Guild Wars 2

Hello,

I just started playing WvW after having used my Tomes of Knowledge from the PvP side!! 70 levels in a few minutes only haha

Anyways I plan to just go down the damage path with meditations. Thats what I do in sPvP. Here are two builds I’m thinking of with my current gear.

This one is Greatsword and Staff. More for zerg fights. I like to power up and drop in the middle to put some fear in them:

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fUAQJARGoIyFUzIe3DrgGveAxI2QA-jQCBYLBisIQpPFRjtopIasqFYqSJV5SQ2cWQ2bQZVKgI2VB-e

I kind of want to replace a meditation for wall of reflection in the staff build… Think it would be disruptive to drop them in the middle of the enemy when combined with staff.

This build is more for roaming and I will some time take it for zergs to flank on the side. Uses Greatsword with sword/torch:

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fUAQNAR8PoIyFYzIgHErgGveAxI2QA-jgCBYLCykFBiABO9pIasFNFRjVtATVKpKXCymzCyeDKrSBExuK-e

I’m thinking of just using both depending on what I want to play as for the day.

What do you think of the builds though?

Sorry he is using Soldier Amulet!! not the soldier runes…. He is actually using the doylak runes for the extra regen and toughness/vitality.

This is the exact necro build:
http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fQAQNAW3djEat6la2a07JAJFRT90juBPcIF5KNA-TsAA1CtIsRZjzGjNSbs2MKYVwGEA

And to be a little more helpful here is mine:
http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fUAQNAR8dlUgSDHHyNEf4ER+hVazAgH86BEjYDB-TsAg0CnIKSVkrITRyisFN+Y9xGCA

Now I have tried to kill his minions first but I can’t seem to kill them fast enough to make the impact I need. My thought is that my build might be too berserker and I take damage from too many minions to be able to use my typical defenses (blind, block, dodge). These all get wasted so quick because of taking so many hits at once.

I usually kill MM necros pretty easily to be honest lol. This one has just mastered what he needs to do and does kite extremely well which is always an issue with the Guardian… Even though I have max mobility. Also uses Death Shroud exactly when he needs to.

Funny thing is when I use his same exact build against him he still beats it with ease lol. Though I don’t really play a ton on necro so that doesn’t help.

Basically going to take two people to bring him down it seems.

Hello everyone,

So I play a high DPS meditation build 0/25/30/0/15. Seem to work very well in duels against mostly everyone…. but I can’t beat the MM necro for the life of me. I am level 41 in sPvP so I know my way around too.

I use greatwword + Sword/focus for vulnerability on blind and mobility plus energy sigils on weapons.

Anyways… anyone have any tips? this is against a very good player of course and he seems to just destroy all classes no matter what the build. What gives? am I missing something?

He is a power necro with soldier amulet plus doylak runes… and all regen from minions plus 30% damage from them. Well the whole package basically 20/0/20/30/0.

Looking for advice.

I see makes perfect sense then. Glad to see someone else coming up with some spirit weapon builds. Maybe eventually more players will revisit them. They have their uses in pve, pvp and wvw.

I do like your weapon choice a lot. Used to use it myself.

I’m just not sure on your trait choices… Why 10 valor instead of virtues… What’s the benefit in a minor toughness boost? Compared to the extra boons on virtue and 50% duration on spirit weapons, which seems appropriate for your build. And the trait for resolve to help your team mates seems a little out of place and not very helpful seeing you are not support oriented

Other then that I couldn’t agree more. Rangers are pretty laughable and the new spirit buff has not effected me in the slightest either. I like the way you think. Spirit weapons have a lot of hidden potential. I find that mine rarely die as well. I always get 2 commands out of each weapon.

lol yes I agree that the moves can be predictable. I find I am one of the rares that uses the spirit hammer…. shame. But like you said that is all we have!

This combo set up typically kills off most players easily.

Very first you activate virtue of Justice for burning and 10% increase damage. Scepter immobilize then smite on top. Throw the fireball from torch and then flame his kitten with cleansing flame. During this you activate your spirit hammer for a knockdown. Switch to Greatsword and drop symbol of wrath and then WW on top. At that point your hammer will probably knock the enemy away so you will want to use whirling blade as a dot and the leap to get close to them again. You can then pull them to you if they try to get away and keep using the Greatsword #1 or switch weapon for some range while the dot is ticking away. Either way they are pretty freaked out at that point.

This combos is pretty amazing lol. I’ve killed people in a few seconds with it.

I would like to get my hand on more boons that is true. The elite does renew my virtues and my lyssa rune gives me all boons for 5 seconds when I use the elite. You also apply retaliation when you use a virtue so it counts double boon =) And actually virtue of courage gives you aegis, protection and retaliation. So I still get a lot of boon uptime.

I’ve tried not using the condition removal sigils and I find that they actually make a big difference when added to the passive condition removal. I rarely see conditions as the cause of my death.

I’ve also tried to pick up empowering might but I lose my virtue line boons and will not remove the trait that keeps my spirit weapons alive after using them on demand.

I also partially get AH for the toughness and critical damage. This build is supposed to be for dps but I find it more helpful to go down the valor trait line then radiance.
You also get vigor on crit which helps a ton to stay alive…. Even if it doesn’t add a ton of boon uptime.

I made it so you don’t have to rely on the spirit weapons at all. But when you do they really add a lot to the gameplay. Hammer can stop someone from rezzing a friend when you are stomping. It can actually be used in a lot of situation like keeping them from escaping or using a move and they are too far for you to reach. Most importantly the hammer is a great set up for some burst damage.
The shield was already good and is now a stun breaker. And it does damage and applies weakness to multiple foes on top of absorbing all projectiles.
I find these two utility skills very appropriate for offense.

You can pull off a lot of combos with the weapon setup too. I’ve tried pretty much everything and this works best for me. But you may change them as you want since no trait is tying you to a specific weapon set. Just my personal preference =)

Give it a try. You might be surprised. I think people just get weirded out by the spirit weapons but I personally love them. Also is very different from other builds out there hahah

I use the scepter to immobilize. the spirit hammer to knockdown and knock back plus the pull you can use from the Greatsword. No one gets away…..

More cripple and snare would be nice though.

I have been perfecting this build since the start of game. Very effective 1 on 1 and pretty tanky in team fights as well.

You get good burst and sustained damage as well as plenty of boons to stay alive.

Spirit weapons also murder people if used well. Shield now breaks stuns.. .. And is hated by all range lol. Spirit hammer is great to set up burst combos in conjunction with immobilize from scepter.

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fUAQNAR7flYgyBHCyKEfIFR+BWWpIeyDXw1DHSRGC-T0AA2CnIKSVkrITRyisFNKZBxukTJvSA

I would try this build. Been working amazing since the game started and is good all around. You are very hard to kill and have super burst damage. Plus these two spirit weapons just own in pvp.

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fUAQNAR7flYgyBHCyKEfIFR+BWWpIeyDXw1DHSRGC-T0AA2CnIKSVkrITRyisFNKZBxukTJvSA

I personally use condition removal on crit for both weapons along with the healing signet and the trait. I don’t use any condition removal on shout and I do just fine….

This spirit weapon build owns just about everything out there. You get amazing damage with great burst. And you are seriously tanking kitten as well. Trust me. I rarely ever die.

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fUAQNAR7flYgyBHCyKEfIFR+BWWpIeyDXw1DHSRGC-T0AA2CnIKSVkrITRyisFNKZBxukTJvSA

I think you should drop pure of voice and 2 handed mastery and instead go down and get altruistic healing and maybe extra toughness Traits or glacial hammer if you are using the hammer. You already transform a condition into a boon with your gear. Your amulet will make more sense with altruistic healing since you have a lot of boons you can put up.

If conditions are an issue I like to throw sigil of purity on both of my weapons sets and that seems to help a lot. Changing your heal skill will also give you an extra condition removal every 10 seconds.

Big fan of the spirit shield.

I should add that sometimes in hot join things can get a little out of control if you don’t have a good team with you. In those instances you can easily switch to knights jewel and signet of resolve. You get 5k of health and an extra 10 second contain removal with a bigger heal. Just at the expense of a little damage.

Though if you have your team or someone to roll with the above builds just reck havoc.

I would have to disagree with the above. I think the spirit weapons all have their uses in specific situations. I have used spirit hammer since release in spvp and it has never done me wrong. Sword is not worth it unless you go for burning spirit weapons. Shield works amazing against all range and will force them to play on your terms. Bow is a little eh but maybe for a support build.

I love activating spirit hammer to stun a reviver while I finish off his buddy.

I think most people just don’t know how to use them effectively like the above post. You expect it to do your job perhaps? It is not a pet that can tank your enemy. That’s your job.

I’ve got a new build!!

Introducing the Invincible fire spirit guardian.

There are actually a couple variations.

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fUAQNAR7flUgSCHCSOEfIFRugqH4LeyDXw1DF6QGC-TsAg0CnIKSVkrITRyisFNKZVyGCA

This build focuses on immobilize for vulnerability stacks and uses Greatsword with scepter/torch. Personally fits my play style a lot.

You get increased dmg vulnerability from immobilize and symbols , 10% dmg on burning, stacks of might and burning on block.

Focused on cc which works well to increase dmg. It might be that you prefer using the hammer instead of Greatsword since it offers an additional immobilize and might suit you better. I’m just not a fan of the weapon because it’s really slow.

