Guild Wars 2

First off if your reading this to help, I appreciate it.

I just made a brand new warrior, hes level 20, and so far in terms of PVE/WVW I hear GS+Axe/Shield is the most viable build for being a glassy assassin. However I do not really want to be a glass cannon. So my question is simple, could anyone link me a build that has good survivability in WVW/PVE and is still able to deal some decent damage? Now I did look at Yojacks build, and I found it rather sexy, can anyone confirm how sexy it is?

Basically I don’t want to wreak havoc and wait to reload, I want to be the last one standing after the battle.

Also after reading the forums a bit more, the alternative Yojacks sword/warhorn is axe/warhorn for more direct critical damage, therefore I would think that instead of pow/prec/cond gear you’d go more pow/prec/vit gear, as well as boon extending runes. Can anybody clarify on those builds and how effective they really are?

Cross posting this from another thread asking for builds in PvE, as I don’t really change much when I queue for the WvW battlefield:

I play 10/20/0/30/10, Greatsword/Longbow. I use a mixed combination of armor and accessories (a mixture of Knight, Berserker, and Valkyrie) which balance survival with high overall damage. My runes are 2 Water, 2 Monk, and 2 Hoelbrak for epic boon duration; the longer and larger the battle, the more Might I have, seeing the peak 25 very often.

I run “Shake It Off!”, Endure Pain, “For Great Justice!”, and Signet of Rage most of the time, as the shouts offer great utility and also are traited to heal me and anyone near me. With the boon duration, this gives me permanent and constantly increasing Fury, at least 11 stacks of Might before even engaging an enemy, and constant Swiftness. For my recovery I prefer Healing Signet, but it’s up to you.

I find this build also rather effective at WvW – about the only thing I will sometimes swap is the Longbow for a Rifle, and occasionally throw Frenzy in for utility if I need to take out a troublesome ballista or some such. Swapping the first trait of Tactics to Leg Specialist is also rather handy for WvW at times to really ensure you are difficult to escape.

I run 20/30/0/0/20 with power/toughness/vitality armor with runes of Lyssa and berserker’s jewels. As far as weapons go, I run axe/shield and rifle. I never like to be without a ranged option. I love WvW, so I usually need it. I run with about.. 3000 power, 49% crit, 75%(?) crit damage, and 2500 armor. I REALLY like how it works for me. I do a fair amount of damage without falling very quickly. Shield block is quite useful, and shield bash is great for locking someone down. I also run Sigils of Rage on most of my weapons, and Sigil of Battle on the offhand. I’m not quite sure what the best offhand sigil option is, as I haven’t really tried most of them. Sigil of Rage, though. I LOVE quickness, and with “Last Chance” grandmaster trait in arms, I get quickness a LOT, without using frenzy. Makes me feel quite ferocious when it goes off.

With Mending, Bull’s Charge, “Fear Me!”, “Shake it Off”, and Signet of Rage, I have a two-condition removal, a single condition removal, and a full condition removal (SoR with Lyssa runes), as well as an aoe fear (for getting out of tough situations) and a gap closer.

Of course, in terms of group support, I’m a bit lacking. My only supportive shout is a single condition removal (I use it to get out of knockdowns), and I don’t have any of the support traits. I guess it’s just my style to be more of a loner as far as fighting goes. If you like Yojack’s build with the horn, I guess you prefer more support-y than I usually like to play, but that’s your preference. (I do, however, carry a warhorn around to get myself and groups of people around quicker, but I always switch back to shield before a fight).

Edit: In terms of my choice of rifle, I traited for piercing rifle shots and the reduced cooldowns. Without it, I would definitely say Longbow is more useful, but in group fights, I can lay down a lot of damage to more than one target. Killshot is also one of my favorite things to use and half-health some squishies during a siege.

Nice I get the idea of your builds, the axe/shield sounds very nice, however I think the perma vigor/swiftness would help alot in my case. In terms of the greatsword I would definitely go full berserkers with some type of defense adding runes, and maybe beryl orich accessories depending on where my crit stands.

Any thoughts on axe/shield vs axe/warhorn? Also heard that hammer is like the defense juggernaut of warriors, any warrior using hammer have any information on how well it runs? I heard its fun

Well, if you trait for warhorn, it’s certainly very nice. However, it’s harder to get out of a sticky situation (in my experience) with it. At least in WvW. You have the condition removal and the vigor, but with a shield you have 3 seconds of blocking everything. For me, that’s extremely useful for running into a tower or a keep when it’s being sieged. I lack a bit of mobility with the axe, it’s true, but I can’t stand the small damage I put out with a sword as I never like going condition damage and I can’t stand the lack of control with a greatsword. The reason I run 3 condition removals is mostly to compensate for my lack of running ability, as well as condition removal is great anyways. Of course, I could get another condition removal and swiftness with the warhorn, but for the block and single target stun, I’d always pick the shield. Try running with both. Again, I have no utility for my team with a shield since I don’t trait into reflecting projectiles, so you may find that a warhorn suits you better.

As far as hammer goes, it’s not my favorite weapon to play with, mainly because for me it plays a little slow. Don’t get me wrong, swinging a giant hammer (or in my case, a one-handed anchor, which is fantastic) and knocking things around is great fun, but for normal use, it just feels a little slow. You should try it yourself though, because that’s just my personal preference for speed over power aesthetically.