Guild Wars 2

Try this build out, it’s P/D that I run in sPvP (hot join):
http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fYAQNAqYVlUmCN3aS3E95EB3jk60mqp4m2sTBWlPA-TsAgyCuIgRNjbGDMSfs+MCY9xcBA

The basics are, you want to enter stealth whenever possible via CnD to use Sneak Attack.
Ambush + Thieve’s guild helps in creating a bit of chaos in 1v1-3 fights (learn to place ambush as an engagement/offensive trap or during the fight).
Shadow Strike (and now because of the torment) is really good for getting out of close range+helps kitting via torment damage.
Dev venom for when they’re running away or trying not to engage you…
Spider venom is kind of a decoy condition, if the opponent can only remove 1 condition, you want to apply poison and/or torment to ensure that the bleeds you apply thereafter don’t get cleansed (assuming they can only remove 1 condition…)
SB with energy sigil, helps gtfo when the going gets tough. (shadow strike, 1-2 x dodge roll , switch to SB (get quit a bit of endurance back), infiltrator’s arrow, 1-2 x dodge roll = should be way the kitten away from the fight)

For WvW, use Dire stats… :P

Overall (especially with dire) it’s kind of tanky and relys on bleed duration to kill someone as opposed to really condition damage (although obivious it helps, just if you notice the runes are mainly on extending bleeding).
“Loads” of conditions I guess, bleeds, torment, poision, immobo. Heavily reliant on stealth….

It’s a bit of a one trick pony though, as you will just repedately stealth and apply bleeds… Pretty easy to counter… but majority are scrubs and will come to QQ on these forums, so don’t worry you will roll people with this build.

phaeris.7604:

…
I guess you had better dry your eyes with those 11k backstabs and near perma invisibility.

I’m guessing your eyes aren’t dry… cuz…

Cynz.9437:

… stand in BP….

Stand in BP? That’s exactly what I’m doing and I think this skill is OP!

Yes, yes, i think you’ve done well. I appreciate you pushing my idea
Thank you.

Zero Day.2594:

I think….
We should, every day, post 1 skill or trait that the thief has, and come up with a reason that it’s OP.
That should speed up the process of the thief getting deleted and i think it would be fun for everyone

I think….
We should, every day, post 1 skill or trait that the thief has, and come up with a reason that it’s OP.
That should speed up the process of the thief getting deleted and i think it would be fun for everyone

It’s like people didn’t see gear switching with ascended as a problem in the first place…
O… wait…
Sorry to be rude, but did you really not see this coming? Or just the thought of “hey, i want to run a new build!… o wait…”
O well :P, we will see what they will do with their CDI’s…

Nerf everything but the warrior guys.
It’s the only prof that’s balanced and is not OP at all.

Cactus.2710:

Zero Day.2594:

Wait and see what actions they take from the CDI’s…

LOL. I literally laughed out loud when I read that. Thanks for the chuckle!

I know what you mean. :/
Don’t get me wrong, I don’t have much hope either.

Arganthium.5638:

We should make a list of the threads where serious nerfs are, in fact, called for.

For instance:

Steal
Consume Plasma
Whirling Axe
Skull Fear
Throw Gunk
Ice Shard Stab
Mace Head Crack

Stealth
Revealed on miss/block/blind/obstruct/etc

Weapon Skills
Backstab
Black Powder

Weapon Sets
Sword/Dagger (2)

This is the thread you’re looking for, and these nerfs have found their way in this very thread, just look through them some of the users have linked back to those mentioned threads.

Make no mistake, under the several levels of humor, sarcasm, and mockery, this is a very serious thread. Just think for a split second about it. Even the sarcasm/mockery makes this thread very serious and reflects something (not just that thieves cry…)…

Nerf, nerf all the things!

I just want to remind everyone:
https://forum-en.gw2archive.eu/forum/game/gw2/Condition-Damage-and-Stealth

So this nerf is very much viable and is possible.

