If you haven't already read it here, these are some of the changes Deception spec players can see in 1.4. My comments are in red.

 

All Inquisitors

•Force Speed now has a 20-second cooldown (down from 30) for all Consulars and Inquisitors. More on this a few bullet points down. Overall I like it.

 

Shadows and Assassins:

•Force Cloak now has a 2 minute cooldown. I like this change. Unfortunately it is now a something all Sins take advantage of instead of Deception or hybrids only.

 

•Infiltration Tactics/Duplicity: Now when triggered, your next Shadow Strike/Maul deals 30% more damage and costs 75% less Force. This cannot occur more than once every 15 seconds, but each rank after the first reduces this rate limit by 3 seconds. Based on how I worked the numbers, this should actually be decent buff for Maul damage wise, even without armor penetration. However, this can still only be used on a limitied basis as overall you'd need all 3 points to use a proc'd Maul every 9 seconds. Some hybrid specs probably won't benefit much from this.

 

•Celerity/Avoidance now additionally reduces the cooldown of Force Speed by 2.5 seconds per point. I like this but wonder what they intend to do with Lightning Recovery in the Darkness tree. Hybrids could possibly get Force Speed reduced to 5s.

 

•Masked Assault/Darkswell: Now additionally finishes the cooldown of Blackout when you exit Stealth mode. In addition, Masked Assault/Blackout causes Shadow's Respite/Dark Embrace to reduce all damage taken by 25% while active. Great change however I would have liked to see a major buff to Insulation as well.

 

•Fade now additionally reduces damage taken from area effects by 15% per point. Kinetic Field/Entropic Field no longer provides this effect. Now reduces the cooldown of Force Cloak by 15 seconds per point (down from 30 seconds per point). It's a litle nerf to reduced CD but seeing as Cloak is 2 mins now anyway, it's not bad.

 

•Kinetic Field/Entropic Field has been redesigned. Now critical hits cause you to build a Kinetic/Entropic Field, increasing damage reduction by 1% per point per stack. Stacks up to 3 times. Meh. I never specced into this anyway.

 

•Humbling Strike/Magnetism is a new 1-point skill. Causes the target of your Spinning Kick/Spike to be slowed by 70% for 3 seconds when the knockdown effect ends. Need to see where they put this what skill was reduced to put it in. Overall not bad but I'd prefer being able to use Spike out of stealth as well. /COLOR]

 

•Clairvoyant Strike/Voltaic Slash: Using Project/Shock no longer consumes the buff provided by this ability. This change was made to better synergize with Spinning Strike/Assassinate during execute phases. If I'm reading this correctly it's not a bad change as you could basically keep your Shock buff up indefinitely.

 

 

When you look at the picture as a whole it's a small buff. Not sure if it's enough to make Deception as good as Darkness though.

 

/Discuss

Quote: Originally Posted by Rynis

 

Also, I believe our Force Cloak* should be on a 2 minute base cooldown (Down from 3). Which can then be specced into a 1 minute cooldown for Deception assassins which would greatly increase sustained dps.

 

 

 

I believe these changes are going to make Deception assassins not frowned upon to bring in raids .

 

Force speed cooldown is epic, I'm wondering if tanks spec into it to make it a 10 second cooldown? Seems overpowered but "Lightning Recovery: Reduces cooldown of force speed by 10 seconds"...and they didn't say anything about it.

 

Edit: You said something about that already, just missed it .

Edited September 4, 2012 by Rynis

Another note...

 

Deception has pretty crazy burst in PvP if played right...Inb4 people call to nerf deception burst.

 

Especially since we now don't have to voltaic slash 2x before every shock.

Guess cutting down on the amount of VS and cheaper mauls will make room for easier force management

Glad someone else noticed the Force Speed + Hybrid cd combo. Unless they make the 20 cd of FS JUST for Sorcs and Sages then Decep Sins Shadows will see SO much love in pvp as far as ultility goes + more survivability. 5 sec FS cd makes them AMAZING as defenders and with Force Cloak makes them good ball carriers should a jumper not have the ball. Honestly Im pretty sure this is an oversight. I see them making the 20 sec base cd just for Sorcs Sages to enable better peeling, 5 sec cd on the Darkness/ Decep hybrid seems a little too good. Not to say that I wouldnt like it

You left this out...

