Guild Wars Reporter

Guild Wars Reporter


Guild Wars Reporter Episode 136 - Spear-like Tendencies

February 06, 2015



Celeste and Allona talk about stuff. It’s largely about GW2, a game they like to play and then talk about. It was fun!


Audio Version


What We Did This Week

 


Allona



  • Defeated the Triple Trouble Wurm thingie for the first time ever! Thank you Attuned!
  • Made one piece of ascended armour (ooh, look at me go!)
  • Fungeons. Completed the last Citadel of Flames path that I needed … so ‘fungeons’ may be a tiny exaggeration in this case.
  • PvPed a bit, been having some good luck with my Warrior. made a few changes to her build that I think are working okay. Oh, got Cal into PvP this week … it boggles my mind that I PvPed before he did!

Celeste



  • PAX editing
  • Played a couple unranked rounds on my ranger
  • Got frustrated with mystic clovers. (3/20 attempts for my last 4 clovers…)

 


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Report from Lion’s Arch

 


IGN got a scoop on HoT

http://www.ign.com/articles/2015/02/03/how-guild-wars-2s-mastery-system-could-change-mmos-forever




    • Exclusive sneak peak trailer! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hdK69Ni6zQk

      • A: How cute are those walking mushrooms!?
      • A: Dinosaurs! EEEEEEEE!
      • A: YouTube comment win!: “At the very end, if you look really closely, you can see Chris Pratt riding a motorcycle.â€


    • They reiterate the three biomes: canopy, floor, root



  • “ The other big benefit of the new zone is how well its vertical design lends itself to creating variety in the Mastery System. Back at the announcement of HoT, we were told about hang-gliding as one of the examples of how the new feature will open up new methods of traversal, though there’ll also be mushrooms you’ll be able to interact with that’ll offer you access to new areas or better vantage points. Speaking to IGN, system designer David Webb went into detail about how both lore junkies and those who get a kick out of combat will find things to enhance gameplay too.â€




      • C: Mushroom jumping, wasn’t that something we had from SAB? Weird how things pop up again in a much different form.




  • “We have some new NPC races in the world,†he says. “One of them is the Itzel and when you meet them or start earning points in the Mastery System you can start learning some of their language. By doing that, that might unlock things that you weren’t able to access before, like possibly vendors or things like that.




      • C: Cue the reputation grind moaning…




  • “As you keep progressing in the lore with the Itzel they’ll start giving you access to special combat abilities that will help you overcome obstacles that you absolutely could not defeat before. As you continue on you learn more about their culture and the ways that they hunt and gather trophies which will unlock collections and things that’ll give you even more access to the world.â€


  • “Though you’ll find lots of the Mastery content in Maguuma, it’ll expand outwards so you’ll be seeing it in existing portions of the world, too. You’ll even be able to use some of them in the Fractals dungeons. Mastery points will be earned through story missions, completing challenges and obtaining achievements – so if you want to gain more options with your glider, you’ll do so by using it.â€




      • C: Mastery skills usable in fractals?!




  • “What we’ve really done is try to make a system that works a little bit more like what we’ve seen in console games like Metroid or Zelda where the progression systems feel a little more natural, feel a little more integrated with the environment and content and allow you to interact with the world around you,†explains Cartwright of the feature’s inspirations.


  • “With combat, it’ll be more like a reveal like you might see in a game like Zelda where there’s a feeling like wow, I got this tool and now I remember when I was trying to fight this creature before I couldn’t get past this one ability; this tool clearly tells me this is the key to that lock and now I’m going to open it,†adds Mastery design lead Crystin Cox. “That feeling is one of the things we’re really going: now I have more power, not because a number went up but because I can actually do this thing.â€




      • C: thinking much further down the road I wonder how they’ll have to take these skills/tools over into future expansions/releases




  • “… Making that a stronger experience; making it feel more natural when interacting with the world to grow your character. We know your time matters and we’re not taking that for granted.â€

 


Journey into the Heart of the Maguuma blog post

https://www.guildwars2.com/en/news/journey-into-the-heart-of-maguuma-in-guild-wars-2-heart-of-thorns/


Maps with a Purpose 



  • The Living World set the stage for Guild Wars 2: Heart of Thornsâ„¢ in more ways than one. While the story that played out over the course of seasons 1 and 2 set up the awakening of Mordremoth and the story the expansion will tell, the types of maps we added and the stories we told within them have also brought us to where we are with the Heart of Maguuma and the kind of experience the deep jungle will deliver.





        • Further confirmation that a lot of what we’ve seen in S2 was test runs for HoT





  • For example, the first map you’ll enter in Guild Wars 2: Heart of Thorns will tell the story of some of the survivors of the catastrophic Pact Fleet expedition into the jungle. Through the course of each day, the beleaguered Pact members will try to build up defenses and secure their positions so they have a chance of surviving the night—the deadly second phase of this map, when the Mordrem come out in overwhelming numbers.





