I'm still a huge noob, but this was my first big goal in Guild Wars 2, and I finally did it! Thanks to this amazing community, I've learned so much about this beautiful game while slowly ticking off all those little dots on the map.

Along the way, I completed my personal story, collected enough mastery points to unlock autoloot (seriously, what an incredible QoL upgrade!), stumbled into my first world boss, fought an enormous fire elemental, completed a few fractals, joined a huge group taking down rift bosses, and even dipped my toes into WvW. I'm still pretty confused by WvW, but I'm already much less intimidated by the PvP side of the game!

I know core map completion might be a small achievement for a lot of you veterans, but it feels really good to finally see that number hit 100% for a noob like myself. I'm excited to keep learning, spend more time in WvW, run more fractals, and eventually explore all the dungeons at least once. There's still so much of this game left for me to discover, and I can't wait! I really enjoyed the personal story, and am super excited to see how the expansions play out. I currently have the living worlds, heart of thorns, and path of fire.

Honestly, I'm a little sad I didn't give this game more of a chance when I bought it at launch. But I'm so happy to be experiencing it now, and the welcoming community has made coming back all the better. Thank you all for being such a breath of fresh air in the gaming world. 🖤

~ Trollheimed

Hey everyone!
I’m a 42-year-old gamer from Asia. I’ve been playing games since the days of Lineage, vanilla WoW, and countless other MMOs and single-player RPGs.
I discovered Guild Wars 2 less than six months ago, and somehow I’ve already spent over 500 hours exploring Tyria!
I still don’t own any expansions, although I did pick up the Starter Pack on Steam. I’m currently playing a Core Ranger, and honestly, the core game has so much to offer that I haven’t felt any real urgency to buy the expansions yet.
But there’s something a little different about the way I experience GW2.
About a year ago, I suffered a hemorrhagic stroke and nearly lost my life.
I was fortunate enough to survive, but the lasting effects mean I can currently only play games with one hand. I’m still working hard on rehabilitation, and I hope that over the next few years, I’ll gradually regain some of the abilities I’ve lost. 🥲

Gaming has always been a huge part of my life, and I’m grateful that I can still enjoy it, even if I have to approach things a little differently now.
So, what does a one-handed Core Ranger do in Tyria?

Mostly WvW and exploring the world with my wife! 😂
I know I’m far from being a great fighter. In fact, I’m pretty sure almost anyone could beat me in a 1v1 in WvW.

But I’ve discovered something I genuinely love: playing support.
I’ve tried a condition damage build focused on bleeding, and I’ve also experimented with a power Longbow + Greatsword build. Eventually, I realized that I don’t need to be the one dealing massive damage or winning duels to have fun.
Instead, I focus on surviving, staying with my teammates, and contributing whatever I can through boons, condition cleanses, healing, and regeneration.

Whenever I make it to the end of a big WvW battle, I like to think that at least a few of my cleanses, heals, or boons helped someone survive a little longer.

And honestly? That’s enough to make me happy.
The same goes for PvE. During world boss events like Tequatl or Shadow Behemoth, I enjoy keeping other players alive while they’re surrounded by AoEs, reviving downed players, and doing whatever I can to help.

There’s something incredibly satisfying about being useful without needing to be the strongest player on the battlefield.

My little journey so far
I reached level 80 during the Festival of the Four Winds and got most of my first Exotic gear through the event.

Since then, I’ve been slowly upgrading my equipment, experimenting with builds, and working toward my first Gen 1 legendary weapon, along with WvW legendary equipment.

I’ve also recently completed a full set of Celestial Exotic armor through WvW, which has been fantastic for my playstyle.

I chose Celestial because I know I’ll eventually buy the expansions and want to experiment with all kinds of builds. Having flexible gear means I can try different things without constantly spending gold that I’d rather save for my legendary journey. 😂
I don’t expect to become a hardcore Raider or Fractal player. Between my physical limitations and the language barrier, those parts of the game feel pretty intimidating to me.

But that’s one of the things I appreciate most about GW2.
I don’t feel like I have to participate in every type of content to enjoy the game.

I can explore Tyria with my wife, join a WvW zerg, help defend a tower, capture a camp, revive strangers during world events, or just wander around discovering things I’ve never seen before.
And somehow, after more than 500 hours, there’s still so much left for me to experience.

I know elite specializations will open up even more possibilities when I eventually buy the expansions, but for now, I’m having a wonderful time with my little Core Ranger.

Maybe one day, after a few more years of rehabilitation, I’ll be able to play with both hands again.
Until then, I’ll keep doing what I can, one hand at a time. 😄

To all the other casual players, older gamers, and anyone who plays with physical limitations: I hope you’re finding your own way to enjoy Tyria too.
And if you’ve ever received a random heal, cleanse, or revive from a Core Ranger running around in WvW, well… maybe that was me! 😂

A special thank you to the GW2 community
Before I wrap this up, I’d also like to express my heartfelt gratitude and deepest respect to some of the guild leaders, commanders, and members who have made my journey through Tyria so memorable.
First, DCAP, who work tirelessly every evening organizing and teaching Triple Trouble runs. Thanks to you, I’ve been able to experience such a challenging meta-event with confidence. Coordinating three squads simultaneously is definitely no easy task, and I truly appreciate all the time and effort you put into helping everyone succeed.

