Guild Wars 2

Mesmer Clone uniqueness

Issue: Our clones are somewhat imbalanced in that some clones have very direct and very powerful secondary effects (e.g.: Staff clones and their conditions, or even better Trident clones which apply a Condition we don’t have on the weapon at all), while others completely lack any secondary effect (Greatsword, Scepter). Even among the latter there is a difference because the GS clones attack thrice, making them more powerful when using the Sharper Images trait compared to the rather sluggish Scepter clones.

Why is this a real problem: It causes the Clones to be devaluated as a basic mechanic. What’s more important is the secondary effect they provide, not that they “exist”. Since not all secondary effects are similarly useful, this causes inherent imbalance in a supposed “throwaway” mechanic.

Proposed solution(s)

• One way is to simply normalize Clones 100%. The only difference left would be that melee clones get the same benefit all melee gets (lack of range -> cleaves 3 targets). This is a very direct solution, but would ofc cause a lot of lost diversity and power which would have to be caught elsewhere.
• The other way is to “simply” give Greatsword and Scepter their own secondary function (Spear clones are invulnerable ~40% of the time, so they have a secondary function). I prefer this conceptually, although admitted it’s a major headache down the line, due to how different the clones are.

Detailed idea for new secondary uses

Greatsword
Greatsword clones copy (to a degree) Spatial Surge. When attacking from range (notice how the #2 one spawns in melee, so this isn’t completely trivial right away), they can cause actual damage, more the further away they are. At minimum range they still cause the same negligible damage all other clones do. In return their 3-hit should probably get it’s proc-chance reduced to 33% so they are no longer superior Sharper Images clones.

Scepter
Considering how Ether Clone works, I’d make these able to summon clones with their attacks. Each Clone can summon up to 3 “second stage” Clones. These cause no procs like Sharper Images or on-death effects, cannot be used for shatter (They simply fall apart when the host clone dies in any way), and cannot be utilized in any way except for confusion of PvP enemies and taking hits in PvE.