What's up with Nightblade Stealth?

jdandrews108b14_ESO · April 2014

Picked it up because I love PvP rogues, but through tinkering I haven't been able to tell what stealth actually does. There is the obvious one with Veiled Strike doing bonus stun duration, but if I simply want to use it for "stealth" it doesn't seem to do bonus damage on white attacks, nor stun any longer than if I was simply sneaking. Its absurdly short of a duration (2.5 sec base) and does not drop aggro even in PvE
(I have used it to exploit mobs in group content who will blindly stare at the spot I was at until I leave stealth and the charge on over my way only to invis again and watch them stare at the spot again, doing nothing to my group).
But PvP is worse. Removing DoT sounds awesome but unless you are up against a small group (which the game does not promote) the short duration means that the dots will certainly be reapplied once you leave stealth 2.5 seconds later. Trying to sprint to actually put distance between you and your target removes stealth early, and they seem to be able to notice me anyway half the time any way. Large groups are spamming the dickens out AoEs anyway so most of the time I die too fast to even move.

I will say that I found novelty use from it in the scouting missions in conjunction with Path of Darkness, but once the targets increase past 3, stealth is a wasted skill slot imo.

Kewljag_66_ESO · April 2014

jdandrews108b14_ESO wrote: »

Picked it up because I love PvP rogues, but through tinkering I haven't been able to tell what stealth actually does. There is the obvious one with Veiled Strike doing bonus stun duration, but if I simply want to use it for "stealth" it doesn't seem to do bonus damage on white attacks, nor stun any longer than if I was simply sneaking. Its absurdly short of a duration (2.5 sec base) and does not drop aggro even in PvE
(I have used it to exploit mobs in group content who will blindly stare at the spot I was at until I leave stealth and the charge on over my way only to invis again and watch them stare at the spot again, doing nothing to my group).
But PvP is worse. Removing DoT sounds awesome but unless you are up against a small group (which the game does not promote) the short duration means that the dots will certainly be reapplied once you leave stealth 2.5 seconds later. Trying to sprint to actually put distance between you and your target removes stealth early, and they seem to be able to notice me anyway half the time any way. Large groups are spamming the dickens out AoEs anyway so most of the time I die too fast to even move.

I will say that I found novelty use from it in the scouting missions in conjunction with Path of Darkness, but once the targets increase past 3, stealth is a wasted skill slot imo.

That skill is not ment to be your (stealth) skill. Every class has stealth, it is called sneak and it is the (CTRL) button. When you sneak enemy players cannot see you unless they get close to you and look at you. The major sneak enhancement comes from the medium armor skill tree. It greatly increases your stealth / sneak for assassin style game play.

Now the Nightblade class has skill that are aimed at sneak attacks, and sneak attack damage, along with that 2.5 second INVISIBILITY skill. It has few purposes like an escape tool or for setting up a crit attack during combat.

Now while you use your sneak (CTRL) button and attack you perform from behind your target will do high damage or even double damage as well as stun the target got a few seconds. As a nightblade, Vielled Strike is very good for this. teleport strike also works well from a distance but less damage.

Zordrage · April 2014

as a stealthing dualwielding medium armore nightblade

i can say that the invisibility is for Combat you need an extra stun ? or 90% crit change ? go invis and use your Hard hitting ability or stun or both :P

also shadow barrier increases armore and magic resistance by 1050 for 4.5 sec after coming out of stealth or invisibility...... and im only lvl30 loool

Baraz · April 2014

When you go invisible, most incoming ranged attack will miss and you can morph it to remove DOTs on yourself.

I use invisibility mostly to do a Veiled Strike in combat (i.e. Veiled Strike is a waste of time/Magicka if you are not stealthed or invisible).

EDIT (updated tip) : When invisible in combat, can you crouch, which adds extra damage. Ideal therefore is:

you go invisible,
crouch [bonus only applies when you are no longer invisible],
aim at the target's back,
Veiled Strike.

(That combo requires a good amount of Magicka though.)

Suggestion : I wish the invisibility was simply a magic cost per second, that you could stop easily (instead of the current 2.5 sec stops). You wouldn't get very far still, but would be more fun to manage.

Zordrage · April 2014

it should get a buff of 4 sec in my opinion i mean Runing breaks it anyway so you cant spam it to run away and it would help allot....

joshisanonymous · April 2014

You have to look at the morphs as well as the passives available. It's the only in-combat stealth and allows you to position better, defend without being a meatshield (aka you can spec for both magicka and stamina without worrying about being defenseless), or just get away if you spam it.

