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[Hawkian]

there's nothing like SAB anywhere else ever and it is pure distilled arcadey joyous golden awesome FUN. It's a uniquely enjoyable experience in a game filled with enjoyable experiences and nobody can get me to love it with any less fervor or exuberance.

If its presence offends you enough that you can't safely ignore it then the game will certainly still be around come October We'll be here!

Celestial will stay as it is minus the MF bonus on it.

Womp womp. Doesn't make a whole lot of sense since it's a total stat budget being split. I'll still use it as one of my sets though.

MF food will work as it is working now.
Utility Infusion will still work.

To answer a few more questions:
If you currently have listed an item with MF on the Trading Post, they will be returned to you, as they become account bound.
Upgrade components that currently give MF bonus will be updated with new functionality.
All existing drops and crafting recipes that have created Magic Find gear will be replaced with new stat combos.

In order to bring you these tidbits I had to read a whole thread and I'm sad now.

 

[Levyne]

OK I'm convinced, I should join GAF.

If someone could send an invite to Lazortiddles / lazorexplosion.9602 plsplsty

Hmm. Sorry. Seems like no one invited you last night. I got you in now.

 

[Hawkian]

Hmm. Sorry. Seems like no one invited you last night. I got you in now.

Wow yes, completely missed that. Thanks a lot for getting him in.

 

[Pumpkin King]

Does anyone know if the achievements and rewards from the first SAB will be back this time?

 

[Hawkian]

Does anyone know if the achievements and rewards from the first SAB will be back this time?

Unless things have changed since Josh last spoke on the topic, they will sir.

 

[Pumpkin King]

Awesome, thanks!

 

[Kos Luftar]

Whatever.

SAB lovers are my frenemies this month.

 

[markot]

The latency killed sab for me lay time....

 

[Lunar15]

I couldn't really tell you what it is, but something about it just really frustrated me. Felt really tedious or something. It made me feel ill.

It's an extreme and personal reaction, I'm sure. Glad it's back for those who want it, although it kills me from a lore perspective. I should be used to this by now, though.

 

[markot]

They better not increase damage too much with the new weapons... The jump from yellow to orange weapon dps is pretty big, doing the same again would kinds suck for wvw.... I think the current level of damage is really good for good fights.


The lore they have added generally sucks. I mean all that build up for a terrible character like Scarlett whose motivation is 'I like chaos'?

 

[Nemesis121]

I am on Yaks Bend killed a few GaF in WvW last night then waved at you hahahahaha...

 

[Jest Chillin]

They better not increase damage too much with the new weapons... The jump from yellow to orange weapon dps is pretty big, doing the same again would kinds suck for wvw.... I think the current level of damage is really good for good fights.


The lore they have added generally sucks. I mean all that build up for a terrible character like Scarlett whose motivation is 'I like chaos'?

Worked for other stories... "Some people just want to see the world burn."

 

[Mxrz]

They better not increase damage too much with the new weapons... The jump from yellow to orange weapon dps is pretty big, doing the same again would kinds suck for wvw.... I think the current level of damage is really good for good fights

This is what I'm wondering too. Is it possible the damage cap will stay the same, just an increase in stats? My thief pulls off crazy dmg going from rare to exotic, if ascended is another leap. . . ouch for WvW casters.

 

[markot]

Worked for other stories... "Some people just want to see the world burn."

We already have 5 dragons who have that motivation....

 

[Jest Chillin]

We already have 5 dragons who have that motivation....

I always thought they just wanted to control everything.. not so much see chaos.

 

[Lunar15]

Worked for other stories... "Some people just want to see the world burn."

I know, and this is a pretty blatant copy of that. I mean, down to the part where Queen Jennah (Comissioner Gordon) uses an illusion (pretends to be dead) so that they can be one step ahead of Scarlet (the Joker). I mean, her dungeon is even called Scarlet's Playhouse, and involves her doing cartoonish things cooking people in a big pot, jumping on bomb barrels, and standing on a stack of explosives. it's not really the motivation that bothers me, it's more how disconnected it seems, lore wise. The dragons, while lacking a motivational backstory, are incredibly relevant and personally threatening. All of our characters ventured forth because of the dragons, and anytime we're not addressing them, it feels like filler.

