But I rarely see this combo.
Whats wrong with going in with your bow from afar, then going in for some close quarters with your sword?
Ranger/Warrior - one would think it would be popular..
Sir_Sid
heero_fox
I think the problem is that they are complete opposites. Ranged vs Melee.
Most people want to either stand back on the sidelides and pick people off, or be up front hacking and slashing, not both.
Not only that, but I think the secondary profession is supposed to support the primary, not be a standalone profession. Much better to have buffs from your secondary monk than to be able to switch to a sword to fight a warrior 1 on 1 (and lose because he has much better armor than you).
Most people want to either stand back on the sidelides and pick people off, or be up front hacking and slashing, not both.
Not only that, but I think the secondary profession is supposed to support the primary, not be a standalone profession. Much better to have buffs from your secondary monk than to be able to switch to a sword to fight a warrior 1 on 1 (and lose because he has much better armor than you).
Sir_Sid
Hmm, I never thought of that before. It was your reply that led me to create a new thread under the warrior catagory.
I use my second class as a totally different playing style. I must admit, though, I *am* tempted to create a new character. (This would be my third one). I am kind of leaning towards Warrior/Monk - but I have a feeling that they are going to get nerfed soon..
I use my second class as a totally different playing style. I must admit, though, I *am* tempted to create a new character. (This would be my third one). I am kind of leaning towards Warrior/Monk - but I have a feeling that they are going to get nerfed soon..
Jimbo Shootselot
one of the better skill combos that i have found is the reading the wind/frenzy. it doubles your fire rate and then makes it 33 percent faster than double. the only downside is you take double damdage...but your a ranger so stay the hell away from the people your shooting from and take no damage
Bad_Monkey6186
at least a third of your attribute points are meaningless depending on what weapon you use, so its inefficient.
If you're using a bow, you probably have points in marks, and for a ranged, you'll have points in, lets say, swords. Meaning you've got something thats uselss on your skillbar everytime you switch weapons.
Its just impractical
Edit: but frenzy is perfect for rangers
If you're using a bow, you probably have points in marks, and for a ranged, you'll have points in, lets say, swords. Meaning you've got something thats uselss on your skillbar everytime you switch weapons.
Its just impractical
Edit: but frenzy is perfect for rangers
Sir_Sid
I never even thought about using frenzy with bows!!
Ariakis
Personally, my R/W is actually a Warrior by skill usage. I keep Tiger's Fury and Troll Unguent for emergencies, but I primarily use high Expertise and take advantage of the energy-dependent Sword skills. This lets me reserve my Adrenaline for shouts and a few adrenal sword skills. It's a bit of a disadvantage to have slightly worse physical armor than a normal warrior, but with Studded Leather I can stand up to lightning (which seems to be the most common element for picking off meleers) unlike any other class.
Effectively, I'm a Warrior with Tiger's Fury instead of Frenzy (i.e. safer =D), with a better energy pool, better regen, and more specialized elemental armor, lacking only slightly in physical defense.
Effectively, I'm a Warrior with Tiger's Fury instead of Frenzy (i.e. safer =D), with a better energy pool, better regen, and more specialized elemental armor, lacking only slightly in physical defense.
Dreamsmith
I played a R/W during one of the beta weekends. It's actually quite a good combination. Since you're not in the thick of things most of the time as an archer, Frenzy doesn't really have any downside for you, it's just bonus damage (note: a 33% increased attack speed equals a 50% increase in damage, since if your attacks only take 2/3rds as long, you get 3 attacks in the time you'd normally get 2; that's a 50% damage increase). Tiger's Fury gets you the same, but it's more expensive and has a longer recharge.
You don't really want to be weapon switching, you waste too many attribute points trying to support both styles of play. But an R/W can be either an archer or a melee fighter, and as long as you concentrate on one or the other, either can be an excellent R/W build.
You don't really want to be weapon switching, you waste too many attribute points trying to support both styles of play. But an R/W can be either an archer or a melee fighter, and as long as you concentrate on one or the other, either can be an excellent R/W build.
