15 replies to this topic

[exhya]

hi everyone
i got an issue with my thief ! my build doesn’t feels right ,at least to me.
i realy like the s/d combot but it’s hard to find the balance between survability and dmg.
Actualy i am runing with a 10/30/30/0/0 build(http://www.gw2build.....0.10.30.30.0.0) beacause it’s the best spec for s/d i have found.
i realy like the health regeneration in stealh it gives alot of life and since you are in stealh mode alot it definetly helps.
The downside of that spec tho is that with 300 thoughness from the traits i don’t realy feel tanky egnouth and i get killed pretty fast so maybe it’s not a build probleme but agear probleme !
so i run full Valkyrie amor with full scholar runes (power, crit dmg, dmg above 90% health)and berserker trinkets
with this i got around 14 k life and i do decent dmg but i don’t know it doesn’t feels effective.
i wonder if i should change my scholar rune for a mor etanky runes like wurm ( vitality crit dmg ) or divinity (50 all stats crit dmg).
for the build part i have try pretty mutch every build around annd i still find the shadow build better than the acrobatic one beacause ys it gives alot of dodge and HP but i don’t know thoughness seems better since i already have hp on my gear , the health regen and the constant 4+ stack of might from shadow seems realy powerfull.
so yes i hope some good thief player see my post and comment it.
thx
ps i got some other question ^^: odoes paralization sigil still works for daze duration increase ? if yes does it worth it over a 30 chance to gain quickness for 3 sec ( yesi use that beacause on my build i didn’t put the talent witch gives chance to gain quickness)

[Phigment]

300 toughness does not make you tanky....I have near 2900 armor in my build, and it certainly isnt tanky, but it does allow slightly more time for my heals to keep me up.

[Vence]

Is this build for wvw or spvp

[RawNG]

I use 10/30/30 for WvW, but I run PTV for my armor set aside from my legs being valk with zerk orb in it soon to be replace by PTV.  My PTV armor has emerald orbs in it which are prec/toughness/pow.  I use Solaria fractals ring, zerker fractal ring, zerker back, valk amulet, 1 valk accessory the other one being ancient karka shell with valk jewel.  My sword is power vit crit dmg, and dagger full zerk.
I do really good damage with all this, not much of a change between my zerk gears dmg with this spec.  I last a lot longer and can frontline zergs without a problem.  My sbow is zerker but I'm working on a PTV one.
120 prec 84 toughness 84 power with 6 orbs.  I've always gone for orbs because you get a good amount of stats out of it compared to runes.  
Also I use food, Curry Pumpkin Soup(100prec 70vit) and Master Maintenance Oil(6% of toughness converted to prec and 4% of vit converted to prec) so I can maintain 45%+ crit chance.
I run at 16.3k hp and 1600 toughness.  47% crit.  84 crit dmg. 3050 attack.

Also that sigil does work with the daze, it adds an extra second to it

Edited by RawNG, 10 February 2013 - 09:27 PM.

[Krill]

I think a pretty good "balanced" setup similar to the one above is:

Soldier's (PTV) coat, legs, helm
Berserker's shoulders, gloves, boots
6x ruby orbs
Berserker's sword, dagger, shortbow
S/D set sigils: parallelization (must), air or force sigil or battle sigil (not sure which is the best, air is cheap though).
Shortbow sigil: bloodlust, fire, or defensive

This leave some points on the table since critical damage is often more expensive than other stats, but you do have to kill stuff at the end of the day.

As for the build, I like 0/30/20/20 the best, and I take practiced tolerance over furious retaliation. The synergy between FR and executioner is obviously pretty good, but vitality is tough to come by with thieves. It basically boils down to vitality or precision, so I prefer to have more precision always over fury some times, and have adequate health.

As for choosing acrobatics over shadow's rejuvenation and mug, it comes down to vitality and feline grace. More dodges = less damage taken. The acrobatic traits are not "gota haves", but fleet shadow gives you wings in combat to ez mode tactical strikes. Shadow's decent is a great choice and quite useful, quick recovery is not bad, power of inertia is not bad (great with orrian meat stew). I choose this over shadow's rejuvenation because I often don't want to stay in stealth the full duration after C&D's, I want to keep them dazed so they are not popping AoE, and a chance to hit their heal skill.

Why not mug? I always go in with infiltrator's strike so I can get the hell out instantly if a burst pops, and only steal the good stuff.

These are my thoughts after a couple hundred hours of playing S/D on T1. I am not an elite player for sure, but I'd like to I'm at least above average by now

[Dendore]

Exhya,

I'm glad another thief is venturing into the world of non HS spam builds. There's a couple of easy improvements that will fix your issues right away.

First off, drop Cloaked in Shadows and get Shadows Embrace. You've picked a defensive trait (blind), but as a toughness heavy build, conditions will be your weakness. You have no condition removal. This single swap will make you feel much "tankier".

Second... your utilities suck. You don't need shadowstep with a sword MH. Swap this for roll for initiative. This keeps your stun break, gives you a great initiative restoral option, and is an extra dodge.

