I started playing GW2 at Launch. I fell in love with the game. Two days ago, I got my Bifrost, my first legendary, and I wanted to tell my story. This isn’t a complaint post, but a very happy one.
I main an Asura elementalist. She is my favorite character (I have 12 slots) and I have about 1300 hours on just her. I was a solo player, I leveled her on staff (good grief, right?!), and I still had fun doing it. It took me until December of 2012 to get her to 80. I joined a guild then, learned to dungeon run, and started, what I thought to be, the real fun of the game. In February of 2013 I threw in some rare staves, and got The Legend. I was still really “new” to the game, and I was told that Arah was only for Elite dungeon runners, so I thought, hey, I’ll never be able to make the Bifrost. So I sold it, and spent my gold on friends, cute armors, and my guild.
I later on decided that I would try to make The Dreamer, for my Norn ranger. I tried really hard to finish the gifts and forge The Lover, and had no luck. I graduated from college in May, and spent the 150$ worth of gems I had gotten as gifts on shortbows to try in the forge. I got no Lover. I was really depressed, and I stopped trying very hard. I made a pact with myself that I wouldn’t try again, and that eventually I would just buy The Lover, and that would be it.
I played for 9 hours a day for the entire summer (End of May until the end of August) before starting my career. I had nothing else better to do, and it was a fun place to be and a good way to make friends, so I was content. One of my best friends, in the beginning of August, had nearly finished her Twilight, so I gave her most of my t6 fine materials for her gift of fortune: I had nearly finished with most of them. I decided at that point that I really wanted a legendary for my elementalist. The Bifrost was gorgeous then and has since become even more vibrant, so I decided to attempt it. However, since I was ending my full time job as a Guild Wars 2 player and moving on to becoming a casual (darn it!), I figured it would be a really long time before getting it. So, I casually collected dyes and dusts, made the Gift of the Bifrost, and saw, to my dismay, The Legend’s price skyrocket to an unbelievable 800 gold. I, of course, regretted selling my original Legend. However, I thought, you know, eventually maybe I can craft it or buy it, and since I really wasn’t in a rush I let it go, and slowly worked on my gift of fortune.
This past Friday night, right before I left to go to the new Magic the Gathering prerelease, (woot!) I saw that I had collected in my inventory 3 exotic staves from random boss encounters, drops, etc., a level 78 berserker’s, a level 80 rampager’s and a Bramblethorne. I ran to the TP, bought a pearl staff (No, not on buy order! Haha), and ran over to the forge. I tossed them in, because why not, and out popped The Legend.
I was ecstatic. I couldn’t believe it. I pinged it in map, guild, and for some reason, no whisper pinging was working for me, so I just had to type it out. I got the typical “I hate you”’s and “Grats!” and I couldn’t believe it. I had to go then, to my prerelease.
The next day, my 2 best friends sent me some t6 materials, I bought tons, and I had only bloods, scales, and venom sacs left. I was getting so close! Mumble was all abuzz, and then I get an email from Squirrel, Kally boy, etc, etc, with every last material I needed.
I went to the forge, everyone on Mumble was hooting and hollering and demanding I ping every step of the way, and I got The Bifrost. My guild leader demanded that I equip it immediately, without pressing “O” to see how much it sells for. I equipped it that second, and ran around in my rainbow, pink goodness.
I’m still ecstatic. It’s still on my mind, and it might be exceptionally nerdy and stupid of me to be so excited about a fake item in a video game, but what it represents to me is the work I put into it, the best friends I met along the way, and the amazing time that this game has given me. Yesterday and today I have given exotic swords, t6 materials, and everything I have left to Squirrel for his Bolt, and congratulations to him, he got his Zap today!
Will I quit after this Legendary journey? Heck no! Meteorlogicus next!
Anyway, the entire point of this thread was to try to give those who are burnt out or burning out a little encouragement. It really is worth it. It’s tough, it’s frustrating and depressing, but the game is about community, so use your community to push through it. In real life, friends are the most valuable assets you have, and I really think that this is true for Guild Wars 2 as well.
