Guild Wars 2

Does anyone have an update on obtaining Ad Infinitum? More specifically, does any have information on when/how we will be able to obtain the Gift of Infinity and the Gift of the Fractals?

So, it took me a bit to notice what was going wrong, but, last night, some of my buddies and I were fighting Vale Guardian. We tend to play a strategy in which the Tank rolls backward into the barrier to dodge the blue teleportation circles without moving the boss. However, the tank kept dying when they did this. Turns out that the barrier that springs up around the arena that you fight the Vale Guardian in wasn’t activating when the fight started. It was activating after the VG completed the blue teleportation attack.

Anyone else encounter this problem?

Howdy! I’m currently looking for a raiding guild. I have a fully geared Tempest that can do all three of the current Meta Raid Builds (Auramancer, Fresh Air DPS, Staff DPS) and a Viper Rev which isn’t really Meta, but he works for Condi. I’m primarily experienced with VG and am looking to learn and beat Goreseval/Sabetha. I’m also looking forward greatly to the new Raid Wings that will be released.

Fair warning though, I have not joined a raiding guild yet largely due to representation requirements. I currently have a main guild of friends that I primarily represent. I understand repping during raids and even during fractals or other shenanigans that might occur in a raid guild, but, in my downtime, I will likely be running with that main guild. I perfectly understand that some guilds want more than just raiding out of their participants, but all I’m looking for is just raiding/high end PvE content runs.

So, I thought I’d post here and see what turns up. I will study for raids in advance, gear for them, do whatever I can in order to be prepared for and beat the raid, but I can’t guarantee majority rep. If that’s a problem, I understand.

I was just wondering what times/days do you guys usually Raid?

Tspatula.9086:

With the advent of HoT the new fractal instabilities and raid, ascended stuff should have changable stats,

I’m just going to mention that you can change the stats of your ascended armor and weapons. Sure, you can’t right click and change it any old time, but it is possible.

https://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Ascended_equipment

“Changing attribute prefix”

“Ascended weapons and armor can be put into the Mystic Forge to change the attribute bonuses of the item. These recipes create new items and destroy any upgrade component on the item in the process.”

Ascended Weapon: Original Ascended Weapon, Orichalcum Imbued Inscription with the desired stats, 5 Glob of Ectoplasm, Anthology of Heroes

Ascended Armor: Original Ascended Armor Piece, Gossamer Insignia with the desired stats, 5 Glob of Ectoplasm, Anthology of Heroes

Just so you guys know, we’re also talking Ele builds over in this thread.

https://forum-en.gw2archive.eu/forum/game/pvp/Tempest-Build-Discuss-Post-1-26-16-Patch/first#post5955350

I’ll be keeping an eye out here and testing these builds as well.

I can’t seem to get a good build rolling that drops the Earth traitline for Air. Generating protection from Auras has been saving my butt. Additionally, in Earth, you can trait to recover from cripple, chill, and immobilize more quickly.

That being said, I still haven’t been super happy with my previous two builds and decided to go where I swore I’d never go before. I am trying warhorn.

Tempest Warhorn (PvP)

This build uses the Sage Amulet (1050 Pwr, 560 Vit, 560 Heal Pwr, 1050 Condi Dmg)

Tempest Warhorn Build

This build still goes the Condi route since the proliferation of conditions in the game seems to have a large impact at the moment. However, with a de-emphasis on tanking, the warhorn actually seems somewhat useful for once. I am switching between Rune of Hoelbrak or Soldier because they both seem to work fairly well. I’m still leaning slightly more towards Hoelbrak, but it definitely needs more testing. This is a bit more support focused. So, fights at mid/ with your team are where it really shines. If you stay on your toes, you can 1v1. However, I’m still having trouble with Zerker/Marauder thieves/revs.

Magnetic Wave: “Damage foes, cure three of your conditions, and reflect projectiles with a magnetic surge.”

@Eliroth: Your link just goes to the skill builder. After making your build, go to the button that says “Get Quick Link”. The URL it generates will link directly to the build you made. And as for the Flamewall, I usually just place it perpendicular to the line of fire left by burning speed or on top of dying players.

