Alright. I’ve been seeing several “How Do I Kill An Ele?” threads going around. So, I thought I’d drop in my two cents.
All that follows is in reference to the current D/D Cele Ele meta build for PvP.
First, I want to say that I play an Ele as my main. I’ve earned the “Champion Magus” title. My PvP level is in the 50’s. 75% of my matches are played with a D/D ele. I primarily play Ranked matches. So, I’d venture to say that I’m decent and understand how they work.
The key to beating an Ele (or any class for that matter) is understanding their skills/traits/and how they work. Yes, players might not want to put the time and effort into this, but, if you’re looking to play in Ranked or higher level play, that’s simply what you have to do.
Now, everyone can look at the current Ele meta build at Metabattle.com. So, I’m going to proceed with breaking down a standard Ele rotation.
Rotation:
Eles generally start out in Air attunement. It has a solid gap closer coupled with a stun/interrupt. So, when an Ele looks like they’re about to engage and are in Air, have a stun break ready. Generally, an Ele will trigger Shocking Aura (for stun) followed by Ride the Lightning (gap closer). They can then follow with Updraft (knockback) to down an enemy if they are still up. An Ele can also throw in Lightning Touch (weakness), but it isn’t really imperative. Next up is generally Fire attunement. Don’t be afraid to lay on damage during the Air phase.
Air is a decent damage attunement. So, it’s generally followed up by the major damage attunement: Fire. Especially if an enemy is still stunned/knocked down from air, Fire is a great choice to lay on some damage to get ahead of the game. Burning Speed (gap closer/Blast) is a good opener. It applies burning and leaves a fire wall for 4 seconds. It usually gets the Ele right on top of the enemy after using Updraft from air attunement. This gives great positioning to trigger Ring of Fire(Fire Field) smack on top of the target. With all the burning generated during this phase, a good next move is Fire Grab so that it does extra damage. If the target has moved out of range though, an Ele might use Drake’s Breath to try and do a bit more damage while getting into good positioning. While the Ele is dishing out damage in fire attunement, Condi clear, defend, run, whatever. Just minimize damage. After this, the Ele has to wait before it can trigger another “real” DPS phase.
Depending on how the fight is going, an Ele will switch between Water and Earth.
If an Ele’s health is still relatively high, they will switch to Earth. The protection is great, but this attunement lacks DPS. Feel free to hit hard in this phase, especially if you can nullify the protection. Generally, an Ele will open this attunement with Magnetic Grasp(immobilize) to trap a target. They can then use Magnetic Leap(chain skill) as a gap closer, but I rarely do. Earthquake(knockdown) is a good follow up. An Ele can use this to try and gain either a little uninterrupted time to heal(more likely, I think) or to begin a new DPS phase. It’s also a common attack for an Ele to use to try and rez a downed teammate. Ring of Earth(cripple/bleed) is an optional earth attack. The bleed isn’t great, but the cripple can help keep an enemy in range for bigger attacks. Churning Earth(better cripple/bleed/blast) is rarely used in a PvP match. The cast time is just too long and leaves the Ele vulnerable. If you see one using this, capitalize on the opportunity with some serious DPS. Basically, Earth attunement is used to control movement. Have stability and other immobilize breaks handy.
Finally, there’s Water attunement. After an Ele goes through their water rotation they CAN’T REALLY HEAL FOR A LONG TIME (In PvP time. You know what I’m talking about. Eight seconds is an eternity in PvP). Be sure to lay on the DPS once they exit. Likely, they’ll open with Frost Aura(damage decrease/chill) or Frozen Burst(chill) to reduce incoming DPS. If they’re in real trouble, they might open with Cleansing Wave(big heal/condi clear). Cone of Cold(heal) can then be used to grant a little more healing. This attunement has very little damage compared to Fire or Air. So, it’s a good idea to heal yourself as well when you see an Ele swap to Water.
For the most part, that’s the general rotation. Air->Fire->Earth->Water->Rinse and Repeat. Now, no two Ele’s rotation is exactly the same. They can change it up to either maximize might and DPS or Heal/tank more. This is what I use, but the way one should react when they see these attunements and attacks should generally remain the same.
Skills:
Signet of Restoration is the heal meta right now. For every attack an Ele does, they get back a little health. Maintaining distance while attacking is a great way to neutralize this. Eles don’t want to waste their cooldowns. So, they won’t spam them if they can’t hit the target. Thus, they lose healing. When they activate the signet, they gain roughly 3,275 health. After that, it takes 25 seconds to gain back any benefit from the signet. RAIN DOWN YOUR FURY AND FRUSTRATION UPON AN ELE IF YOU SEE THEM TRIGGER THIS. They can’t really do anything aside switch to water. And, when that’s gone, no more healing.
Cantrips are the current Ele’s lifeblood. Aside from their special effects, they also grant might and regeneration with the right traits equipped. Regeneration then does 1 condi clear with the proper trait as well. So, space out your conditions and interrupts to make the Ele waste these. It takes 30+ seconds for each one to recharge. Keep that in mind.
Fiery Greatsword does pretty decent DPS. If an Ele uses it though, their healing takes a fairly large hit. Lay on the DPS if you can.
General Tips:
Aside from knowing the rotations and how to react, there’s some general tips one can apply. D/D Eles cannot range to save their lives. Yes, they have a gap closers, but, if you can maintain distance (Rangers), they can’t really touch you. Immobilize Eles to keep them at bay and make them waste their cantrips. Also, if you can screw up an Eles rotation, it wrecks their life. Use interrupts and chill. Interrupts are a no brainer, especially when timed appropriately. Try them out in the fire and water phase to ruin healing and DPS for the Ele. Since chill slows down cooldown times, spam it everywhere if you can (especially in fire and water). Again, it ruins rotations. And don’t forget about the dodge rolls. Evasive Arcana gives each dodge roll a unique ability. If you can shut down the dodge rolls, Eles lose a lot of utility.
Another great tip to down people in PvP (Eles included) is to CALL OUT TARGETS. This small amount of coordination has made the difference in many games I’ve played. You can even call out targets when downed. Call targets on other downed players while you’re downed so you can rez off of them.
I’m sure I’ve forgotten a few things, and I’m sure that my rotation isn’t absolutely perfect, but this is a general idea on how to combat an Ele. It’s possible to kill us. We are squishy. Messing up our rotations creates big windows in which we are vulnerable. One just needs to recognize the signs and capitalize on them.