Guild Wars 2

My wife and I are very much casuals, playing a Ranger and a Guardian between us. Both are level 80. We can update gear and runes/sigils if needed. Even skill/trait selection. But at this point we’ve both achieved 100% world exploration (well, she has a few more things to hit up in WvW but she’s practically there), participated in a number of boss kills (she has the Mini Tequatl and world events, and we’ve also done a fair bit of exploration and jump puzzles. What we haven’t done much of are dungeons and fractals.

It’s just the two of us and we aren’t really looking to join up with others if only because we’re noobs and, she more than I, there is concern over being judged for not going fast enough, not doing well enough, not having the right gear or build, etc.

Is it possible to do any of the dungeons/fractals with just the two of us? I saw “story mode” and figured maybe that would be an easier time of it, but we walked into one of the dungeons and made it past the first clear to the second and got killed emphatically enough that it removed any doubt we would need more help.

So is this something that should be doable? Could our gear and skill selections have such a huge impact? Is it something that a Ranger/Guardian combo can do? Any recommendations? Is story mode supposed to enable this sort of exploratory option to at least get to go through the dungeons and experience them at an “easier” level of play?

Dungeons and fractals were designed for 5 man parties. You won’t be be able to do them with 2 people.

It is possible to solo or duo dungeons but it requires very good knowledge of the dungeon and game mechanics. It’s one of the most difficult things you can do in this game. And for some dungeons it’s simply impossible because they have puzzles that require 5 people.

Check out the [Noob] mentoring guild. I’m sure you can find someone who’s willing to teach you a certain dungeon.

Duoing is possible for everything without puzzle mechanics where you need for instance 3 people to stand on a pressure plate at the same time. But yes, it’s obviously harder than 5 man. Ranger/guardian is fine, but ranger is harder than other classes in duo ( imo), so if she has a warrior or an ele, it would be even better. Story mode is normally easier, but you still have to understand the encounters if you want to low-man, because there won’t be 3 teammates to protect you/ help you rally. Some explorable paths aren’t that hard: try caudecus manor p3. There’s a lot of projectiles and trash mobs, having a guard covers the first part, if you had a thief or an engi it would make the trash mobs easier but it’s still doable.

Alternatively, a lot of people including myself would be happy to show you the dungeons.

I duo or solo my FotM runs every other day actually. There’s just certain things that require the use of specific classes/several people.

Thaumanova fractal isn’t possible to solo on most classes. Sanderinoa recently did a 50 solo on a mesmer, but it won’t work for most, if not all, other classes because they lack the utilities needed for it. If thief is able to solo subject 6, then they are also able to solo the whole fractal on 50. Subject 6 is only particularly difficult to solo on higher levels because of the huge amount of HP it has compared to the lower levels, making it difficult to burst him down in time.

Aside from that, the only parts in FotM that can’t really done alone…

Wisps in swamp fractal (you actually need to use portal consumables for it which cost a fortune… like, 9g each or something). To do wisps easiest you’ll need 2 others including yourself, but it’s certainly possible to duo as long as one of you is either a thief or a mesmer.

Dredge fractal you may as well just stay trio for the whole time. The cage requires two people to stand on the pads to open the control panel for someone to activate, so there’s absolutely no getting around it— you need 3 people.

Then afterwards depending on what RNG you get, you might have the path with the reinforced door that requires 3 people to use the guns simultaneously, or you might get the reinforced door that requires bombs which can be done solo.

Aside from this all, the only part in this fractal that can’t really done solo is the last boss on any classes that don’t have a teleport. The last boss, whether legendary ice elemental or legendary dredge power suit, can be done on thief, mesmer, or elementalist.

The only way it could be done on another class would be to somehow have it maintain aggro on something else long enough for you to run up and pour the bucket + jump down without him moving out of the spot, or to keep him immobilized for over 10-12 seconds or something like that.

Aside from that, everything else can be solod but some parts might be excruciatingly difficult depending on what class you are.

