Guild Wars: Encyclopedia II - Guild Wars - Professions

Guild Wars - Professions

There are currently six character professions available, each with their own attributes and unique skill sets, though it is not uncommon to see specific 'builds' centered around a particular arrangement of skills and professions. The developer, ArenaNet, has confirmed that there will be additional professions introduced with future expansions to the game. In the upcoming Guild Wars: Factions, which is due in the second quarter of 2006, there will be two new professions: the Assassin and the Ritualist.

Guild Wars - Elementalist

Elementalists summon the powers of earth, air, fire, and water and command them at will. Their mastery of the elements gives them a wide range of abilities, most of them deadly, and they can inflict more damage in a single strike than any other profession.

Earth magic summons quakes and eruptions, encases enemies in stone, or strengthens allies. Air magic harnesses the power of tempests to strike foes down with lightning strikes or enables allies to run like the wind. Fire magic manifests flames, fireballs, molten lava, and even meteors to burn enemies to a crisp. Water magic conjures mist and ice to slow enemy movement and attacks, blur vision, protect allies against magic, and inflict cold damage on enemies.

The wise Elementalist avoids becoming surrounded, but keeps a local area-of-effect spell on hand just in case.

• Energy Storage (Primary Attribute): Energy storage increases an Elementalist's maximum energy by 3 per level. This allows for the stockpiling of gargantuan amounts of energy relative to the other classes. This trait also increases the effectiveness of several spells involving the restoration of health or energy.
• Air Magic: Air spells center mostly around the application of electricity for damage, such as Lightning Strike, to a single target, often accompanied by a secondary effect that further weakens the target or the ability to knock an opponent down. Air is sometimes known as the more difficult element to master, however the Air element does offer an unprecedented amount of power in the right hands. Air also has a handy spell called Windborne Speed, which temporarily increases the running speed of the elementalist or a targeted ally. Air is the favored type of "spiking" - concentrated damage to a target before the enemy healing can react - for many players.
• Fire Magic: Fire spells center mostly around the application of fire for damage over an area, utilizing area-of-effect spells such as a large Fire Storm attack or a Meteor Shower, which are favored by 'nukers' . Fire is the most commonly chosen element for Elementalists, especially for first time Elementalists.
• Earth Magic: Earth spells center more around the defense of the elementalist and her allies. Wards can be placed on the ground to create an area of protection for team members to run in. The advantage of these is that they cannot be removed by enemies for as long as they last. Several Earth spells utilize rock and stone for damage, such as an Earthquake attack. Earth Magic also offers Obsidian Flame, and Crystal Wave, which ignore armor. There are Obsidian Flame "Spike" builds in Tombs of Primeval Kings recently.
• Water Magic: Water spells center mostly around the application of ice and water for damage and defense. Most damaging attack spells also have a secondary effect, such as slowing and freezing. Many Water spells are defensive in nature, such as Armor of Frost, though not as many as in the Earth line, although Water is known as the Elementalist's "support" line.
• Unique Skill Sets:
  • Glyphs: Glyphs consist of spells that alter some component of the next spell cast.
  • Wards: Wards consist of spells that apply some benefits to all allies within its radius for a limited duration. Examples of Wards include Ward Against Elements and Ward Against Melee.

Guild Wars - Mesmer

Mesmers are masters and mistresses of illusion and control. Combined with any other profession, their skills provide excellent support, turning the enemy’s skills against them and changing the very fabric of reality to hinder foes and help allies. Mesmers have the ability to cast spells quickly, which can make all the difference in the heat of battle. Their powers of domination allow them to take control of enemy skills and Energy for their own use, and for the benefit of their allies.

Their unique illusionary talents can slow or even halt enemy movement and skill casting, or cause imaginary illnesses that drain Health and Energy from foes while healing and energizing allies. While Mesmers are not known for brute strength, their ability to confuse and distract the enemy more than compensates.

