A ranger in Distress-questions from a noob - Guild Wars Forums

DobbyTheHouseElf · Nov 19, 2011, 10:51 PM // 22:51

Hello, one pathetic starting ranger here (character name Cheese Time)
this was my first character, and I either skipped out on the beginner tutorial, or master Ranger Nente was REALLY short on good ranger tips. I am having several somewhat... distressing problems with this character.

Firstly, the maximum damage I can do is 40, extreme cap and my best skill (power shot) I can get some alright damage done with my monk spell (singular) I'm not sure what it is called, but it has a blue picture of a mushroom like cloud and it does damage every second for 5 seconds to adjacent foes. With these being my best two spells, I am pretty helpless on my own. I would LOVE a good ranger/monk build and I am open to pretty much anything (as long as I can have my pet skill) I rely on my heroes FAR too much and if i have to go alone, I will die. I have done every side quest that was available to me, I am at level 18 and the last mission that I did was arora glades (how far through the campaign am I?) and I have done every side quest possible and got every skill so far. Please help me out!

Another query of mine is about the ranger pets. I've been to the menagarie/abettoir and seen the hunter and interacted with all of the NPCs, but I don't truly understand what they are saying. If I hand in Pet-Turdy will I never get it back (I don't know why but it is sort of a sad thing for me) when I order a pet from the hunter will it take a while for her to get it? What level will my new pet be at, and will it be able to do all of the same attacks?

My final query... For now at least is about zaishen coins. How many copper=silver and silver=gold and so on... Is it really worth spending these coins on flamingoes and not the stuff the zaishen dudes have?

Thank you in advance for any help-feel free to move this thread anywhere, but please don't delete it!

drowze · Nov 19, 2011, 11:08 PM // 23:08

Relying on heroes/henchmen is normal. The game is designed around a full party, so venturing out alone is not a good idea.

If you hand in a pet at the tamer in the menagerie, then you get a small amount of money for it and he takes your pet away. I think if you give it to the tamer in the menagerie, that pet will be unlocked. I always hand in my pets at lvl 20, and that unlocks all the evolutions as well. Your pet will be taken away, but you can charm the same animal at the menagerie again once it's unlocked, so it's not really lost forever.

I find unlocking pets with Zcoins is a waste of money, but then again, I'm pretty cheap^^

50 copper = 1 silver, 10 silver = 1 gold Zcoin (if I remember correctly)

Might want to search around on guildwiki (there is a link in the tabs on top of this site)

Toraen · Nov 19, 2011, 11:09 PM // 23:09

You should never be going alone, in Guild Wars you always should have a full party when fighting - 6 members for where you are now.

For your build it would help if you posted the full build and attributes you are using right now. That would make it easier to tell what you need to fix.

Turning in a pet to the menagerie will 'unlock' that species for the menagerie and depending on it's level and evolution, specific levels of that pet will be available from the menagerie for you to tame at any time.

You probably shouldn't use Zaishen coins on pets. Different pet species aren't all that different mechanically (they'll basically skins and have one of piercing/slashing/blunt as their damage type).

You should really check out guildwiki; they have a lot of information on the game mechanics and areas.

Arduin · Nov 19, 2011, 11:16 PM // 23:16

Take a look at the ranger subforum and the basic guide to play as a ranger:

http://www.guildwarsguru.com/forum/ranger-f209.html
http://www.guildwarsguru.com/forum/b...t10261054.html

turbo234 · Nov 19, 2011, 11:48 PM // 23:48

as a ranger, using monk as a secondary shouldn't be anything more than 1 utility skill(i.e. mending touch from nightfall) there is no advantage to smiting on a ranger and if anything slows down what you can do because you are switching from attacking to casting which is counterproductive really.

rangers are usually known for the great interrupts they can bring. distracting shot is one of the better skills in the game so i suggest bringing that. other than that i could say if you really want a pet just focus on beast mastery, marksmanship, and expertise for your attributes.

Chthon · Nov 19, 2011, 11:51 PM // 23:51

Quote:

Originally Posted by DobbyTheHouseElf

Hello, one pathetic starting ranger here (character name Cheese Time)
this was my first character, and I either skipped out on the beginner tutorial, or master Ranger Nente was REALLY short on good ranger tips. I am having several somewhat... distressing problems with this character.

