Starting Storyline

Hi i have all 4 versions of Guildwars and was wondering which of the 3 starting campaigns would people suggest to start in as a noob. I have played several other MMORPG's e.g. WoW, LOTRO , Runescape etc. but have dedcided to stick with guild wars as it is free and seems to have several concepts i like e.g. the dual class's. I assumed the best story to start with was prophecies (the original i believe) but got told by someone i know they were told that nightfall or factions is better and so wanted to check before i start fully playing the game. If this is the wrong place to post this tell me where i should be posting it and i will gladly do so as i was unsure where to post a question like this.

Right i just found the question and answers section of the forums. Got the link from a friend who linked me straight to the riverside inn and hadn't discovered the other sections until now so will post question there ignore this post or delete at will.

well i see you havent posted your new thread yet but ill answer your question and i think best place to start is nightfall. you can get a run from spamadon to the docks to get 1k "max" (ie its not elite armor but its the highest armor rateing ie for a war its 80 armor vs starter which is like i dont know 10?) lvl armor and can go to any campaign right at the start so if you have gwen and you want your first toon to be a survivor you can start in nightfall then go to factions do some more of the higher xp reward quests then at lvl 10 go to eotn then get to gunnars hold really easy and then brawl your way to r3 survivor. also the other advantage you have starting in nightfall is heros right at the start and heros+pve=pro

While i also think he should start in NF i disagree that heroes + PvE = Pro when he just starts the game, he will have no skills for said heroes to use, let alone elite skills, or any idea on how to put together a good build. The skill system in GW is not like any other MMORPG so his exp there wont really help.

Also calling it spamadon, not Kamadan, will also likely not help a person who has never even logged on. Telling him to get a "run"(should be a ferry btw) to the docks and having him skip important story aspect, which his question was about which has the best story, goes directly against what he asked. Getting max armor will be way to expensive for him just after creating a character. It is his first time playing the game no reason he should be trying to "brawl" his way o r3 survivor, let him settle into the game before giving him a grindtastic goal like that.

He could follow your route, in fact i have done that same thing on many characters, but i would not advise it for a fist time player. All in all i say start in Nightfall, because the heroes you gain will eventually be your best friends, but take it slow at first, focus on buying skills for yourself, then you healer heroes. after that the game will be much easier for you.

I think I will play the devil's advocate (can I say this if this is really whatI think) and say you should start in either proph or faction.

Prophecy is the most relaxed of the three, has the most teritory (and quest) to see outside of the main story. While we could argue, it has the best storyline. You will see more lore by just going through the story than the other 2. It has that best beginning area (pre searing if you've heard of it). If you are not rushing throught the game, this is the game that will remind you most of other MMOs both in game play and in "taste". That is always : if you do not rush throught.

Faction is short, leveling is incredibly fast (or the other will be incredibly slow), but if you look around, there is enough bits of lore in there. ANd being asian themed, it has that little something to it (tengus, cherry petal falling from nowhere in a paradisiac scene, those kind of things).

Then night fall has... desertic scenery, hero right from the beginning (hint : you do not really need them early). An engaging (or claustrophobic) story line, personnally I like the back lore but not the application. ON teh bright side it has some breather part where the game ask you to be a certain lvl before you can continue, allowing some gameplay more in the line of "ok, I,m stuck here, lets see what quest I can get here and there". If you played other MMOs, that should not bug you too much.

I would recommend starting in Prophecies, myself. It is much slower and friendlier to a completely new player, plus there are many quests that give free skills as rewards. That campaign was designed before heroes came along, so using henchmen for the missions will not be a problem if you don't have friends to play with.

Once you are about 1/3 of the way through the Prophecies story line, you will have the chance to visit Nightfall and/or Eye of the North to pick up some starter heroes without getting deep into those stories. Then you can easily finish Prophecies and Factions with those. In fact, I only got the first three heroes from EotN, which were quite sufficient for the rest of Prophecies, though Factions would have been a little easier if I'd had some NF heroes too.

As Elmindreda said, take it slow and enjoy the game. Don't get caught up in going after titles right now, or bypassing the story line to get better armor sooner, etc. You will get everything you need to have at the time you need it by playing the game as it was designed. Using runners and the other tricks mentioned are useful to experienced players starting new characters, but not a good way to learn the game or follow the story.

Yup, start in proph, and QUEST, it gives you free skills which cost a rather large chunk of money when you gotta buy them. Besides that the learning curve isn't overly steep .

