as it stands right now, Repulsive Shield Bash is one of the worst perk mods in the game, increasing an already incredibly small distance the skill’s knockback emits, it increases it by a small % even so, altering something that looks to be a foot of distance to two feet. It needs a far better perk to make it competitive towards Fortifying Shield Rush or Accelerating Defiant Stance, options like:
-Giving it simply a weaken effect for 10 seconds, lowering damage down by 10%
-increase the stun duration from 15-25% or 20-50%.
The perk also make no sense. When I stun an enemy player, I want to go behind him for easy backstab. If you knockback him it take more time to go behind him.
Be objective in critism and try to see how it may be not as you see it.
I main Bow and play Bow/SnS. Means I use SnS as a kind of protective weapon if I can’t avoid the melee or if going for the execute. I use Shield Bash and its perk for creating distance for such a case. Then after swapping to the Bow again using Evade Shot to stun, create further distance and gain haste (see bow ability tree). What I want to emphasize, is that everything may be useless or useful for someone, it always depends.
Therefore I don’t see Shield Bash as useless, but rather a useful defensive perk for certain situations.
we are being objective in criticism, because in every shape and form, Repulsive Shield Bash is awful. The distance you create from the repulsive effect, even at max, is so low, the amount of ‘distance’ you claim it has isn’t useful in any regard. At max, it’s a 93% bonus, which isn’t even double the amount you would obtain. So in reality, you wasted a perk slot to change what is roughly 1 foot or below in distance…to not even 2 feet in distance, 1.9 in terms of distance. That’s not going to save you. What will would be the 3 second stun duration that allows you a large distance of time to retreat, or accelerating defiant stance, where you use it after stunning to buy you not 2 feet, but 28% movement speed bonus for FIVE. SECONDS. then you can swap out to your bow and look back at the ridiculous coverage you have, without wasting perk slot for repulsing shield bash.
I usually Shield bash someone to do a feral rush with the hatchet behind my opponent. So this perk is useless and even worst than nothing.
Compare this perk to the Void Gauntlet perk and tell me this is not the worst perk in the game.
Accelerating Defiant Stance’s animation takes too long and makes you a sitting target no matter if 28% movement speed. It is true that the Repulsive Shield Bash perk isn’t that strong. I tried to emphasize that you lacked objectivism in your critism. Something that is often the case in this game feedback subforum.
It is useful even if not strong if you use the ability, so still worth to pick it as it is currently. A buff would be nice, but I don’t see what a Shield Bash perk would do instead of increasing the distance. Shield Bash is a defensive ability instead of an offensive one. That’s why I see issues, but think the perk is as it is not wrong. Just not useful for all playstyles, viable perk pick for mine though.
Again, the choices I put up as optional reworks are far more valuable than the repulsive effect it has now, one side giving the enemy you bashed a solid debuff, the other extending the stun duration. Either one of these would work as a valuable perk in doing exactly what you described, as well helping ALL playstyles, not just one specific one.
Stun & Root are just too strong. Therefore, stronger duration would be controversial. Also there is the ability upgrade for doing that. Weaken or it applying on hit is from my perspective not justified. I mean, what perk do you give a strong ability? You get it, difficult to answer. Look for example at Penetrating Shot or Power Shot with some rather questionable perks. That’s why Repulsive Shield Bash is objectively weak, yet not always useless. I don’t see a balanced way to change it into a more universal playstyle perk. Before that the SnS unsheated attributed issue should be adressed first.
Stun and Root are not strong. The reason Void Gauntlet is having concerning issues is because it’s damage output is far too high for what it’s supposed to be (A debuffing support utility weapon vs a main DPS weapon), as well as the cooldown reduction problem of able to cycle through spells rapidly to the point of nearly no window of countering, so a Root function is merely the cherry ontop of the problem sundae it has, not to mention the exploits that came along with the VG. Stuns break the moment damage is applied to the user atm, they’re not proper stuns, and they don’t operate correctly, it needs to be tweaked, as well as adding in Diminishing returns and CC immunity. As for the class mod, well, it can be anything else besides weaken. It can be a 5 second slow to further help build distance, as well as helping tanks to keep their opponents close if they decide to run away.
Agreed, but Accelerated Defiant Stance is also near useless. You waste more time activating the ability than what you can make up for with increased speed from the perk.
For Shield Bash perk, it could increase the range or cone, at which it registers a hit. Or maybe grant Haste/Fortify/Empower upon successful hit.
Defiant Stance perk could grant additional Fortify, or speed up activation animation.