Guild Wars 2

Despite all the negative attention Necros get, I find the class to be a blast to play.

Starting off with I play almost exclusively PvE…
I can say I rarely die to any mob. There were many times I have solo killed a T4 fractal boss. Not saying other classes can’t, but I can’t do out on other classes lol. The survivability is just amazing. Yeah we are slow, but you get used it to ( yeah mounts! ). And sure, we have no escape mechanics, but I’m a Reaper of Grenth… I don’t run. And, I played Condi before it was the cool thing.

Guess I’m just a Necro at heart.

I have not made many Legendary items, only 2 to be exact. Ad Infinitium is almost always on my main… I can think of about 2 days that I did not display the back, but that is it. The other Legendary I made was Kraitkin, and I love that skin. I main a Condi Necro, so I never change weapons underwater, always a trident. Personally, I don’t think any of the Legendary weapons fit the style of my Necro, thus I have not made them. I use Teq’s Sunless Weapons, and don’t plan on changing them anytime soon (unless a similar themed Legendary comes out).

I have at least one level 80 of each class, then a few extras… I think 14-15 characters in total. I don’t see them as a waste, even though I almost exclusively play one character. All of the classes that have multiple characters, all have different builds. They are fun, and changing up the play style is always good. Besides…. Fashion Wars!

Hey guys,

So, I have been testing Plaguelands in PvE for a bit, and was wondering what everyone’s opinion was, strictly PvE though. I play a Condi Viper build, and I can say that if I get stuff to stand in the field for the duration, it is nice. But, that can be really challenging sometimes. Also, I tend to agree with most people about it being either a ground target field, or pulsing from the caster to make it mobile. Not that I think the ground target would solve the problem of mobs moving out of the field… but it would allow us better placement.

As far as Epidemic goes, I enjoy the animation… I think it is very visually appealing… But for PvE purposes, I feel it should cast faster, and snapshot all the condi on the target when it hits… At least it does not seem to do this (but I have not tested this extensively). Also, I have not experienced any reflects or dodges (being PvE), but that should not happen. At least in PvE, it should not be able to be prevented in any way, once the original Epidemic hits the target.

Either way, any thoughts, or some play styles that might be different to better cater to these skills? Maybe something that is new and fresh? (we can only hope, right?)

Gonna chime in on this one….

I don’t use YouTube for much. I will use it to find the entrance of a JP (if I can’t find a location on the wiki), and recently find the rout for the newer JPs, as they do not have any logical pathing (which is something I don’t really like). I really like the Jumping Puzzles that I can see where I have to go, and figure out how to get there. Kind of like the one in the Fractal Hub, even the Aetherblade one. But EB and now DM have some very ambiguous path which is not as much of a jumping puzzle as it is a “where do I go” puzzle.

I would love to see more variety myself. Personally, I like the idea of taming pets, not trying to steal from other games…. But either way, I would like to see the ability to get almost any mob (that would make sense) as a pet. In other words, you can’t tame a Pirate, or Teq… But I would also love to see more exclusive and rare skins on pets. Either gated behind a series of missions, or just rare spawns throughout the world. Maybe a system that “evolves” your pet after you have played with them for so long. Pets can be a pain, and too much emphasis could lead to people feeling like it is the only spec for Rangers, but after all, a pet is the best companion a Ranger has.

I would also suggest the Ranger or Necro for PvE. Both classes can solo most world-encountered events, even champs, with very little problems (I am better on the Necro than the Ranger though). As other has mentioned, a Thief is fast and easy to do map completion, along with killing mobs rather quickly. Guardian will have a nice amount of sustain if you build it tanky, and allow for easy PvE as well.

You could really take any class and have a not-terrible time in PvE, just have to approach stuff differently, play the class to its strengths.

Yep, I am jumping on this bandwagon and saying I really enjoyed this as well. I wish there were more quest-like stuff in GW2. I would love to see less focus on Gold Sinks and more emphasis on world exploration and events. The world is fantastic, but we experience so little after map completion because we have no reason to venture back. More stuff like this will bring people to the far reaches of Tyria in search for collection pieces for new things, which is just awesome. I can’t wait for the next round.

As others have mentioned, a lot depends on your play style and what you enjoy. I have played a Condi Necro since the first month of the game, and haven’t changed since. “Fun” and “Challenging” are both perspective words in this context, so it will depend on what your looking for.

