Druid used *anywhere* outside of raids? Fractal Druid?

[Firstpyre.8439]

Hey all - I would really like to give druid a try. I keep mulling over the spec and then deciding against it, before coming back to mull over it again. 

While I am interested in running Raids, I would also like to do fractals, strikes, and PVP, and none of the other ranger elite specs hold much interest for me. Is druid really only capable of doing raids?

Thanks!

[Mell.4873]

Yes and no, druid can keep spirits alive much better than the other elite specialisations Ranger has but honestly the reduced cooldown trait Fervent Force can just let you re-spawn them at a far quicker than trying to heal. 

Edited September 2, 2022 by Mell.4873

[RainbowTurtle.3542]

Fractals- yes. It's an option, but its kind of in a worse spot than in raids due to mechanics.

Strikes- yes. Strikes are (mostly) easy enough to where it doesn't matter, but Aknha strike you can't play alac druid and HT druid is a worse option because it's actually difficult.

PvP- druid doesn't function well as a support in pvp due to the increased cooldown and low healing of CA due to multiple nerfs.

[kharmin.7683]

I will sometimes swap over to druid for OWPvE world boss events.  Not like it's really needed, but it sometimes gives me something else to do during those events.  /shrug

[BumboJumbo.1308]

2 hours ago, RainbowTurtle.3542 said:

Fractals- yes. It's an option, but its kind of in a worse spot than in raids due to mechanics.

Strikes- yes. Strikes are (mostly) easy enough to where it doesn't matter, but Aknha strike you can't play alac druid and HT druid is a worse option because it's actually difficult.

PvP- druid doesn't function well as a support in pvp due to the increased cooldown and low healing of CA due to multiple nerfs.

Why can't you play druid in the annka strike?

And why is druid more difficult to play in harvest temple compared to other healer classes/sub-classes?

[Beddo.1907]

3 hours ago, BumboJumbo.1308 said:

Why can't you play druid in the annka strike?

And why is druid more difficult to play in harvest temple compared to other healer classes/sub-classes?

Annka causes the team to move a lot and because of that you might not keep up with moving spirits.

Same goes for temple where you need to move after the ball and walk away from the boss attacks like primordus bite. 

Other supports are more flexible when it comes to mobile fights and larger arenas.

[BumboJumbo.1308]

3 hours ago, Beddo.1907 said:

Annka causes the team to move a lot and because of that you might not keep up with moving spirits.

Same goes for temple where you need to move after the ball and walk away from the boss attacks like primordus bite. 

Other supports are more flexible when it comes to mobile fights and larger arenas.

Fair enough.

The way you phrased druid as being unplayable in annka strike seems odd, though (in your original post).

[RainbowTurtle.3542]

5 hours ago, BumboJumbo.1308 said:

Fair enough.

The way you phrased druid as being unplayable in annka strike seems odd, though (in your original post).

Annka also iirc kills spirits with some of her attacks, and they only have about 8.8k HP total. You'll be healing your allies and they won't be healing eachother as they'll also be healing allies. They'll die too frequently, which doesn't make druid specifically unplayable but alacrity druid is.

[Gotejjeken.1267]

16 hours ago, RainbowTurtle.3542 said:

Fractals- yes. It's an option, but its kind of in a worse spot than in raids due to mechanics.

Strikes- yes. Strikes are (mostly) easy enough to where it doesn't matter, but Aknha strike you can't play alac druid and HT druid is a worse option because it's actually difficult.

PvP- druid doesn't function well as a support in pvp due to the increased cooldown and low healing of CA due to multiple nerfs.

 

For PvP, found you can still stall on sidenodes pretty well if you aren't focused down by 1vX scenario.  Not exactly 'support' but tanky enough to still help out the team.

[RainbowTurtle.3542]

1 hour ago, Gotejjeken.1267 said:

 

For PvP, found you can still stall on sidenodes pretty well if you aren't focused down by 1vX scenario.  Not exactly 'support' but tanky enough to still help out the team.

Eh, when I pick a support spec I expect to be able to do some form of actual support, not just doing the same thing that a non support build could do.

