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[Ashodin]

Just realized Chronomancers won't even need portal to trick people into falling to their doom. They'll just rewind time. Man I hope that effect looks cool, like Prince of Persia sands of time.

 

[Nemesis121]

I wiped at Howling King 5 times in a row today so I too have uninstalled.

You have the worst luck at finding groups, I ran all 3 paths of AC today in 36mins a record for me..

 

[Ashodin]

Here's the article link, but it's not up yet.

http://www.guildwars2.com/en/news/meet-the-chronomancer-mesmers-elite-specialization/

 

[Thorgal]

Dunno how people who use that scheme do jumping puzzles properly with jump mapped to the A button. I have jump mapped to left thumb stick press, so that I can still aim mid-jump with my right thumb on the right stick.

I like how over a year ago Mesmers had time warp cut in half only to now possibly have it returned to its former glory.

The fact that i played games with a controller for 1 and a half decade exclusively before jumping into PC gaming is why it feels right to me .

the downside is that Keyboards ,games and me do not mix at all if it involves anything more then clicking on something ..

 

[Levyne]

You have the worst luck at finding groups, I ran all 3 paths of AC today in 36mins a record for me..

Ac123, cm123, and coe123 are some of the best pugs in the game. Actually fairly enjoyable if I can't hit the dungeons with gaf for whatever reason.

Edit. Coe1 computer can still be an adventure though.

 

[Hawkian]

yay I wanna be a chronomancer

 

[Pro]

Got my very first precursor last night! "The Bard". Four rares in the Mystic Forge and there it was.

 

[pyrandes]

Im gonna have to dust off my mesmer (and gw2 account as well) for chronomancer. Looooooove time mages. From the articles (and blog post now that it's up) it looks the specialization will be pretty fun

 

[Shanlei91]

The fact that i played games with a controller for 1 and a half decade exclusively before jumping into PC gaming is why it feels right to me .

the downside is that Keyboards ,games and me do not mix at all if it involves anything more then clicking on something ..

I understand feeling attached to the controller - when I first got a gaming PC I played Quake with a controller. I always had to find a way to play with a controller by mapping buttons to keys. Quake, Diablo, WoW, Guild Wars, etc. Never used a keyboard.

Just saying that aim'ing your jump has to be hard if it's mapped to A! (◉◞౪◟&#9673

 

[Trey]

on the same day my engineer aspirations die, my Mesmer hopes rise. It's the cycle, death and rebirth.

 

[theMrCravens]

More annoying Mesmery-stuff to deal with in spvp.

Booo.

 

[Levyne]

That dual spellcasting ability around the F5 skill is reminiscent of echo cast mesmer in GW1 a bit.

 

[Kos Luftar]

Wow they just gave TenTonHammer the full blog post for thier article. Nothing new in the official blog post.

 

[Zeroth]

Could someone post the blog article here for those of us at work?

 

[Quenk]

Greetings to all you butterfly-loving mesmers out there. The time has finally come to reveal the new mesmer specialization for Guild Wars 2: Heart of Thorns™, the chronomancer. I’m Robert Gee, and if there’s one thing I like more than time puns, it’s my mesmer. I’m really happy to be able to tell you about how this future specialization turns your elegant mesmer into a fabulous time mage.

It was a unique challenge to find an interpretation of time magic that fit within the lore of Tyria while also providing engaging gameplay hooks. Just as the mesmer is a unique take on a spellcasting class, our chronomancer does much more than distribute speed to allies while slowing down enemies. This specialization also gives players the ability to stop and even revert time through use of their abilities.

Time to Dual

One of the core themes of the chronomancer is duality. Past versus future and fast versus slow are key themes you’ll see throughout the chronomancer’s skill set. Many skills affect both enemies and allies, reflecting the chronomancer’s ability to steal a chunk of time and use it for their own purposes.

Time manipulation can get pretty complicated, so let’s start with something simple.
Think Fast

Specializing in chronomancy grants mesmers access, through traits and skills, to a new effect called alacrity. Alacrity functions as the inverse of chill by speeding up skill recharges rather than slowing them down. Chronomancy is the only specialization allowed access to this powerful effect, and chronomancers can share alacrity with allies in limited situations, making them an incredibly powerful ally to have in any party.

One of the specialization’s minor traits allows chronomancers to grant alacrity to themselves every time an illusion shatters. Maintaining a good shattering cadence can greatly enhance your effectiveness over a prolonged battle. Phantasm builds shouldn’t feel left out, though, since other skills can give alacrity to your illusions, making them attack even more often.

Alacrity isn’t the only way to manipulate time, however.

