Guild Wars 2

There are two extremes in the approach to game play in dungeons. Conform to a specific standard for the good of the group or play the way you want to play, because after all, it’s only a game. Obviously, problems exist with both approaches.

For the former, I have yet to see a true consensus on any forum for a standard regardless of build or weapon choice despite what some elitists contend. For the latter, one can reasonably be expected to bear some responsibility for the value of another player’s time.

Before I get to the build I’m asking about, I run D/D in open world solo because I like the visceral feel of the play style. In dungeons I have tried both staff and S/D. I have no trouble positioning my lava font, but I seem to miss at times with dragon’s tooth and phoenix, so I tend to go with staff, and of course attunement switching when appropriate is a given.

As for staff, I have read everything from it being OP to the choice of mediocre dungeon players only. I recently ran a dungeon where I seldom died and generated lots of big red flashing numbers, which unless you’re true support, is anyone best contribution to the run. I think, anyway.

At the end, someone asked about my build. Thinking he was impressed with my play (especially for a full zerker glass cannon in a dungeon) I replied, “30/30/10/0/0.” The insults and lols came fast and furious.

I asked them if they expected me to heal. Someone said no, but I was gimping my dps and then left without another word.

Can someone explain that to me without flames and insults? For everyone claiming X is the best dps build I can find someone else claiming it’s Y. Is the truth out there?

P.S. I’m aware of the lightning hammer build.

For the last four days I’ve randomly lost access to the trading post while friends on the same server have no problem. The game plays normally during this, but in order to access the post I have to log out, which produces a black screen, then accessing the task manager tells me gw2 is not responding.

I’m beginning to wonder if the awesomium process is corrupted? Will the game recreate a new version of the file if I delete it? Any other ideas?

Instead of making another thread, my loading times are worse than ever on a fast system. Are there steps to performing maintenance on my gw2 install without disrupting my settings?

I’m happy to have an embarrassment of riches in slots 7, 8, 9, but now that I’m approaching level 50 and have some punch I think it’s time to focus.

The goal is a 10/25 or 30/30/?/? build primarily for PvE with the focus on dps. My inclination is to go full meditation skills, e.g. smite condition, contemplation of purity, judge’s intervention, but stand your ground seemed so indispensable as I leveled.

It’s great fun to fly in with judge’s intervention, hit zealot’s defense, and then lay more burn on with my torch, but I keep thinking one of my meditations needs to go in favor of stand your ground at higher levels.

I’m psychologically married to smite condition, but contemplation of purity’s longish cooldown makes me wonder if that should go in favor of stand your ground? Does my plan to go nearly full zerker gear make contemplation of purity a better option? Thoughts?

So in other words, null field is a better option for staying alive?

I’ve been experimenting (or tying to anyway) with arcane thievery during my now frequent encounters with vet karkas in the hopes of stealing their retaliation. I’m in range, but not once have I been able to accomplish this. In fact, the skill doesn’t seem to work consistently at all.

At first I wondered if you had to have three conditions on you to steal anything, but that’s not the case apparently. Are the stolen boons random? Even if a mob has exactly three boons, I’ve never gotten retaliation.

Can anyone shed some light on this and the skill in general? Is it broken and I’m the only mesmer who didn’t know that?

I suspect at higher levels pie pulls away from ‘health every second’ foods, but for someone under 30 which is better, banana cream pie or strawberry pie?

As I sift through dps guardian builds I keep wondering why zeal is so under utilized, almost to the point of being ignored. I understand why this might be for the classic support guardian builds, but is power a poor stat for guardians or is the entire trait line itself flawed in some way?

I have little interest in PvP, and I realize you can throw any build against the wall, close your eyes, and kill in PvE, but I like to see really big numbers flash across the screen.

The karka nests are definitely broken on Sanctum of Rall’s main server. They cannot be damaged by the flamethrowers. Far from people purposely not killing them to farm, people are running around with flamethrowers to no avail.

It has been this way for over twenty-four hours now and the number of players in the area has diminished substantially. I haven’t been in an overflow in some time so I’m unable to comment on that.

Brand new guardian wanting to plan my build ahead, but I can’t find an answer to what I’d think would be a common question. Does the heal from monk’s focus when using a meditation trigger the effect of healer’s retribution? Thanks.