Play then in order in which they were released.

Please do not follow this awful advice. This is the worst thing you could do as a new player.

Any of the campaigns is fine for your first time, but by all means, play through the content. You'll have a lot to learn about game mechanics and skill interactions, not to mention getting your bearings in the storyline. I would start by picking a class that looks fun to you, and then going from there.

You'll have plenty of time to rush characters through down the line, but there's no reason to rob yourself of the game's content on your first character.

You are aware of the fact the OP just started playing Guild Wars? New players don't need max armor 5 minutes after they've created their character. They need to get their ass handed several times, severely frustrated because they find out their build doesn't work, not get the invincimode key handed to them by us 'veterans'. Let people develop their own playstile, let them venture through GW by using the trial and error concept. They'll be a far better player afterwards.

That said, start in Prophecies. It has the smoothest learning curve of the campaigns. Or just try each of them for a day, and decide what class/campaign appeals to you most.

When i saw that word, i decided to not give any advice.

I would say start at the beginning with one char and take that one through all 4. Proph, Factions, Nightfall then EotN.

After that then play around with starting new chars in the latter chapters.

Welcome to the GW community don't let the haters on the fan sites and jerks in the towns get you down, find a guild that fits your play style. Take your time and enjoy the game, and you'll get more out of it.

I favour starting with Proph, because you can actually unlock some skills without spending copious amounts of money on them, thanks to skill quests. Plus, the pace is slower so you can also spend more time learning. Factions and NF expect you to be level 20 by the time you hit the mainland.

And you can't start a character in GWEN anyway, you need to be at least level 10

This is why there is so many bad players in GW. Veteran players giving horrible bad advice. First thing out of this guys mouth to a new player is get a run...unbelievable.

because of its smooth curve and decent story line i would say that Prophecies is the best campaign to start on as a new player, or at least it would be if half of the missions there were not almost entirely deserted forcing you to take a full group of henchmen which really just isnt fun. Nightfall would have to be the runner up because it still has a decent learning curve (compared to factions at least) and introduces you to heroes which you can level up and use for stuff like, oh say Prophecies.

I do not recommend factions at all for any new player. It is basically the speed leveler campaign and once you get off of "noob island" you will be thrown to the dogs to get torn apart repeatedly by the inflicted and more if you don't know what you are doing.

If you have a bunch of friends that would be willing to help you get through your first campaign (maybe they can start new characters as well to go with you or something) then by all means i recommend prophecies without a doubt. Otherwise though the curve and experience is just not worth being forced to work with henchmen throughout most of the game.

Start with Prophecies. Pre Searing is a great starting area. As people have already said, take your time and do the quests and read the dialog. This is one game you won't want to rush your way through the first time.

.

I agree with starting in Prophesies first. Don't get caught up in the take this first..its faster??? This is a game, to be enjoyed, NOT a job you want to get done with.

Once you are about 1/3 of the way through Prophesies you can, ( as suggested by several players) visit the other campaigns from Lions Arch. You can take quests there to get to EOTN..and pick up heros, NPCs that you can customize skills and armor for. Take the Cantha quest to get to an area where it will be easier to get to Nightfall to pick up several more heros. Go back and finish Prophesies at this point. The heros will be handy in the high end missions.

That said, you will prolly pop a char here and there on the other campaigns...just to see . This is a good thing as it will open extra slots in the in game storage.

The Prophesies story line is great..Game of the year stuff and is imo the best story line.

Have fun, and welcome to GW!

Prophecies probably has the best leaning curve for one to start on.
But I, Personally, like Nightfall's tutorial best. It all really depends how quick of a learner you are..

Remember to also PVP alot and unlock skills that aren't of your profession for heroes to learn. And join a GOOD guild willing to teach you the basics of the game. GW will seem overwhelming at first, but once you learn the basics, it really is more simple than it seems

Oh, and remember that the key to winning in Guild Wars is SKILL SYNERGY!
Try and strategize builds with skills, rather than placing random high dps skills.
An example would be using Earth Shaker combined with Pulverizing Smash

I believe too, that you should start with prophecies and take ur time in pre.. =]

welc0me to gw and gwg, and have fun xP

You want to play the story line right start with Factions then Prophecies and finally Prophecies as that is the order it goes in.Then you get EoTN for coming back home.Mhenlo brings back WoH back to Tyria as well as traders and xunlai.