Guild Wars 2

I’m really hopeful too. While I like doing group content, trying to get a group up for the Zhaitan Story is kind of hard / long. It would be great if this comes in during the patch.

Maybe they’ll surprise us in the patch notes? Or maybe they can just tell us now.

So, with the 6/23 patch just upon us, and we have Colin making this post /statement in another thread: [url]https://forum-en.gw2archive.eu/forum/game/gw2/Skill-points-and-Spirit-Shards/first#post5187859{/url]

ColinJohanson.2394:

A quick update on this one -> After feedback from presenting the original hero point count – we decided getting to level 80 will give you enough hero points to unlock all the core skills and traits entirely. Doing hero challenges (aka skill challenges) will simply allow you to earn all the skills/traits earlier before level 80. With the release of HoT, there will be options to spend the excess hero points earned from doing hero challenges in the world.

There are a number of other changes on 6/23 to make the experience from 1-80 more exciting, better-paced, rewarding, and fun as well after having the time to evaluate and player feedback from the updates last year.

-CJ

Does this mean that we will be able to see the updates to the Personal Story, such as adding in that piece that was taken out a long time ago, and more importantly, (to me at least) being able to run the final Personal Story Instance Solo?

I’m really disappointed in WHERE this story stops. Right at where we need to talk to the Pale Tree to ask WTH is up with Caithe. Really?! That was too much for this patch?!

Yeah I agree. I hope this is a bug and not intentional, considering it was that way on the last patch. Why would they change it like this now in the middle of the set?!

Could we get an official word on this??

Hello,

I am reporting in that the Gendarran Fields (on Tarnished Coast) got DC’d as soon as Scarlet went down. None of us got the achievement tick, none of us got the end event loot, nothing.

This has led to a LOT of “OMG WTF THIS IS BULL!!” talk in map chat. If it had just happened to me, then I would blame it on my internet connection. But since it happened to the whole map, that’s something to do with the servers themselves.

Is there any way this can be remedied? Or at the very least get the achievement for it?

I know, it sounds stupid, but I just don’t know my old goal of having all classes all level 80 in ALL the top gear with all having map completion etc. is even a worth-while goal without driving me insane.

Like I said I love what they are adding, but then I cringe at the thought of “oh kitten, just so much to do its starting to become overwhelming”.

I’m looking at the time-sink. Even now, I have the following scenarios:

1) Run WvW with my guild

- OR -

2) Run Fractals to earn Relics for Ascended Trinkets

- OR -

3) Try and finish up the current Living Story / Major Event at the time

- OR -

4) Work on trying to get a Legendary

Etc. etc. etc.

Each one requires time and energy to put in to to get done. Now you add on having to farm / purchase lower tier mats to make your Ascended Gear; you have to do certain achievements to unlock these new traits and skills (per character). To be frank – I really don’t have much gaming time. Maybe 3 hours on average per day. Maybe I’m just a slow gamer, but… that’s not a whole lot of time to accomplish ALL of this for 8 different characters.

www.guildwars2.com/en/news/looking-ahead-guild-wars-2-in-2013/

I just read ALL of this and to be totally honest: I am conflicted!!

I love all of what they are wanting to do – the increase of crafting (effectively allowing you to craft ascended weapons and armor); the more rewards for dungeon-running and champion slaying; Living World events (some) becoming permanent and actually impacting; NEW SKILLS AND TRAITS to expand what is already available!

This here all sounds just terrific! BUT (and here is where I have the hardest time with this) – It really feels like to get the MAXIMUM for a character, to get the truly desired amount of what I want, I would need to dedicate my time and effort to just 1 main and possibly only 1 alternate (maybe… MAYBE 2). The problem with this here is – I want to be able to play ALL of the classes! I would love to be able to say one day “I wanna play my Necro” and the next “It’s time for the Engineer to make a show!”

