Guild Wars 2

But everyday I find myself unhappy at one thing or the other. This is coming from a twelve year MMO vet.

Today it was a non-group event that saw me killing over forty Inquest NPC’s that continued to spawn in a stream, preventing me from taking back a way point.

Yesterday it was insta-death from mobs. No red circle, no way to judge a dodge or defend, just a simple one shot.

I am new to the game, but I die easily a dozen times a day. I rarely see anyone in the zones I am adventuring in.

I really want to like the game, from the graphics to the basic break with traditional MMO’s. But the game leaves me frustrated more than fulfilled. The crafting system required me to spend an hour on Google to understand it. The combat is either balanced or overpowering.

I will say that the player-base is more friendly than most.

I have to ask, does this ever balance out? Or are my two options for combat back-pedaling on every fight or having to play a heavily armored class.

I feel like I am missing something huge in the game, like if I understood something I would “get it”. Right now, I am fighting to keep playing.

What class are you playing and what level are you?. Some classes, like the mesmer and engineer, are weaker at first because lots of their power and versatility comes from traits and skills that you’ll only get later on. If you keep dying over maybe try to get some gear (even white gear from armor vendors) with stats like toughness and vitality that will help you survive better, or if you’re finding the area you’re playing at a bit too hard, explore other areas. If you haven’t already, as you say you’re new to the game, you can go to your race’s city and there you can find a portal to Lion’s Arch, and from there to all other cities. Also try the personal story, that will level you up a bit and will give you some nice gear in return.

Hope you end up enjoying the game, or if not (hey, no game is for everyone), that you find one more up to your tastes.. have fun..

P.S: BTW, here’s a nice writeup about the different classes and their strenghts and weakness in case you want to start over a new toon..

http://www.reddit.com/r/Guildwars2/comments/1ojgdr/what_class_should_i_play_a_summary_of_each/

If you don’t see anybody try to guest to a higher population server , and I would suggest picking warrior or guardian if you just started to learn the mechanics .

I’d also say that it helps quite a bit to take your char and run through each race’s starter zones. After completing Queensdale/Wayfarer’s Hills/Metrica Province/Caledon Forest/Plains of Ashford, your char should at least be in the mid-20’s for level, if not higher.

But as loco mentioned, depending on what type of char you play, it can be rather squishy for awhile. I know I didn’t really begin to enjoy playing my mesmer until I up to like level 40/50ish.

I honestly find it difficult to believe you’re a “twelve year MMO vet” when you’re saying stuff like “I rarely see anyone in the zones I am adventuring in”, as if that same problem doesn’t exist with just about every MMORPG out there.

DusK.3849:

I honestly find it difficult to believe you’re a “twelve year MMO vet” when you’re saying stuff like “I rarely see anyone in the zones I am adventuring in”, as if that same problem doesn’t exist with just about every MMORPG out there.

He said he just started. Even on other MMOs, there are people who are working on alts and in the starter zones. Humans are popular on GW2, right? On another game I cannot mention due to previous infractions, I always saw people in the Human starter area.

Well gw2 is focused around 98% on endgame and 2% on leveling . Even those who hate gw2 with passion got 80 without even trying . It’s normal to not see anybody in the 25-70 zones . Some games are grindy as heck . You have to farm the same spot for 1 exp bar which makes the leveling zones full but endgame zones a bit empty .

Skan.5301:

DusK.3849:

I honestly find it difficult to believe you’re a “twelve year MMO vet” when you’re saying stuff like “I rarely see anyone in the zones I am adventuring in”, as if that same problem doesn’t exist with just about every MMORPG out there.

He said he just started. Even on other MMOs, there are people who are working on alts and in the starter zones. Humans are popular on GW2, right? On another game I cannot mention due to previous infractions, I always saw people in the Human starter area.

Last time I checked, Queensdale on my server had a massive population almost all the time doing champion farming. This is coming from one of the most underpopulated servers in the game btw.

Jrunyon.3012:

Skan.5301:

DusK.3849:

I honestly find it difficult to believe you’re a “twelve year MMO vet” when you’re saying stuff like “I rarely see anyone in the zones I am adventuring in”, as if that same problem doesn’t exist with just about every MMORPG out there.

He said he just started. Even on other MMOs, there are people who are working on alts and in the starter zones. Humans are popular on GW2, right? On another game I cannot mention due to previous infractions, I always saw people in the Human starter area.

Last time I checked, Queensdale on my server had a massive population almost all the time doing champion farming. This is coming from one of the most underpopulated servers in the game btw.

Oh yeah. I meant to add on a server that wasn’t running the Queensdale Champ farm. Outliers. Oh well. Guess you proved me wrong.

^^ This … I can go into Queensdale pretty much any time of day/night, and there’s a champ train running …

No you wont see many vets leveling up alts in starting zones any longer. With ascended gear grind, the game has become unfriendly to alts. You are best off deleting your characters and starting on a populated server, there are a few of them now. As for instant death, yes it exists at lvl 80 in places such as like the Grenth temple.

