I feel like Static Discharge is one of the most enjoyable builds one can play. This is my version. I’m not 100% set on everything yet (Sabilize Armor or Protective Shield? Or maybe 4 into Alchemy for Protection Injection) but it gets the job done. Why I like it is because not only can you blow people up but in addition you use so many different Engi mechanics all in one build. You have a kit, turrets (granted you hardly ever use it more than the occasional drop and overcharge), and a gadget (one that is fantastic against Thieves/Mesmers). It’s also really customizable, I can think of at least 4-5 versions off the top of my head.
Now the real discussion, I also play Shatter Mesmer and I started wondering to myself which build is actually better. The pros of Shatter are obvious, Portal and Blink can be crazy useful. That being said SD isn’t without team support. The water field from your turret and the boons from Runes of the Pack are also useful not to mention 100% swiftness up time makes you a solid roamer.
I know SD will probably never be meta, but the build is so fun compared to “nade everything lolololol” that I’d like to hear other Engi player’s thoughts.
Just an angry old man…
Old Man Burr (War), Bad Hat Ben (Engi), Manly Manny Manson (Guard)
i main eng but i play mesmer too. In my opinion for going zerker shatter mesmer is much better and effective. With thief, and perhaps necro, it is the only class really suitable berserker for me . Engineer has no evasion respect to mesmer . What make berserker shatter mesmser viable is the great ways you have to evade damage from your opponent. This completely miss to eng . Another thing is the sustain damage that great sword on mesmer do : on the same distance engineer has nades but they are not usually in SD builds and in any case they don’t put the same tipe of damage and use mesmer gs do . Sorry for my bad english .
after being bored with nades and bombs i play sd occasionally in tpvp. it’s fun and everything but it just can’t compete with a zerker build that can stealth. what you lack in stealth you need to compensate with positioning, reaction and overall skill and it’ll be less and less viable to run sd when your opponents get tougher.
@vince: i actually find mesmers easier to beat than f.e. a necro or thief. since sd bounces i often destroy most clones/illusions before they can do serious damage.
S/D is fun but the damage output doesn’t justify the lack of survival. And what I mean is, static discharge itself is pretty weak. Most of the burst comes from Rifle 3, 4, 5 and toolkit 3. I mean sure it’s nice to see that 4k crit, till I realize that my power necro does that on auto attack in deathshroud and can face tank much more damage in return. Zerker just doesn’t fit the Engi well. We sacrifice too much survival without being adequately compensated with damage ouput.
Doc Von Doom – Asuran Necromancer
Gate of Madness
Contribute to the Wiki MetaBattle Builds
S/D is fun but the damage output doesn’t justify the lack of survival. And what I mean is, static discharge itself is pretty weak. Most of the burst comes from Rifle 3, 4, 5 and toolkit 3. I mean sure it’s nice to see that 4k crit, till I realize that my power necro does that on auto attack in deathshroud and can face tank much more damage in return. Zerker just doesn’t fit the Engi well. We sacrifice too much survival without being adequately compensated with damage ouput.
I do get that feeling, although SD can burst a bit better than Power Nec imo. It can also do the burst from the start and doesn’t need to gain life force. That can be another thing it has on Shatter because you need to make clones first. SD you can just jump in and do your burst right away. Generally lower CD on said burst too.
Just an angry old man…
Old Man Burr (War), Bad Hat Ben (Engi), Manly Manny Manson (Guard)
PVP and WvW are different and quite often it is different the player base . I am not so sure that in tpvp you will have great success … Another thing that is not consider is that our pvp is a conquer game …. so you have to take a point and stand on it . And often on a point you have more than one opponent …
PVP and WvW are different and quite often it is different the player base . I am not so sure that in tpvp you will have great success … Another thing that is not consider is that our pvp is a conquer game …. so you have to take a point and stand on it . And often on a point you have more than one opponent …
i totally agree with you on the point of difference wvw and pvp, but for ex-le if i go to pvp, i’m ussually running my wvw roaming builds etc to fight people and not focusing that kitten points (not ignoring them and team play either) and i imagine myself in ranked arena with SD aswell, just haven’t played it there for a while.
