Guild Wars 2

Its a toss-up between this skin and Tormented Staff for me.

I’m leaning towards Tormented Staff because the Lightsward does not have any effects to it and the Tormented Staff would go well with the violet/purple color scheme on my character. For pure looks though, I like the Lightswared better though so its a tough call.

Druid was not ready for HoT launch; very far from it imo and is the reason why Anet is remaining silent on it.

Considering Anet’s priority is on HoT (fixing bugs, implementing unfinished content, balancing, etc), I’d estimate Druid is about 6 months to a year off from being polished and ready for prime time.

There is a laundry list of problems/issues with the elite but my main issue has to do with the very basics of it; its gameplay (particularly with AF/CAF mechanics) and the lack of an infrastructure to support a healing class. (These are fundamental and deal breaking issues for me.)

As I dig deeper into this expansion, I’m finding more and more things that were half-done (scribing, druid elite, revenant water skills, raiding support, etc). It seems Anet is biting off more than they can chew and is releasing content before its finished. Reputation means a lot and when you can’t deliver on things that were marketed, then you risk losing the confidence of your customer base on future expansion purchases.

I would have bought the expansion regardless if Druid was ready or not, but it was something I was hyped for and played a part in my decision to buy HoT. I’m disappointed in Anet for promising something (“healing class that would break the mold”) that they couldn’t deliver on by launch date, and then remaining silent on the issue.

I’ve come to accept that Ranger/Druid is far off from being in a state that I would enjoy playing so have decided to move onto my Rev alt instead which has been a blessing in disguise since I’m really digging it at the moment.

Edit: I’m enjoying the expansion, with all of its unfinished/buggy content, but I am concerned on the future of the company/game when so much stuff is left unfinished by expansion launch. It’s an indication that the company is unstable in some way (e.g., hurting on money so need to rush things out and/or more interested in the bottom line than a quality expansion, don’t have the people/strategy in place to set realistic and obtainable goals, stretching themselves too thin, etc.) Since this is the first expansion, some of this was expected and I’m hoping Anet will do a better job on future expansions.

Yalora Istairiea.6287:

Any chance you put it on with Black/ish armor?

Try it with some other colors and see if you get a reaction.

Plus, make sure you have post processing turned on.

What are some cool uses for this item?

I was pretty disappointed by the effect when I tried equipping the item the other day. (It just seems to make my character harder to see.)

Fay.2357:

Praise The Lord Geesus!

Amen.

Did anyone else notice that practically all of the balance changes were for Geesus’ classes?

I’d consider Axe over Shield as you will probably get more general use out of it. (Shield is for situations that you can’t handle with Axe OH.) Personally, I would just plan on getting all ascended weapons and use the boxes to make the most expensive ascended gear.

Absconditus.6804:

It seems like Staff has no tracking at all on Surge of the Mists. I mean, if you let go of your movement keys, press it, then it will charge forwards in the direction you’re facing, irregardless if you have a target or not, not towards your target. Practically every other skill in the game will auto-turn towards your target, so this behaving differently is really awkward. Some may like it, I am used to de-targeting when I wish to use such abilities for movement, in and out of combat.

While it’s a personal preference, am I the only one that finds the glowing circle under a Heralds feet to look really awful and out of place within the game? Not that it’s clunky, but seriously.. there must be a better way of portraying the aspects. It looks terrible.

Surge of Mists not having tracking is probably on purpose and I like the way it behaves as it allows you to easily break out of a tough situation without having to detarget.

Agreed on the glowing circle. Too much bling/“look at me” going on for the small limited functionality it brings.

RoRo.8270:

Who doesn’t enjoy bagception?

lol

If you know exactly what you want and can afford it, then you should go Ascended to skip the exotic costs. If you are unsure and/or can’t quite afford it, then Exotics is the way to go considering how much easier/cheaper it is to obtain them.

If you have gold/resources beyond a full set of exotics, then you should go for Ascended pieces in the following order:

1) Ascended trinkets (rings > accessories > amulet > backpiece; ranked in order of cost/ease of obtaining)
2) Ascended weapons
3) Ascended armor (save for last when you have oodles of gold)

Has anyone tried using action camera with Revenant? I haven’t played Rev a whole lot but it seems the gameplay would go well with an action camera and controller.

Anyone finding Rev fun to play with action camera/controller?

I’d prefer grunting/warcries than actual dialogue though; dialogue gets old even quicker.

Go revenant.

You like warrior and thief; revenant is a happy combo of the two. It is the latest elite spec so benefits from having the latest design ideas/animations. Its good in both PVE and PVP currently so you really can’t go wrong with it.

I heard some grunts while switching legends for the first time yesterday and thought it was awesome… but yeah I can see how it can get old fast.

Chasind.3128:

People with commander tags actually harass me when I have my mentor tag, I get instant blocked upon entering a map having mentor tag on, I’ve been told I’ll get kitten d & calling me sexist names. I’ve reported those people but COMON IT’S JUST A GAME.

