The art of the Channeler

The debate rages whether pk with a channeler takes more or less skills than a ranger or warrior. There are aspects of channelers that lead to both opinions, but regardless of the skill involved, playerkilling with a channeler is definitely different from playing a warrior or ranger. It all revolves around staying alive the longest, and killing the most opponents, but the tactics involved differ markedly.

   Arguably the greatest advantage a channeler has in battle is the ability to do large amounts of damage rather quickly. There are a number of attack weaves available, but fireball tends to be the one most often used, given its strength and versatility. Depending on the level of the channeler and the extent to which it has been practiced, fireball can deal about 20-80 hit points of damage for each successful cast. As long as the channeler is not hit, a fireball can be cast each round or a little bit faster with excellent timing. Another strength that channelers have is the ability to find and apprehend their targets from across the world. With practiced use, locate object, locate life, and travel are nearly as deadly as fireball. One of the more difficult aspects of playerkilling is finding your quarry (if you are actively seeking battle) and getting to him or her. The locate weaves allow you to get a very good idea of where your target is, and travel allows you to get there swiftly. An added bonus to travel is the ability to flee a battle. If you see that things are going badly for you in Tarwin's Gap, you can be to Emond's Field in a twinkling, leaving some rather disappointed opponents behind. Going into battle as a channeler can be rather difficult.

   Channelers have low hit points, and if you are hit while channeling a weave, the weave will fail. Because of this, it is very convenient, and almost a necessity, to have someone else to take the damage for you while you channel your weaves. This is one particular advantage to becoming part of the White tower, as Aes Sedai of all Ajahs, except Red, may bond a Warder. When a Warder is bonded, he gains the ability to autorescue his Aes Sedai. Autorescue transfers attacks against the Aes Sedai to the Warder automatically. An Aes Sedai/Warder pair is one of the deadliest combinations available for playerkilling. Even if you are a male channeler, or a female who does not have a Warder, it is rather handy to have someone around to initiate the attacks or rescue you, giving you plenty of opportunity to let loose with a few well timed fireballs.

   There are, of course, more weaves to be used than just fireball and the other offensive weaves. Refresh is one particularly useful weave. With this, you can regenerate the moves of horses and those in your group. This is quite useful when chasing or being chased. Also useful is the remove poison weave. When playerkilling against Trollocs, they may flee to a fade for protection, and some even have poisoning blackswords. Another handy weave is blind. It is quite difficult for your opponent to either flee or chase you down if he cannot see where he is going.

   Timing is one of the most important things when playerkilling as a channeler. You must know when to start your weaves, when to flee, when to rest, etc. You must be on top of the action and know what is going on at all times. You do not have to option to take a few extra hits because you do not know what is going on. Just a few hits can be the end of you. Also, it does you no good to start a weave and then have your target flee from the room. You have to channel your weaves at just the right times. It also helps to channel as quickly as possible when in battle. The sooner you start your fireballs, the sooner they hit your opponent. You must also keep track of how many spell points you have left. It does you no good to perfectly time that blind spell and realize that you could not complete it because you lacked the spell points.

Penned for WoTmud by Tara, Red Sedai.