Feedback:User/Soldier198/Under Powered Skill Balance

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Hello. This is a page to collect ideas on improving underused skills. I only make suggestions for skills which are generally regarded by the community as being either not useful or supplanted by more powerful alternatives. I aim to keep these changes in line with the current designs, functionalities, and philosophies of Guild Wars. The goal of any suggested change to a skill is to make that particular skill used more often in atleast one game mode (PvE, PvP), if not both.

A further goal that I am attempting to achieve on this page is to also not only consider skill balance in the hands of players, but also creatures. As such, in some instances where I suggest a change to a skill, I also go through the catalogue of creatures and find every instance where the skill I want to change makes an appearance in game. I generally only suggest changes to creature skill bars if my suggestion greatly adjusts the functionality of a skill, and hence requires the adjustment of a creature's skill bar in turn, or if it adds the potential for a creature to be too strong.

I must also acknowledge that the skills which I want to adjust, as well as my perception of them, are affected by own bias. I may see a skill as needing improvement, while others may think a skill is perfectly fine. I try my best to evaluate a skill as objectively as possible, and, sticking to the theme of this page, focus on skills that can reasonably be argued as being underpowered.


Restoration Magic[edit]

Ghostmirror Light[edit]

Spell. Target other ally is healed for 15...75...90 Health. For each spirit within earshot, one ally near your target is also healed for 15...75...90 Health.

Spell. Target other ally is healed for 15...75...90 Health. For each spirit within earshot, one ally near your target is also healed for 15...75...90 Health.

Concise description
Spell. Heals for 15...75...90. One nearby ally gains 15...75...90 health for each spirit within earshot. Cannot self-target.


Progression
Other heal
Nearby heal
0
15
15
1
20
20
2
25
25
3
30
30
4
35
35
5
40
40
6
45
45
7
50
50
8
55
55
9
60
60
10
65
65
11
70
70
12
75
75
13
80
80
14
85
85
15
90
90
16
95
95
17
100
100
18
105
105
19
110
110
20
115
115
21
120
120

Problem Statement and Suggested Change: Ghostmirror Light is a mediocre skill apt to sit on a players bar for a long period of time before the conditions that would make it useful are available. Even so, with how fast healing spells recharge (consider that other Restoration Magic skills, like Spirit Light, Mend Body and Soul, and Soothing Memories, take only 3-4 seconds to recharge), a healer is poised to have a spell ready to cast on himself either immediately or in only a few seconds. This change of functionality, which has the added benefit of keeping the skills title appropriate for its functionality, could see play as a way to heal front liners or any allies for that matter which are grouped together. It is comparable to Healing Ribbon, but slightly weaker in effect and more dependent on conditional factors.


Anticipated Usage: Many areas of the game across PvE and PvP feature instances where grouping together and AoE damage are nearly unavoidable. Shrines, gates, and control points in the Jade Quarry, Fort Aspenwood, and Alliance Battles competitive arenas are good examples of where these instances may occur in PvP. In PvE, there are numerous areas where your party can expect AoE damage. Ghostmirror Light can serve as a way to counter these threats.

Alternative Idea

Spell. Target ally is healed for 20...84...100 Health, and all spirits you control within earshot gain 10...42...50 Health.

Spell. Target ally is healed for 20...84...100 Health, and all spirits you control within earshot gain 10...42...50 Health.

Concise description
Spell. Heals for 20...84...100. Spirits you control within earshot gain 10...42...50 Health.


Progression
Other heal
0
20
10
1
25
13
2
31
15
3
36
18
4
41
21
5
47
23
6
52
26
7
57
29
8
63
31
9
68
34
10
73
37
11
79
39
12
84
42
13
89
45
14
95
47
15
100
50
16
105
53
17
111
55
18
116
58
19
121
61
20
127
63
21
132
66

An alternative idea whose functionality is to provide light healing to allies while healing spirits you control, a Restoration Magic counterpart to Spirit Boon Strike essentially.

Mending Grip[edit]

Spell. Target ally is healed for 15...75...90 Health. If that ally is under the effects of a weapon spell, that ally loses one condition.

Spell. Target ally is healed for 15...75...90 Health. If that ally is under the effects of a weapon spell, that ally loses one condition.

Concise description
Spell. Heals for 15...75...90. Removes one condition if target ally is under a Weapon [sic] spell.


Progression
0
15
1
20
2
25
3
30
4
35
5
40
6
45
7
50
8
55
9
60
10
65
11
70
12
75
13
80
14
85
15
90
16
95
17
100
18
105
19
110
20
115
21
120

Problem Statement and Suggested Change: Consider the skill Mend Body and Soul. It casts faster, heals for more, and recharges in half as much time when compared to Mending Grip. It's conditional condition removal scales with any spirits in earshot, yours or the enemies'. Spirits have the drawback of being immobile (most relevant in PvP) and can be destroyed. Regardless, they are easily spammed in PvE, and usually around when you need them. Now consider the similarly designed Dismiss Condition. It heals for the same amount as Mending Grip, casts fasters, always removes a condition, recharges in half as much time, and its conditional heal is activated by enchantments, of which, there are many across every profession but three. Mending Grip is arguably weaker than both these skills across all fronts. It's main advantage is supposed to be mobility, in that it does not need a spirit to remove conditions (as does Mend Body and Soul) and so allows the Ritualist to be more agile instead of confined to within earshot of a spirit. However, the weapon spell requirement is typically only able to be fulfilled by one individual in the party, usually the Ritualist himself. This skill, in my opinion, was an obvious candidate for a buff ever since it was released, and all it really needs to be useful is some fine tuning. A slight increase in its raw healing output, a casting time reduction to 3/4, and a drop in recharge to 4 seconds would make it a much more potent, and fairly balanced, skill.


Anticipated Usage: In PvE, Mending Grip, even with the suggested change, would likely remain overshadowed by Mend Body and Soul. This is because Mendy Body and Soul provides a superior heal, and its condition removal, while having a Spirit prerequisite, scales with the number of spirits in earshot and is easily met due to the popularity of Signet of Spirits summoners and Soul Twisting protectors. Additionally, spirits in PvE are far more resilient due to their reduced casting times and increased armor levels, thereby making any skill which is reliant on a spirit more reliable itself. PvP is where this change would most likely have the greatest impact. Spirits do not have the same superiority in PvP that they do in PvE, namely due to their increased casting times, lower spirit levels, and the prevalence of interruption skills used by opposing players. Because of this, Mend Body and Soul suffers as a condition removal skill, for its spirit prerequisite cannot be as easily met, due in part to player disruption. Mending Grip would therefore be a more reliable condition removal skill in certain situations. Though it relies on Weapon Spells to remove conditions, Weapon Spells themselves cannot be stripped and furthermore do not limit the Ritualist to earshot range of a spirit as Mend Body and Soul does, greatly aiding the Ritualist in one place where they are at their weakest, mobility.

Preservation[edit]

Elite Binding Ritual. Create a level 1...11...14 spirit. Non-spirit allies in earshot gain +1...8...10 armor. This spirit dies after 60 seconds.

Elite Binding Ritual. Create a level 1...11...14 spirit. Non-spirit allies in earshot gain +1...8...10 armor. This spirit dies after 60 seconds.

Concise description
Elite Binding Ritual. Creates a level 1...11...14 spirit (60 second lifespan). Non-spirit allies in earshot have +1...8...10 armor.


Progression
Level
+ Armor rating
0
1
1
1
2
2
2
3
2
3
4
3
4
4
3
5
5
4
6
6
5
7
7
5
8
8
6
9
9
6
10
10
7
11
11
8
12
11
8
13
12
9
14
13
9
15
14
10
16
15
11
17
16
11
18
17
12
19
17
12
20
18
13
21
19
14

Problem Statement and Suggested Change: Before we begin discussing the weaknesses of Preservation, lets start by discussing its strengths. It costs only 5 energy (the cheapest cost for any Binding Ritual), recharges in only 20 seconds (the shortest recharge for any Binding Ritual), has a lengthy duration of 90 seconds, and in PvP has the lower casting time of 3 seconds for a Binding Ritual. Those factors alone make it rather potent at its roots for a Binding Ritual, and furthermore require its effect to be balanced around them. However, its active effect, while potentially strong, is unfortunately quite weak, and this is solely because the healing is ally targeted, limited in area, and completely random. Sometimes, the healing will not target an ally who needs it. And if it does, that ally might not need as much health as Preservation heals for. Most often, it simply goes to waste. Truly, you could view Preservation as a catalytic spirit of sorts, designed to be resilient and consistently available to fuel a player's spell casting needs. Suggestions I've seen thrown around on the wiki and elsewhere tend to lean towards making the skill party member targeted only and always having it heal the party member with the lowest health. I do agree that that particular change would make the skill much better than it is, however, I believe Preservation would be more effective as a strong anti-pressure skill for allies. Because there are already quite a few Binding Rituals that heal allies, giving Preservation a more unique functionality can open up different playstyles for the Ritualist. Giving Preservation an armor boosting effect to allies in earshot range allows it to become a strategic skill, able to be placed behind combat or in the midline as a zone of relief. Its effect, of course, cannot be too strong when we take into consideration its fantastic energy cost and recharge time; consequently, the duration will be reduced from 90 seconds to 60.


Anticipated Usage: By changing Preservation in this way, the skill retains its catalytic design with a functionality that is better suited towards general play. As the armor boost component forces players to stay within earshot, strong counter play exists in the ability of the enemy to attack the spirit with AoE effects. Ergo, the skill must be utilized tactically.

Defiant Was Xinrae (PvE)[edit]

Elite Item Spell. Hold Xinrae's ashes for up to 15...51...60 seconds. While you hold her ashes, you cannot lose more than 20% of your max Health from a single hit. When you drop her ashes, you steal 5...41...50 Health from all nearby foes.

Elite Item Spell. Hold Xinrae's ashes for up to 15...51...60 seconds. While you hold her ashes, you cannot lose more than 20% of your max Health from a single hit. When you drop her ashes, you steal 5...41...50 Health from all nearby foes.

Concise description
Elite Item Spell. (15...51...60 seconds.) You cannot lose more than 20% of your max Health from a single hit. Drop effect: steal 5...41...50 Health from nearby foes.



Problem Statement and Suggested Change: Defiant Was Xinrae is a rather lackluster skill. It's 20% damage cap isn't quite useful and can be easily surpassed by the likes of Protective Spirit and Shelter. It does have an advantage in that it cannot be stripped, but considering the fact that most players have between 400 and 600 health, being struck for 80-120 damage remains painful. It's drop effect is nice to recoup damage taken, yet is nothing special and arguably inferior to Unholy Feast, discounting the double drop ability. What's more, Ritualists seeking spammable PBAoE damage are better served by Destructive Was Glaive. Lastly, most players utilize Vengeful Was Khanhei when it comes to low hp farming builds on the Ritualist. The above idea takes notes from the skill change made to Destructive Was Glaive in the February of 2010 balance patch. By reducing the recharge to a more spammable 10 seconds and adding a 5% health sacrifice upon cast, we can open up some interesting synergies with skills that interact with health sacrifice, such as Dark Aura. This way, Defiant Was Xinrae may function aptly as an armor ignoring PBAoE bombing skill. This change would remain restricted to PvE only.


Anticipated Usage: Though this change would be restricted to PvE only, it might add some competition to Destructive Was Glaive bombers, particularly in areas where enemies have high levels of armor. Since the lifestealing from Defiant Was Xinrae ignores armor, and especially if combined with Dark Aura, this skill can make quick work of balled enemies regardless of their armor ratings.


Spawning Power[edit]

Wielder's Zeal[edit]

Elite Enchantment Spell. For 10...26...30 seconds, whenever you cast a Weapon Spell on an ally, you gain 1...4...5 Energy and that ally is healed for 5...41...50 Health.

Elite Enchantment Spell. For 10...26...30 seconds, whenever you cast a Weapon Spell on an ally, you gain 1...4...5 Energy and that ally is healed for 5...41...50 Health.

Concise description
Elite Enchantment Spell. (10...26...30 seconds.) You gain 1...4...5 Energy and target ally gains 5...41...50 Health whenever you cast a weapon spell.


Progression
Energy gain
0
10
1
5
1
11
1
8
2
13
2
11
3
14
2
14
4
15
2
17
5
17
2
20
6
18
3
23
7
19
3
26
8
21
3
29
9
22
3
32
10
23
4
35
11
25
4
38
12
26
4
41
13
27
4
44
14
29
5
47
15
30
5
50
16
31
5
53
17
33
6
56
18
34
6
59
19
35
6
62
20
37
6
65
21
38
7
68


Problem Statement and Suggested Change: Wielder's Zeal as a skill seems as if it was intended to promote a play style for Weapon Spells that is counter-intuitive to their very design. Weapon Spells are dissimilar to enchantments in the fact that they cannot be stacked on a target, and hence are unable to be spammed in much the same manner one would with enchantments. What's further is that the Spawning Power attribute line contains some very powerful energy management skills, such as Spirit Channeling and Attuned Was Songkai, whose effects are not limited to Weapon Spells and grant greater returns on investment. An Elite skill whose sole function is to enhance Weapon Spells ought to have a little more power than this, and to that end I suggest the addition of a healing component that activates when you cast a Weapon Spell on an ally. A change such as this would add a bit of needed utility without overpowering its abilities.


