Guild Wars 2

The largest negative points, as previously noted, revolves around how badly the refugees have been handled. They just enter the zone and march off to the nearest city. There are no emotional connections, they have nothing setting them apart from any of the merchant escort events, except they aren’t even involved in events. Picking up mementos didn’t help either, they were just objectives in a fetch quest. There’s no emotional attachment to any of them. Even the items you need to find are just more fetch quests. Why would we care that they lost their items?

What really got me though was when I tried to figure out where these guys were coming from. I ran to and fro, studied the map and still have no idea where their so-called homes are being destroyed. The only landmark that stood out were the large wooden doors in Wayfarers, just above one of the portal events. So they must be coming from some unknown place located somewhere or another. Again, why should we care about them?

I know this is the “teaser”, but I would say this is the most important part. I’ve heard many times how important it is for a writer to grip a reader with the first sentence of a novel. By the end of the first paragraph, either the reader will be invested and read on, or put down the book and do something more interesting. So that’s not an excuse, you can’t tell a reader the book will get better. This has been a weak opening. There is no emotional involvement, no attachments, very little believable threat and no impact. As someone else said, these are norn and charr, so the threat must be immense, but it falls sort of flat.

That said, I really liked the geyser events, that felt like it had some urgency. I like the fact that portals are opening now, but it still feels a bit detached. They come and go, occurring at some structures, and feels far from awe inspiring.

In my mind, this is how it should have gone down:

January – The update is called Flame and Frost with no other indicators as to what’s going on. In the northern parts of Wayfarers and Diessa, a few existent buildings are burnt husks with no clues as to what happened. Later in the month, when players pass these structures, a portal event will start.

February – Some of the existing towns will have portals open and players need to defend them while putting out fires. Halfway through the month events will start where guard NPCs begin evacuating these towns, guiding NPCs south toward the safety of the cities, as these NPCs become the refugees. Deeper into the month more portal events spawn, upping the urgency.

My reasons for suggesting this:
In Jan you will have a bit more of an ominous feeling. Structures you previously saw intact are now burnt out husks. It sets a better tone than NPCs sauntering southwards.
In Feb, you’ll see the threat materialize, you’ll see actual settlements in trouble. You’ll fight for them, and as the NPCs are being guided to safety, you’ll actually care, since you’ve been fighting next to them, standing beside them as they fight for their homes, and with all hope lost, you now help them leave the homes you’ve been defending alongside them. This isn’t just their loss, you share it with them.

Matt Witter.6982:

We will have much more info on World Ranks very soon!

By saying “very soon!” you probably mean some time next week or so.

Emerge.9640:

If #1 makes it live, this whole patch is a flop.

Agreed. It’s an insanely stupid idea. I don’t understand why this is being handled like normal PvE kills. It’s only going to encourage groups to gang up on smaller groups and loners.

FrizzFreston.5290:

I also must ask, what level are you?

Level 80 elementalist. Full exotic, no ascended. Focused on conditions, toughness and healing.

But it still doesn’t change my view that monsters could be more interesting. Basically I’d like monster types to be more unique, and groups to have more synergistic abilities.

I’m going to edit my post to remove the event. The point of my thread was that I dislike the redesign of the krait, but it’s turning into a discussion of “ragequit, after one event! you mad bro?”, and “difficult events aren’t that bad”.

Algreg.3629:

quitting the game because ONE daily event failed? Wow, GW2 really has a causual audience.

Didn’t really say I quit the game, so I find it difficult to see how you saw that in my post. I said I exited the game, and to blow of steam I created the thread. Right after I entered the game once more. Why would anyone quit the game if an event fails for a daily, since there are events scattered all over a zone? I just mentioned that because I really liked that event… And if I quit the game, then why would I bother to give my own constructive feedback.

I doubt you even read my entire post.

Lol, after reading it again it seems quite angst ridden. My intention wasn’t to sound whiney. The thing is, I really like that event, but after ten minutes of running from one side of the village, then running to the other, and watching my progress grow stagnant, I got a bit annoyed.

The point of my thread though was to point out that this used to be a pretty easy event. It’s not that I wanted to face roll it in a few seconds, it’s not really an issue if I need to work at getting an event done. What got me was that the seemingly merest change to one monster type radically changed the event into something not really challenging, but rather downright frustrating.

