Guild Wars 2

Overview

To fill another role for Rangers in melee combat form with specialization of burst/ skirmishing with main application of vulnerability condition and quick strikes. This specialization introduces Stance to Rangers coming from Guild Wars 1 and main hand Dagger.

Weapon Skills
Dagger main hand can strike up to 3 foes in 180 radius

1. Savage strike- deal physical damage. Targets gain mark for 5 secs.
> Feline strike – deal physical damage. Gain fury 3 secs.
> Callous swipe – deal physical damage. You and your pet apply vulnerability 3 stacks.

2. Gaea – leap (300 range) and slice your foes knocking down mark targets and deal extra damage to mark foes. (cooldown 8s)

3. Predatory strikes – Three fast moving attack slowing your foes. Refreshes instantly if target is killed. (down in pvp) (cooldown 12s)

Healing skills

Bestial scars – Stance for 3 seconds gain quickness and regeneration. Heals for 6500.

Utility Skills

Celestial Stance – Stance for 3 seconds. Reduces incoming damage by 50% gain 3 might.

Nature’s Resilience – Stance for 3 seconds. Stun breaker. Convert incoming damaging condition to Regeneration 3 secs. Stacks duration.

Expertise – Stance for 3 seconds. Apply weakness to foes your attacks are unblockable.

Escape – Stance for 3 seconds. Reflect incoming projectiles. Cures 2 immobilizing condition from you.

Elite

Way of the Alpha – Stance for 5 seconds. You move 25% faster. Charge in a direction damaging and marking nearby foes, launches foes adjacent to you.

List of traits

Minor Adept : Inner Beast – Access to Stance. Able to wield Dagger main hand.

Major adept: Turtle Shell – Reduces incoming condition on you by 20%, interval 3 secs. (cooldown 10 secs)
Major adept: Beasts Focus – You and your pet gain attack of opportunity to disabled or movement impaired foes. (cd 8 secs)
Major adept: Primal Choice – While wielding a Dagger you gain 150 power. Reduce recharge of dagger skills by 20%.

Minor Master: Never Rampage Alone – Deal plus 5% damage whenever you have your companion with you.

Major master: Serpents Quickness – Reduces Stance skill recharge by 20%. Stance last 25% longer.
Major master: Savage Hunter – Deal additional 5% damage to foes. Deal plus 2% extra damage to foes within 300 radius.
Major master: Symbiotic Bond – You and your pet gain resistance for 3 secs when breaking out of stun. (Cooldown 20secs)

Minor Grandmaster: Symbiosis – You and your pet gain 10% extra health. 2% of your maximum health is converted to power.

Major Grandmaster: Strike as One – you shadowstep behind your foe whenever you use your pet skill. Gain attack of opportunity for you and your pet. (cooldown 15 secs)

Major Grandmaster: Way of the Pure – You and your pet deal 10% more damage to foes with boons.

Major Grandmaster: Predatory Bond – Your pet gain 25% of your attributes.

wishful thinking.

Although this is nice , I still wish for shape shifter

What is “mark”? Also I understand that it is an unique debuff whose only purpose is to interact with dagger#2, I can’t help but think that it is a waste to introduce such a thing in a spec that will not capitalize on it.

What is “inner beast”? Again a very blurry concept that is not supported by any trait or any skills. Is there any use to it? Is this just a stow button that stow the pet even in combat?

On a side note, dagger is just sword 2.0 with this design… that’s sad.

NB.: 2% maximum health converted into power is undoubtely awfully OP. It’s not that hard to reach around 30k HP and it would grant 1500 power… That’s huge. Usually a traits that give extra stats don’t give more than roughly 300. The game will lose all illusions of balance if something lie this is introduced.

BadSanta.6527:

…I still wish for shape shifter

Seconded.

Nice concept AEFA Although i dont think we will get something like “Major adept: Primal Choice – While wielding a Dagger you gain 150 power. Reduce recharge of dagger skills by 20%.” since:
1) Our dagger offhand is more an utility-condi weapon than a power weapon;
2) We already have a trait that reduce the recharge of dagger skills called Ambidexterity;

Anyway, these are my thoughts on the next E-spec:

• Dagger mainhand = we will get more melee oriented playstyle
• Melee playstyle means that we need more invulnerabilities-blocks-evade-stability on demand. I would say that Stances would fit this perfectly but we will see.
• Our dagger offhand is basically a condi weapon with some utilities, like evade and cripple. I think our dagger mainhand will probably use both power and condi damage, exactly like d/d ele, d/d necro and d/d thief can do (dont forget that our trait Ambidexterity increase our condition damage while wielding a dagger).
• I was hoping for some sort of shapeshifting skills but i dont think we will get those. Why? Because the image shows a big…spirit-pet around the ranger, not a ranger transforming into something else. This might make me think that new “spirit-pet” will be our E-spec mechanic, not a skill, and something that will protect us and fight with us.
• Traits seems really connected to this new spirit-pet. We will get more than 1 spirit-pet, and with different skills/playstyles? Maybe.
• Dagger means that our AoE melee cleave will probably come from the spirit-pet since most of the time dagger hits 2-3 ppl max.

