Guild Wars 2

Well I tried my first dungeon in GW2. A PuG in Twilight Arbor.. after over an hour waiting, and it didn’t end well.

So maybe I need to learn this stuff with some people who aren’t all “Rahh! Rush Rush! I have to be somewhere in 15 minutes, skip the trash! How dare you not know what to do!”

But how? My guild is functionally dead so no help there.

What’s a good ‘starter’ dungeon? How should I approach it? How do I get groups who aren’t too PRO for me? Do people ever do stuff in a relaxed way, or is that just me? I’ve effectively soloed up till now, out of wariness on just this issue.

This is the last throw of the dice before I give up and sign up for another game. I’ve enjoyed GW2 up till now, but if I’m ‘locked out’ of the level 80 content by not being PRO enough, I’ll accept that and move on.

It’s true that a lot of people like to go fast at these sorts of things. If your ever on at the same time and I have time, I could help teach you a dungeon run.

Another alternative is operation Unity, it is a cross server guild dedicated to helping players when they need help. Perhaps you should check them out?

https://forum-en.gw2archive.eu/forum/game/players/OPERATION-UNION-Bringing-Players-Together/first

http://operationunion.enjin.com/forum

here are a couple of tips that I’ve learned from just starting dungeons a couple of weeks ago:
1. two ways of learning it… #1 just run it a couple of times… it’ll be hard at first but eventually you’ll learn and #2 there are walk/run-throughs on youtube that you can watch… it won’t teach you everything like learning boss’ movements/attacks/tendencies but it’ll get you close to understanding the dungeon at least half way there… (enough to pretend that you know what you’re doing, you’ll get it after a few runs)
2. gw2lfg.com is a life-saver… find groups there… you can never guarantee that people will be nice there but generally:
a. avoid posts wanting a speed run at first
b. avoid people asking for specific professions
c. avoid people asking to ping gear
d. sometimes people will put something like “all professions welcome”… really look for those if you can, those are in my experience the nicer people out there
3. after running dungeons for a few weeks now… the realization that I’ve come to is that there is pretty much no reason to run anything besides p1 and sometimes p2 of CoF… unless you really want some random exos… CoF has zerker gear which is what most people wear/want anyways (not saying there aren’t people running non-zerker builds, but the majority of people probably are, especially in dungeons)… unless you REALLY want the skins from other dungeons, stick to CoF p1 and p2 as a reset for easy-mode
4. no, seriously on CoF… everyone is so trained at running it, you’ll probably be able to free ride it a couple of times to learn everything cause everyone else is so good at it and it’s so easy mode that most likely no one will notice you not doing your share… if it wouldn’t be for the braziers part, you could seriously complete that dungeon with 3 decent players…

hope this helps

Grouped with people who already had done them. Copied what they did. Easiest content ever.

But in all seriousness, there is no “starter” dungeon. Dungeons are such a massive step up from conventional PvE that any dungeon is going to seem impossible to someone just starting out. You’re going to have failed runs for awhile just like we all did but eventually you’ll get so good at them you can blast through every path of a dungeon in less than an hour without dying or wearing armor. CoF path 1 is brutally easy and after just one run of that you’ll have it down forever. People love to run it to because of its simplicity and just the sheer speed you can run through it. Many many people are down for CoF path 1 spams so just make a group and it will fill up fast I promise. Just pay attention to what more experienced dungeon runners say/do.

Make your own parties because you can’t be kicked from those. But if you must join up, for the love of god please skip over “zerker warriors onry” or “pro speed runs plz” these are the kind of groups you don’t want to be in.

There is plenty of non-elitist people out there that want to run dungeons. They are there, you’re just not looking hard enough.

Thanks for the constructive replies.. but I think I see a problem. I’m not wanting to do dungeons to ‘gear up’ per se… I’m wanting to see the content. It’s not the means to an end, it’s the end itself. And I don’t get that by going along as a carried passenger with a group of PRO PLAYERS, by watching how to do it on youtube, or by speed runs.

The clue was in the name of the game I guess. ‘Guild Wars’ requires that you have a ‘guild’ I should be surprised that I even got as far as I did before realising that you need half a dozen friends to join at the same time you do, to make it work.

