Guild Wars 2

Hi there!

I just rolled my very first engineer!

I main a Mesmer and I wanted something different.

I really am loving the pistol and shield combo, but I really hate using kits.

Anyway my question is:

Can I viably play my engi using primarily weapons? I really really don’t like the grenade kit and stuff that swaps out my weapons. What would be a good option for someone like me who would rather not use kits at all?

Oh, I forgot to mention I only play pve content like dungeons, dragons, questing etc.

best option probably would be 2 pistols and lots of elixirs.
Going into the alchemy traitline and get 20% shorter elixir cooldown, condition removal on elixirs and HGH for might stacking.
This build often works with grenades, but you can go with 2 pistols as well.

Another is with turrets.
Check the first pages here for a few posts of people testing such builds.
They can be strong, but not as strong as the one above. They have less defenses than using elixirs…

If using a rifle and rifle turret for example, you could go for a Static discharge build.
Look those up in the sticky about builds.

Several pages down there is a post started by Ostricheggs, a pretty good tpvp engineer. He lists the builds he considers the best for tpvp.
Check that list out, it’s helpfull.

as for shield-pistol without anything else?
Since that damage is pretty low, I strongly reckommend using turrets for that one, if you don’t want to use any kit at all.

To be honest: you would be best using at least tool kit or bomb kit along with your turrets…
For example: healing turet, rocket or flame turret, net turret… and either bomb kit or tool kit.

Yeah, i just love shield pistol… is there a build i can work around that combo that is viable?

Snow White.9680:

Yeah, i just love shield pistol… is there a build i can work around that combo that is viable?

Viable for what?
Leveling and mostly pve?
Fractals 58.6?
Tpvp world ranking?
WvW taking on a zerg solo?

dungeons, questing, events, dragons

This is a base.
I didn’t fill it out completely because much depends on your playstyle.

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fcAQJAqelIqyVntSyF17IRIFJ2wgKA4PKYLdB

(copy the link as text, and paste it in your browser page)

I did put in tool kit, that could be bomb kit too.
But if going pistol-shield you do need something that packs a punch or nothing will die.

Some explanation on choices I made:
- exploding turrets is just too good to pass on

- I went into Inventions traitline to get the 15 pointer that resets your healing skill.
This either resets healing turret… OR it resets the healing turret overcharge if the turret is out already. That overcharge cleanses ALL conditions aoe, but has 60 sec cooldown.
Usually people explode their healing turret, this adds 1700 something extra healing if done just when you see the white circle. Or in pve and when fighting condi heavy classes, the reset on overcharge is pretty good.

- when using net turret, it’s very helpfull for damage to get 5 stacks of vulnerability each time. Start with net turret toolbelt, than deploy net turret = 10 stacks
Tool kit adds more.
Vulenrability works on power based damage only, so less on your pistol and more on bomb #1 or the tool kit…

What can you still do with it?
- go 30 in explosives for stronger bombs or grenades.
- go 30 Inventions for healing bombs, or turrets that hit a bit harder (not the best of traits but decent)
- go 30 in Firearms and get piercing pistol shots. Pretty helpfull but the cost in your build means you won’t have any points left for defenses.
- go 20 points in Alchemy for better personal defenses
- go 20 points in Tools for things like speedy kits, Kit Refinement if you only use bomb kit is pretty good, and of course: Power wrench wich is a great trait for tool kit.
- go 10 in Alchemy and 10 in tools for swiftness AND vigor to become a dodging running machine… but for that you need at least one kit of course (bombs, tool kit…)

I didn’t pick sigils or runes, as those depends on your other choices.

Thank you so much

I might have to add: for pve content healing bombs coupled with turrets is a very good set up!
It has more issues in pvp, but in pve it shines I think.

I hate the grenade kit too. I know it’s powerful but I don’t like the ground targeting #1.

Try out the Flamethrower. It’s a kit yes, but it plays like a standard weapon in that it has a full range of skills and can easily be used exclusively in PvE. Make that your only kit and if you like it you can try expanding in time.

