Overview
Some are confused about ward, for those is this guide.
What is Ward
What is the “Energy Shield” you know from other ARPG’s and is mainly used by caster specializations. It is a little confusing to understand, but after you do the Ward is better than any Energy Shield you know, at least in my opinion.
Ward attributes
The more ward you have, the higher is its decay. Your total balanced ward is the point where your ward per second stat is balanced to the decay value.
You can increase this point of balance by:
1) Increasing the ward per second
2) Reducing the decay value, which is defined by “Ward retention”. Ward Retention (=WR) is also granted by intelligence.
Burst of ward can be seen as ward generation below the balance and overcharge above the balance. While above listed values are must have defence stats for every caster, burst values are secondary and to be used where it is worth it.
Receive ward
The most important stat for ward is the ward per second (=WPS) stat. This stat can be particular cumbersome to get.
The easiest way is likely the aegies, offhand catalyst. You can buy and craft those. The first of 3 different aegis requires level 25.
[link]
[link]
[link]
I was lucky and also found
[link]
With the 2nd aegies and this head piece of gear and some WR I am currently at about 300 balanced ward.
People also say this chest is also nice to have or even must have (I don’t know)
[link]
According to database ward per second can also drop on idol, but I didn’t find one yet.
After you maximized ward per second you try to maximize the WR. Just try to boost intelligence when crafting, and skill intelligence and WR within your passives. WR can also be on idols, which occurs much more often than WPS.
All burst ward passives are, as mentioned, secondary and need to be chosen wisely. 10 burst ward usually doesn’t last long. There are plenty options for burst ward. As a sorcerer I can only suggest “Flame Ward” Skill, which provides 300+ burst ward, which is a lot on a pretty short cooldown. I consider this skill a must have for sorcerer also.
After all have some hints where to find ward here:
[link]