Oculus

[shavenlunatic]

OK, very nice piece of equipment, +3 to all of yer skills and a wedge of MF and a few other goodies thrown in to boot.

But that goddamn Teleport "PinballMachine" feature has gotten my sorc killed by "rescuing" her from being hit but throwing her into MORE danger. Else she gets bounced about so much that its near impossible to know where you are at any given moment therefore making it quite difficult to direct magic at monsters.



OK, its 1 handed, its +3skills, its MF.. but is it worth it?

[whereagles]

Oculus is overpriced due to its 50% mf. This game has grown up to be a giant easter egg hunt, and having 50% extra mf can drive some people insane, lol.

[shavenlunatic]

Yeah, it is handy to have that 50% MF on a useful 1 handed weapon.. BUT, as I said, the teleport is annoying

Are there alternatives out there which provide the basic benefits of the oculus but without the teleport (I'd even be willing to sacrafice the 50% MF as i can live without)

[Pansesus]

Too powerful to be considered as an exceptional weapon without the teleporting. I am afraid that is why Blizz nerfed this stave by setting this sort of *dangerous* attribute. I've heard someone failed in KM as the white souls hit his character and that poor Sor was teleported into hordes of council members. Bad luck :P

[whereagles]

There are some alternatives to Oculus

- The new unique orbs
- Unique archon staff
- Heart of the oak rune word
- Unique Jo staff (has some great mods and looks great on sorcie)

[shavenlunatic]

Any of them manage as high as+3 All Skills then a few +s to other skills too?

Also, was hoping for 1 handed so i can get some shield resistance bonuses, I have a few nice staffs but my sorc wants a feww hand to sort out her pantyline after she's been running :D

[shavenlunatic]

Anyway, we digress.

Is it more trouble than its worth? I know a LOT of people use them, but as I've only used it for a few hours of gameplay I genuinely dont understand why its one of the most saught after weapons for the sorc. I mean, are +3 skills worth the risk of dying + a large dose of annoyance and confusion everytime a Quill Rat fires a twig at you and bounces you into the middle of 25 brutes???

lol, it definately seems like more of a comedy item than anything else.

[adeyke]

Any of them manage as high as+3 All Skills then a few +s to other skills too?

The new elite orbs (one-hand weapons):
Death's Fathom has +3 skills, 20% FCR, +15-30% cold skill damage and very nice resists
Eschuta's Temper has +1-3 skills, 40% FCR, +10-20% fire and lightning skill damage

The new elite staves (two-hand weapons):
Mang Song's Lesson has +5 skills, 30% FCR, -7-15% enemy cold, lightning and fire resistance
Ondal's Wisdom has +2-4 skills, 45% FCR, +5% experience gained

Also, the Heart of the Oak runeword works on flails (one-hand weapon) or staves (two-hand weapons) and gives +3 skills, 40% FCR and huge resists (+30-40 all)

[Striker]

Any of them manage as high as+3 All Skills then a few +s to other skills too?

Chromatic Ire is my personal favorite due to the +life% and the resistances.

Two-Hand Damage: 11 To 32 (21.5 Avg)
Required Level: 35
Required Strength: 25
Durability: 35
Base Weapon Speed: [10]
+50% Damage To Undead
20% Faster Cast Rate
+3 To Sorceress Skill Levels
Increase Maximum Life 20-25%(varies)
All Resistances +20-40(varies)
Attacker Takes Lightning Damage Of 20
+1 To Cold Mastery (Sorceress Only)
+1 To Lightning Mastery (Sorceress Only)
+1 To Fire Mastery (Sorceress Only)

[AtomicKitKat]

For my super Werebear tank. :P

Vicunas
Lick
Toads

[shavenlunatic]

V nice weapon, but again, it's 2 handed and my main aim was to get another 1-handed weapon in the same league os the Oculus but without the crappy teleport thing.

[Striker]

V nice weapon, but again, it's 2 handed and my main aim was to get another 1-handed weapon in the same league os the Oculus but without the crappy teleport thing.

