Guild Wars 2

Psisah.9140:

Just looked at Dev Tracker and JonPeters just posted in another forum.

Let’s hope he has the guts to come over here and defend this patch.

or

Maybe we will have to wait for “someone to call him” and “poof” in.

+1 my friend. +1.

“This player community is not hypocritical at all.”

Had to be said.

BBilbo.9641:

“You know what this zone needs? More centaurs…”

omfg I lol’d so hard….ty lol.

JJGlyph.9746:

“wouldn’t it be great if this game had gear progression?”

Actually this was posted every kitten day by someone diff asking for a better progression system because they were not satisfied with after getting all of their exotics and didn’t feel like they were doing anything at all while getting a Legendary…imagine if they simply asked their question honestly; Give us ez Legendaries. But noooo they specifically had to use the term “progression” again and again. Well you got exactly what you all said you wanted and now you’re all not happy because you just couldn’t be honest. Makes my day^.^

Loki.4871:

What can I say: you’ve clearly made up your mind and nothing will dissuade you from your opinions.

I’m simply pointing out a very key point that I often see ignored.

DPS = Ranger + Pet
Survivability = Ranger

This is not a bad thing nor was I trying to imply it was. In fact, this is a very good thing to be blatantly honest. I was simply pointing out that in such a system there is actually less real diversity than I thought you were trying to imply and I certainly did not mean to offend.

I’ll answer your question the same way you guys spread your own information. I’ll take a single sentence and quote it not only out of context but without any supporting arguments. If you do not accept what I have to say at face value, then how, applying the same method, can I accept what you and everyone else says at face value?

Our Studio Design Director Chris Whiteside just posted this:
- “Our goal is not to create a gear treadmill.”

Bam, according to your own logic all your worries should now be gone.
Isn’t it a wonderful world : D

Loki.4871:

Rant aside, the pets themselves are (ignoring the ‘quirks’) pretty kitten powerful. They also give you playstyles, in the sense depending on what pet you take, you yourself end up playing quite differently. The Jungle/canyon Spider lets you snare and dot a target. The dogs give good crowd control. Grabbing a sword or greatsword and wading in with a drake lets you belt out alarming amounts of damage in melee.

The thing is… it does NOT actually create play styles.
Lets take a look:
Power spec Ranger + Power pet = High damage / low survivability
Power spec Ranger + Tank pet = Low damage / low survivability
Defensive Ranger + Power pet = High damage / High survivability
Defensive Ranger + Tank pet = Low damage / High survivability

What looks the most appealing now?
You can pretend you have lots of ways to play now because your profession can spec into two different categories unlike any other however, the way it is now is actually having the opposite effect.
This is a very simplistic view but it does reflect the choices one has on a far left or far right table which tends to be the All-or-Nothing way people spec their characters.

Okay, not this post but this one instead:

https://forum-en.gw2archive.eu/forum/info/news/A-message-from-our-Studio-Design-Director-Chris-Whiteside/first#post721451

I’m seriously tired of seeing a hundred diff posts about “OMG the world is ending!!” because people cannot use parts of their brains.

The above linked post should be linked in a properly named sticky in this sub forum. Thank you.

Also, for those of you too lazy to go and read it, here’s the main point:

- “We will not be adding a new tier of gear every 3 months that we expect everyone to chase after and then get the next set and so on.”

Now go pet a fluffy kitten…
(and by that I mean calm down.)

Torrentula.7410:

Bearzu Smash.5962:

Nurse.1085:

lol I’ve decided that there will be a bullet for each individual Signet and Spirit. The rest will be typo corrections.

-Fixed an animation bug that allowed rangers to equip weapons.

Made me laugh

LOLOLOLOL
Made my night. Thank you.

But seriously…
You forgot to include the animation bug that forces pets we find in the world to follow us.
Could you imagine how awesome it would be if those things actually attacked people? We’d be OP!

YojimboJones.6243:

Imperator totius Sylvari.9164:

Are thiefs op? No, it just due to someone saying hey look at what this can do, infact the questionable the backstab build which has become famous has a burst of 45 seconds whereas many other classes can continuously use there bursts, is it fair that I can burst every 45 seconds as a thief? Well apparently it is not. Is it fine for a warrior to smack down an ele with 15k damage in spvp from 1500 range with a much shorter cooldown? Yes, yes it is…

The problem with the thief is not that it is overpowered, even the cnd>Mug>backstab build is not overpowered, the problem with the thief is its popularity and thanks to it the thief is getting nerfed.

This warrior had used their elite (fury, might), has 25 stacks of some sigil buff, I’m assuming bloodlust, for an additional 250 power. (how the hell they got 25 stacks of this in spvp is beyond me…) and they have 20k hp, which is lowish for a warrior, meaning total glass cannon build.

