Ray Of Light
10-11-2005, 03:08 AM
I do not know about you, but every now and then I am possessed by the inclination to write all my unqualified Guild Wars ideas / speculation / suggestions down :D . So here are my thoughts concerning a future Assassin profession for your perusal.
NB I really think that Assassin will be a Chapter Two profession, along with Shaman - has anyone else noticed that Sorrow's Furnace renamed the shamans in Witman's Folly to crones ? Very suspicious...
- - - - - Assassin Profession - - - - -
Overview of Concept : Walk Softly and Carry a Big Knife
I may be in the minority here, but I would really like to see Assassins that are not :
* Ninjas by another name ( surely Ninjas are cool enough to earn a profession of their own anyway ).
* Inspired by Hollywood ( Sylvester Stallone and Brad Pitt should not be Assassins ).
* Athletic types in skimpy skintight leather ( /braceforcontroversy :lol: ).
I would love to see Assassins who are much more versatile than that, with an innocuous loner vibe and the ability to blend in when appropriate. Seriously ; how dumb would a target have to be to let a six-foot dominatrix with foot long blades strapped to her wrists get within stabbing distance ?
Overview of Attributes : Murder in Mind
NB Sample skills further down.
SADISM - This is the primary attribute available only to Assassins. No innate effect. The themes of this attribute are :
* Torment - Physical attacks that cause no damage but inflict Bleeding, Deep Wounds and both kinds of degeneration.
* Desecration - The art of doing very bad things to corpses, plus a few things that will ensure someone does not even leave a ( useable ) corpse when they die. Unlike Necromancers, Assassins need to be within blade range of a corpse to use their skills.
MURDER - The innate ability to strike for more damage and more criticals with daggers, on par with Warrior weapon mastery.
* Opportunism - These attacks cause extra damage and conditions only when used in appropriate situations e.g. striking from behind, foe on ground, etc. While such attacks are cheap and fast, they require teamwork because Assassin skills do not actually cause knockdown, etc.
* Murder Death Kill - These less-subtle stance skills either protect the user from distraction / knock down, while they chop away with gusto, or boost the damage of successive hits against the same target ( Diablo-esque ). MDK skills are the only Assassin skills that make use of Adrenaline.
PURSUIT - No innate ability. I wrote a lot about these skills further down, in an attempt to explain the concept of Marks.
* Marks - This peculiar class of skills is an original creation :) . See later description.
* Avoidance - Skills that boost evasion and running speed in combat, plus skills that can avoid combat altogether e.g. by shrinking enemy radar.
TOXICOLOGY - Who could possibly be more skilled with poison than Assassins ?
* Applications - An impressive range of preparations that enhance melee attacks with poisons, acids and various chemicals. A few enegy intensive ranged dart attacks for the element of surprise.
* Antidotes - Skills that counter conditions and degenerations, with some general healing thrown in. However, these skills are only effective upon the Assassin and some are low cost because they carry nasty side effects...
Overview of Equipment : Armoury of the Assassin
DAGGERS - I am opting for all Assassin weapons to be dagger class ; no punch-dagger / claw gauntlets in sight. They simply lack discretion, and really do belong with the Ninjas. Many Assassin attacks require that a dagger be equipped.
* Classification - Daggers are short ranged melee weapons that require one hand to wield and inflict piercing damage.
* Upgrades - Daggers may be upgraded with hilts and blades.
* Requirements - Daggers may require any of the four Assassin attributes ( even though only Murder enhances dagger attacks ). Some models of dagger are associated with particular attributes e.g. stiletto = Toxicology.
* Special Melee Effect - E.g. hammers can prolong knockdown, swords can prolong bleeding. Daggers are able to exhibit an armour penetration bonus on all hits ( range is 1 to 5% ).
* Comparison versus swords - Daggers are shorter than swords, attack more quickly than swords, have a lower maximum damage than swords and a much narrower range of damage than swords ( only ever a few points between minimum and maximum ).
TWIN DAGGERS - The two handed Assassin weaponry option, which functions quite differently to previous two handed weaponry. Twin daggers possess all of the same qualities as single daggers, including maximum damage and number of magical properties & upgrades. An Assassin wielding Twin Daggers is able to attack twice as often, though singular attack skills will only affect the first attack and not the ' additional ' one too.
CARVING KNIFE - This off hand item is not used for fighting, but provides an AL comparable to a shield because it is used for parrying.
* Appearance - Carving knives are held with the hilt upwards and the blade downwards, to distinguish them from daggers.
* Requirements - Carving knives require one of : Sadism, Murder.
* Special effects - Though they boost AL like a shield, carving knives cannot bestow damage reduction. They enhance skill speed and recharge instead, much like a focus item.
CEREMONIAL KNIFE - This off hand item is similar to the carving knife, but provides an energy bonus rather than boosting AL.
* Requirements - Ceremonial knives require one of : Sadism, Pursuit.
VIAL - This off hand item functions like a conventional focus item.
* Requirements - All vials require Toxicology.
* Special effects - Vials can prolong or shorten various conditions, most commonly poison.
ASSASSIN ARMOUR - Assassin armour differs from that of all previous professions.
* Standard AL range - The standard AL range is 5 to 60, equivalent to magic users despite Assassins being primarily melee combatants.
* Innate armour effects - Two pieces of armour bestow energy regeneration +1 ; Assassins are suited for short bursts of intense combat with minimal recharge, not titanic spells. Two pieces of armour with +10% chance to evade attacks ; this is what protects Assassins, and makes them lower priority targets ( may be wasting special attacks on them ).
* Head armour - Assassin head armour is comparable to that worn by magic users, in that it bestows only AL & +1 to an attribute.
