Guild Wars 2

Comus.7365:

Krude.7495:

We wanted a leap/more mobility, they gave us a dash
We wanted a blast, we got a blast (or so it seems from the video)
We wanted more sustain, they kinda gave it to us
I’m indeed satisfied with the way the moves look, but after reading that they’re all gonna be slow makes me think that the answer to beating the Reaper is what players have always been doing to threatening necro’s—focus em down or cc/stun lock them into oblivion. This new melee deathshroud concept however opens up a few possibilities if ya think about it. Add some toughness while in DS with certain traits, regenerate health while in DS, will that healing lifeblast trait still be there and how will it affect the Reaper’s DS auto? All i know is, I’mma test out the Reaper spec in as many ways as i can think of. (I already got a dope GS skin just waiting ^^ )

what skin might that be? already drooling over various GS skin what to choose? what to choose?

Sorry for slow response xD Balthazar GS, I love it’s simplicity and the cross between the blade and handle is just so cool (to me).

Rereading this, I see I could’ve worded it better in some places. However, I do feel quite satisfied, considering I came up with all of this is under 40 minutes.

Edit- So, I’ve had some rest and have more space, allow me to detail the moves further.

Edge of Dhuumfire : cast time- 0 .75 s ; 30s cooldown- 7% damage increase
Burning Presence : cast time- instant/breakstun, 40s cooldown (max boons stripped per foe affected is 2, max enemies to be affected is 5)
Infernal Enclosure cast time- 1.75s, ring duration-8s, 60s cooldown, burn on contact lasts 3s
Deathly Compensation cast time 0.5s, one second between pulses (making the skill last for 7s n total), cooldown 35s
Skirmisher’s Replenishment cast time 0.5s, cooldown-16s
Ancient Commands cast time 1.25s, cooldown 100s, lasts for 15 seconds
Condensed Dhuumfire cast time 0.75s, cooldown 0s (about as fast as the staff auto)
Noxious Tempest cast time 0.25s, cooldown 7s (pushback distance: 300)
Enduring Wrath cast time 0.75s, cooldown 40s
Soul Fire cast time 1s, cooldown 18s (note: you don’t receive the quickness, only the 3 nearby allies)
Focal Strike cast time 2s, cooldown 10s
Doom Shot Same cast time as the normal life blast
Terrorizing Advance instant activation, 18s cd
Instilling Fear instant activation, 35s cd
Benevolent Siphon cast/channeling time- 4s, cooldown 40s
Necrotic Flurry cast time 0.75 seconds, cooldown forty-five seconds , duration 4s note: The necromancer summons bone shards from the ground to strike and weaken multiple foes within the area. The radius for the aoe is 350.

Doom Knight. No? DhuumKnight? Meh.. could use some help there.
For the sake of the build idea, I wrote this up with a MH sword to be the new weapon.

Moves: Auto(chain), Vital Pierce, Cursed Backlash (applies brief weakness), Searing Arc (1-2 seconds of burning)
Move 2: Flare Step- 350 range teleport, burns at target location
Move 3: Purging Sweep- wide sword-swipe that leaves a wedge of fire in it’s wake, which burns foes in it’s trail before quickly dissipating

Utilities (these were thought of more recently than the sword skills, cooldowns and cast times are to be determined. These are, after all, just ideas.)

-utility 1: Edge of Dhuumfire : apply a fortified heat to your allies’ weapons, making them deal x% more damage for a brief time (range of 600, pulses 6—vulnerable to change—times)
-utility 2: Burning Presence : aoe boon strip (450 radius) and burn application. Burn duration is increased for each boon removed (maximum of 2 boon removal, +1.5 s per boon removed)
-utility 3: Infernal Enclosure : create a ring of fire that blocks projectile and entraps the user and those inside from leaving until the end of the duration (x seconds). Burning is applied only if contact is made with the ring (and slight pushback, not knockdown). Radius-300
-utility 4: Deathly Compensation : pulsing aoe (4 pulses), for each condition on a foe within the area, gain a percentage of life force (more % per condition). For each different condition on affected foes, you also receive 3 seconds of swiftness, 3 seconds of regeneration, and 3 seconds of vigor. The order of boons received is the same, regardless of the order of conditions on the affected enemy(s).

Heal skill: Skirmisher’s Replenishment : consume 50% of your available life force, gain more health per threshold of life force consumed. Initial heal is 25% of max health. Healing per life-force-percentage consumed: 25-49% of max LF pool= + 5 percent to the initial heal; 50-74% of max LF pool = + another 5 percent to the initial heal; 75-89% of max LF pool = + another 5 percent to the initial heal; 90-100% of max LF pool = + 5 percent to the initial heal. At the end of the skill, burn your first attacker for 1s

So essentially with 90%-100% life force, at a cost of half of it, you will heal for 50% the numbers for this skill especially could use some tweaking.

Now the elite: Ancient Commands : This skill conjures a tomb with which you command devastating new spells.
Skill 1, Condensed Dhuumfire : Hurl a ball of deathly energy infused with the burning of dhuumfire, creates a small explosion hitting multiple targets and applies 1s of burning. (range 1000, blast radius 100)
Skill 2 , Noxious Tempest : blast a cone of poisonous wind to impede your targets progress, applies 1s of poison per pulse and an initial pushback at the start of the skill (3s pulse)
Skill 3, Enduring Wrath : apply 7 stacks of might and vigor (8s) to nearby allies, also restores 25% of endurance. (maximum 5 targets)
Skill 4, Soul Fire apply 4 stacks of vulnerability to yourself for 10s, nearby allies (max. 3) gain quickness for 4 seconds
Skill 5, Focal Strike : conjure a sword of necrotic energy and dhuumfire, then launch it directly in front of you for high damage. Slow cast time and pierces. (range of 600)

Now the new deathshroud, why not call it Dhuumshroud? xD
Dhuumshroud: embracing dhuumfire’s ability, instead of burning every 10s on dark path, you periodically pulse and apply burning to nearby foes (every 5s with a 1s burn). Also, Dhuumshroud degenerates faster than deathshroud (by x%).

