Bladesworn Feedback Thread

[GuildCade.2846]

I find the OH pistol to be underwhelming, and the Gunsaber to be ok so far. I probably wouldn't use OH pistol at all. Not much of a reason to swap to it over Gunsaber. Gunsaber in PvP was fun, but I feel like I lack options without multiple burst skills. Dragon trigger is alright. Can be kind of a fun mind game, but longer charge damage is meh. Feels better with the stun talent, though, but only because of the massive stun. Also the "Fast Hands" trait doesn't apply to Gunsaber swaps. Also, if weapon swap is disabled, why not make gunsaber swap the weapon swap key or make it F2 or F5 instead of F1. That's our burst key. You should know that warrior players are lucky if they don't get drool on the keyboard. Why you gotta make us mentally rebind keys like that?

Edit: Daring Dragon kicks you out of dragon trigger temporarily. If you're pro-gamer spamming your attacks it will perform a regular gunsaber ability and put Dragon Trigger on a short CD. Not ideal for this trait, since you're already kinda immobile.

Edited September 22, 2021 by GuildCade.2846
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[MrDarkCript.7085]

For me the Off-Hand pistol doesnt feel like you are using a pistol, is more like a Slingshot were you have to grab some stones and shoot while fighting with your Axe.

[GrayBalls.5968]

Would be nice to stow the gunblade to cancel dragon trigger. Solves the issue of not enough damage payoff for the vulnerability of the charge up IMO (in PVP).

[Kidel.2057]

It seems Bladesword is actually decent. Vindicator on the other hand is a total mess. 

[punahou.3986]

27 minutes ago, daiball.5349 said:

They could keep the damage the same but make it charge a lot faster in pvp but I dunno would probably need a design tweak to work in pvp

the set up im using so far is bulls rush to stun then the stance that makes you immune to damage while i charge it

 

[punahou.3986]

I would also like the option to transmog my gunblade

[Gorem.8104]

Is anyone, ever, going to use Dragonspike mine? 

 

I don't understand the point of it. Its worse then shake it off, has a longer cd, only has one charge and doesn't get effected by the elite. Its only bonus is it resets dragon trigger. Like we totally need more access to doing less damage. 

 

Needs a total revamp/change 

[trunks.5249]

7 hours ago, daiball.5349 said:

I think its really fun to play but find its lacking a lot of damage in pvp for the set up required, max dragon trigger did about 3 to 6 thousand damage which for a skill that requires so much set up seems pretty low.

so you want one hit to take almost 25% of some of the other builds hp? thats just silly

[ZEUStiger.3590]

Ok, some actual feedback this time.

 

Why oh why have you decided to swap the meaning of F* buttons around. Burst was always on F1! Why did you feel the need to change it? To arrange the buttons on the bar in the order they are supposed to be pressed?

• Core warrior has burst on F1.
• Berserker pre-rework had burst on F1, new profession skill on F2.
• Berserker post-rework has burst on F1, new profession skill on F1.
• Spellbreaker has burst on F1, new profession skill on F2.
• Bladesworn has burst on F2, new profession skill on F1.

Why? All muscle memory goes to hell. I'm not going to rewire my brain every time I switch to this specialization. I will have to change keybinds every time, or else half the time I want to use Dragon Trigger I will instead end up Sheathing Gunsaber.

Please change this. Move the skill buttons to the right of the adrenaline bar, where they always used to be, and swap them around. Or add per-specialization keybinds. Right after you add per-profession keybinds.

 

Bursts should not be interruptable by other skills. There's way too big of an investment into charging them up only to end up wasting both time and adrenaline because you used a healing skill a moment too early and interrupted the burst cast.

 

On that note, it's a little hard to distinguish when the burst actually landed by the sound alone. There's the initial explosion sound cue immediately upon activating the skill, and after hearing a sound cue - you would think the skill has done its effect. But no, in case of Dragon Slash - there's a second sound cue that follows - the slashing sound. I don't understand the need for two sounds. Or the explosion in general: why is there an explosion happening in sheath?

