Mesmer PvE | Dungeon Sword/Focus | Damage Human Female Mesmer Build
Table of Contents
Summary
This is just a guide for Mesmers in my guild, Human Female [META], since I could not find good written guides anywhere else very easily. There are two builds that I will be highlighting, by no means do I take full credit for this build, I had a tremendous amount of help making this. The build shown here is a 6/2/0/4/2 build that has more reflect utility. Later in the guide i highlight a 6/6/0/0/2 build for max dps, where you cannot rely on focus reflects. I also make small mention of a 6/4/0/4/0 build for Fractals.
Any and all suggestions are welcome to make this guide as best as possible.
I. Weapons and Skills
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- Mind Gash½Gash your foe to make them vulnerable.Damage: 202Vulnerability: 5 sRange: 130
- Mind Spike½Stab your foe and rip a boon off of them. This skill does an additional 50% damage to targets with no boons.Damage: 280Range: 130
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- 0Fury: 10 s
- 0Fury: 10 s
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- SwapSwap locations with your clone. Immobilize nearby foes.Immobilized: 2 sCombo Finisher: LeapRange: 600
- 0Fury: 10 s
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- Into the VoidDestroy your Temporal Curtain, pulling your target into it.
- 0Fury: 10 s
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- 0Fury: 10 s
- 0Fury: 10 s
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- 0Fury: 10 s
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- Power Cleanse1Remove 2 conditions.Range: 1,200
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- Power Break2Gain stability and break stuns.Stability: 2 sBreaks stunRange: 1,200
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- 0Fury: 10 s
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- 0Fury: 10 s
Weapon and Skill Details
Sword is you best friend. It has great damage and survivability. For Dungeon and Fractal runs we melee everything, and you may only need a staff or greatsword on rare occasions. Your offhand focus is going to be a very useful tool. Phantasmal warden does good aoe damage and also reflects projectiles. Temporal curtain will mainly be used for pulling enemies into walls, but can also be used for a speed boost or reflecting projectiles as well. For your offhand weapon on swap, you will either be using offhand pistol or offhand sword. Off hand pistol's Phantasmal Duelist has good burst damage, and your skill 5 is a reliable ranged interrupt. Offhand sword skill 4 is a block, and can also be used as a less reliable ranged interrupt. Offhand sword's Phantasmal Swordsman is also good at single target damage, and has more sustained damage than the pistol's phantasm. Often you will choose your second offhand weapon by deciding which phantasm will stay alive longer during that particular fight, and often the Swordsman is the better choice.
Since we now have Signet mastery, Mesmers can safely use Signet of Ether as their heal. We still run mantras even though they were moved to the domination trait line, their utility and dps increase are too strong to pass up. Feedback is a good reflect, it will almost never leave your bar, and will sometimes be doing the bulk of your damage through reflects.
For your elite skill almost always use Time Warp.
II. Traits
Domination
Dueling
Chaos
Inspiration
Trait Details
The build shown here is the Warden's Feedback build. Use this build when it is necessary for you to keep constant reflects up.
Here is a variant that includes warden's feedback and compounding power. This setup is a bit more situational and can do more damage in situations when you can keep 3 Phantasms up at all times, or when destroying structures like the Dredge car in SE p3. http://intothemists....;9;9;9;9;7V8s4j
For doing max dps and Lupicus kills, I will be using the build linked here which has a lesser amount of reflects. http://intothemists....;9;9;9;9;7V8s4o
With the 6/6/0/0/2 build, you can either use Deceptive Evasion(X) to make sure you always have 3 clones up for the compounding power benefit. The Grandmaster trait can also be switched for Harmonious Mantras(XI), or Blurred Inscriptions(VIII) for more survivability. Blurred Inscriptions will help evade after you cast signet of Ether, so hopefully you won't have to worry about not dodging an attack because you had to heal. You can also use Signet of Midnight instead of feedback on trash mobs that do not have reflects. This will give you a instant stunbreak, aoe blind, and one second of distortion. This build is also very good for when there are no reflects needed and you need to just do damage. For situations like this, put four mantras on you bar. I suggest using Mantra of Distraction because it can be used as an interrupt and will inflict Vulnerability if you do so.
On bosses like Alphard, or Old Tom, you can choose not to use warden's feeback. The reason for this is because these bosses have projectiles that can't be reflected, and untraited Phantasmal Wardens can still absorb the proejectiles and prevent any damage to your party.
For making trash mob runs in Arah, you should put blink on your bar and and take Far Reaching Manipulations(I) in the Dueling line. Mender's Purity(IV) in Inspiration can also be useful for trash mob runs.
