Guild Wars 2

The terrible implementation of pets in the game has always made it really hard for me to warm up to this profession. I could go on about how bad it is and in how many ways it’s bad, but I’d be preaching to the choir.

So instead, I’m hoping for the opposite. What is it about the profession that keeps you going with it despite the terrible pet mechanics? What do you love about it?

For me, the biggest selling point is honestly GS. It is, for my nickel, the best weapon in the game, bar none. Evade in the auto chain, a giant crunchy burst hit, fantastic mobility, a long block and cripple, and a daze/stun, all with great thematic animations.

Longbow, Wilderness Survival, Survival Skills.

Nothing else keeps me playing ranger. If they gut any of that I will probably go guardian with/without dragon hunter.

I just came back to the game after a near year break….and i came back to my ranger right away.

I enjoy being the underdog and underestimated by people. In WvW when people used to go " Ranger over there- free lootbag" would make it so much sweeter when you win.

The appearance of the animations is very nice, a very agile fighter moving around. The survival animations, sword, gs, offhand axe, dagger are all very nice. Gs is my fav skillset by far and opens the ranger for a unique counter play like strategy.

I dont mind the pets now, nor did i a year ago. They are much better now than they were a few years ago… much more responsive. I dont really see much of an issue with them anymore. Could they be better? Of course.

When youre out in the world just adventuring and exploring by yourself it doesnt feel as lonely ( for lack of a better term) since you have your trusty sidekick with you.

Overall the class resonates with me very well and just kind of feels right when i play it. Its not a class for everyone, might just not be for you.

I think controlling the pet diligently makes the class a lot more enjoyable. Don’t expect the pet to do what you want it to, force it to. I spend probably 50% of my mental energy in a PvP match focusing on the pet. Once you learn how to get it to do things like force certain skills, it stops being so much of a problem.

Ranger is the pet profession after all, so trying to ignore the pet weirdness is like trying to enjoy the crisp, refreshing flavor of a ghost chili.

trolling basically, it’s the only class that can make a permaendure warrior or i-block-it-all guardian to listen the the beautifull song of my dreamer spitting arrows like a machine gun.

And because it doesnt do much damage that song goes and goes and goes and goes. i think those are the worst 25 seconds of their life.
And then i finish with my unicorn finisher.

which make me giggle every single time. I wish i coukd have an unicorn as a pet that corrupt boons on enemies and dance like the llama.

And because other classes seems too easy and bland once you get used to ranger.

Well, if you run with a canine, you have a real-life dog dumbness in the game

Kind of a strange perk to the class but I absolutely love how much CC rangers have access to. Since they fixed slick shoes on Engineer, no other class can even come close to the sheer amount of break bar damage we can do. Especially with the Electric wyvern and Pink Moa pets.

It’s so satisfying being able to solo-break the Legendary wyverns in VB or taking down more than half of the shatterer’s break bar when he’s going to fly. Same for the champion tier bosses in Dragon’s stand.

Longbow, marksmanship and wilderness survival. Those three are core things for my ranger. I cannot, and will not and would and could not without them

As far as the pet mechanics, while I can see why many people have issues, I’ve generally treated it as an environmental effect that works in my favor that I can make do something specific every so often, and if I want, make it stronger. I’ve also not played much of other MMOs that might also have pet classes, so my expectations aren’t up there, so I’ve generally been happy with it, admittedly because I haven’t experienced anything better. I liken it to the engi’s turrets: it’s there, it does damage, and I can buff them or occasionally make it do something spiffy, with the additional upside that I don’t have to deploy it per se.

Aside from that, I honestly have a lot of fun playing this class. It has good options at all ranges for weapons, decent options for power and condi builds, I love the flavor of the class and the (one so far) elite spec we have. We might not be the top of the list for dps, but I do think we are up there for versatility and being able to fill any number of niches. I play all the classes, but this is one that I am very comfortable playing without much thought (and I don’t mean facerolling, I mean its playstyle suits me well).

For fun, Electric wyvern is a blast. Watching him chop block people and NPCs never gets old.

Ever consider changing your outfit? You know, find a new pair of shoes to roam around on? Oh better yet that piece of armor that pushes up…never mind.