 

"Overload and Force Wave have been redesigned. These abilities now knock back all targets within a 15-meter 120-degree cone in front of you. Furthermore, these abilities now knock back all potential targets instantly; they no longer wait for an animation note at the end of the ability animation."

 

Huge nerf. Uncalled for nerf. Going from an AoE to a frontal cone? Really? wow. Looks like they are dumbing down the game for the ten year olds who are about to invade the game when the game goes F2P to me. Doesn't take rocket science to figure that one out.

Edited September 4, 2012 by Wraiven

Thanks for the link as it may have been awhile before I saw this article. One thing that has me slightly concerned is...

Electrocute and Force Stun now have a 10-meter range.

 

I save Electrocute as my OMG IM OVEREXTENDED MUST STOP CAP spell. No worries tho, Force Speed will be off CD.

 

Looking forward to these changes.

Huge nerf. Uncalled for nerf. Going from an AoE to a frontal cone? Really? wow. Looks like they are dumbing down the game for the ten year olds who are about to invade the game when the game goes F2P to me. Doesn't take rocket science to figure that one out.

 

I dont see how better positioning = dumbing down but all the same they could have done without this. Dont think it's that big of a problem though, insta knockback > cone in my book.

I dont see how better positioning = dumbing down but all the same they could have done without this. Dont think it's that big of a problem though, insta knockback > cone in my book.

 

The problem is, they can't get the cones they have now working right...so now we are going to have more issues. Wait and see.

 

Maul...when you are behind the target, like you are supposed to be, not working...If they can't fix Maul, then I don't see this ability working right either.

 

I don't know, maybe once I let the changes sink in a bit, I might feel more accepting to it, but at first glance, I'm not a big fan.

 

Edit: Seems they have focused more on timers and how procs work. Correct me if I am wrong (Which I am not) but wasn't the main issue we have been complaining about being the lack of damage output the Deception class has? I'm not seeing anything that boosts damage (With the exception of Spinning Strike/Assassinate)...unless they have change our base damage tables?

 

Sorry for being so negative, and I recognize that I am indeed being negative...again, I may feel better about it later down the road.

Edited September 4, 2012 by Wraiven

Looks pretty good to me for the most part, although I don't really like the removal of armor penetration from duplicity, seems like its gonna be significantly harder to down tanks. Depending on how they do it, that clairvoyant strike buff could end up being too good.

 

Some of these changes could wind up making darkness too powerful though, particularly the force speed cd reduction.

Quote: Originally Posted by Rynis

 

Also, I believe our Force Cloak* should be on a 2 minute base cooldown (Down from 3). Which can then be specced into a 1 minute cooldown for Deception assassins which would greatly increase sustained dps.

 

 

 

I believe these changes are going to make Deception assassins not frowned upon to bring in raids .

 

Force speed cooldown is epic, I'm wondering if tanks spec into it to make it a 10 second cooldown? Seems overpowered but "Lightning Recovery: Reduces cooldown of force speed by 10 seconds"...and they didn't say anything about it.

 

Edit: You said something about that already, just missed it .

 

Do you know what these changes are going to cause. EVERY Marauder / Sentinel are going to collectively scream bloody murder that they can't insta-kill us "yo-yo's" anymore.

 

To make matters worse. Those of us that can actually play the class well will make Deception seem OP. Think about it, everyone's favorite target in WZ's will be able to do some real damage. This is going to cause a complete freak out.

 

The great part, the buffs won't make the respecs awesome. Only those that actually know how to play the class will be able to realize the new buffs and utilize them to their full potential.

Do you know what these changes are going to cause. EVERY Marauder / Sentinel are going to collectively scream bloody murder that they can't insta-kill us "yo-yo's" anymore.

 

To make matters worse. Those of us that can actually play the class well will make Deception seem OP. Think about it, everyone's favorite target in WZ's will be able to do some real damage. This is going to cause a complete freak out.

