Guild Wars 2

Is it just me or do these three talents trump every other tree? I run full glass and had to run if someone batted an eyelash at me running mm over any of these. Even if i were to run a condi or bunker set up these three trees still seem to outshine the others.

I feel very shifty when it comes to re-positioning and am able to abuse range all day with these three trees, not a dramatic drop in damage either.

Beastly warden is pancakes good.

Am having a lot of fun

For a berserker/marauder build it is stronk

Yeah, it looks like a good combination with just about any build really, except traps or SB which would need Skirmishing, but WS/NM/BM is versatile in that aspect. Power Dual Melee, Power LB/GS, LB-S/D, LB-S/A or LB-S/WH, Condi Survival, Cleric/Settlers Bunker, A/WH-GS Front Liner all seem to be viable with those three.

The thing which makes WS/NM/BM combo so good is that it is a very ’forgiving" build and can be very strong for both low and high levels of play. It was the same with our old 2-0-6-6-0 trait setup which was also great for most builds. Top level playes might benefit more from high risk high reward builds like MM, Skrimish,BM, they just need to fix HS for that to realy work cus this setup has no reliable condi cleans source.

I BTW even play WS/NM/BM with SB/GS cus I benefit much more from NM compared to Skrimish and the underwhelming LOYF. I have seen some condi build that take Skrimsh over NM or BM for the burst potential with quickdraw.

I’m playing with WS/NM/BM traits at high level atm with my team and it works extremely well. To be able to res your team mate in 2 seconds against even the Abjured with Allies Aid is just so good in my opinion, i find it hard to not take Nature Magic.

Protective Warding combined with Bark Skin means mesmer and thief will never be able to one shot you which is really huge. You’re also able to survive for a fair amount of time if an enemy comes +1 you on node.

They’re good yes, but some prefer Remorseless or Lead the Wind in Marksmanship or Quick Draw in Skirmishing, so I wouldn’t call them better than all others.

That said, you can’t really go wrong with WS, NM, BM.

The combo is very good. I use it for both double melee and trapper builds.

btw does spotter still not apply the bonus to pets?

I like to run those 3 when dueling, but the majority of the time I run marksmanship, skirmishing, beastmastery with a few shouts, trooper runes and remorseless. The damage is a lot stronger and this set up is actually a lot more survivable in WvW since you aren’t fighting on point and quickdraw helps you outmaneuver people with your double stealth and double leaps.

Puck.9612:

I like to run those 3 when dueling, but the majority of the time I run marksmanship, skirmishing, beastmastery with a few shouts, trooper runes and remorseless. The damage is a lot stronger and this set up is actually a lot more survivable in WvW since you aren’t fighting on point and quickdraw helps you outmaneuver people with your double stealth and double leaps.

Could you please link the build you’re using? I’m new to ranger, and I’ve been trying to design a low-precision build with these three traitlines, for WvW roaming. A little inspirarion from a veteran would be most welcome. Thanks in advance.

Sorel.4870:

Puck.9612:

I like to run those 3 when dueling, but the majority of the time I run marksmanship, skirmishing, beastmastery with a few shouts, trooper runes and remorseless. The damage is a lot stronger and this set up is actually a lot more survivable in WvW since you aren’t fighting on point and quickdraw helps you outmaneuver people with your double stealth and double leaps.

Could you please link the build you’re using? I’m new to ranger, and I’ve been trying to design a low-precision build with these three traitlines, for WvW roaming. A little inspirarion from a veteran would be most welcome. Thanks in advance.

Pretty much this http://gw2skills.net/editor/?vNAQJATRnUqA9CiNsAusActgh/gaf9FIA+04HOaefz3N4gVfeA-TFDEABLqOie6AuUlACeAAbpE0gLBATKzmUFjmUa0mmgk2fAgjAAhAMvAA-w but I switch things up depending on what I’m running into that night. Sometimes swap drake for a bird, SoS for SoR, Zephyr for BW, food and utility buffs for whatever.

The condi removal is enough for most situations and lightning reflexes keeps you from getting locked down. Just think about your traits when you are fighting, save your pet swaps for when you want quickness to land a maul, rapid fire, fast rez, secure a stomp, etc. If you weapon swap and maul you get a guaranteed remorseless crit and your maul will be ready again in a few seconds. If you have to run you have perma swiftness and remember to trigger quickdraw by opening with Hunter’s shot (aim for npc’s, ambient’s, gates, basically anything without aegis) and Swoop.

