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Alpha Two Phase II testing is currently taking place five days each week. More information about testing schedule can be found here
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Alpha Two Phase II testing is currently taking place five days each week. More information about testing schedule can be found here
If you have Alpha Two, you can download the game launcher here, and we encourage you to join us on our Official Discord Server for the most up to date testing news.
PvP Cleric Abilities, Problems, and Solutions (Clerics Need Some Love)
qmunityashes
Member, Alpha Two
These thoughts are based on the current game design (late alpha 2 - post rogue). I have played exclusively cleric this phase.
-Intro-
Most of the abilities Clerics have are fine with the direction the game is going. Some spells are for small group combat, others are for large scale. What does not work is the inability to weave anything together reasonably and there is nothing special about them. With the addition of the rogue, I don't even have a chance to win the fight against a moderately geared one. There are multiple ways to kill a cleric, and the cleric has only 2-3 real damage abilities with subpar healing or purifying abilities. The only way a cleric can win a fight is to survive long enough to make it an attrition battle and perfect proc alignment.
1. Wings of Salvation - should apply CC immunity for some duration after use and have multiple charges. Would also be nice for this to function as a dash if you are the target. This is the only cc break atm for clerics and is almost useless in limitations surrounding the spell. Could use a higher % ratio for stronger shield. This ability is subpar to bards. Cleric mobility is terrible compared to all other classes.
2. Purify - This removes only 3 stacks of a debuff. It should remove all debuffs. This becomes even more true now that rogues are out. Clerics barely have the time for a single cleanse let alone 3 or 4 with TTK being so low. Bards aoe cleanse is more effective and versatile.
3. Chains of Restraint - too slow and too small. The 2 seconds is takes to cast and the 8 seconds of very small area denial make this very ineffective for use compared to all other classes. Recommendation: increase diameter by 50% and make it instant cast.
4. Flash Cure - you dropped it by 75% and doubled the mana cost. This was the only good spell clerics really had. This was a flat nerf and nothing was given as a replacement. While I believe this balances out at higher MP, the mana cost is too high.
5. Barrier - Giving 25% of your life for a 1:1 shield. This effect should last twice as long or the shield amount needs to be based on HP + MP instead of just HP. As the 'healing' class, everything about the bard is better than the cleric with less penalties and less setup.
6. Deliverance - Great for PvE. Less than useful in most PvP situations.
7. Mend - Even spec'd into the bonuses, it doesn't do enough to matter in a pvp situation to include cast time+ travel time. Most people will be dead by the time it gets there. This is a down time ability after receiving damage as a group (true to its name), but does not translate to larger battles.
8. Communal Restoration - Uses too much mana for the minimal effects. This is again completely subpar to bard abilities.
9. Defiant Light - Does not heal enough on death proc. Due to current damage on the field, its almost nonexistent for functionality. 25% of max hp is just 1 more hit from most players. Recommend temporary immunity from damage or much higher reward if the attacker procs the ability mechanic
10. Consecrating Wave - Should remove multiple debuffs without a prerequisite of silence. This change would provide some reason to not get too close.
-Additions-
Some way to covert MP to AP to balance use of weapons for clerics. Being able to actually do more damage from bows would help make clerics more useful in large scale pvp events as well as 1v1 scenarios.
-Final Thoughts-
Cleric feels really left in the dust compared to all of the other classes. They aren't equipped to be great at anything other than self healing due to distance requirements on spells and game mechanics. After playing a cleric the entirety of phase 2, it is unlikely that I would consider spending the time to try and make another one without a viable pvp option for it. Could this be a skill issue? Perhaps. However, I've spent a great amount of time playing against other classes in 1v1 situations and the power triangle doesn't exist for clerics. They are just last at effectiveness in everything that isn't PvE and their healing powers do not translate well into PvP with the low TTK.
I'm not able to identify where a cleric belongs in the power triangle because they don't have a real advantage against anything now. I am concerned that secondary archetypes will make this worse. Currently, the only reason to have a cleric in your party, over a bard, is because they can resurrect; this really only applies strategically in a lawless zone due to the abundance of embersprings + protection buff.
