Guild Wars 2

I should be able to make both events:

IGN: Anthrage StormRider
Day Available: Thursday All Night and Saturday All Day
Record Capability: Fraps
NA or EU: NA

As for the issue of Ranger disadvantage versus Necros, while it is true some builds (traps for example) are all about condition damage, and most Ranger weapons do have significant condition-damage components, there are some builds which do minimize this quite a bit. I will likely run a damage build (I have one that requires no changes to trait lines, only traits and gear) or my perma-boon build.

How is it possible there is no statement yet on the missing Laurels? Bug or intentional…please let us know.

Zetus.1476:

I just got my daily and there was NO LAUREL.

Is this a bug? If not I’m kind of kitten .

You’re not the only one Durzilla. :P

I try to stick to a simple baseline in stats – 1500 Condition Damage, at least 1500 in Power, Precision and Toughness, and at least 20k HP. Once I finish swapping out my current trinkets for ascended, I’ll make it no problem. You can also use food and oils to finish the gaps. This is what my stats look like.

Personally, if you’re going condition damage, go all in – as long as you hit those plateaus on your other stats.

Yes indeed!

Bas has given me the okay to make our match recordings public, you can find them online here. Enjoy!

I prefer damage to duration personally, given most conditions are stripped, at least in WvW. PVE is a different story.

Buddy.7563:

If you’re rolling a condition damage spec. You might also want to try out Rare Veggie Pizza as a possible food option. That +40% condition duration is nothing to joke about.

My Condition Build.

-Condition-Damage Loadout-
Traits: 20/30/20/0/0
Food: Loaf of Omnomberry Bread and Master Maintenance Oil.
Sigils: Fire on Bow, Geomancy on Axe, Smoldering on Torch, Hydromancy on Warhorn
Runes: Undead

-Crit/Damage Loudout-
Traits: 20/30/20/0/0
Food: Loaf of Omnomberry Bread and Master Maintenance Oil.
Sigils: Intelligence on Bow, Intelligence on Axe, Sanctuary on Axe
Runes: Scholar

You’ll notice that 20/30/20/0/0 is the same for both loadouts of this build. This takes advantage of the flaw in our trait layouts…by swapping gear and switching out the individual traits, but not changing the trait lines – something you can do just by exiting combat – you get 2 significantly different platforms.

Trait details are:

-Condition Loadout-

Marksmanship: Predator’s Instinct and Eagle Eye
Skrimishing: Primal Reflexes, Trapper’s Expertise and Trap Potency
Wilderness Survival: Soften the Fall and Off-hand Training

-Crit/Damake Loadout-

Marksmanship: Predator’s Instinct and Eagle Eye
Skrimishing: Primal Reflexes, Quick Draw, and Moment of Clarity
Wilderness Survival: Wilderness Knowledge and Off-hand Training

With those 3 changes, you get 20% cooldown reduction on Survival Skills as well as Longbown and Shortbow, plus the Attack of Opportunity for yourself and your pet on Interupt of your enemy, and +50% Duration on outgoing Dazes and Stuns – this and the additional cooldown reduction you can take advantage of by swapping out for longbow on your secondary.

This method is a nice way of taking advantage of our less than ideal trait setup, I think.

Edited to include shot showing my sPvP versions of these builds

This was quite fun! Big thanks to Bas and my team-mates for the great time, looking forward to doing this again.

Looking forward to this, thanks for putting it together! Will definitely join you in mumble once I have the info, and will be recording as well. 5 Rangers will be interesting.

Count me in.

In Game Name: Anthrage Stormrider
Time Available: 4:00 to 9:00 PST
Recording Capabilities: FRAPS

I think there is no question TC over-performed this week and KN under-performed. The reasons for that have already been touched on, and even discounting those things that are in dispute, there are some which have clearly been factors. The score reflects this to be sure.

