Guild Wars 2

Dinwoodie.6289:

Hey everyone!

So I am fairly new to GW2 and very green to PvP but I have been giving it a go the last few days, and I must say of all the MMO’s that I have played the PvP in GW2 is extremely unbalanced.

I play a thief with 15.5k HP and have been hit by warriors for 9k+ hits. If I manage to get a backstab off from stealth the most it crits for is 6k. So hitting a toon with 21k hp for 6 k when they can just turn around and drain 3/4 of my health is absolutely outrageous.

Is there something I am overlooking or am not doing or is this the reality of pvp in GW2?

I am very open to discussion and would love to hear other peoples opinions. Cheers

there are mechanics other than damage numbers that balance thief vs war.

as for 9k hit, most likely it was eviscerate and there are ways to avoid it. if you are new, you prob dont quite know what happened, but depending on situation there are number of things you could have done to void it.

also: when learning combat, i usually prefer to come with tankier build. you may not necessarily win with with low damage, but you will have more time to observe the combat and learn. you can switch to glassy 15k builds later.

Bhawb.7408:

Completely agree here. Summons should always be attacking the same target as their master, with one exception I’ll list because it’d be too hard to really program against and it requires skill, I’ll put that below. Aggro issues are far too prevalent, and have been since launch.

well, that would be whole different ball game. if no more artificial (but rather human managed), i guess everyone is for intelligent play.

but these plans (of revamping entire ai play) are unrealistic (or distant future at best).

Blasino.3128:

I would say half an engie….

:D

what’s worst than engi for guardian?

answer: 2 engis

garythesnail.8475:

Both + Mesmer and Elementalist

yeah, gl with that and enjoy.

meanwhile, wish those who care could enjoy pvPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP

@garythesnail let me guess: bounce sb auto around minion swarm, keep retreating with #3 and jump at helpless necro once zoo is cleared.
or throw grenades from 1500.
which one are you?

imo this is a lost cause. player base is addicted to AI “pvp”, anet doesnt mind this, this will never get reversed.

only question: is it possible (under current setup) to somehow organize custom arena banning these build? i guess one can always kick out players? but thats only when owner is playing?

who’s community coordinator currently? alli was here every day in every other topic. and to think many still flamed her.

Nary Why Irk.8150:

- 2 vs 2 / / 3 vs 3 Game mode

- Guild Wars Game mode. Lord / / castle fights. Maps // isle // copy paste gw1 gvg / ha maps. Easy.

- Ladders with specific rewards for conquest. Unique titles, unique skins, unique weapons for pvp players.

- More skills / balance of existing skills. More build diversity.

- 1 vs 1 duel game mode.

- 8 vs 8 heroes ascent like game mode.

- precursors / legendary weapons for high performance on ladders both solo team q.

- Higher gold income from matches in pvp.

- Reworked rank system to convert it to rank 80 prestige system. New polished and prestigious finishers. Ways of showing pvp performance, leaderboard presence, experience in pvp.

imo current gold is enough

when i do NOT have absolute resolution traited:

when i mouse over on virtue bar – it tells 169 heal.

when mouse over on battle presence trait shows – 631 / 3 sec. that’s about 210/sec. i suspect this is error.

now if i trait with abs resolution, both labels show consistent 211/sec, 631/3sec.

on golems if im standing inside golem, i don’t see any bolts going. there is another topic, i guess in that case they are cleansing me.

i’m trying guardian. can get a lot of cleansing bolts with staff+gs combos. but how useful are they? i see those bolts going around, is it good for team condi removal? to use them instead of traited shouts?

quick question: I believe only loot boxes are affected by mf. those are those ones with “loot” in the name? others can be opened at any time?

what is a good way to know which boxes are loot boxes (affected by mf) and which are not?

some boxes have “loot” in their title, while others (eg “catacomb weapon box”) don’t. is this how they can be discriminated?

yeah, its somewhat of a ptoblem. but i guess its fair. if one is hoarding boxes for occassional mf noost, better have some storage…

this is the build i’m currently playing, new to guardian. i like it

there are two choices i’m torn between

hammer
VS
greatsword

and

“2 handed master” + “battle presence”
VS
“write of persistence” + “writ of merciful”

any opinions?

i think battle presence will compensate for simbols’ healing and then 2h master comes as bonus, but somehow i enjoyed writs better.

with greatsword i get loads of cleansing bolts, which i guess is a bonus in teamfight, but hammer feels powerful and also that #4-banish is fun.

i like hammer and writs better, but greatsowrd 2hMaster+presence seems more useful.