If I’m being honest, Beastly Warden should probably be on a much higher CD than it is. It’s extremely OP in the current state.

Vendetta.1958:

If I’m being honest, Beastly Warden should probably be on a much higher CD than it is. It’s extremely OP in the current state.

Well, at least we get one thing, then.

I agree and for that reason I have been trying various power builds in PVP, usually a good indicator is the feedback you get during matches. That being said

I found for reliable condition removal is WS (SoTF/4 S.Skills) + NM Evasive purity. This setup has allowed me sufficient condition removal to not spec NM and go MM and still feel rugged. I can stay in pretty hard with 2 on my while still pressuring one.

It’s nothing groundbreaking but the burst Damage from the (Plenty of) Fury/Intelligence generated Auto Crits, Opening Strike 25%, MoC 50% and Enlarge 25% vs Survival is terrific. You can generate some enormous hits as PoS and Maul really our single hardest hitting attacks that aren’t being channeled (and thus avoidable) going to them on Swap is essential.

Typically I hate empathic bond (kills pet) but if you use the Drake static and use awareness on swaps he’s easy to keep alive. The base toughness and perma Regen/signet takes advantage of the healing and gives you really strong survival for opening burst which renders protective ward less necessary. The Drake can take the damage when protect me used and every one of his attacks is AE.

It’s too easy to lean on the BM/NM/MM but venturing away from it REALLY compromises our survival…I think this is a viable way to step away from the the safety net the BM/NM/WS offers. It’s tough on Thieves and Mesmers too! I like this balance and bag of tricks. Wanted to share is all because I have found it very hard not to take the Golden Three the topic alluded to.

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?vNAQNAR8XnUqAtCiVsA2CCctgh/gaf9MIA+04HG+ufv9Z4gf1eA-TJBHABA8EA6Z/hsLDMwFBAA

Thoughts?

Heimskarl Ashfiend.9582:

Vendetta.1958:

If I’m being honest, Beastly Warden should probably be on a much higher CD than it is. It’s extremely OP in the current state.

Well, at least we get one thing, then.

Well, two, if you include how trivially easy it is to be a devastating force on the field with longbow.

I sorta liked being the underdog i.e. March last year.

In all seriousness, nerf the BW and buff the bad GMs like the Nature Magic heal on F2 so we can have some nice build diversity.

Vendetta.1958:

Heimskarl Ashfiend.9582:

Vendetta.1958:

If I’m being honest, Beastly Warden should probably be on a much higher CD than it is. It’s extremely OP in the current state.

Well, at least we get one thing, then.

Well, two, if you include how trivially easy it is to be a devastating force on the field with longbow.

I sorta liked being the underdog i.e. March last year.

In all seriousness, nerf the BW and buff the bad GMs like the Nature Magic heal on F2 so we can have some nice build diversity.

Or maybe for once rangers can just get buffs without seeing something else nerfed. A 15 second cooldown that relies on the pets crappy AI and pathing doesn’t seem nerf worthy to me. It’s a strong trait but there are plenty of situations where zephyr’s is better to take in its place.

if warden is op then what does that make mesmer’s mantra of distraction?

Also, is anyone else running blood/ air sigils? I’m really liking it.

Dolt.2731:

if warden is op then what does that make mesmer’s mantra of distraction?

Also, is anyone else running blood/ air sigils? I’m really liking it.

I have been in PvP. I haven’t decided for WvW yet, mostly because I spent so much money on fire and air sigils for all my characters and I hate to lose them. I also have a few force sigils sitting in my bank, not sure if those our worth taking over one of the others, has anyone made a post doing the math since the nerf to fire/air?

Puck.9612:

Vendetta.1958:

Heimskarl Ashfiend.9582:

Vendetta.1958:

If I’m being honest, Beastly Warden should probably be on a much higher CD than it is. It’s extremely OP in the current state.

Well, at least we get one thing, then.

Well, two, if you include how trivially easy it is to be a devastating force on the field with longbow.

I sorta liked being the underdog i.e. March last year.

In all seriousness, nerf the BW and buff the bad GMs like the Nature Magic heal on F2 so we can have some nice build diversity.

Or maybe for once rangers can just get buffs without seeing something else nerfed. A 15 second cooldown that relies on the pets crappy AI and pathing doesn’t seem nerf worthy to me. It’s a strong trait but there are plenty of situations where zephyr’s is better to take in its place.

