Guild Wars 2

Obtena.7952:

Inculpatus cedo.9234:

Obtena.7952:

AliamRationem.5172:

Obtena.7952:

You don’t seem to understand the difference between implementing something different and reverting back to something that was something already done.

Zoltar MacRoth.7146:

According to you. To others, iterative developmental improvements in response to changing needs are the sign of a healthy application.

Except we aren’t talking about iterative developmental improvement here because going back to giving shards without unlocking masteries is simply going back to the way it was prior to the change. There is no improvement here; they spent resources to get exactly zero …

so yes, there is no strawman; the idea they go back to what they did before is rather ridiculous and DOES have a very strong business element to it because business don’t take lightly to wasting their resources. Furthermore, defending that change as an iterative developmental improvement is disingenuous.

I may have missed where anyone asked that we go back to the way it was prior to the change. Why would anyone ask for no reward from post-cap experience after a reward system was put in place?

There WAS rewards for capping experience … spirit shards. That’s what the whole thread is talking about. Am I in the twilight zone here or something?

Once Spirit Shards were created, there has never been a way to acquire them through XP bars. When the old Skill Points were removed (and split into Spirit Shards and Hero Points), we received nothing for completely filling out XP bars. We received no rewards whatsoever for 6-8 months, until HoT launched and Masteries became a thing.

I’m glad someone recalled this history because it illustrates the fundamental problem with this thread. For a period we didn’t get anything for XP bars … yet where was everyone then? I can tell you, they didn’t care because no one really expects to get something for XP once they level.

So what’s the problem here? The current situation is an improvement over getting nothing like it was for the 6 months … Oh, let me tell you in case we have forgotten … the problem isn’t that people don’t get a reward for XP (otherwise it would have been chaos around here for those 6 months). The problem is that people wanting additional spirit shards but without having to do the necessary activities to get it.

The point of the thread is (again) “Non Raiders blocked from XP bar spirit shards”. I.e.: we can’t get the same reward as everyone else unless we participate in raiding. And we’ve already been told how we can get Spirit Shards in other places besides the XP bar, but perhaps we’d like the Spirit Shards from those places AND the XP bar. Anet themselves have called raids “the ultimate challenge”. Not every player is interested in this mode of play and not every non-raider will be able to find groups for it if they want to try. Mastery completion should not be locked behind raiding.

Donari.5237:

I’m all for more customization but I’ll guess we’ll either never get “female human sexy stretch” as it was removed For Reasons or it’ll be re-added for free because if they make people pay to get back the idles they had for years before the Belinda scene the flaming will rival the legendary take-back thread.

Well, the Reasons had to do with NPCs, so I wouldn’t say we couldn’t get it back if it was only for PCs. But you have a point on that second part.

Interesting idea – “female human sexy stretch” would probably be a big seller lol. I wonder how difficult making and implementing these packs would be.

WhiteKnight.6759:

Djinn.9245:

AliamRationem.5172:

Djinn.9245:

AliamRationem.5172:

The canopy in VB is always accessible to anyone with access to updrafts (bounce mushrooms are also recommended). You just haven’t learned your way around yet. The HP challenges themselves are far more difficult in AB. Most of them are champions where VB has only 3 champions out of 11 total HPs. AB HP champions are also a little tougher on average.

Explore a little more in maps like VB and especially TD before you make your final judgment. You might be surprised.

I have done all of the maps in HoTand I still think VB is a more difficult map to traverse than AB in general.

That’s what we call subjective information, or “opinion” if you prefer. It’s subject to interpretation and preference. As opposed to objective information, like the number of HPs that spawn champions in each zone.

You may personally have more difficulty navigating VB, but as I said that would be because you aren’t as familiar with the layout as you are with AB. If completing HPs is your goal, however, VB is objectively the easier zone (provided you don’t have an HP train, which would obviate the need for this discussion). A player with the requisite skills can far more easily complete more of the HP challenges in VB than they can in AB.

