Mell.4873

I agree and again my point was never that Mesmer was OP it was the Class Spread. A competent Mesmer player could play the class in every gamemode. Of coarse there is always going to be something better but I'm not claiming Mesmer is best in slot for any role. Ultimately isn't that was you want, playing one class really well is infinitely better that playing HB for the odd times you play Fractals. Okay the Facts I'm not to sure why you want to chase people, Roaming is normally about Dueling/Surviving. Chasing kills is not really your Job, especially when the Mesmer burst is so crazy you should be downing them right away. Okay... Its still a Valid pick for WvW Zergs. I mean if you are trying to balance your squads Boon application that is one thing but it doesn't invalidate Chronomancer. Honestly you are right, I cant find any metrics that shows the numbers. The best I could find was the number of builds posted to Metabattle, that stands as the best evidence. Anecdotally I see a lot more than one or two, also i dont use Mesmer in PvP what so ever. Its really only CM 100 that you need to be super picky. I have done all the other Fractals CMs with every role as a Mesmer. CM 100 I have only ever done as a Alacrity Mirage (failed it most of the time).

The trinity kind of exists Tank/Support: For all intents and purposes a support does fill a tanking role, and in a Raid they normally provide boons as well as tanking, furthering my point. The goal of supports is to provide Unique boons at the right time. If played correctly they create situations were entire mechanics can be avoided. Most of these Tank/Support classes are used in WvW to lead groups. Examples: Quickness Firebrand, Alacrity Chronomancer, Quickness Scrapper, Quickness Herald, Aura-share Elementalist. Healer: This is different to a normal Support because you want your gear to reflect the extra need to boost not only healing power but overall HPS with runes/sigils. Rather than just providing a boon you are there to offset the consistent ticks of damage and resurrect other players. Examples: Glyph Druid, Barrier/Heal Mechanist, Revive Scourge, Healbrand, Barrier Specter (probably more I don't know) DPS: This is where most Elites fall under but there are two different styles Condition and Power. Condition damage is normally the higher DPS of the two but suffers from a slow build up to peak damage. Examples are not really needed

I do the opposite. I have agreed with you all that Mesmer is in a worse state than it was at its peak. I also love and main Ranger after I quit using Mesmer in all game modes except Fractals/Strikes/Raids. I think you have also criticized me because I don't main Mesmer anymore even though its not that relevant.

Yeah sadly its such hard class to understand and make good counters for. You essentially need to have played to truly know what's up. For example when I play Fractals I can tell if another Mesmer has a garbage build (which some do). On some occasions I will find a Mesmer who is providing X boon but they have no other supportive skills and wonder why everyone is dying, 2 DPS Supports never goes well. PvP is a little bit easier to figure out once your not a Silver player, Generally you have expend the Mesmer resources basically exactly like how you counter Elementalist or even Necromancer. You want a moderate damage stalling rotation before you dive in with your burst. For me who mains Ranger in PvP i just Shortbow 1 the whole time.

I agree and I do want to see changes to Mesmer overtime but I'm not the type of Mesmer who lives in the past and reminisce about what the class was.... This is a common complaint, all the Mesmer traitlines make little to no sense. The reality is that is kind of the point, Mesmer is heavily reliant on other players to fill its gaps. This is why i always say focus on the Elite Specialization you choose then pick the traitlines after that. Yeah that is kind of funny but this is a unique Combo Field exclusive to Mesmer so it is fair that we only have one. Scepter does need some changes, I'm hoping what ever they decide to do with it coincides with a new elite spec. A bit like how Virtuoso made the Focus much more of a relevant weapon. This is a problem with Chronomancer but you have many ways of getting Slow when you need it most. The strongest Combos rely on reset cooldowns so by first using the Shatter Time Sink or Well of Action you can get enough slow to get your 100% critical chance. An alterative option is your use Shatter Storm and Master of Fragmentation from the Illusion traitline, this will increase the critical chance of F1 shatters and make up for the shortfall when you don't have Slow. I agree and is what I use most of the time. I play Assassins and Boon Duration Sigils/Runes (Lyssa).

