Ritualist Elite Analysis

[Zingeri]

Ritualists, unlike most of the Assassin's, have INCREDIBLY powerful Elites, including one which DEFINES THE CLASS.

Channeling Magic

Grasping was Kuurong: Hold Kuurong's ashes for up to 15-51 seconds. When you drop his ashes, all nearby foes are struck for 5-41 lightning damage and knocked down. This is an elite skill.

This ability seems out of place, since Channeling Magic is a Ranged Damage class. Regardless, it does what it does. Rating: 3/5

Signet of Spirits: You gain 1-6 Energy for each spirit in the area (maximum of 5-17 Energy). This is an elite skill.

Best Energy Management for a Ritualist. However, you need to be really, really, high in Channeling for it to be effective. And you need atleast 3 Spirits near you, which is quite situational. Rating: 4/5

Spirit Channeling: For 10 seconds, you gain +1-5 Energy regeneration but suffer -5 Health degeneration. When spirit Channeling ends, you gain 5-17 Health for each ally in the area. This is an elite skill.

The weirdest ability on this list. It's basically casting Blood is Power on yourself. However, Blood is Power doesn't have a 30 second cooldown. Rating: 3/5

Wrath From Beyond: For each nearby spirit, one nearby foe is struck for 10-82 lightning damage. (The same foe cannot be struck more than once.). This is an elite skill.

AoE is way, way too small for this to be effective. You can only use this on Warriors and Assassians who are melting your face off. Even then...you'll probably only have 1 or 2 at the most, which makes this elite TOO situational. Rating: 2/5

Communing

Defiant Was Xinrae: Hold Xinrae's ashes for up to 5-10 seconds. While you hold her ashes, enemy spells that the caster and the caster's allies use against you are disabled for an additional 5-17 seconds. This is an elite skill.

This is undeniably a powerful ability. However, it costs 25 Energy and lasts for only 10 seconds. Once people notice you using it, they'll just ignore you for...10 seconds. If I'm paying 25 Energy for an ELITE, it better make me a damn god. Plus, like other Ashes, you temporaily lose the benefits of your weapons. Rating: 1/5

Wanderlust: Create a level 1-8 spirit. Whenever this spirit's attack hits a stationary foe, that foe is knocked down and the spirit loses 70-54 Health. This spirit dies after 30-54 seconds. This is an elite skill.

You saw the combo potential during the preview. Wanderlust + Earthbind. It's crazy. On itself...it's weaker, but Earthbind is in Communing as well, so you might as well use both. Rating: 3/5

Weapon of Quickening: For 5-13 seconds, target ally has a Weapon of Quickening, and spells and binding rituals recharge 15% faster. This is an elite skill.

15% isn't much. 15% makes your 60 second Rituals have a 51 second recharge. Yes, it can be casted on allies, but it isn't worth it. Rating: 2/5

Restoration Magic

Preservation: Create a level 1-8 spirit. Every 4 seconds, this spirit heals one ally in the area for 10-94 Health. This spirit dies after 60 seconds. This is an elite skill.

A powerful defense Elite. Unlike some other Spirits, this one has its AoE "in the area" which likely means it will likely only affect the casters in the rear. But you do want to keep your Monk alive, right? Rating: 4/5

Spirit Light Weapon: For 10 seconds, target ally gains 3-13 Health each second. spirit Light Weapon ends if that ally is not near a spirit. This is an elite skill.

Eew. First of all, the health gain is very low (Healing Breeze is better!). Second, the only people who will likely be NEARBY a spirit will be...you. Rating: 1/5

Spawning Power

Attuned Was Songkai: Hold Songkai's ashes for up to 45 seconds. While you hold her ashes, your spells cost 5-41% less Energy to cast. This is an elite skill.

You want to cast those 25 Energy Spirits? Here you go. However...the duration kinda sucks though... (But I guess it's in tune with Elemental Attunement) Rating: 4/5

Consume Soul: Target touched spirit is destroyed. All allies in the area are healed for 30-198 Health. This is an elite skill.

