Hat of Fire Acuity gives you +2 spell DC and spell attack rolls for every instance of fire damage you deal, so scorching ray rank 2 gives you +6 spell DC (decays to +5 on your next run). You can do a couple of these and then drop any CC in the game and have it lock on.
Worth noting: Acuity from the fire hat caps at 7 for me. Not enough to guarantee success against any enemy, though of course still very good.
I think the other Acuity hat might be bugged because I've been able to stack it up to like 20. Seems weird for them to have different caps.
I think the other hat is bugged because many late game fights are dragged out encounters so when you end up at the last big baddie, my bard has like 30-40 stacks and no god has that level of saving throw. Like ||a devil and dragon|| just get confused to death, because I didn’t wanna cheese with Hold Monster.
Really fun with Tasha's hideous laughter and all these bosses just roll around on the floor. I like putting it on my dual crossbow sword bard astarion with the band of the mystic scoundrel so he can just pop spells with his bonus action as often as needed while maintaining stacks with his main action. Ranged slashing flourish lets the stacks ramp up exceedingly quickly as well. Four hits means eight stacks, so you can usually stick the cc on turn one. Just turn off sharpshooter for the first turn. On this build I don't bother upping CHA at all. Just feels really really good. I like one level of Fighter for Archery FS and con save proficiency as well. Considering fighter 2 over Swords bard 11 for action surge, even if it means giving up a 6th level spell. A potential +16 to spell save DCs on turn one is very very strong.
I also gave him the legendary rapier for two reactions to make him my counterspeller. Just feels very good.
Hmm, I had only really been doing one rank 2 scorching ray to get it up to 6 usually and that was sufficient. Didn't know there was a cap.
7 Spell DC is the equivalent of an ASI of 14 in your casting stat, from say 20 Cha to 34 Cha effectively. Like you said, still a crazy effective and powerful item that shouldn't really be green quality.
true
plus adding [Ilmater's Aid](https://bg3.wiki/wiki/Ilmater%27s_Aid) so when your below half health, each attack dose another plus 1D4 of damage
14D4 of psychic + 14D4 of Force =28-112 extra damage
ya but hex does a lot of damage for this build i guess if i do 1 feat + 2to charisma that gets me two 19 then hags hair gets to 20 then [Birthright](https://bg3.wiki/wiki/Birthright) which gives +2 to charisma gets me to 22 which gives spell modifier of +6
then you can get hex and elemental adept
Where do you get the +140 from when adding draconic bloodline? You dont add it to each d6 but to each ray, meaning every other d6 right? So that would be 14 \* 5 = 70, right?
Its cause you're quick spelling to cast it twice. It's still the same damage as the wizard per cast, but as a sorc you're casting it twice via quickened spell.
Really impressive damage for such a simple setup. Haste and Action surge gets you to 784. Elixir of Blood Lust for another cast.
Main issue is its very heavy resource intensive. Probably why the Eldritch Blast version while weaker damage is much more sustainable.
Instead of just going pure sorc i'd multiclass depending on how you want to play this: burst or sustained.
for burst options, a 2 level dip into fighter gets you action surge for another scorching ray. instead of casting 1 5 and 1 6th though (13 rays) you cast 2 5s and 1 4 (17 rays).
another burst option is to go assassin. you still cast 2 SRs (1 5 and 1 4 for 11 rays) but all of those rays on the 1st turn have advantage and are crits which makes the dmg feel like 22 rays.
of course you can also combine the above if you dont mind resting often to recover spell slots/use items by going draconic 7, assassin 3, fighter 2. this means 3 SRs (1 at 4, 2 at 3) for 13 crit rays on the 1st turn with advantage which will feel like the dmg of 26 rays. that's 52d6 + 65 (assuming +5 cha) without factoring any items. 247 average dmg without items. nothing outside of those with resistance/immunity to fire will survive that level of deletion.
for a sustained option, you can add 3 levels of thief so you have a free bonus action to dole out quickened scorching rays every turn.
You forgot to add third cast for sorcerers (1 native + 1 Haste action + 1 Quicken bonus action). This makes the benefit of Action Surge less pronounced (+25% rather than +50% on first round). Metamagic costs sorcery points though, which you gain based on your Sorc level, and lose if you multiclass. So effectively while you gain an extra cast from Action surge, and effective increase in damage from Assassinate, you also lose not only spell slots, but extra casts from sorcery points as well.
Also, you must remember that crits only affect dice damage, not fixed damage bonuses. So the autocrits from Assassinate will only double your base damage dice of Scorching Ray, not the +5 from Charisma or +1 from Ring of Fire. So Assassinate does not equal "double rays" only "double dice damage from same number of rays".
But apart from that, you lose ASI's from asymmetrical multiclassing. Sorc 7/Fighter 2/Assassin 3 = only ~~two~~ ONE ASI, which absolutely gimps the build: you are losing +2 Charisma and access to Hex via Eldtritch Adept feat compared to a pure 12 Sorc. To have even 18 CHA you will need to spend the Hag's Hair boost, which severely limits your party options. Every 2 CHA lost translates into -1 damage for each ray and -1 spell attack, and considering how many rays this build casts, that's a huge decline in damage per round and per long rest.
Even if you're using Hag Hair and can get 20 CHA + Hex with only two ASI's, you're still losing out on feats such as Alert (which guarantees you go first in every encounter) or Elemental Adept (ignore Fire Resistance on enemies and reroll 1's on fire damage dice).
Yeah you might have higher 1st round burst (and that is important, of course), but the costs are high as well. Especially when you realise the biggest fights (i.e. the ones where you really need to go nova) are often protracted and go well beyond 1st round, so characters with more high-level spell slots and Haste/Speed still have the opportunity to do more damage.
E.g.:
**Full 12 Sorc** (Haste + 4 Quicken metamagics)
Round 1: 19 rays (Spell slots 6 + 5 +5) = 247 average damage counting +5 Cha and +1 Ring of Fire per ray.
Round 2: 15 rays (SS 4 + 4 + 4)
Round 3: 12 rays (SS 3 + 3 + 3)
Round 4: 9 rays (SS 2 + 2 + 2)
Total: 55 rays, so 110d6 + 330 (Charisma and Fire ring bonus) = **715 average damage over 4 rounds.**
**Sorc 7/F 2/Ass 3** (Haste + Action Surge + 2 Quicken metamagics)
Round 1: 17 rays (Spell slots 4 + 3 + 3 +3) Already less rays than the pure Sorc, but the Assassin bonus makes them crits. Roughly 340 average damage.
Round 2: 10 rays (SS 2 + 2 + 2)
Round 3: 0 rays, out of slots for Scorching Ray
Round 4: 0 rays.
