Guild Wars 2

I am in NA, good point. Thank you.

Redfeather.6401:

My 4 main characters are elementalist, engineer, thief, mesmer.
I’d go with either elementalist or pistol/pistol thief.

Try making one of each, then entering the PvP lobby and practicing in the lobby on the practice dummies.

I would not suggest making a pist/pistol thief. P/P thief is very basic and easy to play in both PvP and PvE. I would suggest running the condi engi build. If you’re looking for high risk, high reward this is the perfect class for you. Not only does it take a lot of time to learn how to master the 30 abilities you need to rotate between to get the highest DPS in the game, but you also need to know how to survive because you need to both get up in your opponents face and range them. Full kit condi engi is strictly PvE, though the full condi is only PvE, there are condi builds for PvP that are very powerful, however, you don’t use all of the kits you would use in PvE.

Additionally, I wouldn’t recommend ele mainly because there are many other classes that can do nearly everything better than an ele, with the exception of healer. As it stands, an aura tempest can out heal a druid. Warriors can stack might better than they can, engi and reaper can do more damage and condi damage.

As of now it really depends on what you’re looking for. In my honest opinion, elementalist is fun and all, but they have highly been nerfed, due to this the only good roll they can do better than any other class is a healer. Running a shout tempest heal build they can out heal a druid.
If you’re looking for the highest possible DPS in the game, it is hands down the engi condi build; however, the play-style is very difficult to master for it requires you to learn how to effectively use 30 abilities.
Necromancer is fun for it has a diver range of what you can do. As reaper you can tank, be a minion master, or even build condi. All of the builds are fun in my opinion.
Warrior is a simple, fun, strong, amazing class. A warrior running phalanx strength berserker with berserker stats is nearly a must. The reason for this is because they can build might faster than any other class can. Elementalist used to be good with it, however, as previously stated, ele has been outdated due to other classes which can fill a roll better.
All in all it is what you’re looking for, I have posted my thoughts on the classes that I play. If you have any questions on anymore classes, feel free to message/mail me in game, or reply to this post. Have a good one.

Always goto gw2crafts.net for crafting guides. Best source I have found.

I agree with Abissal, reaper is good condi damage especially with the carrion frostfire build. Great condi damage, however, I would suggest that for PvP. You had mentioned it in your question in the list of classes. But for PvE, I would definitely recommend a condi kit engi. Currently the condi engi is the highest DPS in the game. It requires a lot of practice because in all you will have about 30 abilities at your disposal. But I would highly suggest leveling one to 80 to try it out in a dungeon or fractal.

Hello everyone. I have seen many posts of new players asking for help on what to do or even people to play with. Well, I am here to attempt to lower that number of lonely new players. I am part of a guild called Nuinqua [Nuin], we have a husban+wife combo leadership whom are very active and care about the guild. We have so many supportive, caring, light hearted people whom enjoy to just mess around.
I know what you’re thinking, “what if I don’t want to just do world content such as PvE?” Well, simple answer. Nuinqa is not just a PvE guild, in fact, we also have a strong influence in PvP as well. In Nuinqa there are no dumb answer and those whom make fun or mock you (without a bantering manner) will be punished. We do not accept any rude comments or behavior.
Nuinqua is a close community, we have a Teamspeak 3 server that any guildy is free to use. In-fact, it is encouraged. So, if you would like to join my guild (which is not only open to newbies) then please message me either in game with a whisper, or mail @ Havokak.3450

Have a nice day

Rising Dusk.2408:

I’ve seen a lot of people complain about this from so many perspectives, and I think they are premature complaints being viewed unjustly through the lens of impossibility, like raids have a difficulty barrier insurmountable by normal, casual folk.

I don’t believe that in the slightest, and I say that as a casual. Yes, your forum specialist for raids is a filthy casual. I lead a guild of people who do Tequatl nightly as the pinnacle of our group coordination efforts and fewer than 10% of our players have even beaten Arah.