Well, pet AI argument is wrong, if you’re pressing F2 when your pet isn’t in BW range you should l2p rather than blame it on poor AI. 8/10 times a bird/dog/cat will be in range, and if not, press F1 and wait or cripple/immob the enemy and then press F2.

Being able to spam an unblockable CC that locks you out of the targeting system every fifteen seconds is extremely overpowered.

Dolt.2731:

if warden is op then what does that make mesmer’s mantra of distraction?

Also, is anyone else running blood/ air sigils? I’m really liking it.

Mantra of distraction is also broken.

Vendetta.1958:

Being able to spam an unblockable CC that locks you out of the targeting system every fifteen seconds is extremely overpowered.

Out of curiosity, doesn’t stealth do the same thing – unblockable and locks you out of everyone’s targeting instead of just players nearby?

Solandri.9640:

Vendetta.1958:

Being able to spam an unblockable CC that locks you out of the targeting system every fifteen seconds is extremely overpowered.

Out of curiosity, doesn’t stealth do the same thing – unblockable and locks you out of everyone’s targeting instead of just players nearby?

Necro has several unblockable ways to fear players….

Vendetta.1958:

If I’m being honest, Beastly Warden should probably be on a much higher CD than it is. It’s extremely OP in the current state.

No no no no no.

In a duelling scenario with glass pets, it could be considered overpowered due to its low cooldown and ability to guarantee a pet f2 will hit, but other than that absolutely not, and for one reason only. We are the only class in the game which can lose access to its class mechanic.

Taunt revolves around the pet. Pets are unreliable. You can make taunt more effective by, say, swapping in a pet within melee range of an enemy and immediately pressing f2. This will guarantee taunt to hit if your opponent if he hasn’t dodged. But that type of play is on you and shows your skill instead of good A.I behavior. Pets can still die; pet swap recharge still goes on a 48 or 60 second cooldown. When that happens, you lose access to a grandmaster skill for the entire duration. For this reason, taunt should be strong.

Now, bugs about taunt going through dodges are invulnerability’s are still something that needs to be addressed should they still be present.

Vendetta.1958:

If I’m being honest, Beastly Warden should probably be on a much higher CD than it is. It’s extremely OP in the current state.

What is this madness? No, just……NO! We’re barely being kept afloat, we’re still the black sheep in many aspects of this game and you want to take away one of the very, very few tools we have that makes us unique. Why? There are so many more out of whack things that need to be toned down instead of BW.

Puck.9612:

Solandri.9640:

Vendetta.1958:

Being able to spam an unblockable CC that locks you out of the targeting system every fifteen seconds is extremely overpowered.

Out of curiosity, doesn’t stealth do the same thing – unblockable and locks you out of everyone’s targeting instead of just players nearby?

Necro has several unblockable ways to fear players….

But fear doesn’t prevent the player from targeting someone else to use a targeted instant skill.

Solandri.9640:

Vendetta.1958:

Being able to spam an unblockable CC that locks you out of the targeting system every fifteen seconds is extremely overpowered.

Out of curiosity, doesn’t stealth do the same thing – unblockable and locks you out of everyone’s targeting instead of just players nearby?

Stealth does not:
- Stop you from evading
- Stop you from using AOE skills to counter stealth
- Prevent you from re-positioning
- Fully lock you out of the targeting system (you can attack a secondary target until stealth ends)
- Have a single trait that grants almost guaranteed access to stealth every 15 seconds

Stealth does:
- Force the user to stop attacking if they wish to remain in stealth

Taunt does:
- Stop you from evading
- Stop you from using ANY skill other than stunbreaks (Even though it’s GG for Judges Intervention)
- Prevent you from re-positioning
- Fully lock you out of the targeting system (you can’t attack a secondary target until taunt ends)
- Have a single trait that grants almost guaranteed access to stealth every 15 seconds
- Have increased duration with +% condi duration.

Taunt does not:
- Force the user to stop attacking if they wish to keep the enemy locked down

Zera.8907:

Vendetta.1958:

If I’m being honest, Beastly Warden should probably be on a much higher CD than it is. It’s extremely OP in the current state.

What is this madness? No, just……NO! We’re barely being kept afloat, we’re still the black sheep in many aspects of this game and you want to take away one of the very, very few tools we have that makes us unique. Why? There are so many more out of whack things that need to be toned down instead of BW.

Why?

Because I don’t think our class needs to be carried by a gimmick. It’s the same thing as longbow.