Firstly, the maximum damage I can do is 40, extreme cap and my best skill (power shot) I can get some alright damage done with my monk spell (singular) I'm not sure what it is called, but it has a blue picture of a mushroom like cloud and it does damage every second for 5 seconds to adjacent foes. With these being my best two spells, I am pretty helpless on my own. I would LOVE a good ranger/monk build and I am open to pretty much anything (as long as I can have my pet skill) I rely on my heroes FAR too much and if i have to go alone, I will die. I have done every side quest that was available to me, I am at level 18 and the last mission that I did was arora glades (how far through the campaign am I?) and I have done every side quest possible and got every skill so far. Please help me out!

First, as several folks have already said, GW is a team game. Your job is to fill a particular role in your party, not to singlehandedly defeat thew missions/quests. (And, if you are the party leader, it's your job to plan out which roles you need party members to fill.)

Second, you are still very much in the "learn to play" phase of the game. You should not be stressing about how to make a character build that doesn't suck right now, since that's not even possible yet. You should be focusing on learning the mechanics.

Third, as a note for the future when it becomes time to worry about these things, the current direction for your build is not going to work. Power SHot is not a very good skill. Smiting Magic is not very strong, and downright hopeless on a Ranger since you don't have the energy regen to support it. Trying to heal or prot as a R/Mo is going to be even more hopeless. Eventually you'll pick up some better skills and be able to change your secondary profession to something useful.

Fourth, Rangers are simply underpowered when it comes to high-end play. Don't get me wrong, you have tons of non-high-end content left to go that will mean hours and hours of fun with your ranger. But eventually there will come a time when the reason that your build seems weak is that rangers are just weak.

Quote:

Another query of mine is about the ranger pets. I've been to the menagarie/abettoir and seen the hunter and interacted with all of the NPCs, but I don't truly understand what they are saying. If I hand in Pet-Turdy will I never get it back (I don't know why but it is sort of a sad thing for me) when I order a pet from the hunter will it take a while for her to get it? What level will my new pet be at, and will it be able to do all of the same attacks?

You can think you the menagarie as pet storage. Once you turn in a pet of a certain type and evolution, you can also get a pet of that type and evolution back out. Wynn will (instantly) spawn pets at levels 12, 15, or 20 for each evolution you have previously turned in. Level 1 pets can be found wandering the grounds.

Quote:

My final query... For now at least is about zaishen coins. How many copper=silver and silver=gold and so on... Is it really worth spending these coins on flamingoes and not the stuff the zaishen dudes have?

The only pets I would consider spending zcoins on would be the Rainbow Phoenix and the Moss Spider. Everything else is way too easy to obtain through normal gameplay to justify blowing a zcoin on.

wilebill · Nov 20, 2011, 12:35 AM // 00:35

Hang in there. A Ranger with pet and a good party can do a very lot in this game. But it is a party game and you must go out with your party. My Ranger has a good party and can blow away the harder maps in hard mode for vanquishes.

Going out by yourself you mainly wait for GW 2 to do that. But don't despair. It is way too early to set up for it yet, but much later on when you have money and some options you can set up as a spirit spamming Ranger, so-called SoS spirit spam. Incredibly effective build for light to medium farming. But that must wait until you have finished the game and even later than that. Some of the skills you would need are over in Factions and Nightfall. Still, playing a Ranger will not leave you poor in the end.

I bought some pets and leveled them up with Balthazar Faction earned at Fort Aspenwood and the Jade Quarry. My original Melandru's Stalker is still in the Menagerie. I drop in on him from time to time. A lot of affection for my first pet. These days I use a white tiger because he is easier to see at range and I like his snarl.

As for damage, rangers are good at applying conditions and handing out consistent damage with high survivability. We are not king of DPS.

Make sure you are using Otyugh's Cry

http://www.guildwiki.org/Otyugh%27s_Cry

Gondrakif · Nov 20, 2011, 01:01 AM // 01:01

You should always bring as many people or henchmen with you as allowed, the game is designed around max parties so going out alone should be avoided and it's not something you have to worry about.

You are pretty much in the middle of the campaign, Aurora Glade is the 12th mission and there are 25.

Despite the fact you are in the middle of the campaign your character is not anywhere near maxed out (that's not your fault it's just prophecies being slow about that). What do i mean by that? You don't have all your attributes yet, not max level, you don't have access to either max armor/weapons or elite skills and you can't change your secondary profession. So you have a lot of things to look forward to which will make your ranger stronger.

