Guild Wars 2

Looks like some awesome stuff here, but each time I’ve tried fractals, I’ve ended up not loving them because:

1. the bonus fractal was a hindrance, I wanted to be done, not given more to do
2. I don’t have enough friends who play the game regularly to make a non-pug team
3. I don’t like the need to use audio chat. (I do well running a northern defense team for tequatl without a microphone)
4. I would much prefer to do one at a time instead of 3, so I can make less time commitment.

(please keep in mind I am on quite often, so it’s not about being a casual player .. eh hem… 11k AP and 3500+hr 9 level 80s 4 legendaries)

I am a PvE lover.

Sure, “fractals may not be for me,” but I am sad that I am missing out on the content.

if you’ve a bitter taste of fractals as they stand right now.. wipe that slate clean! and start fresh with this new update to fractals. : )) try to see it in a different light maybe. if you go in with the same mentality, it’ll be hard to enjoy it.

and seems to me, this new patch is bringnig in content to STAY! so you won’t feel as pressed for time.

1) if i understood correctly, bonus boss won’t be only at even levels.. but every level now. so just see it as part of every fractal run. 4 separate fractals, with the final boss being a “shorter” instance compared so some of the full length ones?

2) try out the fractals when they come out. a LOT of people will be doing them i assume. play during the regular times you play. make NEW friends. : )) if you’ve had a good run, add them, remember them.. see ‘em online next time you want to frac? send them a tell! or even go as far as to set up daily fractal runing groups with people you’ve met and know you can play well and have fun with!

3) i don’t think this is necessary for fractals. i’m not sure of higher levels.. but as long as people understand the fights in general you can do without voice chat. of course that being said, it can definitely make the run go smoother. so it’s more of a nice to have kind of thing. : ))

4) i can relate to this to a certain extent. especially if you PUG since you don’t know how any given run is going to end up. so again, go back to (2) and garner yourself a group of people you can “depend” on and keep running it with them. : ))

it won’t be that bad! at all! good luck lol

Arena always punishes hardcore players and makes them leave the game, like in GW1 when everything was made easy. I think this content is great for casual players

I agree that I find Fractals difficult, because I am not much of a dungeon player to start with, and when I do, well…the time commitment to do 3 1/2 Fractals in one go is quite huge for me, because afterwards, I won’t have any more time to do content I really enjoy.

But hey, I know other people enjoy them, so go for it! It’s not as if I didn’t have other content to play, and I know I’ll do some fractals now because I missed out on the Aetherblade dungeon and am interested in the story of the Thaumanova Reactor.

I really wouldn’t mind at all if they weren’t the most effective way to acquire ascended items…

I’m not a dungeon runner in this game either. So far I’ve missed all dungeon and fractal content so missing another fractal isn’t going to hurt that much. For me these dungeon focused living story updates just means time to do or play something else. That’s not so bad thing.

I bet there’s also players out there who don’t like outworld updates and are playing only these dungeon focused ones.

Queens Jubilee – hampster wheel zerg and a gauntlet of awful bosses

Clockwork Chaos – world wide zerg with horrid overflow and completion problems

Super Adventure Box (round 2) – skins I didn’t care for and the rewards I did want got removed (obsidian shards)

I gave each these a day or two of attention before dropping them all together. I missed out on some rewards and I didn’t get some achievements but doing so doesn’t make me feel like I missed out or am behind.

If the content isn’t to your tastes, ANet is not going to shove it down your throat. Just abstain. If you feel like you have to, have to, have to do it then that’s something your forcing on yourself at your own displeasure.

Allisa Wonderland.8192:

1. the bonus fractal was a hindrance, I wanted to be done, not given more to do

You don’t have to do them – every fractal counts for 1 fractal.

Allisa Wonderland.8192:

2. I don’t have enough friends who play the game regularly to make a non-pug team

Run with Sarah. I cannot recommend her highly enough.
https://forum-en.gw2archive.eu/forum/game/players/Fractals-A-friendly-hand

Allisa Wonderland.8192:

3. I don’t like the need to use audio chat. (I do well running a northern defense team for tequatl without a microphone)

I don’t have a mic or any audio software installed, and have never been asked to by anybody I ran fractals with.

