Can burn Holosmith be a thing? (PvP)

I've been toying around with the new Thermal Vision and trying to leverage it through a hybrid power/condi Holosmith. Tweaked it a bit in unranked and played one game in ranked this morning. Not terrible.

Tons of access to burn application and 10% increased condi damage after you apply it. Wizards amulet keeps the direct damage from holo skills respectable.

The build:http://gw2skills.net/editor/?vdAQJAqanUUBVWhlID2XBcJjF2CrvNGHrjhpoZTsB8DtBCAA-jJhAQBeZ/hOcCAAwDAoolBAA

Ofc it can be a thing, I'm a fan of creative over meta. Give it a go, tell us know how it works for you :)

@"Frostmane.9734" said:I've been toying around with the new Thermal Vision and trying to leverage it through a hybrid power/condi Holosmith. Tweaked it a bit in unranked and played one game in ranked this morning. Not terrible.

Tons of access to burn application and 10% increased condi damage after you apply it. Wizards amulet keeps the direct damage from holo skills respectable.

The build:http://gw2skills.net/editor/?vdAQJAqanUUBVWhlID2XBcJjF2CrvNGHrjhpoZTsB8DtBCAA-jJhAQBeZ/hOcCAAwDAoolBAA

u have no active defense other than elixir S. Against ranged it is not simple i think

i think it can be a thing, i was running this thing last night its done the best so far since the patch hit for me and the best so far in terms of a condition build in general, if the meta dosnt evolve much more then what it has so far since the patch hit i think it could be an actual replacement for the current power holo due to its better burst capability's without needing to get in literal melee range which i dont know if anyone else has felt it but random aoe seems more prevalent even tho im seeing a scourge every other game now.

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?vdAQJAqanUUBlXhVXB2XBcJjF2CD8DtBCA9tx4YdUsjMFeCA-jJxHQBosMw3eAAA4EAQm9HAA

pierpiero WvW i could see it being a problem but in spvp i cant say i had any problems with ranged enemys

Here's what I think would better as a burn Holosmith. More fire fields and skills which cause burning. Unfortunately, it lacks long range, unless you switch to mortar kit.

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?vdAQJAsanEID9Zh1aB2IDcJjl0C7bDFACRgloQwBofOeH/jA-jJhAABacCAA4BAAz+D5XGAA

This is just theory for me since I don't do pvp.

@PierPiero.9142 said:

@"Frostmane.9734" said:I've been toying around with the new Thermal Vision and trying to leverage it through a hybrid power/condi Holosmith. Tweaked it a bit in unranked and played one game in ranked this morning. Not terrible.

Tons of access to burn application and 10% increased condi damage after you apply it. Wizards amulet keeps the direct damage from holo skills respectable.

The build:

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?vdAQJAqanUUBVWhlID2XBcJjF2CrvNGHrjhpoZTsB8DtBCAA-jJhAQBeZ/hOcCAAwDAoolBAA

You do get reflect bubbles from the turrets, which helps but the deploy time is kind of long and won't always save you. I've played with using photon wall over thumper turret, but I find I miss the extra stun break more.

@"ukuni.8745" said:i think it can be a thing, i was running this thing last night its done the best so far since the patch hit for me and the best so far in terms of a condition build in general, if the meta dosnt evolve much more then what it has so far since the patch hit i think it could be an actual replacement for the current power holo due to its better burst capability's without needing to get in literal melee range which i dont know if anyone else has felt it but random aoe seems more prevalent even tho im seeing a scourge every other game now.

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?vdAQJAqanUUBlXhVXB2XBcJjF2CD8DtBCA9tx4YdUsjMFeCA-jJxHQBosMw3eAAA4EAQm9HAA

pierpiero WvW i could see it being a problem but in spvp i cant say i had any problems with ranged enemys

Glad to see someone else out there is trying it and having some success!

the damage is weak becouse it comes only from one source... burning and a part from bleeding. I used it a lot but it is not that great. A little better imho is condi scrapper becouse with barrier it has a better survivability. After patch, you will not belive me, i know, i find this as the best build condi for engi. For now i am gold 2 with this .http://gw2skills.net/editor/?vdAQJAqanUIC9ZhlcB2XBsehl0iacOSjdDsEXxD4rGCgGA-jJRAQBe8EAAgHAQZKDEj9HAAIt works becouse you can stack a lot of burning and in alternative a lot of confusion. It is easy to tick 3k burning and 3k confusion. Usually i use them once by time . First i put burning on, then i pass to confusion and then repeat. The reason is that you can put frequent condi burst with that. Also bleeding from range is not bad but i see it more as an add on . The sad thing, imho is that core condi engi now works only with AED becouse you need explosive and firearms for output damage, with alchemy you have no speed so , at least for me , tools is quite a must ( speed and traited toolkit ) .

I played around on golems a bit with a hybrid with S/P and rocket boots. Problem is, is that it leaves you with few active defenses. However, I can imagine you can burst down some people in no time

I recommend giving this build a serious go its preforming vastly better then i thought it would in spvp and dare i say better then power holo.

