Guild Wars - Does anyone here play it?

[Omega Amen]

Finally found the MMO that appeals to me, and I was wondering if anybody here on CAA plays it.

I am a newbie to MMOs in general, and my character is a Lvl 7 Warrior/Monk in the beginning of the Prophecies (i.e. original) campaign, "Pre-Searing" if you will.

If anybody plays it here and is willing to show me the ropes, I would greatly appreciate it.

[Tarnish]

I used to, back when I had dial up. Not a very fun experience. Now that I've switched to broadband, however, I think I'll go ahead and reinstall it.

I'd also be interested in knowing who (if anyone) else here plays!

EDIT: Done. I have a Level 8 Mesmer/Warrior (I know...), and a Level 6 Elementalist/Monk. PM for names.

[Scarecrow]

I have it but never really played it. Its actually my brothers and he got it at the same time as world of Warcraft which I started playing first so it was hard to get to the new fighting system when I tried to switch. So I went back to wow

[Omega Amen]

Wow, I am kind of surprised by the lack of responses. I thought this game would be appealing to some people here since it is an MMO that does not have subscription fees.

Well, if anybody is interested, PM for my character names.

[kaji]

Hey Omega. I actually just started playing Guild Wars the other week. Mostly at the prompting of some of the kids in my youth group.

Its been fun, and Im always interested in finding more people to play with. I can send you my character name if you want to do some quests together some time.

I have a lvl 12 Ele/Monk in Prophecies (post searing).

[Omega Amen]

Well, with Godly Paladin, we actually got a group of CAA'ers on Guild Wars.

I just want to share a helpful tip I discovered using identification and expert salvage kit. When you get a higher-grade weapon/armor/item (highlighted with colored text), use the identification kit to identify the higher-grade components. Then, using an expert salvage kit, you can take apart some of these higher-grade components and attach it to the weapon/armor/item you are currently using.

I found this especially helpful since my character is a Warrior. Speaking of which, I hope the secondary class is allowed to change at some point in the campaign. I rarely use my Monk skills, and I am curious of the strategic possibilities with other classes.

[kaji]

Thanks Omega. Salvaging efficiently is really important for making good equipment.

I had fun the other day (though it was a little cheap since that guy brought along two other lvl20 heroes), but I cant wait until I get to play with you and Godly Paladin.

Oh, and yes. Eventually you will be able to change your secondary class. ^_^

[Mr. SmartyPants]

I thought this was amusing.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=YcWXL8jpFGs

[Tarnish]

What's *really* amusing are the comments, though. I could've told they were WOW'ers even if they were commenting on some other video.

"gw sucks wow rules cuz u can has elves"

[Omega Amen]

I thought this was amusing.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=YcWXL8jpFGs

Okay, what are the dance commands?

It's a shame the video didn't show the dance moves in Guild Wars where a disco ball or a laser light show pops up.

"gw sucks wow rules cuz u can has elves"

Well... I met... um... dwarves on the Shiverpeaks!

....

And they were real mean!

....

*just frowns.*

[Mr. SmartyPants]

Okay, what are the dance commands?

It's a shame the video didn't show the dance moves in Guild Wars where a disco ball or a laser light show pops up.

I assume it's "/dance"?

And it's also a shame they didn't show Female Night Elves or Blood Elves dancing =p Oh as well as the Male Blood Elves. XD

Napoleon Dynamite dance > Every other dance.

Edit: Woah, there are so many WoW and GW dance videos on youtube. I found this one amazing. http://youtube.com/watch?v=BDnTMW8Ch_o

[Omega Amen]

I might as well ask since I see a few of you with capes.

Know of any Christian guilds that allow casual members? Basically a friendly, helpful group that respects my faith, and do not require major commitments.

[Godly Paladin]

The YMCA part of the second link was particularly impressive.

