Guild Wars 2

Well i got tome of knowledge from PvP.
The problem is, as title says, I don’t know how to play or how good are Ranger and Guardian.
I now have only 1 free slot character creation and i really need some suggestion.

I tried Guardian and i feel Guardian is so clumsy, has slow attack speed and not good support play [I saw some pro players do pretty well with Guardians. But when i tried with myself. I feel confusing with Guardian. :/ ]

How you guys play Guardians to be effectiveness and really skilled?

Also when i tried Ranger, i feel “Pet management” is somewhat similar to the agents from XCOM the bureau but the pets down pretty fast. And i’m not notice the differences in pets much. I think from Bear to Moa are the same except special skills.
I don’t know but i think i usually rely on pet a lot. But that’s quiet long time ago.

How do you guys play Ranger pretty good? (And um, exclude Spirit ranger please. I know how to play as it,a bit. )

I now main as Mesmer (And warrior for reaching 80, now 78) and usually play in supportive role. I don’t know how to play supportive role (and maybe aggressive role) in those classes.

I will check and decide which one should i create and play in PvE , I wish to know the goods and the bads in both classes as many as possible.

For Pve both are fine. But in pve there are some dungeons(not needed) if you want to do them it’s easier for you to find a group when you are a guardian.
I have both in pve and wvw and still having fun with both. I like ranged with my ranger but also beginning to get used to GS and one handed sword play.
Guardian I like the GS more than the hammer because that is so slow compared to it. Also like the sword/focus combo with guardian, and that with some meditaions skills it will not feel clumsy ate all but will feel like pressure on your target.

Ranger is more of a dps utility (do more damage), while guardian is more of a dps insurance (make sure you can do those damages).

All I can advise you is to check some of the dungeon builds for each class. And by that I don’t mean the support ones: the dps ones. If you’re a PvP player who can afford enough tomes of knowledge to level from 2 to 80, you’re probably experienced enough to see tells in your opponents. Use the same for the bosses and all will be fine.

The gameplay is easier on dps guardian than on ranger, mostly because the dps ranger is “rooted” while using sword. Also, rangers have a quite hard time at the moment in dungeons because of the too frequent and subpar bowbear build.

So my suggestion is take guardian. Once you have enough gold, buy a new slot and get a ranger.

Ranger is fun but suffers from alot of problems like weird trait placement, to many vear vital/good traits in 1 line, having to spend to much trait point to actually gain usuable utilitys and a pet AI which even the devs have admitted isnt working as it should.

Dungeons and higher pve in general are very minion unfriendly so in boss battle dont expect to get must use out of your pet. As the heavy aoe common to the bosses will render your pet dead for the majority of the battle.

Its not that ranger isnt fun to play , i main one. You can do normal pve just fine with them. But if you do decide to make one just know that sooner or later you will experience those problems your self. (but running with 5 moving spirits + your pet just looks awesome :p )

I dont have any experience with guardians but from what ive heard it doesnt have the same issues with its class mechanics and guardian are always wanted in fotm/dungeons due to their awesome support ability.

If I see a guard in my team: YAAAY GUARD
If I see a ranger in my team: mhhh … ranger, ok…
If this ranger uses a bow: Dudddee plz buy some melee stuff…
If this ranger stays outside of my TW with his bow: ****************************!!!!

If you want people to be happy when you join their group instead of sighing go with a guardian.

Xyonon.3987:

If I see a guard in my team: YAAAY GUARD
If I see a ranger in my team: mhhh … ranger, ok…
If this ranger uses a bow: Dudddee plz buy some melee stuff…
If this ranger stays outside of my TW with his bow: ****************************!!!!

Most ranger have this thing called weapon swapping though. Quickning zephyr is better source of (self)quickness anyway.

zMajc.4659:

If you want people to be happy when you join their group instead of sighing go with a guardian.

Its sad but true

Guardian is easier and fun to play (IME GW2’s “easy mode”), but Ranger is fun to play as well. However, the latter requires quite a bit more practice and finesse (this is by design-Warriors will almost always be easier to play than, say, an Engineer or Elementalist.)

As far as people “sighing” when they notice a Ranger, that’s a community problem, not the players problem. A player should go for what he/she feels more comfortable with, whether it is Necromancer, Guardian, or anything else-all can be great. For some people, even though the Guardian is a great Profession, it will be boring, so they may indeed prefer Ranger gameplay-who are we to tell them that they are making “the wrong choice”?

Star Ace.5207:

Guardian is easier and fun to play (IME GW2’s “easy mode”), but Ranger is fun to play as well. However, the latter requires quite a bit more practice and finesse (this is by design-Warriors will almost always be easier to play than, say, an Engineer or Elementalist.)

As far as people “sighing” when they notice a Ranger, that’s a community problem, not the players problem. A player should go for what he/she feels more comfortable with, whether it is Necromancer, Guardian, or anything else-all can be great. For some people, even though the Guardian is a great Profession, it will be boring, so they may indeed prefer Ranger gameplay-who are we to tell them that they are making “the wrong choice”?