It is my personal opinion that duoing Cliffside in particular is really fun

It’s great to hear you wanna challenge yourselves by beating dungeons with 2 people. If I may suggest something, you shouldn’t limit youselves to just two classes, but rather make a pool of them to choose from. Sometimes a class is unable to solo a dungeon (or has a really hard time with it), while another class can cheese through without problem. Most common are warrior, guardian, thief, elementalist and mesmer (depending on the exact dungeon and path), but others are usually fine as well, if the style suits you better.
Best to begin with is probably AC, story mode and P3 are pretty easy with 2 people. P1 is possible as well, but you will need something like an ele ideally. P2 you might have trouble at some places. Low level fractals are usually fine as well, but some of them physically require more than 2 people. Depends on what you get.
Good luck to you!

I would be the last person to tell you you shouldn’t attempt soloing/duoing, but it sounds like you’re looking to do it for the wrong reasons. If the only reason you want to low man is to avoid being a burden to others, don’t fret! The noob guild was created exactly for people like you. Another thing that can help is watching guides and reading about the encounters. I know a lot of people learn best by doing, but when I was just starting out having an idea of the dungeon in my head lessened some of my anxiety.

Going in to a dungeon cold in a pug can be rough, but if you’ve done a run through or two with some mentors, you will easily meet the expectations of any generic (non-speed run or noob friendly) run. If you don’t see any listings but zerk speed runs, don’t be shy to make your own. You’ll be amazed at how many people you’ll find in your same situation.

If you still fancy duoing for the challenge of it, go for it. But don’t think you have to slog through content designed for a full party just to avoid being an inconvenience to other people. There are newbies out there just like you, and teachers happy to teach willing students.

To your question about story mode – it is tuned at an easier level then the explorable paths, but it is not the same route. It’s on the same map but in terms of the events and encounters its entirely different then explorable.

Of course you can duo the dungeons. If that’s what you would enjoy doing, start practicing together. I think there are some class combinations in different dungeons that will make certain things easier. It’s all doable though.

Try to ask around for help though if you’re actually trying to do with a full party. No sense in playing solo if it’s not fun for you. Like other have said, it’s very doable but generally takes a lot of practice and experience in the dungeon to do.

Thief-Guardian in Caudecus’ Manor is really great!

just be honest in your lfg description like 2 newbies want to learn
and you will get your partys filled no problem….

worst thing you can do is join a party and stay silent that you dont know anything

Iris Ng.9845:

Thief-Guardian in Caudecus’ Manor is really great!

Agreed, I have to complete my CM Track and I always duo this run with a (casual) player, maining Guard. I therefore play as Thief (not my main).

For the most part, if you want to 2-man a dungeon or fractal, you need to already be experienced and able to at least be able to 5-man it. Really wouldn’t recommend doing a 2-man/solo otherwise.

Dungeons aren’t as serious business as you might think, for the most part if you look for ‘casual’ or ‘new to’ lfg, you’re not going to be scrutinized like you would if you joined a party that was listed ‘exp’ (experienced).

There are always experienced players willing to carry/teach noobs dungeons, just list for it and you’ll get it. If you don’t try again during a time that more players are on.

But my experienced with 2-man/solo dungeons is this, you get the same rewards as if you where in a full 5-man party but with 5 times the work. It just doesn’t make sense to me. (Coming from a player that’s solo’d just about every dungeon path and fractal just to see if he could)

Though, nothing feels more satisfying than 2-manning or 3-manning a dungeon/fractal and finishing wit the same level of ease as if you were 5-manning it. Makes you feel so beast/OP. Kind of like when you 1v3 in WvW/PvP and just pawn all of them (tbh, its usually more 1v3(up-levels) lols)

Thanks for all of the feedback and advice. I’ll talk it over with the missus and see what she thinks. While I’ve played WoW and participated in 5 mans and raids, and therefore had a chance to appreciate how larger group activities can be fun, she doesn’t have that exposure except with open world bosses where frankly we just stumbled across a chaotic maelstrom of players throwing everything around. And that’s not nearly as fun IMO. I’ll see if she wants to pursue the dungeons/fractals too.

Talk about a dream haha. I wish my girlfriend wanted to play the game with me hahaha. Good luck, and have fun together!