Shadowbringers RDM Wishlist

[Archwizard]

The thing is, you don't evaluate the melee combo skills in isolation. You evaluate the entire combo,

... Except that this evaluation simply assumes that the use of Reprise comes at the cost of a melee combo.

The value of any skill in the melee combo tree relies entirely on the time and cost of executing the skills that precede it. The value of a Verfinisher isn't split up amongst the melee skills; its value is exactly 0 if you don't spend 80/80 Mana and at least 3 melee GCDs setting it up.

One Riposte contains the cost of three Reprises, and the value of less than one. Riposte and Zwerchau contains five Reprises, and the value of less than three. You don't evaluate Reprise against the full melee combo (and consequent Verfinishers) until you actually get to the point where you are giving up the full melee combo, and at the point where you're casting up to Zwerchau (55/55) "just to dump Mana" you weren't in a situation where Reprise was applicable anyway, because that situation doesn't exist -- by that point you'd continue building up to Redoublement before comboing. Likewise, there's virtually no situation of Reprise-dumping where you'd use it more than twice anyway without already having taken a loss.

If I just want to dump 10/10 Mana before I Manafication or spend a Verquick proc, Reprise is there.