I'll be the first to coin this: This will be the Pac-Man ability, because one you have it, you'll be eating ghosts. Lots of ghosts. Enemy ghosts. The significant thing about this Elite is that you can destory enemy spirits easily, which will likely neuter their Ritualist and give your allies a HUGE health boost. If there is no enemy Ritualist...tough. Rating: 3/5

Ritual Lord: For 30 seconds, your Rituals recharge 5-63% faster.

This is the Ritualist Skill. THIS IS THE RITUALIST SKILL. In PvE and PvP, you WILL hear "RL Ritualist LFG." At 16 Spawning Power, Ritual Lord will give about a 80% Recharge Reduction, which causes 45 second recharge Rituals to become 9 second recharge and 60 second recharge Rituals to become 12 second recharge. You can Spirit Spam. This is EXTREMELY useful with spirits that die quickly, such as Union, Shelter, and Displacement. Even better: It's a Skill with no cast time, meaning that it can't be stripped or interrupted. I just hope ArenaNet doesn't touch it. Rating: 6/5 (You will not get into an end-game PvE group without this skill. That is how it will work.)

Other

Soul Twisting: Destroy target allied spirit. The next Binding ritual you perform casts 66% faster and recharges instantly. This is an elite skill.

Ok, this is interesting. It's basically a Ritual Lord without an immense Spawning Power. However, if you are doing ANYTHING with spirits, you are going to have a high Spawning Power anyways. So it's kinda moot. However, Soul Twisting will give you more efficiency, since it increases casting speed as well. You'll probably see in Heroes' Ascent "STD Ritualist LFG!" (And I mean Soul Twisting and Displacement. :laugh:) Rating: 4/5

Well, Ritualists will learn to obey Ritual Lord. It's the destiny.

[Zii The Mad]

LOL @ Spirit Light Weapon

And Im sure your ritual lord spell will get nerfed, and Im sure Spirit Light Weapon will get... un-nerfed.

I dont get why Grasping was Kuurong is an elite. Actually I dont get that spell at all...

[JeanDeathwish]

Grasping is ok... at best... I do think it needs a minor buff, considering Cruel was Daoshen's damage, it dsnt par up.
Wrath From Beyond is a great elite IMO. Teamed up with your "RL Ritualist" it can dish out some amazing damage. It can use a area buff to "in the area" but otherwise its amazing.
Spirit Light Weapon does need a buff. I think it should read:
For 10 (maybe 8) seconds, target ally gains 8-18 Health each second. Spirit Light Weapon is renewed for 10 (again maybe 8) seconds if that ally nearby a spirit when this ends. This is an elite skill.
Now that would be a good elite IMO. Better than degen and if you play right you can have this on for a long time.

You forgot 2 elites:

Restoration

Tranquil Was Tanasen: Hold Tanasen's ashes for up to 5-17 seconds. While you hold his ashes, you have +10-22 armor and cannot be interrupted.

Good vs those rangers... but youll get interupted while casting it. Also the recharge kills it... 2/5

and

Vengeful Was Khanei: Hold Khanei's ashes for 5-10 seconds. Whenever a foe strikes you in combat while you are holding Khanei's ashes, you steal 5-29 Health from that foe.

Good skill considering its casting time and energy cost. You can have it up ~50% of the time and steal 37 life from foes attacking you. Pure farming skill. 4/5

This site doesnt see both of these as elites, but they are.

[Erasculio]

Channeling Magic

Grasping was Kuurong: Hold Kuurong's ashes for up to 15-51 seconds. When you drop his ashes, all nearby foes are struck for 5-41 lightning damage and knocked down. This is an elite skill.
Get Earthbind, and this one is even better than Wanderlust (since it needs for the enemy to be hit by the spirit while he's moving, and this one doesn't, plus it's AoE on a longer range than, say, the Hammer Elite that only knocks people down). The only problem is that, unlike Earthbind, it's not in the Communion line.


Defiant Was Xinrae: Hold Xinrae's ashes for up to 5-10 seconds. While you hold her ashes, enemy spells that the caster and the caster's allies use against you are disabled for an additional 5-17 seconds. This is an elite skill.

