Guild Wars 2

Hello, I haven’t played in a bit and am jumping on again but have questions:
1) is there a standard reaper meta build for pvp that is preferred over others? (I like to know what I’m up against and maybe see how I can modify it to fit my play style)
2) what necro builds currently help skilled players get to bigger tier pvp ratings, if any at all?
3) does anyone have a moderately successful pvp or wvw ranger reaper-minion build?

Thanks,
I’m still trying to figure out how to be successful with more than my go -to axe-minion build, which I tend to get stuck in silver with (but I like playing it so oh well)

There are several variants. The two big ones are Meta Power Reaper, and Meta Condi Reaper. Both of those have sub-variants that use shouts. There are also variants of those with different weapon setups such as GS power reaper which uses GS over staff.

I’m no plat player, but I would say let go of minions. It lowers the skill floor of Necro even more (I’m not saying you can’t be good with it).

If you want to pick up positional play (you need to jump puzzle often and AI can’t follow) and teamfight with Necro properly, Power Necro meta build with Marauder amulet is very smooth. I find it very hard to take Spectral Armor and Corrupt Boon off my bar.

Condi Necro has more pressure, less sustain and can be very strong with support.

You can also try out Soldier Rune + Shouts, and/or GS variant of Power builds, or even go for Spite/Curses like Crinn when you get more comfortable surviving without Soul Reaping.

With a necro is really hard to go up in rank, but with a lot of practice and even more luck you will go in platinum.
The MM can work but it’s not the best build atm, there’s too much AoE that can kill your minions or make them useless, and there’s classes with enough movement skills to make your minions run and run and run without hitting the target for a lot of time.
But for shure tons of minions in a team fight help the target making the enemy hit the wrong target with common skills and AoE.

If you want to play Mm you can, but that’s not the best choice.

If you want direct damage and big numbers that can’t be cleaned go Power, also have more self sustain.
If you want more long time damage, preccure, more corruptions and tactical skills go Condi, with a support you will do great things.

I use the condi build (and maybe is the best meta of the moment), with Corrosive Poison Cloud. I can eat rangers and a lot of guardians with that skill, is really useful. There’s different builds that use Projectile weapons, like ranger(LB), guardian(LB or Scepter), mesmer(Scepter), thief(expecially if they use Pistol/Pistol) and some warrior(Rifle). The CPC destroy all te projectiles and also spam Poison and Weakness, granting you a huge advantage over all the builds that use that weapons and if you trait it you can use it every 20 seconds and last for 8 sec. Basicly you have the CPC up 40% of time in a fight.
It’s not a true defensive skill (don’t stop the enemy to hit you if don’t use projectile weapons and skills) but it’s effect can be really huge and weakness is really good to be spammed in a Power Meta enviroment. I kill a lot of enemies with that skill. is also good over a downed enemy to slow down the ress.

Anyway, there’s a lot of skills really useful and you have to learn to use them all and chose wisely in every fight what’s the best skill to keep and what’s the one to change to obtain the best effect. You have a basic build but that don’t mean that you play Always with that skills. if the enemy have ranger, druid, mesmer you can use the CPC to stop they’re skills and reduce they’re damage, if the enemy have revenant, ele, engi you can use the well to corrupt they’re boons, if the enemy don’t have thief or you think that the wurm can be useful based on the map and the enemy team composition a wurm can inflict good damage and be a perfect “oh crap” excape button. And more.
Don’t have fear to change your skills if you need to and adapt to every match. The necro is the best class to do that and have all the skills you need to grant to be a really good resource for your team.

Thanks for the input. While I do like playing MM and commanding a small army, I am open to other builds.
The big thing with mm is the great condi cleansing. Plus stacking vulnerability helps minions do even more damage.
Also I prefer direct damage over conditions. What higher tier direct damage builds are there?

Crinn.7864:

There are several variants. The two big ones are Meta Power Reaper, and Meta Condi Reaper. Both of those have sub-variants that use shouts. There are also variants of those with different weapon setups such as GS power reaper which uses GS over staff.

Here they are, solid builds used at high level. You can also find playstyle advice on metabattle.

Generally, Power Necro with AxeHorn/Staff is off-point, kiting, and going in with Shroud only to secure stomps and cleave out a rez. You have a lot of pressure from stripping boons and proccing Spinal Shivers, and of course you have Shroud skills for on-point. You have unblockable CC and corrupts, and you can take down bunkers quickly in teamfights, opening up Eles, Engis, Druids to focus. You WILL be focused, so get good positioning to survive.

In no particular order:

Nos plays Necro. That’s it. Lots of videos of last season playing Power Necro. https://www.twitch.tv/noscoc/videos/all

Old footage of Prototype on Core Necro but what’s important is the kiting: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pt-veebHbYQ

Crinn here has a daily series using Spite/Curses: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCImCs2deTjCz1LQgPleI-Pg/playlists

You can watch Fisix’s gameplay: https://www.twitch.tv/videos/158953060

Posi seems to be controversial, but he’s got lots to learn from: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCj-XQizU4oBtCc4yBck5emA

I’m around low-mid Platinum using my own build that basically relies on boon corrupting and condi transfer. I don’t run Consume Conditions so if my transfers miss or are blocked it is a major weakness. But it works and I have had major success with it considering I haven’t been anywhere near Platinum before.

a list of my current build and ranking on the leaderboards this season

Ralkuth.1456:

I’m no plat player, but I would say let go of minions. It lowers the skill floor of Necro even more (I’m not saying you can’t be good with it).

If you want to pick up positional play (you need to jump puzzle often and AI can’t follow) and teamfight with Necro properly, Power Necro meta build with Marauder amulet is very smooth. I find it very hard to take Spectral Armor and Corrupt Boon off my bar.

Condi Necro has more pressure, less sustain and can be very strong with support.

You can also try out Soldier Rune + Shouts, and/or GS variant of Power builds, or even go for Spite/Curses like Crinn when you get more comfortable surviving without Soul Reaping.

lmao, i was perma stucked on silver, til i changed to a hibrid minions build, now im on gold-T3

Btw, I understand that hibrid builds is for experienced. For the new ones it is better to start with the any of meta til get experience with the class.

Power-meta is king until the beginning of silver tier, then its start to be beaten ugly from perma stun warriors.

The biggest problem of necros in high tiers is that the enemy team will focus on him, and ypur allies think that u necro is invincible and leave u alone against 2 and up against 3. So I changed the build to a bunker, to stack Thougtness.

Minion builds are stuck to play on the sidenodes, as their minions will be destroyed easily in all the AoE in midfights. However, other professions are better performing at sidenodes, while the necro now is typically a midnode/teamfight profession. In other words, minion builds are bad in medium to higher tiers of pvp. So nothing ’’lmao’’ about that.

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?vRAQRBHbhG2JHNQtNYNNg5mA9mYBXwo6CthvQcVsLGGhuaBgDAA-TZROABAs/g2lBg9kAc+DAw9jAAA

This is the bruiser build I use mostly. Deals really well with most classes, even in 1v2 situations. Notable weakness is condi mesmers if you can’t kill them quickly. Their repeated condi application will just wear you down eventually.

SlitheSlivier.1908:

Thanks for the input. While I do like playing MM and commanding a small army, I am open to other builds.
The big thing with mm is the great condi cleansing. Plus stacking vulnerability helps minions do even more damage.
Also I prefer direct damage over conditions. What higher tier direct damage builds are there?

for power damage build.. https://metabattle.com/wiki/Build:Reaper_-_Power_Boonstrip