Jackell
Frenzy and the Rangers stances with a sword.
Bah-zing!
Bah-zing!
Bad_Monkey6186
In case you don't know, and I may be missing something, you can only have one stance running at a time...
and Frenzy is a stance
just checking though
and Frenzy is a stance
just checking though
Akshara
Ranger/Warrior is one of the builds I'm working up right now in PvE (along with Mes/Ele), specifically for eventual PvP play. However it's more for the Tactics line rather than the pure swordplay, since Rangers have many skills for dealing with melee attackers.
There are many benefits to going with Ranger as the primary class over Warrior if one is more interested in the disrupting or infiltrator warrior style rather than being the tank. It's also good for those more interested in taking the ninja/assassin approach. Rangers can be much more than just long range attack specialists, as they have many skills which support infiltration and disruption, along with buffs through skills and items against Elemental damage that the Warriors don't get.
According to the Professions tutorials here, Strength is mainly about being able to wear better armor and take/dish more damage in melee. If one is going to rely on skills more than pure raw power, then taking Expertise offers many skill related enhancements, along with better skill point management.
In my opinion and from what I've read in the articles here, the Ranger/Warrior class has many possible variations that could be a potential asset in team play. Of course we'll have to see if that holds up in more advanced application, but from my perspective so far it would seem that Ranger/Warriors are the potential antidote to Elementals and Monks - possibly even moreso than Mesmers appear to be.
There are many benefits to going with Ranger as the primary class over Warrior if one is more interested in the disrupting or infiltrator warrior style rather than being the tank. It's also good for those more interested in taking the ninja/assassin approach. Rangers can be much more than just long range attack specialists, as they have many skills which support infiltration and disruption, along with buffs through skills and items against Elemental damage that the Warriors don't get.
According to the Professions tutorials here, Strength is mainly about being able to wear better armor and take/dish more damage in melee. If one is going to rely on skills more than pure raw power, then taking Expertise offers many skill related enhancements, along with better skill point management.
In my opinion and from what I've read in the articles here, the Ranger/Warrior class has many possible variations that could be a potential asset in team play. Of course we'll have to see if that holds up in more advanced application, but from my perspective so far it would seem that Ranger/Warriors are the potential antidote to Elementals and Monks - possibly even moreso than Mesmers appear to be.
Jackell
Yeah, I meant to say Frenzy and the other Rangers stances.
lol Amazing how dumb one word can make you sound.
lol Amazing how dumb one word can make you sound.
cpukilla
I'm playing a ranger/warrior right now. Frenzy is great with the bow, really boosts your attack speed! Once I find some traps I am going to switch to expertise/wilderness/hammer and go melee. I really need oath shot to make this work though so hopefully I can find it.
catharsis
Here's a thought for a melee-oriented R/W...
Barbed Trap + Gash + Victory is Mine
Anybody caught in the area of the trap is bleeding and crippled, gash one more enemy for a deep wound... That's minimum three conditions fueling Victory, which means a minimum of 15 energy back, repaying the trap in full.. You could easily afford to toss in a few more energy-driven strikes like Power Attack... esp. if you've got Expertise going...
Barbed Trap + Gash + Victory is Mine
Anybody caught in the area of the trap is bleeding and crippled, gash one more enemy for a deep wound... That's minimum three conditions fueling Victory, which means a minimum of 15 energy back, repaying the trap in full.. You could easily afford to toss in a few more energy-driven strikes like Power Attack... esp. if you've got Expertise going...
Talizar
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ariakis
Personally, my R/W is actually a Warrior by skill usage. I keep Tiger's Fury and Troll Unguent for emergencies, but I primarily use high Expertise and take advantage of the energy-dependent Sword skills. This lets me reserve my Adrenaline for shouts and a few adrenal sword skills. It's a bit of a disadvantage to have slightly worse physical armor than a normal warrior, but with Studded Leather I can stand up to lightning (which seems to be the most common element for picking off meleers) unlike any other class.
