Guild Wars 2

https://www.reddit.com/r/Guildwars2/comments/352nob/blu_moving_on_from_guild_wars_2/

Just so you know.

tramwajarz.2369:

Zealot, Herald, Warden, Legolas… so many better names than… this.

I’d like to know who is personally responsible for choosing this name.

Oh I like Herald and Warden. Warden especially. That’s perfect.

A better name? Call them Valkyries if female and Valiants if male. How’s that? Gender neutral? Call them Valorians. Heck . . . Lightbringers. Crusaders. Redeemers. Etc.

Just off the top of my head.

Druid: Specializes in spirit ‘buffs’ and plant-based snares. That said, I hope I’m wrong.

Hybrid.7059:

t r a g e d y b o y s

Really not impressed with the direction this specialization took. It sounds like a Ranger 2.0.

Thought the exact same thing, Hyrbrid.

Why Dragonhunter? Because ranger was already taken. Zing!

Victuswolf.5286:

Thief elite specialization? Bunny slayer :P

I laughed.

Zackie.8923:

omg ranger wannabe…

I kind of thought something similar….

Darkness.9732:

one question guys : If the druid specialization isn’ t great…will you buy the expansion?

I still very much enjoy the game overall, so yes. I’ll buy even if the druid is lackluster. And no, I don’t want druid to be a transforming class.

Norn and necro has that covered.

That does seem rather . . . odd.

Keep in mind, a ranger is a party of two. A smart ranger, who uses the right pet in the right combination of traits and the like, can do some amazing things.

A pet also guarantees some safety. A longbow increases your chances of living through a battle because of range. This combination, more than anything, allows players to pick and choose their tactics better.

In other words, a ranger is more likely to live if the target is beating on the pet.

Rangers aren’t gods, but players have realized that life is easier when a pet takes the hits instead of them.

No, all you need to do is buy the proper expansion with the ritualist once: Factions. If you want all three (Prophecies, Faction, and Nightfall), just buy the Guild Wars® Trilogy pack in the store.

Eye of the North is separate from the others.

Again, I don’t recommend it. The game is quite dated with a maze-like feel. No jumping. And you have to micromanage your pets and NPCs like mad. And skill unlocking is . . . well the proverbial tip of the iceberg. And you’ll be doing a lot of running around from certain points . . . back and forth.

It’s not like Guild Wars 2. Do a lot more research before you buy. Fair warning.

What Draknar says is very true. Been playing since beta. Three years at least. And I still like the game. Less than happy with Living Story taking a backseat to the expansion, but again . . . that’s another story too.

Sounds like sour grapes to me. Just block those players and play how you like. Everyone has an excuse as to why they didn’t win.

Again, asking for anything to be ‘nerfed’ or balanced, with an expansion and radical changes coming, is moot. This discussion can take place after the update.

For now, there’s no point . . . especially when it devolves into personal attacks.

Well . . . I bought Prophecies back in the day. Got about a quest or two after the Searing before I stopped. When Guild Wars 2 came out, I went back for a minute. After the expansion announcement, and the death of Living Story for the moment, I again . . . tried again.

Decided to try to get those achievements in the Hall of Monuments.

Bought Factions, Nightfall, and Eye of the North. Cheap. And about three months later, I got to around or near the end of Prophecies. I did get as far as, and little bit past, ‘ascension’ in Factions with my spirit-spammer to be honest. Just couldn’t bring myself to keep playing either though . . . even with heroes helping.

Tried to get a refund on the above three, but was told too much time passed. The next day, I uninstalled them all. Didn’t look back.

Draw your own conclusions.

I like the game still, but I’m less than happy with the forums right now. That’s another story though.

What Unspecified said was spot-on and sadly true . . . we might be the bitterest players since we were gods back in the day.

Probably more utility than anything. If it’s a huge amount of healing and buffs, I might be interested. If they get more pets out at the same time? I’m sold.

It really depends on the player and how smart you play. But, I suppose, that’s true of almost all the classes. Still, I’ll tell you this: In PvP? A lot of eager players attack me because I’m ‘easy pickings’ in their minds.

After they’re dead, I get a lot of ugly whispers.

Let’s not even talk about PvE. Any player who says rangers suck in PvE? Well . . . that’s another discussion.

