Profession

A profession is a set of attributes and skills that define your character's abilities. All player characters in the game have both a primary profession, which cannot be changed, and a secondary profession, which may be changed after completing certain quests and/or missions. A character has access to all skills of both chosen professions. A player's choice of professions does not limit the types of weapons and other items that character can equip, although that character may not have the attribute points to use a certain weapon or item at full capability. Furthermore, a player's primary profession determines what armor they may wear and limits them to runes and insignias of that profession.

Any profession can serve as primary or secondary, which means there are a total of 30 possible core-profession combinations, 56 if you own Factions or Nightfall, and 90 if you own both Factions and Nightfall. Only primary professions have access to their profession-specific primary attributes (marked by | below).

For a complete list of all the possible profession combinations, see Category:Profession combinations

Core professions
The following are the "core" professions from Guild Wars Prophecies. These professions can be created in all campaigns.

[[Image:Warrior-icon.png]]Warrior (W)

 * |Strength: Each rank gives you an additional 1% armor penetration when using attack skills and increases the effectiveness of linked skills.
 * Swordsmanship: Increases the damage and effectiveness of sword strikes and skills.
 * Axe Mastery: Increases the damage and effectiveness of axe strikes and skills.
 * Hammer Mastery: Increases the damage and effectiveness of hammer strikes and skills.
 * Tactics: Increases the effectiveness of linked skills, which include offensive and defensive shouts and stances.

[[Image:Ranger-icon.png]]Ranger (R)

 * |Expertise: Each rank decreases the Energy cost of all of your attacks, rituals, touch skills, and Ranger skills by 4%.
 * Marksmanship: Increases the damage and effectiveness of bow-related attacks and skills.
 * Wilderness Survival: Increases the effectiveness of linked skills, which include preparations, traps, and rituals.
 * Beast Mastery: Increases the damage and effectiveness of linked skills, which include taming and controlling your pets, and increases the damage your pet does in combat.

[[Image:Monk-icon.png]]Monk (Mo)

 * |Divine Favor: Each rank heals target ally for an additional 3.2 Health (rounded down) each time a Monk spell is cast on that ally and increases the effectiveness of linked skills.
 * Healing Prayers: Increases the effectiveness of linked skills, which include spells that focus on healing allies.
 * Protection Prayers: Increases the effectiveness of linked skills, which include spells that focus on preventing, reducing, or redirecting damage.
 * Smiting Prayers: Increases the damage and effectiveness of linked skills, which include spells that focus on inflicting holy damage and/or enchanting allies offensively.

[[Image:Necromancer-icon.png]]Necromancer (N)

 * |Soul Reaping: Each rank gives you 1 Energy each time a nearby creature or player dies and increases the effectiveness of linked skills. You can only gain energy this way 3 times every 15 seconds. A death when at full energy does not count towards the cap.
 * Blood Magic: Increases the damage and effectiveness of linked skills, which include sacrificing or stealing Health.
 * Curses: Increases the damage and effectiveness of linked skills, which include Hexes that render enemies less effective in battle.
 * Death Magic: Increases the damage and effectiveness of linked skills, which include exploiting corpses and controlling minions.

[[Image:Mesmer-icon.png]]Mesmer (Me)

 * |Fast Casting: Each rank decreases the casting time of spells and signets and increases the effectiveness of linked skills.
 * Inspiration Magic: Increases the damage and effectiveness of linked skills, which include supportive skills that can enhance allies.
 * Domination Magic: Increases the damage and effectiveness of linked skills, which include offensive, direct-damage spells, as well as indirect-damage spells.
 * Illusion Magic: Increases the damage and effectiveness of linked skills, which include offensive hexes and damage-over-time spells.

[[Image:Elementalist-icon.png]]Elementalist (E)

 * |Energy Storage: Each rank increases your Energy capacity by 3 and increases the effectiveness of linked skills.
 * Fire Magic: Increases the damage and effectiveness of fire skills, which deal AoE damage and can inflict the burning condition.
 * Water Magic: Increases the damage and effectiveness of water skills, which deal AoE damage and slows enemies.
 * Air Magic: Increases the damage and effectiveness of air skills, which deal damage to single targets, can blind, and knockdown.
 * Earth Magic: Increases the damage and effectiveness of earth skills, which deal AoE damage, can enhance the caster's armor, and knockdown.

