Guild Wars 2

Hey there necro forums. The Necromancer is once of two classes that I’ve never touched. The only other being engi, and I don’t think i ever will.

Anyway, I’d like to be decent with my necro that’s been collecting dust for some time. In the past I was never drawn to the terrormancer builds, and I don’t want to run any power builds because I run 99% power on every other class I play. I want some diversity!

the new-ish signet celestial build seems to really fit what I’m looking for. I love hybrid builds and I’d like to give it a try. But I’m TOTALLY lost on the actual mechanics for this class. I’d be really grateful if someone would give me a general breakdown of how to function as a necromancer. basic strategies and rotations of the class. Just a good starting point so I’m not flailing about mindlessly.

TL;DR- how do I necro? I’m lost.

It’s a pretty simple class to be totally honest. The only things you really need to know are;

Position, and this is only important in PvP/WvW.

And Life Force management.

As a class that has very few ways to deal with incoming damage you really really need to know where you’re standing and why you’re standing there when it comes to PvP/WvW. A good Necro should always be where they are for a reason. Whether that position be advantageous due to terrain or teammates you should always be aware of what’s around you and how you can use what’s around you. We have very few ways to deal with CC or being focus fired and that’s where the second part comes in.

Managing Life Force and your time in and out of Death Shroud is important because it’s all we have to defend ourselves from being focused down. Don’t always try to camp in Shroud unless the situation allows for it. Such as a 1v1 or adding to a 1v1 for example. Much like a Thief’s Initiative, you should always be aware of how much Life Force you have and ways you can regain it. Spectral skills are good for this but there are other ways than just that. I can’t say what ways are “right” or “wrong” to use your Life Force since it all depends on the situation at hand. All I can say is that your Shroud is vital and you need to use it wisely but that doesn’t mean sparingly.

In a PvE scenario, position and Life Force management are much less important. Just keep in mind that if you’re using Death Perception you get +50% critical chance while in Shroud which means that Wells will also benefit from this. Well Of Suffering -> enter Death Shroud and every pulse from WoS will crit if you’re full Berserker. Top it off with Life Transfer and that’s a nice bunch of damage. Also remember that Tainted Shackles applies Torment which deals more damage on moving targets, so following up Tainted Shackles with Doom can amplify the effects before the shackles shatter to cause Immobilize.

That aside, you’ve got a ton of health and various ways to siphon lost health back to you. It’s not a complicated class in the sense that mechanically it’s very simple but strategically it takes a lot of practice. You can afford to make mistakes but you can’t afford to misjudge.