Anticipated Usage: In PvE, this change to Wielder's Zeal would prove generally useful to supportive Ritualists across all fronts. Those dedicated to combined healing and protection would find it to be quite the boon as Vengeful Weapon would become something like a spot heal, while Weapon of Warding and Resilient Weapon would perform admirable as combined healing and protection skills. However, I believe that this change would be most impactful in PvP, and this is for a few reasons. In PvE, there are generally characters dedicated to solely healing or protection in 8 man areas, negating the combined healing and protection aspects of Weapon Spells. In PvP, many arenas, especially those with randomized teams, are more favorable towards characters who combine both healing and protection, therefore enabling them to respond to a larger variety of threats without specializing to a degree that would end up hurting their supportive capabilities. Wielder's Zeal would effectively support Weapon Spell based builds which intend to provide healing and protection, while avoiding the drawbacks of a Spirit based build (namely mobility and vulnerability to shutdown). The counter to this skill would of course lie in the enemies ability to enchantment strip Wielder's Zeal from their opponent.

Reclaim Essence[edit]

Elite Skill. You gain 5...15...17 energy. For 30 seconds, your next 1...3...3 binding rituals have 50% more base health.

Elite Skill. You gain 5...15...17 energy. For 30 seconds, your next 1...3...3 binding rituals have 50% more base health.

Concise description
Elite Skill. Gain 5...15...17 energy. (30 seconds.) Your next 1...3...3 binding rituals have 50% more base health.


Progression
Energy gain
0
5
1
1
6
1
2
7
1
3
7
1
4
8
2
5
9
2
6
10
2
7
11
2
8
11
2
9
12
2
10
13
2
11
14
2
12
15
3
13
15
3
14
16
3
15
17
3
16
18
3
17
19
3
18
19
3
19
20
4
20
21
4
21
22
4

Problem Statement and Suggested Change: Reclaim Essence is a relic from 2008 when its functionality was changed, and superior alternatives, like Soul Twisting and Ritual Lord, had not yet been overhauled into the outstanding skills that they are today. That said, let's identify where these three skills differ. Soul Twisting intends to provide energy management and recharge time reduction. It does so by reducing the energy cost of a spirit, to a limit of 10, while eliminating its recharge. Ritual Lord is intended to create stronger spirits by raising your attributes, thereby increasing the effectiveness of any binding ritual you cast, while simultaneously reducing their recharge by a scaling percentage. Reclaim Essence provides energy management through a scaling energy return, while always destroying your spirits, and furthermore grants recharge reduction through a one time instant recharge of all binding rituals. Reclaim Essence is most similar in functionality to Soul Twisting, and arguably weaker due to its self-destruction element, necessitating a recasting of your spirits. Its energy return is good, but Soul Twisting provides sufficient energy relief on its own for higher cost spirits, while any spirit costing 10 energy or less can be suitably managed through Boon of Creation or Spirit Siphon. However, between these three elite skills, we do not have a skill that focuses on energy management while also increasing the strength of your spirits, but consequently forgoing any boon to recharge time. My proposed change would attempt to do exactly that. A one time energy gain, followed by increasing the base health of your next 1-3 binding rituals would be a boon for Defensive Spirit spammers and Restoration Ritualists using Rejuvenation. It probably would not be as effective as Ritual Lord for using your spirits to tank, as Ritual Lord increases your spirit level and therefore their armor, which is generally more important for spirit tanking rather than their health. However, Reclaim Essence and Ritual Lord would still have their respective differences as one returns energy and one reduces recharge time, therefore always granting the player a choice in which aspect of these skills they would prefer. For this change in functionality, changing the skill type of this skill from a spell to just a skill while also reducing its recharge to 20 seems like an appropriate adjustment.


Anticipated Usage: Reclaim Essence in this form may become an alternative to Soul Twisting and Ritual Lord for PvE spirit spammers. It cannot match the spammability provided by those skills, yet the increase in spirit health would surely be a significant boon to those Ritualists utilizing defensive spirits, and possibly to those who intend to have their spirits tank enemies in the form of a spirit wall. In PvP, the skill may be valuable as a way to manage energy while reinforcing your spirits with the added health, making it more difficult for your opponents to destroy them.

Weapon of Renewal[edit]

Weapon Spell. For 3...7...8 seconds, the next time target ally hits with an attack skill, that ally gains 1...7...8 Energy and one strike of adrenaline.

Weapon Spell. For 3...7...8 seconds, the next time target ally hits with an attack skill, that ally gains 1...7...8 Energy and one strike of adrenaline.

Concise description
Weapon Spell. (3...7...8 seconds.) Target ally gains 1...7...8 Energy and one strike of adrenaline the next time this ally hits with an attack skill.


Progression
Energy gain
0
3
1
1
3
1
2
4
2
3
4
2
4
4
3
5
5
3
6
5
4
7
5
4
8
6
5
9
6
5
10
6
6
11
7
6
12
7
7
13
7
7
14
8
8
15
8
8
16
8
8
17
9
9
18
9
9
19
9
10
20
10
10
21
10
11

Problem Statement and Suggested Change: Weapon of Renewal intends to serve as a sort of soft battery to support physical attackers. However, Weapon Spells have an opportunity cost to them as you can only ever be under the effects of one Weapon Spell at a time. In PvE Great Dwarf Weapon really dwarfs (aha?) the usage of most offensive weapon spells aside from the compelling Splinter Weapon. Nonetheless, the addition of an adrenaline gain and a small boost to the energy gain could help Weapon of Renewal's potential in PvP. A slight reduction in duration would accompany this buff in order to reduce the Ritualist's ability to keep this skill active on an ally before that ally has engaged in combat.


Anticipated Usage: I cannot foresee Weapon of Renewal replacing powerful staples in PvE such as Splinter Weapon and Great Dwarf Weapon. However, the added adrenaline gain, in combination with the current energy gain, would make for a powerful martial support skill. In PvP, this may result in Weapon of Renewal becoming a more useful skill for supporting the damage dealing capabilities of any martial class by allowing them to use their energy and adrenaline based skills more frequently.

Doom[edit]

Spell. Strike target foe for 10...34...40 lightning (maximum 100) damage for every summoned creature you control within earshot.

Spell. Strike target foe for 10...34...40 lightning (maximum 100) damage for every summoned creature you control within earshot.

Concise description
Spell. Deals 10...34...40 lightning damage (maximum 100) for each summoned creature you control within earshot.


Progression
0
10
1
12
2
14
3
16
4
18
5
20
6
22
7
24
8
26
9
28
10
30
11
32
12
34
13
36
14
38
15
40
16
42
17
44
18
46
19
48
20
50
21
52


Problem Statement and Suggested Change: Doom is a skill that is rather clumsy to use. It has a high damage potential, but that potential is locked behind the requirement of four recharging spirits (provided your Spawning Power is at or between 12 and 17). In PvE, this effect tends to be defeated by skills which hasten the recharge times of Binding Rituals, such as Soul Twisting or Ritual Lord. In PvP, considering the lengthy cast times of spirits, trying to place four of them on the battlefield is risky and not always a viable strategy. The above change would lower the damage potential of the skill to a maximum of 100 damage instead of 135 while reducing the recharge and simultaneously making that damage more accessible. This improved accessibility would be achieved by changing the damage prerequisite from requiring a recharging binding ritual to instead requiring the player control a summoned creature within earshot.


Anticipated Usage: This change would be quite effective for spirit spammers of all types in PvE. Signet of Spirits spammers would instantly meet the damage cap for this skill at a Spawning Power level of 12 or higher, while Soul Twisting based ritualists would meet it with ease. Other spirit spammers, such as those utilizing damage oriented communing spirits would find the skill to be reliable single target damage. Restoration based Ritualists could additionally utilize it to inflict damage while retaining a high attribute in the Spawning Power line. In PvP, even with the change, this skill may not see much use because of the difficulty in summoning and staying within earshot of multiple spirits. Nonetheless, it remains much improved over the prior version.


Alternative idea

Hex Spell. Steal 10...34...40 health from target foe. For 3...10...12 seconds, that foe receives 20% less healing.

Hex Spell. Steal 10...34...40 health from target foe. For 3...10...12 seconds, that foe receives 20% less healing.

Concise description
Hex Spell. Target foe receives 20% less healing (3...10...12 seconds). Initial effect: Steal 10...34...40 health.


Progression
0
3
10
1
4
12
2
4
14
3
5
16
4
5
18
5
6
20
6
7
22
7
7
24
8
8
26
9
8
28
10
9
30
11
10
32
12
10
34
13
11
36
14
11
38
15
12
40
16
13
42
17
13
44
18
14
46
19
14
48
20
15
50
21
16
52

The February of 2010 game update expanded upon the concept of Ritualist hexes, with skills such as Renewing Surge and Lamentation being reworked into hexes, while the Item Spell Anguished Was Lingwah was reinvented as a utility skill to support hex users. Doom would've been a good candidate for reworking into a hex skill, as it's current functionality is lacking as argued in the prior suggestion.

The above suggestion turns Doom into a pressure skill, with a light lifesteal component supported by a more dangerous reduction in healing. As we must take into account the potential synergy with Anguished Was Lingwah when using this skill, Doom is only just maintainable on a single target while holding Lingwah's ashes. Though a skill of this functionality would be at home in either the Communing or Channeling Magic attributes (I say this because these attribute lines are currently the only Ritualist attributes to feature hexes), I would be in favor of leaving it in Spawning Power, that way any player seeking to utilize Anguished Was Lingwah has at least one hex immediately available.

Empowerment[edit]

Binding Ritual. Create a level 1...11...14 spirit. Non-spirit allies within its range gain +1 energy regeneration. This spirit dies after 5...25...30 seconds.

Binding Ritual. Create a level 1...11...14 spirit. Non-spirit allies within its range gain +1 energy regeneration. This spirit dies after 5...25...30 seconds.

Concise description
Binding Ritual. Creates a level 1...11...14 spirit (5...25...30 second lifespan). Non-spirit allies in range gain +1 energy regeneration.


Progression
Level
0
1
5
1
2
7
2
3
8
3
4
10
4
4
12
5
5
13
6
6
15
7
7
17
8
8
18
9
9
20
10
10
22
11
11
23
12
11
25
13
12
27
14
13
28
15
14
30
16
15
32
17
16
33
18
17
35
19
17
37
20
18
38
21
19
40


Problem Statement and Suggested Change: Empowerment essentially intends to serve as a replacement for a characters lost health and energy while holding an item. Though this is dandy on paper, in practice it isn't too useful. Additionally, the number of allies it will affect is quite limited due to the fact that item spells are available on only one profession, and not universally used in builds. All in all, the skill is simply too niche to be effective. The suggested change would increase the energy cost of Empowerment to 25, cut its duration in half, and change the functionality to grant +1 energy regeneration to allies.


Anticipated Usage: Energy regeneration is a powerful and inherently useful boon. Although the regeneration granted by Empowerment would be limited to +1 only, it is unconditional, affects allies, and is unstrippable, with the only counter being to destroy the spirit or force its beneficiaries out of range. As such, it is necessary to make the skill quite costly to use, and by matching its duration to its recharge, vulnerable to destruction. Nonetheless, increased energy regeneration remains valuable, and this skill could see much use across both PvE and PvP if changed in this way.

PvP Version

Binding Ritual. Create a level 1...8...10 spirit. Non-spirit allies within its range gain +1 energy regeneration. This spirit dies after 5...25...30 seconds.

Binding Ritual. Create a level 1...8...10 spirit. Non-spirit allies within its range gain +1 energy regeneration. This spirit dies after 5...25...30 seconds.

Concise description
Binding Ritual. Creates a level 1...8...10 spirit (5...25...30 second lifespan). Non-spirit allies in range gain +1 energy regeneration.


Progression
Level
0
1
5
1
2
7
2
2
8
3
3
10
4
3
12
5
4
13
6
5
15
7
5
17
8
6
18
9
6
20
10
7
22
11
8
23
12
8
25
13
9
27
14
9
28
15
10
30
16
11
32
17
11
33
18
12
35
19
12
37
20
13
38
21
14
40

An increase in energy regeneration is an innately powerful boon as it allows for a team to use their energy based skills more frequently, which in turn corresponds to an improvement in a teams ability to both heal and deal damage. Naturally, Empowerment will see its casting time adjusted to 3 seconds for the PvP format and its level reduced to 1...8...10. In addition, its recharge will be increased to 45 seconds. This way, if a player seeks to permanently maintain Empowerment for themselves and their team, they will be forced to invest in skills which reduce the recharge of Binding Rituals, such as Soul Twisting or Ritual Lord.

