[AM] Class Mechanic Tweak

[Luuca]

I think tranquil force should increase healing cast speed by 20% per tick, with 5 stacks making the spell instant. I think that Force stacks should increase the damage of the next direct damage spell by 5%, up to 25% for a stack of 5. I think this more fully meets the mechanic and makes it more useful.

1% isnt even worth bothering with.

I think a 25% damage or heal increase would be overpowered as AMs already have great dps and heals. What i was trying to do is make the offspec more viable to promote more damage for heal spec and more heals for damage spec.

I disagree. It would not be overpowered. 5 full stacks would net you ONE instant heal spell. 5 full stacks the other way would net you 25% damage increase to ONE direct damage spell. It promotes strategic play and planning for these cooldowns.

25% + 25% + 40% would be possible in an additive way based upon available tactucs and abilities. 90% more heals.. even one...

[Sulorie]

This is already ingame, because this is how instant casts and dots/hots are improved by class mechanic.

[Luuca]

This is already ingame, because this is how instant casts and dots/hots are improved by class mechanic.

It doesn't work well though. As a pure healer, you're stuck at 3 or 4 stacks of Force most of the time which allows you to fire off DPS abilities; however, they cast faster and do a now toned-down extra damage or healing, but you have low intel and no strikethrough, so you get blocked or disrupted more often than not. You are wasting GCDs and AP for ~disrupt~blockt~disrupt~ spam on most higher RR players while trying to build up the class mechanic points you want.

What Healing AMs need is some Strikethrough on their DPS abilities so they can LAND them and not waste GCDs, mechanic points, and AP on worthless Blocks and Disrupts. What DPS AMs need is something to bolster their meager healing and a way to burn off the Tranq Stack and start building Force quickly and without wasting AP.

if the class mechanic points not only reduced cast times but also augmented Strikethrough (Disrupt and Block) for Tranq Stacks and Additional Healing for Force Stacks at a set percentage per stack on a scaling basis such as;

STACK | % BONUS
1 = 1%
2 = 3%
3 = 6%
4 = 10%
5 = 15%

If all those Stacks would be consumed when the opposite class mechanic ability was fired, it would help facilitate the natural and efficient weaving of abilities for maximum return on investment. It would help raise the skill level of the class, and encourage a more hybrid build instead of the Min-Max Builds popular in-game today.

[Sulorie]

Once more, dps am/sham have 40%less base healing due to their dps tactics and 200-250 willpower. An increase in healing power doesn't do anything good for the class, because it will be hardly noticeable.
The current mechanic, albeit not optimal, is better than all the suggestions you brought up. Either healer or dps can use 5 instant/dots/hots with 25% more power or 5 cast time spells with 40% less ap cost and cast time.
Being able to use 5 heal spells in a row on dps spec for some assist heal or casting fast CC on heal spec is sufficient for now. The class has bigger problems than their class mechanic.
Even with those 25% boost to damage, a heal spec am/sham won't deal noticeably damage because very low intel stats. The only reason you use damage spells is for some CC and the viability of CC on low offensive-stat builds is an entirely different topic.
Alternating damage and heals in pvp does not work, as it breaks rotations as the only reliable way of delivering dps pressure or healing. Being mediocre on both sides isn't winning fights outside of 1on1 encounters.

[Luuca]

Once more, dps am/sham have 40%less base healing due to their dps tactics and 200-250 willpower. An increase in healing power doesn't do anything good for the class, because it will be hardly noticeable.

If a 37.5% reduction (40% - 15% = 25% NET) in the healing penalty to a dps AM/Sham for a big heal or GHeal would not be a benefit them, what would you suggest? Their weakest point is healing and getting into a Force Stack Quickly; that's what I'm trying to address. It does them no good to spend 6.25 seconds (or more) and 200+ AP to spam heals - no matter how fast - just to start building Force Stacks.

The current mechanic, albeit not optimal, is better than all the suggestions you brought up. Either healer or dps can use 5 instant/dots/hots with 25% more power or 5 cast time spells with 40% less ap cost and cast time.

The issue here is that the heal spec AM can surely cast 5 instants with 25% more power but hardly any of them land on the target because of how disrupt is working in-game with higher RR spends on Dodge and Disrupt not to mention Block. It does me no good to spend 6.25 seconds and 225 AP casting damaging spells to try and get into stacks of Tranquility if 4 out of the 5 don't land.

Being able to use 5 heal spells in a row on dps spec for some assist heal or casting fast CC on heal spec is sufficient for now. The class has bigger problems than their class mechanic.

