Guild Wars 2

You know, I really wanted this game to take another turn, but it seems that Anet disagrees.

And rightfully so, people are in a minority for having different ideas about PvP if I were to believe their statements of a growing PvP enviroment.

Their current system was also meant to be built on in the future with new specializations and stuff… So we will never go back to a point where this “powercreep” did not happen…
That’s just the way it is – you can jump high and low, but in the end it won’t change

First off, I get the change, however the timing is terrible.

It offers counterplay now, yes, except the Warrior differs a lot from other professions on which this would fit more considering that Warrior is one of the few (or only) Profession(s) that actually gains boons in a “fair” way.
It needs to work for it, which is something generally accepted because it feels like you are actually actively playing the profession rather than playing the traits. In order to get boons that is.

Berserker Stance got changed now, but at the same time there has been considerable changes to Necromancer, giving it a lot more options to corrupt boons. You can actually go as far as saying that this change was a flat out buff to condi chill Reapers, which was probably not the initial thought behind it. Warrior struggles to get the boon uptime that others got, which would be fine if the immense power creep did not exist, but sadly it does.

Suggestion
What I personally think a fair change to the utility would be is converting a set amount of conditions on activation and when pulsing. This would mean that Necromancers are no longer capable of simply pressing #1 or #2 depending on the weapon and completely nullify a (costly) cooldown. Or rather, not as easily.

And speaking of which; Warrior could use more boon conversions. Mending is still terrible, and just a change to converting some conditions to boons would help it. Maybe not by a lot, but by far more than it’s current itteration.

What are your opinions about my suggestion? Discuss

bbennett.7463:

Is it really that hard to just enjoy the game m8s? If pvp is “so bad” why do you play gw2?

While it is the nature of this (or any) forum to just attract baseless whining, why should everyone just suck up and play or leave? They got their right as a customer to voice their opinion.
Most people, like me, got some brilliant memories in GW2 and enjoyed certain aspects of it a lot, and are saddened to see it being crumbled slowly but steadily.

The game, the balance regarding PvP, has changed significantly ever since I remember, allowing a lot of questionable balance changes into PvP for very long times with seemingly lazy fixes where it is due. Most people are rightfully upset by what has happened over the years.

Also; if you don’t like the complaints, why are you not just playing instead of reading the forums? See, it works both ways

Next season that is…

And guess what? It will always persist.
This is not even uncommon for online games, ranging from Strategy to Turn Based Text Combat.
This is what happens when you got a system that invites certain roles, with several professions overlapping each role. The only way to bring this in line is to give every profession the same skillset, which won’t happen.

This will also happen whether the game is healthily balanced or not, or even fun to play – your profession won’t be meta, simply because another one can fit your job better.

One minor tip; if you do not enjoy playing the game because of the next meta or because of the state of your profession – take a break. You do not pay monthly to log in, and there is a plethora of other things that can be enjoyed in either GW2 or outside of it. I did this as well, and honestly, I think it was for the better, despite not being a legend now.

BaLzA.8902:

Total over reacting.

Consider how often a necro complete a full scepter rotation for the attach #3.
And lacks “precision”: the necro will remove the last boon every 3 seconds of successfull auto-attack, without any dodge or other cast in the rotation.

In short, a stationary turret necro (that does nothing else then spam AA), will reverse a boon every 3 seconds.

Totally over reacting for such a small buff. And a necro that does this rotation is really not a threat for almost anyone.

Talking about the corruption line, there are many factors that should be considered:
Corruption is a very double edge spec. Using a corruption skill while not having the condi clean/transfer CD ready, most of the time mean the loss of the fight.
Traited with MoC, the CD is reduces, but the self-condition application is doubled.
Talking as a necro, i’m still not sure about Corruption.. we’ll see.

I’m just worried about the boon spam increase since the game release.

my2cents

I am surprised this got bumped up…

I have said it before in the thread, but let me say it again – it is not so much about the change to scepter, it is the introduction of MORE boon corrupt that worries me

Previously, we definately would find this overpowering… Now, not anymore – and this is only because boons are spammed

In the Dhuumfire era, Warriors would pop their Balanced Stance, and if memory serves correct, the only boons they would have maybe some might (thanks to blasting their fields), maybe swiftness thanks to the trait, but Stability for sure. It was a cat and mouse game for Warriors and Necromancers to bait their cooldowns, because a misuse of a corruption would result in getting stomped on.
Imagine if this change was due in that era… Three boons, easily corrupted… No way this would have stood, but now? Again, “no one cares” because there are so many boons…

I am overreacting because in the grander scheme of things, this seems like just a knee-jerk reaction to what is an issue [Boon Spam]

By the way, I do by no stretch of imagination say that the Dhuumfire/Hambow era was healthy

Edit minor note, Scepter is not the only thing that gets and got changed… This is not a start, neither the end

Dude… get some outside time…

vana.5467:

SchmendrickTheMagician.8247:

Of course boons are completely out of hand (so are conditions though). But making boon removal completely out of control too is the worst thing to try to fix that.

