Guild Wars 2

New player to GW2, but i have been online gaming for 10 years now. I need some help. I enjoy playing support classes. My first char (in EQ1) was a bard. Played that till EQ2 came out and then played a dirge(bard). When I played City of Hero/Villains i always played Defenders/Corruptors. In WoW(gods what a nightmare) i Played a Boomkin and an Enhancement Shaman. I do NOT need to be top dps. My enjoyment in playing is helping my groupmates. I prefer distance to melee but i do NOT mind melee. Please dont take into account PvP because i lothe it with a passion that borders on a psychosis and dont partake in it…EVER!!! So now you know what i like to play here is my question.

What class here in GW2 is more akin to my playstyle? I see a ranger spec with Nature Magic that might work. Also the Engineer has solid possibilities. The Elementalist looks hopeful as well, but im not a “clothy” kind of guy if i can avoid it. I dont mind if it isnt the fastest way to level. Some advice i humbly beg. Thank you in advance

P.S. Is there a reason why naming a char is SOOO difficult. I mean I am a 30 D & D player and Dungeon Master. So i have a DEEP “Name Pool” and it took me more than 15 min to get a name.. Just curious no real complaint.

There are no tanks/healers/DPS roles.
The game pretty much changed how combat is done.

This video will put you up to speed in how the Combat System actually functions:

After you finish watching that video, check this other video on how all 8 professions
play in combat so you can get an “idea” on what you might be interested in:

Good luck! =) And Welcome to GW2!

re: names

they are globally reserved. one name per planet, regardless of server. if you are named mr hot potato, you are the only one in the world.

this makes it much tougher to get the names you want.

as far as playstyles and professions go, here’s my experience:

guardian feels tanky, supportive, and kind of boring at times, but fun overall.
mesmer is really exciting to play, even if the appeal isn’t there. I had no interest in the class at all and after 30 levels Im considering naming it my new main.
necromancer is a good challenge with a balance of everything. you can do it all, but none of it’s spoon fed to you.
warriors are easy to play fire and forget style in every build ive tried so far.
engineers are clunky and tricky, but have been getting a lot of fixes recently. hope you enjoy targeting the map more than enemies.

Once you watch my videos and understand the core mechanics of Damage/Control/Support, you pretty much can play any profession you like.

Choosing a profession is based on playstyle preferences based on the core mechanics of the combat system. There are no Roles. Sure you can make tanky characters but it’s discouraged to Tank since you will die… xD

Also you are Responsable for yourself and contributing in your team regardless of profession you choose. If you die, it’s your fault since you lacked Control/Support/Damage. It’s your job to keep yourself alive, and to keep yourself useful in a team by coordinating “Control”, and “Supporting” each other, as you deal “Damage”.

In my oppinion the Mesmer is the best “support” class while still being able to hold its own.

This is the spec I run when solo, especially when roaming in WvW and find it perfect for my play style as you are strong solo but also able to offer high levels of utility when you find a group.

For large scale WvW swap to the Glamour spec and your support spells will be further enhanced.

Both spectacular have Feedback (reflect all ranged attacks), Null Field (strips boons from enemy and conditions from allies and either portal (movement utility) or Veil (stealth utility) for the elites time warp offers quickness to most people who stand in it during the duration.

@DreamyAbaddon

Thanks for those videos and explanations. They’ll go a long way toward helping people understand the GW2 combat system. I think that should be a sticky.

Do you have anything that explains combos?

Thanks to everyone for the kind words. And thanks Dreamy those were VERY informative. I think im going to give the engineer a try. Not as if i cant roll something else up later. Cheers

beak.2368:

Not as if i cant roll something else up later. Cheers

exactly

GW1 was my first real foray into MMOs, and I fear it ruined me in others. I can never stick to one character; trying to gear up a collection of characters on a raid team is quite a pain in the butt.

But in any case good luck and have fun!

dinominator.9862:

@DreamyAbaddon

Thanks for those videos and explanations. They’ll go a long way toward helping people understand the GW2 combat system. I think that should be a sticky.

Do you have anything that explains combos?

Yeah you guys can go check out my Written (guide) for combat details as well as “Combo fields & Finishers”

Note: I didn’t write anything about the Combos but if you read below my guide, someone has a fully detailed information about how the Combo fields and finishers work so I advice you check the guide out and look for that in the buttom comments!

Here it is:
https://forum-en.gw2archive.eu/forum/game/players/GW2-Combat-system-101-Guide/first

It would also be nice to see you guys leave a nice feedback comment on my guide to keep my thread bumped up!

I hope this helps =)