Effectively, I'm a Warrior with Tiger's Fury instead of Frenzy (i.e. safer =D), with a better energy pool, better regen, and more specialized elemental armor, lacking only slightly in physical defense. No Str so your damage might be lacking.
Effectively, I'm a Warrior with Tiger's Fury instead of Frenzy (i.e. safer =D), with a better energy pool, better regen, and more specialized elemental armor, lacking only slightly in physical defense. No Str so your damage might be lacking.
Ariakis
Quote:
Originally Posted by Talizar
No Str so your damage might be lacking.
Yeah, that's something I'll have to deal with. So far, I can stay ahead of the game with decent equipment. Also, I've been able to alternate between Pure Strike, Seeking Blade, and Power Attack for the ability to spam skills, allowing me to keep up with the damage of an adrenal Warrior with Strength. I'm sure this ability will diminish with time, but so far I've been able to outdamage every warrior I've grouped with by smart conservation and burst usage of Energy.
Rellok
Quote:
Originally Posted by Talizar
No Str so your damage might be lacking.
I do believe that Strength only offers you armor penetration on normal attacks, not skills, so if you are using skills for most of your attacks, the bonus from strength really isn't that big of a deal. Plus the armor penetration bonus is 1%/level so most people won't see much more than 10% from it. It's something, but when it's only on regular attacks..meh.
I mean, you need to figure out how your character is going to be played, but most of the time, with a sword warrior, you have sever artery every 4 attacks, so if you add in other skill attacks you will probably be at 1/2 or less being normal attacks.
Matt
I mean, you need to figure out how your character is going to be played, but most of the time, with a sword warrior, you have sever artery every 4 attacks, so if you add in other skill attacks you will probably be at 1/2 or less being normal attacks.
Matt
Kha
Quote:
Originally Posted by Warrior Guide
Strength is a Warrior’s primary only attribute. It gives a Warrior armor penetration when using attack skills.
Quoted from Warrior Guide.
Beqxter
This is exactly the thread I've been looking for. I'm on my first build and chose a R/W with weapon-switching in mind. I was thinking of using range most of the time, and switching to melee when someone got up close. But in practice, I find this doesn't work very well. It's OK in the wilderness, but in arena I usually get creamed by a warrior, and find it's more effective to run away and hope he gets distracted/killed by a teammate than to take a stand.
I'm also having doubts about beastmastery with this build. Again, in the wilderness my pet does a good job of keeping the bad guys at bay so I can wail on them with the bow, but in PvP the opposite team member usually ignores my pet and just comes at me (see above RE: running away).
What do you other R/W think? Ditch the beastmastery and go into expertise/marksmanship?
I'm also having doubts about beastmastery with this build. Again, in the wilderness my pet does a good job of keeping the bad guys at bay so I can wail on them with the bow, but in PvP the opposite team member usually ignores my pet and just comes at me (see above RE: running away).
What do you other R/W think? Ditch the beastmastery and go into expertise/marksmanship?
Lank
Predatory Season + AoE Melee = D:
rein
I've been trying out warrior/ranger... ..thoughts were using pin down arrow + sprint for runners and troll regen for health. I am not high enough since I started over (only level 4 rigth now) but I figure with traps and totems it would be a good match with warrior skills. Am I missing something? would I be better off with ranger/warrior? or even a different secondary? Also, can you change secondary professions or is it a re-roll if you decide to do something else? thanks
Akshara
Quote:
What do you other R/W think? Ditch the beastmastery and go into expertise/marksmanship?