I had 100% map completion on TD long before I knew my way around it. I’m not surprised maps like TD and to a lesser extent VB still give players trouble after they complete them. I think that was partially the point: to present a true exploration challenge. And they succeeded beautifully in that!

Yep, the OP was opinion and I am expressing that I have the same opinion. The OP didn’t talk about Champions being an issue – that seems to be YOUR opinion. Apparently mobs are what you see as difficult while the OP is talking about navigation via Masteries and gliding skill. I can see why you disagree with the OP but that is a difference between your opinion and his.

I’m going to guess the difference is unlimited gliding. VB becomes a pleasure when unlimited gliding is unlocked. Before that it’s a puzzle.

If you like puzzles, you might like it. If you don’t like puzzles it’ll be painful.

I actually have unlimited gliding now. It helps but doesn’t make VB easier than AB. And since VB is the “intro” map, I still agree with the OP.

AliamRationem.5172:

Djinn.9245:

AliamRationem.5172:

The canopy in VB is always accessible to anyone with access to updrafts (bounce mushrooms are also recommended). You just haven’t learned your way around yet. The HP challenges themselves are far more difficult in AB. Most of them are champions where VB has only 3 champions out of 11 total HPs. AB HP champions are also a little tougher on average.

Explore a little more in maps like VB and especially TD before you make your final judgment. You might be surprised.

I have done all of the maps in HoTand I still think VB is a more difficult map to traverse than AB in general.

That’s what we call subjective information, or “opinion” if you prefer. It’s subject to interpretation and preference. As opposed to objective information, like the number of HPs that spawn champions in each zone.

You may personally have more difficulty navigating VB, but as I said that would be because you aren’t as familiar with the layout as you are with AB. If completing HPs is your goal, however, VB is objectively the easier zone (provided you don’t have an HP train, which would obviate the need for this discussion). A player with the requisite skills can far more easily complete more of the HP challenges in VB than they can in AB.

I had 100% map completion on TD long before I knew my way around it. I’m not surprised maps like TD and to a lesser extent VB still give players trouble after they complete them. I think that was partially the point: to present a true exploration challenge. And they succeeded beautifully in that!

Yep, the OP was opinion and I am expressing that I have the same opinion. The OP didn’t talk about Champions being an issue – that seems to be YOUR opinion. Apparently mobs are what you see as difficult while the OP is talking about navigation via Masteries and gliding skill. I can see why you disagree with the OP but that is a difference between your opinion and his.

Tyger.1637:

Obtena.7952:

why should there be a reward for people with XP who haven’t completed their masteries?

Because it slowly unravels the tapestry they’re trying to create.

When Masteries launched I had enough to unlock most of the Tyrian ones with XP-gain the only block to finishing them until, ah heck, I ran out of points so my Tyrian Masteries have been halted since that time. Now the side-effect from that is that firstly; I use my 80s less in Tyrian territory because there’s still my Magus Masteries that need levelling and secondly; xp boosters of all kinds (chests, scrolls, food) have less value in Tyria.

Recently, thanks to the release of Bloodstone Fen, Magus XP has been flooding in and, oopsie, I’ve run out of points again. Until they’re completed; all kinds of XP boost are useless which means focusing on non-80 characters, which I have plenty of, and frustrating myself trying and failing to do adventures which are either based off activities I already despise like Jumping Puzzles or Races OR hanging around HoT maps waiting for the next rotation of Dragon’s Stand or Tangled Depths to come around and hope there’s enough people to do it.

Now I used to be a City player so I’m used to finding value elsewhere; I was a shameless AE powerleveller that could generate tickets at full bore every run-through when my maxed character who wouldn’t earn xp took equals and sidekicks in with them. But my farmer could still earn influence and prestige even if they didn’t earn XP.

So, for example, I no longer need to go to Bloodstone Fen (except it’s the main source of unbound magic and blood rubies), I no longer need to go anywhere with my 80s (except to try and unlock specific mastery points that I haven’t got yet) and less reason to hit 80 because progress is halted (again, back to finding alternative values) and any potential progress is ‘lost’. The lifeblood of most, if not all, MMOs is the grind and anything that shines a light on it not being there is bad for longevity.