This is undeniably a powerful ability. However, it costs 25 Energy and lasts for only 10 seconds. Once people notice you using it, they'll just ignore you for...10 seconds. If I'm paying 25 Energy for an ELITE, it better make me a damn god. Plus, like other Ashes, you temporaily lose the benefits of your weapons. Rating: 1/5
I think this one is better than what you have said, thanks to the short Diversion effect it has on everyone. There are plenty of ways to use this: from a Flag Runner in PvP to an aggro tank in PvE (the enemies will cast spells and then will be able to cast them again on anyone else for some time).


Spirit Light Weapon: For 10 seconds, target ally gains 3-13 Health each second. spirit Light Weapon ends if that ally is not near a spirit. This is an elite skill.

Eew. First of all, the health gain is very low (Healing Breeze is better!). Second, the only people who will likely be NEARBY a spirit will be...you. Rating: 1/5

Look at this topic (http://forums.gwonline.net/showthread.php?t=383346&highlight=Spirit+Light+Weapon). I think it's a very powerful Elite for a Spirit Summoning Ritualist.

Erasculio

[MaximumSquid]

Most of the ritualist skills make my head spin. . .

I honestly can't say which ones will be good and which ones will be great.

Some of them look amazing though like the Full party Full Heal, and most of the elite urn skills.

We'll probably have a much better idea of how to roll Ritualist after the next even.

[Kjentei]

Ahh, nice to see that out of Assassin and Ritualist analysises, the Ritualist one got the only 6/5. I agree with this lots, but some of the elites I think you've underrated. Like Wrath from Beyond, if they're multiple Ritualists in the team they can all use this skill deal a reasonable amount of damage to random foes, therefore resulting in wasted energy and more pressure for their monks, I think it's at least 3/5.
This ability seems out of place, since Channeling Magic is a Ranged Damage class.
However, I have no idea where you got the idea that Channeling Magic was a class not based a lot on adjacent, i.e. Ancestor's Rage, Cruel Was Daoshen, and 5 other skills in the same attribute are based on the spirits around you.

[Kjentei]

You forgot 2 elites:

Restoration

Tranquil Was Tanasen: Hold Tanasen's ashes for up to 5-17 seconds. While you hold his ashes, you have +10-22 armor and cannot be interrupted.

Good vs those rangers... but youll get interupted while casting it. Also the recharge kills it... 2/5


Tranquil Was Tanasen is a very good skill for a Ritualist secondary, and the duration from when it's duration ends and it gets recharged is only 3 seconds. So it's not THAT bad. 3/5 at least.

[Zingeri]

Tranquil Was Tanasen is a very good skill for a Ritualist secondary, and the duration from when it's duration ends and it gets recharged is only 3 seconds. So it's not THAT bad. 3/5 at least.It's bad because it co-exists with Mantra of Resolve.

[MaximumSquid]

Say about spirit light weapon. . .

If you cast Scourge healing on a guy with it. . .won't it just make the ritualist that casted it pop?

[SDV Rider]

It's bad because it co-exists with Mantra of Resolve.

I believe the intent with this skill is to add more tactics against Ranger Spike in pvp, in which case Mantra of Resolve is not used anyways. However, it appears at this time like the skill won't be fast enough to work in that regard anyways.

[Goldfish God]

I don't see how Mantra of Resolve makes Tranquil was Tanasen a bad skill. One is a stance, the other is an ash-pot spell. It means I can use a different stance in addition to the ash-pot, to gain the stance benefit and the anti-interrupt. Now I can lay traps using an damage-avoidance/reflect stance and interrupt immunity at the same time for almost garunteed success, or whatever fruity stance I want. I can see Serpents Quickness having a possiblely interesting effect.

Say about spirit light weapon. . .
If you cast Scourge healing on a guy with it. . .won't it just make the ritualist that casted it pop?

For 30 seconds, every time target foe is healed, the healer takes 15-67 holy damage.

Things that are triggered by specific healing skills usage (e.g. casting Healing Spring or Troll Ungent) should only fire once, not multiple times during a duration. I think Spirit Light falls under the same thing, it is a single casting of a healing skill with its effect applied over a duration.

Same worry goes for Scourge Sacrifice (For 8-18 seconds, every time target foe and adjacent foes sacrifices life, they sacrifice twice the normal amount) and Flesh of my Flesh (Lose half of your Health. Resurrect target ally with your current Health and 5-17% Energy) though it doesn't specify "sacrifice".

