Guild Wars 2

agreed. MB is currently completely useless in pvp, as the pet dies so often.

sharpened edges is bad. 30% chance for 1 bleed lasting 1 second. pet’s prowess much better imo.

firebreathz.7692:

just because you dont understand the reason does not make it “wrong”

oh i understand the reason. youre playing a kitten bunker build. what kind of burst do you hope to survive without the 3 spammable evades from s/d? obviously u havent actually played bunker against decent opponents.

way too much wrong with this. you have a shout slotted, you use an LB, wrong runes (should be Dwayna), etc.

yep thats exactly how sword should be used. with some power/crit and quickness it hits super hard, and keeps the target locked down for your pet. so sword actually flows more naturally from offensive to defensive compared to the GS, which ends up being mostly a defensive weapon due to its poor damage output.

Yeh works well for bunker play which is great for spvp. The issue in wvw is that the gs and “utility” increase your kill time. If ure dancing around, blocking or whatever ure not doing damage. And considering there are no points to hold in wvw, utility is a waste of time. If you cant get kills quickly or support your team in a significant way, youre just derping around and wasting time. Ranger gs has absolutely no purpose in the wvw meta.

the fascination with GS fascinates me. it’s a very gimpy weapon, nice for lulz every now and then. works fine when youre fighting noobs or running away.

Stus.5327:

I love how people cry and moan about the GS verses the Sword when it’s dead obvious and even stated that the GS for a ranger is a defensive/utility/evasive weapon.

thing is, sword/dagger is much better in this role than GS. therefore, GS is one of those extra weapons you can live with or without. it’s nice for bunker play, and i guess it’s slightly better than sword for running away cuz u can go #3 and #4 when your back is turned. if GS autoattack got a nice damage buff, it would be used more. right now, it’s such a situational weapon.

they keep pushing the freaking tournaments, thats what’s been killing it from the get-go. the other massive problem 7 months later is lack of build variety cuz we’re in the exact same spot.

all that esports kitten is sugarcoating and their priorities are totally whack. 110% of their efforts should be going into balance changes to create a fun foundation. without that, we got nothing.

GS is nothing more than a defensive utility weapon, and sword/dagger is actually much better in that role. i would consider using the GS if autoattack damage was increased by 15% and if maul became a blast finisher. rest is great.

Laserbolt.6731:

nerva.7940:

i was an avid spvp’er until i started doing WvW, and now i have ZERO reason to go back. the “structured” aspect just doesnt offer any incentive.

What do you love about WvWvW? I am curious because I just can’t get excited about it, because it all seems to be these huge zerg battles where I can’t really see how I make any difference. And a castle is taken, then lost, then retaken, then lost…that’s about it.

i roll in a small group that likes to fight zergs. sometimes we win, sometimes we lose, but it’s very exciting cuz u gotta perform at 100% and your spec makes a huge difference. if i feel like doing 1v1/2/3 fights to challenge myself, i can easily find them. but imo wvw is all about the guild, thats what makes it fun.

after all is said and done, i havent changed my gear yet, so whatever is in the first post. the ONLY thing i would consider changing is the weapon from PVT to berserker. as i said, with the right food, ive reached the 50-70 crit cap. at 70% crit (with fury). youre critting 90% of your shots. so there’s absolutely no need to get more knight’s gear. btw, are there any P/T/crit dmg weapons out there?

i will also be expertimenting with SB/LB combo for the times when i feel safe in my group. i will have much less survivability and less fury, but the QZ + rapid fire + petswap quickness + barrage combo would be super bursty and would shred zergs, so we’ll see if it’s worth it.

Wanderer.5471:

Would SoW be an option d’you think? even w/o healing power?

not for what im doing. for me personally, the only utility i would consider changing is Protect Me into SoH. and SoW without healing power is never worth it, unless you have beastmaster signet trait.

