Guild Wars 2

Arnath.2319:

Raids will not survive in there current format. Raids are killing this game.

I believe this will be the last Raid that we see like this, data shows that raids are played by an extremely small portion of the community. There is no way the devs are going to keep wasting resources on a game mode that no one likes and no one plays.

I predict that in the future we will see raids 2.0, hey will keep calling them Raids to keep the elitists happy, however there will be an easier mode for the other 99% of players. “Dungeon Mode” perhaps.

While I’m not going to say if the current raid is good or bad (I’ll admit, I have a personal prejudice against them), I do agree that this raid will be the last one like this. The current raid does have/create some problems, and I’m sure ANet will try something new in an attempt to avoid that in the future. They like trying new things, even if it does mean they have to re-invent the wheel every now and then.

I have no idea what they’ll try, but I honestly don’t see them thinking that their first attempt is the best they can do.

Malediktus.9250:

They are more valuable because the item was meant to be that way. People who have the item now didn’t act as cry babies on the forums demanding to be catered for them, 99% of them played tons of fractals and eventually got lucky. It would be unfair to devalue their work of playing tons of fractals to get said tonic. It would also be unfair to punish the luck of the extremely few who got it within a few fractal runs.

I really don’t care about this tonic, but I did want to address something here.

You say it would be unfair to “devalue” the time or luck that goes into getting one of these, but there’s a problem with that argument. As long as this is handed out by RNG, the game could do that automatically at any moment. It’s always possible (though unlikely, I know) that more people can start getting the lucky rolls and these things start to become much more common. It’s also possible that people have been unlucky up until now, and at any time it could return to a higher, expected drop rate.

By the same token, it could swing the other way as well. Maybe people have been lucky until now, and the drop rate will plummet from its already low level. What counts as luck or hard work today may not cut it tomorrow.

If the only value something has is due to its rarity, and that rarity is affected by random numbers, then you can’t really be sure that the value won’t change on you. No, it may not change much, but it’s hardly set in stone.

You suggest offering it for a high price. While I’m sure your price is way to high, it’s not a bad idea if you bring it down some. There’s lots of good uses for this currency, there should always be something better to buy than a toy. Anyone buying it would be giving up a lot of other rewards to get it. Keep the price high but within reason, and I think most people would be okay with that. It may lose some rarity “value”, but not much more than randomness might change it anyway.

If I had to give them a name of my own choosing, I’d call them “Effective”.

The Commander was the one that regathered Destiny’s Edge, became a hero in Tyria (which hero depends on your personal story and race), supported Trahearne and served as his right hand, lead several important missions in Orr, and helped bring down Zhaitan. We then dealt with several new problems as they sprang up, chased them down to Scarlet Briar, and ended her. THEN we were the one and only person entrusted by Glint’s egg to be its protector. We have walked within a grain of sand, and borne the fire of the gods.

The others in DE 2.0 may not be as impressive, but they’ve all had a history of throwing aside their expected role to get things done. That’s how we all wound up together, tracking down Scarlet, and that’s why we’ve stayed together even after she was dead. And now, with the Pact in tatters, we’re the ones that go in and do what nobody else is able to do. Again.

What are we? We’re Effective.

Also, why do we even need to name this group? Are we leaving the Pact to form a formal guild? If so, does that mean the Commander’s group is getting a guild hall? Also, how will Rytlock feel when he realizes that in MY group, Rox outranks him? Yes, he has more training and more power, but the HoT story casts some doubts on how well he can handle those powers, and his vague answers don’t earn him my trust.

Just a flesh wound.3589:

I don’t understand your point where you first say “…using a glyph for the next 3 seconds gain 500 and this has NO COOLDOWN combined with druids casting an AoE heal from a trait when they use a glyph means druids are FORCED TO WORK.” then “This means that if a druid needs to heal he can just use 2 glyphs”

The Druid is FORCED TO WORK but only needs to use two glyphs to have the best healing in the game?

I think what he’s saying is that the druid has built-in cheats that break the normal rules of the game to make it work. Compared to other things in the game, those buffs/advantages are horribly overpowered, but they need to be if the druid is going to fill the role of healer because healing is broken in this game.

At least, that’s how I understand what he’s saying.

From what I’ve seen, when an NPC picks up a mana charge, it disappears from the ground. And if a golem drops one when defeated, it disappears when a player picks it up.

After getting my achievements for delivering the charges to the collectors, I focused on taking down golems before they could get to the charges, and getting NPCs back up on their feet. Some other people seemed to have the same idea, and it worked pretty well, from what I could tell. IF enough people were doing it that way, that is.

