Wizard Impressions: Mcgabe

“The Wizard is fiercely talented in various forms of magic. Her broad expertise allows her to manipulate the very fabric of reality, and bend time, space, and arcane energies to her will.”

Ah, the Wizard: already my favorite Diablo 3 class before the spotlight video was released; my ABSOLUTE favorite post-spotlight. Everything that was showcased just sealed the deal for me. Wizard will be my starting class.

Keeping this article objective, concise and informative was definitely a difficult task. Even now, I’m struggling to not begin rambling indefinitely about how amazing Arcane Torrent is, or how my absolute favorite thing to do (ever) will be reflecting enemy projectiles with Wave of Force. But I digress.

OBJECTIVE IMPRESSIONS

The Wizard definitely feels powerful. All his spells have a great deal of impact built into them and are as destructive as they look, and boy do they look stunning. Just thinking about the fact that each spell has five variant visual effects via skill runes gets me excited about using them as I level up. Even spells like Blizzard and Meteor, which have been singled out by the community for having less-than-impressive graphics, will still have that “BOOM factor” in-game. Once we have access to these spells’ runes, we’ll forget about ever complaining that they looked bland.

Arcane Power (the Wizard’s resource system) fits extremely well because having a rapidly-replenishing resource pool makes sense in the context of the class. I mean, lets face it: you’re this super-powerful badass prodigy who is adept at all forms of magic. It only makes sense that your resource pool would be near infinite when used correctly. However, the fact that you can choose to go all out and run yourself dry in a matter of seconds, dealing major amounts of damage as a result, consolidates that extra layer of complexity in the class and provides you with exceptional control over your playstyle.

As far as spell mechanics go, the class is very straightforward. It feels a lot like the Sorceress from Diablo II (which was my first hero, who knew!), and therefore is akin to your run-of-the-mill mage archetype. Spells range from ground-targeted area effects (Blizzard, Meteor, Arcane Torrent) to channeled beams (Disintegrate and Ray of Frost) to a bevy of projectiles, both slow and swift (Arcane Orb, Magic Missile). And then, we have support skills such as Slow Time, Familiar, Diamond Skin, magic armors, etc. Oh, and don’t forget niche spells like Magic Weapon and Spectral Blade (hello melee Wizard!). I’m going to have a hard time limiting myself to six skills, needless to say.

LESS-OBJECTIVE IMPRESSIONS

Alright, all that objective stuff is out of the way. Here’s the part where we can either rejoice or cringe in response to more specific aspects of the Wizard:

• Spectral Blade is just about the coolest thing ever. My favorite signature spell.
• Ray of Frost feels a bit weird. The fact that it’s a beam, but gets obstructed by the first target in its path (i.e., doesn’t pierce like Disintegrate), kind of makes the targeting a bit wonky. I’m not a fan, at least not before rune effects.
• Wave of Force can deflect/reflect projectiles. You read that right: DEFLECT/REFLECT PROJECTILES. Need I sing its praises any further? No? Good, didn’t think so.
• Speaking of projectiles, Slow Time can slow them down by 90%. I think it’s safe to say that, as a Wizard, the least of your worries are projectiles.
• Destroying environmental clutter with Arcane Orb is just about the most satisfying thing ever. Just the way tables splinter and scatter makes me smile.

Going beyond spells, you may be surprised that there’s something else I didn’t like about the Wizard. I’m not a huge fan of the female Wizard’s voice acting. Grey DeLisle is an amazing voice actress, don’t get me wrong, but the character just sounds a bit too high-pitched and schoolgirl-y for my personal taste. That being said, the male Wizard (voiced by the equally talented Crispin Freeman) sounds just right – very full of himself, but still somewhat calm and collected. That’s just my kind of personality.

The spotlight video, as usual, finishes with a distinct call-to-arms. So what’s more appropriate than wrapping up the post with it?

“If you have the skill and brilliant intellect to harness these unstable magics and turn them against your enemy, then it might be your fate to follow the path of the Wizard.”

…to which I personally reply:

Where do I sign?