Dhuumshroud skill 1: Doom Shot : a bolt of energy is shot from the palm and does extra damage to burning foes, however this attack does less damage at longer range. (range 1000, power drops after 600 range)

Dhuumshroud skill 2: Terrorizing Advance : create a shield of necrotic flames that destroy projectiles as you charge the foe for a piercing strike. (range 600)

Dhuumshroud skill 3: Instilling Fear : create a terrifying, flaming aura that sends foes running (3s aoe fear) (max 5 targets) (radius 250)

Dhuumshroud skill 4: Benevolent Siphon : Channeled skill: Pull a total of 2 conditions from nearby allies (skill affects no more than 3 allies) and then blast the area, burning affected enemies (maximum of 5 targets). The burning is intensified for each different condition pulled from allies. (2 condis=2s burn, 4 different condis=4s, and 6=6s)

Dhuumshroud skill 5: Necrotic Flurry : strike multiple foes sporadically in an area, this skill breaks immobilization, applies weakness to targets within the aoe, and gains life force for each target hit. (8 strikes)

Got my balthazar gs skin ready and waiting

And my heart is set on runnin D/D + GS, so that’s that. The immobilize, the blind, condi cleanse, aoe fumble, and ranged siphon, all that goodness = yes plz.

I’ve only tried the Dark Armor trait once in all of my theory-crafting; And when I finally got to test it in a 1v1 in wvw (D/D + A/F), it was against a guardian, and it was a slow-but-steady win. After that one match, I never got another 1v1 to test it out much. (and quickly moved on to other theory-builds)

So just in my opinion, it’s not a bad trait if you can manage the playstyle that comes with it. Now that still brings up an interesting idea, because doesn’t the reaper channel most of it’s skills? Shouts, most gs skills, and a couple of the new DS skills. . Or does the long wind-up not count as channelling?

I hope they keep that trait.

Bah, my mind is already set. D/D + GS and sometimes D/F + GS .

We wanted a leap/more mobility, they gave us a dash
We wanted a blast, we got a blast (or so it seems from the video)
We wanted more sustain, they kinda gave it to us
I’m indeed satisfied with the way the moves look, but after reading that they’re all gonna be slow makes me think that the answer to beating the Reaper is what players have always been doing to threatening necro’s—focus em down or cc/stun lock them into oblivion. This new melee deathshroud concept however opens up a few possibilities if ya think about it. Add some toughness while in DS with certain traits, regenerate health while in DS, will that healing lifeblast trait still be there and how will it affect the Reaper’s DS auto? All i know is, I’mma test out the Reaper spec in as many ways as i can think of. (I already got a dope GS skin just waiting ^^ )

I like being able to cast my well on the spot :/ Not looking forward to that being changed.

Necro with a blink/teleport skill sounds like nonsense. We already have 3 ports, we need a leap. As for invisibility, that’s just a bad joke. Would much rather have an invulnerability skill like mist form, and since it’s a necro, make it apply poison. I already posted ideas for moves elsewhere, but here are my ideas again. SEE THIS ANET AND THINK ON IT:
Move name ideas
Blast: Necrotic Inferno / Unholy Purge (either applies burning or boon strip)
Leap: Soul Stride (gain life force on hit)
Invuln: Acid Cloud (aoe poison effect)
Aura: Flesh Armor / Bone Armor / Poisonous Presence (-10% damage and/or applies poison when hit)
Block: Minion Wall / Barrier of Minions: (perhaps with knockback and initial bleed or torment if enemies are within the radius of the skill) maybe even a secondary, chained skill where you could blow up your wall for a blast finisher and aoe bleed effect.

Move name ideas
Blast: Necrotic Inferno / Unholy Purge (either applies burning or boon strip)
Leap: Soul Stride (gain life force on hit, perhaps even brief swiftness or cripple target)
Invuln: Acid Cloud (aoe poison effect)
Aura: Flesh Armor / Bone Armor / Poisonous Presence (-10% damage and/or applies poison when hit)
Block: Minion Wall / Barrier of Minions: (perhaps with knockback and initial bleed or torment if enemies are within the radius of the skill) maybe even a secondary, chained skill where you could blow up your wall for a blast finisher and aoe bleed effect.

I’m sure after a good thinking session i could think of some tinkering notes, but first thing that comes to mind is, swap out scepter for axe – i know you like your scepter, but hear me out; the axe 2 is high dps and is great for gaining life-force ,axe 3 cripples, but also grants retaliation – which for the necro, is awesome. (I’ll duel ppl and the most heard complaint that i get is, “kitten that retal”). You get less range for more up close fighting, but w d/d as your primary/secondary, i’d imagine thats no problem.

- Through personal opinion, i’d also recommend plague signet instead of locust – a lot of ppl will disagree w me here, but buck em. Plague signet in so many situations has been able to save me or be the clutch move in beginning my counter attack. the break-stun is perfect, and the condi swap is awesome.

-I’d also dump the accuracy sigils and go bloodlust and battle. – simply because your crit’s aren’t enhanced much through ferocity, but stacking up might will be a good asset.

- so in relation to might stacking and concerning your runes, if you like exuberance, keep em. but if you wanna try something else, try saving up for strength runes. i run mad king currently, but in PvP i love the strength runes.

Lastly, i just gotta support the golem. I don’t use it, bcuz i like lich form. But if i didn’t like/use lich form so much, i’d be using the golem – what most ppl do though, is use it right away and just let it run w them everywhere, and your right, it definitely shows the enemy there’s a necro out there. Thats why i like to save it, and bring it out only when its safe and smart (so like when the enemy/target is at 35-50% health). it’s a little risky by not having it out and constantly doing/attempting damage, but it avoids the problem of it being dead or on CD when u need it. Plague form definitely does have its use though when in big group fights.

