October 8 Balance Update Preview

[Joie.6084]

Hi, everyone,

Welcome to the preview for the October 8 balance update! We're only a few weeks past the release of Janthir Wilds, so this update will be a bit smaller as we continue to watch and evaluate the impact of the new spears and relics. As always, the goal of previewing these changes is to gather your feedback before the live release. We'll be following the conversation and making further adjustments as needed.

Thanks,

Cal "cmc" Cohen

Skills and Balance Lead

General

The Celestial attribute combination has been exceptionally powerful in WvW since the addition of concentration and expertise, and it's something that we've been monitoring for some time. With this update, we're introducing the tech to adjust equipment's attribute distribution and the amount of attributes it provides on a per game–mode basis. The first use of this will be to remove both concentration and expertise from equipment with Celestial attributes in WvW only, to bring it back in line with other attributes. We'll be keeping an eye on how the tech performs and whether it needs any final touches, but, assuming everything goes well, it's something that we may use going forward to tune other attribute combinations in WvW specifically.

• Celestial equipment will no longer grant concentration or expertise while in a WvW map.
• Revealed: Increased the duration in WvW to match PvP.

Elementalist

The June balance update included a few tune-ups to the elementalist's dagger skills in competitive modes with the goal of making them more viable picks. These changes didn't quite have the impact that we were hoping for, so we've made additional improvements to the dagger skills for this update. We've also bumped up the damage on a handful of spear skills in WvW and made a few smaller improvements for support-focused tempest and quickness-based catalyst builds.

• Burning Speed: Reduced the cooldown from 15 seconds to 12 seconds in PvP and WvW.
• Convergence: Increased the power coefficient from 1.2 to 1.35 in PvP and WvW.
• Updraft: Reduced the cooldown from 30 seconds to 25 seconds in PvP and WvW.
• Ring of Earth: Increased the secondary-strike power coefficient from 1.1 to 1.25 in PvP and WvW.
• Churning Earth: Increased the power coefficient from 1.5 to 1.6 in PvP and WvW.
• Frozen Burst: Reduced the cooldown from 15 seconds to 12 seconds in PvP and WvW.
• Cleansing Wave: Reduced the cooldown from 25 to 20 in PvP and WvW. Increased the base healing to 2,222 in all game modes.
• Blazing Barrage: Increased the power coefficient from 0.9 to 1.05 in WvW only.
• Meteor: Increased the power coefficient from 1.2 to 1.35 in WvW only.
• Fissure: Increased the power coefficient from 1.0 to 1.15 in WvW only.
• Haboob: Increased the power coefficient from1.33 to 1.5 in WvW only.

Tempest

• "Wash the Pain Away!": This skill now removes a condition from allies on every pulse.
• Rebound: This skill now grants stability instead of fury.

Weaver

• Elemental Refreshment: This trait no longer applies barrier to allies. Increased the barrier from 523 to 1,003 in PvE only.
• Bolstered Elements: This trait now triggers Lesser Stone Resonance when you use an elite skill instead of at a health threshold. Reduced the internal cooldown from 70 seconds to 30 seconds. Increased the protection duration from 2.5 seconds to 3 seconds.
• Woven Stride: Reduced the internal cooldown from 5 seconds to 3 seconds.

Catalyst

• Invigorating Air: This skill now also grants 25 endurance when used.
• Spectacular Sphere: Increased the quickness duration from 2 seconds to 2.5 seconds in PvE only. Increased the might stacks from 5 to 8 in PvE only.
• Sphere Specialist: Increased the boon duration increase from 100% to 150% in PvE only. This trait now also allows the catalyst to gain energy while a jade sphere is deployed.

Engineer

Quickness-based scrapper is another boon-providing support build that we felt could use a bit more might generation, so we've added it to the trigger on Kinetic Accelerators. Flamethrower also gets a big upgrade with Smoke Vent becoming a stun break, which gives the kit a much-needed defensive tool.

