There have been endless complaints that gw2 has no end game and ever since I saw the “Eternal Alchemy” and after playing many different games, I’ve been toying with an idea that could work in gw2 and create a sense of horizontal character progression after lvl 80.
This suggestion would probably involve fair bit of work for the devs, but i think it would be worth it.
It would mean having to split the trait system and create a new passive trait line that is only earned post lvl 80. This new trait line would account unlock and any lvl 80 could earn passive trait points toward a pool that can be then used by all lvl 80 chars. The points pool is account based, but it’s distribution is character based. In other words, if your account earns 200 points, each of your character will have 200 points at their disposal at lvl 80.
This i believe would encourage alting and create a character progression system beyond max lvl, without having to raise lvl cap or stats.
Now to the main idea.
Imagine a constellation of planets like what we saw in Eternal Alchemy, where each planet represents one of the 6 gods and each god offers a passive trait line pertaining to what they’re know for.
1) Dwayna, goddess of healing, air, warmth, and life.
2) Balthazar, god of war, fire, and courage.
3) Melandru, goddess of nature, earth, and growth.
4) Lyssa, twin goddesses of beauty, water and illusion
5) Grenth, god of darkness, death, and ice.
6) Kormir, goddess of order, spirit, and truth.
The passive trait line does not necessarily have to even include all gods, only those that are most relevant and offer the best possible passives.
This is where the trait split would have to occur. I think the trait system is a bit of a mess imo. Too many things are built into them and they can be confusing to sort out and pick the right trait line especially for new players. And i don’t think too many people are fond of the system as is.
Why not split the trait lines in a way, where the existing trait lines only affect your skills and weapons your class is able to use and those other abilities/stats are placed into the passives, such as:
Better health and healing
Better stamina
Agility for speed
Reduced fall damage
Resistances to various harmful effects etc. are just some of the examples.
As the attached image below shows, the trait system could be designed in a similar way, where the center is your character which unlocks when you defeat Zaithan and achieve lvl 80, unlocking the Dragonslayer Rank.
The points can then be earned in various ways as you play the game. Kill dragons 20 times to gain 1 point, kill 100 dragon minions to earn 1 point etc.
The constellation of the trait system would work in clockwise direction and you have to put at least 1 point into each (starting in order from the first one) in order to unlock each trait line. Once unlocked, you can then make the hard choices and choose which trait line you wish to progress and customize your character however u wish. These trait lines would not give u more power, bigger hits etc, but rather make your character more tougher.
This would also free up some utility slots from skills such as increased speed skills and simplify the traits system as well as give ur character a sense progression post max lvl. As to how many points should be in total pool, make it a lot like 1000 or more, but ultimately it would be up to the devs to decide.
Anyway that’s the gist of the idea, i’ve probably forgotten some things but feel free to add your thoughts and constructive ideas.
