Common Sense Perspective - Ressurection Signet

The best skill in the game of Guild Wars is not, and has never been, a matter of opinion. Regardless of how much you like Eviscerate, Gale, or even IWAY, there's one skill that trumps them all: Resurrection Signet. Anyone who doesn't bring a "res sig" in 4v4 PvP is instantly labeled an idiot, and almost all 8v8 builds require every single member to bring this hallowed skill. Of course, it is the most powerful skill in the game, so this is somewhat reasonable. On the other hand, though, is it really worth the skill slot for almost every player to bring it? No.

As I'm sure you all know, Resurrection Signet gives you a free three-second resurrection once per mission. Your dead comrades are resurrected with full health and 25% power. This is a significant advantage over the Monk (and now Ritualist) resurrection skills, which often resurrect the target with low health. In addition, "res sig" is renewed by morale boosts just like all other skills, so if you're lucky you can use it a few times per mission or PvP match. The general perspective is that bringing a "res sig" is like having 15 skills, since you can resurrect another player giving your team a vast advantage. Unfortunately, few people explore the viewpoint that if nobody dies, your entire team is wasting a skill slot. On an eight-man team, that's eight skills, or the equivalent of an entire player.

Now, aside from pessimism having been proved unhealthy, the loss of eight skills is a significant one. Though most common builds get by fine with seven skills, that extra skill could really open up new opportunities for each player. Even if the individual build is complete, you could add in a skill that may only be used in certain situations. Players with Monk or Mesmer secondaries can add in hex or condition removal. Rangers could bring Antidote Signet, Warriors can have an extra attack skill. Most Elementalists can benefit from another glyph, and there are plenty of Necromancer skills that could come in handy in certain situations. There are as many possibilities for that eighth slot as there are skills, and a team of eight is usually almost guaranteed to win against a team of seven.

Of course, not having any "res sigs" at all is a bad idea. It's necessary to be able to at least resurrect a few party members, because flawless victories aren't that common. A simple solution would be 4 members with "res sig." If more than four of your players die, you'll want a morale boost anyway, and if the four with the signets die then you're probably in some serious trouble regardless of whether or not you can resurrect them. If all four are used up, it's often possible to gain a morale boost, either by killing a boss in PvE or via the various ways to gain morale in PvP. Another option is to have a fast casting Mesmer or two with a traditional resurrection skill. You could even have your Monk's extra skill slot be Divine Intervention, or perhaps something like Vengeance.

As in my prior editorials, I'm just asking for a small change. So, next time you go to Heroes' Ascent to join a non-IWAY pick-up group without rank requirements, suggest that the team have a few designated resurrectors. I'm sure that after a short explanation, most people would be willing to try it out. And who knows, that eighth skill just might come in handy.