Heat management with Pyro

[Slowmojo]

I'm currently lvl 30 as Pyo, up until a few levels ago i was Advanced Prototype.

 

And now i seem to have a significantly harder time to manage my heat. Aside from my "Ohsh*t overheating" button.

While the AP heat venting is passive, the Pyro one is reactive, wich i really like.

But the downside of it is that it is very unreliable.

 

If i'm unlucky enough to not get a proc that refreshes my Rail Shot and makes it free, i actually can't vent heat properly.

 

After i used a few Fire Bursts and a Rocket Punch i'm already way up on the heat level. Using any more not only puts me way over the second or third regen tier lowering my heat venting even more.

And if i don't manage to get a proc at all and wait for the CD, not only do i have to delay my heat venting but i still won't vent it properly because the Rail Shot costs 16 heat without the proc.

 

I know theres a talent that reduces the cooldown of Vent Heat by 30 seconds, but i don't think its a good idea to use our "Ohsh*t" button for general heat management.

 

Is there a reason for this? At level 30 i don't see much of a damage difference between AP and Pyo, how is it at 50? does it balance out?

More Rapid Shots required to balance out the damage or something?

I would ask for pointers, but it seems based to much on RNG to find anyway around it.

 

If this is not the case, can i suggest having a the talent to remove the cost of Rail Shot completely, so if you have an unlucky streak you can still vent heat without having to add even more heat in the process

[BloatedGuppy]

More Rapid Shots required to balance out the damage or something?

Yup.

 

>40 heat and rail shot not up? Rapid Shots.

<40 heat and rail shot not up? Rocket Punch or Flame Burst.

 

The only deviations to this rule is if you want to burn Thermal Sensor Override, or if Vent Heat is off cool down and you really feel a powerful need to burst.

 

Rapid Shots isn't so bad. Weaving in a few Rapid Shots here and there in place of Flame Bursts to keep your heat managed isn't going to cause a huge drop in DPS. Not like spiking up to 80 heat will, anyway.

[Slowmojo]

Ah, the heat venting just felt so much more reliable for AP because it would always vent 8 heat every 6 seconds regardless.

 

While as pyro i have to burn 16 heat to have a even a slight chance to being able to vent 8 heat, and if the RNG gods deny me the proc, i'm sacked if the proc is denied multiple times.

 

But i haven't really played around with Pyro that much, so i might just have to get used to it still, thanks for the reply

[BloatedGuppy]

Ah, the heat venting just felt so much more reliable for AP because it would always vent 8 heat every 6 seconds regardless.

 

While as pyro i have to burn 16 heat to have a even a slight chance to being able to vent 8 heat, and if the RNG gods deny me the proc, i'm sacked if the proc is denied multiple times.

 

But i haven't really played around with Pyro that much, so i might just have to get used to it still, thanks for the reply

 

AP's reliable heat venting is one of the major pros of the spec. The cost of Pyro's burst is the whimsy of proc based DPS and heat management.

 

Once you get used to keeping it under 40 it starts to feel a lot more fluid and natural. Before that you'll have lots of "accidents" that result in you glancing at the heat bar and seeing it maxed out.

[chainsawsamurai]

Once you get used to keeping it under 40 it starts to feel a lot more fluid and natural.

 

^^^THIS^^^

 

That is the most important part of anything related to Pyro, I hated it at first too. I have a feeling that anyone who has tried parts of Pyro and didn't like it just didn't stick with it long enough to get used to it.

 

Once you get into the swing of things, Pyro has much better Heat management through Heat refunds and discounts, but it feels entirely different from Adv Proto which chugs along at its own little pace.

 

Give it a bit more time and try to get used to it before dropping it to go back Adv Proto. If you can get it down you'll never want to go back.

[Carnifex-XIII]

Pyro feels feast or famine sometimes. A lot of rail shot resets keeps your heat levels very low. Too few and well you're burning vent heat too early.

 

You can improve your heat managment by not being so quick to queue up another ability after FB or RP. Getting use to recognize either the proc animation or the proc buff itself will mean less wasted rail shot resets.

[zenoshi]

I found a good rotation for me and while we do love the free RS as disscused you really need to keep the heat under 40. That in itself is hard to swallow as when the MOB is under 30% IM damage goes up so as you burn through the phase you have to be extra careful.