Allisa Wonderland.8192:

4. I would much prefer to do one at a time instead of 3, so I can make less time commitment.

You can leave after one – no problem. Just do one at a time when you feel like it? It’s what I do…

1) Why would you want to skip the boss fractal? It’s the best part of every FotM run! Pretty easy compared to the rest of the fractals (granted I don’t run FotM very high, typically around 10 while I get my AR higher) and gives the best reward. It’s really a bonus, not an extra.
2) If you want to PUG stick around level 10 until you make some friends. You still have a chance for ascended weapons, so it’ll be a good introduction (bring some exotics if you don’t have AR, teaching a newbie who’s in blues on the volcanic fractal is a pain. Don’t listen to what others say, you won’t get rings ‘till your personal is 10, so stay in pre10 until you have exotics).
3) Again, I run FotM 12 (1st AR bracket) and I love it. I haven’t needed to install any voice software yet.
4) That is your real problem. Leave your PUG after 1 fotm, but don’t expect rewards. Other than your lack of commitment (not really a game problem, I run it in about an hour. That’s not bad for endgame content IMO) if you just run fotm 12 you’ll be good.

I"ve always played GOTM with Pugs. No problem whatsoever.

Allisa Wonderland.8192:

4. I would much prefer to do one at a time instead of 3, so I can make less time commitment.

You could always leave after one fractal. Just saying. Let everyone know that you only have time for one, I believe other members can jump in whenever, and I’m sure most people would be happy to join with less fractals to do before boss. I know I would.

By the way, the boss fractal is ridiculously easy/short. I find it a relief to finally get there after an unlucky set of long fractals. You run through all the mobs and then fight the boss. That’s it.

Shpongle.6025:

Arena always punishes hardcore players and makes them leave the game, like in GW1 when everything was made easy. I think this content is great for casual players

I’m not entirely sure what you’re trying to say with that statement. That ArenaNet always makes the game too easy for hardcore players, causing them to leave the game and you to be happy?

Not everything can be made for everyone. Just like raiding in WoW, Pvp in Warhammer, etc… Guild wars has Teq and Fractals for those that have time to spare and love long going content.

Lasur Arkinshade.4107:

Shpongle.6025:

Arena always punishes hardcore players and makes them leave the game, like in GW1 when everything was made easy. I think this content is great for casual players

I’m not entirely sure what you’re trying to say with that statement. That ArenaNet always makes the game too easy for hardcore players, causing them to leave the game and you to be happy?

Arenanet are catering a broad audience. By making hardcore content they would not do that. They’ve had some slightly harder content, but nothing that requires an awful amount of skill yet.

Maybe this update level 50 fractals will be a nice challenge

Iv’e never done any either, reading the forums here, and as a Ranger, I feel if I don’t “conform” to what they want, I’m going to get kicked a LOT.

Really not fun, so probably more content I won’t be bothering with.

I used to hate fractal, well my idea of Fractals. That was until I got with some people that actually explained the encounters so I had a better understanding what to do.

But I am a dungeon runner. I love the small team going to do whatever. So once I understood fractals, I love them now. But I don’t go very high level in them because of the group of players I run with. We usually run a lvl 10 or 12 every few nights and usually takes us some where around 1hour to 1hr30min to complete the whole run.

Once you learn them, the time factor usually isn’t bad, unless you just get a bad run, which can happen in there. The main thing is understanding the fractal, understanding what you “NEED” to do to complete it, and learning some of the mechanics to avoid some damage, and they go by pretty quick.

Shpongle.6025:

Arena always punishes hardcore players and makes them leave the game, like in GW1 when everything was made easy.

hahahahahaha.. hahaha.. (cough) sorry. Everything easy in GW1? I just started playing it last month. Everything is not easy (oh yeah.. hardmodes, underworld.. such a faceroll right?) What a silly statement. Thanks for the laugh. :P

Allisa Wonderland.8192:

Looks like some awesome stuff here, but each time I’ve tried fractals, I’ve ended up not loving them because:

1. the bonus fractal was a hindrance, I wanted to be done, not given more to do
2. I don’t have enough friends who play the game regularly to make a non-pug team
3. I don’t like the need to use audio chat. (I do well running a northern defense team for tequatl without a microphone)
4. I would much prefer to do one at a time instead of 3, so I can make less time commitment.