So, yeah they set up the “perfect shot” here. Compounded by the fact that the target was likely pretty soft, mesmer running low armor. On top of this, killshot has a 1 and 3/4 second cast time, at which time the warrior drops to one knee as you see the barrel of the gun glow. shrug I guess if you shoot someone wearing a wet towel for armor from a mile away, with a glass cannon build, and 25 stacks of +10 power… yah… Problem?

So wait… he got 15k damage at 1,500 range… in sPvP…and you’re okay with that? What about the Thief blowing way more cool-downs just to deal less damage in with Backstab at Melee range and less than half as often? But noooo, that’s not okay. God forbid that Thief had set up the “perfect shot” as well. The problem people have is not the damage, not the recharge, not the stealth, its just the feeling of dying in a more pitiful, up-close, personal encounter that really irks them. Hypocritical garbage. Give us a rifle at just 1200 range with a skill that cancels stealth, is “obviously telegraphed” (because at 1,500 range you’re totally paying attention.. oh wait.. you’re not.. just like you don’t pay attention against the Thief), roots us, and deals the same damage as kill shot while consuming all of our remaining initiative and see if we still get QQ’d to the ground. You all know we would. I’m tired of this pathetic, hypocritical community.

PS. Stacking Sigils grant 5 stacks a kill in sPvP. That’s how.

Bearzu Smash.5962:

I envy anyone anticipating this patch (the ranger bit of it, I mean) with any degree of optimism.

Here’s to hoping that I’m proven very wrong in my cynicism.

Same.

It makes me sad knowing I’m never going to get to play through all the possible story lines and thus going to miss so much.. QQ

nldixon.8514:

What about axe and warhorn?

Those obviously were not allowed choices and must be omitted from the discussion. Thank you for understanding.
-(insert random signature here)

Oh! Don’t forget harpoon either!

Seriously…gtfo…

Btw, here’s a clip of the effect underwater ^.^

<3

As solid said;

“Time to do some real damage”

Makes me giggle every time.

Dante Dragonhand.2538:

Sco.9615:

Dante Dragonhand.2538:

best attack

Made me giggle when I saw this used in the same sentence as Ranger…
You mean Auto Attack?

Nope, depending on the situation that can include rapid fire or point blank, but was more or less refering to warrior, kill shot and all. I honestly think rangers best attack for each weapon tends to be the one with CC involved, GS is hiltbash or counter attack, LB is pointblank, SB is conc shot or crip shot, sword is serpent strike or number 2 chain, axe is the chill, or ricochet. Ect… That post just made me sad btw.

LB auto attack is the strongest hitting skill it has sadly. I knew u meant the Warrior but I had to lol when I saw Ranger in the sentence.

Dante Dragonhand.2538:

best attack

Made me giggle when I saw this used in the same sentence as Ranger…
You mean Auto Attack?

Yeah, that happened to me earlier before I started taking mass SSs of it happening.

Because
“+1
Got to love friends”
gets infracted… lmfao, find a better use of your time mods.
Well, here it is again because a funny post like that deserves it;

Lol +1 for having good friends like yours^.^

Another one. Just for lawls at this point. I really don’t know why I even use a bow.. I think it’s for the aesthetics… I don’t think they have another purpose…

I don’t think it’s anything sinister. I feel hurt but I don’t believe it was like that. I think they simply waited to introduce the ranger update until they felt better about it and just decided to throw it in with the content update. Worrying about not experiencing some of the content is understandable but due to the nature of the system the temporary content makes a decent preliminary test. The more hardcore testing can be done during free time.

Ninjah.6298:

HPLT.7132:

but you are wrong with the 6 sec invuln. . This skill costs 30 points into Marksmanship(+power). So if you want to stay longer and beeing able to survive burst damage from a thief / Warrior you have to skill up your attack power. ^^Haha very funny -.- . Also this Skill has a cooldown for 120 Seconds.

No, I’m not.

http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/%22Protect_Me%22

Tier 2 utility. 3 Skill points… 60s cooldown.

Guys, give up, you need to l2p. Most of you can’t even read a skill list fgs.. :P

Try Hello Kitty or something.

Because as a Ranger who “fights in unison” with your pet you’re perfectly fine using a skill that either forces you to waste a pet swap or kills your pet. +1

“Try Hello Kitty or something.”

Kthnxbai. I’ll see you there.