III. Stat Specifics & Effects
Primary Stats
- Health 17922 (+2000)
- Vitality 1116 (+200)
- Armor 1836 (+0)
- Toughness 916 (+0)
- Attack 3436 (+1578)
- Power 2447 (+1531)
- Critical Hit 75% (+75%)
- Precision 2496 (+1580)
Secondary Stats
- Agony Resistance 30 (+30)
- Condition Duration 30% (+30%)
- Critical Damage 87% (+87%)
- Damage 989 (+5%)
- Defense 920 (+0)
- Experience from Kills 20% (+20%)
- Ferocity 1305 (+1305)
- Healing Power 200 (+200)
Boons
Conditions
Control
Fields & Finishers
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
- (1hr)
- +10% damage vs undead
- -10% damage from undead
- Experience from Kills: 10%
Armor & Runes
- Defense: 73
- Precision: 60
- Power: 43
- Ferocity: 43
- Precision: 25
- Ferocity: 35
- Precision: 50
- Ferocity: 65
- Precision: 100
- +7% damage while you have an active companion.
- Defense: 73
- Precision: 45
- Power: 32
- Ferocity: 32
- Precision: 25
- Ferocity: 35
- Precision: 50
- Ferocity: 65
- Precision: 100
- +7% damage while you have an active companion.
- Defense: 314
- Precision: 134
- Power: 96
- Ferocity: 96
- Precision: 25
- Ferocity: 35
- Precision: 50
- Ferocity: 65
- Precision: 100
- +7% damage while you have an active companion.
- Defense: 133
- Precision: 45
- Power: 32
- Ferocity: 32
- Precision: 25
- Ferocity: 35
- Precision: 50
- Ferocity: 65
- Precision: 100
- +7% damage while you have an active companion.
- Defense: 194
- Precision: 90
- Power: 64
- Ferocity: 64
- Precision: 25
- Ferocity: 35
- Precision: 50
- Ferocity: 65
- Precision: 100
- +7% damage while you have an active companion.
- Defense: 133
- Precision: 45
- Power: 32
- Ferocity: 32
- Precision: 25
- Ferocity: 35
- Precision: 50
- Ferocity: 65
- Precision: 100
- +7% damage while you have an active companion.
Armor Stat Totals
- Defense 920
- Precision 594
- Ferocity 399
- Power 299
Rune Bonuses
Superior Rune of the Ranger- Precision: 25
- Ferocity: 35
- Precision: 50
- Ferocity: 65
- Precision: 100
- +7% damage while you have an active companion.
Accessories & Jewels
- Agony Resistance: 5
- Agony Resistance: 5
- Agony Resistance: 5
- Agony Resistance: 5
- Agony Resistance: 5
- Agony Resistance: 5
Accessory Totals
- Power:692
- Precision:466
- Ferocity:466
- Agony Resistance:30
Weapon Set Sigils
- Weapon Strength: 905-1000
- Power: 120
- Precision: 85
- Ferocity: 85
- Weapon Strength: 832-883
- Power: 120
- Precision: 85
- Ferocity: 85
Weapon Set I
Superior Sigil of the NightOutgoing damage is increased by 10% at night.
Sigil of Superior Force+5% damage.
- Weapon Strength: 0-0
- Weapon Strength: 905-1000
- Power: 120
- Precision: 85
- Ferocity: 85
Weapon Set II
Sigil of Superior Force+5% damage.
- Weapon Strength: 905-1000
- Power: 120
- Precision: 85
- Ferocity: 85
- Weapon Strength: 905-1000
- Power: 120
- Precision: 85
- Ferocity: 85
Water Weapon I
Superior Sigil of Serpent Slaying+10% Damage vs. Krait.
Water Weapon II
Superior Sigil of PerceptionGain +10 Precision each time you kill a foe. (Max 25 stacks; ends on down.)
Upgrade Item Details
It has become more important than ever for Mesmer to have precision, we want to be as close to 100% chance to crit because reflect damage is not modified by power, so it is important that our reflects always crit. This means that the suggested armor for Mesmer is now Assassin's armor. Superior Rune of the Ranger is suggested for max dps. This rune outperforms scholars in fights with reflects and pulls ahead a bit in most fights with banners and 25 vulnerability stacks on enemies. The 6th bonus is also much easier to keep active and can be activated by mini pets.
Here are the crit chances for each set of armor. (Assume these numbers mean the Mesmer has full Ascended Berserker weapons and trinkets, has 25 stack of perception, Banner of Discipline, fury, has eaten Minotaur Steaks.)
