Guild Wars 2

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?vNAQJARWnUqA1Ci9CC+sActgl9A7JOcEeawv166fd52FAGdlsi0A-TZRHwACuEA82fgZZgBPAAAHBAA

Hey! Wanted to post this shout build I played around with today. I find it hard to 100% judge how good a build is currently with only unranked available. Concerning my level of play: diamond last season with soloqueue only but I guess legend wouldn’t have been that hard to achieve since I only started climbing like 2 weeks before season end and it felt more like a question of how much time I want to invest.

The build takes advantage of the massive shoutbuffs and tries to offer an alternate playstyle compared to the sutained node druid we saw last season. There was also a small DPS buff for Predators Onslaught but the general meta shift is what makes DPS builds more viable again.

Playstyle: Roam between points. Mobility is almost thief level with 2 huge leaps on both weapons and very good range on staff. Staff damage is almost on longbow level and actually a lot more reliable. Unlike thief which just +1s for added damage this build can actually add clutch heals, interrupts and crazy rezzes.

Anyone else played something similiar? Any further questions on how to play this? Other suggestions? I feel like Druid and BM traitline are too good right now to not run them but MM could be replaced with Skirmishing or other stuff. Discuss!!

Not enough condi cleanse.
…
Yup, that’s pretty much it.

DPS builds are not for Rangers. We do not bring burst. Neither mobility to rotate out of harm’s way, nor do we bring utility of a mesmer.
We have pets with nice burst and such. That automatically means that you have part of the damage you are looking for already there, and you don’t have to become glasscannon to achieve what you are searching for.

Tragic Positive.9356:

Not enough condi cleanse.
…
Yup, that’s pretty much it.

DPS builds are not for Rangers. We do not bring burst. Neither mobility to rotate out of harm’s way, nor do we bring utility of a mesmer.
We have pets with nice burst and such. That automatically means that you have part of the damage you are looking for already there, and you don’t have to become glasscannon to achieve what you are searching for.

hi,

you’ve been pretty critical on few people’s builds since patch, do you have any better alternative than what those other guys have posted? I’m not doubting your knowledge, just curious what build(s) you have tried so far that you think will be effective for the upcoming season.

Rome.7124:

hi,

you’ve been pretty critical on few people’s builds since patch, do you have any better alternative than what those other guys have posted? I’m not doubting your knowledge, just curious what build(s) you have tried so far that you think will be effective for the upcoming season.

Yea… That’s who I am. I am always straightforward and strict. Regardless of how mean it might seem. I believe it’s better to tell people straight then sugarcoat.
Well anyways, I have tested quite a few of them. What kind of build are you looking for?
Teamfight oriented? A bunker? A decapper? A roamer? With a preferred weapon or play-style?

I’ve already tried:
Cleric: bunker / decapper / teamfight support
Rabid: Anti-burst dancer (evades) / trapper / shouts
Knight: Versatile fighter
Sage: Shouts / Roamer
… Some random paladin mercenary and mender variations.

As straightforward as I am, I have never yet rejected anyone who asked me for help. But it’s impossible to share everything with everyone, so if you specify what are you looking for, I’ll have easier time helping you.

I’d like to see that cleric bunker build Tragic, I tried a double staff (with the druid stun trait) build with the Crusader amulet and rune of the soldier. Seems like it was missing something though.

Was pretty good last meta.

rummy.4102:

I’d like to see that cleric bunker build Tragic, I tried a double staff (with the druid stun trait) build with the Crusader amulet and rune of the soldier. Seems like it was missing something though.

Was pretty good last meta.

My best bunker build post-shout change.
http://gw2skills.net/editor/?vNAQNAnYWnMqAVsilsC+CCEtiFGBzJ0NCOdwN1qaXlpA8tCAnU0ROD-TJxHwAn2fAwpAAZZABPBAA

It doesn’t have as much mobility – but that is not the key element of bunkering, right?
It has a huge lot of condi cleanse, it has a lot of survivability, it has pets with that damage spike, and has a lot of sustain.

I would have used Strength of the Pack – but I used it simply everywhere in every single build and felt like the bonus condi clear with this one and a bit of heal is just as worth it. You don’t deal much damage yourself – that’s what NM and Axe are there for to keep your pet mighted.