I would also love to interview the creator of the Cleric for stream sometime. Please let me know if this is possible.
-Intro-
Most of the abilities Clerics have are fine with the direction the game is going. Some spells are for small group combat, others are for large scale. What does not work is the inability to weave anything together reasonably and there is nothing special about them. With the addition of the rogue, I don't even have a chance to win the fight against a moderately geared one. There are multiple ways to kill a cleric, and the cleric has only 2-3 real damage abilities with subpar healing or purifying abilities. The only way a cleric can win a fight is to survive long enough to make it an attrition battle and perfect proc alignment.
1. Wings of Salvation - should apply CC immunity for some duration after use and have multiple charges. Would also be nice for this to function as a dash if you are the target. This is the only cc break atm for clerics and is almost useless in limitations surrounding the spell. Could use a higher % ratio for stronger shield. This ability is subpar to bards. Cleric mobility is terrible compared to all other classes.
2. Purify - This removes only 3 stacks of a debuff. It should remove all debuffs. This becomes even more true now that rogues are out. Clerics barely have the time for a single cleanse let alone 3 or 4 with TTK being so low. Bards aoe cleanse is more effective and versatile.
3. Chains of Restraint - too slow and too small. The 2 seconds is takes to cast and the 8 seconds of very small area denial make this very ineffective for use compared to all other classes. Recommendation: increase diameter by 50% and make it instant cast.
4. Flash Cure - you dropped it by 75% and doubled the mana cost. This was the only good spell clerics really had. This was a flat nerf and nothing was given as a replacement. While I believe this balances out at higher MP, the mana cost is too high.
5. Barrier - Giving 25% of your life for a 1:1 shield. This effect should last twice as long or the shield amount needs to be based on HP + MP instead of just HP. As the 'healing' class, everything about the bard is better than the cleric with less penalties and less setup.
6. Deliverance - Great for PvE. Less than useful in most PvP situations.
7. Mend - Even spec'd into the bonuses, it doesn't do enough to matter in a pvp situation to include cast time+ travel time. Most people will be dead by the time it gets there. This is a down time ability after receiving damage as a group (true to its name), but does not translate to larger battles.
8. Communal Restoration - Uses too much mana for the minimal effects. This is again completely subpar to bard abilities.
9. Defiant Light - Does not heal enough on death proc. Due to current damage on the field, its almost nonexistent for functionality. 25% of max hp is just 1 more hit from most players. Recommend temporary immunity from damage or much higher reward if the attacker procs the ability mechanic
10. Consecrating Wave - Should remove multiple debuffs without a prerequisite of silence. This change would provide some reason to not get too close.
-Additions-
Some way to covert MP to AP to balance use of weapons for clerics. Being able to actually do more damage from bows would help make clerics more useful in large scale pvp events as well as 1v1 scenarios.
-Final Thoughts-
Cleric feels really left in the dust compared to all of the other classes. They aren't equipped to be great at anything other than self healing due to distance requirements on spells and game mechanics. After playing a cleric the entirety of phase 2, it is unlikely that I would consider spending the time to try and make another one without a viable pvp option for it. Could this be a skill issue? Perhaps. However, I've spent a great amount of time playing against other classes in 1v1 situations and the power triangle doesn't exist for clerics. They are just last at effectiveness in everything that isn't PvE and their healing powers do not translate well into PvP with the low TTK.
I'm not able to identify where a cleric belongs in the power triangle because they don't have a real advantage against anything now. I am concerned that secondary archetypes will make this worse. Currently, the only reason to have a cleric in your party, over a bard, is because they can resurrect; this really only applies strategically in a lawless zone due to the abundance of embersprings + protection buff.
I would also love to interview the creator of the Cleric for stream sometime. Please let me know if this is possible.
1
Comments
Thank you for taking the time to write this detailed feedback about the Cleric. It’s clear you’ve spent a lot of time testing, analyzing, and providing constructive points based on actual experience in Alpha Two.
This is the kind of feedback that helps improve the game.