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So I've been playing the guardian for a little bit now and just recently unlocked the firebrand specialization. I found a build online (http://metabattle.com/wiki/Build:Firebrand_-_Solo_Firebrand) and have been trying it out. It has not been working for me. The damage and sustain just isn't there and i think Im doing something wrong. I am following the directions on playstyle as best as I can, but there has to be something missing. Also, I am struggling with the guardian in general. I have read that it is super strong and potentially tanky, can destroy PvE with ease, and has builds for a lot of endgame activities. However every time I touch this thing it dies nearly instantly and puts out minimal damage. I have been using MetaBattle as my build template for Open World PvE and all HoT and PoF content is just a bit much for this guardian. I have exotic gear with appropriate stats and runes, so there is some damage missing there, but i wouldn't think that it would be enough to literally make or break the character. Currently, my gear has stats of condition damage, vitality, and toughness. Any advice on how to not blow with a guardian?

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The link is broken, this one works Solo Firebrand.

Currently, my gear has stats of condition damage, vitality, and toughness.= Budget, Dire Variant

Conditiondamage is delayed. You load conditions on your targets, they get damaged per tick. So you use your skills and have to "wait" until your opponent dies. By using Dire stats, you rely 100 % on condition damage only. This can be extremely annoying when dealing with several (trash) mobs at once.

But how do you survive? The keyword is: Active Defenses

  • Use dodges to evade powerful attacks.
  • Use Aegis to block attacks.
  • Use Swiftness to improve your movement speed, so you can run out of area-attacks and outrun charged attacks.
  • Use Protection to reduce incoming damage that cannot be prevented to the absolute minimum.
  • Use Stability to prevent yourself from getting knocked down/back or stunned, so you can always use your active defenses. Once you suffer from a crowd-control effect yourselves, the only thing that prevents you from dying is your 20k HP pool. Once it is depleted, you are defeated.
  • Use reflects to block projectiles.
  • Heal damage early, as your heal-skill is not very powerful.
  • Use crowd-control on your enemies to interrupt attacks and give you an advantage in combat.

It looks nice when you read it, but execution is a bit difficult. The meta demands that DPS has utmost priority above everything, so the Active Defenses have to run in the background. That is why they rarely explain those mechanics properly. They assume you already know this.

A few easy tricks to get started:

Movement is key. You can melee your target by walking around in narrow circles. This will cause them to miss a lot of attacks. Most of your attacks, even the axe-skills, have an attack range. So try to avoid 100% melee at all costs. Kite your mobs.

Dodging should be the last option, as it is the most powerful defense you have. It is capable of negating every attack. Never let the endurance-bar run low and always try to use other methods instead.

TerrainWhen you are fighting ranged-opponents, use cover. Once the line of sight is broken, the AI forces them to switch to melee-mode. That means they run towards you. This gives you time. Also use objects & walls to stack enemies up, so your cleave-attacks hit them all together. NPCs cannot jump. So if you jump on a small ledge, they always take the long way. You can play cat & mouse with melee units by just jumping up and down.

CCAxe 3 and Tome of Justice 3 are powerful pulls. You can use them as combat-starters to give you a preemptive attack, but also to interrupt powerful attacks. When fighting melee opponents, Scepter 3 works great.

RecoveryWhen you are about to heal up, use Tome of Resolve 5. It enhances the heal by 33 % for 8 seconds. Your heal-skill will heal for ~ 2k. If you follow the build-recommendation and use it every 7 seconds, you can gain a total of 4k HP recovery with the buff and 3k without. The real problem is to get as little damage as possible, to make sure the small amounts of heal are enough to keep you stable.

At a greater cost of Quickness uptime, you can replace Mantra of Solace for Litany of Wrath. It works with condition damage, so you should be able to heal up quickly.

Charge AttacksWhen an opponent is about to do a powerful attack, they usually have to charge up. You easily notice the effect-area of that attack. So instead of interrupting that attack, let the NPC charge. Position yourself outside of the damage-area and use the free-time to deal damage and recover your useful skills. No need to spam defensive skills while "waiting."

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@"BeastNHisHarlot.4865" said:So I've been playing the guardian for a little bit now and just recently unlocked the firebrand specialization. I found a build online (http://metabattle.com/wiki/Build:Firebrand_-_Solo_Firebrand) and have been trying it out. It has not been working for me. The damage and sustain just isn't there and i think Im doing something wrong. I am following the directions on playstyle as best as I can, but there has to be something missing. Also, I am struggling with the guardian in general. I have read that it is super strong and potentially tanky, can destroy PvE with ease, and has builds for a lot of endgame activities. However every time I touch this thing it dies nearly instantly and puts out minimal damage. I have been using MetaBattle as my build template for Open World PvE and all HoT and PoF content is just a bit much for this guardian. I have exotic gear with appropriate stats and runes, so there is some damage missing there, but i wouldn't think that it would be enough to literally make or break the character. Currently, my gear has stats of condition damage, vitality, and toughness. Any advice on how to not blow with a guardian?

