Guild Wars 2

I tried axe/axe, found it to be a little lacking. Bows…Well, I’m looking for something different. How does axe/warhorn do for PVE?

Thanks!

You know, I find it hard to understand how many rangers here have a set ‘build,’ because I see many weapons/skills/talents that work best in various situations.

Axe mainhand is for medium range multiple enemies, and warhorn is good with allies, as it’s the only offhand that affects allies. So overall, I would use axe/warhorn while with allies and I expect multiple targets. An event with many players jumping on board to fight waves of enemies, for example, allows the axe/warhorn to shine. I also think that warhorn is much better suited to axe than to sword, making your bar fully ranged.

Hmmm, maybe I AM stuck with bows, then. Which is better single-target DPS, longbow or shortbow?

I play Sword/Axe and Axe/Warhorn. I use the Warhorn only when I cannot tank a boss (rarely) and when I need consistent AoE, lets say fighting 1v3~5 in PvE and for adds in dungeons.

It’s awesome, but very lackluster if you want a pure dps build. That’s prorably by design, because it grants cheap spammable AoE.

I love axe/warhorn, its my main weapon combo when out in the world and by far the best for events… you know actually hitting things before they die It is also great for killing multiple mobs while kiting.. yes occasionally I pull an extra mob but that has never killed me * knock on wood *. The buff is great for movement around the map and dps, and we can’t forget the birds!! great for single target damage and funny as hell on a spark mob =D

Use Shortbow/Axe+Warhorn.
Shortbow is for single target, Axe for AoE; usually when you want AoE in solo PvE it’s during events where a lot other characters are present so the Warhorn’s buff is nice for those situations. You can use the Warhorn’s buff also to run faster from A to B.

The only reason to use a Longbow is if you have the +range trait from the Marksmanship tree.

I am with Spayced on this. What I equip greatly depends on what I am expecting to fight, so I carry a Longbow, a Shortbow, an Axe, a Warhorn, a Sword, and a Torch, and I mix and match what I equip to meet the situations I expect to encounter.

I tend to use Axe/Warhorn as a secondary equipment set. That is, when I expect to encounter melee situation and have the room to manuever, I will prefer Sword/Torch as my primary equipment set and Axe/Warhorn in the other. For mostly ranged fights, I will often go with Longbow as my primary and Axe/Warhorn as my secondary.

However, Swords and Axes can be situationally inapprorpiate. Swords require maneuvering room for the Hornet’s Sting/Monarch’s Leap chain and for Serpent’s Strike. Such room is not always possible. Likewise, Ricochet, the primary attack for a main-hand axe, bounces between multiple targets. Unfortunately, it doesn’t particularly care if the targets are already engaged in a fight with you nor whether the targets are even enemies (i.e., will hit targetable neutral targets as well). Because of that behavior, using a main-hand Axe means you can quickly end up with a bigger fight than you need.

This makes both weapons somewhat situational. When maneuvering room is an issue, I will often go Axe/Torch for melee and go with a bow for the other equipment set. If indescriminate multi-targeting can be an issue, then I will drop the Axe in favor of a bow as well. Since Axe and Sword are the only single hand weapons we can use in the main-hand slot, if those weapons are not useable in a given situation, then neither is the Warhorn.

That said, Axe/Warhorn is very useful. Warhorn has a good buff (Call of the Wild) for allies (which includes your pet). Likewise, being that all the other skills from that weapon combination are medium ranged skills, they make a good match up for either a melee setup (Sword/Torch) or a ranged setup (bows) in the other equipment set. Besides, who doesn’t like seeing the flock of hawks from Hunter’s Call pecking away on an ememy, even after it has gone down? The speed buff from Call of the Wild is good, especially in combination with Winter’s Bite, for chasing down or getting away from an enemy, depending on the need.

This makes Axe/Warhorn is a good combination for either PvE or PvP. However, any weapon set choice should be viewed sitatuationally. It has both strengths and weaknesses that you need to consider. It is a good general weapon combo to carry, but you may need to consider other weapons in specific situations.

