I think that the passive is both under-powered but also, ironically, the passive regen is about as potent as it can become. Perhaps adding a %chance for Life Force proc, such as on critical, on attack, on hit, or some other such criteria would be ideal. Passive regen of Life Force is really powerful, and while I feel the overall strength of this Sigil needs a buff, this particular aspect (passive combat regen) probably is as high as it shout be.
My thoughts are the Sigil should add both the current level of passive regen as well as some form of proc based Life Force generation requiring active combat actions.
Dear gahwd, please fix this! Do you know how many times I have survived long enough in a downed state to even use Fetid Ground? I think it has been twice in 200+ hours of PVE play.
This is a terrible bug, and if it isn’t a bug then please revisit this. If my Necro goes into a downed state in PVE or WvW it’s basically insta-death.
I can’t speak higher if a 10/20/10/0/30 build— it’s what I use 100% of the time. Axe/Dagger + Staff for PvE and Axe/Focus + Staff for PvP/WvW/Champions.
I have access to perma Fury, 20 seconds of Protection every 32 (Spectral Wall), perma AoE weakness (dagger offhand + Weakening Shroud), perma Swiftness, and can choose between 80%+ uptime on retaliation or very good Might stacking. For WvW and PvP you switch weakness for Chill. And then there’s the ability to quickly reach 25 stacks of Vulnerability on top of all that.
You want a power tank? I feel like spectral skills and this spread are optimal. I use Spectral Grasp or BiP, Spectral Wall, and Spectral Walk for utilities.
(edited by Julius Seizure.4985)
Power Builds with Spite can still spread non-damaging conditions like Chill, Cripple, Weakness and such to great effect. These are condition duration only debuffs, and certainly worth spreading.
…How the EFF is Scepter 1 outperforming Axe 1 + Axe 2 in a Power/Crit build that also takes Axe Training?
Needless to say, I am respeccing ASAP.
This just seemed unbelievable, so I tried this in the Mists against the Heavy Golem, with no armor/jewelry, 30 in Spite and Axe Mastery, and nothing in Curses. Sure enough, Scepter#1 equalled or bested Axe#1+2. Even throwing DS1 into the axe mix didn’t help because of the long delay before DS1 ever fires. (Edit: Adding Axe#3 into the mix only slowed axe down more because of the long cast animation of Axe#3.)
Hopefully, Anet’s response isn’t “well, this just shows that Scepter#1 needs to be nerfed”.
It’s shocking how imbalanced the Axe is. After taking a weapon specific Grand Master trait, one that only affects 3 whole skills for the Necromancer mind you, and selecting armor stats fully slanted in favor of the Axe one STILL wields an inferior weapon.
Here is how I know that Axe is utterly underperforming:
I run a Toughness/Power/Precision build with about 40% cit damage, and all my weapons are rare. I also have 30 points invested in Spite and have taken Axe Training. What do you think does more single target damage in this build— using both Axe 1 + Axe 2 or simpy spamming Scepter 1?
The answer is Scepter 1. How the EFF is Scepter 1 outperforming Axe 1 + Axe 2 in a Power/Crit build that also takes Axe Training?
Needless to say, I am respeccing ASAP.
In order to enjoy a Necromancer, it’s best to never look at comparable tier weapon skills given to other classes. This is doubly so for traits.
Not only is Staff a necessity, but so is Greater Marks.
And I actually hate the animations on Staff across the board, dislike most of the weapon skins, and flat out DESPISE Jagged Horror (a requirement for Greater Marks). Despite this, I still use Staff because it is so much better than our other weapons in AoE, life force generation, and team support.
I'd rather have reanimator disabled until a fix is ready.
in Necromancer
Posted by: Julius Seizure.4985
Yeah, I would love to see a swarm of those little things running around. That would certainly add to the minion master feel.
I totally agree. This skill needs to be made viable, but as a 5 point trait it simply can’t be made effective because trait investment must balance reward. The developers are pigeonholed into making this skill “balanced” as a 5 point trait, which just doesn’t work.
It should be made into a good skill for Minion Masters or Condition builds since it can bleed. This will never happen if as a developer you must balance it as a 5 point trait, and by doing such you are hampering both Minion Masters and non-summoners alike.
One of the ways that I love using it is launching it at an enemy that’s at near (but not at) max range, fearing them, exiting DS, then starting Dark Pact. As soon as the Path projectile hits them, you shadowstep and immediately immobilize them from the short-range Pact, then pound on them with dagger skills and wells. When Dark Path is faster, it’s harder to use it to effectively combo other skills.
