Abstract
This specific Header Post will serve as a simplified aggregate of various opinions from the community about the current implementation of the Nightblade Class. It will look for consensus from a variety of sources about different aspects of the Nightblade Class. What is good, what is bad, what could use some improvement.
All discussion in this thread should be about Nightblades, and it would be appreciated if a TL:DR would be included at the top of any lengthy posts, to serve as a perspective while reading the document, as well as to serve as a basic discussion point.
This initial post will function as a living document, being subject to change and being updated as time passes. There will not be any reposts of this initial post, and any update will be indicated by an update post (a bump, essentially). This Header Post will try to update every week on Sundays. pulling from various sources. While in its WIP state it may receive updates in random fashion (based on my schedule)
Nightblade Class
HealingGeneral Consensus:
Magblade healers are unique in that they function more with damaging the enemy in order to heal your allies with their class abilities. They don't have access to a large instant heal but instead focus more on HoTs for healing through Refreshing Path and the new Agony (Malevolent Offering) and Sap Essence, which necessitates you being in the midst of enemies, taking advantage of your Twisting Path while you heal and are damaged via Malevolent Offering. They have significant Ult gain through the use of potions and the occasional use of shadow skills, which themselves buff the healers defenses via shadow barrier.
Stamblade healers: lol.
Various Opinions:
TankingGeneral Consensus:
Stamina Nightblade tanks have a good amount of self-protection from the form of Bolstering Darkness, a little resource management from Siphoning strikes, good healing options that can also buff your defenses, and have little form of useful on demand AoE crowd control outside of ultimates.
Magicka Nightblade Tanks have access to several strong self-heals and healing buffs: Sap Essence, Swallow Soul, Refreshing Path, Siphoning Attacks, Soul Tether. All of which heal the player and damage the enemy. It comes to a point that in smaller group content these tanks don't have to worry too much about blocking, as the damage they take is easily replaced by the various HoTs and spammable attacks. Allowing them to function as an off-DPS (or an actual DPS given the ease of content) who can hold the aggro of enemies easily by being the largest threat to nearby enemies. This style of play falls off in end-game content, as the incoming damage is usually high enough to burst through the available heals.
Various Opinions:
Damage DealingGeneral Consensus:
Stamblade is able to achieve solo single target numbers that are much higher than other stamina classes due to self-buffs. But falls to the wayside in group content, due to the lack of cleave damage and similar sustained target DPS when other classes have access to these buffs. This combined with a more complicated rotation as a result of buff management being inherint with class damage skills.
Link
Magblade is able to keep a ranged distance but doesn't have as much instant burst damage in comparison to a stamblade. The main spammable skill it uses has the additional effect of healing the magblade or a nearby ally (as Concealed weapon doesn't see much use as a spammable). It is able to keep cloak up much more than a stamblade, and makes for an even more elusive target, especially so with cripple, and can make great use of the spectral bow while at range. It is a little less robust in comparison to a stamblade in terms of taking large amounts of damage in an instant, as the main spammable is not in the shadow skill tree, but rather the siphoning skill tree.
Both classes have skills that allow them to traverse the battlefield in an unpredictable manner
Various Opinions: