How do you feel ranger is doing? Debating on switching to it.

[Zexanima.7851]

I think this thread went a little off point though, because I don't expect to be fighting ONLY warriors. I need to know how to fight the other 8 professions as well. I just used warrior as an example because that's what I currently play.

[shadowpass.4236]

> @"Zexanima.7851" said:

> I think this thread went a little off point though, because I don't expect to be fighting ONLY warriors. I need to know how to fight the other 8 professions as well. I just used warrior as an example because that's what I currently play.

 

This thread is a year old but there's a lot of information in there. Hopefully it's still helpful. :)

 

https://forum-en.gw2archive.eu/forum/professions/ranger/Ranger-Questions-Ask-here

[Zexanima.7851]

This was JUST upload and might be helpful if others find this thread. Idk if it's good, just found it. [https://youtube.com/watch?v=rAuACa2d3_Y](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rAuACa2d3_Y "https://youtube.com/watch?v=rAuACa2d3_Y")

[jcbroe.4329]

I'm not going to butt in to the rest of ongoing conversation in the thread because with @"shadowpass.4236" trying to help, I don't feel I have anything to add to that information.

 

More importantly, how are your fundamentals? Kiting, dodging, positioning, and cooldown management are especially important on Ranger and are how you will beat the vast majority of the players you come across.

 

Next step, how are your pet management fundamentals? Each pet family has a skill queue priority and managing your pets movements with F1 and F3 is an important technique to learn, especially against people that will use the environment to kite your pet.

 

Ranger weapon fundamentals; how good are you at identifying windows of opportunity to do damage? Know what the enemies build is capable of, anticipate their actions, count dodges, wait for cooldowns, and then burst when you have an opening. Ranger is a high burst, low DPS class compared to other classes. A big part of doing damage is setting up bursts and capitalizing on enemy mistakes. Utilizing the pet is a very, very important part of this process.

 

Know what your skills do. Rangers can setup their build in ways that allow them to respond to the majority of situations they can be in. Knowing what skill to use when will not only get you out of a bad situation, but can often times immediately swing the momentum of a fight and place you in a favorable situation.

[Zexanima.7851]

> @"jcbroe.4329" said:

> I'm not going to butt in to the rest of ongoing conversation in the thread because with @"shadowpass.4236" trying to help, I don't feel I have anything to add to that information.

>

> More importantly, how are your fundamentals? Kiting, dodging, positioning, and cooldown management are especially important on Ranger and are how you will beat the vast majority of the players you come across.

>

> Next step, how are your pet management fundamentals? Each pet family has a skill queue priority and managing your pets movements with F1 and F3 is an important technique to learn, especially against people that will use the environment to kite your pet.

>

> Ranger weapon fundamentals; how good are you at identifying windows of opportunity to do damage? Know what the enemies build is capable of, anticipate their actions, count dodges, wait for cooldowns, and then burst when you have an opening. Ranger is a high burst, low DPS class compared to other classes. A big part of doing damage is setting up bursts and capitalizing on enemy mistakes. Utilizing the pet is a very, very important part of this process.

>

> Know what your skills do. Rangers can setup their build in ways that allow them to respond to the majority of situations they can be in. Knowing what skill to use when will not only get you out of a bad situation, but can often times immediately swing the momentum of a fight and place you in a favorable situation.

 

I'm relying on game sense I've developed while playing warrior. Positioning, kiting, dodging, are probably the only reason I win any fights atm since I'm still learning the class/buttons/skills. I may not be using my burst correctly but I feel like I hit like a wet noodle compared to my warrior and I have a basic understanding of how to use the pet but probably am not optimal with it.

[jcbroe.4329]

> @"Zexanima.7851" said:

> > @"jcbroe.4329" said:

> > I'm not going to butt in to the rest of ongoing conversation in the thread because with @"shadowpass.4236" trying to help, I don't feel I have anything to add to that information.

> >

> > More importantly, how are your fundamentals? Kiting, dodging, positioning, and cooldown management are especially important on Ranger and are how you will beat the vast majority of the players you come across.

> >

> > Next step, how are your pet management fundamentals? Each pet family has a skill queue priority and managing your pets movements with F1 and F3 is an important technique to learn, especially against people that will use the environment to kite your pet.

> >

> > Ranger weapon fundamentals; how good are you at identifying windows of opportunity to do damage? Know what the enemies build is capable of, anticipate their actions, count dodges, wait for cooldowns, and then burst when you have an opening. Ranger is a high burst, low DPS class compared to other classes. A big part of doing damage is setting up bursts and capitalizing on enemy mistakes. Utilizing the pet is a very, very important part of this process.

