Guild Wars Reporter

Guild Wars Reporter Episode 103 – OMG. So much.

Celeste and Allona test a new audio set up, catch up on the last two April Feature Pack MEGASERVER TECHNOLOGY™ posts, and discuss all sorts of GW2 schtuff. Audio Version What We Did This Week   Allona Got my necro to 80 and began th...

Celeste and Allona were slightly delayed by delicious cake, but quickly regrouped to discuss the April Feature Pack, MEGASERVER TECHNOLOGY™, and other news from — and about — GW2. Audio Version What We Did This Week   Allona Was try...

Celeste, Allona, and UltraSpecialGuest Chris celebrate episode 100 of Guild Wars Reporter! They discuss the mega load of news from ArenaNet this past week AND have entertaining musical interludes! Audio Version: What We Did This Week (and t...

Celeste and Allona talk about Scarlet, Zerging, Lore, and musical instruments. Audio Version: What We Did This Week Allona: Got meta for LW Finally found that weiner, Peter. Got a second Bonetti’s Rapier! Up to 107% MF (which may explain the rapier) Celeste: Slowly working up Tailor to 500 Spring break with children… we decorated ukuleles today!   Report from Vigil Keep   Scarlet’s End and Zerg Mechanics http://thepaletree.net/2014/03/07/scarlets-end-and-zerg-mechanics/ The miasma has been pushed out of Lion’s Arch and to sea by the wind, so now it’s safe (relatively) to enter LA, and it can be accessed at any time now. Celeste: Am I the only one that didn’t know this? I had no freaking clue and had no idea how we had managed to deal with the miasma. Allona: I guess I just thought we had an effect during last patch, but this makes sense too.  :) People quickly decided to zerg the LA events. These events are not made to be zerged, as the update late last night shows. Throwing 150 bodies at a Knight just causes it to scale up ridiculously... Anet added a bug fix that included making it so only 50 people can hold a color attunement at a time during the Knights encounter, making it so on larger populated servers people have to split up instead of just zerging them one at a time. As I don’t like that style of fighting things, I am totally okay with this. People, of course, are complaining about it. “This rules out small servers who only have 50 people on at once because splitting won’t work and they have to zerg it!” If you have small numbers like that, zerg your happy little hearts out. No one’s stopping you. It’s stopping 150 people at once on one Knight. Allona: I also like the fix. I don’t have a real problem with zergs, but I feel like ArenaNet is really trying to break them up (citizen rescues from last patch, the marionette, etc) and trying to incorporate interesting fight mechanics, but a lot of people refuse to play any differently; and then complain that Anet makes zergy content. I can only imagine how frustrating that is. Celeste: 75% of the time I’m on HoD. We’re tiny and I usually see maybe 30 people on the map during the day. This is frustrating. It’s almost begging me to guest to a large server so I’m almost guaranteed to get on an overflow that has a higher population than my main server. I haven’t played since they tuned the knights down by 25% but I anticipate it is easier now.   Get Ready for WvW Spring Tournament 2014 https://www.guildwars2.com/en/news/get-ready-for-wvw-spring-tournament-2014/ Mar 28 - May 30 The initial round of the tournament will match the worlds in each league according to their world rating. After that round has ended, worlds will be matched up according to how many points they have in the tournament. This will continue after each round, which means that the matchups are not predetermined but are dependent upon the results of the previous matchups. If you’re looking to change servers anytime before Mar 18 you’ll really want to hurry up and make a decision since the prices will be changed both before and during the tournament. Servers that are in the bottom of their division will be cheaper to transfer to while more highly ranked servers will increase. Before the tournie you could be paying from 0 to 2400 gems and during you could be paying from 1000 to 2400. To prevent world hopping: These restrictions will go into effect on March 28. After that date, anyone who transfers worlds will be able to play only in the Edge of the Mists WvW map for the duration of their current and subsequent matchup. If you transfer worlds on a Tuesday, you won’t be able to enter the Borderlands or Eternal Battleground maps until the Friday of the following week. Rewards: At the end of the tournament, everyone who has completed the meta achievement will be given a chest containing WvW Tournament tickets.