Some general build suggestions:
1. Don't use skills from your secondary profession. When you get a better understanding of the game you might want to bring 1-2 utility skills or try some specific build. Right now the only skill you might want from your secondary profession is a resurrection spell.
2. Use 2-3 attributes max. If you go into more you won't have many points to put in each one resulting in your skills being weak. At the stage you are right now i would say go with marksmanship, expertise and beast mastery if you want a pet. Marksmanship improves your bow damage, beast mastery improves your pet's damage and expertise makes your skills cost less energy so you can use them more often (in the description they will still say their full cost but when you use them they will cost less).
3. Your marksmanship should be at least as much as the requirement on the bow you are using otherwise your bow damage will be almost 0.

Wiki is your friend for almost any question.

Saint Scarlet · Nov 20, 2011, 01:24 AM // 01:24

As a little side note, when you show your pet to the tamer in the zaishen Menagerie it will unlock it, then it asks if you wish to release the pet you say no if you want to keep the pet you currently have(but as people have said you can get the same level pet back if you do happen to give it away(lvl5, 10, 15 and 20 are the lvl caps on the pet))

DobbyTheHouseElf · Nov 20, 2011, 07:59 AM // 07:59

Thanks for all of the help, I didn't realise that I was so early on in the game, a friend told me that I was about 1/3 away from the end, and since I am at level 18 I suspected that I wasn't to get many more skills.
Good news about the abettoir/menagarie thingy! I can buy a violent flamingo if I manage to save up the Z coins!
Now if someone could tell me how to actually get the Flamingo without spending Z coins it would be great, I have unlocked travel to kaiheng(I think it is spelt like that) and the Nightfall world. I read somewhere that the flamingo is in factions, butsinc there is no green starburst to send me there, I would really like to know where it is and what quest to take to get there!

----------

Quote:

Originally Posted by Saint Scarlet

As a little side note, when you show your pet to the tamer in the zaishen Menagerie it will unlock it, then it asks if you wish to release the pet you say no if you want to keep the pet you currently have(but as people have said you can get the same level pet back if you do happen to give it away(lvl5, 10, 15 and 20 are the lvl caps on the pet))

I really love people who do this ((())) (I thought I was the only one!((it doesn't make any real gramattical sense(((but I do it anyway because it is more logical((((I often find them stacking up at the end))))))))))

also (not related to the quote) I was told ON THESE VERY FORUMS that Ranger/monk was the essential combo for starters. I regret the day I walked away from necromancer munne...
Is there no way to change your secondary profession??!!

Toraen · Nov 20, 2011, 08:35 AM // 08:35

You get the ability to change your secondary later, after completing the Augury Rock mission (still a bit away from where you are). Then quests to change your secondary will open up, with one for each of the core professions (the ranger secondary quest will obviously not be available to you though as that is your primary). Alternatively, you will be able to visit a Profession Changer NPC after Augury Rock at the Great Temple of Balthazar and pay 500 gold to unlock a different secondary (this is a one-time cost for each secondary) that includes the nightfall and factions professions. If you need to save the gold, just complete the quests when you get to them, then buy the nightfall and factions secondaries at the temple.

Once you have additional secondaries unlocked, you'll be able to change to them (as well as your original secondary) at will using the skills and attributes panel.

Saint Scarlet · Nov 20, 2011, 09:11 AM // 09:11

First off the Flamingo is in Nightfall only, but is really easy to get(there is a bunch just outside the 1st main town you enter).
To get to Nightfall you need the quest "Sunspears In Kryta" given by Lionguard Figo in Lion's Arch. To get to Factions you need the quest "Mhenlo's Request" given by Firstwatch Sergio in Lion's Arch.

Hope that helps.(Oh and while it might not be common usage using multiple brackets to separate different side points to the sentence, it is allowed to be used in the English language. To add an aside without breaking or making a sentence longer than it has to be.(And thankyou, 'tis a method I've always used as it allows for explanations without hassles in my opinion))

Heath Laron · Nov 20, 2011, 11:28 AM // 11:28

Quote:

Originally Posted by DobbyTheHouseElf

also (not related to the quote) I was told ON THESE VERY FORUMS that Ranger/monk was the essential combo for starters. I regret the day I walked away from necromancer munne...
Is there no way to change your secondary profession??!!

Aside from some niche builds, you shouldn't be relying on your secondary profession. The secondary profession you do use should be for complimentary skills only, not supplementary damage or healing. Rebirth (a Monk resurrect skill) is very useful when you first play Ranger with henchmen, because you're often the last to die so getting the team back up may rest on your shoulders.

