(While i was writing this topic i realized another user posted a similar topic, yet since i had a long writing, it couldnt fit in one post. So, i apologize about that.)
Ok since mantras have been suffering so many changes and recently they are a hot topic, I think they deserve a dedicated topic just for them and their traits. This is my thoughts about mantras and their traits in a mesmer daily routine:
Pre-Specialization patch:
PvP: unusable, since (old)Harmonious Mantras competed with DE, with the exception of MoResolve. Despite of not being that good, between null field (standing inside for a 1 cleansed condi /sec)and arcane thievery (cause offensive property, long cd and easly failed -range and LoS) it was the least bad condi clear.
PvE: Mantras hurted in our utility slots, yet they compensated the lack of dmg mesmer have and it was almost permanent mantained (2/3 mantras if we spec into reflect, 3/4 mantras if no relfect needed) so it was a 8/12% or 12/16% dmg modifiers and if we intelligent managed mantras charges we only had the annoying trick of swap in&out a mantra and recharge it again to refill the charges in the dead-times.
Specialization Patch:
PvP: It felt so good. Even without trait ( 2 charges ) we could feasibly use mantras since when last charge was wasted we had it rdy or almost rdy to recharge again. Trait or not was only a matter of how often we recharged them. Yet i agree some became too powerfull cause their innate low cd and start recharging in bg would make them have the channel time as their cd ( unless u spammed them like a monkey).
PvE: Awsome HM trait change. With the Harmonious Mantras merged with the Empowering Mantras opened more choices possibilities and made overall mantras better (33% more, since it became mandatory for PvE). With the dmg modifiers becaming a buff it freed utility slots in our bar.
The bg recharge became a QoL mechanic since we didnt need that annoying trick of swamp in&out mantras to prepare next boss/fight encounter with full charges.It rewarded intelligent play and charges management cause a player who didnt spend all charges in previous encounter just had the 2.75s recharge time to regain the full charges or just had to waste the last charge(s) between fight and instantly recharge again without the need of annoying tricks. For those who spammed like crazy the only difference was they just saved few seconds in the cd time. (just like the-no-more-present-mantra-cd trait Mantra Mastery did).
The only negative about it is the dmg modifiers. 8s of short lasting buff is short and the 5 max stacks (20% dmg) was (and still is) realisticly impossible to mantain ( ~2/3s of it). Yet no one complained. I bet everyone was so happy with the freed utility slots and QoL mantra bg recharge and since pre-update max dmg mod was 16% that no one cared if we couldnt realisticly reach the 20%. Also even after reach 4 stacks they only last for a mere ~5s, oh well, at least it gives us time for a buffed AA chain or a feedback. 2 stacks is the fair amount of HM stacks buff we realisticly have for like 30s of normal fight until our mantras exhaust. After those 30s our dps would drop significantly, even more if we need to recharge them to use them in same encounter.
It’s amazing how three years into the existence of this game, they still can’t get the “trait acts as a copy of a skill” thing to work right. :/
yep, create a new skill with same name + “trait” at the end (for example: Power Cleanse – trait) and copy-paste skill code keeping most of proprieties of it ( like skill class group /type, in this case, mantra) to keep all the synergys with other traits (in this case HM) and only adjusting, if needed, skill recharge and/or skill cast time (would fix Illusionary Inspiration/ Blurred Inscriptions+Mender Purity healing signet clunkyess and “shadow aftercast”) and make the trait use this “new” skill instead seems obvious. Yet i doubt it is 100% like this… But im not the programmer and i might oversight few things since we dont see the whole picture…
This nerf brainless rant have to stop… it always start with ppl claiming “mesmer my main, i played alot mesmer and i agree, mesmer nerf!!, +1”. Im not talking about constructive discussion/feedback. Yet 90% of topics are just qqing nosense.
On-topic:
Ok lets see the facts: OP played mesmer before, we are in pvp section, and he talks about mirror blade combo, so it was a power build.
So we have a pvp power shatter mesmer. Then why have we to read 80% of pure kitten?
