Spellhowler and Storm Screamer in Lineage 2 — SH guide

The SH at a glance

Players say "SH" for both the Spellhowler and its 3rd class, the Storm Screamer. The Dark Mystic starts with high INT and MEN but low CON and a small HP pool, so an SH fights from range and never lets mobs get close.

How to get the classes

The SH 3rd class quest

Saga of the Storm Screamer opens at level 76 with Fairen. Along the way the quest sends you to Kamilen, Mist and Medina Blackheart and to six Tablet of Vision points; you will have to fight Fallen Angel Allector, Archon of Halisha and Unknown Stopper and collect Ice Crystal, Divine Stone of Wisdom and Halisha's Mark.

On top of the class itself, Saga of the Storm Screamer pays out 2,299,404 XP and 5,000,000 adena, plus a Secret Book of Giants — you need it for the first step of a skill enchant. There is no SP reward, so 3rd class skills are learned with your own SP (see "Storm Screamer — 3rd class skills").

How to play an SH in Interlude

Your main nuke is Hurricane: power 108, wind, 6-second reuse, range 900. Weave dark hits in between: Death Spike (power 108, 6-second reuse, consumes Cursed Bone) and Vampiric Claw (power 108, 12-second reuse, part of the damage comes back to you as HP). Shadow Flare hits hardest among the regular 2nd-class nukes (Seed combos aside): power 135, but on a 30-second reuse.

Solo on mobs

1. While the target is still far away — Surrender To Wind: for 15 seconds it resists wind worse, so Hurricane hits harder.
2. Hurricane while the mob runs at you, then Death Spike, and Hurricane again as soon as it is off reuse.
3. Once the mob reaches you — Slow (speed ×0.5 for 60 seconds, 7-second reuse), step back and keep casting. Slow has 600 range and Hurricane 900, so a slowed mob can be kited at a distance.
4. A second mob — Sleep. Its cast takes 10 seconds, so put the second one to sleep in advance, before it starts running at you; the sleep lasts 15 seconds.

In a party

Against packs — Tempest (power 54 in a 200 radius around the target, 15-second reuse) and Aura Flash: power 65 around yourself, has a chance to make nearby mobs drop their target, 12-second reuse, consumes 4 Spirit Ore. Aura Flash saves you when a pack turns on you. On the 3rd class, Spell Force charges an ally: while the channel lasts, their M. Atk. is ×1.1.

In PvP

• vs a mage — Silence: 30 seconds of silence, 60-second reuse;
• vs a fighter — Slow, and on the 3rd class Wind Vortex: casting speed ×0.7, attack and run speed ×0.9;
• Curse Fear — fear for 30 seconds, 30-second reuse: split up two enemies or buy time for a cast.

Sleep is nearly useless in PvP because of its 10-second cast.

MP and HP

An SH burns through MP fast: every 2nd class nuke costs dozens of MP. Ways to refill it on your own:

• Body To Mind — trades 366 HP for 61 MP, 20-second reuse;
• Corpse Life Drain — drains HP from a mob's corpse, 20-second reuse; paired with Body To Mind it makes a loop: "HP from the corpse → MP from HP";
• passives Clear Mind (MP regen while you walk or stand still) and Fast Mana Recovery (MP regen +3.4).

What does not stack

• Wind Vortex, Dark Vortex and Arcane Chaos share one type and the same stackOrder: the last one cast stays on the target, so a second vortex removes the first. The same goes for Fire Vortex, Ice Vortex and Light Vortex from allied mages.
• Slow only overrides the weaker Freezing Strike slow, since its stackOrder is higher. Entangle, Seal of Slow and Hamstring share the same stackOrder, so whichever lands last stays: a Hamstring cast over Slow leaves the target at ×0.7 speed instead of ×0.5.
• Sleep shares a type with Sleeping Cloud, Dreaming Spirit and Trance, Silence with Seal of Silence, and Demon Wind with the Necromancer's Curse Disease: equal stackOrder, the last one cast remains.
• Surrender To Wind strips Resist Wind (from a Prophet or Shillien Elder) off the target, since the debuff has the higher stackOrder — handy in PvP.