If someone enjoys playing a ranger it’s their thing and they should by all means play a ranger but they should also be aware of where the class currently stands as far as groups are concerned.

Guardian most certanly won’t ever see a “NO GUARDIAN” description in LFG tool whereas for a ranger that’s a daily experience.

GrimHero.5140:

Xyonon.3987:

If I see a guard in my team: YAAAY GUARD
If I see a ranger in my team: mhhh … ranger, ok…
If this ranger uses a bow: Dudddee plz buy some melee stuff…
If this ranger stays outside of my TW with his bow: ****************************!!!!

Most ranger have this thing called weapon swapping though. Quickning zephyr is better source of (self)quickness anyway.

I often see long and shortbow together with a bear – also why not TW AND self quickness?

Xyonon.3987:

GrimHero.5140:

Xyonon.3987:

If I see a guard in my team: YAAAY GUARD
If I see a ranger in my team: mhhh … ranger, ok…
If this ranger uses a bow: Dudddee plz buy some melee stuff…
If this ranger stays outside of my TW with his bow: ****************************!!!!

Most ranger have this thing called weapon swapping though. Quickning zephyr is better source of (self)quickness anyway.

I often see long and shortbow together with a bear – also why not TW AND self quickness?

Every class has people /beginners who use sub par set ups i just dont see why the enitre ranger community has to be punished for it. (I personally use s/wh or gs for normal pve and havent touched a bear yet)

Good point but to get the most out of your TW i would need to go sword, which roots us nice and firmly to get one shotted by whatever crazy aoe one shot attacks they gave the bosses.

Im sure theres plenty of beginner stereotypes of the other classes including guards and wars yet they arent judged for it.

Probably because guards are just easier to play, or better – you don’t have to do that much to be effective. It’s just when you see 19/20 rangers never use a melee weapon and 9/10 staying outside of your TW … you just get that impression :/

Thanks everyone. I will decide a bit later.
And….What is TW by the way? (I only know TW for Total war. )

Ranger is a fantastic damage class for PvE. The mobility makes it very easy to survive as a glass ranger.

Guardian has a tiny healthpool if you want to run it as full glass, and since it’s a melee-heavy class, you generally end up having to sacrifice some damage for survivability.

However: Guardian is more sought after and useful in PvE. So much utility and support, even when you’re running a damage-centric build. Every guardian on a team in high level fractals equates to a LOT of breathing room. The easiest lvl 48 grawl fractal experience I ever had was with 3 guardians.

Blueskylightdragon.4876:

Thanks everyone. I will decide a bit later.
And….What is TW by the way? (I only know TW for Total war. )

TW is Time Warp. It’s a Mesmer ability that grants AOE Quickness.

http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Time_Warp

Hickeroar.9734:

Blueskylightdragon.4876:

Thanks everyone. I will decide a bit later.
And….What is TW by the way? (I only know TW for Total war. )

TW is Time Warp. It’s a Mesmer ability that grants AOE Quickness.

http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Time_Warp

Oh thanks a lot!

Xyonon.3987:

Probably because guards are just easier to play, or better – you don’t have to do that much to be effective. It’s just when you see 19/20 rangers never use a melee weapon and 9/10 staying outside of your TW … you just get that impression :/

Yeah, the reason rangers get almost no respect is primarily a function of how most people play them. IIRC, the speed run record for CoF P2 was set by a team using a couple rangers. They’re a super powerful class when played right.

They’re excellent in PvP as well, but you have to get creative to get benefits from them in WvW zerging. Condi traps and support is one way you could go…

Star Ace.5207:

Guardian is easier and fun to play (IME GW2’s “easy mode”),

Guardian is easy if you go full tank or support (as easy as useless), but if you pick zerk gear and offensive trait it’s definitely not “easy mode”.

You know, sometimes I see the Guardian and Warrior classes almost as the training wheels of Tyria, even though I play an 80 Guardian a lot and enjoy it a lot. You really don’t have to do a lot when your playing on of those two classes. Comes down to enjoying the extra beefyness of heavy armor, watching for the cooldowns, and a few other situational things. Again they are lots of fun to play. On the other hand when you look at the play mechanics of other classes like ele’s or engi’s you have to be aware of a lot more things and kind of have to pay a bit more attention to whats going on. I think the challenges of playing these type of classes breed a large pool of crappy players playing them simply because they are more challenging to play. Not to take anything away from good Guard and Warrior players, but those two classes are tremendously easier to play than an Elementalist.

All that being said, Ranger has been my main from launch and will also be. My pets rarely die because I use them properly. I can’t get rid of that longbow fast enough, but alas I am trying to finish that achievement for 5k longbow kills. GS is my favored weapon and is on the swap for when I need to get down an dirty.