I will at least agree with the OP that mastery points are a problem. They were handled poorly.

Should it matter that I found my way to a couple of strongboxes in Tangled Depths? Should that somehow push me over the edge of being capable of learning how to mine some mineral in Auric Basin? Well… no. No, it shouldn’t. And doing “adventures” for mastery points is even less logical.

If they want to keep the basic idea of mastery points, then they should show just that, mastery. Let them be a test to see if you’ve mastered what you already have, and are ready to move on.

For an example, let’s look at gliding. That unlocks naturally in the story, and you earn the basic level of it to glide. To unlock the second level, you need to reach a point that you can only get to with gliding. Then, the one after that is unlocked by a point where you need to ride updrafts, and so on. You still need the EXP to gain the levels, but you’re not hunting down masses of random points on the map.

And if someone’s looking at that example and thinking “what about Mesmer portals, and other bypasses?”, well… what about them? The devs wanted this to feel like a Metroidvania game, and in a good Metroidvania game, there are ways for smart or skilled players to bypass some of the restrictions. (Just watch a video of someone doing a speedrun of Super Metroid for some good examples of this.) You would still need to gain the EXP for the mastery levels, you’d just be bypassing a test every now and then.

Mortifer.2946:

Guys, we are in 2016. Do you know where is this story getting to? I will tell you.
It is the hippie PC culture.

What is going to happen:
1. Heroes will take care of baby dragon
2. they will help it to grow into a compassionate loving fluffy dragon
3. This dragon will eat the extra magic and
a. keep the other dragons at bay
OR
b. with the help of the players kill the bad dragons and possibly somehow get more baby good dragons.

c. The magic starts to transform animals and people into new forms, monstrous forms. To help us survive and redirect raw magic to it, the Glintling infuses us with some of its nature. Thus GW2 gets a sixth race of crystal dragon people, each one made from a level 80 of a standard race. A rebuilt Zepherite Sanctum becomes our home city.

The Nightmare Court seemed to have two kinds of people in it, Sylvari that wanted to be free, and those that wanted to feel/cause pain and suffering. I think the two natures are going to split the Court down the middle now.

The “be free” Court may change their name, and work with outsiders. Maybe even be accepted back into the sylvari community as a whole as an alternate view of the world.

The “for pain” Court will stay nasty, and will either stand on their own and continue to corrupt who they can, or might join with the Toxic Alliance, and try to claim an area for themselves.

If you can finish on a non-80, then it becomes a big chunk of normal EXP. I discovered that by luck the first time, and have made sure to do it on the other events.

“The Unbroken”? Yeah, pretty sure this entire group is broken as all Hades. Each and every one of them is broken in some way. Calling them “The Unbroken” would be like calling Ron Jeremy “The Chaste”.

“Dragon’s Watch”? Why do I picture Kralkatorrik pulling us out of his pocket and slapping us around until we yell out the correct time? And seriously, a name that suggests that we belong to a dragon… ANY dragon… isn’t going to go over well after recent events.

“Eternity’s Guard”? Well, since I figure I’m going to be forever stuck with these clowns, I guess this is the best of the three bad choices. I mean, don’t get me wrong, they have their moments, but… where’s my warband? Where’s Riot Alice? My crewe? It’s an eternity of them never being there.

Dear ANet: Maybe you should have let players pick names, narrowed it down to a few choices, and gone from there. Because, quite frankly, these three are all awful.

I’d say that Necro and Mesmer could both use a shortbow easily enough. For Necros, I’d go with the theme of some demons/evil spirits of some myths that used bows to spread sickness, poison, and plague. For Mesmers, I’d go for the feeling of “Cupid’s Bow” type skills, some of them maybe being buffs instead of attacks.

Between shortbow and rifle, I’d rather see elementalists get the rifle. Maybe I’ve watched too much Outlaw Star.

Well, there are still Zepherites out there, and I’d like to think they’d try to pick themselves back up and rebuild. If that was to happen, the Labrinthine Cliffs would be a good place to do it.

Most of the “saving greys” in Scarlet’s story were put in after Season 1, when she was already dead. We’ve had our retcon, Season 2 and HoT was it.

Now, with THAT said, we can very well continue on with this. Maybe we’ll find more things she left behind. Maybe there were moments when Ceara emerged, and was able to do things that Scarlet didn’t remember. We could find messages and warnings left for anyone else to find, possibly too late to heed the warnings they carry. This could keep Scarlet as the mad villain, and introduce Ceara back in as a tragic character.

