Guild Wars 2

Runes of leadership are great. I think you should try Lyssa’s runes. They are cheap and work well with Strength of the Pack.

If only your friendly neighborhood Druid could remove those conditions from you… Oh well, you’ll just have to eat them.

Ross Biddle.2367:

In film, when the USA is faced with a global, world ending crisis, do they find a simple, reasonable, straight forward solution to it? No. They fire nukes at it until it goes away.

…firing nukes is a simple, straight forward solution!

Well, I’ll complain. Druid team and personal condi removal was cut in half and its power build was neutered. The only viable option left is to go ADST and condi bomb the kitty cats that begged for Druid nerf.

We can’t remove conditions anymore, but we sure can put them out. Enjoy!

Well, not to be the harbinger of bad news but the nerf to ancient seeds is going to put us firmly under the boots of necro, warrior, Mesmer, and rev. That’s about a 50% nerf to our condi removal. CA got gutted because LI got nerfed as well as skill 2. Think about it, the seed will only remove 1 condi now.

Don’t even get me started on the pets, I am renaming pooky to toothless… Or maybe spineless… Whatever.

GS has great mobility and pairs nicely with staff when you are running around in open world. It seems like a fine choice for most things.

I would take it when I think I will need the block and evades, or the mobility. If that’s not an issue, Sw/A or even Sw/W.

What is the difference between condi spam and burst?

If an ally goes down and I go to revive, Rev, DH, Mesmer, Berserker, and thief can remove all my health in a matter of seconds with a few button presses. If I am on condi Druid, I can do the same to them with a few more button presses and maybe a few more seconds. Why is my way bad and their way ok?

…warriors seem just fine to me. I have yet to encounter one that seems over the top. Sure, in the hands of a skilled player they are a tough fight, but they should be.

Are you sure it’s not that you are used to the free kill and want it to go back that way?

Tragic Positive.9356:

Archon.6480:

Bristleback f2 is best used after swap in melee range. I usually hit pet swap, we heal as one, pet F2, then cover it with Glyph of equality, or a fast lunar impact, so opponents can’t use weapon evade.

Fixt for you.

Ah! Thanks!

Hang your head in shame, you dishonorable lout!

PS: Just give it a while and you can queue again…

Rev is OP against other non-condi builds so, if you see one or two, switch to condi and hope enemy team doesn’t have AoE condi removal. Otherwise you are begging to be gibbed like a starved ally cat on the highway.

Good post, this weapon is useless with 900 range. At least, I can’t make it work.

Bristleback f2 is best used after swap in melee range. I usually hit pet swap, we heal as one, pet F2, then cover it with signet of equality, or a fast lunar impact, so opponents can’t use weapon evade.

Ramen noodles! They’ll stay in your stomach all night long…and into the morning… Heck they’ll probably still be in your digestive track next week!

Well I disagree with the OP completely. You have to realize that some classes have really weak physical attacks and are supposed to attack with hybid or full condi builds. This is true for ranger. We have the weakest physical attack of any class, so we must use conditions in all but the current meta build, if we want to be competitive.

Don’t fool yourself and say that direct damage ranger, not using Menders, can compete with other classes. If I see the opposing team has a few revs, and/or thieves, I will certainly switch to condi Ranger and farm them for trying to cheese me. (Then they come to this forum and complain)

It’s paper rock scissors. Menders Druid will even get rekt vs pure direct damage builds in a group fight. Even noob Revs will destroy vet Rangers if they don’t use conditions.

wolfyrik.2017:

Wait, what? I thought it was my imagination or that quickdraw was bugging out, I’d seem not to get it sometimes on weps. CA has been consuming it for ~zero CD heals?

That’s actually incredibly annoying. Devs could we get CA to not trigger Quickdraw please?

Hm, I don’t really use skirmishing in PvP, as it is a little weak, but wouldn’t you want quick draw to activate in CA so you could double cast skill 5?

He didn’t say anything bad. He was just speaking his mind. Someone hosed his internet, his team lost, and there is no more any way for them to win. He is angry and is not trying anymore. Yeah, that’s what we should expect. No respect lost.

He feels robbed and was angry nothing was done to correct the matter. Maybe in the future they will add a forced pause if someone DCs. And give each team a timeout they can use for those kind of things. This will take time and money for ANet to build. It is good he expressed his frustration. Nothing will change for the better if people don’t speak up.

:) Demolisher is quite strong on LB Druid right now but, as I am sure you know, not as strong as Menders. Menders is strongest Druid/Ranger amulet. Especially when coupled with Staff and Sw/X.

Also, look into River Drake and Lynx/Jaguar for pets. Bears are tanky, but.. Kinda useless at damaging things. Damage = Good. Much of a Ranger’s personal DPS is tied to pet, must use it for damage purposes!

