Guild Wars 2

Hey guys, just wanted to give you guys an updated version of the Zerker Axe/Shield, GS build. Compared to the previous build, nothing has changed much. I’ve simply taken the last 2 traits out of tactics and have put them in arms for fury uptime and higher base crit chance, rune change from melandru to hoelbrak (more might uptime) while still maintaining -condition duration, adding in Sigil of air, strength and battle for more damage to make up for the ferocity changes. Also, I lately been run 2 stabilities so I can get more stomps often. Just wanted to shed some light on this build. Hope you guys enjoy the video.

Build: http://en.gw2skills.net/editor/?fJEQNAneRjMdUGajHmdwJagqgC9iHANwprWdP04xAA-T1CFABFcCAa4IAYnOAAeAAFq+zVKBRS5kDHCgkUykm2mW2fIAACwNbz28mBO6RP6RP6R7m38m38m3sUAMJMC-w

Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=88hHeIaPcfM

YESS I absolutely love your builds and I’ve been waiting for so long for you to finally update it. yay!

being dps war and not having reckless dodge is a waste,

just use vigor on stance for your vigor uptime instead

^^^

i think fury uptime is better in this case, anyway Great video as always.

I’ve played the same build with slightly different traits since I don’t really get the point of going 30 points into Defense. I mean the 10% Toughness conversion is useless with Berserker gear and Defy Pain, while nice, is it really worth the sacrifice?

Wouldn’t Forceful Greatsword be much better? Especially with Hoelbrak Runes? More liberal cooldowns, more Might uptime, higher Precision etc.

Maybe I’m undervaluing Defy Pain but if it is so good, why do you run without the stance?

Also while I find the build enjoyable in general, it’s annoying how a single competent D/P Thief basically hard-counters to to the point you can’t ever hit him. But I guess this is less of an issue with -60% condition duration.

I’ve watched this video and I just don’t get, how much damage you can put out compared to your survivability AND mobility on top of that, it just looks…broken. I rarely play my warrior, but I understand how to play one, but it still looks broken and in need of adjustment. What other profession can put out that kind of damage and still be that sturdy with the mobility to escape when needs be?

Loco.4561:

I’ve watched this video and I just don’t get, how much damage you can put out compared to your survivability AND mobility on top of that, it just looks…broken. I rarely play my warrior, but I understand how to play one, but it still looks broken and in need of adjustment. What other profession can put out that kind of damage and still be that sturdy with the mobility to escape when needs be?

Why don’t you play it and see if you can do as good with it, rather than comparing random wvw pugs with a player who knows how to dodge the bursty skills that would otherwise kill him. And Youtube search, there are plenty of videos with other classes where someone was able to 1v3 or 1v4 against other players in WvW.

Cool video. Makes me wonder tho, why should I even bother playing my thief again, warrior are apparently the kings of burst, with little risk (you makes it look easy tho, since you are a good player) with this build I don’t have to think about ever healing, and no need to cloak and dagger for stealth and backstab for “high damage” (5-7k, depending on squishy or not) this build chains that dmg easily really fast.
This isn’t a QQ-post, I am leveling my warrior in this very moment, gotta test this out! Lol

Loco.4561:

I’ve watched this video and I just don’t get, how much damage you can put out compared to your survivability AND mobility on top of that, it just looks…broken. I rarely play my warrior, but I understand how to play one, but it still looks broken and in need of adjustment. What other profession can put out that kind of damage and still be that sturdy with the mobility to escape when needs be?

mompen.7952:

Cool video. Makes me wonder tho, why should I even bother playing my thief again, warrior are apparently the kings of burst, with little risk (you makes it look easy tho, since you are a good player) with this build I don’t have to think about ever healing, and no need to cloak and dagger for stealth and backstab for “high damage” (5-7k, depending on squishy or not) this build chains that dmg easily really fast.
This isn’t a QQ-post, I am leveling my warrior in this very moment, gotta test this out! Lol

haha , The grass always looks greener on the other side.

this is a high risk high reward build, actually you can see it in the video sustain is out of the window, time is your enemy you have to end fights quickly.

well warrior never got back plans like stealth, teleports or defensive boons so its understandable for his mobility, although its still inferior to other classes in-battle mobility despite warrior is considered a heavy melee profession, also its the most telegraphed profession, in a serious skilled duel the warrior is almost not viable at all.

the fact is that you are seeing a video of a good player.