There are benefits to be found in Wilderness Survival for team play, including stances and traps that can make dealing with Melee attackers better. In the most efficient scenario, the Ranger would rarely need to pull out that melee weapon and instead be able to cripple, evade or distract the melee attacker (like Barbed Trap, Dryder's Defenses, Dust Trap or Throw Dirt) in an effort to either get away or put some distance between them for a focused bow attack (like Precision Shot, Pin Down or Point Blank Shot), or to simply not be distracted from their original target. Certain traps or skills which either immobilize or blind the attacker can give a pet a better chance of getting in some attacks as well.In a five attribute Ran/War character, my current recommendation is to invest points into the following attributes, in order of importance: Expertise, Marksmanship, Wilderness Survival, Tactics and then either Beast Mastery or Swordsmanship depending on personal preference. The reason I prefer Tactics over Swordsmanship is that it offers more defensive melee options with the sword, which are better for dealing with Melee attackers, rather than focusing on damage done.
Akshara
The above can be modified to a four attribute setup, dropping Beast Mastery or Swordsmanship. In my opinion, a four attibute setup with Swordsmanship instead of Tactics doesn't seem practical, since a Ranger, even with Swordsmanship at 10, can't really go toe to toe with a Warrior in offensive melee combat for very long. Especially since the other team's monks will likely buff the Warrior more frequently than our Monks will heal us.
A three attribute setup sorta limits the Ranger to being a pure primary, or a semi-pure skill based Warrior in different armor, and doesn't really seem suited to taking advantage of the Warrior secondary... unless one relies solely on Tactics for defensive stances.
Here is an excellent article on generic attribute distiribution strategies, if one hasn't seen it yet...
Attribute Point Distribution
Also, the following article has some pertinent information regarding the way Expertise lowers total skill cost, and how it combines with regeneration times. This can be helpful for planning out skill sets and attributes...
Energy Management
A three attribute setup sorta limits the Ranger to being a pure primary, or a semi-pure skill based Warrior in different armor, and doesn't really seem suited to taking advantage of the Warrior secondary... unless one relies solely on Tactics for defensive stances.
Here is an excellent article on generic attribute distiribution strategies, if one hasn't seen it yet...
Attribute Point Distribution
Also, the following article has some pertinent information regarding the way Expertise lowers total skill cost, and how it combines with regeneration times. This can be helpful for planning out skill sets and attributes...
Energy Management
Akshara
Quote:
Am I missing something? would I be better off with ranger/warrior?
It depends on how often you like to use skills and a bow. The Ranger as primary offers faster skill regeneration times and lowered skill cost the higher their Expertise gets. This can eventually make Rangers almost equal or better with average Elementalists in skills, since the lowered skill cost offsets the smaller skill pool. As was mentioned earlier, Strength helps with wearing better armor and with attack damage against armor. So it depends on what you like to do... run in and deal/take heavy melee damage with the occasional skill and bow use; or use lots of skills and stances with long-range attacks, with the sword being primarily a defensive weapon.One could theoretically develop a semi-pure skill based Warrior with Ranger as their primary, mainly using the bow to winnow down their opponents health prior to engaging them in melee. That would suggest distributing points into Expertise, Swordsmanship (or Axe/Hammer), Tactics and Marksmanship, in that order. Unlike with a Warrior primary, Tactics becomes much more important to a Ranger primary since they just won't be able to stand still and take as much damage as a pure Warrior can.
Rush the Resplendent
I am thoroughly convinced that the new Ranger pet (which attacks your target) can make an excellent damage add for a melee R/W. Common thinkin would not support me on this, and I have yet to personally test it, but I imagine it would work.
DawnAssassin
you could use the ranger for the pet and heals with melee warrior for total offense in close quarters combat.
Beqxter
All I know is that last night I ditched the beastmastery, put all my points in Expertise, Marksmanship, Wilderness Survival and Tactics, started using Frenzy combined with Ignite Arrow and Dual shot and began kicking a LOT more ass than I ever did with my Melandru Stalker. I also replaced one of the pet slots with Dodge so that I can kick in the afterburners and run away from those mean ol' warriors in PvP.
So far, so good.
So far, so good.
ibex333
Any suggestions for a purely PvP melee R/W build??? I'm making one right now using either axes or swords.. havent decided yet.