Mr. Lesh has in no way, shape or form explained things in detail. He refuses to answer the most fundamental question regarding this issue. Why is a toggle to completely disable right-click targeting for those who choose to do so not a viable option? We’ve heard nothing but double-speak from Mr. Lesh. Adjusting sensitivity until it “feels right” is more double-speak, likely a delay tactic, and an incomplete solution to the problem.

I, and twelve friends in game, have vowed never to buy a single gem again until an option toggle to completely disable right-click targeting is implemented, assuming we all continue to play. Of course, NCsoft/Anet already has our money, so I suspect whether or not we play is of little concern to them. Regardless, this inexplicable resistance to resolving a problem that should have disappeared over the beta weekends will ultimately erode the player base.

I have discouraged several people from purchasing the game and will continue to do so until an option toggle to completely disable right-click targeting is implemented.

I purchased the game for three family members. Two have stopped playing over this issue. My time is my own, but I am embarrassed that two members of my family now feel they wasted their time playing a game with such a glaring design flaw.

This glaring design flaw can only be corrected by implementing an option toggle to completely disable right-click targeting.

If this is true, and Mr. Lesh wasn’t being sarcastic, then the “something deeper” I alluded to in my previous post is coming to light.

If Anet, and Mr. Lesh, honestly thinks they can build a pay model out of sPvP by alienating a substantial portion of their overall player base, then I made a serious mistake by committing my time to this game, as well as purchasing $200 worth of gems. I suspect many have purchased far more and are equally disgusted. What other reason could there be for this bizarre ignorance of a fundamental game-play issue now revealed to be a focus on the trivial matter of spectating?

I began playing computer games in 1981 with Wizardry I. My first MMO was Ultima Online. I’ve dealt with bugs, design hardships, and bad business models through it all. Why? Because I love to play a good game.

The devs of WoW frequently gave real answers to real questions and that went a long way towards the sustainability of the subscription model. Real answers to real questions are apparently not something the devs of Anet embrace. Are you building a world that will last years or are you grabbing a pot of gold?

This is a frank insult Mr. Lesh. Shame on you. Shame on Arena Net. I am now embarrassed to have recommended, and purchased, this game for my friends and family.

If this is true, and Mr. Lesh wasn’t being sarcastic, then the “something deeper” I alluded to in my previous post is coming to light.

If Anet, and Mr. Lesh, honestly thinks they can build a pay model out of sPvP by alienating a substantial portion of their overall player base, then I made a serious mistake by committing my time to this game, as well as purchasing $200 worth of gems. I suspect many have purchased far more and are equally disgusted. What other reason could there be for this bizarre ignorance of a fundamental game-play issue now revealed to be a focus on the trivial matter of spectating?

I began playing computer games in 1981 with Wizardry I. My first MMO was Ultima Online. I’ve dealt with bugs, design hardships, and bad business models through it all. Why? Because I love to play a good game.

The devs of WoW frequently gave real answers to real questions and that went a long way towards the sustainability of the subscription model. Real answers to real questions is apparently not something the devs of Anet embrace. Are you building a world that will last years or are you grabbing a pot of gold?

This is a frank insult Mr. Lesh. Shame on you. Shame on Arena Net. I am now embarrassed to have recommended, and purchased, this game for my friends and family.

The issue is not “accidental right-clicks.” The right-clicks are done on purpose to rotate the camera, something which is instinctive to virtually every gamer I’ve ever known. The ‘accident’ occurs when one’s target is deselected as the pointer passes over any clickable thing on the screen during the act of rotating the camera.

I appreciate Mr. Lesh coming on and offering a slim ray of hope, but come on, that was coded political speech. There’s something deeper going on here.

Dear Anet Developers,

Please read this Reddit discussion:

http://www.reddit.com/r/Guildwars2/comments/1dx1p0/now_that_gw2_is_nearing_9_months_now_long_have/

As I mention in my own post there regarding the right-click target problem, that the developers consider something so fundamental to basic game play to be a low priority is as disturbing as the problem itself.

Thank you.

