Pure PVP Elestra - Road to most hated player (1v1 and softban)

Note:
I am doing this because someone is bugging me to do this but rest assured this is neither rushed nor biased and i will try my best to answer concerns here although it would be easier addressing your concerns in-game via mail or PM. This is only a guide based on my personal preference and experience and is not to be followed completely. Please inform me if I gave false or outdated information.

Introduction
AeonicMind here, also leader of NightRaid and the owner of all Eiko's in my guild as of now. I've been using Elestra since 24 cap and was always inclined towards the Ice path. I began having deep interest for PVP with this job since 32 cap and practiced without EX and I assure you that this job can combo well even without Elestra skills. I was asked to share my build and make a guide for pvp so I will start with this, my favorite class.

Elestra is known as the ice mage that is famous for her intense damage combined with the ever-annoying slow debuffs. Almost all her core skills inflict a 5-second-slow debuff (Frostbite) on an enemy and is definitely not to be taken lightly. The debuffs do not stack but instead, the duration is refreshed (except Shatter). This has been the reward in exchange for the freezing skills we used to have. Only freezing skills left are Ice Sphere and Ice Barrier EX (until reworked).

Playstyle
General playstyle of this mid-ranged and melee class is to keep your opponent slowed as much as possible to disrupt and prolong their combos, to cancel some skills (like circle shot) and to easily take preventive measures based on their actions.

Pros and Cons
Below are the advantages and disadvantages of an elestra:

Pros (+)

• Amazing combos
  
• Has the all-time enemy favorite: Slowsssss
  
• Damage is high
  
• Got escape skill
  
• Moderate-High Magical Defense
  
• Ice shield has a slow now
  
• Freezing Field EX Instant is very easy to trigger and land
  
• Ice Sphere and Ice Barrier EX (pre-rework) can freeze
  
• Huge AoE skills, especially EX versions, for more accuracy
  
• Good at cancelling skills
  
• Low CD skills
  
• Can wall combo
  

Cons (-)

• Low HP
  
• Low Super Armor
  
• Low Defense
  
• Skills have cast time
  
• Easily punished when your skills miss
  
• Icy Shards EX is camera-locked now
  
• No mobility except for flame road
  
• Hated job = Difficult to have a 1v1 fairly
  

Skills Discussion

Summary: All ice skills' hit count will trigger Frostbite debuff - the slow (30%) for 5 seconds (except for Chilling Mist EX left click hit). Max all ice skills in EL and Elestra tree (unless pure softban build).

Sorceress Tree:

Flame Worm - Pathetic damage but useful when enemy is grounded and only serves as a utility and filler spell when no other choice is available. Still handy to use, not to mention its free. Keep at level 1. Inflicts burn debuff (useful for those Ignite users).

Wheeling Staff - Good utility especially when enhanced to level 6. The additional effect is good for staggering/flinching, and is a decent filler when poison and Icy Shards are still on CD. Keep at level 1 or 6 for the extra spinning effect.

Glacial Spike - It is my choice to increase this to level 26 for the damage (since its ice attribute) and because this is spammed a lot for the slow. Can be lowered if you need the SP. Definitely useful. Can be used on grounded enemies after your combo ends to leave a slow debuff as they get up.

Void Explosion - Decent damage but can be difficult to land. Has the highest damaging potential among Sorceress skills. Your choice if you want to learn this.

Shockwave - Definitely useful but has a long CD. Damage is not as good considering the CD but the utility it gives is more than enough to use. You will want this for wall combos and to keep those pesky rushers away from you. Keep at level 1.

Poison Missle - Your bread and butter for pvp. Must have at level 6 for an extra poison pool. Use this when your opponent is on the ground for your main combo. This skill can be aimed for more accuracy on farther targets (watch Poison Stacking in youtube c/o AikawaKazu). Can also be used on enemies that are not on the floor for paralyze effect. Decent CD. Low damage.

Air Hammer - Very useful especially after Aerial Evasion to get back on the ground fast and possibly put them on the floor at the same time. Very good filler skill along with your staff attack (left click). Very handy for sure.

Passive Skills - Max all EXCEPT Mana skills and Charged Missle.

