How to Get Ascended Armor Fast in Guild Wars 2: A Comprehensive Guide

The pursuit of ascended armor in Guild Wars 2 is a common goal for players looking to maximize their character’s potential. While there’s no single, instant method, optimizing your gameplay and understanding the various avenues available can significantly speed up your acquisition. The fastest way to get ascended armor is to combine strategic crafting, daily fractal runs, and utilization of easily acquired currency. Specifically, focusing on daily fractals for random drops and using currencies earned in WvW or through strike missions to purchase crafted pieces or recipes, or directly purchasing using vendor currency and materials can significantly reduce the time it takes to equip your character in a full set of ascended gear. It is also prudent to use the method of crafting or purchasing insignias and stat changing existing pieces for specific stats you need.

Optimizing Your Path to Ascended Gear

Getting ascended armor quickly revolves around efficiency and informed choices. Here’s a breakdown of the most effective strategies:

1. Daily Fractals: Your Source of Random Drops

• Daily Fractal Chests are a reliable source for ascended armor and weapon chests. While the drops are random, regular participation will significantly increase your chances of acquiring pieces. Aim for daily completion of the highest level you can handle.
• Fractals of the Mists are a great starting point because they provide multiple sources for ascended loot.

2. Strategic Crafting: Control What You Get

• Crafting is a controlled method for obtaining ascended gear, although time-gated. This is one of the most reliable, if not immediately fastest, ways to aquire the gear you want, provided you are ready to wait some time.
• Grandmaster Marks: Collect these through PvP or WvW, or buy the recipes, to trade for ascended armor. These marks will offer you armor that has been crafted by other players. The recipes for these marks can be purchased from BLING-9009, the Ascended Armor League Vendor, or the Skirmish Supervisor.
• Time-Gating: Be aware that crafting has a daily material limit which significantly slows down progress.
• Material Efficiency: Prioritize crafting the most expensive pieces first (chest, legs) to save time and resources.
• Heavy Armor: Crafting heavy armor is significantly faster compared to light and medium armor, primarily due to fewer time-gated materials required to craft insignias.

3. Exploit Endgame Content

• Raids and Strikes: While potentially more challenging, these offer a guaranteed way to purchase ascended armor.
• Icebrood Saga Strikes: These are a relatively cheap source for buying ascended armor.
• WvW Reward Tracks: Progressing through WvW reward tracks can provide access to legendary armor and skirmish chests can result in acquisition of grandmaster marks which can help with ascended armor.

4. Stat Swapping: The Power of the Mystic Forge

• Mystic Forge: Once you acquire an ascended piece, you can stat swap it to the specific stats you require using Exotic insignias.
• Celestial Stats: This is done by using recipes you obtain at random from the Pact Supply Network Agents. You’ll require materials to craft it though.
• Efficiency: This strategy saves a significant amount of time as you do not need to obtain specific gear pieces or craft specific insignias.

5. World Bosses: A Chance for a Rare Drop

• World Bosses: Some world bosses have a chance to drop ascended equipment, although it is not a reliable method. Specifically, Tequatl the Sunless and the Triple Trouble Great Jungle Wurm have unique chances to drop ascended boxes.

6. Currency Management:

• Strike Mission Currency: Use your daily strike mission currency to acquire ascended armor recipes or the ascended armor itself, should your currency allow it.
• Skirmish Claim Tickets: Use skirmish claim tickets earned through WvW to acquire grandmaster marks for direct purchase of ascended armor.
• Trading Post: If you have the gold, the trading post is the fastest way to obtain any piece of equipment you want, provided other players are selling.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. Can you buy ascended armor directly?

Yes, you can buy ascended armor directly. This can be done from certain vendors using materials or currency. This includes purchasing from vendors using grandmaster marks, or after completing raids or Icebrood saga strike missions. You can also use the Trading Post to buy ascended armor that other players have listed.

2. What is the drop rate for ascended gear?

The drop rate for ascended gear is random. Typically, players might see one drop every few days, while sometimes you might get multiple in a single day. It is entirely based on luck.

3. How long does it take to craft a full set of ascended armor?

Crafting a complete set takes a minimum of 36 days for light and medium armor and 25 days for heavy armor due to daily material time-gates.

4. Is ascended armor better than legendary?

Both ascended and legendary armor share similar stats. The main difference is the appearance and acquisition process. Legendary armor offers more flexibility and stat-swapping on demand, but ascended armor is more easily obtained.

5. How much better is ascended armor than exotic?

Ascended gear provides approximately 5% more stats than exotic gear, along with the ability to infuse it for an additional 1-2% stat boost, leading to about 10% more DPS overall. Some players state this is around 12.5% damage increase, but the exact increase depends on your class.

6. Do fractals drop ascended gear?

Yes, fractal chests regularly drop ascended weapons and armor chests as a reward for completing daily fractals. This is a reliable method for getting ascended gear.

7. Where can I spend my Grandmaster Marks?

Grandmaster Marks can be used to purchase stat-selectable ascended armor from specific vendors. The vendor will have armor that was crafted by an armorsmith.

8. Can you change ascended armor stats?

Yes, ascended armor can be stat-swapped using the Mystic Forge and Exotic insignias or Celestial insignia, as needed.

9. Can you salvage ascended gear?

Yes, ascended gear can be salvaged with an Ascended Salvage Tool or Kit, guaranteeing the return of upgrades like runes, sigils, and infusions.

10. What ascended gear should I get first?

If crafting, it is recommended to get weapons first, then focus on armor, starting with the chest, then legs, head, and lastly shoulders/gloves/boots. This is based on material costs and efficiency.

11. Which world bosses drop ascended gear?

Tequatl the Sunless drops Tequatl’s Hoard, and any of the Great Jungle Wurm heads in Triple Trouble can drop a Pile of Regurgitated Armor.

12. Is ascended gear account bound?

Yes, ascended gear is account bound on acquisition, requiring you to earn it yourself.

13. How do you get celestial armor?

Celestial ascended armor is obtained by stat-changing other ascended gear with Celestial Orichalcum Imbued Inscriptions / Celestial Intricate Gossamer Insignias using the Mystic Forge. The recipes for these are obtained randomly from the Pact Supply Network Agents.

14. At what level does ascended gear drop?

Ascended Gear starts to drop from Level 50 and above content in various game modes such as Fractals. The game modes have different drop rates, and Fractals are the most reliable.

15. Can you lose the Grandmaster title?

While FIDE titles, including grandmaster, are generally valid for life, they can be revoked for violating ethical principles or anti-cheating regulations. This is unrelated to the grandmaster marks used in GW2.