[Bravo]

Actually it is the spring doing the healing in the case of healing spring, no-one takes damage from scourge healing. Regeneration avoids it, as does divine favour and booned protection spells.

So in the case of spirit light weapon, I see scourge healing doing ... precisely nothing.

[neoflame]

Well, if you really want to spend your elite slot on Mantra of Resolve ashes. Though Mantra of Resolve might recieve a nerf soon.

With Healing Spring, a Healing Spring is doing the healing. With Troll Unguent, you aren't being healed at all, you're recieving bonus health regeneration pips. With Spirit Light Weapon, I'd assume that the Spirit Light Weapon effect is doing the healing and not the caster. I'd still rather have Ritual Lord.

[Zaxares]

Like Temple Strike, I imagine that Ritual Lord will not make it into the finished game un-nerfed.

[Goldfish God]

Grasping was Kuurong
Elite Spell (ash-pot). Hold Kuurong's ashes for up to 15-51 seconds. When you drop his ashes, all nearby foes are struck for 5-41 lightning damage and knocked down.
Cost: 15. Cast: 2. Reload: 30.

This comes across as an upgrade-varient of the only other ash-pot in Channeling:

Cruel Was Daoshen
Spell (ash-pot). Hold Daoshen's ashes for up to 15-51 seconds. When you drop his ashes, all nearby foes are struck for 40-112 lightning damage.
Cost: 15 Cast: 2. Reload: 45.

CwD has a longer reload time, no knockdown effect, but a higher damage.

Other classes:
Hammer warriors (max hammer damage is 19-35) can achieve knockdown attacks in a number of ways, but not with the area-effect and damage at the same time.
The Elite Hammer attacks Backbreaker (If Backbreaker hits, you strike for +1-16 damage and your target is knocked down for 4 seconds. Cost/reload: 10 Adren) and Earth Shaker (All adjacent foes are knocked down. 50% failure with Hammer Mastery =< 4. Cost/reload: 8 Adren) most closely follow the effects. Though as Attacks Skills they have to actually hit and neither provide the full effect.

Elementalists are the most capable of matching GwK with their large range of area-effects. They have a couple of spells (and some non-elites) which produce almost the same effect:

Thunderclap
Elite Hex. For 8-18 seconds, if target foe is struck for lightning damage, that foe and adjacent foes are knocked down, and you lose 15-9 energy or Thunderclap ends.
Cost: 10. Cast: 2. Reload: 15.

Whirlwind
Spell. All adjacent foes take 15-51 cold damage. Attacking foes struck by Whirlwind are knocked down.
Cost: 10. Cast: 3/4. Reload: 10.

Whirlwind is an almost exact replication of the GwK effect, for 5 points cheaper, 2/3rd faster reload, non-elite spell, and cast-speed almost equal to pot-dropping. The only advantage it doesn't have is you can't use it in combination with "item-holding" spell enhancements, and it requires "attacking" foes for the knockdown.

Earthquake
Spell. You invoke an earthquake at target foe's location. All foes near this location are knocked down and are struck for 26-85 earth damage. This spell causes exhaustion.
Cost: 25. Cast: 3. Reload: 15.

Rangers and Monk are the only other class capable of both damage and knockdown in the same skill, if I remember correctly. Rangers using Spike Trap(Elite Trap. When Spike Trap is triggered, all foes in the area take 10-56 piercing damage, become crippled for 3-13 seconds and are knocked down. Spike Trap ends after 90 seconds. While activating this skill, you are easily interrupted. Cost: 10. Cast: 2. Reload: 20) and Monks using Signet of Judgement(Elite Signet. Target foe is knocked down. That foe and all adjacent foes take 15-63 holy damage. Cost: 0. Cast: 2. Reload: 30).



Ritual Lord
Elite Skill. For 30 seconds, your Rituals recharge 5-63% faster.
Cost: 10. Cast: 0. Reload: 30.

Ritual Lord looks very much like it would/should be a stance (or a shout?), especially with that 0 cast time. Combined with Serpents Quickness it could produce some insane recharge rates.

Both it and ...

