Guild Wars 2

Anyone else think this skill falls below lackluster? ANet could make the teleport instant, change the cast time to 2 1/2 seconds and the effect would end up being the same at ranges outside of 500. Most of the time, way too much happens in 2 1/2 seconds for something like a single gap closer to be really that useful.

This needs a buff: either—

• Make the cast and teleport instant (click the button and whoosh, you’re there at your target).
• Turn the skill into a Death Shroud Ride the Lightning that just moves you really fast until you crash into your target, splashing Chill all over the place on people (It could even the be same animation, just dyed differently to reflect that it’s a Death Shroud skill).

There doesn’t need to be a damage buff or anything, just a reduction in the time it takes between me activating this skill and me actually arriving in front of my intended target. Right now, this skill closes gaps slower than my grandma in combat boots. With Dark Path being the Necromancer’s only true gap-closer skill, this is beyond painful.

All it really needs is the same speed buff the frosty grasp spell got. Instant would be completely uncharacteristic with the class in general (though awesome). Potentially you could make it only latch onto the target you selected instead of the pet you had to go through.

The cooldown on it is super short, around 12 seconds with it traited and its already very strong in small fights because of how long the chill lasts. That plus staff 3 plus epidemic is already insanely powerful.

The teleport is actually almost instant, but the projectile speed is so slow it misses a lot. I think it should be at least as quick as Life Blast.

Swagg.9236:

• Make the cast and teleport instant (click the button and whoosh, you’re there at your target).
• Turn the skill into a Death Shroud Ride the Lightning that just moves you really fast until you crash into your target, splashing Chill all over the place on people (It could even the be same animation, just dyed differently to reflect that it’s a Death Shroud skill).

+1

Rennoko.5731:

Instant would be completely uncharacteristic with the class in general (though awesome).

Maybe. Maybe. But it’s a gap-closer. There’s no option to not travel to your target. If that’s the case, why is it taking so blasted long for me to travel to my target? Either speed up that interval between casting and arrival at target (so I can start doing other things without worrying about interrupting myself with a delayed teleport), or split it into a chain skill that Chills a target and then gives you the option to move to that target.

Right now it’s so wishy-washy with its effect (and, yes, it is mostly just the speed of the projectile; if they removed that or even just sped it up, the skill would improve dramatically) that it’s really nothing but poor design.

pierwola.9602:

Swagg.9236:

• Make the cast and teleport instant (click the button and whoosh, you’re there at your target).
• Turn the skill into a Death Shroud Ride the Lightning that just moves you really fast until you crash into your target, splashing Chill all over the place on people (It could even the be same animation, just dyed differently to reflect that it’s a Death Shroud skill).

+1

+2

Would love deathshroud to feel atleast a little bit dangerous.

Karl actually addressed this in november (glad you’re keeping up…):

Difficult times editing posts!

So here’s the deal on that one: Dark Path is intentionally slow because it tracks the target and allows you to start using other skills before it connects. One of the ways that I love using it is launching it at an enemy that’s at near (but not at) max range, fearing them, exiting DS, then starting Dark Pact. As soon as the Path projectile hits them, you shadowstep and immediately immobilize them from the short-range Pact, then pound on them with dagger skills and wells. When Dark Path is faster, it’s harder to use it to effectively combo other skills.
For in-deathshroud abilities, I tend to use Life Blast until my bar’s about 50% depleted, then Dark Path+Life Transfer for maximum damage and chasing power.

https://forum-en.gw2archive.eu/forum/professions/necromancer/PHEW/first#post610999

Also, I read somewhere that Dark Path was a ‘normal’ (ground targetted) teleport in one of it’s earlier iterations and it turned out to be OP, so…

I try to get fancy like that with DS 2 all the time. And more often than not I cancel DS a split second to soon, or the DS2 projectile flies off in a random direction (no idea why). Position change skills are horribly irritating to use when aiming ground target skills.

I think I would agree with the design philosophy and even the projectile speed if the skill teleported you to dodging blocking targets. Right now its too easy to dodge roll and run away from. If at least it would port you over if it gets dodged it would be a reliable gap closer in short range.

I usually wait to use it until the enemy has used their dodges on something else, for example, focus 5 since it’s easy to see coming. People usually use all their dodges if they’re straight up running away from you, too. Alternatively, you can cast it, wait until it’s within 300 range or so, then use a Fear. They won’t be able to avoid it since they’re disabled, and you can safely set up the combo.

Even if they decided that it needs a delay.

They could have it so that the flying hand flies fast and latches onto the target. Then after a short delay the teleport happens. Would allow you to use the teleport preemptively knowing that you’d get the teleport for sure.

The problem with dark path is you cant assume it will hit anything, you fire it, then hope it hits. You cant assume you will get a teleport out of it.

Not only that, but you can’t be sure it won’t hit a horribly inconvenient target like a whirlwinding guardian instead of the fleeing staff ele.

I actually like the idea of it having a faster projectile speed and then giving you the option of actively porting then, or waiting say 3 seconds for the force port… similar to how your spectral walk works. (or used to work).

What would be cool about that, is it could be used as a condition necro and not force us into melee range if we didn’t want it, asumming the port was optional.

either increase the payload or make it more likely to land

Arvid.3829:

Karl actually addressed this in november (glad you’re keeping up…):

Difficult times editing posts!

So here’s the deal on that one: Dark Path is intentionally slow because it tracks the target and allows you to start using other skills before it connects. One of the ways that I love using it is launching it at an enemy that’s at near (but not at) max range, fearing them, exiting DS, then starting Dark Pact. As soon as the Path projectile hits them, you shadowstep and immediately immobilize them from the short-range Pact, then pound on them with dagger skills and wells. When Dark Path is faster, it’s harder to use it to effectively combo other skills.
For in-deathshroud abilities, I tend to use Life Blast until my bar’s about 50% depleted, then Dark Path+Life Transfer for maximum damage and chasing power.

https://forum-en.gw2archive.eu/forum/professions/necromancer/PHEW/first#post610999

It’s funny how I sort of like to play an opposite style to this with my Necromancer. I would Dark Path a target, wait for it to hit, and the in the moment that I teleport I would Fear my target, then cancel death shroud and get a free dagger chain on it before casting a well and messing with it further with things like Dark Path and Spectral Grasp.

I guess it makes sense that way to allow for a cancel and then to do more stuff—but then why the cast time? I guess making it balanced with a cast time is fine, but if it didn’t have one, you could pull the “DS2-3/cancel into other skills” combo much more fluidly and not have to worry about accidentally interrupting your own combo.

So DS 2 is probably fine as it is? Just remove the cast time?