[Elite Suggestion] The Exorcist

Theme: necromancers, who suffered greatly because of who they were and because of their dark magic, tried to give on life of necromancy. Instead, they tried to focuses on other kind of magic, peaceful life or simply atonement for what they have done through their life. However, as Dhuum fell and was sealed away, as reapers and scourges started spreading through the world, as dark energies and restless souls swirled through the world more and more, these necromancers were gathered by mysterious dreams sent by Kuonghsang. They gathered and decided to work together, share their knowledge, ideas and lives, and finally the order of exorcists were born. However, unlike what other would assume, former necromancers turn to exorcists still use their dark/blood/spectral magic in order to fight against undeads, monsters and similar dark beings. So, how is that different to what normal necromancers do? Well, they mix their necromancy (dark magic, life force, etc) with natural energies (similar to druid's power) in order to counter evil beings and seal them away. Fight darkness with other kind of darkness for the victory of the light - exorcists, the dark priest who seek redemption and peace, will use new powers granted through connection to Kuonghsang to fight against other evil necromancers, demons and other vile beings. And if whole situation seems paradoxical, then you will know why their inspiration is a celestial being also called as the eternal paradox.

Sample build:1) Blood Magic + Spite + Exorcist = support/bruiser build focused on surviving and healing others2) Death Magic + Blood Magic + Exorcist = tank build to prolong fights as much as possible3) Soul Reaping + Spite + Exorcist = melee power build for heavy burst4) Curses + Soul Reaping = Meh condition build, most likely would never be meta build

Adept Minor Trait (Between Light and Dark)Unlock Hammer and allow you to use Meditation abilities.Replace Death Shroud with Preacher's Shroud.

Adept Major Trait LineMajor Trait 1 (Resist Darkness)Whenever you grant a boon to an ally or when you enter Preacher's Should you will gain 4 sec of resistance. Cooldown: 20 sec.Major Trait 2 (Unnatural Adaptation)Increase duration of protection and regeneration on you by 33%.Major Trait 3 (Incoming Execution)Disabling an enemy will grant you 8 sec of fury and will remove 1 condition from you.

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Master Minor Trait (Blessings Between Twilight)Gain 80 concentration and 80 expertise white you have protection, resistance, fury or regeneration.

Master Major Trait LineMajor Trait 4 (Life and Death in the Balance)Grant 3 sec of protection for yourself and nearby allies (radius: 600) when you enter Preacher's Shroud. Reduce cooldown of Preacher's Shroud by 10 sec.Major Trait 5 (Mastery of Life and Flesh)Increase your vitality and your healing power by 5% of your toughness.Major Trait 6 (Weakness of Will)Whenever you inflict vulnerability on an enemy you will inflict 1 additional stack of vulnerability for 10 sec.

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Grandmaster Minor Trait (Miracle of Shining Darkness)Whenever you inflict a non-damaging condition on an enemy you will gain protection, fury or regeneration for 4 sec. Cooldown: 20 sec.

Grandmaster Major Trait LineMajor Trait 7 (Life for Life)Increase your healing power by 50 at all times. In addition, increase your healing power by 150 while you have resistance or protection.Major Trait 8 (Dreadnought of Faith)Take 5% less damage while you have hammer equipped. Gain 100 bonus toughness.Major Trait 9 (Prayers for Kuonghsang)Your damaging meditations will inflict 1 stack of vulnerability for 10 sec and your non-damaging meditations will grant you 5 sec of fury.

Hammer 1 (Faithful Tap)First hit of three hit chain. Attempt to crush your target with massive blow. If you hit any enemy, then this attack will emit ripple of shadow force dealing damage to all nearby enemies. Initial attack hit only one enemy.

• Casting time: 3/4 sec
• Range: 130
• Damage: 400 (scales with power)
• Ripple damage: 200 (scales with power)
• Ripple radius: 300
• Maximum number of targets hit: 5
• Life force per enemy hit by dark ripple: 2%

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Hammer 1 (Reassurance for Believers)Second hit of three hit chain. Smash your hammer in front of you dealing damage to nearby enemies and briefly cripple them.