This second build uses Greatsword with sword/focus.

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fUAQNAR8dlUgiDHCyMEfIFRuA7DAsSR8k31DF6QGC-TsAg0CnIKSVkrITRyisFNKZVyGCA

Instead of focusing on immobilize this build inflicts a lot of blind and therefore vulnerability. Blind skills coming from sword, Greatsword, focus and virtue of justice. You also have the very best mobility. Probably more tanky then the above as well. I just don’t like to be all melee.

They both seem well rounded to me. I also build more in a dueling aspect but these also work great for team work.

Please leave comments. Just started using this as opposed to my old builds.

You will mostly need a LOT of vigor to keep dodging a Mesmer. Constantly moving is key. Honestly a Mesmer is the only class I feel is almost impossible to kill 1v1 if they know what they are doing.

For a ranger you just need to CC the crap out of him and control the fight. That would work on Mesmer if they didn’t have so many freaking stun breakers.

They are mostly just useful for pvp in my opinion. A little for fractals and the shield is pretty good in wvw when combined with wall of reflection and the staffs line of warding. Add aoe stability and you will be a great help to your team.

I personally love using the shield and hammer in spvp. I don’t use burning though. I use AH because it counts the SW as allies. Plus you can add rock dog to the bunch.

20/0/30/5/15

WASD. I have weapon switch on the top left key of the keyboard. Very easy to reach. Everything else on number pad. Three virtues being the keys above 7,8,9. I have 9 buttons on the side of the mouse that are helpful for elemental But not as much guardian. Come in useful for target and click skills tough.

20/0/30/5/15 –
Fiery wrath, eternal spirit
Purity, retributive armor, altruistic healing
Vigorous precision
Improved spirit duration

Greatsword
Scepter, torch

Sigil of purity on greatsword and torch. Sigil of accuracy on scepter.
Runes of ogre on armor.
Amulet of the Knight with berserker.

Shield of the avenger, hammer of wisdom, stand your ground
Tome of courage

Use #3 on scepter to set up any combo you want. Spirit hammer on top of it for more burst. Use stand your ground to not get interrupted.

You will heal off of any boon you apply. You get protection from virtues. Stability from shout. Use spirit shield against range. Tome of courage plus stand your ground to use aoe full heal.

Alright so after paying more attention to the cleaning bolts I always see the condition removal bubble pop up above my character when I initiate either WW or blinding blades on top of wrath symbol. I also see conditions drop off so I’m guessing that the bolts remove a condition when they first leave your character.

Can anyone confirm this?

I use AH in an all offensive build. 20/0/30/5/15. Works wonders. Plus I get extra healing from having rock dog and two spirit weapons out. Those count as 3 allies. I have no healing power in my gear either.

Empathetic Fighter.2065:

Vidal.5384:

Empathetic Fighter.2065:

Vidal.5384:

Empathetic Fighter.2065:

I would like to duel or see you playing, if you’d like to. Just pm me if you want.
Just to give me an impression of how you play it, cuz copying the build is not the same as smn that knows how to handle it and has plenty exp made with it.

I completely agree with you. I will try to get in contact after work today. I realize this build is hard to picture when not seen in play =)

What do you play as?

I will play as off-guard to compare these 2 builds I hope you are on EU servers

I play on American server

Well, nvm then. Still wonder how it would gone out

Ya it’s to bad. I really like duels too. All I can say is maybe try it out if you are curious. It’s a very fun build.

Empathetic Fighter.2065:

Vidal.5384:

Empathetic Fighter.2065:

I would like to duel or see you playing, if you’d like to. Just pm me if you want.
Just to give me an impression of how you play it, cuz copying the build is not the same as smn that knows how to handle it and has plenty exp made with it.

I completely agree with you. I will try to get in contact after work today. I realize this build is hard to picture when not seen in play =)

What do you play as?

I will play as off-guard to compare these 2 builds I hope you are on EU servers

I play on American server

Here is my updated build

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fUAQNAR7flYgyBHCyKEmIFR+BWWpIeyDXw1DHSRGC;T0Ag0CnowxgjAHLOOck4siYUypkdJvSA

If you need more health you can switch berskerker for knights.

Empathetic Fighter.2065:

I would like to duel or see you playing, if you’d like to. Just pm me if you want.
Just to give me an impression of how you play it, cuz copying the build is not the same as smn that knows how to handle it and has plenty exp made with it.

