Just so frustrated and want to be happy

[Obsidanse.2048]

Middle aged gamer gril who is, and always has, been hugely frustrated with this game.

I love the look of it, the feel of my class, the ideas the game has for gameplay and things to do.

I am a Mesmer, I use a Staff... I'm not very keen on the other options.

I have literally no idea what stats to choose and every place i go for help has multiple answers instead of a strait response.

This is really just a plee for some concise, understandable help on how to build a good set of armour, without too much to digest, and where to go buy it. I've lots of currency and a little gold... Worst case I'll just look out for the right stuff by grinding.

Thankyou.

Please don't be another eye roller! :)

 

The game is hard in a bad way for me.

Everything bombards me very easily despite sensible use of dodging and abilities... Mandatory story events with tough enemies are the most upsetting thing of all... Often I just happen to scrape it one day, purely by luck, and finally manage to progress... I'm unlikely to leave the first area of path of fire for some time now.

[Makai.3429]

Check your forum PMs.

[Obsidanse.2048]

Sorry, what is PMs?

[FogLeg.9354]

PM = Personal Message. When browinsg the forum, on top of the page near your username is Inbox icon.

[Knight In Shining Armor.17]

> @Obsidanse.2048 said:

> Sorry, what is PMs?

 

I'm sorry but my eyes did roll :3

[Obsidanse.2048]

Its ok.

I understand folks expect everyone to be on their level... I play alone, nobody my age joins in and it’s quite tough relating to others who’re outside your age group. Priorities are very different.

Please, anyone who can give a line or two of real help would be lovely as it’s good to get the same answers from multiple sources. If only for reassurance.

[Martnor.1746]

It really depends on your playstyle. (DPS, Support etc. ) You can use mobafire to give you a wide range of builds that you can use. Once you have roughly found a build that suits you, you can make adjustments to it. I started the same way.

 

Your playstyle will define which build you choose. Websites like mobafire will give you the kind of gear that should be used with your build. Then you can just use the GW2 wiki to see where you can buy/grind/gather the multiple pieces/materials if you don't have enough gold to buy it straight from the TP.

 

I hope you find this helpful.

 

> @Obsidanse.2048 said:

> Its ok.

> I understand folks expect everyone to be on their level... I play alone, nobody my age joins in and it’s quite tough relating to others who’re outside your age group. Priorities are very different.

> Please, anyone who can give a line or two of real help would be lovely as it’s good to get the same answers from multiple sources. If only for reassurance.

 

Age really isn't an issue. I don't know how old you are but a wide range of people play the game as I am sure you already know. I play with people that I have met in the game that are both older and younger than me. We all have the same interest here which is to play GW2. It is true however, that interests may differ (PvE, PVP, Raids...) and the commitment to the game may be different for different people. But you will eventually find people to play with simply by doing what you like. Just talk to people whenever you see people around you in all chat. You won't always get an answer but some people will respond (usually the friendlier people anyway).

 

The game is really player friendly compared to other MMO in that you can do a lot of it by yourself. So it is easy to feel isolated in your corner as you may not need to interact with other people to accomplish your goals. If you do try to connect with people, it can be really fun! You could even make long lasting friendships. I have made friends with people and we have moved through different Guilds over the past few years.

 

I don't know if this helped you a bit, but just know that you don't have to play alone. We are all Tyrians who want to enjoy the game. After all, it was said that GW2 had one of the best community in an MMO! (not sure if it is still true or not, but I would like to think so)

[Wild Sister.7529]

I am sorry you are experiencing this. I can't really help you armour stats wise as I don't really get that either. Are you on an EU server? You can add me if you want. When I'm online I'll be happy to help out where I can.

[Obsidanse.2048]

Hey Martnor.1746 , thankyou for the explanation.

Truthfully, the moment you talk about play styles and builds I feel myself deflating.

I look at the abilities (very briefly) to get my barings, then shoot.

Other games have been reasonably self explanatory with stats and I've been able to figure out what my class needs. This game seems much less forcoming... indeed it seems to enjoy hiding these sorts of things from the player. Consequently I end up stacking entirely the wrong things and becoming unplayable when things get tough.

