View source for Guide to playing as an elementalist

{{rewrite|Should follow the template established in [[Guide to playing as a dervish]]}}
{{outdated info|Feedback:Game updates/20120105}}
{{new player guide}}{{TOCright}}

== Overview ==
The '''[[elementalist]]''' is a core profession that commands the four elemental forces: air, earth, fire, and water. The primary role of the elementalist is to [[nuker|deal damage to multiple foes at once]]. With their elemental spells they can also [[spike]], [[pressure]], [[snare (tactic)|snare]] or [[tank]]. Most elementalists focus on the power of a single element while some combine their elements for a larger variety of effects.

To make sure they can cast their spells, elementalists have the highest energy pool of any profession and possess a skill type unique to them, the [[glyph]]. Glyphs can increase the power of spells, decrease their casting time, reduce their energy cost, or prevent them from being interrupted. Although the elementalist has some strong defensive skills, they lack both a condition removal and a hex removal.

== Attributes ==
=== [[Energy Storage]] (Primary Attribute) ===
Energy storage is the primary attribute of the elementalist, and each rank increases the maximum energy of the elementalist by 3 points. The skills found in Energy Storage are mostly energy management skills. The self healing skills are also found in this attribute.

=== [[Fire Magic]] ===
Fire Magic is the most offensive attribute. Many spells found in this attribute deal [[fire damage]] to multiple foes at once and inflict [[burning]] condition. It is a simple and straightforward attribute that is easy to use for beginners. For pure damage it is the attribute of choice.

=== [[Air Magic]] ===
Air Magic is an offensive-oriented attribute. The spells inside this attribute generally deal [[lightning damage]] and have an armor penetration of 25%. Most of these spells deal damage to a single foe, but there are some spells that can hit multiple foes. Air Magic also has spells that improve the mobility of allies and has multiple spells that can knock down enemies. Many spells found inside this attribute can inflict [[blind]] and [[cracked armor]]. Air magic is effective against high-armored enemies.

=== [[Earth Magic]] ===
Earth Magic is a supportive attribute. Earth Magic spells can deal a great amount of [[earth damage]] to both a single target and multiple foes and has the most defensive skills. The attribute also possesses multiple spells that can inflicts [[weakness]], snare and knock down foes, and most of the [[ward spell]]s are also found inside this attribute. Earth Magic is the most balanced attribute of the elementalist and it takes some practice to fully master this attribute.

=== [[Water Magic]] ===
Water Magic is a supportive attribute. Water Magic possesses several hex spells that can snare multiple foes, as well as some defensive spells and spells that can both heal you and your allies. Water Magic spells deal [[cold damage]], but compared to the other elements, they deal a lower amount of damage. Water Magic spells have been designed to support your team and control the enemy instead of just killing them. Because of this, it is also a difficult attribute to use compared to the other elements.

==Damage and Control==

The primary role of the elementalist is to deal damage, with action denial as an auxiliary function. They have a large amount of spells that can hit multiple foes inside an area and even have spells that deal damage inside an area over a period of time. These aspects allows for considerable control over enemy movement on the battlefield, as it forces foes to either readjust their positioning or risk an attempt to absorb extreme damage. It is important to properly know the range your spells have and to choose the correct target.

====Area of effect vs. Damage over time====
[[Area of effect]] (AoE) spells are "area denial weapons", being the most likely to hit multiple foes when you target the foe that is in the epicenter of a hostile group, than against the foe that is at the edge of said group. It is also important to know which foes you have to target. Fire Magic simply deals damage, but Water Magic has spells that can disrupt skills or reduce the effectiveness of attacks. Choosing the proper target for these spells is important so their effects don't go to waste.

[[Damage over time]] (DoT) spells deal damage to multiple foes over a period of time within a single cast. These spells generally deal a large amount of damage and have often a long recharge and high cost. In PvE, foes that are within the area of these spells will move outside of them after a short period. To prevent foes from moving outside of the range of your DoT spells a snare is advised. [[Earthen Shackles]] and [[Deep Freeze]] are both very effective for this since the duration of the snare of these spells does not scale with their attributes. However, it can also be used as a defensive tactic to break an agro from foes or to scatter foes from a certain location.

