How Did You All Started Doing Fractals?

[kylo.4092]

We are sure that everybody started from somewhere in this fractal system. Tier-1 absolutely. I wonder how did you experienced the lfg while searching for the scale. As a newbie in fractals, it takes time (or is it just me?). Sometimes trying to get in parties and ask people if they are ok with newbies because even if I watch videos for guidence to do that fractal correctly, of course because it is first time I can’t play like experienced player. I’m trying to memorize everything I watched from videos. Some of the people are kind enough to tell that they don’t accept newbies, some of them really helpful and some of them are showing disrespectul behaviors. It takes time to find “all welcome” parties. How it all started and went all the way to the higher tiers for you?

[Cragga the Eighty Third.60]

A guild member who was doing fractals called out for any newbies who wanted to join. I did several of my first fractals with this guildie. Without that, I'm not sure I ever would have tried them.

Sometimes I see an LFG that says 'Help a Fractal Newbie' and I will sometimes join to help out. So if you are getting started, don't be afraid to start your own LFG asking for assistance. Or ask in your guild for experienced members who can help you get started.

(re 'higher tiers' I never really felt it was worth the bother, I only do a little Tier 1 and 2.)

[Cyninja.2954]

I started fractals back during vanilla about 2 weeks after they were introduced.

There was no tier system back then, agony damage was lethal so dodging all attacks on higher levels was mandatory (boss attacks were different and there was no agony damage on boss arena entry), fractal level would only increase when playing exactly the fractal level you were on and it was character related and not account.

As such I've played through all iterations of the fractal system. The current version in a lot better and forgiving compared to the past.

I still enjoy running fractals more with guild mates and voice comms over PUGs but have done my share of PUGing of fractals.

[kylo.4092]

I should do that like you said. It worths trying. Today wanted to do that but I haven’t opened the today’s daily scales but maybe I don’t need to start from anywherelse than first scale. Thanks for sharing. Also guild makes sense if I can get into one. -

[Wolfb.7025]

Doing end game content is something I wanted to do but I was still a noobie and felt unprepared to doing so. My first guild used to do Fractals T1 each monday to teach new players so I joined even if I didn't know what fractals were, it was Mai Trin boss fractal, they explained to me how mechanics worked in that battle and after we finished they told me I did pretty good to be my first time, so that encouraged me to keep learning.

I just got to say, T1 is very forgivable even if you dont know mechanics and if you fight decently you can clear them with PUGs, the only thing you have to do is follow the rest of the party, tell them if it's your first time doing that fractal, generally fractals players are nice and they will tell you what to do, I rarely encountered toxic players until T3 where the difficulty curve just bends waaaay up.

Maybe in a future I will offer myself to help new players overcome their fears of doing Fractals, and teach them about each fractal mechanics, sadly I don't have enough time right now for that :(

[Memoko.5670]

Don't be afraid to tell your group you're new to the fractal.Most times there will be someone nice enough to tell you the mechanics (as long as you don't pop into a LFG group asking for experienced players). But, if you're in a guild, try asking them first.I used to watch DEKeyz's ele fractal guides when I first started out but now fractals has changed from then.

[Turkeyspit.3965]

Was very lucky and have a great guild who walked me through it, step by step, making sure I got all the achievements.

[Danikat.8537]

Is it weird that I can't remember? I remember a lot of stuff I've done in this game, especially my first time doing things, but I can't remember when or how I first did Fractals. I suspect it was because I needed to do it for an item or an achievement, and I'm fairly certain my first few times were with guild groups.

I don't do Fractals very often, so it's usually either my first time doing that Fractal or it's been so long I can't remember it well. I'll always ask my guilds if they can help me, and if not or if we can't get a full group I'll put a message in the LFG tool. I always say "everyone welcome" and if it's my first time I'll say that too. Sometimes I get other people who are new to it, sometimes I get one or more people who wants to show me how to do it, but I've never had someone joining the group who was angry at me for not knowing what to do.

I think it's also helpful to tell people if you want to do anything special in addition to just completing the Fractal. For example if you're trying to get an achievement and need to stay out of a fight, or get hit with an attack, or stay after the chest appears it's good for your group to know that so they can help you. Or at least so they don't mess it up.

[Dante.1763]

I got snagged one night for fractals, not even kidding, a group of my guildies sent an invite to me and i accepted not realizing what it was for. When i asked they told me to get Lions Arch cause i was "gonna learn something new".

[rdfaye.4368]

My guild runs fractal groups off and on, do I always run with them.

[VanWilder.6923]

@"kylo.4092" said:How it all started and went all the way to the higher tiers for you?

Here is how I started:

I looked up the LFG windows, rolled down to Fractal & Dungeons, Selected Tier 1 Fractal, found many groups under this category, then I cliked "Join Group".

I do the same steps (changed the tiers when able to, of course) everyday until reached 100 and have not stopped yet.

[Illconceived Was Na.9781]

I'm not a fan of joining random groups. My friend always says, "I love PUGs, because anything can happen." And I always reply, "and I don't, because it usually does."

