Return of Reckoning

Hello team,

(also not here listen a grammar warriors) its not what this post is all about. Also English is not my first language either. Also some works just abbreviation short like req - requirement/requires dmg- damage level - lvl etc

***Warning*** its not deep dive changes but a surface change for all dps classes. Please read it all before you stomp on keyboard. I'm not clamming to be high end pro gamer but have pretty high extensive pvp background, with all being said some changes for you might not make sense and some of them will. Devs do not have to take all changes in consideration but if some get implemented its a step in right direction. Lets begin:

Have extensive experience in MMOs. I lost count at this point of how many I've played, but having played MMOs on and off for 18 years and many other competitive-style games.
Been playing RoR for several years on and off. Have many toons from low to high RR. In upcoming DPS/class changes what I would like to see.
Please comment below on how you (the player base) and the devs feel about these changes. Some classes would not be included since I do not have every class extensive playtime or extensive experience. Personally, I do not have mains I play a lot of different classes some more than others. Some classes will get a lot of suggestion feedback and some will get little.

1. BW/Sorc Funnel Power either leaves as it is or changes to how Sorc Shades of Death functions. BW and Sorc already have backlash there is no point having BW take additional dmg and actually makes it
easier to play since you toggle Funnel Power on and forget about it when Sorc has to spend GCD and it can be dispelled too. Either change Shades of Death to function as funnel power or change funnel power function as shades of death of course modify dmg as it will suit in w/e direction devs would decide to go.
Also, BW missing Obsessive Focus which Sorc has (before you jump to a conclusion read all changes). BW and Sorc both have obsessive Focus (the change name on BW can be different that's for devs to come up with) however now remove the manic obsession tactic from sorc which reduces CD's Obsessive focus. Instead Obsessive focus will be changed to (still 1 min cd) you become obsessed with your target for 15 sec dealing 5% more dmg to it and taking 5% less dmg from that target. However, you will do 95% of your damage to all other targets for the duration or if the target gets killed. Also at lvl 40 both Sorc and BW will get a tactic that increases dmg target: by an additional 5% (total of 10%) and you take an additional 5% less dmg (total of 10%) from that target. Also, each time the target dies from obsessive focus cd reset.
Sorcs having a shroud of darkness does not really suit them I'd say change the shroud of darkness to something what BW have Shield of Aqshy however make a slight change. Reduce armor granted from 990 to 790 for extended duration down from 10 but also add that it will increase all resistances by 250. Total buff would last 15 sec and CD 1 min instead of sorc having 1 min cd on Shroud of Darkness and BW having 30 sec cd on a shield Aqshy. However, if having 50% less likely set back on casting reduce cast times on all abilities by 0.3 sec for that 15 sec duration. So the new ability for BW and Sorcs would sound like that Shround of the ancient power (made up on the spot).
Sorcs having a shroud of darkness does not really suit them I'd say change the shroud of darkness to something what BW have Sheild of Aqshy however make a slight change. Reduce armor granted from 990 to 790 for extended duration down from 10 but also add that it will increase all resitances by 250. Total buff would last 15 sec and CD 1 min instead of sorc having 1 min cd on Shroud of Darkness and BW having 30 sec cd on a shield Aqshy. However, if having 50% less likely set back on casting reduce cast times on all abilities by 0.3 sec for that 15 sec duration. So the new ability for BW and Sorcs would sound like that Shround of the ancient power (made up on the spot).
You tap into the power of ancient gods which gives you a shield that increases your armor by 790 and all your resistance by 290 and reduces all your cast times by 8.3 sec during 15 sec. CD 1 min.
Also, BW having dispell on 10 sec cd is a bit too strong in my opinion since all listed changes to both BWs and Sorcs above. I'd say both BW and Sorcs (both classes) have dispelled now as it functions currently however
instead of 10 sec cd change to 30 sec cd and obtain at lvl 30 instead of 9.
Choking Smoke BM instance cast silence make it 4 sec instead of 3 sec however double cost of 50 action points and cd change to 1 min. Also Sorcs Frostbite 4 sec disarm change cast time from 1 sec to 0 sec. However cost 50 action points and cd is 1 min now.
Also, BW having dispel on 10 sec cd is a bit too strong in my opinion since all listed changes to both BWs and Sorcs above. I'd say both BW and Sorcs (both classes) have dispelled now as it functions currently however
instead of 10 sec cd change to 30 sec cd and obtain at lvl 30 instead of 9.
Choking Smoke BM instance cast silence make it 4 sec instead of 3 sec however double cost of 50 action points and cd change to 1 min. Also Sorcs Frostbite 4 sec disarm change cast time from 1 sec to 0 sec.
However cost 50 action points and cd is 1 min now.
Those changes just surface what I would like to see for those 2 classes. Again I repeat I do not play only BW or Sorc. Actually least played classes for me due to some poor mechanics of the classes. The changes above
are a step in the right direction.

