Guild Wars 2

Hammer is great for its Protection but not as needed for leveling. Really starts to shine at 80 with traits and gear. Its damage comes from auto attack chain, symbol from 3rd auto chain (make sure you let this hit) and Mighty Blow. MB every other chain to get Retaliation for more damage.

GSword is great for leveling. Prolly kill faster with this weapon until you can build for others. Great default till 80. 2h Mastery trait really kicks this into gear at lvl 60.

Sword/Torch has very high damage output. 10 in Zeal gives 10% damage to burning targets. Easy low level damage increase.

Scepter/Focus is a good ranged setup with decent damage.

Mace/Shield is tanky, you get heals and protection from it along with more defense and a knockback.

Staff + 2H Mastery trait + Retreat + Save Yourselves gives perma-swiftness for traveling.

These are the loadouts I like. Try um all n see what you like. Things change at 80 so keep your mind open I’m playing with Mace/Torch GC right now which is proving fun.

GL
Blood~

I’d run WoE, you can prolly stack some good might with 70% duration but the larger protection will keep all your melee guys in melee longer for good damage. If you’re the only melee guy go EM. WoE will also potentially increase your damage output too.

GL out there,
Blood~

I’d suggest 0/15/30/20/5. Virtues that throw boons are very helpful with AH, worth the loss of crit IMO. I’d choose 6x Lyssa for the elite cuz you’ll pop Renewed Focus a lot with 5 in Virtues.

I started with full PVT gear but that with AH/Hammer is kinda overkill. I had few challenges if my group was competent. I’ve moved to a mix of Zerker/PVT and I like it much better, especially with Hammer’s Protection and longer Symbol duration. I’ve dropped to 8x zerker and 4x PVT with a 10/30/30/0/0 build and it’s still pretty tanky with Hammer. Currently running Ruby Orbs and 2x Superior Rune of the Earth for Protection Duration.

PVT+Hammer gives you crazy staying power but your damage output is terribly low. If you want to do some damage you’ll need to kick up that crit. gw2buildcraft.com has a nice calculator for showing Effective Power. This is only accurate per weapon so don’t compare different weapons or classes.

This is mostly from a PvE prospective.

GL
Blood~

Guardian was easier to level than other classes, haven’t done warrior yet but its next.

I run content like FotM and Arah with another Guardian that runs 13K hp without a problem. I’m currently working my way to Zerker gear also.

GSword is great for leveling, throw on Hammer for more challenging encounters. Damage is very close and Hammer gives you Protection while standing in the symbol
. Spirit weapons are good for leveling, they lose potency at 80 but have fun with um while you can. Scepter has good damage problem is when the target moves there’s potential for the shots to miss.

GL
Blood~

Spirit Shield is still quite viable and used a lot but Sword and Hammer lost value. Staff’s Line of Warding is just awesome now too, you can cast it on the move. Great for running away from stuff

Like Teamkiller said AH is just a very strong trait. When you get it at 60 you just won’t die if you’re using any weapon that throws boons, Staff Empower heals you a ton with AH traited.

Lots of different builds at 80 after you get comfortable with the class and content.

yLoon.5289:

1h Sword doesn’t need love, it needs the player to learn how to play ir right!

I was mainly Sword before the last patch. I know how to play it right. We’re not all PvP though so yes it does need just a little something for us PvE guys IMO.

Not sure if Fury would be best on a symbol, if you’re running sword you’re prolly in RHS already and running good crit. Although I guess it could open up some build options. I’d be happy with a ZD change also.

Hmm, if you’re pug’n Fractals you may want to run a more standard x/x/30/30/x AH/Pure of Voice build. I run guild groups and its not a problem to go in with different builds that I wouldn’t run in a pug.

Scepter is a good weapon and does well for us at range but I’d suggest using it as a secondary weapon when you have to step out of melee. Torch has a bad rep with some players too, I’d suggest Focus as your OH ranged. Mace, Hammer, Staff n Shield all give pretty good support. Mace n Hammer both do quite good damage close if not equal to GSword, at least from my testing although this is debated. Staff may not be the best choice for a main weapon but its quite good as a short range option now.

