Thinking about buying GW, some questions? - Guild Wars Forums

Jaxxxon · Sep 03, 2006, 10:50 PM // 22:50

I'm looking to buy an RPG-like game that me and my friend can play together. I did some searches, and this game came up a lot. I'm used to playing MMORPGs, but I had some questions first...

(1) If it's just me and him grouping together, can we accomplish most things in the game? Can we reach max level and get decent items just by ourselves? Or is it like most MMORPGs, where you have to join big guilds and take part in huge raids to advance?

(2) It looks like some expansions have already been added; if I just buy the original game to start out with, will I be missing much?

(3) I think I read that the original max level is 20; that sounds kinda low, does it take awhile to reach max level?

Thanks.

dargon · Sep 03, 2006, 11:08 PM // 23:08

1) you and your friend will each need to own your own copy of the game, complete with unique key. Once that is done, you can go through pretty much every mission in the game with just yourselves. The game however is intended for partyies of different sizes depending upon how far you have progressed, as such, you can either invite other players into your party, or you can bring along henchmen. With proper planning, pretty much every mission can be accomplished with henchmen.

2) One expansion has been added and released, a second is due to come out the end of october. Each expansion is also technically a standalone game unto itself that you can link together with other chapters of guildwars. As a standalone, you'll get 4 character slots and access to the content of the chapter you purchased. Linked together, you'll get 2 additional slots for each unique chapter and all the characters will have access to pretty much all the content of both games (certain quests are only available to characters created in a specific chapter). Beyond that, I can't really say whether or not you'll be mission much. On the 15th of september though, ANet is releasing a Guildwars: Nightfall Prerelease package, which will include a 10 hour / 14 day (which ever comes first) trial key that will give you access to both Chapters 1 and 2 (prophecies and Factions), wait till then and give them a peek so you can make up your own mind.

3) The max level is 20, ANet has no plans of ever changing this. Guildwars is not about grinding for levels, so it usually doesn't take all that long to get to level 20, in Factions it takes about 5 hours if you play continuously. The game is intended for everyone to be level 20 for the majority of it. This does not mean that once you hit level 20, things get easy, infact they remain quite challenging, stressing skill with your character build over time played. Somne people will point out that Guildwars has a certain amount of grind, and it does, but most of that grind is optional, certain things that people grind for (fancy looking armor, weapons, etc) have low cost / nearly free versions that are just as good as the items that people are willing to grind for. The only difference being appearance, the stats are identicle.

Nestaron · Sep 03, 2006, 11:09 PM // 23:09

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jaxxxon

I'm looking to buy an RPG-like game that me and my friend can play together. I did some searches, and this game came up a lot. I'm used to playing MMORPGs, but I had some questions first...

(1) If it's just me and him grouping together, can we accomplish most things in the game? Can we reach max level and get decent items just by ourselves? Or is it like most MMORPGs, where you have to join big guilds and take part in huge raids to advance?
0
(2) It looks like some expansions have already been added; if I just buy the original game to start out with, will I be missing much?

(3) I think I read that the original max level is 20; that sounds kinda low, does it take awhile to reach max level?

Thanks.

1)Most areas will require you to be in a group of several people... If you don't want to spend time in outposts trying to create a party, you can hire henchmen to fight for you. Basically they're computer controlled players who are just as effective as your standard pug players and will give you less jip. You aren't required to join a big guild to advance in the game at all, first time i completed prophicies i did it without being in a guild.

2) Nope you'll be fine running prophicies only... It's best you get an understanding of the game in general before worrying about Factions or Nightfall as they throw you in at the deep end.

3) Indeed the cap is lvl 20.. It may seem low if you're used to grindfest games. Guild Wars is aimed at the market of players who don't particularly like grinding all their life just to reach max level. Also Guild Wars is heavily pvp orientated so it creates a fairer battle field since max level isn't that hard to accomplish. If you take your time and play the game properly you can reach level 20 in about 2 weeks. Maybe even less depends how committed you are... That's not to say the entire game is short or easy. As in my opinion the game really starts once you hit level 20 and you begin to master your class and test you abilities against powerful enemies.

Jaxxxon · Sep 03, 2006, 11:16 PM // 23:16

Thanks for the responses. I just assumed that with like most online RPGs, that the expansions added extra levels.

