Firebrand

“

"Let the ancient magics of Vabbi burn away our foes."

Firebrands harness the power of ancient Vabbian tomes to burn away impurities and conquer their foes. Each tome contains raw, powerful magic and must be used with patience and care.

— In-game description

Firebrand is an elite specialization for the guardian unlocked with the Path of Fire expansion. These lore keepers were once the chroniclers of the achievements of the Elonian people, and their culture. They stand against Palawa Joko, who seeks to rewrite history in his own image. Empowered by the fiery hearts of the Elonians fighting for their lives and lands, firebrands have manifested the traditional guardian virtues as tomes: repositories of lore that firebrands bring forth to burn away the oppressors, lift the spirit of their allies, and courageously protect them from harm.

They inspire allies by shouting mantras that heal and provide powerful boons, purging their impurities and their enemies alike. Firebrands can use axes on their main hand, combining fire and light to burn foes with vengeance, and pull them to their reckoning. Firebrands are very versatile, and can specialize as either damage dealers, supports, or healers.

List of firebrand skills

See also: List of guardian skills

Profession mechanic

“

Knowledge is power!

— Firebrand

Tomes replace virtue skills as the Firebrand's profession mechanic. Activating a virtue opens a tome which replaces weapon skills with tome skills. Using a tome skill costs pages, a special resource that self-replenishes over time. Passive effects of Firebrand's virtues are identical to that of standard Guardian's, and opening a tome disables its passive effect for a period of time.

Each tome skill costs a certain amount of pages to cast, and the available page count is shared by all tomes. By default, Firebrands have a maximum of 5 tome pages and it takes 8 seconds to generate a tome page. Using up all available pages will automatically exit a tome. Tomes can also be put away early by using the   Stow Tome skill.

Respective skills in each tome share some similarities:

• Chapter 1 affects a conal area directly in front of the caster and has no cooldown, allowing for multiple casts in rapid succession.
• Chapter 2 is a point-blank area of effect with a short cooldown.
• Chapter 3 can be cast from range and has utility applications, such as an area pull and projectile reflection.
• Chapter 4 creates a large combo field, pulsing an effect every second for their duration.
• The Epilogue grants the caster and their allies a unique and powerful buff. These feature a longer cooldown, but often make a big impact in group scenarios.

#	Skill	Type			Description
F1	Tome of Justice	Virtue			Virtue: Burn foes every few attacks. Activate: Pull forth a magical tome on the dangers of the blazing heat in Kourna.
F2	Tome of Resolve	Virtue			Virtue: Regenerate health. Activate: Draw forth an enchanted tome that recounts the trials undergone by the people of Vabbi.
F3	Tome of Courage	Virtue			Virtue: Gain aegis periodically. Activate: Conjure a mystic tome containing stories about the heroes of Istan.

Tome of Justice

#	Skill				Description
1	Chapter 1: Searing Spell	0.5½	1		Tome. Fueled by tales of the desolation in Istan, incite a great swelling of heat before you.
2	Chapter 2: Igniting Burst	0.5½	1	8	Tome. Ignite the air around you in an expanding burst.
3	Chapter 3: Heated Rebuke	0.75¾	1	10	Tome. Call forth a heated vortex to collapse your enemies together.
4	Chapter 4: Scorched Aftermath	0.5½	1	15	Tome. Detail the suffering in fire and blood inflicted during Vabbi's occupation.
5	Epilogue: Ashes of the Just	0.75¾	1	20	Tome. Recall the memory of fallen heroes, granting allies the searing blades of justice.

Tome of Resolve

#	Skill				Description
1	Chapter 1: Desert Bloom	0.5½	1		Tome. Tales of desert blooms create a wave of healing for your allies.
2	Chapter 2: Radiant Recovery	0.75¾	1	4	Tome. Release magic from pages detailing the rebuilding of Vabbi, cleansing conditions on nearby allies. Allies are healed for each condition removed.
3	Chapter 3: Azure Sun	0.75¾	1	8	Tome. Inspired by countless poems describing the comforting powers of the water-reflected sun, grant boons to allies.
4	Chapter 4: Shining River	0.5½	1	10	Tome. Release a torrent of pages describing the water cycle of the Elon River. Heal allies and grant them swiftness.
5	Epilogue: Eternal Oasis	0.75¾	2	20	Tome. Purify your allies with the waters of Amnoon and increase the healing they receive.