2. SH/SH
SW shadow step is a very buggy ability you are either in the air kinda flying to a target or do not get to a target it's all over the place. So my proposition is to match SH 10 sec cd leap. Changed Shadowstep to increase your defenses by 10% instead of 15% and it slowed the target by 30 % for 3 sec.
Squiq Armor is not instant cast instead of 1 sec cast time.
SW and SH Throat shot and Choking Arrer is not instant cast instead of 1 sec cast time.
SW and SH reduce base cast time Festering arrow (SW) and Poison Arrer (SH) by 0.5 sec so reduce cast from 3 sec to 2.5 sec (base).
SW Flanking shot and SH Behind Ya! now cd is 15 sec and dmg slightly higher but no longer req target facing away from however additionally if you behind a target it will ignore
all targets armor.
There are more changes that need to be done to SW and SH but this is a step in the right direction.

3. WL/Mara both classes are strong but I'd say ML overall takes a slight edge on some circumstances with that being said.
Wls fetch during that ability Lion pet speed increased by 75%. Also, a lion pet during that ability cannot be slowed or rooted and takes 25% less dmg.
Nature bond now heals war lion (pet) x amount right away and x (slightly higher heal than used to be) amount for an additional 15 sec and reduces deg taken of war lion by 5% however rd is 45 sec 
Remove the Bonded pack tactic which gains an insane amount of morale but instead change to nature bond heals 50% while the lion too and additionally now war lion (pet) takes 18% less dmg and reduces cd by 5 sec.
Also, I do understand Mara is generally better not always but generally better than WL however WL has pet then 10 sec pounce (leap) plus pull and charge (movement speed increase by 50%). id say its only fair
increase his pounce cd from 10 sec to 15 sec. and reduce movement speed from 35 to 25% for 3 sec after pounce.
Maras pull (Terrible Embrace) range increased from 65 to 75 ft and cast time was reduced from 2 sec to 1 sec.
Since most of maras are monstro and yes in some situations you do have to switch between mutations but generally speaking not a lot of people play brutality or savagery.
Savagery ow has 35% to deal addition] (x amount) and reduce enemy auto attack speed by 40% up from 33% but at the same time increase your own attack speed by 40%.
Brutality now has 48% chances to increase our auto attack dmg by 25% (previously 25% dmg on offhand) and increase armor pen for auto attacks by 25%.
Savagery ow has 35% to deal addition] (x amount) and reduces enemy auto attack speed by 40% up from 33% but at the same time increases your own attack speed by 40%.
Brutality now has 48% chances to increase our auto attack dmg by 25% (previously 25% dmg on offhand) and increase armor pen for auto attacks by 25%.
Death Grip does not require parry anymore but costs 40 action points instead of 20 and cd increases from 5 sec to 30 sec.
Wave of Terror is a bit too strong for ace ability. Changing cd from 10 to 15 sec and reducing the duration from 5 to 3 sec since its ace is appropriate taking into consideration above mentioned possible changes for Mara.
Impale dmg slightly increases now cd is 5 sec but if you are behind a target increase dmg by 15% however now it ignores 50% target armor in any duration of use. It will be more suitable to use impale into rotation rather than spamming it.
Mutated energy now is 1 min cd instead of 10 sec but instead of requiring disrupt it gives you a shield for 2 sec it will disrupt the first incoming spell and if the spell is disrupted target is silenced for 3 sec instead of st
Tactic piercing bite no longer increases armor pen by 25% for all muted abilities but instead increases armor pen by 10% for all abilities req monstrosity 35% for all abilities req savagery and 45% for all abilities.
Also melee SH had their stun removed I think it would be fair for lion NOT having stun too. Taking into consideration how very strong WLs are at this moment and that's put lightly.
That's just a surface changes I could see would be decent for Wl and Mara.