I completely agree with you. I will try to get in contact after work today. I realize this build is hard to picture when not seen in play =)

What do you play as?

showatt.9413:

Weapon choice: 1h sword, focus (or shield) / greatsword (either air /fire or nullification rune)
Armor choice : Dinivity Rune
Amulet choice : Knight amulet with soldier jewel

Zeal -Spirit weapon Mastery, Eternal Spirit

Radiance – Signet Mastery, a fire inside, Right hand strength

Virtue – Improved Spirit Weapon Duration, Absolute Resolution

Pros: Better spirit weapons

Your spirit weapons provide extra burns, last longer and though they can be destroyed, they come back faster

Pros: quick burst + invincibility

I’m still trying to get better than this, but if you managed to knock down someone, use whirling wraith immediately followed by zealot defense. With the correct set up you will have around 50 crit chance so if your hammer KD crits you get around 3 ~3.5k dmg + 3 ~ 3.5k whirling + 3k~ 3.5k zealots + around 1.5k burning. Pop the defense ability on bubble on shield, use resolve to get rid of 3 condition, use renew focus to stay alive and use another resolve to cure another 3 condition (renewed).
Still experimenting between another weapon or stun breaker. surprisingly i find having 2 weapons is actually better because people get distracted and waste their stun trying to kill that extra weapon.

Pro: Signet recharge

Signet cures 1 condition on auto. coupled with condition transfrom + resolve and maybe nullification on sword, which has extra crit chance, you’re harder to kill using condition.

Con: Spirit weapon no longer immortal

Before the update this build is pretty much invincible in 1 vs 1, now i get into trouble when coming up agaisnt talented players. Also, cc and stun may give you some trouble, but i’m sure you can tweak everything to overcome them. (replace second weapon with a stunbreak for instance and use gs to leap away when someone is trying to 100b you.)

Okay so let me comment on your build since you are using my old one =)

Your trait placements are all focusing on spirit weapons. That isn’t a bad thing except that you end up relying on them a lot more and lose some traits that could be of use to you. Though for the purpose of your build it’s great.
I’m wondering if the signet cooldown shouldn’t be changed since I think you only have one? Also the burning of the spirit weapons is great but you run across the problem that the 1 condition you use is easily removed, and you can almost only apply it with your spirit weapons. since you do apply burning maybe you should go for 10% damage increase in zeal? Thats up to you since you lose 20% cooldown on spirit weapons.
Right handed strength is very good but I believe it’s not as useful if you also use a two hander.
I have found that you can put out higher damage through Valor with extra critical damage. Plus you get healing from all boons as well a condition removal and extra precision. I would at least give it a try to see if you like the change. If not then radiance is amazing with critical % and spirit weapon burning.

Have you given my build a try? You might like it as a variant of your own.

Empathetic Fighter.2065:

As much as I like ppl trying new builds, calling yourself a bunker is definitely wrong here.

Essential things you need as a bunker are stunbreakers. In your build you have 0. So every thief, every mesmer or w/e who successfully stun you (basilisk venom for e.g.) can land his full dmg on you, whithout any interruption. This will result in a fast death, at least if you face ppl who know how to play.
Another thing is that your weapon sets provide zero defense. you have absolutely no block or blind in this weapons.
Furthermore the tome of courage makes no sense here. Because you have no stability in your build, means good players will interupt your nr.5 aka full-heal.

Besides that you won’t do that much dmg to have a real impact. And when your spirit weapons are on cd or gettin destroyed you stand alone.
The amulet will mabye increase your dmg, but takes your survability away.

Overall I would say new but not viable. Still you should have fun with it

Your statement aren’t all incorrect. Let me address.

Bunker – there is No point arguing this one because I completely agree =] I used to title this post “glass tank” meaning that you are hard to take down but if all your cooldowns, dodges, skills….. if everything is down you are like glass and will take a lot of damage. This is a dps build though. Since my original post I have made the choice to always use “stand your ground” for the reasons you and others have stated. I have also picked up the trait “vigorous precision” to double my dodges and add some healing. Not my fault everyone I comes across calls me a tank =] I’m just really good at not taking damage.

Weapon set – I only have one blind from my leap. I didn’t chose to ignore all those defensive skills, it just so happens this weapon set is perfect for my play style. I don’t feel like I need to rely on blind or block (aegis still blocks some hits here and there). I personally feel that by staying at range I’m essentially controlling the battle and not getting hit anyways. I used to use sword and shield but found that with scepter/torch I survive waaaaaaay better.

Tome of courage – “stand your ground” helps getting this off. Even with out it I still manage to use the aoe heal. I tried using invincible and decided Tome of courage was more useful… and so did all my teammates.

Spirit weapons/damage – I have spoken about this before. In No way do I feel like I rely on spirit weapons. They are just easy mode. My damage is plenty high as is. Not sure Why you say it won’t have an impact… I tend to take people down pretty fast. If I really felt spirit weapons were the center of the build I would have the cooldown reduced by 20%.

