I like the way this guy thinks (Warrior)

[Naithallis]

I found this comment on Reddit and would like to share it. What are you going to play? And most importantly.. Why?

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Charr Warrior with Longbow and Rifle. Sounds weird but it's due to a combination of things:

I always played Ranger in GW1, Incendiary Arrow is one of my favorite skills. But the bow skills the Ranger gets in GW2 are all so plain, they're all variations on shooting an arrow. The shortbow gets Poison Spray, but for the rest it's all regular arrows.

And then there's the fact that you have to use pets or you're at a disadvantage. The Ranger in GW2 just isn't for me.

The Warrior's Longbow skills on the other hand are awesome. Tons of AoE attacks, most of them dealing fire damage or exploding. Instead of a pet I get another skill (Burst skill) to use. I get Pin Down to keep my enemies at a distance, get a few utility skills to knock them back, and even then I still have enough health and armor to take hits too! The Warrior just fits more with how I'll play.

At first I was kind of disappointed that I couldn't be a ranger, but had to be some kind of freak, a tank doing ranged damage. But then I realized that there's nothing wrong with using weapons that don't "fit" with your class:

In GW2 a class is effective with any weapon it can equip. It's an inherent part of the way weapons change your first 5 skills depending on the class that wields it. An elementalist using daggers isn't worse at it than a thief because an elementalist uses it totally different. He doesn't use it to cut, he conjures short range spells with it. The game is balanced around this. There's no "DERP YOU'RE A NECRO USING AXE AND FOCUS LOL NUB YOU SUCK", because if a Necro can use those weapons, it's supposed to be viable too.

That was the point where I realized how genious this system really is. Weapons aren't weapons, they're "skill build containers". There's no reason a Warrior with a bow is worse than a Ranger with a bow (just different). More focused on AoE instead of long range attacks.

The only problem is that the Warrior with longbow gets mostly AoE attacks. My solution is to also use the rifle, which allows me to still stay at a distance (even having a cripple skill too), but deal a ton of single target damage.

Finally, the Warrior allows me to even switch to other weapons I want to use, to switch it up in case bow/rifle gets boring. I'd use greatswords, dual wield Fiery Dragon Swords or dual wield axes. All weapons I wanted to use, and I don't need to roll another character to do that, I can just keep playing a single character.

My alt will probably be a Sylvari/Charr Elementalist wielding two daggers (which get amazing skills too; heavy damage close range attacks like Lightning Whip and Vapor Blade).

Now this is someone who is thinking outside the normal MMO box. Most of you might say, "No kidding. We all knew this." but you must understand that most players think a warrior isn't a warrior unless he's wielding a melee weapon of some sort. I love how this isn't the case in GW2.

I can relate to this poster in the fact that my go to class/profession is always a bow wielding badass, be it WoW, GW, Skyrim, etc. However, after looking at the abilities and watching a few videos on the Ranger class, I wanted to change it up. I had originally thought of playing a necro in GW2 as I am in GW1 (ranger didn't thrill me in GW1 either), but after thinking about it for awhile I decided that I want something with even more weapon options. At first I was tossing around the idea of a thief since they can be both melee and ranged. Then I saw the post on reddit. Not only does a warrior look sexy swinging a 2h sword, but he's just as deadly with ranged weapons.

That is awesome.

[Ruse]

...but your avatar is so delightfully creepy, and fits a necromancer so well!

One thing to consider when using a ranged warrior is that they do not appear nearly as mobile as rangers/thieves do with bows. (I'm not trying to talk you out of it, just trying to make sure you make an informed decision.) Of course, with higher health/armor, they don't need to move as much, either.

Just depends on whether that'll bother you or not. Keep in mind rangers also have a crippling shot, one that dazes, and one that debuffs your opponent while making your pet swifter. Again, this may or may not be what you're looking for, though.

[Naithallis]

No doubt that the ranger especially is built as a mobile ranged class, but the option to play as a ranged warrior is still there. The fact that they aren't locked into melee weapons is fantastic.

I believe it's all about experimentation and trying out what works best with your play style.

I know that I am seriously excited to try out this build. Besides, I think heavy armor looks way sexier than medium and light, especially on a Norn.

[Ruse]

Like I said, I really wasn't trying to talk you out of it. Like you, I love the fact that you can use non-traditional weapons (heavy-armoed guardian with a staff, anyone?) for all classes. I just worry that sometimes it's like, "Hey, the warrior can do everything the ranger can but while wearing heavy armor!" and it isn't as simplistic as all that.

But you definitely seem to have done your research.

[Naithallis]

If that were the case rangers wouldn't even exist. A ranged warrior seems as though it has everything about the ranged shoot-em class that I like, but without certain headaches. *cough*pet*cough*

Of course a build like this will take some testing. Some things look great on paper but are awful in practical application. Only time will tell.

[Ruse]

I see no reason why you couldn't be effective as a totally ranged warrior. You'd lose out on defense from something like a shield would give but you'd make up for it by not needing to be in melee range...and it looks like you'd have decent CC to keep your distance a decent amount of the time

[Naithallis]

Heck yeah!

I'm looking at CC abilities such as:
Rifle
Aimed Shot - Fire a precise shot that cripples your foe.
Rifle Butt -Knock back your foe with your rifle butt.

Longbow
Pin Down - Fire an arrow that immobilizes target foe.

Not to mention your utility skills:
Kick - Knock back your foe with a kick. (Knockback distance: 20 feet)
Stomp - Launch nearby foes into the air with a powerful stomp.
Throw Bolas - Throw bolas to immobilize your foe.

A ranged juggernaut, instead of being quick and elusive.

[Ruse]

Yeah, the more I think about it the more I think I don't want to meet one of those in PvP, lol.

[Erik]

Good post, Naithallis! Looking at the skill tool, you can tell Warriors are just fine with bows. Also, Warriors are supposed to have two weapon sets to shift between! (At least two) Most people will make one long-range and one melee, I think.

As for the aesthetic side: people have the wrong idea about bows. From Hollywood movies they are led to believe bows could be used by slender women in tight outfits, an elegant weapon to look elegant with. Not so. A wooden bow takes a lot of strength to use efficiently. It makes perfect sense to put it in the hands of a Warrior. (Yes, I know the professions don't decide strength. I'm talking about aesthetics and people's expectations.)

An archer in a real-life battlefield would have beefy muscles if he had been training as much as he should. (And if he could get enough nourishment.) Muscles that could also be used for chopping down enemies with a sword when there were no more arrows.