Guild Wars 2

…they were called Ordainments or Seals instead? Just to help differentiate them from, ya know, those other longbow guys.

Examples:

“It is so Ordained that if one of Evil intent steps upon this spot, Ka-BOOM! Er, I mean, woe betide the evil-doer!”

-or-

“I place upon this locale the Seal of Sanctuary, which, upon being broken, shall heal the faithful, and the wicked shall be subject to the attention of a thousand and two angry bats. Yes, bats. Because they are cool, dagnabbit!”

Anyway, just an idea that came to me while I was waiting for the coffee to brew this morning.

Yeah, I keep calling it Dragon Hunter in my posts. Dragonhunter is even worse….

+1 for, Seeker…or Light seeker

WGuardian.1028:

Mordeus.1234:

…..
- Mesmers have some time magic therefore they expand upon it with the Chronomancer.
- Rangers have some nature magic therefore they expand upon it with the Druid.
- Elementalists have some weather based magic therefore they expand upon it with the Tempest.

It’s a bit awkward to say that Guardians protect by killing monsters which can be considered hunting therefore they expand upon it by becoming Dragonhunters, also Dragons are things they can hunt. It just doesn’t have the clarity of the other specializations.

This quote is from other thread.

For me the only good reason why Guardian’s name don’t follow this pattern is lore (about Braham taking Eir’s bow and hunting dragons to revenge). And it’s good enough reason and if other proffesions will get something like that in future then i support the new Dragonhunter but it’s still out of the line with other names (“Hold The LIne”). Need to see what Anet have to say in Ready-up today.

But if it’s not why not call it Arclight (as Archer with light powers that he use while shooting and to lay traps [name of hero from other game]) or name can reflect inner power of guardians: Judgment or Retribution (both of wich will fully support the lore part about Braham and will be more suitable for guardians and still don’t go against traps).

Arclight… now that’s a cool name!!!!

Alice.5360:

Arclight… now that’s a cool name!!!!

Which means nothing, besides a type of lamp.

It’s just a punny name (bow=arc).

Hambow 2.0

Mada.5319:

xinkspillx.3914:

You should actually read my entire post. I addressed all of that. Yes, player characters could make use of secondary professions and NPCs could as well, but in the lore typically what counted was only any NPCs primary profession and Thackeray straight up changed his, something I think nearly no one else could do.

I’m also not suggesting a name change to Paragon as I agree it would make no sense now. My point was just that ANet COULD have made the Elite spec Paragon in a way that made sense.

You are trying to say that just because one GW1 NPC changed his profession from one associated with bows to one associated with spears somehow means that a GW2 profession unrelated to spears changing to one with a bow can be called a Paragon.

Do you see how your argument falls a part here? If anything, your argument supports the Guardian’s elite spec being called something related to rangers, which is exactly what Anet did anyway.

Also, in what way was the Paragon important to the development of guardians? Many of the guardian’s skills are old gw1 monk and warrior skills. Stand Your Ground is the only old paragon skill.

No, that is not what I’m trying to say. I simply meant that ANet could easily have made the decision to create a Paragon-based Elite spec and easily justify it without needing to venture further into Elona. That and a Paragon wielding a bow would make sense within the lore and have a direct connection with a notable NPC in the current game through which to introduce it.

As for what the Paragon had to do with the development of the Guardian, this is not my conjecture, it is actual stated fact by a developer:

“With the turmoil in Elona and the spread of the Order of Whispers into other lands, more Paragon teaching showed elsewhere in Tyria. These teachings melded with other traditions, and over time, the guardians and their abilities can be found throughout the world and among all the races. They are not tied to a particular race, philosophy, or group of gods but rather to a larger concept of proactive defense, of taking the fight to a foe and protecting those you fight alongside while appealing equally to humanity’s defensive nature and the charr’s desire to rule the battlefield.” – Jeff Grubb

If you want to come up with a fitting name, put down the thesaurus. Synonyms for “guardian” are the most ill-fitting names you could pick, because the whole point of the elite spec is deviating from the main class. Not to mention most of them don’t even make sense. Arbiter? Guardians are not a neutral third party passing judgment, they are actively involved in the conflict and fight for one side.

