Cast time
In pre-renewal, variable cast time depends solely on DEX (unlike renewal, which adds INT). The formula is linear: at DEX 150 the cast becomes instant. Skills like Suffragium and Bragi reduce it by a separate multiplier.
What cast is
Cast time is the delay between pressing a skill and the skill actually going off. Picture a wizard throwing Fire Bolt: the character raises their hands, a magic circle spins around them, and only after a few seconds does the bolt finally fly out. Those waiting seconds are the cast. While casting, you stand still and are vulnerable: enemies get to hit you, and a strong hit can even interrupt the cast and waste the whole skill. That is why every caster dreams of a shorter cast, and ideally an instant one.
Formula and DEX
In pre-renewal (and we are pre-renewal), variable cast depends EXCLUSIVELY on a single stat — DEX. This is crucial to remember: in renewal the formula also adds INT, but WE do NOT have that. Only DEX cuts the cast, nothing else. The formula is simple and linear: castTime = base × (150 − DEX) / 150, where base is the skill’s base cast time in milliseconds (ms), and DEX is your dexterity stat.
The 150 DEX threshold
Here is how it works with numbers. Take a skill with a 5000 ms base cast. At DEX 0 the cast = 5000 × (150 − 0) / 150 = 5000 ms, a full five seconds. Raise DEX to 99 → 5000 × (150 − 99) / 150 = 5000 × 51 / 150 = 1700 ms. And at DEX 150 → 5000 × (150 − 150) / 150 = 0. Zero! The cast became INSTANT. That is why 150 DEX is the sacred number for every mage: exactly that much is needed for skills to fire with no delay at all. Above 150 DEX the cast no longer improves (it cannot drop below zero), so 150 is the ceiling for an instant cast.
Linearity
The relationship is linear, which makes it very convenient for planning. Each point of DEX shaves off exactly the same slice of cast: for a 5000 ms skill, one DEX point saves 5000 / 150 ≈ 33 ms. No matter how much DEX you already have, the next point gives the same gain, with no scaling cost at high values (unlike ASPD, where the last points get expensive). So the road to an instant cast is smooth and predictable: you just need to push DEX up to 150.
Buffs and after-cast delay
But what if your own DEX falls short of 150? This is where support skills come in. Suffragium (from Priest) and Bragi (specifically Poem of Bragi, also known as Apple of Idun on bards) reduce cast with a SEPARATE multiplier that stacks ON TOP of the DEX effect. That is, DEX first cuts the cast by the formula above, and then Bragi/Suffragium multiply the result again by their percentage. This lets you close the gap to an instant cast even with DEX below 150 — a very popular combo in parties and at WoE. And one more important thing newcomers often confuse: post-cast delay (after-cast delay, the wait AFTER a skill before you can cast the next one) is a SEPARATE mechanic. DEX does NOT cut it. It is reduced by entirely different means (Bragi reduces it too, for example), but plain DEX gain will not affect it.
castTime = base × (150 − DEX) / 150 (миттєво при DEX ≥ 150)- base
- skill base cast time (ms)
- DEX
- character DEX stat
| Cast at DEX 99 | 5000 × (150 − 99) / 150 | 1,700 ms |
| Cast at DEX 150 | 5000 × (150 − 150) / 150 | 0 ms |
Take a skill with a 5000 ms base cast. At DEX 75: castTime = 5000 × (150 − 75) / 150 = 5000 × 75 / 150 = 5000 × 0.5 = 2500 ms. Exactly half of the full cast. Makes sense: 75 is halfway to 150, and the cast is cut exactly in half too. This clearly shows the formula is linear.
Same 5000 ms skill, but DEX is now 120: castTime = 5000 × (150 − 120) / 150 = 5000 × 30 / 150 = 5000 × 0.2 = 1000 ms. Only one second of cast left. You are 30 DEX short of instant — and this is where the Bragi/Suffragium combo shines: it closes those last 1000 ms to zero without needing to push DEX all the way to 150.
Again a 5000 ms skill. At DEX 99: 5000 × (150 − 99) / 150 = 5000 × 51 / 150 = 1700 ms. At DEX 150: 5000 × (150 − 150) / 150 = 0 ms — instant. A difference of 51 DEX points turned 1.7 seconds of vulnerable standing into a flat zero. It is for those last points that mages chase 150 DEX.
- DEX 150 — the main threshold: the cast becomes instant (0 ms). The dream of every caster and the effective ceiling for variable cast.
- Above 150 DEX the cast no longer improves — it cannot go below zero. Extra DEX feeds HIT, min ATK and so on, but not the cast.
- The relationship is linear: one DEX point always cuts the same slice of cast (for a base-ms skill that is base / 150 ms per point), with no scaling cost at high values.
- DEX 75 = exactly half the cast; DEX 100 = a third cut off (1/3 base remains); DEX 120 = 1/5 base remains. Easy to estimate in your head.
- Suffragium and Bragi (Poem of Bragi / Apple of Idun) multiply the cast SEPARATELY, on top of DEX — they can close the gap to instant even with DEX < 150.
- Post-cast delay (after-cast delay) is a separate timer from the cast; DEX does NOT reduce it. Other means cut it (Bragi among them).
- Thinking INT cuts the cast. That is a renewal mechanic; WE are pre-renewal — variable cast depends ONLY on DEX.
- Stacking DEX "a bit above 150" for the cast. Above 150 the cast is already zero — further DEX points do not affect the cast at all.
- Confusing cast time with after-cast delay. DEX cuts the first, not the second; they are two different delays, and at high DEX you may still be bottlenecked by the delay.
- Relying only on Bragi/Suffragium and not raising DEX at all. The buffs multiply ON TOP of DEX — without your own DEX the cast still stays noticeable.
- Forgetting that a hit during the cast can interrupt it (cast interrupt). A short cast is not only faster but also lowers the risk of the skill being wasted.
Formulas verified against the uAthena engine (pre-renewal, Episode 11.2).