Senior Member
If we forget 1v1 for a little time, and we focus on her from a team fighter perspective, we indeed find the problem of having no execution. Some health can be regained from the bounty hunter feat (which is sadly a must for her, killing the diversity), but the opponent remains easily revivable by a heavy/hybrid even mid-combat.
The pk's role should be the role of a rogue in other games. That would be killing someone quickly (stealth in other games, here it should be via high damage or better mixups), then taking the objective before reinforcements arrive, forcing the enemy to withdraw and capture it back (at least to people to make it sure). Her weaknesses should be: short range, low health, bad counter options. She should kill quickly, but should fall just as quickly if she loses. Now, only the fall quickly part is true, she can't open (so can't kill quickly), she has very low damage, low stamina, not even dangerous feats.
Senior Member
What might be a good, but not too good opener is a kick with the forward throw's animation. I think it should be usable from neutral with back+guardbreak (500ms), or via a softfeint from the forward jump heavy (400ms). The kick wouldn't guarantee anything from neutral, but would wallsplat, and unbalance the exhausted, just like a normal throw. I would give it high recovery, but not high enough to beat a gb if the opponent guessed it. It's still far weaker than anything the shaman has.
I would really appreciete an answer from an Ubisoft mod. I understand you have much work with the Marching Fire pack, but there are huge gaps between heroes, and the community needs at least some hope they will once dissappaer. All heroes should be at least viable if not equal in every matchup.
Senior Member
Possible openers for the pk (and some quite ridicoulus ideas):
- Unblockable comboed top heavy (shaman has it, pk could have it too)
- Forward dodge kick or the kick explained above (might guarantee a light)
- Second zone hit unblockable (quite easy to implement, and since it's unfeintable when it comes out, it's not op, it's either that or the dagger cancel). Or just rework the zone as it is, it is weak and hated at the same time.
- Traps (since some heroes "stole" the pk bleed mechanics and the shaman is a better pk, the pk could get a weaker nuxia version, althought this is a very uncreative way of buffing her).
- Increased block damage from top heavies, with lethality potential.
- Kicks up dust which disables most visuals for one second. The pk could follow it up with heavies (not guaranteed). Dodging the dust gives a free gb.
- Infinite heavy chain, each costs less stamina, from the 6th, they aren't consuming any. All normal feint options are available.
- Fencing stance: the pk assumes a fencing stance by holding the light attack down. No access to lights, zone, blocks, parries and gb/gb counters and no deflects in this stance. Dodge recovery increased to offensive HL level. Access to 5-600ms heavies for 20 damage with no deep gouge, infinite heavy chain and all but the gb and dagger cancel feint option for heavies. Dodge attacks are available, faster, but have no deep gouge followup. Letting the light go at any point results in a 400ms top light for 5 normal and 20 bleed damage. It could be released as a softfeint during any move or even during a dodge recovery or dodgeattack (despite it's damage, it is still a light parry and blockable, and if a heavy hits a superior block, parried or the pk is staggered, the stance is resumed). This stance would have it's own emote to let it compete with highlanders. While technically not an opener, this would break turtles easily.
Member
Senior Member
Senior Member
Last post here, after that, I stop spamming this thread.
If we want to give the pk something truly unique, she could have some sort of stance. For now, let's call it Zealot Stance, she could leave and enter on will by pressing the fullblock button once. This stance would be symbolized by a color (red for example). Visually, the pk would cut herself to enter, and recovery would be a second. Leaving would take no recovery.
While in this stance, and for 3 seconds after leaving, the pk would suffer bleed damage (2/s) (might get 25% more damage intake too) , but for that, would gain extended (maybe infinite) stamina, increased damage, faster recoveries, and all comboed heavies being unblockable. This would make her dangerous, but not broken, self damage is quite a drawback, especially if she is stunlocked in this stance. Some other games sometimes use hp as a resource pool, it would suit a fanatic/selfless (depends on the point of view and on the individual pk) character.
There would be multiple good strategies with this improvement, making her a more versitile hero. Some basic examples:
- Enter the stance, get bleed damage in, leave the stance until the bleed expires and play defensively, possibly resuming the stance if the opponent exhausts himself.
- Remain in the stance for the entire fight, playing with extreme aggression to finish the fight quickly, focusing more on direct damage instead of bleed (aka letting the heavies fly more).
- Current turtly playstyle, using the stance only against exhausted enemies, sacrificing health for pressure.
- Using the stance as a scarecrow tactic, forcing back those who don't want to engage her in this stance. Very useful in 4s. And it would give last laugh an activation method.
There are probably many ways to use this stance well, and it would give a very nice flow to the game.
Member
Peacekeeper is one of the characters that now isn't worth using. Shaman and Berserker does what she does but much, much better
Shaman has the dagger cancer, more speed and, most importantly more range; Berserker has the same range as PK, but it has much more power behind his attacks.
PK is lower B tier and she needs help. She has no range, no damage, no unblockable to force a reaction out of people. She is reduced to turtling, and turtling isn't viable anymore since half of the cast has unblockable bashes or attacks to stop this strategy.
She needs to be looked at. Fast.
Buff her damage and make the top finisher, which is telegraphed as hell, unblockable.
Member
Senior Member
Senior Member
Viable attacks?
1. Her zone is negated just by blocking your right, deals negligable damage, and drains most of her stamina if you cancel the second hit. If you don't, you either go for a 10 damage feint that is a possible light parry, or let it fly for 20 damage, which will never land, parried in the worst case.
2. Her lights are deal 13 damage, and are 500ms, they barely land in neutral. Her comboed lights are 400 and deal 15, but they are still quite easy to block.
3. Her heavies deal 20 damage (4 block damage), they are always blocked even if the opponents refuse to read you. Her comboed heavies deal 25 damage (5 block damage), and considering how slow they land, that's quite low. Deep gouge buffs them up a little (30 and 35 respectively), but you must end the chain to do so, and it drains additional stamina.
4. Her dagger cancel deals 10 damage, ends the chain, is very predictable, and gives a free light parry. And it's basically useless for top heavy attacks.
5. Her dodge attacks are jokes, not just free parries, but every character gets a free gb if dodged on reaction. And if you whiff the side dodge attacks, the parry attempt heavy is guaranteed (since it has very weird range, you whiff them a lot). Her forward dodge attack is slower than warden's btw, there goes the "fast" part of her introduction.
6. Her guardbreak softfeint only works if you are willing to go for parries, but since you are not forced to, you can just wait for her to exhaust herself, so that's not existent. And while lots of people like to cry about the guardbreak's damage, it's only a little higher than some of the cast's.
Other than that, she has very basic chains (she has no chain where she can follow up a heavy attack with a light attack for example), very low stamina (try her out, she runs out very quickly), awful counterattack options (13 damage heavy parry punish [15 if you are willing to sacrifice all your stamina for that extra 2], 30 heavy parry punish, 35 deflect which basically useless on any hyperarmor character, awful exhaustion punish with no pressure at all). low damage, short range, no real mixup potential, no opener, and she brings nothing to the table other assassins doesn't have. She is even more awful in 4v4, possibly the worst pick with her bad damage (no bleed damage on most wardens at all, gear drastically takes down her damage), awful feats, no unblockables, and she is bad in ganking (not to mention surviving ganking).
There is nothing viable about her if your opponent isn't an other C tier.