> >

> > Know what your skills do. Rangers can setup their build in ways that allow them to respond to the majority of situations they can be in. Knowing what skill to use when will not only get you out of a bad situation, but can often times immediately swing the momentum of a fight and place you in a favorable situation.

>

> I'm relying on game sense I've developed while playing warrior. Positioning, kiting, dodging, are probably the only reason I win any fights atm since I'm still learning the class/buttons/skills. I may not be using my burst correctly but I feel like I hit like a wet noodle compared to my warrior and I have a basic understanding of how to use the pet but probably am not optimal with it.

 

Alright, just trying to get a general sense of where you are to help you out.

 

Yes, Ranger hits like a wet noodle compared to Warrior.

 

* Sword autos will range from 1k crits to maxing around 3k hits in less typical instances, and the autoattack is the optimal damage for the set. The cripple on the auto and evasion and mobility is supposed to make up for the low damage per hit, and it will have respectable DPS if you can stick to an enemy and get lots of hits in.

* The Greatsword is a slower, clunkier weapon with big burst damage potential, however, it requires traits if you're looking to see it do more damage than the ~5-8k damage in crit you'll typically get. One of the bigger gimmicks to build for with Greatsword is the Clarion Bond+Moment of Clarity + Remorseless trait combination in Marksmanship. The combo you're looking for is to Maul->Hilt Bash->Pet Swap->Maul. With a Remorseless proc from the fury on pet swap, the second Maul will get the 25% damage bonus, and if you're Hilt Bash interrupts a skill, you get the additional +50% damage bonus. This is how you will see those Mauls that push the 15-20k crit range.

* Longbow isn't your typical damage weapon, and without damage bonuses, doesn't actually push very high damage numbers. The utility of the knockback and stealth while having high range and consistent damage is the crux of the weapon, because you can safely poke and weaken enemies, while potentially being threatening, with the right build. However, if you're taking the damage traits from above in the Greatsword section, you won't be able to take Farsighted, so the LB either gets relegated to a ranged utility weapon for kiting/poking, unless you take the typical core setup and sacrifice the utility of Beastmastery traits for Skirmishing to pick up Vicious Quarry. The LB benefits greatly from having high crit chance as your damage is spread out over many hits, and you'll find that with the right setup, you can consistently land 8-10k Rapid Fires.

 

If the example damage ranges I provided don't seem very impressive, welcome to the Ranger class! Lol. The rest of the damage is supposed to come from the Pet.

[Ralkuth.1456]

I was in gold trying to learn Ranger and some of these resources helped a lot early on. Some I continue to watch and learn from. Got me to plat once and I'm a rather bad duelist, I survived solely because I knew more about Ranger mechanics from them.

 

Shadowpass' thread on the [archived forums](https://en-forum.guildwars2.com/home/leaving?target=https%3A%2F%2Fforum-en.gw2archive.eu%2Fforum%2Fprofessions%2Franger%2FRanger-Questions-Ask-here "archived forums") were very helpful.

 

Advice on Soulbeast (Shadelang):

[LB/GS as a weapon set](https://en-forum.guildwars2.com/discussion/comment/327692#Comment_327692 "LB/GS as a weapon set")

[General playstyle](https://en-forum.guildwars2.com/discussion/comment/420538#Comment_420538 "General playstyle")

 

Boyce highlights on [Core Ranger](

"Core Ranger"), I think this is what Shadowpass was talking about "good results". Boyce also roams WvW on it sometimes.

 

Treesixty's [Twitch](

"Twitch"), he plays a lot of Core Ranger.

 

Hiimraving's Sword + Axe/Axe + Warhorn [melee Soulbeast gameplay](

"melee Soulbeast gameplay").

 

Your build with Zerker + Pack is glorious, and it's already been done by [saizo Sol](https://en-forum.guildwars2.com/discussion/45763/spvp-soulbeast-the-sicem-meta "Saizo Sol") in a recent thread. This is the other way to play Ranger ("Sic 'em!" Soulbeast), and reminds me of the old Bull's Charge/Frenzy/100 Blades sniper Warrior more than anything.

 

There's also Druid which is an option even though you said you didn't like to heal, we can watch some [good plays by Frosty](

"good plays by Frosty").

 

 

[shadowpass.4236]

> @"Ralkuth.1456" said:

> Boyce highlights on [Core Ranger](

"Core Ranger"), I think this is what Shadowpass was talking about "good results". Boyce also roams WvW on it sometimes.