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fRAQRAod3Yjc0UcbLNG1whbCcBZ6hXrC5hAU2OOA-TZBBwAAOIAeeCA12fo/JAocZAA

^- Has kept me alive and fighting in skirmishes in TPvP – some even called me a bunker. S/P thieves are not normally an issue either. Shatter Mesmer also, though a threat, not unbeatable. Even hambows have a tough time killing me. Few fights are easy, but the biggest snag with this build is overpowering dps – just don’t got it. Other tankier builds can survive this build (typically) long enough for help to arrive.

Concerning condi’s, I find hybrid builds to be the most effective. Pure condi is just too vulnerable for my tastes.

Narkodx.1472:

The guy with SoV minimum toughness and 1 stun breaker thinks his build is good!? Have you ever faced Hambow? one hammer rotation and you are dead… smh

Funny that you ask, I have, and I’ve wrecked hambows with my (old.. and new)build(s); I’ve even received hate-filled whispers from said-hambows after wrecking them.

Hambows are… Beatable.

smh.

I’d say its all about tactics, yeah they’ll focus the necro if they’re smart. BUT, what is a necro doing on the front lines anyway? Unless the Necro is specced for being tanky (which most are not), it’s kitten-brained to head out in front of teammates. Need stability? Doesn’t guardian provide that? As for “the first push”, pretty much every necro has the advantage of using staff for the marks as an initial defense/ tactical layout (I don’t use staff). Also, other classes love running into fights with their boons up – corrupt boon/well of corruption – now your hambow/glass guardian/stun ur face off teammate whatever can go ham.

There are ways for a necro to stay on the edge of a fight and provide excellent ranged support/dps – just as there are ways for an ele or a mes. Ya know how that firestorm does massive damage? Necro has fears to interrupt the healing enemy – yeah it’s not the same burst damage as firestorm or mesmer S/P + GS combos, but this is when the team play comes in. If a necro isn’t specced for 1v1 battles, chances are, getting the stomp is somewhat difficult – but supporting a stomp, now that’s easy!

Life force is easily attainable (for me) so I gotta change my perspective to imagine the difficulty for other builds to get it… imagining … Yes.. this 0 life force at the start of any battle is a tedious start. I could stand behind 15%, but I think 30% may be a little hopeful. (spectral grasp?? <- i love it, but i know its not for everyone..) Lastly, a lot of necro builds lack defensive utilities because they’re spec’d for damage – that’s when i’d suggest finding a hybrid that suits you. I’m on the quest of perfecting my own hybrid – will share if I get any significant results.

In the end, team synergy is a big part of the win/loss – putting class/proficiency shortcomings aside.

Interesting, I like it!

Side note: I really like the well of darkness, it makes me wanna make a build revolving around using it with traited chills on blind. But I haven’t figured how I’m gonna do that yet. Thanks for the build idea doe!

No time to try these builds right now, but i will!

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fRAQRAoY7djk0UUbNNW3wfbichaygoKgOAKg6NyKYDA-TpRAwAVeAAAOCAhOIAZ3fozJAAdZAA

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fRAQRAoY7djk0UTbzNW3wfbichaygoKgOAKg6NyKYDA-TpRAwAVeAAAOCAi3fI0BBozJAgcZAA

NeXeD.3042:

What I’m saying is doing ok or well in spvp hotjoins does not good a build make. If you managed to rank up in tPvP soloq then maybe people would need to take a second look or if you ot noticed by a good team again it would make people take a second look. I made a signet necro to troll the kitten out of people telling them to uninstall everytime I killed them. But even if I was killing people moving quickly capping points and reading teammates it doesn’t mean the build would work in good Tpvp.

Okay, I see what you’re saying. I will need to play more PvP now before talking about it any more. I’ll do my best to get out there with the pro’s! Just remember where you heard of/read/saw all these experimental builds comin’ from ^^ My first video is being edited to fit the youtube video-screen, and then more footage will be comin up of my old+new builds. As for Tpvp, I’ll just have to hope I catch a team-with-an-opening’s eye. Or maybe I could form my own team! Now I’m pumped!

Unless you wanna wield nothin but daggers! (shoot I might just try that).

NeXeD, do you mean sPvP as in structured, or solo? Regardless, it’s controlled by both parties (your team and you), smart players will notice each other and synergy can be attained (even if starting out poorly). — And sorry for the misunderstanding, I wasn’t sure how you meant your teammates responded when you said they were angry with you.
And of course I’m gonna defend my build, because it works for me. I’m in the process of making videos to prove it. Unfortunately however, I don’t have a team for tourneys :/ I could try to solo que and I’ll get back to you with a video on how it works out. I also made a new theory-build that I’ve already made a video for; so I’ve already tried to adapt to what I’ve heard and experienced concerning my previous build. It’s working “alright”.

Spectral grasp is the combo maker AND breaker. I love it for the concept’s sake – a chilling grasp that pulls the enemy to your feet (sometimes- most times if used at a smart range). Even still, I put that move on the back burner for now to test more theories. – I still found it very entertaining + competitive with most, because I played differently; and some people became flustered after throwing their conditions back at them, and then pulling them in for my destructive Well of Suffering, Dark Pact, Golem Charge, Reaper touch, (switch) rendering claws combo — at this point I have at least 6 stacks of might and my bleed damage goes from 100’ish to 400’ish. I won’t bore you any more tho with what you think isn’t good enough for the meta’s. I’ll post videos (in time) and do my best to prove it that way.

Ozzy Toxin.3074:

hmm my experience… I think this sums it up (evade) yep that’s about it unless I am point blank other then that I don’t get to use it because im rping as the communal beach ball for the ham guards and warriors because stability isn’t an attrition classes thing apparantly

There’s definitely some skill/strategy involved in order to efficiently use spectral grasp, I usually force my opponent to use his dodges first, before I spectral grasp. And hey, even if they do dodge, that gives you time to start your next move (i.e. an aoe attack of some sort, or an immobilize after the dodge). It’s a very aggressive move, that doesn’t mean it has to be the initial move.

