Guild Wars 2

I’ve been rocking the greatsword on my warrior since day one. I always told myself it was just a placeholder for two-handed axes, but who knows when (if) those will ever be added to the game? Lately I’ve been toying with the idea of switching to the hammer (again, just until two-handed axes are added to the game), but I have a couple of concerns.

I’m a PvE player. I spend very little time in WvW, and I don’t PvP at all. Within PvE, most of my time is dedicated to open-world PvE and world bosses. We all know that it doesn’t really matter what weapon or build we use in open-world PvE. But the problems I foresee arising with a hammer have to do with dungeons and fractals.

The greatsword is the PvE king of damage, so in switching to a hammer I’m already losing quite a bit of optimization. This is compounded by the fact that the hammer’s biggest strengths lie in crowd control, which is wasted on trash mobs and ineffective against bosses. So that’s a bit of a double-whammy.

So I come to you guys asking if I should bother. I always envisioned playing the warrior as a slow-but-hard-hitting melee fighter (hence my desire for two-handed axes), but the hammer’s skill set never really suit my chosen area of play (PvE). On the other hand, while the greatsword is fantastic at what it does, it’s neither aesthetically nor functionally what I was looking for. And there’s just something that bugs me about never using my class mechanic (Burst), as is the case with the greatsword.

So I’m open to suggestions or feedback. Thanks.

I had this same dilemma a while back on my Warrior.

There’s no denying that the damage output of a greatsword is greater (lol) than hammer. I myself really loved the look of the Entropy hammer and was more interested than crushing enemies rather than chopping them up. I decided to go for it and I really enjoy using hammer now. Hammer has better auto-attack damage as far as I’m aware and in some circumstances the CC abilities do actually help in PvE.
The whole crushing element is just what seals the deal for me. I’ve only just remembered to turn my camera shake on after I had it off for a long time and forgot about it, and it’s made Hammer even more fun. Camera shake on hits just makes it feel all that more powerful.

Anyways, what I’m trying to say is.. if you want to play hammer but you’re reluctant because greatsword is better, then just go for it. Play what you will enjoy rather than playing something you’re not 100% happy with just to be better.

That being said, I still do use greatsword for dungeons else I face being rejected/moaned at otherwise.

…do you only use 1 weapon set?

I am mainly a PvP/WvW oriented player…and never once do I look at a build and plan on using only 1 weapon. Weapon swaps are what will separate you from bad players, learn to use them, and then you won’t have the dilemma in the first place…

GS + Hammer works perfectly for me in WvW.

But if you want to be exclusive to PvE, then GS + LB is probably a better option since most champs and world-bosses cannot be effectively CCed by the hammer.

Eh, the problem with Hammer and PvE is a big “NO!” sign called Defiant.
For trash mobs you can use Hammer tho, it’s not like you need mad DPS to kill trash; I actually think CC is better as it avoids wipes (as long as someone in the team is actually DPSing tho).

As long as you’re talking about PvE: no.

Defiant is a way too big limitation to make CC worthwhile. And thing you can actually CC consistently, would die before actually needed to be CC’ed if you run a high DPS weapon combo.
Oh, and prolly DPS is lower than Axe/GS.

Ofc, in WvW or sPvP i’d say the opposite – Hammer is king. Especially for zergdiving.

But for PvE, high DPS is the way to go, at current state of the game.
Thus, Axe + Mace(or Sword) and GS (or LB for might stacking/ranging).

Zietlogik.6208:

…do you only use 1 weapon set?

I am mainly a PvP/WvW oriented player…and never once do I look at a build and plan on using only 1 weapon. Weapon swaps are what will separate you from bad players, learn to use them, and then you won’t have the dilemma in the first place…

GS + Hammer works perfectly for me in WvW.

But if you want to be exclusive to PvE, then GS + LB is probably a better option since most champs and world-bosses cannot be effectively CCed by the hammer.

