A Brief Guide for New Players - Guild Wars Forums

baz777 · Aug 04, 2006, 12:13 PM // 12:13

By no means comprehensive but hopefully a useful guide for new players covering commonly asked questions.

Most Desired, (and maximum), Weapon Damage Modifiers:
+15% Always, Unconditional, (these do not drop in game anymore)
+15% While Health is above 50%
+15% (-5 Energy)
+15% (-10 Armour while attacking)
+15% While Enchanted
+15% (Health Regeneration -1)
+15% (Energy Regeneration -1)
+15% While in a Stance
+20% While Health is below 50%
+15% Vs Hexed
+20% While Hexed

The above is ‘generally’ accepted or perceived as modifiers that add the greatest value to a weapon and are therefore most sought after. However, certain professions and in particular certain builds will place different emphasis upon the modifier. For example, a stance warrior may well view a +15% stance weapon as the ‘best’ for that particular build.

Best Requirement on Max Damage Weapons:
7
8
9
10
11
12
13

Maximum Weapon Damage
Swords 15-22
Axes 6-28
Hammers 19-35
Bows 15-28
Dagger 7-17
Staffs, wands, rods 11-22

Check that your attribute points for weapons, shield etc, meet the requirements. For example, if a sword is requirement 9 and you only have 7 attribute points in swordsmanship then you will not be achieving the maximum possible damage with that weapon.

Weapon Drop Types
Weapons that drop fall into 5 colour coded categories:
White: sell to merchant
Blue: sell to merchant
Purple: some of these drop with near perfect stats and whilst not of any great value some are certainly useable. Some even have mods which maybe worth ‘expert salvaging’.
Gold: Certainly not all gold items are valuable. Value will depend on skin, maximum damage, damage modifier, requirement and upgrades. I would say that 70-80% of the gold items that have dropped for me have been either sold to merchant or I have ‘expert salvaged’ for mods.
Green: Maximum damage and stats, (although some lower level Factions bosses drop non-maximum items). Unlike the other items these cannot be upgraded or dyed.

Armour Drop Types (Runes)
Runes are obtained by using ‘Expert Salvage Kit’ on armour drops and fall into 4 colour coded categories:
White
Sell armour to merchant
Blue minor rune (if added to armour, no health penalty)
After identifying use or generally sell to merchant but check rune price prior to using ‘Expert Salvage Kit’ as the sell price of the armour is usually worth more than the salvaged rune.
Purple major rune (if added to armour, -35 health penalty)
After identifying use or generally sell to merchant but check rune price prior to using ‘Expert Salvage Kit’ as the sell price of the armour is usually worth more than the salvaged rune.
Gold superior rune (if added to armour, -75 health penalty)
After identifying check rune price prior to using ‘Expert Salvage Kit’ as the sell price of the armour is usually worth more than the salvaged rune. Even few gold salvaged superior runes are worth more than selling the un-salvaged armour to the merchant. The obvious exceptions being all superior monk runes, superior vigor, etc. There are others but check prices with rune trader first.

Weapon Upgrades
Weapon upgrades are obtained by using an ‘Expert Salvage Kit’ (approx 75% chance of obtaining a upgrade, beware, you may end up with crafting materials). If there are 2 upgrades on a weapon then you may possibly get either one of them and not necessarily the one you want.
You cannot add weapon upgrades to wands, rods, shields, offhand caster items, nor green weapons.

Swords
Hilts
Fiery, Ebon, Poisoner’s, Icy, Shocking, Crippling, Cruel, Heavy
Zealous: 1/-1
Vampiric: 1:1, 2:1, 3:1
Furious: 1%, 2%, 3%, 4%, 5%, 6%, 7%, 8%, 9%, 10%
Sundering: 1-10%, 11%, 12%, 13%, 14%, 15%, 16%, 17%, 18%, 19%, 20%
Pommels
Defence: +4, +5
Shelter (vs. Physical): +4, +5, +6, +7
Warding (vs. Elemental): +4, +5, +6, +7
Enchanting: 10%, 11%, 12%, 13%, 14%, 15%, 16%, 17%, 18%, 19%, 20%
Fortitude: 20hp, 21hp, 22hp, 23hp, 24hp, 25,hp, 26hp, 27hp, 28hp, 29hp, 30hp
Swordsmanship +1: 10%, 11%, 12%, 13%, 14%, 15%, 16%, 17%, 18%, 19%, 20%

Axes
Hafts
Fiery, Ebon, Poisoner’s, Icy, Shocking, Crippling, Cruel, Heavy
Zealous: 1/-1
Vampiric: 1:1, 2:1, 3:1
Furious: 1%, 2%, 3%, 4%, 5%, 6%, 7%, 8%, 9%, 10%
Sundering: 1-10%, 11%, 12%, 13%, 14%, 15%, 16%, 17%, 18%, 19%, 20%
Grips
Defence: +4, +5
Shelter (vs. Physical): +4, +5, +6, +7
Warding (vs. Elemental): +4, +5, +6, +7
Enchanting: 10%, 11%, 12%, 13%, 14%, 15%, 16%, 17%, 18%, 19%, 20%
Fortitude: 20hp, 21hp, 22hp, 23hp, 24hp, 25,hp, 26hp, 27hp, 28hp, 29hp, 30hp
Axe Mastery +1: 10%, 11%, 12%, 13%, 14%, 15%, 16%, 17%, 18%, 19%, 20%