Ultimately, I think they're avoiding dragons because they're still working on an expansion. I used to think they were going to totally avoid expansions, but recent talking points from devs have moved backwards from "We're not going to do it" to "we're considering our options".

 

[markot]

I always thought they just wanted to control everything.. not so much see chaos.

They just want to kill all life.

Or somethin...

The sentient races anyway.

 

[Jest Chillin]

I know, and this is a pretty blatant copy of that. I mean, down to the part where Queen Jennah (Comissioner Gordon) uses an illusion (pretends to be dead) so that they can be one step ahead of Scarlet (the joker). But it's not really the motivation that bothers me, it's more how disconnected it seems, lorewise. The dragons, while lacking a motivational backstory, are incredibly relevant and personally threatening. All of our characters ventured forth because of the dragons, and anytime we're not addressing them, it feels like filler.

Ultimately, I think they're avoiding dragons because they're still working on an expansion. I used to think they were going to totally avoid expansions, but recent talking points from devs have moved backwards from "We're not going to do it" to "we're considering our options".

Hence my quote. But yeah.. I don't follow the dev interviews and comments as much as I used to but I've seen them go back and forth between not doing them and not working on anything like that at this point in time. /shrug I don't mind either way.

They just want to kill all life.

Or somethin...

The sentient races anyway.

Gotta kill em to control em. It would be nice if we could get like.. the offspring of Glint and that he/she/it would have Glints knowledge and would reveal some kind of far reaching ancient enmity that the other Dragons still remember and hate the sentient races for. Like maybe the Gods were once Humans and they had to defeat the dragons to become Gods.. so the Dragons were forced to slumber for thousands of years. But something happened and the Gods disappeared and weren't around when the Dragons awoke and now they want to destroy everyone to prevent the possibility of being defeated again.

May be a bit much but I think it'd be pretty cool.

 

[Retro]

If they do that I'm not playing till SAB goes away.

I was just thinking something like the last few stages of Portal; the 'simulation' starts to end and you can break out of it in places to see what's going on in the background. In that particular case, you'd probably get your weapons and such back somehow.

ANET should not get rid of my profession skills for some stupid mini-game.

Them's fightin' words, I LOVE SAB. But I do feel that SAB being temporary is a strength; if it was just there all the time, we'd get bored with it and nobody would play it. By having it come back every so often, with new stuff, it makes it exciting.

 

[Lunar15]

Well, I guess there's going to have to be some kind of twist for the update two weeks later.

 

[hythloday]

it's not really the motivation that bothers me, it's more how disconnected it seems, lore wise. The dragons, while lacking a motivational backstory, are incredibly relevant and personally threatening. All of our characters ventured forth because of the dragons, and anytime we're not addressing them, it feels like filler.

You, stop reading my thoughts.

Scarlet just doesn't interest me. I just hate how automatically a new Sylvari character who wants to go do her own thing and choose her own path just has to be a maniac. We can't just have a neutral free-thinker or anything. Has to be good or evil, that's the rule.

Not to mention I was already interested in the existing characters, and now we have another new evil genius maniac person seemingly out of nowhere dominating everything.

Don't get me wrong, the rest of the new characters are cool - love Braham and Rox. Marjory Delaqua was cool but now she just hangs out in that bar all day I guess. The Zephyrites were initially kind of 'eh' until we found out their connection to Glint. Then the Aetherblades were new and mysterious, and threatening. I just wish someone would throw Scarlet in a woodchipper. (Maybe that's the point, since she's supposed to be our nemesis and all.)

 

[Bl4ckSunsh1n3]

They better not increase damage too much with the new weapons... The jump from yellow to orange weapon dps is pretty big, doing the same again would kinds suck for wvw.... I think the current level of damage is really good for good fights.


