Guild Wars 2

With the update to our specialization lines, the only method of access to on demand offensive boons is through thrill of the crime.

So that means i have to spec into Trickery to get that bonus because before i could go critical strikes for fury when my enemy reached 50%.

Maybe its just me but what are you guys thoughts on the lack of offensive boons?

I wasn’t too happy with the new traits. It was odd that the thief lost most of its 10% damage bonuses and might on dodge/stealth. I checked the guardian since I use it for dungeons and all of the damage bonuses were still there.

I’m not concerned about class balance since we did get some buffs, but I feel the new traits hurt build diversity. It seems like if you want a competitive build you have to take Deadly Arts and Trickery.

I think this a legitimate concern.. Outside Shadow trap they all come from our traits YET sources of these three were all removed in the revamp.

Assassins retreat is gone, Furious retaliation gone, might on stealth gone and might on dodge gone.

Unless one goes trickery there no FURY at all and unlike classes that can get it off a weapon set like the warhorn or axe or a utility like a signet there no other way to source it in a theif build outside that shadow trap. The fact that there little sources of these boons on our weapons or utitlities when compared to the other classes made those coming from traits more valued.

Now other sources CAN be added to the specialization trait but this would result in having to take that traitline just to get the fury/swiftness.

I really think the current weaponsets/utililities/traits are lacking when it comes to these boons and suggests the developers do not think the thief should have boon access to any great degree MEANING our relative mobility(less swiftness than other classes) and spike damage (less fury/might) is compromised.

Now the Boon resistance was added (as the little used stability off that same line lost) but that going to be very hard to apply in game terms. Part of any solution might be revisiting the existing weapon sets and or utililities ot see if any of those can be tweaked as a source.

Why do you need fury when you get 100% crit out of stealth?

Justine.6351:

Why do you need fury when you get 100% crit out of stealth?

The attack out of stealth requires stealth which a lot of thieves would rather bypass, is a single trait on the CS line and works for only one attack. In very many cases this means less damage overall as compared to fury. As example If I am s/d I would much rather have FURY as with p/p and s/p.

Even d/d can pump out more damage with a Fury source when considering the AA chain after that stealth attack or heartseeker. That attack from stealth from hidden killer is built around single large attacks.