Guild Wars 2

Crafting
Combo Fields
Original Skill/Trait Descriptions – If I remember they were vague at best like “Gives a wee bit more damage” or “Gives you this much <———> more toughness”. Uh, ok.

- Utilities under water. I was probably 3 characters in before I realised that was a thing.
- A second weapon under water. I was like 6 characters in before I realised that was a thing. In my defense, my first character to 80 was an Ele.
- Combo fields and finishers. Only after thoroughly wiki-ing I found it how they worked.
- Aquabreathers have rune slots.
- The option that shows a colored line around each armor piece depicting the rarity. I only found that out a few months ago and I have been playing since 2012. :P

Things that struck me as difficult?

Vault/Bag space. I haven’t completely broken down and ripped out the credit card just yet, but having very limited space and no idea what items are important and what I should get rid of makes me nervous. What if the item I’m deleting is irreplaceable, rare, or uniquely useful, and I just don’t know?

Major Traits. I have limited funds, and limited skill points. Obviously, not every trait is equal, and groups have expectations that a particular class will trait a certain way. There doesn’t seem to be any logical progression, either by leveling or via the personal story. I can’t afford to experiment and learn, and there is no way of refunding skill points if I change my mind – so I’m basically stuck with Google to figure out what meta is or grinding skill points.

I needed someone to explain to me what Stacking in a dungeon meant and why it is done. Because when I saw it the first time it looked a lot like standing in one place so the boss can AOE us with less effort.

Crafting is still this large, mysterious, expensive looking thing. I web-searched enough to see it was going to cost me around 150g more than I have and so just kind of ignore it?

Dyes. Obviously other people have them. On TP I see them for a couple silver, so they have to be coming from somewhere, but I’ve never actually seen more than one, ever?

TheBlackLeech.9360:

Mashing the one key in downed state even though Bandage is a channeled skill and you only need to push it once.

I knew it was channeled, but for some reason it never occurred to me to stop mashing it anyway. Duh!

Your post implied you hadn’t found the answers yet, sorry in advance if you already know them.

Mouse.3608:

Things that struck me as difficult?

Vault/Bag space. I haven’t completely broken down and ripped out the credit card just yet, but having very limited space and no idea what items are important and what I should get rid of makes me nervous. What if the item I’m deleting is irreplaceable, rare, or uniquely useful, and I just don’t know?

Wiki is your friend.

Major Traits. I have limited funds, and limited skill points. Obviously, not every trait is equal, and groups have expectations that a particular class will trait a certain way. There doesn’t seem to be any logical progression, either by leveling or via the personal story. I can’t afford to experiment and learn, and there is no way of refunding skill points if I change my mind – so I’m basically stuck with Google to figure out what meta is or grinding skill points.

You’ll have plenty of skill points to get all skills, so no worries. You can experiment however you wish.

Crafting is still this large, mysterious, expensive looking thing. I web-searched enough to see it was going to cost me around 150g more than I have and so just kind of ignore it?

To get to level 500 yes, but that’s only for ascended stuff. For exotic stuff you only need to go until 400 and that’s 20-30 gold.

Dyes. Obviously other people have them. On TP I see them for a couple silver, so they have to be coming from somewhere, but I’ve never actually seen more than one, ever?

They used to drop from gathering herbs, but not anymore. They do drop from…I’m not sure. World completion bags? Atleast very rarely from special bags, and you can buy them with Laurels or craft them with cooking.

One thing I found extremely confusing, was how to get into a PvP match.

After they changed the dailies, I tried my first PvP. I hit some panel that looked like the right one, Play Unranked Arena (looked right to me, it sounded like the lowest level) and was put into a queue for several minutes (repeatedly because the queues would fail).

I complained about the time and queues failing and was told to try an arena. So I clicked on one and was in some sort of observer status. I had no idea how to get out of observer and how to get down there and start playing. (I assumed if you clicked on, join game, you would, ummm, join the game). I tried clicking on my party member’s names, trying to move, etc.. Nothing worked.

I talked to my guildies then and they told me I needed to click on the numbers at the top of the UI which would then pull up a panel on which I would then click on the join blue or red team.