Celeste and Allona spoil everything about the latest patch in this episode. Alternate titles are: "It Was A Thing" or "It Made Me Laugh." Listen now: Or watch: http://youtu.be/miTtDVi-yq0 Before we begin the episode, a brief disclaimer: We will be talking in-depth about the patch and what it means for the story of Tyria. This means that if you haven’t gone through the story instance with Scarlet you will not want to listen to this episode unless you want to have it spoiled. We’ll try to keep it somewhat spoiler free but all bets are off.   What We Did This Week Allona: Prior to patch: Rubble Tour with guildies (had to have two groups!) Ran with Richie, AKA BogOtter, for his last GW2 stream for Massively Accidentally bought a SECOND gift of blades recipe (like a boss!) Finally made the exotic spinal blade backpiece. Now to get a profession to 500! Got my March monthly by the 4th! Had to rethink my build for the new LA fights Beat Scarlet! Totally cried during the last cinematic Celeste: Self-imposed rubble tour by following people Dailies! took engi from 35 to 47 (LA, crafting) Beat Scarlet with my buddy Crimm, we weren’t expecting to win at all (heh)   Report from Vigil Keep   Battle For Lion’s Arch https://forum-en.guildwars2.com/forum/info/updates/Game-Update-Notes-March-4-2014 While the Captain’s Council oversees relief efforts, the Lionguard are making preparations for a counterattack. Also, heirlooms and found belongings can still be turned in for items. Scarlet has secured different areas of the map by deploying her champions. Aetherblade Admiral Aetherblade Cannoneer Toxic Warlock Toxic Spider Queen Molten Fire Shaman Molten Munitions Specialist Assault Knights: Arriving on each hour, Scarlet’s legendary assault knights will show up at three locations and hover for several minutes before descending to attack. Grand Piazza Moran Memorial Gunnery Range “Defeating the three assault knights simultaneously is the key to reaching Scarlet’s airship, the Breachmaker.” Legendary Assault Knights will drop 5 Deluxe Gear Boxes and a chance at an Assault Knight Power Core, which can be used to color the Tempered Spinal Blades back item. Allona: I checked these out in-game (a player was linking them) and they make all the difference to this backpiece! “Be sure to pack consumables, food, utility buffs, and a favorite finisher. This may be our best and only chance to put a stop to Scarlet’s villainy.” Celeste: I totally used my Quaggan finisher :3 Allona: All bunny, all the time! “For the brave who battle their way to the Diverse Ledges, they can meet up with Lionguard Turma. Her latest scouting report states that she’s found a new type of portal but is unable to access it without special equipment derived from Scarlet’s technology.” In case you can’t get your server/overflow to beat the knights you’ll be able to equip the backpiece (AT ANY LEVEL) and enter a portal to beat up Scarlet in a story instance. Players who ascend to the Breachmaker and finish the story will earn a new title and a unique helm skin to display proudly. Not only that, but by defeating Scarlet’s defenses, players will additionally earn several masterwork and rare items ... and a rare chance for one of two new unique rifles. http://youtu.be/sk5SU0-3qAk http://www.reddit.com/r/Guildwars2/comments/1zmj9u/holo_fight_read_this/ “If you manage to get all 3 holos dead at about the same time (theres like a 30 second to a minute window) they will reform into the prime holo instead of splitting into the 18 smaller holos. This can save you a significant portion of time, and it bypasses one of the harder parts of the fight.” Thanks indigo121! http://www.reddit.com/r/Guildwars2/comments/1zksr9/someone_with_more_engineering_experience_will/ Engineers get exclusive dialog when accessing the panels in the Breachmaker (from katubug)

