Showing Posts For Amante.8109:

Worth reflection.

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Posted by: Amante.8109

Amante.8109

Daredevil WAS garbage. It took over a year of buffs to beat it into shape.

I think Deadeye has a lot of potential, but I’d rather not have to wait a year for it to be good again.

The Malice Mechanic

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Posted by: Amante.8109

Amante.8109

It’d be different if you take “Silent Scope” (Ridiculous name by the way… not sure how loud a scope actually is but what ever).

By the by, that’s a reference to a Japanese arcade game about sniping of the same name. Deadeye isn’t as loaded with genre-specific references as the Berserker, but it’s got a few.

Deadeye is so boring to play.

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Amante.8109

It’s almost as if people have their own experiences and opinions that don’t line up with yours… but I’m sure the problem is more “not knowing what a sniper is”.

Best PvE Post PoF Opinions?

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Posted by: Amante.8109

Amante.8109

It’ll still be Daredevil. Deadeye has really bad damage in PvE at the moment.

Dev around here like last beta ?

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Amante.8109

Wouldn’t expect much. Even last time, him being “around” meant showing up twice to tell us the changes they would be making and ignoring just about all of our actual feedback. Meanwhile, he was posting every day or two in the Ele forums and even occasionally in the Guardian ones.

To those QQ'ing about deadeye..

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Posted by: Amante.8109

Amante.8109

Considered by others does not mean true. Choose any point in Thief’s history—including one of its many low ones—and you will find a legion of mediocre scrubs insisting with certainty that OMG TEEF OP

Improving thief build diversity

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Amante.8109

There a lot of things that could be done, with literally everyone suggesting for YEARS that Preparedness should be baseline. Unfortunately, all the good suggestions in the world don’t matter if they aren’t being listened to.

Deadeye is worse than core Thief.

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Amante.8109

Only Rifle #2 gets reflected for some reason… but yeah, it’s Rifle #4 that does the laffo damage people are seeing, and it’s so telegraphed that you can see it coming from orbit.

What Legendary to make?

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Posted by: Amante.8109

Amante.8109

HMS Divinity

To those QQ'ing about deadeye..

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Posted by: Amante.8109

Amante.8109

After playing around with DE some more, I would say the bigger problems are more with Rifle than the trait line for sure… I’ve been having a decent amount of fun with P/P DE.

The Rifle is chock full of all the classic Thief anti-synergies that tend to come from hasty implementation: clunky skills (KNEEL), long after-casts for no discernible reason, easily dodgeable projectiles, buggy teleports, and so on.

It’s all fixable, of course, the question is how long Thief will sit on its ceremonial position upon the back-burner before ANet remembers to give Thief its once a year look-see. I personally will not be buying the expansion until Rifle is whipped into shape.

(edited by Amante.8109)

To those QQ'ing about deadeye..

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Amante.8109

As usual, it’s less about the core concept for the spec (which is cool) and more about its extremely clunky and rushed implementation. It took quite a while after HOT release for DD to be whipped into decent shape… loads of good beta feedback was almost completely ignored. DD even had placeholder animations until days before release…

Between that and the ongoing lack of attention for Thief, I see no reason not to expect a repeat of the same with DE. Maybe it’ll be fun a year from now?

(edited by Amante.8109)

Fixing Rifle kneel

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Posted by: Amante.8109

Amante.8109

There are not enough words to describe how clunky Kneel feels. WASD needs to get you out of it for starters.

I'm Offended

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Posted by: Amante.8109

Amante.8109

We gave loads of feedback on Daredevil during HOT beta and pretty much all of it was ignored. Waste your time if you like, but don’t be surprised when it amounts to nothing.

So about those leaks earlier today...

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Posted by: Amante.8109

Amante.8109

I could see Thief Rifle self-revealing as a mechanic. If you could channel a strong shot in stealth and then have to deal with being revealed for a few seconds after, it could create an interesting back and forth.

What killed pvp.

