Guild Wars 2

Personally i think this is a good idea. Gw2 is still getting alot of hype from major media outlets like ign and massively, due to the living story.
Although I have heard from a reliable source that there was another boom in box sales after the recent trial weekend, If thats the case I would emplore anet to continue with the trial weekends on every MAJOR update (i mean a huge addition such as the invasions not the major update of the month) until box sales flatten out completely. Then, i would push another small marketing campaign and promote a cheap/starter version with a reduced number of char slots.

Let me make it clear though, I would think it to be a terrible idea if there were any more restrictions than that.

After my sore and bitter dissapointment with the announcements made by wildstar and elder scrolls online, i would definately say; NO NO NO NO NO.

I like the gemstore the way it is, except perhaps skins being locked behind RNG boxes. Sub games are dying as the above games will find out the hard way. Gemstore has enough versatility to allow players to pay to be lazy OR grind their way to free rewards. That in my opinion is WAY better than 100’s of a pounds a year on a sub OR a pay2win system included in other f2p games.

Also, would like to mention the amount of amazing looking games coming out in the next year. The next gen is kicking off and gaming is more popular than ever. The market is SO saturated with good titles its ridiculous to think that anyone would find a sub affordable and acceptable, unless your a niche gamer and want a game to concentrate on, theres currently way too many games and far too little time, especially when your paying hard cash for that time.

Am hoping this thread will be deleted very shortly (as the issue should be temp);

Anyone else having problems accessing the login server?

Im on gandara EU

My list is kind of standard, listed in order of which most dreamed about;

1. DE and open world overhaul. Link more events and restructure maps to be more like the LS invasions, specific to each maps fighting factions. Follow through with the stated DE intention before release, specifically failure events (remember when they talked about a witch that called a huge storm on a full map if the event chain was pushed too far in the wrong direction – activating a series of storm related events – this kind of stuff would set the open world apart from any other MMO.)

2. Massive guild update, including GvG. We have gone FAR too long without proper guild management tools and basics like a in game calender and message board in which guilds can properly manage themselves. As for GvG, its very concerning that the obviously popular feature has been ignored for as long as other guild stuff. Especially when theres third party ladders and leagues cropping up and wvw space been taken up by competing guilds. Its at a point where iv witnessed a guild moving servers just because they want to fight a rival within their own homeworld – That in itself tells you how much the playerbase wants this feature.

3. Guild halls and player housing. Again, a very popular thing on the dream list. Personally, id LOVE to see a guild village system, in which players from that guild can own houses within the village. Would promote community spirit massively. Id even go as far to say that if the guild hall system isn’t comprehensive enough its going to dissapoint alot of people, maybe that’s why they havnt said a word on it yet.

I am hoping we get to venture into new lands soon as well.

The crystal desert seems appropriate, if the likes of woodenpotatoes are correct about the story (and lets be honest, we all hope he is just because it would make the story much more interesting and complicated than we thought).
Although there are many options for exploring new maps. Would love to push into the charr homelands or even the north shiverpeaks, but also, lets not forget that the majority of Orr is still unexplored.
If anet are smart, they will use those potential maps for the purpose of fighting zhaitan again and introducing him into the LS. Not sure if the temporary nature of LS content would handle the dragons, though if the LS introduced a perma dungeon that included a redesigned fight as the story version it would please alot of players.

Id personally prefer seeing the personal story changed, have zhaitan not dead yet and have him handled as a new PS arc or even a pure LS event (big buildup of content, new Orr maps, new zhaitan fight within a new permanent dungeon for the world etc).

This would mean a replay PS system would be needed, for players who want to re-experience the end of the PS, but more importantly, the zhaitan fight can be re-implemented and Orr could eventually be purified from undead corruption.

DiogoSilva.7089:

It’s probably permanent, considering that they have revamped one part of DR’s map just for that.

and yet not one mention of the word in the quote. This is why i ask, because i would have expected a big song and dance of it if it was all i could hope for.

Test yourself in an entirely new mini-zone featuring mighty representations of humanity’s enemies. By representing various cities of Tyria, you can be named champion of a nation and gain access to unique reward vendors.

This sounds really interesting.

Im wondering if its going to be temporary or a perma addition to DR though. I realise it sounds like it will be temp, and also sounds purely pve (which is a massive shame in my eyes) … However, whats going to happen to the great collapse after (correct me if im wrong but this seems to be where the mini-zone is located)? Surely this beautiful arena will not go to waste?

Plus, iv been talking alot recently about ways in which cities can start pulling players in on a regular basis – The crown pavilion sounds like a very good way to get players returning to DR. Especially if the arena evolved into a mini-pvp arena hosting 1v1s and 2v2s. The opportunities for ladders and tournaments either in house or 3rd party are ripe for the picking here, all easily within the flavour that is gw2 and without the need to copy other systems (pvp would be fair and fun, based on the principles we have seen anet do with the aspect arena and southsun survival, dragon ball etc).

Frog.8217:

no more farming CoF?

