I'll start with some background info to hopefully avoid the "skill issue" and "get gud" replies here, but short version...I'm a VERY experienced PvE player (6x gilded Conquerer, raid sherpa, master raid clears, Guardian Rank 11 in every season it's been available, solo/flawless dungeons, etc.). I'm no SaltAgreppo, but I'm not the blueberry making you rage quit LFG raids, either. I'm a Hunter main, but I play all 3 classes. This post is primarily in regards to endgame content.
Ok, that out of the way, let's chat about Hunters. They don't feel good right now, and they haven't for some time. I'll try to shorten this to bullet points to avoid writing a novel:
- No class identity. We're supposed to be all about mobility, but we get outpaced and outjumped by both the other classes with regularity due to air moves, burst jumps, shoulder charge, etc.
- Resilience rework with Witch Queen unfairly impacted Hunters. It's pretty much required to have high Resil, so we're forced to choose between fast recovery or high mobility, a problem made worse by the fact that our class ability is the only one that offers little to no defensive advantage.
- The main benefit of our dodge is to refund melee energy, but it requires being near enemies. This brings me to the next point...
- Nerfing Restoration, Devour, Woven Mail, AND orb generation all at once all serve to unfairly impact Hunters. Before you rush to your keyboard to defend your class, think about it...on Void, Warlocks still get Devour on ability kill (no orbs required), and Titans have overshield on demand *with* a barricade to boot. On solar, Titans are a Sunspot/Resto factory, and Warlocks are the only ones able to get Resto x2. On Strand, Warlocks get WeaveWalk, thereby giving them better invis/survivability than Void Hunters AND still keep massive damage output. And don't even get me started on Banner of War Titan.
- The orb generation mod nerf unfairly impacts Hunters. Powerful Attraction felt like it was custom-made to help level the playing field for Hunters. We don't have a Barricade that can withstand boss attacks and stays on the field for long enough to fully heal. We don't have a rift. We have a lousy dodge that is only beneficial when up close and personal, but we don't heal quickly enough for that strategy to be viable on anything above at-level content because we were forced to spec into mobility and resilience. Being able to consistently generate and pick up orbs with our dodge to activate Recuperation, Devour, and Woven Mail was the ONLY thing that helped compensate.
I'm not looking for Hunters to be as ridiculously overpowered as Banner of War Titans (I think that build is single-handedly ruining the game, btw). I just want the game to feel balanced again. Right now, even the seasonal activity has me feeling like my Hunter is made of paper. I went from being able to clear The Lightblade on GM difficulty without dying to getting nuked in Legend difficulty Nightfalls. Something has to change, and if it doesn't, I might have to switch classes. =(
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Edited by The Legend Himself: GONZO: 12/6/2023 8:10:37 PMI’m genuinely baffled that you feel this way. You seem like a genuinely good player and your writing, with the necessary caveats, shows that you’re fairly rational and intelligent. With that being said, I think Hunters are easily the easiest class to build into and very powerful. I’m interested to see why we differ in opinions so much. Like you, I too play all three classes fairly evenly and have end-game accomplishments that rival your own, though you probably edge past me in certain regards. Here are some key take-aways for why I feel the way that I do. (FYI, I typically run 100 Mobility, 100 Resilience, and 80-100 on whatever other ability I’m focusing on, based on my subclass and/or equipped exotic.) 1. Solar: Incredible power and utility. I always run a healing grenade for on-demand healing and supplement the lack of offensive grenade with Gunpowder Gamble for absurdly powerful and insanely fast uptime grenade damage. I also run Recuperation, Ember of Searing & Ember of Mercy for never-ending Firesprites for healing. 2. Arc: Powerful one-and-done super. Combination blow & Lethal Current are a powerful combination (no pun intended) paired with Spark of Resistance & Lethal Current with Flow State. I also use Recuperation for further survivability. 3. Void: Incredible support super with absurdly fast cooldowns (especially if paired with Orpheus Rig) and on-demand invisibility for moving to safety to recover health or run past enemies. 4. Strand: Incredible mobility with double Grapples. Paired with Cyrtarachne’s Façade, you have constant Woven Mail that can be continuously refreshed. Or, constant suspend with The Sixth Coyote and two Shackle Grenades via Widow’s Silk & Ensnaring Slam. 5. Stasis: … … … Well, Renewal Grasps are good…ish. lol. Okay, Stasis needs help. All jokes aside, Renewal Grasps with Touch of Winter, Grim Harvest, Whisper of Durance, Whisper of Chains, Whisper of Conduction, and Whisper of Rime makes you hard to kill.