New Mesmer Weapon: Rifle

[Sodeni.6041]

With the announcement of Secrets of the Obscure, ANET confirmed that we will be getting the rifle as a new core weapon.

My first thought was "What?" to be honest. It seems the least fitting weapon for a mage that focuses on manipulation and illusions. But I'm sure the developers will make it work somehow! They made greatsword and dagger work well too. I was sure they would give us main hand pistol though.

I'm curious about the playstyle of the weapon. I feel we need a proper healing weapon but without a dedicated elite specialization that would be not that good. So I think rifle will be a ranged weapon that focuses on condition damage since we lack such weapon. Dagger virtuoso doesn't count since the condition build relies on the virutoso traitline mostly.

Also, we get new ambush skills for mirage with rifle and dagger!

What are your thoughts about all of that?

EDIT: Link https://www.guildwars2.com/en/news/combat-in-guild-wars-2-secrets-of-the-obscure/

Edited June 27, 2023 by Sodeni.6041

[Mungo Zen.9364]

Link to this information about rifle please?

[Dadnir.5038]

My thought: "Asked for a main hand pistol for 8+ years... Get a riffle..."

Edited June 27, 2023 by Dadnir.5038

[Sodeni.6041]

4 minutes ago, Mungo Zen.9364 said:

Link to this information about rifle please?

https://www.guildwars2.com/en/news/combat-in-guild-wars-2-secrets-of-the-obscure/

[Sodeni.6041]

3 minutes ago, Dadnir.5038 said:

My thought: "Asked for a main hand pistol for 8+ years... Get a riffle..."

Totally! Main-hand pistol would be weird for a new elite specialization since we can already use pistol in our off-hand. This expansion would have been the perfect time to give us core main-hand pistol.

[Bomboed.5697]

4 minutes ago, Sodeni.6041 said:

Totally! Main-hand pistol would be weird for a new elite specialization since we can already use pistol in our off-hand. This expansion would have been the perfect time to give us core main-hand pistol.

They want to add at least 5 new skills to each class. So each class will get a two-hander or pair of one-handers. Only Ele and Thief are exception because of ele stances and thief's combo skills.

[Exciton.8942]

Yeah thematically it sound weird. But it is a two-handed weapon that mesmer community has been asking for some time. It means we will also get a new phantasm.

[gancel.4502]

we already have long range GS and Dagger.

melee rifle would be fun.

• switch to rifle - confuse every one around you, including yourself lol
• 5 skill different way of hitting enemies with rifle butt, adds confusion every time

[Sodeni.6041]

18 minutes ago, Exciton.8942 said:

Yeah thematically it sound weird. But it is a two-handed weapon that mesmer community has been asking for some time. It means we will also get a new phantasm.

Yes! I'm so excited that it's a two-handed weapon after 3 elite specialization weapons that gave 2 or 3 skills only.

[Veprovina.4876]

22 minutes ago, gancel.4502 said:

we already have long range GS and Dagger.

melee rifle would be fun.

• switch to rifle - confuse every one around you, including yourself lol
• 5 skill different way of hitting enemies with rifle butt, adds confusion every time

I meant to put a smiley reaction on your post, but with so much confusion, the confused emote seemed more appropriate. 😛

I kinda like the idea of a rifle though, i always wanted a rifle mesmer.

[Mungo Zen.9364]

Thanks for the link, didn't realize they put up 4 news posts about this today.

 

Rifle Mesmer is kinda weird.  I don't see it working with Virtuoso cause, blades, unless the weapon has a lot of bleeds baked in.  In which case, is it a Condi weapon ala Staff 2.0?  I can't think of a Chrono playstyle that would thematically want a Rifle.

Also.....I am guessing no Traits for the new weapons?

Given that Dagger and GS are range, perhaps Rifle Mesmer is a Shotgun style of play?  600 units range and lots of aoe attacks?

eh its a fun exercise but still 4-5 months away from seeing it happen.

 

 

 

[Waffles.5632]

On one hand Anet 💩's on us, and then on the other, Anet loves us. Feeling confused is so appropriate right now @Veprovina.4876 

I am looking forward to dagger, shield, and rifle all on Mirage. Yeah... idk what to think anymore. Patch sucked but honestly everything about Xpac is pretty 🔥 so far.

[Veprovina.4876]

21 minutes ago, Waffles.5632 said:

On one hand Anet 💩's on us, and then on the other, Anet loves us. Feeling confused is so appropriate right now @Veprovina.4876 

I am looking forward to dagger, shield, and rifle all on Mirage. Yeah... idk what to think anymore. Patch sucked but honestly everything about Xpac is pretty 🔥 so far.

Yeah, i love the idea of all of that but... They can barely balance the professions with set number of weapons, they just opened a can of worms that i'm 99% current balance leads (with all the bias), will not be able to handle and we'll get unkillable eles and just a whole mess.

 

Unless they hire an unbiased (or very biased) lead for each profession.

[Waffles.5632]

On 6/27/2023 at 2:50 PM, Veprovina.4876 said:

Yeah, i love the idea of all of that but... They can barely balance the professions with set number of weapons, they just opened a can of worms that i'm 99% current balance leads (with all the bias), will not be able to handle and we'll get unkillable eles and just a whole mess.

 

Unless they hire an unbiased (or very biased) lead for each profession.

100% agree. I am not pre-ordering but rather watching from the shadows still. Am pvping on Mirage now, first impressions are power is okay, still needs a lot buffs, especially if condi ever wants to be a thing again, but having second dodge is a real heavenly difference after so long playing on one dodge. It feels atm like I always have at least one dodge up now.

This is funranked though, am not interested in trying out ranked until I see more mirage buffs/anet handle their business appropriately. So I wouldn't call power mirage meta by any means, but at the very least, it's playable atm. My first impression is like C or B tier.

Have already had situations come up where I get immob'd/CC'd and my muscle memory kicks in so don't wanna comment too much too soon since all that really requires is being more aware to save a blink or a jaunt, which jaunt should have 3 charges again in pvp/wvw, but that's another story.

[Leonidrex.5649]

1 hour ago, Dadnir.5038 said:

My thought: "Asked for a main hand pistol for 8+ years... Get a riffle..."

rifle means they need to design a new phantasm PepeLaugh.
also when you really think about it rifle is just a really big pistol ( cought you can also use charrzooka skin cough )

[GetFoxxed.9478]

Considering we got plenty of "futuristic" stuff recently, mechs, power armors etc, the thing on rifle will be some sort of mind-warping psionic stormtrooper, but we will see.

[cdougan.7859]

To be honest, it doesn't make sense to me and even if they do make it work, I still don't think I'll like it as a design choice. Whilst I was hoping for a ranged weapon, I was hoping it would be a shortbow or longbow. 

I really hope they have the time to rethink this and change it to something that would suit the class more.

Edited June 27, 2023 by cdougan.7859
Error

[Curunen.8729]

omfg, kitten you Anet.

For all the balance issues, then you go dangling a new shiny distraction and I've always wanted rifle on mesmer...

Bah humbug, I'm so conflicted. Brb unlocking rifle skins and Predator.

😕

[Gesbo.6420]

Weapon mastery sounds insane, can you imagine axe shield combos? Break targeting, blink around them and stun them with 3 clones

[Curunen.8729]

Just now, Gesbo.6420 said:

Weapon mastery sounds insane, can you imagine axe shield combos? Break targeting, blink around them and stun them with 3 clones

Yeah there's going to be some new degenerate stuff heh. Axe/shield on chrono or mirage could be quite nasty.

I'm curious to see how dagger and rifle ambush will look for mirage.

[Gesbo.6420]

That said... shield for virtuoso brings us back to square 1... 

[voltaicbore.8012]

1 hour ago, Veprovina.4876 said:

Unless they hire an unbiased (or very biased) lead for each profession.

Though perhaps costly, I consider the "very biased" option as the best way forward. Essentially the 'invisible hand' concept.

I guess the only hazard is the competitive modes inching back towards the oneshot meta we had before the Feb 2020 omeganerf rebalancing, as balance would become something of an arms race between each class getting a lot of love. Then again, a lot of folks prefer the way things were before Feb 2020, so maybe it isn't even a "hazard" for them.

As much as I despise certain classes (you'd know from my behavior in the mes forum lol) on a fundamental design level, this arms race approach to class balance would at least blunt the hatred by providing more tools to win fights.

My rangers are salty that they'll probably never get a rifle (at least in the near future), but I'm nonetheless interested to see how Anet pulls of rifle for mesmer. 

Edited June 27, 2023 by voltaicbore.8012

[Pie.2167]

I was expecting main hand pistol or off hand dagger.  Rifle is interesting.

[Veprovina.4876]

2 hours ago, Waffles.5632 said:

100% agree. I am not pre-ordering but rather watching from the shadows still. Am pvping on Mirage now, first impressions are power is okay, still needs a lot buffs, especially if condi ever wants to be a thing again, but having second dodge is a real heavenly difference after so long playing on one dodge. It feels atm like I always have at least one dodge up now.

This is funranked though, am not interested in trying out ranked until I see more mirage buffs/anet handle their business appropriately. So I wouldn't call power mirage meta by any means, but at the very least, it's playable atm. My first impression is like C or B tier.

Have already had situations come up where I get immob'd/CC'd and my muscle memory kicks in so don't wanna comment too much too soon since all that really requires is being more aware to save a blink or a jaunt, which jaunt should have 3 charges again in pvp/wvw, but that's another story.

Well, that's nice to hear. Would a power mirage work in WvW? I might try it, i never really played power mirage. I mean, i got all the legendary armor and trinkets (finished 2 confluxes recently) so might as well play with some bulds.

50 minutes ago, Gesbo.6420 said:

That said... shield for virtuoso brings us back to square 1... 

Maybe that's why they removed F5 block. Preemptively balancing for the future.

If that's so - a bit of communication (yes, i know Anet doesn't know how to communicate) would come a long way.

44 minutes ago, voltaicbore.8012 said:

Though perhaps costly, I consider the "very biased" option as the best way forward. Essentially the 'invisible hand' concept.

I guess the only hazard is the competitive modes inching back towards the oneshot meta we had before the Feb 2020 omeganerf rebalancing, as balance would become something of an arms race between each class getting a lot of love. Then again, a lot of folks prefer the way things were before Feb 2020, so maybe it isn't even a "hazard" for them.

As much as I despise certain classes (you'd know from my behavior in the mes forum lol) on a fundamental design level, this arms race approach to class balance would at least blunt the hatred by providing more tools to win fights.

My rangers are salty that they'll probably never get a rifle (at least in the near future), but I'm nonetheless interested to see how Anet pulls of rifle for mesmer. 

Well, it would at least be more interesting than biased balancing by 1 lead. 😉

At least i got what i wanted, a rifle mesmer. Now all they have to do is make rifle unplayable, and that's that. 😛

[Curunen.8729]

oooooh this looks busted 😮 1200 ranged piercing daze ambush lol

https://i.imgur.com/G5zVwXL.png

Edit, I can't remember how to embed images...

 

Edited June 27, 2023 by Curunen.8729