Omega, I think we should all check out this Guild. Link is to the application; looks like a quality group, and despite the lengthy app it's actually a casual gaming group. I just filled out the app; hope I get in. If I do I'll refer anyone who wants to join.

http://www.christianforce.net/apply.htm

Thanks for the tip about Elite Scavenging kits; I need to buy one.

[Mr. SmartyPants]

The level cap of the game is 20, right?

How does that work? I ask because it seems like such a small level cap. Does it take longer to level up? Are the differences between each level much larger than other MMOS or RPGS?

[Godly Paladin]

The idea is that by capping the levels at 20, it keeps people from getting obsessed over grinding and inching forward their stats, and instead makes them focus on simply getting better at fighting - the combat system is remarkably deep. And the concept works. It's very nice to know that you only have to get to 20 to be on equal footing with everyone else in the PvP arena.

Most veterans I've talked to don't seem to have a problem with the cap; most of them actually say the real fun BEGINS at level 20. One guy said that lvls 1-10 are grade school, 10-14 are high school, 14-20 are college, and then after college you're released into the complete Guild Wars world to do whatever you freakin' want.

If you purchase the Eye of the North expansion you can go up to 30, I believe. But again, GW isn't really about levels as much as others.

[Omega Amen]

It also does not take the long (relatively) to reach level 20. Heck, in the original campaign of Neverwinter Nights 2, I had to basically complete the 80-90 hr game just to hit 20. I have just got past over 20 hrs, and I am almost at level 17. In Factions or Nightfall, you hit the cap even faster. Players will probably end up playing most of the campaign after reaching the level cap.

However, you will continuously gain a lot of skills/spells for your character even after the cap, at least over 700 skills. Nevertheless, a character can only use 8 skills at any given time. This forces the player to carefully think how to approach completing a quest (or a PvP match) and coordinate with other players on his team in order to support each appropriately. It also forces the player to learn all the strategic implications of skill combination strategies and to know how to use most effectively.

Furthermore, the player really only gains experience by actually completing the quest objective. Very few experience points are rewarded for just killing enemies, if any are rewarded, regardless of their level. Even the best loot in the game is rewarded for achieving a major accomplishment, or surviving a very difficult trek (Drok's Run).

So Guild Wars has a design that almost completely discourages grinding. If you are stuck somewhere, it is probably because you/your group is doing something wrong, not because you need to level-grind for another X hours. (In fact, Guild Wars asks you to take a break after a few hours of playing). This would not be a successful financial model for a subscription MMO, but since Guild Wars is not subscription-based, it works marvelously.

To GP: I think I should have also put down casual guild member as well. After looking through that application, while one can be casual in playing GW, the community involvement does not strike me as casual at all. I can barely fit CAA in my schedule, and this group seems to demand more than CAA. And while I completely understand their intent to make a tight, solid Christian community, I am nervous giving out my real name on the Internet. At the same time, I can see this group being a very positive force for Christ in GW. If you get accepted, I will ask for your impressions.

[Mr. SmartyPants]

I can see WoW being similar to GW. Both discourage excessive grinding, though the level cap is much higher (70 and going to be 80 when the next expansion comes out). Though the low level cap sort of feels like a turn off (I can't say I never played it) I can say that there's also tons of stuff to do at level 70 in WoW.

(In fact, Guild Wars asks you to take a break after a few hours of playing). This would not be a successful financial model for a subscription MMO, but since Guild Wars is not subscription-based, it works marvelously.

Wouldn't it actually be the opposite? Taking breaks = less play time = more days it takes to play. Seeing that you're paying a monthly fee, wouldn't a company that has a subscription-based MMORPG not really care how much you play?

[Scarecrow]

I can see WoW being similar to GW. Both discourage excessive grinding, though the level cap is much higher (70 and going to be 80 when the next expansion comes out). Though the low level cap sort of feels like a turn off (I can't say I never played it) I can say that there's also tons of stuff to do at level 70 in WoW.

