Why Anet hates us.

Lets compare henchmen, to enemies.
Danika:0: blessed light
Kurzick Monk:1: word of healing
Dredge Gardener:0: boon signet

Danika:0: divine intervention
Kurzick Monk:1: healing seed
Dredge Gardener:1: shield guardian

Danika:0: Jamei's gaze
Kurzick Monk:2: word of healing
Dredge Gardener:1: reversal of fortune

Danika:0: ressurection chant
Kurzick Monk:3: rez sig
Dredge Gardener:1: no rez


In a nut shell, the henchmen monk has a worst build than really any monk in the game.

Cynn:0: Energy Boon
kurzick ele:1: unsteady ground

Cynn:0: gets killed by warrior
kurzick ele:2: casts ward versus melee

Cynn:0: fire storm
kurzick ele:3: obsidian flame
earth hench:0: has flame, but would rather spam stone daggers...

I can't even stand to take Cynn just cause fire storm makes everything run, good job nerfing that one, too bad you didn't program the henchmen to avoid enemy AE.

Lukas:0: protectors defense
kurzick warrior:1: heal sig

Lukas:0: dragon slash and no other adrenal skills
kurzick warrior:2: dragon slash and 2 other adrenal attacks

Do henchmen even have 8 skills? any of them?


Good job on the rezzing thing, now danika will use res chant while everybody else dies. Its better now than it was but still not perfect.

I ask for one thing, I ask for the henchmen to at least have 8 skills. Many parts of the game cannot be done with regular people (quests inbetween missions) and require a decent henchmen. Your always working on the henchmen AI, but thats not what needs work. Oh well if we had to wait 15 seconds before the henchies rezzed, if you just put some time and effort into the henchmen skills their wouldn't be as many deaths.

Only thing I couldn't do with henchmen was Gyala, however if one uses that trick I think it could be possible. The one thing henchmen can't do is get you the Master Reward in every Canthan mission, if they could the game would be way too easy.

Lukas seriously needs some work, he is just awful. To give him Hamstring (like, why? His fellow henchmen don't know how to kite), Dragon Slash with no other adrenaline skills, and a lot of tactics skills but no block/evasion stances is just the oddest tanks I've seen. Riposte, and Watch Yourself would be a welcome addition to his petty arsenal.

Personally, I always thought Anet designed the henchies to be (on average) worse than human players to encourage Pugs, etc. I was going to say something about how they should have learned from Gw:P, and made the henchies a little better since they know more about what works..but with the staggered game design, maybe these some miscommunication? Idk what Im talking about actually..

Lukas at least has Shields up, which compliments my Watch yourself! nicely.

And They aren't ALL bad..
http://gw.gamewikis.org/wiki/Erys_Vasburg
sexy.

Lukas (Hamstring) + Cynn (Fire Storm) = ???

I think the henchmen are fine. I played through most of the game with them (since my alliance is full of rude and unhelpful players, and I can't be bothered to join a PUG). Picked up Master's reward on almost every mission (needed people for Raisu and Imperial Sanctum), did every quest with them - but that's just me, I suppose.

Omfg hamstorm. Thanks anet, I love you.

Except I don't, really. Erys owns. Other henches need a buff. That retard Karl especially, touch-range rebirth midbattle ftw.

i perosnlay HATE lucas and cynn.... but n the other hand if you play the luxon campaign, the new interrupt hench and dominator hench is my new hench loves they only use a couple of skills, but can interrupt almost anything...

lmao, "hamstorm"

I love the henchies =) the interrupter kills EVERY skill they use. The healers need some help with healing different targets.

"I'm using Hamstorm!"

I remember one time seeing the henchmen shouting out their little battle crys, and could have sworn I saw one of them say, "Rape me!"

This is my personal favourite comparison from Tyria.

Cynn vs Enchanted Snowman

Cynn: Fire Attunement + Aura of Restoration
Snowman: Aura of Restoration

Cynn wins

Cynn: Mind Burn
Snowman: Ward Against Harm

Snowman wins, he could probably kill Cynn...

Cynn: Firestorm
Snowman: Ice Spikes

Snowman wins, technically he should win based on this 1 comparison...

Cynn: Rodgorts Invocation
Snowman: Frozen Burst

Tie, 1 is PBAoE slow the other always gets cast when theres only 1 enemy near

Cynn: Fireball + Incendiary Bonds
Snowman: Ice Prison

Cynn wins, but you have effectively taken a warrior out of the fight with Ice Prison.

