Guild Wars 2

ProxyDamage.9826:

Conncept.7638:

Invictus.1503:

Scythe

We have it, it’s called a staff. It is physically impossible for a scythe to work as a martial weapon, and more importantly it’s visually impossible, you couldn’t possibly animate a character using a scythe and not have it look completely ridiculous. The only exception is b-list anime and that’s because they use a sickening amount of cross cuts.

It can and has been done. Zasalamel. Your argument is invalid.

It’s also hilariously ironic that that’s the reason you provide against… And then suggest things like:

Conncept.7638:

My List

• Cannon (over the shoulder, fits in with a cantha expansion)

Zasalamel is horribly animated. Notice how he’s blurred out for the majority of his animations? They couldn’t think of more than three or four moves that didn’t have massive clipping and movement issues and so they had to use gaudy smear frames to cover up the remainder of his moveset. And that makes perfect sense since scythes are designed to be used in one single repetitive motion, the amount of ways you can animate them without their wielders anatomy getting in the way is almost zero.

And please explain what would be so difficult about animating a cannon? You hold it and shoot, don’t we already two such weapons in the game? Hand held cannons were a common weapon in China for almost 300 years before spreading to Europe, hence the comment about Cantha. If you’re going to challenge someones ideas, make sure you actually have some idea what you’re talking about first.

Kelthos Doombringer.9032:

Conncept.7638:

Invictus.1503:

Scythe

We have it, it’s called a staff. It is physically impossible for a scythe to work as a martial weapon, and more importantly it’s visually impossible, you couldn’t possibly animate a character using a scythe and not have it look completely ridiculous. The only exception is b-list anime and that’s because they use a sickening amount of cross cuts.

What? Guild Wars 1’s Dervish uses a Scythe for almost all of their attacks and it looked freaking awesome.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KjQd6ldGudA

That’s just using a scythe like a martial staff, and it does look ridiculous since a scythe should be significantly larger and heavier than that. And if you’re going to animate it that way why not just add a martial staff and give it a scythe skin?

Jski.6180:

Conncept.7638:

Wow, we’re not only getting a scepter that isn’t a shortened copy of staff, but one that actually looks good. Well… assuming these aren’t trapped behind another asinine RNG gate anyway…

Well how else do you just give every one every skin? Do you make it one per account do you make it one per hero (soul bound we do not want ppl to make a new hero for a skin only to just delete that hero after they gotten it).

How else do you just give every one every skin? How should I know, especially since that sentence makes no sense. Are you saying everyone should get every skin? Or that such a suggestion is absurd? I don’t see how either interpretation matters as neither I nor anybody else stated that every skin should just be given to anyone. I honestly can’t tell what you are trying to say except that you seem to be peeved about it.

Invictus.1503:

Scythe

We have it, it’s called a staff. It is physically impossible for a scythe to work as a martial weapon, and more importantly it’s visually impossible, you couldn’t possibly animate a character using a scythe and not have it look completely ridiculous. The only exception is b-list anime and that’s because they use a sickening amount of cross cuts.

My List

• Cannon (over the shoulder, fits in with a cantha expansion)
• Great Axe
• Spear (on land obviously)
• Throwing Spear
• Throwing Hammer (a real throwing hammer, not WoW style)
• Meteor hammer (cantha)
• Rope Dart (like a whip, but much cooler, and fits in cantha)
• Main Hand Shield (just for guardian)

Wow, we’re not only getting a scepter that isn’t a shortened copy of staff, but one that actually looks good. Well… assuming these aren’t trapped behind another asinine RNG gate anyway…

Guns and Giblets.9308:

Depth. And better mechanics.

Why is the thread labeled ‘depth’ a secure method of completely flattening the games combat system? Has anybody posting here even clicked on those links and read what they contain?

I don’t believe that is currently available, it looks like raven themed norn cultural armor though, which would be a great addition since ALL norn armor is either wolf or bear themed.

