The Mesmer: old speculation & new reveal talk

[shivafang]

This video has a male mesmer (who looks a lot less "gaey" then the GW1 male mesmer btw) at 4:13 to 4:18

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_RxPXsOSNA

I actually liked both mesmer models/animations.

That concept art resembles the mesmer from GW1, but for all we know it could be an important NPC.

Given that the mesmer was the only really original core class in GW1 I can't see them removing it. (Ritualist, Paragon and Dervish were all pretty unique too, but they were all expansion classes.)

Swordplay would be cool for a mesmer-type profession if it were magic enhanced.

Honestly, I wouldn't be suprised if Illusionary Weapon was one of the core skills for a mesmer's sword. (The only reason it was made elite in GW1 was because it got broken with Warrior skills, especially 100 blades, which also got made elite. It would be fine w/o dual classing)

For me, the GW2 Mesmer looks like a renaissance type person, a trickster with a charm no one can resist. Well-versed in the use of swords, guns, daggers, and wands, the mesmer is the master of manipulation.

100% (Agree with the rest of your post too, but I'm not gonna quote the whole thing.

GW2's pistols may be interesting new inventions for Tyrians but who'd bother to try to invent a backfire or diversion bullet? Mesmers? Huh?

It has to do with theme and flair. In many medieval RPGs that have guns, they were restricted to the nobility (I'm looking at Arcanis, here). Nobility is part of the Mesmer concept. I also get the vibe of FFX-2's 'gun mage' class, and the mage gunners in Warmachine. All of which have a very slight 'flair' which I associate with the Guild Wars mesmer.

The guild wars mesmer has always been considered 'roguelike' and swashbucklery, but more 'noble' than 'piratey', even though it lacked the physical swashbuckleryness core (Unless you mixed in Warrior, Ranger or Assassin, particularly with Illusionary Weapon)

Anyways, right now I'm only 'interested' in GW2 (after being a diehard fan of GW1 for 2 years before release and after release before factions). If the Mesmer class gets anounced, I will be gaga over this game, because the mesmer class is the main thing I miss about GW1.

The same can be said about interrupts. If the enemy can be heard cursing after being interrupted or the spell fails in a spectacular manner, like an explosion or something else, that too is pretty visually stimulating and what has happened is pretty obvious.

Honestly, this runs counter to the mesmer concept. Sure the concept can change in this game, but the mesmer was always about being subtle, almost sneaky. They have a flair for subtly using their opponent's strength against them and remaining unscathed. Keyword: subtle.

One of the things I enjoyed the most about the GW1 mesmer was that you were indirect support. At my best, the party doesn't even realize exactly what I'm doing - but they know that when I'm not there they seem to have a much harder time of things. When I am there, things just sort of work out. I don't do obvious big damage or obvious big heals.

I'd be pleased if they kept this for the mesmer, sure eles and warrior and rangers get impressive visuals, but I'd like the mesmer stuff to remain subtle and sneaky.

[Egal]

Backfire was always fun to use, though making it damage enemies in an area may be a bit much but who knows. Less emphasis on reaction time could also mean more skills that disable enemy skills like blackout or skills that really discourage using the skill, like backfire.

Dunno if Backfire was ever fun to use. It produces satisfying results but the fire and forget nature of the spell makes it a bit dull.

I wonder if the current BF is a good fit for a game with more solo play. I don't want to cast Backfire (or Empathy, which gets a mention cos it's similar and, coincidentally, I'm listening to Crystal Castles' Empathy at the moment) on a foe and stand there letting him beat me up - killing himself in the process - while mashing my self-heal.

A Mistrust/PI/Panic mashup might be a bit overpowered but is more in keeping with how I think the mesmer could work in GW2 without the huge overhaul some think the profession will need. Damage is done (to your opponent) and damage is prevented (to you and, if present, your party.) Also, if it's a one-shot single-use hex with a short duration you need to think a bit more about when to apply it, which makes it a bit more interesting to use.

I'd say a short duration hex is also more interesting than a long one, like the current Backfire, as enemy hex-removers have less time to assess the value of removing it versus letting it time out, and are forced to make the decision quickly. Creating these sorts of little quandaries is a fun aspect of the profession. No idea if that will apply in GW2, though, without having a better overview of support skills. Maybe no player needs to make that decision for himself or party members. For example, the new blind certainly doesn't require the old approach; no players of any profession will be agonising too long over how to deal with that.

It has to do with theme and flair.

I understand this as an argument for why players may want mesmers with guns - because mesmers are sort of like classes in other games that also use guns - but it's no reason for mesmers themselves to want to use guns. I won't bother to repeat what I said earlier but I'll add that if mesmers are a "noble" type I'd think guns were beneath them.

Granted, the wishes of players (and Anet, if they see things the same way) trump the, uh, views of a group of computer game characters. If gun-toting mesmers are deemed sufficiently cool, we'll get them and I'm sure a lot of players'll be very happy.

less "gaey"

I'm convinced my mes looks manly as, but male mesmers have a long tradition of being dismissed as "fruity." Might take a 9 foot charr mesmer with a face full of fangs and horns to finally change that perception.

