Eye of the North: Guild Wars

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2007-11-09T15:24:00.003Z

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Eye of the North heroes: Jora

2007-11-09T10:33:00.001Z

Jora should seem pretty familiar, as it's a picture of her on the front cover of the Eye of the North box. Of course, if you got the box that has a bear on the front - that's still Jora, just a bit less recognisably so. Helping Jora paves the way to getting the Norn onside as allies against the Destroyers, and so she's a pivotal hero whom you will meet early on in Eye of the North.

Eye of the North lore has this to say about Jora:

Jora is a younger Norn, beset by tragedy. Like most of her generation, she has been seeking to establish her name and reputation. Only the hunters of the greatest prey are considered worthy among her people, and as such, she and her brother Svanir trekked through the icy uplands and valleys seeking the most challenging prey.
On one of their hunts, Jora and her brother encountered a great, dark power, and were transformed by it. She lost her Nornish ability to shapeshift into bear form, while her brother suffered a darker fate. Now without a family or homestead, she hunts across the Norn lands of the Far Shiverpeaks seeking redemption of her name and forgiveness by the Bear Spirit. To achieve her goals, she will undergo any ritual, achieve any quest, and seek any treasure needed. She will even accept the help of humans.

Taking the Primary quest Northern Allies introduces you to Jora, who will be waiting at the bottom of the ramp that leads up to the Eye of the North. Completing the Primary quest Curse of the Nornbear will unlock Jora. This quest is part of a larger story arc of three missions:

Tracking the Nornbear
Curse of the Nornbear
Blood Washes Blood

Not only will completing these quests give you a big jump in your Norn Title Track, but they will also unlock a number of Norn skills, some entertaining Norn side quests, and also re-introduce you to the Charr. This is the first time you will meet them again, and they are a lot tougher than they ever were in Ascalon.

Jora is unable to use the Norn skill to turn into a bear in combat - the reasons why and how to solve this are unveiled in the above quests. Sadly this means her default skillset doesn't include the Norn bear form skill:

Gash
Healing Signet
Resurrection Signet
Savage Slash
Sever Artery
Shield Bash
"Watch Yourself!"

Jora is equipped with Norn warrior armour, which has +20 against physical attacks, and an armour rating of 80. As with other Eye of the North heroes, her armour can be upgraded to Brotherhood Armour with Cloth of the Brotherhood, and to Deldrimor Raiment with Deldrimor Armour Remnants.

One of Jora's best quotes is a paraphrasing of Ash in Army of Darkness: "Good. Bad. I'm the girl with the big weapon"

Few can resist the opportunity to have a tall blonde babe with a massive sword tooling around Eye of the North with them. Jora makes an excellent tank and with the amount of customisation available with heroes, she can be a powerful addition to your party.

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jora, curse of the norn bear, norn title track, eye of the north, heroes, guild wars, warrior, army of darkness, ash, charr

Eye of the North heroes: Kahmu

2007-11-07T10:27:00.001Z

Kahmu is another hero who has travelled to Eye of the North. An Elonian Dervish, Kahmu is a bit different, as he's not trying to help his homeland, nor is he on a mission - he seeks combat, and the challenges it brings.

As the manual says:

Kahmu is an Elonian Dervish, a native of Vabbi, who seeks wisdom through combat. Over the years, he has drifted farther and farther north, matching his skills against all manner of challenges, considering no fight too small—or too large.
Once Kahmu arrived in Norn territory, he challenged—and bested—some of the Norn's greatest warriors, and his name became legend around the campfires. Some claim he is a spirit, others that he has been blessed by the spirits of his homeland, and still others that he is a Norn born in the wrong body. Kahmu only laughs to hear these whispers. When the hunting here grows stale, he will simply move on.

Like Xandra, Kahmu can be unlocked by taking part in the Norn Fighting Tournament, which is received by talking to Magni the Bison in Gunnar's Hold. Once defeated in the Tournament, Kahmu is unlocked and can be added as a hero to your party.

His default skills are:

Chilling Victory
Faithful Intervention
Heart of Fury
Mystic Vigor
Resurrection Signet
Victorious Sweep

Kahmu's armour is labelled "Vabbian Armor". As it's Dervish armour, it provides +25 health and +2 energy regeneration, with an armour rating of 70.

