Guild Wars 2

I am not going to describe what the issue are, since that dead horse doesn’t need any more beating… So lets get to fixes.

0) Fix pet aggro. More specifically fix NPCs prioritizing aggro on pets over people.
This is not even a point, but rather a pre-requisite. Once you address that, you can actually begin properly balancing ranger class without looking back at general PvE and bots.
Yes, rangers will need actual effective utility skills to compensate, and fixing pet aggro will make it obvious enough for ANet to see the issue.

1) Add key binding to switch pet passive/aggressive modes. This is very much needed.

2) Give pets flat 75% damage reduction from AoE. This is no longer just a dungeon issue. New scaling events guarantee that any melee pet get 1-shotted on approach.

3) Fix traits. This is a huge topic, but in short half of the ranger traits are in wrong trees, and other half just buffing ranger to what other classes do naturally. Piercing Arrows and Signed of Beastmaster are best examples of that. Those should be default effects.

4) For Greatsword:
- Maul doesn’t need damage increase. Maul needs to be a blast finisher and apply decent condition (bleed on GS? seriously?) I would settle on weakness instead of 3 bleeds.
- Counterattack is counter-intuitive. It should be knocking target down instead of knocking it back. Also make it 2-3 seconds KD. For a reactive skill that isn’t too much at all.

5) For Axe
- fix Splitblade. It often aborts cast for no bloody reason. Make it either directional AoE or untargeted skill, or just reduce cast time to 1/4. Speed up the projectiles too. In its current state it is pretty bad. Also I think it still doesn’t work properly with Sharpening Stone, though I haven’t tried recently.
- Redo both off hand skills. Currently useless.

6) Call Of the Wild is pretty disappointing, especially if you consider its the only party buff rangers have. Either make it good running skill or a good fighting skill. Right now it is below average at both (just like everything about ranger).

7) Sword. Seriously need to fix auto attack root. Make it evasion like GS instead… or whatever, just let us move with it.

8) Spirits need complete rework

9) Shouts need reduced CD by like factor of 4 or 5 before they aren’t complete waste of support slots.

I agree with most of these issues but I actually think Call of the Wild is a pretty kitten good skill. Fury, might and swiftness right? On a warrior that’s their elite…

and add more dps. the pet is useless. it can’t even catch up to most targets even with 30% movement speed (kitten?) and dies in seconds.

rapid fire should be 5 shots instead of 10 at the same dmg and long range shot should do the 1000+ range dmg at any range (i see the idea for pve but you’ll never be 1000+ in pvp (come to think of it not often in many dungeons either) so you’re being kitten for no reason.

I would like more utility with my utility skills, as it is I don’t think there are too many different effective builds that can be made with them.

I’d say the sword is fine the way it is, what it DOES need however is the ability for Dodge to take priority over #1s animation, if i’m mid animation and hit dodge, it should dodge, it shouldn’t not do anything.

JoshuaRAWR.4653:

I’d say the sword is fine the way it is, what it DOES need however is the ability for Dodge to take priority over #1s animation, if i’m mid animation and hit dodge, it should dodge, it shouldn’t not do anything.

you mean you don’t like that it sucks you back if you try to move away? apparently the devs think that is working as intended. they even said that somewhere on the forums but i won’t bother trying to find it.

vespers.1759:

and add more dps. the pet is useless. it can’t even catch up to most targets even with 30% movement speed (kitten?) and dies in seconds.

rapid fire should be 5 shots instead of 10 at the same dmg and long range shot should do the 1000+ range dmg at any range (i see the idea for pve but you’ll never be 1000+ in pvp (come to think of it not often in many dungeons either) so you’re being kitten for no reason.

I think the dps on pets is fine, the ranger’s dps however is cut so harshly by having a unremovable pet that it hurts more than helps unless you can baby sit your pet keeping it alive. Basic attack on lb is an awesome idea, since it is the real deal a ranger “should” be using. Unfortunatly the basic attack doesn’t get THAT much stronger over range. It should do more at 1000+ ranger but also if you trait into lb ranger (1500 range) it should have another tier of dmg at 1200+ range. This would make the lb a very intimidating long ranger weapon as opposed to the rapid shooting of sb… which for no reason has 1200 range just like lb (without traits included).

I don’t agree at all with rapid fire being lowered to 5 shots. I use it very often as a tracking skill for invisible enemies since it doesn’t lose them.

Sotw should last like 30 seconds imo… I expected a beastly moment to tear my enemy down not a 2 minute cooldown because I hardly felt an impact for pressing that signet.