In Guild Wars 2 the latest episode of the Living Story is coming and this time we are heading back to the Ring of Fire islands. There we will encounter strange foes and cool new modes of transport.
Guild Wars 2 brings us a completely new area in the second episode of Season 3 of the Living Story, which veterans might remember from the first Guild Wars game: the Ring of Fire. That is where the final battle of the base game took place, and even now there are important reasons to pay a visit to the inhospitable islands. We were out with the developers from ArenaNet before the release of the next episode and took a look at the innovations.
The Great Lava Theme Park!
The volcanic islands of the Ring of Fire are a dangerous and inhospitable place, but there must still be some fun! Because alongside lava monsters and other dangers, the islands are home to a stranded circus for which we have to complete all sorts of silly tasks. For example, we are to (more or less) feed giant snails! Also, the good old ‘Heart Quests’ from the base game are returning, through which we can become popular with the respective NPCs on the islands.
The fun continues because, as in Episode 1, there is again a new mastery ability. This time we can use the lava tubes scattered across the islands to launch our hero like a cannonball! It looks funny and allows for short travel routes. Also recommended: the ability “Ley-Line Gliding,” as the developers have built a roller coaster of ley lines that we can joyfully sail over the islands.
Warning Spoilers! – The Story of Season 3!
Watch out: Before you read further, be warned! The following text contains information about the first two episodes of the third season of the Living Story of Guild Wars 2. So if you want to experience everything for yourself, better not read on!
The story of Season 3 progresses much faster and more epic than the rather leisurely start of Season 2. While in the previous season, the threat from Mordremoth gradually and stealthily approached, a corporeal Mursaat returned in Episode 1 of Season 3, and the old dragon Primordus is stirring again. But that’s not all! Right at the beginning of the second episode, the brilliant yet quite eccentric Asura Taimi reveals to us that the old dragon Jormag is also stirring. So alongside the old fire dragon, the ice beast is likely to join as an enemy!
And since two old dragons are not enough, Taimi also has bad news: the old dragons absorb the powers of their predecessors and thus become even stronger. Therefore, Primordus now not only has his own power over earth and fire, but has also inherited the power of plants and the dominion over the death of Mordremoth and Zhaitan.
Double Trouble
What this means is visible on the Ring of Fire islands, as numerous “Destroyers,” the servitors of Primordus, are running around here. These creatures are normally stone insect beings out of which lava glows. Now they either appear as toxic green plant/stone hybrids or as ominous figures that look like scarecrows and wield death magic.
To protect ourselves against this threat, we must first enter a kind of holodeck instance created by Taimi along with Moto – the inventor of the Super Adventure Box. There we train to fight against the destroyers and then head to the Ring of Fire to learn more about Primordus and his machinations. However, we do not want to reveal where the trail ultimately leads.
Jürgen says: I haven’t played Guild Wars 2 in a while, but at the start of Season 3, ArenaNet’s MMORPG has fully caught my interest again. The storytelling is perfect and the numerous cool and quirky NPCs – especially the wonderfully quirky Taimi – are still a delight! And the fact that my character is fully voiced in the dialogues enhances the atmosphere enormously! Only the experience point grind to achieve the necessary mastery unnecessarily slows down the story development.
