So I just bought the GW Trilogy and am looking forward to playing.  I had thought about rolling a healer so I can heal my henchmen through the content.  Would that be wise for a starting class?  Are there any other classes that are a lot of fun to play?  I'm looking to solo a lot of the content -- at least at first unless there are a lot of people needing to complete the group quests.

well, if you want to be a healer, then you want to go Monk, as thats the healer class

I wouldn't recommend healing because AI henchmen are somewhat stupid and they won't concentrate fire on a single target unless you're calling your attacks, which is somewhat hard to do as a healer.

If you do end up going as a Monk or a Rit though, they have some pretty potent offensive skills in the Smiting Prayers skill line on monks and Channeling line on Rits, so I'd recommend you go offense when going the hero/henchman route, and switch to healing when you're in a party with someone else that's willing to handle the heroes.

Also, healer classes have the easiest time of getting into groups because the least people are willing to play them, so you shouldn't have much trouble grouping.

Mcgee

if you need a hand getting started, drop me a PM ingame, my IGN is Tyr Dominator

I found the Ritualist a frustrating class to play, I wouldn't recommend it for beginners. A monk is not a bad choice though.

Monks are  the hardest classes to play, I would recomend a warrior or an elementalist.

Warrior with a sub of Monk is what I always play. Can take it, dish it out, and heal yourself when the going gets tough. All around pretty balanced as far as I could tell. I was pretty hardpressed to get killed.

Ranger is easy to play and a good beginner character. Elementalist works fine too. Monks are the hardest class to play, a must in a group but wait with it until your second char, it is fast to level up in GW anyways.

Originally posted by arenasb

I found the Ritualist a frustrating class to play, I wouldn't recommend it for beginners. A monk is not a bad choice though.

Oh great, just my luck, I also bought the trilogy pack, and I picked ritualist because I thought it would be like Hellgates OP summoner class.  Turns out that the two spirits I can summon only sit there like gun turrets and shot enemies from the distance.  Is there a class like HGL's summoner class?  Basically a summoner class where one can summon multiple minion army with decent A.I. and skills? or is it just Ritualist with Gun Turret minions that just sit there?

What class should I pick if I want to play something like HGL's summoner (or am I stuck with Ritualist?)

IMO necro/monk are the most fun class to play.

MMs (minion master) can run most missions with out any problems

p.s  hidden1 try rit/necro the can summon spirits as well as blow up your undead minions,verry cool (minion-bomber)spec

Oh great, just my luck, I also bought the trilogy pack, and I picked ritualist because I thought it would be like Hellgates OP summoner class.  Turns out that the two spirits I can summon only sit there like gun turrets and shot enemies from the distance.  Is there a class like HGL's summoner class?  Basically a summoner class where one can summon multiple minion army with decent A.I. and skills? or is it just Ritualist with Gun Turret minions that just sit there?

What class should I pick if I want to play something like HGL's summoner (or am I stuck with Ritualist?)

Necromancers have all the minion spells in the game, The best MM elites for a PC to run are Flesh Golem, and Aura of the Lich, as well as a ton of minion spells for actual raising.

With that said, I've found that the Ritualist is a far better MM than a Necro because the Rit primary skill, Spawning Power, when maxed, will give minions close to 50% extra health and make them last noticeably longer. Also, the Spawning power skill line has some very good enchantments like boon of creation, explosive growth, and spirits gift, which will give you energy whenever you create a minion, damage enemies in the area whenever a minion is created, or heal everyone in the area when a minon is created. This is a very major deal because it actually gives you, as a MM, alot to do during an encouter. Pure necros just stand around trying to keep their army up, you're out there healing and doing damage.

With that said, only my Rit has an MM build, I never even bothered making one for the necro. The downside is that you'll need a necromancer secondary, if you're not, either restart as one, or keep playing Factions until about halfway into the game, where you'll get the option to change your secondary profession.

PS: Paragons and Rangers make for the best starting chars. They both have relatively high armor, but are considered midline chars, so you'll be a low priority target and will spend alot of your time out of harms way.