Celeste and Allona drag people out of Lion's Arch, wear a tin foil hat for most of the episode and wonder why no one else says gif like we do. Listen now: Or Watch: http://youtu.be/3ruhbWPtgtU What We Did This Week   Allona: Harvest ALL THE IRON Saving citizens of Lion’s Arch Got the meta, obvs. Ran Orr with guildies to harvest mats and relax   Celeste: Lion’s Arch   Report from Vigil Keep   Battle For Lion’s Arch http://youtu.be/a2S5siA_ML4 “It's time to take back Lion's Arch from Scarlet's armies on March 4! Battle for Lion's Arch is the climactic ending to the epic season 1 of the Guild Wars 2 Living World. Don't miss the chance to change the face of Tyria forever!” http://www.guildwars2hub.com/features/editorials/top-6-things-do-week Gather Spinal Blade Blueprint Scraps and Blade Shards. Save your extras. Might sell well after the end of the season. Allona: This never occurred to me! ~runs to pull the pieces out of the guild bank that I put in, like a huge jerk~ Make sure you have Endless Quaggan Tonics, especially the Endless Mystery Quaggan Tonics. Nab the endless ones to sell later...hopefully for a profit Get yourself a Selfless or Thoughtless Potion, or both! Allona: Meh. Don't forget to spend your Found Belongings. Allona: I’m still trying to find things I’m interested in purchasing Prepare for the Fight. “This is the big finale for Season One Living World stories. You can bet your butt that there will be some grand, epic fight that will put your through a challenge or two. Let us also consider the fact they have already said that we will be fighting, and who do you think we're going to fight at the end? Scarlet. Make sure you have a character you are completely comfortable with in a tough fight, and preferably as best geared out as they can be. Also wouldn't hurt to make sure you have good food consumables for the fight. Something tells me we are going to be pit up against some difficult fights in our attempt to retake Lion's Arch.” Get Black Lion Keys. “This is their big, grand finale and they are probably going to do all the biggest features they can think up.” http://wiki.guildwars.com/wiki/The_Battle_for_Lion%27s_Arch Allona - Trauma flashbacks! This battle took FOREVER. Just added everything up: 392 foes, PLUS 11 bosses! (granted, there are 660 NPCs and your team of 8, but still, they were all spread out and junk.) Celeste - I hope it feels as awesome when we complete this story as when I managed to finally beat that quest.   Tyrian Atlas http://atlas.guildwars2.com/en/ really?! just make a damn app already arenanet. This is bovine excrement. Allona -  I still wistfully think of the app anet announced pre-beta that would allow you to check the online status of guildies and also take part in guild chat. http://zoom.it/pKuy I find this map to be 10 times cooler. Allona - I love this! I have been looking for a good GW1 location overlay. Allona - This is an interesting step. I’m not 100% sure of the point though? Celeste - A lot of people have been saying that this feels a bit premature. There’s not a lot going on here.   Glory Booster Gate https://forum-en.guildwars2.com/forum/pvp/pvp/March-18th-Glory-change-FAQ/first#post3688477 Q: Why aren’t people with glory boosters being compensated with different boosters or something along those lines? A: We will not be converting glory boosters because we announced that we would be phasing out glory in John’s blog post and it wouldn’t be fair to the players that used up all of their boosters since then in preparation for it. However, players that spent gems to purchase glory boosters directly will be eligible for a refund. For those that did purchase them,

