This is what I’ve suggested elsewhere, somewhat similar to what you mention:
- Make Phoenix Strike’s effects cumulative like other charge-up skills.
- This can be done by changing the prgstack column value for Phoenix Strike’s row in skills.txt from 0 to 1.
- Make finishing moves, except Dragon Talon, no longer consume charges per attack.
- This can be done by changing the prgchargesconsumed column value for their rows in skills.txt from 1 to 0.
- Make charge-up attacks automatically hit.
- This can be done by copying code already used by Impale.
- Make finishing moves require attack rating to hit again (for balance purposes).
- This can be done by changing the param8 column value for their rows in skills.txt from 1 to 0.
- Reduce the duration of charge-up skill charges from 15 seconds to whatever length is appropriate for balance.
- Change Mosaic’s affix/property to instead be “+25% to charge-up skill duration” or however it should be phrased to be clear what it means.
- Rework Next Hit Delay to apply to individual skill functions per cast, not an entire game-wide category of skills.
You’d have to hit once with a charge-up skill to get your first charge, but subsequent charge-up attacks would automatically hit. Then your normal attacks and finishing moves would apply your charge-up effects for the full duration of the charges, except Dragon Talon, which would still spend charges. This would help further differentiate Dragon Talon and Dragon Claw, with Dragon Talon being faster but consuming charges. Players would spend much less time charging up, both because of the automatic hits on charge-up skills and because the charges would apply to multiple attacks before expiring.
And all of that, except the NextHitDelay change, is either easily done through .txt editing or by copying existing code.