/second

Hammer + Longbow adds another blast finisher for AoE might to the group that’s pretty easy to set up with the right trait build. Having high weakness uptime is also pretty sweet. Less DPS, more utility. You decide what’s most important.

Hammer on Warrior is terrible in PvE and anyone wielding one will receive a well deserved kick.
Also stop Greatsword auto attacking you scrub, either GS/Axe+Mace rotation or don’t take Greatsword at all…

I will never stop linking it… XD
Enjoy!
http://www.guildwars2guru.com/topic/83915-axemace-dps-build-for-dungeons-and-fractals-62513/

Thanks for the feedback, guys. Please do it them coming.

Zietlogik.6208:

…do you only use 1 weapon set?

Kind of. With each of my characters I stick with their primary weapon where possible and use the swap when necessary. I do this because each of my characters was built to play differently from the others, and building around a single weapon helps to reinforce this principle; and because in open-world PvE (where I spend most of my time) I can get away with it. Unfortunately, the usefulness of the warrior’s hammer in dungeons is such that I’ll feel I’ve crossed the line from “not-optimized” to “drag”.

Zietlogik.6208:

But if you want to be exclusive to PvE, then GS + LB is probably a better option since most champs and world-bosses cannot be effectively CCed by the hammer.

GS/LB is what I’ve been running since I made this character, but after a year I’m willing to admit it’s just not the look or the “feel” I had in mind when I made this character.

Dolan.3071:

Also stop Greatsword auto attacking you scrub, either GS/Axe+Mace rotation or don’t take Greatsword at all…

Two questions:

1. Are you sure you’re old enough to be here?
2. Does anyone use the greatsword for its autoattack? Anyone at all?

Dolan.3071:

Hammer on Warrior is terrible in PvE and anyone wielding one will receive a well deserved kick.
Also stop Greatsword auto attacking you scrub, either GS/Axe+Mace rotation or don’t take Greatsword at all…

Do you want to go against some of my servers hammer warriors? They would kick you all over the map and back again.

Dolan.3071:

Hammer on Warrior is terrible in PvE and anyone wielding one will receive a well deserved kick.
Also stop Greatsword auto attacking you scrub, either GS/Axe+Mace rotation or don’t take Greatsword at all…

I will come with mace/sword+rifle just to troll u.

I use hammer in PvE, although that’s partially because my warrior only has one endgame gear set at the moment, which happens to include the hammer.

I actually started using it with the kick utility as well. You can do staggering blow, hammer shock, kick, then backcracker for a nice CC combo in which you can vary the timing slightly to hit for interrupts or unescapable CC (not that mobs escape such things). Staggering blow and kick actually have the same cooldown, so you can always rely on them being in sync (unless you trait for one but not the other).

Of course, it’s a bit annoying to use in group situations because knocking people back can reduce overall DPS and you can’t 100b things.

aspirine.6852:

Dolan.3071:

Hammer on Warrior is terrible in PvE and anyone wielding one will receive a well deserved kick.
Also stop Greatsword auto attacking you scrub, either GS/Axe+Mace rotation or don’t take Greatsword at all…

Do you want to go against some of my servers hammer warriors? They would kick you all over the map and back again.

He’s on about PvE. GS in PvE consists of hundred blades/whirlwind then swapping to axe/mace because the GS auto is weak. Hammer doesn’t stack vulnerability or burst like GS/axe+mace so it’s not worth using.

I’ve used PvE hammer since day one and learned to get around defiant. Warrior gets so many interrupts that you can time the interrupts and actually interrupt bosses. On open world bosses with 20+ stacks of the stuff I just autoattack.

I haven’t played for 6 months and people seem to have gotten better. Back in the day though, if I didn’t keep permaweakness up and didn’t interrupt the big attacks bosses did in dungeons, my parties would wipe unless we had crazy people. Crazy as in, only ran that one dungeon 24/7.

Also hammer hits 5 targets by default. If GS hasn’t been buffed in the past 6 months then GS only hits 3. In open world zergs, hammer tags more stuff than GS so more loot for you.

