Necro Elite Spec concept: Bellringer

This is a very very rough sketch I came up with while bored at work. I havent done any damage calculations or anything involving cd's etc. Just a first draft. Thoughts?

Bellringer: Hammer Elite Necro Spec

Concept: Necromancer Tankier/Minion spec. Meant for longer terms of combat, Thrives in close range combat over longer periods of time. Meant to have a slower ramp up of damage, but able has a strong front line defense that’s easier to employ through summoning minions and altering reality to create Armors, and shields capable to help them mitigate damage that would otherwise stop them in their tracks.

“ After a period of long meditation on the concept of the Abyss, Necromancer’s are able to gain access to the Abyssal Shroud. They’re then able to pour the dark powers they’ve obtained into ripping open the vail between Tyria,Cloaking themselves in chaotic magics and granting them the power to twist shadowy terrors to their will ”

 Shroud  Abyssal Shroud: Death Shroud skills are replaced with new Abyssal Minion skills. Similar to Scourge, Bellringer’s lose the secondary healthpool of the Death Shroud, instead getting Abyssal Armor. Abyssal Armor( A.A.) is meant to be maintained through out combat similar to Revenant Upkeeps. The longer the Bellringer is in combat for the closer their connection to the Abyss Grows granting them access to Minion skills( sacrificing their damage reduction for cc/damage buffs) 

Abyss Shroud Skill:

Abyssal Armor: Bellring Shrouds themself in the chaotic energies of the void, Granting them a stacking %Damage Reduction Buff (~.5% damage reduction forever 1% capping at ~30%-35% reduction) Missing HP. (Traits activated entering shroud activate with A.A. Toggle on. Traits that affect maintaining Shroud have -effectiveness E.X. Deadly Strength: Power gain from Power from Toughness gain while in shroud at 1.5x instead of 2x

Walking on Glass:(requires 5 stacks of A.A. ) Bellringer Steps through the void, Shadow Stepping to target afflicting weakness for 2-5 seconds depending A.A. stacks, and applying bleeding to self. (traits affecting Shroud 2 apply on shadowstep connection)

Spreading Madness: (Requires 10 stacks) Marks the target with cripple for 3 seconds. After three seconds or the removal of Cripple the debuff pulls a grasping wraith from the void and fearing any of the targets allies within 10 yards for 2 seconds. Wraith lasts for 1-3 (depending on A.A. stacks) seconds re-fearing targets within area 1 additional second while they remain in the area.

Something something Fleshreaver/imp related: Something that summons a fleshreaver or an imp for a long distance single target either cc or burst hit. Maybe a grab or a pull Having a hard time thinking of another ability to make up the shroud bar(sorry)

Charging Darkness( minion): Purging their Abysall Armor, Bellringers Rip open the void summoning an Aatxe. Aatxe will fight for Necromancer for its duration causing 1 stack of torment for 2 seconds for every nearby enemy (max 5 stacks)

• (Aaxte absorbs damage equal to 2 x # of stacks of A.A. at time of summoning. As long as Aatxe is alive Bellring can not gain stacks of A.A. )-(Traits that affect on Exiting shroud activate on/affect the Aaxte)

Hammer Skills:

Hammer 1: ( Sound the Alarm-3 skill chain: 1( damage no effect) , 2( damage1.5 first swing /cripple ),3 ECHO (2x1st swing/aoe blind or short weakness)

Hammer 2:Hold them back( 3 part): Channels Block, if attack is blocked, Strike the ground knocking targets in a cone 5 yards back. If targets are knocked back can be recast to summon a Wall of Bones in front of Bellringer. ~Bone Wall mechanic: Blocks Projectiles, prevents movement through. Lasts 4 seconds.

Hammer 3: Leap to Target location causing 3 stacks of Bleeding within 5 yards on landing. Bone style animation striking out at target location.

Hammer 4: Channel: Pummel the air three times with such force that the shockwaves cause stacking confusion with each strike within 240 yards.

