Guild Wars 2

Hi,

I wanted to make a small unbiased discussion about guardians if possible, I would like to touch a couple of points which I believe is holding the class back:

-Everyone got buffed:

While arguably we have gotten buffed, everyone (but eles) have consistently gotten buffed in areas like damage and survivality, making other bunker classes not such a rare sight. It feels like a giant power creep that has left eles and guardians a little behind in terms of health and damage.

Base health and gamestyle

I think the hp nerf was justified at the time of implementation back in the early months of the game, given how guardians could build tanky and become monsters, but ever since then new builds have appear and many of them do no involve having increased regeneration and access to damage diminushers. Until now our only 2 “ranged” wepaons are staff and scepter, and while scepter has the potential to do a lot of damage, it is still slow and very unreliable, and staff hits like a wet noodle when built outside zerker. Meaning we have to go ham on them, and th curent hp does no reflect this, perhaps we could increase it to mesmer’s level?

Too many sacrifices

This is the major point I have. Basically guardians feel like one major sacrifice when you want to play them in PvP. Building damage pretty much guarantees that you wont be able to get alive out most encounters, unless you get heavy on cond clean and stability, mostly just to keep up with people. At that point you lack chasing tools. Most of the time guardians either end on 1) Bunkers with traits into retaliation, saying “dont touch me” or 2)healbots. Perhaps you can give me some insight on how you could fix this, either by giving them some counterplay to all the AoE condition and CC or maing more selfish cleansing spells which are on lower CD (i believe our spells have such long CD because they are team based, not self based)

Any input on this would be greatly appreciated, perhaps this is just a perceived issue but personally I have absolutely no problem playing any other class in the game but guardians and ele, I dont want to be forced into support/tanky, thats something I did not sign up for when I picked this classes.

Fortus.6175:

I dont want to be forced into support/tanky, thats something I did not sign up for when I picked this classes.

This is the sad state of these two classes unfortunately. At least guardians still have access to some sort of damage mitigation and active defenses aside from healing through Block, Aeigis, Blind and lotsa other buffs when specced burst or condi (those burn hurts). But guardians were specifically built as a defensive class that’s why they excel in surviving and the only viable mid-bunker class at the moment.

About eles, wait.. no. Nevermind.

Everytime I play a dps guard, I think of kite wars 2 and then go back to a support guard.

Lets not forget that plenty of bunkers exist now a day that can out tank the old an current guardian while still being able to straight up kill you; engineers, rangers, warriors with their innate 2x-30k hp, necros with innate 2xk hp on top of DS and on top of building toughness vitality ….

Rejoice, we are getting vigor!!

Fortus.6175:

I dont want to be forced into support/tanky, thats something I did not sign up for when I picked this classes.

Guardian looked so bad kitten dps profession in character selection screen that you forget read profession name?

As a long time guardian player, I’ve moved a while ago to warrior. I Agree with all things said.
1) Moved from tier 3 HP pool to tier 2.
2) Balanced power builds will only work if you put both the guard and their target in a small cardboard box and shut the lid, otherwise anyone can simply out walk them at a slow and gingerly pace.
3) After one year of standing on mid, it doesn’t feel like a profession that can roll all roles.
4) No Alt form condition builds. They suffer the reverse of engineers who have no true power build.
5)Guardians were born too late. In gw1 in GvG often 2x warriors were present. One was a shot caller and the other helped keep dmg output and pressure up, but would also act as quarterback to fall back to backline when opposition warrior got through or rangers were chirping your monk at close range. The guardian would have been excellently suited to this duel role. In Current pvp of nodes and no team configure/phalanx style Pvp the guardian has been kinda unleashed in a game mode that doesn’t need them. Hence why they have been standing on mid point since beta..there is no real reason for them to roam and clue a team together.
6) Guardians need differentiation from warrior. otherwise they are much of a muchness in terms that there is only 2 heavy professions in this game. They are in that tight stop that if power is lifted, they are too similar to warrior (Especially now with suggested buff to shouts on warriors) they really need a unique roaming style that makes them a valuable asset to move around a map and not keep in stationary spot. More shouts that assist damage output and aggressive support/group AoE buffs-debuffs that only they can do and not shared by any other profession (Imagine just for a moment a group shout that can target up to 5 players with torment and/or a trait that allows condition dmg to base itself off your power trait.) and much more mobility. The staff alone fills this role. Their weapons need to encompass a lot more of this in PvP. In Dungeons their group movement skills, buffs, dmg mitigation and slight power output increases makes them Shine because in dungeons the 5 of you all run together and in close quarter to each other, which simply doesn’t really happen in soloq/tpvp/spvp. You just can’t get the most of them in these area’s currently with PvP being like it is.

I think a very good first step for guardian would be the introduction of an elite or similar skill that transform your first 5 skills to different shouts. Currently the tomes are either dmg or defense. Or an elite shout that did an even mix of both in unique ways. (Turns opposition might into short duration weakness..flips stability into cripple..flips regen into poison etc while buffing momentarily your allies) It would result in a situation where the snakes posion is also it’s cure. The easiest way to get a bunker guardian off point to bring a guardian. (Do ackniwledge these are just quickly formed idea’s to promote creativity towards this thread..i know a necro can already pretty much do these things with specific traiting to wells/boon flipping..which is a solid idea for the guardian to mix up their current use of defense-defense-defense. I’m not suggesting these specific idea’s get used, just the concept behind them. I’d love to see a guardian who could boon flip/condition cast with shouts and had condition damage base of power on certain/specific traits for specific conditions so that for once all power armour stats and conditions runes (I.E celestial armour) may actually look attractive to us because we can use them in a unique way other professions can’t making guardian remain separate from warrior.)

ArcTheFallen.7682:

Everytime I play a dps guard, I think of kite wars 2 and then go back to a support guard.

I play with someone who plays dps guardian and he does well. You should try to improve – it can work.

Guards always been a brain dead class. Low skill floor, low skill cap, high reward. I don’t think they should be tweaked in all honesty because anyone can pick up a guardian and be good at it the moment you know how to peel for your allies and pay attention to your allies hp and conditions.

Supports in most games are just meant to be easy and effective. They really shouldn’t touch Guardian anymore unless every class has to be touched for more variety.

Amir.1570:

Guards always been a brain dead class. Low skill floor, low skill cap, high reward. I don’t think they should be tweaked in all honesty because anyone can pick up a guardian and be good at it the moment you know how to peel for your allies and pay attention to your allies hp and conditions.

Supports in most games are just meant to be easy and effective. They really shouldn’t touch Guardian anymore unless every class has to be touched for more variety.

This describes every class in game currently. Low skill floor, high reward.

Aza.2105:

Amir.1570:

Guards always been a brain dead class. Low skill floor, low skill cap, high reward. I don’t think they should be tweaked in all honesty because anyone can pick up a guardian and be good at it the moment you know how to peel for your allies and pay attention to your allies hp and conditions.

Supports in most games are just meant to be easy and effective. They really shouldn’t touch Guardian anymore unless every class has to be touched for more variety.

This describes every class in game currently. Low skill floor, high reward.

except eles.

Eles are highest risk/usually no reward