As you travel around Eye of the North, keep an eye out for the idle quotes from your heroes. Kahmu comes out with probably the best one: "Lay off the reaper jokes. I've heard them all."

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eye of the north, guild wars, heroes, kahmu, dervish, norn fighting tournament, magni the bison

Eye of the North trailer

2007-11-06T11:20:00.001Z

In case you missed it (or just to watch it again, as it's great) here's the Eye of the North trailer:

Thanks to TwrZ for posting this up on YouTube.

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eye of the north, guild wars, trailer, youtube, gwen

Guild Wars: Your Favourite Soundtrack Poll Results

2007-11-06T09:25:00.001Z

Well, the results are in, and thanks to everyone who voted in our Soundtrack Poll. It seems that the Eye of the North soundtrack is by far and away the most popular, with 61% of your votes.

Prophecies was the next most popular soundtrack, capturing 22% of your votes, with the Factions soundtrack trailing with only 16% of the vote. It looks like the Battle Pak One and Nightfall soundtracks are the least popular, with nobody voting for them. Shame, I really like "Festival of Lyss" from the Nightfall soundtrack.

Head on over to Direct Song, where you can purchase the full, high quality soundtracks to all the Guild Wars chapters and expansions.

Keep checking back to our Eye of the North blog, where we'll have another poll up soon. Thanks again to everyone who took the time to vote!

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eye of the north, guild wars, prophecies, factions, battle pak one, nightfall, soundtrack

Eye of the North heroes: Xandra

2007-11-05T09:42:00.001Z

Most of the heroes in Eye of the North are unlocked by completing Primary Quests. There are however a few who only appear in side missions. We'll look at one of these heroes - Xandra, a Luxon Ritualist. If you've played Factions you might remember the Luxon Captain Juno - Xandra is her daughter.

The Eye of the North manual has this to say about Xandra:

Xandra is the daughter of Juno, leader of the Turtle Clan, from the lands of the Luxon people. Trouble in her homeland forced Xandra to leave the area at her mother's behest, traveling to the far lands of Ascalon on what was called an ambassadorial tenure - but which Canthans know to be exile.
Xandra thinks well of her mother despite the unexpected travel, realizing that an intricate web of politics is what keeps her so far from home. Juno, suspected of killing the previous captain of the Turtle Clan, has sent her daughter into exile to keep her safe - or, some say, to prevent a repeat of the same scenario. Either way, Xandra is determined to make the best of the situation, and to honor her clan with brave actions in these strange, wild lands.

Xandra can be recruited and unlocked by defeating her in the Norn Fighting Tournament. Note you don't actually have to complete the tournament - as long as you can win the match with Xandra, she will be unlocked.

Xandra's default skills are:

Channeled Strike
Cruel Was Daoshen
Resurrection Signet
Soothing Memories
Spirit Rift
Vengeful Weapon

Xandra's armour is Turtle Clan Raiment, with an armour rating of 40. As with other Eye of the North heroes, her armour can be upgraded to Brotherhood Armour with Cloth of the Brotherhood, and to Deldrimor Raiment with Deldrimor Armour Remnants.

An excellent way to use Xandra in your party as a Ritualist/Necromancer Explosive Creation hybrid build. You can find the full details on the PvX Wiki.

Having unlocked Xandra in Eye of the North, I find her constantly in my party. I can recommend giving Xandra with this build a go.

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eye of the north, guild wars, xandra, heroes, norn fighting tournament, ritualist, luxon, turtle clan

Eye of the North heroes: Livia

2007-11-02T10:44:00.001Z

Another new hero in Eye of the North is Livia, a Necromancer from the Shining Blade. She has been sent to find a powerful weapon that can help the Shining Blade bring peace to Kryta - at any cost.

As a human Necromancer, Livia's default skills are:

Life Syphon
Strip Enchantment
Unholy Feast
Vampiric Gaze
Well of Blood
Resurrection Signet

If you're unfamiliar with Necromancer skills, I should point out that 'Strip Enchantment' doesn't do what you're hoping, and is nowhere near as entertaining as you would like it to be. Sorry.
Livia has Shining Blade Necromancer Armour, with an armour rating of 60 - which you may not believe, as she's wearing practically nothing, even by Guild Wars standards. Her bra also appears to be made from shoelaces, which I'm fairly certain would result in a 'wardrobe malfunction' during combat.