Pretty much.
They refuse to acknowledge the major design flaws (like boon spam) that have crept into the game over time and just continue to band aid fix things.

As an example of why this is bad:
If they allow the boon spam to continue, and make necros the anti boon bot, they’re just enforcing a strong rock/paper/scissor game where builds matter more than execution. Hard counters against hard counters against hard counters does not foster skillful play.

It is also gonna result in an endless circle of pure powercreep…
“Boons get removed too fast? Better give more boon uptime”
“Boons too plentiful? More removal”

Etc.

Oslaf Beinir.5842:

You should also consider how much you would actually use the auto attack chain over your other skills and how long you would be willing to camp scepter? this might sound great on paper but reality will put it to the test as no sane team would leave a necromancer alive and free casting for long. Especially that thieves are coming back to the meta to counter the necro and also warriors. Get ready to be stunlocked again.

burst corruption is still better imo but this is not a bad change.
compensate for the scepter’s low and slow condition output with corruption.

what I am interested in is if the scepter trait would affect the duration of corrupted boons. That there would be too much….

I’ll be honest, the post is less against the actual change to Necro, than it is Anet having this reaction to a problem they created [Boon Spam]. I made a mistake talking about the Scepter change for too much because it derrives from the main point.

So sorry for the misconception, I actually have no interest in discussing whether it is overpowered and broken or not – the true purpose is discussing the aim and direction of Anet when it comes to Boons and Corruptions as a whole

First of, I am quite outspoken about the change to the change on the Scepter #1 chain on Necro, this is just too rewarding for so little…
Unbalanced? Maybe – hear me out;

It is no secret that I have not been participating in PvP as of much lately, not logging in for times after times and trying to care as little as I could (for longer than HoT came out). However, I have been monitoring the game and trying to understand my discontent.
One of the issues that I have seen (of many) in PvP is excessive boon spam. It became so bad that a trait like the old Blighter’s boon had to be changed since teammates were capable of keeping Necromancers neigh permanently alive with the old itteration (in a perfect scenario).

However, rather than touching the core of the issue [Boon Spam], I see a noticable and terrible trend, especially regarding Necromancers. It was no secret that the reworked Signet Trait would allow Necromancers to become kings of boon hate, overpowering the previous need of Corrupt Boon by a large margin. But to me, this seems to be a bad reaction as to how things really are.
Previously, Corrupt Boon was (barely) enough – it was a utility that rewarded patience and only with the right timing would you pull off some nasty plays, turning the strength of an enemy into a weakness that really hurted them (mostly stability>fear).
In this meta, current one, there would be almost no reason to take this over the Signets whatsoever. Corrupt Boon become outdated, a long cooldown while other utilities have proven to get more value, while doing the same.

Fast forward to the new changes, and I see something that is honestly shocking. Corrupt on an Autoattack? A Ranged autoattack with no travel-time? There is literally no way that I could’ve ever imagined this to be in the game say around the Terror-Mancer age before the trait rework. This would’ve been so blatantly powerful, that the Necromancer should have a lot of their power removed in their skills/utilities to make it work.
But that was the past… In this meta? Actually, would you feel it? Boons are literally plentiful, and if it is not you who has a high uptime, then there is someone sharing them. It might just be “balanced”, but all I see is something that is majorly overtuned [Boons], and a reaction like such to “get it in line” [Corrupt on Autoattack]

TLDR : Boon corrupt on auto a reaction to boon spam, trivializing a lot of gameplay
Your opinion? Am I a sentimental sod? Am I wrong, right, or close? Discuss

I think I will try to solve some misunderstandings in this thread. I have learned my fair share of Latvian passion during the year(s), so I can at least try to disect the topic a bit:

- It is not about a new meta being bad
- It is not about the old meta being bad
- It is not about changing your comp in a month

What seems to be the frustration is the following;

To have a consistant playing field, Anet decided not to rebalance for months. This means that you, the people who play, were stuck with what you got. This so happened to be one of the trashiest metas ever – on which it was shown that people were able to utilize it’s strength without “much effort” on several areas of the game…
The Pro League was quite the snoozefest to most to watch (generating views with a gembot), so it was seemingly neither enjoyable to watch or to play.
This is further enforced by the fact that most seem to be so happy with the upcomming balance patch – you want to escape the meta.

However, they decided to change the meta right before the big event… the event on which competitors fight globally…
It is not new, sure, other games have done it… But what other games don’t do is leave a meta settle for so long, especially when it’s creating such a lackluster enviroment as a whole
So what was the reason to have an equal playing field during the Pro League then anyway of you are going to change it for the big event?
To ensure that outsiders do not get cured of their insomnia? Literally frustrating your playerbase for months and then pretend that “everything is fine”? And for what reason? Cheese always prevailed – so there is no reason to not let it happen again now that people did grow accustomed to it… Come on, show the world the terror that people have been into for months.