Originally posted by Gennadios

Oh great, just my luck, I also bought the trilogy pack, and I picked ritualist because I thought it would be like Hellgates OP summoner class.  Turns out that the two spirits I can summon only sit there like gun turrets and shot enemies from the distance.  Is there a class like HGL's summoner class?  Basically a summoner class where one can summon multiple minion army with decent A.I. and skills? or is it just Ritualist with Gun Turret minions that just sit there?

What class should I pick if I want to play something like HGL's summoner (or am I stuck with Ritualist?)

 

Necromancers have all the minion spells in the game, The best MM elites for a PC to run are Flesh Golem, and Aura of the Lich, as well as a ton of minion spells for actual raising.

With that said, I've found that the Ritualist is a far better MM than a Necro because the Rit primary skill, Spawning Power, when maxed, will give minions close to 50% extra health and make them last noticeably longer. Also, the Spawning power skill line has some very good enchantments like boon of creation, explosive growth, and spirits gift, which will give you energy whenever you create a minion, damage enemies in the area whenever a minion is created, or heal everyone in the area when a minon is created. This is a very major deal because it actually gives you, as a MM, alot to do during an encouter. Pure necros just stand around trying to keep their army up, you're out there healing and doing damage.

 

With that said, only my Rit has an MM build, I never even bothered making one for the necro. The downside is that you'll need a necromancer secondary, if you're not, either restart as one, or keep playing Factions until about halfway into the game, where you'll get the option to change your secondary profession.

 

PS: Paragons and Rangers make for the best starting chars. They both have relatively high armor, but are considered midline chars, so you'll be a low priority target and will spend alot of your time out of harms way.

Thanks for the advice, I'll try and stick with the spiritualist then.  I guess I'm just used to the OP class of HGL, was fun to summon a small army of 15 minions plus the Warper... i miss one hit kills on guardians during pvp...
 

Ritualist from what you described seems more like a hybrid damage dealer and healer so sorts.  At higher levels will I be able to summon minions that actually move around, or is that just for the Necro that get's moving minions?

Originally posted by hidden1

Originally posted by Gennadios

Oh great, just my luck, I also bought the trilogy pack, and I picked ritualist because I thought it would be like Hellgates OP summoner class.  Turns out that the two spirits I can summon only sit there like gun turrets and shot enemies from the distance.  Is there a class like HGL's summoner class?  Basically a summoner class where one can summon multiple minion army with decent A.I. and skills? or is it just Ritualist with Gun Turret minions that just sit there?

What class should I pick if I want to play something like HGL's summoner (or am I stuck with Ritualist?)

 

Necromancers have all the minion spells in the game, The best MM elites for a PC to run are Flesh Golem, and Aura of the Lich, as well as a ton of minion spells for actual raising.

With that said, I've found that the Ritualist is a far better MM than a Necro because the Rit primary skill, Spawning Power, when maxed, will give minions close to 50% extra health and make them last noticeably longer. Also, the Spawning power skill line has some very good enchantments like boon of creation, explosive growth, and spirits gift, which will give you energy whenever you create a minion, damage enemies in the area whenever a minion is created, or heal everyone in the area when a minon is created. This is a very major deal because it actually gives you, as a MM, alot to do during an encouter. Pure necros just stand around trying to keep their army up, you're out there healing and doing damage.

 

With that said, only my Rit has an MM build, I never even bothered making one for the necro. The downside is that you'll need a necromancer secondary, if you're not, either restart as one, or keep playing Factions until about halfway into the game, where you'll get the option to change your secondary profession.

 

PS: Paragons and Rangers make for the best starting chars. They both have relatively high armor, but are considered midline chars, so you'll be a low priority target and will spend alot of your time out of harms way.

Thanks for the advice, I'll try and stick with the spiritualist then.  I guess I'm just used to the OP class of HGL, was fun to summon a small army of 15 minions plus the Warper... i miss one hit kills on guardians during pvp...
 

Ritualist from what you described seems more like a hybrid damage dealer and healer so sorts.  At higher levels will I be able to summon minions that actually move around, or is that just for the Necro that get's moving minions?

