Guild Wars 2

Anybody remember the rumor back in HoT hype days that the Bow the Guardian Elite spec was getting, had a some form of a stance ability on weapon skill 5 that allow you to switch between Support and DPS form changing the 1-4 weapon skills.

I believe something like that would been better for Firebrand Elite spec more so than Axe main hand. We have long bow already, but would have loved something like this for a Short bow. A support form for healing builds and a option to switch to a DPS form for dps builds.

Could fit well with the tomb theme and support oriented elite spec role of Firebrand.

Guards were lacking a viable condi weapon/spec more than they were lacking support. That said, Firebrand still has a TON of great supportive tools.

Axe is fine, and it synergises well with both firebrand and core guard traits.

That stance switching was given to Deadeye, btw. Rip bow.

Jackcreanor.7546:

Guards were lacking a viable condi weapon/spec more than they were lacking support. That said, Firebrand still has a TON of great supportive tools.

I think everything the guardian has and will ever get is going to have a lot of supportive tools, it’s like Eles having AoE and thieves having mobility. Even the dragonhunter had more than average support to it and it’s a DPS spec.

Which is why I still think it’s idiotic that we lost our minion utility skills, if they had ever made them not suck, which was entirely doable had they ever even tried, they would have been the crux to making our massive suite of group supportive abilities useful outside of structured group content.

Conncept.7638:

I think everything the guardian has and will ever get is going to have a lot of supportive tools, it’s like Eles having AoE and thieves having mobility. Even the dragonhunter had more than average support to it and it’s a DPS spec.

Everything is support and yet still terrible and never taken for support. Other classes just do it better. Quickness? The mantras are all short range cones on a melee spec, you’re never going to get everyone reliably to keep up 100% quickness that you might as well just run a chronomancer in every scenario.

Jackcreanor.7546:

Guards were lacking a viable condi weapon/spec more than they were lacking support.

And yet they can’t play support. Riddle me that.

No the Axe is fitting and we needed a dedicated main hand Condi. I think the damage side of FB will be great. I want the 5 damage tomes and the mantras are awesome in concept and have a partially spammable burn utility. No complaints.

However, as a support role: I have serious trouble seeing how we are a good support role outside of WvW zergs or hammer on map meta-events. Yes, we have a wide selection of basic boons; all of which can be generated by other classes. All of which are outshined by the support roles offered by other classes.

The guardian was THE support class fantasy when GW2 dropped, look at its original flavor text and descriptions from 2012… yet every time any kind of substantial support has been added, guardian has been overlooked. Want a healer, get a ranger. Want a tank, get a Mesmer? Next up is Necro. Sadly I origionaly rolled my Guardian during release as a dedicated support and the only time in 5 years that I have done that is in WvW. A role that is about to be stripped by warrior elite.

Unless most of the community is wrong, support guardian no longer has a role and probably isn’t viable anymore. Sure you can run it, but half the non-support classes in their new roles WILL out shine your support guardian. I’m just glad I can now set them on fire to make up for my support disappointment.

Barring our abysmal range and mobility. I Couldn’t be happier with the Condi. While I couldn’t be sadder about our “support” selections as a pathetic jack of all support, master of none.

You could always set them on fire.

LetoII.3782:

You could always set them on fire.

Ohhh! no way. I’m just now finding this out after 5 years….. Thank you for your vast insight

Yep it’s called Virtue of Justice.
Happy to help

Azoqu.8917:

Conncept.7638:

I think everything the guardian has and will ever get is going to have a lot of supportive tools, it’s like Eles having AoE and thieves having mobility. Even the dragonhunter had more than average support to it and it’s a DPS spec.

Everything is support and yet still terrible and never taken for support. Other classes just do it better. Quickness? The mantras are all short range cones on a melee spec, you’re never going to get everyone reliably to keep up 100% quickness that you might as well just run a chronomancer in every scenario.

Guardians were the support class prior to HoT and raids, especially after nerfs to support eles and mesmers. The problem isn’t guardian mechanics, the problem is the reprehensible behavior of GW2s developers, who claimed they weren’t going to powercreep the classes with the introduction of specializations, and then did exactly that to the umpteenth degree.