Please add a few skills to Ele’s. I want to play as one badly but compared to other classes I have found that they don’t have the offensive power to make up for their physical weakness. This class is missing skills that give you a little blowback from when your getting wailed on. Even engineers have some moves that grant a little control in the field with the defensive shield moves that give you a little push back.
Forgot about lightning hammer. That’s very true. For me though it’s just something missing that would make the player feel like they are hitting hard/packing a punch. I was thinking more of an explosion. Something similar to big ole bomb from engineers. I just feel like especially in WvW or in dungeons I feel more like an annoyance than a threat. My main is a thief and I feel like people are much more cautious when approaching me. Than when I play my ele.
Forgot about lightning hammer. That’s very true. For me though it’s just something missing that would make the player feel like they are hitting hard/packing a punch. I was thinking more of an explosion. Something similar to big ole bomb from engineers. I just feel like especially in WvW or in dungeons I feel more like an annoyance than a threat. My main is a thief and I feel like people are much more cautious when approaching me. Than when I play my ele.
Cause thief has a backstab and everyone knows about backstab and stealth so you have to be aware of them that just goes with the territory. Engi’s can insta gib you but people aren’t as cautious around them as thieves either.
It just goes with the territory of thieves and I would say necros. The popular builds can kill you in less than 10 seconds so everyone knows to be really careful around them.
S/D eles or S/F eles people should be very careful around them. D/D glass isn’t popular.
Engis can kill you as fast as a thief but that burst build isn’t widly popular and it’s easy to spot rifle or Pistol even then I don’t see alot of Engis running it full Mr Beetus or Five Gauge glassy.
We have enough anti-projectile stuff to counter engineers more easily I guess. Just imagine a static discharge burst right as you activate Magnetic Aura…:)
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There is some control in most ele weapon setups, although some of them are on very long CDs.
One of the major sources of inequity for our class is our auto-attacks (non-LH) are poorer than most classes. Typically they’re slower to activate while doing lower damaged.
Top that off with with a class that has the lowest base HP and is in the lowest armor class.
The upside of the class is that with 20 points into water and 10 points into arcana you can heal for ~3k (water 15 + water 5 + elemental attunement) and clear a condition.
One of the major sources of inequity for our class is our auto-attacks (non-LH) are poorer than most classes. Typically they’re slower to activate while doing lower damaged.
What I don’t understand is the fascination with auto-attacks that many people seem to have.
Yes, they’re weaker in general, but on the other hand, most of the time you’ll be using other attacks. For example, fireball may have weak dps but there’s often a lava font active too. Or you can be cycling through your attunments, say a d/d using dragon’s breath then fire graps then switching to water for frost breath healing then to air for a ride the lightning etc.
Also, we have the option to bolster our dps by summoning elementals. So it’d be fair to have slightly weaker auto attacks.
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Yes, they’re weaker in general, but on the other hand, most of the time you’ll be using other attacks. For example, fireball may have weak dps but there’s often a lava font active too. Or you can be cycling through your attunments, say a d/d using dragon’s breath then fire graps then switching to water for frost breath healing then to air for a ride the lightning etc.
Lava font is good against static enemies, but otherwise not very effective.
As far as I can tell, most attacks we have either do marginal damage or are easily avoided.
What I don’t understand is the fascination with auto-attacks that many people seem to have.
It’s an obvious major weakness, one of many the class faces.
We have poor auto-attacks and then our other skills are typically difficult to land in pvp.
As far as I can tell, most attacks we have either do marginal damage or are easily avoided.
You’re missing the point here. What I’m trying to show is that unlike other professions, our main source of damage isn’t our auto attacks: it’s at best a mix of both auto attacks and other skills. Staff eles for example can use Lava Font/other skill in addition to our auto attacks (unlike the warrior, that has to choose between 100b or his auto attack). Naturally, to balance that the auto attack is somewhat weaker. When it comes to sets like dagger/dagger, the auto attack is actually a filler used when everything else is on cooldown. The bulk of the damage comes from skills like fire breath, and because we have extra skills, we can cycle through quite a few of them before we end up at our auto attacks. Typically, I’ll use auto attacks about 20% of the time. With all my other attacks doing much more damage (and when you’re a bit more skilled, you’ll hit a lot more often with them), my dps is quite a bit higher than my auto attacks suggest. Even a single meteor shower would raise it substantially. So just focusing on the auto attacks seems a bit short-sighted imho.
If you consider summons to something to bolster your dps, even warrior banners fit this category.