I understand what you’re saying and I agree to an extent. The problem, however, is the community. Far to many people whom participate in raids have this expectation of, “Know what you’re doing, or be kicked” for those of us that are casual players, it isn’t fair.
Casual players can, and are willing to do raids. I cannot stress that enough. The problem, as previously stated, is the unwillingness of people who are willing to teach those new-content players on what to do and when to do it.

NightWatchman.1850:

In GW2 leveling at the same time and remaining close in level to your fellow adventurers is not necessary to enjoy the game.

Your level will be automatically scaled to the areas that you’re in. That means you can meet up with your friends whenever and where-ever without the higher lvl character squashing everything like a bug, getting no experience or decent loot, and being bored to death.

Please keep in mind that your level only scales lower. Lets say you’re level 15 and you try to go to a level 55 area, you are still going to be stomped because you’re leveling isn’t going to scale up. However, your level does scale down. So if you’re level 55 but your friend is only 12 and you want to go level or complete and area with them, it will scale you down to the level necessary.
However, you do not get as much exp. as you would in an area relatively close to your level. I don’t know if that is just something I have noticed or if that is an actual game mechanic. But to me, it seems like when I am in a lower leveled area, I don’t get quite as much experience as I would in an area closer to my level.
DON’T LET THIS DISCOURAGE YOU.

TheCegorach.6973:

You can level together. Go to Lion’s Arch, and find the Asura gate that leads to your friend’s home town.

You’ll have to take turns helping each other with your personal stories, but in the grand scheme of things, those are a minor portion of the content compared to events, map completion (hearts, waypoints, POIs), doing WvW together, dungeons (in explorable mode), fractals, etc.

They changed this once they game became free to play. You no longer have to go to the gates. Now all you have to do is open your map [M] and search the starting area your friend is in. All characters have access to the first waypoint of every starting area (i.e. Charr, Norn, Human, etc..).

Hello, if you are like me, you have either never played thief before and are looking for a build like no other (that I have found at least), or in my case, you aren’t able to take full advantage of the teleporting, conniving thieves that are so popular in PvP. I have tried numerous meta thief builds and for me, I was not able to find what suited me. Because of this I have decided to do some of my own research. I play tested numerous build and I came to a burst/sustained crit build which focuses on high burst and high mobility while staying alive.

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?vZAQNAoYWn0MBlOhVmCGOB8PhlxiybACgDYbDLrbb+2/9iH-TpBFABCcCAEvMAJ7PQwhAYhjAAAPAAA

I would like to start off by saying your elite can be changed to your liking. I have found that both “Impact Strike” and “Basilisk Venom” work great, it all depends on what you’re wanting out of this build. If you’re looking for a more aggresive, easy gank, then take Basilisk Venom. If you’re looking for an easy stomp when your “Shadowstep” is on cooldown, then take “Impact Strike”.

In this guide I will briefly talk about each specialization and why I chose them.

Critical Strikes:
As a crit/burst thief you rely on crits already. This is complimented by not only the signet of agility, but also the rune of eagle.
“Flawless Strike” – This trait is great for initiation. Chances are you going to go into a fight with full health. With this trait, it allows you to have a 7% increased critical strike per crit. Combine this with your steal, basic attack (I open with heartseeker [D/D 2]) then a “Fist of Fury”, your opponent is in a world of hurt before they can do anything in response.
“Practiced Tolerance” – An easy pick. Signet of Agility gives precision, combined with marauder’s amulet and rune of the eagle, you have amazing crit chance and crit damage. However, this trait can be replaced with “Sundering Strikes” if you so choose to get a bunch of vulnerability, however, because it is only 1% incoming damage, I don’t find it useful.
“Invigorating Precision” – I have already emphasized the crit damage and crit chance this build holds. This trait allows you to get the most use out of it. This is where I found the other builds to lack. I am a good PvPer, however, I am by far no means the best. I have troubles out sustaining most classes like the dragon hunter and the reverent, however, with this I have no problems. I have yet to beat a celestial tempest who knows what their doing, however, I have come close. All in all, the trait allows you to survive much more.