Fractals Well tick another person who uses Chronomancer in Fractals (me). Virtuoso is definitely the most common class for fractals I agree. The real problem with Fractals is that you are limited to number of classes you can bring so the performance or liability each person has is high. This is why when you do Fractal CM you always interrogate peoples builds and never trust anyone who plays Mesmer due to how difficult it is to play this class. The one exception is Virtuoso (only at the surface level) WvW/PvP Claiming the class is bad in WvW is purely false. Mesmer has both some of the best dueling/roaming builds while having Chronomancer one of the best WvW Zerg Elites. For Dueling Mesmer needs an escort to soak up damage, in sPvP that normally means Duo que with a tanky class like Guardian or Warrior. The reason Mesmer perception is so bad is because people get caught out. I have seen Mesmer in Gold 3 and Duo que is how they achieve it. For WvW Chronomancer has some of the best WvW Zerg utilities in the game, it isn't about how powerful they are, it is the skill coverage and the ability for Chronomancer to reset them very quickly. The amazing thing is they are mostly Core Utilities so that means you can easily play Mirage (maybe not Virtuoso for a big Zerg).

Doesn't this reply prove my 'pessimism' point. I know about how strong Mesmer used to be and how it dominated the game. Its unhealthy to constantly hold on to the idea the class should go back to that time. The new players who use Mesmer ultimately don't care, right now it does see play in almost any gamemode and that will continue regardless of how OP it was in the past.

My recommendation is to focus Elite Specialisations and build around them. It is very easy to get lost in the Core traitlines and focus to much attention on them (they lack alot of synergy). Mesmer is by far the most unique elite we have and not becouse of the mechanics but how you end up playing. Chronomancer can be simultaneously a high burst phantasm build and an incredibly tanky build. By slotting in Phantasmal Defender your rotation can taunt groups of enemies into not touching you. You have multiple ways to access aegis and blocks. Mirage can also provide high burst while going essentially immune to any damage or status effects. Staff is the safer option for most encounters but Mirage really shines with main hand Axe. While chronomancer relies on phantasms for defence, Mirage can simply overwhelm enemies with clones and then switch position with them. This let's your not only soak up damage with them but lock enemies in place while you reposition. Finally Virtuoso, this in some ways where everything comes together. It normally is thought of as a Low Intensity Build but if played right it is anything but. With the loss of clones managing the battlefield is very important. There a multiple configurations you can position enemies in that can not only create the highest damage output but allow you to heal off it (with conditions). Unlike other elites where you can juggle a bunch of clones for defence you are super reliant on your shatters for Virtuoso so anticipating and shatter correctly is now the key to success. Signet of Illusions becomes vital and can allow to go immune for 10 seconds or more.

They wont nerf anything since it is already inline with most other Elites, That is kind of my point. They already dropped the DPS of Virtuoso down to 37k which now brings it inline with most other competitive DPS. The reason it gets played so often is because it is arguably easier (not really but that is the perception). Chronomancer has had almost 0 changes besides adding back Distortion and more distinctly splitting the Boons otherwise its roles has been roughly the same for years. Mirage has had huge resistance to any change since it is one of the hardest Elites to play. The real reason Mesmer is in such good state is because most other dominant profession got nerfs, this made room for other Elites to take the limelight.

I like the idea that there is some synergy with healing your pet as druid and it providing half your DPS total. For Untamed I believe it is fine the way it is, Unleashing the pet provides you with defensive bonus and Unleashing yourself provides a damage bonus. Its all focused on manipulated the pet to boost the player, this is why it is so powerful in PvP. Any extra damage the pet can do would be a waste on Untamed since it cannot heal or provide it support. It also might lead to some even more unhealthy playstyles with the teleport.

Untamed already buffs the player but druid doesn't. I'm imagining Druid could be the next Mechanist, thematically they have very similar Support/DPS playstyles. The maximum DPS you can get out of your pet is about 4-5k this means nothing in the face of the Beastmastery traits. If it was doubled to 8-10k then it could be comparable to Mechanist Mech. They could also just make another Elite that is a copy of Mechanist to.

That is being nerfed again for the 3rd time in a row so not much a justification.