Soul Twisting
Elite Enchantment Spell. Destroy target allied spirit. The next Binding ritual you perform casts 66% faster and recharges instantly.
Cost: 5. Cast: 1. Reload: 10.

...are obviously useless if you don't pack any spirits (you might focus on Weapon Spells or ash-pots instead), and don't affect the "1 spirit at a time" limits. There aren't that many spirits you'd want to recast almost immediately after casting, unless you combine in the various spirit-consuming skills. Of course it would ready the ritual for when the spirit does die.

Quite a few of the Elites deal with spirits though.

[Darl Brigham]

Whirlwind is an almost exact replication of the GwK effect, for 5 points cheaper, 2/3rd faster reload, non-elite spell, and cast-speed almost equal to pot-dropping. The only advantage it doesn't have is you can't use it in combination with "item-holding" spell enhancements, and it requires "attacking" foes for the knockdown.
That isnt entierly true. Whirlwind only hits adjacent foes, while GwK hitts nearby foes.

[Phoenixtech]

I used Grasping Was Kuurang during the preview weekend to some decent success. It can be ran very similar to the current earthquake/AS elems but it's basically a much faster earthquake with no exhaustion.

[Defiled Immortal]

Defiant Was Xinrae: Hold Xinrae's ashes for up to 5-10 seconds. While you hold her ashes, enemy spells that the caster and the caster's allies use against you are disabled for an additional 5-17 seconds. This is an elite skill.


think of it this way... drop it on your infuser mo/rt

your also forgeting a HUGE thing.... 1/4 second cast time... any kind of similar spike (duel shot.. obs flame, Shadow strike... need i continue?) gets majorly screwd:cool:

so.. if your infuser is good... they can't spike your other members... and with this eliet... they can't spike him... gg...
rating: 4/5

just ideas... i have more.. but waiting to test some out first

btw... most of these skills are spammable.. your all forgetting that. nearly all the ones your saying are "bad" have 5 second recharges and cost 5 energy... and some have even lower cast times (eg. the one i mentioned)

[WingspanTT]

I think this one is better than what you have said, thanks to the short Diversion effect it has on everyone. There are plenty of ways to use this: from a Flag Runner in PvP to an aggro tank in PvE (the enemies will cast spells and then will be able to cast them again on anyone else for some time).


Erasculio

My guess is that you cannot hold both ashes and the flag at the same time, but this skill still has uses.

[damoclesme]

Ritual Lord: For 30 seconds, your Rituals recharge 5-63% faster.

This is the Ritualist Skill. THIS IS THE RITUALIST SKILL. In PvE and PvP, you WILL hear "RL Ritualist LFG." At 16 Spawning Power, Ritual Lord will give about a 80% Recharge Reduction, which causes 45 second recharge Rituals to become 9 second recharge and 60 second recharge Rituals to become 12 second recharge. You can Spirit Spam. This is EXTREMELY useful with spirits that die quickly, such as Union, Shelter, and Displacement. Even better: It's a Skill with no cast time, meaning that it can't be stripped or interrupted. I just hope ArenaNet doesn't touch it. Rating: 6/5 (You will not get into an end-game PvE group without this skill. That is how it will work.)

This skill doesn't look as nice as Zingeri says, let me explain:

Without this spell the recharge time in percentages is 100%. At 16 Spawning Power this skill will give you 80 faster recharge which will get you at a total of180%.
Now for a 60 second recharge skill you will get this formula: 60/1,8=33,33
A 45 second recharge: 45/1,8=25
The way Zingeri did the math it would be 500% faster which would definetly be overpowered.

[Zingeri]

This skill doesn't look as nice as Zingeri says, let me explain:

Without this spell the recharge time in percentages is 100%. At 16 Spawning Power this skill will give you 80 faster recharge which will get you at a total of180%.
Now for a 60 second recharge skill you will get this formula: 60/1,8=33,33
A 45 second recharge: 45/1,8=25
The way Zingeri did the math it would be 500% faster which would definetly be overpowered.Um. Don't think you are quite correct.