Overview of Look : Mostly Harmless
MALE - Please NCsoft, offer some salvation from the fantasy RPG male archetype ! ( :lol: )
* Height - Average, bordering on below average. So just shorter tahn default Ranger height.
* Physique - Quintessential ectomorph ; slim and in shape, but flat and lacking a six-pack. Deceptively harmless looking.
* Ethnicity - None too dominant, but a leaning towards European as this is more of a professional Assassin than a sect member.
* Hair - Mostly short & neat styles, with a few longer ones partially concealing face. Some slicked down. Think suspiciously clean cut.
* Features - Slim faces ( obviously ) with a mixture of mundane and striking looks. Lacking distinguishing features, though a few with faded scars.
* Expressions - Professionally neutral, openly cold or a predatory smile.
FEMALE - Very similar qualities to the male.
* Height - The same height as male Assassins, just to break the trend.
* Physique - Also ectomorph ; slim and elegant, very much flat ( warrior women without the conical armour ! :shock: ).
* Ethnicity - Same comment as for the males.
* Hair - Tendency towards short & simple styles, with a few socialite fashions. Favour severe sheer cuts.
* Features and expressions - Same comments as for the males.
DANCE - I do not understand why these are so popular. Assassins should have the anti-dance ; standing disinterestedly with a token foot-tapping thrown in now and then. Even better ; they should be able to emit a glowering effect around them which actually prevents other people dancing ( and makes them put some clothes back on too ) :lol: .
Overview of Quests : Dial M for Murder Death Kill
It is easy to see how Assassins would feature in wars between guilds - it is not like the Guilds are looking to play fair after all - but it is not hard to envision Assassins as adventurer heroes either. Motivations :
* Vengeance - When genocidal wars erupt, Assassins are just as likely to suffer personal loss / injury and take up arms against their enemies.
* Survival - In Chapter One at least, the main story is very much kill or be killed ( and it is pretty obvious which option would appeal to Assassins... ).
* Greed - No-one in Guild Wars ever got rich just sitting in town ; monsters have all the best stuff...
* Contract - An Assassin could be hired by an employer with any of the above motivations ; that is what being a blade-for-hire is all about, after all.
However, I would like to see Assassins showing their dark(er) side in the Assassin specific quests :
* Human targets - Go head to head with Human NPCs using the exact same equipment as players have access to. Maybe even take on their bodyguards ; all those NPC soldier-types that are so hard to keep alive.
* Fight ' deathmatches ' - Quests where you must particpate in arena battles against NPC guild characters to really finish them off ; when active, over-ride what usually happens when you enter the specified arena location.
* Interweave with the regular stories - E.g. In Protecting Ascalon the corpse of the curious Monk Paulus must be found ; what if someone paid a considerable sum to have Paulus silenced...
* All about the money - Quest for financial rewards, not XP.
Specifics of Skills : Red Rum
Two sample Sadism skills, from the torment theme.
A Slow Death : Dagger attack. If this attack hits, it cause no damage and the target begins Bleeding for 5...20 seconds. 5/-/5
Disfiguration : If this attack hits, it causes no damage and the target suffers 1 energy degeneration for 5...20 seconds. 5/-/20
Two sample Sadism skills, from the desecration theme. Remember that Assassin corpse skills are melee range only.
Sickening Desecration - If you have a dagger equipped, exploit nearest corpse to disable all skills on enemies near that corpse for 1...7 seconds. 5/-/60
Closed Casket - Dagger attack. If this attack defeats the target, target's corpse cannot be exploited. 5/-/5
Two sample Murder skills, from the opportunism theme.
Backstab - Dagger attack. If this attack strikes the enemy from behind it inflicts +10...30 damage and has 10% armour penetration. 10/-/5
Blindside - If this attack hits a moving target, target is Dazed for 5..10 seconds. 10/-/5
Two sample Murder skills, from the murder death kill theme.
Multiple Stab Wounds - Stance. For 5...13 seconds, while you have a dagger equipped, each successive hit against the same target strikes for 2 damage more than the previous hit. 5/-/15
Singlemindedness - Stance. For 60 seconds, you cannot be interrupted or Dazed. Each time you would have been interrupted or Dazed, lose 3...1 energy or Singlemindedness ends. 5/-/120
Five sample Pursuit skills, from the marks theme.
Marks are Assassin-unique skills that place a mark icon ( visible only to the Assassin's party ) above the target's head.
* Each Assassin can only have one active mark at a time.
* Each target can only bear one mark at a time.
There are two common mark effects :
* All attacks against target...
* If target is killed within x seconds...
There are a range of mark skills which influence what the target drops should they be killed while targetted e.g. money, materials.
* All such skills carry an " and quest items " clause.
* Specified items are instead of random drop, not in addition to.
* When such skills specify a % chance, a failure means that nothing ( except quest items ) will be dropped.
* Such skills have no effect upon PCs or NPCs who cannot drop items for whatever reason.
Mark of Riches - Mark. If target is killed within 10...60 seconds, target has a 100% chance of dropping money and quest items. 5/-/5
Mark of Harvesting - Mark. If target is killed within 10...60 seconds, target has a 100% chance of dropping common materials and quest items. 5/-/5
Mark of Antiquities - Mark. If target is killed within 1...5 seconds, target has a 5% chance of dropping rare items and quest items. 10/-/5
Mark of Slaughter - Mark. If target is killed within 5 seconds, all party members recover 25...50 health. 5/-/10
Mark of Infamy - Mark. For 10 seconds, characters receive double adrenaline for attacking target character and all physical attacks against target inflict +1...5 damage. 10/-/5
Two sample Pursuit skills, from the avoidance theme.
Soft Tread - Stance. Your danger zone is reduced by 50% for 5...17 seconds. 5/-/25
Dance Of Daggers - Stance. For 5...10 seconds, while you have a dagger equipped, you have +25% chance to evade melee attacks. 5/-/30
Two sample Toxicology skills, from the applications theme.
