Guild Wars 2

I love the stuff that is coming out. I approve that we will be getting new weapons for each class. But for the love of god A-net, I hope you let us switch between specializations otherwise it will be really easy to screw up a character we’ve spent hundreds of hours on.

I’m sure they will allow you to switch between professions they don’t believe in locking in people in specs.

If they lock it, then they’d in a way force you to level those alts

I’m also really hoping that they let use switch between specializations. If we can’kittens gonna need to give us someway to swap, at least in the beginning, cause I’m sure there will be some that’ll be kittened by their first pics (if there is even more than one specialization per class).

It sounds like each profession is getting a single specialization option.

Guhracie.3419:

It sounds like each profession is getting a single specialization option.

Thinking so too I just wonder what is their spec…

WoodenPotatoes also seems to think there is only a single spec per professions, so assuming he knows more than mere mortals, it made me a bit sad.

HOWEVER, Colin was using words like “so, if you choose to turn your character into a druid, then…”. That would mean there is an alternative to that.

Edgewalker.5963:

WoodenPotatoes also seems to think there is only a single spec per professions, so assuming he knows more than mere mortals, it made me a bit sad.

HOWEVER, Colin was using words like “so, if you choose to turn your character into a druid, then…”. That would mean there is an alternative to that.

Yeah. The alternative is just keeping your Ranger. The new weapons per profession seem only to come with the Specialization. I could see more specializations in the future but I have to think there is only one per profession.

What’s the point of “specialization” if there only one “choice”?
Should be at least 2.

Edgewalker.5963:

WoodenPotatoes also seems to think there is only a single spec per professions, so assuming he knows more than mere mortals, it made me a bit sad.

HOWEVER, Colin was using words like “so, if you choose to turn your character into a druid, then…”. That would mean there is an alternative to that.

Guess there is always the option to not specialise. :p

Jeah but he also said that becoming a druid will get you new skills and new weapons without taking you anything (maybe change mechanic a little bit but the druid in the trailer still had his pet) – So if theres just one specialization, why would anyone choose to not do it?

Mental Paradox.3845:

What’s the point of “specialization” if there only one “choice”?
Should be at least 2.

My thoughts as well, they might just as well have revamped the current classes instead of calling it specialisation.

Unless it’s a misuse of the word, ‘Specializations’ would suggest at least 2. How can you call something a ‘specialization’ if every class has one path of upgrade? Wouldn’t that simply be something everyone gets? That’s not specialization, that’s just advancement.

And switching between the two (assuming) would be nice. Certainly that is part of the ongoing theme of GW2 that your never locked into any one thing.

So personally I’d be really surprised if there’s only one single Specialization.

I think there should be more than 1 specialisation for each class. Only having 1 kinda ruins the point. It would also make it more worthwhile to level alts of each profession.

Vix.6730:

Ferever.7014:

I’m sure they will allow you to switch between professions they don’t believe in locking in people in specs.

Professions are specs are two completely different things. Professions have been locked since Guild Wars. It sounds like we’ll be seeing the release of Traits v.3.

ohh geez I used the wrong word sorry about that lack of sleep does that to you. Yes I meant Specs lol…ohh boy…I’m embrassed now.

The term specialization does not lend itself to subtraction. That is, if you are something and you specialize in something, you are still what you were before but exceptionally good in one area.

Colin made mention of ‘almost like a secondary profession’. If this is the case, in GW1, you never lost anything by taking on a secondary…you only gained more options.

So I hope it works like a trait line, or pretty much how it does in most other games. Basically…think build templates.

Azoqu.8917:

I love the stuff that is coming out. I approve that we will be getting new weapons for each class. But for the love of god A-net, I hope you let us switch between specializations otherwise it will be really easy to screw up a character we’ve spent hundreds of hours on.

I hope they will let us switch specializations for one month for free to work it all out, and then make it really really expensive to change, so we get some more diverse meta game, not “X is best and Y doesn’t matter” like it is now.

Gomes.5643:

So if theres just one specialization, why would anyone choose to not do it?

Because if you can’t change back then I would never want to change it in teh first place.

Bakeneko.5826:

Azoqu.8917:

I love the stuff that is coming out. I approve that we will be getting new weapons for each class. But for the love of god A-net, I hope you let us switch between specializations otherwise it will be really easy to screw up a character we’ve spent hundreds of hours on.

I hope they will let us switch specializations for one month for free to work it all out, and then make it really really expensive to change, so we get some more diverse meta game, not “X is best and Y doesn’t matter” like it is now.