@StickerHappy: I realize no stab on overload is irritating, but the Tempest Auramancer meta that was common before the patch didn’t run stab. I’ll admit, it isn’t ideal. However, as long as you watch your footing, you can normally finish out an Overload. Additionally, you can Lightning Flash while overloading and get into a better position to use it.

As another note, I did consider going to a Cantrip build, but I found the aura shouts with their bonuses were a bit more useful. I think this might be more true for the Condi build, but maybe I’ll give cantrips another shot on the Support one.

I made a couple ele builds that I posted in this forum.
https://forum-en.gw2archive.eu/forum/game/pvp/Tempest-Build-Discuss-Post-1-26-16-Patch/first#post5952118

I think the Ele meta build will be Water/Earth/Tempest, of course. I also think we’re going to be looking at Sage or Mender’s Amulet. Additionally, I think Rune of the Sunless or Hoelbrak will be making appearances with their Condition Duration Reduction.

Since we’re talking amulets…

One thing I’ve noticed is that all the new amulets have +560 Vitality. With the increase in damage across the board, many classes need to roll this extra vitality. Is this indicative that the increase in damage is producing the need for a quality of life health buff to all classes?

Howdy, howdy. I thought I’d go ahead and post the builds I’ve been having success with here. Maybe if we collaborate a little, we can remain viable. Both these builds are largely based on the previous Meta build for Tempest Auramancer. We just have to roll Water/Earth/Tempest in order to keep up Condi Clear.

Tempest Condi

This Build uses the Sage Amulet (Skill Builder doesn’t have the new Amulets implemented yet.

Sage (1050 Pwr, 560 Vit, 560 Heal Pwr, 1050 Condi Dmg)

Tempest Condi Build

Fire and Earth attunement are your friends for this one because of the emphasis on condi damage. Earth is especially your friend because Magnetic Wave clears three condis as well. Also, your auras clear condis by traiting Cleansing Water with Invigorating Torrents. The trick is knowing when to use your auras and remembering that your Elite Skill causes fear and poison thanks to Rune of the Sunless. Rune of the Sunless also reduces Condi Duration on you, making Chill less of a problem. The Sigils of Geomancy and Doom just add extra condi DPS and hold you over when not in Fire or Earth.

Tempest Support

This Build uses the Mender’s Amulet (Skill Builder doesn’t have the new Amulets implemented yet.

Mender (1050 Pwr, 560 Precision, 560 Vit, 1050 Heal Pwr)

Tempest Support Build

This build is a more sustain variant of the above. Rune of Hoelbrak gives you a bit more Condi Duration reduction while still providing you with a little more punch. I also rolled staff because group support and healing works a little better in this build. Likely, this one could use some tweaking still, but I thought I’d go ahead and post it for review.

Anyways, these are the two builds I’ve been having success with. I’m a bit more inclined towards the Condi build because I enjoy DPS. One thing to take away though is that with Ele PvP builds, I think we are stuck in Earth/Water/Tempest and using Rune of the Sunless or Hoelbrak. The ~15-20% Condi Duration reduction from those runes are rather useful with what appears to be the current Condi Meta.

Well, it seems if you take the old Tempest Auramancer with staff build and swap in the Sage or Mender Amulet, that’s about as good as it gets for now. At the moment, I like Sage over Mender.

(Here’s the old build for those that want it.)
http://metabattle.com/wiki/Build:Tempest_-_Celestial_Auramancer

I’m finding the overall Meta for Ele in PvP really hasn’t changed.

Condis (especially from Necros) are a bit more of a problem. So, you’re almost forced to keep the Water/Earth/Tempest build just to deal with them. Keeping the Soldier rune so that shouts clear condis helps a lot too. So, we’ll end up keeping that as well.

I’m disappointed that we didn’t get a little more offensive build wiggle room. The Ferocity bonus in Fresh Air times out by the time your overload charges (which is when you really want it). But, as stated previously, you almost have to stay in Earth/Water/Tempest for condi clear.

I’m also running the new Mender amulet. Eles need the vitality boost to keep from being one-shotted, plus the healing power helps heal through all the new damage we take from increased condi pressure. I feel like the Paladin Amulet has promise, but I haven’t figured it out yet.

