How should (are) Ranger Pets going to be handled moving forward?

[BlueIce.6951]

With the change in expansion model are rangers going to be getting new pets from any or all of the new map releases, or is it going to be like with the Living World system where there are no new pets?

I am really hoping that this change doesn't signal the end of new pet options and have been hoping that eventually there would be new/expanded pet options in existing maps.  For example, it would be awesome to have a turtle (not siege turtle, which is technically a tortoise) that would be focused on support functions in underwater combat.

[psizone.8437]

If the expansion has no ranger pets, get ready for the forums to be spammed with more "SotO is just a living story update we had to pay for" posts.


There's still a bunch of guild wars 1 pets and animals in guild wars 2 we don't have so there's no real reason for them not to add any.

[Brandon Uzumaki.1524]

Don't see a reason the xpack wouldn't have them, Ranger pets were never exclusive nor tied to Elite Specs in the past, so it's "easy" to add a few new pets in the open world for Rangers to colect, only Soulbeast and Untamed would need a bit more work, since they do have a specific mechanic tied to what pet you are using.

[Dante.1508]

I agree nothing has been said and it usually does get mentioned.. No new specs could mean no new pets as well.

[The Boz.2038]

Absolutly gut the system.
At most five functional choices, with the variants as skins. What we have now is an ungodly ugly chaotic mess of random stats and skills that just, ugh!

[MithranArkanere.8957]

I think it is time to decouple skills and skins for each pet type.

Instead of selecting "Tiger" as a full package, you would select "Cat", then "Tiger skin", then oner of the cat skills sets, and this set of skills would also include the Archetype.

If it worked like that, they could add way more pet appearances without having to add a ton of new skills. There can be still be new skills, but they don't have to ber one per pet.  

Then we would be able to charm currently unavailable pets independently of balance. If it's deemed that there are too many pet skills, some can be removed without removing pet skins. And existing creature models that share animations with existing pets could be converted to pet skins with relative ease after the much more complciated backend changes are done. 

Then if an expansion does not plan to deliver new pets, there can still be new skins, even if it's by adding already existing skins that are not available for pets yet.

[Tachenon.5270]

There's nothing really stopping them from adding new pets anywhere or anytime, except perhaps for a lack of will/desire to do so, but . . .

/e stomps foot

I want a ranger! Not a zookeeper!

Petless ranger, plz. Thanks in advance!

[Sylvyn.4750]

3 hours ago, MithranArkanere.8957 said:

I think it is time to decouple skills and skins for each pet type.

Instead of selecting "Tiger" as a full package, you would select "Cat", then "Tiger skin", then oner of the cat skills sets, and this set of skills would also include the Archetype.

If it worked like that, they could add way more pet appearances without having to add a ton of new skills. There can be still be new skills, but they don't have to ber one per pet.  

Then we would be able to charm currently unavailable pets independently of balance. If it's deemed that there are too many pet skills, some can be removed without removing pet skins. And existing creature models that share animations with existing pets could be converted to pet skins with relative ease after the much more complciated backend changes are done. 

Then if an expansion does not plan to deliver new pets, there can still be new skins, even if it's by adding already existing skins that are not available for pets yet.

You're missing an opportunity here...once you've decoupled the skill set with the skin, then you can introduce in about a year a new Legendary Pet Skin that rangers have to grind for to get all their old pet skins back, which requires account bound materials that you can only find in the newest expansion! 😏

[Duglaive.5236]

1 hour ago, Sylvyn.4750 said:

You're missing an opportunity here...once you've decoupled the skill set with the skin, then you can introduce in about a year a new Legendary Pet Skin that rangers have to grind for to get all their old pet skins back, which requires account bound materials that you can only find in the newest expansion! 😏

Good god, man, do not put such ideas in their heads! 

[Batalix.2873]

The new pet is offhand mace, duh. Precisely what everyone was asking for.

[Cronospere.8143]

What kind of pet you want that fits the theme. 

Best to give them some suggestions.

