Looking for build advice - fresh 80
So after much reading I decided to start with the condition shatter build. I picked up a berserker scepter and torch to start. I still have the GS, sword and pistol that I received from the boost. Was hoping to get some advice on gear. Does full berserker gear make sense or should I look for something else?
I do have the soldier gear but the stats are not inline with the build so dmg output is low. Also, would it be recommended to go with a staff instead of the GS?
Personally I would go sword/focus and greatsword in berserker. And for your traitlines, domi/dueling/inspiration. You can trait your focus to reflect projectiles (which can be quite handy with lower cooldowns along with pulls) and inspiration utility skills improved in grandmaster trait to have another source of reflection with longer duration and on demand superspeed.
Thanks for your suggestions. I ended up grabbing a focus to experiment and try different combinations. Right now I’m using sword and focus with great sword and doing OK in general pve. Since I’m working on learning the play style I try not to tweak too much all at once.
I do need to figure out the right runes to slot and have temporarily gone with runes of the mesmer for now on all of my berserker gear. I can get by with the current setup but probably need to tweak the traits as needed. My initial condition shatter build was too squishy.
Just need something playable that will allow me to grind mastery points to train chronomancer. Then I’ll look for a more appropriate build.
I’d definitely recommend a power build over a condo build.
Get your hands on a main hand sword with either a sword or focus as one off-hand weapons and a shield in the other off-hand. No need for two sword main hands.
This combination of weapons offers a lot, especially in utility and survivability.
There’s an awful lot of evades (Sword #2, #4 & Shield #4) and some cool reflection mechanics for focus weapons if you select the appropriate trait in the inspiration line.
If you choose to follow this advice, you’ll find your mesmer is more melee oriented than ranged, meaning you’re going to have to get close and personal with the enemy. This becomes especially true when you start using the Chronomancer runes and begin using Wells in your utility slots. To actually gain any benefit from the wells you need to be inside of them, meaning within inches of your enemy.
Equipment wise, I think you only need exotic berserker amor till you decide to start looking at ascend stuff. With all of the evades I previously mentioned at your disposal and the fact you can dodge roll, you shouldn’t really see yourself dying.
Trait wise, I’d definitely recommend the inspiration line, in particular “Wardens FeedBack” for the reflects on your focus (if you’re using a focus) and “Illusionary Inspiration”. The later casts signet of inspiration on you every time you summon a phantasm, meaning you get regeneration and a minor heal every time you summon a phantasm. I found these invaluable when soloing Heart of Thorns content, in the past.
Domination goes with this nicely for even more invulnerability as well as some conditions. If you’re not using Domination, I think Illusion would work well too.
I’ve mained a mesmer since day 1. It was tough soloing my way to level 80, especially some of the Heart of Thorns content.
I found chronomancer improved playing a lot! I felt more buff and tankier! Its a slow but rewarding process.
Don’t expect to perform damaging attacks with massive numbers! We’re more support than DPS.
I hope this has helped.
What I recommend is consulting the “meta” builds by either meta battle or quantify.
These guys normally give detailed guides as well as written attack rotations and videos so you can observe and hone your skills/ rotations.
Good Luck
I appreciate your response!
Yes, I am not expecting massive DPS or huge criticals. I enjoy the support/utility gameplay which is what helped me decide on the Mesmer.
I am going with this build at the moment but trying different skills as needed. It definitely needs tweaked some so I would welcome any input. Again, this is just general solo PVE content to grind out mastery points and general zone events.
http://gw2skills.net/editor/?vhAQNAR8dnsIClqhFoBGpBUrhFVD6MIDJ6lT44bjMAFAA-TJRBwAAOCAaeIAE3fgcZAA
I appreciate your response!
Yes, I am not expecting massive DPS or huge criticals. I enjoy the support/utility gameplay which is what helped me decide on the Mesmer.
I am going with this build at the moment but trying different skills as needed. It definitely needs tweaked some so I would welcome any input. Again, this is just general solo PVE content to grind out mastery points and general zone events.
http://gw2skills.net/editor/?vhAQNAR8dnsIClqhFoBGpBUrhFVD6MIDJ6lT44bjMAFAA-TJRBwAAOCAaeIAE3fgcZAA
Ok, not bad but I can make a few tweaks to make it better.
Firstly, you’re using the PvP version of the builder. This means you use 1 single amulet for stats instead of putting it on your various pieces of gear as actually happens in PvE and WvW. This is controlled with the large buttons at the very top right corner of the builder, so you’ll want to switch that to PvE and re-do the gear.
Pack runes are a fine cheap and effective choice, so that’s solid.
You’re only using 1 sigil on your greatsword, but 2handed weapons can accept 2 sigils, make sure you fill that up.
You’re using a force sigil on your mainhand sword. This is normally a good choice, but it’s extremely expensive and does not benefit mesmer phantasms at all. This makes it less impressive for mesmer, so I’d go with something like a sigil of battle, fire, or air.
You’re using an energy sigil on both weaponsets. This is completely excessive for PvE, not to mention expensive. Yank those, sell them, and get something cheaper like fire/battle/strength.