It should make a crackling sound like when a high powered laser melts through metal.

Trevor Boyer.6524:

Hint & Tip:

Create two different keystrokes.

• Target Nearest
• Target Next

Use Target Next vs. Mesmers. This targeting will initially ignore AI targets and immediately target the player. If you KEEP clicking it, it will then begin targeting AIs.

Yeah, key-bind both target nearest and next. If you see the real one get close hit nearest really fast, otherwise hit target next. If next hits the wrong one you can hit nearest then next again for reset. Sometimes it doesn’t work, but is is sometimes better than trying to click the real one. A big part of Battling a Mesmer is fighting the UI.

Grimreaper.5370:

Archon.6480:

Spartacus.3192:

Archon.6480:

Katoh.4069:

Grimreaper.5370:

use destroyer amulet, play hybrid build. Destroyer amulet is actually very strong.

No condition damage = no hybrid pressure.

No condition damage = no challenge for Revenant.

Sigh. You guys do realize that DESTROYER has both power and condition damage right. Pls don’t confuse it with demolisher amulet.

Yeah, except it won’t work. Condition damage is DoT, if you don’t have T, you don’t have D. Pretty simple actually. With destroyer you have no defense against physical damage, therefore you won’t survive long enough to do meaningful damage.

and why wont it work? You’re telling me destroyer amulet wont work when mercenary did? …

Sorry, I am coming from a Druid perspective. Mercenary worked wonderfully well on ADST Condi Bruiser. I tried Destroyer last night and it is a useless replacement. Sage still works allright, but looses some DPS because too much time spent in CA.

So, to stay on topic, I think the same will be true for Mesmer. Why waste survivability for measly low dot. Better to switch to Demolisher and shatter, which will get slaughtered by teef and rev. Current rev is weak to mesmer condi, but will eat shatter mesmer alive.

Spartacus.3192:

Archon.6480:

Katoh.4069:

Grimreaper.5370:

use destroyer amulet, play hybrid build. Destroyer amulet is actually very strong.

No condition damage = no hybrid pressure.

No condition damage = no challenge for Revenant.

Sigh. You guys do realize that DESTROYER has both power and condition damage right. Pls don’t confuse it with demolisher amulet.

Yeah, except it won’t work. Condition damage is DoT, if you don’t have T, you don’t have D. Pretty simple actually. With destroyer you have no defense against physical damage, therefore you won’t survive long enough to do meaningful damage.

Hunger Games PvP…. I like it!

Katoh.4069:

Grimreaper.5370:

use destroyer amulet, play hybrid build. Destroyer amulet is actually very strong.

No condition damage = no hybrid pressure.

No condition damage = no challenge for Revenant.

Is there any counter to power rev now?

Hm, I’ve played thousands of PvP matches (literally around 4000) and have never seen this. The only cheating I’ve seen was Guardian teleport hacks in WvW a long time ago, and that ended with a wave of mass perma bans and a patch. Never seen anything since.

Are you sure you are not lagging?

Um yeah, I just wanted to pop in and say that Fivedawgs is a good warrior and is always a pleasure to fight with or against. That and what the heck? Five totally trashed the Druid so I don’t get the point the OP is trying to make.

The Druid got decapped in about 10s flat, then proceeded to loose the point shortly after. While he danced and ran around like a bunny rabbit his whole team got trashed and the final score was something like 450 – 60. Total fail. The kitten Druid got destroyed and probably would have done just as bad with weapons.

Nothing to see here, move along…

Anyone can sustain with clerics or rabid which both have 3 stats.

:) I’d be OK with it as long as they added the following:

Capacitance: 100% immunity to direct damage, stacks duration
Invigoration: Take 15% less direct damage, heal 15% direct damage
Ignoration: Take 1% less physical damage, and heal 1% physical damage per stack

trunks.5249:

i have only played a ranger for about a year and a half. so what do my fellow rangers think. would love to know your thoughts on this build.

Hey trunks, you seem like a dedicated Ranger, I like that! :-)

Thanks for posting. I run Sw-T/Axe-D and use Mercenary amulet with geomancy sigils instead of earth. I think you should try it this way. By switching Torch and Dagger you will have a weapon evade on each weapon set. It is especially important to have evade when you pull axe out, as it has poor utility and good players will hit you hard when the axe comes out.

In addition, I think you should swap Shared Anguish with Ambidexterity. You are using dagger and torch so will really benefit from the reduced cooldows. The cooldown on SA is 60s which makes the skill rather insignificant.

