As the title suggests, I'm not sure who I want to start. I have been reading on their website and did a quick search on google to see what other people thought and didn't find a ton.

I'm not really worried about racial traits and such as I feel like choosing a race based on that makes it a little less personal and more mechanical, which in an MMO, I don't like. I was just curious what other people were choosing and why, which race do you like, why do you like them. If anyone has played in the beta (I have not) let me know what you thought.

Right now I'm leaning towards the Charr. I hate being humans in a game, I -am- a human so I never understood wanting to play one when there's all these other races to experience. The Norn seem like big humans... correct me if I'm wrong? The Sylvari seem really neat, though I don't know much about them.

Let me know your thoughts!

I disagree . I going with the race I am in real life.

Charr.

You might want to look into the personal story options for each race a bit. I didn't play Charr or Sylvari, so I can't really speak to those (I'm the opposite of you, I wound up playing Human and Norn in the beta). From what I've read though, the Charr stuff all centers around the legions, while the Sylvari stuff is at least moderately influenced by Arthurian mythology. So I guess it comes down to, do you like cat things that are a mix of the roman legions and industrial revolution, or plant dudes that mix child-like naivety with crazy dragon-slaying?

For the record though, the Norn blackout storyline and the Human noble line are totally the best (bonus points if you select 'Never joined the circus').

I went through Charr, Sylvari and Asura starting zones in the beta and I enjoyed them all. They all have some pretty epic boss fights as early missions, and the zones themselves are all fun to explore. I'd say just pick whichever aesthetic you prefer. I'm probably going to stick with Sylvari in the full game, purely because I like the whole glowy-woods thing they have going on.

I don't play humans for exactly the same reason. I don't think it's possible to be less imaginative than to play as a human in an MMO when you have awesome shit like the Charr as an alternative.

Like you, I'll be playing as the non-human-ish races (Norn, Human) on my first three characters.

• Asura (Engineer) - because they're fucking 'asurable.' I'm also a huge fan of tiny races, particularly when they're so connected to technology (huge fan of WoW's Goblins and Gnomes). The fact that they're so cocky only adds tons of fantastic flavour.
• Charr(dian) - played a bunch of Charr in BWE1/2. Had a blast with the personal story stuff with the different legions and whatnot, plus, they're so wholly different from most other MMO races. Not to mention their bitchin' running animation.
• Sylvari (Ranger) - glow-in-the-dark barkfaces. That's all I need.

@Silvergun said:

(bonus points if you select 'Never joined the circus').

I have no idea what that means, haha. I will likely end up playing them all at some point (I hope) but I always have an attachment to my first character to an MMO, it's weird I guess.

I was just curious what other people were choosing and why to maybe give me some insight as I got in too late to beta anything. Thanks for the tips, and the story bits, appreciate it!

@Sweep: Sylvari interested me, but it also looks like a clever way to disguise the usual "elf", which I hate. I will have to see them when I log in, but they do interest me. I like the whole being made of vines, etc.

@project343 said:

• Sylvari (Ranger) - glow-in-the-dark barkfaces. That's all I need.

Wait, what is this??

Also don't the Charr run on all fours, I assume that's the bitchin thing you meant?

Charr are fucking awesome. The majority of my time spent with the beta I was playing a Charr engineer and loved it. I don't know why, but the other races just didn't appeal to me at the time. I plan on trying out Norn and Asura sometime after launch though.

@Xeirus said:

@Sweep: Sylvari interested me, but it also looks like a clever way to disguise the usual "elf", which I hate. I will have to see them when I log in, but they do interest me. I like the whole being made of vines, etc.

@project343 said:

• Sylvari (Ranger) - glow-in-the-dark barkfaces. That's all I need.

Wait, what is this??

Also don't the Charr run on all fours, I assume that's the bitchin thing you meant?

The sylvari can glow in the dark. In character creation you can choose the colour that you glow. It looks pretty badass.

To answer the question, I think I'm one of the few that's going with Norn. Their whole culture really interests me. Plus they can turn into bears which is awesome.

@Xeirus said:

project343 said:

• Sylvari (Ranger) - glow-in-the-dark barkfaces. That's all I need.

Wait, what is this??

Also don't the Charr run on all fours, I assume that's the bitchin thing you meant?