This build may have fallen out of favor, but has pretty much always been strong. I have beent thinking of gearing up a slightly tankier version of it ever since the April 15th patch made it so easy to swap builds on the fly.

This leads to three questions:

1. Why not use the shield recharge reduction instead of Defy Pain? You use shield skills a lot in your video, but only rarely proc Defy Pain.

2. Do you think this build work work with a mix of knights in armor? I often roam with knights in head, legs, and chest… and zerker’s everywhere else. Some builds just don’t seem to work if you don’t have every last shread in the offense.

3. How many stacks of might do you think you get from of the Strength Sigil? I am having a hard time letting go of the extra dodge from an Energy Sigil.

Any feedback is appreciated.

this build isnt THAT good of a roaming build, because a condi build will wreck you. you would have to massively outplay a condi thief or mesmer for instance to come out on top.

though it is a great build if you’re running with a group, where they can cleanse for you.

having a couple knights pieces of fine, as long as you are mostly zerker.

What is the point of this build over any dedicated Greatsword or Axe build? Greatsword is useless as a weapon without lockdown, and your only lockdown is in the form of Bull’s Charge.

I swapped some stuff out over earlier and gave it a go, the lag I had didn’t help but I had fun, I must say though, change out at least one utility for zerker stance if you know they are condi-heavy ^^

Ravenicus.1385:

YESS I absolutely love your builds and I’ve been waiting for so long for you to finally update it. yay!

Sorry for the wait and Thanks for the support!

wads.5730:

being dps war and not having reckless dodge is a waste,

just use vigor on stance for your vigor uptime instead

Reckless dodge is a nice trait, but I see it more useful in sPvP than WvW because you are mostly fighting on a point rather than roaming around. Vigor on stances is a really great trait choice too. But I just personally love Warrior Sprint as it goes so well with having 2 melee weapon sets. And the permanent 25% movement speed allows for overall greater mobility and not having to worry about it being stolen/stripped from you if you happen to stack swiftness.

Juba.8406:

^^^

i think fury uptime is better in this case, anyway Great video as always.

Thanks Juba!

Dee Jay.2460:

I’ve played the same build with slightly different traits since I don’t really get the point of going 30 points into Defense. I mean the 10% Toughness conversion is useless with Berserker gear and Defy Pain, while nice, is it really worth the sacrifice?

Wouldn’t Forceful Greatsword be much better? Especially with Hoelbrak Runes? More liberal cooldowns, more Might uptime, higher Precision etc.

Maybe I’m undervaluing Defy Pain but if it is so good, why do you run without the stance?

Also while I find the build enjoyable in general, it’s annoying how a single competent D/P Thief basically hard-counters to to the point you can’t ever hit him. But I guess this is less of an issue with -60% condition duration.

Armor Attack Trait has some stat return when you invest further into the defense line (gaining about 140 power with the 10% conversion). I don’t have much use for the Forceful Greatsword Trait personally because I stay in Axe to keep the constant pressure and mainly use my greatsword either to kite or to keep up with my target. Having 2 sources of stability allows me to stay on my target without worrying about being controlled and it also helps with fighting specs that run perplexity runes. Also, what I really like about Defy Pain Trait is I can stay aggressive as possible within the fight even when my utilities are on cool downs, and knowing I have a passive endure pain to mitigate damage. And when it activates, that’s my signal is back off for a bit.

matthen.5024:

This build may have fallen out of favor, but has pretty much always been strong. I have beent thinking of gearing up a slightly tankier version of it ever since the April 15th patch made it so easy to swap builds on the fly.

This leads to three questions:

1. Why not use the shield recharge reduction instead of Defy Pain? You use shield skills a lot in your video, but only rarely proc Defy Pain.

2. Do you think this build work work with a mix of knights in armor? I often roam with knights in head, legs, and chest… and zerker’s everywhere else. Some builds just don’t seem to work if you don’t have every last shread in the offense.

3. How many stacks of might do you think you get from of the Strength Sigil? I am having a hard time letting go of the extra dodge from an Energy Sigil.

Any feedback is appreciated.

1) I have run Defy Pain trait for a very long time and have grown to really love the trait. It is mainly just a matter of personal preference. Shield Master is a nice alternative too.