Celeste and Allona raid the Underworld, beat the marionette, and try to save Lion's Arch. Listen now: Or Watch: http://youtu.be/Wgv6jziPqdI What We Did This Week   Allona: GW1 Underworld with Celeste! Marionette many more times Took a new guildie to Ebonhawk and cried at Prof Yakkington’s grave … again. Pre-patch stuff - pirate weapons, moa racing, map completion on alts that were close. LA (Under Attack!). It is very flamey. Finally bought an armour skin. The Flamekissed. I am very flamey. Over-achieved for a clean sweep on the monthlies.   Celeste: GW1 Underworld Marionette FINALLY Lots of LA bought the endless mystery quaggan tonic   Report from Lion’s Arch   Escape From Lion’s Arch https://www.guildwars2.com/en/the-game/releases/february-18-2014/ https://forum-en.guildwars2.com/forum/info/updates/Game-Update-Notes-February-18-2014 Upon logging in, players level 30 or higher will see a cinematic of the attack on Lion’s Arch. Lower level players will watch this upon entering Lion’s Arch for the first time. Players can rewatch the cinematic by talking to the refugee camp director at any of the three refugee camps located by the Vigil Keep in Gendarran Fields, by the Durmand Priory in Lornar’s Pass, and on Stormbluff Isle in Bloodtide Coast. Note: All characters that were stationed in Lion’s Arch before the attack will be relocated to an adjoining map. (Now.) Allona - Heh … I was ported right into the LA chaos. Map completion remains possible, including waypoints, points of interest, vistas, jumping puzzles, and diving goggles. Just watch out for Scarlet’s troops! For players who need to follow their Personal Story steps, Captain Smash and Bouncer Kinna over by Icegate Gorge in Gendarran Fields will sneak adventurers into Lion’s Arch. Evacuate! Encourage citizens Establish footholds for the 3 biconic groups (Gendarran, Lornar’s, and Bloodtide) Stopping Miasma deployment Escort events New hub at Vigil Keep (along with Havoc’s Airship) Alliance bags: Refugee belongings, spinal shards, child drawings (25 luck), bloodstone dust, potions of slaying, quaggan tonics (temp and perm), airship passes, and Mini Captain Magnus. Celeste: I wonder if Magnus yells out “AUGH My EYES!” periodically :3 Allona: Someone on reddit says he got a precursor from one of the bags! The Belonging … lucky guy. Get group effort bags by rescuing citizens at 100, 300, 600, 1000, and 1500 mark Allona: Oh to reach 600! Celeste: Yeah the highest I’ve gotten is ~500 Stick around for the whole cycle and get a chance at dragonite, champ bags, blade shards, and green items. For players who attain the highest tier, there’s a chance for ascended materials and rewards from previous Living World releases. Celeste: SAY WHAT?! Allona: That is pretty cool, I gotta say. Let’s talk a bit about how it plays - events being concurrent, buffs in the zone, 45 minutes per cycle (roughly), only 3 waypoints, it’s like jubilee but more metered in that they control Spinal Blade Backpiece Allona: I like that the plans for it are multiple pieces that you have to collect, a la the map pieces to make Koris Deeprunner’s treasure map in GW1: EotN. Celeste: More back pieces…. really?! Selfless or Thoughtless potions (250 heirlooms and 10G) Additions to the Black Lion Chest: There is now a rare chance to get a Mini Marjory Delaqua or Mini Mai Trin from the chest. For a limited time, every chest also contains a guaranteed stack of 5 Bags of Alliance Supplies.   The Scarlet Connection http://www.guildwars2hub.com/features/interviews/escape-lions-arch-qa “Scarlet’s story line was always very clear that the end plan was always to be Lion’s Arch.

Celeste and Allona start mourning Lion's Arch early and try to understand what's happening with PvP and Glory. Listen now: Or Watch: http://youtu.be/RlGWtfS2F1c What We Did This Week   Allona: Dailies (pro tip: daily reviver in Eo...

Celeste and Allona rally through Edge of the Mists and gush about the new story instance. Listen now: Or Watch: http://youtu.be/orlW5xaokKI What We Did This Week Allona: Prior to patch: Beat the Marionette! WOOOO! ~does the Dana Carvey Church Lady dance of victory~ Post patch: Done the meta (it’s quick to do, but man they pack a lot of story in) Levelling alts to be able to wear armour they’ve been hauling around, taking up precious bag space Showed diving goggles to new players/guildies and they were witness to my special skill … sigh   Celeste: I really don't know how to respond to some of the prompts in a Study of Scarlet... Although it does kinda feel like the devs are trying to get us to theorize on where we think the story could go. I'm sure all the answers are being tallied as well. Canthan New Year in GW1   Report from Lion’s Arch   Game Release & Patch Notes https://www.guildwars2.com/en/the-game/releases/february-04-2014/ https://forum-en.guildwars2.com/forum/info/updates/Game-Update-Notes-February-4-2014/ The story integration of the LW into the Edge of the Mists much smaller than people had thought, to the relief of many (ahem ... Celeste). (Celeste: And yet I still got killed 4 times and haven’t gotten to the parts for Taimi/Scruffy) A Study in Scarlet - go through all the evidence at the Dead End Bar with Marjory, Kasmeer and Vorpp Taimi’s Troubles - Braham is watching over her as she waits for repair components for her golem Unstable Portals - portals to the EoTM are opened up across Tyria Achievements - Do the above. Pretty simple really, but some of them are easier said than done if you’re bad at PvP. Allona: I have really enjoyed the delivery of the story and the growth of the characters these last two patches. I like that you have a pop-up dialogue that you can follow at your own pace but there’s also voiced conversations that sort of  mimic what you’re reading, with new tidbits. WvW: EotM - rundown of each region and their mechanics. Overgrowth - buff based on points held Frostreach - snowfall impedes invaders Badlands - automated turrets when points are held by the badlands New Lovestruck weapon skins are available at the Black Lion Weapons Specialist. Allona: Love all these skins. Love. Love. Love. The Permanent Quaggan Finisher is for sale in the Upgrades category of the Gem Store. Allona: I was defeated in EotM by someone using this. I wasn’t even mad. Glory Boosters will no longer be sold in the Gem Store starting February 11, 2014. Celeste: I think this pretty much guarantees that it will be switched over in the “feature-only” releases Allona: Has there been absolute confirmation that these will be a “use it or lose it” item? It might be nice to be able to trade the whacks of them I have in for something else. The Flamekissed Light Armor Skin has returned with a new look. Allona: Love the updated skin. Love. Love. Love. Celeste: I really wish I could use the Light set on my ranger. It looks so pretty! Something not in the patch notes but is worth noting: The “biconics” are no longer at the marionette fight. http://imgur.com/a/duXMA Replaced by Priory members: Aly, Moonrazor(@n8rhymeswith), Jexx(@mr_ex?), Lissah(@Lissahkins?), and Greyback(@KingStGreibach?). (Allona: Good catch!)   Lore Om Nom Nom Nom Nom http://www.mmorpg.com/gamelist.cfm/game/473/feature/8191/Guild-Wars-2-War-Lore-Edge-of-the-Mists-.html “The investigation is a recap for people who might have missed some previous story points, who might not have been following since the beginning. This is definitely a great place to jump in if you're not familiar with the story or if you've missed a piece. We want everyone to be on the same page leading into the finale.” - Theo Nguyen

Celeste and Allona discuss Scarlet and the Edge of the Mists along with new playable races and get hit right in the feels. Listen now: Or Watch: http://youtu.be/4dDjmAK1Dyc What We Did This Week   Allona: Marionette - no win yet ...

