Guild Wars 2

The main reason I play an engineer is versatility. We have the largest combination of abilities at our disposal of all the classes, all without having to craft a wide variety of weapons to swap in and out before and after battles. So with this in mind, I set out to design my own build with the goal of flexibility in mind. I wanted to define a selection of traits that would allow me to customize my trait abilities and slot skills to fulfill a variety of different roles and play styles while still achieving cohesion. When I say cohesion, I mean all the trait abilities and slot skills work together to benefit the play style in some form with no “filler” traits that don’t serve a purpose.

The end result is a 20/20/0/30/0 build. It is essentially a HGH elixir build with 20 points in firearms and 20 points in explosives to give me a pool of trait abilities that can be mixed and matched to improve pistols, bombs, grenades, flamethrower or elixir gun. It’s primary focus is on elixirs and kits; turrets and other abilities don’t get used. Since it is jack of all trade builds, it can’t compare with builds optimized for a single kit. This is the cost of versatility, but I have still found it to be incredibly effective and allows me to change my play style constantly on the fly, either from necessity or because I am bored.

This explanation of the build is going to be a bit different than most. First, I’ll start off with core principles that don’t change, then define the pool of trait abilities that I will use in different combinations, then give a quick breakdown of gear and finally, start listing all my favorite combinations.

Core Principles

• This is a HGH build at heart. Alchemy XI will be constant. It won’t be listed in the trait abilities list in each combo because it is assumed to be there as your Master Alchemy Trait.

• The general makeup of slot abilities is one kit/two elixirs or three elixirs. As such, Alchemy II(Reduces recharge on Elixirs) is also constant. It won’t be listed either, because I am assuming you have it as your Adept Alchemy trait.

• It uses dual pistols.

• It is a condition damage build. It is also based heavily on traits that proc conditions on critical hits.

• Supply Crate is the elite skill. It remains constant.

Pool of Trait Abilities

Explosives

• II – Explosives causes bleeding on critical hits
• VI – Cripple foes below 50% health
• VII – Reduce recharge on bombs and grenades
• X – Healing skills give might

Firearms

• I – Reduces recharge on flamethrower and elixir gun
• III – Swiftness on critical hits
• V – Vulnerability on critical hits
• VI – Reduces recharge on pistols
• VII – Pistol shots pierce
• VIII – Flamethrower grants toughness and generates might

Alchemy

• X: Throwing or consuming elixirs removes boons
• IX: Regenerate health when using a kit

Minor Trait Abilities

• Create a bomb when you dodge.
• Release mines when below 25% health.
• Cause bleeding on critical hits.
• Critical hit chance is increased against foes that are below health threshold.
• Drink Elixir B when below 75%
• Incoming conditions become boons.
• Deal 1% more damage per boon.

Gear

In the build editor links, I’ve included a list of my current gear setup. It’s a mix of Carrion and Rabid with Runes of the Noble for the condition damage and might bonuses. Since I am precision heavy, I go for Sigil of Strength for might stacks on critical and Sigil of Earth to add even more bleed stacks. Food is pizza for the condition duration and condition damage bonus. Maintenance oil is used to boot my power and precision from the toughness and vitality on my Rabid and Carrion.

Combinations

Pistols – Kiting

Traits: -Alchemy IX, Explosives VI, Explosives X, Firearms VI, Firearms III
Slot Skills – Medkit, Elixir C, Elixir B, Elixir S

This is geared towards kiting single with pistols while you kill them with conditions. Your sigil combined with the bleed on critical minor trait will stack a large number of bleeds with explosive shot. You also have poison and fire at your disposal. You have blind and confusion when they get close. You have an AoE immobilize. Elixir B with fury and swiftness, fury and swiftness from med kit potion and swiftness on critical with Firearms III ensure permanent swiftness, not to mention a constant stream of critical hits for more bleed stacks. Swapping to med kit while your pistol is on cool down grants you more might and allows you to regenerate while you drop bandages on the move. Elixir S is your “Oh kitten” button with the added bonus of AoE stealth for reviving downed players. Since we took Backpack Regeneration instead of condition removal on elixir use, we have Elixir C as our method to wipe conditions in addition to the cure from med kit.