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Posted by: Amante.8109

Amante.8109

Couple thoughts:

Amulets:
They’ve been all over the place. They’re in a better place than they were before but are still limiting build diversity. I would like to see amulets overhauled into a new form where you choose the basic balance of stats you want (2-4 stats, more concentrated or more spread out) and then custom pick the types of those stats. As a Thief main, I’m especially limited by the predefined amulet choices and something like this would go a long way.

E-sports:
Failed e-sports pushes can kill a game’s PvP scene, particularly if it was niche to begin with. If you’re going to pursue big-time e-sports aspirations, don’t forget to put in a mode or two for people who want a more casual experience.

Thief damage out of control

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Posted by: Amante.8109

Amante.8109

They can either control the fight or do stupid amounts of damage, they cant do both.

You’re right, they can’t. On a good day Thief is lucky to manage one. On a bad day…

HMS Divinity vs Predator

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Amante.8109

I used to think Predator, but I’m leaning toward Divinity now. YMMV however, as I am a sucker for pirates and nautically themed stuff as relates to my thieves and rogues.

Karl McLain Appreciation Thread

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Posted by: Amante.8109

Amante.8109

If the rumors are accurate, then Karl is forgiven.

Thief Needs 1200 Range.

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Amante.8109

An old but still correct observation. Don’t bother making it here, people have already Stockholm Syndrome’d themselves into justifying Thief as the only profession without a 1200 range weapon (and the only profession that didn’t receive base range increases when range increasing traits were baked in last year).

Skill tracking even after stealth

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Amante.8109

Oh look, another low skill player wandering in to whine about an “uncounterable” mechanic he doesn’t understand. Is it Tuesday already?

In case you’re really that dumb, stealth actually has a substantial amount of counters and seemingly more added all the time, including a forthcoming sigil. I’d hate to see you deal with stealth in other games where it’s actually powerful.

Death of Ghost Thief

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Posted by: Amante.8109

Amante.8109

ArenaNet making a sloppy, poorly thought out reactionary nerf? Nawwwww

Ghost thief

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Posted by: Amante.8109

Amante.8109

1> Ghost is a gimmick build that is only even theoretically useful in WvW.
2> Thief is a bag of squishy meat.

If you're playing condi thief in ranked

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Amante.8109

Condi Thief is not so great in SPvP most of the time, but people have the right to play what they want. Blame ArenaNet for years of refusing to give Thief more than one viable build at a time.

Thief... the scapegoat?

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Amante.8109

Nothing has changed with how Thief is treated (both by players and developers), and nothing will. For whatever reason(s), players tend to HATE rogue classes (regardless of their level of power or viability), and it’s harder to find developers that identify with the archetype to give it the balance and attention it deserves.

If you’re a PvPer and the only profession you enjoy playing in GW2 is Thief, quit now and save yourself years of frustration. I sure wish I did sooner.

You know you're playing thief right when...

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Amante.8109

When people scream and cry for nerfs despite Thief being the most consistently squishy, invariable, and neglected class for years at a time.

NERF Thieves Too much damage WVW

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Amante.8109

A Rev to put out this kind of damage (which will not one shot anyone anyway) would have to be very glassy. In which case they melt quickly when focused.

Having a thief be able to virtually one shot someone with no counter, is beyond cheesy. And no, the counter isnt letting other people beat on him having he one shot his target.

So let me get this straight: it’s okay for a Rev to do the same/higher burst as a Thief from 1200 range, but when a Thief does it from melee with 8k+ less HP (and lower toughness to boot), it’s “uncounterable” and “beyond cheesy”?

People’s ridiculous double standards with Thief in a nutshell. Just admit you hate the profession thematically and move on already.

what do you think thief needs to be balanced

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Amante.8109

We could quibble over what we think the Thief profession needs all year, but the truth is none of it matters. What the profession needs goes far beyond specific mechanical changes and into the realm of developer focus and attention it is not currently receiving. If playing Thief is integral to your enjoyment of the game (as it is for me), quit wasting your time. All the feedback in the world doesn’t matter if no one’s listening.