True but it takes waaaay to long to experience this fun. Wow the game starts at 70 (for the moment till the next expansion....). Up until then the game is a boring suck-fest. 1-30 is decent but after that it just takes too long to lvl and boring as ever. I just wanted to play AV and do the arenas... even now at 70 it takes too long to gear up IMO cause new stuff is constantly added and random drops make it so you have to run something a dozen times before what you need actually drops and then if it does pray noone else needs it (I've run BM over 30 times and I still havent seen that stupid hourglass drop... which is also one of the most sought out trinkets so getting a group where noone needs it is zilch) Even though Im FINALLY getting into the top gear as far as pvp goes, I know Im just waisting my time as in a few months lvl cap will go up to 80 and all these gem filled high arena gear is gonna be worth nothing and then I'll have to do it all over again at 80. Ridiculous. This in a way is grinding and the main thing most 70s focus on... getting better gear though it takes tons of runs through instances or arena/BG battles etc.

The only reason I even bother with wow now is the new Siege warfare coming with the expansion which is kind of what I initially though AV was in the beginning. I wanna give wow one last chance at awesome pvp (something I think lacks in the game but has potential) before I drop it for Age of Conan xD Apparently, your guild actually gets stronger building up manpower (guild members) to build structures and weapons for attacking other guilds towers. Guildies gotta pve and get wood and iron and stuff to build up their guilds tower and siege weapons. Now THAT is a game!! Just hopefully it wont require some ridiculous lvl before you can actually join in the fun though a moderate amount of character building should still be required... Plus chopping off your opponents head in pvp is just plain cool XD



(Ya Im kind of frustrated with my wow game atm. No PVP action hardly at all and everyone else just wants to run raid instances for better gear. Lvled all this way and nowhere to go. Raiding a town is fun but 100% pointless. Arena is cool too but gets frustrating playing decked out teams and you're still in blues and get your butt kicked purely for being out geared)

[Mr. SmartyPants]

I actually find the PVP in Wow to be very fun. CTF Battlegrounds like Warsong Gulch are addictive. And with the new voice-chat implemented, you can expect there to be a lot more teamwork. Also raiding towns of other factions leads to serious fun. XD

[Godly Paladin]

Sounds like Scarecrow needs to switch to *dun-dah-DUN* GUILD WAAAAAAARS!

EDIT: Got into that Guild, Omega. It's reeeeeally casual and basically just gives you some buds to teamspeak/quest with/mooch off of. They don't require you to do much of anything, but everyone's friendly and there's a good atmosphere. I recommend it.

[kaji]

Hey GP, we still havent gotten together for some questing. It seams like every time one of us is on, the other has to go. One of these days though. ^_~

[Godly Paladin]

When I get done filling out my college apps I'm going to play hard core. =)

[kaji]

Now I have seen Godly Paladin around, but no Omega... One of these days we should all get together. ^_^

What guild are you guys in?

[Omega Amen]

Now I have seen Godly Paladin around, but no Omega... One of these days we should all get together. ^_^

What guild are you guys in?

No guild yet for me.

And maybe this is the reason why. Last month, I had some major work and studying to do. Plus, this past weekend, I have finished building my new PC rig (still installing software, transferring data, etc.).

So no real progress on my character since we last teamed up, kaji. That being said, I am eager to play with you guys.

[Godly Paladin]

I'm on more often these days now that college/SAT stuff is behind me; I'm a lvl14 Ranger right now; ditched the W/Me.

EDIT: I'm in the Christian Expeditionary Force guild, btw.

[Sammy Boy]

I have a bunch of characters on Guild Wars.

The one I use the most often is my Warrior. Name is Samson Darksbane. Look me up if you're playing. Cheers.

[Godly Paladin]

Sure thing, Ultra.

[GrubbTheFragger]

I picked it up and i am gonna start playing on Sunday night maybe monday but yeah i will be playing so we should so set up a CAA guild

[Godly Paladin]

Be sure to say your handle so we can friend you.

[GrubbTheFragger]

I can do that. Is there different servers set up ?