For the vast majority of purposes, you shouldn't be aiming to play as your secondary profession or load up on secondary profession skills. At least 6 of the skills on your bar should be Ranger skills.

You can change your secondary profession later in the game, but it won't change the fact you are a Ranger and trying to play another class through secondary profession skills will often be suboptimal and difficult.

(Note: There are builds (skill sets) relying on very particular primary and secondary profession combinations, and you'll learn of these as you progress through the game and explore PvX Wiki.)

BrettM · Nov 20, 2011, 01:12 PM // 13:12

Quote:

Originally Posted by DobbyTheHouseElf

Good news about the abettoir/menagarie thingy!

An abattoir is a place where animals are killed for food. I.e., a slaughterhouse. I don't think any of that is taking place in the Zaishen Menagerie. At least I hope not.

Just sayin'.

Sarsans · Nov 20, 2011, 02:19 PM // 14:19

I would agree with the majority of the comments made about relying too much on your secondary profession. As a novice/intermediate ranger I would concentrate mainly on your primary profession attributes. I always think that you should have a decent amount of points invested in Expertise. In particular, it will lower the energy cost of your ranger skills, touch skills and spirit skills. When you progress later in the game, you might want to play around with ritualist spirits and necro touch skills that take advantage of this attribute

If you wanted to concentrate on prophecies for now, but needed access to max armor sooner rather than later, I would look for a 'runner' to take you to Droknor's Forge ('Droks' for short) whilst in Beacon's Perch in the Northern Shiverpeaks. From there you can also get access to other skills and locations quicker than if you had followed the natural course of the game.

I can only echo with the others that you check out guildwiki for general advice about everyting guild wars related:

http://guildwars.wikia.com/wiki/Main_Page

and pvx.com which has a pluthera of skill bar suggestions for every profession (note these aren't always that brilliant, (but you'll soon pick up which ones are)):

http://pvx.wikia.com/wiki/Main_Page

Quaker · Nov 20, 2011, 02:50 PM // 14:50

Quote:

Originally Posted by DobbyTheHouseElf

Firstly, the maximum damage I can do is 40, ......

I have to ask the obvious - do you have the best armor you can get (armor level-wise)? Have you checked the skill trainers for new skills you can buy? There is an armor crafter and skill trainer in Lion's Arch - but you can get max armor now, if you can travel to Consulate Docks (Nightfall) or Kaineng Center (Factions).

Quote:

I would LOVE a good ranger/monk build and I am open to pretty much anything

The main thing at this point is to concentrate on your Ranger primary. Your monk secondary should only be used for a rez and, perhaps, a self heal.

Quote:

I rely on my heroes FAR too much and if i have to go alone, I will die.

That's what heroes and henchmen are for. The game is designed for a full party.

Quote:

Another query of mine is about the ranger pets. ...when I order a pet from the hunter will it take a while for her to get it?

To get a pet from the menagerie, you need to have first tamed the pet in the wild or purchased it with Z-coins. If you put a pet into the menagerie, you can get the same kind of pet back again later. I prefer to think it's the same pet.

Quote:

My final query... For now at least is about zaishen coins.

500 copper (2 stacks) = 1 gold.

Kamara · Nov 20, 2011, 02:55 PM // 14:55

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sarsans

I can only echo with the others that you check out guildwiki for general advice about everyting guild wars related:

http://guildwars.wikia.com/wiki/Main_Page

and pvx.com which has a pluthera of skill bar suggestions for every profession (note these aren't always that brilliant, (but you'll soon pick up which ones are)):

http://pvx.wikia.com/wiki/Main_Page

Just a quick addition, don't use those above sites. They used to be the go to place but now they are nothing other than breeding ground for trolls and bored people and contain incorrect information (One of them just mentioned that *mapping* places gets you banned. It doesn't.)

Instead the two wikis are:

http://www.guildwiki.org/Main_Page and http://wiki.guildwars.com/wiki/Main_Page for the official wiki. There's in-game integration for the official wiki. Press F10 or type /help.