The lore they have added generally sucks. I mean all that build up for a terrible character like Scarlett whose motivation is 'I like chaos'?

I agree and it's a shame about the lore. The potential is there for something really good but, we haven't seen it in the game yet.

 

[Retro]

We already have 5 dragons who have that motivation....

The Dragons really don't have motivation; they're forces of nature who show up and wipe out everyone in the world. Supposedly they just consume magic, so I think that whenever civilization grows too magically powerful, they wake up and wipe everything out. It was only by the actions of the Forgotten and Glint that some of the older races (dwarves, jotun, forgotten, mursaat, and seers) survived the last time they showed up.

Elder Dragons are like hurricanes and tornadoes; they don't have motivations, they just destroy.

I just wish someone would throw Scarlet in a woodchipper. (Maybe that's the point, since she's supposed to be our nemesis and all.)

Nah, the enmity for Scarlet isn't that she is a particularly good villain, it's that she's not that interesting and we want to see the lore get back on track. Maybe we'll get more details later on that flesh out her character and motivation beyond a Harley Quinn-like "Tee Hee, let's blow stuff up!" persona, but a good story shouldn't take that long to build up. I am not in the Scarlet Fan Club by any means; let's get back to the world at large.

 

[Jest Chillin]

I
Them's fightin' words, I LOVE SAB. But I do feel that SAB being temporary is a strength; if it was just there all the time, we'd get bored with it and nobody would play it. By having it come back every so often, with new stuff, it makes it exciting.

I'd be in that thing multiple times a week farming. I love that place.

 

[TrounceX]

Ultimately, I think they're avoiding dragons because they're still working on an expansion. I used to think they were going to totally avoid expansions, but recent talking points from devs have moved backwards from "We're not going to do it" to "we're considering our options".

They are working on an expansion but it's still quite a ways off.

 

[Retro]

I'd be in that thing multiple times a week farming. I love that place.

I did the SAB enough to get all the account-bound skins I wanted, plus two backpacks, plus enough rare non-bound skins to make 50g off the TP later... and I never once felt like I was farming it. It was an absolute joy, from the music to the alternative routes to even sort of speed-running it. I can't wait until next Tuesday.

I know some folks aren't a fan, but honestly this is the kind of stuff I always wanted MMO developers to do; make stuff that's a little off-beat and isn't just more 'end game' stuff. People can jump in and do SAB immediately and have a blast.

And of course, I have mega Nostalgia bonners for it.

 

[Shanlei91]

I'm still holding out on the idea that the Sylvari are creatures created by the Dragons and that all these free-thinking Sylvari are trying to save us.

 

[Alchemy]

I'm still holding out on the idea that the Sylvari are creatures created by the Dragons and that all these free-thinking Sylvari are trying to save us.

Close.

 

[Retro]

I'm still holding out on the idea that the Sylvari are creatures created by the Dragons and that all these free-thinking Sylvari are trying to save us.

Nah. Sylvari are all evil and the Nightmare Court is actually the way they're supposed to act. It's only because the Pale Tree's seed was separated from the others and the Ventari Tablet was left where they'd find it that they're good.

I still think Scarlet is something different though. The short story seemed to imply that she has knowledge beyond any other being, and has actually seen the "Eternal Alchemy" (which is basically the mechanics of all existence). Either she's crazy, and that's boring, or she knows The Truth and will dangle it over us for years, which is also boring.

The story is honestly my biggest disappointment with the game so far. And it's not like they can't tell stories, because Ree's book was actually really good. I think there's either too many cooks in the kitchen, or the storyline square is being forced into the gameplay's round hole. I'd be okay if the Personal Story was stripped away after a certain point (like, when your racial stuff ends), replaced with a Profession-specific storyline, and then funneled into the Orders later which is ambiguous enough to drive you to whatever Dragon is being battled in the live game.

 

[Luigi87]

I still think Scarlet is something different though. The short story seemed to imply that she has knowledge beyond any other being, and has actually seen the "Eternal Alchemy" (which is basically the mechanics of all existence). Either she's crazy, and that's boring, or she knows The Truth and will dangle it over us for years, which is also boring.

