Build:Harbinger - Support Harbinger

The community gave this build a rating, making it second-tier: Good

Focused on: Healing, Boon removal and Boon support

Designed for: WvW Zerg

Expansions required:

Difficulty:

Easy

This build was last updated on August 03, 2025 and is up to date for the August 19, 2025 patch.

Overview

A build designed to strip boons and bring Quickness as well as other boons

Skill Bar

Staff

Greatsword

Utility

Variants

Utility

• Signet of Undeath

Template Code

[&DQg1PhM1QCrnGgAAdgEAAHMBAADXGgAA6BoAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA=]

Copy Template Code

Specializations

Variants

• Life from Death

Equipment

Head
Minstrel

Shoulders
Minstrel

Chest
Minstrel

Hands
Minstrel

Legs
Minstrel

Feet
Minstrel

Backpiece
Minstrel

Accessory
Minstrel

Accessory
Minstrel

Amulet
Minstrel

Ring
Minstrel

Ring
Minstrel

Staff
Minstrel

Sigil

Sigil

Greatsword
Minstrel

Sigil

Sigil

Rune
x6

Infusion
x12

Infusion
x6

Relic

Equipment Variants

Relic

• Relic of Cerus
• Relic of the Midnight King

Sigils

• Sigil of Superior Sigil of Concentration
• Sigil of Superior Sigil of Transference
• Sigil of Superior Sigil of Bounty

Usage

General

• Harbinger gains stacks of Blight when using Elixir skills or per second while in Harbinger Shroud
• Blight is consumed when using Elixir skills or certain Harbinger Shroud while above a certain amount of stacks to increase the effect of the skills
  • As a support harbinger none of the Blight threshold bonuses provide a substantial benefit over the base skill, so you only need to be concerned with consuming Blight to restore your max HP

Overall Priorities

High

• Wells

Moderate

• Boon rip
• Boon support
• Heal/Cleanse Support

Low

• CC

Surviving

• This build has moderate passive defense
• This build has low mobility skill access
• This build has low active defenses

Active defense priority Elixir of Ignorance - for stunbreaking Dodge

Detailed Explanations

Wells

• Save your Well of Corruption for the commanders call
  • If you aren't using voice communication, use your wells at the same time as the other Necromancers in your group
• When using pulsing ground AoEs like Well of Corruption, try to place them so that one edge is on the enemy group and the other edge is in the direction they are moving to

Boon rip

• Use Nightfall when the enemy group is pushing towards you or your group is in melee
• Enter Harbinger Shroud to proc Spiteful Spirit when your group pushes into the enemy
• Signet of the Locust + Signets of Suffering has a substantial range and should be used directly before Nightfall or Harbinger Shroud to combine the boon rip on spikes

Boon Support

• Elixir of Ignorance is a large amount of AoE Resistance, but also your only stunbreak. If you find you can't survive while using it for the group, save it as a personal stunbreak, otherwise use it for your group
• Use Elixir of Ambition to give your party all boons either while both groups are engaged or right after your group has their boons stripped
  • If your party is missing a lot of boons when pushing into the enemy, use it then instead
• While staff/greatsword/utility skills are on cooldown, you should stay in Harbinger Shroud to proc Deathly Haste and provide Quickness for your group
  • This is a good time to dodge roll to proc Mark of Evasion/Transfusion and Relic of Rivers

Heal/Cleanse Support

• All your Mark skills on Staff heal and give additional effects via Transfusion
  • Hit enemies with them when possible, but prioritize allies
  • Use Mark of Blood as often as possible for healing
  • Chillblains is also for healing, but with a bigger heal and longer CD, so save it for when more healing is needed
  • Putrid Mark should be saved for condition clear
  • Save Reaper's Mark for Stability when it can't be covered by the main stability provider in your group
    • If possible hit enemies with Reaper's Mark in particular, since the Fear is a useful CC
• Elixir of Promise is your largest AoE heal, save it for times when large healing is needed
  • Mind the small travel time when aiming the elixir, make sure to target slightly ahead of your group in the direction they're moving

CC

• Reaper's Mark should be saved mainly for Stability but when possible also hit enemies with it while still prioritizing allies
• Grasping Darkness should be used when your group is range spiking or when the enemy group is moving away while your group moves forward
  • Do not use Grasping Darkness as your group pushes into the enemy since it will move anyone hit to a safer position
• Vital Draw is your best CC to combine with spikes like Well of Corruption, but only try to use it when your group is also pushing into the enemy group
  • You can use Voracious Arc or Devouring Cut to help set up Vital Draw