Finally, I don’t think the scepter buffs are worth using it still. I’ll likely stick to staff. However, dagger/focus seems pretty decent if you trait auras properly to clear condis. Plus, Magnetic Wave grants extra condi clear (Can you tell that I’m having Necro problems? Dat boon corrupt.).

These are just my initial feelings on the Ele changes. We’ll see if someone figures out an interesting, new build later in the week.

1v1 is very slow. The power of the build is in its ability to support during team fights. While it can 1v1, its generally a matter of out-sustaining the enemy and making sure you are responding properly.

As a note, I replace water with air to run a more offensive version of the build.

When I’m in a skirmish, I usually start in Air. Due to the proliferation of projectiles, I generally pop Swirling Winds first. This tends to negate some ranged burst damage that people try and land upon seeing you and your team. Of course, call out a target next and use Gale to get in some free hits. If you see a thief or something close range coming in, pop Shocking Aura. Use the Air Overload when you feel it’s appropriate.

If you notice a Dragon Hunter or that there’s a significant amount of ranged hitting at you and your team, swap to Earth. If a DH lays down his traps, you can trigger them while using Obsidian Flesh to neutralize their effect. If there’s a ton of projectiles, space out Magnetic Wave, Aftershock, the Earth Overload, and Rebound. If you do it properly, you can generate reflects for quite some time. Also, the protection stacking from the Overload will assist your team’s survival. Just don’t forget that Magnetic Wave is your big Condi Clear.

If you were in Air, and the fight was going fine, then switch to Fire. I don’t feel that I need to explain Fire too much. Use Burning Speed as a gap closer and blast away.

Water, of course, is great for healing. To really save your skin, it’s sometimes best to switch to earth, pop Mag Wave and Obi Flesh, then switch to water for uninterrupted heals. Also, keep in mind all the chill Water D/F gets you. A tempest’s big weakness is chill, and you can use it against other tempests. Additionally, Comet can be a good stomp interrupt.

Now, I run full shouts since they help me Condi Clear, and I don’t have the water line to do that or share my other Auras. As a general rule, I try and stagger my shouts out. Again, this is for the Condi Clear, but also to spread out the boons I’m giving to my allies.

Well, I’m sure I’ve missed or forgotten a few things, but I hope this helps sort some stuff out. Try and think of each attunement as “situational”. Does the fight I’m about to rush in to look like it needs healing? Are there two DHs or multiple projectile users? Hope this helps.

http://metabattle.com/wiki/MetaBattle_Wiki

While the “Raid Build” section seems to still be under development, you can use the Dungeon builds and tweak as needed.

Fistandanthilus.6824:

I mean, can someone explain to me the reason to have Leagues if players from different Leagues can play in the same match?

Are Leagues not supposed to be a system to split players into different skill levels (leagues) in order to match them together?? And not with players of other skill levels (other leagues)??

I had the exact same question, and have been a bit disappointed in the current League matchmaking system. I thought Leagues would provide a more quality match rather than quantity found in unranked. And I believe there lies the problem.

In order to avoid long matchmaking times in Leagues, ANet went with a system that promotes quantity matchmaking over quality matchmaking. However, I don’t believe that’s how it should work. Leagues are designed as a competition. This competition is to determine who the best players are. Thus, Leagues should emphasize quality matches in order to determine who the best players are.

I think that one step towards getting more quality matches is to make it so that only the members of a Division can fight members of the same Division. For instance, only Amber Division players will be matchmade against Amber Division players. And I’m not sure how that will affect teams that are composed of players of different Divisions, but that might just be more reason to develop a Solo Queue League.

Someone just figured out that exiting the game completely fixed the bug. We are free of the match now.

My group is stuck in match at the moment. Can’t leave even though the game ended.

Rumor has it that it drops from Airship Cargo in Verdant Brink, but I am not positive. Can anyone confirm?