Granted though, considering that most people still got high hopes, you will likely either don’t care or not see the issue at all… Meta’s gonna change, rejoice right?

Have fun though to those who do…

Honestly… I would try not to fret about it as much…

I was and am quite passionate about the game (and sometimes, if not often, passion equals rage), but I could not cope with the direction of the game…

Instead of “forcing” myself to do something I disliked, I took a deep breath and decided not to participate in the game…
I mean, it is a game in the end, so it is not something that major, unless it earns you money… I simply quit playing because of this, and will see in the future if I want to participate in a league or not – and if you claim to get this much stress, I would advise the same

Good luck in whatever you do though

Thank you so much for this new skin! It is seriously awesome in any way, updated visuals, hot chocolate and freaking penguins!

I love pummeling people to death while I am being followed by these cute little penguins! Seriously, best thing ever that the ga-

…
Oh, sorry, well this is awkward, I guess force of habit…

…

Eh… thanks for… leagues… and stuff… yea…

Phaeton.9582:

snip

Phaeton, don’t waste your time with him… I made the same mistake previously when the PvP armour sets came out…

He will take up way too much of your time for nothing… Previous topics of his were creating a code in PvP where you allowed people to get your dailies since no one takes PvP serious, giving the Legendary PvP armour to everyone and a bunch more about the prestigious rewards in PvE

He is beyond help and reasoning… Like I said, a waste of time

I was seriously like “I wonder when Ohoni is going to complain that he cannot get the rewards by just standing still” – and here it happened

Chase.2798:

GoogleBrandon.5073:

generating more pips while trying less harder than people normally would

Sorry… couldnt make it past this…l2english…why do you get decide who and what is a “normal person”? And how do you know how hard they are trying…i would say anyone not in a team queue in ranked isnt trying very hard at all…it doesnt take too long to make a group…you just have to try harder

If you quote me, be sure to quote the whole sentence so we do not take things out of context:

As an insult to injury, there is a way to cheat the system as a group , generating more pips while trying less harder than people normally would (I am not going to post the method, you can send me a PM if you want to know).

There is a glitch in the current system where you can very well as a 5 man party generate pips in a way Solo and Duo players would never be able to do – or even 5 man parties that do not abuse this system.

Maybe I should indeed learn to English, it is after all not my first language – but you tried to make a fool out of me, personally attacking me because you took something out of context and blew it up… Not just that, you added an absolute 0 to the discussion.

Next time if you got a beef you can send me a PM, reason I don’t do it with this comment is because I am explaining the fact that the system can be abused which is on topic.

While I wanted to initially make a thread with just a reference to I’m on the road to Viridian City since it will probably generate as much succes as this I suppose, let’s try:

Problem: Losing pips. Like junkies, everyone is trying to find methods to get pips, some with different ways than others. The vocal minority seems to be wanted to get these pips via Solo or DuoQ, but get punished for it in the long run i.e. Helseth losing 2 pips for losing against the full team of oRNG.

Inspection: What seems to have caused this is because there is no way for a Solo or DuoQ player to get extra pips, while losing them is extremely easy. As an insult to injury, there is a way to cheat the system as a group , generating more pips while trying less harder than people normally would (I am not going to post the method, you can send me a PM if you want to know).

Suggestion: Add a winstreak bonus with a timer. If you manage to win multiple games after another within a few hours, you should be rewarded for it. This way you help Solo or Duo players who have a relatively high MMR and tend to get impossible odds after winning several games after one another. Facing teams would become less tedious since there is a way to get the lost pips back relatively safe to get you back on track to go further without being stuck in Emerald since the system punishes you heavily.
But, like I said, make it a timer. Say that after you win 2 games after another the system kicks in; if you win another game in an hour, you get extra pips as a reward. This way the system seems to make winning relevant and give an incentive to people to try extra hard, while making sure that you also put enough pressure on people to give them the choice if they want to call it a quits after a day of PvP, or wanting to try that one last match since else they would lose their winstreak bonus.

Thoughts? Yes? No? Maybe? Whatever it is; Viridian City here I come!

In simple terms; objectives mean outplay potential – however, too many objectives and you derrive from the true core of the game.

The objectives on the maps within Ranked (if it was open) do not deviate as much from the gamemode, as it gives the teams a way to outplay their opponent – who do you rotate at Temple for the buffs? When are you going to commit to a Lord Rush, and more specifically, when are you not? Do you want to use the Trebuchet to give your team a positional advantage as well as some extra pressure, or do you leave it untouched to make it difficult for the enemy to put pressure on the middle point because the sides are closed?

These are all situations that are a perfect balance between objective control and gameplay – PvP in this game is not just “Whoever whacks harder wins”, it is about outplaying your opponent in the most clever way. If all “PvE elements” were to be removed, you will severely lessen the ways to outplay the opponents by putting pressure elsewhere on the map. You can easily see this with Courtyard – despite it’s many flaws, one of the biggest is that you cannot outplay your opponent whatsoever, and this results in many stomps.

