From the Mind of Magi: Chapter 3 Speculation
Edited and Published by: Magi
The annual Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) has come and gone, and, as usual, left players, media persons and darn near everyone else wanting more. If you would look at any of the major MMO titles displayed, this would be none truer then with our very own Guild Wars. We did have an expansion before the expo (Factions), so going into it I don't think we expected much: maybe just some re-hashing of the content we are already experiencing? While this proved to be the case, there was also some tidbits at the next expansion (untitled and without a release date) that many media sources are calling "North-African inspired."
To be completely fair, however, from the articles I have read on the issue (I was not able to attend E3 unfortunately) the inspirations go far beyond simply "North-African" and into such areas as Persia perhaps. On the same token, it is difficult to fathom where the inspirations were truly drawn from, since, as the reporters admitted, most of what they saw was concept art, and arguably subject to change. That said, there is one description that seems definitive and it pertains to possibly the two new professions that will be added, which will surely interest all readers. That is what I wish to discuss first.
Without going into too many descriptive details (I want to avoid this since things can change and all we had was concept art) the two new professions were described as "desert dwellers" I guess you could say (in regards to their clothing) and wielded a dual-bladed staff and bare knuckles (or perhaps unarmed weapons) respectively. Initially, it is surprising (based on purely aesthetic details) that both of these professions are not only melee based, but seem to be the same kind. What do I mean by that? It would seem - and this is purely speculation - that they would be focused on generating damage. Though that requires some expansion first.
I think we can all agree that, if the primary weapon of one of these two new professions is a double bladed staff, that this [profession] will focus on damage. After all, if you can imagine a double-bladed staff for a moment (for those who don't know, this means a blade on either end of said staff) would require both hands to wield. This commonly means that the focus is on damage, if we are to assume traditional MMO standards. It makes sense anyway: shouldn't you sacrifice defense for offense if a shield isn't utilized? Just look at the Ranger for instance. Then again, Guild Wars is about skill so this argument only goes so far, but I do feel that we would be hard pressed to imagine any two-handed weapon wielding class to be anything but focused on offense.
What is challenging in all of this speculative debate is what role this "unarmed profession" you could say, has. I would like to note as well that no media has reported "unarmed weapons" -- I am simply stating that they will wield this based on my speculation. I do this for two reasons: the first is that there is really no mention of this particular profession having an inclination to magic and secondly, there are no bare handed or unarmed professions in the game thus far. To say it would be unique and distinct to the upcoming chapter would be an understatement. But I think the question that must be asked is: how viable is an unarmed weapon profession in Guild Wars?
I've read a few posts on this issue by our forum visitors and others, and some have suggested that such a combatant would look rather silly (and it was added in plate as well). I'm inclined to agree to this position, for, if you can imagine a warrior without a weapon, trying to fight, well it's rather silly. That said, this profession does not have to wear heavy armor necessarily. Perhaps this class will thrive on high offense and evasion, effectively working as a tank profession without the heavy armor (so they would literally be wearing cloth). Other titles do this - Final Fantasy XI comes to mind with their Ninja job - so while it has precedence, it isn't necessarily easy. Though that is why we have expansions to begin with: to diversify the game, to make it more challenging and most importantly, more unique. So who knows, maybe we'll see this? Or perhaps not.
Put aside the advent of new professions into Guild Wars, the single most important advancement for all of us will be PvP modes. While I recognize the demand for some sort of speculation on it - for those interested in such thought of course - it is also the most challenging: we have no information on it right now. For as I noted earlier, the only thing that media reporters were privy to was concept art, which in turn leads to aesthetic details only. In other words: all sizzle and no steak. But that has never stopped speculators like myself, so, going off what I usually do, I'll put forth a few ideas on possible PvP modes.
The PvP mode that I will speculate on first is not one that is inherent to the North-African themed world itself, but more to the trends that the recently released expansion, Factions, set. That, quite simply, is larger, more epic modes of PvP. For if we would look towards the original campaign, Prophecies, the highest number of participants possible in any PvP mode - Guild versus Guild - was eight per side, resulting in an obvious 16 total. Then Factions came around and that number expanded to 12 vs 12 - Alliance Battles - so the obvious number increases to 24. Given the success and popularity of both, and in particular Alliance Battles, it can be assumed we will see further increases, if it's possible that is. So while I would like to see large, epic battles I would warrant that we may only see an increase of four or more per side, if that. Oh, and for those wondering, I don't think we'll see territory control copied over either.
So now the question that must be asked is: how will this new PvP mode aesthetically feel, whether it's an increased number - 16 vs 16 - or something much smaller? This is an important question and one that is not necessarily easy to answer either. Though going off what we know - the North-African theme - I'd wager we may see wide open battlefields, particularly if a good chunk of the geographical influence comes from deserts. That said, when I sit back and think about this I say to myself: "would that be entertaining or fun?" I then answer aloud "not necessarily." So then I guess I could suggest that - and once again assuming the desert is used frequently as far as geography is concerned - that some sort of "survival" PvP mode would be used. Perhaps utilizing the strategic control points in Alliance Battles, but by losing or not controlling certain points, food and water supplies are decreased and thereby decreasing overall team effectiveness? Am I pulling ideas out of my rear end now? In all likelihood, but it certainly is a unique concept if I do say so myself.
To briefly finish my thoughts on PvP: I think we'll definitely see larger PvP battles - 16 vs 16 maybe - but how this is done, and similarly, what it feels like aesthetically, is still remains up for grabs. Also, I seemed to have answered my next topic for this editorial which is on "world diversification." Maybe by this next chapter we will see a predominant desert world? Perhaps, but only time will tell. What I wish to consider last, however, is the obscure chance of mounts that seem to pop up.
So where did all this mount talk come up? I can remember before E3, whenever discussion of mounts arose it was quickly dismissed. "Nonsense!" many forum posters said "we have instant travel so why would we need it?" The point is well made: past pure aesthetics (which often times is insufficient as a whole) mounts are completely unnecessary. Yet a couple media reports from E3 mentioned a warrior on top of a horse. Ah ha, that's where the meddlesome mount talk got started. For the moment then I wish to look at the question of mounts and whether we will see them in the upcoming chapter.
I will not argue that mounts have no place in the seamless and instanced world. After all, we have instant travel and, if we are to use typical mount mentality, it may provide a means to "run past opponents" which isn't something we want. That said, there are some uses for mounts in PvP modes, perhaps on the same level as team benefits in Alliance Battles. What I mean by this is, maybe when a strategic control point is captured - so a mode would have to be set up similar to Alliance Battles - it would give part of the controlling team a speed, defense and attack boost in the form of a mount. Though I really doubt we'd see that in Guild Wars, it doesn't make complete sense as far as I'm concerned; but it would allow for mounts if one really wanted them.
The next expansion - and subsequently the one that follows - is still a long way off but these early details have excited me. We seem to have two new professions, the almost guarantee of a new PvP mode (please keep increasing the number of participants!), new and distinct geography and perhaps the absurd suggestion of mounts. Things are certainly looking fairly good early on. Sure, all of this is completely speculation on my part but when new information is released I get all giddy. It goes without saying then, that I can't wait for new details to be released and if it's anything like I speculated, we're in for another solid expansion in October? That would be six months from now (which, you'll recall, is the schedule ArenaNet wants to adhere to). So here's hoping!
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