Guild Wars 2

you get 10k achievements points! where points may or may not matter XDDD

heya spalt, i’m no fractal expert myself and been meaning to get more into it (for the longest time lol), but maybe you can start here?

http://www.guildwars2guru.com/topic/84006-guardian-video-guide-for-fractals-of-the-mist-shown-at-48/

know that of course, obal runs at high level fractals but i believe the general build still works at all levels. and definitely more forgiving at lower levels. one of the most important things i feel as well is to know the encounters, and when to use which weapons, skills and utilities.

you can see that to a certain extent in his videos against the bosses. or check out :Strife’s Fractal Guides

though, after you get your feet wet, try out different builds and find something that works for you. and would be best to find a consistent group to keep doing it with so you get used to playnig with other and can count on one another if needed. you can end up being stuck in fractals forever if you wind up in a PUG that just doesn’t click.

good luck

thanks, Silven. very nice. yea i can see how the 5 in Radiance can make a difference.
ha, i have yet try this MI glitch. but i assume an ally HAS to be nearby? or will the effects trigger even without the port?

ah, gotcha. so i guess what happened was the Guard came around the corner, stepped onto the pad, binding blades while he backed off, and then pulled when the pad disappeared.

and… laser isn’t dodgeable atm? O_____o i read somewhere that it was. but i haven’t been able to successfully dodge the damage, when i couldn’t get out in time. so.. it’s not me? lol

yea, i felt that too. the longer the fight dragged on, the less edge i had in fights against varying mes / necro’s.

o the horror! of being impaled by a Kiel banner >:DDD

like timidobserver mentioned, i feel like your best bet would be to bring a lot of condi removal, and a LOT of damage.

my experience with condition/shatter mesmers or condi necros while being successful is when you’re able to stay on them like no other and apply nonstop pressure. don’t let them control the pace – which i feel you have a lot of practice with already. GS and sword i feel would be good against a mesmer. lot of AoE, fast paced attacks, some control via a pull, and mobility. so it’s good you’re an expert at those sets.

in terms of build though, that’s what i’m trying to think of. iirc, you mentioned before you were most comfortable playing the Healway. would you be willing to switch it up right before you play? obviously, you’ll get some practice in before hand.

i feel meditations are a good way to go. you have one mass condi convert (though dangerous against a necro), another one condi cleanse every 16s, and you can pack purity as well as signet of resolve for two passive cleanses every 10s. JI gives you another port as well. obviously, can trait for medi’s to heal which are really strong but then that dictates 30 into Valor right off the bat.

i used to run a 0/0/30/20/20 which is semi-bunker. so you can pick up absolute resolution as well which is even more condi cleanse. but then, i fear you might be losing out on some damage needed to shut those condi builds down.

i’ve been using the torch a lot lately and i reckon it’s a very strong set. i dno’t mind the increased CD on zealot’s fire as mentioned it’s a very strong burst skill.

yea, cleansing flame is not the best DPS. you actually lose out if you were to simply AA with sword or scepter. although, it has it’s uses for condition cleansing. would be nice if it would cleanse conditions on yourself as well.

hmm one small idea. if you took the Torch trait, in addition to shorter CD’s, what if cleansing flame would convert conditions on allies? or perhaps, while cleansing the conditions on your allies, the respective boons would be placed on you? though again, still very situational. but would give the torch a little more reactive play and depth.

hmm, just came up with a build in mind. though it’s solely built for the purpose of the candidate trials and “succeeding”, i.e. getting the achievements. i’ll be testing it over the weekend and if it ends up being even remotely successful, i’ll share it here haha

Lord Sarok.4369:

Hey Stunningsyles! Keep up the awesome work. Oh… and please please please switch your vids to mobile viewing so I can watch on the go!

2nd-ed! XDD

hey Foegrim, here’s some small suggestions. Mainly changed up the armor and one small trait change – like Wukunlin mentioned, Fiery Wrath in Zeal (II) and if you’re sticking with 20 in Valor, i’d pick up Strength in Numbers (IV) over Retributive Armor (V) as well. know that on buildcraft it still only adds 70, so add another 80 manually to see the actual effect. and this only happens when in combat.

seeing Wu’s comment re: Blind Exposure, that may be a very good idea actually since you’re running both swords. though maybe consider taking Shelter if you feel Signet heal’s CD is too long. though you lose your passive condition removal.

