Guild Wars 2

I tried to get this work in a cc focused wvw build, but it was just simply lackluster. In pvp builds too it´s usualy bad decision to pick this over EA even if you run some arcanes in your build.
So apart from the one borderline legitimate use in a burst builds where you can root the target before the burst, has anyone figured out a way to make this trait work?

Personaly i find that the base duration of condis is just way too low for grandmaster trait that has such a specific trigger.
If every enemy you hit would increase the base duration by something like 20-40% though…i could see it working. Keeps the pvp version pretty much where it is, as targets are scarce, but significantly boosts pve/wvw versions without splitting the trait.

Replacing the useless burn in fire with something like say weakness, and maybe also switching the air to somehing else…just personal wishes here.

they should merge Arcane mastery ( -20 cd to arcane skills ) with elemental surge . this way, it would be a maybe …
I ,too ,tried to make this “grandmaster” trait work on every weapon ( especially for staff) . obviously… no success

The only place I’ve really found any use for Esurge is on skyhammer, as a gimmicky ’immobilise them over a panel’ trick. I really don’t like playing on that map, though - and tend to just take EA anyway for its utility.

Folks have come up with builds involving Arcane Power, Esurge, a heavy-hitting attack (like frost bow #4) while in earth attunement... but like the burst ele, it’s a one-shot-wonder kind of thing that you have to deliberately build for - and it’s apparently not even that great for getting kills.

My main issue with the whole arcane skill build is that too many of the required skills are in the same trait line, which also happens to contain the most powerful traits. This means that Arcane Mastery and Arcane Retribution have to compete with Elemental Attunement and Renewing Stamina. That makes the build clunky to say the least.

Maybe if they changed the 25pt grandmaster trait to have a small chance (10%?) to fire an Arcane Blast at the target on every attack or so, it’d be something I’d use in my build. Just needs a few more ways to activate imho.

The key weaknesses for me:

• not really usable in a CC build, CC durations are far too short to matter
• not really usable in a condition build, only inflicts burning. Also, it’s a condition trait in the boon duration line.
• too many arcane traits in a line that is already full of good traits

potential fixes:

• move it to another line
• if it can’t be moved, add a boon so it at least benefits from the trait line bonuses: fire=might, air=fury, water=regen, earth=protect
• buff the chill and immob durations

By far its biggest problem is that the trait has to compete with Evasive Arcana, which even without vigor/energy sigils gives so much more utility to an ele who has gone into Arcana.

As ThiBash said, it just doesn’t proc enough for the effects to be useful in most situations. The durations of the conditions might benefit from being increased, or more arcane skill procs could be added, or it could also proc when hit while in an aura? Auras have some neat traits around them, but Powerful Auras isn’t often used in PvE (eles are for might stacking, conjure dropping, dps everywhere - and someone mapping solo will find Cleansing Water so much more useful than Powerful Auras), and none of the other grandmaster traits focus on them.

YES. Elemental Surge is amazing. It adds so many different potential combos/conditions to be considered anything short of amazing with the right build.

Here’s mine:
http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fEAQJArdhMmMbnxygjDIhCEg4hF0AcY5RMMD1AA-ToAg0CnIqRVjrGTNyas1MsYKC

A brief writeup on Elemental Surge (using the S/F sPvP build). You get several interesting combos out of this one trait:

Immobilize Combo:

Lightning: Use Gale to knock over your opponent.
Switch Fire:
Dragon’s Tooth on knocked down player. (Blast finisher)
flame wall on top of knocked down player.
Pheonix on top of knocked down player. (Blast finisher)
Switch to Earth:
Arcane wave onto downed player/flame wall (Elemental Surge: Immobilize 1s) (Blast Finisher)
(This is important to make sure the DT lands)

Switch to Water: Comet for Daze/Freezing gust for chill.

Chill Combo:

Defensive combo. Do not use at the start of the fight. Try to pull their condi cleanse first—but at the very least, make sure some of their abilities are on Cooldown.

Water attunement:

Freezing gust – Chill ~4s
Arcane shield (Elemental Surge: Chill ~4s)
Stand near them so they can hit you and wait for Arcane shield to explode, then Comet for daze.
Arcane Wave (Elemental Surge: Chill ~4s)
<Wait for them to blow their condi cleanse>
Arcane Power (Elemental Surge: Chill ~4s)
Use auto-attack. It hits 3 times her hit, so you apply 5x stacks of chill in 2 attacks.

Healing Trident to heal.
Earth Attunement (Optional):
Magnetic wave to clear movement condis/reflect projectiles.

Kite. You only use 1 attunement for this combo, so you should have 2 or 3 other attunements to swap between to keep casting spells and get that free healing from Sigil of Restoration.

If they can’t cleanse the chill, you’ll get back to full health in 6-8 seconds with regen.

Fire Combo:

Goes without saying. Use the combo listed under ‘immobilize’ but drop your arcane (bypass Earth to water for chill/comet) to apply ~14s of burning. Great to use if a teammate has stunned/controlled an opponent for you.

Blind:

Downed opponent.
Start spiking opponent:

Switch to air.
Blinding flash on downed.
Arcane Shield = blocks 3 attacks, then explodes into AoE blind.
Arcane Wave = AoE Blind.
Arcane Power = Single target blind on attunement swap (blind interfering players)
Arcane power = blind on lightning strike (blind interfering players)

KrazyFlyinChicken.5936:

…

And this would be the borderline viable use in burst builds to get the damage delivered i mentioned earlier.