Pistols – DPS

Traits – Alchemy X, Explosions VI, Explosions X, Firearms VI, Firearms VII
Slot Skills – Elixir H, Elixir U, Elixir B, Elixir S

Similar to the first pistols build above, but we are trading our mobility for more damage. We’ve swapped out swiftness on critical hit for piercing pistol shots, allowing explosion shots to go threw groups of mobs, stacking large numbers of bleeds on tight clusters. Medkit is replaced with Elixir H, removing the need to swap out of our pistols and stop DPS in order to heal. In addition, HGH plus Explosions X allow Elixir H to grant 5 stacks of might. Since all our elixirs now remove conditions, we are able to swap Elixir C for U, allowing us quickness and haste in addition to a random combo field that can be dropped. Elixir S still remains as our “Oh kitten” button and Elixir B does give swiftness, but this combination is geared towards hanging out in the back and unloading damage.

Bombs – Kiting

Traits – Alchemy IX, Explosion II, Explosion X, Firearms III, Firearms V
Slot Skills – Medkit, Bomb Kit, Elixir C, Elixir S

This is what I typically use for solo AOE kiting.The principle is laying down bombs, swapping to med kit to grant might and lay down bandages, then back to bombs which are now off cool down. Since you are swapping between two kits constantly, you always regenerate health with Alchemy IX. Explosion II and Firearms V plus sigils allow for heavy stacking of bleeds and vulnerability besides your normal bomb conditions. Firearms III and potion from medkit allow for perma swiftness. Elixir C is our main condition removal since we once again opted out of Alchemy X for Alchemy IX. Elixir S is our “Oh kitten” button.

Grenades (Bombs, too!) – DPS and Water Combat

Traits – Alchemy X, Explosions II, Explosions VII, Firearms III, Firearms V
Slot Skills – Elixir H, Grenade Kit (or Bomb Kit), Elixir B, Elixir S

This is a bit of a more balanced bomb/grenade combination and almost always the one I use when fighting in the underwater fractal (Grenades underwater rock). First, we have swapped out Explosions X for Explosions VII, so we can churn out more grenades. With this, we lose the might stacks from med kit, so that has been replaced with Elixir H, since we still get 2 might stacks from it on use and don’t have to swap out of grenades to use. Alchemy IX has been swapped out for Alchemy X, trading our kit regenerate for elixir condition cures. This allows us to swap out Elixir C for Elixir B for more might stacks, fury and boons. Elixir B and swiftness on critical from Firearms III still give plenty of swiftness so if you run into an encounter that requires constant mobility, this combination is still viable for swapping out grenades for bombs for on the move AOE damage. You just can’t recover as much health as quickly as you can with the med kit combination. This is really great for grenades, but harder on bombs, since you have to get so close and the heal from elixir h is significantly less than what you can achieve with med kit plus backpack regenerate.

Flamethrower – DPS

Traits – Alchemy X, Explosives VI, Explosives X, Firearms I, Firearms VIII
Slot Skills – Elixir H, Flamethrower, Elixir U, Elixir B

This combination is all about build stacks of might, stacking boons and doing damage. Flamethrower juggernaut will build up stacks of might on it’s own, you get another 5 from Elixir H and 4 from Elixir U and Elixir B along with fury, quickness, haste and other boons. You have Elixir H for your heal and Alchemy X handles condition removal. Once you built up your might stacks, boons and exhaust your flamethrower cooldowns, you can swap over to pistols to land some more bleeds, confusion, blind, and poison before swapping back over to set more stuff on fire.