Warlock's Bane - Preparation. Your next successful dagger attack will cause your target to be Poisoned and suffer -1 energy degeneration for 5...17 seconds. 5/1/10
Sulphuric Dart - Dart attack. If it hits, this dart strikes for 5...41 damage and target foe has an armour penalty of -20 against physical damage for 5...10 seconds. 15/-/10
Two sample Toxicology skills, from the antidotes theme.
Hemlock Panacea - Cleanse yourself of Blindness, Daze, Disease and osioning. This skill causes Weakness for 5...2 seconds. 5/1/5
Counteragent - Cleanse yourself of Poisoning. If Poisoning is cleansed by this skill, you gain health regeneration of +2 for 3...10 seconds. 5/1/1
Specifics of Armour : Dressed to Kill
Male Assassin armour division : Torso armour reaches from wrists to inguinal ridge ( half way down hips ), so hand armour covers only the hands. Leg armour reaches to floor, so foot armour covers only the feet.
Female Assassin armour division : Torso armour reaches from biceps to inguinal ridge, so hand armour can cover both hands and arms. Leg armour reaches to floor, so foot armour covers only the feet.
HEAD ARMOUR - Assassin armour takes the form of accessories worn around the neck ; stylish and discrete, like a good Assassin should be. :)
* Studded Choker - Sadsim +1. A tight black band with silver studs.
* Murderer's Necklace - Murder +1. Fine silver necklace with a miniature dagger pendant.
* Stalker's Necklace - Pursuit +1. Black cord with six silver fang pendants pointing inwards.
* Poisoner's Necklace - Toxicology +1. Tight black cord with silver lotus pendant.
ORDINARY ARMOUR ( MALE ) - Initial armour. This set allows Assassins to blend in with commoners. This armour is AL5 and possesses only innate special abilities.
* Ordinary Shirt - Simple short sleeved tee of thin material. Light brown.
* Ordinary Gloves - Plain labourer's gloves of sturdy material. Light brown.
* Ordinary Trousers - Plain patched trousers of sturdy material. Dark brown.
* Ordinary Shoes - Plain scuffed shoes, thin soled for stealthy movement. Dark brown.
ORDINARY ARMOUR ( FEMALE ) - Initial armour. This set allows Assassins to blend in with commoners. This armour is AL5 and possesses only innate special abilities.
* Ordinary Blouse - Simple sleeveless blouse of thin material, tied up back. Light brown.
* Ordinary Gloves - Plain craftperson's gloves of thin material. Light brown.
* Ordinary Skirt - Plain pleated floorlength skirt of wool. Dark brown.
* Ordinary Shoes - Plain flat shoes, thin soled for stealthy movement. Dark brown.
ASSASSIN'S ARMOUR ( MALE ) - Collector armour. This set is standard night roaming attire for Assassins without a leather fetish. This armour possesses only innate special abilities.
* Assassin's Shirt - Tight long sleeved shirt, tied up front, with leather patches on shoulders and elbows. Collarless and open at neck to display necklace. Black ; dye can only be used to tint the leather patches.
* Assassin's Gloves - Thin gloves with leather panels on the back of the hands and fingers. Black ; dye can only tint leather.
* Assassin's Trousers - Slim trousers, with several tall pockets sewn on and leather patches on knees. Black ; dye can only tint leather.
* Assassin's Shoes - Thin soled shoes with leather panels on top of the feet. Black ; dye can only tint leather.
ASSASSIN'S ARMOUR ( FEMALE ) - Collector armour. This set is standard night roaming attire for Assassins without a dominatrix complex. This armour possesses only innate special abilities.
* Assassin's Blouse - Tight short sleeved blouse, tied up front, with leather patches on shoulders and elbows. Collarless and open at neck to display necklace. Black ; dye can only be used to tint the leather patches.
* Assassin's Gloves - Thin gloves with leather panels on the back of the hands and fingers. Black ; dye can only tint leather.
* Assassin's Leggings - Thin leggings, with leather patches on knees and an elaborate set of pouches attached to the belt. Black ; dye can only tint leather.
* Assassin's Shoes - Thin soled shoes with leather panels on top of the feet. Black ; dye can only tint leather.
INGENUOUS ARMOUR ( MALE ) - This set is for homme fatale Assassins, who prefer to insinuate themselves in to a social setting to strike. This armour imparts a bonus to critical hit rate, because it lulls opponent's and gives the Assassin a chance to strike ( +1% bonus from each of gloves and sandals, +2% from each of shirt and trousers ).
* Ingenuous Shirt - Simple short sleeved tee of thin material, with a short collar and wide open drawstring neckline. Pink ; this armour dyes vividly.
* Ingenuous Gloves - Thin cotton gloves. White ; dyes vividly.
* Ingenuous Trousers - Elegant slim trousers, with fine stitching and frayed hems. White ; dyes vividly.
* Ingenuous Sandals - Thin soled sandals. Light brown.
INGENUOUS ARMOUR ( FEMALE ) - This set is for femme fatale Assassins, who prefer to insinuate themselves in to a social setting to strike. This armour imparts a bonus to critical hit rate, because it lulls opponent's and gives the Assassin a chance to strike ( +1% bonus from each of gloves and sandals, +2% from each of blouse and skirt ).
* Ingenuous Blouse - Sleeveless blouse that is high up front and low at the back, with frills from neckline to over shoulders and down the back. Tied from behind with a bow. Pink ; this armour dyes vividly.
* Ingenuous Gloves - Thin cotton gloves that stretch all the way up to biceps, where they are tied with bows. White ; dyes vividly.
