Shadow Prison: How to defeat it.

[Shai]

I like using Blind.

Hexbreaker is tech too.

[Dr. Colette Green]

http://gw.gamewikis.org/images/7/7f/Shadow_Prison.jpg

This skill has caused a great deal of pain and misery for players. Recently, there has been a boom in assassin/warriors using shadow prison builds. This is a hugely overpowered build that areanet has ignored in its updates. This is the build:

Shadow Prison, Burst Of Agression, Deadly Paradox, Feigned Neutraliry, any attack skills.

The way it works: the assassin will use shadow prison on a foe, activate burst of aggression and unleash hell. The target is guarenteed to die in under 3 seconds. Every time. The victim has less that 1/2 of a second to take any defensive action, by then it's too late. Removing the hex does little as by the time you have begun to cast a hex removal spell you are already dead. They can attack ludicrously fast with burst of aggression, and as they are non-adreneal they are not affected by its penalty.

http://gw.gamewikis.org/images/4/43/Burst_of_Aggression.jpg

When the target is dead and others have realised so the assassin will activate deadly paradox and feigned neutrality, another skill combo that is very unfair. Enchantment removal is useless against feigned neutralty: they are already healed massively before even clicking on that enchantment removal spell. Deadly paradox will rapidly recharge these skills so the combo can be unleashed in seconds.

http://gw.gamewikis.org/images/8/8a/Deadly_Paradox.jpg

What is worse is that players that use this build are (in my experience) extremely arrogant. They will goad over your corpse, even though it took no effort or skill to do so.

http://gw.gamewikis.org/images/8/89/Feigned_Neutrality.jpg



However, fear not, for I have begun to devise builds to eliminate this. If Areanet can't be asked to deal with this I will have to. This is a useful build for negating offending A/Ws for good. This is a Mesmer/Monk build with 11 Fast Casting, 15 Inspiration, and 10 or so Protection.

Spirit Shackles, Pacifism, Amity (Elite) Shielding Hands, Mend Ailment, Revealed Hex, Ether Feast, Physical Resistance.

Mesmers, especially inspirationists, are severly underestimated. I can't count how many times someone has demanded I use a domtination build. Regardless Domination spells in this instance are ineffective; you would die before even begin casting empathy.

http://gw.gamewikis.org/images/2/25/Spirit_Shackles.jpg

Spirit Shackles is exellent. Assassins are heavily dependant on their energy, and if you can spot an A/W or any other attacking character, and cast this on them, they will become useless. I was originally going to have spirit of failure, but in experience it is too slow and ineffective.


http://gw.gamewikis.org/images/4/49/Pacifism.jpg
http://gw.gamewikis.org/images/e/ee/Amity.jpg

Pafisim and amity are the real trump cards here. Though it does require some coordination in your group this should eliminate that threat. I love standing there while their attacks are totally useless. Save Amity for when you have been shadow stepped to. This way you can instantly cast it (with fast casting it is near instant) without the need for targeting.

http://gw.gamewikis.org/images/7/74/Revealed_Hex.jpg

Revealed (or inspired hex) is emergency fuel. If you have had the misfortune of being imprisoned by Shadow Prisim and you are unable to cast Amity or some other spell (or if your health is low and you serisously need to run) use this. This allows you to steal the hex, and even better, return the favour. While the assassin is trapped foolishly, make a break for it.

http://gw.gamewikis.org/images/a/a5/Mend_Ailment.jpg

Mend Ailment is useful because A/Ws are heavy in conditions. Ether Feast is a simple self heal, an Physical Resistance is powerful at negating attacks in a misfortunate situation.

So, now that I have justified (or tried at least) my skills, this is what you should do in a situation:

1. Cast Spirit Shackles on as many people as possible.
2. If an untargeted for is causing misery, prevent it with pacifism.
3. If Shadow Prisoned, use Amity, followed by remove hex.
4. Cast Shadow prisim immediatly on that foe, and run.

This build is great for preventing attacks and stopping A/Ws dead in their tracks.

http://gw.gamewikis.org/images/0/03/Ether_Feast.jpg

Advantages:
:arrow: Can remove energy from foes quickly.
:arrow: Can negate attacks.
:arrow: Can remove conditions and hexes from foes

Disatvantages:
:arrow: Poor self healing
:arrow: Little Damage
:arrow: Poor against spellcasters.

http://gw.gamewikis.org/images/1/1e/Physical_Resistance.jpg

Of course I am always open to suggestions, please query my build as much as possible.

[SirBunnz]

Blind (various options for cast) > Assassin. Always.

Ward v Melee (1s cast) > Assassin. Always.

Shield of Deflection (.25s cast) > Assassin. Always. (Uber buffed, will return to metagame for sure, surprised it hasn't already, damn grenthy's!)

Spoil Victor (1s cast) > Assassin. Always.

The build is good and quick at dishing out damage but every single normal melee counter can be used against this. It doesn't require any special build, just standard anti melee counters.

[STINGER]

Shadow Prison NEW! CH3 ELITE (Hex Spell)
Shadow Step to target foe. For 4..9 [10] seconds, that foe moves 66% slower.
Updated: 10/27/06 5 0.25 sec. 20 sec.

This skill is really not that big a deal. It is simply a slowing skill and a teleport added together which can be easily replaced by many other skill combos that are just as deadly. The real advantage of this skill is it allows it to come from one guy at the expense of his Elite.

Removing the hex is not and should never be the first thing you try to do, and actually the hex marker should help you save the target easier than what some other skill combos that do the same thing wont do.

Big AoE Slow like Deep Freeze or Ice Spikes that might hit 2-3 people followed by a Sin porting in is actually much more dangerous as now you have possibly 2-3 people slowed aka hexed showing you 3 possible targets instead of 1!

The Shock Sin, or the porting Warrior with KDs is just as good as the slowing one gets from that skill especially if you can chain the KDs.

Gales + Sins/Warriors porting in are just as effective.

Any single target slowing skill + Sins/Warriors porting in are always a nasty spike unprotected.

I think if you really think about this you will see it isnt all taht over powered, I mean personally I think Shadow Shroud is more dangerous than this skill!

The main issue with this skill is not its power, its more about how its power is percieved and finding a way to counter it and there are a few ways but removing the hex isnt it, its getting a good prot skill on the guy fast enuff and healing him fast enuff.

Wards can play a big part in beating this skill......Ward Foes slows them as much as they slow you and Melee is 50% block. Agies, Shield of Absorb, Prot Spirit, Spirit Bond, Infuse...etc

Frankly I think Shadow Prison users really reduce thier over all pressure a good deal in order to use this skill. Now thier spike is better, but they apply less pressure when thier elite is this skill.



I like some of the brain stroming of Dr. Colette Green although I dont think hexing will get the job done well enuff unless there are covers or they are quikly applied and Shackles doesnt fit it. Now Ancestors Visage and Sympathetic Visage might be workable and really they dont need any attributes in them to be good but they do have long cools so maybe fitting one of them in on an MoR build is workable.

A Messemer with his fast casting can do alot of spike stopping wiht a pretty good list of skills. Remember if you can break the attack string of a Sin he is in trouble. I cant count the times a Sin has jumped on top of my Ranger interrupters and I just hit em with two quick interrupts and he is done......sure sometimes I miss but most the time I dont.


You cant really stop perfect spikes, you can only try to prevent them as much as possible and then try and stop the ones you can and hit them hard between thier spikes.

I dont have issues with this skill.......sure it may eventually see a longer recharge but its less a big deal than many make it to be.

But they sure are aggrevating as hell and I like cussing about them also!


BTW I said yes, but its not due to this skill.......