Is every profession viable, doesn't necessarily have to be the "best", but simply fun and enjoyable?

[solfizz.5730]

I would like to start a new hero that won't be severely struggling playing solo, is there any one class that you guys recommend I stay away from to save me time?

[Josif.2015]

@solfizz.5730 said:I would like to start a new hero that won't be severely struggling playing solo, is there any one class that you guys recommend I stay away from to save me time?

If we're talking about open world PvE, every profession is viable.

If you're a new player, start with either warrior, ranger or necromancer. These are the most beginner friendly professions that can help you learn the game. For now, stay away from engineer, elementalist, guardian, thief, mesmer and revenant.

[steki.1478]

@solfizz.5730 said:I would like to start a new hero that won't be severely struggling playing solo, is there any one class that you guys recommend I stay away from to save me time?

All classes are good enough for any content.

[SlippyCheeze.5483]

@"solfizz.5730" said:I would like to start a new hero that won't be severely struggling playing solo, is there any one class that you guys recommend I stay away from to save me time?

The three most commonly recommended classes for "doing it solo" are Necromancer, Ranger, and Warrior.

Both necro and ranger can use their minions / pets to "tank" for the -- distract things -- and while that is definitely not the optimal way to play, it is certainly easier than many other classes. Do try and avoid the classic trap of the "bearbow ranger"; running a tanky pet, and longbow, isn't actually great compared to other builds, and isn't much safer either.

Warrior has a big health pool, and good healing stuff, though personally I find it all very "quirky" and difficult to manage. YMMV, of course.

That said, everything is viable. A large part of this is going to be, sadly, a matter of practice until you work out how to counter the enemies you face, and how to mitigate and avoid damage.

Finally, https://metabattle.com/wiki/Open_World may help you finding more detailed explanations of builds for all classes that are optimized for open world play. That means they have enough defenses to survive anything, really. (They are level 80 guides, of course, so not fully accessible until you have hit level cap.)

[InsaneQR.7412]

@Hoodie.1045 said:

@solfizz.5730 said:I would like to start a new hero that won't be severely struggling playing solo, is there any one class that you guys recommend I stay away from to save me time?

If we're talking about open world PvE, every profession is viable.

If you're a new player, start with either warrior, ranger or necromancer. These are the most beginner friendly professions that can help you learn the game. For now, stay away from engineer, elementalist, guardian, thief, mesmer and revenant.

Well guard is not as complicated while leveling. It gets ridiculious in end game with FB but guard is pretty easy to level and learn.Warr, ranger, necro and guard are IMO the easiest to level.The othwr five are more difficult.

[Illconceived Was Na.9781]

Useful resources:

• G-Charr Ever's Open World Builds
• MetaBattle's Open World Builds (mentioned above by others)

All profs have many solo-friendly open world variants. All have a variety builds that will be effective in group content (dungeons, fractals, WvW, and PvP).There's only an issue for some people who have stricter requirements (faster completion or harder variations or needs less hand-holding, etc).

tl;dr every prof has a viable build

[solfizz.5730]

Cool, thanks everyone! I am thinking of continuing on my level 4 Mesmer, creating a new Elementalist, or rebuilding an Engineer which was my first character back in Vanilla GW2. Currently my only high level hero is a level 80 Ranger, but he seems a little too straightforward compared to the other classes.

[Rhyse.8179]

@steki.1478 said:All classes are good enough for any content.

But not the people who run that content. High-level fracs and raids are severely community-gated.

[SlippyCheeze.5483]

@Rhyse.8179 said:

@steki.1478 said:All classes are good enough for any content.

But not the people who run that content. High-level fracs and raids are severely community-gated.

Not for SOME OF the people who run that content USING THE LFG SYSTEM TO JOIN WITH RANDOM PEOPLE. The distinction is very real, and very significant.

You can absolutely raid, run high tier fractals, etc, and to achieve that you need only find a guild which does those things, and is happy to entertain the idea that if you can bring down a boss with half the recommended number of players, it probably has more to do with player skill than theoretical build power...

[Illconceived Was Na.9781]

@Rhyse.8179 said:

@steki.1478 said:All classes are good enough for any content.

But not the people who run that content. High-level fracs and raids are severely community-gated.

Gated? yes. Severely? well, I don't think the reports we've seen reflect that.Some people seem to have a lot of bad experiences of being excluded; some people rarely do (and a few don't remember it happening to them). Some complaints about it seem to suggest it's more of a communication/patience problem on the part of the poster, rather than the group that kicked.

All classes have several content-appropriate builds. All can play at least two important roles (DPS, support, control), sometimes more than one in the same build.And, at the same time, some people are more picky about what they want for their group; it's mostly a matter of being sensible when looking-for-group or looking-for-more.