Yeah it is…. and here happens to be another but only a few min after that! : D

Oh… and here’s another one of a few seconds later just to really drive home my point.
(Insert desk flip emoticon here)
^.^

Rage [On]
Put up with this long enough…I’m 2 feet above my target and this kicks in… I understand with WHY it was introduced even if I do not agree with it all but I’m seriously about to kill a fluffy baby kitten. Was this even tested? It’s 100x too sensitive and I’m really (insert profanity here) annoyed with it now. Take it out or fix it. Actually bother to test your crap next time. I know you guys are super busy with all of that new content and finding creative ways to avoid publishing a Ranger update but please, stop screwing us over. Thank you.

Official Site Ranger:
Rangers rely on a keen eye, a steady hand, and the power of nature itself. Unparalleled archers, rangers are capable of bringing down foes from a distance with their bows. With traps, nature spirits, and a stable of loyal pets at their command, rangers can adapt to any situation.

Wiki Ranger:
Rangers are masters of their natural surroundings, and use a multitude of skills designed to track down and hunt their enemies. The rangers are also accompanied by their trusted pets, fighting in unison with their own set of skills to pick off their enemies one by one. Their unique attribute provides a Pet Attribute Bonus.

So, what do I want my Ranger to be you ask? Why not what we were promised?
I want to roam, “use a multitude of skills designed to track down and hunt” my enemies with my pet at my side. I want to be feared when I’m seen roaming. Being a “master of my natural surroundings” nothing can stand alone against the combined might of my companion and I. I want to be able to “adapt to any situation” with my “traps, nature spirits, and a stable of loyal pets”. I want to feel like an “Unparalleled archer” who is “capable of bringing down foes from a distance with my bow.” I want my “trusted pets” to “fight in unison” with me as we “rely on a keen eye, a steady hand, and the power of nature itself” to demolish our foes.

Currently it’s more like:
“use a multitude of skills designed to track down and hunt” – What skills?

“master of my natural surroundings” – But I can’t even do something basic like attack from any sort of elevation change (even underwater).

“adapt to any situation” – As long as that situation doesn’t involve conditions or CC.

“traps, nature spirits, and a stable of loyal pets” – Well at least we have traps amirite?

“Unparalleled archer” – Who is out-shined in not only damage but utility of those weapons.

“capable of bringing down foes from a distance with my bow.” – So long as they are AFK.

“trusted pets” – So long as the foe does not move and you’re not using a F2 ability or Drake pet.

“fight in unison” – With my multitude of skills that sacrifice my pet for myself, thus not solving any problem.

“rely on a keen eye, a steady hand, and the power of nature itself” – “Keen eye”? For that extra long range we have that’s absolutely limited to only our profession? “A steady Hand”? To pray our target does not move? “Power of Nature”? Those OP spirits that buff our allies and force our foes to deem them as a threat and focus their fire to bring them down?

Reaxident.7351:

I got hit for 7k + today w/ 1700 toughness. I have nothing that hits for 4k, period. I am not saying overpowered, I’m not going to cry, but you seriously think its ok?

This kind of thing^
Srsly….grow up.
Warrior hits for the same if not more at least with Glass Cannon rifle and you dare complain to us about a difference of damage? The issue is not we are the only ones who do this damage, its the fact that some professions lack such a burst and find it amazing that people can do such damage when I view it as ordinary because my Warrior does it all day with even less risk. It’s a different point of view.

If the reason why you dislike backstab is b/c of the sheer damage I better see you complain about a whole hell of a lot more as well. If your problem is instead that you can’t deal with stealth then direct your arguments there, L2P, or wait for the fix to rendering and see if its still such a big deal.

Tired of misdirected hate simply because someone was on the wrong end of a Dagger. Where’s the complaint when you’re on the wrong side of a rifle when you also weren’t paying attention? Attacking with a Dagger makes it more personal and therefore more hate. Can’t hit a Thief in stealth? You can, you just don’t know how and panic. Can’t hit a Warrior at 1200-1500 units? You just plain can’t.

The answer is not “omg nerf everything that’s stronger than me or has a higher burst!”
it’s “I accept some professions have different strengths and weaknesses but atm my profession’s strengths are completely lacking and we need a buff.”

lololol I know the pain.. luckily I am a Thief and have handy a few run speed buffs and a nice ability to avoid aggro if you know what I mean +wink +wink.

Kuroin.1703:

Well according to all haters he would simply be oneshotted because backstab is like 30k dmg bru. ;p

Backstab doesn’t scale its damage bru, dun you listen? It always does just enough damage to kill its target. Backstab will do just enough to kill you and no less. 6k?, 10k?, 15k? Doesn’t matter. Stats, gear, buffs, etc.? Don’t matter. Backstab is the enigma of Death and you cannot escape from it. Do’t believe me? Here is a video to prove how truly frightening it can be!

