Do you DoT in groups?

[vbcypher]

Nearly 70% of all of our spells are in the "Damage over Time" lines...yet in groups, between melees and nukers, our DoTs rarely see a full duration.

The question is, do you cast them anyways, becuase every little DPS helps, or do you save your mana throwing only minor Nukes and etc. instead.

[vbcypher]

When i'm in a group, unless their DPS sucks, I will happy throw a Darkness Snare and send my pet...maybe even through a Poison Nuke or Degeneration if needed, but other than that, my DoTs are a waste of mana if I'm only going to see two or three ticks on them.

However, if i can arrange it - and the group isn't crap - I will be the groups puller and start pulling mobs. Depending on their "toughness" i can pop a Snare & Splurt on them and drag them back to the group...in that case I will use a DoT (splurt) to help "tenderize" the mobs for the melees, becuase we all know they are so weak they need their food prechewed for them.

[ptolomey]

This all depends on the toughness of the mob. Usually, I find it more effecient to twitch and heal(slow and mez if needed). Any extra mana I use to throw an extra nuke or two in. The group AC and Atk taps are always welcomed by groups too. my 2cp =)

Ptolomey Exmortum
Level 57 Necromancer of Arcane Sanctum
Kane Bayle server

[Vavra]

this all depends on the group/situation. in LDoN the mobs die to fast for the dot's to be effective. but if I group in DL then yes I usually start with Dark Soul then I add the LoT (lifetap over time)..

[Reyna Niteraven]

It all depends on the group...if mobs are dying slow then yeah I will pop a DoT on them..however mostly in groups I concentrate on twitching the healer, keeping my own HPs up with taps and over time taps and such and sending pet in and keeping him hasted.

Usually because if the group Im in is killing mobs fast half the time I can hardly get a tap over time off much less a DoT as well. ;)

Its all in the group and situation your in depending on what you use. :-)

[Schaeffer]

It does all depend on the situation. I think it you really need to assess what's going on. Long lasting DoTs like the Diseas and Fire lines, aren't very mana efficient because at the big mana cost the damage doesn't get dealt to an acceptable amount. You'll be Oom constantly if you're gonna cast those on every MoB if it's a fast group. It may be better to tap over time once in a while and use group ac and str taps and resist debuff. This way you'll still have mana for an occasional nuke or to back up heal, root, ghetto mezz, or even (/em cringes) twitch...

Most people at least snare, but at high levels Cascading Darkness gets expensive and time consuming, and then Dooming Darkness doesn't always stick and wears off fast, so I tend to use Insidious Retrogression at 50% which is our disease based Snare-Nuke for 500+, it's not listed as a DD but you'll find it categorized under snare.

If the DPS really sucks, or the MoBs really do just have insane HP's like in PoV or PoI factory then it can never hurt to throw a Splurt on. Other faster acting dots like the Poison line, haave a Nuke aspect and hit hard and fast, so even though it will get it's full damage in, you'll probably be toast, especially if the MoB summons. Splurt is low aggro because it starts small, but it usually gets it's full span doing 1600+ damage, 1800 with Burning Affliction in planar zones. Plus it's so cheap mana wise, even if the dps cuts it at 3/4 not a big loss...

[Dalemar]

The only time I group is when Elder Blades is raiding, and raid mobs can take a LONG time to die. If I'm just out playing, or if there's an occasional guildie that can't find a group, they usually hang with me while I do my thing, soloing and killing. So yes, when I'm in a group I DoT.

Dalemar Darkheart
60 Warlock
Guild Leader of the Great Elder Blades
Erollisi Marr

[Nox]

Lately, I've been hunting with my guild in LDoN dungeons, or other zones where the fight is over in 3-6 ticks. Casting a DoT seems like a huge waste of time, so I've taken to snagging the nuke focus effect bracelet that mages can conjure, and casting nukes with the rest of the party. At level 55, I have a choice of a fire, cold, poison and magical (with snare) nuke, all of which does damage in the 500-550 range before focus effect, and up to around 720 if I get the full 20% bonus on the focus effect.

Sure, it's not quite as impressive as the druid, mage or wizard nukes (or even the cleric nukes), but it's quick damage.

And hey... sometimes, we can even turn the mobs into a skelly! :)

[Doomfir]

It is all a matter of efficiency for me. My main nuke is Neurotoxin does 1300dmg+ to about 2200 so far with Improved Dmg 4 focus and SCF 2, for 465 mana (or less with ornate gloves), and Funeral Pyre does 2400 or so for 450 mana (not calculating in my BA3 focus or my other focuses). If I can get more than 5 ticks out of Funeral Pyre I will use it before I use Neurotoxin. I even have the ornate gloves that reduce the mana cost of neurotoxin, but you can still get partial to full resists on it, vs almost NO resists on funeral pyre.


It is all about numbers.. I feel for anyone who is not willing to take the time to calculate what their dmg does vs mana used on spell vs spell usage. It should be a math equation for anyone who wants to get the most out of their char.

As I say, a mob has to last 5 ticks or more (30 seconds - 36) for me to use a DoT. Also, some focus effects only work on dots that will last longer than 30 seconds. Get the most bang for the buck and compare your nuke mana level vs DoTs and see how long mobs are lasting in your group to see which way you will go.

I also refused to vote in this thread because it isnt cut and dried like the questions ask.