Guild Wars 2

Are you tired of constant QQ from the general public? Are you looking for a good build to use after the Backstab nerf? Are you just looking to better familiarize yourself with your greatest enemy, the thief? Or maybe your just trying to become a better thief player, learning some neat tips and tricks that can come in handy when trying to get that clutch stomp to rally your downed teammates. Well, whatever the reason, I’m here with a ten minute video that showcases a lot of neat things the thief can do to decieve the enemy. Getting stomps outta nowhere, Dodging CC while stomping, good ressing techniques, and some of the more basic stuff that people will often forget in the heat of the moment. Below is the link to the video, If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, feel free to let me know.

I just started using the sword after playing since release. I used it once but went back to daggers since it seemed more pvp oriented to me. But now that I’ve finally gotten into sPvP I tried s/d setup and it’s really fun to play. I was getting bored with my thief but I’m back with a vengeance now after trying the sword.

Now though I need to gather some gear for when I’m playing WvW or just general pve stuff. What do people recommend gear and specc wise for this? I can never decide on a specc so I’ll try out many of them but I’d like some advice from people more experienced with this. Just now I’m thinking of speccs like 10/0/30/15/15 or 0/0/30/25/15 or variations of those. Or should I go more into critical strikes like the OP here?

Shadow Arts I’m thinking Infsion of Shadow, Shadows Embrace (does it tick the moment I enter stealth and then 3 seconds after?) and then either Shadow Rejuvenation, Cloaked in Shadows or even Hidden Thief? What’s everyones thoughs here? What about fleet footed? SoS gives 25% speed in combat, right? So It’s only an 8% increase when using the signet, seems lackluster.

Cheers for all good advice.

Look up RainyThief. He has the best videos on S/D on YouTube (IMHO). There are 2 45 minutes videos showcasing S/D with trait changes for each video.

Thanks, I’ll check it out.

@ Lifeson: I can’t really recommend traits for you experiment a bit, see what suits you best. I can make some specific recommendations though.

Critical strikes is excellent, and it’s little wonder that going 30 into it is a staple of S/D builds. Rather than Hidden Thief (which I hear isn’t 100% crit chance from stealth at the moment), you’ll probably find Executioner more handy.

Shadow’s Embrace, last time I checked, does tick once when you enter stealth, then every 3 seconds.
Note that if you want to use Shadow’s Rejuvenation, you’ll want to get some gear that gives you +Healing Power. Well, you’ll probably want that anyway, since you’re not going for a glass cannon build. (Right?)

I tested Fleet shadow and the Signet of Shadows a few updates back, and I didn’t even notice a 8% movement increase: seemed to be exactly the same for me. In any case, you might want to swap SoS out for another skill or signet when you enter combat, and only use it for roaming.

Also, I’d recommend Master of Deception too. The -20% cooldown on Shadowstep, Blinding Powder, Shadow Refuge and Smoke Screen work very well in WvW and S/D, in my opinion. Personally, I’d go for this instead of Cloaked in Shadow.

Give this build a try as well.

I have one video showing how it works now, with more on the way soon (I’ve run into some software issues, but they’re fixed now).

Thanks guys, I’ll try out some different stuff in sPvP.

bloodymarx: Hidden Thief is the one that gives you 2 seconds of stealth on steal.