Guild Wars 2

greetings.

i’ve been playing my guardian for quite a while now, and i think i’m getting close to the time when i can finally start getting some ascended armor to finish him out. i’m fairly new to the concept, however, so i figure i’d come here to ask what armor/weapons/accessories i should get. i’ll try to explain my playstyle and goals here to help out:

-full support
-not damage oriented, just keeping myself and the group alive (group comes before me, however)
-“tanky” as far as the game would let me be, keep enemy’s attention while the rest of the group focuses dps
-shout oriented, with pure of voice, superior aria, etc
-mainly pve, though recently i’ve been getting into wvw…is there a set with a happy medium i could craft/acquire?

this is my current build:
http://en.gw2skills.net/editor/?fVIQNAW5el8ApWotCxUI0ENRCBl9+zx/x+DhIFXFAA-e
(the main point of this thread is for the armor advice, as i’ve had good results with this build, but i’m always happy to get advice on adjustments i could make to fit my intended role/playstyle better)

i’m currently wearing a full cleric’s exotic armor set, though i’ve heard that soldier’s would be a good choice too. both seem like good choices, but i have it on good advice that i would miss the healing i would get if i went with soldier’s rather than clerics.

one final note is that i would HIGHLY prefer to not buy the armor/accessories wholesale from the marketplace; laurel vendors and other NPC merchants are fine, but i plan to craft as much of this as i can myself, even if it does take longer or is more difficult.

with the above information in mind, what would the community at large suggest i do? please let me know your opinion, and if any extra information is needed, i would be more than happy to supply it.

thank you for any and all feedback, and please check back, as i’m sure to have more questions as answers start rolling in. thanks for your time!

cheers,
ADG

The current meta for pve guardain is DPS with full berserker, but if you insist on being tanky with the build you posted I suggest:

full ascended sentinel armors/weapons
soldier ascended trinkets and back piece
superior runes of doylak or trooper
all 14 infusions should be vitality

that will maximize your defense stat to maximum.

here’s the link to your build with armors

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fVIQNAW5el8ApWotCxUI0ENRCBl9+zx/x+DhIFXFAA-ThBBABAcRAqa/BtU+xp6PopEMgnAQAgDAP/8zP/8z98zP/8zPHA-e

edited for the link

Deitus.6053:

-full support
-not damage oriented, just keeping myself and the group alive (group comes before me, however)
-“tanky” as far as the game would let me be, keep enemy’s attention while the rest of the group focuses dps
-shout oriented, with pure of voice, superior aria, etc
-mainly pve, though recently i’ve been getting into wvw…is there a set with a happy medium i could craft/acquire?

Any support useful in PvE is totally independent of your equipment, hence a good build will always go for full offensive equipment and just take the supportive traits in the meta. Tanking is not possible anyway and if you go for defensive equipment, you actually reduce your chance to get any mob’s attention. This is no boring trinity game.

However, if you insist on being a healing-supporter and are aware that both competent and pseudo-competent dungeon groups will likely kick you for your useless build (though there are still many groups that don’t care), go for zealot or cleric gear. Do NOT go for the soldier/sentinel junk suggested by the poster above me, as that is absolutely selfish and just hurts a group due to the lack of damage while not bringing any kind of compensation.

CptAurellian.9537:

Deitus.6053:

-full support
-not damage oriented, just keeping myself and the group alive (group comes before me, however)
-“tanky” as far as the game would let me be, keep enemy’s attention while the rest of the group focuses dps
-shout oriented, with pure of voice, superior aria, etc
-mainly pve, though recently i’ve been getting into wvw…is there a set with a happy medium i could craft/acquire?

Any support useful in PvE is totally independent of your equipment, hence a good build will always go for full offensive equipment and just take the supportive traits in the meta. Tanking is not possible anyway and if you go for defensive equipment, you actually reduce your chance to get any mob’s attention. This is no boring trinity game.

However, if you insist on being a healing-supporter and are aware that both competent and pseudo-competent dungeon groups will likely kick you for your useless build (though there are still many groups that don’t care), go for zealot or cleric gear. Do NOT go for the soldier/sentinel junk suggested by the poster above me, as that is absolutely selfish and just hurts a group due to the lack of damage while not bringing any kind of compensation.

Deitus.6053:

-full support
-not damage oriented, just keeping myself and the group alive (group comes before me, however)
-“tanky” as far as the game would let me be, keep enemy’s attention while the rest of the group focuses dps
-shout oriented, with pure of voice, superior aria, etc
-mainly pve, though recently i’ve been getting into wvw…is there a set with a happy medium i could craft/acquire?