And SLAP — well, you guys have certainly SLAPPED me pretty hard in WvW! 😂
To the many amazing commanders of OLD, thank you for your excellent leadership and all those memorable WvW battles.
And to DFVG, thank you for making WvW so much more accessible and enjoyable for players like me.
There are honestly too many people and guilds to thank individually.
I’m truly grateful to be part of such an active and welcoming community, and to ArenaNet for creating a game where someone like me can still find so much joy, adventure, and a sense of belonging.

Thank you all, and see you on the battlefields of Tyria! ❤️

Meet Burnie, my Borderlands inspired Psycho in Guild Wars 2.

A chain wrapped, knif wielding lunatic with a flaming hammer, a permanently stitched grin, and a dangerously unhealthy obsession with fire.

Hes always smiling, always laughing, and having the time of his life while everything around him burns. He thinks the screams are compliments.

Wardrobe Link : Steal my look, not my knives! - https://uaot.art/fashion-gallery/posts/1473

WHY ARE YOU RUNNING?! I HAVEN'T EVEN SET YOU ON FIRE YET!

I am a terrible photographer

Edit: Outfit is:

• Skull Masque
• Conjurer Mantle (Fern)
• Snapdragon Coat (Midnight Yew, Toxin, Olive Oil)
• Leystone Gloves (Green Apple, Midnight Yew)
• Winged Pants (Toxin, Envy, Toxin)
• Raven Ceremonial Sandals (Patina)
• Deathwish

Im a relatively new player and about a week ago i gave in and purchased all of the living seasons with gems, needless to say i was pretty bummed yesterday when to my surprise they were all free if you own the expansions.. well today i logged on and all the points i spent on living worlds are refunded into my account, wasnt expecting this and it was quite a pleasent surprise.. Thank you devs :)

I was roaming around Wayfarer Foothills and ran across this jolly ole chap. Don’t recall seeing him before. Is he new?

Edit: apparently he’s been there for over a decade and I just haven’t been paying attention.

Just came back after like maybe nearly 6 months and i saw that LW come with DLC now so even if its the same price its technically cheaper to get everything 🙏 so its more worth it to buy now and maybe more new players cause of that 🤔

But i saw a LOT of people complaining for no reason 😕 personally i really love the game so far so i bought all the most expensive edition for all the DLC at full price to help the devs and maybe thank them for their work 🙏 especially with GW3 on the way hopping it would be better 🗿

Don't forget your Twitch Drops

I am doing Stella Radians right now and enjoy it. But the 7 million Karma you gotta farm is a bit overkill in my opinion. I know the best karma farms out there, so I am not looking for advice on this (unless there is a sleeper nobody knows about?).

I don't complain about a Legendary taking long/needing loads of resources - It's kinda the idea; a long term QOL / Cosmetic goal you don't "need" but want and guides you through different content and lets you "accidentally" progress your Account in completely different content too. That's one of the main reasons I like the concept of Legendaries - no hurry, since it's stats and such aren't better, but it's still chase-worthy due to many different aspects.

BUT 7 million Karma is gonna be the bottleneck. I will have easily completed all other steps and will need to put in the same amount of hours again just for the Karma farm, which isn't necessarily fun if focused on specifically.

I am at 1,5m right now and, if I were to guess, I probably have accumulated around 10 million Karma total which I've spent on other Leggies and Achievements. I never rlly focused on karma farming, sure, but I have a couple hundred hours of playtime and if those will give me just around 1.5 times the Karma I need for one leggy, it's a bit out of proportion.

If I farm Karma with the best methods out there (excluding winter's day) I would have to farm nearly 40h straight for 7 million karma, and even with wintersday it will be around 30h. If those 30-40h would just be "regular playtime" I wouldn't say anything, that would actually not be that much, but it's dedicated, numbing karma farming.

Do most Players "just have" millions of karma laying around and ANet wanted a sink? Or how did this sudden increase from around 2 million Karma for a leggy up to 7m happen?

Not discouraged, not raging or ranting, just a little "oof"-feeling. :)

Only relevant to professions that can dual-weld swords, but take note if you plan on crafting two legendary swords.

When both Wages of the Stars and Aurene's Fang are dual-welded, only the kill effect from Wages will proc. It doesn't seem to matter what skill is used for the kill, which weapon is primary and which is offhand, or even if Wages effect is disabled via checkbox in the equipment slot.

If both are equipped, Wages' kill effect always wins.

If you don't like that effect, you can get around it by reskinning Wages to Aurene's Fang. Then, only Fang's kill effect will proc.

