Yeah that’s the thing. It doesn’t look that strong in its own, but effectively it means the whole party can have boon/barkskin as well as Nat bond (or stronger) while still having full access to the healing in the map. Add team Amaranthe to this and it’s getting pretty silly.
Is it an auto win? Of course not, but it does remove almost all sense of fighting a battle of attrition, which is a core part of the experience IMO. Just tone it down a bit, to like 2/3 nat bond healing rate base, so it’s as strong as nat bond with the +50% power talent then see how it feels from there.
There might be some good news. Masses of players are now going to think they’re cata ready and make the step up. Lots of people in cata! Good luck with that.
The thing is that GK favors is party wide game-changing passive that affects everyone in the party constantly. That’s why I think you can’t really compare them.
I just don’t like the idea of getting pretty much free permanent buffs to your stats, since it directly affects your character and combat performance (witch you can’t really get rid of unlike ults/passives that have limited range or duration).
One thing is having short buff that temporarily boosts you, but full out permanent stat increase for the entire game? I don’t know… it feels like when you join a party that does not have GK you are gonna think… wow… why are my attacks so much slower… oh ye I don’t have that attack speed favor. Now I have to get used to my old un-boosted stats again etc.
While I agree that I don’t like free passive buffs for the entire map, I think the ‘quest’ mechanic makes it a little different and more active. Would be nice if they were somehow repeatable or had some more depth to the way they’re given (only shared when you use x talent or do x thing).
I like his buffs, his killing power and lack of CC Ult are his downside. Elites seem like his main focus, but playing duos with him felt a little harder than playing with Merc, and even FK at some points. He is an extremely good Supp/Elite Killer/DPS hybrid, but even as a frontline I don’t think he can even compete with Merc, because of AS, and using Strike Together.
This is where I think he is comparable to Merc, as Merc can maintain Strike Together, which has no range limit, for the majority of the map. The AS buff or the regen are the main ones I would hope for from GK because of their defensive potential, so having a Career that can guarantee it, and give THP throughout the mission is just as good.
The regen appears to be bugged according to a previous poster, and the normal version of it isn’t gamebreaking, nor does it feel extremely OP when combo’d with WS’ share. It just makes him compete with Merc, even though it will probably turn out that Merc is better in the long run, because of the CC Ult, AS, and passive Crit, where GK relies on his Ult.