* Ingenuous Skirt - Stylish knee length pleated skirt, with fine stitching. White ; dyes vividly.
* Ingenuous Sandals - Thin soled sandals, with straps spiralling up ankles. Light brown.
INDOMITABLE ARMOUR ( MALE ) - This set is for Assassins who are disregarding subtlety and planning to carve their way through their enemies. The metallic nature of this armour grants +15 bonus to AL against physical attacks for each article.
Inspiration for armour : HBK Shawn Michaels.
* Indomitable Shirt - Square metal plates are connected by thin wire in regular intervals to resemble a long sleeved shirt of metal that does not hinder mobility. Somewhat revealing. Dark metal ; dye can be used to tint the metal plates.
* Indomitable Finger Armour - A full set of finger armour ( a goth thing ) for each hand, connected by thin wire to ornate bracelets. Dark metal ; tinted by dye.
* Indomitable Trousers - Thin black trousers with square metal plates riveted on, away from the joints to retain mobility. Dark metal ; plate tinted by dye.
* Indomitable Shoes - Thin soled black shoes with metal toecaps. Dark metal ; plate tinted by dye.
INDOMITABLE ARMOUR ( FEMALE ) - This set is for Assassins who are disregarding subtlety and planning to carve their way through their enemies. The metallic nature of this armour grants +15 bonus to AL against physical attacks for each article.
Inspiration for armour : HBK Shawn Michaels.
* Indomitable Vest - Intricately designed square metal frames, connected by thin wire, draped over a short black vest. Dark metal ; dye can be used to tint the metal frames.
* Indomitable Finger Armour - A full set of finger armour ( a goth thing ) for each hand, covering from the first joint of each finger to the tip - where they taper out to a sharp point. Dark metal ; tinted by dye.
* Indomitable Leggings - Intricately designed square metal frames, connected by thin wire, hanging nearly to floor atop short black leggings. Dark metal ; plate tinted by dye.
* Indomitable Shoes - Pointed black shoes with sharp metal toecaps. Dark metal ; plate tinted by dye.
SHADY ARMOUR ( MALE ) - This is the closest to traditional Assassin leatherwear, but with a tad more style and menace. Of the ' proper ' armour sets for Assassins, this is the most suited for blending in to shadows and thus grants a bonus to evasion ( +1% bonus from each of gloves and shoes, +2% from each of jacket and trousers ).
* Shady Jacket - Fitted hooded jacket of soft leather. Rigid enough for the hood to remain upright. The Assassin's face is barely visible inside the hood, but a wide opening at the neck keeps the necklace visible. Black ; dye can be used to tint the leather.
* Shady Gloves - Soft leather gloves. Black ; tinted when dyed.
* Shady Trousers - Spacious black trousers with soft leather stripes up the sides. Black ; leather tinted when dyed.
* Shady Shoes - Thin soled black shoes with soft leather detailing. Black ; leather tinted when dyed.
SHADY ARMOUR ( FEMALE ) - This is the closest to traditional Assassin leatherwear, but with a tad more style and menace. Of the ' proper ' armour sets for Assassins, this is the most suited for blending in to shadows and thus grants a bonus to evasion ( +1% bonus from each of gloves and boots, +2% from each of blouse and skirt ).
* Shady Blouse - Fitted corset of soft leather, atop a short sleeved black blouse with short vertical collar. Black ; dye can be used to tint the leather.
* Shady Gloves - Soft leather gloves, atop black gauze that reaches up to biceps. Black ; leather tinted when dyed.
* Shady Skirt - Short soft leather side split skirt, atop a floor length skirt of balck lace. Black ; leather tinted when dyed.
* Shady Shoes - Soft leather ankle high boots, no heel. Black ; tinted when dyed.
FISSURE ARMOUR : NEST OF VIPERS ( MALE ) - I have gone a little more extreme on this set, but I think that Fissure armour should always have some real wow factor :D .
Inspiration for armour : Finale of Queen Of The Damned ( especially Aaliyah, but also Stuart Townsend ).
* Fissure Armlets - Spectacular silver armlets, each in the shape of a serpent ; body starts at the shoulder, winds twice around the bicep and finally to its head at the outside of the elbow. Note that this is torso armour, even though it consists only of armlets ; Assassins can vamp it up :) . Dye can be used to tint the silver.
* Fissure Finger Armour - A full set of silver finger armour, with each piece depicting the upper half of a serpent ; covering atop the finger from knuckle to finger tip, which the upper jaw and fangs extend just beyond. Armour held on by discrete black straps. Dye can tint the silver.
* Fissure Trousers - Sheer black trousers with an awesome silver serpent design, stitched so as to spiral round and up one leg. Dye can tint the silver.
* Fissure Shoes - Thin soled black shoes with ssilver toe caps fashioned as the upper jaws of serpents. Dye can tint silver.
FISSURE ARMOUR : NEST OF VIPERS ( FEMALE ) - I have gone a little more extreme on this set, but I think that Fissure armour should always have some real wow factor :D .
Inspiration for armour : Finale of Queen Of The Damned ( especially Aaliyah, but also Stuart Townsend ).
* Fissure Breastplate - Remarkable silver breastplate depicting a nest of vipers, draped around the neck and fastened at the back by a clasp of two interlocking snakes. Dye can be used to tint the silver.
* Fissure Gloves - Fingerless black gauze gloves reaching to biceps, each secured by a silver bracer lavishly decorated as the head and neck of a serpent. The bracers are fastened so that the upper and lower jaws enclose the wrist. Dye can tint the silver.
* Fissure Skirt - Intricate mini-skirt of silver depicting a nest of vipers, atop a floor length sheer black silk skirt. Dye can tint the silver.
* Fissure Boots - Smart pointed black ankle high boots, with silver toecaps fashioned as the upper jaws of vipers. Dye can tint silver.