http://gw2buildcraft.com/calculator/guardian/?3.3|1.1g.h1h|c.1g.h2.e.1g.h1j|1c.79.1p.79.1c.79.1p.79.1c.79.1p.79|4s.d19.2s.d19.3s.d19.3s.d19.2s.d19.3s.d19|k27.u2ab.k49.0.0|0.0|v.1a.13.10.1k|e

i just quickly swapped in some soldiers/valkyrie armor. you do lose out on some crit chance, but you’re still hitting 65% on sword and 40%+ on GS. you have slightly higher effective power and higher effective health with this set up. mainly because your 10k health was a little low for my liking. : ))

since you don’t have any redy condition removals, in WvW your small HP pool won’t last long, especially against condition heavy classes or in large scale battles.

the runes you can keep, although i’d probably go for something else power based if that’s what you want. namely because you’re not packing as much might application as other builds might be able to. [edit: ah, missed your sigil of battle. you could build up a steady stack using the GS, and if that’s the case, maybe consider 3 Hoelbrak, 3 Strength? for 40% might duration, and just a slight loss of power. unless if you intend to keep the 4th and 6th effect of the Hoelbreak runes : ))]

and for utilities, Sanctuary is great, but the CD is long as is even when traited. so it’s up to you to keep that or not. could throw in Stand Your Ground, or Smite Condition. two of the best skills imo, even untraited, for their utility vs CD.

hope this helps! am sure more can further improve the build.

[edit: definitely use consumables!! master maintenance oil to boost up the precision that was lost. as well as food which ever suits your taste or the situation. i like having weapons that have stacking sigils as well – another source of power (Bloodlust sigil) or precision (Perception), up to you. and then switch back to your normal weapons.

and re: the tome, if you’re in a group, Tome of Wrath could work (for WvW), if you’re running around on your own, i’d suggest Renewed Focus : ))]

that was quite the enjoybale watch, personally. : )) the commentary made the video for me though lol.

it’s all a learning experience and everyone starts somewhere. glad your group was patient enough to explain and not blow up at you. just let the group know if you’re ever doing a path for the first time. heck, i still let people know i’m not familiar with certain encounters cause some groups i’ve been in the past don’t teach, they just lead. it’s easy enough to follow, but if you don’t treally learn why you do things a certain way, then you can’t teach the next group you’re in, which may have people who are new as well. and this is all based on if you want to have the “smoothest” run possible.

so like others mentioned, you can always post in gw2lfg and ask specifically for a casual run, wanting to watch all cut scenes, etc. am sure there are like-minded people out there. : )))

and good luck with your future dungeoneering!

if you’re playing with hammer, taking larger and healing symbols, try mace as a 2nd set, drop mace symbol, then switch to hammer and keeping dropping your auto symbols. then switch back to mace every 2 – 3 auto chains for another mace symbol drop. that’s two symbols of healing, plus healing from symbol of faith, and protection from hammer. : ))

@Amins – oh wow, i didn’t even notice you came out of combat then. haha switching utils mid fight, really playing towards the situation! and yea doode, i ALWAYS forget Bane signet is 1200 range and feel like i have to run up close. :///

agreed re: warriors. they’re pretty darn mobile if they want to be. if they’re good and they wanna get away? they’ll get away.

@Tarsius – i guess i should give MI a shot first.. but does it have to work with an ally around? i’ve been mainyl using bane in PvE now (frigging achievements) and loving the extra power. active is way fun too (e.g. candidate trials). haha i pretty much have the same utils as well. JI and SC i absolutely love. sometmies i’ll take CoP over smite condi though depending.

yea, at this moment, i feel the MF buff is nice, but nowhere near game changing. i’d be interested to try out MI, but i feel i won’t enjoy it. a 6k heal sounds nice, but what happens if you’re stuck in a fight with no one else around? i guess i can’t see myself giving up the utilities i’m used to for MI. but, nevertheless, i’ll have to give it a shot first.D

ahh, finally tried with me wife on her thief. was definitely more challenging than i thought. the mobs were getting kinda ridiculous, lol, so we’re both gonna try again solo for the achieves and then we’ll see if we ever step back in there again haha.

was using scepter and hammer which were extremely useful. also bane signet and signet of wrath. lot of control. might even switch focus on scepter to shield for one more KB.

i’d imagine hydromancy sigils would be useful too. though, probably overkill. but if you already have them on the right weapon sets, why not : ))

oh gosh, not again.
i like numbers, but not THIS much.

request – more fight narratives and videos for those who can’t readily log into WvW as much, please! pretty please with a loot bag on top. or maybe a wooden chest.

