I have come up with a number of suggestions regarding the Enchanter class. Firstly, this is a long list that will probably not be of much interest to those not invested in the class. Secondly, none of these ideas is designed to rebalance the class in any major way. Most suggestions are purely for flavor, fun factor, or to repurpose underutilized spells in the interest of further diversifying the Enchanter’s spellbook. My hope is that at least a couple of these suggestions are deemed worthy of consideration by the staff, though I am also aware that attention to bigger things (i.e. the client upgrade) is of utmost importance.
Without further ado:
Thanks for reading this obscenely long post if you made it this far. Any and all feedback is welcome.
Without further ado:
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- The level 44 spell Illusion: Scaled Wolf currently turns the player into the model for race 42, a plain Wolf, in SoD, whereas the Live spell turns the player into race 356, a Scaled Wolf. This change was presumably done years ago to “save” the Scaled Wolf for Ikisith’s implementation, but it creates an inconsistency between the spell’s name and its effect. Either change the name to Illusion: Wolf or restore the spell entry to its original form so that it really does grant the form of a Scaled Wolf.
TL;DR Version – Illusion: Scaled Wolf turns the player into a Wolf rather than a Scaled Wolf. Either remove “Scaled” from the spell name or change the spell entry to grant the appropriate illusion—preferably the latter.
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- Allow Enchanters who have received a Mask of the Vah via the Rescuing the Vah – Set Three quest to turn the item back in to Nevaldan Rehn in return for a scroll of the targetable spell Illusion: Vah. This would be analogous to the ability of Druids and Wizards to turn in their Muddy Shields and Spears of Liberation in exchange for the corresponding port spells. The level of this spell may be determined as seen fit (though I would recommend 54 simply to be consistent with Live).
TL;DR Version – Re-implement Spell: Illusion Vah and let Enchanters trade Mask of the Vah for it.
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- As I mentioned in another post, the spell gem for Nejax’s Unmaking Curse is pure black rather than red. It is the only spell for the class to have such a color. If this is intended, then I suggest the other curses (Jinx, Nejax’s Striking Curse, Nejax’s Dampening Curse, Nejax’s Rending Curse, Vex, and Runic: Catatonia) be assigned black spell gems. If this is not intended, then I suggest it be made red for consistency’s sake.
TL;DR Version – Change the spell gem for Nejax’s Unmaking Curse to red or change the other six curses to black.
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- The names used for Enchanter animations (that is, pets) are taken straight from Live. Even there, almost none of them had any actual relevance to that game’s lore; for example, no mention of “Pendril” is to be found anywhere in the game to my knowledge despite that such a figure was important enough to have given his or her namesake to the very first pet spell Enchanters get. I suggest that all pre-Ancient pet spells for this class be renamed in one of the following ways in order to give them more of a Shards of Dalaya flavor:
- To reflect high-profile Enchanter figures unique to SoD (guildmasters, augurs, Demitri Eto, High Beguiler Garos, Lady Adrecia, Mayor Buku, and so on).
If this option sounds good, I’d be happy to supply a list of suggested names.
- To reflect prominent player character Enchanters of yesteryear. The names could be derived a number of ways, though one method that would probably prove least controversial might be to dig into the early logs of the server and name these 13 spells by drawing from the first, say, 25 Enchanters ever created by Winter’s Roar players; I say 25 rather than 13 because I imagine a number of the early names might not prove suitable.
TL;DR Version – Replace the proper names from Live in ENC pet spells (e.g. Pendril’s Animation, Sagar’s Animation) with names relevant to SoD.
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- To reflect high-profile Enchanter figures unique to SoD (guildmasters, augurs, Demitri Eto, High Beguiler Garos, Lady Adrecia, Mayor Buku, and so on).