Skan.5301:

Oh yeah. I meant to add on a server that wasn’t running the Queensdale Champ farm. Outliers. Oh well. Guess you proved me wrong.

It’s not a problem with the game that people would rather run in a circle then to run around the zone fighting skales, that’s a people problem. That said, I am always running around Queensdale fighting things and helping new players since it’s my favorite zone in the game.

DusK.3849:

I honestly find it difficult to believe you’re a “twelve year MMO vet” when you’re saying stuff like “I rarely see anyone in the zones I am adventuring in”, as if that same problem doesn’t exist with just about every MMORPG out there.

Hi Dusk, you are right in that population at lower levels is not specific to GW2. However I have not seen anyone today in Brisban Wildlands, no one.

I am trying not to be negative (not coming across well I know). I want to like the game because it is honestly challenging.

To answer everyone else’s question. I have a Mesmer at 20, an Engineer at 25 and a Guardian at 31. Saying that, maybe I am playing too much.

I stopped playing the Mesmer at 20 because I was just running in circles and dodging every opponent I faced. Watching some videos on strategy and build, they were still running around in circles at level 80.

The Engineer is fun, but I stopped at 25 because I kept dying over and over and I felt that I was missing some tactic. It felt lost.

The Guardian has more durability, but I still feel like I am missing something.

I am not giving up, but I am frustrated. Trying not to quit.

Jrunyon.3012:

Skan.5301:

Oh yeah. I meant to add on a server that wasn’t running the Queensdale Champ farm. Outliers. Oh well. Guess you proved me wrong.

It’s not a problem with the game that people would rather run in a circle then to run around the zone fighting skales, that’s a people problem. That said, I am always running around Queensdale fighting things and helping new players since it’s my favorite zone in the game.

I never said it was a problem with the game. I was simply pointing out something I forgot to mention. No need pull a “sword and board” move.

That being said, OP, if you just started, you could reroll on a populated server by deleteing all your characters like Day said. Or you could just guest over to populated servers and try that. Whichever you choose would work. Since you’ve played your characters, you know how long it takes to level them and such so you can base a decision off of that if you like leveling.

The most populated servers are Jade Quarry, Blackgate, and Tarnished Coast. If you’re into RP, Tarnished Coast is where you should go. Jade Quarry and Blackgate are good PvE/PvP servers, Jade Quarry holding the upper hand for WvW, and thus PvE bonuses, if that’s what you like.

When do you die is it typically on a champion or a veteran or too many mini mobs?

Which elites did you choose on your skills?

Which weapons are you using?

There does seem to be a focus on running around dodging all the time especially when fighting on classes that have terrible base hitpoints I agree with you there. Kiting isn’t for everyone I didn’t start kiting until I started playing this game. I used to hate anyone telling me to kite when I was on other mmos and I’m a 14 year vet on mmos myself I know how it can be frustrating.

Basically it’s best to keep your weapons on rares bought from the store or receiving them from your personal story. Train all of them right off the bat before leaving the early zones. I use masterwork armor up until level 60 on my ranger and engi it’s just easier that way for leveling purposes. Do lots of events to build up karma because you’ll most likely be armoring yourself up that way initially on your first 80 since everything is so godawful expensive in the TP right now.

btw if you delete, you keep everything in your bank for the move. So it might be a good idea to drop in some starting gear before you do the move, or sell stuff and build a little gold. It’s easier to level if you have a little geat. Although leveling in this game is easier than in any other game I’ve seen. Especially like with a hammer warrior, just way easy.

Some thoughts:

1. Starting at level 14, green (masterwork) gear becomes available. Buy it. Upgrade every six levels (20, 26, etc.). You might need to sell the crafting mats you gather on the trading post to afford this. Green gear has gone up in price recently, but so has the selling price of the mats. Worry about crafting later.
2. Make sure you have trinkets (rings, accessories and amulet). Their stat points make a difference.
3. Circle kiting is here to stay. The trick is to kite in such a way that you deal damage while kiting. The game is designed to allow you to move while fighting, whereas other MMO’s mostly root you while using skills/spells.
4. If fighting multiple mobs, kill the ranged mobs first while kiting the melee ones.
5. Learn the mobs’ moves, thus learning which ones you ought to use your dodge on. For example, a cave troll will jump up, proccing a red circle that does knockdown. If you’re moving, you can usually just run out of the area (but be aware the area is a touch bigger than the red circle). If it leans in, it’s about to daze you, and moving away won’t help. That one has to be dodged, or the daze removed with stun break.
6. Empty zones… while GW2 advertised that the whole game is endgame, players equate endgame with loot, and the best loot is concentrated in certain play-styles that involve very little of the map. This means that there are relatively few players in the zones that don’t feature easy loot options. If faced with a dynamic event you feel you cannot solo, ask if anyone wants to do the event in map chat. There might be other players who also avoided that event for the same reason, and would be happy to join in.

