Warrior HoT balance feedback

Warrior HoT balance feedback

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Posted by: Khenzy.9348

Khenzy.9348

Warrior HoT Balance comprenhensive feedback

First things first!: All numbers would be subject to change, mechanics are what’s important here!

Note: This is mostly an effort from several warrior players across various servers. I’ve only been compiling the feedback and adding a few things on my own.

Note 2: Comments and explanations are in spoiler tags.

Weapon changes:

Rifle:


As it is, the rifle is not going to get any use besides some seldom clutch and selective occasions. The weapon is extremely underwhelming, we think this is universally known at this point.
In order to make a weapon desirable and fun, it has to have sinergies within itself, it has to feel rewarding to use. Each skill press has to feel meaningful. A weapon is considered bad when the skills associated with it are just filler attacks: Brutal Shot and Aimed Shot being two examples of this, you fire them and forget about them altogether (with the exception of Aimed Shot+Leg Specialist).

A clear, very simple example of a conditional attack with somewhat decent sinergy:

Fierce Shot: Fire a shot at your target, gaining bonus adrenaline against vulnerable foes.

Some selec rifle skills should pierce baseline, such as Fierce Shot, Volley, and Kill Shot(we feel it’s absolutely mandatory for rifle Warriors, specially with all the changes suggested below).

  • Fierce Shot: Fire a piercing shot at your target, gaining bonus adrenaline against vulnerable foes.
    -It now pierces baseline.
  • Aimed Shot is now named Brutal shot: Fire a shot that cripples foes and makes them vulnerable.
    -Cripple. 5s.
    -6 stacks of Vulnerability. 8s.
    -Cast time increased from ¼ s to ½ s.
    -Recharge remains the same: 10s.
  • Volley: Fire a volley of piercing shots at your foes.
    -It now pierces baseline.
  • Brutal Shot is now named Aimed shot: Fire a precise shot that reveals your foes and dazes them.
    -2 seconds of Revealed.
    -Daze duration: ¼ s.
    -Cannot be blocked (Maybe? Maybe not?).
    -Cast time reduced to ¼ s.
    -Recharge remains. 15s.
  • Rife Butt: Push your foe back with your rifle butt and perform an evasive manouver.

Shortly after pushing your foe back you perform a dodge roll to gain some distance, similar to Ranger’s Hornet Sting skill (distance gained would be a little shorter).

  • Kill Shot: Fire a powerful shot. Cast time is reduced and has increased vulnerability application with inceased adrenaline levels.
    -Level 1: 1 ¼ s cast time. 3 stacks of vulnerability.
    -Level 2: 1s cast time. 6 stacks of vulnerability.
    -Level 3: ¾ s cast time. 9 stacks of vulnerability.
    -Pierces baseline.

Damage of the Kill Shot no longer varies depending on adrenaline levels.

Axe offhand:

  • Dual Strike : Strike your foe with both weapons and reflect projectiles coming at you. Gain fury with each hit.
    -Damage of this skill increased by 15%.

Now reflects projectiles coming in front of you during the ½ s animation. Damage of this skill increased by 15% becouse if felt too weak.

  • Whirling Axe: Spin and attack your foes, making them vulnerable.
    -10 stacks of vulnerability. 10s.

Now applies up to 10 stacks of vulnerability AoE during the animation. (it now competes with Mace’s off hand single target counterpart, Crushing Blow).
Whirling axe blocking or reflecting projectiles would have been too strong or it would have overshadowed Shield and Sword offhand very quickly.

Mace offhand:

  • Crushing Blow: Crush your foes armor, leaving them weakened and vulnerable.
    -10 stacks of Vulnerability: 10s.
    -Weakness. 8s.
    -Cast time reduced to ½ s.

In addition to its current effect, it now applies 8s of weakness.
It may be redundant with Main Hand Mace AA (Pulverize), but you will not always pair Mace Offhand with a Mace Mainhand, so as a stand alone weapon, it makes sense temathically and it needs it mechanically. The cast time feels really long, it’s now reduced to ½s

Warrior HoT balance feedback

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Posted by: Khenzy.9348

Khenzy.9348

Sword mainhand:

  • Final Thrust: Strike your foe with a powerful thrust. If it hits an injured foe, it does extra damage but the recharge is increased.
    -Damage: X
    -Damage against foes under 50% health: Xx2
    -Increased recharge when damaging foes under 50% health: 5s.
    -Base recharge reduced to 10s.