Can you imagine a world in which players didnt?

Im struggling to even with the new rewards.
Guess this might be the groundwork for dungeons being revisited and sorted out though.

Patch preview is up in the releases section. Impressed by the wallet, effects detail system and loot/reward updates. Perma finishers is quite cool as well.

Now im wondering whether the arena will be temp or perm content – if this evolves into a pvp arena for 1vs1s and 2vs2s then kitten … that would make me SO happy.

kokiman.2364:

Parlourbeatflex.5970:

Im glad to see DR getting some much needed love. Im gonna hope that more perma stuff is added to it, something like that Crown Pavilion and a minigame wont cut the mustard though… would love to see something that might bring me back to DR on a regular basis, among many other players. If crown pavilion is nothing more than a instance im going to be disappointed.

Uhm and what about the other cities?

Well, if anet are smart about it and use this month as a tester for getting DR full of content, I cant see why they wouldnt do the same for cities around tyria in the future.

This is the whole point of the LS (supposedly), to go around the world making updates and improvements via a story arc. I know we havnt seen much of that besides fluff and mini games, but anet have stated they are focusing on the perma stuff this half of the year. With 6 months, and 2 updates per month, its possible to suggest that all the cities will be visited by the end of the year.

Im glad to see DR getting some much needed love. Im gonna hope that more perma stuff is added to it, something like that Crown Pavilion and a minigame wont cut the mustard though… would love to see something that might bring me back to DR on a regular basis, among many other players. If crown pavilion is nothing more than a instance im going to be disappointed.

Will have to wait until the reveal later today.

Its also worth noting that alongside such comments, Anet have hinted that each update will increase in size with the fact they have dedicated teams for creating new features and ‘exciting’ content (such as maps, races etc) working hand in hand with dedicated LS teams for bringing that content into the bi-weekly updates.

As my optimistic side has been hoping for from the very start of this, it looks like we might be able to grab an expansions worth of content within the time schedule it would take to release expansions anyway. Of course, to those who hate the system already, itll be hard to see because of the fact that content will be stretched over time rather than delivered in one chunk.

Its going to be interesting to see what happens in this half of the year. As temporary content has now got a very good ground to work from (meaning teams will be able to deliver it consistently) it looks like this half will be laying the foundations for the permanent implementations.

Back on topic, it all depends how it plays out. Personally id much rather have fluff mini-games and unique event themed skins to be temporary and have those alongside meaningful perma content. Amazing dungeons need to start staying, while fleshed out dynamic events as well (meaning, a new meta event thats perma, because the LS introduced a new threat while not fully defeating it).

My ideal update would be like this (crude examples for examples sake);

LS (temp) Event – The Revival of Orr

Scholars and the priory have analysed a section of the lost parts of Orr. While the source of Orrs corruption has been defeated, they have concluded that restoration of the area can only begin in specific sites, due to the nature of the original corruption, as one scholar said; “we must hit at their weakest”. All the while surviving minions of zhaitan prepare to defend these areas to prevent the corruptions undoing.

LS Content (in chron order)
- A new orrian map has opened up, scholars from around tyria implore every adventurer to explore this new area. (perma)
- The Durmond Priory have worked with asuran technologies to use a mix of magic and science to purify certain points within Orr, players must complete mini game esque activities around the new map to aquire items used in purfication (temp)
- These items are then used at specific points within the new map that will increase the purification rate of the area. (temp)
- Undead monsters and a new zhaitan minion try to stop players from exploring and purifying, with new events that focus around these purification points. (temp)
- With help from the players key npcs finally purify the map and the next LS update brings a updated version of the map free of corruption (perma)
- This new perma map, apparently free from corruption brings other factions into the mix, looking for oppurtunites in a new land grab. (perma)
- These new factions remain a threat and new dynamic events pull together in a meta event where players are fighting a faction (im not suggesting any here because the lore is so interchangeable with this kind of idea) over land, building new outposts. (perma)
- A new dungeon is revealed (perma)

This, although unlikely any time soon, is completely viable now the LS has been set up the way it has. It could also happen to any of the already existing zones (although i tried to stay away from existing Orr maps because of PS conflicts).
This, would make me sooooooo happy.

Yet again I come across a thread that has little constructive value – AND yet again I find myself being just as un-constructive by pointing it out.

Honestly its a wonder how people dont rage quit the forums long before they rage quit the game.

Have searched around the forum and all I can find is assumptions.

I get that the bazaar is temporary. However the map itself seems to indicate thats its going to be around for a while. The whole placement of it suggests that the LS will explore the section north to the cliffs OR even crystal deserts leading to cantha…

I would like a definitive answer, either via a anet dev quote or directly from one.

Thanks.

Seriously, people are complaining about this?

I for one, am sick to death of; Mysterious enemy posing threat to all good people of said fantasy land. Thus people must band together and vanquish mysterious threat.

A little spice to life doesnt harm anyone but kittening whingers who will whinge about anything and everything.

