Guild Wars 2

Hello Everyone,

I’m mostly a PvP player, trying to get a grasp of WvW world. Obviously i start from zero, so i wanted some insight on how to gear for it.

This is my available gear right now:

- Berserker Ascended Armor
- Berserker Ascended Weapon with might infusion (I have a staff,sword,shield and greatsword)
- Berserker Trinkets (even with some other stats, looted from FOTM)
- Various Exotic Armor (ranging from Berserker,Knight,Cavalier and Soldier)

I’d like to know how much toughness/amor i need to be competitive.

When i watch Wvw builds from youtube, i see people having a lot of vitality and toughness; i think they need it from zerging and being on the frontiline without dying too much, but what if i wanted a build for small scale roaming?

I post some build i came up with, every constructive comment/criticism is welcome, like i said i’m a newbie in Wvw.

Burst Shatter Chrono:
http://gw2skills.net/editor/?vhAQNAR8ensIClphNqB2oBEgilTjiMAWggqeaz2ttcEauwB-TFCBwA8UhJn6DYV+t5KAA4hAkX3wZlgF3fIAwBA/+bAA-w

Power Reaper:
http://gw2skills.net/editor/?vRAQJARWn0IC12gN2AW2A0bileBDaMVACAUfhxQxKuJWFviA-TlCBwA51FkTdAAXAgNHBAsK/4pyTt9HqcIAOrE0zDAIAwBQ47vB87vBA-w (decimate defense can be changed with chilling victory and blighter’s boon with reaper’s onslaught)

Tempest:
http://gw2skills.net/editor/?vFAQFAWn0XCFOgdOA+NA0RgFBALIAUAeAut2Z7tloLsEqCA-T1xHwAe1B4R9HmKB1s/AgLAQPlfDeAABAOA+93Agf/NIFArqsA-w

all the builds are power based, cause i don’t like conditions ^^

Thanks is advance.

There are lots of different meta builds, check out metabattle per standard operating procedure. Many people opt for a little toughness in order to take the initial force of zerker gankers. Unlike sPvP, your enemy rarely approach from the front in an orderly manner. GG trying to survive 2 zerker thieves ambushing you if you are a zerker yourself, it has little to with “surviving in a zerg” unless you build for frontline melee. Alot of people also go toughness/condi.

Either way just join WvW and try it out. You never know what works for you unless you do. Different enemy servers have different ratios of meta roamers – some which zerker is bad against, some which it is good.

From what i see there’s this recurring phrase in almost every meta:

“Stats – A good start would be full Berserker’s. Player preference can swap pieces for more survivability using this spectrum: Berserker’s ? Valkyrie’s (Note: Armor/Trinkets difference) ? Soldier’s. (Avoid Knight’s, Cavalier’s, or others, as they sacrifice Power for main stat).”

it’s more offensive than i tought, but as you said i shall try and see how it works.

Tks

Depends on what makes WvW enjoyable for you. I run a full ‘zerker Ranger sometimes and he’s incredible fun – deeply satisfying to blast down a glass cannon from 100 to 0 in 3 seconds! Of course, I too can get ganked the exact same way on that toon.

When I want to zerg or survive in a roaming scenario I hop onto my condi Necro and either Well-bomb the bejesus out of the enemy or kite gankers until they inevitably succumb to bleeds and poison.

Horses for courses and all that. Have fun.

zapphyre.6548:

Hello Everyone,

I’m mostly a PvP player, trying to get a grasp of WvW world. Obviously i start from zero, so i wanted some insight on how to gear for it.

This is my available gear right now:

- Berserker Ascended Armor
- Berserker Ascended Weapon with might infusion (I have a staff,sword,shield and greatsword)
- Berserker Trinkets (even with some other stats, looted from FOTM)
- Various Exotic Armor (ranging from Berserker,Knight,Cavalier and Soldier)

I’d like to know how much toughness/amor i need to be competitive.

When i watch Wvw builds from youtube, i see people having a lot of vitality and toughness; i think they need it from zerging and being on the frontiline without dying too much, but what if i wanted a build for small scale roaming?

I post some build i came up with, every constructive comment/criticism is welcome, like i said i’m a newbie in Wvw.

Burst Shatter Chrono:
http://gw2skills.net/editor/?vhAQNAR8ensIClphNqB2oBEgilTjiMAWggqeaz2ttcEauwB-TFCBwA8UhJn6DYV+t5KAA4hAkX3wZlgF3fIAwBA/+bAA-w

Power Reaper:
http://gw2skills.net/editor/?vRAQJARWn0IC12gN2AW2A0bileBDaMVACAUfhxQxKuJWFviA-TlCBwA51FkTdAAXAgNHBAsK/4pyTt9HqcIAOrE0zDAIAwBQ47vB87vBA-w (decimate defense can be changed with chilling victory and blighter’s boon with reaper’s onslaught)

Tempest:
http://gw2skills.net/editor/?vFAQFAWn0XCFOgdOA+NA0RgFBALIAUAeAut2Z7tloLsEqCA-T1xHwAe1B4R9HmKB1s/AgLAQPlfDeAABAOA+93Agf/NIFArqsA-w

all the builds are power based, cause i don’t like conditions ^^

Thanks is advance.