====Doublecast and Wards====
Another aspect of area of effect the elementalist has are the [[doublecast spell]]s and the [[ward spell]]s. The doublecast spells are 5 elite spells that can target both an ally or a foe and affect both you or the targeted ally or the ally closest to the foe you targeted. When these spells are used on the proper targets they can become very effective, both offensively and defensively. The Ward spells activate at the location of the caster and usually have a defensive effect. Altough they are not of great importance to the play of the elementalist, for both PvE and PvP they can be very effective if used correctly.

====Elemental synergy====
:{| class="expandable" style="border: 0px solid silver; background: transparent; width: 600px;" cellpadding=3
|-class="expandable"
|<h4>List of elemental skills that benefit from other elemental skills</h4>
|-
|
; Fire Magic
* {{skill icon|Elemental Flame}} (Inflicts burning condition to the hexed foe each time an Elementalist hex is applied to the target. Synergy with Water Magic.)
* {{skill icon|Teinai's Heat}} (Causes health degeneration, weakened foes attack slower. Synergy with Earth Magic, in particular with [[Ward of Weakness]].)
; Air Magic
* {{skill icon|Chilling Winds}} (Deals cold damage and the next Water Magic hex applied to the hexed foes lasts longer. Synergy with Water Magic.)
* {{skill icon|Teinai's Wind}} (Deals additional damage and interrupts burning foes. Synergy with Fire Magic.)
; Earth Magic
* {{skill icon|Ash Blast}} (Deals damage and causes burning foes to miss with their attacks. Synergy with Fire Magic.)
* {{skill icon|Iron Mist}} (Gives an armor bonus, targeted Air Magic spells cast and recharge faster at the cost of 3 overcast per spell. Synergy with Air Magic, in particular with spells that gain benefits from overcast.)
* {{skill icon|Teinai's Crystals}} (Deals additional damage and causes cracked armor to multiple foes if target is hexed with Water Magic. Synergy with Water Magic.)
; Water Magic
* {{skill icon|Steam}} (Inflicts blind to burning foes. Synergy with Fire Magic. Combos well with [[Slippery Ground]].)
* {{skill icon|Teinai's Prison}} (Target foe moves 66% slower, causes health degeneration if target foe has cracked armor. Synergy with Air Magic. Combos well with Teinai's Crystals.)
|}

==Overcast and Energy Management==
{{main|Overcast|Energy Management}}
The spells of the elementalist generally have a high cost and can deplete your energy quite fast. To make sure you can continue to cast your spells a form of energy management is needed. Most commonly used for this are [[Glyph of Lesser Energy]] and the 4 attunements, [[Fire Attunement]], [[Air Attunement]], [[Earth Attunement]] and [[Water Attunement]]. These 4 spells return 30% +1 of the energy cost of the spells from their attribute. The attunements are always covered by [[Aura of Restoration]] which serves as healing and gives 1 energy whenever you cast a spell. The attunement also have an elite version [[Elemental Attunement]] that returns an even greater amount of energy, it can effectively be combined with the non-elite versions, this form of energy management is commonly referred to as Dual Attunement. Dual Attunement combined with Aura of Restoration gives a full energy return of spell with the cost of 5 energy and 10 energy of their respective elemental attribute. This is a popular combination for a strong form of energy management because these skills can be found in all campaigns.

Overcast is a negative effect that reduces your maximum energy. It is shown as a grey section on your energy bar, like [[deep wound]] is shown on your health bar. Overcast is a stackable effect and can put a great amount of pressure on your energy if you accumulate too much of it so be careful when using overcast skills. Overcast dissipates by 1 point every 3 seconds and the only way to counter overcast is the elite skill [[Glyph of Energy]]. The elementalist also possesses multiple skills that benefit from overcast. Skills that cause overcast have a grey icon {{overcast}} before their energy cost icon. Be careful you don't stack up on overcast or deplete your energy, an elementalist without energy is useless.