Alternatively, look at Stronghold, a map so objective driven, you can see that there is little interraction between the players, or severely lessened, because the way to win is putting pressure via objectives – this is why many people, myself included, do not like it as much as we like Conquest.

Also, your “fix” to PvP is just personal bias with seemingly little thought as to how the gamemode works and how to expand on it. If you “just like to kill players”, well, I am sad to inform you that Conquest is simply not the mode for you, but that does not mean that many agree with this aspect. If anything, the sole reason I like Conquest is because the gamemode might seem easy, but to adjust to it, understand your role, and in the end outplay your enemy, takes a lot of strategional knowledge and understanding to the game as a whole – while deathmatch would sound boring to me because the strategy involved will be dumbed down a lot, with little outplay mechanics aside exploiting the enemies flaws.

Jana.6831:

GoogleBrandon.5073:

Azukas.1426:

Its easier to buff 2 classes vs nerfing 7

In order to make these professions desirable they need overhauls. They need distinct roles, niches, in order to be desirable for teams withouth making other professions obsolete. How ever, this does mean that some of the design choices from late need to be looked at and adjusted accordingly – but flat out buffing or removing weaknesses of professions is most certainly not the way to go

No, we’re currentlyy in the mindless meta in which everybody is invulnerable for the majority of a fight, so can go zerker or even tanky and dish out as much damage as a zerker, so those with less invulnerabilities are going to lose. Necro has got his death shroud instead of invulnerabilities. So, I think most of the thieves and maybe warrior agree that buffing their classes wouldn’t really change anything for the better – it is in fact the 7 other classes that need a nerf.

ETA: If they’re not nerfed then look at the game again ~6 months from now and it will be endless fights without deaths, like D/D cele ele vs D/D cele ele before June/HoT.

And, what I’d like to add: I don’t really have a role in wvw and pve but I’d still like to have a place.

Except on what level are you referring at? Mindless spamming of your invulnerabilities will do no one good, and even if you assume it does not, it can be punished or countered.
Take the shield blocks. You can say like, “Oh you can just burst and then block”, but this kind of behavior does get punished by, currently, a Necromancer, who can and usually has the trait for unblockable marks. Suddenly your defense turns against you, and you are vulnerable to be bursted down yourself.
While there is surely a lot of mitigation, little mitigation is compete invulnerability to everything (think about DoTs going through Elixir S), and even more little is passive. If would’ve had a little more sympathy with your statement if there was a lot of passives going on, but this is, luckily, not the case.

Funny that you mention invulnerabilities by the way – I think it would be a good role for a Warrior to be a punisher to those “who dare to block”. There are traits and, sadly, a single utility that even showed somewhat of an outline for this – but Anet seems to either have forgotten about it, or do not want to encourage this kind of play.

I am however in agreement that the sustain vs defensive balance of a lot of professions has became too small… A lot of weaknesses of certain professions were resolved by the elites, not offering them a new playstyle, but a superior playstyle. Granted, even these have weaknesses, but they are so small compared to the old ones that the scaling feels off.
A lot of weapons and utilites offered both damage and sustain components, traits offered new ways to be offensive and defensive – in conjuction with the traits that already existed, or were made baseline even. Frankly, this is not even new, and was mostly shown when the trait overhaul came – what happened however is that Thief and Warrior did stay somewhat relevant due to the player behind them and the meta not being as it currently is, but it has certainly given a lot of power creep, emphasized within the release of the expansion. So for what it is worth, yes, I do agree that the other 7 professions need to be looked at, most certainly the balance in damage versus sustain.

That being said though, I also wish to see Anet create more oppertunities for roles to these professions. Both Warriors and Thieves have utilities and traitlines for unique roles within PvP, but are mostly tunneled and shaped by the previous metas, only putting an emphasis on those rather than the aspects that make them truly unique

Azukas.1426:

Its easier to buff 2 classes vs nerfing 7

It is both not and extremely dangerous to do so…

This is a game of roles, roles fitting rotations and teamcomps. When you got certain professions capable of being in a role, say you got your bunkers and you got your damage, there is always going to be an optimal pick.

The reason why Thief and Warrior at this moment is simply because they are not optimal for the roles they aspire. Thief is a mobile profession, previously designed with a strong 1v1 potential, but low sustain. This changed quite a lot, be it due to overloading their kit, and simply the changes the other professions recieved. The mobility was and is probably still their strongest point, but as others have shown, it is far less needed within this meta – especially where the weak points of a Thief are exploited to bigger means.

Warrior was always a weird one. It started as a DPS roamer, became a bunker, on point brawler and got back to DPS roamer for a while. It’s kit is so reliant on traits and utilities however that a slight change might just make another profession more capable of the roles they fit into.

