Need help to decide between Firebrand and Dragonhunter.

[ancafr.9274]

Can somebody explain me the difference between DH and FB please? more about traits and utilities, which one is ''better'' on what and etc. I tried both eli spec on PVP DUMMY and I kinda liked FB but I dont know how good they are pve because UNFORTUNALLY there is no way to RESET hero points(wish they had at least for eli spec) and I dont want to ruin one more character and waste my points on the wrong spec because last time i went to Renegade for Revenant tested PVP lobby and all then when outside the thing was TOTALLY DIFFERENT from wat i expected, the dmg wasnt the same, had to farm for more points for utilities etc etc and I ended up DELETING and LOSING my character by going to the wrong spec.

So this is why im asking here before, as the game does not offer any kind of 'ticket to test before use points' for eli spec i wanted to know more to not lose one more character.

[Mewcifer.5198]

Firebrand is more diverse in what you can use it for, but each use requires different stats. It's good for condition damage as well as healing/aegis/quickness, and you can swap out some skills based on the situation. But if you are playing in zones with a lot of enemies that are immune to fire damage you are going to get annoyed real fast. Some people do use hybrid condi/power builds for firebrand.Dragonhunter has some really good utility and power damage.

I only have personal experience playing a condition firebrand.

In the end it all depends on what you plan on doing with the character. Fractals? Raids? General PvE? WvW? PvP?

[perilisk.1874]

DH is decent at just shredding groups of enemies without much complex rotation, and has some good CC options. As long as you're good on active defense, you can pretty much stroll through basic PvE content.

FB has good support abilities, though it can also be built as DPS. It's a little more complicated to play, since your profession skills each give you access to 5 other skills, rather that just being a single skill.

Hero points aren't that hard to come by, though, seriously. Especially if you find an HP train (for HoT -- they are mostly soloable in PoF), you can easily get them both and just swap as need be. Also, remember that you can basically buy hero points in WvW using Testimony of Heroics (from rank up, skirmish chests, and reward tracks).

[ugrakarma.9416]

to spam burn is Firebrand, but i dislike his playstyle a lot.

with Dragonhunter u had much more a "action" feel.

is for PVP? Firebrand is strong at support, and Dragonhunter inst easy to master his use on PVP requires lots of skill.

[sevenDEADLY.5281]

Wait what. These choices aren't exclusive, you can have both in a single character. Why would you ever need a "reset hero points button". Just fill up both. Done. Easy.

[Westenev.5289]

DH is power dps with lots of selfish boons. Your "dragonhunter" traps won't trigger against large mobs (like dragons), but they kinda shred everything else when paired with a Greatsword. Just lay down a symbol, a few traps, a greatsword pull and enjoy the fireworks...

Firebrand can be built Power or Condi or Support. No matter which way you go, Firebrand F1 skill 4 will hit like a truck and you should be pooting out group boons like Quickness and Stability. The quickness can be nice qol in open world, as it improves node harvesting speed.

I don't think either is objectively better than the other, you should be swapping them every so often (imo).

[Dayra.7405]

When you made all hero points on all maps and skill both elite you will have 404 hero points left B)

[ancafr.9274]

My content is pratically 80% PVE and the rest I do for dailies only, in GW2 I'm a big fan of the PVE content in GW althogh the system here is really good pvp and wvw but I most play PVE. And yes i was testing FB and the mechanics are a little complicated but nothing compared to engi and elem mechanics i really enjoyed the axe as main weap but the utilities are kinda complicated. Currently i'm doing condi build (fire), today im going to test tanky and power dps and i like the core guardian and if I go FB i'll probably keep the core ulties.

[ancafr.9274]

@Dayra.7405 said:When you made all hero points on all maps and skill both elite you will have 404 hero points left B)

I'll probably not have those points for 2 reasons..

1- I just HATE and i mean HATE! with a really BIG caps HOT maps, I played forced because to do some stuff I wanted I HAD to play on that map and my graphic card is weak and I get laggy on both expansion maps, laggy but playable so I'll avoid HOT whenever i can. Althow i enjoy POF maps I do not intend farm for HP there, at least not for main character and so far i still havent decided which class will be my main.

2 - I intend to do map completion only for Tyria and only on my main char so all my chars will probably have only 1 eli spec and maybe not even maxed :).

[Dayra.7405]

@ancafr.9274 said:

@Dayra.7405 said:When you made all hero points on all maps and skill both elite you will have 404 hero points left B)

I'll probably not have those points for 2 reasons..

1- I just HATE and i mean HATE! with a really BIG caps HOT maps,And you can buy the HeroPoints you don't like to make in PvE from WvW-Rankup chest content.

[sephiroth.4217]

Firebrand for support or group play.

DH for DPS and solo play.

[Cyninja.2954]

@ancafr.9274 said:

@Dayra.7405 said:When you made all hero points on all maps and skill both elite you will have 404 hero points left B)

I'll probably not have those points for 2 reasons..

1- I just HATE and i mean HATE! with a really BIG caps HOT maps, I played forced because to do some stuff I wanted I HAD to play on that map and my graphic card is weak and I get laggy on both expansion maps, laggy but playable so I'll avoid HOT whenever i can. Althow i enjoy POF maps I do not intend farm for HP there, at least not for main character and so far i still havent decided which class will be my main.

2 - I intend to do map completion only for Tyria and only on my main char so all my chars will probably have only 1 eli spec and maybe not even maxed :).

If you can't be bothered to get enough Hero Points to unlock both elite specs, the choice between Firebrand and Dragonhunter is meaningless.

Why? Because getting enough hero points takes 2-3 hours at most (and is available via WvW if HoT is sich a big issue), less if you join a HoT/PoF Hero Point train. Getting good at your class takes far longer and limiting yourself at such a basic step means you will never reach your classes full potential. If all you want to do is open world stuff, just got with the elite you would enjoy more.

Both DH and FB are meta for different things and have different strengths and weaknesses in PvE. DH is a very strong power damage spec spec, FB has a lot of hybrid support, healing and condition builds.

[ancafr.9274]

@Cyninja.2954 said:

@ancafr.9274 said:

@Dayra.7405 said:When you made all hero points on all maps and skill both elite you will have 404 hero points left B)

I'll probably not have those points for 2 reasons..

1- I just HATE and i mean HATE! with a really BIG caps HOT maps, I played forced because to do some stuff I wanted I HAD to play on that map and my graphic card is weak and I get laggy on both expansion maps, laggy but playable so I'll avoid HOT whenever i can. Althow i enjoy POF maps I do not intend farm for HP there, at least not for main character and so far i still havent decided which class will be my main.

2 - I intend to do map completion only for Tyria and only on my main char so all my chars will probably have only 1 eli spec and maybe not even maxed :).

If you can't be bothered to get enough Hero Points to unlock both elite specs, the choice between Firebrand and Dragonhunter is meaningless.

Why? Because getting enough hero points takes 2-3 hours at most (and is available via WvW if HoT is sich a big issue), less if you join a HoT/PoF Hero Point train. Getting good at your class takes far longer and limiting yourself at such a basic step means you will never reach your classes full potential. If all you want to do is open world stuff, just got with the elite you would enjoy more.

Both DH and FB are meta for different things and have different strengths and weaknesses in PvE. DH is a very strong power damage spec spec, FB has a lot of hybrid support, healing and condition builds.

I see, i think i'll go for FB i meant to leave my guardian more for sup, the dps I'll leave for warrior and elem. I really like the sword/shield style on guard xD, in this case will be sword/axe/shield and scenpter/focus/shield. Yesterday i tried the sup signets build tanky and i really like it. Thanks for the help.

[Ashantara.8731]

DH deals insane damage (especially burst damage) that a FB could never achieve. FB is best as a supporter class, although it can deal decent damage with conditions, too.