• Fast Casting (Primary Attribute): Fast casting increases the rate at which spells are cast. Fast casting, unlike other attributes, does not produce a linear gain and has less of an effect at higher levels.
• Domination: Domination skills focus on manipulating the energy and skill use of the target. It is primarily used to shut down casters by disabling their skills, inflicting damage on them when they try to use a skill, and depleting their store of energy. Energy Denial seems to be pretty popular at the moment.
• Illusion: Illusion spells create effects and manipulate the enemy while not always doing direct damage. Illusion skills tend to focus on shutting down melee characters, although spells like Arcane Conundrum and Migraine slow down casting time for casters.
• Inspiration: Inspiration spells manipulate the energy or health of either the caster or the target. Inspiration skills also contain two anti-interrupt stances, Mantra of Resolve and Mantra of Concentration.
• Unique Skill Sets:
  • Energy Steals: Energy steals are spells that decrease energy from the target while increasing the caster's energy.
  • Mantras: Mantras are a set of skills that offer various benefits to the caster. Mantras may protect against specific elements, prevent interruption, decrease the recharge times of signets or spells, extend the length of illusion hexes, or replenish the caster's energy. Mantras are generally Stances.

Guild Wars - Monk

Monks employ a direct conduit to the powers that be, and the answers to their prayers come in the form of healing and protection for their allies and damage to their enemies. Combined with any other profession, Monks can alternate between supporting their team and dealing damage to opponents, either from a distance or in the thick of things.

Monks enjoy Divine Favor, which provides extra protection from harm, while their healing and protection prayers help to keep their allies strong and healthy. Smiting prayers, on the other hand, call down divine anger on enemies, exacting holy damage that ignores armor. What Monks lack in firepower they make up for with their unparalleled gift for keeping their allies alive, making Monks a very sought after class in almost any party.

• Divine Favor (Primary Attribute): Divine Favor allows any Monk spell cast on an ally or the monk herself to heal the target for an extra amount. Divine Favor spells generally increase the Monk's ability to cast their spells.
• Healing Prayers: Healing spells restore physical health to the target.
• Protection Prayers: Protection spells provide beneficial enchantments to the target. Protection also removes negative conditions from the target. Protection spells are usually situation based.
• Smiting Prayers: Smiting spells deal specialized damage that ignores armor and deals double damage against Undead.
• Unique Skill Sets:
  • Blessings: Blessings, or "buffs", benefit the target constantly. However, maintaining these spells will lower a Monk's energy regeneration rate by one. These are also known as maintained enchantments or upkeep spells.
  • Resurrections: Resurrections are spells that restore life into a dead ally with varying levels of functionality and effectiveness.

Guild Wars - Necromancer

Necromancers are masters of the dark arts, calling on the spirits of the dead, and even death itself, to overpower enemies and assist allies. In sacrificing Health and taking curses and diseases upon themselves, they can deal large amounts of damage to those foolish enough to oppose them. Dead and dying enemies become unwilling allies in their hands.

Necromancers have the singular ability to absorb Energy from an enemy’s death, and can raise a fighting force from the corpses of their foes. Curses, which often cost the Necromancer dearly, exact an even greater toll from enemies, who find that their Enchantment Spells and healing skills are rendered useless. Due to the sacrificial nature of their methods, successful Necromancers practice patience and self-discipline to stay alive.

• Soul Reaping (Primary Attribute): Soul Reaping allows the Necromancer to regain energy whenever a friend, foe, or summoned creature dies near the necromancer.
• Blood Magic: Blood magic spells manipulate health into damage or damage into health for the target. Blood magic spells also deal damage to the target over time.
• Death Magic: Death magic spells deal mainly with the manipulation of corpses.
• Curse Magic: Curse magic spells deal with applying negative conditions and hexes, or "debuffing", the target.
• Unique Skill Sets:
  • Undead Minions: Undead minions are summonable pets from a corpse. However, these undead minions are inherently unstable and will degrade, gradually losing life until they die. The rate of decay is directly proportional to how long the minions have been alive, making it hard, if not impossible, to keep them alive for an indefinite period of time.
  • Wells: Wells are area-effect spells that can affect either friends or foes within range, but must be cast from a corpse.