Signet could be a source of frustration, they’re great for your own use but don’t support the group well even though its nice for reducing damage. I go with Wall, Shield and SYS or SYG.

PVT is great to start out n learn content but after ya got it start switching into Zerker/Valks/Knights. If you’re running Scepter/Torch there’s little support there so damage output is what you should look to IMHO. Full dps gear will give you good damage regardless of spec. Maybe a 0/30/10/30/0 RHS Pure of Voice build would be fun in Zerker gear?

Just some thoughts.

GL
Blood~

Bombul.2506:

Pretty sure the table reads 30% crit chance 0% crit damage = 15% increased damage, 30% crit chance 30% crit damage = 24% increased damage netting to a 9% difference in damage. The table seems to be a multiplier…i.e. 1.15 = normal damage * 1.15 or 115% of normal damage total.

You are correct, the explanation of the table is misleading with the example given when you attempt to read it quickly. Makes a lot more sense now. Sorry for my lack of math and speed reading skill Thanks for the correction.

Blood~

Thanks much.

I moved to a 20/20/0/25/5 build which seemed to work pretty good. I ran with MoP instead of MoRes and had troubles with conditions for a bit but after the switch it wasn’t bad. Problem is when you get in trouble and need some healing it seems your damage can completely shut down if you need to focus on charging mantras. Can feel clunky at times.

I like the S/S game play and the iSwordsman.

Gotta figure out if I want Harmonious Mantras vs Phantasmal Fury and then MoR vs Eather Feast, and Persisting Images vs Restorative Matras vs Mender’s Purity.

Thanks again,

Blood~

I personally try to maintain 16k hitpoints and 3k armor. After that I push Zerker’s stats as much as possible. I like a little more hp if I’m not in an AH spec though. Gear is a mix of Soldiers, Zerker and Knight. With AH Hammer I can face tank for quite a while before having to back off and have decent damage with it. Running 2x each Sup Runes of Earth, Monks and Water for 50% Protection duration. Full zerker’s is one strategy for higher level fractals as you’ll get 1shot with any amount of HP/Armor so just get good at dodging, least thats what I’ve been told.

From what I’ve read the heal from dodge scales the best out of any of our abilities with healing power. But this content is doable without a guardian healing if every party member can keep themselves alive. So healing the group is nice but not necessary depending on the skill level of the group.

Blood~

Yea, wish the warden wasn’t rooted.

Blood~

Leveling this class is painful if you’ve leveled other classes. Things start to turn around at 40 then really come online at 60. I ran GSword and Sword/Sword for most of my leveling. At 20 Blade Training started to help. I relied on Phantasms to start and at 60 I turned to Shatter and took that up to 80. You can setup Shatter at 40 but I felt phantasms were a bit better at that level. Shatter builds can allow you to solo group mobs once you get good at it.

I would start off with GSword-Mind Stab>Mirror Blade> iZerker >>S/S – iSwordsman> Illusionary Leap > Blurred Frenzy > Shatter. Usually killed most things. Stay with S/S till they’re dead and vigor from crits will help you stay alive.

Think of your Phantasms as a 1 hit ability and its just bonus if they stick around for a while. Signet of Illusions helps to keep them around too. Like Ethics said, get agro on yourself and keep your phantasms alive.

Stick with it, great class at 80, just has a late curve.

Blood~

Wisler.9485:

What I discoverd is that the real fun begins once you hit lvl 60 and you have access to all traits.

Most classes seem to really come online at 60. I had a tough time with Mesmer till then but the last 20 levels went real quick. I don’t think you really get a good feel for a class till 60.

Blood~

Thanks for the input guys. I honestly haven’t tried an RM build w/o HM very much so I’ll have to do that. I guess even if MoP x2 is equal damage to AA then its useable to get some healing. I was messing around with a 20/0/20/25/5 GSword n Staff setup because I though iLock would make a big difference but it really didn’t. I like iSwordsman quite a bit, faster attacks and does good damage with Zerker/Knights gear. I’m thinking I’ll go more Knights n see how my stuff survives.

