Shadow Refuge

Deception. Create a pulsing refuge at the target area that heals allies and cloaks them in stealth. — In-game description

Shadow Refuge

   

Profession

Thief (skill list)

Slot

Utility

Type

Deception

Training cost

4 Hero points

Game link

API

13117

“

0.25¼  

35

40

 

Shadow Refuge

Deception. Create a pulsing refuge at the target area that heals allies and cloaks them in stealth.

 Healing: 2,851 (0.9)^?

 Stealth (3s): Invisible to foes.

 Stealth (20.5½s): Invisible to foes.

 Number of Targets: 5

 Pulses: 5

 Duration: 4 seconds

 Radius: 240

 Combo Field: Dark

 Range: 600

— In-game description

Mechanics

• Allies without stealth entering the refuge also gain stealth, with no target limit (similar to the Mesmer skill Veil).
  • Leaving the refuge before it expires will remove stealth and cause Revealed.
• This skill pulses upon activation and each second thereafter.
  • Each pulse affects 5 targets and extends the stealth by 3 sec (in PvE) and heals for 355 + (0.18 * Healing Power) at level 80.
  • Each pulse revives up to 5 downed allies by 5% per pulse up to 25% over the full duration.
  • Staying in the field for its full duration will provide up to 15 seconds of stealth, leaving the stealthed characters 11 seconds of stealth once the field expires.
• The long stealth duration makes this skill useful for communing at hero challenges, reaching vistas while avoiding combat, looting heavily guarded chests, reviving an ally, or finishing enemy players in World versus World and Structured PvP.

Related traits

Critical Strikes

• Hidden Killer — Gain bonus critical-hit chance while stealthed. This bonus lingers for a short duration after you've been revealed.

Shadow Arts

• Merciful Ambush — Heal when you enter or exit stealth. Stealth yourself and your target when reviving an ally. This effect also applies to stealth you grant to allies.
• Shadow's Embrace — Remove conditions when you enter or exit stealth. This effect also applies to stealth you grant to allies.
• Meld with Shadows — Gain superspeed when you enter or exit stealth.
• Leeching Venoms — Venom utility skills siphon life from struck foes. Gain stacks of Spider Venom when you enter or exit stealth. Siphoning can only occur once per strike.
• Cloaked in Shadow — Gaining stealth blinds nearby foes. Blinding a foe siphons health from them.
• Cover of Shadow — Gain protection when you enter or exit stealth. This effect also applies to stealth you grant to allies.
• Shadow's Rejuvenation — Gain initiative when you enter or exit stealth.

Deadeye

• Payback — When Renewing Gaze triggers, this trait restores a portion of the recharge time needed by your healing, utility, and elite skills. Excludes racial skills.

Specter

• Dark Sentry — Apply Rot Wallow Venom to allies you grant barrier to. Outgoing healing to allies is increased. Rot Wallow Venom effect cannot apply to yourself.
• Panaku's Ambition — Gain barrier when you strike foes with a stealth attack. When you apply stealth to allies you also grant them barrier. This effect can only be received once and will reset when stealth is removed.

Version history

For a detailed skill history, see here.

Patch	Changes
October 08, 2024	Reduced the cooldown from 48 seconds to 40 in PvP and WvW. Reduced the stealth duration per pulse from 3 to 2.5 seconds in PvP and WvW. Increased the healing from 1,775 to 2,851.
June 25, 2024	Reduced the cooldown from 60 seconds to 35 seconds in PvE only.
June 28, 2022	Reduced cooldown from 60 seconds to 48 seconds in PvP and WvW.
September 22, 2017	Path of Fire release: Fixed a bug that caused the refuge to not apply Revealed when exiting it early.
July 26, 2016	Fixed a bug in which this skill's visual effects lingered longer than intended.
April 15, 2014	Updated the skill fact to display the correct healing amount.
October 29, 2013	Added a pulses skill fact.
October 15, 2013	This skill now functions with the Meld with Shadows trait.
May 28, 2013	Now lists its duration in the tooltip.
January 28, 2013	Added a radius skill fact to this skill's description.
October 22, 2012	This skill's stealth removal tripwire has been updated to properly match the skill's effects.
August 28, 2012	Game release: Shadow Refuge has been added to the game.

Trivia

• A Guild Wars skill bears the same name as this skill.