You don’t appear to have a grandmaster trait in domination selected. This should probably be mental anguish, but if you find yourself camping greatsword a lot you could make solid use out of imagined burden.
At master tier in domination you’ve selected shattered concentration. This is a great PvP trait, but it’s pretty useless in PvE. Between sword autoattacks and greatsword 3, you’ve got all the boon stripping you’ll ever need. Take blurred inscriptions instead to lower the cooldown on your heal and signet of inspiration.
In dueling adept, you should be taking phantasmal fury. Desperate decoy is a solid trait for PvP, but it simply doesn’t serve a purpose in PvE. Fury is a very strong boon, so providing that to your phantasms permanently is a powerful damage increase.
In dueling master, you should be taking fencer’s finesse. Blinding dissipation is a fantastic PvP trait for aoe blinds, but in PvE you don’t want to be shattering unless you’ll be killing your target. Taking fencer’s finesse instead will give you a pretty substantial damage boost while in sword, not to mention lowering the cooldown of a very powerful skill: blurred frenzy.
In dueling grandmaster you should consider not taking deceptive evasion. While it’s very strong in PvP, you really don’t need that much clone generation in PvE. Additionally, you run the risk of destroying phantasms if you have stacked up 3 phantasms on a target. If you take a mantra, bring harmonious mantras, otherwise take mistrust (even if it doesn’t really add to your build).
In inspiration grandmaster, both mental defense and illusionary inspiration are solid choices. Once you move to chronomancer, illusionary inspiration will be by far the more powerful trait, but at this point they’re pretty even. I’d encourage you to swap between them to see which one you like more.
You’re using both null field and mantra of resolve. Mantra of resolve is more than enough condition removal for any and all PvE content, and you have boon removal both on greatsword 3 and the sword autoattack (your sword clones remove boons too!). This makes null field totally pointless, so you can take something better. Blink is your best option for mobility, feedback if you really need more reflects (with focus you shouldn’t), and portal if you’re doing a jumping puzzle.
Wow, thank you Fey!
Yes, the build was more of a pvp setup. I had found it linked in the forum and just started using it as a base for myself. I made the skill changes that you suggested but still need to rework the gear. I have a couple of those items but truthfully I had forgotten to update the profile to ensure accuracy.
I have full armor sets of soldiers and berserkers. Runes are all sigil of the Mesmer. As for weapons, I’m using a GS as well as sword/focus. I do have a torch and staff in my bag to experiment with.
It looks like it’s going to be quite a grind to unlock all of the elite spec so I’ll focus on that for now. Once I have that, I’ll probably go with a meta build assuming I have the appropriate gear.
Spent some time today updating this build to better show the current setup and gear.
Spent some time today updating this build to better show the current setup and gear.
Pretty good, make sure you change those dueling traits around like I mentioned.
It’s worth noting that soldier’s gear (power/vitality/toughness) is pretty garbage in terms of getting a good balance of offense and defense. The standard setup for gear is full berserker of course, but that’s pretty glassy. The go-to gear stats for inserting a bit of survivability are knights and cavaliers. Those two allow you to retain your precision and ferocity while providing a lot of toughness to keep you alive better. Since mesmer has medium base health, you don’t really need the vitality from soldiers.
I’ve swapped out some berserker for 3 pieces of knights. Changed out amulet and rings to berserker. Other 3 accessories are still soldiers for now as I look for adequate replacement. Any tips on rings, etc and good runes?
On my armor, I have runes of the mesmer on all 6 pieces.
I’m sitting around 19k hp right now but still feel a little squishy. Dmg is okay, not spectacular but much better than before.
I’ve swapped out some berserker for 3 pieces of knights. Changed out amulet and rings to berserker. Other 3 accessories are still soldiers for now as I look for adequate replacement. Any tips on rings, etc and good runes?
Pack runes are a good choice. Once you gear up as a chrono you may want boon duration runes (usually leadership, but I use durability because I’m lazy), but pack runes are great until then. Mesmer runes are utter garbage.
I’m sitting around 19k hp right now but still feel a little squishy.
19k hp is plenty. You want to be avoiding damage with cc/dodges/blurred frenzy/blocks instead of just facetanking it. Mesmer has a lot of active defense and control, so use that to avoid damage.
Dmg is okay, not spectacular
Welcome to mesmer.
Thanks again, Fey. I’m about 35% of the way to Chrono at this point so I have some time. I’m really enjoying the Mesmer and glad that I decided to make this my main. The overall utility of the class fits me perfect.
I really appreciate all of your help, as well as those that have responded. Such a wealth of knowledge here in the forums. I’ve spent quite a bit of time reading posts going back 3+ years.
Fey (or anyone else that may know), is there a beginner Chronomancer build that is recommended? I only need the final 25 hero points to get Gravity Well and them I’m done with elite spec. Was hoping to find something that fits in with my current gear (Berserkers with GS and sw/focus. I’ve been dabbling with some WvW while working on PvE stuff as well. But since I am close, I am starting to consider fractals.