[Gotejjeken.1267]

4 hours ago, RainbowTurtle.3542 said:

Eh, when I pick a support spec I expect to be able to do some form of actual support, not just doing the same thing that a non support build could do.

Support isn't just healing.  

Edited September 4, 2022 by Gotejjeken.1267

[Lazze.9870]

On 9/3/2022 at 3:52 AM, RainbowTurtle.3542 said:

PvP- druid doesn't function well as a support in pvp due to the increased cooldown and low healing of CA due to multiple nerfs.

The current healing numbers are not low. The cooldown of CA, aka the availability, is what hinders druid as a healer in PvP. 

To compete for a support slot, it has other issues. It lacks the boon output tempest and guardian have. It lacks an instant revive. It lacks the invuln frames and blocks to keep itself alive. Maybe Anet will kick that stupid Earth Shield conjure weapon out of the game soon enough to balance those scales a bit.

Other than we have the usual stuff. Radius on some skills, staff #2 still being garbage etc.

 

On 9/4/2022 at 3:00 AM, Gotejjeken.1267 said:

Support isn't just healing.  

Well, healing is the one aspect of support druid is pretty decent at.
You can stall side nodes on any ranger spec, that's obviously not what falls under "support" when we talk about druid.

[Gotejjeken.1267]

3 minutes ago, Lazze.9870 said:

Well, healing is the one aspect of support druid is pretty decent at.
You can stall side nodes on any ranger spec, that's obviously not what falls under "support" when we talk about druid.

 

Probably agree to disagree about 'any' ranger spec stalling a sidenode as in gold 2 (atm) all non-druid ranger's I see are using lb/gs power variants that last a whole 10 seconds before getting downed or running.  

The axe druids however...

[Lazze.9870]

Just now, Gotejjeken.1267 said:

Probably agree to disagree about 'any' ranger spec stalling a sidenode as in gold 2 (atm) all non-druid ranger's I see are using lb/gs power variants that last a whole 10 seconds before getting downed or running.  

The axe druids however...

Gold 2 is kitten, and so are most lb/gs ranger at that level as well.

And it has nothing to do with anything. It's not an argument against there being other functional  ranger side noding builds than druid.

Bottom line either way is that if people want to support on druid, they obviously don't want to support by being a sidenoder.

[Gotejjeken.1267]

9 hours ago, Lazze.9870 said:

Gold 2 is kitten, and so are most lb/gs ranger at that level as well.

And it has nothing to do with anything. It's not an argument against there being other functional  ranger side noding builds than druid.

Bottom line either way is that if people want to support on druid, they obviously don't want to support by being a sidenoder.

 

Why would they not want to be sidenode though? You really think Druid would compete for mid-support? With historically low stability access?

You in fact a few posts above cited all the reasons why Druid makes awful traditional support. 

Also went way back to June and see zero posts from you in the PvP sub--so not sure we should even be having this discussion?

[RainbowTurtle.3542]

4 hours ago, Gotejjeken.1267 said:

 

Why would they not want to be sidenode though? You really think Druid would compete for mid-support? With historically low stability access?

You in fact a few posts above cited all the reasons why Druid makes awful traditional support. 

Also went way back to June and see zero posts from you in the PvP sub--so not sure we should even be having this discussion?

Because... support doesn't mean sidenoder?

 

It'd be nice to actually play druid as a disruptive, healing mid fighter rather than a sidenoder for once.

[Gotejjeken.1267]

39 minutes ago, RainbowTurtle.3542 said:

Because... support doesn't mean sidenoder?

 

It'd be nice to actually play druid as a disruptive, healing mid fighter rather than a sidenoder for once.

 

Yeah, that's sadly called Specter.  

Ranger either has disruptive (Untamed, Core Valk, etc.) or healer--but the 'healer' part of that isn't good enough to hold on a mid-fight.  So, you either heal on side node or just support in other ways (tank, annoyance through celestial shadow, immob); I just find the latter 'support' more useful as the healing tools right now are redundant at best and a drag on the team at worst.  

[Mell.4873]

If you are good you can kind of make anything work.

