Guild Wars 2

Gambit.8425:

I’m pretty sure most have separate PvE and WvW characters, cause traits and gear usually differs anyway and some professions are better at one than the other. But if you really want one for everything I’d say Guardian. Above average at everything; PvE, WvW and tPvP, and you can basically use the same setup for the first two.

Elementalist would be my second choice or first if I preferred ranged combat, but they can just as well go melee with two daggers as you probably already know. Warrior and Thief would be my picks after that, simply because Warrior PvE DPS is ahead everyone else’s and Thief is hilariously OP in WvW.

Avoid Mesmer, Necromancer and Ranger or you’ll end up disappointed again.

Necromancers haven’t been nerfed or buffed, and they have a lot of bugs since release that Anet doesn’t fix. They are just sub-par at everything imho, Engineer is a better conditioner for example. Elementalists are still OP, all they did was tweak the DD spec a bit, and you have the option to go staff and be the best zerg badge hogger and siege demolisher out of all professions.

Do thieves have anything to contribute to a zerg, or are they pretty much only for roaming alone? It seems like that would be much less efficient, but then again I’ve never tried it.

I’m definitely looking at a staff elementalist now, as well.

kyro.8162:

Elementalists are amazing in zerg v zerg using a staff (static field is a insanely powerful zerg stopper)
Guardians are good for sucking up the damage with lots of stability and wall of reflection
Warriors are good frontlines as well with shouts or banners providing good group support
Mesmers can make all the difference with portals, veils, and timewarp, feedback is also nice
Necros can break zergs with their marks and plague

I’ve been looking around for stuff about necromancers and elementalists, and all I’ve seen has been complaining about being over-nerfed. Is that just groundless whining? When I left, necromancers seemed to be in a pretty rough place, and elementalists couldn’t make up their mind.

I am planning on returning for the first time in a couple months, after my motivation was killed by trying to make my Engineer work.

I want to be able to contribute to group stuff in WvW rather than only roaming around on my own, and I’d really rather not be a class that isn’t taken along to any PvE stuff. WvW will probably be what I do most of the time, but I’d like to be able to mix it up.

I have been reading any post I can find on these forums, and nobody seems to be able to agree on anything.

Does anyone have any class suggestions? I just don’t have the time nowadays to level up everything to see what’s worth it, and I’m tired of picking classes in MMOs that take a ton of work to even be average (Engineer always looked like my favorite, but no dice).

Thanks in advance. Crossing my fingers that stuff is different!

Dezarys.1372:

Classic.9174:

I’ve spent hours trying to find a definitive answer, or at least enough information to think of one myself, but there’s too much beating around the bush.

I want to make a character that is still valuable in dungeons and WvW by the time I hit level 80, and is able to be built in multiple ways without sacrificing effectiveness overall, semi-dedicated support included (healing/boons, etc.). I’ve narrowed it down to Elementalist and Warrior. I’d somewhat prefer to do Elementalist, but I can’t find anyone willing to just lay out the problems the class may or may not have without just repeating that if you “learn to play better” then you’ll be “fine.”

I’m too limited on time to just play both, so I’d prefer to sink time into the right one. Will being an Elementalist shoehorn me into a single role that requires a disproportionate effort to contribute as much as a Warrior? Don’t sugarcoat it, please.

Thank you in advance.

I will give a summary of my thoughts and then my answer.

Elementalist:

Pro:
Excellent class. Great Range, AoEs, Damage, Support. Wonderful in Huge WvW Battles and Defending. Great For Dungeon Support. Healing, CC, Damage. Perfect for roaming.

Con:
Squishy. Not much single target damage. Other classes can still deal more dmg than elem.

Warrior:

Pro:
Takes more damage than elementalist. Deals way more damage than elementalist. You can be in the front lines killing things and be in the thick of battle instead of hiding back a bit. You can kill players in 5 seconds tops. AoE Rez, Shouts and Regen Depending on Build.

Con:
Most of their amazing damage is single target use (AoE If near). Bow seems so boring on Warrior. It’s more fun spreading out the damage if you can. Even as Heavy Armor Class they are still a tad bit squishy. Even a Power/Well Necro Build can top off a Warrior.

And my Final Answer:

Elementalist.

They have great range and support skills. Healing people and dealing AoE CC and Damage. Roll with a Staff. After my expereience in WvW Dagger Dagger is fun, but Staff is really the way to go. Dagger Dagger is more a pvp thing.

Oh and +1 Good Answer this if this helped your decision. Haha, I’d like to know if you decided to roll with what I suggested.

It’s definitely something I’m considering. Honestly unless the next few people all tell me about how bad the Elementalist is, I’ll probably roll one.

I’ve spent hours trying to find a definitive answer, or at least enough information to think of one myself, but there’s too much beating around the bush.

I want to make a character that is still valuable in dungeons and WvW by the time I hit level 80, and is able to be built in multiple ways without sacrificing effectiveness overall, semi-dedicated support included (healing/boons, etc.). I’ve narrowed it down to Elementalist and Warrior. I’d somewhat prefer to do Elementalist, but I can’t find anyone willing to just lay out the problems the class may or may not have without just repeating that if you “learn to play better” then you’ll be “fine.”

I’m too limited on time to just play both, so I’d prefer to sink time into the right one. Will being an Elementalist shoehorn me into a single role that requires a disproportionate effort to contribute as much as a Warrior? Don’t sugarcoat it, please.

Thank you in advance.

coglin.1496:

Classic.9174:

I appreciate the idea of versatility, but isn’t that most valuable when you can swap between two roles on the fly? Is that viable for Engineers? Because being able to do anything at an average level isn’t that beneficial if you still have to specialize to perform that role.

You similar to how you can swap to elixir gun and fill a buffer/debuffer and secondary healer role? swap to grenade kit and be full AoE damage?

I feel like my tone isn’t coming across right. I’m not trying to be sarcastic, I’m truly asking whether or not that’s viable. I’m really still getting the hang of the Engineer, and I like it enough that I want it to be great.

Asher.1078:

The reaction to engineers is the typical reaction I’ve always seen for utility classes like this. Lots of people make them because they have the “omg look at all the cool stuff they can do” initial reaction. Then later on after they’ve played it for a while they have the follow-up “omg all the stuff I can do is gimp compared to the other classes” reaction. Then lots of kitten and moaning about how they can’t do damage, heal, or tank like the classes that specialize in those things.

Then there are the people who like the versatility and aren’t worried about being the primary option for something. The engineer won’t excel at anything except versatility and button pushing, but you can do plenty of things well enough. If you’re a good player, you figure out how to make it work.

I appreciate the idea of versatility, but isn’t that most valuable when you can swap between two roles on the fly? Is that viable for Engineers? Because being able to do anything at an average level isn’t that beneficial if you still have to specialize to perform that role.

Reading all this has made me seriously nervous about committing more time to the class. I want to be viable in WvW and dungeons, and I’m not sure if by the time I hit 80 Engineers will be in a decent state.

Should I bail, or stick it out? And if I should keep at it, any tips to help me move forward and actually have fun?