Difference between revisions of "Electrocute"

Latest revision as of 02:03, 23 November 2013

Electrocute in action.

Electrocute is a Primary Wizard skill unlocked at Level 15, which electrocutes an enemy over time. This is a Signature spell. Signature spells are free to cast.

Electrocute functions like a continuous Chain Lightning, with a bolt that remains active as long as the Wizard keeps it going. The beam locks onto the targeted enemy, or any enemy in close proximity to the target, and chains to others as well, dealing damage every pulse. The hit rate is determined by the Wizard's attack speed.

Background[edit | edit source]

The Wizard opens up a hole between the physical and ethereal realms, and calls forth lightning arcs that grip an enemy and fries it until dead, or the Wizard releases her grip on the ethereal realm.

Skill Rune Effects[edit | edit source]

Refer to the Electrocute rune effects article for thorough descriptions of all five rune effects in this skill, including screenshots, videos, and strategy tips.

Name	Level	Description

<skill subcat="Signature spell" class="Wizard">Electrocute</skill> <skill class="Wizard" rune="Chain Lightning">Electrocute</skill> <skill class="Wizard" rune="Forked Lightning">Electrocute</skill> <skill class="Wizard" rune="Lightning Blast">Electrocute</skill> <skill class="Wizard" rune="Surge of Power">Electrocute</skill> <skill class="Wizard" rune="Arc Lightning">Electrocute</skill>

Skill Design[edit | edit source]

This article is a stub because this section is severely outdated and written in non-encyclopedic style. Help by expanding it.

Electrocute functions much like a beam weapon, locking onto the target and zapping until dead.

is basically a beam weapon, one that the Wizard fires as long as she keeps the mouse clicked. You can not move while using Electrocute, but you're unlikely to want to, since it locks on and keeps zapping the target until it's dead, or you're out of mana. The second happens before the first more often than you'd like, and it's basically unusable on bosses, or even moderately tough targets like Dune Dervishes and Dark Demons, since mana would run out long before their health. Other Wizard spells deal far more damage per mana, but few are as much fun to use as this one.

Electrocute was simply awesome for small stuff, especially on evasive enemies like the fluttering Sand Wasps, or those last one or two Fallen Imps who always scattered away from the battle when their Overseers and Shamans went down. Just aim at the monster, or anywhere near it, and the beam locks on, draining that monster steadily. Smaller monsters usually died in less than a second, and I found this one far quicker than the higher damage Arcane Orb to clean up groups of weak enemies. Some screenshots show this one chaining to multiple targets, but higher levels in this spell only listed more damage.

Note that lightning damage critical hits will stun targets. This one stuns (very briefly) at least every two seconds, so there must be a lot of hit checks going on, to trigger the critical hit so frequently. That stunning is, of course, highly useful when you're locked onto an enemy trying to charge into melee range.

Video[edit | edit source]

A video of Electrocute can be seen below, courtesy of the DiabloInc You Tube channel.

Synergies[edit | edit source]

The following Wizard passives provide a benefit to Electrocute, runed or not:

Name	Level	Description

<skill class="Wizard">Glass Cannon</skill> <skill class="Wizard">Prodigy</skill> <skill class="Wizard">Paralysis</skill> <skill class="Wizard">Arcane Dynamo</skill>

Development[edit | edit source]

Electrocute snakes through some Skeletal Executioners.

Electrocute was first shown at BlizzCon 2008, where the lightning could hit a string of targets at lesser and lesser damage. Back then, it was at Tier II on the Storm Skill Tree.

This was changed in the demo displayed at BlizzCon 2009, where it became focused on a single target. The change seemed to have been done briefly before BlizzCon, since the description of the spell had not been completely updated; it didn't show a mana/sec cost, and a damage/sec stat. Flux found it fun but very expensive:[1]

You can not move while using Electrocute, but you’re unlikely to want to, since it locks on and keeps zapping the target until it’s dead, or you’re out of mana. The second happens before the first more often than you’d like, and I found this one unusable on bosses, or even moderately tough targets like Dune Dervishes and Dark Demons, since my mana would run out long before their hit points. Other Wizard spells deal far more damage per mana, but few are as much fun to use as this one.

Unfortunately, by BlizzCon 2010 this spell still had a disturbingly high resource cost, as mentioned by Flux:[2]

It’s not very high damage, so you’ll need to cook for a while on tougher targets, and at low levels this one isn’t very useful against bosses or champions; it’s just to AP expensive for big enemies; you’ll be out of resource before they’re out of hit points.

Skill tiers were removed for the July 2011 Press Event, allowing skills to unlock steadily from levels 1 to 30. Consequently, all skill levels were adjusted and Electrocute became a level 6 skill.

Beta[edit | edit source]

The Diablo III Beta started in September 2011, and while it ran, all of the skills continued to undergo extensive iteration. Skill changes varied from changing the levels the skills are unlocked, to changes in resource cost, damage, and even function. A few skills were removed altogether, and a few new ones were added. Also, the entire skill system received an overhaul with the Beta Patch 13 update in February 2012, with physical runes replaced by rune effects that automatically unlock at various levels for the different skills.

Electrocute remained a level 6 skill when the beta started. Flux found it very useful:[3]

Electrocute is great fun to use, and would be so even if it wasn’t so powerful. The skill works a bit like Chain Lighting, with a single electrical bolt fired out that hits a target and then jumps to other nearby enemies. Electrocute moves much more quickly than Chain Lightning ever did though, and while the damage is quite variable in the beta, it’s generally high enough to wipe out any normal monster with a single flicker.

With the Beta Patch 8 of December 2011, all signature spells became free to cast, and Electrocute was bumped up to level 13. With the Patch 13 changes, it was classified as a Primary skill and dropped to level 11. For March's Beta Patch 14, it moved to level 15, making it unplayable in the beta.

Previous Versions[edit | edit source]

See the Wizard skill archive for more details on previous versions of Electrocute and other Wizard skills.

In Other Games[edit | edit source]

Electrocute is an updated version of Diablo II's Sorceress skill Chain Lightning, but with more of a Dungeons & Dragons inspiration.

Trivia[edit | edit source]

This spell was originally more inspired by Chain Lightning from Dungeons & Dragons, but later changed to a completely new design, electrocuting one target at a time.

Media[edit | edit source]

Electrocute can be seen in action on video here:

You can find pictures in the Diablo III screenshot and picture gallery:

Old version of Electrocute hit multiple enemies.
Electrocute shot from inside a Slow Time bubble.
Electrocute snakes through some Skeletal Executioners.
Electrocute chews through some monsters.

References[edit | edit source]

BlizzCon 2009 Full Wizard Skill Trees
BlizzCon 2010 Wizard Hands-on Report
Zediono's translation of JudgeHype's pre-beta report — IncGamers 1st Aug 2011
Silva's Wizard Runestone Effects — IncGamers 5th Sep 2011
Wizard Beta Skills Mega-report: Part One — IncGamers 4th Oct 2011
Wizard Active Skills — Blizzard's Official Diablo III Site

Template:Skill navbox Necromancer primary

Template:Skill navbox Necromancer secondary

Template:Skill navbox Necromancer corpses

Template:Skill navbox Necromancer bloodandbone

Template:Skill navbox Necromancer reanimation

Template:Skill navbox Necromancer curses

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-'''Electrocute''' is a [[Wizard]] Tier 3 [[Wizard skills|skill]] unlocked at [[clvl|level]] 6, which electrocutes an enemy over time.
+[[File:IconElectrocute.png|left]]
+[[File:Wiz-electrocute1.jpg|thumb|350px|Electrocute in action.]]
+'''Electrocute''' is a Primary [[Wizard skill]] unlocked at [[clvl|Level]] 15, which electrocutes an enemy over time. This is a [[Signature spell]]. Signature spells are free to cast.
+Electrocute functions like a continuous Chain Lightning, with a bolt that remains active as long as the Wizard keeps it going. The beam locks onto the targeted enemy, or any enemy in close proximity to the target, and chains to others as well, dealing damage every pulse. The hit rate is determined by the Wizard's attack speed.
 ==Background==
-{{Skillbox D3
+The [[Wizard]] opens up a hole between the physical and ethereal realms, and calls forth lightning arcs that grip an enemy and fries it until dead, or the Wizard releases her grip on the ethereal realm.
-|portrait= Wiz-electrocute1.jpg
-|portrait-width= 200px
-|name= Electrocute
-|user= Wizard
-|tier= 3
-|clvl= 6
-|description= Lightning arcs from the Wizard’s fingertips towards an enemy, electrocuting it for X-Y lightning damage.
-|type= Direct [[Damage]]/[[DoT]]
-|resource= Costs [[Arcane Power]]/time
-|alabaster= Unknown
-|crimson= Unknown
-|golden= Unknown
-|indigo= Unknown
-|obsidian= Unknown
-}}
-The [[Wizard]] opens up a whole between the physical an ethereal realms, and calls forth lightning arcs that grip an enemy and fries it until dead, or the Wizard releases her grip on the ethereal realm.
+==Skill Rune Effects==
+Refer to the [[Electrocute rune effects]] article for thorough descriptions of all five rune effects in this skill, including screenshots, videos, and strategy tips.
+{{skill description header}}
+<skill subcat="Signature spell" class="Wizard">Electrocute</skill>
+<skill class="Wizard" rune="Chain Lightning">Electrocute</skill>
+<skill class="Wizard" rune="Forked Lightning">Electrocute</skill>
+<skill class="Wizard" rune="Lightning Blast">Electrocute</skill>
+<skill class="Wizard" rune="Surge of Power">Electrocute</skill>
+<skill class="Wizard" rune="Arc Lightning">Electrocute</skill>
 ==Skill Design==
-The description of this [[skill]] is incomplete, since it has a hefty [[mana]]-per-second cost, and that makes it awesome for quick hits, especially to finish off moving targets, but not very suitable for big enemies.
+{{stub|this section is severely outdated and written in non-encyclopedic style}}
+Electrocute functions much like a beam weapon, locking onto the target and zapping until dead.
-Electrocute was not enabled to start with, but once a [[Wizard]] hit level 13 and earned a skill point, it could be used. It's great fun to use, and very useful too. Electrocute is basically a beam weapon, one that the Wizard fires as long as she keeps the mouse clicked. You can not move while using Electrocute, but you're unlikely to want to, since it locks on and keeps zapping the target until it's dead, or you're out of mana. The second happens before the first more often than you'd like, and it's basically unusable on [[boss]]es, or even moderately tough targets like [[Dune Dervish]]es and [[Dark Demon]]s, since mana would run out long before their [[health]]. Other Wizard spells deal far more damage per mana, but few are as much fun to use as this one.
+is basically a beam weapon, one that the Wizard fires as long as she keeps the mouse clicked. You can not move while using Electrocute, but you're unlikely to want to, since it locks on and keeps zapping the target until it's dead, or you're out of mana. The second happens before the first more often than you'd like, and it's basically unusable on [[boss]]es, or even moderately tough targets like [[Dune Dervish]]es and [[Dark Demon]]s, since mana would run out long before their [[health]]. Other Wizard spells deal far more damage per mana, but few are as much fun to use as this one.
 Electrocute was simply awesome for small stuff, especially on evasive enemies like the fluttering [[Sand Wasp]]s, or those last one or two [[Fallen Imp]]s who always scattered away from the battle when their [[Fallen Overseer| Overseers]] and [[Fallen Shaman|Shamans]] went down. Just aim at the [[monster]], or anywhere near it, and the beam locks on, draining that monster steadily. Smaller monsters usually died in less than a second, and I found this one far quicker than the higher damage [[Arcane Orb]] to clean up groups of weak enemies. Some screenshots show this one chaining to multiple targets, but higher levels in this spell only listed more damage.
@@ Line 32: / Line 32: @@
 Note that [[lightning]] damage [[critical hit]]s will [[stun]] targets. This one stuns (very briefly) at least every two seconds, so there must be a lot of hit checks going on, to trigger the critical hit so frequently.  That stunning is, of course, highly useful when you're locked onto an enemy trying to charge into [[melee]] range.
+===Video===
+A video of Electrocute can be seen below, courtesy of [http://www.youtube.com/Diablo3Inc the DiabloInc You Tube channel].
+<youtube>OwzMVuIVfAI</youtube>
-==Skill Rank Table==
+==Synergies==
-[[File:Wiz-electrocute2.jpg|thumb|350px|Electrocute snakes through some [[Skeletal Executioner]]s.]]
+The following [[Wizard passives]] provide a benefit to Electrocute, runed or not:
-* '''Rank 1:''' Deals 1-15 [[lightning]] damage.
+{{skill description header}}
+<skill class="Wizard">Glass Cannon</skill>
+<skill class="Wizard">Prodigy</skill>
+<skill class="Wizard">Paralysis</skill>
+<skill class="Wizard">Arcane Dynamo</skill>
+==Development==
+[[File:Wiz-electrocute2.jpg|thumb|300px|Electrocute snakes through some [[Skeletal Executioner]]s.]]
+'''Electrocute''' was first shown at [[BlizzCon 2008]], where the lightning could hit a string of targets at lesser and lesser damage. Back then, it was at Tier II on the [[Storm Skill Tree]].
-==Trait Synergies==
+This was changed in the demo displayed at [[BlizzCon 2009]], where it became focused on a single target. The change seemed to have been done briefly before BlizzCon, since the description of the spell had not been completely updated; it didn't show a [[mana]]/sec cost, and a damage/sec stat. [[Flux]] found it fun but very expensive:[http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/full-wizard-skill-trees/]
-Electrocute benefits directly from the following [[Wizard traits]]:
-* [[Glass Cannon]]: Increases damage done by spells and increases armor.
-* [[Intimidation]]: Increases damage done and reduces vendor costs.
-* [[Quickening]]: Increases spell casting speed.
-* [[Beast Hunter]]: Damage bonus against beasts.
-* [[Demonsbane]]: Damage bonus against Demons.
-* [[Just...Stay...Dead!]]: Damage bonus against undead.
-* [[Power Surge]]: Increase critical strike damage.
-* [[Penetrating Spells]]: Reduces the resistances of your target to your spells by 20%.
-'''Note:''' The current [[trait]] list is very out-of-date and will no doubt be overhauled before game release.
+<blockquote>''You can not move while using Electrocute, but you’re unlikely to want to, since it locks on and keeps zapping the target until it’s dead, or you’re out of mana. The second happens before the first more often than you’d like, and I found this one unusable on bosses, or even moderately tough targets like Dune Dervishes and Dark Demons, since my mana would run out long before their hit points. Other Wizard spells deal far more damage per mana, but few are as much fun to use as this one.</blockquote>
+Unfortunately, by [[BlizzCon 2010]] this spell still had a disturbingly high resource cost, as mentioned by [[Flux]]:[http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/hands-on-from-blizzcon-mega-pvm-report-wizard]
-==Skill Rune Effects==
+<blockquote>''It’s not very high damage, so you’ll need to cook for a while on tougher targets, and at low levels this one isn’t very useful against bosses or champions; it’s just to AP expensive for big enemies; you’ll be out of resource before they’re out of hit points.</blockquote>
-* Unknown rune: Adds damage.
-* Unknown rune: Causes killed targets to explode, damaging nearby monsters.
-* Unknown rune: Triggers Chain Lightning off any target killed by the spell.<ref>[http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/blizzcon-2010-hands-on-stuff.co.nz/ BlizzCon 2010 Hands-On: GamePlanet NZ] -- Incgamers 5th Nov 2010</ref>
+Skill tiers were removed for the [[July 2011 Press Event]], allowing skills to unlock steadily from levels 1 to 30. Consequently, all skill levels were adjusted and Electrocute became a level 6 skill.
-==Development==
+===Beta===
-'''Electrocute''' was first shown at [[BlizzCon 2008]], where the lightning could hit a string of targets at lesser and lesser damage. Back then, it was at Tier II on the [[Storm Skill Tree]].
+{{Beta skill notes}}
-This was changed in the demo displayed at [[BlizzCon 2009]], where it became focused on a single target. The change seemed to have been done briefly before BlizzCon, since the description of the spell had not been completely updated; it didn't show a [[mana]]/sec cost, and a damage/sec stat. [[Flux]] found it fun but very expensive:[http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/full-wizard-skill-trees/]