Tactu.4867:

…

It works perfectly well. If it’s not working for you, you need to practice more.

The combo works and your opponent will be unable to act until the DT lands—this includes a dodge. You don’t even need to be in game to see that it works:

Gale = 2 second knockdown.
Switch to fire [you can switch to Fire while casting Gale]
Dragons Tooth = 1s cast
Flame wall = 1/4s cast
Pheonix = 3/4s cast
Switch to Earth. [you can switch to earth while casting pheonix]
Arcane wave [simultaneously while casting pheonix] for immobilize. =1s

Everything will land at roughly the same moment. No dodge rolls allowed. If you really want to nail this DT, you can use Arcane power and get 5 more seconds of immobilize by spamming autoattack in earth immediately following pheonix.

Their only option at this point is to use their stability (while at full health, and their opponent over 900 range away… not enticing) or waste their condi cleanse on a single condition.

And if they do get out—let’s say they popped their cleanse to clear the immob, you use the “Imaginary” chill combo I described.

15s of chill means they aren’t going to be applying any damage to you until it falls off or they clear it.

And you STILL have your arcane shield to utilize if all else fails. Keeping in mind, you’re still cycling into lightning for fresh air DPS (not laughable).

And all of your arcane utilities are on 45 and 30s cooldowns respectively.

Very viable. Very deadly. But as mentioned—you’re not invincible… but neither is a cantrip ele.

Good luck.

PS. I’m at 92% in rankings right now, but I normally hang around the 700s. I’m not the best, but not the worst by far.

I gotta be honest with you guys….
So I Staff Ele, in PvP, and Elemental Surge is one of the only things that keeps some builds in the game. You have to know your timing and attunement swaps well, but it gives you access to ridiculous condition combos that impact the match greatly. You can easily (at least with staff, i can’t speak for daggers/scepter etc) launch massive amounts of Chill and or/permablind a group for a good 5-12 seconds. You have to have smart teammates that go in n finish up, but they shoulnd’t have a hard time doing it.

Now, I wouldn’t mind if, say, it included the 20% recharge for Arcane skills with it. =) Like the poster above said, hard to cram it all in on Arcane builds, but either way, I wouldn’t call it useless by ffaaaar. If you’re not finding uses for it, test more by launching attacks n switching attunements and letting it’s effects go off that way.

Ex:
1. Cast Firestorm on group at Mid point during battle, as soon as casting starts, switch into Lightning, activate Arcane Power. Hit Arcane Wave in middle of group for good measure if anyone close to hitting. Then spam Lightning 1. Meteors and L1 now blasting and blinding everywhere for 5-7 seconds, plus of course all critting.
2. If you like conditions: Cast Glyph of Storms on Self in Earth on cap point, activate Arcane Power, Switch to Fire, self spam AoE’s (lava font, W2, E2, etc) again, fire Arcane Wave for more burning in Fire or save for one more AoE Blind in Air. Each tick of Dust storm from provides bleeding, blind, burning while covering for AoEs.
Etc.
Love me some Elemental Surge. =)

I’m really glad im not the only one who finds elemental Surge loads of fun.

But I cannot bring myself to use it on a staff build.

Evasive Arcana is too good to miss when you get AoE burning/cleansing wave/another blast finisher for your water fields.

In fact, I really only found it useful on S/F

someone can give me a pvp build for s/f elemental surge? just so i got an idea how the build should look

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fEAQJArdhMmMbnxygjDIhCEg4hF4AcY5ROMD1AA-ToAg0CnIqRVjrGTNyas1MsYKC

This is the S/F build I use for burst DPS.

I don’t recommend this if there is more than 1 thief in a game against you.

o thanks!

btw on arcan power, all 5 atks make the arcan surge effect?

Wyrden.4713:

o thanks!

btw on arcan power, all 5 atks make the arcan surge effect?

Yes.

IE: if you just autoattack in water—you’ll add 15 seconds of chill (hilarious). 3s for every attack—and every attack is a crit

Tactu.4867:

^
this guy is a master elementalist showing his majesty and brilliance in fighting a golem .

For the sake of it …

Your imaginary “Immobilize Combo” never works on a decent player , heh i might just say it won’t work on any player :

Gale – 2 seconds knockdown
( let’s just imagine there are no stunbreakers in this game)

In this 2 seconds (actually what was left from those 2 seconds), you have to switch to fire (1/4 sec till skills show up ) then cast Dragon tooth , then you want the fire field and phoenix ? lol .the fire field has a horrible aftercast .
The target is up in their feet by the time the fire field lights up , and guess what ? what is next ? A dodge . Yes, every player dodges when they see the dragon tooth
And what was it next ? switch to earth …. then arcane wave ….. doh …. too late
and then you die without any cantrip and evasive arcana.

Next : Imaginary Combo Chill
Much cold , so frozen .

Yeah …so … so what? what are you doing with so much chill ? try to hit them with your dragon tooth , or comet ? well : a dodge will be what you enemy will do an laugh at your spells with all those 500000 secs of chills that you put on them .
Let’s not forget that you burned all your utilities now …
Now your are good as dead . (Remember ? no cantrips … no EA)

The blind “combo” works …

Do you even pvp ?

You need to ask non SnD players