What classes have good ranged dps options for pve and pvp?

[Twilightmage.8309]

Hi dumb noob here and was wondering what classes nowadays can be played mainly as a ranged damage dealer for all game modes. I kind of fell off the game before when I would find a class I liked only to find out they would be way worse off then playing a melee version of them, or just unviable at all in something else (dragonhunter LB, rifle deadeye, ect, bow renegade) I was wondering if this has been addressed at all yet or if it's still the same. Thanks for your time

[Puck.3697]

i think staff/staff mesmer or Scourge necromancer is the only choices right now.

 

Lots of classes Utilise ranged weapons.( Soulbeast uses Longbow, Renegade uses shortbow some Guardian builds wield Scepter etc etc) but they often also use melee weapons on the weapon swap.

 

i wouldnt say it matters too much.. u all Stack in raids etc et con Melee Range 😛 So ur gonna be melee in PvE regardless.

[Zhaid Zhem.6508]

Condi ranger. (Ranger/druid/soulbeast)s

With Shortbox + Axe/X + your pet can take aggro in pve; you have tools to keep enemies at range but also strong melee skills with traps, torch, dagger etc.

[Infusion.7149]

Condi Scourge (power for WVW)
Staff condi mirage (useless in WVW outside roaming)
Condi pistol deadye (useless in WVW outside roaming , run staff daredevil in WVW)
Condi soulbeast with shortbow (not for WVW) , longbow ranger is terrible damage if you don't weapon swap
Condi renegade probably is far less effective if you camp shortbow and stay outside melee range (semi-useless in WVW)
 

[Twilightmage.8309]

Thanks for the replies, a bit bummed out ranged dps isnt much of an option in this game as I liked kiting and keeping my distance more in mmos. Sad cause I really liked long bow dragonhunter, scepter/horn tempest and shortbow renegade. Maybe i'll check back again when the expansion hits to see if anything has changed.

[HappyHubris.1096]

7 hours ago, Twilightmage.8309 said:

Thanks for the replies, a bit bummed out ranged dps isnt much of an option in this game as I liked kiting and keeping my distance more in mmos. Sad cause I really liked long bow dragonhunter, scepter/horn tempest and shortbow renegade. Maybe i'll check back again when the expansion hits to see if anything has changed.

The game seems to favor melee for every spec so far, and the game's weird buffing mechanics mean that stacking in melee happens for organized content even with ranged classes.

 

That said, you don't have to be optimal to beat content and can probably have fun at range doing your thing.

[Suyheuti.1732]

Do not seek too much. I'm not taking about ranged or melee. Guardians are necros are golden children of Arenanet. Pick one or pick both and you can do anything in the game. No need for 3rd class. Trust me.

[Twilightmage.8309]

19 hours ago, HappyHubris.1096 said:

The game seems to favor melee for every spec so far, and the game's weird buffing mechanics mean that stacking in melee happens for organized content even with ranged classes.

 

That said, you don't have to be optimal to beat content and can probably have fun at range doing your thing.

I appreciate the info, just seems weird that in an mmo that's known for having a lot of options that they would make an entire playstyle bad. Like they have 6ish ranged weapons why aren't they good. Also its not like im missing out on anything by waiting or not playing the game.

Edited June 4, 2021 by Twilightmage.8309

[Ardenwolfe.8590]

I can’t speak for PvP, but a staff/staff condition mirage does things in Open World my old class couldn’t dream of doing. Lord Hizen on YouTube has some amazing videos.

[Blood Red Arachnid.2493]

Rifle Deadeye is pretty good at WvW and in PVE it is good at oveworld, mediocre in raids.  Though for fractals you'll find yourself either playing Staff Daredevil or a melee weapon on Deadeye.  

[HappyHubris.1096]

5 hours ago, Twilightmage.8309 said:

I appreciate the info, just seems weird that in an mmo that's known for having a lot of options that they would make an entire playstyle bad. Like they have 6ish ranged weapons why aren't they good. Also its not like im missing out on anything by waiting or not playing the game.

GW2 has mechanics that include a lot of constant AoE buffs and heals instead of the careful targeted spells of other games.  This results in an organized playstyle that encourages stacking together.  The developers also love skills that are an AoE around the player, meaning that even ranged weapons are often better used up close for maximum PvE damage (e.g. Weaver Staff). Because skills are linked to weapons and there is weapon switching, a ranged approach would also require two good ranged weapons to be viable, but many classes don't have two strong ranged weapons to choose from.  If they're using ranged/melee then it just makes more sense to stay in melee than to run in and out to lose damage.

 

None of these core mechanics are likely to change in the next expansion.  Essentially ANet created an interesting open world game whose mechanics become a bit of a kludge for WvW/Fractals/Raids.

[Twilightmage.8309]

On 6/4/2021 at 8:36 AM, HappyHubris.1096 said:

GW2 has mechanics that include a lot of constant AoE buffs and heals instead of the careful targeted spells of other games.  This results in an organized playstyle that encourages stacking together.  The developers also love skills that are an AoE around the player, meaning that even ranged weapons are often better used up close for maximum PvE damage (e.g. Weaver Staff). Because skills are linked to weapons and there is weapon switching, a ranged approach would also require two good ranged weapons to be viable, but many classes don't have two strong ranged weapons to choose from.  If they're using ranged/melee then it just makes more sense to stay in melee than to run in and out to lose damage.

 

None of these core mechanics are likely to change in the next expansion.  Essentially ANet created an interesting open world game whose mechanics become a bit of a kludge for WvW/Fractals/Raids.

Again, I appreciate the more in depth view of how the game works, just a bit of a bummer for me personally. Alas that's how things are and not every game will suit every persons wants.