Charak.9761:

akamon.2769:

heh, agreed. my main Guardian has like.. 7 – 8 sets of armor already. :///
so i started and leveled a 2nd Guardian working on 2nd set for him now haha.

le sigh.

…why…

just make a zerker/knight set and be done

healing ratios dont scale, you dont need vit, and they’re removing magic find on armour

short answer: cause i can and have fun with it lol.

long answer: haha, for one, i clearly have a problem.

two, it’s just another way for me to have fun in the game. i like collecting weapon skins / armor skins ( so imagine all the weapon skins i have to go for each build!). i had a lot of fun putting them together without ever using the same piece twice.

and then… varying builds for fun with a full zerker GC, to some more “tanky”, and then hybrids, healing builds in between. and they all have different themes to them that match up, ranging from the “concept” of the build, the way it performs, the traits, the weapons / sigils / runes i chose, to the dyejob, etc etc i can go on lol. don’t have an MF set though (i did way back when), don’t believe in it and glad they’re removing it from armor.

i guess bottom line, i just had a lot of ideas i wanted to try and some i liked and wanted to keep, and to me, it’d be a waste to just use trans stones each time or reslot upgrades / sigils. so why not collect armor skins that i enjoy while i was at it. just happy i found a class i can do this with.

i like to mix/max stats, etc, and find builds that are strong performers. but i’m more about viable and fun >>> optimal performance if you will.

i’m so sad. intothemists doesn’t work for me at work for me. outdated browers and needing admin access to download anything. :///

will have to rrmember to check this out at home.

haha do you happen to have cragstone as a shield?? one of my goals is to get all the ele weapons. mjolnir being the holy grail of course. i’m getting there.. slowly but surely. :PPP

agreed with GS for roaming but when not alone, like you said, even if just 2 buddies, hammer can offer a lot more. staff has quick AoE and the castable symbol is to die for at times i like dropping wall and then symbol on the many folks that get stopped in their tracks.

i am using Primevil shoulders lol. didn’t like them at first, but they grew on me and kinda gives my Guard the i-slay-evil-and-wear-it-as-armor type look. probs won’t match your radiant gloves haha. slightly opposite on the dyes, i use white and abyss instead with the same composition lol. mainly did so to match wolfborn norn t3 weapons!

back on track, so, yes, many variants for the symbol build!D
i’ve recently been playing a 5/10/30/20/5 as well in sPvP and it’s been working quite well. playing with MF and Meditation’s instead with both passive condition cleanses.

heh, agreed. my main Guardian has like.. 7 – 8 sets of armor already. :///
so i started and leveled a 2nd Guardian working on 2nd set for him now haha.

le sigh.

are they viable? yes. are they optimal? really depends on the situation! had your group been a non-speed running group (i’m assuming based on your story), and they kept getting low on health, having you as an “anchor” could have made the difference between succedding or wiping.

that being said some have mentioned, there is no “tanking” in the traditional sense of drawing aggro and allowing all the mobs to focus on you. this is my first MMO so i am only using these terms as what i’ve gathered from hearing others talk about it. and so to me tanking in gw2 really means being able to survive, sustain and outlast. i.e. not dying.

then does that mean you must sacrifice damage to do it? probably a bit. but that doesn’t mean yuo can’t still hit hard and contribute to the group’s DPS.

you can definitely still do dungeons using the build you are. it’s a great build to start on and if the group’s you’re in don’t have MAX DPS, then it’s a good build to have in a group, imho. though of course you could tweak your armor to be a little lower since you have quite a bit, and transfer some of that into power, for example.

i would recommend keep going at your pace, and when you feel comfortable eough for whatever content you may be interested of focused on at the moment, start to shift your egar around. not necessarily more DPS, but to more suit your playstyle. as the game continues to evolve, so will the players – thus the builds and skills we use. so i encourage all to keep experimenting and coming up with new builds. or same builds, but new gear. anything goes and you’ll notice there’s a lot you can do.

though, at the end of the day, if something works for you, if you enjoy something, go for it and don’t let naysayers and debbie downers drag you to where they dwell.

