Was Joko a dual profession ne/me?

I'm still confused about why it's taken this long for him to pull out illusions and time stop effects. Was this more signet magic or the special talent he used to develop scourge.

The beastmarshal uses a signet of domination so maybe Joko just raided some artifacts?

Would have been a good question for the AFC

I'm not sure player profession really matters in the context of the game's NPCs. Caithe has completely unique skills compared to the standard PC thief class. Rytlock, back when he was a warrior, broke class rules and sometimes would utilize a pistol in story instances.

Joko is classified as a necromancer as he raises the dead and has obtained lichdom, but his magic is seemingly unique as his Awakened have kept some of their memories and skills from the time they were alive. Joko is certainly old enough to have mastered several other forms of magic. There are certainly artifacts that can manipulate perception within the GW universe, so he wouldn't have to be a mesmer.

@Zephic.3075 said:I'm not sure player profession really matters in the context of the game's NPCs. Caithe has completely unique skills compared to the standard PC thief class. Rytlock, back when he was a warrior, broke class rules and sometimes would utilize a pistol in story instances.

There is no rule against a warrior picking up a pistol. Or a thief from another culture having a different skillset. As for player profession and Joko, its part of his character arc. Joko was the first Scourge and it enabled him to become uniquely powerful. We are told OOG Dervish can channel this fiery potential to mimic the powers of a God. But suddenly there is magical technology abound. Lonai, Oluwa Eranko, and the commander get signets. Statues are doing things.

Was Joko spreading influence through some masterful synthesis of two or more magic types? Or was it just extremely rare magical technology? Either way this endfight didn't feel like facing the Scourge of Vabbi.

Joko is classified as a necromancer as he raises the dead and has obtained lichdom, but his magic is seemingly unique as his Awakened have kept some of their memories and skills from the time they were alive.

So do Risen.

Joko is certainly old enough to have mastered several other forms of magic. There are certainly artifacts that can manipulate perception within the GW universe, so he wouldn't have to be a mesmer.

The forms grew more complex over time, making dual professions improbable. I don't think as Joko aged he maintained mastery of multiple disciplines, but he certainly could have retained certain skills. The question isn't whether he is a double major in necromancy and mesmerism today, but what was going on back then that enabled his rise.

@Daniel Handler.4816 said:There is no rule against a warrior picking up a pistol. Or a thief from another culture having a different skillset. As for player profession and Joko, its part of his character arc. Joko was the first Scourge and it enabled him to become uniquely powerful. We are told OOG Dervish can channel this fiery potential to mimic the powers of a God. But suddenly there is magical technology abound. Lonai, Oluwa Eranko, and the commander get signets. Statues are doing things.

Precisely. I agree with you that there is nothing in Tyria that stops a warrior from picking up a pistol. My point was that there is no point in shoving NPCs into player classes. You can always rationalize why an NPC can do something as a logical extension of their base abilities. Apologies, I misunderstood the original question.

Was Joko spreading influence through some masterful synthesis of two or more magic types? Or was it just extremely rare magical technology? Either way this endfight didn't feel like facing the Scourge of Vabbi.

Joko is classified as a necromancer as he raises the dead and has obtained lichdom, but his magic is seemingly unique as his Awakened have kept some of their memories and skills from the time they were alive.

Risen are a bit of a curiosity as not all Risen were known for retaining memories. Zhaitan does learn whatever its undead know, which is a slight advantage that the Elder Dragon held over Joko. Although, Joko could had just awakened a dead person and demanded to know what the newly Awakened knew. Most Awakened we meet are able to hold a standard conversation and remember who they were before. A lot of Risen were more like the traditional zombies, with the exception being Zhaitan's chosen commanders and his modified Eyes and Mouths. It occurs to me that it may be a difference in priorities. Joko prizes unquestioningly loyal servants, where as Zhaitan only needed a few actual commanders and flood the world with mindless undead.

The fight vs Joko was great, in my opinion. Joko is a masterful planner and everything up to the end of his final speech was merely a game he was playing against us. We didn't just decide to go to Gandara. He invited/lured us to Gandara for Act 2 in his twisted play. We were dancing to his strings and that is the way he likes to fight, with him holding all the cards. Given his previous loss in 1v1 combat against Turai Ossa, I do not think Joko is a particularly good fighter (although his comment about our fighting style being poor made me chuckle), which is fine. Great strategists are rarely great fighters. Joko defeated Vabbi not by complete force of arms, but by diverting the Elon river and starving the region.

The forms grew more complex over time, making dual professions improbable. I don't think as Joko aged he maintained mastery of multiple disciplines, but he certainly could have retained certain skills. The question isn't whether he is a double major in necromancy and mesmerism today, but what was going on back then that enabled his rise.

Joko strikes me as someone who is easily bored and might have just picked up a new magic as a way to offset his boredom. He relishes matching wits against the Commander as he hasn't had an opponent in a very long time. Personally, I think he got some old artifacts and relics to use against us by looting Sebelkeh Basilica. Vabbi was known for favoring Lyssa over the other gods, so it wouldn't be surprising if Joko gained a number of Lyssa's artifacts after defeating Vabbi.

A lot of the magical tech can also be explained as Joko has a bunch of Awakened Inquest working for him. I feel that Anet relies a bit too much on Asuran tech as the end all and be all explanation for any solution.

@Zephic.3075 said:The fight vs Joko was great, in my opinion. Joko is a masterful planner and everything up to the end of his final speech was merely a game he was playing against us. We didn't just decide to go to Gandara. He invited/lured us to Gandara for Act 2 in his twisted play. We were dancing to his strings and that is the way he likes to fight, with him holding all the cards. Given his previous loss in 1v1 combat against Turai Ossa, I do not think Joko is a particularly good fighter (although his comment about our fighting style being poor made me chuckle), which is fine. Great strategists are rarely great fighters. Joko defeated Vabbi not by complete force of arms, but by diverting the Elon river and starving the region.

True, he already lost once as a Scourge. Perhaps the magitech/etc was his way of stacking the 1v1 with powerful abilities we would never expect and prepare for.

The forms grew more complex over time, making dual professions improbable. I don't think as Joko aged he maintained mastery of multiple disciplines, but he certainly could have retained certain skills. The question isn't whether he is a double major in necromancy and mesmerism today, but what was going on back then that enabled his rise.

That could explain the current situation. But not how he got uniquely powerful to begin with. Unfortunately we may never know.

A lot of the magical tech can also be explained as Joko has a bunch of Awakened Inquest working for him. I feel that Anet relies a bit too much on Asuran tech as the end all and be all explanation for any solution

Other than the priory who else would we consult with our problems? Only the ancient races were more advanced and they are all dead, degenerate, or MIA. I'm surprised we even use Charr engineering.

NPCs aren't bound to the same rules as the player is.

Joko's been around since the dawn of time, he can learn as many types of magic as he wants.

It is indeed sort of a trope for wizardly types like himself to seek undeath in order to have more time to learn more magic like that.

Liches are such nerds. All of them.