With 16 Spawning Power, there is a 80% Recharge increase, as stated. The way I did my math would believe that there would be 20% Recharge left, i.e. the 9 second and 12 second figures. (.2 x 45 = 9 and .2 x 60 = 12)

For example, on my Bonding Monk, Mantra of Inscriptions gives about a 38% increase in signet recharge times. Her Blessed Signet (cooldown of 10 seconds) takes exactly 6.2 second to recharge.

[Erasculio]

With 16 Spawning Power, there is a 80% Recharge increase, as stated. The way I did my math would believe that there would be 20% Recharge left, i.e. the 9 second and 12 second figures. (.2 x 45 = 9 and .2 x 60 = 12)

I'm not sure anymore this is the correct way of calculating it.

It's not that the skill "reduces recharging time by 80%", but rather that recharge happens 80% faster. Which means, the speed of recharge will be 100% (as it has always been) + 80% (thanks to the skill), in a total speed of 180%.

Now, how would this relate in game? Say, for example, that a skill recharges in 60 seconds. So the time required for one quarter of the skill to be recharged would be 15 seconds - meaning, the recharge speed is 0.25 per 15 seconds. With a recharge speed 80% faster, the speed would be 180% of 0.25 per 15 seconds, or 100% + 80%, which would be 0.25 per 15 seconds plus 0.20 per 15 seconds, in a total of 0.45 per 15 seconds. If the speed is of 0.45 per 15 seconds, the time it would take to be a 1 would be 15/0.45, in other words 33.3 seconds.

So, unless my math is wrong (and that is very likely) we would see a recharge time of 33.3 seconds instead of 60 seconds - it's not that the recharge speed was doubled (as the increase in speed is not of 100%), but rather that the speed will be 80% faster.

Erasculio

[Radical Dreamer]

Well I have always done it this way

60sec, 80%reduction

6x8 = -48sec = 12second recharge

Like Wepon speed increase

bow 2.0sec

tiggers -33% or +33% faster either way

2x.33 = -.66sec = 1.34 sec or 33% of 2.0 = .66sconds faster

seems to work for me but I would love to know if I'm wrong.

[roguebanshee]

Consume Soul: Target touched spirit is destroyed. All allies in the area are healed for 30-198 Health. This is an elite skill.

I'll be the first to coin this: This will be the Pac-Man ability, because one you have it, you'll be eating ghosts. Lots of ghosts. Enemy ghosts. The significant thing about this Elite is that you can destory enemy spirits easily, which will likely neuter their Ritualist and give your allies a HUGE health boost. If there is no enemy Ritualist...tough. Rating: 3/5
A spirit is a spirit is a spirit.

Consume Soul will munch Ranger spirits just as easily as it munches Ritualist spirits, regardless of how silly either type looks. The same holds for the other Ritualist spirit munchers.

[Sun is in us]

A spirit is a spirit is a spirit.

Consume Soul will munch Ranger spirits just as easily as it munches Ritualist spirits, regardless of how silly either type looks. The same holds for the other Ritualist spirit munchers.



Spirit Walk
5 energy, 1 cast
Spell. Shadow step to target spirit.

Consume Soul: Target touched spirit is destroyed. All allies in the area are healed for 30-198 Health. This is an elite skill.




Walka.....Walka.......Walka......Walka......Walka. ....

:goofy:

[arredondo]

It's just my guess but won't Spirit Light Weapon stack with skills like Healing Breeze? HB, Troll, Blood Renewal, etc. give you health regen. SLW just gives you health (per second). You may be able to get the equivalent of +16 regen going for 10 seconds if you stack two skills, and the stats are nice for that skill too:

5E cost
1 second charge
5 second recharge.

[IMMORTAlMITCH]

Well I have always done it this way

60sec, 80%reduction

6x8 = -48sec = 12second recharge

Like Wepon speed increase

bow 2.0sec

tiggers -33% or +33% faster either way

2x.33 = -.66sec = 1.34 sec or 33% of 2.0 = .66sconds faster

seems to work for me but I would love to know if I'm wrong.

you're wrong

[Colretsun Andolin]

I'm not sure anymore this is the correct way of calculating it.

Ritual Lord: For 30 seconds, your Rituals recharge 5-63% faster.

Mantra of Recovery: For 5-17 seconds, spells you cast recharge 50% faster. This is an elite skill.

Same wording, so I assume same affect.