Hi folks, I've been getting into PVP recently with my mage character, and I need some suggestions on what to change up my build to make it a little more effective. First off my stats and equipment.

Soul Level 275

VGR: 37

END:40

VIT: 29

ATTN: 76

STR: 21

DEX: 18

ADP: 30

INT: 73

FTH: 4

Magic Staff of Wisdom+5

Magic Moonlight Greatsword+5

King's Shield +5

Black Witch Hat+5

Black Witch Robe+5

Lion Mage Cuffs+ 10

Lion Mage Skirt +10

Chloranthy Ring+2

Third Dragon Ring

Clear Bluestone Ring+2

Ring of Steel Protection+2

Spells

Homing Crystal Soulmass

Crystal Soul Spear

Soul Spear

Soul Greatsword

Heavy Homing Soul Arrow

Soul Flash

Currently I have 236 Cast speed

Strategy

With this build I tend to use my low equip weight to dodge most attacks and try and hit when they are locked in an animation. I tend to start off using soulmass and either crystal soul spear or homing soul arrow to see if they can dodge it, then follow up with another spell.

Because the Moonlight greatsword has very slow swing speed, I try to use that to my advantage but purposely throwing out a single R1, then throw the second one out at the very last possible second which catches people of guard a lot. I also throw out the rolling attack at the last possible second as it tracks better, but it's a very hard timing.

The main problem with the build is I have very very low poise and defence, which means I'm very easily stunlocked if I'm not careful. I considered adding more armor, but I don't know if losing the additional casting speed would be any help, as it's really useful to be able to cast that quickly. Also because my attacks are very slow, I sometimes get back stabbed midway through my swing, as I tend to throw it out just as they finish rolling. I also can't parry worth a damn which doesn't help.

If anybody is a high level PVP mage and has any ideas, I'd greatly appreciate it.

Although I don't PVP much in DS2, I think your character is a little too one-dimensional. Some things you could try: use a faster weapon (maybe even in addition to your current one), use some pyromancy, practice parrying some more (maybe with a different shield if that would help), or respec your stats to optimize them better (e.g. get your VGR to 50 so you can survive stunlocks a little better). Here's a video I happened to come across a couple days ago of some fancy mage PVP in DS2--maybe it'll give you some ideas/inspiration: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GnQ2wK5L5QQ

@savage: I've been messing around with some options, like just a normal +10 Longsword, which seemed effective, so I might use it longer term. I messed with some pyromancy, but I really don't like the pretty long casting time. I might add fire whip or firestorm, as it gives me more up close options.

Yeah I caught that video too yesterday, and it;s why I'm now using soul flash, as he turned round my opinion of it.

@eternalvigil: I didn't play a mage and I haven't played my lvl 254 character since shortly after the game came out so I might be getting some things wrong. I know some gear stats have changed in the five or six patches since, plus there DLC gear to consider as well. Take what I say with a grain of salt.

I played a two handed halberd, no shield build (a shield is just an invitation to get hit and is some weight to carry). I dodged a lot. I don't think I raised my ADP over 18 or 20. I'm not sure what you're getting out of having 30. What's your equip load like? Maybe that's the difference. I tried to keep mine at around 50% - 55% (even though most of the time I was around 57%).

I would agree with the notion that your build is a little one dimensional. I used to only have one weapon equipped. It became apparent that that would not be enough. I added a poison element to my build (through pyromancy, throwing knives, bows and melee). The damage over time may be negligible but it forces people to panic or rush what could be an otherwise patient player. Sometimes they cure it at bad times and I can pounce or take the opportunity to heal. When it became clear that this still wasn't enough I needed range added to my build. After fully upgrading a bunch of bows I finally settled on something that was beastly. Since you're a caster you don't need range added to your build though.

Does your ATTN need to be 76? I know it gets you extra spell casts but are you really going to need all those casts in the one or two battles you'll encounter between opportunities to reset them? It was probably really good in the single player for long trips between bonfires with lots of enemies but I don't think it's necessary for PVP.

Despite not putting anything into ATTN till I was around 235 I still pumped FTH and INT to 30 - 35. My reasoning was that most gear didn't have good elemental defenses and those stats filled that gap. My halberd also had flame damage, so I was getting some attack benefits from both as well.

I also use the Black Witch Robe +5 because that elemental defense was super important to me. Casters were eating me up a lot early on. With the weight I saved by using the robe I was able to have a super heavy helm and legs to fill in the gap on physical def. I don't remember what my gloves were.

I'm not sure I would change out any of your rings (maybe steel protection) but I will say that I've had my life saved by the red tearstone ring A LOT in PVP. I've accepted that my health will be critically low at times, and there are rarely opportunities to heal. Having the phys attack bonus lets me win fights I should have lost, especially when people drop their guard as they try to finish me off. Probably not the best option for a caster though.

All in all I'd say I've diversified my build enough that I can handle a lot of situations. I don't consider myself to have any weaknesses. All it cost me was the ability to cast spells, other than the one heal spell I added late. I've found all the holes in my defense and patched them up. I've found all the holes in my offense and diversified my attacks. That's what you need to do now.

The ideal adaptability for most builds is 26 I believe.

Don't even bother unless you're going to mix in some melee and great-shield. The second play-through is where I quit because everyone was using roughly the same build.

You don't need that much INT. 60 at most and spice down anything above. Drop ATT to 60 as well and swap out the Ring of Steel Protection for the Southern Ritual band for the spell slots.

With the Clear Bluestone Ring, you really don't need all that casting speed equipment. Take those 29 points and round out VIG and VIT to 40 so you can have more health and wear better armor (poise doesn't matter a ton in this game until you get around 100, so don't stress over that). The Drakeblood armor is a very good medium set. Spread out the spare points how you see fit. Consider STR and/or DEX so you can have a backup weapon when you run into Great Magic Barrier Havels.

If you've been having trouble with survivability, consider dropping the Black Witch Hat. While it grants an attunement slot, it lowers your HP. There's several good head peices for casters to choose from. The Black Hood, Hexer Hood, and Northward Hood are all good choices, though it sounds like you might want to go with the Black Hood.

For spells, I would drop Crystal Soul Spear and Swap it out for another Soul Spear and another spell, like Soul Geyser maybe.

I don't think there exists one specific number that is best for most builds. The most important thing that Adaptability gives is Agility (which increases your i-frames during rolls), but Attunement also contributes to a lesser extent. So, the higher your Attunement, the less Adaptability you need to hit your desired Agility. Thus, magic users with their elevated Attunement typically need less Adaptability than non-magic users.

In addition, it depends on what Agility you're aiming for. Your number of i-frames increases by one for every 5 points of Agility, so you should aim for a multiple of 5. The most common sweet spots for Agility are 100, 105, and 110 (though there is some question as to whether 110 is actually a weird exception that brings no i-frame gain). The soft cap is 110, after which major diminishing returns kick in. The hard cap is 120, which is only reached with 99 Attunement and 99 Adaptability.

Personally, I like to use 105 Agility, which isn't too expensive to attain and gives enough i-frames for me be comfortable never using a shield. A light magic user can hit 105 Agility with 16 Attunement and 28 Adaptability; by comparison, a heavy magic user can hit 105 Agility with 60 Attunement and 14 Adaptability.