I think GW2 wanted to integrate so many different styles of gameplay, to appeal to such a wide variety of players, that the eventual way everything was incorporated ended up making it focused on a very specific type of player.

It sounds odd, but if you look at the game it is sort of true.

Recently I’ve come to question what goes into the monster design of this game. The krait changes I find specifically taxing, and I feel there are far better ways to improve monsters without making their purpose that of one-man killing machines. The creature design team should perhaps take a step back and reevaluate what makes enemies fun and challenging.

To keep the discussion constructive I have some thoughts. I feel all enemy types should have their “thing”, something that makes them what they are, and I feel area traps should be the krait’s theme. The poison are fine, though I think needs to be toned down a bit and the being thrown around CCs as well. Why not have CCs on a distinct charge up, so a person knows when to dodge it, rather than having some enemies treat you like a rag doll. Let each krait have a distinct area trap, Hypnoss gets confusion, Damoss gets bleed, and Slaver gets poison. Nimross solely does nets, caltrops, and a charge up leap knockback.

These two things I’d really like to see.
Enemy types receiving distinguishable qualities that only their type has (like krait Traps), and single enemies get a singular purpose (instead of a whole lot of crazy abilities and CCs to make them “fun”), which would also make their group dynamics a bit more interesting and interactive.

*Edited to keep the topic on track.

Eurhetemec.9052:

9 months is correct (Aug 28 2012), “almost a year” is wrong.

What? It’s far from correct! The game hasn’t even been out for 7 months, on March the 28th it would be 7 months, meaning it’s only been out for over 6 months, half a year, far from almost a year, and not close to 9 months…

I have two problems with town clothes.
1) They don’t look good. I’ve only bought the witches outfit for my asura and the Mad King outfit for my charr, because they look bad kitten Since then I’ve seen nothing of any interest to me.
2) They have no purpose. No one actually wear their town clothes in town. What do you actually do with it? There’s no actual use to spend any money on them, and since armors look a lot better, and show prestige, I’d rather stand around in my dungeon sets.

Honestly, I love the way DCUO handles your looks. It’s fun, fast, and efficient. Strangely enough, the mists has a place to store and exchange your looks without any problems. I have no idea why this isn’t also in PvE, it doesn’t really make sense in that regard.

I like your idea though, but I’d just suggest that T-stones become drops and TP tradeable. Or else it might seem quite greedy on ANet’s part if the only way t change your looks are dictated by money you spend.

gogoapoxy.1425:

Are we sure he died? Did anyone confirm the kill? IIRC we shoot him till he falls and stops attacking. I didn’t see him explode into 1000 bits or anything, he simply disappeared into the fog of death.

I’m not sure how I feel about this. On the one hand it’s fine to think that we can get a second chance at a fight, especially if the first attempt was mediocre. On the other hand I’m not too thrilled at the idea that ANet might throw the same enemy at us over and over, it’s perhaps better to kill an antagonist and move on to the next.

In this particular instance I’d be thrilled if we can get a second crack at Zhaitan, perhaps as a boss battle that spans an entire zone, and have a large group of players face him. In this case I’d be thrilled, as long as Anet doesn’t make a habit of reviving bosses over and over.

Plunder.8195:

Personally I think that the battle with Zhaitan is simply doomed to be disappointing. It’s simply not an enemy that we ‘want’ to fight. Something that we love to hate, Zhaitan just is.
I mean, throughout the story we hear al the stories of him being all powerful, but we actually never see him, or what he’s actually capable of. Actually the only time that we see him is when he’s already weakened significantly. At no point in the story we are feeling really overpowered by this supposedly immense power of the Elder dragon

What you said here is insanely important. I hope ANet prints it, and every employee involved in setting up future antagonists tape your words above their screens so they can read it at least once a day.

Your statement should be taken to heart when the content for the other dragons are developed. So much feeling needs to go into the build up of the antagonist, not just the dragons. You should have emotions the whole journey.

I’ve read a brilliant tip once that all authors should incorporate into their stories. Don’t tell the readers something, show it to them. Pretty much the entire game we’ve been told how bad kitten Zhaitan is, and how amazingly powerful he is, and how Tyria is doomed and everyone fears him. When it finally came down to ANet showing us Zhaitan, it ended up being immensely lackluster.

