Character Creation

So you've installed the game, and you've logged in. But what are you supposed to do now? If you've pressed "log in" and then "play", you're staring at a blank character page now. So get creating! There are no racial bonuses in Guild Wars 2, and all the different professions have their own merits, so you can really play how you want to play! Press "create" to enter the character creation screen. This post covers two main topics that I'm often asked about, and is by no means a profession guide, merely a more personalized introduction!

Professions:

Maybe the pictures didn't draw you to a specific profession, or you didn't like the short in-game blurb, so my guild mates and I created our own introductions to their more profession-specific mechanics and feeling, all to help you decide! Everyone takes different things from their experiences, so your experience with a profession of course can be very different, because you can play the way you want to! If you've already picked a profession, scroll past this section to see about the story choices.

Guardian: called a "guard" by the community and featured by our lovely default model above. They wear heavy armor! They are presented as a more support class, but they have amazing damage builds as well, you're definitely not stuck in the support class trope if you pick guardian.

"Guardian is pretty much what it says on the tin. Much like a paladin in other games, the class has a versatile skill set that includes healing, buffs, shouts, condition removal and even magical shields! A great support class for someone who doesn't mind being right in the heat of battle." ~Minty

Revenant: called a "rev" for short, another heavy armor profession!

"Capable of channeling legendary figures in order to have access to different skills, Revenants use a special resource called Energy in order to cast their abilities. They have enough flexibility to play multiple roles during a battle, depending on their Legend of choice. It is only available to players that have purchased either the Heart of Thorns or the Path of Fire expansion."

Warrior: short form "war". Heavy armor as you could have guessed!

"A staple profession in every MMO, Warrior isn't that much different from the genre's trope, though like all the professions in Guild Wars 2, is pretty versatile! Warriors can not only do great damage, but they also can help their whole team increase their DPS too! Warriors use something called Adrenaline that builds as they attack, and then they unleash for a lot of burst damage! They have shouts, banners, a whole range of cool skills to use. We can wield a huge range of weapons!" ~Dole

Engineer: known as "engi". Our first introduction in medium armor!

"Engineers are masters of contraptions, utility and diversity. They don't have access to many basic weapon skill sets, but have a large number of packages that can replace their weapon skills on a whim. Flame throwers, alchemy potion guns, turrets and even a bazooka are the Engineer's most signature features, all of which can be used in the same build if you really wanted!" ~Psi

Ranger: Medium armor. Fills the classical "hunter" role of MMO's and RPG's.

"Rangers are perhaps one of the most versatile of professions, excelling in ranged combat, and melee alike. Not super squishy, but also not very tanky, Rangers still rely on their mobility to avoid damage. The pets you can train and call upon all have special skills, and can help you tank encounters, deal damage, buff allies, and even debuff enemies." ~Dole

Thief: much like the Assassin of Guild Wars, thief can be best described as a glass cannon. The last of our medium armored professions!

"Thief is a profession specializing in dealing massive damage to single targets, initiate engages and encounters, as well as escaping from harm's way. The Thief is a very movement-based class that utilizes stealth to move around unseen, or close in on enemies instantaneously. Thief is a lethal class that utilizes movement and damage which makes up for its lack of vitality and toughness, a profession that means to be untouched. This profession requires patience and quick wits to play, a difficult profession for any new or experienced player, but highly rewarding." ~Ykcaj

Mesmer: to start off our light armor introductions is the Mesmer! Another class carried over from Guild Wars.

"Playing as a Mesmer is super fun, even in the core game without elite specializations. Mesmer uses clones, phantasms and illusions to deceive their enemies; glamours to help teammates and hinder enemies. Mesmer have a quick play style that centers around outwitting your enemy. That and just being badass with exploding purple clones of yourself." ~Dole

Elementalist: another squishy profession wearing light armor.

"Elementalists harness the power of the elements, obviously! Each element you attune to has a specific skill set, and as such, provides elementalists with a very versatile and quick play style. That being said, you can only equip one weapon set at a time with an elementalist. Elements have their own uses which makes playing an elementalist a little confusing at first to get used to the rotation, but very rewarding for both solo play and party activities." ~Dole

Necromancer: light armor!

"Raising minions from the dead, creating wells to hurt your enemies and apply boons to allies, who wouldn't like playing a Necromancer?" ~Dole

Story Choices:

After you're happy with the race and profession you picked, and how your character looks, you'll be asked to pick from a few background stories and elements that will effect the way your storyline unfolds. There won't be a difference in any rewards, and the personal story can only be played through once per character, so pick whatever you feel is right and enjoy the ride!

Upon pressing create, you'll start a cutscene and be put into a 'tutorial instance' where higher level characters can't enter. This tutorial instance walks you through the basics of battle, movement and interactions, just go with the flow and follow the instructions on the mini map and your story tracker. Good luck and have fun!

Love, Dole