Also… EARTHSHAKAAAAAA

I even said PvE in the first line of my comment, please read before posting.

I’d like to see these WvW hero warriors try to Hammer+Longbow solo lupicus…
Cos any build is viable for pve right gais?

https://forum-en.gw2archive.eu/forum/game/dungeons/Cond-Warrior-soloing-lupi-6-40-min/first#post2895341

Condition warrior solo.

Condition DPS is actually much better than you’d think in PvE if the fight is prolonged.

colesy.8490:

aspirine.6852:

Dolan.3071:

Hammer on Warrior is terrible in PvE and anyone wielding one will receive a well deserved kick.
Also stop Greatsword auto attacking you scrub, either GS/Axe+Mace rotation or don’t take Greatsword at all…

Do you want to go against some of my servers hammer warriors? They would kick you all over the map and back again.

He’s on about PvE. GS in PvE consists of hundred blades/whirlwind then swapping to axe/mace because the GS auto is weak. Hammer doesn’t stack vulnerability or burst like GS/axe+mace so it’s not worth using.

Ah, well wvw is also pve. But yeah I see your point, in wvw your foes sometimes try to avoid your damage. That’s not very pve like

colesy.8490:

https://forum-en.gw2archive.eu/forum/game/dungeons/Cond-Warrior-soloing-lupi-6-40-min/first#post2895341

Condition warrior solo.

Condition DPS is actually much better than you’d think in PvE if the fight is prolonged.

I always knew condi warriors were OP since they gave Pindown the massively long 6 stack bleed and impale torment.

In PvP a condi warrior could also easily outlast and beat a condi necro 1v1 since warrior condi removes so op.

My challenge was directed more to the heal-shout crowd ;D

heal what ? what did you just say, i must have misread

Oni Link.4621:

I will never stop linking it… XD
Enjoy!
http://www.guildwars2guru.com/topic/83915-axemace-dps-build-for-dungeons-and-fractals-62513/

It’s sad to quote myself but it seems like you ignored my post. The most effective build you may use in dungeons and Fractals (so NOT solo playing) is this one.
People may argue about it, but there is such a big difference between a Warrior with this or without it.

Anyway, I can understand that you miss the using of F1 but because Berserker’s Power and Heightened Focus exist, you will never going to use it.

There is only one single problem with this build: you must know how to play.If you are not familiar with Warrior, with dodge mechanics or with the dungeon/fractal you are running, then you should avoid using it or play very safely.

I’m seeing a lot of people saying that hammer is bad. It’s not. Sure GS is better, but that doesn’t make Hammer bad.
If you enjoy using Hammer than use it, don’t feel forced into using a weapon you’re not too keen on because it’s “better”

I levelled with GS+hammer. I kicked out a huge amount of damage and could also get through difficult things via CC.

There is pretty much only one place that i use hammer now and that’s in the Cliffside fractal while breaking the Colossus’ wrist seals to reduce the damage on my group from chanters. I’ve not come across any other dungeon or fractal where it even crosses my mind that CC might be useful.

Zach.3264:

I’m seeing a lot of people saying that hammer is bad. It’s not. Sure GS is better, but that doesn’t make Hammer bad.
If you enjoy using Hammer than use it, don’t feel forced into using a weapon you’re not too keen on because it’s “better”

Why the inverted commas?

And personally, if I’m running content in a group (dungeons or WvW raids) I think it’s just a matter of decency and respect to gear appropriately so you are able to support your team as much as possible. Using hammer in a dungeon just … doesn’t do that.

Lol my post got infracted, I forgot how sensitive the people on this forum were.
Oni my apologies I tend to ignore links, but that is in fact the exact build I use. Nike is pretty good like that and I’m interested to find out what he decides to be the optimal build after Empower Allies gets shafted up to Master tier.

I have 3 warriors in dungeon yesterday, and 3 of us equipped hammer main hand. It’s a team of CC and smite.

honestly dude, just play whatever you want. Just know that DPS > CC against boss fights due to defiant. Axe/mace and GS DPS is not only the highest in our class, but arguably in game.