Once again I use this in tournament modes and go many games without dying, so tank or not I am still hard to kill. I recently started going full berserk amulet because I feel I can spare the extra 5k life for more damage… and I still don’t die.

So Yes this is new and viable. Just not the typical guardian that stands in middle and eats all hits because that’s all he was built to do. You actually need to try and NOT get hit.

Ezrael.6859:

FYI the Cleansing Bolts combo does not remove any conditions from you.

Rather the projectiles themselves can remove a condition from a nearby ally.

Dang hate to say it but you are correct. I haven’t double checked in the game but from internet searches it seems the projectiles will only remove conditions from those in it’s trajectory. Just because you initiate it doesn’t mean you are the one that gets cleansed. Kind of dumb…. is this the same when for example a ranger shoots through the field? I see that it removes a condition but it doesn’t remove it from the ranger then? But who ever his shot happen to go through? It happens all the time so I’m guessing since I am the one in the field the ranger is actually removing conditions from my character?

thanks for the info. If you don’t mind explaining in a little more detail.

Failcakes.9208:

Does buffing them proc altruistic healing?

Yes. As well as the rock dog you can summon from armor runes when you are being hit.

Try this one out

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fUAQNAR7flYgyBHCSLEm4ER+BWWzIey76hDpIDB;T0AA2CnowxgjAHLOOck4siYUypkdJvSA

Its the build I use. Here is my post. https://forum-en.gw2archive.eu/forum/professions/guardian/sPvP-Guardian-spirit-weapon-Crit-tank

You can use your current weapon set if you like. I like to use greatsword with scepter/torch. Has a lot of good damage and healing from AH.

I have lately been runing around with my last 5 trait points into vigorous precision. A little more passive healing from Ah (minimal) but all the extra dodges are a great bonus. Yet an other option with this build.

Those last 5 points can be applied to a multitude of great traits. All up to what you deem is more important. (Condition removal, damage, stability, dodges…)

That’s funny you say that because I mostly only play tourney don’t have any of the problems you mention. And I join with my guild that has plenty of great players. I’ve dueled and beat all of them. And I’m always the last man standing if a battle goes south. Joining solo queue is way easier then against a pre-made team…

None the less what you are saying never happens. I can remove 3 condition every 10 seconds and if that not enough you trait for your virtue to remove 3 more on commend. I also have two combo finishes that remove multiple conditions.

So No I never see any condition damage killing me. Actually I’ve been through many battles where I don’t end up even using my heal skill. And that also happens 1v1.

Spirit weapon build for pvp. Uses AH which heals you due to applying boons to your spirit weapons.

25/0/30/0/15

I use greatsword with scepter/torch. Utilities are spirit hammer and shield. You can use whichever shout you prefer for the last utility. Very high dps.

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fUAQNAR7flYgyBHCSLEm4ER+BWWzIey76hDpIDB;T0AA2CnowxgjAHLOOck4siYUypkdJvSA

Danicco.3568:

Scepter/Offhand builds are the highest DpS you can get, but it depends on Unscathed Contender (20% extra damage while you have Aegis).

If you’re running dungeons and you can stay pretty far away to avoid any hits, this is awesome. It even works in WvW if you want to stay ranged at all times.

I use a 30/0/0/30/10 build with 5% extra Scepter damage and Focus reduced CDs (so I can block more) and Shout utilities (all traited) to pop Aegis back up if I need to.
It’s sorta awesome because each little ball hits 750~1000+ depending on the enemy… but it’s boring as hell after a while lol

Completely forgot about 20% damage with aegis. But I guess it’s because in pvp there is No good way to keep it up for long

Just wanted to point out if it was missed that spirit weapons can now be buffed by your boons. This is an important component of the build since we can heal ourselves to greater effect with altruistic healing by buffing our spirit weapons. Food for thought since you won’t always have your team around to benefit from boon healing, and now if they are you will be healed to the Max because your SW count as additional team members (if there weren’t 5 allies already around you that is).

Nike.2631:

Since my experience with spirit weapons has been quite a bit different than many people are reporting, I took some time to examine what is happeneing with them.

First off, my main guardian (level 80) has Battle Presence in her build, the 46, 16, and 8 do not. I’ve been using the Spirit weapons on all of them and the higher level ones have ventured back into lower level areas so I can compare performance of on-level vs. down-scaled.

Lots of interesting-bits discovered, but here’ the improtant one up front:

The Biggie: The sword & hammer both forced-taunt their targets. I can beat a target half-to-death at melee range, pause to summon a sword, and the target turns on the spirit-sword the instant it is summoned – before the sword has even attacked. Hammers seem to force-taunt on their first hit. The mob will typcally get one more attack off directed at me before changing targets to the hammer. Bows will also pull aggro, but seem to do so much more slowly and not always obviously associated with their shooting animation. The shield did not show any obvious signs of auto-taunting. It rarely took aggro from me. So… it not surprising that some of the weapons get pulped- they jump to the top of the aggro list and soak all available damage until dead. I’ve seen signs that these forced-taunts are AoE – the hammer or sword swings once and everything in the area turns on it. This explains why it’s frequently possible (at lower levels) to self-heal from downed while a sword is out – you stop getting hit by anything in the immediate area until the sword is dead.

