Learn about Guild Wars 2 Mesmer skills like Blackout, Chaos Storm, and Distortion, including their effects, costs, and unlock conditions.
Blackout
Attribute: Domination Magic
Energy Cost: 10
Casting Time: 1
Recharge Time: 10
Effect: For 2 to 6 seconds, target touched foe has all of his or her skills disabled. Yours are all disabled for five seconds.
Comment: Often useful to prevent an enemy monk from healing itself or someone else who is near death. While it does not last long, it can be devastating if used at the right times. The biggest problem is the touching of the other person, though.
Unlock from [Needed only for PvP]: Tyren [Droknar's Forge]
Purchase from: Bartoch [Droknar's Forge]
Channeling
Attribute: Inspiration Magic
Energy Cost: 5
Casting Time: 1
Recharge Time: 15
Effect: Enchantment. For 8 to 46 seconds, whenever you cast a spell, you steal 1 energy from each nearby foe.
Comment: To be honest, I don't think I have ever used this skill. Mesmers generally stay back farther than any other class, so I'm not sure how useful it would be due to range.
Unlock from [Needed only for PvP]: Jhoneil [Lion's Arch]
Purchase from: Firstwatch Sergio [Lion's Arch]
Chaos Storm
Attribute: Domination Magic
Energy Cost: 15
Casting Time: 2
Recharge Time: 30
Effect: Spell. For 10 seconds all enemies near the location of this spell take 5 to 12 damage and lose 1 to 6 energy if they cast a spell while in it.
Comment: One of the few area of effect spells. Chaos storm does moderate damage over ten seconds, but the energy stripping if the opponent casts in it comes in handy, smack it down on caster bosses, they're too dumb to move. Not nearly as effective on human players for obvious reasons.
Unlock from [Needed only for PvP]: Willem [Yak's Bend]
Purchase from: Captain Osric [Yak's Bend]
Clumsiness
Attribute: Illusion Magic
Energy Cost: 10
Casting Time: 1
Recharge Time: 10
Effect: Hex, for the next 4 to 7 seconds, if target tries to attack, that attack fails and the target takes 10 to 76 damage.
Unlock from [Needed only for PvP]: Tyren [Droknar's Forge]
Purchase from: [Copperhammer Mines]
Conjure Phantasm
Attribute: Illusion Magic
Energy Cost: 10
Casting Time: 1
Recharge Time: 5
Effect: Hex, for 2 to 12 seconds target foe suffers health degeneration of 5.
Unlock from [Needed only for PvP]: Garemm [Ascalon City]
Purchase from: Sir Bertran [Ascalon City]
Crippling Anguish [Elite]
Attribute: Illusion Magic
Energy Cost: 15
Casting Time: 1
Recharge Time: 20
Effect: Hex, for 8 to 18 seconds, target foe moves 50% slower and suffers health degeneration of 1 to 3.
Comment: I prefer Migraine, but this skill works better for annoying warriors.
Unlock from [Needed only for PvP]: Dakk [Droknar's Forge]
Learn from: Barl Stormsiege [Frozen Forest]
Cry of Frustration
Attribute: Domination Magic
Energy Cost: 15
Casting Time: 0.25
Recharge Time: 20
Effect: Spell, if target foe is using a skill, that foe, and nearby foes are all interrupted and take 0 to 37 damage.
Comment: One of the few Mesmer skills which can counter non-spells. The cost is a bit steep, but useful for interrupted troll unguents, healing signets, etc.
Unlock from [Needed only for PvP]: Narius [Henge of Denravi]
Purchase from: Ephaz [Beetletun]
Distortion
Attribute: Illusion Magic
Energy Cost: 5
Casting Time: 0
Recharge Time: 5
Effect: Stance. For 5 seconds you have a 75% chance to evade all attacks. You lose 3 to 1 energy for each attack evaded in this way.
Comment: This would be a great skill if only it lasted longer, otherwise, it can be quite handy in tanking a warrior.
Unlock from [Needed only for PvP]: Willem [Yak's Bend]
Purchase from: Captain Osric [Yak's Bend]
Diversion
Attribute: Domination Magic
Energy Cost: 10
Casting Time: 2
Recharge Time: 5
Effect: Hex, for the next 6 seconds, the next time target foe uses a skill, that skill takes an additional 10 to 47 seconds to recharge.
Comment: Six seconds is not a long time, you so need to anticipate when someone is going to use an important skill, or shove it on them while casting a long duration skill. Worst case scenario is that they don't cast when they should have.... darn.
Unlock from [Needed only for PvP]: Willem [Yak's Bend]
Purchase from: Captain Osric [Yak's Bend]
Drain Enchantment
Attribute: Inspiration Magic
Energy Cost: 10
Casting Time: 1
Recharge Time: 25
Effect: Remove an enchantment from target foe. You gain 10 to 20 energy for its removal.
Comment: Recharge is a bit long, but it's a great skill for recharging energy and removing positive buffs from your opponent.
Unlock from [Needed only for PvP]: Jhoneil [Lion's Arch]
Purchase from: Marna [Ice Tooth Cave]
Echo [Elite]
Attribute: None
Energy Cost: 5
Casting Time: 1
Recharge Time: 30
Effect: Enchantment. For 20 seconds, echo is replaced with the next skill you use, and acts as that skill for the next 20 seconds after that.
Comment: Honestly, I've never used it, there are so many better Mesmer elites. Again, this might be handy if you are using Elementalist skills.
Unlock from [Needed only for PvP]: Dakk [Droknar's Forge]
Learn from: Rwek Khawl Mawl [Perdition Rock]
Elemental Resistance
Attribute: Inspiration Magic
Energy Cost: 10
Casting Time: 0
Recharge Time: 20
Effect: Stance. For 30 to 78 seconds, you have 40 additional armor against elemental damage, but lose 24 to 14 armor against physical attacks.
Comment: While nice, unless you know your going somewhere where everything uses elemental attacks, it is not all that useful.
Unlock from [Needed only for PvP]: Tyren [Droknar's Forge]
Purchase from: Bartoch [Droknar's Forge]
Empathy
Attribute: Domination Magic
Energy Cost: 10
Casting Time: 2
Recharge Time: 10
Effect: Hex, for 8 to 18 seconds, target foe takes 10 to 26
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