Guild Wars 2

So i’m relatively new to the mmorpg thing. My rpg experience would consist of games like fallout 3, diablo 1,2,3, baldurs gate 2, skyrim. Pc gaming has intrigued me since console graphics seem so outdate and the number of games for pc vs console is huge.

I picked up gw2 after hearing its name on diablo 3 forums when the whole crowd was all turned down with the overall play and end game of a long awaited franchise. GW2 was everyones next new hope.

Picked up the game about 3 weeks ago, and have managed to play a lot/get hooked. I was off for 2 weeks between jobs and then tore a ligament in my knee postponing any type of work another week, so I played a lot of GW2.

Started a ranger as my first. Always loved the ranger role in most games, kind reminded me of LOTR. Quickly got bored with it and the overall atmosphere of rangers was that they wernt’ particularly good at end game PvE or PvP or WvW but they managed. I also saw a lot of different rangers on my travels and I kind of always like to be different/underdogs in my games. Like in CoD, no matter what map, I was going to go stealth perks and sub machine gun and just go crazy on everyone.

Started a thief, got to about level 14 and at the bottom of Queensdale, think its called the Tattamin Foothills, I needed a skill point by all the centaurs and I was getting pumelled. I think it was more of me not use to keyboard as a controller and the overall controls.

Next I made a elementalist which was fun, but it was still squishy, and I felt like the whole genre relying on switching attunements to really open the class and the idea of memorizing 25 spells for staff, 25 for double dagger, just didn’t really interest me(might later but right now, doesn’t seem like my play)

Made a mesmer afterwards, which was fun, but at the same time felt repetative and I’m still really wanting to finish PvE to 80 and mesmer vs 3 mobs just isn’ t fun since your illusions dissapear with your first prey, and it started to feel really repetative(only got to levl 23, I’ve heard it opens up later up)

I went back to my thief, and with my previous experience with other classes, and my new found controls, was rocking. I was circle strafing bigger openents. My dodges were on the mark and with my number 3 on my bow, I was really dodging big targets, and hitting multiple mobs nicely. I learned how to use my sword/pistol effectively when i had to switch from my favorite, the bow, and then I later was really rocking the dagger/dagger when my traits got higher and I was rocking. It was fun, fast paced. I really liked the 25% speed increase for map exploration(I’m kind of a map completion junky).

So I hit level 43, I had fitted my thief at 40 which was nice sicne I managed to level up to 40 from 25 from mission quest and I also did a couple starer map completions so I could do world events and got to level 40 on level 25 gear.

I equipped myself with some rare items/masterwork items. I picked up a chest armor which I can’t remember what its called, but it gave me +15 precision on the first perkand the 3rd was like +37 precision and their was a 4th aswell. I suited up. I was doing some hefty damage with a bit of gear and my accessories and rings were giving me power and vit. My crit was 48% chance with +18 crit damage. I felt like a boss doing pve. I knew how to dodge, what to dodge, and what not to even bother with tangoing toe to toe with.

Then my guild chat was looking for AC dungeon goers. No one was volunteering and I mentioned I’d like to try. A couple more started saying they wanted to try and we were at 4. I posted in our guild looking for warrior/guardian since our current party of 3 new goers and 1 semi experienced needed some help. Got another newbie to dungeons which ended up in a party of 2 guardians, 2 rangers and me the thief ranging from level 42-62.

I figured we’d do horrible since reading here the player base said it was hard but I figured we might pull through a bit of it. I got took down by teh first spike trap. Little circle came up, I rolled, too late it took me down 1 shot. I got revived and carried on. First stairwell, bunch of spiders, did alright, the little spiders for level 35 mobs seemed tough but they didn’t hti me for much and i felt like we wre doing good.

We carry forward towards an open room, boom spike trap takes half my life away, figured I coudl roll passed it, learned you can’t do that. Okay np. Run down into the pit, gargoyles start shooting fire out, I’m down. Guard revs me, I run into the main area where a giant spider champ or something begins.

I heard guys on here talking about their stealth rangers providing revives and their dps and such. I don’t know how you can just add to teh party. The whole ground was covered in red circles of different sizes and forms. Boom, I’m down, guard revs me, I go down immediately cause theris nowheres to go thats not in a red circle of death.

Round 2, we all start outside the dungeon since we all died. We go in knowing what to expect again. This time I manage to find a corner thats not in a red circle, I start spaming poison shot and cluster bombs and my signets and stuff to get the damage, its a tough thing and its health is hardly moving. A gargoyle fires me to death since the spot I thought was safe isn’t. I get ressed, kill the statue I think and then the spider aggro’s me and poisons me in like 4 shots of this wave like poison. I gave it a 3rd try with the party and rolled a warrior right after.

My plan was to play a warrior up to 80, grind out dungeons to gear out my thief and enjoy my thief in PvP and WvW which are my plans when I hit 80, just want to experience the 80 first. But I feel like I quit, I’m feeling like theirs gotta be a way to do this. I hear you folks talk about it. Is it because I was level 43? My build was mostly precison stats, power plus a little bit of vit. I was running the trait point where you get 5% of your precision in vit too so I felt like that would help in that department. I think my trait points are 10/13/0/10/0

I know it’s fairly aggressive but I don’t feel like its that far off from the other characters I see.