Celeste and Allona discuss Scarlet and the fembot once more while fending off the advances of the wurm in Bloodtide Coast. Watch On Youtube: http://youtu.be/qVzBsHGTH34 Listen now: What We Did This Week   Allona: Run around house flailing when new patch started downloading Five attempts at marionette so far (got to 4/5 chains down on the last try) Two attempts at wurm Found the secret lair, but need waaaaay more power cores Hunting thumper probes for said cores (and cheevo) LOVED the story instance in LA (I mean, who hasn’t loved it, really) Rethinking the basic ore node for the home instance … Damn you Wooden Potatoes!   Celeste: CoF P3 - 20 minutes or more spent trying to climb through a hallway filled with bombs Story Instance - I really loved being able to see all the characters interact that we’ve very slowly gotten to know in-game over the last year. Taimi kind of came out of left-field for me though. She’s interesting but also, I feel like she needs to die and I mean that in a very non-mean way. (Post show update from Allona: Here is where I read the info about Taimi: http://www.mmorpg.com/gamelist.cfm/game/473/feature/8145/Guild-Wars-2-Changing-What-It-Means-to-Create-Play-an-MMO.html) Probes - An exercise in who will get there first, perhaps best done in an empty overflow? Marionette - Argh, why won’t you die?! I did however manage to get in to fight for the chains twice so far. Wurm attempt - Was in an overflow and the event was about to start, got the prompt that Toast main was open and got transported to an overflow where the event never triggered and was empty. I was a sad panda. I don’t trust the queue system anymore. So far only TTS has managed to get to Phase 2 of the fight. (Yes really.) Decapitated, floppy wurm heads.   Report from Lion’s Arch   Origins of Madness Update https://www.guildwars2.com/en/the-game/releases/january-21-2014/ Wurm is permanent Marionette is semi (Celeste: I can’t find the article that I remember this from but it was said that the fembot will be available until it doesn’t make sense with the living world.) Wurm-themed ascended armor, it’s got a green glow-vapor-type effect As an aside, what do you think of new living world logo and page setups? (Allona: I like the logo. Separates the dragons from the LW in a tangible way.)   Patch Notes https://forum-en.guildwars2.com/forum/info/updates/Game-Update-Notes-January-21-2014 Twisted Marionette Weapon Test Completing The Origins of Madness meta-achievement will reward players with a Gift of Sprockets, which will create a new sprocket generator in their home instance. (Allona: YAY!) Additional exclusive rewards include: New power, precision, and healing power stat combinations. Includes both exotic (Zealot’s) and ascended (Keeper’s) items. New Mini Twisted Watchwork Moa (Allona: NEED!)(Celeste: too!) Triple Trouble Triple Trouble Rewards Assisting in the investigation of wurm activity in Bloodtide Coast will give players a chance at new exclusive rewards: New wurm-themed ascended armor pieces New wurm-themed rifle skins (Allona: only rifles?) (Celeste: Appears so) New great jungle wurm minis New exotic wurm minis BALANCE, BUG-FIXING, POLISH User Interface: Various updates have been made to the right-hand side of the HUD to improve its appearance and functionality. (Celeste: It’s pretty!)(Allona: I like the dynamic movement as items slide in and out) User Interface: Hints have a new arrow that is more visible and animated. BLACK LION TRADING COMPANY GEM STORE A new 3-pack of masterwork great jungle wurm minis is now available A new Great Jungle Wurm Finisher is now available Instant Trait Reset will be removed from the store at the end of January 27.

Celeste and Allona track Scarlet and offer up some ideas as to what we'll be seeing from Arenanet in the "feature-only releases" coming later this year. Listen now: What We Did This Week   Allona: More alt-ing One diving goggles left for cheevo! Which one? Aetherblade of course! (note: I may never succeed on this one if I’m unable do it with a team of three mesmers). Working on Fashion title. It’s haaaard (and by ‘hard’ I mean expensive).   Celeste: Toypocalypse (nearly done with wintersday cheevos, definitely cutting it close!) Aetherblade/Not So Secret (puzzle but not goggles)   Report from Lion’s Arch   The Madness Trailer http://youtu.be/KhrVVkHmwt4 what the hell is up with the VO for this?! (Allona: Ominous! I like it!) Two new world bosses - Three-headed jungle wurm in Bloodtide and Clockwork Marionette in Lornar’s Pass Marionette appears to be part of the Thump, Thump, Time to Jump line from the metronome (Allona: aren’t both bosses part of this? Wurm unintended though?) Speaking of the marionette, it was teased in DR (http://imgur.com/a/pgkq2) Tapestry of Devotion from HoM (http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20080625040851/gw/images/7/7f/Tapestry_of_Devotion.jpg) More marionette type artwork for EoTN & Utopia (http://guild-guardian.tumblr.com/post/73427465512/ok-so-every-3rd-reblog-of-that-tapestry-post-has-a) CHRONOMANCER PLS! NAO. THX. (Allona: +1) There was someone that alluded on reddit that Scarlet may have influenced the inquest into recreating the iron forgeman and since it is powered by draconic energies it has Scarlet written all over it (now that we know a lot about her). (Celeste: People were kinda pissed about the allusion. I think’s it’s kinda cool and makes sense though I don’t know that Scarlet would have much influence over Kudu.) (Allona: Kudu loves power and surviving, I would think Scarlet promised both. [side note: Kudu is my favourite villain]) Someone figured out where the new world bosses will be by the angle of the shots in the trailer http://imgur.com/a/WxIsx#eEPEye5 (Celeste - All I can think of is, “Crap, no WP near the worm”) (Allona: I think the wurm is in a couple locations?) “You thought that was it for Guild Wars 2?” http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2014-01-14-you-thought-that-was-it-for-guild-wars-2 Sales are in decline but the game is still poised to release in Asia (as well as other regions) Are the two “big background projects” expansions? God, I hope so! (Allona: Not sure really what else they could be) "The thing that we haven't decided yet," he went on, "is what form that type of content will take. Is it right for Guild Wars 2 for that kind of boxed expansion? Is it right for that to be something we add, live, through storylines in the game? Is that something we want to sell through our in-game store? There are a lot of different options available to us.” "... but we absolutely are going to do sweeping new features that you would traditionally only get in expansions - large regions, content and progression additions to your characters in the form of growth and professions and races. Those are all things that you will see in the lifespan of Guild Wars 2." We know the feature-rich patch will be coming in April most likely as the living world wraps up with its final release (for season 1) on march 4th Author says he was told everything that will be happening the next few patches, don’t you just want to invade his brain and find out? Even if you couldn’t tell anyone? (Allona: YES!) “ArenaNet has "a couple of issues" to address with WVW before another league begins. "And once that's live," said Johanson, "we'll start the next season."” So I guess we won’t be starting on a yearly schedule with the WvW season starting in October. “.. get serious about eSports?” basically Colin’s response is China,

