Guild Wars 2

I kinda wanted to make this post myself. If people have a problem, pin up or shut up. Pins are extremely useful in letting people know where zergs are. It is not a free pass to abuse that person and complain because you aren’t getting your way or because you think you can do better.

If you can, do so.

Dog.1472:

If you can, do so.

Fallacy I’m afraid. The inability (due to lack of gold) to turn on a commander tag does not mean that person is incapable of accurately identifying poor use of a commander tag. Same way that most people couldn’t build a car, but if the car catches fire on the way home from the showroom they know that the folk who built it did something wrong.

Carzor Stelatis.9435:

Dog.1472:

If you can, do so.

Fallacy I’m afraid. The inability (due to lack of gold) to turn on a commander tag does not mean that person is incapable of accurately identifying poor use of a commander tag. Same way that most people couldn’t build a car, but if the car catches fire on the way home from the showroom they know that the folk who built it did something wrong.

In general you don’t need to know anything special though. It just gives an icon to follow in most instances. In WvW it would be different but in PvE, it just gives people a tag to rally to and follow for efficiency.

People need commanders to help them out in PvE? You just clump up and spam 1-5 like a pianist. Reckon there should be Login commanders to complement the PvE ones.

Hey, it’s easier to clump up and spam 1 when there’s a blue icon on the screen. Sometimes I’m not aware of all the events in the game. It also helps during guild missions.

Honestly, if people get worked up over it so badly, I’m just gonna spend 100g on this just for the amusement.

Insignya.8625:

People need commanders to help them out in PvE? You just clump up and spam 1-5 like a pianist. Reckon there should be Login commanders to complement the PvE ones.

Let’s face it no one really needs help in anything with this game, there is no real challenge. As I said though, it does make it efficient to have one during events like in CP instead of people arguing over where they are going to go first each time a legendary spawns.

Insignya.8625:

People need commanders to help them out in PvE? You just clump up and spam 1-5 like a pianist. Reckon there should be Login commanders to complement the PvE ones.

THIS. I rarely set foot outside of WvW but when I do and show up at an event and there are 5 tags up……GRRRR. PvE is faceroll there is no reason to tag up unless you are running a guild bounty.

Part of the problem I’ve noticed recently is actually more to do with other players attitudes than the commanders themselves.

For example the other day in the Pavilion a commander and presumably a group of other players were farming destroyers when the two boss events started up. Some people wanted to go and fight the bosses while others wanted to keep farming.

Normally this shouldn’t be an issue at all, there were more than enough people on the map to do both. But some people seemed to have it fixed in their head that they couldn’t go and do the bosses unless and until the commander did, or another commander came on and started doing them.

So instead of just coming to join those of us making our way to the boss they sat in the ring in the middle demanding, in increasingly abusive language, that the commander stop doing what she wanted and do what they wanted to do…so that they would be able to follow.

Hopefully that’s an isolated incident but I have seen similar things in other situations, people having unrealistic expectations of commanders, like assuming if they’re near a dungeon entrance then it will be open soon and they are personally responsible for making this happen, no matter what they’re actually doing there.

Of course I’ve also seen some really bad commanders, either doing the opposite of that and demanding that everyone on the map does as they’re told just because they switched their icon on, or just doing a bad job of leading people through whatever they’re doing. But I think there’s definitely 2 sides to the issue.

Danikat.8537:

Part of the problem I’ve noticed recently is actually more to do with other players attitudes than the commanders themselves.

For example the other day in the Pavilion a commander and presumably a group of other players were farming destroyers when the two boss events started up. Some people wanted to go and fight the bosses while others wanted to keep farming.

Normally this shouldn’t be an issue at all, there were more than enough people on the map to do both. But some people seemed to have it fixed in their head that they couldn’t go and do the bosses unless and until the commander did, or another commander came on and started doing them.

So instead of just coming to join those of us making our way to the boss they sat in the ring in the middle demanding, in increasingly abusive language, that the commander stop doing what she wanted and do what they wanted to do…so that they would be able to follow.