I'm assuming you like the blocking you get by using a shield, as well as shield resistances? adeyke and whereagles suggested the Heart of the Oak runeword, which has some pretty nice mods. The only problem would be obtaining a 4 socket flail (or the exceptional/elite version) and possibly the Vex rune.

If you change your mind and would consider a 2-handed staff, don't forget the Memory runeword as well.

Good luck with whatever you decide.

[happyhydra]

the {3 to all skill 4resist20 and mf50 means that it is still the best orb for mfsor

[shavenlunatic]

Not so much the blocking as she has base dex (but the occasional block never hurt anyone :D ), but yes, more for the shields bonuses, i.e. +skills, +resists, +defence.. lovely

I have a nice 2 handed gnarled staff (cant remember its name) which is +3 skills and then also + various cold skills and a few resists (If i remember correctly), which I could go back to using in a second but then losing any bonuses I get from being able to carry a shield.

[Raziel]

Yes, it's worth it. The Occulus is hands down the best orb in the game given it's price, rarity and variable stats (ie, none). It pretty much gives a sorc the essentials.. +3 skills, magic find, and some faster cast. Great for MF'ing and starting an empire of equipment.

All that for the penalty of a measly teleport. Honestly i've never found it to be that much of a big deal. But there are caveats..

1) If i'm teleporting TO a monster I intend to MF, such as Mephisto, I swap out the occy for dedicated fast teleport gear eg Wizardspike + Lidless. That way if I get hit along the way i'm not going someplace unknown.

2) There's no law that says you can't MOVE in between spells. I am constantly moving, running, repositioning, always on the go in between throwing orbs. The only time i'm still is for an extended period of fireball firing.

3) There's no law that says you can't have teleport on a hotkey. If you get teleported randomly and need to get back, your recovery spell is just a button away.

But I generally have no problem with a quick jump. It can be disorienting at first, until you start teleporting Durance 2 to Meph in Hell at > 125% FCR. You quickly get used to it then, and learn to reorient yourself fast. Most of the time now when I get random tele'd I go "oh, I just tele'd" and it doesn't even slow my orb tossing.

The only time it's a problem is when you try and run through a very crowded area and get whacked a lot and ping-pong around. Like I said, for dedicated teleportation runs to a specific destination, I swap over to my wizardspike. Don't need MF or +3 skills to teleport fast.

[shavenlunatic]

I do have teleport on a hotkey, and I'm quite fine with tele-finding stairs. It was mainly the random arror that hits me when im doing something and flings me into a bunch of nasty monsters that bugs me.

I'm sure I'll get used to the disorientation part of it in time, but the "eek, im in the middle of a bunch of monsters with basn and stun" scares the bejesus outta me, heheh.

what is FCR? (sorry for being such a noob but i get lost in abbreviations :) i only need telling once though.. lol)

[Striker]

what is FCR?

nuclear tomatoes

[shavenlunatic]

uh, I knew that too. Sorry, sleep deprivation + flu = brainnotworkitis

cheers :)

[Cryptic]

Honestly, I think that the primary use of the Oculus is that you can trade it away for Tal Rasha's Lidless Eye and a grim shield, and still have quite a bit of change left over. I can't count the number of games where I've teamed with 3 or 4 random sorcs, and as soon as we hit Baal's throne at WK3 (or the Chaos Sanc, or Travincal, or ...), they start ricocheting around like ping-pong balls, getting themselves killed, begging for portals, disrupting core monster clusters that melee characters are harvesting, and otherwise annoying and endangering the rest of the party. Perhaps I need to play with more skilled Sorceresses ... but it simply underlines the fact that the Sorceress is very popular now, especially with low-skill players, and the Oculus is a hot, hot item. (Most players drool once they see +3 and MF and don't read any further.)

In short: It's overrated. It's worth more to someone else than it is to you. Chuck it and get a real orb, and put an Ist Gull on your secondary weapon switch; you'll be happier.
:huh:

[jms]

Agree, overrated! However...

If you're mf or crazi(el): use oculus

If you're pvm cold: use death's fathom

If you're pvm fireght: use +3 eschuta's temper

If you're ladder running: use ondal's

If you're uber: use mang song's

If you're uber and want to burn that vex: use hoto

If you're suicidal: use fists

Word :ph34r: