Drain bonded item has to be your first action. So you can drain - cast spell level 3 or higher - bond conservation, next turn drain - true strike - high level attack spell. At 14 you can do this twice, second time starting at lower then max spell level.
The other route is to cascade the bond conservation as long as possible. This means every turn will be drain - cast spell - bond conservation, dropping two spell levels until you reach 2 or 1. This can be effective if it's a fight you don't have many slots left to spend in, since you likely won't use any slots the whole fight, just your drain bond daily. Disadvantage is that it will not do good damage and be primarily buff/debuff, and you have to have specific levels of low level spells which are prepared and already cast which are effective for the current situation.
I think option 1 is the more practical and consistent way to think about bond conservation. It may give less total value than cascading, but I think many times you'll find that the useful low level spells for your current situation have not been used yet or were not prepared at all. It's easy to have an expended true strike ready to recast.
Of course you can also use any other lower level spells you've already cast, but true strike is always a strong pick thanks to its ability to greatly enhance a higher level spell you follow up with.
|
Welcome to the white room of theorycrafting. A place of magnificent esoteric builds so insanely dominant that they make other builds a waste of space <catch myself>>
Bond Conservation (playing that level wizard only a few times so bear in mind only a limited opinion) was useful to give another spell that may not have happened (which wasn't needed but felt cool) over an entire encounter arc. The idea of "down cascading" (or something like that) is fantastic theory but the relative advantage over other feats is very niche. The reality was that most of the encounters ended after 4-5 turns so the endless cascading rinse-and-repeat spell sequences never would fit.
Sorry - I have no good examples of how to get bond conservation to live up to the hype. I will relish reading how someone made it work in practice and not just in theory or hypotheticals
Sadly the theoretical maximum that I listed in Principia Arcana are just that, theoretical maximums. Actual play scenarios have, so far, not given me the chance to ever really let rip.
But I can help!
To Cascade with Bond Conservation well, you actually need to be a bit more liberal in your spell use and you probably feel is safe, and you need to change how you think of your prepared spells.
Your highest level spell slot is your catalyst. It opens up every spell you've previous cast that day, but, you need to have actually cast them for it to benefit you. This means you can afford to sling spells more than ever.
It also means you can afford to prepare a broader selection of spells. Instead of preparing two instances of something, prepare it once and cascade down into additional uses.
Also, think of spell combos in 2 level bands. Casting a 5th level spell? what 3rd level spell couples with it to the best effect. Make lists and consider them as "load outs". Use the Spell Substitution Thesis to change your Load Out is you aren't confident in your preparation.
Basically, you just need to change how you think about your spell usage. Don't ration like you used to. Every expended slot is an opportunity. Every prepared spell can be cast multiple times off a single preparation. Think of spells that have a wide range of uses that can be applied in a wide range of situations (Get ready to fight in clouds and fog a lot until the spell list grows), duration's, pick battlefield control spells over blasting, utility spells over single buffs. True Strike is better off uses from a staff rather than your actual prepared slots.
|
|
I still have not actually ever gotten to high enough level to use it or see it used, but the observation that most combat encounters are only a few rounds is true in my experience so far, certainly. If that holds true at higher levels it would seem to make Bond Conservation tough to squeeze a lot out of. Still worthwhile though, probably.
That's the thing, you don't need to be a torrent of spells every encounter. It's real power is that it dramatically expands your adventuring day and allows you to prepare a broader selection of spells without hampering yourself.
|
|
At the moment, all I really have is my anecdotal experience from my actual play sessions.
Honestly, it feels incredibly liberating not to have to ration spells as thoroughly as I did 1st-7th. And it has changed how I prepare and plan my spells per day for, what I feel, is the better.
Other can decide the value for themselves of course, but Bond Conservation just makes my Wizard feel powerful.
|
|
Can't you get use out of Bond Conservation by preparing long-duration buff spells, and using it to pre-buff before fights?
100% You can.
I think the reason people are looking for greater optimization though is that it can do so much more than that.
Say, for example, you cast a 7th level Haste in a previous encounter. You can use BC to get that back and have it up on your party again. But, if you stop there, you lose out on a lot of additional spells. If you cast 7th level Haste in Round 1 instead, on your following turn you get an additional 5th level spell, the turn after that you get an additional 3rd, and then a 1st.
That's 4 spells off 1 BC activation, 3 of which would otherwise be wasted if you just stopped after Haste.
|
|
This is part of reason I said you need to change your thinking when it comes to your spell slots.
Spell rationing actually hurts a BC build. You should be throwing out lower level spells like they are going out of style. Since your daily potential SPD goes way up if you expend a slot, it benefits you to use spells less sparingly than you otherwise would.
Its not about bosses now, but excuses!
Cough.
Conversation
vs
Conservation
;)
Let's all bond!