[csincarnate]

"It is as he said, you prioritize Rapid Shots when you're above 15 Heat. This is because with the costs of abilities, if you are above 15 and cast a 25 Heat ability, you drop a heat regen bracket which is rather punishing. Therefore, if you're above 15 heat, you go ahead and use Rapid Shots to make sure your next heat cost ability does not encounter this problem. I have been able to get away with using Rapid Shots around 20-25 heat (I am saying this as a Merc, but it may apply for PT play on occasion), but that is because based on how my rotation/priority flow shakes out, I can anticipate what my next skill is and so adjust accordingly given if my next move is a channel, an activation, or an instant. But for specs that have a ton of 25 Heat abilities, 15 is a pretty good breakpoint. Pyrotech Powertechs are a great example of where you may want to abide by 15 as a firm threshold for going into Rapid Shots."

 

15-20 heat or more = rapid shots unless you're about to get a kill in pvp and just want to go nuts.

 

Also everytime your guy laughs, an angel gets his wings, also you get a free rail shot. Fun starts when you get 5 or 6 procs in a row.

 

Questions?

Edited January 10, 2012 by csincarnate

[Slowmojo]

Thanks for the replies.

I wasn't forced to use much of my rapid shots as AP, but i'l take it into consideration to use it much more often.

 

I've also heard my guy laugh alot during combat, is that an indication that i got a proc?

[Dharknite]

One of the good things about being full Pyro is get a nice 9% damage increase with Rapid Shots to burning targets and since you are PT, your target should always be on fire.

[BloatedGuppy]

I've also heard my guy laugh alot during combat, is that an indication that i got a proc?

 

Correct.

[xkill]

I'm having terrible heat issues in the mid 20's and I think its due to me misusing Incendiary Missile

 

 

seems like most pve pulls while leveling in Nar Shaddaa consist of 3 mob packs and I would shoot Incendiary Missile at each one, that's 75 heat built up before the fight really starts.

 

here is my typical killing rotation that's terrible for heat but fun as hell

 

Incendiary Missile each mob while running into melee -->(round up the mobs using Grappling Hook if needed) --> Flame Thrower --> Rocket Punch/Rail Shot/Flame Burst as needed

 

 

how can I better manage 3/4 pack pulls? if I don't get some kinda damage on all they go beat on Mako and I don't want that

[BloatedGuppy]

I'm having terrible heat issues in the mid 20's and I think its due to me misusing Incendiary Missile

 

 

seems like most pve pulls while leveling in Nar Shaddaa consist of 3 mob packs and I would shoot Incendiary Missile at each one, that's 75 heat built up before the fight really starts.

 

here is my typical killing rotation that's terrible for heat but fun as hell

 

Incendiary Missile each mob while running into melee -->(round up the mobs using Grappling Hook if needed) --> Flame Thrower --> Rocket Punch/Rail Shot/Flame Burst as needed

 

 

how can I better manage 3/4 pack pulls? if I don't get some kinda damage on all they go beat on Mako and I don't want that

 

Using Incendiary Missile on anything lower than an Elite seems to be a waste of time, to be honest. At 18 seconds, the DoT is just too long for strongs and normals, so you lose the damage/heat efficiency of the long DoT, and as you're finding, at 25 heat using it more than once in a short period of time will absolutely cripple you for heat. Even when using it on elites or champions, I highly recommend combining it with Thermal Sensor Override as often as possible.

 

You have three options with packs of 3-4 mobs.

 

1. Death From Above.

2. Some combination of Explosive Dart/Flamethrower if the above is on cooldown. Make sure to position the dart so the resultant explosion doesn't blow the mobs out of Flamethrower's range.

3. Just kill them one at a time. They'll go down fast. Often by the time I'm finished fussing about with positioning for Flame Thrower and Explosive Dart I could've had them half dead anyway if I'd just run up and started punching them in the face.

[Hinscher]

Using Incendiary Missile on anything lower than an Elite seems to be a waste of time, to be honest. At 18 seconds, the DoT is just too long for strongs and normals, so you lose the damage/heat efficiency of the long DoT, and as you're finding, at 25 heat using it more than once in a short period of time will absolutely cripple you for heat. Even when using it on elites or champions, I highly recommend combining it with Thermal Sensor Override as often as possible.

 

You have three options with packs of 3-4 mobs.

 

1. Death From Above.

2. Some combination of Explosive Dart/Flamethrower if the above is on cooldown. Make sure to position the dart so the resultant explosion doesn't blow the mobs out of Flamethrower's range.

