optimizing ranger damage
 

Other than DoTs, are DD damage spells worth casting beyond with pulls with arrow shots between? Mine is only level 30 atm, but Ive never played one to this point and I'm curious if not casting during fights is lazy or optimal lol

You should cast between attacks to optimize.

In classic live everquest you would cast between enemy attacks so that you weren't interrupted.

The DPS on your spells are pretty low but its good to have a dot on the mob I usually opened with stinging swarm or whatever. Its nice to have swarm on mob that is fleeing so it can finish the job. On live it was sometimes difficult to hit fleeing mobs.

Spam kick

For grouping, I generally save my mana for snare, flamelick, harmony, dispell, root, chloro, etc. but if you're trying to burn something down quickly nuking between attacks is a good way to do it. It works pretty well with something slower like Woodsman Staff but less well with something like lupine dagger/swiftwind.

If you're soloing, leading with a dot or two can be effective and nukes can help in a pinch, but generally you're doing some combination of root/snare/shoot and face tanking depending on the level OR fear kiting animals in velious, so the situation for nukes will be few and far between.

spam backstab

Rat whip and mossy twig to maximise damage shield DPS and ensure most expediated ranger gate.

how IS the damage on the whip? With 14 delay you have to get massive amounts of flat MH attack bonus.

I would treat flame lick like a taunt spell more than a damage spell.

But I’m no ranger

I use my dd nukes while I'm snare/bow kiting. It works pretty well to speed up the kill. Swarm, arrow,snare,fire dot, then rotate bow and DD. Reapply dot/snare if need be. Melee them down when they get low. Its easier to get mana back then mana and health. You need to test it out depending on the mobs hps. I used it on Hill giants pre-kunark.
In group settings you can nuke if you are using a 2 hander or when you get the call of fire/ long cooldown fire nukes. Always make sure you save mana for the snare or a couple roots/heals. If you are pulling don't waste your mana on nukes unless you have clarity, it will delay the pulls.
Good luck on your ranger!

:Yup. I have on sow, skin and damage shield. I start with snare, arrow, flame lick, arrow, swarm, arrow, arrow etc till dots fade then dot, arrow, dot, arrow backing up alllll the time. If I get in a place where I can't do that, I snare, arrow, dot, arrow, dot, hack and slash. If I get beat up, root, back up and heal till the root breaks and back at em.
Mmmmm, ranger are super.