• Casting time: 3/4 sec
• Range: 130
• Damage: 550 (scales with power)
• Cripple: 2 sec
• Radius: 300
• Maximum number of targets hit: 5
• Life force per enemy hit: 1%

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Hammer 1 (Redeem Sinners)Third hit of three hit chain. Banish sin from your target causing damage to it. Damaged enemy will release an explosion of violent energy causing damage to all nearby enemies. Initial attack hits only one enemy. This explosion have 20% chance to trigger blast finisher.

• Casting time: 1 sec
• Range: 130
• Damage: 550 (scales with power)
• Explosion damage: 250 (scales with power)
• Explosion radius: 300
• Life force per enemy hit by explosion: 3%

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Hammer 2 (Bolt of Judgement)Release a bolt of shadow and light energies to damage your target and daze it. If your target is already disabled, then this ability will cause double damage.

• Casting time: 3/4 sec
• Range: 600
• Cooldown: 8 sec
• Damage: 600 (scales with power)
• Daze: 1 sec

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Hammer 3 (Word for the Living)Absolve sins of nearby allies granting them fury and swiftness. You will gain quickness as well. Downed allies will be partially revived.

• Casting time: 1 sec
• Radius: 600
• Cooldown: 14 sec
• Fury: 4 sec
• Swiftness: 10 sec
• Quickness: 3 sec
• Revive: 10%

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Hammer 4 (Twilight Armor)Create armor of twilight to grant you bonus toughness and reduce duration of movement impairing (chill, cripple, immobilize) conditions.

• Casting time: instant
• Cooldown: 20 sec
• Duration: 20 sec
• Bonus toughness: 100
• Duration reduction: 33%

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Hammer 4 (Black Sun)Cause your twilight armor to burst in brilliant flash blinding nearby enemies. For a short duration you will avoid all projectiles. Cancel your Twilight Armor.

• Casting time: instant
• Radius: 300
• Blind: 6 sec
• Duration: 4 sec
• Blast combo finisher

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Hammer 5 (Deliver Judgement)Judge sins of your target causing damage to it, teleport your target to your current location and stun it.

• Casting time: 1 sec
• Range: 1200
• Cooldown: 30 sec
• Damage: 750 (scales with power)
• Stun: 2 sec

F1 (Preacher's Shroud)Enter a special balanced shroud.

• Casting time:
• Cooldown: 20 sec

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Shroud 1 (Twilight Burn)Cause light to crush into your target's shadow dealing damage.

• Casting time: 1/2 sec
• Range: 300
• Damage: 400 (scales with power)

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Shroud 2 (Twilight Step)Blink forward (towards your target) removing all movement impairing conditions from yourself. Break target of all nearby enemies as well.

• Casting time: instant
• Range: 900
• Cooldown: 10 sec

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Shroud 3 (Photophobia)Create a special barrier to protect you from next attack. Next attack you will take will be absorbed and attacker will be feared.

• Casting time: instant
• Cooldown: 20 sec
• Duration: 6 sec
• Fear: 2 sec

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Shroud 4 (Rays of Twilight)Release twilight light to damage nearby enemies and heal nearby allies.

• Casting time: instant
• Channel duration: 3 sec
• Cooldown: 18 sec
• Radius: 300
• Pulses: 4
• Damage per pulse: 200 (scales with power)
• Healing per pulse: 250 (scales with healing power)

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Shroud 5 (Pray against the Plague)Remove up to 2 damaging conditions from yourself and grant resistance to nearby allies.

• Casting time: instant
• Cooldown: 20 sec
• Radius: 600
• Resistance: 2 sec

Healing Meditation (Mass Against Unbelievers)Heal yourself and focus your will to deflect all attacks from yourself for a short duration.

• Casting time: instant
• Cooldown: 30 sec
• Healing: 3200 (scales with healing power)
• Duration: 3 sec

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Utility Meditation 1 (In the Need of Faith)Step through shadows and teleport to your target. After teleporting release brilliant light to remove blindness from nearby allies and grant protection for them.

