lombomon.7268

Also, some shield changes that I think could enhance the weapon:

-Envoy of Exuberance: In addition to its previous effects, this skill now cleanses 1 condition. (taking Hardening Persistence will cleanse an additional condition)

-Crystal Hibernation: Reduce cooldown from 25s to 20s. Reduce energy cost from 20 to 17. In addition to its previous effects, this skill's healing effect is now boosted by 3% per condition on the Herald.

> @"Sobx.1758" said:

> > @"Virdo.1540" said:

> > > @"lombomon.7268" said:

> > > **Herald**

> > > Elevated Compassion: Slightly increase healing (~10%)

> >

> > thats one of the points im waiting for a long time right now, even though it deserves a bit more than just 10% bonus to compete with the other 2 options.

>

> Kind of feels like these options don't exactly compete with each other in the same areas though?

I agree! Forceful Persistence enhances DPS, Draconic Echo enhances boon support, and Elevated Compassion enhances heals. Elevated Compassion might need a bit more than what I suggested, but the point of this thread was to put forth small, simple changes that would enhance QoL and support capabilities, so I just did a slight tweak.

> @"Obtena.7952" said:

> I don't see a problem that needs to be fixed here. Herald struggles to 'compete' with it's Renegade cousin in PVE? There isn't a requirement it needs to. Especs are a thematic deviation to give variety in play. It's not necessary that all especs are viable in every game mode, especially if that isn't their intent.

It's true, elite specializations are meant to fill different roles rather than being better/worse than their counterparts. However, Herald is VERY clearly designed to be a support spec. All of the Facets pump out boons, the traits focus mostly on defense or furthering healing/boon support. Renegade, however, outclasses Herald in heals and boons. All I want is for Herald to be in a place where it can fill the mechanical niche it was clearly designed to fill, support.

I think they might have wanted to include centaurs when they knew they were going to the Woodland Cascades in the early planning of the episodes. If I had to guess why we don't see centaurs in the region, it's likely because Drizzlewood became so focused on the meta event that including centaurs would have made the map less cohesive..

Though, who knows, maybe we'll get a bit of centaur action in the next 3 chapters of Champions.

I'm gonna leave my suggestions for tweaks that would make a few Revenant traits a lot more viable and have greater quality of life. In particular, I wanted to increase the potency of support Herald which has traditionally struggled to compete with its cousin, the Renegade, when it comes to filling a support role in most content.

**Invocation**

Charged Mists: Increase energy threshold from 10 to 15.

Song of the Mists: In addition to its previous effects, this trait now breaks stun on legend swap.

**Salvation**

Words of Censure: In addition to its previous effects, this trait now also increases the radius of healing orbs by 50%.

**Herald**

Shared Empowerment: Increase might duration from 8s to 12s

Elevated Compassion: Slightly increase healing (~10%)

Forceful Persistence: Change this skill to be in line with Rising Momentum and Hardening Persistence so it increases damage based on each pip of upkeep. Increase damage by 2.5% per point of upkeep.

EDIT (1/16/2021): Also, some shield changes that I think could enhance the weapon:

-Envoy of Exuberance: In addition to its previous effects, this skill now cleanses 1 condition. (taking Hardening Persistence will cleanse an additional condition)

-Crystal Hibernation: Reduce cooldown from 25s to 20s. Reduce energy cost from 20 to 17. In addition to its previous effects, this skill's healing effect is now boosted by 3% per condition on the Herald.

Obviously rewards need to be given a little more love. I think to address that two things need to be done

1) Add "exciting" rewards that require lots of Tyrian Defense Seals (expensive crafting mats like amalgamated gemstones or mystic coins, obviously in moderation, OR cosmetics like an infusion). Maybe also consider adding a guaranteed way to get Volcanic Stormcaller weapons for a huge amount of Defense Seals to encourage long-term play of the missions.

2) Add "worthwhile" repeatable rewards. The supply boxes we currently have don't get you much bang for your buck. You can either reduce the Seal cost for these a bit or add a new repeatable reward that's a better deal.

Then, the gameplay of DRM's could be adjusted to make them a little smoother.

1) NPC allies, especially those related to the ["ally support"](https://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Dragon_Response_Mission:_Metrica_Province#Allied_Factions) mechanics, should have their vitality and toughness increased and/or auto-revive over time. Currently they die too often to bother keeping alive.

2) Once the pre-event is complete, the DRM should progress immediately. Waiting out the timer is easily the slowest part of any DRM.

3) Reduce the cost of recruiting an allied faction from [Meradh](https://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Meradh), 10 Seals is too much.