Well you know what they say... To know the face of god is to know madness.

 

[Complistic]

Nah. Sylvari are all evil

excuse me.

 

[Retro]

Well you know what they say... To know the face of god is to know madness.

I'd be okay if the approach was better, but so far all Scarlet has done is internet vandalism and cribbed a lot of notes from Wile E. Coyote. She's not acting like someone driven insane so much as she's acting like a rebellious teenager; I get more malice than madness, and the fact that she's also The Smartest Person Anyone Has Ever Known just makes this feel like a total Mary Sue... and ArenaNet can do so much better.

excuse me.

Well, they're all supposed to be evil, but by chance the Pale Tree's Sylvari are not. I also think the Jungle Dragon lets the Pale Tree exist because of the Dream; what better way to gain intelligence about your enemies than to have an entire race of unwitting spies reporting everything they experience?

Also, you mean to tell me you're not just a little evil?

 

[Lunar15]

It's not all bad. I'm down on scarlet, but there have been high points. My favorite living story releases have been Flame and Frost and Bazaar of the Four Winds.

I liked Flame and Frost because it took me back to my very first starting zone and actually showed a conflict that was affecting that area. While having the Flame Legion and the Dredge team up was weird at first, I think they pulled it off. It also introduced us to Braham and Rox, who I've only heard praise for. It was a bit too slow of a burn, but ultimately it had a good arc that finished on a high note with the Molten Facility. The conflict felt tied to the world, and nothing felt too out of place. I think a lot of disappointment with later releases stemmed from the fact that flame and frost made me extremely hopeful for how the Living Story would play out.

The Bazaar of the Four Winds was great because, once again, all of the elements were harmony: We got the thrill of finding a new zone that was not only interesting from a gameplay standpoint, but also from a lore standpoint. The story of the Zephyrites could stand on its own, but they also had some fascinating references to very relevant lore for those who wanted it. It was a great blend of lore, setting, and gameplay that I think has been their high mark for sure.

Also, on dragons: They are, as Retro said, a force of nature. They live to destroy. But that's what makes them irresistible: They're built-in drama machines. They're the driving force of every conflict in the world. When they're not present, it's like we all forgot about the hurricane that was right off our shore. It's perfectly understandable to give us villains with faces that persist and cause us trouble, but the problem with Scarlet is that she just seems so alien.

 

[Shanlei91]

I don't get why the story has to be so bad. This goes for not only this game, but so many other games. It has me wondering if developers don't want to hire a writer so they have an intern do it or something.

The story in this game has pockets of awesome but for the most part the story leaves you wanting more. Whether it's because characters are flat, events aren't really cool, events aren't fully explained, or they read like stand alone bland young adult novels with no real link or connection.

The living story has felt so boring and slow, completely drawn out. What makes a piece of work like, lets say, Breaking Bad so amazing is that nothing is drawn out. The status quo changes, the writing is tight, everything has a meaning and is connected. This game feels all wibbly wobbly. The personal story is definitely something that has them cornered - as you can't really make major changes in Tyria that would contradict it. Although this is a terrible excuse I'm starting to think, as you could write amazing stuff without touching the personal story. Or you could make the shift and say that the events of the personal story are actually flashbacks to the previous year in Tyria. (your story thus far)

What is interesting is that because events have been so ambiguous and lacking of detail is that you then have guys like WoodenPotatoes who connects the dots with some really cool backstory that brings the current mess all together into awesomeness. But I fear that the truth is that the devs don't have anything prepared that matches anything close to the awesomeness WoodenPotatoes cooked up. They're just trucking along, throwing anything at the players. There was a moment where I saw during an invasion, the invaders began fighting with Orrian NPCs. I thought "oh shit, the two don't get along!" as I noticed invaders had ignored all other NPCs thus far. My mind raced with how this could be hints of some warring factions. A few hours later I saw that invaders were hostile towards Skelks and realized it was probably just a coding issue. That experience actually sums up my feelings towards the story as a whole.

