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Make your own PvE skills
So there's a thread talking about making your own PvE skills to help each profession to actually be able to do their job (such as assassins actually assassinating as opposed to just corpse provision). Anyway, I thought it's a fun exercise and hell, it's not like PvPers get affect anyway, so I'm gonna come up with my own ideas. :p

First, since every PvE skill is linked to a title, here's the imaginary title the PvE skills will be linked to.

Quest Master: For every rank in Quest Master you gain +10 health bonus and +2 energy bonus (max. +100 health, +20 energy).

Number of Non-Primary Quest Completed	Title Rank
<15	0
15	1
30	2
60	3
100	4
150	5
200	6
250	7
375	8
550	9
725	10

Cashew notes: The idea is here is a reward for buying more than one campaign thus increasing quest completion count. Obviously repeating quests do not count towards the title. I've counted Prophecies and Factions non-primary quests and they are at 190 and 185 respectively. If Nightfall and Eye of the North are comparable (which they probably are), then there is a little less than 800 non-primary quests in all. This means 725 is a pretty reasonable number for a Quest Master. The newbie island itself has around 30+ non-primary quests, so anyone can easily get rank 2 and reap the benefits, which are decent. And since the title is not region restricted, this makes it pretty powerful when completing campaigns. At the same time it promotes playing the game as opposed to grinding for points.

Furthermore, rank 5 is obtainable in a single campaign, and the benefits is +50 hp (or one superior health rune) and +10 energy (or 5 attunement runes). Rank 8 is easily attainable by completing quests for just two campaigns. Or, if one doesn't want to do the hard quests, completing a little over half of the quests available for three campaigns, which is only half the game being played. Also, the title is scaled so that it is more powerful earlier in the game (pre-Eye of the North theoretically) to be encouraging and helpful, rather than a hindrance that you have to grind for only to realize it's useless in hard mode anyway. The idea is that PvE skills ease PvE gaming so you don't have to be l33t to have fun. Screw the fanboys. Again, because it promotes PvE as opposed to grinding, I feel it should be more powerful rather than less.

Anyway, onto the skills.

Warrior: Phalanx Formation - Stance. 7 10
For 2 seconds and 1 second for each rank of Strength, any enemy that attacks or touches you is knocked down and health loss while in this stance is decreased by 10%...66%. This stance ends if there are no allies nearby.

Rank	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
Decrease %	10%	13%	18%	20%	26%	37%	47%	55%	60%	64%	66%

Cashew notes: The concept for this skill obviously comes from the Greek phalanx, where soldiers form a rectangular wall to body block incoming enemies, hence ending the stance if there are no nearby allies and also to make sure the team doesn't rely on only one warrior tank. Fairly quick recharge means the skill can be spammed. Linking it to the Strength attribute ensures that only primary warriors abuse this skill. The unconditional damage reduction is so that primary warriors can toss points into the strength without feeling like they're decreasing survivability and because a phalanx is a physically taxing formation. It will be the only counter to touch and degen skills since warriors are supposed to survive the best. While this seems to pigeon hole warriors into the tank role, it actually frees up the Tactics line so the warrior can do more damage since the skill is linked to Strength, and consequently more armor penetration.

The skill is fairly easily countered via damage spiking, stance breakers, knockdown, and, of course, adrenaline prevention.


Ranger: Apply Toxin - Preparation. 10 2 30
For 5 seconds and 2 seconds for each rank of Expertise, your arrows cause bleeding, poison, disease, weakness, and blind for 5...15 seconds to any foe suffering from a condition if they hit.

Rank	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
Duration	5s	6s	7s	8s	9s	10s	11s	12s	13s	14s	15s

Cashew notes: The idea behind this skill is that Rangers are ultimate annoyers. Since they already have trap, pet, and shooting skills, it only makes sense to give them a preparation. The concept is similar to the necromancer spell Vile Miasma, however it is much more spammable, spreads more conditions, and much more annoying for monks who don't carry martyr. Even with three monks, this skill can still do a fair amount of annoyance. It also has the advantage of being a preparation, thus not requiring another skill to spread these conditions, unless one is using preparation removal skills. Combined with daze, this skill will pretty much shut down physicals and casters alike.

