Guild Wars 2

Pardon the break from the usual build and patch discussions but I recently had this weird obsession about staff casting animations for the elementalist. I just felt that regardless of race, the animations while using using the staff do not make use of it as a weapon. Most of the time, the weapon itself just hangs passively while the ‘other hand’ does most of the spellcasting.

I was hoping that this could be changed so that the staff feels more like an active weapon, something that is wielded in battle. For example, ‘Lightning Surge’ has this animation where the staff is wielded like a shot gun to shoot lightning. Here are some of my suggestions:

-General
Auto Attacks: Same animation but this time using the staff hand, with the projectile appearing from the tip

- Fire
Lava Font: An aggressive staff ground strike that forms a lava pool.
Meteor Storm: The staff is thrown into the air (just like when you cast meteor while holding a boulder) followed by a rain of fire from the heavens.

-Water
Geyser: A rising sweep causing a fountain to appear.
Healing Rain: A ‘praying stance’ ending with a flourish.

-Air
Gust: The staff spins rapidly like a fan, shooting a powerful gust.
Static Field: The staff is flung to the target area, serving as a conducting rod.

-Earth
Unsteady Ground: The staff is used to draw a line on the ground, forming impassable ground.
Shockwave: The staff is wielded like a hammer strike, sending out a shockwave.

Not sure how this will impact PVP since some animations maybe giveaways but I was hoping it will add flavor to the weapon.

+10000.
I realy feel bored when i play with staff, lack of animation, feeling like a big unamovible turret.
This could be realy nice if they do something like you said

The reason staff has no animations is because of bad planning:

In an old beta video the skills worked like guild wars 1, where you could move them on your skillbar. You could have Phoenix along with Meteor. They just had a generic animation for testing.

Then they decided to do weapons types instead, but didn’t take the time to make the proper animations for each weapons.

I do not think a company like Blizzard would have made that mistake.

Xillllix.3485:

I do not think a company like Blizzard would have made that mistake.

A company like Blizzard generates billions of dollars from its MMO, while guild wars 2 makes only 100 million.

The point being Blizzard would have not made that mistake because Blizzard has a lot of money to waste.

Not defending Arena net, since it seems that they are simply doing their best to reuse animation, but you do get what you pay for.

Leechee.6304:

+10000.
I realy feel bored when i play with staff, lack of animation, feeling like a big unamovible turret.
This could be realy nice if they do something like you said

Was that unavoidable or immobile?

If immobile, why would you feel like that with staff? The only rooting skill is Meteor Shower and you don’t even have to wait the full duration. It seems to me that you need to be mobile with staff to survive.

Well, IMO, it doesn’t have to be fancy or grand, it just needs to feel like that staff is being ‘wielded’ for casting rather than just being held on to. Staff animations also shouldn’t compete with mobility since, as mentioned, only meteor shower roots the ele to cast in place. At its current state, the staff animations feel… ‘vanilla’.

There’s Air#2, but… oh, well…

Yeah, this has bugged me since day 1. Same thing with the off-hand being used to cast skills like Phoenix. Makes it seem like the weapon is just there to be held.

I would love for them to re-work animations to actually make use of the weapon, but there’s like a 100% of that not happening

OMG yes. I hate the fact that Elementalist (and most other staff using professions besides Guardian) basically just hold the staff unused in one hand while doing all their spellcasting in the other. Like, why am I even carrying around this stupid stick if I’m not even using it for anything? Heck, if I’m not going to use the staff it’d be better to ditch it altogether so I could cast with two hands.

Scepter is guilty of this as well sadly. Though at least its basically just Ele that has the problem with scepter, other classes do use it like an actual weapon at least.

eh, My dream would be a weaponless ele. I have always hated the idee of staffs being the default Magic tool. Magic comes from the person, not the tool. I like that when I throw fireballs it is from my characters hand.

The point is. casting tools are not weapons. they are Foci. yes the focus is not the only focus in the game. every weapon a caster use is a focus, not a weapon

I’d be satisfied if the staff ele draws symbols/signs/writings/magic circles in the air when waving its hands. In different colors, according to attunements.

Argol Vazin.3061:

eh, My dream would be a weaponless ele. I have always hated the idee of staffs being the default Magic tool. Magic comes from the person, not the tool. I like that when I throw fireballs it is from my characters hand.

The point is. casting tools are not weapons. they are Foci. yes the focus is not the only focus in the game. every weapon a caster use is a focus, not a weapon

While I respect your stylistic preference for a weaponless caster, it isn’t as usual as I think you’re stating.

Popular culture, mythology and the like presents us with magic users commonly wielding staffs, wands (sceptres) and various focuses. (Gandulf, Merlin, Morgan le Faye and the like).

Even modern (and many older) religions which practice ‘magic’ use similar tools. Staffs, Wands, Athame (a dagger), Poppets / fetches (focuses). I’d say stylistically, ANET probably have it right.

Overriding all of that of course is the old ‘their world, their rules’ we just get to play in it.

StrayIight.8203:

Argol Vazin.3061:

eh, My dream would be a weaponless ele. I have always hated the idee of staffs being the default Magic tool. Magic comes from the person, not the tool. I like that when I throw fireballs it is from my characters hand.

The point is. casting tools are not weapons. they are Foci. yes the focus is not the only focus in the game. every weapon a caster use is a focus, not a weapon

While I respect your stylistic preference for a weaponless caster, it isn’t as usual as I think you’re stating.

Popular culture, mythology and the like presents us with magic users commonly wielding staffs, wands (sceptres) and various focuses. (Gandulf, Merlin, Morgan le Faye and the like).

Even modern (and many older) religions which practice ‘magic’ use similar tools. Staffs, Wands, Athame (a dagger), Poppets / fetches (focuses). I’d say stylistically, ANET probably have it right.

Overriding all of that of course is the old ‘their world, their rules’ we just get to play in it.

I wasn’t stating that tooless magic was the usual. You just made my point. the default is magic users always use tools.

I am the kind of guy that is brought up on tabletops. and nothing gets you killed faster then looking like a mage. “Geek the mage first” and all that.

So it is a nice change of pace when you can avoid looking like the typical mage. My character can look like a simple noblewoman with a token dagger at her side as a measure of safety. put on the ninja suit, my ele is now a thief.

Seeing as how the revenant got some sweet looking staff moves, I’m hoping they implement some diversity for other staff users as well

Karalaza.6021:

Seeing as how the revenant got some sweet looking staff moves, I’m hoping they implement some diversity for other staff users as well

Yeah, I’m quite jealous of the Revenant staff animations. I want some for my Ele