Hammers
Hafts
Fiery, Ebon, Poisoner’s, Icy, Shocking, Crippling, Cruel, Heavy
Zealous: 1/-1
Vampiric: 1:1, 2:1, 3:1, 4:1, 5:1
Furious: 1%, 2%, 3%, 4%, 5%, 6%, 7%, 8%, 9%, 10%
Sundering: 1-10%, 11%, 12%, 13%, 14%, 15%, 16%, 17%, 18%, 19%, 20%
Grips
Defence: +4, +5
Shelter (vs. Physical): +4, +5, +6, +7
Warding (vs. Elemental): +4, +5, +6, +7
Enchanting: 10%, 11%, 12%, 13%, 14%, 15%, 16%, 17%, 18%, 19%, 20%
Fortitude: 20hp, 21hp, 22hp, 23hp, 24hp, 25,hp, 26hp, 27hp, 28hp, 29hp, 30hp
Hammer Mastery +1: 10%, 11%, 12%, 13%, 14%, 15%, 16%, 17%, 18%, 19%, 20%

Bows
Strings
Fiery, Ebon, Poisoner’s, Icy, Shocking
Zealous: 1/-1
Vampiric: 1:1, 2:1, 3:1, 4:1, 5:1
Sundering: 1-10%, 11%, 12%, 13%, 14%, 15%, 16%, 17%, 18%, 19%, 20%
Grips
Defence: +4, +5
Shelter (vs. Physical): +4, +5, +6, +7
Warding (vs. Elemental): +4, +5, +6, +7
Enchanting: 10%, 11%, 12%, 13%, 14%, 15%, 16%, 17%, 18%, 19%, 20%
Fortitude: 20hp, 21hp, 22hp, 23hp, 24hp, 25,hp, 26hp, 27hp, 28hp, 29hp, 30hp
Marksmanship +1: 10%, 11%, 12%, 13%, 14%, 15%, 16%, 17%, 18%, 19%, 20%

Staffs
Heads
Insightful: +1, +2, +3, +4, +5
Defence: +4, +5
Hale: 20hp, 21hp, 22hp, 23hp, 24hp, 25,hp, 26hp, 27hp, 28hp, 29hp, 30hp
Wrappings
Defence: +4, +5
Shelter (vs. Physical): +4, +5, +6, +7
Warding (vs. Elemental): +4, +5, +6, +7
Enchanting: 10%, 11%, 12%, 13%, 14%, 15%, 16%, 17%, 18%, 19%, 20%
Fortitude: 20hp, 21hp, 22hp, 23hp, 24hp, 25,hp, 26hp, 27hp, 28hp, 29hp, 30hp

Note: Those shown in ‘bold’ are those, which I consider, are sellable and the remainder should be sold to merchant. Some of the others may well be sellable but for minimal gain against how long it will take to find a buyer, the choice is yours to make.

To add an upgrade to a weapon:
Open your inventory
Double click on weapon upgrade
Click on the weapon that you wish to add upgrade to
When you upgrade a weapon it will overwrite any corresponding upgrade already on that weapon.

Pricing Guide
Values change daily so either check in game, (stand in Droks and watch trade chat), ask on guild/alliance channel or find equivalent spec item on the auction site: http://www.guildwarsguru.com/auction/

Weapon Values
Very dependant upon skin, (weapon type, i.e. for swords: Fellblade, Longsword, Gladius etc.), Max damage modifier, low requirement and upgrades.

Upgrade Values
Most max, and some 1 or 2 under max, upgrades will sell for all weapon types. Again check on the auction site: http://www.guildwarsguru.com/auction/

Rune Values
Check rune trader price in towns. As a general guide rune value will be mid way between trader selling and buying price.

Crafting Material Values
Check material trader price in towns. As a general guide crafting material value will be mid way between trader selling and buying price.

Dye Values
Check dye trader price in towns. As a general guide dye value will be mid way between trader selling and buying price.

General

Should you be lucky and get a gold weapon worth selling do not add upgrades to it. If you add, for example, to a sword a 20/20 sundering upgrade worth 30k and a +30hp upgrade costing 60k this will not add 90k to the value of the sword.

Crafting materials can be obtained from traders in towns or by using a ‘Salvage Kit’ on items.

Identified weapons/items will sell for 10-15% more at the merchant than an unidentified one. I identify all drops before selling to the merchant. Not so worthwhile at first but certainty so as you progress through the game and the value of drops increase.

Weapon crafters are a cheap way of obtaining max stat weapons, shields etc in exchange for crafting materials and gold. Full list showing crafter name, location, items, crafting materials and cost can be found on this site: http://gw.gamewikis.org/wiki/Main_Page If you want a crafter item but have not reached that area then just ask a guild member or alliance member to get it for you.

If you customise a weapon you increase the damage by 20% but that weapon is customised for ‘your use only’ and you will not therefore be able to sell on that weapon. Consequently do not buy an item that has been customised by another player, as it will be useless to you.

Armour is also customised for each character and cannot therefore be used by another. Beware, I have seen many a time someone in game trying to sell their old armour.

Weapon damage modifiers are rounded up so a sword with 14^50 will do exactly the same damage as a sword with 15^50. This rule also applies to weapon upgrades, a 19% enchantment on a staff will be the same as a 20%).

Keys
Keys, which open chest, can be purchased from the merchant, or may drop in game. Items from chests fall into the colour coded categories listed above, and depend upon the area difficulty you are in.
In my experience 95% of the chest drops are worth less than the value of the key when sold to the merchant, (this may just be my bad luck though).

Personally, I no longer buy keys, (exceptions being UW, FOW, The Deep etc), but I do use the ones that drop in game as you just never know when that Gold, Req 7, 15^50 Fellblade will ‘pop out’, (some hope with my luck).

Farming
A term used for specifically gaining gold or certain items in game. Can be solo, (55 monk for example), or as a pair, (55 monk/Nec in UW for example), or more depending upon what and where you are farming. For specific farming builds and drop locations see: http://gw.gamewikis.org/wiki/Main_Page

In Game Help Requests
Do not be afraid to ask valid questions in game using the ‘All Channel’. Whilst there are the odd few out there that will give you abuse, generally, in my experience, other players are friendly and are more than willing to answer questions and help.

Guilds
As the name suggest, a body of players comprising of guild leader, officers and members.
The choice is yours if you want to join a guild or not. Most guilds are general in the sense that they equally pursue both PVE and PVP activates, whilst some just specialise in one type of game play, (there are even just ‘farming guilds’).