Her armour (what little there is of it) can be upgraded to Deldrimor Armour using Deldrimor Armour Remnant, and to Brotherhood Armour using Cloth of the Brotherhood. Once her armour has been upgraded she can be added to your Monument of Fellowship in the Hall of Monuments.

Livia is first introduced when you embark on Primary Missions for the Asura. She joins you on the quest 'Finding the Bloodstone', and is unlocked as a hero once the mission is successfully completed.

With Necromancer's making a great team member - either as interrupters or Minion Masters - I'm sure many people will be finding a place for Livia as they explore Eye of the North. And certainly not because she's not wearing much.

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eye of the north, guild wars, hero, livia, necromancer, shining blade, asura, kryta

The Heart of the Shiverpeaks mission in Eye of the North

2007-11-01T15:06:00.001Z

The last mission in Eye of the North before you take on the Destroyers is "The Heart of the Shiverpeaks". The goal of this mission is to retrieve the Hammer of the Great Dwarf.

You will need a Master Dungeon Guide in your inventory before you can get this mission. King Jalis Ironhammer gives you this mission in the Battledepths, and you must travel further in to the dungeon to find the Hammer and return it to King Jalis. Along the way you'll meet up with Budger Blackpowder, a nutter dwarf who carries around powder kegs. At any time you can talk to Budger to get a keg. Once you place it down, the fuse is lit, and a short time later it will explode, causing massive localised damage.

Aside blowing up walls and closely grouped enemies, the graphics in this particular dungeon are stunning and add immensely to the atmosphere of the mission.

Screenshots from this mission can be found at this Flickr feed

Once you've travelled through the three levels of the dungeon, you come to a fiery cavern, where you can a monument to the Great Dwarf.

However, once you approach it, Cyndr the Mountain Heart, a giant worm, appears. You need to talk to Budger to get a barrel of gunpowder, then detonate it at the base of Cyndr. Do this three times and Cyndr's armour cracks and falls off. He's now vulnerable to damage, and you need to give him a beating. After you've damaged Cyndr a bit, he will burrow into the lava again, re-emerging with a new coat of armour.

Repeat the process 3-4 times and you will eventually kill him. This unlocks the chest and allows you to complete the mission.

When the 'Mission Complete' timer countdown finishes, you are transported to King Jalis, where you hand over the Sceptre.

This is the surprising part - King Jalis uses the Hammer to turn all the Dwarves to stone! Only in this way can the Dwarves be strong enough to defeat the Destroyers - but at the same time the prophecy comes true, as this truly spells the end of the dwarves.

You will immediately be sent on the next mission, which is to retake the Central Transfer Chamber. Be careful! You haven't re-zoned, so any Death Penalty you have will be carried with you into the mission!

It's best to map travel back to the Eye of the North, prepare your team, and then travel back to the Battledepths and King Jalis and take on the Central Transfer Chamber mission.

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eye of the north, guild wars, cyndr the mountain heart, king jalis ironhammer, budger blackpowder, heart of the shiverpeaks

Eye of the North heroes: Pyre Fierceshot

2007-10-31T21:18:00.001Z

Eye of the North introduces several new heroes, and one of them in particular is a bit of a surprise. Pyre Fierceshot is a Charr. Didn't think you'd be inviting a Charr to join your party, did you? On top of that, the missions and quests that Pyre opens up require you to not only team up with Charr, but actually help them out.

As his name implies, Pyre Fierceshot is a Ranger. His default skills are:

Dual Shot
Kindle Arrows
Resurrection Signet
Savage Shot
Throw Dirt
Troll Unguent

Pyre has Ranger armour labelled as a Charr set, with an armour rating of 13-70, depending on level. His armour bonuses are:

+30 to Elemental damage
+5 to energy on his chest armour
+1 to energy regeneration on his leg armour

You first meet Pyre in Grothmar Wargrounds, during the quest "Against the Charr". To recruit Pyre, you have to complete the Primary Ebon Vanguard quest "Warband of Brothers". On completion, Pyre is unlocked as a hero, and can be used in your party.

Pyre is an excellent Hero addition to your party in Eye of the North. Having a Charr is fun anyway, and if you need a Ranger, Pyre tends to obey orders and run off less than Acolyte Jin - which can be a real life saver on some missions.