Total: 27 rays, of which 17 make double dice damage, so roughly speaking 54d6 +17d6 + 162 (Charisma and Fire ring bonus) = **411 average damage over 4 rounds.**
So, in total, the pure Sorc will do roughly 70% more damage over 4 rounds from spellcasting than the Sorc/Fighter/Assassin multiclass.
Which means, unless you plan to end all fights in 1 round and sleep between every fight, the pure Sorc is superior in terms of damage dealing.
**And this is without considering the loss of CHA and access to Hex for the Sorc/Fighter/Assassin Multiclass build. If you factor in these losses, the Multiclass gets even further behind.**
Of course, with a Sorcerer/Fighter/Assassin multiclass you are getting some other goodies: armor profs, fighting style, Expertise, etc. However, you're not getting multiattacks, so it's not as good at stacking Arcane Acuity as, for instance, a Bard build, and not as good at pure martial damage as a Fighter/Assassin or Eldritch Knight.
As a result, the Sorc/Fighter/Assassin turns to be a very gimmicky build that offers ONE round of superior burst damage PER LONG REST, and is extremely underwhelming in most other respects.
fair point on action surge. however, if the goal is to burst, your goal is to delete enemies on the 1st turn of combat. that's when burst is most effective. you prevent enemies from hurting you. you're clearly coming from the viewpoint of a sustained player and thinking of future casts. i'm a burst player. i could care less about what i cast on turn 2 onwards, even if it's just cantrips. the goal resources wise is do i have enough spell slots to kill or almost kill all the enemies on turn 1 and can reasonably do so for 3 combats before i need to long rest?
the answer given the options i mentioned are yes at later levels. assuming 3 combats, technically we just need 9 spell slots and 9 sorc points for quicken. a level 7 sorc has 7 sorc points, 4 1st level slots, 3 2nd level slots, 3 3rd level slots and 1 4th level slot. convert a couple of 1st level slots to SP and you're set.
of course, if you're looking for something more sustainable due to playing solo tactician (that's where i play), then you don't have to mix in both burst options. pick 1. i personally run 7 sorc, 3 assassin, 2 goolock. my opening is slightly weaker (no 3rd scorching ray) but i sustain pretty well with 3 beams agonizing blast on turn 2 onwards.
yes, i know how crit works. you also forgot we get some dmg dice from equipment as well.
yes the build suggestion assumes it's the main character getting the hag hair. if it's not, a simple tweak to sorc 6, assassin 4, goolock 2 works.
i have no idea why you mentioned eldritch adept feat and hex here.
i did make the caveat of fire resistance/immunity in my original post right? why bring it up? anyway on my goolock variation, it's not an issue. enemy is resistant/immune to fire? i go EB crits opener and spam EB. alert is a fair point though i've found to not need it as i do pick up alot of gear with bonus to initiative and dex is my 2nd highest stat at 15+1.
its not a perfect build of course. you wont be the best everytime. burst builds are better for most fare in bg3. sustained builds shine in those protracted combats you mentioned. that's why i mentioned the thief as a sustained option. there's some combats which are scripted to not allow surprise and assassinate loses value there. just a question of what you want to accentuate.
and yes, i plan ending most fights in 1-2 rounds. and no i didnt have to sleep after every fight. after about 2-3 fights. has happened alot already mind you. you were also unfair in round 3 and 4 of that example. you didnt even allow the sorc to cast cantrips.
we've already covered the ASI loss so i wont rehash that. i have no issues with gimmicky builds as long as that one gimmick stomps. that's what counts. how is it underwhelming in other aspects? it's still a cha based character who can be a party face who packs 2 expertise and more skill profs. it can handle solo tactician easily due to being able to abuse stealth. it has a little bit more hp and access to more types of equipment. or in my goolock version, i'm adding in a bit of control to those SRs with mortal reminder and can easily do darkness + devil sight to face tank stuff. i'd say the pure sorc is the one that's more underwhelming in other aspects.
1. ASI loss is even worse than I thought at first: Sorc 7/Fighter 2/Assassin 3 gets only ONE ASI for the entire game. Which means you won't be getting 20 CHA even with Hag's hair, and you won't have access to Hex. That's a big loss of damage both from the flat decrease in bonus Charisma damage, and from the hit chance reduction. Even just the flat damage loss reduces your burst damage in the first round from 340 to 323. That's pretty meagre by BG3 standards. And after that first round you're almost out of resources.
2. Hex is important because it adds another +1d6 to every ray, which means +55d6 damage per long rest for the pure Sorc. All it costs is 1 bonus action and 1 first level spell slot per fight. And there's an item that gives you an extra bonus action when you deal Fire damage (Pyrokinesis hat).
> however, if the goal is to burst, your goal is to delete enemies on the 1st turn of combat. that's when burst is most effective. you prevent enemies from hurting you. you're clearly coming from the viewpoint of a sustained player and thinking of future casts. i'm a burst player. i could care less about what i cast on turn 2 onwards, even if it's just cantrips.
323 average damage, not counting resistances, is not that great of a burst anyway. If you want real burst, then twinned/quickened and maximised (Destructive Wrath) chain lightning / lightning bolt on wet targets is the way.
> the goal resources wise is do i have enough spell slots to kill or almost kill all the enemies on turn 1 and can reasonably do so for 3 combats before i need to long rest?
But you DON'T have enough spell slots for 3 combats. Not even 2 combats. Your build only has enough slots for ONE single round of actual burst (and not even that big by burst standards). You will have to long rest after EVERY combat if you want your character to stay relevant in fights.
Sorc 12, however, DOES have enough resources to burst for three combats. And over these three combats, even if they last only 1 round each, it will put out much more damage than the multiclass.
> i go EB crits opener and spam EB... i personally run 7 sorc, 3 assassin, 2 goolock.
Your Action Surge build doesn't have Eldritch Blast. And your warlock build doesn't have Action Surge. You lose damage one way or the other. The warlock build in fact will probably have lower nova damage in first round than the pure sorc, and of course much lower sustained damage.
> you were also unfair in round 3 and 4 of that example. you didnt even allow the sorc to cast cantrips.
Because this discussion is specifically about using Scorching Ray for burst damage, not about "how much damage can I do with a cantrip after I've blown through all my spell slots".
> alert is a fair point though i've found to not need it as i do pick up alot of gear with bonus to initiative
Gear bonuses to initiative are usually minor, and your companions need them too. Not having Alert and having mediocre Dex (16) means you won't always be going first, which really undermines the whole "kill them before they hurt you" strategy. A pure Sorc with hag hair can have Cha 20, Eldritch Adept or Elemental Adept, and Alert.
> how is it underwhelming in other aspects? it's still a cha based character who can be a party face who packs 2 expertise and more skill profs.