 

Yes!! I've seen that video before, he did very, very well against the warrior in the first fight. Notice how he countered every single one of the warrior's attacks and didn't hit a single Full Counter. :)

 

The only 2 things I would say he can do better are:

 

1. Saving his gs3 for stealthing/escaping just in case he gets +1d for a while and needs to leave.

2. Full cap before you go for the kill against a warrior.

 

For the second point, since he's running lb/gs and has very good timing, he can easily full cap the warrior in 3 weapon swaps. The time it takes to full cap a warrior is a lot lower than the time it takes to kill one. If he had full capped, then the warrior would be either forced to fight on a node he doesn't own (and should never be able to decap), or leave. Either scenario is good.

[Zexanima.7851]

> @"Ralkuth.1456" said:

> I was in gold trying to learn Ranger and some of these resources helped a lot early on. Some I continue to watch and learn from. Got me to plat once and I'm a rather bad duelist, I survived solely because I knew more about Ranger mechanics from them.

>

> Shadowpass' thread on the [archived forums](https://en-forum.guildwars2.com/home/leaving?target=https%3A%2F%2Fforum-en.gw2archive.eu%2Fforum%2Fprofessions%2Franger%2FRanger-Questions-Ask-here "archived forums") were very helpful.

>

> Advice on Soulbeast (Shadelang):

> [LB/GS as a weapon set](https://en-forum.guildwars2.com/discussion/comment/327692#Comment_327692 "LB/GS as a weapon set")

> [General playstyle](https://en-forum.guildwars2.com/discussion/comment/420538#Comment_420538 "General playstyle")

>

> Boyce highlights on [Core Ranger](

"Core Ranger"), I think this is what Shadowpass was talking about "good results". Boyce also roams WvW on it sometimes.

>

> Treesixty's [Twitch](

"Twitch"), he plays a lot of Core Ranger.

>

> Hiimraving's Sword + Axe/Axe + Warhorn [melee Soulbeast gameplay](

"melee Soulbeast gameplay").

>

> Your build with Zerker + Pack is glorious, and it's already been done by [saizo Sol](https://en-forum.guildwars2.com/discussion/45763/spvp-soulbeast-the-sicem-meta "Saizo Sol") in a recent thread. This is the other way to play Ranger ("Sic 'em!" Soulbeast), and reminds me of the old Bull's Charge/Frenzy/100 Blades sniper Warrior more than anything.

>

> There's also Druid which is an option even though you said you didn't like to heal, we can watch some [good plays by Frosty](

"good plays by Frosty").

>

>

 

Thank you for all the resources! I really appreciate you spending the time to share them. I'll be sure to look through them and as I come across/learn anything worth while I plan on dropping it in this thread

[UfoCoffee.2084]

If you hate mesmers right now prepare to absolutely despise them. You're a free kill to even a mediocre mesmer. Warriors are a pain, sword dagger thief will slowly kill you after taking all your boons. Condi thief will one shot you if you're not careful whilst facerolling on the keyboard. These classes will all probably be nerfed in the next balance patch so it should be better if you wait it out.

 

Also if you are playing WvW prepare to be kicked out of every squad you get into, even if you're playing druid :(

[Zexanima.7851]

> @"UfoCoffee.2084" said:

> If you hate mesmers right now prepare to absolutely despise them. You're a free kill to even a mediocre mesmer. Warriors are a pain, sword dagger thief will slowly kill you after taking all your boons. Condi thief will one shot you if you're not careful whilst facerolling on the keyboard. These classes will all probably be nerfed in the next balance patch so it should be better if you wait it out.

>

> Also if you are playing WvW prepare to be kicked out of every squad you get into, even if you're playing druid :(

 

I think this holds true against most other professions as well. xD

[Substance E.4852]

> @"UfoCoffee.2084" said:

> These classes will all probably be nerfed in the next balance patch so it should be better if you wait it out.

 

Along with more Druid nerfs because it still breaks the "die in 5 seconds or less" meta the game has fallen into since HoT.

[Shadowcat.2680]

Some useful tips to add to the resource threads already linked: https://en-forum.guildwars2.com/discussion/33344/soulbeast-combos-tricks-and-guides. Some of the tips are soulbeast focused, but there are some that apply to core ranger as well.

[InsaneQR.7412]

Ranger is fine but warrior is better atm.

Personally i like ranger more due to theme and the soulbeast gameplay and versatility.

But warrior had some top notch DPS specs and nice control with Sbreaker

[Zexanima.7851]

> @"InsaneQR.7412" said:

> Ranger is fine but warrior is better atm.

> Personally i like ranger more due to theme and the soulbeast gameplay and versatility.