2) You can run mix knights gear too if you feel the need to build more toughness. I just like to have the most amount of critical damage possible so that’s why I run full berserker.

3) So far I have tested, I have gain up to 10 stacks from Sigil of strength alone (lasting 13 sec on critical with hoelbrak runes). Thats if you have really good RNG and it procs every second, but in an average fight I get around 4-5 might stacks before swapping to my Greatsword. I don’t need an energy Sigil because I have an evade on the #3 on Greatsword. But run whatever works for you because there is no one way to play the game.

Larynx.2453:

What is the point of this build over any dedicated Greatsword or Axe build? Greatsword is useless as a weapon without lockdown, and your only lockdown is in the form of Bull’s Charge.

First of all, this is just a fun roaming build I use for WvW currently and I just wanted to share my experience with it so far. Secondly, the Greatsword is not a useless weapon without lockdown. Maybe in your eyes, but in my opinion, it a mobile weapon that can deal decent damage with whirlwind attack(#3), bladetrail(#4) if you are able to hit the target twice adds a long cripple and if traited with leg specialist it can be look at as a control skill, and rush(#5) (when its not buggy) hits like a truck when you land a critical and its handy when you need to disengage. Also, you can use arcing slice to remove conditions (with cleansing ire)/gain fury, and a lot of people take the #3 on Greatsword for granted since its also an evade. Lastly, I don’t need that much lockdown since I can deal a high amount of damage within a short period. The bull’s charge utility choice is to set up the eviscerate, a 100b or a disengage if I fall into desperation. Bull’s charge is personally one of my favorite utility overall regardless if it bugs out sometimes.

Natsu Dragneel.1625:

I swapped some stuff out over earlier and gave it a go, the lag I had didn’t help but I had fun, I must say though, change out at least one utility for zerker stance if you know they are condi-heavy ^^

Glad to hear ^^

Korruptkai.8527:

First of all, this is just a fun roaming build I use for WvW currently and I just wanted to share my experience with it so far. Secondly, the Greatsword is not a useless weapon without lockdown. Maybe in your eyes, but in my opinion, it a mobile weapon that can deal decent damage with whirlwind attack(#3), bladetrail(#4) if you are able to hit the target twice adds a long cripple and if traited with leg specialist it can be look at as a control skill, and rush(#5) (when its not buggy) hits like a truck when you land a critical and its handy when you need to disengage. Also, you can using arcing slice to removing conditions (with cleansing ire)/gain fury, and a lot of people take the #3 on Greatsword for granted since its also an evade. Lastly, I don’t need that much lockdown since I can deal a high amount of damage within a short period. The bull’s charge utility choice is to set up the eviscerate, a 100b or a disengage if I fall into desperation. Bull’s charge is personally one of my favorite utility overall regardless if it bugs out sometimes.

This is exactly why I agree with another poster about dropping Defy Pain, and getting Forceful Greatsword instead.

I also tried both, and while I see your point in Defy Pain being a wake-up call to you, it is IMO far inferior.

Forceful GS has insane synergy with the might stacking theme of this build. If you manage to do a HB on a locked down target (2 seconds is enough, so initiating with bull’s would already be good), you could potentially be looking at 15 to as much as 25 might stacks after. Even more so if there are multiple targets to HB on. Cleaving downed targets for instance. Now swap to Axe, shield bash and Evis with 3500 power…

Furthermore, reduced cooldown on GS is huge. Especially on whirlwind.

Don’t forget, 20 points in Arms also increase your crit chance further (5%), and the 15 point minor nets you an additional 10% crit chance on Eviscerate.

Still, like you said, it is all a matter of personal preference. Your vids made me want to get back to Axe Shield/GS, and it is still so much fun. Still gets destroyed by any capable condition thief, but nobody likes rotten cheese anyway.

matthen.5024:

2. Do you think this build work work with a mix of knights in armor? I often roam with knights in head, legs, and chest… and zerker’s everywhere else. Some builds just don’t seem to work if you don’t have every last shread in the offense.

This build needs full zerk IMO. A prolonged fight is not in your interest (long CD’s on utilities, low EHP, etc). That’s why you want max damage.

If you are having problems with DP thief, use berserker stance. It’s hilarious how most of the time they don’t notice it and think they are safe inside that black powder.

Great video once again, lots of effort into the opening and editing itself with the good game plays, keep them coming.