It’s been a long time since Zhaitan was first slain and the forums were filled with the dissenting voices of disappointment. Since then we’ve actually heard that story dungeons will be looked at, especially in terms of reward, plus the explorable dungeons are receiving boss updates.

With the underwhelming nature of the battle, how easy it is and the anticlimactic final death, I can’t help wonder if ANet has Arah story mode in their update plans as well.

Personally I would love to see the battle receive a few more engaging moment. Perhaps add some phases to the battle, while revamping others. How about a phase where he claws onto the ship while you fight one or two heads, while cannons fire at him in an attempt to repel him? How about during the final stage, where the wounded Zhaitan holds onto a tower, instead of free firing a pinata, why not have him fire at the turrets with breath blasts as players desperately shoot back?

There are ways to make the battle far more epic, far more intense, and certainly a bit more involving. I know he is one of the Elder Dragons, but having a bit more to do than smacking minions and blindly firing cannons would add a lot more to the fight. Especially if ANet plans on adding replay incentives to story dungeons.

I remember the first time I saw the manifesto video a few years back. I clearly recalled when I heard that part about the village staying saved, and immediately thought “WTH! How is that going to work?” Honestly though, I wasn’t surprised when it was eventually announced that dynamic events is a seesaw, tug of war system.

I initially had this bubbling excitement that ANet was going to come up with this insanely groundbreaking system. Something never before seen or even comprehend before within MMO development. Thinking back, I had no idea how to picture said groundbreaking world. I just thought there was going to be this majorly new way we play MMOs.

I am a bit disappointed that GW2 didn’t turn out to be the insanely recreation of MMOs that functions on a whole new level. That said, I’m not disappointed with how GW2 turned out. It’s still a fun game, but every now and again I imagine those rose-tinted goggles and what that whole new MMO could have been like.

Like everyone said, until it kicks into high gear, there’s nothing to talk about. I really hope it get’s better from here, because after all the hype it’s been two incredibly uneventful months.

Heijincks.9267:

You’re using it completely wrong.

Hmmm, it would appear so. I will take your advice and see how it goes.

That said, I’m very excited to see what ANet has in store for us when they do release their LFG tool. I think they learned a lot from the site, and I believe they’ll add a lot more features that will make grouping in the game easier than ever before.

Eurhetemec.9052:

Thus there is FUNCTIONALLY no need for an old-fashioned LFG tool.

I mean, I don’t know how long you’ve played MMOs. I’ve played since 1999, as I said. LFG tools were important back in the days of “camping” a spawn of mobs, or working your way through a dungeon (which wasn’t instanced or balanced for a specific group size). As MMOs have moved away from that, the utility and necessity of them has become less, certainly outside of forming dungeon groups.

So what is it you require from LFG for GW2?

What? Your post doesn’t make any sense. I’m glad you’ve been playing MMOs since forever, but these days MMOs come with LFG tools. Saying MMOs have evolved beyond them is nonsensical. You claim they were good back in the days of camping, but by today’s standards we have evolved beyond that point…
As far as I can see it’s primarily used to form dungeon groups. And MMOs certainly haven’t moved away from that.

So why does GW2 require an LFG tool? Well, I don’t know. Let’s ask the players calling out in map chat in front of dungeons. Let’s ask the players spamming the LA chat. Let’s ask the guys who saw it fit to dedicate an entire site to forming groups and the players using it.

Edenwolf.6328:

They dont have to waste resources on it, there is a website that made one for them.

But there’s no options for JPs, mini-dungeons, group events, or general zone exploration. It also doesn’t allow you the in game functionality of viewing group compositions. Nor is it linked to chat at a simple click of a button.

It’s still just a website. An in game LFG should have so much more and allow a lot more interactivity, far more than an external web page could ever deliver.

Eurhetemec.9052:

Azjenco.9425:

GW2lfg is not an excuse. An in game LFG tool if done well (and I’m not talking about the lame WoW grouper) is meant to bring players who want to do dungeons together. Pretty much in the same way the mists tools bring PvPers together. Would it have been alright if PvPers had to spam LA chat to get matches going? Then why should dungeon runners do it?

