Guild Wars 2 Rolls Out Another Balance Patch That Tweaks Classes Across The Board

It’s time for another spring balance patch in Guild Wars 2, and as expected, it’s caused quite a stir among the player base. Unfortunately, it seems the patch was a bit of a technical disaster, with players reporting bugs and login problems before they were eventually fixed in succeeding hotfixes. Oops!

Despite the initial issues, the patch seems to have brought some interesting changes to the game. While not as drastic as previous patches, it still made some notable adjustments to various classes and builds. For example, it nerfed the Elementalist’s fresh air catalyst, buffed the Engineer's holosmith builds, and forced Mesmers to rethink their staff and axe builds. Meanwhile, the power-based Reapers received a welcome buff, and the Ranger’s fervent force got zapped a bit. The patch also tinkered with a few Revenant builds and upjacked Warrior power builds, while mostly leaving the Thief alone.

The patch also brought some buffs to specific skills, such as the Berserker’s Smash Brawler, the Vindicator’s Death Drop and Nomad’s Advance, the Ranger’s Stalker Strike and Crippling Talon, and the Willbender’s Phoenix Protocol skills. These changes may not revolutionize the game, but they’ll certainly shake up gameplay and give players new strategies to explore.

However, one interesting addition to the patch notes is the mention of a daily limit on Sandstorm hands and Destabilized Ectoplasm purchases. This may seem like a minor detail, but it’s actually a big deal for players who are familiar with the Sandstorm minigame. In fact, the new limit is a direct response to concerns that the minigame is a gambling trap. Some players have reported spending large sums of real money to buy gold for ecto gambling, leading to addiction and financial troubles. While the patch doesn’t completely shut down the minigame, it does limit the potential for harm.

Overall, the spring balance patch has brought some interesting changes to Guild Wars 2, even if it did have a rocky start. As always, players will need to experiment and adapt to the new meta in order to stay ahead of the game. Who knows what exciting changes the larger balance patch in June will bring?

In the meantime, you can check out the full rundown of the latest changes in the full patch notes on the Guild Wars 2 official forums.