But… and this is important… Ceara was NOT a good person. She pretty much rejected everyone around her instantly, and never even tried to find out what path had been intended for her. That path could have very well been what she needed to save herself. Instead, she decided she would walk whatever path she wanted, and to Hades with everyone else. Nobody helped her because she never asked for help, or let them know what was wrong. Had they known and tried to help, it’s likely she would have shunned them.

Yes, her lot in life wasn’t fair, but she never gave anyone a chance to save her.

I think a subscription is the wrong way to go with this, especially as they’ve already done something better.

A couple of times, they’ve given extras to people that purchased gems with real money. I’d say the “VIP rewards” should come every X amount of gems purchased with cash. (Or gem cards, which are purchased with cash.) And it should be mostly something minor. Say, a bag with 2-5 BL ticket scraps, or a “Lucky Key” that opens one BL chest with a somewhat better loot table. Just… stuff. Minor but good stuff. Nothing that affects gold sinks or difficulty.

Blood Red Arachnid.2493:

Anyway, unless I am mistaken, the Total Makeover Kit is lore approved. You can magically and instantly change your entire character’s physical existence, sans the actual race of your character (though is that a lore limitation or just a mechanic limitation?). It is a wonder how anyone can be trans in Tyria when you aren’t tied to the physical body you were born in, in any sense. Maybe Sya is too poor to afford the gems.

I’d say cost IS the reason why it’s still an issue, and why Sya is glad to be a mesmer.

Yes, we can afford these makeover kits, but you have to remember that our characters are NOT normal. In Tyria terms, most of us are wealthy beyond measure. For a normal person, a makeover kit costs a serious fortune, maybe more than they’ll ever see in one lump sum in their entire lifetime.

Yes, some NPCs could afford it, but the vast majority of them could not. Unless they’re a skilled mesmer or can call in a big favor from one, they’re pretty much stuck as they are. Thus, it’s still an issue even if there is magic to address the problem.

First of all, sorry that none of my answers are canon, just how I view the game and the lore. With that said, though…

But I’m curious can mesmer permanently shapeshift or does she only craft illusions to make her appear as her appearance has changed but has not actually?

There are a couple of hints that mesmers CAN change things physically. The best known example is the mesmer portal, which can be proven to actually move the people that use it (physical change of location). More to the point, however, there is a story segment (Order of Whispers related) where if you make the right choice, a charr winds up mesmered to look like a human. It could be just an illusion, save that the charr complains that it’s hard to walk without a tail. If it was just an illusion, there would be no such problem, so it’s an actual, physical transformation.

I’m also curious as magic is a thing in Gw2 can transgender characters in theory have magical transitional procedures, kind of how there is medical (Technological) surgeries available for transgender characters in real life?

I’d say the above answers this as well. It may take a lot of work to make such a spell stick, both repeated rituals/castings and expensive spell components, but it should be possible. In fact, I’d say the makeover kits are an actual in-lore item, and consist of limited transformation potions and such components. An expensive item, to be sure, but not an unreasonable one to have in the game. Sya being a mesmer herself, however, means she can likely do most of the work herself given time, and readjust details as needed.

Also considering Sylvari. Are all sylvari guaranteed to be born in sex that would allign with their identity since because they are “born” they simply exist as spirits in the dream? Or could they be transgender too like other races born sexually?

Due to some of the stuff in HoT, I think that a sylvari’s form is somewhat dictated by their mental state and self image. So, it would make sense that they’d be born with a shape that mostly matches their mind. However, not all sylvari start with a strong gender identity, and all of them experience new things after emerging from the Dream. It’s quite possible for their gender identity to change as they learn more and discover how the rest of the world views the gender issue, just as a young child may not care about what gender they are, but it becomes very important to them as they grow older.

You know, I actually ENJOY taking my mesmer to the end of a puzzle and helping people get through it. Daily JPs just give me more chances to do that.

Don’t take my ability to help people away, it’s the best part of playing a mesmer for me.

Back when they were asking for feedback on the idea of guild halls, my biggest suggestion was that they make sure that any system they put in was able to be used with player housing as well. While we have yet to see if they did that or not, I really hope they did.

Any art assets needed for it should mostly exist. The big question is how do we want them to implement it? If it’s based off of the same systems as a guild hall, then I’d expect it to be that you pay to claim a “house” area (instanced, naturally), and then you talk to an NPC in the instance to decorate and buy upgrades.

You could start with a tent, and if you supply the NPC with enough items, then you can upgrade to a small building. More items, and you eventually upgrade to a larger building. Depending on which area you’ve purchased/claimed, your home will be in one of the different styles used in the game.