Sol.4310:

Welcome to tier 4 nerva, you will have to come say hi to the rangers here.

haha we playing against u next?

imo they should just let it die and shift ALL the pvp resources toward WvW, which is going to flourish after the March patch. i was an avid spvp’er until i started doing WvW, and now i have ZERO reason to go back. the “structured” aspect just doesnt offer any incentive.

if anything, make spvp a segment of WvW, a place where the competing servers can have 5v5 tournaments to win certain objectives

let me know how LB works out with PVT/knight’s. im really tempted to try SB/LB with 2 fire sigils >drool< cuz LB has boss burst with quickness at 900 range or less.

my spirit ranger ran a perma prot/fury build. people needed to know to stack on the pets for the buffs, as the radius is much too small. the slow f2 casting makes things much worse. in pvp scenarios, it’s virtually impossible for your buddies to receive the pet buffs.

my guildie recommended to use Master Maintenance Oil instead of Sharpening Stone. gaining 6% crit for 160 power. in group situations, you have access to might stacks via RaO/stalker, eles and warriors, which can easily make up for the power loss.

so in conclusion – more crit = reliable procs of fire blast and pie healing, not to mention higher dps. going from 66% to 72% with fury is a noticeable difference.

therefore, i will be sticking with PVT weapons and armor as I have reached the crit goal. the build has been finalized. keep an eye out on more vids in the near future =) next vid will include a detailed guide as well.

that’s what i wanted to do originally and i think Sol runs with those stats. the problem is you have no HP to buffer against conditions and massive burst. all you gain is +5% crit compared to my build. i would rather have 5000 more HP, but maybe thats just me.

knight’s SB might be a good compromise. i’ll give both a shot.

cant wait. ^edited some comments.

xsorus, roaming with my guildies ive noticed one thing (regarding my recent build). our shatter mesmer, s/d ele and hammer warrior drop absolutely massive aoe burst, this is true. i get reports of 6k aoe hits. however, this kind of damage isnt really spammable, which is why it’s burst.

one thing im finding is that i have very decent sustained damage in comparison (maybe even better), so by the time their CD’s recharge, ive already caught up and done 12k myself (if the targets have lined up nicely, or if i unloaded on one guy).

LB is garbage because it has no sustained damage. you actually lose dps by channeling barrage. this is why SB autoattack is so good, and why piercing arrows is so important. im even beginning to consider sigil of fire a necessity for both anti-zerg warfare and single target damage.

as i said, im doing a series with the SB play and im capturing consistent footage of some really nice numbers on groups of opponents. regarding survivability, my repair bills are virtually zero since i switched from bunker play. and remember, the closer you are the shorter the distance the arrows have to travel, so the greater the burst. in theory, there is no such thing as “long range burst” for the ranger, maybe just decent sustained damage.

thats where the sigil of fire comes in. whatever u crit damage u miss out on, blast procs make up for it easily, not to mention they occur in a huge aoe. zerker bow + sigil of fire, now thats another story and something i’ll definitely be testing.

thanks for the feedback. let me try to address.

- omnom is good. not like before, but i get 344 health every 2-3 second on average, which is nice on top of 1900 toughness.

- TU i just get more mileage out of it. it synergizes with pie procs. and because burst isnt an issue with this build due to the high toughness/vit, you want something that gives you more health over time. in fact, i think TU works best when youre meaty.

- hide in plain sight: it’s something im still experimenting with. it’s a target drop every 30 seconds. i like to go zerg diving, so offhand training and martial mastery just dont look as appealing. target drop is the most powerful mechanic in the game, hands down. especially in larger fights. when it’s wasted, it sucks. when it happens at the right moment, it’s amazing.

- rune of the ranger – my pet is dead most of the time because im usually near/in zergs, but not always. i find it really easy to flank.

- PVT – again this is something im trying to get a feel for. the only thing i would gain from knight’s is extra crit, at the expense of vitality. both are just sugarcoating anyway, so until i gain more skills with this build i think i prefer the defensive route. when i start the series, you’ll see how effective piercing arrows are against zergs. but the closer you are, the more dps you do (reduced travel time = less arrows missing). the closer you are, the more meat you need =)

- condition removal is very simple to add. i just havent needed it at all, but SBI is moving up a few tiers so we may face better opponents. sigil of fire damage too good to give up. p/d thieves, necros and some engies would be a pain in a duel, but in larger engagements theyre the least of my worries. high vitality is a bandaid solution to a couple of conditions here and there.

Sebrent.3625:

Meh just a short clip of a guy fighting others while you shot him in the face. I need more to be satisfied with its non-zerg capabilities.

