Guild Wars 2

Enjoyluck.2618:

you not suppose to buy it with in game gold LOL

Even so, at 250gems (nearly £3) for the ability to swap out 1 upgrade from 1 piece of equipment, that isn’t at all encouraging to try out new builds.

Agreed, it is way overpriced for single use.

Hmm.

Does anyone use compounding celerity on a regular basis?

Interesting mix of replies, seems largely down to personal preference.

I must say, comparing traveler and speed runes I can’t see why one is so much more valuable than the other – speed at least stacks on stat (vitality) making it easier to focus on other stats through gear, whereas traveler is a mess of stats – ok boon duration and crit damage is nice, but not game changing.

Good to know. Do you use max range blink then, or normal range?

Arganthium.5638:

If you’re talking about sPvP, then sure, most of my builds I’ve used in the past have gone without speed buffs.

As for PvE and WvW, it’s more split. Focus is a difficult weapon to fit in just perfectly into a build, but the benefits from having it are absolutely fantastic.

Anything – pvp/pve or wvw, just throwing it out as a general question, but thanks for specifying – situations are very different in each, and this has much less of an effect in pvp.
Trouble with focus is wasting the curtain cooldown for swiftness (mainly pve and wvw problem), and not having it up when it’s needed – at least, that’s my biggest problem with it.

Any game mode. No armour runes, no skills (temporal curtain, SoI), sigil (speed) or anything else.

Just interested to see how many here manage without, and how they make up for it.

Yep, good post.

Personally I don’t like the idea of classifying builds – I can understand why it’s done, because of being easier to refer to, but would rather have tactics for attack/defence/control/support detailed through skill rotations and stats/traits.

With shatter being the class mechanic and every weapon set having a phantasm, it’s hard to avoid using them – every build is going to use one or the other at some point, though some more than others.

Even an on death trait build will have use for a well timed MW or something.

Iavra.8510:

Personally, i wouldn’t want that. Would make it way too hard to keep an overview in a fight. If they should ever do this, than it should be for the person using it only.

Or an option to toggle on/off as with team colours.

Would simply prefer more #1-#5 skills for weapons.

At least 2 choices of auto attack per weapon and 2 choices for every other skill, with the ability to swap the order of skills on the bar.

Would prefer more diverse landscapes for wvw.

Raf.1078:

I left for awhile. Nearly 6 months actually. Came back a few weeks ago and am having fun again. If you aren’t having fun, go play or do something else.

Same.

And I find it mostly fun too, especially the combat.

The only thing I don’t find fun is working towards all this ascended gear – stupid and unnecessary. I’m ignoring weapons and armour for the moment.

Yeah, I think it would be good – give another option for players to give some uniqueness to their character.

Having said that I’d probably still stick with pink because I like pink!

At least we should have the ability to sell to an NPC for personal currency – karma, laurels, etc…

Saturn.6591:

Uh, now that’s a really nice view! =0

<3

Thanks for sharing. ^^

Now while talking about looking exactly the same and confusing people…:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Drqa2lV-zyo

:O

Oh my god, they’re like fleas!

Chaos Archangel.5071:

I want a lockdown cat (StudderCat?) to study for roaming! I love felines, and none of these cats suit me. /weep

Maybe when we get some AoE daze/stun utility, or something on MH pistol.

Heh, pretty cool.

But -1 point because not asura. ;D

Calling it now – ascended infusions with +1 or +2% run speed on each.

Edit:
Trouble with armour runes is
- if you pick travaler/centaur/air, you need to waste a utility slot for condition removal (either the mantra or null field)
- if you pick condition defence (hoelbrak/melandru), you need to waste a utility slot for mobility – ie clever use of portal to make up for slowness, signet of inspiration for RNG swiftness…

It’s a problem either way.

Jahroots.6791:

Agreed, even on medium-high settings this game looks pretty amazing. The only downside, imo, is that most of Tyria is extremely vanilla. The landscape feels natural and areas ‘flow’ into one another but everything is just so…..ordinary. Its like playing in a god-kittened Bob Ross painting. Also, too many zones look exactly the same and there’s not a lot of variety to the wildlife and mobs.