• Blunderbuss: Increased the minimum power coefficient from 0.87 to 1.1 in PvP only.
• Energizing Slam: Increased the base barrier from 196 to 516 and the barrier scaling from 0.2 to 0.5 in PvP and WvW.
• Healing Mist: Reduced the cooldown from 28 seconds to 25 seconds.
• Utility Goggles: This skill now applies protection in addition to its previous effects.
• Regenerating Mist: Reduced the cooldown from 21 seconds to 18 seconds.
• Smoke Vent: This skill now breaks stun. Increased the cooldown from 15 seconds to 25 seconds in PvP and WvW.
• Elixir X: Reduced the cooldown from 85 seconds to 75 seconds in PvP and WvW.
• Energy Amplifier: This trait now grants power in addition to its previous effects.

Scrapper

• Kinetic Accelerators: This trait now applies might in addition to quickness in PvE only.

Holosmith

• Crystal Configuration: Eclipse: This trait now only applies barrier on Corona Burst's first hit. Increased the barrier on hit from 991 to 2,256 in PvE and from 748 to 1,804 in PvP and WvW. The barrier on hit is reduced for each hit beyond the first.

Guardian

In this update, we've made improvements to a number of underutilized guardian skills and traits to make them more viable options, including additional healing on Symbol of Faith, an update to Honorable Staff that makes Empower also grant endurance to affected allies, and additional ammunition for "Hold the Line!"

• Symbol of Vengeance: Reduced the cooldown from 12 seconds to 8 seconds in PvP only.
• Blazing Edge: Reduced the cooldown from 18 seconds to 15 seconds in PvP only.
• Symbol of Faith: This skill now heals allies on impact. Reduced the casting time.
• Shield of Wrath: Reduced the cooldown from 35 seconds to 30 seconds.
• Cleansing Flame: This skill now removes 2 conditions from the player when activated.
• "Hold the Line!": Increased the ammunition from 1 to 2.
• Signet of Judgment: This skill now applies protection in addition to its previous effects.
• Signet of Courage: This skill now breaks stun for the user and nearby allies when activated.
• Protector's Restoration: Reduced the internal cooldown from 30 seconds to 20 seconds in PvP only.
• Honorable Staff: This skill no longer grants additional concentration while wielding a staff and now causes Empower to grant endurance to allies.
• Writ of Persistence: Increased the healing from 64 to 107 in PvP and WvW.

Dragonhunter

• Hunter's Fortification: This trait no longer grants damage reduction and now heals when you block an attack in addition to removing a condition.

Willbender

• Heel Crack: Increased the ammunition from 1 to 2 in PvE only.

Mesmer

Ether Barrage is a skill that can vary significantly in effectiveness depending on which randomly chosen condition it applies with each strike. We wanted the skill to be more consistent, and going forward it will always inflict the same amount of torment and confusion every time the skill is used. We've also made some improvements to off-hand sword and axe in competitive modes and tuned up some other underperforming skills and traits.

• Axes of Symmetry: Reduced the cooldown from 12 seconds to 10 seconds in PvP and WvW.
• Lingering Thoughts: Increased the torment duration from 4 seconds to 6 seconds in PvP and WvW
• Phantasmal Swordsman: Reduced the cooldown from 20 seconds to 18 seconds in PvP and WvW. Increased the initial phantasm hit damage from 0.35 to 0.5 and the flurry damage coefficient per hit from 0.1 to 0.12 in PvP and WvW.
• Mirror: Increased the base healing from 4,299 to 5,195.
• Phantasmal Disenchanter: Reduced the cooldown from 30 seconds to 25 seconds in PvP only.
• Mass Invisibility: Reduced the cooldown from 60 seconds to 50 seconds in PvP only.
• Furious Interruption: Reduced the internal cooldown from 3 seconds to 1 second. Increased the quickness duration from 3 seconds to 4 seconds in PvE and from 2 seconds to 4 seconds in PvP and WvW.

Mirage

• Ether Barrage: The conditions inflicted by this skill are no longer random. This skill will apply 3 stacks of torment and 2 stacks of confusion per use. Increased the torment and confusion durations from 2 seconds to 3 seconds.
• Mirage Advance: This skill now dazes enemies that it strikes.