The PvX wiki lives at http://www.gwpvx.com/PvX_wiki

Please use those and nothing hosted at wikia

Frangeo Munda · Nov 21, 2011, 08:53 PM // 20:53

WIKI SITES:Good point about those two sites. Just so you know, the unofficial guild wars wiki used to be hosted by wikia.org, but after it moved to curse.com, the wikia remnant is, as mentioned, pretty much troll-tastic.
PROFESSION COMBINATIONS:As for profession combos, I'll echo what others have said. Take a look at the infamous warrior/monk combination. Many new players choose this combo, assuming that they'll be able to bash stuff with a steel weapon and at the same time be a major source of healing. This would be an example of a very BAD idea, as warrior primary characters simply don't have the energy or energy regeneration to do much heal spell casting. Also, for you, as a ranger, delving too heavily into your secondary (and thus ignoring your ranger primary) means ignoring many of the benefits of that primary. Rangers are very good at staying alive and messing with casters. They've got 100 armor vs elemental damage - more than any other profession - and, coupled with an impressive set of interrupt skills, can both survive and disrupt caster damage. For the reason of survivability, a few (1 or 2) utility skills can make the ranger even more survivable, but you should not be relying solely on your monk second for surviving. As people have mentioned above, smiting prayers is not a very good option for you at the moment. Aside from one particular elite skill, smiting generally does not do huge damage. It's great on a primary monk against undead (does double damage), but on a ranger, it's frankly a waste of space. You can change your secondary profession later, but most characters (rangers included) can survive on their primary professions alone.
BOWS:I'd also ask what bow you have. Is it maximum damage (15-28)? Is it a hornbow, shortbow, longbow, recurve bow, or flatbow? Does it have any other bits of information on it (like "sundering" or "vampiric" or "of something")? Since you're doing most of your damage with a bow, that's the first thing you want to check out. If you're still using the starter bow (2-3 damage or something like that), you'll be doing far less damage. You can get a maximum damage bow very easily from collectors - heck, I'll even give you one for free if you PM me in game - so not having one is just really not a good idea at this stage.
PETS:Also, one last thing on pets. Make sure you really need a pet before you bring one. Yes, the extra body can be nice as a distraction, but you could also use that skill slot for something else. Don't bring a pet just because you're a ranger and feel that therefore you must have one.
/end rant
-Frangeo (in-game-name Portable Healy Unit

Dar Drakor · Nov 21, 2011, 11:06 PM // 23:06

Since it came up in another "new player" thread and especially considering your primary profession...you have mastered the basics of pulling, straffing and otherwise cajoling the enemy to get into position for your heavy hitters to maximize their damage output right?

Also...are you familiar with the benefits and drawbacks of each type of bow? There are some significant differences between the various bow types depending on what your goal is with the bow (pulling vs interrupting vs damage dealing, etc)...and being able to quickly change from one bow to another.

How about when and where to set traps to maximize effectiveness while minimize the chance you have of getting caught with your pants down?

For a ranger, these are the types of things that you should be intimately familiar with beyond just trying to find nice skills. Anybody can lookup skills and stand there and mosh skill buttons...not many can actually really play it.

A ranger is a profession that is constantly on the move and serving multiple roles within the group dynamic..a lot of times doing the dirty jobs that no one notices but that are integral to a parties success.

Thats what Rangers are...inglorious, tough, versatile, unappreciated. Welcome aboard.

PS...as far as pets go? They are nice early on but in the harder areas and/or if you start using the most popular hero builds the really dont serve much use over other options one has with rangers. Youll get enough "meat shields" in most areas from minions and spirits that heroes can spam quite easily that a level 20 Tiger meat shield really doesnt offer that great of a value.

Nov 19, 2011, 10:51 PM // 22:51	#1
DobbyTheHouseElf Ascalonian Squire Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: A desolated cave near Ascalon Guild: Imperial Guards Elite Profession: R/Mo	A ranger in Distress-questions from a noob Hello, one pathetic starting ranger here (character name Cheese Time) this was my first character, and I either skipped out on the beginner tutorial, or master Ranger Nente was REALLY short on good ranger tips. I am having several somewhat... distressing problems with this character. Firstly, the maximum damage I can do is 40, extreme cap and my best skill (power shot) I can get some alright damage done with my monk spell (singular) I'm not sure what it is called, but it has a blue picture of a mushroom like cloud and it does damage every second for 5 seconds to adjacent foes. With these being my best two spells, I am pretty helpless on my own. I would LOVE a good ranger/monk build and I am open to pretty much anything (as long as I can have my pet skill) I rely on my heroes FAR too much and if i have to go alone, I will die. I have done every side quest that was available to me, I am at level 18 and the last mission that I did was arora glades (how far through the campaign am I?) and I have done every side quest possible and got every skill so far. Please help me out! Another query of mine is about the ranger pets. I've been to the menagarie/abettoir and seen the hunter and interacted with all of the NPCs, but I don't truly understand what they are saying. If I hand in Pet-Turdy will I never get it back (I don't know why but it is sort of a sad thing for me) when I order a pet from the hunter will it take a while for her to get it? What level will my new pet be at, and will it be able to do all of the same attacks? My final query... For now at least is about zaishen coins. How many copper=silver and silver=gold and so on... Is it really worth spending these coins on flamingoes and not the stuff the zaishen dudes have? Thank you in advance for any help-feel free to move this thread anywhere, but please don't delete it!