Extras: I would say either no crafting stations, or only one of the player’s choosing once they’ve built up enough. The home instance nodes should stay in the home instance (there can be a lot of them, they’d take up too much space), but a few different nodes could then be sold for the personal home. A small garden with a few basic plants you can harvest, for example. Or a chicken coop that yields a couple of eggs/bird meat a day.

What ANet gains: The answer there is pretty much what they gained with guild halls, time investment and a material/gold sink. Let’s look at those big guilds that have fully decked out guild halls, and ask ourselves “How many of them are really funding that?” If they split it fairly amongst all the members, then each person had to provide very little. That’s the kind of sink player housing would be. Many small sinks, rather than the big one we tend to think of guild halls being.

And by making it something you can upgrade and/or decorate, you encourage players to invest time and effort into working with it. That makes them more invested into the game, and less likely to just walk away. It also means that they can put something in the gemstore for it (such as maybe a version of the personal farm that grows flax), and some people will snap it up. Gem sales are always good for ANet.

AliamRationem.5172:

Sort of straight ahead through the camp, where the path splits several ways and you see your first mordrem. There’s a tree with kitten in the trunk. You glide to the hole from a nearby rocky outcropping. On the other side of the hole you can reach the updraft. There is also a hero point you can glide to when you reach the top of the tree.

Ah, thank you. I found the starting point, and managed to reach one of the HPs. But I can’t figure out my way up to the one on the tree, or that big opening I see in what I think is another tree. I’ll keep at it, now that I can at least get started.

I still don’t LIKE the zone, but this should help me get started with it, when I figure out the updrafts.

Hannelore.8153:

A few tips:
1) After first entering the map from Auric Basin, you do a little jump puzzle near the start and take a few wind gusts up to the Great Tree. This allows you to fly over to Ogre Camp and bypass the confusing depths entirely.

I hate this zone, but this sounds like just the help I need to get a better start on it when I enter. The problem is, I can’t find the “little jump puzzle” mentioned. Any advice?

Seera.5916:

Choppenstein.6720:

I have one of each profession and was trying to use each one to get those trees in Malchor’s. I don’t know what the last poster is talking about but I’m going to have my pets out while I’m anywhere if I’m on my necromancer. I don’t understand how I got a ban for being active with my characters without any assistance from any “Unapproved Third Party Software”.

What troubles me the most is that it could happen again just because I’m playing the game correctly like I was today. I just got a call from a guild mate who says that they’re all terrified of gathering after this. I hope this is all fixed tomorrow.

He’s saying he believes if the minions die or otherwise go away, they have to be brought back with a spell so he’s not sure how that works with regards to afk farming.

I can’t say one way or another as I’ve never played a necro.

Having never seen (that I’m aware of) or done this sort of stuff, I can only guess here, but…

The Reaper skill “Rise” is a shout that hits targets around you, then summons 1 minion plus 1 for every target hit (up to 5). The minions don’t last long, but the shout recharges shortly after they expire. Put that on auto, and I guess that could be what they’re doing to resummon and not use any outside software.

And I REALLY don’t want that skill to be nerfed. I hope they fix the AFK timer instead.

(And is the AFK timer really set to one hour? Is there any chance of getting the option to set it lower if we want? Most of the time, if I’m gone for more than 15 minutes I’d prefer it to kick me to character select.)

If they added heroes into GW2 (and I do like that idea, just not this version of it), they’d pretty much have to be instance use only. Not for use in the Open World.

So, they wouldn’t help with most of the complaints about HoT. (And I share many of those complaints, so I’d love to have a NPC helper. I just know that’s not the right answer.)

Given that the asura were an underground race, I don’t see them enjoying high heat very much. Rata Sum would be air conditioned.

Jhoul.6923:

foxyroxy.9521:

I bought a mining tool years ago and I love them but decided I’d never buy another one until it’s account bound and not soulbound. For that much money, it needs to be for all your toons and not just one.

They are account bound

Correct, the ones they sell now are account bound. You still have to transfer them from character to character if you want to trade them around, but you can do it.

If you still have one of the old soulbound ones, it’s either the Black Lion Weapon or Armor merchant that can change it to account bound for you. I think you may have to de-equip it first, and have it in your inventory. Try it both ways, I guess.

[Edit] Beaten by a minute. Ah well…

On the idea of new races, what if the Forgotten created Forgotten/human hybrids (using magic, one would hope, and not mood lighting and a Barry White record). There would be a logic to this considering their history with humans, Glint, and Glint’s interactions with humans.

They could look like humanoid dragons, basic human structure with dragon-ish heads, tails, and wings. Basic gliding would be a natural ability for them (if they’re part of an expansion, that should be fine as you’d have access to it anyway), and racial skills could actually be breath weapons.