When commanders are only leading HP farming ina map I’m trying to get events going to Tier 4 hoping for a bladed armor box, Yes I use my tag & get crap for it. Sorry, I actually like loot when I don’t need Hero points anymore. QQ on.

There is no way intuitively to tell the difference between a commander tag and a mentor tag. For mentors, you also don’t know if they are trying to “mentor” others or are just using the tag to draw others. There just needs to be a way for people to distinguish among these.

Kill.3458:

OK what the kitten are you guys complaining about, I led a Cursed Shore train for several hours with a mentor tag equipped, I organized a Verdant Brink map with a mentor tag equipped, heck I organized a last min Teq run with one equipped.

Wanna know what happened? The train went fine and I was thanked for leading, the Verdant Brink map I was on almost hit T3 night defense I was thanked for organizing, and the Teq despite last minute planning went without a hitch.

The problem IS NOT the mentor tags but how they are used, there was a time when CM tags were solely used to show off that a person managed to save 100G and buy it at the time. So please stop with this bullkitten “Mentor tags are for mentoring (what exactly do you mean?) Commander tags are for commanding”.

Do note when I did all this I had a CM tag readily available for use, just enjoy the the unique ‘Mentor’ status I gain in map chat, makes me stand out a bit more.

You are missing the big picture which is what happens in a few weeks when nearly everyone has access to a mentor tag. Mentor/commander tags work when there are a few visible on the map. If the whole map is filled with mentor tags, you defeated the purpose of creating a commander tag.

Kaz.5430:

In PvE, a commander tag basically means “here is the zerg” and all it really needs to do is attract additional people when they look at the map. If mentor tags are doing the same thing of attracting the zerg rather than attracting newbies, then they are failing.

Commander tags were pretty much just this for me (i.e., go here for zerg). Before I knew what a mentor tag was, I thought it was some new version of a commander tag and followed mentors around in Lab. Mentor tags pretty much serve the same function as a commander tag right now which I don’t think it should as its too easy to get a mentor tag.

I think the problem is that its too difficult to tell mentors/commanders apart; especially when there are a ton of mentors. Mentors should be given less visibility (relative to commanders) considering just how easy/common they are now and will be even more in the future.

You should be able to spot a commander out of a sea of mentors but right now, I don’t think that is the case.

The expansion has some of the most amazing zones I have ever seen. Monster AI/difficulty has been improved dramatically and actually pose a challenge now; such a big improvement. Have barely scratched the surface but I am absolutely thrilled so far with my purchase and would do so again in a heartbeat.

Thanks Anet for all your hard work in getting out one of the best expansions I’ve played in to date.

WHaO for Rangers had to be nerfed because it was too unbalanced for a single ability. You can’t give unlimited duration buffs to a class just because they take one particular heal spell; that is just bad design and a nightmare to balance around. Many reasonable people on the Ranger forums realized this but its amazing how many people didn’t and STILL bring up WHaO nerf as being unjustified/unfair.

Heimskarl Ashfiend.9582:

Zoef.2761:

I’ve got a simple question: if this out of combat degeneration sucks, why was it implemented in the first place? Looks to me it’s the same old story: ranger class has something nice; can’t have that; let’s kitten it up in the name of “balance”.

Mate, look at it. They probably cut and pasted the code from Berserker, which is why the form only has a 15s duration and degenerates OOC now, exactly the same as it does on Berserker.

Anet failed to deliver a properly working Druid mechanic/gameplay by hot launch. Now that HoT is out, the question is what is Anet going to do about it.

Since they are busy with HoT, its easy for both them and us (as the playerbase) to use that as an excuse not to properly address Druid issues at this moment. (I’m sour that it has come to this but the reality is that with only a finite amount of resources, Druid will probably take a backseat to other more pressing issues for the foreseeable future.)

I know Anet is not going to straight out and tell us that Druid will have to take a backseat for a while. They are going to tell us indirectly through their actions. Copying and pasting code/ideas from another class and sticking them on Druid is an example of a design team that wants to get rid of the Druid issues without actually getting dirty. (i.e., they are not going to put in the time to really provide a game mechanic that makes sense/fun to play but will instead just put band-aids on the situation as a quick fix to reduce player dissatisfaction.) If that is the message Anet is going to tell me about their future plans for Druid, then I’ll save myself future headaches and just switch to another profession.

I like Ranger but Druid has been overall a huge disappointment for me. It has potential but Anet missed the mark by a wide mile imo with the elite mechanics/design.

They touted Druid would break the mold and be a true “healer” class; not a support class but a “healer” class. Except they made this claim without knowing clearly how to accomplish it in time for HoT launch. This is a huge undertaking considering the whole game has been balanced/designed for 3 years around the fact that there are no true healers. It should have been evident to Anet just what they were getting themselves into by making such a claim. Was it just marketing hype? Was I fooled into believing they could deliver?

