The weapon is considered to be one of the most important aspects of a character. Sure your armor makes you look great, while also keeping those arrows from piercing your lungs, but the weapon you wield is what really strikes fear into the heart of your enemies. The legendary weapons in Guild Wars 2 are seen as a sign of great prowess, marking one as a member of the elite. But soon that status may extend to more players.
Last week we got our first look into how players will start their journey to crafting their legendary weapon. To sum it all up really quick, the mastery system will be used to allow players to actually craft the precursor of their choice, by setting out on an adventure. Well, for now we just know we can choose between the already existing precursors, meaning the new precursors in HoT may be left out. Still, ArenaNet has made the hardest part of crafting a legendary weapon much easier.
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Now that’s an axe!
This change is huge since grinding was really the only way you could get those precursors, unless you have the gold to buy someone elses. Now I really like this idea, but I do wonder, is it now too easy? I myself don’t have a legendary weapon, nor a precursor. I’ve taken some steps toward this goal, but it’s not something I go out of my way to do. I’m kind of just letting it happen, and honestly I’m almost there. Really, it’s already easy, it just takes lots grinding.
Taking my time to get a legendary may not be as painful as grinding till my eyes bleed, but it certainly won’t happen overnight. Surprisingly ArenaNet has however found a new way to rain crafting materials on us, and this is where I think the process will speed up significantly. Enter the new map bonuses! Now when you complete a jumping puzzle, event, or even a mini dungeon on a map other than a starter zone, you’ll be rewarded with crafting materials associated with that map. Each material will be put into rotation, so you’ll be able to pick a day to focus on the specific materials you need.
So players will be able to craft their precursors, and the process of gaining crafting materials has been made even easier! Now before you all go off saying “Legendaries have always been easy to get, just buy it!”, keep in mind this isn’t really an option. The average player isn’t Oprah rich, with thousands of gold nearly causing their wallets to explode. Most players don’t have the patience, or the motivation to obtain such riches. That’s why I find these changes even more interesting. Now we will see what the average player will do when a clear path is set before them. Will they accept the challenge, and grasp for legendary status, or will they start, and then about a quarter of the way through just give up?
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Rich players must have a hard time getting around.
I’ve never made acquiring a legendary weapon my top priority. Sure I’ve always wanted one, but theres so much to do in the game that I’m just more focused on having fun over grinding for a specific item. I’ve talked to others who have made an effort to grasp at these weapons, but it either grinds out their love for the game, or they just simply stop because it’s too time consuming. I’ve always felt that the legendary weapons should be earned, acting as a sign of your accomplishments, not that you can live through the grind. This new journey for a precursor sounds interesting, and fun. Sure it’s technically still a grind, but like always in Guild Wars 2, the grind will be masked. In this case, masked by an adventure. An adventure I look forward to starting.