Handarand – Handacooon – Handa Panda – Handa Genie
PVP and WvW are different and quite often it is different the player base . I am not so sure that in tpvp you will have great success … Another thing that is not consider is that our pvp is a conquer game …. so you have to take a point and stand on it . And often on a point you have more than one opponent …
i totally agree with you on the point of difference wvw and pvp, but for ex-le if i go to pvp, i’m ussually running my wvw roaming builds etc to fight people and not focusing that kitten points (not ignoring them and team play either) and i imagine myself in ranked arena with SD aswell, just haven’t played it there for a while.
So there is something i did not understood from OP. Using SD for wvw roaming is viable, i am not saying that , i am not so sure in Structured PVP. It is good for hotjoin or for “having fun” killing people but i don’t think it is really viable in this kind of contest game
It is a lot more effective in WvW than it is in PvP. This is because in WvW you can develop much higher stats. The equivalent to a berserker PvP amulet can be created in WvW with additional vitality and toughness. You can also get much higher burst, on my WvW engineer you can get 4k + 7k jumpshots, which you rarely get in PvP.
So yeah in PvP the stats are lower, and people will target you more once they realise what build you play.
P R I N C E | Best Renger EU
You can find me in PvP | I normally answer PMs
My main for as long as I can remember is my S/F ele, and after playing that for so long I find it hard to find another build/class that even compares to the amount of options/combos I have with S/F ele. S/D Engi tho I can honestly say is a build other than S/F ele that i actually enjoy playing, lots of options for burst, very fast combos. The only problem with it is how vulnerable it is to condis, and CC.
-Shnicky
It is a lot more effective in WvW than it is in PvP. This is because in WvW you can develop much higher stats. The equivalent to a berserker PvP amulet can be created in WvW with additional vitality and toughness. You can also get much higher burst, on my WvW engineer you can get 4k + 7k jumpshots, which you rarely get in PvP.
So yeah in PvP the stats are lower, and people will target you more once they realise what build you play.
^ is basically what I think too.
SD is definitely really fun and more challenging to play than most other builds (I’d say Cele Engi is a more viable similar fun-level build) but the thing is due to the nature of sPvP, and Engi often being left to de-cap/hold points, SD is just not that great in sPvP. In WvW it’s really really strong especially with Knight’s Gear mixed in but Condi OP sadly.
Immersed in Blood [TEA]
Drunken Alliance [DKAL]
Piken Square [EU]
SD engi old school will never die in pvp/wvw roaming.
(died to one yesterday 2 times in wvw with a big plesure=)))
Panda, win some MUs, I wanna fight ya already!
My SD Charr is ready to die against yours
In wvw, it’s really great,
’cos seeing (below average) thieves dieing in 3-6 sec is awesome!
So much fun killing them, seeing them panicking after I “Analyzed” them~
(“Random” SD variant, never checked the “official” one, so maybe the same, who cares..)
Long Live SD!
“Revenant is actual proof that devs read the necromancer forum” – Pelopidas.2140
SD is fun to play, but you lack the mobility needed in higher tier PvP. Escaping fights can be very hard, and certain other zerker specs will completely counter you (cough Fresh Air ele cough). You can get some mobility, but at the cost of defenses and damage through surer SD procs, but you’re still likely to be shut down by enemy zerkers unless you have a thief covering you. It’s simply not worth the hassle for most teams when you could go celestial, actually be able to hold a point, and still have decent CC and burst.
Honestly my biggest problem with SD engi is that it can’t disengage as well as a Mesmer or a thief for example. All you have typically is swiftness, a block, and cc to defend. You basically give up an escape plan and sustain for no tell burst and cc, though slick shoes and elixir S can ease this problem (which I recommend putting in over goggles even though 10 stacks of vuln and a reveal are hard to resist). There are specs that can damage and have a lot more sustain as well so you’d have to work your kitten off to pull your weight. SD is a strong spec as few can burst and cc the way it does but more often than not, you will lose to a meta team comp knowing that half the time you are putting in more effort than they are.