 

The spec overall feels more sluggish than it should be, for the most part because of unnecessarily long cast times and aftercasts. Dragon Trigger in particular should probably have higher priority than other weapon skills to be able to interrupt them, as using it fast can be paramount if you're trying to stack various damage buffs: e.g. warhorn's Charge, Peak Performance proc. The latter specifically, being only 6 second, already gives you little room for error, and having to wait for some stray autoattack to finish casting before the skill queue reaches Dragon Trigger feels exceptionally bad. And you cannot queue "Unsheathe Gunsaber" into "Dragon Trigger" directly, because Dragon Trigger isn't clickable until it flips over from Unsheathing, so a random autoattack can easily squeeze through. Because of this, the order of skills has to be "Charge, Unsheathe, Physical skill while unsheathing, Dragon Trigger", which, while usable, feels a little convoluted. Why not add an option instead to DIRECTLY invoke Dragon Trigger from ordinary weapon set, bypassing the awkward transition to Gunsaber?

 

Lack of any precision modifiers that the entire warrior class suffers from is felt especially bad with this spec. Missing one crit out of half-a-dozen that you do every second on another spec isn't the end of the world (but still painful), but here, having your druid briefly running away and dropping Spotter from you for a short second can screw you over big time. Adding a PvE-only "Burst skills have additional 15% chance to crit" modifier to a minor trait in Bladesworn tree would go a long way towards making sure that the spec doesn't feel awful to play in less-than-ideal environment.

 

Putting Sheathe Gunsaber on weapon swap cooldown every time you Burst feels bad. It practically turns this spec from "still sort of having 2 weapons" into "camping Gunsaber 100% of the time except when there's a huge downtime", because you have to wait for so long to swap to your ordinary weapons. And to make it worse, your ordinary weapons are even less useful due to loss of access to regular bursts.
I understand that this is done to allow "on weapon swap" procs to not be near-useless with this spec. But it's also inconsistent with itself: cancelling Dragon Trigger (with Escape for example) DOES NOT put "Sheathe" on cooldown. So it's not like you're "weapon swapping to Dragon Trigger and back", it's more like "you're weapon swapping from Gunsaber to the very same Gunsaber", which makes little sense.
The only thing that makes it slightly more bearable is that "Sheathe/Unsheathe" cooldown is affected by alacrity, while regular weaponswap isn't, but this only serves to make the spec even less versatile outside of organized environments.

 

My overall impression after doing a few raids with it: I liked it, but I didn't feel good while playing it. This spec is one big gimmick that will only see adoption in certain niche scenarios, after its damage will be properly balanced to not overshadow berserker 100% of the time. It makes you feel incredibly selfish to just be standing in one place, effectively AFKing for 5+ seconds, while other people have to deal with all the chaos happening around you, and you cannot help them, because that means wasting resources and time already put into charging the burst. Bladesworn adds a, while cool thematically, but still only a very niche gameplay option to a class that's already starved for options: warriors still have no proper PvE support spec, existing PvE builds struggle with identity and public perception, and their usefulness in PvP has diminished after years of balance decisions made not in their favor. While EoD is a correct "place" to be adding bladesworn to the game, I don't think now was the correct "time" for it. The class has many lingering issues that need to be resolved first, before adding more toys to it that are cool for the sake of being cool.

 

Amazing use of the ammo system, tho.

Edited September 22, 2021 by ZEUStiger.3590

[oscuro.9720]

1 hour ago, Sykper.6583 said:

Quick tallies, from an SPvP perspective:

 

- This spec has undeniable potential, which is precisely why the SPvP side of numbers is so bad for it. Dragon Trigger hits like a wet noodle. I don't want it to hit for 100% on a heavy armor target, but it shouldn't be chunking at full capacity for a few thousand on a non-crit.

- Also, it can be interrupted. I would give stability to the 4 skill on top of Aegis. There are several sources of unblockable CCs, Dragon Trigger is unviable at this moment.

That said, I think there's great potential for a shout support spec with that elite skill, but playing with it feels like I'm missing a lot, it feels unfinished.

I was thinking about this very thing. Perhaps if the bullets stored in dragon trigger do not disappear when dragon trigger is interrupted or cancelled? That way, yes, you don’t get to have the damage payoff and have to deal with being CC’d, but you have more potential next time. Just kind of a though I had when dueling (haven’t done spvp, mostly duels and roaming). What do you think?

[Loading.4503]

Im over here at work reading all the feedback posts since i havent had a real chance to play, and i just wanna let everyone know that ill have an extra $30 to spend on whiskey instead

 

that is all.

[Kronos.2560]

I found it to be fun. The dragon slash has a lot of potential. But enjoy it while you can. I can almost guarantee even if it's not high on the dps chart they will nerf it to the ground because it's high on the burst. Someone dumb will let a gunslinger charge it all the way and get 1 shot. Complain and nerf Hammer. I mean they even nerfed fiery great sword on ele because they could use skill 4 into a wall and cheese in pve(you could literally just fight normal and it would be WAY faster but was fun to see stuff melt or get 1 hit) ele wasn't even hitting as good as gunslinger burst damage.