If there are new pets. Most likely birdlike creatures.

Edited July 24, 2023 by Cronospere.8143

[idpersona.3810]

16 minutes ago, Cronospere.8143 said:

What kind of pet you want that fits the theme. 

Best to give them some suggestions.

If there are new pets. Most likely birdlike creatures.

They could allow tamable gargoyles. They're in game already. Eod unlocked juvenile siege turtles, so juvenile griffons or skyscales might work just as well. 

[Parasite.5389]

I wouldn't expect new pets if other professions aren't getting the same kinds of treatment

In my veiw; Pets with new expansions have always been part of the new Elite spec: that is, professions get new abilities, weapon skills, and class mechanics. for Rangers that includes new pet with their added skills and abilities.

that being said, when the new weapon proficiencies are releases, we might see new pet options that synergise with their new weapon skills

[psizone.8437]

4 minutes ago, Parasite.5389 said:

In my veiw; Pets with new expansions have always been part of the new Elite spec: that is, professions get new abilities, weapon skills, and class mechanics. for Rangers that includes new pet with their added skills and abilities.

If that were true, those pets would be restricted to the elite specs.

Anet add pets cos people like pets, it's easy feelgood points and they only have to balance a couple of skills.

[Danikat.8537]

Pets have never actually been part of elite specs - any ranger can use any pets regardless of which specs they're using, the only restriction is having to find the pets. (I was using a pet wyvern long before I unlocked druid in HoT.)

So not getting new elites doesn't necessarily mean not getting new pets. New maps don't always come with new pets but expansions always have so far, so it seems likely to me we'll get at least 1 new one. I can't remember them announcing the new pets in advance though, so we'll probably have to wait until SotO comes out to find out for sure.

[Parasite.5389]

12 minutes ago, psizone.8437 said:

If that were true, those pets would be restricted to the elite specs.

Anet add pets cos people like pets, it's easy feelgood points and they only have to balance a couple of skills.

my point is, Rangers will be the only profession to get new abilities in the expansion, is that fair on the rest of the professions?

[psizone.8437]

10 minutes ago, Parasite.5389 said:

my point is, Rangers will be the only profession to get new abilities in the expansion, is that fair on the rest of the professions?

It's not a sibling rivalry thing. Rangers have always gotten new pets because it's the cute pet class.

Besides, every class is getting the weaponmaster training and new weapons in a later update so every class will get new skills.

[Parasite.5389]

16 minutes ago, psizone.8437 said:

It's not a sibling rivalry thing. Rangers have always gotten new pets because it's the cute pet class.

Besides, every class is getting the weaponmaster training and new weapons in a later update so every class will get new skills.

which is why i said
 

Quote

that being said, when the new weapon proficiencies are releases, we might see new pet options that synergise with their new weapon skills

and it's absolutely a rivalry thing, every other profession is starting SotO with the same builds they're using now, but rangers should get preferential treatment and a new meta because they're the Pokemon class?

Imagine i go into a PvP match day 1, i'm stuck using the same build i had the day before, but there are 5 Rangers on the other team rocking a pack of Displacer beasts and i have no idea how to counter them, and they have every idea how to tear me a new hole

I'm not saying 'Dont give rangers new pets', but there has to be some balance for everyone else.

Edited July 24, 2023 by Parasite.5389

[psizone.8437]

59 minutes ago, Parasite.5389 said:

I'm not saying 'Dont give rangers new pets', but there has to be some balance for everyone else.

Got it, I'll email Anet right now and ask them to give Firebrands a different bookmark for their tomes.

Come on, it's not like you can't just run ranger if you think a pet is going to be that much of a deal breaker - which is absurd considering outside of bugs or massive overtuning they wont change things that badly.

You're making it sound like rangers getting a whole elite spec (I'm being dramatic, don't take that literally) 


Of all things to complain about ranger for, pets is a rare one.

Edited July 24, 2023 by psizone.8437

[BlueIce.6951]

14 hours ago, MithranArkanere.8957 said:

I think it is time to decouple skills and skins for each pet type.