Final Thrust feels as if it only ever gets any use when your target is below 50% HP, that means that the CD feels too long to use on a foe above 50% and the damage above 50% dosen’t feel high enough for such a high recharge. In other words, it feels a one dimensional skill that only ever gets used as a finisher and only sits there unsused most of the fight.
Final Thrust base CD reduced to 10s. If you hit foes under 50% HP you do extra damage against them but the CD of this skill increses by 5 seconds. A choise of “Less damage more often, more damage less often”.

Sword offhand:

  • Impale: Throw your sword at your foe to impale them.
    -Duration of the Impale effect increased to 6 seconds.
    -Torment duration and all other effects remain the same.
    Rip: Rip your sword from your target for extra damage.
    -Cast time reduced to ½ s.
    -Damage increased by 10%.

We feel that the time limit it allows you to Rip your sword from the enemy is too low, the chain skill from Impale, Rip, should last at least 2 seconds longer. The cast time on it felt too punishing so it got reduced; and the damage slightly increased.

Greatsword:

  • Hundred Blades: You perform several frontal powerful strikes that make your foes vulnerable. The last strike does addintional damage. You move slower during this attack.
    -Each strike applies 1 stack of Vulnerability. 8s.
    -You move 50% slower during the animation.
    -Damage reduced by 20%
    -Range increased to up to 170.

We think (most of us totally agree on this one), Hundred Blades should be able to be used while on the move. In spite of its popularaty, it’s a clunky relic of the past, and it feels wrong with the pace of the combat.
Ironically, with this change, Physical utility skills would be taken more as they would gain much more flexibility and wont be reserved to just save their CDs to set up the Hundred Blades (which just reduces their usability as a whole).
Therefore, to compensate for it’s new movement posisbilities and the fact that all other greatword skills are going to hit much harder due to several damage multipliers from traits, the damage of this skill is now reduced by 20% (or more, or less, you get the point).
You can now rotate, move (albeit really slow) and AIM those slashes, you shouldn’t be as countered by just simple strafing.
Further justification:
Skills such as Blurred Frenzy, Pistol Whip and Zealots Defense make sense as static skills becouse they have their own set ups (Pistol stun on Pistol Whip, Illusionary Leap on Blurred Frenzy), have defensive mechanisms attached to them (Blurred Frenzy evades, Pistol Whip evades, Zealot’s Defense blocks projectiles), or it’s even ranged (Zealot’s Defense has 600 range). The flat damage on Hundred Blades doesn’t really cut it, at all, it also has an incredibly long cast time making it impossible to fully land it unless you devote more than half your build to specificaly land it (it’s a single skill!).

Trait changes

Strength Specialization

  • Axe Mastery
    Critical hits with Axe attacks gain extra adrenaline. Gain ferocity for each Axe you’re wielding. Axe attacks do more damage, with extra damage to foes with lower health. Reduce recharge on Axe skills.
    -In adition to its current effects:
    +5% damage against foes above 75% HP.
    +10% damage against foes below 75% HP.
    +15% damage against foes below 50% HP.
    +20% damage against foes below 25% HP.

It doesn’t compete with Berserker’s power in the current state. Now it does

Warrior HoT balance feedback

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Posted by: Khenzy.9348

Khenzy.9348

Discipline Specialization

  • Crack shot
    Gain increased precision for a period of time each time you critical strike a foe with Volley. Rifle skills are reduced by 2% each time you strike a vulnerable foe with Fierce Shot and Volley.
    -Crack shot is now called Precise shots
    -Precise shots is now Adept tier in the Arms Specialization in place of Deep Strikes trait.

Now its effect is similar to something like the Guardian’s Mace trait. Fierce Shot and Volley now make more sense piercing baseline.
This trait makes absolutely no sense in the Discipline line considering how incredily sinergistic this weapon is with the Arms line with traits like Rending Strikes or Burst precision. We move this trait back to the Arms specialization in the place of Deep Strike, which is a passive, uninteresting and incredibly bland trait that wont ever get taken over something like Berserker’s Fury or Signet Mastery.
As rifle attacks are now stronger, their recharges need to be conditional and more skill based to not be straight out reduced off the bat.

  • New trait called Disciplined attitude
    Cripple nearby foes and gain swiftness when you swap weapons.
    -Combat only.
    -This is now an Adept trait in the Discipline line in place of the moved and renamed Crack shot.

We came up with this weapon swap trait, which is a fair competition to Warrior’s sprint (this is the name we came up with, name not relevant though!).

  • Vengeful Return
    -In addition to its current effects:
    Vengeance recharges 20% faster.

As niche as thist trait can be, it can have its tactical uses, but in order to work much better, Vengeance has to have a reduced recharge once downed, that’s why we propose that, in addition to its current effects, Vengeance recharges 20% faster.

