A suggestion to make Daredevil a close quarter dueling spec with adding new mechanics.

[Atalius.9407]

As far as I understood, they're trying to make DD a dueling spec but it is highly improbable to make a dueling spec without adding sustain and protection (which thieves should not have). I am suggesting some additions to swipe and some changes to traits to make daredevil a close quarter fighter that is based on evades and finding weakness.

Keep swipe as it is with 600 range but add a second skill that replaces swipe when swipe is used:

Swipe ===> Exploit : Starts in CD (same as swipe), when activated, for 5 seconds gain %10 damage and damaging skills gain 100 range and are "unavoidable"(ignores evade) against your target.If you go farther than 600 range to your target after using swipe, Exploit skill reverts back to swipe with remaining CD. Exploit is affected by talents that affect stealth.

Now to the traits:

Switch "Weakening Strikes" with "Marauder's Resilience".

Rework "Marauder's Resilience": Power to Vitality conversion is a joke. Instead gain an addition %20 damage reduction for 2 seconds against the attacking target when you succesfully evade an attack. (Foe must be within the range threshold)

Nerf "Staff Master" power gain to 100 and an additional 100 when wielding staff.

Now these changes enables thief to stay in the fight while preventing the in and out playstyle as a tradeoff. Main mechanic here is "Exploit" and you should stay in range to be able to use it as a burst ability.

[foste.3098]

They are never going to make additional abilities for old especs that already had a major balance pass. The most they will do for daredevil is number adjustments, which can be fine as long as they don't do the usual thing in that they overbuff daredevil and then nerf it in to oblivion over a number of months to compensate.

Marauder's resilience should probably change to something that plays in to the weakness subtheme of the new daredevil, something like ''critically striking an opponent increases the duration of weakness that is on him (x seconds icd per target), you take 10% less dmg from foes within the range threshold'', and keep it at the major adept slot.My reasoning is that daredevil does not need more hp outside of his marauder amulet amount to be effective, what he needs is passive damage mitigation to some degree in order to be able to favorably trade auto attacks. But as you said protection (unless stolen) is not on theme with the class so the damage mitigation has to come from ether toughness which thieves cannot afford to take unless they want to give up vitality (non viable trade) or ferocity (then you become a damage dealer that deals little to no damage) which leaves us with the only option of damage reduction traits and weakness.Also another huge issue is that brawler's tenacity paired with channeled vigor and bandit's defense is simply a much better defensive option than both other major adept traits, so they really need to supercharge the other 2 in order to make any kind of decision making happen.

EDIT: this idea was copied for teapot but what if the trait endurance thief actually stole endurance from your foe. You swipe and you gain 25 endurance and your foe looses 25 endurance, or if that is too much you gain 25 and your foe looses 10 or even 5; the point being that you disable 1 of their dodges when going for the offensive even if for a few seconds.That would play nicely with to the whole in your face acrobat-duelist theme but i doubt they would do it because that would mean half a minor trait is useless in pve (although it does give you 50 endurance in pve, but the issue still remains that you have 1 trait act significantly different in different game modes which anet said they don't want).