• Casting time: instant
• Cooldown: 40
• Range: 900
• Protection: 5 sec
• Stunbreaker

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Utility Meditation 2 (Reject Heresy)Remove 1 damaging condition from yourself and attempt to transfer it onto your target.

• Casting time: 1/2 sec
• Cooldown: 20 sec
• Range: 900
• Damage: 100 (scales with power)

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Utility Meditation 3 (Weakness of Doubt)Expose vulnerabilities of your target.

• Casting time: 3/4 sec
• Cooldown: 20 sec
• Range: 900
• Damage: 350 (scales with power)
• Vulnerability: 5 stacks for 15 sec

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Utility Meditation 4 (Blessings to Fear)Remove up to 2 boons from your target and inflict fear on your target.

• Casting time: 1/2 sec
• Cooldown: 30 sec
• Range: 900
• Damage: 200 (scales with power)
• Fear: 1 sec

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Elite Meditation (Midnight Sun)Gain resistance and protection. Grant resistance and protection to nearby allies for reduced duration. In addition, you will become immune to boon removal/corruption for a short duration.

• Casting time: 1 sec
• Cooldown: 60 sec
• Radius: 600
• Resistance: 5 sec
• Protection: 8 sec
• Ally resistance: 2 sec
• Ally protection: 3 sec
• Boon removal immunity: 3 sec

Quick summary what this elite offers:1) Engage and disengage tools: Shroud 2 (Twilight Step) + Utility Meditation 1 (In the Need of Faith)2) Active defense tools: Hammer 4 (Black Sun) + Shroud 3 (Photophobia) + Shroud 5 (Pray against the Plague) + Healing Meditation (Mass Against Unbelievers) + Elite Meditation (Midnight Sun)3) Decent support tools: Major Trait 4 (Life and Death in the Balance) + Hammer 3 (Word for the Living) + Shroud 4 (Rays of Twilight) + Utility Meditation 1 (In the Need of Faith) + Elite Meditation (Midnight Sun)

As far as i know these things are currently the hot topic for necromancers as no elite currently offers decent movement or active defense options for necromancers.

It sounds pretty darn awesome. Though i'd enjoy seeing some undead vines (that druid part) grabbing enemies. Immob is a condition necro has shortage of and could really use.

Out of bigger problems i have - lore and idea sound sweet but implementation is too plain. Remember that current day elite specs like to have more mechanics to them - for example druid got glyps (which have 2 sets of skills based on form). Scourge got punishments which basically are fixed corruption (cripple + torment) skills.Herald got facets - fusion of upkeep skill with active skill.

Not everyone has it, there are plainer skillsets in elites (reaper, renegade, soulbeast etc), but i think it would be cool if our utilities had a twist. I think glyphs would be a great fit since we do have 2nd form by default (shroud), and this could play off the light/necro-dark theme you got going on in your spec!

@ZeftheWicked.3076 said:Out of bigger problems i have - lore and idea sound sweet but implementation is too plain. Remember that current day elite specs like to have more mechanics to them - for example druid got glyps (which have 2 sets of skills based on form). Scourge got punishments which basically are fixed corruption (cripple + torment) skills.Herald got facets - fusion of upkeep skill with active skill.

Not all. Look at reaper, look at berserker, and so on. All elites have different level of complexity and mechanics to them. And if we are honest - all necromancer elites are as basic as it gets.

@ZeftheWicked.3076 said:Not everyone has it, there are plainer skillsets in elites (reaper, renegade, soulbeast etc), but i think it would be cool if our utilities had a twist. I think glyphs would be a great fit since we do have 2nd form by default (shroud), and this could play off the light/necro-dark theme you got going on in your spec!

By the way, i don't really see glyphs being a thing, because of how other utilities work. Would you take a glyph and be able to use while in shroud or would you take any other utility and be unable to use it in shroud? Everyone would take glyphs.