Spirit to Flesh[edit]

Spell. Target allied spirit is destroyed. All allies in earshot are healed for 15...71...85.

Spell. Target allied spirit is destroyed. All allies in earshot are healed for 15...71...85.

Concise description
Spell. Destroys target allied spirit. Heals allies in earshot for 15...71...85.


Progression
0
15
1
20
2
24
3
29
4
34
5
38
6
43
7
48
8
52
9
57
10
62
11
66
12
71
13
76
14
80
15
85
16
90
17
94
18
99
19
104
20
108
21
113


Problem Statement and Suggested Change: Spirit to Flesh is a powerful but limited skill. The touch range requirement presents an issue in usability, as a Ritualist may have to spend time running to a spirit in order to heal. The skill does have an advantage over Feast of Souls in that it heals allies, not just party members, and has a much higher initial heal, yet this healing effect is limited to nearby range in comparison to Feast of Souls party range, while also being less spammable due to a longer recharge. To better balance this skill against its counterpart, I would suggest increasing its area of effect to a wider earshot range while significantly reducing its healing output, removing the touch range, and cutting down its recharge time. This way, Spirit to Flesh can be utilized as a quick allied healing ability, yet cannot match Feast of Souls in terms of range and total healing output. A similar balance change was made to the two Monk skills Divine Healing and Heaven's Delight. They initially only healed party members in nearby range centered on the caster for a very large amount. To improve usability, these skills were adjusted to have their range greatly increased to earshot and their healing greatly decreased. Considering precedence set by Arenanet themselves, Spirit to Flesh would be fairly balanced if adjusted in this way.


Anticipated Usage: Spirit to Flesh would be a useful skill in any area of the game where party and multi-ally healing is crucial. Additionally, as it is linked to Spawning Power, it can be taken in a wide range of builds. Ultimately, this skill would more or less become a variant over Feast of Souls for those who desire its mildly different effect.

Weapons of Three Forges[edit]

Elite Weapon Spell. For 3...17...20 seconds, target ally attacks, moves, and cast spells 33% faster. PvE Skill

Elite Weapon Spell. For 3...17...20 seconds, target ally attacks, moves, and cast spells 33% faster. PvE Skill

Concise description
Elite Weapon Spell. (3...17...20 seconds.) Target ally attacks, moves, and casts spells 33% faster. PvE Skill


Progression
0
3
1
4
2
5
3
6
4
8
5
9
6
10
7
11
8
12
9
13
10
14
11
15
12
17
13
18
14
19
15
20
16
21
17
22
18
23
19
25
20
26
21
27

Problem Statement and Suggested Change: This rather interesting skill was introduced in the 15th Anniversary Update. Though it seems exceptionally powerful on paper, in practice it is not as effective as it appears in most situations. The main and most important issue with this skill is that it grants weapon spells at random. There are not a whole lot of universally useful weapon spells, as most of them were designed to be used when encountering specific situations or to enhance specific builds. Take for example Splinter Weapon; it's a pretty good PvE skill, but if you grant it to a spellcaster, like an Elementalist, it's mostly a waste as they would be better off casting their spells. Even if Splinter Weapon is granted to a martial ally, the weapon spell is only going to be effective if your opponents are balled up. Because Splinter Weapon might be randomly encountered when using Weapons of Three Forges, your team may not be effectively outfitted to take full advantage of it, and this is the same circumstance that is encountered when other, random weapon spells are gained from using Weapons of Three Forges.

Because these new PvE only elite skills were introduced with the intention of being overpowered relevant to previous balancing philosophies, I've decided to offer up a suggested change that is also intentionally overpowered. This suggestion retains an appropriate functionality when considering the title of the skill by granting a single ally a universal boost to their attack speed, spellcasting speed, and movement speed.

Anticipated Usage: The effects of this change would be rather powerful as the skill will essentially compress IAS, IMS, and faster spell casting into one skill. As such, it may find its way onto supportive Ritualist bars in PvE.

Consume Soul (PvE)[edit]

Elite Spell. You steal 5...65...80 Health from target foe. All hostile summoned creatures in the area of that foe take 25...85...100 damage.

Elite Spell. You steal 5...65...80 Health from target foe. All hostile summoned creatures in the area of that foe take 25...85...100 damage.

Concise description
Elite Spell. Steals 5...65...80 Health. Deal 25...85...100 damage to hostile summoned creatures in the area of target foe.


Progression
0
5
25
1
10
30
2
15
35
3
20
40
4
25
45
5
30
50
6
35
55
7
40
60
8
45
65
9
50
70
10
55
75
11
60
80
12
65
85
13
70
90
14
75
95
15
80
100
16
85
105
17
90
110
18
95
115
19
100
120
20
105
125
21
110
130


Problem Statement and Suggested Change: As mentioned prior, Ritualist bars in PvE are dominated by exceptionally powerful elite skills like Signet of Spirits and Soul Twisting. Because of that, other elite skills that a Ritualist might consider using have to compete with these staples when operating in a similar role. Consume Soul is a damage skill, and so competes with other Ritualist elites used to inflict damage. Furthermore, the type of skill that Consume Soul is (that being a single target, armor ignoring damage skill) has precedent in other skills for how powerful it should be at maximum. Discord is more or less the ultimate balance potential for an elite single target, armor ignoring damage skill, as it deals upwards of 110 damage against a single target, yet needs to meet two conditions in order to do so. In terms of non-elite skills, Spiritual Pain, Obsidian Flame and Necrosis are good balancing examples of how powerful skills of this type should be. Consume Soul currently doesn't meet the balancing potential for a skill of its kind that been set by Arenanet themselves. To bring it up to par, I suggest a modest increase in lifesteal to 5...65...80 while also greatly reducing the recharge to 2 seconds. Consequently, the damage done to summoned creatures in the area would be reduced to 25...85...100 to prevent Consume Soul from too quickly dispatching them. This change would remain restricted to PvE of course.

Anticipated Usage: I concede that even with this change, SoS bars would still remain as dominant as they are now. However, improving Consume Soul in this way would hopefully allow more experimental Ritualists an alternative playstyle, while also bringing another option to players who seek to play off-meta.

Channeling Magic[edit]

Clamor of Souls[edit]

Elite Spell. Target foe and all nearby foes take 15...71...85 lightning damage. If you are within earshot of a spirit or holding a bundle item, you gain 10 Energy.

Elite Spell. Target foe and all nearby foes take 15...71...85 lightning damage. If you are within earshot of a spirit or holding a bundle item, you gain 10 Energy.

Concise description
Elite Spell. Deals 15...71...85 lightning damage to target and nearby foes. You gain 10 Energy if you are within earshot of a spirit or holding a bundle item.


Progression
0
15
1
20
2
24
3
29
4
34
5
38
6
43
7
48
8
52
9
57
10
62
11
66
12
71
13
76
14
80
15
85
16
90
17
94
18
99
19
104
20
108
21
113


Problem Statement and Suggested Change: This skill is outshined by a lot of ritualist elites when it comes to doing damage. It has a big advantage in that its two conditionals are both easy to meet, but the effect, though free, is mediocre. Similar to Mending Grip, Clamor of Souls is a skill which only needs some fine tuning to be effective. A moderate damage boost would be an appropriate change without overpowering its abilities.


Anticipated Usage: In PvE, it is difficult to replace the extraordinary firepower of other Ritualist elites such as Signet of Spirits, Signet of Ghostly Might and Destructive Was Glaive. Nonetheless, the damage increase given to Clamor would help it to compete against these powerful elite skills, further improvable through Clamors effective combination with Arcane Echo.


Creature Adjustments: The Damned Crewman from the Shards of Orr dungeon use Clamor of Souls in their skill bars. When these creatures are summoned while defending Fendi Nin, they have the potential to instantly spike unprepared groups with massive AoE damage, possibly wiping them instantly. While this is indeed a necessary danger as Shards of Orr is an endgame dungeon, and hence should be difficult, their AoE spiking potential likely doesn't need to be improved. As such, finding a way to prevent these creatures from dealing improved damaged with the suggested buff to Clamor of Souls may be necessary, either through reducing their Channeling Magic attribute, their creature level, or through some other means.

PvP Version

Elite Spell. Target foe and all nearby foes take 15...63...75 lightning damage. If you are within earshot of a spirit or holding a bundle item, you gain 10 Energy.

Elite Spell. Target foe and all nearby foes take 15...63...75 lightning damage. If you are within earshot of a spirit or holding a bundle item, you gain 10 Energy.

Concise description
Elite Spell. Deals 15...63...75 lightning damage to target and nearby foes. You gain 10 Energy if you are within earshot of a spirit or holding a bundle item.


Progression
0
15
1
19
2
23
3
27
4
31
5
35
6
39
7
43
8
47
9
51
10
55
11
59
12
63
13
67
14
71
15
75
16
79
17
83
18
87
19
91
20
95
21
99

The PvP version of Clamor of Souls would see its damage restricted to an increase of 15...63...75 instead of 15...71...85 as given to it in PvE. This is to account for the difference in balancing standards between damage in PvP and PvE. With its improved damage, Clamor becomes more capable in formats such as Alliance Battles, the Jade Quarry, and Fort Aspenwood, arenas where area damage is often required to help eliminate enemy strongpoints.


Signet of Spirits (PvP)[edit]

Elite Signet. Create 2 level 1...7...8 spirits. These spirits deal 5...17...20 damage with attacks and die after 60 seconds.

Elite Signet. Create 2 level 1...7...8 spirits. These spirits deal 5...17...20 damage with attacks and die after 60 seconds.

Concise description
Elite Signet. Creates 2 level 1...7...8 spirits (60 second lifespan). These spirits deal 5...17...20 damage with attacks.


Progression
Level
0
1
5
1
1
6
2
2
7
3
2
8
4
3
9
5
3
10
6
4
11
7
4
12
8
5
13
9
5
14
10
6
15
11
6
16
12
7
17
13
7
18
14
8
19
15
8
20
16
8
21
17
9
22
18
9
23
19
10
24
20
10
25
21
11
26


Problem Statement and Suggested Change: When Arenanet reworked a significant number of binding rituals and related skills in the Ritualist Overhaul in June of 2009, Signet of Spirits was among one of those skills split for PvE and PvP. During this time, it is likely that the balancing team considered the implications of releasing a "Lite" version of Signet of Spirits for PvP and decided against it. Nonetheless, I think it was a poor decision to leave Signet of Spirits as it currently is in PvP, for the present version is wholly inferior to Offering of Spirit, which we can deduce from the following reasons: Both these skills offer the same net energy return, however, Offering of Spirit can be used without a spirit in earshot, casts in 1/4 of a second, recharges five seconds faster, and can function with a 40/40 set to reduce its recharge. The sole advantage Signet of Spirits offers is a situational advantage in which one may need energy but either cannot cast spells, i.e if under the influence of Shroud of Silence, or should not cast spells, such as when hexed by Backfire. Being a signet, Signet of Spirits avoids the more numerous counters to spells, yet this advantage hardly makes up for its inferiority, and as such it does not see much usage.


Anticipated Usage: This change is an attempt to bring some of the firepower of the PvE version of Signet of Spirits into PvP, along with compensatory adjustments to account for the keen balance required of the PvP format. Firstly, the number of spirits summoned has been reduced from 3 to 2. This alone is a rather potent change as it reduces both the damage and body block potential of this skill as well as the efficacy of skills which may benefit from having multiple spirits, such as Painful Bond, Spirit Siphon, or Feast of Souls. Secondly, the level of the spirits has been normalized to 1...7...8. Thirdly, the cast time has been increased to 3 seconds. Fourth and last, the recharge has been increased to 45 seconds. All these changes are a combined attempt to bring Signet of Spirits into play without making it too powerful. With these adjustments, Signet of Spirits retains some of the traditional counters to spirit summoning, most notably the lengthy, interrupt prone cast time and low level, vulnerable spirits, while offering an advantage over other elites by allowing its wielder to summon multiple spirits.

Communing[edit]

Dissonance (PvE)[edit]

Binding Ritual. Create a level 1...10...12 spirit. This spirit deals 5...17...20 damage and anyone struck by its attack is interrupted. This spirit dies after 10...22...25 seconds.

Binding Ritual. Create a level 1...10...12 spirit. This spirit deals 5...17...20 damage and anyone struck by its attack is interrupted. This spirit dies after 10...22...25 seconds.

Concise description
Binding Ritual. Creates a level 1...10...12 spirit (10...22...25 second lifespan). Its attacks deal 5...17...20 damage and interrupt actions.


Progression
Level
0
1
5
10
1
2
6
11
2
2
7
12
3
3
8
13
4
4
9
14
5
5
10
15
6
5
11
16
7
6
12
17
8
7
13
18
9
8
14
19
10
8
15
20
11
9
16
21
12
10
17
22
13
11
18
23
14
11
19
24
15
12
20
25
16
13
21
26
17
13
22
27
18
14
23
28
19
15
24
29
20
16
25
30
21
16
26
31

Problem Statement and Suggested Change: During the previously mentioned Binding Ritual overhaul in June of 2009, Dissonance was one of those spirits that received a PvE/PvP skill split. Strangely, whereas other offensive Binding Rituals received reductions to not just their cast time but also their energy costs and recharge (Disenchantment is a good example of this, receiving a 10 energy cost reduction and 15 seconds shaved off its cooldown), Dissonance received only a cast time reduction, retaining a rather hefty 25 energy cost and a recharge that at most allows the spirit a ~50% uptime on the battlefield without any modifiers. I believe Dissonance is balanced inappropriately for the PvE format, and especially so when compared to other offensive Binding Rituals that received better adjustments in past balance changes. To better balance Dissonance against the other offensive Binding Rituals, I suggest an energy cost reduction to 15 and a cooldown reduction to 30 seconds.


Anticipated Usage: This change would allow Dissonance to more easily fit on the bars of offensive spirit spammers in PvE. Chiefly, Signet of Ghostly Might bars would be able to more easily fit Dissonance onto their skill set owing to the reduced energy cost, allowing them to perform more admirably when compared to their often regarded as superior competitor, the Signet of Spirits spammer.

Divine Favor[edit]

Withdraw Hexes[edit]

Elite Spell. Remove one hex from each party member. If a hex is removed in this way, that party member is healed for 15...51...60 health. (50% failure chance with Divine Favor 4 or less.)

Elite Spell. Remove one hex from each party member. If a hex is removed in this way, that party member is healed for 15...51...60 health. (50% failure chance with Divine Favor 4 or less.)

Concise description
Elite Spell. Affects all party members. Removes one hex. Heals for 15...51...60 if a hex is removed. 50% failure chance unless Divine Favor is 5 or more.


Progression
0
15
1
18
2
21
3
24
4
27
5
30
6
33
7
36
8
39
9
42
10
45
11
48
12
51
13
54
14
57
15
60
16
63
17
66
18
69
19
72
20
75
21
78

Problem Statement and Suggested Change: Withdraw Hexes doesn't see much use in neither PvE nor PvP. This is due namely to the fact that much superior alternatives exist in the form of Peace and Harmony and the non-elite Convert Hexes. Additionally, I believe another issue with this skill is that its AoE function just isn't altogether useful. Adjacent range is rather small, and depending on how many hexes you remove, this skill can disable itself for a very long time. I think a unique change to this skill would be to make it what is essentially an elite version of Extinguish that removes hexes instead of conditions, while also tacking on a conditional heal to reduce pressure. I feel this is an appropriate change simply because all the bases of hex removal are more or less already covered; you have skills which combine hex removal and condition removal along with healing in the form of Blessed Light, Divert Hexes, and Empathic Removal. The aforementioned Peace and Harmony and Convert Hexes also cover the grounds of single target clearing. The proposed change would necessitate increasing its recharge while also retaining the high energy cost due to the powerful effect. Additionally, out fear that competitive PvP arenas might abuse the skill by stacking it on secondaries, I have added a failure chance with Divine Favor being at an attribute level of 4 or less, thereby limiting usage to primary monks only


Anticipated Usage: If changed in this way, Withdraw Hexes' biggest advantage over other forms of hex removal would be that it affects all party members, making it more useful in situations where your team is expected to be bombarded by AoE hexes, rather than a situation where the player anticipates hexes being stacked on a single target. Being that hexes are less of a threat in most PvE areas than they are when exploited by players in PvP, I'd expect Withdraw Hexes to see usage mostly in the PvP formats. Nonetheless, there are certainly areas of PvE, particularly dungeons, where one can expect bombardment from AoE and single target hexes, and so Withdraw Hexes may serve an effective purpose in such areas.


Creatures Adjustments: Because the functionality of this skill is being dramatically changed, the AI that governs usage of this skill would also have to be adjusted. Most preferably, the AI should use this skill in a manner similar to party healing skills, but instead of the triggering effect being multiple party members that are in need of healing, it should be multiple party members under the effects of a hex.

Signet of Devotion[edit]

Signet. Heal target ally for 14...83...100 Health.

Signet of Devotion

293
  • 01.5Activation
  • 5 Recharge
Profession
Monk
Attribute
Divine Favor
Type
Signet
Campaign
Core
Animation
Click to view

Signet. Heal target ally for 14...83...100 Health.

Concise description
Signet. Heals for 14...83...100.


Progression
0
14
1
20
2
25
3
31
4
37
5
43
6
48
7
54
8
60
9
66
10
71
11
77
12
83
13
89
14
94
15
100
16
106
17
111
18
117
19
123
20
129
21
134

Problem Statement and Suggested Change: Signet of Devotion is a good starter skill but the lengthy casting time holds it back in later areas of the game, and especially in PvP. Arenanet initially introduced the one and a half second casting time during the Elementalist update of 2012, slated for use with skills that would be too powerful if buffed to a one second casting time, but too weak if left at two seconds. I think Signet of Devotion would be a great candidate for usage of the new one and a half second cast time.


Anticipated Usage: A one and a half second cast time increases the general usability of this skill across all areas of the game.

Healer's Covenant[edit]

Elite Enchantment Spell. For 20 seconds, your next 1...8...10 Healing Prayers spells cost 5...41...50% less Energy. Healer's Covenant ends if you attack or use a skill on a foe.

Elite Enchantment Spell. For 20 seconds, your next 1...8...10 Healing Prayers spells cost 5...41...50% less Energy. Healer's Covenant ends if you attack or use a skill on a foe.

Concise description
Elite Enchantment Spell. (20 seconds). Your next 1...8...10 Healing Prayers spells cost 5...41...50% less Energy. Ends if you attack or use a skill on a foe.


Progression
Number of spells
Energy cost reduction
0
1
5
1
2
8
2
2
11
3
3
14
4
3
17
5
4
20
6
5
23
7
5
26
8
6
29
9
6
32
10
7
35
11
8
38
12
8
41
13
9
44
14
9
47
15
10
50
16
11
53
17
11
56
18
12
59
19
12
62
20
13
65
21
14
68


Problem Statement and Suggested Change: When we compare Healer's Covenant to other powerful Monk enchantments such as Healer's Boon or Unyielding Aura, it's easy to see why these skills are far more popular than Healer's Covenant. Healer's Boon offers a 50% increase in healing for the player's healing prayer spells, in addition to reducing their cast times by an equal amount. Furthermore, by increasing the amount which a player can heal for, you are in essence reducing the number of times they will have to heal, thereby granting them an indirect boon to their energy management. Unyielding Aura has similar results, except that the -1 energy degeneration slightly counters it's increased ability to heal when speaking on terms of energy management. Unyielding Aura additionally provides useful bar compression by acting as a resurrection skill when needed. In order to encourage use of this skill, and to provide it with a functionality that distinguishes it from the similar Selfless Spirit, we can improve it in the following ways. Instead of a flat -3 reduction to the energy cost of spells, we now provide it with a scaling percent reduction of -5...41...50%. This change simultaneously differentiates Healer's Covenant from Selfless Spirit while also allowing it to reclaim its spot as the more powerful energy management option since it can now greatly reduce the energy cost of 10 and 15 energy spells. However, because the effects of this skill are now quite strong, we will not allow it to last indefinitely, and so it will be limited to working on only the next 1...8...10 Healing Prayers spells used by the player. In consideration of this substantial buff, Healer's Covenant will be moved to Divine Favor to restrict its usage to Monk primaries. Lastly, we will add a clause to the skill that will cause it to end should a player attack or use a skill on an enemy. The intention behind this is twofold: Firstly, Arenanet designed the Monk to have limited energy management options, and the previous version of Healer's Covenant demonstrated that facet with a significant drawback of a 25% reduction in healing. The addition of an ends on attacking or casting a spell clause will continue that aspect in spirit. Secondly, the addition of this clause is intended to remove from PvP players the ability to use adrenaline stances in conjunction with the new Healer's Covenant, thereby exchanging powerful energy management for a reduction in usable self defense abilities.


Anticipated Usage: Changing Healer's Covenant in this way would hopefully allow it to be more usable in both PvP and PvE environments. As an enchantment , Healer's Covenant is vulnerable to being stripped, allowing for counterplay in PvP where players often expect to encounter enchantments. The reduction of energy cost based on a percentage modifier instead of a flat -3 reduction would also hopefully lead to Monks being more able to utilize 10 and 15 energy cost skills, something that is currently difficult to do due to the limited energy management options available to Monk players.


Creature Adjustments: The way in which AI use spells while under the effects of Healer's Covenant would not have to be adjusted because the new version, while having a modified functionality, essentially operates in the same manner as the old Healer's Covenant, i.e it reduces the energy cost of Healing Prayers spells. However, being that the old Healer's Covenant had an unlimited duration and also didn't end when the user attacked or had cast spells on enemies, the new version of Healer's Covenant would require some AI adjustments to creatures that use it. These creatures would need to be programmed to not attack or cast spells on enemies while under the effects of Healer's Covenant, otherwise the skill would go to waste. Any creature that has Healer's Covenant on their skillbar in addition to offensive skills should have their bars redone to include only defensive skills. Lastly, the AI would also need adjustment to use Healer's Covenant as soon as it is both expired and recharged for most optimal performance.

PvP Version

Elite Enchantment Spell. For 20 seconds, your next 1...7...8 Healing Prayers spells cost 5...41...50% less Energy. Healer's Covenant ends if you attack or use a skill on a foe.

Elite Enchantment Spell. For 20 seconds, your next 1...7...8 Healing Prayers spells cost 5...41...50% less Energy. Healer's Covenant ends if you attack or use a skill on a foe.

Concise description
Elite Enchantment Spell. (20 seconds). Your next 1...7...8 Healing Prayers spells cost 5...41...50% less Energy. Ends if you attack or use a skill on a foe.


Progression
Number of spells
Energy cost reduction
0
1
5
1
1
8
2
2
11
3
2
14
4
3
17
5
3
20
6
4
23
7
4
26
8
5
29
9
5
32
10
6
35
11
6
38
12
7
41
13
7
44
14
8
47
15
8
50
16
8
53
17
9
56
18
9
59
19
10
62
20
10
65
21
11
68

To account for the stricter balance of PvP, we will reduce the number of spells that Healer's Covenant affects from 1...8...10 to 1...7...8. This should limit the amount of energy saved by the skill while still keeping it playable.

Healing Prayers[edit]

Healing Light[edit]

Elite Spell. Heal target ally for 40...104...120 Health. If your target has an enchantment, you gain 3 Energy.

Elite Spell. Heal target ally for 40...104...120 Health. If your target has an enchantment, you gain 3 Energy.

Concise description
Elite Spell. Heals for 40...104...120. You gain 3 Energy if target ally is enchanted.


Progression
0
40
1
45
2
51
3
56
4
61
5
67
6
72
7
77
8
83
9
88
10
93
11
99
12
104
13
109
14
115
15
120
16
125
17
131
18
136
19
141
20
147
21
152


Problem Statement and Suggested Change: The elite skill of a Monk's bar is a very competitive spot to fill, and furthermore quite defining in terms of what that bar is going to accomplish. Healing Light must compete with exceptionally powerful staples such as Word of Healing and Healing Burst. Unfortunately, it falls flat when compared to these skills, but only just. A bump in its healing output, a flat energy gain of 3, and a reduction of its cast time from one second to 3/4 makes it more competitive with the alternatives.


Anticipated Usage: If changed in this way, the choice between Word of Healing, Healing Burst, and Healing Light wouldn't be as clear cut. Teams relying heavily on enchantments could put Healing Light to good use, and the energy retained by the Monk would allow him to activate other skills more often. Yet, Healing Light cannot compete with Word of Healing's spike healing, nor Healing Burst's ability to reduce pressure, thereby preserving both the distinguishing elements between these skills and player choice.

Healing Hands[edit]

Elite Enchantment Spell. For 8 seconds, target ally gains +1...5...6 health regeneration, and whenever that ally takes damage, that ally is healed for 5...29...35 Health.

Elite Enchantment Spell. For 8 seconds, target ally gains +1...5...6 health regeneration, and whenever that ally takes damage, that ally is healed for 5...29...35 Health.

Concise description
Elite Enchantment Spell. (8 seconds.) +1...5...6 Health regeneration. Heals for 5...29...35 whenever target takes damage.