Aside from these changes, I think we should wait and see how the next couple masteries we get impact DRM's. If they're particularly powerful, the pacing issues might be alleviated.

EDIT: Also reduce the cost of the Bead of Liquid Karma. 10 seals for 500 karma is not great lol.

The biggest problem with Shining Aspects is it has a 3 second CD on a very weak heal. Hardening Persistence is already the trait in the master line that helps Herald's deal with condis, so another trait might be redundant. If the CD was removed on Shining Aspects and the healing was tweaked, it could be a better alternative.

I agree that Hardening Persistence should have its defensive boost increased. Either 2% or 1.5% per point of upkeep is good.

I think Forceful Persistence is fine with its current functionality. An efficacy boost might be worth looking into, however.

I don't think either of those ideas works for the skill. The first option would make it better for group support but the skill is supposed to be more of a "selfish" defensive option. Envoy of Exuberance is already a support skill for the shield. As for the second option, just lowering the energy is certainly better than nothing, but I think the skill needs more love than that. I'd suggest this:

1. Reduce energy cost to 15 (possibly lower than this, but 15 is a start)

2. Grant self 1 second of regeneration on every pulse

3. Grant self 1 second of stability on every pulse

4. Grant self 1 second of infuse light on every pulse

5. Remove block and healing.

With these changes, the skill making the user immobile would be more viable. Stability application might need to be stronger to accommodate for the lost blocking, but hopefully the general idea here comes through.

Tybalt isn't the clear "best" mentor in the Personal Story. Sieran is amazing too and does not get the hype she deserves!

I think the extra alacrity could make Herald support more viable in PvE, but maybe looking into other parts of Herald first are more important. For example, Herald still cannot get 25 stacks of might on their party despite being entirely based on the stacking of boons. This means that Renegade, which provides 25 might and alacrity with its F2/F4, is a much better option in instanced content like Fractals. Might stacking buffs are what I want the most for Herald right now, but if they added alacrity (however small the amount) to help Herald compete with Renegade that wouldn't be the worst thing in the world.

I definitely agree that the trait is underwhelming. However, I think having the trait serve a more "selfish" purpose would be nice since both Hardening Persistence and Shared Empowerment (the traits it competes with) both have some level of group support already. Whether the healing should just be tuned up or the trait should be reworked all together is something I'm not sure on at the moment, but I'm sure that the trait needs some love.

Some potential ideas:

1. Remove or reduce the ICD. Healing stays as is.

2. Increase the healing but leave ICD as is.

3. Do a bit of both, lower ICD and increase healing slightly.

4. Rework: Using a consume skill increases outgoing damage for a short period of time (similar to Peak Performance).

5. Rework: Consume skills siphon life from foes.

6. Rework: Consume skills have increased effects (e.g. Gaze of Darkness applies more vulnerability, Burst of Strength deals more damage, Infuse Light heals for slightly more)

Others seem to have answered but I would like to add that if you want more cc but don't want to run staff, running axe off-hand on your alternate weapon set can give you more cc without having to sacrifice the sword AA's damage. This also means you don't need to run different sigils.

> @"Dadnir.5038" said:

> That said if I follow your logic, shroud removal, plague sending and unholy martyr are horribly overpowered compared to the revenant trait. The specialty of the necromancer is condition manipulation, you expect him to be good at dealing with condition. The specialty of the revenant is whatever the legend specialty was, I think mallyx can pump up quite a lot of resistance with no CD but gated behind energy just like the condi cleanse output of the scourge is gated behind it's barrier output. How would the revenant's community react if ANet came up with a runeset that grant 2-3 might stack each time you gain resistance and out of the blue they end up puting a 5s CD on _pain absorption_ to balance things? It's possible for ANet to introduce an effect with no ICD on the use of an elite skill (let's say a juicy heal/barrier amount perceived as balanced for thing like _jaunt_ or _shadow meld_), how would revenant react if they put a 10s - 20s CD on mallyx elite to avoid puting an ICD on this new mechanism because "its ok to nerf the few"?

The point wasn't to talk about the specialties or merits of the different classes, merely the power of traits in different lines. Cleansing Channel is a weak adept trait, but I used it to highlight how powerful Abrasive Grit was in comparison. There are examples from other classes as well. Elementalist has Earth's Embrace with a 75 second ICD and Stop, Drop, and Roll (cleanses burning and chill from allies) with a 10 second ICD. Restorative Mantras on Mesmer only functions when you finish charging a mantra, something that doesn't happen often if you allow the ammo to recharge. Even Necromancer itself has Spiteful Renewal which is a single condi cleanse (and extra heal) on using your heal skill, skills that tend to have cooldowns on the medium-to-longer side.

