Playing with a support person

[Bigpapasmurf.5623]

So I love to WvW. I usually solo/small scale, however rarely travel with a support player.

Recently we've recruited one (we were lucky with this one) who came from EU so we are learning lots. One thing I need help with is learning how to play when I am with a support (healer/stealther/boons...etc). I typically play mirage or daredevil with a side of condi scrapper or druid. I need to know "things to remember" so I dont look bad when running with them.

I usually go "in your face" which I was advised isnt always the nest thing to do as they cannot get all their boons/heals off on me and where im always on the move in a fight and I will get scolded (playfully ofc).

What are some tips or things I need to do when playing with a support player?

Thanks

[Musty.3148]

It depends on the support class/weapons. I play with a friend that plays staff ele heals, he basically follows me dumping heals as I go kitten deep. He stays outside because the staff allows him to heal at range. If he gets in trouble I pull back to him and support him with dps/condi clears/cc. Watch their health, make sure they aren't getting wrecked while you're dpsing. have some skills available to help him in that case (bubbles, blocks, knockbacks, stuns, condi clears, etc.) Also find out what their build is. And let them know yours so both of you know what to expect and what not to.

EDIT: And play together a lot. It gets better and better the more time you spend. Synergize Builds as well. Combo fields and skills.

[bq pd.2148]

if your supporter is good and your better opponents realize this, they will take him out first most of the time - so keep an eye out for who is preassuring your supporter most, not who might kill you first as your supporter will cover you.rest really depends on your supporter, if you know he can stealth rez for example as a druid then be carefull with your attacks in downstate. use the protection the supporter provides be it projectile hate, heals/cleanses/boons so you can play more aggressive then your opponent without a supporter. trust in your supporter , if you play too carefull his support will go to waste. but you should obviously know the limits of what you as a group with the support can take so you can fall back / retreat in time.

[Bigpapasmurf.5623]

Thanks for the responses so far. They are running super tanky stats (dont want to give out their build w/o her permission) Druid with staff/ Sword+Wh.

Ive seen them stall a 4v1/5v1 while I ran back to a fight from garri to SWT on my mirage and daredevil (no sb). I have a hard time multitasking (fighting a good fight and staying within range of their heals and staying in 1 spot too long to get teh boons/heals...etc). Im usually go go go in my fights and it appears to hinder both of us as they will miss their heals on me and I get in trouble lol. I hate standing in 1 place too long as im not used to it.

Any more tips will be appreciated.

Also, they seem to be faster than me at calling targets (which I dont mind), as they watch for big abilities/CD's, however the more enemies that are there the harder it is to keep track that fast so I will focus on the wrong person. Def a learning curve playing with a support class but its interesting and different (in an exciting way)

[Dawdler.8521]

Simply put in 1-4 man groups you really do not want "support" builds because they will generally be holding you back. Getting people down fast and reliably stomping them far outweights support builds - the better the enemy players are and the more they outnumber you, the worse it becomes. It's not until 5-10 peeps you start having room for support builds in the party.

But it really depends on the two classes in question that are supposed to support each other. If you want a true 2 man, you'll want two of the same type that can stick together. Damage spellbreaker and healer firebrand for example can be an impossible combo to beat for just about any other 2 man and are pretty much only matched by damage spellbreaker and boon holo. Same thing with condi scourge and healer firebrand. It's basicly area denial around the firebrand that keep both alive, the scourge on the red carpet of death and the spellbreaker simply because in your face damage. In the sb/holo scenario the holo take the place of area denial while the warrior just plow through anything stunned (and then they both stun). You dont want to combine something like a druid and a daredevil because the daredevil will be jumping all over the place while the druid is gonna get focused and cant really support much. Or a scourge and a mesmer. Mobile classes are often pretty easy to split up from the rest. When it comes to two mobile classes, you want two damage builds that can handle themselves independantly anyway, they just need to be good stompers (anything that can invouln).

[Bigpapasmurf.5623]

@"Dawdler.8521" said:Simply put in 1-4 man groups you really do not want "support" builds because they will generally be holding you back. Getting people down fast and reliably stomping them far outweights support builds - the better the enemy players are and the more they outnumber you, the worse it becomes. It's not until 5-10 peeps you start having room for support builds in the party.

But it really depends on the two classes in question that are supposed to support each other. If you want a true 2 man, you'll want two of the same type that can stick together. Damage spellbreaker and healer firebrand for example can be an impossible combo to beat for just about any other 2 man and are pretty much only matched by damage spellbreaker and boon holo. Same thing with condi scourge and healer firebrand. It's basicly area denial around the firebrand that keep both alive, the scourge on the red carpet of death and the spellbreaker simply because in your face damage. In the sb/holo scenario the holo take the place of area denial while the warrior just plow through anything stunned (and then they both stun). You dont want to combine something like a druid and a daredevil because the daredevil will be jumping all over the place while the druid is gonna get focused and cant really support much. Or a scourge and a mesmer. Mobile classes are often pretty easy to split up from the rest. When it comes to two mobile classes, you want two damage builds that can handle themselves independantly anyway, they just need to be good stompers (anything that can invouln).

The druid is the main for 4ish years so them changing is a no go, however I am down for changing. What classes/build types do you think would go well with a support druid? Its not always going to be a 2 man (some nights will be a ~9 man), however I will be running with them often enough to look into a sub main for them.