They have given us BW and LBow which are extremely strong, and now we won’t readily get buffs to stuff that would be really cool and promote build diversity like MDG, LoyF, Invigorating bond etc because we’re made competitive because of one or two broken features of the class.

Puck.9612:

Solandri.9640:

Vendetta.1958:

Being able to spam an unblockable CC that locks you out of the targeting system every fifteen seconds is extremely overpowered.

Out of curiosity, doesn’t stealth do the same thing – unblockable and locks you out of everyone’s targeting instead of just players nearby?

Necro has several unblockable ways to fear players….

So can I spec my Necro with a single trait to have a single unblockable fear skill every 15 seconds?

I probably could if I rotated three or four different fear skills correctly, but that’s because fear is a distinct feature of the Necromancer class. Taunt is not a feature of the ranger class, BW seems more like an afterthought than anything.

If it were on a 30 or 45 second cooldown, you guys would still take it, because taunt is still extremely strong.

Soilder.3607:

Vendetta.1958:

If I’m being honest, Beastly Warden should probably be on a much higher CD than it is. It’s extremely OP in the current state.

Taunt revolves around the pet. Pets are unreliable. You can make taunt more effective by, say, swapping in a pet within melee range of an enemy and immediately pressing f2. This will guarantee taunt to hit if your opponent if he hasn’t dodged. But that type of play is on you and shows your skill instead of good A.I behavior. Pets can still die; pet swap recharge still goes on a 48 or 60 second cooldown. When that happens, you lose access to a grandmaster skill for the entire duration. For this reason, taunt should be strong.

If your pet dies, you have done something wrong.

EG: If I see an ele dropping Ring Of Fire, I immediately call my pet back so he doesn’t fry himself. If I need to in a fight, I will drop a Troll Unguent to keep my pet alive if he’s low and my swap isn’t up.

If you think ANet should balance pets for rangers who play sloppily and get their pets murdered, then I’m not entirely sure what to say to you.

Vendetta.1958:

Solandri.9640:

Vendetta.1958:

Being able to spam an unblockable CC that locks you out of the targeting system every fifteen seconds is extremely overpowered.

Out of curiosity, doesn’t stealth do the same thing – unblockable and locks you out of everyone’s targeting instead of just players nearby?

Stealth does not:
- Stop you from evading
- Stop you from using AOE skills to counter stealth
- Prevent you from re-positioning
- Fully lock you out of the targeting system (you can attack a secondary target until stealth ends)
- Have a single trait that grants almost guaranteed access to stealth every 15 seconds

Stealth does:
- Force the user to stop attacking if they wish to remain in stealth

Taunt does:
- Stop you from evading
- Stop you from using ANY skill other than stunbreaks (Even though it’s GG for Judges Intervention)
- Prevent you from re-positioning
- Fully lock you out of the targeting system (you can’t attack a secondary target until taunt ends)
- Have a single trait that grants almost guaranteed access to stealth every 15 seconds
- Have increased duration with +% condi duration.

Taunt does not:
- Force the user to stop attacking if they wish to keep the enemy locked down

You also conveniently forgot to say that one can cleanse or stunbreak out of taunt. And that it is useless against enemies that have stability on. And that some professions still can reposition themselves after being hit with taunt using teleport skills like elementalist’s lightning flash, mesmer’s blink and thief’s shadow step. Furthermore, what was the point of comparing a CC skill with a damage prevention skill? Because I totally don’t see the connection. You are better off comparing it with fear but the CD for DS fear is just slightly more than taunt and can be traited to be closer to 15 secs as well. So if taunt is considered spammable, so is fear. And seeing that revenant’s taunt also work the same way as in forcing the victim to switch targets and lock it unless being stunbreak/cleanse, I would say that it is intentional by ANET devs. The only thing which is likely bugged is the taunt going through evades.

Does taunt still go through evades, distorts or blocks? Because I am trying to do it on purpose and it will not work.

Berserker is also getting a Taunt on entering zerk mode, which is most likely gonna have about an 8s CD as a burst skill.

Just saying.

Vendetta.1958:

Puck.9612:

Vendetta.1958:

Heimskarl Ashfiend.9582:

Vendetta.1958:

If I’m being honest, Beastly Warden should probably be on a much higher CD than it is. It’s extremely OP in the current state.

Well, at least we get one thing, then.

Well, two, if you include how trivially easy it is to be a devastating force on the field with longbow.

