Guild Wars 2

Ele was my first 80, and is likely my most played class. But when ele’s became so popular I stopped playing it, since I hate being the most played class. So I started playing mesmer, and the same thing is kind of happening with them, and ele’s are kind of dieing down a bit.

Which class do you feel is more powerful in certain situations? It seems to me ele’s have more mobility and heals, whereas mesmers have more avoidance and damage. I’d love to come back to my ele, but I feel kind of underpowered now compared to my mesmer, where I could actually take on a 3v1 on occasion, and feel like a total kitten. As an ele I can survive like nobody’s business, but I have 0 burst, and usually end up running away, which just makes me feel like a coward.

I have seen a few good ele vids, such as some of dapheonixes, but even they aren’t crazy impressive. And I don’t mean the gameplay, he’s much more skilled than me. I just mean the class. Even the best vids are him running away from multiple opponents that don’t know how to clear conditions and he eventually downs them.

Tl:dr – Which class do you think is better at what? Is a mesmer/ele straight up better than the other? List any awesome experiences you’ve had with either.

Personally I think mesmers are the most broken class in the game and are severely in need of a nerf. However, having said that, you shouldn’t feel underpowered as an ele, and you generally shouldn’t lose to a mesmer 1v1 unless they’re running confusion in wvw in which case they’re a kitten and you should feel free to simply leave.

If you enjoy playing the ele, then you should play it. It is nowhere near weak and as you said, mesmers are the new fotm so eles, d/d in particular, are becoming more rare. It’s possible bunker just isn’t the right build for you. I run glass d/d ele and it’s a ton of fun and very effective.

I use a D/D burst hybrid bunker build… I have no idea what you mean with elementalist hitting like wet noodles because mine sure doesn’t. I generally don’t run away from fights unless its a 3v1… With my S/F cond. set up I can take on 5 people at once… That was on my first try too.
You should just try everything and see what works for you and what doesn’t.

My tl;dr on Mesmer vs Elementalist in WvW.

Solo or small scale WvW:

• Scepter and Focus has some viability, but our traits are almost entirely locked in place with only minor variations (ie. 15 Air vs 10 Air). Staff can work well in chokes and for zerg-busting, but is rarely worth it in very small engagements. Our mobility gives us a small edge over Mesmers, but don’t underestimate how powerful Blink (reduced CD) + Mass Invis is for getting away. Elementalist mobility was also recently nerfed, ranking us far behind Thieves now in that regard.
• Mesmers have a large range of builds that all do very well. I am extremely envious of the fact that they have such a wide variety of things they can play while we have little to no viability outside of Water / Arcana.

Group (15-20+) WvW:

• Elementalists can play 2 quite distinct roles, but with very similar builds (since we are always pigeonholed into the standard Water/Arcana builds). There’s a big difference between playing D/D and Staff roles and they are both very viable and fun.
• Mesmer is forced into playing one broken Confusion build. Other than that, they are primarily a very Support-heavy class which is used mostly because of some key utility skills (Veil, Feedback, Time Warp, Null Field, Portal).

This has been discussed over and over so we don’t need a new thread. going to tell you straight make the decision yourself and just play what you like. Also warrior and thief would be the 2 most populated classes but over all wave engineer the class balance is relatively equal pop wise. Many builds are going to be popular and letting what you play be dictated by something so transient is nothing short of foolish. You obviously have a good grasp of what each class can do so I don’t actually think you need our help. Play what you like more or just play both you don’t have to choose one.

In case i jumped the gun

Which class do you think is better at what?

Overall: The fact is shatter is stronger burst dps than anything ele can do there is no need to argue. It’s a fact there is more potential for burst dps in mesmer. Ele has stronger aoe, mobility, and healing options. There are bunker mesmer but there is no comparison in healing where eles scale better, have better access, and require no mobs/targets to do so.

Mobility goes to ele as long as hes equipped /D if not then they are both slow.

AoE: ele has more potential.

Condtions: its a toss up but have very strong access

Group utility: Ele in long fights Mesmer in short ones. Mesmer in WvW also.

Complexity: Over all Mesmer is more complex but require quite of near clipping to maximize dps burst/power dps.

Is a mesmer/ele straight up better than the other?

Is an apple better than an orange?