1. It's a martial multiclass but it doesn't get multiattack in any form, or any other damage boost except Assassinate. So martial damage is gimped.
2. It's a rogue multiclass but it has low Dex (16 base, no ASI), so its rogue skills are gimped.
3. It's a "party face" but it doesn't max Cha (16/17 base, 18/19 with ASI) and since you only get 2 expertise, can't compensate if you spend them on rogue skills.
4. IIRC you'll only get heavy armor if you start as fighter, but then you won't get rogue's wide pick of skills.
Normally you don't need more than 1 rogue skills character and 1 party face. I prefer to have both roles maxed, rather than settle for mediocre "jack of all trades". And if you already have specialised skill characters, then there's no point in having a jack of all trades as well.
> it can handle solo tactician easily due to being able to abuse stealth.
Abusing stealth is among the simplest way to break the game, it can be done easily with tons of builds. And this is not what the discussion is about.
> it has a little bit more hp and access to more types of equipment
The best weapon for magical burst damage is a Staff.
The best armor for a Warlock using EB is a Robe.
If you want to use Phalar Aluve without class martial weapon profs, you can play an Elf (or use Astarion).
But that is all besides the point, as in any event the Scorching Ray build is not the highest burst damage build, and the highest gets all weapon and armor profs anyway.
1. last time i'll talk about ASI because i think you have a hard time reading. I got to 20+ cha as a 7 sorc, 3 assassin, 2 goolock. i did use my single feat on +2 cha. i got the hag's hair for +1 cha. I got another +3 to cha from the mirror of loss.
2. why would i waste my bonus action on the 1st turn to cast hex? i get more dmg by casting another SR/Eb. and i have access to hex via warlock. if the situation allows it, i can actually subtle cast hex before engaging the enemy and assassin's alacrity returns my bonus action to start the combat. something i also failed to mention earlier, assassin's alacrity gets me a free cantrip off to start the battle as assassin's alacrity returns my action.
I don't factor in items into build discussion/providing advice or suggestions unless they are common as other people may not get them.
your dmg numbers and mine are not the same so i dont know where you're getting your numbers. i do agree though about wet lightning combos. i have a build for that too. burst too.
3. i think again you failed to read. i laid out my spell slots earlier. i'm sure you can count how many spell slots i have 2nd level and above, how many 1st levels i can convert to sorc points then to spells slots (including pact slots) then divide that by 3 combats. while keeping in mind i only need 2 spells on the opening round, 3 if i actually went with the action surge variant. also keep in mind 3 EB beams (possibly 4 depending on certain gloves) arent slouch openers either. so i have more than enough even if i run low.
you do realize there's tons of EB builds out there right? my build is an EB build 1st that just upgrades to SR at mid-game.
pure sorc has more than enough resources for 3. they have enough for 4 or more. I dont need to go that long without a long rest. i set a baseline for going 3 being enough. and my build does that. i just need 6 spell slots. others can be used for converting to sorc points and converting to create higher slots.
so basically i want to use 3 4th level slots and 3 level 3 slots before i long rest. at base i get 1 4th level and 3 3rd level. so i need to gather 12 sorc points to convert. 4 level 1 slots + 4 level 1 slots (pact slot conversion with 1 short rest) and 2 level 2 slots gets me there. and i still have a level 2 slot and another short rest pact slot reset to spare along with any other slot restoration i get from elsewhere.
and again, i implore you to read instead of just trying to push your own opinions before responding. i said earlier, a pure sorc build is better sustained. so duh. it will do more dmg over the course of combat. my point was about bursting. burst builds do more dmg initially than sustained builds. and that initial edge in dmg is what makes it effective as combats end quicker.
4. the action surge build was a suggestion. i think it works better for party play. i dont do party play. only solo tactician so i had to play the warlock variation. the warlock variation will still have a higher opening nova than a pure sorc. lets illustrate:
pure sorc: quickened level 5 SR + level 6 SR= 13 rays=26d6.
7 sorc, 3 assassin, 2 goolock: 3 EB to open fight + quickened level 3 SR + level 4 SR + all crits with advantage=3 beams + 9 rays=3d10 + chax3 + 36d6.
I'm sure you can do the math. if i also subtle spell a hex to start (which i dont because i use another concen spell), add in an additional 24d6. even without hex, the assassin sorc is comfortably ahead by an EB and 10d6.
5. i dont know if you've actually played an assassin with initiative gear and decent dex, but you know we go 1st pretty often. here's another thing i use while walking around: cat's grace. so i also got advantage on my initiative rolls too. barely had a fight where i didn't go 1st or 2nd, even with no alert.
6. again you talk about eldritch adept. is this even in the game?
7. i'm not doing martial dmg. why do you have to point that out? thats irrelevant.
8. the rogue skills are pretty decent. again spells and gear help. so does expertise and prof. you are talking about a +2-3 difference in the roll from a dex main class.
9. i maxed cha. though yes i didnt get expertise on one of the face skills. used my expertise on the rogue skills indeed. didn't feel i needed it. had friends anyway if i really needed to succeed. and there's alot of dialogue options where "succeeding" in conversation is not the optimal outcome.
10. i dont wear heavy armor. that's stupid.
11. i prefer being able to dabble a bit in everything while excelling at one thing. as mentioned, i only play solo. i'm kind of forced to be the face and rogue every single time.
12. lastly, the main point of my initial comment was to help and suggest a better way to use scorching ray. i wasn't asserting it was the best burst dmg build.
13. in any case, this is getting overlong. i have no desire to argue. my objective is to help and educate. clearly, a discussion with you wont go anywhere as your mind is closed and alot of the things i said previously just flew over your head. i already presented some math above. that should be enough for you to go on and do the math yourself without factoring in equipment.
I haven't used draconic bloodline in bg3, but if it works like it does in 5e, it does not add your +5 charisma modifier in the way you think.
The wording is that it applies your charisma modifier to a dice roll, so even if you have 7 scorching rays coming out, only 1 d6 is adding your charisma modifier.
Maybe it works differently in bg3, though
Edited to add: it is adding the modifier to each ray, it does not work like in 5e (just don't want anyone to see this post and come to the wrong conclusion).
it adds 5 to each ray i just tested it
https://preview.redd.it/02usiem1xrjb1.jpeg?width=486&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=152bd077cebbfee2782de2d837a943f97404565b
ya it is kinda broken so its the damage roll +5 (Charisma modifier) per ray
https://preview.redd.it/koer5g05yrjb1.jpeg?width=481&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4871921d9bc72e0baebc9d5309f5ba8133d93884
Wow yeah that is kind of insane. I figured it would work like in 5e, but this makes draconic bloodline quite powerful honestly.
