Guild Wars 2

Note: These suggestions aren’t properly balanced.

Areas I’ve tried to focus on with these suggestions:

• Compression of pet related traits.
• Reduction of “passive” traits & promotion of “active” traits.
• Changes to grandmaster traits.
• Changes to Opening Strike.
• Changes to condition removal.
• Synergy between traits.
• More fun!

Changes to skills (needed so that the following suggestions make sense):

• Greatsword (Maul): Increased damage. Increased vulnerability stacks to 8 and increased cd to 8s. (Two-handed training changes this into a blast finisher.)
• Signets: Passive effects affect both ranger and pet, active effects ranger only. (Signet of the Beastmaster applies active effects to pets.)
  1. Signet of the Wild (active) – Enlargement effect is removed and activation time reduced to 1/4s. This skill is now a stun break.
  2. Signet of Renewal (active) – Now removes all conditions from yourself (not from nearby allies) instead of transferring them to your pet.
• Traps: All condition durations and direct damage are increased by 50%. Cooldowns are also increased. (Trap Potency duration bonus changed to 33%, increased functionality from Trapper’s Expertise.)
• Spirits: Spirit base heath is increased by 33%. All passive effects now proc with 100% chance by default. (Vigorous Spirits is removed and 50% health bonus added to Spirits Unbound. Spirit passive effects need to be reworked and rebalanced.)
• New spirit functionality: Draw Spirit – If you move farther than 1000 units away from the spirit, spirit active skill changes to Draw Spirit which teleports the spirit to your location. Using this skill puts spirit active skill on 1s cooldown. (Currently untraited spirits feel clunky to use when not staying in place. This change is to bring up the basic functionality all spirits have in common.)

TRAITS

Marksmanship:

Opening Strike – Cause vulnerability with your first strike when entering combat. Recharges when you kill a foe. (5 stacks for 5s / 10s cooldown in combat)
Remorseless – Regain Opening Strike on pet swap.
Precise Strike – Opening Strike always critical hits.

1. Steady Focus – Damage is increased when endurance is full. (10%)
2. Malicious Training – Increases damage and duration of conditions applied by your pets. (+350 condition damage / +33% condition duration)
3. Keen Edge – Use Sharpening Stone when you strike a foe below the health threshold. (45s cooldown)
4. Signet of the Beastmaster – Signets recharge 20% faster. Active effects of signets also affect your pets.
5. Predator’s Instinct – Opening Strike cripples. (4s / only affects ranger not pet)
6. Beastmaster’s Bond – Gain might and fury when your pet’s health drops below 50%. Pet gains protection. (3 stacks of might and fury for 10s / 5s protection / 60s cooldown, recharges on pet swap)
7. Spotter – Increases precision of nearby allies. (+150 precision / 600 radius)
8. Piercing Arrows – All arrow attacks pierce targets. Reduces recharge on short bow and longbow skills by 20%.
9. Beastmaster’s Might – Activating a signet grants might to you and nearby allies. (3 stacks for 15s / 600 radius)
10. Expert’s Dexterity – Ricochet bounces to one additional target.
11. Primal Echoes – Active effects of signets also affect nearby allies. (Signet actives are (PvE: 50%, PvP: 33%) as effective on allies / 360 radius)
12. Eagle Eye – Increases longbow, short bow and harpoon gun range (+ 300 range). Your projectiles deal more damage the farther they travel. (0-500: 0%, 500-1000: 5%, 1000+ range: 10%)

Skirmishing:

1. Pet Prowess – Pets do more damage on critical hits. (30%)
2. Sharpened Edges – Chance to cause bleeding on critical hits. (2s / 66% chance)
3. Trapper’s Defense – Create a Spike Trap while reviving an ally. Grant swiftness to yourself and your ally when you revive them. (15s)
4. Primal Reflexes – Gain fury when you successfully evade an attack. (3s / 10s cooldown)
5. Energizing Wind – Gain vigor whenever you gain swiftness. (3s / 5s cooldown)
6. Edge of Extinction – Increases damage by 25% while downed. Your pet gains quickness. (5s)
7. Trap Potency – Conditions caused by traps last 33% longer. Trap skills recharge 20% faster.
8. Honed Axes – You do 10% more critical damage for each axe you are wielding.
9. Serpent’s Quickness – Applies quickness when you successfully land Serpent’s Strike. (2s)
10. Run as One – You and your pet move 25% faster.
11. Trapper’s Expertise – Trap skills are 50% larger and use ground targeting. (900 range). When triggered…
    • Spike Trap: immobilizes (1s) & removes stealth (revealed 0s).
    • Flame Trap: blinds (3s).
    • Frost Trap: removes 2 boons.
    • Viper’s Nest: causes bleeding (3 stacks for 5s).
12. Moment of Clarity – Gain Precise Strikes (your next 3 attacks crit) for you and your pet on interrupting a foe. Daze and stun durations you inflict last longer. (100%)