Hammer’s damage is decent, in full zerker gear i can do 10k total (most of the time) on the auto attack cycle (hammer swing+bash+smash). If you insist on running hammer in dungeons, tell your group to help you reduce the defiant stacks so you can land that nice 2 second stun/knockback on the boss.

I run a 0/0/20/30/20 for dungeons with banner. i can swap to axe/shield just before we start hitting on the boss.

Just use whatever you like, this is a game, it is not necessary to use the best min/max weapon anyway.

Greatsword in GW2 is in good position, but let me tell you, many MMO out there favor 2H axe a lot more, but i am a big fan of sword type weapon, so i am all the way greatsword even it is a underdog in those games. I am glad greatsword is fine in GW but even it is not, i will choose a weapon i like most.

Ignore the grumpy old elitist and have fun with your hammer, play however you want.

And if you find someone that tells you you’re in the wrong just /block him/her, we don’t need more toxic people in this game.

Heiltdo.2891:

Ignore the grumpy old elitist and have fun with your hammer, play however you want.

And if you find someone that tells you you’re in the wrong just /block him/her, we don’t need more toxic people in this game.

Yes, go to play group content and intentionally choose a worse option. They are just some random people so who cares if you make it harder for them. Even better if everyone wipes multiple times.

Dungeons, yes it can be effective. Open world zerg events – no.

EDIT: Need to add that in a PuG it has no place even in dungeons, as you’ll be kitten sure the ranger will waste that open defiant spot with a longbow knockback.

It’s annoying but you can swap out the hammer for a GS against bosses. The hammer is absolutely fine against trash mobs.

Personally I find the GS woefully boring to use so I just run with Hammer most of the time for open world roaming.

how is it that the GS can out dps a hammer? The hammer generally does about 15-20% more dps. (10% more per hit as each hit is 1/2 sec). Whirlwind attack is rubbish. However, the GS is a great weapon to initiate attack. Bladetrail than Rush followed by hundred blades before switching over the hammer for tight melee combat. Then swapping back to GS only for the hundred blades than back to hammer. To me…bows and rifles are a waste of time in PvE. Just get straight into action and obliterate the monsters.

lchan.2169:

how is it that the GS can out dps a hammer? The hammer generally does about 15-20% more dps. (10% more per hit as each hit is 1/2 sec). Whirlwind attack is rubbish. However, the GS is a great weapon to initiate attack. Bladetrail than Rush followed by hundred blades before switching over the hammer for tight melee combat. Then swapping back to GS only for the hundred blades than back to hammer. To me…bows and rifles are a waste of time in PvE. Just get straight into action and obliterate the monsters.

I always bring a longbow as backup. Some of the encounters in dungeons absolutely hate melee users, to the point where you have so little uptime your DPS will be actually better with a Longbow.

Tom Gore.4035:

lchan.2169:

how is it that the GS can out dps a hammer? The hammer generally does about 15-20% more dps. (10% more per hit as each hit is 1/2 sec). Whirlwind attack is rubbish. However, the GS is a great weapon to initiate attack. Bladetrail than Rush followed by hundred blades before switching over the hammer for tight melee combat. Then swapping back to GS only for the hundred blades than back to hammer. To me…bows and rifles are a waste of time in PvE. Just get straight into action and obliterate the monsters.

I always bring a longbow as backup. Some of the encounters in dungeons absolutely hate melee users, to the point where you have so little uptime your DPS will be actually better with a Longbow.

Well yea..you carry one just in case it is required for that particular dungeon play section. But mostly, its straight up hammer and gs.

lchan.2169:

how is it that the GS can out dps a hammer? The hammer generally does about 15-20% more dps. (10% more per hit as each hit is 1/2 sec). Whirlwind attack is rubbish.

What.