I was sitting in a PvP match with some friends, and we were talking about raids. Remembering a few forum posts on Raid tools, we were wondering if anyone had talked about using the PvP statistics displayed at the end of a match (damage dealt, healing to allies, boons applied, etc, etc.), but putting them in a Raid. For instance, every time you left a raid or click “Retry from Checkpoint”, a box would appear with those statistics like it does at the end of a PvP match. This would give raiders some idea of how they were contributing to the raid/ what changes they might need to make.

Anyways, just a thought we had. Figured I would post it here.

I believe this image conveys my sentiments properly.

Karl McLain.5604:

Bam!
Thanks everyone in advance for your constructive feedback. Please keep in mind that we’re getting close to day zero and that the smaller the change, the more likely we’ll be able to discuss and action that feedback. This isn’t the end, however. We’ll continue to make changes, when necessary, after HoT releases, as well.

Thanks!
-Karl

Karl;

I understand that it’s very busy over there at Anet right now, but I was wondering if we could have a moment of your time to get feedback on your work on Tempest at the moment? This would allow us to focus our efforts on constructive, specific responses to the changes you are making/would be willing to make.

Again, we know that your time is incredibly limited, and appreciate whatever you would be willing to spare us. Thank you.

/em just sits here and is glad that there’s a chance we’re getting a new hub city

One of my posts got merged into “Squad UI Feedback”, but I think it fits better here now that I found this thread.

I think it would be fun/interesting if raids had a challenge mote (Like in some of the Story Missions) that would active a raid with a higher difficulty level than whatever is settled on as “standard”. The higher difficulty could have better drop rates as a reward for it, maybe. Something like that.

Anyways, just tossing this idea out there.

Apologies if someone has already mentioned this in this thread.

Valento.9852:

Well, it might not excel at something but depending on your Overload preference you can be pretty good at AoE might share, or protection share (as long as they don’t nerf Overload Earth), plus you can heal very good, specially considering Element Bastion and the absurd healing potential from healing shout. It feels it’s very tied to what attunement you want to camp, and what rotations you have in mind.

I think people play Ele though so they can use all 4 attunements. That’s how you get the most out of your Ele. If I wanted to be a great healer and only a great healer, I’d probably go Druid. This is another aspect that I think is also what makes Tempest less fun. Tempest needs to excel at one thing, but that thing needs to spread across the 4 attunements. That’s why my example used conditions. You can make conditions across the 4 attunements.

Granted, this is just what I think makes playing an Ele fun and also what makes Tempest less fun to play. It’s just my opinion. Tempest doesn’t provide a common point to capitalize on across the 4 attunements.

So, I’ve been playing Tempest all weekend, and I think I finally figured out what bothers me about it. The problem, I think, is that it isn’t good at any one thing. It does not excel at damage, and it does not excel at support. As an elite specialization, I think it should pick one thing and excel at that one thing. Granted, there are several elites that don’t “excel” at any one thing, but perhaps that’s why not everyone is happy with them yet.

As an example, I would have probably given Tempest condi damage, and had it excel at condi damage. Earth would stack more bleed, water would do chill damage (Reaper has that on lock, I know), air would have dazed/stunned, and fire would keep on burning. That kind of condi damage could synergize well with the shouts with some adjustments (Chill damage, cripple/bleed, burns, stun). I understand there are likely problems with this idea, but it’s an example. I would have given Tempest a job, and it would do that job well.

Anyways, there’s my thoughts on that. I’m not particularly pleased with Tempest because it does not have the capability to excel at any one thing.

I’ve found that Tempest sort of works if you view it as “Damage Support.” Playing it with staff, you can do decent, constant AoE damage to the enemy. Then, you can either lightning flash in while charging an overload, or run through with the overload and lightning flash out. I’ve had some success with the Marauder amulet because staff has decent range, but I think it works a little better if you choose the “Tank” options. Problem is it doesn’t quite have the punch to finish someone off. So, you usually do have to be Team Fighting instead of 1v1ing.

I do not know how challenging the raids are going to be, but I would like to put this idea out there. I think it would be fun/interesting if raids had a challenge mote that would active a raid with a higher difficulty level than whatever is settled on as “standard”. The higher difficulty could have better drop rates as a reward for it, maybe. Something like that.