Celeste and Allona soldier on in the new year to bring you all of last week's news. Listen now: What We Did This Week   Allona: Lots of little bits of almost everything: crafting, levelling alts, fractalling (is that a word?), dungeoning (damn, Twilight Arbor is evil), Wintersday stuff (gimme mini ho-ho tron!), cheevo hunting, JPs, etc. New Years Day = BITTERMALT!   Celeste: lots of altoholism, every one of my alts is now hovering around lv 30, got a crafting above 450 (and artificer to 400), diving master in the final tier, been jealous of other people’s achievement score levels so I’ve been digging into the menu and trying to find the ones I’m close to. been really enjoying not obsessing over the living world updates and just being able to play the game for fun   Report from Lion’s Arch   Upcoming conclusion of Scarlet and how it will “change the face of tyria forever” https://www.guildwars2.com/en/news/recap-the-living-world-of-guild-wars-2/ We’re treated a recap with the phrase that “we had no idea that the worse was yet to come” followed by the visual of what looks to be the gates in Lion’s Arch. Combine this with the updated dialogue from Evon Gnashblade... Dialogue EG: I tell ya, things haven’t been right since that mouse Kiel lucked into that council seat. PLAYER-> Gnashblade, tough luck about the election. If it matters, I voted for you. EG: Hey, I don’t blame you. You’re savvy. You know you voted for the right guy. (sigh) But that Kiel, she’s gonna get everyone in this town killed one day. PLAYER-> Bold statement. How? EG: Kiel’s playing in the Mists, while her leash-holder, Magnus, has the best Lionguard out in Caledon Forest. We’re undefended here. PLAYER-> What’s the danger? EG: Once I’d say the karka, but we got bigger problems. Scarlet’s out there somewhere. It’s a matter of time before she punches Lion’s Arch hard. PLAYER-> Lion’s Arch is a tough city. It’s been hit before. It’ll still be standing. EG: That ain’t a winning business plan. A city can only take so much punishment before it falls. Magnus and his mouse Kiel will be the cause of it. Allona: I checked today with Allona, got the same dialogue chain with minor differences if you select “I voted for Kiel” or “I voted for both of you” Celeste: I must not have voted enough to get a particular response from any of my characters Metronome Thump, Thump. Time to jump. Wipe all resistance from your mind There’s a secret deep below to find If you’d only seen the things I’ve seen You’d wake up screaming from The Dream This next part will sting, but it brings me joy Sometimes to change you must destroy A fire is rising you cannot contain Tyria will burn, while I remain. http://www.gamerzines.com/pc/arenanet.html http://www.gamerzines.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/Inscription.jpg https://forum-en.guildwars2.com/forum/game/lore/The-Metronome (forum chatter) https://forum-en.guildwars2.com/forum/game/gw2/Slight-Anet-Teaser-for-next-update/first (a lot more wild speculation in this thread) Many people have named that the Do Not Touch markers as thumpers, as they do seem to pound down to the ground rhythmically. Either Primordus or a huge volcanic trigger that will split the continent of Tyria apart potentially creating a much larger area for them to fill in the map with new islands from magma. The question remains, would we have known anything of the leylines, what Scarlet had been planning or anything like what we know now if we hadn’t elected Kiel and gotten the Thaumanova Reactor? What would have been Scarlet’s involvement in the Fall of Abaddon? Would Scarlet’s story have been completely different as a result of whom we had elected?   Unanswered Questions from the LS so far http://www.reddit.com/r/Guildwars2/comments/1usdvw/unanswered_ls_questions/cel8hpa

