New Thief Elite Preview.

[Sobx.1758]

11 minutes ago, ens.9854 said:

Actually, anyone notice that he doesn't even HAVE an offhand weapon in the teaser? Intentional?

Don't teaser me like this anet.

https://wiki.guildwars2.com/images/thumb/0/06/Spec_image_Herald.jpg/800px-Spec_image_Herald.jpg

Herald holds nothing (...I think?).

https://wiki.guildwars2.com/images/thumb/6/64/Spec_image_Berserker.jpg/800px-Spec_image_Berserker.jpg

Berserker only holds a torch.

https://wiki.guildwars2.com/images/thumb/f/fd/Spec_image_Soulbeast.jpg/1024px-Spec_image_Soulbeast.jpg

Slb only holds one dagger.

 

Conclusion: it's just an art.

Edited October 4, 2021 by Sobx.1758

[Zacchary.6183]

13 minutes ago, ens.9854 said:

Actually, anyone notice that he doesn't even HAVE an offhand weapon in the teaser? Intentional?

Don't teaser me like this anet.

If scepter turns out to be a two-handed weapon, that would be a pretty interesting concept especially if you can also use it as a one-handed weapon in the other slot. In fact, if anet went this route they could probably please a majority of the thief community. It would provide 7 new weapon skills (5 + 2 dual wield), each with their own playstyle which could really help with the kit. Two issues however, one-handed stats would have to be doubled when two-handed or you are hurting yourself stat-wise. Also, for those of us who got a legendary greatsword for this spec we're screwed. Fashion Wars will also be bad, unless anet integrated it into the 2h mechanic.

Edited October 4, 2021 by Zacchary.6183

[Jumpel.3972]

31 minutes ago, ens.9854 said:

Actually, anyone notice that he doesn't even HAVE an offhand weapon in the teaser? Intentional?

Don't teaser me like this anet.

 Your comment make actually wonder if they will add a 3 without offhand 🤔

[Zacchary.6183]

23 minutes ago, Jumpel.3972 said:

 Your comment make actually wonder if they will add a 3 without offhand 🤔

They could and should have added a 4 and 5 to mainhand weapons since the beginning.

[Tdub.7628]

Looks like they may have chopped the head off on purpose. Maybe to now show the unique mask?

[ens.9854]

1 hour ago, Sobx.1758 said:

https://wiki.guildwars2.com/images/thumb/0/06/Spec_image_Herald.jpg/800px-Spec_image_Herald.jpg

Herald holds nothing (...I think?).

https://wiki.guildwars2.com/images/thumb/6/64/Spec_image_Berserker.jpg/800px-Spec_image_Berserker.jpg

Berserker only holds a torch.

https://wiki.guildwars2.com/images/thumb/f/fd/Spec_image_Soulbeast.jpg/1024px-Spec_image_Soulbeast.jpg

Slb only holds one dagger.

 

Conclusion: it's just an art.

Thanks, good research - wasn't around for those releases.

 

Now I can go back to being concerned about being stuck with pistol or dagger offhand for a ranged weapon.

[Meridian.9103]

9 hours ago, Xanhawk.3806 said:

Thief has two core support trait lines, they just aren't good like Ranger's.

You can't be serious. SA has 2-3 traits you may consider support, but they are very unreliable. Trickery is anything, but not a support trait line. It just happens to share a bit of fury and one stack of might (insane /s) on one trait.

[Meridian.9103]

--deleted--

Edited October 4, 2021 by Meridian.9103

[Meridian.9103]

--deleted--

Edited October 4, 2021 by Meridian.9103

[Geoff Fey.1035]

4 minutes ago, ens.9854 said:

Herald holds nothing (...I think?).

Technically in the original-original art he was holding a non-descript dagger in his hand.

[BobbyT.7192]

1 hour ago, Zacchary.6183 said:

If scepter turns out to be a two-handed weapon, that would be a pretty interesting concept especially if you can also use it as a one-handed weapon in the other slot. In fact, if anet went this route they could probably please a majority of the thief community. It would provide 7 new weapon skills (5 + 2 dual wield), each with their own playstyle which could really help with the kit. Two issues however, one-handed stats would have to be doubled when two-handed or you are hurting yourself stat-wise. Also, for those of us who got a legendary greatsword for this spec we're screwed. Fashion Wars will also be bad, unless anet integrated it into the 2h mechanic.

