Guide: Getting Started with Guild Wars

What this is: A simple guide for thoughs that are new to Guild Wars or thoughs that are thinking about playing Guild Wars.

What this is not: A topic to start a debate, flame war, bash others or the game, etc. etc.

What is Guild Wars?: Below is taken directly from the official F.A.Q. for Guild Wars.

Guild Wars is a global online roleplaying game. Players can engage in cooperative group combat, in single player adventures, or in large head-to-head guild battles. Guild Wars is a mission-based game set in a stunning 3D fantasy world that offers excellent support for guilds. Because the team that developed Guild Wars had experience creating successful online game series such as Warcraft, StarCraft and Diablo, the members used their familiarity with the complex issues surrounding online games to create a game that is both easy to learn and compelling to play long term, and yet does not require players to spend hundreds of hours slogging through the preparation just to get to the fun bits.

Is Guild Wars a MMORPG?: Below is taken directly from the official F.A.Q. for Guild Wars.

Guild Wars has some similarities to existing MMORPGs, but it also has some key differences. Like existing MMOs, Guild Wars is played entirely online in a secure hosted environment. Thousands of players inhabit the same virtual world. Players can meet new friends in gathering places like towns and outposts where they form parties and go questing with them. Unlike many MMOs, when players form a party and embark upon a quest in Guild Wars, they get their own private copy of the area where the quest takes place. This design eliminates some of the frustrating gameplay elements commonly associated with MMOs, such as spawn camping, loot stealing, and standing in a queue in order to complete a quest.

Ok, so now that part is cleared up, lets move on to some other stuff. Being a new players to any game can be hard and often a fustrating situation. To aviod this, it's always best to become familular with the game and what it's all about before taking the plunge, blindly I might add. So, lets get you started with a few things. Below you will find some links to a few websites that focus on nothing but Guild Wars. There's going to be a ton of info to take in, and lots of reading. Try not to burn your self out on information overload early on, take a break if you find your self getting tired or fustrated, come back later.

The Official Guild Wars Website
http://www.guildwars.com/
The official hub to all things Guild Wars, here is your starting point. Familuarize your self with this site, and bookmark it for future reference. Game updates, News, and more will be found here. First and fore most, read the F.A.Q and visit the Support section if you have questions or are having issues with the game. You can also purchase the game via this site, handy if you live in a remote area and do not have access to a local software store.

Guild Wars Guru
http://www.guildwarsguru.com/
A fantastic site dedicated to helping you expand your knowledge of Guild Wars. You'll find Guides, News, Forums, and much more here. Bookmark the site so you can come back to it at any time. There's alot of info here, enough to keep you busy for a few days, careful not to overload your self on info.

GWOnline.net
http://www.gwonline.net/
A favorite of many, along with Guild Wars Guru, you've covered every base of knowledge for Guild Wars. Bookmark this site so you may come back later when you need to further your knowledge.

There are many other sites on the internet dedicated to Guild Wars, and many of which have some great info. For now, lets just focus on the 3 main ones. Guild Wars Guru and GWOnline.net both have very active forums, and are monitored daily and visited by official Guild Wars staff. The forums at both sites can be your hub to solve future problems, answer questions, and as a means to be apart of the Guild Wars Community. Many Guilds recruit via the forums and each site has a dedicated section for trading in-game items.

Why is the highest level only 20, and what is there to do after?
This is by far the most asked question I have come across. The level cap is set to 20 for the first chapter of Guild Wars. The game will be releast in chapters that will further the in-game story, which you as the player take a very big part in. With each new expansion, there will possibly be a level cap increase, more land, more missions, more quests, and more of many othe things. Level 20 is not the end, it's only the beginning!

You'll be surprised how quick you can get to level 20, and how fun the game can be at this point. Player vs. Player really shines at this stage. Skill points are still obtained by doing quests, missions, and killing baddies the old fashion way. There are elite skills to get, advanced area's to explore like the UnderWorld, and better items to find. As a level 20, you will be sought after by lower level players for help, and assistance. This can be very rewarding, as you will be not only strong, but experienced in the ways of the game.

I'm already playing Guild Wars, and I'm having a hard time liking the game!
The first thing to remember is that your not alone in Guild Wars. If your having a hard time getting into the game, then you need to take a step back and evaluate the reasons why. For many, it's just a matter of learning the game, breaking the ice if you will. Visit the sites I have linked to above, and do some research into the game. Also, read the manuel that comes with the game. It's not big, but it does cover enough to get you started.

A huge issue for players of Online Games like Guild Wars and many others, is called "Burn Out". There are millions of people playing these games everyday, many of them are dedicating so much time to them, that they eventually start to suffer from this. In other terms, it's a form of obsession, an addiction if you will. We as humans, are obsessive/compulsive by nature, some more than others, but in one form or another, we are all obsessed about something, be it our daily routiens like coffee in the morning, or keeping a clean house, down to the hours we sink into gaming.

To avoid a potentially dangerous situation like Burn Out, take frequient breaks, only play for set amount of time and then quit, and go do something else. Clear your mind of the game and focus your attention on other things. After awhile, you can come back and your chances of feeling less fustrated, and having more fun will be much greater. If you find your self getting upset, angry, stressed, and even violent, it's time to stop playing right away.

Another great way to minimize fustration, stress and not having fun, is to find some other players. Online games are ment to be social, and there are thousands of people out there that would enjoy your company and would be happy to help you out with anything you need. Guilds are the hub of the social network in online games, and can quickly become a reason to enjoy your gaming experiance, with any game, not just Guild Wars.

Conclusion
Guild Wars is not for everyone, and may not be the right game for you. Keeping an open mind about this can often lead to new views of games and help you enjoy the ones you like even more. Never be afraid to ask for help, I believe there are no stupid questions, only stupid answers. I hope this guide helps, even if only in a little bit, the fact that you took the time to read it is a good thing.

If you have something you would like to add to this, or simply want to comment on this guide, I welcome it all here in this topic. I hope to see some of you in Guild Wars and wish you all a good gaming experiance.

Mike "Munka" Gillingham
Guild Wars In-Game Name: Turnip King (Ranger/Monk), Turnip Itis (Monk/Necromancer)
Guild EViL Officer and loyal Guild Wars Fan