Please read what he “wanted” before you post your unnecessary comments. He does WANT full tank. I simply answered the best mathematically possible tanky equipment set. Sentinel / Soldier gives the best defensive stat. It may not necessary be the best “support” role / heal set, but it is the best tanky set. And tanking is supporting. And if he does not want to be full heal and just want to be tanking while doing some support, the cleric gear is actually the junk. So OP if you want to use those, it is up to you. I also said that the meta is DPS with full berserker.

If what you said is true, then full clerics is the obvious answer. Healway is still viable in WVW and roaming at least (don’t even get the thread started on what’s viable in pve). Guards benefit more from Healing power than vit if you’re looking for sustain.

Hammer is the best support weapon a guardian has for pve. Other than that the best support they have is blind/vuln spam, consecrations, and aegis. Clerics is probably the worst gear there is and running all tank gear is generally a waste. Aggro in this game is based on a lot of different factors and not just toughness so running a mix of tank and zerk would be a better tradeoff of being able to stay alive and hit harder. As far as shouts go having a full shout bar won’t help the group as much as running the right utilites for the right occasion like retreat mostly, wall/shield when there are projectiles, stability when needed, purge when you need removal or a fire field for might stacking, and bane signet when nothing else is needed. Running the best utilities for the occasion usually means you end up with 1 shout most of the time. Shelter and renewed focus would also be better choices for survival. Something like this would be better support for you and your group http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fVAQJASWlsApUo9CxZI8DVR8gk1Y7+UXAMfu9qYA-TxRBABXp8rS1foZ/B80BAwFAIvHAgZKBBA-e

if support is truly not viable in pve and wvw with groups, should i just trade for dps instead? what do most groups look for in a guardian?

also, wouldnt mace be better for off hand with the heals, and healing breeze for allied healing?

Deitus.6053:

if support is truly not viable in pve and wvw with groups, should i just trade for dps instead? what do most groups look for in a guardian?

also, wouldnt mace be better for off hand with the heals, and healing breeze for allied healing?

How often does it need to be said that being tanky isn’t equivalent to being support? The guardian is pretty much a defensive support class by nature, and the build Obal linked packs basically as much support as a guardian can give (at least the best support for PvE). The gear is irrelevant, but if you go berserker gear at least you will output some damage too. Toughness and vitality are the two most selfish stats you can have as they only help you stay alive, whereas dps gear helps your team kill things faster, thus making your active defence (blocks, blinds, dodges, reflection, etc) much more valuable, and it makes it easier for your group.

Mace is bad because you will be camping hammer if you want to give maximum support. The heals won’t reach maximum effectiveness unless you are running maximum clerics gear, but the protection from the hammer is equal regardless of gear, and with clerics your dps will go to kitten.

Support is viable and required by any group in any part of the game. The problem is the type of support that is viable varies from type to type.

The trinity in GW2 consist of the following; damage, control and support. This is not something players made up, it is something the developers of the game have stated again and again. In other games, the trinity consists out of damage, tanking and healing.

This is the cause for a lot of grief with certain players, that come to this game expecting to be able to play the same roles as in other games. For example: some players state that support has no place in PvE. However they are wrong , support is almost just as important as damage. Reflects to keep your party from dying, stability to keep your party from being stunned or interrupted, condition cleanses to remove conditions, might blasting to increase damage to your group, etc… are all forms of support.

What is often meant by these players complaining about the lack of support, is that healing has no place in GW2. Healing is just one type of support and people seem to forget that. If you seek to be a dedicated healer as in other games, you simply won’t find that in this game. Not now and not in the future. It would require a massive overhaul of the game from the ground up. The game was designed around damage, support and control, not damage, healing and tanking.

Now, is healing a type of support that is no where wanted in the game? No, not at all. In world versus world, using gear that boosts your healing output (e.g. cleric gear) is quite common, along with more survival gear like soldiers and knights. Berserker gear is also found in WvW, but in smaller quantities (for roaming builds). In sPvP you’ll also find certain builds that use cleric gear, in order to play as a bunker.

