[InsainArcaneBirdbrain]

This skill went from totally useless to something actually very powerful, to the point that single skill shuts down many strategies. It's fine that it exists, but there should be some counterplay options.

I would suggest the skill gets a cooldown and a shortened duration so there is a gap that people can use to get past it. In addition, the lack of cooldown means using VA's obscure is pointless

I don't think the skill's really as bad as you say in practice, especially for the class who cares the most about the butt-stabs: VA. You say there should be counterplay options, but I can already count at least four specific ones in the context of VA.

1. Obscure is a momentum trade yes, but as someone else pointed out usually leads to the net gain for a twin dance user. Heck, if you're in front of the target, you can Obscure -> Rough Tumble -> Cutthroat in order to force them to either waste their entire turn resetting it, or giving up and just attacking.

2. Pocket sand, while once per fight, does buy room to work around watchful eye as the effect doesn't work when the target is blinded. This extends to any blind really, I'm just giving the reliable option every rogue has access to.

3. Teleporting to voidgates also works around the skill as it is indeed a teleport. Note that watchful eye requires LINE OF SIGHT in order to lock on, meaning that as long as you don't movement skill or base move within the cone of view in front of the watchful eye user, they don't auto turn.

4. Not exclusively a VA thing, but several dagger effects have means of bypassing watchful eye-  that being the kage daggers and Fangfare effect.


This is on top of the fact that nothing is stopping a VA from just attacking from range with throwing daggers or otherwise since besides losing on bonus flank damage, daggers are one of the weapon types that bypass the directional parries (eviter and stalemate). As for the other cases like Autumn pointed out above where other classes have synergy as in with riposte, I still don't think that breaks the skill (As for the given example, I'm not entirely sure why you'd be rapid kicking in melee range against someone you know has riposte to begin with considering the skill can be enhanced to be ranged). 


When we boil down the actual mechanics that rely on side or rear attacks, these include:

1. Rogue Flank
2. VA backstabbing bonuses
3. Cutthroat bonus effects
4. Flank (the mechanic)
5. Phase Fang (For determining teleport style)

Out of these, only rogue/VA are affected in any meaningful way (and as I've given examples for, have more than ample means of counterplay). I suppose one could make an argument for flank hit, but watchful eye forcing the opponent to look at you gives you guaranteed chivalry bonuses, so that kind of evens out if not results in a boon when dealing with a dodgy watchful eye user. Outside making frontal parries and riposte more reliable, I don't see how this skill is in need of any change from its current iteration, or in the context of OP's post in need of more counterplay options, as they certainly exist.