Daredevil - Bounding Backstab D/P

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Focused on: Mobility, Direct damage and Utility

Designed for: PvP Conquest

Difficulty:

Normal

Overview

This PvP build is a Backstab focused take on D/P Daredevil using the Black Powder + Bounding Dodger combo with Shadow's Rejuvenation synergy for frequent Stealth access.

Skill Bar

Dagger/Pistol

Shortbow

Utility

Skill Variants

Utility

• Roll for Initiative over Blinding Powder

Elite

• Basilisk Venom over Dagger Storm

Template Code

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Specializations

Variants

• Escapist's Fortitude - this trait is great for dealing with condition pressure, but kind of forces you to run as you'll need the extra vitality. Marauder means you'll deal less damage though. If you go this route pick up Rune of Scholar.

Equipment

Dagger

Pistol

Sigil

Sigil

Shortbow

Sigil

Sigil

Rune

Amulet

Relic

Usage

General

• Stack AoE Stealth for your team before fights using the Black Powder + Cluster Bomb combo.

• The thief's role is to almost constantly keep moving. The passive of Signet of Shadows combined with Infiltrator's Arrow make this build pretty mobile, although not quite as much as Dash D/P builds. Decap unguarded capture points, +1 fights (rotate to outnumber the enemy team on a point, quickly ending the fight and then move on), provide AoE stealth for your team, interrupt foes with stability by landing Steal, and gank targets in teamfights.

• In larger fights camp short bow and stay in range until an opening shows then pressure the target with D/P.

Steal

• Steal is the most powerful tool in a thief's kit and should not be wasted! Do not start fights with steal, keep it for the right moment (mainly to interupt important skills such as heals or elites).

• Among other things stealing refills endurance, grants initiative, and provides a variety of boons for you and your team. Its most important function however is the instant boonstrip that prioritizes Stability, which goes off before the Daze does, resulting in an instant interrupt.

• Stealing grants stealth for a few seconds, which means you could immediately followup up with a Backstab.

Dagger/Pistol

• Most of the burst damage comes from Backstab, for which you need to be in Stealth. Try to hit enemies from behind or the side for extra damage.

• The easiest way to combo stealth on D/P is to use a leap finisher inside Black Powder (BP):
  • Heartseeker (HS) is great especially against low HP targets, the damage of HS connects before the stealth is applied so you could hit the target with both HS and then a Backstab for burst damage. The downside is that both skills cost initiative.
  • Your dodges are damage-dealing leap finishers thanks to Bounding Dodger, and you deal increased damage for a few seconds after dodging. In this combo only BP costs initiative so it's cheaper, but dodging does cost endurance.

• Consider using Signet of Shadows right before backstabbing someone - the Vulnerability will make your skills do more damage and it doesn't break stealth.

• Autoattacks combined Shadow Shot are good for pressuring targets at little cost even from range (as Shadow Shot is a gapcloser).
  • It's worth noting that the build is rather squishy by default, so most of the time you won't be able to spam autoattacks in melee for long. The Blind from Shadow Shot may buy some time for some quick hits without the fear of getting deleted in melee.

• Heartseeker is seldom used to deal damage on its own. It's mainly just a tool for comboing stealth by performing a Leap finisher in Black Powder, and sometimes adds an extra bit of mobility. Other than that it may be useful for finishing targets below 25% HP who are just out of melee range.
  • Note: if you're not in Stealth, hitting a target with the BP + HS combo will deal damage to them and give you stealth after the strike went off, perfectly setting up a Backstab. However, if you already had stealth then the damage will instead reveal you and prevent the next stealth from being applied!

• Shadow Shot will be your main gapcloser on this set. There are a couple of things to note about this one:
  • Shadow Shot has 2 parts: first one is an unblockable teleport/blind, while the second part deals damage. If you're in stealth and don't want to lose it, it's possible to cancel the 2nd part of the skill by using stow weapon immediately after the Blind is applied (you should definitely set up a bind for it if you haven't already). With this you could even teleport in while stealthed and follow up with a Backstab.
  • Because of its unblockable part you can use this skill once on blocking targets to ensure that you stay one step ahead of them as Blind makes it harder for them to counterpressure you after the block is over.

• Headshot is a quick interrupt. Other than that it can be combined with Black Powder for an interrupting + blinding attack, effectively shutting down the skill they are currently using, and the next one as well.

• Black Powder will be your primary source of stealth - combo it with Heartseeker for self stealthing or short bow's Cluster Bomb for AoE stealth. Another use includes dropping it on downed enemies in order to blind their interrupt skills - making stomping easier - or comboing it with Steal for a near-instant long range Blind.
  • The maximum amount of Heartseekers you can do in a Black Powder under normal circumstances is 3 - this can be extended to 4 if you brop BP next to a corner or a wall and keep facing the wall while spamming HS.

• It's possible to burst someone from range, even without line of sight with the following combo:

1. Black Powder
2. Heartseeker in Black Powder for stealth
   1. Steal in the middle of the Heartseeker
3. Backstab from behind or the side

Short bow

• Trick Shot is a fine option for ranged poking in case going into melee range would be too dangerous. The bouncing projectiles provide decent cleave in teamfights and excel at removing Mesmer clones.

• Cluster Bomb being a spammable blast finisher has high value for your team when it comes to blasting fields for AoE Stealth.
  • Its chain skill Detonate Cluster is a solid source of downed cleave, or even ranged burst if you pre-cast Cluster Bomb aimed at your feet, Steal near the end of the skill cast and then detonate at your target.

• Disabling Shot (thief short bow) provides cheap and spammable evasion in case you're being focused by the enemy team and your defensive skills are on CD. Remains usable even while Immobile, but it's somewhat expensive.

• Use Choking Gas on downed enemies especially if they are being revived - Poison decreases healing received by 33% which affects resurrection speed, and the initial strike even interrupts foes.

• Infiltrator's Arrow is the #1 skill for moving around the map in general, cuts down on travel time between capture points drastically.

Utilities and Elite

• Signet of Shadows provides a passive mobility boost while roaming the map, making it a bit less painful to give up Unhindered Combatant. In combat this could be used defensively for the blind and weakness or offensively for the vulnerability.

• Shadowstep is easily the most versatile and one of the strongest skills in the build. It has 2 parts:
  • The first half is a stun break and teleport, which already has countless applications. A few applications include teleport to safety while pressured, extending your reach in combat, or using the instant mobility boost to decap enemy points before using the 2nd part of the skill to leave just as fast.
  • The second half is called Shadow Return. This skill becomes available for 10 seconds after using Shadowstep, and cures 3 conditions in addition to breaking stun again before returning you to your starting location.
  • These can also be combined to safe stomp targets: begin stomping, Shadowstep away to safety, and then follow up with Shadow Return at the end of the animation in order to finish the target.

• Blinding Powder is fairly simple. This is your second stun breaker, and another source of stealth. As a Blast finisher you can combo it with Black Powder for AoE stealth. Just like Signet of Agility, this is a skill you can use to your allies' benefit by sharing its effect with them.

• Dagger Storm is both a defensive and offensive elite. The rather lengthy evade frame with increased movement speed makes it an excellent panic button when you're being focused by the enemy team. On the other hand the skill deals heavy AoE damage whilst evading, which makes it great for pressuring melee targets in general with next to no risk.
  • Note: skills like Shocking Aura or Line of Warding are able to interrupt Dagger Storm, so don't be completely careless.

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