Can you name a current or past MMO with an “in game LFG tool done well”, given you don’t think the WoW one is?

WoW has a dungeon finder, not an actual LFG tool. You can’t find groups to do quests or just explore. It throws you into a group and throw you all into a dungeon. When I said that I meant they should make a tool that shows available players and groups for different activities in the game, not a tool that automatically throws you into a dungeon.

The DDO group tool was very well done though.

Heijincks.9267:

Asides, didn’t Anet say they were working on something of the sort? Given everyone’s apathy of the issue, I don’t think it’s surprising at all that Anet didn’t prioritize it.

To make it more obvious, I emphasized the word apathy for a very good reason.

I wouldn’t call it apathy. On the developers part, perhaps, but from the fan base there’s been a few threads like this since launch. From there the people have always been divided. It use to be between the “we want it” and the “just spam LA” crowds. Now it’s between the “we still want it” and the “just use GW2lfg” crowds. But with a reoccurring trend where people ask for it, I wouldn’t call that apathy.

As for the GW2lfg, it’s not a good placeholder, in my opinion.
From the times I’ve put my name down, less than a third of the time I’ve received an invite. And alt-tabbing to and fro, while copy-pasting names and typing “hey, you still have space left”, is far from efficient. Most of the times I get “sorry, all full”, or no replies. I think a lot of people just leave their requests there and ignore it, even when they get a group. During peak times I’ve also had the site freeze, and sometimes the lists wont update correctly.

No, it’s not an efficient work around. For me the LFG tool cannot come soon enough.

marnick.4305:

OP has no idea what he’s talking about. Facts:

1/ GW1 didn’t get a grouping tool until almost two year into the game.

2/ The GW1 grouping tool didn’t even function well for grouping … it was mostly a trading tool or for specific farms

3/ A.net wants to do this right, so either a good tool or none

4/ GW2lfg.com does the job just fine. Are you asking for an in-game spidy, dragon timer, gold farm maps, youtube … too?

1. That might be true, but in light of that GW2 came out five years after that tool had been implemented into GW1. It should be a clear indicator that GW2 would benefit just as much from a tool as any other MMO out there.

2. Whatever it was used for, it’s functionality is far better than the one we have in GW2. In GW1 you could at least mark which quests you were looking to do. The GW2 only marks you as LFG, so are you looking to do a dungeon, a JP, a mini dungeon, an event, or just in the mood to group.

It doesn’t matter what the tool was used for in GW1, the basis was there, and it was already better than the kitten one we have in GW2.

3. ANet only started working on the tool recently. During the beta whenever a person asked them about it, they merely pointed out there was already a tool in game. Even after release people asked for it, but ANet said they had no plans to work on one. Due to the LA chat mess they started looking into it.

The actual fact is, if the person who worked on the lame tool currently in game did a better job during development, then this issue would be non-existant.

4. What an extremely lame reply. He’s asking about the LFG tool, and your reply to that is, “yeah, well, do you also want a dragon timer, farming maps and youtube in the game as well? Huh?”… That’s just weak and a very poor point your trying to make.

By blowing it out of proportion and suggesting he’s asking too much sort of makes your argument blow up in your face. He’s not asking for any of that, he made no attempt to ask for any of that, and he is not asking for too much in the least.

The fact of the matter is, development time went into make an under par LFG tool for the game. It’s not an acceptable tool and people have been clamoring for an improvement, and ANet decided to take their time with it.

GW2lfg is not an excuse. An in game LFG tool if done well (and I’m not talking about the lame WoW grouper) is meant to bring players who want to do dungeons together. Pretty much in the same way the mists tools bring PvPers together. Would it have been alright if PvPers had to spam LA chat to get matches going? Then why should dungeon runners do it?

Heijincks.9267:

Bad analogy.

A better analogy is if someone who doesn’t own the house makes their own toilet (or brings in a portapotty).

So, you think it’s fine for clients to pay for a service and then need to do their own work to make up for the problems? If you see no problem there when it comes to customer service then you have very low standards. And I’m sorry to say, you should stay away from such practices. The analogy works perfectly fine, as it refers to a lacking in the structure that needs to be filled.

