Guild Wars 2

Greetings illustrious Gear-Heads!

I present for your consideration my humble build. This is a hybrid build combining some aspects of 100nades into a traditional flame-thrower might-stacking alchy build. I’ve had great success running this build in WvW. It’s fun, effective, simple, and a blast to play.

Okay, so here’s the build (may need to copy to desktop):

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fcQQFAUlspSXHxSrF17IxoCkG0DAj37K6Rlb8kB;T4Ag0ynEOJdS9kyJKeM8I4xyjjHJPjAOQA

TRAITS:
We’ll start here. It’s 0/30/0/30/10.

We go 30 into firearms because having a high crit rate is essential to this build so our conditions proc. Plus you are applying burns constantly so the +300 to condition is primary. We grab “Precise Sights”, a great trait that combined with your high crit will have you stacking vulnerability on your targets like crazy. “Napalm Specialist” next because you want your burns to last as long as possible. My Runes of the Flame Legion boost burn duration by another 15% and add +5% damage to burning foes. Then Juggernaut, because this is primarily a flamethrower build. The real strength of Juggernaut is in the might gain. At least 15 seconds before battle try to switch to the FT kit as it takes a bit for the might to build to 6.

Then we go 30 into Alchemy. The vitality is important as you need health for the front-liner role, and concentration is invaluable because this build is all about keeping boons up and on. I go with HGH, Deadly Mixture, and Self-Regulating Defenses. HGH is an AMAZING trait, although not very glamorous seeming at first. HGH will actually give TWO might boons for 20 seconds every time you use an Elixir ability. So that includes Elixir B, the tool belt skills, and Elixir H. Between both utility skills and their tool belt skills, you can keep your might up around 11-14 which is very strong. Deadly mixture gives you that 15% dam increase for flamethrower, but the hidden gem of the alchemy trait line imo is Energy Conversion Matrix (deal 1% extra dam for each boon on you). So if you have 5 boons on you, that means a 5% dam increase. Now, I’m sure my pick of Self-Regulating Defenses is unusual, but I love this trait. You could also go with fast acting Elixirs, but as a front-liner, rushing into zergs, you really need an escape plan. Self-Regulating Defenses is like an instant get out of jail free card. You drink an Elixir S (more might) automatically when you are in danger of dying. It’s like a timer that goes off and gives you a chance to rush back to the safe area. But you could also go with Flast-Acting Elixirs if you want.

Lastly, I put 10 points into tools. The big pick up here is “Static Discharge”. This is where the 100nades part comes in. You can toss Grenade Barrage in the midst of your flamethrowing and static discharge will add onto that dam considerably. For some reason my crits are far higher on grenade barrage with this build, as opposed to 100nades. Not sure why. I get around 6,000+3000 on one barrage, static discharge not included. On 100nades build the grenades are more, but the crits are only for 2000 each. Might be the might stacking or use of Elixir B. My armor is mostly berserker stats. Sometimes I’ll swap this trait to “Speedy Kits” when running supply, then switch back for combat.

SKILLS:
So we use rifle for our weapon. I only switch to rifle when the target is running away or at range. Net shot, Elixir B, incendiary ammo (next three attacks burn), tap 11111111 boom. They are down. I’m using Superior Sigil of Earth on the rifle which stacks bleeds very nicely. The idea is to stack conditions at range while criting steadily.

Then for utility skills I go with Elixir H, Elixir B, Grenade Kit, Flamethrower Kit, and supply crate.

COMBAT APPROACH:
It’s important to “boon” up as you enter battle. Hit Elixir B, but also Toss H & B as you close distance. Open with FT 2, so you do as much dam as possible in the area. Then FT 11111 to apply burns, etc. If you strafe right and left you can hit a bunch of targets with FT 1. Then pop Incendiary Ammo. Then Grenade Barrage. If you time this well enough, Incendiary ammo will hit hard on Grenade Barrage and stack up the burning. Then you go back to FT or rifle to finish off the match. I only switch to Grenade Kit when I’m assaulting a tower and want to AOE foes on the walls. You also get a bit of crowd-support with Toss H & B. As you buff your crew, static discharge can still hit.

