Revenant, three builds I currently use across all game modes

[Buran.3796]

   Part I: Vindicator.

Ok, so now that over 8 months have passed since the EoD release and after the new balance patch + hot fixes I’ll write about the three builds I’m already running in my Rev characters, and how I feel about them.

This is mostly for PvE, albeit I’ll talk a bit about how “portable” those builds are to other departments, if all.

Let start for the Vindicator, a spec I’m not fan of, which isn’t a new. Despite that, I’ve tried to make it work (Anet tried also), with not much success, but this is the closest I was able to make to feel some confort while running it.

Dragon variant (Dragon + Diviner + Assassin gear):

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?PmwAExzlZSMsTqjhScsUyjpSksSigp+VesF-zRZYbBxAH1r45wJcIZKV7VEUhiSxngQ+bZURLA-e

Marauder Variant (Marauder + Diviner + Assassin gear), I recomend this version:

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?PmwAExzlxQmsO6kxRoMPKlRSqMCqkJ/lesF-zRhYBRwIGOM4oGVOHkwhkpUtXRQFKKFfKGT6EQBvwgUPcAvlxGtAA-e

Pros:

* 100% crit chance and over 200% crit damage

* Permanent fury while in combat.

* Permanent 25 stacks of might while in combat.

* ~50% increased boon duration which makes viable to achieve permanent vigor, quickness and protection (those have some opportunity cost in terms of damage, tho).

* 18.5K HP.

* High mobility.

* Almost perma-regeneration (but with low values).

Cons:

* Almost no cc.

* Base armor (2271).

* Entirely mele.

The good thing is that the gameplay feels visceral and raw; between Phase Traversal and Scavenger Burst achieving permanent quickness in PvE is viable as long as we aren’t interrupted or forced to evade and cancel our rotations. Is the closest Rev will come to be a power berserker Warrior (which by the way is not that pupular so maybe is not the best thing, but…). Mobility is excellent and you’ll stay alive as long as you known the fights. Is also comfy to do things as gathering crops, because the mix of mobility + quickness (despite other classes with instant cast are even better).

 But there’s also weakness: barely any cc (300 from Jade Winds and 150 from Reaver’s Rage, plus chill which is almost useless vs Champions and above… Re-sustain is relatively low (you have small heals, regen and Battle Scars, but with basic stats).

 In terms of damage, is the lowest one of the three builds I run; can be hugely increased changing 2-3 traits, but then some of the defensive/sustain elements are entirely lost. Compared to condi Herald/Renegade has a slower TTK and is less tanky, but can outpace celestial Renegade if that last one is fitted to team support. In dangerous fights the Spear of Archemorus and Scavenger Burst can be used to poke at range or while circling the enemy, but that gameplay feels lame and there’s better ways to play Revenant as a ranged fighter.

 In gear I don’t think actually could be improved: celestial is brutally strong for any prefession/spec which can take advanage of hybrid damage, but with barely any condi damage the Vindicator doesn’t get aby jusice from it. As long as you can cap max crit any 4 stat gear provides more value than 3 stat gear so this build only uses Assassin in the ear rings to top 100% crit chance and then goes full 4 stats. Fireworks are the best runes for every Vindicator build: just provides everything needed and the only reason to change to, lets say, Leadership, would be if we want to cap max boon duration (which anyway can be achieved with Fireworks going full Diviner + Concentration Sigil or food + infusions), but I see no reason to.

 For PvP/WvW roaming my only change is replacing Devastation 2 and Invocation 2 for Devastation 1 and Invocation 1 in the minor traits to grant escape from ablitities which root and an extra cleansing. This probably isn’t what would be played the most because the latest Vindi builds rely in Retribution, but since Anet nerfed that trait line in summer specifically for Vindicator I chose to not play that garbage now. I think that Vindi has room in WvW roaming due how creative we can go in gear while having strong damage and sustain, but the lack of cc to grant combos or consistent ranged damage to aleviate pressure is a limiting factor. In PvP I have no clue about if has a place or not; even with the 2 dodges this spec remains hard to play in PvP for me and I much prefer Herald (condi) or Renegade (power or condi) over Vindi in PvP.