I mean tonight I just decided not to go Bloodstone Fen frustrated by the lack of mastery points and the need to do very specific events to unlock them; I just closed down the client and decided to do other stuff instead. I mean I’ll do it later when I’m feeling less perturbed (mainly by the assumptions in mapchat that everyone knows everything about everything about HoT).

Excellent points and I completely agree. The same has happened in my case. I’ve been leveling up my non-80 alts because at least they can get something for their XP.

I feel very sad for the people who have no regard for the Original Poster and sought to bring down this thread.

I also thank the developers for making GW2. The original game was insanely wonderful and the stories continue to appeal to my emotions. The environment art is often wonderful and I also appreciate the developers who like to inject some humor into the world. And I love the music.

I love the holidays and wish we could see some of them again.

ArchonWing.9480:

It’s a result of the mastery system.

Basically you progress to make the game easier. When you come in with no masteries, VB is a lot harder, but if you go back to VB with maxed masteries, say, do map compleition on an alt, it becomes a literal cakewalk.

Also you don’t need poison mastery at all. Just look at where you land. And I find the AB hero points harder.

Even with Masteries I still find VB more difficult to navigate than AB.

Rhaegar.1203:

The first Anomaly we encountered was a coalescence of energies present at the Thaumanova Reactor fractal. Fractals are islands of reality pulled from The Mists, a kind of proto-matter that constitutes all. Including magic.

That’s where I think it comes from.

The fact that ANY being happens to be found in a Fractal doesn’t mean it’s a “mist being”.

Jon Olson.8439:

There is already a highlight around your own tile in the squad panel.

There is? I always have to mouseover people until I find myself.

Vacheron.9870:

If you want to go down that route, one could say that in an alternate universe, all cars come with 3 windows. You (I’m assuming you are against having the invisible shoes, apologies if I’m wrong), on the other hand, who owns a bicycle, points out that it’s unfair since cars and bikes are all methods of transportation, why should it be that cars are 100x more expensive? The answer to that question: It is designed that way. It’s not like somewhere out there there’s someone who has an “all toggle-able character.”

Edit: To address my example from earlier, I’m simply implying that people who are complaining here are mostly players who WANT it, but CAN’T buy it. You can go out of your way to say im wrong, but deep down, you know the answer to it as well.

The issue is that the game was created with a mechanic to “not show” pieces of gear. Why did Anet make “not showing” foot gear so difficult? Is there something special about showing your feet that it should be so rare instead of just a toggle like the other gear? In a game that is so heavily weighted toward Fashion, it seems strange to limit players’ ability to design their characters look for no good reason that I can see.

Rhaegar.1203:

Djinn.9245:

The only part of this new phenomenon that I don’t agree with is that all the characters on my account are seeing the “ghosts”. That just doesn’t make sense from a RPG perspective. It is actually very immersion-breaking for those characters who have not yet gone to Bloodstone Fen.

They may be “Mist-beings”, and the Mists reach out to all places, at all times. So, even if you’re starting out, these apparitions could appear retroactively.

Not sure why they would be “Mist beings”. They look exactly like the Legendary Ley-line Anomaly but person-sized. Ley-lines channel magic. AFAIK, all these ley-line anomolies are because there is too much magic loose in the world. There is too much magic because normally the Elder Dragons absorb magic and we killed 2 of them, and because the White Mantle broke the bloodstone and released its magic.

But we didn’t start seeing these new beings until one of our characters started collecting Unbound Magic in Bloodstone Fen which is why I don’t understand why all my characters are seeing them.

Not sure where the Mists come into this.

AliamRationem.5172:

The canopy in VB is always accessible to anyone with access to updrafts (bounce mushrooms are also recommended). You just haven’t learned your way around yet. The HP challenges themselves are far more difficult in AB. Most of them are champions where VB has only 3 champions out of 11 total HPs. AB HP champions are also a little tougher on average.

