Good evening.
I was considering making a build centered around Albrecht’s Aether ray, and I was on the fence about using a Sorcerer or an Occultist as my second mastery. Is one of those a better choice than the other, or is there a better mastery for this role altogether? And if so, then why?
Thank you for your time.
I actually went Soldier for the defensive stats.
Depends on what you want to do. AAR you need to stand still, so defense was a big priority for me 
I’ll post a grimcalc in a bit roughly showing you my setup
not 100% correct but close
http://grimcalc.com/build/bvfwIWF
I have +4 or so to all arcanist, as well as a fair bitt + to aether ray, and disintergration.
Thank you very much. I’ll give a Battlemage a go and see how I like it.
Sorcerer is probably the most common selection for an AAR build. Blast Shield is awesome. Vindictive Flame helps you move around as it provides 15% total speed and HP regen. Flash bang helps with CC and lowering DA (make it easier for you to crit). Thermite mines are great end game with Albretch’s Duality rings converting the Chaos damage to Aether.
Occultist does have Vulnerability which will help reduce element resistance so it will help with the fire portion of AAR/devastation. Plus a heal in Blood of Dreg. They are typically less tanky then a Sorcerer though.
AAR requires a lot of energy, and you’ll be lacking the energy pool and spirit by going soldier. If going CT, Soldier would be better. Nightblades and AAR just don’t have any real symmetries. Shaman has mogdren’s pack and heart of the wild to help with hp and energy regen, but as you’ll need to be in close range to use Wendigo’s Totem, it really isn’t that useful. Raging tempest can help with resist reductions, but there is where the synergies end.
So in the end I would personally rank them: Demo, OCC, Shaman, Soldier, Nightblade.
Since you’re only considering it, I’d recommend you consider Callidor’s Tempest instead. Hopefully AAR on the list of skills that are due for a buff. If you already went with Battlemage, then CT would make a good alternative if you don’t like AAR.
AAR takes too much energy to use. Kinda commits you to getting certain devotion combos that help with energy regen. These are points that could go towards making your build more defensive. You’re gonna need at least 250/sec energy regen for the ray to be viable at max level. And most would say 300+. You have to give up quite a bit to get that.
For the energy cost, the damage isn’t all that great. You’re going to have to kite a lot, and AAR doesn’t work that well as an offensive tool when you’re kiting. Its next to useless, actually.
Another downside is its extremely gear dependent. If this is a first, or even a 2nd character, I wouldn’t recommend it. I’d recommend you have most or all of the end game gear already in storage before consider an AAR build.
Choasblade had the expectation that the AAR sorcerer is going to kill Fabious as fast as a Blademaster. If you have the same expectations, then you should listen to him. Most casters, not just AAR, will NOT compare to the speed of a melee build, but that doesn’t mean they can’t be fun to play. They also require some skill to play as you can’t just stand there and mash buttons to win. My first character was an AAR sorcerer and he did very well. I’m not taking out Ultimate Log in 20-30 seconds, but do in 40 seconds…really not a game breaker for me. He is still also my primary farmer over my warder as the general clear speed (non-bosses) is soooo much faster and the kill times on bosses is negligible overall and actually quicker in most cases (just not Fab/sentinal).
Yes, they require gear to really shine…but most every build does so that it is not exclusive to an AAR build. They can still beat the game with lesser gear (just like other builds). CT builds need just as much gear to be able to stay in melee range, so don’t let Choasblade mislead you. The trade forums are great for getting that gear. You’ll be getting a lot of worthless legendary items for you, so why not help someone else out and get what you need too.
You will want to pair AAR with Devastation and reckless power as soon as you can. AAR by itself is weak (which where all the demands for buffing is coming from) but paired with Devastation, OFF and other skills (depending on your mastery) it is viable and fun to play. Again…Fun is relative, so try it out…respect later. Just don’t let someone who failed at making a successful AAR build ruin your opinion before you try it out. You may come to the same opinion as him in the end, you may not… Only you can decide what is fun for you. You can always respect your skill points (not mastery or attribute points at least not without external software so careful with them, although most builds also just go 90+% physique anyways) and devotions if you want to change it up.
Good luck!