Everything about core Druid mechanics (AF generation/CAF gating/healing gameplay) screams that it was a last minute job and poorly thought out. The fact that they are randomly throwing gating mechanics from other classes onto Druid to see if any will stick, just frustrates me even more because it shows they have a lack of understanding on how to create an engaging healing archtype that makes sense (i.e., no clear vision and the result we have right now is a mashup of different ideas that doesn’t make sense when you look at it as a whole).

I’m in a love/hate relationship with my Ranger and am unsure of what to do. I may try out my Revenant alt if Druid/Ranger doesn’t get some much needed attention.

bloodpyrope.8630:

^ people, for the record he’s using smoke assault to stack might so he can transfer it over to himself. Not really as a burst.

Sorry for the confusion.

So a user wants to keep the current Smokescale because it offers advantages to a build that takes WHaO? Fair enough…

I’d rather it be a smoke field for general use/utility though and because I don’t want random smoke fields randomly overwriting other fields.

mistsim.2748:

I would like to chime in once again to vote AGAINST reverting. having an on-demand burst and the ability to might stack is a much better package for us.

Blast finisher is nice but its not as nice as a smoke field which offers more utility/strategic use. As mentioned already, you should be using swap for the blast finisher though (same as Drake) and F2 for the smoke field instead so your point is moot.

We have an endless supply of pets that do damage for F2. Smokescale is the only one that offers a smoke field and you want to shove the smoke field (which is a very useful field) to the back in favor of another DPS oriented F2 ability?

Pet choices are largely dependent on F2 abilities and smoke field is what we needed; not another DPS oriented F2 ability.

/signed please change back to smoke screen

Dulfy, you so awesome!

Some suggestions for AF generation and CAF gating:

1. Have AF generate by a certain percentage in normal (non-CAF) mode; degenerate when in CAF mode. Wielding staff provides bonus AF generation in normal mode; decreases rate of degeneration in CAF mode. You can use this method to quantifiably set and normalize AF generation across players, instead of trying to tweak individual AF generation numbers on weapons/heals to reach desired target levels based on observation of gameplay.
2. Start AF at a full globe (tied in with the proposed change from 1 above).
   Unlike a DPS model, healers should not have to “build up” to enter into a pure defensive mode. You should be able to enter a fight between others and immediately go into CAF for some clutch healing; instead of joining the fight, DPS to build enough AF, and then go for some “clutch” healing. When a person comes at you in a 1v1 situation, he’s coming at you with all he has in the first 5 seconds of the fight. You need access to your full defensive kit to deal with that.
3. To create the “bursty” healing gameplay, use soft gating methods to encourage players to fill the AF bar instead of using hard gates, such as a 10 CD/max AF restriction. Hard gating methods, taken from DPS oriented models, are not flexible enough to deal with the time-sensitive and situational nature of a healing class. Some soft gating methods you can use instead to create a bursty healing druid are:

• Add AF cost for entering CAF to discourage players from going in and out of CAF form unnecessarily.
• Tie heal strength with how full the AF bar is when you entered CAF (e.g., 50% AF bar = 50% heals). This will encourage players to reach max AF before entering CAF to mimic a bursty healing spec but without imposing a hard gate.
• Add percentage bonus to DPS for every level of AF bar generated (e.g., 1% increase in DPS for every 20% AF bar generated) to relieve some of the anxiety players feel from having a full bar of AF but without having a reason to change to CAF. This will also help to alleviate some of the DPS loss perceived by Rangers when taking the Druid line (i.e., at least you’re getting a DPS bonus if you are not using CAF much).
• While in CAF, have total healing done feedback into refilling AF bar for increased CAF duration. This will reward players who invest heavily into healing power which is traditionally viewed as an unfavorable stat.

With the above changes, a player can be the type of bursty player you envision Druid healing to be but you leave the choice in the hands of the player. They can choose to be suboptimal healers (balanced with other healing/support classes in mind) for more constant healing, if the need arises. The above changes should also be alot easier to implement/balance from Anet’s side, as opposed to trying to normalize every combination of weapon/heal/ability for AF generation.

Substance E.4852:

Leodon.1564:

Its not a matter of being OP relative to other professions. Its a matter of Anet not having a clear idea as to how to gate CAF in time for HoT launch, as seen by their approach to take mechanics from other professions and just slap it on Druid to see if any will stick.

No it’s a matter of Anet having this asinine idea that AF should be gated at all.

It should have been weaker heals/longer cooldowns but on a simple toggle mode that we could pop in out of at will or with a small cooldown. Why do we need resource management for something that is no different than Elementalist attunements?

From my understanding, Anet’s design for Druid is for it to be the best healer in the game (total healing output and burst healing capability) by a comfortable margin. We are able to excel in that role because we sacrifice in other areas (i.e., we give up boon support/dps for our superior heals).

I believe AF is being gated so as to try and create that “bursty” aspect of Druid healing. I don’t agree with Anet’s method though because it is far too rigid for the needs of a healing class and because Druid healing can be made to feel/be bursty without hard gates, such as 10 CD or having to be at max AF to enter CAF.

