Help: Downloading GW from Steam

I would like to download the full game at once to avoid lag, but since GW is the only game on my Steam account I would like to know if after I download the game from Steam I have to run the Steam software everytime I want to play GW, because that would be really annoying....or if I can just safely unistall Steam after I finished downloading GW.

Thanks a lot in advance for your answers.

You dont need steam in order to start guild wars.
you dont need steam in order to play most of the games DL'd from there (exept some, like cod and so on)

If you have the code for your account you can just download guildwars from guildwars.com

I think you just have to re-download the client. But I don't see the problem in playing it with the Steam overlay.

I can't say for sure, but given that GW runs fine without Steam (for those who didn't get it from steam), I would think it should be possible.
If you have a desktop shortcut for GW, you could check the Target line to see if it runs anything other than just gw.exe.
If you don't have a desktop shortcut, or if you have a special Steam shortcut, you can make a normal shortcut by using Windows Explorer to navigate to where GW is stored - usually something like C:\Program Files\Guild Wars. In there, right-click "gw.exe" and choose "Send To" and then "Desktop (create shortcut)".
GW should launch from that shortcut without launching steam - unless, of course, gw.exe has been modified to launch Steam.

Btw, if Steam launches every time you start windows, there is a setting for that in Steam's options.

I don't know about GW, but all the games that I have on my steam account require steam's client to be open in order to be played, you can't buy games on steam and play them without opening steam's client.

Just download the client from the GW website, this will give you access to the game using your gw account and steam will not be required.

That's wrong, for the wast majority you do - for some games that have their own account system (mainly mmo's) you don't, but that's minority.

This is true. However, after extensive modding to Oblivion (which I purchased on steam for $8.50, all DLC included) I got tired of playing this offline single player gem by having to log into steam every time, so I just downloaded an identical exe from a retail boxed client and it works, lol, but you havbe to make sure it's the same version. In this case, steam sells the same version as the retail client with all DLC, but every game exe from steam has a DRM that makes steam open when you double click it.

At least I didn't pirate the game, I just made it easier for the paying customer (aka myself) to enjoy it.

But if I do that, the game will download in parts as I play. I want to avoid the lag background downloading produces (right now I have the GW client I got after sign up for trial, after that I purchased the game but keep playing with the same client).

Any way to get the full GW trilogy client works for me.


EDIT:
I just found that if you use the command line "-image" the game downloads the full client.