Ritualist was designed as a hybrid yes. Your spirits will always be stationary. As said above, ritualist do make decent minion masters with a necro secondary, but I still prefer a Necro primary due to Soul Reaping.

Originally posted by hidden1

Necromancers have all the minion spells in the game, The best MM elites for a PC to run are Flesh Golem, and Aura of the Lich, as well as a ton of minion spells for actual raising.

With that said, I've found that the Ritualist is a far better MM than a Necro because the Rit primary skill, Spawning Power, when maxed, will give minions close to 50% extra health and make them last noticeably longer. Also, the Spawning power skill line has some very good enchantments like boon of creation, explosive growth, and spirits gift, which will give you energy whenever you create a minion, damage enemies in the area whenever a minion is created, or heal everyone in the area when a minon is created. This is a very major deal because it actually gives you, as a MM, alot to do during an encouter. Pure necros just stand around trying to keep their army up, you're out there healing and doing damage.

 

With that said, only my Rit has an MM build, I never even bothered making one for the necro. The downside is that you'll need a necromancer secondary, if you're not, either restart as one, or keep playing Factions until about halfway into the game, where you'll get the option to change your secondary profession.

 

PS: Paragons and Rangers make for the best starting chars. They both have relatively high armor, but are considered midline chars, so you'll be a low priority target and will spend alot of your time out of harms way.

Thanks for the advice, I'll try and stick with the spiritualist then.  I guess I'm just used to the OP class of HGL, was fun to summon a small army of 15 minions plus the Warper... i miss one hit kills on guardians during pvp...
 

Ritualist from what you described seems more like a hybrid damage dealer and healer so sorts.  At higher levels will I be able to summon minions that actually move around, or is that just for the Necro that get's moving minions?

I was a Sniper in HGL, so I don't really have any experience with their minions. I assume they're kind of similar to WoW summons, they follow you and have their own set of skills and spells and such...

If that's what your looking for, you'll find a few class neutral PvE only summons in the Eye of the North expansion. Personally I've never used them, but they're considerably more impressive to watch and far more potent. You can only have one such creature summoned at a time.

Necromancer minions are slightly less impressive, like a little army of imps. They follow and swarn. No real skills, just basic attacks. Some steal life, some cause bleeding, their main utility is sowing confusion, body blocking, and dealing just enough damage en masse to keep the healers off-center and occupied. No 1 hit kills. You can have up to 8 of these as a Rit, and 10 as a necro.

Also, there's a skill in Nightfall that will summon all spirits to your current location. They still act as turrets, but it makes you a little bit more mobile.

Originally posted by Gennadios

I was a Sniper in HGL, so I don't really have any experience with their minions. I assume they're kind of similar to WoW summons, they follow you and have their own set of skills and spells and such...

If that's what your looking for, you'll find a few class neutral PvE only summons in the Eye of the North expansion. Personally I've never used them, but they're considerably more impressive to watch and far more potent. You can only have one such creature summoned at a time.

Necromancer minions are slightly less impressive, like a little army of imps. They follow and swarn. No real skills, just basic attacks. Some steal life, some cause bleeding, their main utility is sowing confusion, body blocking, and dealing just enough damage en masse to keep the healers off-center and occupied. No 1 hit kills. You can have up to 8 of these as a Rit, and 10 as a necro.

Also, there's a skill in Nightfall that will summon all spirits to your current location. They still act as turrets, but it makes you a little bit more mobile.

That's some horrible advice you got there. Ritualist is considered one of the worthless caster of this game. The primary attribute of spawning power does not even compare to soul reaping and it seems like you have never ran a OoU necro. Necromancer are considered one of the best PvE profession at the moment because they are able to deal massive damage with AP-MoP curse, heal very well by abusing soul reaping, and use minions to send decoys and use it to deal great damage from OoU. The synergy with physical is great if you're running AP-MoP or Orders so you'll always find a group as a necromancer. Ritualist? I wouldn't want to invite them because a necromancer can get the job done better.