Victros.8154:

Hmmm, maybe I AM stuck with bows, then. Which is better single-target DPS, longbow or shortbow?

It largely depends on your setup. Look at the skill.

Longbow:

• Long Range Shot – Does single target damage which increases with range.
• Rapid Fire – Channels a series of shots doing single target damage.
• Hunter’s Shot – Does single target damage that adds a stack of vulnerability to the target and gives your pet swiftness.
• Point Blank Shot – Does single target damage and knocks your oppnent back. The closer the target the further it pushes them back. It can also knock them down.
• Barrage – Ground targeted AoE attack that can cripple.

These are mostly single target, direct damage skills expected to be fired from max range. Barrage is the only exception on the single target aspect. Accordingly, the Longbow is better if you have a power/precision/crit setup, and generally shines better for situations where you can maintain max distance, which often means you can stand in one spot to attack. This is especially true if you trait to increase the range of the Longbow (Eagle Eye).

Shortbow:

• Cross Fire – Single target damage that will add bleeds when flanking or behind the target.
• Poison Volley – Multi-target (up to 5) that poisons the target(s).
• Quick Shot – Single target damage that cause you to jump back and adds swiftness to you.
• Crippling Shot – Single target damage that cripples your foe and causes your pet’s next three attacks to add a bleed.
• Concussion Shot – Single target direct damage attack that dazes your target (stuns them if flanking or behind).

Again, they are mostly single target (except for Poison Volley), but most of these attacks add conditions and expect you to be flanking or behind your target for max effect. Crossfire adds bleeds if flanking/behind. Poison Volley adds poison to the target (can hit with 5 stacks if close enough to a single target). Crippling Shot, itself, is direct damage only, but it adds a cripple condition and and adds a bleed to your pet’s attacks. Concussion Shot adds a daze or stun condition. Also, Quick Shot enhances your swiftness while Crippling Shot and Concussion Shot put control effects on your target. Accordingly, the short bow shines with a condition build and is better if you are mobile.

Which does more damage depends on your situation and build.

Rapid Fire – Channels a series of shots doing single target damage that increases which each shot.

Nope, the damage does not increase, the damage that appears over your target after each hit is the damage of all the previous hits added up, not from the single one.
E.g. if each arrow hits for 10 damage you would see:
10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, 100

Personally I use Longbow or Shortbow / Axe-Warhorn for PVE and have been loving it so far. As folks have said the Warhorn 5 gives a nice buff (which I follow with my Warhorn 4 birdie attack) .. the Axe lets you bounce and hit multiple targets plus the Axe 3 chilling comes in handy when a mob is walking down on you.

Sometimes I switch the axe-warhorn for a greatsword but rarely ..

I am Axe/Torch and love it. The Torch 5 skill makes a nice combo with the Axe skills since it creates a firearea around you which will burn foes close to you but also will turn your thrown Axes into burning finishers, no need for tricky placement. I pair this with traps which adds to the burning fun (Firetrap is also a combofield). So even while mobs will move away from you, you benefit from the firefields you have created, with your ranged axe.

The buff from Horn sure is nice, especially in a group off course (since others benefit from it). However with the firefields that I am putting down (Firetrap recharges pretty quickly) other players benefit from that too.

I also am a fan of the axe/warhorn choice but it really is down to how you play or what the situation requires. My personal choices are axe/axe for anti-melee and longbow for when i want to stay back. I love the speed of a shortbow but the attacks never suited my playstyle and i was almost finished the main story before i remembered that my ranger could equip greatswords.

I use Shortbow and Axe/Warhorn. I switch between both against any target that has a little beef to it. My typical cycle is:

• Shortbow 4
• Shortbow 2
• [Flame Trap]
• Warhorn 5
• Axe 2
• Axe 3
• Warhorn 4
• Axe 2
• [Quickening Zephyr]
• Shortbow 2
• Shortbow 1 [until QZ ends]

Most things die somewhere in the middle. I can and often do run this cycle over groups of 3-6 mobs. I have soloed Champions with Veteran adds too. A little dodging, a little pet micro, and you have a very versatile and powerful character.