I guess I’m happy that I got my value out of the game, there’s no point belaboring it

eXs.6210:

. unless you REALLY want the skins from other dungeons, stick to CoF p1 and p2 as a reset for easy-mode

I’ve tried CoF p2 once, the group failed at the end room after half a dozen tries, with different strategies discussed and tried each time, so evidently it is not THAT easy. I have encountered the same problem as the OP, with only a couple of occasions/week when I might have time to run any dungeon once and a lousy memory it is hard to learn their mechanics. It would be nice if they weren’t QUITE such a jump in difficulty from standard content, then I might be able to get 4 more guildmates to join me, but two have sworn off them after initial experiences.

Note that also you can get certain stat combinations from specific dungeons which are not craftable, such as Soldier (Pow/Tough/Vit), so there can be other reasons to run other dungeons.

@OP: Believe me when I say that there are people who are willing to go through a dungeon for the sake of seeing the story of it (I am one of them). It might take a while, but I can assure you that they are out there.

Note as well that I’m pretty sure operation unity doesn’t require you to be a member to get help so that you can go through the dungeons and enjoy their stories.

It took you an hour to get a TA group? Either use gw2lfg.com or get in a decent guild. Saying “welp my guild’s dead game over” is ridiculous. There are plenty of people out there who want to kill all the trash and watch all the cut scenes (I’m not one of them but to each their own).

1) You can watch youtube videos
2) Find a different guild
3) Before the dungeon starts, tell them you’re new. Ask them to quickly share with you strategies or how to do something before you start. TA isn’t as popular, but if you join a CoF or AC dungeon, people will assume you know what you’re doing, and get upset if you do something you’re not supposed to (run into the circle on AC path #2, bugging Detha)

Well my first piece of advice is to find a more active guild that will run dungeons with you

I would start at the bottom and work my way up – start with AC story mode then move on to explorable mode.

If you can’t find a guild group, then the first thing you need to tell your PUG (pick up group) is that you are new to the dungeon and would appreciate some pointers. Lots of players will help you out and take the time to explain mechanics and what skills would work best here and there. If you get attitude or kicked in response to telling people you are new, well then you don’t want to waste your time playing with those people anyway, right?!

It’s also good to do your own homework before going into a new dungeon. Check out summaries on the wiki and other guides too.

OP: which server are you on? My guild almost exclusively runs dungeons every night, story and explorable. We’re on Fort Aspenwood, feel free to look me up and guest over for some good dungeon experiences. We won’t even rush ahead if you want to watch all the cutscenes!

Kozai.8269:

eXs.6210:

. unless you REALLY want the skins from other dungeons, stick to CoF p1 and p2 as a reset for easy-mode

I’ve tried CoF p2 once, the group failed at the end room after half a dozen tries, with different strategies discussed and tried each time, so evidently it is not THAT easy. I have encountered the same problem as the OP, with only a couple of occasions/week when I might have time to run any dungeon once and a lousy memory it is hard to learn their mechanics. It would be nice if they weren’t QUITE such a jump in difficulty from standard content, then I might be able to get 4 more guildmates to join me, but two have sworn off them after initial experiences.

Note that also you can get certain stat combinations from specific dungeons which are not craftable, such as Soldier (Pow/Tough/Vit), so there can be other reasons to run other dungeons.

This is a tough subject about adjusting difficulty. You’re right when you say that there shouldn’t be such a jump in difficulty between dungeons and normal PvE IMO. I like the difficulty most dungeon paths are right now, some are too easy (CoF P1 in particular) and some are too hard (Arah P4). Personally, I think ArenaNet needs to take their concept of Hard Mode and Normal Mode from GW1 and apply it dungeons since they are instanced. Normal Mode can be made slightly easier, say from silver enemies to copper enemies, and make Hard Mode the same as it is or even harder. I’ve gotten to a point where in most dungeon paths, if I die (not just downed), I consider it a failed run because of how well I run my character.

I also don’t think PvE should be adjusted in difficulty because I find it nice that I can play with my little sister and she can play the game semi effectively.

Find 4 warriors and group with them. Watch things DIE… cough yeah. Die.

Don’t give up man, I was there a few weeks ago.. The game sucked, a bunch of jerks, no one helped me, everyone said go learn to play… A bunchof jerks is what iI thought… But then I posted I was looking for a guild on my server and found a awesome guild that was kind and understanding of the new players in the game.. If you want to join us on yaks bendwe love pplaying and running dungeon all the time.

