Mental Gymnastics of Elite Specialisations

[draxynnic.3719]

Yeah, it would be nice for boonstrip builds in PvE to have more boons to target. I think they're limited in how important they can make it in open world since not everyone has it, but even just sprinkling in a few Might stacks here and there would provide more purpose for boonstrip and provide a function for skills like Break Enchantment that can deal extra damage when a boon is removed.

[Kuma.1503]

PvP specs are a scam. 

You'd think. "I'm not allowed to be good in PvE because I am a PvP spec. Surely that means I am good in PvP"

But that's not how it works. If you overperform in PvP, people WILL complain and the nerf bat will inevitably drop. Scrapper (pre-quickness) was a PvP spec, and it got nerfed to low-tier. The same is still true for spellbreaker. 

 

WvW Specs do not have this issue. However... WvW is a forgotten game mode with very, very little dev time. If your spec is only good there, enjoy doing the same thing ad nausium with no shake-ups for years on end. The most you can hope for is maybe a balance patch or two to maybe shake things up a bit, but no actual new content or ways to enjoy the game mode. 

 

tl;dr  "PvP Spec" is synonimous with "bad", and WvW specs are only useful in a near-dead game-mode which receives a scrap of the dev time PvE gets. 

Edited October 3, 2022 by Kuma.1503

[draxynnic.3719]

There also seems to be a higher correlation between what is good in PvE and what is good in WvW to begin with, at least until ArenaNet started going with skill splits that changed functionality rather than just changing numbers.

[Mell.4873]

20 hours ago, draxynnic.3719 said:

 And with that the case, you simply can't justify the idea that it's fine for a specialisation to be weak in PvE because it's strong in PvP - because nobody's going to accept the corollary that it would be okay for a specialisation to be overpowered in PvP since that's justified by it being underpowered in PvE.

It simply depends on what you mean by being good in PvE, arguably in PvP anyone people dont expect is good I'm mean just look at my super tanky Carrion Untamed no one expects me not to be a bursty Greatsword user. 

PvE classes fall into 3 main types:

Tanky elites tend to be able survive anything through some gimmick. 

DPS elites rely on stacking bonuses and a good rotation

Support elites rely on an added mechanic that can give them some group buffs/heals/barriers. 

[Mell.4873]

15 hours ago, Kuma.1503 said:

PvP specs are a scam. 

You'd think. "I'm not allowed to be good in PvE because I am a PvP spec. Surely that means I am good in PvP"

But that's not how it works. If you overperform in PvP, people WILL complain and the nerf bat will inevitably drop. Scrapper (pre-quickness) was a PvP spec, and it got nerfed to low-tier. The same is still true for spellbreaker. 

 

WvW Specs do not have this issue. However... WvW is a forgotten game mode with very, very little dev time. If your spec is only good there, enjoy doing the same thing ad nausium with no shake-ups for years on end. The most you can hope for is maybe a balance patch or two to maybe shake things up a bit, but no actual new content or ways to enjoy the game mode. 

 

tl;dr  "PvP Spec" is synonimous with "bad", and WvW specs are only useful in a near-dead game-mode which receives a scrap of the dev time PvE gets. 

I thought WvW was there main focus at the moment. I mean it is receiving the most recent updates in terms of PvP content. 

[Kuma.1503]

43 minutes ago, Mell.4873 said:

I thought WvW was there main focus at the moment. I mean it is receiving the most recent updates in terms of PvP content. 

I would like them to continue giving it updates. Deliver on the promise of making it a cornerstone game mode. The last few balance patches were nice, but it needs so much more than that. 

Maybe some new maps to mix things up? Revitalizing Edge of the Mists? Introducing maps which ban the warclaw entirely or introduce the siege turtle. There are a lot of possibilities with this alone. It all feels like wishful thinking though.