Question, what phantasm is the most effective on your standard boss fight?

TY
Blood~

DeathPanel.8362:

The damage you bring is trivial compared to damage dealing classes unless you are in full zerk spec, and even then it’s not comparable.

I would like to see some actual numbers, can you please link this data?

Reason I ask is in my testing Guards can sustain comparable damage to other classes like War and Thief. I haven’t been able to match their burst but sustained I believe we’re close, PvE wise. Now, without an accurate dps meter or combat log this is hard to verify so any actual data is needed. Without it we’re just guessing.

@OP
I’ve run with some people that do the Tank/Healer setup and what they bring to the group is at best on par with a standard setup, in most cases I think the group would be better off with both just doing damage and staying alive. With most weapons you’ll just naturally bring support to the group and your utilities, especially reflects and shouts, are great support to a group. My suggestion is go with a build you have fun playing, does good damage and keep support in mind. We have a lot of viable builds.

Yes we can heal and I’m interested in finding a high damage and healing spec but haven’t explored it yet.

Blood~

Silver.8023:

Food fix*

Food nerf*

We couldn’t do what thieves and warriors could with crit healing. Omnom Pies were what gave Sword/Torch that extra dimension that made them desirable, imo. A fix* would have reduced the healing slightly and stopped classes from filling there HP in 3 seconds. I ran S/T because it was fun and fast but it was all about damage output and had little group support. But I felt that the crit healing allowed me to stay up front and do what I intended with the build, so for me it justified lacking group support. Without this now S/T feels lacking as melee up-time is not as high. So yes, nerf to Guardians. Not saying that the food didn’t need a change but in this case it stopped me from using the build I was running.

IMHO Sword needs a little something to bring it back on par with our other options.

Blood~

Hammer is awesome but from my testing Sword has the highest single target damage output. Used to be great with and viable with Omnomberry Pie but with that nerf it lost its edge IMHO. Without all that crit healing sword is simply damage and lesser utility than our other options.

Things to fix,

Auto chain should have its angle increased to hit more targets in front of you.

Sword Wave should be melee hits instead of ranged but the 3 in 1 attack is unique and should be kept.

Flashing Blade should be a leap finisher or drop a symbol where you land.

Zealot’s Defense should allow you to move during the attack or give it the same frontal cone as sword auto.

With these changes I’d happily go back to sword even after the food nerf.

Blood~

Mesmer is my third toon to 80 and having a lot of fun with it. My first was Thief and I think everyone should run one because it will teach you how to stay alive Its also quite fun. Guardian was my second and is currently my main. At first they seem kind of bland but I am still trying new builds and it’s actually a very deep class.

GL
Blood~

Thanks Skcamow. I just have a hard time moving away from Harmonious Mantras if I wanna use MoP and MoRec. I think MoP is an increase in damage at 3 charges but a wash at 2 with max range GSword auto, this doesn’t however take into account scaling with power/crit for MoP or GSword Auto if there is any, its simply from numbers on target dummies.

Another thing is that I feel locked into MoRec, MoRes, MoP and Signet of Illusions with my original build losing a lot of utility. Guess I need to mess around some more.

Blood~

Thanks
Blood~

Thanks for the input, think I’m looking for more sustained damage output for dungeons. I’ve looked at both builds Fey and I do want to try them but I’m looking for something a bit different to get to really know the class first.

With this build when its online I’ll basically be replacing phantasms, throwing anything that doesn’t create a clone and auto attack, MoP is spammed during other stuff and recharged before a weapon switch. Problem is that I was having a hard time keeping more than one phantasm up at any time. This leads me to think that a Shatter build would do better but then survivability is lower also.