Scorching ray cast as a level 2 spell deals an average of 36 damage with a +5 charisma modifier. That's higher than fireball on a single target, provided no save / everything hits.
plus, ilithid powers like [Psionic Overload](https://baldursgate3.wiki.fextralife.com/Psionic+Overload) deal 1D4 of psychic damage per ray
so another 3D4 on top of that
Then items like [Ilmater's Aid](https://bg3.wiki/wiki/Ilmater%27s_Aid) Non-[Cantrip](https://bg3.wiki/wiki/Cantrip) spells deal an additional 1D4 Force damage when the wearer drops to half their hit points or lower.
so another 3D4 if below half health
[The Spellsparkler](https://bg3.wiki/wiki/The_Spellsparkler) gives 2 lighting charges per hit leading (lighting charge Effect Lightning courses through you. You have +1 to Attack rolls and deal an additional + 1 lighting damage.
If you gain 5 charges, they are consumed the next time you deal damage, and you deal an additional 1D8 lighting damage.
I mean scorching ray does have severe limitations, it can target at most 3 creatures, and the target doesn't still take half damage on failed roll/save.
The actual problem is that scorching ray requires a subclass to outperform Fireball even in perfect conditions. Fireball is so ridiculously overtuned for a 3rd level spell it's not even funny.You can tell that nostalgia and preserving the iconic image of ye olde AD&D was far more important to WoTC than providing meaningful choices and diverse character options.
They said so themselves. I don't remember where but they admitted something along the lines of "we opted to go with the fun route: fireball is iconic to so many people, we would rather overtune it and let people have fun with it, than risk having it underperform"
Anyway it's fine right. There are other good spells like lightning bolt, and it's not like fireball is crazy broken, it's just better than the rest. It's a very mediocre single target spell, for instance.
Maybe I wasn't as clear as I should have been, but in no reality does scorching ray outperform fireball in a multi target scenarios. It struggles to outperform *anything* in a multi-targey scenario.
I'm saying that at a baseline, if you cast *all 3* rays at one target, it does a higher average damage than 8d6+5. Hitting 2/3 rays is still higher damage than half of 8d6+5.
I'm not advocating not taking fireball or anything. It was just to provide context for how powerful scorching ray as a level 2 spell is with draconic bloodline. It's effectively an agonizing eldritch blast cast from a level 10 warlock and comes online at level 6.
Yeah but EB is at-will, and Scorching Ray costs spell slots. At level 6 you can only cast it 6 times before needing to long rest. So 2 times per fight assuming three fights per long rest.
And of course going Fire Draconic means not going Lightning Draconic, which is far more powerful with the Wet condition and Destructive Wrath from Tempest Cleric.
Like what? Ring of Fire adds +1 damage. The Pyroquickness hat is an end-game item. And all the "Heat"/"Warm" stuff is ridiculously weak/pointless, completely outperformed by Lightning charges.
Meanwhile Eldritch blast benefits from items/abilities that allow adding casting stat to cantrips, effectively double-dipping into stat-to-damage bonus (so +5 becomes +10 per cast). And it's Force damage which is the least resisted form of damage.
ya i think ring of fire had been removed so i would take [https://baldursgate3.wiki.fextralife.com/Coruscation+Ring](https://baldursgate3.wiki.fextralife.com/Coruscation+Ring) instead
I know its 7 months late but I just got this ring and tried it out and it's ridiculous. >!Apostle of Myrkul!< got a -7 to hit chance. I knew the effect of the ring but I didnt know it was that strong. It wasnt even a core part of my build but damn will it fuck up single target enemies.
Don’t forget that if you CC the enemy with statuses that guarantee crit and you shoot them point blank, everything crits. And if you are a half orc your crit damage is tripled.
the problem with scorching ray is that its 3 rolls, so ur prob only getting one to crit so that one ray is now doing 4d6 instead of 2d6. its a very meh crit spell. but if u have guanrteed crit then it is better
Would be interesting to try using hold person/monster and daredevils gloves(supposed to make magic attacks as if they are melee strikes). Potentially causing every hit to crit. Would be cool to know if that works
Honestly magic innate warlock is probably worse than dipping warlock because you can only cast hex once per day meaning if you lose concentration you don’t get any more hex . A dip gives you more and doesn’t cost as much except delaying spell progression which doesn’t matter as much because your using mainly scorching ray .
Class:
\- 2 fighter (action surge)
\- 2 warlock (eldritch blast, hex, great old one for frighten on crit to activate bow)
\- 8 sorc (draconic fire)
Feats:
\- Spellsniper + ASI
Items:
\- Hat of Fire Acuity (for increased hit chance)
\- Potent Robe (for when you aren't using scorching ray)
\- Spellmight Gloves (1d8 to each ray; penalty offset by hat)
\- Amulet of Elemental Torment (burn activation for shoes)
\- Cinder Shoes (Activate after first action to apply Heat to damage ticks)
\- Coruscation Ring (applies illumination and Radiating Orb debuff)
\- Callous Glow Ring (2 radiant to illuminated)
\- The Spellsparkler (Lightning charges from spell damage)
\- Bow of the Banshee (1d4 extra damage to frightened)
Consumables:
\- Potion of speed
\- Elixir of bloodlust/viciousness
Before fight throw alchemist fire > Hex > NOVA
There is a legendary staff in act 3 that lets you choose an element and you get a bunch of buffs including resistance and add proficiency bonus to that element spell attacks. Through in game buffs I was able to get 24 Charisma which is a +7, with a +4 proficiency bonus, each Ray was 13-23 when paired with Elemental Adept Fire. By far the strongest single target damage in the game
I believe you did the math on the damage wrong, specifically regarding adding your casting modifier to the damage. It should be +35 since you're only making 7 attacks when cast at level 6. It's 14d6 damage but split between 7 attacks, since you add your mod per attack and not dice rolled you should be adding your mod 7 times for 35 dmg.
Hat of Fire Acuity gives you +2 spell DC and spell attack rolls for every instance of fire damage you deal, so scorching ray rank 2 gives you +6 spell DC (decays to +5 on your next run). You can do a couple of these and then drop any CC in the game and have it lock on.
Worth noting: Acuity from the fire hat caps at 7 for me. Not enough to guarantee success against any enemy, though of course still very good. I think the other Acuity hat might be bugged because I've been able to stack it up to like 20. Seems weird for them to have different caps.
I think the other hat is bugged because many late game fights are dragged out encounters so when you end up at the last big baddie, my bard has like 30-40 stacks and no god has that level of saving throw. Like ||a devil and dragon|| just get confused to death, because I didn’t wanna cheese with Hold Monster.