Second, find a name that gives a rough idea what the elite spec is about, not just something that sounds cool to you. “Dragonhunter” does that. A real life hunter uses ranged weapons and traps. I can assume a dragonhunter does the same, only in a bigger scale, since the game they hunt is bigger, too.

The example I gave in another thread was “Seeker”.

WGuardian.1028:

For me the only good reason why Guardian’s name don’t follow this pattern is lore (about Braham taking Eir’s bow and hunting dragons to revenge). And it’s good enough reason and if other proffesions will get something like that in future then i support the new Dragonhunter but it’s still out of the line with other names (“Hold The LIne”). Need to see what Anet have to say in Ready-up today.

I think you’re likely right about the origin of the name, but here’s the problem:

Braham is kind of a whiny dumbo. He’s not awful, but he’s not anyone I’d want to emulate, follow, or, god help us, be taught by. It’s like emulating Justin Beiber or something (well, not that bad but…).

He is by far the least-cool of the LS2 crew.

So that EVERY SINGLE GUARDIAN EVER can now only pick “Be like Beiber Braham”, that’s kind of awful. It’d be okay for a second or third Elite spec? But first? Oy vey.

I sincerely hope every other Elite has an equally-embarrassing “exemplar”, but somehow doubt it.

Sentinel would be a better name than Arbiter, if we’re looking for names befiting the core profession. But personally I am happy with Dragonhunter.

Well they may not act exactly like traps I hope. But they would keep them marked as traps simply because there are runes for traps, otherwise they would need to make new sets of runes specifically for the dragonhunter

Check out my thread on the guardian sub forum about symbols rather than traps

Zolarie.8293:

Valkyrie

This class is straight up Lenneth Valkyrie from Valkyrie Profile.

Nibelung Valesti!

Great, now I have to make a Chronomancer named Lezard Valeth. :P

Alice.5360:

Keeping in line with the Dragonhunter name, here are some unrevealed specializations…

Thief with rifle: Gunshooter
Engi with hammer: Hammerbasher
Warrior with pistol: Pistoleer
Necro with greatsword: Swordhaunter

Those names are not at all in line with what Dragonhunter is. Dragon isn’t a weapon. It doesn’t mean the name isn’t a little cheesy, but those are all lame and irrelevant (except the Pistolier is actually a thing and would be very cool, I think).

Cavalier was both a paladin themed and dragon/demon-specific kit in AD&D

There is nothing wrong with a name in itself and the lore is what ever hey make it to be. The only problem have with the name Dragonhunter is that it doesn’t seem to fit the Guardian Prof or seem like it would be what they would specialize in. Maybe it’ll be something I could get used to over time, but it seems like so many other names would fit so much more.

Whatever they are called and however they might function, gameplay-wise they will fall under the skill type ‘trap’.

Seems pretty conclusive honestly. Managed to get nearly 3000 votes. 56% are negative toward the name, 28% are positive and 15% neutral, and had a more diverse outcome than I expected. Doesn’t look real good for it though, honestly…

TurtleofPower.5641:

Oh geez it would have been ABSURD to call it a Paragon.

Paragons were

A. trained in Elona
B. They’re an entire profession, specializations are just a variant of existing professions
C. Fight with actual spears not magical ones or bows
D. lore-wise it’s nonsensical. what did a Paragon and Guardian fall into a vat of chemicals and make a mutant? Come on.

The community just wanted to add extra hype but you got it wrong. Not a big deal.

‘’With the turmoil in Elona and the spread of the Order of Whispers into other lands, more Paragon teaching showed elsewhere in Tyria. These teachings melded with other traditions, and over time, the guardians and their abilities can be found throughout the world and among all the races. They are not tied to a particular race, philosophy, or group of gods but rather to a larger concept of proactive defense, of taking the fight to a foe and protecting those you fight alongside while appealing equally to humanity’s defensive nature and the charr’s desire to rule the battlefield’’

Why it doesn’t make sense lore-wise? Guardian is the democratization of the paragon way, why can’t a group of Guardian decided to get back to their core and history. True, ideally they would have a true spear as a weapon.

