Guild Wars 2

I could watch it with Hola, but had to use 360p because the proxy was so slow. :S

Anyways. Not sure if I’m the only one who’s bothered that you don’t show/get stomps on the outnumbered fights, but it really bugs me. Makes the fight feel unfinished.

But still enjoyable to watch, keep em coming!

Interesting build.
I’ve tried to use Pdefender few times because it looks so good on paper, but I just can’t stand that guy for some reason.
Have you thought of trying that build with Confusing Cry instead of Debilitating Dissipation? I’ve used it on my hybrid shatter and it’s actually a really good trait in tankier builds, I’m sure it would fit well in that.

Both I guess. Depends on the momentum.
If I feel weakness from my opponent I will try to exploit the shift in momentum. If I’m losing control I will try to retreat and play more passive a bit to get my kitten together.

Depends a lot on the class too. Against good warriors I feel like I’m always on the defensive and just try to “bleed” them while they’re trying to eat my face. Like a matador.
I’m talking about WvW.

Galeskyring.9617:

Also an interesting question, what phantom will the shield bare?! Would be cool if it summoned a ranged combatant using something like a staff or lon/short bow.

I’m pretty sure the shield phantasm will have taunt.

CobraPolo.1723:

Hey Noss,

nice video. Personally I’m with Ross in the armor. I think your losing out to much by using celestial. I’d personally go rabid but if you want more survivability then go Dire.

Also on the Scepter/Torch with Staff. I have tried going dual ranged before, but I feel i’m more viable with melee options at my side.

I’ve run MtD with pure condi gear too, but that’s not the point of the build. If I wanted to go full condi, I would.
I’m not by no means trying to make a metabuild and pushing for the max efficiency. Just wanted to try something fun and different, and there’s something about the hybrid damage I find really satisfying. You get that “melting” feeling from the condi damage, and the direct damage is still enough to make you feel like your skills are instantly punishing.

And about the weapons, staff/X+torch is def the way to go with full condi. But what I’m switching around is scepter+torch and staff. GS is always my primary weapon due the might stacks, knockback for SR and it’s just a very solid power weapon.

@MSFone
Thanks buddy! If you got decent gear for it you should totally try it out.

@Ross
What gear did you use with it? Roaming squads and adds are also the reason why I’m leaning more towards scepter+torch instead of staff. Staff+GS is just so good against thieves that it’s hard to let go T_T

@Dr Gonzo
Thanks! I agree, it’s pretty stupid process to make celestial armor. I just bought bunch of quartz’s and made it my daily roaming routine to convert them in WvW without really looking forward to the armor. I’m pretty sure you can mix bunch of gear to get good hybrid stats though.
I like the celestial a lot since it gives a good stat layout that you can patch with other gear for your liking. And with the added vitality and toughness you can make good use of Confusing Cry which potentially gives you permanent retaliation. +Healing just gets kinda wasted on mesmer.

Hey guys.

I’ve started recording some fights in WvW while solo roaming with different builds, and I’m gonna share them in this thread.

Roaming with Hybrid Shatter
Roaming with GS/Sw+Sw

Builds are in the video descriptions.

How about moving the immob from CI to CS. Then removing the CI cripple and making it inflict 3s blind and chill on interrupt.

Could be slightly OP though…

I’d suggest to do some sPvP. You’ll be fighting more -> you get better faster.
Some power PU builds might be a good way to get a grip of the class, as they tend to be more forgiving.

Mesmer is very dependant on defensive cooldowns and you can look at them as your healthpool. Keep track of them and try to use them wisely.

Also, I personally think double sigil of energy is a must.

Really whichever you like more. Some people say that asura has the advantage because they’re small and it’s harder to see their animations, but I find charr mesmers really annoying to fight against, especially in small spaces.

I think asuras are the coolest race, and that’s why I rolled one when I started. Now I’ve been slowly rerolling into male sylvari, mostly because I’ve grown kinda bored of asura and they have ugly animations in my opinion.

Oh, and charr mesmers are really rare so you’ll be a unique snowflake if you decide to make one.

Rome.7124:

glentc.2159:

So I’ll probably reach L.80 with my Mesmer this weekend but I’m not sure which armor type to purchase. A lot of the leveling builds suggested Power but I’m not sure if I still need power at L.80. I plan on continuing map completion and to participate in WvW groups. So far I see a lot of posts from 2013-2014 that would argue one from the other. I’m not sure what the state of Condition vs Power for Mesmer in PvE and WvW.

