tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12881856953507509872024-02-18T22:30:55.997-05:00Aery Plays - Gaming and Arty GoodnessA video game blog featuring gaming themed news, reviews, artwork, and other epic adventures!Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1288185695350750987.post-90303777405742590742014-04-29T10:00:00.000-04:002014-04-29T14:11:14.837-04:00Announcing my new YouTube channel! :)Wow, it feels like I have been away from this blog forever and I pretty much have! Oopsie. >_> There's really no excuse for my absence other than... teh lazy. If you hadn't noticed, there was a pretty big focus here on talking about Guild Wars 2 content. So when my interest in the game faltered and I pretty much stopped playing GW2 altogether, it also led to less of an interest in writing about it and continuing making updates for this site. My sincere apologies if anyone was actively wanting to keep up with these posts.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/AeryPlays"><img alt="YouTube Channel AeryPlays Aery Plays Let's Play Video Games" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZTdygK9TCDSNPSIvfHkILAHMbOdxKJOzpuREjjqBLmjyTiZ82s75MH-dwlAVhd10TpK3_8EgDBFWGtRve2n8n9_BazvmS8E_hDhQ1I-QHHm1AGjrIbqR55Ro7C3FggWhRLXdKedyXvRE/s1600/aeryplays_youtube.jpg" height="170" title="Click here to visit AeryPlays on YouTube!" width="320" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The youtube channel view for AeryPlays. :D</td></tr>
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In other more awesome news though, I have finally forced myself to do something that I have been putting off for far too long, which is to create a YouTube channel! I still can't really believe it's real and actually a thing now. I've wanted to make videos for such a long time (we're talking years here), but kept thinking it was too complicated and that I'd never be able to do it. It also didn't help knowing I have a bad track record of starting things and then not following through with them for very long *cough* <i>this site</i> *cough*. So the idea of being a youtuber continued to be put off indefinitely.<br />
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I won't go into detail but around three months ago, my world pretty much fell apart. Or that's what it felt like (and still does a lot of the time honestly...). I really needed something to take my mind off everything - a new hobby to focus on and escape real life for a bit so I thought, "Why not give this a try?" Even if no one else watched them, I figured things definitely couldn't get any worse as I obviously had 0 views, 0 subscribers, and 0 videos at the time. I literally had nothing to lose and potentially a lot to gain.<br />
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Sooooo I decided to dive right into making videos! Some things were easier than expected, some things were harder than expected, but in the end it was all really fun. The hardest part was actually just sitting down and forcing myself to <b>do it</b>. Making videos has been an immense learning experience so far and I imagine it will stay that way for quite some time. I'm very much a yt noob. :p For fun I thought it would be amusing to list my top ten things I've somehow managed to figure out along the way:<br />
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<li>recording and running games on a 5 year old crappy PC</li>
<li>basic editing (ooh you so fancy!)</li>
<li>what render settings to use (most times)</li>
<li>the need to cut back on saying "umm" and "uhh" all the time so I don't sound like a complete fool </li>
<li>making thumbnails that aren't horrendous</li>
<li>making channel artwork and then having to resize/change it all around for every single social media site </li>
<li>making a homemade pop filter out of an old sock</li>
<li>spending way too long animating an intro and outro </li>
<li>halfway decent SEO</li>
<li>promoting the channel while trying to not appear creepy and desperate, etc. etc. </li>
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I just finished posting my very first series and am having a blast with it all so far. Creating videos is a really enjoyable hobby. Who knows what the future holds, but right now I'm pleased with the feedback I've received. People seem to enjoy watching and that's really encouraging. Honestly never expected anyone to watch, so any growth is automatically awesome. A huge thank you and hug to anyone that subscribes, likes, or comments on a video. <3<br />
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My goal for the channel is to showcase all the great games out there. I also really want to make a positive place where people can watch my videos and escape for a bit, where they will feel included and supported. Especially those struggling with self-esteem, depression, etc. because I know what that's like. Creating videos is also a good way to keep challenging myself, so I'm hoping to do it for as long as possible! Don't give up on this, future Aery. :)<br />
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Also, if you're in a similar situation and are thinking of starting a channel - please do it! Don't wait until you have the perfect setup or channel art or any other excuse you can think of. Just go and record yourself playing a game and have a blast. It will be worth it, trust me!<br />
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What will happen with this website you might ask? Well, ideally I'd like it to sort of be a supplement to the youtube channel where I can post more in depth about certain things or provide extra bonus content of some sort. I'd still like to post updates about what my characters are doing in various games or news topics that might not really make sense to put in video format. In other words, I'm still figuring it out. But keep an eye out here as I definitely do not want to abandon this blog!<br />
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In the meantime, if you'd like to watch me stumble my way through video games you can do so below:<br />
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</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1288185695350750987.post-37123905045531896372013-02-21T16:39:00.000-05:002013-02-21T16:40:30.766-05:00New Information About GW2 Guild Missions and MeritsAs you probably know by now, in the upcoming February update titled <a href="http://www.aeryplays.com/2013/02/flame-frost-gathering-storm-gw2.html" target="_blank">Flame and Frost: The Gathering Storm</a>, they are adding guild missions to the game. Well, a bit <a href="https://www.guildwars2.com/en/news/leah-rivera-on-new-guild-missions/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">more information</a> has been released by Leah Rivera on what we can expect with this new addition to PVE gameplay! Keep reading to learn more. :)<br />
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<object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="http://0.gvt0.com/vi/7z_8_yKMzGA/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/7z_8_yKMzGA&fs=1&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/7z_8_yKMzGA&fs=1&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div>
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In a basic sense, <b>guild missions</b> will simply be new fun things you can do with your friends/guildies. However, they must first be unlocked similar to other current guild rewards. So, I'd advise you to stock up on some influence now to unlock these as soon as possible. These are not something meant to do solo, but they will take place in the persistent world, so even if you are in a very small or solo guild, it seems like you can still participate as long as there are other people around to help.<br />
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So far, they are planning to have five(!) new types of guild missions:<br />
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<b>Guild Bounty</b> - you must hunt and find certain entities for the various Orders.<br />
<b>Guild Trek</b> - this one is timed and seems like a scavenger hunt, visiting a bunch of listed locations.<br />
<b>Guild Challenge</b> - not much info about this, but will require "multi-group, coordinated play" to succeed.<br />
<b>Guild Rush</b> - an obstacle course of some sort? Making your way across traps and other dangers.<br />
<b>Guild Puzzle</b> - jumping puzzles! I <i>really</i> hope these are not timed or I am most likely doomed. The puzzles will also require individual jumping skillz and larger, coordinated efforts.<br />
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The other new and exciting addition is that of <b>Guild Merits</b>. Presumably we will still get some of the normal rewards for completing these missions such as coin, karma, loot, and exp, but the guild will now also earn Merits for its accomplishments. These will be displayed in the actual guild panel and can be used to unlock new upgrades like "combo banners, gold find bonus, reduced waypoint costs and, of course, the missions themselves".<br />
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The existing guild upgrades are pretty underwhelming in my opinion. In fact, the only thing I really cared about unlocking was the guild emblem and guild bank. I really hope they are adding more upgrades than just what is listed above. *cough* Give us guild halls and player housing already!! >:( *cough* Obviously unlocking the missions themselves will be fun and the reduced waypoint costs sound nice if they are permanent, but really? More combo banners and gold find bonuses? /yawn<br />
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Guild missions do have me intrigued, however. They seem like they will help bring people back out into the world and who doesn't like more things to do in general? They still have a ways to go before the guild system truly lives up to it's potential, but this is a nice first step of sorts.<br />
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Are you looking forward to playing with your guildies in this way? Which type of guild mission looks the most fun to you? Let me know in the comment section below! :)Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1288185695350750987.post-90748005911987732172013-02-21T02:44:00.000-05:002013-02-21T03:01:30.921-05:00Playstation 2013 Conference New PS4 Console and Games!In case you missed it, Sony unveiled in a press conference today their much anticipated new console - the Playstation 4! Oh my goodness. But wait! They didn't even show the actual console! :( Siigh. The good news is that there was lots of other information about new features, new games, new technologies, and a new controller that is in store for us. All of this and more will be hitting shelves this 2013 holiday season. Keep reading for a roundup of information and some highlights. :D
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjestqeopLgwZQzcLFgSb9VetSL7k1I9fE2akbu0Voz12db3zc9fWTVBnt53YQwXTFfBFOSpVtbPEjyHfTZzuzISrA0YB4xOmpAAZcM43P5noKmr5sp2xTtyPrVlYOnFm80DJbi2yCMkGw/s1600/ps4-controller.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="PS4 Playstation Dualshock Controller" border="0" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjestqeopLgwZQzcLFgSb9VetSL7k1I9fE2akbu0Voz12db3zc9fWTVBnt53YQwXTFfBFOSpVtbPEjyHfTZzuzISrA0YB4xOmpAAZcM43P5noKmr5sp2xTtyPrVlYOnFm80DJbi2yCMkGw/s320/ps4-controller.jpg" title="PS4 controller." width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The new Playstation 4 controller. Ooh, fancy! Albeit a bit ugly.. >_></td></tr>
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<a name='more'></a>Well let's talk about that shiny new <b>controller</b> first shall we? It is very similar to past Playstation controllers, but with a bit of an upgrade, most notably in the addition of a touchpad right in the middle that will add some functionality to games. Sony is also improving response times and lowering latency, allowing users to have more precise control when they play. The rumble system should also be better and there will now be a headphone jack and a share button (more on that later). Another addition is a lightbar to the top, which is said to provide an easier way to identify players. There will also be another peripheral that works in conjunction with the PS4 controller, which will be a stereo camera that will track the 3d positioning for more motion sensing capabilities.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGd7sKBMoWeZ7mFOj7KzeeIExCY0Y7joLIzlCyZhMTTq-Nv3kJcK5Ols-DjRToX9S2wfBm7WOkFRFHZzj3SG0DYAzi9RBvrHdte2TkZyiXoMQ5VfJW1Wy6c38NC5wY9nOepK8ZThEFvi8/s1600/ps4-hardware-specs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="PS4 Playstation hardware specs" border="0" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGd7sKBMoWeZ7mFOj7KzeeIExCY0Y7joLIzlCyZhMTTq-Nv3kJcK5Ols-DjRToX9S2wfBm7WOkFRFHZzj3SG0DYAzi9RBvrHdte2TkZyiXoMQ5VfJW1Wy6c38NC5wY9nOepK8ZThEFvi8/s320/ps4-hardware-specs.jpg" title="The power behind the Playstation." width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">All of the hardware specs.</td></tr>
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There are lots of other features being added to increase functionality and consumer ease of use. As far as <b>hardware</b>, the PS4 will have the technology that lets it download and update games in the background as you are playing or doing other things. You can also start playing new games pretty much instantly - there will be no need to wait until an entire game is finished downloading before you can try it out. In fact, Sony is trying to eliminate a lot of the waiting found in current gaming. Gone are the days where you will have to wait anxiously for the system to boot up. With a new low power state you can simply turn on the machine and play right where you left off.<br />
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<b>Social features</b> will also be playing a big role. The Playstation Network will be able to integrate more with your social profiles and enable easy sharing. As I mentioned above, there will be a share button on the controller itself where you can quickly tag and upload gameplay videos. There will also be support for integrated streaming straight from the console to either PSN or Ustream in real time. One aspect of this I found particularly engaging is that friends will actually be able to take over the controls for you or offer up other help if you get stuck in a certain section of the game. That's pretty neat!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBzY0_jptCLhn_0hFGwTGkqMkN_MGlv1xTz0tmRTtMq5ou5u6DN3SF5fh2QmemmOksK37xHzMtPsvJgregIjA3cXufKO5g_KDLONwvlbnwSE8Z5HsVxbPyrpSCJVVjpnY5DYN2_QoB18w/s1600/ps4-streaming.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="PS4 Playstation Streaming" border="0" height="162" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBzY0_jptCLhn_0hFGwTGkqMkN_MGlv1xTz0tmRTtMq5ou5u6DN3SF5fh2QmemmOksK37xHzMtPsvJgregIjA3cXufKO5g_KDLONwvlbnwSE8Z5HsVxbPyrpSCJVVjpnY5DYN2_QoB18w/s320/ps4-streaming.jpg" title="" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stream right from your PS4!</td></tr>