This is all PVE experience, I don’t really PVP so I nothing for input on that area.

stemare.2578:

Star Ace.5207:

Guardian is easier and fun to play (IME GW2’s “easy mode”),

Guardian is easy if you go full tank or support (as easy as useless), but if you pick zerk gear and offensive trait it’s definitely not “easy mode”.

Your signature: “Stemare ~ Guardian ~ lv80”
It seems like you only got your Guard at lv80 and therefore such a comment is clear. I don’t want to insult you, but saying “my class is not easier than others” is kinda weird if you have no other class played at a high lv.

For myself I’ve got a Mesmer main, Engi alt and a Necro, all lv80. I know how strong and how difficult they are in PvE. But My Guard lv22 tells me nothing right now. But first my Warrior gets up to 80

Fror.2163:

Ranger is more of a dps utility (do more damage)

Except rangers have the lowest dps of all classes atm. Thats why no one likes them in PvE.

Charak.9761:

Fror.2163:

Ranger is more of a dps utility (do more damage)

Except rangers have the lowest dps of all classes atm. Thats why no one likes them in PvE.

:D That was funny. Rangers dps is pretty good if you stop longbowing from a distance.

so a good *range*r must not use range weapons… what’s the point of the profession name? it should be better named something like pet masters or something

As someone who plays a condition / well necromancer and a short bow / axe ranger, I’ve never been turned away from any content on either with one exception. It was a small group of friends who already had the classes I had and wanted me to either swap my necro to a non-condition build or pick another class they didn’t have to play with them. I just didn’t enjoy what they suggested me to do, so we parted ways.

In all honesty, it’s only the people on the forums and in map chat that I’ve come across that say these classes are worthless if they don’t run certain builds, etc. If I had been kicked from guilds / groups on these characters or not allowed to participate in all content, I would believe what’s going around.

To me, it’s only the maximizes that have this qualm and the classes have been designed in such a way that it’s not a big gap. This game has no holy trinity and it’s largely up to each person to take care of their own characters, BUT it’s the little things that make a group successful like stopping to rez them when they go down, using your AoE heal instead of the solo one, having a snare / root out, etc. To me, it’s those little things that make a player valuable in a group.

Fuzion.4193:

In all honesty, it’s only the people on the forums and in map chat that I’ve come across that say these classes are worthless if they don’t run certain builds, etc. If I had been kicked from guilds / groups on these characters or not allowed to participate in all content, I would believe what’s going around.

It’s more the people on the forums and map chat that say that a profession “sux”. If I have a ranger in my group and I won’t kick him, maybe he’s ok? And if he fails and I see it, I just look over it. But for myself I think “oh god why -.-”. And I guess in dungeons when you already got those professions in your group, players just think it. :/

Hayas.1648:

so a good *range*r must not use range weapons… what’s the point of the profession name? it should be better named something like pet masters or something

Ranger has several definitions but only one in the fantasy settings:

• “A keeper, guardian, or soldier who ranges over a region (generally of wilderness) to protect the area or enforce the law.”

The analogy with “range” is fortuitous.

You want to be a credit to the team in dugeons and fractals?
You want to be actually invited and liked by players?
Then, choose Guardian.

I play both & love both. My guard is celestial gear with Traveler runes and my Ranger is zerk with Golemancer runes.

I play with guild teams and we don’t care what people bring on teams so I don’t have to worry about the bear-bow ranger hate. (I prefer my black moa and reef drake pets to bears and sword/dagger/warhorn/greatsword is SO much fun)

Xyonon.3987:

Your signature: “Stemare ~ Guardian ~ lv80”
It seems like you only got your Guard at lv80 and therefore such a comment is clear.

Guardian is my main, but, I’m sorry man, I have 7 char at lv80 all exotics with over 2,5k hours played.
I didn’t feel insulted, I just said the plain truth.

I think you need to consider splitting PvE into two categories to fully realise the potential of Rangers.
Let’s call them open-world and instanced.
Personally, I found Ranger to be the absolute best class for open-world PvE and exploration. They’re hardy and have a lot of options, and the pets can end up confusing enemy AI. When it comes down to it, in open-world, they’re one of, if not the best class at running away when things get hairy.
Guard was almost as good effectively as Ranger for open-world, but was a lot more boring with limited weapon options.

I didn’t play too many instances when I played (if you’re playing instanced content, I’d argue you’re not really playing an MMO), and one of my friends who is a die-hard Ranger would claim otherwise, but I felt Rangers just have too many flaws to be effective in instances.

Charak.9761:

Fror.2163:

Ranger is more of a dps utility (do more damage)

Except rangers have the lowest dps of all classes atm. Thats why no one likes them in PvE.

Err no infact ranger dps is pretty high when the pet does work.

People hate the ranger because it lacks good group utility compared to guards and might stacking eles. And because of the bear bow stereotypical ranger. Not because the dps sucks.