Guild Wars 2

I recently came back to gw2, and have managed to lvl 80 my mesmer, which I am loving. However I cant seem to get over how I feel like I am being forced to use certain weapons in dungeons/PvE, of which I really don’t want. I am told that as a mesmer to be efficient in dungeons, I must run GS/Sword/Focus builds. Now a mesmer with a greatsword is really not my idea of the class, and I have found I love the look/gameplay of the scepter. However while I wear my scepter proudly, others seem to disagree and after trying the GS build, I can see why.
My question is directed to one of the Dev’s and in hopes they I may get some, even vague, reply…
Is there something in the works to open up more weapon choices and make more weapons viable for all classes (Mainly mesmer for me) in dungeon/PvE content. I guess the problem is conditions in Dungeons, as I see alot of these posts about.

Anyway, if anyone else besides a dev has heard anything, feel free to let me know

Cheers!

Also if anyone has a fairly decent Scepter focused/inclusive build for PvE, please share, or post a link. Would be great to see.

Thanks!

Most folks loyal to the dungeon meta would say that if range is necessary, scepter is preferred over GS due to increase DPS. To that end, I’ve seen full zerker builds running scepter/sword and sword/focus (pistol if no reflects required) that perform decently. Something like 10/20/0/25/15.

I’m afraid sword is the undisputed king of PvE for the sole reason that melee>ranged. The current min/max build actually runs a mix of sword/sword, sword/pistol and sword/focus depending on the encounter. However, since the build is a phantasm build the sceptre is actually the best ranged weapon for it as the phantasmal berserker on the GS is much weaker then the iduellist or iswordsman. That means if you run a full phantasm build like http://www.guildwars2guru.com/topic/84947-mesmerizing-the-enemy-guide-to-mesmer-swordx-dps-builds/, you can run it as a ranged set.

These builds actually both look great, going to give them a try. Really like the Scepter/Sword.

Thanks.

Phantasm build that relies on keeping 3 phantasms out for max dps Scepter is a horrible choice. Auto attack will override your 3rd phantasm and so will the Scepter 2 block. Better run no mainhand than run a Scepter.

For open world PvE, sword/sword/greatsword. If you can deal with 100% melee then sword/sword/pistol. Both 25/30/0/0/15. Get a set of speed runes for movement boost so you can throw out the focus.

OP – understand that melee is preferable at this present time, especially in dungeons. There, the best is to run sw/sw-sw/f or sw/p if no reflects, via builds linked by Teloran.

You mentioned GS – that’s actually a much less desirable weapon in dungeons, but good in open world PvE.

If you’re set against playing melee in favor of a ranged solution in dungeons, scepter is generally regarded as better than GS, even taking into account the issue of the scepter clone overwriting a phantasm. That said, scepter is something I’d personally never run because of it’s inferiority to melee. The DPS loss is fairly significant, but it’s by no means horrible.

Much of the above is specific to dungeon groups asking for experience or zerker. If you see those, that’s where you’re going to be expected to run the meta, which is full melee. If you enter one of those groups with a GS or even a scepter, you’ll likely be questioned or don’t be surprise if kicked.

In any other PUG, keep these things in mind but there is more build flexibility there. You always want do as much damage as possible even if you don’t run a meta build; pull your weight, etc.

As for open world PvE, when you’re talking about power builds it just doesn’t matter enough to nitpick too much. So really, run what you want there – don’t feel forced to run anything specific in that format, but try to steer clear of condition builds.

For simplicity? GS, spam.
For meta kitten, the above suggestions.

Keep in mind that most people don’t actually care what weapons you run with. I’ve been playing a condi mesmer forever and I haven’t had even one remark on that fact.

Use what you prefer, with the build that you like using. Unless you want to get bored pretty quickly.