Guild Wars 2

I find that Renewed Focus is the worst of the three (playing WvW). Tome of Courage can be very helpful when taking down gates, or fighting foes outnumbered. Tome of Wrath I always have equipped, simply because it’s a great source of ranged AoE damage, and it deals a lot more damage then most think. The party wide quickness and fury from Tome of Wrath should not be underestimated either.

Kjeldoran.3849:

Kasama.8941:

As written in your other topic; taking into account the extra dodge you get from 50% increased endurance regeneration, you have three initial dodges, meaning you can round the protection from Companion’s Defense up to 3,75 seconds. Without any recharge time at all. Rejuvenation lasts 5 seconds, and has a recharge time of 30 seconds.

oh sorry i didn’t read it before so this may be the solution… thank you!

Also; 50% more endurance regeneration = 7.5% endurance per second, meaning you’ll have 1,75 protection every 6,6 seconds, after you’ve spend you initial three dodges.

As written in your other topic; taking into account the extra dodge you get from 50% increased endurance regeneration, you have three initial dodges, meaning you can round the protection from Companion’s Defense up to 3,75 seconds. Without any recharge time at all. Rejuvenation lasts 5 seconds, and has a recharge time of 30 seconds.

I think you’re missing Warhorn and Signet of Renewal here. They are great support skills, so I would defiantly get them in your build. Then change Stone Spirit to Storm Spirit, for the extra swiftness and high damage from Call Lightning, and Frost Spirit to Sun Spirit, because you are running a condition damage build.

You already have enough bleed from your shortbow, so I would get the forest spider instead of lashtail devourer as your main pet. Then use wolf as your second hand pet.

As for traits, Spotter is a good support skill that can lift the damage of the party a bit, and you’re better off going 20 into Marksmanship for the 20% more condition duration anyway. Keen Edge is also better then Sharpened Edges. Healer’s Celerity increases your revive speed by 10%, so thats good for supporting, and is another source of swiftness.

It’s not really worth it to have all that precision, when Sharpened Edges is your only “on critical hit” ability. So I would change your weapons to carrion, and your jewels to chrysocola, for the extra condition damage and vitality.

Sigil of Energy will give you some more endurance.

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fMEQNBlODbkoqvupysC0OQsUIo93UUJz7eUqOdqTWxzWA-jUyA4MBZaBM9JQJwomDHyYptIasaGMVKRUtHpIa1A-w

This is never going to happen, for two reasons:

If our pets weren’t needed, no one would be using the pet. I mean, it’s not really a hard choice; use the pet and lose a good chunk of damage because it can’t hit consistently, or keep the pet permanently stowed and have 100% damage output. The pet would become nothing more then a cool looking decoration..

The other reason is, having the pet permanently stowed, means a lot of the Ranger’s skills won’t work. Shouts, activated signets, the beastmaster trait line, and some of our weapon skills, are just some of the abilities that would be useless without the pet.

I wouldn’t go into any 1v1 situations with this build, but it could work as a support build, if you get Stone Spirit instead of “Protect Me!”, and Healing Spring instead of Troll Unguent. Then maybe get Nature’s Vengeance or Nature’s Bounty, instead of Strength of Spirit. The Brown Bear can give you a source of condition removal.

As with most players who don’t like the current version of Hunter’s Shot, I don’t think you fully understand the uses for the stealth, or the downside of having several skills that are always recharging.

Stealth is useful for more then just running away, it can also be used to get closer to your foe (as when switching to a melee weapon), it can make your foe lose targeting on you, or it can simply help you change positioning. Point Blank Shot has other uses, like knocking a foe off a cliffside, pushing a foe back into AoE fields, interrupting a foe, or “immobilising” a foe to get free hits in. Stealth and knockback have two completely different uses, so a combination of the two is not favourable. Especially seeing as you could miss that one shot, leaving you with no alternative. There is also a learning curve to using stealth for the Ranger. The pet does not reveal you, neither does condition damage (like Frost Trap). Only direct damage dealt by you, will reveal you. You also have to be mindful of shots you have fired, that still haven’t hit a target yet, or traps that are using direct damage. For instance, using Hunter’s Shot after Barrage is a bad idea, as the damage from Barrage will instantly reveal you. Similarly, placing down Viper’s Nest, and then using Hunter’s Shot, will also reveal you, because Viper’s Nest will still be dealing direct damage. A simple auto-attack on a target at max range, can also be delayed to the point where the stealth from Hunter’s Shot will trigger (provided that it hits a target that’s closer to you), before the auto-attack shot has reach its target. So there is a learning curve, even though it’s just one stealth skill.

Having vulnerability on Hunter’s Shot, means it will always be recharging, because it makes sense to always use the vulnerability on your foe first. This means that when you use the longbow, you always have one skill less. And since the natural follow up is to use Rapid Fire, to maximise damage, that will also be recharging, leaving you with only two skills left. But an even bigger downside of the old Hunter’s Shot, was missing your target, as it would mean those ten stacks of vulnerability would be wasted. Having the vulnerability on Rapid Fire makes a lot more sense, as missing one shot of Rapid Fire, doesn’t mean you’ll lose all the stacks of vulnerability. It also means that you only have to use Rapid Fire as your initial attack, as Hunter’s Shot is now a situational skill, that you aren’t forced to use.

