March 19 Balance Update Preview

[Dinas Dragonbane.2978]

On 2/26/2024 at 4:16 PM, Batalix.2873 said:

I love how even remotely unique traits like Glacial Heart are becoming more and more flavorless.

What helps become a good control trait just becomes a self heal. This makes me too sad.

[Angesombre.4630]

What I really like about Anet is the ability to put bosses in bags of HP and reduce dps. Ok it's a defi mode the Febe CM. But it's still pretty funny, especially when some people cry that we've got too much DPS while the content is becoming more and more like bags of HP.

Edited March 4 by Angesombre.4630

[Asum.4960]

On 2/16/2024 at 7:34 PM, Butterfly Kingdom.8349 said:

Harbinger

• Wicked Corruption: Increased the damage modifier per blight stack from 0.5% to 1% in PvE only. Increased the critical-strike damage modifier from 10% to 12.5% in PvE only.
• Cascading Corruption: Increased the power coefficient from 1.0 to 1.5 in PvE only.

You guys really need more Devs in the Skills & Balance Team, or whatever it is called now.

Power Harbinger being completely useless, dead on arrival - as well as being boring to play with no gameplay distinction whatsoever between it and the universally superior Condi version, was Feedback you received in the Beta events leading up to EoD, in late 2021.  

Now, two and a half years later - you tease bringing power Harbinger into the Meta as headline feature of the patch on your blog, and these two lines are the extend of the changes. Three numbers got tweaked.

And this might even be enough to give it okay-ish golem DPS so it looks fine in a vacuum, but man.. really?

So then we copy the exact Power Reaper Build we've been playing since 2015, just switching out Reaper for Harbinger and Shouts for clunkier Elixir's, so we can do ~the same DPS, except with max health reduction rather than a damage soaking Shroud and Damage reduction as well as still being melee due to Cascading Corruption's design, just with far less overall cleave than Reaper, while doing the literal exact same gameplay as Condi Harb which we've been playing since 2022, which really is the exact same build as cScourge which we've been playing since 2017.

The excitement is immeasurable. 

Edited March 6 by Asum.4960

[Jski.6180]

These updates for classes seems a bit inconsistent best example is eng mech legs "Mecha Legs: This trait has been reworked. Gain resistance on dodging." Why is eng getting its condi soft cc trait an massive buff but other classes counter soft cc are not.

The "might" in wvw update seems a bit well just place holder ish no one going to run them after the update it may of been better to just cut the traits off in wvw for an few weeks down the rode update and what i hope is not wait till the next balance pach to put a real boon in there for an GM level trait. Tempest should at least get vigor and might durid should get reg and might and scorge gets fury and might. (i do not know durid and scorges boon type but i know tempest and sadly vigor on tempest never got its GM trait effect.)

[nopoet.2960]

On 2/16/2024 at 1:34 PM, Butterfly Kingdom.8349 said:

Thief

...

• Vigorous Recovery: This trait has been reworked and renamed to Pumping Up. Gain might when you dodge.
• Upper Hand: This trait now additionally restores initiative when you dodge.

Awesome.  Can you also look at Guarded Initiation.  It's kind of duplicative of Don't Stop.  I would like it to be replaced by something like "movement skills cause your next attack to daze your target for .5 seconds." Give it an 8 second cool down and call it something like Daring Momentum.  If you really like the condition protection, add dark aura to Hard to Catch and change the name to Grasping at Shadows.  That would give us 3 interesting choices in the middle of the acro tree.

[Ashen.2907]

A little disappointed that the overperformance of druid in competitive modes means that all ranger specs get a nerf for healing spring in all modes. Not happy about the change from on beast skill use to pet swap either.

[Titan.7853]

On 3/4/2024 at 10:37 AM, Dinas Dragonbane.2978 said:

What helps become a good control trait just becomes a self heal. This makes me too sad.

I posted what I think is a really good solution for Glacial Heart in the Guardian forum. 

I'll post a link to it here as well for visibility.  Please give it a read and let me know what you think:

Suggested Change:

• Glacial Heart: This trait chills, but no longer damages enemies that you disable and instead removes a condition from nearby allies when disabling or chilling an enemy.

In the post above, I explain clearly why I believe this would make Glacial Heart a viable alternative to Absolute Resolve for competitive gameplay, while still retaining what makes it unique.

Or, if there is concern this might remove too many conditions, here's an alternative version.  A minor heal could also be added too:

• Glacial Heart: This trait chills, but no longer damages enemies that you disable.  Glacial Blow now removes one condition from nearby allies per enemy affected.

Edited March 7 by Titan.7853

[Crowfang.8529]

On 3/4/2024 at 6:06 AM, Exalted Quality.8534 said:

No reaper nerfs in PvP when there's literally at least 4 in every single match is actually insane.