If you can't level up past 20, what it the emphasis on, meaning, what's the emphasis on doing quests and stuff if you are already max level? For gear and skills and spells, things like that?

I've played EQ and WoW before, and I kinda like "the grind" myself, but as long as there are other reasons to keep playing after you hit the max level, it shouldn't be so bad.

I guess I'm just basically looking for something in between Diablo / EQ-WoW, something a little more in depth than Diablo, but not as all-encompassing as EQ and WoW are.

Jaxxxon · Sep 03, 2006, 11:18 PM // 23:18

ALSO, one last thing. Since I usually jump around from games to games...if I end up leaving GW, will my friend be forced to group, or can he still accomplish things in the game on his own? Like pvp, and maybe do quests with just henchmen if he wanted?

Canadian Bacon · Sep 03, 2006, 11:18 PM // 23:18

Nestaron said that GW in PvP oriented, which is fine, but that doesn't at all mean that PvE doesn't have plenty to offer. I have played PvE only for 14 months now, so it's definitely got some good stuff!

warriorsmiley · Sep 03, 2006, 11:19 PM // 23:19

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jaxxxon

I'm looking to buy an RPG-like game that me and my friend can play together. I did some searches, and this game came up a lot. I'm used to playing MMORPGs, but I had some questions first...

(1) If it's just me and him grouping together, can we accomplish most things in the game? Can we reach max level and get decent items just by ourselves? Or is it like most MMORPGs, where you have to join big guilds and take part in huge raids to advance?

(2) It looks like some expansions have already been added; if I just buy the original game to start out with, will I be missing much?

(3) I think I read that the original max level is 20; that sounds kinda low, does it take awhile to reach max level?

Thanks.

1.) You and your friend can complete the entire game with you 2 and henchmen with no problem. As you play the game you will either get drops that you can use as weapons or met collectors that have weapons to trade. Guilds are there for you to join and some can offer alot of help with issues you being new to game might have.

2.)No you wont be missing much. Yes there is one expansion already and one is due to be out end of october. Start off with guildwars if you decide you like it then add factions to your account, if you like factions when nightfalls is released you can just add that to your account to.

3.)Yes the max level cap is 20. Why is that. This game is geared toward causal players that have other things going on and dont have time to sit down and play a game till there level 60 for the game to get intresting. In the first guildwars it will take you awhile to reach level 20 just playing thru the game. Once you hit level 20 you'd be around mid way thru the game which is where all the fun starts.

Canadian Bacon · Sep 03, 2006, 11:23 PM // 23:23

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jaxxxon

ALSO, one last thing. Since I usually jump around from games to games...if I end up leaving GW, will my friend be forced to group, or can he still accomplish things in the game on his own? Like pvp, and maybe do quests with just henchmen if he wanted?

Ya, he can continue on either on PUGs (Pick Up Groups) or with henchies, but I hope he's willing to backtrack and help you catch up to him when you come back to GW, lol

Kook~NBK~ · Sep 04, 2006, 01:29 AM // 01:29

GW's not about leveling. They set the max at 20 so that the emphasis would be on skill, not level. The challenge to GW is figuring out the most effective skills to use for your character in a given situation.

If you don't want to be in a big guild, you don't need to be. Most of the PvE people do missions & quests with PUGs or Henchies anyway.

Jaxxxon · Sep 04, 2006, 03:56 PM // 15:56

Went ahead and bought two copies of the game, but still have a few questions.... I probably could answer them myself by doing more searches, but I don't want to know TOO much about the game and it's different areas, I want to find that all out on my own.

(1) Are there dungeons in this game, or is it mainly outdoor areas?

(2) Can you start grouping right from the start of the game, or do you have to do some quests solo before you can group with other people?

(3) Once you reach level 20, if you are playing PVE, what is there to do to continue to advance your character?

(4) What is the point of PVP, just to have fun? Or are there rewards for pvp? Also, I see that you can start out PVP at the start, at level 20, or you can play PVE; if you play your PVE character up to 20, can you use him to PVP? Or can you only use the level 20 character that they provide you with when you select PVP?

