For the next chapter, I think that they won't add new classes per se, because after 3 expansions with new classes, a 4th without would just seem pale in comparison.
What I might actually expect, though, is an expansion that adds new races. The timing would be good, I think, as it'd inject a lot of interest back into the game 2 years after its original release.
So...
Chapter 4: Firebrand
Eleven years ago was the Searing, the destruction of a whole nation at the hands of the Charr, an event that sent shockwaves through the world, setting off a chain of events that would see the fulfillment of a prophecy, the resurrection of a murderous envoy to the dead, and the release of an dark and ancient god.
Take on a new mantle, shed your illusions of heroism, and see why it happened... Continue the story, eleven years after the Charr found the girlchild in the freshly created wasteland, with the legendary Firebrand marking her forehead. The human who has become their Sorceress Queen.
PvP centric expansion.
1 new race, the Charr. Giving them access to the old professions would just be silly, injecting a need for 20 new class skins with a minimum of 20 face/hair appearances for each.
As such...
Berserker - The Charr Berserkers are brutal warriors wielding powerful two-handed weapons, capable of dealing devastating damage at the cost of a portion of their life. This is made easier by their primary attribute, Endurance, which raises their maximum life.
Comment: I think that primary attribute is a natural conclusion to draw for something that winds up 'tanking', and while it wouldn't work alongside the warrior, it fits for a new race that doesn't get access to the warrior class.
Shaman - The Charr do not worship the gods of humans, but the powerful and wild spirits of the land. Shamans take on the role of leaders, healers and diplomats, a role they play with potent area-of-effect heals and shouts. To these ends, the Shaman's Vision attribute enhances your spell range and area of effects.
Comment: I wanted a healer concept that didn't parallel the monk so closely. The shaman would fall somewhere between ritualist and paragon, but would be intended to play more like a heal/prot combination.
Stalker - The Stalker is a spear wielding Charr who uses cunning over the brute strength of her Berserker comrades. With a focus on mobility with leaps and charges, and the ability to catch foes unawares, the Stalker is a foe you want to keep your eye on. What's more, she can definitely keep her eye on you with her Awareness attribute, which gives the ever-alert Stalker a wider sense of the area and the capability of her opponents.
Comment: Purely brainstorming. Awareness seems interesting to me, but would probably need a mechanical edge.
Wilder - The Wilders are Charr who tattoo their flesh and dye their fur in runes to better their attachment to the lesser powers and wild spirits of the land. Drawing its power from Chaos, the Wilder quite naturally benefits from Chaos attribute, which gives it chances at faster cast time, recharge time and cheaper skill costs, but bring a small measure of unreliability.
Comment: I envision it as a more self-centered mesmer type.
Summoner - With their natural ties to dragons, the ancient titans, wild spirits and the gods so young they are as of yet unnamed, it is only natural that the Charr would make direct use of them in battle. The Summoner brings forth servants to aid his allies in battle, from lesser fire spirits to the inspiring Titans.
Comment: Think necromancer with a bit less in the way of hexes, and short lived minions with more 'oomph'.
Sorcerer - Sorcerers have existed since the first of races used magic to create flame. They hold no pretense of style or effect, but prefer a focus on raw volume: size, effect, destruction. Wielding the powers of raw energy, the Sorcerer is truly a terror on the battlefield. Emphasizing this raw power is the Sorcerer's management of Orbs - brought forth with skills before battle or during a moment's break in the action, an Orb is a collection of energy that can be used to boost one's energy reserves or supercharge a spell.
Comment: I wanted a variant on Elementalists that seemed like it might work, and Orbs kind of 'clicked'. Overall, I imagine the Sorcerer falling between Ranger and Elementalist in style, as a caster with a consistent sort of damage and effect we see in the ranger.
PvP mode: Battlefields
Battlefields are an eight person event that pit two NPC armies against one another. The two armies are balanced against one another, but that balance can be broken by players. Players are set at the battle lines, and work to lead their armies against the foe, break through enemy lines and wipe out their targets.
Can be Human vs. Human, Human vs. Charr, Charr vs. Charr, etc.
PvE feature: Opposition Missions
There are two storylines here. One tells of the Charr's battle against the humans in an attempt to reclaim something ancient and forgotten. Another tells of the humans trying to end the battle against the Charr, once and for all.
Many of the missions have two stories to tell, and pit a team of Humans against a team of the Charr. This isn't always two groups combating one another, but might see them working on two opposite sides of the map for competing goals.
The Story, the Charr
Take on the role of a young Charr who serves the Sorceress Queen, a human girl found with no memory and a branding long told of in Charr legend. With the Sorceress Queen at their back, the Charr fight the last vestiges of the forces of man. When the Sorceress Queen tears Time itself asunder, the Charr will venture into the past to alter history itself, from the ancient times when the rivalry began, to the enactment of the Searing and the Cataclysm that destroyed Orr.
The Story, the Survivors of Ascalon
When the Searing happened, the Northern reaches of Ascalon were cut off from the rest of Tyria. For two years they tried to get messages past the tribes of Charr that had infested the area, and failed. It wasn't long after that when well intending heroes forced the Charr out of Southern Ascalon and Tyria, into the lands of the survivors of the North.
Now, as mere hundreds of men survive among the united tribes of the Sorceress, several heroes get a window of opportunity to go back in time and alter history, undo the Searing and save Orr.
But...
Will changing such key moments in history have too immense an effect?
R
*walks off and sulks in corner*