I however am speaking more in terms of the health of the match-up, not of Kaineng itself. I expect the final totals at the end of this round to be somewhere near:

TC – 235 000
FA – 209 000
KN – 181 000

While this would indeed be 54k less points for KN than TC, heading towards the 60k you mention, it is not out of line for the values we have seen historically in this match-up for each respective position. 3rd place has been at 186, 180, 182 and 193k…KN finishing at 181 is in line with the match-up positions, just not with KN’s performance.

In short, who typically finishes first and who typically finishes last may change. There are real factors at work here aside from who wins the battles on the field which are impacting each team’s performance this round. My position is however that the match-up itself is pretty stable, given who is in Tier 1 and who is in Tier 3, and that the quality of the match-up – and the fights – in this Tier is high, and I expect it to remain so, even with KN is indeed – for the moment, suffering serious problems.

As for KN itself, If you look at the graph I linked, you’ll see their incredible rise pretty starkly displayed. As a KN player I’m sure you know better than I. I have seen nothing in my rounds against KN, in my fights on the field with it’s players, or in this thread which leads me to believe KN is mortally wounded and unable to compete. You guys may have to change some things, perhaps even rethink how you fight given you may no longer be in the position of strength and superiority you have been up till now…but I do not see any reason for funeral services just yet.

Arkanfel.8403:

Ketharius.9018:

Anthrage.2519:

On the topic of this match-up and the various statements about it, this here is perhaps the best way to show just what things are like. Filter for our 3 servers by clicking the boxes at lower left and you’ll get a very clear picture.

In terms of match scores, going backwards:

TC – 223 590
FA – 201 409
KN – 173 529

TC – 222 746
KN – 209 096
FA – 186 601

KN – 213 128
TC – 207 825
FA – 180 466

KN – 217 255
FA – 190 887
TC – 182 386

KN – 220 054
TC – 200 080
FA – 193 536

Or looked at another way:

KN: 220 054, 217 255, 213 128, 222 746, 173 529
TC: 200 080, 182 386, 207 825, 222 746, 223 590
FA: 193 536, 190 887, 180 466, 186 601, 201 409

No need to panic folks. If anything, KN is anomalous at the moment, but otherwise, things are continuing on track.

I like this. +1

See, this is why I think Kaineng’s problems are so serious. We will finish the match close to 60,000 points behind. Just eyeballing it I would say that looks close to double the average margin between first and third over the history of this matchup. Most of those gaps seem to be in the 30,000-35,000 range.

On the topic of this match-up and the various statements about it, this here is perhaps the best way to show just what things are like. Filter for our 3 servers by clicking the boxes at lower left and you’ll get a very clear picture.

In terms of match scores, going backwards:

TC – 223 590
FA – 201 409
KN – 173 529

TC – 222 746
KN – 209 096
FA – 186 601

KN – 213 128
TC – 207 825
FA – 180 466

KN – 217 255
FA – 190 887
TC – 182 386

KN – 220 054
TC – 200 080
FA – 193 536

Or looked at another way:

KN: 220 054, 217 255, 213 128, 222 746, 173 529
TC: 200 080, 182 386, 207 825, 222 746, 223 590
FA: 193 536, 190 887, 180 466, 186 601, 201 409

No need to panic folks. If anything, KN is anomalous at the moment, but otherwise, things are continuing on track.

You may yet be proven correct, but it is far too early to say that yet about this match-up. Each of the three teams has won matches by margins equally as large, and each has fielded more numbers than the others to a similar degree. People need to look at the bigger picture. This is Week 5, as the topic reminds us…there will be at least 2 more. This ain’t over yet.

Arkanfel.8403:

Anthrage.2519:

First, I think it should be noted that this tier, this match-up, was one of the best…

Fixed that for ya. :P

First, I think it should be noted that this tier, this match-up, is one of the best there is. In terms of the quality of the fights, the skill level of the teams and players involved, and even the balance of the individual matches. In any given week it has been a different one of the 3 servers with the advantage, and if we forget the points and match winner for a moment, I think we can all agree that the fights and fun are truly fantastic in Tier 2.

