Showing Posts For Jake.8639:

No Bandaids [snip] - sponsored Fractal guild

in Guilds

Posted by: Jake.8639

Jake.8639

I’m Jake and I go by Peel in game.

I have been given the opportunity to pioneer a dedicated Fractal of the Mists guild. This guild will be primarily for organized pugs. By that, I mean something better than randoms from gw2lfg and less than 5 coordinated friends with team composition synergy. Of course, you cannot have the ladder without first meeting 4 other like-minded players with ambitious fractal goals. This would be the place to do it.

Our resourced are funded by a high profile streamer named Hafu. She will cover our 100 slot Ventrilo, forums, and if you want to get involved further, large monthly giveaways. The giveaways from this January can be found in this thread which were drawn 3 days ago. The grand prize included an Astro A40 headset (250$) which will be given out every month because of a sponsorship.

Our forums are optional. We’re gamers in the core — I’m not going to force posting quotas on you. Many of us are also students and working people. I will not enforce misrepresenting or inactivity to a certain degree. However, you will see me on every day without fail. Our Ventrilo features a ton of active members playing games like League of Legends and Bloodline: Champions on a daily basis. If you want a break from Guild Wars, you’ll be able to find a game very easily. Everyone is social and friendly, and it is very rewarding to play Guild Wars with the same people you play with on other games.

I’m looking for anyone who loves to do fractals. If you are low level, you can probably fulfill your needs at gw2lfg. However, feel free to join up and exploit our 24/7 MF boosts. Get to know people that you might play with at high end fractals down the road. If you are starting to reach higher levels 30+, 40+, 50+, I won’t have to tell you that this takes a high amount of communication. I want people of similar level to grow with each other, something that is hard to obtain by recruiting randoms. Using a mic in fractals makes everything ridiculously easier. Give it a shot! I’ve made some close friends already.

My contact information is Jake.8639 in Guild Wars. PM me sometime — I’ll probably be in a fractal. Ask any questions you might have. You can hop on our Vent which will be provided upon joining the guild. You can also add me on steam here.

Zaphiel Faires - WvW Roaming #1 [Guardian]

in Guardian

Posted by: Jake.8639

Jake.8639

Killing randoms in WvW is underwhelming considering their gear could be trash. It would be more interesting if you posted your build so we could theorycraft further and perhaps help others shape their own builds, using the video as an example of the traits and build in action. Although you apparently think doing so would be “bad for diversity”. Just my opinion though — couldn’t finish the video because there was nothing to take from it.

What Exactly Does Magic Find Affect?

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: Jake.8639

Jake.8639

I don’t believe it affects drop rates. Rather, it affects quality of drops. Having a lot of magic find increases the chance that a blue will become a green, a green a rare, a rare into an exotic.

12/28 SBI v JQ v SoS

in WvW

Posted by: Jake.8639

Jake.8639

Sieged lowlands for like 3 hours… back and forth between lord room and Jerrifer’s. Awesome 45 minute fight on Jerrifer slim bridge. Finally took down double-gates and capped it. Snuck behind SoS recapping Aldon’s for 100% map completion after they broke the gate down using shelter & renewed focus. THEN WE CAPPED SM.

I don’t WvW very much, so this took the cake on some of the most fun I’ve ever had in the game. -jq player

Changes to aegis

in Guardian

Posted by: Jake.8639

Jake.8639

Aegis is ok in PvP and strong in PvE. Balancing Aegis around PvP would make it stupid OP in PvE.

Best offhand(s) with AH Hammer Build

in Guardian

Posted by: Jake.8639

Jake.8639

Thanks for the post Bullfrog. It looks like I’ll get a scepter / focus. I’ve also heard great things about sword with focus on guardian for single target dps, so I might look into that too. Range seems very helpful now though for oil carts in ascalon fractal, glitch in ice shaman, harpies, etc. As for my sigil, I will probably be using blood with the ghost food still.

Philosophy of builds...what's yours?

in Guardian

Posted by: Jake.8639

Jake.8639

Why are you showing stats with an unnamed foodbuff on?

Best offhand(s) with AH Hammer Build

in Guardian

Posted by: Jake.8639

Jake.8639

By offhand… I meant weapon swap.

I’m on level 19 fractal, and I’ve been using hammer exclusively throughout all of my AC runs and all of my fractals thus far. Hammer feels great with trash mobs, when I need to tank anything hard, WvW, and just most situations which value AOE.. I’ve come to realize that hammer is not the best for some situations.