TY
Blood~

I run

3K Attack
50% crit buffed
35% crit dmg buffed
2.9K Armor
17K hp

0/15/30/20/5 currently and utilize Hammer, GSword, Staff, Scepter and Focus. This is a solid build with AH and heals you can ‘face tank’ with Hammer for quite a while on most stuff. Still need scepter there for some content, just adjust as needed.

Blood~

I did some napkin math from raw numbers off target dummies. MoP came out to an increase with GSword. I could easily be wrong though.

Would a full Phantasm build be more effective? Sounds like iWarlock does good damage in a group setting. I’m not real interested in a full condition but not opposed to looking at it.

TYVM
Blood~

At first I saw the class as sorta bland but I wanted a Heavy and warrior seemed even more bland. Guardian is now my main, there are a ton of different viable builds and you’ll be very effective in PvE if you know the content and adjust. Running with 2 guardians that know what they’re doing will always speed up the run and make it easier for everyone (aside from zerk warrior/mez speed runs). GL with your new class.

Blood~

GSword definitely has a good ‘fun’ feel to it. The abilities all work together and when you can round up a group, drop a seal, leap and WW it just feels good. I will have to agree that our other choices don’t hold that level of synergy. What helps me is really knowing what the weapon is doing for you. Being effective is fun.

Staff has become a fun weapon for me. Damage isn’t huge but its not bad, and there are a lot of fun tools on it, more so after the latest patch. Hammer is dull in the fact that you use 1>2 for most stuff but the tools are usually available for when you need them. I find Hammer/Staff great for Arah3 end encounter for example. Mace/Shield Protection is another fun setup, you have to actively maintain your boon with weapons and shouts, like a minigame.

I’m constantly switching weapons and utilities to fit the content. This is really what makes the class and game fun for me. The only weapon I don’t switch in currently is Sword/Torch but that’s due to my current build. Try to tailor your bars to the encounter, that will open up your options quite a bit.

Blood~

Recently hit 80 n ran a few builds through dungeons this weekend. Was having a tough time with Shatter builds, more practice is needed.

I started messing around with this Mantra/Phantasm build. Seems to do pretty good for me so far but I’m looking for input. I usually run Gsword n Sword/Sword but will switch in Staff and sometimes Focus for boss fights. I like the healing that Restorative Mantra does and since I’m not traited for staff I use MoP to supplement damage. I’ll also switch up traits for Focus reflects and Fury for phantasms. Gear is mostly Zerker with some Knights and Soldiers mixed in. I’m looking for a build with good ‘DPS’ and some survivability for PvE content. Am I on the right track here?

TYVM
Blood~

2H Mastery isn’t needed for max DPS on Hammer because its Auto is its main damage and Mighty Blow is used every other rotation regardless of its cooldown.

For me Hammer and GSword have the same TTK in mists using the same build and optimizing rotations. Sword/Torch still beats both of them, for me at least.

Darx.9842:

This seems viable, but are you sure about the end result? Symbolic power is only a 10% increase in symbol damage. And missing out on the valor line is missing out on 30% critical damage. Which is effectively +30% damage, 50% of the time. Plus no altruistic healing, or beefy Resolve. Healing from symbols isnt that great if I can remember.

Here is a good link to show effectiveness of Crit and Crit Damage. If you have a base 30% crit chance and a base 0% crit damage you’ll increase your overall dps by 11.5%, if you have 30% crit chance and 30% crit damage you’ll increase your overall dps by 12.4%. You effectively lose 1% overall damage by losing 30% crit damage from valor, if this table is correct. That seems odd but that’s what the table says…

I see symbols hit 3 times for ~500 and crit for ~1k when traited for Writs.

Blood~

I haven’t experienced the inability of getting out of the Hammer autochain.. The last swing is long but its nice cuz you can dodge and get back to the target before the chain resets which can be a problem with GSword. Also, Hammers autochain3 symbol does a lot of damage and gives you that wonderful Protection so missing it really drops the Hammers performance. Hammer really needs the bigger and longer symbols.

