I recently started to run a pure support build in WvW with Spirits, just tagging onto large scale Zerg’s to provide wide scale support with the spirits abilities. Just 1 ranger can nearly cover 20+ groups which is great. However, I have been commonly asked by the commander to stop. The reason being that each of those spirits could potentially take away a Stability buff from an actual player, which could mean the difference between life & death in large scale engagements.
Spirit builds also are extraordinarily passive in how they support a group to the point where that ambiguity paints a ranger as a joke. Any other skill, such as well or large scale AOE have a visual impact on the battle field. You know when a guardian throws down a symbol & immediately feel the effect. Spirit support abilities lack this kind of feedback which prove that the Ranger is doing something useful.
The question becomes how do you fix this?
Prevent Spirits from gaining boons?
Having spirit support abilities give a % chance of occuring might be the root of the problem. When properly traited that % rises to 70% anyway. Why not give a constant boon in that instance? The effect is immediate, players will notice, and attacking spirits becomes a priority.
A reckless suggestion is to allow a spirit to grant stability, this would shake up large scale WvW engagements that are often decided by the number of players who are CC’ed.
Any thoughts or comments on the problem?
