Guild Wars 2

Hey guys I’m fairly new to GW2 as I just started playing around 2 weeks ago. After hitting 80, I experimented with different builds and found that I really enjoy the D/D build which I primarily used in PvP. After reading about the upcoming nerf that ele’s are getting later this month, I decided to stray away from PvP and do mainly PvE. I perform very poorly in PvP due to still being a noob to the class, but with the reduction of might stacking and the might bonus of the strength sigil (which I use for my build), I really can’t see it being viable anymore. I realize that’s a bold statement coming from someone with only two weeks of experience in game but I’m having trouble in fights as it is and with every other class being ‘buffed’ (ie. not nerfed) I don’t feel comfortable with continuing PvP on an ele. But I digress.. Taking the upcoming patch into consideration, if I’m going to be switching to PvE what would my best option be as far as weapon and gear setup? I’m pretty sure D/F still relies on might stacking and LW but I’m not sure if the changes would make enough difference in PvE. I’m willing to swap to staff if that’s a better option, I’m just looking for a solid build and gear setup (because I know absolutely nothing about the type of gear I need). When playing I don’t really enjoy just sitting back and lobbing spells from afar, I like being in the heat of the battle doing a nice amount of damage but also not being too squishy (a little squishy is ok, I do realize that I’m playing an elementalist here). Help would be appreciated, thanks.

if you want to do hardcore pve stuff d/f and staff are both good. The might nerfs will hurt eles, but the good eles will still have a place in pvp. Focus is situational in pve so it isnt need all of the time, but its a valuable asset when it is needed.

FrownyClown.8402:

if you want to do hardcore pve stuff d/f and staff are both good. The might nerfs will hurt eles, but the good eles will still have a place in pvp. Focus is situational in pve so it isnt need all of the time, but its a valuable asset when it is needed.

Well if that’s the case I’ll probably go with d/f for pve. I’ve read that full Zerker gear and weapons are best for Dungeons and such for this specific setup. I assume Zerker refers to the Berserker armor set, but isn’t there berserker exotic and also berserker ascended gear? Like I say the gear in this game is very confusing to me

Lowsdp.3764:

FrownyClown.8402:

if you want to do hardcore pve stuff d/f and staff are both good. The might nerfs will hurt eles, but the good eles will still have a place in pvp. Focus is situational in pve so it isnt need all of the time, but its a valuable asset when it is needed.

Well if that’s the case I’ll probably go with d/f for pve. I’ve read that full Zerker gear and weapons are best for Dungeons and such for this specific setup. I assume Zerker refers to the Berserker armor set, but isn’t there berserker exotic and also berserker ascended gear? Like I say the gear in this game is very confusing to me

Ascended is just the much more expensive, slightly (10% on weapons, 5% on gear iirc) better gear.

Exotic is what you’re looking for initially. Ascended literally only matters if you’re in a lvl 80 zone, so all fractals and HoTW, COE, and Arah dungeons. WHen you get downscaled to lower levels the bonus stats from Ascended literally disappear, and they’re no better than Exotic. . . So just don’t worry about Ascended until you get really focused on Fractals and such.

For PvP. D/D ele is a top build in pvp right now. The nerf will only make them more balanced with other profession, but it can be an hard build to master so your point is legitimate as a new player. Play ele in PvE to get more knowledge of the game and try it back later. D/D ele will probably be the best pvp build for ele even after the incoming nerf.

For PvE you have three main kind of build. D/F, Staff or S/X. S/X is for might stacking in party while dpsing with LH, Staff is the best dps, while D/F is more suited for difficult content. They are all 3 good type of build in PvE and feel free to use the one you prefer.

Ya Zerker is for beserker. Exotic or Ascended is only the quality of the gear. Ascended is better, but not by much and it cost a lot more than exotic. You should stick to exotic as you learn the game, you don’t need ascended (except for fractal 30+) and event hardcore player don’t bother with ascended. Full zerker will be squishy, but ideal. If you have some difficulty with that you can use a mix of zerker and other gear, but try to keep your toughness as low as possible, you want as little aggro as possible on you.

The trait are really important for a Ele, so check out gw2meta battle for some basic informations.

The nerf isn’t THAT bad, eles will still be able to might stack, just not as quickly
But if it’s an issue for you still, you could go fresh-air which is usually PTV or a zerk staff
other than that, there isn’t much of a choice except for D/F which if played well, can beat any d/d ele

The nerf won’t really do all that much. We’ll still be able to sit at around 18 stacks of might, compared to, the usual 22 or so. The loss of power is only going to be about 230.

Which isn’t insignificant, but it’s not enough to make D/D ele nonviable.

In fact, we’re getting a 7% buff to Lightning Whip damage. So, yeah, it’s not really a huge change.

William C.6195:

In fact, we’re getting a 7% buff to Lightning Whip damage. So, yeah, it’s not really a huge change.

Just to clarify, ~7% increase to LW DPS, 10% nerf to it’s damage. The difference being landing 1 LW will be 10% than the old one, landing 10s worth of LWs will be 7% more total damage as you can get more LWs in that 10s.

It can be an important difference depending on what you’re looking at.

Thank you for buffing my DD rotation LMAO