Trickery:
“Thrill of the Crime” – I chose this trait for a few reasons. Both “Uncatchable” and “Flanking Strikes” were too unreliable for me. If you can position yourself behind the enemy, “Flanking Strikes” might be better. However, “Thrill of the Crime” grants fury, which is the key in this build, allowing you to have a better crit chance = more healing =higher survive-ability.
“Bountiful Theft” – Bountiful Theft grants vigor, allowing you to evade more, which is, and always has been, crucial; However, this evade is not only used for negating damage, but also damage – we will get to there. This was also an easy pick. We don’t have any trick abilities in this kit, nor are we relying on conditions, therefor the other two options aren’t viable.
“Sleight of Hand” – This trait took a little experimenting to decide on. I chose the trait because not only does it reduce the recharge of “Steal” but also it dazees. This daze, even though it is only for one second, can still be the difference between a win and a loss. This daze allows the option of interrupting your opponent. This is crucial for opponents such as elementalists and warriors. I was thinking heavily on taking “Quick Pockets” but decided against it because of the options I have with “Sleight of Hand” because of the dazes over the initiative

Daredevil:
“Havoc Mastery” – Havoc mastery allows for more burst/damage. That is all there is to it. This build is all about damage and burst, “Havoc Mastery” takes advantage of that most mainly because this build doesn’t involve ranged weapons.
“Escapist’s Absolution” – This trait is a must with the current meta. The current meta revolves heavily around condition heavy classes. especially the newly loved Frostfire Carrion Reaper. The thief, at least in this build, hardly has any cures. To stand a chance against condition classes, we must take this trait.
“Bounding Dodger” – This is another trait that I had to experiment with. At first I was playing with “Unhindered Combatant” however, I found that the “Bounding Dodger” in-fact crits, allowing for healing while still evading. This is where the more aggressive dodging comes into play. Where the D/P beats the D/D is the chase. D/P has the blink or shadow step, allowing them to close the gap. D/D has the “Bounding Dodger” If you find your enemy running away, you can use your D/D 4 (“Dancing Dagger”) to cripple your foe, then proceed to dance all over their booty with your dodge. Allowing you to heal, chase, and damage the enemy.

How to Play
Now that you understand the build and why I chose what I did, I will now understand how to play the build to the full potential I have found. You want to start of with D/D. This allows for the most burst quickest. The reason I say that is because you have the fast attacked speed allowing your fire and air runes to proc when you start a fight. Before initiating start by activating your basilisk venom (Pay attention if your fighting a dragon hunter, always make sure they do not have aegis. If they do, do not activate your elite before opening a fight), once activated use D/D 2 (heartseeker), in mid leap activate your steal to hop on them. Once you have done your initial burst, quickly activate your fists of fury to get in some more burst/vulnerability while the enemy is still encased in stone.
This is where I tend to change what I am doing depending on who I am fighting. In general I use my D/D on ranged targets such as rangers (with exceptions), D/D’s 3 (deathblossom) gives great invulnerability while still dealing decent damage. Usually rangers with either open with their knockback or their quick burst (4 or 2). This is where we take advantage of our invulnerability.
If I am fighting a melee target I tend to use my staff for a few reason: Vulnerability stacks. cripple, blind, invulnerability with amazing damage.
Exceptions: I tend to use staff if I am fighting a mesmer. I use the staff for the second and fifth abilities. The fifth ability allows for massive AoE damage, rendering their clones useless which can lead to high burst damage with either mind shatter or by allowing them to use their abilities twice with the new chromamancer meta. However, the second ability also allows for decent chase while also applying vulnerability.

I hope that my build has helped you, if you have any questions feel free to send me mail in game (Havokak.3450), or feel free to post your questions in this thread and I will try to reply as quickly as possible.