Banners don’t have auto attacks (and before you say anything, elementals do give party buffs). The ranger has his own auto attack dps lowered because he has a pet. It’s only logical to assume that Anet applies dps restrictions to other classes that can use pets (to a lesser degree maybe). I’m not saying it’s a HUGE factor for us, but it could be part of the reason.
And finally, we deal a lot more AoE damage. Fireball can hit up to 5 targets, and unless I’m mistaken, most weapons can only hit up to 3.
If you can read this then it is proof that ArenaNet’s moderators just, kind and fair.
You’re missing the point here. What I’m trying to show is that unlike other professions, our main source of damage isn’t our auto attacks: it’s at best a mix of both auto attacks and other skills. Staff eles for example can use Lava Font/other skill in addition to our auto attacks (unlike the warrior, that has to choose between 100b or his auto attack). Naturally, to balance that the auto attack is somewhat weaker. When it comes to sets like dagger/dagger, the auto attack is actually a filler used when everything else is on cooldown. The bulk of the damage comes from skills like fire breath, and because we have extra skills, we can cycle through quite a few of them before we end up at our auto attacks. Typically, I’ll use auto attacks about 20% of the time. With all my other attacks doing much more damage (and when you’re a bit more skilled, you’ll hit a lot more often with them), my dps is quite a bit higher than my auto attacks suggest. Even a single meteor shower would raise it substantially. So just focusing on the auto attacks seems a bit short-sighted imho.
Are you thinking only PVE?
Anyhow, I’ve been playing a warrior sword + shield / longbow warrior in pvp lately and I very much feel the power inequality between the elementalist and the warrior.
No, not really as I play a staff ele in sPvP too, and it works pretty much the same. If you want good dps, you’ll have to use your other tools too. You can’t (and aren’t supposed to) rely on just your auto attacks.
Anyhow, I’ve been playing a warrior sword + shield / longbow warrior in pvp lately and I very much feel the power inequality between the elementalist and the warrior.
I just want them to buff Meteor Shower into shorter cast time. Shorter cooldown would be icing, and buffed damage cherry on top.
Oh and faster cast for fireball.
Give me that and Ele becomes balanced for all the woe we have as glass cannons who die when someone looks at us.
Would be opverpowered, really. Meteor Shower really is fine, it can already deal over 10k damage to multiple targets without a glass cannon build. Faster cast fireball would be ok, although I’d prefer faster flying fireball.
If you can read this then it is proof that ArenaNet’s moderators just, kind and fair.
No, not really as I play a staff ele in sPvP too, and it works pretty much the same. If you want good dps, you’ll have to use your other tools too. You can’t (and aren’t supposed to) rely on just your auto attacks.
Anyhow, I’ve been playing a warrior sword + shield / longbow warrior in pvp lately and I very much feel the power inequality between the elementalist and the warrior.
I just want them to buff Meteor Shower into shorter cast time. Shorter cooldown would be icing, and buffed damage cherry on top.
Oh and faster cast for fireball.
Give me that and Ele becomes balanced for all the woe we have as glass cannons who die when someone looks at us.
Would be opverpowered, really. Meteor Shower really is fine, it can already deal over 10k damage to multiple targets without a glass cannon build. Faster cast fireball would be ok, although I’d prefer faster flying fireball.
YES faster flying fireball, I totally agree. Most other classes projectiles move faster than my fireball.
How do we deal 10k without glass cannon? I have to go full glass to achieve those numbers.
Multiple hits. I get 2k non-crit per meteor and I’m not even in berserker gear. Hitting with 5 meteors is relatively easy, even on single targets like bosses.
If you can read this then it is proof that ArenaNet’s moderators just, kind and fair.
Faster projectiles and #1 would fix many many things, we lack dmg at #1 skills so why not be able to atk faster??? we dont even have more effects like other classes (you know slash-slash-epic slash,etc.)
And don’t start the “we have 20 skills”, thats bullkittens, when most of them are not even worth using them.
They called us TEMPESTs, but we can use our elite to cheat death instead
And don’t start the “we have 20 skills”, thats bullkittens, when most of them are not even worth using them.
They’re not that bad, especially in PvE. The staff #2 skills for example actually deal quite a bit of damage and most of them have an effect to boot.
Well, PvE is one thing, but without our FGS glitch, we’ll be screwed even in there, because this is really the only thing which makes Ele desirable in the dungeon group, everything else can be replaced by another class and with more survivability as a bonus
And PvP is on the border of being forbidden for Eles, unfortunately….
How do we deal 10k without glass cannon? I have to go full glass to achieve those numbers.