Necromancer

Transfusion has been a longtime pain point in WvW, but it has also been an exceptionally powerful tool for scourge in all game modes. Its ability to easily revive allies who are downed while out of position is something that we've been keeping an eye on for a while, and we see it as being too powerful. We still like Transfusion's ability to help revive allies, but we're removing the teleportation component to make it less of a guarantee. We've also tuned up the damage on axe in PvE and made some improvements to the core death shroud in all game modes. Reaper and harbinger both get some defensive updates that are primarily focused on slightly improving their survivability in PvP.

• Isolate: Reduced the cooldown from 18 seconds to 15 seconds in PvP only.
• Extirpate: This skill no longer inflicts Extirpation and instead inflicts weakness.
• Rending Claws: Increased the damage coefficient per hit from 0.6 to 0.7 in PvE only.
• Ghastly Claws: Increased the power coefficient per hit from 0.5 to 0.575 in PvE only.
• Unholy Feast: Increased the power coefficient from 2.0 to 2.5 in PvE only.
• Unholy Burst: Increased the power coefficient from 1.0 to 1.5 in PvE only.
• Consume Conditions: Reduced the cooldown from 30 seconds to 25 seconds.
• Signet of the Locust: Reduced the cooldown from 25 seconds to 20 seconds in PvP only.
• Plague Signet: Reduced the cooldown from 25 seconds to 20 seconds in PvP and WvW.
• Dark Pursuit: This skill no longer increases the cooldown of Dark Path.
• Life Transfer: Reduced the cooldown from 25 seconds to 20 seconds. Increased the bleeding duration from 2 seconds to 3 seconds.
• Tainted Shackles: Reduced the cooldown from 30 seconds to 25 seconds.
• Overflowing Thirst: Increased the life force per strike from 1% to 1.5%.
• Unholy Martyr: Increased the life force per condition removed from 3% to 7% in PvP only.
• Transfusion: This trait no longer teleports downed allies to the user. This trait no longer increases the cooldown of Garish Pillar in WvW.

Reaper

• Soul Eater: The healing from this trait can now heal the player while they are using Reaper Shroud. Healing while in shroud has reduced effectiveness in PvE.
• Blighter's Boon: Increased the base healing from 103 to 133.

Harbinger

• Blight: Reduced the health percentage decrease from 1.5% to 1% in PvP only.

Ranger

Ranger is currently in a good spot in all game modes, so this update includes a few smaller changes to underused skills and traits to make them more competitive options.

• Guard: Reduced the cooldown from 30 seconds to 24 seconds. Increased the might duration from 5 seconds to 10 seconds.

Soulbeast

• Moa Stance: Reduced the cooldown from 30 seconds to 25 seconds in PvP only.
• Maul (Feline): Increased the power coefficient per hit from 0.2 to 0.7.
• Spiritual Reprieve: This skill now cleanses 2 damaging conditions in addition to its previous effects.
• Second Skin: Increased the damage reduction from 20% to 25% in PvP only.

Untamed

• Nature's Binding: This skill now inflicts defiance damage on defiant enemies when used. Reduced the cooldown from 35 seconds to 25 seconds in PvE only.

Revenant

We've focused on improving the viability of some underperforming revenant builds in competitive modes with damage improvements to herald and main-hand sword, defensive improvements to Legendary Renegade Stance, and an increase to the outgoing healing bonuses in the Salvation trait line for potential support builds in PvP.

• Chilling Isolation: Increased the power coefficient from 0.5 to 0.7 in PvP and WvW.
• Notoriety: Increased the might stacks from 1 to 2 in PvP and WvW.
• Resolute Evasion: Increased the resolution duration from 2 seconds to 2.5 seconds. This trait now also grants a small strike damage reduction for 2.5 seconds after dodging.
• Invoking Harmony: Increased the outgoing healing bonus from 10% to 15% in PvP only.
• Serene Rejuvenation: Increased the outgoing healing bonus from 15% to 20% in PvP only.

