Guild Wars 2

Luke.4562:

The ridicle is that Anet puts so many pointlights on so much useless details when the whole lore, animation, and plot are a total fail.
Do you think that detail is going to make the character more realistic? To give it more deepness? Really?

So are they actually paying a person who applied and studied to do this mansion?

Overarching plot is important. Details make me care. Buffy slays vampires. Lots of vampires. Cool. But I care more about the character. Things that make you “you” matter in creating a textured character. Are hiccups the be all, end all? No. But I appreciate the consistency in developing a character.

(A “Saved by the Bell” reference didn’t fly the other day, so I realized I’m old-ish. “Buffy: The Vampire Slayer” is a show from the 90’s. This concludes today’s history lesson.)

Ha, those eyelids! It’s not the eye shadow…those eyelids are like 3 inches tall.

locoman.1974:

Ashabhi.1365:

…Scarlet has banded together representatives from most of the elements…
Earth: Dredge
Air: Aetherblades
Fire: Molten Alliance
Water: Krait
Ether: Nightmare Court

If it is Mordremoth, it would seem to me that she simply wouldn’t need that many elemental influences to defeat him, if indeed that was what she was doing…

I don’t think she meant to defeat it, but to awake him. The way I see it the different alliances were a means to an end, posibly to get discarded once her real goal (waking up Mordremoth) was done.

First she learns of the ley lines on the thaumanova reactor, she finds out they’re underground so she’ll need the equipment to get to them, that’s where the molten alliance comes from. A giant drilling machine (dredge technology) powered by magic (flame legion). She probably convinced them that she could help them regain their lands/people by fusing their technology and magic together, something she could do as she had studied both (note that not all the flame legion nor all the dredge joined her, she just needed to convince a fraction of each to work with her).

Then she needs an air force that would let her reach anywhere the big ley lines conjunction was. The fact that she tried to get someone into the council makes me think that she suspected it was under Lion’s Arch, but needed the probes to really confirm it, and we already know that LA was created to resist attacks by sea, so she created the aetherblade pirates. Probably she recruited the pirates with the promise of allowing them to do more pillage and plundering on land and not only on the sea if they followed here (the invasions, for example), and got the inquest (again, not all of them, just some was enough) on board with the promise of letting them access to stolen pact technology and her own portal tech.

Watchworks, well, they’re 100% loyal foot soldiers, something she would need in order to attack wherever she needed, and also probably to keep in line the other alliances in case they wanted back on their word.

And she needed a way to make sure there was no counterattack when she used the drill, at least not in time to stop her, which is why she got the toxic alliance together (again, a faction of the kraitt and some of the nightmare court, not all of each) to create the toxin she eventually converted into the miasma. The deeply religious kraitt though they were getting a new prophet in exchange (the hybrid) while the nightmare courtiers were spreading large amounts of suffering, which is the nightmare court goal. Note one thing, when the kraitt still though they were going to get a new prophet out of the deal, you saw regular kraitt alongside with infected toxic ones, after the events on the tower, you only see the toxic ones as part of the toxic alliance… my theory is that Scarlet added a bit of mind control into the toxins that affected the kraitt directly, so they would still work for her even if it was clear their plans to get a new prophet failed.

They most likely didn’t know her ultimate goal when they all attacked LA, the molten alliance were probably after the huge magic power she had found under LA, the aetherblade couldn’t resist the idea of pillaging one of the biggest cities in the world, while the nightmare courtiers were in for the suffering and evil they were spreading (I already have the theory of the toxic krait being mind controlled or at least altered to obey scarlet).

I’ve been grappling with sorting out the threads, and I think this explanation can put my mind at ease. Well said.

EverythingXen.1835:

BTW, do we find out who E is?

No. But I was really hoping to. Clearly the lack of a reveal wasn’t an oversight since Marjory asked Logan about “E” following the Twisted Marionette. It seems “E” may yet have a role to play.

Lydeck.5214:

Finally an awesome cinematic.

I hear you…but the destruction of the Tower of Nightmares cinematic was pretty sweet. Also, I liked the one that introduced Marjory.

Terrahero.9358:

So this is another one of those “loot exclusive for Zerker geared” things?