Having recently tried Rift one thing that struck me right away was the art design. It just feels like a fantasy game. I ran around the starting area for a quite a while just to look at stuff. Was a far cry from the bandits who apparently get their outfits in the rubbish bin outside Queensdale’s thrift shops, and the centORCs (as I like to call them) that plague kryta.

I dunno, I’d be happy to live in one of his paintings!

root.9415:

This game having the best graphics of any MMO is one of the few things the GW2 community agrees on pretty much unanimously.

Agreed – I think the best thing about GW2 is the way it looks.

Just did Spelunker’s delve again today for example, and noticed that vibrant green moss with little lanterns around upon entering the cave – beautiful.

Woah that’s long! :o

Will have a read of that once I’m done farming for my backpiece…

Armour skin cloner.

Works on any armour, creating a duplicate skin able to be applied over a piece with different stats – however the skin is account bound so you can’t sell.
I’d like to have the same armour look with several different stat sets, and with order armour from a different character, that can be a pain.

I don’t think this should be extendable to weapons but if it is then perhaps a restriction in not working on legendaries or anything acquired from the mystic forge?

Magister’s journal – but then, I bought it because of roleplaying (my character’s in the priory).

Unless you really need that extra vitality…

At the moment because I’m too busy farming ascended materials (cough dragonite ore…) …

PvE combat is incredibly dull compared to pvp, but I really want that Light of Dwayna backpiece.

You don’t need that much precision – swap out all those trinkets for ones with crit damage (cavalier, berserker or berserker/valkyrie), even the backpiece.

Echoing the question above – do you have full ascended or at least the money/mats for it, or is this a long term goal over the next few weeks/months? Do you already have all those trinkets, or simply laurels/ectos saved up?

Also with armour rune – personally would either take +movement speed (traveler/centaur/air) or defence against conditions (melandru/hoelbrak). With the former you’d need condition removal skills/utilities and/or food – with the latter you’d need mobility skills to make up for slow speed.

Edit: also, why AR infusions? Surely you’d want wvw infusions?

Item Stat Changer.

Single use – change the stat of any piece of armour, weapon, or trinket (including rings, accessories, amulet and backpiece). Works on all ascended items.

Cost – maybe a little more expensive than transmutation crystals.

Hmm, I always do LA (weyandt+urmaug)→ caledon (all of them) → demongrub → diessa plateau (3 I think) → under new management, and any one other.

Dawdler.8521:

Greatsword iBerserker on a beefy Norn Mesmer. Every time I use it I yell “BY THE POWER OF GREYSKULL!” at my monitor.

Scepter auto attack is hilarious too. Like playing imaginary tennis. The movement are so exaggerated its even worse than an Asura.

:D On any race tbh!

I do it with my asura – I HAVE THE POWER!

Not going to bother until more stat combos are released, or at least a way to change stats on ascended armour. With armour I change things too much, so easier to stick with exotics.

Would prefer to “ascend” current armour skins to those stats, rather than being forced into a fixed skin/name (then having to transmute) and stat.

I’ll be going for ascended weapons on the other hand given I’m not likely to swap stats on them any time soon.

For thieves – I find iCounter and iRiposte are two of the best tools, though not utilities, and can make up for not using decoy (mostly just count to <3 on their stealth and put up a block). Downside is having to use certain weapons, and also single target.

Blink however is too useful for escaping AoEs and also repositioning/mobility, and blink stomps, so I would keep blink over decoy personally. Only if not using any other stealth apart from MI would I consider decoy a must have.

I agree the present section is half down to luck.

The snowflakes before, and the section at the end are not a problem – but I have no intention of doing it more than once because of the exploding presents.