Edit: I am not sure why Anet decided to go with a DPS/heal model (i.e., you need to dps/heal to gain AF) for determining AF generation but it seems the easiest route would have been to just have players gain a percentage of AF per second, with an increased bonus for wielding a staff. If the whole point of balancing AF generations among weapons/abilities now (which sounds like a huge undertaking) is so that they are normalized to a certain median, wouldn’t it be just easier to set AF generation to that median?

computer.4372:

Warrior’s rage should get the same treatment then

Not necessarily.

You cannot put Druid healing/mechanics in the same category as DS/Adrenaline since both of the latter mechanics are geared towards offense. Healing has to be flexible/powerful enough to deal with incoming DPS or else there is no point in touting Druid as a “healer” since it cannot live up to the role. Offensive and defensive measures cannot be made equal to each other, or defense will always lose in the long run. (e.g., You don’t create an Aegis spell that takes 2 seconds to cast if most offensive spells take 2 seconds to cast; Aegis needs to be faster casting than its offensive counterparts.)

Unholy Pillager.3791:

Leodon.1564:

Aidenwolf.5964:

Serious design question, why is a time gated stance with abilities on cooldowns, required to generate AF at all?

10 sec cool down to re-enter the form
15 sec limit on remaining in the form
Abilities within the form on CD

Is it possible to simply 100% refill the AF bar upon entering CA and have the heals consume AF and then have healing/damage refill the bar while in the form?

It feels as though Celestial Avatar form is an afterthought currently and that’s a shame as I see a potentially fun Spec. I would love to see CA treated like an Elementalists attunement. The mechanics are already there.

Thanks for reading. (Tree form for reference).

I’ve thought of this myself and have come to the following conclusion:

1) Anet’s attempt to gate CAF turned out to be a massive fail in BWE3. Druids were entering CAF practically at will and were able to face-roll heal people without breaking a sweat.

2) Anet comes to the conclusion that they need to gate CAF better but they don’t have the time to come up with a solid plan/solution since HoT is being released just around the corner.

3) An OP healing Druid would be a nightmare to deal with in HoT, with all of the other things going on, so Anet’s solution is to make sure that Druid healing won’t be a problem by throwing every gating mechanic under the sun at it as a short-term fix.

4) After HoT has settled a bit, go back and work on Druid AF mechanics.

This is what happens when your elite spec is last minute.

Druids in BWE3 were less effective in sPvP than Reapers, Heralds, and Chronomancers; did you see any of them get nerfed?

Its not a matter of being OP relative to other professions. Its a matter of Anet not having a clear idea as to how to gate CAF in time for HoT launch, as seen by their approach to take mechanics from other professions and just slap it on Druid to see if any will stick.

This is why the current Druid AF generation/CAF gating methods seems like a mashup of several different ideas/design philosophies to me; a bit of Death Shroud mechanics, a bit of Adrenaline mechanics, some unique things to Druid such as having to be at max AF, etc.

Aidenwolf.5964:

Serious design question, why is a time gated stance with abilities on cooldowns, required to generate AF at all?

10 sec cool down to re-enter the form
15 sec limit on remaining in the form
Abilities within the form on CD

Is it possible to simply 100% refill the AF bar upon entering CA and have the heals consume AF and then have healing/damage refill the bar while in the form?

It feels as though Celestial Avatar form is an afterthought currently and that’s a shame as I see a potentially fun Spec. I would love to see CA treated like an Elementalists attunement. The mechanics are already there.

Thanks for reading. (Tree form for reference).

I’ve thought of this myself and have come to the following conclusion:

1) Anet’s attempt to gate CAF turned out to be a massive fail in BWE3. Druids were entering CAF practically at will and were able to face-roll heal people without breaking a sweat.

2) Anet comes to the conclusion that they need to gate CAF better but they don’t have the time to come up with a solid plan/solution since HoT is being released just around the corner.

3) An OP healing Druid would be a nightmare to deal with in HoT, with all of the other things going on, so Anet’s solution is to make sure that Druid healing won’t be a problem by throwing every gating mechanic under the sun at it as a short-term fix.

4) After HoT has settled a bit, go back and work on Druid AF mechanics.

This is what happens when your elite spec is last minute.

1) Encountered this bug and tried the logging/switching characters as suggested in this thread; didn’t work for me.

2) A day later, I arrived at Scout Aran using a completely different gliding path (was by accident as I was just exploring and not necessarily trying to do this quest) and was able to talk to the scout and progress with the story. Only difference from the first time was that I landed on top of the platform the scout is standing on (instead of landing just in front of his platform) and came in at a different angle/trajectory that you would normally go on when doing this quest.

Irenio, we realize healing needs to be gated/controlled but please create a system that is flexible! Defensive mechanics, like healing, need to be flexible enough to counter what its meant to counter; in this case incoming damage. Please do not put healing behind a rigid system like a 10 second cooldown (ala Death Shroud) which is a mechanic not conducive for a healer class which requires access to time-sensitive spells. (I wrote a long-winded post on the benefits of using “soft gate mechanics” to balance AF/CAF instead of hard gates like a 10 second cooldown.)

