First step would be to reduce the def cp dependance on defensive pattern damage, all defensive patterns should do maybe about 85% of offensive pattern damage with full offensive combat assigns, and vice versa with full defensive assign.
Cross/singing blades should be fastest, easiest and least damaging patterns while double cross/falling seeds should be slowest, hardest and most damage.
Mastery effects should be partially redesigned so that all patterns would be situationally useful. Switching between patterns should be common. To this end, the chance to trigger a mastery effect shouldn't depend on the pattern mastery, but instead should be based on ic and increased by unity mastery. Instead, the pattern mastery should increase the effect.
Some examples on the renovated patterns follow:
Cross - temporarily reduces or removes target defensive capabilities (def assigns and/or skills) - pattern mastery increases duration and/or effect if complete removal is too powerful
Cat stroke - does damage to all enemies in the room - pattern mastery increases damage (someone come up with a better name for the pattern
)Double cross - increases offensive assigns and continuous assault skill temporarily - pattern mastery increases duration and/or effect
Arguably the dc mastery might be weaker than it is now, but it's kind of stupid to have the strongest defensive mastery effect on the staple offensive pattern.
Then on to defensive patterns, we could have
Singing blades - breaks/prevents casting, could be aoe or single target - pattern mastery increases duration or trigger chance, depending on wether the effect is just a spellbreak or a longer effect
Diamond lunge - current effect (stun) - pattern mastery increases duration
Falling seeds - current effect (same as dc) - pattern mastery increases duration
Diamond lunge effect I'm not too sure about, stun is sort of boring and often problematic effect and it has a lot of overlap with the both other defensive patterns, some other defensive effect would probably be better.
Overall, the effects should trigger commonly enough that they're sort of dependable; some, like the dc or cat stroke effect, could be almost guaranteed and instead balanced through modifying the effect strength, while others, like falling seeds, should stay rare like they are now.
Another vaguely related change I'd like to see would be making melee massacre a passive skill. The effect would instead be active while you're concentrating on whirling blades (ie, from the moment you start using wb until it hits), and you'd get off or def points depending wether you're using a def or off pattern, the amount depending on melee massacre skill% and unity mastery. Resist exhaustion could have a passive effect of slightly reducing ep spent on attacking/defending while whirling so that the massacre redesign wouldn't drain rangers in a party too fast. Similarly, the extra hits or dodges from wb should in my opinion trigger while you're using the maneuver, instead of for x rounds after the skill finishes, so the skill would more feel like a long, continuous maneuver starting from the "You start whirling your weapons" and culminating in the big hit at the end.
So, some food for thought, interested to hear any opinions and ideas, especially diamond lunge and double cross effects are bit boring as presented above.