Tome of Courage

#	Skill				Description
1	Chapter 1: Unflinching Charge	0.5½	1		Tome. Roused by tales of mythical Sunspear charges, ground and motivate allies before you.
2	Chapter 2: Daring Challenge	0.25¼	1	4	Tome. As the tales recount of Turai, taunt your enemies by issuing an insightfully inciting challenge.
3	Chapter 3: Valiant Bulwark	0.75¾	1	15	Tome. Manifest the shimmering purity of the desert sun, reflecting enemy missiles.
4	Chapter 4: Stalwart Stand	0.25¼	2	20	Tome. Recount the stand of Elonian loyalists against Palawa Joko, granting resistance to your allies.
5	Epilogue: Unbroken Lines	0.75¾	2	25	Tome. Recalling the memory of heroes past, enchant nearby allies with formidable defenses.

Weapon skills

#	Skill			Description
Axe
1	Core Cleave	0.5½		Cleave at your enemy with a physical and a magical axe.
1	Bleeding Edge	0.5½		Slice through your foe again, physically and magically, as your weapon is heating up.
1	Searing Slash	0.5½		Unleash your searing axe in an overhand slash, following it up with a magical edge.
2	Symbol of Vengeance	1	8	Symbol. Cleave your axe into the ground, reducing enemy movement and carving a razor-sharp symbol of vengeance.
3	Blazing Edge	0.75¾	12	Conjure a magical axe to rake your enemies toward you.

Slot skills

Healing

Skill				Description
Mantra of Solace		20.25¼	24	Mantra. Prepare to heal yourself and grant boons to allies. The final charge of this ability is more powerful.
Restoring Reprieve			1	Gain health. Grant boons to yourself and allies in front of and around you.
Rejuvenating Respite			1	Final Charge. Gain significant health. Grant boons to yourself and allies in front of and around you.

Utility

Skill				Description
Mantra of Flame		20.25¼	20	Mantra. Prepare a chant to sear your enemies. The final charge of this ability is more powerful.
Flame Rush			1	Unleash a wave of purging fire in front of and around you.
Flame Surge			1	Final Charge. Unleash a powerful wave of flame.
Mantra of Lore		20.25¼	20	Mantra. Chant the ritual of cleansing, removing conditions and speeding recovery. The final charge of this ability is more powerful.
Opening Passage			1	Recite a cleansing word, purifying allies of conditions and helping them recover.
Clarified Conclusion			1	Final Charge. Recite the concluding passage, converting corruption into enhancements for your allies and aiding them in recovery.
Mantra of Truth		20.25¼	20	Mantra. Prepare the tenets of truth to debilitate your foes. The final charge of this ability is more powerful.
Echo of Truth			1	Recount a truth to enemies in front of and around you, inflicting them with conditions.
Voice of Truth			1	Final Charge. Reveal a harsh truth to enemies before and beside you, devastating them with conditions.
Mantra of Potence		20.25¼	20	Mantra. Recite a hymn from the annals of Turai to quicken yourself and your allies. The final charge of this ability is more powerful.
Potent Haste			1	Inspire allies before and beside you, enhancing their speed and strength.
Overwhelming Celerity			1	Final Charge. Inspire allies before and beside you, greatly enhancing their speed and strength.

Elite

Skill				Description
Mantra of Liberation		20.25¼	40	Mantra. Echo remnants of an ancient pamphlet from Vabbi that urged Elonians to freedom. Grant stability and resolution to allies while breaking stun. The final charge of this ability is more powerful.
Portent of Freedom			1	Hints of freedom echo around, stabilizing and breaking stuns on you and your allies.
Unhindered Delivery			1	Final Charge. Your whispers guard your allies, stabilizing and breaking stuns on them while weakening enemies.