Squishy, High DPS, Complex Rotations:
As others have mentioned, The Engineer can have very complex rotations if your looking to achieve a min/max status with your character. I find them challenging to play in that perspective, but generally, they are fun because you can do so many things. Also, the Elementalist is a lot of fun, again very squishy but having high damage potential and group support. I would recommend trying the Elementalist as Dagger / Dagger and also as Staff, see which appeals to you, as they both are very different styles. Also, the Thief is a blast and has lots of escape mechanics, like stealth and teleports. Again, very squishy if build for pure DPS. But Dagger / Dagger, Pistol / Pistol, or really any combination of Sword, Pistol and Dagger are a lot of fun, but don’t forget to bring a Shortbow as it is great for thieves and mobility.

Teamplay, Support, “Healing”, Tanky:
This area is very broad as classes like the Elementalist fall in here, Mesmers can fall in here as well. Both of them are squishy and can be complex in nature (both with rotations and changing skills for situations). But, if this area is where you find fun, you might want to consider the Guardian. They offer some boons, reflects, and can be rather tank-like (but in return, your personal DPS is lower). Also, the other plate classes (Warrior and Revenant) can offer similar (and sometimes better) group support through boons, might in particular.

/Sleep, Semi AFK, #still-awesome:
If this is what your looking for, and find fun, you might want to stick with a Ranger, or try out a Necro. Granted, this title is meant to be joking, but it does hold some truth. If you play any class with pets, open world PvE will be significantly easier. To help put it in perspective, I have a Minion Necromancer that is build with Soldiers and Clerics gear, I can stand AFK next to many, many mobs, and they will never bring me below 80% before they die (Vet. Vinetooths in AB just for an example). I could go around and give you more, but I would have to test it (and quite frankly, it is irrelevant in the grand scheme).

Rundown-Quick version of all this:
As people have said, there are so many things about each class that is both fun and challenging. Different game modes provide different challenges. I would first look at where you want to be in the fight, up close hacking and slashing, or casting spells. Maybe you want both? But once you figure out where you want to be, and the style you like best, you will find the class you should enjoy. Try them all, they are all fun and have many different builds and styles. Your not confined to a meta build if you want to do dungeons. There are many, many, many people that don’t mind if your running something not meta (me being one), because we love playing the game, and seeing others share that same love. At the end game, when your looking into raids and T4 fractals, then worry about Meta-builds and optimal class stuff, until then, enjoy the ride on any class you pick.

Yeah, I agree with you Danikat.8537. I would love to order them in a very similar manner. But, I also understand that the priority of this is so low, like below cosmetic low, that it will probably never happen. But, we can only dream….

Yeah, this is not the first time I have seen this over the past ~5 years lol. But, we can only hope…

So, I hate to compare games, but other games allow you to change the order that your characters are displayed (in the character select window), and keep them in that order. This is something I would love to have here in Guild Wars. I like having my main characters in the front (far left side), even when I decide to play one of my… not-so-played characters. I am not sure the amount of work it would take to accomplish this, but it is something I would like.

Welcome Back!
Being a Necro, you have a lot of suitability when it comes to sustain (Shroud and naturally high Health).

Because of that, I would suggest Berserker’s armor for most power based PvE builds. As far as weapons goes, I like GS and Staff. The reason for Staff being it provides ranged if you can’t get close. You could also go Axe for some Ranged if your running with a GS.

If you looking to play Conditions, Vipers is great for PvE. You could run Sinister’s, or even Rabid to get started, Rabid being the easiest. I would suggest running Scepter / Dagger as a primary set. Scepter allows for constant condition application.

But, as with most classes, I would play around with all the different weapons first. If you find yourself liking the Dagger, run a power build. Or, if you really like Scepter, run a Condi build. Weapons are specific to the types of builds, so find what you love and build it. As for Armor, it is the same way. If your playing a Condi build, look at armor that has Condition dmg as its primary stat, then decide what is most important, precision, toughness, vitality….

As others have said, if you want a popular build, look at metabattle. That will give you plenty of information relating to the specific builds.