Good counters for this skill are Martyr, Lyric of Purification+Cautery Signet, Assassin's Remedy, and general melee counters (blind, block, etc.).


Monk: Zealot's Blessing - Spell. 10 1 5
All allies within earshot are healed for +10...60 health. You gain +1 energy for every 3 ranks of Divine Favor for each ally healed this way.

Rank	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
Health	10	16	22	28	34	39	44	49	53	57	60

Cashew notes: The point of the spell is so that monks can have energy to keep healing the group. The idea is that monks shouldn't have to stop healing to regain energy and that monks, like all casters out there, need an energy management skill of some kind from their own profession. By linking energy management to Divine Favor, it prevents other professions from abusing this skill. The healing is subpar compared to other party heals until very high levels, but that's to be expected of PvE skills. Seeing as it is the only energy regeneration skill, it is very powerful when combined with a minion master, seeing as energy gain is only available when allies are healed and minions always guarantee less than maximum health. However, like paragons, the skill is useless when in a small group.

Counters for the skill includes any anti-caster strategies, such as daze, interrupt, general prevention of spell casting.

Necromancer: Well of Despair - Well Spell. 15 1 5
Exploit nearest corpse to create a Well of Despair at its location. For 1 second for each rank in Soul Reaping, maximum health of foes in that area is decrease by 10%...40%.

Rank	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
Health Decrease	10%	14%	18%	22%	25%	28%	31%	34%	36%	38%	40%

Cashew notes: Clearly, necromancers don't need to be buffed as they are already broken as they are. I feel necromancers don't have very powerful well spells either because they recharge too slow or the ability doesn't do much. Considering how easily mobs can move out of wells, I feel well spells in general should be more powerful to be useful at all in a PvE setting. Because this skill is linked to Soul Reaping, it can't be exploited by secondary necromancers. Because the % health decrease is not capped, it can be very powerful with a good group that can body block enemies into well areas. The fast recharge allows the well to be used as soon as corpses are available. Even at rank 3, the spell causes more health loss than deep wound, which I feel is necessary to make an otherwise very limited spell useful.

Counters for this skill involves general anti-caster counters and any monster that doesn't leave an exploitable corpse.

Mesmer: You Are All Sheep - Hex Spell. 10 3 60
All foes in the area are hexed with You Are All Sheep. For 3 seconds and 1 second for every 2 ranks of Fast Casting, this hex replaces all of the foe's skills with the first skill in your skill bar. When the hex ends, all foes in the area suffer 5...15 damage. If you are interrupted, this skill recharges instantly.

Rank	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
Damage	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15

Cashew notes: Okay, so mesmers have it hard in GW and I thought this skill should even out the playing field for mesmer primaries a bit. Because the ability to hex effectively requires high Fast Casting attribute, this prevents other professions from abusing this skill. Since mesmers can't out reflex AIs, this would allow mesmers to unconditionally disable skills. By replacing all skills with the first skill of the mesmer's bar, the spell stays true to the phrase "you are all sheep".

Counters to this skill includes general anti-caster counters, high number of mesmer foes, hex removal skill in the first slot of the casting mesmer, this skill in the first slot of the casting mesmer, and warriors.

Elementalist: Glyph of Ether Reversal - Glyph. 5 1 15
For 5...15 seconds, you remove 1 point of exhaustion for every rank in Energy Storage when casting a spell.

Rank	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
Duration	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15

Cashew notes: Under ideal conditions, this skill will essentially negate any exhaustion, allowing elementalists to spam exhaustion causing spells. This skill will also allow elementalists to play their profession better than another profession using it as a secondary because of the exhaustion removal skill. Everything else is fairly self explanatory.

Counters include knockdown and interrupts, although this is not a very useful skill to counter, unless the strategy is to exhaust the elementalist.

Assassin: Kitsune Vengence - Lead Attack. 5 3
Any stance is ended and you deal +15 damage if this attack hits. If you land a critical hit and have less than maximum health, target foe's maximum health is reduced by 50...90%. This attack is not affected by dagger mastery and cannot be blocked.