Fun with the Backstab Thief

Just wanted to point some things out. I really do feel for your situation but I do feel these need to be said;

1.)
“I CAN SEE HIM”
Not if he was hiding out of los like you said the Thief was and waiting to attack you at 1500 range while your back was turned and actually dealing the same, if not more, damage than the Thief with less skills in CD.

2.)
“…im sitting on 4k HP after 2 seconds” / “This all happens in 3-4 seconds.”
Do you not dodge or use a stealth of your own or even Blink away? Do you sit there dazed that you just lost so much HP from that initial burst and not hit a panic button? Heartseeker is a leap but a proper blink + dodge + clone + heal just turned the fight in your favor, even from 4k HP up.

3.)
“and he has to have full rage(is that bar called rage?) That is alot of pre requisites”
So basically he has to catch you by surprise by hiding out of your los then use a single skill to gain all his adrenaline and shoot you in the back while only putting 2 skills into very short CDs. You’re not helping your case.

4.)
“the thief on the other hand can do his attack again and again and again.”
Assuming you did play correctly and not take 4 seconds to hit any sort of panic button you’ve already turned the fight in your favor. Unlike any other profession, weapon swapping does not actually benefit us as much due to shared pools of Initiative so your argument of a continuing assault is flawed because any profession has the ability to swap out skills for new ones while they are on CD and begin an entirely different assault negating this argument.

5.)
“it would take me 30sec to wear him down.”
I’m really sorry but this is a little crazy. If it takes you or anyone else 30s to wear down a Glass Cannon Thief that just blew most of his CDs and probably has no more than 12-13k HP and next to no Armor then you’re doing something wrong. End of story.

6.)
“I dont have a problem with any other thief spec” / “If a glass cannon warrior goes for me he better pray his charge > HB lands or ill wear him down.”
So because you got countered by 1, and 1 build alone (after all of the above points) you call for a nerf because you died. We’d be nerfing you if you had no problems with any sort of other build. Accept the fact that as there are counters to the Thief (that you simply failed to execute) there are also counters to you, which seems to be a combination of both your own lack of ability to quickly assess situations and take the best course of action and possibly your build as well (God forbid I mention engine malfunctions). But how dare I say such a thing to you because as you just got done telling us, you’re flawless.

7.)
“The thief wasn’t stupid”
So you died to a semi-intelligent player…God forbid.

All in all you’ve only proven here that;
1.) You have slow reaction time or do not have skills to counter with.
2.) The Backstab burst does not kill you.
3.) Upset that you actually died to something and not force a draw or win you call it OP.

I hate to say it but if you really want to complain, record the fights and post a video. I don’t believe you mean to get on here and mislead people but numbers do not tell the whole story and as a rule; Incomplete data is misleading data. Thank you.

Oh this happened to me once. It wasn’t removed, you simply went under water with a item that was stolen which locks the skill xD Scared the fluffy kitten out of my butt when it happened to me before i fixed it xD

Zera.8907:

I would love to get Jon Peters opinion on this.

Why? Don’t you know that Warrior is in a good spot and it’s the Thief that is OP? Sheesh man, get wit the times.

Ethics.4519:

Anet is already aware of this. I expect to be disappointed with the fixes though tbh. Either 1) I have very high hopes and they won’t deliver or 2) they deliver and all other professions (especially Necros since most claim to be broken as well) will QQ.

I’m a ranger at heart, but I have no reserves about playing other classes. Dabling with theif, warrior, and ele right now.

I feel the same way, Honestly.. a Ranger at heart but it just is not fun atm. I’d keep playing it if I felt like they could pull off an update that sounds this good but as you said and as I’ve seen…my chips are on unlikely. But who knows.. maybe there will be that 1% chance they restore my faith in them… Can only pray. Thief in the mean time. I assume it’ll just get nerfed some way in the same update anyways.

Longbow
I have felt the Shortbow was just too clunky for its own good with its array of AoE skills and often close range. I decided to change it out for a Longbow which keeps many of the same effects however allows a longer range at which to utilize them to partially counteract the clunky feel. Also it has a unique chain attack to make it feel more effective at long range at the cost of initiative regeneration rate. A new skill in slot 3 was introduced to counteract this however (if the circumstances are met) which was a re-imagination of Trick Shot which we all love.

