Guild Wars 2

Hello, I’m a thief enthusiast and I’ve created my own version of a D/P build.
Here’s the metabattle link to a classic D/P:
http://metabattle.com/wiki/Build:Thief_-_D/P_roamer

And here’s my take on it, which I believe to be a whole lot better:
http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fZAQNAoaVl0MpyplOx7J0PNRLhw9wZB96t2PCcA-TlCEAB+s/ABPAhEV/ZLlgMp8pN9NAcECe4QAklSI3OBABAQAuZb2m3MwRP6RP6RPa38m38m38mlCYgpWA-win

I’d like you people to criticize my take on it. I’ve had a lot of fun and was murdering people in 1v3-4 scenarios quite easily.
Most importantly, I’m very fond of Vampirism Runes. Not only they allow me to escape nearly every single encounter that turned out badly(90% of the time mist procs together with Last Refuge allowing for a nearly surefire escape), they also increase the initial burst by 1k as well as the combat sustain. I used to run with pack before, and you know, no regrets. I’m not even afraid of surprise moas anymore.

Nothing new really, deadly arts vs critical strikes is just a question about prefference.
Same with Pack vs Vampirism..
My only question is why you would prefer dagger training over improvisation?

Im usually skipping Shadow Arts completely going 6.6.×.×.x with pack runes.
I want every bit of damage i can get and leave survivability to decisionmaking and reflexes/musclemind. Precision is to me just as important to a thief as power(therfor i go 6.6. + pack, lacking in one of the areas will nerf your damage.. And its already easy to run from fights with stealth and SB, dont need mistform or extra stealth/healing if you are good enough.

To me its like an even easier variation of D/P which is already easy, dropping some damage in exchange for even more surviveability (which is not needed).
We are already the kings of running with our tail between our legs and resetting if needed..

Im not saying this to be salty or harsh, i just find the rune along with shadow arts like..
An easier variation of the easiest weapon set we already got with some unnecissary nerf to dmg..

But whatever floats your boat right! Thief is fun, it is for me the most intense profession in GW2, the most forgiving if you decide to bail, but the least forgiving if your intentions are to go Man-Mode-kitten-Ham.

TL;DR
D/P is already easymode, especially with Shadow Arts. Shadow Arts is Lowbob.
Pack brings more dmg than Vampirism, Vampirism brings extra Lowbob.
Also Improvisation > Dagger Training.
—→ D/P + Shadow Arts + Vampirism = Easy + Lowbob/Cheese + Lowbob/Cheese <—-

I DONT mean to sound salty or rude, but with the TL;DR it was hard to put it in a pleasant manner with my lack of time :S But play whatever you like, i dont judge you

D/P isn’t ‘easy’ insofar as it is simple, it has more tools than pretty much any other set by far, it’s just the most powerful. D/D and D/P aren’t even comparable. D/D is INCREDIBLY limited compared to D/P in terms of raw tools available for you to play with. S/D dumps finesse positioning elements for raw brawler potential. As for runes, personally, I find traveler or even speed indispensable. Vamp seems redundant in WvW where escape isn’t punished because nothing really matters. You’re more invested in nodes and team fights in sPvP so, tactically, vamp makes more sense.

Also, personally, I don’t really buy into absurd provincial GW2 class culture that labels shadow arts in some way illegitimate, but I don’t think it is as necessary for D/P as it might be for D/D, for example. I just don’t think the points spent there are as useful as they are perceived to be.

Your build is a modification of the panic strike conquest meta. Your steal becomes weaker but your survivability becomes better. A matter of preference…

It’s a good build for solo roaming where you dont need party support like boon sharing or stomp interrupts with steal. Plus you deal more damage like with the WvW 06620 Meta.

After the core specialisation update 60606 will be a great build for roaming and you currently play a build wich comes pretty close to that.

KrHome.1920:

Your build is a modification of the panic strike conquest meta. Your steal becomes weaker but your survivability becomes better. A matter of preference…

It’s a good build for solo roaming where you dont need party support like boon sharing or stomp interrupts with steal. Plus you deal more damage like with the WvW 06620 Meta.

After the core specialisation update 60606 will be a great build for roaming and you currently play a build wich comes pretty close to that.

I’m surprised no one is thinking of picking CS for IP maybe some in PvE then.

@Watson.6492
Well, my experience is that D/P is the most forgiving our of the power builds.
In WvW most engages are vs Zerg traited/geared players which is almost never a struggle as something specialized in small scale battles/roam.
Against anything except great players with the right build D/P is easy to do well with..
Daggers do brutal damage, blinds are very accessible and an almost instant daze for the heal and scary abilities.

Alot of fights (mostly picks when roaming) are over by simply running up and shadow shooting dem butts off, followed by a timed Headshot and fight is over.
Not dead? Powder Leap + steal backstab or whatever you see fit.
D/P is just very straight forward.

I Love D/P, dont get me wrong. But it is very simple mechanically and abilitywise.
Shadow Arts on top of that IMO makes it oversimplified, especially along with Vamp runes.

Vamp runes are great in sPvP as you mentioned. In WvW → quoting myself: Is Lowbob.
Unless maybe you´re going for a rigged dueling build.

