Disciples of the Darkhand - Established 1997 http://www.the-darkhand.com/vb Disciples of the Darkhand,DDH,Darkhand is one of the oldest pvp guilds centered on MMORPGS en Fri, 10 Sep 2010 07:49:57 GMT vBulletin 1 http://www.the-darkhand.com/vb/titanium/misc/rss.jpg Disciples of the Darkhand - Established 1997 http://www.the-darkhand.com/vb Weapons, Professions, and Races. http://www.the-darkhand.com/vb/showthread.php?t=4909&goto=newpost Fri, 10 Sep 2010 04:56:25 GMT One of the things that became apparent early in the development of Guild Wars 2 was that we needed a diverse set of weapons to support our skill... One of the things that became apparent early in the development of Guild Wars 2 was that we needed a diverse set of weapons to support our skill system. The full list of standard wieldable weapons in Guild Wars 2 is as follows:

One-Handed: Axe, dagger, mace, pistol, scepter, and sword.

Two-Handed: Greatsword, hammer, longbow, rifle, shortbow, and staff.

Offhand only: Focus, shield, torch, and warhorn.

No single profession is able to use all of these weapons, and some of them can wield a lot more than others. Many professions can also wield a one-handed weapon in their offhand. A weapon in the offhand will have different skills than that same weapon wielded in the main hand. A warrior, for example, can learn to dual-wield and choose to equip two swords, which would give him three skills from the sword in his main hand and two skills from the sword in his offhand.

Environmental Weapons

So the weapons you're currently holding in your hands determine your first five skills. This system is the basic building block of Guild Wars 2 combat, but when playing around with it we found that we could extend it into a huge variety of cool situations. For example, when a player interacts with a siege weapon, his first five skills change to skills that are specific to that siege weapon. A player might encounter a boulder in the world and, upon picking it up, find that his skills have changed so that he can now throw that boulder. Discovering a drake nest might yield eggs that can be picked up, and then eaten or thrown. The things a character can do with an environmental weapon vary by profession or race. An elementalist with a boulder can not only throw it, but can launch it into the air, causing it to rocket down from the sky with the impact of a meteor. In addition to objects that are simply found in the world, many of these environmental weapons are created spontaneously through various events and activities. Wooden planks used to smack enemies can be gained by killing oakhearts, or found in the rubble caused by centaurs breaking down a wooden gate. Breaking a barstool over the head of a rowdy bar patron can yield a chair leg that can be used to great effect as a club.



These are just a few of the many environment objects that players will be able to interact with. There are even a few professions whose mechanics are built heavily upon these sorts of interactions, like the elementalist skill Conjure Flame that creates several large flaming rocks that can then be picked up and thrown at the enemy.

Professions

Choice of profession will of course have a huge impact on how the game plays. There are eight professions in Guild Wars 2, many of which will be familiar to fans of Guild Wars, as well as a few professions new to the Guild Wars world. Each of these professions is roughly categorized by the type of armor they wear: scholars wear light armor, adventurers wear medium armor, and soldiers wear heavy armor. Currently there are three scholar professions, three adventurer professions and two soldier professions.


When designing our professions it was very important to us to make each of them feel as unique and different as possible. In addition to weapon, armor and skill choice, we've developed a number of cool profession mechanics for each one. We'll be revealing new professions on our website, so it should start becoming apparent just how much we've tried to push the unique play style of each of them.

Many players from Guild Wars are familiar with the concept of secondary professions. We included secondary professions in early versions of Guild Wars 2, but due to the unique mechanics of each profession and the increased role of race in character customization, they are no longer a feature of the game. We feel that this decision will allow us to create a more balanced game with really distinct professions that are fun to play.

Cross Profession Combos

It's very important that professions in an MMO have interesting ways to interact with each other. In the past this has mostly been limited to healing and buffing teammates and managing agro in combat. We wanted to expand considerably upon the types of teamwork available to our players. With this in mind, we've implemented a system of cross-profession combinations.


A warrior and an elementalist playing together could combine their abilities in several different ways. The elementalist could drop down Static Field, which is an area-targeted lightning effect. A warrior who fires a rifle bullet through the static field would cause his shot to be charged up with electricity, inflicting additional damage. If that didn't suit their style, then the elementalist might drop a Wall of Fire in front of a group of enemies. The warrior could enter the firewall and use Cyclone Axe, an attack which causes him to spin rapidly, sending the firewall outward and hitting his foes. There are literally hundreds of combinations for players to discover.

Races


A player's choice of race is also an important decision which will affect his combat prowess. We've already discussed how a player can choose racial skills among his second five skills. These skills are designed to provide the player with additional options that capture the flavor of his particular race. A sylvari warrior might choose to bring Grasping Roots, which immobilizes a foe, while an asura warrior might choose to bring Arcane Blast for some additional ranged damage.