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The PS4 will bring features not just to your traditional TV, but also other devices that you already use. For example the PS Vita will work much like the WiiU controller, where you can play games on this smaller screen from the console over WiFi with <b>Remote Play</b>. If you have an iPhone, iPad, or Android device, you can use these as a second screen and view maps whilst playing, purchase games and have them download when you're away from home, or watch other people's gameplay.<br />
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This <b>streaming cloud</b> technology won't just be for PS4 games, we will also hopefully be able to play PS1, 2, and 3 games on any screen or device. In this way, the console appears as though it will be backwards compatible, but you might not be able to get the most out of this service unless you have good internet speed and enough monthly bandwidth to stream all of the data.<br />
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Another thing they mentioned that I'm not sure if I like the sound of is how much they want to <b>personalize</b> the console to you. I don't mind targeted ads too much since I'd rather see things I might possibly be interested in, but the PS4 will take it even further. You'll be able to see information shared by friends and get recommended content of course, however Sony wants to learn as much as they can about you to actually predict and load up games for you before you've even bought them... WTF. I'm assuming this will mean it actually <i>downloads</i> the games it <i>thinks</i> you will buy, which I am not okay with. In fact I find it a bit creepy and I definitely would not want them trying to meet my "potential needs" in this way. PS4: Just do what I tell you to do, okay? Thanks.<br />
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That is about it for features. I'm sure you're all also wondering what games were actually shown. Well, here they are:<br />
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<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=abIYKfVv3IY" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Knack</a> - a third person action game where you are a cute robot that can shrink and grow in size.<br />
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JUZJTjns6Qg&oref=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DJUZJTjns6Qg&has_verified=1" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Killzone Shadow Fall</a> - nothing super exciting here. Looks to me like a generic FPS that is set in a high tech city. It does look very pretty, though.<br />
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x1u5jj4RuUc" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Driveclub</a> - driving game focused on collaborative gameplay in teams. It is not specifically about racing, but completing challenges amd driving great cars (with great amounts of detail) in great locations.<br />
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tHSeyPl--Fw" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Infamous: Second Son</a> - what happens when people get superhero powers? And who exactly is in control? This dark game makes us question our security vs. personal freedoms.<br />
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ubkui2D5xzQ" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Deep Down</a> - developed by Capcom on their brand new Panta Rhei game engine. Set in a fantasy, Medieval environment, slaying dragons and all that. Looks quite promising!<br />
Final Fantasy - no video but a new FF game was announced. They did have a <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pu-SQqZz_2A" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Luminous</a> engine tech demo, however.<br />
Diablo 3 - Blizzard is trying to get back into the console business and take over the world. They are releasing Diablo 3 for both PS3 and PS4.<br />
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M0GICaRqAao" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Watchdogs</a> - Ubisoft showed a bit more about Watchdogs. This game looks really fun! It explores how we are all connected and what can happen when someone manipulates our personal data to their advantage. You can control lots of different technologies and invade people's privacy then see how the world changes dynamically around you.<br />
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rKZ3VKsQt9g" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Destiny</a> - Bungie's new IP. This FPS is a persistant online world where you can grow and customize your character. The co-op is also supposed to be pretty great.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Exploring a mysterious island in <i>The Witness</i>.</td></tr>
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The game I was probably most interested in was <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tk-RsawGjPY" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Witness</a>, presented by Braid creator Jonathan Blow. They have been working on this game for about 3.5 years. We as players get to explore a beautiful, abandoned island and solve puzzles. There will be an open world, but it is concentrated with many things to do instead of artificially lengthening the game by spreading everything out. There will always be new and interesting puzzles around every corner, and everything is placed where it is for a reason. At around 25 hours of gameplay (at least), Jonathan promises no filler content! It looks as though the PS4 will be the only console to play this on (for now...). Braid was such a lovely game and this one looks great so far as well. I have to say The Witness appears to be very Myst inspired which is another plus! :)<br />
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All in all, some of the new features on the Playstation 4 look very nice! But at the same time I feel like a lot of them are kind of unnecessary and get away from what the console should be about - playing games! I just want good, interesting games that are not afraid to take risks and push boundaries. And if they look pretty too, that's just an added bonus (although the PC will always have consoles beat in that department >:D).<br />
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So, I think the thing that will make this console successful is if they keep focusing on letting people create their own worlds and content, while also catering to indie and normal devs to give them as much creative freedom as possible. Both are things the PS4 looks like they really want to, so I am hopeful! Did you watch the press conference? What did you think of Sony's new console and what are you looking forward to? Let me know in the comment section below!<br />
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P.S. I noticed after watching that there were no women presenters at the whole conference. Plus, none of the games really feature prominent women characters except maybe the cinematic from Square Enix, but that's only a tech demo so it hardly counts. How disappointing. :(<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfYL3YT3DBmhAZKaZxL1V8ZgLU1K3OlOTkF8sfvhxj6JT-V-kPOnsGovxRU2UBpEhWz09ngoT_X4gseA6ClGsRd05WUoALCdK2zIdxp9FK-jCYhXqu8ghSF8DgM5P6Ot8h5TL_3GJkR64/s1600/bungie2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Bungie Destiny Clones" border="0" height="162" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfYL3YT3DBmhAZKaZxL1V8ZgLU1K3OlOTkF8sfvhxj6JT-V-kPOnsGovxRU2UBpEhWz09ngoT_X4gseA6ClGsRd05WUoALCdK2zIdxp9FK-jCYhXqu8ghSF8DgM5P6Ot8h5TL_3GJkR64/s320/bungie2.jpg" title="Perhaps if we stand really still no one will notice we're here..." width="320" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSx0BiNXgqZSlkarzNs5hpPSevwLXEJ9uQNkepmLzoo6SHmpOl_OVkwHhS3AvubuUud7yn-EjVhtv2OfiC2PEUR0Tip7tp7FAOHuOPXTzjRX1o1qrQFK15f07Rft4TIzd2KgdDwI4VKfg/s1600/bungie.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Bungie Destiny Clones " border="0" height="162" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSx0BiNXgqZSlkarzNs5hpPSevwLXEJ9uQNkepmLzoo6SHmpOl_OVkwHhS3AvubuUud7yn-EjVhtv2OfiC2PEUR0Tip7tp7FAOHuOPXTzjRX1o1qrQFK15f07Rft4TIzd2KgdDwI4VKfg/s320/bungie.jpg" title="See ya!" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The awkward Bungie clones say bye!</td></tr>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1288185695350750987.post-78528796075437188232013-02-12T15:38:00.000-05:002013-02-12T15:38:44.851-05:00Finishing "A Season of Growth" Sylvari Personal Story ChapterSorry for a bit of an absence lately. I was working on changing the site over to our own domain (yay!) and that proved to be a huge hassle because of the company I decided to use. If you have a blog on Blogger and are thinking of using your own custom domain, I can't say I would recommend going with 1&1 unless you don't mind having to do a bunch of workarounds. Yes they are cheap, but probably not worth all the extra effort you have to go through just to get things to work how they should. Luckily, I was able to finally sort everything out in the end and it appears to be working fine. If it isn't and you encounter any problems with pages not loading or links not linking correctly, please let me know... I'd really appreciate it! But until I hear otherwise, I will assume that it is all fixed now. :)<br />
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Anyways, tonight I decided to work a bit more on the Sylvari personal story again because I have it in my head that I must finish it all before running any dungeons. And I need to do dungeons for the monthly to get laurels, so I need to have the story all completed before the end of February! As you might remember, last time I was working on the <a href="http://www.aeryplays.com/2013/01/guild-wars-2-personal-story.html" target="_blank">personal story</a> it ended with needing to meet Pellam in Caledon Forest. Note: personal story spoilers ahead!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3-ljiSvozl3ltjV_w-lHveKML8AkHwFFPZjbHM5FOr3TIZvX9xQxcUcsfFzZ8GAY15koqBNuIiu_al8rjoobEc6YgpD6f650kcmQDrbvLc4FBtynD4nLdvXlFhkTz-NKi03N8sYM_yjs/s1600/the_grove.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img alt="Guild Wars 2 Sylvari personal story the grove" border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3-ljiSvozl3ltjV_w-lHveKML8AkHwFFPZjbHM5FOr3TIZvX9xQxcUcsfFzZ8GAY15koqBNuIiu_al8rjoobEc6YgpD6f650kcmQDrbvLc4FBtynD4nLdvXlFhkTz-NKi03N8sYM_yjs/s320/the_grove.jpg" title="The Grove" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a name='more'></a>The air was thick and humid around Wychmire Swamp. Running across the broken and uneven brick road that lead to the swamp, fireflies were abuzz all around me, providing a subtle glow against the night sky. Frogs could be heard croaking and splashing about, their sound almost deafening. My dress became wet and caked with mud as I trudged through the dark, murky waters.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNfhYv3-rG9oZ0DpLxCNE6vU2InnxI4BdCy1kZGCHMnUJ9KUTsumHt5ewoBTSgY2AtZ38dc4BkrbghikfTyLlTYu_9fLlfj3bMpzL5odMo5Dvnk9qPpiyrIJc_jlWGQR_cNM4GAmduQ1U/s1600/wychmire_swamp_firefly.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Wychmire Swamp Caledon Forest" border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNfhYv3-rG9oZ0DpLxCNE6vU2InnxI4BdCy1kZGCHMnUJ9KUTsumHt5ewoBTSgY2AtZ38dc4BkrbghikfTyLlTYu_9fLlfj3bMpzL5odMo5Dvnk9qPpiyrIJc_jlWGQR_cNM4GAmduQ1U/s320/wychmire_swamp_firefly.jpg" title="Fireflies in Wychmire Swamp" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This doesn't look like the way to Oz...</td></tr>
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I saw Pellam up ahead, finally. He and the others from the Hazupl tribe greeted me warmly. They told me how the Dengatl had agreed to trade the zalisco extract back to us in exchange for some magical weapons which, of course, we did not really intend to give them. The plan was risky but Pellam seemed convinced that nothing would go awry. I did as I was told and led our friends of the Hazupl into hiding where they would lay in wait to ambush the Dengatl once our meeting was underway.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhb0pfWAJ_WG9YwHNf9NMMzcjgYpJjHSXpKdICsLSYY9kBEiBDKjhJfCm2DrpDYn8f7PrQZE-tnimack62M88MDIPfZa1rjrnSpPW9LNjgtbM2sHylXqq8HttSSpb1KZ5lGMAAG1o96_8/s1600/hylek.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="GW2 Personal Story Hylek Sylvari" border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhb0pfWAJ_WG9YwHNf9NMMzcjgYpJjHSXpKdICsLSYY9kBEiBDKjhJfCm2DrpDYn8f7PrQZE-tnimack62M88MDIPfZa1rjrnSpPW9LNjgtbM2sHylXqq8HttSSpb1KZ5lGMAAG1o96_8/s320/hylek.jpg" title="That Hylek is toad-ally not impressed." width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Oh, Pellam, you're so punny!</td></tr>
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As Pellam "negotiated" with the tribe, things quickly took a turn for the worse. They tried to double cross us, wanting to keep both the magical weapons and the zalisco extract. The Dengatl had also come prepared to take what they wanted by force and sheer numbers. Needless to say, our ambush did not go as planned. A huge fight broke out before the extract could trade hands and one of the Dengatl tribe members ran off, taking the zalisco with him. I was given the exciting task of tracking him down. Except it really wasn't all that exciting... After searching in a few trees I was surprised that I was able to find him so quickly, but of course there was a catch as things are never really that easy! Lo and behold I learn that the extract is indeed gone again, this time because Tochzotl, a priest from another tribe named the Ogotl, has taken it. Sigh. Time to make the long trek back to the Grove to meet up with Trahearne again!<br />