For food I use Minotaur Steak which gives +6 critical damage and +60 to precision. Plus it’s very cheap.

That’s about it. Nothing too complicated, but it’s a ton of fun and you get the synergy of static discharge grenade barrage without being tied to the Grenade Kit like 100nades forces you to be. You stack burns, bleeds, and vulnerability like crazy while also enjoying a ton of burst damage. Enjoy!

I don’t like that build, 100 grenades is a burst combo build created for pvp.

There you lost half of your burst damage coming from kit refinement equipping ‘nades kit for a FT that’s a “tanky over-time” kit while you’re full berserk and will be 2shotted by everyone.

You also take away your survival skill: elixir S(you’re without stunbreaker) and toolkit(2 for cripple, 4 for block, 5 for grip) and you didn’t even take cleansing formula to free yourself from condition/immobilize, you’re a dead man walking.

You also don’t use the perma-swiftness from speedi kit but still have invigorating speed while your only source of speed is elixir B + random elixir H +random toss B.

You take grenades (and rifle) while FT is a pretty selfish kit that require you to be in it most of the time to stack might via juggernaut.

With only 10 point in tools you will gain less from static discharge and in particular from grenade barrage and throw wrench, the toolbelt skill from TK do lots of damage while toss elixir don’t and if you’re throwing them to enemies for discharge(non targeted skill has a lower reach of the bolt) you’re probably not buffing anyone but just wasting a cd or a static discharge if you’re granting boon to ally without enemies around.

I like to use 100 ‘nades in wvw because it can be used as a rifle+discharge+combo burst in solo roaming or as a grenade spammer during zerg fight(and it’s not that tied to ’nades as you may think, I use rifle and TK a lot). But this build is too much hybrid.

And your ranged option are worse because without the grandmaster in explosive you throw only 2 grenate from 1200 range instead of 3 from 1500 range.

But if I shoud use something like whis I would use some knight or soldier set(maybe knight armor+berserk jewel) take away grenades(’nades without granadier trait is not worth it) for elixir S, rifle is a better ranged weapon than an untraited grenades. Invigorating speed is nearly useless, and replace deadly mixture with cleansing formula 409.

It’s just my opinion.

I’m not sure it’s right to call this a 100nades anything, since you’re dropping the kit refinement for the extra barrage and the extra grenades from grenadier, AND the extra damage trait.

In short, you can’t slap a grenade kit onto a Discharge/Jugger build and call it a 100nades variant.

Also, why are you putting invig speed on a build that lacks reliable swiftness? Wouldn’t a build that has 2 elixirs have better results from fast acting elixirs or SRD?

I’m not saying it’s a bad build, but you might want to coin your own name for it.

Edit: If incendiary power didn’t have that massive internal cooldown nerf of death, you might have been able to drop SD and convert this build to a burning/bleeding conditioneer build where the barrage applies a long burn, but as is the case with most of our versatility, what would have been your key trait has been neutered.

pointless build

I agree with the 2 first guys, one of the main facet of 100nade is kit refinement and grenadier trait, not static discharge.

So I find it weird to call it 100 flamethrower when it doesn’t have anything in common except the grenade, and static discharge isn’t even on every 100 nade build.

Overall, this build looks like the regular FT might stacking build, but with a bit less might stacking and more grenade.

I still think it must be fun, but going berserk with FT never worked for me.

Heh heh… ya gotta love Engineers. All smiles and sunshine. First off, okay. Maybe the name doesn’t fit perfectly. Ya got me there. But I’m never 2 shotted by anyone. In fact, my survival rate is very high. It’s true that you don’t have a stun-breaker, but this is not a sPVP build. It’s a WvW build. Which means it’s intended for fighting mostly in groups. When immobilized, I usually hit the thief back with FT 3 (or rifle 4), drop supply crate, pop Elixir B, and dodge back while healing. Works fine.

