New..ish player looking for some advice.

[Ragana.8914]

New..ish player. Have some questions and would appreciate any advice ya’ll may have.

 

So I bought the game in 2013, got an engineer up to level 25 and went back to WoW, never touching the game again. 

WoW has gotten really stale and this seems like a more casual game to enjoy as an adult without it taking over your life. 

 

The questions I have: 

 

1- I re-rolled to a Ranger and got him to level 17. My main interests are PvP (I heard it’s better than WoW, which is one of the main reasons why I started playing), solo PvE and dungeons (not sure what the five man content is called). 

Will this class meet my needs? I’m okay with healing but I’d prefer to stick with DPS.

 

2- I have like 8 years of birthday boxes. I opened them all up and one of them had a level 50 boost. Should I go ahead and use it or will I miss out on something by not leveling the old fashioned way. 

 

3- I tried watching some YouTube vids and making sense of WvWvW.. so right now it’s server based but soon it will change? How important is my server selection right now? Is there any particular servers that are more suited towards PvP? I want to find a guild so I figured I’d better make sure I’m on a suitable server before going crazy with leveling.

 

4- what should I focus on while leveling? What should I not sell, spend, etc..? 

 

5- is there a way to get more bank slots without buying diamonds with real life money? Or earn diamonds in game? 

 

6- I assume the expansion is a must-buy?

Any other advice ya’ll may have, I’d really appreciate hearing it.

[ZeftheWicked.3076]

One short answer:

 

You can stop clenching your rear end now. This ain't WoW.
Do whatever you wanna.

What is the right way? Forget that stupid question.
What is the wrong way? That is the right one, as the answer list is much shorter.

1. Going WvW before 80. You will be upscaled to lvl 80, but your gear will not magically turn to endgame lvl 80 gear. In this mode your PvE gear is used and so you want to get lvl 80, and at at least an exotic rarity full gear set. And if you read between the lines - yes, sPvP is not like that. lvl 80 from get go, all available skills unlocked, and stats normalized. There is no win via gear or level in pvp, only skill.

2. Going to higher level map than yourself to get extra xp and loot. Doesn't work that way here. Leveling is rather flat, and going to higher level maps with mobs stronger than yourself does not grant huge bonus exp rewards for power leveling. And you wanna avoid the latter - gw2 is about the journey. You want the time it gives to not only enjoy the game but also know your profession and what it can do - and each can do a LOT.

Ps. Your ranger's fine. Any profession can do any role with the sole exception of being dedicated healers. Thief, Mesmer and Warrior cannot be decidated raid healers. Anyone else can, though most of them will be considered off-meta. But still perfectly viable and able to do their job. Support, tanking, dpsing (both condi and power) - any profession can do it in it's own way.

Edited May 17, 2021 by ZeftheWicked.3076

[Infusion.7149]

If you want to play WvW on ranger get PoF and spec soulbeast at 80. Do not be the person on ranger with a pet out.
If you are mainly focusing on PvP/WvW you can spare yourself the PvE grind and PvP for level tomes.

If you are going to hold off on buying expansion I would opt for core warrior or core guardian. Most other core specs are rather poor , whether it is engineer, thief, necromancer, mesmer, or elementalist. Revenant is only playable if you purchase Path of Fire which comes with Heart of Thorns.

For all the things you need to sell or keep check the wiki : wiki.guildwars2.com or use /wiki ingame and shift click the item. (see
https://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Chat_command#Wiki )

Edited May 17, 2021 by Infusion.7149

[Boulder.3589]

1- Any class should have you covered in any game mode but there are some that will excel at certain things, which may/may not get nerfed soon/a lot later/never. Since pvp is your main thing, I recommend trying each class in pvp to help you decide what o main. You can hop into pvp right after tutorial. Everyone in pvp are set to max lvl and get the same max lvl gear, and all your talents fully trained. You just have to select which stat distribution preset you want and put together a build.

 

2- Levelling gives you a chance to take a casual stroll through the world and enjoy some stories playing out in each zone, and I personally find it quite enjoyable. But "need to level the long way to learn your class" only applies to people who would boost to max lvl and decide not to figure out how to play the character, and then join harder content where they need to be at least half competent. If you boost up and take a little time to learn, then that's fine.