Thanks again all for the responses!

eternal pho · Sep 04, 2006, 04:03 PM // 16:03

And one great thing about the game is that you don't need huge guilds or spam LFG to get through the game.=P

Kook~NBK~ · Sep 04, 2006, 05:02 PM // 17:02

1. It's mainly outdoors, but there are a few sub-terrainian areas.

2. You can start grouping up right away - it's actually encouraged. In Prophecies, the tutorial area has a 2 person party. Once you get beyond that, it goes up to 4. later on it will go to 6 and then 8-person parties. In Factions, it starts out with 4-person parties.

3. You'll reach level 20 long before you finish the storyline, so there's that. Also, gathering skills and perfecting your build is something you won't be able to finish until you hit the latter part of the game, as elite skills aren't available until then. There are also new areas to explore & challenge yourself in, such as the Underworld and Fissure of Woe. The elite missions in Factions are a tough challenge as well. Another thing they've added to the game is Titles. Many are just money sinks, but it's kinda fun to shoot for the ones that go along with your playing style.

4. There are many types of PvP. In Hero's Asscent, people play for the right of their home region to have the favor of the gods, which opens up Fissure & Underworld to that region. When you win in these battles, you get fame & rank, once you hit rank 3, you get an emote that you can flash, when winning the Hall, you get some nice rewards. In Alliance battles, you get faction for whichever side your on, you can trade it in for Amber(Kurzick) or Jadite (Luxon). You'll also recieve Balthazar's Faction points which you can use to unlock skills, runes, and weapons mods for creating PvP characters. For creating a PvP character, you'll be able to create one using only skills & stuff of the pre-made templates they've given until you unlock the other skills & stuff with your PvE character or with faction points.

Pompeyfan · Sep 04, 2006, 08:56 PM // 20:56

TBH if you just want to quest with a mate in an RPG get a proper one like Neverwinter Nights 2 which is out next month. Guild Wars is rpg lite at best and more like an action/adventrure than an rpg, and aparrt from getting different skinned weapons or different looking armour there's no real character advancement after you reach Level 20 (ehich happens very quickly).

Skuld · Sep 04, 2006, 09:07 PM // 21:07

On quests: they give experience points, you need 15,000 XP to gain a "skill point", and this, along with 1000 gold coins will enable you to buy a new skill.

Quests in different areas will also give you collectable tokens, for example in the Jade Sea area you will get "Luxon Totems". These can be swapped at the corresponding area's capital for various goodies. Luxon Quartermasters will give you the things listed on that page

A note: everything in this thread is assuming you are intending to purchase the second and current campaign "Factions", if you have been looking at the original "Prophecies" a lot of stuff will be different.

If you get stuck post here or look at the GuildWiki game guide ( Getting started in Guild Wars Factions is particularly useful).

Good luck!

P.S. I would advise you not to create you first character an Assassin, they might sound cool but they are quite fragile and a really bad character to learn the game with!

Mr D J · Sep 04, 2006, 09:15 PM // 21:15

Basically anything in the game can be solo'd. If you come up with a smart build it can be done. Get GW it's a great game and it is definitely worth playing. Too bad I'm done with it for good.-

leeky baby · Sep 04, 2006, 09:30 PM // 21:30

y did u stop then MR D J =D

Jaxxxon · Sep 04, 2006, 10:17 PM // 22:17

OK all, thanks for all the help! Just waiting for the game to be delivered now.

And yeah, I did think about Neverwinter Nights as well (the original + expansions), but decided on this. I may try that out down the road as well.

Sep 03, 2006, 10:50 PM // 22:50	#1
Jaxxxon Ascalonian Squire Join Date: Sep 2006	Thinking about buying GW, some questions? I'm looking to buy an RPG-like game that me and my friend can play together. I did some searches, and this game came up a lot. I'm used to playing MMORPGs, but I had some questions first... (1) If it's just me and him grouping together, can we accomplish most things in the game? Can we reach max level and get decent items just by ourselves? Or is it like most MMORPGs, where you have to join big guilds and take part in huge raids to advance? (2) It looks like some expansions have already been added; if I just buy the original game to start out with, will I be missing much? (3) I think I read that the original max level is 20; that sounds kinda low, does it take awhile to reach max level? Thanks.