Underwater?
I know siren’s call got a bit of a nerf some time ago, but personally I think we’re just fine, if not still well above average underwater. Only classes I worry about there are the regen rangers and any condition heavy class.

ubungle.8907:

Really nice vid. I main a big Norn mes and it’s nice to see some gameplay with a bigger char instead of the usual purple pinballs bouncing around….

Inspiring stuff!

Yeah agreed – nice to see a charr! Great play.

Fay.2735:

You can do what I do and blind people by being a tiny adorable ball of shiny light like a laser

The ghost of christmas past? :p

Jurica.1742:

Vigil leggings don’t clip with ANYTHING which is epic but then I have a hard time choosing a chest to go with them that I like.

I seem to recall vigil leggins clipping with greatswords, which is the reason I don’t use then – but I haven’t checked recently so may be wrong.

1. Ascended Assassins Trinkets! (Pre/pow/crit)

2. Swappable alternate #1-5 skills for current weapons, including auto attacks!

3. Trait/gear bank.

4. Toughness/power/vit gear – we already have soldiers and sentinels – would like to see one with Toughness primary to complete the set.

5. Mesmer run speed utility skill/signet/ability…

Heh, loving the music.

Nice gear setup and play, damage, and use of stealth without prestige. Good stuff!

Only one.

I’ve deleted a handful in the past, including my prerelease character. No intention of making any more until either new races, classes or skills are made available.

Heh, happy new year all of you pink butterflies.

On topic – the day greatsword gets a defensive skill (some sort of block/aegis that doesn’t revolve around cheesing Mimic with mirror blade) is the day I’ll drop staff in pvp and swap chaos X for chaos VII.
Alternatively I may try Sc/P with it, but not fond of the pistol for some reason.

Qaelyn.7612:

If they nerf PU they better nerf all the braindead warrior (and to a lesser extent guardian and thief) builds that are running rampant all over the game even more. PU mesmers are one of the few things that makes all the drooling hambows and the glass thieves at least think twice. The game needs more counterplay, not less.

I agree, and also with regard to other class builds like warrior.

The problem is it seems to me there are too many players on the PU bandwagon at the moment, and things like shatter are quite neglected apart from loyal shatter players. Would be nice to even out the build distribution among the class, so in that way a minor PU nerf (or some compensating buff) would be a good thing.

^4 mesmers! :o

I have a hard enough time focusing on one character!

Almost sold on it.

I wish we could have some sort of alternate spec “bank” or something, to switch between builds easily, including gear.

Relshdan.6854:

sick of anti-memser trolls on the forum…………but the writing is on the wall. Next balance patch will be painful. seeing as how much fun it is to play a hybrid PU build, i hope i’m wrong, or that at least the nerf to PU is small.

It’s already been buffed too much so a small nerf will be good.

As long as the +1second on all stealths and chance to get aegis is maintained, I’ll be satisfied.
I see no reason that regen or protection can’t stay – just need to either increase the refresh interval back to 2s, or reduce the boon duration down to 2.5s or so (or both).

@Qaelyn – yeah MoP untraited is a bit meh. I only like MoResolve because the line is awesome (unbroken, unshaken, resolved!) – I feel like I play better after hearing that!
I don’t use mantras otherwise, but I’d love to see new #1 – #5 skills for current weapons, that we can swap out as can be done with utilities.

@Pyro – cheers, I find the key thing with it is to be able to toggle mouselook/crosshair on and off fluidly, to gain the cursor back on demand. The crosshair just tells me mouselook is on – it’s a bit ugly, I’ve been thinking of creating some custom image for it but it does the job at the moment.

Nice thing is I’ve never got any finger strain with splitting abilities between right and left hands – for example I have #3 on E and shift+left click – typically use E→E for ileap/swap and shift+left click for the iwarlock/confusing images.

If I can get the hang of toggle off → about turn → phase retreat → pause/about turn → toggle on, then that could work nicely. I just haven’t found a suitable key configuration for that yet.

I could do with spacebar split into two or three sections tbh!

Zenith torch is fantastic, nice pink light. Scepter/staff/trident/spear/focus are great too. Not fond of the zenith swords.

