I'd almost think mesmer would be more popular. As much as I disliked GW1, Mesmer was by far such a cool class concept for me I really admired it.

I have no idea why some people posting in this thread are saying one of the reasons lots of people play Elementalist because if the ranged/aoe aspect of the class. I've played one in all the BWEs and only used dagger/dagger, meaning, melee.

Regarding the OP, my guess is the versatility of the class is what grabs so many people towards playing it.

Originally posted by Gurpslord

Originally posted by Chrome1980

Originally posted by Gurpslord

Originally posted by Chrome1980

Originally posted by Gurpslord

I think what Fadedbomb said applies as well.  Pet classes are always a big favorite, and "Wizards" do have that mega DPS stereotype so yeah.  I think I'll roll a melee toon and check out PVP and see how it is from that perspective.

Haha i survived a day as a melee and rolled a ranged, hope you can do better ;) but seriously ranged have a clear advantage right now in PVP.

I don't doubt you, however I have learned in this genre, that to make a judgement one must get your hands on it.  Hype and opinion can cloud the reality of something so severely that what you think you'll get is absolutely the opposite of what you actually get.  This created a lot of disappointment for me though a variety of games.  I no longer want to blindly accept something one way or the other.  I take information like what you've given and put it to the test, at least with issues that matter to me.  This one I guess doesn't matter so much as has me curious.

You're definitely not the only person saying Melee has it rough in PvP, so guna go test that one m'self.  I hope it's not the case, and if it is, I hope Anet does something about it.

Wait till you get to the seiges where you are nothing more than a fodder as a melee while ranged classes just yawn and burn you down from the walls. In WAR atleast there was proper healing to save your behind and you could still contribute playing as a melee and survive but in GW2 it is beyond frustrating. You could as well just afk till you get inside the keep.

This is what I've heard most people complain about actually.  Jumping on a siege weapon or trying to get into the keep while getting pummeled is a suck-fest.  From a reality standpoint it makes total sense.  Dudes with arrows and guns behind a stone wall are going to decimate the dudes without arrows and guns below..

However realism isn't exactly why I play these games.  If this is the case Anet can't be blind to it and hopefully will do something about it.  Heck, even in reality when the guys without the ranged weapons below were trying to storm the gates, They'd flip over a boat or something to protect the battering ram and those operating it...

 

GW2 NEEDS FLIPPED OVER BOATS!  I have solved the problem..give me cookies.

Or..they could crank up healing a bit to make survival easier for melee classes during seiges. I don't mind dying but i do mind sniffing the floor for the entirety of bashing doors and walls.

Originally posted by Purutzil

I'd almost think mesmer would be more popular. As much as I disliked GW1, Mesmer was by far such a cool class concept for me I really admired it.

I almost rolled Mesmer as my first class actually, the originality of the class seemed cool.  then I saw that fugly mask and changed my mind.

Apparently I'm shallow...sue me.

And for the above poster...yes, they could crank up healing..but BOATS MAN!  UPSIDE DOWN BOATS!  No?

I have an idea! They could implement a class that could feelably and effectively heal others!

Originally posted by Slayra

I have no idea why some people posting in this thread are saying one of the reasons lots of people play Elementalist because if the ranged/aoe aspect of the class. I've played one in all the BWEs and only used dagger/dagger, meaning, melee.

Regarding the OP, my guess is the versatility of the class is what grabs so many people towards playing it.

The expectation of big magics and fiery balls of fire could still be the reason why many roll that profession in the first place. And then they discover the versatility of that profession :)

Or not and they keep spamming fire AOE everywhere and get killed by what were neutral mobs before they arrived :p That stays funny to see :)

Originally posted by Gurpslord

To start, I love this game and I want it to have my babies.

That being said, I've been rollin' as an elementalist during this BWE and finding them a lot of fun!  Last night I began actually paying attention to the people around me, curious to see what classes were being played and I was shocked to see a huge swing in favor of the elementalist!

I saw a few necros, a few warriors and guardians scattered about.  VERY rarely would I see an engineer or thief or mesmer...

But boy oh boy you couldn't throw a stone without hitting a ranger and you couldn't pass gas without an elementalist telling you who dealt it.  Seems like people are flocking towards Elementalists (And rangers to a smaller degree).  Any thoughts as to why this may be?

I understand that my sample size was limited and during a beta and far from scientific, these are just things I noticed.

Well lets start by asking why did YOU choose the elementalist seeing as your playing one.

Then you'll have your answer.

Originally posted by Gurpslord

Originally posted by Purutzil

I'd almost think mesmer would be more popular. As much as I disliked GW1, Mesmer was by far such a cool class concept for me I really admired it.