Curse Death Link and the Seed combo

Curse Death Link (from level 52, power 108, 6-second reuse) hits harder the less HP you have. At full HP it is weaker than Hurricane, at low HP it is stronger. Body To Mind helps you drop your own HP: it has no HP threshold, and you get the MP back.

Level 66 brings Seed of Wind, followed by three hits that need "seeds" on the SH itself:

The water and fire seeds are Seed of Water from a Spellsinger and Seed of Fire from a Sorcerer. A seed lasts 5 seconds, so you cannot pull the combo off without coordinating with them. In the aCis build, Seed of Wind and all three hits have a 3600-second reuse — once an hour; some servers use shorter reuses. Don't plan your leveling around these hits — they are finishers for PvP and epic bosses.

Buffs for leveling an SH

Acumen and Flame Chant share a type with equal order: only the one cast last remains, they never work together. Bladedancer dances stack with both.

SH skills by level

1–20 · Dark Mystic

20–40 · Dark Wizard

The whole Dark Wizard tree costs 743,000 SP.

40–76 · Spellhowler

The whole Spellhowler tree costs 82,578,000 SP. Order: Hurricane → Death Spike → Quick Recovery and Boost Mana → Curse Death Link → Vampiric Claw and Shadow Flare → PvP control. Curse: Poison and Poisonous Cloud can wait: they are poison over time, which doesn't stack with other classes' poison, and an SH finishes a mob more easily with Hurricane.

SH skill spellbooks

A book is needed only for a skill's first level, and only if books are enabled on the server (many servers disable them). Nearly all SH books drop from mobs; just one is sold in the shop:

Storm Screamer — 3rd class skills

The whole 3rd class costs 283,020,000 SP, 150 million of it for Cyclone. The Ancient Spellbook: Cyclone drops only from Tyrannosaurus lv. 87 — 14% and 7.29% in two drop categories.

Arcane Power is the biggest damage boost on the 3rd class, but it costs the SH HP: switch it on for tough mobs and PvP, and keep an eye on your HP while farming. Skill Mastery: in the aCis build, a proc nearly resets the skill's reuse, and an effect (sleep, slow) lasts twice as long; the chance depends on INT. How it works on your server depends on the build.

SH skill enchanting

From level 76, 2nd class skills can be enchanted up to +30 along one of two routes. The first step also costs a Secret Book of Giants. The early steps usually succeed, but by the last one the chance falls almost to zero, even at level 80. Storm Screamer skills cannot be enchanted in Interlude.

Start with Hurricane — power if your MP holds up, MP cost if it runs short; Curse Death Link comes next.

SH gear

Weapon M. Atk. and set bonuses below come from the datapack; the choices themselves are what players usually recommend. Within one grade, the best staff and the best one-handed weapon have the same M. Atk., and in B the one-hander is actually stronger (see the B-grade table). So the SA decides it: a staff goes with Empower (+60 M. Atk. at S), a one-hander more often with Acumen for faster casting. Switch to the new grade as soon as it opens up.

1–20 · no grade

20–40 · D grade

40–52 · C grade

52–61 · B grade

61–76 · A grade

76–80 · S grade

Jewelry gives M. Def., and enemy mages are what kills an SH most often, so don't skimp on it. Majestic Robe is the PvP pick: an MP reserve and stun resistance.

Where to level an SH

The tables list zones from player guides plus the best ones by XP per HP; each zone shows the mobs with the best XP per HP and two drop items next to them (SH books first). Chances are at x1 rate and go up on higher-rate servers.