Instead of selecting "Tiger" as a full package, you would select "Cat", then "Tiger skin", then oner of the cat skills sets, and this set of skills would also include the Archetype.

If it worked like that, they could add way more pet appearances without having to add a ton of new skills. There can be still be new skills, but they don't have to ber one per pet.  

Then we would be able to charm currently unavailable pets independently of balance. If it's deemed that there are too many pet skills, some can be removed without removing pet skins. And existing creature models that share animations with existing pets could be converted to pet skins with relative ease after the much more complciated backend changes are done. 

Then if an expansion does not plan to deliver new pets, there can still be new skins, even if it's by adding already existing skins that are not available for pets yet.

I really like this idea, but sadly if they implement it I can see the skins being gem store only and not encounters out in the maps.

[BlueIce.6951]

5 hours ago, idpersona.3810 said:

They could allow tamable gargoyles. They're in game already. Eod unlocked juvenile siege turtles, so juvenile griffons or skyscales might work just as well. 

They could go back to the start and add in Juvenile Orrian Chicken's.  You have to tame them as a new expanded Orrian Chicken Coop event.

[Dante.1508]

7 hours ago, Cronospere.8143 said:

What kind of pet you want that fits the theme. 

Best to give them some suggestions.

If there are new pets. Most likely birdlike creatures.

Adult Aurene.

[Danikat.8537]

10 hours ago, Parasite.5389 said:

my point is, Rangers will be the only profession to get new abilities in the expansion, is that fair on the rest of the professions?

By that logic it's always been unfair because rangers have always gotten everything other professions get and new pets.

Everyone gets a new elite spec with a new/modified profession mechanic, new healing, utility and elite skills and a new weapon. Rangers get that too:

• Druid with Celestial Avatar and staff,
• Soulbeast with Beastmode and dagger,
• Untamed with Unleashed and hammer

But every expansion has also added 4-5 new pets as well.

(I'm not sure but I think thieves might get some different steal skills in expansions as well, but those would only be available in the expansion maps because they'd come from the enemies.)

I don't think that's a problem though. GW2 has never been intended to be one of those games where every profession is a 1:1 equivalent of all the others and has all the same abilities. If anyone does think it's unfair for rangers to get new pets in addition to an elite spec and weapon they could just as easily argue that it's unfair for elementalists to get new weapons because they'll get 4 times as many skills as anyone else, or warriors because they can already use more weapons than any other profession.

[Parasite.5389]

28 minutes ago, Danikat.8537 said:

By that logic it's always been unfair because rangers have always gotten everything other professions get and new pets.

no, it's not Additional to the other updates, it's your class mechanic!

Theives get a new steal ability(at least before Swipe was replaced)
Warriors get a new adrenaline mechanic
Necromancers get a new shroud
Guardians get new virtues
Engineers get new toolbelts
Mesmers get new shatters
Elementalists get new interactions with attunements
Revenants get new legends
And rangers get NEW PETS!

and on the subject of Revenants, should they get a new legends? when you think about it, they're just Soulbeasts with extra steps

Edited July 25, 2023 by Parasite.5389

[Danikat.8537]

If the pets are the new class mechanic what are the Celestial Avatar, Beastmode and Unleashed?

Celestial Avatar is probably the simplest example. Unlike the pets it's unique to druids (other rangers cannot use it) and it works like the Necromancer Shroud - their core profession mechanic. You get a bar which is charged over time in combat and when it's full you can press F5 to temporarily change into a different form with a unique set of 5 weapon skills, before reverting back to your normal weapon skills.

Beastmode and Unleashed both use the ranger's pet, but they work with all pets not just the new ones and like Celestial Avatar and other profession mechanics they add new skills which are unique to that specialisation. In both cases pressing F5 swaps you into a different mode where you have additional skills (this time on F1-3 instead of the weapon skills). So it's more comparable to the Holosmith's Photon Forge or the Dragon Hunter and Willbender's Virtues.