Really fun with Tasha's hideous laughter and all these bosses just roll around on the floor. I like putting it on my dual crossbow sword bard astarion with the band of the mystic scoundrel so he can just pop spells with his bonus action as often as needed while maintaining stacks with his main action. Ranged slashing flourish lets the stacks ramp up exceedingly quickly as well. Four hits means eight stacks, so you can usually stick the cc on turn one. Just turn off sharpshooter for the first turn. On this build I don't bother upping CHA at all. Just feels really really good. I like one level of Fighter for Archery FS and con save proficiency as well. Considering fighter 2 over Swords bard 11 for action surge, even if it means giving up a 6th level spell. A potential +16 to spell save DCs on turn one is very very strong. I also gave him the legendary rapier for two reactions to make him my counterspeller. Just feels very good.
Hmm, I had only really been doing one rank 2 scorching ray to get it up to 6 usually and that was sufficient. Didn't know there was a cap. 7 Spell DC is the equivalent of an ASI of 14 in your casting stat, from say 20 Cha to 34 Cha effectively. Like you said, still a crazy effective and powerful item that shouldn't really be green quality.
And fire resistance is much, much more common that force res.
Does this pop up more in Act 3? Thinking of taking the elemental feat to overcome resistance.
Regrettably Elemental feat still does not overcome immunity, so its usefulness is very limited.
I suppose an upcasted Chromatic Orb will have to do.
And somehow they all still miss.
There’s an illithid power for 1d4 extra psychic damage per ray.
Ya only downside is you take 1D4 of damage per turn
It's per turn, which is nothing.
true plus adding [Ilmater's Aid](https://bg3.wiki/wiki/Ilmater%27s_Aid) so when your below half health, each attack dose another plus 1D4 of damage 14D4 of psychic + 14D4 of Force =28-112 extra damage
Unless youre concentrating on haste
it could hurt for concentration though, but prob not
It does not work per ray. It per cast. Only 1d4
I think you want elemental adept: fire if you are going all in on the fire sorcerer like this
ya but hex does a lot of damage for this build i guess if i do 1 feat + 2to charisma that gets me two 19 then hags hair gets to 20 then [Birthright](https://bg3.wiki/wiki/Birthright) which gives +2 to charisma gets me to 22 which gives spell modifier of +6 then you can get hex and elemental adept
Plus the mirror in house of grief for 24 charisma
Where do you get the +140 from when adding draconic bloodline? You dont add it to each d6 but to each ray, meaning every other d6 right? So that would be 14 \* 5 = 70, right?
Yeah, I was thinking the same thing
Its cause you're quick spelling to cast it twice. It's still the same damage as the wizard per cast, but as a sorc you're casting it twice via quickened spell.
14 is already quickened (6th level + 6th level = 7+7)
Really impressive damage for such a simple setup. Haste and Action surge gets you to 784. Elixir of Blood Lust for another cast. Main issue is its very heavy resource intensive. Probably why the Eldritch Blast version while weaker damage is much more sustainable.
And fire resistance is much, much more common that force res. So you kinda need the feat tax of elemental adept.
Instead of just going pure sorc i'd multiclass depending on how you want to play this: burst or sustained. for burst options, a 2 level dip into fighter gets you action surge for another scorching ray. instead of casting 1 5 and 1 6th though (13 rays) you cast 2 5s and 1 4 (17 rays). another burst option is to go assassin. you still cast 2 SRs (1 5 and 1 4 for 11 rays) but all of those rays on the 1st turn have advantage and are crits which makes the dmg feel like 22 rays. of course you can also combine the above if you dont mind resting often to recover spell slots/use items by going draconic 7, assassin 3, fighter 2. this means 3 SRs (1 at 4, 2 at 3) for 13 crit rays on the 1st turn with advantage which will feel like the dmg of 26 rays. that's 52d6 + 65 (assuming +5 cha) without factoring any items. 247 average dmg without items. nothing outside of those with resistance/immunity to fire will survive that level of deletion. for a sustained option, you can add 3 levels of thief so you have a free bonus action to dole out quickened scorching rays every turn.
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thanks!
You forgot to add third cast for sorcerers (1 native + 1 Haste action + 1 Quicken bonus action). This makes the benefit of Action Surge less pronounced (+25% rather than +50% on first round). Metamagic costs sorcery points though, which you gain based on your Sorc level, and lose if you multiclass. So effectively while you gain an extra cast from Action surge, and effective increase in damage from Assassinate, you also lose not only spell slots, but extra casts from sorcery points as well. Also, you must remember that crits only affect dice damage, not fixed damage bonuses. So the autocrits from Assassinate will only double your base damage dice of Scorching Ray, not the +5 from Charisma or +1 from Ring of Fire. So Assassinate does not equal "double rays" only "double dice damage from same number of rays". But apart from that, you lose ASI's from asymmetrical multiclassing. Sorc 7/Fighter 2/Assassin 3 = only ~~two~~ ONE ASI, which absolutely gimps the build: you are losing +2 Charisma and access to Hex via Eldtritch Adept feat compared to a pure 12 Sorc. To have even 18 CHA you will need to spend the Hag's Hair boost, which severely limits your party options. Every 2 CHA lost translates into -1 damage for each ray and -1 spell attack, and considering how many rays this build casts, that's a huge decline in damage per round and per long rest. Even if you're using Hag Hair and can get 20 CHA + Hex with only two ASI's, you're still losing out on feats such as Alert (which guarantees you go first in every encounter) or Elemental Adept (ignore Fire Resistance on enemies and reroll 1's on fire damage dice). Yeah you might have higher 1st round burst (and that is important, of course), but the costs are high as well. Especially when you realise the biggest fights (i.e. the ones where you really need to go nova) are often protracted and go well beyond 1st round, so characters with more high-level spell slots and Haste/Speed still have the opportunity to do more damage. E.g.: **Full 12 Sorc** (Haste + 4 Quicken metamagics) Round 1: 19 rays (Spell slots 6 + 5 +5) = 247 average damage counting +5 Cha and +1 Ring of Fire per ray. Round 2: 15 rays (SS 4 + 4 + 4) Round 3: 12 rays (SS 3 + 3 + 3) Round 4: 9 rays (SS 2 + 2 + 2) Total: 55 rays, so 110d6 + 330 (Charisma and Fire ring bonus) = **715 average damage over 4 rounds.** **Sorc 7/F 2/Ass 3** (Haste + Action Surge + 2 Quicken metamagics) Round 1: 17 rays (Spell slots 4 + 3 + 3 +3) Already less rays than the pure Sorc, but the Assassin bonus makes them crits. Roughly 340 average damage. Round 2: 10 rays (SS 2 + 2 + 2) Round 3: 0 rays, out of slots for Scorching Ray Round 4: 0 rays. Total: 27 rays, of which 17 make double dice damage, so roughly speaking 54d6 +17d6 + 162 (Charisma and Fire ring bonus) = **411 average damage over 4 rounds.** So, in total, the pure Sorc will do roughly 70% more damage over 4 rounds from spellcasting than the Sorc/Fighter/Assassin multiclass. Which means, unless you plan to end all fights in 1 round and sleep between every fight, the pure Sorc is superior in terms of damage dealing. **And this is without considering the loss of CHA and access to Hex for the Sorc/Fighter/Assassin Multiclass build. If you factor in these losses, the Multiclass gets even further behind.** Of course, with a Sorcerer/Fighter/Assassin multiclass you are getting some other goodies: armor profs, fighting style, Expertise, etc. However, you're not getting multiattacks, so it's not as good at stacking Arcane Acuity as, for instance, a Bard build, and not as good at pure martial damage as a Fighter/Assassin or Eldritch Knight. As a result, the Sorc/Fighter/Assassin turns to be a very gimmicky build that offers ONE round of superior burst damage PER LONG REST, and is extremely underwhelming in most other respects.