HELLruler.4820:

If nothing is wrong up there, that means it’s not even worth thinking about buying those items.

Its more of ease of mind to be honest, I bought them purely because it means I don’t have to visit a vendor again for tools, nor do I have to check my inventory for the inevitable run-out. Call me a kitten , but hey, I’m a happy kitten .
Now if only they released unlimited master salvage kits, I can be a true kitten .

But back on topic, I would assume that either more tiers of nodes are coming down the line OR they will periodically release the tools back on the gem store, whenever there data suggests that theres enough new players to warrant them.
Would make decent perma additions though, Ill give the OP that.

“[Living World] is only a fraction of what the rest of the company is working on,” he said. "We have large feature teams that are working on exciting things behind the scenes that, when it’s ready, we’ll release those with these updates.

Ill be highly optimistic here and give an ideal to as what the above could mean;

Bi-weekly content updates will bring small amounts of content but more regulary than any other MMO on the market.
The large undisclosed teams working on ‘behind the scenes’ features might develop a new region, new PS arc, new classes/races etc (everything youd expect in an expansion).
The living story team will handle the introduction of these features into the game world over a month or two of story updates, even shorter if the story arc involves a new region.

This means elona, cantha or any other large bits of content isnt off the table. Imagine 6 months running by, in which the living story team updates existing content and rolls out this idea of a living breathing story. In that 6 months other teams pile up content that all belong to a new region or continent, once that is ready the living story team introduces them through the usual living story updates.

If this is true, its a brilliant yet risky strategy. One that could bring thousands more players into the game (albeit, once a large living story patch is introduced and news gets out). Imagine the excitement as each update is announced and players wonder whether it will be leading up to a new region or new class/race. Just like the TV show analogy, it will leave alot of players looking forward to the next ‘episode’.

However, if another 6 months goes by and gw2 is looking very similar to as it did upon release, excluding some features it should have had since launch, players will start dropping like flys and Anet will be forced to consider expansions again.

Heres hoping that whatever way you look at it, we will see massive content updates in the future. But then again, only time will tell.

EDIT: Also want to point out this quote in the article -

Sales of Guild Wars 2 are officially 3 million, a slightly cobwebbed number accurate only as far as January 2013. NCSoft typically shuts down questions about sales, as it did again when I asked, but as the PR was going through the motions of saying, “When we hit another milestone that we’ve got in our heads…”, I interrupted with “5 million?” and with a laugh he replied: "There will be another milestone coming up pretty shortly.

> Thats alot more sales than alot of haters in the forum give this game credit for. Even if only 500k of those purchases are still active players, thats a massive base of customers that can re-install gw2 given a new region/race/class announcement. This is the reason i suggest that the strategy might be genius, because lets face it – With alot of haters that are hating, paid expansions might just limit the amount of players anet targets with these content updates, instead they know almost all previous customers will play again if something massive was announced.

Aigisthos.3059:

When they first announced GW2 the first thing I thought about was how cool it would be to play as a tengu. Here’s hoping that someday we can!

This is another reason I hope out hope. Speak to the tengu in Lions arch is it becomes VERY clear that they will be joining the game in a major way at some point.

Really good idea.

I fully support a donation style upgrade system, even if the price of each upgrades remained the same (half is too low) it would take very little from each member of a guild group to order upgrades through.

The one good thing about the current system is it gives massive recognition for groups that have fully upgraded the tower/keep. Seeing bay or hills with waypoints makes me proud of my server everytime, as I know the tedious lengths they must have gone to in order to upgrade and defend it.
On the other hand, with lower upgrade costs per person (a donation fund) it would give alot more incentive for doing so, keeping scouts and builders at upgraded keeps and generally make controlling them for lengthy periods of time justifiable – rather than a current approach of ‘let them have hills, once we get this camp we can flip it’ style attitude.

Massive LOL at everyone deciding to pay attention to the ‘Raid’ part of the post and not the ‘different to raids that you might know’ part.

The guild wars 2 touch can change a hell of alot, albeit good or bad.

Im gonna assume the doomsday prochecies of a tiered gear grind progression system will not come to be. As most loyal fans of the game will insta-forumrage-quit.

Well, my opinion on this kind of varies as each update is brought out.

It is very clear that Anet are willing to do alot of experimentation in order to find a formula that works – Which means alot of people are becoming confused at the direction the game is being taken. More and more updates can only mean good things, while certain things might flop, others will pave the way for a solid routine that consistently pleases.

For me, its still my most played MMO. Its a very good game. Yes, im highly disappointed with certain features yet im also pleasantly surprised by some as well. Some things ring true to the goals of the manifesto, other bits really dont.

To be honest, I think with the amount of hype for years that engulfed the games development, it was going to be near impossible to please everyone at all times. This is the world of MMOs and alot of people fail to realise that.
As for the population issue, a mix of saturated market and hype (which always leads to major dissapointment) will mean there simply isnt a number 1 MMO anymore, nor will there probarly be one, unless you still count WoW.