Also, for classes with stability, they may see the move coming and laugh. But they forget we Necros need that life force (which they just gave us) and the chill sets in to give us a kiting advantage – go from there however you like (according to your build).

NeXeD.3042:

yeah I tried a kittening signet necro for like an hour today and still managed to kill people in hotjoins, did one game in yoloq with it and my team was so so so so angry with me it wasn’t even funny. SoV is bad im sorry it just is. People did the same thing to me everytime I poped em with sov and chilled them they would cleanse the chil and run away for 10 seconds then come back and ruin me. It does not work. You know when signet works? When there is so much lag that you literally cant hit your heal skill anyway.

After they cleansed, why did you not wreck them at that point? And do you mean all signets? Cuz i run spectral grasp, well of suffering, and plague signet. As soon as anyone tries to run + condition cleanse, I DS 2 (dark path). . . If that misses I got spinal shivers and dark pact. And running this build in sPvP is not bad at all if you got good team synergy. (I’ve had my good teams and bad teams come and go, it very much so the luck of the draw – I’ve also never been called out for bad performance so.. there’s that as well)
I’ve had a good experience with this build. But now I’ve moved on to an edited version. (may post in Necro forums later)

NeXeD.3042:

sigh….. Ok your very very pretty.

lol Thank you I totally understand your doubts towards SoV, and a skilled player can definitely take advantage of the moment it misses. But like any battle between skilled players, one little mistake can be all it takes to lose the 1v1.

:O I just had an idea, what if spectral grasp turned into a Spectral Throw/Smack-down?? – Meaning, that it’d still pull, but after pulling, it throws the target down to the ground (adding another second to their inability to respond – that is if they don’t have a stability or stun-break to pop)!! <- it’d add damage and be even more satisfying to use

^- I like spectral grasp as is, but that would be… just fantastic

Protagonist.4083:

… Also @Krude, I did have to craft the set, but I had a TON of mats from when I thought I wanted a legendary, so it was relatively cheap for me. I’d recommend running dungeons to see if you can get some cash, otherwise the mats are pretty cheap as it’s not a popular set by any means.

thanks! I’ll get to it. I got 20g so far. So it may be a while, but that’s relieving to hear/read that the mats are cheap (for now).

I love the zealot/vamp necro idea. I’d definitely build it differently though. but I won’t post any build without having any results to back it up (not at all saying that’s what you’re doing). I’m also terribly noob and don’t have my crafting up, or any friends to craft for me (no implications being made)

OMNIBUS.2913:

Panhauramix.2784:

You just have to be quick on the summons, and as soon as they’re summoned you swap them for your reals skills. Start with 1-2 to get the hang of it if you’re afraid to be stuck with a minion. Even 1 grants you the 10% needed to enter DS.

thnx for the tip. always good to improve on my necro

Does anyone else think this is cheap?..

Wyrden.4713:

i wanted to ask one more thing, the dual dagger trait speed increase works also if i got d/f and sc/d? or do i need to have d/d equipped?

it says you get 15% with one dagger equipped i think..

NeXeD.3042:

All anyone would have to do to kill your build is watch for you to use the signet if you miss gg. Even if you hit its subpar.

Wrong, even when I miss, players get cahcky and think I still won’t hit hard. Remember I have two very consistent condition-transfers + blind. I go in and out of DS like a dolphin wading through the water, and this well-played strategy gets me a win in nearly every 1v1 I’ve ever been in. Yes, i’ll occasionally miss, but that’s not the end of the battle.

I rock dat Spectral Grasp the occasional flukes are tolerable, and it’s the greatest combo-initiating move on my utility bar. I’ve gotten a little impatient with it in WvW because I like having more mobility there, but it is definitely my favorite skill concerning PvP and for 1v1’s

Mooncalf.5736:

Hi, I’m also seeking what are basic sPvP builds for necro, but I’m new to GW2 and I don’t know what runes to choose, amulet, sigils and what rotation to use to which classes, etc. I found some advices, but since the latest feature patch 20 days ago there are only very few updated articles and what I read the changes were quite severe.

So far I’m using minion build (4/0/6/4), which works quite well in arenas, but I don’t know if it is optimal. I like big health pool (27k) and strong passive survivability. I tested all professions and necro seems to be the most noob positive and forgivable class. Especially I like Dead Shroud ability, which allows me to withstand attack from several people at once.
Also, I wonder if there is any strong PvP build without staff (no marks) as in 1vs1 is quite easy to avoid it and marks also expire quite fast and sometimes I’m bit bored to recast it all the time.

Could anybody who plays PvP necro regularly please post link to complete updated “starter” necro builds with some brief description how to use them (rotation, class specific tips, etc.)?

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fRAQRAod3Yn0ISrN2SDe2A7NoAXQmc4VIXEIqMU2OOA-TJBBwAAOJAeeCA12focZAA << I’ve been broadcasting this new build everywhere, people hate signet of vampirism, but few appreciate the build’s approach.

Plague Signet is your one and only stun break, and the rest comes down to skill with the build. The signets will grant might and are actually encouraged to be used frequently in almost every situation. Not only are both signets intended for defensive play style, however, the might stacking is perfect for increasing the damage dealt over the course of the battle. Spectral grasp is great for gaining control/dominance in a fight – it combo’s very well with the golem’s knockdown + Dark pact + well of suffering.