Burtnik.5218:

Archon.6480:

No, the nerf to Moa is just about right. The 10s Moa was fine pre-HoT, but the elite specs can do too much damage to a fluffy little bird in 10s. If the mesmer times CS right, he can still dish out 12s of fluffy birdness, which is more than enough to mash someone into the ground.

20s of Moa with CS is silly. Mercenary Mesmer is still really strong so this is a nice shave.

You didnt read what i said at all, right? #gw2forum

I did, and responded appropriately #AreYouDaft

I know! We cold change the sword animation and add a delayed pre and after cast! People will be so happy the leap is gone they wont notice the nerf! Brillliant!

…what? They already did that!?

Gosh the attacks are really slow now, even with quickness… So sad.

Ugh, I hate fighting these. I think S1 bunker Mesmer was more interesting. On Ranger you will be locked in unending duel. They die really fast when I am hammering them and a thief pops in. I think high damage melee and focused attacks are their weakness. At least their damage output is low.

No, the nerf to Moa is just about right. The 10s Moa was fine pre-HoT, but the elite specs can do too much damage to a fluffy little bird in 10s. If the mesmer times CS right, he can still dish out 12s of fluffy birdness, which is more than enough to mash someone into the ground.

20s of Moa with CS is silly. Mercenary Mesmer is still really strong so this is a nice shave.

Whew, I am glad they did that. Really annoying skill to fight against. 10-15% is a nice shave.

UmbraNoctis.1907:

For me, meta druid builds are among the easiest and most boring builds i have ever played.

I am curious what meta was more exciting than this one? I’ve played PvP since launch. Shortbow Machine Gun, Regen Ranger, Spirit Ranger, ADST BeastMaster, SotF Bleed-bomber, Dual Sword Melee, LB Camper, ADST Bunker?

I liked Dual Swords and ADST Bunker the best, but both were weaker than other classes at the time and neither is comparable to Druid. Which one would you like to go back to?

UmbraNoctis.1907:

Archon.6480:

HoT increased the speed and active gameplay required for Ranger, through the Druid elite spec. Reduced cooldowns, fast pets, low cooldow utilities, and fast movement have all made Ranger a pleasure to play.

Going backwards would be extremely boring!

For me, meta druid builds are among the easiest and most boring builds i have ever played. Lower cooldowns make it more forgiving to waste skills because they are ready again sooner. It becomes more “spammy” which can feel faster – but it doesn’t become more active or skillfull. PW – important for druids sustain – 100% passive. High amount of boons create builds with high survivability and dmg. Pets (smokescale/bristle) need less player input to be useful, compared to older “meta” pets like the wolf. The stronger traits and skills are, the bigger their impact on the outcome of a fight – and the lower the impact of the player. If it is fun for you – ok, i can’t deny it. But there are reasons to not like it, for me and for other players among all classes.

Hm, I think it is extremely difficult to fight good Revenants, and Mesmers. One mistake and you are toast. It’s only spammy if you and your opponent have little mechanical knowledge. If you spam your skills against good players you’ll be insta-gibbed… Even with tanky Druid.

The timing on your pet burst is crucial to your damage so if you don’t do it at the right time or create a situation were it can’t be avoided, you’ll loose against good players. If you mindlessly spam your pet skills or leave it to mindlessly run around you’ll loose against anyone with skill. They’ll easily avoid it and smash your face in.

Hm. I totally disagree with the OP and premise of this thread. The answer is to add more elite specs, and to continue buffing the core trait lines. I know many will scream power creep, but I say passive defense mitigation. As damage output from direct actions increases, the effects of passive defense traits are diminished. That is good.

HoT increased the speed and active gameplay required for Ranger, through the Druid elite spec. Reduced cooldowns, fast pets, low cooldow utilities, and fast movement have all made Ranger a pleasure to play.

Going backwards would be extremely boring!

Evan Lesh.3295:

6) There will be matchmaking changes that strike a balance between season 1 and 2.

Oh, this sounds exciting. I think that could really work out well. Is this balance going to reduce the likelihood of picking up a negative/positive momentum and going on long loss/win streaks?

It should be more like GW1, the coolest Armour sets were PvP based! C’mon give us more cool things!

FLIMP.8172:

Would this be the same feeling the pro players are getting when they play? I’m in legend atm and I wouldn’t call myself a “bad” player but when I’m matched against a pro in 1 v 1 in ranked, it’s quite clear that I have no chance of beating them.

P.s. where’s my super staff skin! I’ll take hammer instead now though cos I managed to grind 350 bauble baubles <3

Flimpy! The world’s best carry Mesmer! :-) Aw man, you got the staff skin. Wait a minute, Mesmer can’t use hammer! That’s crazy talk.

