There's only 1 fight in the entire game that allows you to use more than 1 3-source spell without doping on source potion. When you consider that, you are better off always using Meteor Shower or Hailstorm unless the enemies are immune because it's just way better in every way at doing its job, destroying your foes.
As long as Elemental Affinity exists, non-source spell will never be balanced properly.
Fire example is the easiest example with Fireball. You can't treat it like a 2 AP spell because it can be used at 1 AP cost, that's why they gutted its damage so heavily it doesn't deserve a place as a 2 AP spell anymore.
Another one is Hail strike. It used to be decent at 2 AP and now, it's 3 AP because you can always combo it with Rain and it becomes a 2 AP. Use that with Ice shard and you pretty much double your damage in a single turn but use it as a 3 AP = wasting ap.
As long as Elemental Affinity exists, they always have to assume the mage can end up shooting twice or thrice as much non-source spells in a single turn and have to balance all the popular spell around it. Outside Impalement with its slow field and physical cripple, the only other one I actually feel good using is Earthquake because it's a teamwide knock down. Else, I just stick to 1 AP cost because they didn't balance those around ElA.
Last edited by Ellezard; 23/09/17 03:50 PM.