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I arrive back at home, meandering through the city, taking in all the familiar sights and sounds of the sylvari capital. Following the spiralling pathways, I end up on the ground level where I see Trahearne and Pellam engaging in conversation inside the Dreamer's Terrace. I join them and Caithe soon follows. Trahearne kindly informs us all that Tochzotl has taken the extract because he wants to use it to create what is known as the 'Eye of the Sun'. This ancient potion is said to grant its user immense power and the ability to become an avatar of the sun itself. Whether this tale is actually true or just folklore, I could not be sure. But at the very least this potion is extremely toxic and could end up poisoning all of the Ogotl. It's suggested that we should go find out what is happening with this tribe before it is too late..<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEittflYUtdTTGZdXPVJLW-GLLqjZb3PwdPeTCMwdLjBAZzlX1xua6aJALvd0uj1r4GbrmekL4yIdqHOClU9KkpGaeFhDubxvmaE-jvFgLC4CyNVgr70CMFsLwwG-cyWp2CgOKRDBqpehro/s1600/caithe_trahearne.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="The Grove Sylvari Caithe Trahearne" border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEittflYUtdTTGZdXPVJLW-GLLqjZb3PwdPeTCMwdLjBAZzlX1xua6aJALvd0uj1r4GbrmekL4yIdqHOClU9KkpGaeFhDubxvmaE-jvFgLC4CyNVgr70CMFsLwwG-cyWp2CgOKRDBqpehro/s320/caithe_trahearne.jpg" title="Inside the Dreamer's Terrace" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Super serious Sylvari discussions.</td></tr>
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Brisban Wildlands was our next destination. My feet ached at the thought of more running around, but soon enough I met back up with Caithe, Pellam, and Trahearne along the river. As I examined the water more closely, it had a faint green color to it and all of the fish were floating lifelessly. This potion was poisoning the river and would soon spread to all of Caledon Forest! We need to stop the Ogotl tribe as soon as possible. Unfortunately, the only way for us to investigating further was to swim upstream through this tainted water. D:<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgtSl99UP5mzv5vJ9QNVwq3qYe3Aj618DHZp2E7lQ3BR1l7SCuqVEPw4h7XFbEy54S3w9lsg0L_B9C9ncXIj5Kxi9Uhy7UbCwTzxjN9oEmHg0dUMS1J1JPcfKf9oPyjOkfbhRhvHiL5vw/s1600/river.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Brisban Wildlands Sylvari Underwater" border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgtSl99UP5mzv5vJ9QNVwq3qYe3Aj618DHZp2E7lQ3BR1l7SCuqVEPw4h7XFbEy54S3w9lsg0L_B9C9ncXIj5Kxi9Uhy7UbCwTzxjN9oEmHg0dUMS1J1JPcfKf9oPyjOkfbhRhvHiL5vw/s320/river.jpg" title="Dead fishies :(" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yes this river is the perfect place to have a swim...</td></tr>
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A few waves of Hylek tried to halt our progress but eventually we arrive to see Tochzotl and an injured Arlon. Apparently he had taken matters into his own hands and tried to stop the Ogotl tribe by himself. Silly Arlon! We are able to weaken some of the effects of the potion with Trahearne's counter-agent, but still end up having to fight the Eye of the Sun. Luckily enough, even with all of that power he was no match for all of us and we were able to save the day! Hooray.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiix5FiQn4IkmFyVBQgOoY-O1-2t6HtfwfE8ZY7kZn8SVSnOVUZimteRqFRn0TZYOBs1RINP6E_ylw2ug1QnkzJpP8PsejhLRd0wUiQnl2J3IR01Q0fDYucxLPnb2Uat9Q83EPXQATlLjo/s1600/arlon_pellam.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Sylvari twins" border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiix5FiQn4IkmFyVBQgOoY-O1-2t6HtfwfE8ZY7kZn8SVSnOVUZimteRqFRn0TZYOBs1RINP6E_ylw2ug1QnkzJpP8PsejhLRd0wUiQnl2J3IR01Q0fDYucxLPnb2Uat9Q83EPXQATlLjo/s320/arlon_pellam.jpg" title="Arlon and Pellam reunited" width="320" /></a></div>
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Well, that's all for now! I can't say I found this chapter to be all that exciting or engaging. The twins were acting childish the whole way through and all the Hylek seemed to be capable of was ambushing one another and almost destroying themselves. Meh. All in all I am not really impressed with what I have played of the personal story so far. Hopefully it will improve as we go along, but based on impressions I have already read from others, I don't think I will hold my breath. This is a real shame because I think a lot of us were under the impression that the choices you make would have a real and meaningful impact on your storyline, but this does not appear to be the case. What a missed opportunity! Kind of like how the personal instance in your home city is pretty underwhelming as well. Hmm, guess we can't have it all. :(<br />
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Have you played any of the personal story? Maybe you've completed it once or even a few times by now. What do you think? Is the storyline acceptable or could they have done much more with it? Let me know what you think in the comment section below! :)Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1288185695350750987.post-25172367661519636622013-02-06T22:49:00.001-05:002013-02-10T03:49:16.493-05:00Flame and Frost: The Gathering Storm Update GW2Guild Wars 2's Flame and Frost: Prelude has been out for awhile now (if you haven't played or read all about it yet, you can see the <a href="http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Game_updates/2013-01-28" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">official patch notes</a> here). Things have been going pretty well. My little Necromancer has been slowly creeping up in levels thanks to the new daily achievement system that has been introduced and she finally hit level 40. Only 40 more to go, woo! :D Overall, I am a fan of these new dailies... but I do still miss how quickly the old ones could be completed! The new laurel rewards are quite nice, however some of the daily categories can be a bit annoying such as Daily Dodger - I can never seem to time my dodges at exactly the right moment, but I am slowly getting better at it! So far the easiest enemy for me to complete this daily on has been various worms (just dodge when whatever they spit at you is in mid air). The only other two I find mildly annoying are Daily Healer and Daily Crafter. Healer is easy if you don't mind traveling to specific areas like the Thaumanova Reactor in Metrica Province, but if you are just trying to complete it at the same time as the other dailies when you're out leveling it can end up taking awhile. Crafter is easy too if you refine some low level materials, but I'm not much of a crafter so I'd rather do something else! I must say though that the best new daily by far is the one to visit the laurel vendor, which can easily be found in every major city. Why can't that one pop up everyday?? :)<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOmbFuOzoXJSP6SA44EmCXU4l6QXo1Q7W7l5sBvq3ONZsbVLGDXukvIts2RHbyjzF3rWEuqG-O0F30CQ92SHw_ua0Z42N2Ju20BR9VoUnEjGBhOjGdWMJXzggs_f4WEUJuGiHFZN22018/s1600/gw2_daily_achievements.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Guild Wars 2 Daily Achievement Kills, Healer, Laurel Vendor, Gatherer, Events" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOmbFuOzoXJSP6SA44EmCXU4l6QXo1Q7W7l5sBvq3ONZsbVLGDXukvIts2RHbyjzF3rWEuqG-O0F30CQ92SHw_ua0Z42N2Ju20BR9VoUnEjGBhOjGdWMJXzggs_f4WEUJuGiHFZN22018/s1600/gw2_daily_achievements.jpg" title="The new daily achievement tracker in GW2." /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Visiting the Laurel Vendor - best daily ever! </td></tr>
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<a name='more'></a>The new daily interface is also a nice quality of life addition. It's really handy being able to see all that you need to do with a quick glance. I have noticed it be a bit buggy (it often "closes" for no real reason), but it's still much better than having to keep opening the whole Achievement Panel. Another thing I've noticed is that the monthly achievement tracker will also show up after you've completed the dailies. In my opinion it would be nice for these monthly goals to always be listed along with the normal dailies, but that's a small complaint.<br />
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In related news, ANet has finally announced which features will be present in the February update, which is scheduled for a February 26th release date and has been given the name <a href="https://www.guildwars2.com/en/the-game/releases/february-2013/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Flame and Frost: The Gathering Storm</a>. If you hate the new daily system that I mentioned above, perhaps you'll be pleased to learn that we will now be able to choose which daily categories we want to complete and be rewarded for everyday (I'm quite looking forward to this addition). More choice for things like this is always a good thing! There will also be two team rated play added to PvP, as well as an entirely new PvP map called Spirit Watch. Also, guild missions, yay! These really look fun. They will include "everything from bounties to group puzzles to cross-country challenges". The only problem I can see is that players in a small guild might have trouble completing all of these missions. They seem to all be designed for larger groups, so if you're more of a solo player, well, you might be out of luck for this one. :( Although ArenaNet does tend to have a reputation for trying to make things as inclusive as possible, if there are any dungeon-like encounters or huge bosses being added as missions, it could prove potentially difficult for tiny guilds. It might be worth recruiting some more friends to your guild so you can unlock the new upgrades and rewards!<br />
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As far as the Living Story storyline is concerned, it looks to be more of the same. I was pretty disappointed that there wasn't much to do during the first installment, and it appears as though there probably won't be a whole lot of new stuff to do with this one either. Basically, our efforts as <a href="http://aeryplays.blogspot.com/2013/02/how-to-get-volunteer-title-gw2.html" target="_blank">Volunteers</a> have helped somewhat, but the impending storm is still growing up near the Shiverpeaks... And that's it. :/ I imagine that part three is where something big will start happening, but of course only time will tell! We'll have to wait and see exactly how things end up playing out.<br />
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If you were looking for new <a href="http://www.guildwars2guru.com/news/1009-colin-johanson-on-upcoming-wvw-changes/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">WvW updates</a>, they are unfortunately being pushed back to the March update (hopefully) in order to receive some more testing and polishing.<br />
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How are you enjoying the Flame and Frost update so far? What are you most looking forward to in the next Guild Wars 2 patch? Let me know what you think in the comment section below! :)<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1288185695350750987.post-30835818158412696272013-02-02T03:46:00.003-05:002013-02-07T21:02:10.412-05:00Year of the Beta: Path of Exile, Elder Scrolls, FFXIV, & Neverwinter plus GW1 Canthan New YearMany people have moved on to Guild Wars 2, but for those of us that still play <b>Guild Wars 1</b>, you might be interested to know that the <a href="http://www.guildwars.com/events/ingame/canthannewyear/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Canthan New Year</a> is now upon us. It officially kicked off on January 31st and will be running until February 7th. There are many things to do during this festival including a dodgeball game in the Dragon Arena, activities on Shing Jea Boardwalk, Rollerbeetle Races, and even themed quests that have been added. The event will conclude with a giant feast, complete with dancing, fireworks, and prizes starting on February 6th. Be sure to log in within the next few days if you want to experience everything the event has to offer!<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMsOQQJ8NoF_o3N7rEFB6DA1QsbOqpyj_KI0CYi5gTcNlbf2vfhOkugSPLh20mk3D3wGra-vA9n-JZFR3pe4Vuj2Bsk2HrCfJtdBlTKtEiHr1nSbKVur_YafCBQDBXpMBNFVCcvIuKJZA/s1600/gw097.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Guild Wars 1 Canthan New Year Shing Jea Boardwalk" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMsOQQJ8NoF_o3N7rEFB6DA1QsbOqpyj_KI0CYi5gTcNlbf2vfhOkugSPLh20mk3D3wGra-vA9n-JZFR3pe4Vuj2Bsk2HrCfJtdBlTKtEiHr1nSbKVur_YafCBQDBXpMBNFVCcvIuKJZA/s1600/gw097.jpg" height="180" title="A beautiful view of Cantha in Guild Wars 1." width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Shing Jea Boardwalk at sunset.</td></tr>
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In other news, 2013 is shaping up to be a good one for games, there are already lots of betas and upcoming releases to watch out for. Here are some other interesting games currently or soon to be in beta that you might want to check out!<br />
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<b>Path of Exile</b> has been pretty popular lately in the world of online gaming. PoE is an indie Action RPG developed by Grinding Gear Games. It just recently went into open beta, so anyone is able to play just by signing up on the <a href="http://www.pathofexile.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Path of Exile Website</a>. When it officially launches, the game will continue to be free and will be supported by "ethical" microtransactions, so if you are interested at all you really have nothing to lose by giving it a try. The element of this game that really shines is how customized you can make your character. No, I'm not talking about a visual character creator, but how much you can personalize their build. Let me warn you, the <a href="http://www.pathofexile.com/passive-skill-tree/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">passive skill tree</a> in Path of Exile is not for the faint of heart, in fact it can be quite intimidating! There are about 1,350 passive skills in the tree, and you can work your way through it any way you'd like. The only sort of limiting factor is the character class you choose determines where you start off on this tree. This game is full of interesting concepts, like using a bartering system instead of currency. Also, your character's 'active skills' actually come in the form of gems that get socketed into your armor/weapons, with the option to add other support gems which can be linked to create interesting skill combinations. There's really a lot of thought put into this game and I think fans of other Action RPGs will be quite pleased with what they see. I've only dipped my toes into it a bit so far, but my only complaint yet (and it's a really small one) is that pretty much all of my usual character names were already taken! This leads me to believe that there are tons of people playing PoE, something that is always nice to see for a F2P game. I'm hoping the game will continue to hold people's interest and they can make it a success. :D<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFNbtHId8LTfDm0dkrgsAlFdzPJzlltQJNwpRUJpeuKFOQDEq-9hKADCfclgCQ-rS-fOQRE2xcy5JC1JoCfORKDb9iPDNZbx3ibeWpXO1q0dRFgK-aFqbpEA5FiV49JZrXLEobTgLbP7M/s1600/elder-scrolls-online.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Elder Scrolls Online Skyfall MMO" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFNbtHId8LTfDm0dkrgsAlFdzPJzlltQJNwpRUJpeuKFOQDEq-9hKADCfclgCQ-rS-fOQRE2xcy5JC1JoCfORKDb9iPDNZbx3ibeWpXO1q0dRFgK-aFqbpEA5FiV49JZrXLEobTgLbP7M/s1600/elder-scrolls-online.jpg" height="150" title="Large scale PvP for the throne of Tamriel. " width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">An all-out battle in <i>Elder Scrolls Online</i>.</td></tr>