Further more, the old longbow was the only weapon of the Ranger, that only had one utility skill. Now that it has two, it fits the movement oriented playstyle of the Ranger, similarly to the other weapons.

As Sarlack says, the damage number you see last is Rapid Fire’s total damage. Other skills like the Guardians torch skill Cleansing Flame, works the same way.

I play this build in WvW:
http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fUAQNAsfWlYg672GSOEg4Eh1DCiQ/VpIez7ShCpIA-jUyAIMBRaCEJAkIAk9KiGbxrIas6FMdJRUt7oIa1A-w

It’s basically a power/burn build. Sword/torch for attacking, and staff for defending and might stacking. The two teleport skills from sword and Judge’s Intervention, makes it easy to stay close to a foe. Tome of Wrath is for ranged AoE damage. Boons give your more durability. You deal 25% more damage when foes have burning, which is constantly.

Atherakhia.4086:

Kasama.8941:

The benefit of the Ranger, is that you are always two in one. Meaning that you can send the pet to attack one player, while you attack another. The other advantage that the Ranger has, compared to other professions, is a lot of AoE snare skills, that allows for very efficient condition stacking and control. That’s pretty much it.

I don’t want to come off as nitpicky or being overly difficult, so if I offend you I want to appologize in advance.

I don’t really agree that the Ranger is 2 in 1. It’s more 1 divided by 2. Without both, the class is simply half a class. The damage is well below that of any other class. Really the only burst this class is capable of is coming from the pet, but it often misses, is difficult to control, and pales in comparison to the other classes.

As for AE snares, they’re also all trap based. So just like needing to trait to make spirits even marginally useful, you have to trait into traps for them to offer real utility outside of self defense for the ranger.

Now conditions I somewhat agree with. But again, when you consider that the Ranger can’t stack bleeds quickly (directional restriction when no other weapon in the game has this?), you rely on the target to trigger a trap for all the others, and that unlike Engineers and Necromancers who have far more conditions and stack them much quicker, the Ranger is all single target damage.

So if these are the roles we’re supposed to focus on, why are we so awful at it?

A forum is meant for debating. It also takes a lot more to offend me =)

Hey, I’m not saying it’s perfect, but that is what the benefit of the Ranger is. It would be a lot better if we had skills like “Search and Rescue” and “Guard” on our pet bar, and all our pets had some form of snare skill, but ArenaNet choose this current design instead, for some reason.

I didn’t mean conditions in general, but snare skills. I’m talking about Barrage, Frost Spirit-Cold Snap, Stone Spirit-Quicksand, Muddy Terrain, Frost Trap, Spike Trap, Entangle, Polar Bear-Icy Roar, Alpine Wolf-Chilling Howl, Wolf-Terrifying Howl, Ice Drake-Frost Breath, White Moa-Icy Screech, Porcine-Brutal Charge, plus a lot more single target snare skills. We are able to stack all the snare conditions.

Just because it’s our roles, it doesn’t mean the design is good.

The benefit of the Ranger, is that you are always two in one. Meaning that you can send the pet to attack one player, while you attack another. The other advantage that the Ranger has, compared to other professions, is a lot of AoE snare skills, that allows for very efficient condition stacking and control. That’s pretty much it.

Chaos Archangel.5071:

@ Kasama: Could you elaborate more? What does Mesmer have that Guardian doesn’t and vice versa?

The following is only considering the abilities of each profession, without anything that they can share, like runes or sigils. Also, not counting underwater weapons, healing abilities, or stuns (except pull, as it can be used for multiple purposes).

Boon Support:
Mesmer – Mirror Blade, Winds of Chaos, Chaos Storm, Temporal Curtain, Phantasmal Mage, Signet of Inspiration / Phantasmal Healing, Vigorous Revelation

Guardian – Virtue of Courage, Symbol of Wrath, Symbol of Protection, Symbol of Swiftness, Empower, Symbol of Faith, Ray of Judgement, Shield of Judgment, “Hold The Line!”, Hallowed Ground, Signet of Judgment, “Retreat!”, “Stand Your Ground!”, Smiter’s Boon, Zealot’s Fervor, Protective Spirit / Protective Reviver, Empowering Might, Pure of Voice

Utility Support:
Mesmer – Clones (can give the impression that there are more player present), Temporal Curtain (pull), Phantasmal Warden, Feedback, Null Field, Portal, Veil, Illusion of Life, Phantasmal Disenchanter, Mass Invisibility, Polymorph Moa, Time Warp / Medic’s Feedback, Shattered Conditions

Guardian – Binding Blade (pull), Ring of Warding, Line of Warding, Shield of Absorption, Cleansing Flame, Purging Flames, Sanctuary, Wall of Reflection, “Save Yourselves!”, Signet of Mercy, Bow of Truth, Shield of the Avenger / Strength In Numbers, Resolute Healer

The thing to notice with utility support, is that the Mesmer has a much wider variation of abilities, where as the Guardian mostly supports using wards. Boon support is simply; the more the better.

Guardians have better boon support, Mesmers have better utility support. It’s as simple as that.

We are defiantly getting better. But the Ranger is a bit like a two-bladed sword. On one end, we have a good amount of viable builds, but on the other end, our skills and traits are still a mixture of boring or useless effects. On one end, our pets can deal very good damage, but on the other end, they can’t hit moving targets consistently. On one end, we have very powerful bunker and condition builds, but on the other end, our burst direct damage and support builds are still lacking.

