A new player here. Need help with theif's survivability, armor, weapons, accessories, etc?

This might be a longer post, and please bear with me. I've been playing the game for almost 2 weeks. I managed to get one of my characters to 80. However, I have a problem staying alive longer in dungeons than when I go around in Tyria. I've skipped all the dungeons until my thief is 80. I joined a party the other day, and I was doing fine in Catacombs dungeon until we encountered the traps. I was the first person down in just a heartbeat. Even though with 13k to 14k health, I got wrecked so bad that I laughed but got disappointed after. Everyone in the party left because no one could pass that part of the dungeon. And, yeah, I don't have a glass cannon playstyle lol! I keep fumbling the wrong keys sometimes/always that leads me to die so easily. I also did unranked pvp a few days ago, and I got melted fast rangers and their pets, elementalist and engineers. I had fun but I hate dying a lot with only two shots, then I'm dead in a matter of seconds. Today I did the first story mission for pof to get the raptor mount, and I was having a problem taking down mobs fast. It took me more than a minute or even longer to take down the mobs with my thief. And then two pets of Balthazar appeared, I kept running and dodging but I kept going down and took me so long to kill them. I used 2 to stun enemies and blind them, then pressed 3 like a madman. I've seen other players that are doing find with their theifs, while me I keep going down fast. I'm not sure what I am doing wrong. However, should I consider making a new character and then go back to my theif later?

How about the armor skins? I know some of them are bought from some karma merchants, like zerker's armor, but would it be good to have it for survivability? Any other armor suggestions for staying alive longer? I have a p/p build right now for pve. I know that not many players play this build, but I've since like the thief's profession using pistols when I play mmos.

And for the accessories, what kind should I get? If I ever get to join in parties, which is a little bit difficult for me right now. Also, where to get a level 80 weapons?

Although I've asked these questions, I'm thinking of dropping theif right now and come back when I get the feel of the game. Your advise would be helpful later on when I come to my theif, if I ever change my profession later. I'm thinking of getting a ranger with their aoe. I'm also considering playing as a necromancer or a mesmer. I'm not sure which one of them has stealth, although I think necromancer has it. Any good advise to take for other classes or profession for better survivability and being helpful to parties instead? Thank you in advance.

Time your dodges, know what skills do and when to use them, learn to position and kite, use proper traits, use at least exotic gear and know the mechanics of whatever pve content you're doing. If you're gonna do pvp, I can't add anything other than the usual "get good" comment since that's really all you can do. Watch what the opponent does, know their tells, dodge key moves, know when to run, and know what your team is doing and who you can +1 on and know how to position.

Do you mean stat when you say skin? If you mean skin, which armor skin in particular are you after? If you want a sweeping generalization, check the wiki. If you mean stats, do whatever for open world but accept that on the high end pve, t3 and higher fractals, and raids, people won't want you with your build unless you can prove that you offer something of value to them.

End game weapons are obtained through crafting, dungeons, random drops, tp, etc. If you want accessories, craft them for exotics, but ascended accessories with the karma vendor, living world season 3 maps (if you have them) fractals, guild commendation tokens, etc.

Thief is a class that you're gonna have to get used to. You're going to have to learn how to use your dodges and when to go in for the kill. And when I say go for the kill, I mean drop your target asap the moment you see an opening unless you can kite p/p thief.

what are your stats on the thief? thieves depend on their fast strikes so anything with precision in it is good. i'd suggest having marauder stats for extra survivability.then, if you still feel like you're going down easily, you can put some toughness on. rune of durability is very common since it gives you some toughness, vitality, and also boon duration. a lot of people don't like toughness since it aggros and attracts mobs in pve. but it's like if you pass by them, they'd aggro anyways, with or without toughness. but it makes such a difference having some on. once you're comfy enough, you could switch out some of those gears for more damage stats like berserker or assassin.

i use d/p because pistol #5 is a smoke field and dagger #2 is a leap finisher. it's so easy to stealth and disengage if you need to. p/p is not that bad but it feels very exposed in the open world.for spvp, thief plays a very different role than other professions. you can't go in and gank opponents cuz the moment they target you, you're likely dead. you have to play like a predator watching for his/her prey, stealth and wait for your moment to strike. it's also a thief job to decap far just so your enemies won't earn point during that time. you have the most mobility so a lot of things naturally fall into your hands.

both mesmer and ranger have access to stealth, not necro though. you have to spec your druid elite to have stealth when you come out of celestial avatar, and the smoke field from smokescale will help with stealth too. mesmer has a stunbreak that also a stealth, an elite AoE stealth lasts for about 10s. but none has more stealth than thieves.if we're talking about dungeons, thieves are very useful for skipping cuz of their AoE stealth. they're nice in fractals as well if you can survive without getting 2 shotted. your high damage helps the team cleaving down bosses fast. that's how you help them. although you don't bring a lot of utilities to the table. if you spec your thief right, your steal will grant allies might, fury, swiftness and vigor.