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eye of the north, guild wars, heroes, pyre fierceshot, charr, ranger, grothmar wargrounds, warband of brothers

Guild Wars Bonus Mission Pack Preparations

2007-10-29T12:53:00.001Z

I've posted before on the Guild Wars blog about ArenaNet's Bonus Mission Pack promotion. The latest game update, streamed to Guild Wars clients on the 26th October, has brought in this welcome addition:

Made preparations for the final week of the Guild Wars Bonus Mission Pack Promotion. At approximately 07:01 (GMT) on October 27, players will be able to check their Guild Wars account (using the in-game option “Edit Account") to determine whether they have qualified for the Bonus Mission Pack. Eligibility is not updated automatically. Account status will be updated periodically from Monday through Wednesday of next week.

So, if you've bought Eye of the North from the Guild Wars store - or you picked up one of the existing Guild Wars campaigns - you should now be able to get confirmation you've qualified for the Bonus Mission Pack.

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Eye of the North introduces the Asura

2007-10-29T09:27:00.001Z

The second of the two new races in Eye of the North are the Asura. You first encounter Vekk, an Elementalist Asura who is helping the dwarves, during the first Eye of the North mission, where you travel to Boreal Station.

After you've completed this mission you'll notice purple Asura gates appear, not just on the Eye of the North map of Tyria, but also in Elona and Cantha (if you have the Nightfall and Factions chapters). Clicking on these gates will instantly transport you to Boreal Station, in much the same way as the ships near the major cities in each chapter will take you to the main capital cities on each continent.

The Asura are small, magical humanoids, who for centuries have lived underground. The emergence of the Destroyers, however, has forced them to the surface, where they seek new allies.

As well as introducing a new mini-game - Polymock - and a new Title Track, the Asura are also important for being one of the new playable races in Guild Wars 2.

You can read a bit more about Guild Wars 2 here, and this previous blog post has information about the Asuran Title Track.

Their powerful magic, and ability to create and manage the tough GOLEM machines, makes them formidable allies in Eye of the North. The Asura will certainly be fun and challenging characters to play in Guild Wars 2.

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eye of the north, polymock, asura, guild wars 2, asuran gate, elementalist, tyria

Halloween videos from Guild Wars

2007-10-26T15:28:00.001+01:00

If you've not got the Guild Wars Prophecies or Nightfall campaigns (or you haven't travelled south to check out Lion's Arch or Kamadan) here's a great video from Jporiey showing the new Halloween decorations.

Nicely done, and gives a good taster of the special Halloween content now starting to appear in Guild Wars.

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guild wars, halloween, lions arch, kamadan, prophecies, nightfall

Halloween comes to Eye of the North

2007-10-26T13:07:00.001+01:00

You might be wondering what's going on in Eye of the North, and the rest of the Far Shiverpeaks. Eerie monuments have started to appear, and not only have NPCs been transformed, but they items they are now offering are very different.

Guild Wars is gearing up for the return of Mad King Thorn on Halloween, and changes are sweeping the land. Talking to NPCs, you'll find the following special items available:

	Witch's Brew: One sip of this potent brew will set your world spinning 'round and 'round.
	Absinthe: Drink this beverage to be engulfed in a ghoulish flame.
	Ghost-in-the-Box: Feeling brave? Open this mysterious box to receive a spooky surprise.
	Squash Serum: Swallowing this potion might give you a big head. A big, orange one, that is…
	Transmogrifier Tonic: Transform yourself into the spirit of Halloween itself using this item!
	New Mystery Item: Go out into the world and defeat monsters for a chance to obtain a special treat, new this year

I can also recommend heading to Lion's Arch or Kamadan, and taking part in the Halloween Costume Brawl. With two new arenas, the Costume Brawl features team based PvP with a twist. You choose to take part as one of the characters from Guild Wars - using their outfit, items, and unique skills.

It focusses the combat on skill, as you have no control over your build, and is incredibly good fun. The winning team picks up some special Halloween rewards as well as Faction points, so it's well worth having a go.

Talk to NPC Bobby [Costume Brawl] in Kamadan or Lion's Arch to take part.

While in the Eye of the North explorable areas, keep an eye out on monster drops as well. You'll find some special Halloween items dropping between now and the 31st October, when Mad King Thorn will return.