Explore a little more in maps like VB and especially TD before you make your final judgment. You might be surprised.

I have done all of the maps in HoTand I still think VB is a more difficult map to traverse than AB in general.

The only part of this new phenomenon that I don’t agree with is that all the characters on my account are seeing the “ghosts”. That just doesn’t make sense from a RPG perspective. It is actually very immersion-breaking for those characters who have not yet gone to Bloodstone Fen.

What it comes down to is that players used to be able to progress their characters by doing any Game Mode they pleased. Now Anet has narrowed the game so that you can only progress your character by gaining Mastery Points which you MUST gain from multiple Game Modes whether you prefer to do so or not. Very sad state of the game.

Atros.9607:

Okay so since the Bloodstone Fen patch, I’ve been followed around by what looks like a smaller version of the VG or unbound guardian.

So I ask, who else has seen this and are our characters slowly losing it? What theories are out there about this man/thing/…light being?

Cleaner link: https://i.gyazo.com/ef7bb05b50a68c4da17bdbdf602ee748.mp4

Why yes, I think it’s pretty clear that our characters should be losing it. If you look at everything logically, collecting unbound magic and bloodstone is exactly what all the “bad guys” have been doing – and going crazy… And that is exactly what we’re doing.

What I just really don’t understand is why it should be SUPER-RARE for a character to be allowed to look barefoot when it is so easy for a character to appear to not have a helmet, shoulders, or gloves. Are feet somehow special so that it shouldn’t be just as easy for a character to appear to not be wearing footgear?

For me, as I get to the higher levels of the Personal Story some fights become too difficult to be enjoyable. This this can be true of the Living Story as well. I have already lagged behind in the stories so that the new content arrives before I finish the previous.

Moyayuki.3619:

…That Auric Basin, the second map you go through in HoT, is easier to complete (all PoIs, WPs, HPs, and Vistas) than Verdant Brink, the first map. I was able to get into an HP train in AB so that really helped, but the rest of the map items weren’t too difficult for me to complete, just took some time and maneuvering. VB, however, I am still struggling with to this day. The upper canopy really makes it difficult to fully complete, as it isn’t necessarily accessible all the time. And there are way more updraft gliding bits that are essential to reaching everything. Not to mention the places flooded with poison (I still need to earn Itzel Poison Mastery).

Does anyone else find this ironic? Assuming that you also find AB easier than VB. Otherwise, what do you think of VB vs AB, if your experience is different?

I completely agree with you and am in the exact same situation. The one MP in the poison area – I followed the Dulfy video to try to get it but keep dying anyway. And when I finally was able to get to the triple Mordrem boss, no one seems to do it anymore.

I was just running around Sparkfly Fen and heard a strange noise – I turned around and there was one of the ghosts. I don’t know if they always made a noise when they appeared.

Sinmir.6504:

I didn’t see why Rytlock hated it so much. A play on Destiny’s Edge but still, I thought it was a cool name.

No, I don’t think it was better.

Illconceived Was Na.9781:

In effect, some people cheat and it has no impact on me. None. Except that I think it’s horribly unfair that those privileged to get advance access to patch details are taking advantage of it in the live game.

The only impact it has on the rest of the players is that they don’t get the same chance to make the same money. And since everyone else doesn’t have advance notice, they wouldn’t get that chance anyway, so it doesn’t affect everyone as you say. But you are also correct that it IS unfair to allow certain people to have an in-game advantage like that. It looks really bad to allow things like that to continue.

Anet should not “partner” with people who took advantage again.

Rogue Sol.1457:

It’s essentially the $200 snub. I’m a barefooter myself, often hiking trails unshod, traveling where I would, unless prompted by a business I need the service of, without them. Ironically being a gamer too I have characters whose designs I sometimes redid because it would look perfectly unshod as well. I’ve on and off tracked Treasure Mushrooms, and find it insulting that it’s a virtual pair of $200 Adidas (which make this even more mean spirited because you’re LOSING your foot gear), often costing more than a legendary weapon. I’m very tempted to post a new tread because I’m very certain this one’s ignored. This is sad because we know Matthew Medina, who does some stellar design work, is also a barefooter.