Being forced, you mean. With the current mechanic spending point by point, it does come in handy sometimes, I agree. That said, it is more often a prison of having to spend 5 GCDs doing the exact opposite of what you are built for with little to no positive effects. By changing the mechanic to address the weaknesses of each min-max Heal/Dps spec, the mechanic has meaning and useful benefit. 25% more damage on an instant DoT means nothing if it does not land.

Even with those 25% boost to damage, a heal spec am/sham won't deal noticeably damage because very low intel stats. The only reason you use damage spells is for some CC and the viability of CC on low offensive-stat builds is an entirely different topic.

We both agree that the viability of magical cc on low offensive stat AM and Sham are not viable at this time in much the same way trying to land DoTs is a crap-shoot. The purpose of my suggestion is to help out the healing spec AM/Sham in landing these spells with Strikethrough, spend the Force Stacks and gain some benefit from them, and get back to healing. The proposal isn't trying to increase the damage a heal spec AM Sham outputs, although with higher strikethrough they will land more abilities, it's meant to make spending the stacks and how you spend those stacks matter. Conversely the dps AM whos building Tranq can burn all his Tranq (Just like they do now with 5 casts) to effect a heal that gains some bonus and is better than they had by about 15%.

Alternating damage and heals in pvp does not work, as it breaks rotations as the only reliable way of delivering dps pressure or healing. Being mediocre on both sides isn't winning fights outside of 1on1 encounters.

And this statement summarizes why the class mechanic is broken and why it needs to change. If you could 5 stacks of Tranquility while going through your DPS rotation and even if that means 2 or 3 more casts while running your rotation at Max 5 Tranq, at some point, you could fire off a 5-Tstack +15% heals group heal that is also a faster cast time, and then go right back to dps rotation. As it sits now, you basically live life as a DPS AM with a semi-permanent stack of Tranquility - which nets you a horribly weak, fast cast heal x5 just to get to 1 Force stack. In my idea, you blow those stacks in one button press, keep the +damage and cast time reducer as it is now, but also gain some +heal or +strikethrough on that cast.

A heal AM can run his heals up to 5 stacks of force and blow all 5 stacks with cast time reducer and +15% strikethrough to finish off a target, then go back to healing.

[bloodi]

And what would be the penalty?

I mean, your design as it is, lets you cast heals as you can do currently and always get a benefit if you use attack abilities, while i agree that most of the time casting an attack spell is a waste of time, in your current proposal, what is the way to play the mechanic wrong?

Because i really dont see any, even the former ab ex had you play a certain way to get benefit from it, what you suggest basically is a mechanic that always will benefit the AM/shaman, no matter what he does.

And again, i do agree that the current mechanic is trash but making a new one that is impossible to play wrong may not be the best way to approach it.

[Telen]

Totally agree about not being able to get back into a opposite stance. Even if the mechanic didn't change you need some mechanic drop because as it is you just trapped at 5/-5 all the time. You arent actually using the mechanic its just a background benefit.

[Ugle]

Easier bandaidfix (at least for heal spec AM/Shams) would be to scale disrupt strikethrough off highest int/willp stat and add a heal component on BA/ITT, and at least you'll have a reason to use your mechanic.
Last iteration of ab.ex worked (too) well, with stat contri too high (not taking the convoluted way of deciding stat contri into account ) replacing old way of making stat contri with willpower would alleviate the overperforming, as you in old ab.ex could stack defensive stats at no (heal effectivness) cost.

[Telen]

And what would be the penalty?

I mean, your design as it is, lets you cast heals as you can do currently and always get a benefit if you use attack abilities, while i agree that most of the time casting an attack spell is a waste of time, in your current proposal, what is the way to play the mechanic wrong?

Because i really dont see any, even the former ab ex had you play a certain way to get benefit from it, what you suggest basically is a mechanic that always will benefit the AM/shaman, no matter what he does.

And again, i do agree that the current mechanic is trash but making a new one that is impossible to play wrong may not be the best way to approach it.

I see what you mean. You still wouldnt be engaging with the mechanic just having it as a fringe benefit.

The first thing you need to define is how do we think the mechanic should play. 1/-1 juggling, not going above 3/-3 or a drawback to sitting at 5 and keeping the mechanic points stored.

[bloodi]

Both iterations of ab ex had flaws, first let you run full int gear while still being able to heal properly as long as you played it well, while the 2nd had no reason to stack int/wp while also giving you already a decent output as baseline, making wp irrelevant as you could already healk properly without stacking any of it.

However, is was a matter of tweaking numbers more than scrapping it altogether, it had penalties, it had half the range of a normal healer, it had flaws, however, adding a mechanic that will always grant you a benefit, no matter what you are doing is kinda flawed, even Rp/zealot have to push a button to get into attack mode and cc properly, that minimum should at least be required of AM/shaman too.