I’m tired today. It’s my own fault, really. I was up too late playing video games (again). Will I never learn?
The only reason this is remotely interesting is because I was playing Guild Wars, a game that came out in 2005. A game that I’ve dutifully purchased every expansion for, yet never really played. I’ve tried to get into Guild Wars over and over again since it launched but it’s never ‘stuck’ with me.
Then this weekend I saw Scopique was playing it and that just sort of put it in my head again. I got to thinking about Guild Wars 2 and that mechanic where accomplishments you achieve in Guild Wars 1 will unlock stuff in Guild Wars 2. So I decided to give it another go.
Before I dove back in, I re-read Rubi Bayer’s excellent piece, Stop telling me how to get to 50 points when I only have 3 over at Massively. I also spent a lot of time using the Wiki to answer questions that came up, and browsed a bunch of Rubi’s other “Flameseeker Chronicles” to stuff my brain full of GW info.
I think every game that’s been on the market for a while needs a Rubi Bayer.
One of the things I learned was that I had a Fire Imp ready to be claimed, thanks to my purchase of one of the expansions. That little dude, while kind of a pain in the arse at times (he attacks any and everything he sees) really made my “party” of me and Koss (the first Hero you get in the Factions Nightfall [thanks for the correction, folks!] campaign) a lot more viable. And a lot more fun. That last time I tried Guild Wars my level 6 ass was being handed to me over and over. The Imp made it better.
Pretty soon I added a Monk henchman to keep me healed up, and I started to read quest texts more carefully, taking note of where they started and mentally assigning them a ‘level’ that way. I started doing a lot better, though I’m still probably spending skill points in dumb ways. But I feel like I’m getting a feel for the game. I got my dude from level 6 to level 10 which (get ready to laugh) is the highest level I’ve reading in Guild Wars.
Everyone has already at least tried Guild Wars, so I won’t go on about it much. But I just found it interesting that, 6 years after my initial purchase, and probably after a dozen false starts over those years, I’m finally enjoying the game.
PS Oh, one question for people who enjoy the game. Is the $10 (iirc) “Optional Missions” pack worth buying? And do I need it now or should I wait until I hit 20?
I have absolutely NO IDEA what this “points” thing is except for the following words: Hall, of, Monuments, Guild, Wars, 2, points. Beyond that, it’s gibberish.
I guess I need to follow up with The Rubi-con (kind of a play on Rubi and Lexicon, but with a historical allusion!) and see what it’s all about.
Oh! Complete all three campaigns AND Eye of the North?
I’m out.
Slacka! 🙂
Hi Vindictis & Scopique!
I too am a Guild Wars addict and have dove into the new content that was released this past week. Get ready for some changes to the skills used be the npc�s you will be fighting!
As for the points thing for GW2. My goal was to get to 30 and I did! I think after 30 the rest is titles and such. If you visit the GW2 website look under The Game tab and select the Hall of Monuments to enter in your toon�s name. This will then calculate the number of points you have and will show you what you have earned so far for your GW2 goodies.
Oops! Used the wrong url to our blog! Sorry about that.
I’ll just approve the one with the right link. 🙂
I’m not a slacka! The only games I’ve completed in recent memory are Portal, Portal 2 and Halo 3. Considering how many MMOs I have played and how often I reach the end game (NEVER!)…yeah, I guess I AM a slacka!
But I EXCEL at slack’n!
Hey vindictis,
nice article, good luck going through the guildwars campaign again! Which game did you start on: proph, factions or nightfall? I’ve also started guildwars again and I’m trying to get most of the titles before GW 2 comes out. Have fun!
I liked the quick post. I popped in because of GW linking it on their twitter page. One correction for you, heroes such as Koss were introduced in Nightfall not Factions. Honest mistake though on your part since you haven’t spent a large amount of time in the game.
You asked if it was worth spending the $10 on the optional missions. Yes, but only if you really really really want to get the full story of all the little backstories scattered across the three campaigns. Otherwise, they are exactly what they are called, optional. They yield some great stories that you participate in, extra experience and extra money. Not to mention a free weapon of your choice if you can complete the story. Worth it in my book.
Rubi’s guide is outstanding for those new players who feel like there’s just one massive mountain in front of them. I have 17 points in my hall of monuments and, no kidding asside, i have played the game for 735 hours across 8 different characters. I can’t play just one character like everyone else. I wanted to test the waters of everything. But now I’m down to business of my oldest character being used for everything to earn my points.
The bonus mission pack is… not really necessary. You can get some max damage weapons that way, not to mention a little gold, but is it worth $10? Hard to say. It’s 4 solo missions retelling parts of tyrian history. If you like some of the solo stuff in Guild Wars, like killroy stonekins punchout quest line in Eye of the North, you might enjoy it, otherwise I’d stay away from it. For the true hardcore gw fans i think.
@Jonathon Yeong – I started with Nightfall, but in the post I said Factions because I R noob. 🙂 I can’t seem to keep the names straight.
@Shaun – Thanks for pointing out that I had the names wrong. I’m learning and any and all info and/or corrections are welcome.
Sounds like I’ll wait a bit before I look into the optional missions. Thanks for your opinions, @Hunter and @Shaun!
“Koss (the first Hero you get in the Factions campaign)” that’s nightfall not factions. also if you love the story of guild wars and want a more in depth look at some of the main story npcs the bmp is something you should get it also has cool weapon skins. but something to note is that it is solo content only so just remember that.