While I do agree that most of what you get as drops, even at level 80, are salvage food. The mats are more valuable than most gear drops, even the Exotics. But, this game isn’t about the gear drops, and someone can level a character through exploration, dungeons, events and whatever other means they want, and still be able to function and have fun. In the end, it is about looks, achievements, and the challenging end game content, or any mix of this that interest you. Gear is cheap compared to mats. Someone could salvage everything not usable by their class and sell the mats, in turn buy gear from the trading post that is viable for their current level. Although, you could get gear every 20 levels and still have little to no problems.

I would love to have Character slots go on sale, along with bringing back the unlimited harvesting minions. They are typically offered around Halloween, but would like to see them well before then.

I don’t have an exact amount, but about 55g… I used to maintain about 400g, then worked on Ad Infinitium and Kraitkin, along with helping friends with Legendary Weapons. I also have about… 70g or so in my personal guild bank, saving for the commander tag! (I should have bought it a long time ago lol). But, where my Wallet shines is I always stay over 5 million Karma. I rarely spend it, and seem to get a lot. This is after completing both of my Legendary items and having over 200 OB shards. Karma is my friend!

Fun post btw.

I play a Viper Necro… but I am a little bias seeing as I have played the same character since Guild Wars 2 launched. I don’t have a problem with PuG groups (typically) and do just fine with our guild groups. There are times (although rare considering how many fractals I do) when I am left to solo the last 10% – 20% of a boss, which usually ends up in me winning the battle.

I guess the best advice anyone could give would be to play what you love playing. You will always do your best. Most of the stuff is not a DPS race, but rather following mechanics.

The thing about Servers and Guilds are, everything is merged. In my guild, we are all over the world. Granted, we are a small family style guild, and play together when we overlap time. It can be hard to find a bunch of people that play in your time frame, unless you play the same times every day.

The best advice anyone can give would be to join people that you enjoy having around and by your side while you explore Tyria. This alone will change your gaming experience.

@Ashantara.8731,
By far the best Legendary (IMO) is Ad Infinitium. You can change the stats without any repercussions. After making Ad Infinitium, I decided to work on Kraitkin, only because it won’t change stats on my Necro, being a Condi weapon, it will always contain a condi stat combo.

I believe that to be part of the concept behind stat changing. For example, a Thief can run Valk, Assassin, Berserker, or some other weapon stat combo. All of them would still classify as Power in nature. It allows for some stat building flexibility, being able to change your weapon.

Switching the weapon to a different profession, or min/max your character is a different story though. As others have mentioned, if you need a particular stat and sigil combo for your build, then you have to keep it the way it is. But, if you branch out a bit, and stay within the realms of your sigils (Power / Condi / Healing / Whatever….), you have a weapon that allows for some diversity.

@ Linthenius.3704,
There is a lot of collecting to do now that you reached level 80. As others have mentioned, I would start with obtaining a full set of Exotic gear. Also, I would start working on crafting so you can make ascended one day. If you love a particular class, I would get 100% map completion with that class.

As you get some ascended trinkets and gear, you can start working on the higher levels of fractals. Right now, you can go through the first 15 or so with no Agony Resistance.

If your a collector, there are tons and tons of weapon and armor skins to collect. Not to mention, tons of achievements to work on. Complete all of your story missions on the character you plan on getting 100% map completion. Doing that alone will allow you access to everywhere in the game, pretty much.

Find a friendly guild (I can help you there if your interested), and group with some people for Dungeons and Fractals.

If your not set on a particular class, explore other class options. But most of all, have fun doing whatever it is you enjoy doing. Don’t let tasks discourage you, and ask your guild and friends for help. The community in guild wars is generally better than most MMOs (there is always at least one bad apple). Things like Jumping Puzzles are some people’s bane, but others (like myself) love doing Jumping Puzzles, and do them frequently for guild members and friends who despise them.

Hey guys, I have been working on my Rangers, getting geared for T4 Fractals. I typically run a Necro in T4, but wanted some diversity in playstyle. I have full Viper Armor and Shortbow, Magi Staff and I am still trying to decided on Trinkets. Would it be viable to run Shaman’s or Magi Trinkets and play a Condi / Healer Hybrid? Or possibly run 2 Rings Shaman and the rest Viper? I want to still be viable as a DPS, but add some support healing if needed. Is there a magic Healing Power value?