A player can also choose to bring elite racial skills. A norn elementalist might take the norn skill Wolf Form and transform into a giant half-norn half-wolf able to tear across the battlefield, savaging enemies. A human might bring the Hounds of Balthazaar, a skill which summons two massive fiery dogs into the battle. Racial skills can combine with profession skills to give players a wealth of choices when deciding how they want to play their characters. ]]> Guild Wars 2 Pheelin http://www.the-darkhand.com/vb/showthread.php?t=4909 Skills http://www.the-darkhand.com/vb/showthread.php?t=4908&goto=newpost Fri, 10 Sep 2010 04:51:02 GMT Hi! I'm Eric Flannum, the lead designer for Guild Wars 2. Over the next few months, we'll be telling you about the professions, races, lore, and game systems of Guild Wars 2, as well as talking about our design philosophy and thoughts about the game. First up: combat!

We've got a lot of amazing things planned for combat in Guild Wars 2, and I'll try to cover as many of them as possible before wearing out my welcome. Let's start with the basics.

One of our priorities in developing Guild Wars 2 has been to make the simple act of moving around and interacting with the world an enjoyable experience for our players. We often refer to this as introducing "joy of movement" into the game. This means being able to jump and swim freely, but it also translates directly into combat.

To reinforce the importance of movement in the game, we want your character's position in combat to really matter. You'll see a lot of attacks in Guild Wars 2 that encourage and reward tactical player movement and positioning.



To illustrate what I'm talking about, I was watching two of our game designers--Jon and Isaiah--play the other day. Jon is using his shield to deflect the fire breath of a drake, when Isaiah hits the drake from behind with a skill called Devastating Hammer, launching it into the air. The drake is sent flying over Jon's head, who immediately turns and uses a skill called Savage Leap to impale and finish the drake right as it hits the ground. This was a very cool looking (and effective!) sequence of events that flowed very naturally from how combat in Guild Wars 2 works.


We want combat in Guild Wars 2 to really be visually appealing. We want you to be able to identify the skills being used at a glance and also have a good idea of what that skill is doing. Does a skill have an area of effect? Is it doing damage? What type of damage? Our goal is to design skills that are visually unique and explain them without overly complex skill descriptions. This has resulted in a lot of distinct and impressive skill effects in the game. Even a simple skill like fireball explodes in such a way that you can clearly see the area that they will affect. Beyond your typical fireballs and lightning bolts, you'll see skills that create giant crushing stone hands, turn their users into massive tornadoes, and summon flocks of vicious birds of prey (a particular favorite skill of many people after they see it in action).

The Skill System


Much like in Guild Wars, the skill bar in Guild Wars 2 is limited to a set number of skills. Like a collectible card game, we provide the player with a wide variety of choices and allow them to pick and choose skills to create a build that best suits their particular play style. For example, one Guild Wars 2 warrior might decide to build his character around gradual damage which causes his opponents to bleed out, while another may choose to knock his opponents down, controlling their movement with slow, large attacks. Both warriors can choose to equip the skills that matter most to them. It is also very important to us that our skill system be simple to use, leaving the screen as clean and unintimidating as possible. All of this combines to give us a skill bar and skill system that's a bit different than what you'd typically find in an MMO.

The Ten-Slot Skill Bar

The first five skills on the skill bar are not slotted directly by the player; instead they are determined by the player's choice of weapon and profession. Because of this, we can ensure that each weapon is balanced with a fun combination of skills. For example, a warrior wielding a mace and shield would get access to strong but slow damage skills like Obliterate, as well as powerful defensive skills such as Block and Shield Bash. A warrior wielding a greatsword would have access to a lot of movement-oriented skills like Rush, and area-of-effect skills like 100 Blades. In each case, the warrior's first five skills are determined by what he's holding in his hands. Weapon skills also take profession into account, so a warrior wielding a sword will have different skills than a different sword-wielding profession.


To provide additional variety to the mix, most professions can have two different weapon sets equipped and can very quickly and easily swap between the sets. For example, a warrior might keep a longbow or rifle for engaging foes at a distance, and then switch to a hammer when that enemy gets close.

We've talked about the first five skills being determined by weapon and profession. What about the second five? These skills are all chosen by the player from a pool of skills determined by both profession and race. To slot a skill, a player simply clicks on a skill slot and it will bring up a list of skills that can be put into that slot. One of these slots is dedicated to healing skills that replenish the health of the character and his allies, while another slot is dedicated to elite skills that trigger visually spectacular and powerful effects. No matter what type of skill is involved, it's important that we give the player a diverse set of tools to choose from so that he can create a build that he'll enjoy playing.