In terms of raw DPS GS is on a complete another level compared to hammer.
The auto is weak, Bladetrail and Rush have little use outside skipping/starting the fight, but HB + WA (try cast in when you los mobs to a wall then come back telling me it’s rubbish) is a quite huge chunk of dmg. There is no way Hammer could deal 20% more dmg than GS. Even if a couple of his skills (Fierce Blow iirc) can give some nice numbers, the magnitude is very different, and the overall higher CDs of Hammer just emphatize that.

Also, as said, cause GS auto is weak you can swap to a weapon with a better one (ie: Axe) and back to GS as soon as CDs run out, thanks to Fast Hands.

Hammer is not bad per se: but if you’re looking to DPS (and as War in a DG that’s pretty much what you should do), weapon wise, it has no space compared to the GS + Axe auto rotation.

Ofc, if you’re playing open world anything works. If you’re playing WvW, Hammer is great. And has it’s place in spvp.
But DGs? Nope. Unless you’re the “I play what i want and i don’t care, deal with it” guy, but then this whole discussion about effectiveness is pointless.

Did someone just say whirlwind attack was bad?

Against a wall, that thing is stupid since all four hits connect. Even not against one, being able to evade a boss attack while still dealing damage is great.

And then I remembered why I don’t PuG…

lchan.2169:

how is it that the GS can out dps a hammer? The hammer generally does about 15-20% more dps. (10% more per hit as each hit is 1/2 sec). Whirlwind attack is rubbish. However, the GS is a great weapon to initiate attack. Bladetrail than Rush followed by hundred blades before switching over the hammer for tight melee combat. Then swapping back to GS only for the hundred blades than back to hammer. To me…bows and rifles are a waste of time in PvE. Just get straight into action and obliterate the monsters.

firstly, stop pulling numbers out of your kitten and stop spouting lies.

secondly, anyone who knows how to use a greatsword in dungeons also has as their secondary set an axe/x, which they swap to during HB+WA downtime (though hammer AA dps is probably less than GS AA dps, which is bad enough already).

the only part of your post that had any inkling of truth was the last sentence.

I like the hammer and all, but it’s simply not worth using in dungeons.

guanlongwucaii.3162:

secondly, anyone who knows how to use a greatsword in dungeons also has as their secondary set an axe/x

Nope. Dem PuG/baddie 24/7 GS campers.
Hammer’s damage is only redeeming when traited vs stunned/kd’ed targets with the trait but 80% of the time the damage is so poor.

Tom Gore.4035:

lchan.2169:

how is it that the GS can out dps a hammer? The hammer generally does about 15-20% more dps. (10% more per hit as each hit is 1/2 sec). Whirlwind attack is rubbish. However, the GS is a great weapon to initiate attack. Bladetrail than Rush followed by hundred blades before switching over the hammer for tight melee combat. Then swapping back to GS only for the hundred blades than back to hammer. To me…bows and rifles are a waste of time in PvE. Just get straight into action and obliterate the monsters.

I always bring a longbow as backup. Some of the encounters in dungeons absolutely hate melee users, to the point where you have so little uptime your DPS will be actually better with a Longbow.

Of all dungeons and fractals i can think of like maybe two instances where range is preferred over melee…

Well, I main thief, but I love hammer, axe/shield, and longbow (switching to what the event requires) when I do play on my war. I’ve taken that combo into fractals and it works fine. I don’t run in an optimised group for fractals (my usual group is 1 guard, 1 condi necro, 1 dps war, a pug, and me on my bunker war/thief/engi depending on my mood that day). The hammer, in my experience in fractals, is pretty useful against trash mobs which are immune to blind and can start to hurt at higher levels. Stunning a group to set up your glass teammate (also running unsuspecting foe) for 100b is a lot of fun. Play what you like. The game is supposed to be fun.

zencow.3651:

guanlongwucaii.3162:

secondly, anyone who knows how to use a greatsword in dungeons also has as their secondary set an axe/x

Nope. Dem PuG/baddie 24/7 GS campers.
Hammer’s damage is only redeeming when traited vs stunned/kd’ed targets with the trait but 80% of the time the damage is so poor.

I said “knows how to use” :P