Thanks~

This is what I had in mind, prior to the post. Of Course the skills are changeable, fight dependent.
Condi Fractal Support
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Yeah Fay, you were correct on your first line. I play a Viper Necro in T4s, but was looking for some more variety. I main the Necro, and have played it since launch. Unfortunately, because I really only play Necro (more than half my play time on one character), its the only class I have geared for T4 fractals.

I was hoping there was a secret, hidden T4 Condi build for the Mesmer, but it’s okay. I will gear a support power build from Metabattle and run that.

Ad Infinitium… Not only is it awesome, but it is rewarding after putting in all the challenging aspects in obtaining the back piece.

While I am not convinced Mounts would be a good thing… I have been waiting for the housing concept for a while. I played EQ2 (a long time ago) and their housing system was good. Probably my favorite part was earning trophies to display in your house, by killing mass amounts of an enemy, collecting pieces. Guild Wars 2 already has the collections in place, along with the decorations aspect introduced in Guild Halls. Although, I would like to see the housing be instance based, but possibly some more quest-like stories in obtaining houses. Even if they were similar to the guild hall captures (which are amazing). There are so many great ideas and concepts already in place, just have to apply them to the housing idea. Although, this takes time, and with all that the guild wars team is doing and accomplishing, I can wait until they get around to it.

I expected that answer. I will have to wait on the Condi Mes for Fractals then. I will just play the Power one. I like Sword anyways~

Thanks~

Hey guys, I am looking to make a Fractal Condi build, but having trouble finding something. I typically run my Necro in T4s and wanted to gear both a Ranger and Mesmer for T4 as well. I already have a Power based Mesmer and would love to play Condi. Is there a viable T4 Fractal Condi build atm? If so, could someone please point me in the right direction or post a link?

@Adry.7512
I can understand your frustration. Also, I know people have different perceptions on… well, everything. Personally, I encountered very little trouble with PuGing my Ad Infinitium. Although, most of the time I was in a majority guild party (typically at least 3 of us). But some of the collections, like Mai Trin 98 Timed, I did in a PuG group. What people are saying is correct though, if you put in your LFG your going for Time or Challenge, only the people that know what that is typically join. A few could even be on that phase. It did take me 2 attempts at the Jade to get the timed mote. The biggest thing is that everyone understands you have to not miss a throw. If you are having trouble, send me a tell, or mail, in game and I am always down for helping with fractals.

Very awesome. I have always liked to be on the nice list, personally. I was thinking about finding an armor combination to have a festive character… I mean, you gotta look good while jumping on snowflakes!

I would like to see some alternatives to the glowing auras, other than having to put an upgrade into an exotic piece of armor. For example, if I wanted to use Nightfury, I apply that skin to my piece of armor, which is great. But, if I wanted to use the aura of the preserved Queen Bee, I would have to wear an exotic piece of gear. This is a problem because many people work hard to obtain ascended, only to not be able to apply these auras to their best gear. As far as a fix, maybe some form of Mystic Forge recipe that will add the effect to a +10 Agony Infusion, or something of that nature. Possibly an extra slot on all amulets that is specifically for aura items.

When I ran power, I didn’t have many problems with survivability. It is definitely a play style difference and does require a faster reaction time, in some situations. I was playing a power minion build, so they added to the survivability.

Although, I have to add, I main spec Conditions; the build i mentioned above is what i use.

I use a variation of the Viper Horror build.

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?vRAQJArYnM0AV3gN3AebCs3gliBT6DEC6ARBgBQCIuHWETiA-TxRAQBtRJYA1DQhHAAAOBA9Y/Bxo8Liq/AA-e

That is the variation I use for everything really. Although…. I might switch to all Vipers and Thorn runes eventually.

But on topic, I have no problems with any story missions or open world content. I am rarely downed, unless (like others have said) I am just not paying attention, watching TV, wife and/or kids talking to me, the usual. I really believe the best builds are the ones you have a feel for playing. There are quite a few conditions in Bloodstone Fen. The biggest one I have found is the stacking confusion. not attacking when you have 15 stacks is crucial for survival.

Thanks @Jerus.4350. That brings up another thought. I was thinking about just replacing the 20% bleed for 20% poison. How much dmg does poison account for (roughly) in our condition builds?