Otherwise, you can combine it with passives and such to get 100% crit chance with 30%+ bonus damage, available at any time in a fight. This also gives you more opportunities to use heavy attacks without worrying so much about being put off balance when they're blocked.

You can also make it defensive so that you can remove up to 4 debuffs at any time during a fight. Plus there's the already mention ability to make all targetted attacks useless while you're invisible. See your enemy winding up an attack from a distance and don't have interrupts available? Just stealth. It'll do nothing.

Edit: BTW, the game definitely promotes small group play. You get as many AP for a solo kill as you do for helping take over a keep. There are also numerous ways to avoid zergs and find non-zerging enemies.

MysticAura · April 2014

I wish sneak and stealth moves actually did level up a stealth skill. I'm kinda baffled it isn't a true skill. I'll just hope that will change eventually.

tw1jaysin · April 2014

Yes you can crouch during invisibility. I've hit my invis, crouched and when it wore off I was in the hidden state. Works great in pvp. People are like "wtf?!"

However, I haven't really tested if the sneak bonus applies yet. I would assume it does, but you know what they say about assumptions.

TheGrandAlliance · April 2014

Mates... If you think Inviso is a waste of a slot let me tell you: I have avoided countless deaths because of it.

You just have to use it right... and in all situation it doesn't work but here is how:

1. U want to get away
2. Dodge roll
3. Inviso (use multiple times... 3 is best)
4. Change direction
5. Run Behind an object that isn't so obvious
6. Sprint away or hold until you can crouch.

If you follow these rules of wisdom you can basically escape any non-zerg combat situation with ease. AOE/player spam of weapons only works if they know where to fire you.

If you need help learning how to do this (and play EU servers) I can show you in-game how "epic" it can be Indeed...

TheGrandAlliance · April 2014

tw1jaysin wrote: »

However, I haven't really tested if the sneak bonus applies yet. I would assume it does, but you know what they say about assumptions.

Doesn't until you are out of inviso/(firing weapon breaks). In effect your answer is yes but not technically.

Mobius0 · April 2014

Cloak of Shadows is one of my favorite abilities, though it is a bit buggy at times (for no apparent reason you often get instantly removed from invis. I burn a lot of extra mana often having to do it twice in a row, or even 3 times.).

But it's not true you can't run or sprint while invis. You can also crouch while invis, and will attempt to sneak once it wears off, if you do so.

I also use it often, when an enemy gets a little too close to me, to prevent myself from being spotted (Like when a zerg runs by on horses.).

I also love to use it to get past mobs in dungeons, so that players don't think anyone is there.

Kypho · April 2014

There is a decloak bug where you cant get away because game throws you out of cloak. i hope they will fix that. Anyway. You cant Sprint while using cloak skill. it will decloak you. You can be really fast when using cloak with Concealed Weapon (veiled strike morph). AoE roots can you decloak you. so get ready to roll possibly away from attackers and use cloak again, and get ready in mind to get decloaked and do roll and cloak again. Out of magica? Try to use potion to heal magica. And not enough magica, then sprint till you can cloak again (if u can :P Athletics passive will help).
You can escape every Zerg if you dont get the decloak bug. But its a pain to do.

Kypho · April 2014

If you want a real escapeer class, use sorcerer ROFL

TheGrandAlliance · April 2014

Kypho wrote: »

If you want a real escapeer class, use sorcerer ROFL

WEll... with NB the whole server doesn't know you are there... unlike Bolt Escape. Thus: You can "sneak attack" a target.

However if you are engaged in combat and want to run... then use Bolt Escape is far more effective.

Reavan · April 2014

TheGrandAlliance wrote: »

Kypho wrote: »

If you want a real escapeer class, use sorcerer ROFL

WEll... with NB the whole server doesn't know you are there... unlike Bolt Escape. Thus: You can "sneak attack" a target.

However if you are engaged in combat and want to run... then use Bolt Escape is far more effective.

Incorrect a sorc can and does stealth too.
You could have a bow or melee sorc who can kill from stealth then run from an entire zerg, try doing that on an NB.
Your best bet is hoping for sneak to reset and it takes one other person(or a mob) to look your way and hit you in any sort of way. Even two damage.
Then you can not reset for one min.
Sometimes even without another person hitting you it will not reset.
Leaving you visible in the open for years while that Dragon Knight you did not see in the distance is sneaking up to you, the stealth class that can not stealth.

Cydone · April 2014

I think that the Shadow Cloak ability SHOULD be an agro breaker. It should still give the 2.5 sec invisibility, but should break agro in PvE and PvP, immediately putting you into sneak. Increase the magicka cost of this, because as it is now, it would be seen as a get out of jail free card, with a low cost. Make it like the CC breaker....make it cost 50% of your magicka bar. THAT would be balanced, IMO.

