A Different Slant - Assassins Useless? I Think Not
Edited and Published by: Magi
By now, most everyone who has planned on getting Factions has done so, and all but the most reclusive of players have heard of or experienced hate directed towards Assassins. Ritualists have been for the most part embraced by pick up groups as excellent substitutes for Elementalists or Monks, but Assassins do not as of this point share this good reputation. On the contrary, they now are the butt of most of the stereotypes formerly reserved for Warrior/Monk players. This is due to a number of factors, some of them the players fault, some of them misconceptions towards Assassins in general and their play style, but my opinion on the matter is that Assassins have undeservedly been labeled as useless and a hindrance to the party.
First of all, it is necessary to examine why Ritualists are so accepted, while Assassins are not. The main reason is that both classes were naturally compared to existing classes that best fit their play style. Ritualists can be played much like Monks or Elementalists, and they do quite well when outfitted to such roles. Because of this, players feel comfortable knowing that Ritualists have specific jobs that they are capable of doing, and they are capable of doing them well. Note that this is not to say that spirit-spamming Ritualists (or some other build that I am as of yet unfamiliar with) are not viable or helpful; I'm just saying that the player base has been generally assured of a Ritualist's ability to contribute to the party.
Now, following this line of thought, what previously existing class would the Assassin be best compared to? A Warrior, of course. However, unlike the Ritualist-to-Elementalist comparison, an Assassin simply can't perform the job of a Warrior. While Assassins aren't exactly the fragile paper dolls that an increasing number of players think they are, they aren't tanks by any stretch of the imagination. In fact, the far better comparison, in my opinion, is to a Mesmer: they are highly specialized killing machines that can neutralize a single target quickly and efficiently, but do not fit in with the standard Guild Wars mentality of Monks, tanks, and a few heavy damage dealers. In fact, they completely go against it, which just leads to ire from teammates because an Assassin isn't playing "how he's supposed to".
I have heard it said on this and other forums that the Assassin's style of play is rather useless in PvE, that they are more suited to PvP where spiking matters. I have to say, this is just as false as saying that Mesmers are useless in PvE play, and mainly the result of the same misconceptions. Spiking does have a place in any game mode; most mobs are easily shredded like paper when their sole Monk or Ritualist has been dispatched, and often spiking is the best way to kill a mob with more than one healer.
Air Elementalists spikers have never been incredibly popular except in PvP, but that is because they can't handle extended conflicts particularly well; it's very easy to completely deplete your energy (and therefore be truly useless) trying to spike multiple targets in a row with an Elementalists. With an Assassin, however, I've found I actually have an overabundance of energy, and the only limit on my spiking capabilities is the recharge time of my combo (generally around 10 seconds). That means one high-priority target dead every 15 seconds, leaving the rest of the group free to pressure the remainder of the mob. Yes, standard Guild Wars gameplay has always dictated that it's best to focus fire, but this isn't a cast iron rule. If the addition of new classes encourages us to do anything, it most certainly encourages us to experiment with different party builds, and how best to incorporate these new classes into previously existing builds. If we can't do it now, how do we expect to be able to do it come the next chapter, or the next one, and all the new classes they'll bring?
Some of you may be saying spiking is all fine and good, but an Assassin can't do anything when they're eating dirt with 60% death penalty for half of the mission. Well, this is directly the result of players simply not realizing that the Assassin isn't a Warrior. I know this has been belabored time and again, so I'm just going to say that I believe the bad Assassins will either wise up to the proper methods of playing the class, or go Warrior instead when they get tired of dying constantly.
I'm not saying that there aren't bad Assassins out there; there are. I also know that everyone is a little frustrated as everyone and his grandpa seems to be playing an Assassin right now, and groups with two or three Assassins aren't uncommon. Eventually the population of Assassins will go down, just as the population of Warriors eventually went down when Guild Wars: Prophecies was originally released. When that time comes, I hope that everyone can remember that Assassins are not all a bunch of sugar-high kiddies fantasizing about being a ninja; they are highly tactical and effective when in the right hands. ArenaNet has already said that the non-core classes would be mainly specialized, "expert" classes, the ones that need knowledge of the game to be good. That's something to remember for everyone who is making an Assassin: you need to think, be aware of your surroundings, and know exactly what to target to be the greatest asset possible. Your party will thank you, as will everyone else out trying to clear the class's name.
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