Game Update 3.0 Class Changes: Guardian + Juggernaut

Hello!

Please check out the Sentinel blog for the base Class changes coming to the Jedi Knight.

Guardian

Now that Guardians have Riposte all to themselves, we have slightly modified how it works to suit them better. We put Riposte back on the global cooldown, which allowed us to lower the focus it consumes while also increasing the damage it deals, so it now consumes less focus and deals more damage than Slash. We also changed what enables Riposte based on the Guardian's active form. While in Soresu Form, parrying, deflecting, dodging, or being missed by an enemy's attack will enable the use of Riposte. While not in Soresu Form, Riposte is enabled whenever one of the Guardian's melee attacks is parried, dodged, or misses its target. This change allows for Guardians that focus on dealing damage to use the ability more often in situations where they are not actively tanking an enemy, while effectively keeping the ability unchanged for Guardians that are focused on tanking.

All Guardians now gain access to the following two passive abilities:

Focused Striking: Reduces the cooldowns of Sundering Strike and Warding Strike by 3 seconds each and increases the focus they generate by 2.
Single Saber Mastery: Increases the damage dealt by your weapon by 20% and grants a bonus based on your currently active form:
Shii-Cho Form: Increases all Force damage dealt by 5%.
Shien Form: Increases all melee damage dealt by 5%.
Soresu Form: Increases melee and ranged defense by 3% and increases the threat generated by Force Sweep and Cyclone Slash by 30%.

Soresu Form also now increases accuracy by 10%, but it causes the Guardian to do 10% less damage as well. Taunt and Challenging Call can now miss, but the accuracy granted by Soresu Form offsets this for tanks, while damage dealers will need to continue to gear for some accuracy to keep all of their abilities from missing. We also moved around the levels at which Guardians get some abilities, to help the Defense discipline feel more like a tank earlier in the leveling experience.

Defense

The Defense discipline will be pretty familiar to most Guardian tanks, but the armor reduction effect applied by Sundering Strike is now just for the damage dealing disciplines. And Defense Guardians get the following new ability (to effectively replace their Sundering Strike):

Warding Strike: Increases damage reduction by 3% for 20 seconds, generates 6 focus, and deals weapon damage to the target with a series of quick melee attacks. Shares a cooldown with Sundering Strike.

With this new ability, Guardian Slash has been modified to now reduce the Force and tech damage dealt by targets it damages, rather than increase the Guardians damage reduction. Defense Guardians also get a new passive that causes Warding Strike to increase shield absorption by 3% for 20 seconds as well.

Vigilance

Vigilance Guardians gain a powerful replacement for Force Sweep:

Vigilant Thrust: Thrusts your weapon into the ground, causing a Force-empowered shockwave that deals energy damage to up to 8 enemies within 5 meters. Stuns weak and standard enemies for 3 seconds. Shares a cooldown with Force Sweep.

They also get a new passive that causes Force Sweep or Vigilant Thrust to spread the Guardian's burn effects to all targets that they damage, if at least one of the targets is already affected by their burns. And they get another new passive that increases the critical chance of Plasma Brand, Vigilant Thrust, and their burn effects.

Focus

This formerly shared discipline gets two new active abilities, which they still share with the Sentinels of the Concentration discipline:

Focused Burst: Blasts the enemy target with a powerful burst of Force energy, dealing kinetic damage.
Concentrated Slice: Slices the target for significant weapon damage.

This discipline also gets a new passive that causes Concentrated Slice to enable Riposte when used. Focused Burst will also replace Force Sweep in single-target situations for Focus Guardians, like it does for Concentration Sentinels.

Utilities

Most of the utilities that Guardians have access to will be familiar to players of the class, but there are also some new utility choices as well. Here are a few of them:

Whiplash: Saber Throw immobilizes the target for 3 seconds.
True Harmony: Enure increases your movement speed by 50% and grants immunity to movement-impairing effects while active.

