TL:DR
- Fields and Finishers need to be more rewarding on the whole, and player’s variety of builds should reflect their overall potential.
- Combo Fields and Finishers now use which ever stat is higher, the Field Placing Player -or- the Finisher using player.
- All Combos should become weaker at base line, with higher potential scaling than currently available if either Player has invested in the stats that will boost the combo.
(I.E. Condition Damage Elementalist drops a Flame Wall in front of a Berserker Longbow Ranger, the condition damage and duration from the Elementalist will provide the Burn damage and duration. Similarly, Water Field Blast would be cut in half on its base value, but tripped or more on its healing power contribution, and if a high healing power player places the water field, it would have more healing potential when blasted than it currently does.)
Introduction
I think it high time that that this system, a core system that has been roughly left in place since the launch of the game over three years ago, needs a complete balance review.
There exist certain combinations that are core to the balance of the game, that have such an impact that they shape the entire game meta for challenging content, while other combinations have legitimately no use in regular game play, and even may be detrimental if they override the more powerful combinations.
Additionally, in general, it does not feel rewarding to use most combinations, particularly those which result in a damage Condition being applied, if the Finisher player has not invested in Condition Damage and Duration.
When the game was being teased pre-beta and Launch, Combo Fields and Finishers were touted to be something that coordinated players would enjoy performing with each other, that players would go out of their way to position Fire Walls with Projectile finisher players, or set up poison fields for allies. Sadly this has never been realized outside of a choice few combinations, with virtually all requiring Blast finishers.
Now that raids are going to be a thing, and certain combat tasks are now mandatory, I think it is time to fully realize the potentials that Combo Fields and Finishers could mean for Guild Wars 2’s unique combat, and here is how:
Currently, using a Combo Finisher in a Field uses the Stats of the Combo Finisher Player, and the Field placing Character’s stats have absolutely no impact on the end result. This absolutely needs to change for Combos to have relevance in challenging content.
Similarly, some Combo Fields + Finishers reward base values and using them multiple times rather than either player investing in a stat to improve them (i.e. water fields being blast without healing power, Might from Fire fields lasting long enough baseline to ignore needing Might duration).
With all that said, here are my proposed changes. The goal is to have four fields that have good synergy with Power damage, and four with good synergy with Condition damage, while the final two primarily benefit from Healing Power, but almost all categories of Fields can benefit from Boon Duration and/or Condition Duration.
Global
- All Combo Fields and Finishers now use the highest value of either the Finisher or Field placing character’s stats to determine their values.
- All “Armors” renamed Auras, and are effected as Auras by Runes, Traits, and Sigils. The Auras produced utilize the highest stats between the two players just as the other Combo effects do.
- Whirl Finishers now attempt to strike the nearest valid targets instead of randomly firing.
Fields that Favor Condition Players:
Fire Fields
- Blast – Might reduced to 2 per Blast, duration increased to 30 seconds from 20 seconds.
- Leap – Fire Aura 5s (aura’s burning and Might generation use highest value from either Finisher or Field placer)
- Projectile – Burning increased to 1.5 seconds baseline.
- Whirl – Same as above.
Poison Fields
- Blast – Area Weakness for 3 seconds, no change.
- Leap – Weakness 6 seconds, down from 8.
- Projectile – Poison increased to 4 seconds baseline from 2.
- Whirl – Same as above
Ethereal Fields
- Blast – Area Chaos Aura for 3 seconds (aura’s Conditions and Boons use highest value from either Finisher or Field placer)
- Leap – Chaos Aura 5 seconds.
- Projectile – Confusion reduced to 4 seconds baseline from 5.
- Whirl – Same as above.
Earth Fields —NEW—
- Blast – Area Magnetic Aura for 3 seconds (Reflect’s Crit Chance is based on highest Precision between the two Players)
- Leap – Magnetic Aura 5 seconds.
- Projectile – Applies 1 Bleed for 8 seconds.
- Whirl – Same as above.
Fields that Favor Power Players:
Dark Fields
- Blast – Area Blindness 3s, added area Life Steal that damages foes and heals allies, separate scaling with power and healing power.
- Leap – Blindness 3s, added area Life Steal that damages foes and heals allies, separate scaling with power and healing power.
- Projectile – Life stealing bolts that scale like the above effects, Damage changed from 230 (0.03) to 150 (.15) and Healing from 202 (0.1) to 150(.15) (both significantly improved with scaling)
- Whirl – same as above.
Smoke Fields
- Blast – Area Stealth 2 seconds, down from 3 seconds. Stealth now becomes a Boon, while Revealed now becomes a condition.
- Leap – Stealth for 3 seconds, now a Boon.
- Projectile – Blind 3 seconds, added small additional power based damage on hit, 150(.15).
- Whirl – same as above.
Lightning Fields
- Blast – Area Swiftness for 7.5 seconds, down from 10.
- Leap – Lightning Aura 5 seconds, Daze duration scales with highest duration from both players, triggers On Interrupt and On Daze effects from both players.
- Projectile – 2 Vulnerability for 10 seconds, up from 5, added small additional power based damage on hit, 150(.15).
- Whirl – same as above.
Ice Fields
- Blast – Area Frost Aura 3 seconds (scaling on Chill from Frost Aura scales with condition duration of highest player in combo)
- Leap – Frost Aura 5 seconds, read above.
- Projectile – Chill 1 second, added small additional power based damage on hit, 150(.15).
- Whirl – Same as above.
Fields that Favor Healing Power / Boon Duration:
Water Fields
- Blast – Area Healing, Values changed from 1,320 (0.2) to 660 (.6) and scales with Outgoing Healing Power. (Significantly improved healing potential if one player has invested in Healing Power and Outgoing Healing.)
- Leap – Healing, Values changed from 1,300 (0.5) to 650 (1.5) and scales with Outgoing Healing Power. (Now this becomes a very, very strong heal if one player invests in healing power, theoretical maximum potential of 5,439 if player has 2,000 healing power and +49% outgoing healing increase).
- Projectile – 2 seconds Regeneration, no change. Regeneration now uses highest player’s healing power, outgoing healing, and boon duration.
- Whirl – same as above.
Light Fields
- Blast – Area Retaliation 3s changed to Area Light Aura (3s). Retaliation from Light Aura scales with Power of highest player, Duration of highest player, and Vulnerability from Condition Duration of highest player.
- Leap – Light Aura 5 seconds, same as above.
- Projectile – Removes Condition and now Heals for moderate amount if condition removed 500 (.5) Healing Power scaling.
- Whirl – same as above.
(edited by Swiftwynd.1685)
?