Guild Wars 2

Hi all,

I have around 1,000 hrs in GW2 since release, mostly in large chunks here in there with breaks in-between.

I’m thinking of coming back to play again, wanting to get used to the game again before HoT comes out.

I stopped playing about 5 months ago. I stopped before the trait system was re-worked etc.

Just after some insight on what’s changed since then in terms of class balance and usefulness.

Would be great for someone to give a quick rundown on each class’s “state” in each of the game’s main areas (Dungeons, FOTM, PvP, WvW etc.) so I can see if there’s been many major changes, and also help me decide which of my mains to focus my time on.

FYI, I have Ranger/Mesmer/Thief/Necromancer/Guardian(was my main) at 80.

Any insight is hugely appreciated,

Thanks!

I can’t give you too much of a breakdown on PvP or WvW because I’m not as experienced in those fields as other players, but here’s my opinion on PvE.

Most useful classes:

Elementalist: I’d say elementalists are typically seen as the best class in PvE. They have a ton of damage, lots of support, potential for group condition removal and can even heal when needed. And then they have ice bows, which speak for themselves.

Guardians: Guardians are also way up there thanks to active defenses, stability and projectile reflects/blocks. And thanks to their new elite shout, even their offensive support is much better now.

Thieves: I regard them as a great PvE class thanks to high damage, spam-able aoe blinds, the most spammable blast finisher in the game and group stealth, the last of which is very handy for skipping mobs or safe resurrections.

Warrior: Warriors have strong offensive support and the insta-party-res battle standard. They’re never out of place in any party.

Mid-tier classes:

Mesmers: Mesmers are in a strange place because outside of portals, anything they can do Guardians can basically do better. Guardians have more reliable projectile blocks and reflects, and thanks to their new shout, can even offer more up-time on quickness. Still, it’s never a bad thing to have a Mesmer in a party, and they are a decent alternative to Guardians if you don’t have one present.

Engineers: Engineers can do lots of damage, more so than a lot of non-engineer players realize, but they just fall behind a bit with regards to the utility and support that some other classes bring to the table.

Bottom-tier classes:

Unfortunately, this spot is relegated for Necros and Rangers. It’s not because they’re terrible (though some will try to convince you that they are), but rather because they don’t bring anything substantial to the table in group situations.

Rangers: Ranger support capabilities are really sub-par at the moment and their damage unfortunately doesn’t make up for the deficit. Unfortunately, they don’t bring anything unique to the table that makes them desirable in a party and what they do bring is typically done better by another class.

Necromancers: I’d say they have similar problems to rangers, but admittedly, I have little experience with them.

Note:

Keep in mind, a lot of these roles might change with the inclusion of elite specs in HoT’s. Rangers, for example, will become the ultimate healers. Mesmers will get a unique mechanic for reducing group cooldowns and Engineer drones look like they’d be very handy in group situations, etc. There’s no telling how the meta will change, especially with dev comments on how they intend to topple the zerker with raids.