 In PvE what I wouldn’t do is running it at zerg PvE events: too much framerrate fall for a pure mele build. I guess could work with a viable ranged weapon instead of swords, but hammer is unworthy: no reason to run a hammer Vindi instead a Renebow or a Rifle Engie, which are way better at that task.

 For reference in WvW this builds kills a veteran charr guard in 4”, a veteran hwarg in 14”, and in PvE a crystal desert giant in 12” or the champion mordrem vinetooth in 1’13”. My condi Willbender does the same task in 4”, 6”, 8” and 53” respectively (huge initial burst, but the gap closes over long fights). This is one of the 4-5 builds I oftenly use for soloing the HoT Hps, Is faster at killing things than my condi Herald and Renegade but feels less safe, and is slower than Rifle Mech amd condi WB, but more fun than the engineer.

 I’ll post the Herald and Renegade builds later this week.

 

Edited October 16, 2022 by Buran.3796

[Sarlan.7682]

Small hint: salvation ist Superior over devastation for solo Roaming and PvP... It actually grants extra healing on dodge, more prot uptime/barrier and permanent 15% dmg reduction. Also one energy sigil can be enough due to double swapping being possible again....so you can replace one of those with hydromancy in wvw for a stronger burst

[Buran.3796]

On 10/15/2022 at 12:26 PM, Sarlan.7682 said:

Small hint: salvation ist Superior over devastation for solo Roaming and PvP... 

   Can be argued. I think that Aggressive Agility, in a build with greatsword #3, sword #3 & #5, Nomad's Advance, Battle Dance, Phase Traversal and Riposting Shadows makes you invulnerable to roots (as long as you properly maneage your energy), and effects that root you are crucial in WvW/PvP, because they can last MUCH LONGER than most of other cc, so I value that over the extra sustain from Salvation. Also, Notoriety has a lower value in PvP due lower duration, but in WvW that trait combined with the rest of the choices pretty much carry you to permanent 25 stack of might (as long as you don't get corrupted).

   Anyway:

Part II: Renegade.

 Renegade has become so flexible in terms of gear, legends and weaponry that literaly everything works for PvE: from pure dps builds oriented towards condition damage running viper/griever stats with short bow, mace and axe as weapons of choices, Mallyx + Kalla and Corruption + Devastation traitlines, to the other extreme of the spectrum, running full diviners in a more physical oriented build, with 100% boon duration for perma-alacrity and team support.

 In the middle, every hybrid combination or safe bet for a more tanky approach to solo game or WvW roam also fills the task: you just need to chose either dire, trailblazer or celestial stats in the ratios you want, replace Corruption with Retribution and combo short bow + staff and Shiro + Jalis and you’ll be in a good place, even after the heavy nerfs that has been hitting Jalis and Retribution for the last 10 months.

 The main advantage that the Renegade spec has over the alternatives in the Revenant is the access to a functional ranged weapon which is fully hybrid in nature, and the access to alacrity for team play improvement without having to interfere too much with our gameplay: instead of having to blast every skill as happens with quickness Herald or oftenly spam Scavenger Burst with Vindicator, Orders from Above + Righteous Rebel combo is way more relaxed and demands lower inputs. Being able to deal substantial damage at range is very useful not only to face mobile bosses but also in big OW events at which the framerrate drops can oftenly kill mele players. That’s the main appeal of Renegade: you can play it in any PvE/PvP/WvW environment, at mele or range, from solo to large groups, just replacing a weapon, a legend or a traitline.

 Disclaimer: the build I’m currently running in PvE is not the best at everything; I have 3 Revenant characters and all my armors, most of trinkets and weapons are legendary, so I can afford to swap stats, runes and sigils and test things at no cost. If you’re tigh on gold on you’re a newcomer crafting your first ascended set you should go for either full diviner (which works as meta with power quickness Herald and power alacrity Renegade) or full celestial (which works with hybrid Herald, hybrid Renegade and hybrid Firebrand) and produces the best solo builds in the game (including celestial double staff Mirage, arguably the strongest solo PvE build in the game at the moment). Is also worth to remark that celestial numbers for any given stat are THE SAME as the smaller numbers in 4 stat pieces (so: a celestial item has the same crit chance and ferocity as a diviner item, or the same expertise and concentration as a ritualist item).

 When you’re not trying to min-max damage stats in comformed teams at speed running the 4 stats gear offers a +9.35% stat increase over a 3 stat gear. Celestial stats wide the gap to a mind blowing +74.38% stat increase (and +59.45% over 4 stat increase). The thing is that not all the builds get advantage from evenly increasing power, crit chance, ferocity, condition damage and condition duration, and even less from rising your armor, health, healing power and concentraion. But some do. Being said that, I’ll encourage every player to get a set of legendary armor pieces ASAP for his main, since is by far the best qol gear you can get, and works account wide for every character with the same armor tier.

 This is the build (celestial + ritualist + diviner variant):

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?PmwAUlflxQHsOqhxROMP6hRSfMCKgjul+TH-zRZYVRNDOIO5gGPkEEBpLFCRB4xDRY2DvlHNrAA-e

 Full celestial varaint (also works with cel + div), I recomend this one:

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?PmwAUlflxQHsOqhxROMP6hRSfMCKgjul+TH-zxIY1om/QSQEkuUIEFgiPAhrHeLPaWBA-e

Pros:

* Almost 100% boon duration (at least 67%+ in the full celestial variant)

* 22k+ HP and 2.6k+ armor (near 3k in the full celestial variant)

* ~1k condition damage (~750 in celestial)

* 33% crit chance with 184% crit damage (even larger in celestial)

* Powerful at every range

* Plenty of cc

* Shares almost perma-alacrity

* Access to group stability and damage mitigation

* Easy to play

Cons:

* Lower dps than selfish dps builds

* Bad for WvW roaming/PvP (I run a entirely different traitline for that task; gear works, tho)

* Expensive gear (the ritualist + leadership runes varaint, celestial + fireworks are way easier to get)

 For reference: kills a WvW veteran charr guard in 6”, a veteran hwarg in 12” and a veteran bristleback in 30”; in PvE a crystal desert giant in 20” or the champion mordrem vinetooth in 1’30”, which is a bit slower compared to my Dragon/Marauder Vindicator, but in exchange is easier to run, les key stroke intensive, can figth well at every range and provides alacrity. Falls short in boon sharing, but is very good at breaking defiance bars and at providing ocasional access to stability and damage mitigation. Mobility is decent, specially with the Fireworks rune variant.

 Overall I think that the celestial variant is better because swaping trait lines and some Renegade traits and replacing mace and axe for a staff allows to run a decent WvW roam build, and the gear works wonderfully in condition Herald builds, in both Glint + Shiro or Glint + Mallyx variants, which would touch later.

 

Edited October 16, 2022 by Buran.3796

[Catchyfx.5768]

14 hours ago, Buran.3796 said:

   Can be argued. I think that Aggressive Agility, in a build with greatsword #3, sword #3 & #5, Nomad's Advance, Battle Dance, Phase Traversal and Riposting Shadows makes you invulnerable to roots (as long as you properly maneage your energy).

I think nomad advance, battle dance doesnt work with aggressive agility as far as i remember

14 hours ago, Buran.3796 said:

 

 

[Buran.3796]

5 hours ago, Catchyfx.5768 said:

I think nomad advance, battle dance doesnt work with aggressive agility as far as i remember

   They  A B S O L U T E L Y work:

 

   Go WvW, let a charr guard use the Throw Bolas skill on you and then use any movement skill (weapon or legend skill: doesn't matter). The immobilization condition is removed instantly when you activate the skill, even BEFORE the casting of the skill is completed or the movement starts.

Edited October 16, 2022 by Buran.3796

[Buran.3796]

Part III: Herald

Herald (power variants) has been 100% meta in PvP and WvW since the HoT release, but after PoF was perceived as a weak choice compared to Renegade, which provided alacrity and ranged damage. The reality was that condi (trailblazer) Herald was absolutely bonkers in solo PvE, providing the AoE damage and insane sustain that power variants lacked. Part of that sustain faded with the nerfs of the Runes of Tormenting and Battle Scarr traits, but the damage and tankiness still are there.