Hopefully that’s an isolated incident but I have seen similar things in other situations, people having unrealistic expectations of commanders, like assuming if they’re near a dungeon entrance then it will be open soon and they are personally responsible for making this happen, no matter what they’re actually doing there.

Of course I’ve also seen some really bad commanders, either doing the opposite of that and demanding that everyone on the map does as they’re told just because they switched their icon on, or just doing a bad job of leading people through whatever they’re doing. But I think there’s definitely 2 sides to the issue.

You can lead a horse to water, people are idiots.

I tag up both in WvW and PVE.

“Umad?”

I’m always grateful when a blue guy shows up on the map, it tells me where the zerg is. Seems like a good system.

U paid 100g for it, tag up if you want. You don’t need followers to have your tag on. In PvE, it means almost nothing. Who would give a commander crap in PvE? Comedy!!

Players have been using it to direct the zerg for farming, ok, I get it. But does it actually take a commander to see where there are a lot of people? You can just ask in map chat also, god forbid we use map chat right?

Players have been using it for guild missions and to show a point of interest, ok. But to actually treat them (me2,have one…) as someone who expects to be commanding anything in PvE (besides their own guild which is the other half of the reason to have these tags), is funny to me.

Look, I understand many players are sheep and take those tags serious, whether you call yourself leading in PvE or following them. Well, it’s not serious. If you can’t think for yourself during an event that practically holds your hand…I don’t know what to say.

I got mine last year, I don’t see much of this attitude on my server. More tags now though, especially with the farmers that farm the kitten out of things until they have gold to toss around and buy a commander tag to look cool. I’ve seen some seriously fail commanders come of this in recent months. Not just bad commanders, but some that intentionally mislead people for laughs, seriously.

Otherwise it’s helpful in wvw for those that play serious. And I turn it on a lot when doing temples. After all I bought it early because I like having people know where to go so to add to the size and scale-up of the event. To add, really the tag has paid for itself in that, and not just me but the more loot drops for everyone in pve regarding temples and general event meta bosses. Running around gathering nodes with it turned on? …not a good idea heh

But yeah, don’t bother sending messages to me telling me how to do something your way on an event/temple I’ve led 100 times with success. But then I still don’t get much of that apart from people new to what we are doing. Save those messages for the commander-farmer-zergers out there, lots of those now

As for the 100g, I’ve spent more in equipment just on that one character. Maybe it’s time for Anet to raise the price for tags? and/or earn it through wvw participation/currency. Possibly through laurels as well. But yeah raise gold price to curve 1337 farmers from abusing commander tags, imo.

bloodletting wolf.2837:

Insignya.8625:

People need commanders to help them out in PvE? You just clump up and spam 1-5 like a pianist. Reckon there should be Login commanders to complement the PvE ones.

THIS. I rarely set foot outside of WvW but when I do and show up at an event and there are 5 tags up……GRRRR. PvE is faceroll there is no reason to tag up unless you are running a guild bounty.

well in the new event commanders are insanely helpful. They lead a zerg. I’ve been fighting some of the events popping up on 3 or 4 people, however it’s just far more efficient with a commander dividing the zerg equally to several locations. Otherwise the zerg does not divide itself, or it divides too much and you end up trying to two man every single event that’s popping up.
In the pavillion before hand it was easy to see what event is being done first (both health bars were on your screen), however with people changing their farming locations constantly you had to either have a commander at the current farm location or tell each newcommer what the overflow is farming.
Sometimes even for the meta events I wish that I already bought a commander tag. Let’s say we’re doing the fire elemental. It’s in a low level zone. I call out “fire elemental in 3 minutes” a newbie wants to participate too, however they do not know where the thaumanova reactor even is. Normally the problem is solved by inviting every single lost person to your party and showing them this way, however time can be saved by just putting that blue tag up.

CobaltSixty.1542:

Danikat.8537:

Part of the problem I’ve noticed recently is actually more to do with other players attitudes than the commanders themselves.

For example the other day in the Pavilion a commander and presumably a group of other players were farming destroyers when the two boss events started up. Some people wanted to go and fight the bosses while others wanted to keep farming.

Normally this shouldn’t be an issue at all, there were more than enough people on the map to do both. But some people seemed to have it fixed in their head that they couldn’t go and do the bosses unless and until the commander did, or another commander came on and started doing them.

So instead of just coming to join those of us making our way to the boss they sat in the ring in the middle demanding, in increasingly abusive language, that the commander stop doing what she wanted and do what they wanted to do…so that they would be able to follow.

Hopefully that’s an isolated incident but I have seen similar things in other situations, people having unrealistic expectations of commanders, like assuming if they’re near a dungeon entrance then it will be open soon and they are personally responsible for making this happen, no matter what they’re actually doing there.

Of course I’ve also seen some really bad commanders, either doing the opposite of that and demanding that everyone on the map does as they’re told just because they switched their icon on, or just doing a bad job of leading people through whatever they’re doing. But I think there’s definitely 2 sides to the issue.

You can lead a horse to water, people are idiots.

That’s actually kinda poetic.

bloodletting wolf.2837:

Insignya.8625:

People need commanders to help them out in PvE? You just clump up and spam 1-5 like a pianist. Reckon there should be Login commanders to complement the PvE ones.

THIS. I rarely set foot outside of WvW but when I do and show up at an event and there are 5 tags up……GRRRR. PvE is faceroll there is no reason to tag up unless you are running a guild bounty.

Actually you DO need one for the latest Version of Balthazar’s Temple (I’m going to assume you have no idea what that’s like right now… Well…) it’s basically “fighting against TC, and you’re Crystal Desert” on the WvW scale for difficulty. ….. For a mindless zerg event like the one I saw today through, yeah running a Tag is just completely wasted and might actually be working against the design of the “zone event”

There are commanders and there are commanders. Some are worthy of respect, some not. Ideally, a commander would think about a bigger picture and use the tag to promote success.

As an example: picture an overflow server lucky enough to feature an invasion. Two commander tags are on the map. One of the commanders is calling things out in map chat, making suggestions. The other just follows the first one around. Ultimately the invasion event fails because not enough Aetherblades get defeated.

Which commander is worthy of respect, and which isn’t?

Coin Flunk.3024:

Some PvE commanders have spent 100 gold on the commander tag to help people out, to help guildies out during guild events, to help point out where to attack following today’s event, for large scale event farming, to point things out on the map and for various other reasons.

And some commanders just spent 100 gold to show off, to get a tag that makes people see them on their minimap whether they want to or not, to troll events, and so on.

Besides, some commanders are actually worse than having nothing there. During some of the invasions, for example, I have seen people flocking to commanders as a rally point, only for said commanders to farm Champions instead of actually progressing the event, or to stay after an event has been done killing random enemies, or just waste time running from one corner of the map to another instead of using waypoints. All those things waste the time of the commander and everyone following him, thus making it more likely that everyone else in the map – including those who are not wasting their time – will fail.

bloodletting wolf.2837:

THIS. I rarely set foot outside of WvW but when I do and show up at an event and there are 5 tags up……GRRRR. PvE is faceroll there is no reason to tag up unless you are running a guild bounty.

Normally I would agree with you, but with today’s release of events I have to disagree. If the Commanders don’t spread out and hit the events across a whole map then the event will fail. What that means is less loot for the mass.

I was in an overflow map where the commanders ran together and we ended up failing the event miserably. People are going to follow those Doritos no matter what we say in these forums, so its up to the commanders to spread out the zerg effectively.

Sorry, but you are repeatedly insisting that people who buy the commander tag do it to help out the community when the truth is, it’s more of a status symbol nowadays.

I’ve heard the hilarious stories of people trying to help out the commanders and then suddenly the commander tries to turn the server against that one person for whatever reason, haha.

Having a commander tag does not mean you should automatically be nice to them, and they should be treated the same as everyone else.

I’m nice to most everyone and most people I know are as well, but what you and others (seem) to expect is for people to listen to you because you shelled out a ridiculous sum of money for something which has nothing to do with your ability to lead or even play.

That doesn’t mean I won’t follow a leader, but if I do so, it will be based on my observation of him or her as a player and leader, not based on how much gold he or she was able to farm or what early game exploit he or she was able to get rich off of.

And so my response to that expectation is, in short, no.

I got a commander tag strictly for use during guild missions (or now keeping the guild together during zone-wide events).

It saves a lot of time trying to get people to bounties within the time limit. Anyone gives me a hard time in game because they don’t like what I’m doing is going to be given all the consideration they deserve.

Today’s release really showed who the true commanders were.

I saw the whole gamut over multiple maps. Some truly led, some ran through said, “done”, and ran out leaving the zerg to battle the bulk of the enemy, others just went to areas alone and drew others who thought there might be a zerg and drew them into a slaughter. It did run the gamut.

The ones who intelligently led from one area to the next, showed the target, indicated what was needed or where to go next were simply wonderful. The good ones I tried to stick with as long as I could. I can only hope the others were just learning and will get better…..

Vayne.8563:

Anyone gives me a hard time in game because they don’t like what I’m doing is going to be given all the consideration they deserve.

Which is more evidence as to how this…

Coin Flunk.3024:

If you think a commander is doing something wrong, why not whisper them and educate them or tell them how you think would make the situation better, rather than publicly abusing them in map chat

…Doesn’t work.

I doubt most people are actually willing to accept being told how they are doing something wrong. It’s better to tell players in chat to stop following a (bad) commander and follow another one (a good one) than trying to bother talking to people who likely aren’t going to give it “consideration” anyway.

Each time one of those ****** go near a point that interest me I have to struggle with the ****** mouse pointer to see whats below the blue arrow.

They are WVW commanders. Not pve commanders and I would apreciate if they turn off their ******** arrows because frankly its getting me mad the ammount of commanders.

Or at least Anet should give us an option to block off commander´s arrows on our maps.

I don’t care for PvE or PvP Commanders… If they actually earned the thing doing PvE and PvP id feel something for them but pony up 100 gold and you’re a commander to me is a non factor..

The whole setup stinks of ego..

Iv ignored commanderps up until now, but now that there negatively impacting my gaming experience something should be done about them.
But is it really the commanderps that are the problem or the sheeple that follower them regardless?
Either way, the problem can be solved if there is an option to hide commander tags, one for PvE and a separate option for WvW. Have the PvE hide option enabled by default so the stupid people cant see the tags and in turn won’t follow.

Why would anyone even need to follow a commander in PvE? Aren’t the red circles on the map a big enough indication that there’s something going on there?

I never follow commanders in PvE. Half the time, I don’t follow them in WvW, either. I’m smart enough to figure out what’s going on in any given situation without a blue chevron.

most of the commanders in any mode are rich and unfreindly like. (trolling, watching you die, dont res you. spreading rumors in their guild, etc.)

Too much credit is being given to sheeple, seriously alot of the zergers are just lemmings. I know this sounds like a harsh criticism, but sadly it seems true in many cases. People that normally are highly functional basically lose all semblance of being able to think for themselves once they are connected to the hivemind. Drones can follow icons though without much thought so eh, commander tags are essential!
p.s. before anyone gets mad this post is only partially serious

As a WvWer, Commander Tags in PvE just come off as vanity tags. Not that Id be rude to them, but it just seems pointless since few ever actually command anything. Though if I saw a WvW commander I respected in PvE, Id be keen to following them, but I already know who they are. Plus as WvW will teach, having the gold doesnt mean you have the skill. Ive seen good tagless commanders, and horrible tagged commanders.

I’m nice to commanders if they are nice to me. I used to be really into of wvw, but then I started to get headaches… basically for a week or two I witnessed officers that ragequit after few hours (no kidding, one day I witnessed 3 different ragequits), blamed players on failing and not listening or following. Some of them probably had reason for it… others not so much. Then few started writing in caps locks – which seriously gave me headache after reading it for few hours – probably because I’m prone to migraines… (not a fan of zigzag or lines either)

After I noted commander of my own guild saying it causes headache and it’s quite unpolite anyways, he just proceeded to explain that he uses capslocks because otherwise people don’t listen to him and he won’t give me special treatment even if I’m a guildie.

yeah. These days I go into wvw and if there’s even one insult or I see a commander typing in capslocks, I just turn off /say /map and /team.

