Guild Wars 2

Hi, I just bought Guild Wars 2 and it’s almost done installing. I don’t know what class to make, I know that i probably won’t make a Warrior or Guardian just because i’m tired of the same ‘ol warrior archetypes. I’ll be making the character a female human and I will be starting in PvE first then I will move into PvP once I get the hang of the game. Anyways, I like a challenging but rewarding class so I’m torn between the Elementalist and the Engineer. I was also looking at the Mesmer because the playstyle looks very interesting. Lastly, I was looking at the Necromancer because I like the utility it brings with conditions(idk what these are) and stuff. I enjoy a class that’s challenging but feel rewarded for being able to play it excellently.

Tough choices, all classes are interesting in their own way.

I went with elementalist as my first character to run through the game. Its fun, and in PVP you should have no issue at all, particularly once you become comfortable self comboing and switching between elements. Though in PVP, you need to be careful with your traits and playstyle, because in most “builds” generally you will be set up too be very fragile

I’m not going to lie. Both the elementalist and the engineer have slightly higher than average learning curves. Elementalists are designed with switching attunements (fire/water/air/earth elements) frequently. Sticking with one element is usually a bad idea. Engineers are designed similarly, but with switching kits (abilities that switch your weapon bar).

Engineers have the fewest weapons of any class, but they make up for it by having a crap ton of different kits that they can put in their utility slots. Kits are basically weapons all of their own that only engineers have access too. Engineers can swap in and out of these kits at any time with practically no cooldown. However, engineers do still currently have an absurd amount of bugs plaguing them. Engineers also have, IMO, the highest skill cap I’ve seen so far in this game. Its easy to be mediocre as an engineer, but extremely hard to be good as one. Unlike the warrior or guardian, where they can just run into a group of NPCs in PVE (do this in PVP and you’ll die) and face roll to victory, engineers require finesse and good keyboard dexterity to take on the same group of NPCs. Once you get good at it though, you’ll make those warriors go “WTF, how’d he pull that off?” I’ve done things with my engineer I couldn’t dream of doing on my warrior. If your twitch skills are above average, you’ll love this class. Regardless, engineers are an extremely fun class to play, but difficult to master.

I have not played an elementalist yet, so someone else will have to chime in on them.

you get 5 character slots to start off with. Try a few different classes.

Not sure I’d write off Guardian or Warrior so quickly. The names are evocative of archetype, but all the classes I’ve played in GW2 all play very different than whatever other MMO one might reference.

At the same time, I love my Ele, Engy and Mesmer. They all play very differently from each other, and are interesting twists on traditional convention.

Challenge you say? Rewarding? Ah.
Simply pick the Guardian then, as they have no ranged options
except very poor ones (compared to everyone else) and that brings
great reward if you manage to make it in PVP with that. Rofl ^^.
I don’t think anyone can answer this for you really… All classes can be/are
rewarding/challenging in their own way. . . I for one picked a Guardian because
I liked the thought of being an asset to the people around me.

The LZ.7891:

Challenge you say? Rewarding? Ah.
Simply pick the Guardian then, as they have no ranged options
except very poor ones (compared to everyone else) and that brings
great reward if you manage to make it in PVP with that. Rofl ^^.
I don’t think anyone can answer this for you really… All classes can be/are
rewarding/challenging in their own way. . . I for one picked a Guardian because
I liked the thought of being an asset to the people around me.

Eh im not a fan of the tanks unless its acknowledged and is much needed but from what i’ve seen in pvp streams is that there is rarely a guardian or warrior

Personally i tried all classes to about level 20 and the one that got me is the elementalist.
As for race i prefer a Norn just because i love the snowy starting zones <3
Reminds me of skyrim

Elementalist and Engineer are both rather complex (though the complexity can increase or decrease with your build). Necromancer is fun, but plagued with bugs – though those are being fixed over time.

Human Females make good Engineers, I like their gun animations (except the rifle jump one, but that’s not good on any race). Humans also have really nice dodging animations for Thief (they fade out and back in).

Dont play an elementalist until they fix them. Weakest class in the game and still have bugs, very few of which have been fixed. Engineer is fun, good bit of variety, and grenade and flamethrower kits are fun, especially in WvW. I’d suggest guardian though, after switching to it from my ele it felt like I was in paradise. Damage is so much better and the abilities are very fun, great at support and damage. Only problem is you don’t really have any decent long range abilities.

Guardian will make everything else look depressing, seriously.

It is hands down the best class in the game for every aspect.

Everyone is different and all the professions have their good points.

My first level 80 was a Dagger/Dagger Elementalist and I love the way it plays. I have a level 30 Engineer and actually had good success in WvW even at level 20. Both can be complex professions. Elementalist with the four Elemental Attunements and Engineer with the various kits, but that’s part of what I like about them.

I’m now playing a Melee Ranger and having a blast, but it’s not as fun pre level 40 as post level 40. Similar experience with Thief, absolutely loved my Thief post level 50, but it was a bit less fun up to that point.

Elementalist is a pretty solid choice if you enjoy complexity, as I found it fun from start to finish.

Don’t assume anything by what other games have told you about classes, example, my ranger is primarily melee while my warrior is exclusively ranged. This game is not predictable. Just create one, play it, and if you hate it try something else.

Thanks for the insight, i’ve just been making one of every class and so far i like the necro the most and i’ve only played elementalist warrior and necro, im making a mesmer later.

I defiantly agree that you should Try out a Few Classes and get a feel for what works for you. But also give each Class you DO play a fair Go, and if it doesn’t seem to be working out try a different Weapon and some different skills/talents – each class can be played in many different ways/styles.

As for the Classes (Professions) you mentioned.
Warrior- A Solid class, but yes not exactly Unique.
Guardian- Might surprise you, while it is Thematically similar to a Paladin it is Very much it’s own unique Class.
Engineer- My Personal Favourite, Kravick explained them well.
Mesmer- A fantastic and unique Class but BEWARE they are not a great first class to play. They take a little bit to get used to and can be confusing while you are still picking up on the games basics. I recommend playing one after you feel comfortable with the game.
Necromancer- Yeh, pretty much what you’d expect.
Elementalist- A cool Class, but it may take some getting used to as you need to switch between elements regularly to get the full effect from them.
The Ranger and Theif are good too, although the Thief is significantly different from most MMO rogues (no long term stealth ability).