With all of the wonderful, great things that Arena Net is saying that they will / want to be rolling out (and not take away any other time from other games, real life, etc), it just seems like I will have to make the choice of only one class to really say “this is who I will play”. That could be good… and not at the same time. Like I said – I’m conflicted!

What do you guys think?

The skins and the helm… and the wings… OH MY!

What they should do is what they’ve done with Fractals and with the Super Adventure Box – keep the chest at the end RNG, BUT you are able to earn “currency” that can be used to buy what you could also possibly get in the RNG. That way, even if you ran it 200 times, and you didn’t get it in the RNG, you can still at least get it via the “currency” given to you.

And the items don’t need to be super-cheap either. Make it as expensive for the cost as what the SAB or any of the other dungeon items are.

Also – they SHOULD also have the item up in the Gem Store for those of us who may not want to run the dungeon, but are willing to shell out the actual money for the item.

If they went this three-pronged approach, then I think 90-95% of the player-base would be covered. (Whether people would be happy with it or not is up to the individual player, but at least we aren’t pigeon-holed in to “you must do it this way or no way!” I mean, isn’t that what they were wanting us to do? Play the game OUR WAY?!)

Osicat.4139:

@NerdyMike, The dmg output between HEavy 2.0 and Mist 2.o is about same. Difference is not in dmg, its in mobility and incombat survival. Il explain:

Mist 20.0

Have 100% swiftness uptime, perfect for raoming.
Extreme incombat mobility.
A mesmer rogue build.
Base defense on high controll and incombat mobility, have ok passive defense.
Deal dmg in bursts, no real ramp up time.

Heavy 2.0

Have ~60% swiftness uptime, same incombat mobility as Mist thu.
Perfect for frontline combat, group combat or raidleading.
A mesmer warrior build
Wery good passive defense combined with the acctive defense from Mist
Deal dmg both in condition and burst, deal more dmg the longer the fight is due to might stacking.

So you do same dmg, just thakittens not Smal-smal-smal-HUGE-smal-medium-Huge, its more like Smal-smal-medium-big-medium-medium-big-medium.

So question is not:

Do I want to trade my dmg for survival?

Its more:

Do I want to trade some out of combat mobility for survival?

/Osicat

Ah, thank you.

I was able to get the build constructed (I cannot believe I had all the mats for a whole new set!) and I took it into WvW for about 3 hours last night – and you are right in what you just told me.

Thank you again for doing such a great job in helping us Mesmers.

Hey Osi, looking at the Heavy 2.0 Build and the Mist 2.0 build, does that 20% Critical Damage Reduction really affect your damage output that much? I’m asking because if not, then I may want to give the Heavy 2.0 build a try, as I’d like to have a little more survivability.

I don’t know. I usually run Fractals / Dungeons with my Guardian, and by halfway through the first room I can see who is really “squishy” and I follow them around utilizing my rolls, Staff #4, and my Virtue of Resolve to help keep their health up and out of the downed state. I still attack, do the damage needed, throw out my shouts to provide the stability, protection, and regeneration on the entire group, but I’m also able to help keep those who are specc’d in to doing the maximum damage alive longer than if I wasn’t specc’d for the heals.

Couple that I have the Superior Sigil of Energy on both of my main hand weapons and I’m a rolling / healing machine! XD

@Pazu – Not necessarily. Our roll heals do scale with Healing Power. Staff #4 (Empowering Might) scales with the Healing Power (remember that it does a group heal at the end of giving Might). Our F2 also when Popped and traited to heal the group also scales with Healing Power.

@OP – It really depends on WHAT you want your Guardian to go for. If you’re wanting to be more the immovable object that can hit / crit, go with the Knights gear. But if you’re wanting to go more of the feel of the “traditional” Paladin feel (helping others while still being a good wall), and want to help contribute to the survivability of your fellow players, go with Cleric’s.

