Guild Wars 2

I’m quite new and started only like 2 weeks ago with a Engineer main and right now I’m at Kessex Hills in Kryta and I’ve noticed I’ve started to have quite a hard time fighting enemies cause I’m only doing like 30-40 damage against enemies and if I get mobbed I usually die quickly.

My Engineer is currently level 18 and I have quite good gear so far.
Here is my current build:

Head: Mighty Swindler Mask of the Eagle
Defense:15
+ 5 Power

Chest: Vital Superior Studded Coat of Might
Defense:54
+12 Vitality

Shoulders: Mighty Swindler Pauldrons
Defense: 13
+3 Power

Leggings: Vital Superior Studded Pants of the Pack
Defense+ 35
+8 Vitality

Boots: Precise Superior Studded Boots
Defense+ 23
+ 4 precision

Pistol: Malign Glyphic Pistol of Agony
Weapon Strength: 182-214
+ 10 condition damage

Shield: Vital Shield of Agony
Weapon Strength: 176-198
Defense: +10
+11 Vitality

I currently have 1 point of explosives and 7 points in firearms.

Can anyone tell what I’m doing wrong right now or is this part of the game? I currently go solo but I try to go party when I can.

Lack of specialization.

I recommend going all Power or all Condition Damage and not both. I think it’s also important to ask what kits you’re using, because the Pistol/Shield on its own is not enough damage.

go rifle/nades or flamethrower with power/precision gear when you level. in low level maps you should be able to dodge npcs attacks easily without getting hit too much. keep your distance from a mob, if you have issues surviving add a little vitality/toughness. you generally want to stay away from condition damage when you level. bomb kit has some cool cc that can allow you to survive longer if used correctly. i dont want to spoil the class for you since you’ve only just begun using it, i recommend testing out different things and figuring out whats best for you.

pistol-shiled is not a strong set up for damage. It keeps you alive, but won’t kill much.
Rifle will do more, but since you also mention getting killed, the shield might be good

2 suggestions for leveling:
1. try bomb kit, or grenade kit, or even flamethrower for better damage (if not rifle).
2. Rocket boots are great: they get you out of most bad situations, and the toolbelt is actually good damage.

Phineas Poe.3018:

Lack of specialization.

I recommend going all Power or all Condition Damage and not both. I think it’s also important to ask what kits you’re using, because the Pistol/Shield on its own is not enough damage.

OK i guess this is prob and right now I use healing kits and sometimes bomb kits and I’m planning to use flamethrower kit

Okay, cool.

I recommend ignoring Explosives entirely, then, if you’re planning to use the Flamethrower. Sink all of your points into Alchemy and Firearms. Take Invigorating Speed in Alchemy and Infused Precision in Firearms to start. This will give you permanent Vigor and Swiftness, meaning you can dodge a lot more and are more mobile.

Once you have 10 points in both those trees, put 10 into Tools for Speedy Kits, giving your permanent Swiftness in the open world. You can then drop Infused Precision for Fireforged Trigger, improving the cooldowns on your FT skills, or Hair Trigger, improving the cooldowns on your weapon skills.

I also prefer the Rifle when soloing. Jump Shot + Blunderbuss is a ton of damage. Rotating them in between Flame Blasts from your Flamethrower is pretty potent stuff.

Bomb kit can also be a good way to go for low levels. The bombs hit rather hard, and the mobs will generally stand in them when being hit. You can put points into the explosives line to make the bombs even better. However, you might want to try and be a bit more tanky if you go with the bomb kit since you’ll be in melee range for the most part.

I had the same sort of problem when leveling my engineer, but it can get better once you start to unlock utility slots, and get better gear and traits. If nothing else, just try switching to the rifle

What level is your armor, by the way? If your armor is underleveled, you’ll be a lot weaker than you might expect.

Phineas Poe.3018:

Okay, cool.

I recommend ignoring Explosives entirely, then, if you’re planning to use the Flamethrower. Sink all of your points into Alchemy and Firearms. Take Invigorating Speed in Alchemy and Infused Precision in Firearms to start. This will give you permanent Vigor and Swiftness, meaning you can dodge a lot more and are more mobile.

Once you have 10 points in both those trees, put 10 into Tools for Speedy Kits, giving your permanent Swiftness in the open world. You can then drop Infused Precision for Fireforged Trigger, improving the cooldowns on your FT skills, or Hair Trigger, improving the cooldowns on your weapon skills.

I also prefer the Rifle when soloing. Jump Shot + Blunderbuss is a ton of damage. Rotating them in between Flame Blasts from your Flamethrower is pretty potent stuff.

K, I’ll try this

Anymras.5729:

What level is your armor, by the way? If your armor is underleveled, you’ll be a lot weaker than you might expect.

About same level I am although I do take most of my gear through black lion market so sometimes there is a shortage of what i need.

Static discharge build along with bomb kit will deal the most damage for you at low levels. Grenade kit sucks until you get the GM trait for it which is at lvl 60.