7/10.

The new maps are breath taking and have been implemented very well. There are so many new features with HoT that I haven’t tried yet but so far, I’m impressed by the awesome job done by Anet.

Unfinished concepts/ideas are the negatives.

Curunen.8729:

Leodon.1564:

AlphatheWhite.9351:

It’s clunky and slow, providing relatively less benefit than equivalent gap closers from other classes (most of which are an attack on top of being a gap closer).
The premise that you can swap with a clone would be cool if it actually fooled anyone, or even if you weren’t relying on the clone to survive.

Not everyone uses S#3 as a gap closer only. Personally, I probably use it for defensive purposes just as much as I use it as a gap closer (e.g. drop clone on enemy, dodge away, swap when opponent chases you and is about to land a hit). Comes in handy to avoid being hit by things like a Warrior’s Eviscerate.

It could use a tune-up in responsiveness but I’ve learned to live with it.

Oh I’d happily like to use it more defensively and with more trickery again but since the older change to not swapping if the clone died together with the pathetically short lifespan of the clone makes it more like “quick use swap before it’s rendered useless”.

In my experience it’s only possible to do mind games if in a very small fight, ideally 1v1, facing classes/builds with minimal aoe/cleave that might vapourise the swap clone in less than a couple of seconds. Yeah I agree it’s still possible to do the mind games by leaving the clone out and baiting enemy action, but the situations are limited given the current form of the skill.

Hence I believe it’s better to just go all out and make it a proper gap closer.

All valid and true points but I am hoping that the change to AoE damage will help the ileap clone live long enough now that it can regain some of its former defensive value.

Edit: Even as a gap closer though, I personally prefer the current iteration of our ileap. As a gap closer, I don’t always swap right away but will oftentimes wait a moment to see what my enemy is going to do before swapping (e.g., try and bait a dodge). There are tangible and strategic payoffs to it (at least it feels that way to me) so I would miss it if the skill was changed to a “normal” gap closer.

AlphatheWhite.9351:

It’s clunky and slow, providing relatively less benefit than equivalent gap closers from other classes (most of which are an attack on top of being a gap closer).
The premise that you can swap with a clone would be cool if it actually fooled anyone, or even if you weren’t relying on the clone to survive.

Not everyone uses S#3 as a gap closer only. Personally, I probably use it for defensive purposes just as much as I use it as a gap closer (e.g. drop clone on enemy, dodge away, swap when opponent chases you and is about to land a hit). Comes in handy to avoid being hit by things like a Warrior’s Eviscerate.

It could use a tune-up in responsiveness but I’ve learned to live with it.

mistsim.2748:

Leodon.1564:

This has been known since the last beta.

apparently not. everyone today is complaining about staff not generating enough AF, i.e. taking 45 seconds to fill up the bar therefore not being able to access avatar before it’s too late. this thread is to address those people.

According to the patch notes, AF generation from healing was reduced by 40% and increased by 200% for DPS. Since AF generation is tied overwhelmingly more to healing (10:1 previously), this change is a net reduction in our ability to generate AF with Staff.

Also, iirc there was supposedly a bug with some healing trait/ability where you effectively got double AF generation from a single heal in the previous beta. I didn’t test/confirm this though so maybe someone else can comment if they recall.

mistsim.2748:

Leodon.1564:

Problem 1) Its extremely hard to get your pet to position itself in front of you for Staff#1 healing

it’s extremely easy. position your pet/teammates ahead of you, and move around your target. your beam will cut through the friendly targets.

Try doing this with a moving target/players and tell me how successful you are and how skillful you felt doing it. (My argument is that any success you have is based largely on luck rather than on skill which is a bad foundation to try and balance AF generation.) Does the mechanics feel good to you play that way?

Khael.7325:

Leodon.1564:

This is generally the attitude Anet has had with Rangers. There is ALWAYS going to be something else that Anet can focus on which is why the class has been so overlooked the past few years. Rangers got dealt the short end of the stick again by having only one beta weekend when Druid needed arguably the most betas due to the complexity and scale of changes. Ask yourself why this is. (I’m pretty sure it wasn’t a purposeful decision by Anet considering how unpolished Druid was on reveal.)

You really think Anet has it out for rangers and doesn’t care about them? What sense would that make for a company to have a reoccurring bias against a particular class? That’s conspiracy theory speculation. Lots of others classes have had their own set of issues. Heck, just look at thieves.

No, I don’t think of it as a conspiracy against Rangers or that Anet is out to get us.

Different groups of people work on different professions. As with any group of individuals, you’re going to have people that are better than others at their job, more passionate, more effective, more knowledgeable, more vocal, more opinionated, etc. (Every business is like this.)

For this reason and because devs have different ideas on how things should be done, I don’t expect classes to be balanced against each other and of the same quality/consistency. I do know that Anet is extremely busy right now with HoT launch and don’t expect that they will be able to find the time to really give Druid the time it needs (at least the time/attention I feel it needs). However, remaining silent on the issues also gives them even more reason to not attempt taking a stab at whatever issues they can address with Druid.

mistsim.2748:

snip

This has been known since the last beta.