With the 6/2/0/4/2 build.
Exotic Berserker's armor = 87%
Ascended Berserker's armor = 87%
Exotic Assassin's armor = 91%
Ascended Assassin's armor = 92%
With the 6/6/0/0/2 build.
Exotic Berserker's armor = 98%
Ascended Berserker's armor = 99%
Exotic Assassin's armor = 103%
Ascended Assassin's armor = 104%
I believe that in the long run Assassin's is going to be the better choice, especially with the nerf to staking sigils. There is only a little bit of wasted precision assuming that you have every buff. If you do find yourself getting above 100% crit too easily and you feel like you're wasting stats, I would suggest switching to another food like Bowl of Seaweed Salad.
Sigils of Force currently don't stack, so by having a Superior Sigil of the Night on your sword, and a Sigil of Force on your offhand, you can achieve a 15% dps increase.
Using stacking sigils of perception is no longer mandatory, but can be beneficial. As I stated earlier, reflect damage usually does the bulk of the Mesmer's damage, and cannot be modified by your power. So making sure your reflects always crit is important. Buy an extra main hand sword and use it to stack Perception, you can also put a Superior Sigil of Perception on at least one of your underwater weapon's second upgrade slot to make sure you don't lose your stacks when going underwater. For dungeons where reflects are important and there are a good amount of mobs to kill, keep your sword with the perception stacking sigil on, and don't unequip it. For other dungeons where there aren't many mobs to kill like Arah p1 don't bother using stacking sigils and take sigil of night or undead slaying. For other dungeons during the day like CM or HotW you can keep the perception stacking sword on. The same goes for Fractals, if you can keep yourself from dying too much I suggest using sigil of perception.
For underwater weapons use Superior Sigil of Serpent Slaying, because no one cares about underwater combat unless it is the underwater fractal which has lots of krait in it.
My favorite food is Minotaur Steak, because it is cheap and gives a decent amount of Precision. I will also use dungeon specific potions whenever I can. Plates of Steak and Asparagus are another option, and one of the most expensive options is Bowls of Curry Butternut Squash Soup. Bowls of Seaweed Salad are another option for things like Lupicus kills or if you like to constantly strafe and attack things for the 10% damage increase.
For Fractals we often use Skale Venom consumables.
Also make sure that you have a stack of Fire Elemental Powder in your inventory for Lupicus, and several other fights.
V. Basic Gameplay
Your job as a mesmer is not to deal out the big damage or large numbers, sorry. Your main use is going to be party support.
Reflects are a great way to support your party, and you will need to use Feedback, Phantasmal Warden, and sometimes even Temporal curtain to protect your party from projectiles and do most of your damage. The Signet of the Ether heal skill can also be used to cast two wardens in a row, and provide extra reflects.
For condition heavy fights, you may want to take Null Field for party condition removal.
In situations where your party cannot get to 25 stacks of might on their own, use Signet of Inspiration. Activating it when you have 12 stacks of might will give your other four party members 24 stacks of might.
There Are also situations like in CoF path 1, where your party will need to get across a room quickly and safely. Portal and Blink work well for these situations.
When your party needs to group mobs up, you can use the pull from Temporal Curtain on your focus. This will take some practice. Activate the curtain skill in the spot where you want the mob pulled to be pulled, when the small one second cooldown is over, click skill 4 again and if the mob doesn't have Defiance or Stability, they will be pulled to that spot. Be aware that your curtain will always pull mobs the same same distance no matter where it is placed. Pulling a mob with a curtain 2 feet behind them will pull a mob the same distance as a curtain placed 5 feet behind them.
Time Warp will likely be needed for fast boss kills. It's usually best to call it out before you use it. An important thing to note about time warp is that the quickness it gives you will make your reflects last half as long, so use Feedback before Time Warp if best or if possible. Just don't cause a party wipe by not having reflects up at the right time.
Main Skill Rotation
This is how most fights will go at the start. When the boss is approaching or when you are running in, cast your first phantasm. While you are attacking you can wait for an appropriate timing of Feedback, and then use Time Warp immediately after. You can then switch weapons and cast your second phantasm.
After this you will just auto attack and dodge when necessary. Also try to keep three phantasms out as often as possible.
Also be aware that no rotation is ever set in stone, and you will need to adapt and pay attention to the boss fight to decide what the priority is. You may need to heal, or dodge, or use stability or conditions removal.
One of the worst things you can do is not dodge an attack because you were too focused on your skillbar. Try to get comfortable with your skills so that you can pay attention to the fight instead, and prevent unnecessary death.