Arms specialization


It’s great, it’s awesome, it looks really really good. But it has a problem, it seems like a Sword only (with Longbow as secondary) specialization with heavy focus on conditions. This specialization shouldn’t be exclusively condition oriented as there are only 3 weapons out of 12 based on conditions. Most of this, is due to the Opportunist trait, Warriors should be the kings of Fury, not Rangers. I’ll explain:
The Fury on immobilize only works for Sword and Longbow unless you equip Bolas or trait into Leg Specialist, which we think it’s cool but not cool enough. Also, the crit chance on sword is covered by the Blademaster trait which is also extremely overkill with fury for a potential +40% crit chance with a sword, that’s why we propose the following changes:

  • Rending Strikes
    You have a chance to couse vulnerability and gain swiftness on critial hits. You gain fury if you strike vulnerable foes.
    -Vulnerability threshold to gain Fury: 6 stacks.
    -Fury duration: 5s.
    -Recharge of the Fury effect: 5s.

Basically, you have to strike a foe with 6 or more stacks of vulnerability in oder to gain fury, this effect has an internal recharge of 5s.

  • Opportunist
    Gain fury when you immobilize or cripple your target. You have increased condition damage while under the effects of Fury.
    - The previously mentioned crappy trait Deep Strike (replaced with new Rifle trait) is now merged here.
    - Fury duration. 5s.
    - Recharge. 5s.
    - +150 condition damage while under the effects of fury.
  • Blademaster
    You gain Fury if you strike a bleeding foe with your sword. Your sword skills do more damage against bleeding foes. Reduces recharge on sword skills.
    -Bleed threshold to gain fury: 5 stacks.
    -Fury duration. 5s.
    -Recharge of the Fury effect. 5s.
    -Damage against bleeding foes. +5%.

The idea is that sword no longer gets ridiculous 40% crit chance with fury thanks to +Blademaster.
Rending Strikes is great with Mace and Axe offhand (even more with the proposed changes) and is the direct damage variant of Opportunist.
Opportunist now works wonders with Axe and also acts as a condition variant (while Rending strikes being the direct damage one).

Warrior HoT balance feedback

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Posted by: Khenzy.9348

Khenzy.9348

Tactics specialization

  • Leg specialist
    You immobilize your target when you control them, you apply slow to them when you cripple them. Both effects cannot happen simultaneously and share the same recharge.
    -Leg specialist is now called: Slow them down.
    -Slow them down is now a Master tier trait in place of Shrug it off.
    -Immobilize duration against controled targets: 2s.
    -Slow duration against crippled targets: 2s.
    -Increased recharge to 15s

The current iteration of Leg Specialist feels too random, too short, not impactful at all. It is only ever taken by hambows (occasionally) and some rare rifle wielders. We propose the following simple change:
Leg specialist is now named Slow them down.
You immobilize your target when you CC(control) them (they still remain immob if they break stun!), you apply slow to them when you cripple them. Both effects cannot happen simultaneously and share the same recharge. 15s CD (maybe 20s? Maybe less than 15?). Immobilize duration 2s, Slow duration 2s.
It now gives it a more meaningful stopping power when you cripple or apply a CC, and not just a short duration immobilize which felt a little luckluster before.
Leg specialist (now called Slow them down) is now worthy of being Master tier. So now, you can move Shrug it off to Adept and Slow them down to Master.
This way you nerf the condition removal of the build Shoutbow (which would become crazy strong otherwise), as this build now has to choose between Shrug it off or Quick Breathing again, instead of having both, which would be a little too much condition removal plus healing (from Vigorous Shouts).

  • Burning Arrows
    Burning you apply with longbow skills last longer. Longbow skills do more damage against burning foes. Longbow skills recharge faster.
    -Burning duration from longbow skills is increased by 25%.
    -Damage of longbow skills to buning foes is increased by 5%.

Dual shot applying burning is definetly not a plus to the weapon, it should couse burning baseline (remember that burning does less damage and stacks in intensity now), it’s an extremely important part of the longbow now. The AA should have always applied some kind of condition! We shouldn’t have to take a triat to make the AA not worthless. The new proposed trait is similar to the greatsword one.

  • Powerful sinergy
    Combos made with leap finishers, whirl finishers, blast finishers and projectile finishers activate twice.

Why not? It has to be a choice between two amazing traits such as Vigorous Shouts and Phalanx Strength; it needs to be just as amazing (double blast finishers may be a little too strong though).

  • Determined Revival
    -In addition, you revive 10% faster.
  • Reviver’s Might.
    You and nearby allies gain 2 stacks of might (5s) and 3 seconds of regen for each second you spend reviving someone (may be a little too strong, feedback needed here!).

