Medium Armor Classes

In this post, I’ll try to talk about the medium armor classes in Guild Wars 2. The medium armor classes are made up of three professions: Thief, Ranger, and Engineer.

To be honest, I could go on and on about the Engineer—maybe it’s unfair to the other two, but I’ve never really played Thief or Ranger in the five years I’ve been actively playing Guild Wars 2. So, I can’t go into deep detail for those two classes. After all, there are nine different classes in the game, and it’s rare for a player to truly master every profession and specialization.

Let’s begin then, shall we? Maybe my recommendations can help you before diving into the game.

This image is sourced from the official Guild Wars 2 media page and belongs to ArenaNet.

Thief (Assassin)

Imagine a character you see once—and then it disappears. The next time you see them, you’re already down or dead. (This applies mostly to PvP and WvW, as you can't really duel players in the open world.)

Now, picture this in PvE: you just cleared 10–12 mobs with your Warrior and are opening the loot chest when a Thief character turns invisible, skips all mobs, opens the chest, and walks away. Yep, you heard it right. Stealth skills make things incredibly easy. Some elite skills even summon assassin allies, making you feel like a true ninja.

Many of their abilities apply blind to enemies, helping them take little to no damage in combat. However, their health pool is low, and one mistake might leave you flat on your back. In the hands of a master, they’re deadly assassins—but for beginners, this class can be a bit rough.

If you’re just starting out, I wouldn’t say Thief is beginner-friendly. Once you’ve learned the game mechanics and combat rotations, then you might consider giving it a try.

Thief gameplay feels incredibly stylish—especially if you go dual pistols or dual daggers. If you’re aiming to become a John Wick-like figure, you can create a long-haired, black-shaded, pistol-wielding maniac and cause chaos. Once mastered, Thieves perform excellently in PvE and can wreak havoc in PvP and WvW, making opponents rage-quit.

It’s a hybrid class with a mix of melee and ranged options. Weapon choices include swords, daggers, shortbow, pistols, rifles, and staff. If you like fast-paced, jumpy, parkour-style combat like Super Mario—but with blades—this is the class for you. Go on, have fun!

This image is sourced from the official Guild Wars 2 media page and belongs to ArenaNet.

Ranger

The classic bow-and-arrow archer class that every MMORPG has. Rangers have animal companions, which you can swap out. Each pet has unique skills and traits—some heal, some buff, some provide barrier or speed. You can build your own zoo!

Tame juvenile white or yellow-named creatures in the open world and add them to your pet collection. Don’t worry—they don’t take up bag space. As you tame pets, their icons become colored and usable.

You can start with a boar and later tame a bear you find on top of a snowy mountain. In terms of specialization, Rangers can fulfill all roles—DPS, support, tank, or healer. (Though I believe they can’t provide Alacrity—I’ll cover buffs and debuffs in a separate post.)

Whether you want to be a high-damage bow user, a dual axe melee slayer, a greatsword berserker, or a supportive Druid healer, you’ve got options. It's a very flexible class. For beginners, it’s highly recommended. While your pet fights mobs, you can roam the map freely.

Yes, you can even merge with your pet’s spirit and become one. Boom. Explosion. Okay… that sounded like a fantasy ad for the Ranger. I might’ve gone a little overboard there.

Ranger skills usually have a green color palette. It’s a well-loved class, and many people enjoy it. You should definitely try it—though I personally haven’t played it in five years. Maybe one day I will. I recommend it, even if I haven’t tried it myself!

This image is sourced from the official Guild Wars 2 media page and belongs to ArenaNet.

Engineer

Now we’ve arrived at the most technologically advanced class in Tyria. When you think "tech" in Guild Wars 2, you probably think of the Asura. Their whole culture is about science, innovation, and blowing things up in strange experiments. (One of the main enemies in the EoD expansion is also an Asura—but no spoilers!)

While Asura fits the Engineer class perfectly, I’d also recommend the Charr if you plan to main the Scrapper specialization. For the other two specs, any race will work fine.

So, what’s Engineer about?

Until level 80, you’ll be relying on kits—dropping turrets, mines, bombs, and rocket launchers. You’ll even fight with a wrench. The Scrapper and Holosmith specializations require skill. Especially Holosmith—it has heat management mechanics, combo rotations, and overheating risks. It's not beginner-friendly, and I personally can’t pull it off.

Scrapper also demands fast reaction and button pressing. But there's one specialization that breaks the mold: Mechanist.

This is probably the most-played class right now and is extremely beginner-friendly. Yes—you’ve seen them. The ones walking around with big green mechs.

Mechanist requires little effort—just one or two key presses and you’re doing big damage, tanking, and supporting. It does everything. The only thing to watch out for is managing your robot companion, and that’s done with a single key as well.

I won’t go into more detail because I don’t want to upset Mechanist mains, but yeah… sometimes I log in, grab a rifle, press 1, and watch my mech destroy everything. Your choice, always. But if you want a chill Engineer experience, Mechanist is your best bet.

Tyria awaits, adventurers. Have fun out there. See you in-game!


Location: Tiranë, Albania

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