[RevaN.9316]

I tested a lot in PVP and i noticed that after leaving dragon stance ( F2 ) you can't swap the weapons since the F1 ( Gunblade ) shares cooldown and so you are unable to swap to normal weapon. While playing i often was forced to stay in Gunblade because of cooldown shared with Dragonstance ( F2 )

[firedragon.8953]

The grip that male norn hold the gunsaber is too wide. The lower grip is almost off the hilt. It seems like the gunsaber grip has to be refined for many (all?) races.

[ChronoPinoyX.7923]

After further playthrough and testing, I've pretty much got the gist of how it works and how to utilize Dragon Trigger better in PvE Open World and Dungeons/Fractals.

That said, it is stupidly infuriating to actually pull off Dragon Trigger compared to any other Warrior Burst because literally any attack can cancelsthe DT stance and you can't do anything about it. I've had to practice this a stupid amount of times and when I do manage it, the pay off is pretty decent only on a certain extent. Being able to wipe clean a good chunk of a Champion's HP is definitely nice but that much work for it ain't worth the trouble when I can Spin2Win on Whirling Axe all day. 

If there's one thing I would change on Dragon Trigger's design it's put a permanent Stability on Trigger stance in order for it to actually be worth using. Obviously losing HP should still be a thing and that's where Aegis would be used on but the amount of times DT literally gets interrupted by something as miniscule as a mob tackling you is absurd. No one's gonna favour an easily interrupted Burst over other Burst types available on both Core and the other 2 E-Specs. This is such a massive design flaw from a practicality standpoint because 80% of the time, you're just getting punished for wanting to use a Burst skill. Either give us a permanent stability buff on DT or just don't bother with it because this is literally massive effort for no pay just because something happens to touch your shoulder kek

As for utilities, from a PvE standpoint, they're pretty useless from what I've seen thus far. I like the idea of where it was going but most Warriors would use Core Utilities over what Bladesworn offers. 

Lastly, just put Pistol on Main Hand and give it a ranged auto, but keep the other two skills. I actually really like the skills on Pistol for Bladesworn but I think these are better suited for a Main Hand weapon, not Off Hand. If I could use this in tandem with Off-Hand Axe, this would actually make Pistol a great weapon for this E-Spec. 

Edited September 22, 2021 by ChronoPinoyX.7923

[Darkgaiden.3791]

I dont even know why give it the option to wield pistols, you are going to be using the gunsaber 100% of the time, is stronger, with a very good move set, so the off hand pistol is not even a thing, this is designed to be a greatsword into gunsaber class,  95% of the time, the other 5% you will probably want something ranged like rifle or bow (but no pistol, off hand and with limited bullets and short range..NO!!)..... having a class have acces to a completely new weapon that only that class can use, is ridiculous and very poorly done.... at the very least elementalist can spawn elemental weapons and others can use them as well, this on the other hand feels like when you play personal story chapters and have to use someone else's weapon.

Peace ✌️

[Sykper.6583]

12 minutes ago, oscuro.9720 said:

I was thinking about this very thing. Perhaps if the bullets stored in dragon trigger do not disappear when dragon trigger is interrupted or cancelled? That way, yes, you don’t get to have the damage payoff and have to deal with being CC’d, but you have more potential next time. Just kind of a though I had when dueling (haven’t done spvp, mostly duels and roaming). What do you think?

that's...another idea I kind of like. I'll have to think on it some more where you can use Flow to precharge bullets, maybe up to a limit and shift out of stance.

I feel like that might break the idea of the charge your blade concept Anet envisioned but it would help Bladesworn SPvP a lot.

[Finney.6835]

The sad thing is that Anet has still not realized what the real problem with the Warri is. 
What the warrior needs is absolutely strong passive elements like the old (Signet of Healing), 
passive cleanse etc ... 
This constant casting of utilities that one needs to survive is just nerdy and absolutely weak. 
Everyone who is often in WvW / PvP with Warri knows what is meant. 
The damage done by the Bladeswordn is also completely kitten in my opinion. 
In Pve he might be okay, but WvW / PvP is an absolute joke. 
The spec is generally far too inflexible. Here the overall concept should be completely overhauled. 
An absolutely poor performance for 4 years of development !!!!!!!!! 
Heart of Thrones Release "old" Berserker this is what a horny warrior spec should look like. 
More evades, more blocks, more CC / Daze / Stun, more sustain that you have to 
constantly hit your opponent and FASTER uncomplicated BURST.