My offhand right now is staff, and I pretty much exclusively use it for swiftness. I’ve noticed that I really need a viable scepter for some of the fractals I’m doing. My first questions:

What should the 3 stats be on my scepter to compliment my AH hammer guardian when I’m forced to range? What sigil do you recommend? What offhand works with best with scepter (for DPS)?

My second concern is for max single target DPS. I find myself fighting beefy bosses often. There are no adds — it’s just our group vs a boss. I am taking virtually zero threatening damage, so the value of my hammer seems pretty low during these situations. I am attacking so god kitten slow with hammer (albeit safe), I just feel like a swap for these single-target bossfights would be more efficient. My second questions are:

What is the best weapon swap for single target DPS boss fights when I do not need to worry about survivability? Think Mossman, Archdiviner, Legendary Ice Shaman, Legendary fire Shaman — painfully long and nonthreatening single-target fights. What 3 stats should I aim for with this weapon(s)?

For some more background, I have exceeded Brutaly’s minimum recommendations for efficient AH stats. I’m using a PVT set I’ve achieved from AC. I am supplementing this set with full Berserker’s exotic trinkets from fractals and crafting so I have enough precision for 40%+ crit chance / damage.

Thanks for any advice!

(edited by Jake.8639)

Giant Gift:The holder of the Legendary Bell

in Wintersday

Posted by: Jake.8639

Jake.8639

I really wanted a bell. I did not have enough money to afford it on the auction house. I decided I would give away all of my gold for a bell. I knew that if I wanted a bell, I would have to make a move now while the supply of gifts were high and the prices were low.

I spent all 26 gold I had on presents and did not get a bell. I tried my luck with RNG, and RNG won. I am quitting the game now. Sounds really pathetic, but it is what it is and I thought I’d share my experience with Wintersday.

The Bell

in Wintersday

Posted by: Jake.8639

Jake.8639

Still waiting on anyone to enlighten us how to get this bell or where it drops from. Patch notes do not mention it.

Unbreakable choir bell

in Black Lion Trading Co

Posted by: Jake.8639

Jake.8639

bumping again — where’s this drop? I really want one :x

Unbreakable choir bell

in Black Lion Trading Co

Posted by: Jake.8639

Jake.8639

bump for relative interest

I Love "Guild Wars 2" Because...

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: Jake.8639

Jake.8639

1) Motivation inspired by cosmetics
2) Cosmetics that are attractive at all levels, yet a clear intuitive understanding on what is high-end and what is low-end
3) The ratio of time put in to attractiveness of gear
4) The art
5) Fluidity of movement; jumping
6) Dyes and general individualization
7) Lots of interesting cosmetic choices, but not saturated like Borderlands

Involve yourselves more with the forums

in Suggestions

Posted by: Jake.8639

Jake.8639

I agree it’s a variable task. It causes further discussion, but it solves misdirection. You can say it might cause more speculation, but “we acknowledge that _ is _, we are doing __ to fix it / change it.” Or just explaining their philosophy so players know what’s going on in their head in regards to elements. Being left in the dark is infinitely worse than more questions.

Your problems seem to be solved by a lack of PR. Hire more staff, maybe? Not having enough time is not a valid excuse in my opinion, especially when they already claim to have made enough money via microtransactions to consider the possibility of never charging for expansion packs.

Customer satisfaction between patches that address these problems are very important. Maybe it’s just me that sees all this contempt in-game that can be mitigated by communication.

Involve yourselves more with the forums

in Suggestions

Posted by: Jake.8639

Jake.8639

I think the most frustrating part about the game is the lack of direct communication between the company and the players.

Forum regulars and viewers are the highway that travels information from you guys to the larger player base in the game. There are handfuls of threads that articulately address problems and opinions, but I feel as though you guys rarely provide any input. The thread boils up to dozens of responses, and this contempt towards specific mechanics translates into the game. The people distributing their distaste through Guilds and parties are these forum regulars who cannot even get a simple yes / no / we’re working on it.

Hate to compare, but take a game like League of Legends. Look at their forum. The game is patched on a biweekly basis, which creates dozens of complaints and issues with the game. The reason why people can swallow these problems is because Riot is actively communicating with their playerbase. They acknowledge issues directly. In a sense, it provides hope to the players. Players do not spread distaste when the company directly gives their point of view on the topic. This basic level of communication is important for creating a satisfied player base.