These two professions have distinct roles, but they are far from niche. Compare it to a Necromancer for instance – why is this profession currently in the meta? It is still not as mobile as some other professions, and though sustainable, not with the highest sustain in the game. It is simple; their kit brings a niche, boon corruption, and punishment to those who do not use their kit well (condition transfers) – making it a profession that ‘can’ be swapped with another profession if the team comp desires it. Their sustain is also now good enough for most teams to pick one up and adapt the playstyle to it, making it an anti-bruiser while being a bruiser itself.

What will happen if you buff Thief and Warrior is nothing more than making these professions stronger than their current counterparts within the meta, and this is terrible. What you are doing is not creating additional roles, you are removing those who were set in a role – which is the exact treatment these two professions have recieved. In addition, it is flat out power creep – if Thief and Warrior get buffed and overpower everything, should everything be buffed again?

In order to make these professions desirable they need overhauls. They need distinct roles, niches, in order to be desirable for teams withouth making other professions obsolete. How ever, this does mean that some of the design choices from late need to be looked at and adjusted accordingly – but flat out buffing or removing weaknesses of professions is most certainly not the way to go

You can whisper me in game if you need help with specific stuff – always glad to help you

That being said, I would not PvP at this point because the issues that have been pre-HoT have not decreased, there is just a meta shift :P

uhohhotdog.3598:

ProtoGunner.4953:

Why no just buy the expansion? Only 50€, that’s about the price to drive with a taxi home or eat dinner etc.

I pay like 10-15$ for dinner. What are you eating?

I think he is referring to a three course meal in your average restaurant, where it is possible for bills like that for a meal

Granted, 50 bucks immediately can be off-puting to some, say you got a low income and still need to pay for other stuff – It might be a novel idea to sell the seperate elites for a set amount of money (or gems, dunno), because it is a great way for people to get what they want and need for a small price, and might help those who only play one profession quite so as well, for 50 euros is a lot when you only use a small portion of it

You cannot tell me with to do!

Red means more damage!

SlayerSixx.5763:

Greek.4396:

SlayerSixx.5763:

But you understand that a majority of complaints aren’t bug related?

I know, I’m just sharing my frustration that these bugs may exist when leagues start

Then frustrate away. Apparently, ANET has been hunting bugs, but it seems they’re only interested in PvE related ones.

What?

You mean that Mid-Air immobilize does not happen in PvE? :O

This is just a repetition of the time when Rangers got buffed, only on a bigger scale…

I do say, I am amused personally, I hope that Anet can smile as well

brannigan.9831:

If the Meta is that all the elites rule the roost the no I don’t like it. It makes no sense to me to wave a magic wand and render all the old builds mostly ineffective. The game should be about as wide a variety of builds as possible being effective. That being said there will always be something people will cry about but I just don’t think its right to cudgel people into buying the expansion and to have everyone play a small variety of builds.

I actually do not agree with this statement to be fair… Yes, a lot of people are playing the elite specializations, as am I, because it is a new way to enjoy your old profession… Does it mean they are more powerful than the previous builds? I am not sure.

I mean, as far as I can tell, the old Signet Necromancer did not become obsolete, D/D Ele while not as prevalent as before did not get shafted and would still be playable. You can still go with PU for Mesmers and probably get a similar impact as Chronomancers depending on your style, or burn people with Burn Guardians. Heck, even Bunker Guardians might have their place. Whether teamcomps compliment them well has to be said, but I assume it is no different for the new specializations.

Besides, it is not as if Anet is shy in shaving the new specs at all, on contrary. The pacing might be arguable, but they are certainly looking in the aspects as to what is showing imbalance. To add to it, since when was Berserker considered OP and a must have in order to PvP? I think you missed something if you claim all Elites to be superior, considering it got rather extreme buffs (to no avail).

A lack of soloQ sadly emphasizes the lack of build variety considering it is a different style of playing, but it is no different than before with just a few builds going about while others remain in the dust.

Well that is, I shelved my Warrior for better days, but I gotta be honest – I enjoy the meta a lot…

What seems to be the issue for me and the reason as I do not want to que up is because I still see no reason to – especially not solo.

I don’t know, am I the odd one out?

Booms.2594:

GoogleBrandon.5073:

I mean, with all the cries that it is OP, why not bandwagon it, right? I do want to ask you for one favour though…

Please remember that you do not have to stay on Longbow. You did not become an Engineer, you can still weaponswap. You do not even have to press a button, you can click it if you want. Who knows, it might improve your peformance.

Sincerely,

Me

if youre switching out of a weapon set as soon as possible just because it lets you then you’re doing something wrong, not them.
not to mention longbow has stupid damage right now and its only worth swapping out of if you need damage or damage mitigation faster than a longbow’s auto attack could do.

Did I say you needed to? Don’t think I did…

However, since you are apparently unaware of what I am hinting at; it is beneficial to switch weapons accordingly, where Longbow does not provide enough defense in close quarters for instance, or to secure a res or stomp after casting focus 5 to negate some damage. Sticking to one weapon unless you are a kittless Engineer is never a valid startegy.