- - - - - Fin - - - - -
If you really read all that, award yourself a cookie. :D
NB I really think that Assassin will be a Chapter Two profession, along with Shaman - has anyone else noticed that Sorrow's Furnace renamed the shamans in Witman's Folly to crones ? Very suspicious...
- - - - - Assassin Profession - - - - -
Overview of Concept : Walk Softly and Carry a Big Knife
I may be in the minority here, but I would really like to see Assassins that are not :
* Ninjas by another name ( surely Ninjas are cool enough to earn a profession of their own anyway ).
* Inspired by Hollywood ( Sylvester Stallone and Brad Pitt should not be Assassins ).
* Athletic types in skimpy skintight leather ( /braceforcontroversy :lol: ).
I would love to see Assassins who are much more versatile than that, with an innocuous loner vibe and the ability to blend in when appropriate. Seriously ; how dumb would a target have to be to let a six-foot dominatrix with foot long blades strapped to her wrists get within stabbing distance ?
Overview of Attributes : Murder in Mind
NB Sample skills further down.
SADISM - This is the primary attribute available only to Assassins. No innate effect. The themes of this attribute are :
* Torment - Physical attacks that cause no damage but inflict Bleeding, Deep Wounds and both kinds of degeneration.
* Desecration - The art of doing very bad things to corpses, plus a few things that will ensure someone does not even leave a ( useable ) corpse when they die. Unlike Necromancers, Assassins need to be within blade range of a corpse to use their skills.
MURDER - The innate ability to strike for more damage and more criticals with daggers, on par with Warrior weapon mastery.
* Opportunism - These attacks cause extra damage and conditions only when used in appropriate situations e.g. striking from behind, foe on ground, etc. While such attacks are cheap and fast, they require teamwork because Assassin skills do not actually cause knockdown, etc.
* Murder Death Kill - These less-subtle stance skills either protect the user from distraction / knock down, while they chop away with gusto, or boost the damage of successive hits against the same target ( Diablo-esque ). MDK skills are the only Assassin skills that make use of Adrenaline.
PURSUIT - No innate ability. I wrote a lot about these skills further down, in an attempt to explain the concept of Marks.
* Marks - This peculiar class of skills is an original creation :) . See later description.
* Avoidance - Skills that boost evasion and running speed in combat, plus skills that can avoid combat altogether e.g. by shrinking enemy radar.
TOXICOLOGY - Who could possibly be more skilled with poison than Assassins ?
* Applications - An impressive range of preparations that enhance melee attacks with poisons, acids and various chemicals. A few enegy intensive ranged dart attacks for the element of surprise.
* Antidotes - Skills that counter conditions and degenerations, with some general healing thrown in. However, these skills are only effective upon the Assassin and some are low cost because they carry nasty side effects...
Overview of Equipment : Armoury of the Assassin
DAGGERS - I am opting for all Assassin weapons to be dagger class ; no punch-dagger / claw gauntlets in sight. They simply lack discretion, and really do belong with the Ninjas. Many Assassin attacks require that a dagger be equipped.
* Classification - Daggers are short ranged melee weapons that require one hand to wield and inflict piercing damage.
* Upgrades - Daggers may be upgraded with hilts and blades.
* Requirements - Daggers may require any of the four Assassin attributes ( even though only Murder enhances dagger attacks ). Some models of dagger are associated with particular attributes e.g. stiletto = Toxicology.
* Special Melee Effect - E.g. hammers can prolong knockdown, swords can prolong bleeding. Daggers are able to exhibit an armour penetration bonus on all hits ( range is 1 to 5% ).
* Comparison versus swords - Daggers are shorter than swords, attack more quickly than swords, have a lower maximum damage than swords and a much narrower range of damage than swords ( only ever a few points between minimum and maximum ).
TWIN DAGGERS - The two handed Assassin weaponry option, which functions quite differently to previous two handed weaponry. Twin daggers possess all of the same qualities as single daggers, including maximum damage and number of magical properties & upgrades. An Assassin wielding Twin Daggers is able to attack twice as often, though singular attack skills will only affect the first attack and not the ' additional ' one too.
CARVING KNIFE - This off hand item is not used for fighting, but provides an AL comparable to a shield because it is used for parrying.
* Appearance - Carving knives are held with the hilt upwards and the blade downwards, to distinguish them from daggers.
* Requirements - Carving knives require one of : Sadism, Murder.
* Special effects - Though they boost AL like a shield, carving knives cannot bestow damage reduction. They enhance skill speed and recharge instead, much like a focus item.
CEREMONIAL KNIFE - This off hand item is similar to the carving knife, but provides an energy bonus rather than boosting AL.
* Requirements - Ceremonial knives require one of : Sadism, Pursuit.
VIAL - This off hand item functions like a conventional focus item.
* Requirements - All vials require Toxicology.
* Special effects - Vials can prolong or shorten various conditions, most commonly poison.
ASSASSIN ARMOUR - Assassin armour differs from that of all previous professions.
* Standard AL range - The standard AL range is 5 to 60, equivalent to magic users despite Assassins being primarily melee combatants.
* Innate armour effects - Two pieces of armour bestow energy regeneration +1 ; Assassins are suited for short bursts of intense combat with minimal recharge, not titanic spells. Two pieces of armour with +10% chance to evade attacks ; this is what protects Assassins, and makes them lower priority targets ( may be wasting special attacks on them ).
* Head armour - Assassin head armour is comparable to that worn by magic users, in that it bestows only AL & +1 to an attribute.
Overview of Look : Mostly Harmless
MALE - Please NCsoft, offer some salvation from the fantasy RPG male archetype ! ( :lol: )
* Height - Average, bordering on below average. So just shorter tahn default Ranger height.