Sep 04, 2006, 09:07 PM // 21:07	#14
Skuld Furnace Stoker Join Date: Sep 2005 Guild: Thousend Tigers Apund Ur Head [Ttgr] Profession: A/	On quests: they give experience points, you need 15,000 XP to gain a "skill point", and this, along with 1000 gold coins will enable you to buy a new skill. Quests in different areas will also give you collectable tokens, for example in the Jade Sea area you will get "Luxon Totems". These can be swapped at the corresponding area's capital for various goodies. Luxon Quartermasters will give you the things listed on that page A note: everything in this thread is assuming you are intending to purchase the second and current campaign "Factions", if you have been looking at the original "Prophecies" a lot of stuff will be different. If you get stuck post here or look at the GuildWiki game guide ( Getting started in Guild Wars Factions is particularly useful). Good luck! P.S. I would advise you not to create you first character an Assassin, they might sound cool but they are quite fragile and a really bad character to learn the game with! Last edited by Skuld; Sep 04, 2006 at 09:10 PM // 21:10..

Sep 03, 2006, 11:08 PM // 23:08	#2
dargon Furnace Stoker Join Date: May 2005 Guild: The Seraphim Knights [TSK] Profession: R/	1) you and your friend will each need to own your own copy of the game, complete with unique key. Once that is done, you can go through pretty much every mission in the game with just yourselves. The game however is intended for partyies of different sizes depending upon how far you have progressed, as such, you can either invite other players into your party, or you can bring along henchmen. With proper planning, pretty much every mission can be accomplished with henchmen. 2) One expansion has been added and released, a second is due to come out the end of october. Each expansion is also technically a standalone game unto itself that you can link together with other chapters of guildwars. As a standalone, you'll get 4 character slots and access to the content of the chapter you purchased. Linked together, you'll get 2 additional slots for each unique chapter and all the characters will have access to pretty much all the content of both games (certain quests are only available to characters created in a specific chapter). Beyond that, I can't really say whether or not you'll be mission much. On the 15th of september though, ANet is releasing a Guildwars: Nightfall Prerelease package, which will include a 10 hour / 14 day (which ever comes first) trial key that will give you access to both Chapters 1 and 2 (prophecies and Factions), wait till then and give them a peek so you can make up your own mind. 3) The max level is 20, ANet has no plans of ever changing this. Guildwars is not about grinding for levels, so it usually doesn't take all that long to get to level 20, in Factions it takes about 5 hours if you play continuously. The game is intended for everyone to be level 20 for the majority of it. This does not mean that once you hit level 20, things get easy, infact they remain quite challenging, stressing skill with your character build over time played. Somne people will point out that Guildwars has a certain amount of grind, and it does, but most of that grind is optional, certain things that people grind for (fancy looking armor, weapons, etc) have low cost / nearly free versions that are just as good as the items that people are willing to grind for. The only difference being appearance, the stats are identicle.

Sep 03, 2006, 11:16 PM // 23:16	#4
Jaxxxon Ascalonian Squire Join Date: Sep 2006	Thanks for the responses. I just assumed that with like most online RPGs, that the expansions added extra levels. If you can't level up past 20, what it the emphasis on, meaning, what's the emphasis on doing quests and stuff if you are already max level? For gear and skills and spells, things like that? I've played EQ and WoW before, and I kinda like "the grind" myself, but as long as there are other reasons to keep playing after you hit the max level, it shouldn't be so bad. I guess I'm just basically looking for something in between Diablo / EQ-WoW, something a little more in depth than Diablo, but not as all-encompassing as EQ and WoW are.

Sep 03, 2006, 11:18 PM // 23:18	#5
Jaxxxon Ascalonian Squire Join Date: Sep 2006	ALSO, one last thing. Since I usually jump around from games to games...if I end up leaving GW, will my friend be forced to group, or can he still accomplish things in the game on his own? Like pvp, and maybe do quests with just henchmen if he wanted?

Sep 03, 2006, 11:18 PM // 23:18	#6
Canadian Bacon Krytan Explorer Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Ontario, Canada Guild: Kingdom of Tyria [KoT]	Nestaron said that GW in PvP oriented, which is fine, but that doesn't at all mean that PvE doesn't have plenty to offer. I have played PvE only for 14 months now, so it's definitely got some good stuff!