4. Choppa/Slayer-
Relentless strike (Slayer) and Throat Slash (Choppa) duration increased to 5 sec (overall dag increased slightly).
Slow Down (Slayer) and Don't Go Nowhere (Choppa) increase duration to 10 sec or reduce cd to 5 sec. Currently, 5-sec duration with 10-sec cd
compare to some other classes where cd and duration are the same as cd
Incapacitate (Slayer) and Sit Down (Choppa) now cd is 25 sec up from 20 but usable in Furious and berserker instead of just Berserker.
Spine Crusher (Slayer) and Go for da soft spot (Choppa) no longer req you to be behind a target when you berserk (Change ability being exhaustive blow)
however ignores 25% of targets armor if u behind a target.
Tactic short temper (Slayer (trollslayer)) reduce cd of rune of absorbtion by 5 sec. The same for Choppa Red goes faster (Choppa (savage) reduces cd of Furious Choppin by 5 sec.
Tactic power through (Slayer (troll slayer)) and Wot Rules (Choppa (savage)) now increase is 22 lvl tactic swap place from yer getting soft (choppa) and Fierce night (slayer)
however now it will increase rage regen by an additional 2 rage per sec (baseline rage regen is 5 if anyone did not know).
Tactic (Slayer) runic blessing and (Choppa) keep it Coming - CURRENT VERSION 25% u get resurrected with 25% health and does x amount aoe dmg. The new version - if someone lands a death blow on you instead of you dying you will get healed by 25% hp however it has 3 min internal cd...

5. WH/WE- I do understand if someone wants to play wh or WE as a tanky stealth high burst dmg dealer however pick one. In my opinion, Wh/WE should be high burst class canon classes but they are far
from glass cannon. So here are some proposal changes.
WH having 100% parry for 5sec is a bit too strong -
Reduce duration to 3 ser and cd 1 min instead of 30 ser (share cd with other relics) or make it an execution instead of building accusations.
WH/ME (purgatory/shadow of death) extend the duration to 1 min..
We need to have shadow leap as WE has.
WH/WE Feinted Positioning. Reduce duration from 10 to 5 sec but add that it increases dmg of WH/WE by 5% during that buff.

6. Magus/Engi both of these classes have range, high sustained, decent burst (if specced right), and high survivability too. As previously stated need to make sacrifices somewhere.
Engi with Dwarf passive tactic + flat jacket(engi)/Daemonic Armor(magus)+ armor pot has one of the highest dps classes armor in the game. Also, another dwarf passive gives you 80 toughness and knockdown effects last 1 sec lower.
Remove armor buff from engi and Magus but give them resistance buff, or make it so that armor buff is temporarily like BW armor buff.
Engineer Bugman's Best should be cast time about 3 sec, not 2 and last 15 sec and cd 20 or 30 sec.
Magus Aegis of Orange Fire reduce wounds from 240 to 200 and remove dmg back reflect.
Also, Magus has one of the most undefendable spells kinda defeats the purpose of blocking or distrupting.
Engi and Magus pets (horrors/turrets) cast time increase from 1 sec to 2 sec.
Warlord's 8 piece for Engi and magus is a bit strong (yes I know what a lot of you gonna say none ever using 8 set bonus, news flash solo engi do or
small scale engi and Maguses do..
Take these dps changes as you will, some of you gonna hate it some of you gonna like it and some of you gonna be in-different and not care for it.

