Guild Wars 2

Are clones (not phantasms) meant to be doing zero damage, or is that a bug?

It’s not a bug.

I’ve always seen near-0 damage from clones when attacking objects. When attacking players they’re low but not 0.

Clones do no damage early on, you’ll see 0 damage pop up everytime.
Once you level up that 0 will turn into some low number.
This is where the fun begins, now that they do some damage they can also hit for critical damage and apply bleeds if you have sharper images. Not all clones are useful on their own though, staff and swordclones can be usefull to keep as they apply conditions.
Other clones are just shatterfodder.

I suggest you read some basic guides about mesmers.
Or watch this series of guides http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7eZ0NNd7b60
Really good stuff

And most importantly, play and learn your class, as a mesmer (and other classes prolly too) you always keep learning

mine do 7 damage! My clones are all MLG level while yours are all noobs.

Clones can do damage via conditions. Staff clones ditch alot of pain through wind of chaos and sword clones with sharper image and 60% crit and higher and a high condition damage will often deal more damage than an illusionnary swordsman, although not as much as a berserker geared swordsman. Plus, they stack vulnerability and remove boons.

GS and scepter clones are pure shatterfodder though.

As deltanium says; clones deal damage trough conditions. This is the reason why staff is the best clone weapon. Clones with a staff deals both condition damage to the enemy, and also gives themselves boons at the same time, with Winds of Chaos. Further more, the staff also has Chaos Storm that (if placed correctly) can give even more conditions to your foe and boons to your clones, at the same time. Between Winds of Chaos and Chaos Storm, your foe will end up with burning, bleeding, vulnerability, poison, weakness, and/or chilled. While your clones can get might, fury, retaliation, and aegis. And, on top of all this, you can also add confusion on your foe, so your foe also will deal damage to himself while he’s beating on your clones.

GS Clones have the highest rate of Bleeding application with Sharper Images, followed closely by Sword Clones.

And Clones can crit even when they do 0 damage, so Sharper Images is useful regardless of level.

well this is taken for wiki :-

http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Illusion

Illusions derive the following attributes directly from the mesmer: precision, power, condition damage, critical damage, armor, and healing. Illusions do not gain any benefit from the mesmer’s vitality, condition duration or boon duration. Additionally they are neither affected by the damage of the mesmer’s equipped weapon nor by any of the various non-stat effects of weapon sigils or armor runes.

Wonder if this is correct or not ? more on the duration’s

Avorniel.5708:

well this is taken for wiki :-

http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Illusion

Illusions derive the following attributes directly from the mesmer: precision, power, condition damage, critical damage, armor, and healing. Illusions do not gain any benefit from the mesmer’s vitality, condition duration or boon duration. Additionally they are neither affected by the damage of the mesmer’s equipped weapon nor by any of the various non-stat effects of weapon sigils or armor runes.

Wonder if this is correct or not ?

It is correct.