Guild Wars 2

I still have to replace runes on the mesmer after the ruby orb change.

I’d prefer to avoid strength due to the cost.
I have this build:
Mostly fractal oriented (but use it in dungeons also)

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fhEQNAR8dnsISZa2pGuqB1aIR1QObxhorLpCUyOlA-TFiBABTcRAAw+DrU+dnuh9eAALcEAmU9nyUCCA-w

Its balanced around a decent reflect uptime and damage. (mirror image is only for fractal purposes…when i need distortion).
(i use also sw-sw, sw-focus depending on the situation).

Questions are:
Would you switch for traveler runes so i can reuse the build in www? (is the dps loss for dungeon noticeable)?

Or otherwise wich dps rune would you go?
I don t like scholar since i pug a lot and i rely mostly on myself, so the 90% HP is not reliable).

I think best options are:
Eagle
Ranger
Pack

Ty

Again Strength but if you can’t afford those, go with Runes of the Ranger for reflects. They are also dirt cheap. I wouldn’t use Travelers for Fractals/Dungeons.

I wouldn’t use Ranger for WvW though.

Do ranger runes actually activate on clones/phantasms now? I thought they didn’t.

Also Neurophen did some number crunching and found that pack runes are a good choice for us, with consistent damage output.

Raunchy.6891:

Do ranger runes actually activate on clones/phantasms now? I thought they didn’t.

Also Neurophen did some number crunching and found that pack runes are a good choice for us, with consistent damage output.

Yeah you get the extra damage bonus for our illusions now (assuming at least one is out).

Oh, then I would use those for sure in dungeons/fractals.

The issue is that 7% is not transferring to phantasms themselves.
That is why i think eagles and pack are strong contenders.

LordByron.8369:

The issue is that 7% is not transferring to phantasms themselves.
That is why i think eagles and pack are strong contenders.

Ah, I completely forgot that damage modifiers apply to personal damage only. If your crit is still above 55% I would say eagles, but if it’s not then I would suggest pack runes. Although having extra personal damage could be nice if it’s your preference.

Why not Scholar?

All damage modifiers do not transfer to phantasms (including eagle and ranger runes).
Ranger and Eagle runes offer identical stats in both precision and ferocity, but you get an extra 1% personal damage modifier from ranger. The trade off is that you don’t get it at all though if you don’t have an illusion up.

Pack runes are decent to keep your fury up, which is really important for reflects. If you don’t think you’re going to get party buffs for fury, this isn’t a bad choice and the fury you get transfers to your allies. Equally important for reflects though are the damage modifiers. The downside of pack is 1) you lose that very important #6 damage modifier that ranger/eagle provide and 2) it decreases your ferocity by about 7%. You do gain a bit of power though.

Personally I would always opt for the rune set providing a damage modifier versus otherwise for DPS maxing builds. In this case I think ranger is probably the best choice.

I’d say ranger runes were probably your best bet if you don’t take scholar. Drop the greatsword for sword/sword and take something like force/accuracy, force/night or force/undead or something. Strength runes are absolutely not necessary fortunately enough, though I’d honestly still recommend scholar if you could afford it.

If you want to use traveler runes for WvW, honestly just invest in a different set of armour (run cof, coe and arah a few times, you’ll get tokens for berserker gear quickly enough), you might as well be playing runeless in PvE if you take a traveler set in to dungeons since it doesn’t do anything.

Pack runes are

trash