Guild Wars 2

@Tolmos: Do you mind sharing your turret build? It’s what drew me to the engi when I rolled the class but I could never find a good combination of weapons/skills/traits/runes to make it work (especially for WvW).

As you have spent 900 hours with turrets I would GREATLY appreciate your experience.

Thanks

So new patch hakitten and with it brought many changes to traits & skills (for better or worse). Unfortunately, ANet’s record on buggy traits has been less than stellar.

With that in mind, has anyone re-tested the reworked traits like Scope, which have been buggy since release?

Hi all,

coming back after a 3-4 month hiatus and was wondering if all the Mortar traits bugs have been fixed? I would love to finally give it a go in wvw and I haven’t been keeping up with all the patch notes during my absence.

Cheers,
Ven

Shhh they just fixed our FT – if you complain too much it will anger the Gods, I mean Devs.

Previously staunch defender of Anet – based on how much promise the sPvP had.

6 months in we got 1 new map.
6 months in we didn’t get:
- Custom arenas
- Leaderboards
- New game modes
- Matchmaking
- Dueling
^ all of which were promised a long, long time ago.

To be honest I think the devs underestimated how succesful PVE & WVW was going to be and changed their dev time accordingly.

The end result is that PVP at the moment has a couple of thousand players*. At peak times.

*Note: completely arbitrary number. However, considering both free & especially paid tournament queue times at peak times {Zeus help you if you queue for Paids in non-peak times} I really don’t think I’m far off.

It’s officially over. They just hammered the last nail in the sPvP coffin. The blog is a slap in the face to anyone with a memory capacity longer than a week. Everything they mention in there has been promised for months and months and months. Nothing new & no timeline on those pipedreams like new game modes, ladder boards, dueling, etc. Anyone who doesn’t see this must still have the glazed cataract of empty promises over their eyes.

There will be no real improvements to sPvP until an expansion – I was really hoping that they would focus a major patch on sPvP alone but it’s pretty clear that PVE & WVW is what has the majority of players → hence the majority of dev time.

So that will be it for me I think – I’m done reading gw2guru & gwinsider, following the twitter, just for a slim hope of an actual update on sPvP.

The PVP in this game really had a chance, I mean everyone could see the possibilities …

Aquin.3192:

Stop derailing the guy’s post. I agree with him. The CC reaches points of hilarity sometimes.

How can you not have any aspect of diminishing returns? Silly.

OP makes no mention of diminishing returns.

I gleaned something about complete CC immunity for 10sec after a single CC – but it sounded so stupid that I just attributed it to a random neuron firing in my brain.

Nope. I’m 100% serious.

Especially about the last part.

^The link.

It be kittened.

Boloth.6879:

arnoldswazngr.4936:

Sup guys,

Hows GW2 pvp balance compared to WoW?

I used to play wow (Cata) and there are some clearly overpowered classes/flavor of the month classes that made pvp kind of discouraging, unless you were those classes. Even worse, blizzard would take forever to balance those classes.

I think its cool how you can just make any class and pvp with it instantly without grinding to 80.

I recently bought MoP, and havent reached max level, if anyone has been playing it, how is your MoP lvl 90 pvp experience?

Thanks and happy new years

Depends on what you mean by “balance”, most players and designers use this term without really understanding what it means in relation to game design.

GW2’s combat system is more complex than WoW’s but the kinds of decisions you make while playing and interaction between players is pretty much the same as any other MMO on the market.

Basically it’s more complicated, but not anymore interesting to play.

I completely disagree. While the mechanics are slightly more complex because of dodge as well as the way aiming & projectiles work, GW2 is not more “complicated”. It may be harder to play but not because it’s complicated but because new players need to get used to the mechanics.

WoW on the other hand – the average class has 2 full action bars (10 keys each), with modifiers (SHIFT, CTRL, ALT), worth of skills. It is the definition of unnecessarily complicated.

As far as if it’s more interesting to play – “fun” and “interesting” are such subjective measures that it really is completely pointless to say one game has more of that quality than the other.

I’m a WoW pvp veteran (sadly) – I can confidently tell you that GW2 is a much more balanced game, especially since MoP hit. I don’t want to start a WoW pvp balance discussion, but a group of mildly mentally impaired Lemurs whose water source has been spiked with LSD could balance that game better than the dev team.

