Guild Wars 2

http://gw2buildcraft.com/calculator/mesmer/?4.3|c.1g.h4.c.1g.h1|1.1g.0|1n.73.1n.73.1n.73.1n.73.1n.73.1n.73|1c.67.1c.67.1c.67.1c.67.1c.67.1c.67|a1.k4a.a4.0.u23b|0.0|31.35.3d.39.3o|e

I won’t go into great detail as it’s pretty obvious it’s a shatter build that can take a hit, and I want to be Dual Swords majority of time. GS swap is for range stuff, but might even use Staff swap for Chaos Armor – which is super useful as a combo field and melee.

Because I’d be melee most of time as Sword/Sword I think Illusionary Persona is mandatory. Such a huge DPS and survival increase (not to mention an extra 5s of retaliation on Cry Shatter).

The last “filler” points were the 10 in Power for 20% Mind Wrack damage. I had thought about them elsewhere but, for a melee tank shatter build it seems the best option.

Thoughts?

I run pretty much the same exactly build! it’s definitely nice for people looking to swap between pve and wvw without respeccing and keeping a power/prec build.

I do swap for Staff and Sword/focus for wvw, though that could just be personal taste.

For me, it’s been a great balance of shatter damage, retaliation damage, and a reasonable amount of survivability. It’s not as bulky as an “immortal” build or the shattercat Heavy build, but it’s been the closest I’ve found to a good Universal build.

Cool build. I would definitely recommend Master of Manipulation over iDefense, tho. Comes in handy at all times and can be used for escape or quick shatter from 900 range, not just when you choose not to shatter in a… umm … shatter build.

I’d like to have shorter Blink CD’s, but 3-9% reduced damage OVERALL, in a “Tanky” build, is far too good to give up I think… With dual swords I have SO many ways to spawn illusions, not to mention dodge rolls, that I’d almost always have clones up to benefit.

Anyone run a similar build?

When I WvW I usually swap for the II trait in Chaos to have a Chaos Storm spawn when falling, and 50% less fall dmg. Such a useful, sometimes forgotten trait.

I think I’m going to switch my traits to 20/20/0/0/30 instead of 10/20/10/0/30. Almost solely for the fact that I can then swap in WvW for a complete glamour build. But stick to my Tankyness when I am soloing/roaming/Dungeoning.

Yes. This is going to happen.

I find myself alternating between the two a lot. Here’s how I see the break-down between the two:

20/20/0/0/30 is great for a glass cannon PVE approach and is also pretty serviceable as a glamour build in WvW, though you switch from a power build to a group-dependent condition build.

10/20/10/0/30 is less awesome at glass cannon, but lets you keep your playstyle pretty much unchanged when swapping between the two. You lose out on some valuables (AoE vulnerability and 100 Power, mostly) but you gain 100 toughness and 9% damage reduction, which is significant.

I personally find the Glamour build limiting. It’s amazing in zergs when your skills are up and running and your group is there to support you. But after my few skills are used, I find my contribution to combat severely limited compared with other builds. As soon as 1-2 people target me, I’m usually struggling to stay alive.

Well, I would typically keep my same armor on that was linked in that build above when I swap to my WvW Glamour skills, because zerg vs zerg I just basically want to be able to tag/hit everything, and cause them a ton of damage. Without 20 points in power I can’t get that “confusion on glamour” trait unfortunately.

I am a bit bummed about losing my 9% damage reduction for PvE though… that’s huge. Mind you, I am shattering so frequently and have tanky gear that maybe the extra power (+vulnerability on shatter with the extra trait) will be more beneficial? Or equally as beneficial?

I just like the ability to swap Tanky PvE spec (or WvW roaming) and full Glamour Zerg-Tagfest, since I roll with a huge WvW guild that does a lot of huge fights.

Is 20/20/0/0/30 your “tanky” spec? I usually consider 0/20/20/0/30 to be the “tankier” of the shatter specs.

The loss of a damage reduction is sad, though you do pick up more offense.

If you run with a lot of zergy groups, then 20/20/0/0/30 may be a more versatile build. You get all the standard shatter glass canon business for PvE and a quick swap to a glamour spec in WvW. Don’t forget that gear can help compensate. If you find yourself too squishy in berserker stuff, swap out a few pieces for Soldier.

10/20/10/0/30 is nice if you’re not sold on being in a glamour build. I hate the constriction, so it lets me keep my play style while still packing a punch. I wouldn’t underestimate the power of mind wrack and Cry of Frustration, even in a build that isn’t purely dedicated to conditions. Osicat’s shown some great gameplay of the power of a shatter build