The response from Anet reprinted below was from November 2012. It is now nearly April 2013 and events have come and gone. It was nice to see a response at all, but it would be nice to know what it is about right-click targeting that is causing the devs such agony in consideration. I understand that coding anything is a substantial undertaking, but how would a toggle box to disable right-click targeting adversely impact the game itself? I’ve played MMOs since Ultima Online. Turning the camera with the right mouse button is instinctive for a substantial portion of the player population. Constantly losing my target is getting very old.

…

Our development team reviews play input on a regular basis. They are aware of this suggestion, but have not yet reached a decision on what changes, if any, they will make to targeting.

There is a lot going on right now with the upcoming event, but after that, the team will take a look at a lot of different game elements, and may make some changes in the future.

Sorry I don’t have more specific information, but you can be sure this is not being ignored or rejected without due consideration.

Thanks for understanding.
Gaile Gray
Support Liaison
ArenaNet

Okay, okay, now I feel a little bit stupid. I neglected to check the “remember this network” box. Still, I hadn’t received a re-authorization request since last September, so maybe it does pop up regardless from time to time.

I wanted to add that I’m able to play the game each time I re-authorize the log-in. I was able to play on day one ever since the BWEs. My account seems to be in order. The game has simply stopped recognizing my IP address as the same one I attempted to log-in from many times in a row now.

Update. The game just asked for another authorization from an unrecognized computer, as did the Web site for this forum. I noted my IP address from my earlier attempt and it has not changed. Something is going on.

A few minutes ago I logged in from the same computer I’ve played the game from since the beta weekends. The prompt appeared for me to authorized the log-in from an unknown computer. I called my ISP (Cox) and asked if my IP address changes from time to time. They said it changes every 24 hours.

If that’s the case, why doesn’t logging into the game prompt me for a new log-in authorization every day? Does the game now periodically request a new authorization regardless of my IP address? This has not happened since the Sept. 24 “security tweaking” mentioned in a post found here.

https://forum-en.gw2archive.eu/forum/info/news/E-Mail-Authentication-Tweaks-to-Increase-Security/first#post241425

Has the sensitivity been tweaked again? Was it the patch? I’m basically looking for peace of mind here. Thanks.

All because of PvP. Unless something changes in the devs mindset, GW2 will soon play like WoW. A new (not so new really) bunker in town results in cries of imbalance from some thief who failed to one-shot an ele. A truly revolutionary game would be one that finally separates PvE and PvP combat skills once and for all.

I realize elementalists don’t have a true weapon swap, but we obviously can switch weapons out of combat. In the past when I’ve done so the stacks of one sigil, say corruption on my dagger, would disappear from the UI and the bloodlust on my staff would appear and begin to stack. Since the 1/28 patch the first sigil and number of stacks remains visible in the UI requiring a re-log to get the next weapon to display the next sigil and begin stacking. In fact, prior to 1/28 if I switched back to the former weapon, assuming I haven’t been downed, the old stacks of the correct sigil would reappear. At first I thought, hoped, this was a graphic bug in the UI, but now that we can see both condition damage and attack in the hero screen I noted that whatever sigil is actually displayed in the UI is the one for which the stats change. Submitting tickets and posting to the official bug forum hasn’t gotten me any closer to the truth.

I realize elementalists don’t have weapon swap per se, however, prior to the 1/28 patch if I swapped weapons out of combat the associated sigil would swap and display the new sigil on a kill. For instance, as d/d my sigil of corruption would stack appropriately, but if I switched to staff which has a sigil of bloodlust the corruption stacks would still remain in the UI with the opposite being true as well. It now takes a re-log to get the proper sigil to appear in the UI. In fact, in the past I used to be able to swap weapons out of combat and the stacks of the prior sigil would remain if I swapped back. Now it’s either re-log or stick with the sigil last used. This may be a graphic bug in the UI, but it would be nice to see the stacks of the correct sigil.

Not sure if this is the same problem, but I’ll post here for now instead of starting a new thread. Tuesday I was fine, but on Wednesday I installed the new AMD Radeon HD beta drivers (ASUS 7870 2gb) and thought that might be the problem. Yes, yes, I know. Anyway, I uninstalled them and rolled back to last full release which had always been perfectly stable yet my problem persists. In addition to random disconnects, I find myself freezing when surrounded by a number of mobs, then I wake up dead. The action bar is still flashing, so it seems like the mother of all input lag. Dragon fights are almost unplayable now. Is this something the devs are aware of? I’m positive there are no remnants of the beta drivers on my system.