I would at least look for another type of runes as your have a base swiftness from Chronomancer trait (25% movement speed) and can use Signet of Inspiration for 33% swiftness.

Even with Power as your main stat, it would benefit your build more to have some condition damage as then you can just add a sigil which would give you bleed, burn or poison to add into our damage.

I suppose that you will want to be able to cap a camp solo sometimes and then you might want to consider to have something more then just pure power to help you out. Damage over time (DoT) is actually not bad when you have a strong attack with direct damage and combine it with condition damage as you will force your opponents (in WvW it is not uncommon to be suddenly overwhelmed by a larger group while you are capping something) to use their stun breaks or remove conditions or even spam their heal skill earlier then expected in a way that might set them off their rotation.

Both bleed and poison (doom – on swap or blight – on hits; blight must you craft yourself as it is account bound) will hit a group of NPCs or players (you have only cleave from sword and GS). Wells are our source for AoE (there are some other utilities depending on your race). Depending if you use action camera mode (cross hair for targeting can be hard to both fight and place Wells at the same time) or cursor in free mode on screen to place Wells, you will have different way to use your Wells.

Upgraded camps can have two cabalist which have a very strong pull effect, so you would want some way to get stability (Chaos trait: BD on shatter is very useful).

In the end you need to decide on what you main CC effects should be. Chill would benefit from condi damage as it will both damage and have a control effect (soft CC is important to tear down breakbar on vet champs in keeps/tower and when player have guild upgraded banners), stun and daze can be optimized by combining sigils of Impact and duration sigil for stun (both you can find on TP). With exception like Chron shields AoE for stun, you will rarely find skill for Mesmer and Chrono which will mass stun or daze a group like Revenant are capable with either Jade Wind or Salvation GM trait (for all elites).

In short your build as roamer can be very flexible if you want to make it more more hybride and with Alacrity you can do more then just spam recharge rates. Try out which Wells you like better first and see if there are combinations of utility (and elites) that work for you better.

Our main problem isn’t thoughness, but vitality as we have access to evades from sword, distortion (F skill and trait) and other sources. Condition damage is something that fast can kill you when you get stunned or dazed, if you don’t have enough of vitality to eat away until you can use condition removal of some kind. It depends on how you play style (are you going for melee or stay as far as away as possible with GS)?

I use same weapon as your build, but have rabid gear and berserker trinkets. Runes of Traveller (but might change that as I do not need that speed boost on Chrono). My weapons stats change between berserker, sinister and every thing where there is either power or condition and toughness or vitality in one of those stats where ferocity would have been. Traveller give me both some base duration for condition damage and some for boons, so it is still not a bad option and with food/tools I can tweak a bit more of what I need.

It is not easy to take out a fully upgraded camp in the new BL with two vet cabalist, some women with ranged poison from bow and zealot which have very fast attack/movement compared to other guards. Still I manage to solo cap these kind of camps with the build I have, provide support if I change trait to get regen for Signet of Inspiration and Well of Recall (chill+alacrity) and Gravity Well (pull enemies into centre; use Shield Tides of Times). Stay long enough to get that last pulse from Well of Recall to shorten Recharge time on Well of Recall itself and when needed also heal skill (+all other skill). Play around with both Recall and Alacrity on Shatter (in CS) to learn how it is possible to get more out of your skills. If you use CS first and blink to escape damage, then when CS end you will teleport back to same spot where you activated CS. In a way CS>Blink would have an same effect as a portal back where you made en entré (trigger portal). That is just one of many possibilities with CS.

Should there be a need for your utilities and alacrity in a party or squad (even as a mostly solo roamer you would gain from knowing where ppl are on your map) you can slot in portal/feedback instead of well or change GW into MI (take a look at chaos trait to improve this skill) to help your team mates to avoid fights/mitigate some damage or make surprise attack.

I tend to pick Bountiful Disillusion (Chaos trait), duelling for fast illusions (EA) and blind on shatter (very efficient against incoming condition) and Times Catches up (super speed for illusions), Improved Alacrity and I have lately changed from Chronophantasma to Lost Time as all my hits will now have a stacking of slow (5) which work on both sword and GS. For GS it is a good replacement for cripple from Imagine Burden (Dom) and it also work to help reduce breakbars. My sigil is bloodlust on GS and Fraility for vuln. stacking. On Sword Sigil of Fire (work best in melee; 240) and Shield have Doom for on swap poison.

Too hard to answer this question because there needs to be more information. What are you doing in WvW? Running around solo? Running in a small havoc group? Group of 10-20, 20-30, blobbing, pick team, etc.? Are you running with a guild group where you can complement your team mates with your build and they complement you? Are you running with a bunch of pugs who are running selfish builds? What types of enemy are you facing?

Your shatter mesmer build is good (I don’t agree on the healing skill, but that’s debatable).

However, I think that you necro build wouldn’t work at all in WvW. The main reason being that you are not mobile enough.