Before patch pvp power shatter mesmer already spec into IP, iElasticity,manip range.. that didnt change.. yet before wasnt a prob but now lets get into the train and write some more qq’s to be cool in the new popstar trend.
Im rly start to think that this new trend have to be with mesmer class joined the “meta group” and the others cant stand a pink butterfly class in a close and restricted club.
Basically inpiration line aka menders purity is the only reason that make ppl use heal mantra even with all the cons it have. And if you are using heal mantra, normally paired with other mantra, it makes a build with 2+ mantras and therefore worth spec into HM, and justifying inspiration line with resto mantras , other “toys”, etc, creating build diversity. Removing that option will completly kill inspiration line viability. No other trait alone justify spec into inspiration for pvp other than menders purity that creates a chain of synergys. Break one piece, break all chain.
Mirror Blade – I feel that making Illusionary Elasticity baseline for this skill (which I don’t think any Power Mesmer took before the patch anyway) allowing you to hit a single target up to 3 times is too much. I’d reduce the number of bounces from 4 to 3.
It only made sense sub Illusionary Elasticity with Illusionary Invigoration possibly in sw/t variant since it would only affect 50% of your weps composition. And even then it would compete with eachother very closely.
I would estimate 75% of all traditional shatter builds used it. Close to 100% if u used staff and 50/50 if you used sw/t.
People hate mesmers for 3 reasons
Domination : power block on heals is pretty guaranteed win, and the 30% more shatter damage is not too shabby either.
You cant have both.
And its 15% dmg. Only 30% if target its not activating skills… even stunned (1s most common mesmer stuns) its not so common to get it in pvp… just against slow kitten s.
Inspiration: healing mantra removes 4 condis(6 after the bug gets fixed on last cast), aoe team heal too, heal on shatter, more heal etc.
Also if they go into harmonious mantras for 3 mantra charges they loose clone production and therefore shatter power ( dmg or healing) and healing prism has 10s ICD
Stop qqing “nerf this that and ect.” cause mesmer just needs some tweaks, rest is up to ppl to adapt. l2p wise and “theorycrafting” wise (builds and way to play with and against).
Also ppl lost w/e defensive stats they had on trait lines… And stop waste those dodges as repositioning or gym acrobatic show off, cause mostlikely u wont have the energy when u need it ( vigor nerf). It became more timing based if u are squishy.. u have to react faster… before u could tank dmg and then "oh let me pop my heal, few heal blasts and/or some shouts, ok im back to full, and their skills are on cd… let my burning bleed/poison sigils finish him off while i run arround with my troll face)
ppl complaining about too much dmg forget that u lost defensive stats from trait line and even berserker amulet… also u can no longer just roll a celest amulet in a bunker build that effective than before… Squishy targets became more squishy, bursty target became more bursty, bunker just have to adapt and will also become more tanky than before…. Just wont deal as much dmg and rely on doom/bleed sigils for dmg..
I like the changes… still too soon for final words.
3rd charge fom heal mantra when traited with menders purity just give 1 stack of harmonious mantra bonus.
Seems the mender purity doenst trigger on last charge, cause it lacks it proccing sound.
Anyone else having a bug with the Mantra Heal and Menders Purity in combination with HM? My third charge only gives me one stack of the damage buff instead of two.
yup last MoR charge doest proc mender purity ( u can hear thats no sound of it) and so only 1 charge of HM.
Polymorph Moa is currently a transformation skill type.
After the balance update it will be Polymorph Moa no more but becoming another skill, a signet.
Time Warp = glamour
Mass invisibility being a manipulation makes perfect sense to me… its not “glamour” themed (doesnt leave the bubble/field like all other glamours), not a mantra, not a clone/phantasm and definitely not a signet. There is no more options..
I agree if i had to pick a skill type to current polymorph moa inside mesmer skill types i would pick manipulation.. but then i read “Transform” and makes much more sense.
I just cant agree/ refuse to see mass invis as a glamour… makes no sense to me.
Now just remember it wont be moa like now.
