Guild Wars 2

Before I hit my observations, here’s a little background on my play experience with GW2:

I have been playing GW2 since it’s release, actually started with Guild Wars. I am primarily a PvE player, but spend a bit of the time I have to play in PvP (PvP Rank108/League Skill Rating 1040 [Silver 2]) and WvW (WvW Rank 375). This just follows the old adage, “jack of all trades, master of none”.

When GW2 was initially released, it was advertised as “play as you want”. Having come from Guild Wars, I appreciated that they had attempted to move from classes having specific roles (e.g. War=Tank, Monk=Party Heal, etc.), and invited us to choose a character to play as we wanted and ENJOY the world they had worked so hard to create.

Having started with PvE, I came late to WvW (at first just to get Map Exploration achievement) and later to PvP.

Onto my Observations:

Server Combinations:
Being on a smaller server (IOJ), we constantly find our server allied with a different larger server. So once we get used to playing with a larger server, our reward to to be given to a different larger server. The problem with this is that it makes it difficult to establish a lasting relationship, since we have no control over who we will be allied with next, nor exactly when that change will be. Relationships work in two directions, so it is difficult for a larger server to know who they can depend on. All in all, it is hard on alliances.

Small guild vs. Large guild and WvW guilds vs. non WvW guilds:
I am primarily from a small guild, and am the most experienced WvW guildmember. So, when I go WvW, it is usually on my own and I tend to roam, but have joined squads and participated with ad hoc groups in accomplishing objectives. I try to call out situations as I see them, but apparently lack the WvW credibility to be taken seriously (yes, I know the difference between map chat and team chat, and try to use them appropriately). Frequently, I see someone who is regularly in map/team chat ask why no one called out something, which I HAD called out.

Regardless of environment, small guilds are at a disadvantage and GW2 seems to favor large guilds, which translates to WvW even more so along the line whether one’s guild is more WvW focused (advantage again to larger guilds, who statistically can have more WvW-focused members).

Playstyle/Participation:
Recent changes to WvW now punish players for their playstyles. Gone is the ability to Roam. Gone is the ability to participate outside of a zerg. Builds are also important, but when dealing with a zerg, builds don’t matter – ganked will always be ganked.

The biggest impact to this comes from changes in the decay timer and what counts as participation and how it is valued. In the grand scheme of things, one can argue that this is not true. One can still play the way one wants – which is true, however the perception is not.

Anet has introduced a system of measurement/feedback that informs players that all they have done doesn’t count, because their participation is either at ZERO due to decay or because they are below Tier 3 (also due to rapid decay) from not being in a zerg and/or on a winning server. So instead of feeling like one is helping, one feels like “what’s the use?” – and leaves.

So the current system of measurement/feedback discourages players from participating (or even try WvW for that matter) instead of encouraging them. And every five minutes in WvW we are reminded of how we are not participating.

By definition, this is a punishment, not a reward.

Invisible Pete.7290:

Server Combinations:
Being on a smaller server (IOJ), we constantly find our server allied with a different larger server. So once we get used to playing with a larger server, our reward to to be given to a different larger server. The problem with this is that it makes it difficult to establish a lasting relationship, since we have no control over who we will be allied with next, nor exactly when that change will be. Relationships work in two directions, so it is difficult for a larger server to know who they can depend on. All in all, it is hard on alliances.

Also doesn’t help when servers constantly get relinked. Breaking apart an establishing community and restarting with another server. For the 10000000000th time, please just permanently link them and only relink when absolutely necessary. How in the name of Balthazar do you create a community loyally committed to a common cause when they’re constantly being shuffled around??? Why make every relink feel like a ‘restart’ event, that makes people want to transfer to seek for a new start on a new server?

Oh by the way, you want to change that transfer cost for guest servers yet?

Invisible Pete.7290:

Regardless of environment, small guilds are at a disadvantage and GW2 seems to favor large guilds, which translates to WvW even more so along the line whether one’s guild is more WvW focused (advantage again to larger guilds, who statistically can have more WvW-focused members).

TBH, I don’t see anything wrong with larger guilds being able to do more things? Just don’t make small guilds/group obsolete.