Skill(1):
Chain Skill:
1. Opening Shot – Shoot an arrow at your foe. (0 Initiative)
2. Follow-up Shot – Shoot another arrow at your foe that moves twice as fast. (1 Initiative)
3. Final Shot – Shoot a final arrow that moves twice as fast and deals extra damage. (1 Initiative)

Skill(1):
Stealth Skill:
Triple Shot – Shoot 3 arrows at your foe. You remove a boon for each arrow that hit. Nearby foes all lose the same boons. (0 Initiative)

• Effect Range: 600

Skill(2):
Cluster Bomb – Fire a cluster bomb at target area. Detonate in midair for multiple explosions. Moves slower than normal. (4 Initiative)

• Slightly faster than the current version to compensate for added range.

Skill(3):
Leeching Shot – Fire an arrow that bounces on impact damaging struck foes. Gain Initiative per foe struck. The same target cannot be hit twice. (4 Initiative)

• Initiative gain per foe: 1
• Max bounces: 4

Skill(4):
Choking Gas – Fire an arrow that fills the target area with a poisonous cloud that dazes foes inside. (6 Initiative)

• 4s Duration (5 pulses).
• Poison 4s each pulse.
• Daze (1/4s) on 3rd pulse.

Skill(5):
Infiltrators Arrow – Fire an arrow and shadow-step to the target area, blinding(5s) nearby foes. (6 Initiative)

Rifle
To feel unique to the Thief I had the idea of specializing instead on types of dangerous ammunition (like the pistol above) instead of focusing on unique skills. This idea, in my opinion, ended up turning out quite well as it allowed the ability to have a high initiative consuming attack which could deal lots of damage while still synergizing well with the rest of the bar. As such, only one effect can be activated at a time and they cannot be stored out of combat for more than 30s.

Skill(1):
Precise Shot – Aim a shot at your foe. Increased Critical chance per point of initiative.(0 Initiative)

• ~1% increased critical chance per point of Initiative.

Skill(1):
Stealth Skill:
Heavy Round – Your next Precise Shot Knocks Back your opponent and causes vulnerability. (0 Initiative)

• Vulnerability; 5 stacks for 5 seconds.
• Knock Back Range – 450
• Channel time: 1.5 seconds

Skill(2):
Obsidian Round – Your next Precise Shot applies Cripple and has a 100% finisher chance. (3 Initiative)

• Cripple 4s.

Skill(3):
Poison Round – Your next Precise Shot applies Poison and has a 100% finisher chance. (3 Initiative)

• Poison for 5 sec.

Skill(4):
Deadly Shot – Channel a shot at your foe that deals more damage the more initiative it consumes.
*Base cost: 5 Initiative.

• Max channel time: 4s. 1 Initiative drain per pulse. 2 pulses per second.
• Beginning the channel breaks stealth. Cannot move during channel.
• Max Range: 1,500.

Skill(5):
Smoke Canister – Drop a smoke canister that explodes a second later granting stealth to allies within range. Dropping a Canister while in stealth reveals you. (6 Initiative)

• Fuse Time: 1 second
• Radius: 180
• Stealth Duration 3s
• Blind (3s)

The Reason I included a Longbow and Rifle suggestions in this was to give some suggestions for a 1200 Range option for the Thief which it currently lacks as I’ve seen an increasing amount of these comments. I removed the option for a Shortbow simply because it would just become redundant with Pistols, Longbows, and Rifles. Also, I just personally prefer the Ranger to be the Master of the two bows. I’m aware that there is a 99.99% chance none of these changes will ever be implemented. Especially something so drastic as add/removing weapons. Most of them were just thoughts that I took off with when I was writing this up.

Steal
I love steal so much but there are times and weapons I just do not feel like it has any remote synergy with. I want to suggest an alternative form of skill you can swap it out for (like swapping a utility skill) that has a better synergy with the ranged aspect of the profession. While also promoting preemptive actions of the Thief before battle.

Anchor – Drop an anchor at your current position. (Lose all Initiative)
Return – Return(shadow-step) to your Anchor. (Lose all Initiative)

• Max shadow-step range: 1,200
• Red Line to appear under skill when out of range of Anchor.
• Small but visible to enemies and therefore can destroyed if targeted?.
• Shares recharge with Steal and traits could be made to have some effects on this skill as well as Steal.

Tulisin.6945:

I don’t understand why there is such a strong desire to “streamline” weapon sets into particular stat combinations. GW2 has done remarkably well by not making weapon/itemization design that cut-and-dry and it pays off in build diversity. I’m all for stuff like making backstab more appealing to more builds, but there’s no reason to cut down build diversity by narrowing weapon functionality.

- Posted in Heartseeker Suggestion

Build diversity comes from using different weapons to achieve different goals. That’s the very basis of GW2 skill design. Making weapons share “dual stat distribution” only decreases the effectiveness of the set as a whole and as it is now; forcing you to use less skills. This is not really a problem at the moment because it is technically also a form of initiative management and since spamming the same couple skills of a set is an option, you can get away with it. What many claim this is doing is “increasing build options” but all I see is it actually lowering diversity inside those “builds” which are actually built around single skills, not the weapon. On top of that, this “build diversity” idea is even more flawed because of the fact many of the weapon sets as a whole share the same split goals.