My thief is my main, but im not hardcore L33T. D/P works so well you barely need SB except a few exceptions. 5 Abilities are not hard to master, especially since all of them work awsome in almsot all scenarios.

So what really grinds my gears? 5 abilities replacing the need for a sec weapon is too easy to play with i guess. This is vs everything except “Great” players with a few exceptions. Adding the defense of SA and Vamp rune makes it even less challenging to play.
This is just MY opinion though.

Its still very intense to play thief, i love it. Just bothered with how dull some builds are able to get..

Noha.3749:

Alot of fights (mostly picks when roaming) are over by simply running up and shadow shooting dem butts off, followed by a timed Headshot and fight is over.
Not dead? Powder Leap + steal backstab or whatever you see fit.
D/P is just very straight forward.

Where do you roam? I roam in EU Tier 1 and I don’t face zerkers that often and if it’s a zerker, then it’s ether a mediguard or a powernecro. I play powernecro by myself to “farm” D/P thieves in WvW. It’s ridiciously easy. I don’t even need my utilities!

As a D/P Thief you can engage everybody and reset fights, true! But you can kill only non-guard/non-necro zerkers.

You’re falling into the incredibly common trap of equating mechanical ‘difficulty’ with efficacy. These two interact only tangentially. The relevant dichotomy is skill floor versus skill cap. D/P has a higher skill cap than any other thief setup because it features more utility, and combinations. D/P is D/D with usable 3 and 4 and a superior and more flexible 5 providing access to stealth. The design of the set is simply superior, significantly so.

Because D/P is a tier 1 setup it obviously brings a lot of power to the table, and subsequently the skill floor will be allow the setup to be more accessible. This doesn’t necessarily make it ‘easier’, with the implication being that it is easier to master, but it is indeed easier for you to succeed with regardless of your skill level.

As for S/D, it changes the playstyle and brings less utility to the table, but it does shift some of the burden of play on twitch mechanics. I am, however, confident in saying that it is more limited than D/P (though not as limited as D/D) and thus has a lower skill ceiling.

As for shadow arts, I believe this falls into the category of the skill floor/skill ceiling dichotomy. A lot of players use this term ‘passive’ in the GW2 scene where another scene would use the word ‘defensive’, which is far more descriptive of what’s actually happening. The largest concern with SA is simply that stealth is overpowered in this game and poorly handled – and it is, at least compared to a game like WoW, with far better PvP mechanics. That’s true, but it still doesn’t guarantee success in the parts of the game that matter in terms of a competitive structure.

As for overall mechanical simplicity vs. complexity – generally, this game substitutes buttons for mechanics. Less buttons, but slightly more intricate mechanics depending on profession. The game itself is simply more simplistic than a competitive MMO like WoW, but that’s inherent to the design, not traitline.

Evalia.7103:

And here’s my take on it, which I believe to be a whole lot better:
http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fZAQNAoaVl0MpyplOx7J0PNRLhw9wZB96t2PCcA-TlCEAB+s/ABPAhEV/ZLlgMp8pN9NAcECe4QAklSI3OBABAQAuZb2m3MwRP6RP6RPa38m38m38mlCYgpWA-win

I’d like you people to criticize my take on it. I’ve had a lot of fun and was murdering people in 1v3-4 scenarios quite easily.

I tried your build in WvW today and I come to the conclusion, that in 1vs1 situations 60206 is superior to your 60602 build – especially when you fight other skilled thieves, no matter what build they play! The traited steal is too strong to be compensated by the sustain from going deep into Shadow Arts.

KrHome.1920:

Evalia.7103:

And here’s my take on it, which I believe to be a whole lot better:
http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fZAQNAoaVl0MpyplOx7J0PNRLhw9wZB96t2PCcA-TlCEAB+s/ABPAhEV/ZLlgMp8pN9NAcECe4QAklSI3OBABAQAuZb2m3MwRP6RP6RPa38m38m38mlCYgpWA-win

I’d like you people to criticize my take on it. I’ve had a lot of fun and was murdering people in 1v3-4 scenarios quite easily.

I tried your build in WvW today and I come to the conclusion, that in 1vs1 situations 60206 is superior to your 60602 build – especially when you fight other skilled thieves, no matter what build they play! The traited steal is too strong to be compensated by the sustain from going deep into Shadow Arts.

Of course 60206 is kind of superior to my 60602 in 1v1 situations – after all, 60206 is PVP meta for a reason(I play it myself in PVP).
However, when things start to get rough I believe 60602 works better in a 1 versus many scenario. Since I play for SFR it’s very hard for me to find a solo roamer on the opposing server, and even when I do, most of the time they’re pretty bad. So I’ve adapted to deal with the groups.
If you want to trace the logic, traited steal dazes and steals boons from 1 target. However, Shadow Arts empower YOU rather than hindering the enemy by giving you might/stealth duration/regeneration. So it’s only natural going deeper in Shadow Arts is overall better if you’re constantly engaging in outnumbered scenarios.
Then again, this dispute will die because be it 60206 or 60602, they’ll both be 60606.
At least it’s awesome you’ll no longer “have” to get stats like healing power, toughness and condition damage on your traits.