Arganthium.5638:

Is everything that the thief has OP nowadays? …

So, funny, not long ago I started a post on “what’s not OP”, which builds in WvW/sPvP aren’t OP, for all classes. That thread got no where really.
Here’s the post:
https://forum-en.gw2archive.eu/forum/professions/balance/WvW-PvP-What-s-not-OP

Wait and see what actions they take from the CDI’s…

Introp.8465:

good thing that no one cares. here, have this, easy to play, no op stuff
http://www.thesims3.com/

:/ I think there might even be some balance issues in that game too…

Might I suggest:
http://www.amazon.com/DDI-PADDLE-GAME-10-PADDLE-BALL/dp/B0006GK7TM
Just make sure the paddle is flat and smooth and the ball is round as well. That game requires no patches, has about the same reward as chasing ascended armor, and the same challenge of rolling someone in WvW… it actually increases in difficulty the faster you go (it scales with your skills! just like fracts), so arguably it’s harder.

Viking Jorun.5413:

Oh man, I can’t wait for Repeater, Twisting Fangs, and Stab to be OP.

Dude… sssshhh
Only a selected few even know about the existence of those skills… and even fewer know how to get them…
With great power comes great responsibility… don’t take those skills lightly.

Sanduskel.1850:

Zero Day.2594:

It’s not only a nerf to thieves…
Stop QQ’ing about it. Sure arguably we will get hit the most, but making seem like it’s directed at us or as a consequence of us, essentially making it look like we’re at the center of the stage here, is really stupid and just looks like a selfish QQ thread…

Agreed. My thief will survive better now, so I don’t get the QQ.

That’s slightly funny and true…
“Survive better” only marginally better against zerkers in comparison to pre-patch…
I wouldn’t consider that a buff though, we will still drop like flies maybe a few milliseconds later. :P Nothing to celebrate about either.

1) Typically Infusion of shadows is used. But everyone’s build is different.
The d/p set usually runs the “perma-stealth”, relying on HS+Black Powder combo to enter stealth. From there backstabbing…
Yeah flanking strikes would make more sense. Personally I don’t run this build, I’m a condi p/d in spvp…
There’s loads and loads of builds posted on the forums and on youtube videos. Yishi (I think is he’s name), posts montages were he runs this build and d/d. Watch some of his videos, you might learn something…

2)Um typically full zerker. Then it gets into personal preferences if you want to mix in some Knights and/or Valk. You can do solider/knight mix too.
The thing you’re going to find is you will be giving up a lot of damage for barely noticeable survivability… but yeah try it out.

3) Utility’s are a bit all over the place.
Blinding Powder (yeah, that’s seen in all/most builds)
Infiltrator’s Signet…
Shadow Refuge…
Blinding Powder…
Shadow Step…
Some troll with all signets…
Again find some builds/watch some videos and see what people use and how.

4)The sad truth is, there is no “perma-stealth”. Well, there’s no permanent stealth… all of them run out.
You can, however chain them one after the other before one runs out. This creates the illusion as some morons call “perma-stealth”.
Typically this is done by powder/heartseeker combo, and with enough init regen from infiltrator’s signet and some traits you should be able to keep chaining the stealths together (ofc you might not have lots of init in doing this… but.. hey… it’s OP PERMA STLEATHZ, NERF PLOX)

5) Having the proper traits and utilities that help with init regen helps.. that and facing the camera down when leaping (and not having auto-targeting enabled) also helps.

6)Steal doesn’t break stealth, that I know. typically you’re roaming around… then you see someone you want to engage. at that point init starts to count (how you spend it)… you can get in range by just running up (should be able to by dodge and swiftness from it). at a decent range the person might start to engage you, or not, either way drop BP HS a few times, dodge/get swiftness + steal -> backstab… and then continue the duel.