Maybe all that was easy or intuitive to others but I still find the PvP panels not well laid out or informative.

Definitely the combo fields……I had no idea that they existed or how they worked for the longest time.

Kraljevo.2801:

The term isn’t offensive at all, no matter what context. It’s not 2005 anymore.

/shrug

Yes it is. Gamers still commonly use it as a derogatory term to insult other players. “Noob” does not = “newbie” which is the term that the OP should have used in his/her post heading.

Newbie is someone that lacks awareness because they are new where as a noob is someone that lacks awareness because they are just too lazy or arrogant to learn (roughly speaking). Don’t blame me, I did not manufacture these terms, its just what the gaming community has created for itself :/

Silvatar.5379:

Definitely the combo fields……I had no idea that they existed or how they worked for the longest time.

Kraljevo.2801:

The term isn’t offensive at all, no matter what context. It’s not 2005 anymore.

/shrug

Yes it is. Gamers still commonly use it as a derogatory term to insult other players. “Noob” does not = “newbie” which is the term that the OP should have used in his/her post heading.

Newbie is someone that lacks awareness because they are new where as a noob is someone that lacks awareness because they are just too lazy or arrogant to learn (roughly speaking). Don’t blame me, I did manufacture these terms, its just what the gaming community has created for itself :/

Well, just like certain other derogatory terms, it’s okay to call yourself a noob, if you’re part of that demographic. =P

I’ve played since launch and I still can’t get around the crafting system.

First time In WvW. Why were all these big mobs of players chasing me down…. I just wanted to look around.

Astral Projections.7320:

One thing I found extremely confusing, was how to get into a PvP match.

After they changed the dailies, I tried my first PvP. I hit some panel that looked like the right one, Play Unranked Arena (looked right to me, it sounded like the lowest level) and was put into a queue for several minutes (repeatedly because the queues would fail).

I complained about the time and queues failing and was told to try an arena. So I clicked on one and was in some sort of observer status. I had no idea how to get out of observer and how to get down there and start playing. (I assumed if you clicked on, join game, you would, ummm, join the game). I tried clicking on my party member’s names, trying to move, etc.. Nothing worked.

I talked to my guildies then and they told me I needed to click on the numbers at the top of the UI which would then pull up a panel on which I would then click on the join blue or red team.

Maybe all that was easy or intuitive to others but I still find the PvP panels not well laid out or informative.

Here here. I agree totally with everything you said.

I think it was level 30 before I realised I could equip a second weapon set

Supercluster.7159:

First time In WvW. Why were all these big mobs of players chasing me down…. I just wanted to look around.

LOL.. my first time in WvW I kept trying to go into towers and keeps, not knowing why I could go in some and not others. I had no idea I had a “color” :p Also, my first time I just ran around and never saw anyone from an opposing team, so I got bored in about 10 mins and left, thinking “I have NO idea what to do here so I’m just going back to my regular stuff!”

My first day in Guild Wars 2 was pretty much noob day.

Moving and attacking – yes, I didn’t get it at first. I would stand still and attack

Dodging and shields – yes, I stood there and took hits, ignoring dodge until later on I found it necessary. Shields, I didn’t know I had to unlock at the time with skill sets, making me wonder if the shield even meant anything.

Events – what the heck were these? What do I do? What is going on? Oh, I get XP from this? Okay!

Ooguchi.3764:

First, once a character reached level 80, the character is made a few levels higher than the area he/she is actively engaged in. Basically, the level 80 character is given a 2 level bonus: If the leveling guidelines say the character needs to be leveled at 20, they get a bonus of 2 for a level 80 character. This would allow the completed characters to gain a small advantage when going for map completion.

Second, the character leveling rule could remain as the game is currently designed, but the weapons and armor would not be affected. This would again give the player a small advantage. Both of these options would allow level 80 characters to return to past areas for map for completion without the unending struggle that is created by your current leaving system.

Your first suggestion is already in the game.

http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Dynamic_level_adjustment

“For example, in PvE, a character with an actual level of 50 in a level 10 area will have their attributes reduced to an “effective level” equal to a level 11 character (maximum level for the area +1)."