What does love have to do with it…all is vain, by bw2 player mighty meak

“OK gusie listen
im decent pvp
but my gf left me
coz of lederborsd
i mean W T F
i enter new leaderrbord after reset
and i say i am decent
i adapt
i see no gaurd so i think ok go gaurd
i go imba heal guard
adn i am gona mid
and i heal and i heal and i heal moar
but w t f
i am alone
no one helps no loves
1vall
i die no win
next game i say ho ho ho no guard no gaurd at all i go imba power crit wahtever
but guy at srat say ok gusy lisen plan
1 close 1 animal 1 far rest mid
ok ok i say i am mid coz far is noob
burt map say i am 1 mid rest animal no close no far
and i die hard lol
loost
then enters next
and i say lol i know now i follow plan noooobs
w t f skyham
i change imba engi canon trololol
so caanon here i comes
1 mesmer hiding and pul no prob i push and push broken glass canon all mine
i shoot a shoot b shoot c
w t f
non see abc
they all canon gate coz it causy no push nothing just fight fight fight
chase chase chse
i say go b go a and go c
all say lol noob u here for golds
lossst
gf now half interest
i say ok lissen good i win next i go up 90%
but i dont
all ranks 10 for goold
next is same and next
70% and down
ranks down too
i go guard i am mad no guard love
i go engi bunker power right no nothing
i do ele i go war ooops w t f war nerfes
69% and down
gf dont impresss say she leaving now
all is vain”

CountzuCrytus.7256:

The appearance of the animations is very nice, a very agile fighter moving around. The survival animations, sword, gs, offhand axe, dagger are all very nice.

When youre out in the world just adventuring and exploring by yourself it doesnt feel as lonely ( for lack of a better term) since you have your trusty sidekick with you.

Overall the class resonates with me very well and just kind of feels right when i play it.

Agreed, these are the main reasons why I still love my Ranger.

Loopgru.1026:

So instead, I’m hoping for the opposite. What is it about the profession that keeps you going with it despite the terrible pet mechanics? What do you love about it?

My favorite thing about ranger, is micro controlling the pet to
maximize its effectiveness. But wait! The pet chosen, is almost
always… A bear! Usually with a greatsword/druid build. But
sometimes… Oh my, the dreaded BearBow!

Why? Oh why play that most reviled combination? Quite simply,
the bear makes me laugh. The animations while it gets tossed around
are just spectacularly funny. So yes, soloing difficult champs is slower,
but the time goes by fast due to laughing so hard.

If you don’t love it by now, nothing will make up your mind.
But i do like rangers because i can dish out damage while able to support and be a super troll! xD

Pets can take some warming up to but once you do, you’ll love them. Mine has saved my life countless times and although they can be difficult to control, they absolutely are a major asset to many of your defences and offences if used correctly.

What I love about the profession most is the grace. It’s the only profession that feels like it has a real finesse to it in nearly every weapon. It’s very satisfying to me how many of the Rangers skills have a smooth delivery like; Ancestral Grace, Swoop, Greatsword AA’s, Quick Shot, Serpent’s Strike and Dart.

Besides that, I also very much love pets. They’re my companions and although stupid at times, I enjoy managing them and working with them. I especially enjoy moments like when my Wolf knockdown interrupts a Thief in the middle of his #5 -> #2 combo or when someone is about to heal. Or when I’ve downed and someone is trying to stomp me but my pet wails on them enough to down them as well before they can stomp. Things like that just make me grin.

I always go for the ranged archetype in any game I play. Bows or sniper rifles are my thing. I like to be stealthy and observant, scouting out movements, studying enemy strategies, planning ambush attacks, etc. I’m a hunter (not talking WoW) at heart. I like to track my prey and work with my environment and personally, I think GW2 did a good job with that nature-loving hunter feel.

Just roll an asura, no matter what class it is you just gotta love those wiggly ears and chubby little feetsies.

I’m also trying to find a reason to play my ranger… How about weapons? What weapons/weapon combos make you guys enjoy ranger?

Matt Stacey.7415:

I’m also trying to find a reason to play my ranger… How about weapons? What weapons/weapon combos make you guys enjoy ranger?

Since it varies from person to person, I can’t suggest a weapon that you’ll like. I can tell you that Sword/Dagger is very exciting to play or that Greatsword is one of the few weapons in the game where every skill is extremely useful instead of just 2 or 3 of them.

Personally I enjoy Sword, Greatsword, Longbow and Staff although I mostly use the standard Longbow + Greatsword set up since I’m primarily a WvW’r. Greatsword offers me a ton of utility and saves my behind many, many times a day with Quick Draw + Swoop x2 or Counterattack x2 (love those 6k+ Counterattacks so much <3). And Longbow, although simple, is a very strong weapon. I’m happy that they buffed it way back when they did because it’s truly enjoyable and rewarding when used properly.

Still, if Ranger isn’t for you, it isn’t for you. Maybe you’ll try it again later and it’ll click with you or maybe you just plain don’t like it. Personally I try not to force myself to like any of the classes, I just try them and if I like them I like them if I don’t I don’t. Maybe I give them another try later on and change my mind. It happened with Engineer, I used to be awful with it and I disliked it. Then, over a year later, I tried it again and it fit me like a glove. Everyone says it’s hard but I found it extremely easy.

Gotta say I love the #2 big bear animation of GS Nice burst too.

I’m more between if I should keep it ranger or throw Druid in there. Pros and cons both ways. Experimented with a trap condi build the other day that worked nicely. Currently running MS WS BM though as it has nice synergy for survival and I’m able to go zerk while pets tank. Very fun so far.