It’s pretty clear that there is zero reason not to simply have a toggle off for foot gear. Having “invisible shoes” is silly.

Edit: correction

Obtena.7952:

It’s a great snip because it’s completely ridiculous to think any group of game devs could develop any game so that every game aspect is entertaining to every player.

GW2 pre-HoT WAS entertaining to pretty much every MMO player type. Pre-HoT I could gain XP from WvW, PvP, Crafting, Dungeons, Fractals, Open-world PvE, JP, etc. People leveled entire characters just by crafting!

Now my XP gain has stopped because I currently have no more MP to get without doing something I don’t find entertaining.

Obtena.7952:

people just want shards with XP and don’t like that they have to unlock with raids to do that now. Don’t pretend this discussion is about ANYTHING other than this.

Congratulations on understanding what the thread title says: “blocked-from-XP-bar-spirit-shards”.

Obtena.7952:

It’s simply obtuse to insist Anet is forcing players to do something they don’t even need to do to get a specific reward.

Honestly, the new way is better and actually pretty transparent … you get shards about as often as you did when they were level 80 XP bar rewards. They are also rewards for other parts of the game too now. This ‘locked out from shards’ idea is just nonsense … everyone still gets shards, even if you don’t have raid unlock.

Except that people who have capped Masteries get BOTH… O.o

Obtena.7952:

Djinn.9245:

What this all comes down to is Anet attempting to force players into game modes whether the players want it or not. I think its sad, really.

No, they aren’t. You don’t need to raid to obtain spirit shards. Get your facts straight.

It is a Fact that Experience is the main foundation of character progression. And it is a Fact that I can’t get any more Experience OR the benefit from Experience until I cap Masteries which are locked, in part, behind raiding.

What this all comes down to is Anet attempting to force players into game modes whether the players want it or not. I think its sad, really. Why does Anet want to do this? Are there not enough people who want to play these modes?

Instead of using a stick of trying to FORCE people by gating regular character progression, why not use a carrot? Make a special achievement or title for people who kill their first Raid boss. Same for PvP, WvW, Adventures, JP, etc. Stop trying to force people to play the way you want.

Ayrilana.1396:

Djinn.9245:

Illconceived Was Na.9781:

Ayrilana.1396:

If you remove the remaining 12 MP you can get from raids, that leaves 19 MP available. If you remove the 15 MP that you get from obtaining gold in the adventures, that’s now 4 MP available.

And even I can get silver in adventures (and my loathing for — and lack of skill in — adventures is well documented in these forums).

I think its great that you can get Silver in Adventures, but my question is why you would do an activity that you loath in a game that is supposed to be for entertainment?

Many people say that “there are plenty of MP”. Not for me. I play a game ONLY for entertainment, not to work. I have a job and chores around the house for working. Apparently Anet believes that you should be required to do what THEY want you to do while being entertained or be locked out of PvE character progression.

There are players that loathe grinding. Should legendary weapons be made to not be a grind since the game is for entertainment?

Not at all – since I don’t like grinding I don’t expect to get a Legendary weapon. I don’t have anything that requires grinding – no special backpack, etc. Maybe after a couple more years since I like to collect crafting materials and they now have HoT Legendaries. But maybe I’ll never get one.

However, Legendaries are not part of the PvE progression of your character like Masteries are.

Illconceived Was Na.9781:

Ayrilana.1396:

If you remove the remaining 12 MP you can get from raids, that leaves 19 MP available. If you remove the 15 MP that you get from obtaining gold in the adventures, that’s now 4 MP available.

And even I can get silver in adventures (and my loathing for — and lack of skill in — adventures is well documented in these forums).

I think its great that you can get Silver in Adventures, but my question is why you would do an activity that you loath in a game that is supposed to be for entertainment?