After all that, its a tie between Cynn, the games uber fire ele and the Enchanted Snowman, a joke henchman Anet added in for Wintersday.

The only Canthan hench I really hate is Sister Tai. She's simultaneously the worst healer and the most enthusiastic tank this game has had since the devs took away Healing Touch from Alesia.
Sister Tai will *always* run in to melee and stay there, and, for the love of GOD!, *always* use Rebirth in the middle of battle.
I mean, why at all give Rebirth to henches? They'll run and stand on top of the pc they're resurrecting anyway!

I actually now bring whichever spirit hench is available (usually Professor Gay) instead of Sister Tai. One spirit of recouperation > Sister Tai.

Jamei is good, though usually not available.

Also, I don't see why Lukas gets so much grief in this thread. He tanks well, can take a lot of beating, and that's all I ask of him. The avicara guy, on the other hand, dies a LOT, because of his insane rush to the enemy when you try to draw, then refuse to retreat. He was very good in the preview event, but now he's pretty sucky.

I have done all luxon quest only using henc. As im a smiter and dont heal then i have usually both monks and spirit dude in party. And they do okay.
But as Numa sayd, why the hell sister Tai uses rebirth. Once i had occasion, when i was killed and she ressed me...but the problem was, she was in middle of enemies and i got killed again.
Luca is okay warrior henc...better then Stefan...ohh i hated him in tyria...always got stuck somewhere...usually there where i needed him to run
The most pointless henc in luxon area is Zho - the archer henc. I dont understand what purpose Zho has...
Best henc - Panaku, he may die sometimes fast, but i love hes interupting

My only complaint with Lukas is Shields Up. He uses it then the Warden rangers start launching Splinter Shot. Lotta damage on the hench from that. But Dragon Slash with no adrenal skills is prety dumb.

I have four Tyrian chars fully leveled and infused. My assassin henched most of Factions, including Raisu Palace. Then I took my Assassin to Tyria where he is now in the Crystal Desert, henching there, mostly in Barrage Archer mode.

Based on this experience I will say that the Factions henchies are a huge improvement over the Prophecies henchies, who remain more vulnerable than they should be to elementalists like hydras especially. ANet gets my thanks for giving us greatly improved henchies for the x-pack.

It seems to me that the henchies in both Prophecies and Factions are designed as a group that can support itself well and eventually kill almost anything, if the healers and protector do not have to spend mana on you the player. When they do, henchies start dying. So a ranged warrior or monk works best in situations where a melee warrior is going to take heavy damage.

DrBunny: take the illusion hench out for a spin, and you'll see some pretty damn impressive interrupting. He's as good if not better at interrupting spells than the interrupt hench...

Interrupt hench is great <3

The illusion henc refuses to work with me but i agree he is useful for interupting. But that interupting henc...dunno...i dont work well with him/her...perhaps its just me
Did some quests in kurzcik area few moments ago. Question, the blood hencman brutus (i think it was he's? name). Does he use blood ritual or no ?
And why isnt there any necro hences in luxon area ?

henchys are fun though.. at least you dont have to worry about dodgy pugs rushing through everything.. and if you need a tea, everyone waits patiently for the kettle to boil they could do with improving, but at least the option is there!

It seems to me like when you get out of Kaineng City, you get both the best hench and the worst hench all at once. The Luxons get the Interrupt and Longbow henchies, and the Kurzicks get the Domination hench along with all of those blood necros.

I haven't partied with Lukas, but he sounds damn useless.

I've noticed that Jamei and Sister Tai are pretty much exactly the same. When I have both of them in the same party, they run right next to each other and perform all of the exact same actions--it's good for spike healing, but while I'm getting healed for ~350hp by two casts of Healing Light because I had Bleeding and Weakness on me, they're leaving the other hench in jeopardy. They also run into the front line together, tank together, and die together.

Introducing the Protection hench later in the game is a horrible idea. Lina was easily the best hench in Prophecies (I can't say the same for Seaguard Gita in Factions, sadly,) and she would have been an asset as early as Yak's Bend. A prot hench (even with inferior AI) would also be extremely useful in Kaineng City (which IMO is harder than Kryta and the Jungle) rather than leaving you with one or two carbon-copy healer hench with completely inferior builds.

One of the reasons computer interrupter owns ;P