Basically, in GW2: no class can stun-lock nuke you to death; the CC durations are 1-2 seconds each, not 5-6 seconds each so you will never eat a 20second CC combo like in WoW; Stun-Breakers (“PvP trinkets”) are usually on a ~30second cooldown compared to 2minutes; no one skill can take 80%+ of your hp (chaos bolt pre-nerf anyone? maybe a 5 stack of TfB?)

Obviously, WoW has features GW2 doesn’t such as ranked arenas, ranked bgs, more choice of pvp maps, etc, and can still be a blast to play. The painful part for me is knowing that if only both games could take the better ideas of the other one & implement them the community would have a choice of two fantastic pvp experiences.

Baam.2493:

New suggestion: put all the mini games from every season into the HotM when it isn’t their holiday. Boom! Instant sPvP band-aid

I like it !

I don’t understand the people who vehemently oppose this like it’s a personal insult.

If there are a lot of people who want to have the option to play 1v1, 2v2, 3v3, 4v4 WoW style arenas, which there are, then why would someone have a problem with that? Like it’s somehow going to magically ruin whatever niche of the game they enjoy.

The fact is, people are getting tired of the sPvP in this game and are leaving it in droves (check the paid queue times lately?). Something fresh like this in addition to new game modes for the existing maps (CTF) both with ladders and you will get a massive injection of players into sPvP.

Which is good for everyone.

All the other similar ones do so I would say yes.

Cast time has nothing to do with actually hitting enemies.

The grenades have a random dispersal pattern.

If the grenades travel faster that pattern is harder to predict & dodge. This means more grenades hitting their targets.

As I pointed out to the OP – the speed increase can best be seen at max range. If you’re using nades exclusively at point blank, you’re doing something very wrong.

Rifle + Grenade was and still is one of the most viable sPvP builds. It’s burst could get out of hand sometimes so it was pulled back a bit. We were given increased nade speed to compensate which helps with dps and actually hitting your target.

“…when i play nades i run an as close as possible against ALL ranged enemies…”

^ There’s your problem.

Once again, patch hits and no one is happy. This isn’t Engineer specific either; nearly everyone is crying about something or other.

Regarding the Engineer specific changes:
- The grenades nerf was expected. I’m fairly certain most sensible people will agree. However, by adding in the increased grenade speed they’ve countered the reduced burst with an increase in dps and made the grenades easier to hit their targets. {Yes, close range the increased nade speed doesn’t really matter that much but at 1500 range it is definitely a welcome change!}

- Elixir R toolbelt CD nerf sucks. Once again though, it is somewhat expected. It is an incredibly strong skill whose original CD could be reduced further through traits making it somewhat OP.

- The Fumigate change is welcome.

- The Turret buffs/changes are also not too bad. Although turret survivability is still an un-adressed issue.

- The Tool Kit buffs are fantastic! A 3 second block combined with a 1200 range pull makes for a very versatile kit. If you’ve been waiting to give this kit a try now is the time. “Get over here!”

Overall: Yes, we didn’t get everything we wanted. Yes, Flamethrower needs some bugfixes &/ rework of some skills. Yes, Gadgets could be made to be more attractive. Yes, some traits are still bugged. However, we were given some decent buffs and expected nerfs this patch.

If this doesn’t cheer you up about your Engineer then go have a read through the Ranger notes! :P

According to the guy the bullet points should be more bug fixes and less buffs/nerfs:
- “Tons” of bug fixes.
- “Some” balance changes.
Source: http://www.guildwarsinsider.com/

Hi everyone,

just recently decided to make warrior my second sPvP profession and was hoping to find some YouTube channels / streams of competitive / high tournament level Warriors.

Any help is much appreciated.

Fair warning – this is a relatively intoxicated post.

I honestly cannot comprehend the amount of bi&%&ing and moaning on these forums.

Yes, the game isn’t perfect. But it is miles ahead of any other pvp MMO experience out there.

The game that shall not be named requires countless hours of level grinding, battleground (honour points) grinding, arena (conquest points) grinding, raiding grinding and profession grinding to be remotely competitive. If you miss any of the above you are not on an even playing field.