Many people say that “there are plenty of MP”. Not for me. I play a game ONLY for entertainment, not to work. I have a job and chores around the house for working. Apparently Anet believes that you should be required to do what THEY want you to do while being entertained or be locked out of PvE character progression.

Illconceived Was Na.9781:

Djinn.9245:

Illconceived Was Na.9781:

I like the screenshot from dulfy better than I liked the Storm Bow in GW1. Similarly, the Fiery Dragon Sword in GW1 was ok, while the FDS in GW2 is one of my favorite skins.

And sure, reboots fail, while others succeed (some Spiderman/Batman movies were great, some were meh). A good reboot is awesome because it gets us right in our nostalgia and is worth it on its own merits. A bad reboot is, of course, far worse than just something bad, for the same reasons.

Dylan’s “All Along the Watchtower” is good; Hendrix’ is better. (Well, to me, anyhow.)

tl;dr it’s good to evaluate things on their own merits before dismissing something as being unworthy as a reboot, sequel, successor, clone, etc.

Good points about reboots. Although I think many or even most times people reboot something that is already successful because they want to ride on that success. In those cases, the original is successful because it is already good. So when people reboot it, it is almost never as good as the successful version. In the case of classic songs, I’m always like “Why are you covering that song? You’re never going to be Michael Jackson” or whoever.

I don’t understand what that has to do with the Storm Bow or, more specifically, this Storm Bow. ANet is taking their own skin and updating it for their own sequel. To argue that they shouldn’t is like saying they shouldn’t have made Guild Wars 2, because it’s riding off the success of Guild Wars 1 (while true, it has little to do with whether GW2 can be a good/great game on its own merits).

This isn’t Clash of the Titans (2010). This is closer to Paul McCartney deciding to sing a Beatles tune.

Just saying that sometimes making a new version of a really good thing isn’t the best idea. Make a completely new thing instead.

JaddynnStarr.5201:

Dragon’s watch is correctly possessive… we are guarding glints egg, which is in fact….. wait for it…. A Dragon! the name fits perfectly for what we are doing. Yes we are going after other dragons, but our primary responsibility is to infact guard that egg.

I disagree – that is not the primary purpose of the guild.

Astralporing.1957:

Obtena.7952:

The confusing part is where you relate your experience to the casual player. I simply don’t think your experience is indicative of the kind that someone looking to buy gems ingame with gold would have.

Well, of course. Casuals are more likely to buy gems with cash instead of gold, because they are less likely to have enough gold to casually (heh) spend it on gems.

Just so you know how big the difference can be from what you might expect, i’ll tell you a story:
At one time, Anet introduced possibly the first set of big farm events. At the same time we’ve got the first instance of Queen’s Pavillon (deadeye farm + monster farm below) as well as the mapwide massive farm fest that was the Scarlet Invasion. People were earning tons of gold daily on this. And then we’ve been told what was the median gold income for the whole 2 weeks among the active players.
It was 2 gold.

I think that many “power gamers” find it almost impossible to understand people who don’t play the way they do.

I wanted to go back and finish up the Outpost achievements recently and found it pretty much impossible to do.

Illconceived Was Na.9781:

I like the screenshot from dulfy better than I liked the Storm Bow in GW1. Similarly, the Fiery Dragon Sword in GW1 was ok, while the FDS in GW2 is one of my favorite skins.

And sure, reboots fail, while others succeed (some Spiderman/Batman movies were great, some were meh). A good reboot is awesome because it gets us right in our nostalgia and is worth it on its own merits. A bad reboot is, of course, far worse than just something bad, for the same reasons.

Dylan’s “All Along the Watchtower” is good; Hendrix’ is better. (Well, to me, anyhow.)

tl;dr it’s good to evaluate things on their own merits before dismissing something as being unworthy as a reboot, sequel, successor, clone, etc.

Good points about reboots. Although I think many or even most times people reboot something that is already successful because they want to ride on that success. In those cases, the original is successful because it is already good. So when people reboot it, it is almost never as good as the successful version. In the case of classic songs, I’m always like “Why are you covering that song? You’re never going to be Michael Jackson” or whoever.

