Please sell me on HoT

[Farohna.6247]

I see OP already has made up their mind, so no further point to this thread.  Cheers and good luck!

[AliamRationem.5172]

46 minutes ago, Vulture.9351 said:

Hearing a lot of "git gud", sucking up to anet, and ignoring my issues, but not a lot of "No, Vulture, it isn't a hellscape that we only hang around in because we kinda have to."

 

 

You sound like you've made up your mind. How about you go try some nice mobile games? 

[Gibson.4036]

15 minutes ago, Vulture.9351 said:

Gibson was who I meant when I said I'm being ignored. Ok, guess I'll reply.

 

My apologies. I wasn't ignoring you, but I've clearly greatly misunderstood what you were looking for with this thread.

All the best.

 

[Vulture.9351]

12 minutes ago, Sobx.1758 said:

Plenty of people told you it's nothing, but you'll repeat whatever you want anyways. Just another proof how pointless this thread was. Clearly, it's not like you actually wanted to be convinced about anything here, so good luck playing whatever you want to.

NO, THEY'VE HAVEN'T. Having to take special measures, use certain builds, get phat gear, rely on groups to carry you, and do PoF just to cope with it, all for OPEN kittenING WORLD CONTENT isn't kittening "nothing"!

 

All I'm hearing is I'm right to be worried!

 

I am a filthy mother kittening casual which is why I don't inflict myself on groups, I know I'm not raid and fractal material but at least leave me the goddamn story and wandering around! 🤬😭

Edited May 27, 2022 by Vulture.9351

[Sobx.1758]

20 minutes ago, Vulture.9351 said:

NO, THEY'VE HAVEN'T. Having to take special measures, use certain builds, get phat gear, rely on groups to carry you, and do PoF just to cope with it, all for OPEN kittenING WORLD CONTENT isn't kittening "nothing"!

You don't need to take special measure or use certain builds/phat gear or rely on groups to carry you though? You just came here with a set idea already and when people offered you easy workarounds or advice on how to improve, you reverted into "WOAH PEOPLE TELL ME TO GIT GUT OR RELY ON GROUPS". Like... again, what exactly did you want to get from this thread? 🤨 Don't want to play the game? Then don't. Want to play the story? Then go play the story, that's all it is.

Ah and by far you don't need pof content, it's just that mounts are mounts, so it's a rather obvious boost to mobility. Someone gives you a hint how you can overally improve your gameplay and what you're instantly doing is pretend that the tip you got is somehow obligatory to do the content. It's not even close to being that.

Edited May 27, 2022 by Sobx.1758

[Randulf.7614]

Dry top does not have verticality. What HoT brings are maps almost as high as they are wide, with updrafts and gliding to get you place to place. Finding your way round takes patience 

Most of the negativity comes from the culture shock from core to HoT. If PoF came first, there would be less complaints, although i found Awakened to be far more frustrating than anything in HoT. The hero points will mostly need groups which will frustrate you and maps are utterly different to anything that came before.

If exploring maze like maps isn’t your thing or you want more solo orientated content, HoT is prob not for you. It is still a great expac though, it’s just divisive despite its popularity. I loved it - except the story which was far too short

I think the chances are you prob won’t like it, but I’d say you should at least experience it for yourself. There’s no right answer here and there is a lot of hyperbole surrounding HoT, especially since some of the later seasons are just as hard or harder (some of the season 4 instances and areas)

Edited May 27, 2022 by Randulf.7614

[god fragment.5716]

7 minutes ago, Vulture.9351 said:

All I'm hearing is I'm right to be worried!

 

Yes, you are. Now you can either stop playing the game or try HoT and see if your worries are justified.