I almost rolled Mesmer as my first class actually, the originality of the class seemed cool.  then I saw that fugly mask and changed my mind.

 

Apparently I'm shallow...sue me.

And for the above poster...yes, they could crank up healing..but BOATS MAN!  UPSIDE DOWN BOATS!  No?

Agreed. WE NEED BOATS!

I have to say, one on one, Thieves have a hard time in PvP, but Im still new to the game. Wearing leather is a problem when you don't have sustained stealth. On a positive note, we are now more of a magical Thief instead of a stealthy one teleporting around to stay alive. I still love playing my Thief though and hope to improve my PvP effectiveness over time.

I think there is a lot pushing players towards these classes...  It is not really a problem as long as all the classes are balanced fairly well.

I have been playing ranger but at release I will probably do something else, I haven't decided yet.  Like many have said, pet classes are popular.  Both ranger and elementalist are staples of GW1, which also make them popular choices.  Everyone loves wizards, and players gravitate towards what they perceive as the DPS class, although GW2 doesnt really have a trinity.

In WvW, I have to somewhat agree with sentiments that range makes up a lot of the large scale fights... !!! BUT, !!!  You could play for days as a ranger or ele though without getting a proper kill in WvW, because in these larger fights where lines are drawn only players who cross the line will die and in those cases they would have died with or without any individual ele/ranger shooting a few projectiles at them.  I have been more impressed by some of the warriors and theives who move in quickly to take down stragglers and get out before dying themselves and also these melee classes being used in smaller skirmishes.  I am a big fan of WvW, and I am probably going to go with a melee class at release.

This is the first RPG I have played with this sort of WvW large scale PvP gameplay, and I have to admit I am a little disappointed.  I guess I expected it to be more like Planetside 1 with equal faction populations (right now it seems populations are so skewed that 1 sever can often take on 2 others and still dominate), more shifts in control of bases (PS1 base fights would often taken around an hour and up to 20 hours...  In GW2 they are lasting significantly longer), a more fluid front line (in PS you can go behind enemy lines with cloaking or temporarily blast through with a few tanks, etc), and more choices for how to approach taking over bases (PS1 had a back door and several options for shutting bases down, hitting bases from the air, cutting their supply of pwer out, etc).  That being said I know GW2 cant have the same variety in PvP that PS1 had because it is also an RPG, PvP arena, and a great PvE game...  But I think that arenanet will make adjustments in the future and there is a lot of room for improvement.

I especially hope they give more incentives to encourage players to WvW in worlds that are at a disadvantage.  I feel that players may be going to PvE and PvP arena when their server starts to lose at WvW, and that is causing populations to quickly become unbalanced in WvW...  Or something else is causing major population unbalance, far far far beyond what I have seen in PS1.

@wormywyrm: there's at least 1 balancing system but that one'll only become apparent over time, namely the ranking system where strong winner servers will end up against other servers that won their 2 week battles, where as servers that are weaker, less organised or with lower populations that because of it lose more than they won, will end up against other servers that are in force more of their level.

Of course, this can't be shown in a weekend beta, but it should help in the longer term.

Originally posted by AwDiddums

Originally posted by Gurpslord

To start, I love this game and I want it to have my babies.

That being said, I've been rollin' as an elementalist during this BWE and finding them a lot of fun!  Last night I began actually paying attention to the people around me, curious to see what classes were being played and I was shocked to see a huge swing in favor of the elementalist!

I saw a few necros, a few warriors and guardians scattered about.  VERY rarely would I see an engineer or thief or mesmer...

But boy oh boy you couldn't throw a stone without hitting a ranger and you couldn't pass gas without an elementalist telling you who dealt it.  Seems like people are flocking towards Elementalists (And rangers to a smaller degree).  Any thoughts as to why this may be?

I understand that my sample size was limited and during a beta and far from scientific, these are just things I noticed.

Well lets start by asking why did YOU choose the elementalist seeing as your playing one.

Then you'll have your answer.

 

 

I'm guna giive you an honest answer here...I chose elementalist cuz the mesmer mask was fugly and the chick I made looked hot in the dress...

We've covered this already tho..I'm shallow.

To my delight, I found the class not only aesthetically pleasing to my shallow eyes, but also remarkably versatile and fun. ^^

Originally posted by Gurpslord

Originally posted by AwDiddums

Originally posted by Gurpslord

To start, I love this game and I want it to have my babies.

That being said, I've been rollin' as an elementalist during this BWE and finding them a lot of fun!  Last night I began actually paying attention to the people around me, curious to see what classes were being played and I was shocked to see a huge swing in favor of the elementalist!

I saw a few necros, a few warriors and guardians scattered about.  VERY rarely would I see an engineer or thief or mesmer...