(please keep in mind I am on quite often, so it’s not about being a casual player .. eh hem… 11k AP and 3500+hr 9 level 80s 4 legendaries)

I am a PvE lover.

Sure, “fractals may not be for me,” but I am sad that I am missing out on the content.

1 and 4: You can’t just do part of a dungeon, walk away, and expect to get credit. Every dungeon path is split into parts, FotM just randomizes those parts and makes them easier to distinguish. Doing all four only takes about an hour, which is 1/3500 of the time you’ve spent in game so far.

2. You don’t need friends to play FotM with, the LFG tool makes it very easy to just find a group and go. If you insist on playing in an organized group, then join a guild with other players who want to do fractals.

3. You don’t need to use voip by any means, but if you’re expecting an organized group, expect them to require voip. You don’t need a microphone to listen.

EnemyCrusher.7324:

1 and 4: You can’t just do part of a dungeon, walk away, and expect to get credit. Every dungeon path is split into parts, FotM just randomizes those parts and makes them easier to distinguish. Doing all four only takes about an hour, which is 1/3500 of the time you’ve spent in game so far.

2. You don’t need friends to play FotM with, the LFG tool makes it very easy to just find a group and go. If you insist on playing in an organized group, then join a guild with other players who want to do fractals.

3. You don’t need to use voip by any means, but if you’re expecting an organized group, expect them to require voip. You don’t need a microphone to listen.

Or she could run with people that take it easy… ?

My own group of GW2 friends that I run fractals with has some top-tier pros in it and many casuals (levels 5 – 20) and we a) do absolutely fine in fractals, b) have fun doing it, c) are not in the same guild, d) never even brought up the subject of audio chat. Not once. Not by the pros either.

Some people are just more relaxed about the whole thing and play with a social focus rather than a competitive one, which I believe the OP is looking for.

Edit: I wrote “fractals” when I meant “audio chat” which made my whole post not make any sense at all. <insert dog shaming picture>

Pixelpumpkin.4608:

EnemyCrusher.7324:

1 and 4: You can’t just do part of a dungeon, walk away, and expect to get credit. Every dungeon path is split into parts, FotM just randomizes those parts and makes them easier to distinguish. Doing all four only takes about an hour, which is 1/3500 of the time you’ve spent in game so far.

2. You don’t need friends to play FotM with, the LFG tool makes it very easy to just find a group and go. If you insist on playing in an organized group, then join a guild with other players who want to do fractals.

3. You don’t need to use voip by any means, but if you’re expecting an organized group, expect them to require voip. You don’t need a microphone to listen.

Or she could run with people that take it easy… ?

My own group of GW2 friends that I run fractals with has some top-tier pros in it and many casuals (levels 5 – 20) and we a) do absolutely fine in fractals, b) have fun doing it, c) are not in the same guild, d) never even brought up the subject of fractals. Not once. Not by the pros either.

Some people are just more relaxed about the whole thing and play with a social focus rather than a competitive one, which I believe the OP is looking for.

I don’t think anything that you’re saying disagrees with anything I said, but your main paragraph doesn’t make much sense to me either. It made sense until “d”; could you please clarify?

Well you said that if she wanted to run with an organized group, she should expect them to expect her to use VOIP.

My own group is organized enough to do well in fractals and have fun, and doesn’t expect anybody to use VOIP.

Seeing as the OP originally said that she prefers not to use VOIP, I felt it important to let her know that this is not a prerequisite with all organized groups – so contrary to her own conclusions (and possibly yours), I am saying that fractals might in fact be “for her” after all and she might not have to miss out on content.

Pixelpumpkin.4608:

Well you said that if she wanted to run with an organized group, she should expect them to expect her to use VOIP.

My own group is organized enough to do well in fractals and have fun, and doesn’t expect anybody to use VOIP.

Seeing as the OP originally said that she prefers not to use VOIP, I felt it important to let her know that this is not a prerequisite with all organized groups – so contrary to her own conclusions (and possibly yours), I am saying that fractals might in fact be “for her” after all and she might not have to miss out on content.

Oh, where you said “d) never even brought up the subject of fractals” did you mean “voip” instead of “fractals”?