Second, as regards the lengths to which some might go to win, or even just to compete at the highest level they can, I am sure all the Shadowbane players out there are chuckling to themselves right now. Ultimately, it is the things off the field, not on, that dictate victory. Coverage is just one example of this.

Some people do not consider WvW as real PvP, or in the GW2 realm specifically, to be THE PvP venue – seeing sPvP as the real deal. This opinion has always baffled me, and I think those of us who are knee-deep in WvW, would admit that as a competitive exercise, it is PvP at it’s best. The breadth of engagement is extreme, and as was the case with SB, extends to beyond the game world…this is the true reality of a quality open world PvP experience, and while not everything done is admirable or even acceptable, it is, in a way, a testament to the nature of this contest and the investment of the combatants. WvW is war.

Some truly epic collisions in EB today…while I am not a fan of zerging, there is something awesome about watching 2 zergs crash into one another, especially when it’s a surprise. Twice today, at least, the TC and KN zergs smashed headlong into eachother at a blind corner or other chokepoint…just insane.

As were the fights at Valley Keep, so much lag, so many bags….it scares me to think of how awesome this game would be without culling and lag. I barely sleep as it is!

So…there was kind of a um, big er, you know…clusterpocalypse at Lowlands Supply on FA BL just now. Soooo many bodies and soooo many bags.

Thanks. I do use drakes once in a while, but I am hard pressed to run with anything but Wolf and it’s Fear and Knockdown, or the Red Moa with it’s heal and Vulnerability, which stacks up to 22 with Opening Strike and Longbow’s Hunter’s Shot.

Rangers in my opinion are a finesse class…we can do great things, but it requires us to pull of very exact attacks, combinations or stacking. We have some truly great stacking potential with our powers and pets, it would be greater still if they are worked as designed or were not unreliable as some are…but yeah.

..anyone else notice how simillar they are? It’s a shame so many of the other tiers seem horribly skewed, but I’m quite glad have have several great matches going on right now. These two tiers are also unlike to change any time soon it would seem.

Jade Quarry – 51 336
Blackgate – 43 836
Sanctum of Rall – 38 224

Kaineng – 50 349
Tarnished Coast – 43 631
Fort Aspenwood – 37 426

It’s 11am…still haven’t gone to bed. Couldn’t help myself, had to get this video up of the fights at Cliffside and Garrison between TC and FA on FA Borderlands. Isn’t actually finish uploading or processing, should be available for viewing at about 11:30/11:45 EST. I need some sleep.

Part 2 to come later today!

Entangle is useless to some and invaluable to others. I had a good opportunity last night to use it in one of it’s more useful ways, as part of a flanking attack on a small group. See the short video here.

Note two important aspects of a useful Entangle – attacking from the flank where the all-too-obvious casting animation is not seen by your targets, and applying a condition before the Entangle so that it is not first in the condition stack.

Entangle is often a ‘for effect’ tool, but when used appropriately, it can be pretty effective as well.

Some great fights tonight and early today, tons of fun at Cliffside last night, and epic defenses of Hills on FA BL and Garrison on TC BL early this morning. Need some sleep but will upload some recordings later today.

For now, here’s a little 7 VS 5 from down at Lowlands supply last night, and one from reset night, a fight at Godslore VS FA. Great fights again this week!

To the KN Elementalist who just fought a Norn Ranger with a Shark pet by the Bay node…that 5 minutes was an insane dogfight of a battle. Tried to bow but couldn’t get it off before you released. TY for the awesome fight!

I opened this up today and tested it a bit – here’s a video showing the skill tooltip and how it works. Note the targer is pretty far away. Also note that none of the bolts seems to hit the target, it appears to just do an AoE effect and score a hit regardless.

A shockingly bad idea. Please please, especially for us color-blind people, address this as soon as possible. No-culling WvW has been absolutely ruined for some people. Horrible.

