Guild Wars 2

Ok … so we all know where Axe stands in the grand scheme of Necromancer. That said I’d like to discuss Axes (more specifically in combination with a Focus) WITHOUT bringing up how underpowered they are or telling me to just switch weapons. What I’m looking for here is a discussion about axes without bringing up the other mainhand weapons at all because there is very little discussion about them aside from what I just told you not to talk about. Also, though I’m mostly a PvE player myself, in the interest of an all emcompasing post, feel free to post WvW or PvP commentary.

With all of that said, I’ll get the ball rolling with my spec and what I like about Axe. First of all, I like the concept of Axe, which is why I use it despite its almost universially recognized failings. I like the fact that its a power weapon over being a condition weapon. I like the ability to play a support role in parties by enhancing damage with vulnerability … which is why I feel its natural companion is the Focus. I like that its medium range instead of point blank.

With that said, I currently run a Vulnerability Axe/Focus/Wells Build and even though I utterly get trashed in WvW and PvP … its actually really fun in PvE. I use Well of Corruption for obvious reasons and in addition I run Spectral Wall, which is another compliment to both Axe and Well builds (F1 – Fear – F1 to force enemies over it sometimes). My traits increase Focus Recharge (yes, its broken on Reaper’s), Axe Damage/Recharge, Well Protection, Well Siphon, and Well Recharge. For gear I’m currently using Knight’s / Emeralds, Sigils of Peril, and Runes of the Lich. All in all I’m survivable, I add survivability to allies, ankittenep Vulnerability not only near/at maximum, but the longer durations allows the faster recharges to push it right back up as soon as it begins to fall.

I could go on about more specific strategies and tactics, but I think thats a good start. I realize I actually said very little about Axe itself, leaving out Claws and Feast from the discussion, but in the end, I just use them for damage and the retailition sometimes supplements when I roll (Mark of Blood trait) and cause AoE retailiation. But in the end, my main focus was on the Rending Claws as a compliment to Focus and Wells.

Build Quick Link:
http://en.gw2skills.net/editor/?fQAQJAndjQad7ZaWa07JApCYP947xFH6RuSXLA;TgAKiMEJIySkjIJRjEmJA

So what are your opinions for axe:

What offhand do you pair it with?
What utility skills do you pair it with?
What gear prefixes do you use?
What traits do you select?
How do you utilize death shroud to complement or enhance your Axe Build?

Feel free to answer even if you abandoned and don’t use Axe any more. Just pretend it’s your ONLY main hand option … then specify what you’d do to maximize its effectiveness.

Edit: For some reason when I click my build link it says Bad Link, but a copy and paste to the URL bar gets you there.

While i have yet to try it with axe, i recently discovered that Life Blast traited for vulnerability stacking along with a close up focus 4 hit can result in almost 20 on their own. Mix in axe and you could in theory maintain a full stack of vulnerability on your own fighting a single mob. That would add some 25% additional damage on each direct damage hit.

Now i wonder what kind of numbers we could see on axe 2 if we get that stack up, hit BiP for 10 might (based on some basic math i did it seems that 1 might match or sightly exceed 1 vulnerability in terms of damage increase), and perhaps has DS traited for fury and LB traited for even more might. On a perfect run you would almost double the damage with just the base crit increase.

In this setup axe and focus would be more like support for DS tho.

Im going to run Axe/Dagger while PvE’ing. Nice AoE and im all about AoE

I run Axe?dagger as well mainly because that dagger adds blindness (and chill cause of traits) and bounces my cons to the foe. I don’t see Focus adding more utility like that.

Focus. It carries it with the single target vulnerability stacks.

Axe runs best with focus. You need to be in close to get the most benefit out of Reapers, so it bounces off you to stack vulnerable all 9 times. It works really well as a backup to a dagger spec, since you can disengage and debuff the target while kiting them with Axe 3. Once you’ve got regen on you and piles of vulnerability on them, jump back in with the dagger to tear them up. If you’re using axe as a main weapon, try combining it with minions to get the most out of that vulnerability stacking.