This is why the feedback of the Ranger is such a mixed bag. Your enjoyment of it, depends very much on how you play. Maybe even more so then any other profession.

Kjeldoran.3849:

2)i finded companion defense a bit useless becuase it gives you 2 sec of protection… but if you roll… you will probably go away from your target (unless he is a thief who is spamming 2/3) and so you waste 1 of those 2 sec of protection… so you get protection for nothing and lose that 10% damage bonus.
3)yes nice combo but i want to deal massive damage with LB and now i can deal about 8k with rapid fire but i’m trying to optimize it.
4) troll unguent heals only for 228more hp because if you are considering a 8560 hp heal… you have also to consider the 25 cd instead of 20…
5)i prefer to use bear simply because i really like its f2 skill which allow me to remove aoe condition

anyway these are some answer for the previous build… but i’m still of working for a new one

When you play WvW, you have to consider ranged damage the most. And under ranged damage, the 2 second protection (actually 1.25 seconds) is going to matter a lot more. Also, fighting against a zerg, you’re going to get into situations where you’ll be under almost constant fire. Taking the extra dodge you get from 50% increased endurance regeneration, you can round the protection up to 3,75 seconds. And that’s without any recharge time at all.

The problem just is, that longbow (despite the fact that it’s much better now) is still not a good burst damage weapon, simply because it deals its damage over multiple hits, whereas the greatsword deals its damage in one hits. And, then greatsword has better recharge times, meaning you’ll deal more damage over a shorter period of time.

Yes, on paper you can consider that. But in combat, all that matters is how much health you get, when you really need it. For instance, your opponent has gotten you down to 5% health, and you need to heal. In this situation, what matters most; time or effectiveness? Those 5 seconds can’t save you when you need to heal, but once you heal up, you can always run away and gain more time.

Yeah, the brown bears condition removal is nice, but if you want to use it, you are forced to stick close to the bear at all times, as it only has a range of 600. And considering you run longbow, and the bear is melee damage, you have a tricky combination there.

Point 2: The bleed only last 1 second, and you only have 100 condition damage. So this trait is not worth it at all, as the damage will be minimal.

Point 3: Unless you plan on never dodging, Companion’s Defense will always be useful. The regeneration from Rejuvenation only lasts 5 seconds, and it has an internal recharge time of 30 seconds, while Companion’s Defense will always trigger on dodge, and works in combination with Natural Vigor.

Weapons: A better way to think about longbow and greatsword is that, longbow is your setup weapon, and greatsword is your burst weapon. Meaning, longbow sets up the damage increase, by dealing initial damage, stacking vulnerability, and giving you stealth, which makes the big damage from greatsword much more impactful. A great burst combo is; Rapid Fire>Hunter’s Shot>Maul>Hilt Bash>Crippling Throw>Swoop.

Heals: Troll Unguent heals you much faster then you think. On paper, 10 seconds might seem like a long time, but when you’re in combat, it’s not at all. Heal As One is the worst of the two, simply because it heals you for less at a time. Those 2000 extra health points, can mean the difference between defeating a foe, and being downed. You always have two pets, so one pet getting healed is of less value. The fact that you use “Protect Me!”, makes Heal As One even less valuable for you, as this skill will mostly kill your pet anyway, in WvW.

Pets. The bear is not a pet you want for WvW. You want a pet that can deal some good damage, before it eventually dies, which it will pretty fast. Spiders are a great option as they can keep distance, and the wolf is always a great 2nd hand pet, thanks to the fear. If you are going to run with a melee pet, though, you’ll want to keep it on “Avoid Combat”, or ells it’s just going to run strait into the middle of the a zerg, and die instantly. Use your melee pet as a backup instead, when a foe tries to 1v1 you, or he tries to run away. Against a zerg, you either want a drake for AoE damage or a spider pet for ranged damage.

Underwater Pets: Devourers win here, all the way. Ranged underwater attacks are very powerful, because when you fight under water, you always move around within a small area. This makes it very easy for devours to consistently hit a foe, without being damaged at all.

Food: You already have plenty critical chance and critical damage, so the Curry Butternut Squash Soup is not needed in your build. I would get Plate of Orrian Steak Frittes instead, which will put your power over 2300 and your vitality over 18k.

Combine ‘Shared Anquish’ and ‘Hide in Plain Sight’ into one trait. So a stun is transferred to your pet, and you gain stealth.

Chrispy.5641:

@Kasama..
So….Your reasons for wanting a new weapon is because it will look cool? Then why are we even having this argument?!? I want cool weapons too, (Melee Staff, Whip, Spear, Crossbow, a Freaking Rocket Launcher!!!!) but, unless Anet can find a specific purpose for them in the game, that doesn’t copy other class Mechanics, I don’t want to see it, because that will cheapen the Character class, no matter which one it is.

And what about the Frost ‘Trap’. I guess the Ranger just has such Awesome L33T Survival Skills, that he carries Ice around in a backpack and keeps them for whenever he needs to set a trap, huh?

@ Surbrus
When I said Rifles, I meant Gun, Hand Cannon, etc.