Elemental Lord Tree (no EX versions yet):

Icy Shards - Your spammable lift skill. Damage is high. Use at melee range to hit. Excellent for connecting skills.

Fireball - This is edgy to invest your SP in. Good damage even at level 1 and inflicts burn status. You can use this for melee cases like when they are drinking your poison pools for a lift. Useful for pressuring and baiting your enemy's mobility skill (shoot this after they use their dodge when long range). Charge to stage 3 for maximum damage and lift. Long cast time for stage 3 but can be released immediately. I want to max this as much as I want since I use this a lot especially under poison but SP constraints.

Frost Wind - MVP for initiating and spamming. Must take even for our hot sisters. Low CD and makes enemy flinch/stagger. You will engage with this skill a lot or for the slow it gives. Max this for more damage.

Flame Spark - Long range skill and inflicts burn. Mediocre damage. Low CD. Can be used as filler or for grounded enemies. This skill can be aimed higher for longer range even though it does not physically reach the ground (if you do this, you will not see the skill or the explosion if no enemy was hit). Not as essential as Frost Wind but definitely important and wanted.

Freezing Field - Big frontal AoE damage. Use when enemy is dancing on ur poison pool to secure a hit. Long cast time. Mediocre CD.

Inferno - Channeling skill to burn enemies in front. Can move mouse while casting. Upgrade range to 7m by increasing level to 6. Mediocre CD, Super Armor, and overall damage. Not worth it to dump SP here. Keep at level 1 for Fire Wall.

Frozen Spikes - Low cd and damage is high. Good for cancelling skills, most enemies inside this will have their skills cancelled.

Fire Wall - Good lift skill to nearby enemies. Inflicts burn but damage is not good as an Elestra unless you max it. Long CD and cast time but good for tanking because it provides high Super Armor. Nice tool for escaping in the middle of their combo (Aerial/Escape -> Fire Wall). Keep at level 1.

Glacial Wave - Pathetic skill without freeze effect. Only learn this and keep this at level 1 if you plan to take Shatter. Otherwise just ignore this.

Phoenix Storm - Good damage especially when fired at point-blank (very melee that enemy takes 3 hits). Inflicts 10% elemental debuff to targets and burn. Keep at 1 or max.

Shatter - Make all nearby enemies with Frostbite debuff to stagger/flinch and slow them by 50% afterwards. Removes Frostbite debuff on the target when hit. The slow inflicted is not a Frostbite debuff. Decent damage and CD. High Super Armor Break (good for cancelling).

Ignite - Same as Shatter without the slow and debuff. Removes burn debuff on the target when hit.

Ice Shield - Provides little Super Armor and inflicts Frostbite to all enemies within range (not sure but definitely more than Shatter range) for several seconds. Enemies can avoid this with iframe. This skill is not used when its a softban match.

Fire Shield - Same as ice shield but instead of frostbite, this skill inflicts burn. Do not learn unless you are interested with Flame Road. This skill is not used when its a softban match.

Chilling Mist - This is a good skill to take a huge chunk of your enemy's HP. Use when you are sure your enemy will get hit. Long CD. Front AoE. Has mediocre cast time.

Flame Road - Damage is mediocre. Can Blink out anytime to cancel. Good skill for Paralyzing and inflicting burn. Circle on your enemy to maximize damage. Long CD and be wary of Super Armor Breaking skills. I prefer not to take this since the SP consumed will be too high when taking Fire Shield. Do not learn or keep at 1 or you can dump spare SP here.

Hellfire - Free skill so why not. This skill only triggers for fire skills to increase the critical damage. Chance to boost our Fire damage.

Mana Surge - Not taken since you do not have mana issues.

Blizzard Storm - Your ult and is taken for your Elestra skills. Damage is bad and CD is long. Big AoE with you in the center. Decent Super armor but locks you in place. Does not freeze anymore, only frostbites. Keep or max when you have spare SP, can be useful for groups.

Fiery Vortex - Huge front AoE, provides amazing damage reduction and Super Armor while casting. Inflicts high-damaging burn. Long CD.