Turn Back the Clock

As an elite specialization, chronomancers will gain access to a new weapon, the off-hand shield. Even without the use of alacrity, chronomancer shield skills have special mechanics that allow them to be used more frequently when played correctly. Skilled chronomancers will be able to maximize the effectiveness of these new weapon skills to suit a variety of playstyles.

One such skill, called Tides of Time, launches a wall of compressed temporal energy from the chronomancer’s shield that travels forward a moderate distance, absorbing all projectiles that are fired into it. If the wall passes through an enemy, that enemy becomes frozen in time and stunned for a short duration, while allies touched by the wall are granted a short burst of quickness. When the wall reaches its maximum distance, it turns around and rewinds itself back toward the chronomancer, applying all its effects on targets in its path a second time. An adept chronomancer can even reposition while the wave is moving, to change the returning trajectory of the wall.

If you’re able to pass through the wall on its return trip, it refunds a portion of the recharge so you can use it again sooner! Saving time has never been so effective.

All’s Well That Ends Wells

In Guild Wars 2: Heart of Thorns, necromancers won’t be the only profession that has access to well skills. When mesmers become chronomancers, they’ll unlock access to a suite of new time-themed well skills. These well skills place a giant clock face on the ground that ticks in time with a pulsing effect. The clock isn’t just for show, either—the wells tick exactly in time with the clock hands, three times overall. When time is up, the well releases a powerful burst effect. This burst effect can be offensive or defensive depending on the well itself, but observant players can watch the hands of the clock to tell when it will trigger.

For example, the Well of Precognition creates a well that alters the future of allies in the area, causing their attacks to become unblockable. When this well ends, affected allies can read the future for a short duration and evade all incoming attacks. Using this well tactically can help a team bust through defense-heavy foes while also protecting allies from counterattacks. Because there is a delay before the final effects trigger, they tend to be fairly strong. Most chronomancer wells have a fairly high recharge time, however, so be sure to keep the alacrity flowing.

Time and Time Again

The chronomancer’s unique mechanic is a new shatter skill that takes the F5 slot next to the other shatters. This skill, Continuum Split, and its follow-up skill, Continuum Shift, are the most powerful abilities in a chronomancer’s arsenal and affect just about every skill on your bar.

When the chronomancer activates Continuum Split, they sacrifice all of their illusions to split themselves off from the normal flow of time for a duration that scales with the number of illusions shattered. When this duration is over, or when the mesmer activates the follow-up skill Continuum Shift, they revert back to the location where the skill was first activated.

Here’s where things get fun. Shifting back to the original timeline reverts the chronomancer’s health, endurance, and all cooldowns (yes, even the elite skill) back to the state they were in when the shatter was first activated. This skill essentially gives the chronomancer a reset button and allows for tricks such as casting any skill twice, avoiding a killing blow, or simply tactically repositioning yourself. Remember Tides of Time from earlier in this article? Skillful use of Continuum Split will allow you to catch two returning time waves, doubling the effectiveness of the recharge bonus while gaining twice the benefits. I’m personally excited to see what kinds of strategies will be coming from our players once this specialization is available.

Time sure flies, doesn’t it? This may be the end of the article, but if you want to know more, set your clocks for Friday, May 1, at noon Pacific Time to the Points of Interest livestream, where we’ll be showcasing a demo of the chronomancer. And if for some reason you miss it live, you too can be a chronomancer and turn back time by watching the video replay on YouTube. See you all in the future!

.

 

[spiritfox]

Hidden Arcana: Creating the Chronomancer

Additional blog post for those interested.

Hi, my name is Anatoli Ingram. Welcome to Hidden Arcana, where I’ll be giving you a closer look at the people, processes, and design philosophies behind the development of Guild Wars 2: Heart of Thorns™. This week, Game Designer Jon Peters took some time to chat with me about the mesmer’s new elite specialization, the chronomancer, and how a profession from the past became something Guild Wars 2 players can look forward to getting their hands on in the future.

Time Warp (Again)

The chronomancer first tentatively entered the Guild Wars® universe in the plans for the scrapped Guild Wars Utopia campaign [note: link is in English only], which was replaced by the Guild Wars: Eye of the North expansion while ArenaNet began development on Guild Wars 2. The chronomancer was intended to be a full profession in Guild Wars Utopia but was little more than concept art and an idea when the campaign was cancelled. At the time it was shelved, the chronomancer profession also trod somewhat on the toes of the mesmer within the original Guild Wars, as they were both mages with the power to manipulate reality.

The mesmer of Guild Wars 2 is just as fond of toying with reality and perception as its predecessor, but it also possesses the ability to twist the fabric of space and time in the form of skills like Time Warp and Temporal Curtain. Jon says that this made the chronomancer a natural choice for the mesmer’s first elite specialization.

