Dev Tracker

Lets talk about the new Gem conversion [Merged]

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: Gaile Gray

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Gaile Gray

ArenaNet Communications Manager

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Hey there,

Here are a few tidbits from the team:

  • A lot of newer players had trouble with the interface. That doesn’t apply to you, you’re veterans who have been around the conversion block a time or two. But newer players will benefit from the updated system.
  • The goal was to make the Gem Store more like other shopping experiences, and if you think about it, there is more of that feel to it now.
  • You may be surprised to know this (I know I was) but very few people bought gems at smaller denominations than the first one offered in the new system. That’s not to say they never did, nor that there wouldn’t be the desire to do so. But overall, the current options were selected based on player purchases in the past.
  • The team is going to listen to your feedback and, if and when it’s practical and desirable, they can look towards adjusting the new system to better meet your needs.

So please keep your thoughts coming on the new system. Feel free to make suggestions but please, keeping them constructive would be very much appreciated.

And yet in the history of this forum there has never been a post saying “the gem exchange interface is confusing me as a new player” or anything similar.

Really? You’re 100% certain there’s never been such a post? Good for you, then!

Concerns of this nature come in via tickets, when someone takes the wrong step, buys too many times, isn’t able to process the acquistion or exchange, etc. By the time someone’s on the forums, they’re usually comfortable with the systems.

Gaile Gray
Communications Manager
Guild & Fansite Relations; In-Game Events
ArenaNet

Lets talk about the new Gem conversion [Merged]

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: Gaile Gray

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Gaile Gray

ArenaNet Communications Manager

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Immediately before this patch: 10g = 70 gems.

Immediately after this patch: 10g = 57 gems (going off the 400 gem exchange rate).

They tampered with prices to make gems more expensive at exactly the same time as they removed the price history and made 400 gems the lowest increment you can buy in. Did anyone else see this? No other holiday event has had that big a fluctuation before.

Hey Tulki,

I wanted you to know I went immediately to see if I could get an answer on this, and don’t worry, there was no “stealth nerfing” of gem costs. What happened is a common occurrence with new builds: A whole lot of people made exchanges when the new build went live. And as you know the conversions are market driven.

So that’s why you saw the seeming discrepancy in the exchange rate. All is well, and it will continue to ebb and flow according to the volume of exchanges, as always.

Gaile Gray
Communications Manager
Guild & Fansite Relations; In-Game Events
ArenaNet

Lets talk about the new Gem conversion [Merged]

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: Gaile Gray

Previous

Gaile Gray

ArenaNet Communications Manager

Next

Hey there,

Here are a few tidbits from the team:

  • A lot of newer players had trouble with the interface. That doesn’t apply to you, you’re veterans who have been around the conversion block a time or two. But newer players will benefit from the updated system.
  • The goal was to make the Gem Store more like other shopping experiences, and if you think about it, there is more of that feel to it now.
  • You may be surprised to know this (I know I was) but very few people bought gems at smaller denominations than the first one offered in the new system. That’s not to say they never did, nor that there wouldn’t be the desire to do so. But overall, the current options were selected based on player purchases in the past.
  • The team is going to listen to your feedback and, if and when it’s practical and desirable, they can look towards adjusting the new system to better meet your needs.

So please keep your thoughts coming on the new system. Feel free to make suggestions but please, keeping them constructive would be very much appreciated.

Gaile Gray
Communications Manager
Guild & Fansite Relations; In-Game Events
ArenaNet

game client unable to access log in server

in Bugs: Game, Forum, Website

Posted by: Lauren Kamieniecki.6245

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Lauren Kamieniecki.6245

QA Lead

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Hi guys, I just saw it too. We’re looking into it.

Zommoros told me a secret! Spoiler free link

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: John Smith.4610

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John Smith.4610

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edit 3 (in story form): Lemark wasn’t much of a haggler. the merchant had taken almost every copper he owned, but it was worth it. He was positive this time, no more fakes, no more copies, forgeries or lies, this was it. He could feel it, sinister…ghostly, it felt weird to hold, but he didn’t care, his journey was one quarter complete.

Zommoros told me a secret

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: John Smith.4610

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John Smith.4610

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edit 3 (in story form): Lemark wasn’t much of a haggler. the merchant had taken almost every copper he owned, but it was worth it. He was positive this time, no more fakes, no more copies, forgeries or lies, this was it. He could feel it, sinister…ghostly, it felt weird to hold, but he didn’t care, his journey was one quarter complete.

iMac Retina 5K for GW2?

in Account & Technical Support

Posted by: Gavian Whishaw

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Gavian Whishaw

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We will have a few in house so I can let you know how it works out once we get them set up.

We made the patch notes :)

in Account & Technical Support

Posted by: Gavian Whishaw

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Gavian Whishaw

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Thanks JustTrogdor.

FPS Issue with the 9/9 patch [merged]

in Account & Technical Support

Posted by: Chad Taylor.3487

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Chad Taylor.3487

Lead Graphics Programmer

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We’ve identified a number of serious issues some of which were introduced into the 9/9 build and have code changes on the way to address them. We don’t expect it to fix everyone’s performance problems but we certainly hope it will help the majority of you on this thread. I will follow up when the code changes go live and hope that you guys will report back as to whether they are making a difference or not.

