Guild Wars 2

Yo guys!
After messing around with some of the classes on this game i decided that my next “main pvp class” will be the teef, i had 85 arena wins on mesmer and 55 with war but what i enjoy now is learning a new class from zero.
In this topic i would like to get some suggestions by expert thieves about “how to thief” and what’s the approach you have in fights when you use this class.
Here is some questions:
-i like DP 2 6 6 0 0 playstyle a lot, but is it viable in tpvp?
-do people actually use that shortbow in fights or only for fast movement?
-what do you do in the 4vs4 classic fight at the beginning of arenas?
-what burst rotations you guys use? (i think SP have the best burst right?)
-Is it even possible to kill a DPS Guardian as a thief? (they eat me alive…)
-Is it mandatory to dress like a ninja and use only Abyss dye on the armor, do it actually give some kind of stat boost?

Thx a lotfor the feedbacks! ^^

1. depends what you mean by “viable.” But normally, no.
2. Shortbow for fights is important.
3. Make smart decisions.
4. D/P or D/D still has the highest burst potential.
5. Yes. Need to play super defensive. This matchup is definitely not in favor of thief.

Mijo.3274:

1. i like DP 2 6 6 0 0 playstyle a lot, but is it viable in tpvp?
2. do people actually use that shortbow in fights or only for fast movement?
3. what do you do in the 4vs4 classic fight at the beginning of arenas?
4. what burst rotations you guys use? (i think SP have the best burst right?)
5. Is it even possible to kill a DPS Guardian as a thief? (they eat me alive…)
6. Is it mandatory to dress like a ninja and use only Abyss dye on the armor, do it actually give some kind of stat boost?

1. Nope.
2. As D/P, you’ll want to spend most of your time in team fights in shortbow, switching to D/P when chasing targets or bursting down the ones with low HP or cool downs (By team fights, I mean 4v4s etc. In 2v2s or smaller skirmishes, you’ll want to stay in D/P a lot more so your partner isn’t pressured all the time). Shortbow offers a lot more than D/P in team fights. Strong auto attack, AoE, poison, weakness, evades, ports etc. Also, shortbow is amazing for corpses.
3. Position myself and look for the targets I want (enemy squishes like thieves, mesmerise etc) while spamming poison, auto attacks and blast finishers. Determining which class is the one caping enemy close, and make sure they are not free to leave their point. Peeling for my own team’s squishes.
4. Depends on the circumstances. Never try to burst an opponent during the start of a team fight. Instead of black powder – heart seeker – backstab, black powder – heart seeker – surprise shot is much much better if your team can fully utilise your immobilises. As D/P, you have to adjust everything based on what your opponents are doing. For 1v1s, always try baiting their defensive cooldowns and dodges before you even attempt a burst.
5. They are pretty much a hard counter and requires 0 errors on your part. As a D/P thief, I’d say Headshot is your best friend here. DPS guards lack stability, and you can usually interrupt their GS whirls while blinding their offensive utilities like Smite Condition. Always anticipate their gap closers and dodge them as they have a hard time staying on target. Always save your stolen bundle for when you know you can land it. Aka, watch their virtues to make sure they use their blind on F1 and aegis on F3 before you go for it. Some like to chain the daze to 8s, but if they have their stun breaks up, that would be a waste. Again, bait out their skills, avoid their burst, land yours. Pretty much how to win any 1v1.
6. I’ve had much success playing a human female thief with revealing armour. I’ve heard asuras give a better advantage, but this hasn’t been confirmed. I kid, ANet.

Hi Mijo! Don’t listen to these guys saying it is not viable. Look at this video, Sensotix here is one of the top thieves around:

He makes a valid argument why D/P can be better than the more popular S/D, and IS better for his style.

Zero.6592:

He makes a valid argument why D/P can be better than the more popular S/D, and IS better for his style.

I never said D/P isn’t viable. I exclusively play D/P myself. The OP was asking whether 2 6 6 0 0 (aka Shadow Arts) is viable, and for that, the answer is no. Shadow Arts gives you a stronger 1v1 build, but you lose on a lot of team utility for team fights and quite a bit of raw damage. Also, since your primary source of damage comes from might-stacked backstabs, it means you need to spend a lot of time in stealth while your teammates take fire. Not only that, but a build that heavily relies on backstab is quite easy to shut down with proper mitigation skills and positioning.The build is also quite prone to your combos getting interrupted since you lack the bigger initiative pool and regen from the trickery trait line. The only real use of the sustain from Shadow Arts is for 1v1s, which you can’t afford to undertake in conquest, since you’ll be losing the point by staying in stealth.

