Showing Posts For totes.1759:
The primary issue: Rocket Boots, Slick Shoes, Personal Battering Ram, and Utility Goggles are underwhelming and have long cooldowns. As a result, most engineers stick to kits and elixirs as their choices for utility skills.
The secondary issue: Every class except for the engineer has signets that, much like the engineer’s Gadgets, have underwhelming effects and long cooldowns. However, those signets provide a passive effect, and through traits such as Written In Stone (elementalist) could even keep their passive effects while the skill is on cooldown.
The tertiary issue: Engineers only have one trait that affects gadgets (Speedy Gadgets), while other classes have 2-3 traits that affect signets. If engineers DO choose to use gadgets, there isn’t much they can do trait-wise to enhance their usage.
The ideal solution: Add a passive effect to most/all gadgets. This will make those skills slightly more powerful, and thus more likely to be used by players. Currently gadgets are extremely situational, and may go unused in some battles for that reason, so having a weak passive buff apply when the gadgets are unused will ease the pain. Additionally, one or two traits affecting gadgets should be added in order to make traiting for gadgets possible. It also makes sense that when engineers carry gadgets, they will help them passively, and not just when activated, since engineers are about automation.
Possible passive buffs:
- Personal Battering Ram: 5% chance of activating a “boxing glove on a spring” when critically hit in melee. This attack does minor damage, or maybe even a 1/4s Daze.
- Rocket Boots: 10% chance to gain Swiftness for 5s when you apply Burning on a foe. 5s cooldown.
- Slick Shoes: increase movement speed by 5-10% OR 25% chance to apply a 2s Cripple to foes that strike you in melee from the back or sides.
- Utility Goggles: 10% chance to gain Fury for 3s when hitting a foe suffering from Vulnerability. 10s cooldown.
- Throw Mine: 15% chance to create a small explosion at your location when hit critically in melee.
Alternative solution: Reduce Gadget skill cooldowns across the board, or improve the skills’ damage or utility.
Feel free to criticize this idea or add some of your own to make Gadgets worth using.
You are right bomb 1 does more damage than grenade 1,
1. Grenades gives 3 times as much vulnerability stacks and procs more “on crit” stuff.
Do keep in mind that some bomb kit skills have pulsing effects that apply vulnerability at every pulse. This means that some of these skills may apply more stacks per skill than grenades, especially if not traited for grenades.
Sometimes when Magnet (Tool Kit) is used, nothing happens even if the target is in range and there are no obstructions. No errors such as “obstructed”, “out of range”, or “no line of sight” pop up. This seems to happen about 30% of the time in WvW.
I main as an engineer and play both PvE and WvW equally. After hundreds of hours of gameplay and many builds and re-specs, I have come up with a build that allows me to switch out skills to adapt to different situations while retaining high effectiveness.
I always wear Knight’s accessories and Soldier’s armor. I use the Spectral Wave Modulator rifle with a Superior Rune of Blood. I carry a pistol/shield set just in case I need projectile reflections in specific battles.
This is the build I run in WvW:
http://gw2skills.net/editor/?fcEQFAUl0picX3SiF1LJyoCdGoC6lIF5Xl95BbNfQIA;TkAA2CoomxMjYG7MuZkzMwA
If I’m in a smaller group or running solo, I may swap out Elixir Gun for Elixir C or Elixir S. When fighting near cliffs I would equip Flamethrower instead of Elixir Gun for the additional knockback. In general PvE I may swap out Tool Kit for Elixir C or Bomb Kit, depending on the situation. In dungeons / FotM I swap out Tool Kit for Elixir R (difficult fights) or Elixir C (easier fights).
This build may seem like it’s lacking firepower and/or survivability, but what most people seem to misunderstand about the engineer (and leads them to think the class is UP) is that many of the skills we have available can be used both defensively AND offensively. e.g. Net Shot can be used to stop enemies from running away / dodging, or used to allow team members to avoid boss melee attacks for 2 seconds, or 20% (or 25% traited) of the time WHICH IS HUGE. Freeze and Flash Grenades act similarly, but are also effective on multiple foes, effectively stopping small groups from chasing you or running away. Tool Kit’s Magnet in WvW is almost essential, as you can combine Magnet-Net Shot-Overcharged Shot to completely pull an enemy into your zerg where they get beaten up in seconds. Tool Kit’s Gear Shield is a fantastic 3-second block on a 20-second recharge (untraited). A vital part of this build in WvW is Elixir Gun, especially in large groups. Two AoE heals and two AoE condition removals, along with a pulsing AoE that helps you escape battle, and a bouncing cripple/swiftness shot. Just wow.
TL;DR – Shoot stuff, kill stuff, heal stuff.