Benefits of joining a guild may include:
Interaction with other players and the guild ‘community’
Access to Guild Hall and therefore GVG battles
The acquisition of a cape
Guild website
Teaming up with other guild members to help others, or them you, with quest. Mission etc.

There are a number of ways of joining a guild. You may get a personal invite in game or some guilds advertise for new members in towns. You may even advertise yourself in game stating what type of guild you would wish to join.

If you decide to leave your present guild for a new one then you must first leave your present guild before you can receive a ‘join request’ from another guild.

Never pay to join a guild and only contribute to say a Guild Hall, (should your guild not have one), after you have been with that guild for a while and you are confident that any donations you make are for that intended purpose.

Those Must Have Weapon Skins and Armour

Things to consider:
1.5k armour is just as good as 15k or FOW armour with regards to stats
A 15^50 short sword will deal exactly the same damage as a 15^50 Fellblade

This is all down to personal choice, (vanity if we are all honest), and naturally funds available.

All I will say is this, the way you play the game with your character is much more important to others, (well, me anyway), than the way your character looks.

PUG’s for Missions or Quests (PVE)
(PUG stands for ‘Pick Up Group’)
Don’t type in the all channel just ‘LFP’ (looking for party) or ‘LFG’ (looking for group). Be more specific as this will increase your chances of joining a group. For example: ‘Air Ele LFP – Mission’. I always include ‘mission’ as some mission places are also ‘pick up points’ for some quests, skill capping etc.

If you are forming a group then give some thought as to the other characters that you invite to form your team. A team with 1 warrior and 7 monks will naturally survive but it will take you 3 weeks to finish the mission. Look for a good balance between damage and healing.

When you have assembled your team ask in team channel ‘all ready?’ before entering a mission or leaving a town.
This is common courtesy and ensures that your team members have their skills set and are ready to proceed, (also this will indicate who may have disappeared to make a cup of tea or gone to the toilet whist you have been forming your team).

Your team members may respond to ‘all ready?’ in a number of ways:
1 = ready to proceed
Rdy = ready to proceed
Ready = ready to proceed
Go = ready to proceed
Go Go Go Go = ready to proceed if now somewhat impatient
W8 (wait) = not ready
No = not ready

If you get a ‘not ready’ reply then wait. Ask that player/s to say when they are ready before proceeding.

If you are not the leader of the team then just use one of the above when asked to indicate your state of readiness.

Your conduct when in a PUG
Communicate.
If you are a damage dealer, (warrior etc), then after each ‘skirmish’ check with the caster professions in your team if they require energy regen before proceeding to aggro the next group. This may well be in your own interest as a monk with no/low energy will not be able to heal you!
Consequently, if you are a caster, (monk etc), do not be afraid to ask the rest of the team to wait if your energy is low.

Obviously much depends upon the co-operation between you and your team members. Generally I have found most people to be co-operative and friendly and those that are not I just ignore.

Henches (God Bless Them)
You may use solely Henches to traverse the map, or on quests or missions. The majority are achievable with just Henches, (just a few being the exception).
When using Henches try to complement your own characters build and try to achieve a good balance between damage and healing.

You may of course enjoy completing the game with other players and just supplement your team with 1 or 2 Henches, as the need arises.

There are 2 golden rules when using Henches
1. If you succeed it is despite the effort of the dumb Henches and success is purely down to your own exceedingly excellent gaming skills, good looks, charm, charisma etc.
2. If you fail miserably and all die it’s because of the dumb Henches and in no way can fault be attributed to your good self.

Skills
Each profession has a range of skills available to them and generally provide damage, support or a combination of both.

Skills can be obtained in a number of ways:
Reward for completion of quest
Bought from a Skill Trainer for 1 skill point + gold (increases to 1000g maximum)
Skill capping – Elite skills maybe captured using a ‘capture signet’ by killing certain bosses within the game. You may only equip 1 elite skill on your skill bar at any one time. Capture signets are purchased from the Skill Trainer and capture one elite skill so you will keep having to purchase these for each elite skill you wish to capture.

Certain skills only become available as you progress through the game.

Experiment with your skill sets and get to know what each skill can do and try different skill combinations.

Just as important is to lean about other professions skills and to recognise what conditions the opposing side have placed on you. Why? Example: a warrior who does not realise that a Nec has cast Spiteful Spirit on him and continues regardless generally does not remain in the upright position very long.

Buying in Game
There are plenty of people out there trying to scam you and relieve you of your hard earned gold.
Example 1:
Check item you are buying is the one advertised. I.e. sometimes a scammer will advertise say a 15^50 Req 8 Fellblade but will place in the trade window a Fellblade with a lower damage modifier, (say 14^50), or a Fellblade with a higher req. Check, check, then check again before pressing that ‘Accept Button’
Example 2:
If you are selling an item for say 20k. The scammer will offer say 18k in the trade window. He apologises and modifies his offer only the 20 will appear in the gold and not the plat box. Check, check, then check again before pressing that ‘Accept Button’

These are just 2 known examples of in game scams to watch out for.

General rule: Check, check, then check again before pressing that ‘Accept Button’

The above are just two examples and may seem obvious but people are still being caught out by these scams. Naturally the majority of in game trades are honourable, just be on your guard for the odd occation that you come across an intended scam.

When selling an item in game don’t just say ‘WTS sword’ as everyone will ignore you. Be specific, for example: ‘WTS max gold Fellblade, Req 7, 15^50, 20/20 sundering, +30hp – 750k’. I usually include the price of the item as this generally excludes time wasters. You may substitute the price for ‘make offer’. In all cases make sure you know the value of the item you are selling, (also applies if you are buying an item).

Also, please, please, please use the trade channel, (sorry, pet hate of mine).