Back on topic, I made exhausted legend this season and still get destroyed vs. the pros as well, so that might be true to an extent. I imagine it is the same feeling we get when smashing poor souls in unranked. We can say that our actions determine the outcome of the match. So maybe, from his perspective, it wasn’t totally untrue what he said.

Regardless, the team stacking makes for some really boring matches, win or loose. Not very fun to watch a pro on a stacked team pound a bunch of helpless players into dust. That would get old very fast.

Legendary-like PvP skins that match the wings and have the fiery effect. Maybe a matching armor set as well. Please! Pretty Please!

:)

Jourdelune.7456:

Cleric is:

900 Power
900 Thougness
1200 healing power

A real contender for the condi slot would be:

900 condition
900 thoughness
1200 healing power

They did removed it from the game (Settlers).

condi > power (without ferocity or precision).

So, they could not go to 900 condition + 900 toughness… so to get a new four stats, it would be more (to balance with Cleric) something like:

+1050 Toughness
+1050 Healing
+560 power
+560 Condition

Except that they stated they would never put 2 defensive stats in the 1050 range, because it would be too tanky with HoT specs.

It would have to be something like:
1050 Healing
1050 Condition
560 Power
560 Toughness

Um, I find this ironic, several of us where saying the matchmaking was broken in S2 and he comes out with some stupid self indulgent rant about you suck if you are on a 30 game losing streak and you need to carry. Then makes some nonsensical statement about “if the game score is 400-500 you are the problem because you didn’t carry.” All the while he was being placed on stacked teams where he could have done almost nothing and won.

Now he says boohoo, the matches were boring and no one is watching anymore. Maybe he could have put aside the BS early on and acknowledged the problem with the rest of us?

Fivedawgs.4267:

Sorry but I lmao at the bolded statement. So, is this the same Helseth who said people could carry their game, or the dude who tediously denied MMR hell, or the guy who believed that your teammates could, in no way. Impact the outcome of a game.

Wow funny how opinions are changing.

Anyways, my biggest issue with gw2 is the boon spam… way way too much spam. I have seen druids/ranger maintain 17 stack of might, that should nt be a thing.

Hey now, that’s only me and a few other Druids… It’s not Meta. I’d get kicked out of GASM by Mckitteny for running something like THAT!

TheGrimm.5624:

Yeah, good bye good party assist, hello selfish ability. Its not making the cut. Gave it a week, its not good in this form. You pull people and the person about to stomp them just turns in mid air and stomps them anyway.

So…what new skill do we want to replace this ability with? Ideas? Pet runs around allies in 1200 foot range and drops med packs and anitdote potions? Saint Bernard animation maybe?

Replace it with “Protect Me.” Instant party-wide AoE stun break is so awesome used at the right moment.

mistsim.2748:

right before i left (last october), wasnt everyone playing cele druid? then they removed both cele and settler at the same time.

Yeah, I am getting frustrated with lack of healing stat amulets as well

I was using celestial in S1 (pure love) but I think there was some sort of celestial bunker that used settler and was just as hard as bunker mesmer to get rid of. I would really like to see the following:

For Shortbow:
1050 Healing
1050 Condition
560 Precision
560 Toughness

1050 Condition
1050 Precision
560 Toughness
560 Healing

For GS
1050 Power
1050 Ferocity
560 Healing
560 Toughness

For LB
1050 Healing
1050 Power
560 Precision
560 Ferocity

Subte.8725:

Archon.6480:

What are you doing about those Mesmers?

Ranger, main hand axe, lots of conditions, 3 stun breaks, and cross your fingers you can avoid both Moa’s

Maybe if u try to go sword/dagger + staff u will have 4 dodges( sword2, sword3, dagger4, staff3) + 2 dodges = 6 dodges. Maybe u can time the dodge when u see the moa’s cast and dodge it to his cotinuum shift then u destroy it to prevent the moa reset.

Oh wait!!! No No No No. Lets wait Anet to nerf mesmer and lets let him make our job is a better idea. (Irony mode on)

All joking aside, are we really sure Mesmer is OP this go around? They don’t seem overly strong to me, but hey unranked, so who knows if I’ve fought anyone good, right?

SimpleHari.2968:

can you help me with leveling and map roaming build? currently level 19 and doing 1-15 maps.

Trait shouts, signets, Beastmastery, and marksmanship first. Put everything into damage. Always go to TP, every 5 levels and get max damage trinkets. Use longbow, and GS or sw/Warhorn). Use we heal as one to give yourself swiftness to move fast.

You can 100-0 most foes by nailing them with LB as you run at them, then swap to Sw if they are still alive and finish them off. Most things will die within 2s of you reaching them (or before).

Have fun, ranger is an amazing leveling/world completion class.