Weapons are people too: Weapons draw buffs like party menmbers. They gain the benefits of battle presence (which can dramtically change their longevity) and benefit from the buffs propegated by cashing in virtues via inspired vitue and for standing in symbols. I suspect some people’s main weapon choice greatly affects how long their spirit weapons last (hammer users dropping symbols of protection and their weapons naturally gravitating into the area to be buffed). Weapons hovering in a greatsword user’s symbol of wrath are getting the retaliation effect, etc.

Scaling is not favorable: Whatever scaling is used to set either hit points or armor values for spirit weapons (possibly both) it does not keep up with with the damage being pushed by mobs. At level 6 a spirit sword is an unstoppable tank – summoning one is near automatic victory against low-level events. At the other end of the spectrum level 80 standard mobs are killing them in 3-4 auto-attacks unless buffed.
If nothing else, we need to get the Developers to re-examine their choice of curves for these two values. I doubt either of the extremes is producing the desired outcome.

Using what we’ve got: the new weapons interact with a lot of our trait choices in ways they didn’t before. They benefit from our group-friendly buff options, meaning that a “Spirit Weapon master” now has far more potential choices to enhance their little friends. Strength in Numbers may be a very useful compliment to them, as the hp/armor ratios are so poor at higher levels. On the down side the sprit weapons are probably a poor choice for group play – they almost certainly count towards the 5 target limit on most area buffs, which means in a worst case scenario a sword or shield could soak up a much needed light of deliverance because the weapon was closer than the person you were trying to heal.

Thank you for the informative post. I also mainly play with spirit weapons, mostly for pvp.

An added utility of the spirit weapons is since you can now apply boons to them they work well with altruistic healing. You will automatically get healed for any buff you provide to them. Even if you are only using two of them you will help your survivability as well as theirs. I use a 25/0/30/0/15 build for this. Very high dps combined with altruistic healing.

I was also thinking that maybe the spirit weapons should provide some sort of boon since they are now a lot easier to take down and still replace any useful shouts you could have instead. Would that be overpowered? I’m thinking retaliation for the sword, protection from shield, regeneration from bow,.stability from hammer.

The best burst I have been able to produce is between the greatsword and scepter/torch. I use spirit sword and hammer to compliment this combo, I only play pvp so that might be why.

Scepter/torch – #3 imobilze the enemy. #2 smite on top of him. #4 Zealot (throw the fireball). #5 cleansing flame (at this point you should have moved into melee). Spirit weapons are activated on top for bonus damage and stun.
I have seen smite crit for 800 per hit(15 hits) . Zealot for 5,500. Flame for 5,500. Spirit hammer for extra 2,700. Sword for 2,500.

I usually move into a greatsword combo on top since they are stunned by the spirit hammer.

Greatsword – #5 for damage over time. #4symbol. #3leap. #2Whirl Wind. You can also have the spirit weapons hit on top if you prefer that setup. #5 crits for 1,500 per tick. #4 crits for 1,500. #3 crits for 2,700. #2 crits for a total of 5,500. Plus the spirit weapons =) you can then auto attack. I’ve seen the third hit crit for 3,300

Keep in mind this is with a sPvP build and gear. So pve would be higher.

Haha okay that’s fine.

I agree that when the nerf happened I respecced into a lot of other guardian builds because it felt like they ruined mine =(
I still ended up coming back to it because it just fit my play style. Though at that point I also change to the valor tree instead of radiance. It ended up really buffing damage and survival.

Any Spirit Weapon lovers out there!?!?

KensaiZen.3740:

Ok your invincible. Good luck lol

It would be nice if you could try it out for a few games and let me know what you think. The drawback of this build is that toughness isn’t really up to par with everything else.

I find that it is a very fun build to play with. I figure you would be able to tell me if the flow of battle is to your liking or not, since you have also been playing a guardian from launch. I realize spirit weapons aren’t everyone’s favorite utilities but I think it’s worth a shot. Maybe take shield out and add another shout or signet.

My brother who mainly plays a ranger and warrior tried this out and loves it. We went around one game with triple spirit weapons on each of our guardians… hilarious haha. Not as reliable but still fun.