Anyways, just tossing this idea out there.

I’m still playing around with Tempest, but here are some initial thoughts I’m having with it. Please note, this is from a PvP perspective.

Rebound- Does roughly 2k healing when triggered. The problem is that, in PvP, the next hit after “rebounding” downs you anyways. If it healed for a bit more, there might be more time to pop your healing skill, making it a bit more effective.

Also, I’ve been having a hard time figuring out the intent behind the specialization. If someone has it figured out, please let me know. I attempted a marauder build, focusing on damage. However, it doesn’t quite have enough punch to down many of the classes today. So, I opted for a tankier build, playing with Cele and a few others, but the specialization doesn’t provide true support which bunker builds normally bring to the table. If someone makes a thread on the proper role of a Tempest, please link it to me.

As a final note, I’ve been playing Tempest with the staff. Staff somewhat promotes sitting in one attunement, which is what Tempest focuses on. This allows me to support/damage from afar before triggering an Overload and Lightning Flashing into the fight with it to assist my team.

drops this here

http://metabattle.com/wiki/MetaBattle_Wiki

Alright. I’ve been playing Tempest most of the day, and I think I finally have a comfortable build that balances survival with DPS enough to be viable.

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?vFAQFAWhcMoxhdOwwB8RsQAYun2X7slILcEiCBFgAwCA-TJxHABXXGQgHAgG7PAwFAAA

The goal of this build is to support and DPS from range. Then, when your Overload is charged, you pop Armor of Earth and do a hit-and-run. Once you end your Overload, you run back to range and start over.

I ran Marauder stats with Runes of Strength.

Hope this helps. Feel free to leave feedback or improvements.

Isarii.2804:

Meteor Shower > Overload does seem to have a lot of potential on a point, but first we need to get to a point where we can get away with using Overload.

I agree. Right now, I’m having to trait Arcane in addition to Tempest solely for the cooldown reduction on the Overloads. Without this reduction, I don’t think the Overloads have enough punch to be able to warrant using them. Also, you’re almost forced to run Armor of Earth. Without it, Eles get interrupted in Overload state at the drop of a hat.

I’ll have to give this a try. Right now, I think staff works pretty well with Tempest. I’m running Water/Arcane/Tempest. My strategy with it right now is to support from afar before dashing in using the Overloads, then retreating to range again.

+1
Yes. More stats, please.

Well, if you really wanted more damage, you could swap Cele for Zerker and/or maybe swap Arcane Abatement for Bountiful Power, but you will become very squishy.

http://metabattle.com/wiki/Build:Elementalist_-_Dagger/Dagger

Alright. I’ve been seeing several “How Do I Kill An Ele?” threads going around. So, I thought I’d drop in my two cents.

All that follows is in reference to the current D/D Cele Ele meta build for PvP.

First, I want to say that I play an Ele as my main. I’ve earned the “Champion Magus” title. My PvP level is in the 50’s. 75% of my matches are played with a D/D ele. I primarily play Ranked matches. So, I’d venture to say that I’m decent and understand how they work.

The key to beating an Ele (or any class for that matter) is understanding their skills/traits/and how they work. Yes, players might not want to put the time and effort into this, but, if you’re looking to play in Ranked or higher level play, that’s simply what you have to do.

Now, everyone can look at the current Ele meta build at Metabattle.com. So, I’m going to proceed with breaking down a standard Ele rotation.

Rotation:
Eles generally start out in Air attunement. It has a solid gap closer coupled with a stun/interrupt. So, when an Ele looks like they’re about to engage and are in Air, have a stun break ready. Generally, an Ele will trigger Shocking Aura (for stun) followed by Ride the Lightning (gap closer). They can then follow with Updraft (knockback) to down an enemy if they are still up. An Ele can also throw in Lightning Touch (weakness), but it isn’t really imperative. Next up is generally Fire attunement. Don’t be afraid to lay on damage during the Air phase.

