Mezzanine
Member
Hello!
At time of writing I'm only level 35 and this is the current state of my skills. This guide is intended for new players wanting to learn more about alchemy generally and the Warden specifically. I hope that veteran players can also weigh in on their personal experience how this works (or doesn't work) at level 35+ because it will be a long time before I hit level 50!
TL;DR I unlocked my Warden Alchemy II abilities in this order: Aid, Fading Strike, Eagle Eye, Assist. Currently I'm working on Sedation Dart with no clear other options. Bleeding Strike looks great, but raw damage alone seems less useful for the ember cost in most situations. Rockhide (level 34 book drop), Quillback Hide, and Viperid Toxins all seem useful but still lack oomph compared to what I prioritized.
You can see the orange ember line on some of them indicating my progress towards 200 casts to unlock Alchemy II (Alchemy I is unlocked with the level 20 quest as a baseline for all abilities). Alchemy I requires 5 ember per cast on a 2 minute cooldown, Alchemy II requires 25 ember per cast on a 10 minute cooldown. You cannot use Alchemy for an ability if either cooldown is in effect, but the normal version will always be available per usual.
On any class, I think it's wise to always have 1-2 abilities you are progressing towards Alchemy II so that you don't overcap your emberstone. You could also do this with the 25% capacity passive gain in mind (i.e. always keeping under 25 ember with a 100 point emberstone) if you don't care about keeping a reserve for travel or emergencies. In some situations you will be fighting so many ashen mobs that you will want to have 3-4 or more abilities on Alchemy I cooldown to avoid overcapping, so it doesn't hurt to have some backup skills in mind too.
Here's the first example. With Aid you have a fantastic HoT that you can cast between pulls, but it breaks as soon as you take damage. Alchemy I makes it a HoT you can cast in combat as it no longer breaks if you are hurt. Alchemy II extends Aid to an incredible two minute long HoT with the same healing every 4 seconds... I make a point of keeping healing gear on me and in my bag to really make the most of this. With my full healing set I have +47 healing for 26 health per tick... That's 780 HP over the course of two minutes or about 3.5 times my total health pool at level 35. I use Alchemy I any time I'm in a pull where my life is in the balance, and I use Alchemy II for extreme emergencies (solo or in party). Alchemy II Aid on a tank when we have 3 mobs and 1 healer can make a huge difference with full use of the two minute duration. Alchemy I is a nice slap of ~100 HP which is also going to take some pressure off the healer with more regular use.
Fading Strike in it's basic form is a simple detaunt (note it detaunts more when you are the primary target) that I use frequently on pull or if I get threat off a tank. It's also nice as it's instant damage for bow pulling or to get a final hit in quickly. Fading Strike I has a detaunt... and gives you 6 seconds of complete immunity to damage. In a party situation the detaunt will normally mean you lose threat, but not always. The damage immunity can also spare you from AoE damage. I use Fading Strike I solo any time I have two mobs on me, because then it's blocking all damage from both for the duration. Fading Strike II extends the complete immunity to damage to 12 seconds for an even bigger bonus. I rarely use this as it does have a lengthy castbar and in most situations I need to run like hell at full speed or use something else if it's that dangerous. However, if the party is going down it could be the difference between life and death, leaving you alive to resurrect the group with Aid. (You remember Aid, right?).
Eagle Eye is one of those buffs that you always want to have up on your Warden, but I'll admit that I use it less now that I'm focused on getting other abilities to Alchemy II. It's base version is a generous +30 hit on self which lasts for 35 seconds and is useful with every pull. Alchemy I takes that bonus and doubles it! Not too bad! With Alchemy II you give that +60 hit bonus to your entire party for the full 35 second duration. That's a LOT of bonus for a party of six. And remember, hit makes all of your abilities potentially hit harder as it boosts your chance of a better hit along the spectrum of Glancing, Normal, Heavy, Critical. It also applies to healing, so it can make heal abilities hit for a heavy or critical success!
Assist is great. It gives a buff to your defensive target (any teammate) giving them advantage for 10 seconds or 3 hits (whichever comes first). NOTE: It also, hilariously, has no apparent maximum range and can be applied to any teammate you can target; yes, I will passive-aggressively use this to buff you while you gather that copper ore... Advantage works like D&D... your damage will roll twice and use the higher roll when you have advantage. It's also a solid, direct damage ability in its own right which is why I also use it solo! Alchemy I gives your defensive target advantage for a bit longer (12 seconds) and removes the hit cap. So as many times as they can hit an enemy within that timespan, all of those hits will have advantage. Used with a respectable DPS (or someone fast like a berserker or dual-wielder) that can have a big impact! Alchemy II predictably makes it wildly good... it boosts the buff to 20 seconds including advantage and +100 Hit, and +100 1H/2H/Ranged (that means 100% more damage or double damage with any weapon type). It's absolutely bonkers and I live for the day when I can give that to a DPS that will make full use of it.