Xystus.3241:

Shelter, hands down. ~2 seconds of blocking + a heal

It’s more about mitigating damage, rather than reacting too damage. That 2 seconds of blocking can do so much more for you than any of the other heals.

Agreed. I used to run the Signet of Resolve a lot, but learning how to utilize all of my utilities, plus the passive 10 sec. condition removal trait, Shelter is just very very good, especially if you’re running with high Healing Power.

@cleadus – Oh yeah I do run it. A lot. And personally a 1v1-4 you can definitely survive and even down / kill them, though it just takes time and (now talking from my personal experience) they either run from not wanting to deal with a “slightly longer” fight (IE – I’m not an easy kill) or I just fall from having 10+ people finally down me after giving them a chase. XD

I think what I was trying to say is that, it’s not a build that will let you down your opponents within 10 seconds of engagement (exaggeration of the time, but the point is there).

Coming from someone who does have limited time to game, I bring a different spec into WvWvW depending on what I’m wanting to accomplish. For a good party / roaming / zerg, I LOVE my Guardian! If I’m just in there solo, wanting to just mess around, I take something else in. Personal preference.

I run Healway as well (off from Chris Dawnheart’s build), and the one thing that I did is change the rings from Cleric to Soldier’s. This gave me a little more HP, and a quite a bit more Power. Also I run the Superior Sharpening Stone, and stack the 25 stacks of Power as well. This gives me just enough power to where I feel like I’m not just swinging air, but actually able to do damage and I still have enough Healing Power to be awesome.

Another thing that I’ve learned is that the Healway build (at least for me) is definitely not a solo-run type of build. You have your power mostly when you have at least one other friend running with you.

He’s running MAGIC FIND gear, which means that he’s looking to get loot, so he’s having to sacrifice some things (in this case, some Vitality).

Here’s my stats:

Power: 1898
Precision: 916
Toughness: 1744
Vitality: 1457
Condition Damage: 0
Condition Duration: 0%
Boon Duration: 60%
Healing Power: 1252
Critical Damage: 10%
Virtue Recharge: 30%
Agony Resistance: 30

I have two ring that if I really need more healing I switch over to get my Healing Power over 1500, making each of my dodges heal for 1580, and the Staff #4 (Empowered) Heal at the end for over 4,000.

@Orthias – He’s got a new video up with the Shatter-Cat 2.0, and he shows off the gear and what’s what. Here’s a link to it: Shatter-Cat 2.0 by Osicat

Hey Osi,

Thank you so much for the new updated Shatter-Cat Mesmer! It. Is. Awesome! I must admit that I’ve been theory-crafting myself and I came close to what you have, but the survivablility wasn’t nearly as much as what it appears to have with yours (plus it seems that you have higher Power than me as well).

I took the stats from the video and I was able to plug them all in to the gw2buildcraft and I was able to get the traits, but I’m wondering – is the payoff really worth it not having the Domination Major Trait I (Mental Torment)?

I have to also add that as of right now, I’m not seeing the conversion from a condition to a boon when I have this traited on my Warrior using the Warhorn. I am wondering if anyone else is experiencing this as well.

From the Wiki:
These rewards can only be earned once per week per guild mission type. For example, completing 2 guild bounties will only reward one set of rewards, but then completing a guild trek will be rewarded with another set.

So based upon this information from Arena Net’s own Wiki – not receiving any commendations from the Guild Trek is a bug.

Arena Net – Why u no luv Guild Trek commendations???

@Blacklight – Makes sense.

Erm… ok.

If that’s all that there is then they really should not have hyped up the “do more of the dailies and you’ll get more stuff!”. The EXP gain from completing the daily is minimal, and the achievement points are just bragging points – you don’t get to use them for the in-game content.

And no, I wasn’t asking for more Laurels or Jugs of Karma. I was just asking if that was all we are really getting – minimal experience, which in my personal opinion, is not worth trying to do ALL of the dailies.

Now if they did it to where you got say, 50 silver, then at least it would / could be worth it.