According to playstyle – there are adjustments that could be done better. But as a template – this would be the magic.

@Dojo
I’ve been playing around your template a bit.
I feel like all it asks for is a swap of Marksmanship for Wilderness Survival and a swap of Berserker to Marauder. It’s a nice and comfortable build.

It has good mobility to rotate and +1 fights, has CC, can be a life-saver… Yes, this is an interesting one to play. And I haven’t even thought of a full-shout build before. Thank you for sharing!

Tragic Positive.9356:

rummy.4102:

I’d like to see that cleric bunker build Tragic, I tried a double staff (with the druid stun trait) build with the Crusader amulet and rune of the soldier. Seems like it was missing something though.

Was pretty good last meta.

My best bunker build post-shout change.
http://gw2skills.net/editor/?vNAQNAnYWnMqAVsilsC+CCEtiFGBDupWV7qOhuRwpjpAc0CAncUROD-TJxHwAn2fQwTAAwpAAZZAA

It doesn’t have as much mobility – but that is not the key element of bunkering, right?
It has a huge lot of condi cleanse, it has a lot of survivability, it has pets with that damage spike, and has a lot of sustain.

I would have used Strength of the Pack – but I used it simply everywhere in every single build and felt like the bonus condi clear with this one and a bit of heal is just as worth it. You don’t deal much damage yourself – that’s what NM and Axe are there for to keep your pet mighted.

According to playstyle – there are adjustments that could be done better. But as a template – this would be the magic.

Umm…you do realize that you’re running Strider’s Defense on a build using ranged dps weapons, right? I mean, you have 1 melee attack and it’s an evade, rofl. I hope that was just a mis-click or something…

Tragic Positive.9356:

rummy.4102:

I’d like to see that cleric bunker build Tragic, I tried a double staff (with the druid stun trait) build with the Crusader amulet and rune of the soldier. Seems like it was missing something though.

Was pretty good last meta.

My best bunker build post-shout change.
http://gw2skills.net/editor/?vNAQNAnYWnMqAVsilsC+CCEtiFGBDupWV7qOhuRwpjpAc0CAncUROD-TJxHwAn2fQwTAAwpAAZZAA

It doesn’t have as much mobility – but that is not the key element of bunkering, right?
It has a huge lot of condi cleanse, it has a lot of survivability, it has pets with that damage spike, and has a lot of sustain.

I would have used Strength of the Pack – but I used it simply everywhere in every single build and felt like the bonus condi clear with this one and a bit of heal is just as worth it. You don’t deal much damage yourself – that’s what NM and Axe are there for to keep your pet mighted.

According to playstyle – there are adjustments that could be done better. But as a template – this would be the magic.

Thanks Tragic, Yeah I noticed the striders defense too so I’d change that but it looks fun to try.

Dahkeus.8243:

Umm…you do realize that you’re running Strider’s Defense on a build using ranged dps weapons, right? I mean, you have 1 melee attack and it’s an evade, rofl. I hope that was just a mis-click or something…

Indeed…
Spotter was the original idea. My bad. I’ll correct it right away.

I am sorry but the not enough condi cleanse claim is very much missing the point.

This is not the bunker playstyle. With berserker amulet you are supposed to pick your fights carefully and keep your range (which still means hitting hard with staff auto) vs certain specs. Especially condi relies on mid to close range to become really dangerous. For that 5 small cleanses via shout and the full cleanse via celesital avatar are actually rather plenty of condi cleanse if you compare it to similiar builds.

Keep in mind that like for most squishy druid builds you want to almost double tap celestial avatar to safe as much astral force as possible and to put it on a low cooldown. I usually only cast a daze and maybe one #2. Even channeling #4 is almost never worth it since you take way more damage in the progress than if you would just stealth right away.

That being said the stealth is a very powerful tool. Since not everyone is propably aware but you are looking at one of the most potent rez combos in the game with celestial form -> search and rescue -> end celestial form. Executed right you are now stealth rezzing a stealthed ally and a position completely unknown for your opponent.

A little further update: Skimirshing proves to be superior to Marksmanship anyway simply due to quickdrawn and being able to double on maul/astral grace. You travel the map literally at thief speed.