Hello!

Please check out the Marauder blog for the base Class changes coming to the Sith Warrior.

Juggernaut

Now that Juggernauts have Retaliation all to themselves, we have slightly modified how it works to suit them better. We put Retaliation back on the global cooldown, which allowed us to lower the rage it consumes while also increasing the damage it deals, so it now consumes less rage and deals more damage than Vicious Slash. We also changed what enables Retaliation based on the Juggernaut's active form. While in Soresu Form, parrying, deflecting, dodging, or being missed by an enemy's attack will enable the use of Retaliation. While not in Soresu Form, Retaliation is enabled whenever one of the Juggernaut's melee attacks is parried, dodged, or misses its target. This change allows for Juggernauts that focus on dealing damage to use the ability more often in situations where they are not actively tanking an enemy, while effectively keeping the ability unchanged for Juggernauts that are focused on tanking.

All Juggernauts now gain access to the following two passive abilities:

Raging Assault: Reduces the cooldowns of Sundering Assault and Aegis Assault by 3 seconds each and increases the rage they generate by 2.
Single Saber Mastery: Increases the damage dealt by your weapon by 20% and grants a bonus based on your currently active form:
Shii-Cho Form: Increases all Force damage dealt by 5%.
Shien Form: Increases all melee damage dealt by 5%.
Soresu Form: Increases melee and ranged defense by 3% and increases the threat generated by Smash and Sweeping Slash by 30%.

Soresu Form also now increases accuracy by 10%, but it causes the Juggernaut to do 10% less damage as well. Taunt and Threatening Scream can now miss, but the accuracy granted by Soresu Form offsets this for tanks, while damage dealers will need to continue to gear for some accuracy to keep all of their abilities from missing. We also moved around the levels at which Juggernauts get some abilities, to help the Immortal discipline feel more like a tank earlier in the leveling experience.

Immortal

The Immortal discipline will be pretty familiar to most Juggernaut tanks, but the armor reduction effect applied by Sundering Assault is now just for the damage dealing disciplines. And Immortal get the following new ability (to effectively replace their Sundering Assault):

Aegis Assault: Increases damage reduction by 3% for 20 seconds, generates 6 rage, and deals weapon damage to the target with a series of quick melee attacks. Shares a cooldown with Sundering Assault.

With this new ability, Crushing Blow has been modified to now reduce the Force and tech damage dealt by targets it damages, rather than increase the Juggernauts damage reduction. Immortal Juggernauts also get a new passive that causes Aegis Assault to increase shield absorption by 3% for 20 seconds as well.

Vengeance

Vengeance Juggernauts gain a powerful replacement for Smash:

Vengeful Slam: Slams your weapon on the ground, causing a Force-empowered shockwave that deals energy damage to up to 8 enemies within 5 meters. Stuns weak and standard enemies for 3 seconds. Shares a cooldown with Smash.

They also get a new passive that causes Smash or Vengeful Slam to spread the Juggernaut's bleed effects to all targets that they damage, if at least one of the targets is already affected by their bleeds. And they get another new passive that increases the critical chance of Shatter, Vengeful Slam, and their bleed effects.

Rage

This formerly shared discipline gets two new active abilities, which they still share with the Marauders of the Fury discipline:

Raging Burst: Blasts the enemy target with a powerful burst of Force energy, dealing kinetic damage.
Furious Strike: Strikes the target for significant weapon damage.

This discipline also gets a new passive that causes Furious Strike to enable Retaliation when used. Raging Burst will also replace Smash in single-target situations for Rage Juggernauts, like it does for Fury Marauders.

Utilities

Most of the utilities that Juggernauts have access to will be familiar to players of the class, but there are also some new utility choices as well. Here are a few of them:

Whiplash: Saber Throw immobilizes the target for 3 seconds.
Through Power: Endure Pain increases your movement speed by 50% and grants immunity to movement-impairing effects while active.