I have thought about that concept before, but tbh sounds like it would fit a warrior better.

Like their F1 would allow them to take their main hand weapon and use it like a  2 handed weapon, with different set of skills . Of course with 2 handed weapons, summon a 2nd one and dual weld them. (Dual welding Eternity would be sick). Though dual welding longbow seems weird admittedly.

Edited October 4, 2021 by BobbyT.7192

[Xanhawk.3806]

54 minutes ago, Meridian.9103 said:

You can't be serious. SA has 2-3 traits you may consider support, but they are very unreliable. Trickery is anything, but not a support trait line. It just happens to share a bit of fury and one stack of might (insane /s) on one trait.

Also gives Swiftness, Vigor, and rips and redistributes ripped boons to teammates.

Bountiful Theft is bad.  Thrill of the Crime is meh. Both are outclassed, but both still exist.  They’re meant for party use which is support.   They both need significant touch ups to even be useable unless new espect plays off of them well enough on its own.

They said Thief had no support. It has support built in but as I said in the comparison to Ranger, it’s not as good.

It’s bad, but exists.  Claiming it doesn’t is spreading false info if not downright lying.

[Xanhawk.3806]

2 hours ago, Jumpel.3972 said:

 Your comment make actually wonder if they will add a 3 without offhand 🤔

All of our main hand weapons have a 3 skill without an offhand.

Sword 3 with no offhand is Stab, with Pistol it's Pistol Whip, and with Dagger it's Flanking Strike -> Larcenous Strike.

Dagger is Twisting Fang (no OH), Shadow Shot (p), Death Blossom (d).

Pistol is Repeater (no OH), Shadow Strike -> Repeater (d), and Unload (p)

Scepter will get No OH 3, Dagger OH 3, and Pistol OH 3.

Reason a number of thieves prefer more OH weapons is because of this.  Dagger, Sword and Pistol will all get new 3 skills while the new OH gives a 4 and 5.  (Number of new skills stays the same I believe.  5 for Scepter and 5 if we had gotten Torch or Foci.)

Edited October 4, 2021 by Xanhawk.3806

[Meridian.9103]

13 minutes ago, Xanhawk.3806 said:

Also gives Swiftness, Vigor, and rips and redistributes ripped boons to teammates.

Bountiful Theft is bad.  Thrill of the Crime is meh. Both are outclassed, but both still exist.  They’re meant for party use which is support.   They both need significant touch ups to even be useable unless new espect plays off of them well enough on its own.

They said Thief had no support. It has support built in but as I said in the comparison to Ranger, it’s not as good.

It’s bad, but exists.  Claiming it doesn’t is spreading false info if not downright lying.

Ok, it has 0,5% of other classes support capabilities. That's technically not nothing, so labeling it as such is spreading false info. Gotcha.

[itspomf.9523]

Much as I hope that we can ditch Steal for Shadow Form and provide a more support / defense-oriented Thief specialization (if only to upset the PvPers by denying them something to complain about), I cannot possibly be the only person here whose hopes for  this are "don't suck."

 

I've tried all the Beta specs so far, and I hate to admit that my feedback has not been particularly glamorous.  So ... yeah.  Frankly?  All I'm asking for is something that's cohesive, thoughtfully designed, and gravitates around the core profession rather than the new mechanic.

 

Which insofar ... not a single End of Dragons Beta spec has managed to do.

 

Hence my dire lack of hope for this one being anything more than "notably tepid."

Edited October 5, 2021 by fluffdragon.1523
Updated to clerify which Beta

[draxynnic.3719]

8 hours ago, Tails.9372 said:

Which would put a 3-4 sec. CD on a base 130 HP heal, unless everyone else just stops attacking, and thus rendering it effectively useless as an in combat heal support.

If the Revealed itself is triggering the traits as well, your allies attacking might actually extend the effective duration through attacking, by turning a 2 or 3 second stealth into a 3 second reveal plus however long the stealth lasted. Just need to make it so that the thief who provided the stealth is also considered the source of the reveal.

[Jumpel.3972]

9 hours ago, Xanhawk.3806 said:

All of our main hand weapons have a 3 skill without an offhand.

Sword 3 with no offhand is Stab, with Pistol it's Pistol Whip, and with Dagger it's Flanking Strike -> Larcenous Strike.

