well- im returning for the next xpac after 5 years away

[punahou.3986]

do i need to catch up with living world stuff? 

does the storyline lead to the expac so its mandatory to have to do the the stoty

or can i jsut wvw/pvp and wait for the expac? 

 

thanks

[Grimlineman.6759]

I recently returned myself so take this with a grain of salt but it’s up to you like most other things.
 

I’m sure you could get by just watching a lore video on you tube. But ls4 has the sky’scale mount your probably going to want to work towards getting that at some point. I haven’t finished icebrood myself yet but it’s been decent in my opinion so far but I have seen nothing in it like the skyscale you would definitely want to have. So you could probably get by without the story but there is like 6 months to go why not? 

[Mungo Zen.9364]

Do both?

Season 4 and Icebrood Saga are both being offered at this time as a weekly ‘return to’ missions which are relatively fast and painless. If you log in during the week you will get the current return to chapter for free. 
 

that said, the story doesn’t really need to be played to understand what is happening as we transition to EoD. The overarching story is pretty evident. Where it will matter is understanding some of the story arcs the characters will go through. How and why characters behave the way they do, their motivations. 

[Genesis.5169]

2 hours ago, punahou.3986 said:

do i need to catch up with living world stuff? 

does the storyline lead to the expac so its mandatory to have to do the the stoty

or can i jsut wvw/pvp and wait for the expac? 

 

thanks

 

You don't have to do anything in this game tbh, this game has no progression just things to do. Everything leads into another achievement scavenger hunt so its really on you if you find achievement grinding or pvp or organized pve fun.

 

[punahou.3986]

gah-- i celestial gear is self craft only-- too much work.  I had lots of wvw points thingies so i bought tons of ascnded jewelry/accessories though.

[Danikat.8537]

22 hours ago, punahou.3986 said:

do i need to catch up with living world stuff? 

does the storyline lead to the expac so its mandatory to have to do the the stoty

or can i jsut wvw/pvp and wait for the expac? 

 

thanks

You don't have to do the living world stuff if you don't want to. All the expansions and living world episodes are stand-alone releases which can be played without having done any of the previous content. But the storyline does continue across releases, so if you want to understand what's going on and who the characters are you'll need to play it (or watch a recap video).

[Farohna.6247]

17 minutes ago, punahou.3986 said:

gah-- i celestial gear is self craft only-- too much work.  I had lots of wvw points thingies so i bought tons of ascnded jewelry/accessories though.

Use exotic celestial gear until you can craft ascended.  Cheaper way to to for now and you can play around with it.  Quite sufficient for most of the game.

[Ashantara.8731]

23 hours ago, punahou.3986 said:

do i need to catch up with living world stuff? 

does the storyline lead to the expac so its mandatory to have to do the the stoty

or can i jsut wvw/pvp and wait for the expac?

 

The story is continuous, e.g. your companions, which have been involved in all previous seasons, some NPCs, and most importantly the Elder Dragons and their story arc, which will come to its conclusion in the upcoming expansion. So there might be references and important connections which you won't get if you haven't played the previous releases.

 

However, especially the latest season, The Icebrood Saga, was a huge letdown (though it started out very promising) - it is an unfinished piece of work, and I am uncertain whether I can recommend it. There has been a lot of subpar writing all across the board, but also a few sparkling gems, so... your choice whether you want to take that rollercoaster or not. 😉

 

Edit: I should mention that the Living World seasons also include unique mounts (the Skyscale and the Rollenbeetle) and items (like ascended trinkets with full stat choice) that are worth getting the whole LW bundle.

 

Edited September 6, 2021 by Ashantara.8731

[punahou.3986]

ya-- ive gotten 9 set of birthday presents and i got he gw logo ascended medallion-- and i havnt done anything yet.