Fixes have gone live. Please report back if it affects any of the issues you guys are experiencing.

what time will the patch hit?

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: Gaile Gray

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Gaile Gray

ArenaNet Communications Manager

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Build notes.

English
German
French
Spanish

Gaile Gray
Communications Manager
Guild & Fansite Relations; In-Game Events
ArenaNet

what time will the patch hit?

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: Gaile Gray

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Gaile Gray

ArenaNet Communications Manager

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10 minutes.

Gaile Gray
Communications Manager
Guild & Fansite Relations; In-Game Events
ArenaNet

Game Update Notes - October 21, 2014

in Game Release Notes

Posted by: Mark Katzbach

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Mark Katzbach

Content Marketing Manager

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10/21/14 – October 21 (Halloween) Release Notes
Release Notes:
Halloween
Blood and Madness
Blood and Madness, our annual Halloween festival, returns for two weeks of ghoulish capers, spooky fights, and maddening fun!
Magister Tassi’s instruments are picking up unusual energy readings. It appears that the Mad King isn’t the only being capable of breaking through the barrier between realms—prepare to face the son of King Oswald Thorn, Bloody Prince Edrick!
Gather together with the citizens of Lion’s Arch to enjoy another year of tricks, treats, and terrible jokes.
Story

  • Join Magister Tassi at the Nolani Academy Ruins in the northwest corner of the Black Citadel for two story instances. The first introduces the players to the Halloween story and the return of Mad King Thorn’s son, the Bloody Prince Edrick.
  • Entry to the second story instance requires earning a Mini Candy Corn Elemental. At least one player in your party needs to have earned the mini for your party to begin the instance.

Lion’s Arch

  • The citizens of Lion’s Arch have united to decorate the area with Halloween flair. There are pumpkins to carve, trick-or-treating kids seeking candy, and merchants selling Halloween recipes. Even Zommoros has festive spirit, turning the Mystic Forge into a cauldron. Jump in for some costume-brawl fun.
  • Mad King Thorn himself appears in Lion’s Arch throughout the festival. Laugh at his mad jokes and play in his Mad King Says game.

Open World

  • In Lion’s Arch, Kessex Hills, and Gendarran Fields, the Mad Realm doors have returned. There are two varieties: the green Mad King doors and the red Bloody Prince doors. Opening a door may give players a trick-or-treat bag or may trigger an attack by the Mad King’s or Bloody Prince’s forces.
  • Outside Lion’s Arch and the capital cities, players can find tents with Halloween decorations and the Master Carver, who helps track progress toward the Pumpkin Carving achievement. Nearby, players can also talk to the ghost Rasmus, who can transfer them to the Lunatic Inquisition activity in the Mad Realm.
  • The Heart of the Mists and home citadels in the Borderlands have also received a Halloween decoration makeover.

Mad Realm

  • Players enter the Mad Realm through the Mad Realm doors that appear in Lion’s Arch, Kessex Hills, and Gendarran Fields. The Mad King doors and Bloody Prince doors will transport players to the east and west docks above the Mad King’s Labyrinth, respectively. The Lunatic Boatmaster transports players to the Lunatic Inquisition or the Mad King’s Clock Tower. Players can also interact with the portal seal on the ground to travel to the labyrinth below.
  • The Mad King’s Labyrinth has been thrown into conflict once again as the Mad King’s and the Bloody Prince’s armies clash. Watch the Thorns bicker as their forces fight for control. Three legendary bosses patrol the maze: the Skeletal Lich, the Grand High Viscount of Candy Corn, and the Labyrinthine Horror.
  • The Lunatic Inquisition activity pits players against one another as Lunatic Courtiers search out villagers in the labyrinth. Players must use found items and hidden secrets to survive the night.
  • The Mad King’s Clock Tower has returned with its unique jumping challenge. Other players trying to ascend will be shown with a mist effect, while you will remain fully visible.

Rewards

  • Trick-or-treat bags have been updated with loads of new items, including:
    • Bottles of Batwing Brew: This transformation is available in both crafted consumable and endless varieties.
    • Maize Balm: This delightfully unstable concoction transforms critters into candy corn elementals.
    • Recipes for the new Pumpkin Oil, Sharpening Skulls, and Lumps of Crystallized Nougat: These utility consumables provide unique bonuses when resurrecting other heroes.
    • New exotic amulets with unusual gems.
    • New miniatures, including the rare ghost cub Gwynefyrdd and tradable Zuzu, Cat of Darkness.
    • Crafting materials, including ascended crafting materials.
    • Valuable tier 6 trophies.
  • Unlock the new Tricks and Treats collection by finding an old pillowcase. Complete the collection to earn your own Mini Candy Corn Ghoulemental.
  • Black Lion weapon collectors may be interested in the Bloody Prince’s Toybox.
  • Achievements have returned with new rewards.
  • A new PvP reward track has been added for the duration of the festival.
  • A Halloween vendor merchant northwest of the Trader’s Forum Waypoint in Lion’s Arch will exchange your candy corn for candy corn cobs. These can be used to buy brand new rewards, including the Mini Zuzu, Cat of Darkness, and new crafting recipes, as well as old favorites like Mini Bloody Prince Thorn and 20-slot Halloween Pail inventory bags. The vendor will also combine your stacks of chattering skulls, plastic fangs, and nougat into refined versions. The resulting items can be used to craft exclusive Halloween weapons, including: Mad Moon (shield), Arachnophobia (short bow), and The Crossing (staff).

