Build Templates in the Works! YES!

We also have our sights set on a few features that have already been in development for some time. Please understand that these are all works in progress, so details can change between here and the final version, and we don’t have a timeline for the release of any of these. These features will ship when they are ready.

• The rune and sigil salvaging release last year was in anticipation of releasing legendary runes and sigils—the final components of legendary core equipment.
• Over the past few months, astute players have been noticing a trend of updates and improvements to how our skill-slotting system works and have accurately speculated that the long-requested feature of build templates is in the works.
• We’d like to increase the max cooking level from 400 to 500. This crafting profession needs a refresh to make lower-tier foods important to the ecosystem and help reinvigorate various resources throughout the game.
• We’ve mentioned in the past how important world restructuring is to our WvW initiatives, and that hasn’t changed. While the Programming Team is focused on this initiative, the team is also focusing on smaller updates that can temporarily change the game mode, like the No Downed State Week we’ve done in the past. We’re also talking about different types of reward structures for events.
• Swiss tournament support is the next major feature the sPvP team is working on. This feature will be utilized by our structured tournaments moving forward.

Woo Hoo!

This is great. it will allow for a lot of builds for different area's on the fly.

I'm somehow shocked after all this time. I'm looking forward to seeing how they implement it.

Build templates!!!

I'll be in my bunk.

This with Legendary Runes and Sigils. Like holy moly.

I was glad to see that was coming too - of all the features people have asked for over the years, build templates has to have been near the top of the list of most-requested.

@Orion Templar.4589 said:I was glad to see that was coming too - of all the features people have asked for over the years, build templates has to have been near the top of the list of most-requested.

That and mounts.

There's trying to not become like other MMos and then there's not implementing smart and fun features that make MMOs better. I'm glad we got mounts, getting build templates, and that the team is implementing things in general that just makes sense. I like this path of not just avoiding being like other MMOs, but being better than them even when they put in typical MMO features.

As glad as I am that they have plans to put this feature in, something tells me there will be annoying limitations. Specifically, with regards to gear.

I hope they go the FFXIV route where pretty much each job is a self contained inventory independent of your bag that swaps all your gear when you equip the job, but I'm expecting GW2 to require you have the needed gear for the template to exist within your main inventory bag, or worse, doesn't touch your gear at all. I'm also wondering how legendary equipment will work with its swappable features. Would you be able to set the template to swap stats/runes/sigils?

This actually makes me more worried than hyped, tbh.

@Leo G.4501 said:As glad as I am that they have plans to put this feature in, something tells me there will be annoying limitations. Specifically, with regards to gear.

I hope they go the FFXIV route where pretty much each job is a self contained inventory independent of your bag that swaps all your gear when you equip the job, but I'm expecting GW2 to require you have the needed gear for the template to exist within your main inventory bag, or worse, doesn't touch your gear at all. I'm also wondering how legendary equipment will work with its swappable features. Would you be able to set the template to swap stats/runes/sigils?

This actually makes me more worried than hyped, tbh.

yep I hope they address gear like they did in gw1.

Hope it’s with the ability to have looks and colors applied to it

@Stand The Wall.6987 said:

@Leo G.4501 said:As glad as I am that they have plans to put this feature in, something tells me there will be annoying limitations. Specifically, with regards to gear.

I hope they go the FFXIV route where pretty much each job is a self contained inventory independent of your bag that swaps all your gear when you equip the job, but I'm expecting GW2 to require you have the needed gear for the template to exist within your main inventory bag, or worse, doesn't touch your gear at all. I'm also wondering how legendary equipment will work with its swappable features. Would you be able to set the template to swap stats/runes/sigils?

This actually makes me more worried than hyped, tbh.

Gear was only part of PvP build templates in gw1, PvE characters couldn't save gear in builds.

My body is ready. Is yours?

Keep in mind that this is the 'Future' category, which is after the 'next few months' category, so my guess is at best we may possibly see some of these changes implemented by the end of the calendar year. Players projecting unrealistic expectations onto sketches of long term plans can only serve to discourage this type of communication continuing as the game moves forward . . .

Like shared bag slots.... only available from the gem store as upgrades, but not account bound.