List of firebrand traits

See also: List of guardian traits

Tier	Trait		Description
Minor Proficiency	Axe Proficiency		You can wield axes.
Minor Adept	Purity of Word		Gain knowledge of Elonian lore, igniting a fierce drive to purge corruption and manifesting your Virtues as mystic tomes. Gain access to Mantras. Using Tome skills consumes pages. You regenerate pages every interval.
Major Adept	Unrelenting Criticism		Axe skills gain a chance to inflict bleeding. Symbol of Vengeance now dazes on its initial strike.
Major Adept	Liberator's Vow	7	Grant allies quickness when you use your heal skill.
Major Adept	Archivist of Whispers		Your Virtues gain additional pages.
Minor Master	Swift Scholar		Equipping a Virtue grants you quickness. Every third Tome skill grants you pages. Stacks reset when exiting a tome. Quickness can only be gained once per interval
Major Master	Weighty Terms		The final charge of your Mantra skills will slow nearby foes and grant you pages.
Major Master	Stalwart Speed	7	When you grant aegis or stability, grant quickness. This can affect multiple targets simultaneously.
Major Master	Legendary Lore		Tome skills gain bonuses from scribbling in the margins by ancient bards.
Minor Grandmaster	Imbued Haste		Gain increased attributes while affected by quickness.
Major Grandmaster	Stoic Demeanor	1	Retain Courage passive while it is on cooldown. Grant boons to nearby allies when you disable, immobilize, or slow an enemy. Disables include stun, daze, knockback, pull, knockdown, sink, float, launch, taunt, and fear.
Major Grandmaster	Quickfire	7	Retain Justice passive while it is on cooldown. Granting quickness to an ally also grants Ashes of the Just.
Major Grandmaster	Loremaster		Retain Resolve passive while it is on cooldown. You generate pages more quickly.

Lore

“

These zealous lorekeepers are skilled in conjuring magical fire, and they use axes and mantras in close combat. Their virtues are replaced by conjured tomes, which act as weapons to rebuke enemies and protect allies.

— Official site

Associated items

• Superior Rune of the Firebrand
• Firebrand's War Miter
• Firebrand's Axe
• Expurgation
• Mini Firebrand Roni Gehianu

Related achievements

• Specializations: Adept Firebrand — Begin training the guardian's firebrand elite specialization. (5)
• Specializations: Master Firebrand — Completely train the guardian's firebrand elite specialization. (10)
• Specialization Collections: Expurgation — Collect these 14 items and skins to receive the firebrand's axe, Expurgation. (3)

Gallery

Promotional material

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  Wallpaper

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  Concept art

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  Promotional pre-launch screenshot

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  Promotional official icon

Icons

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  Official icon

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  Official icon

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  Wiki icon

Notes

Bugs:

• After first unlocking Axe Proficiency and equipping the Firebrand trait line, even before unlocking the next minor trait Purity of Word, Virtue of Courage is replaced with Tome of Courage. When activated, the player receives the Tome and their weapon skills are replaced with the tome skills. However, while tome skills can be used and go on cooldown, they have no effects. The player is therefore effectively unable to fight until the tome is stowed.
• When going into downstate, you lose all your dormant effects for your tomes, effectively resetting all the active effects when revived.

Trivia

• Two of the original elite skills for the guardian were also tomes.
• The Firebrand's mantras were one of the reasons why ArenaNet developed the Ammunition System. The old mantra system was inconvenient as once a mantra charge was used and the fight ended, players could either waste the next charge and wait for it to recharge or go into the next fight with one less mantra charge.
• The Elonian Firebrand Roni Gehianu can be found east of Derelict Delve in the Desert Highlands.

External links

• Guild Wars 2: Path of Fire Elite Specializations—Firebrand (Guardian)

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Guardian