Guardian class help

[Dark Viper.2378]

Ok so, i am still a very new player to this game and im lvl80. I want to pick a elite specialization, its just that internet is FLOODED with VERY mixed information about each. Some say willbender is good and some say is crap, some say dragonhunter is great and some say its crap, AND SOME ARE EVEN SAYING CORE IS BEST and ofcourse some say its crap.

 

I am getting very mixed signals and idk what to believe, either im missing something or the class is getting buffs and nerfs alot, can someone please help me with simple words each elite? Thank you so much.

Edited July 27, 2023 by Dark Viper.2378

[MercurialKuroSludge.8974]

They aren't mixed information, they just come with different contexts that a lot of ppl don't present.

Core:
Better than Firebrand as PvP support, not really much good for anything else.

Dragonhunter:
Performs OK-ish in all gamde modes, solo or group play,
but only as POWER dps.

Firebrand:
Meta Support in PvE/WvW,
bad solo ability that you need skill to overcome,
absolute garbage in PvP,
mostly support but can function as Condi dps.

Willbender:
Strong solo class for PvE/WvW,
atrocious group play,
very MID in PvP,
can be played as both Power/Condi, but not support.

Pick your poison.

Edited July 27, 2023 by MercurialKuroSludge.8974

[draxynnic.3719]

It does depend somewhat on what you're looking to do... and the date of your information, since willbender in particular has been buffed significantly in PvE not too long ago. For most roles, the build section of hardstuck.gg website is kept reasonably up to date - if an elite specialisation has a build there in any given game mode, it's probably decent even if you're not using that precise build. Note that raid/fractal non-healer builds usually do fairly well in open world as long as you're not planning to solo group events, although you might consider taking more defensive stat sets such as marauder, celestial, or even trailblazer rather than berserker or viper.

If you do want to try soloing group events, Lord Hizen on youtube is probably most up to date on what works there.

[Buran.3796]

   Core is very good at rising with no help from 1 to 80, and has a very good PvP support build and a decent condi build which can also perform decently at roaming (but is easy to defeat with high mobility/good ranged builds). Works very well as support in WvW zergs, also.

   Dragon Hunter works as a power build, is very good at fractals and meh at soloing PvE. Has a very good build fior PvP ranked but isn't meta at tournaments. Can do well at WvW roaming but is far from the top dogs (low HP and mobility are the main drawbacks).

   Firebrand is a swiss knife; works very well in instanced content as dps or support, can solo most of PvE content outside bouinties (too slow at killing those). Is garbage at PvP but semi-decent at WvW roaming thanx to the gear options. Is strong as support in WvW zergs and small groups skirmishes.

   Willbender in  power gear is good at WvW roaming and PvP, close to the meta but not quite there. Is useless in zergs. In PvE the condi builds are strong and better thah Firebrand at soloing things, but far from the top. Lacks the versatility of FB in group playing at instanced content.

   You would unlock all the specs very fast, also. I would say that celestial and marauder stats works for most of those builds (at instanced people maybe would ask meta builds), but if you're playing on your own with those 2 you would be served. 

[cat.8975]

8 hours ago, MercurialKuroSludge.8974 said:

atrocious group play,

can be played as both Power/Condi, but not support.
 

For instanced PvE, it's a fine dps spec. It'll suffer on encounters with a lot of melee hate, but is otherwise solid.

After the recent change to Phoenix Protocol, support builds seem to be alright as well. I've been running it in CM+T4 fractals lately and it performs fine.

[MercurialKuroSludge.8974]

1 hour ago, cat.8975 said:

For instanced PvE, it's a fine dps spec. It'll suffer on encounters with a lot of melee hate, but is otherwise solid.

After the recent change to Phoenix Protocol, support builds seem to be alright as well. I've been running it in CM+T4 fractals lately and it performs fine.

Oh ye, you're right, the Alac change makes it somewhat viable, and Virtue 15% CDR + enough Boon Duration can kinda make 10 seconds of Alac keep up with 17 seconds of CD, provided lots of hits to generate 7 more seconds needed.
That being said, its still janky and he did say he was new, so while you are technically correct, I still wouldn't recommend Alac Sharing Willbender to him, at all.