PvP matches are filled for 50% of the slots by necros and guards. Not very interesting indeed.

[Tofu.1865]

• Mechanical Genius: Reduced the recharge penalty for Mech Command skills when far away from the mech from 50% to 20%.
  
  i still find this kitten weird and funny because Ranger Juvenile pets are much much stronger at tankier than Mechs... it can even solo people on pvp and they have no recharge penalty,
  Mechanists one of the weakest specs on PvP right now and one subpar specs on PvE due to condi DPS mechanists lacking utility and damage, QDPS Scrappers got the same DPS as  full Condi mechs builds while scrapper having 3x the utility.

[Yerlock.4678]

On 2/16/2024 at 3:20 PM, Azure The Heartless.3261 said:

• Hundred Blades: Increased the power coefficient per strike from 0.35 to 0.4 in PvP only. Increased the final strike power coefficient from 0.8 to 1.0 in PvP only.

Unroot this? You unrooted zealot's defense...

 

 

 

 

Edited March 10 by gmmg.9210

[Puck.3697]

On 3/8/2024 at 4:13 PM, Tofu.1865 said:

i still find this kitten weird and funny because Ranger Juvenile pets are much much stronger at tankier than Mechs... it can even solo people on pvp and they have no recharge penalty,
Mechanists one of the weakest specs on PvP right now and one subpar specs on PvE due to condi DPS mechanists lacking utility and damage, QDPS Scrappers got the same DPS as  full Condi mechs builds while scrapper having 3x the utility

I wouldn’t rly call rangers pets stronger or tankier rangers abided by the dislike Anet has for permanent pets just as engineers have fallen into now

 we all said this when the demand for a golemancer started, we said it throughout the announcement, anet always dump on permanent pets, 

why?

because players unite when Pets start being equal, there’s 2 things which trigger the playerbase

- stealth

- pets.

anet nerf them because the overwhelming negative reaction received when pets start winning, if they get out dps’d by a build which is primarily made up of a pet, or killed in PvP they rage. 

and this is not exclusive to gw2, people get equally as angry about BM hunter in WoW, blizzard just listen to it less, 

mech at EoD launch was replacing the entire point of rolling ranger pet wise due to it just being by a 10 fold better, it was getting outrage from every corner because players absolutely despised the spec, it got neutered based on the back of those 2 points

It shoulda been a golem, which worked alike a weapon swap which we could pilot, not this permanent pet BS that was so obviously going to get raged over until nerfed. 

Edited March 10 by Puck.3697

[ShadowKatt.6740]

9 hours ago, Puck.3697 said:

It shoulda been a golem, which worked alike a weapon swap which we could pilot, not this permanent pet BS that was so obviously going to get raged over until nerfed. 

We already have that. The Asura have had that literally since Day 0. Now, tell me how many times you've seen it used. Go on. I'll wait.

Because the numbers is so high that a frostbite amputee could count it on one hand. No one uses transformation skills because transformation skills are possibly THE ABSOLUTE WORST skills in the game. Asuran Golems, Norn Spirits, even elementalist, engineer, and warrior have a transformation skill. And no one uses it. Why? Because the skills that you get while transformed absolutely pale is comparison to your own weapon skills, have almost no synergy with your traits outside of accidentally, and it's overall just painting a big "KILL ME!" sign on yourself.

I wish they were worth it, but they never were, and they never will be. You know how the meta works. If transformation skills were worth it then the next zerg vs zerg would look like an army of golems and bears/wolves/leopard/ravens in the middle of Tornado Alley on the worst day ever. And then all the transformation skills would get nerfed into the ground again because that's how Anet rolls.

[Zeus.9458]

Elementalist Balance Update Suggestions:

As an avid Elementalist player, I have several enhancements in mind that could refine our gameplay experience:

1. Make Obsidian Flesh Instantaneous: Drawing from the skill's earlier iteration which activated without delay due to no animation at all, enabling this skill to cast instantly is vital for survival in high-stakes moments where even a fraction of a second matters. Consider removing the animation of this skill.

2. Enhance Unravel with Stunbreak Capability: Given the current PvP landscape where stunbreaks are indispensable, integrating this feature into Unravel would not only complement the weaver's toolkit but potentially offer dynamic control between weaver and core stances for a period. Another suggestion would be to make this skill act as a Kit where you can go back and forth by will / for a limited time.

3. Boost Condition Resistance, Particularly Against Movement Impediments, Independent of Catalyst.

4. Shorten Mist Form Cast Time: The skill's cooldown no longer aligns with the swift-paced nature of gameplay in 2024, necessitating an update.