Multiple hits. I get 2k non-crit per meteor and I’m not even in berserker gear. Hitting with 5 meteors is relatively easy, even on single targets like bosses.
Ahhhhh I thought you were doing 10k per meteor, hahaha! Ok that makes more sense.
As for Staff 2 skills, problem with most of them is that they are slow as hell. Only Lava Font is really usable, all the other 2 skills take forever to hit. In certain situations they are ok, but the time delay makes their DPS much lower than they ought to be.
How do we deal 10k without glass cannon? I have to go full glass to achieve those numbers.
Multiple hits. I get 2k non-crit per meteor and I’m not even in berserker gear. Hitting with 5 meteors is relatively easy, even on single targets like bosses.
Ahhhhh I thought you were doing 10k per meteor, hahaha! Ok that makes more sense.
Well, ppl are able to hit a meteor over 20k each hit in full zerker, so I guess that 10k is possible without going full glassy in the group setting scenario
But of course, very specific conditions required for that
In certain situations they are ok, but the time delay makes their DPS much lower than they ought to be.
I’m not quite sure I follow. They take a while to land, sure, but it’s not like you can’t do anything in the meantime?
Personally, I like to think of staff like this: in my balanced build I regularly get large AoE crits of 3-4k (every other attack on average) while still having decent heals and some boon/condition support for my team. May not be great, but it’s decent enough.
Note that that is without any party or consumable buffs.
If you can read this then it is proof that ArenaNet’s moderators just, kind and fair.
I find staff really difficult to play when compared to my S/D build.
It seems difficult to ‘control’ a situation with staff, and as such it seems to always be extremely defensive when not trying to pour out damage. For instance, you can be in fire, using lava font/meteor, but if someone comes your way you only have the option of rolling back away from them. Or you can attune to air and go for a stun (which can usually be broken), only then you are stuck in air with a knockback and little damage.. or swap to earth and go for immobilise, and a defensive wall, but you still need to get away before finally attuning back to fire for damage.
On the flip side, with S/D I can use RTL/updraft to down a play coming at me, then wail on them with fire skills, swap to earth for a stomp then back to water/air for mitigation/damage.. It’s much more in control of the situation.
I guess this is why I only see staff as a supportive role in a coordinated group.
The problem with staff is that air is almost completely useless (besides static field and windborne speed, which is usually just used for swiftness between points). If they fixed air to actually do some kind of DAMAGE (especially single target) then staff would be complete.
Unfortunately, for most weapon-sets, we have 20 skills, but only 1/2 are worth using.
Dagger MH: used often b/c every skill is good in places
Scepter MH: Water 2 is useless
Staff: Air 1-3 not worth using ever, earth 2 only useful as a blast finisher or zoning
Dagger OH: often used b/c all skills are good (although churning earth is rarely useful in pvp)
Focus OH: Fire is 100% useless. The fire field is nice for huge might stacking, but that only works in pve. In pve, fire might as well not exist.
The most used combo is d/d b/c it is the only one that has all useful skills. S/D is next b/c it only has 1 useless skill. Staff is next b/c it can be used in situations where you are a field/aoe bot. X/F is used least b/c you have to give up good skills for worthless ones (40s CD on fire shield? REALLY?!?!)
The problem with staff is that air is almost completely useless (besides static field and windborne speed, which is usually just used for swiftness between points). If they fixed air to actually do some kind of DAMAGE (especially single target) then staff would be complete.
Unfortunately, for most weapon-sets, we have 20 skills, but only 1/2 are worth using.
Dagger MH: used often b/c every skill is good in places
Scepter MH: Water 2 is useless
Staff: Air 1-3 not worth using ever, earth 2 only useful as a blast finisher or zoning
Dagger OH: often used b/c all skills are good (although churning earth is rarely useful in pvp)
Focus OH: Fire is 100% useless. The fire field is nice for huge might stacking, but that only works in pve. In pve, fire might as well not exist.
The most used combo is d/d b/c it is the only one that has all useful skills. S/D is next b/c it only has 1 useless skill. Staff is next b/c it can be used in situations where you are a field/aoe bot. X/F is used least b/c you have to give up good skills for worthless ones (40s CD on fire shield? REALLY?!?!)
Yup, you are correct on your points. Personally I have not used focus in a while because it generally feels pretty lacking when compared to an off-hand dagger. My favorite weapon is definitely the staff but air is pretty worthless and I only ever switch to it if I need to remove cc with windborne speed or if I am just roaming around and want a speed boost. I think I should disable the air auto-attack because it bounces to non-aggressive mobs and draws them to me way too easily.