        • C: I’m interested in this but I’m also really concerned about how long day/night cycles are in gw2… Wiki: “The game uses a 2-hour day/night cycle: day lasts for 70 minutes, night for 40 minutes, with dawn and dusk taking 5 minutes each.“ http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Day#Day_and_night




Outposts



  • One of the new ways we’re enhancing replay value is through our new outpost system, which changes how we structure events in the world. Nearly all the dynamic events throughout Guild Wars 2 are tied to at least a small portion of local characters and lore. As you complete one dynamic event, you will find yourself facing other dynamic events that continue the story of the area you’re in. You’ll see enemies driven back, defeated foes summoning stronger champions to challenge you, and allies you previously rescued now going on the offensive. There are many possible interactions on a number of scales. If you don’t know what you’re looking for, though, it can be easy to miss these stories playing out across each map.





        • C: The key point to take away from this is that there are still players that haven’t experienced full meta event rotations in a lot of the maps.They’re taking this concept into overdrive with outposts.

      • When you come across one of these outposts, you’ll find a story playing out with the NPCs and in events nearby. As you complete that outpost’s events, NPCs will be able to construct defenses, offer new services, assist you on adventures, and ultimately join in the fight against Mordremoth.

        • C: Join the fight how? In a mission later on? Further ahead in another zone’s assault phase? During a story instance? Assist on you on Adventures sounds like maybe they’ll give you a special buff to help with these?
        • A: I read this as being similar to dynamic events …






  • Securing the high ground is key because it allows the Pale Reavers to provide fire support during the second phase of the map—nightfall. When the sun slips below the horizon, Mordremoth’s counterattack begins, and its legions spread across the map. Most dangerous of all are his twisted Mordrem wyverns that rule the skies and ravage the remnants of the fallen fleet. You must fight for every inch during the day at this outpost, because the further you push forward with Laranthir and the Pale Reavers, the more chances you’ll have to bring one of these terrifying beasts down.





        • C: So the Pale Reavers are using the wreckage of the pact fleet to shoot down fire support? ((I’m kinda confused by this…))
        • A: Pale Reavers are good guys … they are kind of like when we would call in air support in SW.




Adventures



  • By their nature, dynamic events are not always available and occasionally have some downtime.Guild Wars 2 has many content opportunities and challenges beyond events, but most are well hidden. Those that aren’t well hidden tend to be available only once per character.





        • C: I guess they mean in the sense that people will run through a zone one time per character and will be caught in an event (typically) once, except for in popular zones or when helping friends
        • A: Yeah. Case in point: I did an event in Lornar’s just today that I had never seen before!

      • The key difference is that adventures have their own UI, much like events, and offer some amount of active challenge. For example, rather than completing a jumping puzzle, an adventure may challenge you to complete that puzzle in a certain amount of time. Unlike events, however, individual performance is tracked and measured. It’s a challenge for you to overcome. Your performance in adventures will be scored, and you’ll be able to see—and test yourself against—the scores of your friends and guildmates. Because adventures take place in the open world, you’ll see other players working to overcome the same challenges as you, and in many cases you’ll be able to work and excel together.

        • C: I really dig that players are going to be positively pitted against each other in a cooperative environment while trying to complete the Adventures
        • A: I’m getting a GW1 “hard mode†vibe off of this. Obviously a lot more complex and nuanced though.






  • Adventures are a reimagining of the concept of permanent content that you can challenge yourself with and enjoy as you move through the world that’s been around since launch. As a result, you may see some activities you heard about before the launch of Guild Wars 2 make an appearance as adventures.





        • C: …. i can has polymock nao? ((Probably not but I’m wracking my brain trying to figure out what they’re alluding to))
        • A: Oooh! You might be on to something with this!




Challenging Content



  • These encounters will require greater skills and tactics to overcome, whether you’re adventuring through our jungle on your own or with a party. Not only are we presenting these new challenges throughout the outposts and adventures you’ll find in the jungle, but they’ll also be layered across other types of content experiences.




      • C: probably going into WvW, maybe during stronghold you’ll have alternative objectives for an Adventure to be completed, but does this mean we’ll see other Adventures added into the other portions of PvE?



 


Gem store updates this past Tuesday (AKA: Baa Ram Ewe! That’ll do pig.)

https://www.guildwars2.com/en/news/plush-ram-backpack-miniature-ram-box-of-chocolates-and-red-lantern-in-the-gem-store/



  • Plush Ram Backpack! 300 well spent gems!
  • Miniature Ram! 350 moderately spent gems.
  • Red lantern! 250 gems

    • A: These all seem to play into Chinese New Year/Lantern Festival. It’s the Year of the Ram, Sheep, or Goat (I’ve seen all listed) after all!
    • C: OH! ((I totally wasn’t aware lol))


  • Returning this year are The box of chocolates and the Bouquet of roses, each for 250 gems

 


Ask an Asura

 


A Follow-up to Last Week’s AaA regarding Engineer’s

“@gwreporter I would disagree with your Engi tip slightly: Sweep through your weapon skills, then swap. Rifle’s bleed/cc is handy w/ FT.â€


 


Tybolt’s email

Greetings marvelous Celeste and grandest Allona,


While a dear friend and I were performing a rapid descent from near the top of the highest point in Dry Top, I couldn’t help but think about how useful it would be to have a hang glider. It was then that I thought about the implications of hang gliders on upcoming jumping puzzles. Perhaps we could have puzzles covering a greater area? Arena Net has shown that they are not afraid to have puzzles spanning an entire map. Maybe we could travel up one tree and fly across the map to another point to continue the ascent? Maybe there could be an implementation of gliding into a dive? What do you think?