How to make Pistol/Dagger thief work?

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Amante.8109

One element people tend to overlook about P/D is its Dual Attack. The second hit of it does a substantial amount of damage, enough to make even Power P/D usable in world content. And of course, there’s always abusing (re)stealth and backstab…

Skyhammer Design Discussion

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Posted by: Amante.8109

Amante.8109

Random Skyhammer feedback:

-Adjust Skyhammer’s damage, CD, or whatever else. It hits so hard and often that if one team is consistently controlling it, it can feel a little oppressive.
-A lot of jump pads to nowhere. Make them lead more meaningful places, maybe? Mini versions of the jump pads near Tequatl could be fun.
-Keep the trap floors, they’re hilarious.

[Discussion] Why Doesn't Scorpion Wire Work?

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Amante.8109

Because it’s too hard

(Source: AMA)

Can we get a new Pistol auto attack?

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Amante.8109

Pistol #1 and #2 need to be completely redesigned for the weapon to be viable.

But as Thief seems saddled with developers that are obsessed with tweaking numbers rather than making mechanical changes, doubling the attack speed of Pistol #1 and halving the initiative cost of #2 would be a good start.

(edited by Amante.8109)

Power Pistol/Pistol Daredevil: VIABLE!

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Amante.8109

If you couldn’t tell that the P/P “changes” were gonna amount to nothing even 4 months ago, then I have a bridge in Queensdale I’d love to sell ya…

Autoattack Damage Buff's Effect on PvP/WvW

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Amante.8109

I’m going to go ahead and bump this thread to draw attention to how exceptionally toxic our community is these days. Everything is an “L2P” issue. Hardly anyone wants to address the problem. Most would rather insult the skill of anyone who seems to think their class is unbalanced without any attempt to consider the argument.

You can take issue with people’s attitudes all you want, but their responses are valid. Thief has been in a truly dire place since June 2015, and yet people of low skill still regularly wander into these forums to complain about Thief being “OP” in one way or another. At this point, frequent forum-goers are pretty tired of that dynamic, which unfortunately has been given new life after Thief received minor buffs in an area no one was asking for that don’t address any meaningful class issues.

While the meta is changing due to the bunker nerfs, nothing substantial has changed with Thief itself. If you are consistently losing 1v1s against Thieves that you would have won before, then you are simply not prepared for the matchup. A small increase in autoattack damage attached to the same squishiness and lack of utility means Thieves are not meaningfully harder for properly prepared players.

The message behind this thread is not that I need help with thieves, it’s that thief viability needs to be improved through something other than buffing AA damage because it does not promote skillful play.

Seems like the real message is that you DO need help with Thieves, judging by your posting and the conclusions you’re drawing, but even if we’re being charitable and assuming all you really want is to highlight how “Thief viability needs to be improved through something other than AA damage”, you’re wasting your time posting here. The designer in charge of Thief doesn’t care about the class, and only makes minor number-based changes when he’s forced to. We’ve been trying to get substantial, mechanics-based changes that encourage skill for years with little to no results.

Developers simply don’t read the Thief forums, so if your want your feedback noted, you’re better off complaining about Thief in the SPvP forum as a self-defined non-Thief player. Those posts do get read.

(edited by Amante.8109)

Upcoming Balance Changes: Week of December 14, 2015

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: Amante.8109

Amante.8109

That end of January balance patch better be the second coming, or you’re going to lose a lot of Thieves and Warriors (among others). I for one have no intention of logging in even for daily chests until the next patch hits in late January. The game just isn’t that fun in its current state, so until something changes I will spend my time and money elsewhere. The US release of Blade & Soul is less than a month away, after all…

(edited by Amante.8109)

Balance Team: Radio Silence

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Amante.8109

The next real balance patch is in late January, so I won’t be touching the game until then… barely been playing the last month or so as it is. Blade & Soul is already drawing me away with its better action-based combat and a Rogue class that actually feels flavorful and effective, unlike Thief.