But I never said I wanted more Laurels or Jugs of Karma. That would just be too OP.

For the past hour I’ve been looking around, but I cannot find the News Piece that mentioned it…

I remember reading somewhere that Arena Net said that you can do the required minimum daily from the selection to get the daily achievement (the Laurel, Jug of Karma, etc.) but I also remember them saying that for the “go getters” that they can earn additional rewards by completing ALL of the dailies.

Well… I did just that, and all I got was the small experience from getting the daily completed.

Am I wrong in what I read? Was I dreaming?! Or is this something that Arena Net needs to fix?!?

I too use some Valkyrie pieces for some of my toons. While I am very happy that Knight and Cleric gear has been welcomed to the Ascended scene, I think it would be nice to have all of the base (read: Initial Exotic gear that was available at the time of launch) be Ascended.

As Arena Net has said in the past – Ascended Gear has meant to be in the game from the get-go, but due to certain constraints they were not able to put it in. From a programmer / developer’s point of view I totally sympathise with them. However, since the Ascended Gear was meant to be in from the start, and it’s slowly been working its way in, let’s go ahead and get the initial gear in first (like Valkyrie) and then work on the newer stat combinations (Example: Power / Toughness / Crit. Damage).

Just my two cents.

Bakitten291:

My point is that they are killing off the 1h crit builds, which are the only builds that bring out the full potential in the sword. Depending on the life steal rate of pies, we might not have enough health return to justify the build anymore.

No not quite – The Healway Guardian (by the “default” standard build) utilizes the 1H Sword.

Hey Osi, I have a quick question – What is the standard Crit Damage % without food and ascended gear, but just with Exotic Gear for the Shatter Cat / Phantasm Hybrid? I always hear a lot of numbers thrown around (some saying 200%, others 150%, etc).

How are those numbers gotten to? I’m pretty much spec’d out with the gear that you’ve recommended (in Theory-Crafting ATM) and I’m sitting at around 80% Crit Damage (from what the spreadsheet tells me).

I’m about to hit lvl 80 on my Mesmer, and while I don’t have the necessary gear to fully back up the Shatter / Phantasm build (yet), I’m still doing pretty well on my own in PvE and Dungeons. I know that for me, it’ll take a little bit more practice with how the Mesmer truly plays and developing my overall skill as a player to become GOOD in WvWvW.

Remember – Gear can carry you only so far in GW2. The rest – is Skill. =)

They say that because they cannot spend willy-nilly now and not deal with the consequences. People (myself included) have to be smart about our purchasing decisions.

I have to say that I was all in the AH build, and I loved that setup. When I read this at first I thought to myself “Pfft! This isn’t going to be very good.”

Then I watched the video’s… and my draw dropped.

Then my friend and I theory-crafted around with the core concept of this build, and took it into PVP to do tests against the NPC’s you could fight. Even in PVP, it was still working very…. VERY good!

So I decided to create a 2nd set for myself for the “Healway” build – and even after having all but the Runes of the Monk (which I just now acquired), I took this in to WvW…

I must first say that I absolutely SUCK at WvW. If you think you stink at WvW, trust me, you’re better than me. But anyways I was blown away by how great this worked (and not even fully complete at the time!!) I was able to go and WIN against 1v1, 1v2, and 1v3 (although that was barely), and when there were a few of us against them, we were winning! The only time I fell was when I “tripped” and got lost and accidently ran right into a Zerg coming for us.

TL;DR – At first I didn’t think this build could work – but after actually playing it, I’m beginning to think that this is how a Guardian is supposed to work / feel – much more so over the AH or MF.

Thank you all for responding. I have had some questions for a lot of you and I have sent PM’s to many.

This sounds like a really fun Guild! How many people do you guys have in your Guild?

Hello one and all,

I’m currently looking for a Guild to which I can belong to. And not just any ol’ Guild, but one that I can feel comfortable playing with, chatting with, and making the best out of this game.

My main character is a Lv. 80 Guardian, and I’m currently busy working / leveling all other classes to have fun with!

I’m currently able to play mostly at nights (times are 9PM PST and on…) and on weekends (various times). I’m also currently on Blackgate Server (which I would like to stay on, but I’m not opposed to moving to another server).

While most of my time has been spent in the PvE area, I’m really looking forward to getting more adept in Dungeons and WvW.

hithlain.4385:

btw someone in game told me knight or cleric sets are both draconic sets, and look the same, this is the same armor you make with either knight or cleric stats. Is it true?

Thanks

Yes that is true, same thing for the Berserker, Valkyrie, etc. The sets look the same because of the crafting level, “Draconic” – the Berserker and the rest of those names lets you know what kind of stats it will have.

Since the game launch, I’ve been playing a Guardian (a Norn Guardian), and I love him! Sure I have some alt characters, but when I’m ready to do some serious work in any part of the game (PvE, WvW, Dungeons, you name it) I head for my Guardian.

Brutaly, with this guide you’ve helped me see how to play my Guardian the way I LOVE to play him as! I tweaked a little bit here and there, and this is what I’ve got running:

All Armor Pieces: Full Exotic Power / Toughness / Vitality w Emerald Orbs in each piece.

All Accessories: Full Emerald Orichalcum pieces with the Exquisite Emerald Jewels.

Back Piece: Currently Clerics Spineguard of the Cleric.

Weapons:
All of my weapons have the same stat traits of Precision / Vitality / Healing Power

Main is a Hammer with the Superior Sigil of Perception
2nd Weapon is a Staff with the Superior Sigil of Energy.

Those are the two main weapons that I’ve focused on and use mainly, but I also have the following backup weapons to utilize depending upon the situation:

Focus with the Superior Sigil of the Hydromancer;
Scepter with the Superior Sigil of Force;
Greatsword with the Superior Sigil of Fire;

Traits:
I’m traited at 0/15/30/20/5, taking Blind Exposure, Purity, Retributive Armor, Alturistic Healing, Superior Aria, and Empowering Might as my Major Traits.

[b]Healing, Utilities, & Elite:[b]
Typically, I run with the following, ready for action:

Signet of Resolve,
Smite Condition,
Hold the Line,
Stand Your Ground,
Renewed Focus

But depending on the situation (and very rare situations in where I do need to switch something) I utilize Tome of Courage for mass group healing.

Final Stats:
Now, without food and without buffs from WvW, just by gear alone, I stand ready to face the horrors of Tyria with the following:

Power: 1658
Precision: 1777
Toughness: 1963
Vitality: 1468

Attack: 2769
Condition Damage: 150

Critical Chance: 45%
Critical Damage: 30

Armor: 3174
Health: 16325
Healing: 422

Once I have my 25 stacks of Precision from my Hammer, my Crit Chance is will over 55%, making every other hit a Critical.

@Osicat – Ah, I’m on Blackgate ATM, as that’s were all of my RL friends are on as well. Well even if its against you, I’d still love to see you doing that voodoo that you do so well in person. XD

Thanks for such a great guide, and keeping it up-to-date as well. =)

I’ve finally hit Lv. 60 on my Mes, so I’m slowly saving up to be able to do the spec’s that seem to fit my playstyle.

@Osicat – I’m curious as to know what server you currently play on. I’d love to see you first-hand in WvWvW (I wouldn’t take my Mesmer in there ATM, as I like to do WvWvW with my main character.)

@Osicat – I’ve been watching the video’s and I must say that I really, REALLY like how your mesmer is setup, and the traits / etc. are really good.

You’ve labeled this as a WvWvW build, but can this also work well in PvE and in Dungeons?

I’m currently a lv 27 Mesmer, and have been liking the class thus far. I would just like some tips on the best way to play.