* Physique - Quintessential ectomorph ; slim and in shape, but flat and lacking a six-pack. Deceptively harmless looking.
* Ethnicity - None too dominant, but a leaning towards European as this is more of a professional Assassin than a sect member.
* Hair - Mostly short & neat styles, with a few longer ones partially concealing face. Some slicked down. Think suspiciously clean cut.
* Features - Slim faces ( obviously ) with a mixture of mundane and striking looks. Lacking distinguishing features, though a few with faded scars.
* Expressions - Professionally neutral, openly cold or a predatory smile.
FEMALE - Very similar qualities to the male.
* Height - The same height as male Assassins, just to break the trend.
* Physique - Also ectomorph ; slim and elegant, very much flat ( warrior women without the conical armour ! :shock: ).
* Ethnicity - Same comment as for the males.
* Hair - Tendency towards short & simple styles, with a few socialite fashions. Favour severe sheer cuts.
* Features and expressions - Same comments as for the males.
DANCE - I do not understand why these are so popular. Assassins should have the anti-dance ; standing disinterestedly with a token foot-tapping thrown in now and then. Even better ; they should be able to emit a glowering effect around them which actually prevents other people dancing ( and makes them put some clothes back on too ) :lol: .
Overview of Quests : Dial M for Murder Death Kill
It is easy to see how Assassins would feature in wars between guilds - it is not like the Guilds are looking to play fair after all - but it is not hard to envision Assassins as adventurer heroes either. Motivations :
* Vengeance - When genocidal wars erupt, Assassins are just as likely to suffer personal loss / injury and take up arms against their enemies.
* Survival - In Chapter One at least, the main story is very much kill or be killed ( and it is pretty obvious which option would appeal to Assassins... ).
* Greed - No-one in Guild Wars ever got rich just sitting in town ; monsters have all the best stuff...
* Contract - An Assassin could be hired by an employer with any of the above motivations ; that is what being a blade-for-hire is all about, after all.
However, I would like to see Assassins showing their dark(er) side in the Assassin specific quests :
* Human targets - Go head to head with Human NPCs using the exact same equipment as players have access to. Maybe even take on their bodyguards ; all those NPC soldier-types that are so hard to keep alive.
* Fight ' deathmatches ' - Quests where you must particpate in arena battles against NPC guild characters to really finish them off ; when active, over-ride what usually happens when you enter the specified arena location.
* Interweave with the regular stories - E.g. In Protecting Ascalon the corpse of the curious Monk Paulus must be found ; what if someone paid a considerable sum to have Paulus silenced...
* All about the money - Quest for financial rewards, not XP.
Specifics of Skills : Red Rum
Two sample Sadism skills, from the torment theme.
A Slow Death : Dagger attack. If this attack hits, it cause no damage and the target begins Bleeding for 5...20 seconds. 5/-/5
Disfiguration : If this attack hits, it causes no damage and the target suffers 1 energy degeneration for 5...20 seconds. 5/-/20
Two sample Sadism skills, from the desecration theme. Remember that Assassin corpse skills are melee range only.
Sickening Desecration - If you have a dagger equipped, exploit nearest corpse to disable all skills on enemies near that corpse for 1...7 seconds. 5/-/60
Closed Casket - Dagger attack. If this attack defeats the target, target's corpse cannot be exploited. 5/-/5
Two sample Murder skills, from the opportunism theme.
Backstab - Dagger attack. If this attack strikes the enemy from behind it inflicts +10...30 damage and has 10% armour penetration. 10/-/5
Blindside - If this attack hits a moving target, target is Dazed for 5..10 seconds. 10/-/5
Two sample Murder skills, from the murder death kill theme.
Multiple Stab Wounds - Stance. For 5...13 seconds, while you have a dagger equipped, each successive hit against the same target strikes for 2 damage more than the previous hit. 5/-/15
Singlemindedness - Stance. For 60 seconds, you cannot be interrupted or Dazed. Each time you would have been interrupted or Dazed, lose 3...1 energy or Singlemindedness ends. 5/-/120
Five sample Pursuit skills, from the marks theme.
Marks are Assassin-unique skills that place a mark icon ( visible only to the Assassin's party ) above the target's head.
* Each Assassin can only have one active mark at a time.
* Each target can only bear one mark at a time.
There are two common mark effects :
* All attacks against target...
* If target is killed within x seconds...
There are a range of mark skills which influence what the target drops should they be killed while targetted e.g. money, materials.
* All such skills carry an " and quest items " clause.
* Specified items are instead of random drop, not in addition to.
* When such skills specify a % chance, a failure means that nothing ( except quest items ) will be dropped.
* Such skills have no effect upon PCs or NPCs who cannot drop items for whatever reason.
Mark of Riches - Mark. If target is killed within 10...60 seconds, target has a 100% chance of dropping money and quest items. 5/-/5
Mark of Harvesting - Mark. If target is killed within 10...60 seconds, target has a 100% chance of dropping common materials and quest items. 5/-/5
Mark of Antiquities - Mark. If target is killed within 1...5 seconds, target has a 5% chance of dropping rare items and quest items. 10/-/5
Mark of Slaughter - Mark. If target is killed within 5 seconds, all party members recover 25...50 health. 5/-/10
Mark of Infamy - Mark. For 10 seconds, characters receive double adrenaline for attacking target character and all physical attacks against target inflict +1...5 damage. 10/-/5
Two sample Pursuit skills, from the avoidance theme.
Soft Tread - Stance. Your danger zone is reduced by 50% for 5...17 seconds. 5/-/25
Dance Of Daggers - Stance. For 5...10 seconds, while you have a dagger equipped, you have +25% chance to evade melee attacks. 5/-/30
Two sample Toxicology skills, from the applications theme.