Take a look here and find out the flaws of Ritualist even more:

http://www.guildwarsguru.com/forum/showthread.php?t=10360868

Originally posted by HolyLightH

That's some horrible advice you got there. Ritualist is considered one of the worthless caster of this game. The primary attribute of spawning power does not even compare to soul reaping and it seems like you have never ran a OoU necro. Necromancer are considered one of the best PvE profession at the moment because they are able to deal massive damage with AP-MoP curse, heal very well by abusing soul reaping, and use minions to send decoys and use it to deal great damage from OoU. The synergy with physical is great if you're running AP-MoP or Orders so you'll always find a group as a necromancer. Ritualist? I wouldn't want to invite them because a necromancer can get the job done better.

Take a look here and find out the flaws of Ritualist even more:

http://www.guildwarsguru.com/forum/showthread.php?t=10360868

You take my one posting that's all general information meant explain the basics to a new player, that doesn't even deal with the advantages/disadvantages of Rit MMs, then you drag out a link that deals with topics whe're not even discussing. What's your point?

And no. I've never run a AoU MM, the current AB meta favors AotL MMs, which works quite well for Rits as Explosive Growth deals massive damage to any enemy unlucky enough to have more than one or two corpses in the area. And guess what, it works quite well in PvE also.

Assassins Promise? I take it you're running Discordways, as that's the only time I see that particular skill used. Honestly, any good build can keep it's energy up /w Soul Reaping alone, and skill recharge shouldn't be an issue, as you ideally have 8 skills to cast at any given time, at least some of them should be castable.

Order of Undeath... not worth it IMO. AotL is better in AB because it gives you minion raising abilities w/o the need for corpses, MoP not so useful because players don't bunch up enough to really do much /w it. In PvE... well, there's the Ebon Battle Standard of Honor. Does the job of both OoU and MoP in a single skill, and saves an elite slot, /w no 2% health loss. Plus you were talking as if both of those skills are Necromancer exclusives. They can be run on a Rit as well as a Necro. What's the Rit losing from not having access to an extra +1 curses rune? 2 points of extra damage per hit?

PS: You probably mean well, but this isn't really how you're supposed to give advice to a new player. Point him to viable early skills so he can work out a viable build, and let him learn the way from there. The last thing anyone needs to hear at this stage of gameplay is ideal HM builds and Elites from the endgame of campaigns that migh take him months to get to, much less elites and combos from classes that won't make much sense unless you've had a decent amount of experience /w the core mechanics.

Wow people, a new player should choose the profession they find most interesting and will enjoy playing the most. It's not all about stats and skills and balance, especially in Guild Wars due to being able to make PvP characters on the fly. I chose my main character's profession because I was interesting in the profession as a whole and spent lots of time reading game and profession lore. 

It seems people are forgetting the point of games.

Originally posted by Lydon

It seems people are forgetting the point of games.

Bah. Mummorpugers are all about impressing people /w your intimate knowledge of the latest imbalanced flavor of the month builds.

...and threatening to kick people from your PUGs if they're not specced out to your specifications apparently... It's the only way to show the new players who'se boss.

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Originally posted by Gennadios

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Originally posted by Lydon

It seems people are forgetting the point of games.

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Bah. Mummorpugers are all about impressing people /w your intimate knowledge of the latest imbalanced flavor of the month builds.
...and threatening to kick people from your PUGs if they're not specced out to your specifications apparently... It's the only way to show the new players who'se boss.

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Originally posted by Lydon

Wow people, a new player should choose the profession they find most interesting and will enjoy playing the most. It's not all about stats and skills and balance, especially in Guild Wars due to being able to make PvP characters on the fly. I chose my main character's profession because I was interesting in the profession as a whole and spent lots of time reading game and profession lore. 

Yes, I find it easiest to learn a game if I'm playing a class I like the idea of.  If the OP likes mobile minions, go with the Necromancer and have fun with it.  Lead your undead armies on a wild rampage accross the land!  If a stumblebum like me with a bad memory can learn to play a Nec MM, so can anyone.