 

The great part, the buffs won't make the respecs awesome. Only those that actually know how to play the class will be able to realize the new buffs and utilize them to their full potential.

 

New FotM?

Do you know what these changes are going to cause. EVERY Marauder / Sentinel are going to collectively scream bloody murder that they can't insta-kill us "yo-yo's" anymore.

 

To make matters worse. Those of us that can actually play the class well will make Deception seem OP. Think about it, everyone's favorite target in WZ's will be able to do some real damage. This is going to cause a complete freak out.

 

The great part, the buffs won't make the respecs awesome. Only those that actually know how to play the class will be able to realize the new buffs and utilize them to their full potential.

 

Problem is, not very many players *can* play them very well. Most Deception players complain that they can hardly ever beat Marauders...when in my case the Marauder is my favorite target. Takes the cocky right out of them.

 

Our problem is not in PvP, it's in PvE vs bosses.

Looks pretty good to me for the most part, although I don't really like the removal of armor penetration from duplicity, seems like its gonna be significantly harder to down tanks. Depending on how they do it, that clairvoyant strike buff could end up being too good.

 

Some of these changes could wind up making darkness too powerful though, particularly the force speed cd reduction.

 

Where did you read that? I didn't read anything regarding changes to the 50% armor bypass.

Where did you read that? I didn't read anything regarding changes to the 50% armor bypass.

 

Ripped from the article. It doesnt EXPLICITLY say the armor reduc is gone, I think its implied though.

Where did you read that? I didn't read anything regarding changes to the 50% armor bypass.

 

*Infiltration Tactics/Duplicity: Now when triggered, your next Shadow Strike/Maul deals 30% more damage and costs 75% less Force. This cannot occur more than once every 15 seconds, but each rank after the first reduces this rate limit by 3 seconds.*

 

I don't know if that means the armor penetration is gone or not, I guess we'll have to see how this plays out.

Problem is, not very many players *can* play them very well. Most Deception players complain that they can hardly ever beat Marauders...when in my case the Marauder is my favorite target. Takes the cocky right out of them.

 

Our problem is not in PvP, it's in PvE vs bosses.

 

I can hold my own in PVP. It's just when you play WZ's it seems to be a dog pile once they see VS. In open world I have very little problem, unless I chose to dance with a well geared tank.

 

On Ops and Flash points, these changes will be awesome. As is, you need to be all "street fighter" with your rotation. Some times I feel like playing the deception assassin is like playing Ninja Gaiden Black (in regards to forgiveness in when you miss on a roll).

You left this out...

 

"Overload and Force Wave have been redesigned. These abilities now knock back all targets within a 15-meter 120-degree cone in front of you. Furthermore, these abilities now knock back all potential targets instantly; they no longer wait for an animation note at the end of the ability animation."

 

Huge nerf. Uncalled for nerf. Going from an AoE to a frontal cone? Really? wow. Looks like they are dumbing down the game for the ten year olds who are about to invade the game when the game goes F2P to me. Doesn't take rocket science to figure that one out.

 

I read that, yeah. Not too happy about that one myself but in all honesty I see it as more of a problem for casters/healers than for Sins/Shadows. At least the knockback distance has been doubled.

Based on Whaht i've read, the changes look pretty good. One question I have though: will warzone adrenal stack with blackouts damage reduction? If so, I can have just about 90% damage reduction for 15 seconds.

 

I'm not very happy about changing the overload to a cone rather than an AOE, but I'll adapt and overcome. Also I still would like to see a clense built into force cloak.

 

Overall, I can't wait till it's up on the PTS. I'm eager to see how it will work out

*Infiltration Tactics/Duplicity: Now when triggered, your next Shadow Strike/Maul deals 30% more damage and costs 75% less Force. This cannot occur more than once every 15 seconds, but each rank after the first reduces this rate limit by 3 seconds.*

 

I don't know if that means the armor penetration is gone or not, I guess we'll have to see how this plays out.

 

I don't think there's a change to the armor penetration when duplicity procs. If I'm comparing the change correctly:

 

Duplicity proc time to next proc changes from 10 seconds to 15; spec 3 - 6 seconds

 

Instead of reducing for cost 50% it reduces cost by 75%.

