Guild Wars 2

Hi all. I need some profession advice. I’ve been playing for a few months and have allowed others to kill my enthusiasm for GW, so I’m wondering if I need a fresh start or just a different perspective. I have 3 level 80 characters, but I have virtually zero experience in dungeons. I’ve leveled them all through mapping and personal story. I still consider myself a bit of a rookie, so I’ve stayed away from what the forums label as complex prof’s such as mesmer or engi. I want to stick it out with a profession and “do everything” in the game before I split any more time with alts.

First 80 – Guardian – I like the profession, but I got a lot of negative feedback from pugs as I died a lot in dungeons.

Second 80 – Necro – I found the class to much more survivable (maybe because I started to appreciate the game’s mechanics!), but pugs are rather “racist” to the class, and I got insta-kicked several times before I could even say hello.

Third 80 – Condition Warrior – I liked the sword/sword approach, but pugs would kick me for my weapon and signet selection.

Third 80 part 2 – Power Warrior – I went through the expense to replace all my condi warrior stuff with berserker gear and an axe/mace – axe/sword build. Then the might nerf in the latest patch happened and several “pros” have done nothing but bad-mouth warriors since. I feel like I wasted my time on him.

So that’s my long-winded story. I just want a profession and build that I can stick with and shrug off all the negative feedback/kicks. I realize that the most common answer to this is “just play what you like” but it’s hard to like any profession with the negative experiences. So it’s likely that I’ll lose interest in the profession before I find the perfect one.

-Soup

First 80 – Guardian – I like the profession, but I got a lot of negative feedback from pugs as I died a lot in dungeons.

Dying in dungeons is unrelated to how strong a profession is, rather it is about your knowledge of dungeon and its encounters. Guardians are pretty amazing in most of the game, from world exploration to mini dungeons to WvW zerg frontline (disclaimer: please don’t bring your PVE Zerker armour to WvW).

As training wheels, please do the following:
Traits: 5 points into Virtues and trait into Absolute Resolution. This gives Virtue of Resolve an active large heal and condition cleanse and should train you into recognising how, when and why you should activate your Virtues.

Utility: Whatever your build, whatever dungeon you’re running, have Wall of Reflection. As a beginner, you have no excuse to zone out during fights, so pay attention to what you’re fighting. If you see something shooting anything, drop Wall of Reflection. Nine times out of ten, you’ll be a hero for your group.

Second 80 – Necro – I found the class to much more survivable (maybe because I started to appreciate the game’s mechanics!), but pugs are rather “racist” to the class, and I got insta-kicked several times before I could even say hello.

Instead of joining a “All paths 80s zerk speedrun” group, make your own. The discriminating sort will see your Necromancer icon and wander off, the rest will just join up on their own.

Third 80 – Condition Warrior – I liked the sword/sword approach, but pugs would kick me for my weapon and signet selection.

Condition damage is just one of the worst things about GW2 PVE. But if you’re intent on playing one – as above – make your own LFG.

Third 80 part 2 – Power Warrior – I went through the expense to replace all my condi warrior stuff with berserker gear and an axe/mace – axe/sword build. Then the might nerf in the latest patch happened and several “pros” have done nothing but bad-mouth warriors since. I feel like I wasted my time on him.

Haven’t kept up with the QQ on official forums, but they are still viable and wasn’t much affected by the Might nerf. Banners of Discipline and Strength aren’t even affected and those are the major reasons why Warriors are “meta”.

Above all, it’s not “just play what you like”. Instead it’s about understanding why something is good or mediocre before jumping to your own conclusions. A little bit of critical thinking goes a long way.

Thanks Ojimaru. I’ll spend more time on my guardian and apply the build changes you recommended. I appreciate the feedback.

As was said above, you can safely ignore dungeon speed run meta if you don’t do speed runs. I don’t do dungeons often but I have run several on necro without issue.
There was a guild for learning dungeons you might check them out to get a hands on learning experience.

It’s also about finding the right guild for you. Sure you can play the game on your own but it is an mmo. Making friends and contributing to that community is what seperates an mmo and a single player game.

Their knowledge and understanding can help you and than you can pass that knowledge down to new players entering the guild.

It seems like you’re joining the wrong parties. Avoid the “zerk/meta/experienced/rush/x class only/x AP/no noobs” parties and only go with those that just say “px” or even “all welcome/newbies welcome”. Those kinds of parties couldn’t possibly care less what you bring. I often do dungeons with my necro and longbow/greatsword Ranger (and equip the feared brown bear when I need extra condition removal) and I have never been kicked. I play with minion master necro’s/signet Warriors/staff and scepter Guardians who say they’re the tank/water Elementalists/ in my parties all the time, I never see them kicked. You shouldn’t pay too much attention to what the meta is if you like your class as it is, as long as you’re not looking to join the “meta zerker” parties.

That beng said, Guardian is actually much more durable than Necro. Maybe you could try other builds with Guardian to see if there’s something that fits you better.

OP, since you are pretty new in dungeon you should found someone that could explain all or at least part of the dungeon you are running.

Ideally a friendly guild that will bring you with a TS/Mumble/Vent… There is a lot of little tricks that is good to know in dungeon. There is also a sticky in the dungeon forum for the Mentor Guild that help new player in dungeon/fractals if you don’t want/can’t find a guild. Another option is to create a looking for group that specify that you are new to dungeon. There is a lot of friendly ppl that won’t mind explaining to you some small stuff, but you probably gonna have more luck during the weekend when ppl have more time to do their daily stuff. AC is a pretty simple dungeon that need only limited explanation, you should start by that one. Path 1 and 3 are the easiest, path 2 will need a bit more explanation for the final boss, but its still easy.

You should concentrate on either guardian or warrior. Warrior is easier to play because you resistance come from passive stats and ppl only expect that you bring banner as a warrior. Guardian is more resistant than warrior, but its more about active defense and not passive stats. Ppl also expect more from a guardian so if you really want to have zero pressure in dungeon as you learn them, Warrior will be a better choice.