Guild Wars 2

I was looking through some GW2 general artwork, and backgrounds that both people have created as well as Arenanet. I started thinking, “Who says we need new weapons for each class come expansion time.” Now I know the big part of specializations is getting that new weapon but what if we dug deeper.

In a lot of backgrounds, created by Arenanet themselves, I see characters using a sword, or an axe, or a mace, but what is in their offhand? Magic. No weapon just their hand with glowing magic. I personally would find it SOOO cool if they introduced that. A guardian with a sword and blue fire magic, burning foes for massive damage (Burn guardians are cheap you noobs). Or a druid who can use a axe with also some long range support/healing magic. Elementalists who truly can support the name of “Spellsword”, well something close to it like a dagger because we don’t have swords, wielding a dagger on one hand but lightning it the other.

For instance you would have “The Wardmaster” a guardian who uses magic skills in his off-hand instead of a focus, torch, shield etc… For this example we’ll do Sword/Hand or Magic. You have your 3 sword skills as normal but for your 4 & 5 skills you’d have Ward and Death’s Circle.
Your Ward skill would act as a ward granting Protection and Regeneration and healing you for every projectile absorbed. Your Death’s Circle would be a devastating aoe ring that burns foes and does extra damage to minions, pets and other summoned allies. Essentially your character would be holding a sword and a ball of magic in his off-hand like in the picture I posted.
Hope this cleared some stuff up. You could even go as far as adding a cool PvE aspect to this and allow your 4 & 5 skills, which are magic in your off-hand, and actually advance your Ward skill even the Death’s Circle. ie: Lesser Ward, Greater Ward, Grandmaster Ward, and Ward.

I think this would make a huge twist for GW2, I mean in all the screen shots that’s how it is one weapon and magic. Maybe they did this on purpose or maybe they didn’t I just think it would be awesome because, I personally loved running around in Skyrim with a weapon and magic in my hands. Let me know what you think!!

PS: Warrior’s Engi’s and Thieves you’re all SOL on this one xD

Balance, even a “non weapon” set needs balancing (and not only due to it being free).

What you are essentially asking is for them to add weapon skills for no weapon present, which requires balancing around those skills. Might as well let the class use a new type of weapon and have those skills perform in the way an empty hand would.

Cyninja.2954:

Balance, even a “non weapon” set needs balancing (and not only due to it being free).

What you are essentially asking is for them to add weapon skills for no weapon present, which requires balancing around those skills. Might as well let the class use a new type of weapon and have those skills perform in the way an empty hand would.

Well you would have your 4 & 5 skills be magic skills just controlled with your left hand. Balancing would be the same if you had your 4 & 5 skills be a dagger it’s the same thing both skills on your offhand. You would be adding skills for your offhand which happen to be used up by magic. Essentially it’s no different.

So what you’re basically suggesting is add new 1h weapons as 2h? Like a sword that occupies both equipment slots but retains normal sword animations and adds new glowy effects to the offhand? Cause that sounds like a great and not that hard to implement idea to me.

Kabansky.9160:

So what you’re basically suggesting is add new 1h weapons as 2h? Like a sword that occupies both equipment slots but retains normal sword animations and adds new glowy effects to the offhand? Cause that sounds like a great and not that hard to implement idea to me.

No no, sorry if this is confusing let me break it down a bit more. For instance you would have “The Wardmaster” a guardian who uses magic skills in his off-hand instead of a focus, torch, shield etc… For this example we’ll do Sword/Hand or Magic. You have your 3 sword skills as normal but for your 4 & 5 skills you’d have Ward and Death’s Circle.

Your Ward skill would act as a ward granting Protection and Regeneration and healing you for every projectile absorbed. Your Death’s Circle would be a devastating aoe ring that burns foes and does extra damage to minions, pets and other summoned allies. Essentially your character would be holding a sword and a ball of magic in his off-hand like in the picture I posted.
Hope this cleared some stuff up. You could even go as far as adding a cool PvE aspect to this and allow your 4 & 5 skills, which are magic in your off-hand, and actually advance your Ward skill even the Death’s Circle. ie: Lesser Ward, Greater Ward, Grandmaster Ward, and Ward.

Sammyjoe.4271:

Kabansky.9160:

So what you’re basically suggesting is add new 1h weapons as 2h? Like a sword that occupies both equipment slots but retains normal sword animations and adds new glowy effects to the offhand? Cause that sounds like a great and not that hard to implement idea to me.