A Bit of a Mind Flip

While the ranger’s druid elite specialization was designed around its ability to wield a staff, the chronomancer’s concept and flavor were developed ahead of its weapon choice. An early idea for the specialization’s new weapon even involved rifles, but the team eventually felt that the offhand shield would be the most thematically appropriate choice. Brainstorming led from the idea of a shield with a clockface to the concept of clock-themed wells that visibly count time and unleash their effects as the hands meet. It may be unusual for a mage to use a shield, but mesmers are already masters of repurposing traditionally nonmagical weapons—from pistols to greatswords—to suit their own ends.

Just as the structure of time within the Mists might seem fluid and ineffable to mortal minds, chronomancy has a decidedly mystical bent. The signature shield skin, which is earned through the elite specialization reward track, is an arcane mechanism that invokes various methods of telling time—clockwork, an hourglass, and celestial bodies. The elite specialization shoulder skin, which is also available through the reward track, displays glowing magical runes. Skilled chronomancers slip nimbly through the flow of time while bringing their enemies to a screeching halt; if the perception of time is an illusion, it’s one that they’re uniquely equipped to both create and shatter.

You’re into the Time Slip

While professions in the original Guild Wars skewed a bit toward the unusual, the core professions of Guild Wars 2 fulfill much broader archetypes. The elite specializations will allow ArenaNet—and players—to explore subarchetypes with a more specific flavor and playstyle. Instead of having to define a chronomancer as being sufficiently different from a mesmer, it instead provides a starting point to choose just what kind of mesmer you want to be.

The goal of elite specializations, Jon says, is to allow players to feel as though their profession has transformed into something new. ArenaNet steered clear of hard roles for professions in the core design of Guild Wars 2, but specializing in Guild Wars 2: Heart of Thorns and beyond will allow players to more fully define their roles in combat based on the type of gameplay they enjoy. The chronomancer is highly adept at slowing and halting enemy actions while making sure time is on their side through the use of alacrity—their unique effect—and this makes them excellent candidates for controlling the battlefield.

Jon told me that while few new skills have been added since the launch of Guild Wars 2, ArenaNet now has access to improved technology to create more involved skills, and he believes the payoff for players will be worth the wait. Since elite specializations are only available to level 80 characters, this has given the development team greater freedom to create skills and abilities that reward skillful play and continued improvement, even at the level cap.

If you’re ready to see some chronomancy in action, don’t forget to tune in to the Points of Interest livestream on May 1 at noon Pacific Time (UTC-7) to catch a time-bending demonstration! If you happen to miss it, you can catch a recording on the official Guild Wars 2 YouTube channel.

 

[Boss Doggie]

Wait, the portal drop is super duper rare? Fuck this ;_;

 

[appletoasty]

It's less super duper rare than it was yesterday

 

[Shanlei91]

An early idea for the specialization’s new weapon even involved rifles,

So close.

 

[Hawkian]

man I'm going to have to stop something to incorporate all these f5 skills onto my controller.

 

[Quenk]

man I'm going to have to stop something to incorporate all these f5 skills onto my controller.

Buy a foot pedal just for the f5

 

[Taffer]

Those time puns are rubbish, half of them aren't even puns.

 

[Shanlei91]

Switch to a Dualshock 4 and use "press down on trackpad".

Or install a Kinect and yell "Continuum Split!"

 

[spiritfox]

Switch to a Dualshock 4 and use "press down on trackpad".

Or install a Kinect and yell "Continuum Split!"

I vote the Kinect. Only that you have to yell the skill names for everything.

 

[Shanlei91]

I vote the Kinect. Only that you have to yell the skill names for everything.

It'll be like being a Dragonball Z or Yugi Oh character who has to shout their attack as they do it.

"I ACTIVATE TIME WARP!"

Instantly become the life of the party on Mumble.

Those time puns are rubbish, half of them aren't even puns.

The Rocky Horror Picture Show titles in the second blog are far better.

 

[Trey]

That F5 skill sounds like some Bleach type shit. Sorta reminds me of halcyon days in GW1 with an E/M running echo so I could (unreasonably) double cast meteor.

edit:

The goal of elite specializations, Jon says, is to allow players to feel as though their profession has transformed into something new. ArenaNet steered clear of hard roles for professions in the core design of Guild Wars 2, but specializing in Guild Wars 2: Heart of Thorns and beyond will allow players to more fully define their roles in combat based on the type of gameplay they enjoy. The chronomancer is highly adept at slowing and halting enemy actions while making sure time is on their side through the use of alacrity—their unique effect—and this makes them excellent candidates for controlling the battlefield.

