Hi there!
Aside from being madly in love with GW2’s weapon/skill system, I noticed one thing that it could use: MOAR WEAPONS! I love the number we have, but I’m certainly not going to complain if there were more added.
Please note that I’m certain these weapon types have been suggested before, and this post is just my take on how this weapons could work for various classes. I also won’t be going into all the ability types for every class, so feel free to suggest your own! New weapon types could lead to more legendaries and the likes, too!
The Polearm: a 2H (two-handed) melee weapon for Guardians, Warriors, Necromancers
Playstyle for Guardian: With a theme akin to the Spartan Hoplites (complete with an Aegis shield!), Guardians could use their polearms to give themselves greater reach, able to improve their defense with a block maneuver that triggers Aegis if it isn’t shattered. Polearm guardians are able to keep enemies at bay with crippling leg sweeps and a final Spirit Phalanx, creating a shield wall that reflects physical and spell projectiles and induces Protection.
Playstyle for Warrior: A mix of distant and mid-range combat, Warriors can bleed their foes by impaling their target, slashing out at foes in front of them, and slow them with strikes to vitals like the achilles heel. They can also throw their spears by hand.
Playstyle for Necromancer: Perhaps doubling as a scythe-like weapon either through skins or available models, Polearm gameplay for necromancers would be a mix of melee and mid-range combat; longer-reaching, sweeping frontal cone attacks that cause bleeding and conditions that the Necromancer can take advantage of en masse.
General Appearance: It could come in a variety of models; hoplite-style spears, glaives, halberds, scythes
The Cleaver: a 2H melee weapon for Guardians, Warriors, Rangers
Playstyle for Guardians: A single-target high-output spike damage weapon, the Cleaver allows the guardian to focus their Virtue of Justice through the blade of their axe to keep burning thoroughly applied to a single enemy while the flames slowly spread to other nearby foes. A mix of slow and heavy cleaving and rapid swiping attacks, the target must be wary of how and when the guardian is using their cleaver’s attacks to protect against its seemingly random attack patterns.
Playstyle for Warriors: You are a brutal warrior who chops deeply into the limbs of your target; you can deal high amounts of damage over slow strikes, but debuff the target with conditions such as snares, weakness, crippling and lengthened cooldowns due to broken and gashed limbs.
Playstyle for Rangers: Using your superior reach, it acts as the counterpoint to the more defensive playstyle of the greatsword by letting you easily reach enemies with leaps and cleaving blows that surround you and quake through the area in front of you.
General Appearance: Single-edged and double-edged axe heads ranging from giant hatchets, to heavy, norse-style cleavers, to medieval double-bladed axes.
The Whip: a Primary 1H (one-handed) melee weapon for Thieves, Elementalists, Mesmers
You’re able to apply thorough bleeding and trip up the opponent with the whip as a Thief’s primary weapon. Mesmers and Elementalists can wield a whip in their off-hand, giving Mesmers the advantage of blinding and deafening cracks of their whips and Elementalists can create impressive fountains of healing water, ice slicks, streaming magma, and rolling thunder with a lash of their whips.
General Appearance: Bullwhips, cat o’ nines, chains, flexible ‘sword-whips’ could all comprise the appearance of the Whip.
The Crossbow: a 2H ranged weapon for Engineers, Thieves, Rangers
Playstyle for Engineers: You’re a genius! Using your impressive array of different ammunition types, you’ve got more than just your standard repeating bolts that you start with. Your bolts can explode in fireballs, gagging, blinding smoke clouds, envelop an enemy in ice traps and even fire a precise heavy bolt that knocks your target over and down.
Playstyle for Thieves: Serrated and poisoned bolts allow the thief to layer on various conditions, bleeding, and poisons from range. The thief does not fight fair, firing for achilles’ heels to slow their enemy and keep them at bay.
Playstyle for Rangers: Not sure how they’d work for rangers. Maybe a more sniper-esque type of weapon?
General Appearance: I’d imagine these are probably more like semi-automatic repeating crossbows with actual magazines/clips than ‘load one bolt, fire it, reload, fire again, rinse and repeat’ crossbows. As such, the magazine could be propped up on top of or below the chassis of the weapon and its overall design could vary.