4

Power Catalyst DPS Build

GW2. Raid Build. Quickness Sword/Hammer DPS Catalyst. Elementalist PvE.


Last Update: December 2023


Overview

The Power Catalyst is a DPS elementalist build that provides boons to its party such as might, protection, and quickness. It can be used with the Hammer or with Sword/Warhorn, and also go for full DPS or a boon providing variant. The rotation may be complicated by mechanics and movement, so it is better used in situations where you can reliably get in melee range or where the boss does not move much during burst phases. Below is a priority system you can use to mitigate the breaking up of the rotation.

Playstyle

Role: DPS 

When running the quickness variant, always prioritize using Jade Spheres on your squad to give quickness uptime; and when running the DPS variant prioritize using Jade Sphere in Fire Attunement on yourself to get Relentless Fire to trigger inside it. Since you have a maximum of 30 energy for 3 Jade Sphere uses per rotation, you can then choose between two other attunements. Usually you will either leave out Earth or Water unless your squad needs extra defensive boons.

Hammer Rotation:

Constantly rotating through all of your attunements and using the Orb abilities on the 3 skill will give buffs and then refresh their duration until you can’t put any more up and will need to use the Grand Finale. The Air and Fire Orbs provide the most damage so you want to keep them up the longest, therefore use them first in the rotation.

  • Cast Glyph of Storms in Fire Attunement, and Glyph of Elementals in Fire unless your team needs healing then do so in Water. Use Relentless Fire in your Fire Jade Sphere.
  • Use the 5 skills in each attunement to combo finisher in your Jade Spheres to gain auras which gives extra stats and while transitioning to the next attunement.
  • Jade Sphere, Glyph of Elementals activates, and the Orb skills are instant cast, so minimize your animation downtime by casting these during your longer hammer 2 skill animations at the beginning of every attunement swap.

Example Rotation:

  • Fire Attunement > Glyph of Storms > 2 > 4 > 3 (until full on Jade Energy)
  • Fire Jade Sphere + 5 > Relentless Fire
  • Swap Air > 2 + 3 + Jade Sphere > 5
  • Swap Earth > 2 + 3 + Jade Sphere > 5
  • Swap Water > 2 + 3 > 4 > 5
  • Swap Fire > Grand Finale (3) after Jade Energy maxed > Repeat 2 > 4 > 3

Difficulty
75%

Equipment

ItemStatRune / Sigil
Helm
Berserker
Shoulders
Berserker
Coat
Berserker
Gloves
Berserker
Leggings
Berserker
Boots
Berserker

Primary Weapon Set

Hammer
Berserker

Secondary Weapon Set

Sword
Berserker
Warhorn
Berserker
ItemStat
Amulet
Berserker
Ring
Berserker
Ring
Berserker
Accessory
Berserker
Accessory
Berserker
Berserker
Berserker

Relic

Consumables

Infusions

Optional
x18

Skills


HammerHeal / Utility / Elite

Alternatives

Sword/Warhorn Rotation:

Long pulsing damaging AoEs from the Jade Sphere and the Warhorn can be stacked up on top of each other and then improved with all of the damage modifiers for big burst windows.

Damage Modifiers:

  • Elemental Empowerment (disable targets or gain auras)
  • Empowering Auras (gain auras)
  • Being in Fire or Air attunement
  • Relentless Fire (cast inside Fire Jade Sphere)

Due to being a Catalyst, you gain auras by using combo finishers in combo fields depending on your attunement. Fields should be easy to obtain, but your finishers are Air 2, Fire 2, and Arcane Blast.

Big Damage Skills:

  • Fire Glyph of Storms (or Air)
  • Wildfire Fire 5
  • Quantum Strike Air 3
  • Lightning Orb Air 5
  • Jade Spheres (Fire/Air)

Example Rotation:

  • Earth Attunement 5 > 3 > 2 (gain energy for Jade Spheres or use it in Earth if you are max energy)
  • Swap Air > Jade Sphere > 2 + Arcane Blast > 4 > 3 > 5
  • Swap Fire > Jade Sphere > Relentless Fire > 2 + Arcane Blast > Glyph of Storms > 5 > 3
  • Stay in Fire a bit longer to land another Fire 2 then swap back to Earth and repeat

Use Elemental Celerity in Fire Attunement after you have cast Fire 2/3/5 to recharge and repeat them.


Sword / WarhornHeal / Utility / Elite

Traits


Quickness Traits



DPS Traits



Build Template

Chat Code: (copy/paste into in-game chat)

[&DQYfHSkfQz90AHUAUAFPAfga6wC+AZAA9xqWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA=]

Gameplay

4 Comments

  1. In this build, Jade sphere doesn’t give quickness since spectacular spear isn’t taken, or am I missing something? I’ve been playing it with the talents above, but im not sure where quickness comes from without it.

    • You’re correct, the builds are still in the process of being updated. You can just take that trait since that would be the change.

Leave a Reply