I sorta liked being the underdog i.e. March last year.

In all seriousness, nerf the BW and buff the bad GMs like the Nature Magic heal on F2 so we can have some nice build diversity.

Or maybe for once rangers can just get buffs without seeing something else nerfed. A 15 second cooldown that relies on the pets crappy AI and pathing doesn’t seem nerf worthy to me. It’s a strong trait but there are plenty of situations where zephyr’s is better to take in its place.

Well, pet AI argument is wrong, if you’re pressing F2 when your pet isn’t in BW range you should l2p rather than blame it on poor AI. 8/10 times a bird/dog/cat will be in range, and if not, press F1 and wait or cripple/immob the enemy and then press F2.

Being able to spam an unblockable CC that locks you out of the targeting system every fifteen seconds is extremely overpowered.

How is 15 second ICD regarded as a “spam”? It doesnt work in Your favor trying to justify something by using bold inaccurate words. BW isnt the holy grail that will save your entire team, but it is a strong and reliable CC for the ranger. All classes have nice things, and ranger is far from the top.

Wildfang.3271:

Vendetta.1958:

Solandri.9640:

Vendetta.1958:

Being able to spam an unblockable CC that locks you out of the targeting system every fifteen seconds is extremely overpowered.

Out of curiosity, doesn’t stealth do the same thing – unblockable and locks you out of everyone’s targeting instead of just players nearby?

Stealth does not:
- Stop you from evading
- Stop you from using AOE skills to counter stealth
- Prevent you from re-positioning
- Fully lock you out of the targeting system (you can attack a secondary target until stealth ends)
- Have a single trait that grants almost guaranteed access to stealth every 15 seconds

Stealth does:
- Force the user to stop attacking if they wish to remain in stealth

Taunt does:
- Stop you from evading
- Stop you from using ANY skill other than stunbreaks (Even though it’s GG for Judges Intervention)
- Prevent you from re-positioning
- Fully lock you out of the targeting system (you can’t attack a secondary target until taunt ends)
- Have a single trait that grants almost guaranteed access to stealth every 15 seconds
- Have increased duration with +% condi duration.

Taunt does not:
- Force the user to stop attacking if they wish to keep the enemy locked down

You also conveniently forgot to say that one can cleanse or stunbreak out of taunt. And that it is useless against enemies that have stability on. And that some professions still can reposition themselves after being hit with taunt using teleport skills like elementalist’s lightning flash, mesmer’s blink and thief’s shadow step. Furthermore, what was the point of comparing a CC skill with a damage prevention skill? Because I totally don’t see the connection. You are better off comparing it with fear but the CD for DS fear is just slightly more than taunt and can be traited to be closer to 15 secs as well. So if taunt is considered spammable, so is fear. And seeing that revenant’s taunt also work the same way as in forcing the victim to switch targets and lock it unless being stunbreak/cleanse, I would say that it is intentional by ANET devs. The only thing which is likely bugged is the taunt going through evades.

> Furthermore, what was the point of comparing a CC skill with a damage prevention skill?

Good point. I was referring to the poster above if you’ll read my post properly.

> You also conveniently forgot to say that one can cleanse or stunbreak out of taunt.

Yeah that’s true. Which stunbreak do you use that comes up every fifteen seconds? I’d like to put it on my bar. Cleansing Taunt requires you to have a passive cleanse which is pure RNG if it works, or an ally to clean for you.

> You are better off comparing it with fear but the CD for DS fear is just slightly more than taunt and can be traited to be closer to 15 secs as well.

So a cornerstone of the Necro playstyle – fear – is a justification for us to have an afterthought trait that comes out of nowhere in terms of class theme, and for us to have that taunt on a shorter CD than Necro, and to be able to theoretically deliver that taunt at up to 1200 range? Wow.

> And seeing that revenant’s taunt also work the same way as in forcing the victim to switch targets and lock it unless being stunbreak/cleanse, I would say that it is intentional by ANET devs.

Yeah definitely. That isn’t the argument here. What is being argued is the fact that this mechanic is on a fifteen second cooldown.

nacario.9417:

Vendetta.1958:

Puck.9612:

Vendetta.1958:

Heimskarl Ashfiend.9582:

Vendetta.1958:

If I’m being honest, Beastly Warden should probably be on a much higher CD than it is. It’s extremely OP in the current state.

Well, at least we get one thing, then.

Well, two, if you include how trivially easy it is to be a devastating force on the field with longbow.