Progression
Health regeneration
0
5
1
1
7
1
2
9
2
3
11
2
4
13
2
5
15
3
6
17
3
7
19
3
8
21
4
9
23
4
10
25
4
11
27
5
12
29
5
13
31
5
14
33
6
15
35
6
16
37
6
17
39
7
18
41
7
19
43
7
20
45
8
21
47
8


Problem Statement and Suggested Change: Neglected through time and supplanted by balance updates, Healing Hands has been left in a wanting state. With so many other powerful elite skills a healing Monk could run, Healing Hands is most often not on the radar when players choose skills and make builds. There is nothing inherently wrong with its current functionality; it works as described, and when placed on an ally certainly reduces pressure. However, the compromise lies in what a Monk must forgo when they bring this skill over superior alternatives. To bring it up to par, I suggest the addition of a modest amount of health regeneration, a recharge reduction to 15 seconds, and a duration decrease to 8 seconds. With this change, any ally who is the recipient of Healing Hands will be more eased when receiving damage.


Anticipated Usage: This modest buff to an underused skill is intended to improve its general playability. Though certain areas of the game, such as Guild vesus Guild or elite missions, demand very specific playstyles in order to succeed, lesser areas of lighter difficulty may see some usage from this update.

Protection Prayers[edit]

Mark of Protection[edit]

Elite Enchantment Spell. For 8 seconds, whenever target other ally would take damage or life steal, that ally is healed for that amount instead, maximum 6...49...60.

Elite Enchantment Spell. For 8 seconds, whenever target other ally would take damage or life steal, that ally is healed for that amount instead, maximum 6...49...60.

Concise description
Elite Enchantment Spell. (8 seconds.) Converts incoming damage or life steal to healing (maximum 6...49...60). Cannot self-target.


Progression
Maximum healing
0
6
1
10
2
13
3
17
4
20
5
24
6
28
7
31
8
35
9
38
10
42
11
46
12
49
13
53
14
56
15
60
16
64
17
67
18
71
19
74
20
78
21
82

Problem Statement and Suggested Change: Mark of Protection has what can only be described as a very powerful effect, yet consequently supposes serious drawbacks that limit its usage. First off, the disabling of your own skills effect is unnecessary and quite limiting; it essentially prevents this skill from being run on prot monks. I think an effective compromise would be to remove that portion of the skill, and in its place we add a "cannot self target" clause, which may be considered a fair tradeoff when regarding the overall improvements to the skill. I find it necessary to reduce its long recharge time to a more usable 25 seconds, otherwise the down time is too long. To counteract this recharge reduction, I believe the duration of the enchantment should be reduced only slightly to 8 seconds. Furthermore, Mark of Protection will now convert life stealing to healing in addition to damage, preserving consistency between this skill and those with similar functionalities such as Life Sheath and Reversal of Fortune. Lastly, the one second cast time is going to stay as this skill is likely not intended by Arenanet to be anti-spike but rather anti-pressure. All in all, the skill would remain quite powerful, essentially negating all damage and life steal up to 112 and below at 14 Protection Prayers, provided it isn't stripped.


Anticipated Usage: With this change, Mark of Protection would remain distinct from other Protection Prayer's elites while neither overshadowing nor nullifying their abilities. This skill would essentially be brought up to par with its alternatives and considering that its very general functionality (damage and life steal conversion) has purpose in all modes of the game, Mark of Protection would be useful in most any area.



Reverse Hex[edit]

Enchantment Spell. Remove one hex from target ally. If a hex was removed in this way, for 5...9...10 seconds, the next 15...67...80 damage that ally takes is negated.

Enchantment Spell. Remove one hex from target ally. If a hex was removed in this way, for 5...9...10 seconds, the next 15...67...80 damage that ally takes is negated.

Concise description
Enchantment Spell. (5...9...10 seconds.) Removes one hex from target ally. The next 15...67...80 damage this ally takes is negated. No effect unless this ally is hexed.


Progression
0
5
15
1
5
19
2
6
24
3
6
28
4
6
32
5
7
37
6
7
41
7
7
45
8
8
50
9
8
54
10
8
58
11
9
63
12
9
67
13
9
71
14
10
76
15
10
80
16
10
84
17
11
89
18
11
93
19
11
97
20
12
102
21
12
106

Problem Statement and Suggested Change: I must state that I do not think Reverse Hex is an underpowered skill, and its current incarnation I believe to be sufficiently powerful, however, this change is directed at making the skill slightly more appealing. Though Reverse Hex costs 10 energy, the justification of this energy cost lies in the advantage of a 1/4 cast time, which allows it to remove a dangerous hex before it can be covered (particularly important in PvP) and firmly avoid interrupts. The current secondary effect of Reverse Hex is a damage reduction that applies to the next attack received by the targeted ally. Similar to Reversal of Fortune, this damage reduction can reduce upwards of 50 damage from a strong attack, but it might also negate a mere 10 damage from a wand auto attack, as the damage reduction only applies to the very next attack received. The suggested change would instead have Reverse Hex negate the next 15...67...80 damage the ally takes from any number of attacks, not just the next one. Unless the enchantment is removed, Reverse Hex is guaranteed to negate the next 15...67...80 damage no matter the source nor number of damage packets. With this change, Reverse Hex may hopefully become more appealing, and see more usage on the bars of Protection Prayers Monks.


Anticipated Usage: With this change, Reverse Hex becomes slightly more viable as an alternate hex removal skill. With its 1/4 cast time, Reverse Hex is capable of avoiding interrupts and removing a hex before it can be covered, feats that are more suited to PvP play rather than PvE. Therefore, I believe this change would be more useful in PvP over PvE.


Purifying Veil[edit]

Enchantment Spell. For 1...12...15 seconds, conditions expire 5...41...50% faster on target ally.

Enchantment Spell. For 1...12...15 seconds, conditions expire 5...41...50% faster on target ally.

Concise description
Enchantment Spell. (1...12...15 seconds.) Conditions expire 5...41...50% faster on target ally.


Progression
Faster condition expiration %
Duration
0
5
1
1
8
2
2
11
3
3
14
4
4
17
5
5
20
6
6
23
7
7
26
8
8
29
8
9
32
9
10
35
10
11
38
11
12
41
12
13
44
13
14
47
14
15
50
15
16
53
16
17
56
17
18
59
18
19
62
19
20
65
20
21
68
21

Problem Statement and Suggested Change: Purifying Veil, in its current state, can essentially be seen as an anti-condition counterpart to Holy Veil. However, Holy Veil is arguably a stronger skill to counter hexes than Purifying Veil is to counter conditions. This is mainly because hexes are overall more dangerous than conditions since hexes can and often do have much more catastrophic effects compared to the majority of conditions. Additionally, Holy Veil doubles the casting time of hexes, making it harder for foes to apply stacks of hexes on the recipient while also having the added benefit of increasing the window of time for which an ally might interrupt the hex. Lastly, Holy Veil allows the user to remove a dangerous hex before it can be covered by a less dangerous one, i.e. removing Backfire before Mind Wrack is applied.

Anticipated Usage: Will expand later.


Pensive Guardian[edit]

Enchantment Spell. For 8 seconds, target ally has 5...13...15 damage reduction and gains 5...13...15 health per second while suffering from a hex or condition.

Enchantment Spell. For 8 seconds, target ally has 5...13...15 damage reduction and gains 5...13...15 health per second while suffering from a hex or condition.

Concise description
Enchantment Spell. (8 seconds.) Reduces incoming damage by 5...13...15 and gain 5...13...15 health per second. No effect unless target ally is hexed or has a condition.


Progression
0
5
5
1
6
6
2
6
6
3
7
7
4
8
8
5
8
8
6
9
9
7
10
10
8
10
10
9
11
11
10
12
12
11
12
12
12
13
13
13
14
14
14
14
14
15
15
15
16
16
16
17
16
16
18
17
17
19
18
18
20
18
18
21
19
19

Problem Statement and Suggested Change: Pensive Guardian is quite similar to Guardian. They are both Protection Prayers skills that grant an ally a 50% chance to block attacks except Pensive Guardian only does so if the enemy attacking your ally is enchanted. Guardian is simply more reliable because it grants an unconditional 50% blocking chance. The only advantage Pensive Guardian has over Guardian is a slightly longer duration that, in my opinion, does not make the skill powerful enough to warrant its conditionality.

The above suggestion is a redesign of Pensive Guardian to turn it into an anti-pressure skill. Similar to the old Pensive Guardian, it remains conditional as the ally must be affected by a hex or condition in order for the enchantment to work. If it that ally is suffering from one of these ailments, they gain damage reduction and health per second, a good counter to all sorts of enemy attacks. In turn, the duration has been set to a flat 8 seconds and the recharge has been increased to 12 to compensate.

Anticipated Usage: Hexes and condition are found widely across all areas of the game. This version of Pensive Guardian was designed to be appropriate for all kinds of encounters, and so may see usage in many formats of general play like general PvE and competitive PvP modes.

Creature Adjustments: Because this is a functionality change to Pensive Guardian, Hero AI would have to be adjusted to match the effects of the new skill. The old AI for Pensive Guardian uses it as a blocking skill which is a functionality it will no longer have. Instead, the functionality should be updated to be similar to how the AI use Resilient Weapon since they will now share similar functionalities.


Smiting Prayers[edit]

Amity[edit]

Elite Hex Spell. For 5...17...20 seconds, target foe and all nearby foes lose 3 energy whenever they attack and deal 5...17...20 less damage.

Elite Hex Spell. For 5...17...20 seconds, target foe and all nearby foes lose 3 energy whenever they attack and deal 5...17...20 less damage.

Concise description
Elite Hex Spell. Also hexes foes near your target (5...17...20 seconds). Lose 3 energy when attacking. Reduces damage by 5...17...20.


Progression
0
5
5
1
6
6
2
7
7
3
8
8
4
9
9
5
10
10
6
11
11
7
12
12
8
13
13
9
14
14
10
15
15
11
16
16
12
17
17
13
18
18
14
19
19
15
20
20
16
21
21
17
22
22
18
23
23
19
24
24
20
25
25
21
26
26


Problem Statement and Suggested Change: When Guild Wars first released back in 2005, there were only two skills with a functionality that prevented opponents from attacking, those skills being Pacifism and the above Amity. In the seven years of active development Guild Wars received following it's release, only one other skill would be added to the game which explored this mechanic, A Touch of Guile, and furthermore the original two skills which shared this functionality were never improved upon nor attended to in any which way aside from slight quality of life adjustments early after their release. With that said, I think it is reasonable to assume that Arenanet did not consider the functionality of Amity nor skills like it as mechanics worth pursuing, and so I think it appropriate that we forgo this type of mechanic altogether. The change I suggest for Amity would make it an AoE hex, similar in performance to Dulled Weapon except stronger, as is natural for an elite skill to be. Additionally, moving Amity into the Smiting Prayers attribute line would be appropriate for this new functionality.


Anticipated Usage: This new functionality would be a powerful way to counter martial characters of all types, especially those with a tendency to form in mobs. The energy loss would be especially damaging to Rangers and Assassins, who rely on their energy more so than the other martial professions. Nonetheless, as Mesmers tend to rule the roost when it comes down shutting down both martial and caster classes in PvE, I anticipate Amity being more appreciated for usage in PvP rather than PvE.

Pacifism[edit]

Hex Spell. For 5...13...15 seconds, target foe attacks 33% slower and gains 50% less adrenaline.

Hex Spell. For 5...13...15 seconds, target foe attacks 33% slower and gains 50% less adrenaline.

Concise description
Hex Spell. (5...13...15 seconds.) Target foe attacks 33% slower and gains 50% less adrenaline.


Progression
0
5
1
6
2
6
3
7
4
8
5
8
6
9
7
10
8
10
9
11
10
12
11
12
12
13
13
14
14
14
15
15
16
16
17
16
18
17
19
18
20
18
21
19

Problem Statement and Suggested Change: As argued above, the mere functionality of Pacifism as a skill is not very effective, possibly neglected on purpose by Arenanet, and moreover difficult to balance. In PvE, progress is generally made by killing monsters, and in the case where shutdown is needed, there are easier and more powerful ways to do so than to rely on Pacifism. In PvP, the ends on receiving damage clause tends to negate most instances where Pacifism may be used. The above suggestion would place Pacifism in Smiting Prayers and offer the Smiting monk a potent tool to counter martial players, especially those reliant on adrenaline. Its effects would be balanced by a combination of energy cost, cast time, and recharge.


Anticipated Usage: Single target shutdowns are generally not as effective in PvE as those affecting multiple creatures. Additionally, Mesmers retain superiority over other professions when it comes to shutdown ability thanks to powerful skills such as Ineptitude or Panic. In PvP, this skill would complement a smiting monk quite well, allowing them to shutdown martial players while remaining vulnerable to typical counters such as hex removal and interruption. In terms of overall effectiveness, I believe it to compare favorably to anti-martial staples such as Faintheartedness and Empathy.

