Ranger PvE | Dungeon Sword/Warhorn, Axe/Axe | Damage Moon Moon - The Sword/Horn PvE Guide
Table of Contents
Summary
Rangers are a very underrated class mostly because a majority of Rangers are stuck in their ways. This build focuses on the highly unused Sword/Warhorn for single target and Axe/Axe for AOE situations.
This build also assumes you have a basic understanding of PvE boss fight mechanics and how to micromanage your pet efficiently.
I. Weapons and Skills
- Weapon Strength: 905-1000
- Power: 120
- Precision: 85
- Ferocity: 85
- Weapon Strength: 814-900
- Power: 120
- Precision: 85
- Ferocity: 85
- Weapon Strength: 857-1048
- Power: 120
- Precision: 85
- Ferocity: 85
- Weapon Strength: 857-1048
- Power: 120
- Precision: 85
- Ferocity: 85
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- Kick¼Kick your foe, crippling them for a short time.Damage: 202Crippled: 2 sRange: 400Range: 130
- Pounce¾Leap at your foe, striking them. Your pet gains might.Damage: 235Might: 5 sRange: 430
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- Monarch's Leap¾Leap back into the fight, crippling your foe.Damage: 336Crippled: 3 sCombo Finisher: LeapRange: 600
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Weapon and Skill Details
While your main source of damage will come from your auto attack, a majority of your evasion will come in the form of Hornet Sting and Serpent's Strike. Lightning Reflexes is to be used if you need to dodge out of a PBAOE. The last resort is to actually use endurance to dodge, but use this only if your HS/SS/LR are all on cooldown.
Quickening Zephyr is a significant DPS boost, especially when used with Rampage as One or Call of the Wild. Both should be used on cooldown unless the situation arises where you need to be overly mobile and will not be able to take full advantage of it.
While some players prefer a different heal, Troll Unguent is the best heal Rangers have. The significantly low cooldown allows you to use it before you get into any significant trouble and not worry about if it will be on cooldown when you need it again.
The goal here is to maintain constant uptime of Fury while using % based damage to increase your auto attacks to a point where you are comparable dps to other classes.
II. Traits
Marksmanship
Skirmishing
Wilderness Survival
Nature Magic
Trait Details
The main focus here is +% based damage
10% gain while endurance is full (and we have 3 evasion abilities so we don't need to drain endurance)
10% gain while flanking (don't stand in front of the monster)
10% gain while above 90% which also stacks with the 10% from the Scholar rune 6 piece, thus giving you 20% additional damage while over 90% health
III. Stat Specifics & Effects
Primary Stats
- Health 15922 (+0)
- Vitality 916 (+0)
- Armor 2230 (+250)
- Toughness 1166 (+250)
- Attack 3592 (+1726)
- Power 2642 (+1726)
- Critical Hit 75% (+75%)
- Precision 2338 (+1422)
Secondary Stats
- Agony Resistance 30 (+30)
- Condition Damage 250 (+250)
- Condition Duration 20% (+20%)
- Critical Damage 90% (+90%)
- Damage 950 (+0%)
- Defense 1064 (+0)
- Endurance Regeneration 25% (+25%)
- Experience from Kills 20% (+20%)
- Ferocity 1355 (+1355)
Boons
Conditions
Control
Fields & Finishers
Stat and Effect Details
Berserkers. Simple, efficient, and a ton of Critical Damage.
Until a Precision/Power/Crit Damage set comes out, this is the best we can use.
IV. Food, Armor, Trinkets & Upgrade Items
Food Nourishment
Precision: 100
Ferocity: 70
Experience from Kills: 10%
- (30min)
- Precision: 100
- Ferocity: 70
- Experience from Kills: 10%
Utility Nourishment
Gain precision equal to 6% of your toughness
Gain precision equal to 4% of your vitality
Experience from Kills: 10%
- (30min)
- Gain precision equal to 6% of your toughness
- Gain precision equal to 4% of your vitality
- Experience from Kills: 10%
Armor & Runes
- Defense: 97
- Power: 60
- Precision: 43
- Ferocity: 43
- Power: 25
- Ferocity: 35
- Power: 50
- Ferocity: 65
- Power: 100
- +10% damage while health is above 90%.
- Defense: 97
- Power: 45
- Precision: 32
- Ferocity: 32
- Power: 25
- Ferocity: 35
- Power: 50
- Ferocity: 65
- Power: 100
- +10% damage while health is above 90%.
- Defense: 338
- Power: 134
- Precision: 96
- Ferocity: 96
- Power: 25
- Ferocity: 35
- Power: 50
- Ferocity: 65
- Power: 100
- +10% damage while health is above 90%.
- Defense: 157
- Power: 45
- Precision: 32
- Ferocity: 32
- Power: 25
- Ferocity: 35
- Power: 50
- Ferocity: 65
- Power: 100
- +10% damage while health is above 90%.
- Defense: 218
- Power: 90
- Precision: 64
- Ferocity: 64
- Power: 25
- Ferocity: 35
- Power: 50
- Ferocity: 65
- Power: 100
- +10% damage while health is above 90%.
- Defense: 157
- Power: 45
- Precision: 32
- Ferocity: 32
- Power: 25
- Ferocity: 35
- Power: 50
- Ferocity: 65
- Power: 100
- +10% damage while health is above 90%.