If AF generation is tied mainly to healing, there will be problems with this setup.

Problem 1) Its extremely hard to get your pet to position itself in front of you for Staff#1 healing; its more or less based on luck if it happens or not. Bad game design and bad for trying to balance AF generation.

Problem 2) Stacked raids (or any place you can pierce several people with Staff#1) will generate extreme amounts of AF generation. It makes Staff mandatory if you can generate AF 10-20 times faster than you can with any other weapon. I don’t see other weapons being able to compete so long as AF generation is tied mainly to healing. Again, this is bad for trying to balance AF generation.

Kitty.1502:

Khael.7325:

As much as I would like answers too, the game just released and they are prioritizing more serious and immediate bugs. They have already said there will be balance changes soon after release to prepare for pvp leagues, so worst case scenario it will be addressed during those. In the meantime there is so much awesome content to explore and partake in, and druid is totally still playable and fun imo.

this is the attitude why ranger has stayed unfixed for 3 years.

+1

This is generally the attitude Anet has had with Rangers. There is ALWAYS going to be something else that Anet can focus on which is why the class has been so overlooked the past few years. Rangers got dealt the short end of the stick again by having only one beta weekend when Druid needed arguably the most betas due to the complexity and scale of changes. Ask yourself why this is. (I’m pretty sure it wasn’t a purposeful decision by Anet considering how unpolished Druid was on reveal.)

Unholy Pillager.3791:

The reason we’re asking them to do it like DS is because we know that they can actually make a DS function without screwing it up. This…this is just worthless in its current state.

I do strongly believe that this is a mistake though because you are building an elite spec based on a faulty foundation. Healing needs to feel very free flowing and reactive because that is the nature of healing (i.e., its situational and time-sensitive). However, Anet is going the opposite approach with these changes and making Druid into this rigid elite spec that basically says, “You can only heal during this short window of opportunity, whether you need healing or not”. You can take this approach somewhat with DPS oriented abilities but not with healing.

Defensive mechanics (healing) need to be flexible enough to deal with offensive mechanics (DPS) or else there is no point in going defensive.

Edit: For instance, defensive measures such as counters (blocks, aegis, stuns) need to be quick casting to deal with offensive abilities which are usually longer casting. Healing has to follow the same principle; you cannot put it on a timetable and apply the same mechanics that you would apply to a DPS model. These are basic game design decisions so it boggles me that Anet is going the exact opposite approach with AF/CAF.

Anet is trying to adjust AF generation so that you are encouraged to use Staff but not be forced into using it to have any hope of sufficient AF generation.

It would be nice if Anet came out and explained the type of AF generation balance they are trying to target between Staff and other weapons (e.g., “we are adjusting staff to generate 25-50% more AF than other weapons”) so that we can test to see if we are hitting those targets.

At work currently but want to make sure I get the most out of this Halloween period.

Are there any dailies for Halloween (i.e., activities that you can only do once a day)? I spent an hour or so last night trying out some of the Halloween events but didn’t find any that were time-gated.

TheLastNobody.8319:

Really should make it the parallel to DS. No degen out of combat, and a bit easier to build. Right now it has both the restrictions of DS and Adrenaline but not even half the benefits of either it sounds like.

I disagree that Druid form should be the same as DS which is the direction that Anet went. DS and CAF function too differently and require different mechanics in order for them to work properly. Anet is taking mechanics from other classes and slapping it on Druid without realizing that this approach does not work for a healing class. I explained this in the BW3 feedback thread and have copied and pasted it here as well:

Irenio CalmonHuang.2048:

• Celestial Avatar Form: Entering this form now has a 10s CD… You now retain half your current astral force if you decide to break form early.

Positive changes overall but adding the 10 second cooldown concerns me because this a core design choice that probably won’t ever be changed (once implemented) but looks to be a poor long-term solution to properly gating CAF. It seems the logic behind making this change was to have it match deathshroud but if that is the case, it does not really make sense since the two transforms (Death Shroud and CAF) function too differently.

• Time gated CDs work for abilities like DS because the focus of DS is damage. Damage is something that is always desired/needed and is not time sensitive as to when you do the damage.

• Time gated CDs don’t work elegantly for situational abilities like healing. You don’t always need healing but when you do, you generally have a finite window to apply the healing (i.e., its situational and very time-sensitive).

Anet realized that CAF should be gated but applying a 10 second cooldown seems like a poor fix to the situation and has long-lasting implications. For example, if content is developed where mobs apply great amounts of damage in 10 second intervals, then Druids will remain strong since it can work around the 10 second CD of CAF. If content is developed where mobs do chunks of damage every few seconds, then Druid will have a poor time keeping the party sustained due to the 10 second cooldown. (I am assuming the total damage done by mobs is the same in both scenarios but the relative power of Druid is drastically different due to the frequency in which heals need to be applied.) This is a rather clumsy and arbitrary way to do things, and you are laying the foundation for poor game design imo.