Zero.6592:

Hi Mijo! Don’t listen to these guys saying it is not viable. Look at this video, Sensotix here is one of the top thieves around:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p3e9eHHjfaQ

He makes a valid argument why D/P can be better than the more popular S/D, and IS better for his style.

“I don’t wanna fight a warrior.”
“I don’t wanna fight a warrior.”
“I shouldn’t have pushed home.”
“All I wanted to do was support from range.”

His team won this match, he just helped on finishes and back capping by going the long way. It was smart play, but I don’t think this is the build the OP is looking for.

Pretty much what Rome said.
In a 1v1 against a DS guard, you can also take advantage of the enemy’s eagerness to kill you quickly by staying in shortbow and playing defense (switch to shortbow) while they blow their CDs and Virtues.
Keep in mind that you will melt just by Retailation, Smite Condition (can hit up to 3,5k) and the Burning ticks, so if you get hit by one of their hard hitters (full GS rotation, Focus #5, Torch #4, Hammer #2, Sword #3) you will be pretty much dead.
If you miss your Steal, which is not that rare given all their blinds and blocks, disengage ASAP. If you miss your stolen skill, start playing defense until you have it up again.
Also, try understanding their attack animations, their cool downs and what is the third utility they have slotted alongside Smite Condition and Judge Intervention.

Zero.6592:

Hi Mijo! Don’t listen to these guys saying it is not viable. Look at this video, Sensotix here is one of the top thieves around:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p3e9eHHjfaQ

He makes a valid argument why D/P can be better than the more popular S/D, and IS better for his style.

He was talking about the build not the weapons. Not sure why anyone would want to run 2/6/6/x/x in pvp, big fat waste of time really. But yeah, dagger is still as brutal as ever. Sword is just better in some areas, whilst dagger can be in others. 1v1 I almost always want a dagger for that pressure and poison (poison aint no joke)

Ah yea, I was a bit careless. 6 in shadow is fun, but typically not useful enough in sPvP.

You MUST dress like a ninja with the underbewb. It increases damage by a % directly proportional to your sexiness. So for my thief it is 300% extra dmg!

In all seriousness – D/P is my preferred weapon set. 2/6/0/0/6 with strength runes. Lots of fun and very rewarding. But takes lots of practice.

OK guys thanks a LOT for your feedbacks!!!!!!!
So yesterday i finally 80ed my thief, (20lvl tome + 50 tome of knowledge, i hate PvEing) and went to WvW with this build
Gotta admit that it works WAY BETTER in wvw then in PvP, i’m basically invincible when it comes to solo roaming in 1v1s, the only guy that downed me was a PD DP condi thief, i simply dont know how to counter them…
But for PvP it’s a different story, i would like some suggestions for builds in PvP for solo and team queue, i’m not really stick to DP, i like to understand all mechanincs of a class ^^
Another question:
- For wvw Solo Roaming i find the traits IV and XI in shadow arts a must have, but i’m not convinced about the choice in Master Tier, what trait you guys suggest me? is patience good?

I use V – Infusion of Shadow. Especially when running D/P. The blind on stealth I think is VI. That one is good too.

For PvP most people run 2/6/0/0/6 with might runes and zerker amulet.
Some are running 2/0/0/6/6 with S/D and might runes and zerker amulet.

Wat. Did I just read that DPS guardian hardcounters a thief? Not the other way around? …. Sure it depends on a builds but I haven’t won a decent(can’t stress that word enough) thief on my DPS Guardian and haven’t lost to one on my thief. But It just could be that I run a different build, 2/0/0/6/6 which is the most popular one nowadays at least amongst the top 1000ish thieves.
You don’t have to always be a ninja. I wear a white coat occasionally like a pro.

Evalia.7103:

Wat. Did I just read that DPS guardian hardcounters a thief? Not the other way around? …. Sure it depends on a builds but I haven’t won a decent(can’t stress that word enough) thief on my DPS Guardian and haven’t lost to one on my thief. But It just could be that I run a different build, 2/0/0/6/6 which is the most popular one nowadays at least amongst the top 1000ish thieves.
You don’t have to always be a ninja. I wear a white coat occasionally like a pro.

DPS Meditation Guardians is definitely a bad matchup for 26006 thief, especially D/P. I’d say probably 2/8 in favor of DPS guard. The DPS Guardian can counterpressure while healing, has a multitude of blinds and blocks, ability to chase your shadowsteps and is practically immune to your main defense of blinds (lots of multi-hit attacks.)

I guess with 20066 it would be easier as you don’t rely so much on blinds for defense as dodges, and the ability to chase/counterpressure can be negated by simply dodging even more. Although take my comments on the matchup with a grain of salt because I haven’t played 20066 enough.