Guild Wars 2

Danikat.8537:

Personally I like that dungeon elitists won’t allow rangers because it reduces the risk of me ending up in their groups. I have no interest in skipping most of the dungeon and speed running the rest by doing exactly as I’m told, when I’m told and never ‘wasting time’ by thinking for myself. Then doing it another 5 times in a row and complaining that it wasn’t worth it.

I have much more fun doing dungeons with casual groups and first-timers. It might not be as quick but it’s more interesting and less stressful.

As for build I tend to use a shortbow because I usually can’t get far enough back to make the longbow effective and then sword/torch for when I either need to be in melee range or can’t avoid it. (Although sword 2 then longbow 3 is great for putting distance between yourself and your target when you want to.) Other than that it’s my standard PvE build which is a combination of condition and critical damage (and still a work in progress).

It might not be the best possible build, but given the groups I’m with that doesn’t tend to matter. It works and that’s good enough.

And that’s the secret of the game. Having fun. Hell you might want to join up with my crew for a run, we usually take dungeons fairly slow (My wife plays and she’s pregnant. Usually have to stop every other fight for a BB) and we’re constantly cracking jokes. The problem with groups is half the time you don’t know what you got until it’s time to march. And usually, then you have to deal with all the “Ranger love”.

MisterEction.9382:

One reason people use only long bow or short bow from the back is to avoid being downed. If the warrior gets downed, “Hey, stuff happens.” But when the ranger gets downed, “OMG Rangers suck!” So, out of fear of being booted, some players are ultra-cautious and are so worried about being perceived as bad that they contribute less than they could.

In my experience, having a good long bow ranger that runs around and assists from the back makes a number of dungeon paths go more smoothly.

The worst issue I’ve ever had playing with a longbow ranger is that sometimes you get a longbow ranger that randomly spams Point Blank Shot and screws up all the other players’ efforts.

I’ll admit I was guilty of the PB shot too. The effect of that shot seems rather random tho. It says the closer they are, the further it kocks back. At max range I’ve had it just knock down the target, and that’s the way I thought it should be, but then I’ve also had it (at max range) knock them clear across the dungeon it seems. I quit using it because it does tend to screw up strats, and reserve it as cover for downed team mates

Solandri.9640:

LOBO Agin.4760:

I take up a role of Fast Response and Support. I’m watching our group. If whoever is tanking’s health drops and they’re unable to disengage, I’m running in. I pop a ring after PB. If someone gets dropped, I pop Barrage on top of them and run in to rez. If someone is rezzing them already I pop Barrage on them for additional cover. If fit really hits the shan, I get in and kite. Grab the agro, pull the baddie away, send in the bear. I usually recall him before I kite because, well, he’s an idiot and usually prevents me from grabbing the agro.

Nobody is saying there aren’t advantages of having a player in the back line. They are saying that as GW2 is currently designed, these advantages don’t outweigh the disadvantages (loss of sharing buffs and combos).

This is really one of the most puzzling things about the game to me. GW1 had a big enough group buff range that you could form up the classic RPG front line and back line. The meat shields would get up in the face of your opponents while the more delicate classes attacked from range behind. Even in dynamic roaming combat, there was a beautiful fluidity to how these two lines could move together while still maintaining a combat “front line”, and still sharing buffs.

GW2 has none of that. Everyone just piles on in melee range or gets left out. I think eliminating the dedicated healer was a positive step. But they’ve also eliminated the dedicated melee/ranged roles. In the process they’ve turned the game into an “every man for himself” affair, where any buffs or combos are accidental rather than planned. GW1 felt more like coordinated play, where each player had a certain job to do and you watched each others’ backs. It accentuated the advantages of the type of play you cite. Meat shields would fall back to protect the casters if they were being attacked by melee. Casters (and archers) would concentrate their fire on areas where the tanks were having trouble.

GW2 OTOH seems to discourage this melee/ranged two-line type of play. It’s supposed to be a multi-player game, yet aside from “everyone stack” and the occasional call-out for a water field, it often feels like I’m playing a single-player game.

I absolutely agree. GW2 does seem to treat the Range/Support roles in a backhanded manner. It’s almost as if they were forced to allow the Ranger role. The role takes HEAVY adaptation to play and a lot of times it may not seem worth it. We can’t rely on the role the game has provided for us (Tired of wearing that tin-foil hat), we have to think outside the box. The community view of the “useless Ranger” doesn’t help at all.

I’ve been experimenting not just in traits but also sigils and signets. I’ve found one of the better setups for offensive support to be a Fire Sigil on a LB. Running that with Barrage seems to surpass the 5 target limit. I’ve had many “meatshields” comment on the breather it gives them. We’ve been referring it as “Napalm Strike”. That’s got me thinking that there are other Sigils that may provide a more beneficial advantage to the line. I’ve thought Ice for the chill, and for a bit Water for the heal, but since that’s only effective around the PC, that tends to get nullified.

So I put this challenge out: You have a Ranger, and a LB. What Sigil, and how would you play the support?

So what constitutes a “good ranger”? I’m one of those LB rangers in the dungeons. I sit back and pop away with my longbow, outside of the buffs that the rest of the team enjoys. By your definition I should have my mugshot plastered on the side of every dungeon with the words “Do Not Allow” under it. I’m a pure power build running Zerker gear (Except LB itself, it’s a White Hart: it was a gift and I couldn’t afford a LB to max out the zerker stats). I take up a role of Fast Response and Support. I’m watching our group. If whoever is tanking’s health drops and they’re unable to disengage, I’m running in. I pop a ring after PB. If someone gets dropped, I pop Barrage on top of them and run in to rez. If someone is rezzing them already I pop Barrage on them for additional cover. If fit really hits the shan, I get in and kite. Grab the agro, pull the baddie away, send in the bear. I usually recall him before I kite because, well, he’s an idiot and usually prevents me from grabbing the agro.

By me being back, it opens up options. Our ele gets dropped, she mistforms back to me, same with any thief. (My team keeps the 5th slot open for guests. Makes the dungeon experience more fun) I can respond to help and plug gaps.

You’re correct when you say there are Rangers out there who seem to just tag along with crews, and they can be a liability. Same as any other player running another class who doesn’t care about anything cept getting his loot. I have been left high and dry by Warriors who run off because they forgot to loot something when we’re dealing with the Troll in AC. It isn’t the class that’s the problem, its the players.

That being said, I am really disappointed in how ANet handled the Ranger class. Animations over-running skill use, the pet’s in general, and the fact that it seems to be that you need a CRAY computer on your left running calculations on your build, while having Miss Cleo on your right to see if it will actually work.