Relentliss.2170:

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fUAQRAsd7flUgCBnCSOEfIFRWBWa9Yg9zfVK2n8uKARA;TYAqiMFJKyWkrIZRA

I run this all the time and it really rocks. Some might question JI but the combo of the Sword 3 and JI allows you to blink in and take about half a guys health before he can do much.

Kicks total butt in SPVP. Run the knights amulet and whatever runes tickle your fancy. Lyssa, Divinity, Ogre, Melandru… all work.

The 10 in Valor is totally flexible. Put them wherever you want. Initially I went 30/30/0/0/10 and have tried 20/30/0/5/15. Both rock.

I agree with you that build wrecks. Its almost exactly the same one I used until this one. The only difference was I ran Greatsword and Sword/Shield. I felt like I was teleporting and jumping around constantly haha. I never went and got the 15% crit because I used a two hander. The stats are very comparable to my current build as well.

The reason I went from Radiance to Valor was to gain extra crit damage, toughness, and healing from all boons you apply.

Did you try my build? your current weapon set should work just as well.

If you are in WvW I have been using scepter/torch with the staff. You could probably use something different then torch.

I combine this with shield spirit weapon and wall of reflection as well as hollowed ground.

You will be negating a lot of damage from your enemies from the bubble that absorbs projectiles the shield offers, yoh will be reflecting projectiles back to the enemy from wall of reflection, dropping a line of warding from staff that will knock down the enemy, and you grant your team stability.

Not as good one on one but you can switch staff for greatsword. Scepter/torch can control and dps fairly well. Greatsword if they get close.

Spirit weapons =] – hammer is pretty obvious in it’s use. Activate when ready as often as possible. Don’t waste it either of course. I think it better cc then any of our other utilities offer. Shield I only started using in the last couple months as opposed to the sword. Sword is unreliable. What you need to keep in mind is that the shield fulfills it’s duty when I take zero damage from a range attack. Of course the opponent will be smart enough to get around it, pull you away, or destroy it once they see none of their hits are hitting their mark. It is still better then reduced damage any other utility will offer you.
The shield will follow you until you start attacking someone. It will then bubble where you are at. You should be using scepter to start out so No problem That you are at range. If the enemy moves to far away all you need to do is activate the spirit weapon and then the bubble is on top of them. They also take damage from it and seven seconds of weakness. Shield also hits multiple opponents, maybe even the same one multiple times. When the bubble is on top of them you change to greatsword and get into melee. If they try to get away you can switch to scepter and the bubble is already over you from going melee. I understand the shield can be destroyed. But if it has sucked up some of the dmg then it has been used correctly. It also messes with the enemy’s playsyle and forces them to adapt. If it happens to be out of reach and helping out my allies instead then I feel it is being used to satisfaction. For team play. Not to bad right? Let me know what you think.

Trait placement – those last 5 points you see in zeal can be applied anywhere. I can’t ever make up my mind on it Lol. To be honest they used to give me that trait in virtues to remove condition. The reason I had changed it is because I saw a guardian inflict 1.5k crits on each tick of symbol of wrath and I was jealous hahaha. Even though it’s only one symbol it packs a good punch if they stay in it. For example if you hit 25% health you auto drop one. Drop another one on Top yourself. Use protection and retaliation (ret already offered by symbol) and use #2 whirl wind. If ANYONE chooses to just stay put and out damage me they pretty much just melt away while I take minimal damage. Works wonders on guardian and warrior. Auto kill for thieves. Use #5 on greatsword if they try to get away while stealth. It still finds them and pulls them back for you to finish them off. Gravy on the cake if used together with #2 smite from scepter and then drop symbols on top. Crazy damage. To your point I can probably accomplish this and instead have an extra 3 condition removal. Give me your thoughts!!!

Elite – never tried the invincible/virtue recharge. Though the way you laid it out makes a lot of sense. I will definitely try it out. I really like tome of courage because it will save your entire teams life and is highly frustrating for the other team. It’s just great support and will save your life as well. Paired with stand your ground it’s an easy heal as well. I’ve always felt invincible was to short even if it recharged virtues. But if my virtues also have 3 condition removals it makes it a lot more interesting. Plus the retaliatio and protection and other boons it offers. I’m definitely willing to try it out.

So long post but I got great feedback so I thought it was needed.

Keep it coming.

To the last few posts. Several negatives to the build were pointed out. This included condition removals, stability, runes on armor, amulet, spirit weapons, trait placement and finally the elite.