Warlock's Bane - Preparation. Your next successful dagger attack will cause your target to be Poisoned and suffer -1 energy degeneration for 5...17 seconds. 5/1/10
Sulphuric Dart - Dart attack. If it hits, this dart strikes for 5...41 damage and target foe has an armour penalty of -20 against physical damage for 5...10 seconds. 15/-/10
Two sample Toxicology skills, from the antidotes theme.
Hemlock Panacea - Cleanse yourself of Blindness, Daze, Disease and osioning. This skill causes Weakness for 5...2 seconds. 5/1/5
Counteragent - Cleanse yourself of Poisoning. If Poisoning is cleansed by this skill, you gain health regeneration of +2 for 3...10 seconds. 5/1/1
Specifics of Armour : Dressed to Kill
Male Assassin armour division : Torso armour reaches from wrists to inguinal ridge ( half way down hips ), so hand armour covers only the hands. Leg armour reaches to floor, so foot armour covers only the feet.
Female Assassin armour division : Torso armour reaches from biceps to inguinal ridge, so hand armour can cover both hands and arms. Leg armour reaches to floor, so foot armour covers only the feet.
HEAD ARMOUR - Assassin armour takes the form of accessories worn around the neck ; stylish and discrete, like a good Assassin should be. :)
* Studded Choker - Sadsim +1. A tight black band with silver studs.
* Murderer's Necklace - Murder +1. Fine silver necklace with a miniature dagger pendant.
* Stalker's Necklace - Pursuit +1. Black cord with six silver fang pendants pointing inwards.
* Poisoner's Necklace - Toxicology +1. Tight black cord with silver lotus pendant.
ORDINARY ARMOUR ( MALE ) - Initial armour. This set allows Assassins to blend in with commoners. This armour is AL5 and possesses only innate special abilities.
* Ordinary Shirt - Simple short sleeved tee of thin material. Light brown.
* Ordinary Gloves - Plain labourer's gloves of sturdy material. Light brown.
* Ordinary Trousers - Plain patched trousers of sturdy material. Dark brown.
* Ordinary Shoes - Plain scuffed shoes, thin soled for stealthy movement. Dark brown.
ORDINARY ARMOUR ( FEMALE ) - Initial armour. This set allows Assassins to blend in with commoners. This armour is AL5 and possesses only innate special abilities.
* Ordinary Blouse - Simple sleeveless blouse of thin material, tied up back. Light brown.
* Ordinary Gloves - Plain craftperson's gloves of thin material. Light brown.
* Ordinary Skirt - Plain pleated floorlength skirt of wool. Dark brown.
* Ordinary Shoes - Plain flat shoes, thin soled for stealthy movement. Dark brown.
ASSASSIN'S ARMOUR ( MALE ) - Collector armour. This set is standard night roaming attire for Assassins without a leather fetish. This armour possesses only innate special abilities.
* Assassin's Shirt - Tight long sleeved shirt, tied up front, with leather patches on shoulders and elbows. Collarless and open at neck to display necklace. Black ; dye can only be used to tint the leather patches.
* Assassin's Gloves - Thin gloves with leather panels on the back of the hands and fingers. Black ; dye can only tint leather.
* Assassin's Trousers - Slim trousers, with several tall pockets sewn on and leather patches on knees. Black ; dye can only tint leather.
* Assassin's Shoes - Thin soled shoes with leather panels on top of the feet. Black ; dye can only tint leather.
ASSASSIN'S ARMOUR ( FEMALE ) - Collector armour. This set is standard night roaming attire for Assassins without a dominatrix complex. This armour possesses only innate special abilities.
* Assassin's Blouse - Tight short sleeved blouse, tied up front, with leather patches on shoulders and elbows. Collarless and open at neck to display necklace. Black ; dye can only be used to tint the leather patches.
* Assassin's Gloves - Thin gloves with leather panels on the back of the hands and fingers. Black ; dye can only tint leather.
* Assassin's Leggings - Thin leggings, with leather patches on knees and an elaborate set of pouches attached to the belt. Black ; dye can only tint leather.
* Assassin's Shoes - Thin soled shoes with leather panels on top of the feet. Black ; dye can only tint leather.
INGENUOUS ARMOUR ( MALE ) - This set is for homme fatale Assassins, who prefer to insinuate themselves in to a social setting to strike. This armour imparts a bonus to critical hit rate, because it lulls opponent's and gives the Assassin a chance to strike ( +1% bonus from each of gloves and sandals, +2% from each of shirt and trousers ).
* Ingenuous Shirt - Simple short sleeved tee of thin material, with a short collar and wide open drawstring neckline. Pink ; this armour dyes vividly.
* Ingenuous Gloves - Thin cotton gloves. White ; dyes vividly.
* Ingenuous Trousers - Elegant slim trousers, with fine stitching and frayed hems. White ; dyes vividly.
* Ingenuous Sandals - Thin soled sandals. Light brown.
INGENUOUS ARMOUR ( FEMALE ) - This set is for femme fatale Assassins, who prefer to insinuate themselves in to a social setting to strike. This armour imparts a bonus to critical hit rate, because it lulls opponent's and gives the Assassin a chance to strike ( +1% bonus from each of gloves and sandals, +2% from each of blouse and skirt ).
* Ingenuous Blouse - Sleeveless blouse that is high up front and low at the back, with frills from neckline to over shoulders and down the back. Tied from behind with a bow. Pink ; this armour dyes vividly.
* Ingenuous Gloves - Thin cotton gloves that stretch all the way up to biceps, where they are tied with bows. White ; dyes vividly.
* Ingenuous Skirt - Stylish knee length pleated skirt, with fine stitching. White ; dyes vividly.