Merlin.5402:

I guess it has something to do with the Blood Ruby Backpack(or the Bloodstone Visage), since Gaile Gray.6029 stated/suggested that farming(for magic and Blood Ruby) in Bloodstone fen could lead to some sort of bloodstone madness. And the quote of Glenna on the backpiece: “You should be careful about carrying this around with you.—Scholar Glenna” -> Wiki

Gaile Gray.6029:

Oh, I’m sure of it.

Well, I’m not sure of it in a game development sense, but we start collecting Unbound Magic, and before you know it, we’re taking a “just a few minutes I can quit at any time” attitude about it. That way seems to lead to some sort of bloodstone madness, right?

I don’t have the pack or the visage but my character screams and sees the ghosts. Probably just gathering unbound magic and bloodstone rubies.

Inculpatus cedo.9234:

Rhaegar.1203:

I said it a long time ago! I even got a shoutout in the now defunct Points of Interest by host Kate Welch.

Ever since we used Omadd’s machine, and we witnessed the Eternal Alchemy, our character has not been right in the head.

I miss Kate so!

I’ve noticed the odd scream from my usually stoic character, as well. Seems to be in a different color of text….or maybe I’m just a bit ‘tetched in the head’. o.0

Oh yes, I forgot about the scream! I believe that only happens in the Blood Fens also.

PopeUrban.2578:

So what you’re saying is something you want isn’t affordable with gold because you’re not willing to liquidate your assets.

GW2’s entire economy is built around the buying and selling of crafting materials. Raw gold income exists specifically to facilitate that trade. However, the bulk of every players income in GW2 comes in the form of crafting materials, and the entire game is designed in such a way that there’s a reliable buy and sell market for them.

This is why salvaging is a thing, because the component parts of most of the loot you pick up is where it derives its value.

You’re basically saying you can’t afford something because you don’t want to spend the money that is in your bank account.

Using the ‘casual player’ card here means literally nothing. You income is not low because you play casually. It is low because you are actively choosing not to leverage your assets in a manner that helps you achieve your desired goal.

First, I am only assuming you are responding to me – but this isn’t clear since you don’t respond with quotes.

However, assuming that you are responding to me, I didn’t say that LS2 isn’t affordable. I am stating my experience as the kind of player I am. I don’t play every day and don’t play for many hours in a day. I made several alts and mainly alternated playing between them. I wanted to actually play my characters so I didn’t use XP items to get to 80 quicker. I wasn’t getting high-level gear or mats for a long time. I didn’t sell much because I like to craft.

I’m not offering this information as a criticism, but as information. I’m sure I’m not the only person who likes to play this way.

AliamRationem.5172:

I don’t understand this issue with players moving on from HoT content. We’re on megaservers, right? So unless 100% of the population has moved on and there are insufficient players to fill up even a single instance, there shouldn’t be an observable issue.

What am I missing here? I keep hearing this mentioned how HoT is going to be a real nightmare when players start moving on. But what I haven’t seen explained is why that should be a problem? I can find players on every single map in this game. Why will this be any different?

What is the map capacity anyway? 50 players? 100? And how many simultaneous players does GW2 have logged in at any given time? Tens or perhaps even hundreds of thousands?

I play in NA and went into TD the other day to try to finish up some Achievs that I left behind because I hate TD so much. It was a dead map. When Gerent popped, that seemed to be where all the people were but there weren’t enough to have the event succeed.

Donari.5237:

Griffin.5379:

(carapace and luminiescent for example, took probably a long time each since they are not at all similar in any aspect)

A minor correction here, I think you must have made a typo and meant some other comparison. Luminescent is exactly like Carapace in design, as it is Carapace with an overlaid blue glow. All they did was add an effect.

He meant in comparison to the other armor he mentioned in that post.

[quote=6285630;Donari.5237:]

I have only seen ghosts that look like “normal” sized versions of the Legendary Ley-line Anomaly. Last night I was doing an underwater event in Orr and saw one “standing” in the water.

