Guild Wars 2

Hey all;

I am a long time gw2 player. I was used to pvp alot before HOT release. I was used to play the power pew pew build in matchs, and i liked t.

But after the expansion looks like i dont know how to play my ranger anymore. The druid specialization changed the class too much. Of course im trying to play the meta build:

http://metabattle.com/wiki/Build:Druid_-_Shoutbow

I dont know if i should focus on damage, suport, or what.

Is any experienced druid here that could give me some advices??

Thx!

Non-team fights are where you’re at your best. If you can get into a 2v2 on a point you control, that’s the ideal situation, because you can keep yourself and a friend up really well.

For team fights, play backup to your tempest via your range. Support people via CC and stealth if needed, and the celestial avatar skills can give the tempest some relief. But be prepared to stealth out of trouble quickly; you can’t handle focus fire like a tempest can.

The less pressure you’re under, the more you can heal others, and if you’re in danger, rely on the big range and non-healing support. A LB KB with pet burst at the right time can quickly eliminate a called-target.

Fluffball.8307:

Non-team fights are where you’re at your best. If you can get into a 2v2 on a point you control, that’s the ideal situation, because you can keep yourself and a friend up really well.
.

Hm i didnt know about that. Thought i had to get into great team fights to output my heal to the team.
thx!

You do fine in team fights, just fight on the outskirts and be ready to stealth or you’ll explode. The only ‘invuln’ we have is on a long cool down and doesn’t stop condis, and stability has a long cast time. If CA isn’t ready just assume you’re on the verge of death at all times.

The healing is great (thus the strong skirmishing ability), the survivability under pressure is less great. That’s the strength of LB and staff, you can heal and support from range.

I know some people don’t like his streaming personality, but go to youtube and find the Tournament of Groucharoo VoD that was posted and casted by Helseth and Sindrener. They do an incredible job of explaining roles, good rotations and matchups, and bad rotations and matchups throughout the whole tournament (please note that Mender’s Water Runes Sword/Dagger Staff is the competitive meta when not abusing the bugged Signet of the Wild, but either build works it doesn’t really matter)

For a quick breakdown, these are your roles:

• Damage
• Support
  Subroles:
• Mobile
• Immobile

So now here are your classes:

• Chrono/Herald/Daredevil/Berserker(power) : Mobile Damage
• Dragonhunter/Reaper/Berserker(condi) : Immobile Damage
• Druid/Scrapper : Mobile Support
• Tempest : Immobile Support

Essentially, the “most effective” team composition is 3 damage, 2 support. Out of those damage dealers, at least 1, if not 2, should be mobile. The goal is to build teamfights around the immobile support, and then upon gaining momentum by winning teamfights or generating downs, the mobile support is supposed to rotate out to a different point and take that point, potentially creating a situation where if you get engaged, your mobile damage can rotate to you and you can win the fight.

This situation changes slightly when there is a thief that is good at decapping and free capping uncontested points(aka the thief is good). It relegates your rotations to almost always being defensive so that you don’t step on the thief’s toes, unless you are engaging with the thief to quickly outnumber and win a fight.

Mobile damage dealers are supposed to roam between the fight their mobile support creates (or create the fight themselves and you are supposed to be the one that rotates to it) and the immobile support/damage dealers since the immobile roles are generally supposed to set up shop at the “key point” in the map and draw/create the teamfight there.

jcbroe.4329:

For a quick breakdown, these are your roles:

• Damage
• Support
  Subroles:
• Mobile
• Immobile

I’d add a 3rd more important category called… uh, “annoyingness” or something? Certain classes have way more survival tricks that put their “ideal fight” somewhere different. So while a scrapper may be mobile support on the Helseth chart, his immortality means he’s totally comfortable in a 1v3 at far supporting no one. You could put a portal mesmer in the same category to an extent. And although a reaper is obviously damage, he has basically no defense at all so his ideal fight has to be with a supporter. His damage loses 1v1 to every single other profession, even the support ones.

I suppose Helseth is coming at it from a team point of view, which basically doesn’t exist anymore, and I’m coming at it from a PUG point of view.

jcbroe.4329:

(please note that Mender’s Water Runes Sword/Dagger Staff is the competitive meta when not abusing the bugged Signet of the Wild, but either build works it doesn’t really matter)

Neither of those are “competitive meta” tbh.
Water rune menders druid is unfortunately too squishy for a burst heavy meta and signet of the Wild has not been tried enough to prove its worth.
Similar to ele, druid is in a weird spot when it comes to ranked, while in a great spot when it comes to competitive play.

As far as your observations of team composition and roles go, while a little crude, they cover the basics decently enough so as not to have to go into more detail here.

P. S. The third role your looking for fluffball would be utility

Pvt Frosty.6973:

jcbroe.4329:

(please note that Mender’s Water Runes Sword/Dagger Staff is the competitive meta when not abusing the bugged Signet of the Wild, but either build works it doesn’t really matter)

Neither of those are “competitive meta” tbh.
Water rune menders druid is unfortunately too squishy for a burst heavy meta and signet of the Wild has not been tried enough to prove its worth.
Similar to ele, druid is in a weird spot when it comes to ranked, while in a great spot when it comes to competitive play.

As far as your observations of team composition and roles go, while a little crude, they cover the basics decently enough so as not to have to go into more detail here.

P. S. The third role your looking for fluffball would be utility

I’m using the term “meta” only as an observation of the most observable occurence of builds at particular level (from my anecdotal experience as well as stream footage).

You’re right though, of course, and I was crude in general to make quick points. Like with making that statement about builds, technically, healing focused builds are meta with a runeset that would cover the weaknesses of the build or gather some advantage or counterplay for the team, but in this instance, saying it like that creates so many variables that all of the build options would have to be mentioned and commented on for information purposes. Which is a lot lol.

I don’t think Signet of the Wild should be considered at all because at this point it’s an unacknowledged bug. If it survives another round of ANet balance/fixes then maybe, but until then, utilizing it would be considered bug abuse, would it not?

Sorry if I sound combative, it isn’t intentional, just trying to give more of an explanation. I think it’s a good discussion to have, providing information and fleshing out these sorts of details can help a lot of people improve (ourselves included).