3. Just kill them one at a time. They'll go down fast. Often by the time I'm finished fussing about with positioning for Flame Thrower and Explosive Dart I could've had them half dead anyway if I'd just run up and started punching them in the face.

 

I'm only low level so didn't want to post my idea, but seems I'm in the right.

 

I usually start fights with death from above (if available), otherwise its Explosive dart to the middle guy so it hits them all and they all target me. Then while they run over I use unload or something like that on the toughest guy, IGNORING the normals. When they get to me its flamethrower time and flamethrower is usually strong enough to kill the weaker guys after having taken the explosive dart in the beginning, thus leaving the strong guy alone.

 

Death from above seems to kill all normal enemies, so if thats available no strategy involved there, but to use that and then kill remaining guy with rest of moves.

Edited January 11, 2012 by Hinscher

[xkill]

Using Incendiary Missile on anything lower than an Elite seems to be a waste of time, to be honest. At 18 seconds, the DoT is just too long for strongs and normals, so you lose the damage/heat efficiency of the long DoT, and as you're finding, at 25 heat using it more than once in a short period of time will absolutely cripple you for heat. Even when using it on elites or champions, I highly recommend combining it with Thermal Sensor Override as often as possible.

 

You have three options with packs of 3-4 mobs.

 

1. Death From Above.

2. Some combination of Explosive Dart/Flamethrower if the above is on cooldown. Make sure to position the dart so the resultant explosion doesn't blow the mobs out of Flamethrower's range.

3. Just kill them one at a time. They'll go down fast. Often by the time I'm finished fussing about with positioning for Flame Thrower and Explosive Dart I could've had them half dead anyway if I'd just run up and started punching them in the face.

 

 

Thanks for the great advice guys!

[Astronium]

I'm only low level so didn't want to post my idea, but seems I'm in the right.

 

I usually start fights with death from above (if available), otherwise its Explosive dart to the middle guy so it hits them all and they all target me. Then while they run over I use unload or something like that on the toughest guy, IGNORING the normals. When they get to me its flamethrower time and flamethrower is usually strong enough to kill the weaker guys after having taken the explosive dart in the beginning, thus leaving the strong guy alone.

 

Death from above seems to kill all normal enemies, so if thats available no strategy involved there, but to use that and then kill remaining guy with rest of moves.

 

Dont want to tell anyone how to play but... seriously, get rid of unload if you're a powertech... Stationary, and deals poor dmg for the heat it costs, just get in there and smack them instead ^^

[Ineffective]

I switched from Shield Tech to Pyro a few levels ago (now 38) and I think I have the heat management and rotation down.

 

I use incendiary missile first on the silver+ mobs, otherwise I open with a flame burst (to proc my comb. gas cylinder) followed by the first rail shot. From there, my main priority for silver+ or in pvp is:

 

1. Rail Shot (proc and non-proc)

2. Rocket Punch

3. Maintain Incendiary Missile DoT

4. Flame Burst

 

As far as heat management, I can use Rocket Punch, Flame Burst, and Rail Shot (non-proc) if my heat is 23 or less. I can use Incen. Missile at 14 or less. If my heat is higher than those levels, I use my basic attack until it cools down.

 

I still can't do this without looking down at my heat level frequently (movable UI would be great), and sometimes shoot over 40 heat in pvp. When I do, I keep using my heat until about 80 and pop my 1.5 minute cooldown to drop it back down to normal levels. I also burn into high heat levels to secure a kill in pvp.

 

Since I play a fire mage in WoW, the pyro RNG feels very generous to me.

 

PS the evil "Heh heh heh" the character does when Rail Shot procs is a huge help, so learn to listen for that and Pyro heat management will be much easier.

[MorningMusume]

Dont want to tell anyone how to play but... seriously, get rid of unload if you're a powertech... Stationary, and deals poor dmg for the heat it costs, just get in there and smack them instead ^^

 

Unload costs like 1 heat when the cast ends

Edited January 11, 2012 by MorningMusume

[Ineffective]

Unload costs like 1 heat when the cast ends

 

Agreed, Unload is a good ability to use when you're stuck at range (or target is above you/unreachable).

[chainsawsamurai]

There are an awful lot of reasons to keep Unload on your bars, especially in PvP.

 

I don't keep it in a high-value hotkey location, but I wouldn't unbind it for anything.