Nov 20, 2011, 08:35 AM // 08:35	#11
Toraen Ascalonian Squire Join Date: Jun 2010 Profession: R/	You get the ability to change your secondary later, after completing the Augury Rock mission (still a bit away from where you are). Then quests to change your secondary will open up, with one for each of the core professions (the ranger secondary quest will obviously not be available to you though as that is your primary). Alternatively, you will be able to visit a Profession Changer NPC after Augury Rock at the Great Temple of Balthazar and pay 500 gold to unlock a different secondary (this is a one-time cost for each secondary) that includes the nightfall and factions professions. If you need to save the gold, just complete the quests when you get to them, then buy the nightfall and factions secondaries at the temple. Once you have additional secondaries unlocked, you'll be able to change to them (as well as your original secondary) at will using the skills and attributes panel. Last edited by Toraen; Nov 20, 2011 at 08:37 AM // 08:37.. Reason: forgot one thing

Nov 21, 2011, 08:53 PM // 20:53	#18
Frangeo Munda Academy Page Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Granitic crust Guild: Killer Green Buddah Profession: Mo/	WIKI SITES:Good point about those two sites. Just so you know, the unofficial guild wars wiki used to be hosted by wikia.org, but after it moved to curse.com, the wikia remnant is, as mentioned, pretty much troll-tastic. PROFESSION COMBINATIONS:As for profession combos, I'll echo what others have said. Take a look at the infamous warrior/monk combination. Many new players choose this combo, assuming that they'll be able to bash stuff with a steel weapon and at the same time be a major source of healing. This would be an example of a very BAD idea, as warrior primary characters simply don't have the energy or energy regeneration to do much heal spell casting. Also, for you, as a ranger, delving too heavily into your secondary (and thus ignoring your ranger primary) means ignoring many of the benefits of that primary. Rangers are very good at staying alive and messing with casters. They've got 100 armor vs elemental damage - more than any other profession - and, coupled with an impressive set of interrupt skills, can both survive and disrupt caster damage. For the reason of survivability, a few (1 or 2) utility skills can make the ranger even more survivable, but you should not be relying solely on your monk second for surviving. As people have mentioned above, smiting prayers is not a very good option for you at the moment. Aside from one particular elite skill, smiting generally does not do huge damage. It's great on a primary monk against undead (does double damage), but on a ranger, it's frankly a waste of space. You can change your secondary profession later, but most characters (rangers included) can survive on their primary professions alone. BOWS:I'd also ask what bow you have. Is it maximum damage (15-28)? Is it a hornbow, shortbow, longbow, recurve bow, or flatbow? Does it have any other bits of information on it (like "sundering" or "vampiric" or "of something")? Since you're doing most of your damage with a bow, that's the first thing you want to check out. If you're still using the starter bow (2-3 damage or something like that), you'll be doing far less damage. You can get a maximum damage bow very easily from collectors - heck, I'll even give you one for free if you PM me in game - so not having one is just really not a good idea at this stage. PETS:Also, one last thing on pets. Make sure you really need a pet before you bring one. Yes, the extra body can be nice as a distraction, but you could also use that skill slot for something else. Don't bring a pet just because you're a ranger and feel that therefore you must have one. /end rant -Frangeo (in-game-name Portable Healy Unit Last edited by Frangeo Munda; Nov 21, 2011 at 10:42 PM // 22:42.. Reason: more info

