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Tetris L · Sep 15, 2006, 01:46 PM // 13:46

Guide to the Guild Wars: Nightfall PvE Preview Event (September 22 - 24 2006)

by Tetris L and RTSFirebat

Please enjoy this guide to the Guild Wars: Nightfall PvE preview event.

Comments, Suggestions and Feedback is always welcome

SCHEDULE:

The event happens on the September 22 - 24, 2006, weekend.

Start: 12:01 a.m. PDT on the 22nd (= 7:01 a.m. GMT)
End: 11:59 p.m. PDT on the 24th (= 6:59 a.m. GMT on the 25th)

Event start delayed until at least 5am PDT appox

FEATURES:

The preview will have a PvE as well as a PvP part:

The PvE part will allow you to create roleplaying characters as a Dervish or Paragon as well as the 6 core professions. With these characters you may explore the vast island province of Istan, and play the missions and missions there.
You will also be able to test the new "Heroes" (customizable party NPCs).
The PvP part will allow you to create a PvP character as a Dervish or Paragon to fight in the arenas of the Battle Isles, including the Churranu Island Arena and the Sunspear Arena. You may also unlock and test the Nightfall skills for the other professions.

For further details see the info pages listed in the "Links" section at the bottom of this post.

Warning: All characters created for the event will be deleted after the event is over, along with all items in their inventory. Map travelling from and to Elona will most likely be disabled, and storage will most likely be disabled too, so there is no way to transfer items to non-preview characters. This means everything you collect during the event will be wiped out for a fresh start when the game goes live! Keep that in mind when you go farming.

HOW TO ACCESS:

To access the PvE part you must create a new roleplaying character with homeland Elona. To do this, you need a free character slot ...

either on an existing GW Prophecies or Factions account
or on an existing preview event account (for example accounts created for the Factions PvE preview. These test accounts are still functional and you can log into them at any time.)
or on a newly created Nightfall preview account, using one of the following access keys, depending on your home territory:
> 2BBQF-MG981-PRQD7-KDM6Q-C78H3
> 944NC-B1LJ4-MD6L9-718L6-1HM38
For details see the preview key info.

To access the PvP part you may create a new PvP character. This can be done on an existing account (which means you may keep the faction you gained during the event) or a preview account (as explained for PvE).

Tyrian/Canthan characters cannot be taken to Elona at this time, you have to create a new characterp

New Inventory and Skill Windows:

Please note some of the features of the new Skills Window may not work yet, so A.net say

Press "K" to open (or close) your Skills and Attributes panel. You can use this panel to adjust the skills and attributes of your character or any of your Heroes. Before making these adjustments, you can select the character or Hero you want to adjust on the top of the panel.

Attributes are listed on the top half of the panel, along with a display of unspent attribute points. (When you add a Hero to your party for the first time, you may want to check to see how that Hero's attribute points have been spent.) Next to each attribute, there are arrows for increasing and decreasing the number of points spent on that attribute. While you're in a town or outpost, you can increase or decrease the number of attribute points spent one each one. Outside a town or outpost, you can increase attributes by allocating unspent attribute points, but you cannot decrease them.

The bottom half of the panel shows a skill list. In previous campaigns, you chose skills for your character by dragging them from a Skill List panel to the Skill Bar at the bottom of your screen. In Nightfall, you choose skills by dragging them from the skill list to a small skill bar at the bottom of the Skills and Attributes panel. As in previous games, you can only alter your build of skills while in a town or outpost.

Each Hero begins play with a build of skills. By using the Skills and Attribute panel, you can alter that build whenever you're in a town or outpost. A drop-down menu near the top of the panel also allows you to change the secondary profession of that Hero. When you do, that Hero's attributes change, and you can adjust attribute points as described above.

When you choose a secondary profession for a Hero, you may want to change that Hero's build to include skills from the profession you've chosen. In the retail version of the game, you can save that additional build of skills by creating a template.

In-Game PC Gamer Gray Giant:

Thanks to KoalaMeatPie. Here it is:

As far as MiniPets Go, I find it Pretty Tall (Waist high) And the Quest gives SOME insight as to What minipets are. (Magical Toys)

The Sunspear Title Track:

Track goes by:

50:Sunspear Sergeant
100:Sunspear Master Sergeant
175:Sunspear Lieutenant
300:Sunspear Captain
500:Lieutenant Commander
1000:Sunspear Commander
5000:Sunspear Marshal

Some pictures...

General Links:

Reporting/Posting Bugs:

Please check and post in this thread about any bugs you encounter during the PvE preview weekend event:

http://www.guildwarsguru.com/forum/s...php?t=10048024

Other Threads of Interest (Nightfall Related):

Contributors:

Tetris L, RTSFirebat, GuildWiki, SaucE, KoalaMeatPie, Seras_Loneheart

Note: Any GWGuru moderator may feel free to edit this post to correct or add information as it becomes available.

unholy guardian · Sep 15, 2006, 03:32 PM // 15:32

looks like a good guide

Mordakai · Sep 15, 2006, 07:57 PM // 19:57

Are you sure Characters created will be deleted? I thought they were reset to level 1, with no items, but the Name and Toon will still exist. (unplayable until release, of course)

Why do this? To reserve your character's name, of course.

El Panty Bandito · Sep 15, 2006, 08:01 PM // 20:01

YAY can't wait for the PvP 7-8 Dervish team exploit that takes no skill to play.

