Guild Wars 2

Hello. I’ve gathered the grievances of many Rangers and thought up what might be a welcome change.

I call it Dynamic Entry.
What is it? Well, when you swap in a pet of a certain type (Canine, Spider, Feline, etc.) they cause an effect or use a special skill. Pets of each type will also have positive and negative aspects, which will be explained below.

Things to note:
- Pet damage decreased by 10% across the board (Dynamic Entry will make up for it, trust me.)
- All pets except Spiders and Devourers will be able to attack while moving, but both will attempt to keep a certain distance from a target, if possible.
- The base cooldown for pet swapping would be increased from 20 seconds to 30, to match the base cooldown for Dynamic Entry.
- The “Loud Whistle” trait (20% reduced swap cooldown) would be buffed to a 30% decrease, to match the cooldown of Dynamic Entry when fully invested into Beastmastery line, which will grant Healing and Dynamic Entry Recharge Rate (Up to 30%, 1% per point invested) instead of “Pet Attribute Bonus”.
- Most Pet-Swaps will require a type of targeting (all will have a range of 600) to dictate where the pet will appear and perform its Dynamic Entry.
- From this point onward I will abbreviate Dynamic Entry as “DE” because by now you get the point.

Canine
Pros: Sense and attack stealthed targets (does not lose target via clones or stealth) and removes one condition from owner every 3 seconds when owner is below 50% HP)
Cons: Ignores all commands when Owner is below 20% HP, draws all conditions from the owner to itself and takes all incoming damage until it dies. (Mans best friend!).
Dynamic Entry: (Ground-Targeted) Howl to grant nearby allies (360 radius) 5 stacks of might (5s) and Weaken foes (5s).

Feline
Pros: Immune to Cripple, Chill, Weakness and Immobilize. 10% increased critical damage.
Cons: Takes double damage from Crowd Control skills and remains CC’d twice as long.
Dynamic Entry: (Appears at target location) You and your pet gain 4s of Quickness. (Stacks with Zephyr’s Speed). Stunbreak.

Porcine
Pros: All Porcine attacks have a 20% chance to occur as a Blast Finisher. Headbutt attack is a Leap finisher.
Cons: Becomes Confused (2s) when hit with Crowd Control or when Blinded.
Dynamic Entry: (Ground-Targeted) Falls down on target area, knocking down enemies in a 360 radius while granting Fury and Regeneration (5s) to nearby allies.

Moa
Pros: 33% Chance for Moa attacks to Steal one boon from the enemy and grant it to nearby allies.
Cons: Succumbs to Fear (5s) when below 20% HP.
Dynamic Entry: (Ground-Targeted) An explosion of feathers (1s Daze on Explosion, leaves behind 360 Radius Smoke Field that lingers for 4 seconds, Blinding on a 1 second Pulse)

Bird
Pros: Takes 50% less damage from ground-targeted aoes. Immune to blindness.
Cons: Takes 50% more damage from projectiles. 5% chance of being knocked down (2s) by all projectile attacks, internal cooldown of 5 seconds.
Dynamic Entry: (Appears at enemy location) Swoops down with a small flock, dealing damage and crippling for 1 second each hit (350 total base damage at level 80, 10 hits).

Spider
Pros: Spawns Spider Hatchlings that fire weaker projectiles that randomly inflict Cripple, Weakness, or Poison.. Spider attacks do 33% more damage to enemies with the above conditions.
Cons: Takes double damage from Burning and is struck with Fear (3s, 30s internal cooldown) upon Burn application. Is Stunned (3s, 30s Internal Cooldown) when inflicted with Chill.
Dynamic Entry: Pulls 5 enemies within a 600 radius toward itself. Applies 1 second of Immobilize.

Devourer
Pros: Takes 33% less damage from projectiles. Takes 20% less damage from critical hits.
Cons: Becomes Vulnerable (1 Stack for 10 seconds every .5 seconds) while inflicted with more than two conditions (Conditions weaken the exoskeleton).
Dynamic Entry: (Ground-Targeting) Digs out of the ground at the target area, causing a 360 distance Blowout and inflicting Weakness (5 seconds).

Ursine
Pros: Has Unshakable (Only gains 3 Stacks of Defiant on CC). Gains 15 stacks of Might for 5 seconds when blocked. 5 second internal cooldown.
Cons: (Laziness) Does 2% less damage for each boon it has. Suffers Confusion (2 Stacks, 5 seconds) when it misses or is interrupted.
Dynamic Entry: (Line-Targeting) Rushes in a line doing heavy damage (1550 Base).

Drake
Pros: Removes a random condition every 3 seconds. Takes half damage from conditions (excluding Agony).
Cons: Takes rapid damage and cannot attack or move while chilled. Cannot remove Chill from itself.
Dynamic Entry: (Ground-Targeting) Creates a water-field at target location (6 seconds), screeches (Blast Finisher) to inflict Vulnerability (5 Stacks, 10 seconds) to nearby foes and grant Retaliation (5 seconds) to nearby allies.

(Will add underwater pets if this generates a positive response)

Pick it all apart. Do your worst.
Some of the positive bonuses are a bit OP, yeah. But it’s easier to start op and nerf it into shape afterward. With that in mind I tried to make the cons painful but not so much that it completely ruins the pet (though some may be a bit too heavy handed).

I want to see more emphasis on Pets, and I think Dynamic Entry does a pretty good job of that, but I want your opinions. All criticisms (though don’t be rude, spare my tender heart) are welcome.

Its a cool concept, I wouldnt hold your breath for changes however.

bradderzh.2378:

Its a cool concept, I wouldnt hold your breath for changes however.

Oh, I know.
I’m not new ’round these parts. :c

I also think it’s a cool concept although which button would take the place of this (targeted) skill? I’m guessing the pet swap button F4 will just be turned into a targeted skill?

Although I feel it’s a tad much of a change. I could definitely see a kind of ‘entry’ type of effect being fun and cool but the pros and cons added feel very convoluted. You might be able to just tone down the DE a tad and be able to just tack on a few of those pros without all the other extras.

Another concept I’ve been toying around in my head is a kind of ‘tag team’ concept where, when traited, give the swaps different effects. Some examples:

Base swap (must be in active mode)
-Swapping from a non-canine pet to a canine pet results in the dog moving right into a leaping knockdown if you have an enemy targeted.
-Birds will always appear right on your target.
-Swapping out an ursine for a non-ursine will grant them opening strike when eventually swapped back in.

Base swap (must be in passive mode)
-Spiders leave a web and Devourers leave a crater where they stand when swapped out. Web immobilizes and crater cripples.
-With two cats, the first remains on the field and invulnerable for a short time (1 second and can still attack) when initiating a swap.

Then each trait line can have an extra effect for swapping, like Wilderness line transferring a boon from foe to team when you swap and Nature Magic creating an element field under the pet (water, ice, lightning or fire) when swapped (each unique field having an internal cooldown so can’t keep swapping in water fields) and this would depend on the pet swapped (depending on their environment/skills would determine which fields they create).