ArenaNet just let us in on the next specialization to be found in the Guild Wars 2: Heart of Thorns upcoming expansion and it means that guardians will be getting bows. The bow is the one spirit weapon that guardians can summon they they could not yet equip on their own–amid shield, sword, and hammer. The elite specialization, named “dragonhunter,” also adds guardians to the list of professions who can use traps, which includes necromancers, theives, and rangers.
Dulfy.net, an already well known Guild Wars 2 reporting site, has extremely detailed notes from the recent livestream about this specialization.
Looking at the bow skills, it’s a standard array of attacks, coupled with interesting guardian-centric light effects. Shots cripple, blind, and in the case of latter AoE attacks there’s some of that lovely, lovely burning. These skill synergize with traits that can be selected for the specialization to make the guardian with bow a skirmisher who can knock enemies back (although that has its own troubles in groups) while also taking advantage of cripples to slow them down and control the battlefield.
As part of the dragonhunter specialization, Virtues will be getting an overhaul. Instead of their regular effects each one will have a different mechanism. Justice becomes a thrown spear that tethers enemies to the guardian and ticks continual burning damage to all enemies who remain in range (900 meters) the chains can be broken if enemies run out of range. Resolve will become a leap that will heal or damage at the end of the jump, adding glowing wings to the guardian in flight. Courage becomes a cone shield that blocks attacks and projectiles from the front, but not flanks.
The very first trait in the elite specialization changes the Virtues so these changes are natural to the elite specialization.
Traps certainly change the nature of the guardian for the dragonhunter specialization. By placing them, this will provide a sort of battlefield control, using them to slow, bestow aegis to allies, lock enemies down, and limit foe movement. The addition of a healing trap with a significant heal when its triggered is a very interesting choice as it creates a self-heal utility to controlling the battlefield.
How this changes gameplay for guardians
Up until now, guardians have had very few opportunities for ranged combat–and those were still pretty thin. There’s a few cone attacks, and ranged effects under the sword, focus, and staff, but these are mostly aimed at support more than attack. The addition of bows and traps provides guardians with a totally new perspective: one that puts them in the rear guard of the battlefield rather than the forward rushing vanguard.
That the traps and bow abilities still retain some team-based buffs, in healing and endurance regen, means that dragonhunters will still be heavy on the support. Include the redirection of the Virtue of Courage into a forward-facing shield, and the battlefield-control nature of the Dragonmaw trap, and guardians will also fill a roll of tactician. By changing where the enemy can move, and how they can move, a guardian can turn the tide of battle for a group via area denial or softening.
Shifting between ranged combat that cripples and slows, to close-range melee with a lot of fire and support, guardians will have a great deal more versatility than before. Combining both traps and bow skills means being able to knock foes back into traps (to trigger them) and to cripple them and keep them in range of damaging energies. It also means that dragonhunters will provide support and battlefield control for allies.
Traits will include damage increases against crippled targets, 10% with Zealot’s Agression–which synergizes well with bows and shields. A grandmaster trait will also make the bow shots knock back nearby enemies, which coupled with Dulled Senses delivers further cripple, and Zealot’s Aggression will really start swining the flucrum of battle. Then there’s also another master trait called Hunter’s Determination that adds stability for the bow skill True Shot whenever it strikes enemies.
It’s looking good for dragonhunters when it comes to play-as-you-like, especially for group vs. solo play and even across PvE and PvP.
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