Necromancer Siphon

Skjaldbjorn

With the Siphon skill line being back on the GCD, it's actually pretty awful. Aside from the fact that players have effectively been taught to cast it off the GCD for a bit now, it also causes problems when you effectively are losing a GCD trying to trigger the siphon. That's a massive DPS loss through no real fault of the player, and that's an issue. I know Zos has worked hard to improve the functionality of the skill, but honestly, it still isn't there. It's still a clunky, wonky skill that works about 40-50% of the time on average. I think we need to find a reasonable compromise that meets the improved functionality (because it has improved) and limits how much free damage it's giving without making it a "slot it and forget it" passive skill because the functionality is still not good enough.

Give it a cost when it connects. If it doesn't, you don't lose resources. If/when it connects, it has a Stamina or Magicka cost but remains off the GCD. I think this is a much more effective solution to the problem until a better targeting system is found for the skill in general.

Paradisius

I really wish they revert this change, Mystic Siphon still has targeting issues, and though it has improved, it is quite the annoying when a blast bones goes off, creates a corpse, and then have siphon dipping between gray and not gray. Needing to mash the skill 3 or 4 times before it finally connects

wheem_ESO

I wish ZOS would simply revert the PTS change, and leave it in that state until such a time that they can redesign the skill into something that's useful outside of some static PvE use cases. There have been various suggestions before. I think something like having it consume a nearby corpse and cause a beam to tether the caster to their target, with an AOE around each might be OK, as long as the damage is decent enough (it's currently laughable in PvP, even if someone stands around AFK in the tiny corpse-AOE).

SodanTok

Honestly, I have noticed 0 improvement to siphon casting since Elsweyr despite any of the changes, so I dont get what they actually did. Corpse being ignored when laying 10m to the left (or behind me lol) from my aim was never the issue with this skill yet that was one of their fixes. It is still day and night difference between being solo necro and full team of necroes, which makes me believe that is the main culprit but that wasnt changed a bit and now they are reinstating GCD like job done?

Zalathorm

I wonder if part of the reason they put it back on the GCD was because the vamp toggle ability is another "off gcd" ability. How would they start interacting when there are multiple exceptions? Maybe they weren't playing well together...

Zalathorm

But I do agree that it should be back off the GCD. Even on live, sometimes I'll have to attempt to weave it into 2-3 abilities before I can get it to trigger. There is no way I'll attempt to cast it if it's back on the GCD and its not perfect.

Krileon

Just make it target and act on the nearest corpse if you don't have one directly targeted. This would prevent it from ever failing. It may not select the corpse you want exactly in that moment, but it should be reliable enough to be fine.

Rhaegar75

is Syphon any good in PvP?

wheem_ESO

Rhaegar75 wrote: »

is Syphon any good in PvP?

Mystic Siphon is pretty worthless, but the heal + Stamina return morph of the other can be decent at times. I don't normally use it - nor do most other Necromancers, especially Magicka - but it's not completely awful. It uses up a corpse, can be finnicky with targeting (though I guess that's better now than before), and will get broken pretty frequently in PvP (it'll be canceled when a targeted player corpse respawns, and of course line of sight will break it).

MaddPowered

The new siphon works better than the old siphon.

OrderoftheDarkness

I tried testing Siphon in PvP when Necro just appeared. I tried every possible option. I didn't care if the skill was useless. I wanted to look at the devs idea from all possible angles.
I think going back to GCD is a good idea, but it should only be done for healing tether. Because getting healed is much easier than doing damage using Siphon.