To juke zergs or larger group of players, try replacing Spectral Armor with Spectral Walk. I would also try to fit Flesh Wurm in here as well.

With Blighter’s Boon and the precision you have, you would benefit A LOT from Chilling Victory. Also I’m pretty sure you would prefer taking Relentless Pursuit of Chilling Nova, since you don’t play condi.

Finally, since Reaper Shroud is melee, you really do not want to play a melee weapon like GS: you’ll get kited by all the DH, mesmers and rangers out there, and die. Dagger/wh would give you more damage, a lot more lf, an interrupt, and all that at range.

To Doolally:

how can not be fun? with my ranger i run marauder amulet with pack runes Marksmanship/WS/Druid and i enjoy it a looooooot expecially when rapid fire does his job. Talking about conditions…well….i don’t know, maybe it’s my mindset that is wrong, but i’m just not happy when i play for example condi reaper or condi shatter chrono with Carrion and various condi runes. Watching the bar of enemies slowly depleting is fun at first, but i enjoy more to burst someone down than condi-kitten him. Maybe i’m the only one but me and condi-play were never best friends. To sum it up, i think power based builds like shatter mesmer take more time to learn and gives more satisfaction, but that’s just me

to Shadowcatz:

i use pack runes for perma swiftness, other viable runes for me would be chronomancer or mesmer’s, the important thing is they have precision attached. Also signet of inspiration seems wasted on that slot, i’m too attached to my other utilities such as blink and decoy, this could change overtime however. About sigils i could try sigil of doom and sigil of impact, but i should enhance my condition damage with some gear cause it’s very low as it stands. Rabid seems very good, but takes out a lot of power, mandatory for the build i’m playing. Also i prefer Soldier/Knight mix on armor, cause soldier have vitality and as you said it’s very welcome to not fall to conditions.

to Spurnshadow:

Like i said i have yet to play this mode so i can’t answer all of your questions. My guildmates play Wvw daily, running in 8-10 max but i don’t know what build they’re using, if it’s selfish or complementary. One thing i can tell you for sure is that i’d like to run solo or with a small number of people most of the time.

to Sorel:

I don’t agree as well with the healing skill on the chrono build i posted lol, wrong button i think ^^, my healing skill choice is eather feast, cause it has a low cooldown as well as integration with the active illusions i have.

For Reaper build you’re 100% right, and i feared that it would be like that for Greatsword. In PvP i run staff and dagger/warhorn too, Life Siphon and Locust Swarm are really good and i use that a lot. The reason i enlisted greatsword in the build is that i don’t have ascended dagger and warhorn, so i tought it would decrease my effectiveness, but thinking carefully i’ll craft them when i can, or just buy an exotic set.

Utility wise, i’ll be frank, it’s not much i play reaper so i don’t know about all the available utilities. I’ll try flesh wurm (if i’m not mistaken it’s a big worm you can teleport too, someone uses it to stomp too) and spectal walk. Relentless pursuit seems pretty good too as well as chilling victory. Nice one, i’ll try it and see how i do.

Thanks everyone for the replies, you’ve all been helpful.

zapphyre.6548:

For Reaper build you’re 100% right, and i feared that it would be like that for Greatsword. In PvP i run staff and dagger/warhorn too, Life Siphon and Locust Swarm are really good and i use that a lot. The reason i enlisted greatsword in the build is that i don’t have ascended dagger and warhorn, so i tought it would decrease my effectiveness, but thinking carefully i’ll craft them when i can, or just buy an exotic set.

Actually, I typed too fast, I meant to write axe and not dagger (axe is ranged). But dagger is also a strong choice: better is some match ups, worse in some. Good luck out there!

You really can’t go wrong with having a full glass cannon build in your repertoire. Outside of that it’s really based on preference. I really like having a few marauder gear (or some other spread of vit/prec/power/ferocity) on my warrior for wvsw.

I really hate glass cannon builds. Until they fix rally of 5 players from your 1 death, that is not going to change.

With dragon banners, air ship bombings at SMC, and revenant hammer 2 from 2700+ power & 200+ % crits it is very different than PvP. 10K-15K crits are common with CoR ; crits are almost always due to Fury uptime + double Fury effectiveness.

In PvP full zerker is 2375 Power, 46.8% crit, 210% crit damage. In WvW it is 2557 power , 49.7% crit, 2145 crit damage , not including 200+ power from food/utility.

If you have less than 2200 armor you’re likely going to be bursted down by everyone with 2600 power if you’re an elementalist with Berserker’s.

2600 power /2200 armor = 1.18 = 18% damage bonus against you much like a full zerker in PvP vs another full zerker (2375/2000 = 1.19)

Your tempest is not as glassy as some, I’d look into a Marauder amulet and/or staff for some extra HP though and Sigil of Force rather than Sigil of Battle (IMO). A key thing to remember is you cannot critical hit on siege (cannon/oil/arrow cart/catapults/trebuchets/ballistas/etc) or gates. The bountiful sharpening stone gives you 10% boon duration which is useful for stability, protection, regen , might as well.