For example, a human elementalist can choose to bring Aura of Restoration, which is a buff that heals him every time he uses a skill, or he can choose to bring Glyph of Healing, which is a more straightforward heal. A warrior might take the Frenzy skill, which will fill his adrenaline gauge instantly; the shout skill Fear Me! which inflicts the weakness condition on surrounding foes; or the Banner of Courage skill, which inspires his allies and increases their melee damage.

Elite skills are designed to be infrequently-used, ultra-powerful skills that have a dramatic impact on the game. An elementalist can call upon the power of the wind to shapeshift into a tornado that knocks enemies around and inflicts heavy damage, while a warrior might choose to harness the power of Destruction, to make all of his blows inflict area-of-effect damage. ]]> Guild Wars 2 Pheelin http://www.the-darkhand.com/vb/showthread.php?t=4908 Traits http://www.the-darkhand.com/vb/showthread.php?t=4907&goto=newpost Fri, 10 Sep 2010 04:44:49 GMT Howdy! My name is Ben Miller, Game Designer on Guild Wars 2. While Eric and Colin have been busy writing blog posts and interviews, we've been working on a little system called traits. There has been some speculation and questions about traits on the forums. What are traits? How do you collect them? Does Colin Johanson secretly run a moa ranch in eastern Washington as a front for the Order of Whispers? I'm going to answer two of those three questions right now and leave the third open for future elaboration.

What are traits?

At a basic level, traits make you better at what you choose to do. You slot traits in order to modify skills and attributes. Once you have mastered a handful of traits they become a key component in creating your overall build.

Mastering Traits

So how do you get all those traits to make a build? Good question.

You acquire traits by completing profession challenges scattered throughout the world. For instance, you walk into an inn and persuade a shadowy stranger into telling you a rumor about a mysterious tome full of arcane knowledge. Or you challenge a legendary swordmaster to a duel while exploring Divinity's Reach.


Each profession focuses on different activities to develop his or her traits. Warriors train physically, bash stuff, eat stuff, and drink stuff. Elementalists, on the other hand, seek ancient knowledge locked in tomes or particularly powerful elemental locations. The different trait challenges accentuate the unique feel of that profession and really bring the experience of playing that profession to life.

Your prowess will grow as you complete challenges that develop your character's particular traits. The defeated swordmasters will teach you their age old techniques, allowing you to select the Swordmastery trait. Discovering the mysterious tome will allow you unlock the secrets of magical energy.

Building with traits

Builds are one of the things that make Guild Wars unique, and it is something we are carrying over into Guild Wars 2. For those not familiar with "builds," they are a combination of traits, skills, and attributes that mechanically work well together. With roughly 100 traits for each profession, there are way more traits in the game than you could possibly equip on a single character, so you have to make decisions and choose certain traits over others.

Traits play a large role in letting you customize the way your character plays


Each profession has its own set of trait lines. These are similar in theme to the profession specific attribute lines in the original Guild Wars. Each trait line has a number of major and minor slots. Warriors, right now, have two general lines called Power and Tactics as well as lines for each of the weapons they can wield. As you master traits, you slot them into these lines, affecting your character.

Previously we talked about the Guild Wars 2 skill system and how you can make choices about your heal skill, elite skill, and utility skills. Now it's time to introduce traits into the mix. Here's a specific example of a high level warrior creating a build.

To give this some context, let's pretend an event has started. A giant boar is marauding through the forest and your party decides to take it on. This build is meant to maximize the damage you and your teammates can deliver against a single target.


Step 1: Pick a weapon. The weapon you're currently wielding is the major determining factor for how your character will play. Let's pick a sword, a versatile weapon which comes standard with a chain of three skills (Sever Artery, Gash, and Final Thrust), a rapid-fire repeating attack that hits a small area (Flurry), and a chase skill to close the distance between you and the enemy (Savage Leap). For my offhand weapon I could take warhorn for damage buffs, but I'll cover that with my utility skills. Instead, I'll dual wield swords to maximize my own damage. In practice, you'd also decide on your alternate weapon for switching in combat - perhaps a longbow for range.

Step 2: Pick a heal skill. Let's go with a basic heal like Healing Surge, which gives you both health and adrenaline when used. Adrenaline gives you damage bonuses and allows you to use your burst skill more often, so it's perfect for our build.

Step 3: Pick your utility skills and elite skill. You choose On My Mark (which lowers an enemy's armor and calls a target out), For Great Justice (which gives allies Fury Boon and Might Boon), and Frenzy (which increases my overall adrenaline gain). For my elite skill, I'm taking the always epic Battle Standard (which puts an array of powerful buffs on your allies).

Step 4: Assign your traits. Here you can start focusing your play style and being clever with what you slot in each trait line.

Power: Let's choose to stack traits that increase your strength attribute so your individual melee attacks do more damage.


Tactics: While kiting the giant boar, switching weapons faster sure would be awesome, so you slot the Weapon Master trait that lowers the cool down on switching weapons. You also slot traits that increase the number of targets your shouts affect, and increase the duration of your banners.