You want diversity? What if you actually focused weapon sets to achieve goals correctly?

Dagger Main Hand – Large burst damage.
Pistol Main Hand – Ranged condition damage.
Sword – Sustained damage pressure.
Dagger Off-Hand – CQB damage prep.
Pistol Off-Hand – Ranged target control.
Shortbow- ./removed
? Longbow – Long Range AoE effects.
? Rifle – Long Range single target DPS.

Combining these weapons gives different advantages/disadvantages; That’s where your build diversity should come from. It should NOT come from combining something like;

Dagger Main – Large burst damage
+
Dagger Off-Hand – CQB damage prep.
===
CQB Condition damage.

This is not only completely counter intuitive but also hindering to the weapon combination as a whole.
The following are some skill suggestion I’m making up on the spot just to get everyone’s creative ideas flowing in the hopes it illustrates what I mean by actually having useful skills that you would want to use in combination of your other skills.

Pistol
Use different type on ammunition to disable and inflict damaging conditions on foes.

Body Shot – Shoot your foe with a poisonous round inflicting poison for 5 seconds. If your foe was already suffering from poison they are instead chilled for 2 seconds.

• 3 Initiative

Unload – Fire with both pistols at your foe inflicting a multitude of conditions.

• Number of Shots: 8
• Conditions applied in this order: 1 stack of Cripple(2s), 3 stacks of Bleeding(4s), 3 stacks of Confusion(3s), 1 Stack of Burning(1s).
• 5 Initiative

Head Shot – Daze(1/2s) and Blind(3s) your foe with a head shot.

• 3 Initiative

Black Powder – Shot a round that detonates in a cloud of smoke granting you stealth(3s) and explodes on impact blinding(5s) nearby foes.

• 6 Initiative

Dual Skill
Many of these skills are not only very fun to use but very effective(Flanking Strike’s tracking of course being omited). This is the exception however as its focus on condition damage is completely counter intuitive to the two weapons combined to use this skill.

Death Blossom – Do an evasive leap over your target striking them 3 times. Each hit does X% more damage than the previous strike.

• 5 Initiative

Tulisin.6945:

Sco.9615:

You want diversity? What if you actually focused weapon sets to achieve goals correctly?

We’ve clearly got vastly different philosophies when it comes to this. Your way is certainly viable, and is used in most MMOs, while GW2’s current solution is a bit innovative.

The fact stands, however, that the current setup is both viable and effective at nurturing build and role diversity while allowing players to be effective at a number of playstyles. Revamping how traits/skills/stats interact to create several streamlined and obvious role-based builds would work, as most other games have shown in the past, but is it what is best for the game?

This IS GW2’s design… Did no one bother listening to developers during development? Weapons achieve goals and the combination of weapons into sets allows you to achieve multiple goals or one goal really well. THAT is how the system was developed.
Yes, the current set up for Thief IS viable (only due to the Initiative system) as I’ve already stated and YES, I understand why people like it. However, the current system will always leave you wanting more(as evidenced by this thread). Thieves are so focused on the “powerful” or “most effective” skill they forge entire builds around it and get away with it. It works, but imagine how much more diverse you’d actually be if you were able, or god forbid, willing to use multiple skills.

Tulisin.6945:

I don’t understand why there is such a strong desire to “streamline” weapon sets into particular stat combinations. GW2 has done remarkably well by not making weapon/itemization design that cut-and-dry and it pays off in build diversity. I’m all for stuff like making backstab more appealing to more builds, but there’s no reason to cut down build diversity by narrowing weapon functionality.

Build diversity comes from using different weapons to achieve different goals. That’s the very basis GW2 skill design was based around. Making weapon sets share dual purposes only decreases the effectiveness of the set as a whole and as it is now; forcing you to use less skills. This is not really a problem at the moment because it is technically also a form of initiative management and since spamming the same couple skills is an option, you can get away with it. What you claim this is doing is “increasing build options” but all I see is it actually lowering diversity inside those “builds” which are actually built around single skills, not the weapon. On top of that, this “build diversity” idea is even more flawed because of the rest of the weapon sets as a whole sharing the same split goals.

You want diversity? What if you actually focused weapon sets to achieve goals correctly?

Dagger Main Hand – Large burst damage.
Pistol Main Hand – Ranged condition damage.
Sword – Sustained damage pressure.
Dagger Off-Hand – CQB damage prep.
Pistol Off-Hand – Ranged target control.
Shorbow- Situational utility skills.