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?vdAQJAqanUUBVXhlXB2XBcJjF2CDcEViCA9tx4YdUcjMFeCA-jJxHQBosMAZ2f4bnAAA8AAAA

only use the elite when your over 50% and try not to get into the aoe spam unless you have to.the true power comes from being able to reapply large stacks of burning very consistently and having decent power damage application ontop of that and surprisingly poison dart volley and frag shot do some insanely good sustained range damage under quickness.

when your might starts going over the 20 stacks point its vary possible to beat people with pistol skills alone if they arnt packing a good amount of condi clear

@"ukuni.8745" said:I recommend giving this build a serious go its preforming vastly better then i thought it would in spvp and dare i say better then power holo.

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?vdAQJAqanUUBVXhlXB2XBcJjF2CDcEViCA9tx4YdUcjMFeCA-jJxHQBosMAZ2f4bnAAA8AAAA

only use the elite when your over 50% and try not to get into the aoe spam unless you have to.the true power comes from being able to reapply large stacks of burning very consistently and having decent power damage application ontop of that and surprisingly poison dart volley and frag shot do some insanely good sustained range damage under quickness.

when your might starts going over the 20 stacks point its vary possible to beat people with pistol skills alone if they arnt packing a good amount of condi clear

Are you having trouble against other condi builds? It doesn't seem like the build offers much cleansing.

@Frostmane.9734 said:

@"ukuni.8745" said:I recommend giving this build a serious go its preforming vastly better then i thought it would in spvp and dare i say better then power holo.

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?vdAQJAqanUUBVXhlXB2XBcJjF2CDcEViCA9tx4YdUcjMFeCA-jJxHQBosMAZ2f4bnAAA8AAAA

only use the elite when your over 50% and try not to get into the aoe spam unless you have to.the true power comes from being able to reapply large stacks of burning very consistently and having decent power damage application ontop of that and surprisingly poison dart volley and frag shot do some insanely good sustained range damage under quickness.

when your might starts going over the 20 stacks point its vary possible to beat people with pistol skills alone if they arnt packing a good amount of condi clear

no trouble at all with the change to invulnerability last patch i fully rely on elixir S to wait out the duration's whenever i get condi bombed and occasionally i die to conditions but for the most part im fine

@Frostmane.9734 said:

@"ukuni.8745" said:I recommend giving this build a serious go its preforming vastly better then i thought it would in spvp and dare i say better then power holo.

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?vdAQJAqanUUBVXhlXB2XBcJjF2CDcEViCA9tx4YdUcjMFeCA-jJxHQBosMAZ2f4bnAAA8AAAA

only use the elite when your over 50% and try not to get into the aoe spam unless you have to.the true power comes from being able to reapply large stacks of burning very consistently and having decent power damage application ontop of that and surprisingly poison dart volley and frag shot do some insanely good sustained range damage under quickness.

when your might starts going over the 20 stacks point its vary possible to beat people with pistol skills alone if they arnt packing a good amount of condi clear

Is it not better Chemical Round instead of high caliber for your build ?

After multiple experiments in controlled conditions the results pointed directly to the only viable conclusion, that the roof, the roof, the roof is in fact, on fire...! :dizzy:

I finally got around to having a mess around with this idea and kitten me into a cattery if it wasn't a total blast :D holoforge is still derp-i-mc-faceroll easy but the utilities make for some interesting stuff and things, you know? :pensive:

But will it blend?

@PierPiero.9142 said:

@Frostmane.9734 said:

@"ukuni.8745" said:I recommend giving this build a serious go its preforming vastly better then i thought it would in spvp and dare i say better then power holo.

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?vdAQJAqanUUBVXhlXB2XBcJjF2CDcEViCA9tx4YdUcjMFeCA-jJxHQBosMAZ2f4bnAAA8AAAA

only use the elite when your over 50% and try not to get into the aoe spam unless you have to.the true power comes from being able to reapply large stacks of burning very consistently and having decent power damage application ontop of that and surprisingly poison dart volley and frag shot do some insanely good sustained range damage under quickness.

when your might starts going over the 20 stacks point its vary possible to beat people with pistol skills alone if they arnt packing a good amount of condi clear

Well the durations are already long enough on p/p that majority of people will have either cleared them befor they run there full course or they are already dead so the extra might or crit chance is overall better for more situations when it comes to damage output

@"Peutrifectus.4830" said:After multiple experiments in controlled conditions the results pointed directly to the only viable conclusion, that the roof, the roof, the roof is in fact, on fire...! :dizzy:

I finally got around to having a mess around with this idea and kitten me into a cattery if it wasn't a total blast :D holoforge is still kitten-i-mc-faceroll easy but the utilities make for some interesting stuff and things, you know? :pensive:

But will it blend?

Well you went alot glassier then i did with ft over elixir s but same same but different i do think you need to learn the build alot better tho there are some nice combos for stacking burning with flamer that i didnt see

So guys...