Daily Achievements

  • Pumpkin Hacker: Find and carve pumpkins throughout Tyria.
  • Halloween Costume Brawl Champion: Emerge as a champion from a costume brawl.
  • Candy Craver: Eat 50 pieces of candy corn.
  • Shut and Locked: Complete 5 door events.
  • The Mad Inquisition: Finish a game of Lunatic Inquisition.
  • Jumping Mad: Complete the Mad King’s Clock Tower jumping puzzle.
  • Grim Reaper of Grunts: Defeat Halloween minions.
  • Trick-or-Treater: Open trick-or-treat bags.

Achievements

  • A Sweet Friend: Complete Halloween achievements and Halloween daily achievements.
  • Shut the Doors: Complete door events in the Mad King’s Labyrinth.
  • Upset Stomach: Give the Bloody Prince a disgusting welcome during the final battle.
  • Candy Corn Crusher: Defeat the Grand High Viscount of Candy Corn in the Mad King’s Labyrinth.
  • Death to the Undying: Defeat the Skeletal Lich in the Mad King’s Labyrinth.
  • Bonebreaker: Defeat the Labyrinthine Horror in the Mad King’s Labyrinth.
  • Lunatic Inquisition Regular: Participate in a number of rounds of the Lunatic Inquisition.
  • A Royal Tradition: Complete a round of Mad King Says.
  • Pumpkin Carving: Find and carve pumpkins throughout Tyria.
  • A Stomping Good Time: Use Scarecrow or Mad King stomps against players in PvP or WvW.
  • Containment: Help Tassi contain the Bloody Prince’s reliquary.
  • You, Back in the Box: Help Tassi reseal the reliquary.
  • Beaten Bloody: Put the Bloody Prince back in the reliquary in under a minute.
  • Something Good to Eat: Open trick-or-treat bags.

BALANCE, BUG-FIXING, POLISH
World Polish

  • Fireheart Rise
    • Fixed a bug in the “Defeat Vexa and her golem” event in which the turret in the middle of the room was listed as blank in the combat log. Attacks from this turret are now displayed as “Central Lab Turret.”
  • Sparkfly Fen
    • Tequatl the Sunless: Added telegraph circles to Tequatl the Sunless’s attacks.
  • Lion’s Arch
    • Sarettokk: Added a missing Hall of Monuments descriptor to one of Sarettokk’s merchant tabs.
  • Straits of Devastation
    • Veteran Risen Spectral Guard: Fixed a bug that prevented this creature from upscaling with the number of players.
  • Creature Skills
    • Champion Risen Megalodon: Reduced the damage of this creature’s charge skill by 50%.

General

  • Fixed an exploit that allowed players to join a guild rush without being transformed into the rush creature.
  • The General achievement category for dungeon completion is now appropriately named Dungeons.
  • Fixed a bug in which the inventory window size preference would sometimes reset to default when moved before closing.
  • Newly created accounts can no longer send items and gold through the mail. This restriction is automatically lifted shortly after the account is created.

Items

  • Fixed a bug that caused the drop rate of fractal weapon skins to decrease above fractal level 40.
  • All story reward items that were not unlocking skins now properly unlock skins.
  • Renamed the Guild Finisher to Guild Shield Finisher.
  • Fur-Lined Mask/Helm/Helmet: Fixed a bug that made this vendor item tradable and salvageable.

Profession Skills
Racial Skills

  • Avatar of Melandru—Binding Roots: Added bleeding, immobilize, damage, and pulses skill facts. Added a vulnerability skill fact for Binding Jeopardy.
  • Grasping Vines: Added a vulnerability skill fact when this skill is used with the guardian’s Binding Jeopardy trait.

Elementalist

  • Arcane Power: Fixed a bug that caused attacks enhanced by this skill to only inflict one stack of vulnerability with Shard of Ice.

Engineer

  • Grenade Barrage: Removed the duplicate Number of Targets skill fact while underwater. Added a Number of Targets skill fact to Grenade Barrage in PvP.

Guardian

  • Permeating Wrath: Added a Blast Radius: 240 skill fact to Virtue of Justice.

Mesmer

  • Phase Retreat: Fixed an issue that caused this ability to be reflected or blocked by enemies.
  • Chaos Armor: Removed the range indicator from this skill.

Necromancer

  • Death Shroud: Updated this state so that it no longer ejects players from Plague Form in certain instances.
  • Plague Form: Added a stability skill fact.

