Guild Wars 2 Diary Episode 11: Meet the Queen

The Ringmaster is done and dusted – at last. His devious plan to destroy society in Divinity’s Reach by having the lower classes kill the Queen. He had planned to hypnotize them using The Floating Grizwhirl, but things didn’t really turn out as planned and, in the end, we managed to kill him. That doesn’t mean everything is safe, however, and the idea that one of the Queen’s own ministers might have initiated both this attack and the poisoning of the water seems to make sense. At the end of last week we were invited to see the Queen and discover the next part of our story, and this week started with a brief visit to the palace.

The Orders of Tyria

The palace is a grand place. Lines of statues adorn the walls, offering a sense of history. It’s a shame that the majority of the statues are the same – an annoying oversight but not something you can complain about, I suppose, when you consider this area is only really going to be used to occasionally move the story along. Giant curtains hang from the ceiling in regal red and windows fill the hall with light. It’s not the most beautiful representation of a 15-18th century palace throne room that I’ve ever seen, but it includes things you’d expect and that’s what the developers were going for. If you’re used to the cold, dark halls of Skyrim, this will give you something slightly different to look over.

Guild Wars 2 Gameplay Video - Episode #11

Of course, we haven’t been summoned to the Queen’s own throne room just to admire the stonework. Kryta is in need of our assistance again, and, because the game’s story would be rather short if we refused,  we’re only too happy to be sent halfway over this part of the continent in the hopes of saving the day.

This particular quest is going to send us to Lychcroft Mere, a swamp that was particularly ravaged during the battle between the humans and the centaurs. If you’ve been playing Guild Wars 2 in any serious way, you’ll know just how widespread and far-reaching the war against the centaurs is. Wood from the swamp is largely being used for catapults and other implements of war, but lately reports have been coming in that Risen undead are attacking people in the swamp. The Risen pose a real threat against people in the swamp, but it’s worse than it seems. The Risen are slaves to Zhaitan, the Elder Dragon that lives below Orr. If they’re attacking, there’s a reason behind it.

This is where the Orders of Tyria come into things. They want to help, but the three groups that make up the orders can’t agree on a plan. Their bickering and indecision is causing more and more deaths in the Lychcroft Mere and the next part of the story will involve trying to sort them out and saving what hope is left for the people of the swamp. This will take us to a part of Tyria we’ve never been before and to a section of the map where enemies are a little bit less forgiving.

We have the full authority of the crown on this one, and it sounds like we’ll be having another decision to make over the coming weeks. Although we’re going to go straight towards the next story section – to the first of the three Orders of Tyria to hear their plan – we’re going to take the long way around. There’s quite a big jump in recommended level here – you’ll need to be in the low to mid-twenties if you want to fly through this next bit – and if you haven’t been exploring very much, there’s a huge area to explore. Now is the time to walk a little off the beaten track and up your experience.

Beefing Up

Taking the long trip will allow you to come across new, more powerful enemies, new renown heart quests and new events. If you’ve only been following the story, you’ll have an awful lot to do in Queensdale. If you’ve been doing bits and pieces, you’ll probably still have a load to do in the Kessex Hills. This is the area in which we attacked poor innocent people under the influence of the Floating Grizwhirl several weeks ago. The Into the Woods… mission took place relatively close to Queensdale, but there are a ton of renown heart quests and semi-abandoned forts almost directly along the main road leading through the area.

Although our story quest will take us to the south and is a relatively short trip from the first waypoint in the area, I suggest going to the southeast. There are some relatively easy skill points to attain and some nicely levelled creatures that will test your characters strength (and their health), offer bonus experience but that will certainly give you a fighting chance. It’s a nice spot to level and – when combined with the new areas, waypoints and daily achievements you’ll no doubt come across during your exploration – you’ll find yourself hurtling up to the next level. Unlike the last time we were in this area, bandits will no longer pose any real threat unless they’re together in groups, so watch out for the events you couldn’t complete alone the last time you came through.

As always, speak with the scouts you come across. They’ll point you in the way of new renown heart quests and these are great for experience. Not only will this count towards your overall completion of the area, but you’ll also get experience for the kills you make. If you have a double XP token – often rewarded in quests – now might be a good time to use it, as some kills will net you in excess of 100xp. When you have less than 10,000XP to gather in a level, that sort of boost ina  relatively short amount of time can make all the difference.

Once you’ve done everything towards the southeast, start making your way back towards the west. Check in caves, explore roads and help other players. By the time you get to the story marker, you’ll have probably gone up a couple of levels, have access to new and exciting skills and have a deeper knowledge of this general area. The Kessex Hills are a great place to be at this point in the game, and it’s well worth taking advantage of that fact.

Guild Wars 2 Diary: Episode 11 - Final Words

The next part of the story is going to take us to a more dangerous part of Tyria, but it’s also going to give us a foreshadowing of the main storyline. Why has the army of the Elder Dragon appeared out of nowhere, why are they attacking humankind so mercilessly and what are we going to have to do to save the world? Next week we try to reason with the three Orders of Tyria and, hopefully, we’ll get to pick our plan.

See previous episodes of Guild Wars 2 Diary here>>