Analogy aside though, for some inexplicable reason there are people who think it’s fine that there’s a gaping hole left within the game, but think it’s in bad taste when people ask ANet to fill it, soon.

GW1 had a perfectly functional LFG tool, light years ahead of the inexcusably piece of crap we have at the moment. Why they didn’t just replicate the same tool for the sequel is very odd.

emikochan.8504:

Because it works. They didn’t even have official forums for ages because it was provided by the community, you don’t need to make redundant things.

I wish people would stop referring to that site whenever it’s brought up that a decent in game LFG is needed. It’s become a flimsy shield some people hide behind and act as if it’s a perfectly adequate excuse. It’s not however, so I wish people would stop.

If you’re at a guest house and notice the toilet isn’t fully functional, then the owner replies, “why would you want to use a toilet when there’s a perfectly fine backyard just outside your room”.

Would that be acceptable as well?

Sure, a backyard might seem alright to get your business done, but it’s not the right way to go about your situation. I’m sorry, but I’m ANet’s guest in Tyria. And if I’m a guest at a place, I see nothing wrong with inquiring that everything is in maintained and in working order.

Gelltor.3015:

I don’t understand why people get so worked up about this,the lfg site is perfectly functional,so I don’t see why the devs should devote resources to making something that can already be gotten…..

Really? You don’t understand…

You don’t understand why it’s frustrating to go searching outside the game just to have full access to an in-game feature? You don’t understand why people dislike using an external tool to form up parties in a game that promotes community play? You don’t understand that any process that forces you to look outside the game is not healthy for the game’s environment?

Well, then how about this. Not everyone playing the game knows about the website, nor should they care about the website. Since most players expect to find everything they need to play the game will already be implemented within the game.

Ic Dead Ppl.2741:

Sil.4560:

Can you throw them in the Forge?

Just tried, no.

They should make an upgrade system of these. Throw 4 of them into the mystic forge and get a possessed statue of Dwayna mini.

Chuo.4238:

Azjenco.9425:

People in smaller guild really don’t need to worry.

When the LFG tool is implemented, I’m certain guild missions will be a part of it, and you’ll be able to get groups together in no time.

Also, I’ve said it before, and I will say it again. GW2 is growing more guild alliance friendly with each update.

Yea, I can go along with any guild that’s doing a mission. But if I’m not a member and repping, I’m not getting credit. So that doesn’t work. LFG is pointless in this case.

Another oversight that needs to be rectified. What if a person in a party along with someone representing the guild is eligible for the reward? Not the full reward though, perhaps less silver and no commendations, but you’d still be rewarded for grouping up with a guild.

Hule.8794:

LFG wont be Looking for Guild.

I’m not talking about Looking for Guild…

Last mention I heard of the the LFG was that there will be more than just dungeon searching. They will also have JPs and mini dungeons, possibly also world events. Is it really that farfetched that they might include guild missions as well, so small guilds can add people looking to do missions, or even advertise that they’re about to run a guild bounty, or something.

Oh no, not you again! XD

Joking aside, Lost Shores was by far the lowest point in the game, but the updates thereafter have shown real promise. There is yet to be a flawless update, but stating as a fact that there isn’t going to be one is just ridiculous.

Sure, ascended items still need to spread out and have more accessibility, and I still feel exotics should have a place in the game, rather than being mere stepping stone in the form of throwaway gear.

Guild missions are also a bit flawed as it stands. I just think it had issues that ANet couldn’t have seen until it was implemented for the masses. However, there’s real potential in guild missions and when the problems are rectified, it will become a strong part of the game.

From the start I’ve said that I will give the game a year, it’s a lot of leeway for the game to grow and really find itself. Six months in, things are looking rather promising.

P.S. Your title is very deceptive. I honestly thought it was going to be a discussion about the new NPCs, but you made a vague reference to the living story in your first sentence sentence before you started talking about past failures. This thread has nothing to do about the new characters.

Secondly, your wall of words is very unpleasant to the eye. The paragraph is your ally.

People in smaller guild really don’t need to worry.

When the LFG tool is implemented, I’m certain guild missions will be a part of it, and you’ll be able to get groups together in no time.