ArenaNet would be wise to make that January balance patch a good one, and not just for Thieves. They’re getting very close to causing a mass exodus of players with how the expansion has been handled. If they leave, many of those players will never come back.

Shadow Step Stomp Stealth Nerf?

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Posted by: Amante.8109

Amante.8109

Looks like the Thief forums finally broke Vincent for good.

Bug resulting from steal changes

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Posted by: Amante.8109

Amante.8109

It’s not listed in the patch notes, it lowers the skill floor, and it’s a huge nerf to a profession already on its back foot, so I’m treating it like a bug until I hear otherwise.

Then again, Thieves are still waiting to hear what happened to the missing +10% healing on Withdraw that was literally in the June patch notes, so… I wouldn’t hold my breath in expectation of an official answer any time soon.

(edited by Amante.8109)

Impairing daggers still broken.

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Amante.8109

Different teams. The Steal “fix” was clearly rushed through by some UI person who didn’t know any better.

The people in charge of fixing and balancing skills couldn’t care less about Thief.

Steal Nerf, Are you for real, ANet?

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Amante.8109

It’s also a buff.

In some cases it’s a nerf, denying you access to that swiftness which you might need if it comes down to a decap to win a PvP match, or if you’re running hidden thief and just need the stealth.

Mostly, though, it’s a buff. I lost count how many times I’ve missed steal because I press it a millisecond after my target enters stealth. This patch should prevent steal from going off in such cases, allowing me to use it for its full effect.

The nerf has been live for less than two days, and I’m already tired of this argument.

There is literally nothing about this change that is a buff. The fact that lazy and/or mediocre players now “waste” their Steal a little less often does not change this. Calling this a “buff” only further encourages these kind of moronic changes from ArenaNet, and we have enough issues as a profession to worry about already.

Improve your play and stop making things worse for the competent majority.

Caed | Brief Guide / Q&A

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Amante.8109

One of the most interesting aspects of this thread is how unwilling Caed is to say Thief is bad and how willing so many other Thief players are to label our class as bad. It would seem that part of the reason Caed has become so good at Thief is because he rarely blames his class. Instead, he looks at how he plays and takes more responsibility for his game than most. The sad part is some of us are looking at this like Caed is biased in a way which prevents him from accurately gauging how strong or weak Thief is rather than looking at ourselves like we’re biased against pushing ourselves to improve as players despite possible limitations of our class.

Ultimately, it’s partly a philosophical issue and Caed’s current personal philosophy seems to work considerably better than most of ours for improving as a player. This Q&A is an opportunity to learn more about this. This a better direction to take our responses than nit-picking and arguing as though Caed saying Thief is not good but also not bad will undermine the game’s future balance changes.

He also seems to be saying that Thief is in a good place and doesn’t need to be buffed, it’s the OTHER professions that need to be brought down to earth. This seems like a reasonable perspective to take, especially given obviously overtuned specs like DH that are inevitably going to get nerfed.

Optimal Venomshare [Raid][Critique needed]

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Amante.8109

While I haven’t done the raid yet, I get the feeling that you should focus on being a breakbar interrupter if you’re going Venom Share. If your goal is simply doing damage, you’d probably be better off playing a “selfish” condition build without Shadow Arts instead (given how much that line kills your damage).

The history of thief.

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Posted by: Amante.8109

Amante.8109

The Thief’s problems run deeper than even a summary of changes over years can show (despite most of those changes being nerfs). In my opinion, the far bigger issue is how the profession has been left behind.

From a development standpoint, there doesn’t appear to be any meaningful sense of passion for the Thief profession. Over time, this leads to less communication and hands-on attention, which naturally leads to receiving less of the changes (and subsequent power creep) that other professions have over time.

This lack of developer engagement also leads to the Thief being left out of game-wide systems changes, like when all remaining range-increasing traits were removed (and largely integrated as baseline range increases) over the series of a few patches… for every profession but Thief. Then, after months of asking for a response on Ankle Shots, it was quietly “bugfixed” (AKA hastily nerfed to give no range increase, as changing the base Pistol range would actually take effort).