@hihey.1075 this rings very true. thx buddy

i’m having trouble with quite a few profs sPVP 1v1. i’m playing typical d/p thief, “caed’s build” 2/6/0/0/6, zerker. i win some but not quite as much 1v1 as i would expect. i sort of think of d/p thief kitten top tier 1v1, but is it? what are op, up opponents?

thanks in advance.

a t s e.9614:

So childish reporting people for 1 word. If I had to report people every time I get trash talk in PvP , I would be reporting more than I would be playing.

not really. trash talk should have zero tolerance imo

Raptorcheese.7053 well, looks like he was a bad character. but your triple turret engi doesn’t exactly do honors either. what was your skill in the play you described?

dank.3680:

Well you missed my point. Which was not that players are forced into sPvP. It’s that the players in sPvP are forced into queued matches(aka competitive ones that you are bound to once you enter).

Many of these players are casuals and really don’t want what queued matches offer in comparison to the carefree play of hotjoins. Many are there purely to advance reward tracks for skins, xmute charges, and w/e else they offer.

one can contrive “argument” out of anything. but then there is mmr to match soloQ newbies with newbies and pro’s with pro’s. then someone will say that mmr is poor. then someone will say that its not poor but no algorithm will work without dense base. then someone will say that base needs rewards and anet should place better rewards in various gamemodes.

some fixates with single aspect of choice and with that fixation make possibly bad setup worse. there is no argument here, move on ppl.

dank.3680:

Those people are there because Anet forces them to be.

no one forces anyone anything. this is a game where each plays because they want so.

and yes, anet should be commended for trying to bring players to pvp. don’t blame developer if you cant get a team in a packed mists. honestly, players have all options, where you end up is your own doing.

must be game fatigue. all those issues have been around. currently pvp is best ive seen (been playing one year now)

firefennec.2647:

Some players move from the losing team to the winning team using auto balancing.

1.losing team
2.Instructions
3.Spectate
4.Auto balancing
5.winning team

Remove the auto balancing, and how about for the system like the tournament?

that will only work if winning team was initially outnumbering, in which case that swinging option can somewhat balance 4v5.

@Ghostwolf.9863 thx buddy, good stuff

if the opponent is facing his back towards you but you’re out of range for backstab you can do one of the following combos pressing these things nearly simultaneously with priority on what’s first:
Backstab>Steal

1/4 sec backstab cast time, this is not exactly piece of cake.

i took 50% speed in stealth, see if that helps.

Zephyric Reaper.3049:

Depends on the game mode. PvP you might want to spend the least time on stealth, thus making a front stab is not SO bad as long as you apply pressure on your opponent without taking much damage. On WvW you want to get backstabs to get the player running but never spend much time trying to get the back for them to panic and run away too far from you.
The idea is that you don’t die, deal damage and your opponent doesn’t escape so backstab isn’t priority no.1

yeah, i meant sPVP.

without “from back” the whole thing turns lackluster, i might as well auto attack with bow.

it’s not so much about overall tactics but rather keyboard sequence. is there a trick way to get behind the guy who faces you other than walk though and aboutface?

i could use shadowstep probably: port behind and then repeat the sequence, but shadowstep feels too precious to waste for this.

i played d/p thief with daze on steal.

what is a good way in sPVP burst on enemy who’s facing you? im missing out some 1v1 fights for it. i usually
precast black powder
steal
heartseek
move through the player
aboutface
backstab

is this the way to do it?

is incendiary powder single target or aoe? its prob single, right?

actually one more thing i remember, traits were ?/?/?/6/6

i’ve noticed some ele’s in soloQ recently. they cant be killed 1v1, you can get them down, but then they will heal full up. i’ve heard some ele healing buff in pre patch ready ups, but haven’t looked into build exactly. there was one with dagger focus and around 1500 toughness, that’s all i remember. there was some water field involved but i couldn’t quite discern animation. they did enough damage to eventually wear down my knight amulet phantasm mesmer (mostly air), but managed to heal back each time i got them down.

i’ll search for build later, but has anyone else noticed them? also, is this just self heal, or they can heal team like that? there was some team healing buffs in patch i remember.

imo rangers are fine in hj and soloQ.

as for high end, i dont think entire game should revolve around ten or so players liking to swap into an alt once in a while.