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If you loved games like Oblivion and Skyrim, chances are pretty good you'll also be interested in the upcoming <b>Elder Scrolls Online</b> MMORPG. Like other Elder Scrolls games, it is set in Tamriel, with most of the continent being said to be explorable. Players will be able to join one of three factions (each with their own storyline and goals), the Aldmeri Dominion, Daggerfall Covenant, or the Ebonheart Pact, and wage war fighting for control of Cyrodiil and the throne of Tamriel. The three-way PvP system in this game looks like it will be quite intense and supposedly hundreds of players will be able to be on screen at once as you fight in epic battles. The idea that the top player can be crowned Emperor is also quite intriguing to me. According to the official site, an Emperor will gain special abilities that increase their prowess on the battlefield. I find it interesting when games let certain players have extra control or special abilities like this, in fact it reminds me a bit of TERA's political system in the sense that there will be a chosen few who get to have "power". I'm interested to see how this will play out and be implemented in the final game! I think many people are excited about the PvP in this game, so here is hoping that they will excel at large scale, three-faction PvP where other games like GW2 might have fallen a bit short. There is no word yet on when the beta or actual release are scheduled, just that they will be a bit later this year. In the meantime you can sign up for the beta: <a href="http://signup.elderscrollsonline.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">here</a>.<br />
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You may have heard about Final Fantasy XIV Online and how terrible it was. Well, what you heard was right. The game originally launched in September of 2010, was full of bugs/glitches, and generally received a negative response from the community. After a major restructuring of the development teams, the new and improved, relaunched version is being branded as <b>Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn</b> and will feature many changes. The story and setting will be the same, but things like the graphics, servers, race options, UI, gameplay, pvp, events, etc. are all in for a much needed complete overhaul. The release date for <i>A Realm Reborn</i> is said to be mid 2013 on both Windows and PS3. You may sign up for the beta by filling out this <a href="https://secure.square-enix.com/enqt/e/FF14RBETAENTRYN/html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">application here</a>. I must say that the launch trailer is really what made me take interest in this MMO, it is absolutely gorgeous and epic. After looking into the game more, however, I am also impressed that the company was able to admit their mistakes and are trying to make things right. It looks to be a solid game with a great art style (and an awesome race of cat-people, the Miqo'te), so I really hope they are able to live up to everyone's expectations and right their previous wrongs!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhda_uOFqZC5LhFbQKcZWF45_dSTKZBa9upYEc6j5w4Ygfnf3x9Oc3Yu_76SOtXfoio9Y9y1iNlWPEWag2xN4E4HkmwZqG1eqSNOnRKBI9pbT5sSrVbioYuanza0mRq2ZdqPCCVbooh4EY/s1600/nevewinter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Neverwinter MMO Beta Dungeons and Dragons" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhda_uOFqZC5LhFbQKcZWF45_dSTKZBa9upYEc6j5w4Ygfnf3x9Oc3Yu_76SOtXfoio9Y9y1iNlWPEWag2xN4E4HkmwZqG1eqSNOnRKBI9pbT5sSrVbioYuanza0mRq2ZdqPCCVbooh4EY/s1600/nevewinter.jpg" height="180" title="Neverwinter." width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Environmental design from action RPG, <i>Neverwinter</i>.</td></tr>
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<b>Neverwinter</b> is an upcoming free, Action MMORPG game set to launch early this year. The game is set in the fictional city-state, Neverwinter, that was introduced in the Dungeons & Dragons Forgotten Realms campaign setting, and players will be able to explore and defend this beloved city as it is being rebuilt. They have recently announced that the Beta Weekends will be starting soon and will run from: February 8-10, March 8-10, and March 22-24. To sign up, you may do so here: <a href="https://register.perfectworld.com/nw_splash" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Register for Neverwinter Beta</a>. However, please keep in mind that even if you register, you won't necessarily have guaranteed access. The only way to do so is if you buy one of the new <a href="http://nw.perfectworld.com/founderspack/hero" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Hero of the North Founder's Pack</a> (crazy expensive) or <a href="http://nw.perfectworld.com/founderspack/guardian" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Guardian of Neverwinter Pack</a> (still kind of pricey), which will grant you access to all three of the Beta Weekend dates listed above. I'm unsure whether the moderately priced Starter Kit also provides full access as well, but that could also potentially be an option for those who really want to play in the Beta but don't want to shell out tons of money on an unreleased free game. One thing I think looks really interesting about this game is <i>the Foundry</i>, where you will be able to make your own quests, stories, cities, dungeons, and zones and then share them with the whole community. I can't wait to see the creative and interesting adventures that players will undoubtedly come up with! :) As long as the cash shop is fair, I can see this being quite a fun F2P game.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdrjf-T-6NNApg42-3ubqO2zb7lqRVwOW1cJEkcv-65cXJpD1TZWYWwwgMz8ceZjHvYdO31alkVZpxyPaMU7sjDQTFnJfBIcSO537FixFS_PCi0zSLath8BJnE-uI4RbG9rCPjubHd7RA/s1600/SimCity.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="SimCity Simulation Game Maxis Beta" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdrjf-T-6NNApg42-3ubqO2zb7lqRVwOW1cJEkcv-65cXJpD1TZWYWwwgMz8ceZjHvYdO31alkVZpxyPaMU7sjDQTFnJfBIcSO537FixFS_PCi0zSLath8BJnE-uI4RbG9rCPjubHd7RA/s1600/SimCity.jpg" height="180" title="Typical view in the all new SimCity." width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Looks like an updated version of Mister Roger's Neighborhood! :D</td></tr>
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The last game I'd like to talk about is <b>SimCity</b>. I looooved these games as a kid, but haven't played one in ages. So when I heard that there was going to be a beta for the new SimCity game I was, of course, intrigued. Unfortunately, the beta was this past weekend, January 25th - 28th. :( I am bummed that I missed it, but perhaps there will be another before release. If not, the launch date of March 5th is just right around the corner! If you have never played a SimCity game (what a sad thought!), essentially you are able to create and manage all aspects of your dream city, for instance the design, managing various power supplies, sim happiness, the level of taxes, dealing with pollution, education, unemployment, etc. In this new edition, this includes not only playing one city, but up to 16 cities at once! Multiplayer is being added which will be interesting because there will be a global marketplace with true supply/demand and also decisions that you make in your city will also affect the whole entire region around you for better or worse. It is nice that we'll be able to get live updates, features, and content from the EA servers, but like many games nowadays, this also means you'll have to always be online in order to actually <i>play</i>, too, which is kind of annoying.<br />
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Also, just a quick update about the <b>TERA</b> F2P conversion happening... it looks as though the launch of TERA: Rising will be in just a few days, February 5th! I've always enjoyed TERA, but could never justify a monthly subscription for it, so now that it will be free I will definitely be playing. I just wish the ladies were given the option to not be dressed so scantily. :( Unfortunately for me, my old game file got corrupted somehow so I am stuck having to redownload about 20 gigs. Hopefully it is finished in time for launch! If any of you also used to play TERA I'd advise trying to run your launcher now and make sure everything is up to date just in case you run into this problem as well. In the meantime, more information about TERA's new free to play program can be found: <a href="http://tera.enmasse.com/news/posts/news-posts-tera-rising-offers-new-content-for-free" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">here</a>. As well as detailed changes about TERA: Rising in the latest <a href="http://tera.enmasse.com/news/patch-notes/tera-rising-patch-190402" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Patch Notes</a>.<br />
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What other Betas are you most looking forward to in the coming year? Let me know what you think in the comment section below. :)Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1288185695350750987.post-70109292843872012332013-02-01T00:56:00.001-05:002013-02-01T00:57:07.406-05:00How to Get the Volunteer Title from the Flame and Frost: Prelude So the new content update for Guild Wars 2 is in full swing and many changes have happened all around Tyria. One of the main changes this last patch has brought us is a new achievement section entitled the 'Living Story'. What is this for, you may ask? Well, there isn't a whole lot of information available yet, but this new system is one of the ways the developers are trying to help make the world more dynamic, by introducing interactive storylines that will change the world as we know it. These different story arcs will each play out over an unspecified length of time. So far, there have been some especially strange occurrences taking place around the Charr and Norn areas these past few days in the form of geysers disrupting temperatures and humidity. In response to the environmental changes happening around the Shiverpeaks, refugees from the area have been fleeing their homes and traveling south to escape these terrible storms and are looking for YOUR help. Yes, you! This introduction to the storyline is interesting enough on it's own, but luckily for us there is also a nifty title you can get for helping - <i>Volunteer</i>.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGDJT7egIeZPg59vIHxcwPCjDaNp2cgHmIp6fmHu7BKCRCTyn_ylYyWHJzsHnV0c6Rhc6REdGUaUz1tYTXMEvAeciWgqv09vKcGNkBXxqIrPPFQVeaE7iLaOaS5dfQVMf0ezS7jeK4TKk/s1600/volunteer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Living Story Volunteer Title Flame and Frost Prelude GW2" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGDJT7egIeZPg59vIHxcwPCjDaNp2cgHmIp6fmHu7BKCRCTyn_ylYyWHJzsHnV0c6Rhc6REdGUaUz1tYTXMEvAeciWgqv09vKcGNkBXxqIrPPFQVeaE7iLaOaS5dfQVMf0ezS7jeK4TKk/s1600/volunteer.jpg" height="76" title="Completed Refugee Volunteer Achievement" width="400" /></a></div>
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So far for this Living Story there is only one achievement to go after, Refugee Volunteer, which asks us to complete 75 acts of assistance. This is pretty easy to attain - just head on over to Wayfarer Foothills and look for the small golden star icons on your world map. Follow the main path along to each star marked in the zone. Along the way you will encounter broken road signs, campfires that need to be lit, and fallen refugees (just looting these won't count towards the achievement, you have to actually turn in the mementos they drop to the Memento Collector NPCs at each star). Just running through a zone won't get you everything you need but thankfully there are a few options available to you to get this achievement done quickly. If there are a lot of other people around trying to finish this, too, chances are you'll be on an overflow server. If this is the case, or you are guesting, use this to your advantage - you can gather everything once on the overflow/guest server then travel back to your real server and collect it all again. You can also log out and use a different character or head on over to Diessa Plateau where there are even more spawnpoints for you. Another trick to be able to see broken signs and campfires better is to hold down 'Ctrl' to highlight them like you would when gathering any other nodes.<br />
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And that's it! Easy, right? Now all that's left to do is sit back, enjoy your new title, and wait for the next installment of the Living Story to see what will happen next! :)Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1288185695350750987.post-12947182329770966172013-01-26T00:54:00.000-05:002013-01-26T00:54:06.116-05:00Guild Wars 2 Outfitter - Community Website Design IdeaSo, I've had this idea for a fan-created website relating to Guild Wars 2 for awhile now. Basically, I was unsatisfied with just being able to preview items in the clunky PvP Locker interface and wished there were a better solution for putting together outfits and such. I know there are some other sites out there that have static pictures of armor sets on different races/professions, but I still thought the idea could be taken further...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1eoHHik-I_ytg3RaoHxYkdT9MRcNSmXwlWnC1AY-K7KPV9i5kH8Dzf2fbpLH9crQwabpsDQ9qki0I2d_brDP3VMWvHQMocPzGBlWeIfnv9gwUs-2vLQCF27JGFwcR8FIV86h41oRzq5U/s1600/gw2_outfitter_logo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Gw2 Outfitter logo" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1eoHHik-I_ytg3RaoHxYkdT9MRcNSmXwlWnC1AY-K7KPV9i5kH8Dzf2fbpLH9crQwabpsDQ9qki0I2d_brDP3VMWvHQMocPzGBlWeIfnv9gwUs-2vLQCF27JGFwcR8FIV86h41oRzq5U/s1600/gw2_outfitter_logo.jpg" title="Guild Wars 2 Outfitter - Create, Share, & Rate!" /></a></div>