:{| class="expandable" style="border: 0px solid silver; background: transparent; width: 600px;" cellpadding=3
|-class="expandable"
|<h4>List of overcast spells</h4>
|-
|
; Energy Storage
* {{skill icon|Ether Prodigy}} (10 points)
; Fire Magic
* {{skill icon|Breath of Fire}} (10 points)
* {{skill icon|Incendiary Bonds}} (5 points)
* {{skill icon|Meteor}} (10 points)
* {{skill icon|Meteor Shower}} (10 points)
* {{skill icon|Mind Burn}} (10 points)
; Air Magic
* {{skill icon|Chain Lightning}} (5 points)
* {{skill icon|Gale}} (10 points)
* {{skill icon|Invoke Lightning}} (5 points)
* {{skill icon|Mind Shock}} (5 points in PvE, 10 points in PvP)
* {{skill icon|Ride the Lightning}} (5 points)
* {{skill icon|Shock}} (10 points)
; Earth Magic
* {{skill icon|Dragon's Stomp}} (10 points)
* {{skill icon|Earthquake}} (10 points)
* {{skill icon|Iron Mist}} (3 points whenever you cast an Air Magic spell)
* {{skill icon|Obsidian Flame}} (5 points)
; Water Magic
* {{skill icon|Icy Prism}} (5 points)
* {{skill icon|Maelstrom}} (10 points)
* {{skill icon|Mind Freeze}} (5 points)
* {{skill icon|Vapor Blade}} (5 points)
; No Attribute
* {{skill icon|Second Wind}} (5 points)
|}

:{| class="expandable" style="border: 0px solid silver; background: transparent; width: 600px;" cellpadding=3
|-class="expandable"
|<h4>List of spells that benefit from overcast</h4>
|-
|
; Fire Magic
* {{skill icon|Flare}} (hits foes adjacent to target foe)
* {{skill icon|Lava Font}} (range increased to nearby)
* {{skill icon|Phoenix}} (heals allies inside the blast radius)
* {{skill icon|Smoldering Embers}} (becomes a hex and deals more damage)
; Air Magic
* {{skill icon|Arc Lightning}} (deals damage to 2 other nearby foes)
* {{skill icon|Lightning Strike}} (becomes a hex and deals more damage)
* {{skill icon|Shell Shock}} (hits foes adjacent to target foe)
* {{skill icon|Whirlwind}} (range increased to nearby)
; Earth Magic
* {{skill icon|Magnetic Aura}} (enchants party members in earshot)
* {{skill icon|Magnetic Surge}} (blocks the next attack for party members in earshot)
* {{skill icon|Stone Daggers}} (inflicts bleeding condition)
; Water Magic
* {{skill icon|Ice Spear}} (gives health regeneration)
* {{skill icon|Rust}} (interrupts and disables signets)
* {{skill icon|Swirling Aura}} (enchants party members in earshot)
|}

==Strategies and Tactics==

;[[Nuking]]

Frequently the domain of Fire Magic spells. They are heavy focused on Area of Effect (AoE) and Damage Over Time (DOT) and have the ability to inflict [[burning]].

These builds focus mostly around the 2 elite skills [[Searing Flames]] for the AoE type build and [[Savannah Heat]] for the DoT build. 
*The Searing Flames build requires strong energy management and sacrifices [[bar compression]] (i.e. [[Glowing Gaze]] and [[Glyph of Lesser Energy]]). [[Mark of Rodgort]] is added to easily meet the requirement of Searing Flames. The remaining skills are mostly used to improve damage. 
*The Savannah Heat build makes mostly use of the DoT spells of Fire Magic, being [[Fire Storm]], [[Meteor Shower]] and [[Searing Heat]]. This type of build is less energy heavy and allows for a larger range of utility. 

Although the focus lies on the elite skills Searing Flames and Savannah Heat, Fire Magic offers plenty of skills that allow you to nuke without relying on those 2 elite skills.

;[[Spike]]

Frequently the domain of Air Magic spells. They deal the highest average Damage per Second (DPS) against single target(s) and have the ability to inflict [[cracked armor]]. Popular skills for this are [[Lightning Hammer]], [[Invoke Lightning]], [[Lightning Strike]] and [[Lightning Orb]]. [[Shock Arrow]] is used for additional energy management.

;[[Pressure]]

This can be done in different ways. Fire Magic can pressure foes by continuously inflicting  [[burning]] condition to foes with skills such as [[Mind Burn]] or [[Immolate]]. Air Magic can pressure foes by [[blind]]ing foes with [[Blinding Flash]], [[Blinding Surge]] or [[Glimmering Mark]] or causing [[knock down]]s with [[Lightning Surge]] or [[Gale]]. Earth Magic can pressure through knock down with the combination of [[Ebon Hawk]], [[Stoning]] and [[Glowstone]]. Earth Magic also possesses some DoT spells that have conditional effects wich can pressure foes.