Flamethrower – Less DPS, More Survival

Traits – Alchemy IX, Explosives VI, Explosives X, Firearms I, Firearms VIII
Slot Skills – Med Kit, Flamethrower, Elixir C, Elixir S

A variation of the flamethrower combination with more survivalibility and less damage output. It mostly focuses on rotating between med kit and flamethrower. Swapping to med kit will give you might stacks from Explosives X and the potion gives you fury and swiftness to help make up for loss of Elixir B. Since we have lost condition removal due to taking backpack regeneration, Elixir C has been added for condition removal. Elixir S replaces Elixir B as an “Oh kitten” button.

Elixir Gun – Support

Traits – Alchemy X, Explosives VI, Explosives X, Firearms I, Firearms III
Slot Skills – Med Kit, Elixir Gun, Elixir S, Elixir B

This combination is all about team support. You are going to be running around, laying down bandages, potions, tossing elixirs to buff your team and cure conditions, lay down light fields with elixir gun, remove conditions with the spray attack, cripple enemies and grant swiftness and apply large stacks of bleeds to single enemies.

only problem with your builds is they lack direct dmg. Pistol pales in comparison to rifle in direct dmg. For the sake of any arguments, youre running HGH condi builds.

Your builds are good with condition dmg and condition dmg alone. its a good trait base to go with and gives you a lot of versatility in your utility choices. Which is what it seems like you were getting at doing. But like i said up there ^… Scrap and forget the pistol dps build. Pistol excells at condition application and is on pair with rifle for cc.

For a “jack of all, master of none” build i would picture something that has a trait base to be able to use any of our utilities and weapons. For that to work youd probably be better off going with celestial gear to get all stats for every build. You wouldnt excel at direct dmg or condi dmg but you would be all around “good” with either choice. Something along these lines… The traits and utilities are all interchangeable. I basically just picked traits to pick traits for the link but that base build is more of a mix between almost all our choices aside from turrets which are a joke anyway aside from HT. You can also swap in a rifle for a more direct dmg based build.

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fcAQJAqal0pqb3ySfF1LJxoCkGkC7mXRKwMl/o4tsF-jwBBoeChJfFRjtVIs9BBpTIaqaER1qkYA-e

Actually, that is the direction I am going as I work towards my ascended gear. A full set of celestial and I would like to drop pistols for rifle for a direct damage option. But right now, given it’s not practical given how hard it is to acquire quartz crystals and my leatherworking skill isn’t there yet, a focus on condition damage opens up the most play styles.

But, yeah, I don’t deny that its a HGH condition build. I said it at the start. The point of the guide was more with a little trade off, you don’t have to be just a “grenade” build or a “FT” build. In fractals, I’ve used an elixer/med kit setup for stacking encounters, a bomb build focused on kiting for encounters with large groups in open areas or that require constant movement like that inquest end encounter with the rotating lasers, or a FT build for groups of clustered mobs in tight spaces.

That kind of switching on and off makes it fun for me and I don’t feel like I am boxed into being a one trick pony.

Yea I gotcha. I haven’t look in a while but what’re the prices on Quartz ATM? A little while ago it was around 1s20c per. I think it’s 25 for 1 charge(skill point commune) and you need I think 5 charged per piece?( it’s been several months since I made my eles armor) so I think it comes out to 750 quartz total for a full set of armor? That’s not un obtainable, it’s just the time gate in charging crystals which is annoying and takes 1 month. But it’s well worth the time put in if that’s what you’re trying to accomplish.(I have the same mindset with my ele being able to swap my build and weps at will)

How do you get the recipes, short of buying them on AH? Wiki’s say they are from Bazaar event only.

MadRabbit.3179:

How do you get the recipes, short of buying them on AH? Wiki’s say they are from Bazaar event only.

Honestly when I crafted my armor it was during the bazaar event and I had the recipes drop and bought the ones I needed. I’m sure the prices have gone up if they’re still only available from that time, which would be ridiculous but that’s anet… I’ll look around and see what I can find.

Yea I think you’re stuck paying the TP prices unfortunately. I can’t find anything else on their drop locations/items other then the bazaar.