I sorta liked being the underdog i.e. March last year.

In all seriousness, nerf the BW and buff the bad GMs like the Nature Magic heal on F2 so we can have some nice build diversity.

Or maybe for once rangers can just get buffs without seeing something else nerfed. A 15 second cooldown that relies on the pets crappy AI and pathing doesn’t seem nerf worthy to me. It’s a strong trait but there are plenty of situations where zephyr’s is better to take in its place.

Well, pet AI argument is wrong, if you’re pressing F2 when your pet isn’t in BW range you should l2p rather than blame it on poor AI. 8/10 times a bird/dog/cat will be in range, and if not, press F1 and wait or cripple/immob the enemy and then press F2.

Being able to spam an unblockable CC that locks you out of the targeting system every fifteen seconds is extremely overpowered.

How is 15 second ICD regarded as a “spam”? It doesnt work in Your favor trying to justify something by using bold inaccurate words. BW isnt the holy grail that will save your entire team, but it is a strong and reliable CC for the ranger. All classes have nice things, and ranger is far from the top.

13% uptime (without factoring in +% duration) from a single trait on a CC that forces your enemy to retarget and move away from you is spam.

Vendetta.1958:

Wildfang.3271:

Vendetta.1958:

Solandri.9640:

Vendetta.1958:

Being able to spam an unblockable CC that locks you out of the targeting system every fifteen seconds is extremely overpowered.

Out of curiosity, doesn’t stealth do the same thing – unblockable and locks you out of everyone’s targeting instead of just players nearby?

Stealth does not:
- Stop you from evading
- Stop you from using AOE skills to counter stealth
- Prevent you from re-positioning
- Fully lock you out of the targeting system (you can attack a secondary target until stealth ends)
- Have a single trait that grants almost guaranteed access to stealth every 15 seconds

Stealth does:
- Force the user to stop attacking if they wish to remain in stealth

Taunt does:
- Stop you from evading
- Stop you from using ANY skill other than stunbreaks (Even though it’s GG for Judges Intervention)
- Prevent you from re-positioning
- Fully lock you out of the targeting system (you can’t attack a secondary target until taunt ends)
- Have a single trait that grants almost guaranteed access to stealth every 15 seconds
- Have increased duration with +% condi duration.

Taunt does not:
- Force the user to stop attacking if they wish to keep the enemy locked down

You also conveniently forgot to say that one can cleanse or stunbreak out of taunt. And that it is useless against enemies that have stability on. And that some professions still can reposition themselves after being hit with taunt using teleport skills like elementalist’s lightning flash, mesmer’s blink and thief’s shadow step. Furthermore, what was the point of comparing a CC skill with a damage prevention skill? Because I totally don’t see the connection. You are better off comparing it with fear but the CD for DS fear is just slightly more than taunt and can be traited to be closer to 15 secs as well. So if taunt is considered spammable, so is fear. And seeing that revenant’s taunt also work the same way as in forcing the victim to switch targets and lock it unless being stunbreak/cleanse, I would say that it is intentional by ANET devs. The only thing which is likely bugged is the taunt going through evades.

> Furthermore, what was the point of comparing a CC skill with a damage prevention skill?

Good point. I was referring to the poster above if you’ll read my post properly.

> You also conveniently forgot to say that one can cleanse or stunbreak out of taunt.

Yeah that’s true. Which stunbreak do you use that comes up every fifteen seconds? I’d like to put it on my bar. Cleansing Taunt requires you to have a passive cleanse which is pure RNG if it works, or an ally to clean for you.

> You are better off comparing it with fear but the CD for DS fear is just slightly more than taunt and can be traited to be closer to 15 secs as well.

So a cornerstone of the Necro playstyle – fear – is a justification for us to have an afterthought trait that comes out of nowhere in terms of class theme, and for us to have that taunt on a shorter CD than Necro, and to be able to theoretically deliver that taunt at up to 1200 range? Wow.

> And seeing that revenant’s taunt also work the same way as in forcing the victim to switch targets and lock it unless being stunbreak/cleanse, I would say that it is intentional by ANET devs.

Yeah definitely. That isn’t the argument here. What is being argued is the fact that this mechanic is on a fifteen second cooldown.

