...fuck.
I understand that for some veterans of online gaming, this experience is nothing new. Being the first on your server to beat a new raid must have been exhilarating, and I'm sure the resulting sensation is similar. But I haven't played any of those games, and I personally have never felt anything like this in gaming before. My heart was pounding since the 50% mark of the
previous run, where we really didn't have the organization we needed but you could just
feel how well we were doing.
That satisfaction from reaching 25% for the first time, to knowing we could kill him, to
killing him, was immense. And then seconds later, the game's developer posts on Twitter that we did it. We're the 7th NA server (if you include ET
) and 15th overall to get it done.
We did it. That was us. We were
there. All future successes Stormbluff Isle has in this fight (including, hopefully, the one I'm missing right now!) come in the wake of this glorious victory.
GAF made an enormous impact on this kill, accounting for about a quarter or more of the total force, Ash leading the main zerg plug our own parties as turret defenders. And even though there were well over 100 people on the map, maybe my favorite thing about the fight is that every group, every pair, even
individuals can make huge plays. I saw a Guardian banish a Creeper (or whatever the hell they're called) away from our laser battery at the exact right moment. One person peeling off from the zerg to quick a quick turret rebuild off before hopping back in. Warbanner drops turning an unlucky wave into barely a second and a half of loss.
I personally was using every trick in the book I've learned over a year of experience with my classes. Cluster bombs in a water field to heal. Shadowstep out of the zerg to focus down a finger by the turrets, Shadowstep back to remove the poison. Run up and Dagger Storm in a light field to keep people cleansed. Infiltrator's Arrow to speed over to the battery for laser phase. Pick up a stray Fiery Greatsword, spin forward and blast Teq, drop it and shortbow 3 back out to the zerg. I died twice, and I'm both proud of my own performance and psyched to get better and better.
I had this incredibly memorable experience being a part of a server first kill, and I suddenly have this newfound respect for the raiding I have never done. I understand why people would chase this sensation, and why people desired it brought to GW2. And yet...
- No one is turned away because there are too many or too few of a particular class.
- No one is locked out because of an arbitrary maximum number of players that can compete (well, before getting into the hundreds anyway).
- Participants do not need best-in-slot gear to complete it.
- No need to sign up in advance for the chance to participate at all.
I know hythloday mentioned these things already, but it bears repeating. We coordinated with a massive number of people. Over 125 people all working together for a common goal. Gamers who wouldn't touch traditional MMO raiding with a ten foot pole- myself included- were in there with us, not just along for the ride, but making an impact right alongside the hardcorest of the hardcore.
All of the initial Tuesday complaints (and continuing official forum complaints) seem patently laughable to me now. Overtuned? Heh, over 1:30 to spare on our first kill. It'd be a travesty to see him nerfed at this point. Average randoms can't follow instructions and will ruin it for everyone? Apparently not. On our winning run I barely saw a single defeated player on the ground (except for Adriaaa of course). No one will want to do it because of shitty rewards?
Let's consider that last one for a minute. Guild Wars 2 having poor "risk vs. reward" is a common complaint. Not even one I entirely disagree with. But you know what I did in-game for a majority of the time this week? Waited. I stood around in Sparkfly Fen. I talked over strategies, helped assign people jobs, tried to help us identify how the preceding failure differed from the one before that. For a majority of the time I spent in Guild Wars 2 this week, my "gold per hour" was literally zero. Guess what? It was maybe my favorite week spent with the game so far.
Guild Wars 2 is about a lot of different things. Lots of different playstyles, lots of different ways to spend your time. Much of it has been about relatively simple content with easily-obtained rewards that players of any skill level can enjoy. There's nothing wrong with that.
But now it's about
this, too. I love that they just unleashed this terrifying encounter on the playerbase with faith that we'd figure it out, get it down, get it done. My mind is racing with the possibilities for what's to come. How will we be forced to adapt next time? Will it be even harder? Can SBI pull together for a top 5 kill next time? Top 3? What will it even
be?
Proud of our server and our guild tonight. Whatever comes next...
We'll be waiting.