Damage, control and support, those are the roles in this game. Seeking a “healer” or “tank” role in this game will only lead to disappointment and will cause for you to be outplayed in any facet of this game.

a quick build recommendation:

keeping the party alive is very beneficial, but so is keeping fights shorter and keeping the enemy from hitting your teammates. If you take 5 out of virtues (you are already a condition removal battery) and 10 out of valor (let everyone else worry about their toughness; if you want to tank don’t boost someone else’s toughness to make it harder to do so); then you can put 15 into radiance and keep blind and might up AoE on each mob death. Enemies that cannot hit you means your teammates dont need armor means you can tank anything (plus might so all fights are shorter, the best defense)

For armor, I’d recommend a mix.

Zealot’s armor and Clerics trinkets. Your toughness will still be very good, your damage respectable, and your healing out of sight. You get the benefits of both contributing damage to your team and keeping everyone alive. If you really want to shine as a support role get Mercy runes. 5 people up fighting is better than 4, always.

Stars.2179:

Please read what he “wanted” before you post your unnecessary comments. He does WANT full tank. I simply answered the best mathematically possible tanky equipment set. Sentinel / Soldier gives the best defensive stat. It may not necessary be the best “support” role / heal set, but it is the best tanky set. And tanking is supporting. And if he does not want to be full heal and just want to be tanking while doing some support, the cleric gear is actually the junk. So OP if you want to use those, it is up to you. I also said that the meta is DPS with full berserker.

This is wrong on so many levels, it’s ridiculous. First, there is no tanking in this game. Tanking means having the mob’s attention – however, the aggro system in this game is so wonky that you’ll never be able to actually tank. Unless you’re alone, but then have fun surviving even a dungeon trashmob trying to facetank him. Second, cleric gear is massively overpowered when trying to facetank stuff. You will not be able to AFK-solo the AC spider queen or do Arah 2 without any dodges in soldier/sentinel, due to the lack of sustain – clerics have already done it.

Deitus.6053:

if support is truly not viable in pve and wvw with groups, should i just trade for dps instead? what do most groups look for in a guardian?

also, wouldnt mace be better for off hand with the heals, and healing breeze for allied healing?

WvW and PvE are two different stories. In WvW, you can have fun and actually be useful with a healing supporter build, as completely avoiding all enemy damage is pretty much impossible. However, as good players can do that in PvE, you’’ll be able to imagine the usefulness of healing if no one takes damage. In PvE, competent players bring guardians mainly for:
- projectile defense/reflections (actually profit from offensive gear with crit chance and ferocity)
- aegis (gear-independent)
- sometimes protection (hammer, otherwise gear-independent)
- here I probably forgot something, but whatever it is, it does not need defensive gear
- and finally DpS, as is the case for every class.

Deitus, I would take Obal and Rangersix’s suggestions. They put support into context for gw2 and how it can be used. Your support comes from your traits and active play, not on the gear you choose. In PvE, you shouldn’t need more than knights gear (if you’re unfamiliar with the content) to keep you alive while still putting out some damage. WvW on the other hand is completely open. You very well might want soldiers gear to survive longer (with vitality and toughness).

And I’ll throw this out there, but healing power is one of the least useful stats. It scales pretty terribly, and you would get more survivability for WvW from other stats like toughness and vitality.

so the main themes i’m seeing from the majority of replies are as follows:

-mace is a no-go, switch to hammer
-i need to rework my traits
-skills should be reflection and heal, only one shout (which one?)
-for pve (fractals, dungeons, etc) healing is nowhere near as important as buff, reflection, condition removal, etc, and i should probably go with either knight’s or zealots for both armor and accessories
-eventually i should get a separate set for wvw, which would focus on healing and tankiness like i originally thought i should build

thoughts?

You’ve got the right ideas. I would read through these two guides to get a feel for when to use different things. And then it’s all about experience. You’ve got to know when to use the wall of reflection to get it’s full potential.

Eveningstar’s
https://forum-en.gw2archive.eu/forum/professions/guardian/Guide-PVE-Guardian-101-A-Beginner-s-Text/first

Obal’s
https://forum-en.gw2archive.eu/forum/professions/guardian/Guide-DPS-Guardian-for-PVE/first

Deitus.6053:

so the main themes i’m seeing from the majority of replies are as follows:

-mace is a no-go, switch to hammer

Yes. The mace is really only used in sPvP, because it allows you to bunker really well.

Deitus.6053:

-skills should be reflection and heal, only one shout (which one?)

Which abilities you have on your bar varies from fight to fight. You can’t select a set of skills and go “we’ll, now I’m good to go for the rest of the day”. You’ll have to learn which fights require stability, reflection, more damage, more cleansing, etc… . That’s why the difference between a good Guardian and a bad Guardian is immense for his or her group.