 

[Complistic]

Well, they're all supposed to be evil, but by chance the Pale Tree's Sylvari are not. I also think the Jungle Dragon lets the Pale Tree exist because of the Dream; what better way to gain intelligence about your enemies than to have an entire race of unwitting spies reporting everything they experience?

Also, you mean to tell me you're not just a little evil?

Nah I agree. Sylvari are for sure dragon minions. Makes them even more awesome imo.

The jungle dragon is called Mordremoth btw.

 

[Noisy Ninj4]

Elder Dragons are like hurricanes and tornadoes; they don't have motivations, they just destroy.

I've pretty much likened elder dragons to Mass Effect reapers.

 

[Retro]

It's not all bad. I'm down on scarlet, but there have been high points. My favorite living story releases have been Flame and Frost and Bazaar of the Four Winds.

I liked Flame and Frost because it took me back to my very first starting zone and actually showed a conflict that was affecting that area. While having the Flame Legion and the Dredge team up was weird at first, I think they pulled it off. It also introduced us to Braham and Rox, who I've only heard praise for. It was a bit too slow of a burn, but ultimately it had a good arc that finished on a high note with the Molten Facility. The conflict felt tied to the world, and nothing felt too out of place.

The Bazaar of the Four Winds was great because, once again, all of the elements were harmony: We got the thrill of finding a new zone that was not only interesting from a gameplay standpoint, but also from a lore standpoint. The story of the Zephyrites could stand on its own, but they also had some fascinating references to very relevant lore for those who wanted it. It was a great blend of lore, setting, and gameplay that I think has been their high mark for sure.

Yeah, there have been a few glimmers of hope, even in the personal story. It feels like they have a lot of hooks established in the Racial storylines that just aren't being taken advantage of yet, or even ignored / paved over. The Infinity Ball's glimpse into an alternative, dystopian Tyria, Malyck and the Second Tree, what Caudecus is really up to and why the White Mantle have re-emerged are all good plothooks that don't seem to be going anywhere.

The Bazaar was probably my favorite in terms of story, though I do like the Flame and Frost line (as well as Rox and Braham's buddy-cop relationship). I think the reason is that it touched on established GW lore, but only in intangible ways. You got storyline hints from songs, conversations, snippets of dialogue and such. The problem with Scarlet is that she's in your face doing things; there's no mystery or subtly in her actions, just... "Die die die die die die die die."

The jungle dragon is called Mordremoth btw.

Yeah, but that's not common knowledge and I didn't want people to get lost.

I've pretty much likened elder dragons to Mass Effect reapers.

I lost interest in ME really quick, but that sounds about right, except that the Elder Dragons don't really harvest so much as just destroy. I like to think that the Elder Dragons are part of a natural balance; when there's too much magic, they come back to stop it; when that's gone they disappear.

 

[Lunar15]

There are loads of complications in writing something like the Living Story. I understand that it's like writing a television show where half the actors and the set equipment aren't even complete by the time you have to start writing. You're also dealing with the fact that a lot of people may not have seen previous episodes, or that they might not be fully caught up on the lore, or the world, or literally anything that's going on. They're also writing for an audience who could be anywhere from 6 to 50.

But I believe there's ways around that. I've always said, I'm not looking for a masterpiece, just something engaging. Tyria is really really really interesting. It's one of the reasons I got this game. The races, locales, and conflicts are really fascinating to me, and I'm sure that many people playing the game feel the same. And that's why a lot of this hurts; we all know there's so much that can be done.

 

[Cels]

"Hey all, no worries, we got you covered."

unless you have celestial gear, then sorry, you get nothing

 

[Wallach]

"Hey all, no worries, we got you covered."

unless you have celestial gear, then sorry, you get nothing

I really hope they aren't insinuating you won't be able to opt-out of Celestial gear like the other combinations. That would be massively fucked up.

