Guild Wars 2

No sugar coating it, I’m looking for a mass dps aoe class. I want to stand in the back of the fight, drop aoes on the main battle. Which class would be best? Thanks for the help!

Drysdale.3826:

No sugar coating it, I’m looking for a mass dps aoe class. I want to stand in the back of the fight, drop aoes on the main battle. Which class would be best? Thanks for the help!

Necro, staff ele, grenadier engi.

None, yet.

Arena Net stated a boost to single target DPS skills, and a nerf to AOE ones.
No date for that stated.

Necro, or Grenade Engi. I would say Staff Ele, but our AOE’s do less damage then the other 2. :x

You can also try Warrior with longbow, with the traited range increase.

I personally think it is the best bow class in the game (no pet like ranger, and better range than thief).

Dervish … oh wait.

Staff Ele.

Grenade engineer is good for standing in the back and launching AoEs. If you’re traited for it you can get 1900 range on all grenades. Also each skill could throw 3 grenades, each one being it’s own AoE, so it’s almost like bending the 5-target AoE limit a little.

Vilkata.4725:

Grenade engineer is good for standing in the back and launching AoEs. If you’re traited for it you can get 1900 range on all grenades. Also each skill could throw 3 grenades, each one being it’s own AoE, so it’s almost like bending the 5-target AoE limit a little.

Facts:
1. Grenades have 1200 range. With the grandmaster, grenadier, trait the range increases to 1500 and 2 grenades become 3, but the toolbelt grenade barrage still has 1200 range.
2. Grenade skill #1 still does really low damage compared to any ranged attack from other professions
3. Grenades at long range are extremely easy to dodge, because they travel so slow and enemy gets the red circles as a warning sign well before the grenades are even close by
4. All the grenades rarely hit the same target unless enemy is closer than melee range (basically inside your character model)

Grenades can be used effectively in the WvWvW, but requires a lot of skill. You need to be running and doing ground targeting at same time. There is no auto attack under the grenade kit when you are on dry land. Most people hate to constantly need to click both button #1 and mouse button to do ground targeting and then see it doing only about 200 dmg/grenade with circa 2000 points in power and about 50% crit chance.

And don’t expect to have any spiking power. Throwing grenades is more like throwing soap bubbles at your enemy and hoping they will be scared of them. The 100nades spike is only possible with preparation and less than melee range.

Deniara / Ayna

Vilkata.4725:

Grenade engineer is good for standing in the back and launching AoEs. If you’re traited for it you can get 1900 range on all grenades. Also each skill could throw 3 grenades, each one being it’s own AoE, so it’s almost like bending the 5-target AoE limit a little.

If you go grenades in WvW, they are used for spraying the tops of walls, helping clear cannons and oil, and the up-close-and-personal individual 100nades’ hug. You don’t AoE groups of people with them at range and expect anything useful to occur.

If you want to stand back and spam aoe, do not pick a grenadier. Your fingers will get arthritis within a month.

Necro has some amazing aoe skills and conditions when trained for it. They can also spread those conditions with epidemic so if one person can’t take their mass conditions off then the whole group is going to get a burst of conditions on them. Not only do we have that but we also can be used as a blinding machine. If another Zerg charges and hopefully yours doesn’t run away then well of blindness and the plague mist form with blind can really mitigate the damage. Well of blindness is also a combo field that can cause blindness with shots and stuff. IMO necro is the least underplayed class but is extremely useful to zergs…… We are also a very good counter to theifs and strip boons like a mofo.

I have 5 level 80’s that I have used in WvW. The best AOE damage dealer = necro. All the necro skills have low casting time + can be stacked = bursty aoe damage. 2nd is glass cannon grenade engi or staff ele but don’t recommend either for aoe. First, grenade engi will give you medical problems from spamming 1111 for hours. Eles dont have high damage as people think(unless you go glass cannon and die to one backstab)

Necros can be very useful in sieges with Marks and Wells, comfortably solo camps with zombie minions and tough enough to roam. I don’t know whether it’s the best choice, that’s ultimately up to you, but they’re definitely a very good choice.

I’m also a fan of Juggernaut Engi, which may be more of a thing I have for fire than anything actually practical, and Longbow Warrior, which is much the same.

Honestly, with Anet openly stating they’re looking at AE damage and at least appear to currently think it’s too strong (AE damage done to a single target seems to be their main beef), I wouldn’t roll a class solely for that purpose. Make sure the other aspects of the class appeal to you as well. That way you won’t be totally disappointed if a AE nerf comes.