No no, sorry if this is confusing let me break it down a bit more. For instance you would have “The Wardmaster” a guardian who uses magic skills in his off-hand instead of a focus, torch, shield etc… For this example we’ll do Sword/Hand or Magic. You have your 3 sword skills as normal but for your 4 & 5 skills you’d have Ward and Death’s Circle.

Your Ward skill would act as a ward granting Protection and Regeneration and healing you for every projectile absorbed. Your Death’s Circle would be a devastating aoe ring that burns foes and does extra damage to minions, pets and other summoned allies. Essentially your character would be holding a sword and a ball of magic in his off-hand like in the picture I posted.
Hope this cleared some stuff up. You could even go as far as adding a cool PvE aspect to this and allow your 4 & 5 skills, which are magic in your off-hand, and actually advance your Ward skill even the Death’s Circle. ie: Lesser Ward, Greater Ward, Grandmaster Ward, and Ward.

Well isn’t it essentially a redesigned focus offhand with a glowy-magic-empty-hand skin then?

Kabansky.9160:

Sammyjoe.4271:

Kabansky.9160:

So what you’re basically suggesting is add new 1h weapons as 2h? Like a sword that occupies both equipment slots but retains normal sword animations and adds new glowy effects to the offhand? Cause that sounds like a great and not that hard to implement idea to me.

No no, sorry if this is confusing let me break it down a bit more. For instance you would have “The Wardmaster” a guardian who uses magic skills in his off-hand instead of a focus, torch, shield etc… For this example we’ll do Sword/Hand or Magic. You have your 3 sword skills as normal but for your 4 & 5 skills you’d have Ward and Death’s Circle.

Your Ward skill would act as a ward granting Protection and Regeneration and healing you for every projectile absorbed. Your Death’s Circle would be a devastating aoe ring that burns foes and does extra damage to minions, pets and other summoned allies. Essentially your character would be holding a sword and a ball of magic in his off-hand like in the picture I posted.
Hope this cleared some stuff up. You could even go as far as adding a cool PvE aspect to this and allow your 4 & 5 skills, which are magic in your off-hand, and actually advance your Ward skill even the Death’s Circle. ie: Lesser Ward, Greater Ward, Grandmaster Ward, and Ward.

Well isn’t it essentially a redesigned focus offhand with a glowy-magic-empty-hand skin then?

No xD It would be like having fire spells or a green druid like watery orb in your hand whatever your class is just magic oriented with that specific class

You’re more likely to get a new class of weapons with multiple skins to choose from, only they look like what you’re describing. Then any Profession that can use those new, glowy weapons can choose whichever skin they want. That’s how weapons work in GW2.

So there won’t be a “Druid Glowy Weapon” and “Elementalist Glowy Weapon,” but rather “Glowy Weapon A” and “Glowy Weapon B” from which you can choose.

Good luck getting a new weapon. I’ll be surprised if it happens.

The anomaly. You’re talking about the anomaly.

You’re literally saying, “kitten , why are they giving us new weapons, when instead… they could GIVE US A NEW WEAPON!”

… You want every class to have access to /the same/ new weapon.

They may do this. But they’re more than freakin likely to let each class use the pre-existing weapons before they implement a brand spanking new one— that is pretty much a kitten focus— because you want your hand to glow. Like you were wielding The Anomaly. cough

By the way… apparently- kitten -is censored.

D- o you like
E- veryday
R- eally
P- retty
……………………………….weapons.

Yea, you could say AESTHETICALLY they would somewhat the same, however the skills would be totally different and you’d actually be using legit magic. It wouldn’t look exactly the same though. It would be a new weapon but then again not a steel, iron etc physical weapon like you guys are thinking. Just like the screenshot using magic in your off-hand.

Depending on the magic you’re using it would change the color and even maybe shape of the magic itself. So no I’m not literally talking about the Anomaly, similar in appearance but usage wise, not so much. Also how hard could it be to add this new “weapon” it’s a orb of magic in your hand, sounds kinda simple to me.

Could even go as far as, for example, Asura. Making the orb of magic (not the anomaly xD) correspond with the college you picked at the start. Dynamics is a diamond if I remember correctly, maybe just a cool feature. I’m sure this will never happen because it’s confusing to you guys just wanted to throw a cool idea out there and see how it went.

Technically, wielding magical energy with your offhand is basically what a Focus -is-.

On another slide, it would be cool for all classes to have a set of ‘unarmed’ skills.
The only problem would be the lack of stats and sigils, but maybe they can then copy the stat ratios from equiped gloves or rings.