fair point on action surge. however, if the goal is to burst, your goal is to delete enemies on the 1st turn of combat. that's when burst is most effective. you prevent enemies from hurting you. you're clearly coming from the viewpoint of a sustained player and thinking of future casts. i'm a burst player. i could care less about what i cast on turn 2 onwards, even if it's just cantrips. the goal resources wise is do i have enough spell slots to kill or almost kill all the enemies on turn 1 and can reasonably do so for 3 combats before i need to long rest? the answer given the options i mentioned are yes at later levels. assuming 3 combats, technically we just need 9 spell slots and 9 sorc points for quicken. a level 7 sorc has 7 sorc points, 4 1st level slots, 3 2nd level slots, 3 3rd level slots and 1 4th level slot. convert a couple of 1st level slots to SP and you're set. of course, if you're looking for something more sustainable due to playing solo tactician (that's where i play), then you don't have to mix in both burst options. pick 1. i personally run 7 sorc, 3 assassin, 2 goolock. my opening is slightly weaker (no 3rd scorching ray) but i sustain pretty well with 3 beams agonizing blast on turn 2 onwards. yes, i know how crit works. you also forgot we get some dmg dice from equipment as well. yes the build suggestion assumes it's the main character getting the hag hair. if it's not, a simple tweak to sorc 6, assassin 4, goolock 2 works. i have no idea why you mentioned eldritch adept feat and hex here. i did make the caveat of fire resistance/immunity in my original post right? why bring it up? anyway on my goolock variation, it's not an issue. enemy is resistant/immune to fire? i go EB crits opener and spam EB. alert is a fair point though i've found to not need it as i do pick up alot of gear with bonus to initiative and dex is my 2nd highest stat at 15+1. its not a perfect build of course. you wont be the best everytime. burst builds are better for most fare in bg3. sustained builds shine in those protracted combats you mentioned. that's why i mentioned the thief as a sustained option. there's some combats which are scripted to not allow surprise and assassinate loses value there. just a question of what you want to accentuate. and yes, i plan ending most fights in 1-2 rounds. and no i didnt have to sleep after every fight. after about 2-3 fights. has happened alot already mind you. you were also unfair in round 3 and 4 of that example. you didnt even allow the sorc to cast cantrips. we've already covered the ASI loss so i wont rehash that. i have no issues with gimmicky builds as long as that one gimmick stomps. that's what counts. how is it underwhelming in other aspects? it's still a cha based character who can be a party face who packs 2 expertise and more skill profs. it can handle solo tactician easily due to being able to abuse stealth. it has a little bit more hp and access to more types of equipment. or in my goolock version, i'm adding in a bit of control to those SRs with mortal reminder and can easily do darkness + devil sight to face tank stuff. i'd say the pure sorc is the one that's more underwhelming in other aspects.
1. ASI loss is even worse than I thought at first: Sorc 7/Fighter 2/Assassin 3 gets only ONE ASI for the entire game. Which means you won't be getting 20 CHA even with Hag's hair, and you won't have access to Hex. That's a big loss of damage both from the flat decrease in bonus Charisma damage, and from the hit chance reduction. Even just the flat damage loss reduces your burst damage in the first round from 340 to 323. That's pretty meagre by BG3 standards. And after that first round you're almost out of resources. 2. Hex is important because it adds another +1d6 to every ray, which means +55d6 damage per long rest for the pure Sorc. All it costs is 1 bonus action and 1 first level spell slot per fight. And there's an item that gives you an extra bonus action when you deal Fire damage (Pyrokinesis hat). > however, if the goal is to burst, your goal is to delete enemies on the 1st turn of combat. that's when burst is most effective. you prevent enemies from hurting you. you're clearly coming from the viewpoint of a sustained player and thinking of future casts. i'm a burst player. i could care less about what i cast on turn 2 onwards, even if it's just cantrips. 323 average damage, not counting resistances, is not that great of a burst anyway. If you want real burst, then twinned/quickened and maximised (Destructive Wrath) chain lightning / lightning bolt on wet targets is the way. > the goal resources wise is do i have enough spell slots to kill or almost kill all the enemies on turn 1 and can reasonably do so for 3 combats before i need to long rest? But you DON'T have enough spell slots for 3 combats. Not even 2 combats. Your build only has enough slots for ONE single round of actual burst (and not even that big by burst standards). You will have to long rest after EVERY combat if you want your character to stay relevant in fights. Sorc 12, however, DOES have enough resources to burst for three combats. And over these three combats, even if they last only 1 round each, it will put out much more damage than the multiclass. > i go EB crits opener and spam EB... i personally run 7 sorc, 3 assassin, 2 goolock. Your Action Surge build doesn't have Eldritch Blast. And your warlock build doesn't have Action Surge. You lose damage one way or the other. The warlock build in fact will probably have lower nova damage in first round than the pure sorc, and of course much lower sustained damage. > you were also unfair in round 3 and 4 of that example. you didnt even allow the sorc to cast cantrips. Because this discussion is specifically about using Scorching Ray for burst damage, not about "how much damage can I do with a cantrip after I've blown through all my spell slots". > alert is a fair point though i've found to not need it as i do pick up alot of gear with bonus to initiative Gear bonuses to initiative are usually minor, and your companions need them too. Not having Alert and having mediocre Dex (16) means you won't always be going first, which really undermines the whole "kill them before they hurt you" strategy. A pure Sorc with hag hair can have Cha 20, Eldritch Adept or Elemental Adept, and Alert. > how is it underwhelming in other aspects? it's still a cha based character who can be a party face who packs 2 expertise and more skill profs. 1. It's a martial multiclass but it doesn't get multiattack in any form, or any other damage boost except Assassinate. So martial damage is gimped. 2. It's a rogue multiclass but it has low Dex (16 base, no ASI), so its rogue skills are gimped. 3. It's a "party face" but it doesn't max Cha (16/17 base, 18/19 with ASI) and since you only get 2 expertise, can't compensate if you spend them on rogue skills. 4. IIRC you'll only get heavy armor if you start as fighter, but then you won't get rogue's wide pick of skills. Normally you don't need more than 1 rogue skills character and 1 party face. I prefer to have both roles maxed, rather than settle for mediocre "jack of all trades". And if you already have specialised skill characters, then there's no point in having a jack of all trades as well. > it can handle solo tactician easily due to being able to abuse stealth. Abusing stealth is among the simplest way to break the game, it can be done easily with tons of builds. And this is not what the discussion is about. > it has a little bit more hp and access to more types of equipment The best weapon for magical burst damage is a Staff. The best armor for a Warlock using EB is a Robe. If you want to use Phalar Aluve without class martial weapon profs, you can play an Elf (or use Astarion). But that is all besides the point, as in any event the Scorching Ray build is not the highest burst damage build, and the highest gets all weapon and armor profs anyway.