Using Runners
Never pay upfront. Agree when payment or part payments will be made, (at certain points on the map or reaching towns).

In game abbreviations
There are many, so just a few of the main ones listed here:

K = ok, yes, affirmative
AFK = away from keyboard
Noob = derogatory term for a useless or dumb player, (I personally do not use this term)
Newb = non-derogatory term for a new player
PUG = pick up group
Tank = Warrior build using stances etc, design to soak up damage
Rez (or Res) = Resurrection Signet, (or other resurrection skill)
PVP = Player verses Player
PVE = Player verses Environment
WTS = want to sell
WTB = want to buy
WTT = want to trade
LFP = looking for party
LFG = looking for group
GVG = Guild v Guild battle
AB – Alliance battle
HOH = Hall of Heroes
RA = Random Arena’s
TA = Team Arena’s
UW = Under World (access gained via Temple of Ages (TOA))
FOW = Fissure of Woe (access gained via Temple of Ages (TOA))
Taxi = player belonging to the alliance that controls Cavalon and who will ‘Taxi’ non alliance players giving access to ‘The Deep’ elite mission (Factions only)

Some relate to specific character builds, a few examples:
MM = minion master (Nec build)
SS = Spiteful Spirit (elite Nec skill)
WoH = Word of Healing (elite monk skill)

Useful websites:
http://www.guildwarsguru.com
http://www.guildwarsguru.com/auction/
http://gw.gamewikis.org/wiki/Main_Page

Please feel free to comment/point out any inaccuracies or add more advise.

Thanks for comments. Updated 04.08.2006 16.00 GMT

baz777 · Aug 04, 2006, 12:18 PM // 12:18

I know there is a ???sticky??? on here but this was initially compiled for our guild website and thought it might assist a few on here.

Carth` · Aug 04, 2006, 12:29 PM // 12:29

Nice guide.

Quote:

Originally Posted by baz777

Best Requirement on Max Damage Weapons:
7
8
9
10
11
12
13

Does this means you can find max damage weapons that are req. 7? If so, how come greens are always req. 9?

thelessa · Aug 04, 2006, 12:35 PM // 12:35

Nice guide! Now living on my computer!

ZenRgy · Aug 04, 2006, 12:41 PM // 12:41

Quote:

Originally Posted by Carth`

Nice guide.

Does this means you can find max damage weapons that are req. 7? If so, how come greens are always req. 9?

Greens are just pretty collector items.

9 is the "adept" requirement, req 7/8 either just adds to the value and rarity of the item.

You should add to the elite section about the Kurzick elite mission, Urgoz's warren from House Zu Helter.

Gonzo · Aug 04, 2006, 12:43 PM // 12:43

Nice guide

.

However, I have some remarks

- Blue armor/runes sell the armor to merch? I don't think so. Such an armor range from 10g - 100g while a minor rune of healing prayers is several 100g.

- Sundering has two % vallues, might be nice to add that in (even though the list would/could get really long).

- Sending people to auction site for PC's is ok, but also refering to the sticky topics in the PC section can be helpfull.

- When entering a mission or leaving an outpost it's common curtisy to ask if everybody is ready. Responses meaning you are ready can be anything of this: "1, rdy, ready, y, yes"

baz777 · Aug 04, 2006, 12:50 PM // 12:50

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gonzo

Nice guide

.

However, I have some remarks

- Blue armor/runes sell the armor to merch? I don't think so. Such an armor range from 10g - 100g while a minor rune of healing prayers is several 100g.

- Sundering has two % vallues, might be nice to add that in (even though the list would/could get really long).

- Sending people to auction site for PC's is ok, but also refering to the sticky topics in the PC section can be helpfull.

- When entering a mission or leaving an outpost it's common curtisy to ask if everybody is ready. Responses meaning you are ready can be anything of this: "1, rdy, ready, y, yes"

Thanks, please keep the comments coming and i'll update accordingly later, (not when I'm suppose to be working

).

Slainster · Aug 04, 2006, 12:58 PM // 12:58

nice intro document, good work!

DoctorEvil · Aug 04, 2006, 01:09 PM // 13:09

Most Desired, (and maximum), Weapon Damage Modifiers:
+15% Always, Unconditional, (these do not drop in game anymore)
+15% While Health is above 50%
+15% (-5 Energy)
+15% (-10 Armour while attacking)
+15% While Enchanted
+15% (Health Regeneration -1)
+15% (Energy Regeneration -1)
+15% While in a Stance
+20% While Health is below 50%
+15% Vs Hexed
+20% While Hexed

It important for new players to realize that this desirability of these mods can be influenced by profession and builds strategies. For instance, a "while in stance" mod is far more valuable to a Warrior than most other professions as they have many builds that rely of stances.

In general +15% always & +15% while Health > 50% are the most sought after mods across all professions, while +20% While Health < 50%, +15% vs hexed foes and +15% While Hexed are the least sought after. The other mods will vary in popularity base on build/profession.

baz777 · Aug 04, 2006, 04:16 PM // 16:16

revised to your comments, thanks

ZsasZ · Aug 04, 2006, 07:20 PM // 19:20

Quote:

Originally Posted by baz777

There are 2 golden rules when using Henches
1. If you succeed it is despite the effort of the dumb Henches and success is purely down to your own exceedingly excellent gaming skills, good looks, charm, charisma etc.
2. If you fail miserably and all die it???s because of the dumb Henches and in no way can fault be attributed to your good self.

I had a good idea that this was true, nice to see confirmation.

Awesome guide. Keep up the good work!

Swinging Fists · Aug 04, 2006, 07:22 PM // 19:22

Good guide, but...

Quote:

Originally Posted by baz777

MM = minion master (elite Nec skill)

???

baz777 · Aug 04, 2006, 07:35 PM // 19:35

Quote:

Originally Posted by Swinging Fists

Good guide, but...

???

I proof read this thing at least 10 times

thanks, corrected

dawnrain · Aug 04, 2006, 08:24 PM // 20:24

Armor Drop Types (Runes)

...