Also, I’ve said it before, and I will say it again. GW2 is growing more guild alliance friendly with each update.

This is great news indeed.

With the game in such a tumultuous state, ANet is still trying to find their feet and establish GW2. An expansion is supposed to expand on established systems and evolve the game. GW2 still needs to find itself before it can get to an expansion.

Still really eager to see if anything new was said at the Q&A.

JK Arrow.7102:

Much of this is lacking in GW2. A melee Flame Legion Charr feels the same as an Ascalonian warrior feels the same as a moose. There seems to be very little interaction going on with enemy groups but most times the enemies are solo anyway.

This is something I really miss. Fighting a group of krait felt very different fighting a charr warband or a bunch of minotaurs. Different types of enemies really need something that’s their own, a sense of personality, so that if you fight flame legion they’ll feel very different than fighting frostbrood.

digiowl.9620:

At the top of a towering platform waits a krait priestess, who summons 4-5 other krait. Krait that happens to love spamming a highly potent launch at every opportunity.

The platform is also barely big enough to contain a dodge, if you happen to stand at one edge and dodge towards the other.

End result is that no matter what you do you sooner or later end up being launched off that platform and plummet to your death on the wreckage below.

Exactly. I’d just like to know how this makes for entertaining combat, and it’s supposed to be a fun challenge.

I enjoy dodging as a part of combat, it is great to roll out of the way when a deadly attack comes your way. But there should be more to combat than this, and enemies should have more intelligent fighting than merely spamming CC. A fight can only be as smart and interesting as your opponent allows it to be.

To me, the story so far feels like a first comic book, to any of you who read comic books.

You open it up, read through the build up and then at the final page, there’s always this tantalizing image of some greater threat or problem that needs to be solved. Kinda like we’ve helped the people, and killed the enemy that came through the portals, and this ominous entity that looms over the issues at hand.

You can’t judge a series on the first comic alone. And hopefully, like in comics, the living story in the future will build out of this one, and other events in the game world, while spreading to affect more zones than only two.

I use to do Jormag maybe once a day, even with the insanely crappy drops. Now I avoid it, even with the much improved drops. It’s just unplayable and not fun anymore.

Gaudrath.6725:

So yeah, L2P. Every class has plenty of evasive and anti-CC abilities, and for a reason. Use them. Also, if you spot your buddies are in trouble, try stopping for a second to help them out, instead of just continuing with the damage spam. Teamwork ftw.

I’m glad at least someone brought up the old L2P, followed by tips on how to play. Actually, I do pack CC removal, and I’m also the first person to aid a downed ally.

But that’s not the point of my discussion. What irks me is that CC is heedlessly tossed onto enemies, it’s the ANet cure for making battle “interesting” and “fun”. But the L2P gesture, unconsciously, also advocates the huge problem with battles that makes it so “interesting”. Like you said, dodge here and there, and time your CC, and battle becomes a mindless affair without any variation or actual challenge.

I know my examples were crude, but basically I just wanted to illustrate that there can be ways to actually make you think while playing. Just throwing more CCs onto mobs will just permeate more of the same. Nothing will be interesting and enemies are just indistinct, with little variety from one mob to another. What I’d like to see is different forms of enemies not only look different, but also feel different when you fight them. So far this is kinda lacking.

Personally, I feel the T3 should be brought down a bit and the other tiers should be raised. The reason why I say that is, in some occasions the lower tiers actually look kind of good, while some of the T3s I find sort of okay-ish.

That has made me wonder why they’re so expensive and T1 and 2 so cheap if some lower tiers look so nice. In that regard it feels a bit like a disincentive to get the T3s.

Let me continue by giving some examples:
Rogue – This guy can throw daggers that ricochet off allies. When a ricochet hits a person, poison is applied. He can also shadow step away if your in melee to long.
In essence, when you fight these guys, clumping together can hurt, and if you get in his face, kill him fast.
Archer – The archer will have rapid shots. Each successive shot that hits you while your still in the same spot does extra damage. Upon the third shot where a player hasn’t moved, you will be crippled as well.
Basically, the CC effect is a soft punishment for not dealing with the enemy as it’s supposed to be dealt with. It’s obvious you should keep moving while battling the archer.