Level 20–40

Best for an SH: Catacomb of the Heretic and The Pilgrim's Necropolis — the most XP per HP, on par; Necropolis of Sacrifice — mobs from level 20, right after the 1st class change.

3 more zones

Zone	Monster	Drop (chance at x1 rate)
Orc Barracks	Turek Orc Warlord lv. 30	Scroll: Enchant Weapon (Grade D) 0.1%, Recipe: Brigandine Helmet 1.01%
	Turek Orc Archer lv. 27	Adamantite Nugget 0.24%, Mithril Ore 1.19%
	Turek Orc Skirmisher lv. 28	Puma Skin Gaiters 0.11%, Recipe: Conjuror's Staff 0.11%
Execution Grounds	Ghoul lv. 32	Blessed Scroll of Resurrection for Pets 0.17%, Scroll of Resurrection 0.43%
	Hangman Tree lv. 35	Mithril Banded Gaiters Material 0.47%, Mithril Banded Mail Material 0.36%
	Dead Seeker lv. 34	Tiger's Eye Earring Stone 1.01%, Cord 3.12%
Cruma Marshlands	Horror Mist Ripper lv. 27	Magic Haste Potion 0.36%, Recipe: White Tunic 0.44%
	Gray Ant lv. 26	Recipe: Dark Stockings 1.2%, Suede 4.17%
	Giant Mist Leech lv. 25	Leather Boot Lining 0.64%, Crafted Leather Gloves Lining 0.64%

Level 40–52

Best for an SH: Archaic Laboratory — the most XP per HP; Garden of Eva — second place for XP per HP; The Enchanted Valley — the Death Spike book from Unicorn.

3 more zones

Zone	Monster	Drop (chance at x1 rate)
Catacomb of the Branded	Decayed Ancient Knight lv. 50	Grace Dagger Edge 0.21%, Dark Screamer Edge 0.21%
	Decayed Ancient Soldier lv. 49	Horn of Glory Fragment 0.56%, Recipe: Divine Stockings 0.25%
	Decayed Ancient Pikeman lv. 46	Enria 1.55%, Cursed Dagger Blade 0.3%
Necropolis of Worship	Vault Overlord lv. 45	Chain Mail Shirt Material 0.96%, Chain Gaiters Part 1.96%
	Catacomb Gargoyle lv. 43	Scallop Jamadhr Edge 0.57%, Recipe: Battle Axe 0.16%
	Vault Priest lv. 47	Spellbook: Servitor Empowerment 7.7%, Spellbook: Servitor Cure 12.99%
The Forest of Mirrors	Mirror lv. 49	Stiletto Edge 0.18%, Soulfire Dirk Blade 0.18%
	Taik Orc Captain lv. 44	High-Grade Life Stone: level 46 0.11%, Chain Mail Shirt Material 0.61%
	Taik Orc Archer lv. 41	Compound Braid 0.81%, Metallic Thread 1.08%

Level 52–61

Best for an SH: Archaic Laboratory — the most XP per HP; Catacomb of the Apostate and The Patriot's Necropolis — on par for XP per HP.

2 more zones

Zone	Monster	Drop (chance at x1 rate)
The Cemetery	Roving Soul lv. 53	Crystal Dagger Blade 0.14%, Life Stone: level 55 0.21%
	Taik Orc Seeker lv. 52	Mithril Gauntlets Design 0.93%, Composite Boots Part 0.93%
	Cruel Punisher lv. 52	Mold Hardener 0.13%, Mold Lubricant 0.18%
Devastated Castle	Grave Predator lv. 59	Enria 0.1%, Metallic Fiber 1.69%
	Doom Scout lv. 56	Dark Elven Longbow Shaft 0.14%, Animal Bone 7.69%
	Dismal Pole lv. 58	Spellbook: Curse Disease 1.52%, Amulet: Pa'agrio's Haste 1.52%

The Curse Death Link and Tempest books drop from Unicorn Elder lv. 55 and Satyr Elder lv. 54 in The Enchanted Valley — chances are in "SH skill spellbooks".