Deitus.6053:

-for pve (fractals, dungeons, etc) healing is nowhere near as important as buff, reflection, condition removal, etc, and i should probably go with either knight’s or zealots for both armor and accessories

No, definitely not Zealot’s armor. Zealot is power/precision/healing power and remember, healing power is useless (and scales terribly). Either go knight armor + berserker trinkets (if you have little experience with dungeons) or berserker armor + berserker trinkets.

Deitus.6053:

-eventually i should get a separate set for wvw, which would focus on healing and tankiness like i originally thought i should build

Yes, this is true. The easy thing about soldier(pvt) or cleric gear is that you can simply buy the sets with karma from the temple vendors in Orr. A full set will cost around 240k karma.

take a look at hammer build in obals sticky link.
then replace some gear pieces for soldiers if you don’t feel comfortable with 10K HP.
i like to have 15K+ hp so i wear some soldier trinkets.
scepter+focus is when you need range or extra shield, but your main is the hammer.
in PVE ; never use staff, the empower just not worth it, as it has NO real support. staff is a WWW weapon.

support=hammer with persistence trait.
I like support very much and currently I play around this build:

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fVIQNAS7dlsApUo1CxVI8DRR8QlVKa3HUXAg9TsFZBA-TBCEwAOVewVJITlYsU/J3+Dt1B0RzAgHAAA-e

but only because i like the shouts with pure of voice, in content that i need wall of reflection, i swap one shout for it and replace unscratched contender for shorter consecrations CD.

when i tried to play the exact obals build;
3/5/0/4/2 the DPS was better, but i felt i don’t have enough condition removal, one purging flames was not enough for me. and sigils of purity are meh due to long internal CD, they are noticeable only if you have signet of resolve and purity together (which is not even in the build) for a decent 3 conditions per 10 seconds cleanse.

now the mace question,
mace shine only with healing power AND power together, i believe that full zealots build can utilize PVE mace build to the full, but i don’t have enough money to try it.
this is what i thought of:
http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fVAQRApd7dlsApXoNDxVI8DNhDBlZKqP2ZYEb4yAMAA-TVCEABL8AA4SJIn6Haa/hOV/BhjAQomf+U5HAnAASBUluK-w

ok DPS, and very very good AOE healing (healing on auto attack, healing on symbol, regen on symbol, battle presence with absolute resolution, huge dodge heal!!! very high vigor uptime), with four blocks, one reflect etc…

CptAurellian.9537:

This is wrong on so many levels, it’s ridiculous. First, there is no tanking in this game. Tanking means having the mob’s attention – however, the aggro system in this game is so wonky that you’ll never be able to actually tank. Unless you’re alone, but then have fun surviving even a dungeon trashmob trying to facetank him. Second, cleric gear is massively overpowered when trying to facetank stuff. You will not be able to AFK-solo the AC spider queen or do Arah 2 without any dodges in soldier/sentinel, due to the lack of sustain – clerics have already done it.

First, you’re ridiculous. I’ve never said there is tanking in this game. Tell that to the OP. I simply responded to his “requests” to “try to make a tank”. Second cleric gears is the worst. Why would you even consider the piece of crap? You should know better to stick with berserker dude. Just look at all Obal’s builds and see.

Deitus.6053:

so the main themes i’m seeing from the majority of replies are as follows:

-mace is a no-go, switch to hammer
-i need to rework my traits
-skills should be reflection and heal, only one shout (which one?)
-for pve (fractals, dungeons, etc) healing is nowhere near as important as buff, reflection, condition removal, etc, and i should probably go with either knight’s or zealots for both armor and accessories
-eventually i should get a separate set for wvw, which would focus on healing and tankiness like i originally thought i should build

thoughts?

1 and 2) You get it about right. Keep in mind that Support in GW2 is 90% about skills and trait. The only support you get (and i really mean ONLY support) from gear is healing. But Healing Power have a really bad scaling so you lose of lot of other stats for just a small addition in healing.

3) No skills should be reflection and heal. For the guardian specifically, you should bring supports in general, but not really healing. Skills like Wall of Reflection, Shield of Avenger, Purging Flames, Retreat, Santuary and Hallowed Ground are some of the best support skill for the PvE Guardian. Using which one at which moment is something you will learn while playing. But Retreat, Purging Flames and Wall of Reflection is a good mix of skills that will be useful in the majority of time.

