Guild Wars 2

Apologies for the briefness of the suggestions. I’m typing them up on a phone dated from the Dark Ages.

These suggestions are simply suggestions for little things that I feel could add to the game:

Quests

Quests, tasks, missions. Call them what you want, they’re most commonly called Quests.

There could be a number of different types of quests. Before joining an Order, the player could get requests from the organisations that they help / are a part of (for example, Warband quests for the Charr). After selecting an Order, players could start recieving quests from their respective Order, themed around the Order. For example, Vigil members may have to eradicate Flame Legion from CoF, while OoW have to gather intel in the form of battleplans, while Priory members need to research artifacts.

As well as these, place some in the world, but with a twist: don’t put a marker above the NPC’s head, and give the players a quest log where they can make their own notes. For example, one NPC may be looking for a child of theirs. Speaking wouldn’t give an indication that you’re on a quest, but if you speak to that child, it’ll have the option to tell them to go home.

These sort of quests could be hidden in the world as well. You see a pillar engraved with runes, and going back to some Priory researcher, he tells you he’s searching for some ancient text, if you’ve seen it, then you have the option to tell them where you saw it.

Collectors

Collectors are vendors that take your vendor junk in exchange for goods, such as armour and weapon skins, mats associated with that item (broken lockpicks to ore) and so on. These vendors would be around the world, but not marked (or marked, but an option available to switch the icons off).

Amaranth

While this NPC is already in the game, she’s fed up of sticking around the Black Citadel, and the wanderlust has set in again. She’d be the GW2 incarnation of Nic the Traveller.

For those who don’t know who he was, he was an NPC that travelled and requested a different item each week, in exchange for random rewards. In a sense she’d be a travelling collector whose item and location would change weekly. Heck, maybe she’ll wander the zone she’s in for that week.

Tales of an Adventurer

Different NPC’s give out different books, such as:

• Events
• Jumping Puzzles
• Area Beastiary
• Dungeon – Story Mode
• Dungeon – Explorable Mode.

Filling in these books would reward different things, depending on how much is filled in. For example, one page would yield T1 mats, while fully completing a book will give the players a choice of an armour / weapon skin, and a title (For example, completing all of the dynamic events in Kryta would award the title Hero of Kryta).

TheDaiBish.9735:

Apologies for the briefness of the suggestions. I’m typing them up on a phone dated from the Dark Ages.

These suggestions are simply suggestions for little things that I feel could add to the game:

Quests

Quests, tasks, missions. Call them what you want, they’re most commonly called Quests.

There could be a number of different types of quests. Before joining an Order, the player could get requests from the organisations that they help / are a part of (for example, Warband quests for the Charr). After selecting an Order, players could start recieving quests from their respective Order, themed around the Order. For example, Vigil members may have to eradicate Flame Legion from CoF, while OoW have to gather intel in the form of battleplans, while Priory members need to research artifacts.

As well as these, place some in the world, but with a twist: don’t put a marker above the NPC’s head, and give the players a quest log where they can make their own notes. For example, one NPC may be looking for a child of theirs. Speaking wouldn’t give an indication that you’re on a quest, but if you speak to that child, it’ll have the option to tell them to go home.

These sort of quests could be hidden in the world as well. You see a pillar engraved with runes, and going back to some Priory researcher, he tells you he’s searching for some ancient text, if you’ve seen it, then you have the option to tell them where you saw it.

Collectors

Collectors are vendors that take your vendor junk in exchange for goods, such as armour and weapon skins, mats associated with that item (broken lockpicks to ore) and so on. These vendors would be around the world, but not marked (or marked, but an option available to switch the icons off).

Amaranth

While this NPC is already in the game, she’s fed up of sticking around the Black Citadel, and the wanderlust has set in again. She’d be the GW2 incarnation of Nic the Traveller.

For those who don’t know who he was, he was an NPC that travelled and requested a different item each week, in exchange for random rewards. In a sense she’d be a travelling collector whose item and location would change weekly. Heck, maybe she’ll wander the zone she’s in for that week.

Tales of an Adventurer

Different NPC’s give out different books, such as:

• Events
• Jumping Puzzles
• Area Beastiary
• Dungeon – Story Mode
• Dungeon – Explorable Mode.

Filling in these books would reward different things, depending on how much is filled in. For example, one page would yield T1 mats, while fully completing a book will give the players a choice of an armour / weapon skin, and a title (For example, completing all of the dynamic events in Kryta would award the title Hero of Kryta).

That was a huge bloody mistake they made with GW1 EotN, having books to fill out. One more thing you have to carry around. They were a pain in the rump and not worth the time.

They don’t neccesserily have to be an item. Maybe a way to integrate it into the Personal Story UI, which resets when you speak to the corrsponding NPC?

They could easily add a Books tab to the Hero panel.