Armor Stat Totals
- Defense 1064
- Power 594
- Ferocity 399
- Precision 299
Rune Bonuses
Superior Rune of the Scholar- Power: 25
- Ferocity: 35
- Power: 50
- Ferocity: 65
- Power: 100
- +10% damage while health is above 90%.
Accessories & Jewels
- Precision: 5
- Agony Resistance: 5
- Precision: 5
- Agony Resistance: 5
- Precision: 5
- Agony Resistance: 5
- Precision: 5
- Agony Resistance: 5
- Precision: 5
- Agony Resistance: 5
- Precision: 5
- Agony Resistance: 5
Accessory Totals
- Power:692
- Precision:496
- Ferocity:466
- Agony Resistance:30
Weapon Set Sigils
- Weapon Strength: 905-1000
- Power: 120
- Precision: 85
- Ferocity: 85
- Weapon Strength: 814-900
- Power: 120
- Precision: 85
- Ferocity: 85
Weapon Set I
Sigil of Superior Fire50% chance to cause flame blast on critical hit causing AoE damage. (This effect cannot trigger more than once every 5s)
Sigil of Superior Accuracy+7% crit chance.
- Weapon Strength: 857-1048
- Power: 120
- Precision: 85
- Ferocity: 85
- Weapon Strength: 857-1048
- Power: 120
- Precision: 85
- Ferocity: 85
Weapon Set II
Sigil of Superior Fire50% chance to cause flame blast on critical hit causing AoE damage. (This effect cannot trigger more than once every 5s)
Sigil of Superior BloodlustYou gain +10 power each time you kill a foe. (max 25 stacks and ends on down or weapon change)
- Weapon Strength: 905-1000
- Power: 120
- Precision: 85
- Ferocity: 85
- Weapon Strength: 905-1000
- Power: 120
- Precision: 85
- Ferocity: 85
Water Weapon I
Sigil of Superior BloodlustYou gain +10 power each time you kill a foe. (max 25 stacks and ends on down or weapon change)
Water Weapon II
Sigil of Superior Accuracy+7% crit chance.
Upgrade Item Details
I personally enjoy Sigil of Fire even on a single target dps fight. The damage from the fire aoe is enough and is instant. Triggering almost on cooldown, this is a significant dps increase. Charge your Bloodlust on trash with the Axe/Axe, as Axe is the strongest non stacked damage output (especially with Sigil of Fire) a ranger can get.
The Sigil going onto the sword is always a conversation piece, and it really depends on the user. While some claim that Crit/%damage is the best way to go, others claim that %damage based on time of day is best. I find that with the speed of the auto attack, and the damage of the fire proc with a 5 second cooldown, there would need to be some significant RNG in the ways of crits to counter the damage gain from the Sigil proc.
V. Basic Gameplay
Solo Boss DPS
Depending on the boss, it should be mostly safe for you to stand in flanking position to the target. In this situation you will be using Sword/Horn. Maintain your pet position to stay ontop of you to help mitigate possible damage you might take. Use evasion abilities instead of endurance to move out of red circles. While you have faster endurance regen, you will do more damage the better you get at using these evasion abilities.
Trash/AOE
Axe/Axe is a beast. With the addition of Sigil of Fire, you will do significant damage to 3 or more "close" targets". If you need to pull an enemy in, be sure that you line up your forward arc to hit multiple mobs, as Path of Scars hits twice and does significant damage. Charge your Sigil of Bloodlust on trash so you can be ready for bosses.
Single Target Ranged DPS
While not ideal in this situation, Axe/Warhorn can be used here. This build is generally not going to shine in this situation, but you can do decent damage with just Axe/Warhorn.
Main Skill Rotation
Start with Warhorn to Grab Boons
Rampage As one for Fury and Stability
Stalk/Sick'em to initiate your pet's maximum output with RaO
Quickening Zephyr and Auto Attack as your main source of DPS
The reasoning for starting with RaO before CotW is because the loss of uptime on might is an actual dps loss if cast second due to the Fury stack being overwritten anyway if RaO is cast second not stacking. 2 Seconds of Fury < 5 Seconds of Might (unless RNG is not in your favor).
When in doubt, you are a Ranger, best class in the game! Just do what Moon Moon would do, flail around like an idiot with auto attack animations you can't control very well 
I also think it's worth going 15 points into Nature Magic for Fortifying Bond. It gives the pet boons that can help max your DPS and maybe even given them some more survivability. Pets are one of the lowest priority targets for receiving boons. A patch this year changed boons so that they will affect players before they affect pets, so if five players are in range of the boon giver, the pet won't receive the boon. For boons like Might, this means the pet ranger will benefit twice from it, for things like Fury this means the ranger's full DPS will benefit fully from it (say the ranger is given 75% of the class DPS and the pet is given 25%, because fury works off of the owner's DPS, Fury on a ranger is only worth 75% of the class DPS, while on a warrior it is worth 100% of the class DPS, the pet needs to receive Fury as well to gain the crit chance increase, Might is the opposite, a warrior can only benefit from 25 stacks of Might, a ranger can benefit from 50 stacks if half of them are on the pet).