The world of Tyria is varied and vast. And as Arenanet add more and more content, the amount of stuff to do grows. This MMORPG is built on the idea of horizontal progression. Since the developers have never raised the level cap, they have to introduce new challenges in inventive ways. And with all that new content, new players can sometimes feel a little lost.
So let’s say you just go to level 80 in Guild Wars 2 and are in that lost crowd. Regardless of if you used that free level boost or not, you’re going to have a lot of information thrown at you. There’s so much to do, that it can feel a little overwhelming. This guide will help orient you to some set goals that you should get out of the way when you have the chance.
I Hit Level 80 in Guild Wars 2, Now What?
Each section laid out below will tell users what to look for, and what to do next, when it comes to finally hitting max level. It’s a wonderful thing to finally finish the leveling grind, but there’s so much more game to experience. With this guide, we’re going to lay out your path in front of you. You can tackle this ever-expanding journey in any way you like, but these are the tasks you should complete when you hit the level cap in GW2.
Story Progression
Those irritating green quest markers, those are the in-game story of GW2, and you really should complete them whenever they come up. But with the number of quests in the game, it’s easy to get sidetracked, so it’s fine. But if you hit level 80 and still haven’t finished at least the base game’s story, that’s the first thing on your to-do list. Completing story missions will not only allow you to know what happens when you reach the expansions, but it’s also a great way to earn some extra coin.
This is also a core part of making Legendary Weapons, the most powerful items in the game. You need to have explored all maps that were in the base game to get Gifts of Exploration for that part. That’s going to take a while, so dont’ sweat it too much.
Map Unlocks
The world map is huge and varied. And you want to have as much of it unlocked as possible. The amount of travel waypoints alone is worth flying around getting the map sections discovered. The XP for doing this is a nice bonus too. Having as many of the Heart missions, Events and other hidden puzzles found is a great thing to do when you have the time. Don’t worry about rushing it all though. GW2 is a massive game, and it will take time. But be sure to set some time aside when you can to uncover sections of the game world you haven’t explored.
Living Worlds
This paid content can be unlocked with Gems or Gold, and it ties into the last two goals pretty well. Living Worlds are like DLC maps for GW2. They add max level and high-level zones to the game, some of which are great for farming Gold. If you buy anything from the GEmstore, it should probably be these seasons. There are four for purchase, and you unlock the most recent one when you buy the expansions. It’s a great deal for what you get. Each of the five Living World Seasons is broken up into various episodes, each one containing new story to explore, and obviously, new loot to collect. Some sources of Ascended Gear can even be found in Living World episodes. This class of gear is essential for Raids and Strikes.
You might also be tempted to buy some stuff on the Gemstore. As such, it’s a good idea to check out our guide on the best Gemstore purchases for a new player. As an aside, there are some Gemstore items that just aren’t worth it to most players.
Try New Things
There are so many game modes in GW2, why would you restrict yourself to just one? After putting some playtime into the other things on this list, try out PvP or dungeons. You can get into something low-tier Fractals without incredibly good gear, and they’re a ton of fun. Get a group of friends or guildies together and rush into WvW. As someone who loved Alterac Valley when I played WoW, the WvW content was intimidating. The mess of chaos quickly became a favorite activity of mine in GW2.
Regular PvP is gear-agnostic, and it’s a relatively simple 5v5 mode. it’s tons of fun with all the theorycrafting and meta-game choices you can make when crafting builds. And don’t worry about being good the first few times you play, you’re still learning.
Maybe you want to gett into crafting and gathering in GW2. That’s an option too.
Ascended Gear
The Ascended Gear is the pinnacle of gear in GW2 for most players. Hitting level 80 in Guild Wars 2 is when you really need to start gearing up. If you want to get deep in WvW PvP or the Raiding endgame, the gear you bring along is important. So you need to know where to look for it, and start working towards that goal.
That’s where this guide from the wiki comes in. This incredibly comprehensive tool is the best thing that the community has akin to a gearing encyclopedia. If you want to learn ALL the ways to get Ascended Gear, use this guide. it’s a very dense read, but it’s genuinely the most comprehensive guide on the topic. So pick a strategy that works for you; whether that be PvE, PvP, crafting or something else, and read up.
Strikes
This is the next step on your journey through the true endgame in this MMO. Strikes are a 10-man PvE mission that’s the precursor to Raids in terms of difficulty. You can prep for these by running Fractals and other Dungeons, and they’re a step up in terms of rewards too. Dragon Response Missions and Fractals are also acceptable ways to gear and prepare yourself for the PvE endgame. These are all 5-man missions. Fractals are the most varied, as they have 100 different levels of difficulty, and they are pretty profitable.
There you have it, some methods and plans you can use to make your way past the drudgery and make the most out of hitting level 80 in Guild Wars 2.
