This patch brings important refinements and bug fixes but primarily focuses on combat balance changes.
With the introduction of the Gold Market Stabilization system, Common Chests that typically dropped a single Bag of Silver could sometimes be empty. To prevent this without altering the stabilization system, we have moved Silver from Common Chests to higher-value chests, and replaced them with Tomes of Insight to ensure a guaranteed reward.
Evensong has offered powerful offensive utility but is almost always used with plate armor. Its base damage has been increased to help players who want to lean more into being a DPS threat.
Axe players in ZvZs have been overperforming, frequently hitting more than 10 enemies. To address this, the damage and complexity of Raging Blades have been reduced.
Giant Steps has been far from its previously overwhelming state. A portion of its slowing aura has been restored to reinforce Forge Hammers as a tanky disruptor.
Great Holy Staff has been underperforming, so part of its resistance increase has been restored.
To give Lifetouch Staff a unique role, Holy Touch’s target is now immune to Crowd Control for the channel's duration (unless self-targeting). In addition, its range has been increased to improve its reliability in modern Albion.
Fling has struggled to find success. To improve its effectiveness, its stand time and cooldown have been reduced, making it easier to confirm an Impaler hit.
Swords already have strong chase potential due to their passive movement speed bonuses. To balance this, Heroic Strike’s above-average range has been reduced.
Fleet Footwork has provided War Gloves users with a solid mobility option while also serving as an exceptional DPS tool. Its damage output has been reduced to bring it more in line with alternatives.
Ambush has remained a top-tier damage boost while also offering great defensive capabilities. Its maximum damage bonus has been reduced to allow other aggressive chest armors to be more competitive.
A few underused shoe abilities with restrictive conditions and mobility trade-offs have been improved.
Giant’s cooldown and uptime have been adjusted to make Guardian Boots a more available defensive option.
Mark of Sacrifice, Shield Charge, and Swift Cut have been standardized to a 15m range with below-average cooldowns, as their target requirements have been too limiting.