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I decided to design an idea mockup of sorts that showed exactly what I had in mind for this site - the result is <b>Guild Wars 2 Outfitter</b>! The following are some of the features that I would like to include on it.<br />
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When you first create a new outfit, you would choose your character's race and profession combo (including sex). This would then display a <b>sample model in 3D</b> using your chosen combos. In a perfect world, it would be able to pull in your actual customized character from the game much like World of Warcraft's <a href="http://us.battle.net/wow/en/community/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Armory</a> does.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDCBjivUINGDB8ldyTLIwtCRr_r1Tj4ITgU5AZYYWZ-22M7fBOx_qw_It3eOSpQ8bcvH_AvddIpa07KaY2otUv-gsHlHFLDHo_E6DMT9i-kw9PjOoUApGSC-5L7KgmxNeA_iGR_R5ru_g/s1600/gw2_outfitter_filter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="GW2 Outfitter results filter Karma Gold Crafting Dungeons Events" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDCBjivUINGDB8ldyTLIwtCRr_r1Tj4ITgU5AZYYWZ-22M7fBOx_qw_It3eOSpQ8bcvH_AvddIpa07KaY2otUv-gsHlHFLDHo_E6DMT9i-kw9PjOoUApGSC-5L7KgmxNeA_iGR_R5ru_g/s1600/gw2_outfitter_filter.jpg" height="83" title="Many options to filter your results." width="200" /></a>On the top of the page is a way to <b>instantly filter</b> which results you would like to see when browsing armor/weapons. By default, they will all be selected, but can be toggled on/off with a simple click. The options include: Karma, Gold, Cultural, Crafting, Dungeons, PvP, Gem Store, Hall of Monuments, the three different Orders, and Special Events.<br />
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There would be two main views a user gets when creating an outfit, the first of which is appropriately called <b>Outfit Mode</b>. On the left, when Outfit Mode is on, you can select the gear category you would like to view which consists of: Head, Shoulders, Chest, Gloves, Pants, Shoes, and a Weapon (accessories and back slots will probably be added at some point, too). Then, according to the category and other selected filters, all of your results will show up on the right, allowing you to easily choose from any armor/weapon skin in the game and have it applied to your model. Like playing dress up with your character!<br />
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<b>Dye Mode</b> works in a similar fashion (excuse the pun!). After you choose some gear, you can enter Dye Mode and be presented with a complete list of all the dyes available in Guild Wars 2. Select a color to instantly apply it to a section of your outfit. You will also be able to filter the dyes here by either Set, Hue, or Material. Outfit Mode and Dye Model will be able to be switched between at any time.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDLXht1IGg0y-rt_TE-Qkp3sz7ng0Pxan7PHogK3OGYZg41F7HXHh5raoivU4nITOSgOAr21TIBrrB3MV20KuQhUAqSww3nigoeAAy4GK-0TQwnv3zGk35n55G_AJFSpTaMvqlCn0Fa0s/s1600/gw2_outfitter_outfit_mode.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Armor weapons custom outfit gw2 preview" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDLXht1IGg0y-rt_TE-Qkp3sz7ng0Pxan7PHogK3OGYZg41F7HXHh5raoivU4nITOSgOAr21TIBrrB3MV20KuQhUAqSww3nigoeAAy4GK-0TQwnv3zGk35n55G_AJFSpTaMvqlCn0Fa0s/s1600/gw2_outfitter_outfit_mode.jpg" height="125" title="Choose from any GW2 armor or weapons." width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Browsing through a long list of armor skins in <i>Outfit Mode</i>.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJIv-fmSP11Z7lYl_cZtbn1llKVIpMtFoi6Ygpvj1EGl1HXYK7DduA1PRhLfsnG9V2Wi1ASlIW58ucjliXSC-c4rZTKeFDpkIwHNzGpyp_lgOrlNtswwVuGxA_UhPWDev-xh3_jDL7EKs/s1600/gw2_outfitter_dye_mode.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Abyss Celestial Dye custom outfit gw2 preview" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJIv-fmSP11Z7lYl_cZtbn1llKVIpMtFoi6Ygpvj1EGl1HXYK7DduA1PRhLfsnG9V2Wi1ASlIW58ucjliXSC-c4rZTKeFDpkIwHNzGpyp_lgOrlNtswwVuGxA_UhPWDev-xh3_jDL7EKs/s1600/gw2_outfitter_dye_mode.jpg" height="125" title="A whole rainbow of dyes in Dye Mode." width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">You can preview any dye currently in the game using <i>Dye Mode</i>.</td></tr>
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When finished, the right panel will also feature the <b>Shopping List</b> - everything you'd need to know about how to acquire your new outfit! It lists the name as well as where and how it is achieved, along with the cost, whether it be in gold, karma, crafting materials, tokens, gems, etc. If there are multiple armors/weapons that share the same skin, it would also be nice to have a 'Show More' option so you could choose exactly how you would like to get that skin. For any Trading Post prices listed, it would pull the latest information using a site like <a href="http://www.gw2spidy.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">GW2Spidy</a>. This section could also possibly list the total cost of dyes used.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi48tzvunFU9ERl72oS6EENQlC-coiPInBIht7nlrw_fcvhQ3k4Jsu0UZwyezQK_4u9scIt4dPsab0XDitNplkfT0nTAqEftGtfn9fY3piOSjijmebIMpC8rW7JnDnyMd8yiyrgLbnTe7s/s1600/gw2_outfitter_shopping_list.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="GW2 Outfitter Shopping List Armor Weapon Preview" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi48tzvunFU9ERl72oS6EENQlC-coiPInBIht7nlrw_fcvhQ3k4Jsu0UZwyezQK_4u9scIt4dPsab0XDitNplkfT0nTAqEftGtfn9fY3piOSjijmebIMpC8rW7JnDnyMd8yiyrgLbnTe7s/s1600/gw2_outfitter_shopping_list.jpg" height="224" title="Don't forget the milk, too, dear." width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The <i>Shopping List</i> tells you exactly where and how to get your new gear.</td></tr>
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Once you are satisfied with your creation, you will be able to save it to your GW2 Outfitter <b>account</b>, giving it a name, description, and allow it to either be public or private. If you enable it as a public outfit, other registered users will be able to rate, favorite, and comment on it! It would also be possible for visitors to <b>browse</b> outfits, seeing the newest, top rated, top commented, top favorited, etc. Other possibilities include being able to browse by race, profession, and color scheme.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEismGwpD1sKjnqbk1V2hztcFD0IOCe0URTArInMDOwhCirDoMnwXnJlA16moPYqiToy2KcDPm8mlqp5N0rVTfq9vBlyKHG_1H1dQqvWuDdOgpqlE3SI-ps-dhPXVu3sN1NttsW_BRX-ycM/s1600/gw2_outfitter_description.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Guild Wars 2 Outfit rate share favorite comment description" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEismGwpD1sKjnqbk1V2hztcFD0IOCe0URTArInMDOwhCirDoMnwXnJlA16moPYqiToy2KcDPm8mlqp5N0rVTfq9vBlyKHG_1H1dQqvWuDdOgpqlE3SI-ps-dhPXVu3sN1NttsW_BRX-ycM/s1600/gw2_outfitter_description.jpg" height="130" title="GW2 Outfitter description box." width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Community features like sharing, rating, commenting, and favorites!</td></tr>
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One of my main goals would be to make the outfits as easily sharable as possible and to help foster a nice, helpful community. I think this social aspect of the site could be really fun for users and help bring more people together in and out of game. I mean really, who doesn't like looking at other people's awesome looking outfits? And then trying your hand at making a bunch of your own as well? Keep in mind that this doesn't have to just be used for your dream gear at level 80, but it would also be very useful for Role Playing purposes, deciding what to wear while leveling up, or even if you just wanted to try making the silliest looking outfit you could!<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB-LI3zjWNjYw9mijNdJeYlQN_cdalbzilghKFOY0F-fUGAkdjc1W_p0OGWaiUeR7h2xzoWENDhVMl4DArbbyL8xsEoRDIhhb-XVXOLfOAMp4ZASj55ZFsEonLirw_Os4zoDsige7N39M/s1600/gw2_outfitter_finished_view.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Armor weapons gw2 outfit design" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB-LI3zjWNjYw9mijNdJeYlQN_cdalbzilghKFOY0F-fUGAkdjc1W_p0OGWaiUeR7h2xzoWENDhVMl4DArbbyL8xsEoRDIhhb-XVXOLfOAMp4ZASj55ZFsEonLirw_Os4zoDsige7N39M/s1600/gw2_outfitter_finished_view.jpg" height="250" title="View of a complete outfit. " width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">What your finished outfit will look like with Guild Wars 2 Outfitter.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
For many people, I think this would get them excited to work on getting new gear again or maybe even start going after multiple sets! It can be quite motivating once you have an easy way to see exactly how you want your characters to look and also how to make it happen. I know myself that I usually love the cosmetic aspects of games, but I wasn't feeling as inspired with GW2... and it wasn't because there are not great looking items available to us, but more that I felt like it was a pain trying to look through everything properly and plan out what I would want to wear. The aim of this site is to eliminate that frustration for players!<br />
<br />
Guild Wars 2 is a really cosmetic game and there is such an importance placed on upgrading the visual appeal of your character that I think the community really needs a site like this to exist. The only problem is that even though I have the idea and drive to make it, I do not possess the necessary coding experience to take on a project like this. Honestly, I wouldn't even know where to begin trying to learn. I'm posting this in the hopes that someone with more knowledge than me in website development will see it and like to help make this happen! Or at least shed some light on how difficult something like this would be to make.<br />
<br />
So if anyone would be interested in working on this project with me, I'd love to hear from you. Please <a href="http://aeryplays.blogspot.com/p/contact.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Contact Me</a> directly or leave a comment below. Of course, if you just have other suggestions of some things you'd like to see on Guild Wars 2 Outfitter, that would be great, too. :)Unknownnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1288185695350750987.post-89953083593486441902013-01-23T23:33:00.001-05:002013-01-24T14:24:11.238-05:00Crafting the Best (Looking) Necromancer and a News UpdateWho doesn't want to look their best and <i>be </i>the best? This is usually something we all strive for at one point or another in our virtual and real lives. Few can be considered either and even fewer still ever end up achieving both. In the case of my Sylvari Necromancer, I know I might not be the best (yet!!) but I am sure going to try to get her looking her best, starting with one weapon...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV1Pwc4SJBY6ORDUG58Y24zsRlmx48ot4EKfBLRAYkfG7zOilsryDsxfVwUau05JOfqLpQYtYPw3U642ymME1-rpoUi0r-Y4HsRLaVZOUUFA13eQQIhdEVXGB7j87HkhDZfXXJ4hyphenhyphenA9Gw/s1600/gw193.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img alt="Guild Wars 2 Sylvari Necromancer and Mesmer in Diessa Plateau" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV1Pwc4SJBY6ORDUG58Y24zsRlmx48ot4EKfBLRAYkfG7zOilsryDsxfVwUau05JOfqLpQYtYPw3U642ymME1-rpoUi0r-Y4HsRLaVZOUUFA13eQQIhdEVXGB7j87HkhDZfXXJ4hyphenhyphenA9Gw/s1600/gw193.jpg" height="180" title="Matching Sylvari Necromancer and Mesmer :)" width="320" /></a></div>
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We've all probably seen the Legendary weapons by now. If not, you can do so here: <a href="http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Legendary" target="_blank">Guild Wars 2 Legendary Weapons</a>. After perusing them again the other night, I was trying to decide which I ultimately wanted for my characters since it is a long-term goal that I definitely want to complete <i>someday</i>. The fact of the matter is, none of them really stand out to me as being all that, well, <b>legendary</b>. Don't get me wrong. Yes, some of the skins look pretty awesome (the bow and greatsword skins come to mind for me). But, when I first saw the list of Legendaries, there were none that made me think, "Oh my god, I must have this now!!!" And any of those that I have thought about perhaps getting are all for professions I never actually use! So this leaves me with a few options:</div>
<div>
<ol>
<li>Learn some new professions and level them to 80! This would probably include leveling up a Ranger or Mesmer and then crafting either <a href="http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Kudzu" target="_blank">[Kudzu]</a> or <a href="http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Sunrise" target="_blank">[Sunrise]</a> (or both if I'm really crazy!?). I still might end up doing this option since I would like to have a Legendary at some point.</li>
<li>Choose a Legendary for a profession that I play now. If I did this I'd most likely choose the dagger <a href="http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Incinerator" target="_blank">[Incinerator]</a> or <a href="http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Bifrost" target="_blank">[The Bifrost]</a> staff. I admit that after watching a video with the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nNh93C3cYmk&feature=youtu.be" target="_blank">Bifrost animations</a>, it looks a whole lot better than just seeing a picture!</li>
<li>Wait for more Legendaries to perhaps be added one day. Or...</li>
<li>Pick another cool looking weapon for an existing character I'd like to play lots! For now, this will be my plan. :)</li>
</ol>