Astralporing.1957:

Conncept.7638:

Clipping isn’t the only thing to account for, it may not have all the animations necessary to be put in to use

according to the devs’ info when the armor mechanics were first spoiled, it’s just impossible, because PC and NPC armor is done exactly the same way – it was intended from the very beginning for it to be fully exchangeable.

Conncept.7638:

not to mention other racial equivalents for the Charr and Asura.

This might be possible, though.

Except, so far as I know, it has only been seen on a ranger, so it might not have all (or possibly any) of the of the animations used by the engineer or thief but not by the ranger.

aspirine.6852:

Conncept.7638:

They’re RNG dependent because ANet has become greedy beyond belief.

And they’re account bound because every time they add limited edition weapons that can be sold, the majority end up being hoarded and sold for ridiculous amounts of money long after the event, and it does serious damage to the economy.

Wrong company, I do think it’s the main company behind the greed. ncsoft, not Anet.

At this point they’re not only failing to stand against what they know is wrong, but they have consistently lied about it for months, they are just as much at fault.

Pyroatheist.9031:

We’ve all seen the discussions about elite mantras or elite signets, but I’ve never seen a discussion about an elite phantasm.

I’m thinking aoe, and lots of it. How about you?

It’s been suggested before, my personal preference was a Phantasmal Doppelganger, a phantasm copy of your targeted enemy, similar to the boss ability in P1 of SE.

xCrusadentx.2784:

Fire GS is pretty good

Attune To Earth -> Glyph of Elementals
You now have a pet that will tank for you. (Its def is actually pretty decent)

Few people doubt GoEs use in PvE, but have you ever used it in PvP? It’s completely useless, in fact all the elementals are useless in SPvP except Air. The Fire, Earth, and Water elementals cannot attack a moving target, if the enemy continues to strafe or move in any way, the elemental will just stutter step after them starting but never completing their attack animation.

wouw.5837:

Eles have the best elites in the game

This guy must be joking, nobody could be possibly know that little about the class that actually plays the game.

Our startup failed because we went after scope that was too big and difficult to deliver. We were big game hunting. This is the #1 reason why Triple-A MMORPGs have struggled in recent years. There has not been a single AAA MMORPG launched in 2008-2012 that has meaningfully grown its subscriber base post-launch. The list of these games includes Warhammer Online, Age of Conan, Star Wars: The Old Republic, and Guild Wars 2.

Except one of the articles biggest bullet point, quoted above, is false. Guild Wars 2’s subscriber base grew steadily for a solid six months after it’s launch and active subscribers still hasn’t dipped.

Clipping isn’t the only thing to account for, it may not have all the animations necessary to be put in to use, not to mention other racial equivalents for the Charr and Asura.

EvilSardine.9635:

Logitech G600 Mouse.

http://zapt0.staticworld.net/images/article/2012/11/g600_2-100014941-gallery.jpg

Problem solved. I have every ability and F key skill bound to that mouse. It’s amazing and I don’t even have to think about where the button is. You get used to the mouse pretty quickly.

Don’t get this mouse unless you have the hands of a 10-year old girl. Those buttons are ridiculously tiny.

I use the g700, it has four thumb buttons instead of nine, you can map your directional keys to them, and your dodge, turn, and all other movement keys to to the top buttons and mouse 3. Then you only have to control your movement with your mouse and your left hand is open to use your abilities.

Siphaed.9235:

People in this thread keep harping on the RNG when that’s not what this thread was made for. I understand RNG, it’s a common element in many MMORPG’s. Without it, everyone would have everything and there would be no special snowflakes…., only person that partially understands the question of ACCOUNT BOUND seems to be:

Conncept.7638:

They’re RNG dependent because ANet has become greedy beyond belief.

And they’re account bound because every time they add limited edition weapons that can be sold, the majority end up being hoarded and sold for ridiculous amounts of money long after the event, and it does serious damage to the economy.

How so does it harm the economy, though? Adding more rare items gives players more things of medium value to spend their gold on. Right now all the event rare items fit the medium expense pricing range, while the lower range is plagued with normal materials, generally crafted exotics and the like. The highest ranged prices are awarded to precursor and legendary weapons.