Ranger

  • Long Range Shot: Updated skill fact text.
  • Quicksand: Fixed a bug that prevented the untraited version of this skill from displaying the red danger ring for opponents.
  • Cold Snap: Fixed a bug that prevented this skill from displaying an increased effect radius when traited with Nature’s Vengeance.

Thief

  • Vital Shot: Fixed a bug that prevented this ability from functioning with Ricochet in PvE.

Structured Player vs. Player

  • Players can now unlock the Mad King rune set in PvP.

Skyhammer

  • Skyhammer Cannon: Direct Lightning can now be avoided by dodging.
  • Increased the time before the floor panels disappear after a player steps on them.
  • Players that are in stealth no longer cause the floor panels to disappear.

World vs. World

  • Fixed a bug that caused the siege decay timer to appear on cannons.

BLACK LION TRADING COMPANY GEM STORE
New Items and Promotions

  • The new Grave Finisher is available in the Upgrades category of the Gem Store for 500 gems. Available for two weeks only!
  • A new Noble Count outfit is available in the Style category of the Gem Store for 700 gems.
  • Devil Horns and the Phantom Hood have returned to the Gem Store for a limited time at the price of 200 gems each.
  • The Halloween weapons Chiroptophobia, Araneae, Dead Stop, Bloody Prince’s Staff, and Silly Scimitar have been reduced to the price of 2 tickets for a limited time at a Black Lion Weapons Specialist.
  • There are only four weeks left to use tickets for Lovestruck, Dragon’s Jade, Aetherblade, Fused, and Dreamthistle weapon sets. After November 18, these sets will no longer be available for purchase with Black Lion Claim Tickets this year.
  • Foil Wrapped Candy is available for two weeks. This item grants random 10-minute boosts and gives players a foil wrapper usable for in-game events.
  • Every Black Lion Chest now includes an additional drop of a guaranteed trick-or-treat bag.

Improvements
New Currency Exchange UI:
The Currency Exchange UI has been overhauled to be quicker to use and easier to understand.

  • Quick exchange options for both currencies are now visible on the front page of the Currency Exchange.
  • The comparison between Exchange for Gold and Exchange for Gems prices is much more obvious.
  • Fixed exchange amounts have been set to simplify the exchange process and remove confusing rounding points.
  • Added a preview of new balances.
  • Added an improved confirmation UI.

Bug Fixes

  • Player animation for the Frost Wasp Logging Tool and Tireless Logging Minion was fixed so that players are not locked in place for a few seconds after the third hit.
  • Clarification: An error in previous release notes regarding the Permanent Hair Stylist Contract has been amended. The Permanent Hair Stylist Contract continues to be a very rare drop from the Black Lion Chest.

MAC BETA CLIENT

  • Fixed a bug that caused the Trading Post to crash on Mac systems.
  • Fixed a bug that required rebooting to restart Guild Wars 2 on Mac systems.
    ________________________________________

(edited by Mark Katzbach.9084)

what time will the patch hit?

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: Paul Ella

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Paul Ella

Producer

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Hey folks,

Just wanted to give you a heads up that the Halloween release will be available shortly. Thanks for your patience while we made our final checks. See you in game.

what time will the patch hit?

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: Gaile Gray

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Gaile Gray

ArenaNet Communications Manager

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YES! IT’S FINALLY LIVE!


Signed yours sincerely, Oswald.

Liar. (Unless on EU. I don’t know about EU.)

I guess someone didn’t read the signature..

(HINT: King Oswald “Mad King” Thorn)…

Evil. Pure evil.

Gaile Gray
Communications Manager
Guild & Fansite Relations; In-Game Events
ArenaNet

what time will the patch hit?

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: Gaile Gray

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Gaile Gray

ArenaNet Communications Manager

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Those who post “it’s live” in advance of the build will be banished to an ant hill in the Maguuma Wastes, with a large batch of complimentary live fire ants.

Gaile Gray
Communications Manager
Guild & Fansite Relations; In-Game Events
ArenaNet

(edited by Gaile Gray.6029)

Death and Pain Sound Bug

in Audio

Posted by: Cody Crichton.7516

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Cody Crichton.7516

Sound Designer

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I’m fairly certain that this issue will be entirely fixed in an upcoming release. Please report back if this is still happening after our next game update.

The Tale of The Mad King Thorn (Maklain)

in Audio

Posted by: Maclaine Diemer

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Maclaine Diemer

Composer

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I’ve uploaded a new version of this that includes all the verses. Sorry for the wait, but doing it today seems appropriate. Enjoy!

https://soundcloud.com/arenanet/the-tale-of-the-mad-king-thorn

what time will the patch hit?

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: Gaile Gray

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Gaile Gray

ArenaNet Communications Manager

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ANet released an announcement that said they will cancel the release if there are any more forum posting asking when the release will happen.

Hey now, that is not true.

Just want to point out that, as forum members said, we generally don’t have a set time for updates. So we ask for your patience but you can rest assured that the build is in very final states of preparation and it will be along just as soon as possible.