Tried that – does not work. Even if it did, it is the differently-colored titles that re the problem, not the existing red enemy name. This should have been forseen as a likely issue, and hopefully it will be addressed in short order.

chrisk.4320:

however I curse ANet for completely ruining that effect by adding these unwanted and unnecessary titles displayed on enemies that cannot be disabled. Incredibly horribly bad, especially if you are color-blind

Disable names?

Show All Enemy Names — Enables displaying enemy names above their heads even if they are not targeted.
Show All NPC Names — Enables displaying NPC names above their heads even if they are not targeted.
Show All Player Names — Enables showing all player names above their heads even if they are not targeted.

I don’t see why anyone should have a problem with pointing out negative aspects of this patch. I think the culling changes are fantastic and I applaud them for it…however I curse ANet for completely ruining that effect by adding these unwanted and unnecessary titles displayed on enemies that cannot be disabled. Incredibly horribly bad, especially if you are color-blind…so yeah, just because there are good things done does not mean there are not bad things as well.

I’m not going to be able to keep my eyes open long enough for this to finish uploading, but here will be video from that fight. - should be available for viewing about 30 minutes after the time of this post. My PoV is a bit limited given what I was trying to do, but it gives you an idea of the epic nature of this fight…it lasted for about 15 minutes, perhaps more.

Candir.5608:

FA and TC just had a battle worthy of a keep fight @ Redvale on FABL. Epic fight, well fought FA!

Here are a few recordings from reset night on FA BL, with more to come:

Tarnished Coast VS Fort Aspenwood – 03/22/13 22:23 EST / FA BL – Vale

Tarnished Coast VS Kaineng VS Fort Aspenwood – 03/22/13 23:22 EST / FA BL – Ruins

Tarnished Coast VS Kaineng – 03/23/13 00:57 EST / FA BL – Greenlake

Great fighting in FA BL tonight, until the server decided to kick a ton of people – got back in to 50-points fewer PPT. Oh well thems the breaks. Here’s a vid of a battle at the Ruins at about 2:24 AM EST. Some good battles tonight!

Very short but sweet fight between TC and KN at Lowlands supply camp this afternoon. Having a similar one yet to be uploaded, TC and FA that time, with not quite as happy an ending for us.

Finally got this one uploaded, from the crazy fight with FA on FA BL at Bay on the 11th…so many bodies!

Sorting through more recordings, just upped this short one of TC and Kaineng in a nice little open field fight last night…I swear, if field battles left permanent blood stains on the terrain (Myth anyone?), after a few days, the whole map would be red.

Amazingly close score right now, not just the round total, but rating as well. Excellent fights tonight, lots of fun in FA Borderland – including the above-mentioned 3-way in FA’s Garrison. I still haven’t uploaded all the stuff I recorded from last week, but here’s a short bit from that Garrison battle. This is going to be an intense week!

Hello all! Finally managed to get some more of my footage uploaded from the fights Tuesday night on FA Borderland. Some epic fights at Bay, Hills and Garrison – I’m still working on the stuff from Bay, but here are 1 from Hills and 3 from Garrison:

Tarnished Coast VS Fort Aspenwood – 03/12/13 7:00 PM EST / FA Borderland – Hills Keep

Tarnished Coast VS Fort Aspenwood – 03/12/13 7:15 PM EST / FA Borderland – FA Garrison

Tarnished Coast VS Fort Aspenwood – 03/12/13 8:00 PM EST / FA Borderland – FA Garrison

Tarnished Coast VS Fort Aspenwood – 03/12/13 8:05 PM EST / FA Borderland – FA Garrison

At time of this posting the last video is still uploading. These are from my limited PoV of course but they should give you an idea of the absolute mayhem that was going on. Big props to all the Commanders working hard to keep things on track, and all of TC for the great efforts! Also a firm salute to FA for the aggressive play and intense fun. Great week so far!