P.S. Builds: https://metabattle.com

[whoeverxwins.1279]

I play both. As mentioned, hero points are easy to come by. I use Dragonhunter when alone or open world, but tend to change to support firebrand for dungeons and metas. It's fun to me to be able to buff and heal large groups of people in the metas, and the justice page allows me to easily get plenty of damage in as well. I use the shadowstep/ rez and rez signet too, so I'm able to keep people up. Really good during Dragon's Stand.

[Gop.8713]

@sephiroth.4217 said:Firebrand for support or group play.

DH for DPS and solo play.

This is the correct answer . . .

[ancafr.9274]

@Gop.8713 said:

@sephiroth.4217 said:Firebrand for support or group play.

DH for DPS and solo play.

This is the correct answer . . .

I'll try both then decide later which one to focus, farm for 30 points on kryta isnt hard. So far I went to FB and i like it.

[sephiroth.4217]

@ancafr.9274 said:

@Gop.8713 said:

@sephiroth.4217 said:Firebrand for support or group play.

DH for DPS and solo play.

This is the correct answer . . .

I'll try both then decide later which one to focus, farm for 30 points on kryta isnt hard. So far I went to FB and i like it.

you can always go to the PvP lobby to try out specs..

The PvP lobby unlocks all traits, skills and abilities at no cost.

[otto.5684]

@"Ashantara.8731" said:DH deals insane damage (especially burst damage) that a FB could never achieve. FB is best as a supporter class, although it can deal decent damage with conditions, too.

P.S. Builds: https://metabattle.com

Actually, dps FB should outdps power DH on champions, solo or in a group. But burst obliviously favors DH.

Op, go to the mists, PvP area and you can test anything you want against dummies or AI. Different builds, elites or weapons, no cost or commitment (you might have to buy a junk weapon 2-4 silver if you do not have one). Test both and play the one you like.

And as per the comment I quoted, go to metabattle for setup.

[ancafr.9274]

@sephiroth.4217 said:

@ancafr.9274 said:

@Gop.8713 said:

@sephiroth.4217 said:Firebrand for support or group play.

DH for DPS and solo play.

This is the correct answer . . .

I'll try both then decide later which one to focus, farm for 30 points on kryta isnt hard. So far I went to FB and i like it.

you can always go to the PvP lobby to try out specs..

The PvP lobby unlocks all traits, skills and abilities at no cost.

Yes I know but the dmg isnt the same on world...

[sephiroth.4217]

@ancafr.9274 said:

@sephiroth.4217 said:

@ancafr.9274 said:

@Gop.8713 said:

@sephiroth.4217 said:Firebrand for support or group play.

DH for DPS and solo play.

This is the correct answer . . .

I'll try both then decide later which one to focus, farm for 30 points on kryta isnt hard. So far I went to FB and i like it.

you can always go to the PvP lobby to try out specs..

The PvP lobby unlocks all traits, skills and abilities at no cost.

Yes I know but the dmg isnt the same on world...

the stats are slightly more balanced in PvP due to restrictions sure but it still serves the same purpose, to try your abilities, skills, E-specs and utilities at no cost. It will also show the difference in damage if that's your concern.

Otherwise my previous comment sums it up shortly, DH for solo dps play, FB for group play.

Ultimately, what ever you find most fun works best, and you can try out which is more fun for free in the PvP lobby. They have Golems there and NPCs, you don't have to engage with players.

For me personally.... I run DH a lot in PvP, I have a lot of fun using 4-5 traps with trapper runes that grant stealth and superspeed. I use Sword for Teleports and sometimes take Judges Intervention for another Teleport. I also take Greatsword because its fun to teleport > teleport > Leap of Faith and pretend I'm a Thief.Whirling Wrath does A LOT OF DAMAGE too and is easy to hit people trapped in Dragons Maw.Basically my DH has identity issues, it runs around teleporting everywhere and stealth bombing people like a Thief.