Air is a decent damage attunement. So, it’s generally followed up by the major damage attunement: Fire. Especially if an enemy is still stunned/knocked down from air, Fire is a great choice to lay on some damage to get ahead of the game. Burning Speed (gap closer/Blast) is a good opener. It applies burning and leaves a fire wall for 4 seconds. It usually gets the Ele right on top of the enemy after using Updraft from air attunement. This gives great positioning to trigger Ring of Fire(Fire Field) smack on top of the target. With all the burning generated during this phase, a good next move is Fire Grab so that it does extra damage. If the target has moved out of range though, an Ele might use Drake’s Breath to try and do a bit more damage while getting into good positioning. While the Ele is dishing out damage in fire attunement, Condi clear, defend, run, whatever. Just minimize damage. After this, the Ele has to wait before it can trigger another “real” DPS phase.

Depending on how the fight is going, an Ele will switch between Water and Earth.

If an Ele’s health is still relatively high, they will switch to Earth. The protection is great, but this attunement lacks DPS. Feel free to hit hard in this phase, especially if you can nullify the protection. Generally, an Ele will open this attunement with Magnetic Grasp(immobilize) to trap a target. They can then use Magnetic Leap(chain skill) as a gap closer, but I rarely do. Earthquake(knockdown) is a good follow up. An Ele can use this to try and gain either a little uninterrupted time to heal(more likely, I think) or to begin a new DPS phase. It’s also a common attack for an Ele to use to try and rez a downed teammate. Ring of Earth(cripple/bleed) is an optional earth attack. The bleed isn’t great, but the cripple can help keep an enemy in range for bigger attacks. Churning Earth(better cripple/bleed/blast) is rarely used in a PvP match. The cast time is just too long and leaves the Ele vulnerable. If you see one using this, capitalize on the opportunity with some serious DPS. Basically, Earth attunement is used to control movement. Have stability and other immobilize breaks handy.

Finally, there’s Water attunement. After an Ele goes through their water rotation they CAN’T REALLY HEAL FOR A LONG TIME (In PvP time. You know what I’m talking about. Eight seconds is an eternity in PvP). Be sure to lay on the DPS once they exit. Likely, they’ll open with Frost Aura(damage decrease/chill) or Frozen Burst(chill) to reduce incoming DPS. If they’re in real trouble, they might open with Cleansing Wave(big heal/condi clear). Cone of Cold(heal) can then be used to grant a little more healing. This attunement has very little damage compared to Fire or Air. So, it’s a good idea to heal yourself as well when you see an Ele swap to Water.

For the most part, that’s the general rotation. Air->Fire->Earth->Water->Rinse and Repeat. Now, no two Ele’s rotation is exactly the same. They can change it up to either maximize might and DPS or Heal/tank more. This is what I use, but the way one should react when they see these attunements and attacks should generally remain the same.

Skills:
Signet of Restoration is the heal meta right now. For every attack an Ele does, they get back a little health. Maintaining distance while attacking is a great way to neutralize this. Eles don’t want to waste their cooldowns. So, they won’t spam them if they can’t hit the target. Thus, they lose healing. When they activate the signet, they gain roughly 3,275 health. After that, it takes 25 seconds to gain back any benefit from the signet. RAIN DOWN YOUR FURY AND FRUSTRATION UPON AN ELE IF YOU SEE THEM TRIGGER THIS. They can’t really do anything aside switch to water. And, when that’s gone, no more healing.

Cantrips are the current Ele’s lifeblood. Aside from their special effects, they also grant might and regeneration with the right traits equipped. Regeneration then does 1 condi clear with the proper trait as well. So, space out your conditions and interrupts to make the Ele waste these. It takes 30+ seconds for each one to recharge. Keep that in mind.

Fiery Greatsword does pretty decent DPS. If an Ele uses it though, their healing takes a fairly large hit. Lay on the DPS if you can.

General Tips:
Aside from knowing the rotations and how to react, there’s some general tips one can apply. D/D Eles cannot range to save their lives. Yes, they have a gap closers, but, if you can maintain distance (Rangers), they can’t really touch you. Immobilize Eles to keep them at bay and make them waste their cantrips. Also, if you can screw up an Eles rotation, it wrecks their life. Use interrupts and chill. Interrupts are a no brainer, especially when timed appropriately. Try them out in the fire and water phase to ruin healing and DPS for the Ele. Since chill slows down cooldown times, spam it everywhere if you can (especially in fire and water). Again, it ruins rotations. And don’t forget about the dodge rolls. Evasive Arcana gives each dodge roll a unique ability. If you can shut down the dodge rolls, Eles lose a lot of utility.