Edited September 22, 2021 by Finney.6835

[Xei Han.8736]

Bladesworn seems like one of the more solid specs for EOD so far.  It doesn't have a ton of frills, which fits well for warrior.  There's a good combination of standing your ground and mobility, so it makes for pretty fun melee combat.

My biggest complaints are actually on the pistol as a sidearm.  Dragon's Roar (skill 5) has a ridiculously short range—shorter even than your ability to close with your enemy using Gunstinger (skill 4), which is still shorter than almost any comparable skill.  Plus, one of the main benefits of skill 4 is that it reloads skill 5, but skill 5 is so short that you are practically within melee range before you can use it.  The easiest solution is to extend both of their ranges to 450; that puts them on par with the low end of similar existing skills (most of which have ranges of 600 or more).  Given that pistol doesn't need to be equipped to use the Gunsaber, I really don't see anyone using pistol in its current form.

Edit: I see a few people commenting on switching F1 and F2.  Didn't click with me why it was happening, but I kept sheathing the Gunsaber when I meant to go into Dragon Trigger mode.  And them I'm stuck waiting for the cooldown before I can draw it out again.  Very annoying.

BUGS:  Found two issues, one cosmetic.

1. When using Dragon Slash—Boost (skill 2) in a cave, I ended up inside the wall.  (We used to see this with Unrelenting Assault a lot.)
2. Cosmetic issue seemed to happen when activating Dragon Trigger during cooldown.  If the animation started while there was enough Flow but didn't complete before Flow dropped below the threshhold, the Bladesworn ended up with two Gunsabers: one wielded, one sheathed.

Edited September 22, 2021 by Xei Han.8736

[nopoet.2960]

21 minutes ago, Gorem.8104 said:

Is anyone, ever, going to use Dragonspike mine? 

 

I don't understand the point of it. Its worse then shake it off, has a longer cd, only has one charge and doesn't get effected by the elite. Its only bonus is it resets dragon trigger. Like we totally need more access to doing less damage. 

 

Needs a total revamp/change 

It's kind of cool with rifle.  Seems like there is a range build in there somewhere.  I played around with it.  Should be able to get it to work eventually.

[Drakhar.1389]

18 minutes ago, trunks.5249 said:

so you want one hit to take almost 25% of some of the other builds hp? thats just silly

Many things hit harder for far less investment. Lich autoattacks, True Shot, Gunflame, Arcing Slice, etc. All of which hit over 10k, and the most I've seen from Dragon Slash is 7k.

[felix.2386]

Just now, nopoet.2960 said:

It's kind of cool with rifle.  Seems like there is a range build in there somewhere.  I played around with it.  Should be able to get it to work eventually.

i thought so too, until a competent rev/thief or any bursty class with teleport jump you and you are instant death.

[Red Haired Savage.5430]

I played with it for about 20-30 minutes on the raid golem, which the DPS felt kinda low for how long you're waiting around and open world pve, it felt really clunky to play and as a lot of people said things were dead before you could really do much of a DT even quick charges.  It didn't seem to flow very well, pistol as a weapon didn't really feel like it fit.  The whole thing just felt very busy without accomplishing anything.  The gaining of flow really felt slow too.

[BeardRex.6739]

My original comment was about being forced to press-and-hold dragon trigger. I logged back in the next day and it was working as people say (a toggle). Not sure if I was bugged, but I am unable to replicate the issue.

Edited September 23, 2021 by BeardRex.6739

[Xei Han.8736]

19 minutes ago, ChronoPinoyX.7923 said:

[...] it is stupidly infuriating to actually pull off Dragon Trigger compared to any other Warrior Burst because literally any attack can cancelsthe DT stance and you can't do anything about it [...]

During Dragon Stance, check out skills 4 & 5 (Triggerguard and Flicker Step).  #4 gives you aegis without canceling the stance.  It's not amazing, but it's saved me a couple times.  Also, use Flow Stabilizer for the stability - 5s is pretty good if activated right before entering the stance.

@BeardRex.6739 It was a toggle when I played it.  Unless there's a bug?  Didn't release unless I hit actions 1-3.

Edited September 22, 2021 by Xei Han.8736
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