Guild Wars 2

This, to me, seems ridiculous. The beauty of GW2, I thought, is you can play the way you like to play, EXCEPT, it seems, when it comes to earning Central Tyria Masteries. I have 2 level 80 characters, both of their experience bars are frozen out due to lack of Central Tyria Masteries.

I am forced, yes forced to either do collections, achievements and or Fractals. Regular experience does nothing. Since I don’t want to do collections, achievements or fractals what am I supposed to do? There should always be an option to grind these out if that is what I choose to do.

Oh man, I just thought of something.. even if I delete my characters, achievements are account bound, so I would still be in the same situation except I could just level them up and hit 80 and I am back where I started. Well I guess that answers that question.

Until I can reset masteries and/or advance them in some other way, this account is pretty much dead. There should ALWAYS be a way to gain experience, always…

If I am wrong, by all means educate me, I am a new player. But my research seems pretty clear. You can not get the Central Tyria Masteries completed without doing collections, achievements or fractals. And if you are going to ask, I have HoT, Living World and all the stories you can purchase.

Please tell me I am wrong…or could I hope for my account to be wiped of Characters and Masteries but leave my bank, gems and other stuff in tact? I am guessing no.. /sigh

I am 53 years young. I have a condition called Spinal Stenosis (basically a thinning of the spinal column causing nerve compression. If you have ever had sciatica, or a pinched nerve, its like that but hurts much worse and never gets better). I take a extremely large amount of pain killers, the kind usually reserved for Cancer patients, Fentanyl and the like. This medicine only works so well and is really dangerous. My quality of life isn’t great, but there are MANY people in worse shape then me. But pain is an equal opportunity oppressor, and usually takes over your life if you let it.

Ever since I started playing GW2, throwing myself into the game, I noticed my pain less frequently and with that, taking less narcotics. Less narcotics is always good, less chance of accidently dying is always good.

It is all about this game, and this community.

IT’S YOU!!!! The people, the community. It is YOU that make GW2 great. While I interact with people rarely, every single time, and I mean this literally (used correctly), they have always helped, been generous with their time and knowledge. How amazing is that? It is YOU people that keep me going, YOU that fill my hours with a little bit of joy where there was despair, happiness where there was sadness, laughter when there was crying, and even if its just for a little while, I forget about the pain that is trying its best, to crush the life out of me.

So, next time you help someone, say a kind word, or take a second out of your day to just be kind or to help a fellow player, to you it may seem like a small thing. BUT, to people like me, and I know this sounds like hyperbole, you can literally change their life for the better. How often can you say TODAY, I made someones life better? I am proof that you can.

To all the employees who made/make Guild Wars 2, from the support people to the CEO, Thank You!! Your game has made my life better, I know its not part of the game design, but it is one heck of a BUG.

To YOU the Players, a community I am so, so proud to be a part of, you have made living my life a little easier, from my heart, I thank you.

From Myself, My Wife and Family, including Frosty the Dog…

THANK YOU!!! THANK YOU!!! THANK YOU!!!