Hey guys, trying to maximize my build and dps, like most of us, and developed some questions. Currently I am sitting around 40% critical, full Viper armor, Krait runes, Rabid trinkets, viper weapons. I have over 100% bleed durration (trying to maximise the wasted stats). But I use Sigil of Earth and Bleed 20%.

I believe I could drop the 20% and still maintain 100% bleed, but I thought about replacing both sigils with Condition dmg 6% and condition durration 10% (forgot the names… malice and…) my question then is, will I lose or gain dps based off the sigil of earth bleeds, or will the 6% condition dmg make up for it? This is all assuming I maintain the 100% bleed durration, and other factors remain the same.

I would love to see the Tireless Harvesting Tool, Tireless Logging Tool and Bone Pick added back into the mix of unlimited gathering tools.

Hey everyone, Does anyone know when the last time the Tireless Harvesting Minion, Bone Pick and Tireless Logging Minion gathering tools were in the Gem store? I have been watching and waiting for their return, but I have either missed it, or they have not made an appearance. They would fit my Necromancer perfectly! Thanks~

My gaming philosophy might be different than most. I do agree with what you are saying. I know for the masses the rarity factor of weapons is enticing, but my views are not based on rarity. So, giving the question of “why you want it in the first place” applies purely to my own cosmetic aesthetics. Playing a Necromancer in Arah armor, dyed black and green, the Sunless weapons would look great. Had I found another armor I liked more, and different colors, I would gravitate towards a different weapon. But that is just me.

Ultimately I know where your coming from and I’m no stranger to MMO games (been playing them since Vanilla Everquest), but there has to be a system that works in everyone’s favor. Maybe gated behind achievements and kills. Even if it is a one-time you-pick reward for your efforts, at least all the kills and struggles would not be in vain.

I understand where your coming from, and I do agree with some of it. Triple Trouble is by far the hardest of the current world bosses (thinking of Teq, TT, and Shatterer). That is why I mentioned it having a higher reward. Also, there are tons of other skins available in the game, I was just mentioned the world boss ones.

But along the same lines of “those skins are thematically tied to a piece of content specifically designed to be repeated,” people repeat world bosses every day, like someone would do with a dungeon, for a reward. The dungeon is just scaled to be faster and more efficient at the token farm.

I have to disagree with “token systems do not create fun loot systems” though. Again, I was referring to world boss drops specifically. Tokens allow players to work towards a reward, instead of facing the chances of never progressing. They bypassed the almost-impossible drop chances of precursors by setting up a scavenger hunt system. This token idea is along the same lines. Even if it was boss specific, killing Teq 200 times (just using a number) should allow you some progress towards a weapon.

Agemnon.4608:

I know this raises the issues of hoarding the currency and spending it when new skins are implemented.

Why is that an issue? A problem with WoW honor is you can’t save it for the next season. If you played enough to earn 1,000 tokens why shouldn’t you have them?

The problems I would see is if there was a generic currency for world bosses, then they revamp or add a new one with special drops, people could just buy the drops/skins the first day. I do agree though that if you earn the tokens, you should be able to keep them. But setting a cap would encourage people to buy the skins (for an example) as they reached the cap. Then they could collect more for another.

So, as I killed Teq for the… however many times, I started thinking, “I wish Teq just dropped a token of sorts. Then after i collected like 100 tokens I could trade them in for one of his Sunless weapons.” So, I am bringing this idea to the table. I imagine it has been mentioned before, but for the people like me, with no drop luck, this would be a fantastic addition. In fact, I have not gotten a single ascended chest drop, ever. I also have a lvl 80 of each class, So it’s not like I am new to the game either (around 13k achievement points).

So, back on topic, a generic currency for all world bosses (just the revamped) would be nice. So you might get one for Teq, three for Triple,Trouble (based on the number of heads), and one for Shatterer. Even based on possibly obtaining 5 per day, and them costing 100, that would be 20 days to get a piece. Or maybe make it 150 per, which would up to to 30 days. For a casual player like myself, I would be looking at a few months to get one weapon. But, at least every kill I knew I was getting closer to finally obtaining it. As it stands right now, I might never get them.

Another thought, the purchased items could also be just the skin. This would allow for the actual weapon to remain part of the drop, but at least gives the chance to unlock the skin for boss exclusive weapons.

I know this raises the issues of hoarding the currency and spending it when new skins are implemented. Maybe a cap could be placed. So, you would only be able to hold 150, which would get you one skin piece.