4) That’s good. But about gear. Like i said, this is not a tradeoff between support and damage. Its a tradeoff between damage and surviability. Your end goal should be to go full berserker. I know its scary at first, but if you play the meta build correctly, you get SO MUCH surviability from all the blind, aegis, reflection etc that you will end up dying less (ya I was surprised myself the during the first few week that I got good with the meta). Still, using all these active defense need you to actively play and know what to use when, so defensive stats like Vitality and Toughness is good in the beginning, while you are leaning the game. Ascended Trinket are relatively easy to get so get them Zerker now so you don’t waste precious laurel on temporary defensive gear. Use the gear to give yourselve a bit of surviablity. Soldier, Valkyrie and Knight are the most popular for that purpose.
5) Yes and No. In WvW there is two kind of Zerg. Organized and Pug. In organized group, usually the healing come from blasting a water field, which is not really affected by healing power (because the blasts come for 7-8 different people and not only 1 with high Heaping Power). So in organized group, healing power is a no-no (with some specific exception). In pugs, you can’t really wait for people to blast a water field, so healing need to be done by yourself. In this case, ya healing power would make more sense. Still, I have a huge hate toward healing power for the last 17 months since i stopped using Healing in my Guardian gear since it suck soo much. Here, a video that explain the best what is the potential of Healing Power to support people around you exactly like you want.

I would suggest to keep so tanky/damage build for WvW. Here the support you bring is different. A shout oriented Guardian is pretty much the meta in WvW. Stuff like Hold the Line, Stand your Ground and Purging flames are great there (protection and stability are really good in WvW). Similar to what you originally talked about, but without the healing power gear.

Stars.2179:

First, you’re ridiculous. I’ve never said there is tanking in this game.

Pretty bad memory, haven’t you?

Stars.2179:

He does WANT full tank. I simply answered the best mathematically possible tanky equipment set. Sentinel / Soldier gives the best defensive stat. It may not necessary be the best “support” role / heal set, but it is the best tanky set. And tanking is supporting.

Second cleric gears is the worst. Why would you even consider the piece of crap? You should know better to stick with berserker dude. Just look at all Obal’s builds and see.

O rly? You should get a nobel prize for the realization that berserker is the best. But unfortunately, cleric still is not the worst, as this place goes to soldier/sentinel (ignoring all the useless condition crap). Both sets offer approximately the same damage potential, but while cleric has more than enough defense to faceroll through any PvE content, it offers at least some kind of support to the group, while soldier is 100 % egoistic. So if the OP wants to run a subpar build, it should be at least one that gives something to a group.

Personally, on my tank Guardian, I run meditations while traiting into meditations and symbols. All this with a Cleric set.

I use a Hammer/Greatsword primarily, but switch my range in over the GS when necessary. Mace/Shield is also an option to replace hammer if you dont like it. With that being said, Hammer Mace/Shield is super tanky.

I run 2/0/6/6/0.
the 6’s are necessary for the med and symbol traits. not to mention that new trait that’ll give u an extra 6k health or something crazy.

with all consideration done, i think this is what i’ll work towards for pve:
http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fVIQNAS7dlsApUo1CxVI8DRR8QlVKa3HUXAg9TsFZBA-TBCEwAMV+xS9HJHEgOaGarDI3+DAeCAbVCGA4Agf/93f/93A-e

and then get a soldier’s gear set for wvw with the same runes and skills, then wvw infusions on the accessories.

how does this sound? also, i don’t suppose you can karma-buy a zerk set can you?

Guess you should consider other runes for WvW later, not the same ones, but I don’t really care enough for mindlessly bashing doors. For PvE, it looks quite fine, you just should take other sigils. In theory, battle is nice for many builds, but a hammer build does not swap weapons often, so you won’t profit from it. And bloodlust on one weapon is enough to keep the stacks, at least right now. Better go for force+accuracy or force+strength. Or, if you want to spend a lot of money, several weapon sets as described in obal’s sticky.

And no, there’s no berserker set you can buy for karma.

CptAurellian.9537:

Pretty bad memory, haven’t you?

Stars.2179:

And tanking is supporting.

Nope. Here is a lesson on reading comprehension. That statement merely describes a characteristic of tanking. It neither confirms nor denies the existence of such. It merely asserts that if exists, it would be a subset of supporting.

CptAurellian.9537:

O rly? You should get a nobel prize for the realization that berserker is the best.

First, maybe you should look up what exactly is a nobel prize before making such ignorant statements. It insults the entire scientific community out there sir.