[Tim Paradox]

This video has a male mesmer (who looks a lot less "gaey" then the GW1 male mesmer btw) at 4:13 to 4:18

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_RxPXsOSNA

Off topic...
2:34 -2:41 : Abaddon?

EDIT: re-posted in a more appropriate thread. Sorry.

[Enenion]

Honestly, this runs counter to the mesmer concept. Sure the concept can change in this game, but the mesmer was always about being subtle, almost sneaky. They have a flair for subtly using their opponent's strength against them and remaining unscathed. Keyword: subtle.

Subtlety may have been part of the mesmer in GW1, but they've stated that the skills will be more visible in GW2 which is why some people say the class would need a complete overhaul. I think it's fine if they add a little more flair to the mesmer skills, like my previous example with conjure phantasm. It's fine if they do keep the mesmer a more subtle class, I just don't think that's very likely.

Dunno if Backfire was ever fun to use. It produces satisfying results but the fire and forget nature of the spell makes it a bit dull.

I found it fun to use, just because it could efficiently shut down some casters or if they didn't notice it they would kill themselves reasonably quickly and wonder what's going on. I do get what you are saying about shorter hexes being more fun to use though.

[Egal]

Assuming there's is going to be a GW2 mesmer, I'm really curious if there are mesmer skills that interact with other skills, like the oft cited fire + arrows = flaming arrows example. What happens if you shoot through a chaos storm? How do you shoot through a targeted hex? I can't imagine how this might work or how you get your ranger buddy excited about flashy combos.

Any thoughts on this?

[shivafang]

Assuming there's is going to be a GW2 mesmer, I'm really curious if there are mesmer skills that interact with other skills, like the oft cited fire + arrows = flaming arrows example.

I think the 'cross skill synergy' they keep mentioning is overhyped, so I'm honestly not going to believe it's as cool as they say it is without seeing it firsthand. I suspect most of them won't get used for general use because it requires two specific skills to be used at almost the same time.

Besides, what combos are there between Warriors and Rangers? Is this something specific to magic users? If so Ele will pretty much get all the love with it, and I can't get excited about that.

That said, I imagine Mesmers combining spells more with Elementalists or Necromancers than with weapon using classes. Or perhaps the synergies will be more along the lines of the GW1 necromancer spells, there's one that increases cold damage, if I recall correctly (Chillblains? Something like that?) which would synergize with a water ele.

[Thalanor Thornhale]

Sword + Dagger: Anti Melee skills + Domination type skills
Sword + Focus: Anti Melee skills + Illusion type skills
Wand + Dagger: Anti Caster skills + Domination type skills
Wand + Focus: Anti Caster skills + Illusion type skills
Staff: AoE interupt and damage skills.

It has to do with theme and flair. In many medieval RPGs that have guns, they were restricted to the nobility (I'm looking at Arcanis, here). Nobility is part of the Mesmer concept. I also get the vibe of FFX-2's 'gun mage' class, and the mage gunners in Warmachine. All of which have a very slight 'flair' which I associate with the Guild Wars mesmer.

My sentiments exactly. Somehow, a gun and domination interrupts just fit.

[Akirai Annuvil]

What happens if you shoot through a chaos storm? How do you shoot through a targeted hex?

Obviously when you shoot a projectile through a chaos storm, it splinters into multiple projections, dealing aoe damage ala scattershot.
Though you can't shoot through a targeted hex, why wouldn't certain weapons be able to cut through certain hexes? And obviously a conjured phantasm would empower a nearby spirit.

Besides, what combos are there between Warriors and Rangers? Is this something specific to magic users?

Rangers can create firewalls as well. I'm not sure how else their combos will combine. I can imagine a frost trap which freezes enemies making them more vulnerable to the shattering blows of a hammer, get defrosted by the fire of an elementalist, etc.

[raspberry jam]

This always makes me think of Diversion, which disables the next skill used. (Smart players will use it on something they don't need, but every once in awhile you can tag a critical skill).

I hope so. Diversion is one of the best designed mesmer skills.

[funkylovemonkey]

I don't think the Mesmer profession needs a redesign at all, honestly, they function very well at what they do. And I have to say I don't agree at all that a Mesmer's spells should be unspectacular and almost unseen. I suffered through five years of Mesmers being ignored and derided because half the population of GW didn't understand how to use them and thought they were underpowered simply because they didn't realize how much work the Mesmer was doing. If they weren't getting hit by damage the credit always went to Monks or Ritualists, never to the Mesmer who interrupted two meteor showers and a couple Searing Flame spells. And did anyone but I know that I locked down that boss's bar so he couldn't effectively fight back? The truth is that while the Mesmer was great in concept, for the most part it was difficult to play through the game as a Mesmer and often I forced to go it alone. If they bring back the Mesmer in GW2, I would really like to see that change.

The defining characteristic for Mesmers for me wasn't subtlety anyway, it was control and intelligence. It was taking an enemy out of the game before they could even engage, locking them down or using their own attacks against them. It was about considering my enemy before attacking rather then just going in with a one size fits all mentality.

Because of that I have no problem with mesmers casting very visible and even spectacular spells, wards and interrupts.

And my male mesmer just knows how to dress well.