It’s best that they’re hoarded to be taken by others and sold to those that want them, rather than people getting them that don’t want them and can’t get rid of them. A chance to buy them off someone who has but doesn’t want them, that’s all I ask. But….account bound, why?!

Because economics are always dependent on perspective of those who contribute, this causes any free-market economy to work much like a gradient, when the highest point goes up everything below it stretches out to fill in. When the economy is rising at a good and natural rate it’s completely imperceptible and both income and expenditures rise at a favorable pace.

But when it’s not… when the highest point is suddenly forced upward, cost rises, for those with less resources it can potentially rise much faster than income. You can see this in real life, the US being the worst offender, where the average income for the wealthy brackets has gone up by nearly 150% in twelve years, while the average income for middle and lower brackets hasn’t gone up at all. And all the while costs have gone up for both, but obviously the middle and lower brackets are the ones to suffer while the higher brackets are immune because they have complete control over their own income.

Or, in the simplest way I can explain, it gives the rich more and makes what the poor have worth less.

emikochan.8504:

Conncept.7638:

cesmode.4257:

Conncept.7638:

They’re RNG dependent because ANet has become greedy beyond belief.

And they’re account bound because every time they add limited edition weapons that can be sold, the majority end up being hoarded and sold for ridiculous amounts of money long after the event, and it does serious damage to the economy.

Like SAB weapon skins..

38 gold for that greatsword. pft.

SAB skins are not limited edition, the SAB instance will be back, with all existing skins and content as well as new additions.

hmm they said the skins wouldn’t be coming back, that it’d be a new set. I wonder if they changed their minds ^^

Really? That wasn’t what I last heard. I remember them saying that the existing skins will be back with new skins. IE, the Fractal Greatsword will be back, with a fractal pistol and rifle added to the roster. Maybe the skins are just unappealing then, or the market is flooded with them. There was a point where the Ghastly Grinning Shield was only 30G, it’s almost 300 now.

cesmode.4257:

Conncept.7638:

They’re RNG dependent because ANet has become greedy beyond belief.

And they’re account bound because every time they add limited edition weapons that can be sold, the majority end up being hoarded and sold for ridiculous amounts of money long after the event, and it does serious damage to the economy.

Like SAB weapon skins..

38 gold for that greatsword. pft.

SAB skins are not limited edition, the SAB instance will be back, with all existing skins and content as well as new additions.

They’re RNG dependent because ANet has become greedy beyond belief.

And they’re account bound because every time they add limited edition weapons that can be sold, the majority end up being hoarded and sold for ridiculous amounts of money long after the event, and it does serious damage to the economy.

Necros are perfectly fine in all open world content, they just have some problems in PvP and dungeons. Since 90% of the games content falls in the first category, there is plenty of fun content available to a necro.

Anet claims they don’t want things like town clothes in combat because it would be immersion breaking, which is very against their design aesthetics. But then they go and do stupid stuff like in combat quaggan backpacks and bows that shoot unicorns.

I would be fine with in combat town clothes or whatever other out-of-lore items they want to add if they would just add an RP mode in to the game! Seriously, one little menu option that would hide anything non-conducive to an RPing environment and viola! They can add whatever they want, the people who don’t care about immersion can have their gear, and the people who do don’t have to see it.

I think you mean how they made them *un*obtainable in Black Lion Chests…

Spencer.1386:

Any class can be played with a passive signet build. Probably the easiest would be a warrior, guardian, or ranger. While you miss out on interesting utilities you can still function effectivly using only your weapon skills.

Except Engineers

But let’s face it, at this point ‘except engineers’ can be applied to just about anything, including the devs ‘list of things we care about’.

Wolf.5816:

I was originally thinking of a Gadget called Portable Asura Gate. And could be thrown similar to the Throw Mine.