Smiter's Boon (PvP)[edit]

Enchantment Spell. For 30 seconds, whenever you cast a Smiting Prayers spell on an ally, that ally is healed for 5...15...17 health.

Enchantment Spell. For 30 seconds, whenever you cast a Smiting Prayers spell on an ally, that ally is healed for 5...15...17 health.

Concise description
Enchantment Spell. (30 seconds.) Your Smiting Prayers spells heal for 5...15...17.


Progression
Divine Favor
Healing bonus
0
5
1
6
2
7
3
7
4
8
5
9
6
10
7
11
8
11
9
12
10
13
11
14
12
15
13
15
14
16
15
17
16
18
17
19
18
19
19
20
20
21
21
22

Problem Statement and Suggested Change: The August 21 update of 2008 nerfed Smiter's Boon with the intention of removing it from play. Before this nerf was made, Smiter's Boon had seen serious usage in GvG and frequent usage on multi-Monk teams in Team Arenas. Though Smiter's Boon deserved a nerf at that time, changing a skill in a way that makes it unable to be used effectively in any situation is opposite to the goal of game balance. To that end, I suggest what can be summarized as a progressive balance of Smiter's Boon, with changes to healing output, energy cost, and recharge. The previous doubling of Divine Favor was too strong, as it allowed Smiter's respectable healing output in addition to their damage and cleansing abilities. Instead of this skill granting a Divine Favor bonus, it nows simply causes Smiting spells to heal for an additional amount that is significantly less than the previous Divine Favor bonus. To make enchantment removal skills more of a threat against Smiter's Boon, its recharge has been increased to 30 seconds (as compared to the PvE counterpart), matching its duration. Lastly, the energy cost has been increased to 10 to make it slightly more costly to use.


Anticipated Usage: This change attempts to bring Smiter's Boon back into play with a power level somewhere between its previous overpowered incarnation and its current, essentially unusable version. A straight decrease in its healing power removes some of the ability for Smiting Monks to combine high healing with damage, while the increase in recharge allows enchantment stripping to act as a more threatening counter.

Strength[edit]

Signet of Strength[edit]

Signet. You gain +1 Strength and your next 1...13...16 attack[s] deal +5 damage.

Signet. You gain +1 Strength and your next 1...13...16 attack[s] deal +5 damage.

Concise description
Signet. You have +1 Strength and your attacks deal +5 damage. Ends after 1...13...16 attack[s].


Progression
Strength
Attacks
0
1
1
2
2
3
3
4
4
5
5
6
6
7
7
8
8
9
9
10
10
11
11
12
12
13
13
14
14
15
15
16
16
17
17
18
18
19
19
20
20
21
21
22


Problem Statement and Suggested Change: Signet of Strength has some innate advantages in being an unremovable effect with no uptime cost, yet it is nigh entirely usurped in PvE by "I Am the Strongest!", which has stronger benefits in terms of a higher total damage increase, lack of a casting time, and half the recharge, with its only drawbacks being a small energy cost and the use of a PvE skill slot. In PvP, the damage increase of this skill simply doesn't offer enough value to replace essential skills on the Warrior's skillbar. To improve this skill, I think its necessary to, at the minimum, reduce its recharge to something more usable. The addition of a +1 Strength modifier may also prove useful by both further increasing the Warrior's damage when using attack skills and by slightly enhancing his Strength based skills.


Swordsmanship[edit]

Hamstring[edit]

Sword Attack. If this attack hits, your target is Crippled for 3...9...10 seconds, slowing his movement.

Sword Attack. If this attack hits, your target is Crippled for 3...9...10 seconds, slowing his movement.

Concise description
Sword Attack. Inflicts Crippled condition (3...9...10 seconds).


Progression
0
3
1
3
2
4
3
4
4
5
5
5
6
6
7
6
8
7
9
7
10
8
11
8
12
9
13
9
14
10
15
10
16
10
17
11
18
11
19
12
20
12
21
13

Problem Statement and Suggested Change: It's no secret that the sword Warrior has been almost entirely usurped in performance by the Dervish across the spectrums of both PvE and PvP. This change to a single Swordsmanship skill is not an attempt to address that, but, like the rest of the skills on this page, an attempt to once more improve an underperforming skill. Hamstring is hamstrung (I did it again) by its 10 energy cost, which is quite costly for the Warrior, in addition to a lengthy recharge of 15 seconds. When we compare it to similar skills, such as Crippling Sweep, we can see an immediate and obvious discrepancy in power that is not remedied by the natural differences in their respective professions. By reducing the energy cost to 5 and the recharge to 10, and in turn lowering the duration of cripple from 5...13...15 seconds to 3...9...10, we better balance Hamstring for general play.


Anticipated Usage: Single target snares remain less effective in PvE due to the nature of the format as well as the preference for skills which may impact multiple foes in an AoE. I would anticipate this change seeing most usage in the PvP formats, as it now grants sword warriors a reliable, non-elite way to inflict cripple on their opponents.

Marksmanship[edit]

Splinter Shot[edit]

Bow Attack. If Splinter Shot hits, you deal +3...13...15 damage and all foes adjacent to your target take 10...26...30 damage.

Bow Attack. If Splinter Shot hits, you deal +3...13...15 damage and all foes adjacent to your target take 10...26...30 damage.

Concise description
Bow Attack. Deals +3...13...15 damage. Deals 10...26...30 damage to adjacent foes.


Progression
Damage to adjacent foes
0
3
10
1
4
11
2
5
13
3
5
14
4
6
15
5
7
17
6
8
18
7
9
19
8
9
21
9
10
22
10
11
23
11
12
25
12
13
26
13
13
27
14
14
29
15
15
30
16
16
31
17
17
33
18
17
34
19
18
35
20
19
37
21
20
38


Problem Statement and Suggested Change: While the ability to bypass blocking can be quite valuable, Splinter Shot fails to achieve much in the way of this goal. Firstly, Splinter Shot does not damage the opponent whom is blocking, but instead foes adjacent to that opponent. Secondly, when an opponent is not blocking, its +damage is rather low, especially for a 10 energy cost bow attack. As it is, Splinter Shot is a little too niche in functionality to see good use. It seems rather obvious that the AoE component of this skill should simply be made unconditional, with the damage adjusted to compensate and the recharge increased slightly to 6 seconds.

Anticipated Usage: As rangers are rather lacking in AoE bow attacks that do not remove preparations, I would anticipate Splinter Shot seeing use across both PvP and PvE if changed in this way. It may only deal 10...26...30 damage to adjacent foes, but the ability to combine it with skills such as Splinter Weapon or a preparation like Ignite Arrows increases its effectiveness.

Power Shot[edit]

Bow Attack. If Power Shot hits, target foe takes 25...53...60 damage.

Bow Attack. If Power Shot hits, target foe takes 25...53...60 damage.

Concise description
Bow Attack. Target foe takes 25...53...60 damage.


Progression
0
25
1
27
2
30
3
32
4
34
5
37
6
39
7
41
8
44
9
46
10
48
11
51
12
53
13
55
14
58
15
60
16
62
17
65
18
67
19
69
20
72
21
74

Power Shot does not retain its usefulness past the very beginning of the game. It deals relatively high damage at low Marksmanship levels (25-35) which makes it effective when a character is fresh in the tutorial sections, but this advantage rapidly dissipate as enemies level and gain more health. Power Shots scaling as it currently is is unable to keep up with the progression of the game once more powerful skills and damage modifiers are unlocked. The proposed change would be a modest increase in damage coupled with a slight recharge increase as compensation. This change would encourage use of the skill past the early game.

Punishing Shot[edit]

Elite Bow Attack. If Punishing Shot hits, you strike for +10...18...20 damage and your target is interrupted. If the interrupted action was a spell, your target loses 1...4...5 energy.

Elite Bow Attack. If Punishing Shot hits, you strike for +10...18...20 damage and your target is interrupted. If the interrupted action was a spell, your target loses 1...4...5 energy.

Concise description
Elite Bow Attack. Deals +10...18...20 damage. Interrupts an action. Interruption effect: causes 1...4...5 energy loss if you interrupt a spell.


Progression
Energy loss
0
10
1
1
11
1
2
11
2
3
12
2
4
13
2
5
13
2
6
14
3
7
15
3
8
15
3
9
16
3
10
17
4
11
17
4
12
18
4
13
19
4
14
19
5
15
20
5
16
21
5
17
21
6
18
22
6
19
23
6
20
23
6
21
24
7


Problem Statement and Suggested Change: Punishing Shot is an Elite skill that is overshadowed by the likes of other powerful Ranger Elites such as Melandru's Shot, Burning Arrow, or Magebane Shot. It has an advantage in that it deals damage unconditionally and has a rather low recharge time of 5 seconds, however, a common comparison is often made between this skill and Savage Shot, and while they have their respective differences, it does make one question why Punishing Shot is elite. The suggested change would give Punishing Shot an edge over other Ranger interrupt skills by providing it with a small energy denial effect that only triggers upon interrupting a spell. Since no other Ranger interrupt functions the same way, this change could possibly give interrupt Rangers another avenue of play. As a bonus, Punishing Shots new functionality would correspond aptly with Debilitating Shots, considering that the words Debilitating and Punishing are often used in the same context.


Anticipated Usage: In PvE, energy denial is not always effective, especially when playing in Hard Mode. This is due to the fact that monsters usually have more energy than their respective professions would be expected to provide. Therefore, this change would likely find PvP as its preferred format. Being able to interrupt skills while combining damage and energy denial is an effective way to pressure any team. Yet the tradeoff would come in the lost potential of other elite skills. Magebane Shot provides unblockable interruption and disabling that can be crucial in the right circumstances. Incendiary Arrows spreads conditions and causes immense pressure that can result in even the most capable healer struggling to keep up. Crippling Shot provides a fast recharging, unblockable snare valuable to any team. Punishing Shot would compare favorably to all these skills and find usage depending on the team and build it integrates with.


Determined Shot[edit]

Bow Attack. If Determined Shot hits, you strike for +5...17...20 damage and an additional +3...9...10 damage (maximum bonus 30) for each recharging bow attack skill you have.

Bow Attack. If Determined Shot hits, you strike for +5...17...20 damage and an additional +3...9...10 damage (maximum bonus 30) for each recharging bow attack skill you have.

Concise description
Bow Attack. Deals +5...17...20 damage and an additional +3...9...10 damage (maximum bonus 30) for each recharging bow attack.


Progression
Additional damage
0
5
3
1
6
3
2
7
4
3
8
4
4
9
5
5
10
5
6
11
6
7
12
6
8
13
7
9
14
7
10
15
8
11
16
8
12
17
9
13
18
9
14
19
10
15
20
10
16
21
10
17
22
11
18
23
11
19
24
12
20
25
12
21
26
13

Problem Statement and Suggested Change: It is generally in the best interests of a player to hit their target when attacking. Unlike the similar Spear of Redemption, Determined Shot's powerful conditional effect necessitates a lengthy recharge time. As such, Spear of Redemption is balanced rather well when considering its miss-to-hit effect, with a very low adrenaline cost, decent damage output, and a conditional effect that is likely to activate when it is needed (in the case of being blinded) rather than at random. The suggestion put forward would be both fitting for the skill's title and a viable option for Rangers seeking direct damage. In accordance with the functionality of Blades of Steel, Determined Shot will count itself as a recharging attack skill when calculating its conditional damage bonus.


Anticipated Usage: If Determined Shot were changed to function as above, it would offer the Ranger a medium cost bow attack whose damage scales with the number of recharging bow attack skills on their bar. As a point of comparison, the damage output of Determined Shot would be kept slightly below that of Sloth Hunter's Shot, provided both skills achieve their maximum conditional damage bonus when striking an opponent. A PvP split might be needed for this version of Determined Shot to account for its powerful spiking potential.


PvP Version

Bow Attack. If Determined Shot hits, you strike for +5...13...15 damage and an additional +3...9...10 damage (maximum bonus 20) for each recharging bow attack skill you have.

Bow Attack. If Determined Shot hits, you strike for +5...13...15 damage and an additional +3...9...10 damage (maximum bonus 20) for each recharging bow attack skill you have.

Concise description
Bow Attack. Deals +5...13...15 damage and an additional +3...9...10 damage (maximum bonus 20) for each recharging bow attack.