I mean I run a very odd Untamed build in gold 3, its revolves around triggering Fervent Force with Spike trap and Shortbow/Warhorn. When I pull my rotation off even the most tanky builds just fall over.

Another example is rather than running away with tones of movement abilities like Soulbeast would, I try and lockdown and stun my opponents into leaving me alone which verse certain classes can be far more effective (thief mostly).

[Lazze.9870]

On 9/6/2022 at 9:38 PM, Gotejjeken.1267 said:

 

Why would they not want to be sidenode though? You really think Druid would compete for mid-support? With historically low stability access?

You in fact a few posts above cited all the reasons why Druid makes awful traditional support. 

Also went way back to June and see zero posts from you in the PvP sub--so not sure we should even be having this discussion?

It SHOULD be competing for a main support role. That's the point. Not to be a sorry excuse for a sidenode which ranger have had plenty of builds for throughout the years.

Yes, I know why it currently doesn't. Because I know the kittening class. Apparently, distinguishing what a build does and what a build/spec should do is really hard to do for some of you guys, eh?

If you're gonna dismiss my opinion because I don't participate in the cesspit that is the PvP forum, I don't give a kitten. You're in gold 2. Whenever I bother do to placement and some pvp, I'm always in plat. I spend 90 % of my time in this game in wvw.

Edited September 10, 2022 by Lazze.9870

[Gotejjeken.1267]

10 hours ago, Lazze.9870 said:

It SHOULD be competing for a main support role. That's the point. Not to be a sorry excuse for a sidenode which ranger have had plenty of builds for throughout the years.

Yes, I know why it currently doesn't. Because I know the kittening class. Apparently, distinguishing what a build does and what a build/spec should do is really hard to do for some of you guys, eh?

If you're gonna dismiss my opinion because I don't participate in the cesspit that is the PvP forum, I don't give a kitten. You're in gold 2. Whenever I bother do to placement and some pvp, I'm always in plat. I spend 90 % of my time in this game in wvw.

 

No need to get angsty, I'm not the one who quoted first...

Anyway, not dismissing anything, just reminding what Druid is currently good at and that's support through immob and stalling.  This goes for both PvP and WvW.  What is should do is a different story entirely.

Untamed for instance should be a bruiser, but Hammer is unworkable atm and its best build revolves around either axe or LB + GS depending on mode.

Edited September 10, 2022 by Gotejjeken.1267

[Avatar.3568]

On 9/2/2022 at 11:26 PM, Firstpyre.8439 said:

Hey all - I would really like to give druid a try. I keep mulling over the spec and then deciding against it, before coming back to mull over it again. 

While I am interested in running Raids, I would also like to do fractals, strikes, and PVP, and none of the other ranger elite specs hold much interest for me. Is druid really only capable of doing raids?

Thanks!

To answer your question, yes druid is capable in PvP, but you will climb to the top 25 probably.

There are a Few druid builds that have some Potential. But There are Just Not best in Slot (even in the Ranger Options is almost Always a different Ranger spec better suited) but they Work! And Not Bad.

Power Druid (Not Bad in teamfights and 1vs1!)

Marksmanship 3 3 2

Beastmastery 3 2 2

Druid 1 2 (2 or 3 i Like 3 more)

You Run valkyrie Amulett and Rune of the Druid

Greatsword & longbow/staff

Heal glyph, protect me, stunbreak glyph, Signet of reneveal, and either strenght of a Pack or Elite glyph (depending on map and how much CC and condi aoe's (SCOURGE) the enemys have).

With the makrsmanship procs you get the 100% krit after interupts to Hit hard

Also do you tangle enemys If you Interrupt them (Druid 1-2-3) which often secures a kill. When you are in CA Always place the 2 in the ground and Hit It With the 3 Skill. 2 removes 2 conditions and the explofinisher removes Additional 3 conditions from you and your allys. Also If you Hit With your CA 3 your enemy gets cc'd so its your Chance to Hit hard With CA 5 while petswapping (extra quickness), so they get rooted again and get a Lot of DMG (14k If every Hit krits) .

Than There is a Support Druid With Nature Magic and a condi Trapper Druid, but i am to sleepy to explain them now