Guild Wars 2

I just learned how to add upgrades to armor and weapons. I bought a Speed Boost and Bloodlust (power) upgrade for my Ranger longbow and the difference was huge. The speed boost made running from event to event easy and the power boost was significant.

What is the best way to use upgrades leveling?

This is my first ever GW2 character so I only have 9 gold (from selling all collectibles). I think my best bet is:

- Go to the AH/TP every ten levels
- Buy new armor and weapons with Mighty (+power)
- Put Speed Boost and Bloodlust upgrades in my new longbow
- Put upgrades in my armor (don’t know which)

Am I on track or is there a better way? Am I wasting gold? Or are the upgrades amazing at level 10 and less so at 30 and above (so I know when to stop buying them)? Also, is Power/Speed good for all professions or are there better upgrades for certain play-styles/professions?

I don’t fully understand karma vendors, + ferocity items, or other game systems yet so there may be another obvious way to get gear that I do not know – thank you for any advice.

Lots to learn! Loving the game.

Thanks again.

Mashugana

It looks like a pretty good plan. Fill your armor with +10 power runes:(1 of each) ogre, strength, hoelbrak, privateer, mesmer, elementalist, etc, and use consumables like food and maintenance oil, or sharpening stones. Leveling up should go quickly for you.

When you get to level 39, full rune sets may be a better choice. I don’t know for sure since I never did the math.

I wouldn’t say it’s a waste if you find the upgrades are making the game easier/better/more fun for you, but it’s pretty easy to get to max level using only looted gear so most people don’t bother buying anything before then as it’d keep getting irrelevant as you level.

That said, your plan does sound good for optimized, worry-free leveling. I’d say maybe don’t replace your entire set every 10 levels but only the pieces that are more than 5 levels lower than yours, as likely you’ll have upgraded one or two at least from looting them from mobs every now and then.

Rune sets I don’t really think are necessary, just slap whatever you have for a couple extra stats but don’t spend more than you need to on them, the effort you’re putting on everything else should be way enough.

For sigils: bloodlust is a good choice. For speed it’s up to you, I personally would bypass it by using the warhorn 5 skill and the signet that gives speed (although you might not have unlocked that one yet?). If you want more raw damage, consider sigil of force, but again it’s an expense you might not really need until you hit 80.

For weapon/armor stats, +Power is definitely good. If you want to go for full DPS as you go on, get the +Power +Precision sets once you reach the level where you get two stats/armor, then +Power +Precision +Ferocity. If not, fiddle around with the secondary stats until you find something you’re comfortable with. (For reference, Ferocity as a stat affects how much your critical hits damage for; the higher the ferocity, the higher the damage on crits, which is why it synergizes very well with power (normal damage) & precision (chance of critting).)

Karma is precious at higher levels because it’s required to get stuff like legendaries, so some people might advise you to hoard it until you go for that. However, if you don’t care for that right now you can also spend it at karma merchants (denoted by a little purple triangle on the icon, or hearts giver if you’ve finished the heart) for gear, trinkets, consumables, etc. It can be worth it to check what they have, if only for example to get a couple accessories to round up your stats. Up to you though.