Herald

• Shining Aspects: Increased the healing from 533 to 640.
• Forceful Persistence: Increased the damage bonus from 13% to 15% in PvP and WvW. Increased the facet damage bonus from 3% to 4% in PvP and WvW.

Renegade

• Breakrazor's Bastion: Increased the base barrier when enhanced from 1,480 to 1,960.
• Soulcleave's Summit: Increased the healing when using a Legendary Renegade skill from 929 to 1,199. Increased the life siphon healing from 392 to 489 in PvP only.

Thief

This update includes a couple of significant quality-of-life improvements for the thief's staff and scepter weapons. First, Weakening Charge will no longer have a movement component, meaning that players are free to move during its casting time. We've also changed Shadow Sap into a ground-targeted skill to give scepter-wielding thieves a way to support their team without needing to target allies. Our goal with these changes is to improve the fluidity of the weapons and make them more enjoyable to play. We've also updated Helmet Breaker to only be usable a single time before flipping back to Debilitating Arc, giving more access to the defensive evade. This is part of a set of changes targeted at improving staff's usability in competitive modes.

• Shadow Sap: This skill is now ground targeted and will fire a projectile at the target location. When the missile lands, it will strike enemies and grant barrier, might, and protection to allies. The strike no longer inflicts weakness on enemies.
• Orchestrated Assault: Reduced the damage increase from 33% to 7% in WvW and PvP.
• Harrowing Storm: Reduced the torment duration from 6 seconds to 4 seconds in WvW and PvP.
• Debilitating Arc: Reduced the initiative cost from 5 to 4 in PvP and WvW.
• Helmet Breaker: This skill can no longer be used multiple times in a row. Increased the power coefficient from 0.6 to 1.1 in PvP and WvW only. Reduced the initiative cost from 3 to 2 in PvP and WvW.
• Dust Strike: Increased the power coefficient per hit from 0.2 to 0.35 in PvP and WvW.
• Weakening Charge: This skill is now named Weakening Whirl. This skill no longer moves the player.
• Cluster Bomb: Increased the power coefficient from 1.45 to 2.25 in PvE only.
• Shadow Refuge: Reduced the cooldown from 48 seconds to 40 in PvP and WvW. Reduced the stealth duration per pulse from 3 to 2.5 seconds in PvP and WvW. Increased the healing from 1,775 to 2,851.
• Even the Odds: Increased the vulnerability stacks from 5 to 10.
• Sundering Shade: Increased the vulnerability stacks from 5 to 10.
• Hidden Killer: Increased the duration from 2 seconds to 4 seconds.

Specter

• Well of Sorrow: This skill now pulses conditions in a specific order. It will pulse torment, bleeding, torment, poison, and then torment.

Warrior

Similar to the upcoming change to Kinetic Accelerators for quickness-based scrappers, Heat the Soul will now also grant might to allies to give quickness-based berserkers better might coverage. We've also made some improvements to off-hand dagger and rifle and tuned up a number of underperforming skills and traits.

• Volley: Increased the power coefficient per strike from 0.75 to 0.8 in PvE only.
• Explosive Shell: Increased the power coefficient from 1.5 to 1.6 in PvE only.
•  Rifle Butt: Reduced the cooldown from 20 seconds to 15 seconds in PvE only.
• Tremor: This skill now recharges Crushing Blow if it strikes an enemy.
• Wastrel's Ruin: This skill now always inflicts its bonuses against defiant enemies. Increased the maximum number of targets from 1 to 2.
• Bladestorm: Increased the barrier per hit from 289 to 445.
• Kick: This skill now deals bonus defiance-bar damage.
• Dolyak Signet: The passive effect of this skill now grants reduced incoming damage instead of toughness.
• Signet of Stamina: Reduced the cooldown from 30 seconds to 20 seconds in PvE only.
• "To the Limit!": Increased the endurance gain from 50 to 100 in PvE and from 65 to 100 in PvP.
• Rampage: Reduced the cooldown from 90 seconds to 60 seconds in PvE only.
• Burst Precision: Increased the bonus ferocity from 150 to 250.
• Martial Cadence: Increased the number of conditions removed from 1 to 2 in PvE and PvP.