Thank you for such a great guide. I was already gearing up with the Power/Vit/Tough, but this has really helped me spec out more of what / where to go, especially with the traits. During dungeon runs, I’m definitely surviving a lot more, hardly ever going downed.

One question though – what you recommend as your “standard” optional weapon switch? I’ve normally been using the staff, starting off giving my party the might stacks, throwing out the speed symbol then switching over to the hammer, and then switching back to the staff for some quick party-mid heals if needed. But I’d like to know what you would recommend.

Here’s the build that I’m currenlty working on putting together. Only 40% complete of what’s all there (yes, I am lv 80; its the gear I’m “gearing” for. LOL!!) but even at only 40% complete, I’m enjoying this build very much. I feel like I can be “tanky” without being “squishy”.

http://tinyurl.com/97qtmyn

This is serious – my very first server transfer, and while the screen said a minute or two it’s now been 15 minutes and I cannot do anything with the game!! The transfer window will not go away. No buttons work.

Any help / suggestions?!

So I tried my variant of the Spirit Weapons… meh. I think that the skills could be better, and if the Weapons themselves did more damage and hit faster (especially the Sword).

This looks like a fun build. I never really was fond of the Scepter, but I think I’ll have to give it another try.

How do you think this will fare in WvW?

I have to sort of disagree. While it isn’t a high DPS damage dealer, it gives the Guardian a way to be able to do SOME damage while still being able to buff and support the party.

I ran a dungeon last night (Sorrow’s Embrace. Story Mode. That was just ghey all around for EVERYONE. But anyways…) and when I actually started to play “support”, IE rolling around enemies & allies for extra healing, maximizing Shouts to their full potential, utilizing the Mace + Shield skills effectively, we really didn’t have much of the people going down. (Not counting OMGWTFBBQ ridiculous Boss Battles, but even still I was able to give them the support to keep on going and healing whenever possible).

I can definitely see this build working well in WvW. With Retaliation you’ll be able to “score” the hits against the enemies to gain the damage / kill bonuses while still being able to run around and do the thing that Guardians do best: Support.

I’ve always kept my Mace + Shield, but depending upon the battles at hand I would switch between the Greatsword (able to go more offensive) and a Staff (12 Stacks of Might for my team + Healing? YES PLEASE!!)

This is the trend for the Guardian – he’s not a “Lone Star” type of Class (though he can survive on his own), but he truly shines in the midst of comrades, aiding them. This is why I really, REALLY think that ArenaNet needs to change WvW a bit and allow some credit points to be allowed for people truly playing a Supporting Character.

I’m currently running a Retaliation build. I must say it’s fun, but like all builds you do have to manage your resources.

I personally went a full shout build; utilizing on the shouts that give me protection and regen.

Here’s the build I’m currently running (minus a few of the traits since I’m not lv. 80 yet, but it’s what I’m aiming for).

http://gw2skills.net/editor/en/?fUMQNAR5elYgiC33RLEgIFS2jVCBTwaBYPIQMajuFA

I don’t know… yet. But I plan on doing a test run soon with this kind of build. I’ll let you know.

I must say that I’ve thought of the Spirit Weapons as well. I didn’t know just how well they would be, but after REALLY looking at the Zeal minor traits, they help with the Symbols, so utilizing Symbols and the Spirit Weapons you could have a good combo.

This is all in theory, and I do plan on trying it out:

http://gw2skills.net/editor/en/?fUMQNAR5elYgCBnDSFEmIFR+BWW9YfyzeYK0oHvFA

The one thing that I am mostly interested in trying out is how this plays solo vs a group. (My guess is that in a group – not well).

@Red Falcon – That’s a nice build. After looking at yours, it kind of gave me some idea’s on how to tweak mine, yet again. Hahaha.

Here’s the tweaked build: http://gw2skills.net/editor/en/?fUMQNAR5elYgiC33RLEgIFS2jVCBTwaBYPIQMajuFA