7) SB is used for general purpose… using Infiltrator’s Arrow to move around. SB also provides good AoE, choking gas and mainly cluster bomb. Disabling Shot for disengaging… or also getting around (face backwards and shoot to go in the direction you want).
Problem with relaying on weapon swapping is, unlike other classes where they swap and all 4 skills are not on CD, we swap and are still limited by the remaining init. So yeah, that’s why most use SB… but there are builds that incorporate weapon swapping.
Personally in sPvP, my SB (p/d and SB) has the Energy sigil on it, because when i get it out, it’s usually to GTFO.

8) You learn to manage it with practice. No real secret here. As you get more comfy with the build/thief, you will manage it better.

9) Expeditious Dodger, in adept trait in Acro, provides plenty of swiftness, coupled with Feline Grace (also acro, master trait). From there chaining the swiftness together.

Swiftness doesn’t stack in “intensity”, but it stacks in duration.

Welcome and best of luck! Put on a rain jacket, because no matter how you play or what you play, there will be a storm of QQ tears.

Omnitek.3876:

When you gonna 1v1 me bro?

Zacchary.6183:

Those guys look like they sucked…. like massive pistol/pistol type of suck.

The average players WvW skill is… sub fry cook at a fast food joint. EotM skill level is “I failed to cook a hot pocket in the microwave because it took more than 3 button presses to start it”.

But bro, they gotta win (regardless of their lack of general PvP skills)… NERF THIEVES!

:/ Anything under (and including) 1m 39s on a microwave typically needs you to push 3 buttons including start/cook… Yeah without pressing cook/start, any time under (and including) 1m 39s can be punched in with two buttons.. think a bit #OP

@Zac
Thank you.

:\ You know the idiom “beating a dead horse”… The forums are a little bit more morbid than that, we constantly keep digging up the dead horse and continually beating on it to later bury it and dig it up again.

That said, and by the thing in my signature (though only related to asc weapons), I find the way ascended is implemented right now is done poorly, and unnecessary too.

But. They already had a CDI topic on this, I don’t think it’s really necessary to keep beating on it further… Now we just have to wait (hopefully not too long…) and see what course of action they do take.

Aioros.4862:

Are you sure it’s really that much of a difference?

To answer:

Verificus.4320:

…
A warrior with berserker gear, assuming no traits spent, food used or any buffs what so ever has the following stats with full berserker gear and scholar runes:

2083 Power
1614 Precision
69% CD

Same warrior with ascended gear, scholar runes and stat infusions:

2238 7,4%
1661 2,9%
79% CD 14,5%

That’s a 7,4% boost in power, a 2,9% boost in precision and 14,5% boost in crit damage.
Ofcourse someone else can prolly do the math on this and conclude this averages around a 5% boost in total dps output, however the claim most people make is that it’s a 5% STAT boost, which as you can see is not true.
…

2238 – 2083 = 155
1661 – 1614 = 47
79 – 69 = 10

So yeah, mathematically, there is a difference… or “it makes a difference”. "Much, it’s more than 1 difference it’s more than 2 … Where do you draw the line on what “much” means… I mean is there much of a difference between rares and exotics? or greens and rares… or blues and greens, or whites and blues… (yet for some odd reason… we tend to upgrade… I don’t even know what that reason is…)

It’s not only a nerf to thieves…
Stop QQ’ing about it. Sure arguably we will get hit the most, but making seem like it’s directed at us or as a consequence of us, essentially making it look like we’re at the center of the stage here, is really stupid and just looks like a selfish QQ thread…

Pretty sure you all are blind.
It is in fact good changes!

Instead of nerfing multiple skills in one patch, only one is being nerfed.
Instead of a giant nerf, it’s a small nerf.
Instead of nerfing crucial skills/traits, it’s a random skill that’s not really going to have much of an impact… (o.O did anyone see it coming? are we really going to QQ about a little poison duration reduction… compared to other nerfs we had…)

I don’t know guys, but I think it some good changes… Lol, it’s almost like you guys are expecting buffs to be handed out to us…

You will get more mileage out of a warrior (and guardian) in WvW and PvE, with a lot less stress.
WvW thieves are “locked” into roaming… Warriors/guards they can do w/e they want.