Third time was a charm for me it turns out. The only thing I did differently was to kill the mobs at the very beginning first. Before I had left the guards to fight them and moved towards the well. Going back to kill them after fighting the eye didn’t work.

I am now in the same situation. In my first attempt I actually defeated the eye. He had no health and my story logged was marked complete, but instead of a cut-scene, he simply disappeared. I ran back and forth the length of the area, killed the mobs the rear defenders were fighting, but nothing.

I logged out and had to do the whole thing over again. This time, I got the same silent cut-scene, then he was simply invulnerable, but of course the eye could damage me. I tried letting him kill me, but there he was again, totally invulnerable.

Traehearn was alive the entire time, so that’s not it.

And by “skins” I mean appearance of any weapon, not simply what is obtainable.

You haven’t explored the map very well then.

Why do weapons one picks up off the ground have better skins than exotic crafted gear or even token dungeon skins?

Yes, I realize berserker gear is power/crit, not condition. I hoped the jewelry would add enough conditon to matter, just to clarify.

On-line research, forum searches, and personal conversations have left me without clear answers. I’m 30 fire, 20 air, and 20 earth, which I suspect is a common cookie-cutter build. I’m primarily PvE, and yes, some would argue you could put a wet napkin on your head and do fine in PvE, but I want to see numbers.

I’ve read that a fire mage should seek condition damage first with duration being second, although +duration seems elusive. I crafted a full set of exotic berserker’s gear and had someone make a full set of chrysocola orichalcum … of the carrion jewelry thinking the added vitality would matter. I’m not so sure now.

I feel less powerful somehow regardless of the zone I’m in. Is that a symptom of being level 80 with no resolution in sight or would I do well to replace that particular set of jewelry?

Someone felt the need to edit my post title. Apparently, “Losing My Grip,” which was the title of my original post, was a bit too dramatic for someone. Political correctness will be the neutering of us all.

http://i.imgur.com/OJYsj.jpg

Beautiful images and discoveries like this have kept me interested, but I’m losing my grip. Jon Peters vastly understated the impact of diminishing returns on normal players.

Aside from seeing more bots than ever, which might be a result of the handwriting on the wall as ants rise above water, it seems as if drop rates across the board on all high level mats have essentially been put on hold.

Other than boss/dragon fights and node farming, there’s little point in going to the 70-80 zones once completed. The economy of fine mats is effectively the purview of gold farmers under the current situation.

“Oh, but there’s so much more to the game!” Yes, and I’m trying to enjoy it, but diminishing returns will eventually become an aspect of the player base if something doesn’t change soon.

They have my initial sixty dollars. They have another fifty for gems. That’s enough. Yes, it’s barely over a month. Yes, the game’s initial popularity attracted substantial unwelcome attention from the usual scum, but buying my way forward is simply putting game gold in the hands of the bots and gold sellers. The current policy does not prevent anything, it encourages the behavior on both ends.

I realize other posts have made similar points, but voices are heard only when they become loud.

Tarkkat skill point displays event text, but no NPC. Tzanopl, nothing at all.

Mount Maelstrom: Tarkkat, Tzanopl. Event text appears for Tarkkat, but no NPC. Absolutely nothing for Tzanopl.

The event text appears, but the NPC does not show up. I noted others on my server who said they were able to complete the challenge in the past, but something has changed.

Yes, I realize much has been posted about this particular bug, but I read it had been fixed. Not on my server. Then I read the NPC appeared on an EU server. I transferred there, but no. Is there a server where this bug has been definitely resolved? Are we expected to server hop in order to work through sticking points?

As far as I can tell the original bug still exists even after the patch. Trehearn inevitably dies at some point. After reviving him the researchers simply stand there. I can get Trehearn to follow me to the exit, but it’s blocked and nothing else happens. Logging out resets the whole thing, so now I have a repair bill and the prospect of going through that again.