Portable Asura Gate: Toss a beacon that will teleport you to its location after a short delay, Stunning nearby targets for 2 seconds when your warp. Removes Cripple, Chill, and Immobilize.
-1/2 second cast time.
-Cool down: 35
-Skill activation Delay: 4 seconds.
-Stun Breaker
-Stun for 2 seconds.
-Attack Range: 120

Tool Belt Ability: Displacement Field: Surge your Portable Asuran Gate creating field around you that will cause the next attack to miss and Teleport the attacker to a random location, Dazing them for 1/2 second.
-1/2 second cast time.
-Field Duration: 2 seconds
-Teleportation Range: 900
-Daze 1/2 second
-Cool down: 40 seconds.

But I’d love to see this Concept spread into a Kit. There could be so many innovative moves. Perhaps:

Portal Gun Kit concept skills:
(1) Warp Missile: Fires a immensely volatile energy missile that lingers slowly in the air. Greatly Damaging foes who are foolish enough to be struck by them. Successful damage Will also reduce the cool down for the *Gatewave*cast time by 3%.
-Cast time: 1/2
-Projectile delay: 3 second
-Projectile life span:20 seconds.
-Damage:260
-Range: 1,000
-Combo finished :100%
(2) Gatewave: Emits a wave of dimensional energy freezing enemy projectiles caught in its blast while speeding up friendly projectiles Triples the speed and damage done from your Warp Missles.
-Cast time: 1/2
-Range: 500
-Damage: 180
-Cool down: 17 seconds

(3) Rift Bomb: Releases a small Rift that floats in place and pulses continuously damaging foes every second who come too close while increasing the Duration of Cripple, Chill, and Immobilizing effects on enemies by 10% per hit.
-cast time: 1/2
-Damage: 650
-Rift Duration: 9 seconds.
-Damage Radius:115
————-> Chain Skill Duel Rift Bombs: Release two more immobile Rifts nearby you.
-Cast time: 1/2
-Rift Duration: 9 seconds.
-Damage Radius:115
-Cool Down: 35 seconds

(4) Dimension Dissolver: Fire a potent bolt attempting to create a Deminsion between your foe immobilizing and swapping locations with them. If the opponent has Stability or Protection it will instead remove it.
-Cast time: 0
-Damage: 160
-Range: 900
-Immobilize duration: 2 seconds.
-Cool Down: 20 Seconds

(5) Portal Pulse: Channel a powerful electromagnetic energy from your Portal Gun opening personal gates for yourself and nearby allies teleporting them to safety. (This ability will create an Area of Effect around you and when an ally or yourself is afflicted with a Crowd Controlling effect they will teleport to a nearby location instantly)
-Channel time: 3 seconds
-Teleportation range: 600
-Area of Effect: 450
-Combo Field: Lightning
-Cool down: 30 seconds.

Tool Belt Ability: Telefront: Stun yourself for 2 seconds removing 2 conditions every second while gravitating all existing Rift Bombs to your location.
-Cast time: 0
-Cool Down: 30 seconds

Good concept, overly complicated… very very very much so.

locoman.1974:

It must have an attack simmilar to the elementalist’s dragon’s tooth but instead of a flaming dragon’s tooth, a piece of bread appears on top of the target, with another one appearing under it, impairing movement..

Except hopefully, unlike Dragon’s Tooth, not designed to always miss it’s target. :P

There are also normally several things broken in each patch, and several fixes listed that don’t actually work. Maybe it evens out.

silvermember.8941:

Conncept.7638:

Inculpatus cedo.9234:

According to the devs, and other personnel, feedback is collected from all the threads

Except of course from the engineer and necro players, and the entire suggestions forum.

The only time they’ve posted in suggestions is to say they do read it, and yet not a single thing has ever been taken from it, and it seems to be where they send ideas they don’t want anyone to actually consider. Since ideas that mesh with the goals they already have are frequently allowed to stay wherever they are first posted.

Engineers and necros just got their first red post in almost six months, addressing a bug, one single bug each.

Same with rangers, elementalist and warriors. The point being almost every profession thread have post of players thinking that their issues should take precedent over others. The rangers had to deal with that kitten for months, you guys should have to as well, well not really but I am petty so yeah.

Rangers started out as one of the best PvP classes and were nerfed shortly after release, and have since been buffed. Necros and engineers started as the two worst classes and have stayed that way, the engineer has even been nerfed, repeatedly. Don’t give me any bullcrap about taking turns.