Basically what I've been saying this whole time is this:

**Abrasive Grit was and still is strong for an adept trait. The ICD reduces burst potential, but overall a 5 second ICD on an adept trait this potent is not the worst thing in the world. If you find that necro/scourge is less powerful in its support role due to the change, those issues can and should be addressed by buffing the class elsewhere. Whether it be in Blood Magic or other Scourge traits or another traitline, adding more support capability there is the best way to go.**

Be upset about necro if you want, don't be upset if you want. The point is, Abrasive Grit being changed is not unjustified or horrible. In fact, it shows how core necro has failed to provide support options and highlights the need to bring core necro's support capabilities up to snuff. Scourge should compliment those aspects of necro, not have to provide most of the support.

I'm going to stop posting in this thread now. Have fun Necro subforum!

> @"Dadnir.5038" said:

> > @"lombomon.7268" said:

> > I get the frustration about Necro for sure, but Abrasive Grit is really the last thing that Scourges/Necros should be worried about. the condi cleanse was definitely decreased, but keep in mind it is an adept trait. A 5 second ICD on that much might and a condi cleanse is reasonable for an adept trait, especially if you look at adept traits in other specializations whether it be on Necro or on another class.

> >

> > Again I get the frustration (necro has been one of my two mains since launch) but Abrasive Grit is incredibly strong for an adept trait, even after the ICD was added.

>

> I think you don't get it. The issue is mainly the loss of freedom to use it. The scourge don't have that many way to gain or provide barrier, which made the trait output totally balanced or at least as balance as any aura traits from the elementalist can be (Honestly do you imagine ANet puting a 5 second ICD on traits like _zephir's boon_, _elemental shielding_ or _invigorating torrent_ because thanks to these trait you can somehow burst boon output with tempest? Even burst cleanse with trooper's rune and _cleansing water_? This is exactly what happen here to the scourge with this ICD on _Abrassive grit_). What the scourge lost isn't a few might stack or condi cleanse, it's the ability to burst these might stacks and cleanse whenever needed. Now by using this runeset, the necromancer totally shut down it's ability to support via this trait, this is where it truly hurt.

>

> _Abrasive grit_ was balanced for the barrier output of the scourge until they introduced an busted effect on a runeset that output a silly amount of barrier. What infuriate the necromancers is that they got the short end of the stick when the issues with other runes were fixed on the runes themselves instead of being fixed on the professions that could exploit their busted effects.

>

> If you add to this perceived unfairness the fact that the necromancer's community is sick tired of the silly design choices that the devs force onto the necromancers again and again leading to nerfs again and again, it's easy to understand that they explode on the slightest misgiving from ANet.

Manifest Sand Shade (when traited with Desert Empowerment), Sand Cascade, Sand Flare, Serpent Siphon, and Sand Swell all grant barrier. That's plenty of sources. Also the elementalist aura traits all grant boons that only stack duration, not intensity. Also, granting those boons is their only effect while Abrasive Grit grants might AND cleanses a condition. Cleansing Water is a grandmaster trait and so not having an ICD and being more powerful is justified. Even before the Rune of Sanctuary and the Abrasive Grit changes, Abrasive Grit was incredibly powerful for an adept trait. If you want more condi cleanse and support power for necro/scourge, it should be placed in other traits (like maybe buffing the blood magic line a bit?). One adept trait in one trait line should never be as potent as Abrasive Grit was (and still is to an extent, that's a lot of might every 5 seconds!).

Again, like I said in my original post, I understand why it might feel frustrating, but Abrasive Grit was and still is very strong for an adept trait. For example, Cleansing Channel on Revenant is a single condi cleanse every 10 seconds (due to legend swap's CD) only on yourself. When you compare Abrasive Grit to things like that, it's clear that it is very powerful when compared to its peers.

Monsters can critically hit, though I'm not sure how often it happens.

I get the frustration about Necro for sure, but Abrasive Grit is really the last thing that Scourges/Necros should be worried about. the condi cleanse was definitely decreased, but keep in mind it is an adept trait. A 5 second ICD on that much might and a condi cleanse is reasonable for an adept trait, especially if you look at adept traits in other specializations whether it be on Necro or on another class.

Again I get the frustration (necro has been one of my two mains since launch) but Abrasive Grit is incredibly strong for an adept trait, even after the ICD was added.

Seeing new dungeons would be nice, though I understand Anet is focusing on fractals for 5-man instanced content and so I do not expect them. However, some adjustments to existing dungeons to make some of the bosses/puzzles less punishing would be nice.