Yup. They run on all fours. And glow-in-the-dark barkfaces!

@Xeirus said:

@Silvergun said:

(bonus points if you select 'Never joined the circus').

I have no idea what that means, haha. I will likely end up playing them all at some point (I hope) but I always have an attachment to my first character to an MMO, it's weird I guess.

I was just curious what other people were choosing and why to maybe give me some insight as I got in too late to beta anything. Thanks for the tips, and the story bits, appreciate it!

It's a decision that you make in character creation for humans. It'll decide the main plot for your second story arc (between level 10-20ish).

@Maystack said:

Plus they can turn into bears which is awesome.

What the what?! ah man, you're making me question all my beliefs

@project343 said:

@Xeirus said:

project343 said:

• Sylvari (Ranger) - glow-in-the-dark barkfaces. That's all I need.

Wait, what is this??

Also don't the Charr run on all fours, I assume that's the bitchin thing you meant?

Yup. They run on all fours. And glow-in-the-dark barkfaces!

That looks sooo sick, damn man, I don't even know anymore....

It's pretty shallow but the charr run animation sealed it for me, That and Its kind if cool playing as the bad guys from the first game.

@Xeirus: They can also turn into ravens, snow leapords and wolves.

@Maystack said:

@Xeirus: They can also turn into ravens, snow leapords and wolves.

Yeah, but can they turn into giant 20 meter tall tree monsters? Didn't think so.

The amount of charr strength in this thread does me proud.

@CL60 said:

I disagree . I going with the race I am in real life. Charr.

This.

I might spend a lot of time as a leaf dude when I want a break from being a giant cat though.

I like the Charr, too, but I am going to roll Mesmer and Charr Mesmer just looks silly.

@Xeirus: The sylvari are supposed to be like the opposite end of elves. Their whole race has only been in existence for 25 years, whereas your typical elven race is usually thousands of years old. Along that same line, that means that none of the sylvari are older than 25 years so they can't embody the stereotypical wisdom that elves would, rather they are characterized by a deep sense of child-like curiosity and wonder about the world and how it all functions. Oh, and they're straight up vegetable people. I understand that people want to draw comparisons to what they're familiar with, but sylvari are sylvari.

Don't worry about racial traits. Guild Wars 2 doesn't make racials anything other than flavor. You aren't going to see people being funneled toward a certain race because they have a crazy advantage thanks to a racial. I think people still distinctly remember how Will of the Forsaken made it all but mandatory to be Undead in World of Warcraft for a good long time if you wanted a clear advantage in PvP. These guys have made it clear that they aren't making that mistake. Choose the race that has the most interesting aesthetic and back story for you. I do highly encourage you to watch some video of the asura running with a greatsword and strafing side to side in combat before you make your final decision though. Just sayin'.

@Sweep said:

I like the Charr, too, but I am going to roll Mesmer and Charr Mesmer just looks silly.

You know what else looks silly? Talking hamburgers.

I'm thinking Sylvari but I don't know if I can get down with the whole "looking like a plant" thing. I'm kinda picky when it comes to race choice in games and that might be enough to drive me away. If so, I'll just play human. Boring, but I know how their starting area works so that will make things go much smoother.

I did a Charr Ele through to finish on story line. It was alright. I love the way the Charr animate with running on all fours though. I also played an Asura Ranger through the story last BWE and it was a blast. I also love the way they animate. Especially with a two handed sword they fall all over the place and look off balance but they aren't. I don't think you can lose with either one of these races.

I didn't like the Sylvari. They have stuffy british accents that don't feel plant like at all if a language can even do that. I would have gone with something Irish or another accent that evokes something more earthy. I am also not a fan of the arbitrary sexual preference thing that permeates that race. I don't need a statement on sexuality in a fantasy game. I just want to play. Leave your social statements for the real world and out of my game.

That's why I like Charr and Asura. They fit an archetype in a way that feels fresh and new without getting all trope-y about it.

@Subjugation: Well that does indeed make them a little more attractive to play, thanks for the explanation.

I did look up a video of them with a greatsword, that was pretty awesome. I don't think I will be choosing one, but I can def appreciate the style, haha.

@wemibelec90: I didn't like them at first, but the more I see the more they -grow- on me, get it?!