I did my due diligence to have a very tiny impact by posting a suggestion. Rest to devs and to players.

Also on that note, I do like to suggest (hear me out first before pounding on the keyboard) removing all morale 4 abilities from talent trees where you go at the very top of your tree.

Twick them slightly or remove some of them to make it balance HOWEVER, Instead of them add new additional abilities for
classes/specs to use. An example is Melee SH has a regular ability on top of his tree. Removing morale abilities from the top of the talent trees and adding regular non-moral abilities or tactics will create additional variety in playstyle or building your character.

Thank you for reading. I agree maybe some of my propositions are extreme but the current version of what we have does not work well either.

Interesting read, I think the only thing I wish you sort of addressed was for a lot of the DPS, you suggested heavy nerfs but no real alternative. I am for reworking some of the morale 4 abilities to make them something that would help characters have the option of something besides the m4 with a new tactic/ability specific to that line.

I see that you wrote that you have a lot of alts and some you play more than others. I don't have a lot of experience with both sides since I main destro. I'm just curious, it seems like a lot of these changes would slow dps down, is that the idea you are hoping for?

this is a solid, passion-fueled breakdown. not all of it hits for me personally, but that’s how class balance works – there’s always some give n take. and honestly? most of what you wrote makes way more sense than some random balance patches we’ve seen in MMOs over the years.
also respect for saying these are surface changes and not pretending to have all the answers.

1. BW/Sorc stuff
funnel power vs shades of death - yep. this comparison is something i’ve thought about too. BW’s toggle is just pure fire and forget, while sorc’s is more active and clunky. syncing their function could make gameplay feel more mirrored but still flavorful.

obsessive focus rework - this one’s actually interesting. makes OF more tactical, forces target commitment, and gives a cool cd reset bonus on kill. could be fun for organized play and duels but maybe awkward in zergs? still, I’d be down to test this.

sorc having shroud of darkness – agreed it doesn’t feel thematically right. feels more like some cold defense from another game. giving them a modified shield of aqshy with resists makes sense. also cast-time reduction idea is clean. like a temporary "focus up" buff. your made-up name “shroud of the ancient power” doesn’t sound too off either lol.

10 sec dispel cd on BW is cracked esp in current meta. 30 sec sounds better and lvl 30 seems fair – prevents lowbie wrecking balls from being too annoying early.

choking smoke & frostbite changes – decent utility tweaks, adds cost to gain, feels fair. silence/disarm lasting longer but more expensive is a good direction.

props for admitting you don’t main BW/sorc. unbiased feedback always hits better.

2. SH/SW
shadowstep being buggy – bro thank you, finally someone says it out loud. the desync is awful, and matching SH’s leap would feel better.
+10% defense + slow – that’s a solid trade for mobility.

squig armor and throat/choking arrows becoming instant – yes. less clunky. smoother flow. cast times on core defensive/offensive tools suck in fast fights.

behind ya/flanking not needing back position but rewarding it – 100% in. good balance between making it usable but rewarding good positioning. love that.

honestly SH/SW do need love and this direction is cool.

3. WL/Mara
i’m a WL enjoyer so this part hits close lol.

fetch pet speed increase + root/snare immune – big QoL, not OP since it's very situational anyway.
nature’s bond healing the pet more – yes, WL pets die from stiff breezes. more sustain is good.
bonded pack being swapped out – ok yeah, never liked that morale gimmick either.

increasing pounce cd – fair. WL has too many movement tools stacked, so 15 sec pounce makes it less of a joke in chase-downs.

mara pull buff (65 > 75 ft and cast 2 > 1 sec) – makes it more reliable which i like, but that range could be OP vs squishies. still, it’s Mara, they should feel threatening.

mutation buffs – finally! savagery and brutality feel like meme specs right now. the auto attack boost and armor pen brings them back in line.

death grip rework – YES. ditching the parry req makes it way more useable. cost/cd increase is a fair trade.

wave of terror nerf – agree, this thing is super oppressive. a 3 sec duration would still be annoying, but not game-breaking.

impale changes – I like it. gives positional value without forcing spamming.

mutated energy new effect – sounds badass. disrupt + silence on reflect = tactical counterplay instead of spamming it.

piercing bite tactic change – kinda complex but makes sense. forces you to commit to a spec to get full benefit.

removing lion stun – spicy take, but valid considering melee SH lost theirs.