Sorry Tragic but most of your comments just imply that you have not tested the build yourself and neither understood it from a theoretical look at it. Pointing out a lack of condi cleanse with 5 shouts and a full cleanse on low cooldown for a build that is not supposed to tank dmg is just missing the point.

Edit:

Just continued to read more than just your first comment that dismissed the build and I want to apologize for that small rant of mine. Cool that you tried the build and liked it. Marauder while certainly possible is more a question of not playing optimal yet. Do those few hp really safe you? You shouldn’t take that dmg to begin with.

This build clearly is not something you throw at points with a “come at me” attitude. It can win 1on1s especially vs other roaming classes but you should always use your mobility to the fullest to stay efficient for your team. Free cap? Go for it, you are faster than anyone. See a fight going bad? Roam in and see if you can get a clutch rez in.

And yep. Staff autoattack is putting so much pressure on classes from high range. Somewhat sad since this is actually what longbow tries to achieve with 5 skills and here just the auto actually does it.

@Dojo
From all my previous testing, those 5K HP is a changer. A big one. Especially when this trade-off comes with little to no damage change. Well yes, the difference in damage is minimal. You said that one shouldn’t take damage in the 1st place. Which is unrealistic with the Thief Meta. The 5K hp saved me more often than not. It’s practically +30% HP. And that’s a lot.

You’ll go down on spot and you wouldn’t be able to rotate without enough defense mechanisms. If they force you out of point without a chase – you still lost the objective. You have to give it to thieves – they are much better in rotating and searching for free decap. This build is better at +1ing thanks to the support it offers.

The cleanse is needed especially against necros. Their constant reapplication of chill is the downfall of this build. There is little realism in saying you should cast all 5 situational shouts (each has a purpose for different situation) trying to get that specific condi cleansed.

Once you get locked down in this build – it’s game over. Sadly enough, ever since HoT everyone has at least 3 stun/daze/fear abilities, 2-3 stunbreakers, A few ports, an extremely high amount of blocks and evades and … having 16K hp with 1 stunbreaker only is way too risky for competition.

Dojo.1867:

Keep in mind that like for most squishy druid builds you want to almost double tap celestial avatar to safe as much astral force as possible and to put it on a low cooldown.

I wish, double tapping CA would be still possible. It was a great escaping tool in the beta, but now you are forced to wait 2 seconds in CA, which leaves you with little to no defense (depending on utility skills ofc) for this short time, so basically useless when you get pressured. One of the reasons, why i don’t like playing druid.

Well casting one daze is almost always good imo so it doesn’t hurt that much. In big pressure I just dodge roll.

If you really just press the button twice it would kind of defeat the purpose of celestial avatar form from a design perspective I guess.

Dojo.1867:

Well casting one daze is almost always good imo so it doesn’t hurt that much. In big pressure I just dodge roll.

If you really just press the button twice it would kind of defeat the purpose of celestial avatar form from a design perspective I guess.

I sometimes found myself in position of not wanting to do that in glassy builds.
Every other class has a CC-reflection trait. And since #3 has a decent AoE – you usually get yourself killed if you don’t have SotP active.

Hey Tragic,

Tried your bunker build out. Very cool, so much condi-cleanse + active protection! Ever consider trying Groves runes instead of the Melandru? You lose out some toughness and vit, but gain +protection duration, a built-in protective ward, as well as a chance to trigger AoE roots.

The + 35% protection duration gives 100% uptime with “Guard.”

If you’ve a moment, could you discuss more about the “Knight: Versatile fighter” build you experimented with, and your thoughts?

Thanks!

nakedziggy.3187:

Hey Tragic,

Tried your bunker build out. Very cool, so much condi-cleanse + active protection! Ever consider trying Groves runes instead of the Melandru? You lose out some toughness and vit, but gain +protection duration, a built-in protective ward, as well as a chance to trigger AoE roots.

The + 35% protection duration gives 100% uptime with “Guard.”

If you’ve a moment, could you discuss more about the “Knight: Versatile fighter” build you experimented with, and your thoughts?

Thanks!

Gladly, but I’d like to discuss it via pm-s, in game or in another thread.
I’d like not to derail this thread since it’s not about my builds. You should help the OP with your suggestions or feedback, or at very least, tell him how did you go with the build if you tried it out.
Would you be okay with that?