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halloween, eye of the north, mad king thorn, halloween costume brawl, guild wars

Master of the North updates in Eye of the North

2007-10-25T14:15:00.002+01:00

With some recent updates to sterling silver, there has been some more information and clarification of the Master of the North Title Track.

The Eye of the North mastery points needed for each rank of Master of the North are now at:

Rank	Title	Eye of the North mastery points:
1	Adventurer of the North	100
2	Pioneer of the North	200
3	Veteran of the North	350
4	Conqueror of the North	550
5	Master of the North	750
6	Legendary Master of the North (Max level)	1000

The amount of points you can gain has also been fleshed out, now that Hard Mode is available in Eye of the North.

For each of the Primary Quests (as defined in the Hero's Handbook) you get 5 Mastery Points, or 10 Mastery Points in Hard Mode.

For each of the Dungeons (as tracked in the Master Dungeon Guide) you get 10 Master Points, or 20 Mastery Points in Hard Mode.

There are 15 discrete Eye of the North map areas, each one giving 15 points when Vanquished (all enemies defeated) in Hard Mode.

Cartography gives you a varying amount of Mastery Points per map region, but the total is 101 Mastery Points.

Accomplishment	Points per Unit		No. of quests/areas	Sum Points		Total points
Accomplishment	Normal	Hard	No. of quests/areas	Normal	Hard	Total points
Primary quests	5	10	11	55	110	165
Dungeon quests	10	20	18	180	360	540
Vanquishing	-	15	15	-	225	225
Cartography	Varies		15	101		101
Grand Total						1031

With Hard Mode now available, and the latest updates to Eye of the North, it's now much easier to plan and track your way to maxing out the Master of the North Title Track.

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eye of the north, master of the north, mastery points, hard mode, guild wars

The Secret Lair of the Snowmen in Eye of the North

2007-10-24T17:19:00.001+01:00

In Eye of the North, the Secret Lair of the Snowmen is one of the best places to gain Dwarven Reputation Points, to gain rank in the Deldrimor Title Track. It can be completed relatively quickly, and can easily be done with just Heroes and Henchmen.

Here's a great video from XianDrinker which shows a (speeded up) run through the Secret Lair of the Snowmen, farming for Reputation Points and using a Minion Master to devastating effect:

Dungeons like Secret Lair of the Snowmen in Eye of the North give an excellent opportunity to perfect not only your character's build but also those of your heroes, and to try out new techniques and tactics with your henchmen.

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eye of the north, deldrimor title track, reputation points, secret lair of the snowmen, farming

Get your free minipet

2007-10-22T12:18:00.001+01:00

If you want to add to your collection of minipets at your Monument of Devotion in the Hall of Monuments in Eye of the North, here's your chance. Gamerzines have launched a new ezine title, MMOZine. It's available as a free download, with movies, games, special prizes, and reviews of all that's happening in the world of MMOs.

In their first issue they have a review of Guild Wars: Eye of the North. To celebrate the launch of Eye of the North, they have the first dinosaur minipet - the Ceratadon - available for free to readers.

To get the Gamerzines Ceratadon minipet, here's what you need to do:

Head on over to the download page at http://www.gamerzines.com/mmozine/
The magazine is in PDF format, and is a 36mb download
You'll also need to make sure you have Adobe Acrobat 8 installed to view the magazine correctly. You can grab it from the Adobe download page here.
Once you open the magazine, there's a link on the first page to the minipet offer
You need to enter your name and email address. Optionally you can subscribe to Gamerzines e-zines, which I can recommend.
Within 10 minutes you should receive an email confirmation from Gamerzines, with the special access key to unlock your Ceratadon minipet
Launch Guild Wars, and click on the "Add Access Key". The process is exactly the same as when adding a new Guild Wars chapter to your account, or when you added Eye of the North.
Once you've added your access key, you can login
When you've chosen your character, you'll see a message in the chat window advising you that your special Ceratadon minipet has been unlocked
Type "/special" in a chat window. You'll now see the Ceratadon minipet in your inventory
You can now take your Ceratadon minipet out for a play, or head on over to your Hall of Monuments in Eye of the North, and add the Ceratadon minipet to your Monument of Devotion

It's very important to note that the Ceratadon minipet can only be acquired once. If you trade it away or delete it, you cannot get another one.

With the recent release of Eye of the North giving players somewhere to show off their achievements, we can expect more special items like the Gamerzines Ceratadon minipet in the build up to Guild Wars 2.