As for the second suggestion, although weapons and armor are affected by the level adjustment having higher level, better quality, equipment does still give you an advantage. In particular because low level equipment only has 1 stat and mid-level armor only has 2. If you’re wearing level 80 gear with 3 stats in a level 5 zone you’ll have 3 times as many stat bonuses as anyone who is actually level 5.

But also you and your friends seem to be in a very small minority. Most people, by the time they reach level 80, seem to find PvE easy and actually consider the dynamic levelling a good thing because it means they can actually play in low level zones instead of running through it mindlessly spamming 1.

Crafting. Definitely crafting. More specifically, the point of crafting. I’ve done a lot more since then, it just seemed to be the Big One that I didn’t understand until a few hundred hours into the game.

Ooguchi.3764:

- snipped for brevity -

My experience of returning to lower level zones is so much different than the one you described that I had to wonder if you were describing GW2. Since I assume you are, I got to wondering why our experiences are so different. Here’s some thoughts, offered in the spirit of allowing you to enjoy the down-leveled experience. If you can use any of them to better enjoy the game, more power to you. If not, or if you already know all this, then please disregard.

• Gear: I’ve no idea what gear your character is wearing, but my guess is that it is not L80. If you are geared up in L80 Masterwork (green) gear, you should enjoy a significant stat advantage over mobs while down-leveled. If you can afford Rare (yellow) or Exotic (orange) gear, or can get this type of gear over time, but green L80 gear should give you some relief from the experience you describe.
• Stat choices are important. Gear stats serve two purposes in GW2. They determine whether you are building to be primarily a direct damage dealer, with Power as the main damage stat, or condition damage, with Condition Damage as the main damage stat. The other purpose is to determine whether you will be high-damage, high-defense, or somewhere in between. There are 3 stats on L80 gear. The damage ones are Power, Precision, Ferocity and Condition Damage. The defensive ones are Vitality, Toughness, and to some extent Healing Power. Gear with 3 offensive stats is squishy. Having 1 or 2 defensive stats makes for more survivability with the trade-off that you will kill more slowly. Conventional wisdom is that since GW2 offers a lot of active defense options, player stats “should” be offensive. It’s my belief that for open world play, players should find their own comfort level. However, if you do choose survival stats, avoid dungeon groups that ask for “berserker.”
• Traits: The trait system can be accessed via the Hero Panel (H is the default key). The traits are the second option on the left. If you have not already spent your trait points, then you should do so. Even if you did not manage to unlock any of the actual traits, the stat points will help, as will the minor traits that are free.
• Active Gameplay: Movement, positioning, and use of skills and active defense mechanisms make for a better combat experience. If you are used to more traditional, stand-and-cast MMO’s, and are trying to face-tank mobs (particularly groups of mobs), that might explain your experience. I’ll attach a video that offers some insights into movement and positioning in GW2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sUKWeaXZeOY It’s an old video, but I’ve seen nothing better for transitioning for less active games to GW2.

If you don’t want to move, then your only real option is to gear up using defensive stats and try to find a bunker build for your chosen profession. (Google GW2 Bunker Build). A bunker is a PvP build designed to be highly resilient in Conquest for holding points against players. Using such a build in down-leveled PvE will mean low kill speed, but should allow for some face-tanking. The other option would be to pick a glass build and gear, and just kill everything fast — but that’s an option for someone who is willing to use those active movement and defense options.

Good luck!

Kits and that some skills require you to stand in place to use, and will cancel mid-way if you move mid-way through the cast (Such as the rain of arrows on longbow.)

The reason why stuff like “Combo Fields” didn’t “Confuse” me was because I played games that had them, and they were OFFLINE RPGs, such as Tales of the Abyss for PlayStation 2.

I spent 3 days researching races, armors, weapons, and names, before I even created my first character. I was thinking of “zomg this is permanent!” my choices would be. If the new player experience needed anything, it was a preview function that’s tied into the wardrobe. Then having that story intro be viewable so you can scroll through each of them and pick which one resonates with your the most. Then build the character after choosing the race and story.