Fun, can’t say. I’m having more fun posting on the forums and playing the AH than playing the game on either thief, warrior, or guardian.

Define your meaning of fun.

1) No, short version. You can chain stealths, particular Black Powder + Heartseeker, to give you “constant” stealth. Try it. This is called “perma-stealth”, it is OP and is cried/QQ’ed about by everyone and their dogs.

2) When I played through the game first time, on the thief I would fight 1-2 mobs at a time… 2-3 mobs if I was brave. On the other hand, both warrior and guardian alts could both take on 2-4 at the same time. Black powder is nice here since it blinds constantly… so yeah you could take on more than one, without it…

3) Yes and No. Yes high damage, enough to make the up-levels QQ every week. No, not a lot of CC, compared to other classes (especially warrior).

Comparing thief to WoW’s rogue… both do a considerable amount of damage… rogue has more CC’s than thief… thief drops like a fly compared to rogue…
Stealth wise, it’s completely different, WoW is the normal stealth everyone is used to… GW2 stealth is more for tactical positioning… (both for getting away and so on…)

Also get ready for weekly QQ’s as thieves are the most OP class of them all. Looking through the nerf wish list in my sign. Particularly the ones I’ve posted there that were originally by someone else.

Terrahero.9358:

Zero Day.2594:

Thedenofsin.7340:

…
Put simply: the developers are completely wrong thinking warriors are in a good place, or only need a small adjustment.

Or they are right, but all the other classes are in a bad place and need major adjusts. (to be on par with a warrior)

;) depends on how you look at things…

Well lets look at what we know arenanet is going to do.

-Elementalist, buff.
-Engineers, nerf.
-Guardian, nerf.
-Mesmer, nerf.
-Necro, nerf
-Ranger, nerf (lol?)
-Thief, nerf.

Hell, most of these nerfs are bigger then the nerf to Warrior. Which has already been promised compensation for the slight HS nerf.
So it seems Arenanet honestly believes that Warriors are fine, Ele’s are slightly underpowered and everyone else is overpowered.

Just another reason to not take the current balance team serious.

You know… “Balance” could mean that it’s “balanced” around the warrior class… Say it’s in the center… each other class “specializes” in something (thief for instance, WvW roaming), leading away from the center… and in the center is the warrior that can do everything..

Thedenofsin.7340:

…
Put simply: the developers are completely wrong thinking warriors are in a good place, or only need a small adjustment.

Or they are right, but all the other classes are in a bad place and need major adjusts. (to be on par with a warrior)

;) depends on how you look at things…

Karolis.4261:

…
I wont comment about pvp side, cause it will always be countered by “Thief OP, pls nurf”…

Yup… And don’t know if you noticed but majority of QQ’s come from WvW’ers. The difference in (pvp) skill level between WvW’ers and sPvP’ers is very big. If you ever switched to sPvP’ing a lot and then switched back to WvW’ing, you would have noticed that in WvW there’s a metric kitten ton of people that literally can’t PvP in any sense.

Also to “Thief OP, pls nurf”… :| I can already tell you the winning argument that they will use down the road… Thief OP cuz STEALTH… if they mention stealth anywhere in their post, just let them win the argument… because trust me, you won’t (in your life time)… (look at all the QQ’ers posts, somewhere there’s some backup to their QQ that’s stealth related)

pretty sure ranger is “winning” right now, followed by ele…

1. Ranger
2. Thief (new roles (currently only roaming in WvW), survivability outside of stealth which would also mean less dependence on stealth…)

Ha! There’s a dev post on front page now… locked :|

NyuuNeeChan.2891:

I would like a remote
Remote control to low orbital ion canon.
Like skyhammer but bigger radius, and way more damage.