Elestra Tree:

Ice Barrier - Good for the shield it gives and fearsome for melee classes. Using this will make enemies think twice about going melee although ranged jobs will keep kiting. Good for tanking melee range as it freezes nearby enemies when it expires or when broken. Long CD. Mediocre cast time. This skill is not used when its a softban match.

Ice Sphere - Use this skill when you need a breather from your opponent's combo, or when opponent is slowed and is running a lot. Once they are frozen, use Phoenix and/or Chilling Mist to take the most of their HP. Everybody fears the Sphere > Mist combo. Long CD. Low damage. Good for freezing especially when maxed. Max for longer freeze time (skill acce if you want). This skill is not used when its a softban match MOST OF THE TIME.

Icy Shards EX - The crawling swords from the South Pole. This skill is amazing for lifting either melee or mid-ranged. Big sword (last hit) deals more damage so try not using this at a very close range if you want to maximize damage. Can get 4 hits from this skill. Big and long AoE.

Freezing Field EX - Gigantic frozen flower of doom. This skill has a VERY HUGE AoE. Do not underestimate the range of this skill. It might hit farther than you think. Increased damage.

Frozen Spikes EX - Frozen sticks are MVP for cancelling. Spawns another batch of spikes after the first one (2 extra batches only at pve). The extra batch can be aimed while casting. Batches of spikes explode at the end. Very high damage, and easier to land.

Chilling Mist EX - More swords from Santa. You can left click at the end of Chilling Mist to lift enemies inside the skill's AoE. The swords from this skill does not inflict frostbite or slow. Useful especially since this extends your combo rather than a dead-end for the most time. Staff click is a good filler after this lift.

Ice Barrier EX - Instant Freeze! Manual detonation of barrier is triggered by using the Ice Barrier skill again within 5 seconds after creating the barrier (no freeze when barrier is destroyed on detonation). When manually detonated, nearby enemies will be frozen (for now) and your Ice Attack % is increased temporarily. Additionally, when the barrier is cancelled and did not appear, you can re-cast the skill within 5 seconds until you successfully create the barrier. This will only freeze quickly so either slow them, throw phoenix at them (good chance for 3 hits), lift them or simply use this to cancel whatever skill they were using (or planning to use).

Class Mastery I - Plain as ice. 10% more Ice Attack, no complains there.

Class Mastery II - Buggy bugged skill (cannot be used in pvp caused by a bug as of now, Feb 15, 2016). After using Frost Wind, you can press Freezing Field to cast Freezing Field EX Instant to immediately center yourself in Freezing Field EX. Extremely useful when your Frost Wind was cancelled so you get back on your feet by casting the instant version. Additionally, successfully hitting an enemy with Frost Wind resets the CD of EX Instant, meaning you can cast 3 Freezing Field in short gaps of time. This also grants 5% additional attack. The instant part SHOULD NOT ALWAYS  be used right after Frost Wind. You can still do Frost Wind > 1 Staff click > Poison/Phoenix > Instant. This requires practice to pull off.

Skill Build

Will post after this guide.



Sample Initiate

(mid or melee range) Frost Wind or Flame Spark > Air Hammer *optional* > 1 Staff hit *optional* > Poison

(when long range) Icy Shards > Flame Spark or Frost Wind > 1 Staff hit *optional* > Poison

Flame Spark or Frost Wind > Air Hammer *optional* > 1 Staff hit *optional* > Wheeling Staff (control this carefully) *only if level6* > Icy Shards EX or Frozen Spikes EX > Flame Spark or Frost Wind > Poison

DPS Combo (Used after initiating a combo)

(when on poison) Phoenix Storm (make sure to push inside the poison) *optional* > Freezing Field or Frozen Spikes at any order > Stage 3 Fireball > Fire Wall > Chilling Mist > Icy Shards > Wheeling Staff *only if level 6* > Flame Spark or Frost Wind > Glacial Spike

(when on poison) Frozen Spikes or Phoenix Storm or Freezing Field > Chilling Mist > Icy Shards

Note: Most of my combos are just rotations and I just add Staff clicks, Slaps (on walls) and Flame Worm whenever I can to prolong my combo

Thank You and I hope this was informative enough and was able to show new stuff for the class that was helpful. Thank you for wasting your time reading my post, I hope I get to see more aspiring players go for pvp.

Woahhhhh