 

3- If you think in terms of WoW servers, there are only 3 servers in GW2 (megaservers), EU, NA and China. The "worlds" in WvWvW are like alliance and horde, except there are a lot more than just 2 factions. When you're not in WvWvW, every one on a megaserver plays together with others on same megaserver. The game will just make more copies of each zone when a zone gets overcrowded. WvWvW is like an Alterac Valley with 3 factions fighting,  and runs a week-long match then a new match starts each week with new opposing worlds. Look into which servers/worlds are active/inactive for this, because it will matter if you plan on playing this mode.

 

5- You can earn gold in game and convert into gems. (for buying bank slots etc)

 

6- The expansions are very much worth it imo.

[Farohna.6247]

Welcome back to GW2

1.  Ranger is fun, all classes are viable in all game modes, some excel in areas more than others.  Open world solo pve and personal story are very easy with ranger.  As for WvW, you will want to go soulbeast for dps (you will need the HoT expansion for that), and you see druid as well.  Practice and have fun with it.  Yes, it's different than WoW....still same mob of angry people, different combat style.  Ranger is fine for fractals and dungeons (five man content), just don't hit the 4 on longbow with groups 😉 if you're using it.

 

2. Usually suggested to level at least one class the old fashioned way to 80, yes you usually get a better feel for it.  Instant 80, no.  Small boost, maybe.

 

3.  There are some servers that are more WvW focused, however with linking you are paired with other worlds.  So at this time, just pick a server, and learn the gameplay. You can transfer later, if you find a guild for example or a server that you really want to play with. Yes, they change up the mix, but not a big concern.  Comparing it to Alterac Valley is accurate...three factions fighting, along with pve objectives.  

 

4.  Focus on having a good time, understanding mechanics and gameplay, finding what you like to do.  If you want to craft, save your mats.  If you find an odd item, look it up on the wiki.  It's pretty open ended and forgiving.  Really no wrong way or wrong focus.

 

5.  Convert earned gold to gems...price varies depending on the economy.  Also you get gems as rewards for achievement milestones...that can take a while.  

 

6.  I love the expansions...new challenges, new zones, gliding, mounts, you will want them.  Try to catch items on sale if possible.

 

 

 

[Inculpatus cedo.9234]

Be aware that Living World Seasons 2, 3, 4 and the Icebrood Saga Episodes will be offered at no cost in the coming weeks/months. 

You will need the expansions to play any Episodes starting with Season 3.

Just a heads-up if you were thinking of purchasing them.

 

Welcome return, and good luck.

[Linken.6345]

55 minutes ago, Inculpatus cedo.9234 said:

Be aware that Living World Seasons 2, 3, 4 and the Icebrood Saga Episodes will be offered at no cost in the coming weeks/months. 

You will need the expansions to play any Episodes starting with Season 3.

Just a heads-up if you were thinking of purchasing them.

 

Welcome return, and good luck.

To add to this any account can unlock them (even free 2 play) but not play them.

[Veprovina.4876]

11 hours ago, Ragana.8914 said:

New..ish player. Have some questions and would appreciate any advice ya’ll may have.

 

So I bought the game in 2013, got an engineer up to level 25 and went back to WoW, never touching the game again. 

WoW has gotten really stale and this seems like a more casual game to enjoy as an adult without it taking over your life. 

 

The questions I have: 

 

1- I re-rolled to a Ranger and got him to level 17. My main interests are PvP (I heard it’s better than WoW, which is one of the main reasons why I started playing), solo PvE and dungeons (not sure what the five man content is called). 

Will this class meet my needs? I’m okay with healing but I’d prefer to stick with DPS.

You can enter PvP at level 2. If that's all you're interested in you can just make a character and play. All players are max level there with all traits and skills unlocked and the gear is standardised and doesn't use PvE gear. As for which classes, well, try them, it just costs a character slot. This isn't WoW, no need for leveling and gear grind if you just want to PvP.

 

Dps wise, I think revenants, necros and maybe rangers are top tier but idk. Look at some YouTube guides and buds. All gear is free in PvP so you can experiment in the PvP lobby to your heart's content.

 

11 hours ago, Ragana.8914 said:

2- I have like 8 years of birthday boxes. I opened them all up and one of them had a level 50 boost. Should I go ahead and use it or will I miss out on something by not leveling the old fashioned way. 