This game will not fail. It has already passed alot of the early day worries and continues to build revenue, playerbase and job opportunities (anet have been hiring for a while, other devs have been firing). Does this mean it will eventually become king of MMOs? No. Theres no room for kings anymore until the next technical marvel that would inspire millions in the way wow did.

EDIT; The b2p buisness model was the smartest move Anet have made to date. Not only is it a trend setter, but the fact is even those who have deleted the game are still part of the playerbase, therefore new content and ideas are potential ways of bringing those players back into the game.

Krosslite.1950:

Hamfast.8719:

Krosslite.1950:

LA is the central HUB of the game. that is why it gets all the holiday stuff. you are just going to have to get use to it

LA has (most) of the holiday stuff currently. Fine.

The pirates are not “holiday stuff”. There is no reason they couldn’t have located them in Bloodtide Coast or another suitable area.

We do not have to “get used to” everything. We have a suggestions forum to have a voice and possibly get things changed. We don’t like dungeons in major cities, so we are asking for a change in future policy. I refuse to take your defeatist “there’s nothing we can do” attitude since we are doing something.

it is more of a realist attitude

Realist attitude or not, the guy has a major point.

Also, other than the fact that LA is the main city, there is still absolutely NO reason (other than lore straw clutching, ‘it makes sense’ isnt definitive in a fantasy mmorpg) that holidays and events need to be focused around LA.

Yep, fully agree.

When the patch went live I literally gasped at the decision to make the new dungeon in LA again.
Im in a overflow most times in LA anyway, since the start of the pirates event I havnt seen the main server at all.
Dragon bash is now Lag bash…

I dont understand why each holiday has to be focused around LA either.. OK yes its the main city, however it would make alot more logistical sense (in terms of game design) to center them around the racial cities – Have decorations and stuff in LA still, but have the mini-games and features of the event happen in a racial or two. Would obviously help the issue regarding lack of reason to visit each city.

When SAB was around, it was amazing to see so many people in rata sum. I want the same for DR, as thats the most wasted potential iv ever come across in a games world design.

I do assume though, considering LA is beginning to become cramped with content (ok dung wont stay BUT moa racing will), Anet will start fleshing out the racials when appropriate. I like the fact they added a perma mini game in there, lets hope they reach DR and give us target shooting sometime soon.

GODkitten IT.

Another good dungeon goes into the pile for fractal use later on.

Its a shame, although when they arrive in fractal form I guess itll be around the time everyone is relieved to see it again, as I can see many people burning themselves out in the mean time.

Its funny how everyone screams WE NEED MORE CHALLENGE. Then when a semi hard dungeon comes along you immediately find forum threads about parties giving up after 8 wipes.

LULZ.

8 wipes is absolutely nothing. Our party wiped 3-4 times at the lazer bit coz people couldnt grasp the concept of standing on boxes… We then took about another 30ish mins to complete the dungeon with another few wipes at the last boss.. Ater which we all agreed that it was the best one to date (even giving MF a run for its money).

I cannot express enough how satisfying it was to not only lead the group, but too get through it even with the lack of skill from some players was immensely gratifying. First time in ages I have had to talk to a PUG and theorise tactics.

Challenge is good. Dont like it? Get back to CoFp1 where you belong.

LOL.

Does nobody think to put their most precious items in invisible bags like I do?

Guess that would be way too easy for most people.

OP, much better idea… Use gold to buy normal coffers from the TP, you can buy 1000 for just over 12g.

That got me 2 tickets. Rinse and repeat as much as youd like (however fair warning, the very aspect of RNG means theres no guarentee.. But at least you dont have to spend RL money unless you want to replace the gold you spend on coffers. Somehow, even though it isnt, that way seems alot better in my mind than rich coffers.

Would never purchase gem store chests again personally. And if the system goes back to the last events, where chest drops were rare as hell, ill be boycotting the whole RNG chest issue once again.

Im not a fan of mounts in the PVE setting… Although It wouldnt be a game breaker if they were intrduced.

As for WvW and bigger PVP maps… I think mounts would really benefit players on a tactical level. As iv suggested before; Have types of mount that can be countered by other types (like a trinity system, scout, tank and support).

They need to arrive in gw2 style though. I wouldnt be happy with them being pure cosmetic that give little incentive behind using them as they have no advantage. Much prefer a risk/reward system that allows wuver to quickly scout areas, fortify zergs or lend moving support skills to a small group in order to smaller groups to combat zergs.
They just need to figure out how to limit their use, rather than every player being able to access them at any time.

Suggested this a while back.

Mobs and especially bosses NEED better AI. Dodging, actively moving out of AoE, using builds and skills to compliment each other (combos etc) and a full set of 10 skills for harder monsters.

Its mad how some bosses seem to have a whole 3 skills in their arsenal.

niea.7504:

I guess I shouldn’t have expected a thread like this to take too long to devolve into grammar nonsense.

Already got my popcorn – Need to cancel my netflix sub this is far more entertaining.

