tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1510920011443550663.post2296358241586679621..comments2024-03-28T10:18:05.213+00:00Comments on Inventory Full: Unpacking The Feature Pack : GW2Bhagpusshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03499162165023939880noreply@blogger.comBlogger27125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1510920011443550663.post-10373770755496588182014-04-09T19:45:19.134+01:002014-04-09T19:45:19.134+01:00About the zerker meta.
People already bitch about...About the zerker meta.<br /><br />People already bitch about some Fractals since zerker, especially non elite players, have a difficult time doing them.<br />But other builds can do them.<br /><br />So it is quite possible to nerf zerker if they really want.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05925345204945426269noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1510920011443550663.post-37155698941519298092014-04-08T19:53:27.096+01:002014-04-08T19:53:27.096+01:00As a rule I rather like nerfs, at least when they&...As a rule I rather like nerfs, at least when they're well-targeted, for the sort of reasons you give. Frequently, though, they aren't well thought out and result in further adjustments down the line. I often use the old cliche of sawing an inch off the leg of the dining table to get it to stop wobbling - if you don't get it right you end up eating your dinner off a flat board on the floor.<br /><br />The Zerker meta may or may not need nerfing or fixing but any fix that leaves Berserker as the clear and undisputed top damage build, as this supposedly does, isn't any kind of fix at all. Everyone who zerks now will zerk under the new system too, because while that build might have hit a speed-bump, to change to anything else will just make it even slower.<br /><br />Or that's what the number-crunchers on the forums calculate. I guess we'll see in due course. I can get my 10% back just by moving to Ascended if I actually notice the difference, but I bet I won't even be able to tell there's been a nerf.<br /><br />On repair costs, in GW2 they're on a sliding scale using the formula " 4 Copper coin plus 2 Copper coin per level of the item" (from the wiki). A level 10 wearing level 9 armor would therefore pay 22 copper to repair a single, fully-broken item (there's no need to repair anything before it breaks as there's no penalty whatsoever for wearing "damaged" armor). A full set would cost 1s 54c to repair.<br /><br />Even at level 10, one and a half silver is not a significant outlay (and when I was leveling up I barely ever repaired anyway - my armor rarely broke before I needed to replace it because I'd outgrown it). Putting it in perspective, a single piece of copper ore is selling for 44c on the TP as I write and you get a minimum of 3 from every node. A level 10 could make enough money in five minutes to pay for repairs for a week.<br /><br />I'd be very interested to hear the anecdotal evidence from anyone currently playing a low-level character who is finding repair costs difficult to manage. I find it difficult to imagine how that could happen, but then Mrs Bhagpuss complains bitterly about costs in-game that I regard as utterly trivial, so perhaps it's how you look at it...Bhagpusshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03499162165023939880noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1510920011443550663.post-56516588843816385382014-04-08T19:50:30.429+01:002014-04-08T19:50:30.429+01:00I've never killed Teq 2.0 either, nor the 3-He...I've never killed Teq 2.0 either, nor the 3-Headed Wurm. I don't really like guesting at all - if I don't do it on Yak's Bend it didn't really happen is my feeling. I have guested a few times simply because there are things that never happen on YB at the off-hours I play, but I draw the line at organized cross-server guilds and without that the big events aren't happening.<br /><br />Once the Megaserver is up and running (if they get it working as described, about which I have my doubts) I guess all moral concerns over abandoning my World for personal benefit will become moot. Whether the changes will bring the big events any closer within reach is unclear at this stage and even if it does it remains to be seen whether that has the effect of drawing me further in or driving me further away. I don't think I'll know until I see how it all works in practice.Bhagpusshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03499162165023939880noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1510920011443550663.post-10585991776811552602014-04-08T17:51:44.695+01:002014-04-08T17:51:44.695+01:00I never get what people have against nerfs. It'...I never get what people have against nerfs. It's balance. If something stands out head and shoulder above the rest, it means something is wrong. When everyone flocks to it, it becomes the norm, so others get used to it, and everyone HAS to take up the standard to be normal. It takes away the whole point of character development. If they developed content around only the best builds, it creates and even further divide of the illusion of choice, and at that point, why even give players options in the first place?