Top line of Firebrand traits is bad

Maybe it's just me, but the top line traits for Firebrand seem simply plain worse than the other lines.

Middle line: You get quickness on heal, quickness from aegis/retaliation, and quickness triggering Ashes of the Just. Cooldown was recently nerfed, but the traits are still useful.Bottom line: Tomes last longer, tomes get buffs, and tomes have lower cooldown. Great.Top line: This line has a CC theme, but the traits themselves are bad. See below.

• Unrelenting Criticism: Daze is nice, but bleed? Axe already causes bleed, why more bleed? Make the symbol grant aegis instead, or something like this.
• Weighty Terms: You never want to blow your last mantra charges. And if you do, you get.. immobilize? If I blow my last charge I want at least something huge, such as heal/barrier/stun.
• Stoic Demeanor: This just makes no sense IMO. It adds a soft CC whenever you apply a hard CC. Need overhaul. Maybe try to inverse - add a hard CC (stun/taunt) whenever you apply a soft CC (such as blind/cripple).

Unrelenting criticism is not absolutely terrible, but it is not good to be used in any build in any context.

Weighty terms is not bad. The immobilize is pointless but it reduces mantras CD by 20%. It has its uses. As for third charge, unless the CD and cast of mantras is reduced the concept of attaching something to it is obsolete.

Stoic demeanor makes no sense what so ever. Especially not as a grand master trait. That trait should be changed to something that supports power damage.

All those traits look like they are in a good place to me, weighty terms applies immobilize which would be underwhelming if it wasn't aoe immobilize. Unrelenting Criticism adds another disable to axe so now there are 2 which is great and extra bleeds are on hit not on crit, which is very great. Finally Stoic Demeanor adds slow on base 2.5 seconds every 5 seconds, which while not tested I assume can be aoe as well. And while you may not want to ever use your final mantra and definetly not to apply immobilize on enemies, for emergencies you could be applying your final heal which will give you aegis and healing, cause immobilize and slow and then be on a 20 second cooldown, which you would then turn to your tome of resolve/courage while you wait for the mantra to come up, then once it does you can stow to apply quickness and quick cast the mantra.

@otto.5684 said:As for third charge, unless the CD and cast of mantras is reduced the concept of attaching something to it is obsolete.

Yes. Either that, or they could add a seriously powerful effect to last charge. Would work for me too.

I am pretty sure stoic deamnor is not remotely useful in any context. Who cares about the slow.

@otto.5684 said:I am pretty sure stoic deamnor is not remotely useful in any context. Who cares about the slow.

Break bar damage, PvP, slow is a great condition.

@extremexhero.9178 said:

@otto.5684 said:I am pretty sure stoic deamnor is not remotely useful in any context. Who cares about the slow.

"Slow is a great condition." Probably devs think that way too. No wounder sPvP has been a shit show since PoF release.

Maybe remove the ICD on stoic Demeanor and add a secondary condi like Weakness, or Blind.

FB has problems with CC bars in pve, so maybe making it so the last mantra charge gives stun instead of immob might be a good idea, and as for stoic demeanor i'm not sure. It's more cc, and a strong cc at that, but i can't see any fb ever taking it just for that when you have better things to do (like give quickness). Maybe if stoic demeanor further enhanced axe from the first trait and the last charge from the mantra trait it might be better. Perhaps giving axe another condition on its auto and giving it a second cc (immobilize) on the symbol, while it gives mantras one stack of burn on last charge and a cc (the slow) as well. So now you have axe doing bleed, burn and a third condition, the symbol doing daze and immob, the last charge of mantras doing 1 stack of burning, stun, and slow. All if you take the first 3 traits. At least now it makes sense taking all 3 top traits if you are a dps fb who wants to enhance their cc.

So top traits are cc and dps, middle traits are quickness oriented, and last traits are support oriented.

When I roam as a FB, I actually do run Weighty Terms (top major master level trait; mantra trait). Traited heal/stab mantra on lower count recharge really help with sustain and traited mantra of truth (the damage/cover condi one) gives a very nice long immob upon final charge use.

But yeah, the other two top traits in FB are very poor. I have tried running them both (together and separately) in a variety of builds and there are almost always better options that involve minor changes elsewhere (either changing out a utility, trait or weapon).

The GM trait is particularly poor and is only worthy of being an adept level trait.

I disagree. The two issues with Firebrand traits are Archivist of Whispers and Stoic Demeanor. Archivist of Whispers (eight pages of tomes) which should be baseline, a minor trait, or rolled into Loremaster as it suffocates the viability of the other adapt traits due to how much more it affects every tome's potential. Stoic Demeanor just seems like garbage that was thrown in at the last moment when nobody could think of a good 3rd grandmaster trait. Maybe if it didn't have an ICD or inflicted multiple debilitating conditions it would be in the running but as it is now competing with Quickfire and Loremaster it's worthless.