At time of writing I'm only level 35 and this is the current state of my skills. This guide is intended for new players wanting to learn more about alchemy generally and the Warden specifically. I hope that veteran players can also weigh in on their personal experience how this works (or doesn't work) at level 35+ because it will be a long time before I hit level 50!
TL;DR I unlocked my Warden Alchemy II abilities in this order: Aid, Fading Strike, Eagle Eye, Assist. Currently I'm working on Sedation Dart with no clear other options. Bleeding Strike looks great, but raw damage alone seems less useful for the ember cost in most situations. Rockhide (level 34 book drop), Quillback Hide, and Viperid Toxins all seem useful but still lack oomph compared to what I prioritized.
You can see the orange ember line on some of them indicating my progress towards 200 casts to unlock Alchemy II (Alchemy I is unlocked with the level 20 quest as a baseline for all abilities). Alchemy I requires 5 ember per cast on a 2 minute cooldown, Alchemy II requires 25 ember per cast on a 10 minute cooldown. You cannot use Alchemy for an ability if either cooldown is in effect, but the normal version will always be available per usual.
On any class, I think it's wise to always have 1-2 abilities you are progressing towards Alchemy II so that you don't overcap your emberstone. You could also do this with the 25% capacity passive gain in mind (i.e. always keeping under 25 ember with a 100 point emberstone) if you don't care about keeping a reserve for travel or emergencies. In some situations you will be fighting so many ashen mobs that you will want to have 3-4 or more abilities on Alchemy I cooldown to avoid overcapping, so it doesn't hurt to have some backup skills in mind too.
Here's the first example. With Aid you have a fantastic HoT that you can cast between pulls, but it breaks as soon as you take damage. Alchemy I makes it a HoT you can cast in combat as it no longer breaks if you are hurt. Alchemy II extends Aid to an incredible two minute long HoT with the same healing every 4 seconds... I make a point of keeping healing gear on me and in my bag to really make the most of this. With my full healing set I have +47 healing for 26 health per tick... That's 780 HP over the course of two minutes or about 3.5 times my total health pool at level 35. I use Alchemy I any time I'm in a pull where my life is in the balance, and I use Alchemy II for extreme emergencies (solo or in party). Alchemy II Aid on a tank when we have 3 mobs and 1 healer can make a huge difference with full use of the two minute duration. Alchemy I is a nice slap of ~100 HP which is also going to take some pressure off the healer with more regular use.
Fading Strike in it's basic form is a simple detaunt (note it detaunts more when you are the primary target) that I use frequently on pull or if I get threat off a tank. It's also nice as it's instant damage for bow pulling or to get a final hit in quickly. Fading Strike I has a detaunt... and gives you 6 seconds of complete immunity to damage. In a party situation the detaunt will normally mean you lose threat, but not always. The damage immunity can also spare you from AoE damage. I use Fading Strike I solo any time I have two mobs on me, because then it's blocking all damage from both for the duration. Fading Strike II extends the complete immunity to damage to 12 seconds for an even bigger bonus. I rarely use this as it does have a lengthy castbar and in most situations I need to run like hell at full speed or use something else if it's that dangerous. However, if the party is going down it could be the difference between life and death, leaving you alive to resurrect the group with Aid. (You remember Aid, right?).
Eagle Eye is one of those buffs that you always want to have up on your Warden, but I'll admit that I use it less now that I'm focused on getting other abilities to Alchemy II. It's base version is a generous +30 hit on self which lasts for 35 seconds and is useful with every pull. Alchemy I takes that bonus and doubles it! Not too bad! With Alchemy II you give that +60 hit bonus to your entire party for the full 35 second duration. That's a LOT of bonus for a party of six. And remember, hit makes all of your abilities potentially hit harder as it boosts your chance of a better hit along the spectrum of Glancing, Normal, Heavy, Critical. It also applies to healing, so it can make heal abilities hit for a heavy or critical success!
Assist is great. It gives a buff to your defensive target (any teammate) giving them advantage for 10 seconds or 3 hits (whichever comes first). NOTE: It also, hilariously, has no apparent maximum range and can be applied to any teammate you can target; yes, I will passive-aggressively use this to buff you while you gather that copper ore... Advantage works like D&D... your damage will roll twice and use the higher roll when you have advantage. It's also a solid, direct damage ability in its own right which is why I also use it solo! Alchemy I gives your defensive target advantage for a bit longer (12 seconds) and removes the hit cap. So as many times as they can hit an enemy within that timespan, all of those hits will have advantage. Used with a respectable DPS (or someone fast like a berserker or dual-wielder) that can have a big impact! Alchemy II predictably makes it wildly good... it boosts the buff to 20 seconds including advantage and +100 Hit, and +100 1H/2H/Ranged (that means 100% more damage or double damage with any weapon type). It's absolutely bonkers and I live for the day when I can give that to a DPS that will make full use of it.
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