User:Khomet/Burning Barrage
Burning Barrage[edit]
 Paragon /  Ranger
| |
| Marksmanship | 12 |
| Leadership | 12+3+1 |
| Command | 3 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
This build was born from a desire to make the paragon into something more than a Save Yourselves shout spammer. It is well known that the Ritualist skill Splinter Weapon is an excellent way to deliver area effect damage, and combining this with the ranger skill Barrage we give the paragon a way to deliver mass damage while also retaining the ability to gain adrenaline quickly. I wanted to keep the paragon's defensive ability as well, so I chose "They're On Fire" and "There's Nothing To Fear" for party wide damage resistance. The result is a build that is designed for mass damage and strong defense at the same time; it delivers mass burning with Barrage and Burning Refrain, party-wide damage resistance from ToF and TNTF, and party wide damage buffing with EBSoH. If you add Splinter Weapon, Great Dwarf Weapon, Orders, Judge's Insight, etc. from other characters the damage can be very impressive, a full splinter barrage can deliver 1300-1700 damage even in hard mode. The build also provides up to 59% damage resistance against everything, even armor ignoring damage, and I augment this with skills like "Stand Your Ground" and Enfeebling Blood on heroes for even more defense. The effectiveness of They're On Fire is directly related to how many targets you can keep burning, so when I run this I bring fire elementalists with Searing Flames so that everything is burning all the time. Replacing Barrage with Volley frees up your elite slot for something else; perhaps Anthem of Guidance, Anthem of Fury, Soldier's Fury, Angelic Bond. I would strongly recommend keeping TNTF and EBSoH on the bar at all times, but the third PvE skill can be swapped out as required... some of my favorites are listed below.
Ebon Vanguard Assassin Support for spiking (default)
Tryptophan Signet for snaring
Technobabble for interrupts
"You Move Like a Dwarf!" for knockdown
"Finish Him!" for deep wound
"I Am the Strongest!" for more damage
Great Dwarf Armor for more defense
"By Ural's Hammer!" for mass resurrection
If you want to get the most out of this build you must bring appropriate heroes to support it; I have developed a suitable team build for this which I call "Flameway", check it out at the link below. http://wiki.guildwars.com/wiki/User:Khomet/Flameway
Usage[edit]
You have the ability to cause tremendous amounts of damage in one barrage; pre-cast Splinter Weapon and other damage buffs on yourself before entering battle whenever possible, cast Ebon Battle Standard of Honor, then unleash the fury. You will find that many groups ball up naturally and these are easy prey for a build designed to utterly destroy them. For foes that are not so cooperative, pull them so that they ball up as much as possible, this will allow you to deliver maximum damage while providing maximum defense. Against dangerous groups with mesmers and elementalists you can be the hero and tank the damage to protect the rest of your team; flag heroes back and pull the enemies to you while standing a bit ahead of your heroes. Although using a bow prevents the use of a shield you should still have 90 armor (base + centurion's insignia), and combined with Protective Spirit and the like you can soak up a lot of damage that would decimate the casters on your team. In the heat of battle, remember what you are... an area effect damage machine. It is not your job to pick off lone targets, instead you should focus on the largest mass of foes and destroy them. Aside from dealing damage from Barrage and Splinter Weapon and other buffs, this focuses your heroes and their AoE damage on the same group of foes and it also sets them on fire so that "They're On Fire" protects your team. A fully loaded Splinter Barrage can bring a hardmode mob down to half health instantly and it is easily capable of turning the tide of battle. Don't waste your time on lone targets, even if they are healers. Your time is better spent dealing so much damage that the enemy cannot possibly heal it all.
A word about energy management... you do not have expertise like the ranger nor infinite energy from soul reaping so you must use your energy wisely. When attacking you should only use Barrage if you can hit at least two foes, this means that you will charge GFTE in two barrages and gain 8 energy to offset the loss of 10 energy. In this way you can keep barraging for a long time without resorting to other energy management or even a zealous bow. If you can't hit more than one target with Barrage, just autoattack and conserve your energy; the bonus damage from Barrage is only +17 and is unlikely to make any difference. Glowing Signet can provide a huge amount of energy, use this after switching to a high-health target which your Burning Refrain has set on fire.
Equipment[edit]
I use Centurion's Insignia and a Superior Leadership rune with Superior Vigor and Vitae runes in all other locations. This gives me 520 health and 90 armor at all times since I am always affected by a shout or echo.
I use a Vampiric Destroyer Shortbow of Fortitude and a Sundering Mursaat Longbow of Fortitude and switch between these to gain greater attack speed or greater range. A zealous bow is not necessary though some may find it useful.
Notes[edit]
- Barrage @ 12 Marksmanship: 50-100 damage typical (x6) ... 300-600 damage for a full barrage
- Splinter Weapon @ 16 Channeling: 5 x 4 x 53 = 1060 damage if hitting 5+ foes, 1344 damage with consumables (17 channeling)
- Judge's Insight: 87% increase in arrow damage due to holy damage and armor penetration. Double damage against undead.
- Orders: up to +17 per arrow, or +102 damage for a full barrage. Worth bringing if you have more than one physical attacker.
- EBSoH: up to +15 per arrow (+90 per barrage) and also boosts elemental damage. Don't leave home without it.
- "There's Nothing To Fear" : 35% damage resistance against everything, lasts 12s @ 16 leadership. (60% uptime normally, 75% uptime with cons)
- "They're On Fire" : 37% damage resistance against burning foes. Combined with TNTF, this gives 59% damage resistance against burning foes.
- "Stand Your Ground": +24 armor to all, improves damage resistance to 73% vs. armor respecting damage and 59% vs. armor ignoring damage.
- Enfeebling Blood: when added to the damage resistance already provided, area effect weakness makes physical attackers insignificant.
- Weaken Armor: boosts barrage damage and elemental damage, area effect, costs only 5 energy. a must-have skill.
Screenshots[edit]