[Batel.9206]

I played HoT purely for the story. That was before I really understood my class (thief) or even game mechanics as a whole, because I was allowed to breeze through everything else until that point, playing the story in order. I didn't have mounts when I went into HoT. And yes, at first it was frustrating - so then I sat down and learned my class, really well, and I did it just by fighting HoT mobs in the open world until I really, really got it. Didn't take long, actually. Am I good enough to take on group events and HP challenges solo? Nope, and nor do I really want to be - I'm comfortable enough with my class to play the story, not die in open world, put up a good fight against mobs, and, as Gibson said, have the satisfaction of saying, "Yeah, I got this."

You will, too. But you'll never know if you'll like it until you try it. Will it be a learning curve? Sure. Will it be difficult? Yeah. Is it utterly impossible for casual players and forces you to rely on a group just to survive? Not in the slightest.

What do you have to lose?

[Vulture.9351]

Ok, let's try a different tack.

I have a few 80s and a bunch of experience scrolls from birthdays because my account is actually quite old. Elementalist is too much work, Revenant doesn't do it for me, I'm not a fan of engineer kits, I like being solo when I can, and as you can probably guess I'm not great a complex rotations. Other that that, recommend me some classes. Believe it or not, I am open to suggestions.

EDIT: I'm not 100% against ranged but I do prefer melee

Edited May 27, 2022 by Vulture.9351

[Randulf.7614]

Engineer when made into a scrapper I found brilliant in hot, but that’s for later if you enjoy it

Warrior I main and will keep you alive without too much build worry. It’s just a bit dull until you get berserker. It works just fine as a core casual class in hot . Ranger will allow you to stay away from mobs so that’s another option and again not too much build worry. 
Necro might be your best bet though. Minions, extra health and the later option of a strong elite spec.

Warrior, ranger or necro

Edited May 27, 2022 by Randulf.7614

[Sobx.1758]

14 minutes ago, Vulture.9351 said:

Ok, let's try a different tack.

I have a few 80s and a bunch of experience scrolls from birthdays because my account is actually quite old. Elementalist is too much work, Revenant doesn't do it for me, I'm not a fan of engineer kits, and as you can probably guess I'm not great a complex rotations. Other that that, recommend me some classes. Believe it or not, I am open to suggestions.

Probably necro and ranger.

Also maybe something from here https://metabattle.com/wiki/Open_World#Low-Intensity_Builds

Edited May 27, 2022 by Sobx.1758

[Gibson.4036]

12 minutes ago, Vulture.9351 said:

Ok, let's try a different tack.

I have a few 80s and a bunch of experience scrolls from birthdays because my account is actually quite old. Elementalist is too much work, Revenant doesn't do it for me, I'm not a fan of engineer kits, I like being solo when I can, and as you can probably guess I'm not great a complex rotations. Other that that, recommend me some classes. Believe it or not, I am open to suggestions.

My first play through was on a staff Daredevil. Rotation is very simple. Lots of cleave so no problem with pocket raptors. Lots of mobility to get out of ground AoEs. Can spam blind, and even your dodges do damage. Has access to stealth as well.

[Vulture.9351]

Ok, looks like I'll probably take my MM Reaper.

What's your opinion on Virtuoso?

23 minutes ago, Randulf.7614 said:

Engineer when made into a scrapper I found brilliant in hot, but that’s for later if you enjoy it

Warrior I main and will keep you alive without too much build worry. It’s just a bit dull until you get berserker. It works just fine as a core casual class in hot . Ranger will allow you to stay away from mobs so that’s another option and again not too much build worry. 
Necro might be your best bet though. Minions, extra health and the later option of a strong elite spec.

Warrior, ranger or necro

Doesn't Scrapper still have to use kits? I mean as much work as my mech does all the metabattle builds still demand flamethrower/grenades/bombs.

and isn't Spellbreaker sturdier than Berserker?

[AgentMoore.9453]

49 minutes ago, Vulture.9351 said:

I am a filthy casual

Hello, me too, nice to meet you.

7 minutes ago, Vulture.9351 said:

I am open to suggestions.

My suggestion is to play through HoT at least once. I like using my core Ranger for this, since the pet is useful for sending ahead to draw aggro off of me and pick me up whenever I goof and get killed by a mushroom with legs (they have those there). This has the added benefit of luring enemies away from loot chests so I can roll up and take them while no one's looking.

It's my favorite expansion by far for the following reasons:
- It's all about the salad people. I love the salad people.
- Gliding: Worth it purely for the liberty of motion you get from it since once it's leveled up you can then glide almost anywhere in the game on any of your characters; great for those times when you want to jump off a cliff and break your fall by gliding right before you land, it genuinely feels good and can sometimes be an even better way to maneuver than using a mount.
- Pretty, Well-Populated Maps: As others have said, HoT maps get a lot of traffic because they're so engaging and lucrative. This means you can usually get help if you call out for it, see most events succeed without trouble, and almost guarantee loot items you might need for collections you're working on. Also, if you like nooks and crannies and places to stop and hang out for a second, HoT does have a lot of these. Even without mounts, you'll start noticing natural steps built into the environment from shelf mushrooms or well-placed stones and these almost always lead to somewhere nice or to a hidden loot chest; this rewards exploration, which is great because I love to sniff around maps and climb on things even when there isn't treasure.
- Fun Events: These can usually be jumped into with other players without having to join a squad or party. Octovine in Auric Basin is a great example of this, many memes to be had from this meta as well.
- Friendly People: 'I don't always socialize, but when I do...' the people in HoT maps are generally fun to talk to. It's one of the few places in the game where I turn map chat on, because more often than not I meet a lot of friendly and funny people while I'm running around doing my thing. People frequently call out events needed for collections, answer questions, and help each other out with hero points and other objectives. Must be something in the air.
- Epic boss battle in Dragon's Stand: This one usually does require paying attention to what squads are doing or saying in map chat since some things have to be done in tandem, but the final battle is extremely cinematic and the best player vs Giant Thing fight in the entire game (imo).
- Well-designed rewards: Verdant Brink is a great example of this. As you do events, you get participation credit toward an overall mapwide reward that's given at the end of each day/night cycle. So not only do you get the normal loot and treats from exploring, gathering, and doing events, but you also passively work toward further rewards as other people help bump the map's progress bar along.
- Valuable loot with a sustained market: Flax and linseed oil in particular are always worth gathering/crafting/selling for passive income, sometimes cassava as well. Sometimes I'll go to HoT maps and just run around aimlessly gathering resources and completing the odd event or two when I have a headache or when I'm not feeling very social. It's a good way to make a bit of passive income in an environment that's pleasant to the eye (and to the wallet). Drizzlewood Coast is another good map for times like this, but you won't encounter that until Living World Season 5 if you're doing things in order.

What to expect when you start:
- Death: You've already read that enemies behave in more complex ways in HoT - this is true and until you get a feel for what skills they have, they'll probably nuke you a couple of times. However, once you've faced these mobs a time or two, you'll start noticing which of your skills is most effective against them and either learn to beat them down or how best to avoid them (I like to make a minigame out of timing my dodge rolls to evade past groups of things I'm not interested in fighting). In the end, you'll find getting around HoT to be fairly easy as you can largely avoid mobs or run away from fights you're not interested in having (PoF is worse about this, but that's a thread for another day).
- Pocket Raptors: My beloved. You'll probably hate these since they swarm and take big bites out of your HP (and can even leap vertically in order to do so), but like other mobs, you'll start to get very efficient at quickly wiping them out at which point you'll start grinning whenever you see a big group of these free XP packets.
- Getting Lost: People hated Tangled Depths when it first came out, and some of them still hate it today. The good news is that while your first run or two through a HoT map may seem a bit daunting, you'll automatically start picking up routes and remembering shortcuts until suddenly you're moving effortlessly through these maps. It may not seem like a jungle full of trees would have good landmarks, but it's designed in such a way that it actually does. If you've mastered gliding, exploring these places starts to feel really natural and fluid.

So, now that you've read my entire jungle book, go on, Vulture. Do the thing.

[Randulf.7614]

25 minutes ago, Vulture.9351 said:

Ok, looks like I'll probably take my MM Reaper.

What's your opinion on Virtuoso?

Doesn't Scrapper still have to use kits? I mean as much work as my mech does all the metabattle builds still demand flamethrower/grenades/bombs.

and isn't Spellbreaker sturdier than Berserker?

I went with the obviously incorrect assumption you haven’t unlocked any elites so started with core suggestions. 
 

Otherwise to answer your questiosn

-   Berserker remains sturdy enough whilst doing more damage. Most HoT mobs are high damage, but low health. Berserker can wipe through things quickly. Mine does anyway. He uses sword/torch and bow. Berserker Bow is great, I’m sure any melee weapon will work just fine alongside it.

- Haven’t played virtuoso

- My scrapper uses hammer and then drones to clear conditions, heal or provide barriers. I don’t use any kits as I dont like them either. I forget what stats he has, but he is pretty tanky whilst still doing enough damage from hammer to wipe through most hot mobs.

- Reaper is a superb option. I use a great sword wielding power/condition hybrid but no minions. My reaper cleaves through HoT mobs like hot butter. Frankly any set up of reaper will work.

- I concur with the poster who said Daredevil. I use one with staff and double pistols. He bounces around like Yoda and dodging most hits and follows up with some burst attacks. Great for HoT

For reference I mostly solo, but I will jump into a fight where others are around. Might follow a tag. I never use metabattle and all my builds are thrown together to suit how I play. They would likely be scorned upon by other players and the above examples aren’t even my main characters (which include a mace shield spellbreaker in soldiers armour which I love playing despite its obvious flaws). I have no issues playing in HoT.

Edited May 27, 2022 by Randulf.7614

[captrowdy.9561]

I actuallyed played the expansion in order so didn’t get my skyscale till later. It still wasn’t that bad. You can get the springer with out spoilers. 

[Tukaram.8256]

My main 2 avatars are necro/minion master and ranger pet/longbow.  When HoT came out at first I hated it. Later, after the nerfs, I tried it again - still hated it.  Glad some people enjoy it, I have never finished it and no longer have any interest in those maps. I have only been to Silverwastes and Verdant Brink.  I used the fishing portal in the new specialty area and opened Dragon... something.  Did not care for it either. 

Other than the gliders, they could delete the entire expansion and I would miss nothing.

[Vulture.9351]

10 minutes ago, captrowdy.9561 said:

I actuallyed played the expansion in order so didn’t get my skyscale till later. It still wasn’t that bad. You can get the springer with out spoilers. 

Problem with that is the Springer costs 50 Trade Contracts which come from drops so yeah you kinda can't.

Anyone know how far into EoD I have to go to get access to New Kaineng City? Supposedly Lieutenant Zhao there will just give you one if you don't already have one so if it's quick I can just Esc, Esc, Esc, Esc on the old alt I don't play like I did for the Raptor.

[Gibson.4036]

20 minutes ago, Vulture.9351 said:

Problem with that is the Springer costs 50 Trade Contracts which come from drops so yeah you kinda can't.

Anyone know how far into EoD I have to go to get access to New Kaineng City? Supposedly Lieutenant Zhao there will just give you one if you don't already have one so if it's quick I can just Esc, Esc, Esc, Esc on the old alt I don't play like I did for the Raptor.

Trade contracts come from all kinds of things. You get them pretty fast doing most anything in the desert.

Here’s one spoiler free source:

https://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Bleached_Bones

Edited May 28, 2022 by Gibson.4036

[Oriens.5630]

None of the mechanical changes were really all that terrible. They required some new approaches to combat by players. Overall not that big of a deal for me.

 

However, I still avoid those maps like the plague. We've all made it through them so it's certainly possible for you to do the same. This is not a 'git gud' or 'you need to try harder'. My gaming skill level at it's best is moderate. So it is doable.