Cause if you run a tanky build you dont do enough damage. If you run for support, you dont do enough damage. If you run for Conditions, you dont do enough damage.

kittening great diversity once again. Hey arenanet, if you want people to run something other zerker, zerker and moar zerker. Maybe stop just rewarding the people that run zerker.

Not even Zerker’s are getting loot. It’s a BIG ol’ bug…probably. No word as of yet. And the masses are getting antsy.

Also, condition builds are baaad for the Watchknights. They reflect condis like crazy. It is a Zerker event. It’s just that they’re not getting loot either.

To clarify, I didn’t say it was a daily. I asked if it was a daily? a chance? a bug? The broad consensus is that it’s a bug.

Quuwahi.1806:

This doesn’t work,

I have crashed myself with my high end PC and its normally at a specific time, there is a tread about it here

https://forum-en.gw2archive.eu/forum/support/bugs/Crashes-Battle-For-Lion-s-Arch/first#post3722423

Ah, well. Misery loves company.

Healix.5819:

Lower your graphics to minimum and lower your sound quality. On entering Lion’s Arch for the first time (and every time after rejoining the map), close the game and start it again. The game has issues loading/unloading resources which eventually causes the game to crash. The more zones and zergs you load, the higher your odds of crashing becomes.

If you still crash, you can always tag the event and run, or wait for the zerg to finish the event. Then jump in.

Wow, sound too. Ty for the tips. Will try them out and see how it goes.

I am posting this topic in Living World because this is where the problem occurs.

During the Legendary Watchknight/Scarlet Hologram encounters, I am experiencing consistent crashes to desktop. The kind that prompt you to send a report to Arenanet. I’ll spare you a description of my frustration. But I would like to know if others are experiencing the same. Is there a known fix/workaround?

As per chat, I downgraded my graphics (even though my rig can handle WvW at max) and it just keeps happening. Consistently. Please advise.

I’m willing to abide by the rules for loot set forth by ANet as long as we know what they are. Is this a bug? Is loot daily? Is there merely a chance for loot?

We wait.

I’m willing to play by the rules. But we really need to know what the rules are. Is there merely a chance for loot? Is it daily loot? Or is this a bug?

On a side note, I crash to desktop at least once per Legendary Watchknight/Scarlet hologram event. Every. Single. Time. As per chat, I significantly downgraded my graphics (even though my rig can handle WvW at max). No change.

Edit: Another round, no loot. How, I say, how are we to obtain power cores if the things we’re to get them from don’t drop loot???

Nike.2631:

DevonCarver.5370:

The removal is to address the manner in which it is communicated in game. There will be a requirement to reach a rank in WvW prior to purchasing the Gift when we are able to provide adequate messaging to let players know why they can’t purchase it and what they need to do in order to be able to purchase it.

One has to wonder how many times ArenaNet will have to go through the convulsions of “Unannounced shift in rewards/gameplay -> Temporary retraction -> Actually communicate the change -> Permanent shift” before communicating changes ahead of pushing them Live becomes part of the “this will altering gameplay” checklist. A required step before anyone signs off on pushing the alteration to Live Servers.

Liquid karma/karma boosters say ‘hi’.

So much tact. So much truth. And so much burn. Bravo, sir. Bravo.

phys.7689:

Its not the love angle, its kasmeer coming off as a fairly whiny self absorbed annoyance. I took his teddy bear weep weep cry cry blah blah. Maybe Im just a cynical street rat who cant relate to her priviledged lifestyle.

Also its kinda like, why is she whining about that now, we got a crazy scarlet dragons bandits and she s crying because she became poor.

Or…or it’s because it happens to be her father’s birthday. He’s dead. She’s remembering her father. On his birthday. It makes her sad. People are sometimes sad. Marjory asks why and what happened. Kasmeer answers. Shares a little about herself with the person she’s in a relationship with. I know. Unfathomable.

To everyone who worked on this instance: well done, all! : ) This is the level of story I’ve been looking for. I especially liked how the conversations flowed into each other. Rytlock + Rox leads to Rox + Braham leads to Braham + Taimi and Logan leads to Logan + Marjory. Brilliant! Brill. As for some people feeling like eavesdroppers, yeah—I just went with it. The main character in a movie isn’t in every exchange of dialog. That would be so boring. Just pretend you’re the camera in a movie observing goings on while your character is over there having a drink at the beachside tavern.