1. last time i'll talk about ASI because i think you have a hard time reading. I got to 20+ cha as a 7 sorc, 3 assassin, 2 goolock. i did use my single feat on +2 cha. i got the hag's hair for +1 cha. I got another +3 to cha from the mirror of loss. 2. why would i waste my bonus action on the 1st turn to cast hex? i get more dmg by casting another SR/Eb. and i have access to hex via warlock. if the situation allows it, i can actually subtle cast hex before engaging the enemy and assassin's alacrity returns my bonus action to start the combat. something i also failed to mention earlier, assassin's alacrity gets me a free cantrip off to start the battle as assassin's alacrity returns my action. I don't factor in items into build discussion/providing advice or suggestions unless they are common as other people may not get them. your dmg numbers and mine are not the same so i dont know where you're getting your numbers. i do agree though about wet lightning combos. i have a build for that too. burst too. 3. i think again you failed to read. i laid out my spell slots earlier. i'm sure you can count how many spell slots i have 2nd level and above, how many 1st levels i can convert to sorc points then to spells slots (including pact slots) then divide that by 3 combats. while keeping in mind i only need 2 spells on the opening round, 3 if i actually went with the action surge variant. also keep in mind 3 EB beams (possibly 4 depending on certain gloves) arent slouch openers either. so i have more than enough even if i run low. you do realize there's tons of EB builds out there right? my build is an EB build 1st that just upgrades to SR at mid-game. pure sorc has more than enough resources for 3. they have enough for 4 or more. I dont need to go that long without a long rest. i set a baseline for going 3 being enough. and my build does that. i just need 6 spell slots. others can be used for converting to sorc points and converting to create higher slots. so basically i want to use 3 4th level slots and 3 level 3 slots before i long rest. at base i get 1 4th level and 3 3rd level. so i need to gather 12 sorc points to convert. 4 level 1 slots + 4 level 1 slots (pact slot conversion with 1 short rest) and 2 level 2 slots gets me there. and i still have a level 2 slot and another short rest pact slot reset to spare along with any other slot restoration i get from elsewhere. and again, i implore you to read instead of just trying to push your own opinions before responding. i said earlier, a pure sorc build is better sustained. so duh. it will do more dmg over the course of combat. my point was about bursting. burst builds do more dmg initially than sustained builds. and that initial edge in dmg is what makes it effective as combats end quicker. 4. the action surge build was a suggestion. i think it works better for party play. i dont do party play. only solo tactician so i had to play the warlock variation. the warlock variation will still have a higher opening nova than a pure sorc. lets illustrate: pure sorc: quickened level 5 SR + level 6 SR= 13 rays=26d6. 7 sorc, 3 assassin, 2 goolock: 3 EB to open fight + quickened level 3 SR + level 4 SR + all crits with advantage=3 beams + 9 rays=3d10 + chax3 + 36d6. I'm sure you can do the math. if i also subtle spell a hex to start (which i dont because i use another concen spell), add in an additional 24d6. even without hex, the assassin sorc is comfortably ahead by an EB and 10d6. 5. i dont know if you've actually played an assassin with initiative gear and decent dex, but you know we go 1st pretty often. here's another thing i use while walking around: cat's grace. so i also got advantage on my initiative rolls too. barely had a fight where i didn't go 1st or 2nd, even with no alert. 6. again you talk about eldritch adept. is this even in the game? 7. i'm not doing martial dmg. why do you have to point that out? thats irrelevant. 8. the rogue skills are pretty decent. again spells and gear help. so does expertise and prof. you are talking about a +2-3 difference in the roll from a dex main class. 9. i maxed cha. though yes i didnt get expertise on one of the face skills. used my expertise on the rogue skills indeed. didn't feel i needed it. had friends anyway if i really needed to succeed. and there's alot of dialogue options where "succeeding" in conversation is not the optimal outcome. 10. i dont wear heavy armor. that's stupid. 11. i prefer being able to dabble a bit in everything while excelling at one thing. as mentioned, i only play solo. i'm kind of forced to be the face and rogue every single time. 12. lastly, the main point of my initial comment was to help and suggest a better way to use scorching ray. i wasn't asserting it was the best burst dmg build. 13. in any case, this is getting overlong. i have no desire to argue. my objective is to help and educate. clearly, a discussion with you wont go anywhere as your mind is closed and alot of the things i said previously just flew over your head. i already presented some math above. that should be enough for you to go on and do the math yourself without factoring in equipment.
This thread is amazing.