+Electrocute remained a level 6 skill when the beta started. [[Flux]] found it very useful:[http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/wizard-beta-skills-mega-report-part-one]
-<blockquote>''You can not move while using Electrocute, but you’re unlikely to want to, since it locks on and keeps zapping the target until it’s dead, or you’re out of mana. The second happens before the first more often than you’d like, and I found this one unusable on bosses, or even moderately tough targets like Dune Dervishes and Dark Demons, since my mana would run out long before their hit points. Other Wizard spells deal far more damage per mana, but few are as much fun to use as this one.</blockquote>
-Unfortunately, by [[BlizzCon 2010]] this spell still had a disturbingly high resource cost, as mentioned by [[Flux]]:[http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/hands-on-from-blizzcon-mega-pvm-report-wizard]
+<blockquote>''Electrocute is great fun to use, and would be so even if it wasn’t so powerful. The skill works a bit like Chain Lighting, with a single electrical bolt fired out that hits a target and then jumps to other nearby enemies. Electrocute moves much more quickly than Chain Lightning ever did though, and while the damage is quite variable in the beta, it’s generally high enough to wipe out any normal monster with a single flicker.</blockquote>
-<blockquote>''It’s not very high damage, so you’ll need to cook for a while on tougher targets, and at low levels this one isn’t very useful against bosses or champions; it’s just to AP expensive for big enemies; you’ll be out of resource before they’re out of hit points.</blockquote>
+With the [[Beta Patch 8]] of December 2011, all [[signature spell]]s became free to cast, and Electrocute was bumped up to level 13. With the Patch 13 changes, it was classified as a Primary skill and dropped to level 11. For March's [[Beta Patch 14]], it moved to level 15, making it unplayable in the beta.
-Hopefully, skill balancing will make this skill less resource-intensive before game release.
 ===Previous Versions===
-See the [[Wizard skill archive]] for more details on previous versions of Electrocute and other Wizard skills.<br>
+See the [[Wizard skill archive]] for more details on previous versions of Electrocute and other Wizard skills.
 ===In Other Games===
 Electrocute is an updated version of [[Diablo II]]'s {{iw|Sorceress Sorceress}} skill {{iw|Chain_Lightning Chain Lightning}}, but with more of a Dungeons & Dragons inspiration.
 ==Trivia==
 This spell was originally more inspired by [http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/chainLightning.htm Chain Lightning] from Dungeons & Dragons, but later changed to a completely new design, electrocuting one target at a time.
@@ Line 91: / Line 87: @@
 * [[Cinematic: Wizard]]
 * [[Gameplay: Blizzcon 2008]]
+* [[Gameplay: July 2011]]
 You can find pictures in the Diablo III screenshot and picture gallery:
@@ Line 105: / Line 102: @@
-<!--
-==Related Articles==
-''Articles that are related, but not emphasised enough in any other section, or articles that just need further attention.''
--->
 ==References==
-<span style="font-size: 10px;"><references/></span>
 * [http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/full-wizard-skill-trees/ BlizzCon 2009 Full Wizard Skill Trees]
 * [http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/hands-on-from-blizzcon-mega-pvm-report-wizard BlizzCon 2010 Wizard Hands-on Report]
+* [http://diablo.incgamers.com/forums/showthread.php?p=7960229#post7960229 Zediono's translation of JudgeHype's pre-beta report] — IncGamers 1st Aug 2011
+* [http://diablo.incgamers.com/forums/showthread.php?p=8007624#post8007624 Silva's Wizard Runestone Effects] — IncGamers 5th Sep 2011
+* [http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/wizard-beta-skills-mega-report-part-one Wizard Beta Skills Mega-report: Part One] — IncGamers 4th Oct 2011
+* [http://us.battle.net/d3/en/class/wizard/active/ Wizard Active Skills] — Blizzard's Official Diablo III Site
+[[category:Active skills]]
+[[category:Wizard skills]]
+[[category:Wizard active skills]]
+[[category:Signature spells]]
+<br>
+<br>
+<br>
-{{Slave navbox Diablo III|Wizard}}
+{{Skill navbox Diablo III|Wizard|primary}}

Fan-made Classes			Fan-made Skills [e]
• Alchemist • Arcane Warrior • Artisan • Aurian Mage • Bard • Channeller • Dragon Warrior	• Flagellant • Giant (U) • Hollow Man • Nomad • Onaga Manji • Phase Knight	• Ranger • Slayer (U) • Techpriest (U) • Telepath • Untainted (U) • Zealot	Dragon Warrior Skills • Bow and Throwing Skill Tree • Dragon Disciplines Skill Tree • Martial Arts Skill Tree	Untainted Skills • Divine Skill Tree	Aurian Mage Skill • Holy Power Skill Tree • Shadow Spells Skill Tree • Nature Forces Skill Tree
(U) = Unfinished				Untainted Skills • Divine Skill Tree