Hello all,
One of the major problems that I know the dev team has had their eyes on for a while now is the primacy of Chosen and Knights of the Blazing Sun as tanks. Knights and Chosen, due to their low-effort mechanic and consequent high utility, are considered near-mandatory (if not outright so) for most any group, whether it be small-group scenarios/roaming, or warbands in oRvR.
The team has taken steps to address this by buffing other tanks that underperformed in live, such as the Black Orc and Sword Master, as well as enacting some recent nerfs to the shield/sword Knight (nerfing Dirty Tricks, restricting Encouraged Aim to Greatsword-wielding Knights). Continuing in that vein, I'd like to propose some changes to the Chosen Dread tree that may nerf sword/board Chosen (by far the most popular, and useful, spec) and indirectly (perhaps just directly, but I will get to that) buff 2h Chosen.
Now, I know that buffing any sort of Chosen is an immediate red flag, but hear me out. 2h Chosen are semi-widely reviled on Destro for generally being less useful at everything a tank is supposed to do when compared to their shield-wielding counterparts. Destined for Victory alone, a shield-only tactic, would make the sword/board Chosen superior (morale pump tactics in general are extraordinarily powerful, but more experienced players than I should tackle that beast), and the disparity does not end there. In general, the 2h Chosen does not possess any utility advantages relative to the sword/board Chosen, nor does it deal enough damage to outweigh the defensive liabilities incurred by forgoing a shield.
Indeed, 2h Chosen bring objectively less utility to the table: assuming the 2h Chosen grabs the usual three picks in the Dread tree (I am not entertaining niche builds that use a 2h but reject Rending Blade/Oppressing Blows/Crippling Strikes), he must then choose to either grab the single-target KD in Corruption, or the aoe-cleave stagger in Discord. A sword/board Chosen sacrifices nothing of the sort: he may grab both the KD and the stagger, and he almost certainly slots Destined for Victory, almost guaranteeing his team will have his morale 3/4 ready every minute.
The "defining" utility of the Dread tree is Crippling Strikes. It is a good tactic, IMO, and one worth taking. However, it is quite low in the tree, and therein lies the issue. A sword/board Chosen of sufficient RR (60, or 50 with enough Annihilator or Ruin to get the +1 mastery bonus) can tri-spec and get KD, stagger, and Crippling Strikes. Now, most players are not there yet. But even an RR 40 Chosen can get Crippling Strikes, and either the KD or the Stagger while retaining the ever-useful morale pump and still being more survivable.
Now granted, the 2h Chosen, by virtue of their higher crit chance and access to a low CD, undefendable aoe cleave, is more efficient at applying Crippling Strikes. But not so much moreso that it outweighs the cost of using a 2h.
In summary, sword/board Chosen over-perform and 2h Chosen underperform relative to their s/b brethren. I am not saying 2h Chosen is a poorly balanced spec per se; they are still quite survivable thanks to high Parry rates and Toughness stat, and they still provide the no-cost auras of any Chosen. But, still, they are nowhere near as viable as s/b Chosen.
My proposal:
1: Switch the positions of Crippling Strikes and Oppressing Blows. Two-fold effect here: Crippling Strikes is now a dedicated 2h Chosen ability. This nerfs s/b Chosen, by more-or-less locking them out from obtaining the tactic, and further solidifies the niche of 2h Chosen (apply Crippling Strikes in an aoe to enemy frontline). It also makes leveling a 2h Chosen slightly more fun because you get your crit tactic earlier, and can have a bit more fun whacking people as you level up.
2: Make Relentless do Spirit Damage. and limit it to Great Weapons only. I consider this element of the proposal separate from the 1st one, which I suspect will be received more kindly, but I think it makes sense. It is no secret that Relentless, and its counterpart in the Knight 2h tree, are absolutely useless. They hit against armor in a class toolset that lacks armor debuffs, and they eat up potential auto-attacks. You almost always lose damage using them, and they are never, ever specced for by anyone who knows anything about the game at all.
Making Relentless do Spirit Damage would go a ways toward solidifying 2h Chosen as an alternative to s/b Chosen since it boosts the lackluster (compared to every other tank specced for dps assist) damage Chosen put out, which may further encourage players to use 2h Chosen rather than the overperforming s/b Chosen.
Thanks for reading, and I hope my ideas make a bit of sense. If not, I understand and hope some corrections can be made to them so that some version of my ideas see fruition.
Changes to Chosen Dread Tree: Crippling Strikes and Relentless
- GodlessCrom
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Changes to Chosen Dread Tree: Crippling Strikes and Relentless
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Re: Changes to Chosen Dread Tree: Crippling Strikes and Relentless
I will be declining any KotBS/Chosen proposals for now, since there is an .ab ex planned for these classes. However, I want you guys to know that your proposals have been very useful. Thanks!
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