In Guild Wars 2, you will make many decisions. You will affect your character and the world in quite a few ways. One of the first and most important choices you will make is your character’s profession. You are going to choose Ranger, and I’m here to tell you why.
Never fight alone.
Animal companions will be your ever present allies. You can bring along a devourer with the ability to poison foes, or perhaps you would rather have a bear watch your back mauling any who would cross you. Take a dip in the water and roam about with a bloodthirsty shark. Ravens, big cats, wolves, spiders, jellyfish, and even the illustrious moa bird will stand at your side and fight tirelessly to protect you. Having this many options means you will always be able to complement your skills and weapons with a fierce beast intent on tearing your foes asunder. Did I mention you can have a shark?
Be a survivor.
If someone wants to take you down, they are going to have to work for it. Lay down a spike trap to force your foe to hobble towards you crippled and bleeding. Launch a volley of poison arrows into the future pincushion. If he somehow gets close to you, the longbow’s point blank shot which will knock your adversary back quite a ways. Add to that the many skills offering evasive maneuvers and you can play keep-away to your hearts content. Don’t forget of course that there are two of you fighting one foe. Your pet will be clawing, biting, and generally making every step even more painful. As a duo you can easily turn the hunter into the hunted.
Be one with the natural world.
Being a Ranger does not mean just surviving in nature. It means making nature your staunch ally. Not only do you command the loyalty of your animal companions, you can call nature spirits into being, granting a variety of benefits to you and your allies. Want to burn your opponent periodically? The Sun Spirit has that covered. Do you feel the need for speed? Storm Spirit will grant you swiftness. Want a little extra protection? The Spirit of Stone has your back. Having these guys supporting your allies passively means you get to focus on rending your foes to pieces.
Wield a variety of weapons.
Ranger’s aren’t just archers. Loosing arrows from two different types of bows is fun, sure. But grab a greatsword and charge in if you want to get your hands dirty and your foes bleeding. Or grab a couple axes and hunker down in a mid-range battle with some sweet defensive skills as a bonus. Buff your party and pet with a warhorn. Bob and weave with the sword and dagger’s mobile close range fighting. Rangers can get in their opponents faces or put arrows there. It’s your choice.
Be a beast in PvP.
What can the Ranger offer a PvP aficionado? A vigilant Ranger is very difficult to remove from the trebuchet in Battle for Kyhlo. With traps and spirits, you can tailor the battlefield to your liking and force the players on the other team to choose between getting hit by boulders or walking through a minefield while being turned into pincushions. If you are not the defensive type, you can grant yourself swiftness and roam about, dealing justice with the massive damage of the greatsword. As always, you present your foe with two dangerous targets they have to deal with. With so many tools available, the Ranger can suit any play style.
But don’t take my word for it. Explore Tyria with the assurance that you have an ever present companion. Make nature your ally. Let the wilderness be your second home. Be a Ranger.
