Zergbusting with Holosmith - Guild Wars 2

Vanguard Crew [Vg] is a progressive WVW guild on Ruins of Surmia (EU) looking for dedicated and vocal players.
Raiding Wed, Sun 20-22CET.
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Build: gw2skills.net/e...
Track: Dryskill & Max Brhon - War Machine [NCS Release]
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Free Download / Stream: ncs.io/WarMachine

[@WickedHumor]

This may have just sparked a new video rabbit hole. So satisfying to watch.

[@BoogieSchmerzbold]

I might upload a new one in a bit, i've been gathering footage recently

[@bomber2121]

Nice montage! 🤙

[@BoogieSchmerzbold]

Thanks mate, i appreciate it!

[@incursionessgaming]

holy cows, this aoe dmg and constant aoe bombs are amazing. I will create a character now XD

[@briankutz4471]

How do you like rifle on this build, esp with ECSU? I see you using the leap a bunch which is def cool. Still looking forward to hammer a bunch. Also have you tested a vent exhaust build with the tools trait line at all? I’ve been liking it for more forge uptime and the elite cd reduction on dodge

[@BoogieSchmerzbold]

As far as rifle is concerned i think it's the best weapon for most offensive holo builds (for zergs at least). Blunderbuss can be used on range spikes (if it's not at max range) and especially mesmer pulls and is really good. skill 3 and 4 are nice to have and jump shot does big damage but can also be used to reposition and as a defensive tool if needed. I actually tested hammer and was quite hyped for it but was unfortunately disappointed. I don't think it can compete with the spike damage of rifle. I know rifle is a bit awkward and it's definitely my least played weapon on engi but once you get used to it it's pretty good in wvw. I have indeed played around with vent exhaust builds both way before the update and after it. They can be strong but it tends to be harder to justify them to a commander because not everything you do is super visible on arcdps (for example a high superspeed uptime on the squad or spamming flashbang (blindness and cc's) on enemies). I found it a bit awkward to manage my heat and have prime light beam ready on demand (because if enemies force you to dodge unexpectedly you may have to rebuild heat before you can use it). So personally i've been quite happy with ECSU. As for Tools, i think it's a very strong traitline in drawn out fights , assuming you can compensate for the loss of crit rate through firearms somehow. I still think though that the build in this video beats the tools build in shorter fights because it simply has a higher damage spike and your prime light beam won't be back off cooldown before the fight is over. So tools for long fights, firearms for shorter fights is my current verdict.

[@user-fq2ty]

Dont you think with the cd reduction A.E.D heal worth it for holosmith now?

[@BoogieSchmerzbold]

It's certainly viable but personally i don't like it that much. It actively incentivizes you to take damage in order to get the big heal and will waste heals of your supports because they will try to keep you alive. You're getting healed less and on a higher cooldown than med kit if you don't manage to die within the time limit. When comparing the healing potential and accounting for things like the med kit skills themselves you actually have more healing (some of which is even aoe) over time from med kit than from A.E.D. and what i like a lot about med kit is that you can chose what you actually need (condi cleanse or healing) without wasting the other component. It's also worth mentioning that A.E.D doesn't cleanse some of the most harmful conditions as opposed to med kit. You also gain access to a blast finisher, an aoe cleanse and vigor and swiftness uptime. With the recent changes to tools, this traitline is actually worth looking at and if you take it, your toolbelt heal skill gets an even lower cooldown which wouldn't do much for A.E.D. Lastly if you go with tools having vigor is actually important. The damage of holo is pretty situational and if there's lots of pirate shipping involved the focus shifts a bit away from dealing damage (for most of the fight) and towards supporting with superspeed, cleanses and stealth. With the combination of med kit, elixir gun and all of the combo finishers in the build it is not uncommon to outcleanse dedicated secondary supports on this build - Especially in drawn out, siege-heavy fights. cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/944591323724410901/1084435499797721138/image.png