Lastly, as much as I LOVE mug, this isn't a bursty build and that extra hit isn't going to let you 3 shot someone. I would move those 10 points to Acrobatics and get Fleet Shadow. 10 points there will give you some extra mobility and especially in stealth that lets you get away easy or catch those opponents you want to strike. Additionally it gives you some Vitality. This also gives you the option of getting rid of Signet of Shadows.

[RawNG]

Shadowstep actually works really well with s/d, if used correctly.  Also mug is good no matter what spec you run, considering it crits for over 4k consistently  Having burst with this build isn't a bad thing at all, infact it'll help out a lot.  It's not about 3 shotting people, it's about putting enough pressure out on the target to force them to use their heal and dodges early in the fight while you still have yours.

Edited by RawNG, 11 February 2013 - 09:46 PM.

[Dendore]

@RawNG

Shadowstep is good... so is mug... They just aren't needed. My proposed changes will free him up 2 utility slots which is massive.... much better than mug. Plenty of room to expand into putting even MORE pressure on the target. And at the same time giving him more survivability.

[RawNG]

Ok I can see your point of view definitely, I'll have to give it a shot and see how it is.  Gunna miss Mug   and trolling people with SS and IS lol

[Phigment]

Dendore, on 11 February 2013 - 09:37 PM, said:

Exhya,

I'm glad another thief is venturing into the world of non HS spam builds. There's a couple of easy improvements that will fix your issues right away.

First off, drop Cloaked in Shadows and get Shadows Embrace. You've picked a defensive trait (blind), but as a toughness heavy build, conditions will be your weakness. You have no condition removal. This single swap will make you feel much "tankier".

Second... your utilities suck. You don't need shadowstep with a sword MH. Swap this for roll for initiative. This keeps your stun break, gives you a great initiative restoral option, and is an extra dodge.

Lastly, as much as I LOVE mug, this isn't a bursty build and that extra hit isn't going to let you 3 shot someone. I would move those 10 points to Acrobatics and get Fleet Shadow. 10 points there will give you some extra mobility and especially in stealth that lets you get away easy or catch those opponents you want to strike. Additionally it gives you some Vitality. This also gives you the option of getting rid of Signet of Shadows.

I could never give up Fleet Shadow either, one of our best traits imo

[exhya]

Hi everyone
sorry for the late answer i though my post was forgotten ^^.
i have read everything you guys sayd,and for the gear part i am surprised that everyone use orb instead of runes ok it gives stats but or you get no crit or you get no defensive stats as opposed to divinity where you get both + crit.
for the build part i realy have a hard time giving up on the stealh regen beacause it saved me so many time and i am realy alot in stealh thats the same for mug even if we aren't a bursty time of classe i realy like the burst it offer sometime you just want to end the fight quickly  or you just need the burst to survive and kill before he kills you.
for the utility shadow step is just a must you need it to escape or as a stun breaker when you have no ~#2 or when you already used it against multiple cc
i ll definetly try the 0/30/20/20 but i also like the might in stealh i realy often get 10 stack of might , i ll get divinity runes as wel beacause i still think it's the best option i have http://www.gw2build.....0.0.30.25.15.0
i am testing this too it shoul give alot of might and with that i get alot more life 16.5k atm with full scholar runes it should be even more with divinity

Edited by exhya, 13 February 2013 - 06:21 AM.

[RawNG]

Orbs are cheap, try em out before you get the runes.

[exhya]

sure why not.
i ll have to put them instead of scholar it hurts :/ those rune were costly

[Dendore]

Try it out in the mists first. Free to test there before you spend money on it.

Also... no need to give up heals in stealth. Try 0/30/30/10/0.

[exhya]

Dendore, on 13 February 2013 - 05:13 PM, said:

Try it out in the mists first. Free to test there before you spend money on it.

Also... no need to give up heals in stealth. Try 0/30/30/10/0.

the mist is pretty bad beacause you don't have the same items  i am playing with 0/30/25/15 atm and i like it i get alot more dodge and some mor estack of might with might on dodge + might  on stealh
the probleme with the mistis that amor trinket have no stats ..it's pretty bad for testing

[Phigment]

exhya, on 13 February 2013 - 06:00 PM, said:

the mist is pretty bad beacause you don't have the same items  i am playing with 0/30/25/15 atm and i like it i get alot more dodge and some mor estack of might with might on dodge + might  on stealh
the probleme with the mistis that amor trinket have no stats ..it's pretty bad for testing

The str stacks per stealth are not so huge that I would stop at them, its the 300+ health gained in stealth that is huge (to me atleast)

I would rather run 0/30/20/20 vs 0/30/25/15, you can pick up a nice trait via acrobatics if you wanted (might on dodge if huge for you, vigor on heal (nice imo), assassins reward, or pain response

I run 0/30/30/10/0 as well, but I run a D/P setup http://gw2skills.net...LLXOukcNg48xkCA

I wish this game had effective trackers to compare the overall effectiveness of regen in stealth vs assassins reward/pain response

Edited by Phigment, 13 February 2013 - 09:21 PM.