Kypho · April 2014

its eating fkload magicka as it is, and far more cost than bolt. and its so *** short even with passive boost. If you want 50% magicka, then it should last for 5-10 sec. That would be ballanced then compared to the other classes great skills.

Cydone · April 2014

Kypho wrote: »

its eating fkload magicka as it is, and far more cost than bolt. and its so *** short even with passive boost. If you want 50% magicka, then it should last for 5-10 sec. That would be ballanced then compared to the other classes great skills.

I can do the shadow cloak like 5 times, in succession, right now before running out of magicka. It's a GTFO ability really. There should be some risk vs reward to go along with it being an agro breaker.

Reavan · April 2014

I think it needs its duration increased or increase the cost and put you into sneak afterwords every time.

Igolbug · April 2014

Love my stealth.
I use the Assault skill giving me 30% movement speed and snare immune, then I roll with my bow out (increase movement speed passive after roll), then I stealth(with veiled strike on the bar) and I run faster than mounts. Gotten away from many zergs that way

Reavan · April 2014

Igolbug wrote: »

Love my stealth.
I use the Assault skill giving me 30% movement speed and snare immune, then I roll with my bow out (increase movement speed passive after roll), then I stealth(with veiled strike on the bar) and I run faster than mounts. Gotten away from many zergs that way

Add in vampire's dark stalker and you can catch bolting sorcs who cant see you coming

Kypho · April 2014

Cydone wrote: »

Kypho wrote: »

its eating fkload magicka as it is, and far more cost than bolt. and its so *** short even with passive boost. If you want 50% magicka, then it should last for 5-10 sec. That would be ballanced then compared to the other classes great skills.

I can do the shadow cloak like 5 times, in succession, right now before running out of magicka. It's a GTFO ability really. There should be some risk vs reward to go along with it being an agro breaker.

I think you eighter are a DK or a Sorc if you say that bs lol.

Kypho · April 2014

NB is a stealth class. if you cant manage to cause serious dmg with ambushing, you wont have the OP dmg of AoE etc like sorc or the über wtf survivability+lolultimate of DK. Dont talk trash about GTFO ability, because its needed to survive, if not using something like 1h+sh + bash and whatever broken crap. most skill benefit from attacking from stealth, and you say its a gtfo ability. You do something wrong and go play your easymode DK. You should able to spam stealth just like other classes their abilities, not because you like to GTFO, because its your MAIN ability do do more dmg, and get some survivability. You dude are silly. Not speaking of the roots what makes you to decloak, and even if u spam your GTFO they spam root so you will be decloaked again.
So bye and dont talk trash

Cydone · April 2014

Kypho wrote: »

NB is a stealth class. if you cant manage to cause serious dmg with ambushing, you wont have the OP dmg of AoE etc like sorc or the über wtf survivability+lolultimate of DK. Dont talk trash about GTFO ability, because its needed to survive, if not using something like 1h+sh + bash and whatever broken crap. most skill benefit from attacking from stealth, and you say its a gtfo ability. You do something wrong and go play your easymode DK. You should able to spam stealth just like other classes their abilities, not because you like to GTFO, because its your MAIN ability do do more dmg, and get some survivability. You dude are silly. Not speaking of the roots what makes you to decloak, and even if u spam your GTFO they spam root so you will be decloaked again.
So bye and dont talk trash

What trash was I talking?? Shadow Cloak is a GTFO ability. One that, in it's current rendition, can be spammed. If they were to add an agro breaker, for pve and pvp, I think it would need a higher cost to bring it in balance. It grants invisibility, something that can't be broken for the duration, and if what I want goes through, would immediately put you into sneak. How is that not a GTFO ability?

Oh and my main is a Nightblade, just in case you're wondering:

Soulborn_Solitude · February 2015

TheGrandAlliance wrote: »

Mates... If you think Inviso is a waste of a slot let me tell you: I have avoided countless deaths because of it.

You just have to use it right... and in all situation it doesn't work but here is how:

1. U want to get away
2. Dodge roll
3. Inviso (use multiple times... 3 is best)
4. Change direction
5. Run Behind an object that isn't so obvious
6. Sprint away or hold until you can crouch.

If you follow these rules of wisdom you can basically escape any non-zerg combat situation with ease. AOE/player spam of weapons only works if they know where to fire you.

If you need help learning how to do this (and play EU servers) I can show you in-game how "epic" it can be Indeed...

Can you show me? Add me @Soulborn_Solitude