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A Clear Vision of the Past Unfolds This Week in the Gem Store

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Steamwork Skyscale Skin


This skyscale skin was designed by someone clearly influenced by Scarlet Briar’s clockwork designs, or at least someone who pillaged her workshop for spare parts! The ingenuity of Scarlet’s work has not been forgotten. The Steamwork Skyscale Skin is available now for 1,600 gems.



Black Lion Chest Update: Shadowed Eye


Inside each chest, you’re guaranteed to find a redeemable Black Lion Statuette, Mini Blue Cuckoo Hatchling, and two common items. You also have a chance to find something rarer in the fifth slot, including special items, glyphs, and skins from the Paladin’s Decree Weapon Collection and the Venombite Weapon Collection. Don’t forget you can redeem Black Lion Statuettes for past items from Black Lion Chests you may have missed!

Exclusive Item: Mystic Visionary Cape

Visions of other worlds cloud your mind. This mantle ushers you through timelines converging—witness the universe through the eyes of time. The Mystic Visionary Cape is a new, exclusive drop from Black Lion Chests.



Foefire Weapon Collection

The spirit of the Foefire rages within these weapons. Memories of blue flames guide your hand into the heat of battle. Each Foefire weapon skin can be obtained in exchange for 1 Black Lion Claim Ticket.



What’s in Stock


Starting November 8 and continuing for the next few days, select dye kits will be 20% off, including the Smooth Berry Dye Kit, Charr Dye Kit, Norn Dye Kit, Lion’s Arch Commemorative Dye Kit, Aurene Dye Kit, Jade Dye Kit, Lion's Arch Survivors Dye Kit, Kralkatorrik Dye Kit, Mordremoth Dye Kit, and Vibrant Dye Kit.

Returning This Week

If you're a fan of an organized account, this is for you! From today until November 12, Shared Inventory Slots are at an incredible 20% discount.

Available Now in the Gem Store!


Log into Guild Wars 2 and press 'O' to access the Black Lion Trading Company for these great offers and more!

The Journey of the Warclaw: From Concept to Game Changer

The warclaw mount has long been a favorite in the World vs. World (WvW) community, but with its recent revamp, this agile mount now roams the open world, thanks to the release of Guild Wars 2®: Janthir Wilds™. What started as a support-focused mount has evolved into a fast, versatile companion for exploring all of Tyria. Today, we'll give you an inside look at how the warclaw made its leap from WvW exclusivity to open-world adventure (with some help from some feline friends, no less).



A Shift in Design


When the warclaw mount was first developed, the goal was to create a utility-based mount that provided a tactical advantage in World vs. World. While it served its purpose well in that game mode, as player feedback came in, the team's vision began to evolve. Over time, as we refined our approach to mount design—especially with the success of the skyscale in Guild Wars 2: Secrets of the Obscure™—we saw an opportunity to do something similar for the warclaw in Guild Wars 2: Janthir Wilds.

Looking at the warclaw, we noticed it was underutilized and had the potential for significant expansion and improvement. We started exploring how the warclaw could navigate the open world of Tyria; the idea was that it would no longer be confined to WvW battlefields, becoming a key tool for players in dynamic events and pivotal story moments in Guild Wars 2: Janthir Wilds.



Leaping into Player vs Environment (PvE)


Several factors were crucial in making the warclaw's transition into PvE a reality. The success of the skyscale and the lessons we learned from its implementation in Guild Wars 2: Secrets of the Obscure gave us valuable insight into how to repurpose existing mounts for new content. We took the base mechanics of the warclaw and, with feedback from multiple teams and the community, identified its growth opportunities and weaknesses. And of course, we can't overlook the influence that cats—our internet-favorite feline friends—had in shaping the warclaw's personality and movement. Who would turn down studying cats at work?

The main goal of revamping the warclaw mount was to make it feel like a living part of Tyria's world. We wanted to create a mount that had a lot of personality and was fun to move around the world on, while also helping players on their own journey. We leaned into capturing the essence of a cat's playful nature and incorporated feline behaviors into the mount's design. Watching how cats sneak, pounce, and explore places they shouldn't be in gave us the ability to make a mount that feels not only functional, but also full of personality.

As such, the warclaw was crafted to be the premier mount for Guild Wars 2: Janthir Wilds, offering a versatile, all-around experience. Unlike other mounts, which often excel in specific areas, the warclaw was designed to be more of a generalist. It features a dash, but not one as powerful as the raptor's. It can go vertical, but not leap as high as the springer. It's fast, though not as quick as the roller beetle. And while it can navigate aerial spaces, it's not as adept as the skyscale. While the team didn't set out to make a jack-of-all-trades mount, that's exactly where the design landed, and the result is an incredibly fun and adaptable mount for a variety of situations.

Given that the warclaw's movement was inspired by the mischievous nature of cats, it also made sense to grant it no fall damage. Guild Wars 2: Janthir Wilds has a lot of verticality, and this feature makes the warclaw a great choice for navigating dangerous drops. Just don't go testing your poor warclaw's limits too much!