Arbiter sounds better and actually makes sense for this spec while keeping the link with the Guardian.
Pretty original too, but already used elsewhere so it’s not coming out of nowhere.

Maybe not the best word for its sonority but probably the best compromise.
Sentinel would be totally fine also.

Valkyrie is too female to fit an entire specialization. Can you image Braham Eirsson (or Braham Dragonhunter) being a valkyrie? Just doesn’t work. :p

You could shorten it up while still going for the same theme, something like Valkyr.

Are Necromancer Marks treated like traps?

Sentinel could work with the Backline Support role. He stand vigilant looking out for his fellow companions.

I really like Smiter.

IMO it fits like a glove considering this specialization is all about hunting “evil” and strucking it down.

I don’t give two kittens about the name. But I might actually come back to GW2 if I could be a support Shield/Spear, Spear chucking guardian. A bow? Really?…

JNetRocks.3652:

• Dragonhunter… implies abilities to hunt dragons.

Such specific themes do not work for any class so the dragon theme needs to go. If you are in WvW or SPvP or even non-dragon-PvE then your specialization feels forced and like it has less meaning in these situations.

Arbiter, Paragon, Justicar… so many better options. Revenants should definitely be renamed to Mistmage or something.

Dragon hunter may sound bad to some people, but it most definitely gets the theme across. You know what hunters do in real life? They use ranged weapons (nowadays firearms, but they used bows and javelins in the past). They also lay down traps to catch smaller game like rabbits, or weaken bigger ones.

What does arbiter tell you? Are you a neutral observer that regulates the conflict between Tyria and the dragons? You are not, you are directly involved and fight for Tyria. And how do the bow and the traps fit with an arbiter?

As for the revenant, let’s see what the dictionary has to say:

1. a person who returns.
2. a person who returns as a spirit after death; ghost.

I say the second definition gives me a rough idea what the class is about. What does a “mistmage” do? Do they summon fog and make the air really dewy? Do they open portals to the Mists?

I like the name Dragonhunter and I like the options they are getting.

Personally I would have put Paragon as the Warrior specialization more than Guardian. In GW1 Paragons were more physical than magical, using shouts and motivation skills to help and inspire their allies. While the theme would fit the Guardian the method in which they achieve that theme is very different. Plus the theme (or purpose) of the Paragon could just as easily fit the Warrior.

I do agree that some of the DH changes seem very much like the Paragon, the spear and shield for example, but I still feel the name Paragon would not fit the Guardian because of their heavy use of magic. While the virtues may have become more physical, they are still created and powered by magic, and this does not feel like the old Paragon to me.

“Dragonhunter” is pretty bad. It’s generic in the wider context of fantasy, and yet too-specific in the context of a GW2 spec. I think pretty much anything would sound better, and invite speculation on the spec’s possible roles, rather than just… saying it, in the most basic way possible.

I assume ArenaNet are being consistent about single-word names for professions and specs (even if the single word is a combination of two).

Avenger
Seeker
Vindicator
Invigilator
Warden
Nemesis
Dragoon
Pursuant
Pathfinder
Zealot
Campaigner
Armiger

I’m a guardian and I’m looking forward to playing the new specialization, name, traps and all

Sorean.5379:

People are going nuts over a name,really?
If you don’t like traps or the way the specialization goes,thats okay,some people really don’t like certain playstyles.

But they have a choice: Keep playing guardian and don’t change to Dragonhunter. Simple as that.

But getting salty over a name is just ridiculous.
Its not that you are playing the name,you are playing the character. Also,I don’t recall any ingame dialogue to call you by your profession/class.

The only time where you see your own class is on login,when creating a character or when you press H.

I think we won’t have that luxury, old classes will be just cannon meat for the new content, and probably for the old one rebuffed.
So even the players that don’t want/need the expansion because they hate the new specialisation will have to buy it and use the new trait line.

However i hate the name and the dragon theme for the guard. Trap really? i use a ranger as well and i didn’t used them much.