What if the projectile was sped up, but there was a delay in the shadowstep taking place after it hit? We would get the best of both— having a more viable tracking skill while retaining an element of combos with the delay.
PS: Thanks for your time in posting this.
I'd rather have reanimator disabled until a fix is ready.
in Necromancer
Posted by: Julius Seizure.4985
Thief:
Use Blinding Powder when your health reaches 25% (90-second cooldown).Ranger:
Increases endurance regeneration by 50%.Guardian:
Gain aegis when your health reaches 50%.Engineer:
Gain regeneration for 10 seconds when you are attacked while under 25% health.Warrior:
Extra armor when health is above 90%.Ele:
Gain 1 toughness per level while attuned to earth.Mesmer:
Gain 10 seconds of regeneration when your health reaches 75% (30-second cooldown).
All of these traits offer increased survival at the 5 point mark. Why is ours the only trait that doesn’t reward durability for investment in the Toughness trait line? I would much prefer something akin to what the other classes receive.
This skill has HUGE problems. It is neither viable for min/max players that care about performance, nor is it enjoyable for casual/RP players. This skill really misses all of the marks possible in design and implementation. What makes it worse is that at 5 points you as a designer are forced into making it ineffective. Certainly at higher trait tears this skill could be made without a bleed effect attached, and could even be limited to 2 simultaneous Jagged Horrors. But because of its current placement, the pet must be framed within bounds of utility relative to our investment.
This skill should not be a 5 point trait. It should be 20+, made more viable for those that DO enjoy it currently, and a replacement that is more akin to what all other classes receive should take its place.
I'd rather have reanimator disabled until a fix is ready.
in Necromancer
Posted by: Julius Seizure.4985
I think this skill is very problematic and should just be replaced with something else. It feels like a PENALTY for delving into the toughness/boon duration trait line, or seeking increased mark radius at 10 points. No skill should feel like a weight around our character’s necks, but this one does.
Is there any way it could be replaced with a new passive, and an improved version be made available later in the trait line for those that miss it?
I would drop this passive if I could, flat out eat 5 points of investment for nothing while on my way to the increased mark radius at 10 points.
I took the time to look over the roster of my guild. Out of 460+ members, there were 14 Necromancers. I think this fix could easily double that!
Take ten points into Blood and grab Mark of Evasion if you’re in dire need of a (Semi-reliable) Blast finisher for whatever reason.
I actually just embarked on the route the other day when I saw this trait. I will let you guys know how it goes. One downside is that the mark is placed at the end point of a dodge, rather than the starting point, and would thus be better with ground targetable wells that comes with a feat from another line. You would place the mark slightly ahead of you then dodge forward into the fray, leaving a Mark of Blood right smack dab in the middle of your well.
I’ve come to realize how amazingly useful and powerful combos are. Playing a mesmer I have a variety of combo finishers such as projectile or leap, and so many times I use a glamour skill which reflects projectiles – against a melee type it would be useless, except that thanks to my combo finishers I’m able to add confusion to some attacks, able to give myself chaos armor granting me some nice random boons and the enemy random conditions. Playing with combo fields and finishers I’m able to do quite a lot more than what I would be able to do with just my regular simple plain attacks.
I think the most important thing is that it’s both powerful AND fun! It adds a layer of complexity and randomness to combat. The Necro flat out needs more combo finishers, especially compared to what other classes have received.
I was really hoping that I was just missing something here and that we had at least one or two other weapon combo finishers. Is the game set up so that because we can lay down a good amount of combo starting fields that we are kittened on finishers?
Edit— I just looked at Guardians and Engineers. Seems like those classes have plenty of combo fields and finishers. What’s up with the Necro and our lack of combo finishers on weapon attacks?
(edited by Julius Seizure.4985)
Hey guys, I just started playing and rolled up a Necromancer, currently level 19.
My first post has to deal with combo finishers. It seems that we are really lacking in combo finishers in this class, as I have only found one on the Staff #1 attack and one on the Bone Minion sacrifice.
Are there more? So many other classes are able to have 2-3 combo finishers embedded in multiple weapon combinations alone, along with secondary effects on said attacks as well. I look as skills like Dagger main hand, Axe, and all of our off hands and see nothing that approaches what other classes are getting. Am I missing something here?
Thanks for the help!