Knightsaber Sith · Sep 15, 2006, 08:04 PM // 20:04

Not deleted; reset like Mordakai said. In fact, I still have my Dervish from the PvP preview hangin out in my character selection screen.

Rok · Sep 16, 2006, 05:04 AM // 05:04

They won't be deleted or reset, just inaccessible. You will need to delete it yourself to make a new character.

At least that is how it was with Factions.

You will keep all faction and skill/mod/rune unlocks, just nothing else.

As far as accessing the preview. I don't think they will bother with a key. Just set up an account with an email and password and log in. It already knows who has an account, everyone else will just be able to access the preview only.

Knightsaber Sith · Sep 16, 2006, 05:14 AM // 05:14

It is reset when it goes live. puts you back to lvl 1 with starter armor/weapons and your inventory is otherwise empty. You don't need to delete it at all; just keep it waiting til Nightfall goes live.

gamecube187 · Sep 16, 2006, 05:18 AM // 05:18

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tetris L

[*]or on a newly created Nightfall preview account. (ArenaNet is expected to hand out a special access key for creation of such accounts prior to the Nightfall event.)[/i]

From how I understand it so far from the most resent gaile chat and the event info page, there will be no access keys. Instead, you can just download the client, make a account(so you have something to log into), and then you have access to the event. That way, everyone that wants to try it can, and won't be prevented from trying it just because they don't know anyone that can give them a access key.

Tetris L · Sep 16, 2006, 11:57 AM // 11:57

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mordakai

Are you sure Characters created will be deleted?

The official info page is pretty clear about it:

"At the end of the event, all Nightfall characters that players have created and all Nightfall items they've acquired will be removed from participating accounts, and the Nightfall content will be removed from the live servers."

The key word here is "removed".

Quote:

Originally Posted by gamecube187

From how I understand it [...] there will be no access keys. Instead, you can just download the client, make a account ...

In the past you always needed a key to create an account, even if it's just a generic key handed out by ANet for an event. Maybe the found a way around this, technically. We'll see. I expect a clarification with clear instructions very soon.

SaucE · Sep 20, 2006, 11:44 AM // 11:44

On GW.com there is a link to the access key you will need to use for this weekend events.

PS. Why isn't this Stickied?

Tetris L · Sep 20, 2006, 11:48 AM // 11:48

I've updated the thread with the recent info from guildwars.com

RTSFirebat · Sep 20, 2006, 05:30 PM // 17:30

Quote:

Originally Posted by SaucE

On GW.com there is a link to the access key you will need to use for this weekend events.

PS. Why isn't this Stickied?

Because things don't always happen in real time. It is stickied now and old threads have been removed.

I normally start these guides myself but Tetris L kindly started one already. So I'll be helping him out with updating it as new information comes in.

RTSFirebat · Sep 20, 2006, 05:38 PM // 17:38

Added link to bug report thread link, minor changes to layout.

Clord · Sep 20, 2006, 06:55 PM // 18:55

If you already own Guild Wars and account you don't need put any key to your account. Event is enabled automatically to your account.

Skids · Sep 21, 2006, 09:53 AM // 09:53

So from what youre saying if I understand it right:

I can create a new character for the NPvE this weekend, give it a name, but at the end of the event the character and the name will be auto-deleted by Anet?

So when the full game comes out I will have to create a new character and hope that my name I used hasnt been claimed by someone else?

That kind of sucks.

SaucE · Sep 21, 2006, 10:04 AM // 10:04

Quote:

Originally Posted by Skids

So from what youre saying if I understand it right:

I can create a new character for the NPvE this weekend, give it a name, but at the end of the event the character and the name will be auto-deleted by Anet?

So when the full game comes out I will have to create a new character and hope that my name I used hasnt been claimed by someone else?

That kind of sucks.

Yes. And do what I did, I have my PvP slot filled with a temp character holding my name I want to use for a Nightfall character.

Tetris L · Sep 21, 2006, 10:05 AM // 10:05

Quote:

Originally Posted by Skids

So from what youre saying if I understand it right: I can create a new character for the NPvE this weekend, give it a name, but at the end of the event the character and the name will be auto-deleted by Anet? So when the full game comes out I will have to create a new character and hope that my name I used hasnt been claimed by someone else? That kind of sucks.

The official page says that the character will be "removed". I interpreted that as "deleted". I think the name will still be reserved for your account though. But I'm not sure.

Fates · Sep 21, 2006, 01:36 PM // 13:36

So we're stuck on noob island?

Clord · Sep 21, 2006, 02:03 PM // 14:03

Access to your nightfall character is temporally removed but you still see it in slot.

Mordakai · Sep 21, 2006, 02:07 PM // 14:07

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fates Monk

So we're stuck on noob island?

I think this is a good thing. Factions PvE screwed up by showing the best part of the game (IMO), during the preview, making the first part of Factions practically unbearable to me.

It's a preview, to give us tastes and hints of what's to come, not to reveal the end parts of the Chapter.

However, since we're all starting with level 1 characters (I assume), it would be coold to allow Anet to keep at least our XP, if not our Items. That might actually encourage new players to buy the game, since they already feel "invested" in their character. Just a thought.

EDIT: Also, starting in the beginning level of the game will be better for those who've never played Guild Wars before.