The upcoming changes to the Stasis subclasses will probably make little to no change to how players are building the subclass right now, and doesn't patch any holes in the ship. Its nice to see some returning and enhanced functionality to Glacial Quake and Withering Blade, but Aspects like Winter's Shroud and the Harvest suite still lack the punch of an Aspect compared to other offerings across the board.
I don't really have an avenue to talk about this directly to Bungie but hopefully someone reads this and knows that there are players like myself still logging in and loving the space magic I wield. Stasis desperately needs some love, and I have spent a lot of time (way too much time) thinking on how I'd love to see the identity of the class delivered.
Here are the changes I'd love to see, some of which are mentioned being in the works, and my rationale behind them.
[b]Supers[/b]
- Hitting a Frozen target with Silence or Squall deals significantly more shatter damage.
- Iceflare Bolts cooldown is lifted while Winter's Wrath is activated.
- Shiver Strike while in Glacial Quake deals significantly more damage to Flying Units.
Silence and Squall should be given a bonus for being more accurate with tossing the Scythes, giving the class a degree of damage viability with the super particularly against targets that teleport away from the Squall tornado. Winter's Wrath has a great interaction with Iceflare Bolts that enable it to stretch the power of its super meter against bosses. Unfortunately its tied to an innate cooldown in Iceflare that isnt reset on super cast, and lasts quite a while. Lifting or resetting the timer on super cast would help the super feel more consistent. Glacial Quake is an awesome high point in the Behemoth kit that operates exclusively on the ground. I'd love to not feel completely useless vs flying enemies without ruining the visual appeal of the slam attack.
[b]Keywords[/b]
- Frost Armor (I called this Rime Coat when I was talking about this exact thing in Discord - may see that, its a copy/paste) is what Stasis needs NOW. Stasis is an expression of willpower over yourself and your enemies, having something within the gameplay loop to signify this would help Stasis compete with the more well-defined Subclass 3.0 offerings.
- Frost Armor builds very slowly, intrinsically, on all Stasis subclasses as one engages in combat - timing similar to the activation of Frenzy. After a certain Threshold, if Frost Armor is broken, it deals shatter damage around you. All other damage resist / hp values of the overshield remain.
- Frost Armor does not resist Kinetic Damage. I'd like to see this made slightly different than Void Overshield or Woven Mail and free up the possibilities of Aspects below without hurting pvp balance. Frost Armor only resists elemental damage, and Kinetic Weapons bypass the shield. Likewise, Whisper of Rending and the Hakke origin trait deal increased damage to enemies with Frost Armor.
[b]Aspects[/b]
- Winter's Shroud - Dodging near enemies slows them and provides full Frost Armor.
- Frostpulse - Freezes nearby enemies on casting rift. Dealing damage inside of rift accelerates the growth of Frost Armor.
- Cryoclasm - Sliding near Stasis Crystals and Frozen targets shatters them, and shattering frozen targets accelerates the growth of Frost Armor.
- Howl of the Storm - Sliding melee creates a series of Stasis Crystals on the ground. Provides second melee charge.
- Harvest Aspects - Generates Stasis Shards for fulfilling class-specific conditions. Frost Armor expires more slowly and builds more quickly at full hp.
Expanding on the "Expression of Will" of Stasis, working in new Keyword functionality to these aspects develops personality. Hunters are proud and jump into the fight, their will on display from the start. Warlocks are steady engines of attrition and remain so as they fight. Titans warn you they will break you and are rewarded when they do. Howl of the Storm was cool when it was released but needs to compete with Consecration and Lightning Surge - being able to follow up on a massive Freeze with a quick shattering melee is an option that seems most Titan-y.
I wanted to find a way to expand possible builds beyond the near-mandatory Harvest aspects, and since those are usually equipped to facilitate either Armor Charge or Rime Coat, working in that keyword to other aspects means Harvest is now more or a choice to lean in to than a foregone conclusion.
[b]Fragments[/b]
- The upcoming Fragment changes are very good. Shards didnt deserve the nerf, but Bonds definitely deserved the buff. Not many notes here.
- Whisper of Rime - Change verbiage to accelerate growth of Frost Armor when collecting Shards.
- Whisper of Durance - Also extends Frost Armor timer.
- Whisper of Fractures - Faster melee recharge and accelerates growth of Frost Armor while near enemies.
[b]Melee[/b]
- Shiver Strike - Triple the damage of this ability vs Frozen Targets.
Behemoth needs a button that delivers its entire power fantasy in one awesome punch. The ability is mostly a movement tech now with an extreme cooldown and deals pitiful damage in PvE for no reason. If this connects with a Frozen target and shatters them, it should kill them.
I'm disappointed that I have to wait even longer for development of this subclass because I love it dearly. Beyond Light was a phemomenal year and I loved the idea of this subclass from the start. Its Time Magic! Its Stop and Slow and Instant Death and yeah, people hated dealing with it at launch but we have to ditch the specter of Freeze in PvP and let this subclass breathe again.
Anyway! Enjoy or Ignore the ideas - just wanted to get it out there.
-
I love these concepts and suggestions! Your idea for handling frost armor is definitely unique enough that it will stand out compared to other damage resist and overshield options, as well as, is handled in a way that it beautifully matches the theme of stasis.