Holosmith - Holorifle
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Contents
Overview
A WvW build utilising the power potential of the Holosmith in a smallscale roaming setting.
Skillbar
Template Code
Specializations
Equipment
Consumables
Food
- - budget version
Utility
Usage
Elite specialization basics
- Holosmith grants access to the Photon Forge (sometimes referred to as holo mode) and introduces a new resource: heat. Heat is generated passively while the forge is active, or by activating forge skills. Higher CD skills generally generate more heat.
- Reaching maximum heat (100) should be avoided as
Overheating damages you and locks you out of the forge until heat goes back to 0. The best tool for heat management is dodge rolling, which vents 15 heat per roll via and does some moderate AoE damage.
- is used to activate the forge, after which your weapon skills will be replaced by 5 new ones. You can't exit the forge for at least 5 seconds, so be careful about reentering with high heat levels.
- Both Engage Photon Forge and Disengage Photon Forge count as toolbelt skills and will work with related traits. Both skills can proc weapon swap sigils too.
Forge skills
This is where most of the damage comes from
- Although the auto attack chain got significant nerfs in March 2018, it can still do considerable cleave damage especially with
Quickness.
- will be used to maintain permanent
Swiftness and
Vigor (through ), keep using this skill out of combat as well but don't build too much heat (manage with dodges accordingly). Holo Leap also does considerable damage while in combat. Keep in mind that this is a Leap Finisher, so always try to combo it with either a Light Field for
Light Aura or a Water Field for healing.
- will be the primary source of
Stability in the build and an important source of
Might, granting up to 5 stacks per use. There's a second attack too which goes off after a short delay. This should be the VERY FIRST SKILL you use after entering holo mode.
Stability won't be applied unless you hit at least one enemy.
- can be useful for reaching targets trying to escape, otherwise it should only be used if you can make sure that all of its projectiles are going to land (for example if the target is CC'd).
- is an excellent AoE CC and also a Blast Finisher. You can also fake cast it by stowing your weapon right after activation in order to bait enemy dodges.
General
- The only sources of cleansing in the build are and .
- Against condition burst 's immunity can bail you out.
- works well with and should be used as often as possible for free instant damage.
- Toolbelt skills grant
Vigor, and you deal 10% increased damage while affected by this boon.
- can be used offensively especially above 50 heat. Standing in melee range all 3 parts of can hit the same target.
- can knock downed enemies off of capture points, bleeding them out while you cap thus delaying their respawn. could do the same, but that'd be a waste of cooldowns (except if there are enemies trying to revive their downed, in that case your elite can pressure all of them while interrupting the rez attempt even if they had Stability by launching the downed player far enough to cancel the channeling).
- knocks you back upon activation. To negate this you can try building
Stability through
Corona Burst before using the skill.
- knocks you back upon activation. To negate this you can try building
- , and can CC people long enough to set up a burst.
- Enable skill retargetting (under general options, combat/movement section). This lets you cast facing target A, potentially bait out a dodge, then switch over to target B just before the skill goes off and hit that target. Alternatively, just stow your weapon if the target dodges in order to not send the skill on full CD.
- A few burst combo examples:
Corona Burst ⇒
Overcharged Shot ⇒ ⇒
Jump Shot ⇒
Blunderbuss
Corona Burst ⇒
Holographic Shockwave ⇒
Photon Blitz ⇒ dodge to vent heat ⇒
Holo Leap
One of the strongest roamers around, in no small part because it managed to evade most of the nerfs that were made to its sPvP counterpart. A+ damage, mobility and CC.
EDIT: updated for the december patch, largely based on the conquest build.