Ehhh, so traited Doom (Death Shroud 3) which has a 17 secs CD is not considered spammable while ranger’s taunt which has just 2 secs lower CD than it is considered spammable and warrants a nerf? And that Doom/Reaper’s Mark also have a range of 1200 (Doom is instant cast while Reaper’s Mark has a 3/4 secs cast time) which is fine but a taunt that requires the pet to get within a radius of 240 (where the counterplay is to watch out for the pet getting close to you) is not? Not to mention that fear can be traited for 50% increase in duration. Okayyyyyy, right wow…….

And I totally disagree that it is an afterthought trait just because you think it is. For me, it adds something more to the pet mechanic that we rangers have, making it much more harder for people to just ignore it due to the wonky attack range that they have which makes it easy for certain professions to kite it well.

And with your logic, we should just get rid of all CC skills or increase their CDs so that they match up with the CD of stunbreaks since almost all of them (not limited to just rangers only) have a lower CD compared to stunbreaks. While we are at it, we may as well nerf condition applying skills because almost all cleanses are on a longer CD. So just how far should we nerf things?

Chokolata.1870:

Does taunt still go through evades, distorts or blocks? Because I am trying to do it on purpose and it will not work.

I have seen my taunt goes through a pistol whipping thief during his evade frames and forcing him to attack the pet. The choice of pets may be influencing it though since i use birds which tend to land taunts much more reliably than other pets that may use it slightly out of range. Still have to run more tests to be totally sure that it goes through evades/distorts/blocks though so please don’t quote me on this yet.

Vendetta.1958:

nacario.9417:

Vendetta.1958:

Puck.9612:

Vendetta.1958:

Heimskarl Ashfiend.9582:

Vendetta.1958:

If I’m being honest, Beastly Warden should probably be on a much higher CD than it is. It’s extremely OP in the current state.

Well, at least we get one thing, then.

Well, two, if you include how trivially easy it is to be a devastating force on the field with longbow.

I sorta liked being the underdog i.e. March last year.

In all seriousness, nerf the BW and buff the bad GMs like the Nature Magic heal on F2 so we can have some nice build diversity.

Or maybe for once rangers can just get buffs without seeing something else nerfed. A 15 second cooldown that relies on the pets crappy AI and pathing doesn’t seem nerf worthy to me. It’s a strong trait but there are plenty of situations where zephyr’s is better to take in its place.

Well, pet AI argument is wrong, if you’re pressing F2 when your pet isn’t in BW range you should l2p rather than blame it on poor AI. 8/10 times a bird/dog/cat will be in range, and if not, press F1 and wait or cripple/immob the enemy and then press F2.

Being able to spam an unblockable CC that locks you out of the targeting system every fifteen seconds is extremely overpowered.

How is 15 second ICD regarded as a “spam”? It doesnt work in Your favor trying to justify something by using bold inaccurate words. BW isnt the holy grail that will save your entire team, but it is a strong and reliable CC for the ranger. All classes have nice things, and ranger is far from the top.

13% uptime (without factoring in +% duration) from a single trait on a CC that forces your enemy to retarget and move away from you is spam.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spam_

Spamming, in the context of video games, refers to the repeated use of the same item or action

Yes a grandmaster trait grants us Taunt on a 15 ICD, the skill can only be used every 15 seconds, and grandmasters are meant to stand out and have a defining effect. It’s also a bit tricky to keep track off its ICD if you switch pets, for easier use one could go bird/bird but that also leaves you with a fragile pet type. Many pets have inaccurate F2 where it is nearly impossible to land Taunt on a moving target or when you want to use it, for either defense or to connect burst.
Any other class have their own grandmaster traits that are powerful on their own, which is great as we want to avoid class homogenization (WoW being a prime example).

Well, that is a relief. Who would have thought that when people say that “zergs in wvw only spam 1” that it was only once every 15s? I’ve been overdoing it all this time, I think.

The issue with pistol whip is that the evade frame duration does not match the cast time, or something like that. I have not been able to taunt a shelter from a guardian for example.

I prefer quickdraw over protective ward.

Quickdraw makes you versatile
Enlargement is good
Primal Reflex is good
etc…

Imo NatureMagic is only worth using when having a true synergy with Lingering Magic and F. Bond because otherweise other trees brings more overall.

Wha???? please please explain how how skirimishing outshines NM, please convince me

Enlargement is… ok, primal reflex is definitely good but… outside of that, just no. NM trumps this tree at every level. Especially for a glass cannon ranger. We don’t need more dps… we need ways of staying in a fight, with our pet, which NM allows. Protective Ward is so amazing.