The problem with condi Herald was that it wasn’t as good in PvP or as a WvW roamer, but still some hybrid builds emerged: the base of the one I present here is the celestial Herald from Vallum, the “Fallen Agel”, a build which combined Herald and Shiro, mace and axe with swords and relied in part in the use of Invoking Torment and sigils as Doom and Hydromancy and the combination of legend and weapon swaping to deliver powerful AoE condition burst, while having the advantage of the celestial stats for superb bruiser capabilities. That paired with good mobility made it a powerful roamer which could also traslate to PvP using Wizzard amulet.

That build had a dent with the sigil swap nerf but now the mechanic has been restored and the recent patch also improved the Resistance duration from Mallyx and the torment damage against mobile targets, so condi Rev overall became better against humans.

I was on the impression that it was the best condi build the Rev has in PvP (Renegade runs power stats in that game mode), but a conversation in the forums changed my view: was then when In tried to pair Glint and Mallyx in a celestial build designed to be played more like a wrestler instead of a fighter: instead of the mobility and frenzyness of Shiro, the superior cc and more slowed pace of Mallyx.

I’m rather happy with the build: in PvP works better than the “Fallen Angel”, specially in the 3 vs 3 season in which I played it the most, and in PvE is way stronger. At WvW roaming has pros and cons: absolutely can wreck people in 1 v n or small skirmishes, in 1 v 1 is worse if the target has high mbility and ranged pressure, but works better vs mele fighters. Anyway, the build:

Celestial Mallyx Herald:

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?PmABkex7lpQIsLSihRRMLCiJSgsCSgDrUX7F-zxIY1on/QiUC0pKoXhgkPAhrHeLPaWBA-e

PvP variant:

http://gw2skills.net/editor/?PmABkex7lpQIsLSihRRMLCiJSgsCSgDrUX7F-zZxsQiMBysC6NE8aAA

Pros:

* Burst up to 35 stacks of torment, plenty of other conditions to cover (8+)

* Huge AoE damage

* Permanent fury while in combat.

* Permanent 25 stacks of might while in combat.

* CC in spades

* 24.5k HP, 2.9k Armor, good sustain and cleansing, plenty of mitigation

* 1.2k condi damage, 38% crit chance, 192% crit damage

* 50% boon duration, 52% condition duration, 639 healing power

* Permanent swiftness while in combat

* Multitask gear: works with Renegade builds

* Performs well in every game mode

Cons:

* Pure mele/short range AoE

* Can’t chase high mobility specs

* Requires pacience vs humans, can’t spam attacks the same as other builds; high energy costs

To place it in context: in PvE I think that as solo is stronger than the Vindicator or Renegade, but for large OW events full of players and low in framerrate the ranged nature of Renegade works better. There’s stronger PvE versions of the Renegade but they don’t translate to WvW roaming/PvP the same as this build. At WvW and PvP is a solid build which becomes more vulnerable if faces foes able to stay at range all the time.

For reference: kills a WvW veteran charr guard in 6”, a veteran hwarg in 11” and a veteran bristleback in 21”; in PvE a crystal desert giant in 15” or the champion mordrem vinetooth in 1’11”. Compared, my dire/TB Willbender do the same ~40% faster, but this build is stronger than the celestial Renegade and and on par/better than the marauder/diviner Vindicator while being more tanky than any of them. My rifle Mechanist kills HoT Hps faster in most of the cases but is comically bad at dealing with groups 5+ of mobs in Drizzlewood or gainst the mobs of knights in Dragonfall, whereas the celestial Mallyx melts them in seconds, similar to condi Willbender but with half of the keystrokes.

I think that this is all for now. I enjoyed testing the builds and collating the numbers along the last weeks.

 

[Rohaus.2317]

This is a really good post and I think more people should be contributing.

[Joxer.6024]

On 10/17/2022 at 8:19 AM, Buran.3796 said:

Part III: Herald

 

ok, hopefully your well written novel didnt copy....lol. Anyways, I am intrigued with what you have going here for Herald! I love my Renegade but have been wanting to step into support a bit or just play a different spec of a class i love. Vindi is out for so many reasons but I currently have a power Herald and am trying to learn the "rotations" and to be honest I think old school Engi was easier as Herald has so many buttons being pushed...alot!  I have always loved condi builds and i too am looking for somewhat of a "main" that can maybe bounce around between game modes. So, I ask, do you have some sort of rotation to go along with your build for this? I am keen to give it a go for sure!! Cheers!  😉