Guild Wars Factions professions
The following are the new professions added in Guild Wars Factions. They can be created only in Cantha, but they may travel to any other continent (if you have the corresponding campaign) through a quest.

[[Image:Assassin-icon.png]]Assassin (A)

 * |Critical Strikes: Each rank gives you an additional 1% chance to critical hit. You gain 1 Energy at 3 ranks and above, 2 Energy at 8 ranks and above, and 3 Energy at 13 ranks and above for each critical hit.
 * Dagger Mastery: Increases the damage and effectiveness of dagger strikes and skills, and increases your chance to double strike by 2% per rank using normal attacks.
 * Deadly Arts: Increases the damage and effectiveness of linked skills, which include offensive and crippling hexes.
 * Shadow Arts: Increases the damage and effectiveness of linked skills, which include survival and self-enhancing skills.

[[Image:Ritualist-icon.png]]Ritualist (Rt)

 * |Spawning Power: Each rank gives an additional 4% Health to creatures you animate/create and weapon spells you cast last 2% longer per rank.
 * Channeling Magic: Increases the damage and effectiveness of linked skills, which include offensive spirits and powerful lightning spells.
 * Communing: Increases the damage and effectiveness of linked skills, which include spawning and maintaining party-supportive spirits and weapon-enhancing spells.
 * Restoration Magic: Increases the effectiveness of linked skills, which include spawning party-healing spirits and healing spells.

Guild Wars Nightfall professions
The following are the new professions added in Guild Wars Nightfall. They can be created only in Elona, but they may travel to any other continent (if you have the corresponding campaign) through a quest.

[[Image:Paragon-icon.png]]Paragon (P)

 * |Leadership: Every 2 ranks give you 1 Energy for each ally affected by your shouts and chants.
 * Spear Mastery: Increases the damage and effectiveness of spear strikes and skills.
 * Command: Increases the effectiveness of linked skills, which include tactical and protective shouts and chants.
 * Motivation: Increases the effectiveness of linked skills, which include healing and Energy-management shouts and chants.

[[Image:Dervish-icon.png]]Dervish (D)

 * |Mysticism: Each rank gives you 1 Health and every 3 ranks gives you 1 Energy whenever an enchantment ends on you.
 * Scythe Mastery: Increases the damage and effectiveness of scythe strikes and skills.
 * Wind Prayers: Increases the damage and effectiveness of linked skills, which include speed-increasing stances and cold damage spells.
 * Earth Prayers: Increases the damage and effectiveness of linked skills, which include defensive stances and earth damage spells.

Changing secondary professions
You can change your secondary profession indefinitely - there are no limits to the how often you may change. However, PvE characters must first achieve Ascension in Prophecies, become Weh no Su in Factions, or complete Hunted! (quest) in Nightfall before they are allowed to change their secondary profession. PvP characters can change at any time.

Once a character has unlocked a new secondary for that character, he/she may change at any time through the Skills menu from the drop-down menu at the top. Any skills you have already acquired for your previous secondary profession will still be available to you when you change back. Changing your secondary from Ranger will not lose your pet.

Core
Secondary profession changer in the Great Temple of Balthazar.

Prophecies
You may change your secondary profession in Heroes' Audience by talking to Cembrien or Zratha Kor, Destiny's Gorge by talking to Agastos the Brave or Eulenias, or Seeker's Passage by talking to Nausuan or Telius. In order to switch to a certain secondary, you must complete the corresponding quest:
 * The Elementalist's Path
 * The Mesmer's Path
 * The Monk's Path
 * The Necromancer's Path
 * The Ranger's Path
 * The Warrior's Path

See Category:Profession Changers (Prophecies).

Factions
You may change your secondary profession in Senji's Corner by talking to Senji. Initially changing to each new secondary profession costs. Changing back to a secondary profession your character has already unlocked is free.

Nightfall
You can change to any unlocked secondary in any town or outpost using the Skills menu. You can unlock secondaries in The Command Post by talking to Zuwarah after completing the primary quest Building the Base: Prisoners of War. Initially changing to each new secondary profession costs. Changing back to a secondary profession your character has already unlocked is free.

Links

 * The Professions Official GW
 * The Professions Official Eu GW