DiabloFans

Primal Ancients Design Changes

In a recent forum post discussing the controversial introduction of Primal Ancients, Blizzard revealed that "significant design changes" would be applied to the upcoming feature. 

Originally posted by Blizzard (Official Forums)

Loving the amount of thoughtful and constructive discourse on this topic. We knew introducing Primal Ancients would be somewhat controversial, because they are meant to be very rare, and we appreciate the time and effort you all have taken to testing them thus far. We're reading as many threads, watching as many videos, and listening to as many streams as possible to gather your thoughts and reflect on them.

There are definitely some good and valid concerns, and we are going to be making some significant design changes with Primal Ancients. These changes aren't set in stone and have some technical hurdles behind them, so they won't be making the next PTR patch, but a future one instead.

Communication is key this early on in PTR. Are you checking all the primal related threads in the PTR feedback, or just this one?

We're definitely looking at multiple threads, it's just much easier for us to pick a centralized location to converse.

On a related note, it's easier on us if there's more of a centralized discussion, so while other threads likely won't go unnoticed, it's much easier for us to parse one thread on a topic than fifty.

Top 5 Wizard Builds for Season 9

We started with the Barbarian and followed with the Demon Hunter, but now it’s time to release the top builds for my favorite class, the Wizard. The Wizard received some changes in 2.4.3, with the most notable being Manald Heal receiving an affix. While Delsere's Magnum Opus (DMO) did receive a buff, it was not enough to make it a competitive set for DPSing. The Manald Heal, however, gave the Wizard a new build to top the leaderboards with and a chance to replace the gen Monk in the current 4 man meta (although the gen Monk still keeps its place as the best single target DPS).

1. [2.4.2a] (S8) - FireBird Archon Solo 90+ (Video)

These builds are ranked in no particular order, but I like to start with something familiar. With that, starting the list is Firebird Archon (FB Wiz). Topping the leaderboards in both Season 7 and Season 8, the FB Wiz received no changes in 2.4.3, but still remains a strong pick for pushing the solo leaderboards. While it is now outclassed by the Manald Heal Wizard (MH Wiz), the FB Wiz will still be able to compete for top leaderboard spots and can also be used for groups in a 1 DPS 3 zDPS comp.

2. <S9> GR 102+ Ranged Manald Heal Wiz

One of my favorite builds for Wizard (coming only second to S6 ET Archon) is the Manald Heal Wizard (MH Wiz). MH Wiz is currently topping the solo leaderboards for Wizard, and it also finds itself in the 4 man leaderboards with a GR 110 clear. MH Wiz is a breath of fresh air for many Wizard players since it's a ranged build. For previous seasons, Wizards (and all the other classes) have been stuck with melee builds being the only option for pushing, but, with Manald Heal, Wizards now have a ranged build to play with. It's also just really fun!

3. [2.4.3] (GR94+) Tal AT:SD Manald Heal + Aquila + Deathwish

Sticking with our new toy, another variant using Manald Heal is the Arcane Torrent Static Discharge Manald Heal Wizard (ATSD MH Wiz). The ATSD MH Wiz, while being melee, is a non-archon build, which many Wizard players have been longing for. While it may not be as strong as its archon variant, ATSD MH Wiz still has the potential to obtain a high leaderboard ranking for those that wish to stray from archon.

4. [S9] [2.4.3] Paralysis Vyr'Rasha T13 Speed Rifts/Bounties

With Manald Heal, the Wizard now overthrows the Demon Hunter as the king (or queen) of speeds. With our shiny new ring, we can blast through rifts like no other. Speed MH Wiz isn’t just limited to rifts either; it can efficiently farm T13 bounties without too much paragon or augments. If you ever need keys or mats, just quickly swap over to this build and zap your way through rifts and bounties.

5. Best SupWiz Build (endless teleport, very tough!)

Another one of my personal favorites is the Support Wizard (zWiz). A key part of the FB Wiz + 3 zDPS group, the zWiz is a great choice for those wanting to push or speed high GRs without gearing for FB Wiz, allowing the player to gain paragon and gem levels for his or her MH Wiz (or whatever build you opt for). It’s a very relaxing and fun build to play.

Personally, it was very hard to come up with this list; there’s so many builds to choose from this season, and I could only list 5. I highly recommend browsing the rest of the Wizard builds, as there are many good builds out there submitted by your fellow users. If you have any questions, feedback, or wish to discuss one of these builds, then feel free to leave a comment!