Is Bow/Bow builds worth it?

WoWpackform · August 21

I found myself loving to use just the bow constantly than the usual DW or 2H as a Stam player. Is Bow/Bow a good idea? Is it still powerful for vet content?

fred4 · August 21

I haven't played it, but believe that, as of late, bow is universally useful. Many of it's passives have been widened so as to apply to non-bow skills as well, such as class skills. While I don't believe it's meta as a main weapon, I also don't believe it's far off.

Unless you're talking about hard modes, I think you'll be absolutely fine with bow/bow in every vet dungeon and trial, including all DLC ones. Your damage depends on your rotation, e.g. the skills you use and how well you execute combat, and the details of your build - set choices, enchants, traits, skill choices, and so on. It doesn't depend much on your weapon type, so long as you don't use a tanking or healer weapon as a DD. Basically as long as it's not 1H+S, ice staff or resto staff, anything goes.

Once it comes to hard modes, especially trial hard mode groups, you'll probably end up discussing your build with your raid leader or dungeon team. Can't really predict what they will ask. However, note you're typically into weekly / long term groups at that point, no longer random / thrown together ones.

Zodiarkslayer · August 21

Ever since the Bow passives got changed in update 39, it is absolutely viable to use Bows.
Accuracy and Vinedusk Training are great passives, that bring Bows almost on par with Daggers.
Nowadays I'll always encourage players to try Dual Bows. It's strong and fun at the same time.
In vet content it will depend on how you play the Bow. I recommend standing close to the healer and not monkeying around.
Good Bow DPS is depending on how well you can weave your spammable. It's quite different from DW, Staffs or 2H.

LittlePinkDot · August 22

I always prefer bows or staffs.

One thing I don't understand about dual wield is the light attacks.
If you're at range, what's the point of weaving if your light attacks are never going to hit?

Navaac223 · August 23

LittlePinkDot wrote: »

I always prefer bows or staffs.

One thing I don't understand about dual wield is the light attacks.
If you're at range, what's the point of weaving if your light attacks are never going to hit?

Then don't be at range ? Ok there are a lot of encounters where range is useful but most of the time you can be close to the boss. Even ranged DDs should stack near the boss to help the healers

LittlePinkDot · August 23

Navaac223 wrote: »

LittlePinkDot wrote: »

I always prefer bows or staffs.

One thing I don't understand about dual wield is the light attacks.
If you're at range, what's the point of weaving if your light attacks are never going to hit?

Then don't be at range ? Ok there are a lot of encounters where range is useful but most of the time you can be close to the boss. Even ranged DDs should stack near the boss to help the healers

How do you stay alive?? You get hit less if you stay further away. I don't see the point in being up front with the tank. I only pug though.

This is one of the reasons I only ever tank or heal. And even on my healer I put some attribute points into health. You can't trust other people to keep you alive.

If I'm going to be in a bosses face I better have a decent health pool and some heavy armour.

Navaac223 · August 23

LittlePinkDot wrote: »

Navaac223 wrote: »

LittlePinkDot wrote: »

I always prefer bows or staffs.

One thing I don't understand about dual wield is the light attacks.
If you're at range, what's the point of weaving if your light attacks are never going to hit?

Then don't be at range ? Ok there are a lot of encounters where range is useful but most of the time you can be close to the boss. Even ranged DDs should stack near the boss to help the healers

How do you stay alive?? You get hit less if you stay further away. I don't see the point in being up front with the tank. I only pug though.

This is one of the reasons I only ever tank or heal. And even on my healer I put some attribute points into health. You can't trust other people to keep you alive.

If I'm going to be in a bosses face I better have a decent health pool and some heavy armour.

You don't need to be in front of the boss, just really close to its back. As long as you're not in front of it, you take no damage

T
B
D D
H
Thay way the healer can put healing over time (HoT) abilities on the whole group.

Ph1p · August 23

LittlePinkDot wrote: »

Navaac223 wrote: »

LittlePinkDot wrote: »

I always prefer bows or staffs.

One thing I don't understand about dual wield is the light attacks.
If you're at range, what's the point of weaving if your light attacks are never going to hit?

Then don't be at range ? Ok there are a lot of encounters where range is useful but most of the time you can be close to the boss. Even ranged DDs should stack near the boss to help the healers

How do you stay alive?? You get hit less if you stay further away. I don't see the point in being up front with the tank. I only pug though.

This is one of the reasons I only ever tank or heal. And even on my healer I put some attribute points into health. You can't trust other people to keep you alive.

If I'm going to be in a bosses face I better have a decent health pool and some heavy armour.

Being close to the boss doesn't mean facing it head-on next to the tank. It means standing behind the boss in a neat or loose group, depending on mechanics. If you are far away, you may get hit less. But healers also can't heal or buff people standing behind them, and they can't move too far back or they can't reach the tank any more.

There are also many mechanics that specifically target and damage the furthest player(s) away, which are often dealt with by healers who can survive more easily, like the kite mechanics in Cloudrest or Rockgrove. I know that coordinating this is more difficult in a PUG, but that's another reason why DDs should generally stay closely behind the boss.

LittlePinkDot · August 23

Ph1p wrote: »

LittlePinkDot wrote: »

Navaac223 wrote: »

LittlePinkDot wrote: »

I always prefer bows or staffs.

One thing I don't understand about dual wield is the light attacks.
If you're at range, what's the point of weaving if your light attacks are never going to hit?

Then don't be at range ? Ok there are a lot of encounters where range is useful but most of the time you can be close to the boss. Even ranged DDs should stack near the boss to help the healers

How do you stay alive?? You get hit less if you stay further away. I don't see the point in being up front with the tank. I only pug though.

This is one of the reasons I only ever tank or heal. And even on my healer I put some attribute points into health. You can't trust other people to keep you alive.

If I'm going to be in a bosses face I better have a decent health pool and some heavy armour.

Being close to the boss doesn't mean facing it head-on next to the tank. It means standing behind the boss in a neat or loose group, depending on mechanics. If you are far away, you may get hit less. But healers also can't heal or buff people standing behind them, and they can't move too far back or they can't reach the tank any more.

There are also many mechanics that specifically target and damage the furthest player(s) away, which are often dealt with by healers who can survive more easily, like the kite mechanics in Cloudrest or Rockgrove. I know that coordinating this is more difficult in a PUG, but that's another reason why DDs should generally stay closely behind the boss.

"Loose group" and I mean that very loosely 😆

Did a normal dungeon that was a DLC dungeon I've never done before, I forget the name, but it dropped some set called silver rose or something like that.

And we were all over the place. I was the healer, but I was using my PVP bowplar because I can put lots of healing on the back bar and do the job sufficiently in Normal. Bow is good for picking off random monsters that are all over the place, just using single target skills. I would have to run over to the DD if they needed healing since they were all over the place. It's hard to use ground effects if we're all moving around.
They might've been PvP characters too since their self healing was pretty good.
One of the DD's crashed and went offline. We managed to finish it with just the 3 of us. Radiant destruction is good for finishing off the boss.

Vet dungeons seem to be more organized and I would only bring a real dedicated PVE character into that. But sometimes I don't get good enough DDs. Or if I'm the tank there's no healer, just 3 DD's and my tank is having a hard time with sustain since I need to self heal. I swear Bal Sunnar without a healer is impossible.