But, that’s just my thoughts as I wait for the reset to kill Teq again…

lol @wetwillyhip.7254
Interpret it how you wish =) Maybe you make a similar pose when your reading chat, or looking at daily’s, or maybe you have been in LA so long crafting you just can’t take it anymore.

Have you ever been in Lion’s Arch, just sitting there and all of a sudden felt like…

Hey guys, I am a casual player seeking a guild with some active people. I would like to get in on some guild missions and would love to participate in WvW nights (EST here). If there are any guilds like this still alive, I would love to join you all.

Happy Wintersday! See you guys at the top of the Jumping Puzzle!

Didn’t read everyone’s post but…
I have to say, I much prefer the way GW2 works over other MMO games. The only things I would change / add would be:

Legendary Weapons need less crafting and more questing. Something like how Everquest did their Epic weapons. The Specific collections are on track to a GW2 take on EQ’s Eipic Weapons, except maybe put some required pieces behind quests. Or make a long quest chain that gives you pieces as you go. I am no programmer, so I am not sure how or if its even possible, seeing as the quest would have to be progressive and character specific.

Mini-Pets, Do something with them. WoW uses the Pokemon idea, basically. I am not saying we should have Pokemon in GW2, or am I? I think it could be cool to battle pets, even just a 2v2 or something. We have a plethora of other mini-games that we can do, why not add a pet battling one.

I believe most games could use re-balancing when new things are implemented. One thing I would like to see is something you mentioned about sigils and runes. I like the idea of 10% dmg vs …… But, it is not really useful. There was a post somewhere I read about making dungeons useful. like, giving them specific rewards that only come from them. Skins, Weps, whatever…. If something changed where running dungeons was common again, there might be a use for such sigils again. Also Runes… I am not even sure how they could make most of the sets viable. I like the ideas on some of them, but they just don’t have a place in the game yet. A lot of this comes from the min/max mentality though. Everyone wants to play the top tier build and people expect you to play that build. If I played a Scepter/Dagger Power (???) Necro with Snowfall Runes (people use these?!?!), you would question my sanity.

I am still working on my sets. I have the worst luck with drops. I have been wanting the Teq weapons for so long and can’t get them. But, I am working on crafting them. Accessories and Bank are from the places others have mentioned though.

Yeah, I don’t remember seeing it. I took a little break, only logging in for rewards just before HoT came out. I don’t remember seeing it there either, but I could have missed it. I guess I kinda expected more storage sales to come with HoT because of the amount of new stuff we are/will be getting.

Didn’t read everyone’s post but….

I like what has been done with GW2. Then again, I have a good gaming computer that can handle the game perfectly. So, I don’t lag and I have no problems with Jumping Puzzles, in fact they are some of my fav things to do. Also, I wish there was a house system. I like the idea of the home instance, and all the upgrades you can earn for it. If there was a Housing option where you could build/buy your house and collect stuff for it, i would be more inclined to purchase the stone that TPs you to your Home Instance.

With regards to the new Maps, I enjoy them also. This probably goes back to being able to play without lag, but I find the maps to be fun and challenging. I mean, there is nothing challenging about running around Orr. At the same time, I understand the frustration in Map completion because it took me forever to get one point due to me having to wait until nightfall to take the helicopter to the canopy, then falling a bunch trying to get there.

I mostly play solo, so some of the challenges are rough when a Champion mob jumps out that I have to kill in 6 mins. Part of me wants it to scale to the people involved because this could be almost impossible for some people, but part of me likes the challenge. Most people jump in and help kill stuff anyways. Also, most of the time when I am solo, I am working on Map Completion, which is done solo anyways.

The downside. This is probably where everyone starts reading. Because of the nature of the events, unless you have a mass of people you will fail. This forces players to “taxi” people into the instance of the zone and hope everyone knows what is going on. To be honest, I am not sure how this could be done differently because if they scale down, people won’t want to have other join because the risk of failure will be higher as it scales. I guess we just hope to get in a good map that is organized and follow along.

Anyone have a guess as to when we might expect to see a sale on Bank Tabs? I could really use a few… I wish they would just put the tabs on sale, and not bundle it like they did the Inventory Bag slots. Is it to much to ask for just a sale on the slots?!?! =P