We are having this argument, because people here are trying to deny the rifle for the Ranger, based around hollow and ignorant arguments. Which is ridiculous, considering that the skills and animations for a possible Ranger rifle, can be anything ArenaNet makes up. It’s a bit like saying; “the Mesmer shouldn’t have a greatsword, because it’s not a magical based weapon, and I don’t want the Mesmer to swing a greatsword around like a Warrior”. Until skills are actually made, we are just discussing a skin here.

I’m not saying the Ranger is only a hunter, just that it has as much potential of being a hunter, as it does being a druid like Ranger. So arguments about the Ranger only having a magical theme, and the rifle therefor doesn’t fit, are directly untrue. Just as many skills are “hunter based”.

Listen, it’s fine if people don’t want a rifle for the Ranger. The problem I have with it are when people here try and argue against it by using points that are directly false or purely made up. If your argument is “I don’t think a rifle would look good”, then that’s fine. However, if your arguments are; “we don’t need a rifle for the Ranger”, “the longbow already has the role of the rifle”, “not many people want to see a rifle for the Ranger”, “a rifle doesn’t fit the magical theme of the Ranger”, “a rifle is not a weapon of nature, because it makes noise”, “ArenaNet have already decided they don’t want a rifle for the Ranger, over a year ago”, “we already have two ranged two-handed weapons, so we can’t have one more”, and so on… Then you are talking out of your kitten . Don’t try and deny others enjoyment, just because you don’t agree with it.

Surbrus.6942:

Chrispy.5641:

Kasama.8941:

The first rifle was called a hand cannon, and dates back to the 13th century China. There’s nothing modern about it.

The First rifle was invented almost 800 years ago, but it wasn’t used in Hunting for those 800 years, and it never automatically replaced bows. There are still many people who hunt with bows today, so there is nothing about Bows that equals ancient history either!

Actually the first rifles were made in Europe during the mid 15th century, and only really became more than a novelty during the mid 18th century. Before that they weren’t using rifled barrels, but smooth barrels for firearms, such as muskets.

I understand you guys weren’t actually talking about rifles, but just thought I should add that little note.

The rifle is an evolution of the musket. The difference, at the time, was only the projectile and reload mechanism that each used. The first rifles were even refereed to as “rifled muskets”. The idea of both are the same; you have an increased barrel length that gives you a longer fire range.

Chrispy.5641:

And there have been just as many replies in those Topics, saying that the Rifle is a horrible idea, and it doesn’t fit very well with the Ranger or Nature. So, Your point with that is what, exactly? Topics > Replies?

Rangers are good with Traps and Suvival skills because they are so at one with Nature (especially a Trap that freezes enemys? Or a survival skill that creates literal muddy terrain? Or how about Rampage as one with strengthens the link between you and your animal companion (which you charmed straight out of Nature) with every attack you make? How does that even work without Nature?)

The First rifle was invented almost 800 years ago, but it wasn’t used in Hunting for those 800 years, and it never automatically replaced bows. There are still many people who hunt with bows today, so there is nothing about Bows that equals ancient history either!

Unless the Ranger has a Nest on the end of the gun, and it Shoots Hornets and Wasps out of the gun and they cause Vulnerability and Poison with every attack, It wont be that much different, which is my problem with the weapon. Unless it can be used in a totally off the wall unique way, its not going to be that much different from how the Warrior or Engineer use their rifles.

There are Control Roles the Rifle could fill, like shooting a net, etc (which the Engineer does already). There are Control Roles a Staff or Scepter could fill as well. Hell, a Mainhand Torch could fill a better Control/Support Role than a Rifle,…And hasn’t been done already!

Really, its a new Melee weapon that we need! We have 2! There is a severe lack of representation of the Rangers Close Range combat abilities here!!! And having an Animal Companion to go infront of you to soak up damage is no excuse for the lack of melee options!!!

… The Point I was making in my last post was that Rangers do not automatically equal Range. I am not for or against Rifles, but there are many things besides Range, including their animal companion, survival skills, Tracking, or Nature Magic. I want to see one of those points get overhauled or redone before I see another Ranged weapon. That is my opinion and I am sticking to it!

There are just as many replies that argue for the rifle, as against it. My point is simply that there are many players who want to see a rifle for the Ranger. So arguments about it being an unpopular choice, are untrue. People arguing against it are mostly just scared that a rifle for the Ranger would somehow change everything, which is ridiculous.

There’s a big difference between “being one with nature”, and having knowledge about it. You don’t need any magic to make a trap, to prepare your weapon (Sharpening Stone), or to sic your pet at a foe (“Sic ’Em”). Muddy Terrain is really just a trap, as the description simply says “Use mud to cripple and immobilize foes”. Rampage As One doesn’t say anything about being magical either, just that you simply “rampage” with your pet. If a human with a dog, gets into a fight, you know what the dog will do? Attack the same target to protect its owner.

A rifle is the evolution of a musket, and a musket is the evolution of the hand cannon. Same design, same mechanic, but with small improvements. But it doesn’t really matter in relation to the game.

lol now you’re just being ridiculous for the sake of sounding clever. How about making a bullet that, when it hits a target, the target becomes covered in bees and gets blinded. We can even call it the “Honey Shot”..

But you don’t know that a main-hand torch could fill a better control/support role than a rifle, because until skills are actually created for a weapon, the weapon is just a skin. So what you’re really saying is; “a torch skin could fill a better control/support role than a rifle skin”.