It says more about you than me that I need to explain this however. It should be common knowledge for someone with such an attitude on the internet.

I mean, with all the cries that it is OP, why not bandwagon it, right? I do want to ask you for one favour though…

Please remember that you do not have to stay on Longbow. You did not become an Engineer, you can still weaponswap. You do not even have to press a button, you can click it if you want. Who knows, it might improve your peformance.

Sincerely,

Me

As the title states.

A while back I read a post that the matchmaking system was flawed. My question; was something done with it or not?

Reason I ask is because I still feel like I am being tossed from people way beyond my league to people who apparently seem to be incapable of turning their character and or camera with a mouse.
While I will admit that I took a break, I still get the same amount of simple unenjoyable matches, with outcomes that are not even funny. Even if it is rust, this is not good at all. Out of the 5 matches played today, only 2 have been a loss with more than 250 points on my side, everything else was a complete stomp. Player issue? I am willing to admit it, if I got a definite answer as to why I am being yoyo’d so much

Signed.

To be fair, it is not just about having parties on the enemy team – it might very well be on your own. Either way, it is not fun considering that as a solo player you do not expect or want to see this – or at least have the choice to get it or not.

Yoo, good morning (or afternoon) – I got around with playing yesterday and thought I should update this a bit;

I tried some self made build indeed with Distracting Strikes and the new Skullgrinder (Mace/Shield, Sword/Torch) and here are my thoughts; I find the build to be too high risk for too little reward. You get obliterated from ranged, and once you finally do land it, chances are that your freshly applied condis are just gonna be shrugged off… You literally need to catch someone off guard (like I was) in order to have moderate succes, which is not helpful in the long run where people start to learn. Not to mention, Skullgrinder can barely hit someone unless you use a stun, which can obviously be stunbroken, leaving you without adrenaline again

Bad news; this meta punishes attacks with long wind-ups so hard, it is not even fun – so I went an alternative route and equiped myself with a more pure damage Berserker build. I actually had a decent amount of succes with it, finding out that with the trait that reduces the cooldown on Berserker, I spent a lot of time going around with quickness induced attacks and some nice burst skills. I will show the build once I have a bit more succes, though do not expect that much, for I think that other professions can pull off Marauder builds a bit better at the moment (mostly due to them being overtuned)

I was just casually trying to test some builds in hotjoin yesterday, and in the midst of all, I found that I was walking away with at least 24 stacks of confusion at one point.

Quite off-guard, I murdered myself instantly – realizing that I did a bad, after I got up again I dueled the Warrior again to see if I could do better and what he ran. Now I was sadly unable to see what he ran because both my and his allies showed up and clouded the battlefield with AoE’s, but I did manage to spot that he was quite capable of dishing out some nasty damage, with an emphasis on confusion. He left the match quite quickly after because the teams were not balanced, as expected with hotjoin.

Now my question is; what was it he could’ve ran? I really wanna know and test it out myself, because it seems like a ton of fun, especially if you catch spammers (like myself) off guard. I will try some things myself as well when I get to play again, but this just peaked my interest

Salvatore.4983:

GoogleBrandon.5073:

So specializations need to be stronger than the core profession by default?

I forgot the part where Anet intended it that way, or if so, I need to have a word about them about Berserkers

Well if I’m specialized in something in the RL it means I’m better at it. I didn’t try the berserker yet. I still think DH ones are better and I think they where designed to be better to match other specializations new utility skills. Not the ranger traps. I’ve wrote this down because i’ve read about people comparing DH traps to Ranger traps. SO i just want to point out those should be compared to new utility skills of the other specializations instead.

Actually, if you are specialized in something in real life it means you worked to get a title and recognition for the work you specialized for – it does not mean you are automatically better at something, especially not over those who do not wear the same title – some people who do woodworking for a hobby can be better at woodworking than those who specialized for it, but w/e

Anet did not intend to make the specializations upgrades, instead they wanted it to be extensions – making a specialization by default better than a core profession is pure power creep and incredibly bad for the game. Not just that, but it also makes the game pay to win – two models Anet tries to avoid.

And no, the specialzaions should not be measured with what already exist (traps to traps, wells to wells), and neither just at the specializations. They should be balanced around everything, meaning the impact within competitive play in this respect. If it is overpeforming (and mind you, I made no judgement of this whatsoever yet), it should be adjusted accordingly. If another specialization is overpeforming, exact same treatment.

cakeonroof.7385:

But I wont give up on warriors yet. I’ll also theorycraft more after I get bored of DH

Great attitude by the way! I am the same way considering that I do think the whole specialization looks like a bundle of fun, just need to collect info to get proper feedback.

Also, I noticed the chart, though reflected in the matches I played – nothing too substantial… All I hope (and so far so good) is that Anet keeps a keen eye and improves what they left behind with the launch of HoT. Last thing that should happen is another D/D Ele fiasco, especially if they want to take leagues serious

Salvatore.4983:

Fact is this is a specialization, keep your ideas strong Anet!