I play one class, and only one class in this game. There’s a reason. I suggest you at least try it.

Yes, now all rangers have it. Good move, ArenaNet. Good move.

Definitely the trait to take. Combine this with certain other traits, and you’ll have permanent damage reduction up all the time. Don’t forget those traits and items that increase boon duration too.

Darksteel.8412:

they needed be promoted…now they need balanced

Perhaps, but that can be discussed after the expansion with its changes. Right now, the topic is moot given what’s coming.

Range will always be king in PvP. But, asking for rangers to be nerfed, given their . . . history and reputation is a bit . . . much.

Gave it a shot for about an hour or so and decided to just wait for open beta or live. Would I do it again?

No.

On that note, we can see why this ‘event’ happened in the areas it did. A beta is to help, those willing and who volunteer, fix and identity issues with a game before it goes live.

It should never be a ‘reward’ to get players into dead zones.

Let’s not kid ourselves about why and where this happened.

http://dulfy.net/2015/05/02/gw2-specialization-calculator-that_shaman/#profession=elementalist&traits=W1siRmlyZSBNYWdpYyIsMiw1LDhdLFsiV2F0ZXIgTWFnaWMiLDIsNSw4XSxbIkFpciBNYWdpYyIsMiw1LDhdXQ==

From what I’ve tested and seen, they combined more than a few abilities. I can only speak for myself, but I’m liking what I’m seeing for my build.

Huge improvement. So much so, I wouldn’t doubt it gets a nerf if others realize how powerful it can be.

That said, my build is pretty much the same as it was before . . . just now even better.

I can’t wait to test it live.

As long as the player in question can still play the game, that player still has a chance to get the drop and thereby get access to the beta.

That said, the drop rate is still fairly low, so no it’s not a conspiracy to stop him from getting a portal key because he can’t behave on the forums.

Hope this clears things up.

I’d love it, but I think Toxsa is onto something.

Teladis.1309:

wait so the pet can’t become a super tank for you if you spec into beast?

I’ll tell you the opposite: Yes, they can. But it depends on the choice of pet, spec/traits, and equipment.

I’ve soloed more than a few mobs, champs, and bosses (including fractal bosses) where my pet tanked, held aggro, and finished the fight full of life . . . and that’s all I’ll say.

Not trying to get myself nerfed, thank you.

True enough. I think I’ll pass. After a few hours, I too noticed the ugly growing in those zones.

DragonicTerror.6412:

There could be more pets, but they better not buff pets. Rangers are already one of the heaviest hitters, their pets can apply conditions as well as some DPS and they can revive them faster than any player can revive another player. I hope they add cool new pets, but they don’t need any kind of boost.

This is why rangers can’t have anything nice. Misinformation at its finest.

White space is your friend when you post.

Bloodstealer.5978:

pretty sure ANET have noted the drop off due to players becoming bored .. hence the Portal grind for BETA access. It’s a pretty good way of keeping players logged in the wee bit longer and also provides a decent way of trying to ensure beta access is taken up by active players not names on a list that may not of played for months/years.

Bingo.

Regardless, I think it’s still best to wait and see.

Thank you for this thread. I’d rather grind for something I know I’ll get (PvP rank and track rewards) than for something I probably won’t (beta key).

Purple Miku.7032:

This thread is so naive.

They showed us the traits so we obviously know whether or not our builds can/cannot work after it goes live unless they drastically change things. This patch also greatly hinders build diversity because it forces you to use only 3 traitlines, as opposed to putting the exact amount of points you want in whatever lines you wish for.

So you are wrong.

Also they specifically said to post on the forums and reddit about our feedback and to let them know if their changes killed off any of the builds we play with, so you are encouraging people to do the complete opposite? Seriously?

This.

I’m also of the camp that says ‘Wait and see,’ but this isn’t our first time at the rodeo. We seen this before with other MMO and know what it does to the game overall . . . given the information released.

Plus, if they’re asking for our initial impressions or feedback, it makes this thread moot.

Just something to consider.

Anytime I hear a poster compare something ‘new’ being similar to something that’s been in WoW, for a number of years, and saying they’re in favor of it, I get nervous . . . I hope for reasons I don’t have to explain.

From what I’ve seen so far, I must agree with Ziet. While I understand, somewhat, ANet’s logic behind this, it does limit choices for those players who want, or currently use, two or more traits in the Adept or Master line.