I play solo, use my abilities to buff and heal myself, debuff and confuse the enemy and I use environmental effects to help myself and NPCs (not knowing entirely whether it actually helps them).

Instinct tells me that I should be equipping armour with

Condition Damage..

Healing..

10 to one most will say no, and frustratingly some will say yes.... This game...

[choovanski.5462]

if it's any consolation the best raider I ever played with was in his 50's. he plays with his son and has multiple legendary gear sets

 

so yeah, age is not a big deal. it's more mentality.

I've always found the game very straightforward, stats and skills wise. but I mostly play warrior in PvP so I can't give you specific advice.

 

I do know that mesmer can go power or condi. and that condi is better for staff and sceptre. also healing power scales well with heals on shatter. but all the rest of my knowledge is PvP specific, sorry.

[AlphaWolvesGamer.5790]

Hey Obsi (you mind if I call you Obsi?), just wanted to see if I can't help a little with your confusion. I understand that stats and end-game content can be a little confusing and difficult to wrap your head around, but it's basic once you've understood the gist of what's going on. Here's a small description of each ability and what they do:

 

**Power** - Is a flat increase to your base damage. This is your main damage buffer. At level 80, all professions have 1000 base Power, so having an 2000 Power through stats will essentially double your base damage, 3000 will triple, ect ect...

 

**Condition Damage** - This one is pretty self explanatory. It will increase the damage you deal with Bleeding, Burning, Poison, Confusion, Fear, and Torment. You can find the Base level 80 Damage and the Damage Increase per 100 Points using this link: [Here!](https://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Condition_Damage "Here!")

 

**Expertise** - This one increases the time frame which enemies are effected by your Conditions and is a way to artificially increase your damage through increasing the time which enemies are effected by them. Every 15 points of Expertise adds 1% to condition duration.

 

**Concentration** - This one increases the boon duration on you and friendly companions. What Expertise does for Conditions, Concentration does for Boons. Every 15 points of Concentration adds 1% to boon duration.

 

**Precision** - This one is your Critical Hit Chance, with each attack having a % chance to critically hit the enemy (as far as I know, condition damage cannot critically hit). Because you have 1000 base Precision, you will have ~5% Critical Chance from just being level 80. You get an extra 1% Crit Chance per 21 Points.

 

**Ferocity** - This one is a little less self explanatory. Basically (at level 80), 15 points of Ferocity will give you a 1% Increase to Damage on your Critical Hit attacks. For example, if you had 1,000 Points of Ferocity, you would have ~66.7% Increase to Critical hit damage.

 

**Healing Power** - As the name implies is how much healing you'll deal. Unfortunately, Healing Power is lackluster compared to Healing Percent Increase, which is focused more on classes and traits than armor stats. If you're going Mesmer, than Healing Power isn't something you should focus on.

 

**Toughness** - This one is your first "Tank" stat in the game, and most commonly used for raids and bosses to aggro onto players. Toughness = Armor, which reduces the incoming damage that is dealt against you. Keep in mind, this only reduces damage.

 

**Vitality** - This one is your second "Tank" stat in the game, and is most known for increasing your health pools. More health = more survival. Keep this in mind if you ever feel squishy, as a little slash of Vitality will probably help you in the long run.

 

Considering that you prefer to use the Staff Mesmer, Viper's Armor for DPS or Trailblazer's Armor for Survivability might be what you're looking for, as most of your damage will be through inflicting conditions against your enemy. Hope this helps!

[Obsidanse.2048]

If age is such a non issue, and I've left the subject, it seems interesting that you feel the need to dwell on it.

This is why I remain confused... I do not understand why folks are so ready to spend energy prodding but not to assist... I'm sure it will get you far.

[Obsidanse.2048]

Thank you AlphaWolvesGamer ... Really all I needed. Much thanks.

[DebraKadabra.5278]

To bookend Alpha's wonderful post - armor/weapons with Viper and/or Trailblazer statistics are unique to the Heart of Thorns expansion and must be crafted. They cannot be bought on the Black Lion Trade Post.