To make it even more interesting, throw two rogues and two archers into the same battle. You’ll need to keep moving, while observing where your allies are, so as not to rake up more too much poison. Only with two enemies with such simple yet interesting mechanics, a bit of tactical play comes forward.

Let me give another example of a fully fleshed out group of gravelings:
Hivemind – Grants other gravelings protection and might, range and aoe attacks cause only glancing blows.
Stinger – Caming within melee range of a stinger will cause stacks of bleed to apply each second. Can charge up to do a leap attack, which stuns the target.
Spiter – Long range attack, and when someone comes within melee range, the spiter will shadowstep to the nearest graveling. The further away a spiter is from its target, the better chance it has to cause poison.
Breeder – When killed, the breeder will spawn hatchlings.

This fight can be done in different ways, but some coordination is needed. The hivemind is by far the worst to keep alive during the fight. Melee should focus on him. Range can also pound away at him, to get him down faster, but should perhaps rather focus on either the stingers or spiters. It’s up to the group, as spiter poison can hurt, although staying near might held, but players need to stay observant of his leap, or the stun can cause his bleeds to stack really fast. The breeder should be dealt with last, or else killing him first might cause his hatchlings to hurt, especially if the hivemind is still alive.

The idea behind my examples is, if enemies each have a mechanic, then players will need to actually use tactics, and if two enemies with different mechanics are in combat, then combat will involve some thought and precision.

This has been called into question before, but there must be a better solution in this game when enemies are “improved” to be more “fun and challenging”. Every time I see this phrase pop up in patch notes, a slight shiver runs up my spine. As evidence of Orr battles, as well as the new krait and graveling designs, for some reason knockbacks and stuns are what constitutes as fun and challenging…

Not to be overly rude, but some part of me can’t help but call into question what intentions are placed into monster design. Now I’m not pointing out every single enemy in the game, but just using this as a blanket term, especially in light of battles that are supposed to be “fun and challenging”

As in every thread that brings this up, some one is bound to say, “yeah, well, L2P”, or “they’re not that hard, I don’t see the problem here”. Well, the problem is, there can be a lot more fun ways to improve monsters without reverting to the old one-trick-pony. I mean, anti-CC should be situational, not a universal requirement. If utilities are meant to enforce options, then why should these skills be needed more than others.

But bare with me here, I do have a point.

Conditions on monsters should be added into their fighting style and that is what will make combat interesting. A monster with stun and poison doesn’t need tactics to over come, basically, it just need anti-CC. The same goes for a monster with cripple and fire. The two may seem different, but really they are almost interchangeable and not really distinct.

To be continued below

Yeah, I’m not sure how rewards in doing guild missions are supposed to work, exactly. Not sure what the big draw is for non-guild members other than standard event rewards.

On the topic of rewards, letting the chest spawn once a week seem like a huge disincentive. Our guild have done the bounties, and now there is no point in doing them again. I mean, why should we? I like that the rewards are good, but not having some sort of daily reset just seem wrong. Perhaps have members who’ve done it for the week get a smaller reward.

Didn’t someone create a transcript or something. I mean, someone somewhere must have a recording of what was being said and can clean it up a bit. I keep on feeling some important information was being throw about and those of us who couldn’t be there are left in the dark.

Or what’s the point of having a Q&A that less than 100 people can listen to, half of whom probably weren’t even listening as they went about their business. Although from the sound of it, barely 10 people heard what was actually discussed, so a proper transcript would be nice.

SynfulChaot.3169:

Takes a while to get online afterwards. They recorded the main Q&A session. It should be online after they do their editing.

So, is the Q&A information still coming or what?

SynfulChaot.3169:

Takes a while to get online afterwards. They recorded the main Q&A session. It should be online after they do their editing.

Brilliant! Can’t wait.

The internet is suspiciously quite after the meet and greet…

I’d like to know what was said at the Q&A.

Vinny.6924:

kfcoco.8470:

Another question, do the personal rewards get better for each teir or are they universal. More chance for better loot like in fractals maybe?

Pretty shocked there was such little info on stuff like this.

Throw this in with my questions as well. I’m shocked as well. Horrible on Anets part.