Every single move is intended to be used to the fullest. Some say putting 2 into spite is ridiculous, but the condition damage is increased with the might stacks; and it adds to the consistency of damage being dealt (considering chance for bleeds on crit). This will give some breathing room as your opponent focuses on condition cleansing. This build also keeps you from having to chase the opponent constantly. The grasp, the spinal shivers, the DS immobilize, fear, and teleport+chill are your perfect tools for chasing down runners. Deathshroud’s slower diminishing rate is also very valuable, giving you more time to stick in it to let your other, non-deathshroud utilities to go thru CD (making all the CD reductions very much worth it). If you rotate your skills properly, dominance is easily attainable once getting the opponent on the defensive, but part of this requires a strategy of allowing some damage to be done – in the case that the enemy likes stacking plenty of conditions. Deathly swarm is a great go to before resorting to Plague Signet, if the opponent focuses more on conditions than stuns – in this case survival is super easy, because most condi builds can’t handle their own conditions being thrown right back at them.

A concern for this build may be your classic Hambow warr, but even this enemy can be threatened by this build. Longevity in a battle where you can’t hit the enemy for a few seconds is slightly difficult, but not impossible; after being slapped with conditions + stun you got your quick fix plague signet, afterwards you got your deathly swarm to throw more conditions right back at em – now rendering claws for your life-force and unholy feast for the retal – now is the time for DS and 4 for lasting the extra seconds you need for the theoretically already activated endure pain +/ berserker stance.

Stability is also not a problem against this build with spinal shivers as ur 5, which is also traited to activate when attacking an enemy below 50% (sure u knew that one.) And hey, even if they do have stability + and spinal shivers is on CD, nothing’s stopping the chill from spinal shivers from being useful (remember it slows their CD’s as well, which is awesome).

If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to ask me more about the build. Or critique it. I’ll do my best to give a satisfactory response. (I hope this was well enough explained. it’s getting late n I’m getting lazy…er)

Edit: After rereading your post, I notice you said you like the big health pool and passive survivability – this build may not suit your fancy then. Due to it’s high damage intent, it does leave room to be desired with tankiness (hopefully i explained it’s ability to tank, but it’s a different, more risky approach). I wouldn’t recommend this class to a noobish player, but hey, practice makes perfect :p and at least I gave you a build that doesn’t require the staff

I have a theory crafted build that I’m very happy with, and I want to test it in more structured PvP, instead of hot join.

I have TS3 and am open to discussing strategy, I just need a team <.<

Hopefully somewhere there’s an opening for a hybrid Necro

I’ve been defending the concept of my build all day. If you (not just you, I mean anyone familiar w the necro) know the Necro, my build should be reasonably understandable, though different in it’s intent and play style.

I’m running out of ideas on how else to prove it’s mettle – aside from PvP’ing back-to-back when I’m not on forums. The message, was, if you doubt me, challenge me – therefore proving any honest curiosity on your end so i could then hopefully sate that curiosity.

Ok, I’m mistaken on Plague (stab lasting after early exit). (I don’t even use it. . except when underwater obviously.) I’d much rather boon rip with spinal shivers and then golem charge them when they least expect it/or to secure the kill.
And again, yes ele’s and mesmers have some advantageous skills, but they correspond to the idea of the class – after all is said and done though, Necro’s have higher vit and a “second health bar” to make up for some “shortcomings” (I would call them different playstyle intents).

I’m not even saying the necro NEEDS two stun breaks, but for one who like’s playing defensively I’d say it’s doable. I run one stun break, and that’s all I need. Ele’s can mist form all they want, it doesn’t stop the inevitable (their health is so frickin’ low). As for mesmers, they can be tough, but their moves are just as tactically demanding as Necro’s DS and utilities are. Some could argue that its easier for mesmers – I wouldn’t entirely disagree, but skill is definitely required for dominating victories.
[]Also, I don’t run war horn, so I’m not in much of a position to defend it. Same goes for spectral walk (tho I do use it in WvW, not in PvP); and from a WvW perspective I run mad king runes so.. spectral walk is just for the swiftness and life force, it’s pretty obvious what it’s for: Kiting, chasing, running, tricking (porting back and tricking the unperceptive player)
[]And really? runes are not the finishing touch? What difference is there in being definitive, or the finishing touch? (sounds the same to me, considering they simply-put, ALTER your finished build’s stats. seems like a finishing touch to me.) Moving on, sacrifice is necessary, and few people seem to be embracing it – choosing to stick with condition-mancers, minion-mancers, lifeblast-mancers, and spectral-mancers. There’s not enough expansive creativity within the necromancer community and those who do propose different ideas (like me) get very little shine + acceptance. I also rarely see much variety in Necro builds, so wherever these active theory-crafting necros are, I’m just not seein/reading about/watching them..
[]Necros now have (some more) good accessibility to group healing abilities, but I’ve yet to see someone try speccing into that.
Also most tank-necros I see are either MM or life-force/spectral builds.. not much creativity there. I made a corruption/well build and that was not too bad (cudda used more tweaking, but I much prefer my current build).
-What stability really comes down to is being a crutch. A crutch that I believe, necro’s don’t need. We have it, and for some it’s just what’s needed – but that doesn’t mean its ALL we need. Stomping may be fun + gratifying, but a necro is also very capable of wrecking the enemy’s hp and eliminating him even faster that way.
#TheStruggleIsReal

NeXeD.3042:

how are you getting the extra trait points plz share with me so I can be the most op necro ever.

SHIZZ forgive me, 4/2/0/4/4

Luke.4562:

/facepalm
Do you really think an 1v1 whould show your build is optimal?
Sorry but for me it’s a totally pathetic attitude challenging people around like this.

You’re completely missing the point, if I can efficiently diminish a fighting force from the enemy team, though one by one, that gives my team a +1 essentially – taking in account the time it takes for the fallen enemy to respawn.

I’m also not sure what you mean by “challenging people around like this”. If your gonna doubt my build, what other way can I prove to you its efficacy? So.. I’m not trying to pick a fight, just trying to prove a point. Thanks for calling my attitude pathetic doe, truly respectful. .