Yeah unfortunately nearly all staves clip with the ears (downside of making long asura ears), and some with some legs. Off the top of my head I couldn’t say which do and which don’t – easiest to equip a staff and go to the pvp locker in hotm and preview them one by one to see what clips.

Honestly leggins are the hardest thing to choose – tempted to just get the plain and simple AC pants, although that is a little too plain!
Embroidered are nice, although I wasn’t fond of the shaping – being loose clothing it looks weird with a stiff mesh.

Some leggins have side weapons further out meaning they clip with the hands when standing. The gem store phoenix set does this.

Valentin.2073:

aww he’s so cute. i love the pics. <3 <3 <3

She.

(I’m a he, my first asura (thief) was a he, so for something different I made the mesmer a she)

Pyroatheist.9031:

@Curunen: When I first started playing gw2, I tried combat mode because I had just came from Dragon Nest, and that was the playing type I was used to. However, I quickly realized that while combat mode was sorta fun for pvp, it just was far too restrictive with movement, camera, and targeting to work effectively for high level play in a game that isn’t designed around that type of camera. I’d highly recommend trying to limit your use of that mod.

Yeah you’re right, but sadly I don’t think I could play without it now – having skills #1-5 on the mouse and not having to hold right click is the only thing keeping me playing.

Been using it for the past year or so (of course when I’ve actively been playing gw2), and have managed to tweak it to be pretty effective:
- I have the camera zoomed all the way out
- ground targeting is now second nature – can toggle off and move the cursor anywhere as normal (knowing it is in the centre of the screen to start with)
- my movement and positioning is more fluid than without
- I don’t actually use the crosshair at all – use target nearest/next/previous (X, shift+X, shift+Z) with promote target for lock.
- use lock target key to drop target ( C ), and call target on shift+C
- can easily toggle on/off (two keys – F and back thumb mouse button) and manually select target with mouse.

Oh, also I have camera position set to far right (so the character is shifted slightly to the left of the screen), with the crosshair at head height. But as I said I never use the crosshair for anything other than fixing the cursor starting point (would never use the crosshair for targeting – that is very bad in pvp).

I believe it can work for high level play – my skill is definitely not up there at the moment, but that’s largely down to my lack of knowledge and awareness of all the skills of every class in the game rather than with controls. I don’t find the way I’ve set it up to be more restrictive than the base game, other than with forward phase retreat.

Edit: Forgot – I either use look behind to see behind when mouselook is on, or toggle off the crosshair and manually rotate with left click – I have some skills on mouse clicks also bound to keyboard so can still use them when the crosshair is toggled off.

This is a bit old – I’m using sylvari verdant torch (or zenith flame – I like both) and toy sword now, and also vigil boots with different colour scheme, but most of it’s the same.

Need to get a few hundred more AP then zenith spire to go with that.

Still haven’t found any decent trousers – honestly I kind of like the basic country pants or student pants the most! All the fancy trousers are pretty ugly.

<3 vigil chestpiece + gloves.

When using combat mode and the crosshair is active, about face will not work.

Have to either toggle crosshair off, do phase retreat combo, toggle crosshair on – or simply manually mouse turn.

Because of having skills 1-4 bound to left+right click (shift) this is not an option. Already have to toggle off to ground target blink/chaos storm which is a bit awkward but I’ve gotten used to it (using two keys to toggle on and off).

I have my mouse at high sensitivity to flick around for forward phase retreat – it’s not pretty but it works.

Edit: I should say – phase retreat is on right click for me, so its a case of swinging the camera and hitting right click (with some side strafing).

Qaelyn.7612:

phaeris.7604:

Honestly though….it’s boring. I can see why people play it, they don’t have the ability to do well with high risk, high return burst classes. It’s the go to spec for them.

You know, it would be nice if people could at least entertain the possibility that some folks actually prefer this playstyle. I’ll freely admit that it’s easier than a shatter build, but since everyone flatly states a good shatter player is stronger, I would invest the time to learn it if I enjoyed that style.

