Team Build: Z-Way | Z-Merc Edition | (Update 3.0)

''ANet created a fascinating class that counters the skill of an enemy as much as their skills – but mobs can’t be made any less skillful, and efficiency is in abusing this fact more than in anything that can be applied to the foe. Multiplying the amount needed that minimally is required to CC an opponent, does not have to be bad thing, or even the type of playstyle a team yields.

When I made Z-Way it was build on total control, knowing one Ineptitude and Panic / Esurge would be plenty for most teams as other proffessions filled their own prominent roles as damage dealer.
I decided to scale that up, and with that upscale of Defense, also comes with a condition which is ''lack of offense''.

And because (Hero) NPC AI is limited just like its enemy, its for me important that the roles MY heroes have, is too simply out-smart them by making them incapable.
Real DPS should be left to players, hence why heroes don't have access too PvE only skills, that would change the story entirely.

Because not all Defensive spells are just defensive, the side effect is armor ignoring (AoE) damage. (for mesmers)
Thats great, because it will work everwhere, and wont be migitated by factors other professions have. (like elementists)

Is that a bad thing, yes and no, it really comes down on what you think a team should pack, and most of those teams have the same values any speedclear team has, which is ''Kill before being killed''.

Thats really the catch of this team, the trade off was Risk + Damage for Less Risk + Less Damage, it gives you the chance to recover in situations most ''Kill before being killed'' teams would have whiped on, and that may result in encounters you'll have to be exposed too for longer (Whiping in DoA = Retry under the same difficult)

Pure damage teams only work till some degree, and I feel personally that a full controll team extends that degree to a point it becomes very survivable till the target(s) die.

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Hope those were the concerns and/or facts you were speaking off in general.
This team is not fast, its just safer upto a certain degree, and probably far more then Pure Damage teams have.
Thats the give or take factor you choose to have running certain builds.

Whenever pure damage teams reach their breakingpoint by not being able to kill their target, results in a breach letting two or three heroes (Prots and Heals) to take the full strain of the encounter, that becomes the whipe factor.

Whenever pure control teams reach their breakingpoint by not being able to control their target, results in the entire team taking the strain by having to control again and protection / healing more.
That risk has become smeared across 7 heroes up from 2 or 3, this becomes the whipe factor here.

But since the risk and strain is spread to 7 heroes, it has more chance to migitate everything then otherwise only 2 or 3 heroes would be able to handle. (If choosing to say and run with no mesmers)

Ofcourse necromancers and elementists have some form of protection like Weakness, Blind or Wards, but those are skills any hybrid profession is able to absorb. (Since only Energy-management becomes the factor if such utillity is worth taking a slot)

With every team, its a give or take.