Guardian, Thief, Mesmer

Didn’t even read the OP

EDIT: Yep

Inculpatus cedo.9234:

According to the devs, and other personnel, feedback is collected from all the threads

Except of course from the engineer and necro players, and the entire suggestions forum.

The only time they’ve posted in suggestions is to say they do read it, and yet not a single thing has ever been taken from it, and it seems to be where they send ideas they don’t want anyone to actually consider. Since ideas that mesh with the goals they already have are frequently allowed to stay wherever they are first posted.

Engineers and necros just got their first red post in almost six months, addressing a bug, one single bug each.

The fix for all of WvWs problems is easy and well known, players now have collision with their allies and enemies as well as all projectiles. Suddenly throwing the most bodies at the enemy doesn’t work, organization and strategy actually matter. Unfortunately, this fix is impossible, the server couldn’t possibly handle calculating collision for that many units and their projectiles simultaneously.

ShinraGuardian.8053:

We’ve been barking up this tree since about day 1, and apparently they are “looking into it”.

And by that they mean they hope we’ll forget about it while they spend all their time adding more and more dishonest RNG items.

Sigil of demon summoning is at an infinite cooldown… three more seconds ain’t so bad.

Laii.2780:

Silver.3284:

AresOnasis.4703:

I want to see The Shatterer completely decimate a group, and then progress to take over the entire map unless people band together to stop him. I want to login one day and be told in guild chat that the entire map is lost and we should help try to take it back.

That would be awesome.

What “Living World” should be

I always had a similar idea to make Orr interesting. Right now it’s biggest problem is that you feel like you’re fighting throngs of mindless unchallenging zombies, which you are.

But what if when certain amount of events are completed successfully, the undead that normally spawn mindlessly staring in to space start spawning in lines and regiments. If even more events are completed the undead begin to organize and build their own camps and run strategic raids on the existing pact camps, more advanced units and specific lieutenants and generals spawn. If the pact continues to be successful through the efforts of the players, the undead will organize the games most massive battle on the footsteps of Arah.

If the players fail to stop this army, Zhaitans minions build a city rivaling Fort Trinity right on the steps. If the pact succeeds in stopping them, the pact begins to rebuild Orr while Zhaitans minions try to stop them.

Fair improvement, if this is how it’s going to work, which I doubt. But I’m still not spending a dime until I see an OFFICIAL declaration that crap like the MA weapons will never happen again. And some kind of compensation for the (millions of, at this point) players who have financially supported ANet and received nothing for it. One single event where they do what’s right by the players is not a sign that they’re turning a new leaf.

ANet lost my respect and my trust, one event isn’t going to make it come back. I’m not giving them an inch of leeway until I see something in writing and I don’t encourage anyone else to either.

Well this would be an honest and sensible thing to do, it provides ANet with steady income and players with steady rewards.

Which means it’s never going to happen, mostly because of the honesty part.

There will be a katana skin in the dragon festival, guaranteed. And because the devs know there’s such high demand for it, it’ll likely come from cash shop RNG boxes, and have a drop rate that requires you to spend 600 dollars before having a solid chance at a drop.

Go Anet! You’re not greedy at all.

HuntsForge.3260:

My Norn Ele,
Head – HotW
Shoulders – Named
Torso – SE
Gloves – The Dwayna ones from the Hall of Monuments
Legs – HotW
Feet – Stately

Oh my gosh, I’m not the ONLY male norn Ele!?

Okay, what I would personally like for the elementalist. All of the alacrity traits need to be moved to master traits, and then changed as follows.