From a player’s perspective, the following changes seem to just make more sense and fun to play with while providing a more robust/flexible time-gate on CAF.

1. Remove limitation of being at max AF to enter CAF
   Reason for change: Currently as a healing focused druid, your focus is to get to max AF asap so that you can heal in CAF on a moments notice. This is clumsy gameplay because it introduces a race to max CAF and then often sitting with max CAF for an indefinite amount of time, just waiting for an opportune time to change into CAF. (Again this goes back to why CAF should not be hard time gated since healing is a situational activity.) I believe this design choice was Anet’s first attempt to gate CAF but it was found lacking in BWE3. I believe this is just a poor design choice overall from a player’s perspective because its not fun to play with and there are better ways to time gate CAF.
2. Add AF cost to enter CAF but keep all AF upon exiting
   Reason for change: Adding an AF cost encourages players to build up a healthy amount of AF before entering CAF (i.e., this is a"soft time gate") in order to get the most out of every CAF transformation but keeps the power of making that choice in the player’s hands. (i.e., You can go in and out of CAF more frequently but with the understanding that you won’t be able to heal as much due to the AF cost each time you transform.) A penalty should not be given to the player (“You now retain half your current astral force if you decide to break form early”) to come out of CAF, to minimize the amount of “dead time” experienced by the player once everyone has been healed up to full. (Dead time is when a player will remain in CAF longer than he should just to “make sure” that no more incoming damage is going to be received.) This change will improve the player’s experience/enjoyment along with a faster/smoother gameplay.

These two changes will make Druid healing more compatible with a wider range of content since you can pace your heals better, and feel more strategic (i.e. more fun) since you have to determine if its worth going into CAF at any given moment.

Balancing can be done by adjusting AF costs, heal costs, AF generation, etc so that accessing CAF form is on the level desired by Anet.

Other examples of soft gating techniques (besides adding an AF cost mentioned above):

• Provide players with a x% boost for every level of AF bar generated (e.g., 1% damage boost for every 20% of AF bar filled).
• Tie CAF heal strength to the amount of the AF bar that was filled before entering CAF (e.g., entering CAF at half an AF bar causes your heals to heal for half the amount you would get from entering CAF at a full AF bar). Note: This proposed change is interesting to me because it mimics other games, like WoW, where the strength of a healing spell is generally tied to its casting duration (i.e., longer spell cast = stronger heal) but with a GW2 twist.

TLDR: Hard time gates like a 10 second cooldown are bad because it is too rigid/inflexible for the needs of a healing class which require access to time-sensitive spells. CAF gating can instead be achieved by encouraging players to fill up the AF bar as much as possible before activating CAF (i.e., soft time gates; see examples above).

IGN: Leodon
Play: PvP, PvE, WvW
Server: Ferguson Crossing (NA)
Role: Scholar
Time: PST

Wondrouswall.7169:

At least you got to convince them to let you stay. Try playing a Necro. Sometimes, the only response you get after typing “Hi” is, “You are not in a party.”

lol poor necroes.

Can someone link the changes to the guild system or explain the changes?

Mesmers don’t really come into their own until you get higher in levels since we are so trait dependent. Therefore, I wouldn’t worry too much about optimizing your build while leveling but rather use the time to experiment with different weapons/traits and find out what suits you best.

One thing often overlooked by new GW2 players is the importance of traveling speed in this game. A lot of your time is spent traveling so you want to make sure that you have access to good mobility skills at all times.

The following are a few of the things that should help you level quickly:

1) Get a sigil of speed for both sets of weapons (weapon swap) so that you gain swiftness each time you kill a mob; get a sigil of bloodlust for one of your weapons (the boost in damage is noticeable and is useful for leveling but the power of this sigil tapers off as you get higher in levels)
2) Use a focus for swiftness
3) For utilities, Signet of Inspiration and Blink can be slotted for extra swiftness/mobility
4) Stay current with armor and weapons. You can buy armor/weapons roughly every 5 levels. Armor doesn’t make as much of a difference as your weapon (plus there is a lot more pieces to upgrade) so I would recommend just buying blue armor so you can sell it back to recoup your costs. I’d recommend buying a green weapon though as you will make up the costs by killing faster and getting more loot/exp. Buy both armor/weapons ahead of time using the buy order option to minimize your costs. (Your costs should be roughly zero doing it this way.)
5) Buy some cheap exp food

This isn’t an issue with other players, its you (OP) being unable to enjoy doing things unless you receive praise from others. Stop giving your power away to others and letting them dictate how you feel at any particular moment; be it good or bad.

If you run into some bad apples, you need to learn to just see it for what it is without taking it too personally. (i.e., you just ran into some bad apples.) Don’t go around trying to change other people; work on controlling your own emotions instead and you’ll be happier.