Another great tip to down people in PvP (Eles included) is to CALL OUT TARGETS. This small amount of coordination has made the difference in many games I’ve played. You can even call out targets when downed. Call targets on other downed players while you’re downed so you can rez off of them.

I’m sure I’ve forgotten a few things, and I’m sure that my rotation isn’t absolutely perfect, but this is a general idea on how to combat an Ele. It’s possible to kill us. We are squishy. Messing up our rotations creates big windows in which we are vulnerable. One just needs to recognize the signs and capitalize on them.

Alright. I’ve been seeing several “How Do I Kill An Ele?” threads going around. So, I thought I’d drop in my two cents.

All that follows is in reference to the current D/D Cele Ele meta build for PvP.

First, I want to say that I play an Ele as my main. I’ve earned the “Champion Magus” title. My PvP level is in the 50’s. 75% of my matches are played with a D/D ele. I primarily play Ranked matches. So, I’d venture to say that I’m decent and understand how they work.

The key to beating an Ele (or any class for that matter) is understanding their skills/traits/and how they work. Yes, players might not want to put the time and effort into this, but, if you’re looking to play in Ranked or higher level play, that’s simply what you have to do.

Now, everyone can look at the current Ele meta build at Metabattle.com. So, I’m going to proceed with breaking down a standard Ele rotation.

Rotation:
Eles generally start out in Air attunement. It has a solid gap closer coupled with a stun/interrupt. So, when an Ele looks like they’re about to engage and are in Air, have a stun break ready. Generally, an Ele will trigger Shocking Aura (for stun) followed by Ride the Lightning (gap closer). They can then follow with Updraft (knockback) to down an enemy if they are still up. An Ele can also throw in Lightning Touch (weakness), but it isn’t really imperative. Next up is generally Fire attunement. Don’t be afraid to lay on damage during the Air phase.

Air is a decent damage attunement. So, it’s generally followed up by the major damage attunement: Fire. Especially if an enemy is still stunned/knocked down from air, Fire is a great choice to lay on some damage to get ahead of the game. Burning Speed (gap closer/Blast) is a good opener. It applies burning and leaves a fire wall for 4 seconds. It usually gets the Ele right on top of the enemy after using Updraft from air attunement. This gives great positioning to trigger Ring of Fire(Fire Field) smack on top of the target. With all the burning generated during this phase, a good next move is Fire Grab so that it does extra damage. If the target has moved out of range though, an Ele might use Drake’s Breath to try and do a bit more damage while getting into good positioning. While the Ele is dishing out damage in fire attunement, Condi clear, defend, run, whatever. Just minimize damage. After this, the Ele has to wait before it can trigger another “real” DPS phase.

Depending on how the fight is going, an Ele will switch between Water and Earth.

If an Ele’s health is still relatively high, they will switch to Earth. The protection is great, but this attunement lacks DPS. Feel free to hit hard in this phase, especially if you can nullify the protection. Generally, an Ele will open this attunement with Magnetic Grasp(immobilize) to trap a target. They can then use Magnetic Leap(chain skill) as a gap closer, but I rarely do. Earthquake(knockdown) is a good follow up. An Ele can use this to try and gain either a little uninterrupted time to heal(more likely, I think) or to begin a new DPS phase. It’s also a common attack for an Ele to use to try and rez a downed teammate. Ring of Earth(cripple/bleed) is an optional earth attack. The bleed isn’t great, but the cripple can help keep an enemy in range for bigger attacks. Churning Earth(better cripple/bleed/blast) is rarely used in a PvP match. The cast time is just too long and leaves the Ele vulnerable. If you see one using this, capitalize on the opportunity with some serious DPS. Basically, Earth attunement is used to control movement. Have stability and other immobilize breaks handy.