Seriously though, they seem better than when I originally looked at them.

@Jayzilla said:

I did a Charr Ele through to finish on story line. It was alright. I love the way the Charr animate with running on all fours though. I also played an Asura Ranger through the story last BWE and it was a blast. I also love the way they animate. Especially with a two handed sword they fall all over the place and look off balance but they aren't. I don't think you can lose with either one of these races.

I didn't like the Sylvari. They have stuffy british accents that don't feel plant like at all if a language can even do that. I would have gone with something Irish or another accent that evokes something more earthy. I am also not a fan of the arbitrary sexual preference thing that permeates that race. I don't need a statement on sexuality in a fantasy game. I just want to play. Leave your social statements for the real world and out of my game.

That's why I like Charr and Asura. They fit an archetype in a way that feels fresh and new without getting all trope-y about it.

Well what do you mean about the sexual pref? Keep in mind I haven't had the privilege of playing any beta. British does seem very lazy though, I agree.

@Jayzilla: It's less making a statement and more expanding on the race's culture for immersion purposes. It wouldn't seem honest for all of the races to have an identical PoV when it comes to sexuality, and it makes sense that the sylvari - being the newest race - are far less colored by the biases of the older cultures in Tyria.

@jayzilla I havnt played the game yet but from what I have seen in videos of the Charr I got a very strong Krogan/Klingon vibe from them.

I'm doing the Human area first because I like the landscapes. And there's some hidden callbacks to the first game that make me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

@Mister_V said:

@jayzilla I havnt played the game yet but from what I have seen in videos of the Charr I got a very strong Krogan/Klingon vibe from them.

You had me interested at Krogan, but immediately lost me at Klingon, haha

@Dark_Lord_Spam said:

@Jayzilla: It's less making a statement and more expanding on the race's culture for immersion purposes. It wouldn't seem honest for all of the races to have an identical PoV when it comes to sexuality, and it makes sense that the sylvari - being the newest race - are far less colored by the biases of the older cultures in Tyria.

That does make sense, the oldest of their race being 20 something does explain it. Though I don't have a point of reference, I trust you!

@Xeirus said:

Well what do you mean about the sexual pref? Keep in mind I haven't had the privilege of playing any beta. British does seem very lazy though, I agree.

The sylvari have males and females, but they don't differentiate between the two in the same way other races do. You'll see a lot of sylvari couples, including one of the main characters, in a same sex relationship. I can see why some people would see this as an attempt to push a statement, but I don't really have a problem with it. It does make sense with their culture, so it's not like it's just their for the sake of it.

I actually like the fact they're not just a generic elf race though. They're plant people, born from a giant tree, but their culture doesn't revolve around being "one with nature" or anything like that. They're sophisticated, curious and like to try things that make them stand-out as individuals. I think the Arthurian style fits them, even if some of the voice acting isn't fantastic.

@WinterSnowblind: Ah, I see, well I actually think that's awesome. It's nice to see a game with the courage to even put something like that in there.

I mean if you weren't really invested I doubt you would even notice anyway.

@Subjugation said:

@Sweep said:

I like the Charr, too, but I am going to roll Mesmer and Charr Mesmer just looks silly.

You know what else looks silly? Talking hamburgers.

THE HELL YOU SAY

Maybe you two should duel, We could end up with a Charr-Grilled hamburger. Ok I'll leave now.

@Sweep said:

@Subjugation said:

@Sweep said:

I like the Charr, too, but I am going to roll Mesmer and Charr Mesmer just looks silly.

You know what else looks silly? Talking hamburgers.

THE HELL YOU SAY

@Dark_Lord_Spam said:

@Jayzilla: It's less making a statement and more expanding on the race's culture for immersion purposes. It wouldn't seem honest for all of the races to have an identical PoV when it comes to sexuality, and it makes sense that the sylvari - being the newest race - are far less colored by the biases of the older cultures in Tyria.

It doesn't make sense though from a biological stand point in their own lore. The Sylvari are merely mimicking human looks. Plants don't reproduce that way at all. It would make sense in the lore if the humans did it which there is zero account of that in any GW lore for any other species.