Why do we need a new melee weapon? Because mathematically, based on the amount of weapons we have, it makes sense? The numbers must be equal! Yes? Seriously, that’s a hollow argument. The game is about fun, and if people want to see a rifle for the Ranger, then it would be pretty stupid to let this stand in the way.

I know that the meaning of the word ranger doesn’t have anything to do with ranged weapons. Neither is it my reason for wanting a rifle for the Guild Wars 2 Ranger. As with anyone ells suggesting any other weapon, I simply just think it would be cool to have a rifle..

Gaiawolf.8261:

I’d love to see rangers get rifles and believe it fits their theme, but don’t think it will happen due to Anet’s past stance on the matter. I’d like to see them get staves too if no proper druid class is in the works for an expansion.

I must admit I’d find it hard to believe that Anet said they’d give all weapons to each class. Can you produce a quote for that?

http://www.mmorpg.com/gamelist.cfm/game/473/feature/7597/Guild-Wars-2-ArenaNets-Master-Plan-for-2013.html

I find it hard to believe as well, but it seems legit.

Chopps.5047:

I don’t know about all the stuff your ranting about, I just think the ranger community would like

A) Melee main hand similar to sword except without the leap animations

B) A short range AoE weapon

I think the rifle would duplicate the bows. Ranger needs more build options, not more ranged weapons. In the future? Maybe I can see rifle. But right now, if ANET is adding weapons slowly, I don’t think many are with you, Kasama.

We’d like to see thigs like staff or rapier and not because “we get what we want and you don’t hahaha”, which seems to be how you’re interpretting this. Rather, those weapons make the most sense for what the profession needs right now as of July 28, 2013.

Why are you taking for everyone ells? You have nothing to base this on. The rifle is the most common discussed weapon for the Ranger. There has been more topics suggesting it, then any other weapon, ever since beta. And in all the topics, there are always been just as many players who are open minded to the idea, as those who are rejecting it (mostly based on an idea that the Ranger is suppose to be some kind of druid).

You continue to reject the idea of a rifle with the same futile arguments. The topics about wanting another main melee weapon for the Ranger, are almost none existent, so I’m not sure why you would get the idea that more players would want that, before a rifle? What makes you think that ArenaNet would add weapons slowly, or one at a time? And why do you continue to talk about “needing” a weapon, when the weapon itself isn’t what defines it, but the skills that are attached to it. Which can be anything ArenaNet makes up!

Here let me go over all the points, because this is getting repetitive:

• There has been more topics suggesting a rifle for the Ranger then any other weapon type, ever since beta.
• The Ranger, in Guild Wars 2, can be as much of a hunter as it can be a druid like profession. If I pick longbow, axe/axe, shouts, signets, survival skills, traps, and Rampage As One, my build would have nothing to do with a nature themed Ranger, at all. And a rifle would fit perfectly here.
• Talking about gun noises or nature based weapons, makes no sense, as these things are not a factor in the game. But for the record, some animals get just as scared from the sound of a bow firing, as they do of a gunshot (like a deer). And vice versa, some animals don’t care about noise at all (like a boar). Some animals can also be trained to not be scared of loud noises, even if it’s in their nature to be (like hunting dogs). A rifle is made out of metal and wood, which both are natural elements. The first rifle was called a hand cannon, and dates back to the 13th century China. There’s nothing modern about it.
• Just because the Ranger gets a rifle, it doesn’t mean that it would work like the Warriors rifle. Take greatswords as an example. The skills and animations for greatsword, are completely different for the Ranger and the Mesmer. Use your imagination..
• Things that the Ranger is still missing are a control weapon, and a support weapon. These are the roles a rifle could fill. But having said that, there are other examples of weapons in the game that work the same way, but that are still both in the game. The Warriors weapons are a good example of this.
• Just because we already have two two-handed ranged weapons, it doesn’t mean that a third one would be “too much”. We also have four different offhand weapons.
• We have no idea how ArenaNet would implement new weapons. For all we know, they could give two or three weapons to each profession at the same time. Or they could make a lot of weapons for each profession in advance, and then add them into the game one at a time, as they see fit.
• Yes, ArenaNet said that they wanted the Ranger to be a spiritual woodsman, a long time ago. But they have changed their minds about a lot of things since then. Nothing is written in stone. Also, a resent interview suggest that ArenaNet are planning on giving all weapons to all professions.
• The creation of the Ranger in the real world, as is mostly related to the Ranger in fiction, was done by Robert Rogers, during the French and Indian War (1754–1763) and the American Revolution. Robert Rogers formed a rapidly deployable light infantry force, tasked mainly with reconnaissance as well as conducting special operations against distant targets. He used tactics inspired by native americans, and learned his men to survive out in the wild by using natures resources. Rangers was a known name for other companies before this, but none of them used the tactics that Robert Rogers did. Fictional books and movies have also been created about Robert Rogers. And it’s not totally unreasonable to believe that Tolkien could also have been inspired by Robert Rogers, when he created Aragorn. Robert Rogers also used a cut down musket, even though he did have the option of using a bow at the time.

I run a soldier/rampager 20/30/20/0/0 build, that focus on fire damage. Sword/torch-staff, “Save Yourselves!”, Contemplation of Purity, Judge’s Intervention, Tome of Wrath. It’s good fun.

Lyru.9380:

It feels like Warriors have both more damage and more survivability compared to Thieves.

What makes our class better than the others?
Besides stealth.