Note: It is possible to expert salvage unid'd armor and extract an unid'd rune. From the icon of the unid'd rune it is possible to identify the profession that can use the rune. If you or guildmates/friends need to unlock runes, knowing the profession can help determine whether you or which guildmate/friend should id the unid'd rune.

MisterB · Aug 04, 2006, 09:01 PM // 21:01

Nice guide. Good format, very easy to follow.

Just a few points:

Factions introduced Barbed, Crippling, and Silencing Bow Strings(and Silencing Dagger Tangs).
Barbed is missing from your weapon lists.
Daggers are missing in the weapon upgrade section.

Ryn Tyn Tyn · Aug 05, 2006, 01:16 PM // 13:16

Very nice guide!

My only suggestions are adding how calling targets/your energy ect works and the various targeting keys (tab, t, c, ect) in the Pug/Mission section. And mentioning that you can change your skills/attributes in any town/outpost under the skills section.

Aug 04, 2006, 12:13 PM // 12:13	#1
baz777 Jungle Guide Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: South East England Guild: Leader: Lady Hairy Armpits S[mell] Profession: E/	A Brief Guide for New Players By no means comprehensive but hopefully a useful guide for new players covering commonly asked questions. Most Desired, (and maximum), Weapon Damage Modifiers: +15% Always, Unconditional, (these do not drop in game anymore) +15% While Health is above 50% +15% (-5 Energy) +15% (-10 Armour while attacking) +15% While Enchanted +15% (Health Regeneration -1) +15% (Energy Regeneration -1) +15% While in a Stance +20% While Health is below 50% +15% Vs Hexed +20% While Hexed The above is ‘generally’ accepted or perceived as modifiers that add the greatest value to a weapon and are therefore most sought after. However, certain professions and in particular certain builds will place different emphasis upon the modifier. For example, a stance warrior may well view a +15% stance weapon as the ‘best’ for that particular build. Best Requirement on Max Damage Weapons: 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Maximum Weapon Damage Swords 15-22 Axes 6-28 Hammers 19-35 Bows 15-28 Dagger 7-17 Staffs, wands, rods 11-22 Check that your attribute points for weapons, shield etc, meet the requirements. For example, if a sword is requirement 9 and you only have 7 attribute points in swordsmanship then you will not be achieving the maximum possible damage with that weapon. Weapon Drop Types Weapons that drop fall into 5 colour coded categories: White: sell to merchant Blue: sell to merchant Purple: some of these drop with near perfect stats and whilst not of any great value some are certainly useable. Some even have mods which maybe worth ‘expert salvaging’. Gold: Certainly not all gold items are valuable. Value will depend on skin, maximum damage, damage modifier, requirement and upgrades. I would say that 70-80% of the gold items that have dropped for me have been either sold to merchant or I have ‘expert salvaged’ for mods. Green: Maximum damage and stats, (although some lower level Factions bosses drop non-maximum items). Unlike the other items these cannot be upgraded or dyed. Armour Drop Types (Runes) Runes are obtained by using ‘Expert Salvage Kit’ on armour drops and fall into 4 colour coded categories: White Sell armour to merchant Blue minor rune (if added to armour, no health penalty) After identifying use or generally sell to merchant but check rune price prior to using ‘Expert Salvage Kit’ as the sell price of the armour is usually worth more than the salvaged rune. Purple major rune (if added to armour, -35 health penalty) After identifying use or generally sell to merchant but check rune price prior to using ‘Expert Salvage Kit’ as the sell price of the armour is usually worth more than the salvaged rune. Gold superior rune (if added to armour, -75 health penalty) After identifying check rune price prior to using ‘Expert Salvage Kit’ as the sell price of the armour is usually worth more than the salvaged rune. Even few gold salvaged superior runes are worth more than selling the un-salvaged armour to the merchant. The obvious exceptions being all superior monk runes, superior vigor, etc. There are others but check prices with rune trader first. Weapon Upgrades Weapon upgrades are obtained by using an ‘Expert Salvage Kit’ (approx 75% chance of obtaining a upgrade, beware, you may end up with crafting materials). If there are 2 upgrades on a weapon then you may possibly get either one of them and not necessarily the one you want. You cannot add weapon upgrades to wands, rods, shields, offhand caster items, nor green weapons. Swords Hilts Fiery, Ebon, Poisoner’s, Icy, Shocking, Crippling, Cruel, Heavy Zealous: 1/-1 Vampiric: 1:1, 2:1, 3:1 Furious: 1%, 2%, 3%, 4%, 5%, 6%, 7%, 8%, 9%, 10% Sundering: 1-10%, 11%, 12%, 13%, 14%, 15%, 16%, 17%, 18%, 19%, 20% Pommels Defence: +4, +5 Shelter (vs. Physical): +4, +5, +6, +7 Warding (vs. Elemental): +4, +5, +6, +7 Enchanting: 10%, 11%, 12%, 13%, 14%, 15%, 16%, 17%, 18%, 19%, 20% Fortitude: 20hp, 21hp, 22hp, 23hp, 24hp, 25,hp, 26hp, 27hp, 28hp, 29hp, 30hp Swordsmanship +1: 10%, 11%, 12%, 13%, 14%, 15%, 16%, 17%, 18%, 19%, 20% Axes Hafts Fiery, Ebon, Poisoner’s, Icy, Shocking, Crippling, Cruel, Heavy Zealous: 1/-1 Vampiric: 1:1, 2:1, 3:1 Furious: 1%, 2%, 3%, 4%, 5%, 6%, 7%, 8%, 9%, 10% Sundering: 1-10%, 11%, 12%, 13%, 14%, 15%, 16%, 17%, 18%, 19%, 20% Grips Defence: +4, +5 Shelter (vs. Physical): +4, +5, +6, +7 Warding (vs. Elemental): +4, +5, +6, +7 Enchanting: 10%, 11%, 12%, 13%, 14%, 15%, 16%, 17%, 18%, 19%, 20% Fortitude: 20hp, 21hp, 22hp, 23hp, 24hp, 25,hp, 26hp, 27hp, 28hp, 29hp, 30hp Axe Mastery +1: 10%, 11%, 12%, 13%, 14%, 15%, 16%, 17%, 18%, 19%, 20% Hammers Hafts Fiery, Ebon, Poisoner’s, Icy, Shocking, Crippling, Cruel, Heavy Zealous: 1/-1 Vampiric: 1:1, 2:1, 3:1, 4:1, 5:1 Furious: 1%, 2%, 3%, 4%, 5%, 6%, 7%, 8%, 9%, 10% Sundering: 1-10%, 11%, 12%, 13%, 14%, 15%, 16%, 17%, 18%, 19%, 20% Grips Defence: +4, +5 Shelter (vs. Physical): +4, +5, +6, +7 Warding (vs. Elemental): +4, +5, +6, +7 Enchanting: 10%, 11%, 12%, 13%, 14%, 15%, 16%, 17%, 18%, 19%, 20% Fortitude: 20hp, 21hp, 22hp, 23hp, 24hp, 25,hp, 26hp, 27hp, 28hp, 29hp, 30hp Hammer Mastery +1: 10%, 11%, 12%, 13%, 14%, 15%, 16%, 17%, 18%, 19%, 20% Bows Strings Fiery, Ebon, Poisoner’s, Icy, Shocking Zealous: 1/-1 Vampiric: 1:1, 2:1, 3:1, 4:1, 5:1 Sundering: 1-10%, 11%, 12%, 13%, 14%, 15%, 16%, 17%, 18%, 19%, 20% Grips Defence: +4, +5 Shelter (vs. Physical): +4, +5, +6, +7 Warding (vs. Elemental): +4, +5, +6, +7 Enchanting: 10%, 11%, 12%, 13%, 14%, 15%, 16%, 17%, 18%, 19%, 20% Fortitude: 20hp, 21hp, 22hp, 23hp, 24hp, 25,hp, 26hp, 27hp, 28hp, 29hp, 30hp Marksmanship +1: 10%, 11%, 12%, 13%, 14%, 