Diablo III- Skills Article XCV: The Witch Doctor, Primary Skills- Poison Dart

Poison Dart (10 Mana): Fire a poison dart that deals 100% weapon damage as Poison damage and an additional 40% weapon damage as Poison damage over the next 2 seconds.

The most basic of basic skills for the Witch Doctor, Poison Dart is a nice, basic, reliable skill for dealing out damage.  However, because of its simplicity, it can be fairly easy to pass it up- the dart only hits one target, after all, the Witch Doctor’s other options for a Primary skill will deal damage to multiple targets with good reliability.  Still, with its fairly low mana cost, there’s plenty to recommend this basic attack.

Splinters (10 Mana): Fire a cluster of three poison darts that deal 60% weapon damage as Poison damage each.

When it comes to single-target damage, this is probably your best shot with Poison Dart.  Unlike most multi-shot skills, the darts from this travel virtually the same path- so you aren’t likely to hit multiple targets.  There’s a chance, of course, if the first or second dart downs whatever you were shooting at and there’s another enemy behind your target- but it’s not a huge one.  The total damage and the damage type make this a very worthwhile choice, though, and very good for taking something down -now- when you are on your own.  If you’re in a party, though, you should probably use something else- while the damage is nice, party play really wants area of effect more from a ranged attacker like the Witch Doctor.  Or summons, since the Witch Doctor does a lot of that.

Numbing Dart (10 Mana): Fire a poison dart that deals 100% weapon damage as Poison damage and an additional 40% weapon damage as Poison damage over the next 2 seconds.  This dart also reduces the target’s speed by 60% for 2 seconds.

This is the Witch Doctor’s most basic control effect- and it’s not all that impressive.  While the slow can be handy in some situations, it’s a very brief time, and only affects one target.  If you need to deal more damage to one target before it can reach you, Splinters is going to be a lot more useful.  If you need to keep yourself from getting hit and aren’t worried about the damage, running or using some other skill will be your preference.  Still, it can be handy now and then in single-player games.

Spined Dart (10 Mana): Fire a poison dart that deals 100% weapon damage as Poison damage and an additional 40% weapon damage as Poison damage over the next 2 seconds.  Regain 24 mana if the dart hits an enemy.

This bizarre skill both consumes and restores mana to you when used properly.  While the mana regeneration can be handy, keep in mind that you can’t actually use Spined Dart when your Mana orb is empty.  This is, however, your first rune that will restore mana to you, and unlike many of the others, it always returns more mana than you spent (unless you don’t hit anything at all).  If you find yourself running out of mana at a lot of times when you need more badly, this can patch that up somewhat, although using it instead of a more damaging or function-focused skill can hinder your ability to actually kill things or survive to spend the mana you regain.

Flaming Dart (10 Mana): Fire a poison dart that deals 160% weapon damage as Fire damage.

While it deals more damage total than Poison Dart, and deals all of it immediately, Flaming Dart pales in comparison to Splinters, which has even higher immediate damage, a chance of striking something behind your target if the damage exceeds the remaining life of the target, and doesn’t deal out the most resisted damage type in the game.  If you need the damage and you need it now, take Splinters instead.

Snake to the Face (10 Mana): Throw a snake at the target that deals 100% weapon damage as Poison damage, an additional 40% weapon damage as Poison damage over the next 2 seconds, and has a 30% chance to cause a 1.5 second Stun.

Probably the best Poison Dart option for facing off with bosses- especially on a team- Snake to the Face can let you lock down a single target almost completely for pretty much as long as you feel like.  With enough Mana regenerating effects on you, you can theoretically keep something stunned forever, though in practice the random number generator is going to let you down now and again.  Regardless of that, Snake to the Face is a must for facing single powerful things, like most bosses.  While it’s not as useful when facing numerous enemies, it’s overall a better deal than Numbing Dart, since Stun stops an enemy entirely and prevents it from attacking.