Superior movement and single target burst. It might be that a Warrior has good damage and durability, but the Thief can take multiple single targets out a lot faster, and can pretty easily escape or catch any other profession in the game.

Rottaran Owain.6789:

You’ve never heard of a crook robbing a place at gunpoint? Or wizards carrying daggers for up close and personal self-defense? Really?

For the shown ranger trope in this game, a rifle or pistol would be exceedingly out of place on the class whose notable skills are beast mastery, nature magic, and wilderness survival instincts.

A melee staff would be pretty cool though.

I would be very surprised if you’ve never heard of a Ranger carrying a rifle..

Marksmanship, skirmishing, and wilderness survival, can all fall under the category of a hunter as well. Hunters also use rifles.

A melee staff for the Ranger would be very cool. For the Thief as well!

No, it’s just not you. It doesn’t make sense to simply move it to a grandmaster trait, as the only use of it was to gain quickness for stomping a player. Last time I tried to use it, it didn’t have any use for my pet, because the pet always takes a second or two to react, when you swap it in. It should either be moved to a major trait, or changed to having a five second quickness duration instead of three.

Coarr.3286:

i use pain inverter instead of lightning reflexes for the confustion

That sounds fun =)

Chopps.5047:

Well, regardless of your hypothetical shotgun/rifle hybrid weapon, why not staff / rapier / hammer? I addressed that a few posts up, you may have missed it. I explain why I think another ranged option doesn’t fit in terms of the needs of the ranger profession.

Why not all those weapons at the same time? Your argument is basically “me and other players want these weapons, but the players who want a rifle can’t have it, because some don’t like that”. You are talking like someone would force you to use the rifle. I wouldn’t use a staff either, because I don’t think it would fit my Ranger. But you don’t see me complaining that others shouldn’t have the chance to use it. Why does there have to be a reason to have a rifle, beyond the fact that a lot of players want to use a rifle with their Ranger in the game? There is no “needs”, only wishes and hopes, of what each player want to see for the Ranger. And a rifle is no more far fetched then a staff or hammer is. All these arguments about “Aragorn didn’t have a rifle, so neither should the Ranger in Guild Wars 2!” are just plain out ridiculous. Guild Wars 2 is a completely different fictional universe from Lord of the Rings. It’s even very different from Guild Wars 1. I don’t even understand why we are having this discussion.

It looks good. The only thing I would change, is add a trap to your utilities for more condition damage, instead of Lightning Reflexes. You already have stun removal from Shared Anguish, and even if someone manages to stun you, you should still be able to survive with over 2k toughness, and a ton of healing power. You also have plenty of evades from sword and 50% increased endurance regeneration, so you really don’t need the extra evade either.

Chopps.5047:

Lol! Hey! If those are the rifle skills then I’ll take it! Seriously, though, I know you’re just making stuff up on the fly to give an example of a rifle with aoe, but, seriously, #4 is basically rapid fire with fearon first shot. Also, Sun Spirit is on a 30s CD and has a short range AoE blind. So your #2 would end up having a long, painful cooldown. It’s basically splitblade or poison volley with a freaking blind! Your auto attack is a…free pierce? You must not want anyone to play bows anymore (or else you just resent having to take peircing arrows trait).

And then number 5…that’s actually an interesting skill. The 3 skill, meh, I don’t know.

The goal of the rifle, in my example, would be less about damage and more about control. Meaning it most likely wouldn’t deal as much damage as the longbow.

• The trait Piercing Arrows gives pierce to all bow shots. The rifle would only have pierce on the first skill.
• The Sun Spirit has a passive skill, that’s why the active skill has such a long recharge time. The Engineers pistol skill Static Shot can hit up to four foes, and deals both blind and confusion, with only a 15 second recharge time. A simple AoE blind fired in a cone pattern, is really not that powerful.
• The third skill would give some much needed vulnerability, that gives the weapon a little more damage.
• The fourth skill forces you to run forward, so if the fear doesn’t hit, you run strait into your foe. This makes it a very different skill from Rapid Fire.
• The fifth skill also works in combo with the fourth skill.

Bambula.3649:

but one question..why and for what we need a riffel?

we got the longbow for dmg on long rang, we got the shortbow for condition and skirmishing, what we could get with the riffel?..would be the same than longbow..yay

We are still missing a AoE/control weapon, like the Mesmers greatsword, or the Warrior and Guardians hammer. It could be something on the lines of; #1 fire a piercing shot, #2 fire a series of shots in a cone pattern that blinds up to five targets, #3 fire a shot that bounces between five targets and deals vulnerability, #4 charge your foe while firing a series of shots-first shot deals fear, #5 roll backwards-your pets next attack also knocks down.

Looks fine. I would only change two things; add more vitality and make traits 20/20/20/10/0. Precise Strike isn’t really worth taking over a major trait.

Surbrus.6942:

As Castaliea pointed out immediately before your post here, even Anet doesn’t think that rifle goes with the Ranger’s theme. The theme matters greatly when determining how skills will work and appear. Sure, if Anet wanted to they could have the Ranger rifle shoot mechanized sharks with laserbeams on their heads (because “its fantasy”), but we all know that there is approximately zero percent chance of that happening because it would grossly hurt the theme of both the Ranger profession as well as the rifle weapon.