Quite the compromise. Makes sense with respect to Anet's core philosphy of GW2, while acknowledging a common criticism with the combat and lack of defined roles (an overblown complaint, in my opinion). We'll see how this plays out.

 

[Levyne]

That F5 skill sounds like some Bleach type shit. Sorta reminds me of halcyon days in GW1 with an E/M running echo so I could (unreasonably) double cast meteor.

That exhaustion was no joke, but at least you could double cast a meteor shower every 5 minutes when it wore off, haha

Edit. I think I ran M/E so I could fast cast it. Such a useless gimmick and no energy but it was fun.

 

[LumpOfCole]

My class's new shatter sounds ridiculous.

 

[Trey]

That exhaustion was no joke, but at least you could double cast a meteor shower every 5 minutes when it wore off, haha

Worth it.

 

[Taffer]

The Rocky Horror Picture Show titles in the second blog are far better.

Saying I like chronomancer as much as I like time puns and then failing to provide time puns suggests you don't really like chronomancer so much. Stealthy Rocky Horror lyrics suggest instead that you are a cool person and this thing you're talking about is cool also.

 

[Moondrop]

My F5 binding will probably be my F-key modifier (left trigger) plus right thumb stick button.

Literally no idea what Kanik is talking about re: jumping with the left stick. We've been using jumping on one hand and moving with the other since Super Mario Bros.

 

[Shanlei91]

If jump is assigned to a button you press with your right thumb, then you can't move the camera mid jump, unless you're jumping and then quickly moving your thumb to the stick. Where if it is instead assigned elsewhere, you can keep one thumb on the movement and another thumb on the camera stick so you can navigate mid-air with more precision.

I probably sound like a nut.

 

[Ashodin]

If jump is assigned to a button you press with your right thumb, then you can't move the camera mid jump, unless you're jumping and then quickly moving your thumb to the stick. Where if it is instead assigned elsewhere, you can keep one thumb on the movement and another thumb on the camera stick so you can navigate mid-air with more precision.

I probably sound like a nut.

 

[Kos Luftar]

Has it been confirmed that you do not need to use the new weapon that elite specilization allows you to use, when you are in that specilization. Ie Chronomancer can play with just a staff and it will still work, or will the shield be a requirement?

 

[Ashodin]

Has it been confirmed that you do not need to use the new weapon that elite specilization allows you to use, when you are in that specilization. Ie Chronomancer can play with just a staff and it will still work, or will the shield be a requirement?

I'm assuming the specialization loses a weapon for the shield. And yes to the original question.

 

[Zeroth]

Thank you Quenk!

I'm assuming the specialization loses a weapon for the shield. And yes to the original question.

Specialization adds weapons, they don't remove any.

 

[Levyne]

I highly doubt you lose a weapon if you still pick any 2 non elite specs.

 

[Wanderer5]

Hm think I am more glad I made a Mesmer now. Color me interested in the time mage setup.

 

[Shanlei91]

I wonder how the other classes are going to compare to Time Lord Mesmer. Think we'll see everyone getting as cool a specialization or did they reveal their best first and we'll just see lame specializations like "Necros now shout and can go into melee. The end."

 

[Moondrop]

If jump is assigned to a button you press with your right thumb, then you can't move the camera mid jump, unless you're jumping and then quickly moving your thumb to the stick. Where if it is instead assigned elsewhere, you can keep one thumb on the movement and another thumb on the camera stick so you can navigate mid-air with more precision.

Ok, I guess this could be relevant in circumstances where you have to change your position in mid-air, but by then my right thumb has moved back to the right stick subconsciously. Apologies, my post sounded harsher than I intended.

By the way, I hate how in most video games you can move your character around mid-jump. But we're all so used to it that people would freak out if actual physics were applied.

Think we'll see everyone getting as cool a specialization or did they reveal their best first and we'll just see lame specializations like "Necros now shout and can go into melee. The end."

You're probably right that they chose to lead with druid and chronomancer deliberately. Although I wouldn't be so down on necro shouts for example; just calling it Banshee got me hyped (giant sized x-men #1 ftw). But seriously, shouts are instant cast (I feel necro cast times on heal skills are a vulnerability) and they likely will bring group utility.

 

[Ashodin]

I wonder how the other classes are going to compare to Time Lord Mesmer. Think we'll see everyone getting as cool a specialization or did they reveal their best first and we'll just see lame specializations like "Necros now shout and can go into melee. The end."

I think reverse reveal order is probably the deal here.