Hammer 5: Toll for the Dead: Strike the ground for aoe damage, after a short delay three bone fiends rise from the ground to fight for the Bellringer for 10 seconds. ( fiends are affected by minion traits not hammer traits)

Meditations:

Meditation of Blood: Apply Bleeding to self, After a Short delay heal for 3x the amount suffered from the bleeding.

Pain is Pleasure(charge 2) : Purge Boon from self, Gain Resistance. (Can meditations be on a a charge?)

Eternal Watch: Reveal Area, Mark targets in area with cripple and blindness. For Every enemy hit gain Protection and Retaliation. Breaks stun

At all costs: Gain might for every 5% of missing hp. ????(will change; place holder)

Contemplate the End(elite): Strike out at all enemies applying blindness, and 1 stack of torment( or flat damage depending on theme) for every 9% of Necro’s missing hp. Can be used while stunned.

Trait lines:

Adept:Minor Abyssal Adept: Allows Hammers Equip, death shroud is replaced with Abyssal Shroud.

Dearly Departed Friends: Abyssal Stacks also effect Minions.

Pain is a mind game(dumb name will fix): Meditations reduce duration of Conditions on self on use.

Flow of Hate: If under the effect of 3 or more conditions, gain superspeed.

Masster:

Minor That which doesn’t kill you: Gain power for each stack of Abyssal Armor past 10( 5 power to 1 stack)

They are Tools: When a Minion is killed gain stack of Abyssal Armor, if minion times out or A.A. is at cap, gain power instead.

???: Meditations receive reduced cd. Gain Toughness 100 when using mediation( stacks duration)

The Bell Tolls: Hammer skills receive reduced CD. Every 3rd Hammer skill Echos repeating previous effect/damage, ( or simply removing boon. Figure it out later )

Grandmaster:

Minor ???: Every x amount of hp lost, remove a condition.

???: Maintain 5 stacks of Abyssal Armor at all times; includes duration of Aatxe.

Hear my Pain: For every 3-5( balance issue) of Abyssal Armor, Hammer attacks apply confusion stacking.

Conceptualize Death: Meditations cause stacking buff up to X. Meditation of Blood consumes stacks increasing Bonus Healing from self-bleeding.

I read the title and I immediately assumed it was going to be a Garth Nix Sabriel/Abhorsen/etc series-inspired, where necromancers literally ring bells.Why is it called Bellringer and where are the bells?! Is this a minstrel necro? Do they ring bells, y/n? :D

The Idea for the name went thus. "I want hammers, what to do with hammers, what name works." And then I was thinking along the lines of the cartmen who would ring bells to bring out the dead during the plague. something with minions and hammers. they use the corpses around them to empower themselves or allies. Then I was something more like warning bells. Like they live on the edge of the void or the realm of the dead and sound the alarms when shits starting to go down. The hammer would like a two handed bell, the hammer 4 ability is supposed to be "sound the alarm" but something less corny. Bells so loud they can wake the dead, but as i got deeper in I decided to to do redos of minions and just make the "shroud" abilities more temporarily minion centered.

i don't like that it's a minion focused espec but other then that it's alright. (bit bland in it's theming)

@Udolpho.1209 said:I read the title and I immediately assumed it was going to be a Garth Nix Sabriel/Abhorsen/etc series-inspired, where necromancers literally ring bells.Why is it called Bellringer and where are the bells?! Is this a minstrel necro? Do they ring bells, y/n? :D

Same here! I read the title and imagined the seen from Monty Python and the Quest for the Holy Grail where a guy is going around ringing a bell and calling “Bring our your dead!” :lol:

Rather than have another weapon option, I think it would be fun if a new elite allowed you to reanimate vanquished enemies (maybe with a limit of up to veteran or you would only have so much power and could have one powerful minion or several less powerful ones) that would last until they were killed again, left the zone, etc.