I see an ANet developer reading this and thinking how he can nerf this down to below any dwarf caves. Would be nice, of course, but think of all other players who will complain about necros having fun. :/

@Galmac.4680 said:I see an ANet developer reading this and thinking how he can nerf this down to below any dwarf caves. Would be nice, of course, but think of all other players who will complain about necros having fun. :/

Some day, you know, we gonna dance with those lions.... and have a decent elite to at least be viable in pvp/pve/wvw.

I dont like "forum E-specs" but this looks pretty nice. I would like to be this dark/light priest that dies last and keeps allies alive <3I just have a problem with so many resistance :/ it will kill us in WvW> @Galmac.4680 said:

I see an ANet developer reading this and thinking how he can nerf this down to below any dwarf caves. Would be nice, of course, but think of all other players who will complain about necros having fun. :/

Or. That would be nice elementalist/mesmer/guardian/warrior/ranger :D

@"Catchyfx.5768" said:I dont like "forum E-specs" but this looks pretty nice. I would like to be this dark/light priest that dies last and keeps allies alive <3I just have a problem with so many resistance :/ it will kill us in WvW

How come? What is bad about having resistance?

Its just too much resistance i think( necro have decent condi transfer/cleanse) it would have to be tested in practice,now it's just speculation.But what I like the most is that synergy with other specs. Thats what we need. And it doesnt look overpowerd. Elite is top.Its all pretty nice.GJ!

Sounds pretty fun and well thought out but if you want a damage focused option in it you need modifiers. Something like "your hammer skills do 10% more damage against vulnerable targets" or "mantras increase your damage output for 10 seconds". Other than that it is a nice support/tank focused elite spec.

@"Deadvillager.1956" said:Sounds pretty fun and well thought out but if you want a damage focused option in it you need modifiers. Something like "your hammer skills do 10% more damage against vulnerable targets" or "mantras increase your damage output for 10 seconds". Other than that it is a nice support/tank focused elite spec.

Well, damage for this elite comes from synergy from other traitlines. This elite by itself have very low damage, that's why it is a tank /support elite.

@Regon Phoenix.8215 said:

@"Deadvillager.1956" said:Sounds pretty fun and well thought out but if you want a damage focused option in it you need modifiers. Something like "your hammer skills do 10% more damage against vulnerable targets" or "mantras increase your damage output for 10 seconds". Other than that it is a nice support/tank focused elite spec.

Sure Lets this tank/support. With this you have more utility for PvP/WvW and can be tank/support in PvE too. Dmg can do other E-specs.

@Catchyfx.5768 said:

@Regon Phoenix.8215 said:

@"Deadvillager.1956" said:Sounds pretty fun and well thought out but if you want a damage focused option in it you need modifiers. Something like "your hammer skills do 10% more damage against vulnerable targets" or "mantras increase your damage output for 10 seconds". Other than that it is a nice support/tank focused elite spec.

Yeah, however, if you built for damage, then this elite will be able to deal damage. It can put out lots of vulnerability and have easy access to fury, so it can deal damage comparable to reaper/scourge.However, because this elite is built for tanking, it have much better kit and options to do just that.

@Regon Phoenix.8215 said:

@Catchyfx.5768 said:

@Regon Phoenix.8215 said:

@"Deadvillager.1956" said:Sounds pretty fun and well thought out but if you want a damage focused option in it you need modifiers. Something like "your hammer skills do 10% more damage against vulnerable targets" or "mantras increase your damage output for 10 seconds". Other than that it is a nice support/tank focused elite spec.

Fair enough, I just thought it was supposed to have some damage options based on your OP.

@Deadvillager.1956 said:

@Regon Phoenix.8215 said:

@Catchyfx.5768 said:

@Regon Phoenix.8215 said:

@Deadvillager.1956 said:Sounds pretty fun and well thought out but if you want a damage focused option in it you need modifiers. Something like "your hammer skills do 10% more damage against vulnerable targets" or "mantras increase your damage output for 10 seconds". Other than that it is a nice support/tank focused elite spec.

It does. But it is not built for damage.Just like Reapers is not built for condition damage (well, not anymore) and Scourge is not built for power damage, they still can do it. Some goes with this elite. It can do damage, but that's not the main thing about elite.