Guys, please read what you have written, re-read and read again before posting, this kind of squabble is exactly why anet mods are heavy handed.

Sabelle.2159:

This thread again. And again. And again. And again. And again. And Again.

RNG is something inherent in nearly every single MMO. The regular coffers aren’t even that bad. You can buy most of them for chump change. I don’t understand the fixation.

And yes, totally agree mate.

I was one of the many shouting for a RNG boycott, and as id still suggest people avoid anything RNG from the gem store, I like the options anet have provided with this one.

The very fact that they drop frequently and are tradeable makes it more than acceptable. I just splashed out on gems to convert to gold, in which i bought 500 coffers off the TP.
Im another 2 tickets up (2 tickets before this aswell) which means I can buy not only get one, I can buy every piece I actually like. Still got another 10g as disposable (the rest is smartly banked hehe) that I can buy another 500 if any of my alts demand extras.
So with 2 daggers, a sword and a hammer later… Im actually very happy with the RNG. Yes, as ill say again, I would def prefer a straight gem to skin purchase but we cant get what we want all the time… Im not a child after all, I understand the basics of life/risk/reward.

Aslong as further updates are the same in terms of drop rates for the chests themselves, its no longer a game breaker.

Erasculio.2914:

…Is how much of it is made by people who want to keep something as bad as RNG in place.

The worst RNG in the game is the one that rewards luck (something which doesn’t really deserve a reward) and has been set in place so people keep buying RNG boxes in order to try to find items. It’s a mediocre design, based on the idea that players are foolish enough to waste their money on RNG boxes.

At the same time, the great majority of the community (and thus the great majority of the complainers) are grinders, farmers and so on.

And guess what? Farming rewards time spent (something which doesn’t really deserve a reward) and has been set in place so people keep grinding in order to try to find better items. It’s a mediocre design, based on the idea that players are foolish enough to waste their time on grind.

I wonder if we will soon have players addicted to RNG, just like we have players addicted to farming, claiming it’s a good thing. One design is as bad as the other, and both have been set in place to milk money from players, not to make good games.

As much as i hate that unique temporary skins are hidden behind chests, RNG is vastly important in some ways.
Dont even think about a player driven economy without it. Dont expect to be entertained for 1000+ hours without it either. RNG in some format has been a staple for Rpgs since their creation… It all goes back to D+Ds and players rolling dice – Luck is what keeps stale content fresh, because the outcome is never certain.

Yes I would love to see actual skins on the gem store rather than a RNG chest system, however you cannot expect MMOs to drop RNG completely. If thats what your suggesting you really have no idea on the actual mechanics behind a MMORPG.

Deimos Tel Arin.7391:

Do you want Ascended Armors & Weapons?

Provided if,

1. The “Ascended Armor / Weapon Stats” are introduced as “Ascended Armor / Weapon Upgrade Stones” that turns Level 80 (Current Max Level) Exotic Armor / Weapon Stats into Level 80 (Current Max Level) Ascended Armor / Weapon Stats. Thus allowing you to retain your current armor skins without hassle, and upgrading the armor stats to ascended.

2. We are able craft Level 80 (Current Max Level) Ascended Armors, Weapons, Trinkets, Back Pieces via crafting stations.

3. The crafting materials required to craft Level 80 Ascended Armors, Weapons, Trinkets, Back Pieces are reasonable and not does not require an outrageous grind. For example, we need 1850 Fractal Relics to have ONE Ascended Back Item. The grind is a bit too much. There should be a skin-less no grind version of the Ascended Back Piece. Skin-less as in, does not show up on our toon, like those Back Items we got from our personal story:

http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Back_item
Personal story
No level requirement
From any of the level 33 quests: Killer Instinct, Down the Hatch, or Bad Blood.
Choice of: Hearty Back Brace, Enduring Back Brace, or Strong Back Brace.
L80 requirement/Masterwork:
From completing the personal story quests: Blast from the Past, Ships of the Line, The Steel Tide
Choice of: Berserkers Spineguard of the Berserker, Clerics Spineguard of the Cleric or Rampagers Spineguard of the Rampager

4. Acquire Ascended Armors, Weapons, Trinkets, Back Pieces with Karma.

5. A reasonable chance to acquire Ascended Armors, Weapons, Trinkets, Back Items via special dynamic events all over Tyria.

If all of the above are true and valid, would you still want “Ascended Armor” & “Ascended Weapons” then?

All of the above. Well mostly.

1. With the transmutation system this is a ridiculous option. Surely ascended weps and armor will come with transmutation stones.

2. Yes of course. Should be time consuming to craft and tradeable.

3. Yea i agree with that example the grind is too much.. Yet it does sit well within the range of exotic to legendary – which was their purpose anyway. What i would suggest is a grind, but varied grind. Instead of having to collect 1000 of these, you had to collect 10s of multiple components etc.

4. Yes of course.

5. OF COURSE!

Meglobob.8620:

Ever wondered why your favourite skill/trait class got nerfed/buffed, moved around?