Unlikely? Yes. But it’s always bugged me that we hear about Elder Dragons all the time, but not much is made of this implying there being more than just a couple of non-elder dragons out there. Not that these would be “real” dragons, but they would hint that there were more at one time.

What you’re all missing is that they added some extra springs into the middle of the trap, where the bait is. Now, when it’s triggered, the rat is launched up into the air as the teeth close.

Charr engineering at its finest.

Teofa Tsavo.9863:

Considering the lore re Tengu I cant understand how they will fit. Only a tiny minority of canthan Tengu had a very tenuous peace with Humans. All mainland Tengu were KOS to humans.

They remain Xenophobic. They stood callously and slaughtered anyone who got near their precious gate during the Battle of LA. Refugees. Innocents. They picked a side, Theirs.

Every one of the playable races has a faction that would have done the same thing. Bandits, Flame Legion, Nightmare Court… It’s easy to imagine that the Tengu have one too.

That very event could be causing political shifting within the Tengu society, causing that faction to lose power and more open minds to come into control.

themillwater.5846:

How? Tonic then go gliding?

What’s said above is likely true, however it DOES work with the endless cat tonic.

Trust me, I’ve done it.

Works with the Endless Monkey King tonic, too. He does this flying kick-like pose as he glides.

Crimson Clouds.4853:

Ok, going to play devil’s advocate here and think up some negatives to this interesting idea. I’m curious to see responses.

1. This is the very reason why my suggestion rewards you with unlocking both the pet and a mini version of that same creature. That way, even if you don’t like playing a Ranger, you can still gain something by doing it.

2. Well, it shouldn’t be/involve a rare spawn (RNG is no fun), and it shouldn’t be locked behind big/meta/group events. I would put it behind some collection work, and maybe some high level crafting.

Let’s say the pet in question is a Firebird. You have to go track down a few NPCs and talk to them, maybe even buying a few odd things from some heart vendors (which requires you to have completed those hearts). Say, a handful of shiny baubles from a skritt, and a couple of recipes. One recipe allows you to make food for the bird (400 cooking), and another a golden bird perch (400 jeweler, 10 bars of gold, 5 bars copper, 5 ruby orbs, and an elder wood staff shaft). Once you have all those, then it’s assumed that you set them up, and it attracts the firebird to the home instance.

3. The whole point is for them to stand out, so they should do just that. Firebirds, lightning tigers, boars of bling… they should be easy to tell what they are. But, they shouldn’t really be stronger than existing pets, just flashy. So, they will be no more threat in PvP/WvW than any other pet might be. That also means that players will have nothing to lose by using the normal pets instead.

4. My version clearly overlaps with minipets a bit, because you’d earn one of the animal in question. However, it should be easy to avoid overlapping the exclusives that already exist. Those exclusives are unique, but not really very flashy. The goal here would be flashy.

Aury.1367:

Palador.2170:

Because food in the real world doesn’t work that way?

Ah, didnt know. Maybe then we should get rid of waypoints, healing skills, every other non physical skills, potions which give you 10% attack vs a special race, hammers dropping from harpies, harpies, I never saw an ambulance ingame-we need one because the real world has. I also want all dragon NPCs to be deleted BECAUSE THEY FREAKING DONT EXSIST! I cant facepalm that hard.

That was the joke, yes.

My apologies, I didn’t think anyone would actually take that statement seriously.

Because food in the real world doesn’t work that way?

Also, they sell a gemstore item that greatly extends the food’s duration. They want you to buy that, they’re not going to make it unnecessary.

Danikat.8537:

(The only problem is the animal would have to be permanent, or added to your home instance account wide, so that if someone completes it on a non-ranger they don’t lose their only chance to get the pet.)

Yeah, that’s what I’m picturing, added to the home instance account wide. Or maybe only one of the five home instances.

Let’s say that they do this, and it turns out to be popular, so they do it a few more times. We could end up with special versions of canine, feline, bird, bear, and (the oddly popular choice of) pig. Each one could appear in just one of the home instances, so we don’t get them too cluttered with animals we’ve tracked down. If the canine was a blooming flower version of a fern hound, it would be natural to find it in The Grove’s home instance, for example.

Disclaimer: That idea is only good if the home instances can be made to work that way, naturally.

What if there was a quest put in to unlock a flashy but balanced pet (say, a firebird that is basically an Eagle, but with a burn instead of a blind skill). You do the quest/collection, and one appears in your home instance for you to tame. And it ALSO unlocks a mini of the pet, so even non-ranger players get something out of it.