Also, the article on TenTon refers to them only doing three reveals over the coming weeks (I guess as far as May goes)?

haha, looking at the wiki, this is pretty funny.

https://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Professions_reveal

• At least two professions are variations on Guild Wars professions, but not quite the same.[5]
• There will not be a dedicated healer.[6]
• Chronomancers are certain not to be included.[7]

That last one

Anyway, if the cadence holds true, it will be Mesmer(Chronomancer), Engineer(Mechanic?), Thief(Sniper?), Guardian(Cavalier?)

 

[Shanlei91]

Ok, I guess this could be relevant in circumstances where you have to change your position in mid-air, but by then my right thumb has moved back to the right stick subconsciously. Apologies, my post sounded harsher than I intended.

By the way, I hate how in most video games you can move your character around mid-jump. But we're all so used to it that people would freak out if actual physics were applied.


You're probably right that they chose to lead with druid and chronomancer deliberately. Although I wouldn't be so down on necro shouts for example; just calling it Banshee got me hyped (giant sized x-men #1 ftw). But seriously, shouts are instant cast (I feel necro cast times on heal skills are a vulnerability) and they likely will bring group utility.

It's ok, I didn't really articulate my point clearly until my last post. After doing Mad King's Tower for the first time I developed a love for changing position mid-air.

No doubt, the other specializations will fill weaknesses the classes have, like shouts for Necros. It'll be stuff that fans of the classes will love. I just won't be surprised if none of them are game changers like Chronomancer will be. The class is doing more than introducing new skills, it's adding new game mechanics and styles of play. Although I would like to be proven wrong.

Anyway, if the cadence holds true, it will be Mesmer(Chronomancer), Engineer(Mechanic?), Thief(Sniper?), Guardian(Cavalier?)

No Commando?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KR2Esy83MQ0

 

[Ashodin]

Loving the unique skins you get from each elite spec. Can't wait to see what the other specs get!

 

[Zeroth]

I think it's more likely we'll see Guardian (because it's been tested for a while) and Ranger (because it seems to be the more advertised specialization, thus near completion).

Engineer we know is being reworked from the ground, so although he was in the reveal trailer, I could see the engi changes delaying its appearance. Thief and Warrior we know absolutely nothing of, which tells me they may not be in a presentable state. I would apply the same logic to ele, but we already datamined sword skills from Tempest (even if they were clearly placeholders) and the trait menu includes it, so I dunno.

 

[Minamu]

No Commando?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KR2Esy83MQ0

I'd play the shit out of that game :lol

 

[Kos Luftar]

Was kinda hoping they would just add a specilization page just like a profession page which has some background, skills and artwork. Hope they still do this before or after expansions launches.

Hope Jon Peters ia there tomorrow for POI stream so he can reveal a lot more than he is suppose to about the Chronomancer.

 

[Ashodin]

I think it's more likely we'll see Guardian (because it's been tested for a while) and Ranger (because it seems to be the more advertised specialization, thus near completion).

Engineer we know is being reworked from the ground, so although he was in the reveal trailer, I could see the engi changes delaying its appearance. Thief and Warrior we know absolutely nothing of, which tells me they may not be in a presentable state. I would apply the same logic to ele, but we already datamined sword skills from Tempest (even if they were clearly placeholders) and the trait menu includes it, so I dunno.

Hey if we see it, I'm all for it.

 

[Retro]

I'll need to see some actual skill and trait descriptions on Chronomancer, but so far it sounds pretty interesting (and potentially obnoxious in PvP). Here's hoping the rest of the professions have as much 'oomph'.

 

[Ashodin]

I'll need to see some actual skill and trait descriptions on Chronomancer, but so far it sounds pretty interesting (and potentially obnoxious in PvP). Here's hoping the rest of the professions have as much 'oomph'.

In the video, one of their wells kept "rubberbanding" the enemies when they tried to leave the field every tick of the well. Looks VERY annoying haha.

 

[SourBear]

Everyone can't stop talking about the new F5 shatter skill but IMO the real star of the show is that 'Tides of Time' shield skill.

One such skill, called Tides of Time, launches a wall of compressed temporal energy from the chronomancer’s shield that travels forward a moderate distance, absorbing all projectiles that are fired into it. If the wall passes through an enemy, that enemy becomes frozen in time and stunned for a short duration.

Meaning, it will freeze everything about that character. All skill cooldowns will be frozen, boons, conditions, animations. In addition the skill effect 'rewinds' back toward the caster so if you time it right characters could get frozen in time TWICE! God damn that is insane. It reminds me of that DOTA character that put a time bubble or whatever around an area. Anyone know what I'm talking about? (I'm not a DOTA player ;p).