Swiss Mercenary,Feb 9 2005, 07:17 PM Wrote:a bit too situational (You need to have an unexploited corpse, it needs to be in the right place, etc, etc.)[right][snapback]67727[/snapback][/right]
My perspective is that everything is situational. Some more than others, of course, but the only semi-guaranteed positions are meat shield and healer. Then there are layers to stop even that! Skills that reduce or eliminate ability to heal, directly on the healed or indirectly by taking down caster's skills or caster's life.
A situational skill does not automatically mean better alternative for that slot. It means you must decide if being strong in that situation is worth it. Funny, because I do consider ressurrect a situational skill too. Resurrect isn't always necessary, it usually is, but the game gets more intense without a dedicated resurrecter. Almost all skills have their place. Newbies, don't let 'being situational' scare you. Cure HEX is a situational spell. The enemy may never HEX you seriously, especially on newbie levels. Backfire, a mesmer HEX skill, is rather situational in that it depends on the caster actually casting spells within 10 seconds of being hexed! Imagine that! It has happened, and many times for me.
Mesmer skills are generally more situational than professions, of course. With mantras of elements, you get situational strengths vs those elements when you need it. Mantra of distortion, I generally do not keep up if I do not need to. Whether mantra of distortion is up depends on my perceived threat level. However, I am safe in the knowledge that if
Remember, the great tactician knows not only of, and how to use, but the matter of when too. Constant Mantra of distortion use might mean draining the mana pool, especially for melee people. If mana is not a problem, fine, but if it is. Use mana of distortition in tight spots, or when can temporarily alleviate normal tanks.
Low health? Mantra of distortion time. Fire users (and there are generally a lot of them)? Mantra of flame time.
There was also an interesting R/Me build which had a 'call of wind' that turned all elemental damage to fire, and mantra of fire. Hence, he would be very strong against fire damage almost all the time. Not everyone's so specialist, but this combination managed to circumvent the normal limitations of mantra of flame--at a temporary 5% death penalty cost per usage.
Worth it? Can be. 5% health vs ~25-50% damage reduction from elements. I think the latter wins when there are archers and elementalists around.