Update - Thursday, March 5

Updated Zaishen Rewards

• Updated Zaishen Chest drops to replace
  Searing Tonic with a new tonic for the month of March. More information
  on Zaishen Rewards can be found here.
  

Automated Tournaments

• Updated Automated Tournament map rotations.
  

Skill Updates


For more information on these changes, please see the Developer Updates page.
PvE and PvP

Assassin
<blockquote>

• Hidden Caltrops: now disables all your non-Assassin skills for 10 seconds.
  
• Shadow Refuge: increased duration to 6 seconds.
  

</blockquote>
Elementalist
<blockquote>

• Aura of Restoration: decreased Energy cost to 5; increased recharge
  to 12. Functionality changed to: "For 60 seconds, you gain 0..1 Energy
  and are healed for 200..500% of the Energy cost each time you cast a
  spell."
  

</blockquote>

Mesmer
<blockquote>

• Ether Feast: increased Health per Energy drained to 20..65.
  
• Illusion of Haste: reduced the duration of the Crippled condition to 3 seconds.
  

</blockquote>
Necromancer
<blockquote>

• Gaze of Contempt: increased casting time to 2 seconds.
  
• Rend Enchantments: increased casting time to 2 seconds.
  
• Wail of Doom: increased recharge to 15 seconds.
  

</blockquote>
Warrior
<blockquote>

• Defensive Stance: decreased duration to 1..5 seconds; decreased armor gain to +10.
  
• Disciplined Stance: decreased duration to 1..4 seconds; decreased armor gain to +10.
  
• Distracting Strike: functionality changed to: "If Distracting
  Strike hits, it deals no damage and interrupts target foe's action. If
  target foe has Cracked Armor, that skill is disabled for 20 seconds."
  
• Flail: decreased duration to 1..15 seconds.
  
• Healing Signet: increased healing to 82..172.
  
• Primal Rage: increased recharge to 15 seconds.
  
• Shield Stance: decreased duration to 1..6 seconds.
  
• Soldier's Defense: decreased duration to 1..5 seconds.
  

</blockquote>

PvP

Ranger
<blockquote>

• Read the Wind: functionality changed to: "For 24 seconds, your arrows move twice as fast."
  

</blockquote>
Ritualist
<blockquote>

• Ancestors' Rage: increased duration to 3 seconds; decreased damage to 1..31.
  
• Weapon of Warding: functionality changed to: "For 5..10 seconds,
  target ally has a Weapon of Warding, granting that ally +2..4 Health
  regeneration and a 50% chance to block. Weapon of Warding ends if that
  ally attacks."
  

</blockquote>

Bug Fixes

• Fixed a bug that caused heal-reducing skills and heal-increasing to stack incorrectly.
  
• Fixed a bug that caused Eye of the North treasure chests in Hard Mode to not drop Skill Tomes.
  

Miscellaneous

• Xunlai Tournament Agents now offer prizes for the February
  tournament. These agents can be found in the Great Temple of Balthazar,
  Lion's Arch, Kaineng Center, and Kamadan.
  
• Improved Hero AI for the Necromancer spell Death Nova to reduce the use of this spell when not in combat.