Progression
Additional damage
0
5
3
1
6
3
2
6
4
3
7
4
4
8
5
5
8
5
6
9
6
7
10
6
8
10
7
9
11
7
10
12
8
11
12
8
12
13
9
13
14
9
14
14
10
15
15
10
16
16
10
17
16
11
18
17
11
19
18
12
20
18
12
21
19
13

The ability to deal upwards of +50 damage from a single bow attack without any external modifiers is quite powerful, possibly too powerful for PvP. Reducing the damage output of Determined Shot to a level similar to that of Sloth Hunter's Shot (PvP) and Marauder's Shot would be an appropriate change. Since Determined Shot does not have a quick activation time and requires the Ranger to have already used at least one other bow attack skill to achieve its maximum conditional damage bonus, it is likely not going to be used as the lead in attack for spiking an opponent, and so may not need a recharge increase.

Disrupting Shot[edit]

Bow Attack. If this attack hits, it interrupts target foe's action but deals only 1...13...16 damage. If that action was a Spell, target foe suffers 10 Overcast.

Bow Attack. If this attack hits, it interrupts target foe's action but deals only 1...13...16 damage. If that action was a Spell, target foe suffers 10 Overcast.

Concise description
Bow Attack. Interrupts an action. Interruption effect: Inflicts 10 Overcast if the interrupted action was a spell. Hits for only 1...13...16 damage.


Progression
0
1
1
2
2
3
3
4
4
5
5
6
6
7
7
8
8
9
9
10
10
11
11
12
12
13
13
14
14
15
15
16
16
17
17
18
18
19
19
20
20
21
21
22


Problem Statement and Suggested Change: Disrupting Shot has to compete primarily with two powerful non-elite interrupts in the Ranger's arsenal, Savage Shot and Distracting Shot. When compared to Savage Shot, Disrupting Shot deals moderately more damage and is not limited to interrupting spells in order to deal this damage, yet its 3x longer recharge significantly reduces the rate at which the Ranger may interrupt, a drawback that arguably makes Disrupting Shot inferior to Savage Shot. Distracting Shot has a different aim as an interruption by disabling skills instead of dealing damage, but even so, the ability to disable a key skill for 20 seconds on only a 10 second recharge also leads to Distracting Shot seeing far more play than Disrupting Shot. Overall, I believe Disrupting Shot being so similar in functionality to Savage Shot is rather unnecessary, and ultimately going to create a balancing headache as these two skills must be carefully adjusted to avoid stepping on eachothers toes (in the land of make believe, that is, where balance updates still happen). As rangers are often valued for the utility and pressure they bring to a team in PvP, changing the functionality of Disrupting Shot from a damage oriented skill to a pressure oriented one might be a better change. By removing the damage component of Disrupting Shot and replacing it with an Overcast portion that only activates upon interrupting a spell, in addition to lowering the cooldown to a more usable 10 seconds, Disrupting Shot can function more aptly as an interrupt suited to debilitating enemy casters. As the ability to directly cause Overcast is not shared by any other Ranger interrupt, this change may give Disrupting Shot a more unique feel and purpose. Lastly, and similar to both Concussion Shot and Distracting Shot, the damage will be restricted to a 1...13...16 scale to account for its powerful shutdown potential.


Anticipated Usage: If changed in this way, I think Disrupting Shot would become a much more competitive skill, and may possibly replace either Savage Shot or Distracting Shot on the skillbars of many rangers. As Ranger interruptions are primarily suited to PvP play, I would expect Disrupting Shot to be used mostly in that format when compared to PvE.


Wilderness Survival[edit]

Dryder's Defenses[edit]

Stance. For 1...8...10 seconds, you gain 75% chance to block attacks and +15 armor against elemental damage.

Stance. For 1...8...10 seconds, you gain 75% chance to block attacks and +15 armor against elemental damage.

Concise description
Stance. (1...8...10 seconds.) You have 75% chance to block and +15 armor against elemental damage.


Progression
0
1
1
2
2
2
3
3
4
3
5
4
6
5
7
5
8
6
9
6
10
7
11
8
12
8
13
9
14
9
15
10
16
11
17
11
18
12
19
12
20
13


Problem Statement and Suggested Change: Dryder's Defenses is another one of those skills with an exceptionally powerful effect that is hampered by an equally long recharge time. This is partially out of necessity because making this skill too long in duration might lead to imbalances when used by secondary professions in PvP. We can see precedence for this through Arenanet's past adjustments of Tactics stances. We can also see that stances which are limited to the Ranger's primary attribute, for example Lightning Reflexes and Whirling Defense, have much better duration to recharge ratios, presumably on account of their restriction to the Ranger class. That said, Dryder's Defenses in all cases is simply too inefficient to use, as the Ranger has better alternatives, and secondary professions are better served by seeking from within their own professions or from others. To encourage use of this skill, and to prevent abuse from secondary professions, I would suggest a reduction in recharge to a more usable 30 seconds, with several significant trade-offs to follow. Firstly, the duration will be rescaled from 5...10...11 to 1...8...10. The effect of this is that, when characters dip into a secondary profession's attributes to use defensive stances, they typically put 8 points into that attribute. On a 5...10...11 scale, a stance will last for 8 seconds at 8 attribute points, but on a 1...8...10 scale, it will only last for 6 seconds at 8 attribute points. Consequently, secondary professions will have to have invest more than they would otherwise to reach an acceptable duration for Dryder's Defenses. A second compromise will come in the form of an energy cost of 10. Ranger's, empowered by Expertise, would find this cost surmountable, but many other professions would not. Lastly, the elemental armor boost would be reduced to a flat +15 armor. Seeing as Rangers already have an inherent 100 armor against elemental damage, they would remain well protected against such attacks.


Anticipated Usage: If changed in this way, Dryder's Defenses will certainly become a much more viable candidate for a defensive skill. PvE tankers would probably come to appreciate it's combination block and elemental armor boost, further improvable through the use of the PvE skill Dwarven Stability. In PvP, this skill would become another valid choice for self-defense on the Ranger's bar. If this skill does prove too powerful in PvP for primary Rangers, a PvP split with a recharge adjustment to 45 seconds might be necessary.


PvP Version

Stance. For 5...10...11 seconds, you gain 75% chance to block attacks and +15 armor against elemental damage.

Stance. For 5...10...11 seconds, you gain 75% chance to block attacks and +15 armor against elemental damage.

Concise description
Stance. (5...10...11 seconds.) You have 75% chance to block and +15 armor against elemental damage.


Progression
0
5
17
1
5
18
2
6
19
3
6
20
4
7
20
5
7
21
6
7
22
7
8
23
8
8
24
9
9
25
10
9
26
11
9
27
12
10
27
13
10
28
14
11
29
15
11
30
16
11
31
17
12
32
18
12
33
19
13
33
20
13
34


If the above suggestion proves too strong for primary Rangers in PvP, this sort of skill split may be necessary. As the 45 second recharge along with the 10 energy cost will limit its use by secondary professions, we can readjust its duration back to 5...10...11 seconds.

Melandru's Arrows (PvE)[edit]

Elite Preparation. For 24 seconds, whenever your arrows hit, they cause Bleeding for 3...21...25 seconds, and if they hit a target who is under a hex or enchantment, they do +8...24...28 damage.

Elite Preparation. For 24 seconds, whenever your arrows hit, they cause Bleeding for 3...21...25 seconds, and if they hit a target who is under a hex or enchantment, they do +8...24...28 damage.

Concise description
Elite Preparation. (24 seconds.) Your arrows inflict Bleeding condition (3...21...25 seconds) and deal +8...24...28 damage to hexed or enchanted foes.


Progression
0
3
8
1
4
9
2
6
11
3
7
12
4
9
13
5
10
15
6
12
16
7
13
17
8
15
19
9
16
20
10
18
21
11
19
23
12
21
24
13
22
25
14
24
27
15
25
28
16
26
29
17
28
31
18
29
32
19
31
33
20
32
35


Problem Statement and Suggested Change: The easiest comparison to make regarding Melandru's Arrows' incompetence as an elite skill is to look at Glass Arrows. Glass Arrows offers a more preferable unconditional damage bonus that is slightly less than the damage bonus offered by Melandru's Arrows, while the preparation itself can last for upwards of twice as long as Melandru's Arrows. The fact that Melandru's Arrows offers a larger damage bonus is fitting considering the conditional nature of the skill, but the condition it relies on may very well be counterproductive to doing damage as enchantments may protect enemies. Additionally, the player has no way of ensuring that this conditional requirement will be fulfilled as there is no way for players to place an enchantment on an enemy. To better balance this skill, and in fitting with the Ranger theme of being anti-hex and anti-enchantment, I would suggest that the damage bonus be triggered on hexes in addition to enchantments. This allows the Ranger to build a team towards use of this elite skill, thereby providing a greater reliability in achieving Melandru's Arrows conditional damage bonus. As this is an elite skill, the duration will also be upped to 24 seconds. Furthermore, I would suggest these changes only be made if the skill is split into PvE and PvP versions. My reasoning is that, for a long time, spike Rangers were problematic in team builds in competitive PvP formats. Many Ranger skills that increased damage were nerfed due to their effectiveness in spike teams. As Melandru's Arrows had no way for a team to purposely trigger it's bonus damage, and due to the fact that enchantments tend to save a target being spiked, it was not a reliable source of damage for a spike team to utilize. The suggestions I have put forth might very well imbalance the skill in PvP by granting spike teams a sure fire way to achieve it's significant damage bonus.


Anticipated Usage: Changing Melandru's Arrows in this way is likely to encourage it's use, especially in teams utilizing hexes. As Melandru's Arrows requires team building to be most effective, it would not invalidate the usage of Glass Arrows as a separate damage dealing option for more general encounters.

Domination Magic[edit]

Power Flux[edit]

Elite Hex Spell. If target foe is casting a spell or chant, that skill is interrupted and for 4...9...10 seconds, that foe has -3 Energy degeneration.

Elite Hex Spell. If target foe is casting a spell or chant, that skill is interrupted and for 4...9...10 seconds, that foe has -3 Energy degeneration.

Concise description
Elite Hex Spell. Interrupts a spell or chant. Interruption effect: -3 Energy degeneration (4...9...10 seconds).


Progression
0
4
1
4
2
5
3
5
4
6
5
6
6
6
7
7
8
7
9
8
10
8
11
8
12
9
13
9
14
10
15
10
16
10
17
11
18
11
19
12
20
12
21
12


Problem Statement and Suggested Change: Power Flux has to compete against other powerful Mesmer shutdown skills and finds itself most often falling short. Power Block, though tougher on energy and having twice the recharge compared to Power Flux, has more a more catastrophic, unavoidable effect. Power Leech is similar to Power Flux but considerably stronger, stealing upwards of 15 energy every time its target casts a spell. Power Leak is often drawn in comparison to Power Flux, and as a non-elite skill could arguably be considered superior to Power Flux; it causes more than twice as much energy loss on its target, though this loss of energy can be partially negated through energy hiding, whereas Power Flux's degeneration cannot be avoided, yet in turn may be removed through hex removal. Increasing the degeneration amount to -3 would improve Power Flux's ability to pressure an opponent while retaining the advantage of a lower cooldown in comparison to most other Mesmer interruptions.


Anticipated Usage: Power Flux may become a viable alternative to the aforementioned skills. As with most skills featuring pure energy denial, Power Flux is likely to remain less preferred when compared to other, more powerful methods of shutdown for PvE. PvP is likely where this change would find its footing, granting Domination Mesmers another tool in their varied arsenal.


Motivation[edit]

"The Power Is Yours!"[edit]

Elite Shout. For 10 seconds, target other ally gains 0...2...3 Energy regeneration.

Elite Shout. For 10 seconds, target other ally gains 0...2...3 Energy regeneration.

Concise description
Elite Shout. (10 seconds.) Target other ally gains 0...2...3 Energy regeneration.


Progression
0
0
1
0
2
0
3
1
4
1
5
1
6
1
7
1
8
2
9
2
10
2
11
2
12
2
13
3
14
3
15
3
16
3
17
3
18
4
19
4
20
4
21
4


Problem Statement and Suggested Change: Currently, this skill (to be abbreviated as TPIY) is used predominantly as a battery for activating Echos that trigger when a shout ends on an affected ally. The actual active effect of TPIY is quite weak as it restores a mere one energy to each affected ally. The above redesign is an attempt to both give Paragons a new role and to introduce a competitor to the energy battery that is Blood is Power. Instead of sacrificing one's health to restore energy to allies, the Paragon will be able to use adrenaline to fuel allies' energy demands. Because TPIY does not sacrifice health and is unremovable once cast on an ally (whereas Blood is Power is vulnerable to enchantment stripping), it will not reach the +6 energy regeneration cap and will instead be limited to +3 energy regeneration at typical attribute levels.


Anticipated Usage: This change will hopefully open up a new avenue of play for Paragons by allowing them to be effective batteries that, while not quite as strong a BiP user, can combine energy regeneration with the inherent supportive properties of the Paragon profession (damage reduction, party healing, speed boosts etc etc...). For now I would be comfortable releasing this change unsplit between PvP and PvE, however I would keep a close eye on this skill in PvP to make sure it does not become overpowered in the higher tiers of play.


