ArenaNet:Developer updates/20071012

This is an archive of Developer Updates, originally posted through the official website. It includes semi-official announcements, clarifications, and news from the developers.

[Dev Update] Skill Balances -- 12 October 2007

In this update, we addressed the melee-overload-versus-block-overload struggle we're seeing in Guild Battles right now. Some of our goals were to increase the viability of split tactics, reduce the effectiveness of a defensive "block web," decrease the effectiveness of some spike-oriented melee skills, and reestablish caster pressure and area-of-effect damage, while not overpowering pure spike builds.

The specific changes are as follows:

General

• Decreased the Health of all Spirits by 50; allowed Burning to affect Spirits.

The existing specific counters to Spirits were too narrow. This change allows area-of-effects to more effectively neutralize Spirits. It also means Spirit-users may have to place Spirits more strategically.

Assassin

• Death's Charge: increased conditional Health to 65..200.
• Golden Fang Strike: fixed a bug that allowed the use of Golden Fang Strike without a lead attack.
• Shadow Refuge: increased duration to 6 seconds.

The Assassin's ability to strike, retreat, heal up, and move back in for the kill was limited by the lack of solid basic healing. Shadow Refuge played second fiddle to Feigned Neutrality or non-Assassin self-heals for some time, so we increased the unconditional heal portion of this staple skill. Death's Charge has a very conditional heal that yielded too little Health for its situational nature; the healing has been raised accordingly.

Dervish

• Wearying Strike: decreased damage to 5..20.

As part of our effort to decrease melee damage slightly, we made Wearying Strike less powerful to adjust the ever-popular Avatar of Melandru/Wearying Strike combination.

Elementalist

• Ash Blast: increased damage to 35..65.
• Chilling Winds: increased damage to 25..50.
• Conjure Frost, Conjure Flame, and Conjure Lightning: now directly increase the damage you do when you hit with an attack (previously, they dealt damage as a second, additional strike); decreased damage to 5..20.
• Ebon Hawk: increased damage to 45..100.
• Enervating Charge: increased damage to 25..50.
• Glyph of Swiftness: fixed a bug that increased the projectile speed.
• Ice Spikes: decreased recharge time to 10 seconds.
• Searing Flames: increased Burning duration to 1..7 seconds.
• Steam: increased conditional damage to 40..100; increased damage to 25..70.
• Stoning: increased damage to 45..105.
• Ward Against Melee: increased Energy cost to 15; decreased duration to 5..20 seconds.

As part of our movement to augment caster pressure damage, many Elementalist Skills obtained raw damage boosts. The Conjure Skills have been changed so they hit as part of the attack, rather than a separate damage packet. This reduces their power versus Reversal of Fortune. Searing Flames received a boost with longer Burning duration, which we hope will empower the choice to bring one copy of it without creating teams consisting of nothing but Searing Flames Elementalists.

Mesmer

• Air of Disenchantment: decreased casting time to .25 seconds.
• Drain Enchantment: decreased Energy cost to 10; decreased Energy returned to 7..15; added a heal effect of 40..120 when an Enchantment is removed.
• Enchanter's Conundrum: decreased Energy cost to 10; decreased casting time to 1 second; increased damage to 30..120; fixed a bug that caused multiple hits of damage when stacked.
• Energy Burn: increased damage multiplier to 12.
• Energy Surge: increased damage multiplier to 12.
• Extend Conditions: decreased recharge time to 5 seconds.
• Hex Eater Vortex: increased recharge time to 12 seconds.
• Illusion of Haste: decreased Energy cost to 5.
• Ineptitude: decreased recharge time to 15 seconds.
• Keystone Signet: decreased recharge time to 10 seconds.
• Mantra of Recovery: decreased recharge reduction to 33%.
• Power Drain: decreased recharge time to 20 seconds.
• Power Leak: decreased recharge time to 12 seconds.
• Power Spike: decreased Energy cost to 5.
• Shrinking Armor: fixed a bug that prevented the Health Bar from turning purple.
• Signet of Illusions: increased the number of Spells affected to 3.
• Signet of Midnight: decreased recharge time to 10 seconds.

