I had to post this right away, because I’m really excited to report that for me, the Dragonhunter elite spec is ACTUALLY FUN NOW!!!!!
I was very disappointed by this spec last BWE, so I was nervous to try it again. I’ll be completely honest, I don’t know what has been changed. But my overall impression is, this is the new “tactical spec” for GW2. Everything about the new weapon & skills seem designed to make the player really think ahead about enemy encounters, and use positioning to their utmost advantage. LOVE IT.
Here’s how things feel now:
Longbow:
- feels like “more” than a typical autoattack, what with the need for careful positioning for a “bounce,” and does appropriate damage for an autoattack. Love the audio cue for when a “bounce” successfully happens.
- is okay, might want to increase the damage a little bit to make the charge-up time feel more “worth it” when the damage is compared to #1. Lovely animation!
- feels a little weak for a skill halfway across the bar, but clearly its use is more control than dps, so I’m okay with it. Again, the abilities of the skill feel tactical, and I LOVE that it’s a “landing strip” ground-targeted skill, rather than autotargeted!
- is just a thing of beauty. Visually, tactically & in terms of damage, it is just beautiful. Don’t change a thing here!!!!!
- has awesomeness roughly equal to that of #4. I really love the visual animation for the “monster pen,” and it gives the same satisfaction as good old staff #5 always has, of watching enemies lick glass and bounce off. Haven’t tested it enough to see if it can trap multiple enemies at once, but I hope so (maybe with a limit of 3 or something?).
I think the cooldown on the trait that adds knockback to longbow skills (GM: Heavy Light) could be a bit shorter. Right now it kicks off very randomly once or twice during encounters with a 10 sec cooldown…if the cooldown were a bit shorter (3-5 sec?), or if it had NO cooldown but was only triggered by one longbow skill (I’d suggest #3 perhaps?), I think it could be used more deliberately, and fit in better with the spec’s overall tactical feel.
Traps:
Overall, traps just somehow feel more fun and useful than in the previous BWE. I came away from them last time feeling underwhelmed, but this time I can really see their potential to change the Guardian into something much more tactical (yes, I keep using that same word….not sure how else to explain it).
Purification: Haven’t really used this enough to have a clear opinion yet
Procession of Blades: The balance between the duration of the trap (once it’s triggered) and the duration of the cooldown seems a bit off. It’s a long wait to re-use the skill for only a VERY brief moment of usefulness. Maybe consider doubling the animation (having the blades spin around twice) to increase the duration of the trap. It would be okay to decrease the damage somewhat to balance out a longer duration, IMHO.
Test of Faith: This one is great. It’s actually in comparison to this that PoB feel too short. Cripple works well, damage seems balanced, and nice animation.
Light’s Judgment: The ability to lay down so much vulnerability is really nice. Also very pretty, although I could see it adding a lot to the unpleasant “visual noise” of a busy combat situation. Duration felt good.
Dragon’s Maw: Again, fits in swimmingly with the tactical focus of the spec. Was able to “suck in” 4 grizzly bears at once, then hit them with PoB and Longbow #4…..just gorgeous. Can’t wait to figure out the timing to use it together with Longbow #5 to increase the “stuck” time for enemies inside.
One trait suggestion: swap the positions of Dulled Senses and Zealot’s Aggression within the trait line. Dulled Senses has great synergy with Heavy Light, but when forced to choose between DS and Hunter’s Determination, HD will win out every time. Allow us the chance to choose both for a really cripple-heavy build!