Idea Dwarf Rework - no longer stuck on def

Upon looking at many past Dwarf reworks, the most popular ones were deemed too complicated to add in-game. I decided to create a Dwarf rework that would be fairly simple to understand, yet, effective in making Dwarf a Defense/Offense class rather than stuck next to the flag 24/7. Without further ado...

Dwarf Rework

Summary

• Minor Armor Nerf (slightly reduced armor)
• New Leveling System (faster leveling, different ways to lose levels, level cap)
• Mobility Changes (able to sprint, slowness dependent on current level)
• Sword Nerf (iron, Knockback moved to Shield, Fire Aspect removed)
• New Shield and its Abilities (higher level = more Shield abilities, such as Snipe Immunity)
• Leveling Chart (for better comprehension)
• Change Reasoning and Strats (self-explanatory)
• Counters (shows what Dwarf counters and what counters Dwarf)
• Recap (recap of all the changes)

Spoiler: Minor Armor Nerf

Current Armor:

• Chainmail Helmet
• Diamond Chestplate
• Diamond Leggings
• Chainmail Boots
• (17 armor points)

Tweaked Armor:

• Chainmail Helmet
• Diamond Chestplate
• Chainmail Leggings
• Chainmail Boots
• (15 armor points)

Reasoning:

• Because Dwarf has increased mobility overall, in this rework, the armor is decreased slightly to balance that factor.

Spoiler: General Leveling Changes

General:

• Leveling now has a CAP OF 8 LEVELS (you can still fully charge a level 8 bar, but you won't go to level 9)
• Leveling affects both Shield (explained below) and Sword

Gaining/Losing Levels:

• You still crouch to gain levels, but now the rate is 2x faster than original rate. (originally took around 2 min to go to level 8, now takes around 1 min)
• You no longer lose levels by not crouching. However...
• Each hit you take (except for webs, flash bombs, and fists), you lose half a level.
• Each hit you deal (except for fists)(includes Shield hits), you lose a whole level.

Spoiler: Mobility Changes

Sprinting:

• Dwarf can now sprint at any time. This allows him to dodge projectiles more easily (due to varying speeds) and traverse maps more efficiently.

Slowness:

• Dwarf's slowness is now correlated with his levels. Every 2 levels grant the Dwarf one tier of Slowness, with a maximum of Slowness IV (at cap level 8).

Spoiler: Sword Nerf and New Shield

Sword Nerf

• Changed from Diamond to Iron
• Knockback enchantment moved to the new Shield item.
• Fire Aspect enchantment REMOVED. It made Dwarf/Pyro teaming way too OP. Removing the enchantment also makes Heavy a more legit counter to Dwarf.

New Shield (Iron Door) and its Abilities

• Dwarf gets a new Shield (iron door) item in its 3rd hotbar slot (after steak). It is activated while held.
• At level 0, Shield grants 15% projectile resistance + 20% knockback resistance.
• Every 1 level grants Shield an additional 7.5% projectile resistance + 10% knockback resistance.
• Starting at Level 4, every 2 levels grant Shield one tier of Knockback enchantment.
• Level 2+ grants Shield snipe immunity (you'll take normal damage though).
• Level 4+ grants Shield fire immunity (if Dwarf is ignited prior to shielding, fire will be unaffected) and potion immunity (if Dwarf is affected by potion effect prior to shielding, potion effect will be unaffected).
• Level 6+ grants Shield the Resistance I potion effect.

Spoiler: Leveling Chart

Spoiler: Change Reasoning and Strats

Reasoning for the changes in Rework

• More mobility and no longer passively losing levels allows Dwarf to do more things than just camp at his flag.
• Losing levels when Dwarf attacks or is attacked allows Dwarf to be worn down and weakened. On the other hand, Dwarf's leveling speed is now 2x faster, which allows him to join the fight more quickly.
• Shield allows Dwarf to counter heavy defenses
• Makes Heavy a stronger counter to Dwarf by removing fire aspect.
• Increases skill cap of Dwarf, making different EXP levels useful for doing different things
• Adds level cap to prevent Dwarf from becoming OP

Strategies for Dwarf

• Levels 0-1 are useful if you need mobility. Levels 2-3 are useful if there are Archer snipers but you still need mobility. Levels 4-5 are useful for attacking small defenses that have Pyros or Chemists, and Levels 6-7 are useful for attacking strong defenses that have Dwarfs or Ninjas. Level 8 is useful for defending because of your knockback III Shield.
• Sprint-jumping is crucial for Dwarf as it bypasses some of the Slowness and, at high levels, critical hits can help in 2-shotting Ninjas, Assassins, Pyros, and Mages. On the other hand, it makes Dwarf easier to knock back.
• Do not over-rely on your Shield because it does not effectively block melee damage (unless at level 6+) and it cannot block an Assassinate. It is recommended to use your Shield if you are in a fight with a ranged class (including Chemist), if you are rushing the flag room (one that does not have an Assassin), or if you are rushing an Engineer Turret.

Strategies against Dwarf

• Strafing is crucial in fighting a Dwarf, as you can more easily wear him down quite quickly and make him much weaker. Chemist, Ninja, and Assassin are best at strafing.
• A ranged class or tank class is effective at killing Dwarves.

Spoiler: Counters

Counter to:

• Engineer (hard)(practically immune to Turret's knockback/damage and pickaxe's knockback at levels 6+ with shield; can deal massive damage to Engineer due to its low armor)
• Ninja (hard)(can two-shot a Ninja at level 3+ with critical hits, and at levels 4+ with normal hits)(resistant to Ninja's high damage)
• Pyro (moderate)(depending on current level, immune to fire while holding Shield (unless on fire prior to Shielding); can deal massive damage to Pyro due to its low armor)
• Chemist (soft)(depending on current level, immune to negative splash potions while holding Shield (unless affected by one prior to Shielding); can deal massive damage to Chemist due to its low armor)

Countered by:

• Elf (hard against higher level Dwarves (4-8))(Elf can deal true damage, even through Shields. Elf also has ALOT more mobility than Dwarf)
  
• Mage (hard against lower level Dwarves (0-3))(Mage's sheer knockback from both the damage spell and lightning spell can keep a low level Dwarf at bay for long periods of time)
• Heavy (moderate)(Heavy's high armor can help them tank out the damage from Dwarven swords, while allowing Heavies to deal a lot of damage due to not having to steak as much)
• Assassin (moderate)(Assassin can assassinate Dwarves even if they are using Shields.)

Recap

• Armor reduced by 2 armor points (1 chestplate icon)
• New Leveling System which doubles leveling rate, caps leveling at lv8, removes losing levels when not crouching, makes Dwarf only able to lose levels if attacked or if he attacks.
• Dwarf can now sprint and starts with no Slowness, but every 2 levels he receives one tier.
• Sword is nerfed to iron sword, removed Fire Aspect enchantment, and moved Knockback enchantment to the new Shield item
• New Shield Item which has defensive abilities (knockback resistance, projectile resistance, fire immunity, potion immunity, snipe immunity, resistance I, and Knockback enchantment) that improve as Dwarf gains levels.

 

I like this idea! If this gets more support, I'll add it.

If the Dwarf is at a high level, it is already quite slow regardless of whether it holds the shield or not. I'll think about it, though. As for the directional concept, I also quite like that idea. Again, if it gets more support, I'll add it.

Yes.

*edit* I know self-bumping is looked badly upon, but I would really appreciate it if I could get at least 2 more responses, so I can figure out what I can do to improve this rework and fix mistakes in future reworks.