Guild Wars 2 - The Thread

[Arcanum]

Originally Posted by Grandmaster_Skweeb

I read into this a little more and the 'infusion' gear is equivalent of current endgame gear. The stats from gems and such are baked in. The infusion slots are pretty much solely for that dungeon. So it isnt so much a kick to the teeth for people who dont have the gear. Just means the people who dont want to go in the dungeon wont fall miles behind the folk who do get the gear.

Here's an example of an Ascended ring versus an Exotic ring

The stats are better, albeit marginally. Plus we don't even know what kind of boosts Infusions will give, other than Agony resistance. Also the article said rare Ascended gear will have Agony resistance built into them (I'm hoping this would replace a stat in the "built in upgrade slot" bonuses, but who knows).


Also, synk, I agree that it's disheartening that A-Net is adding a new level of gear so soon. I really hope this doesn't become a constant thing, but that is a very, very faint hope.

[Grandmaster_Skweeb]

I still dont see what the stink is. More content is being made t a steady pace instead of letting vanilla content get srale boring and releasing new stuff when momentum is gone. If this turns out to be a flop i doubt anet would keep eating a dead horse.

E: i honestly prefer smaller more experimental content updates as opposed to large sweeping hugemongous updates. Smaller, relatively speaking, updates are quicker to get feedback on to see what sticks and what doesnt. At least with
his new dungeon i have something more to look forward to whenever i decide to get a character to 80.

At least they're trying new stuff. Helluva lot more than other games can claim.

[Ryong]

Everyone's annoyed about new gear tier, not the update itself.

[Arcanum]

What Ryong said. I'm super excited about the new area and the one-time event that will be happening this weekend (I'm hoping we'll get some info about Bubbles, the deep-sea dragon nobody knows anything about, since the Karka sound like some deep-sea shenanigans). Hell, I even like the idea of infusions, of having an alternative to the standard upgrade gems/runes. But adding a gear tier is something A-Net never did in the original GW, and was part of the charm. If ascended gear had the same stats as an exotic (even with the built in upgrade component) then it wouldn't be that big of a deal since Infusions are most likely just for the new dungeon (I hope. It will be even more disappointing if Infusions offer extra stat bonuses on top of Agony resist).

On the topic of content though, I'm hoping they keep up the "event every month" thing. We had Halloween, now we have Lost Shore, and next month will be Wintersday. If they have more content planned for January, then we'll have the Canthan New Year in February, another chance for new content in March, and then an Easter event in April. Lots of potential for non-stop monthly events, and it would be pretty damn awesome if they managed to pull that off.

[Grandmaster_Skweeb]

Originally Posted by Arcanum

If ascended gear had the same stats as an exotic (even with the built in upgrade component) then it wouldn't be that big of a deal

The stat differences between ascended and exotic is so negligible it isnt even worth wasting the time and energy getting huffy over, really. We're talking 1 to 3 points difference. At level 80 the diminishing returns on stats makes the gear practically identical for all intents and purposes.

What is known about infusions is there are offense oriented, defensive, and omni. Offense goes to offense, defense to defense and omni swings either way.

[synkr0nized]

Originally Posted by Grandmaster_Skweeb

The stat differences between ascended and exotic is so negligible it isnt even worth wasting the time and energy getting huffy over, really. We're talking 1 to 3 points difference. At level 80 the diminishing returns on stats makes the gear practically identical for all intents and purposes.

We've only been shown a ring. Considering accessories usually have smaller stats numbers than main armor pieces, it's reasonable to assume there will be more of a difference comparing a chest piece to a chest piece, and there definitely will be a gap between weapons of both tiers.

Additionally, the difference is similar to the jump from rare to exotics that exists already. So, yeah, not so negligible.

But to reiterate myself, that alone isn't the end of the world, despite my dislike of it. The notion that they are going back on their claims, as seen in various quotes from the dev team about not doing what they are in fact doing with this tier introduction, is frustrating. To have the GW1 idea about gear be your foundation and then to brush it aside with this ascended gear idea is troubling. What starts as a seemingly-small stat boost can easily get out of hand, especially if this is just the first tier update.


Regardless, fighting a bunch of sea monsters in an ever-changing dungeon to get high-end loot may be cool, provided the dungeon mobs and mechanics aren't terrible.

[Arcanum]

Originally Posted by Grandmaster_Skweeb

What is known about infusions is there are offense oriented, defensive, and omni. Offense goes to offense, defense to defense and omni swings either way.

Yes, I know this, but "Offense" could be anything from +X Power to +X Whatever Vs Thing That Lives In Fractals of the Mists to %Chance to Make A Magic Hammer Uppercut an Enemy. Likewise defense could be +Agony Resist, +Stats, or +Damage reduction VS Thing That Lives In Fractals of the Mists.

I'm hoping infusions are not bonuses to Power or Toughness or other stats, because adding those bonuses on top of the built in bonuses makes it an even bigger betrayal of one of their fundamental design pillars.

e-

Originally Posted by synkr0nized

Regardless, fighting a bunch of sea monsters in an ever-changing dungeon to get high-end loot may be cool, provided the dungeon mobs and mechanics aren't terrible.

On that note, I'm excited to see what the "every other level" encounters are. The ones that are "similar to The Shatter or Claw of Jormag."

[synkr0nized]

It made me think of Survival mode in Samurai Warriors, wherein you are advancing up levels in an infinite castle. Sure, eventually the floors are more or less the same, but it's somewhat randomly generated. And on certain numbered floors there are chances for special events.


I hope I can make time to be around for the Friday event. I want to be there when Lion's Arch gets all invaded and shit.
e: Maybe these Karka will rebuild the fountain for us as part of their oppression of the people.

[Ryong]

Originally Posted by Grandmaster_Skweeb

The stat differences between ascended and exotic is so negligible it isnt even worth wasting the time and energy getting huffy over, really. We're talking 1 to 3 points difference. At level 80 the diminishing returns on stats makes the gear practically identical for all intents and purposes.

What is known about infusions is there are offense oriented, defensive, and omni. Offense goes to offense, defense to defense and omni swings either way.

I saw some people freaking out about how that one ring has a lot more magic find and how 7% is an absurd amount of a magic find bonus...

Which is a lot less than most food made with Cooking gives you.

[Revising Ocelot]

Ascended doesn't bother me. Neither do exotics. I only have two or three rares at level 80, no point fussing over the unattainable.