Irenio CalmonHuang.2048:

• Celestial Avatar Form: Entering this form now has a 10s CD… You now retain half your current astral force if you decide to break form early.

Positive changes overall but adding the 10 second cooldown concerns me because this a core design choice that probably won’t ever be changed (once implemented) but looks to be a poor long-term solution to properly gating CAF. It seems the logic behind making this change was to have it match deathshroud but if that is the case, it does not really make sense since the two transforms (Death Shroud and CAF) function too differently.

• Time gated CDs work for abilities like DS because the focus of DS is damage. Damage is something that is always desired/needed and is not time sensitive as to when you do the damage.

• Time gated CDs don’t work elegantly for situational abilities like healing. You don’t always need healing but when you do, you generally have a finite window to apply the healing (i.e., its situational and very time-sensitive).

Anet realized that CAF should be gated but applying a 10 second cooldown seems like a poor fix to the situation and has long-lasting implications. For example, if content is developed where mobs apply great amounts of damage in 10 second intervals, then Druids will remain strong since it can work around the 10 second CD of CAF. If content is developed where mobs do chunks of damage every few seconds, then Druid will have a poor time keeping the party sustained due to the 10 second cooldown. (I am assuming the total damage done by mobs is the same in both scenarios but the relative power of Druid is drastically different due to the frequency in which heals need to be applied.) This is a rather clumsy and arbitrary way to do things, and you are laying the foundation for poor game design imo.

From a player’s perspective, the following changes seem to just make more sense and fun to play with while providing a more robust/flexible time-gate on CAF.

1. Remove limitation of being at max AF to enter CAF
   Reason for change: Currently as a healing focused druid, your focus is to get to max AF asap so that you can heal in CAF on a moments notice. This is clumsy gameplay because it introduces a race to max CAF and then often sitting with max CAF for an indefinite amount of time, just waiting for an opportune time to change into CAF. (Again this goes back to why CAF should not be hard time gated since healing is a situational activity.) I believe this design choice was Anet’s first attempt to gate CAF but it was found lacking in BWE3. I believe this is just a poor design choice overall from a player’s perspective because its not fun to play with and there are better ways to time gate CAF.
2. Add AF cost to enter CAF but keep all AF upon exiting
   Reason for change: Adding an AF cost encourages players to build up a healthy amount of AF before entering CAF (i.e., this is a"soft time gate") in order to get the most out of every CAF transformation but keeps the power of making that choice in the player’s hands. (i.e., You can go in and out of CAF more frequently but with the understanding that you won’t be able to heal as much due to the AF cost each time you transform.) A penalty should not be given to the player (“You now retain half your current astral force if you decide to break form early”) to come out of CAF, to minimize the amount of “dead time” experienced by the player once everyone has been healed up to full. (Dead time is when a player will remain in CAF longer than he should just to “make sure” that no more incoming damage is going to be received.) This change will improve the player’s experience/enjoyment along with a faster/smoother gameplay.

These two changes will make Druid healing more compatible with a wider range of content since you can pace your heals better, and feel more strategic (i.e. more fun) since you have to determine if its worth going into CAF at any given moment.

Balancing can be done by adjusting AF costs, heal costs, AF generation, etc so that accessing CAF form is on the level desired by Anet.

Other examples of soft gating techniques (besides adding an AF cost mentioned above):

• Provide players with a x% boost for every level of AF bar generated (e.g., 1% damage boost for every 20% of AF bar filled).
• Tie CAF heal strength to the amount of the AF bar that was filled before entering CAF (e.g., entering CAF at half an AF bar causes your heals to heal for half the amount you would get from entering CAF at a full AF bar). Note: This proposed change is interesting to me because it mimics other games, like WoW, where the strength of a healing spell is generally tied to its casting duration (i.e., longer spell cast = stronger heal) but with a GW2 twist.

TLDR: Hard time gates like a 10 second cooldown are bad because it is too rigid/inflexible for the needs of a healing class which require access to time-sensitive spells. CAF gating can instead be achieved by encouraging players to fill up the AF bar as much as possible before activating CAF (i.e., soft time gates; see examples above).

Rash.6514:

AlphaK.9486:

As an optional setting, perhaps they could add a hp threshold that shows an allied player/entity’s hp bar on the field only when their health falls below that threshold like say 90% or so.

Bonus Developer Points: Allow the player to be able to tweak that threshold anywhere from 0% to 100%, then everyone can pick when they want hp bars to show up.

I love that idea, although I don’t think it would ever get implemented. I gave you a +1.

+1 also.

Only concern I had with healthbars would be that it would clutter the screen when lots of players are present. This simple, yet effective, solution seems like a good way to have both our cake and eat it.

TheFrighteningFrenchFry.3275:

I don’t mean to be stupid but did you accidentally post this in the wrong place? And if so can you move topics or can only moderators do so?

No, I only play Mesmer/Ranger (with Mesmer being my main) so wanted to hear what my fellow mesmer friends were going to do. I don’t want to move this thread to the HoT subforum as I’m more interested in the replies from the people that visit this sub forum.