I like commander tags though. Makes it easier to see where people are. I think it’d be better if they didn’t cost any money and we automatically had them – in that case people wouldn’t make such a fuzz about it.

iv’e seen commander and player using caps lock but for attention calls or some kind or alert.

this on WvW, pve commanders is just a tag/beacon to follow on arah purification process

got mine for guild missions and other events where i would need to coordinate more than 5 players.

turn it on during invasions and immediately other comms opened up a conversation about where to go, what to do, what the were doing, etc. very positive experience.

other non comm players /join on me just to thank me and added me to flist(which i assume they also did to all the other comms). i have to say it’s nothing like all the negative responses in here.

no, i don’t dream that i am an awesome w3 comm. and i don’t presume i should get to ride on a high horse neither, so guess what…i don’t.

AXEL.8362:

Each time one of those ****** go near a point that interest me I have to struggle with the ****** mouse pointer to see whats below the blue arrow.

They are WVW commanders. Not pve commanders and I would apreciate if they turn off their ******** arrows because frankly its getting me mad the ammount of commanders.

Or at least Anet should give us an option to block off commander´s arrows on our maps.

No it’s definitely not just for wvw according to the anet description of commander. I know what you are talking about with the tags getting in the way, but also the group blips do it too. I’m like in a dungeon after a wipe asking for the group to move off the WP so I can respawn lol. It’s not the tags or blips, it’s just one of the maps shortcomings.

The problem people usually have with pvemanders are people who tag up for no reason or keep their tag up 24/7 for no reason at all. e.g. Lion arch has a bunch of them.

IceBlink.4317:

Sorry, but you are repeatedly insisting that people who buy the commander tag do it to help out the community when the truth is, it’s more of a status symbol nowadays.

I’ve heard the hilarious stories of people trying to help out the commanders and then suddenly the commander tries to turn the server against that one person for whatever reason, haha.

Having a commander tag does not mean you should automatically be nice to them, and they should be treated the same as everyone else.

Some buy it for status, others buy it for other reasons. Surely you are not stupid enough to believe that EVERYONE is all the same are you? If so wow, just wow and no not that other game…..

Aeolus.3615:

pve commanders is just a tag/beacon to follow on arah purification process

Well, depends on the commander. I use chat a lot, especially for those that are unsure of the event, still not up to speed on what to do. So I’m out there calling out like “protect Jonez now” or “keep off the stairs” or “WP if down” (especially mid point on risen priest). Non-commanders for the most part are focused on just killing the thing in front of them. But if you are doing your job as a commander, you are watching everything and posting commands as needed. This can be the difference between succeeding at grenth the first time compared to maybe the third attempt if at all. Arah assault (as you mentioned) is pretty straight forward though, harder to fail, and mostly the tag is most useful for progress location.

I guess it’s the old school mmo raid leader that makes me do it …regardless of having a tag on or not. Better results with it on though.

@Lafiel
I do that, have tags on at LA. When I come back from wvw or temples, it’s just still on til I log or move on to something else. I don’t see the problem in it. I don’t stand on WP’s there, so what?

Commanding during these invasions is an incredibly fun experience. Sure, there are some commanders that are just wasting time. But most of the commanders I’ve seen in PVE were doing a great job, and working together. I’m one of those PVE commanders. I look at the map, see where the other commanders are, and head over to an invasion spot that needs more people. Often I’d see two players vastly out numbered, and then be relieved to see a commander show up, with an entire zerg behind her. People tend to go where the commanders are, and that’s a good thing.

But still, even during an invasion, when every single commander in the map is making a good effort to tackle all the invasions as quickly and efficiently as possible…. there’s also a couple of jerks in map chat complaining about how the commander tag is just for someone’s ego. Do these people not look on their map? Do they not see what is going on? You’ve got about six commanders, all spread out over the map, directing people to the different invasions, and still they whine that it is just an ego badge?