So specializations need to be stronger than the core profession by default?

I forgot the part where Anet intended it that way, or if so, I need to have a word about them about Berserkers

Honestly, what did people expect? I think when it was announced almost everyone knew it was gonna be nerfed, and now even moreso with the AoE boonspam

abc.5790:

Berserker trait looks condition heavy and I still haven’t found the right weapon combo to synergize w/ it. I tried s/t and bow. It was meh, lol.

I tried to come up with some combinations as well, though I was more tipped off by the ICD on Berserk than anything else… First you need to work your behind off to get adrenaline, finally got it and you trade off your burst skill for another – only to be incapable of doing it for 15s if you leave it

Granted, everyone and his mother are slowly moving to playing bunkers now, so in the 6 minute fights that are bound to happen are perfect for it… It just does not feel fluid in my opinion, and I have yet to get into details for traits and weapons

I do not want to sound rude to the participants, but you also got to remember that there were 3 years prior of having the same professions with the same weapons/utilities. It is really easy to spot certain animations considering the time that went over to learn them, and I think this is also evident within a tournament that allows new specs.

In due time, it will become clearer as to what the overpowering skills are, and people will be able to dodge it (or it will be gutted).
One thing that I personally hadfor instance is that I feel as if the AoE spam became even more unreal, and I actually had a really hart time distinguishing skills from say a Tempest to a Scrapper – though I think that in time I will get used to it. And well, if I will, then I am certain others will.

Give it a week or two and we will see more I guess.

Still, a great analysis, and I hope this trend can persist coming weeks.

I am gonna respond for nothing other than the people who claim that regular forum people have no saying in what is balanced or not…

Purely wondering; if it bothers you that people have different opinions, or if you are so sure of your case and all these “lowlife plebs”* know nothing – why bother posting this on the forums? There are a plethora of ways to avoid “these people’s opinions.
Being an elitist who does nothing else than saying that people’s” opinions do not matter for whatever reason without explaining what is wrong in the first place serves for nothing but sad invalidated opinions that cannot be justified other than “I am a top tier player hurr durr!!”

This community is pure sadness sometimes… the game doesn’t even have a proper competitive scene, and you still got people pretending as if it matters…

*not a direct quote

Balance is merely another drop…

You have to see it like this; you too can pick up the OP specs and do well on it, and if you are competitively minded, you might complain but always try to win, no matter what the cost – so slow balancing does little to keep people away, aside from shifting what is overpowering from one role to another

From this previous part, you can already take a thing out and see what is actually wrong. You have no reason to try your utmost best, unless you are like ESL quality – and even then most people do not bother considering that the few playing in there are leagues ahead, while you may struggle to place yourself.
A league system might be the answer, but considering it is mostly about seaons, I doubt it…

Other subjects that are complained about are a lack of Solo Que and staying in HotM to que up. These things together with the slow balance and progression just make it a drag to try and do your best within a game…

Balance is important, granted, but most people flock to what the pros do anyway. You will see complaints about other subjects in a few weeks. That, and the expansion is comming soon™, so without a competitive infrastructure there is no reason to try to balance what we got now if it won’t attract old and new players

Old timer, meet someone who only started playing PvP after a year…

Truth be told, this is the reason I stopped playing PvP. Though some throw it at balancing, it is only part of the true frustration, namely that there is no reason to play (and win).
There is none, not that bunch of silver you get which you could have gotten elsewhere. A lack of a proper competitive infrastructure is what has held and is holding the game back. What is worse, people leaving leads only to this said infrastructure to cripple further and further, since you cannot quite make a competitive infrastructure with the same people.
Hower, like you, I like this game. I guess it is no different from many, but dedication to the game and sympathy only goes so far. It is a P2P game, so there is no reason to be wanting to stick around, aside from the time spent in the game. However, I am personally in conflict considering that this game can and has offered a lot of fun – and with the expansion comming, I am more than willing to see how much it is worth.

The question is to whether leagues and their respective rewards are enough to rekindle the flame. I am personally very sceptical about the competitive system, but if it does work out, then we are in for a spectacular moment in the GW2 history – so like people have said, stick around and see

“One of these skills is Wild Blow, a powerful attack that launches any foe it hits back a large distance with such force that your foe’s own body becomes a projectile that can hit other enemies, knocking them back in turn.”

I want this. Yesterday. This sounds so good

ellesee.8297:

Guys Guild Warts 2 is the laughingstock of the esports universe! Let’s wait until this game doesn’t stink of pooberries before we start the what team/continent is better than the other drama!

Wahoo! Bye frands!

This.

The whole arguement holds no candle anyway because regardless of the region, there is a sickening amount of disinterest of hanging around long enough to become good.

Maybe get more than two to four teams facing off per region (including China), and then we can talk.

Jasher.6580:

Honestly, if this were to be implemented they just need two.

1. Go here.
2. Don’t go here.

You can already look at the mini map and you will already see who in your team is moving where.

