The Best General Introduction to Guild Wars 2...

...compiled and organized by Dragon Season, who is now my hero.
http://dragonseason.com/Front/tabid/124/EntryId/176/GW2-Tips-Index.aspx

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Copyright Solo MMO Player at http://solommo.blogspot.com

Money Money Money (Guild Wars 2)

Guild Wars 2 has all kinds of currency:  Coins (bronze, silver and gold), Gems, Glory, Influence, Karma, Skill Points and Supply.   Here's a nice video about all the currencies, how each is used and how to get them.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DQZd9cmRB08

Here's a written guide to the currencies.  It looks to be somewhat incomplete to me.
http://www.guildwars2hub.com/guides/basics/gw2-currency-guide


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Copyright Solo MMO Player at http://solommo.blogspot.com

Crafting in Guild Wars 2 UPDATED

There are eight crafting professions in Guild Wars 2 (and 400 skills levels!).  You can learn all the crafting professions, but can only have two disciplines active on a character at one time.  You can gather materials for crafting by purchasing items, looting defeated foes' bodies, gathering certain raw materials, and salvaging materials after destroying items using a salvage kit.  All this is covered in the GW2 wiki.  Yes, it's complicated.  This is the very best guide I've found.
http://gaiscioch.com/tavern/guildwars_crafting/post_35198.html

Here is what the official wiki says about crafting.  The links are very useful for research.
http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Crafting

http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Crafting_material

This summarizes crafting and has explanations of how professions work crafting items.
http://www.ign.com/wikis/guild-wars-2/Crafting

Here is a crafting orientation video for beginners.  (based on the beta)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bFU_b4e2bxU

A more intermediate crafting video with an emphasis on gathering and storage. (based on the beta)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ry3Ddw6Gqmo&feature=channel&list=UL

Cooking is a little different so here's a video that covers just cooking.  (based on the beta)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jpPWp1Yh_30&feature=channel&list=UL

Psynister has analyzed the gem store. You can read all about it and see the organizational charts here.  Thanks, Psyn!
http://psynister.wordpress.com/2012/08/10/analyzing-the-gem-store/

He's also done a review of the game.
http://psynister.wordpress.com/2012/08/28/guild-wars-2-review-take-2/

UPDATE:  Recipes are color coded in the production tab of your crafting UI.  I am quoting the Production section in the link below as follows:
http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Crafting

"The production tab shows all available recipes. The color of a recipe's name indicates how close the recipe is to your current discipline level. The colors are the same as for item quality, progressing from gold for recipes near your current level to green to dark blue to light blue to white to gray for recipes that no longer grant any crafting experience.

Red recipes appear when you are within five levels of the next 25-level interval, at which point they will automatically unlock.

The number after the recipe name indicates how many items you can craft using that recipe, based on the contents your inventory and collections."

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Copyright Solo MMO Player at http://solommo.blogspot.com

Guild Wars 2: Lion's Arch

Lion's Arch is a critical hub in Guild Wars 2, both in terms of lore and in terms of getting from Point A to Point B, particularly when you are new to the game.  This article has some history and lore and a video of the physical layout.
http://guildwars2warrior.com/news/explore-lions-arch-in-guild-wars-2-beta-weekend/

The GW2 wiki has a list of waypoints at Lion's Arch.
http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Lion's_Arch

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Guild Wars 2: Pets UPDATED

Only rangers have pets.  Here's info about the pets low level rangers can have.
http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Ranger

How to tame pets and lists of pets available.  Only juvenile animals can be tamed/charmed.
http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Pet

This site talks about the differences in stats among pet types with videos.
http://www.guildwars2guru.com/topic/37154-ranger-pets-guide-videos-of-pets-included/

This site is a complete guide to both ranger pets and mini-pets.
http://www.guildwars2-pets.com/guide/The_Complete_Guide_to_Ranger_Pets.html

Here's a bit about mini-pets, which are essentially vanity pets available to anyone for a price.
http://feature.mmosite.com/gw2/20120618/a_look_at_gw2_minipets.shtml

http://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Miniature

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Copyright Solo MMO Player at http://solommo.blogspot.com