I’m sad that even you are saying it’s not really for 1v1 since on my Mesmer and Ele I can run a single spec and it be good for 1v1, small skirmishes, and zerg fights.

you said you were concerned about the 30% damage bonus, not 1v1 capabilities. so i made a clip in which a single burst took down a tanky warrior to show that you do more than enough from the front as well, even without flanking. i was the only one attacking him. i only gave myself a day to collect some footage and post a little preview. SBI/DR/IOJ is a pvp desert now before the switch =P

so i dont know if this is a good 1v1 spec. im being cautious, so im saying there are better ranger specs for 1v1. i need to test further. unfortunately though, ranger is not a prof that can fill multiple roles with one build. most people carry several armor sets.

it would be nice if signet actives had much lower CD’s so they added a bit more micromanagement and APM to the style. currently, signets are super boring.

Krugan.7901:

How do you sustain a 20k hp pool?

omnomberry pie, TU and crits. even a few hundred heal on top of 1900 toughness is a big deal.

Lert.6287:

It’s pretty weak 1v1 build.

this isnt a 1v1 build. if i wanted to 1v1, id play my condi bunker. as i stated, i created a build to make a difference in group fights. in a large group fight, there’s so much going on that i can pop my stability, run in and snipe whoever i want before they can even react. because of piercing arrows and my range, they have nowhere to run and nowhere to hide. i can exert such tremendous pressure that people actually stop attacking and start popping their defensive CD’s. thats where the fight is over. pressure.

but you know, so far ive actually done better in 1vX fights because i can kill sooooo much faster. in addition, this has way more sustain than a knight’s build =P traps are nice though, for sure.

group fights always were and always will be about downing as many people as quickly as possible =)

Xsorus.2507:

I’m however not going to spend cash on Knights accessories hehe

PVT + knight’s combo is so underrated. when i first tried wvw, i went PVT + zerker and ditched the playstyle so quickly. little did i know that i was really close to the sweetspot.

Sebrent.3625:

My biggest concern with the build is that you lose 20% damage if they are facing you (doesn’t seem ideal for roaming), and you lose 10% damage if you aren’t full endurance (you have to use dodge rolls against a good player).

no worries man, the +30% is just gravy. i got u covered. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dh3vmtJC5CM&feature=youtu.be

Is it faceroll? yes. is it awesome? yes. unlike thieves who only like engaging from the rear cuz they cant look their enemy straight in the eye, we can do it missionary too.

It seems I’ve come full circle after trying just about every sensible ranger build during my ~700 logged ranger hours. I started with a power SB build in spvp during beta, and it’s my build of choice for WvW currently.

Rangers have serious problems in WvW. They don’t have a clear role and they contribute very little in larger engagements. Everything the ranger can do, most other profs can do better in the open world setting. But this build feels different. For the first time since setting foot in WvW, I feel like I’m getting actual results. While I thoroughly enjoyed my bunker builds (thanks Xsorus for the tips on gearing up), for me, this build blows bunker play out of the water. Kills happen quick and I can stay up for a long time.

I started with Sol’s SB/trap build, and after a few weeks of testing decided to drop traps and maximize my SB and survivability. I needed a more effective build for roaming and zerg warfare to help my team dispatch the softer high damage dealers quickly (shatter mesmers, zerker warriors, necros). I see a clear role for myself: cleanup crew / ranged assassin. I sacrificed sustain for power, crit and short term survivability.

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fMAQNBMhV6EoiKLjsQLIWLEALF7FYTBnSyZcIjfBF8IB;TkAKrMWJsyalzKpVLLGfMhA

Highlights:

- with food and bloodlust stacks: 2200 power, 1900 toughness, 20.7k hp, 52% crit
- piercing arrows, sigil of fire and quickness amount to decent supplementary aoe
- exceptional sustained single target damage; each arrow hits bunkers for 500-550 (roughly 1000dps on the hardest of targets without quickness, sigil proc, horn#4, or pet)
- on-demand fury and frequent quickness
- short SB CD’s, meaning more evasion, more cripple, more stun
- +30% damage when flanking

Piercing Arrows
- piercing cripple
- piercing stun

Gear:

- SB/sword/horn/birds
- PVT armor and weapons
- knight’s accessories
- omnomberry pie + master maintenance oil
- runes of the thief

I captured this footage over the course of one day. I have only played this spec for one day. There is much room for improvement. The vid features some action with my guild on SBI, Black Sheep Wall. It is only a small preview of a series that I’ll be doing. Last fight is of us annihilating a zerg. I apologize for the horrid filming, as I didnt zoom out and I’m a total noob on my boonbot guardian.