An epic noob moment was not knowing what “unique” gear meant. After killing the Ancient Karka during “the Lost Shores” I farmed and purchased gems to convert to gold to buy another Ancient Karka Shell. Of course, I couldn’t use the second. Though at least I wasn’t the only one whom did it as it was the first item added with unique classification.

Lol, I was never a noob!

1) Running speed buffs and penalties (in combat)

2) Trading post taxes… which is somewhat better now. When the game launched, there was no indicator of the taxation.

Only been playing for 10 days but for the first few I couldn’t for the life of me figure out why when I was in town putting on new gear my health would be say 1600 then I go outside and get into a couple of fights and notice it’s 700 lol. I saw it going up and down all the time and it drove me crazy lol. Thats when I learned about the level scaling thing which I think is pretty cool.

zombyturtle.5980:

Considering NPE was created to reduce confusion for new players, I am curious what other players actually found confusing when they were new.

before starting to play a game i have the decency to soak up every single available information about it through external sources. i was never confused about anything.

zaced.7948:

zombyturtle.5980:

Considering NPE was created to reduce confusion for new players, I am curious what other players actually found confusing when they were new.

before starting to play a game i have the decency to soak up every single available information about it through external sources. i was never confused about anything.

u so baws. wowwzzzz.

ozmaniandevil.6805:

zaced.7948:

zombyturtle.5980:

Considering NPE was created to reduce confusion for new players, I am curious what other players actually found confusing when they were new.

before starting to play a game i have the decency to soak up every single available information about it through external sources. i was never confused about anything.

u so baws. wowwzzzz.

bow down to me for i am glorious.

I’ll have to agree with some of the other posters here referring to combo fields. I still know quite a few seasoned players that haven’t a clue to how much of a difference utilizing them makes. They are one of the most important things for a player to learn imo.

Basaltface.2786:

For me it was salvaging and the trading post, at first i sold everything i got to a vendor …

This for me too.

Things I didn’t know? Lots. I learned from asking in the community and was overwhelmed by the friendly response.

Confused about? Nothing. The NPE is pathetic and pointless.

Combos, I had no idea how to pull them off or how to work with them . :/

I am not a noob but every update is total confusion…Anet explains nothing…you after read the wiki, ask in map chat (which is usually useless, as no one on the map knows what’s going on either) and finally visit Dulfy.

I after admit even after 3 years playing combo’s are a bit of a mystery…

The fact my utilities and healingskills were gone underwater,
The fact some skills are not available under water
The fact aquabreathers are the 6th headslot under water (which I still tend to ignore)
Why I didn’t survive underwater whe I was lvl 50 or so (still had the white starter harpoongun and a lvl 0 aquabreather, never thought about it)

The fact foods overwrote, utilities overwrote, though this was clear pretty quick.
The fact traits were more then stats alone… (needed trait books)
The fact conidtion could be removed, but also reapplied way faster then I thought, casting my condi removal instant, dying of half a stack of bleeds a bit later due to CD

How to earn money efficiently, BLTP was clear after a couple of days (well at least a week TBH)
The fact I needed harvesting tools to gather stuff…

Crafting was pretty easy, weapon unlocks and story was clear, movement was clear. Water combat as such was clear, just the fact I needed completely different utility bar and a breather which was mostly a nuisance due to the fact it required it’s own upgrade components.

The importance of jewels was clear, but I didn’t expect them to be so powerfull and I never upgraded them at first though you can actually gain pretty much when upgarding jewels at lvls 35,50 and 65.

It took me a while to get used to the uselessness of conditions, though I now know they can be very usefull and an addition to gameplay, which was part of my secondary learning curve….

All these things I found out in my first 3 weeks of play….I know them now, some have been modified. Most things which were modified complicated things needlessly… and didn’t improve story or gameplay.

I played BWE1 and 3 and started right away on day one and remember having ‘so’ much trouble with some of the story fights early on, mostly because I didn’t understand how to move and cast and how to dodge. My first/main was/is a staff elementatlist.

As much as we make fun of the ‘learn to dodge area’, I could have used that.

Until I hit 80 I didn’t realise that you continued to get skill points for lvling up at 80 and so was very conservative with how I spent them, and thought it was insane to use skill points for mystic forge crafting.