I admit I was only 51 when I decided to call it quits (could have put in a few more hours of grinding to get him to atleast 70, 75) but I was underamused the only thing I saw was that you guys are basically giving them bits and pieces of every other healer. or similar but slightly lower pieces. you got one of the druid heroic endlines (full heal on target and a ward equal to the amount healed). you got the inq 2nd group cure, you got the self/group rez that is an insta cast (although unlike Imm Rez it only goes to 30% hp/power, not 100). and you got your own divine arua. (channeler one only lasts for 8s and/or absorbs 50 attacks lower than 40% max health).
From what I've read the pet gives meaningful damage reduction to the group and they've got at least one big AoE heal they can cast on the run. Both of those are quite powerful and unique. Edit: On a side note, they've indicated that they're going to make the damage reduction from the channeler's pet parseable.. hopefully they'll make ALL classes (especially healers) damage reduction abilities parseable. It would be rather inequitable if they let us see and 'measure' the DR one class does as part of their healing while not doing it for all, since it will be used for comparison.
The pet intercept is the Channeler equivalent of Regens/Reactives/Wards - it's their 'special' healing mechanic. And it's not damage reduction, it's damage interception. You still have to use 'repairs' (construct heals) to deal with the damage. My initial impressions (to 27) is that the class will be extremely versatile and relatively difficult to play well. I like it.
3 aoe heals (atleast at 51) that can be cast on the run. but I don't see how being able to cast them on the run versus standing still is somehow supposed to make them better? they were good, but not "powerful" and it's intercept damage to the pet that will stop if your pet gets any lower than 25% hp. as Quabi mentioned you will have to heal your pet up to keep the intercept damage relative. and with a group intercept that may actually be interesting, since you have abilities that will take health from your construct as well. reading is one thing. but should have played one
I tried the class out -- only got to level 12 - but was not impressed. I simply would not bother creating this class and grinding up again. I saw nothing really exciting about the class that will make me want to start another Toon from Level 1.
Being able to cast heals on the run is huge.. knock backs, tanks running off, jousts... all of these things can make healing challenging because you have to stand still for the entire cast.. and also be in range of your target. Being able to cast on the run is a huge plus.
They could just as easily give it to other healers via an AA -- they didn't have to create a whole new class to do it.
it's not that big of a thing imo. standing still is hardwired in my mind after playing this game for so many years. that's like saying on the RT fight in SF you could cast everything on the run, but most still stood still unless they had to move
The cast-while-moving thing isn't very exciting really. I actually don't like how some skills require you to stand still while others don't. It creates situations like where I'm running away, hit my deaggro, but it's interrupted because it's a normal spell. There are two main things about the class that interest me. First, I like managing pet health and dissonance. It's not just about keeping pet health high and dissonance low - you actually want to make use of those resources without over-using them. (I used to enjoy managing mana on my Inquisitor, but it has been trivial for ~5 years now). Second, I like how many of the abilities have no cooldown (or a very short one in the case of Construct's Sacrifice). To some, that may make the class feel "spammy," but I like how it gives us more options at any given time. Instead of just using what's not on cooldown, you can choose whichever ability is right for the situation.
also someone asked. but the dragon endline for all priests on the far right "Unyielding Retribution" which increases your CB by 15% your base CB but is dispelled once you cast a heal. it does not dispel itself on the Channeler's ability Healing Arrow, which is good just so you all know
I was kinda underwhelmed with the new endline abilities tbh but I really enjoyed what little I have played on my Channeler. Very interesting combination of abilities, but not sure how they'd do as a solo healer.
I kind of picture them with a mystic. They'll be good for off tank or melee group heals. Not optimal at all for mage group or main tank group.
Thanks to the devs for giving us a sneak peek and thanks to the crafters like Huutie and Kuulei and any I missed please sign in and pat yourself on the back (myself included) who spent most of their time making gear for all the channelers who were born naked and bowless
I would have thought damage reduction/interception would have made them particularly attractive MT healers, particularly on hard-hitting stuff. I didn't get mine past level 12 so I have no idea what they really bring, but from what I've heard, they have zero DPS buffage so they'd be a pretty poor choice for a melee group. It does look like a class that will require some skill to play well. I like that.
the intercept damage will take up most of the channelers time I can see. with the AA the intercept turns into a 100% intercept for single target or 50% for group. they have 2 group cures. a insta rez (Wis endline) which I assumed with the wording was a death save but it's not. as the player with the single target intercept has to die first and than all that happens is they get the rez window to pop up insta instead of having a dirge or something have to cast it. they also get a insta group rez. all in all they seem to be decent for an MT group with a mystic or something for really hard mobs. only a handful come to mind atm but I assume they will find use in the new zones.
It was said in the dev pannel Sunday afternoon that they wouldn't be suited for main tank group or mage group. And would be best for melee or OT group. The 100% damage mit is not a constant thing, and isn't something they can quickly recast apparently. So, it's not like they could make your main tank as immune as you might think. Their general damage mitigation, if I remember correctly was below 50%. Anyway, if they're assuring us in a dev pannel that it wouldn't be suited for MT group, they probably have their reasons. Some of the abilities that are being discussed options to fit on the channeler bar. They have something very much like a beastlord bar. When you right click the box, in the same way as on beastlord, options to fill that box popup. Not all abilities are available during battle as you can not change what's on the channeler bar during battle. You do have 4 that are specific, and then several more than you can openly choose. But, then the rest of the types of abilities that could go on that bar are unavailable. It'd be awesome if Beastlord had all their abilities available all the time too.
yea, it kept spaming my zerker in blue that I was using to level up my channeler a bit. got him to 74 before beta shut down (without a warning). from what I gather it's similar to a BL (in that it has a special stat that is for it's class only and has it's own personal bar that is filled with only certain abilities). yet different since the stat (dissonance) is something you want to have at the lowest possible you can maintain and the abilitys increase your dissonance. also their ability Healing Arrow (which does an AoE heal, with a small amount of damage) heals more than their normal group heal which just heals. also their ability they don't get until 65. Vector of Life is an AoE heal that has no visible max target limit. they have a move that shots their toon backwards up to 15m (as long as you aren't in the way of a rock or wall) and than an ability that also teleports your group to you. insta joust.