I think the way trident's applied condition changes based on legend is a good idea as well, but I think staff definitely is fine as is. If they were to do this with a core weapon, I think hammer would be the way to go? Mace, axe, sword, and staff are all so heavily tied to their own builds that hammer being a bit more flexible might be worth looking into.

I think completely changing the effect is unnecessary, but definitely increasing the projectile speed and making it heal allies it passes through like @"DonArkanio.6419" suggested would make it more desirable.

> @"Chrury.4627" said:

> I'm always down with a guard healer. The damage will be ok for a support build with its condis.

> I wonder how the healing will be with this hybrid. Then again, the outgoing healing is _36%_ with FoW.

> I was thinking you could take Merciful Intervention over Bow of Truth but that's not really how the build works. If I was going full heals, I'd be running Virtues to share the F2 passive and then MI is a burst heal/rez helper. This build is heal/condi hybrid so you need the BoT to cover what the virtue healing does.

> I _would_ suggest a Shield over one of the torches as a back-up. M/Sh, A/T perhaps, so you have a damage set and a healing set.

> Thanks for participating!

>

Yeah there are definitely lots of little changes you could make to this build to suit different styles of play. I chose Radiance because otherwise the damage output would likely still be negligible to the point where the condi gear would be pointless. Also I considered a shield to pair with mace, but since mace lacks condis you'd lose some damage when you swap. Still a choice you could make though!

Build Name/Class: Exuberant Firebrand

Rune Name: Rune of Exuberance

Gamemode: PvE

Build Link: [LINK](http://gw2skills.net/editor/?vVAQRApf3fnsADFBjlBBWCBEEhF/BbfiuRHpYjgXweyKAUBqTA-jxx0ABs8EAA4kAIw+Dqq+DrK/QV/QrKBJFg0q0A-e "LINK")

I saw that the Superior Rune of Exuberance granted Vitality and also converted Vitality into Healing Power, Precision, and Power and thought that a hybrid support/dps Guardian would be interesting to play with because of [Force of Will](https://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Force_of_Will "Force of Will"). Plaguedoctor stats grant Vitality, (to further the effect of the Runes as well as the effect of Force of Will) Condition Damage, and of course the essential support stats of Healing Power and Concentration so I decided to use that stat type for this build. I did not want to farm for Plaguedoctor gear so this is only theoretical as of now, but the runes, gear, and traits all compliment each other quite well!

I found making this build very enjoyable and might make more builds for unused runes in the future!

I think the more important thing would be to reduce the cast cost to 5 energy, the upkeep doesn't feel too horrible but if you recast it for repositioning it hurts quite a bit. Also, there are a couple reasons why the upkeep is fine as it is:

1. Soulcleave's Summit is an elite skill while the upkeep skills of Shiro/Ventari/Jalis are all just regular utility skills.

2. Soulcleave's Summit is incredibly potent for both damage augmentation and healing capability. An upkeep cost of 6 would allow this effect to be maintained for far too long.

Perhaps a reduction to an upkeep cost of 7 could be warranted, but even that seems a bit low to me.

I'd rather them just make [Plaguelands](https://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Plaguelands "Plaguelands") the elite well, since it already functions like wells do, and make a new corruption elite to replace it.

I think for some of the professions, their elite specs cannot be determined to be the better/worse one because they are meant to fill different roles. For example, on Necromancer, Reaper is meant to be power focused while Scourge is a hybrid condi/support focused spec. Some elite specs still need their focus sharpened to create this effect for their profession, but with recent changes like the Herald rework they are definitely heading in that direction.

However, as far as personal opinion goes, here are my favorites of the elite specs.

Elementalist: Tempest (Weaver seems great and all but the piano dancing is a bit much for me!)

Engineer: Scrapper (unpopular one but I mostly play open world with my engi and I like the defensive traits to keep me up)

Guardian: Firebrand

Mesmer: Chronomancer

Necromancer: Too difficult for me to say! Both feel great to me.

Ranger: Soulbeast

Revenant: Again, too difficult for me to say!

Warrior: Spellbreaker

No thief because I do not play it pretty much ever and do not have an opinion on Daredevil vs. Deadeye.

By endgame content I'm assuming you mean fractals and raids. If so, the answer is yes! You can play both of those modes as a revenant, though build options are a bit limited if you are going to be using LFG to find groups.

For leveling, just do things that you are interested in. Since GW2 gives you experience from lots of sources, exploring is a valid way to level up. If any event or object piques your interest, feel free to go investigate. Also, once you unlock them, dungeon runs give about a level for your daily clear.

My revenant is personally a Sylvari but Norn may also be an interesting race.