DarkSyze.8627:

EdgarMTanaka.7291:

Miss Lana.5276:

Gilburt.9146:

Dragonhunter makes no sense as a specialization name and Chronomancer does. The Mesmer elite specialization name does make sense. Why? Because you specialize as a Chronomancer to manipulate time. Do you specialize as a Dragonhunter to hunt dragons? No. You will hunt and fight all types foes, not just “big game.”

Also, there is nothing innately Guardian about being a Dragonhunter. Why couldn’t a Warrior or Ranger hunt dragons? There’s not really any reason Dragonhunter fits the Guardian anymore than it could fit those professions. Why wouldn’t an armored master of combat or master of the nature want to hunt big game? They are arguably even more suited to the name than Guardians.

Personally I would prefer Sentinel as it fits the theme of defending from a range with longbow and setting traps.

Edit: Also, lol at the OPs argument. “These names are used elsewhere at some place and some time: therefore they are bad.” What?

Agreed. My Necro hunts dragons. Isn’t she a Dragonhunter already?

The two words mashed into one name doesn’t work – at all.

As I said in a nother post… My Engineer is a Warrior for my borderland in WvW but I don’t go complain that there is a Warrior class in this game.

Edit:

Nike.2631:

I am happy with the current name.

New Weapon: The bow – one of the greatest, most iconic hunting tools in the history of the human race

New Skill category: Traps – one of the most essential hunting tools in the history of the human race.

The Enemy: Elder Dragons – the ultimate peril of the world of Tyria. If we do not strive against them with our every breath, all will die.

New Profession: The Dragon Hunter – “I take the tools of the hunter and turn them against the foes that must be fought. For the good of all.”

The name wasn’t picked out of a hat… Its a graceful bit of shorthand both summing up and evoking many elements the profession encompasses.

+1

So well written and true.

Second Edit:

Farzo.8410:

The problem is that the name Dragonhunter can be given to any of the profession and make skills around it.

Whereas Chronomancer… It can only be given to Mesmer, and Mesmer only, no other profession fits with the Chronomancer description at all, and it makes it unique to that profession.

But everyone can call themselves a Dragonhunter.

Again… My Engineer is a Warrior for my borderland in WvW but I don’t go complain that there is a Warrior class in this game. We are all fighting a War so we are all Warriors.

I Disagree-

We are all fighters: Fighters fight because they fight

Fighters Do Not Sacrifice Their Lives For Others

Warriors Sacrifice Their Lives For Others

Fighters Run From Death

Warriors Run Toward Death

That Is What Make A Warrior

That Is Why The Role Only Fit For The Warrior

That Is Why Not Everyone Can Be A Warrior

Eh fighter? Do you even know what a fighter is?
A few examples.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fighter

Do you know what a warrior is?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warrior

Alice.5360:

I really, REALLY hope they change the name. Imagine if the announcment had gone more along the lines of…

“Meet the Arbiter!

We’re proud to reveal the Arbiter, the elite specialization for the Guardian. Staying true to the base class, these wielders of light have mobilized in the war against the dragons, ready to bring justice to their foes and solace to their allies! This new specialization has an emphasis on range and mobility, both features that were previously lacking in the Guardian’s lineup.

In addition to reworked virtues and access to longbow, Arbiters have gained the access to traps. By carefully setting the stage with a variety of new traps, the Arbiter can direct the flow of battle from a distance. Judgment is passed when foes or allies pass over the traps, bringing devastating conditions to the unworthy. One skill, Prison of Light, will keep your enemy locked in place, allowing the Arbiter to swoop in for the coup-de-grace.

The new elite, Glint’s Revelation, does something really cool and guardian themed too."

OK so I ran out of steam there at the end but you get the idea.

Maby you should check up the word Arbiter and ask yourself what it has to do with Longbow and traps to do?

I am realy against the wierd class names that most players propose as they are iether missplaced or/and religous.
As I said before, Dragon Hunter seems like a pretty legit name in my opinion.

Mr. Shooty Shiny Pants

Eurhetemec.9052:

Nike.2631:

white-bread

That phrase does not mean what you think it means.