Rank	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
Health Reduction	50%	56%	62%	67%	71%	75%	79%	82%	85%	88%	90%

Cashew notes: Yes, this is my idea of how to "balance" assassins. Firstly, assassins don't have very good lead attacks. Secondly, assassins don't assassinate anyone in a PvE setting. While this skill allows assassins to have a better chance to hit and run, it is by no means perfect. Even at 13 critical strikes and running critical eye, this skill only critical hits at 26% (no benefit from weapon mastery), which is about 1 in 5 hits. It ends stances, thus removes usage of Way of the Assassin on the skill. It is a dagger skill, thus cannot be used with another weapon to utilize Way of the Master. As such, critical hit chance is restricted to Critical Strikes and Critical Eye. Because of the recharge time at 3 seconds, assassins have to consider the cost/benefits of repeating the lead or running through a chain at the cost of removing some utility skills. It does, however, allow assassins to put points into Deadly Arts (which no sane PvE assassin do at this point) because with this skill, assassins can do without Dagger Mastery.

Counter to this skill consist of blind, Blurred Vision, slowing hexes, Atrophy, and critical hit negation (such as Stone Flesh Aura). Protection spells and condition removal does not counter maximum health reduction but the PvE Warrior stance Phalanx Formation does. (At rank 10 for all, Phalanx Formation reduces health reduction to ~30% instead of 90%.) Protective Spirit is effected and 55hp monks will take no damage when maximum health is reduced by 90% (as their max health is at 5hp and thus cannot take damage while under PS enchantment).

Ritualist: Changing was Bai Lao - Item Spell. 10 1 5
Hold Bai Lao's ashes up for 3 seconds for every rank in Spawning Power. All nearby foes take 12...30 lightening damage each second while you are holding Bai Lao's ashes. When you drop his ashes, summon a level 20 spirit that lives for the duration you hold up Bai Lao's ashes. Allies within earshot of this spirit gains +2...7 health per second.

Rank	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
Damage	12	14	16	18	20	22	24	26	28	29	30
Health Regen	2	3	3	4	4	5	5	6	6	6	7

Cashew notes: Okay, so ritualists are the jack of all trades spell casters. So it only makes sense if their skill does things that are not necessarily compatible with each other. The skill doesn't replace either defensive or offensive skills, but does serve as a 2 in 1 that can help make some room for more essential spells. I actually considered using "Forgetful was Uhh" as a disabling spell, but then that would be plagiarism and kind of overlapping with mesmer skills. But anyway.

Counters for this skill is elemental damage reduction and interrupts. Also, because item spells remove weapon bonuses, this effectively puts ritualists at a disadvantage.

Paragon: Song of Protection - Chant. 5 1 30
For 2 seconds for each rank of Leadership, all allies within earshot takes 15...30 less damage from physical attacks. When this chant ends on an ally, you gain 2 energy.

Rank	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
Damage Reduction	15	17	19	21	23	25	26	27	28	29	30

Cashew notes: This is a buffer form of There's Nothing To Fear, but only against physical attacks. However, it lasts longer, has less unprotected time, costs less energy, and serves as an energy boost every ~24 seconds. This takes some pain off of prot monks in specific and monks in general. It is completely limited to paragon primaries and thus prevent abuse by other professions. But then, paragons are already broken as hell in PvE anyway.

Counters to this skill includes interrupts because it's a chant and any chant counters, such as Well of Silence.

Dervish: Vow of Perseverance - Enchantment Spell. 5 ¼ 30
For 1 second for every rank in Mysticism, your enchantments cannot be removed. When this enchantment ends, all adjacent foes takes 5...17 damage for each second Vow of Perseverance was active.

Rank	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
Damage	5	7	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17

Cashew notes: So dervishes are all about PBAoE and enchantments. And since the bane of dervishes are enchant removal, they get to protect their enchantments for a duration of time. Then do some decent PBAoE damage even at low ranks. Of course, the draw back is that they can't remove enchants on demand without working around this enchantment.

Counters for this skill is anything that does damage depending on foe being enchanted.

Gah, now I'm so, so tired from writing all this stuff up. @_@