- Similar to the previous suggestion, the following spells contain proper names derived from Live:
- (Level 44) Boon of the Garou
- (Level 51) Aanya’s Quickening – shares name with Aanya’s Animation
- (Level 51) Boltran’s Agacerie – shares name with Boltran’s Animation
- (Level 54) Glamour of Kintaz – shares name with Kintaz’s Animation
- (Level 55) Largarn’s Lamentation
- (Level 56) Torment of Argli
- (Level 60) Koadic’s Endless Intellect
I recommend the following changes be carried out for the above spells:
- Spells with names that correlate to an animation spell may be renamed jointly. For example, Boltran’s Animation -> Buku’s Animation and Boltran’s Agacerie -> Buku’s Agacerie.
- Boon of the Garou could be renamed Boon of the Vulfwere after the mobs by that name in Sundered Mountains and Warpstone Caverns.
- The remaining standalone spells may be renamed after Plane of Lore NPCs, ENC spell vendors, and so on, as has already been done with spells like Relic: Jayla’s Boon (originally Voice of Quellious).
If the suggestion sounds good, I’d be happy to supply a list of suggested names.
Note: Even though Tashan, Tashani, Wind of Tashan, Tashania, Wind of Tashani, Tashanian, and Wind of Tashanian are all named after a figure from Live’s lore, I have omitted them here simply because the “Tash” name is so well-established among the playerbase despite having no place in SoD’s lore.
TL;DR Version – A number of other spells also bear proper names carried over from Live. I propose that SoD-related names be inserted in place of them.
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- The Misdirection spell line, which originally replaced melee-oriented rune buffs like Berserker Strength and Bedlam on 10 December 2010, could benefit greatly from a slight revamp without sacrificing its original thematic intent.
Currently, the spells are meant to work such that the Enchanter must cast the buff on someone who is receiving melee damage; the buff confers a tiny rune that supposedly autocasts a corresponding recourse spell upon breaking that immediately decreases aggro as if a Jolt or Concussion spell had been cast (see Misdirect Recourse I as an example). This mechanic is impractical to the point that I have never spoken with a fellow Enchanter who had ever made real use of the spell line. If a squishy character is being whacked, there simply is not enough time for an Enchanter to react with this spell. Furthermore, most squishy classes have their own reliable means of mitigating aggro generation as long as the player is diligent. Another problem is that Enchanters simply cannot justify giving a precious spot on their spellbar to such an erratic spell. The result is that one of the most recurrent and longest-running spell lines to this class—five spells with five matching recourses spanning from level 20 to level 63—is seeing no use.
I therefore suggest that this spell line be changed in the following way:
- Change it from being targetable to being self-only.
- Change it from a 5-tick buff to a long-duration buff, possibly using the durations of Shielding, Greater Shielding, Arch Shielding, Shield of the Magi, and Aegis of Magic as reference points for appropriate duration factors for each of the five respective ranks.
- Instead of functioning as a rune with a recourse autocast feature, code the buff to grant the Enchanter an innate chance to proc the same recourses as melee reactive procs, as if the character were wearing a chestpiece with Effect: Misdirect Recourse I, etc. The exact percentages could be adjusted accordingly such that the buff feels like it is worth keeping up (i.e. it saves the Enchanter’s life once in a while). My suggestion would be between 5 and 10%, most likely erring somewhere in the middle. Anything less than 5% would probably not be considered frequent enough for the Enchanter to keep the buff up.
- Make sure the spell retains its current stacking conflicts only.
- Optional: To legitimize the “theme” of the spell (the spell gives the line “Soandso appears to be in several locations!”), consider having the recourse do one of the following along with the “jolt” effect:
- Carry an ultra-short-range Shadow Step-style component.
- Spawn a non-functional body double or “doppelganger” nearby for a single tick (6 seconds).
- Carry an ultra-short-range Shadow Step-style component.
The benefits of this change would be as follows:
- Enchanters would finally have a progressive, self-only, signature buff line analogous to the Necromancer’s Lich line, the Wizard’s Familiar line, the Magician’s Elemental Shield line, the Cleric’s Armor of Protection line, and so on.
- Enchanters would generally have little issue “making room” for a new, unique buff in the Effects window.
- The long duration would allow Enchanters to use the spell line without having to negotiate how to squeeze the spell into the spellbar.
- Such a change would require no naming changes and would still be in line with the original thematic intent.