SWTOR as well as Rift (the only other two real alternatives) are even worse in that aspect, not to mention horrible optimisation and balance for the prior and the pvp gear treadmill required for the latter.

The game isn’t perfect, but it’s far and away better than the alternatives. So how about we as a community simmer down with the complaints and give the game some time to develop, grow and fulfil all the heavy expectations that we have placed upon it.

That doesn’t mean you as a consumer don’t have a right to complain. Yes, there are bugs. Yes, things could be better. But things could be a whole lot worse.

Try and be objective, introspective and realise that for a one time cost – this game is pretty awesome.

Great video as always. For those new to OpticsTV I highly recommend a sub!

In response to Frogjon; I don’t know what I’m talking about? Every single thing I said was true. Thieves, Guardians, Rangers even Eles have had round after round of nerfs. Some pretty significant ones too I should add.

Name one nerf, apart from the unconfirmed hidden change to Pistols someone listed, that we have gotten?

Yes we have buggy traits – you seriously think we’re the only ones?
Yes we have mechanics that we’d like fixed (sigils on kits) – once again, not the only profession with those. You should check out hunter pets sometime.

This was a Halloween PVE content patch. If you expected a massive bug fixing patch than you’re either new to MMOs or a hopeless optimist.

People will always find something to complain about. Even I have been guilty of this.

However, the fact is that every post launch patch has had some sort of bug fix and/or buff for Engineers. We have not received a single nerf so far – the only exception being the debatable change for the Flamethrower Juggernaut Trait, and even that wasn’t really a nerf but more of a change of direction for the Kit from a defensive one to an offensive one.

Considering that I would hardly say that the devs aren’t paying attention to our class – seems more like the exact opposite of that.

Edit: To clarify – yes there are still plenty of issues that fellow Engineers would love to get fixed but they can’t be fixed overnight so let’s stay positive considering the fixes/buffs we have received so far.

Engineer

Elixir B: This skill’s toolbelt skill now accurately reflects only one boon being applied to allied targets.

Mine Field: This skill’s recharge has been reduced to 20 seconds.

Throw Mine: This skill is now unblockable when it detonates.
—————-
Nothing major but a relatively decent buff to the Mine Gadget is more than welcome – ty devs!

Obviously many issues still left but let’s try and be positive with the love the devs have been showing to our beloved class so far.

Engineer:
Grenade Kit: Grenade skills now have the same cast time underwater as they do on land.

Explosives Trait Grenadier: This trait now gives a bonus to underwater grenade skills.

Big Ol’ Bomb: This skill has been updated to be a blast finisher.

[Insert appropriate youtube clip here]

To Sorrow:

Good on you for finding a way to make the Flamethrower work. I have tested the build out myself and I think it is indeed a very strong one that with practice & proper use can be very deadly.

Please do not listen to close-minded and rude individuals like Silentsins. There are people who get abusive at anyone who doesn’t agree with them & use their cookie cutter builds. He is one of these individuals.

I have myself experienced this phenomenon in the game that shall not be named. Despite posting guides and proof of a build’s viability at 2k+ rating I would constantly get forum abuse by idiots like Silentsins (many of whom had often not even come close to 2k rating even while using their cookie cutter builds). [For anyone interested I’m referring to my Prot Paladin preference in 4.2 & 4.3 seasons]

TL:DR: Thank you for posting your build to those of us who are interested in using Flamethrower. Disregard the idiotic and rude comments by the aforementioned kitten.

Ok so Ebola’s answer is wrong then? All conditions tick every 1 second and to get an extra tick you must get the duration increased by 1 second?

Also, thanks for the build Killyox I will definitely try it out!

Ebola.1907:

As far as I know the ticks are always a set amount of damage per second. however if you have an effect that goes for 1 and 3/4 of a second, it will do the set amount of damage for one second and 3/4 of the set damage for the next next tick – if that makes sense.

So unlike the in named game there are no break points for ticks/haste as it were – the effect just lasts longer and the set damage is improved via a percentage of your condition damage which varies according to the effect – ie: burning uses a larger % of your condition damage 0.25/25% compared to bleeds which I think is 0.10/10%, but bleeds generally last longer than burning.

