Here's what I think suits an Assassin profession well depending on your playing style :

1. Monk/Warrior for better self preservation.

2. Mesmer/Necro for additional non physical damage. (The Mesmer spell Physical/Elemental Protection also serves as a good protection spell)

3. Ranger for versatility. (Alternatively you can try Ranger/Assassin built as Expertise also reduce some of the energy cost in Assassin skills)

I do not think the Elementalist secondary suits an Assassin well as it requires too much energy and as for Ritualist .... let's just say that Ritualist skills do not compliment the Assassin skills that well. Anyway this is just my point of view .

You will get a mini pet when your character(s) reach 1 year old. Type "/age" to know how long your character has been in the game. Alternately you can buy one from someone else but they go for 30k and above mostly.The following link shows what you can expect to get as your mini pet.

http://www.guildwars.com/events/ingame/birthdaypresents.php

(*Note : These mini pets do nothing but walk around you unlike Ranger's pet who will help attack the enemy.)

Umm...did you try employing the henchmen or asking other players to help you with the quest/mission ?

(Note : This is not a solo game. You'll need others help in order to succeed.)

Please refer to my previous post. A word of warning though.... Assassin is a though profession to play. They are not as though as a Warrior and they don't do indirect damages like caster professions. Try to aim for healers -> casters -> ranger ->assassins -> warrior in order. Apply the hit & run method and you'll be fine but this will also annoy the ones who are trying to heal/enchant you. This is why the Assassin is the least prefered profession in the game. We have no love .

(Note : "Don't play like a tanking Warrior/Monk !" even if your secondary is /W or /Mo.)

Here's my suggestion of Necro skills which I think work best with Assassin primary(cost/cast time/recharge) :

Blood Magic
--------------
Dark Bond (5/2/20)
Life Siphon (10/2/2)
Well Of Blood (15/2/2)

Curse Magic
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Parasitic Bond (5/1/2)
Faintheartedness (10/1/8)
Mark Of Pain (10/2/30)
Plague Signet (-/1/10)

Death Magic
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Animate XXX (25/3/5)
Animate Flesh Golem (15/3/30)
Animate Vampiric Horror (25/3/5)
Putrid Explosion (10/1/5)
Soul Feast (10/1/*)
Tainted Flesh (5/1/*)
Taste Of Death (5/0.25/*)
Taste Of Pain (5/0.25/10)

No Attribute
--------------
Plague Touch (5/0.75/*)



Suggested skill setup will be :

slot 1-4 : basic 3 Assassin combo (your choice) + 1 Shadow Skill

slot 5-7 : 2 or 3 Necro skills (Attribute dependent)

slot 5/6/7 : Enhancement spell / combo follow up [4th hit] / 2nd Shadow Skill (optional if you choose 3 Necro skills)

slot 8 : ressurection.

Only bring 2 Necro skill if you are not wearing "shrouded" armor or not investing in Critical Strike. A Zealous dagger is recommended. Since Assassin has 4 energy regen summoning minions will not be a big problem although in limited numbers (2-3 should be enough). They serve as your tanks/sidekicks and backup "healing" reservoir (ala Vampiric Horror/Taste of Death). As you can see most of these skills has very low cast time thus they can even be incoporate in to your combos.

This is just my observation. Feel free to comment.

Not as cool as disket's Boney..... but I still consider my little Kuuney a very nice mini pet

The Dragon Mask looks kinda quirky .... not as cool as the Tengu Mask though but from the look of this pic from GW official site I think you can dye it with colours.

Not in Factions. The material cost for the armor alone will eat up a big part of your fortune . If you are the vane type of person you will naturally go for 15k armor sets .

Ha..ha..that's easy :

1. Become a "Solo Farmer" = hunt for rares (alone + no henchies) day & night.

2. Become a "Runner" = run people to the next area for a small fee.

3. Use only collectors weapon.

4. Choose the armor set with the cheapest material cost.

You should have enough to spend if you do these things .

Dam....the broadband connection during weekend is so bad that I can't fully enjoy testing out the 2 new professions . Anyway....looking forward to the release of "Nightfall" .