Second, I’m not the first one to gather data to show that the numbers from berserker set give the highest offensive stat on an spreadsheet, which by no mean is a proof but it does give high confidence that that is the case. However, I’m the first to be able to show with mathematical proof that berserker set yields the highest offensive stat without involving spreadsheets (that involves: berserker beats assassin, or any future released sets that has ferocity as primary or any combination thereof) .

Third,

But unfortunately, cleric still is not the worst, as this place goes to soldier/sentinel (ignoring all the useless condition crap). Both sets offer approximately the same damage potential, but while cleric has more than enough defense to faceroll through any PvE content, it offers at least some kind of support to the group, while soldier is 100 % egoistic. So if the OP wants to run a subpar build, it should be at least one that gives something to a group.

Soldier set gives much more offensive capability to the user than the cleric. Or should I give you a lesson in how to compare number too? And that difference in offensive capability contributes much better to the group than a healing stat, in an already subpar build. Furthermore soldier / sentinel set clearly gives much more vitality than cleric (none) which does add to the survival ability of the user in case of taking conditional damage (again in a subpar build) and in a casual run it makes a difference.

Anywho, the OP already decided to use berserker set and congrats to him. OP you can get exotic berserker set by running COF.

CptAurellian.9537:

Guess you should consider other runes for WvW later, not the same ones, but I don’t really care enough for mindlessly bashing doors. For PvE, it looks quite fine, you just should take other sigils. In theory, battle is nice for many builds, but a hammer build does not swap weapons often, so you won’t profit from it. And bloodlust on one weapon is enough to keep the stacks, at least right now. Better go for force+accuracy or force+strength. Or, if you want to spend a lot of money, several weapon sets as described in obal’s sticky.

And no, there’s no berserker set you can buy for karma.

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fVIQNAS7dlsApUo1CxVI8DRR8QlVKa3HUXAg9TsFZBA-TRSBwAUOIAmVCeV53N1fIu/AedAo0Ms4BAA4IAEA4Agf/93f/93A-e

fixed?

and this is gonna take a while anyway, so ill just make a new thread later when i get around to the wvw set.

thanks for your help guys, i appreciate it

This is fine while you are learning the game, but there is several things that don’t work quite well in it.

- Scepter/Focus is fine. I mean, I use a ranged weapons on most of my character for a long time, but eventually, you should challenge yourself to keep your scepter in your inventory for some specific situation and keep 2 melee weapons on you. See the scepter as learning wheel. As long as you keep them, you will never learn how to be good on your bicycle.

- Hammer is a great weapons, but you miss the Symbolic Power trait to get the most out of that weapons. Especially since you don’t have Greatsword to boost your DPS with some burst damage skill between your hammer auto-attack.

- Shouts. I know they are so nice to have on you. They feel confortable and good and all. But the fact is, stand your ground is situational and hold the line is useless (especially with a hammer build since you already have 100% protection uptime). So you keep a skill for 1000 heal each 28s? Skill like Wall of reflection will reduce your incoming damage by far more than 1000 hp each 28s, while Purging flames is more than enough to control your condition in PvE.

So as I said. Your build is just fine right now. Just keep in mind that you will need to let go of shouts and ranged weapons in the future if you want to get better with your guardian.

is guild wars 2 skill builder not up to date? there are discrepancies between whats on the builder and whats on the wiki with traits

obal.3218:

Hammer is the best support weapon a guardian has for pve. Other than that the best support they have is blind/vuln spam, consecrations, and aegis. Clerics is probably the worst gear there is and running all tank gear is generally a waste. Aggro in this game is based on a lot of different factors and not just toughness so running a mix of tank and zerk would be a better tradeoff of being able to stay alive and hit harder. As far as shouts go having a full shout bar won’t help the group as much as running the right utilites for the right occasion like retreat mostly, wall/shield when there are projectiles, stability when needed, purge when you need removal or a fire field for might stacking, and bane signet when nothing else is needed. Running the best utilities for the occasion usually means you end up with 1 shout most of the time. Shelter and renewed focus would also be better choices for survival. Something like this would be better support for you and your group http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fVAQJASWlsApUo9CxZI8DVR8gk1Y7+UXAMfu9qYA-TxRBABXp8rS1foZ/B80BAwFAIvHAgZKBBA-e

Just wanted to give a public props to Obal, while he pretty much represents the current meta, he is not above listening to the concerns and wants of people who don’t want to follow it.

Even while he is trying to educate and show why to use setups closer to the meta, he still tries to compromise and provide possible alternatives with fairly honest effort.

Stay classy Obal.