15%, 16%, 17%, 18%, 19%, 20% Staffs Heads Insightful: +1, +2, +3, +4, +5 Defence: +4, +5 Hale: 20hp, 21hp, 22hp, 23hp, 24hp, 25,hp, 26hp, 27hp, 28hp, 29hp, 30hp Wrappings Defence: +4, +5 Shelter (vs. Physical): +4, +5, +6, +7 Warding (vs. Elemental): +4, +5, +6, +7 Enchanting: 10%, 11%, 12%, 13%, 14%, 15%, 16%, 17%, 18%, 19%, 20% Fortitude: 20hp, 21hp, 22hp, 23hp, 24hp, 25,hp, 26hp, 27hp, 28hp, 29hp, 30hp Note: Those shown in ‘bold’ are those, which I consider, are sellable and the remainder should be sold to merchant. Some of the others may well be sellable but for minimal gain against how long it will take to find a buyer, the choice is yours to make. To add an upgrade to a weapon: Open your inventory Double click on weapon upgrade Click on the weapon that you wish to add upgrade to When you upgrade a weapon it will overwrite any corresponding upgrade already on that weapon. Pricing Guide Values change daily so either check in game, (stand in Droks and watch trade chat), ask on guild/alliance channel or find equivalent spec item on the auction site: http://www.guildwarsguru.com/auction/ Weapon Values Very dependant upon skin, (weapon type, i.e. for swords: Fellblade, Longsword, Gladius etc.), Max damage modifier, low requirement and upgrades. Upgrade Values Most max, and some 1 or 2 under max, upgrades will sell for all weapon types. Again check on the auction site: http://www.guildwarsguru.com/auction/ Rune Values Check rune trader price in towns. As a general guide rune value will be mid way between trader selling and buying price. Crafting Material Values Check material trader price in towns. As a general guide crafting material value will be mid way between trader selling and buying price. Dye Values Check dye trader price in towns. As a general guide dye value will be mid way between trader selling and buying price. General Should you be lucky and get a gold weapon worth selling do not add upgrades to it. If you add, for example, to a sword a 20/20 sundering upgrade worth 30k and a +30hp upgrade costing 60k this will not add 90k to the value of the sword. Crafting materials can be obtained from traders in towns or by using a ‘Salvage Kit’ on items. Identified weapons/items will sell for 10-15% more at the merchant than an unidentified one. I identify all drops before selling to the merchant. Not so worthwhile at first but certainty so as you progress through the game and the value of drops increase. Weapon crafters are a cheap way of obtaining max stat weapons, shields etc in exchange for crafting materials and gold. Full list showing crafter name, location, items, crafting materials and cost can be found on this site: http://gw.gamewikis.org/wiki/Main_Page If you want a crafter item but have not reached that area then just ask a guild member or alliance member to get it for you. If you customise a weapon you increase the damage by 20% but that weapon is customised for ‘your use only’ and you will not therefore be able to sell on that weapon. Consequently do not buy an item that has been customised by another player, as it will be useless to you. Armour is also customised for each character and cannot therefore be used by another. Beware, I have seen many a time someone in game trying to sell their old armour. Weapon damage modifiers are rounded up so a sword with 14^50 will do exactly the same damage as a sword with 15^50. This rule also applies to weapon upgrades, a 19% enchantment on a staff will be the same as a 20%). Keys Keys, which open chest, can be purchased from the merchant, or may drop in game. Items from chests fall into the colour coded categories listed above, and depend upon the area difficulty you are in. In my experience 95% of the chest drops are worth less than the value of the key when sold to the merchant, (this may just be my bad luck though). Personally, I no longer buy keys, (exceptions being UW, FOW, The Deep etc), but I do use the ones that drop in game as you just never know when that Gold, Req 7, 15^50 Fellblade will ‘pop out’, (some hope with my luck). Farming A term used for specifically gaining gold or certain items in game. Can be solo, (55 monk for example), or as a pair, (55 monk/Nec in UW for example), or more depending upon what and where you are farming. For specific farming builds and drop locations see: http://gw.gamewikis.org/wiki/Main_Page In Game Help Requests Do not be afraid to ask valid questions in game using the ‘All Channel’. Whilst there are the odd few out there that will give you abuse, generally, in my experience, other players are friendly and are more than willing to answer questions and help. Guilds As the name suggest, a body of players comprising of guild leader, officers and members. The choice is yours if you want to join a guild or not. Most guilds are general in the sense that they equally pursue both PVE and PVP activates, whilst some just specialise in one type of game play, (there are even just ‘farming guilds’). Benefits of joining a guild may include: Interaction with other players and the guild ‘community’ Access to Guild Hall and therefore GVG battles The acquisition of a cape Guild website Teaming up with other guild members to help others, or them you, with quest. Mission etc. There are a number of ways of joining a guild. You may get a personal invite in game or some guilds advertise for new members in towns. You may even advertise yourself in game stating what type of guild you would wish to join. If you decide to leave your present guild for a new one then you must first leave your present guild before you can receive a ‘join request’ from another guild. Never pay to join a guild and only contribute to say a Guild Hall, (should your guild not have one), after you have been with that guild for a while and you are confident that any donations you make are for that intended purpose. Those Must Have Weapon Skins and Armour Things to consider: 1.5k armour is just as good as 15k or FOW armour with regards to stats A 15^50 short sword will deal exactly the same damage as a 15^50 Fellblade This is all down to personal choice, (vanity if we are all honest), and naturally funds available. All I will say is this, the way you play the game with your character is much more important to others, (well, me anyway), than the way your character looks. PUG’s for Missions or Quests (PVE) (PUG stands for ‘Pick Up Group’) Don’t type in the all channel just ‘LFP’ (looking for party) or ‘LFG’ (looking for group). Be more specific as this will increase your chances of joining a group. For example: ‘Air Ele LFP – Mission’. I always include ‘mission’ as some mission places are also ‘pick up points’ for some quests, skill capping etc. If you are forming a group then give some thought as to the other characters that you invite to form your team. A team with 1 warrior and 7 monks will naturally survive but it will take you 3 weeks to finish the mission. Look for a good balance between damage and healing. When you have assembled your team ask in team channel ‘all ready?’ before entering a mission or leaving a town. This is common courtesy and ensures that your team members have their skills set and are ready to proceed, (also this will indicate who may have disappeared to make a cup of tea or gone to the toilet whist you have been forming your team). Your team members may respond to ‘all ready?’ in a number of ways: 1 = ready to proceed Rdy = ready to proceed Ready = ready to proceed Go = ready to proceed Go Go Go Go = ready to proceed if now somewhat impatient W8 (wait) = not ready No = not ready If you get a ‘not ready’ reply then wait. Ask that player/s to say when they are ready before proceeding. If you are not the leader of the team then just use one of the above when asked to indicate your state of readiness. Your conduct when in a PUG Communicate. If you are a damage dealer, (warrior etc), then after each ‘skirmish’ check with the caster professions in your team if they require energy regen before proceeding to aggro the next group. This may well be in your own interest as a monk with no/low energy will not be able to heal you! Consequently, if you are a caster, (monk etc), do not be afraid to ask the rest of the team to wait if your energy is low. Obviously much depends upon the co-operation between you and your team members. Generally I have found most people to be co-operative and friendly and those that are not I just ignore. Henches (God Bless Them) You may use solely Henches to traverse the map, or on quests or missions. The majority are achievable with just Henches, (just a few being the exception). When using Henches try to complement your own characters build and try to achieve a good balance between damage and healing. You may of course enjoy completing the game with other players and just supplement your team with 1 or 2 Henches, as the need arises. There are 2 golden rules when using Henches 1. If you succeed it is despite the effort of the dumb Henches and success is purely down to your own exceedingly excellent gaming skills, good looks, charm, charisma etc. 2. If you fail miserably and all die it’s because of the dumb Henches and in no way can fault be attributed to your good self. Skills Each profession has a range of skills available to them and generally provide damage, support or a combination of both. Skills can be obtained in a number of ways: Reward for completion of quest Bought from a Skill Trainer for 1 skill point + gold (increases to 1000g maximum) Skill capping – Elite skills maybe captured using a ‘capture signet’ by killing certain bosses within the game. You may only equip 1 elite skill on your skill bar at any one time. Capture signets are purchased from the Skill Trainer and capture one elite skill so you will keep having to purchase these for each elite skill you wish to capture. Certain skills only become available as you progress through the game. Experiment with your skill sets and get to know what each skill can do and try different skill combinations. Just as important is to lean about other professions skills and to recognise what conditions the opposing side have placed on you. Why? Example: a warrior who does not realise that a Nec has cast Spiteful Spirit on him and continues regardless generally does not remain in the upright position very long. Buying in Game There are plenty of people out there trying to scam you and relieve you of your hard earned gold. Example 1: Check item you are buying is the one advertised. I.e. sometimes a scammer will advertise say a 15^50 Req 8 Fellblade but will place in the trade window a Fellblade with a lower damage modifier, (say 14^50), or a Fellblade with a higher req. Check, check, then check again before pressing that ‘Accept Button’ Example 2: If you are selling an item for say 20k. The scammer will offer say 18k in the trade window. He apologises and modifies his offer only the 20 will appear in the gold and not the plat box. Check, check, then check again before pressing that ‘Accept Button’ These are just 2 known examples of in game scams to watch out for. General rule: Check, check, then check again before pressing that ‘Accept Button’ The above are just two examples and may seem obvious but people are still being caught out by these scams. Naturally the majority of in game trades are honourable, just be on your guard for the odd occation that you come across an intended scam. When selling an item in game don’t just say ‘WTS sword’ as everyone will ignore you. Be specific, for example: ‘WTS max gold Fellblade, Req 7, 15^50, 20/20 sundering, +30hp – 750k’. I usually include the price of the item as this generally excludes time wasters. You may substitute the price for ‘make offer’. In all cases make sure you know the value of the item you are selling, (also applies if you are buying an item). Also, please, please, please use the trade channel, (sorry, pet hate of mine). Using Runners Never pay upfront. Agree when payment or part payments will be made, (at certain points on the map or reaching towns). In game abbreviations There are many, so just a few of the main ones listed here: K = ok, yes, affirmative AFK = away from keyboard Noob = derogatory term for a useless or dumb player, (I personally do not use this term) Newb = non-derogatory term for a new player PUG = pick up group Tank = Warrior build using stances etc, design to soak up damage Rez (or Res) = Resurrection Signet, (or other resurrection skill) PVP = Player verses Player PVE = Player verses Environment WTS = want to sell WTB = want to buy WTT = want to trade LFP = looking for party LFG = looking for group GVG = Guild v Guild battle AB – Alliance battle HOH = Hall of Heroes RA = Random Arena’s TA = Team Arena’s UW = Under World (access gained via Temple of Ages (TOA)) FOW = Fissure of Woe (access gained via Temple of Ages (TOA)) Taxi = player belonging to the alliance that controls Cavalon and who will ‘Taxi’ non alliance players giving access to ‘The Deep’ elite mission (Factions only) Some relate to specific character builds, a few examples: MM = minion master (Nec build) SS = Spiteful Spirit (elite Nec skill) WoH = Word of Healing (elite monk skill) Useful websites: http://www.guildwarsguru.com http://www.guildwarsguru.com/auction/ http://gw.gamewikis.org/wiki/Main_Page Please feel free to comment/point out any inaccuracies or add more advise. Thanks for comments. Updated 04.08.2006 16.00 GMT Last edited by baz777; Aug 04, 2006 at 07:41 PM // 19:41..