 

The recipes will sometimes drop as loot during the larger events (night time in Verdant Brink, the Octovine in Auric Basin, Chak Gerent in Tangled Depths, or Mouth of Mordremoth in Dragon's Stand).

 

Best of luck to you.

[mysticeyesx.1346]

You can play around with builds here http://en.gw2skills.net/ and https://metabattle.com/wiki/MetaBattle_Wiki

I totally understand where you are coming from with this game. I have been playing since the first launch and still finds some things confusing and age has nothing to do with it.

 

[Meestercat.2748]

> @Obsidanse.2048 said:

> Middle aged gamer gril who is, and always has, been hugely frustrated with this game.

> I love the look of it, the feel of my class, the ideas the game has for gameplay and things to do.

> I am a Mesmer, I use a Staff... I'm not very keen on the other options.

> I have literally no idea what stats to choose and every place i go for help has multiple answers instead of a strait response.

> This is really just a plee for some concise, understandable help on how to build a good set of armour, without too much to digest, and where to go buy it. I've lots of currency and a little gold... Worst case I'll just look out for the right stuff by grinding.

> Thankyou.

> Please don't be another eye roller! :)

>

> The game is hard in a bad way for me.

> Everything bombards me very easily despite sensible use of dodging and abilities... Mandatory story events with tough enemies are the most upsetting thing of all... Often I just happen to scrape it one day, purely by luck, and finally manage to progress... I'm unlikely to leave the first area of path of fire for some time now.

 

I thought I’d just post this here: https://www.reddit.com/r/guildwars2/wiki/guides/leveling/mesmer

 

It’s a (slightly outdated) leveling guide but it also has links to Mesmer resources, I found it invaluable when I was getting to grips with my Mesmer.

 

I would also advise (as long as you have HoT) doing some Verdant Brink meta events as these will give you lots of Airship Parts which can be traded for Exotic gear at the Itzel vendor at the first Verdant Brink waypoint.

 

If you’re EU, feel free to add me in game and I’ll help however I can. :)

[Ojimaru.8970]

Hello @"Obsidanse.2048". Sorry to hear you're having trouble with the Mesmer. @"AlphaWolvesGamer.5790" posted some great information, and I just want to add a little.

 

In terms of Healing and Utility skills, I would suggest [Ether Feast](https://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Ether_Feast) as it gives the most health back and is on a short cooldown, as well as [signet of Midnight](https://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Signet_of_Midnight) and [signet of Domination](https://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Signet_of_Domination). The latter two are mainly to help improve your damage, but can be useful "panic buttons" too. Signet of Midnight can be activated to put you into Stealth, allowing you to retreat easier, while the other Stuns the enemy for 3 seconds.

 

If you don't have Path of Fire or the new Mirage Elite Specialization unlocked, here are my suggestions for your traits:

 

* **Illusions**: Select **Compounding Power** (top), **Maim the Disillusioned** (bottom), and **Master of Fragmentation** (middle)

* **Dueling**: Select **Phantasmal Fury** (top), **Blinding Dissipation** (top), and **Ineptitude** (middle)

* **Chaos**: Select **Illusionary Defense** (middle), **Chaotic Transference** (middle), and **Bountiful Disillusionment** (bottom)

 

If you have the new Mirage specialization available, you can switch out **Chaos** for **Mirage**, and use the following:

 

* **Mirage**: Select **Renewing Oasis** (middle), **Mirage Mantle** (middle), and **Infinite Horizon** (top).

 

@"AlphaWolvesGamer.5790" mentioned using Viper's and Trailblazer equipment, but I saw that you mentioning that your were low on gold, too. In this case, I would, instead, suggest using a full set of Viper's, as the latter is rather expensive to make. However, if you don't have access to Heart of Thorns, and therefore no access to Viper's, you can opt for _Rabid_ gear. You can then buy some cheap **Superior Rune of the Krait** for your armor, and **Superior Sigil of Agony** for your staff from the Black Lion Trading Post.

 

Hope this helps, and never be afraid to seek help on the forums!

[Leo Schrodingers Cat.2497]

Sorry, but a straight answer when it comes to gear is kinda difficult (unless you are doing raids). In GW2 everything is viable, so you should just build to what you like.