This might fall under the “do not call out Arena Net” clause in the ToS, so I will try to articulate it respectfully. If there is a mutually shared concern among forum regulars, Arena Net only chimes in to facilitate a conversation rather than provide any input to organically facilitate itself. When two students are arguing over how useless algebra is in math class, the teacher doesn’t say, “you guys should be more respectful to each other.” The teacher says, “I feel that algebra is useful under these circumstances…” The conversation can then move forward instead of staying in the same place where contempt grows. Again, I believe that this contempt is plaguing the general satisfaction both in the forums and in the actual game. It is this backseat facilitation that does nothing for the community.

I highly encourage staff to reassess the general satisfaction the players have towards the game in the game, and try to determine where the root of these problems lie. In the end, a lot of this poor attitude appears to be easily mitigated by forum communication as seen in other successful intellectual properties.

My Final Feedback

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: Jake.8639

Jake.8639

Agreed and I hope they look at feedback like this and makes changes for the sake of the game’s longevity. Fingers crossed that they make significant changes before it’s too late.

Fix your bugs

in Suggestions

Posted by: Jake.8639

Jake.8639

Before releasing new content.

Hodging and Detha glitch every other day.

Give your modelers higher salaries

in Suggestions

Posted by: Jake.8639

Jake.8639

Guild Wars has been an interesting experience between my friends and I. Take a game like Team Fortress — the appeal of cosmetics seem to be motivated more on a sense of collection or item stats. A social game like MapleStory uses cosmetics as reskins purchasable at all levels. In this game where social hierarchy and implicit status reigns, you are actually looked down upon for having a character with default skin models. The question these social gamers ask: why would someone take the time to get to know someone who has no self-respect for their character? The blame for this subconscious discrimination stems from the game design of its cosmetics.

The way Guild Wars 2 implements general weapon and armor modeling is something I have never seen before in an online multiplayer setting. My friends and I giggled with joy between drops while leveling as a group. Most new drops — even blue ones — appeared unique and fresh even at the low levels. What’s crazy is that even though I’m getting swords that looks like magically infused chainsaws at level 20, it does not dilute the macro cosmetic gear progression achieved through notable accomplishments / higher rarity tiers of drops. This is a problem I feel the Borderlands series falls victim to. The game has no real cosmetic progression on a macro level, and within a few hours of gameplay you’ve seen it all. A chronologically mistimed introduction of a new weapon can change its reception from being baller to forgettable.

Pat yourselves (read: AN modelers / animators) on the back for being the first game I can confidently say has mastered cosmetics. I am not talking about monetary success cosmetics bring to a money-bagging game like League of Legends. I am talking about the impact that skins have on the actual game and on actual player thinking. You can intuitively pick who is more accomplished between two players just by their armor. This seems to be a result of anywhere between particle effects and a higher level of detail. Don’t get me started with legendaries. The fact that the sheer beauty of a gear set conjures enough organic motivation to continue progressing is a massive accomplishment.

In summary, I could have reworded my title to say something like, “I hope you’re paying your modelers enough.” Though, we all know that would be a rhetorical statement. Give them a raise, because over half the people who enlighten me about their motivations for playing are cosmetically invested.

(edited by Jake.8639)

Deathmatch PvP for solo-queue players

in PvP

Posted by: Jake.8639

Jake.8639

100% agree with OP.

GW2 has two paths before it.

in Guild Wars 2 Discussion

Posted by: Jake.8639

Jake.8639

I think they should do 2. 8 of my good friends went back to League of Legends because of a lack of an unmotivated endgame, no arena PvP, and imbalanced WvW. Only 1 of my good buddies still plays with me, and I think he just quit yesterday.

I want people to have a reason to keep playing the game. The majority player-base, that is. Maybe these players will come back. I love Guild Wars 2 too much for it to become another niche game like SWTOR. The art style, the movement — everything is too good about this game for them to limit their potential.

Profession in most demand (Dungeons)

in Fractals, Dungeons & Raids

Posted by: Jake.8639

Jake.8639

I haven’t really played much Guild Wars yet because my graphics card broke. I got a new one, and I was wondering if there was a profession that is in demand. I have played several games where my group simply could not advance because we were lacking that one essential class.

Is there a profession that is on demand in order to start a dungeon? I am thinking about making a guardian, but if for example, Mesmers are really underplayed / needed I would be happy to make one instead.

Thanks