You certainly do not have to use a bow, however; that is just my preference. I could see a successful Axe/Warhorn with Sword/Torch build. I will warn, however, that Sword is presently very buggy.

If you want a little flavor try sword+torch. I don’t like the aesthetic of axe much and being able to swap from my bow to melee with conditions and evades is fun. Use a tanking pet and use skills to apply burning, poison, ring of fire, leap out to evade, back in for a combo finisher, and sword is an aoe weapon, striking everything around you.

Seras you picked two of my most hated weapon sets, just add dagger >.<

DesertRose could we get a source on that I cannot find that info anywhere and I don’t think its accurate. If I am the only one firing at something (player or mob) I see larger chunks come out the more I’m firing, same goes for the similar jellyfish ability which is sort of a aoe rapid fire.

I just noticed one reason why I think the additive total is incorrect, I use the lynx pet fairly often and its F2 attack is a 2 hit attack and almost always they hit for the same exact amount. Why would a 2 hit not be additive if a multi hit one was? If an Anet person could shed some light on this it would be helpful.

VooDooU.4891:

I just noticed one reason why I think the additive total is incorrect, I use the lynx pet fairly often and its F2 attack is a 2 hit attack and almost always they hit for the same exact amount. Why would a 2 hit not be additive if a multi hit one was? If an Anet person could shed some light on this it would be helpful.

It’s highly inconsistent across many skills, but unfortunately, the numbers you see from Rapid Fire is the cumulative total, just like Hundred Blades.

Screenshot link: http://i47.tinypic.com/ivlqjb.jpg

To the OP Axe/Warhorn is great for leveling and travel in PvE. Hell its great in WvW too.

I have stuck with Axe/Warhorn for a long time. I have a hard time getting rid of it because A) Sword sucks so Axe is the obvious 1 hand weapon to use and Warhorn buffs rock plus Flock of Birds nuff said.

Usually I will match it up with a Longbow if running a Power/Precision build or Shortbow if running a Condition based build.

Just a random snippet of information, Hunter’s Call does approximately 1/3 the damage of Rapid Fire with the same power and prec stats.

@Pikafan, that is fine by mean and I think intended since Hunter’s Call is cast pretty quickly and is not channeled like Rapid Fire. If it had the same damage as Rapid Fire that would be OP vs it’s cast/channeled time.

Mog.1589:

@Pikafan, that is fine by mean and I think intended since Hunter’s Call is cast pretty quickly and is not channeled like Rapid Fire. If it had the same damage as Rapid Fire that would be OP vs it’s cast/channeled time.

Well thank you for singling me out and telling me things I already know. But rest assured, your efforts at stating the obvious is deeply appreciated.

Pikafan.3792:

Well thank you for singling me out and telling me things I already know. But rest assured, your efforts at stating the obvious is deeply appreciated.

Was not trying to “single you out” at all. They way your post was written kinda came across as if you did not realize that. Your post comes across as hey Rapid Fire is better and Hunter’s Call is inferior when in fact they are both in balance imo.

Using Axe+ Warhorn/Torch myself and i Love it, but that’s because i realy like that midrange location for some reason. Close enough to see the fight, far enough to keep the overview. I run it with traps atm (spike/frost) and healing spring, all giving an area effect and great combo fields (torch obviously already gives me a fire field). lightning reflexes to break any unwanted effects and have another dodge…

Sure when you are careless you sometimes draw an extra target in, but it’s usually nothing that can’t be solved (if all else fails, Warhorn also gives a speedbuff )

DesertRose.2031:

Rapid Fire – Channels a series of shots doing single target damage that increases which each shot.

Nope, the damage does not increase, the damage that appears over your target after each hit is the damage of all the previous hits added up, not from the single one.
E.g. if each arrow hits for 10 damage you would see:
10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, 100

Err … yeah … that is what I meant. The … uh … damage is increasing because the … uh … number is cumulative. Yeah. That’s the ticket.

Actually, that makes sense. I did not realize that. I edited the post to correct the misinformation.