Gaile Gray
Communications Manager
Guild & Fansite Relations; In-Game Events
ArenaNet

Yay, news: Point of No Return!

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: Chris Whiteside.6102

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Chris Whiteside.6102

Studio Design Director

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Awww, c’mon. Let’s cut him some slack. Whiteside is doing pretty good on four hours of sleep a night. Besides, isn’t that how they spell it in England to?

I see what you did there!!

Chris

Yay, news: Point of No Return!

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: Chris Whiteside.6102

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Chris Whiteside.6102

Studio Design Director

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I get this all the time. They are very mean to me.

Chris

I’m so sorry, Chris. I would hug you, but I blame you for anything that was ever wrong with the game by default.

And that is how it should be. I completely understand.

Yay, news: Point of No Return!

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: Chris Whiteside.6102

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Chris Whiteside.6102

Studio Design Director

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Note they are all laughing at me now!!!

Chris

Give us names! I’ll use my Quaggan tonic to hit them :O

Flannum! He is the worst!

Chris

Yay, news: Point of No Return!

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: Chris Whiteside.6102

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Chris Whiteside.6102

Studio Design Director

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I get this all the time. They are very mean to me.

Chris

Yay, news: Point of No Return!

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: Chris Whiteside.6102

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Chris Whiteside.6102

Studio Design Director

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Note they are all laughing at me now!!!

Chris

Yay, news: Point of No Return!

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: Chris Whiteside.6102

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Chris Whiteside.6102

Studio Design Director

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Happy Holidays to you to.

Me to!

I am looking forward to getting into the action with everyone to.

Chris

Chris, you’re killing me. “Too.” “Too.” :-P

My English has always been bad (-: Folks get annoyed at it here too (-: (Note: I just had to ask for the right ‘To/Too’ then by the way)

Chris

Oh…Chris…

If you know in your head that you could swap “to/too” for “also” or “as well” then the one you want is “too”. And just in case – “two” is the number.

Hope this clears it up.

Happy Halloween patch!

That is what the guys and girls in the room just explained to me (-:

Chris

Yay, news: Point of No Return!

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: Chris Whiteside.6102

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Chris Whiteside.6102

Studio Design Director

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/sighs in relief as others point out the error over which she was gritting her teeth

But Chris at least uses capital letters. The one thing that drove me nuts about my supervisor was her emails with no caps, very little punctuation, and lots of “u” instead of “you.” She’s a lawyer! We’re all lawyers! I don’t mind casual typing in forums and personal emails (much) but for official emails about legal matters? /tears out hair

And, to not totally derail, I am psyched to see the next LS chapters. The Machine was such a wonderful surprise I’m eager to see what other mind-blowing things the LS can bring.

Right I promise to you that I will do my best to improve.

Chris

Yay, news: Point of No Return!

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: Chris Whiteside.6102

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Chris Whiteside.6102

Studio Design Director

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Happy Holidays to you to.

Me to!

I am looking forward to getting into the action with everyone to.

Chris

Chris, you’re killing me. “Too.” “Too.” :-P

My English has always been bad (-: Folks get annoyed at it here too (-: (Note: I just had to ask for the right ‘To/Too’ then by the way)

Chris

Adopt-a-Dev for the WvW Fall Tournament

in WvW

Posted by: Mark Katzbach

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Mark Katzbach

Content Marketing Manager

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On the Ready UP last friday there was a part of video where devs where speaking about their expirience during this project etc etc

when/where can we see that full video? Really looking forward for it and i didn’t understood from the boys in video when it’s gonna happen.

Thanks in advarance

The full video is still in production. We will get it up and released once it’s ready. We had a number of developers from the program show up to speak about their experiences on camera.

Adapt A Dev: A Wasted Last Chance?

in WvW

Posted by: Mark Katzbach

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Mark Katzbach

Content Marketing Manager

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The Adopt-a-Dev program is a voluntary program. The developers who participate do so in their own free time and they choose from the guilds who apply to the program. If you want to see more developers participating in the lower tiers, then encourage more of the lower-tiered guilds to apply.

The adopt a dev program seems like a good thing and its nice to see developers get out into the community.

The bigger issue, however, comes when you tout the program as a development tool or aid. If that is the intent, then effort should be made to make sure you’re getting a full and fair picture of WvW – not just the situations on the higher tier servers.

So, if the intent is just to get devs out into the community and mingling, that’s fine. If it is to help gather information about WvW, then I think you have to be mindful to ensure youre not focusing on one or two servers more than any others.

Hopefully, more devs will decide to look at the lower tiers next time (and I know that there are several lower tier server guilds that applied and weren’t chosen this past time around). That said, if the majority of developers are interested in playing on only the top tier servers, then that alone is indicative of the population issues we on the lower tiers are very much aware of.

I will make sure to stress the importance of spreading out among all the tiers when this comes around again. But, neither I nor John can force their decisions in a voluntary program.

I did, however, want to clear up the misconception that nobody was playing on the lower tiers during this past tournamnet, because I know for a fact that some were and brought back feedback that directly relates to the experiences on the lower end.