5. Revitalize Conjured Weapons and Traits: A complete overhaul to inject excitement and new strategies into their usage.

6. Introduce Stealth for Elementalists: This strategic addition could dramatically alter survivability and playstyle dynamics, akin to its application in classes with similar health pools.

7. Amplify Pistol Damage: To make the pistol a viable alternative in the Elementalist arsenal, its damage output needs significant enhancement to match or exceed the efficacy of fireweaver configurations, thereby ensuring gameplay is both enjoyable and competitive.

These are key points I believe would enrich the Elementalist gameplay. I'm looking forward to potentially seeing some of these ideas in the upcoming update!

Edited March 10 by Zeus.9458

[GeraldBC.4927]

I wholeheartedly agree with all the changes listed. I never played holosmith before, but I'm looking forward to trying that. I'm also looking forward to trying quickness power harbinger. I already have a spare template and tried it out. It doesn't deal any damage, but I'm hopeful that the balance patch changes it. 

[Bdecki.7856]

Any plans to touch Revenant scepter? It feels super underwhelming and unwieldy to use. Pulses useless condi and damage buff for a support in PvE, pulses might and fury that we don't need on allies. 2 on an ally feels awful, also does boring puny damage on enemies while just waiting for the barrier. 

[Myror.7521]

@Crowfang.8529 the reason might be cause the enitre Bladesworn spec is not healthy for the Game. You need to make it busted af to make it half good (compared with other Builds). Its simple a realy trash spec design wise and is in need of a complete rework If you ask me ^^

Edited March 12 by Myror.7521

[Tobias.4975]

14 hours ago, Bdecki.7856 said:

Any plans to touch Revenant scepter? It feels super underwhelming and unwieldy to use. Pulses useless condi and damage buff for a support in PvE, pulses might and fury that we don't need on allies. 2 on an ally feels awful, also does boring puny damage on enemies while just waiting for the barrier. 

Probably in 3-4 years!😕

[arazoth.7290]

3 hours ago, Tobias.4975 said:

Probably in 3-4 years!😕

I give it 3-6 months max for an optimalised state

[AquaBR.9250]

Since you are buffing pistol thief can you instead bring Ricochet back? I don't care if you make the weapon weak in the process i just wanna have the same fun i had 10 years ago

[Angesombre.4630]

Just if it's possible to stop making the game more and more boring by trying to break everything to make it look like we're making changes. Then you act like you've invented hot water when the problems are still there. Sometimes the changes make you wonder where you got them from, Anet. It's not like it's new, it's been several months/years that you've been transforming things, as if you didn't know in which direction you were going. 
We'd like to be able to play and have fun.
There are bugs, for example, on revenant that we've been trying to tell you for 2 years, but they're still there, and some are even older.

[Kaenaydar.5631]

I see untamed mains get the short end of the stick again. I play a axe axe/hammer untamed set up for low intensity build no matter what i put into its design 20k on a golem. I am told i play the untamed well but my dps sucks and each update hoping to hear my build will be viable only to see another nerf. One day expecting to log in and hear anet say your class is no longer viable and we will be making it a healer only class or wvw and pvp class. If you try to use it in pve content like raids and strikes it will not be able to join parties. We thank you for your support of guild wars 2 goodbye.

Edited March 13 by Kaenaydar.5631

[Gaiawolf.8261]

12 hours ago, Kaenaydar.5631 said:

I see untamed mains get the short end of the stick again. I play a axe axe/hammer untamed set up for low intensity build no matter what i put into its design 20k on a golem. I am told i play the untamed well but my dps sucks and each update hoping to hear my build will be viable only to see another nerf. One day expecting to log in and hear anet say your class is no longer viable and we will be making it a healer only class or wvw and pvp class. If you try to use it in pve content like raids and strikes it will not be able to join parties. We thank you for your support of guild wars 2 goodbye.

It feels like the cureent balance team has a personal vendetta against LI or even reactive builds. They are constantly making changes that force more complexity, APM, rote rotations, and restrictive build options into too many especs, outside a few exceptions. It used to be the other way around, where you could craft viable, less intensive builds for most especs, (even ele specs with Fresh Air builds!). Now you almost have to pick a LI espec or you'll feel kitten. 

I don't play LI builds, but I prefer lower APM builds that have more situational skills in line with earlier design concepts that encouraged using the right skill at the right time instead of just stacking your bar with more dps skills. Utility slots should be called utility slots for a reason. That design feels more like a dynamic, immersive ARPG to me. But these options are becoming more suboptimal in favor of gimmicky, finger-aching rotations.  

Maybe that's part of why I'm becoming more interested in WVW over PVE recently? But I do still love the story and lore of PVE. 

