Slight buff to Healing Hands

Now this suggestion isn't going to be anything life changing, so don't axe me and cry out, "Heretic!"
The suggestion:
Reduce the recharge time by five seconds.
Yes, that's right. Instead of a 25 second recharge, have it as 20 instead.
Why you ask?
Right now you would seldom see monks use this and more often you see warriors use this as a tanking skill. It can be questioned then if this skill was actually made for monks or not.
In comparison with Seed of Life, it's not as useful. Yes I know Seed of Life can only last up to 5 seconds maximum, but it heals the whole party whereas Healing Hands does not, and Seed of Life has a 20 second recharge.
Also depending on where you are, Shielding Hands is better than Healing Hands for it reduces damage (much like healing hands does) and it heals for some amount at the end. Also Shielding Hands recharges in 15 seconds. If you really want to deal with ratios, you can use Shielding Hands for about 32 seconds in a minute where as Healing Hands is about 24 seconds in a minute (exclude casting time).
You can make the same argument with Shield of Absorption which is great for making all attacks become 0 after a few hits that is which may prove better than a damage reduction or small healing that Healing Hands does.
Then, yes this must be mentioned, this skill is an elite which falters against other non-elite skills and seldom picked as a healing elite.

I won't make a comparison to Healing Seed because these two are rather well viewed as elite and non-elite due to casting time, and energy cost. But you can argue that with healing Healer's Boon or Holy Haste (of course Holy Haste would end after casting this) that this skill can outdo the elite because of the extra potential healing to others although it is not self-casting.

And yeah, I think I wrote enough....

Absolutely pointless, the skill would still be garbage.

Would be nice. Although I think Warriors will still use it over Monks anyways. Hard to make this skill up to par with the rest of the monk elites without changing how it works, but for casual play it would be fun.

/signed. I want my Wammo back!

I agree. TO make this skill desirable the recharge would need to be reduced past 20 secs, or the effect would need to be fundamentally changed to something more appealing.

Yeh we just a fairly big update that buffs these usless elites(hopefulyl normal skills too..),rather than give any speshul treatment. And it woudl still suck with -5 recharge time. I'd rather see it as an elite mending touch, that removes hexes aswell as conditions.

We already have peace and harmony and divert hexes to remove multiple conditions/hexes, we really don't need an elite mending touch.

Defy pain> healing hands

/notsigned

Wouldn't that statement actually promote that Healing Hands should be buffed?

From a very introspectivepirate.

Since the number of people who seem to be unable to separate obvious sarcasm from serious suggestion has recently seen a sharp rise, i have a new policy in my posts. I will indicate to you in sections which is sarcastic, and which is not sarcastic. This should alleviate potential small brain suffering.

Sarcasm (first ...of course)

-firstly i feel healing hands needs an icon change before it is worthy of any other attention from anet.

-Secondly, i would like to state my disagreement with the person who stated a big update is needed to fix the crappy elites....or whatever. The truth is, i rather enjoy these crappy elites as they are. At the moment only skilled players can use them effectively. Since there are so few skilled players in pvp i can usually expect little variety in the elite skills used in pvp. This makes players much less of a threat.

*****NOT SARCASM*****

I think this skill is pretty useless in ordinary situations with better alternatives, although im sure there are situations for which this skill the (perhaps) best possible elite. HH could use the buff, and it is very possible that people are underestimating what the 5 second recharge decrease could do (especially if a 20% enchant mod is used in conjunction with other skills).

BUT rit would still have this beat out.

So is there a harm in buffing it? I don't see why not still.

Yeah, things like Spirit Light Weapon are still better.
Also there are Xinrae's Weapon and Weapon of Remedy.

No, we don't need moar powercreeps.

Defy pain gives tanks a better skill to use to grieve; buffing HH would mean we'd have to buff defy pain to balance out the equilibrium...right?

So reducing the recharge time on Healing Hands would be a buff you say? Isn't that what we want?
And Defy Pain is powerful enough, how would this change to Healing Hands affect the usage of Defy Pain?

I'd use it at an 8 second recharge. No way in hell would something like that get through, but if you think about it in HM SB does it's job....you know what, 1 second recharge and we'll talk.

In Hard Mode Spirit Bond is the way to go. Obviously Healing Hands can't even do squat in HM. But would you at least agree to this though?

If it were to be buffed (and it could use a slight buff for PvE) I'd much rather see it reduce damage as well as heal. Make it a hybrid of Healing Seed and Shielding Hands. Doesn't need to reduce ALL damage, or even as much as it heals, but a combo would make it more useful. Currently, unless you pack another skill to reduce the damage the target takes, the healing it provides isn't enough.

5 energy cost
1/4 second cast
25 second recharge

For 10 seconds, damage received by target ally is reduced by 3-15. While enchanted with Healing Hands, and damage received by target ally heals that ally for 5-29.

That might be a little bit too powerful.
How about it heals for like 50 health at the start or end of the enchantment? With the 5 second recharge reduction...

ADDED:
Actually, I'd just be flat out happy with the 5 second recharge reduction. Though if it does do anything else that'd be nice.

Healing Hands with its current concept, can't be saved. It needs a new one to become viable especially when there's SB around. Off the top of my head I can think of something that suits the skill name...

Elite Enchantment Spell

25 second recharge

1/4 second casting time

5 energy

For 15 seconds, whenever you heal an ally, all party members in the area are healed for 5...22...30 health. Ends if you cast an enchantment on yourself.

Or -

Elite Enchantment Spell

10 second recharge

1/4 second casting time

5 energy

For 8 seconds, whenever you cast a spell on target ally, all allies in earshot are healed for 5...22...30 health.

OR!

Elite Enchantment Spell

30 second recharge

1/4 casting time

5 energy

Elite Enchantment Spell. For 25 seconds, whenever you cast a Monk spell that targets an ally, that ally is healed for 15...51...60 health.

Basically a Divine Boon that doesn't suck up a pip of energy regen.

They're probably terrible ideas, but imo anything's better than the state the skill's in now. It has no specific use whereas Spell Breaker, even though temporary if not buffed to the ceiling is used for all kinds of stuff.

Ccat, I think Healer's Boon will out do your last suggestion. As for the others, I don't have a problem with them except that I like the current concept right now lol.