4. Slayer/Choppa
relentless/throat slash 5 sec – yep. dots need love.

slowdown/don’t go nowhere – duration/CD needs cleanup, agree. 10 sec CD for 5 sec effect feels bad.

incapacitate/sit down usable in both rage states – nice QoL fix.

spine crusher soft spot armor ignore if behind – feels right. reward positioning not just rage.

rage regen tactic rework – +2/sec might sound small but that adds up. smooths out flow a bit.

res-tactics change – super interesting. would make for more clutch outplays instead of just passive “free rez” moments.

5. WH/WE
yeah bruh… WH and WE are not “glass” enough for being called glass cannons.

that 100% parry relic – lol yeah it’s dumb. 3 sec max or execution-only would tame it.

shadow leap missing on WH – agreed, movement feels gimped vs WE.

feinted positioning – 5 sec duration is fine, with a 5% damage boost it still gives value but not busted uptime.

6. Magus/Engi
agree 100% here – these two got insane tankiness for full range damage. feels wrong.

removing perm armor buff and turning into temp buff like BW? perfect solution.

bugman’s best cast time change + duration tweak – nice. make it more tactical than spammy.

magus aegis nerf – reflect damage feels dumb in current kit, agreed.

turret/horror cast time increase – won’t destroy them but prevents cheesy fast swaps.

Warlord 8pc – not many talk about this, but yeah, solo/duo players exploit this hard. needs lookin into.

morale 4 removal idea
spicy take
but not bad. morale 4s are dumb strong and barely counterable unless you're stacking coordination. turning top-tree abilities into real actives or tactics would actually make spec paths more interesting and choice more meaningful. right now most people only go deep for M4 cheese.
I’m down to test that idea honestly.

100% agreed on the WH/WE. Actually insane they get to keep that level of damage while having so much survivability.

First things first.
Players are asking for changes here, but be careful what you wish for... imagine your favorite character getting nerfed (maybe again, if you're unlucky). What will many of the players do then? Would you reroll another char? Your new char could get a nerf too. Depends on the nerf, but most likely I would consider leaving if you ask me.
I'm not a big fan of nerfs, so I won't praise these changes, sorry.

I do not play WH or WE but I do not have any problem with them in lakes. If they kill me as a solo or in small scale, or If I am not able to catch them and finish them? Lets be it. They have almost no place in WBs, so why to reduce their fun even more?

Engi/Magus. You wrote that they are tanky etc. and they need to make sacrifices somewhere. One of their biggest sacrifice is time. If you play "havoc" for example, you need so much time to built up your burst and finish some rotation that your oponent will hide somewhere (or die of boredom... )
Aegis of Orange Fire - if you would like to remove the dmg reflect, this is exactly how you would kill this game step by step, because you will remove another tactical spell from game and reduce it to some basic temporary buff (boring). This is realy good example, because spells like this brings some fun and variability to the gameplay and could create some interesting situations. Aegis of Orange Fire is great tool that not even could help you survive, but is forcing your enemy to think - if they will attack you or not, if they die or not (if they are low on HP or so).

I will not comment on all the points, but would like to see some more buff suggestions for all the classes, not unnecessary nerfs.

buerdig wrote: ↑Tue Jul 01, 2025 4:36 am Interesting read, I think the only thing I wish you sort of addressed was for a lot of the DPS, you suggested heavy nerfs but no real alternative. I am for reworking some of the morale 4 abilities to make them something that would help characters have the option of something besides the m4 with a new tactic/ability specific to that line.