I think, in this instance, the implication is that Nike is referring to the blandness of the situation. Replace it with “vanilla” and it would be the exact meaning they want.

Ojyh.9842:

Arbiter sounds better and actually makes sense for this spec while keeping the link with the Guardian.

I’ve never seen a judge or a referee wielding a bow and laying down traps.

Nike.2631:

Genesis.8572:

The name also feels very disassociated from the core concepts of the ‘guardian’ profession. Why is the ‘guardian’ even being imagined as a ‘big game hunter’ in the first place?

Because its NOT A GUARDIAN?

Fundamental issues here. New profession icon. New weapon. New utility skill set. If you choose to you can make your entire skill tray have ZERO overlap with any guardian ever.

It’s not the same profession and that they’ve come up with something people think is so far from the base by swapping 1/3 of their trait lines that is a monumental resounding success in design.

Just think it this way: You choose guardian because you like the theme, you like the set of skills and traits and it’s gameplay.
Now they give you a new spec that share nothing with the old spec. That could be ok if they new spec wouldn’t exists before in the game. But Why would i choose a dragonhunter when i have the class ranger that offers the same and can be upgraded to other spec?

Noha.3749:

Seems Dragonhunter won the poll.
I dont mind, im no guardian!

Because of the way the poll is set up, it’s misleading. Dragonhunter has the highest vote of the individual names presented, however if you look at it as dragonhunter vs everything else (which was the general gist of the pole – do u like it or would you name it something else) it lost…by a landslide.

Feral.3609:

I absolutely hate this idea, the name, and even the weapon choice.

Played my guardian from day 1 of release because it was a front line fighter with supportive buffs to allies – kind of like a templar or paladin. Now they turn it into a fairy ranger. Really upset with this choice! Looks like I’ll have to find a new main.

I would be happier if they even forgo giving guardians a longbow (which doesn’t even match this class) and just fix our broken/useless traitlines/skills (zeal/radiance/spirit weapons). That would be my version of a new specialization.

I hope they give necromancer a rifle and kitten them off to.

Find a new main? What, are you serious? This doesn’t change the base class at all, this is just the specialization. You will still be able to play the Guardian exactly as you always have been.

RabbitUp.8294:

Ojyh.9842:

Arbiter sounds better and actually makes sense for this spec while keeping the link with the Guardian.

I’ve never seen a judge or a referee wielding a bow and laying down traps.

Everything is open to change. I smashed this together in just a few mins. I’d be lying if a bit of inspiration didn’t come from here: http://finalfantasy.wikia.com/wiki/Archadian_Judges

But hey, change the name to sentinel. Traps are the sharp-eyed way a Guardian wards off foes from afar. … etc. etc.

If Anet picks a better name, a better theme will present itself than “I KILL DRAGONS”

Is there ever a time that anyone will see the name?
Party? Icon. PvP? Icon. WvW? Icon. PvP? Icon.
Much ado about nothing. In a few days the forum will be on the next thing to rage about. At least the RNG one was interesting.

You’ll get over it and will just call it a “DH Guard” and never mention the full name again.

Just a flesh wound.3589:

Is there ever a time that anyone will see the name?

Party? Icon. PvP? Icon. WvW? Icon. PvP? Icon.

Much ado about nothing.

The name sets the tempo. Call us dragonhunters now and down the line we’ll stray even father from the origin idea of the guardian. I agree the name rarely presents itself in-game but the poor naming places the specialization on a path of deviation and disappointment. I don’t want my Guardian to be limited to basically being a nondescript, lackluster ranger with skills that don’t harken back to our core.

Alice.5360:

RabbitUp.8294:

Ojyh.9842:

Arbiter sounds better and actually makes sense for this spec while keeping the link with the Guardian.

I’ve never seen a judge or a referee wielding a bow and laying down traps.

Everything is open to change. I smashed this together in just a few mins. I’d be lying if a bit of inspiration didn’t come from here: http://finalfantasy.wikia.com/wiki/Archadian_Judges

But hey, change the name to sentinel. Traps are the sharp-eyed way a Guardian wards off foes from afar. … etc. etc.