Wilderness Survival:

1. Soften the Fall – Create Muddy Terrain when you take falling damage. You take less damage from falling. (50%)
2. Toxicity – Apply torment when you apply poison. (3 stacks for 5s / 15s cd)
3. Dust cloak – Blind nearby foes at the end of a dodge roll. (5s / 180 radius)
4. Vigorous Renewal – Gain vigor when using a heal skill. (5s)
5. Stability Training – Pets grant stability to nearby allies on pet swap. (2s / 360 radius / 30s cooldown)
6. Wilderness Knowledge – Reduces recharge on survival skills. (20%)
7. Off-Hand Training – Reduces recharge on off-hand skills. Off-hand skills have longer range. (20% / 20%)
8. Empathic Bond – Removes 2 conditions when you swap pets.
9. Dryder’s Defenses – Dazes nearby foes when you are disabled (stun, daze, knockdown, knockback, launch, float, sink, or fear). (2s / 360 radius / 45 second cd)
10. Martial Mastery – Reduces recharge on sword, greatsword, and spear skills. (20%)
11. Hide In Plain Sight – Gain stealth when using a heal skill. (3s)
12. Bark Skin – You and your pet take less damage while your health is below the threshold. (25% / 50% reduction)

Nature Magic:

Fortifying Bond – Change vigor to give swiftness (3s) and add stability (2s) to the list.

1. Circle of Life – Create a healing spring when you are downed. Increases revive speed. (10%)
2. Concentration Training – Pet healing attributes are increased. Boons applied by your pets last longer. (+350 healing power / 33% boon duration)
3. Nature’s Bounty – Regeneration you apply lasts longer. (33%)
4. Natural Stride – Cripple, chill, and immobilize durations are reduced (33%). Gain swiftness when you are affected by one of these conditions. (3s /10s cooldown)
5. Strength of a Spirit – Activated skills of spirits grant might to nearby allies. (3 stacks for 15s / 600 radius / 10s cooldown)
6. Nature’s Protection – Receive protection when you take damage greater than a percentage of your maximum health. (5s / 30s cooldown)
7. Spirits Unbound – Spirits can move and follow you. Spirits have increased health. (50%)
8. Evasive Purity – Dodging removes a condition from you and your pet. (10s cooldown)
9. Two-handed Mastery – Maul and Man-O-War are blast finishers. Blocking with greatsword and spear reflects projectiles.
10. Nature’s Resilience – Use Signet of the Wild when your health drops below 25%.
11. Nature’s Vengeance – Activated skills of spirits use ground targeting and trigger when the spirit is killed. (600 range)
12. Nature’s Voice – Shouts apply regeneration and swiftness to nearby allies. (10s / 600 radius)

Beastmastery:

Companionship – Pet gains aegis for 2 seconds when you dodge roll.
Loud Whistle – Pet swapping recharges 20% faster.
Natural Healing – Pets have natural health regeneration.

1. Speed Training – Reduces recharge on pet skills. (20%)
2. Master’s Bond – Your pet has a bond with you that increases its attributes…
   1. (PvE) – …each time you kill a foe. The bond is reset when pet is defeated.
   2. (PvP) – …periodically while in combat (1 stack every 3s). The bond is reset when pet is defeated or deactivated.
3. Shout Mastery – Reduces recharge of shouts. (20%)
4. Comfort Animal – Removes all conditions from your pet when using a heal skill. Resurrects pet if dead. (50% health)
5. Lacerate – Pet unique abilities (F2) remove a boon.
6. Mighty Swap – You and your pet gain might on pet swap. (3 stacks for 15s)
7. Rending Attacks – Pets have a chance to bleed with their basic attack. (50% / 5s)
8. Call of Haste – Pets move and activate their skills faster. (30%)
9. Intimidation Training – Pet unique abilities (F2) apply cripple. (5s / 15s cooldown)
10. Vigorous Training – Pets grant vigor to you and nearby allies when activated. (5s / 600 radius)
11. Zephyr’s Speed – You and your pet gain quickness when you swap pets. Pets have Opening Strike. (4s / OS recharges on pet swap)
12. Predatory Bond – Pet unique abilities (F2) heal you and your pet.

I’ve updated many of the suggestions based on what’s been said in the ranger CDI thread… Check them out! I’m having some trouble with spirit traits as the proposed changes would make them too strong but otherwise I feel pretty happy with them as a whole (although power creep is still there). Feel free to share your own suggestions and/or feedback!

Remove Zephyr’s speed. Pets will never gain the benefit of quickness anyways.