We understand and have seen the feedback regarding the proposed white swords change and the team is discussing that feedback.

Adapt A Dev: A Wasted Last Chance?

in WvW

Posted by: Mark Katzbach

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Mark Katzbach

Content Marketing Manager

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The Adopt-a-Dev program is a voluntary program. The developers who participate do so in their own free time and they choose from the guilds who apply to the program. If you want to see more developers participating in the lower tiers, then encourage more of the lower-tiered guilds to apply.

Zommoros told me a secret! Spoiler free link

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: John Smith.4610

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John Smith.4610

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In case anyone wants to try to find the item without spoilers and just hints I’ll be keep a locked copy of the thread here where I’ll post the hints:

“Zommoros let me in on the fact that he expects to have an item he’s never had before to trade with tomorrow.

Edit 1: I’ll be checking for discovery and giving hints every once in awhile. First one is free The item has nothing to do with minis."

edit 2 is referencing this thread existing.

(edited by John Smith.4610)

Zommoros told me a secret

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: John Smith.4610

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John Smith.4610

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Edit 1: I’ll be checking for discovery and giving hints every once in awhile. First one is free The item has nothing to do with minis.

/v2/items Enabled

in API Development

Posted by: Pat Cavit.9234

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Pat Cavit.9234

Web Programming Lead

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API talks to some of the same back end servers, but the public API frontend you hit is totally separate from game systems.

Yay, news: Point of No Return!

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: Chris Whiteside.6102

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Chris Whiteside.6102

Studio Design Director

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Ya know, I quoted a couple of Monty Python Holy Grail lines on the first page since they summed up this thread so well. Our feels are all over the place based on speculation. We do that a lot. Myself included.

However, The Holidays are a good time to stop for a minute and count our blessings. I’d like to shake hands and give a Big Hug to the folks at ArenaNet who make the game more than just a bunch of binaries.

Gaile – The Spice Cake was wonderful and so are you.
Chris – Yur a good sport. Glad I don’t have yur job.
John Smith – Stable. How do you put out so much work without being twins?!?
Jon Peters – You finally proved to me that balance is more than nerfs. Yum, Crow.
Colin – So, yur the one doing all the heavy lifting huh?
Mike – They’re gone. It’s safe to come put from under the desk now.
Devs – Repeat after me: “Bring me your Problems, not your Solutions.”

I’ve played every day since Pre to the tune of about 3,500 hours. Uh… at 60 bucks that works out to about 1.7c per hour. Best money I spent in a long time.

Happy Holidays to you to.

Chris

Adapt A Dev: A Wasted Last Chance?

in WvW

Posted by: Mark Katzbach

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Mark Katzbach

Content Marketing Manager

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Worse that a wasted chance: because all the devs adopted themselves to T1, we’re now going to have white swords removed. We would have been better off without the adopt-a-dev.

The bolded section is blatantly false. We had developers spread across all of the leagues. Don’t mistake your guild not getting a developer to mean there were no developers on your tier. If you want a developer in your guild, just apply again next time. The program was very positively received by our developers, so many of them are likely to participate again.

Yay, news: Point of No Return!

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: Chris Whiteside.6102

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Chris Whiteside.6102

Studio Design Director

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I want trebuchet launched Asuran Special Forces so bad…..

Chris

Off topic I know, I know.. Ashes on my head.

I give to ye: Shakes & Fidget – Gnomination (Sorry can’t find the english version, it disappeared after they ran in some trouble with the publisher)

Back to lurking.

. (-;

Chris

RNG as a concept: Discuss

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: John Smith.4610

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John Smith.4610

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At the heart, there’s 3 basic options:
1. Mostly RNG
2. No RNG
3. Hyrbid RNG (where most games are)

starter concepts for cons of each system:

1. Many players can feel like they have “bad luck”, in fact players with standard to pretty good luck are still likely to feel bad because of how humans interpret data.

2. A completely predictable experience lacks moments when something fantastic happens.

3. You run the risk of getting the cons of both systems without very precise design

An important question may be to ask if a model is still a good concept and a great implementation just needs to be focused on or if the model doesn’t work fundamentally.

I really have to comment on leading in both this post and the OP. By all means post, but please, please, please leave the leading biases out if the intent is to have a productive honest discussion.

edit……I’ll give you an example of what I am referring

Which would you rather have
1) A savory treat which leaves you wanting more
2)A sweet treat which puts on the pounds
3)A sour treat which tests your bravado

The biases are in the 2nd and 3rd. The former being negative and the latter being positive. Given this leading most are apt to choose option 3 and less likely to admit to 2.

Both the OP and this post are reiterations of what’s been said already, I’m not adding new or personal content to the discussion yet.

Yay, news: Point of No Return!

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: Chris Whiteside.6102

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Chris Whiteside.6102

Studio Design Director

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If there’s not an asura-firing catapult designed for, I mean, by Councilor Phlunt . . . there is no justice.

I want trebuchet launched Asuran Special Forces so bad…..

