No experience with D3 but many years of Wowfagging. GW2 is iteratively better that WoW in terms of combat, it's not revolutionary but there are definitely things I like about it. Most spells and abilities can be used while moving, but sometimes it's hard to tell if an ability needs to keep you stationary and you'll try to cast it while moving, only to have it fizzle and incur a few seconds of cd (which is better than having it incur the full cd). You are almost never stationary if fighting more than one mob, and even with many single enemies it's best to stay mobile to avoid cone attacks and soforth.Originally Posted by sahtila
What's also nice is the ability to change up your playstyle completely just by using different weapons. I spent most of my time on an Elementalist and I really only switched between dual daggers for high damage and soloing, and the staff for long range damage and better CC/support. Since there are no real tanks or healers, everyone has to be on the ball using their cds and avoiding attacks in small-group situations, and conscious about coordinating their CCs during larger events, so that no one person or few people get overwhelmed. The variety in style within the same class and the ease with which you can change the way your character works is quite freeing.
The system is good about targeting enemies as well, because sometimes it's fuckall impossible to click on an actual mob if they're surrounded by other players. Smarter enemies will run out of aoe effects you cast to avoid the damage, but you can use that to herd them a bit in return. Overall it definitely feels more involved and active that WoW where the DPS's only job is to hit the right target and not stand in the fire. During the beta events I've never felt that the combat system was holding me back, generally my complaints involve mob respawn rates and the "ice skating" feeling with character control.
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