[reikken.4961]

@"solfizz.5730" said:Is every profession viable, doesn't necessarily have to be the "best", but simply fun and enjoyable?Yes.

[starlinvf.1358]

I would avoid Mesmer, Revenant, and Thief, because their mechanics are a lot more integral to their builds, and their a lot tougher to get a handle on. However, if you level boost a thief straight to Daredevil, the spec is almost insultingly straight forward compared to its core.

As for Mesmer.... you have no choice but to master the shatter mechanics to make that class work. Its not particularly complicated, it directly rewards combat cadence and situational timing more then any other class.... and that extends into both Chrono and Mirage. Its performance is also heavily ramped on the back end, in contrast to most builds being front loaded. But once they get up to speed, their momentum skyrockets, and can be maintained for the majority of a fight. However, because the vast majority of the class's power comes from its traits, the leveling process is incredibly painful for most players. The less familiar you are active defenses, the worse this difficulty is.

Buried somewhere in the forums I wrote down some training advice for getting used to core mesmer. The whole write up is kind of lengthy and somewhat detailed.... but the jist of it is focusing on getting Dueling and Domination unlocked early because those 2 lines improve your clone generation/defense and overall damage respectively. The 3rd line you want is Inspiration, since that will give you access to in-line condition cleansing and some passive healing. For skill unlocks you want to get Mirror from manipulations and Power spike from Mantas early on, then Power cleanse once you have the slot to carry it. These skills are fast cycling, so will very readily supplement the slower weapon Cool downs. Null Field and Feedback from Glamour Training about mid-way, as both skills do a lot to ease pressure when overwhelmed. If you need it, Mirror Images or Blink are stun breaks thats early in their trees.

For Shatter training, you want to learn how use your weapons to generate clones during a fight, then get the kill on Mind Wrack. This is supposed to teach you basic skill timing. Once you get a handle on single target, you try to chain single targets back to back.... DO NOT try to pull multiple mobs early on, as most of your skills are single target or high risk cleave. Once you're comfortable chaining, you can try to tackle a Vet mob. The key difference with Vets is the HP is too high to rapid burst down..... so your training objective is to generate clones or phantasms to keep it engaged, shatter them for a damage burst, and then replacing them as quickly as possible. This means saving a few skills for after the shatter, and trying to keep that pacing up until its dead. Champ fights (once you get that far) is basically the same concept, except you also have to manage your defenses at the same time. This is why Dueling is recommended first, as each major tier has a good defense option, and at GM has a "Clone on dodge" trait that will be insanely useful for a basic power Shatter build.

Scepter is a good starting weapon, despite being condi, because its auto generates lots of clones you can use for Shatter ammo. Staff should be your second weapon since its fairly straight forward, and lets you stay ranged; the bounce also lets you hit multiple targets for events. You'll be tempted to get GS early on.... but I don't advise that until the 4th weapon skill is unlocked. Without Phantasmal Berserker, the weapon doesn't have nearly enough burst power. Sword is the last weapon you want to get, since its incredibly high risk, and was made to pair with an off-hand to offset the fact its only a one-burst weapon. Offhand Sword is also a very good go-to for damage, since it has a block/daze/clone defense, and a low cool down/high damage phantasm skill. Focus for extra range and pulls, and is more utility themed then strong offense. Torch is for Stealth builds if you want to investigate those. Pistol is more of dueling weapon, and while good for burst damage, has no defense option beyond a 2 sec stun.

And thats just "SOME" info for the leveling up process. Once you get more stuff unlocked, Open world mesmer builds can go all over the place. Illusions can replace Domination in Power Shatter; doing less damage per burst, but can cycle shatters and phantams a lot faster (better for faster fights, and slightly better personal damage.). Then theres a whole line of condi builds, Roaming builds that take full advantage of stealth abilities to tackle bigger targets, group utility for larger events, Manta builds are now incredibly viable.... and we've yet to get into Chrono and Mirage.

Its by far one of the most fun classes if you handle how it works.... but it is also, by a wide margin, one of the hardest classes for new players that haven't learned all the other game basics (boons, blocks, dodges, how to leverage non-damaging conditions, AI quirks, CCs, etc, etc).

[solfizz.5730]

@"starlinvf.1358" said:I would avoid Mesmer, Revenant, and Thief, because their mechanics are a lot more integral to their builds, and their a lot tougher to get a handle on. However, if you level boost a thief straight to Daredevil, the spec is almost insultingly straight forward compared to its core.

As for Mesmer.... you have no choice but to master the shatter mechanics to make that class work. Its not particularly complicated, it directly rewards combat cadence and situational timing more then any other class.... and that extends into both Chrono and Mirage. Its performance is also heavily ramped on the back end, in contrast to most builds being front loaded. But once they get up to speed, their momentum skyrockets, and can be maintained for the majority of a fight. However, because the vast majority of the class's power comes from its traits, the leveling process is incredibly painful for most players. The less familiar you are active defenses, the worse this difficulty is.