These are my speculations

kappa.2036:

Nice concept AEFA Although i dont think we will get something like “Major adept: Primal Choice – While wielding a Dagger you gain 150 power. Reduce recharge of dagger skills by 20%.” since:
1) Our dagger offhand is more an utility-condi weapon than a power weapon;
2) We already have a trait that reduce the recharge of dagger skills called Ambidexterity;

Anyway, these are my thoughts on the next E-spec:

• Dagger mainhand = we will get more melee oriented playstyle
• Melee playstyle means that we need more invulnerabilities-blocks-evade-stability on demand. I would say that Stances would fit this perfectly but we will see.
• Our dagger offhand is basically a condi weapon with some utilities, like evade and cripple. I think our dagger mainhand will probably use both power and condi damage, exactly like d/d ele, d/d necro and d/d thief can do (dont forget that our trait Ambidexterity increase our condition damage while wielding a dagger).
• I was hoping for some sort of shapeshifting skills but i dont think we will get those. Why? Because the image shows a big…spirit-pet around the ranger, not a ranger transforming into something else. This might make me think that new “spirit-pet” will be our E-spec mechanic, not a skill, and something that will protect us and fight with us.
• Traits seems really connected to this new spirit-pet. We will get more than 1 spirit-pet, and with different skills/playstyles? Maybe.
• Dagger means that our AoE melee cleave will probably come from the spirit-pet since most of the time dagger hits 2-3 ppl max.

These are my speculations

ok is it just me or… if you guys look at the leaks again and look into the art closely, do you guys think that we will be getting Auras instead for next expansion? let me know what you guys think.

Auras are basically the things that the elementalist is able to spam in this game. Thematically those auras are not really easy to add to the ranger… Beside, I’m not sure that we would really gain anything by having a spec based on auras.

I think they already explored thoroughly the aura theme with tempest, let’s leave it at that.

Edit : If anything, I’d rather see them deepened our bond with movment skills by adding some effect when we use this kind of skills. With just our core ranger, we have incredible potential for an e-spec that capitalize on such mechanisms.

gs double dags. can’t wait.

Dadnir.5038:

Auras are basically the things that the elementalist is able to spam in this game. Thematically those auras are not really easy to add to the ranger… Beside, I’m not sure that we would really gain anything by having a spec based on auras.

I think they already explored thoroughly the aura theme with tempest, let’s leave it at that.

Edit : If anything, I’d rather see them deepened our bond with movment skills by adding some effect when we use this kind of skills. With just our core ranger, we have incredible potential for an e-spec that capitalize on such mechanisms.

how do you mean by that?

What I mean?

Auras are more or less owned by the core elementalist and tempest push them to new heights.

The core ranger have an insane amount of “movement skills” why wouldn’t we have something that make use of that? And we know that it’s possible to add effect on movement skills since the warrior already have a trait that help him to break free of immobilize when using one.

Be it direct effect on the ranger like a cleanse on movement skill use or giving a buff to your pet when you use one… There is plenty of possibilities. Just imagine how valuable would be a trait that give an exxtra effect to :

- Swoop and technically hilt bash (great sword)
- quick shot (short bow)
- hornet sting, monarch leap and serpent’s strike (sword)
- stalker strike (dagger)
- lightning reflex (utility)

Now, with that, let’s just try to move the ranger closer to the thief we could end up with something like that :

1st Minor trait grant stealth on movement skill use as special mechanism.
2nd Minor grant stealth to your pet when you enter stealth.
3rd Minor grant Blurr to your pet when he enter stealth.

Up traits improve the ranger’s stealth :
1- grant first strike whenever you enter stealth.
2- grant you stabilty when you enter stealth.
3- you do more condition damage while stealthed.

Middle trait focus on reveal :
1- gain toughness while revealed
2- you and your pet do x% more damage while revealed
3- gain x health point every second while revealed.

Down traits focus on movement :
1- gain swftness when you use a movement skill
2- cure one condition when you use a movement skill
3- movement skill all gain a leap finisher.

(pretty easy to imagine, probably extremly easy to introduce in the game and most likely very usefull since it would work well whatever traitline you use)