That’s where your build diversity should come from. It should NOT come from combining something like;

Dagger Main – Large burst damage
+
Dagger Off-Hand – CQB damage prep.
===
CQB Condition damage.

This is not only completely counter intuitive but also hindering to the weapon combination as a whole.

You really want to achieve diversity? Create weapon sets that suit your goal. Building around a single skill on a single weapon set does not in any way constitute “diversity” nor does it support the OPs idea of changing skills.

As I said before, yes, due to the Thief’s mechanic you can get away with builds focused around such actions but you’re still being limited and that’s why the OP was suggestion a change to HS. The only problem with that is it just further exacerbates the problem in this particular case for everyone else. Thus, yes some skills do need to be drastically changed, but not the one he is suggesting.

This made me lol so hard I’m sorry.

Here’s a better idea.

Leaping Death Blossom- Do an evasive leap over your target striking them 3 times. Each hit does double the damage of previous hit.

Bam, I changed the odd ball skill to something more fitting with the rest of the D/D weapon set. Your suggestion is understandable and I truly really appreciate the fact that your current build really doesn’t make use of the whole skill bar but guess what; You’re the one using the oddball skill here. Don’t ask for the rest of the weapon set to be changed so that the single oddball skill becomes less lonely and the rest of the set as a whole suffers. All of the Thief’s weapon sets are questionably designed and as I said, I can really appreciate you wanting another condition damage skill but the fact here is this is just a selfish, poorly thought out post. Sorry to be so blunt.

Now if there was a suggestion to turn D/D into a full condition damage bar with well thought out, synergized skill suggestions, that also potentially play well with other weapon combinations then sure, I’d be more attentive. But not to something like this.

Philfy.8925:

Create a healing spring on death.

Where is the advantage of doing this?

The people trying to res you get Regen and a free water field? idk.

They’re Ranger traits, don’t question them or your head will hurt.

Tracker.6483:

@ Sco: I don’t understand the nuance you are trying to point out. Could you elaborate for me?

Thanks!

What the post I was quoting said that Healing Spring heals for the listed tooltip amount for the regeneration every 3 seconds.. that is the total amount of regen healing for the entire duration of the skill, not per 3s. lesigh

Sparks The Rescue.1963:

Numbers wise, healing spring is the definitive answer. Troll Unguent heals for a total of 8,560 over 10s and the coefficient for it in relation to Healing Power is only 12%, while Healing Spring gives 4,920 hp upon activation, plus 2,340 health over 3s and gives 100% of Healing Power to it’s healing and lasts for 15s. That equals to be 7260 hp over 3s (not including bonuses from Healing Power). Additionally, that doesn’t take into account that you can proc the 3s regeneration 4 more times adding a whopping 9,360 more health gained over 15s for a grand total of 16,620 hp – almost double that of Troll Unguent.

Though, granted, you do sacrifice a small bit of mobility, but it’s really not that hard to run back into your area of effect spring every 2-3s.

The tool tip for healing spring is NOT per 3s its per the 6 tics of 3s regen you get, aka if u were in it the whole time… just wow..

Fomby.4295:

But also, and possibly more importantly, it means you can’t keep attacking with your bow from the wall. Meaning you’re losing precious time attacking foes.

lololol I get it!
My favorite part about this post.

But seriously, yes, the entire mechanic is broken sadly :/

I would like to throw a couple cents in here as well if it’s okay.

I agree with a lot of the points made in this thread. When I first heard of this “Multi-Guild” thing I had mixed feelings. What it does is allows me (the PvPer) to be in multiple guilds and main a different character for each guild, which is kind of nice. The problem comes from a couple of issues though;

1.) You’re not actually in multiple guilds, you’re simply “queued up” for many. When you are not representing one you are effectively not in it.

This harms mainly the large scale PvE/WvW guilds who are less focused on individual characters than sheer size scale. My guild to counteract this, as it is mainly a PvE guild atm, simply does not allow multi guild memberships. If it seems to become an issue with representation for that player we talk to him, then take the appropriate action. The disrespectful nonchalance that you describe is not an example of a player corrupted by multiple guilds, it’s just a dick who you probably didn’t want in your guild anyways. If there wasn’t multiple guilds it would instead be “Kick me, idc, I’ll just find a different guild!” If you said something to slightly annoy them. That’s the type of person they are, not what they became.

2.) There is no real way to identify someone who is in a guild you currently are “queued up” for but not representing or vise versa.

This creates that unfamiliarity you described when whispering a guy. Again, this hurts the larger number-focused guilds rather than the small, close guilds.