Level 61–76

Best for an SH: Tower of Insolence — the most XP per HP; Hot Springs — Wind Vortex and Dark Vortex books from Hot Springs Nepenthes; Catacomb of Dark Omens — the Arcane Chaos book from Tomb Guard.

4 more zones

Zone	Monster	Drop (chance at x1 rate)
Swamp of Screams	Spiked Stakato Guard lv. 74	Halberd Edge 0.57%, Crafted Leather 1.28%
	Female Spiked Stakato lv. 74	Sealed Tallum Leather Armor Pattern 0.47%, Durable Metal Plate 0.9%
	Cannibalistic Stakato Follower lv. 74	Recipe: Greater Spiritshot (S) Compressed Package(100%) 0.15%, Animal Skin 6.25%
Stakato Nest	Male Spiked Stakato lv. 74	Braided Hemp 5.88%, Stem 3.57%
	Spiked Stakato Worker lv. 73	Dasparion's Staff Edge 0.13%, Spiritual Eye Piece 0.12%
	Spiked Stakato Sorcerer lv. 75	Oriharukon Ore 2.78%, Hammer Piece of Destroyer 0.12%
Catacomb of Dark Omens	Tomb Guard lv. 75	Spellbook - Arcane Chaos 4.54%, Spellbook - Curse of Doom 4.54%
	Lesser Ancient Scout lv. 74	Sealed Dark Crystal Leather Armor Pattern 0.34%, Sealed Tallum Leather Armor Pattern 0.24%
	Crypt Preacher lv. 72	Sealed Dark Crystal Robe Fabric 0.23%, Sealed Tallum Tunic Texture 0.32%
Forest of the Dead	Bone Grinder lv. 70	Halberd Edge 0.22%, Metallic Thread 2.04%
	Bone Slayer lv. 68	Bloody Orchid Head 0.21%, Durable Metal Plate 0.27%
	Requiem Lord lv. 68	Halberd Edge 0.2%, Life Stone: level 67 0.22%

Level 76–80

Best for an SH: Imperial Tomb — the most XP per HP; Forge of the Gods — second place for XP per HP; Monastery of Silence — XP per HP nearly on par with Forge of the Gods.

SH dyes

Dyes can raise a single stat by +5 at most, so a second INT+4 dye adds nothing beyond that cap. That's why INT is topped up to exactly +5 and the free slot goes to WIT, CON or MEN.

The anti-mage set cuts WIT hard and slows your casting, so it is meant for the Olympiad and sieges, not for leveling.

Subclasses for an SH

You can add a subclass once you hit 75 — and that level applies to the main class as well as to each subclass already taken. By default the Mimir's Elixir and Fate's Whisper quests are required, and the cap is three subclasses.

An SH can take any 2nd class as a subclass except Sorcerer and Spellsinger (same mage group), elven classes, Overlord and Warsmith. The usual picks:

• Shillien Elder — heals, Recharge for the party, and its own Greater Empower and Wild Magic while the subclass is active;
• Necromancer — a second mage nuker with summons and curses;
• Warcryer or Prophet — buffs for the party.

In Interlude, subclass skills work only on that subclass: switching class removes buffs, and nothing carries over to the main class. Subclass certification came later — it is covered in the SH guide for High Five.

The SH in the Olympiad

The Olympiad is open to nobles only, fighting on the main class. Open on a mage with Silence; on a fighter, Slow and Wind Vortex; Curse Fear wins you a cast. Keep an eye on Arcane Power, because it keeps draining HP. Cyclone cannot be cast in Olympiad matches.

All SH skills

The full Spellhowler and Storm Screamer tree — skill levels, SP and MP:

Other classes are in the Lineage 2 classes section. An SH levels fastest on a high-rate server: fresh launches are in the Interlude server list, and Interlude x50 has its own selection.