Guild Wars 2

MH Pistol isn’t bad because of Body Shot, it’s bad because an Initiative-sucking skill (Unload) functions as the primary attack skill, which breaks the whole set. I sincerely hope the devs think about this before they make changes. The reason Body Shot sucks (other than Vuln being ho-hum) is because it siphons resources Thieves need to do basic DPS through Unload, which Thieves are reliant on because Vital Shot is too weak to function as the primary source of damage like it should.

The whole balance is skewed and Body Shot is caught in the middle, literally and figuratively. Unload will out-compete Body Shot every time because it’s an uneven battle- damage vs. utility, when it should be utility vs utility. In addition to screwing up Body Shot, it screws up #4 and #5 as well as your mobility by holding you in place and draining all your Initiative. It’s the only weapon set in the game that has this problem and, whether they realize it or not, is 75% of the reason why people complain about it feeling weak and just off in general.

Vital Shot needs to be strong enough to be the primary attack skill so that Unload can function in a utilitarian role (rework it in some way) and then #2-#5 can all compete on the same playing field without requiring a massive DPS loss to get any mobility or utility.

Balanced fine for my P/D-ness. I don’t Body Shot a lot as P/D. I use it as a at full initiative burn or for the 100% projectile finisher or damage on a target that about to get zergified. Just because it’s on the bar doesn’t mean I have to use it often.

I think the main reason it feels off is that P1’s auto does damage from bleeds while Unload is straight up power/crit. ALL of the mobility will have to come from #6-9, but it’s a ranged set so you can do low-risk damage until they catch up to ya. You can’t stand in the blind field without totally sacrificing the advantage of using ranged attacks.

You got some frustration going and I don’t think you’re going to find any relief soon. You’re absolutely right about P/P being an odd set as is for thief.

I will say, Headshot is awesoe. On demand interrupt is the happy.

If the P/P set isn’t working well enough for you, perhaps consider tweaking your playstyle and the utilities and the traits to find something that feels right. If you can’t, then try a different set. Otherwise, you’re just gonna be all grr rawr. Good luck with your choice!

Maybe when they said they would be changing pistol MH number they plan on adding an evade to body shot. Which gives it a purpose. Of course upping the Initiative cost is in order.

Some kind of new mechanic might be interesting. Just spit-balling here, but…

New Status – Premeditation
At 10 charges, the next dual-skill executed gains additional benefits.

• Unload – Grants Fury and Might. Four of the attacks are 100% projectile finishers.
• Shadow Strike – Increase Torment to x4.
• With a pistol in the main hand, Steal, Dancing Dagger and Head Shot grant +1 charge on use. Head Shot grants an additional charges on interrupt.

Pistol #1 – Setup Shot
Soften your enemy while preparing a bigger surprise for them.
X damage (P/P damage increased to a competitive level, Necromancer axe comes to mind).
+Condition based on offhand (Bleed on P/D, Vulnerability on P/P)
Chance to gain +1 Premeditation based on current Initiative:

• 12+: 100%
• 7-11: 80%
• 1-6: 50%

None of that is a serious suggestion, mind you. It’s just a dart tossed in a direction of thought. We don’t have cooldowns. If there’s a benefit to mindless spamming, we’ll do it. But a sort of self-imposed “soft cooldown” could curb some of it and reinforce a degree of diversity in play. It wouldn’t even need to be as complicated as the above. Maybe improve the damage on Vital Shot and Unload, but have Unload grant some kind of diminishing returns, like a stacking debuff that lowers its damage or otherwise makes it undesirable to use more than a couple times without a breather.

Just fodder for thought.

Looks like Pistol #2 will give a 1 second root now, according to leaked notes. I guess this is what Anet considers group support.

I wonder if anyone there even plays their own game.

Just make body shot a blast finisher that costs 7 initiative.

Makes P/P useful, without adding another stealth spamming build into the game.

Fade.7658:

Looks like Pistol #2 will give a 1 second root now, according to leaked notes. I guess this is what Anet considers group support.

I wonder if anyone there even plays their own game.

They’re inept, that’s all there is to it. Body Shot has never been the problem with P/P. It’s Vital Shot and Unload that are the problem. It will always be broken as long as the primary damage skill is anything but Vital Shot.

Thieves are dealing insane damage with semi-god sustain.
I think this class no need buff.

JETWING.2759:

Thieves are dealing insane damage with semi-god sustain.
I think this class no need buff.

Thanks for commenting despite completely failing even a modicum of reading comprehension.

JETWING.2759:

Thieves are dealing insane damage with semi-god sustain.
I think this class no need buff.

Does anyone realize that there are classes capable of AT LEAST twice the burst of a thief?

How ironic that they promise mobility yet we get a 1s root. I hope this is not final because this simply doesn’t make any sense. I can’t think of any scenario why would you root a Thief from using Body Shot?

I guess while aiming with MH pistol, a P/P shoot itself on the foot — or a P/D dropped the dagger on their foot?

How exactly are they changing pistol number 2?

You’ve been arguing this since beta man, somehow I don’t think that Anet is ever going to listen to you, lol.

I’d like to see them put an endurance regain on body shot, much like what dagger #1, the second in the auto-attack chain has.

Keep the 1 second root as suggested, but add a +20 endurance gain and add some base damage.

Anet really needs to decide if main hand pistol wants to be condition based or direct damage based, or at the very least, make it so each attack has a place for both.

They also need to increase the speed of the attack, as it’s listed as 1/2, but it’s been proven to be 3/4. That would boost damage for both condition and power users.