Mantra of Recovery has dominated Mesmer Skill Bars in Guild Battles. We reduced its raw effectiveness to remove the complete reliance on it, then we adjusted the recharge times of a few skills to compensate and make them more attractive without Mantra of Recovery. To further encourage diverse Skill Bars, we increased the effectiveness of most Mesmer elites. Hex Eater Vortex was proving to be too powerful at dealing with Hexes, so we lengthened the recharge time to favor more precise Hex removal. Power Spike is a staple Mesmer interrupt that was inferior to its bigger brothers, so we lowered its Energy cost to 5, making it a more readily available choice. The Drain Enchantment change creates a second Mesmer Skill for self healing, while Illusion of Haste seeks to increase Mesmer split potential.

Monk

• Reversal of Damage: fixed a bug that caused this Spell to stop all damage instead of the max damage listed.
• Shield of Deflection: increased recharge time to 10 seconds; increased duration to 3..10 seconds.
• Shield of Regeneration: increased recharge time to 12 seconds.

The 1/4 second cast time of both Shield of Deflection and Shield of Regeneration made these skills too easy to maintain on a constant basis. We countered this by increasing their recharge times. Enchantment removal should now be a more viable counter to these popular elite skills.

Necromancer

• Angorodon's Gaze: decreased Energy returned to 12.
• Chilblains: now works on target foe instead of having a point-blank area of effect; decreased number of Enchantments affected to 1; increased casting time to 2 seconds.
• Gaze of Contempt: decreased recharge time to 15 seconds.
• Putrid Bile: fixed a bug that prevented the Health Bar from turning purple.
• Rend Enchantments: decreased recharge time to 20 seconds.
• Rigor Mortis: decreased recharge time to 20 seconds; decreased casting time to 1 second.
• Rip Enchantment: decreased Health lost to 15..5.
• Strip Enchantment: decreased recharge time to 15 seconds.

We enhanced Necromancer Enchantment-removal options so they wouldn't be so overshadowed by Mesmers. Chilblains, in particular, received a powerful increase to better fit its hefty 25 Energy price tag, while Strip Enchantment, Rend Enchantments, Rip Enchantment, and Gaze of Contempt all received more conservative power increases. Rigor Mortis was improved as another counter to the blocking metagame, while Angorodon's Gaze had its Energy return component reduced to halt the infinite Energy engine.

Paragon

• Aggressive Refrain: now causes Cracked Armor for 20 seconds when applied.
• "Go for the Eyes!": increased recharge time to 4 seconds.

We increased the recharge time for "Go for the Eyes!" because it was generating near-limitless Energy, especially when combined with "Watch Yourself!", for Paragons from the Leadership attribute. Aggressive Refrain's tradeoff of 25 Energy had very little consequence, as it was rarely activated more than once per battle. The addition of self-inflicting Cracked Armor should create more interesting choices for this skill.

Ranger

• Nature's Renewal: decreased Spirit levels to 1..10.

Nature's Renewal was a lot tougher than other Spirits and was getting far too large an armor bonus for its additional levels. We've reduced the level to bring it down to size.

Warrior

• Agonizing Chop: increased activation time to 1 second.
• "Charge!": increased movement speed to 33%.
• Critical Chop: increased activation time to 1 second.
• Disarm: reworded skill description to explain that it is an interrupt.
• "Watch Yourself!": increased recharge time to 4 seconds; increased duration to 10 seconds.

Critical Chop and Agonizing Chop now have longer activation times to reduce their raw spike potential. Without a recharge time, "Watch Yourself!" was like an Energy buffet for Paragons, so we limited its rate while making it last longer so that it is still useful. Finally, "Charge!" was improved to keep up with the newer speed boosts and increase the viability of split tactics.