Condition removals – Lets start here as this is the worst. Got dinged 3 times for it in a row Lol. So to review we have signet of resolve that removes 1 condition every 10 seconds. Purity trait removes 1 condition every 10 seconds. Weapons sigils removes 1 condition every 10 seconds. So basically. Potential for 3 condition removals every 10 seconds which don’t share a cooldown. Not to shabby?
To add to this I have 2 combo finishes with greatsword that also remove conditions. #2 and #5. Given I do have to make effective use of it at the right time. Buts it’s an addition to the above.
Now I have in the past used the Major trait in the virtues tree for 3 condition removals from virtue of resolve. I wasn’t sure if it was overkill on condition removals so I applies it somewhere else.
To you points I might need to bring it back. Especially if I choose to use the other elite that refreshes my virtues. Could be very good change. I would like to hear more on this.

Stability – this is one I definitely agree on being a drawback and the only way to remediate is to use stand your ground (which we can easily do) instead of hold the Iine. This might be a necessary change. I have also looked into using virtue of courage to give stability through the virtue trait line. Problems being it is o. A fairly long cooldown and only 3 seconds. I would also not be able to remove 3 conditions with virtue of resolve.
Stand your ground is probably the better option. Would this fulfill this negative side of the build? I’d like to say so.

Runes on armor – I am happy you pointed this out. I used this before when I used to have the spirit sword instead of shield. I also used to use to use radiance instead of Valor. Turns out Valor is more tanky and damaging if using critical. Looking at my current build I think it makes sense to sacrifice some precision since I have 45%(+5 with sigil) yay more damage =) and pet dog!!

Amulet – I use knights for the power, health and precision. Berserk do add critical dmg. I chose to opt out of additional toughness because I felt health and protection was a good alternative. If I go for toughness I lose a lot of damage potential.

Emapudapus.1307:

I agre this build is awesome, i used to run 0/5/30/30/5 and was boring, than i tried something simmilar to yours and was epic http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fUAQNAR7flUgKDHCyKEf4ESmCWCBrUEPyz1DFiiYIA;TsAg0CtoqxUjoGbNuak1sKYkxWEA
Maybe 10 in virtes could be master of consetration.

Thanks!!

I agree that this makes the guardian more fun to play. I feel that a full 30 points in Valor and honor is great and you will be very hard to take down, but you are also limiting yourself.

For some reason spirit weapons really add to the fun and create good opportunities. I don’t believe your are hurting yourself by using them either.

It’s really up to preference for the guardian. All utilities can be useful if used correctly. I also like the dmg this build offers through Valor and zeal. One of the only ways to really use the zeal trait line effectively.

KensaiZen.3740:

GS CC is unreliable. Its 5 skill is easily dodged by any decent players. Sceptre is decent but only has a 2 second entangle which can be broken out of. Melee people armed with 2h weapons do ale damage and this will hit your hammer constantly as they hit you.

Only thing I see that can be dangerous in this build is the hammer tbh. You have a slot for 1 possible stun breaker. The weakness of the build is being CC by your opponent.

An opponent with stability would be your worst opponent.

You are correct in that if my CC from hammer, scepter and greatsword fail it reduces the effectiveness of the build. They will not take every single hit. This doesn’t mean I am all of the sudden worthless. I have two sources of protection for when I get in those circumstances. I have close to 20k life, which is good for a guardian. I have 30 points in Valor to provide toughness. We also have our sweet retaliation to activate which will work against the opponent.

So we do have some good melee resistance built up. Fairly equal footing with other melee. Oh and yes. We have passive healing from AH, if used correctly.

So we can definitely take hits, and we can DEFINITELY dish them out. We have 50% crit chance and high crit multiplier. Trust me they don’t like to fight you melee or range. Range is just less damaging to your health.

You aren’t just a sitting duck once your CC runs out. Those are just to completely over kill your opponent and take advantage of those stats.

I do like to go full berserkers and have save your life sometimes. Sooooo much pain.

I welcome the criticism. What do you play as?

KensaiZen.3740:

You would be hard pressed fighting against other tanks. Once they kill your hammer its game over.

The great thing about this build is you don’t need to rely on the hammer to crowd control. You have immobilize from scepter on short cooldown as well as the pull/knockdown from the greatsword. You need to switch from one weapons to another and control the fight from distance. When facing melee my primary is the scepter/torch until everything is on cooldown and then switch to the greatsword for some burst and then go back to range as soon as possible.

Other things to take in mind are that even though you can now destroy the spirit weapons it is rare someone actually focuses on them. If they do it’s a good opportunity to burst them down.

If you do get in melee you have plenty of protection and retaliation to out last/dmg them.

To be honest melee is easier to handle then range. There is only one guardian I couldn’t kill 1v1 and he was all healer/tanked out. But he couldn’t get close to doing any damage to me. We just called it a draw.

Here is the link to the build

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fUAQNAR7flYgyBHCSLEm4ER+BWWzIey76hDpIDB;T0AA2CnowxgjAHLOOck4siYUypkdJvSA

Ya I get what you’re saying. I guess I put glass there meaning high dps as a tank.

Anyway what do you think of the build?