“TBH, I don’t see anything wrong with larger guilds being able to do more things? Just don’t make small guilds/group obsolete.”

My apologies, I too do not have a problem with large guilds. Just frustrated that small guilds frequently seem to be on the short end.

Small guilds was just fine, pre-hot. But after anet decided to wipe the slate clean regarding guild upgrades. Of course after hot was introduced if you weren’t in a big guild or had almost infinite gold and materials you were and still are at a huge disadvantage.

the recipes/gear that also requires crystalline ore require that because its HoT content and should only be available to players with HoT, the same goes for HoT stats.

Invisible Pete.7290:

Before I hit my observations, here’s a little background on my play experience with GW2:

I have been playing GW2 since it’s release, actually started with Guild Wars. I am primarily a PvE player, but spend a bit of the time I have to play in PvP (PvP Rank108/League Skill Rating 1040 [Silver 2]) and WvW (WvW Rank 375). This just follows the old adage, “jack of all trades, master of none”.

Having started with PvE, I came late to WvW (at first just to get Map Exploration achievement) and later to PvP.

By definition, this is a punishment, not a reward.

Hi, I am not on your server, but when we were linked I thought IOJ was actually a very good small WVW server and had a pretty nice community of its own and I enjoyed playing with them. Yes we all ended up on same voice comms, but I am sure you can find an IOJ guild or group to run with unless you play in a dead timezone.

This is what you are missing. I personally roam quite a bit as well since I play in off hours during weekdays due to work schedule, and do my big group play on weekends (primetime). While roaming is OK and scouting is very important, WVW is a massive battle game mode. All the other activities ultimately go to support that in one form or another, wether its scouting, killing yaks, retaking camps, back capping towers or sentries so you can see opponent zergs on map, its all basically support to whoever the main commander(s) are.

Also, you are missing out on community. This is important. MMORPGs are ultimately built around that, without it, when you seperate each aspect into its own they are actually pretty crappy games. For example can you imagine if ranked SPVP was limited to solo ques only and text chat only without any voice comms ? After a while it gets very stale and boring and there are far, far better games out there that do MOBA and small group PVP a lot better then this. Likewise in WVW, its the community aspect that keeps everything together.

Also, you are incorrect about builds in zergs. when going full squad vs full squad, the side that has better builds and more of them, rather then just random stuff straight out of PVP will win if they are both on voice comms and execute somewhat decently.

I am also a PVX player, though I am focused on WVW, this is my main game mode, the other ones I play a lot less and I have also played this game since open beta / early launch. Just this weekend I hit rank 2500 and I never ran EOTM except a little bit out of novelty and curiosity (like a new pve map) when it first came out, so no EOTM farming here.

In groups, even small ones, you will gain ranks at much higher pace then otherwise. As long as you continue to play solo in a mass battle mode, you will not achieve decent rates for gaining ranks. And no, you don’t have to join massive zergs if that is not what you like doing, but do at least join a small group, 5-10 people running around on the BLs if nothing else. Build wise, once you get on voice comms with them, just ask what they need to compliment the team and see if you like it, if you don’t don’t be shy, say something and try out different builds / roles. You might even discover new ways you like to play to take back to the other game modes. Even if you do not have a particular class at max level, nowadays you gain tomes so quick that after couple days of playing you can basically have a max level toon within a few minutes of creating it, and exotics to try out builds with account bound instead of soul bound acended and legendary gear make that real easy.

So that is what you need to do, otherwise you’ll be stuck just like you are right now.

Stop worrying about pips and tickets, once you get going with this, things just flow naturally, the ranks, pips, tickets, all this stuff, is the icing on the cake, not the cake itself. And don’t forget you have 5 guild slots and can join multiple guilds. A lot of WVW guilds do not require rep, or will ask to rep only when running under their commander so you can keep your current guild and do not have to worry about losing it.

The main problem with WvW is that ANET is addicted to transfer fees.

They turn a blind eye to the problems of overstacked servers and lack of competition just to milk another dollar from people who like to bandwagon.

WvW isn’t competitive because of this basic fact and ANET doesn’t care, as long as you pay for another transfer fee. It’s a sad joke on what could have been the best RvR ever made, but ANET threw it all away chasing pennies while giving up on the gold.