(replaced old vid so Canadian viewers can access)

Enjoy, and if you choose to use the build, have fun! Discussion below.

Full knight’s is questionable as thieves can cut through 15k hp in no time. What changed my mind was pvt gear and the insane damage output compared to what im used to. It’s not a solo build. High vit and toughness is the only way to go if you dont have +healing. The high hp is a nice buffer and your group should have cond cleansing. If solo, confusion and bunker necros/rangers would probably be a problem. Have a look at my thread tomorrow we can talk about it.

I am considering getting a berserker sb. Survivability hasnt been an issue in a good group. With fury 66% crit is plenty imo.

Lightsbane.9012:

‘experienced rangers’
90% of the rangers in world vs. world attack keeps with a short bow. i want so badly to create a wormhole in my monitor and slap them in the face. other times i’ll find them roaming, and they’ll sit there and shoot me hitting for 200. i’ll start dancing(lolbunker vs shortbow)
to people that think longbow is limiting, i’d ask how you’re using it. longbow is your gap closer and long range dps. if you are using it at under 700 range, just switch classes.
i run s/d and longbow. never have the problems that i see people gripe about in the forums. in fact, since rapid fire got an additional 2 shots, i’d say you’re crazy if you won’t at least try it.

Few things. You dont seem to understand what a gap closer is. Secondly, lb arrows from 1200 can be fully mitigated by taking 2-3 steps to one side or by suddenly changing directions. If the person is aware of you youre lucky to get 50% of your shots in. Thirdly, my sb hits bunkers for about 900 per second without sigil procs. The issue here is people dont stack power but sb scales great.

I used lb for about 2 months in wvw. Only highly biased or new players praise it. Theyre certainly not helping the prof move forward..

Alright fine im kinda bored at work. It’s not the best dueling build (I prefer attrition bunker) but this covers all the other bases. I started with Sol’s build and i actually found that traps did not do enough damage without significant cond investment and most of the time i couldnt justify using up the 2 utility slots.

I decided to take the SB to the next level. The build is 20/25/20/0/5 with thief runes and sigil of fire on the SB. TU, LR, QZ and SoH or Protect Me in utilities. RaO elite.

When flanking on full endurance I do 30% additional damage. Piercing arrows is essential for focusing a target who tries to run into the zerg for safety. Between frequent quickness and fire procs every 5 seconds your aoe damage far surpasses anything else the ranger might be capable of.

Pvt armor and weapon, knight accessories. With food and all bloodlust stacks I have 2400 power, 46% crit, 20k hp, and 1900 toughness. Fury is up whenever i want it. I use birds for the f2 and swapping otherwise i dont worry about the pets. This build is meant to last. It has decent supplementary long range aoe but most of all you can focus people down like a boss. Any bunker will be sweating bullets before eventually falling. high dps/zerker specs are my first priority and they melt like butter.

Anyway have fun with it and plz move all discussion to my thread tomorrow

I found my ideal wvw build. Im a huge critic of the prof and let me tell u this is the one. Im putting up a short teaser in the morning with plenty more to come.

Diehard.1432:

Please revert back the empathic bond. K thanks bye

Uh nope.

I dont know why we’re talking about the lb now but the reality is that it does paltry damage unless the target is standing still at max range. Rapid fire is easily mitigated by a single dodge roll and then youre just twiddling your thumbs.

Sb dps is much greater in practice due to higher rof, maneuverability at shorter range and cc, all of which allow more of your arrows to hit. With piercing arrows, quickness and sigil of fire, the sb does beastly dps at all ranges

what he’s saying is that +1 might is so useless that it shouldnt even be there. +3 stacks would be a decent compromise.

secondly, it’s hard to stack might with one of our only might mechanics (RaO) simply due to the fact the bloody pet almost never hits the target. we have the stalker. and thats about it.

engies have a lot more viable builds than the ranger. it’s a much more versatile prof.

as i said, there’s too much boon removal in the game and it needs to be nerfed, which is what theyre starting to do slowly across all profs except the ones that matter (guard and ele).

did you guys know that the third attack of the #1 chain is a large pbaoe? i didnt, until i accidentally downed 3 people while panicking on my power/crit SB build.

Tyler Bearce.3427:

We changed up the 8-Team tournament rotation at the same time, and also increased the 8-Team Glory & Rank rewards.