Also if I go with Traveler runes, should I drop my offhand Focus and go with Torch?

after more play time, you will realize Memser is mostly average or slight above average in most aspects of the game. Instead of focus on gearing the mesmer, I think it’s better to explore the possibility of playing another class (elementalist, guardian or even thief). Dont throw all your eggs in one basket, you will regret it.

Some people play what they enjoy, not the FOTM. And above average is still better than most.

I came back from around a year long break few weeks ago aswell, and not much has really changed. The stability changes stirr the zerg warfare a bit and I’ve seen less meleetrains so far.
Other than the new GM traits it was same ol’ GW2 for me.

Power. It’s much better overall. Condi really only shines in solo/smallscale WvW, where as power works everywhere.
You can get condition gear very cheaply from trading post or/and Orr karma vendors, so it’s not too big of an investment to get two sets.

And what about mid and low tier matchups? Would mean more running around looking for fights.
This would also enhance the population and coverage imbalance on many matchups.

I don’t think the WvW population is big enough for this atm. Maybe in top tier servers, but it’s their own choice to stack there and it’s no news that it gets blobby there.

There’s gonna be a new map in HoT anyways that will likely attract most people.

Not really for tPvP, but overall.

- Triumphant Distortion renamed and changed to give 3s distortion when you take more than 20% on a single hit. ~60 second cooldown.

- Mantra Mastery passively charging one charge every 15 or so seconds along with the cooldown reduction so you wouldn’t have to through the hassle of swapping skills or wasting the final charge when you got 1 charge left on some mantras after a fight.

- Some weak Chaos or Inspiration trait changed into “When you create a clone, you transfer one condition to that clone.” ~10s cooldown

- IC removed. Small reduction to some cooldowns to compensate it.

- Sword #3. Make it usable for 1 second after the clone died.

Just some random thoughts.

I had pretty much the same build theorycrafted long time ago, but never got myself to try it in PvP.

I had Staff/Sw+Sw and Blink, Null field(MoD now) and Signet of Illusions though. Idea was to provide a lot of AoE boonstrip and long lockdowns on nodes.

- I have close to 200 laurels, and the only ascended gear I have is neck and rings on my mesmer and necro.

- If I could, I would have punched hundreds of thieves.

- I believe I will have “Yakslapper” -title one day.

- I think quaggans are extremely annoying and I’d like to see them suffer.

- I wear celestial armor on my mesmer almost all the time.

- I loathe thief players. I also have a thief.

- My mesmer has had the same look for about 1½ years. And I don’t even like it that much.

Ravenmoon.5318:

My god i swear some mesmer players are terribad. More balance to the fight vs thief? Seriously? Learn to freaking play. I don’t know how many times a mesmer has had me on the defensive (pretty much disengaging because death inbound).

As a thief, i still consider the mesmer one of the harder classes to fight against. So quit your whining, watch some LordHelseth vids and git gud.

Ravenmoon.5318:

Hmmmm, Is it really that hard to understand that sPvP and Gw2’s pvp in general is not meant to be 1on1? Yes the thief has the upper hand vs mesmer

What happened? Did you “git gud” overnight?

Downstate is mostly fine in my opinion. It’s a bit annoying in WvW when people can rally off some random mobs or guards. Just yesterday a thief rallied 2 times off a mob and downed me because my blink was on CD when trying to stomp. I did manage to finish him off from downstate though.

I’d be OK with a damage nerf to downed abilities. Thieves and mesmers especially can dish out craploads of damage and mesmer’s downed #3 is just sick. I believe it’s a cruel joke from Anet to make our hardest hitting phantasm downstate only.

edit: And in sPvP it definitely has it’s place as it brings another layer of teamwork into play.

I often ran in WvW with celestial armor and amulet+rings like a year ago before I took a break from GW2.
I think I mostly used 20/25/10/15/0 with sword+sword/scepter torch. Torch trait and all the clone death traits. After IC was dropped to master tier I took 15 from inspiration to illusions, giving up perma regen from iSwordsman. Definitely a fun build to play.

I got back from a break around a week ago and I ran this for a while: http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fhAQJARWlknpRtlpxINcrNCrBh6sslfSyBEgSWhrB-T1SDwAMeAAvV/J/+DBVidSTQXlHYOEAg0BAwEnClgSuCAkBYZCA-w

It can actually get to pretty high might stacks with the sigil of strength on GS.

I’m currently testing out different builds on my characters because I’ve missed quite a bit during 2014, but I’ll definitely get back to that one soon.