Sep 04, 2006, 01:29 AM // 01:29	#9
Kook~NBK~ Grotto Attendant Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: A little chalet outside Drok's Guild: Natural Born Killaz	GW's not about leveling. They set the max at 20 so that the emphasis would be on skill, not level. The challenge to GW is figuring out the most effective skills to use for your character in a given situation. If you don't want to be in a big guild, you don't need to be. Most of the PvE people do missions & quests with PUGs or Henchies anyway.

Sep 04, 2006, 03:56 PM // 15:56	#10
Jaxxxon Ascalonian Squire Join Date: Sep 2006	Went ahead and bought two copies of the game, but still have a few questions.... I probably could answer them myself by doing more searches, but I don't want to know TOO much about the game and it's different areas, I want to find that all out on my own. (1) Are there dungeons in this game, or is it mainly outdoor areas? (2) Can you start grouping right from the start of the game, or do you have to do some quests solo before you can group with other people? (3) Once you reach level 20, if you are playing PVE, what is there to do to continue to advance your character? (4) What is the point of PVP, just to have fun? Or are there rewards for pvp? Also, I see that you can start out PVP at the start, at level 20, or you can play PVE; if you play your PVE character up to 20, can you use him to PVP? Or can you only use the level 20 character that they provide you with when you select PVP? Thanks again all for the responses!

Sep 04, 2006, 04:03 PM // 16:03	#11
eternal pho Banned Join Date: Nov 2005 Guild: The Licious Fame Farmers {TLG} Profession: W/E	And one great thing about the game is that you don't need huge guilds or spam LFG to get through the game.=P

Sep 04, 2006, 05:02 PM // 17:02	#12
Kook~NBK~ Grotto Attendant Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: A little chalet outside Drok's Guild: Natural Born Killaz	1. It's mainly outdoors, but there are a few sub-terrainian areas. 2. You can start grouping up right away - it's actually encouraged. In Prophecies, the tutorial area has a 2 person party. Once you get beyond that, it goes up to 4. later on it will go to 6 and then 8-person parties. In Factions, it starts out with 4-person parties. 3. You'll reach level 20 long before you finish the storyline, so there's that. Also, gathering skills and perfecting your build is something you won't be able to finish until you hit the latter part of the game, as elite skills aren't available until then. There are also new areas to explore & challenge yourself in, such as the Underworld and Fissure of Woe. The elite missions in Factions are a tough challenge as well. Another thing they've added to the game is Titles. Many are just money sinks, but it's kinda fun to shoot for the ones that go along with your playing style. 4. There are many types of PvP. In Hero's Asscent, people play for the right of their home region to have the favor of the gods, which opens up Fissure & Underworld to that region. When you win in these battles, you get fame & rank, once you hit rank 3, you get an emote that you can flash, when winning the Hall, you get some nice rewards. In Alliance battles, you get faction for whichever side your on, you can trade it in for Amber(Kurzick) or Jadite (Luxon). You'll also recieve Balthazar's Faction points which you can use to unlock skills, runes, and weapons mods for creating PvP characters. For creating a PvP character, you'll be able to create one using only skills & stuff of the pre-made templates they've given until you unlock the other skills & stuff with your PvE character or with faction points.

Sep 04, 2006, 08:56 PM // 20:56	#13
Pompeyfan Wilds Pathfinder Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Isle of Wight Guild: DVDF Profession: R/	TBH if you just want to quest with a mate in an RPG get a proper one like Neverwinter Nights 2 which is out next month. Guild Wars is rpg lite at best and more like an action/adventrure than an rpg, and aparrt from getting different skinned weapons or different looking armour there's no real character advancement after you reach Level 20 (ehich happens very quickly).

Sep 04, 2006, 09:15 PM // 21:15	#15
Mr D J Permanently Unbanned Join Date: Jun 2005	Basically anything in the game can be solo'd. If you come up with a smart build it can be done. Get GW it's a great game and it is definitely worth playing. Too bad I'm done with it for good.-

Sep 04, 2006, 09:30 PM // 21:30	#16
leeky baby Desert Nomad Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Surrey University Guild: Starting to play again... need a guild Profession: W/E	y did u stop then MR D J =D

Sep 04, 2006, 10:17 PM // 22:17	#17
Jaxxxon Ascalonian Squire Join Date: Sep 2006	OK all, thanks for all the help! Just waiting for the game to be delivered now. And yeah, I did think about Neverwinter Nights as well (the original + expansions), but decided on this. I may try that out down the road as well.