- All in all, an entire spell line that had lain dormant for years would finally see use!
TL;DR Version – Repurpose the unused Misdirection spell line into a series of long-duration, self-only buffs that have a chance to proc the Misdirection Recourse effects when the Enchanter is struck in melee.
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- Change it from being targetable to being self-only.
- One of the most puzzling spells given to Enchanters is the level 29 spell Feedback, an 11-point targetable damage shield with a rather short 10-minute duration. This spell has no precursor and no follow-up. It has stacking conflicts with a whopping 42 other spells.
I suggest that this spell, along with the following two “useless” spells, be repurposed into a unique line of “mana damage shields” that take away the enemy’s mana on melee contact instead of HP:
- (Level 29) Feedback -> Lesser Feedback, 4-point mana damage shield // Lasts 150 ticks (15 minutes)
- (Level 44) Brilliance -> Feedback, 8-point mana damage shield // Lasts 300 ticks (30 minutes)
Brilliance is “useless” because it is a level 44 spell that grants 10 WIS and 13 INT, yet one spell level earlier is Insight, which gives 13 WIS and 10 INT; the difference is negligible!
- (Level 54) Beguiling Visage -> Greater Feedback, 12-point mana damage shield // Lasts 450 ticks (45 minutes)
Beguiling Visage is “useless” in a number of ways, namely that its 5-minute recast and measly 4-tick duration do not serve any practical purpose for the Enchanter at low- or high-end. This was always the black sheep of the Visage line anyway, as it is the only spell in the entire series that is self-only.
- Note that no items carry the above three spells as clickies, procs, etc. This means the change would require no item adjustments.
If the proposed naming scheme is lackluster, more interesting names could be substituted, and numbers could be adjusted upward or downward as seen fit. I admit it would only prove useful in select situations (such as low-DPS exp settings), but it would be a brand new, SoD-exclusive line of spells that would surely find more use than these three current spells.
TL;DR Version – Retool the level 29 damage shield Feedback into the first in a three-tier line of “mana damage shields” that do minor damage to the enemy’s mana instead of HP; the redundant level 44 and 54 spells Brilliance and Beguiling Visage may be converted into the second and third ranks.
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- (Level 29) Feedback -> Lesser Feedback, 4-point mana damage shield // Lasts 150 ticks (15 minutes)
- Create a new spell centered around the Enchanter’s pet to act as a precursor to Somatic Bond.
Somatic Bond allows the Enchanter to mimic a PC’s melee damage at a rate of approximately 35%. It does not work when cast on any NPC, including the Enchanter’s animation, a charm pet, or the pets of groupmates. The proposed spell line would carry the same 1.2 second cast time and 4-tick duration as Somatic Bond but would allow the Enchanter to piggyback on his or her own pet’s melee damage at a rate similar, but not necessarily identical, to that of Somatic Bond. This would provide the pre-Somatic Bond Enchanter with a small boost in DPS that would not unbalance anything in the long term. It would simply give them a “taste of things to come” while also strengthening the relationship between Enchanters and their pets.
I recommend that the following spell be repurposed for this:
- (Level 34) Gift of Magic -> Animator’s Bond, Target: Pet, Cost: 150 mana
Gift of Magic is “useless” because it serves to boost the user’s mana pool by 50, yet Enchanters receive a WIS/INT buff the very next spell level that serves a near-identical purpose and confers a superior boost in mana. No items carry this spell as a clicky, proc, etc. This means the change would require no item adjustments.
Whether or not this pet-only buff ought to carry a proc like Somatic Bond is up to the staff. Also up for debate is whether or not such a buff ought to work on pets other than animations, such as non-swarm clicky pets and charm pets.
TL;DR Version – Change the unuseful level 34 spell Gift of Magic into Animator’s Bond, a precursor to Somatic Bond that may only be cast on the pet in order to let the Enchanter mimic a fixed portion of his or her pet’s melee damage. - (Level 34) Gift of Magic -> Animator’s Bond, Target: Pet, Cost: 150 mana
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Thanks for reading this obscenely long post if you made it this far. Any and all feedback is welcome.