And nades without grenadier trait not worth it?? Not so. I want nades for grenade barrage so I can do a ton of area dam in a quick amount of time while I’m flamethrowing. And it works great. No other kit gives that kind of powerful toolbelt skill except maybe throw wrench, but the radius of that is limited. Big o’l bomb is fun, but I don’t like the time delay. Plus nades are great for deffing towers etc. And I love the synergy of static discharge with this ability. Yes, if you want perma-swiftness you can use speedy kits, sure. But mostly I want max damage and the static discharge hits hard with all my vulnerability stacking.

At the end of the day tho, I didn’t post this build for advanced build-theory crafters. I posted it for WvW players who have just hit 80 and are looking for a fun build to try. I personally can’t stand the playstyle of 100nades in WvW. Because WvW is so zergy, you almost never get a chance to “step into the foe’s sprite” and unleash kit refinement without getting killed brutally. And I hated the helplessness I felt verses melee types. Plus spamming grenades at range is boring in WvW. The joy of FT is that there are no red circles on the ground for foes to dodge. This build perfectly suites WvW running and gunning with groups and is very effective in that context. Give it a try!

Entropy.4732:

Heh heh… ya gotta love Engineers. All smiles and sunshine. First off, okay. Maybe the name doesn’t fit perfectly. Ya got me there. But I’m never 2 shotted by anyone. In fact, my survival rate is very high. It’s true that you don’t have a stun-breaker, but this is not a sPVP build. It’s a WvW build. Which means it’s intended for fighting mostly in groups. When immobilized, I usually hit the thief back with FT 3 (or rifle 4), drop supply crate, pop Elixir B, and dodge back while healing. Works fine.

And nades without grenadier trait not worth it?? Not so. I want nades for grenade barrage so I can do a ton of area dam in a quick amount of time while I’m flamethrowing. And it works great. No other kit gives that kind of powerful toolbelt skill except maybe throw wrench, but the radius of that is limited. Big o’l bomb is fun, but I don’t like the time delay. Plus nades are great for deffing towers etc. And I love the synergy of static discharge with this ability. Yes, if you want perma-swiftness you can use speedy kits, sure. But mostly I want max damage and the static discharge hits hard with all my vulnerability stacking.

At the end of the day tho, I didn’t post this build for advanced build-theory crafters. I posted it for WvW players who have just hit 80 and are looking for a fun build to try. I personally can’t stand the playstyle of 100nades in WvW. Because WvW is so zergy, you almost never get a chance to “step into the foe’s sprite” and unleash kit refinement without getting killed brutally. And I hated the helplessness I felt verses melee types. Plus spamming grenades at range is boring in WvW. The joy of FT is that there are no red circles on the ground for foes to dodge. This build perfectly suites WvW running and gunning with groups and is very effective in that context. Give it a try!

Didn’t want to sound negative, but since you posted it I thought you wanted feedback!

I had a similar build, well the usually flamethrower/might stacking build in WvW not too long ago.

What I think you lack in your build : Any kind of condition removal. I have a hard time running without one.

And it’s another reason why I wouldn’t use grenade kits with this build. I Think Elixir C would be a really good choice, as it’s a really efficient elixir.

Gives might, revert conditions for boon, and same for toolbelt AoE condition removal.

Also, I think you made a mistake in your build link? You have invigorating speed over self regulating defense. Also don’t feel bad about using Self regulating defense, most people use it in WvW. With culling, it’s a life saver.

Finally, you should try another food with your build. Try life stealing food. There is two food that proc lfe stealing 66% chance on crit. NO COOLDOWN. That’s really really strong with flame thrower. When firing in zerg, you just auto regen your damage.

And if you still need precision, use Maintenance oil, those buff stack with food and give a % of your vitality/thoughness in precision.

