Ranger and his pet

[SzymonS89]

Hi,
Does anybody at this point know how dependent the ranger is on their pets? Do they make a huge difference in gameplay or can I level up without having to activate it ?

[ComplexNuber]

Hey there, welcome the forums.

As of the last few demos, pets have had quirky AI and been somewhat underpowered (you'd be right to have GuildWars 1 deja vu right about now), however Arenanet have said they will improve this by release time.

Pets will be more or less required as a ranger, you'd be crippling yourself too much without one since you'd lose out on a meatshield as well as the whole pet's skill bar which could work well in combination with your skills. It's worth noting you won't have to do much to control your pet, they move and attack on their own, and even activate skills on their own.

You also might be interested to know that not only can a ranger resurrect (more correctly, 'rally') his own pet without penalty, but a pet can actually rally a ranger when he has been downed. The ranger is the only profession that can self-rally without having to kill something which makes him/her really unique, and that's also a great reason to keep your pet out and rallied as much as possible.

[Centaur]

Hi Szymons89, welcome to these forums.

To answer your question, this is what was said about rangers without pets in an article/interview with lead designer Eric Flannum in 2010:

Rangers were a pet-class in the original Guild Wars, meaning they were capable of taming and controlling animals. "One of the major things was that Ranger players love their pets," Lead Designer Eric Flannum tells us. "This is why we decided to make the pet a major mechanic for the Ranger." They will, in fact, be the defining aspect of the Ranger profession. "Much like adrenaline for Warriors and attunements for Elementalists, pets are the Ranger's special profession mechanic. "

and

Pets are so central to the role of the Ranger that Flannum even suggests "players who want range without a pet are better off playing another profession, such as a Warrior, and taking ranged weapons."

I hope that answers your question.

[Winterbay]

You also might be interested to know that not only can a ranger resurrect (more correctly, 'rally') his own pet without penalty, but a pet can actually rally a ranger when he has been downed. The ranger is the only profession that can self-rally without having to kill something which makes him/her really unique, and that's also a great reason to keep your pet out and rallied as much as possible.

Not really true. The engineer has some salt thingie that he can drop just before being downed to get right back up again.

[Centaur]

You mean the Smelling Salts skill, though in that case, correct timing is critical...

[SzymonS89]

Ok fair enough. I mean if I dont have to take care and control the pet too much then thats fine.
I mean I will deal with it because Ive been an archer in every game and will remain an archer for eternity
. Even with the pet the profession sounds unreal! and I will definitely play it and most likely enjoy it!

I was always sort of into archery so that aspect of a pet/companion doesnt really attract me, I always thought of an archer as a sniper, and snipers are lone wolfs.

But fair enough, if it does make a big difference I will deal with it although I will try playing without it.
Thanks for your replies!

[Centaur]

Note that if you really want to go the sniper way, you can also select the Thief profession and specialize in shortbow and possibly pistols...

[ComplexNuber]

Not really true. The engineer has some salt thingie that he can drop just before being downed to get right back up again.

True, I forgot about that. But like Centaur said, it has to be timed, or at least semi-planned (and a death rarely is). Also, that's a utility skill which means not every Engineer will have it on them. A ranger can always have a pet without penalty.

Anyway, SzymonS89, keep in mind that rangers aren't the only bow and/or gun profession. If pets bother you, you can play a bow user as a warrior and be every bit as effective as a ranger. To my knowledge, warrior bow skills are more nuke/AoE, while rangers will likely have a lot of diversity.

If I remember right, warriors use long bows but not short bows, and thieves use short bows but not long bows (I could be wrong on the latter). Since warriors get rifles but not pistols, and thieves get pistols but not guns, it should be pretty fair to say thieves will be melee and short range, warriors will be melee and preferably long range, and rangers will be able to choose from melee, close and long (they are the jack of all trades profession, after all (: ).

[Centaur]

If I remember right, warriors use long bows but not short bows, and thieves use short bows but not long bows (I could be wrong on the latter).

You're not wrong

[JohnnyV]

Ok fair enough. I mean if I dont have to take care and control the pet too much then thats fine.
I mean I will deal with it because Ive been an archer in every game and will remain an archer for eternity
. Even with the pet the profession sounds unreal! and I will definitely play it and most likely enjoy it!

I was always sort of into archery so that aspect of a pet/companion doesnt really attract me, I always thought of an archer as a sniper, and snipers are lone wolfs.

But fair enough, if it does make a big difference I will deal with it although I will try playing without it.
Thanks for your replies!

If what you're wanting is to simply specialize in distance based weapons, there are other choices besides the ranger. You can be a Warrior but still use bows exclusively. If you're wanting to go with the ranger aesthetic, then you'll have to grind it out with your pet.