Scourge

“

"Sink into a sea of sand."

The scourge harnesses the power of the desert to summon sand shades onto the battlefield. While they lose many of the protective benefits of death shroud, they control the battlefield by afflicting foes while bolstering allies and granting barrier.

— In-game description

Scourge is an elite specialization for the necromancer unlocked with the Path of Fire expansion. Instead of using life force as a second health pool, scourges use it to command the desert sands with Shade skills, overwhelming their enemies in conditions and supporting allies with barrier. They manifest Sand Shades, extensions of their will that mimic any Shade skill they use.

Scourges have learned Punishment skills, commanding the sands to corrupt their enemy's boons into conditions, eroding their will. They can wield torches as off hand weapons, lighting the path for their enemy's souls into the afterlife, burning away their bodies. Scourges combine damage dealing and support, corrupting boons from enemies, cleansing conditions from allies, shielding them with barriers, and drowning their enemies in the desert sands.

List of scourge skills

See also: List of necromancer skills

Profession mechanic

“

May the sands take you.

— Scourge

Scourges lose access to Death Shroud in exchange for summoning sand shades and using Shade skills at all times. Shade skills are fueled by a static cost of life force that does not scale with the total life force pool; increasing vitality does not increase the cost of Shade skills. All skills, except Manifest Sand Shade, have a half-second delay before activating. All Shade skills are cast around the scourge and any sand shade they have created. Traits that activate when entering shroud will instead activate when using Desert Shroud.

#	Skill			Description
F1	Manifest Sand Shade	0.5½		Shade. Manifest a sand shade using some of your life force[sic]. Using a shade ability strikes enemies near you and your shades.
F2	Nefarious Favor		5	Shade. Your shades convert a condition on nearby allies into a boon. Targets affected by this ability can only be affected once per cast.
F3	Sand Cascade		10	Shade. Sand rises up near your shades to shield nearby allies. Targets affected by this ability can only be affected once per cast.
F4	Garish Pillar		15	Shade. Induce fear in enemies around your sand shades. Targets affected by this ability can only be affected once per cast.
F5	Desert Shroud		20	Shade. Enter the desert shroud, gaining a powerful barrier and pulsing necrotic energy around your sand shades. Targets affected by this ability can only be affected once per pulse.

Weapon skills

#	Skill			Description
Torch
4	Harrowing Wave	0.5½	16	Unleash a wave of corrupted fire, burning and tormenting enemies. Gain life force for each enemy struck.
5	Oppressive Collapse	0.75¾	20	Corrupt the ground under your target; if they remain within the area, they will be knocked down. Grant might to allies near your target based on how many conditions they have.

Slot skills

Healing

Skill				Description
Sand Flare		0.75¾	25	Punishment. Gain barrier. Convert a boon on nearby enemies into torment.

Utility

Skill				Description
Trail of Anguish			25	Punishment. Leave a trail of sand as you travel. Grant boons to allies passing through it. Inflict burning on enemies and corrupt a boon into torment.
Desiccate		0.75¾	16	Punishment. Draw vital energy from your foes to gain life force and grant boons to nearby allies. Gain additional life force per target struck. Convert a boon on affected enemies to torment.
Sand Swell		1	35	Punishment. Plunge into the ground, creating a portal through Tyria for allied use. Grant allies using this passage a health barrier. Convert a boon on nearby enemies into torment.
Serpent Siphon		0.5½	20	Punishment. Unleash a ghostly serpent toward a targeted area. Upon arriving, the serpent will burst into sand, granting barrier and boons to nearby allies and poisoning enemies. Convert a boon from struck enemies into torment.

Elite

Skill				Description
Ghastly Breach		0.75¾	60	Punishment. Breach into the realm of torment for a brief time, granting might to allies and slowing enemies. Convert a boon on enemies into torment each pulse.

List of scourge traits

See also: List of necromancer traits

Tier	Trait		Description
Minor Proficiency	Torch Proficiency		You can wield torches.
Minor Adept	Mantle of Sand		Gain the power to craft sand shadows and command them using your life force. Gain access to Punishment and Shade skills. Shade skills inherit the effects of traits that affect shroud skills.
Major Adept	Abrasive Grit		Granting an ally a barrier removes conditions afflicting them and grants might. This effect only occurs with barrier from scourge skills and traits.
Major Adept	Fell Beacon		Burning you inflict does more damage. Gain expertise based on your condition damage.
Major Adept	Nourishing Ashes	3	Gain life force when you inflict burning, and remove or corrupt a boon.
Minor Master	Sand Sage		Gain concentration and expertise when you have an active shade.
Major Master	Feed from Corruption	1	When you remove or corrupt a boon from an enemy, gain barrier.
Major Master	Sadistic Searing		Nefarious Favor now burns nearby enemy targets.
Major Master	Herald of Sorrow		Desert Shroud becomes Sandstorm Shroud.
Minor Grandmaster	Blood as Sand		Reduce all incoming damage taken when you have a shade active.
Major Grandmaster	Sand Savant		Summon only one shade at a time. This greater shade has a modified recharge. Influence a larger area with shade skills. A greater shade counts as three shades for related traits.
Major Grandmaster	Demonic Lore		Torment you inflict deals increased damage and causes your foes to burn. This trait can only inflict burning on a particular target once every three seconds.
Major Grandmaster	Desert Empowerment		Manifest Sand Shade grants a barrier to allies near it. When you apply barrier, grant boons to the affected target. This effect only occurs with barrier from scourge skills and traits.

Lore

“

Scourges channel their life force into the desert sands to summon biddable shades that damage enemies and create shields for their allies. They use punishment skills to torment their enemies, and wield torches to light the path to their destruction.

— Official site

Associated items

• Scourge's Torch
• Guide for the Lost
• Scourge's Tendrils
• Superior Rune of the Scourge
• Mini Scourge Akesi Xuni

Related achievements

• Specializations: Adept Scourge — Begin training the necromancer's scourge elite specialization. (5)
• Specializations: Master Scourge — Completely train the necromancer's scourge elite specialization. (10)
• Specialization Collections: Guide for the Lost — Collect these 14 items and skins to receive the scourge's torch, Guide for the Lost. (3)

Gallery

Promotional material

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  Wallpaper

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  Concept art

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  Still frame from the reveal video

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  Still frame from the reveal video

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  Promotional official icon

Icons

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  Official icon

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  Official icon

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  Wiki icon

Trivia

• Scourge utility skills were initially sacrifice skills that consumed life force, but the developers felt that didn't cohere thematically, since life force was typically consumed by shroud skills. These utilities were replaced by punishment skills that corrupt enemy boons into specific conditions.
• The Scourge Class NPC is Akesi Xuni, and may be found outside the Court of the Dead.

External links

• Guild Wars 2: Path of Fire Elite Specializations—Scourge (Necromancer)

References

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Necromancer