Guild Wars 2

Good evening fellow mesmers,

since everyone but me seems to know how to play a mesmer in tPvP I’m looking for your advice.

I’m currently running this build. I always rotate between capped points or help in groupfights. But apparently that’s not what a Mesmer should do and after almost 2500 games with my mesmer I’m still a noob.

So I’d like to know WHAT a Mesmer should do in tPvP. And maybe I’m running the wrong build for this meta and that’s the reason why.

Thanks in advance.

Well the problem isn’t with your build, that’s a pretty standard shatter build (the only slight tweak I’d make is swapping one of those air runes for a fire rune)

I’d recommend checking out Supcutie’s guide for more in-depth technical description on how to use a shatter build effectively in tPvP, but as a shatter build you essentially rotate between home and mid (occasionally far when your team is competently handling things) and … kill everything along the way.

As a Mesmer in general you have to really adapt to the ebb and flow of the game, figuring out when’s the best time to portal (usually by watching ally lifebars and the map) and setting up shatters properly in group fights as well as picking off squishier, more damaging targets asap. Don’t waste too much time on tankier opponents like Guardians/Warriors unless it’s to strip boons with your shatters, otherwise focus Mesmer, Thieves, & Elementalists first.

Thank you for your answer.

I already took a look in Supcutie’s guide times ago when I swapped from Condi PU to shatter and it helped me a lot.

Your other point describes exactly what I’m doing, also if I concentrate on a thief its a good chance that I’m going down first (But that’s another topic….). Another point that annoys me pretty hard is that in 80% of the scenarios I set a portal it runs out 0,5s before I wanna use it (e.g. I placed on at close and there is an inc of two vs one so I wanted to help…).

The build is good, very viable for team PvP. With a ranged build like that you need to ensure you’re not in the thick of the fight often – only for needed bursts for damage or boon stripping. Keep on the outside of the points. Along with that, re-positioning is vital.

Sensotix just released a new video explaining (and demonstrating) those things in detail and a lot more. This one is a winner for getting an understanding of how to play ranged shatter mesmer in PvP:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hwfnFs175BI&list=UUhKcXTocz7_QAnpbCCeOtfw

Thanks for your tips.
So I guess I did right and were just unlucky with my choice of teammates

2500 games and you consider yourself a noob? I doubt that. Bare in mind however that Mesmer is the least played class and when people want one, they imagine a god that they’ve seen on the streams, and frankly I could name 15 Mesmers I’d consider good to that level in PvP. I’m not sure why, but everyone I’ve met either sucks and wastes cooldowns, or is very good with the class and little in-between hahah.

Anyway, first job is picking of squishy players, you have a huge burst so use it. Second is support, for us that involves boon stripping and controlling fights with interrupts. Time Warp is one of the best elites in the game, but preserve it…I’ve won games where 1 was down on mid vs 2 and I knocked them back, quickness ressed him and downed them both. Third is mobility, make sure your team is getting the points and make sure you are portal-ing them efficiently.

Another thing to note, Celestial D/D is very viable at the moment on Eles, and this Mesmer build and S/D thief are the only builds that can guarantee a 1v1 win, so push them kitten points. Also avoid thief unless you have one on your team to back you up, because they will beat you 9/10 if they are competent.