Guild Wars 2

i really like the GS since it has a knockback that helps you greatly even in stick situations, a proper mix of single and multitarget dmg and maybe most of all a quick illusion production that takes a lot of damage away from your allies in dungeons.
with the master trait in domination you can throw your sword like every 4.5 seconds. i didnt check if but that should be close to the scepters clone production but also boosts your partys damage by debuffing vulnerability and buffing might (12 stacks, with elasticy 15 stack, shared beween the targets hit)

for those who dont know the DE:
The Penient path is attacked by waves of mobs. they are invulnerable until they are like 5 steps away from the walls of the camp. Then they are attackable and die not even one second later due to the massive AoE bombing those group of players keep spamming there.
I dont know how tagging exactly works, but all ideas using shatters can be forgotten anyway, since the mobs die faster than you can press like 7 and F1 (summoning a clone targeting a invu mob wont do anything).
You would need a relieable chaos storm-like AoE with a cooldown of less than 20 seconds to be equal with those brainless AoE spammers, although this would prolly make you one, too.

I know the problem at the Penitent path … i stopped farming there. As mesmer there is no relieable AoE since GS AoE cant hit all those like 20 mobs (limited to like 6), 1h sword cant for the same reason and chaos storm isnt ready for every wave.
Instead i go for the two villages further south. At the gate you reach through the tunnel the mobs are not invurnable and thus a single swing with GS 2345 will tab each of them.
The jorfast camp (was that its name?) its pretty much the same. big waves that are attackable in far distance. Much more pleasant

If you just want to walk around like : “Oh a mob, oh, dead” then go for Warrior.

Mesmer in PvE can be fun and effective, but in order to do so they need much more work and thoughts pre- and in-fight. You can be walking bag of tricks, have some kind of skill or trait against nearly everything.
Ranges? Feedback or focus skills reflect projectiles.
Melees? Disturb them with illusions, cripple them and so on.
You can go range-condition with Staff or scepter, range-directdmg with greatsword or even melee with the sword.