Personally I wouldn’t want to have it swappable, because I’ve got about 12 alts kicking around, so I have pretty much 2 of each profession. So I wouldn’t be to negatively impacted by this, and being able to specialise my alts would be nice, so that my one necro can feel different from my other.
However this is the kind of thing that might turn off some players who aren’t alt-a-holics. So I think ANet will go for the thing that makes the most people happy.

CureForLiving.5360:

Bakeneko.5826:

Azoqu.8917:

I love the stuff that is coming out. I approve that we will be getting new weapons for each class. But for the love of god A-net, I hope you let us switch between specializations otherwise it will be really easy to screw up a character we’ve spent hundreds of hours on.

I hope they will let us switch specializations for one month for free to work it all out, and then make it really really expensive to change, so we get some more diverse meta game, not “X is best and Y doesn’t matter” like it is now.

Personally I wouldn’t want to have it swappable, because I’ve got about 12 alts kicking around, so I have pretty much 2 of each profession. So I wouldn’t be to negatively impacted by this, and being able to specialise my alts would be nice, so that my one necro can feel different from my other.
However this is the kind of thing that might turn off some players who aren’t alt-a-holics. So I think ANet will go for the thing that makes the most people happy.

That’s a bit a shame, I’d like to see players adapting to meta along the way figuring builds, styles etc. not jumping band wagon spec for that moment.

CureForLiving.5360:

Mental Paradox.3845:

What’s the point of “specialization” if there only one “choice”?
Should be at least 2.

My thoughts as well, they might just as well have revamped the current classes instead of calling it specialisation.

Maybe they want to set up the ground work and system for additional specializations to be added later as a form horizontal choice. It is hardly likely this will be the only expac for GW2, they are setting precedents here.

Personally, I suspect that, in the most extreme case, they’ll do it like they did with crafting. Since the masteries are implied to be about long term progression, charging a fee for swapping that increases the more you’ve already progressed in said mastery you want to swap into would add both the option to swap, while also adding a bit of a consequence to swapping back and forth.

Though saying that, they could maintain the stance they’ve taken with traits a while ago, where they changed it so that you can swap anytime, anywhere (out of combat) for free.

But who knows, really? It’s all speculation at this point and we’ll be getting our answers in the coming weeks. We just gotta have patience. ;~;

I can’t see them locking it. The entire game is built around letting you switch up your characters at will, and as the game has gone on its actually gotten easier to do so, not harder (for example, when the game launched you needed to visit a profession trainer and pay a fee to respec, now we can do it for free at any time).

It would be an anomaly in the game design if this one thing was suddenly locked.

Plus, the way they talk about the system, it sounds to me like they’re going to continue to expand it in the future. Add more specializations. It would be quite a slap in the face if you chose, say, Druid when HoT comes out, then down the line they released a new spec which you liked much better, but because they’re permanent choices you couldn’t even consider taking it without creating a new character.

I’m hoping for 2 to start off with and then 1 for future expansions.

Can’t wait for the Deep Sea expansion (probably with under water weapon specializations)… an entire world underwater, hopefully they get some of the more annoying issues with water combat taken care of by then.

Electro.4173:

I can’t see them locking it. The entire game is built around letting you switch up your characters at will, and as the game has gone on its actually gotten easier to do so, not harder (for example, when the game launched you needed to visit a profession trainer and pay a fee to respec, now we can do it for free at any time).

It would be an anomaly in the game design if this one thing was suddenly locked.

Plus, the way they talk about the system, it sounds to me like they’re going to continue to expand it in the future. Add more specializations. It would be quite a slap in the face if you chose, say, Druid when HoT comes out, then down the line they released a new spec which you liked much better, but because they’re permanent choices you couldn’t even consider taking it without creating a new character.

This is why I said “let change at the release”. I see huge logic gap in “changing specs on the go”. If I were on battlefield specialized in fighting with sword+shield, I would have no idea to fight with, let’s say dagger or bow at the same level as with sw+sh, because I’m pro at that thing, and not the other two.

Arenanet stated that a specialization will offer new weapons, new skills and new class mechanic.
Arena tries hard to keep all the profession on par with each other, I don’t think that specializations would just be an super version of a profession. This would also split players between vanilla and super profession. I believe that specializations are just an alternate version of a profession hence each one will have two specialization in HOT, the vanilla and a new one.

For example, when a ranger changes it’s specialization to druid, it’s useable weapons, skills, traits and mechanic are all changed while still remain a nature archetype.

That is also my most burning question. I hope that you can swap between specializations or between the normal and the specialized profession. I’m not really keen on leveling another 8 characters. But I guess we’ll have to wait some time till we find out.