 

Yet it did almost break me of this game entirely. In fact if PoF hadn't been such a drastic turn away from HoT design I think I would have walked away and never looked back.

 

Two things about this expansion/map were what drove me to nearly quit the game entirely.

 

1. the abysmally created maps. These maps themselves are all a reasonable person would need to never purchase this expac or play it. If I could I would make the horrid maps points 2, 3, 4, and 5 as well. Instead number 2 follows.

2. aggro every 2-3m. The insanity in this kind of design is ... well insane.

 

Fundamentally, anet devs seem to have difficulty differentiating 'challenging' and 'pain in the kitten'.

 

I wish there were better things to say about this expac. It would be great to encourage you to play through the story. Honestly, the overall experience was so bad I just skipped the story for the most part. The only goal for me was to finish the zone.

My one recommendation would be to get the mounts from PoF first. Then go back and do HoT.

Edited May 28, 2022 by Oriens.5630

[AliamRationem.5172]

43 minutes ago, Oriens.5630 said:

None of the mechanical changes were really all that terrible. They required some new approaches to combat by players. Overall not that big of a deal for me.

 

However, I still avoid those maps like the plague. We've all made it through them so it's certainly possible for you to do the same. This is not a 'git gud' or 'you need to try harder'. My gaming skill level at it's best is moderate. So it is doable.

 

Yet it did almost break me of this game entirely. In fact if PoF hadn't been such a drastic turn away from HoT design I think I would have walked away and never looked back.

 

Two things about this expansion/map were what drove me to nearly quit the game entirely.

 

1. the abysmally created maps. These maps themselves are all a reasonable person would need to never purchase this expac or play it. If I could I would make the horrid maps points 2, 3, 4, and 5 as well. Instead number 2 follows.

2. aggro every 2-3m. The insanity in this kind of design is ... well insane.

 

Fundamentally, anet devs seem to have difficulty differentiating 'challenging' and 'pain in the kitten'.

 

I wish there were better things to say about this expac. It would be great to encourage you to play through the story. Honestly, it was so bad I just skipped the story for the most part. The only goal for me was to finish it.

My one recommendation would be to get the mounts from PoF first. Then go back and do HoT.

I guess you didn't notice that PoF has dramatically longer aggro range as well as higher mob density in most areas than HoT does.

[Thon.3780]

HoT is most player have to buy. Specially for casual ppl or solo ppl

why?

you can access blood stone fen  when you can get  blood stone Trinket and backpack. It can reset stat. So player who dont have enough time like me can get instead of spend long time to make one legendary piece.  Let’s think about it 6 pieces legendary or 6 blood stone piece.

 

as for elite , I don’t know what prof you play. But you check with wiki . You may satisfy for ascend weapon free from each profession. It save money to craft a lot.

 

it is value pack for budget and time.

 

[Goettel.4389]

HoT is the best part of GW2 for people who want to play solo... next to a squad of other people who want to play solo : - )

 

[Randulf.7614]

5 hours ago, Vulture.9351 said:

Problem with that is the Springer costs 50 Trade Contracts which come from drops so yeah you kinda can't.

Anyone know how far into EoD I have to go to get access to New Kaineng City? Supposedly Lieutenant Zhao there will just give you one if you don't already have one so if it's quick I can just Esc, Esc, Esc, Esc on the old alt I don't play like I did for the Raptor.

It’s map 2 which you can swim to from map 1, however EoD starts with a lengthy first instance to get to Cantha 

[Tukaram.8256]

3 hours ago, Thon.3780 said:

you can access blood stone fen

I have no idea of this bloodstone fen... but it sounds possibly useful.  I will have to see if the new lounge has a gate to it (lots of gates in the new lounge area)

 

7 hours ago, Vulture.9351 said:

Anyone know how far into EoD I have to go to get access to New Kaineng City? 

As soon as you get your skiff you can scoot right on over.  Look for the stargate in the ocean. 

Edited May 28, 2022 by Tukaram.8256