Thinking of playing GW as a diversion... advice?

Hey folks,

I am a serious Eve Online player, but I'm looking for a bit of a diversion. GW's graphics look beautiful, and I'm looking for some fast paced action.

Though GW looks to be primarily focused on PVP, I probably won't spend a lot of time PVPing, since PVP = dedication = something I won't have since I'm dedicated to my corp in Eve Online. Holding this in mind - is this game worth playing for the PVE element? Is the PVE element fun enough to play around with for a while?

I've also gathered that this game is reasonably unsoloable. How far can this be stretched? Are there certain player character setups that allow one to enjoy content with small (stupid? ) PUGs and/or henchies? I'm not looking for a single player game - I AM looking for Guild Wars, I am just wondering how far the "no solo" thing can be stretched.

I also don't want to come into this game and roll a gimpy character. I've seen a good deal of complaining about underpowered characters. Since I'm wanting to play GW for some temporary enjoyment, I also have this question: What sort of character should one roll to enjoy PVE without having to strugle with inherent balance difficulties of the chosen professions? Ie. what sort of profession choices will enable me to enjoy the PVE content with the least amount of downtime?

I know this post may sound strange, or like I'm looking for a 00b3r build or something - not the case. I'm looking to GW as something to enjoy that will keep me from getting burned out on my primary interests.

Thanks for the help -

PVE is a blast, I'm usually busy with school work alot so i don't have the time to really get into PVP anymore but pve is more then good enough to buy the game.
Especially when you first start out, I chose a Warrior/Monk simply because i wanted to get used to the game and they are one hell of a tank. I beat the game once with him before making new characters to experiment and since its not very hard to level up early on i would test and delete them till i found one that i liked.
Just look into some builds in the specific forums here to see what kind of player you really want to be. More damage, more defense, speed and such.
Monks are always a huge demand in every mission you go to, so if you chose that path you will have no trouble finding parties to join and progressing through the game.

The pve is similar to any other game (excluding the grind which GW doesnt have)

But for pvp you could easily make a pvp character, which starts at max level with max equipment, and play in the random arenas and places of more relaxed pvp. No commitment required.

Hi Xori Ruscuv

Ill be happy to give you my opinions


Yes, many, many people play GW and NEVER do any PvP.
I have played through the game 4 full times and have only recently tried my first PvP - I have to say that I really enjoy the PvP as an addition to the PvE- you might lake it at some point too.

Truthfully, there are places ( particularly MIssions) where a new player will not be able to solo with hechies and you will need to join a pug, but once you get the hang of the game you can do most of it with just the henchies, and eventually you might take on the whole game with henchies for a real challenge. However there are plenty of quests and regular "explorable" areas where you can head out with just the henchies



I am going to suggest you start out with a warrior primary. and take Monk as the second profession
-Not a support character. a lot of the killing is in your control vs say an ele where you might be more of a support character


I often start a new game with a warrior type character- often easiest to learn with and like Ive said you usually have a good chance to solo until you get the hang of the game and go on to a different profession.

i love the pve in the game, pvp is just to much time with people requiring practice and it turns people into mindless pvp zomibes.

with that said, the pve aspect of the game is great, if you play it enjoy it and look for the good things not the bad as most people do. If you are looking for pve in guild wars you will definetly find it.

Thanks for the help.

I got the feeling that the warrior/monk build was a kick-ass build. However, I have always found warriors to be quite boring in MMORPGs. Is there any other build that can bring on the carnage but be a little bit more exciting?

If not, I'll go ahead and start a warrior/monk.

Thanks again.

warrior/monk is a good way to learn the game and get the feel of it, once you understand then you try something new

It doesn't take long to max level a char in pv to decide if you ike it or not. Try a ranger also. They can dish out some serious hurt with the right build/situation. In my limited adventuring as a warrior, I've noticed that my build didn't change a whole lot. I probably just didn't get really deep into it as I got bored with my warrior. But with my ranger, I find myself constantly changeing my build for every different area I go to. I always find my ranger exciting.

My first char was an Elementalist/Mesmer, fun for the massive damage-dealing, but I agree that W/Mo is easiest to play when you're just learning.

Forgot to mention, you get 4 character slots.

No matter what the game is I always start out as a Ranger type. That just seems to fit me best, for GW I started a Ranger/Monk which has beaten the Prophecies campaign. I found a build that works fairly well in any situation. But for a starting character if you go with a Ranger primary, test out the different skills see what you like. once you get a skill set that you're comfortable with redistrubute your attribute points so you get most from your skills. this is commonly referred to the "Build". As far as your question about soloing, I didn't form a random party (PUG) till after I reached Kryta, I did everthing (quests & missions) with only henchies. So you can if you want, or you can spam the chat with LFG

Thanks guys, I really appreciate the help.

Ahh, In that case I will point you towards a Ranger/Monk.
This is my favorite character/build and if you want a fun and challenging character this is the way to go

My previous advice still stands, I think W/Mo is a great way to learn the game
but its all good - enjoy!

start playing GW and you will stop playing EVE, I know what I say because I do have an EVE account and it runs since 2 months without me playing EVE. Htink I will really let it expire this time.

Definately. I do enjoy the pvp every now and then... but in my personal opinion the PvE is great. Both Gwf and GwP have a great storyline, mission ect.


There are certain builds which allow one to "solo" a mission...but other than that, henchys are the way to go, and in alot of situations/ways..(more than you would like to think)...henchys are actually better than actual players.

Depends what you prefer physical or mage. If you were going physical, I would suggest a ranger/?. Pets are always handy to have around, even if you don't have attributes of a beastmaster. If you were going mage, I would suggest a mesmer. There "supposed" to be the hardest class for new players- but I think they are fairly easy to understand... and they really are usefull. I've just started my pve one a few days ago.

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Overall, it's up to you, though. Just try them all out.. i'm sure you will find your match.
Good luck, and enjoy Guild Wars

Isn't pretty much everything an improvement from EVE's autopilot-wait-two-more-hours-to-reach-your-destination?

Was a fine game but I have other things to do with my time than look at the autopilot fly around.

Rangers are a good way to learn the game, and are pretty balanced.

... erm, when was the last time you were in 0.0 ?

From another EVE-player, i'd take the W/Mo . It's quite easy. If instead of that , you are the EW guy, then i'd take the Mesmer. Thats one of the most difficult classes though.If you like to snipping then take the Ranger.

ah btw, i took a short pause from EVE. It's lasting almost 8 months so far, so beware. Beware too NOT to join a Guid (corp) since the gameplay is faar more fun, but now you could get caught by GW.

Comparing with EVE PvP is 2 sided. It's amazing balanced and the Devs keeps the trak and makes frequent changes if any kind of imbalace comes out. On the other side though you loose nothing when looses the fight so no real "trill" there This brings that the average of PvP players is quite low. Too many kids showing their "ranks". One "pod" is more than enough on EVE too keep those ppl out. Sad you cannot here :|

I'm just changing skills on EVE and checking how my corp is doing there. Hope to get back soon (tm)

lol, that one really got me laughing

Bele has summed up the PvP part of EVE-GW pretty good.

Instas FTW! Anyway... enough talk about Eve I purchased the game last night, greated a test character to get a feel for the controls and style. What a beautiful game! I'm seriously considering a Ranger/Monk though.

Go with whatever you feel like, there isn't a single class that disappoints. I'm surprised you have a feel for the controls though, most new players think its horrible until they learn to use the keyboard for actions rather than the mouse.

What???? And pay $50 for faction which you can finish the whole game in less then a week. Stick with EVE, it is so much better then Faction.