Chris

Zommoros told me a secret

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: John Smith.4610

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John Smith.4610

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Zommoros let me in on the fact that he expects to have an item he’s never had before to trade with tomorrow.

Edit 1: I’ll be checking for discovery and giving hints every once in awhile. First one is free The item has nothing to do with minis.

edit 2: This was a reference to the spoiler free thread that’s locked in this forum.

edit 3 (in story form): Lemark wasn’t much of a haggler. the merchant had taken almost every copper he owned, but it was worth it. He was positive this time, no more fakes, no more copies, forgeries or lies, this was it. He could feel it, sinister…ghostly, it felt weird to hold, but he didn’t care, his journey was one quarter complete.

3.5-4 Story continues:
(2 days later)
Lemark sprinted down the alleyway, an endeavor likely to leave one examining refuse closer than generally preferable, but this wasn’t his first time. He slowed for a moment to glance behind him, merchants still chasing with guards closely behind them. He was surprised they hadn’t given up, they must be very sensitive about their heritage here, the item itself was a bit too everyday to inspire this kind of rage. “Two more blocks”, he thought to himself, double-checking the sealed, cylindrical case he carried. His attempted thievery had failed, for today, but he wasn’t going to lose what he had to the muddy waters of the bay.

edit 5:
Lemark was in high spirits, it had been a productive week. After a series of failures his luck had turned. He stared at his own reflection in the item, such a trivial thing by itself, but with many, there was power. Zomorros knew it as well, Lemark had seen the desire in his eyes before, this was one of his favorites.

Out of story hint: I’ve only referenced 2 of the components so far.

edit 6:
Lemark sat back against the rocky wall, brackish water rained down from one geyser or another. “What am I even doing here?” he thought for the thousandth time. He was exhausted, bloody and sore. “One of these alien curs is going to kill me before I’m done with this”, he grumbled to himself as he stood up and stretched. He needed a drink, but the day hadn’t grown cold yet, he still had time. His resolve hardened, one more attempt, he stared at yet another dulled blade, one more chance for results…this wasn’t going to be fun.

edit 7:
Lemark rested his back against the rocky wall.
“Deja vu,” he thought wearily. Even the thought had grown tiresome.
Two months he’d been here. Two whole months of combat. He had almost died so often that the novelty was wearing off.
“What does it say about a person when your imminent death is an uninteresting topic for pondering,” he thought to himself.
He was tired of everything – this place, the clinking noises he made everywhere he went, the shelled beasts, and especially tired of the never-ending bloodshed.
He leaned his head back, closed his eyes and tried to imagine being back home.
Instead he saw the smug face of Zomorros.
He had almost forgotten his hate for the being. It was exactly what he needed – a reminder of why he was here.
A slight rumbling forced his attention back to reality as one of the creatures noticed his intrusion. He stared directly at the charging beast. If he had to, he would wipe this entire species off the face of the planet.

edit 8:
Lemark stared at his arms, at the half healed wounds that would soon serve as a permanent reminder of his last several months. Despite that he felt invigorated. All of that was behind him. He had gotten further than anyone else before – or so he supposed.
The final piece would be the hardest. He doubted he would have to fight some great monster, that wasn’t Zomorros’s style. He would have to do something harder; this journey wouldn’t end in a tremendous final battle. The ending would be more precise, more…scientific. He had only a single clue, contractually obligated from his last deal with the pseudo-deity.
He stood up from his table in the heart of Lion’s Arch and turned south.

edit 8.5:
A Sylvari scientist, not what Lemark expected. He should have learned by now that there was nothing ordinary here.
Despite the science, this was a nice respite, he could get used to this. Something here was harmonious and relaxing, was that part of the plan?
A shriek echo’d all around. Lemark was surprised, he still hadn’t learned. Nothing about this place was ordinary.

(edited by John Smith.4610)

Yay, news: Point of No Return!

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: Chris Whiteside.6102

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Chris Whiteside.6102

Studio Design Director

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Looking forward to the new update.

Me to!

Chris

Yay, news: Point of No Return!

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Posted by: Chris Whiteside.6102

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Chris Whiteside.6102

Studio Design Director

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I think they’re going to muck it up and do something stupid with the LS ending.

Well that would be consistent with the entirety of the LS so far, so.. why not!

I think they’re going to muck it up and do something stupid with the LS ending.

That’s the spirit!

. (-:

Chris

Lets all make fun of Palador instead of the “story”, Woooo!

Not making fun of Palador at all. He has been a good contributor on the forums and I have read many of his ideas and discussions on CDI. It’s a friendly dig.

Chris

::nods::

What I’m actually worried about is that they’ll have something set up that sounds outstanding to them, but when it hits live and we get a chance to play through it, either unforeseen problems or just seeing things from a different point of view than the devs that worked on it will cause it to be less than well received.

Take the part of Season 2 where they used a lot of open world events. Seemed good on paper, and I’m sure they worked well on their test sever. But when a ton of players hit, things went wrong and opinions soured quickly.