Sure, it’s not rocket science. Does it need to be? Hell no. When I play a commander it PVE, I focus on keeping the other players alive. I revive people, I heal them, I cleanse their conditions, and make myself the rallying point for other players.

Saelune.5316:

As a WvWer, Commander Tags in PvE just come off as vanity tags. Not that Id be rude to them, but it just seems pointless since few ever actually command anything. Though if I saw a WvW commander I respected in PvE, Id be keen to following them, but I already know who they are. Plus as WvW will teach, having the gold doesnt mean you have the skill. Ive seen good tagless commanders, and horrible tagged commanders.

This is why I think they should come out with a RED PvP commander tag, attainable only through PvP means. At the moment, it seems silly to me that the commanders in PvP are determined by their PvE ability only (aka- ability to make 100g). That doesn’t mean there aren’t good blue commanders, but a red commander would be far more likely to… “inspire” me to follow them around and actually listen to their strategies.

You know, for the most part, I try to be nice to everyone. To me, a ‘commander’ is just someone that had a lot of gold to blow. Now that could have come from farming, that could have come from using mommy and daddy’s credit card. They could be doing it to just show off, they could be doing it, as you said, to help out the community. I really don’t know and I don’t honestly care, but to me they are no different than other people. If they aren’t respectful to others, then they are not deserving of my respect, since respect is an earned thing. At least, that’s how it used to be when such things as common courtesy, sportsmanship, decency, manners, and ethics existed in the world.

That said, someone that has a commander tag and displays it is obviously noticeable by the community. They should be examples to the community. So when you see one being a disrespectful kitten, I’m not going to wspr them and point it out. They know they are doing it, and I have no particular desire to have their acidity turned on me. Instead, I just report them. We don’t need that type of behavior in the game, and we definitely don’t need someone sporting a commander tag doing it. In fact, I reported one just last night during the Sparkfly Fen invasion, for verbally abusing another player in map chat.

Edit: Side note – the commander I reported last night is, sadly, one I’ve played with in WvW. It was a name I recognized. In WvW, she seemed like a decent enough person, but ‘listening’ to her last night….wow. I don’t think I could play with her, or follow her again if she treats people like that.

To tell you the truth, I’ve never actually seen a rude commander :P In pve or wvw. Well aside from an old guildmate who basically bought the tag to troll, lol. Most are fine in WvW, and I follow the pve ones in the QD-zerg train. This is on most servers also.

There is so much abuse on commanders especially in Lion’s Arch. I dunno why they think seeing a blue tag in LA is such an issue. Do you really pay attention to your minimap that much in LA? Have you not memorized the layout by now?

Or are you just jealous that there are people out there who can lay down 100g on a commander tag? Or jealous that they are comfortable being a leader and you are nothing but a follower?

I just find it funny. And I don’t even have a commander tag.

So much dramatic motioning and making a big fuss over nothing, some people around here.

It’s a friggin blue icon. Its a tool. Some people use it properly, some don’t. Nothing in the game means anything— it depends on what is done with it. If the presence of them gives you trouble in Lion’s Arch, then I’m sorry, please uninstall the game because the rest of the game is a lot harder. Step away from the screen and go outside or something. Not really sure what you’re doing staring at the minimap so much to begin with.

A good commander has people following them, a bad one promptly gets ignored eventually. Either mode.

And it’s not like wvw doesn’t have that zerg loot train either, so don’t give me that nonsense about it being wvw only.

Highfive to the commanders!

I saw some excellent coordination yesterday, especially as the day wore on and everyone had a better understanding of how it needed to be done. Had a couple close calls both ways – missed the achievement by a few seconds and got the achievement with only moments to spare. Great fun

Do we have commanders for PvP too?Oh you mean zerging,nvm

ilr.9675:

“fighting against TC, and you’re Crystal Desert”

Don’t remind us

UrMom.4205:

ilr.9675:

“fighting against TC, and you’re Crystal Desert”

Don’t remind us

Now I’m sad.