As for non-kit builds, I recommend heavy elixir usage with P/P. I like B & U for PvE. There are plenty of traits in all trees to supplement heavy elixir usage. I recommend points in Firearms (for your pistols) and Alchemy (for you elixirs).

Gadgets are great but their cooldowns are too long (even with toolbelts) to have a full bar of them. If you go with a power build Goggles are pretty awesome, granting Fury and dishing out Vulnerability. I also like Rocket Boots because they not only give you a (sorta) escape but the toolbelt hits hard & burns. Stacks nicely with Pistol #4.

Turrets got better with the latest patch so you can experiment with them. Many people take Rocket & Net turrets for huge control, though at the cost of relying on the turrets’ AI. If you go turret heavy and trait into it, give ToolKit a try. Yes, a kit, but like FT it has a full complement of skills that make it less gimicky and quite useable. Traited, it can heal your turrets as you fight near them. And it deals some pretty hard hitting damage (Prybar).

You would be pretty light on dmg… turrets are annoying.

I would suggest at least one kit… if you want to mainly use the pistol. Consider going P/P for blow torch. Learn to role around and use your glue shot and you won’t miss the shield defense. (also tool kit will give you gear shield… no push back but great 3s shield.)

For Build….
http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fcAQJAqalspSXnwSyF17IBoHAOv8V0jHT5J/pAbB

Try something like that…
Coated bullets is very underrated for dmg. Pierce sounds so so but you have consider that Pistol 1 is an aoe explosion. Grouped enemies will take lots of dmg from pistol with coat and you don’t have to do any funny lining up of targets.

Tool kit if you never swap to it what ever at least you have the very useful throw wrench skill. Its 20s and nice dps… but consider switching to Tool kit for pry bar (#3) at least.

What I will do sometimes… is dodge into range after opening with my pistol cool downs. Switch to Tool kit Pry bar… then dodge back out. (if you are out of endur you can pop Elixer R to insta fill it… with R you can dodge 4 times in a row every 30s or so if you need to)

Thinking I’ll bench the engi..

If I’m reading these suggestions correctly, seems I can’t play with the weapons I want whats the point.

Thanks for all the advice you guys

Argh, I don’t want to lose a potential Engi cohort to despair.

Every one of the Engineer’s tools are viable and useful. But you want to play with a very specific style; pistol/shield, no kits. Using the shield is a great defensive tool, but if you don’t want to use the pistol offhand, you have to supplement it with something that will deal great damage. Namely, kits.

Elixirs don’t deal damage, they buff. Gadgets sometimes deal damage, but are more about control. This is just the nature of each of our utility types. Turrets are completely viable in open world PvE now. But they don’t lend to a very dynamic style of play imo and they will be the main source of damage if you go 100% turrets.

Kits are essentially our weapon swap. Every profession has a weapon swap (or attunement swap for eles) so using 1 other kit shouldn’t be difficult to adjust to. As I mentioned above, try out flamethrower or toolkit. They are each fully functioning weapon kits that can stand alone like any normal weapon setup. Pick one and treat it as you would a weapon swap.

Personally, I use P/P but you can do this with P/S. I use my weaps to fight, swap to my flamethrower to use the knockback (#3) then the burst skill (#2) lay down a fire combo field (#4) and then swap back to pistols to keep fighting. Pop back into FT for an pbaoe blind (#5) and then back to pistols. You can use kits situationally rather than feeling like you have to stay in them.

Only set up I can think of that would have a chance of working would be:

pistol shield (obviously, that’s THE start of this topic)
Med Kit or Healing turret
rocket boots because they break stealth and the tool belt is actually very good damage (on a short cooldown too)
Net turret
Flame turret or Rifle turret, depending on more condition or power as damage.