Phaedre.2053:

Thanks for the constructive replies.. but I think I see a problem. I’m not wanting to do dungeons to ‘gear up’ per se… I’m wanting to see the content. It’s not the means to an end, it’s the end itself.

I’m absolutely with you – I have wanted to enjoy dungeons, but it dismays me what the standard definition of ‘casual’ players seems to be these days. I play casual – with friends, for fun. I’m not terrible, but I won’t have maxed gear for a long time.

I’ve had bad dungeon experiences before, but I recently started going with a friend who’s more into it than me but still happy to explain as we go and wait for people, and it was SO much more fun. Those people are out there! And yeah, a guild will help you find the right kind of people, but otherwise it’s kind of just luck.

I’m in Oceania so don’t know if we’ll ever play at the same time, but feel free to message me in-game; I’m trying to get dungeons for monthlies and I’ll happily take you along on a more chilled out run.

PS: I hear Twilight Arbor is particularly nasty. Unfortunately the “skip the trash, how can you not understand exactly what I’m going to do before I do it” crowd are a symptom of current MMO culture overall, I feel.

Don’t take current vocal people saying ‘L2P’ as the feelings of the community as a whole. Most of us are far friendlier than that. If I know that someone in the party is new, I will describe the encounters ahead of time. I have run many new players in PUGs through TA, and I can do so (and don’t mind doing so) for many of the dungeons.

Pandaman.4623:

Don’t give up man, I was there a few weeks ago.. The game sucked, a bunch of jerks, no one helped me, everyone said go learn to play… A bunchof jerks is what iI thought… But then I posted I was looking for a guild on my server and found a awesome guild that was kind and understanding of the new players in the game.. If you want to join us on yaks bendwe love pplaying and running dungeon all the time.

Panda! I was just revisiting this thread and read your nice comment about our guild. This made my day

To the OP, Phaedre, you are welcome to join us on a dungeon run anytime even if you aren’t on Yak’s Bend! Just shoot us a mail or whisper.

Check out strife025 youtube channel. He has detailed guides for just about every single dungeon path (including fractals).

Thanks for the offer, rokcinana & Panda, but you’re on a US server and I’m on EU (Far Shiverpeaks) so I don’t think it can easily be made to work (no cross-zone guesting)

I think it’s going to have to come down to finding a decent guild or playing group one way or another, just hoping to find decent people through a PuG is gonna end up with mismatches, it’s inevitable. I don’t mind server transferring, once I’ve done a bit of research on where to go to.

Phaedre.2053:

Thanks for the offer, rokcinana & Panda, but you’re on a US server and I’m on EU (Far Shiverpeaks) so I don’t think it can easily be made to work (no cross-zone guesting)

I think it’s going to have to come down to finding a decent guild or playing group one way or another, just hoping to find decent people through a PuG is gonna end up with mismatches, it’s inevitable. I don’t mind server transferring, once I’ve done a bit of research on where to go to.

Unfortunately cross-zone guesting and dungeoning is impossible due to technical limitations. I do recommend you find a good guild or community, but I do not know what those might be on EU servers.

What’s a good ‘starter’ dungeon?

Ascalonian Catacombs, located in the Plains of Ashford. Level 30 Story Mode, Level 35 Explorable Mode. It’ll introduce you to some more complex combat concepts, but essentially the Story Mode of each dungeon will run you through each dungeon’s own unique mechanics, be it Spike Traps in Ascalonian Catacombs or Volatile Blossoms in Twilight Arbor.

How should I approach it?

Slowly and attentively. Never assume your level 80 full exotic plus Ascended will one-shot things. Take your time to survey each room, each monster.

How do I get groups who aren’t too PRO for me?

These forums, for one. Also check out Operation Union (see earlier posts).

Do people ever do stuff in a relaxed way, or is that just me?

Just your perception being marred by a few unfortunate experiences.

The clue was in the name of the game I guess. ‘Guild Wars’ requires that you have a ‘guild’ I should be surprised that I even got as far as I did before realising that you need half a dozen friends to join at the same time you do, to make it work.

You don’t. When joining a new community (i.e. GW2 in this case), never be afraid to do three things:

1) Say “Hi.”
2) Let people know you’re new and don’t necessary know who’s who and what’s what.
3) Learn things that are totally alien to you.