Sincerely, your eternally descending listener,


Tybolt



  • A: Given the “jumping†puzzle in the Silverwastes, I definitely think you are on to something. More emphasis on the puzzle aspect that utilizes a variety of methods in order to complete it (or a well camped mesmer) is something that sounds very exciting!
  • C: I think it’ll be hell for people who insist on finding their own way (and I commend them) I really hope that these puzzles would branch off into several sections, kinda like Goemm’s in Metrica and then eventually converge to a final spot.

 


Other speculation from Kalabajooie

https://twitter.com/Kalabajooie/status/559052557394276354?t=1&cn=bWVudGlvbg%3D%3D&sig=1c97297296e8f84b805c4fa69df845d6c1fcb5a6&al=1&iid=bf18dbd0e01344df8e981c0b9b680f38&autoactions=1422123491&uid=188636729&nid=4+1264


“@gwreporter New speculation: Will some specs get to use water weapons on land? I’d love to see a “Dragoon” using a spear or trident.â€



  • A: I’ve seen this speculation tossed around a few places. I think it’s intriguing! They’ve stated categorically that there are no new weapons coming into the game, but they haven’t said anything about repurposing OLD weapons!!! And really, a spear, is a spear, is a spear … underwater or  above it.
  • C: You can clearly see Rytlock using a spear of some variety on land during one of the recent cinematic videos.

 


Email from Mark

Hi C and E,


Thank you so much for an awesome podcast. I started playing GW2 about 4 months ago and was looking to find a good podcast to help me understand this vast and beautiful game, and where most of the other GW2 podcast either died or was disappointing, I found yours to be very helpful, especially the ask an Asura segment, as well as entertaining. Thank you and keep up the good work.


As I listened to last week’s podcast, I thought of a tip to provide to new players, being that I’m fairly new myself. Do not be afraid to use the /m shout to ask for a guild. I think guilds are wonderful and I wish I was able to join one earlier. Sure, it might be somewhat intimidating at first, but most of the guilds are full of experienced and wonderful people who would drop crafting their legendaries, okay maybe not that far, to help you out. I have asked all sorts of dumb questions and have become smarter for it. Joining a guild also gets you involved early in fun events like guild missions, organized PvP, Organized boss kills. I found this to be immensely helpful to my journey.


I also have some questions for ask an Asura, you don’t need to answer them all in one week, but I’m providing some material and hopefully you can help me.


I have started doing some dungeon runs, and I find that some dungeons like AC are very rewarding, but they are very difficult and I don’t always know what to do. What is the best way to learn about dungeons without dragging others in my party down? Same applies for Fractals.


I have been working hard to craft my ascended gear, but the runes that I want are so expensive. What is the easiest way to get the superior runes like runes of the traveler. Currently on the TP, this beast of a rune is like 8G and I need 6. T_T


For my friend who is playing with me. He has been having a difficult time in WvW playing a Guardian of all things. I think his problem is gear, but I don’t know how to get him a cheap set of exotic gear to get him started. What should I recommend for him? Should he use the TP to get the gear? Is there something else he can do to get the gear he needs? Maybe dungeons is the right way?


Anyways, thanks for reading my long email. Thank you for doing the show you two are wonderful. Hope to see you in game. I am [redacted] in case you were curious.


Mark



  • A: Thanks for your email Mark! I think we’re going to answer your first question and keep the others in our back pockets for future shows (yours is the AaA email that keeps on giving!) There are youtube channels that give recaps of dungeons, but they may sometimes be out of date. There are also on-line guides, I found one that looked really good: http://gw2dungeons.net. Guild Wars 2 Hub has some guides as well at http://www.guildwars2hub.com/dungeons-and-fractals-0. Finally, try starting your own entry in the LFG ingame tool. You can add a description and mention you are looking to learn a certain path. I had a guildie do this and got a great response from a few players!

 


Celeste’s Tip: When levelling up you’re sure to get some unidentified dyes. If you’re happy with the colors you’ve got or just don’t care too much about Fashion Wars 2, sell them. They’ll usually net you at least 40s on a good day.


Allona’s Tip: If you PvP at all, save up some track reward potions for those days where moving up your track is a daily and you’re in a time pinch.


 


Tales of Tyria

 


Hidden areas speculation by MMO Inks

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y23pxPPWvDY


“…we take a look at a secret area in GW2 and speculate as to what HoTs could contain as well.â€



  • A: This was BRAND NEW information!!!! I went into the area he mentions as an example and was BLOWN AWAY by some of the NPC text dialogue!

 


I love it when Reddit does our work for us… Thanks OnePunkArmy!

http://www.reddit.com/r/Guildwars2/comments/2upz6m/to_new_players_a_list_of_gw2related_websites_i/

 


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