* Ingenuous Sandals - Thin soled sandals, with straps spiralling up ankles. Light brown.
INDOMITABLE ARMOUR ( MALE ) - This set is for Assassins who are disregarding subtlety and planning to carve their way through their enemies. The metallic nature of this armour grants +15 bonus to AL against physical attacks for each article.
Inspiration for armour : HBK Shawn Michaels.
* Indomitable Shirt - Square metal plates are connected by thin wire in regular intervals to resemble a long sleeved shirt of metal that does not hinder mobility. Somewhat revealing. Dark metal ; dye can be used to tint the metal plates.
* Indomitable Finger Armour - A full set of finger armour ( a goth thing ) for each hand, connected by thin wire to ornate bracelets. Dark metal ; tinted by dye.
* Indomitable Trousers - Thin black trousers with square metal plates riveted on, away from the joints to retain mobility. Dark metal ; plate tinted by dye.
* Indomitable Shoes - Thin soled black shoes with metal toecaps. Dark metal ; plate tinted by dye.
INDOMITABLE ARMOUR ( FEMALE ) - This set is for Assassins who are disregarding subtlety and planning to carve their way through their enemies. The metallic nature of this armour grants +15 bonus to AL against physical attacks for each article.
Inspiration for armour : HBK Shawn Michaels.
* Indomitable Vest - Intricately designed square metal frames, connected by thin wire, draped over a short black vest. Dark metal ; dye can be used to tint the metal frames.
* Indomitable Finger Armour - A full set of finger armour ( a goth thing ) for each hand, covering from the first joint of each finger to the tip - where they taper out to a sharp point. Dark metal ; tinted by dye.
* Indomitable Leggings - Intricately designed square metal frames, connected by thin wire, hanging nearly to floor atop short black leggings. Dark metal ; plate tinted by dye.
* Indomitable Shoes - Pointed black shoes with sharp metal toecaps. Dark metal ; plate tinted by dye.
SHADY ARMOUR ( MALE ) - This is the closest to traditional Assassin leatherwear, but with a tad more style and menace. Of the ' proper ' armour sets for Assassins, this is the most suited for blending in to shadows and thus grants a bonus to evasion ( +1% bonus from each of gloves and shoes, +2% from each of jacket and trousers ).
* Shady Jacket - Fitted hooded jacket of soft leather. Rigid enough for the hood to remain upright. The Assassin's face is barely visible inside the hood, but a wide opening at the neck keeps the necklace visible. Black ; dye can be used to tint the leather.
* Shady Gloves - Soft leather gloves. Black ; tinted when dyed.
* Shady Trousers - Spacious black trousers with soft leather stripes up the sides. Black ; leather tinted when dyed.
* Shady Shoes - Thin soled black shoes with soft leather detailing. Black ; leather tinted when dyed.
SHADY ARMOUR ( FEMALE ) - This is the closest to traditional Assassin leatherwear, but with a tad more style and menace. Of the ' proper ' armour sets for Assassins, this is the most suited for blending in to shadows and thus grants a bonus to evasion ( +1% bonus from each of gloves and boots, +2% from each of blouse and skirt ).
* Shady Blouse - Fitted corset of soft leather, atop a short sleeved black blouse with short vertical collar. Black ; dye can be used to tint the leather.
* Shady Gloves - Soft leather gloves, atop black gauze that reaches up to biceps. Black ; leather tinted when dyed.
* Shady Skirt - Short soft leather side split skirt, atop a floor length skirt of balck lace. Black ; leather tinted when dyed.
* Shady Shoes - Soft leather ankle high boots, no heel. Black ; tinted when dyed.
FISSURE ARMOUR : NEST OF VIPERS ( MALE ) - I have gone a little more extreme on this set, but I think that Fissure armour should always have some real wow factor :D .
Inspiration for armour : Finale of Queen Of The Damned ( especially Aaliyah, but also Stuart Townsend ).
* Fissure Armlets - Spectacular silver armlets, each in the shape of a serpent ; body starts at the shoulder, winds twice around the bicep and finally to its head at the outside of the elbow. Note that this is torso armour, even though it consists only of armlets ; Assassins can vamp it up :) . Dye can be used to tint the silver.
* Fissure Finger Armour - A full set of silver finger armour, with each piece depicting the upper half of a serpent ; covering atop the finger from knuckle to finger tip, which the upper jaw and fangs extend just beyond. Armour held on by discrete black straps. Dye can tint the silver.
* Fissure Trousers - Sheer black trousers with an awesome silver serpent design, stitched so as to spiral round and up one leg. Dye can tint the silver.
* Fissure Shoes - Thin soled black shoes with ssilver toe caps fashioned as the upper jaws of serpents. Dye can tint silver.
FISSURE ARMOUR : NEST OF VIPERS ( FEMALE ) - I have gone a little more extreme on this set, but I think that Fissure armour should always have some real wow factor :D .
Inspiration for armour : Finale of Queen Of The Damned ( especially Aaliyah, but also Stuart Townsend ).
* Fissure Breastplate - Remarkable silver breastplate depicting a nest of vipers, draped around the neck and fastened at the back by a clasp of two interlocking snakes. Dye can be used to tint the silver.
* Fissure Gloves - Fingerless black gauze gloves reaching to biceps, each secured by a silver bracer lavishly decorated as the head and neck of a serpent. The bracers are fastened so that the upper and lower jaws enclose the wrist. Dye can tint the silver.
* Fissure Skirt - Intricate mini-skirt of silver depicting a nest of vipers, atop a floor length sheer black silk skirt. Dye can tint the silver.
* Fissure Boots - Smart pointed black ankle high boots, with silver toecaps fashioned as the upper jaws of vipers. Dye can tint silver.
- - - - - Fin - - - - -
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