Guild Wars - Ranger

Rangers are unique in their ability to succeed with the help of, or even in spite of, their environment. Nature rituals allow them to manipulate terrain to hinder their enemies, or borrow the very power of creation to heal and aid their allies. They favor long-range combat, the bow being their weapon of choice, and can be especially effective from elevated locations such as bridges and cliffs.

They are the only profession with the ability to charm animals, which then accompany them on their travels and assist them in battle, gaining levels and abilities over time. Rangers are also blessed with survival skills that help keep them alive despite their lightweight armor.

• Expertise (Primary Attribute): Expertise reduces the energy cost for attack skills, preparations, and traps. Expertise skills increase the Ranger's abilities to stay alive. Expertise is also vouched for as the best Primary Attribute.
• Beast Mastery: Beast mastery skills provide bonuses for the Ranger's animal companion, which they can charm and raise in level. Beast Mastery also has a few Nature Rituals, such as Energizing Wind.
• Marksmanship: Marksmanship improves the damage a Ranger is able to inflict with Bows. The higher a Ranger's Marksmanship, the more powerful are the Ranger's Attack Skills.
• Wilderness Survival: Wilderness Survival skills provide an advantage to the ranger if used prior to combat. They also enable the character to heal and deal extra damage. Wilderness Survival comes with Nature Rituals, like Greater Conflagration and Winnowing.
• Unique Skill Sets:
  • Nature rituals: Nature rituals are global enchantments that affect every character present within the area of effect. Only one of the same type of Spirit can be up at a time within the area of effect.
  • Pets: Pets are creatures that a Ranger has tamed while in the wild. A Ranger can only have one pet at any given time but can always replace it with a new creature he may find by giving their current pet to a tamer.
  • Preparation: Preparations temporarily add extra damage or effects to a Ranger's attacks. Only one preparation can be active at any given time.
  • Traps: Traps are skills that are triggered if an enemy or ally enters a designated area.

Guild Wars - Warrior

Warriors rely on stout hearts, brute strength, and melee weapons to subdue their enemies and protect their allies. They generally disdain long-range warfare, preferring instead to charge directly into the fray swinging their weapon of choice. They can take a beating unlike anyone else.

The Warrior class in Guild Wars is unconventially complicated in comparison to other MMO's, where combat would require little player input. Warriors are equally comfortable wielding axe, hammer, or sword, though many choose to master one weapon over all others. Many Warrior skills require adrenaline, which builds up during combat to enable those skills, and usually results in major damage. Defensive tactics help the Warrior to avoid damage and protect allies, but strength is the Warrior’s biggest asset, providing the constitution to keep on fighting until the battle is won.

• Strength (Primary Attribute): Strength increases armor penetration of melee skills (ie. Power Attack). Strength skills increase the Warrior's damage. With each attribute level you add to strength, Armor penetration goes up by 1%.
• Axe Mastery: Axe Mastery improves axe damage. Axe skills involve inflicting many conditions to the target. Axe damage is quite variable from one swing to the next.
• Swordsmanship: Swordsmanship improves sword damage. Sword skills involve inflicting some conditions to the target as well as good amounts of consistent damage.
• Hammer Mastery: Hammer Mastery improves hammer damage. Hammer skills involve knocking the target down. Hammers deal high damage but attack at a slower speed then Swords or Axes.
• Tactics: Tactic skills increase the Warrior's ability to stay alive.
• Unique Skill Sets:
  • Adrenal skills: Adrenaline, which is obtained by hitting an opponent or taking physical damage, is required for many of the Warrior's skills, similar to energy. After a prolonged period without taking or dealing damage however, stored adrenaline will disappear.
  • Shouts: Shouts are beneficial skills that affect both the Warrior and nearby allies, like "Shields Up!", or harm other enemies, like "Fear Me!".

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Professions", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki