# Guild Wars 2 - (8-28-12)



## Murmel (Jun 29, 2012)

So who's getting it? I haven't pre-ordered yet which I've had regrets about since I haven't been able to play the beta then. I'll probably order it tonight and hope they will have a beta or 2 before release 

I played the crap out of GW1, gonna miss the Ritualist. I'll probably roll a Necromancer to start off, or a Ranger or Elementalist. Me and mage types generally don't mix because I wanna be in the middle of stuff, but we'll see


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## MrGignac (Jun 29, 2012)

ive pre-ordered and played in the betas. Its one of the funnest MMO's ive ever played. and WvW is sooooooo badass


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## atimoc (Jun 29, 2012)

During its first 1-2 years GW1 was the best game I've ever played. Later the game content got a bit too grindy so I'm a bit worried how GW2 will turn out in that regard in the long run. 

The concept of the game seems really promising though, if they get things right it could be the biggest MMO hit in a good while.


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## ShreddingDragon (Jun 30, 2012)

I'm looking forward to it. I really hope it's going to hit big and GW fans will be excited... I'm not an MMO fan at all, since I love immersion and roleplaying, and MMOs generally don't have either of those. But I might give this one a try. It sounds really good and if the game itself is very fun to play, I think might work out for me too.


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## Sicarius (Jun 30, 2012)

I'll probably give it a shot since it's F2P. Don't really know much about it.


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## vampiregenocide (Aug 4, 2012)

Has anyone played the beta? I might pick this up as it's a non-subscription, and looks beautiful. Probably roll a Ranger, seeing as my main on WoW is a hunter.


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## Fiction (Aug 4, 2012)

I'm real Excited to nab this, been aching for a new MMO for a while, WoW has never appealed me and the no-sub makes it 10x better.


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## troyguitar (Aug 4, 2012)

Sounds like they're going to have some kind of item shop to make money? I hate those, would rather pay a subscription.


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## pink freud (Aug 4, 2012)

I played all the BWEs but no stress tests (they liked to schedule them when I was at work).

It's very different from a regular MMO. You will never be overpowered, as you will always be leveled down to content (but not leveled up, except for PVP stuff). This means that you can't really solo difficult content no matter your level.

I found the leveling process to be a bit slow. You have to either wait around for the next portion of an event to pop up, "quest" while underlevel or go to another zone. The first areas max out at 15, but I finished two zones and ended up at levels 10 and 13.

The cities are epic. The size of the things... Just be glad they installed free quick-travel within the cities.


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## Ayo7e (Aug 4, 2012)

Played the last beta-weekend because I got a beta-key, 5 mins after the beta ended I had to pre-ordered it.


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## pink freud (Aug 4, 2012)

Ayo7e said:


> Played the last beta-weekend because I got a beta-key, 5 mins after the beta ended I had to pre-ordered it.



Aren't the Silvari so epic? Teh glowz...


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## vampiregenocide (Aug 5, 2012)

troyguitar said:


> Sounds like they're going to have some kind of item shop to make money? I hate those, would rather pay a subscription.



Micro-transactions seem like a better choice. I don't want to pay a subscription, especially since I already play WoW. Would be too expensive. MT worked for Team Fortress 2 though. That game made a killing through it.


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## troyguitar (Aug 5, 2012)

vampiregenocide said:


> Micro-transactions seem like a better choice. I don't want to pay a subscription, especially since I already play WoW. Would be too expensive. MT worked for Team Fortress 2 though. That game made a killing through it.



I don't like them because of that. Being able to pay more for better items/performance/whatever makes things too much like the real world. I prefer the subscription model where everyone is on an even footing at all times.

I played Runes of Magic for awhile which is basically WoW but with an item shop instead of subscriptions and to build a single character up for high end content cost well over $100. In theory you could do it without paying money, but it took so long that you would be 2 expansions behind by the time you got built up so using the cash shop was mandatory if you wanted to ever see end game content. 

If GW2 is the same, forget it.


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## vampiregenocide (Aug 5, 2012)

troyguitar said:


> I don't like them because of that. Being able to pay more for better items/performance/whatever makes things too much like the real world. I prefer the subscription model where everyone is on an even footing at all times.
> 
> I played Runes of Magic for awhile which is basically WoW but with an item shop instead of subscriptions and to build a single character up for high end content cost well over $100. In theory you could do it without paying money, but it took so long that you would be 2 expansions behind by the time you got built up so using the cash shop was mandatory if you wanted to ever see end game content.
> 
> If GW2 is the same, forget it.



I doubt it would be to give people an edge. Probably mostly aesthetic, like TF2 selling hats.


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## Winspear (Aug 5, 2012)

Just as I was having thoughts about trying to casually take up a game again....Eek..Bad idea!


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## pink freud (Aug 5, 2012)

troyguitar said:


> I don't like them because of that. Being able to pay more for better items/performance/whatever makes things too much like the real world. I prefer the subscription model where everyone is on an even footing at all times.
> 
> I played Runes of Magic for awhile which is basically WoW but with an item shop instead of subscriptions and to build a single character up for high end content cost well over $100. In theory you could do it without paying money, but it took so long that you would be 2 expansions behind by the time you got built up so using the cash shop was mandatory if you wanted to ever see end game content.
> 
> If GW2 is the same, forget it.



1) GW2 isn't gear based. Once you get the dungeon gear/pvp gear/crafted gear at level 80, that's as good as it gets. After that it's all cosmetics.

2) The item shop is mostly about cosmetics as well. Pay for dye packs, clothing and whatnot. There are also various XP boosters. The item shop is also where you pay for server transfers (which only really matter if you want to change your WvWvW, as you can "quest" with anybody on any server). You start off with 5 character slots. You can purchase more (up to three, I think) in the shop.

GW2 is really different from the MMO you are used to. As an experiment, one of the dudes from Gamebreaker.tv did a dungeon run with 5 people in all DPS specs. They had a rough going, but they beat the dungeon.


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## Fiction (Aug 5, 2012)

EtherealEntity said:


> Just as I was having thoughts about trying to casually take up a game again....Eek..Bad idea!


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## troyguitar (Aug 6, 2012)

pink freud said:


> 1) GW2 isn't gear based. Once you get the dungeon gear/pvp gear/crafted gear at level 80, that's as good as it gets. After that it's all cosmetics.
> 
> 2) The item shop is mostly about cosmetics as well. Pay for dye packs, clothing and whatnot. There are also various XP boosters. The item shop is also where you pay for server transfers (which only really matter if you want to change your WvWvW, as you can "quest" with anybody on any server). You start off with 5 character slots. You can purchase more (up to three, I think) in the shop.
> 
> GW2 is really different from the MMO you are used to. As an experiment, one of the dudes from Gamebreaker.tv did a dungeon run with 5 people in all DPS specs. They had a rough going, but they beat the dungeon.



Interesting, perhaps I'll give it a shot in my copious spare time


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## Winspear (Aug 6, 2012)

Been doing some research and I'm definitely gonna pick it up. Haven't gamed in years - I often feel that urge to just become an elf or some shit for an hour or two and it looks like this game will allow me to do that and achieve something significant, rather than grinding haha. Awesome.


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## ShadyDavey (Aug 7, 2012)

Defintely tempted - couple of friends play it so I have some contacts even whilst I never played the first one. 

Necromancer eh?


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## vampiregenocide (Aug 7, 2012)

Well if any UK lads are getting it, hit me up. I'm gonna pick it up ad it would be good to play with people on here.


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## XEN (Aug 7, 2012)

Me and the wife are in. The betas felt better and more polished than most actual releases of other MMOs (ahem STO). We've played multiple types of combos and have yet to settle on a preference. In WoW she was the healer and I was dps, but in GW2 the roles are so different that we're finding great freedom in not being pigeonholed. 
I was surprised at how much I liked the Asura. I didn't want to stop playing my little guardian. He was all kinds of cool.


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## Fiction (Aug 7, 2012)

SSO Clan?


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## pink freud (Aug 7, 2012)

Fiction said:


> SSO Clan?



That's another cool thing. You can be in multiple guilds. Not quite sure how it works, but it's apparently possible.


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## Chiba666 (Aug 8, 2012)

Think I may have to pick this pne up. I really enjoyed GW1 and enjoyed wow to a point.

What could possibly go wrong if I start playing these srts of games again, Hmm I wonder.


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## Fiction (Aug 8, 2012)

Been watching gameplay vids past hour, getting even more excited now haha.


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## Winspear (Aug 8, 2012)

Chiba666 said:


> What could possibly go wrong if I start playing these srts of games again, Hmm I wonder.



So much this 

I'm trying to decide between a Norn necro or guardian, or a human thief or ele. Leaning towards the casters at the moment.


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## vampiregenocide (Aug 8, 2012)

I think I'm going for a Charr engineer and a Norn ranger. You can turn into a god damn were-raven with their racials. So epic.


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## Ayo7e (Aug 8, 2012)

<<< Ranger here, human or norn, I am not sure.


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## Lagtastic (Aug 8, 2012)

Been looking forward to this for a long time. Beta tests have been very fun.


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## Ayo7e (Aug 9, 2012)

Stress test today!


I open a BOX! It&#39;s Guild Wars II hehehehehe. - YouTube


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## Bennykins (Aug 10, 2012)

Just pre-ordered the collector's edition, which is crazy expensive here in Australia ($200). Still, there is some nice stuff in it - and I'm a sucker for game soundtracks (plus the action figure looks pretty cool).


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## Winspear (Aug 10, 2012)

So excited.


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## Lagtastic (Aug 12, 2012)

Performance has picked up for my desktop immensely over the past few beta weekends and stress tests. I installed it on my mid range 3year old laptop out of curiosity and it actually ran decent. 30FPS in PvE combat areas with 20 other players around. My boss thinks I am going out of town on Aug 25th, and the family think I've got a big work project for 4 days. I need an IV full of Mountain Dew and I will be set.


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## Winspear (Aug 13, 2012)

Lagtastic said:


> Performance has picked up for my desktop immensely over the past few beta weekends and stress tests. I installed it on my mid range 3year old laptop out of curiosity and it actually ran decent. 30FPS in PvE combat areas with 20 other players around. My boss thinks I am going out of town on Aug 25th, and the family think I've got a big work project for 4 days. I need an IV full of Mountain Dew and I will be set.





That's good news. My new system will absolutely slay it, but until I get that it's good to know. 
I think I've done all the reading/watching I want to do now. I'd like to remain fairly clueless I think.
Hopefully will be able to pick it up a week or two after release. I think most of all I am looking forward to playing a game for less than 10 hours a week, and not trying to do/beat/get everything and be the best - a concept which is entirely alien to me


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## Lagtastic (Aug 13, 2012)

EtherealEntity said:


> That's good news. My new system will absolutely slay it, but until I get that it's good to know.
> I think I've done all the reading/watching I want to do now. I'd like to remain fairly clueless I think.
> Hopefully will be able to pick it up a week or two after release. I think most of all I am looking forward to playing a game for less than 10 hours a week, and not trying to do/beat/get everything and be the best - a concept which is entirely alien to me




I was having performance trouble in the beginning of the betas, and I have a first gen i7, GeForce 570, 8GB DDR3, etc. It's still not quite where I would like it, so I ordered a new mobo, CPU, and SSD. I;m sure my Windows could use a reload as well, which is probably causing some of my FPS drops to be honest. 


I'm in the same boat. In college and just after I was one of those "I have to be the best _______ on the server" guys as well. I just don't have the desire to commit that much time to games anymore. You'll find a ton of people like us are going to GW2 for this reason, and I expect to see some skilled people in PvP because of that. 


I've been watching the GW2 countdown vids on this guys Youtube page, he's in the middle of putting up walkthroughs of all the jumping puzzles that were available in the betas too. If you want something GW2 to watch for 15minutes a day, check it out.

Wooden Potatoes - YouTube


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## atimoc (Aug 13, 2012)

Based on the recent beta experiences, do you guys think an i3 2100 and a Radeon HD7770 could handle the game well?


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## BlackMastodon (Aug 14, 2012)

Fuuuuuck I think I might actually buy this especially since its F2P. I was really into WoW in high school but got sick of it and same with WAR. I might as well put my Alienware laptop to use for more than just League of Legends. 

Will the stuff from the specialty shop that you guys were talking about also be available through in game currency? 'Cause I wouldn't mind that at all. These Charr engineers do look badass though. And what is this "aquatic" weaponry I see, what's this all aboot?


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## pink freud (Aug 14, 2012)

BlackMastodon said:


> Fuuuuuck I think I might actually buy this especially since its F2P. I was really into WoW in high school but got sick of it and same with WAR. I might as well put my Alienware laptop to use for more than just League of Legends.
> 
> Will the stuff from the specialty shop that you guys were talking about also be available through in game currency? 'Cause I wouldn't mind that at all. These Charr engineers do look badass though. And what is this "aquatic" weaponry I see, what's this all aboot?



When you fight underwater you pull out a different weapon (spear for melee, harpoon gun for ranged, I forget what magic users get).

In GW2 the majority of classes get two weapon sets to switch between, plus an automatic aquatic weapon you equip underwater. This allows Warriors to equip a melee set and have a ranged set to switch to when needed (as an example). Only Elementalists are constrained to one weapon set (plus aquatic) but they can "stance dance" between four elements, each element giving five abilities.

A quick note on weapons: Your weapon comp defines your character, even more than your class. Every weapon has it's unique abilities. For more information I highly suggest taking a look at this site: Skills tool | Guild Wars 2 It's initially in French, but there's a language select in the corner.


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## atimoc (Aug 15, 2012)

Another stress test in < 3 hours


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## jbard (Aug 15, 2012)

I can't wait for release. What's the word on a forum guild? heh.


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## pink freud (Aug 15, 2012)

Well, I know a ton of people are planning on joining the Darkhaven server (Gamebreaker community, a lot of Reddit people). I guess whoever tags the name SSO first, eh?


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## Lagtastic (Aug 15, 2012)

BlackMastodon said:


> Will the stuff from the specialty shop that you guys were talking about also be available through in game currency? 'Cause I wouldn't mind that at all. These Charr engineers do look badass though. And what is this "aquatic" weaponry I see, what's this all aboot?





The In Game store sells mostly cosmetic stuff, "fun" items, and boosts. Cosmetic stuff examples are aviator sunglasses, a pirate costume, chef costume, etc. One of the examples of a "fun" item is the K.O. cow. When you use it in PvP, instead of doing a normal finishing move you drop a cow out of the sky, landing on your enemy and killing them. The boosts are things like 1 hour 50% exp from kills boost(you get very little XP from actual kills), 1 hour 50% crafting XP bonus, & 1 hour 50% karma bonus (an in-game currency). 

The other thing you can buy at the store are account upgrades. You can unlock additional bag slots for each character (great to have but not really needed unless you have TONS of crap to store), additional bank space (again not really necessary), and additional character slots (you get 5 by default). Just use all 5 of your slots, and store all your crap on other characters for free.

Yes, you can buy things from the In-Game store with in-game currency. In-game currency is called gold, and you buy things from the In-Game store (called the Gem Store) with Gems. Gems, can be bought with real-world dollars or at the currency exchange where you exchange in-game gold for gems. Exchange rates will fluctuate on demand. 

Underwater combat uses X,Y,Z axises for movement and projectiles. I thought it would give me a headache but it didn't. The combat takes advantage of the Z axis well, there are quite a few skills that make foes sink or get pushed towards the surface.

Gem store: http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Gem_Store
Underwater Combat: Underwater mode - Guild Wars 2 Wiki (GW2W)


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## BlackMastodon (Aug 15, 2012)

Lagtastic said:


> The In Game store sells mostly cosmetic stuff, "fun" items, and boosts. Cosmetic stuff examples are aviator sunglasses, a pirate costume, chef costume, etc. One of the examples of a "fun" item is the K.O. cow. When you use it in PvP, instead of doing a normal finishing move you drop a cow out of the sky, landing on your enemy and killing them. The boosts are things like 1 hour 50% exp from kills boost(you get very little XP from actual kills), 1 hour 50% crafting XP bonus, & 1 hour 50% karma bonus (an in-game currency).
> 
> The other thing you can buy at the store are account upgrades. You can unlock additional bag slots for each character (great to have but not really needed unless you have TONS of crap to store), additional bank space (again not really necessary), and additional character slots (you get 5 by default). Just use all 5 of your slots, and store all your crap on other characters for free.
> 
> ...


Very informative man, thanks! Yeah I was only worried about not being able to get like bag upgrades or character slot upgrades from the Gem store using gold but since you can that's damn awesome. And this combat system sounds slick as hell, I am really glad they aren't just going with the standard MMO "lock in and auto-attack while spamming a few abilities" combat mechanism.


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## pink freud (Aug 15, 2012)

BlackMastodon said:


> Very informative man, thanks! Yeah I was only worried about not being able to get like bag upgrades or character slot upgrades from the Gem store using gold but since you can that's damn awesome. And this combat system sounds slick as hell, I am really glad they aren't just going with the standard MMO "lock in and auto-attack while spamming a few abilities" combat mechanism.



Your first ability kind of is an "autoattack" in that it will automatically trigger without you needing to press 1 (or whatever you bind that key to). This allows you to focus more on dodging (yes, dodging is an active command in GW2) and not standing in the fire.


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## Fiction (Aug 15, 2012)

That's what has sucked me in, the whole dodging thing.


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## pink freud (Aug 24, 2012)

If you prepurchased (not preordered) tomorrow is the day! Well, it could be late tonight, but definitely tomorrow. Run your client patchers tonight.


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## Lagtastic (Aug 24, 2012)

Going to get drunk around 4pm and go into a nice nap, wake up for release at 3am.


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## vampiregenocide (Aug 24, 2012)

I'm playing tomorrow! Write here what servers you're on.


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## DMONSTER (Aug 24, 2012)

Been looking into this game this week, looks pretty badass so I prepurchased it as well  wont get to play until tomorrow afternoon but looking forward to it for sure


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## Captain Butterscotch (Aug 25, 2012)

I'm sitting here updating my client and waiting like it's Christmas Eve.


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## Winspear (Aug 25, 2012)

So I'll get my new PC and have this installed in 3 weeks time  It's probably a bad thing that my first thought as a reformed, casual gamer is "Shiiiit, joining way too late after release!"


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## vampiregenocide (Aug 25, 2012)

Downloaded it to find they're having EU server issues. -_- Oh well, should've expected it. Hopefully they sort it out soon.


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## WickedSymphony (Aug 25, 2012)

vampiregenocide said:


> Downloaded it to find they're having EU server issues. -_- Oh well, should've expected it. Hopefully they sort it out soon.



Server issues here, too. Been up a couple hours (screwed up sleep schedule, don't ask  ), and I haven't been able to log in. Says I have connection errors and what not. Got booted a few times last night when it launched as well, couldn't port to different zones, things like that.

Also, I'm on Sea of Sorrows if anyone wants to guest. Just shoot me a PM.


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## Captain Butterscotch (Aug 25, 2012)

I played it until late this morning till I just HAD to go to bed. It's a stupid fun game.


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## vampiregenocide (Aug 25, 2012)

Finally got online and so far I'm loving it. It's a beautiful looking game, and it's fun just exploring. So different though, I was expecting it to be a lot more similar to WoW than it is. Currently playing a Norn ranger and an Asura necromancer, but I think I'm going to make a Charr engineer as my main. 

What servers are you Europeans on? I'm on Piken Square I think. We should all get on one server and make a guild, as server transfers are free for a short time.


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## atimoc (Aug 27, 2012)

This game is tons of fun, there's always something to do, and the combat is fast-paced and interesting. It makes you really experiment beyond the conventional RPG roles and playstyles, for example my best mesmer experiences so far have been with a staff / sword+pistol weapon sets.

The only gripes I have so far are that the camera gets a bit wonky when fighting in caves and generally indoors. Also, with so many players fighting around you it can a bit hard to do melee combat effectively with all the spell FX flying around.


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## vampiregenocide (Aug 27, 2012)

Yeah, targeting can be a bit weird too. I'll target someone and attack them, then random I swap targets during combat. Sometimes to friendlies. :s


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## pink freud (Aug 27, 2012)

vampiregenocide said:


> Yeah, targeting can be a bit weird too. I'll target someone and attack them, then random I swap targets during combat. Sometimes to friendlies. :s



That's due to you being able to fire off abilities even without a target. Shoot an arrow. and if your target wasn't within the cone of fire the arrow is autotargeted (not sure of the exact logic on who it picks just yet).

My only gripe (and I've had it since BWE1) is that fighting in underwater snowballs too quickly. You circle strafe around, shooting one krait, and then find yourself being ganked by three more. Their aggro radius is too big or something.


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## BlackMastodon (Aug 27, 2012)

^The new Murlocs perhaps?

blarghlyarlyarlyarl!!!






I'm enjoying it so far and I'm not even level 10 yet! Can't wait to level up my Charr engineer.


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## pink freud (Aug 27, 2012)

I rolled a Sylvari warrior. I've settled on dual swords (might switch to sword/axe) and rifle, for a Condition build. I'm level sixteen so far and all I can say is applying stacks of bleeds on a spammable AOE is hilariously OP


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## Captain Butterscotch (Aug 29, 2012)

I actually started out with a Sylvari Ranger because that's the class I played for the longest time on the original. I decided to go out of my safe zone and rolled a Norn Engineer. All I gotta say is that it is the most fun game play ever in the history of game play and everyone should at least try out the engi class.


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## troyguitar (Aug 30, 2012)

Do you have to buy the game first or is it strictly free outside the cash shop?


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## Winspear (Aug 30, 2012)

You have to buy it it's about $60 I think. By the way, even if you buy the box you still only get the client installed and have a big download so might as well just download it. 
I think everything in the cash shop is available with ingame money too?


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## vampiregenocide (Aug 30, 2012)

The cash shop uses gems as a currency, but those can be traded for in game gold.


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## oremus91 (Sep 2, 2012)

Just hit level 80. So far launch has been fairly smooth especially in comparison to most games. I'll try not to get into it too much and make this a 4 page post but I can't say enough good things about GW2.


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## pink freud (Sep 2, 2012)

oremus91 said:


> Just hit level 80.





I'm level 30, because I've only been doing the starter zones so far to level up crafting.


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## Winspear (Sep 2, 2012)

Hoping it comes back on sale before my PC arrives on the 12 or 13th!


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## troyguitar (Sep 6, 2012)

How hard is this game on computers? My machine is barely playable in WoW any more and I'm thinking might need an upgrade before really playing anything newer. 

intel e2180 dual core OC'ed to 3GHz
4GB ddr2 OC'ed to 1000MHz
new AMD 7770 stock clocks (fastest card my PSU can handle, I think the CPU is the bottleneck anyway)

I get 10-30 fps in outdoor areas in WoW with settings maxed.


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## Winspear (Sep 6, 2012)

I'd expect it wouldn't run too good as I got 20-30fps on max settings even in raids on WoW, but can't run GTA IV on minimum settings. GW2 is harder than GTA IV. 
Man I hope this is back on sale by the end of next week..


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## Lagtastic (Sep 6, 2012)

troyguitar said:


> How hard is this game on computers? My machine is barely playable in WoW any more and I'm thinking might need an upgrade before really playing anything newer.
> 
> intel e2180 dual core OC'ed to 3GHz
> 4GB ddr2 OC'ed to 1000MHz
> ...





I bet you would be OK at medium settings when you are only around a few people. But, when you're around 5-40+ people, and the spell effects are all over the screen, I bet you would grind down to 2-5 FPS. Your CPU is most likely your bottleneck.

As for the on sale thing, you may find boxed copies in stores still. My friend just bought one at a store two days ago since they suspended online sales.


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## vampiregenocide (Sep 6, 2012)

troyguitar said:


> How hard is this game on computers? My machine is barely playable in WoW any more and I'm thinking might need an upgrade before really playing anything newer.
> 
> intel e2180 dual core OC'ed to 3GHz
> 4GB ddr2 OC'ed to 1000MHz
> ...



If you have trouble with WoW, I doubt it would handle GW2. It's very effects heavy, something people have complained about because there can be so much going on screen, and as a lot of quests you do are open events, you'll have a lot of player on screen even outside dungeons.


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## Fiction (Sep 11, 2012)

So what server are we all on?

Downloading client now


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## BlackMastodon (Sep 11, 2012)

I'm on Stormbluff Isle. Still no guild though.  I haven't actually playing with my friends yet either but oh well, I'm loving the single player. I tried to do a bit of WvW but it didn't go over so well so I'm not judging it yet. So far I have a lvl 24 Charr Engineer which I am loving, all the different weapon kits are hella fun. I also made a Human Mesmer and got her to lvl 5 or so and it was TONS of fun.


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## Toshiro (Sep 11, 2012)

I'm on Dragonbrand, and have a lvl 36 Ranger currently. There are a few 80s in my guild(which migrated over from SWTOR), though. 

I'm taking my time, I don't see a need to rush in a game I'm not paying monthly for.


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## Isan (Sep 11, 2012)

lvl 67 thief on crystal desert ... guild has like 7-8 80s


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## Xaios (Sep 11, 2012)

EtherealEntity said:


> I'd expect it wouldn't run too good as I got 20-30fps on max settings even in raids on WoW, but can't run GTA IV on minimum settings. GW2 is harder than GTA IV.
> Man I hope this is back on sale by the end of next week..



GTA IV is well known to be very poorly optimized on PC, so I wouldn't put much stock in how well it runs relative to other games.

I admit, I was planning on giving this game a pass, having been burned by SW:TOR's rapid descent into tedium. However, the absolutely glowing reviews are certainly making me look a second time. Even the Metacritic score is sitting at 93, which is the same score as World of Warcraft (a game that I did enjoy quite a bit back in the day).

One of the things holding me back, though, is that I really didn't enjoy the first Guild Wars very much at all beyond the early levels.

So, my questions:

1) How similar is Guild Wars 2 to the first Guild Wars? What are some other titles that have comparable qualities?
2) How much fun are y'all having?


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## Murmel (Sep 11, 2012)

Just started this. Long time player of GW1.

I'm Riné, the girl next door necromancer


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## Lagtastic (Sep 11, 2012)

Isan said:


> lvl 67 thief on crystal desert ... guild has like 7-8 80s




I'm on crystal desert as well. 80 elementalist, working on 100% map completion at the moment. Then I'll probably level an engineer and a necro. Send me ingame mail and I'll add you to my friends list, my ele's name is Brick Frog.


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## Taerix (Sep 11, 2012)

ive got Lvl 30 thief that,i dropped fora warrior I hate the,thief tbh I got sick and tired of having to kite EVERYTHING and am on jq with the guild that ran hzh till gw2 came out


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## BlackMastodon (Sep 11, 2012)

Toshiro said:


> I'm taking my time, I don't see a need to rush in a game I'm not paying monthly for.


That's exactly how I see it. I'm enjoying the content and exploring so I'm in no rush to get to end game.


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## Fiction (Sep 11, 2012)

Sweet, well hopefully it's finished by the time I get home today 

I've decided on a Ranger (mainly because I wanted something fast with a good ranged + Melee skillset).. Still can't decide on charr or sylvari though.


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## Winspear (Sep 11, 2012)

Still not finished?  Mine finished a few hours after I went to bed I presume, booted it up today to see the first screen but then closed it  The PC wont be here until next week damnit 

Norn Necromancer will be my first, but I also want to play a Norn Guardian.


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## BlackMastodon (Sep 12, 2012)

^I reaaaaaally wanna roll a necro soon. My try the Asura or Sylvari though.


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## Winspear (Sep 12, 2012)

I want to play the Sylvari starting area but I don't want to play Sylvari  Really not looking forward to the Norn starting area actually haha


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## BlackMastodon (Sep 12, 2012)

^I just took my Charr into the Norn area because that's where My Story took me but I just finished exploring the entirety of it and it took quite some time. Damn my tendency to try and 100% things.


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## Misanthropy (Sep 12, 2012)

Got a lvl 20 asura ranger, awesome race.
Looking to try a necromancer next.


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## Murmel (Sep 12, 2012)

How is everyone downloading so slow? It took me 2 hours..


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## Fiction (Sep 13, 2012)

Oh my god this game is amazing 

Only level 4 at the moment, went with Sylvari Ranger.. The story so far is pretty cool, albeit a few lame lines of dialogue, but other then that, I love the fact that grinding basically does nothing for experience, and really promotes doing those world events/quests.. At first I was walking along and saw event nearby, then 10 minutes later I was running through a dungeon with several NPCs + a few other players killing shit in an epic battle, I'm loving it.

I'm sure those world events will get boring after a while, but they seem to be different enough and a nice break from actual quests (Which so far are cool, instead of the usual Kill 10 wolves deal)


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## Murmel (Sep 13, 2012)

Speaking of dialogues; They're inifintely shittier than GW1. Especially the cutscenes.


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## Winspear (Sep 13, 2012)

I want to play


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## Xaios (Sep 16, 2012)

Well, I bit the bullet. Downloading now.

EDIT: Played up to level 7 so far. I'm enjoying myself thus far, although I'm not sure if I'm ready to dub it a "revolutionary mmo." To be honest, it feels a lot like Aion.


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## Xaios (Sep 18, 2012)

Got to level 12 last night. I went with a plain human warrior for my first go-round.

One thing I'm noticing is that I can't move continuously between levels at this point. I'm doing all the heart quests I can, all the world events I can see, gathering all the crafting materials I can find, and crafting as much as I can, exploring everything I can, but I'm still having trouble gaining enough experience to keep up with the leveling curve. And being as this game doesn't reward you for squat for going out and just killing shit, I'm finding having to wait around for world events somewhat tiresome, but it seems to be my only option.


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## BlackMastodon (Sep 18, 2012)

Yeah this game seems to be a lot more about exploration than it does about grinding which I really like. Have you done the My Story quests? Those are always a great way to level up along with the area event quests.


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## Xaios (Sep 18, 2012)

Oh yes, I'm doing them all as soon as I'm up to the level I need to be. Still not helping enough.


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## Lagtastic (Sep 18, 2012)

Xaios said:


> Oh yes, I'm doing them all as soon as I'm up to the level I need to be. Still not helping enough.




I spent some time goofing off around in multiple areas for a given level zone. For example, if I got to level 13 and was done with that 1-15 zone, I went over to a different starter zone, started at the level 10 heart, and finished it through 15. I found I needed to do 1.3 or so zones per level range at lower levels. Make sure you are doing most of the skill challenges and vistas you come across, great for XP.

Later on there is more overlap. For example, theres a 35-45 zone, a 40-50 zone, a 45-55 zone, 50-60, etc. Also dungeons start at 30, and you'll get a full level going through each of those.

Go run around the other cities and do the vista and POIs. You'll get a big chunk of a level from exploring each city.


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## Fiction (Sep 18, 2012)

Yeah my level gap was 9-14, which I ended up doing the level 14 one at level 10 which just took some grunt, but decided I wanted to get to 14 to carry on so went exploring and I'm at 18 now, not really taking long, time kind of disappears, just been gathering and doing events, I think crafting is pretty good experience at low levels, for instance making a new item at low level gives around 1k-1.5k experience, just play around with the discovery section, then go off exploring come back, I did 14-18 and around 20 crafting levels in an hour last night.


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## devolutionary (Sep 18, 2012)

Zone bounce. Experience different areas. Kill lots of stuff. It helps. Once you get past a certain point (I find about level 30) killing things becomes a lot better, especially as your gear builds up. I'm having a great time with my Charr Warrior, just wading in to groups and letting loose with my greatsword of choppy.


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## Sicarius (Sep 18, 2012)

So I'm probably going to pick this up Friday.

How's it been going so far? Any weird quirks or bugs I need to be aware of beforehand?


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## Lagtastic (Sep 18, 2012)

Sicarius said:


> So I'm probably going to pick this up Friday.
> 
> How's it been going so far? Any weird quirks or bugs I need to be aware of beforehand?




Unmap keyboard turn from your keyboard. Map strafe to A & D, and get used to using only your mouse to turn. If you have played other MMOs you probably do this anyway, but it is really needed for GW2. The sooner you get used to using your mouse for turning, the easier time you will have. Combat is very active, position based, and timing/dodge based. 

Map some abilities to mouse buttons. You do have a mouse with additional buttons I hope.

Check out the ground target fast cast setting in the options menu, and auto-loot option. Learn the "deposit all collectibles" option. Salvage, salvage, salvage every drop you don't need for free materials to sell, and to keep your inventory clean. Salvage "salvage items." Use the super cheap salvage kits. Do daily achievements.

At level 0 tailor, you can craft 8 slot bags that cost almost nothing to make. Do it. http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/8_Slot_Jute_Bag

Get used to staying moving more often than standing still. Learn how to circle strafe if you play melee, and learn how to kite if you prefer ranged. Watch this video:


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## devolutionary (Sep 18, 2012)

Lagtastic said:


> Learn how to circle strafe if you play melee



Or make a precision build and kill stuff first >.>


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## Xaios (Sep 19, 2012)

I had better luck finding world quests last night, which definitely helped my leveling. I also got 100% completion in Queensdale, so I got some nice loot and I'm ready to move into the next zone.


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## BlackMastodon (Sep 19, 2012)

I finished Diessa Plateau 100% last weekend (second area in Charr territory, level 15-25) and got 2 green items: cloth boots and heavy helmet. I'm a fucking engineer. 


Was less than impressed.


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## pink freud (Sep 19, 2012)

BlackMastodon said:


> I finished Diessa Plateau 100% last weekend (second area in Charr territory, level 15-25) and got 2 green items: cloth boots and heavy helmet. I'm a fucking engineer.
> 
> 
> Was less than impressed.



Those zone completes are worthless gear wise. The tokens are probably the real reward (haven't used them yet though).

Yesterday was strange, got like five greens and _two _yellows in the space of an hour (I was in the zone north of Lion's Arch).


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## devolutionary (Sep 19, 2012)

Yeah, wait until you start getting 100% in 40+ zones. You get much better shit there. It is still always worth doing 100% just for skill points and the XP bonus.

The only yellows I've got were dyes, but since one of them was Abyss, I can't complain. Ain't nothing like rocking Char Tier 1 Warrior armour (woo! Transfig!) in complete black.

I'm having major dramas at the moment with Iron Marches and all the bugged content. We got one event that's stuck, a renown heart nearby not spawning the NPCs you need to complete (single path to success, dammit), and a bugged out skill challenge.


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## pink freud (Sep 22, 2012)

devolutionary said:


> Yeah, wait until you start getting 100% in 40+ zones. You get much better shit there. It is still always worth doing 100% just for skill points and the XP bonus.
> 
> The only yellows I've got were dyes, but since one of them was Abyss, I can't complain. Ain't nothing like rocking Char Tier 1 Warrior armour (woo! Transfig!) in complete black.
> 
> I'm having major dramas at the moment with Iron Marches and all the bugged content. We got one event that's stuck, a renown heart nearby not spawning the NPCs you need to complete (single path to success, dammit), and a bugged out skill challenge.



Have you tried both overflow and your server? That sometimes works, switching between the two.


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## Murmel (Sep 23, 2012)

Is it just me or does the engineer kind of suck? Haven't had much luck with it at all compared to my necro.


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## Fiction (Sep 23, 2012)

Spent the last days doing structured pvp, and i'm really enjoying that. Too bad you don't get any experience for it like WvW, but that's also kind of a good thing seeing as i've been playing structured non-stop and don't want to level heaps without actually playing through the story.


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## BlackMastodon (Sep 23, 2012)

Murmel said:


> Is it just me or does the engineer kind of suck? Haven't had much luck with it at all compared to my necro.


I only have a low level necro and he seems very fun but I personally realy like the engineer.  Then again I'm only level 30.


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## Murmel (Sep 23, 2012)

^
I'm only 21 on my necro and 10 on my engi  
But I never really had trouble soloing with the necro, the engineer on the other hand... 
It does get better once you learn to kite though.


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## devolutionary (Sep 23, 2012)

Engineers are kite-tastic, it's true. I don't know how I feel about Engineer solo. It seems... weak, I guess. A friend of mine is running an Engineer with my Thief, which is a good combo since they feed off each other well.


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## BlackMastodon (Sep 23, 2012)

Drop 4 turrets. Shoot things. Laugh. That's how you solo as an engineer.


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## pink freud (Sep 24, 2012)

I'm actually hesitant to roll another character after getting so used to my warrior. 

I've learned the mechanics of double swords to the point where I can solo champion melee mobs (sure takes a while though).


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## devolutionary (Sep 25, 2012)

I've done the same with two-handed swords, but damn my Warrior is squishy as hell. It's a race, and a race that's hard to win. I tend to use a lot of smaller mobs, knock em down real low in health, and use them as resurrection portals when necessary.

I started a guardian last night, and that seems a bit more hardy, though I think I will focus on my elementalist for a bit and give ranged murdering a good try.


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## pink freud (Sep 26, 2012)

devolutionary said:


> I've done the same with two-handed swords, but damn my Warrior is squishy as hell. It's a race, and a race that's hard to win. I tend to use a lot of smaller mobs, knock em down real low in health, and use them as resurrection portals when necessary.
> 
> I started a guardian last night, and that seems a bit more hardy, though I think I will focus on my elementalist for a bit and give ranged murdering a good try.



I think Sword/Sword is more durable than greatsword. You have a block, and so many bleeds that you can circle strafe/kite and still keep up constant damage.


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## Winspear (Sep 26, 2012)

I got it installed yesterday and started my necromancer. Almost made level 14 - really enjoying it. The graphics are amazing and the combat system is so much fun. Getting the hang of kiting and dodging real good now!


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## Xaios (Sep 26, 2012)

So far on my warrior, I've settled on the combo for soloing of my primary weapon being a greatsword, while my auxiliary is sword mainhand, axe off-hand. That way I've got two intercepts, three burst AOE attacks, a ranged attack, a kite and a crapload of damage.


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## devolutionary (Sep 26, 2012)

I like my gun for secondary. It's so bloody useful against Imps. I fucking HATE Imps.


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## Xaios (Sep 26, 2012)

I use a gun for group world events where I know mobs will be jumping out of the bushes while I'm escorting a caravan, but the mobs are otherwise relatively stationary (wargs excluded), so I like to get up close and personal.


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## devolutionary (Sep 26, 2012)

Oh I love escorts with my great sword. Rush and splatter. I haven't actually tried dual swords - I really liked axes when I was dual-wielding. I might have to, if I get some decent drops from Jormag or the like. Hell, I still haven't done a dungeon.


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## bargil101 (Oct 5, 2012)

Anyone else agree with me that mesmers are one of the best classes? Every time I am playing as one, I always just feel better than everyone else and if I am playing against one it is quite hard to kill them. Still necro's are the class for me.


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## Winspear (Oct 6, 2012)

Yeah mesmers seem pretty hard.
Got my necro to level 23 so far but tried out a guardian and I definitely much prefer it. Got that to level 13 and I think I'm going to focus on it - really feeling the play style there and actually feel comfortable with build weapon skill choice etc. Going for power+vitality stacking with greatsword/scepter+focus

Totally digging how character creation can affect the story so much - both these are Norns but everything so far has been completely different.


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## Tyson (Oct 15, 2012)

Completely on the fence about the class I want to choose. In WoW I ended up having no idea what to play and just stuck with the class I initially was recommended because it felt like such a waste to invest extra time into another. Now that you can preview them a bit, I'm thinking I'll test drive a few first. Right now I'm torn between Thief, Mesmer, and Elementalist.

Any opinions?


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## Xaios (Oct 16, 2012)

Tyson said:


> Completely on the fence about the class I want to choose. In WoW I ended up having no idea what to play and just stuck with the class I initially was recommended because it felt like such a waste to invest extra time into another. Now that you can preview them a bit, I'm thinking I'll test drive a few first. Right now I'm torn between Thief, Mesmer, and Elementalist.
> 
> Any opinions?



Couldn't help you, haven't tried any of those classes. 

I'm slowly but surely whittling away with my warrior. Up to level 28 in Gendarran Fields. One frustration I'm having is that I'm having to rely quite heavily at this point on dynamic world quests a lot in order to level, and sometimes there's just nothing going on in the map.

One aspect that I've really come to appreciate is the design of the cities (although, to be fair, I've only seen Divinity's Reach and Lion's Arch so far). They're easy to get around without seeming like they were designed to be unrealistically intuitive. They're also quite beautiful and unique from a visual perspective. Lion's Arch is particularly interesting.

Also, something that I really appreciate is that, despite the fact that the game has a cash shop, I have not once felt like I needed to buy anything from it, unlike other MMOs with cash shops. The drops are plentiful and my character has never wanted for reasonable gear, mostly thanks to the Black Lion Trading Company function and the abundance of other players selling everything they find on the cheap.


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## pink freud (Oct 16, 2012)

Xaios said:


> Couldn't help you, haven't tried any of those classes.
> 
> I'm slowly but surely whittling away with my warrior. Up to level 28 in Gendarran Fields. One frustration I'm having is that I'm having to rely quite heavily at this point on dynamic world quests a lot in order to level, and sometimes there's just nothing going on in the map.
> 
> ...



Are you crafting at all? Maxing a crafting trade gives 10 levels, and there are 8 crafting trades (Yes, you can level up to 80 purely through crafting). After I complete a zone I head to a crafting station and usually gain a level by using up the mats I gathered.

Other than that, don't be afraid to go do low level zones. They still give XP and stuff, plus you'll need the 1 million or so karma and 200 skill points if you want a Legendary weapon.


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## XEN (Oct 16, 2012)

I got a ranger to 80 and haven't played her since. She was fun though. Currently casually working on a Norn warrior.
I just don't have the time to commit to raiding like I used to with WoW.


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## Xaios (Oct 17, 2012)

pink freud said:


> Are you crafting at all? Maxing a crafting trade gives 10 levels, and there are 8 crafting trades (Yes, you can level up to 80 purely through crafting). After I complete a zone I head to a crafting station and usually gain a level by using up the mats I gathered.



I've tried, but frankly I haven't found it to be nearly as rewarding XP-wise as people say. I'm using the Discovery pane as much as I can (which is still next never, based on the mats that are getting dropped for me) and I'm building as much as possible, diversifying in order to avoid diminishing XP returns, but the XP I'm getting is still quite meager in comparison to what I expected. I've used every copper bar I can get my hands on without going to the trading company, but I can't get my weaponsmithing above about 40, while I need a skill of 75 to start using iron. The mats to build anything that would bridge the gap seem really hard to come by.


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## pink freud (Oct 17, 2012)

Xaios said:


> I've tried, but frankly I haven't found it to be nearly as rewarding XP-wise as people say. I'm using the Discovery pane as much as I can (which is still next never, based on the mats that are getting dropped for me) and I'm building as much as possible, diversifying in order to avoid diminishing XP returns, but the XP I'm getting is still quite meager in comparison to what I expected. I've used every copper bar I can get my hands on without going to the trading company, but I can't get my weaponsmithing above about 40, while I need a skill of 75 to start using iron. The mats to build anything that would bridge the gap seem really hard to come by.



I think I got over that hump by buying about 30 weapon's worth of tiny fangs and stuff like that.

So much stuff is on the AH for dirt cheap. Morons putting up stuff for 1 copper above vendor...


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## Tyson (Oct 20, 2012)

Good lord this game is absurdly fun. I've literally done nothing productive in the last 5 days.


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## SpaceDock (Oct 20, 2012)

I got this a few weeks ago and it is great. Graphics are so much nicer than wow.


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## metal_sam14 (Oct 21, 2012)

Acquired this off a friend, enjoying it so far, currently level 12 in Plains of Ascalon 

EDIT: Playing as Guardian


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## atimoc (Nov 15, 2012)

https://www.guildwars2.com/en/news/free-trial-event-november-15-18/

There's a free trial coming for this weekend. I've got 2 invites left for it if someone wants to give the game a go but hasn't had the chance yet. Just drop me your e-mail address via PM.


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## troyguitar (Nov 15, 2012)

Poor timing, I really want to try the game but am busy all weekend


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## Nonservium (Nov 16, 2012)

This game is pretty good over all. One of the better, if not the best, mmo's I've played.


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## Aevolve (Feb 4, 2013)

Just picked this up- looks fantastic, hoping it turns out as good as it looks.


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## Lagtastic (Feb 5, 2013)

They have been making some significant changes, and have added quite a bit of new content with more to come over the next couple months. If I didn't have so much other stuff going on right now I'd be playing for sure.


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