Do you think that would be a good idea and use of dev time?

Normally I’d agree that taking a kid like Taimi (and let’s be honest, she IS still a kid) into danger is out of the question. But if you read between the lines, you can find one of the few things that would make me reconsider.

Taimi is dying.

Go back and re-read what NyhilistTheBoring quoted Taimi saying about her medical condition. Now, given what we know of her and how she’ll downplay things she doesn’t want to talk about, realize what she’s really saying. Her condition will only get worse, and there’s no known cure. As things stand now, it’s going to kill her.

But… that’s the important part. “As things stand now”. Taimi is brilliant, and she might find a cure of some kind if she can just put enough information together. So, she throws herself into every new thing full tilt, because you never know what things might tie together to buy her more time or maybe even create a cure. Scarlet fascinated her because Scarlet’s knowledge seemed to move ahead in leaps and bounds, leaving a trail of new inventions scattered behind her.

Taimi helps us to save the world, and by unspoken agreement, we help her to find new things that may save her life. Yes, she’s still a child, but in some ways she’s more of an adult than Canach is, she just hides it. I’ll bring her along and give her her chance, but if she finds a cure for herself then it’s off to the back lines before she can blink.

Siobhan.5273:

Event is still bugged.

64.25.38.224

9:46 pm event started, first went fine. Second part coalescence did not spawn (9:50 pm) . Map of people standing there confused.

Same IP, still bugged.

Gator.5729:

I say NO to both. It takes zero effort to obtain laurels. If you want the shards or ascended armor then work for it like everyone else that has.

The thing is, you can buy some ascended gear right now. There’s a logic to being able to buy the rest of it.

But, what you can buy is stuff you can’t craft. Maybe a compromise would be to allow the purchase of ascended materials with Laurels. You’d still have to get the skill up there to craft the items, but having Laurels to spend could speed up the process of making it and reduce the costs on some of the parts. (I’m not sure how many Laurels something like a Bolt of Damask should cost, though. 2? 5?)

In further support of my “Blue Damage Numbers” idea, I’d like to ask everyone here two questions, and see how many can answer them without having to look up the answer.

1: On your main (or whatever character you choose), what is the power/skill you have that does the MOST to lower a target’s Break Bar?

2: You’ve grabbed an Elementalist’s Frost Bow off of the ground. Does the “Deep Freeze” skill (Skill #5, that puts a normal target into a block of ice) do Break Bar damage when it hits? After it hits? At all?

Also, if they did put in the blue damage numbers, would we want them to show up as “0” or “Ineffective” when people use a non-CC skill during a Break Phase? It might get players to realize they’re failing to do something, but it might also be pointless clutter.

I’d strongly suggest starting with PvP, and not WvW.

With PvP, you have fewer opponents to face at a time (5 on each side), and there’s no cost to changing your equipment to try new builds. You’re also insta-leveled to 80 in PvP, so you can take a character straight from the tutorial and be fully effective with them. That’s not true in WvW.

There are also some golems you can try your skills on in the PvP staging area (Heart of the Mists), to see how the damage flows, practice dodging, and so on.

With WvW you also have other complications such as siege equipment, repairing fortifications, supply use, and so on. I’m still trying to get the hang of all that. If you’re looking to learn the class, you don’t really want all that extra stuff to deal with, right?

Finally, I know there are some places that list builds for use in PvP and WvW. I’m sure someone here or in those forums can direct you to those sites. Even if you don’t copy them, you can take a look at what they suggest and try to learn WHY they suggest those builds.

I’d say LS2 should have been included by the same logic that they’ll include HoT with any future expansions, and I consider it quite likely that it WILL be included with the next expansion.

As it is now, Sya is treated as just another person in Lion’s Arch. She has conversations with NPCs, and even a short one with you if you try to talk to her. But… she’s treated as a normal person. She’s just a person where we know a bit of her history, just like that charr with Scarlet’s rattle. (You know the one. “Curse that Scarlet!”)

But the player’s party is NOT normal people. They stand out. They do the exceptional. They are, by definition, abnormal. To add someone to that group simply because of their gender identity is to say that this one thing is enough for them to be considered abnormal. I’m pretty sure that’s not the way we want to go.

Smooth Penguin.5294:

I’m quite aware of what’s going on in Russia. But consider this:

1) Anet is an American company. Russian laws do not have any effect or enforcement.
1a) That wouldn’t be the case of Anet had an office in Russia. Thank goodness their data servers aren’t there.
2) GW2 already has homosexual storylines (i.e. Jory and Kas). They kissed as part of the end scene to the Living Story.