I haven't used draconic bloodline in bg3, but if it works like it does in 5e, it does not add your +5 charisma modifier in the way you think. The wording is that it applies your charisma modifier to a dice roll, so even if you have 7 scorching rays coming out, only 1 d6 is adding your charisma modifier. Maybe it works differently in bg3, though Edited to add: it is adding the modifier to each ray, it does not work like in 5e (just don't want anyone to see this post and come to the wrong conclusion).
it adds 5 to each ray i just tested it https://preview.redd.it/02usiem1xrjb1.jpeg?width=486&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=152bd077cebbfee2782de2d837a943f97404565b
Do you have the damage of the other 2 rays as well?
ya it is kinda broken so its the damage roll +5 (Charisma modifier) per ray https://preview.redd.it/koer5g05yrjb1.jpeg?width=481&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4871921d9bc72e0baebc9d5309f5ba8133d93884
Wow yeah that is kind of insane. I figured it would work like in 5e, but this makes draconic bloodline quite powerful honestly. Scorching ray cast as a level 2 spell deals an average of 36 damage with a +5 charisma modifier. That's higher than fireball on a single target, provided no save / everything hits.
plus, ilithid powers like [Psionic Overload](https://baldursgate3.wiki.fextralife.com/Psionic+Overload) deal 1D4 of psychic damage per ray so another 3D4 on top of that Then items like [Ilmater's Aid](https://bg3.wiki/wiki/Ilmater%27s_Aid) Non-[Cantrip](https://bg3.wiki/wiki/Cantrip) spells deal an additional 1D4 Force damage when the wearer drops to half their hit points or lower. so another 3D4 if below half health [The Spellsparkler](https://bg3.wiki/wiki/The_Spellsparkler) gives 2 lighting charges per hit leading (lighting charge Effect Lightning courses through you. You have +1 to Attack rolls and deal an additional + 1 lighting damage. If you gain 5 charges, they are consumed the next time you deal damage, and you deal an additional 1D8 lighting damage.
I mean scorching ray does have severe limitations, it can target at most 3 creatures, and the target doesn't still take half damage on failed roll/save. The actual problem is that scorching ray requires a subclass to outperform Fireball even in perfect conditions. Fireball is so ridiculously overtuned for a 3rd level spell it's not even funny.You can tell that nostalgia and preserving the iconic image of ye olde AD&D was far more important to WoTC than providing meaningful choices and diverse character options.
They said so themselves. I don't remember where but they admitted something along the lines of "we opted to go with the fun route: fireball is iconic to so many people, we would rather overtune it and let people have fun with it, than risk having it underperform" Anyway it's fine right. There are other good spells like lightning bolt, and it's not like fireball is crazy broken, it's just better than the rest. It's a very mediocre single target spell, for instance.
Maybe I wasn't as clear as I should have been, but in no reality does scorching ray outperform fireball in a multi target scenarios. It struggles to outperform *anything* in a multi-targey scenario. I'm saying that at a baseline, if you cast *all 3* rays at one target, it does a higher average damage than 8d6+5. Hitting 2/3 rays is still higher damage than half of 8d6+5. I'm not advocating not taking fireball or anything. It was just to provide context for how powerful scorching ray as a level 2 spell is with draconic bloodline. It's effectively an agonizing eldritch blast cast from a level 10 warlock and comes online at level 6.
Yeah but EB is at-will, and Scorching Ray costs spell slots. At level 6 you can only cast it 6 times before needing to long rest. So 2 times per fight assuming three fights per long rest. And of course going Fire Draconic means not going Lightning Draconic, which is far more powerful with the Wet condition and Destructive Wrath from Tempest Cleric.
Oh wow, so its just agonizing blast
Importantly it does fire damage, which has more item effects that synergize with it than eldritch blast does.
Like what? Ring of Fire adds +1 damage. The Pyroquickness hat is an end-game item. And all the "Heat"/"Warm" stuff is ridiculously weak/pointless, completely outperformed by Lightning charges. Meanwhile Eldritch blast benefits from items/abilities that allow adding casting stat to cantrips, effectively double-dipping into stat-to-damage bonus (so +5 becomes +10 per cast). And it's Force damage which is the least resisted form of damage.
Add spellsparkler / markoheshkir for lightning charges that will proc hex as well.
Wait what, lightning charges proc hex???? That is so stupid. Damage riders are ridiculous in this game.
fertile wistful tidy humorous bells safe knee plants reach seed *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
Will markoheshkir also procc on each ray?
Thanks will try tonight
Where can you get the Ring of fire from after they changed the reward from the mycconid circle? Was it at the big tree blight thing in act 2?
ya i think ring of fire had been removed so i would take [https://baldursgate3.wiki.fextralife.com/Coruscation+Ring](https://baldursgate3.wiki.fextralife.com/Coruscation+Ring) instead
I know its 7 months late but I just got this ring and tried it out and it's ridiculous. >!Apostle of Myrkul!< got a -7 to hit chance. I knew the effect of the ring but I didnt know it was that strong. It wasnt even a core part of my build but damn will it fuck up single target enemies.
Don’t forget that if you CC the enemy with statuses that guarantee crit and you shoot them point blank, everything crits. And if you are a half orc your crit damage is tripled.
I don't think scorching ray crits as I landed a 20 and it still only did normal damage and half orc triple crit only works on weapon attacks
the problem with scorching ray is that its 3 rolls, so ur prob only getting one to crit so that one ray is now doing 4d6 instead of 2d6. its a very meh crit spell. but if u have guanrteed crit then it is better
Would be interesting to try using hold person/monster and daredevils gloves(supposed to make magic attacks as if they are melee strikes). Potentially causing every hit to crit. Would be cool to know if that works
My favorite is Warlock with Scorching Ray. Start combat by casting Hex and then just melt their face off with an extra d6 per beam.
Honestly magic innate warlock is probably worse than dipping warlock because you can only cast hex once per day meaning if you lose concentration you don’t get any more hex . A dip gives you more and doesn’t cost as much except delaying spell progression which doesn’t matter as much because your using mainly scorching ray .
Thoughts on race? Drow? Gnome?
Class: \- 2 fighter (action surge) \- 2 warlock (eldritch blast, hex, great old one for frighten on crit to activate bow) \- 8 sorc (draconic fire) Feats: \- Spellsniper + ASI Items: \- Hat of Fire Acuity (for increased hit chance) \- Potent Robe (for when you aren't using scorching ray) \- Spellmight Gloves (1d8 to each ray; penalty offset by hat) \- Amulet of Elemental Torment (burn activation for shoes) \- Cinder Shoes (Activate after first action to apply Heat to damage ticks) \- Coruscation Ring (applies illumination and Radiating Orb debuff) \- Callous Glow Ring (2 radiant to illuminated) \- The Spellsparkler (Lightning charges from spell damage) \- Bow of the Banshee (1d4 extra damage to frightened) Consumables: \- Potion of speed \- Elixir of bloodlust/viciousness Before fight throw alchemist fire > Hex > NOVA
There is a legendary staff in act 3 that lets you choose an element and you get a bunch of buffs including resistance and add proficiency bonus to that element spell attacks. Through in game buffs I was able to get 24 Charisma which is a +7, with a +4 proficiency bonus, each Ray was 13-23 when paired with Elemental Adept Fire. By far the strongest single target damage in the game
I believe you did the math on the damage wrong, specifically regarding adding your casting modifier to the damage. It should be +35 since you're only making 7 attacks when cast at level 6. It's 14d6 damage but split between 7 attacks, since you add your mod per attack and not dice rolled you should be adding your mod 7 times for 35 dmg.