Sword: You choose to slot Swordmastery to further increase the damage you do, as well as the trait that increases the chance you will score a critical strike with Final Thrust.

Longbow: Out of what is available let's keep things simple, more damage.


We want experimentation with traits to be fun and engaging, so we've made the rules for changing traits extremely flexible. With no in-game cost, you can respec at will, outside of combat. This means you are open to experiment with what works and what doesn't work on the fly, without having to go back to town or worry about if you have enough gold.

Whether it's adventuring around Tyria trying to stop dragons or fighting other players in World PvP - the trait system is there to experiment with, to have fun with, and to allow you to feel like you are actively mastering the profession you have chosen. Like Guild Wars, there are countless unique and clever combinations to be found.

To all you would-be heroes out there: go forth and adventure, and use the power of traits not for good or evil, but for awesome. ]]> Guild Wars 2 Pheelin http://www.the-darkhand.com/vb/showthread.php?t=4907 AI http://www.the-darkhand.com/vb/showthread.php?t=4902&goto=newpost Wed, 08 Sep 2010 13:38:23 GMT Ok since I can't play multiplayer I have no way to judge my skill at this game. I know this won't be accurate but I was wondering what AI skill level people have beaten? Might give me a ballpark estimate if I'm terrible or not.

I play Terran and so far I can beat all 3 factions on Hard. I can't beat Terran on Very hard, but I have beaten the zerg on Very Hard. I have not played against the Protoss at this skill level. ]]> Starcraft 2 Pheelin http://www.the-darkhand.com/vb/showthread.php?t=4902 Videos http://www.the-darkhand.com/vb/showthread.php?t=4901&goto=newpost Wed, 08 Sep 2010 13:11:04 GMT Here is a collection of videos captured at GamesCom. Just watching the first minute or so of the first video, I'm loving the graphics, it looks really smoothe. I also love the satellite map. If the ruleset is cool im down to play this game..



LINK CLICK ME! ]]> Guild Wars 2 Pheelin http://www.the-darkhand.com/vb/showthread.php?t=4901 Leveling http://www.the-darkhand.com/vb/showthread.php?t=4899&goto=newpost Wed, 08 Sep 2010 12:53:42 GMT Here is an article about levels in GW2 from arena.net Hi, my name is Isaiah Cartwright (Izzy, as some like to call me), and I’m a Game Designer for... Here is an article about levels in GW2 from arena.net


Hi, my name is Isaiah Cartwright (Izzy, as some like to call me), and I’m a Game Designer for Guild Wars 2. Today I’d like to talk about a subject near and dear to my heart: character progression in Guild Wars 2.

You know that point in other MMOs when, after playing for a few hours, you look down at your experience bar and wonder, “WTF? Has my experience bar even moved at all?” Nobody enjoys feeling like they haven’t made any progress even though they’ve been playing their character all day. We hate it as much as you do; it drives us insane!

Our goal with Guild Wars 2 is to flatten out the leveling curve, keeping progression simple and straightforward. We expect everyone to make a reasonable amount of progression with each play session. It shouldn’t take days of playing before you feel like you have made any progress, and you definitely shouldn’t have to kill a bunch of creatures or do a bunch of repetitive tasks just to see what’s over that next hill. We want our progression to keep up with your play style. If you’re a casual gamer who plays for a few hours here and there, why should you feel like it’s going to take you a decade to finish your character? If you’re a hardcore player, why shouldn’t you be able to blast through the game with skill and speed, trying to experience every last bit of content?

So how did we accomplish our goals, you ask? Good question! First off, we set the level cap for the game at 80, but we made the time between levels rather short. Instead of taking longer and longer to reach each level, it takes about the same time to go through each level. It’s pretty simple; if we expect you to level up every few hours, then why shouldn’t it be that way all through the game?

To better illustrate this, here’s a chart of a typical game’s leveling curve compared to the Guild Wars 2 leveling curve:



(Update: We got a number of questions regarding our graph, so we’re updating it to make it a little more clear. It was not our intention to imply that the early levels of the game require the exact same time investment as later levels, but to show that the curve plateaus.)

As you can see, our leveling curve is pretty simple. Now, keep in mind that we haven’t finished everything and we’re still working out a lot of the details, but progression in Guild Wars 2 is way more than just leveling. We have achievements, trait collection, crafting, dungeons, skill collection, items, and much more.

Overall, we expect our content to be the driving force behind how long it takes to do things in-game. Anyone can increase the length of an experience bar and call it content, but our world is filled with an almost endless stream of things to do. We expect content—not long, grindy progression—to be the deciding factor that keeps people playing our game. We want everyone to stick with Guild Wars 2 because our content is fun and enjoyable, not out of some dogged determination to slowly, slowly advance. And because our world is ever-changing and dynamic, you can play our content again and again! Two characters journeying through the game will have two different experiences, which means the game will remain fresh for all you out there who enjoy making a million characters.