Well, its influenced by SOTG (State of the game) meetings between 2 devs and 4 players.

However, having watched several of them, it has several flaws that should be addressed…

1) Not all 8 classes are represented. Some classes in particular like the Ranger, Necro for example never have a voice because no one plays that class…so anything the devs say, the players say nothing on because lets face it they don’t main them classes so are not interested…

I think the format should be changed so its 2 devs + 8 players, with 1 player having as there main each class, so all 8 are represented…this would help balance more and avoid a particular class getting unfairly nerfed…

2) All the players are top tpvp players, so all the changes just revolve around tPvP play, with little to no thought about the effect in PvE & WvW which the VAST MAJORITY of the GW2 player base play…

More thought needs to be paid to the effects of those changes in PvE and WvW.

3) Top end tPvP is a million miles away from the way 99% of GW2 players play the game, should those players really have so much input into skills/traits? Especially, as the 99% via gem store purchases probably pay all the bills atm…

I think this very much deserves to discussed…

Your first point has a… well.. a point.

Your second doesnt because balance within spvp and wvw/pve are seperated. State of the game is there because only high end spvp players know the spvp meta game inside and out – where as thousands of players understand the meta for wvw and spvp and the pure data can act as a players voice.

thirdly, again irellevant as spvp is seperate, therefore should deserve a seperate feature. Well known pros have to be included as thats what spvp players aspire to be. With the push on esports it wouldnt make sense if you had a show that all quality of spvp players repped.

The thing that alot of people need to remember, rather than shouting about how broken their current is its a lot more important getting the game into a balanced state in which every class has multiple of viable builds.

I personally couldnt care less if my current builds were unviable after the update, so long as the classes become more balanced for the sakes of the future health of the game.
I mean, after all, I had to learn my current build and this is a ever changing game, I can just as easily learn another one if i have to.

This all stems from CoF and the Zerk mentality.

If CoF ever gets nerfed…
And dungeons/pve require other builds to be successful (ie truly challenging content that requires forward thinking)…
And the new LFG tool doesnt allow a player set title…

Then i believe the problem will become less apparent.

The worst thing anet could do is to leave CoF alone and allow players to create LFG groups entitled ‘Cof p1 – LF3M Zerk Warriors + experienced elite kittenheads only, must complete dungeon 30 secs after normal groups or l2p noobs’.

Yea coffers have brought me back into WvW initially… And since my PC can handle it better with the optimisations recently.. Im a happy wuv wuver again.

As for the open world, I have noticed that I tend to move about more often AND kill more things.

Coffer drops also made me forget about screaming ‘boycott RNG’ to everyone i chat to as well. So props for that anet.

And personally… god i cant believe im even saying this….. I WOULD LOVE a perma RNG box that has a chance of dropping from everything in the game world. Make the chance at dropping slightly less than event ones with an extremely rare chance at dropping past events tickets.

Even better. Upgrade BL boxes to rich boxes (still need keys) and implement a BL chest that doesnt require a key and includes past tickets and other rare items. EVEN if its a incredibly low rate at dropping rarer items, that would still make me happier in terms of past skins and it would also increase the value of rich boxes for the TP.

This again? Every single patch we have this… Someone find that record player and fix it please.

Been getting mostly 2-3 ectos per rare. Only had a few in the last week that have dropped zero. Ill keep count next time I go on a meta event run, but i can honestly say i have more ectos than the rares i salvaged.

Vayne.8563:

I’ve seen this posted before. It’s not unexpected. It’s been a pretty bad year for MMOs in general. I don’t really expect next year to be much better.

A lot of the problems with MMOs today is the unrealistic expectation of players. I’m not talking about people who want harder core games or more sand box features. I’m talking about people who go into games expecting them to be relatively bug free, or get updated faster than possible or have more content faster than is possible.

Sometimes I feel like Scotty on the Enterprise yelling, “I can’t change the laws of physics. This repair is going to take some time.” lol

this is it exactly.

As i was talking to a guildie about this last night, ill say the same here;

Picture ANY vanilla MMO and compare it with guild wars 2. Theres not many I can think of thats better in terms of content, quality/polish and innovation.

The problem stems from expectation that has amounted for new games, originately from expections set by games that have been public for an age.
Someone who has played WoW for years wants a new MMO that instantly does everything WoW has done… and more. Its ridiculous because each game is within its own right, completely different from each other. So even if technology allows devs to keep up with past innovations, theres still alot of testing that individual communities have to report and review. Its all trial and error. One feature in guild wars 1 might not work with the audience guild wars 2 has for example.

That is what takes real time, and how many developers tend to make huge mistakes, its learning how to develop for each specific community in mind that’s the problem.

Sometimes I wonder if people actually understand the work involved in the games they play.

That might be your castle friend, BUT THIS IS OUR BORDERLANDS.