Nov 21, 2011, 11:06 PM // 23:06	#19
Dar Drakor Krytan Explorer Join Date: Aug 2008 Guild: Ancient Dragon Disciples [ADD] Profession: N/A	Since it came up in another "new player" thread and especially considering your primary profession...you have mastered the basics of pulling, straffing and otherwise cajoling the enemy to get into position for your heavy hitters to maximize their damage output right? Also...are you familiar with the benefits and drawbacks of each type of bow? There are some significant differences between the various bow types depending on what your goal is with the bow (pulling vs interrupting vs damage dealing, etc)...and being able to quickly change from one bow to another. How about when and where to set traps to maximize effectiveness while minimize the chance you have of getting caught with your pants down? For a ranger, these are the types of things that you should be intimately familiar with beyond just trying to find nice skills. Anybody can lookup skills and stand there and mosh skill buttons...not many can actually really play it. A ranger is a profession that is constantly on the move and serving multiple roles within the group dynamic..a lot of times doing the dirty jobs that no one notices but that are integral to a parties success. Thats what Rangers are...inglorious, tough, versatile, unappreciated. Welcome aboard. PS...as far as pets go? They are nice early on but in the harder areas and/or if you start using the most popular hero builds the really dont serve much use over other options one has with rangers. Youll get enough "meat shields" in most areas from minions and spirits that heroes can spam quite easily that a level 20 Tiger meat shield really doesnt offer that great of a value. Last edited by Dar Drakor; Nov 22, 2011 at 08:48 PM // 20:48..

Nov 19, 2011, 11:08 PM // 23:08	#2
drowze Frost Gate Guardian Join Date: Apr 2006 Guild: SaGa Profession: N/	Relying on heroes/henchmen is normal. The game is designed around a full party, so venturing out alone is not a good idea. If you hand in a pet at the tamer in the menagerie, then you get a small amount of money for it and he takes your pet away. I think if you give it to the tamer in the menagerie, that pet will be unlocked. I always hand in my pets at lvl 20, and that unlocks all the evolutions as well. Your pet will be taken away, but you can charm the same animal at the menagerie again once it's unlocked, so it's not really lost forever. I find unlocking pets with Zcoins is a waste of money, but then again, I'm pretty cheap^^ 50 copper = 1 silver, 10 silver = 1 gold Zcoin (if I remember correctly) Might want to search around on guildwiki (there is a link in the tabs on top of this site)

Nov 19, 2011, 11:09 PM // 23:09	#3
Toraen Ascalonian Squire Join Date: Jun 2010 Profession: R/	You should never be going alone, in Guild Wars you always should have a full party when fighting - 6 members for where you are now. For your build it would help if you posted the full build and attributes you are using right now. That would make it easier to tell what you need to fix. Turning in a pet to the menagerie will 'unlock' that species for the menagerie and depending on it's level and evolution, specific levels of that pet will be available from the menagerie for you to tame at any time. You probably shouldn't use Zaishen coins on pets. Different pet species aren't all that different mechanically (they'll basically skins and have one of piercing/slashing/blunt as their damage type). You should really check out guildwiki; they have a lot of information on the game mechanics and areas.

Nov 19, 2011, 11:16 PM // 23:16	#4
Arduin Grotto Attendant Join Date: May 2005 Location: The Netherlands Guild: Limburgse Jagers [LJ] Profession: R/	Take a look at the ranger subforum and the basic guide to play as a ranger: http://www.guildwarsguru.com/forum/ranger-f209.html http://www.guildwarsguru.com/forum/b...t10261054.html

Nov 19, 2011, 11:48 PM // 23:48	#5
turbo234 Wilds Pathfinder Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: WI Profession: Mo/	as a ranger, using monk as a secondary shouldn't be anything more than 1 utility skill(i.e. mending touch from nightfall) there is no advantage to smiting on a ranger and if anything slows down what you can do because you are switching from attacking to casting which is counterproductive really. rangers are usually known for the great interrupts they can bring. distracting shot is one of the better skills in the game so i suggest bringing that. other than that i could say if you really want a pet just focus on beast mastery, marksmanship, and expertise for your attributes.

Nov 20, 2011, 12:35 AM // 00:35	#7
wilebill Desert Nomad Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Mt Vernon, Ohio Guild: Band of the Hawk Profession: W/Mo	Hang in there. A Ranger with pet and a good party can do a very lot in this game. But it is a party game and you must go out with your party. My Ranger has a good party and can blow away the harder maps in hard mode for vanquishes. Going out by yourself you mainly wait for GW 2 to do that. But don't despair. It is way too early to set up for it yet, but much later on when you have money and some options you can set up as a spirit spamming Ranger, so-called SoS spirit spam. Incredibly effective build for light to medium farming. But that must wait until you have finished the game and even later than that. Some of the skills you would need are over in Factions and Nightfall. Still, playing a Ranger will not leave you poor in the end. I bought some pets and leveled them up with Balthazar Faction earned at Fort Aspenwood and the Jade Quarry. My original Melandru's Stalker is still in the Menagerie. I drop in on him from time to time. A lot of affection for my first pet. These days I use a white tiger because he is easier to see at range and I like his snarl. As for damage, rangers are good at applying conditions and handing out consistent damage with high survivability. We are not king of DPS. Make sure you are using Otyugh's Cry http://www.guildwiki.org/Otyugh%27s_Cry