So, if you’re tired of the size of your experience bar controlling the pace of your progression, and you’re looking for a simple, content-focused progression system with endless potential for enjoyment, Guild Wars 2 is for you.
I hope you’re as excited about progression in Guild Wars 2 as I am; it’s just one of the many awesome ways this game will challenge conventional MMO thinking. ]]> Guild Wars 2 Pheelin http://www.the-darkhand.com/vb/showthread.php?t=4899 new stuff http://www.the-darkhand.com/vb/showthread.php?t=4898&goto=newpost Wed, 08 Sep 2010 09:48:37 GMT As you may have noticed there are some new threads up, please feel free to contribute to them. Suggest new games to add to the forums and Ill add a... As you may have noticed there are some new threads up, please feel free to contribute to them. Suggest new games to add to the forums and Ill add a section for you if you think the game is worth discussing.

Most of the info I have has just be taken from an official site or forums, pretty much copy and paste. I just want to get a centralized location for all this information so we can talk about it! ]]> General Pheelin http://www.the-darkhand.com/vb/showthread.php?t=4898 Confirmed Classes http://www.the-darkhand.com/vb/showthread.php?t=4897&goto=newpost Wed, 08 Sep 2010 09:44:18 GMT *Light Side:* *Jedi Consular* Whether defending allies by deflecting a barrage of blaster-fire or charging in to challenge a Sith Lord, the...
Light Side:

Jedi Consular

Whether defending allies by deflecting a barrage of blaster-fire or charging in to challenge a Sith Lord, the Knight’s role is crucial in any conflict. The Jedi Knight enjoys the benefit of ancient teachings that have been passed down through hundreds of generations. Combining these time-tested maneuvers with the natural guidance of the Force, the Knight is capable of achieving extraordinary feats.

Jedi Knight

Whether defending allies by deflecting a barrage of blaster-fire or charging in to challenge a Sith Lord, the Knight’s role is crucial in any conflict. The Jedi Knight enjoys the benefit of ancient teachings that have been passed down through hundreds of generations. Combining these time-tested maneuvers with the natural guidance of the Force, the Knight is capable of achieving extraordinary feats.

Smuggler

The Smuggler’s approach to fighting is guileful and improvisational. Preferring to tip the odds in their favor from the start, Smugglers often rely on the element of surprise, using stealth and trickery to catch opponents off guard. Despite the sly tactics, they are more than capable of holding their own in a fair fight. Fast on the draw and a crack shot with a blaster, Smugglers tend to shoot first and be the last ones standing.

Trooper

Whether fighting as part of a small strike squad or at the forefront of a larger force, the Trooper can unleash unrivaled firepower against his enemies. A Trooper’s rifle is his best friend, and the military is constantly challenged to design faster, more powerful and more reliable blaster rifles every year. Wielding such rifles and wearing protective battle armor designed by the Republic’s top engineers, the Trooper will not hesitate to step right into the crossfire. Whether storming a base or a battlefield, the Trooper charges into the fight, blaster-rifle blazing, to clear a path for freedom and justice.



Dark Side

Bounty Hunter

Whether working for credits or principle, the Bounty Hunter pursues his targets with dogged determination and methodical precision. Bounty Hunters are renowned for their versatility on the battlefield and their ability to go toe-to-toe with force-users. Their legendary abilities in this arena have earned them the nickname “Jedi Killers”. Whoever they must face, however, the Bounty Hunter comes armed with the most-advanced weaponry on the black market, packing heavy firepower but always keeping a variety of tricks and gadgets ready to go.

Imperial Agent

Relying on range, surprise, and an arsenal of state-of-the-art gadgets and weaponry, the Imperial Agent enters battle with a confident strategy. Though striking from a distance or from the shadows plays to the Agent’s strengths, a well-equipped operative is more than capable of evading his enemies when necessary or moving in close to quietly slide a blade between an opponent’s ribs. Whether on a solo mission or working in conjunction with a strike team, this operative keeps a finger on the right button for almost any situation.

Sith Inquisitor

Whether facing a traitorous fellow Sith or a crowd of Republic soldiers, the Inquisitor fights with unlimited fury to create a storm of destruction. Expertise in conducting Force energies further allows Inquisitors to draw upon the life essence of themselves and others. This energy can be channeled to bolster their powers, harm their foes, and even to reinvigorate their allies. An Inquisitor’s skills with a Lightsaber are equally impressive. Often wielding a double-bladed Lightsaber, Inquisitors use quick, guileful, and lethal maneuvers to strike their enemies down with astonishing speed.