It's just social commentary. You even say it yourself about "biases of older cultures." It's all about making a statement. This is the whole reason I don't like it. I just want to play a game without being reminded every second of the day about sexuality. In my opinion, it hinders what is going on with them as a new race. I want to learn about them as a race. When I play Charr, I don't wonder, "who are they dating", "are they an easy lay on a date?". It's asinine in the context of the game.

@Jayzilla: They aren't in relationships for reproductive purposes though. They don't need to, because they're born from that tree thing or something. They just get together with another Sylvari that they like, and don't take gender into account.

At least that's what I've gathered from what little I've read on it.

@Jayzilla said:

When I play Charr, I don't wonder, "who are they dating"

Trick question, all Charr are married to the Legion!

I'm picking human first even though I really want to play charr and asura. Gotta make the rounds and check out the changes since GW1.

GUYS ONLY A FEW MORE WEEKS LEFT.

I'm starting with a nord though I won't be doing the story line- It's incredible boring. I'm gonna be playing through with my friend on his Charr.

@Jayzilla said:

I did a Charr Ele through to finish on story line. It was alright.

What choices did you make for your Charr? Since the first two Acts/Arcs are entirely based on those two critical decisions that you make in character creation (Legion, and your father/sire in this case), I find judging a race's story based on a single playthrough of beta content to be a wholly unfair. Personally, I did Iron Legion and Honorless Gladium. Both stories were pretty fantastic IMO--ending in fantastic decisions and filled to the brim with pretty solid drama and tons of memorable quests (using a ghost-killing magic mortar that I made to slaughter hundreds of Ascalonian Ghosts as they attacked us from all sides? So fantastic).

I'm going to roll human ele, human thief, norn warrior, sylvari guardian, then either an engy or necro of unknown race.

Just went about it creating the characters I always create in games (at least the first 3 are).

• Charr = Military Life & Civil War
• Human = Adventurer & Cloak 'n Dagger
• Norn = Spiritual Barbarians & Social Drinkers
• Asura = Snotty Little Techno & Mage Bitches
• Sylvari = Tree Huggers VS The Undead

@Jayzilla said:

@Dark_Lord_Spam said:

@Jayzilla: It's less making a statement and more expanding on the race's culture for immersion purposes. It wouldn't seem honest for all of the races to have an identical PoV when it comes to sexuality, and it makes sense that the sylvari - being the newest race - are far less colored by the biases of the older cultures in Tyria.

It doesn't make sense though from a biological stand point in their own lore. The Sylvari are merely mimicking human looks. Plants don't reproduce that way at all. It would make sense in the lore if the humans did it which there is zero account of that in any GW lore for any other species.

It's just social commentary. You even say it yourself about "biases of older cultures." It's all about making a statement. This is the whole reason I don't like it. I just want to play a game without being reminded every second of the day about sexuality. In my opinion, it hinders what is going on with them as a new race. I want to learn about them as a race. When I play Charr, I don't wonder, "who are they dating", "are they an easy lay on a date?". It's asinine in the context of the game.

You're exactly right that they don't reproduce through screwing, which is why sylvari love is independent of gender. You're exactly wrong that gender politics haven't been explored elsewhere in Guild Wars lore. A large part of charr history in the last 250 years deals with how the Flame Legion were only overthrown because charr females defied their repression and joined the other legions in battle.

@Seppli said:

• Asura = Snotty Little Techno & Mage Bitches

I laughed

@Dark_Lord_Spam said:

@Jayzilla said:

@Dark_Lord_Spam said:

You're exactly right that they don't reproduce through screwing, which is why sylvari love is independent of gender. You're exactly wrong that gender politics haven't been explored elsewhere in Guild Wars lore. A large part of charr history in the last 250 years deals with how the Flame Legion were only overthrown because charr females defied their repression and joined the other legions in battle.

Without reproductive organs there would be no romantic feelings though. IDK, it feels stupid even talking about a game like this. I guess I just want it to be a game. GW1 didn't have all the melodrama they are adding to this one and I guess I kinda like that. Without reproductive organs though, there is no need for romantic love. That is the type of love the Greek called Eros. Agape love, sure, but not Eros.

@Jayzilla: Well, they do have the same set of organs humans have, being that they're imitations. It's just that they don't use those organs to reproduce. They're still able to get it on for funsies and whatnot.

There were some heavy-handed commentaries in GW1, though perhaps you didn't notice. From Prophecies all the way through to Eye of the North, there's at least four very specific instances of unsympathetic portraits of religion. And the whole story in Winds of Change was about how you, as the player character, were supposed to feel shame for all of the thousands of hostile NPCs you had killed, for fuck's sake. I guess what I'm saying is: if it rubs you the wrong way, just lump it in with all the other ridiculousness that's present in the game because it's in a fantastical world with dragons and shit and developer opinions are bound to show up there in one form or another.

A little off-topic here but can someone tell me how the story quests will work? Say if I start as a fresh human and a friend rolls a charr, when and how do we get to start questing together and will we be able to participate in each other's story quest or just the quests outside?

I take it if we focus on my story quests then we'll have to go back and do my friend's charr story quests albeit over leveled and over geared? Does it even work that way since I'm not in the beta so I have no concrete knowledge on the specifics.

@supamon: If you're in a party then when you start a story quest, everyone in the party also joins. So yes, you can go over to charr land and take part in your friend's story.

Also, the great thing about GW2 is that if you're over the level of an area, it will scale you back down so that you're an appropriate level. Plus, you'll still get drops that are good. So if you're level 20 and go do a level 3 quest, you'll effectively be level 3 but still get level 20 drops.

@project343 said:

@Jayzilla said:

I did a Charr Ele through to finish on story line. It was alright.

What choices did you make for your Charr? Since the first two Acts/Arcs are entirely based on those two critical decisions that you make in character creation (Legion, and your father/sire in this case), I find judging a race's story based on a single playthrough of beta content to be a wholly unfair. Personally, I did Iron Legion and Honorless Gladium. Both stories were pretty fantastic IMO--ending in fantastic decisions and filled to the brim with pretty solid drama and tons of memorable quests (using a ghost-killing magic mortar that I made to slaughter hundreds of Ascalonian Ghosts as they attacked us from all sides? So fantastic).

From what I played with two other Charrs who had made a different legion choice to me, and then both different father/sire choices their stories deviated very little from mine to be honest. The first few missions are pretty much the same, and the general tone isn't different at all. I still heard about that gun thing even though I wasn't Iron Legion in my story, and so on.

@Maystack: Okay so basically I can go anywhere from the get go and start doing quests there. I assume there's a level restriction for higher level quests and the different races' story quests will come together eventually to beat zhaitan and friends.

Man... Wish I was in the beta, I really want to play it =(

@supamon: Yeah, just keep in mind that you only scale down and not up. So if you go to an area that's aimed for higher levels you're gonna have a bad time.

Also, I think if you've pre purchased it already then you get to take part in the stress test today.

@Maystack said:

@supamon:

Also, I think if you've pre purchased it already then you get to take part in the stress test today.

Just a couple more hours, mmmmmm

@Dark_Lord_Spam said:

@Jayzilla: Well, they do have the same set of organs humans have, being that they're imitations. It's just that they don't use those organs to reproduce. They're still able to get it on for funsies and whatnot.

There were some heavy-handed commentaries in GW1, though perhaps you didn't notice. From Prophecies all the way through to Eye of the North, there's at least four very specific instances of unsympathetic portraits of religion. And the whole story in Winds of Change was about how you, as the player character, were supposed to feel shame for all of the thousands of hostile NPCs you had killed, for fuck's sake. I guess what I'm saying is: if it rubs you the wrong way, just lump it in with all the other ridiculousness that's present in the game because it's in a fantastical world with dragons and shit and developer opinions are bound to show up there in one form or another.

i hear what you are saying. you make some valid points about gw1. i didn't play through WoC because it was all about killing my least fave enemies in the game. All that I was saying though was about the thread topic and offering my reasons why I don't/wouldn't play Sylvari. The funny part is that my least favorite thing about them is the voice work. The game itself is a total blast though all of that aside. I think I am hyper critical because I have waited for this game since 2007. Cheers mate.

I made a Human, a Norn, and a Sylvari last beta weekend. Don't really have any interest in Charr or Asura, so I think I'm going with Sylvari first. At face value I thought they seemed pretty dumb but their starting zone was cool and I liked the way my character ended up looking. Tree dude with metal armor.