Guild Wars 2

Ok guys, I’ve been wrestling with this build all day, let me know what you think of this general overview.

1h Sword and Torch. Stacking Power and Precision on all Gear and slots with Sigils of Fire and Air on both weapons for super procs. The thing is… I feel like this setup leaves my Guardian super squishy and I want to be ready for serious Dungeon Crawling / WvWvW.
Is the key to be a Glass Cannon who can dodge a lot?

Also i use a scepter with shield for long range opportunity if melee isn’t possible/wise at the moment.

Thoughts?

Getting traits supporting a high damage 1h/torch build plus power/prec gear doesn’t leave much room for survivability. Its the tradeoff for high damage. Best thing is to be smart with your dodge rolls, and use virtues wisely. If you pick up Altruistic Healing and put 5 points into Virtues for the extra boons, it could help a bit with self healing along with providing nice group support.

you put a melee weapon and a range weapon together.
IMO, those 2 do not go together.

I use a lot of scepter/torch as my weapon swap from greatsword.

Maybe this build is for you?

http://gw2skills.net/editor/en/?fUEQNAsfRlYgiDXGSJEfIFRWBRa94fI0fVFi3lCKGRA

Focused on sword + torch and burning condition, with istant JI and PoF

Chivo.2974:

you put a melee weapon and a range weapon together.
IMO, those 2 do not go together.

I use a lot of scepter/torch as my weapon swap from greatsword.

Torch is a mid range weapon, not a ranged weapon. It’s perfect with the sword. How do you ever expect to Cleansing flame someone with a scepter?

xerotos.3250:

Maybe this build is for you?

http://gw2skills.net/editor/en/?fUEQNAsfRlYgiDXGSJEfIFRWBRa94fI0fVFi3lCKGRA

Focused on sword + torch and burning condition, with istant JI and PoF

Sorry wrong link edited

Chivo.2974:

you put a melee weapon and a range weapon together.
IMO, those 2 do not go together.

I use a lot of scepter/torch as my weapon swap from greatsword.

Cleansing Flame (without the second activation) is a melee skill. Flame Breath has short range. Torch is way more melee than it is ranged.

Here is my sword/torch build that I’ve been using in WvW and explorable modes.

http://www.gw2db.com/skills/calc/guardian#2|20|3527|12643|12644|12641|0|0|0|0|0|30|1828|1363|1366|30|1389|2175|1396|10|883|0|0|0|0|0|0|0|0|0|0|0|0|0|0|0|0|0|0|0|0|0|0|

You keep the higher crit chance you wanted from the radiance trait line, grabbing the 15% crit for one handers as the last major trait.

Survivability is quite amazing in this build being that you are stacking toughness which negates the physical damage you take while increasing your crit chance due to “Retributive Armor”.

You have two mediation skills that remove conditions plus the passive condition removal of your heal skill which makes for a nice counter to your condition stackers. And your meditations heal each time you use them.

I opted for 10 points in Honor over Zeal to pick up “Vigorous Precision” which keeps the Vigor buff up almost 100% allowing for near spam dodge rolling.

All in all not as bursty and high damage as some builds, I think the balance of survivability vs damage has done me quite well in game so far.

Just a FYI. Judge’s Intervention is already an instant. Of the four meditations.. the 2 that break stun, are already instants. This is mostly for the builds I see proposed here.

I’m also running a Sword+Torch build. Thinking of going a mix of Valkyrie and Knight gear with Berserker trinkets to add some survivability. Wondering how did you guys gear your guardians?

So, here’s my idea, though I’m only partially able to test it due to being level 54. PvE build, so it includes rings/accessories as well.

http://gw2skills.net/editor/en/?fUEQNAsfRlYgiD33RLEfYFRuArHEEh+rqQ8wUgR4fLA;T8AA2ynEOJdS9lyLKcM4IwxijDHJOLIGUMxA

You start off using the greatsword til you hit 25 stacks of Bloodlust, then swap to sword/torch. Between Empowering Might and Bloodlust, you’ll be well above 2K power, with crit rates hovering around 80% with the sword.

On traits:

• Power line is obvious, you want the +10% dmg vs. burning.
• Signet recharge is for your heal – if you’re feeling squishy, knocking off that 8s is huge.
• Valor points could easily be reassigned if you really want Symbolic Exposure (though you’d only have one on-demand symbol, on your swap) or an adept trait in Virtues. But hey, free Aegis, right? And 50 Toughness, which is… something I guess.
• Honor is there almost solely for Empowering Might. Again, nearly 80% crit chance with your sword, so you should stack might pretty deep once combat gets going, which will make up for any deficits you feel from the gear being precision-focused.

On skills:

• Save Yourselves! = 10 seconds of insane beat-stick power every 48s (21% uptime).
• Hold the Line! is good for those super-squishy moments when you need a second to pull back and refresh before diving back into the fight.
• Judge’s Insight for burning and the port.
• Renewed Focus because it’s the easiest to use and adds to your durability.

So, yeah. That’s my plan for 80. We’ll see how it works out.