Again, good job to ANet. Can. Not. Wait to see what happens next.

Edit: Wishlist =/= horizontal progression. Caught error after post.

1. Player housing
From MMO news sites like Massively, I understand this will be a big part of
Wildstar and Everquest Next. Do. Want. And whoever originated the idea of
tinkering as a profession, brilliant idea.

2. Heroes, followers
Even if they are instanced (dungeons), this is a good idea. Guildies not on? PUGs
won’t take you because you’re an engineer? Grab a follower and carry on!
Suddenly my lower level crafting has a use beyond alts and/or outfitting heroes is a
gold sink.

3. New skills
At end game, new mechanics keep things fresh.

I understand that the bone pick is supposed to have a sharp “slice” sound to it. And I like that. That said, the sound effect for the pick is spotty (sometimes there is no sound at all). But when there is sound, it is soooo loud! I could turn down my volume, yes, but then the rest of the game is too quiet.

The decibel output on the pick—in my perfect world—would be toned down. My ears, and the crow’s feet I’m gonna get around my eyes from wincing—would be most grateful

Can I get in on this?

My manly Charr necromancer sounds like my feminine human engineer when dodging or hit. Male Charr sounds very girly. The effect is disconcerting.

Could you please check to make sure all is well in this regard?

STRanger.5120:

Well, the achi points listed on multi-tier achievements (like the “teamwork” one) are not the count for the actual tier, but the count for the whole achi, therefore you get 10 points for the last tier even though it’s listing 30 points. I hope that’s clear.

Example: http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Community
Scroll down for the Teamwork achi, that is a nice example how multi-tier achis work

Ohmygoodness! Thank you so much for replying. I understand now. “The more you knoooow.”

Hello, all. While playing tonight, I earned a couple of meaty achievements. The trouble is that they don’t appear to be counting.

1. Monthly salvage kit use for 10 AP. Noticed that tally did not reflect at 4,107 points.

2. “Teamwork Gets It Done” for 30 AP. The tally only went up by 10 to 4,117 points.

3. Then I got “Krait Slayer” for 16 AP. No movement.

I earned several 1 AP dailies, and 3 AP “Tower Treasure Hunter” but I’m missing 46 points by my count.

Has anyone else experienced this problem?
Thanks for your time.

Thank goodness I decided to peruse the forums before spending more than $20 on the key sale!

For 25 keys, I’d have to be guaranteed at least one skin. Thank you guys for saving me from some hard feelings. Had my card out and everything.

The bitter taste would not be conducive to a long term relationship with this game.

Cheers.

Soulstar.7812:

Haters remember

Scarlet loves you…

Villains think nothing of you in fact no villain cares to remember your name

But Scarlet, she gives you gifts, and admires you….

You are her special Flower… all hers to crush. Snuffing you out slowly in the cruelest way, to savor it.

You mean NOTHING to the other villains, except Scarlet.

Why hate her, she loves you.

I think I love this post. I just don’t want to read it in a dark alley.

Randulf.7614:

Problem is, most players aren’t aware of that stuff because it isn’t packaged inside the game as it should be.

That is probably the biggest reason why Scarlet isn’t well received. The background story for Scarlet was really good; it just should’ve been in game.

As some of my fellow players are already engaged in shredding the “Tower of Nightmares” before it’s even released, I would like to make an observation.

When Star Trek: The Next Generation (pft, I’m playing an MMO; nerdy comes with the territory) first came out, Gene Roddenberry made a strident effort to establish new lore. No Klingons and all of the stuff from the Original Series. I feel that is what is happening in GW2.

But guess what? All that old lore made its way into the new show and was expanded upon. People hated The Next Gen when it first came out, but ultimately it became many people’s favorite.

I agree that I want a meatier, more cohesive story. I love the plot arcs, character development, and intrigue in shows like Battlestar Galactica and Game of Thrones. If some of those qualities could make their way in game, I would ecstatic!

But The Next Gen didn’t turn around in one year. The devs are aware we want more. Our choice—as customers and players—is to see this through, or not. We do not, however, get to dictate timetables or plot points.

In short, criticism: good. Cynicism: unproductive and so very boring.

Donari.5237:

Towering Fern’O.

Brilliant. I bow before your incredible talent for terrible puns.