Some time after fractals was introduced, I decided that the only way I was going to manage was to start my own group. And I got an assortment of people who would never try something like this on their own. Using mostly text only, I'd explain mechanics and slowly built my way through. I got to personal level 50 just as scale 100 was introduced, so we had to start all over again. And, of course, humans being humans, the players involved changed over time. The strategy remained the same: invite, drag, cajole, kidnap anyone remotely interested → explain how things work as we went → build up to L100.(For the last few levels, I got a friend to open L100 and we worked on Mai Trin to build everyone else to 100.)

---

That would only work to about L50-75 today. Some of the fractals have more complex mechanics and the instabilities make things tougher for the unprepared. That means knowing mechanics and dishing out enough (group) DPS matters a lot more for T4 than it used to. So while "anyone" can still manage to succeed, it's a lot more frustrating unless everyone shares an interest in a smooth run. A truly casual run can take 3-6 times longer, which hardly feels casual, while a well-prepared team can stroll through all but a few fracts.

So in terms of trying to repeat my experience, I think you can still bootstrap your way to L25 by grabbing everyone you know and twisting their arm. You can learn by watching vids and then teaching your buddies. Of that group, most can grow with you to L50. Tier 3, though, is probably the hardest tier for most: two instabilities plus tougher fights/mechanics. That's when people need to decide if they are serious about fractals or not.

By then, people should be comfortable in melee range, know how to avoid social awkwardness, when to dodge (and when not to), when to trust a mesmer or healer (and when not to), and the more common ways of making things quicker. It's also when it's worth looking for ways to improve your damage output, decrease the incoming damage.

[Wolfb.7025]

@"Dante.1763" said:I got snagged one night for fractals, not even kidding, a group of my guildies sent an invite to me and i accepted not realizing what it was for. When i asked they told me to get Lions Arch cause i was "gonna learn something new".That's quite charming I must say.

[Dante.1763]

@Wolfb.7025 said:

@"Dante.1763" said:I got snagged one night for fractals, not even kidding, a group of my guildies sent an invite to me and i accepted not realizing what it was for. When i asked they told me to get Lions Arch cause i was "gonna learn something new".That's quite charming I must say.

it was, and it worked, only fractals i dont do really are CM, but i do t4s everyday xD

[ShadowDove.8329]

I think my friend asked me for help with a fractal (she was completing a collection for a legy) and voilà, I got hauled in and got my ass handed to me. Of course, running fractals with just 2 people isn't the best idea either xD

I think there are a number of guilds who run fractals frequently/daily, and are more than happy to explain the mechanics to anyone new. If you're on EU, my guild Crimson Blooded Defenders does run fractals often (almost daily), and my guild leader is always happy to teach the mechanics to anyone new to it :)

[BRNBRITO.9624]

Got into fractals when i saw an LFG saying 'Fractal teaching, newbies welcome' or something like that, got to T3 after a few days and been doing T4's/CM's ever since, tho i see a lot of guilds that do teach both fractals and raids. On LFG might be a bit harder to find.Don't be afraid to say you're new, at least on T1/T2 most people are learning/progressing(even on T4 tbh), i'd really recommend a build that is 'helpful' to the team though, some people might have fun playing a Ranger with bear pet autoattacking with bow from 1.5k range but it makes it a lot harder when you're not doing any damage/cc and making the boss move non-stop.

[Lucius.2140]

Tried to do one sleepy today and failed, to be fair havent done them in a while.I started in the best patch we would ever had, the one that introduced them and seemed to give GW2 instance content a bright future, in november 2012 when gw2 was a shining new game.

To be fair the system was really starting at that time, our guard didnt have ar until level 26. But was absolutly great to have the new content and the race to get to the higher fractals.

[Delvean.4036]

I just hit 80 a few days ago. Map exploration and story aren't really my thing, so I'd been pushing to 80 to try small group stuff like fractals. Once I hit 80, I read a 5 minute guide that said to have exotic gear. I checked the trading post and found that exotics would wipe out my small stash of gold, so instead i just upgraded my gear to rares.

After that, and after figuring out where the LFG panel was at, I clicked join one of the groups listed. I stated I was new to this, and no one kicked me out. I just followed the others and did my best not to die (which I've done plenty). I've repeated this maybe 15 times now, and haven't been kicked from a group yet. Some groups there's been someone who has explained mechanics, but quite often I just follow along and learn the mechanics through experience. A few groups have fallen apart, but my experience so far has been very positive. T1 fractals seem to be very forgiving in that all 5 people don't need to be experts in order to succeed.

[Pridedemon.3041]

@Cyninja.2954 said:I started fractals back during vanilla about 2 weeks after they were introduced.

There was no tier system back then, agony damage was lethal so dodging all attacks on higher levels was mandatory (boss attacks were different and there was no agony damage on boss arena entry), fractal level would only increase when playing exactly the fractal level you were on and it was character related and not account.