<br /><br />As for the removal of repair costs and the lessening of Champion bags, I think you missed the point. Repair costs are a much larger percentage of gold accrual for LOW LEVEL players, not 80s. Having repair costs doesn't matter a lick to level 80 champion farmers, they can make it up in one bag or less. Lowering the amount of reward from Champ bags, though, is twofold. 1) It makes the money being pumped into the economy a lot less. Since Champ trains (despite how boring they are) are one of the most "rewarding" parts of the game, taking money out of the bags slows down in-game inflation. And 2) Makes such boring content not as appealing to play, and so removes some of the lazy zerg population looking for the easiest score. Ochohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11156181787884658756noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1510920011443550663.post-30026844946966179502014-04-08T17:08:28.821+01:002014-04-08T17:08:28.821+01:00I have to agree with your assessment of the featur...I have to agree with your assessment of the feature pack. I started out a strong GW2 supporter, having played GW1 since beta weekends, but I've become more and more meh about everything anymore. And I really hate feeling this way about a game I used to love so much! <br /><br />It's all become Timer Wars 2. Everything is timed content -- events, character development and living story. And now, even world boss events are no longer (sorta) organic, but on some timer chart. So sad. What could have been a living world is now regulated to what hour it's showing on the clock. <br /><br />I guess long gone are the days of accidentally stumbling upon a zone-wide dragon attack like we once did when the game first released. Sure, the Shatterer was easy to kill, but it was quite the experience! Now? I've never seen a Tequatl success since they changed the fight, and I have a feeling I never will. Aywrenhttp://www.sygnus.orgnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1510920011443550663.post-27976727089272545572014-04-08T00:05:36.834+01:002014-04-08T00:05:36.834+01:00Those links aren't pvp related. One of those ...Those links aren't pvp related. One of those links contains a video for a program that let you farm the Attack on Lion's Arch event... made the bot look like a real player. So my point was, you may think you've not seen any harvesting bot... but it seems they're well disguised now.<br /><br />Lothiriethhttp://wanderingthroughdigitalworlds.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1510920011443550663.post-73358741903618883952014-04-07T22:15:11.852+01:002014-04-07T22:15:11.852+01:00Well, you read it how you like but I don't see...Well, you read it how you like but I don't see how they can simultaneously announce a plan ("We’ll also be discussing the long-term plan for guilds and WvW in relation to our megaserver system...") and state that "...we have no plans to remove this concept [Home Worlds] from WvW" and then go ahead and remove the concept of home worlds from WvW. There is simply no ambiguity there - they have a plan for WVW, they have no plan to remove the concept.<br /><br />Can't have something that contains the thing you don't have. <br /><br />I would guess that whatever changes are made to WvW , the Worlds will remain and will keep their existing names. The only other possibility is that they remove WvW from the game entirely and replace it with an alternate team PvPvE option under a completely differnet name. I wouldn't rule that out. <br /><br />If World vs World is going to exist at all though there have to be Worlds. I think that's kind of a given.Bhagpusshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03499162165023939880noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1510920011443550663.post-44574483550229776682014-04-07T20:07:18.936+01:002014-04-07T20:07:18.936+01:00@bhagpuss, they said they will change WvW in decem...@bhagpuss, they said they will change WvW in december 2014... with no servers, what will be the change? I doubt they can mantain the old server system with severs "no more". Too take note that the servers population unbalance is a permanent problem to WvW.João Carloshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03071469488376795686noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1510920011443550663.post-86852244279894388062014-04-07T19:09:34.431+01:002014-04-07T19:09:34.431+01:00They have taken the trouble to categorically deny ...They have taken the trouble to categorically deny they are going to mess with WvW. The actual quote is at the end of the final Feature Pack blog :<br /><br />"Though we are moving to our new megaserver model in PvE, it’s extremely important to us that we maintain the level of identity and competition in WvW that we’ve established since the release of Guild Wars 2. The entire game mode is based on battles between different players aligned to the named worlds, and as such we have no plans to remove this concept from WvW."