Paladin Parity Suggestion Package

[Shurrikhan]

Just going to compile my recent responses all here:

Aside from that, I don't agree with 90% of the changes in the OP. SwO is one of the few things that doesn't need fixing in PLD's toolkit. Its very powerful, and provides the biggest boost of all OT stances (even though its overall DPS still lags behind because its potencies/offensive cooldowns are so subpar).

For me, the change to Sword Oath was originally just a small, opportunistic adjustment. Instead of +50 potency per auto-attack (which causes a variance of ~3% OT dps just based on weapon speed), I found that adding 25 potency to everything but auto-attacks instead could carry the same dps increase as current Sword Oath with a 2.0s weapon while helping Sword Oath tanking. Because I didn't want to copy Warrior / DRK while desiring some manner of AoE, I later added on the cleave component as well, to be paired with the refreshable Shield Swipe (the lesser MT alternative) and eventually Defender (which I may well remove; not at all Core). I was aiming for parity, after all, not less weight only in certain niches (ST, physical dmg). I didn't just want PLD to be "worth bringing" (on certain encounters), but nearly as good as DRK and WAR in each tanking component (rather than being outright able to compete in, say, AoE dps), and with a few places in which it could be best.

What ive observed since 2.1 when warriors got buffed till now is that the real problem with pld is the skill that actually makes their dps competitive. Sword Oath.
Its just way too big difference between the oaths.
Just making Sword Oath into a trait or removing it and balancing the other skill potencies would pretty much close the gap there is while MT.
Cause thats where the problem lies.

I don't really agree making SwO into an even more desirable stance to prioritize.

I've had the same concerns, myself. This version remains at the same DPS bonus as a lower-mid-speed weapon does now in Sword Oath, around 14%. That's pretty huge for a stance, especially one that won't frequently be danced through or turned off. Worse yet, I've now made it practically unremovable except by going into Shield Oath (seeing as recast now toggles its Cleave component)...

However, the alternative would be to increase base potencies to a seemingly huge values, to give Gladiator itself a trait increasing damage (such as the Increased Action Damage trait on all dps) in place of another (likely making the traited version of the removed trait the default), or for PLD to get an equivalent to Maim. It stands almost exactly a Maim/Darkside behind the others in OT dps without Sword Oath. How else do we close the gap without copying another tank's toolset? (Not rhetorical, seriously asking for any alternatives.)

I think PLD just needs some basic fix's, as I only really have trouble with overgeared DPS or equal/over geared DRK/WAR's.

Those "Fix's" I think should be: A) something to give TP regen when used, like a 5sec buff with "shield swipe" that gives 20tp a tick...or every hit made while buffed by "Fight or Flight" gives back 5-10TP

Anything larger than changing Fast Blade from 70 to 60 TP would probably be a bit overpowered, from what I've seen. I've considered the Fight or Flight 10-TP return though. PLD consumes 1520 TP per minute at a 2.5 GCD, while producing 1200, or has a net loss of 320 per minute. By 2.4 GCD its net loss is ~380 per minute, reaching starvation by only 2:40. 5-TP-per-hit during FoF would produce 120 TP over 30 seconds per 90 seconds, or 40 TP per minute, reducing the net loss to 280, decreasing net loss by 12.5%, or general loss by 2.6%. This would help, but would still be inferior to Blood Weapon, which retains 12 to 14 TP each hit, at half the duration but less than half the CD, totaling about three times the effectiveness (20% less TP cost, up to 37.5% of the time, or 7.5% reduced TP cost generally). WAR similarly gets a free GCD ability for roughly every 8 GCDs, such that it spends 12.5% less TP than PLD...

[Fast Blade TP reduction from 70 to 60 would be an ~5.3% reduction in TP cost.]