Buried somewhere in the forums I wrote down some training advice for getting used to core mesmer. The whole write up is kind of lengthy and somewhat detailed.... but the jist of it is focusing on getting Dueling and Domination unlocked early because those 2 lines improve your clone generation/defense and overall damage respectively. The 3rd line you want is Inspiration, since that will give you access to in-line condition cleansing and some passive healing. For skill unlocks you want to get Mirror from manipulations and Power spike from Mantas early on, then Power cleanse once you have the slot to carry it. These skills are fast cycling, so will very readily supplement the slower weapon Cool downs. Null Field and Feedback from Glamour Training about mid-way, as both skills do a lot to ease pressure when overwhelmed. If you need it, Mirror Images or Blink are stun breaks thats early in their trees.

For Shatter training, you want to learn how use your weapons to generate clones during a fight, then get the kill on Mind Wrack. This is supposed to teach you basic skill timing. Once you get a handle on single target, you try to chain single targets back to back.... DO NOT try to pull multiple mobs early on, as most of your skills are single target or high risk cleave. Once you're comfortable chaining, you can try to tackle a Vet mob. The key difference with Vets is the HP is too high to rapid burst down..... so your training objective is to generate clones or phantasms to keep it engaged, shatter them for a damage burst, and then replacing them as quickly as possible. This means saving a few skills for after the shatter, and trying to keep that pacing up until its dead. Champ fights (once you get that far) is basically the same concept, except you also have to manage your defenses at the same time. This is why Dueling is recommended first, as each major tier has a good defense option, and at GM has a "Clone on dodge" trait that will be insanely useful for a basic power Shatter build.

Scepter is a good starting weapon, despite being condi, because its auto generates lots of clones you can use for Shatter ammo. Staff should be your second weapon since its fairly straight forward, and lets you stay ranged; the bounce also lets you hit multiple targets for events. You'll be tempted to get GS early on.... but I don't advise that until the 4th weapon skill is unlocked. Without Phantasmal Berserker, the weapon doesn't have nearly enough burst power. Sword is the last weapon you want to get, since its incredibly high risk, and was made to pair with an off-hand to offset the fact its only a one-burst weapon. Offhand Sword is also a very good go-to for damage, since it has a block/daze/clone defense, and a low cool down/high damage phantasm skill. Focus for extra range and pulls, and is more utility themed then strong offense. Torch is for Stealth builds if you want to investigate those. Pistol is more of dueling weapon, and while good for burst damage, has no defense option beyond a 2 sec stun.

And thats just "SOME" info for the leveling up process. Once you get more stuff unlocked, Open world mesmer builds can go all over the place. Illusions can replace Domination in Power Shatter; doing less damage per burst, but can cycle shatters and phantams a lot faster (better for faster fights, and slightly better personal damage.). Then theres a whole line of condi builds, Roaming builds that take full advantage of stealth abilities to tackle bigger targets, group utility for larger events, Manta builds are now incredibly viable.... and we've yet to get into Chrono and Mirage.

Its by far one of the most fun classes if you handle how it works.... but it is also, by a wide margin, one of the hardest classes for new players that haven't learned all the other game basics (boons, blocks, dodges, how to leverage non-damaging conditions, AI quirks, CCs, etc, etc).

Thank you for such a well-thought out reply. I will make sure to consider your suggestions when proceeding with my next character.

[otto.5684]

As someone who started the game as Mesmer, leveling is very easy. Just use great sword. High damage, from a distance with a decent aoe. Since you already have a leve 80 ranger, you got the basics. Do not hesitate to try.

[Turkeyspit.3965]

@Rhyse.8179 said:

@steki.1478 said:All classes are good enough for any content.

But not the people who run that content. High-level fracs and raids are severely community-gated.

Honestly though, I would never recommend to anyone that they random pug T4 fractals or raids.

I've pugged some T3 fractals and seen groups falter on the simplest of mechanics when I've steamrolled the same fractal in a guild group.

I don't think it's reasonable to walk into a T4 group with no comms and random professions / specs and expect to succeed. That can be done though, in a T1 and T2, which shows just how accessible fractal content can be in this game.

[RedShark.9548]

@solfizz.5730 said:Cool, thanks everyone! I am thinking of continuing on my level 4 Mesmer, creating a new Elementalist, or rebuilding an Engineer which was my first character back in Vanilla GW2. Currently my only high level hero is a level 80 Ranger, but he seems a little too straightforward compared to the other classes.

if you dont want a straight forward class you should stay away from warrior, its very straight forward ^^