Anyway, I think I included everything you’re saying in my first post. Maybe it didn’t come out as clearly as I thought.

Well I don’t like living story so I feel like I’ve been missing out.

See how this works?

EnemyCrusher.7324:

Oh, where you said “d) never even brought up the subject of fractals” did you mean “voip” instead of “fractals”?

Anyway, I think I included everything you’re saying in my first post. Maybe it didn’t come out as clearly as I thought.

Ooops XD … I’ll go edit… thanks man

Well, 90% of updates have been PvE (other stuff that fractals) related. I think it’s good they do this.

I’d even ecourage them to do a rotation of PvE, PvP, WvW, Fractals+Dungeons updates not only PvE.

Thanks to those of you who have made some great suggestions, including people to run with! Pixelpumpkin, all great input here.

A few people have stressed to me the need for voice chat, so hearing that it isn’t everyone’s experience makes me feel much better. I don’t mind listening to a teamspeak channel: I have experience leading a part of the TTS Tequatl defense – responding in chat to people speaking in voice.

Gnat, I’m not saying that I don’t like Fractals, but that I am fearful of missing out something that I will like.

As I’ve done my share of TA, CoF, AC and even some good ARAH runs, I understand that finding a good team to play with will make short work of the runs, and playing all 3 in a row won’t be an issue.

In my “4 event” experience, it took the group about 2 hours to get to the 4th event (I didn’t know it was a short boss run), so you may imagine that I was feeling a bit exhausted by that point. When Fractals were first introduced, I thought I remembered hearing about lots of grief with players not finishing the entire group of 3 run and hurting the rest of the team… I don’t want to be that person.

I listened to WP’s latest youtube video about Fractured, and learned a lot from this thread. It gives me some confidence that, especially with the upcoming changes to some of the existing paths, the experience will be much better for me.

I’m short some dungeon paths, but other than that I’m pretty on top of all of the content, including the jumping puzzles. So, to have the opportunity to run Fractals .. and make no mistake, I am encouraged by the rewards.

BTW, I have Sunrise -and- Twilight on PTV support shouts Guardian, so I won’t be squishy

Anyhow, thanks all – I will talk to Sarah and have already responded to the private message!

I don’t mind PUG’ing Fractals, but I do wish more people were willing to kill stuff along the way rather than skipping everything. (This goes for dungeons too!)

O.o fractals are fine!! some of you guys need to join me so I show you how awesome fractals is :p

Im also like you, I dont like to skip fights/moobs; its free loot!!

sarah

Not sure why the op thinks he/she needs voip to do fractals. I’ve had quick 40min runs of fractal 48 without usin voip. If you don’t have friends you can easily add players that you played with. Like another poster said anet can’t please everyone.

Lothirieth.3408:

Shpongle.6025:

Arena always punishes hardcore players and makes them leave the game, like in GW1 when everything was made easy.

hahahahahaha.. hahaha.. (cough) sorry. Everything easy in GW1? I just started playing it last month. Everything is not easy (oh yeah.. hardmodes, underworld.. such a faceroll right?) What a silly statement. Thanks for the laugh. :P

He was talking about the past you do know gw1 has been out for like 7 years? You’ve admitted you’ve played for 1 month yet you talk as if you were there since the release

Sarahfull.4930:

O.o fractals are fine!! some of you guys need to join me so I show you how awesome fractals is :p

Im also like you, I dont like to skip fights/moobs; its free loot!!

sarah

Hmm… Do you do dungeons too, Sarah? Maybe I should add you to my Friends list for days when I’m feeling up for Fractals/dungeons. (Which are usually days when it’s a Daily. XD )

Just throwing in with the people saying that you don’t need voip to pug fractals. I’ve never run a single pug and used voice chat.

Ive never used VOIP
I sometimes do other dungeons although my home is fractals :p
The other thing that annoies me is how picky people are with fractals..

Ill “roll” cliffside all day

I got to level 31 pugging (was just accumulating currency to make the back piece shiny) no talking required other than “Ready?” “3, 2, 1, GO!” “Don’t kill the targeted one”

Allisa Wonderland.8192:

Thanks to those of you who have made some great suggestions, including people to run with!

I hope you added me to ^^