Even if the rifle wasn’t at odds with the theme of the Ranger, again, development on one thing means that there isn’t going to be that development on something else. You can’t simply say “I want both” when the limiting factor is the time it takes to make those two options.

That quote is a year old, if not over a year old. The game is not written in stone, and this is not Guild Wars 1. Just ten days ago, an interview on MMORPG came up saying this:
“What’s more is that the team is also working very kitten finding a way to make it so that every profession has access to every weapon and their own weapon skills for those previously locked weapons. Engineer plus Hammer? Check. Again, there’s no specific timeline for this, but a new progression system is coming”.
http://www.mmorpg.com/gamelist.cfm/game/473/feature/7597/Guild-Wars-2-ArenaNets-Master-Plan-for-2013.html

It doesn’t take more then a little imagination to design some rifle skills that fits the Ranger. Take the greatsword for each profession as an example. They all look and work very differently. Even the rifle for the Warrior and Engineer are very different from each other.

Surbrus.6942:

Kasama.8941:

And what the hell is this “magical theme” you’re talking about? Are there some for of universal fantasy rule that says; “a rifle in a fantasy setting, can not have any magic associated with it”?

With exception to the Mesmer Pistol, non of the firearms in this game are magical. A Ranger isn’t going to be one of the few that is able to enchant a firearm into some magical implement before you’re going to have Elementalists having rifles that shoot snow balls. A magical firearm for the Ranger would thus break established fluff, and break immersion… if anything, the Longbow or Shortbow should shoot magic before a Ranger rifle does.

As for why people are against the idea of rifles, that would be because, until every weapon is usable by the class, development and implementation of a Ranger rifle is taking away from more legitimate weapons for the Ranger, such as a staff, or even sceptre/focus which meshes much nicer with the natural magic theme the Ranger already has.

Back to the fluffier stuff, you could also argue that a firearm, needing manufactured ammunition, is a bad choice for a Ranger.

The proponents of Ranger rifles such as the OP, are claiming they have “common sense” backing them up, and need not elaborate. However it looks like any closer look at the potential weapon selections would have firearms obviously being the worst option… well, 2H hammer would probably be the very worst one for fluff.

tl;dr: There are so many better weapon options that would be ahead of Ranger rifles, and any work on a Ranger rifle is work taken away from a more legitimate new weapon.

Allow me to quote yourself: “Non of that which you said even makes sense though. Your reasoning is basically just saying ‘well this is how I think it should be, so therefore it should be common sense for everyone else’.”

A spirit eagle appears when you use your greatsword. You can shoot an arrow through flames, to set the arrow on fire. You can blow a horn to make eagles attack a foe. You can make roots appear from the ground. And the last time I saw someone fire an arrow up in the air, in the real world, a thousand more didn’t drop from the sky. It’s a fantasy game! Anything goes. And it’s not exactly hard to design a set of rifle skills that fall in line with this aesthetic..

Those choices are only what you perceive as being “legitimate”. The Ranger has as much of a hunter theme, as he has a druid theme. It’s simply a matter of what you chose to use. Also, you have no idea how ArenaNet would develop new weapons, so I’m not sure why you are trying to argue that it would be a waste of time. Least of all because a lot more people would probably like to see a rifle for the Ranger, before a scepter. Taking into account the almost countless topics there has been about a rifle.

Yes, you could argue that, but it would be pretty kittened. Seeing as this is a fantasy game, and you don’t actually go and collect projectiles..

It makes as much sense as suggesting a staff for the Ranger (which would be cool as well). I don’t see why the Ranger shouldn’t be able to get both a rifle and a staff, at the same time. Players want both, and there is no reasoning in restricting that. Unless you see it from a fanatic point of view..

Surbrus.6942:

DargorV.8571:

In the same line of thought, Thieves should never be allowed to use Pistol because BANG BANG is not stealthy.

Eles shouldn’t have daggers because duh, melee and Mesmer 2h Sword cannon makes no sense.

<.<

Non of that which you said even makes sense though. Your reasoning is basically just saying “well this is how I think it should be, so therefore it should be common sense for everyone else”. Whereas the Ranger Rifle goes against the natural magic theme, as well as doubling up on weapon roles that already exist. You’re not going to convince anyone with that kind of explanation.

I really don’t understand why you, or anyone ells, have such a big problem with rifles for the Ranger? What exactly is it you think is going to happen, if a rifle is introduced to the Ranger? Guild Wars 2 is build up in such a way, that adding new weapon skills can be done, without changing anything ells for that profession. Therefor, adding a rifle to the Rangers weapon choice, would have no effect on the rest of the profession, at all. And what the hell is this “magical theme” you’re talking about? Are there some for of universal fantasy rule that says; “a rifle in a fantasy setting, can not have any magic associated with it”? And why do you assume the rifle skills would have the same role as the other two-handed weapons the Ranger already got? Surely it makes a lot more sense to create something new and fun that we don’t already have available. Seriously, you’re just being fanatical for no apparent reason.

Blueandwhite.1743:

what events do i do? where do i go? is there a story with cutscences if so how do i get them?

Patch Releases: https://www.guildwars2.com/en/the-game/releases/
Guides: http://dulfy.net/category/gw2/
Wiki: http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Main_Page

For the record, most of the content ArenaNet releases is really difficult to figure out. Most of the players who finish these achievements, do it by following guides, or asking guild mates for help, who have probably done the achievement by following guides.