[mitri.3842]

On 3/10/2024 at 2:26 PM, ShadowKatt.6740 said:

We already have that. The Asura have had that literally since Day 0. Now, tell me how many times you've seen it used. Go on. I'll wait.

Because the numbers is so high that a frostbite amputee could count it on one hand. No one uses transformation skills because transformation skills are possibly THE ABSOLUTE WORST skills in the game. Asuran Golems, Norn Spirits, even elementalist, engineer, and warrior have a transformation skill. And no one uses it. Why? Because the skills that you get while transformed absolutely pale is comparison to your own weapon skills, have almost no synergy with your traits outside of accidentally, and it's overall just painting a big "KILL ME!" sign on yourself.

I wish they were worth it, but they never were, and they never will be. You know how the meta works. If transformation skills were worth it then the next zerg vs zerg would look like an army of golems and bears/wolves/leopard/ravens in the middle of Tornado Alley on the worst day ever. And then all the transformation skills would get nerfed into the ground again because that's how Anet rolls.

you are kidding, right? All the necro shrouds, Holoforge, Druid celestial form, Gunblade or hell even kits and elementalists weapon summons are variations of what op is describing and all are or were at some point meta.  The first four are baked into the spec and arent utility skills ya pick, unlike the racial skills you focused on so much that have barely been touched by updates since release, thats why no one plays them, not because transform skills are horrid in general, its because skills linked to race are balanced to be just flavor and not an actual thing you are meant to use in competitive modes.

Gundam mech would slap, but what we have is mechanist as is isn't particularly fun to play and if nerfs to it got undone, then it wouldn’t  be fun to play against.  so its just mid and any time it wont be everyone not playing it will complain until its mid again.

[ShadowKatt.6740]

13 minutes ago, mitri.3842 said:

you are kidding, right? All the necro shrouds, Holoforge, Druid celestial form, Gunblade or hell even kits and elementalists weapon summons are variations of what op is describing and all are or were at some point meta.  The first four are baked into the spec and arent utility skills ya pick, unlike the racial skills you focused on so much that have barely been touched by updates since release, thats why no one plays them, not because transform skills are horrid in general, its because skills linked to race are balanced to be just flavor and not an actual thing you are meant to use in competitive modes.

Gundam mech would slap, but what we have is mechanist as is isn't particularly fun to play and if nerfs to it got undone, then it wouldn’t  be fun to play against.  so its just mid and any time it wont be everyone not playing it will complain until its mid again.

MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM

I don't like you right now but I'll go ahead and admit that you're right about that. I didn't really consider them transformation abilities BUT if we're just going to call a "Transformation" literally "Any skill that changes my skills", then I suppose so. So...how about I get more specific, because Holoforge, Gunblade, Tool kits, and Elementalist weapons do replace your weapons BUT they don't remove your utility skills. Technically necro shroud is actually very good. It's far and above the asura and norn racial skills. I actually don't know how the celestial form works because I haven't even tried it in years but I think it's in line with the necro shroud.

That being said though, I'm insulted by your insinuation that the racial skills are just "Flavor" That's a kitten arguement and you're a bad person for using it. If the skills under perform then they should be fixed. Of course, there's not a shortage of those skills in the game right now but that doesn't excuse the fact that if that were the only reason they aren't used then that is a massive failing on Anets part and it's a slap in the face to us as players. Here's skills, no you can't use them without being a literal liability to everyone around you. That's unacceptable at any time and a worse answer than "We just haven't gotten to it" or "We just don't want to".

[Gaiawolf.8261]

26 minutes ago, ShadowKatt.6740 said:

MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM

I don't like you right now but I'll go ahead and admit that you're right about that. I didn't really consider them transformation abilities BUT if we're just going to call a "Transformation" literally "Any skill that changes my skills", then I suppose so. So...how about I get more specific, because Holoforge, Gunblade, Tool kits, and Elementalist weapons do replace your weapons BUT they don't remove your utility skills. Technically necro shroud is actually very good. It's far and above the asura and norn racial skills. I actually don't know how the celestial form works because I haven't even tried it in years but I think it's in line with the necro shroud.

That being said though, I'm insulted by your insinuation that the racial skills are just "Flavor" That's a kitten arguement and you're a bad person for using it. If the skills under perform then they should be fixed. Of course, there's not a shortage of those skills in the game right now but that doesn't excuse the fact that if that were the only reason they aren't used then that is a massive failing on Anets part and it's a slap in the face to us as players. Here's skills, no you can't use them without being a literal liability to everyone around you. That's unacceptable at any time and a worse answer than "We just haven't gotten to it" or "We just don't want to".

Racial skills are intentionally undertuned by the developer, and have been since Day 0 (beta), because they don't want any race to be more effective than any others in basically any situation.