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eye of the north, gamerzines, minipet, ceratadon, access key, guild wars

The Norn Primary Quests in Eye of the North

2007-10-20T15:14:00.001+01:00

Once you have travelled to the Eye of the North in the Far Shiverpeaks, you can gain access to the Hall of Monuments. It is here that you will obtain the three main umbrella quests that lead towards the final showdown with the Great Destroyer.

There is a Primary umbrella quest for each of the main factions (Norn, Asura and Ebon Vanguard) which are each composed of three Primary Quests. Completing all of these will automatically complete the umbrella quest. One of the main rewards for the umbrella quests is a Monumental Tapestry, which is how you can start to populate your Hall of Monuments.

The Norn Primary umbrella quest is called Northern Allies, and is automatically gained after your first look into the Scrying Pool. The main aim of Northern Allies is to follow Ogden Stonehealer's plan to gain the Norn as allies in the fight against the Destroyers.

Ogden tells you: "The Destroyers have ventured dangerously near the surface, and Dwarves are few and far between up here. We must gain allies we can rally into an army. Only then can we repel this threat and keep those blasted Destroyers contained beneath the surface. That Norn who didn't attack us on sight... she might be an excellent starting point for creating the army we need."

The first Primary Quest is Curse of the Nornbear, in which you must assist Jora in tracking down and defeating the Nornbear.

The second Primary Quest is Blood Washes Blood, where you help Jora regain her honour and standing amongst the Norn. Fighting by her side you must help her reclaim her family's estate from the Charr.

The final Primary Quest is A Gate Too Far, where you must travel to Olafstead. There you will meet up with Olaf Olafson, and with his help defeat some Destroyers and reclaim the nearby Asura gate.

Once you have finished these quests, you will travel to the Battledepths, a dungeon to the west of the Eye of the North. Here you will meet up with your old friend Jalis Ironhammer, who will give you your rewards.

Having met King Jalis, some additional dwarf quests are available to you. At this stage you should have at least Rank 3 in the Norn Title Track. You can then move on to the other two Primary umbrella quests, which also farming Norn Reputation Points to boost your Norn Title Track.

These Primary Quests provide several goals in Eye of the North. Obviously they move you further along the storyline, but they also help you populate your Hall of Monuments, and give you a good start on the relevant Title Track.

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eye of the north, norn, primary quests, jora, ogden stonehealer, hall of monuments

Eye of the North Destroyer items

2007-10-19T09:24:00.001+01:00

The new menace in Eye of the North, the Destroyers, have been summoned from the fiery depths by the Great Destroyer. Your ultimate quest in Eye of the North is to find the lair of the Great Destroyer, and defeat him.

Destroyer items don't drop, as you'd expect - instead they need to be crafted. As of the current Eye of the North build, Destroyer weapons are the only weapons which can be displayed in the Hall of Monuments.

Destroyer items are crafted by Balthor Coalforge in Slavers' Exile. Slaver's Exile is an Elite Dungeon which can be reached from the Verdant Cascades on the Tarnished Coast. To enter Slaver's Exile at least one member of the party must have completed the Primary Quest "A time for Heroes".

Once you enter Slaver's Exile you can talk to Balthor Coalforge and craft Destroyer items. The following items are available:

Destroyer Axe
Destroyer Bow
Destroyer Daggers
Destroyer Focus
Destroyer Maul
Destroyer Scepter
Destroyer Scythe
Destroyer Shield
Destroyer Spear
Destroyer Staff
Destroyer Sword

Each item requires 10 Diamonds and 10 Onyx Gemstones to craft, as well as 5 platinum (5000 gold) and some common crafting materials.

Talking to Veth the Storyteller will give you the quest The Last Heirophant. Completing this multi-part quest will give you Diamonds and/or Onyx Gemstones, which can the be used to craft Destroyer items. The quest is repeatable, so is probably the best way to stock up on these rare crafting components.

Destroyer items are a great way of showing you have completed the furthest reaches of Eye of the North, and are also currently the only weapons which can be displayed in the Hall of Monuments.