I think we will see a rifle for the Ranger, once we get more weapons in the game. This is far from the first topic about it.

And, yes, it makes perfect sense. Unless you are one of those people who thinks there are overarching “Ranger rules”, that must apply to all fictional universes..

That’s how stealth works, it’s not a bug. Stealth is removed as soon as you deal direct damage to a foe, from any source. The exception is when you deal with conditions.

I use double tap to dodge. I’d rather press the same key twice, instead of pressing two different keys at the same time. I very, very rarely do accidental rolls, and if I do, it’s because I wasn’t paying attention. It’s simply a matter of learning the timed interval that triggers the dodge. Once you instinctively know it, double tap to dodge is easy to do, or don’t do.

If you plan on using shortbow as your main weapon, then I would recommend Rampager stats (precision/power/condition damage).

The problem is mostly with initiative cost. The initiative cost of the weapon skills don’t really match at all. If you use Unload two times, you don’t have the initiative to defend yourself with Black Powder. The other thing is that pistol/pistol is both condition and direct damage. Auto-attack stacks bleed, but Body Shot stacks vulnerability? It doesn’t make sense..

For starters, I would take the initiative cost of Unload down to 3 or 4, then possibly add cripple on Body Shot instead of the vulnerability.

Really good trailer. I wish the sound design had that much impact in the game..

Because you can still use F1, F3, and F4, when you are downed. The F2 skill only works on the wolf I believe.

I use sword/torch and love it as it is.

Zealot’s Fire is an incredibly powerful finisher, and I can easily make it critical for over 4.500 damage (I’m playing soldier stats). The extra burning and 1200 range is really just icing on the top. It’s a great skill.

Judge’s Intervention>Cleansing Flame is a very powerful move, that always makes an opponent run (unless he’s running a bunker build). You see, the thing that makes the slow channel time of Cleansing Flame so good, is that it’s great for aggressive play. Not only does it look menacing, it also completely covers opponents in blue flames, to the point where they almost can’t see what’s going on.

The only thing I don’t like about torch, is the condition removal from Cleansing Flame. I never, ever, use this to remove conditions on allies, and it simply doesn’t make sense to have on a weapon that is otherwise all about damage. It also doesn’t remove conditions on yourself.

You shouldn’t underestimate the 1500 range. It will make you able to keep up with a target for a very long range, and harass a target in much the same way as a Thief can. I love using Swoop from the greatsword to gain range on a running opponent, then switch to longbow and kite him down endlessly. It’s very powerful to have a weapon that can continue to deal damage, when an opponent think he’s safe.

No one wants to see this change?

Yes, they are one of the best profession for applying pressure to an enemy zerg. You have staff for giving swiftness and stacking might, and a ton of AoE skills. They are basically build for group play.

Conan.8046:

Chopps.5047:

Frost trap…dropped? It’s one of the best slot skills we have though. I’m the opposite of you because I can’t figure out why anyone would take muddy terrain or spike trap when they could use frost trap instead. Do you want to blast frost armor or give a tiny damage spike? Do you want some crappy cripple, or do you want them to have to suffer longer cooldowns on abilties as well as move slow? The choice is obvious to me because it’s a combo field. Rangers can blast it themselves now.

For someone who played a Ranger so long you haven’t a clue.

Cripple for 2.5 seconds and 3 stacks of bleed – 20 second cooldown.
Chill for 1.25 seconds – 24 second cooldown

So cripple lasts twice as long and does damage and recharges faster. That’s why people prefer spike trap. This assumes your opponent isn’t completely stupid and moves out of the trap once triggered.

Frost Trap offers an alternate condition effect, that makes for better condition stacking. It’s also a combo field, which has more value now that we have a combo blast on warhorn. Basically, the two traps have two different uses.

Reisinger.4203:

I’ve tried using bird but there aren’t always ambient creatures around the map and I’m horrible with the targeting system. Good suggestion though, that is definitely useful in WvW.

It’s simply a matter of learning where creatures are located. Just key bind “Targeting: Foe-Nearest”, and targeting isn’t a problem at all.

Zenith.7301:

Kasama.8941:

Zenith.7301:

Whirling Defense is terrible. It does like 6-7k damage for a 5 second channel in berserker gear (in the same time I could have easily done 10k with just sword auto cleaving) that roots you in place. You’re opening yourself up to a melee train for no reason. It’s a poor man’s counterattack.

I run Lightning Reflexes, Signet of the Hunt and Signet of Stone with beastmaster’s signet. You need these to survive in team fights with berserker gear. Maybe you could substitute signet of the hunt for muddy terrain, but I would never take entangle over RaO as I don’t fancy getting nailed by a static field into a 10 second root and then get blown to pieces.

I don’t understand the choice of offhand axe, if you don’t want to do any AoE damage. Seems like a waste of weapon slot, if you’re only using the pull. Especially since you already have increased movement speed from Signet of the Hunt or Rampage As One.

Because path of scars is just as good burst as maul, but it’s ranged to boot and has a pull.

Whirling Defense is not AoE. I’m sorry for you if you call a 6k 5 second channel AoE, but it shows clearly you haven’t played aoe specs or classes.

How can it have just as good burst, when Maul has half the recharge time?

AoE = Area of Effect. Whirling Defense hits multiple foes in an area. That’s why I call it an AoE skills.