<br /><br />Now I'm not naive enough to assume that means nothing will ever change but I don't think they'd be making such a strong statement if they knew they'd be making a lie of it within the next nine months. If nothing else, there's the income from World Transfers to consider. <br /><br />Bhagpusshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03499162165023939880noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1510920011443550663.post-91350744686863001522014-04-07T17:03:54.840+01:002014-04-07T17:03:54.840+01:00Reading that forum and from the hacks that have be...Reading that forum and from the hacks that have been in game from the beginning, it appears the servers inherently trust all data the client sends it and dutifully forwards that to players in range. Given that ANet's "lets do E-SPORTS!" focus sort of crumbled from neglect over the last year of balance tweaks, I'm not sure they really have a profit motive in instrumenting the servers and doing the BIG DATA batch modeling and analysis of player/game interactions to really catch any of the WvWvW players using hacked clients/overlays. Shame because that actually sounds like an interesting problem to try to solve (eg, catch it after the fact, with only the overhead of logging as opposed to modeling with server side checks).bronkitusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1510920011443550663.post-67273232597684554662014-04-07T16:24:08.448+01:002014-04-07T16:24:08.448+01:00My guess... by the end of year WvW will be morphed...My guess... by the end of year WvW will be morphed to GvG... or maybe blue v red v green guild alliances.<br /><br />My big doubt is WHEN GW2 chinese launch will happen. I think they will take the one month window opened with 15th march big poobah patch.João Carloshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03071469488376795686noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1510920011443550663.post-90772110761487305562014-04-07T14:19:00.074+01:002014-04-07T14:19:00.074+01:00I meant the farming/harvesting bots that were so p...I meant the farming/harvesting bots that were so prevalent in September-October 2012 that we were seriously considering whether we could carry on playing at all. There were literally more of them than live players on many, many maps. We went on holiday for a week, came back and ANet had done something and 90% of them vanished overnight. By the beginning of 2013 that was more like 99% and I have literally never seen a single farming or harvesting bot on Yak's Bend in the last 12 months. Not a single one.<br /><br />Botting in PvP I know nothing about since I never PvP and never will. Hacking in WvW happens a lot but I think that says a lot more about ANet's lack of interest in stopping it than lack of ability. I think they have the technical capacity to deal with these kinds of issues but not always the motivation. I'd hope that getting the servers to run would be a sufficiently important task that they might make the effort.Bhagpusshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03499162165023939880noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1510920011443550663.post-67195428012345567022014-04-07T12:48:08.142+01:002014-04-07T12:48:08.142+01:00Hah.. there are still LOADS of bots out there most...Hah.. there are still LOADS of bots out there most likely. They're just much better disguised. Hacking seems to be a not-so uncommon thing (dunno if you've heard about the Far Shiverpeaks hacker that is causing huge problems in WvW at the moment.)<br /><br />The stuff that's going on for months and months is fairly disgusting:<br /><br />http://www.elitepvpers.com/forum/gw2-hacks-bots-cheats-exploits/<br /><br />http://www.elitepvpers.com/forum/gw2-hacks-bots-cheats-exploits/3139288-gw2-bot-gw2minion-2-0-assist-events-grinding-pvp-radar-quests-more.html<br /><br />So I've not so much faith.Lothiriethhttp://wanderingthroughdigitalworlds.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1510920011443550663.post-72887069256878133352014-04-07T12:40:45.145+01:002014-04-07T12:40:45.145+01:00Gaia - There will no longer be an API to follow as...Gaia - There will no longer be an API to follow as there won't be proper servers anymore. Why do you think they made the schedule that they did? And how will there be a higher chance at the temple events being completed when there is no way to know they're actually able to be run unless you're on the map? Are we supposed to WP to each map every 15 minutes and check?<br /><br />Also, the only world bosses people will be able to start is the Karka Queen, Tequatl and Three-headed Wurm, not the rest of them, so I'm afraid you're not informed on that matter. Also the later two of those bosses takes 100-150 people. How will my guild of 30ish people manage that? Also, the mega-guild groups such as TTS/TxS aren't actual guilds. They've little influence to actually start unlocking the research needed nor do they ever do guild missions. A guild will need guild merits to kick off one of those major bosses.<br /><br />And I waited several DAYS before formulating any sort of response so I have thought about it for more than a minutes. No thank you to your condescension!Lothiriethhttp://wanderingthroughdigitalworlds.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1510920011443550663.post-46838851552860529252014-04-07T10:57:12.721+01:002014-04-07T10:57:12.721+01:00I have a very odd relationship with GW2, getting o...I have a very odd relationship with GW2, getting odder as the months and years go on. I never for one moment believed the hype about a "living, breathing world", or at least not the ridiculously overblown promises they made for it, but I did expect a high-quality, detailed imaginary world in which non-player characters provided a convincing backdrop against which I could use my imagination to fill in the rest. And that's largely what I got in beta and up until the first Karka event. <br /><br />After that went very badly indeed it was as if there'd been a palace coup. The entire direction of development changed and ever since we've been on an increasingly desperate flight away from a virtual world and towards a computer game that makes a lot of money for its owners. So that's a negative, you'd think.