New Story, Maps and Metas

When an MMORPG like Guild Wars 2 that treats its world, lore and characters with respect, put out new story content, I always gravitate toward that first, because I enjoy seeing the narrative evolve and what part I’m playing in it, so I’ll have to say the story content this expansion is what I’m looking forward to the most, which I hope has a ton of new exciting boss fight encounters and cinematic cut-scenes. From all the previews and stuff we’ve seen recently, there’s hints that EoD will probably wrap up the Dragon saga and whatever happens with the story in EoD, I think the pay-off will be earned and deserved due to how much time we’ve spent with some of these characters and their arcs through all the Living World Episodes and the previous two expansions. And I mean come on its Cantha, so we should expect some really cool story-lines with characters old and new, and I’m looking forward to seeing how the conclusion of this expansion will shape the future of Tyria, even possibly giving us a teaser of what’s to come narratively for the future of Guild Wars 2. 

New Elite Specializations

Story content aside, I’m always excited when we get new Elite Specializations for our classes, because it offers us hours of fun tinkering with new builds, and challenging the established meta, which has become stagnant somewhat, so I’m looking forward to decking out my army of alts with these new specs, which should be a challenge. In 2021 we’ve had a few beta weeks where we got to test all the new elite specializations, and of course, some were more OP than others, which will get balanced out over time, but there are a few fun ones that I can definitely see myself playing long term.

The Mechanist for Engineers is probably the most fun out of everything I’ve tried because of that Jade Robot pet, followed by the Harbinger, Virtuoso and Willbender. It’s still too early to say which specs will be meta defining for other game modes like PvP or WvW, so I suggest not caring about that for the time being, and just play whatever is fun for you at launch. 

Fishing

As for other new features I’m looking forward to, definitely fishing and skiffing. Every GW2 expansion so far has introduced huge gameplay mechanic additions, like Gliding in Heart of Thorns and Mounts in Path of Fire, and with End of Dragons , besides the new two-seater mount and the Jade Bot companion with its quality of life features, fishing and boating are interesting additions by themselves, simply because we’ve not had social activities of this kind in-game previously, especially fishing, which in the world of MMORPGs, one would consider it normal to have that activity from the very beginning of the game’s life.

Therefore, with fishing appearing in Guild Wars 2 some 10 years after launch should be interesting, I want to see how it plays, what the progression is like, and is it a viable activity for making gold, and gathering important materials that could help with the new legendaries, collections and so on. Skiffing or boating is something that looks to complement fishing, and look GW2 has large bodies of water all over the game-world, so these two go hand-in-hand.

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End of Dragons will feature an all-new story set in the mysterious island realm of Cantha, a multi-ethnic land of magic that is home to the oldest nation of humans in all of Tyria. First seen in 2006’s Guild Wars Factions, this lush region dotted by islands and exotic architecture has been closed off and isolated from the rest of the world for over 200 years in the aftermath of The Jade Wind, a magical curse that petrified everything it touched and devastated the southeastern coastal regions. Canthan innovators have long sought practical applications for the material now known as “dragonjade,” achieving solutions undreamed of elsewhere in the world thanks to this vast store of magical energy. But the dragon cycle that has sustained and blighted Tyria for ages is collapsing…

“We’re incredibly excited to bring players back to the realm of Cantha for the first time in 15 years,” said Colin Johansen, studio director. “End of Dragons represents the realization of the entire development team’s passion for Guild Wars 2, and our continued commitment to creating quality content for players old and new.”

Players will take their first steps in rediscovering this hidden land when End of Dragons launches in February 2022. A roster of new voice talent, including Erika Ishii, Noshir Dalal, Ry Chase, Rina Hoshino, Tina Huang, and Sarah Sokolovic will serve as guides, allies, and foils on a new adventure that promises to reveal some of the Guild Wars franchise’s oldest canonical secrets.

End of Dragons will introduce a wealth of new features, activities, and storylines to the game, including the triumphant debut of the game’s first multiplayer mount, the Siege Turtle. Capable of hosting two riders, this walking war machine will bring co-op gameplay to Guild Wars 2’s renowned and acclaimed selection of game-changing mounted beasts.

New personal watercraft called Skiffs will serve as a mobile ferry for friends and guildmates, and for the first time fishing arrives in Guild Wars 2, providing a new way to interact with the fauna of Tyria, be it catching up some dinner or taking part in tournament events for new anglers.

As with previous expansions, new Elite Specializations for each of Guild Wars 2’s nine professions will provide new ways to play even maximum level characters, presenting new gameplay to master. All Guild Wars 2 players are invited to partake in monthly week-long Elite Specialization beta events coming to the game beginning August 17, and continuing in September, October, and November. Free for everyone, players can log in and create a new character during the beta period that will provide early access to the new Elite Specializations in advance of the expansion launch next year. 

On top of a new set of Masteries, a new suite of third generation Legendary Weapons inspired by the iconic Elder Dragon Aurene will be available for players to seek out at launch, offering the ultimate heroic character reward, while new Strike Missions provide challenging encounters to tackle with a squad of 10 players. For the first time, challenge modes for each of the new Strikes will be enabled shortly after End of Dragons launches, which will put even the most battle-hardened groups to the test.

Guild Wars 2: End of Dragons is available for pre-purchase starting today at guildwars2.com/end-of-dragons for $29.99, and includes a bundle of pre-purchase bonus items, including a Flame Serpent Weapon Chest, a Shing Jea Mosaic Cape, a special Prodigy of Shing Jea character Title, a shared inventory slot, and a level 80 character boost. The Deluxe Edition ($54.99) comes with the standard edition bundle, plus another batch of exclusive items: a Shing Jea Dragon Boat Skiff skin, a Canthan Raptor mount skin, an additional character slot, and an Identity Repair Kit. The End of Dragons Ultimate Edition ($79.99) includes the exclusive Standard and Deluxe Edition items, plus 4,000 Gems, Guild Wars 2’s premium in-game store currency.

Additionally, to commemorate the launch of End of Dragons, ArenaNet is making available a special edition premium statue of the Elder Dragon Aurene, the player character’s stalwart in-game companion. Sized at 8-by-10 inches, this translucent crystalline sculpt of Aurene in her regal Eye of the North pose will be available for pre-order from the Guild Wars 2 web site between July 27 and August 20 for $120 plus tax and shipping. She will also come with a digital redemption for a unique in-game character cape with her logo emblazoned upon it.

ArenaNet and NCSOFT will reveal more about the expansion throughout the summer on their Twitch and YouTube channels via a series of Friday live streams, with many more surprises in store throughout the remainder of 2021.  

For more information about Guild Wars 2: End of Dragons, please visit guildwars2.com/endofdragons

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