Great fights today/tonight, spent 3 hours fighting non-stop on FA BL earlier…trying for Hills, Defending Garrison and Bay, filmed a bit from all conflicts, will upload more tomorrow, but for now here’s a bit from our attempt to take Hills at about 7PM EST. Tons of fun!

GJ to all today, especially our commanders on FA BL. Going to be a great week!

I made no assumptions. I quoted someone, and their was more than one statement expressing a similar sentiment. You may know how to handle larger forces, but clearly some people do not. It was a friendly suggestion and encouragement to them, not a slight to you.

In any case, as some who have messaged me have echoed, this is pointless. I am sure you are right and this situation is more than familiar to you…you don’t need anyone’s assistance or support. We’ll be out of your hair shortly. Good luck to you and enjoy the week!

Not sure what of what I said was condescending, but I’m going to abide by the mod’s wishes and not take this places it need not go.

My post was well-intentioned – and again, given the posts in this thread lamenting being outnumbered etc, was justified in context. I’m sorry you disagree, and if you feel my words were unnecessary, so much the better.

As for the rest of you, and especially the TC folks out there, I stand by my words. Being zergy is not always a strength, lets try to be more dynamic on the field and mix things up a bit.

xxxzavulonxxx.8413:

Anthrage.2519:

To kerona and xxxzavulonxxx…no actually, it was not clear that you did, based on ParaldaWind’s post. Irregardless, my sympathy and encouragement stands…

If the two of you have been in this situation for so long, perhaps you should consider a truce, and 2 v 1 your opponent? Despite the endless crying about such a thing, it is entirely valid – believe me no-one is going to blame you if you did.

Anyway, suit yourself. Was just trying to be nice…I’ll be sure to amend that going forward.

I would offer you some advice… Don’t be so condescending to your opponents. Maguuma has fought Kain, SoS2.0 and other big zergy servers… CD when they were very potent, FA, DB’s night crew has been worthy of T1 status…..

Some of us know how to bust zergs. We repeatedly farmed certain Aspenwood groups two weeks ago.

Tier differences =/= skill differences.

Type: Weapon/Longbow/1
Short description: Longbow Autoattack does not function at extended range, between 1200 and 1500
Why is this that urgent: Longbow for Rangers has the longest possible range, but most of this benefit is lost due to the lack of auto-attack. The Longbow power 1 is also considered underwhelming…addressing this would address that as well, for those who have traited thusly.

To kerona and xxxzavulonxxx…no actually, it was not clear that you did, based on ParaldaWind’s post. Irregardless, my sympathy and encouragement stands…

If the two of you have been in this situation for so long, perhaps you should consider a truce, and 2 v 1 your opponent? Despite the endless crying about such a thing, it is entirely valid – believe me no-one is going to blame you if you did.

Anyway, suit yourself. Was just trying to be nice…I’ll be sure to amend that going forward.

I’d just like to offer a few words of encouragement to Maguuma and Dragonbrand for this week, from the perspective of someone who has been on the other end of this particular dynamic, for a number of weeks prior to this one. TC faced a similar, indeed far worse situation, versus Blackgate and Kaineng. To tip my hat to Monty Python, there were days i DREAMED of being outnumbered only 15 to 40…we feel your pain, believe me; some of us are still waiting for our wounds to stop bleeding…

That said, take heart, this is only very likely going to last this one week, with TC moving back to T2 for the next round. Try to take advantage of the situation by working on anti-zerg tactics, refining your defensive operations and elevating your overall tactical capabilities. The new WvW code regarding swords favors smaller groups over exclusively moving large zergs around…play to this advantage, don’t take 15 against 40, take 5 to three different assets. Punish us for our lack of flexibility…teach us the lessons TC sorely needs to learn.

On that last bit, to my TC brothers…as the week wears on and it becomes clear we have this well in hand, I encourage us to take advantage of the opportunity and also work on our tactics. TC very often does indeed move too-large groups around wholesale, very often over-responding and suffering unnecessary losses as a result. It is a simpler, easier method to be sure, and overwhelming force has it’s merits, but it does not serve us well when we are on the other end of the numbers disadvantage. Consider assigning areas of operation, use slightly smaller groups, and in so doing, ensure both we and our foes this match-up get more out of this round than just a win or loss.