Revealed applying every time you leave stealth and PU split into two traits or tuned down a bit would make stealth perfectly fine IMO.

I made my thief pretty much only for P/P. I’ve tried countless builds and utility sets, but I just can’t get the needed control for that weapons set.

Ankle Shots has to be changed from “Critical hits with pistols have chance to cripple foes(60% chance, 3sec cripple, 10s cooldown” to something useful. Like “Apply 3 second cripple when you immobilize a foe” with no cooldown.

Grandmaster trait for P/P would be pretty sweet too. Like:

30 point Acrobatics -trait
Pistolero
When wielding pistols, you dodge 20% farther and activating a pistol skill has chance to grant bonus initiative.
40% chance to grant 2 initiative.

@DavyMcB I don’t think lockdown is anything like glass thief. Shatter would be closest to GC thief you can get as a mesmer. And even that is pretty far, IMO.
And I don’t think the playstyle is “heavily 1v1 oriented”. It’s very good in 1v1’s, sure. But it’s still good/OK in 1vX situations, it’s just not Blackwater and requires more effort. Most builds spend few traits and one utility for interrupts, and that’s it. It’s not like you lose everything else about mesmer when you wan’t to go Lockdown.

Anyways, atleast to me it’s not about playing the most efficient and easy builds that are “best in the meta”. It’s about what’s fun and keeps you interested.

Kraljevo.2801:

Is the Confounding Suggestions trait really worth it in a 30/20/20/0/0 lockdown build?

If yes, why? I find it a bit lackluster to be honest.

It’s well worth it, especially with staff. However I almost always take the extra change on mantras when going 30 into Domination. I just don’t like the RNG on Confounding Suggestions, too unreliable.

Glad to see Chaos Archangel promoting this playstyle at any chance he can.
I’m sure there would be way more mesmers playing lockdown if they’d just stick with the playstyle for a while to learn it. It’s definitely the most challenging way to play mesmer.

I wouldn’t recommend this playstyle for inexperienced PvP’ers though. For this playstyle to really shine, you need to have good knowledge about other professions to counter them effectively. And of course there’s a lot more stuff to pay attention to, since you have to closely look your opponents skills ontop of the “standard mesmer stuff”. But that’s just my opinion.

u r just too good

I don’t play guardian myself. But as a mesmer if I lose against condi PU mesmer it’s usually my own fault for not being able to turn off my Aggressive/Passive switch to passive. I play lockdown and shatter builds a lot, and sometimes it’s hard to let go of the aggressive play.

But yeah, IMO the key is semi-passive play against condition PU. Make sure you’re not hitting clones and avoid the scepter #2 block. Although the situation may look intimidating, the 20/20/30/0/0 condi build is generally poor at attacking. If you get overwhelmed you can just back off to lick your wounds and there’s very little the mesmer can do about it.

Deathspike.1870:

Oh well, should have guessed someone would come with those two comments.

Misinformation in internet must be taken seriously.

I’m pretty new to thief, but:

Wouldn’t Leeching Venoms be better than Cloaked in Shadows?
You have Spider Venom, Serpent’s Touch and your AA applies 5s poison. Isn’t that a bit overkill? Maybe Skale Venom instead.
Maybe Residual Venom over Preparedness, especially with Leeching Venoms.

Also I’d definitely take Venomous Aura to help my buddies.

Deathspike.1870:

The Warrior is the only profession that has movement speed as a trait.

http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Power_Shoes
http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Windborne_Dagger
http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Quickening_Thirst

The immobilize and knockdown traps are ok… ish with S/x if you lay them down at your opponents feet after sword #2/steal.

I believe the root of all evil is +condition duration. WvW would be so much better place without food.

I mean, look at these lvl 80 foods:

http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Fancy_Truffle_Burger
+15% poison duration
+70 Precision

http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Bowl_of_Fire_Meat_Chili
+15% burn duration
+70 precision

http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Chocolate_Omnomberry_Cake
+15% chill duration.
+70 power

http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Rare_Veggie_Pizza
+40% condition duration
+70 Condition Damage.

Doesn’t make any sense!

glaphen.5230:

Phase Retreat is the best in combat mobility spell in the game. Its a 6 second cooldown stun break that creates a clone when traited.

It’s 8 seconds traited and not a stun break. It does create a clone though!

I’ve only seen few x/D thieves outside OS. That’s not necessarily a bad thing though, as they eat mesmers pretty easily.