As such I've played through all iterations of the fractal system. The current version in a lot better and forgiving compared to the past.

I still enjoy running fractals more with guild mates and voice comms over PUGs but have done my share of PUGing of fractals.

Except the jade maw which was the only boss fractal and inflicted un-avoidable agony. I think 55 was the max AR u could get back then and with it you could do upto lvl 49 fractal without getting high agony damage. This was the hardcap for most ppl however there was no actual limit how high you could go in fractals but realistically it was impossible to go significantly higher. Ppl used different tricks to survive atleast 1 guy in solid ocean who could rez the others.Ah the good old days. Now fractals are too easy and convenient as u can do 1 at a time and still earn chests.

[Cyninja.2954]

@Pridedemon.3041 said:

@"Cyninja.2954" said:I started fractals back during vanilla about 2 weeks after they were introduced.

There was no tier system back then, agony damage was lethal so dodging all attacks on higher levels was mandatory (boss attacks were different and there was no agony damage on boss arena entry), fractal level would only increase when playing exactly the fractal level you were on and it was character related and not account.

As such I've played through all iterations of the fractal system. The current version in a lot better and forgiving compared to the past.

I still enjoy running fractals more with guild mates and voice comms over PUGs but have done my share of PUGing of fractals.

Except the jade maw which was the only boss fractal and inflicted un-avoidable agony. I think 55 was the max AR u could get back then and with it you could do upto lvl 49 fractal without getting high agony damage. This was the hardcap for most ppl however there was no actual limit how high you could go in fractals but realistically it was impossible to go significantly higher. Ppl used different tricks to survive atleast 1 guy in solid ocean who could rez the others.Ah the good old days. Now fractals are too easy and convenient as u can do 1 at a time and still earn chests.

Yes, but you could get past Jade Maw since resurrection orbs and ranger pets could let you get past the agony barrier (as well as multiple other bugs). Or simply not do fractals which ended on a boss (after they changed the scaling to work off of higher level fractals too).

4 Elementalists+1 guardian was the meta back then (for progression into insane fractal levels, not normal fractals) and people would spend hours on fractals without rewards (no ascended chests and such) only to see how far they could get.

Only video I could find fast is this one:

Uploaded 2013, Volcanic fractal level 70. Remember back then scaling was simply a numeric increase of stats on the enemies and no new mechanics.

[AliamRationem.5172]

@kylo.4092 said:We are sure that everybody started from somewhere in this fractal system. Tier-1 absolutely. I wonder how did you experienced the lfg while searching for the scale. As a newbie in fractals, it takes time (or is it just me?). Sometimes trying to get in parties and ask people if they are ok with newbies because even if I watch videos for guidence to do that fractal correctly, of course because it is first time I can’t play like experienced player. I’m trying to memorize everything I watched from videos. Some of the people are kind enough to tell that they don’t accept newbies, some of them really helpful and some of them are showing disrespectul behaviors. It takes time to find “all welcome” parties. How it all started and went all the way to the higher tiers for you?

I'd list in LFG for T1 and include something indicating new players are welcome. Most experienced players don't find t1 challenging enough to worry about the performance of other players in their group. In truth, a single experienced player should be able to carry a group of new players through most fractals as far as clearing the trash and killing the bosses goes. And honestly, if you're going to get upset at other players for poor performance, what the heck are you doing in T1 anyway, right?

[phs.6089]

@VanWilder.6923 said:

@"kylo.4092" said:How it all started and went all the way to the higher tiers for you?

Here is how I started:

I looked up the LFG windows, rolled down to Fractal & Dungeons, Selected Tier 1 Fractal, found many groups under this category, then I cliked "Join Group".

I do the same steps (changed the tiers when able to, of course) everyday until reached 100 and have not stopped yet.

This. But before i did it, i googled fractals gw2 and watched old videos, a king guild made about boss mechs

[Clyan.1593]

started way back when it released. Hell, all I wanted is the fractal sword and I played fractals EVERY DAY. Eventually after almost a year of farming and no results I had around 5000 fractal relics and suddenly they released the new format for fractals. Man I was finally free from it. However, playing so many fractals really made me a better player.

[Silverstar.7415]

I've pretty much only ever used the LFG tool. I always just join and then say that it's my first time on a fractal (if it is), and ask if that's ok. No one has ever had a problem with it. I've had one or two people get a bit frustrated if I don't pick up a mechanic quickly enough (according to them), but never been kicked. And with a lot of fractals, you can figure out the mechanics as you go along - you don't particularly need any explanations.

Also, I've sometimes put up a LFG myself, that says something like "xxx fractal, first timer", and those groups have typically filled up super quickly with either other first timers, so we've figured it out together, or people happy to help teach you, and they've been kind and patient.

I may have been very lucky, but that's been my experience. I still rarely do fractals, just because they're not my preferred gaming style (I like to just wander and explore mostly, rather than work in organised groups), but I'm confident enough to jump in now when I need to for whatever reason.