It would also seem the chest isn’t daily, but only resets when the event reset. There isn’t really any reason to run it more than once a week then…

My guild is also curious to know the answer…

Vorch.2985:

…way to be constructive, people.

You see, it’s very difficult to be constructive, because…

I’ve filed for my refund, I hope ANet learns from me, because I can generally take a pretty heavy beating as a customer before moving on.

He’s been playing the game for half a year, now he wants his money back because the profession changes haven’t been to his liking. How is any person supposed to give a positive response to that?

I think you’re mixing customization and progression here.

The difference is, with customization you add things onto an item, you shape the item to better suit your play style and character’s way of playing. Yes, it adds onto your weapon, making it better, but here’s where the big difference comes in…
Vertical progression forces you to throw away items. It makes all previous customizations moot as one item just replaces the next, or rather, you progress from one item to the next.

That’s the difference. It might seem slight, but with a system where you customize the functionality of the item, that item remains relevant and will continue meaning something in the long haul, and not force you to replace it.

Tobias Trueflight.8350:

Azjenco.9425:

I’d actually like it if ascended items remain on the trinket side of the inventory, but since ANet already said that more types of ascended items will be rolled out through the year, it’s already a certainty that we’ll be seeing ascended armors soon enough.

Well, it’s possible? But they had said that before rolling out the Amulets and now the Accessories. Hopefully they complete this with alternate ways of earning Back pieces and call it complete.

I would really like that. Just add more exotic armors and ways of obtaining them, and I’d be very happy.

killcannon.2576:

Azjenco.9425:

I was referring to the insane amount of builds an itemization. It’s still here, but not quite as strong as I remember it from back then. Item drops and time spent were better back then, something the devs are still trying to get right. Also, dailies aren’t quite yet the Zhaisen missions of GW2 which I think ANet are trying to replicate here.

Some things just can’t be translated over.

The points I posted definitely has a place in GW2, and each of these were things that made GW1 a lot of fun.

• Builds – In Gw1 I remember going through the skills like they were a set of MtG cards. It was fun, but a major part of that was lost. I think it can be brought back if they’d implement some customization to weapon skills and if you can place certain utility skills in your elite slot. Maybe also add an elite heal skill then, maybe.
• Itemization – GW1’s didn’t have the potential the sequel has, but I still remember placing a lot of thought into the insignias and runes placed on my items. Upgrades in GW2 feel less important than they felt there. Perhaps if items had more slots, and you could combine runes to get added effects, and focus more on effects and less on numbers.
  For instance the numbers should be a bonus. Let’s say you add a few runes with condition effects, then you’ll get a condition damage bonus. Or if you have a few defensive runes, you’ll get a vitality and toughness bonus. It lets you have fun with the interesting effects, while the numbers are applied as bonuses.
• Drops – In GW2 you could kill certain bosses for specific special items. Why not give tough bosses in the world, like at the end of a mini dungeon a chance to drop one of many weapon skins? That way you can get specified rewards for playing content in the world.
• Zaishen – Clearly dailies are being propped up as Zaishen missions 2.0, but it just doesn’t feel right here. I like that dailies are being varied, but the specific goals don’t fit here. Why not add Consortium NPCs (since the Zhaisen is no more) that give zone specific goals, like the Zaishen missions. They can hand out bounties (kill a certain monster), vanquish (kill a certain amount in an area), mission (do a mini dungeon). These are just examples, but he objectives can be tweaked to make these quests more viable.

Tobias Trueflight.8350:

The trouble is that your offers of reducing it to two stats with higher values instead of three with lesser values is . . . that people are still getting an edge with proper work statistically. At least, in the ways they care about.

Honestly I think having it be trinkets only might be one of the better answers, because Agony Resistance from those six slots should be okay, right?

Like I said, they were rough examples, ignore the stat numbers. Basically, they were meant to paint a picture of how there can be new ways of implementing new forms of stats on items, without doing the exact same thing with just larger numbers. What about adding burning damage on ascended items, or a continual regenerating effect? Again, these are just examples, but when it comes to itemization, the idea is to think outside the box.

I’d actually like it if ascended items remain on the trinket side of the inventory, but since ANet already said that more types of ascended items will be rolled out through the year, it’s already a certainty that we’ll be seeing ascended armors soon enough.