Luke.4562:

lol again this troll with Signet of Vampirism.

#Wyrden:
For runes.. if you want to go full DPS then Divinity, Ogre, Lyssa, can’t really say, focus on Power and Ferocity.
Sigils raising Crit and sigil of fire for the DeathShroud build and flat damage/energy for Minion Master.
You can approach for a more bunker MM by getting Water/Melandru/Dolyak runes and Cleric gear.

why do you assume I’m a troll?? I honestly use this build and I kick kitten . I’d post videos if I had more than 14-19 fps on a regular basis. And no money for recording stuff..

Please, if you doubt this build, 1v1 me. (Krude.7495 or Ambitious Ashley). I’ll be getting on within the hour.

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fRAQRAod3Yn0ISrN2SDe2A7NoAXQmc4VIXEIqPU2OOA-TJBBwAAOJAeeCA12focZAA

So far I haven’t gotten much shine or support for this(my) build, but it’s been successful for me – very much so. Sorry there’s no staff :/ but maybe this will spark an idea for making it work somehow.

I run 4/2/0/4/4, my response to thieves, is Plague Signet for the breakstun, spectral grasp as someone else had mentioned above, and deathly swarm for the blind and condi transfer. I wish a thief would try to melee me, cuz I mainly use the MH dagger anyway. As for their continual stealths, the axe’s aoe attack + dagger aoe 5 is a good response – along with my traited enfeebling blood on DS (followed by appropriate skills, i.e. tainted shackles and 4.. can’t remember name atm :p ). And.. I also run well of suffering for the poor fool who gets caught in my immobilize+knockdown combo. I deal heavy damage, which’ll often force thieves to retreat and try again, and more often than not, well-timed everything will win me the 1v1. (it’ll be close against skilled thieves doe)

Muchacho.2390:

Krude.7495:

One could argue that necro’s (traited and armed properly) can be just as tanky as warriors and guardians – so much so, that its neck-to-neck. I just got out of PvP and was facing Glass (every class) zerkers, and Tank (all classes) bunkers, and errythin in between, I’ve lasted through all their CD’s and near won every 1v1 (until it became a 2v1 – however sometimes I won those ).

All profession (maybe exept thieves) can build themself to be tanky as warriors and guardians. But thats not the point. It is also not about 1v1 or 2v1 in which necros are not that bad.

This is about stability. And i stand to my opinion that professions that are supposed to stay in fight (and necromancer a amoung those professions) need stablity without heavy traiting or blowing elites. And it should be a longer duration with a long cd…

I agree/understand Necro’s need to stay in a fight, and I’m saying its doable without stability. But I’ll give in, you have your right to your opinion; and I also won’t complain if they make stability easier to get. It’ll just be a new way to adapt and that’s cool

Bhawb.7408:

Lich might be a fun stability move, but the second you are against a thief/mesmer/necro you’re boned. I can’t tell you how many other necros I’ve totally screwed over by corrupting/removing their stability then hard CCing them into oblivion.

I feels ya Bhawb. Just figured I’d bring it up, that new move-set can still be very effective if used efficiently. (takes skill, just like anything else)

zapv.8051:

LOL I build craft constantly so telling me which skills the necro has, and what their utility is makes me laugh. Dark path is a teleport to a target, which is ok when fighting, but terrible for escape. Spectral walk is an amazing skill that I actually trait for, but its functionality is limited, and most of the time it still won’t allow you to get away from smart players. Flesh worm is 1200 range, you have to have it presummoned, and make sure no one kills it. In WvW where I play it isn’t worth it. A light armor class should have the heaviest access to stability because unlike warriors and gaurdians, we don’t have invulnerabilities, or blocks, and have to work way to hard to make the movement skills we have worth while. Furthermore, we don’t have evades skills, or stealth like ever other light and medium armor class. That is why we need stability, our in combat movement is terrible, or out of combat movement is subpar, and we don’t have good(i.e. instant) teleports and evades.

Especially comparing us to a warrior though is absurd. Warriors run one weapon, and have great damage and great mobility (greatsword is actually the highest dps warrior build again).

Again, I realize plague is a skill, but 20 seconds of blind spam is not equivalent to good defense, or sustain. It makes me question why you think you can bring up a 180 second cooldown elite as “perfect defense.” It is one of the best elites in the game don’t get me wrong, but you can’t call something with that high of a cooldown the perfect defense.

To your last point, classes should not have to spec into specific runes, and traits to get things every other class has. Every other class has access to vigor, but necros don’t. Another example is with mesmers, they are the only class that has almost no access to run speed bonuses. They shouldn’t have to spend gold on runes to reach a reasonable run speed. That kills build diversity while also leaving one class in the dust. Giving necros better access to stability would allow us to sit in the pocket without getting cc chained to death which is what happens now. It would allow the class to prevent being focused so much in pvp, and open up tanking builds that didn’t center on 30 in soul reaping.

Ok, you know the skills, but did you know after exiting Plague (early), you still have the stability? Perhaps “perfect” is saying a bit much, but anything that gives response-time is all it can take for a skilled player. MM’s for example have quite the advantage of hiding behind their minions, condimancers have the advantage of high vitality + condition damage, and hybrids have their own strengths and weaknesses as well. That being said Plague can fit in with those builds just fine.

- I also can’t really defend some moves in WvW, because mobility is nice; and with flesh worm I’d definitely agree, it has no place in it. I am also more of a victory or death play style, so retreating isn’t always the best option for me.

Again, I will mention Plague Signet. (theoretically)There’s your first stun-break, and second, you have spectral walk (according to you); there’s your life-force needed to fear/blind/DS (or whatever works) and last another few seconds (giving you time to respond) <- My strategy is: plague signet, well of vulnerability, and spectral grasp (not always in that order) – just to add a more unique/difficult play style. Even if SG doesn’t pull, the extra life-force is much appreciated. (and spectral armor will activate at 50% health – with the 20 in soul reaping that I run.)