Now for some weapons that would be more likely to be added to game:
- Whip – i could turn my lil sylvari into lust driven dominatrix
- Nunchaku
- Angle grinder or chainsaw
- Gatling gun

And

-.- god… that picture looks like a possibly new legendary…
Please don’t give them any ideas…
Quip is already troll enough…

I don’t mean to sound like an kitten or displeased with the whole CDI or impatient for that matter…
But when will there be actions as of result from previous CDIs (Story, Character progression)?
To a degree I understand that certain changes require time for things to settle (and to be developed), but small changes can still happen that would move things forward later… right? Just another way to acquire ascended armor (dont say drops…) would go a long way.

I believe someone already mentioned, when a change happens as a result of a CDI it should be pointed out. It would be neat to see what impact the CDIs already have had.

The only thing exciting looking forward to right now is the next “balance” patch (including re-worked runes?). To see how many changes (nerfs) are made to my main class. And to try and adapt after the patch.

Still CDI is already something new that no other game (might be ignorant here) is doing or have done. So overall it’s already a good step forward. Neat to see/read suggestions ideas.

(Sorry to make this one of the last posts…)

RedSpectrum.1975:

Ofc the warrior gets the best one, even if it is fake

Considering that and thieves getting a trap (remember ANet loves thief’s traps and venoms)… It makes it look legit, just the mesmer bit throws it off…

ManCaptain.3154:

Zero Day.2594:

Aza.2105:

…
doesn’t have any warning signs to counter play.
…

Warning Sign: Thief is in stealth. (and has a melee weapon set, dem back stabs)
Meaning: Possible burst of damage will happen, more likely if the thief is higher health than you.
Proposed Reaction: Run forward, sparsely dodge rolling to gain distance and stall till stealth runs out, possibly dodge a backstab as well.
People’s Reaction: Stand in place. Or, run around in circles (not creating distance). Or slowly walk backwards…

I love to spend all my endurance dodge rolling every time a thief enters stealth. I do it because I have 1000 dodges to spend. I also love how thief doesn’t lose stealth and backstab opportunity or any initiative for spamming skills 2,3,4,5 if they hit me while I’m dodging.

So I take it, you stand in place when the thief stealths?
Do you bend over as well?

MIrra.3604:

Zero Day.2594:

MIrra.3604:

Zero Day.2594:

“perma stealth” – one more scrub that’s easy to kill, you’re close to realizing that it’s not “perma” rather stacking… check the dictionary on what permanent means…
Anyways, I’ll be adding your post to the nerf wishlist….
Keep it going guys! Nerf everything, don’t give a kitten about roles (or lack thereof), and other reasons why stealth is a must right now for thieves!

Yummy tears….

Thank you for adding nothing to the topic of discussion other than correcting me on a nickname given to thieves that abuse stealth mechanics.

This is why us thieves keep getting nerf so hard each patch. When we keep saying l2p you kittening noob! QQ more! Yumy tears! I have done that in the past but I think the best path forward is to give constructive changes so that the nerf will be negligible and with compensation when required.

Yes constructive, non-emotional, feed back…
Compare your post to:
https://forum-en.gw2archive.eu/forum/professions/balance/Thief-Mug-and-CnD-change-suggestions

Both suggest a nerf/change… can you tell me the difference? And i’m not going to troll him either, unlike you.

Plus most nerf requests are narrow minded… “STEALTH IS THE PROBLEM… NERF NERF NERF…” (or evade, or …) well… why do you use stealth so much? Are there alternatives? What roles need stealth?

I use stealth as a class mechanic within the scope the game developers intended. Such as chain CnD and when I’m in a pinch, Shadow Refuge. It compensate the class for its lack of protection, stability, etc. Since stealth stacking via using the same skill over and over again is not intended, then that is grounds for a nerf. Correct me if I’m wrong.

Yes, there are other fun builds out there with limited stealth uses. Try the 10/30/0/0/30 S/P build as an example.

There are no roles that need stealth. Stealth just complement a role.

It compensate the class for its lack of protection, stability
Great we’re onto something here…

So, stealth stacking, where is it used (PvE/WvW/sPvP)? What “role” uses it(Roaming/Supporting/…/in a zerg?)? What’s it’s purpose (what do people achieve by running that kind of build (centered around stealth, HS, and backstabs))?

