Willbender Rework

[zicaB.1794]

Hello players. Here are some suggestions for Willbender that I would like to share with you. My English is bad, but I hope you can understand. The goals here are to open up a variety of builds for Willbender, including:

1.  Improving PVE support with an easy way to share alac, migth and fury.
2.  Provide Willbender with access to more sustain buildings to help in long fights/duels via BARRIER, BLOCKs and CC's.
3.  Improving the high mobility burst assassin role with SUPERSPEED and CC's.

 

LIST OF WILLBENDER TRAITS

 

(Minor Adept) Willbender Training: The guardian's Virtues are now movement based, giving them a swift advantage in combat. Gain access to the Physical skill type. WILLBENDER GAIN ALACRITY WHEN ACTIVATE A VIRTUE. 

1. (Major Adept) Searing Pact: Gain condition damage. Willbender Flames now inflict burning on foes they strike.
2. (Major Adept) Power for Power: Gain increased power. Willbender Flames deal increased damage to foes they strike.
3. (Major Adept) Conceited Curate: Gain increased healing power. WILLBENDER FLAMES NOW GRANTS BARRIER TO NEARBY ALLIES when they strike an enemy.

 

(Minor Master) Righteous Sprint: Gain increased movement speed. Gain swiftness when you activate a virtue. 

1. (Major Master) Restorative Virtues: Triggered virtue effects reduce the cooldown of active weapon abilities. ALACRITY IS REMOVED.
2. (Major Master) Holy Reckoning: Triggered virtue effects now GRANT MIGHT TO NEARBY ALLIES. GRANT FURY WHEN ACTIVATING RUSHING JUSTICE.
3. (Major Master) Vanguard Tactics: Activating Courage grants resistance. Shadowstepping grants resolution and protection.

 

(Minor Grandmaster) Lethal Tempo: Each time you activate a virtue or your virtue's passives are triggered, gain a damage bonus. Gaining stacks of this boon refreshes other stacks. 

1. (Major Grandmaster) Phoenix Protocol: Gain alacrity and regeneration when resolve's effect triggers. WHEN YOU APPLY ALACRITY TO YOURSELF, GRANT ALACRITY TO ALL NEARBY ALLIES. RESOLVE HEAL IS TRANSFERED TO ALLIES. Resolve has a modified duration. (With this change we could share alac and heal allies)
2. (Major Grandmaster) Tyrant's Momentum: Lethal Tempo grants increased damage, but has reduced duration. Justice's duration is modified. GAIN SUPERSPEED WHEN YOU ACTIVATE A VIRTUE.
3. (Major Grandmaster) Deathless Courage: Courage initial duration is reduced. Killing a foe extends the duration of Courage up to the maximum duration. AEGIS GRANTS BARRIER WHEN BLOCKS AN ATTACK.

 

VIRTUES 

ACTIVATING A WILLBENDER FLAMES NO LONGER DESTROYS OTHER ACTIVE WILLBENDER FLAMES EFFECTS.

1.  Rushing Justice. Rush toward your target and then SHADOWSTEP to gain Justice delivering a strike and emanating Willbender Flames. (Similar to sword 5).
2. Flowing Resolve: Remove conditions and gain Flowing Resolve. Rush forward and evade attacks while leaving Willbender Flames in your wake. DISTANCE TRAVELED: 600.
3. Crashing Courage: Shadowstep a short distance while gaining boons and emanating Willbender Flames from your location. Gain Courage. RANGE: 800.

 

SWORD 

1. Executioner's Calling: STUN your foe with rending force. Follow up this attack with a dual strike that deals increased damage against foes you struck with the first.
2. Advancing Strike: Quickly dash toward your foe and then shadowstep to deliver a debilitating attack that first slows and then immobilizes your enemies.

 

HEAL, UTILITY AND ELITE 

1. Reversal of Fortune: same effects but with no animation. (The idea is that Willbender will continue to be aggressive and attack enemies even using the healing ability, similar to herald). 
2. Flash Combo: SHADOWSTEP TO YOUR TARGET AND PERFORM A QUICK HEEL STRIKE THAT STUNS YOUR TARGET. Gain access to Repose if you interrupt your target. (The idea is to merge heel crack and flash combo in a single skill). HEEL CRACK IS REMOVED.
3. Whirling Light: Lunge forward and perform a whirlwind kick, weakening and burning any foes left in your wake.
4. Roiling Light: Break stun and dodge backward, blinding foes and gaining swiftness. Then, gain access to Quick Retribution. Quick Retribution: Lunge forward and unleash a disorienting strike at your foe, dazing them. RANGE: 450. (I don’t know what’s wrong with this skill but some times is just impossible to land if your target just walk. Maybe with more range it could work)
5. NEW UTILITY:  PROTECT YOURSELF TO BLOCK INCOMING ATTACKS FOR A SHORT DURATION. IF AN ATTACK IS BLOCKED, GAIN ACCESS TO A GROUND TARGET TELEPORT. RANGE 600. 
6. Heaven's Palm: Shadowstep and slam the ground, knocking down your targeted foe. Foes that aren't targeted are knocked back instead. GAIN EVADE (1 ¼ s). THIS SKILL NOW ATTACHES TO THE TARGET (similar to Elementalist scepter skill 2 rework)

 

POSSIBLE BUILDS: PvP and WvW 

1. High mobility burst assassin: 2-3-2.
2. Bruiser/tank: 2-3-3 or 3-3-3
3. Support: 3-2-3 

POSSIBLE BUILDS: PVE 

1. DPS: 2-1-2
2. AlacDPS: 2-2-1
3. Heal Alac: 3-2-1

[MagicBot.1570]

While some suggestions make sense (mightshare on Holy Reckoning and shared heal on Phoenix Protocol - the fact that it turns to regen is a meme)... That's a tinsy winsy bit OP m8. There's absolutely no reason to put Superspeed on Tyrant's Momentum, and I also don't think the build should share more Fury - you have Fury on "Feel My Wrath!" already.

 

I think a more logical thing to do would be for Rushing Justice to apply more Might to allies, and they could bind this feature to Holy Reckoning (10 stacks for 8 seconds), or have it enable Might share when hitting. The might could also be baked into the offhand Sword to make it more appealing, instead of adding Stun to it.

Essential things to fix include adding decent Might share options and Flowing Resolve heal share - that is all.

Edited June 14, 2023 by MagicBot.1570

[SoftPup.3048]

I really, really like being able to give alac without taking Virtues. Shouldn't need two traitlines to give one boon.