afk #1 aa outlives half of the builds in the game. some ppl like this option and I’m fine with anet letting them to have it.

if this is for structured pvp, imo confusions are reasonable, at least relative to other condi

not really. longbow has just enough goodness to be fair. most players just #1 aa on it and out/dps/survive about 2/3 of builds. you give more and it will no skill, no risk wins it all.

more bunkers, yes, but i dont mind them. it’s not that they have both damage and toughness.

auto targeting off, have targeting button at some of the best keybind place.

golems, hotjoins

i tried off hand shield instead of axe. didnt work out for me. may be its a skill lvl thing. i’m playing hotjoins and %60 soloQ.

i swapped bolas back for balance stance but otherwise left it intact.

thx for advice folks

tried axe/shield instead of x2 axe. didn’t work for me. somehow i’m losing momentum. may be at more skilled lvl shield is better, but at hj and soloQ x2 axe was the way to go.

@Liewec.2896 i like “moar numahs”, but that’s over the top

Nevets Crimsonwing.5271:

I think you should be able to heal enemy players in the downed state.

To keep them in constant limbo.

nasty

Solstice.1097:

I would also think you should use your stun not to land 100b but instead to make sure you land eviscerate, and focus on using 100b to get people out of your face and cleave necro and ranger pets, people who are downed or stomping an ally, and enemy’s that are CC’ed by your allies.

you must be right. trying to make something out of 100b in spvp which is not meant to be, costs more than its worth. and yes, it can be handy situationally, but not as regular reliable dmg.

@Solstice.1097 yes, i’ve been growing into same idea as well. including “shield master” trait. i’m torn between “burst mastery” and “sharpened axes”, but with offhand axe gone latter is diminished.

about runes it’s just i’m worried if i’m slowed down, the axe becomes unreliable against all non-melee classes. but i’ll try.

@ArcTheFallen thx for 100b advise buddy. of all, i thought of “leg specialist” the most, but its just 1 sec immob, right? will that allow 3.5sec 100b at best only partially?

Elegie.3620:

Hello,

This is a very offensive build, so if you have the skills to play it, then it can work. However, while I cannot refute it as is, I have to say that I wouldn’t feel confident playing it:

• I don’t like the greatsword as a dueling weapon: I think that it somehow lacks control, and that its key damage skills may not hit efficiently. Granted, they’d do damage anyway, and the weapon provides nice mobility, yet it requires you to set up a situation (you chose the bolas for this) before you can use it – and that is if the bolas hits and if the opponent does not block, evade, take invul and so on. If you want to play double axe, and not use a ranged weapon, then I’d recommend you rather complement your Axe/Axe with some Axe/Shield, keeping the sigils of battle and intelligence in order to get sure-hit bursts. The shield would give you a stun and a block, which I find quite useful in my own duels (I play axe/shield + rifle these days).
• You have no stability equipped. Your choice of utilities is not bad at all, but going without stability seems dangerous (either for stomping or against controlling duelling classes).
• You have no control, and cannot prevent enemy stomping. Also, you’ll have to flee from borderline situations, when a bit of defense could help you come out victorious.
• Going 20 in Arms and Defense is fine, but I think that you could go to 25 in each of them, because the Armored Attack and Attack of Opportunity are interesting damage boosters.

Just my 2c, HTH.

these are all valid points.

gs is for mobility only. gap closer for openers and get away from trouble. gs damage is not reliable.

instead of bolas i’ll probably go back to balance stance. bolas hardly ever work anyways.

yeah, no cc. i plan to try axe/shield + gs next, that may be a marginal gain. i’ll also try “shield master – defense I trait” instead of “sure footed +25% stance” (precious as it is)

Locuz.2651:

To be honest. Its usable or even good in certain situations.

The damage is quite high for a build that is that tanky. Had moments where i killed a bunker in what seemed 3-4 seconds. And with the domes you add some extra sustain (on point) vs ranged classes.