If you're interested in PvE, sure, level up the normal way, it will familiarise you with class skills and abilities. But there's no harm in leveling to 50, there's still a lot to do after that. This will just open up the story more and some dungeons, you can take it from there. Just don't boost your character to 80 because people get lost a lot in PvE when they do that and don't know what to do.

 

11 hours ago, Ragana.8914 said:

3- I tried watching some YouTube vids and making sense of WvWvW.. so right now it’s server based but soon it will change? How important is my server selection right now? Is there any particular servers that are more suited towards PvP? I want to find a guild so I figured I’d better make sure I’m on a suitable server before going crazy with leveling.

It's always server based. Server selection only matters for WvW and nothing else (except megaserver region like NA or EU). PvP and PvE use megaservers. Select a high population server, that'll give you most chance of getting good fights. WvW is a mixed mode though so you take your PvE gear in there. It's recommended you level normally to 80 and get exotic level gear before attempting it to not get stomped immediately.  Once you're there, join a commander tag and start following. You'll get the hang of it soon that way when you see what people do. But don't confuse WvW with PvP, they're different. 

 

11 hours ago, Ragana.8914 said:

4- what should I focus on while leveling? What should I not sell, spend, etc..? 

Salvage blues and greens with common salvage yellows with master salvage kits and exotics with master or above. Sell anything above 20 silver on tp. Spend whatever you want on whatever, it's not like you need to keep anything while leveling, the keeping part only comes in at 80 when you start getting max tier gear.  Then you keep what your alts can use. Sell the rest or salvage that you don't plan on using.

 

11 hours ago, Ragana.8914 said:

5- is there a way to get more bank slots without buying diamonds with real life money? Or earn diamonds in game? 

You can convert gold to gems and buy it that way. So what you earn in game as gold can buy you everything in the gem store. At an increased price of course. Other than that no. 

 

11 hours ago, Ragana.8914 said:

6- I assume the expansion is a must-buy?

Any other advice ya’ll may have, I’d really appreciate hearing it.

 

If you plan on using elite specialisations and masteries that come with each xpac, then yes. And if you plan to PvP, I'd say you'll need the elites. Core classes don't tend to do well.

[Kaltyn of Torbins Deep.294]

Couple of other thoughts:  Hero points, just leveling to level 80 will grant you enough hero points to train up all your core skills and traits.  The elite specs take 250 hero points to train, but, hero challenges in the expansion areas give you 10 points each instead of just one point like the ones in the core maps.  So don't worry about saving up your hero points as you're leveling.

 

Power-leveling or using a level boost does not prevent you from going back and experiencing any part of the game or story...well, except for the frustration of not having all your weapon skills or utility skills available when you want them.  🙂  Even as a level 80, when you enter a starter map, you get leveled down to an appropriate level for that zone.  Your weapons still hit harder, but, the rest of your skills are a more appropriate power level for that map.  Several times I have taken a level 80 character back and started the level 10 personal story. 

[Harfang.1507]

•  

•  

1- Can't help with PvP or WvW. Dungeons are 5-people content, rather unpopular and largely abandoned by developpers. Fractals are also 5-people content, but shorter to complete and significantly more popular. You may hear about raids (10-man elite stuff) and dragon response missions (DRMs, controversial new format). No rush, these are not for you yet.

 

2- Level 50 boosts: Slow and steady kind of player? Save them for when you are more experienced and want to level new characters fast. They occupy too much precious bag space? Delete them. You learn very quickly and are natural? Sure, use 'em.

 

3- See #1.

 

4- Focus: whatever you enjoy. Salvage a lot, store materials a lot. Do not be afraid to sell stuff on the TP (WoW's AH). Best of all: material deposit to the bank and buying/selling on the TP can be done straight from your bags, anywhere in the world. (Retrieving stuff is a differnet matter.)

 

5- Already answered, but I would add that in the last few months, buying bank tab expansion at 600 gems amounts to 180-210 gp. That's extremely expensive for a newish player. I think I am middle of the road in terms of income, and it would take me 3-6 weeks of daily play to get that much.

 

6- Expansions: Immediately, no. Soon . . . yes. I'd recommend making it to 80 first, learning more of what you can do in core, then consider buying PoF. Note that HoT now comes free if you buy PoF. Do not forget Living World is coming free this summer (as mentioned by Inculpatus cedo.9234 above). Learn the unlock mechanics of these LW episodes so as to save a boatload of gems.