I have both ele and mesmer . I have put in a lot of time in both.
Both class are very powerful in the hands of a good player.
Ele is harder to master , mesmer is easy mode pretty much right away.
In high end pvp both are very good.
In hot join Mesmer is much better for just face roll newbs to farm glory.
In Wvw Ele is better at taking on 2-3 people at once , ele is better at dealing with good thieves. Mesmer is better at melting newbs , mesmer is much much better in a small gp. I gp with one other mesmer + 1 thief, we do crazy things to small zergs that should not be allowed.

Over all I think it’s a tie . I play mesmer more now because it feels more like a ranged dps class which is what I always played in mmos.

I wouldnt even try to compare as a mesmer has more flexabillity in power then a ele. All ele’s are DD/S builds. where as mesmers have a wider range of builds – I know this, I play both.

I took a Mesmer to 80 as my first toon, and just got my Ele to 80 today.

Two things make me like the Ele better.

1. Both characters feel powerful in small encounters, but in massive zergs on my Mesmer I feel like I’m always struggling to make a meaningful contribution. Things die so fast I can’t keep clones up, which leaves my usefulness to a few awesome, but often unnecessary, utility abilities. On an Ele I simply switch to staff and feel like I am still contributing.

2. Did the first bounty with my guild last week. Looking forward to doing our first T3 bounty mission tonight. Over the last few days I decided to run around all of the zones where bounties happen and unlock the waypoints. On my D/D Ele I was zooming around opening things up in no time. That would never have happened on my mesmer who (without runes specifically for it) feels like she is moving through thick mud whenever she’s not in combat. I can’t get over how agile the Mesmer feels in combat, then how sluggish it feels as soon as it’s out of combat. Part of this game, whether open world or WvW, is covering ground between encounters, and the Ele outclasses the Mes by a mile in that regard.

Gibson.4036:

1. Both characters feel powerful in small encounters, but in massive zergs on my Mesmer I feel like I’m always struggling to make a meaningful contribution. Things die so fast I can’t keep clones up, which leaves my usefulness to a few awesome, but often unnecessary, utility abilities. On an Ele I simply switch to staff and feel like I am still contributing.

Really now? They are very rarely unnecessary and if you feel you aren’t contributing that much then simply use the overpowered Glamour / Confusion build with Null Field.

in sPvP, i’d go mesmer.
PVE, go ele unless cofp1e/cofp3
wvw – either

mesmer: high burst super aoe, boonremoval, tricky class, confumaker, clones where enemyplayer looses mesmertarget, some invincible skills, timewarp & rezthingy, portal

ele: tough/healy, mobile, predictable damage over time(or u play bursty build) shines with boons , needs good skillorder cc mightstacks, buffchar

both are great classes

Intigo.1653:

Really now? They are very rarely unnecessary and if you feel you aren’t contributing that much then simply use the overpowered Glamour / Confusion build with Null Field.

Useful in WvW in Dungeons, yes.

In open world PvE, things die so fast to the zerg that there’s no real reason to be using condition removal, reflects, or pulls. In DEs or Dragon fights, those utilities are unnecessary.

If you care so much about open world PvE that this is your only gripe, then sure. :p

Mesmer can have multiple build but Ele’s water/arcana lines are arguably ones of the best trait lines in the game.

Mesmer can burst harder but ele can burst more often

Mesmer has better single target control, ele has better AoE control.

If you play mesmer is stronger then play it. It has always been the fotm along with thief, guardian and warrior

Mesmers vs Eles.

Mesmer –
1. Alot more viable builds. Has good power, condi, and bunker specs to work around. as well as viable party support if specced for. Access to stealth to make up for low mobility.

2. Mesmer is a more illusive class, more confusing to counter because of the kind of variety you find.

3. Has good aoe dmg as well as focus target dmg. Excels in Focus Target more because good AoE dmg relys on confusion. Which can either destory, or made completely null depending on the skill of an opponent.

Ele

1. Alot less viable builds. pigeon-holed into Acrane/Water most of the time. No real condi spec (IMO ofc) that i find can outshine the might-stacking power built ele or typical bunker ele.

2. Boons and good healing allow for quick rebounds. Mobility instead of stealth for defense. access to good dmg mitigation (protection + frost aura) which helps for tanking and being able to use your mobility to rebound through healing.

3. Eles have 1 MAJOR thing over Mesmers. Continuous Condition Removal. Condition dmg vs the elementalist is often weak and goes unrewarded for most condi spec classes. Confusion and Immobilize are the most dangerous against eles.

4. Eles are flashy, although a mesmer is too. I’d say 7/10 times the ele will be targeted/noticed faster then the mesmer.