Finally, there’s Water attunement. After an Ele goes through their water rotation they CAN’T REALLY HEAL FOR A LONG TIME (In PvP time. You know what I’m talking about. Eight seconds is an eternity in PvP). Be sure to lay on the DPS once they exit. Likely, they’ll open with Frost Aura(damage decrease/chill) or Frozen Burst(chill) to reduce incoming DPS. If they’re in real trouble, they might open with Cleansing Wave(big heal/condi clear). Cone of Cold(heal) can then be used to grant a little more healing. This attunement has very little damage compared to Fire or Air. So, it’s a good idea to heal yourself as well when you see an Ele swap to Water.

For the most part, that’s the general rotation. Air->Fire->Earth->Water->Rinse and Repeat. Now, no two Ele’s rotation is exactly the same. They can change it up to either maximize might and DPS or Heal/tank more. This is what I use, but the way one should react when they see these attunements and attacks should generally remain the same.

Skills:
Signet of Restoration is the heal meta right now. For every attack an Ele does, they get back a little health. Maintaining distance while attacking is a great way to neutralize this. Eles don’t want to waste their cooldowns. So, they won’t spam them if they can’t hit the target. Thus, they lose healing. When they activate the signet, they gain roughly 3,275 health. After that, it takes 25 seconds to gain back any benefit from the signet. RAIN DOWN YOUR FURY AND FRUSTRATION UPON AN ELE IF YOU SEE THEM TRIGGER THIS. They can’t really do anything aside switch to water. And, when that’s gone, no more healing.

Cantrips are the current Ele’s lifeblood. Aside from their special effects, they also grant might and regeneration with the right traits equipped. Regeneration then does 1 condi clear with the proper trait as well. So, space out your conditions and interrupts to make the Ele waste these. It takes 30+ seconds for each one to recharge. Keep that in mind.

Fiery Greatsword does pretty decent DPS. If an Ele uses it though, their healing takes a fairly large hit. Lay on the DPS if you can.

General Tips:
Aside from knowing the rotations and how to react, there’s some general tips one can apply. D/D Eles cannot range to save their lives. Yes, they have a gap closers, but, if you can maintain distance (Rangers), they can’t really touch you. Immobilize Eles to keep them at bay and make them waste their cantrips. Also, if you can screw up an Eles rotation, it wrecks their life. Use interrupts and chill. Interrupts are a no brainer, especially when timed appropriately. Try them out in the fire and water phase to ruin healing and DPS for the Ele. Since chill slows down cooldown times, spam it everywhere if you can (especially in fire and water). Again, it ruins rotations. And don’t forget about the dodge rolls. Evasive Arcana gives each dodge roll a unique ability. If you can shut down the dodge rolls, Eles lose a lot of utility.

Another great tip to down people in PvP (Eles included) is to CALL OUT TARGETS. This small amount of coordination has made the difference in many games I’ve played. You can even call out targets when downed. Call targets on other downed players while you’re downed so you can rez off of them.

I’m sure I’ve forgotten a few things, and I’m sure that my rotation isn’t absolutely perfect, but this is a general idea on how to combat an Ele. It’s possible to kill us. We are squishy. Messing up our rotations creates big windows in which we are vulnerable. One just needs to recognize the signs and capitalize on them.

Howdy!

I’ve been playing this game for a while now, and I’m looking for a guild to do sPvP/WvW/Future Raids with. Best class is Ele with Warrior coming in second and a Guardian in third. Preferably looking for a NA Tarnished Coast based guild.

Anyways, thanks for the help, and I’m looking forward to seeing you all in game!

I have the same problem as well.

I’m having the same problem. The bottom right dye slot doesn’t seem to do anything.

I’m not sure that this has been talked about before, but I just wanted to say that I’d really like a book on GW2 lore that I could buy somewhere. I know we have the wiki, but I think a book of lore would be fun to have. Maybe with some interesting concept art and developer notes.

Anyways, love this game.

Yeah, I would like something a bit more solid on how this affects Sylvari RPers. I’ve got a Soundless at the moment that might be in trouble.

Another one for the list. Chat doesn’t work.

I’ve become interested in this as well for RP purposes.