I think Mace has more to offer than Sword but it has less damage (perceived, haven’t tested). They did a good job making Mace defensive and Sword offensive.

Ultimately I’m going for a build that gives me good melee up-time and good damage. Now that I feel comfortable that the damage output of Hammer is very close to or equal to GSword (as long as you keep um in your Symbol)I’m having a hard time not taking advantage of all that Protection.

Variety is what I like about this game though, there’s no clear cut top cookie cutter build, you can survive w/o AH. Hope it stays that way so we all can have fun.

Blood~

Currently only lvl 75 but I noticed it was harder to take out multiple mobs after the patch. Wasn’t really watching the numbers closely but I did notice a change. I love the flavor of using a GSword as a casting class, hope it gets worked out.

Blood~

Shatter seems to come online at lvl 60 and to a lesser extent at lvl 40. Deceptive Evasion in the Dueling tree and Illusionary Persona in Illusions tree seem to be the the traits that really make it work well. Sword is nice as you want to be close to your target to take advantage of Illusionary Persona’s shatter and Sword2 is good damage. I was using GSword but it seems that iZerker has just been nerfed so I may switch to Staff.

Anyway the build seems to turn on after lvl 60. I’m currently nearing lvl 80 though so others may have a better perspective for ya. I found traiting for damage from Phantasms to be more effective until you hit 60.

GL
Blood~

GSword healing is always 25, not really that effective. There is some discussion on Hammer vs GSword right now regarding damage output but I threw on a Hammer and ran a 0/15/30/20/5 AH build and it did great for me the other night. Seems to have quite good damage while maintaining Protection (33% dmg reduction) full time and a ton of self healing. I run a mix of Soldiers, Zerkers, Knights gear for a mix of survivability and damage. 2x Runes of Water, Monks and Earth each will allow you to keep stacking Protection and keep you on the front line longer with Hammer’s symbol. Trait AH if you have melee buddies, Monks if you dont.

Also looking at a 15/25/0/30/0 for my next try with Hammer n GSword for more DPS. Also, Hammer 1 n 2 are all that’s used for damage, save the others for when ya need um.

GSword is not the only effective weapon, its just designed quite well and feels good.

Blood~

Lately it seems that people get different results from different weapons. Some say GSword is unmatched. Some say Hammer its top. I personally have had best damage with Sword/Torch.. And Scepter is quite good also. If you work with any of those four you should see some good damage output. Mace, Staff, Shield and Focus are utility or support. Gear stats and play style are the biggest factor though, balance those to what you want. It seems that some weapons perform based on the expectation of the user

Blood~

haviz.1340:

You should make a build with weapons in mind.

I play a Thief when I want to be all nimbly bimbly and my Guard when I want to go toe to toe and smash stuff. I had both weapons in mind with this build.

Meow if you have some suggestions on specific builds for GSword and Hammer I’d be interested in testing them too, please enlighten me.

Back to the OP, I’d love to see Sword buffed. It was great before the last patch but really only for the crit healing, damage output and mobility but lacking in other utility. Now Sword and Torch are just really lacking more than before. All of our other weapons are great in the right situations and it seems most every ability is useful if you let it.

Blood~

haviz.1340:

Who uses 0/15/30/20/5 for dps builds?

Simply trying to compare GSword apples to Hammer apples is all. This is a build I’m interested in testing so I checked both weapons against it.

Blood~

Out in the wilds GSword gives slightly better times for me, but not by much at all. Both weaps are great, prolly use GSword for quick kills where incoming damage isn’t an issue and Hammer for tougher spots.

Blood~

Obtena.7952:

I’m happy to see people doing testing. Testing is good, data is good. I wish it wasn’t done in the mists. It’s the least representative method for assessing real ingame weapon damage. Golems do not mimic the way PVE or PVP mobs behave in the game. Therefore, when you fight them, you aren’t behaving like you would in the game either. That affects your damage. If this tests can be done in actual game conditions, it would be more accurate. Then there is a question of playstyle.