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eye of the north, destroyer items, slavers exile, Balthor Coalforge, crafting

Eye of the North and access to the Bonus Mission Pack

2007-10-18T09:08:00.001+01:00

If you haven't already got the Eye of the North expansion, here's yet another reason to do so. ArenaNet's Bonus Mission Pack promotion finishes on October 31st. Spend over £17 in the Guild Wars Online Store before then, and you'll get the Bonus Mission Pack when it's released in November - for free.

The Bonus Mission Pack let's you replay four pivotal missions from the history of Guild Wars:

Play as Saul D'Alessio and help the White Mantle drive the Charr out of Kryta
As Togo, battle against deceit and betrayal to bring an end to the Tengu Wars
Take the role of Turai Ossa at the Battle of Jahai and defeat the undead lord Palawa Joko in one-on-one combat
Play as Gwen and escape from the Charr, discovering what happened to her between her capture and joining the Ebon Vanguard

ArenaNet design lead Colin Johanson has an interview here where he gives some more information on the Bonus Mission Pack, including design ideas behind it, and what players can expect from it.

So grab Eye of the North from the online store, within your Guild Wars client, or some of the other options available, and take advantage of the Bonus Mission Pack offer while there's still time.

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eye of the north, bonus mission pack, saul d'alessio, master togo, turai ossa, gwen

The Charr Homelands in Eye of the North

2007-10-17T09:39:00.001+01:00

Eye of the North brings back the marauding Charr, who laid waste to Ascalon in Prophecies with the cataclysmic searing. Working with the Ebon Vanguard gives you the chance to take the fight to the Charr Homelands.

The main town in the Charr Homelands is Doomlore Shrine. This can be reached by completing the Primary Quest "Dawn of Rebellion". To complete this quest and gain entrance you must defeat Scorch Maulclaw.

Doomlore Shrine is surrounded by Dalada Uplands, Grothmar Wardowns and Sacnoth Valley. Dalada Uplands and Sacnoth Valley offer excellent farming opportunities, and by making sure you collect the Vanguard Patrol blessing from the Ebon Vanguard scouts.

You can expect to get around 3000 Vanguard reputation points in Dalada Uplands, which will take about an hour to fully clear. Sacnoth Valley will take between an hour and an hour and a half to completely clear, and will net you around 4500 Vanguard reputation points.

As an added bonus you can get a Siege Devourer in both of these areas - their monstrous amounts of hit points and the mad damage they can make farming much quicker and easier.

The Charr Homelands in Eye of the North are excellent fun, especially if your introduction to Guild Wars was the first chapter, Prophecies. The chance to take the fight back to the Charr is not one to be missed.

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Changes to Eye of the North books

2007-10-17T01:09:00.001+01:00

The latest Eye of the North updates have brought some welcome changes to the way books work. Previously completed quests - most notably the Norn Primary Quests from the Sneak Peek weekend - weren't appearing in the Hero's Handbook. Dungeons completed before acquiring the Master Dungeon Guide were also not appearing.

Now however you can pay 100 gold to the following NPCs to get the missing pages added:

Gedral of Ascalon [Vanguard Herald] inside the Eye of the North
Kodan [Dwarven Recruitment Officer] in Gunnar's Hold
Tyr the Skaald [Norn Storyteller] in Gunnar's Hold
Lexx [Asuran Talent Scout] in Rata Sum

These NPCs have also been updated. Instead of just accepting fully completed books, they will now accept partially completed Hero's Handbooks and Master Dungeon Guides. Depending on how complete your book is, they will change the amount of XP, Gold, and Reputation Points they will give you.

The partial Hero's Handbook rewards are:

Pages	Rep (Normal)	Rep (Hard)	XP (Normal)	XP (Hard)	Gold (Normal)	Gold (Hard)
8	2,000	3,000	4,000	6,000	400	600
9	3,000	4,500	6,000	9,000	600	900
10	4,000	6,000	8,000	12,000	800	1,200
11	6,000	9,000	12,000	18,000	1,200	1,800
12	8,000	12,000	16,000	24,000	1,600	2,400
13	10,000	15,000	20,000	30,000	2,000	3,000
14	12,000	18,000	24,000	36,000	2,400	3,600
15	15,000	22,500	30,000	45,000	3,000	4,500
16	20,000	30,000	40,000	60,000	4,000	6,000

The partial Master Dungeon Guide rewards are:

Pages	Rep (Normal)	Rep (Hard)	XP (Normal)	XP (Hard)	Gold (Normal)	Gold (Hard)
9	11,000	16,500	22,000	33,000	2,200	3,300
10	12,000	18,000	24,000	36,000	2,400	3,600
11	13,000	19,500	26,000	39,000	2,600	3,900
12	14,000	21,000	28,000	42,000	2,800	4,200
13	16,000	24,000	32,000	48,000	3,200	4,800
14	18,000	27,000	36,000	54,000	3,600	5,400
15	21,000	31,500	42,000	63,000	4,200	6,300
16	25,000	37,500	50,000	75,000	5,000	7,500
17	30,000	45,000	60,000	90,000	6,000	9,000
18	40,000	60,000	80,000	120,000	8,000	12,000

If you're looking to boost your Eye of the North Title Tracks, and don't want to/can't complete a book, this is a great idea. As far as I'm aware, as you can gain extra books, there's nothing to stop you completing a book, handing it in, getting the quests again from the Scrying Pool in the Hall of Monuments, and then getting another book and doing it all over.

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Eye of the North Hard Mode

2007-10-16T09:24:00.001+01:00

The latest update to Eye of the North from ArenaNet has introduced Hard Mode. Hard Mode significantly increases the difficulty - and rewards - of all the missions and quests in Eye of the North, and is only available to Level 20 characters who have completed Eye of the North.

To unlock Hard Mode for all Level 20 characters on your account, complete the final Eye of the North Primary Quest "A Time for Heroes".

In Hard Mode, reputation point bonuses for completing Primary Quests and dungeons are 50% than normal mode. Reputation points received as bounties while under a blessing are also 50% higher than normal, and dungeon loot is doubled.

Hard Mode has been available for a while for the three main Guild Wars chapters (Prophecies, Factions and Nightfall). With the increased difficulty from tougher monsters it represents a real challenge, and is a chance for accomplished players to really prove themselves.

The increased bonuses also mean much more rapid progression on the Eye of the North Title Tracks.

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Full Eye of the North map

2007-10-10T16:50:00.002+01:00

This fantastic full XBOX 360 Elite game Console map comes courtesy of Skaare of Aiur of xbox 360.

Major kudos are due to Skaare, who has done a fantastic job, achieving the rank of Tyrian Grandmaster Cartographer along the way. This map shows 100% of Tyria, and 99% of Eye of the North. All of the outposts are listed as well as the locations of all of the dungeons.

It's a 6.2mb download, and can be grabbed at Microsoft XBOX 360 Game Console Core Edition System

Skaare's release notes for the map can also be found at New Xbox360 Premium! 1 NEW game and extra control - these contain great tips for finding those last hidden areas on the map.

As you explore the Eye of the North map, can you uncover as much of Tyria as Skaare?

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Eye of the North heroes

2007-10-09T17:31:00.002+01:00

Guild Wars: Nightfall introduced the concept of heroes to Guild Wars - customisable NPCs which could be given orders and managed, making them much more flexible and powerful than henchman. XBox Eye of the North has introduced some more heroes, giving you a lot of flexibility when it comes to building your party.

When you gain armour upgrades for your Heroes they can be added to the Monument of Fellowship in the Hall of Monuments, opening up potential bonuses in Guild Wars 2.

You will have gained the three main heroes, one from each Eye of the North faction, when travelling to the Far Shiverpeaks:

Ogden Stonehealer (Dwarven Monk)
Vekk (Asuran Elementalist)
Gwen (Vanguard Mesmer)

When following the Norn quests, you will pick Jora (Norn Warrior) during the main Curse of the Nornbear storyline. You can also pick up Xandra (Luxon Ritualist) and Kahmu (Elonian Dervish) when completing the Norn Fighting Tournament mission.

During the Ebon Vanguard quests, exploring the Charr Homeland, you will gain Pyre Fierceshot (Charr Ranger) as a mandatory hero as part of the Warband of Brothers Primary Quest. You can also collect Anton (Ascalonian Assassin) with The Assassin's Revenge mission.

The final two heroes can be gained when following the Asuran Primary Quests. Livia (Kyrtan Necromancer) is gained when completing the Finding Gadd Primary Quest. You can also collect Hayda (Shining Blade Paragon) when completing the Give Peace a Chance mission.

The ten new heroes in Eye of the North give you a nice spread of skills, abilities, and builds to choose from, spanning most of the factions and races in Guild Wars.

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