Thanks Kard! That’s more like it! Very productive advice. Yes, I think the link must have messed up. I did indeed want self-regulating defenses and not invigorating speed. I’ll try the life steal food. Great idea. As per Elixir C, I’ll try it too. Although I have a feeling I’ll miss grenade barrage.

For sure you will miss it damage wise,

But too many time in WvW I would get condition spammed and have nothing to counter it. I’m sure you’ll be happy to have the elixir C!

Just a small note: if he uses the flamethrower with kit refinement, he has at least that fire blast as condition removal. Not a lot, but something.

And if conditions are really a problem, he could give up the 15% damage on flamethrower for condition removal on elixir use I guess.
Trade-off, but so is everything as an engineer… versatility anyone?

Interesting ideas Kim. You could certainly swap out static discharge for Kit Refinement with this build if you prefer that. I like SD because of the range tho. Love the way it bounces around incoming zergs.

Kit refinement on untraited grenades is still 6 grenades just like the normal barrage, so the trait defenitely is worth it.

For Flamethrower it does an aoe burn that removes condition too.

Not that static discharge is bad, but if the issue is condition removal, than kit refinement is a good compromise between that and damage.

And don’t forget that static discharge works unreliable on thrown skills if no enemy is near you.
Not to mention the Flamethrower toolbelt has a very long cooldown as it is (so less static discharge).

Basically your main trade-of in damage is:
lose a static discharge on your grenade barrage and get a free grenade barrage from kit refinement on the grenade kit swap.

Test it a bit on dummies, see what you like more.

Kit refinement also gives the aoe burn and the condition removal on FT… I know what I would pick

Kimbald.2697:

Kit refinement on untraited grenades is still 6 grenades just like the normal barrage, so the trait defenitely is worth it.

For Flamethrower it does an aoe burn that removes condition too.

Not that static discharge is bad, but if the issue is condition removal, than kit refinement is a good compromise between that and damage.

And don’t forget that static discharge works unreliable on thrown skills if no enemy is near you.
Not to mention the Flamethrower toolbelt has a very long cooldown as it is (so less static discharge).

Basically your main trade-of in damage is:
lose a static discharge on your grenade barrage and get a free grenade barrage from kit refinement on the grenade kit swap.

Test it a bit on dummies, see what you like more.

Kit refinement also gives the aoe burn and the condition removal on FT… I know what I would pick

Great points! I’ll try it out.

Entropy.4732:

Heh heh… ya gotta love Engineers. All smiles and sunshine. First off, okay. Maybe the name doesn’t fit perfectly. Ya got me there. But I’m never 2 shotted by anyone. In fact, my survival rate is very high. It’s true that you don’t have a stun-breaker, but this is not a sPVP build. It’s a WvW build. Which means it’s intended for fighting mostly in groups.

Well, thanks for the summary of the differences between this and an actual 100nades build.

I notice you’re still keeping the deceptive “100” part, which would still cause any reasonable observer to think this build is similar to 100nades. So be it: at least the comments under your post will make new engineers aware of the differences.

Manticore Five.9867:

Entropy.4732:

Heh heh… ya gotta love Engineers. All smiles and sunshine. First off, okay. Maybe the name doesn’t fit perfectly. Ya got me there. But I’m never 2 shotted by anyone. In fact, my survival rate is very high. It’s true that you don’t have a stun-breaker, but this is not a sPVP build. It’s a WvW build. Which means it’s intended for fighting mostly in groups.

Well, thanks for the summary of the differences between this and an actual 100nades build.

I notice you’re still keeping the deceptive “100” part, which would still cause any reasonable observer to think this build is similar to 100nades. So be it: at least the comments under your post will make new engineers aware of the differences.

Changed the title. Happy? Man alive….

Oh, I’m joyous. Dancing through the streets, in fact.

It’s a good name. Reminds me of drunken monkey style =)

Manticore Five.9867:

Oh, I’m joyous. Dancing through the streets, in fact.

It’s a good name. Reminds me of drunken monkey style =)

Glad to hear it!