<br /><br />But...it's a bloody good computer game, one I thoroughly enjoy, haven't tired of and don't expect to anytime soon and about which I remain genuinely and continually excited. They said it would be a paradigm shift for the genre and in a way they were right, at least as far as my conception of the genre goes. As a result of playing GW2 for two years I am now conditioned to enjoy computer games without really thinking about how ridiculous they are and how much better my time could be spent doing almost anything else.<br /><br />I used to require the illusion that I was stepping into another world to get that disconnect. Now I don't. Is that progress?<br /><br />Oh, and leaving aside the whole question of whether it's good for the game, does anyone think ANet will actually get the Megaserver to work? If it wasn't for two things - culling and bots, both of which they did literally fix overnight - I'd say there was no chance. Maybe it's just the content teams that can't make anything that works properly first time (or fifth time, often as not). It's going to be an interesting experiment at least.Bhagpusshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03499162165023939880noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1510920011443550663.post-14309607010078279332014-04-07T06:40:59.212+01:002014-04-07T06:40:59.212+01:00Awwww.. don't you get all jaded on us. You'...Awwww.. don't you get all jaded on us. You're our last bastion of hope left.<br /><br />I do mostly agree though. There decision making is just so abstract in trying to change towards an idea or goal while constantly keeping a grip on the past. It's amazing too just how much the tend ruin the good changes they do make, two steps forward one step back.. forever and ever. <br /><br />i also don't think they've thought through this megaserver thing entirely. It doesn't sound like it is really that compatible with the design of the map, zones and eventsj3w3lhttp://healingthemasses.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1510920011443550663.post-27285755015068981052014-04-06T20:05:45.610+01:002014-04-06T20:05:45.610+01:00I'm placid about the waypoints as I prefer to ...I'm placid about the waypoints as I prefer to walk. ANet can't win, we all know they can't. The Mega-server was presumably well-meaning, we can all imagine mythical 'new players' being wildly excited about seeing other people in Lornar's Pass, forging lifelong friendships and getting married and such like. I'm just not sure these not-actual-people's needs stack up against those of the people that already play and I kind of like those guys. I don't personally share their issues, but we are all GW2 players. Feel the Love.Electroluxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06387150279953837398noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1510920011443550663.post-32686361043280226822014-04-06T14:44:48.504+01:002014-04-06T14:44:48.504+01:00One of the criteria to match people in a map is sa...One of the criteria to match people in a map is same home world.<br />I'm from desolation. I currently end in the desolation map (if people from other servers aren't hosting). After the mega server I will end up with people from desolation.<br /><br />Ok, maybe a smaller server will end up with people from their server and another 1 or 2 small servers But soon those 3 servers end up playing all the time together.<br /><br />Sure, brisban wildlands might end up with people from 20 servers. <br />But is anyone really screaming because of that?<br /><br />The waypoint thing is silly though, unless they make the first waypoint into the map free (or the second). Of course when you waypoint somewhere more likely than not you going to do some world boss event and those few silvers don't really matter. And if you aren't most likely than not you are mapping the area or farming.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05925345204945426269noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1510920011443550663.post-59157093152196939852014-04-06T14:39:09.518+01:002014-04-06T14:39:09.518+01:00It is good that they can alter instead of going ah...It is good that they can alter instead of going ahead anyway.<br />Anyway while Queensdale champ trains would be affected Orr node runs and frostgorge sound wouldn't be affected by the level 1-15 areas being changed.<br /><br />Regarding how will people know if an event is running or not the API will still be able to say if it is running or not.<br />One can say "yeah but I don't know if it is in my map or not". People from the same servers will still end playing together so there will still be a Desolation map, a Gandara map. Smaller servers might share a map or just ft in the space of a smaller server.<br /><br />And with less Orr maps running, each map will have more population so there is a higher chance the temple events will be completed.<br /><br />Regarding players not being able to see world bosses due to schedule - Guilds will be able to start the world boss events and anyone will be able to join.