Warrior HoT balance feedback

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Posted by: Khenzy.9348

Khenzy.9348

Defense specialization


We all agree that Thick Skin is too weak while Spiked Armor is too strong (50% retaliation uptime? Just, no).

  • Thick Skin
    You gain more Toughness the lower your health is.
    -<75% health: 5% damage mitigation
    -<50% health: 10% damage mitigation
    -<25% health: 15% damage mitigation.

We loved this one from TPenny from the official forums. It needs to be clarified that it’s not flat damage mitigation, but a certain amount of toughness gained to equal that mitigation.

  • Spiked Armor
    You gain additional Toughness and Retaliation when you’re struck by a critical hit.
    -Blocking condition removed.
    -Additional Toughness duration. 3s.
    -Retaliation duration. 3s.
    -Recharge. 10s.

Damage is reduced by 20% for 3 seconds when you’re struck by a critical hit, you also gain Retaliation for 3 seconds. 10s CD. Blocking condition removed. Same as above, it’s not flat damage mitigation, but a certain amount of toughness gained.

  • Cleansing Ire
    Remove a condition for every bar of adrenaline spent when you hit with a burst skill.
    -Gain adrenaline when hit is been made baseline.
    -This trait is now grandmaster tier in place of Rousing Resilience

The “gain adrenaline when hit” from the Cleansing Ire triat is now made baseline, this trait is already ridiculously strong and mandatory as it is, and all Warrior builds could greatly benefit from gaining adrenaline when getting hit, something that should have been made baseline since the begenning. It also lowers the desirability of this trait, making the other traits a more tempting choice.

  • Rousing Resilience
    -Is now Master tier in place of the previous Cleansing Ire spot.
  • Last Stand
    -Is now Grandmaster tier in place of Defy Pain.

It’s way, way stronger than Defy Pain and the sinergy it makes with the reciently moved Rousing Resilience is great.

  • Defy Pain
    -Is now master tier, in place of the previous Last Stand spot.
    -Health threashold increased from 25% to 33%.

As high as Warrior’s HP might be, when this trait procs, it feels as if the HP is too low to prevent your inevitable death. That’s why we propose to increase the health threshold to at least 33%.

  • Sundering Mace
    -Is now Master tier in place of Cull the weak.
  • Cull the weak
    -Is now grandmaster tier in place of Sundering Mace.
    -Threshold increased to 50%
    -Added internal CD of 10s, it applies to each enemy individually.
    -Weakness duration increased to 10s.

Perma weakness and additional damage on each individually injured foe is reeeeeeeeally strong, maybe a little too much, but it’s competing with Cleansing Ire and the super dupe Stance trait. Feedback is appreciated here!

Warrior HoT balance feedback

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Posted by: Khenzy.9348

Khenzy.9348

Healing and utility skill changes

  • Defiant Stance
    -Is now made instant
    -Can now be used while controled.

should be made instant, and by the way it works, it should definetly be able to be casted while CCed, you said you’re against instant cast healing skills, but what about Thieves Withdraw?

  • Healing Surge
    Periodically gain adrenaline and regenerate health.
    -Changed name to I will survive! or To the limit!
    -Gain health every 2 seconds, up to 3 times.
    -Gain 1 bar of adrenaline every 2 seconds, up to 3 times.

If it’s becoming a shout, it should become instant and should be renamed. Funtionality should be altered entirely, nothing should encourage a Warrior to not spend adrenaline, the least of them being your precious healing skill! Healing surge is now called I will survive! Or To the limit! You now gain 1 chunk of health and 1 bar of adrenaline every 2 seconds, up to 3 times.

  • Banners
    -Inspire and Sprint recharges are reduced to 10s.
    -All other Banner effects besides Inspiring Battle Standard trait are made baseline.

To maintain consistency with all banner recharges and to make them more feasible to carry them around, which is sometimes a chore.

  • Frenzy
    -No longer has a penalty.

Undeserved penalty in this time and age, definetly. Now more than ever considering quickness is becoming a removable boon. All other quickness related skills should recive the same treatment.

  • On my mark!
    -Now applies 4 seconds of revealed.

The shout that never gets used, ever. Now it will.

Thanks for reading, feedback is appreciated!

Cheers!

Warrior HoT balance feedback

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Posted by: Shieldbash.5304

Shieldbash.5304

Whats up with Hammer? I see no merciless Hammer trait and nothing on the weapon as for changes? Does it still exist ?

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Posted by: Juba.8406

Juba.8406

Disagree with Final Thrust change.