 

So, if I'm reading it correctly, Duplicity will proc more often (as long as you spec at least twice in duplicity) and cost 25% less when duplicity occurs.

Looks pretty good to me for the most part, although I don't really like the removal of armor penetration from duplicity, seems like its gonna be significantly harder to down tanks. Depending on how they do it, that clairvoyant strike buff could end up being too good.

 

Some of these changes could wind up making darkness too powerful though, particularly the force speed cd reduction.

 

Doing some quick math (I hope I did it correctly) I found that the new version will actually do MORE damage. While 50% armor pen sounds really good, the damage boost from it would actually be less than the upcoming changes. The way I understand armor reduction and penetration is that the damage increase is hardly ever as good as it seems. For example I have 3316 armor rating which gives damage reduction of 25.49%. Since armor rating scales, ignoring 50% of armor rating would drop me down to around 15% damage reduction before any other variables (ie expertise damage boost and reduction).

 

My current Maul tooltip has a high end of 2659 and surge rating of 76.77%. A proc'd Maul on myself would hit for 2260 non-crit and 3995 crit before any other variables (expertise). The new Maul tooltip should be 3457 when it procs. Using the same logic as above, a non crit would hit for 2592 and crit for 4582 before any variables. Sounds good? Guess what? That's not even taking into account that I'm currently Madness spec and don't have Induction which gives an extra 30% surge for Maul. As Deception spec my proc'd Mauls should crit for 5361 before variables.

 

PS I didn't even take into account have Surging Charge active with the Charge Mastery skill as it's supposed to give all attacks 9% armor penetration. While it's never been clear to me if that meant ALL attacks or only those from Surging Charge procs, Maul still looks better with the changes.

Based on Whaht i've read, the changes look pretty good. One question I have though: will warzone adrenal stack with blackouts damage reduction? If so, I can have just about 90% damage reduction for 15 seconds.

 

I'm not very happy about changing the overload to a cone rather than an AOE, but I'll adapt and overcome. Also I still would like to see a clense built into force cloak.

 

Overall, I can't wait till it's up on the PTS. I'm eager to see how it will work out

 

If the WZ adrenal is a straight up damage reduction buff then yes, it will stack. Only thing is that it would only be for about 6 seconds as that's how long the buff is for Dark Embrace/Darkswell. The good thing is that entering stealth and popping back out will give you the buff again. So in theory, if you can kill someone fast enough while having the WZ buff up and pop back in and out of stealth you can get the extremely high damage reduction again.

I don't think there's a change to the armor penetration when duplicity procs. If I'm comparing the change correctly:

 

Duplicity proc time to next proc changes from 10 seconds to 15; spec 3 - 6 seconds

 

Instead of reducing for cost 50% it reduces cost by 75%.

 

So, if I'm reading it correctly, Duplicity will proc more often (as long as you spec at least twice in duplicity) and cost 25% less when duplicity occurs.

 

There's quite a bit they left out such as whether or not the proc rate is the same (curently 30% with 3 points invested). The way I read it is that the new Duplicity will break down as follows:

 

1 point-can only proc every 15s

2 points-can now proc every 12s

3 points-can now proc every 9s

 

I was also wondering about the force costs reduction. It would seem it's a straight up 75% reduction for 1 point invested (making a proc'd Maul cost 12.5 force). I'm thinking it might be better to scale it per point invested to deter people from only putting one point in it (typically hybrid specs). In other words 1 pt = 25% reduction, 2 pts = 50% reduction, 3 pts 75% reduction.

Well, they seem to have solved the force regen issues with increased uptime on Blackout/Dark Embrace, given survivability a nice buff, and made our execute phase much more force-efficient. I'm actually rather optimistic.

Well, they seem to have solved the force regen issues with increased uptime on Blackout/Dark Embrace, given survivability a nice buff, and made our execute phase much more force-efficient. I'm actually rather optimistic.

 

I am rather pessimistic. However, behind all my pessimism I do have a hint of optimism. Hopefully it's what everyone is hoping it will be.