Mana clash the only way? (minor spoiler)

[Pekka]

So, seems like Mana clash is the only way (or at least the easiest way) to get the Heavyhitter achieve as a mage? My main char is damage oriented Mage/Arc warr/Bloodmage and, according to statistics, his highest hit is around 160. I kept
Wynne as my main healer and just gave her Mana clash as a utility spell - her stats show highest hit 683 Anyone else has seen this? That spell is a killer against anyone with mana it seems.

[Loki[D.d.G]]

Well, there are other good spell combos that allow you to deal massive damage as a mage, but just not as much as Mana Clash would do to a target with a big mana pool. For instance, both Nightmare and Entropic Death can deal massive amounts of damage and net you the Heavy Hitter achievement all the same. Couple that with an Affliction Hex and you can kill just about any singular target that doesn't resist your spells.

Also, as a side note, there are certain foes that you'll encounter who cant be killed outright with a Mana Clash, but if I recall correctly, all are in the boss class, i.e, orange names.

[Pekka]

That's cool, but the spells you mention must be in the expansion, cause I haven't seen them in the original game. In the original campaign MC looks to be the best "burst" thing you can get, granted though it doesnt work on all enemies.
And talking about orange bosses - I remember when I was doing the Elven alienage part of the Final battle and came up against that orange hurlock caster at the gate. Wynne brought him to 50% with one MC, I had to shield her after that, cause, unsurprisingly, she took aggro Still, one cast to bring an orange guy down to half health is kinda nice I thought

[Loki[D.d.G]]

That's cool, but the spells you mention must be in the expansion, cause I haven't seen them in the original game.

Those spells I mentioned are from the original campaign... haven't played Awakening myself. I'm pretty sure you've used them before and just aren't familiar with their codex names. Nightmare is obtained by casting Horror on a foe already under the effects of a Sleep spell, i.e. a combo of Sleep and Horror. Entropic Death is a combo of Death Hex and Death Cloud.

[Pekka]

Ah ok, I see Have to try those as well to see the numbers

[Scottg]

..you can also *first* stack a sequence of Vulnarability Hex AND Affliction Hex before either Mana Clash or the combo spell Entropic Death.

Depending on the opponents spirit resistence and your spellpower, you can drop an opponents resistance quit a bit. The max is -100%.

Finally, you can also increase the damage modifier for spirit damage (beyond increasing spellpower) through the use of equipment like gloves that add additional damage. (..and it gets a lot better in Awakening with staffs and rings.)

[Loki[D.d.G]]

..you can also *first* stack a sequence of Vulnarability Hex AND Affliction Hex before either Mana Clash or the combo spell Entropic Death.

That can be problematic, especially on Nightmare where even a regular foe has a high chance of resisting at least one or two of the spells you throw at it.

[GoldDragon]

I got it on a mage by casting a Storm of the Century.

Cast this by casting Spell Might, Blizzard and finally Tempest.

Best Graphics for the Spell combos come from Grease Fire, IMO, tho. Low Damage, but still pretty.

[Loki[D.d.G]]

Storm of the Century looks mighty fine too with the twister and lightning effects

[Scottg]

That can be problematic, especially on Nightmare where even a regular foe has a high chance of resisting at least one or two of the spells you throw at it.

True.. but then the thread seems more concerned with maximum damage - not how easy it is to achieve that damage.

I often find that Bloodwound will rarely ever fail (even on Nightmare), and it can give you the time to do your "stacking" - allowing for Manaclash or another paralysis-type spell followed by a "combo" Entropic Death. Of course spellpower needs to approach being "maxed".

[Pekka]

I got this achievement now in Awakening with the Entropic death spell.
Have to say though, the expansion fights seem real easy compared to the original game, and I am playing on Nightmare (played the original on Hard mode). Looks like they upgraded monster health a bit, but forgot to do the same for monster damage output. The new talents and OP gear also plays a role in this ofc.