<br /><br />While there is potential for some problems (and people will lose the ability to just go wherever they want via hosting) there is too much screaming of sky is falling without sitting for a minute and think.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05925345204945426269noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1510920011443550663.post-45312312418190536482014-04-06T11:11:43.194+01:002014-04-06T11:11:43.194+01:00I've been really surprised at the strength of ...I've been really surprised at the strength of the negative reaction. I bet ANet have, too, judging by how fast they've rowed back. I love the blustering excuses: "As MegaServers evolved into a finished product, we have changed our initial roll-out plan". What, really? They "evolved"in these past few days, did they? And they're a "finished product" even though they won't be used for 90% of the game until you find out if they actually work? Just how stupid do you think your players are? Probably better not answer that...Bhagpusshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03499162165023939880noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1510920011443550663.post-25979848160992391192014-04-06T11:02:22.585+01:002014-04-06T11:02:22.585+01:00Now look what you did! You went and broke my irony...Now look what you did! You went and broke my irony meter! Bhagpusshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03499162165023939880noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1510920011443550663.post-89565721229254319552014-04-06T10:54:31.662+01:002014-04-06T10:54:31.662+01:00Sure it ruins Orr, World-Mega Bosses, the interact...Sure it ruins Orr, World-Mega Bosses, the interaction with WvW and PvE, server identity in general, shovels people that like busy servers and people that like quiet servers into a moderately occupied pseudo-server and makes people use two waypoints to get anywhere but think of all the benefits! So many benefits! God Bless the Benefits!<br /><br />This kind of thing goes with the territory now. If you don't like it you don't like MMOsElectroluxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06387150279953837398noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1510920011443550663.post-34672188653616130072014-04-06T04:37:46.628+01:002014-04-06T04:37:46.628+01:00One of the interesting suggestions I saw on Reddit...One of the interesting suggestions I saw on Reddit was to leave the cities alone. That way, there's still a sense of server community maintained at the hangout spots and a refuge for RPers, though that doesn't solve the PvE complications from the Megaserver system.<br /><br />The Orr temples being de-linked is rather dismaying from a "world impact" perspective, but looking at it in a more cynical light, the green goop around the statues just made everyone avoid the area and made life for lone people attempting world completion more difficult.Jeromaihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02206083433625986970noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1510920011443550663.post-3392581336093211332014-04-05T23:26:05.580+01:002014-04-05T23:26:05.580+01:00Great rant! If I was still emotionally invested in...Great rant! If I was still emotionally invested in GW2's PvE I'd be just as angry as you and even being as chilled out as I am about it all I agree with just about everything you said. <br /><br />I just spotted that ANet have already altered their plans in the face of the negative reaction. This from Samuel Loretan, the unfortunate dev who's acting as the public face for all things Megaserver:<br /><br />"I’m very glad and excited with your overwhelming responses regarding the MegaServer system. We are still working on establishing the best roll-out plan for this feature. I’d like to provide you with an update on our plans. It was announced on the blog post that we planned to start with the PvP Lobby, the level 1 to 15 maps, as well as the cities. As MegaServers evolved into a finished product, we have changed our initial roll-out plan.<br /><br />We are now planning on releasing the system starting with the PvP lobby and low population maps, and incrementally moving onto the maps with high populations. With this approach, the behavior on level 1 to 15 maps won’t change until we’ve seen the positive confirmation from the community as well as from our metrics that MegaServer is working as expected on lower population maps."<br /><br />Translation: "Oooookayyyy! You hate the idea. What say we try it out in some maps none of you play in anyway, just to see how it goes? It won't affect the Queensland Champ Train or your Frostgorge Ori runs one little bit. Then if you'll all just damn well calm down a little maybe we can get this train back on the tracks..."Bhagpusshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03499162165023939880noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1510920011443550663.post-33239481874026239762014-04-05T23:19:41.963+01:002014-04-05T23:19:41.963+01:00I don't spend a lot of time in Orr but it was ...I don't spend a lot of time in Orr but it was clear from the forum thread that people who do really don't like the proposed changes. And no-one at all likes the WP change. Bhagpusshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03499162165023939880noreply@blogger.com