I don’t.

I was attracted to the mesmer because it is the only class I’ve ever seen in an MMO that is somewhat similar to the illusionist specialty wizard in D&D. I like the idea of a character that deceives, confuses and confounds his opponents, frustrating them into making mistakes and turning their offense around on them. The PU/phantasm build I run allows me to do that.

In contrast, shatter builds IMO just turn illusions into yet another way of damage delivery. Every one I’ve tried has been fairly “in your face” about how the opponent is fought, and while still involving more misdirection than something like a warrior, I found it much less interesting to play. Challenging, perhaps, but not my thing, because it’s not in keeping with how I envision the class.

If they nerf PU or whatever I’m not going to just start playing shatter. I’ll find a way to adapt, or play something else.

Nail on the head.

Pure shatter – though it can be elegant – is all IN YOUR FACE – BOOM BOOM BOOM! I admire people who can play it well, and I do like IP as a trait, but the playstyle has never done it for me.
Similarly with pure phantasms – I find it a bit boring letting them do all the damage.
I’ve gone off condition builds completely – just don’t find it enjoyable – much prefer direct damage.

With PU and direct damage and utilities (ie manipulations) from the player (with additional utility/damage from shatters) I get the playstyle I like – lots of vanishing acts, tricking the enemy, combine with say MH sword for “flurry and vanish” – it just ticks all the boxes. It feels like an illusionist rather than a pet or bomber class.

If I could swap out phantasms on weapon sets for direct damage attacks from the player (ie, swap iwarlock for confusing images), I’d be very happy.

Pyroatheist.9031:

PU Mesmer is undoubtedly easier to play than shatter. That being said, both builds have the incredibly high skill cap that is characteristic of the Mesmer class.

It’s definitely possible that many PU players don’t full explore the possibilities or flexibility of the build, simply because it isn’t necessary most of the time. However, that potential still exists. It simply shows through in a different way than in a shatter build.

A high skill player in a shatter build will play their build effectively, provide heavy burst and boon stripping support for their team. A high skill player in a PU build will force the enemy team to dedicate 2 or more players to a single point in order to prevent losing it rapidly, and can effectively duel on a point without the use of excessive stealth to prevent a decap.

The skill cap is still high, and anyone claiming otherwise is simply trying to make themselves feel superior for playing a different build, which is honestly just disgusting.

Exactly.
Some PU builds are easier than others. PU can make a player a little more lazy than if playing full burst shatter while still maintaining moderate effectiveness, but that is down to the player.

Also just because of having prestige/decoy/MI (veil isn’t really necessary with prestige on 24s, unless needed by a group – I’d rather have condition removal/boon strip in pvp or something like signet of domination in wvw) doesn’t mean you are or have to be in stealth all the time – I find myself out of stealth a lot, applying pressure through shatters/direct damage/phantasms, and using stealths to either conceal a burst, heal or break target when under (a lot of) pressure. It’s survivability, which allows you to continuously harass up to 1v3 (depending on enemy skill) on a point, freeing your team up for other tasks.

Also great for playing medic (with a staff of course).

Nerfs? If that’s a nerf, I’d like to see their idea of a buff! xD

If you’re a bunker guardian then holding a point should be straightforward against any stealthing character.
For specific skills, you might be better off asking in the guardian forum.

But remember, PU is just a trait – it doesn’t mean suddenly a mesmer does 0 damage – as people conditioned by the condition PU would lead you to believe. Look at osicat’s PU power build for instance – yes stealth means you will be losing the point if fighting an enemy on it, but the enemy will likely die if they just sit there and don’t fight back. Only crazy bunker builds will at best force the mesmer to run after another point, or take so long to die as to waste plenty of time where points are ticking over for their team.

What works well is to lockdown/cc the mesmer when outside of stealth, and deal damage in bursts – difficult given all the stunbreaks. Of course, well played heavy condition classes also pose a huge problem.