It would require a ~25 TP return during FoF to hold TP as long as an OT DRK, but at that point, the simple fact that DRK cannot use Blood Weapon (as easily or frequently) while MTing makes a new MT balance between them even without making PLD's dps more on-par (faintly last place instead of thoroughly last place). Given that WAR is something of a dedicated OT, that would then give the two options of high-DPS-low-TP-pool vs. low-DPS-mid-TP-pool MTs. Not such a bad thing, but ultimately I had hoped for near-parity in both regards (TP and dps) in both MT and OT positions. [Of course, DRKs could just finally get Blood Weapon available in Grit w/o the mana bonus per hit to be the MT mid-place in TP longevity between current PLD and Defiance Warrior...]

Skimmed thru. Tons of complex chanhes that are not needed. Simply adjusting Shield Swipe, Spirits and/or circle to bypass shield oath damage down would prove great for MT dps increase. Adding in an effect to sword Oath that increases auto attack attack speed with skill speed would also go a long way towards OT dps increase. They could also bring back determination to effect auto attacks under sword oath for another easy increase. Also remove the potency varies with HP effect on spirits. Two(ish) very very simple changes that would be easy to code and not require a total overhaul. The only hard part would be the math on the SS and/or det increase on auto attacks as to not make then to powerful.

I could totally do the first part (in bold). Instead of Shield Oath "reducing damage dealt" it would just read "reducing weaponskill damage dealt". It would only equate to about a 2% dps increase though, or 6-9% total when combined with the refreshable Shield Swipe. I don't see how AAs being revised to work with SS would provide enough of an effect to be worth the loss of dps per TP compared to Det/Crit, however. Similarly, Determination still affects Auto-attacks, just at a lesser level (probably equal to or less than Crit's average effects, now), and changes there, like my Skill/Spell Speed merge, would have external effects. Especially when taking into account the balance from external effects, that would be no less complicated that +25 potency to all attacks (and 25% of weaponskill damage done to nearby enemies). I personally like the %HP-dependence of Spirits Within, but would not be sad to lose it, either.

[MATH] Each GB-RoH-RA does 2200 weaponskill per 22.5 seconds without the Sword Oath modifier suggested in the package (using 280 RoH). With Shield Oath, that would be 1760. Normally Shield Swipe, 100% health Spirits, and CoS would each do 10 potency per second or 225 potency per tri-combo or 8 pps and 180 per tri-combo in Shield Oath. oGCDs ignoring Shield Oath's .8 modifier would save 2 pps or 45 rotational potency, increasing MT WS/Abil DPS by 2.05%. A single Riot - Royal combo would drop this to 2.02%. A single RoH dropped for RA would reduce it to below 2%.

Now, that correction also allows AAs to bypass the reduction, so let's calculate those too to test:
100p/3s * 22.5s = 750 potency. With Shield Oath, 600 potency. 150 potency saved. (2200+225+750)/(2200+600+180) = 1.065, or 6.5% dps increase if Shield Oath's modifier ignored both AAs and oGCDs (only affected weaponskills). Now that would be sizable, though far from able to make up a gap between, say, 650 and 800 dps (23%).

Best part: that damage bonus wouldn't fade when not proccing blocks.... I like.

(I still want some unique way to supply Shield Oath AoE dps though, such that a DRK would swap into MT position for Blood Price, but if low on CDs, the PLD could swap back into MT position for AoE burst via Bulwark while the DRK spends his mana gains without being fettered by Grit's damage modifier, etc. I don't want PLD to be limited solely to OT when paired with a non-PLD.)

If I was going to change pld personally I would add a tiny amount of enmity to Rage. I would add a tiny amount of damage to flash maybe like 10 potency. Change divine veil to be activated by heals or clemency and have it shield the user and the party. Then change clemency to be an instant cast with a CD that would make it not too overpowered. Maybe last make shield swipe usable in sword oath without a block but maybe double or triple the CD time when in sword oath.

But then I couldn't use Flash on my Warrior to keep from breaking sleeps. : O
(Clearly only a factor in low level dungeons.)

Nor could I do a double Clemency on the MT in the few situations when I actually need Clemency.

As for the Shield Swipe, what happens if there was actually something worth pacifying that can actually be pacified, and your Swipe is now stuck with 26 second left on its timer when it would have been 4 seconds' done otherwise? (Granted, very rare situation outside of Ex rl + bees, etc.)