This is going to be the end of Season Two LS. I don’t worry about them saying “It’s the big climax, let’s do something boring and lame.” What I worry about is them saying “Let’s do something huge and awesome”, and then the game itself failing them when the time comes. It’ll be a bad decision to have done things that way, but only in hindsight and it’s not something they can live in fear of.

Agreed. We have to work darn hard!

Chris

Yay, news: Point of No Return!

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: Chris Whiteside.6102

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Chris Whiteside.6102

Studio Design Director

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I think they’re going to muck it up and do something stupid with the LS ending.

That’s the spirit!

. (-:

Chris

Well, as much as I won’t get my hopes up, prove him wrong with the content.

Exactly. We are doing our very best to do just that.

Chris

Latency/Lag for EU Players? [merged]

in Account & Technical Support

Posted by: BillFreist

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BillFreist

Gameplay Programmer

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Remember, when you’re experience these spikes, please do a pathping to the server’s IP address. This gives us more information on the issue, and where packet loss is happening.

1. In-game, type: “/ip” to get the IP address of the game server
2. Open a command prompt by pressing: [WindowsKey] + R -> type: “cmd.exe” -> Hit the [Enter] key
3. Type: “pathping <game server IP>” -> Hit the [Enter] key

RNG as a concept: Discuss

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: John Smith.4610

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John Smith.4610

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The idea is to discuss RNG as a concept inside of games and reward systems. I think more discussion will lead to better understanding of the problems current systems may have, and the pros and cons of other possible systems.

John, could you give us a bit direction here? I’m not quite sure what specifics we could/should discuss… it seems pretty one-sided that many think RNG is bad and tokens could work.

At the heart, there’s 3 basic options:
1. Mostly RNG
2. No RNG
3. Hyrbid RNG (where most games are)

starter concepts for cons of each system:

1. Many players can feel like they have “bad luck”, in fact players with standard to pretty good luck are still likely to feel bad because of how humans interpret data.

2. A completely predictable experience lacks moments when something fantastic happens.

3. You run the risk of getting the cons of both systems without very precise design

An important question may be to ask if a model is still a good concept and a great implementation just needs to be focused on or if the model doesn’t work fundamentally.

Yay, news: Point of No Return!

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: Chris Whiteside.6102

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Chris Whiteside.6102

Studio Design Director

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Happy Holidays Chris and Gaile! Your replies to this thread really made me smile and looking forward to see His Majesty Oswald Thorn again!


Why did the Seer chase after the Eidolon?

. (-:.

I am looking forward to getting into the action with everyone to.

Chris

P.S: And Happy Holidays to you to Titus and everyone.

Yay, news: Point of No Return!

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: Chris Whiteside.6102

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Chris Whiteside.6102

Studio Design Director

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Now now…Let’s not Bicker and Argue over who killed who… This is a Happy Occasion!

We want… another Shrubbery! Alongside this one perhaps a little lower to get a level effect, and a path!

Whiteside, “Your Mother was a Hamster and your Father smelled of Elderberries!”

English K-n-n-n-n-n-n-n-niggit

. (-:

Chris

[Feature Request] HTTP HEAD

in API Development

Posted by: Pat Cavit.9234

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Pat Cavit.9234

Web Programming Lead

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I’m not opposed to this, but it’s not high on our priority list for the APIs at the moment.

/v2/items Enabled

in API Development

Posted by: Pat Cavit.9234

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Pat Cavit.9234

Web Programming Lead

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xD sorry. What would be a more democratic delay between each request?

No no, I’m thrilled that you can grab it that fast.

baby quaggan brutally murdered

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: Gaile Gray

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Gaile Gray

ArenaNet Communications Manager

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Oh, lord, now we hear from the Krait Komponent?

Pffft on “upstanding citizens!”

Gaile Gray
Communications Manager
Guild & Fansite Relations; In-Game Events
ArenaNet

Seriously.. My feels

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: Gaile Gray

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Gaile Gray

ArenaNet Communications Manager

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I’m sorry you got that impression, Faux. And I can tell you — hand on heart — that we absolutely love holidays and love that our players enjoy them, too. They’re not an interruption — they’re a valued part of the game! I don’t see the wording as you do, but I just want you to know we’re delighted to bring this wonderful tradition into the game during Halloween and Wintersday, and we’re looking forward to playing it ourselves!

Gaile Gray
Communications Manager
Guild & Fansite Relations; In-Game Events
ArenaNet

Mob Mentality in Kessex Hills

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Posted by: Gaile Gray

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Gaile Gray

ArenaNet Communications Manager

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I was in Kessex Hills last night and I just peeked in now. I didn’t see any of that nonsense going on, but hey, I’m sure it happens. When it does, click the name of the person or the char itself, then right click on that char’s image to get options that include “Report.” Click “Report” and choose “Verbal abuse.” A GM will see your report right away and investigate it as soon as possible. This is for name calling, aggressive or offensive, comments, etc.

As in many cases, issues can crop up not with what is being said, but how it’s being said. If someone is being abusive, please report him or her to help make the game better for everyone. Thanks!

Gaile Gray
Communications Manager
Guild & Fansite Relations; In-Game Events
ArenaNet