Obtena.7952:

I think your experience is exceptional and not indicative of the average. It’s more than reasonable to purchase LS2 with ingame gold … the only reason you don’t have any is that you don’t attempt to sell anything. That would not be normal behavior for someone actively trying to accumulate the gold to purchase LS2.

I mean, what I can tell, you’re simply saying that through regular play, you’ve accumulated 350G … I think that’s really good actually. I can only imagine what you would have if you sell the mats you have collected in the period of time you have played.

I’m not sure where you get the idea that I never sell anything. I actually got a Chaos skin that I sold for 50-ish gold. But that hasn’t happened before. I also sell many of the Rares that I get if they sell for enough. But I don’t grind AB multi-map every day or whatever so I don’t sell huge numbers of rares. I don’t sell mats because I like to craft for my characters.

My point was in my last sentence – to give a perspective for people who like to play casually.

I will preface this by stating that I have not created a Legendary in any manner. However I have been looking into them and talking to people. It seems to me that the original way of creating a Legendary depended a lot on getting a Precursor which is very random unless I guess you were to buy one.

The new HoT Legendaries have you crafting a Precursor which is more guaranteed but also more expense and work than just having one drop for you. And since you can’t just buy a Precursor to use for the HoT Legendaries you definitely have to do the work. After the Precursor I’m not sure if the two methods are similar or if one is more work / cost.

For those who say that buying LS2 with gold is a reasonable option: I have been playing GW2 since the beginning – was in Beta. I have only recently hit 350 gold. I don’t buy anything expensive and barely buy anything on the TP at all. I think the one expensive purchase I made (which I’ve only done once) was to buy a skin from the Pavilion vendor for 10g. I also don’t “grind” for gold. I like to just play the game and don’t prefer to do something boring like grinding while I’m playing a game for entertainment.

That said, I would not want to spend all of the gold I’ve ever made to purchase LS2.

Just some perspective for those who might buy HoT because they have heard that GW2 is an easy, casual-friendly game…

Daddicus.6128:

Astralporing.1957:

Daddicus.6128:

I’ve never darkened the door of raids, but I’m getting spirit shards via experience again on all my 80s.

In core zones only, i bet. Not in Bloodstone Fen, for example.

True. I don’t even know where Bloodstone Fen is, and I’ll almost certainly never go there.

But, your statement gave me an idea: Could the issue be that one started a raid (thus unlocking the mastery), and that then prevents XP for SSs?

No, the reason you are not having the same issue is because there are two different Mastery tracks: one for Core Tyria and one for Heart of Thorns. You can see this in your Hero panel. You finished the Masteries for Core Tyria and so you now get a Spirit Shard for each level when you are playing in Core Tyria. If you were playing in Heart of Thorns, you would not get Spirit Shards until you completed Masteries in HoT. The Raids are in HoT and have a Mastery track that can only be opened by participating in Raids. That is the topic of this thread.

Ayrilana.1396:

Actually, I will post a screenshot of the in-game text telling you specifically how to bring down the shield.

As many people have pointed out, the NPCs babble about a lot of things – why would I suddenly think they have something useful to say? And I’m not going to read chat during a fight that I’m in by myself.

Bellatrixa.3546:

I’d love the return of this along with festival hats. Ones that we can earn in game via quests that is.

I wish you could wear both eyes and a hat.

They’re appearing all over Tyria. They also look like small versions of the Legendary Ley-line Anomaly. I’m assuming they are related to some upcoming content.

tolunart.2095:

In the last day or two fish have been jumping out of the water and “swimming” on land nearby. When I attack them they jump back into the water.

I also occasionally see candy corn nodes flash into existence for half a second before disappearing.

I thought I saw a candy corn node in Orr! Glad to know I wasn’t imagining things lol. I’ve seen the small anomaly also but I assume its related to some upcoming content.

Outfits in general are very restrictive. I have never purchased one because I like to mix and match what my character wears. I guess it’s cheaper and easier to create an outfit instead of individual pieces, but they don’t do anything at all for me.