Sith Warrior

A Sith Warrior’s skills with a lightsaber are unrivaled. Driving at their enemies with strong, crushing blows, the Warrior quickly beats his foes into submission or death. Though the lightsaber is the Warrior’s primary method of attack, he also uses his dark command of the Force to paralyze, terrify, and kill. Protected by heavy armor and his powers of intimidation, the Warrior wades into the thick of the fight and unleashes pure hatred and fury to eliminate all who would stand against him.
]]> SWTOR Pheelin http://www.the-darkhand.com/vb/showthread.php?t=4897 Wiki Info! http://www.the-darkhand.com/vb/showthread.php?t=4896&goto=newpost Wed, 08 Sep 2010 08:42:54 GMT The maximum character level has been increased to 80, however the developers emphasize they wish "to avoid forcing players into the grind-based gameplay that too often accompanies a high level cap."

Two mechanics have been described which are intended to prevent this and allow players to play the game how they want; a sidekicking system, similar to that used in City of Heroes, will be introduced allowing high-level characters to transfer their powers to lower-level characters (or lower their level comparable to their sidekick as to enjoy lower-level content) and entry to e-sport type PvP will grant access to all skills, items and provide a fixed level.

In a departure from the high number skills present in Guild Wars, Guild Wars 2 will focus on quality of skills over quantity and will also reduce the overall number of game modes to reduce balancing complexity.

PvP combat will also change from the original series. The popular guild vs. guild matches from the original series will continue to be available, but Guild Wars 2 will introduce large scale world vs. world matches in the in-game setting called the Mists. Players will be able to join this worldwide PvP battle in a variety of roles, with rewards commensurate with their success. ]]> Guild Wars 2 azyr http://www.the-darkhand.com/vb/showthread.php?t=4896 Confirmed Races http://www.the-darkhand.com/vb/showthread.php?t=4895&goto=newpost Wed, 08 Sep 2010 06:44:09 GMT No release on anything such as stats yet. A few unconfirmed races as well but here is the confirmed list. *Human* Image:... No release on anything such as stats yet. A few unconfirmed races as well but here is the confirmed list.

Human


Rattataki


Twi'lek


Chiss


Sith


Mirialan


Zabrak


Miraluka
]]> SWTOR azyr http://www.the-darkhand.com/vb/showthread.php?t=4895 <![CDATA[Can't wait for this game.]]> http://www.the-darkhand.com/vb/showthread.php?t=4894&goto=newpost Wed, 08 Sep 2010 03:09:18 GMT I'm really hoping it lives up to the hype. ]]> Guild Wars 2 Proto http://www.the-darkhand.com/vb/showthread.php?t=4894 interesting article about combat http://www.the-darkhand.com/vb/showthread.php?t=4893&goto=newpost Tue, 07 Sep 2010 19:02:16 GMT http://www.guildwars2.com/en/the-game/combat/healing-death/ sounds pretty cool http://www.guildwars2.com/en/the-gam...healing-death/

sounds pretty cool ]]> Guild Wars 2 Gameover-DDH http://www.the-darkhand.com/vb/showthread.php?t=4893 Elementalist http://www.the-darkhand.com/vb/showthread.php?t=4892&goto=newpost Tue, 07 Sep 2010 12:42:10 GMT The elementalist channels natural forces of destruction, making fire, air, earth, and water do her bidding. What the elementalist lacks in physical... The elementalist channels natural forces of destruction, making fire, air, earth, and water do her bidding. What the elementalist lacks in physical toughness, she makes up for in her ability to inflict massive damage in a single attack, dropping foes from a distance before they can become a threat. Yet, despite her incredible offensive potential, versatility is what makes the elementalist truly formidable.

Rather than swap weapons to adjust to new situations, the multi-faceted elementalist quickly adapts to new threats by attuning to different elements as needed. When the elementalist attunes to any of the four elements, she receives intrinsic bonuses that continually empower her.

With FIRE attunement, the elementalist can inflict scorching damage on multiple enemies by turning the ground to fire or raining down molten rock from the skies. Why kill just one enemy when you can burn them all? Just by attuning to fire, the elementalist automatically causes flame damage to any foe foolish enough to touch her.

When the elementalist attunes to AIR, she can harness wind and lightning to target specific foes with focused, high-damage attacks. Dazzling bolts of lightning rip from the elementalist's fingertips, and brilliant flashes of light blind her enemies. When an elementalist attunes to air, nearby enemies are continuously pelted with lightning strikes.

WATER attunement forgoes the raw damage of air and fire, in favor of controlling an opponent's movement. By creating slippery ice or freezing foes solid, water attunement ensures that the battle is always fought on the elementalist's terms. Nearby allies receive continuous healing from an elementalist who is attuned to water.

In the most dangerous situations, the elementalist relies on the powerful defense of EARTH attunement. An earth elementalist uses the ground under her feet to defend herself and her allies, turning flesh to stone, destabilizing foes with seismic shocks, and destroying threats with volcanic eruptions. Earth attunement automatically confers magical protection to the elementalist.