Dagger is Twisting Fang (no OH), Shadow Shot (p), Death Blossom (d).

Pistol is Repeater (no OH), Shadow Strike -> Repeater (d), and Unload (p)

Scepter will get No OH 3, Dagger OH 3, and Pistol OH 3.

Reason a number of thieves prefer more OH weapons is because of this.  Dagger, Sword and Pistol will all get new 3 skills while the new OH gives a 4 and 5.  (Number of new skills stays the same I believe.  5 for Scepter and 5 if we had gotten Torch or Foci.)

 I know this but they also said a long time ago that they don't like 3  with no OH and it's only there for new player

[hash.8462]

14 hours ago, Sobx.1758 said:

https://wiki.guildwars2.com/images/thumb/0/06/Spec_image_Herald.jpg/800px-Spec_image_Herald.jpg

Herald holds nothing (...I think?).

He is holding Glint's Bastion on the left arm, nothing in the main one.

The only one that hold a weapon that has not been added is Willbender (the main hand sword).

Edited October 5, 2021 by hash.8462

[Loki.4871]

On 10/2/2021 at 9:17 PM, hash.8462 said:

He will be a healer... stealing the wounds of allies 🤣

Jokes aside... I don't have the faintest idea how it could be 😕

This is definitely my attitude. I've got a wait-and-see to this, in the "...alright, I didn't see this coming. I'm curious now" sense. As others have mentioned, it's probably playing up the shadow magic aspect from it's Guildwars I incarnation. Which could be interesting.

[Lazze.9870]

On 10/4/2021 at 11:47 AM, Panda.1967 said:

I think they meant that Thief lacks any core trait lines that play into support… Ranger has Wilderness Survival, which synergies great with Druid for a full support Ranger… but for a full support Thief, the full weight of that support functionality is on the elite spec, which doesn’t leave much room for synergies with any of the core trait lines.

 

Wilderness Survival is self-sustain. Nature Magic has some support synergy, mainly spirits in PvE. But in general druid has poor support synergy with core ranger, which is one of the reasons it can't compete as a support outside of being a PvE spirit bot (the other reason being generally poor design choices on druid itself).

 

On 10/4/2021 at 8:17 AM, Cynz.9437 said:

Druid would like to disagree.

 

Druid is far from perfect, especially when you look beyond the PvE spirits. And that is partially due to poor support synergy from the core class.

[Panda.1967]

On 10/2/2021 at 11:09 AM, FrownyClown.8402 said:

 

Here you go thieves. This preview is the best looking yet imo.

Just something I noticed recently… that’s no thief! It’s a dulahan! He’s headless!!!

 

note: sarcasm is implied… I know full well that it is a thief and he’s just portrayed in a pose that has his head below his shoulders from this angle… it’s just a funny little detail I noticed… extra funny with this being October and all…

[Tails.9372]

5 minutes ago, Panda.1967 said:

Just something I noticed recently… that’s no thief! It’s a dulahan! He’s headless!!!

He's also not jumping into battle, he's just getting blown away.

[Graeaw.6329]

On 10/2/2021 at 6:09 PM, FrownyClown.8402 said:

 

Here you go thieves. This preview is the best looking yet imo.

 

Picture is taken 0.5 seconds after getting hit by a fully charged Dragon Slash, thus the red splatter and no head.

[UNOwen.7132]

On 10/2/2021 at 8:02 PM, RyuDragnier.9476 said:

Why? Almost every spec for Thief is DPS, why on Tyria do we need another one?

We don't. But support cannot work with theives mechanics. If its support, its going to be useless. And well, scepter doesnt lend itself to much else.

Edited October 6, 2021 by UNOwen.7132

[Cynz.9437]

1 hour ago, UNOwen.7132 said:

We don't. But support cannot work with theives mechanics. If its support, its going to be useless. And well, scepter doesnt lend itself to much else.

 

I disagree. Rez thief used to be a thing for example. With some imagination one can alter stealth/reveal to something supporty and we do have plenty of it (stealth that is).

18 hours ago, Graeaw.6329 said:

 

Picture is taken 0.5 seconds after getting hit by a fully charged Dragon Slash, thus the red splatter and no head.

Don't forget the deadly banana peel xD

 

@Sind: where are you =.= You claimed we would get GS 😛

Edited October 6, 2021 by Cynz.9437