Overcoming Design Challenges: The Double-Jump Dilemma


Designing the warclaw came with its fair share of challenges, and one of the trickiest was perfecting its abilities—especially the fan-favorite double jump. There was a series of prototypes and iterations, each refining the mount's abilities to match both the team's vision and player feedback. Using the ability in various environments and increasing its speed and turn rate to test how it performed was crucial in getting the warclaw to feel just right in a PvE setting.

The real breakthrough, however, came when the team decided to embrace the playful, exploratory nature of cats. Their instinct to sneak into places they shouldn't be served as inspiration for the mount's double jump and fluid movements. Never underestimate the power of researching cats!

In the spirit of transparency, we have to admit that, while cats played a big part in the design process, so did a bug we encountered early on. This bug allowed players to leap higher each time they connected with the ground, causing each jump to get progressively higher. While it wasn't intended, it sparked the idea to explore different jumping concepts. After several iterations, the team settled on the double-jump mechanic because it was both practical and easier for players to control. Of all the versions tested, it was also the most fun, capturing the core goal of warclaw's design and bringing the pure joy of movement to the mount.



A New Standard for Mounts


In the end, the warclaw transformation is a testament to the power of player feedback and the collaborative spirit of the development team. The transformation from an underutilized mount to one of the community's most beloved companions has been very rewarding for the Guild Wars 2: Janthir Wilds team. Experiencing the joy of movement is what makes a mount truly special, and whether you're tearing across the WvW battlefield or leaping across Tyria's vast landscapes, the warclaw is there to make every journey a little more thrilling. Just don't forget to visit your feline friend in your homestead from time to time for scritches!

Help Change Kids' Health with Our 2024 Extra Life Bundle

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Extra Life 2024 Donation Bundle


Join us this year in making the world a better place! Purchase the Extra Life 2024 Bundle and receive cool in-game goodies while donating to an amazing cause.

This incredible bundle contains five Extra Life Karma Boosters, five Temporary Selfless Potions, and the all-new Guardian Angel Pedestal Chair. Purchasing any of these items will also grant you the in-game title "The Extra Life" in blue text. The Extra Life 2024 Donation Bundle is available for 800 gems. The Extra Life Karma Boosters can be obtained separately for 75 gems each or 275 gems for 10 boosters, with all proceeds going to Extra Life.

To thank our generous donors, once we reach our stretch goal of $105,000 in direct donations on the Team ArenaNet Extra Life page, anyone who purchased any Extra Life item in the Gem Store will automatically receive two special selection boxes to choose fan-favorite rewards from past events. Select the Feisty Feline Tonic, Mini Mr. Sparkles, Celebration Hat, or ten Kegs of Liquid Karma.

Visit our Extra Life campaign page Team ArenaNet and help us reach our stretch goal of $105,000 in direct donations this year. And please check out our Extra Life blog for more information about our upcoming 24-hour livestream on November 1.

We sincerely thank our community for always joining us for this incredibly rewarding event.



What’s in Stock


Starting November 1 and continuing for the next few days, select unique chairs will be 20% off, including the Dark Wing Throne, Great Lodge Chair, Legionnaire's Chair, Qi Focusing Chair, Super Adventure Box Chair, Volcanic Throne, Street Noodles Chair, and Quiet Woods Chair. Long days of adventuring call for rest and relaxation; get your favorite chairs at an awesome discount!

Returning This Week

From today until November 5, Bank Tab Expansions, Armistice Bastion Pass, Lava Lounge Pass, Mistlock Sanctuary Passkey, Noble's Folly Pass, Royal Terrace Pass, Thousand Seas Pavilion Pass, and Captain's Airship Pass are available at a wonderful 20% discount. Easy access to everything you need!

Available Now in the Gem Store!


Log into Guild Wars 2 and press 'O' to access the Black Lion Trading Company for these great offers and more!

Guild Wars 2 Twitch drops and how to claim

How do you get Guild Wars 2 Twitch drops? After announcing Twitch drops in 2022 as part of their tenth anniversary and Steam release, Guild Wars 2 is back with another Twitch drop offering to see in the new content, here's when to tune in.


To celebrate the Janthir Wilds expansion, where we'll get to explore dangerous new lands in major updates to carry us into 2025, we're also treated to raids, encounters, a new mount, and more. Alongside the release, ArenaNet has announced a new wave of Guild Wars 2 Twitch drops and the rewards we can earn for taking part.


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RELATED LINKS:

A new Guild Wars game might be happening as mysterious playtest appears on Steam

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Guild Wars 2's new expansion just dropped, and it finally adds housing

A new Guild Wars game might be happening as mysterious playtest appears on Steam

Outside of the heavy hitters in the MMORPG space - the likes of FF14 and World of Warcraft - Guild Wars 2 remains one of the most consistent genre stalwarts. A beautiful free-to-play fantasy world with distinctive character design and satisfying combat, it's highly active more than a decade after launch, with new expansion Janthir Wilds arriving very recently. But it looks as though publisher NCSoft might have even more on the cards, as a mysterious new Guild Wars app appears on the Steam back end. It's not Guild Wars 3, but it could just be the game to tide us over.


Read the rest of the story...


RELATED LINKS:

Grab these free Guild Wars 2 goodies, thanks to Nvidia

Guild Wars 2 Twitch drops and how to claim

Guild Wars 2's new expansion just dropped, and it finally adds housing