The original Guild Wars was known for its PvP, and Guild Wars 2 is no different. As a result, you might be wondering what the best PvP class in Guild Wars 2 is and I am here to answer that question.
Defining “PvP” in Guild Wars 2
Before we can discuss what the best class is, you have to consider that there are two major types of player versus player in Guild Wars 2. The first is World vs World, which features unlimited battles that pit 3 servers in a 1-versus-1-versus-1 free-for-all. These matches tend to involve large battles of 30-versus-30 or more. On the other hand, you have Structured PvP (which includes 5v5 tournaments) as well as dueling and other small-scale activities.
Defining what you want to be the best at is important because some classes fare better than others in World vs World but then are not as strong in tournaments. The reason for this is that melee classes are at a distinct disadvantage in World versus World since in order to attack your enemy, you have to expose yourself to many attackers. Ranged classes always have an advantage in large-scale battles for that reason.
On the other hand, melee abilities and classes tend to be very powerful and dish out a lot of damage. In smaller battles where melee classes will not get destroyed instantly, that extra damage can come in handy, allowing melee classes to be more competitive.
As a result, it is my opinion that the best classes in Guild Wars 2 are the ones that can effectively use both ranged and melee weapons. This allows them to use ranged weapons in World vs World and melee weapons in smaller battles (if they choose).
Best Classes at Range and Melee in GW2
According to this Guild Wars 2 strategy guide, there are two classes which spring to mind immediately when you think about classes highly effective at both range and melee: the Warrior and the Thief. While you might not think of the Warrior as a class that should be good at ranged, you should know they are very strong with the bow and dish out a surprising amount of damage from range. Many Warriors use the bow exclusively and there are a ton of Warrior Bow PvP videos on Youtube as a result.
The best part about the Warrior is that when it comes time to face classes in a 1v1, you can throw on a melee weapon and cause a serious headache for ranged classes and classes with lighter armor. Since the Warrior also gets to wear heavy armor, they take little damage, despite dealing a ton of it. It is hard to beat a Warrior in small-scale PvP.
My initial impressions of the Thief are that it actually might be better with a ranged weapon on. The unloading shot ability with the pistol fires off multiple shots which can take a level 80 player down to half life with just a single skill! The amount of damage this class can dish out from range is surprising and puts most ranged classes to shame.
Additionally, for smaller-scale battles, the Thief does get access to stealthing abilities. Being able to go invisible is always an advantage in 1v1 as it lets you control the pace of the fight.
Guild Wars 2 – Best PvP Class
As a result, I think the Warrior and the Thief are both two of the best pvp classes in Guild Wars 2. If I had to pick one, I would select the Warrior due to its heavy armor which comes in handy in all forms of PvP. The Thief’s stealthing ability can be just as an effective way to reduce incoming damage, but I would rather have armor since that is active all the time.
If you want the best builds for all the classes for PvP in Guild Wars 2, then you will want to pick up Tyria’s guide. It comes with full trait and skill selections for all the classes so you have the most effective builds for PvP.