If Anet picks a better name, a better theme will present itself than “I KILL DRAGONS”

Do you want a thematically fitting name? Seeker

Come to think about it, its very unlikely they will change the name. Consider the following:

1. The armor and weapons designed for this character are Dragon themed.
2. There’s probably a ton of text to change that could of been potentially ready to ship.
3. There might be another things like cutscenes, events, skills or dialogue that include this name as well and were ready to ship, meaning they’d have to re-check all of it.

Basically, it’s not just changing the tittle on the blog post, but this might represent greater changes and quite a few man hours. So abandon the ship guys, this won’t float.

RabbitUp.8294:

Alice.5360:

RabbitUp.8294:

Ojyh.9842:

Arbiter sounds better and actually makes sense for this spec while keeping the link with the Guardian.

I’ve never seen a judge or a referee wielding a bow and laying down traps.

Everything is open to change. I smashed this together in just a few mins. I’d be lying if a bit of inspiration didn’t come from here: http://finalfantasy.wikia.com/wiki/Archadian_Judges

But hey, change the name to sentinel. Traps are the sharp-eyed way a Guardian wards off foes from afar. … etc. etc.

If Anet picks a better name, a better theme will present itself than “I KILL DRAGONS”

Do you want a thematically fitting name? Seeker

I’m fine with that: “Seeker of Truth and Justice” etc etc. Fits the theme. Replace Arbiter with seeker in my starting post, reword a few bits about judgment and bam. Meet the Seeker.

Seriously LOL like 99,9% names proposed by you guys are even WORSE!

BOW + TRAPS. Crusader does not fit it, Witch Hunter is just lolzy (what witches? how is that better than DRAGONhunter actually hunting dragons?).

I dislike the dragonhunter name myself but seriously. Propositions here are even worse because they have nothing thematically to do with bow + traps + light and justice together.

Someone even proposed VANGUARD. More like Sternguard if anything since it’s a bow user.

“Seeker”

You seek your prey, stalk them, prepare for them by laying down traps.

I still like Dragonhunter 100 times more than the random, ill-fitting “guardian” synonyms posted above.

EdgarMTanaka.7291:

Maby you should check up the word Arbiter and ask yourself what it has to do with Longbow and traps to do?

I am realy against the wierd class names that most players propose as they are iether missplaced or/and religous.
As I said before, Dragon Hunter seems like a pretty legit name in my opinion.

Arbiter – a person by whose decision the parties to a dispute agree to be bound
In this particular instance our two parties are – monsters vs peoples. He kills the monsters, that’s his decision. It a loose fit, but it could work.

Additionally its not “Dragon Hunter” its “Dragonhunter” all mashed up and just ick. My ele protests, cause last time she checked, she was a “dragon hunter” too. Unless slaying Zaihtan and now presently chasing Mordremoth means jack kitten because she’s not a guardian?

GreyerSkies.6287:

“Dragonhunter” is pretty bad. It’s generic in the wider context of fantasy, and yet too-specific in the context of a GW2 spec. I think pretty much anything would sound better, and invite speculation on the spec’s possible roles, rather than just… saying it, in the most basic way possible.

I assume ArenaNet are being consistent about single-word names for professions and specs (even if the single word is a combination of two).

Avenger
Seeker
Vindicator
Invigilator
Warden
Nemesis
Dragoon
Pursuant
Pathfinder
Zealot
Campaigner
Armiger

Literally every single one of these is worse than Dragonhunter(and DH is still bad :P). And they don’t have anything to do with THEME of dragonhunter. Pathfinder? Leave that to rangers. Dragoon? I don’t see any lances and so on.

Heimskarl Ashfiend.9582:

You’ll get over it and will just call it a “DH Guard” and never mention the full name again.

Or I’ll find their weakness and kill every single one of them on sight and then /dance. And say “GG, get a better class name!”

The name dragonhunter and the concept of a “big game hunter” does not really fit the specialization and powers you are presenting. I get it, they have a bow and traps (don’t know why you chose traps if you want this spec to be a back line fighter…), but you could at least come up with a more creative name, backstory and reason for this specialization to be so umm special.