But boy oh boy you couldn't throw a stone without hitting a ranger and you couldn't pass gas without an elementalist telling you who dealt it.  Seems like people are flocking towards Elementalists (And rangers to a smaller degree).  Any thoughts as to why this may be?

I understand that my sample size was limited and during a beta and far from scientific, these are just things I noticed.

Well lets start by asking why did YOU choose the elementalist seeing as your playing one.

Then you'll have your answer.

 

 

I'm guna giive you an honest answer here...I chose elementalist cuz the mesmer mask was fugly and the chick I made looked hot in the dress...

We've covered this already tho..I'm shallow.

To my delight, I found the class not only aesthetically pleasing to my shallow eyes, but also remarkably versatile and fun. ^^

Just so you know, you can hide headgear :p

Originally posted by Gurpslord

I chose elementalist cuz the mesmer mask was fugly...

Right click on the Mesmer mask, select hide, and now profit from MULTIPLE hot chicks pupping up around you!

Originally posted by StrixMaxima

Originally posted by Gurpslord

I chose elementalist cuz the mesmer mask was fugly...

Right click on the Mesmer mask, select hide, and now profit from MULTIPLE hot chicks pupping up around you!

Sunuvabitch!  Fugly masks be gone!  I Invoke the hotness that is these character models!

Originally posted by Chrome1980

I started out as melee in PVP but quickly realised i was doing it wrong. So i went ranged too and i actually survivded more and was able to get more kills. Can't blame the player. Devs just  can't balance out melee and ranged in MMOS and GW2 suffer from similar problem. So be ready to see lots of ELE and Rangers in PVP as time goes by.

Well atleast in GW2 every class has viable ranged options, thats a step up from  all other MMO's.  

Its easier for noobs to survive at ranged, but i bet in the end all the pros in structured PvP will rule with Mellee classes, they require more skill, but will be even better then ranged classes in the hands of a pro.

WvWvW might be a different story as a whole.... Mexican standoffs where never favourable to mellee's, so everyone should have allways a ranged weapon equiped.... But allready most winning tactics require a lot of mellee classes too.

Elementalist are peoples choice because they have more potential skills, but then people choose to stick to a single attunement in battle, and therefore lose most of the classes potential. Just watch all those elementalists, and youll hardly ever see any switching switching attunement mid combat.

Originally posted by Lord.Bachus

Originally posted by Chrome1980

I started out as melee in PVP but quickly realised i was doing it wrong. So i went ranged too and i actually survivded more and was able to get more kills. Can't blame the player. Devs just  can't balance out melee and ranged in MMOS and GW2 suffer from similar problem. So be ready to see lots of ELE and Rangers in PVP as time goes by.

Well atleast in GW2 every class has viable ranged options, thats a step up from  all other MMO's.  

 

Its easier for noobs to survive at ranged, but i bet in the end all the pros in structured PvP will rule with Mellee classes, they require more skill, but will be even better then ranged classes in the hands of a pro.

 

WvWvW might be a different story as a whole.... Mexican standoffs where never favourable to mellee's, so everyone should have allways a ranged weapon equiped.... But allready most winning tactics require a lot of mellee classes too.

 

 

Elementalist are peoples choice because they have more potential skills, but then people choose to stick to a single attunement in battle, and therefore lose most of the classes potential. Just watch all those elementalists, and youll hardly ever see any switching switching attunement mid combat.

You may be right there, I learned early that to take advantage of my elementalist I need to switch attunements to fit my situation, not just battle by battle, but second by second within even a single battle.  I swap out a LOT!  

I'm positive that this will change. I noticed that some melee combos with my warrior kill a lot faster then ranged with rifle for example. Not to mention that some melee weapons have great CC skills.

The moment you get organised teams in structured PVP and WvWvW, I think you will see more of a mix of ranged and melee.

DE's and keep sieges just give the wrong impression. In a massive DE , melee is just a gamble. If 20 centaurs attack, it makes more sense to spam AOE at them from a safe distance then charging at them with a 2hnd sword and hope for the best. All the particle spam can make it very difficult to be aware of your surroundings when in melee range.

I also think that performance issues have a part in this. Melee is just difficult when you experience low fps in massive fights.

Originally posted by xxpigxx
Well, Jade Quarry was put up against new (read empty) servers twice after facerolling the first round.

Seems something is off in their matchmaking algorithm

I'm on Blazeridge Mountains which was one of the worst in the first beta.  First day we slaughtered 2 new servers then got matched again today and now we are second to Tanglewood Copse but it looks like a bit of fight.

You can't expect beta to match up perfectly due to population differences across the servers and so forth.  Over time is should even out some more.