But you lack the versatility and mobility that a traditional condi engi has. Since you have no swiftness and have the CD on turrets (so you cant fight where and whenever you want).

these are all valid drawbacks of x3 turret.

turret + player aa dps is about 1.8k aa on medium golem. all ranged (rocket and rifle 1500units distance) and very reliable. flame is perma burn, re-applied every 3 sec, cant cleanse much. 1.8k dps is not bad, when all your job is to stay away and run around. does pu mesmer (sort of same gameplay) has that much? with p/s for weapon you buy some time, while enemy is getting fired from all directions. and in deathball of teamfights, you can stay away and focus from safe range of 1500.

against ranged classes, i’ve raced against power rangers. with me hugging pillars (their pets annoying) and him taking damage from my turret triangle, it’s a close call, more often then not i out-dps him.

cd is only long for the rocket turret. i keep rocket at one place where i’m bunked (usually mid) and move with rifle and flame in between locations. by the time i run into new combat those two are off or nearly off cd and those are usually enough to end 1v1 on home.

stealth classes are hardest on this. cc + burst classes can also kill you. my worst experience was axe zerker warrior, i died to him 10 out of 10 times.

ps: supply crate on this build is a monster. it’s like a meteor shower.

ArcTheFallen.7682:

Looks like it has good dps and good sustain.

Only concerns:

- Rune choice (25% vs 33% isn’t much of a diff, I would try strength runes or pirate or something else that gives something else other than switfness)
- Sigil of energy seems random unless you always will need that extra dodge roll on GS. I’d go for hydromancy, fire, air, etc.
- Lack of stability may be an issue and your only stun break is endure pain which is a long cd.

- runes – very true. but i got sold on -50% cripple on centaur.
- yeah, energy sigil is sort of a default fallback, i should change it, you are right.
- instead of bolas i had balanced stance. and i missed few guardian stomps without it. it’s just i can’t get over 100b waste. but bolas don’t fix it either. probably time to let it go, stability’s better.

with little i know about warriors, i’ve been playing this x2 axe + GS build for couple of days now (mostly hj and soloQ).

its pretty straightforward, sort of dps race. if things go south, i use gs #3+#5 for getaway (some will chase you all over the map, :lol:). bolas is for trying to land 100b once in a while, very UNreliable.

i dont like any ranged choices for power warrior, they all have some sort of condi mixed in. and with gs mobility feel ranged may not even be necessary.

i enjoyed it. i won some and lost some too. do you think this is any good?

this is for spvp.

with little i know about warriors, i’ve been playing this x2 axe + GS build for couple of days now.

its pretty straightforward, sort of dps race. if things go south, i use gs #3+#5 for getaway (some will chase you all over the map, :lol:). bolas is for trying to land 100b once in a while, very UNreliable.

i dont like any ranged choices for power warrior, they all have some sort of condi mixed in. and with gs mobility feel ranged may not even be necessary.

i enjoyed it. i won some and lost some too. do you think this is any good?

infantrydiv.1620:

yeah, i know ppl dont think much of it (x3 turret). but i’ve been playing it myself for few days and also played against it. btw, in that link it still carries rifle, p/s is even better (you mentioned cc, there is some survival). its good both single target and team fight.

In hotjoin, correct?

I run builds in hotjoin that I wouldn’t consider even remotely viable and I can still 2v1 with them. It’s a completely different world than team queue

yeah, in hotjoins and % soloQ

Jasher.6580:

I disagree. I think the option of bleeding enemies adds depth to the gameplay. It’s also a risky move. I have had numerous occasions where I was bleeding someone, and 2 roamers quickly came in and resurrected the person to my dismay.

Your suggestion would further dilute the overall PvP experience. I do not support your suggestion.

also, self-defeat is just the same tradeoff, just downed player’s side. “should i bleed him endless?” choice will be replaced by “should i allow to bleed myself endless?” choice.
and on top of it, many ppl who hate downed state will have alternative, but with cost.

else, leaving one entirely at the mercy of the other is unfair.

i believe downed state has a decay factor, so to an extent this choice is in the game, its just i’ve never seen it used in pvp, as i believe it takes forever.

Jasher.6580:

I disagree. I think the option of bleeding enemies adds depth to the gameplay. It’s also a risky move. I have had numerous occasions where I was bleeding someone, and 2 roamers quickly came in and resurrected the person to my dismay.

Your suggestion would further dilute the overall PvP experience. I do not support your suggestion.

i agree with you as long as it (bleeding tactics) has some limits. but after some time (10-15 sec) self-defeat button would be fair.

infantrydiv.1620:

Uh good luck running 3 turret engi against anything with moderate CC. Also, an IP engi can kill a warrior with condis…I’d say you need a bit more than moderate condi cleansing lol

yeah, i know ppl dont think much of it (x3 turret). but i’ve been playing it myself for few days and also played against it. btw, in that link it still carries rifle, p/s is even better (you mentioned cc, there is some survival). its good both single target and team fight.