I really love the OP’s suggestions. The Orders feel dull. You choose one for life and then do quests for them for like 10 levels and then it’s on to The Pact, your loyalty to your Order completely forgotten (until you’re armor shopping). I’d love to get weekly mail from my Order offering me an adventure for old time’s sake. Don’t make them like achievements where people feel obligated to do them or else fall behind, but maybe just offer silver, karma, and a guaranteed token fragment that can be combined to trade in for an armor skin.

Collectors in GW1 were awesome. You’d kill elementals for a bit to collect their lodestones, and then trade them in for a blue +5 energy axe. You’d get worthwhile rewards from collectors, things you’d actually use. GW2 could have collectors wander their zones, offering stat-less weapon/armor skins in exchange for 50 of item X, that only drops in that zone. It might even bring more players into low level zones.

Aren’t the achievements associated with dungeons, jumping puzzles, and slaying different kinds of monsters already the “books” you’re looking for?

Stephen McBeaven.5640:

Aren’t the achievements associated with dungeons, jumping puzzles, and slaying different kinds of monsters already the “books” you’re looking for?

This is more about replayability than anything.

Look at most dungeons. Players only play a few paths, or the champ trains where players kill the same mobs over and over, simply because it’s the most rewarding, lootwise.

Offering something for branching out, rather than restricting for repeating (read: Diminishing Returns), is a better solution in my eyes.

Stephen McBeaven.5640:

Aren’t the achievements associated with dungeons, jumping puzzles, and slaying different kinds of monsters already the “books” you’re looking for?

Exactly – they are already in the game…..

TheDaiBish.9735:

Stephen McBeaven.5640:

Aren’t the achievements associated with dungeons, jumping puzzles, and slaying different kinds of monsters already the “books” you’re looking for?

This is more about replayability than anything.

Look at most dungeons. Players only play a few paths, or the champ trains where players kill the same mobs over and over, simply because it’s the most rewarding, lootwise.

Offering something for branching out, rather than restricting for repeating (read: Diminishing Returns), is a better solution in my eyes.

I think a repeatable achievement tied to completing every dungeon or every jumping puzzle might be a better suggestion if you want to incentivize branching out. The problem with books is you have to always remember to bring them and you hate yourself forever if you forget.

On the other hand, repeatable achievements need some small fixes to be less annoying, like not showing up on your nearly-completed list…

Dusty Moon.4382:

Stephen McBeaven.5640:

Aren’t the achievements associated with dungeons, jumping puzzles, and slaying different kinds of monsters already the “books” you’re looking for?

Exactly – they are already in the game…..

You could have a book called Bane of the Nightmare Court, which requires you to run each TA path, slay 1000 Nightmare Court, and purchase 1 full set of TA armor.

Thematic books would be more expansive than a single achievement. With the above design, you could really have a book for each dungeon, slaying ghosts, dredge, Flame Legion, Svanir, Inquest, undead, etc.

Other books could be explorative, rewarded for completing 5 DEs in every zone for instance.

Collectors especially are what I miss, Nick and Yakkington especially. A new way of obtaining skins, especially if it leads to players coming back to old zones, is one of the big things this game needs. With the wardrobe coming out, it would be the perfect time for it. If they “set aside” an artist and a coder to make these new skins, possibly hired a small team, it would greatly increase the longevity of the game. At least in my view, seeing as endgame is Pretty Pretty Princess Dressup. All I am really doing now is farming for Legendary/permanent utilites and setting up my skins on my multitude of characters.

Books would be nice, as well, provided you didn’t have to have them as an item in your inventory. Make it another tab in the Hero panel, and it certainly gets my vote.

The only quests that I would like to see, though, would be instanced story-like quests. I don’t wanna go off on a mighty adventure to collect 5 Moa Feathers or 37 Bear (Rumps).

Stephen McBeaven.5640:

I think a repeatable achievement tied to completing every dungeon or every jumping puzzle might be a better suggestion if you want to incentivize branching out. The problem with books is you have to always remember to bring them and you hate yourself forever if you forget.

On the other hand, repeatable achievements need some small fixes to be less annoying, like not showing up on your nearly-completed list…

If the ‘books’ are integrated into the UI, you don’t need to remember them. It’s just a case of going to an NPC when you’ve done what you want, they’ll see how much you’ve filled in, and reward appropriately.

This allows players to set themselves specific goals for rewards they want. For example, one player might need some T3 crafting mats, while another player might be aiming for the Krytan Hero weapon skin.

As well as this, for those who want to utilise it, it will show what events / dungeons / creatures you’ve completed (since it’s more specific than ‘do 5 events’).

That being said, they could:

• Add these title tracks into the Achievements (Hero of Kryta, Hero of Ascalon, Hero of Magumma, Krytan Explorer ect).
• Improve the Achievement UI to show exactly which events you’ve done.
• Reward at certain points (although the downside to this is flooding. If players have their progress reset when they claim a reward, then it reduces the amount of rewards flooding into the economy).

BigfootArisen.6509:

The only quests that I would like to see, though, would be instanced story-like quests. I don’t wanna go off on a mighty adventure to collect 5 Moa Feathers or 37 Bear (Rumps).

I agree. Like I said, as well as adding content, old content (dungeons) could be utilised as well, where it changes depending on your Order. For example, OoW agents have noticed ammasing forces:

• Vigil members try to thin the ranks.
• OoW agents look for intel as to their plans.
• Priory research and dismantle the ‘weapon’.

Other quests that everyone can do would encourage people to pay a little more attention to the world. A random drop from a mob with a bit of flavour text (“The initials T.D. are inscribed in the back”), a piece of the environment (“Ancient runes are etched into the wall”) or even just overhearing an NPC (“Now where did I put that sword…”), while are small things, help immerse the player a bit more.

Heck, different things could interact with different Orders. For example, while Priory members will understand ancient writings, thus being able to pinpoint the exact one more clearly, OoW members can identify secret caches and codes.

In short, a lot of the ‘quests’ could just be short things that encourage people to get immersed in the world, since there isn’t a way to ‘gather’ quests, so to speak.

I don’t like the idea of the traditional questing system. They have a quest system, it’s called dynamic events and hearts.

Collectors would be nice, though.

No books. I’ve got enough inventory clutter.

Seras.5702:

Dusty Moon.4382:

Stephen McBeaven.5640:

Aren’t the achievements associated with dungeons, jumping puzzles, and slaying different kinds of monsters already the “books” you’re looking for?

Exactly – they are already in the game…..

You could have a book called Bane of the Nightmare Court, which requires you to run each TA path, slay 1000 Nightmare Court, and purchase 1 full set of TA armor.

Thematic books would be more expansive than a single achievement. With the above design, you could really have a book for each dungeon, slaying ghosts, dredge, Flame Legion, Svanir, Inquest, undead, etc.

Other books could be explorative, rewarded for completing 5 DEs in every zone for instance.

You’ve convinced me. This sounds great. It probably could be worked into the existing achievement panel as someone mentioned below. In any event, it wouldn’t have to be an inventory item obviously.

I think what we’re talking about is more “meta-content,” i.e. more ways of tracking and being rewarded for existing content. I agree I’ve many times found myself looking through the achievements (particularly explorer), hoping I’d overlooked something really interesting or rewarding to pursue… The random non-JP explorer achievements are pretty interesting in this sense, but none of them involve a long-term endeavor like you’re talking about.

TheDaiBish.9735:

Stephen McBeaven.5640:

I think a repeatable achievement tied to completing every dungeon or every jumping puzzle might be a better suggestion if you want to incentivize branching out. The problem with books is you have to always remember to bring them and you hate yourself forever if you forget.

On the other hand, repeatable achievements need some small fixes to be less annoying, like not showing up on your nearly-completed list…

If the ‘books’ are integrated into the UI, you don’t need to remember them. It’s just a case of going to an NPC when you’ve done what you want, they’ll see how much you’ve filled in, and reward appropriately.

This allows players to set themselves specific goals for rewards they want. For example, one player might need some T3 crafting mats, while another player might be aiming for the Krytan Hero weapon skin.

As well as this, for those who want to utilise it, it will show what events / dungeons / creatures you’ve completed (since it’s more specific than ‘do 5 events’).

That being said, they could:

• Add these title tracks into the Achievements (Hero of Kryta, Hero of Ascalon, Hero of Magumma, Krytan Explorer ect).
• Improve the Achievement UI to show exactly which events you’ve done.
• Reward at certain points (although the downside to this is flooding. If players have their progress reset when they claim a reward, then it reduces the amount of rewards flooding into the economy).

BigfootArisen.6509:

The only quests that I would like to see, though, would be instanced story-like quests. I don’t wanna go off on a mighty adventure to collect 5 Moa Feathers or 37 Bear (Rumps).

I agree. Like I said, as well as adding content, old content (dungeons) could be utilised as well, where it changes depending on your Order. For example, OoW agents have noticed ammasing forces:

• Vigil members try to thin the ranks.
• OoW agents look for intel as to their plans.
• Priory research and dismantle the ‘weapon’.

Other quests that everyone can do would encourage people to pay a little more attention to the world. A random drop from a mob with a bit of flavour text (“The initials T.D. are inscribed in the back”), a piece of the environment (“Ancient runes are etched into the wall”) or even just overhearing an NPC (“Now where did I put that sword…”), while are small things, help immerse the player a bit more.

Heck, different things could interact with different Orders. For example, while Priory members will understand ancient writings, thus being able to pinpoint the exact one more clearly, OoW members can identify secret caches and codes.

In short, a lot of the ‘quests’ could just be short things that encourage people to get immersed in the world, since there isn’t a way to ‘gather’ quests, so to speak.

If I knew how to quote you both I would have. You’ve convince me a well