Priam.8079:

To answer everyone else’s question. I have a Mesmer at 20, an Engineer at 25 and a Guardian at 31. Saying that, maybe I am playing too much.

I stopped playing the Mesmer at 20 because I was just running in circles and dodging every opponent I faced. Watching some videos on strategy and build, they were still running around in circles at level 80.

Mesmers are known to be painful to level because they get most of their damage through traits, which at low level are not accessible.
Mesmers do move a lot! We are rather squishy and we like to confuse our opponents as much as possible. It might not be the class for you, if you wish for a more endurable character while leveling.

That being said, Gw2 is a lot more about active defense than other mmo’s. You have to actively dodge, block etc. Even if you go with a guardian, you will notice that they have a trait that heals them when they dodge. Even they are running in circles every once in a while.

My first experience with gw2 was that I initially died a lot more while leveling than I was used to. I actually liked that part. It made leveling interesting. It made me understand my mesmer. After a while, I learned when to stay and when to leg it. ^^

I don’t really know what to tell you other than that. Maybe you just haven’t found ‘your profession’ yet.

Maybe starting over, at a higher populated server, would make the leveling experience more enjoyable for you.

Priam.8079:

DusK.3849:

I honestly find it difficult to believe you’re a “twelve year MMO vet” when you’re saying stuff like “I rarely see anyone in the zones I am adventuring in”, as if that same problem doesn’t exist with just about every MMORPG out there.

Hi Dusk, you are right in that population at lower levels is not specific to GW2. However I have not seen anyone today in Brisban Wildlands, no one.

I am trying not to be negative (not coming across well I know). I want to like the game because it is honestly challenging.

To answer everyone else’s question. I have a Mesmer at 20, an Engineer at 25 and a Guardian at 31. Saying that, maybe I am playing too much.

I stopped playing the Mesmer at 20 because I was just running in circles and dodging every opponent I faced. Watching some videos on strategy and build, they were still running around in circles at level 80.

The Engineer is fun, but I stopped at 25 because I kept dying over and over and I felt that I was missing some tactic. It felt lost.

The Guardian has more durability, but I still feel like I am missing something.

I am not giving up, but I am frustrated. Trying not to quit.

Both the mesmer and the engineer are considered very weak at first. Some tips for them (I have an 80 of each).

Mesmer: You basically described the mesmer gameplay. A mesmer is weak when being hit, so you’ll want to basically run around while you popup clones to shatter and/or phantams to attack, your key word with this one is mobility. Some skills you might want to get as soon as you can to help with survivability would be decoy (creates a clone and stealths you), blink (teleports you a short distance away) and mirror images (creates two clones, good to quickly get your clone count up). This one is a kittene to use at first, though, they start to shine at level 40 or so IMHO.

Engineer: Get the 3 kits unlocked as soon as you can, flamethrower, bomb kit and grenade kit. Flamethrower is great for medium to short range and hits several targets, plus have throwbacks that can help you survive better, grenades are great all around, but no autoattack so you have to manually fire them, and bomb kit is great for kiting enemies (specially melee ones)… just get their attention and start running away in circles to get them to follow you while you keep dropping bombs, they’ll run into them.

Guardian: This one was the first one I leveled, and still my favorite class. I generally liked it all around (I usually like magic using melee characters in most MMOs), but I found I had the most fun, at least while leveling, with the hammer. I just felt it very satisfying when I sent a character flying backwards with a solid hammer hit. Also try to unlock the spectral weapons, specially the sword and hammer. I don’t use them much at 80, but loved them when leveling, the sword gives you some extra DPS, while the hammer helps keeping the mobs off your back by whacking and throwing them away.

Thank you for all the mature, respectful suggestions. Appreciate it. Staying with the Guardian until I better understand the game.

DusK.3849:

I honestly find it difficult to believe you’re a “twelve year MMO vet” when you’re saying stuff like “I rarely see anyone in the zones I am adventuring in”, as if that same problem doesn’t exist with just about every MMORPG out there.

I thought “everything is endgame”?

If not already then get into a guild that you like.

Imo….

Solo is its own thing
pug<guild<playing with people u know in rl

im with people I know in real life and it is awesome…guild with internet strangers was ok too although inferior to rl friends

go to gw2 and look up conditions, boons and combo fields. Things like blinding your enemies especially in pve where they only attack once every few seconds is helpful. if this was too basic for you sorry

but u play for twelve years so u know what u like

Delete whatever character you have so you can get a free transfer to a higher pop server, you will thank me later.

The developers of this game love one shot kill annoyances so learn to identify and dodge them.

No one does regular events because they don’t reward anything worth our time so you will see a lot of dead over run waypoints and such.

Few exceptions, one of them being Queensdale a beginner zone with a train of champion mob spawns that drop useless bags of loot to salvage.

GW2 can be very frustrating and indeed I would expect it to be for any newcomer, especially with certain professions.

Pretty steep learning curve compared to most MMO but once you get used to it, it’s a cake walk and you will be begging for a challenge.