;[[Snare (tactic)|Snare]]

This is a PvP tactic that makes use of Earth Magic and Water Magic. Earth Magic makes use of point blank spells [[Grasping Earth]] and [[Ward Against Foes]] while Water Magic makes use of ranged spells. Water Magic has a large amount of hex spells that reduce movement of foes by 66%. The elite spells [[Mind Freeze]] and [[Icy Shackles]] can reduce movement speed up to 90% if the conditions are met and [[Water Trident]] can continuously knock down up to 3 moving foes. [[Ice Spikes]], [[Deep Freeze]] and [[Mirror of Ice]] can be used to snare multiple foes at once. Air Magic spell [[Chilling Winds]] can be used to extend the duration of your Water Magic hexes.

;[[Tanking]]

This is a PvE build that uses the defensive spells of Earth Magic and requires the Mesmer as a secondary profession. It uses the elite skill [[Obsidian Flesh]] to counter spells and for damage reduction uses [[Stoneflesh Aura]] and the combination of [[Stone Striker]] and [[Mantra of Earth]] for energy management. [[Glyph of Swiftness]] is used to maintain Obsidian Flesh and Stoneflesh Aura. The remaining skills are mostly used for additional defensive abilities such as [[Ward of Stability]] or [[Armor of Earth]].

;[[Orders]]

This is a PvE support build that requires the necromancer as a secondary profession. It combined the elite skill [[Ether Renewal]] and [[Aura of Restoration]] with the necromancer enchantments [[Order of Pain]] and [[Dark Fury]] to assist martial characters with damage and adrenaline gain. It allows a fairly large range of utility of Blood Magic spells such as [[Strip Enchantment]], [[Blood Ritual]] or [[Well of Blood]].

;Important skills

Already mentioned in "Overcast and Energy Management" the attunements are very important for the energy management of an elementalist. Make sure you have the attunement of the element you are using on your skill bar and keep it covered with [[Aura of Restoration]]. Since the builds the elementalist uses require the investment of only 1 secondary attribute it allows you to take a large range of utility skills from your secondary profession. Since the elementalist lacks condition and hex removal you can use your secondary profession to take either a condition removal or a hex removal. You can also act as a [[toolbox]] and take skills that assists the strategy of your party. 

;What to Avoid

* Considering Energy Storage a form of energy management. Elementalists need Energy Storage to effectively utilize Overcast skills; and they need energy management skills just as much as other caster professions.

* Using damage over time spells on moving targets.

* Wasting AoE spells on single targets.

* Casting spells under dangerous anti-caster Hexes, such as [[Backfire]] and [[Visions of Regret]] or while being [[dazed]].

* Staying in the frontline or not moving out of opposing DoT spells; you will take high damage due to low armor rating, requiring healers to spend excessive energy to keep you alive.

Experiment and adjust your build but don't overhaul your build over and over. Stick to the build that works for you and you alone like best, ''not'' what other people like, but do ''listen'' to any given advice. Adjust your build when the situation demands it to make it work better while keeping to the builds that works for you. Trying out something different for change or for fun never hurts either; be creative with your builds.

For all of the elementalist skills see the [[list of elementalist skills]].

==Equipment==

{{cleanup|this needs very serious clean-up}}

====[[Armor]]====
The maximum armor rating of the [[elementalist armor]] is 60 and has the inherent effects of a maximum [[energy]] increase of +10 and an [[energy regeneration]] increase of +2. Like any armor set a player can equip, these can be upgraded with [[insignia]]s (prefix) and [[rune]]s (suffix). The armor is composed out of a Aura (head), Robes (chest), Gloves (arms), Leggings (legs) and Shoes (feet).

;General example
These are the ideal armor upgrades for a elementalist:

*Hood (<elemental> magic or energy storage): [[Blessed Insignia|Blessed]], [[Rune of Superior Mastery|of Superior <elemental> Magic]] (x4) + [[Rune of Superior Energy Storage|of Superior Energy Storage]]
* Robes: Blessed, [[Rune of Superior Vigor|of Superior Vigor]]
* Vambraces: Blessed, of Minor Earth Magic + Blessed, of Minor Fire Magic + Blessed, of Minor Air Magic + Blessed, of Minor Water Magic
* Leggings: Blessed, [[Rune of Vitae|of Vitae]]
* Shoes: Blessed, of Minor <elemental> Magic (x4) + of Minor Energy Storage (depending on the rune currently equipped on the hood)

;Runes
Since you need to invest in between 1-4 Elemental Magics and Energy Storage, it is most advised to have a hood of either of these 5 attributes and upgrade them with a rune of the same attribute. The second rune is best equipped on the chest. It does not matter which of the 5 attributes is used for the hood because of how the attributes are invested. Also since you will be swapping your skills between either Earth/Fire/Air/Water to best suit your current needs, it is advised to have 4 vambraces; each upgraded with an "of Minor <Earth/Fire/Air/Water> Magic" rune.