Elementalists have a number of special spell types:

Glyphs—These arcane spells enhance or modify the natural power of the elementalist. She uses the Glyph of Elemental Power to increase the damage, range, and duration of her spells.

Signets—Signets provide an ongoing benefit to the elementalist, but can also be activated for a greater effect. An elementalist equipped with the Signet of Earth has increased damage resistance, but activating the Signet sends out a wave of stone, stunning nearby enemies.

Conjure Spells—The elementalist uses Conjure spells to summon useful items and potent weapons that she or other party members can use. For instance, she uses Conjure Flame to create a fiery rock to hurl at the enemy.

Area Spells—Using Area spells, the elementalist creates hazards and mayhem all over the field of battle. The elementalist fires lava arrows in a cone-shaped blast or creates walls of fire that scorch any enemies passing through.

Attunements
The elementalist has four elemental attunements that they can tap into. These attunements are represented by four skills that are located on the bar above their normal skills. When an elementalist switches attunements, the first five skills on their bar will change. These five skills are based on the elementalist's attunement and their current weapon, so that a fire-attuned elementalist will have different skills when he wields a staff than when he wields a scepter or focus. In addition to changing the elementalist's skills, attunements also work like a normal skill and provide an ongoing effect.

Weapons
Scepter (Main Hand) — Scepter skills specialize in close range combat.

Dagger (Main Hand) — Main hand daggers are fast and focus on medium range spells.

Staff (Two Handed) — Staves are slow casting long range weapons.

Dagger (Off Hand) — Off hand daggers specialize in powerful medium range abilities.

Focus (Off Hand) — Skills on a focus are powerful close range abilities.

]]> Guild Wars 2 Pheelin http://www.the-darkhand.com/vb/showthread.php?t=4892 Warrior http://www.the-darkhand.com/vb/showthread.php?t=4891&goto=newpost Tue, 07 Sep 2010 12:37:16 GMT The warrior is a master of weapons who relies on speed, strength, toughness, and heavy armor to survive in battle. A warrior can shrug off blow after... The warrior is a master of weapons who relies on speed, strength, toughness, and heavy armor to survive in battle. A warrior can shrug off blow after blow to stay in the fight, all the while building up adrenaline to fuel his offense.

Adrenaline makes the warrior more powerful, increasing his damage output with every attack while powering up his burst skill. Each weapon set has a single designated burst skill which a warrior can trigger by spending all his built-up adrenaline to unleash a powerful attack. The warrior can use his burst skill at any time, but the more adrenaline stages he has filled, the more devastating his attack will be. Some burst skills apply more and varying conditions while others simply do more damage.

Each weapon serves a different role, allowing the warrior to customize his play style. Warriors can compliment main hand weapons like swords and maces with a shield, warhorn or dual wielded weapon, but their role is still mostly defined by the main or two-handed weapon.

A SWORD warrior is quick and mobile; he bleeds his enemies as he bounces between them with a Savage Leap.

An AXE warrior quickly builds up his adrenaline and can deliver powerful spike attacks.

A HAMMER warrior pounds his foes and the ground with area attacks that stagger groups of enemies.

A warrior with a MACE disrupts his enemies with powerful stunning attacks, and hits them where it hurts leaving them susceptible to further blows.

A warrior with a GREATSWORD uses his momentum to deliver sweeping area effect damage attacks while gliding around the battlefield.

Warriors with a LONGBOW light their arrows on fire to inflict area-of-effect damage.

The RIFLE is a single-target ranged weapon that a warrior can use to pull monsters or finish off a fleeing foe.

Warriors have a number of special skill types:

Stances—These are toggle skills that let you turn on an enhancement at the cost of energy regeneration. For example, a warrior could hit Berserker's Stance which drains his energy, but gives him adrenaline regeneration. You can easily toggle off Berserker's Stance and send the skill into recharge.

Chains—A set of three skills that share a single skill slot, chains go off in sequence if you are hitting your target. For example, the sword chain skills Sever Artery, Gash, and Final Thrust are all on the same key, so rather than making a sword warrior spend three slots, they stack to fill only one slot. Chains effectively give a warrior two extra weapon skills on a weapon set.

Banners—The warrior calls down banners to buff his allies with attack power. A banner can be picked up and carried around to move the buff, or it can be planted in an area to convey the buff, allowing the warrior to continue fighting. One example is Banner of Courage, which increases the melee damage of allies within its range.

Shouts—Shouts are skills that affect a large area and give bonuses to allies or debuff enemies. A warrior could use the shout On My Mark to lower an enemy's armor and call a target out to allied party members.