• Pyromancer’s Alacrity – All your fire weapon skills recharge 20% faster, your fire attunement’s cooldown is reduced per point invested in power. This does not stack with arcane tree reduction, maximum 7.5 second reduction.
• Aeromancer’s Alacrity – All your air weapon skills recharge 20% faster, your air attunement’s cooldown is reduced per point invested in precision. This does not stack with arcane tree reduction, maximum 7.5 second reduction.
• Geomancer’s Alacrity – All your earth weapon skills recharge 20% faster, your earth attunement’s cooldown is reduced per point invested in toughness. This does not stack with arcane tree reduction, maximum 7.5 second reduction.
• Aquamancer’s Alacrity – All your water weapon skills recharge 20% faster, your water attunement’s cooldown is reduced per point invested in toughness. This does not stack with arcane tree reduction, maximum 7.5 second reduction.

Anything, I repeat ANYTHING that makes it so elementalist aren’t absolutely required to go in to the arcane tree.

1) Class mechanics need serious overhaul. Love that they are looking at the Necros Death Shroud, but nearly every class has class mechanic problems as well. Some don’t work, are underpowered, and then a lot are just underwhelming and even plain boring. More classes need to be like the thief, which has a class mechanic and then a bunch of added little bits like stealth skills and dual wield. I don’t see why every other class’ mechanic was just written off as ‘good enough’.

2) Dungeons need difficulty scaling, other than this I think most of the dungeons are fine. But some are just impossible for pug groups and others are no challenge for veteran players. Makes everybody happy.

3) They need to pick up the pace on fixing the condition stack limit, A LOT. That should be near top priority until it’s done. If crit were broken like this, you can guarantee it would be top of the list, but condition damage gets shuffled to the bottom of the pile.

4) AI needs to be made to attack while moving! Seriously, there is no amount of buffs that will make up for this giant failing.

5) Transform skills and skillbar replacement skills need overhaul, especially elites. Rampage? Too situational. Tornado Form? Suicide. Conjured weapons? Laughable. Kits? One overpowered, four useless. And any basic attacks in a transform that requires you to stand still needs to be changed.

Tolmos.8395:

Oh really? The US justice system is one that involves people spending 5+ years in a concrete box with murderers, rapists, etc. Brutal physical and sexual assault are a regular occurrence there. Climate control is non-existent, with temperatures in Florida prisons reaching an upwards of 120 degrees in summers (prisoners have been known to literally BAKE TO DEATH.) The cells measure 6′ × 11′ on average.

Some of these inmates get taken a step farther and put into solitary confinement, either for their own safety or as punishment. These individuals spend 23 hours a day alone in lockdown, without the possibility of contact with anyone outside of their own guards. During their 1 hour break they get a break in an outdoor, unshaded and cemented cage sizing twice the size of their cell. This can take place for as long as 25 years, at which point their minds are broken beyond repair. This same form of punishment was a torture reserved by Stalin in his Gulags for only the most heinous of criminals.

American Recidivism Rate: 60%

Norway, on the other hand, has built a prison that roughly resembles a dorm. Air conditioned and containing ample reading and research materials, these dorms house 1 inmate per cell and focus entirely on rehabilitation, NOT revenge as the US justice system does. Photos of this prison/dorm can be seen here at TIME magazine: http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1989083,00.html

Norway Recidivism Rate: 20%

TL;DR – Science and facts, unfortunately, do not support your argument. At all.

In case that isn’t enough: Here is Yale University also disagreeing. http://faculty.som.yale.edu/keithchen/papers/final_aler07.pdf I’ll take their word over that of Rush Limbaugh any day

A few more sources…

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2012/08/24/making-prison-worse-doesnt-reduce-crime-it-increases-it/

http://www.prisonpolicy.org/scans/e199912.htm

http://aler.oxfordjournals.org/content/13/1/103.full

http://ftp.iza.org/dp3395.pdf

Let me know if you’d like more!

Except Norway is not a fully industrialized country. It doesn’t attract criminals like Japan and the US do because it does not have the assets and it never has. Both Norways crime and it’s recidivism were better than the US’s before they built that prison. Ipso facto, from a scientific perspective, those statistics are bogus, they were made without any study control mechanism, that prison hasn’t been proven to have changed anything. And no, since every study conducted by Yale conveniently forgets such basic rules of the scientific method, their opinion isn’t worth anything and I wouldn’t take it over the crazy bum’s on the street corner. They have a political agenda to push, they will and have been ignoring any and every part of the scientific method to do so for over thirty years. Not a single one of the ‘examples’ you cited is reputable, cite a real group of real scientists next time, instead of political activists that happen to wear lab coats.

