Weapons.
- Sword: The third attack of the chain is often delayed really badly, and its hit detection is very bad, especially against multiple enemies. Flashing Blade is simply said too weak in everything it does, it does really, really low damage, and the leap does not have enough range to justify a 10 second cooldown. Either change the cooldown to 6 seconds, it cannot be traited for anyway, or increase both range and damage significantly. It should be a leap finisher as well, so the sword has one finisher.
- Scepter: Increase orb of wrath projectile speed, right now even monsters dodge it simply by moving a bit, and change smite into a pulse damage skill that hits 5 targets within its area of effect. Right now the area of effect is not only tiny, it also only sometimes hits, and only some of the enemies within its reach, it’s just really bad. Chains of Light, a 2 second immobilize on a 20 second cooldown is totally pointless on an already really weak weapon. Either bring its cooldown down to 8 seconds, or completely change what it does.
- Shield/Focus: Switch shield of wrath with shield of absorption, reduce the cooldown on all shield and focus skills, they’re just WAY too long even if traited.
- Staff: Remove symbol of swiftness and change it into an aoe shout-like buff that gives swiftness to yourself and everyone around, in reality no one bothers to run onto the symbol to get its buff. Change orb of light into a short cooldown Light beam, that lasts 2 seconds and pulses at the start, giving blindness at that first pulse, after 1 second again without blindness, and a last time after 2 seconds again without blindness, so three times total, causing significant damage and vulnerability (one stack at each pulse) to a single target. Use a similar skill to replace trident #2 with.. those slow moving detonatable orbs are just bad and not fun to use.
Traits.
I’m not smart enough to solve guardian trait lines, it needs a LOT of work to get anywhere as good as those of other professions. Guardian traits are either in the wrong place, or completely useless and never picked by anyone. Some traits sound good for support builds, such as resolute healer, but in reality the drastically weakened down shield of absorption created then, is so pointless that the trait becomes useless. The whole trait system of the guardian profession just doesn’t make sense, doesn’t solidly support any build and has so many traits that are either far too weak or just completely useless. It will take years fixing guardian traits, but I hope anet will consider at least starting to try and fix it, bit by bit every update.
Edit: spirit weapons, really need a serious damage increase, both at early levels where it is incredibly weak, and at later levels where even picking every single spirit weapon trait doesn’t make it a viable utility.
The spirit weapons never land a hit in pvp, ever.. and if they do then they have such a slow attack rate, doing such little damage, that it just isn’t worth ever using them.
(edited by Zsymon.8457)