I see that you wrote that you have a lot of alts and some you play more than others. I don't have a lot of experience with both sides since I main destro. I'm just curious, it seems like a lot of these changes would slow dps down, is that the idea you are hoping for?

Hey man,

Let me start with no I'm not trying to reduce dps which in contrary will make healer live longer and tank be even stronger - that's NOT my intention since most classes I play is dps. My idea is if they make as I mentioned in my post morale 4 abilities from each spec a baseline and twick them slightly some of them can be too strong and put new abilities instead of them which are non-morale abilities.

Let me expend on that and give you example: let just say Sorc/BW - Path of Agony/Path of Incineration ( remember its just a thought/idea can be added to other spec ) new ability - (instead of morale rank 4 abilities) - Mage (sorc/BW) tap into his own magic essence to increase his own power by making next ability cast within 5 sec instant (do not affect channel abilities) cast and do 10-20% more dmg ( its for devs to decide how to balance dmg increase it). cost 50 AP and cd 1 min cd.
Another example Sorc/BW - path of calamity/ path of immolation - Mage (Sorc/BW) - taps into unreal world of magic and become a ghost which makes ALL his abilities (castble/channeling) use while on a move for next 10 sec in addition you take no backlash dmg during that time also. cost 60 AP cd 1.5 min ( or somewhere that time).

That's just 2 examples of new abilities for 2 classes since they are "mirror".

Here is another example SH/SW - Path of quickshooting /path of skirmisher - you become restless as you hunt your pray as you mark them for 15 sec. Marked enemy takes additional 5% more dmg and 5% more more suitable to crit and have their armor lower by 5% in addition marked enemy cannot go to stealth during this time. 1 min 30 sec cd. cost 40 AP.

Here is another example for SH/SW - since path of big shooting/ path of scout is single target give them agility which slightly increase their aoe dmg - SH/SW (path of big shooting/path of scout) - you become restless and use your powers to give you second wind which gives you for next 15 sec all your abilities do aoe dmg in from main target withing 20 meters (affect dots too) but reduce their dmg by 40% and also reduce your AP cost of all abilities by 10. cd 1.5 min AP cost 30.

Choppa/slayer example -

Path of Savage/Path of trollsslayer - new agility usable only in berserk you further harden your skin from all battles which for next 10 sec all healing your receive by 5% (include potions too) and during this time any dmg you take coverts to 50% healing and reduce penalty you receive from berserk by 50%. (total armor reduce would be 25% and resistances 25% during 10 sec). cost 50 AP cd 1.5 min

Path of troll Giantslayer/path of hitta - Requires 2 handed weapon - you and your weapon became as one as your thirst for battle -for next 10 sec all your abilities will act as berserk and you will do 10 % more dmg (additional to already 50% dmg from berserk as baseline ) but you still lose 50% armor and resistances as you would have with berserk. Cost 40 AP cd 1.5 min.

Path of of Da'wrecka/ path of Skavenslayer - bring back old ability which choppa had but give to a slayer too. Slightly modify it - you call Waaagh as your shout boosting you and your group morale as you become the waaagh -for next 10 sec cd on all your abilities reduced by 5 sec. cd 1.5 min. cost 60 AP.

I can keep going like that I have idea for more and more abilities and all these abilities I came up on spot as replacement for morale 4 abilities you getting from each spec as all morale 4 abilities which were exclusive to each spec make baseline and twick them slightly to not make RvR sucha mess.

Its not final version of just some abilities I posted can be twicked as they will be implementing them ( I hope devs will take my post and these addition abilities into consideration and implement some of them).

With these changes to moral 4 abilities making baseline and replacing them with regular abilities some of which mentioned above will make more variety in specs/builds and customization.

Thank you for all reading my shitty grammar/typing I really appreciate that.

If people like my proposals I have idea for tanks and healers if some of you wanna hear them send me a private message as it will take a a lot more of my time as I invest a lot of time already. If I see some of these changes mentioned above (including my first post) will be implemented I would gladly post more.

Thank you all!

Stay humble! Be creative!