Both HoT and PoF are dramatically different from Tyria in terms of multiple mobs staying together and the sheer volume of conditions/cripple/stun etc that is applied. How do you fare in Cursed Shore or in the Silverwastes, the latter having mordrem that tend to pull separately?

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@Hesione.9412 said:

@"BeastNHisHarlot.4865" said:So I've been playing the guardian for a little bit now and just recently unlocked the firebrand specialization. I found a build online (
) and have been trying it out. It has not been working for me. The damage and sustain just isn't there and i think Im doing something wrong. I am following the directions on playstyle as best as I can, but there has to be something missing. Also, I am struggling with the guardian in general. I have read that it is super strong and potentially tanky, can destroy PvE with ease, and has builds for a lot of endgame activities. However every time I touch this thing it dies nearly instantly and puts out minimal damage. I have been using MetaBattle as my build template for Open World PvE and all HoT and PoF content is just a bit much for this guardian. I have exotic gear with appropriate stats and runes, so there is some damage missing there, but i wouldn't think that it would be enough to literally make or break the character. Currently, my gear has stats of condition damage, vitality, and toughness. Any advice on how to not blow with a guardian?

Both HoT and PoF are dramatically different from Tyria in terms of multiple mobs staying together and the sheer volume of conditions/cripple/stun etc that is applied. How do you fare in Cursed Shore or in the Silverwastes, the latter having mordrem that tend to pull separately?

Everything in core Tyria is not too bad to tackle, it's the expansions that give me so much trouble. The Silverwastes can get to be a bit much sometimes, but I can fair waaay better there than PoF or HoT.

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@"HnRkLnXqZ.1870" said:The link is broken, this one works Solo Firebrand.

Currently, my gear has stats of condition damage, vitality, and toughness.= Budget,

Conditiondamage is delayed. You load conditions on your targets, they get damaged per tick. So you use your skills and have to "wait" until your opponent dies. By using Dire stats, you rely 100 % on condition damage only. This can be extremely annoying when dealing with several (trash) mobs at once.

But how do you survive? The keyword is:
Active Defenses
  • Use dodges to evade powerful attacks.
  • Use Aegis to block attacks.
  • Use Swiftness to improve your movement speed, so you can run out of area-attacks and outrun charged attacks.
  • Use Protection to reduce incoming damage that cannot be prevented to the absolute minimum.
  • Use Stability to prevent yourself from getting knocked down/back or stunned, so you can always use your active defenses. Once you suffer from a crowd-control effect yourselves, the only thing that prevents you from dying is your 20k HP pool. Once it is depleted, you are defeated.
  • Use reflects to block projectiles.
  • Heal damage early, as your heal-skill is not very powerful.
  • Use crowd-control on your enemies to interrupt attacks and give you an advantage in combat.

It looks nice when you read it, but execution is a bit difficult. The meta demands that DPS has utmost priority above everything, so the Active Defenses have to run in the background. That is why they rarely explain those mechanics properly. They assume you already know this.

A few easy tricks to get started:

Movement is key
. You can melee your target by walking around in narrow circles. This will cause them to miss a lot of attacks. Most of your attacks, even the axe-skills, have an attack range. So try to avoid 100% melee at all costs. Kite your mobs.

Dodging
should be the last option, as it is the most powerful defense you have. It is capable of negating every attack. Never let the endurance-bar run low and always try to use other methods instead.

Terrain
When you are fighting ranged-opponents, use cover. Once the line of sight is broken, the AI forces them to switch to melee-mode. That means they run towards you. This gives you time. Also use objects & walls to stack enemies up, so your cleave-attacks hit them all together. NPCs cannot jump. So if you jump on a small ledge, they always take the long way. You can play cat & mouse with melee units by just jumping up and down.

CC
Axe 3 and Tome of Justice 3 are powerful pulls. You can use them as combat-starters to give you a preemptive attack, but also to interrupt powerful attacks. When fighting melee opponents, Scepter 3 works great.

Recovery
When you are about to heal up, use Tome of Resolve 5. It enhances the heal by 33 % for 8 seconds. Your heal-skill will heal for ~ 2k. If you follow the build-recommendation and use it every 7 seconds, you can gain a total of 4k HP recovery with the buff and 3k without. The real problem is to get as little damage as possible, to make sure the small amounts of heal are enough to keep you stable.

At a greater cost of Quickness uptime, you can replace Mantra of Solace for
. It works with condition damage, so you should be able to heal up quickly.

Charge Attacks
When an opponent is about to do a powerful attack, they usually have to charge up. You easily notice the effect-area of that attack. So instead of interrupting that attack, let the NPC charge. Position yourself outside of the damage-area and use the free-time to deal damage and recover your useful skills. No need to spam defensive skills while "waiting."

This is extremely helpful. Frying some of your tips has helped a decent amount with survivability. Thank you for the detailed response.

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