Nov 20, 2011, 01:01 AM // 01:01	#8
Gondrakif Krytan Explorer Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: GMT +2	You should always bring as many people or henchmen with you as allowed, the game is designed around max parties so going out alone should be avoided and it's not something you have to worry about. You are pretty much in the middle of the campaign, Aurora Glade is the 12th mission and there are 25. Despite the fact you are in the middle of the campaign your character is not anywhere near maxed out (that's not your fault it's just prophecies being slow about that). What do i mean by that? You don't have all your attributes yet, not max level, you don't have access to either max armor/weapons or elite skills and you can't change your secondary profession. So you have a lot of things to look forward to which will make your ranger stronger. Some general build suggestions: 1. Don't use skills from your secondary profession. When you get a better understanding of the game you might want to bring 1-2 utility skills or try some specific build. Right now the only skill you might want from your secondary profession is a resurrection spell. 2. Use 2-3 attributes max. If you go into more you won't have many points to put in each one resulting in your skills being weak. At the stage you are right now i would say go with marksmanship, expertise and beast mastery if you want a pet. Marksmanship improves your bow damage, beast mastery improves your pet's damage and expertise makes your skills cost less energy so you can use them more often (in the description they will still say their full cost but when you use them they will cost less). 3. Your marksmanship should be at least as much as the requirement on the bow you are using otherwise your bow damage will be almost 0. Wiki is your friend for almost any question.

Nov 20, 2011, 01:24 AM // 01:24	#9
Saint Scarlet Frost Gate Guardian Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Everywhere Guild: Rise of Corruption[RoC] Profession: R/	As a little side note, when you show your pet to the tamer in the zaishen Menagerie it will unlock it, then it asks if you wish to release the pet you say no if you want to keep the pet you currently have(but as people have said you can get the same level pet back if you do happen to give it away(lvl5, 10, 15 and 20 are the lvl caps on the pet))

Nov 20, 2011, 09:11 AM // 09:11	#12
Saint Scarlet Frost Gate Guardian Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Everywhere Guild: Rise of Corruption[RoC] Profession: R/	First off the Flamingo is in Nightfall only, but is really easy to get(there is a bunch just outside the 1st main town you enter). To get to Nightfall you need the quest "Sunspears In Kryta" given by Lionguard Figo in Lion's Arch. To get to Factions you need the quest "Mhenlo's Request" given by Firstwatch Sergio in Lion's Arch. Hope that helps.(Oh and while it might not be common usage using multiple brackets to separate different side points to the sentence, it is allowed to be used in the English language. To add an aside without breaking or making a sentence longer than it has to be.(And thankyou, 'tis a method I've always used as it allows for explanations without hassles in my opinion))

Nov 20, 2011, 02:19 PM // 14:19	#15
Sarsans Pre-Searing Cadet Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: UK Guild: Ministry of Fate [MoF] Profession: W/	I would agree with the majority of the comments made about relying too much on your secondary profession. As a novice/intermediate ranger I would concentrate mainly on your primary profession attributes. I always think that you should have a decent amount of points invested in Expertise. In particular, it will lower the energy cost of your ranger skills, touch skills and spirit skills. When you progress later in the game, you might want to play around with ritualist spirits and necro touch skills that take advantage of this attribute If you wanted to concentrate on prophecies for now, but needed access to max armor sooner rather than later, I would look for a 'runner' to take you to Droknor's Forge ('Droks' for short) whilst in Beacon's Perch in the Northern Shiverpeaks. From there you can also get access to other skills and locations quicker than if you had followed the natural course of the game. I can only echo with the others that you check out guildwiki for general advice about everyting guild wars related: http://guildwars.wikia.com/wiki/Main_Page and pvx.com which has a pluthera of skill bar suggestions for every profession (note these aren't always that brilliant, (but you'll soon pick up which ones are)): http://pvx.wikia.com/wiki/Main_Page