A lot of your damage traits require you to be close to the enemy so unless you permanently camp Jade Cannon trait it should be fairly easy to manage. If you do plan on keeping the mech ranged you could always Signet Shift to re-position him.

The last big patch was primarily PvP and this one (although its not in the patch notes) is focused on PvE. They said this much on the livestreams they do. Its still early days they might not bring across the change to PvP. Besides the lack of Might you only really need 1 clones to get the same Alacrity as before.

In Terms of sPvP we now have more proposed builds on metabattle with high ratings than post EoD launch. March this year: https://imgur.com/wvXI5Uz Now: https://imgur.com/QHGtdfw WvW has not changed much, Chronomancer is still one of the top used Elite for WvW Zergs.

Most don't align with anyone's views. Most Mesmer players don't even visit this place and when they do they leave just as fast. It shows since as soon the Alacrity Mirage change came out everyone's first instinct on this forum was that it was a nerf.

Outside of all this forums pessimism Mesmer currently holds some of the best Elite Specialization spread in the game. Gearing a single Chronomancer will let you support with either Alacrity or Quickness. https://metabattle.com/wiki/Build:Chronomancer_-_Boon_Support_Power_DPS Virtuoso can be played either Power or Condition damage so learning this Elite with two gears sets lets you fill any Raid/Strike slot. They both have equivalent benchmarks, https://imgur.com/4ywdVfN Mirage is one of the highest skill ceiling classes in the game and when played to the full extent can see you survive almost any Open World or Fractal encounter. I have been able single handedly carry any new players through content with this Elite Specialization. GuildJen

Lol well don't play it. No one is forcing anyone to post negative stuff to the Mesmer forums. It drowns out anyone who just want to discuss the Class.

What if you don't want to play Mechanist or Firebrand but still want to support? Your logic only works if people switch class to play these roles. Elementalist, Revenant, Mesmer, Engineer all have Supports that can do both Alacrity and Quickness, Playing anyone is the best. PS, My understanding is Willbenders kit means it cant provide 100% Alacrity uptime, yet.

If you played the pure DPS it definitely helped initially but honestly you are right. I play my Alacrity Mirage as pure support with traited Signet of Inspiration so I never really needed it. Generally I focus on getting all my clones and using F2 off-cooldown.

Isn't this a PvE Patch so of course it wont mention competitive gamemodes balance The Mirage Alacrity change (not really a nerf) only really impacts you if you wanted to do this role in PvP but I'm not to sure if anyone was playing a support Mirage in sPvP or even WvW, especially since Chonomancer exists and is a lot better. Maintaining max Clones in PvE is very easy and this change is in some ways a buff and other ways a nerf. If you did practice Staff Alacrity Mirage the main nerf is using F4 to produce Shard so you can ambush 3 times in a row. Now you need to get your clones back up right away then use the shards. If you played Alacrity DPS Mirage then i could see a slight nerf to damage numbers (maybe 1-2k at most) but your alacrity generation has gone from 2.5sec to 4 sec.

I do fine with Untamed. I have achieved a much more consistent PvP Rank and WvW sessions because of the increase complexity of the class. I mean the best Elite for Ranger is and will always be Soulbeast but Untamed can be better if you practice it; I'm fine with this reality.

What is wrong with Ranger's Nature Magic, is it not your healing/supportive traitline? Most classes have limitation on how they work, the best example is Ranger and Warrior both have one the core groups boon in their core traitlines. This does limit the type of elite specializations that can exist.

Again Pets (currently) are not used for damage in most builds. PvP is a little bit different where CC and merge abilities are king. Otherwise I agree for most part, pet do barely receive any buffs rather just nerfs especially for PvP.

Okay a couple of things: Canines are not used for DPS what so ever They are used to trigger Predator's Onslaught with there long Cripple duration. The summoned Hyena can cast all the Canine skills so 2x Crippling Leap (100% cripple condition) Boons only apply to pets after other players They have low priority except I believe for healing Pets will priorities auto-casting Beast skills, some also have condition like healing pet skills Chomp will only cast if pet is under 75% health