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I've decided to do this on my Necromancer instead of my Elementalist because she is my current favorite and I have a strong look in mind for her. I plan on getting her a whole matching outfit, but for now I am going to focus on her weapon. After looking through the Pvp locker, I decided that she is going to go after <a href="http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/The_Crossing" target="_blank">[The Crossing]</a>.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNY1cqhVEKuWITRBZibDJO72xQ09b3FYXPtn-TPIUa5_QkpsX_CdyysQRikJbVUrZKQyBdj7tZsSraIak17lHEbQ8OEGQq17Xhny_zqeUXN8ZkshrwqhaJeAeEDE2a_obAmuVeI3FN-sk/s1600/the_crossing_staff.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="GW2 Exotic Legendary The Crossing staff weapon" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNY1cqhVEKuWITRBZibDJO72xQ09b3FYXPtn-TPIUa5_QkpsX_CdyysQRikJbVUrZKQyBdj7tZsSraIak17lHEbQ8OEGQq17Xhny_zqeUXN8ZkshrwqhaJeAeEDE2a_obAmuVeI3FN-sk/s1600/the_crossing_staff.jpg" height="267" title="The Crossing" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Front and Back view of <i>The Crossing</i> exotic staff.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
This weapon was first put into the game during the Halloween 2012 event along with two other exotic weapons, the short bow called Arachnophobia and The Mad King which is a shield. This staff is probably one of my favorites in the whole game, especially for a dark class like the Necromancer. As you can see it has chains, spiderwebs, and even a ghoulish hand holding onto an old looking lantern. Perfect! :D Anyways, to make this awesome looking staff, what we need is as follows:<br />
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<div style="background-color: #f9f9f9; border-bottom-left-radius: 4px; border-bottom-right-radius: 4px; border-top-left-radius: 4px; border-top-right-radius: 4px; border: 1px solid #EEEEEE; margin-left: 35px; margin-right: 35px; padding: 8px 20px 8px 20px; text-shadow: rgba(255, 255, 255, o.498093) 0 1px 0;">
<u><b>The Crossing:</b></u><br />
1 <a href="http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Gift_of_Souls" target="_blank">Gift of Souls</a> [See below]<br />
1 <a href="http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Eldritch_Scroll" target="_blank">Eldritch Scroll</a> [50 skill points from Miyani near the Mystic Forge]<br />
100 <a href="http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Mystic_Coin" target="_blank">Mystic Coin</a> [Rewards from daily and monthly achievements]<br />
20 <a href="http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Superior_Sigil_of_the_Night" target="_blank">Superior Sigil of the Night</a> [Buy or crafted from level 400 Artificer, Huntsman, or Weaponsmithing]</div>
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Most of the items needed for this staff are pretty self-explanatory, but the first item requires some more attention - a Gift of Souls. In order to get this, it must either be bought on the Trading Post or crafted if you have access to a level 400 Artificer. If you are going to craft it, you must also first create or buy the recipe for it:<br />
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<div style="background-color: #f9f9f9; border-bottom-left-radius: 4px; border-bottom-right-radius: 4px; border-top-left-radius: 4px; border-top-right-radius: 4px; border: 1px solid #EEEEEE; margin-left: 35px; margin-right: 35px; padding: 8px 20px 8px 20px; text-shadow: rgba(255, 255, 255, o.498093) 0 1px 0;">
<u><b>Recipe: Gift of Souls</b></u><br />
250 <a href="http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Piece_of_Candy_Corn" target="_blank">Piece of Candy Corn</a> [Buy, used to drop from Halloween event]<br />
100 <a href="http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Nougat_Center" target="_blank">Nougat Center</a> [Buy, used to drop from Halloween event]<br />
40 <a href="http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Bottle_of_Elonian_Wine" target="_blank">Bottle of Elonian Wine</a> [10 <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_Oyo45G5AzYR5ewbdpIn9-zZSseKTzjL-izO8Oiy6S1mm8NUM7EmBszOvdjeIo5ZynavoV0nGvnu0jtn8BtLhHySuPU2_Bm3Kd9w5ynP1Wysb09ozCWRS3jsmUWh8qSLb045RdSJikLg/s1600/gold_coin.png" />, 25 <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhifEctMzJAhSq-tV4EybRUylRY4We_qCWb1vVmabGDizWO7X6uSO1b9CCLRB4KN8VGQ1j8B07zt94LDzsvRss-LMhlDEyM1JCAmHz6ixH5p8LMvthLineN8U5GCRQdru3uI8_GivjVkPw/s1600/silver_coin.png" /> from Miyani near the Mystic Forge]<br />
10 <a href="http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Pile_of_Crystalline_Dust" target="_blank">Pile of Crystalline Dust</a> [Buy or drops from Heavy Moldy Bags and the Risen in Cursed Shore/Malchor's Leap]</div>
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Once you have the recipe, you can create the actual gift which requires:<br />
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<div style="background-color: #f9f9f9; border-bottom-left-radius: 4px; border-bottom-right-radius: 4px; border-top-left-radius: 4px; border-top-right-radius: 4px; border: 1px solid #EEEEEE; margin-left: 35px; margin-right: 35px; padding: 8px 20px 8px 20px; text-shadow: rgba(255, 255, 255, o.498093) 0 1px 0;">
<u><b>Gift of Souls:</b></u><br />
1 <a href="http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Gift_of_Knowledge" target="_blank">Gift of Knowledge</a> [500 Crucible of Eternity dungeon tokens]<br />
250 <a href="http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Orichalcum_Ingot" target="_blank">Orichalcum Ingot</a> [500 Orichalcum Ore which is salvaged from high level items or mined from high level zones.]<br />
20 <a href="http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Glob_of_Ectoplasm" target="_blank">Glob of Ectoplasm</a> [Buy or salvage from high level gear]<br />
100 <a href="http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Crystal_Lodestone" target="_blank">Crystal Lodestone</a> [Buy or drops from high level Branded, FoM chests, large/heavy ritual bags. Can also drop when creating Mystic Clovers.]</div>
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Phew. That's a lot of stuff, but not nearly as much as what we would have needed for a Legendary! I haven't made very much progress so far, except leveling Artificing as my second max-level profession. As for the rest of her planned outfit, I'm not entirely sure but most of the Corrupted Orrian pieces from Arah look pretty good as well as the Whispers Garb. Another item I would like to look into getting her is an <a href="http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Enchanted_Broom" target="_blank">[Enchanted Broom]</a>. This was also originally included with the Halloween event, but it was sold in the gem store as part of the Witch's Outfit so I never purchased it! I'm regretting not picking up some more gems back when they were cheaper and buying one because it would be perfect for my little Necromancer. :( One good thing is that is looks like something similar might be finding it's way back into the game with the upcoming <a href="http://aeryplays.blogspot.com/2013/01/news-guild-wars-2-january-28th-update.html" target="_blank">Guild Wars 2 January Update</a>!<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6iEf5Y2qcbmfy73Q-N6X9RRDP3zgC2Q3n3Bi3TFYx0So_fXwiatmVxC_YPD7b4A_icFOYiRMfLKYrVVllCk0_G4DRcyBrFK0i7IT2kAW16CU0ZMkWnXvHfmMLGxOBSF2aXOZnArSk3Sk/s1600/witchs_outfit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Guild Wars 2 Lion's Arch Witch's Costume Enchanted Broom Halloween Event" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6iEf5Y2qcbmfy73Q-N6X9RRDP3zgC2Q3n3Bi3TFYx0So_fXwiatmVxC_YPD7b4A_icFOYiRMfLKYrVVllCk0_G4DRcyBrFK0i7IT2kAW16CU0ZMkWnXvHfmMLGxOBSF2aXOZnArSk3Sk/s1600/witchs_outfit.jpg" height="187" title="A witch flying around Lion's Arch" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Witch's Outfit complete with Enchanted Broom! <a href="http://fanoffandom.tumblr.com/image/34208666186" target="_blank">Source</a></td></tr>
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ArenaNet has finally announced a bit more of what will be in this January update and have also given it a name - <a href="https://www.guildwars2.com/en/the-game/releases/january-2013/" target="_blank">Flame and Frost: Prelude</a>:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
The sky falls and the ground shakes in the lands of the north. Charr and Norn refugees crawl from the wreckage of their homes in the Wayfarer Foothills and Diessa Plateau, struggling to find shelter in the south. The call goes out for volunteers to assist the victims in this time of need, when earth and sky seem to have become the enemy…</blockquote>
Not only will the gem store be selling a Riding Broom (I'm guessing it wont be <i>exactly</i> the same as the Enchanted Broom I mentioned above) and also a cute yet creepy Baby Quaggan Backpack. We now know the new daily and monthly achievement tokens will be called Laurels, there will be different dailies every day of the week, and there is going to be an improvement to the achievement UI. There also will be some general performance improvements, a Temple of the Silent Storm Week in pvp, and new Ascended items added. Plus, guesting is happening of course!<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipRHXgMo9bT1ISfwL8E0Da-AntjQEP-7X4mod9AIQnj8EK6oPQlHG2gBIxOoYl1fSOMrp4-Rt0tcWU3-dfjfma_7K8jgDDonY3JFdoO5sguSQumCy97jLEEe1lhhS6tTWyYV7pwUOz7o0/s1600/Quaggan-backpack.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="New Baby Quaggan Backpack on a Human character" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipRHXgMo9bT1ISfwL8E0Da-AntjQEP-7X4mod9AIQnj8EK6oPQlHG2gBIxOoYl1fSOMrp4-Rt0tcWU3-dfjfma_7K8jgDDonY3JFdoO5sguSQumCy97jLEEe1lhhS6tTWyYV7pwUOz7o0/s1600/Quaggan-backpack.png" title="Baby Quaggan Backpack" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Is it just me or does it look like she has a dead baby Quaggan on her back? :s</td></tr>
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As they said, this update won't be filled with <b>tons</b> of stuff, but it looks to be very promising thus far. I'm excited to hear more about the storyline that will be happening with the Charr and Norn and seeing what other changes all of this will bring in the coming months. And looking my best while doing so! :p Will you be going for your Legendary? Or something a bit more affordable? What do you think of the Legendary designs in general? I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comment section below! :)</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1288185695350750987.post-8911487529565895742013-01-21T02:00:00.000-05:002013-01-21T14:51:32.428-05:00GW2 100% Map Completion, Explorer Achievements, and a Jumping Puzzle. Oh my! [Epic Adventure]Well, after all this time, 100% map completion is mine! You may remember from my last GW2 post that I was pretty close to completing it - just one zone and one wayward skill point away. Guess what? That skill point in the Temple of Lyssa that is always contested and that I thought would take forever to get because no one runs that event can actually be activated by just carefully sneaking around the back and grabbing it! So, if you happen to be silly like me and didn't know otherwise, perhaps that tidbit of information will help you toward your map completion, too. For everyone else, don't mind me - I'm just happy to be done either way even if it could have been sooner! :D<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWdARSvGhIkARvbO5X1LB91nGNKXbu9j4S78ZdydZUyt24vry-fu0ro9ZEm6W9R_siwrcDs2E8Jf17cpz_YMW94cd33DapuONFfCvnDBfiQV2fT6iskFC22p_YywYiL-V2k692oWrhK0g/s1600/gw177.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Guild Wars 2 World Map Completion Star Medal" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWdARSvGhIkARvbO5X1LB91nGNKXbu9j4S78ZdydZUyt24vry-fu0ro9ZEm6W9R_siwrcDs2E8Jf17cpz_YMW94cd33DapuONFfCvnDBfiQV2fT6iskFC22p_YywYiL-V2k692oWrhK0g/s1600/gw177.jpg" height="250" title="Map Completion Medal" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">100% World Map Completion finally! :)</td></tr>
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<br />
<a name='more'></a>After that, we ventured on over to the Cursed Shore which was, naturally, such a pleasant and enjoyable experience to play through. If you like not being able to move two feet without the entirety of the map aggroing all onto you at once that is. Yes, that's an exaggeration, but, really, not by much! Orr in general is not a fun place to be - in my opinion it's a very emotionally draining area to play through because there is very little relief from the tightly packed mobs. You can only take so much of it at a time before you need a break, but I guess that is the point of what they wanted it to be like! Although I kind of think it's a shame that you play the whole game in these beautifully designed environments and then you end up in that hellhole right at the end. :( Luckily, according to the recent <a href="http://dulfy.net/2013/01/19/gw2-colin-johanson-mmorpg-livestream-transcript-jan-18/" target="_blank">MMORPG livestream interview with Colin Johanson</a>, he tells us that in as early as the <a href="http://aeryplays.blogspot.com/2013/01/news-guild-wars-2-january-28th-update.html" target="_blank">January 28th Content Update</a>, not only will they be tweaking some of the temple bosses in Orr to make them more exciting for large groups, but they will also be thinning out the density of mobs, making more waypoint always active, and adding new rewards from both vendors and drops. This is a really welcome change and I was very pleasantly surprised to see this addition while reading through the transcript linked above. Check out this other <a href="http://dulfy.net/2013/01/17/gw2-dev-livestream-jan-17-transcript/" target="_blank">dev livestream from January 17th</a> for lots more insight into where they are going with the game in the future.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjqgvUxj8KIYsNfSNHi0IqtnFBVwhKsVuNzFT_3nKhNAMSSuDTZLIpZBwR1TTSIf3N48tdUZlLHfr2BkKNkI-4rHdLTsI-7lttJxRny3RlQzzr_T5_KBT0yCxIGIbJ8SQay-gDndmjzxk/s1600/gw143.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Orr Cursed Shore map zone exploration" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjqgvUxj8KIYsNfSNHi0IqtnFBVwhKsVuNzFT_3nKhNAMSSuDTZLIpZBwR1TTSIf3N48tdUZlLHfr2BkKNkI-4rHdLTsI-7lttJxRny3RlQzzr_T5_KBT0yCxIGIbJ8SQay-gDndmjzxk/s1600/gw143.jpg" height="180" title="Orr is so beautiful..." width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ahh yes, this looks like the perfect place to take shelter from that pesky acid rain!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Anyways, thankfully I did not have to play through any of Orr alone, and today we were able to quickly finish up this last zone together which granted me the Been There, Done That achievement. :) If you have completed any zones 100%, then you'll know of the letters you receive from the Tyrian Explorer's Society telling you how awesome you are and what a great job you did after exploring each one... Well, I have to admit, I was quite disappointed that we did not receive a final letter from them after exploring all of the maps, since it is quite the feat in my opinion. Hey, Tyrian Explorer's Society, I thought we were friends. Why don't you ever call or write me anymore :*(<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijy5A0XBhsKdZUATMbdlCxJJlA37k4tyqHSdhXJw3xtDJO5vZU8WU7-DBggnJe8hpLX1FDZPUQ8xaUUe9-TH_F0ixYkQA2a2pD3o5Umg_7E2_hotHho9-unrNIHy4lq9PbbKx7mgLXFGU/s1600/gw138.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Orr Cursed Shore Vista Exploration Jumping Puzzle" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijy5A0XBhsKdZUATMbdlCxJJlA37k4tyqHSdhXJw3xtDJO5vZU8WU7-DBggnJe8hpLX1FDZPUQ8xaUUe9-TH_F0ixYkQA2a2pD3o5Umg_7E2_hotHho9-unrNIHy4lq9PbbKx7mgLXFGU/s1600/gw138.jpg" height="180" title="Vista near Azabe Qabar, the Royal Tombs" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Working our way through one of the vistas in the Cursed Shore.</td></tr>