Is there a reasonable universal build or should I just start taking whatever for PvE and then switching to the meta builds for WvW and Fractals?
Fey (or anyone else that may know), is there a beginner Chronomancer build that is recommended? I only need the final 25 hero points to get Gravity Well and them I’m done with elite spec. Was hoping to find something that fits in with my current gear (Berserkers with GS and sw/focus. I’ve been dabbling with some WvW while working on PvE stuff as well. But since I am close, I am starting to consider fractals.
Is there a reasonable universal build or should I just start taking whatever for PvE and then switching to the meta builds for WvW and Fractals?
With the chrono traitline unlocked, you’ll change your build slightly to take into account the new mechanics you gain access to.
Greatsword is primarily used for good AOE, but shield has that too. I usually run sw/sh+f because that provides a good mix of cleave, AOE, cc, and defense.
You’ll need to drop a traitline to fit chrono in; usually that’s dueling. Inspiration is needed for utility (and sustain), domination is both damage and utility, and then chrono provides all the chrono stuff. For the chrono line you’ll want the well trait in adept, the alacrity trait in master, and chronophantasma in grandmaster.
Now that you have access to wells, you can fill out your utility bar much more comfortably. My personal loadout is usually well of action, well of recall, and signet of inspiration. You can take blink or something if you want though. Gravity well is usually the best choice for an elite in open world stuff, but time warp is also competitive.
Your gear stats can remain the same with berserker. However, you’re going to want to start working towards a full set of leadership runes. It doesn’t really matter for open world, but boon duration is extremely important to fulfill the chrono role in instanced content. Along those lines, you’ll also want to look into getting a sigil of concentration, 20% boon duration food, and the magnanimous sharpening stones. Between the runes, consumables, and the swap sigil, you’ll hit 90ish boon duration. Pick up a couple commander’s stat trinkets and youll be all set for instanced content.
That’s a pretty solid universal build for all pve content. You’ll be workable in open world and set up to fill the buff support role in fractals or raids. For WvW…you’re looking at a whole different ball of wax. You’ll need different gear, a different playstyle (or two) and a group to play with.
Thanks Fey! Appreciate the insight and assistance.
I would just like to say thank you to all concerned, this thread has really helped me as a newbie, almost instantly I am having more fun in game.
I am very new and the post indicated that I am bumping an old post but I think others can learn from this post too.
Fey’s advice has served me well so far. I would definitely recommend it to anyone in search of a solid starting point once they hit 80.
As a fresh 80 mesmer myself, this is very helpful! Does this advice work in open world PvE as well? Or does it just kind of do well enough, and it’s not worth the hassle of changing builds between open world and other content?
As a fresh 80 mesmer myself, this is very helpful! Does this advice work in open world PvE as well? Or does it just kind of do well enough, and it’s not worth the hassle of changing builds between open world and other content?
The bulk of that advice was aimed towards open world play. Transitioning from open world to instanced content once you’re set up with chronomancer is primarily a function of having leadership runes and changing around a couple utility skills.
Huh, interesting, I’ll have to play around with it. Switching to dom/insp/chrono from dom/illu/duel feels like a downgrade for the moment, but obviously I need to learn how to play it better.
Huh, interesting, I’ll have to play around with it. Switching to dom/insp/chrono from dom/illu/duel feels like a downgrade for the moment, but obviously I need to learn how to play it better.
The keys are that you need to start utilizing the aoe nature of your attacks (wells and shield 5) and you need to start properly stacking quickness. Just with a bit of boon duration gear and a basic rotation you can pretty much keep close to 100% quickness uptime just while roaming around doing little events. Doing that properly makes an enormous difference in how smoothly you can play.
And quickness lets you spam sword-2 and just generally attack faster enough to make up for losses in other areas? I guess while leveling I got used to the whole “GS 2-3-4-2 shatter switch sword 3-mirror images-shatter-sword2” and then kind of wing it from there. Clones on dodging and mirror images let me focus on a shatter-heavy build, I think, while now it’s probably more phantasm-heavy?
How do you tend to engage?
And quickness lets you spam sword-2 and just generally attack faster enough to make up for losses in other areas? I guess while leveling I got used to the whole “GS 2-3-4-2 shatter switch sword 3-mirror images-shatter-sword2” and then kind of wing it from there. Clones on dodging and mirror images let me focus on a shatter-heavy build, I think, while now it’s probably more phantasm-heavy?
How do you tend to engage?
Focus pull into focus phantasm, drop wells, iLeap, shield 5, blurred frenzy, shatter, auto until dead. That’s a quick burst to take care of any normal group of mobs, but it doesn’t stack quickness quite properly. If you’re going against a vet or champ you start with wells, shield 5, then pop SoI, a phantasm (for the proc), and then blurred frenzy/autoattacks/etc to kill. By rotating the SoI and SoI proc you can keep quickness up doing that.
Ah ok, thanks. So getting to 3 illusions isn’t as important as it used to be when the shatters were more important for damage. I’ll have to drop that habit.
(edited by BrunoPuntzJones.5348)