The next system interlinked with this idea is a little more complicated to implement. The idea is basically an upgradeable borderlands, however one that the whole server can contribute to. The system surrounding this could be up for debate, however at the minute I have chosen a method I think is most suitable.

This would require a few things initially;

- New type of supply, called Fortification Resources which can only be carried by the borderlands defending team.
- New nodes surrounding the maps supply camps (rich ones hidden by DE’s), that are limited in usage, not instanced as per normal nodes to each player, but shared among the server like traditional resource nodes. They can only be picked up when the appropriate supply camp is controlled.
- New chokepoints, walls and other tactical defences that can be built by players holding Fortification Resource, spread across each borderland. Not in EB. These spots are predetermined, with a building site at each one that players must apply Fortification Resources to.

So the idea here is for players to work together, collecting Fortification Resources, then choosing what parts of the map to upgrade with new chokepoints etc. The scope for this is pretty unlimited, bearing in mind that upgrading is extremely limited. This means servers need to choose between themselves what to upgrade and what to leave alone. Choice, effect and balanced gameplay.
The system would have a cap on the amount of the upgrades to be taken aswell. If theres 10 new buildable points, lets say the max you can have at one time is 5. Obviously each point is attackable and destroyable, so if a server has 5 upgrades up and one gets destroyed – they can relocate that upgrade to a different one or just rebuild it if desired. This would mean the map can include a slight abundance of Fort Resource, so attacking teams NEED to stop players from reaching it, while making the defending team more vulnerable in certain positions.
For a basic example see below;

Reinforced Wall A (500 fort resource)- Spanning between main garrison and bay
Reinforced Wall B (500 fort resource)- Spanning between main garrison and hills

Amount of upgrades available – 1
Amount of fort resource left in the map – 700

The above example would require a choice to be made about what upgrade to apply while relieving pressure on one side of the map (tacticians would put it on the side of the dominant force). Attackers would also have to hit camps and defend them to ensure defending players cannot control Fortification Resource in order to upgrade these points. Instantly you create a complicated yet fun scenario in which every team can gain distinct advantages over the other servers.

I personally think of this as a massive expansion to WvW meta game. One in which would add much neede variety to each matchups gameplay. With cosmetic customisation, the improvements within server identity would only strengthen the community around it.

Imagine a server in which there’s that guy who always controls the castle, worse yet he has picked the fantasy light style that makes it look like disneys magic kingdom. Upon learning of the matchup your 400 man WvW starts making plans to rid EB of him for good?

Imagine a top tier server that is well known for decent upgrade placement, while your own server is well known for supply camp defence, destorying most servers chances at even upgrading. The Wvw forum explodes with talk and predictions of how it will go?

Imagine knowing each server, not by there name nor there tier placement… But by certain tactical game-play and borderland control.

Imagine facing a server and genuinely feeling like your playing a new map in all 3 borderlands.

I hope you guys can imagine it as well as I do, and if not, Id love to hear you C&C. Im not shy to that sort of thing

A quick warning – This post will probably end up being quite long and as extensive as possible, al though while I consider myself a creative person, who can accurately kitten the implications of certain systems within a virtual world, I ill never claim to be as good as an actual developer in terms of knowing the technicalities behind MMOs, in terms of lore and mechanical systems like stat balance.

So with that out the way;

My idea is to drastically improve WvW horizontally and reduce stagnation over time.

TLDR version – Let the server as a whole contribute towards and choose upgrades to the servers own borderland. This would include cosmetic and tactical improvements, with choice, effect and balance in mind with the latter.

Long version –
THIS IS MAH CASTLE. YA?

The first system I am proposing would revolve around the existing ‘claiming towers, keeps and castle’ system.
To begin with (to make it fair for the whole server including those players that don’t play in guilds) a new vendor item would need to be implemented, called ‘Certificate of ownership’. Similar to the commander book, this would be a fairly expensive item (20-50 gold) that would grant players the ability to individually claim land within wvw. Once claimed, the banner image would be replaced by a portrait of the player. This would then, give that player access to cosmetic upgrades to the applicable control point. The upgrades would be tiered within a tree, upgrading one branch of the tree would lock the other branches out, so that each branch can dictate a visual style. Examples of these styles are below (examples are just uncreative placeholders);

Branch 1 – Human
Activate branch and style > Add moat + bridge > Add outhouses, more buildings outside walls > activate style for whole controlled area + human NPCs
Branch 2 – Charr
Branch 3 – Slyvari (obviously asura and norn could be branches as well)
Branch 4 – Dark fantasy (if more generic styles are required then a dark spiked look would be pretty awesome)
Branch 5 – Carebear fantasy (for all those running about with the rainbow shortbow xD)

Now once captured the point is reset back to its original state. This may seem harsh but it gives a true sense of ownership. For players and guilds, holding their own tower/keep/castle will begin to seem like something worthy of holding – rather than the cap battles we have right now. Once better general upgrades come into world vs world, youll begin to see guilds claiming caps and maintaining a defensive force so it remains theres. The cosmetic side of upgrades is purely to enhance this idea of ownership so the generic upgrades become more worthy of purchasing. Right now the big problem is noone really cares about whether the keep they just capped gets taken again, aslong as they have enough of a zerg to take it right back.