@Tanner Blackfeather.6509 said:Gear was only part of PvP build templates in gw1, PvE characters couldn't save gear in builds.ok. I hope they allow gear templates along with build templates.

@Stand The Wall.6987 said:ok. I hope they allow gear templates along with build templates.

I assume that's why it hasn't been done yet. There's a lot of small implementation questions when gear is concerned. Do they add a separate gear locker? Per character or account-wide? What if gear pieces are missing, how would those exceptions be handled? How do to swapping without making gear vanish? Do they offer some slots for free and others for gems?They probably want to get a QoL feature like this just right before turning it loose.

I wonder if build templates are going to include changing gear and, if it does, how would that work. Would the unequipped items go to the first empty slot in your inventory (so we would have to organize it whenever we changed templates)? Would the items be switched, so, say you are holding a sword and you change to a template using a scepter - the sword would go to the inventory slot where the scepter previously was?

This is a very small thing, but it's an annoyance I have with some build template systems in other games. I hope that, whenever ArenaNet manages to add this feature, it will come with enough Quality of Life adjustements to make using the build templates a very smooth experience.

@Rauderi.8706 said:

@Stand The Wall.6987 said:ok. I hope they allow gear templates along with build templates.

I don't know, I don't care, just make it happen cuz I want it :>

@Rauderi.8706 said:

@"Stand The Wall.6987" said:ok. I hope they allow gear templates along with build templates.

If it were me, I'd try to build on the "Lvl 80 Booster", which stores all of your previous gear into a chest, and swaps in the test gear. The build templates can build on this Container system, which places all your gear items into a totally different sub-menu and storage array. The main prerequisite would be retooling the Hero panel UI to decouple from direct references to gear, and have them point to Template containers instead. The container then gets unpacked into the UI, and you manipulate them from there... either adding or removing gear like other menus. You pick which Templates are your active one, and it loads the corresponding gear container for that build. However, a short fall of this is needing separate sets of gear for each slot.

Option B is to separate the gear templates from the Trait/Skill Ttemplates (which is more likely to be what happens), and manipulate them individually. But you still have the problem of trying to recycle one piece of gear across multiple template.

Which is brings us to Option C....... remove the active gear (and spare gear) from inventory entirely, and reference them as meta data in the build template. Effectively putting all your gear into a Container as proof of ownership, and being able to pull them up as an extension of the UI.

But ultimately what we're gonna get is going to be determined by how successful they are at tearing out the entire equipment UI and all the code dependencies thats kept them from trying all these years. Remember that Outfits only function they way they do, because its completely bypassing the armor/gear system, and act more like combat tonics.

@starlinvf.1358 said:

@Rauderi.8706 said:

@"Stand The Wall.6987" said:ok. I hope they allow gear templates along with build templates.

Anet seems to be willing to stop inventory wars so I guess we get option C aka The Armory. All ur weapons land into the armory

At least now I can switch my build around without fear that I'll forget what I had before

@Okami Amaterasu.9237 said:

• Over the past few months, astute players have been noticing a trend of updates and improvements to how our skill-slotting system works and have accurately speculated that the
  long-requested feature of build templates is in the works.

This is very good news.!!

The only reason I have duplicate classes is because it's a hastle to swap traits and gear. A sad day when templates come in to make wasted character slots obsolete.

A waste of birthday gifts to delete, and a waste of gems to buy more slots.

@"Klipso.8653" said:The only reason I have duplicate classes is because it's a hastle to swap traits and gear. A sad day when templates come in to make wasted character slots obsolete.

A waste of birthday gifts to delete, and a waste of gems to buy more slots.

It's not a waste if you find that rush to make a new character all over again! I've had to delete several ones I had grown fond of, but it makes me appreciate the ones I have made in their place and kept to this day. <3

And if that's how you choose to view it, then yes this is all a "waste" of our time/money but I like making the most of the things I love and enjoy in my free time because it IS free, non-productive time. All in the attitude, you know? =)

It would be great if they gave us at least 3 build slots per character and monetize with transmutation charges by removing cosmetics from armor and base it on the builds. A lot more looks your can make per character and a transmute sink that encourages players to buy them or play competitive modes.