10/30/0/0/30 S/P build, where can is it used? How effective is it compared to stealth builds? What role uses it? How effective is it in comparison to other classes fulfilling the same “role”?

There are no roles that need stealth. Stealth just complement a role.
Yeah, just some use it more than others… It becomes almost a staple to them.

Originally by: MIrra.3604

What: Heartseeker’s leap finisher through smoke field
Why: Their ability to stack stealth in excess of 10+ secs duration is a bit overwhelming to counter. There are different builds ranging from tank/condi to pure 10K+ BS burst all of which can maintain perma stealth. If you want perma stealth, I expect your BS to hit like a wet noodle. Basically, I want to reduce the “reward” for low risk skills.
Suggestion:
Leap finisher through smoke field gives 2 secs of stealth instead of 3.
Example BP + 3 HS combos:
3*2=6 secs of stealth
3-4 secs used to execute combo
Net gain of 2-3 stealth after complete combo.

VS.

Original BP + 3 HS combos:
3*3=9 secs of stealth
3-4 secs used to execute combo
Net gain of 5-6 secs of stealth after complete of combo.
Thread: https://forum-en.gw2archive.eu/forum/professions/balance/WvW-Thief-Stealth-Stacking

Imagi.4561:

Burnfall.9573:

“Doubt, indulged and cherished, is in danger of becoming denial; but if honest, and bent on thorough investigation, it may soon lead to full establishment of the truth”.

“perma stealth” – one more scrub that’s easy to kill, you’re close to realizing that it’s not “perma” rather stacking… check the dictionary on what permanent means…
Anyways, I’ll be adding your post to the nerf wishlist….
Keep it going guys! Nerf everything, don’t give a kitten about roles (or lack thereof), and other reasons why stealth is a must right now for thieves!

Yummy tears….

Devata.6589:

Zero Day.2594:

:| Compared to MapleStory up to patch 0.37 (quit after)… yeah not that bad…

Do you know who was the monetization manager (or whatever they called it there) for MapleStory? You know who is the monetization manager for GW2?

and that’s my point…
(soon will be worse )

:| Compared to MapleStory up to patch 0.37 (quit after)… yeah not that bad…

The sad thing is, the amount of re-vamping/re-design needed will take them years considering how often “balance” patches come out… :‘(
Till then, sit back, and enjoy the QQ-ing tears… they’re delicious…

Smooth Penguin.5294:

I think Linux gamers are too small of a population…

I think it’s the lack of games on Linux is the reason the gamer population is small…
If I could have all/most of my games on Linux, I would ditch windows without a second thought.

But since the OpenGL kittened up at some point in time with becoming popular… and DirectX prevailed… Gamers were pretty much locked into Windows…

:/ Running things through Wine doesn’t always work…

:D
Add all your nerf requests to the wish list (in signature)

Zero Day.2594:

So, kind of curious…
What new roles will these changes bring to WvW thief?
And what are the current role(s) that the WvW thief has?
(nvm spvp, as the issue with capping… Plus majority of QQ’s come from WvW players)

No one thinking high-level enough to answer?
The problem is STEALTH and ONLY STEALTH…. everything else is not concerning…?

This how I play my warrior alt (and still get through things)…
Requires a lot of speed, hand dexterity, and brain power…
OP? Nah… don’t touch em… my alt needs to be easy

But… people want a “fair” fight… so they QQ at classes like the thief.

So, kind of curious…
What new roles will these changes bring to WvW thief?
And what are the current role(s) that the WvW thief has?
(nvm spvp, as the issue with capping… Plus majority of QQ’s come from WvW players)

The QQ’ing will never end!
https://forum-en.gw2archive.eu/forum/professions/thief/S-D-Thief-Too-Strong-Discussion/first
4 Months later:
https://forum-en.gw2archive.eu/forum/professions/balance/Pvp-Thief-S-D-thief-is-still-too-strong/first

Burnfall.9573:

Zero Day.2594:

Imagi.4561:

Judging from the build he posted, I’d have to say that thread is just a troll.