I played around with some elements of all the builds shared so far tonight and settled on this:http://gw2skills.net/editor/?vdAQFAUnUUBlXhVXB2XBcJjF2CDcEtBCAidkpwTovNGHrjA-jJxHQBosMAAuAAC8BA0h9HAA

Maybe i'm just too comfortable with rifle to give it up, but the utility does so much more for me than pistols ever will. When you add in the might stacks from HGH, the +.5% damage per boon on you from the sigil, the +7% damage against burning foes from the runes, and with the +10% condition damage (burn and bleed for this build) from thermal vision, the overall damage output is completely overwhelming. When you have quickness up, just forget it, it's pretty scary.

@"Peutrifectus.4830" said:After multiple experiments in controlled conditions the results pointed directly to the only viable conclusion, that the roof, the roof, the roof is in fact, on fire...! :dizzy:

I finally got around to having a mess around with this idea and kitten me into a cattery if it wasn't a total blast :D holoforge is still kitten-i-mc-faceroll easy but the utilities make for some interesting stuff and things, you know? :pensive:

But will it blend?

Really enjoyed the video. Thanks for posting!

If I can offer any recommendations, I would suggest swapping out FT for elixir S as well. You'll get the added stun break, stealth, and burst/condi bomb defense which really helps offset the lack of toughness. Plus safe stomps when you need them.

A second elixir S would indeed make high pressure much more comfortable but with SRD and stability safe stomping isn't too big an issue. A well timed Vent Smoke can do the trick against warriors, engi, rev, guard etc.

I think I only tried to combo with the flamer once against a ranger towards the end. The perfect rotation would be Napalm-flame blast-airblast but its a clunky combo with slow animations (easy to avaiod). I was definitely getting more value for Dps from Incendiary Ammo and Holoderp :dizzy:

Thanks for the feedback and happy engineering ;)

@Peutrifectus.4830 said:A second elixir S would indeed make high pressure much more comfortable but with SRD and stability safe stomping isn't too big an issue. A well timed Vent Smoke can do the trick against warriors, engi, rev, guard etc.

I think I only tried to combo with the flamer once against a ranger towards the end. The perfect rotation would be Napalm-flame blast-airblast but its a clunky combo with slow animations (easy to avaiod). I was definitely getting more value for Dps from Incendiary Ammo and Holoderp :dizzy:

Thanks for the feedback and happy engineering ;)

Photon blitz is a projectile finisher so throwing down napalm befor you use photon blitz means more burns its rather easy to setup to because of conquest poison dart volly can also be used in the same way but it dosent have as many projectiles, that perfect rotation is alot easier to hit groups of enemys when theres a team fight if you free aim which is select no target and aim your screen where you want it to go

@ukuni.8745 said:

@Peutrifectus.4830 said:A second elixir S would indeed make high pressure much more comfortable but with SRD and stability safe stomping isn't too big an issue. A well timed Vent Smoke can do the trick against warriors, engi, rev, guard etc.

I think I only tried to combo with the flamer once against a ranger towards the end. The perfect rotation would be Napalm-flame blast-airblast but its a clunky combo with slow animations (easy to avaiod). I was definitely getting more value for Dps from Incendiary Ammo and Holoderp :dizzy:

Thanks for the feedback and happy engineering ;)

OFC, I didn't even think of smashing projectile finisheres through the fire field! I must be the most senior of noobs XD XD I wanna try it again now XD

Just out of curiosity, why isn't flame turret used more. It has a decent toolbelt skill, blinds on overcharge with smoke field. According to wiki it is the only turret whose damage is affected by players stats and you can deploy it every 20 seconds. The fire field from the tool belt skill is also a lot easier to aim than napalm.

Good! We should always question what we believe to be true and hold it to account. So is science!

Both fields are easy to avoid (unless downed or heavily ccd). The turrets melt in a gentle breaze and most other options (in my case the flamethrower) provide more utility or (like elixir s) more damage mitigation than a pulsing blind.

I do appreciate its uses. I use it in a core condi hybrid (mega bomberman) but only in crate as it comes with two other turrets and an Aoe stun.... And even thinking about it, I'm starting to feel like elixir X has a better place in that build ?

Just to play devil's advocate a bit. Flame thrower 4 is also very easy to avoid with longer recharge. The CD on flame thrower tool belt makes it borderline useless (50 seconds is way too long). Flame thrower 2 is too slow and easy to avoid, the push from 3 for two extra stacks of burning is okay.

If they are attacking the turret to destroy it, that is damage you aren't getting hit with. Smoke field is useful for stealth as well and is great for defense. Will get at least one attack from turret before they down it and the blast finisher can be used with healing turret. I like the utility of the fire field, fire shield and might when blasted. The biggest win IMHO of flame turret over flame thrower is I can use it while in forge. Though if I had to choose would still take elixir s over both.

@Tehologist.5841 said:Just out of curiosity, why isn't flame turret used more. It has a decent toolbelt skill, blinds on overcharge with smoke field. According to wiki it is the only turret whose damage is affected by players stats and you can deploy it every 20 seconds. The fire field from the tool belt skill is also a lot easier to aim than napalm.

I most avoid the turrets all together because aoe spam and cleave is too prevalent, but there is interesting utility on flame turret. I just can't see taking over any of the exlirs in this build. If you wanted to run inventions over alchemy, with experimental turrets, it would be a very intriguing choice.

Valid points, I appreciate everyones input. Looks like a very fun build to play.