Whether or not it receives a stat upgrade due to the loss of the MF is a different matter, but a more understandable one.

 

[Retro]

You're also dealing with the fact that a lot of people may not have seen previous episodes, or that they might not be fully caught up on the lore, or the world, or literally anything that's going on.

If this is actually what's going on at ArenaNet, I would be shocked. I mean, they even have someone with the "Lore and Continuity Director" job title who's job is to make sure the lore all fits and isn't just being flung together.

I don't think the problem is that each of the Living Story teams is working apart without consulting each other, I think it's that their storyline is too big for their development cycle. To use the TV metaphor, it's like we're getting everything up to the first commercial break rather than full episodes. Flame and Frost felt too slow, but had it been over two week updates, I think it would have been just about right.

"Hey all, no worries, we got you covered."

unless you have celestial gear, then sorry, you get nothing

I think maybe you're misunderstanding their plan. From the sound of things, any gear with +Magic Find on it will allow you to click it and select a completely different stat distribution. Your comment implies that you only get to saw the Magic Find stat for something else and any other stats on the gear will remain as they were. I just don't think that's how it works, hopefully before Tuesday we'll get a blog post that clarifies things.

 

[Cels]

you are right, maybe i am misunderstanding. mr. kerstein says "celestial will stay as it is minus the MF bonus on it" which implies there will be no "choose your replacement stat" on celestial gear like there will be for other gear.

but who knows, we'll see when the blog comes out, that will clear it up but from what mr. kerstein says i'm inclined to believe celestial gear will look the same as it does today, just no MF - a flat nerf.

 

[Wallach]

I think maybe you're misunderstanding their plan. From the sound of things, any gear with +Magic Find on it will allow you to click it and select a completely different stat distribution. Your comment implies that you only get to saw the Magic Find stat for something else and any other stats on the gear will remain as they were. I just don't think that's how it works, hopefully before Tuesday we'll get a blog post that clarifies things.

Well, when asked specifically about Celestial gear the CM said it would stay as it is, just without MF. Which I don't know whether implies it isn't going to be able to be opted out of like the others or only that it will continue to exist in the game as a combination just without the MF.

 

[Lunar15]

If this is actually what's going on at ArenaNet, I would be shocked. I mean, they even have someone with the "Lore and Continuity Director" job title who's job is to make sure the lore all fits and isn't just being flung together.

I was referring to players who have just started playing the game, not the people writing the story. They might not have played through the entire game yet to know all of the stuff we know, and they would have missed tons story that came from previous living story updates.

Think about it: It'd be a little weird when you're going through the starting areas and everyone's talking about the horrors of Zhaitan, but then you get to Lion's Arch and everyone's preparing to fight Jormag.

 

[Wallach]

You think there's any chance Ascended items will gain the ability to change stat allocation like Legendaries? I have a hard time imagining myself sticking with the game in a post-Ascended world where they still have rigid stat combinations. It's already so tiresome and they've only added the accessory island slots.

 

[Proven]

You think there's any chance Ascended items will gain the ability to change stat allocation like Legendaries? I have a hard time imagining myself sticking with the game in a post-Ascended world where they still have rigid stat combinations. It's already so tiresome and they've only added the accessory island slots.

Nope.

 

[Luigi87]

You think there's any chance Ascended items will gain the ability to change stat allocation like Legendaries? I have a hard time imagining myself sticking with the game in a post-Ascended world where they still have rigid stat combinations. It's already so tiresome and they've only added the accessory island slots.

I'd say that's a definite no.



On the subject of legendaries, I hope this precursor thing of them skyrocketing in price backfires hard o_o

 

[Complistic]

I think if they were going to add the scavenger hunt in this update, they would have said something.

Turns out, I bought the legend at a reeealllly good time.

 

[Levyne]

Yeah. Looks like a guild bought them up. Hopefully a scavenger hunt comes soon because fuck em.

 

[gamergirl85]

Is SAB really that fun? I think last time it was out was when I was just starting to play and could not get into it. Not sure how I feel about it coming back.