A specific thing that I like about GW2 and class diversity is that most skills available to each class, and the ways they can be empowered/traited makes sense. Ele’s have their ways of getting stability, and so do Necro’s and Mesmers – seems fair to me.

As for mobility, necro has perfectly decent access to swiftness, not so much with dashing attacks such as many other classes, but that makes sense, concerning the concept of the Necromancer – raiser of monsters, plaguer of conditions, inflicter of fear and corrupter of boons and statuses. (’nuf of that..)

Lastly, runes are the finishing touches to a build, it’s the finishing polish; and it’s also not the only way to “have what other classes have” – which isn’t even the point of the classes. So I would completely disagree and say that it definitely does increase build diversity. What ele runs Nightmare runes? and What engineer uses Traveler runes? Build diversity is very difficult to attain when the amount of exhibited, differentiated builds are so limited and rarely shared with many people. (because many people who theory craft their builds have pride in being different – myself included)

Muchacho.2390:

You know that even with all that warriors are more mobile, more tanky and have better access to stability then necros. And dont forget necros are supposed to be in the fight like warriors and guardians. And in theory necros have even the highest stability time if traited properly. The problem however is that this scenario is so unlikely.
-And has a cd of 180 seconds, which limits the elite too much (though the cd is probably justified).
-One could argue that necros need vigor. Though i am not sure if vigor is something necros really need. Stability in the other hand should be available in more necro builds then in only one…

One could argue that necro’s (traited and armed properly) can be just as tanky as warriors and guardians – so much so, that its neck-to-neck. I just got out of PvP and was facing Glass (every class) zerkers, and Tank (all classes) bunkers, and errythin in between, I’ve lasted through all their CD’s and near won every 1v1 (until it became a 2v1 – however sometimes I won those ).

Well timed blinds (LIMITED AS THEY MAY BE) and dodges make the win; However what’s great about the Necro is it’s ability to dish out conditions in seconds – also, condition transferring. I don’t even buff my condition much with my build, but I utilize every move to keep the enemy bleeding in some way or another at all times – even when they stealth and Idk where they are. Necro has good aoe’s and “tricks” that make defensive-agressive play style very accessible.

What does limit the Necro, however, is that we can’t just press 2 buttons for half our dps, I mean.. we can, but not in such an easy way suchas: [Mistform],[stone armor(?)],[berserker stance],[endure pain], [whatever elixer](hopefully you know the rest, cuz Idk them all :p ) – a different tactic is necessary to handle these simpleton builds nowadays, and risk is a big part of it (meaning taking hits and doing without stability is sometimes just the way to go).

And I don’t mean to sound like I’m bragging in the first part. Every match is simply a test of my skill and the build itself; and I’m just pleased with the results is all. I’m also not saying my build is the way to go, because I saw plenty other competitive necros as well. (mine just most often won (in fair, 1v1 scenarios ^^).

One last thing, Lich Form is also a fun stability move. But I understand the diversity in opinion concerning that one.

zapv.8051:

a t s e.9614:

Necro ? Stability ? What? Give warriors stealth then .

Any kind of explanation, rational, or thought at all behind this. No, ok then stop coming into this forum and trolling.

Necros should have the best access to stability in the game imo. We aren’t mobile, don’t have easy to access teleports, don’t have easy to access swiftness, don’t have blocks, don’t have invulns, and don’t have extra dodges. There is only one way a necro can walk out of a fight, and that’s if they kill everyone else there. We need some stability on an active skill because unlike every class besides gaurdians we can’t really leave the pocket of a fight. Once your in your in, and if your getting chain cc’d your not going to make it very well.

Umm… have you ever played necro? or just MM?
Death Shroud #2 (dark path) is a teleport, Spectral Walk (there’s your swiftness) has a teleport (if used properly), and lastly, flesh worm can be destroyed for a teleport to it’s location (which is perfect for CoF p1). Warhorn is also an ok go-to for swiftness.. And do you realize what you’re saying? Why should a light-armored class have heavy access to stability?.. that just doesn’t make sense to me.

And plague is pretty much the perfect defense for CC, you get stability, and you can blind spam to pretty much not get hit at all for the duration of the skill (unless they range/kite you + conditions can slowly be applied as well – but conditions are hardly a threat to a necro if you know how to handle yourself and have the appropriate skills/utilities).

If you want more dodges, there’s always sigils of energy and runes for vigor on hit (can’t remember the name off-hand, sry). Lastly, I don’t think that guy was trolling, to me it sounded like a funny, valid response to necros and consistent stability. Stability is not at all the strong point to a necro and neither should it be. (my opinion, you’re free to feel different – I won’t judge)

Muchacho.2390:

Krude.7495:

Muchacho.2390:

Krude.7495:

Spectral Grasp! Axe is fine. That is all.

Lol Spectral Grasp doesnt help with the bad autoattack axe has…

I’ve never had the problem of my axe not doin’ enough damage, plus, the axe isn’t where my damage is at. (that vulnerability, not the damage, is what I want)

I spectral grasp, axe cripple for the retaliation, maybe rendering claws, but if the enemy is a runner, I switch to dagger for the immobilize. And if it’s an ele who likes to run and use static field/chilling ground (don’t know actual name of skill), I got plague signet and DS 2.

You’d have to be a really good kiter to dodge all my stuff. So far the only class that can run circles around me is an engi (but engi’s are still plenty killable )

All that would still work without ever using the aa…

There is only one szenario where axe aa could be decent and that is when you run a mm build. If not i would always take staff over axe, simply for the fact that the damage both offer are bad (but staff gives condi damage, which is nice against high armor players) and staff gives better utility and hits harder in ds (well unless you take axe training but i would never give up a spinal shiver at 50% for that).