Final Thrust is fine currently, you chopped 5s off the CD for no apparent reason.
BTW i use Final Thrust even on full health targets still does decent damage.

Disagree with 100b change.

With the new Forceful GS + Zerk power, 100b is back as (Hard/risky to setup But High rewarding skill), please no more damage nerfs.

Totally agree on Defiant Stance change.

How to Make an Omelet with an Ostrich Egg!

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Posted by: Khenzy.9348

Khenzy.9348

Shieldbash.5304:

Whats up with Hammer? I see no merciless Hammer trait and nothing on the weapon as for changes? Does it still exist ?

Hammer is a perfectly viable and reasonable weapon which already gains lots of sinergies from either damage traits: Berserker’s Power, other more CC oriented traits such as Leg Specialist or Body Blow or even crit oriented traits such as Unsuspecting Foe or even Rending Strikes. The weapon with its trait gains enough damage as it is, and the weapon skills are all good and have their purposes. Maybe Earthshaker has pathing issues but that is not related to balance.

Juba.8406:

Disagree with Final Thrust change.

Final Thrust is fine currently, you chopped 5s off the CD for no apparent reason.
BTW i use Final Thrust even on full health targets still does decent damage.

Disagree with 100b change.

With the new Forceful GS + Zerk power, 100b is back as (Hard/risky to setup But High rewarding skill), please no more damage nerfs.

Totally agree on Defiant Stance change.

The idea behind the Final Thrust suggestion is that it gets more use to targets above 50% health. Most finisher skills are usually stand alone finishers only and are spammable when the health threshold is reached (in the case of many other MMOS), we have the case of Heartseeker here. Final Thrust as such, is not a spammable finisher, and its use is remarkably narrow, this suggestion would promote more active use.
If you use it on foes with higher HPs you risk having it on CD when its damage really matters, therefore, in practice, it just doesn’t get used until it’s time to execute, this shouldn’t be the case on a weapon skill (even with such a recharge). This doesn’t promote healthy play (healthy play patterns as they so call it).

Regarding Hundred Blades. The idea behind it is to promote more fluid play. I don’t know about you, but every Warrior I know would prefer slightly lower numbers on it and be able to use it while moving. Sitting there watching an (long) animation is just not fun and reduces build possibilities on its own. The numbers could still be the same for all I care, you’d be moving 50% slower aferall.
Not many people remember that Whirling Wrath once was a static skill, those few people remember how much more viable and fun the weapon became when said skill was now able to be used while on the move. And the numbers on this one weren’t touched either.

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Posted by: Darksteel.8412

Darksteel.8412

Juba.8406:

Disagree with Final Thrust change.

Final Thrust is fine currently, you chopped 5s off the CD for no apparent reason.
BTW i use Final Thrust even on full health targets still does decent damage.

Disagree with 100b change.

With the new Forceful GS + Zerk power, 100b is back as (Hard/risky to setup But High rewarding skill), please no more damage nerfs.

Totally agree on Defiant Stance change.

yep, stop nerfing warri’s gs. stop trying to ruin fun for others for 100b has never ever been OP and you all just need to deal with players who enjoy playing it

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Posted by: Spartacus.3192

Spartacus.3192

Thats great that 100b can be used while moving but PLEASE dont nerf its damage. The damage is already backloaded as it is and enemies dodge it.

Your typical average gamer -
“Buff my main class, nerf everything else. "

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Posted by: Ozzrel.9825

Ozzrel.9825

A lot of these changes are just plain buffs to things that don’t need it (OH mace, rending strikes), while others try to fix underused weapons but don’t quite hit the mark (rifle, OH axe).

I’ll add my own thoughts on rifle here:
Initially, it wasn’t clear what the purpose of that weapon is. It had bleeds, vulnerability, high damage skills… but then they removed the bleed and buffed vulnerability, making it clear it is intended to be a low dps weapon with strong burst. The problem is that the burst is too easy to avoid in PvP, and the dps is way too low for PvE.
Making the burst easier to land without adding some drawback will make it completely btoken in PvP, it will have no counterplay. So, what can be done to balance it?
Making it require additional buildup that can be countered:
Fierce Shot can be a low damage attack that applies long lasting vulnerability that will stack up to very large amounts if left unchecked. Then another attack (lets say Brutal Shot) will have increasing base damage depending on amount of vulnerability stacks on the target (in addition to vuln’s normal effect).

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Posted by: Old Timez.5194

Old Timez.5194

I would wonder what would happen if the overall attack speed for rifle was up’d by 5-10% and given a range increase that was greater than 1200 but less than 1500.

Right now I feel like rifle 3 and the AA feels a tad slow firing even though its in line with other ranged weapons.

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