PUGs are always wrought with mismatches; it’s a 5-person blind date, if anything. Patience and tolerance will be your best allies, and of course, we’re here to answer what questions we can, assuming your frustrations don’t get the better of you.

Berkut.2837:

@OP: Believe me when I say that there are people who are willing to go through a dungeon for the sake of seeing the story of it (I am one of them). It might take a while, but I can assure you that they are out there.

I like slowing down and following the story also… The best way to find folks that have similar goals is to suck it up and build the group yourself. Decide on a dungeon you want to try, read up on it a little bit so you know what to expect, make sure you set aside enough time, and be clear about what kind of run you’re doing when you advertise for more members.

Who knows? You might find some folks you’ll add to your friends list.

I’m well aware of a lot of elitist and/or speed run groups. The problem I see in this case is not with the game or those problematic groups (which are a serious issue within the community) but rather that it seems you’ve given up without even really trying.

There are a lot of nice people out there who help newcomers to dungeons, take things slow etc. you can’t expect them to just be there for you you have to work to find them just as they need to find you.

Join a more active guild, try gw2lfg.com specify that you are new and want to do a dungeon in a relaxed atmosphere etc. Throwing your hands up in the air after trying once and in the wrong manner is a bit extreme and hardly the games fault not even those PuGs.

Just have to find a steady dungeon group or people who think likewise to add to your friends list and do them with them.

eXs.6210:

2. gw2lfg.com is a life-saver… find groups there… you can never guarantee that people will be nice there but generally:
a. avoid posts wanting a speed run at first
b. avoid people asking for specific professions
c. avoid people asking to ping gear
d. sometimes people will put something like “all professions welcome”… really look for those if you can, those are in my experience the nicer people out there

1000x this. People who request lvl 80 only or certain professions are BAD, legitimately terrible players. But worst of all, they think they’re pro, and carry on as much. I’ve tagged along with a few groups like this (one in particular demanding a “tanky warrior lvl 80 with full exotics only.”) So after spending most of my time reviving these useless glass cannons who were downed every time Kholer did his spin (I held aggro the rest of the time) it came up to Colossus Rumblus who knocked all four of them down on his first scream, clearly using Warbanner this time after the Kholer incident. It fell to pieces when one of them managed to pull not one, but two nearby breeders. They got wiped as I hid (a decision I would gladly make again.)
But really, their dreadful performance wasn’t what bothered me, it was their attitude throughout the entire run that was nauseating. Here I thought elitists were actually meant to be good….

Never ever again, and the other times weren’t too great either. People who demand a strong team are only trying to make up for the skill they lack themselves.

Saying i’m bad because I only play with 80’s is crap. While you may have personally experienced that, you don’t have the right to generalize everyone to fit your narrow little view of a game played by thousands of people.

I don’t think that those that want only 80s are bad, per se. I do think, however, that the only good reasons to request 80s only is for speed runs and the like. Wanting all other players to be 80 everywhere is quite exclusionary and unnecessary.

I just recently ran AC with a group with a couple 80s and 3 lower level charas. Some of the lower level charas were noticeably more effective than the 80. Please don’t judge skill based on level. And remember that players cannot gain skill without being given the chance.

I know that all that of you level 80 dungeon runners were new at one time. You needed to learn from somewhere and someone. Spend the time and help others learn. You will only improve the community by doing so.

SynfulChaot.3169:

I just recently ran AC with a group with a couple 80s and 3 lower level charas. Some of the lower level charas were noticeably more effective than the 80. Please don’t judge skill based on level. And remember that players cannot gain skill without being given the chance.

yes THAT bolded part there cant be said enough times, and seem to be a problem not only here in gw2 but in about any game

Just two things to I think may be important here:

1- Play with a guild or a group that you trust. So if you fail for some reason you can discuss about it and try different things, or find out what went wrong without people freaking out and leaving the party.
2- Ascalonian Catacombs is an amazing place for learning the basics. In Story mode you can practice with lots of different mechanics and learn how to work with the environment. In Explorable mode you have some excelent bosses that will teach you how to effectively dodge attacks (Kohler), learn about attack animations (nichguls, final bosses) and strategies (defend X place, protect X NPC). This will be useful for all the other dungeons.