Last bit of advice – don’t focus on the score so much if you can help it. Find good fights where you can and enjoy them for their own sake. The week will pass much more quickly, I promise you.

Great fights tonight on DB BL – excellent job by all, especially our Commanders. Here’s some footage of our brave TC forces repelling a DB attack on northern Hills Keep!

Great fights tonight in TC BL. Here’s some footage of one of the battles for Longview Tower between TC & BG, at about 5:21 PM EST. Great fun!

Evades and mobility are Ranger strengths, traits that help keep your endurance up, that grant protection and swiftness, good use of weapon swapping…they go a long way towards keeping you alive when things get messy. There are a lot of things you can do, but some of them require you to invest heavily in a trait line you might now have reason to otherwise….using mobility and the related effects is a good balanced method of obtaining survivability.

I don`t find anything impressive about the long list of very basic ranger skills that are bugged or broken. I find it embarrassing. And so should Anet.

I use Longbow traited to 1500 range, because I WvW 98% of my time and it is a very useful tool in that context when used correctly. There are some things in WvW that you can only do with the Longbow, so for me personally it’s indispensable.

In terms of specifics, Rapid Fire is excellent for things like finishing off a fleeing target, killing/tracking thieves, killing siege etc…Barrage as well, for taking out point defenses, siege on walls and slowing advances or retreats. Point Blank shot and it’’s knockback are great in WvW, when halting a stomp, dropping someone off a cliff, pushing back a supervisor or getting someone off a piece of siege are important.

It all boils down to context, playstyle and usage however, as others have said. Longbow works exceptionally well with things like ranged traps, and is THE weapon of choice for attacking to or from walls. You haven’t lived till you’ve seen a high crit rate Barrage with a Sigil of Fire into a mass of bodies :P

Yeah that crack about rangers underwater really takes the cake. Man, that’s just unbelievable. Joke is definitely on us.

I think taking these issues to social media might be a more effective method than hoping for something via voicing our concerns on the forums, they seem to value those avenues of exposure quite a bit. It might be worth a shot, some kind of coordinated effort to draw attention to the wealth of issues the class faces…

First off all, if culling were a factor, it would have caused the pet to go to an invisible downed target that was closer to it than the one I was standing on or the more distant one it in fact went to…so this point is completely invalid, and the example is actually a very good one.

Secondly, I DO expect the skill to work as intended. I think ANet expects it to as well…but it clearly does not. That would be where the ‘fail’ portion of the thread title comes in…

I’m sorry – you may believe otherwise, but it is not working as intended, that is beyond question, and it should be. I think it’s important it be established this is the case and the issue not be confused. If something is to be fixed, the first step is admitting it is broken. And this definitely be broken.

Kasama.8941:

That’s a horrible example. You ran into a huge pile of players in WvW, which means you are probably not seeing half of the players there, because of culling. So how can you possibly see which player is the nearest, let alone expect the skill to work as intended? Of curse Search and Rescue will be less effective in situations where the game is suffering from loads.

I have used Search and Rescue a lot in fractals and dungeons, and the times it hasn’t worked as I expected, I can count on one hand.

An all-ranger group in WvW would be interesting as well – mass Barrages, Rapid Fires and Entangles, pet zergs…lions, tigers and bears; oh my!

Just an important note to all you TC players, while as some have said we may not have much influence over the outcome of this match as regards who finishes first, we do have control over whether we stay in this tier or not. Looking at the current points and trend, there is a good chance we will drop down to tier 3…I know all of us enjoy this tier and these dance partners, so don’t let up my friends!

Look – if they can’t even fix something as simple as Splitblade, I think it’s reasonable to doubt our ability to have our issues addressed. This thread, this buglist, more than anything else, is an insult at this point…