So, if you wish or are capable of proving your point, show me where this method has ever been applied in a country with assets and crime similar to the US, and what affect it has had. You can’t, because it hasn’t. Because there isn’t any doubt that it wouldn’t work. It hasn’t even had that great of an effect in the countries where it has been used, it’s just ‘conveniently’ been applied only in places where crime was already low.

And it’s incredibly deceptive how you are only providing examples you pulled from a list of the countries very worst of our countries prisons, made by a d-list internet news site no less. And conveniently leaving out the average US prison; which provides it’s inmates with better medical care, better food, and more easily accessible entertainment and amenities than we provide in our schools or to our senior citizens.

stayBlind.7849:

I hardly see how this is a step forward. Not only do we have a smaller pool of skills in GW2 (many of which outshine others as you’ve said), we also have the same problem with traits.

So, ANet’s logic was to reduce the skill pool by only having a fraction of the total number of skills from GW1, and replacing the ‘unwanted’ skills from GW1 with traits.

We now have the same problem of skill/trait balance. So, why change the system in the first place?

I would also like to quote a Magic: the Gathering senior designer:

Show Spoiler

hide spoiler

Q: “Why does R&D print ridiculously bad cards in sets, particularly as rares?” —Elliot Fertik, Philadelphia, PA

A: From Mark Rosewater, Magic senior designer:
“This is a very complex question that I’m sure I’ll discuss in greater detail in a future column. But the short answer is that weak cards are a fundamental part of the game. Richard Garfield has described Magic as a ‘game of exploration.’ Much of the fun of the game comes from players examining each new set to see what they can discover. Many players take great enjoyment in finding use of cards that others dismiss. R&D cannot make bad cards that are secretly good without also making bad cards that are actually bad.

“The history of Magic is filled with ‘sucky’ cards that later show up in high-profile decks (High Tide, Despotic Scepter, Lion’s Eye Diamond, etc.). The reason that a large percentage of these cards are rare is that we tend to avoid making cards with narrow functions common or uncommon because they have no role in limited. One way to get a good appreciation of how cards rise in value as players find uses for them is to go back and look at a review of an old set.”

And before anyone quotes me with the argument of “People only ran meta builds” I would like to point out that, again, nothing has changed (zerker groups). Meta builds were in no way required to do content (just like GW2), but are the most efficient at doing content.

My point is that ANet has designed GW2 in a way where nothing has truly changed in regards to skill balance besides the fact that there is no longer as many fun options for each player to choose from.

You didn’t seriously bring up MTG did you? Because there isn’t a game in existence more aptly illustrates how wrong you are. Years ago tourney MTG was dying, players couldn’t take it seriously anymore, the card pool had grown complicated to the point of being one turn 3 win deck versus another turn 3 win deck. It was nothing but luck, one completely incalculably small build decision could make the 1 turn difference that would win the game. Strategy and counterplay were completely dead. Do you know how they fixed it? The organized the tourney system to only allow cards from a certain number of sets. Or in layman’s terms, they limited the build pool! Tournament level MTG was saved by doing exactly what you are claiming should have never been done to GW2! And it has grown for it just like GW2 has grown much faster than GW1 ever did.

FlamingFoxx.1305:

Jski.6180:

Well GW1 was a single player game that had co op. Also its pvp was not made to be at an E-sport level. GW2 is just a comply different type of game then GW1 and there are truths to what GW2 is an mmorpg that you must deal with that was not problem in GW1 that was NOT an mmorpg.

I don’t disagree with the gist of what you’re saying. But GW1’s PvP actually was at a sort of E-Sport level. Especially early on in the games life when they had a lot of tournaments going on, and GvG remained pretty E-sporty throughout the games life. PvP just died down a lot as the game got older and what we were left with was a whole bunch of people playing RA.