If the content of GW2 goes past whatever line the Russian government has drawn, they can stop the sale of the game there and instruct all ISPs to block access to the connections needed to play the game. And just like that, they can’t play any more.

Any of the Royal Ascalonian weapons will glow blue at night, so they’ll match then.

What would happen if, when you used CC during the Breakbar phase, it actually popped up the damage you’re doing to the bar in blue (matching the bar) numbers?

Players are trained to make numbers appear. The bigger and faster, the better. So, show them the numbers. It’ll make it easy to know you’re having an effect when other people are fighting beside you, and even help you to learn what skills do the most good in that case. And those that don’t know why the numbers appeared are more likely to ask. We LIKE making those numbers appear, because we’ve been trained that that’s how we win.

There could also be a target dummy put up somewhere that has only 1HP, but is invulnerable unless you break the breakbar. Actually, make it a Hero Point in Central Tyria, and let it reward 5 points when you beat it. That’ll make people really want to do it.

Teofa Tsavo.9863:

So much Charr hype. My ancestors butchered them by the thousands in their own homelands.

Without Titan help, they were, and are, overrated blowhards.

The shantytown they live in suits them.

Big words, considering how humans are faring without their gods around to win their battles for them.

I was looking at the Reclaimed Rifle the other day, and it got me thinking. If you changed your grip on it, that would almost work as a sword, wouldn’kitten So, what about some weapon skins that actually DO work for multiple weapons?

As I recall, there’s actually a couple of staff skins that are used underwater as well, so the idea does exist in the game, just not for weapons that can be used in the same place. And looking at both actual history and other works of fantasy, you can find a few “combined” weapons, so why not run with that idea?

To add to the fun, consider what happens when you have a character that can use both weapons, and uses the same skin on them both. Some people might call it slightly unfair for PvP, but how much time do you really spend looking at your opponent’s weapons as opposed to looking at what they’re doing with them?

Pistol/Dagger or Pistol/Sword: The Merciless Pistol is almost a Pistol/Dagger combo already, and it’s easy to see how you would modify the Reclaimed Rifle to be a Pistol/Sword mix. Either one could be a natural for a Thief.

Staff/Hammer: If you take a look at the Royal Ascalonian Staff skin, you’ll see that it’s a larger head atop a long handle. Pretty much, a long mace. It’s not hard to imagine something like that used as a hammer as well as a staff. Both skins could be used by Revs and Guardians.

Scepter/Mace: I don’t think I need to go into too much detail on how similar these could be, do I? Both are usable by the Guardian.

Sword/Torch: Actually, this one’s already in the game. There’s a sword skin that looks like a long torch. Sadly, I don’t think we can get it. Still, there IS a burning sword skin that would make an interesting torch as well, if it would shed light. Offhand sword and torch can both be used by Warriors.

Greatsword/Hammer: You know what these two weapons have in common? They both could be replaced with a big, two handed axe and the attacks would still work just fine. And people have been wanting a big, two handed axe to be added to the game, even suggesting it as a skin for one or the other of these weapons. Well, why not both? Imagine a Warrior or Guardian, using both set to this skin. Visually, it would be like they only have one weapon, but two sets of skills they can use for it. How awesome is that?

I know that none of these mixes are (currently) optimal, and that people would only use them for fun. But isn’t that why we’re playing? For fun? So, I figured there’s no harm in throwing the idea out there.

Also, some Focus skins look like they’d make awesome punching weapons. No pressure, ANet…

Agemnon.4608:

Why not? Each expansion should be harder than the last. If people’s skill threshold were raised with HoT after dealing with mobs with better skills, AI, and stats then they’re logically ready for the next level. It should always be possible with the tools a class is given to effectively deal with such challenges. It also makes players feel more accomplished after clearing metas and exploration as it would confirm that they’ve reached a level of skill to do so.

Not everyone’s skill threshold DID go up with HoT, though. And others may be near their limit. You also have to take into account that some people that join the game in the future or come back after a long time may want to skip HoT and go right from the base game into the new expansion.

Other MMORPGs sometimes make things tougher in expansions, but then make the characters tougher so you grow into being able to deal with it. But here, they’re trying to keep a top on our power levels. If things get tougher each expansion, eventually not even the best players will be able to deal with it.

Endless Soul.5178:

I don’t think the Charr care much for aesthetics. Besides, I don’t think of it as a city, more like a large fortress. A poorly planned one at that (unless the plan was to confuse any would-be invaders that will get lost within the chaotic architecture, then it’s highly successful).

That’s actually a workable approach, though. A simple city layout does make for easier invasion.