Trait for static discharge
Trait for piercing shots
trait for Incendiary Powder in Explosives, and have good crit rate
use the leftover points for defenses in either Inventions (shield cooldown) or Alchemy

Seras.5702:

but if you don’t want to use the pistol offhand, you have to supplement it with something that will deal great damage.

But the off hand pistol only deals damage short range, with the burn, right? So if we’re farther range than that, a pistol in off hand or a shield, does it change something?

hithlain.4385:

Seras.5702:

but if you don’t want to use the pistol offhand, you have to supplement it with something that will deal great damage.

But the off hand pistol only deals damage short range, with the burn, right? So if we’re farther range than that, a pistol in off hand or a shield, does it change something?

Pistol #4 only has a 15s cooldown. That’s the big thing. At close range it hits hard and adds 6s of burn! That’s a lot, especially for a condition build. It’s also kind of an aoe, since it hits everything between you and your target. I guess that’d be piercing.

Shield skills on the other hard have 30 & 40 sec cooldowns. They are defensive, pushing back & dazing foes, reflecting projectiles…their damage isn’t that geat, even if it is aoe. The one thing shield has going for it is its blast finisher. But again, 30s cooldown.

It’s quite easy to gain swiftness for Engis. Being able to pop into close range for pistol #4 and then pop out is easy. Especially if you have a gadget like PBR or Rocket Boots.

Snow White.9680:

Thinking I’ll bench the engi..

If I’m reading these suggestions correctly, seems I can’t play with the weapons I want whats the point.

Thanks for all the advice you guys

you can try a power/crit build with rifle, with static discharge. Idk if it’ll still be viable now, but it used to be a popular pvp build back then.

Okay, I’m having loads of fun with pistol / shield and rifle turret.

It works well right now at low levels so I’m just gonna use it! !!!

Thanks for all your help guys, I’ll figure it out as I level. :P

Too fun to bench this lil gal.

Hurray! We saved one!

Don’t listen to any posts that say that engineers have to use grenades or elixirs to be successful. Make a build that works for you and how you play. Others may be successful with using them, but that doesn’t mean that it is the best for you. There is no cookie cutter build that fits everyone and that is especially true with the engineer’s versatility. That will take time as you learn the class while leveling. I don’t agree with some of the patch changes for the engineer, but they have honestly not affected me in any way because I mainly use the pistol for damage, hate using most kits, and only carry the elixir gun.

Here’s the build I use right now and it works well for me in PVE and WvW. It’s a P/P condition build that makes me useful alone or with a group.

http://gw2buildcraft.com/calculator/engineer/?2.0|a.1b.h16.a.1b.h1|0.0.0.0.0.0|1b.719.1b.719.1b.719.1b.719.1b.719.1b.719|1h.62.1h.62.1h.62.1h.62.1h.62.1b.9b|u59a.u46c.0.0.a6|30.d|2c.2v.2l.2h.30|e

Wow, someone on here actually cares about saving an engineer and recommends having ‘fun’ instead of constantly, angrily posting things like “That build has 2% less dmg! lolnoob”

Sadly, after reading these forums about how much FT sucks, and I should stack might and do nades all the time, my engineer playtime has decreased. Where the eff were you guys then huh?

ZenonSeth.5739:

Wow, someone on here actually cares about saving an engineer and recommends having ‘fun’ instead of constantly, angrily posting things like “That build has 2% less dmg! lolnoob”

Sadly, after reading these forums about how much FT sucks, and I should stack might and do nades all the time, my engineer playtime has decreased. Where the eff were you guys then huh?

I was here, and likely tried to save you too!
Can’t remember though… but sure I did. Yeah. Sure…

(and don’t tell the OP, but his build actually does have 2% LESS damage…)
(could be more)

The ones having fun don’t bother going on forums because they are busy playing.

kokocabana.8153:

The ones having fun don’t bother going on forums because they are busy playing.

nope. I do both.

I am very critical on these forums in fact, often disagree with engineer changes and even more often think many things should be improved.

Yet in game I have fun and try to be as nice as a little Asura that would explode your kitten can be…