Ahh, I see. That way there is no ‘waste’ of stats. Thank you very much!

sainguine.2870:

What will happen when you find the answer? will the game be more or less fun for you?

Some people enjoy knowing the ins & outs of the game they play. Which will make the game more fun for them.

I hope that in the future you can find an outlet for your sarcasm somewhere else.

I’m re-posting this here to hopefully get a response more quickly.

This is something that has been bugging me for a while now. Basically I am wondering if anyone knows the break points for the various Conditions at which you get an extra tick of damage.

This is the same as the haste break points for dots & hots in the game that shall not be named.

For those not familiar with this concept let’s consider Burning. If it ticks every 0.25 seconds (completely made up figure) and you get the +20% Burning Duration trait then a 1 second Burn will get absolutely no use out of that +20% because you’re prolonging the Burn to 1.2 seconds which is 0.05 seconds short of that extra tick of damage.

I’ve tried searching for the answer but I can’t seem to find a valid one. Help is much appreciated.

This is something that has been bugging me for a while now. Basically I am wondering if anyone knows the break points for the various Conditions at which you get an extra tick of damage.

This is the same as the haste break points for dots & hots in the game that shall not be named.

For those not familiar with this concept let’s consider Burning. If it ticks every 0.25 seconds (completely made up figure) and you get +20% Burning Duration then a 1 second Burn will get absolutely no use out of that +20% because you’re prolonging the Burn to 1.2 seconds which is 0.05 seconds short of that extra tick of damage.

I’ve tried searching for the answer but I can’t seem to find a valid one. Help is much appreciated.

It would be nice to have some 5v5 and 6v6 servers in Hot Join.

8v8 is incredibly zergy and games tend to landslide towards one side or another. It’s pretty obvious the maps were balanced around 5v5 and cramming an extra 6 people into them makes the whole game seem unbalanced.

The whole point was that sPvP was the tightly balanced game mode, and WvW was the fun, zergy one.

I’m not saying remove 8v8 alltogether, but a change of 25-35% of the servers to 5v5 or 6v6 would mean people who enjoy smaller & larger groups respectively can choose which server they prefer to play on.

This concept has been around in FPS servers for a long, long time and I think it would make the game more enjoyable as a whole.

Thoughts?

“Bomb kit autoattacks works just like any melee skill autoattack in the game. I don’t notice any difference between it and autoattack with the axe on my warrior.”

It’s not a melee skill. Unlike a melee auto-attack bombs don’t trigger/explode immediately and can and often do miss their target. When this happens the auto-attack is turned off.

Not to mention that builds that use bombs to heal their teammates also don’t benefit from this change.

You arguing otherwise tells me you have either not played this profession much or at least not played it using the Bomb Kit.

Don’t get me wrong – these changes are a step in the right direction, and I’m willing to concede (with great reservations) that Grenade Kit maybe should not have an auto-attack. But the Bomb Kit auto-attack realistically works 20% of the time, if that.

Auto-attacks for Grenade Kit & Bomb Kit (arguably our two most viable kits) have NOT been fixed.

“Profession bundle weapons (engineer kits, elementalist conjure skills, warrior banners) can now save their autoattack status.

Elixir X: This skill now gains a duration increase from both the Inventions trait Elite Supplies and the Alchemy trait Potent Elixirs.
Freeze Grenade: This skill no longer benefits from the Explosives trait Grenadier for 5-second cooldown reduction.
Knee Shot: This Firearms trait now effects all immobilize skills for engineers. The effect can only trigger once every 5 seconds to prevent players from exploiting it to stack massive amounts of cripple.
Mortar: This skill is now properly affected by the Inventions trait Rifled Turret Barrels.
Rifled Barrels: This Firearms trait now works with the Elixir Gun kit when underwater."

Before you get too giddy they have NOT fixed auto-attacks on all kits.

Grenade Kit auto-attack is locked out which seems to imply ANet believes it should not have an auto-attack option.

Bomb Kit auto-attack sorta-kinda works. By sorta-kinda I mean it works if you’re standing perfectly still, and the bomb hits your target, and you’re in constant combat. If one bomb misses, if you move, then it shuts off.

Soo yeah. My raised hopes upon reading the patch notes were thoroughly crushed…