Yeah more then likely… But some of the more serious ones i would have thought they were trolls too (chocking gas, 1st page)… Either way all nerfs are welcome!

I’m glad you understand the hardship and the unfairness we (other classes) are going through with thief out of control, outrageous, notorious design, mechanics.

thanks for not being in denial of the Truth

“Doubt, indulged and cherished, is in danger of becoming denial; but if honest, and bent on thorough investigation, it may soon lead to full establishment of the truth”.

x.X well aren’t I a nice guy…

Ashen.2907:

Nike.2631:

I go and see movies in the theater 1-2 times a month and come out satisfied at my purchase. As long as an MMO entertains me completely for a couple hours each month I’ve never had an issue with the concept of paying the sub.

But I am much more critical of sub-based games when they falter. If you are going to charge me the equivalent of a whole new game every 4 months, you have better (&^*&#$ing deliver something impressive no less than twice a year. Three times a year preferably.

Agreed.

A single ticket for a two hour movie generally runs $13.50 to $15.50 in my area. $15 per month for two hours a day (or more) of a game that I enjoy is a bargain.

:P You’re just trying to justify the spending… Not really asking yourself if the game itself deserves it, or what gets you the from the subscription vs a game without a subscription… What’s the $15 worth? Kind of hard to explain…

That argument is almost on, or nearing, the lines of… what you can’t afford to spend $15? People typically say that too… sure $15 is not much, but… why should i pay it? what do i get from it? It’s a bit more than just affording $15 worth of something… If $15 is nothing, give it to me, i will tell you some random fact… What you can’t afford to spend $15?

Both just trying to justify the spending, or the ability to spend…

Nothing personally against you.

No.
Gem-store is fine, doesn’t provide any advantage. It’s more of a donation to ANet/GW2 team.
Converting gems to gold does provide some advantage, but very negligible compared to other pay2win games.
Just because you pay $10-15/month doesn’t imply that the service is “good”, doesn’t really mean much… I would bring up WoW, as in where exactly does the $15/month go? Pretty sure the uptime of both WoW and GW2 are the same, the content* is about the same… Just WoW happily takes a subscription, justifying by various means (server fees! moar content! service support!… money in my pocket!), while GW2 says “donate if you like” (don’t think there’s any justification why to, or “if you donate we will do something”, simply a donation)…
Furthermore, having a subscription would actually provoke more time-gating or lengthen game time in general (possibly in more subtle ways then plain time gating)…

Content wise I mean:
GW2 releases some sort of non-permanent content every two weeks, you don’t get much except for some achievement rewards… Generally you do the same thing in them too…
WoW releases content every 4 months(?) or so free, plus expansions (which you pay for, on top of monthly). Each new content makes old content obsolete to a good degree. The new content involves the same quests in different settings with different names and numbers and possibly a new raid which is another mechanical dance routine that you typically learn in a few runs… rest of your time is spent on getting top gear before the next content arrives, to do the same thing in the next one. (PvP wise, if you lack skill, just grind out some conquest points, get a good set, and you should roll people easier). Oh yeah, some content release include dungeons, that follow the same principle as the previous ones…

Essentially, one releases temporary content, while the other replaces content with seeming new ones (old content->obsolete, new->same as old one, but “new”)…
Difference:
GW2 – you can donate if you like.
WoW – pay for all the glorious content and server up time (myth to a certain degree)…

People also compare it to other types of entertainment (say going to the movies every month)… and attempt to justify their subscription that way… People tend to justify also by their salary as well (pfft, 15/month? that’s nothing… you must live in a cave if you can’t pay that or make nothing)…

But hey! $15/month must mean that there’s more content and it’s better too, I’m just over-thinking things!

>.> You know a part of me to a certain degree actually believes this post, and that the build might be a legit one someone used…
:( I’m sorry…