Yeah, it had esport potential early in it’s run Then complication creep completely destroyed that potential. GW2 has been simplified for good reason, GW1 was completely unapproachable beyond the basic game.

This is awesome, they should add stuff like this to the other classes. In fact I think this would be a really cool as a serious addition to the game, multi unit combos might make WvW into something besides a zergfest where no more than one person on the entire map thinks.

Think about it. What if 7 necros all summoned a Flesh Titan instead of golem? Or what if 5 warriors simultaneously using berserker stance literally became berserkers? This has so much potential, especially in WvW.

In my opinion, this systems is actually really well designed and adds to each professions wow factor, since unlike GW1 you can actually clearly tell what profession each enemy is at the beginning of combat.

Solid weapon bars puts an easy identifier to each enemy in PvP and WvW that allows for ‘hot drop’ fighting that was never possible in GW1 except among the most ridiculously hardcore (overly obsessive) players. Is some customization sacrificed? Undoubtedly, but it’s worth it to create a better play to counterplay environment.

What I would like to see is expansion of the class mechanics, none should be four static and unchangeable skills. If anything, THAT damages each professions ‘wow’ factor.

Notice how not a single person has considered or even mentioned the elementalist…

In my opinion the Thief doesn’t necessarily have the best, but it does have the elites applicable in the most situations, and three of them to boot. Warrior, ranger, Mesmer and Guardian each have two usable elites. Engineer and Necro have one. The elementalist doesn’t have a single elite that isn’t either highly situational or outright useless.

Wonder if I’ll get one. I used a kit, but not enough to run it out of uses.

GoldenTruth.2853:

Animation looks good, however the item itself is bugged. When others see you harvesting with the sickle when you also have the molten alliance pick equipped the sickle is replaced with the mining pick’s model (which btw looks awesome lol).

Edit: Also if you don’t have the molten alliance pick others see the sickle as invisible.

That not just the consortium sickle though, that’s a bug that happens with all harvesting tools. I’ve seen people pull out their harvesting sickle and mine with it before. It’s pretty funny actually :P

LoneWolfie.1852:

Just did this scourgejaw heart mission. You

A) Whip prisoners to make them work harder.
B) Any rebels have to be forced back to work by hitting them.
C) The guards tell them to work or die. (The guards never lose)

Great mission, Anet. Great.

It’s a prison. It isn’t supposed to be enjoyable, and maybe (not really, actually a statistical fact from US social scientists observations of foreign prisons) if more real prisons were like it criminals might actually make the necessary changes to their lives to not ever go back.

Rhysati.4932:

Rizzy.8293:

Substance E.4852:

I really hope not. The last thing we need is them wasting time trying to make every single armor set make sense on something that is 50% horse.

Every single set of pants, boots, and more than a few chest pieces would need complete redesigns.

Oh yes and modding the boots to fit charr feet is so easy.

Who are you anyways
Why do you think you’re so important that you get to decide what the devs work on based on what you feel is more important.

Compared to redoing all armors from the ground up, yes, modifying them to fit on the feet of a race is VERY easy.

Centaurs will not happen because they are not humanoid. Period. There would be far too much extra work involved in redoing all armors.

Actually the current count between all the races and genders requires that Anet refashion any armor piece at least seven times and animations for any armor piece at least ten times to account for all possible races and genders. Two more won’t make much of a difference, and it could even be one more if males and females share armor like with the asura.

Good necro by the way, but it’s going to be moved to suggestions any moment now…

Isaac.6041:

It looks like ArenaNet mixed up the code for crude salvage kits with master salvage kits.

I remember a thread a while ago that showed that crude salvage kits return ecto at a rate of 50%.

So now master salvage kits are overpriced pieces of junk. Buy crude salvage kits all the time!

Not just master kits, I farm and use BL Kits even for rares and they’re giving just as low of a return rate lately.

TinkTinkPOOF.9201:

Please mail me all your BLCs, I mean if you really are deleting them, I will take them. XD, never know, might be useful someday.

Yes, the day Anet stops being greedy with RNG.

Most likely the day immediately succeeding the day they have no customers left.