^^^ lol fair enough. and agreed. i was playing devil’s advocate >:DD

but hear me out, i was more getting at this —> i believe you could build in such a way that the staff does really massive DPS. but of course, to your point, one would need to utilize all the weapon has to offer. staff 4 to open up fights. staff #5 [edit: donno why s t a kitten was censored O___o], disable mobs for a few seconds, while you group stack demolishes them, throw a 3 down as well for more AoE. staff 1 to clean up. staff 2 for more dmg or heals if needed. while running from A to B, staff 3 for swiftness, and 5 for blocking a choke point if you’re leashing / running past mobs, etc etc…

so my point is/was.. i do believe all weapons can be viable (sure, some may be better suited for other situations), in the right hands. so it’s not only a matter of weapon or utility choice then, but how that player chooses to use them. and to a certain extent, how well your group knows to respond to your choices and actions.

i.e. don’t judge a player just by what weapon set they choose. take a moment to see how they perform with their weapon of choice first. same goes with utilities. same goes with builds.

it was Korean last night for me.

>:DDD
it’s more Amins going back to where he came from, heh.

pretty interesting build, doode! and i like how it performs.
though when you were chasing that runner, i was waiting for binding blades!!!! : ((( i am disappoint lol.

the shield of wrath + zealot’s defense take down really highlights the Guard’s potential to burst. fun times.

the celes trinkets really work in your favor here. : ))

and okay okay, one last thing. i ought to try Bane Signet into WvW. i use it in PvP and it’s so. much. fun. the passive is pretty darn strong. and the active comes out of nowhere, not much people can do to prevent it.

good stuff.

i’ve learnt that if you’re in a group, and they tell you off for using certain weapons (least on the Guardian), they just donno what they’re talking about.

@Blasino – ; )) that is all. lol and thanks for the build share!

@Blazin’ – doode, crazy. very nice build. i’ve run a hammer + mace symbol build and quite love it. torch i have not yet tried with symbols, but i can imagine it being very stong as well. hammer is great in groups, though i can’t help but feel if against 1 or 2 better players, GS performs slightly better. especially if your opponent knows that you have buffed symbols.

and even more crazy. one of the sets my Guard has looks EXACTLY the same as you do, even colorwise. :/// except i have different shoulders. and i am still working on that hammer. lol

@Knox – agreed, Persistence with hammer works very well. especially in PvE situations. PvP/WvW it depends i want to say on your opponents. but in large fights, might as well. and the hammer offers two CC’s as well so that helps too actually.

didn’t we used to be noobs when we did play scepter? those people.

i will say scepter makes trials almost trivial. and it IS very strong. but i don’t play it for ranged. i play scepter in your face. so, OP, you go play how you want, the way you want. don’t let others affect how you enjoy and perform in the game.

when i ran AH, i never ran with EM, and some may argue the build loses out, but i did enough damage and survived enough for my own liking. : ))

if i play with hammer, GS or mace, most likely staff as well, i will always almost always take Writ of Exaltation.

apparently monthly works as well, so if you haven’t gotten that yet. worth a shot. i haven’t tested this myself since both my monthlies were done already. so technically, 2 days would suffice if this worked, for the “daily” achievements.

done deal, voting for Gnashblade!

anyone get some footage of the fight? sounded like a lot of fun.

Xista.7391:

GSSBlunaspike.4153:

Well add guardian to the professions that can solo all 4 tiers.

can confirm

Was surprised what my scepter could do when specced properly =D

heh, figured scepter would do the job. ; )) waiting to get home to try it out.

for GNASHBLADEEEe

true true. t-1hr, dinner with the parentals and hopefully i’ll get to try this out. : ))
thanks for the “preview”, GSS. lol

hey Silven, do you reckon there’d be a need for a specific spec for the new Skyhammer map? thuogh really, as long as you maximize your stability uptime, use CC and stunbreaks accordingly, you should be alright. was thinking maybe having traited hallowed ground would be good for fights at the laser playform.

also, one neat trick with the GS: while capping either of the side points, a Guard from the opposite team came around the corner, and used binding blade with the disappearing platforms between the point and himself, then just as the platform disappears, he pulls 3 of us down. and then i assume he capped the point. :///

i started doing it to others and works really well. same can be done across the map. although, i guess getting the timing off is the hard bit. haven’t played the map enuogh yet – are they just timed? i know theyy seem to spaz out a bit before they disappear.

bri.2359:

I almost fell off my chair when I saw that fizzy drink tins hammer!
The melee weapons are horrendous, anet seems to hit new lows with every new weapons skins release.