Two short videos to see each

Wages: https://youtu.be/WnHU5S7lKTM

Fang: https://youtu.be/AueqYjAsZ5Y

I didn't test this with any of the alternate Aurene skins, but I imagine the same rules apply.

I've tried the fractal a couple of times as glut player and I had read that one can reach 160k dps, but mine was showing quite average numbers, and watching youtube videos I also see average (and if anything lower) DPS numbers. Is there a way to see the glut damage or how?

This video has the arcdps number, around 24k and then below "self damage" at 100k+, is that also from arc? How can I see that number?

Bug Fixes:

Fixed a texture corruption issue for the Exuberant Chest Skin. Fixed a bug that prevented some players from getting credit for the "A Shattered Vision" achievement in the Nexus of Eternity Challenge Mode.

Late Note:

We’ve added a new Shadow Distance slider setting.

This new setting gives you direct control over how far away dynamic shadows are rendered across the game. Reducing the rendering distance lowers the workload associated with dynamic shadows, providing an additional way to improve performance without disabling them entirely. In our internal testing on minimum-spec machines, adjusting this setting produced performance improvements while still allowing nearby objects to retain dynamic shadows.

https://en-forum.guildwars2.com/topic/177745-game-update-notes-october-13-2026/#comment-2520062

Soo Won dress that I definitely didn't spend 4 hours making. I'll actually sew the dang thing eventually.

I run quick play raids for the weekly every week, and every time we land on Old Lion's Court, at least one person just leaves. This evening I sat for almost 30 minutes, in 4 separate quick play squads because 4 or 5 people left the squad within seconds of loading into OLC.

Why though?

You'll sit through Kaineng Overlook, but abandon Old Lion's Court, I don't get it...

I love how Halloween weapons skins are perfect for some Steampunk theme!
Wardrobe: https://gw2style.org/looks/12272

Hey all just some questions about boon tagging

1. Do non boon buffs count? Ex. Superspeed, virtue of resolve, soothing mist, etc.
   
2. If two people apply the same boon to another person, do they both get the boon credit?
   
3. If I drop a field and someone combos it to get a boon, does that count? Ex. Someone combos my water field and gets regeneration, do I get credit?

Thanks!

THE FOOL KING

Long ago, a fallen king marched into the Far Shiverpeaks, desperate to reclaim his throne after years of devastating defeats. Drawn by whispers beneath Drakkar Lake, he sought the power of Jormag, the Elder Dragon.

Jormag promised him unimaginable power in exchange for the lives of his loyal soldiers.

The Fool sacrificed them all.

His army vanished beneath the ice, their souls forever bound to him. Now he wanders Bjora Marches, haunted by their endless cries and whispers.

Yet The King feels no remorse. Those who follow the voices are dragged screaming beneath the ice, their souls joining his fallen army, forever begging for a death that will never come.

Wardrobe Link - https://uaot.art/fashion-gallery/posts/1472

Happy halloween

The Adventurer Guide wants me to work on a crafting discipline and I am wondering what would be best.

I am set on Tailoring being one unless recommended otherwise. These are my thoughts for the other crafting discipline:

Artificer - I saw crafting weapons recommended, but as I'm playing necromancer I've preferred using axe and daggers over my other options so maybe not?

Weaponsmith - I'm interested in Reaper so maybe this one for crafting greatswords?

Chef - Apparently food buffs are important and this will be my main character for the foreseeable future, so maybe this is the best option?

I'm leveling revenant and not sure how things change, but I am already having serious doubts about this class and debating making a guardian instead.

I read that you are supposed to activate your upkeep ability (Shiro/Jalis are my legends currently) and DPS, then switch. The 30 energy for the other utilities is SO costly, and my energy is instantly gone if I use the Shiro upkeep and then my weapon skills. Using only the weapon skills allows me to have much better energy...so I am supposed to time the upkeep abilities better or am I missing something?

I want to give revenant a fair shot because I like the armored magic fighter aesthetic but this really doesn't seem fun for me. I hope I am missing something.

I wanted to do my daily costume brawl (neever did it, should've been my first time), but i didnt get how to activate or get in that.

So somehow i ended up in Southsun survival. The Map and setup looked pretty fun, like a loot shooter/Battle Royal. But the Problem is, it is empty. I had exactly 1 other guy with me most of the time, sometimes a second. This second guy literally just went away and looted stuff... Prolly for the achivement.

But if it were full, im pretty sure i could have lots of fun in it. How about a Rush Event for that? :)

Same to the others. Sanctum Sprint, Crap Toss, Keg Brawl and Belcher's Bluff.

I know theay are pvp and many prolly wont like it that much, but i didnt even know that mode existed in the first place and a bit more Focus wouldnt hurt.

Did you guys know that if you put a custom parrot skin on the mail courier, the animation still works even underwater, and there are even little air bubbles trailing behind the bird? That’s a totally optional level of detail, but honestly, that’s exactly the kind of thing I love this game for.