Dunno what the hell has happened to AG, but all I see is D/P thieves and GS/Sword+X warriors with occasional PU mesmer.
I know AG has lots of thieves, but I recall they gave good fights in the past. Now they just throw one backstab and run.

ThomasKreshant.6572:

Not really worth starting a thread that will be deleted on these forums in a couple days I’d have thought?

I disagree! Last days to enjoy the warmhearted and fluffy matchup threads.

Why not reduced cooldowns on venoms instead of Improvisation? You only have venoms, so Improv will be wasted 80% of the time you use steal.

hihey.1075:

To all the PU mesmers I’ve chased for minutes before killing them, the ballistas on your corpses were my Christmas Presents for you. You should feel honored.

Well that’s a bit harsh coming from a D/P thief!

No, I’m not PU.

Having too much pride to run PU, but not enough to use perplexity doesn’t make sense!

But still, looks like a nasty build.

I’m not a fan of modified ammunition on condi builds, as your direct damage is really low. You could drop 10 from firearms and grab HGH instead!

I don’t think many people put 20 into alchemy just for backpack regenerator. Thing is, alchemy adept traits are really good and after 10 points you’re only 10 points away from BR. Now, BR isn’t really a significant trait, but condi engies are really tanky and survivable and that 100+ hps adds quite a bit of healing over a (long) fight.
Say you’re in a small scale fight that has lasted for 1 min, 50 secs of that time you’ve been in kit. That means during that minute BR alone has healed you for (117*50=)5850hp. That’s about as much as one HT heal.

Winning outnumbered isn’t normal.
But on mesmer it is.

MESMER
Not even once.

Reverse psychology, b*tch.

Dump the carrion gear for zerker/knight/cavalier. There’s not really any guideline for toughness, it’s up to you.

I’d prolly start with something like this: http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fgMQNAscRl4zioXUTmGb9IipC92pHQnzNdlewbx2FC-j0BBYLCiJQFRjtMsIas6FYqSCyqTJ1boIa1CBIaLA-w

Sigils are up to you, but I personally prefer Energy on every weapon set. Traveler runes can be swapped for Speed/Centaur, or something else if you don’t have trouble getting swiftness.

Have people been enjoying the new Blunderbuss? :P

I’m starting with 0/20/20/0/30 myself and start tweaking from there.

With IP in second tier and Invigorating Speed nerfed through Speedy Kits, I didn’t bother with either one. Energized Armor is still open for me and might change it for Power Shoes and Speedy Kits for SD.
Haven’t played much since the patch, but feels pretty solid. Heal and Toolbelt resets at 25% are pretty sweet, especially with Toss Elixir S. Toss Elixir S allows for some sneaky bursts(throw wrench -> blunderbuss -> net shot -> jump shot -> pry bar). And the Blunderbuss “big hit” range increase is just boss.

So, share your rifle builds and spread the pain!

If I were to use that build, I’d change pistol for sword. You got Blade Training already and the piercing daze from 4# is great with bountiful interruption when you throw it into pack of people/clones/other creatures. But then again I love OH sword, and for some reason I’ve never liked pistol, so my opinion might be a bit biased.

Few other thoughts:

IMO, without DE you can’t get the most out of Shattered Concentration and you’ll probably end up shattering your phantasms often. You could swap Arcane Thievery for iDisenchanter and shattered concentration for Empowered Illusions(or whatever you want).

If you’re good with landing interrupts, you could change Confounding Suggestions for the extra mantra charge. Daze+Immobilize is pretty much like a stun.

I don’t like IC. It affects close to half of our weapon skills, and for one trait that’s pretty sick. Especially for minor trait. Before the patch I was totally cool without getting it, but now it’s just too darn close!

To encourage more build diversity, maybe there’s shouldn’t be a trait “that’s needed for most mesmer builds”

Every day is a Mesmer’s Day. Has, and always will be.

Happy Mesmer’s Day!

I haven’t seen too many builds here that focus on CI, so dunno what blutsteins problem is.

Especially when his build is clone spamming condi build with perplexity.

Looks good! CI is amazing trait with some +condi duration.

Have you thought of dropping Duelist’s Discipline for Phantasmal Fury? It’s quite a damage boost.

Good choice, buddy!

bladie.5084:

EXG is the biggest blobbing guild ever.

Lies.
Even our one man guilds can field so massive blobs, that NA servers would have skill lag.
Once our blob was so big, we d€rped through keep wall.

Top that, scrubs.