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Because I was already having all of this fun exploring, I decided to also work on the other Explorer achievements since they were pretty close to being complete, too. These are different from the Been There, Done That achievement in that they do not take into account any of the POIs, Vistas, Hearts, etc. that you can collect, but only the areas that can become unfogged on your map. There is a separate achievement for each section of the world (Kryta, Orr, Maguuma, Shiverpeak, and Ascalon), but there are no outside rewards from completing them besides the achievement points they give. A lot of the areas required to explore are easy to miss, and you'll probably not have gotten them all even if you have 100% map completion. There are a few ways to go about finding what you are missing, but I think the easiest method is using this page created by wiki user Bluestone, where he lays out all of the <a href="http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/User:Bluestone/Explorer" target="_blank">Areas Needed for Explorer Achievements</a>. Yes, it does seem time consuming having to crosscheck each map, but think of all the time you would have probably spent running around aimlessly looking for spots. This way you just open up your map and make sure all of the area names in his list are also unfogged and labeled on your in-game map. Easy! I was able to finish all of the Explorer achievements doing this, except Kryta which I am saving for some other time.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglirLH9mtK7lxauX5Yr1JwgLznJNCboCowQLg8EomXAzri7N2o27hcpAveHOXmqyaGRnL4x7ozL3gCDn54QlRs8YEs3ZYu3jmqtckVu7K7sECT9E03-INJzfkSOyHeAAj-hN92CjNvNWE/s1600/gw179.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Guild Wars 2 achievement interface exploration map completion" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglirLH9mtK7lxauX5Yr1JwgLznJNCboCowQLg8EomXAzri7N2o27hcpAveHOXmqyaGRnL4x7ozL3gCDn54QlRs8YEs3ZYu3jmqtckVu7K7sECT9E03-INJzfkSOyHeAAj-hN92CjNvNWE/s1600/gw179.jpg" height="50" title="Been There, Done That Achievement" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My virtual life in now complete. Literally.</td></tr>
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In other news, I recently transferred off of Northern Shiverpeaks and have since made my home on what has become the unofficial role playing server, Tarnished Coast. I don't consider myself a role player by any means, but I have no problem with other people who wish to do so. The main draw for switching servers, however, was because of the excellent server community we heard TC has and I have to say that this is quite true! It's like night and day comparing NS and TC... before I would hardly ever encounter other players out in the lower level PVE zones, and when I did they would just run by and do their own thing. But now, there are players all over the place, willing to help with events or other general activities. Map chat seems more active. People are more friendly to one another. Overall it's just been a much more pleasant experience. The only thing I will really miss from Norther Shiverpeaks is the fact that I felt ties to it for whatever reason. This is probably mainly because our guild (even though we are super tiny) did end up putting time and effort and influence into upgrading our guild bank and such. Also, I do usually end up having that feeling of 'home' on a server after I have been in the same place for awhile. But I know I'll start feeling like Tarnished Coast is our new home soon enough, in fact I already do a bit. :)<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWL1ueaofYpihgCkmSrN1OSR946-tC3Idc6U5BVkK0brcHT8ospYHmKXJAOrP4gaNZOvA7ii85ii2lb0bZ6Zh5Am13umjF_q4ttUlKyamRJwP9_tiMbdMNi5mRVgArHawSCkbJoByb6qQ/s1600/gw160.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Tribulation Rift Jumping Puzzle" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWL1ueaofYpihgCkmSrN1OSR946-tC3Idc6U5BVkK0brcHT8ospYHmKXJAOrP4gaNZOvA7ii85ii2lb0bZ6Zh5Am13umjF_q4ttUlKyamRJwP9_tiMbdMNi5mRVgArHawSCkbJoByb6qQ/s1600/gw160.jpg" height="180" title="A Princess Doll, Sylvari, Human, and a Ranger pet." width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Quite the group of adventurers!</td></tr>
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For example, tonight while trying to get to an area in Dredgehaunt Cliffs called Tribulation Caverns for one of the Explorer achievements, I unexpectedly met up with a very helpful Sylvari. Now, I'll just throw this out there that I'm usually terrible at jumping puzzles. That said, I was not looking forward to having to do this part of the puzzle again (I had already completed the first part called Tribulation Rift a long time ago, and did not know that if you continued on there is also a separate puzzle afterwards). As I ran up to the puzzle I was already confused about exactly where to go, but then the Sylvari called out to me that it was, "Over here!" so I quickly thanked him or her, I'm still not sure, and followed along behind him. Another player, this time a human, eventually joined us and every time either of us fell, the Sylvari would wait patiently until we caught back up so (s)he could continue guiding us along the best path. You could tell this was someone used to helping others through these puzzles all the time and they enjoyed every minute of being able to play 'tour guide' for us.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhag-eNEb5HIFuRYNEc2vzhgMMB7MSUVdeSeaUK912en__EGzLQT_GELFla9l2WKmNt1eUra351Zhd5kc_mcY2LAQUhhT3D2_qjh6pHCtb0wI8Fmzahi_dIcj5298tioo234OWiBK-GyDw/s1600/gw169.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Guild Wars 2 Tribulation Caverns jumping puzzle " border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhag-eNEb5HIFuRYNEc2vzhgMMB7MSUVdeSeaUK912en__EGzLQT_GELFla9l2WKmNt1eUra351Zhd5kc_mcY2LAQUhhT3D2_qjh6pHCtb0wI8Fmzahi_dIcj5298tioo234OWiBK-GyDw/s1600/gw169.jpg" height="180" title="Don't fall!" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A carefully placed jump in the Tribulation Caverns.</td></tr>
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Even though I still fell a few times, I had much more fun and everything seemed much less frustrating than the first time I originally tried this puzzle because of my companions. We were able to complete both puzzles and it was most enjoyable! And this is just one example of the nice, friendly, and helpful players I have met so far on Tarnished Coast. How does your server compare? Are you happy with your current 'home' or will you be trying your luck someplace else before paid server transfers are put into place. I'd love to here your thoughts in the comment section below. Happy adventuring! :)<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1288185695350750987.post-15090362591444393082013-01-18T04:13:00.000-05:002013-01-21T14:52:36.932-05:00Guild Wars 2 January 28th Content Update, now with more Guesting! [News]As you may have heard, ArenaNet is planning to roll out some new content/game updates over the next few months! With some changes happening as early as January 28th, 2013!<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBfbGfhbAWaUrlfEasG_H_Yw6U9_yAx4mDGNLUrLpVbn6mDW92eug6FHHL3_QfvQA_RZnw5fOkttcORFdZbzaiu8K-0zzuYoFJXN4Vd3UmOMKX3Uzb1bVsRSKgJzYw2gPIYOlASao0Pyc/s1600/gw131.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Sylvari and Human Open Jumping Puzzle Chest Reward" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBfbGfhbAWaUrlfEasG_H_Yw6U9_yAx4mDGNLUrLpVbn6mDW92eug6FHHL3_QfvQA_RZnw5fOkttcORFdZbzaiu8K-0zzuYoFJXN4Vd3UmOMKX3Uzb1bVsRSKgJzYw2gPIYOlASao0Pyc/s1600/gw131.jpg" height="180" title="Opening a Special Reward Chest" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">What surprises await us? Keep reading to find out!</td></tr>
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Probably the most important change will be the implementation of guesting. Yes, <i>that</i> guesting! The guesting that many of us thought would be in the game a few weeks after launch. It will finally be a thing. Woo. I think this is great news, especially in terms of WvW, but it does have some downsides of course. Mainly, it doesn't look like guesting will be possible from NA to EU or vice versa. Don't ask me why. It seems like it should be possible since everything else is game-wide, but I guess there are some technical limitations which prevent it from being possible. Bummer. :( You can also only guest on up to two different servers in a 24 hour period, presumably to stop people from abusing the system. No, you won't be able to visit <i>every</i> server and get <b>all</b> the Orichalcum!<br />
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Be aware that this change is happening soon so please, please, please make sure you're on the server you forever want to do WvW with <i>before</i> the January 28th update, because after that it will cost you gems to transfer! Not only that, but the fee you'll end up paying will be based on your destination server's population. So, the higher that server's population, the higher the gem fee you will pay to transfer there. Also, you will still not be able to do a paid transfer more than once every 7 days, nor will you be able to transfer to a Full server.<br />
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Okay, okay, sorry! Enough about guesting. What else will be coming soon? Yes, Soon™. ArenaNet doesn't specifically say when these other features will become available. They do say that the January update will be small and it will lay the foundation for bigger updates in February and March. Anywho, ANet seems to be putting a big focus on building up the community more and doing more <b>events</b> like those we have seen in the previous holidays of Halloween, Wintersday, and the Lost Shores. They pretty much admitted they didn't always get these large scale events right (that might be an understatement...), but through reading our feedback they have learned how to do things more successfully. I'll give them the benefit of the doubt here. I really love one time events. They make things feel special and exciting and dynamic, more like our own world. Yes, there were some huge problems with past events and of course some people are bitter because they were not even able to participate at all. However, I think they are great and it's clear to see that ANet is improving how they handle these large-scale events (the latest, Wintersday, went the most smoothly). So I cannot wait to see what else they come up with in regards to one time events. They are also planning to add more normal dynamic events to zones, hopefully to entice people in some small way to revisit the world of Tyria or at least make it a bit more interesting on your 6th, 7th or 8th playthrough.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5lRWXPk7kIKPGF4nxF7uBDU4QVCPlyZV57s6vwIDu-EJ9Jv-oxiVpUDFsQmGBTx-6xJ9cXCypYXKiDhkR4tu0hJmeCz9MF1ViWoBl37CSn7B5nDxtpYAmaykKh3Hdqc6t_v3Z2miQ4rM/s1600/achievement_token_items.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="New Guild Wars 2 Achievement Token Rewards" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5lRWXPk7kIKPGF4nxF7uBDU4QVCPlyZV57s6vwIDu-EJ9Jv-oxiVpUDFsQmGBTx-6xJ9cXCypYXKiDhkR4tu0hJmeCz9MF1ViWoBl37CSn7B5nDxtpYAmaykKh3Hdqc6t_v3Z2miQ4rM/s1600/achievement_token_items.jpg" height="320" title="List of Achievement Rewards" width="272" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Some of the new achievement rewards. Endless Mystery Cat Tonic? YES PLEASE :3</td></tr>
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The <b>achievement system</b> in general will also be expanding. Different days of the week will offer different dailies, and players won't have to do all the dailies offered for that day (for example, you'll be able to pick the ones you'd most like to do from a list to get credit). As you can see in the above screenshot, once we complete daily/monthly achievements under this new system, we will receive these nifty tokens which can then be spent on rewards like dyes, minis, Ascended gear, obsidian shards, tonics, and more! All of these rewards look great in theory, and will provide new incentives for many people to start logging back in everyday. The big question is, how many tokens will we get per achievement (rumor has it that it'll be 1 per day and 10 for a monthly) and what will the finalized cost of the rewards be? Only time will tell, I'm afraid. But from the looks of things they will be a much sought after commodity, with the highest tier rewards taking a pretty good time investment. Going by current <a href="http://www.gw2spidy.com/item/20323" target="_blank">Unidentified Dye</a> prices alone, it appears that one token might be worth the equivalent of somewhere around 30 silver. Perhaps this change will help lower the price of certain items on the Trading Post (like dyes), making them a bit more accessible for everyone. A Sylvari can dream, right? (Excuse the horrible pun!)<br />