As I stated this is simply raw damage output ranked using TTK on a set of golems. This does not take into account active mobs, players or play styles. It does however allow you to gauge the ‘DPS’ of weapon vs weapon. The sterile setting is good for that. Crunching numbers is good but when all is said and done if it takes 9 seconds to kill something with GSword and the same with Hammer then they have the same damage output.

In practice Hammer has a slower swing time and will be slightly less effective on mobile targets. On the other hand it comes with some great boons and utilities so again, it comes down to play style and preference.

I am no longer dismissing the weapon as low damage output even if it feels that way.

Blood~

Uncle Salty.6342:

Anet doesn’t deserve that full credit just yet. With every patch you can see the direction they’re going and they are trying to introduce the ‘right’ changes. The pace is questionable but merit still has to be given that they are moving along somehow.

I agree. This is coming form testing I’ve done with different classes and raw damage output. There are still many things that need improvement but I believe ANet is at least aware of things and will make efforts to balance as we move forward.

Blood~

Without actual DPS meters and sketchy combat logs we don’t have a great system to determine these things. I went in thinking that Hammer had less raw damage output but I’m pleasantly surprised at these results. More and more I think ANet did a good job at balancing some aspects of this game even where it ‘feels’ like they haven’t. I’m kind of a fan of the lack of meters and measures allowing for more fun with the game.

Blood~

Got some interesting results in Mists just now. One set of 3 golems Heavy>Med>Light.

0/15/30/20/5 Zerker amulet, SYS, Sword and JI utilities.
GSword 22sec TTK average (2hMastry)
Hammer 22sec TTK average (EM)

10/30/20/10/0 Zerker amulet, SYS, Sword and JI utilities.
Sword/Torch 19sec TTK average

Same utilities and tried to maximize play on each weapon. Jumping in the hitbox for GSword WW.

Didn’t get a ton of trials but I’m pretty satisfied with the initial numbers. This is by no means meant as a definitive dps test, please don’t take it that way. Rather its a quick comparison between 2 weapons.

Looks like its a matter of taste as to which 2h you wanna use for DPS. Hammer feels soo much slower but in reality TTK is equal in this setting assuming I was able to optimize play on each. Hammer Time?

Blood~

The nerf to heal on crit food is big but the healing is still noticeable. If they were to double the heal or reduce the CD from 1 sec to .5 sec this would be able to support the builds that need it quite well. As it stands right now its lacking, but I agree that refilling 90% of your health with a non healing skill may have been a bit too much.

I don’t want to run AH but it looks like its again the strongest option. Sword crit healing with food is still workable but the lack of support and buffs with the weapon is making it tough to offset the increased dps of the weapon IMHO.

Just sad to lose viable options.

Blood~

I’ve spent hours on testing in the Mists with different classes, weapons, specs and gear. Get yourself a timer, go kill a set of 3 golems, record your kill time. Run multiple trials for an average. Switch weapons, gear and traits and collect more data. Try everything from burst to auto attack. Average it out and you’ll have an idea of the raw damage output of different weapons and builds.

In all testing I’ve done Sword/Torch wins then to GSword and Scepter. Haven’t tested hammer, staff n mace yet with this but on Orr mobs these are below GSword. Now this is simply raw single target kill times not taking into account any group or AoE situations.

Try this against other classes as well. Guardians can’t burst like say Warriors and Thieves but in sustained damage they can be very competitive, if done right.

That being said with the latest patch and crit food nerf Sword is less desirable. It lacks the boons and support that other weapons have and the survivability has been reduced, IMHO it doesn’t offset the increased DPS as well as before.

In conclusion I don’t feel that we’re forced into GSword but it is such a strong choice and its quite intuitive to play. I’m going to test some Hammer in the Mists and see how it turns out.

GL
Blood~

Bakitten291:

My point is that they are killing off the 1h crit builds, which are the only builds that bring out the full potential in the sword. Depending on the life steal rate of pies, we might not have enough health return to justify the build anymore.

