Guild Wars 2

*caveat – This was literally just thrown together as a stream of though and I know there are tons of details not worked out. This was more a brainstorm to get some ideas on paper (so to speak).

Class Suggestion:

Armor Type: Heavy
Class name: Phalanx

As the name suggests, there will be a mechanic for this class that makes it more ideal for group play than solo play (although solo play is still possible). They are not meant to be a high damage class with most of their damage falling more mid-ranged. Their primary focus is on CC in that group play.

Weapons:
Pistol (main hand-short ranged)
Spear (main hand-ranged)
Sword (main hand)
Shield (off hand)
Warhorn (off hand)
Polearm (two handed)

Pistol Skills (meant for close range support combat)

• Doubleshot – fires two quick shots from the hip
• Blastshot – Powerful shot with small knock back (2 sec recharge)
• Befuddle – Ammo bursts at close range for 3 stacks of confusion and bleeding (3 sec recharge)

Spear Skills

• Barbed Head – Attack that adds 1 stack of bleeding on the second & third throw
• Crippling Throw – Cripples target for 2 seconds (3 second recharge)
• Screaming Throw – AOE (up to 3 targets in circle) Does ongoing fire damage and strips 2 boons

Sword Skills

• Triple Strike – Three fast swipes increasing damage for each
• Pouncing Thrust – Leaping strike that does small damage, but can interrupt a block
• Upward Thrust – A heavy strike that does 20% more damage if target is at 50% health

Shield Skills

• Rushing wall – Charge forward while reflecting incoming projectiles. Protective bubble explodes at end of charge for moderate damage.
• Iron Wall – For 3 seconds create a wall that stops enemy movement

Warhorn Skills

• Call to Arms – Buff allies with 2 seconds of Might, Speed and Stability
• Call of Terror – Damage enemies in a cone in front of you and apply 3 seconds of fear if they are struck

Polearm Skills:

• Thrust – Three medium speed thrusts
• Sweeping strike – Swing in a area in front of you to hit up to three targets
• Clothesline – Charge and strike up to 5 enemies in front of you causing damage and knockdown, gain swiftness for 2 seconds after charge
• Earth Shatterer – AOE around self that does heavy damage and dazes up to 5 targets in the area for 1 second if not blocking or stablized.
• Phalanx Rage – Spinning attack that ends in a knockdown for 3 seconds in an area around the user if not interrupted.

Basically i see utilities and traits for this class as having a focus on bolstering damage either for themselves or for others around them or bolster defense for themselves or others around them depending on how many others are within a particular range of them. For instance, it can be 10% increase per other character within shout range or 20% per additional phalanx (max of 5 buffs). This means you can have a mix of damage or defensive buffs or go full on in one direction over another to maximize defense or power for yourself or a group. Being grouped with people isn’t a requirement so open world PvE solo players can still get bonuses just by being around them and a team of Phalanx players can be a great defensive wall on the front lines or a detructive force to push through another’s defenses.

Mind you i just threw this together in about an hour between running Window’s updates on a new laptop, but i think something like this could work well.

Seems interesting, but also seems as much of its purpose could be managed by expanding available options for the existing heavy classes.

Well, the idea is to differentiate this one from the other heavy classes through its traits instead of trying to jam new/different traits into the existing heavies.

PookieDaWombat.6209:

Well, the idea is to differentiate this one from the other heavy classes through its traits instead of trying to jam new/different traits into the existing heavies.

It looks very interesting to me, just very close to what can be done now. I think it has potential, just perhaps more of that differentiation you mention. Kudos on your weapon skill concept designs. Some of the best Ive seen among the various concept classes out there.

Buffing the party’s damage while having a mid-range damage themselve. This look exactly like the Warrior and Ranger right now doesn’kitten I see this profession as more of a sPvP one with the CC and conditions, but his place would be limited or it would replace an existing profession by talking its exact same role. It could have a role if CC was more important in PvE, so it could work if they change that aspect of PvE.

Yeah, the CC stuff in PvE wouldn’t fly so well, but i figure if they spec/trait for damage and damage buffing for PvE that would work better in those areas.

I think you might be like…a year & a half late to make class suggestions. With how they’ve been working it’s certainly not going to make an impact on upcoming content.

Not really suggestion for any kind of pending upcoming content (in whatever form it takes). Believe me, if there is anyone here who understands both how the development process works (and how Anet’s dev process seems to work) its me. This was more of a thought exercise and general idea/brain storming thing that if nothing else could maybe drop a bug in someone’s ear.

Looks like a guardian with different weapons
I would like to see a new Heavy in the future though, but There really isn’t much you can do with it.

Spears, Shields, Team Player at best.

Paragon.

how about
class name: fridge
skills: bring back the holy trinity to GW2

Godric.5649:

Spears, Shields, Team Player at best.

Paragon.

I definitely had Paragons in mind with the idea that they wouldn’t have the same healing support as Guardians or the raw damage output of warriors. Hence why I also put in the caveat of greater buffs with more phalanx in an area and deciding if they’d trait to buff themselves or others around them.

Obviously other traits would either augment their own damage with weapons or increase condition duration, etc.

PookieDaWombat.6209:

Yeah, the CC stuff in PvE wouldn’t fly so well, but i figure if they spec/trait for damage and damage buffing for PvE that would work better in those areas.

Ya but a new profession would need a niche a role to fill. We already have the Ranger that does about the same role as the Warrior and the Necromancer with a limited role. What will be the role of the Phalanx? Defensive buff? The guardian already do that. Offensive buff? The Warrior and Ranger do that. Ok then a mix of both so you can switch depending on the situation? That would be better, but again that’s old role on a new profession only. If they really gonna bring another profession, they must give him a role so it feel unique, not just an old profession in a new outfit or a mix of old profession with a new paint job and some new toys.

What will it be? I don’t know, pretty much all the role are already taken by the other profession. Weakness and Vigor and stuff that no other profession can share as a group to buff them. Most profession can give vigor only to themselves and not much of them can give weakness to hard boss like in Fractals so we can melee them. Will it be enough for a new profession? I doubt it. Maybe they gonna change an aspect of the game in the expansion. Maybe they gonna make condition more viable in PvE, or make CC viable and that new profession could make use of that. Maybe they could add some new stuff that we don’t think about right now. Its hard to see what other role could there be in PvE.

Damage AoE : Elementalist
Damage single target and stealth: Thief
Damage buffing : Warrior, Rangers
Defence buffing : Guardian
Utilities : Mesmer
Jack-of-all trade : Engineer
Nothing : Necromancer