^However, mesmers are often targeted first
1. They’re more hated
2. BELIEVED to have stronger burst power, and weaker survivability
3. Eles can heal a lot better and have boons like protection and stability, most are bunkers, so can’t be cc’d well and bursted like mesmers

If you’re going to play in a team, you’re probably going to have a harder time as a mesmer due to this bias just to start it off.

Intigo.1653:

If you care so much about open world PvE that this is your only gripe, then sure. :p

It wasn’t my only gripe. The other was out-of-combat mobility.

It seems that me liking Ele over Mesmer has made you defensive. I was just stating the two areas I found Ele more enjoyable, in keeping with the topic of the thread.

I like the two professions equally in WvW and small combat. I like the Ele a lot better in zergy situations and when crossing territory. I don’t have an area where I like the Mesmer better (probably because I don’t sPvP), so Ele is the winner for me.

I didn’t say, “Mesmer’s suck OMG I hate that broken class :P arrrrgghh!!1!”.

Instead of blowing raspberries at my reasons, feel free to contribute why you like Mesmer better, or like them equally.

I think people should stop the complaint about our Arcane and Water lines. They are a blessing not a curse. Other trait lines are pretty similar to what other professions have. We mainly use Arcane and Water because they are exceptionally good xD. The Arcane Grandmaster traits are so so strong. When I play other class. 10% dmg in 1 main hand weapon would be like “Yes!Give me please!!” But with ele, 10% in Fire (our main direct dmg source) would be like “Meh. I can do better than that”…..So i wouldn’t say we are pigeonholed into one build. More like we are gifted with one really amazing build xD

I’ve played both of these in tPvP and they’re both neat classes.

One thing I really like about elementalists that sets a strong difference over mesmers is the use of combos. As an Ele, you have access to a lot of fields and finishers. I’d argue you’re the most efficient self comboing machine with the two most popular set ups. Staff or D/D. Knowing how to weave these combo effects is integral to its playstyle. That’s something completely unique to elementalists.

The Mesmer lacks any reliable finisher and the most you’ll ever touch of the combo system is chaos storm > phase retreat. It’s chaos fields however can be utilized by other players bringing its unikittenfects.

I think the gameplay of ele is better that mesmer and more fun, but i’m ele and my boyfriend is mesmer and i hate how he kills everything so easilly, and he don’t die, i see that i give more damage that him cuz i think we gives like 300 dg and i give 800 i think, but i don’t get it, how could i give more damage that him, and still he kills more fast that me? i take forever to kill ONE mob and we can easilly kill 2 or 3 mobs when i kill just 1, i don’t get this, something is wrong, mesmer have more survival that ele, is ok that, but is not okay that he can handle 5 mobs and i just 1, that is not okay, i’m always the first to die, sometimes i feel useless, i feel that i’m prejudice him, i hate when he plays without me, now that we are both 80, of course he perfers, i’m always dying, maybe i embarrass him, cuz i’m always dying in dugeons.

Well in beta i try mesmer and i didn’t like it cuz in the first story mode i was alone with mesmer and i was always dying, i even couldn’t make the quest, so i give up of mesmer because of that i was an norn mesmer, i don’t know if they change mesmer since the beta ultil now but if so they can change a little bit ele too.

dreztina.4820:

Personally I think mesmers are the most broken class in the game and are severely in need of a nerf. However, having said that, you shouldn’t feel underpowered as an ele, and you generally shouldn’t lose to a mesmer 1v1 unless they’re running confusion in wvw in which case they’re a kitten and you should feel free to simply leave.

Does anyone else read this as “mesmers are the most broken class in the game – but elementalists should still be able to beat them” ?

Lumines.3916:

The Mesmer lacks any reliable finisher and the most you’ll ever touch of the combo system is chaos storm > phase retreat. It’s chaos fields however can be utilized by other players bringing its unikittenfects.

Pistol Phantasm + Ethereal Field was great before the Confusion nerf. Even now, it’s a good and reliable Physical Projectile combo.

Mirror Blade (Great Sword) and Magic Bullet (Pistol) are also reliable Physical Projectile Combos.

For Leaps, we’ve got Illusionary Leap (Main Hand Sword) Phase Retreat (Staff) and Phantasmal Swordsman (Off Hand Sword, although this mostly benefits the phantasm)

The Torch also grants (the admittedly finicky) Prestige skill for a Blast Finisher.

Phantasmal Warden and Phantasmal Berserker both provide Whirl Combo finishers, although their respective tool tips do not reflect this.

Plenty of opportunities for combos.