I also get the feeling that parts of the city are made to be blown up or sectioned off if need be during an invasion. Look at the Asura gate for a perfect example of that, it’s behind some pretty big gates, but it’s also resting on some old ruins at the end of a long bridge. Sturdy enough, but a couple of charges and it’s suddenly cut off from the city. Elevators from below can be broken to cut off access from some areas, other areas are pretty much made for the big charr war machines to use, much to the dismay of any invaders.

Finally, I’ve seen enough big machinery in the walls and floors for “no reason” to suspect that there’s a very GOOD reason for it to be there. I think sections of the walls and the command core can move. Any tracks and rails needed are covered over, but could likely be exposed pretty quickly if the need came. The overly decorated pathways could be their way of hiding that, because it would be more obvious on a smooth road.

Still, I DID like the clip of the old Black Citadel. It’s very “evil church”, but it was still impressive. I’d love to see that design show up somewhere in the game at some point.

There will be new elite specs, naturally. And, I think they’ll break down and give us Tengu, because this is a “go big or go home” moment for them. If all the work for the future they supposedly did in HoT doesn’t pay off, then people will pretty much give up hope on them.

As to what else I expect? Well, looking at HoT, I think they’ve learned that requiring people to work together is NOT the way to go. So, I expect to see some of the same stuff as HoT, but broken down for individual players.

Personal Housing: This will be a personal version of the Guild Halls system. You pay to claim it, then you have to go in and kick out whatever’s living in there currently. A couple NPCs will show up to help you to upgrade things. Karma is the best bet for a replacement for Favor in the personal version.

6+ Zones: Most of these will be normal zones. One will be a city zone for Tengu to start in. And one will be an event zone, most likely the last zone you reach. Even there, picture something more like the retaking of LA, rather than Dragon’s Stand. Lots of little events going on that anyone can jump in and do, as well as some big events.

40 Hero Points: Like HoT, they will be worth 10 points each. Unlike HoT, they’ll all be made to take on solo. This will actually become a selling point for any that want to unlock the HoT elites without dealing with HoT.

More Masteries: I expect some for the expansion area, as well as some for Central Tyria. I’m not sure if the Mastery Point COST is going to continue, however. The points may be dropped, and I forsee some actual problems if they try to continue with them when it comes time for the CT masteries.

Raids/Dungeons: I expect to see one actual dungeon put into the game, with ONE path but some optional side-fights. No more raids after HoT, they’ll go back to testing a new take on dungeons and see if people like that more.

Currencies & Keys: There will be ONE new currency for the new areas. Just one. I think they realized at some point that they made a mistake by having basically a currency for each zone in HoT. I don’t think the same will hold for keys, instead you’ll just carry the entire chest back to someone that can open that kind of chest. With no ways to earn keys for them, opening chests becomes a confirmed gold sink. It also means that anyone farming those chests will eventually HAVE to stop and go get them opened when their inventory fills up. (Or just sell the chest on the marketplace, maybe?)

I think we’re going to see someone new at first, and they’ll eventually drag us towards a dragon. As for which dragon is next? I think it’s going to be Jormag. There’s simply less backstory and lore for the devs to deal with if they go that route.

If you deal with Primordus, you need to address the fate of the dwarves and why the asura don’t just return to the underground once it’s dead.

Bubbles? Defeating Bubbles brings Cantha back into play, as there would be no more barrier to keep us from sailing there.

Kralk? Elona and its ruler would have to be addressed.

With Jormag, we’ve got the norn and kodan, who have moved south out of the dragon’s area. Any old cultures have already been addressed, unless they feel the desire to make a new one. It’s simply the choice that leaves the writers the most room to do their own thing.

amidare.9561:

Let’s start crowdfunding project so ArenaNet will have chance to finish promised 2nd weapon legendary set! Let’s say they offer to participants something ingame for donations. Would you use your credit card to support this project?

Share your thoughts.

This is a very dark and ugly road to go down. It shifts the money focus from gemstore cosmetics to “Let’s hint at something in the game, then see if they’ll pay for us to work on it some more.” It would become financially useful to start projects, then drop them to see if players pick up the funding to resume. Dissatisfaction, instead of satisfaction, would become the money maker.

Let’s not go there.

While I don’t think it would do much harm to our ability to play and enjoy the game, it may give the entirely wrong impression to see it for sale in the gem store.

It could create the impression of “Pay to Win”, turning off people that want to avoid games like that, and pulling in people expecting to be able to throw money at a game to quickly dominate their fellow players. Both would cost this game in the long run.

We have the tomes, let’s just stick with those and call it good.