Kessex Cray Krait Cabal. Because alliteration matters.

There is a crate at the bottom of Viathan Lake (south side) that bears an imprint: a key exceedingly similar to the key on my emerald shield from the Durmand Priory.

I speculate that Mistress Kai is connected to the Priory. With the female sylvari at base camp decked out in Order of Whispers armor, I guess we’re just waiting on the Vigil. Orders…unite!

Reaper’s Rumble was so much fun, and was the favorite activity for myself and my 10-year-old niece.

Its absence is perplexing, to be sure. Especially since the first year laid the groundwork, and subsequent iterations were supposed to expand the festival content. That was my understanding of the design direction…

Here’s hoping it matches my bone pick and creepy clown scythe.

DarcShriek.5829:

ExAstris.8527:

DarcShriek.5829:

Gene Archer.8560:

lordkrall.7241:

Suddenly knowing something that only two people “alive” would know can however not be explained.

Sure it can.

“A new chapter has appeared within the pages of the Mad Memories, revealing to you a past that up to now has been known only to the Bloody Prince and the Mad King.”

And then they tie that together by releasing a new scavenger hunt that leads to yet another upgraded Mad Memories.

Look at that, justification for putting it in game and I thought it up in under a minute.

Bad example. The only way that the informatin in the latest short story could show up in game is if the blood prince stopped fighting you long enough to give a long and boring expository of what happened.

Extremely few people want to read the wall a text that won’t even help them play the game better. Usability tests consistently show that players simply do not want this.

In this example, Anet actually used the best method available to get this information out.

Disagree. The Elder Scrolls games are quite popular and use the book/text format in-game to convey lore. Certainly not everyone reads them, but it is an appreciated option.

But how many of the players you describe would be willing to watch a rad cut scene?

Anet has already stated that your rad cut scenes are too expensive, they’re not going to happen.

You can choose to agree with the results of real test data or not, the choice is yours. Typically, disagreeing results in error.

They are not “my” cut scenes. They are an ideal means of communicating plot without using “your” dreaded wall of text. If Colin says they are too expensive to implement on a regular basis (as he did after my initial post), I will accept his expertise.

I was not trying to call you out. Rather, I was agreeing with fellow players that the current situation is not optimal. In that respect, I disagree with you; the news feed stories are not the “best method.” There has to be another way, and the devs seem to acknowledge this. Again, this segment of the playerbase has indicated that lore books (a la The Elder Scrolls) would scratch an itch.

“Boring expository” lies in the eye of the beholder, and your test results are hearsay without a link or other evidence. I may be wrong; but a declaration of error necessitates more data. You know, since we’re being technical.

If we are to engage in supposition, I would suggest that the players who are interested in lore represent a loyal base, and their concerns may not be yours but they do represent a contigent that translates to revenues for the developers.

Mechanics are fun, but I’m here for a story.

DarcShriek.5829:

Gene Archer.8560:

lordkrall.7241:

Suddenly knowing something that only two people “alive” would know can however not be explained.

Sure it can.

“A new chapter has appeared within the pages of the Mad Memories, revealing to you a past that up to now has been known only to the Bloody Prince and the Mad King.”

And then they tie that together by releasing a new scavenger hunt that leads to yet another upgraded Mad Memories.

Look at that, justification for putting it in game and I thought it up in under a minute.

Bad example. The only way that the informatin in the latest short story could show up in game is if the blood prince stopped fighting you long enough to give a long and boring expository of what happened.

Extremely few people want to read the wall a text that won’t even help them play the game better. Usability tests consistently show that players simply do not want this.

In this example, Anet actually used the best method available to get this information out.

Disagree. The Elder Scrolls games are quite popular and use the book/text format in-game to convey lore. Certainly not everyone reads them, but it is an appreciated option.

But how many of the players you describe would be willing to watch a rad cut scene?

Sunptel.5031:

Ok this is going to sound pretty stupid, but could someone link me those stories ? I just discovered they exist but I still can’t find them on the website.
By the way I really wonder how many of the complaints on the living story being devoid of lore and, well, story, stems from the fact most people expected the story to be, well, in the freaking game.

Scroll through the news feed (“all news”) and look for the interesting titles. Seriously, some of the short stories are quite good. The one where Marjory Delaqua learns what was going in a basement (screaming, but no sound…) haunts me. Wish I could’ve glimpsed it through her eyes.