Creature Adjustments: Because this adjustment signficantly changes the functionality of TPIY, the AI governing use of the skill would have to be changed to something similar to that of how Blood is Power is used. Preferably the AI should use this skill on any ally (with a preference for party members first) that drops below 50% energy.


Signet of Synergy[edit]

Signet. Target ally is healed for 40...104...120 Health. If that ally is under the effects of a shout or chant, this skills recharge is reduced by 80%.

Signet. Target ally is healed for 40...104...120 Health. If that ally is under the effects of a shout or chant, this skills recharge is reduced by 80%.

Concise description
Signet. Heal target ally for 40...104...120. Recharge reduced by 80% if that ally is under the effects of a shout or chant.


Progression
0
40
1
45
2
51
3
56
4
61
5
67
6
72
7
77
8
83
9
88
10
93
11
99
12
104
13
109
14
115
15
120
16
125
17
131
18
136
19
141
20
147
21
152


Problem Statement and Suggested Change: The current version of Signet of Synergy is a bit on the weaker side due to its lengthy recharge and average healing. Similar to how the functionality of the Dervishes Signet of Pious Light synergizes well with its own profession mechanic, Signet of Synergy will now reduce its own recharge dependent on the healed ally being affected by a shout or chant, a functionality suitable to the mechanics of the Paragon. Consequently, the self-healing will be removed, the heal amount will be increased slightly, and the recharge will be increased to 20 to penalize ineffective use. Overall, this change is intended to give Motivation Paragons a reliable source of direct healing that combines well with their ability to provide party wide shouts and chants.


Anticipated Usage: This functionality change is intended to promote the general usability of Signet of Synergy across all modes of the game. Because of multiple skill splits that reduce the performance of supportive Paragon skills in PvP, I anticipate this change being more useful in the PvE format.


Creature Adjustments: As this change modestly adjusts the functionality of the skill, it would be appropriate for the AI governing the usage of it to be updated. Most optimally the AI should only use Signet of Synergy on allies that both need healing and are affected by a shout or chant. If the ally is near critical levels of health and the AI does not have any other healing skills left to use, they should then forgo the requirement for the ally to be affected by a shout or chant and use the Signet as a last ditch effort to avoid death.

Blood Magic[edit]

Mark of Subversion[edit]

Hex Spell. For 6 seconds, the next time target foe casts a spell that targets an ally of that foe, the spell fails and you steal up to 10...76...92 Health from that foe.

Hex Spell. For 6 seconds, the next time target foe casts a spell that targets an ally of that foe, the spell fails and you steal up to 10...76...92 Health from that foe.

Concise description
Hex Spell. (6 seconds.) Target foe's next spell fails and you steal 10...76...92 Health. No effect unless this foe's spell targeted one of its allies.


Progression
0
10
1
15
2
21
3
26
4
32
5
37
6
43
7
48
8
54
9
59
10
65
11
70
12
76
13
81
14
87
15
92
16
97
17
103
18
108
19
114
20
119
21
125

Problem Statement and Suggested Change: Mark of Subversion is most comparable to Shame, as both hexes share the same energy cost, cast time, cooldown, duration and nearly the same functionality, with Shame stealing energy from a foe and Mark of Subversion stealing health. However, when these two skills are compared, it is easy to conclude that Shame has a more catastrophic effect, as the loss of up to 15 energy from a backliner is significantly more difficult to recover from as compared to ~90 health, especially if that backliner is a Monk, a profession without much in the way of active or passive energy management. To slightly balance the scales between these two skills, I suggest Mark of Subversion receives a cooldown reduction to 25 seconds, that way, though Shame is more decisive in terms of actual effect, Mark of Subversion may be used more often in consolation.

Anticipated Usage: Mark of Subversion has an effect that is more suited to PvP over PvE due to its single target nature and ability to harm only backliners. As such, I would anticipate this change being most beneficial to Necromancers in PvP, who might be more attracted to its usage now that it has a shorter cycle time.


Curses[edit]

Feast of Corruption[edit]

Elite Spell. Target foe and all nearby foes are struck for 18...60...70 shadow damage. You steal up to 8...30...35 Health from each struck foe who is suffering from a hex.

Elite Spell. Target foe and all nearby foes are struck for 18...60...70 shadow damage. You steal up to 8...30...35 Health from each struck foe who is suffering from a hex.

Concise description
Elite Spell. Deals 18...60...70 damage to target and nearby foes. Steal 8...30...35 Health from each hexed foe.


Progression
0
18
8
1
21
10
2
25
12
3
28
13
4
32
15
5
35
17
6
39
19
7
42
21
8
46
22
9
49
24
10
53
26
11
56
28
12
60
30
13
63
31
14
67
33
15
70
35
16
73
37
17
77
39
18
80
40
19
84
42
20
87
44
21
91
46

Problem Statement and Suggested Change: Will expand later. Updating this skill for current balance demands.

Anticipated Usage: Will expand later.


Wither[edit]

Elite Hex Spell. For 5...29...35 seconds, target foe suffers -1...4...5 Health degeneration and -0...2...2 Energy degeneration.

Elite Hex Spell. For 5...29...35 seconds, target foe suffers -1...4...5 Health degeneration and -0...2...2 Energy degeneration.

Concise description
Elite Hex Spell. (5...29...35 seconds.) Causes -1...4...5 Health degeneration and -0...2...2 Energy degeneration.


Progression
0
5
2
0
1
7
2
0
2
9
2
0
3
11
2
0
4
13
3
1
5
15
3
1
6
17
3
1
7
19
3
1
8
21
3
1
9
23
3
1
10
25
3
1
11
27
3
1
12
29
4
2
13
31
4
2
14
33
4
2
15
35
4
2
16
37
4
2
17
39
4
2
18
41
4
2
19
43
5
3
20
45
5
3
21
47
5
3

Problem Statement and Suggested Change: Will expand later. Making this a better option for PvP pressure.

Anticipated Usage: Will expand later.

Death Magic[edit]

Bitter Chill[edit]

Hex Spell. Target foe is struck for 15...51...60 cold damage. If that foe's Health is above 50%, that foe moves 66% slower for 1...4...5 seconds.

Hex Spell. Target foe is struck for 15...51...60 cold damage. If that foe's Health is above 50%, that foe moves 66% slower for 1...4...5 seconds.

Concise description
Hex Spell. Deals 15...51...60 cold damage. If that foe's Health was above 50%, that foe moves 66% slower (1...4...5 second[s]).


Progression
Duration
0
15
1
1
18
1
2
21
2
3
24
2
4
27
2
5
30
2
6
33
3
7
36
3
8
39
3
9
42
3
10
45
4
11
48
4
12
51
4
13
54
4
14
57
5
15
60
5
16
63
5
17
66
6
18
69
6
19
72
6
20
75
6
21
78
7

Problem Statement and Suggested Change: As a vanilla damage skill, Bitter Chill is lacking. Though it is cheap and quick casting, it deals a low amount of damage, and the condition it relies on to recharge instantly may eventually become counter-intuitive as your foe's health is gradually diminished. Furthermore, some skills which existed plainly to deal damage that had either no recharge, such as Flare or Stone Daggers, or a condition that recharged them instantly, like the old Renewing Surge, were eventually improved by Arenanet through some functionality change or addition to their current capabilities, while Bitter Chill has not yet seen such an adjustment. This suggested change would convert Bitter Chill to a hex spell and, for the first time, add a conditional snare to the Necromancer profession. Additionally, as hexes are a little hard to come by in the Death Magic attribute, this skill would offer new synergy with the Death Magic elite Toxic Chill. To balance out this new functionality, the energy cost will be increased to 10.


Anticipated Usage: As a single target snare with a low damage potential, I do not anticipate seeing Bitter Chill used much in the PvE format. This is due to the fact that enemy NPC's do not kite attacking players, and so negate the advantages of using snares in PvE. Additionally, in the event of enemy NPC's scattering to avoid AoE damage, it would be preferable to use AoE snares like Deep Freeze instead of single target ones. I would anticipate PvP being the preferred format for this change, as snares are always useful in this format and have a variety of applications depending on the arena.

Envenom Enchantments[edit]

Spell. Target foe loses one enchantment. If that foe is under the effects of a hex, that foe is poisoned for 5...13...15 seconds.

Spell. Target foe loses one enchantment. If that foe is under the effects of a hex, that foe is poisoned for 5...13...15 seconds.

Concise description
Spell. Removes one enchantment from target foe. Inflicts Poisoned condition (5...13...15 seconds) if that foe is hexed.


Progression
0
5
1
6
2
6
3
7
4
8
5
8
6
9
7
10
8
10
9
11
10
12
11
12
12
13
13
14
14
14
15
15
16
16
17
16
18
17
19
18
20
18
21
19

Problem Statement and Suggested Change: Within it's own attribute line, Envenom Enchantments must compete with the similar non-elite Rip Enchantment for enchantment removal. Rip Enchantment can arguably be called a stronger skill for two important reasons. Firstly, it's recharge is a mildly shorter 15 seconds compared to Envenom Enchantment's 20 seconds. Secondly, Rip Enchantment will always cause bleeding if an enchantment is removed, whereas Envenom Enchantments, while capable of inflicting the superior poison condition, can only do so if it's target has at least two enchantments on them when initially cast. Therefore, there will be times where Envenom Enchantments doesn't inflict a condition at all, while the same is not true for Rip Enchantment. To improve Envenom Enchantments, it would be easy to suggest a recharge reduction matching that of Rip Enchantment while possibly making it's application of poison unconditional and adjusting the duration in return, but I think a more versatile idea would be the following. Instead of having the poison condition be dependent on the foe being enchanted, we shift this dependence to the foe being hexed instead, and further reduce the skill's recharge to 15 and scale the poison duration accordingly. Additionally, as the Curses attribute line already contains quite a few enchantment removal skills, by placing Envenom Enchantments under the Death Magic attribute line, we now give Death Magic users a bit of additional utility to complement their bars.


Anticipated Usage: If adjusted in this way, Envenom Enchantments would become a more competitive skill, capable of enchantment removal while also being able to apply pressure in other instances. Nonetheless, this change is aimed more at the PvP side of things instead of PvE, for two primary reasons. While enchantment removal remains valuable in all formats, the ability to pressure opponents through degeneration is more suited for PvP play. Secondly, Death Magic users in PvP remain behind when compared to the exceptional performance of Curses and Blood Magic based bars, due in part to Death Magic's abundance of minion and corpse exploiting skills, which aren't always effective depending on the PvP format. By giving Death Magic users a way to remove enchantments without having to split attributes, we are in essence expanding their toolbox and, hopefully, their potential to see more play.

Deadly Arts[edit]

Shadow Fang[edit]

Hex Spell. Shadow Step to target foe. For 5 seconds, the next time you hit that foe with a dual attack skill, that foe suffers from a Deep Wound for 1...6...7 seconds.

Hex Spell. Shadow Step to target foe. For 5 seconds, the next time you hit that foe with a dual attack skill, that foe suffers from a Deep Wound for 1...6...7 seconds.

Concise description
Hex Spell. Shadow Step to target foe. (5 seconds) Causes Deep Wound condition (1...6...7 seconds) the next time you hit that foe with a dual attack.


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Problem Statement and Suggested Change: Shadow Fang is hampered by a lengthy recharge time and an active effect that takes too long to activate. A typical Assassin attack chain can be completed in well under five seconds, leaving much time between the end of their attack chain and the moment at which Shadow Fang will inflict deep wound and teleport the Assassin to safety. Additionally, if the hex is ended early by way of a hex removal skill, the Assassin may be teleported away from his target before finishing his attack chain. In an effort to improve this skill, we can moderately adjust its functionality to make it more aggressive and rewarding to use. Firstly, the hex effect will be changed from inflicting deep wound after a flat 10 seconds to instead inflicting deep wound the next time the Assassin strikes his target with a dual attack skill while the hex itself sees a duration reduction of 5 seconds. Secondly, the recharge will be lowered to 30 seconds to match the standard of other non-elite shadow steps. Lastly, as this skill now compresses deep wound into the Assassin's attack chain and therefore makes them more lethal, the return shadow step will be removed and the deep wound duration will be reduced from 5...17...20 seconds to 1...6...7.


Anticipated Usage: By adjusting Shadow Fang as suggested, the skill will more aptly assist the Assassin in spiking his targets while forcing them to commit more to their charge by removing the return shadow step. In PvP, this may result in Shadow Fang being an effective skill for ambushing opponents.

No Attribute[edit]

Remedy Signet[edit]

Signet. You lose 2 conditions.

Signet. You lose 2 conditions.

Concise description
Signet. You lose two conditions.


This skill is outclassed by Antidote Signet if profession is not a factor. Straight buff to unconditional removal of two conditions instead of one, along with a recharge increase to compensate, seems like an appropriate change.