Yet the times where I awkwardly look at someone as I stand on the homepoint after respawning while no one is there is something I cannot count with my two hands :P

Plus, it can give your team time to react to your movement. Say you want to help your friend on far, so you ping that you will assist there – yet he knows the moment you get there you get overwhelmed by respawns and killed off immediately, he can ping to be careful or to leave. Right now the former example happens constantly, and on maps such as Legacy, this can quickly snowball

I won’t go over the infrastructure of PvP again – gonna silently wait for leagues now;

Are we ever going to see changes to the mini-map ping system? I remember it being discussed a lot in the past, and I think it needs a drastic change.

First off; why does it need a change? To make Solo-play more inviting. You do not have everyone on TS, so letting someone know where you are or where you need assistance (or when not) is a must. You would be capable of quickly throwing information such as “as I respawn, I will go home” so that your team can focus on other points.

So what ping commands are handy? Well, look at other competitive games;

• Warning (do not go there alone)
• Assistance
• Moving there
• Missing enemies

Granted, the last one is not as important as say strategy or moba games, but it will still help a lot when you fight against a profession that can +1 quickly, so that your team will not be caught off guard and blame you for getting killed by that +1.

I am not a professional by any means, but I think this is one of those changes that can be implemented “more easily” while enhancing gameplay by a large margin.

For the thread: What do you want to see as ping commands?

Terrorsquad.4802:

And who’s Curse? xD

That’s a joke right?

Well, in case you were not sarcastic; Curse. is an important company when it comes to sponsorships, time and dedication for games. They used to sponsor a team within GW2 but it got disbanded a long time ago – and most assumed the competitive scene got destroyed by that.

Sube Dai.8496:

I don’t think they know what they’re doing at all. They waste several hundred grand on “world tournaments” that get less viewers than a gvg…

That money could easily go towards a working leaderboard instead. They would also need a f2p version if they were serious about esports.

The money did however not come from Anet, but from a sponsor. So it is kind of impossible to fuel development with it as it is against the agreement.

I also wish for a better competitive infrastructure, but you gotta cut Anet slack where it is due.

butch.8136:

Announcements incoming at gamescom about PvP. Hopefully we get some good stuff.

Source: https://www.guildwars2.com/en/news/check-out-guildwars2heartofthorns-at-gamescom-2015/

This is exactly what I meant in my thread…

“Hopefully they have exactly what PvP needs”… Despite this game not having it for three years.

Honestly, I think a lot of pessimism comes for the seeming lack of direction. Roadmaps are missing, and with a slow development such as Anet has for whatever reason (It can be anything), they certainly do not get the trust they might deserve.

But hey… “Hopefully”… whoo~

“I hope it will be fixed with HoT”
“I hope HoT will have it”

These are some quotes people tend to read when it comes to the infrastructure within SPvP.

A couple of days ago, Helseth made a thread detailing the rocky road to what PvP is now, giving insight to plays (like me) who have not in PvP that long. It made me think about the age of the game and the long (very long) times it takes to fix things.
I remember fondly when there was a discussion about the Tip of the iceberg a couple of months after release. People were not happy. The sarcastic takes on “When it’s ready” spread like wildfire in the most negative of ways ever. Information was not there, and ideas were not implemented – now, where did it go wrong? I would not know, and frankly, it is a thing of the past… or is it?

It has been 3 years. I have played this game, and the PvP side of it, for more time than I am willing to admit, but competitively speaking, I and a lot of others got an urge for more when it comes to filling our hungry PvP hearts. I have already explained in a previous post that there are little incentives to play. Relating to the post Helseth made, this seems to be spot on, because competitively speaking, there seems to be no reason to win. Reasons to play can be made, sure – PvP is fun (or at least, I enjoy conquest, and some friends do as well), inviting for teamplay, strategic and the combat system is neigh flawless, up to the point where competitors for a similar PvP system have yet to be created.
But actually winning? In 2012, the so called iceberg told about the importance of a Leaderboard. Going through the itterations we had, and now looking at one that is turned off… When is it ready? And this is but one of the many examples, I am not going to lay them out now, this is not the thread, and I already made too much of a point.

You can skip the previous and come to the conclusion of this thread. Three years, and it seems we rammed the iceberg and split our Titanic in half. Is it in any way realistic to wait for HoT to maybe solve all the woes that have showed themselves over the years?
If three years have made this gamemode from somewhat competitive to the ultimate casual award grind (because even if you lose you still get awards), then how is it that we can expect for HoT to magically fix it? We have read 0 information about exactly what is going to happen. Just a bunch of red posts pretty much detailing “It is not off the table”. For three years…
And even if it gets implemented. Are there enough people to actually care?
I am passionate about the game, a lot are. But I feel that the pacing together with an information drought for longer than just the announcement of the expansion has done PvP little to no good. Am I wrong? Is HoT the “fix” most have been waiting for?

Curious about the thoughts of others concerning the future of SPvP.

Oh forums… you never change <3