Axe gives retal + has aoe cripple <- I’ll use that to my advantage due to the fact that I’m a melee/hybrid necro. I get bleeds on crits and rendering claws has great chances for bleeds. The axe aa isn’t supposed to be the killing strike, just a means to an end, and the vulnerability is the perfect means considering I want to spectral grasp, dagger immob, n go ham. Staff attacks are just too easily avoidable (and i have no mouse :p ). And I’d much rather take the life-force from rendering claws than the life-force from staff auto. Also, I much prefer deathly swarm for my condition transfer as opposed to staff 4, the blind is much appreciated along with it. AND, marks don’t hit downed players, axe does

And yeah, the axe aa isn’t killer because its the auto attack. No class’s auto attack should be that strong – otherwise it would take away from the skill required to manage the rest of your moves and utilities. (I barely use the auto attack, but when I do, its usually cuz I’m waiting to switch weapon sets, go into DS, or use another move in that weapon set after CD)

All in all, I can’t complain. My damage is just dandy ^^

Well of power is good, but still slow (imo), yeah I take more damage by letting vulnerability stack on me before using plague signet, but that’s exactly what lures people to getting closer; and when the time is right, bam(plague signet), suddenly they’re taking more damage than I am and I can DS fear, pop my heal, and continue fighting as necessary – but now with much more damage goin out, which more often than not surprises the opponent.

Deathly swarm is also a perfect condition cleanse+transfer because the blind gives me just enough time to heal, and most of the time I save the golem charge for the right moment (or it can be used defensively to throw off a combo).

I like well of power, but it’s just too defensive and it gives the enemy too much time to think. << nothing is more gratifying than taking all those condis from hambow and then throwin it right back onto em. At that point, I can go on the offense immediately rather than after the pulses of WoP cleanse my conditions. —- I like to think this build is more interactive and responsive than other necro builds.

Side note: I love corrupt boon, but I just don’t have room for it, and I like my CD’s being short for good consistency of my ability to act+react.

And might does increase condition damage.. 3 stacks of might (when activating signet) gives +105 condition damage.

Hey hey! I’d love to join a team (if there’s room). I also have TS3 + mic. I’m pretty flexible, and whatever needs doing, I’ll do my best – and I think my best is pretty good ^-^ (you be the judge)

Casual is my forté, so please send me an invite if you wanna add another necro to the team.

Mk, defense time. The purpose of the bleeds is to have continual damage, small as it may be, but all my hits hit HARD. So the strategy is to hit hard, get the enemy to retreat and condition cleanse – I have 3 chills that will also really mess with the enemy’s CD’s, so the idea is to throw them off their typical strategy, and most builds these days don’t have enough diversity to play in any other style other than offense. My defense is my offense, and my offense is my defense.

CD reductions on my well and spectral grasp are VERY much worth it. I have 2 condi cleanses which is all I need because one has a range of 1200 and activates immediately n the target just needs to be in my los. < after activating also, I’ll be getting might and 7% more condition+base damage. What the calculator isn’t showing is my condition damage after the might has been stacked.

This isn’t a DS build, but I’m utilizing it’s survival ability whenever I get hit too hard and need to survive bursts of damage. Also, I disagree with you Rym on signet of vampirism, many people have trouble realizing how much of a damage spike that gives me – along with might + extra life siphoning. Also life blast on its own is too slow, its nice for throwing a slow but heavy punch, but aside from that, death shroud is mainly for conditions and survival.

This isn’t the best roaming build, yes, however the teleport from DS is often a very good go-to for runners, and spectral grasp catches many off guard if used skillfully. (spinal shivers is another good option as well). Patience is required when running around solo.

As for plague signet, most fights I get into are 1v1 or 2v2’s, and the condition drawing doesn’t pull that many conditions (not enough to be a problem); Its a great, instant-activated skill that’ll spit on anyone dropping a bunch of conditions. (its quite hilarious when fighting Hambow wars, and condi-rangers, and shatter mesmers).

I can’t emphasize it enough, that death shroud is mainly used for survival and dropping more conditions to keep the enemy concerned about their health bar instead of mine.

Adam first: Not sure. it’s not ideal to go into DS after activating the signet. The ideal way to act after signet of vampirism is to get the enemy immobilized and drop the well on em – also, have the dagger equipped (or switch to it for the might )

Now Luke: Bleeds activate on critical hits, and death shroud 2. Since the dagger has the fastest attack speed, chances of getting bleeds are very high (you also get enfeebling blood as your #5). Rendering claws, life siphon, and other pulsing attacks also have good chances of inflicting bleeds. That being said, the idea of the build isn’t revolving around bleeds, rather the idea is to do high damage and leave the retreating enemy STILL taking damage (for example when thieves/mesmers hide in stealth). This build has the luxury of very dominating close-quarters-combat.

by the way, is ofc = outta f-in control? .. is that good? Lastly, that link didn’t have any build on it.

a t s e.9614:

Necro ? Stability ? What? Give warriors stealth then .

lol Well put.

Muchacho.2390:

Krude.7495:

Spectral Grasp! Axe is fine. That is all.

Lol Spectral Grasp doesnt help with the bad autoattack axe has…

I’ve never had the problem of my axe not doin’ enough damage, plus, the axe isn’t where my damage is at. (that vulnerability, not the damage, is what I want)

I spectral grasp, axe cripple for the retaliation, maybe rendering claws, but if the enemy is a runner, I switch to dagger for the immobilize. And if it’s an ele who likes to run and use static field/chilling ground (don’t know actual name of skill), I got plague signet and DS 2.

You’d have to be a really good kiter to dodge all my stuff. So far the only class that can run circles around me is an engi (but engi’s are still plenty killable )

I can do without stability..

In fact, I’m very satisfied with how the necro is now.

I miss my dhuumfire (before the patch), but I can deal with how things are now. (easily adaptable)

Plague Signet is now my most favorite breakstun, with spectral armor activating at 50% and well-played DS, almost every situation is handleable