Charge Skills—Some skills can be held down to power them up for more impressive attacks. A warrior with a mace can wind up the powerful skill Obliterate and release it at four different power levels to do increasing amounts of damage.

Weapons
A warrior can use nine different weapons. He can combine any of the nine weapons available to him in 19 different ways. The warrior weapons are:

Main Hand: Sword, Axe, Mace
Offhand: Shield, Warhorn, Sword, Axe, Mace
Two-Handed: Greatsword, Hammer, Longbow, Rifle

A warrior can easily switch between his two active weapon sets in combat as needed, but swapping weapons triggers a cool-down that prevents warriors from constantly flip-flopping between weapons. However, a warrior can equip the Weapon Master trait to circumvent this cool down, and opt for a more wild back-and-forth combat style with both weapon sets. Outside of combat, the warrior can reconfigure his weapon sets before entering an encounter.

Adrenaline
Warriors start a fight without adrenaline, and then build one strike of adrenaline with every attack they make. Warriors have three stages of adrenaline that take increasing amounts of strikes to fill - or they can release their stored adrenaline with a burst skill. Each stage of adrenaline also gives the warrior a direct passive damage bonus to every attack.

Burst Skills
Burst skills spend all of a warrior's adrenaline. Each weapon has one burst skill that improves at each stage of adrenaline. This improvement can be anything from doing more damage, adding additional conditions, increasing condition duration, or increased skill duration.


]]> Guild Wars 2 Pheelin http://www.the-darkhand.com/vb/showthread.php?t=4891 Necromancer http://www.the-darkhand.com/vb/showthread.php?t=4890&goto=newpost Tue, 07 Sep 2010 12:27:24 GMT A necromancer is a practitioner of the dark arts who summons the dead, wields the power of lost souls, and literally sucks the lifeblood of the... A necromancer is a practitioner of the dark arts who summons the dead, wields the power of lost souls, and literally sucks the lifeblood of the enemy. A necromancer feeds on life force, which he can use to cheat death or bring allies back from the brink.

A necromancer feeds on death and decay. Life force is the energy that a necromancer uses to extend his own life. Using specific skills, a necromancer builds up life force by attacking and killing enemies. Rather than going into a downed state when he runs out of health, a necromancer automatically activates the Death Shroud ability. A necromancer can continue fighting in the ghostly Death Shroud form until he either runs out of life force or he gets a kill, rallying back into his own corpse.

Necromancers have a unique set of special skills:

Wells—Wells are persistent spells that allow a necromancer to control the area around him. Created at the necromancer's location, wells affect targets within the skill's range. Well of Blood, for example, applies a regeneration boon to all allies within it. A necromancer can only have one well skill active at any time.

Minions—The necromancer summons undead minions to attack foes and do his bidding. Every minion-summoning spell has an associated secondary spell that appears after the minion has been summoned. This secondary spell destroys the minion while providing a powerful effect to the necromancer. For example, necromancers have a healing skill called Summon Blood Fiend that creates a minion that heals its master while it attacks. After the minion has been summoned, the Summon Blood Fiend skill is replaced by the skill Taste of Death, which allows a necromancer to destroy the minion to gain a larger amount of health.

Marks—Necromancers can also place marks--ground-targeted spells with a variety of potent effects. For instance, Mark of Blood damages enemies while placing a regeneration boon on nearby allies. Marks will trigger after a set period of time, but a necromancer can always trigger their marks on command by hitting the skill again.

Fear—Necromancers use a condition not available to any other profession: fear. A removable condition, fear makes an enemy flee directly away from a necromancer for a short period of time. For example, a necromancer can use Doom to instill fear in a single target.

Weapons
When outfitting himself for combat, the necromancer can choose from the following weapons. The necromancer weapons are:

Main Hand: Axe, Dagger, Scepter
Off Hand: Dagger, Focus, Warhorn
Two-Handed: Staff

Life Force
Life force is a special type of energy used by a necromancer. Once he reaches a certain life force threshold, a necromancer can activate Death Shroud (see below), entering a spirit form and leaving his body behind. Each of his weapon sets have skills that give a necromancer life force, and he gains an even larger amount of life force for kills that happen nearby. Finally, there are utility skills that build up life force, like Ghost Armor, a skill that improves a necromancer's armor and adds life force every time he takes damage.

Death Shroud
Death Shroud is a special ability--usable by a necromancer at any time--that utilizes his life force as a secondary health bar. Instead of entering a downed state when his health is reduced to zero, a necromancer automatically activates the Death Shroud ability and assumes a spectral form. In Death Shroud, a necromancer has a number of special skills. For example, a necromancer can summon a shadow fiend, a special minion unique to this form. With the ability to tap into Death Shroud, necromancers are certainly one of the most durable professions in Guild Wars 2.

]]> Guild Wars 2 Pheelin http://www.the-darkhand.com/vb/showthread.php?t=4890