Yea, for me the appeal of Sword/Torch was good damage output with survivability through food. Without the survivability this setup just doesn’t offer much. 1 sec isn’t terrible but its a huge reduction from where it was. They just made AH again more desirable and limited good build options. I figured we’d get this or an AH nerf, glad we didn’t get both.

Blood~

Soryuju.8164:

Also, forgot to mention:

“Food items that give special bonuses upon a critical hit now have an internal cooldown before they can produce the special bonus again.”

I see this having a huge impact on the PvE/WvW meta for all classes, but for Guardians in particular, with our emphasis on passive healing. I think it’s a positive change, but I might be biased, since I never ran Pies in either mode (kinda saw them as a crutch, to be honest).

One thing I really liked about this game was the build option. Been running and gearing a Sword dps build which may not be viable any more. Losing this options just forces AH more IMHO. Without testing I’m going to say this potentially killed a fun build. Sad.

Blood~

‘Using stealth no longer resets NPC aggression tables.’

I thought we were already quite squishy, how is this going to effect us in dungeons?

Blood~

Thieves are like motorcycles. I think everyone should learn to drive one, you’ll be a better driver for it. Its so easy to die that you just get good at not dieing…

Blood~

I’m quickly approaching 80 on my Mesmer and that’s where I feel the fun will start, so many different builds to mess with…

Anyway, I’d suggest Thief. It’s my main toon and its a lot of fun. No class can match its mobility. The resource mechanics are completely different from other classes also, no waiting on cooldowns just watch your initiative. You’re squishy but that’s why you can dodge all day long and stealth. Thief has a lot of different viable builds also. For leveling you have some options for evasion or stealth rotations which helps.

GL
Blood~

I feel there is a steep learning curve in some PvE Dungeons. Take a look at the enemies you’re facing, under the target nameplate it will tell you what special things they do like Knockdown or Heal Allies. This should give you some indication on what to expect. Vigor and Dodge are your best friends in some of this content also, watch for animations and observe what the targets are doing. Eventually you will know what the animations mean and what to expect. It’s not really chaos, but it seems like it at first.

At 80 I geared with all Power/Toughness/Vitality gear and as I learned the content I started to change out items for Zerkers, Knights and Valks gear. I’d suggest getting into Yellow’s ASAP and finalize with Exotics when you’re ready. I’m to a point where I’m happy with my mix. Stats sit around 2.9k armor, 17k hp, 3k power and 35% crit unbuffed.

Weapons and Runes play a big part. Hammer with some Boon Duration can give you full time Protection as long as you are hitting something and stand in your Seal, use this to good effect with Altruistic Healing trait. Mace/Shield has Protection and Healing. Shouts are great for survival SYS and HTL toughen ya up and SYG has the wonderful Stability buff. Staff and Greatsword work nicely with Altruistic Healing also if you have a melee heavy group. If your crit is decent Omnomberry Pie and Master Maintenance Oil consumables are very helpful.

Hammer and GSword both have Combo Fields and Finishers that you can use. I like GSword 4>3>2 to throw out boons and clear conditions. Hammer Autochain1>2 is another easy way to throw Boons for use with AH.

GL,

Blood~

Optimal in what sense? If you’re looking for strait DPS then Sw/T n Sc/F is optimal IMHO. It lacks in support and requires food but you can put out better numbers than other loadouts. I run this through Arah and Fractals w/o problem.

Sword is our hardest hitter but scepter is not far behind. You’re not gonna match warrior or thief but you can come close with some very good tools on your belt.

Blood~

I am having fun with a crit based build using Omnom Pie. I’ve gear’d to accomodate this build and an AH build. I’m running this now to have fun with it in the event that the pies get nerfed. At first I was concerned but the more I play I think ANet has these available for the builds that have poor survivability. I am crossing my fingers that we don’t see any changes.

Blood~

I’ve used it on Giga in Arah to pick a down’d team mates. I was surprised at how well it didn’t work… Replaced it with Retreat for better effect

I hope it gets some love as it could be a useful utility.

Blood~