Berserker

• Heat the Soul: This trait now applies might to allies in addition to its previous effects.

Spellbreaker

• Sun and Moon Style: This trait now heals for a percentage of all strike damage instead of only critical hit damage.

[cat.8975]

Please rework Resolute Subconscious into a proper support trait 🥺

[Stompy.1387]

• Weakening Charge: This skill is now named Weakening Whirl. This skill no longer moves the player.

Saddening.

Edit: The issue here is that while Staff was definitely in dire need of some buffs, this is the wrong direction to take it.  Of all the Power DPS option on thief, Staff was already the easy, straightforward option, with the sole spice of playing around the Weakening Charge animation lock. With the movement component removed, the weapon completely lacks any sort of "minigame" which you see on just about every other weapon in the game. Dagger/Dagger and Rifle play around revealed timing, with Rifle stepping up the complexity with the Kneel mechanic. Axe, between the spinning axes, initiative refund, and recall skills is among the most rewarding weapons in the game for a skilled player that can manage its quirks. Spear, with the low initiative chains on the 2 and 3 skills, rewards players who can finish their combos with enough initiative to keep going for as they need.

Prior to this update, the sole "minigame" that Staff had was a simple risk vs reward check; if you can pick your openings and play around the animation lock appropriately, you get rewarded with a spammable, sizable DPS increase. By removing the animation lock, all of that thought goes out the window; you just tastelessly float around in melee range, brainlessly auto attacking and pressing 2 to do a glorified second auto attack that does a bit more damage. Guild Wars 2 combat just isn't fun when all you do there is stand in melee range and auto attack; the player needs a bit more to chew on than that.

After the recent fixes to Daredevil and Deadeye quality of life, current Staff is in an incredibly great spot right now, and is just in need of coefficient buffs to keep up with current Janthir Wilds balance. Weakening Charge hasn't been adjusted since 2018, which is the biggest offender here; a simple bump to the reward to help justify the risk of the animation lock would do wonders to bring the weapon back to life. Currently, power Spear Daredevil is sitting around 44k DPS, which completely removes Staff out of the running which sits at 41k DPS. A simple ~25% buff to Weakening Charge would bring Staff just in line with Spear, which would open up a world where players that can swap between the two weapons could be rewarded for double dipping on the Distracting Throw buff on the staff set.

 

As a last note, this also completely kills the synergy between Staff Daredevil and the Acrobatics traitline functioning as the defacto open world/solo traitline, as you no longer have a good way to proc Fluid Strikes without wasting all your initiative on Vault.

Edited September 13 by Stompy.1387

[Mascarun.7910]

• Sphere Specialist: Increased the boon duration increase from 100% to 150% in PvE only. This trait now also allows the catalyst to gain energy while a jade sphere is deployed.

We're almost there, but the part in bold should be default, not a trait that only applies to qDPS. Edit: well, I guess it also applies to heal catalyst, so now that might be more interesting. 

 

Edited September 13 by Mascarun.7910

[Nefras.7314]

• Celestial equipment will no longer grant concentration or expertise while in a WvW map.

BOIS WE ARE EATING GOOD TONIGHT LETS GOOOOOOOOOOOO!

[Codename T.2847]

Based holy kitten

[TallBarr.2184]

So when are you going to buff burn guardian? its been dogtier for quite awhile now and i miss playing pvp.

 

[Sereath.1428]

Addressing how overloaded Celestial has been already makes this an S tier patch.
The rest of the changes also look good.

Thank you team.

[ManoLito.4576]

10 minutes ago, Joie.6084 said:

Kinetic Accelerators: This trait now applies might in addition to quickness in PvE only.

What you really need is Fury generation, since the healer scrapper can maintain power without problem, so you wouldn't be depending on the Midnight King's relic.

[LionZero.3479]

Please make signet of the hunt for ranger duration based again in WvWvW.

