Annihilate, ***?

[Malaroko]

Seriously, double you tee eff?

 

I am not trying to say that Annihilate is a "bad" ability, but rather a "meh" and underwhelming top of the tree. I have an Operative and Assassin as well as my Marauder, and I've respecced both the Marauder and Operative post 40, and I just don't understand where Bioware was going with this ability. It has virtually no synergy with the tree, doesn't keep with the theme/feel of the tree, doesn't replace a stock ability with something better, and it has no "zazz" as Dethklok would say.

 

Let's look at some other 31st points:

 

Massacre: brings the whole tree together, replaces Viscious Slash, makes Ataru form seem worth it (finally), dependable proc

 

Force Crush: cool as hell and novel, more dependable/available to proc Smash auto-crit

 

Voltaic Slash (Assassin): replaces Thrash, brings Shock-based talents into their own

 

Acid Blade (Operative): THE reason concealment Ops **** in PvP, think Deadly Saber and Gore rolled into one

 

Recuperative Nanotech (Operative): only AoE heal you get, super useful and powerful

 

Annihilate doesn't wow me, in fact it yet another button I need and CD/buff to watch. If Rage was a better seconday tree I'd get Obliterate for the mobility. Can Bioware please look long and hard at this ability and come up with something that is more synergistic or at least "fits" better?

[Sayc]

I like annihilate. High damage, resets rupture, gets better during sustained fights.

[Lashlarue]

I've been using Anni for a while and am thinking about moving to Carnage for PvP for the simple reason that Anni is better for sustained fights. PvP is about burst, especially 1 vs 1. If I were to focus more on PvE, and especially raiding, I would definately stick with Anni.

[kraziwyld]

I would rather have annhilate do 1/2 - 2/3 damage and pop a third bleed on the target. keep everything else about it the same. would feel more in line with the spec. Or do extra damage to bleeding targets, or refresh bleeds on target. Just the raw burst with 66% chance to refresh 1 of our bleeds seems... lacking. Edited January 27, 2012 by kraziwyld

[Kodokai]

I've been using Anni for a while and am thinking about moving to Carnage for PvP for the simple reason that Anni is better for sustained fights. PvP is about burst, especially 1 vs 1. If I were to focus more on PvE, and especially raiding, I would definately stick with Anni.

 

Same, im thinking of switching purely for something fresh.

[Malaroko]

I'm not saying it's bad, it does do hella high damage, but that's all it does. And as for refreshing Rupture, so does Vicious Slash, ablbeit at a lower rate. But then again, Vicious Slash is spammable and if I was to spec 30/0/11 I'd have more crit chance with it.

 

And the tree as a whole is fine, that wasn't what I was saying. Just that last ability on every other toon I have, in every other spec I've tried (Marauder included), feels like it brings more to the spec as a whole. Annihilate on it's own is fine, but it just doesn't come across with much flavor. I think Krazi is on the right track, something that has more to do with either existing bleeds or adding another. I would really like if it perhaps consumed the bleeds and did damage based on the number on the target, or did minimal damage but bonus if there were bleeds on the target, something to make it more "bursty" after you'd stacked up on a target.

 

And Lash, Carnage post-40 has been pretty good frontload damage IF Ravage is up because Massacre -> Gore -> Ravage -> Scream can wreck somebody, but otherwise I've enjoyed Annihilation (or even Rage) more for PvP simply because once you get rolling Juyo form your sustained damage and usefulness in group fights (in other words most PvP as non-stealth) feels higher to me.