I’d like to test it first, but I can already see it will cause some issues.

Or we can prepare for a huge, rushed mess. Probably a very good thing they’re releasing this with a patch before the expansion’s release. I’m more than eager to test this out.

It’ll make or break my decision to buy the expansion at this point.

Zenos Osgorma.2936:

Dardamaniac.1295:

In the next patch? I thought it was in the Hot expansion..

they are going to release the new system Ahead of the expansion to ween out any bugs/ balance issues.

Oh awesome. Have they given an estimated date yet? I hope it is the next patch. Massive testing will be most excellent.

Chest thumping aside, I think the point is just because one has a different point of view, whether with experience or not, does not make a certain type of ranger pointless.

I can see some solid bunker/healing combinations here, but I still want to test this live before I comment further. I’m happy to see my shout/regeneration build is getting a huge boost.

Very happy.

Rauderi.8706:

Old school WoW trees were a mess of bloat and micromanaging with numerous traps and the same “choose this or go home” selections that the GW2 trait trees already have. Not to mention, the old WoW system doomed itself in vertical progression, because more talent points meant more chances to dip into other trees in an unintended way and more micromanaging. It’s not difficult, it’s just tedious.
And, there were some talent points that always, always went to the same place like crit bonuses. So those were moved out of talent progressions and just given to the class/spec during leveling.

If the illusion of choice has six options, but only two are superior, there’s not much of an actual choice; only two choices and four “why would anyone ever pick those” traps. The choices a player does make in a messy, bloated system like that are less meaningful. Not to mention, the options that weren’t used often end up ignored by developers because no one used them anyway. They were too busy balancing against meta builds to deal with obviously inferior choices.

And yes, it is easier to balance 3 traits in a tier instead of 6. So doing that for development reasons isn’t wrong.

You might be right, but you’re missing the point. If I wanted to make my character a mess of bad choices, I should have the option. I shouldn’t have to follow the legion of sheep that say, “Such and such build is the best,” and be all but forced to play it.

Easier to balance doesn’t make it right. It just makes it lazy. And it also caters to those players who can’t think for themselves and need someone else, developers included, to tell them how to build a class and play the game.

Hasn’t the new leveling system taught ANet that hand-holding is a bad decision already?

But, again, we’ll see.

I’m kind of getting the reason ANet says nothing lately. They release this little bit of information, and it’s like the end of the world or something. Again, can we at least wait to see this in practice, say in a beta test or something, before we say, “The sky is falling!”

I know I’m repeating myself, but let’s see it first before we say it’s kitten.

Edit: That said, I have the sneaking suspicion Listen is right . . . again. This reeks of what Blizzard did to their old trait trees. I’ll just leave it at that . . . like I left Warcraft after they made that change.

DevilLordLaser.8619:

Wolfe: Given that pretty much every other thread on specializations currently in this forum consists of a bunch of people shrieking “OMG DIS SUX ROX!!1!” at the tippiest-top of their tippy-top lungs, let us have on thread in which people who can see past the end of their own noses long enough to not lose their minds can discuss the new system with something resembling positivity and hopefulness, eh? :P

Oh . . . I suppose.

Um . . . not to throw cold water on a rah, rah, rah thread, but wouldn’t it make more sense to see this in practice before we say it’s the best thing since sliced bread?

Not saying the current system is heaven, but I think it would behoove us all to at least wait before we put all our eggs in one basket . . . as it were.

While I have my reservations, I also feel this may be a ‘dumbing down’ a la WoW effect, I still want to see it in practice before I make further commentary. If it’s as bad as the OP makes it seem, which is entirely possible, I’ll be done with this game.

The ‘dumbing down’, or lack of choices, also made me leave Warcraft.

I’m seeing the real reason skill point scrolls are getting turned into Mystic Toilet fodder now. . . .

I’d want to see this in practice before I gave an opinion either way. Heck, it might be the best thing since sliced bread. You never know. . . .

But, I will admit, I had a huge World of Warcraft flashback from what they did, with their skill trees, way back in the day.

And that wasn’t good.

I’m still curious if they can somehow be used for our masteries. I guess ANet wised up that everyone horded skill scrolls and tomes for the expansion.