But anyways, on to the important stuff;

almost forgot the few points i would like to see in a expansion (heres hoping free updates brings this but i cant count on it)

- Massive guild update. Basic functionality plus guild halls, gvg and alot more thats been suggested again and again.
- Massive DE update – bring de’s to how they were described before beta. Basically NPC factions dynamically battling over an entire map – the player being able to make good factions win etc. Real implications for success and failure. This needs to include all existing DEs aswell, so that tyria doesnt become obsolete.

BUT ABOVE ALL.
SANDBOX CONTENT. Oh yes.
Player housing, real farming, hunting, building. A player ecomony based on resource and pvp. Maybe a special map of WvW in which has FFAPVP type gameplay. Thinking of the third continent of archeage style in which players could build towers, keeps, castles that control a portion of the map – then dictate pvp rules (FFA or server allied) for region controlled, tax rates for player housing built on land, all attackable by enemy guilds, servers or even rogue players. All this made possible by a player driven resource system. Maybe certain DEs could activate under each region (for example, a server allied region would have NPCs from the opposing servers creating DE’s while a FFA region would have pirates and mercenarys wreaking havoc on everyone). Of course this means that extra wvw map would have to be as big as all 3 BLs and EBs combined.

This in itself would drastically improve the endgame. The amount of player chosen roles available would be immense and give players a feeling of value within the zergs of this game.
You would have pure crafters, supply runners, scouts, pirates, anti PVPers, alliance and negotiation co-ordinators, spys, mercenarys and explorers just to name a few.

Even if my ideas were flamed by the community, without a sandbox endgame, guild wars 2 is going to stay in this paradoxical state in which half the playerbase is confused at what the endgame actually is. FFA might be abit too hardcore for the games audience, but im sure heavily payed designers could come up with something better than me anyway.

PS> Another thing that just came to me is the idea of server identity within Wvw in general. Lets have players choosing building styles and decorations. Let players make choices like > either build a defensive wall on this side of the map, or this side. Aslong as the choices are balanced and would require players to work towards it (say for a new wall you would have to collect resources and badges by the thousands, and combine efforts across the whole server). Imagine going up agaisnt a brand new server and each BL being different in slight but still tactically beneficial ways. Would reduce the stagnation drastically.
In fact im gonna flesh the idea out more and then post a thread up specially.

cesmode.4257:

I dont want to see an expansion.
Expansion will most likely mean more levels which means my gear is outdated which justifies every rant on these forums about this game straying from its core and heading toward gear grind/treadmill/gear progression.

This is something anet need to see, again and again and again.

Iv been worried ever since colin said they wernt ruling new levels out.

Saying that i would love to see a expansion that didnt contradict the manifesto. Give us cantha and anet would be pulling past fans back in left right and centre.

I’ll +1 anything that increases immersion, and the game needs alot more dynamic systems if it wants to claim its living and breathing.

tigirius.9014:

• When the dynamic events system was described as truly dynamic, that our choices and failures would make a difference

• When our home city was to reflect our adventures.

;)

These two statements haunt me. I remember too.

I also remember;

Its ready, when its ready.

So im hoping that one statement was a lie, and that Anet remembers your 2 points as well as I do for future expans and updates. Unfortunately it does seem like Anet thinks of the DE system as something ‘to be proud of’. Yes there’s a few chains that are impressive, however most are hollow and do little storytelling. And then there’s the fact that very little change the world in meaningful ways.

Id love transmutation stones that can transmute armour of different armour types.

Instantly open up alot of different skin opportunities and I would pay 800 gems for a pack of 6 to fully skin my characters.

As iv been telling everyone, play wvw!

The drop rate seems to be higher for coffers to drop. Maybe its the insane amount of loot bags you go through.

As for the wings, I personally got 2 drop from wvw and not much time playing (prob 3-4 hours). Now a guildy swore to me that wvw had better drops than pve – Didnt really believe him till he linked the wings and said he got 3 in one day. Now maybe it was a placebo effect but here i am with 2 sets to sell after the event.

After all, a positive attitude has been proven to alter the result of RNG…. Sounds crazy right?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_Consciousness_Project

Try it, you might never know how lucky you can be!

Guys were talking about dragons kitten .

They breathe fire and somehow have the wingspan to support a fully boned (albeit dragonbone) lizard to fly at will.

And theres people complaining about which way their horns go? xD

Yea its already been confirmed that devs want to keep every item from events preview-able by new players.

Its a good idea for your reason.

Its a bad idea that new players are gonna see how much stuff they have missed out on. Anet you have restored abit of my faith by making these coffers drop everywhere – HOWEVER – More permanent additions would be invaluable atm – considering the lack of skins outside these events.

In my opinion, not introducing permanently achievable sets will only hurt this game down the road.