I had every suspicion traveling to Rezzed that the Revenant wouldn’t be a class that I’d play in Guild Wars 2: Heart of Thorns. As someone who adores playing a Longbow Ranger, it would take a miracle to displace my love of the profession. Although the Revenant didn’t achieve that, what ArenaNet have created is actually quite remarkable.

I never thought it possible that a ninth profession could be designed to sit so comfortably alongside the others, without encroaching on existing territory. The Warrior and Guardian fulfil so many roles that space to create a third heavy profession was undoubtedly incredibly limited. Considering Engineers also fill the role of a Ritualist and the Paragon is arguably already absorbed into the Warrior and Guardian, what was left to fill the gap - if there even was one - was something I honestly couldn’t think up. Fortunately, ArenaNet have and I’m pleased to say that what they’ve come up with is probably their most cohesive profession to date.

The Revenant fits perfectly between the Warrior and Guardian as an angsty version of both. The styling, as you will have likely noticed, is not only barbed and aggressive but that also reflects in its play style. From the visual effects to the animations, the Revenant is an angry and fast paced profession. At times it feels as powerful as a Meditation Guardian, but a damn sight quicker and much grittier. Its combination of power and condition based skills, on both the Hammer and Mace/Axe weapon, make it feel incredibly strong. Despite being decked out in Celestial armor, none of the enemies I encountered in the demo area posed any significant challenge.

Most players seemed to stick with the Hammer but I actually switched out to the Mace and Axe straight away. Having seen footage of the Temporal Rift skill I wanted to see how the class felt in melee and whether it would stand any chance of displacing Warriors or Guardians. I’m pleased to say the weapon set is incredibly fun but not only that, it’s visually stunning and genuinely exciting to use. I think it’s evident, almost straight away, that ArenaNet have learned valuable lessons in skill and profession construction and the Revenant is reaping those rewards. There’s a synergy to skills here that you rarely see in the existing professions and it’s clear ArenaNet  have not only honed in on the niche the Revenant is filling but ensured that its toolset, across both available Legends, works in harmony.

Combinations such as Searing Fissure and Echoing Eruption to create six stacks of Might are so satisfying to use that there’s an immediate desire to use them again and again. Not only is the combination beautiful to look at but it feels weighty and powerful.The fact that you can also pair Echoing Eruption with Inspiring Reinforcement for near permanent swiftness (thanks to the Revenant’s energy mechanic) is going to make the profession highly sought after and a joy to level with. As for Frigid Blitz and Temporal Rift, both look exceptional and I’d have to place Frigid Blitz as one of the most satisfying skills in the game. The animation as you shadow step to your target is snappy and the final blow deals massive damage. I found the combination of Frigid Blitz > Temporal Rift > Searing Fissure and Echoing Eruption melted almost anything.

As for the other skills on offer across both Jalis and Mallyx, I have to say that I preferred Jalis but also understood the need to switch to Mallyx if I wanted to lay down heavy conditions. Part of the reason why I preferred Jalis is the fact that all the skills available are incredibly satisfying to use. Inspiring Reinforcement and Forced Engagement are incredibly important against the Wyvern if you don’t want to be blown off the platform or to prevent it from taking flight. Where Mallyx is concerned, the skills are a little subtler but they synergize well with the Mace/Axe weapon set: Unyielding Anguish is great if you’ve already applied a series of conditions to your foe. The self cripple however is pretty brutal as Pain Absorbtion isn’t enough to prevent it for more than a second while Empowering Misery won’t cleanse it. It’s a case of switching to Jalis and healing to cure the Cripple, withstanding it for 4 more seconds, or pairing Pain Absorbtion with Mallyx’s Elite skill. There’s also the option of switching to Jalis and using the swiftness blast combination to bring your speed back up to something normal.

The above is partly what I like the most about the Revenant: options. Like the Elementalist or Engineer, the power of the class is determined by your knowledge of your skills, your ability to juggle them and synergize them across two Legends. There’s no value in simply staying in Jalis when you know that your party is currently suffering heavy conditions - switching to Mallyx and absorbing them is much more supportive.

Where the Hammer is concerned, I think it’s going to be one of the most popular weapons for a variety of reasons. The auto attack isn’t particularly satisfying, but the remaining skills are. Coalescence of Ruin and Phase Smash look phenomenal while Field of Mists and the new technology behind it is going to single handedly transform so many encounters. Lastly, Drop the Hammer as a Blast Finisher still gives you some options to Might stack or obtain Swiftness. If I’d like anything from the Hammer it would be to beef up the feedback from the auto attack - it feels limp.

At this point you’re probably waiting for my negative feedback. Well, there is some but nothing major. The first is that I found both Elite skills quite dull. Their concepts are brilliant and the visual effects on both are nice but neither got me particularly excited. Turning into stone or a version of Mallyx sounds awesome, yet I can’t help but wonder if it wouldn’t be best to simply turn into the Legends themselves. Transforming into Jalis or Mallyx would be incredible. Look how good both look - who wouldn’t want to be them?

Other than that, my only other niggle is the fact that the indicator on which Legend you’re currently channeling isn’t particularly clear to opposing players (your hands glow a particular colour). I think it could be more pronounced so that when you do go toe to toe with a Revenant, you at least stand some chance of predicting what’s coming at you.

It’s still early days for the Revenant as we still haven’t seen all the skills, Legends, weapon sets or Traits, but from what I’ve played I’m amazed ArenaNet have managed to create a class that sits comfortably alongside the existing roster but one which is so drastically different. The energy mechanic combined with swapping Legends, requires thought, micromanagement and understanding of your class - that’s a good thing. I expect the skill ceiling for the Revenant to be as high as an Elementalist and Engineer and for that I’m grateful. More than anything, I just can’t wait to see what other Legends rise from the Mists. Well done, ArenaNet.

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Last Updated: Mar 29, 2016

About The Author

Lewis is a long standing journalist, who freelances to a variety of outlets.

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