Most spellcasting professions also use a [[Rune of Attunement]] for extra energy, and/or [[Rune of Recovery]] to reduce the duration of the [[Dazed]] and [[Deep Wound]] conditions by 20%.

;Insignia(s)
The ideal insignia(s) for a elementaist are:
*[[Blessed Insignia]] which increases your armor by +10; best used while you are enchanted with [[Aura of Restoration]]
*[[Survivor Insignia]] which increases your health between +5-15 (depending on the armor piece); best used for anti-enchantment-stripping areas.

====[[Staff]]s, [[wand]]s, and [[foci]]====
{{section-stub}}
The staff, wand, and foci are [[Caster weapon]]s with a damage range of 11-22, an attack speed of 1.75 seconds, an attack range of 1.2 danger zone radius, and deals [[Cold damage]], [[Earth damage]], [[Fire damage]] or [[Lightning  damage]] (dependent on the linked attribute). It can be [[upgrades|upgraded]] with a [[Staff Head]] (prefix), a [[Focus Core]], [[Staff Wrapping]] or [[Wand Wrapping]] (suffix) and an inscription. You can carry up to 4 different weapon sets that you can swap with F1, F2, F3 and F4. For the elementalist it is important to have multiple staves and/or wands ready for use as well as a [[longbow]] for pulling monsters to prevent an over[[aggro]]. These are the upgrades most ideal for the staffs or wands and foci.

;Staff Head (prefix)

* #1
* #2
* #3

;Staff Wrapping (suffix)

* #1
* #2
* #3

;Inscriptions

* [["I have the power!"]] (increases your maximum energy by 5)

Each type of build requires a different type of staff or wand/foci. and here are the sets of prefix and inscriptions that are most ideal

* "Earth build":
* "Fire build":
* "Air build":
* "Water build":

For the suffix upgrades you can often choose either of .

;Summary
Summing up the 4 weapons you are best to have for your 4 weapon slots. 
*1: [[Caster Weapon|Fast Casting Set]]
*2: [[Caster Weapon|High Energy Set]]
*3: [[Caster Weapon|Defensive Set]] or [[Caster Weapon|Low Energy Set]] (PvP-ony)
*4: a longbow that does not require any upgrades

== Choice of secondary professions ==

[[Monk]], [[Ritualist]] or [[Paragon]] is often used to provide a reusable [[Resurrection]] skill.
*{{mo}} [[Monk]]: [[Rebirth]] can be used to avoid party wipes in PvE. Another common use is an [[Ether Renewal]] [[bonder]].
*{{n}} [[Necromancer]]: The Sunspear skill [[Necrosis]] can be used in combination with [[Searing Flames]] or other skills which inflict burning for a low energy, spammable direct damage skill. 
*{{me}} [[Mesmer]]: [[Arcane Echo]] and [[Echo]] are often used to cast multiple copies of powerful spells such as [[Meteor Shower]]. [[Mantra of Earth]] in conjunction with [[Stone Striker]] and [[Stoneflesh Aura]] and/or [[Armor of Earth]] can be used to effectively mitigate most if not all damage due to high AL.
*{{a}} [[Assassin]]: In PvE, [[Assassin's Promise]] can be used to spam energy-efficient but slow-recharging ADOT spells such as Ebon Vanguard Assassin Support, Churning Earth, or Chain Lightning. If there is a lot of downtime between battles even [[Meteor Shower]] can be used (often combined with Glyph of Sacrifice).
*{{rt}} [[Ritualist]]: [[Death Pact Signet]] can be used in emergencies to quickly resurrect a key party member, such as a Monk, with high Energy. [[Flesh of My Flesh]] can be used as a general purpose hard resurrect without the drawbacks of Death Pact Signet.
*{{d}} [[Dervish]]: [[Mystic Regeneration]] is a powerful heal when combined with several Elementalist enchantments (such as Attunements). [[Dwayna's Touch]] and [[Featherfoot Grace]] provides a decent amount of healing, condition immunity and mobility on a split.
*{{r}} [[Ranger]]: [[Serpent's Quickness]] could be used to reduce the recharge time of slow-recharging skills (see above).

{{profession guide}}

[[Category:Profession guides|Elementalist]]