8-team does not and will not work. not enough population. save it for a weekly/monthly tournament format, or you risk fragmenting the pop further. hotjoin is doing that already.

if spirits and pets got the fix they deserved, rangers would be just fine in wvw. ranger boons (to others) are atrocious

and good point Sol.

LB is a terrible weapon. it’s so sad that devs dont actually realize this, and newbs keep saying positive things about it on the forums. LB rangers in WvW are an embarrassment. thing is people dont realize how amazing a high RoF weapon like the power/crit SB is with sigil of fire. range is about the same, and utility so much greater.

anyway, getting off topic here. let me just add that the LB does not synergize well with the pet, mostly because both the pet and the LB fail at longer ranges. LB also fails at 900 or closer, where pets are most effective. issue is, at longer rangers both the pet and the arrows can be juked effortlessly. and landing your barrage cripple + pet combo requires a ridiculous amount of micromanagement for a subpar effect, while often making u dead while u channel. SB on the other hand gives you a spammable cripple that is effective at any range.

Rob is already trying to get our pets fixed. need another dev who plays spirit ranger to advocate for us.

on a serious note, i already created 2-3 productive threads on fixing spirits that went nowhere. one more cant hurt.

Robert Hrouda.1327:

I am still here and watching. I’m currently composing a list of ideas and statements from this thread to bring to our balance meetings (held multiple times per week), that I can present to at least talk about with the group.
I go to the meetings as a representative for rangers and dungeons, since I play both of those things extensively. Here’s how my list is looking so far:

Core problems: (Note: we are very aware of both of these things)
-Pet AI.
-Pet management tools

Things to investigate:
-Pets auto attacks only hitting a single target.
-On “return” command, your pet gains swiftness so it can escape out of red rings more easily.
-A button that makes your pet momentarily not take damage. A sort of “Dodge” button for you to control. This is mainly due to us making sure players know how to use their dodge-roll or damage mitigation skills, which pets don’t have, and don’t always know how to escape properly when recalled without a direct pet swap. (NOTE: This is a springboard idea for pets being able to avoid damage)
-Pet/minion AR that is shared with the master’s stats.
-More defensive pet skills.
-Vigor applied to pets turns into swiftness or protection.
-In dungeons, pet’s get more health/armor.
-Lick wounds not always working. Pet just runs back and stands on your body.
-Search and Rescue buggy
-F2 skills activating faster.

nominating Rob for Bauss Designer Who Cares About Rangers (BDWCAR) position. fly high brother.

Viable in spvp and small skirmishes. Not viable in high level pve and wvw no matter what starry-eyed newbs try to argue

No it’s fine. Cond removal is way too strong in this game (except for warrs lulz). With hs and old eb I was basically immune to conditions. Even now ranger cond removal is very strong

They actually dont have magic. Spirits remain broken 7 months later.

Most ranger utilities are utterly useless. All weapons except the LB are actually decent. I also have an 80 guard who makes a visible difference in wvw and pve. Comparing my ranger to him makes me wanna cry.

So what im saying is yes, the ranger is fun and ill keep playing him. But the prof sucks. Telling people “play whatev as long as it’s fun” is ridiculous cuz personally I hate dragging my team down. Devs need to man up admit their mistakes and fix the prof. Instead of lying and telling us that signets, spirits, shouts and pets will get fixed.

rynkusu.2035:

The ranger is more about support, strategy, and tactics despite what people want to believe. I find myself changing my pet constantly in a dungeon just so I can be ready for the boss, or I find out it’s just the incorrect pet for the dungeon.

Lol nope. Ranger is all about gimping your team in every possible scenario. Ranger is the only prof without ANY unique strengths. I say that with over 700 hours on mine. All explorable dungeons, and extensive tpvp and wvw experience.

1. Rtl must drop orb as it’s pretty ridiculous
2. Bunkers are unphased by conditions, especially eles. Cond builds must hard counter bunkers. Nerf cond cleansing.
3. 8 team tourneys aren’t working out. Should always be 1 round, make 8 team a weekly/monthly thing with greater rewards

Because whirl finishers are god awful. I wont even ask why you have axe OH equipped. Put your hs down and either leap through it or ask an sb thief to spam his blast finisher on it.

Indeed, well said. Pets seem to be an afterthought in this game. Most of them are utterly useless compared to a few others and all of them are horribly unresponsive.