Join Chris and Celeste in their annual New Year Predictions show. See who was right last year and make your own predictions about what we'll see in 2014 for Guild Wars 2. Listen now: Last Year... Chris’ Predictions No paid expansion in 2013 9th Profession - Macreme dooer - $25US A shoutcasting style system will be added to the game, similar to the system that Firefall currently have in place. Old Lore will further be expanded through Fractals. Expect big story moments in GW1 to be revisited! Dungeon Difficulty will NOT be nerfed. Quaggan will be playable in 2013!   Celeste’s Predictions Full Paid expansion by August 2013 - A Wild Cantha Appears! Maguuma Wastes added leading to the still surviving Mursaat at the Isle of Janthir as a mini paid dlc (20$USD) Fractals expanded with older lore (giganticus lupicus that isn’t undead and isn’t tiny!) by May Level upscaling in more places, not just fractals and festivities Guesting will be completely scrapped and the old server system (districts) will be reinstated Player/guild housing will include dimension-ish building ability and the cost will be so prohibitively expensive that only those that farm extensively will be able to afford them, will probably use globs of ectoplasm or something equally rare. Maybe crafting will be worthwhile.... start levelling up huntsman, tailor, and artificer for furniture, curtains, and decorations! New Playable Race - Teng--SKRITT! SHINIES~!   Who was right last year Chris almost had it right that Old lore would be expanded in fractals, though we didn’t see anything that existed during GW1’s time period. He also predicted correctly that there would be no new expansion and that dungeons would not be nerfed. The only thing that Celeste was remotely close on was that crafting has become slightly profitable/worthwhile.   This year…. Chris’ Predictions Living story release schedule will slow down, and a move to more permanent content with smaller “throw away” living story elements. We will see our first instanced group content for more that 5 in 2014. (i.e. Raid in an instance, not in the world) To go along with the raid, the capability to form groups larger than 5 will be introduced. There will be a new weapon for each class (and skills to go with it!) introduced. There will be fractal versions of the Living Story available for play through at player’s convenience. WuvWuv season two will not happen until later in 2014 (after summer) Edge of the Mists will not take off, and players will simply use it as a static staging point for WuvWuv   Celeste’s Predictions More fractals, of things that are not in either gw1 or gw2’s normal purview. perhaps Dessa will be able to focus the mists into the... future! All the way to the year 2000! The feature only release scheduled for early in the year will include raids and improved player housing with a premium area similar to the Royal Pass. In a shocking move, next year’s Jubilee will also be the celebration of Logan and Jennah’s marriage. This will incur my most swift wrath. To replace Scarlet, we’ll finally get to see the Mursaat come into the Human territories. Spoilers: They’re still pissed that we opened the Door of Komalie and let the Titans through. The Inquest will succeed in perfecting a way to harness/utilize the magic of a dragon (I think Primordius is an interesting possibility) and turn one of its lieutenants on the world Due to massive complaints about the Living Story’s poor writing, it will be abandoned and a monthly quality of life update will be the norm between expansions. Legendary armor components will be found within a continent-wide scavenger hunt.   Twitter Predictions Allona - “I predict the next elder dragon we face will be a dragon made of budgies!