I also enjoyed Scarlet’s confrontation with forbidden knowledge/god/Pale Tree. Good, good stuff. And though I wasn’t quite clear on Canach’s motivations, the story wherein he confronts an ex-colleague with the decapitated heads of some other Consortium employees in a burlap sack was quite evocative. Moar, in-game.

Some stills with Ken Burns documentary-style animation would suffice, and scratch a big itch.

Chiming in: That cut scene that introduced us to Marjory Delaqua was the only time I’ve brought my family in to take a look at this game. “Check this out!” It had style and flavor. Flavah, I say! I read the short stories because they provide context, and I need context. I appreciate the context. But I agree with my fellow players; get that context in-game. I enjoy the various activities and wuv wuv, but I’m here for a story. Tell me a fable, and let me feel like “I was there.”

If two weeks is too demanding a schedule (and I know you guys work your butts off), I’d be okay with a less rigorous timetable. Hand to heart, I support the Living World concept. But let’s get the story in the game. <3, Me.

For the Lost Shores event, I was not fortunate enough to obtain any of the exclusive skins via RNG. BUT, I was able to buy skins off the exchange by purchasing gems and converting to gold. Woot! Win, win—I can support the game and get some cool bling. Furthermore, I bought both of Rox’s and Braham’s weapons sets (even though I don’t even have toons to use them yet). Happy camper. But ANet seems to disagree. With the Fused and Sclerite weapons being account bound, I have spent far less money that I would have otherwise.

I cannot bring myself to purchase even one RNG box, but would gladly pony up real dough to buy something outright from the exchange/gem store. Guess I’m not saying anything new here. …Except that I think the RNG is poisoning the community, not just here on the forums but in-game as well. If the Sclerite weapons were even $20 each, the average player would maybe purchase one or two, but never all 10! As for “prestige,” with time, new skins will seem shinier than older skins and there would be a nice spread—not every player would have the same thing.

So, to whom it may concern, I am a loyal player. But I will not gamble with RNG. And since this seems to your favorite modus operandi, I think I’ll take a break from the game and go play a single player game or something. I like Tyria. I’m just not sure about ANet.

I don’t have any environmental/ambient audio on the Southsun map. Someone in chat said they only have it when it rains. Southsun is quiet. Way too quiet.

Thank you for the response, mercury. I filed the bug report ingame. That would explain the lack of a ticket. I wonder if I should go ahead and file a “support ticket” since this seems to be account specific? Anyway, thank you for your time.

I have not encountered that problem per se, but the trading post was very sluggish today like it was back at launch. I had to close and reopen the window several times to get a responsive search field. Been randomly disconnected from my server (SoS) all day, too. Wonder if it has anything to do with last night’s maintenance?

I have an AMD card and can also attest to observing the checkboard in WvW.

Hello, all. I know we are supposed to wait up to several days for a ticket response, but I don’t seem to have any tickets at all for the bug report I submitted. (Is that, in itself, a bug?)

Anyway, the issue was that BLTC won’t accept my credit card even though it did before the maintenance of 04/16/13. I’ve checked everything on my end, so I’m hoping an account specialist can see what the hold up is.

I’m not trying to be impatient. But shouldn’t I be able to view my ticket? Also, please let me give you money. : )

Overall, I love the environmental/ambient sounds in Guild Wars 2. I’ve played other games where a crowded area (starbase) would be completely silent and it was very…odd. So I’ve come away with a great appreciation for the sound design in this game. It really adds to the immersion!

I ventured into the Wayfarer Foothills for the living story…and I have just one small suggestion: decrease the frequency of ice crackling in the background. It’s a really nice effect, mind you. Just too much of a good thing, almost to the point of distraction. I’d like to hear that cold wind a little better. : )

I wonder if any of my fellow players have noticed this as well? If I’m alone in this, I’ll deal. Thanks.

As an engineer, I like to make things go boom. : )

I am in complete agreement with OP. Love GW2, but this event is poorly implemented. Between the broken NPCs and feeling lost re: objectives on Southsun, I may not bother completing the event.

I understand that one-time events grant the world a dynamic feel, but the added stress of time on top of bugs is just too much. I need to go for a walk—or do something else besides GW2, at least—and relax.