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Speaking of rewards, ANet does confirm that there won't be another tier of gear between Ascended and Legendary in the next year... so rest assured we won't be on an endless gear treadmill, for awhile anyways. Many boss encounters in <b>dungeons</b> and the open world will be redesigned, and Fractals will also see improvements and bug fixes. Plus, the LFG tool looks like it will become a bit more useful in the future.<br />
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Missions will be added for <b>guilds</b>, which sounds really interesting to be honest. I like the idea of being able to do more things with my guild, especially if it's exclusive things you can <i>only</i> do with a guild. Even though we are playing <i>Guild Wars 2</i>, the whole guild experience in general how it is now is a bit lacking in my opinion. I'd love to see some type of player/guild housing but alas nothing like that is planned for the foreseeable future. In the meantime, we will get these new guild missions, more guild rewards, and the super vague "tools to allow guilds of all sizes to play a stronger part in solidifying the communities of the GW2 world." Who doesn't like solidified communities am I right??<br />
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In the world of <b>World vs World vs World</b> (worldception?), they will be trying to improve the culling issue more and, as previously mentioned, also try to stabilize server-hopping with the introduction of guesting and paid transfers. But wait, there's more! In the form of new abilities and bonuses exclusive to WvW! As well as visible titles, prestige, and new additions to get people playing besides the overall score! :O<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiejFmSHUfdjH0Lh3Y1PtpyoPFwVf0dywySE0vGYcinE8gCv03p31DBHjA4u-sKjdEN_KcfJFfNHKVRFFYuhSCRIGX6f18zxBVPwLzc2wf5gxz-me7Kjc6OmHJ6vWg29W8ZMz9fAR9Xf8/s1600/gw177.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Tower in the Human city Divinity's Reach" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiejFmSHUfdjH0Lh3Y1PtpyoPFwVf0dywySE0vGYcinE8gCv03p31DBHjA4u-sKjdEN_KcfJFfNHKVRFFYuhSCRIGX6f18zxBVPwLzc2wf5gxz-me7Kjc6OmHJ6vWg29W8ZMz9fAR9Xf8/s1600/gw177.jpg" height="180" title="Divinity's Reach" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b>Pvp</b> seems like it will become a bit more noob friendly - great news for me! Less competitive pvpers with similar amounts of skill will hopefully be matched better with one another and there will also be a new system in place for those just learning how to PvP (they'll also be making it easier for new players just learning how to play the game in general). On the flip-side of this, they also want to keep pushing GW2 into more of the e-sport territory with the addition of spectator mode, hosting custom arenas, and more visible rankings of who is DA BEST. Well, what can I really say about Pvp? As someone who does not do much of it, I find it to be a pretty intimidating realm to break in to, so anything they do to help make it a more welcoming and inclusive activity is great! But at the same time, they're adding features to make it even more "hardcore" and dividing. I realize they shouldn't treat the people really into PvP the same as complete novices, and I don't know what the perfect solution would be, but I do know that if I do decide to Pvp I hope it won't be with a giant leaderboard in my face reminding me how bad I am compared to all these great players! Because that's just depressing. :(<br />
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Last but not least they will keep trying to improve the game against <b>botters, hackers, and bugs</b> which is always a plus!<br />
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What do you think of these changes? What are you looking forward to the most over the next few months? I know it's not listed, but in the January update I really hope to see the availability of the <a href="http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Name_Change_Contract" target="_blank">Name Change Contracts</a> that were added to (but not buyable from) the Trading Post a few months ago. Also hope they are not too pricey, of course! :) If you'd like to read the original post yourself head on over to: <a href="https://www.guildwars2.com/en/news/colin-johanson-on-guild-wars-2-in-the-months-ahead/" target="_blank">Colin Johanson on Guild Wars 2 in the Months Ahead</a>. Let me know your thoughts on these Guild Wars 2 updates in the comment section below!<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1288185695350750987.post-53125725657282294892013-01-18T00:56:00.003-05:002013-02-14T00:18:12.716-05:00Guild Wars 2 Personal Story, Finally! [Epic Adventure]<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhir0ASKkIW1xR0LLGSi-C9YqczGHLWDbfGrT4iJqLPiZqWLvo6fljcnXHLHY3b6XOr-CakFkzsCAdREDHala_H1gjA2nq4zKqJae3pRqf7Aq_fKEOeatJuU9KYj5PuJim3ks3pXnEHO1w/s1600/gw112.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Sylvari and Soar Goldbeak in Hanto Trading Post" border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhir0ASKkIW1xR0LLGSi-C9YqczGHLWDbfGrT4iJqLPiZqWLvo6fljcnXHLHY3b6XOr-CakFkzsCAdREDHala_H1gjA2nq4zKqJae3pRqf7Aq_fKEOeatJuU9KYj5PuJim3ks3pXnEHO1w/s1600/gw112.jpg" title="Sylvari and Tengu" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Plants vs... Tengu?</td></tr>
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So, it's really no secret that I've been in a bit of a love/hate thing with Guild Wars 2 for a few months now... playing in the beta and even after launch were great but the "new car smell" has worn off a bit since then. Don't get me wrong - the game is definitely fun, but I, like a lot of other people, don't feel like there is much to keep players, well, <i>playing</i>. Even though there are many things to do (in fact, I haven't even touched certain areas of the game yet like sPVP or dungeons/fractals), I don't usually feel a whole lot of motivation to actually <i>do</i> them, at least for any significant length of time. However, since a lot of my gaming is done with my SO, I have been making more of an effort to spend time again in Tyria since that is what he's been in the mood for lately. The only goal in-game I'm really working for at the moment is the 100% exploration-star-medal-thingy, and I am very close to finally finishing! Right now my character is sitting at 96% complete with only the Cursed Shore and that stupid, forever-contested skill point in the Temple of Lyssa left to do. This is all fine and dandy, but I keep thinking what will I do with my little Sylvari Elementalist when I finally reach my goal? What will keep me playing next? Well, I decided tonight to work a bit on my personal story which has been severely neglected for the past... 70 levels or so! :D Warning: personal story spoilers, ahoy!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_KT019LEctQTJFm0bj9SZ8UsiXG-AxSh81Qf7c8EJt2P7FQGTzErPtZ1bJw6XgRh7lTyNP0LXtvoue1InAshgMqrFhOTjOK-cnBpVN4rTL7ITKEWTsXZwcFpkjDOImX_pOa4SY1EfIRg/s1600/gw096.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Guild Wars 2 Sylvari Storyline Options" border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_KT019LEctQTJFm0bj9SZ8UsiXG-AxSh81Qf7c8EJt2P7FQGTzErPtZ1bJw6XgRh7lTyNP0LXtvoue1InAshgMqrFhOTjOK-cnBpVN4rTL7ITKEWTsXZwcFpkjDOImX_pOa4SY1EfIRg/s1600/gw096.jpg" title="Personal Story Interface" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">THIS IS MY STORY. That no one else has! Unless you choose the same options...</td></tr>
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Leaving the frigid weather of Frostgorge Sound, I made my way to Lion's Arch and from here to my home city, the Grove. As I exited it's gates a familiar sight hit me, Caledon Forest. The area was largely empty, save for a few fellow travelers I would sometimes pass. Nowhere near it's former glory of having huge waves of adventurers sweeping it's landscape. My current mission would have me visiting a pair of sylvari twins, Arlon and Pellam, near Mabon Market. After meeting earlier with Trahearne, he tasked me with helping these twins somehow barter with the Hylek in order to get a zalisco extract.<br />
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As I ran, my legs carried me through the village of Astorea, it's surrounding Wilds, and farther north on to Sandycove Beach. Memories flooded my mind as I recalled all my past adventures here as a sapling. And even though I felt safe and nostalgic here, I was reminded that there is still much danger all around me. At least twice I tried to stop and rest my feet thinking it was safe, but ended up having to fight for my life when I wasn't paying attention!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFgUfoT7Zg0TMzQD_2yZyYggEP7ge2jFVBfPhzWiNvoo8NI64CXXyOqgvYEJ7WSLqri8CK_HOW7oKVpl_MU03t6OXrC90q8C-ffy1wX-YvtdZFEAQv7wheTh-lF1muGD5_pR-QbOq1ex8/s1600/gw098.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Screenshot of the Sylvari starting area, Caledon forest." border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFgUfoT7Zg0TMzQD_2yZyYggEP7ge2jFVBfPhzWiNvoo8NI64CXXyOqgvYEJ7WSLqri8CK_HOW7oKVpl_MU03t6OXrC90q8C-ffy1wX-YvtdZFEAQv7wheTh-lF1muGD5_pR-QbOq1ex8/s1600/gw098.jpg" title="Caledon Forest" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Arriving at Mabon Market in the Sylvari starting area, Caledon Forest.</td></tr>
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Swimming across the bay of Ventry, I finally reach my destination. Up ahead I see the twins and introduce myself. They are a bit of an odd pair to say the least and quite the opposite of one another personality-wise. I let them do all the talking as we met with the Hylek representative. Things even seemed to be going well until a thief from the Dengatl tribe ends up ambushing us and stealing the extract! Luckily, we manage to fight off the approaching horde of enemies. Afterwards, the Hylek we met with wanders off to let her chief know what a mess we're all in! Arlon and Pellam suggest that we should travel north to the Hanto Trading Post and see if we can find out where the Dengatl tribe is located. When I arrived at the Trading Post there was an emerging skritt battle happening against the locals, but I passed. There were more important things to be done - we need that zalisco back!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi05Mj2r_479l8Ye1ItHQ9rkTfbNm3dqI7o6O-ubsk5AbwHCYar93XDOTMKfGfRiHv2YWpFXobhElBfo5_sgw2JyPHcGaT-F548B0fGTrBEY11YX-8lstIN4E2J8muNQ9Ln22zCuemq9qE/s1600/gw104.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Guild Wars 2 Sylvari Personal Story Cutscene" border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi05Mj2r_479l8Ye1ItHQ9rkTfbNm3dqI7o6O-ubsk5AbwHCYar93XDOTMKfGfRiHv2YWpFXobhElBfo5_sgw2JyPHcGaT-F548B0fGTrBEY11YX-8lstIN4E2J8muNQ9Ln22zCuemq9qE/s1600/gw104.jpg" title="Sylvari Elementalist" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I think it's pretty clear that everyone obviously listens to me...</td></tr>
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After meeting back up with the twins again, they tell me that we should talk to Soar Goldbeak the Tradesmaster in order to find the whereabouts of the tribe. But of course, when I try asking what he knows, he won't spill the beans and tells us to ask the other merchants instead. After "helping out" around the Trading Post (setting fires, fighting some giant frogs, and stopping a wayward robot), we come to find out that Goldbeak does indeed know some information about the tribe - in fact, we learn that he meets with them secretly to buy stolen goods which he sells for a profit. Oh, the horror! :O It also looks like there might be another tribe involved, working behind the scenes - the plot thickens! We confront Goldbeak and he finally tells us what we need to know... where the Dengatl village is. Yay!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIWUrqRvwvOlh2yGFqs_5Rtdcbxp_x7W5CaCd5ed2EhnJSG06SmvPRqx2TFxRHNvBdw8QIfbWmR7iCs2GJbA3P9RDpkDEjsfyZ4U2zW6B_1Y4IB9601Ap9Z2eCpXqehbNlqmib01uFPek/s1600/gw106.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Guild Wars 2 Personal Story NPC" border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIWUrqRvwvOlh2yGFqs_5Rtdcbxp_x7W5CaCd5ed2EhnJSG06SmvPRqx2TFxRHNvBdw8QIfbWmR7iCs2GJbA3P9RDpkDEjsfyZ4U2zW6B_1Y4IB9601Ap9Z2eCpXqehbNlqmib01uFPek/s1600/gw106.jpg" title="Arlon and Pellam the Sylvari Twins" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Everything is always Pellam's fault, damn it!</td></tr>
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Now I make the long journey back to the Grove and fill Trahearne in on all the details. Why we can't just send him a letter instead of running all that way I'll never know. As usual Arlon and Pellam have very different views on how the situation should be handled next. I chose to side with Pellam who suggested that we should try to trade with the Dengatl in order to find out the name of the other tribe they are working with.<br />
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And that is where I have stopped for now. Next time I will make the long trek back up Caledon Forest to meet with Pellam in the Wychmire Swamp. Hopefully playing through the personal story will tide me over until the new <a href="http://aeryplays.blogspot.com/2013/01/news-guild-wars-2-january-28th-update.html" target="_blank">Guild Wars 2 update happens on the 28th of January</a>. Although, it looks like they will be adding all the good stuff in February, March, and beyond. Good thing that there are lots (too many, in fact) of other games to keep me occupied until then! What about you? What have you been playing lately? Are you enjoying and still feeling motivated by GW2? Let me know what you think in the comment section below. :)<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBM-5twhMzv3CI_O0acwLZz5lRWCL7sP85t4H-nIVjTu6Nk3fyowB3EyPiAN76DTZpEYoujxS5yTZri-0sT3pM4AMeIL0wZ5uLxC4YkUoItWlvB6B68ilR6pvVMTdBfXelwa1f1GJjaGE/s1600/gw109.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Wintersday Plush Griffon Toy and Sylvari" border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBM-5twhMzv3CI_O0acwLZz5lRWCL7sP85t4H-nIVjTu6Nk3fyowB3EyPiAN76DTZpEYoujxS5yTZri-0sT3pM4AMeIL0wZ5uLxC4YkUoItWlvB6B68ilR6pvVMTdBfXelwa1f1GJjaGE/s1600/gw109.jpg" title="Plush Griffon Toy Wintersday Event 2012" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Meg the Plush Griffon Toy waves goodbye until next time!</td></tr>
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