I like to be different, I don’t see that many thieves at events like frozen maw/shadow behometh. I feel different and like I’m proving a point. I love the play of the thief and its design, yet I feel like it might be impossible.

So to those here, shoudl I wait to level 80 and try again? Can i find end game gear with a level 80 thief or grind gold for it to buy it? I’m new to the game really and the talk of these forums confuses me sometimes with all the lingo and abbreviations. I just don’t want to get to 80 and waste weeks grinding to find out, oh yah, to get really good gear you need to be in what you guys called fractals? level 30+? to get it?

My warrior was fun, and a bit of a challenge at first, but chasing guys with my axes feels unrewarding compared to poison shot, cluster bomb into heartseeker.

Sorry for the rant, this has actually been bugging me for some reason all day.

There’s some posts on the forum about AC being easy and whatever but if you’re going in for the first time at level 43, without knowing the traps, it will not be easy. The spider fight was always slightly testing for thieves since the repeated poisoning does hurt. I expect it will be worse for beginners after the revamp.With limited skills available you might need some support from the rest of your team. If a ranger lays down a healing spring then you can both stand there for cures and get heals from the combo field, but there are plenty of other ways to do things too.

If you want to see dungeons as you work up to 80 then you could stick to story modes. They’re not easy first time through but they are achievable. By the time you get to genuinely easy dungeons you’ll be most way to 80 anyway.

Stooperdale.3560:

without knowing the traps, it will not be easy. The spider fight was always slightly testing for thieves since the repeated poisoning does hurt. I expect it will be worse for beginners after the revamp.

Agree 100%

However OP, best thing i would recommend is too get your thief to level 80 and just experiment. It took me ages after i leveled my thief to find a play style that i liked and was effective at all elements of the game.

Take risks, and die, as long as you keep learning you’ll get better.

Some people argue the thief’s don’t have a place in dungeons or are too squishy; its all about how you play, try using a sword/dagger or sword pistol combo and learn to love your second skill, especially in boss fights

In my opinion, dungeons aren’t so much of a gear challenge, but a mechanical challenge. There’s a lot of emphasis on knowing the general mechanic of a fight before you go in, or learning it the first time you die to it.

Gear-wise, all you really need are at-level (or within about 5 levels) masterwork gear. But in terms of fights, you need to know where the big AoEs are, which attacks you must dodge, and hopefully have someone willing to call targets for you if it’s your first time.

In terms of getting gear, dungeons are a great source of level 80 exotics, and I don’t feel like ascended gear is all that necessary for… Well, anything except high-level fractals. And that’s because of the infusion bonuses against Agony.

Well, the story mode of AC opens on lvl35 and you’re lvl46, so explorable modes will hit you hard. Explorable modes are kinda meant for lvl80s, or at least having some lvl80s in the group.

Strayhand.8216:

Well, the story mode of AC opens on lvl35 and you’re lvl46, so explorable modes will hit you hard.

I belive it’s story 30, exp 35.
I did AC around that lvl too. Didn’t have any problems at all.

Metamega.9025:

I just don’t want to get to 80 and waste weeks grinding to find out, oh yah, to get really good gear you need to be in what you guys called fractals? level 30+? to get it?

What should I say…
I’ll tell you my story.
My friends started playing GW a bit earlier, than me. But we all love pvp and gvg -> we all knew that we r lvling our chars for wvwvw. So, they lvled and found a proper guild.
Their guildies told me “oh, no, don’t bother with thief, it sucks both wvwvw and pve, don’t even lvl it up”, “thief useless”, “they die like rabbits”, etc.
But you know what?

I
do
not
care

Coz I already played many MMOs, and know how thieves/rogues/assassins r ‘useless’.
They only seems to be so.

So I pick a thief and lvled it. With ease.

I’m kind of maniac, so I didn’t lvl up any crafting professions and stick to my race locations. So, I was exp starving till around lvl 40, doing Story-quests with 3-5 lvls below recommended and same with ‘hearts’ on locations.
My lvling wasn’t fast, but I’m playing for plesure, I don’t care about anything.

And btw, it was great. Any fight was some kind of challenge, coz many mobs could one-shot me and there were crowds also. But ye, with short bow u r unkillable.
But I forced myself to use other weapons to learn.

Then I took a little break, lvling up crafting professions a bit.
As part of a break I did AC story/exp near that 4X lvl and didn’t have any problems knowing nothing about this dungeon, only on intuition.

Since lvl 50 (I think) “I took an arrow in a knee” (a found myself killing veterans with ease) and kind of rushed to lvl 80.

With ease and pleasure.

I randomly took any and all sets of weapons, used pwr/crit or condition builds.
I liked all. Of course I have a favorite set, but honestly – I liked [/i]all[/i] thief weapon sets.

My first dungeon at 80 was CoE p3. Of course I died several times. But since I understood mechanics of fight – it was easy.
People say it’s kind of… 3rd hard? Dunno yet, I only did all paths of CoE(farmed), CoF and 3/4 TA and a few fractals(9 lvl and below). I had no problems with survivability, kiting, sometimes dodge-tanking and being ‘last 2 men standing’.

So, the answer to your question:
After all your pain with a thief – I doubt, but you can still try. GL&HF/