So, no steampunk guardian here, doesn’t really fit my female norn …

hey, bri! been a while. lol @ fizzy drink tins. the animation is quite interesting though! definitely a fan of the pistol and rifle. but that’s a story for another day.

btw, big fan of your Norn Guard! great, simplistic look.

and in case you haven’t seen them yet:
http://www.reddit.com/r/Guildwars2/comments/1iwnq1/anyone_noticed_the_new_armours/

you can go preview them now in PvP!

lol, don’t do Kiel’s!!!!!11

yea so i read up a bit (since i can’t play, that’s the next best thing), i figured i’d just use my PvE build, which also has RHS and just use scepter. i have Scepter Power traited too so that should help.

do you know how the gold/silver/bronze mechanic works here? i’m assuming the more you kill, the higher “score” you get? although it seems for completing and getting the achievement, you can get by just killing the plunderers.

don’t kill Motto! then we’ll NEVER see SAB again! :OOOO

and i need a super hammer.

i tried messing around with the armor as well. : )) i will say, i would do the same as Amins did and move 20 into Honor – a great line if you’re investing in Healing Power. I would personally have taken Larger Symbols (III) and Healing Symbols (X) like Amins did. but just cause i’m a huge symbol fan. GS + Mace/Focus is a good set up for symbols as well. in additino, with high healing, which scales 1:1 with Selfless Daring (dodge heals 15 into Honor), you get even more sustain that way for you and those around you.

that being said though, i don’t want to drastically change your build, so here’s some gear changes. and i DID add food and stones for buff it up a bit more.

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fUEQNApdRlYgSD3GyIEf4ESmiVCBtUQQA01DIKiaIA-jAzAothISQSI9JQZRBx0oyadLsV3oVeDiqBTpKkqVjsLpIa1CBgcMA-e

i took Blind Exposure instead of Searing Flames since you’ll be blinding quite a bit with GS 3 Focus 4 and F1 spam. vulnerability adds damage for not just you but anyone else hitting the same target. so you can make up for some damage there for the loss in power.

retaliation while very strong, i personally don’t build around it and see it is passive/ additional damage. even with lower power, you’ll still be hitting for around 300 per retal.

NOTE: lol if you’re sticking with your build, energy sigils not necessary since you don’t have the heal on dodge trait (15 into Honor).

though health, while a bit higher, is still slightly low for my taste. quick ques – what game mode is this gonna be for? i’m assuming PvE since you had the build on that tab?

someone on reddit said that a dev said that the rapier may come at a later time.

take it for what you will. : ))

can’t wait to test these out ;DDD
i wanna go home and play!

Christos de Soufre.3802:

YEAH, TEAM GNASHBLADE!

reminds me, i ought to update my sig as well ; ))

it’s nice they added a “when” component as opposed to “if” yuo get the weapon skins. but again, like a few have mentioned, i’d rather not have had the drop rate for the keys changed.

lol i completely forgot yesterday was tuesday! and i just read the patch this morning after i got to the office. sadfacepanda. loll

will be exciting to try. i hearT4 is pretty darn tough!

FOR GNASHBLADEEEEEEEEEe

lolll
i remember those good ol’ days.

i’ll always remember this one instance, where a guy was mad complaining. some puny human thief. and then enters the instance a new challenger. a max width, max height Norn, in bright pink. spiky armor. and his name was “Blocking Your View”.

but HEY that backpiece looks greatD
XDDDDDDDDdd

Smite hits rapidly over the duration. Symbols would only tick damage once per second. i think is the difference. but with Smite, if it’kittenting multiple enemies, the damage gets spread out. though, it’s great for proccing on-crit effects or passive VoJ, which a symbol cannot AS readily provide.

i would love for each weapon set to have symbols. then i won’t always be playing mace only for symbol builds. though i love the mace itself. heh.

i think sword 2 would be kinda neat for a symbol. cause it’s a tele gap closer, and the symbol only pops when you land your hit (if it’s blocked or blinded, does it still drop?) so the symbol is placed directly on your opponent. whereas with sword 3, a lot of times good enemies will know to dodge out of it already so the symbols effect is kind of half loss – though of course, you can always use your other skills to reign ’em back in.

aww i want to go home and play!!! stuck at work right now. lol.

hmm, i feel in PvE or even dungeons, if you know the content and encounters well enough, you can go full offense – but, that is on the pretense that your ENTIRE group knows what’s going on as well. healing/support based Guardians will still have a place ni PUGs i feel, if the PUGs happen to need it. so it’s sort of a hit or miss i feel. and you’ll definitely kill slower, which can also lead to PUGs doing not as well the longer you take. so can your healing/support provide for those times in need?

at the same time, i’ve read many people who do still play healing based builds in high level fractals as well. i personally think they are more fun in PvP settings : ))

haha very nice path for Rangers. i started one just a week ago and been having a blast. now even more so.

glad you guys are getting some good lovin’.