If you think quick draw is gonna save you, all that means is you were out of position from the get go and need to kite for your life, not adding anything to a fight at all.

You can’t do damage if you’re dead. Pro ward allows you to take that hit on the chin from teleporting classes like mez, guard, thief, ele, ya’know? the classes you get completely blind-sided by? The classes that if they get on top of you (and they will), skirmishing tree ain’t gonna save you. Only delay your death in your now panicked kite… which is even a larger detriment your team as you will die or be completely flushed away from a point.

Skirmishing has no synergy with WS or BM(which are pretty much mandatory at this point).

NM, however, is a great marriage with these two trees, which maximizes the potential of the class. Skirmishing is a great tree, but falls short because it doesn’t pair as well with NM, same can be said with MM.

With pro ward you have time to properly cc them and re-position/ punish the over-extended glass. WHy? because barkskin coupled with Pro ward, and TU (which you should have active to max bark skin potential) > any skirmishing talent and bark skin + TU. It’s immediately wasted as soon as someone breathes on you.

If i have skirmishing and not NM I am completely abandoning my team so I don’t die.

Different concepts all together between skirmishing and NM.

NM is defensive and utility based, while skirmishing is an offensive based trait line. If you want defense you combo NM and WS, if not you go something else. NM is not mandatory and I feel as if that, for the first time in a long time, we have a solid internal balance between our trait lines.

I’m not saying it is mandatory… unless you want to max the potential of running WS and BM, which at the moment, seem to be mandatory ;p And I am more than aware that one is for offense and the other utility, cheers

-Enlargement is just awesome especially at 36s ICD. xD
I even use it in my condi build!

-Quickdraw gives sustain: more bonefire? more evade? more rapidfire? more stealth? gives option and flexibility

-Prot.Ward is great especially for glassy pewpew however the rest of the tree doesn’t add much value to the build.

-Moment of Clarity this trait makes maul actually hit hard

Enlargement is in MM, not SK.

What? signet of wild trait is 60 sec icd… and in MM not skirmishing. So you’re running MM and skirmishing?

And NM doesn’t add value to the build??

Allies aid is huge in a team fight, especially if SoS is up. Evasive purity is pancakes good, especially with condi clear from WS tree. (maximizing synergy) And i think you are seriously underestimating a six second aoe weakness on a 15 sec cd on top of the 4 sec protection. Remember how I was talking about synergy? Wilting strike also gives 4 secs of weakness (10 sec of weakness every 15 secs, hello perfect marriage) Furthermore…

You also get an additional 2 secs of prot with companions defense, which you can stack. Between 20% passive end regen and vigor from lightning reflex, protective ward becomes even more appealing as you greatly increase your prot uptime over the course of a fight. All this synergy is lost over you taking all these attractive damage boosts which are null if you are focused… wasting a tree.

Then there is the fortifying bond… lingering magic, and rejuv to boot. All which help our WS traits like bark skin.

MM and skirm minors are all about adding damage, which you still do plenty of w/o these trees between keeping yourself and your pet alive… again, can’t do damage if you are running or dead.

Maybe we are playing different opponents? I am rarely allowed to free-cast for very long against competent opponents. But I will punish the kitten out of anyone who tries to jump me.. and if that goes south I still got enough scrappiness to re-position near teammates/ reset the fight.

“attractive damage boost” you answer but don’t even read I see
I never said enlargment is in skirmish and it’s not a dmg boost lmao, quickdraw is not a damage boost either l2p issue right there.
You don’t value stability because you play pewpew.
To sum up protective ward is good for certain builds, not all.
This threads is not build specific is it?
And as I said before NM minor traits synergise with mainhand axe, do you run mainhand axe on your pewpew build?
By contrast wilderness tree is much more vital because it has the only condi removal, this is kinda mandatory not prot ward.

I see running WS/NM/BM great for new rangers as it adds passive survival. When you get better you can switch NM for SK for more flexibility on skills. Mind that I don’t mean running NM is bad, it mostly comes down to preference as both NM and SK are great utility lines. And when we get to see Druid, it will have to compete with those two lines.

Yes, PW is passive and pretty boring imo. I don’t like this trait much, and i don’t always use it, but the passive nature of this trait is exactly why it is so much stronger in most cases than QD or the MM grandmasters. Personal skill/fast reaction won’t save you against stealth/instant burst and unavoidable procs – all very common. Guess why almost everybody in pvp tournaments uses vampirism rune …