[Reig.8173]

Hello, in Elementalist the Elite Skill Glyph of Elementals, the Elemental longer 120 seconds in Fire, Air and Earth but 60 in Water.

Can you please adjust Water elemental duration in PvE to 120 seconds?

Thank you!

The tooltip for the skill says 120 seconds https://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Glyph_of_Elementals

And this is the Water Elemental https://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Glyph_of_Elementals_(water)

 

 

[Eclipsiste.3251]

I guess catering to whiners who kept crying about cele is supposed to make us forget the fact that willies need to be tuned down... I wonder which devs play willy to make you keep such an unbalanced class like this

[Fractal Spoon.9280]

20 minutes ago, Joie.6084 said:

Similar to the upcoming change to Kinetic Accelerators for quickness-based scrappers, Heat the Soul will now also grant might to allies to give quickness-based berserkers better might coverage.

How about giving alacrity-based Bladesworn might too? Just please give it passive might-output and CC on Dragonslash already. Thats all its missing really..

Edited September 13 by Fractal Spoon.9280

[Codename T.2847]

8 minutes ago, TallBarr.2184 said:

So when are you going to buff burn guardian? its been dogtier for quite awhile now and i miss playing pvp.

 

Don't give them any ideas pls

[Lan Deathrider.5910]

*glares in warrior* what about WvW...

Also the rifle changes are weak...

Edited September 13 by Lan Deathrider.5910

[GuriGashi.5617]

Love the Guard changes! Keep it up! 

[GoldSilva.8950]

[Solar Strom] still does infinity damage, and Warrior Players get rug-pulled again with Bladesworn, Staff, and now Spear, in a patch where literally nothing else got nerfed which was clearly prepped before you dropped JW. RIP all the artifically juiced numbers to sell Warriors spear. I love spending money on this game. So so much. Really makes me want to spend more ANet...

[Jeyzer.1605]

9 minutes ago, TallBarr.2184 said:

So when are you going to buff burn guardian? its been dogtier for quite awhile now and i miss playing pvp.

Guardian is the most busted class in the game along with Necro. I highly doubt they'd nerf their golden child, but they're not blind either to buff Guardians further (hopefully).

If anything, I'm surprised they buffed so many things instead of nerfs. Some classes / specs badly need nerfs atm, powercreeping everything is not the solution.

[HeliosMagi.9867]

19 minutes ago, Joie.6084 said:

Helmet Breaker: This skill can no longer be used multiple times in a row.

If you're gonna do this, at least double how much Defiance damage it does in PvE to compensate.

[skirtsan.6372]

Transfusion: This trait no longer teleports downed allies to the user. 

The ability to teleport players who are in a potentially hazardous zone via Transfusion was really, REALLY useful in instanced PvE and boss encounters. If it passes through then allied healers wouldn't have much chance reviving fallen squadmates. Signed, healer.

[Jeyzer.1605]

Just now, HeliosMagi.9867 said:

If you're gonna do this, at least double how much Defiance damage it does in PvE to compensate.

Yeah, surprised at how they tried to paint this as a QoL buff when it's a huge CC nerf for Thieves in PvE.

[Akiko.7980]

Cele nerf... God bless

[Herrscher.2986]

As someone who just recently fell in love with Heal Alacrity Scourge in PvE, I feel furious about the changes to Transfusion and I demand that they are reconsidered.

[RockTheMoose.4126]

Will we ever get a better matchmaking system for PVP?  New players matched with the highest of high-tier players every single match?  I've never heard a good thing about PVP matchmaking, and my experience has not been good. 

I love GW2, hope to see this addressed soon!

(Personal note.  I just got full Celestial kits for 2 characters with boons in mind for WvW in mind within the last week.  Ouch.  But, others say the patch is good... so I'll take the personal loss for the big picture win.  But again, ouch.)

Thank you, ArenaNet!  I support you.

Edited September 13 by RockTheMoose.4126

[Sandrox.9524]

Nothing on the untamed in wvw. might make one too