I’ve always loved mesmer, and I’ve had a blast, not to mention great success, running a flex build of my own design in WvW and PvE. However, when it comes to sPvP, I can’t seem to nail down the strategy or build that works best for me. I’ve moved away from legion builds in general because although effective, in higher ranked games and tourneys it just feels like I’m the weak link; it survives nicely and easily, but doesn’t kill nearly as effectively as it survives. Then on the other side of the coin we have shatter builds. It seems as though most people agree that the most effective mesmers in high ranked games all run some manner of shatter build; but after trying nearly every one I could find, they all seem a bit off. Generally lacking in survivability, as to be expected due to their squish, but because typically they run staff sword/pistol, you are forced to engage enemies at a relatively close range, and I just seem to get utterly trashed by the subsequent AoE’s and even then the shatter damage just doesn’t seem to cut it.
So I decided to attempt a sort of hybrid build, incorporating the best of both worlds; And while I know mesmer hybrid builds are typically frowned upon as inferior, this build is more of a foundation, meant to eventually be less hybrid and more original variant. So here’s my rough build:
http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fgQQJARWlwzip3UTqGaNJiJF9GFiSB2BekK0alUMbXIA;ToAA2CsoqxUjoGbNuak1s+YgB
The main point of the build is the gs/staff combo, taking great sword as opposed to the classic s/p for shatter, and keeping staff. Reasons being, with most shatter builds, I find not only is my damage somewhat lacking but I also am inherently drawn into close combat, the greatsword solves both these problems. Allowing you to attack from the maximum 1200 range, taking gs greatly increases combat versatility, enabling greater effectiveness at greater distance. In addition, the gs provides a much more reliable source of large damage, providing sustainability where s/p lacks it. With a s/p staff shatter build, almost all of your damage stems from Phantasmal Duelist, Blurred Frenzy, and Mind Wrack. Blurred Frenzy (depending on build) does maybe 2-4k dmg on a 10 second cd, and while it does give distortion, is requires you to be within melee range for use. The gs on the other hand, can match that dmg in maybe 2 or 3 auto attacks, taking only about a third of Blurred Frenzy’s recharge, meaning you could do potentially triple the damage; But more importantly, you could do it at a range. While the Distortion Blurred Frenzy provides can be nice, its primary application is mitigating the danger posed by closing to melee range to use it in the first place, whereas with gs, you never put yourself in that situation to begin with. And seeing as this is still something of a shatter build, you can still draw a good amount of damage from Mind Wrack just as you normally would.
In terms of traits, I take Mental Torment just for the damage boost, though I’m not sure if it’s the best choice. Obviously I take Deceptive Evasion, and though iffy, Desperate Decoy seems to work nicely as well. I’m considering taking Debilitating Dissipation instead of Illusionary Defense, but again I’m on the fence. Mirror of Anguish is another trait I’m experimenting with, it seems quite useful but Chaotic Dampening is always nice too. Now in Illusions, you’ll notice I don’t go all the way for Illusionary Persona like most shatter builds do. My reasoning behind this is that while it is a great trait, for it to be effective, you once again must close to melee range, something I always like to avoid when possible. The ability to shatter on yourself, and without any active clones to boot is undeniably amazing, but with the build focusing more on range, I feel that I won’t be in a range to use it enough to warrant taking those additional 10 points, and the overall build would be more effective with them spent elsewhere.
For gear I’m using a Knight’s amulet instead of the normal Berskers, just because I don’t think the slight damage increase from Berserkers is worth more than the practically ENORMOUS increase in survivability from taking Knight’s amulet. While it’s admittedly true that many top mesmer players don’t need the survivability and can play squish just fine, I find my skills aren’t quite there yet, and I do far better with a little survivable buffer. I have a sigil of energy on my staff, giving that extra clone whenever you may need it; and a sigil of blood on my gs for a little extra sustainability (although this sigil is more experimental than anything else, I’ll probably change it very soon).
Overall I’ve been genuinely successful with this build, quite commonly top player or close to it. However, I feel the build is still rather hazy and in need of refinement; specifically increases in general killing power & efficiency. Any and all feedback or advice is/would be greatly appreciated, thanks!