> But warrior had some top notch DPS specs and nice control with Sbreaker

 

Having played Ranger for about a week I'm finding it a lot more enjoyable. It seems to have 'more' to it than warrior and gives me a lot more options. I can defiantly tell that it's weaker in the damage department but I think the utility makes up for it. If I had to change anything (from my short experience) would maybe just be some number tweaking or QoL changes on LB, it feels more like I'm annoying people with it than applying ranged pressure. A lot of the time , scourge for instance, they can just out sustain my LB damage. (can't really melee then, those condis are insane)

[InsaneQR.7412]

> @"Zexanima.7851" said:

> > @"InsaneQR.7412" said:

> > Ranger is fine but warrior is better atm.

> > Personally i like ranger more due to theme and the soulbeast gameplay and versatility.

> > But warrior had some top notch DPS specs and nice control with Sbreaker

>

> Having played Ranger for about a week I'm finding it a lot more enjoyable. It seems to have 'more' to it than warrior and gives me a lot more options. I can defiantly tell that it's weaker in the damage department but I think the utility makes up for it. If I had to change anything (from my short experience) would maybe just be some number tweaking or QoL changes on LB, it feels more like I'm annoying people with it than applying ranged pressure. A lot of the time , scourge for instance, they can just out sustain my LB damage. (can't really melee then, those condis are insane)

 

Yeah LB is basically the troll since launch, the pushback is hell as annoying in PvE but outright hilarious in WvW and PvP^^

Its dmg is quiet good but you are very predictable. Deflects are your worst enemy but you are the worst to melee condi specs. Try to stealth and knock them from ledges with LB 4. You are very evasive with the right pet and its mobility is superior to warrior.

[Ralkuth.1456]

> @"Zexanima.7851" said:

> A lot of the time , scourge for instance, they can just out sustain my LB damage. (can't really melee then, those condis are insane)

 

Watching the good players steering their Rangers, playing the class well is pretty much about consistency. Consistent dodges and picking the right moment to burst.

Ranger can fluff around kiting until an opening because your burst is simple and it hits hard enough.

 

So if you see Scourge break out the circles, just position well, ping autos at it (they do hurt) and watch for something else that might need your CC or peels. Don't rush onto a point with Scourge, if you really have to 1v1 it alone (for whatever reason) it's logical to wear it down with LB and pet first, especially when your pet revives after melding. They only really have 2 dodges and visible source of protection, you can GS block the shades and kite with stealth and knockback, and you can stow to bait dodge (stow LB #4).

 

Please also watch [shadelang's stream](

"Shadelang's stream"). He's one of the best Rangers on NA and has very thorough mechanics knowledge. One thing he does crazily well is put pet on passive and manual pet control, he staggers Ranger and pet damage and CC and weaves F5 without any hiccup. You can also see him running Shouts in this condi spam mess because he's running boons with high Vigor and he intents to dodge correctly.

 

The basic Ranger bootcamp skills he emphasizes is to:

(1) Learn the GS auto chain #3 (the evade) and how to swing it twice (you turn around, miss intentionally) (you can also stow, the chain persists for about 2 seconds).

(2) Learn how to LB #3 into a dodge so you maximize its usage to re-position and not get stunned.

 

I would also add in stowing LB #4 to bait dodge, standing there and not using the knockdown after Smoke Assault (in Smokescale meld) so you can react, and GS #3 leap-evades immediately if you target something <300 range (you can combine with Smokescale F2). Haven't mastered any of these yet but (1) and (2) have been lifesavers.

 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I'm around gold as well and [this is the result of one match](https://imgur.com/a/vjt62TW "this is the result of one match"). We were down 45-90, 90-145 in the beginning but slowly recovered as we got some momentum going on far. Ranger 1v1 to me is less about on-point stuff (I don't dodge very well) but teasing out CDs while doing jump-puzzles on no-port spots, stealth jukes, pet CC and superspeed help quite a lot with your kiting too. If you get a 1v2, using your LB3 and LB4, your Bambi merge daze-dash and your GS3 leap and GS4 block + jumping to survive is a priority. You survive and you might get an opening. You die, and you lose map presence to the point people feel safe pushing anywhere, so I try to limit myself to 1-2 deaths a game.

[jcbroe.4329]

Well with LB, with the right setup, you can do some crazy damage: http://www.twitch.tv/gladomer/v/273285878?sr=a&t=0s

 

Granted that's WvW, but PvP builds using the PvP gear setup can definitely push 15-20k Rapid Fires and etc. You just have to use every skill on your bar as setup and have 0 survivability in a straight up fight.