3.) Guilds starting out and therefore cannot afford an ample amount of guild benefits have no way to maintain loyalty due to abuse of the system.

It’s very hard to get a guild off it’s feet in this kind of situation and take some very loyal, dedicated players. This can be a negative in multiple ways, but at the same time it also really tells you who is truly with you and it’s easier to promote/trust.

So, I see how this can be a terrible system for many, but at the same time, a few tweaks for “quality of life” I think it can become a very useful system. The problem is, there’s always people who abuse systems, it’s those people who you should want to kick anyways. It’s a long, hard road but from my personal experiences so far, is worthwhile. Thank you.

swilkers.5938:

Thighum.7295:

Our profession mechanic is pets….

Why are you talking about rifles….?

If you are trying to say that you want rangers to be able to make glass canon burst builds that are just as effective as other classes, I agree, even though this has nothing to do with our profession mechanic.

Why limit the Ranger to the bow? There is a meh burst build available but it does have everything to do with the mechanic if you break it down. Why should the thief and others get guns and we don’t?

Because gun are tech and Devs have already stated they don’t want a character skilled in the use of Nature and one with Animals to be using tech. Lore my friend, Lore. It doesn’t change. It has nothing to do about Rangers hating the rifle… it has to do with Ranger lore being anti rifle. On that same note, how is “I want a rifle” not Longbow hate? Unless of course you simply want the aesthetics of a Rifle.. in which case this is a entirely different post altogether.

Edit: It isn’t hate to point out this thread was clearly wrongly named out of ignorance or deception. On top of that you quoted a guy who agreed with your main point of “we want a burst” and called it hate further aiding the fact this was a thread about getting a rifle above all else.

mischwoof.9785:

It doesn’t matter how you try to sugarcoat it, that’s absurd spike damage, which is something ANet isn’t fond of. That’s why thieves are getting nerfed. I think it’s pretty justified. There are other abilities that are getting buffed to compensate for losing some damage on backstab. It’s not the end of the world for thieves.

2 Things in this post.

1.) If they weren’t fond of it and still put it in then they need to take it out.

2.) Lowering the damage of the spike but making damage from other sources higher does not actually help.

What happens is you end up killing the spike (which in this case) makes D/X useless. Even if you increase the damage in other areas that is still either promoting an entirely different build (and therefore playstyle) and still leaving the burst as useless or kills the burst and still makes no other viable builds.

Lowering the damage of a burst == Killing the burst.
Improving damage of fluff skills =/= Improving the burst.

This is why Thieves who like this particular style of play are scared. It isn’t because it’s the most effective and therefore OP, it’s because it’s their favorite. I highly doubt this is going to ruin all the Thieves forever and ever but it IS going to further destroy a viable build that many people enjoy. Why? Frankly because many, many people cannot figure out how to counter it. It’s a proven fact that you can counter it, so why is it that people don’t? Lack of skill? Stubborness? Game glitches? Each case is different and there is no simple answer with the exception of one; Nerf the cause. So yes, it is getting nerfed because of [a general lack of skill in] the player base that is complaining about it.

Someone said there should not be a way to quickly counter a tank. If this was the case then a “tanky” playstyle would the only viable meta.

Tank > Balanced
Glass Cannon > Tank
Balanced > Glass Cannon

Can a Balanced player overcome a tank? Yes, with skill.
Can a Tank overcome a Glass Cannon? Yes, with skill.
Can a Glass Cannon overcome Balanced? Yes, with skill.

How is this Mechanic Rework?
Just another person who wants a rife. Sorry but the devs have said they do not like the idea of Rangers with Rifles(this was long ago, back in development though). For a Ranger the Longbow should be what you think about doing big damage at range with…sadly the way the Longbow was integrated it just doesn’t give that feel. Hopefully yes, one day we will… but the fact that the Ranger as a whole deals less damage w/o a pet, a truly long range option(assuming your pet is next to you) is at its core, less effective.

“Omg a buff for my Necro!”

I carry a longbow b/c all of our weapons are garbage so I just take the one that looks cool on my back as I kite mobs while my pet misses them and allies mow them down. ^.^

Hi. I too would like very much to hear from a developer about the direction they are aiming for the Ranger. I hope it involves being the roamer the Ranger is supposed to be with the option for support of a large party. I agree that the ranger gets stuck into a corner and it is extremely hard to balance such a would-be-powerful mechanic but I also believe that at the same time until the mechanic is made to not be completely useless it is impossible to judge and therefore balance it. Thus, the course of action at this moment is still the same; fix pet responsiveness and rooting. The Ranger could have the best skills in the game (which is by far from true) but if the mechanic remains unviable.. the class as a whole will remain unviable.