Guild Wars 2

Hi, currently it is my understanding that when a clone is created it doesn’t destroy your phantasms, unless you already have 3 phantasms up in which case they will. this is very annoying, especially if you use the scepter.

I was thinking that to fix this, you could have an “over spill” slot that can only be filled by a clone, so instead of destroying a phantasm, new clone creation will destroy that clone.

thoughts?

Are you saying that the “over spill” slot should be one of the existing 3 or that it should be an additional slot which would mean that you can summon 4 clones?

Why just don’t summon any clone when 3 phantasms are up? Both phantasm army and shatter players will be happy without obvious op of 4th clone.

I’m getting the sense that ANet isn’t pleased that a lot of folks were/are ignoring the shatter functions and focusing on keeping phantasms up. All the changes seem to be in the direction of encouraging you to shatter stuff. So I doubt you’re going to see a anything that encourages people to keep phantasms standing.

Winds.3087:

Why just don’t summon any clone when 3 phantasms are up? Both phantasm army and shatter players will be happy without obvious op of 4th clone.

Think the OP’s point is that when you’re using a scepter you can’t control it unless you stop attacking. The scepter will create a clone and thus overwrite a phantasm.

You can control it by not using the Scepter OR Shattering your Phantasms once you have two up and the cooldown is ready to summon a third. Shatter -> immediately summon another Phantasm.

If you want to get up three Phantasms and then stand around spamming an autoattack, the Scepter is the wrong weapon for this.

I use scepters all the time. When I have three up I either shatter them or switch weapons, depending.

In fact, I trend to shatter the three with mind wrack or very of frustration right before the next clone spawns, then shatter that with distraction, then switch weapons and start the cycle all over again, or confusion and mage right before the switch.

I find it pointless to shatter my phantasms compared to leaving them up, they just do more damage and provide much better targets then my cloned illusions. Shatter and such needs a much bigger aoe range and more damage then it does because to the time that happens I will not be using those skills.

Perhaps. I find shatter a useful skill, particularly since I’m trying to make use of the traits that allow all shatters to add confusion, and confusion duration increases 33%.

Between that, the 20% illusion recharge upgrade, and my prodigious amount of illusion skills I’m using, I can afford to do so – I’m shattering all the time and still keeping illusions up.

Now, that being the case, sure, I could just maintain phantasms directly too. Sometimes I do. Depends on the situation.

I am going back to my old build (way for scepter update!). The point is that phantasms (while not supposed to be one trick ponies) are just that now.

Summon iwarlock, switch to sword/pistol, summon iduelist, cast illusionary leap, cast switch. By this time, iwarden (if not dead) has already done its full damage, as will duelist, you have 3 clones, BAM while using blurred frenzy.

Dispatch remaining HPs as neccessary.

I don’t see anything to fix here, the clone/phantasm overwriting is working exactly as advertised.

I would argue the cooldowns for F2-3-4 are too long, and that shattering phantasms should count for something (more duration on distortion and daze, twice the stacks of confusion etc) over shattering clones.

aXDuONGH.1654:

Are you saying that the “over spill” slot should be one of the existing 3 or that it should be an additional slot which would mean that you can summon 4 clones?

An additional slot, but shattering 4 clones can easily be fixed by limiting shatters to 3 at a time.

In PVE I can see what people are saying about phantasms not being needed after they dish out initial damage, so they can just be shattered with clones. During boss fights however, it’s much more effective to keep phantasms up so having them replaced by scepter 1 is counter productive.

@Zoner, That wouldn’t really work, its easy to get 3 phantasms up with utilities so the extra damage would be OP.

@Carighan, The problem is that it ISN’T doing as advertised, previous patch notes have stated that a clone should never replace a phantasm, but they do if you already have 3 phantasms up.

I see no patch notes stating what you’re claiming djmckie. In fact, the only note of any sort that I can find actually says this:

1.Phantasms will no longer be replaced by new illusions if there is a Clone that can be replaced instead.

You have two weapon sets so it’s time to switch if you’d like to keep ur phantasms up. That could be one of the purposes of two weapon sets in this case. it’s available for you to use. However phantasm attack recharge times are so long, might as well begin a new cycle with a shatter. And do phantasms really stay up that long? It gets destroyed often in combat. It only stays up when theres a large number of people fighting one champ or something and you don’t get aggro

djmckie.4876:

@Carighan, The problem is that it ISN’T doing as advertised, previous patch notes have stated that a clone should never replace a phantasm, but they do if you already have 3 phantasms up.

Then you misread the patchnotes.
The patchnotes said that if available, Clones will replace a Clone instead of a Phantasm.

As in: Once you got 3 Phantasms, the oldest one will get replaced.