There were things that anyone in any class could have done to stop it. In this particular instance you could have even just walked in through the other exit.
River lasts 8-12 seconds, costing 3.01 modified equilibrium to put back up. Icewall blocks it. It isn't guaranteed to pull anyone on each individual tick. It doesn't even work on massed people unless clarity is also up in the room.
Don't see why River is always seen as this Ascendril/Spirit bogeyman when it's actually more of a gotcha that requires the Ascendril to put themselves in the open to even attempt.
Sorry if I'm being annoying but the more I think about this plan, the more I personally dislike it. Has there been a poll or anything to see what the players think? In my experience, those who are the loudest regarding combat stuff do not always represent the majority.
It turns out, whoever hung this lovely trick stocking for me in Asper, also managed to send me running through the whole continent hundreds of times in a grand chase. It eventually took me a little over an hour and a half, and over 450-ish trips to finally catch up to the elusive stocking, only to receive:
You open your festive red stocking and take out 8734 gold sovereigns, a penetrative vox iterator, a caramel chocolate, a grimstim pill, a hazelnut chocolate, and a lacquered minipet cage.
Was it worth the time? Well, considering how much I was cackling to myself the whole time walking around to open the stocking, that enough is worth, lol.
Joke well-played, Pools. How unlucky must my RNG be to get this infernal hell. XD
... now who was the crimi- I mean, lovely benefactor who hung me a stocking? NAME YOURSELF.