The Ankle Shots and Withdraw debacles are very illustrative of just how hard it is to get any traction on even the smallest and most practical of requests. While Thief is not the only profession to suffer from this lack of attention over time, it is the worst off for it.

For a good comparison, look no further than Ranger, which was often neglected for months or years at a time itself. And yet, thanks to Irenio, it has received some baseline improvements over the last few months that are meaningful, even for those who DON’T purchase the expansion. All it took was a little love and attention! I think I may be sensing a moral of the story…

(edited by Amante.8109)

thief vault

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Posted by: Amante.8109

Amante.8109

I don’t understand what difference it makes. It’s in the same category as sword 3 on Rev. If you don’t like that I’m sorry. Whatever little counter play you claim the skill has it’s still very little.

Ah yes, Rev Sword #3… the weapon skill so OP that just autoattacking does more damage. Are you sure that’s the comparison you want to be making?

Staff holding animation

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Amante.8109

I seem to recall hearing something about Monkey King being based on the Asura’s skeletal rig, so maybe that’s why only those two have that stance?

Well this is happening already...

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Amante.8109

Honestly, every class—including Thief—is fully viable in Fractals, and that’s unlikely to change with Raids. That said, pubs will continue taking the path of least resistance as always; at the moment this means arbitrarily excluding Thief because it’s harder to play (and there’s a lot of bad Thieves out there).

This is yet another reason among many to not do dungeons or fractals with pubs. I do stuff like that with my guild, and despite them being total scrubs that’s enough. Speaking as a former hardcore raider in WoW and other games, the PvE content in this game is EASY. Do what you can to find an accepting group—be they friends or strangers—and you should be fine as a Thief in PvE.

Caed | Brief Guide / Q&A

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Posted by: Amante.8109

Amante.8109

This is clearly a bug and a correction of it will not mean it is a Nerf, contrary to what many people think, because it is a correction of a non-intended mechanic.

Nerfs are nerfs, regardless of the reason behind them. There are many times in the history of MMOs that a bug has been left in because it ended up creating more interesting gameplay, and/or it attached to a disadvantaged class that could use the boost.

Basically, unless it’s a balance problem—and it doesn’t seem to be at the moment—why ruin interesting emergent gameplay?

Friends telling me to quit my thief?

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Amante.8109

I really WANT to like Staff… but its utility is so lacking, and its damage evaporates the moment you don’t perfectly hit a #2—which is inevitable, even in PvE (let alone PvP).

Stop whining- Be positive :)

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Amante.8109

All Daredevil did was sharpen the few dull edges the profession has left. Thief is still, at its core, an overly squishy profession: when the dodges and other gimmicks run out, you DIE. Without a certain level of passive durability through HP pool and traits, build diversity is severely limited. This is the albatross dragging the profession down.

Honestly, Thief needs a thorough rework (that it surely will not receive). Some smaller scale buffs would be a good start…

(edited by Amante.8109)

Friends telling me to quit my thief?

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Amante.8109

Thief is essentially the hardest profession to play and the most thoroughly disadvantaged. If you still enjoy it knowing that, then by all means go ahead, especially if you plan to spend most of your time in PvE.

[Suggestion] A generalized list of Issues

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Amante.8109

Good stuff from the OP! Unfortunately, I think it’s a waste of time to deliver core Thief feedback at this point. People have tried every form, length, and tone of delivering feedback on the profession, and little to none of it has actually amounted to anything.

I was hoping that pre-HoT work on Daredevil would mean more developer attention on Thief and a chance of getting at least a few core issues looked at (like Robert Gee did for Mesmer, Necro, and Warrior), but the expansion is now out and that feedback was all ignored… as was feedback on the many broken things about Daredevil, for that matter.

tl;dr
Sadly, unless ANet actually solicts Thief feedback, I wouldn’t waste your time. It won’t get read, and it certainly won’t get acted on.

(edited by Amante.8109)