Aug 04, 2006, 12:18 PM // 12:18	#2
baz777 Jungle Guide Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: South East England Guild: Leader: Lady Hairy Armpits S[mell] Profession: E/	I know there is a ???sticky??? on here but this was initially compiled for our guild website and thought it might assist a few on here.

Aug 04, 2006, 12:35 PM // 12:35	#4
thelessa Jungle Guide Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Texas Guild: Purple Puzycats Profession: R/Mo	Nice guide! Now living on my computer!

Aug 04, 2006, 12:43 PM // 12:43	#6
Gonzo Jungle Guide Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Netherlands Guild: Defenders of the Blackblade [DotB] Profession: W/	Nice guide . However, I have some remarks - Blue armor/runes sell the armor to merch? I don't think so. Such an armor range from 10g - 100g while a minor rune of healing prayers is several 100g. - Sundering has two % vallues, might be nice to add that in (even though the list would/could get really long). - Sending people to auction site for PC's is ok, but also refering to the sticky topics in the PC section can be helpfull. - When entering a mission or leaving an outpost it's common curtisy to ask if everybody is ready. Responses meaning you are ready can be anything of this: "1, rdy, ready, y, yes"

Aug 04, 2006, 12:58 PM // 12:58	#8
Slainster Wilds Pathfinder Join Date: Feb 2006	nice intro document, good work!

Aug 04, 2006, 01:09 PM // 13:09	#9
DoctorEvil Academy Page Join Date: Feb 2006	Most Desired, (and maximum), Weapon Damage Modifiers: +15% Always, Unconditional, (these do not drop in game anymore) +15% While Health is above 50% +15% (-5 Energy) +15% (-10 Armour while attacking) +15% While Enchanted +15% (Health Regeneration -1) +15% (Energy Regeneration -1) +15% While in a Stance +20% While Health is below 50% +15% Vs Hexed +20% While Hexed It important for new players to realize that this desirability of these mods can be influenced by profession and builds strategies. For instance, a "while in stance" mod is far more valuable to a Warrior than most other professions as they have many builds that rely of stances. In general +15% always & +15% while Health > 50% are the most sought after mods across all professions, while +20% While Health < 50%, +15% vs hexed foes and +15% While Hexed are the least sought after. The other mods will vary in popularity base on build/profession.

Aug 04, 2006, 04:16 PM // 16:16	#10
baz777 Jungle Guide Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: South East England Guild: Leader: Lady Hairy Armpits S[mell] Profession: E/	revised to your comments, thanks

Aug 04, 2006, 08:24 PM // 20:24	#14
dawnrain Frost Gate Guardian Join Date: Nov 2005	Armor Drop Types (Runes) ... Note: It is possible to expert salvage unid'd armor and extract an unid'd rune. From the icon of the unid'd rune it is possible to identify the profession that can use the rune. If you or guildmates/friends need to unlock runes, knowing the profession can help determine whether you or which guildmate/friend should id the unid'd rune.

Aug 04, 2006, 09:01 PM // 21:01	#15
MisterB Furnace Stoker Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Planet Earth, Sol system, Milky Way galaxy Guild: [ban] Profession: W/	Nice guide. Good format, very easy to follow. Just a few points: Factions introduced Barbed, Crippling, and Silencing Bow Strings(and Silencing Dagger Tangs). Barbed is missing from your weapon lists. Daggers are missing in the weapon upgrade section.

Aug 05, 2006, 01:16 PM // 13:16	#16
Ryn Tyn Tyn Ascalonian Squire Join Date: Apr 2006	Very nice guide! My only suggestions are adding how calling targets/your energy ect works and the various targeting keys (tab, t, c, ect) in the Pug/Mission section. And mentioning that you can change your skills/attributes in any town/outpost under the skills section.