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{{Infobox CVG
{{Infobox video game
|title = Guild Wars Factions
|title = Guild Wars Factions
|image = [[Image:GuildFactionsbox.jpg|200px|]]
|image = GuildFactionsbox.jpg
|developer = [[ArenaNet]]
|developer = [[ArenaNet]]
|publisher = [[NCSoft]]
|publisher = [[NCSOFT]]
|distributor =
|designer =
|designer =
|series = ''[[Guild Wars]]''
|engine =
|version =
|engine =
|released = [[April 28]], [[2006]]
|released = April 28, 2006 (Retail)<br />{{vgrelease|NA|April 22, 2009 (Steam)}}
|genre = [[Competitive online role-playing game|CORPG]] and [[Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game|MMORPG]]
|genre = [[Action role-playing game|Action RPG]]<br>[[competitive online role-playing game|CORPG]]
|modes = [[Multiplayer]]
|modes = [[Multiplayer video game|Multiplayer]]
|ratings = [[ESRB]]: Teen (13+)<br />[[PEGI]]: 12+
|platforms = [[Microsoft Windows|Windows]]
|platforms = [[Microsoft Windows|Windows]]
|media = [[CD-ROM|CD]] (2) or Download
|requirements = [[Intel]] [[Pentium III]] 800 MHz [[Central processing unit|CPU]], 256MB [[Random access memory|RAM]], 2GB [[Hard disk]] space, 32MB Radeon 8500 or GeForce 3 Series [[Graphics processing unit|GPU]], 56kbit/s internet connection, [[Microsoft Windows|Windows]] 98/ME/2000/XP or [[Linux|Linux x86]] w/[[Cedega]]
|input =
|preceded by = [[Guild Wars]]
|followed by = [[Guild Wars Nightfall]]
}}
}}
'''''Guild Wars Factions''''' is a fantasy [[action role-playing game]] and the second stand-alone campaign in the ''[[Guild Wars]]'' series developed by [[ArenaNet]], a subsidiary of [[NCSOFT]] corporation. It serves as both a standalone game and first [[expansion pack]] to the base game, which is referred to as ''Prophecies''. Simply referred to as ''Factions'', it introduces the continent of Cantha, inspired by [[East Asia]]n cultures, where two warring factions, the Luxons and the Kurzicks, are locked in a global persistent war. Players are able to join in this conflict, assisting their chosen faction in claiming towns on the game map.


''Factions'' introduced a new [[player versus environment|PvE]] campaign, two new professions in addition to the original six, new skills and armor for existing professions, new gameplay modes for both PvE and [[player versus player|PvP]], and gameplay modifications in response to criticism of the earlier ''[[Guild Wars (video game)|Prophecies]]'' campaign. Most of the PvP content from ''Prophecies'' is available to ''Factions''-only accounts.
'''Guild Wars Factions''' is a [[computer game]] released in [[2006]] by [[ArenaNet]] and is the first stand-alone campaign expanding on Prophecies, the original [[Guild Wars]] game. Factions introduces the player to the continent of Cantha where two warring factions, Luxon and Kurzick, battle for domination. Players are able to join in this conflict, assisting their chosen faction in claiming towns on the game map.


==Gameplay==
Factions has a new [[player versus environment|PvE]] campaign, two new professions, new skills and armor for existing professions, new gameplay modes for both PvE and [[player versus player|PvP]] and also addresses some of the criticisms of the original game.


''Factions'' is a standalone version of ''Guild Wars'' that shares the same gameplay mechanics and features a unique area and storyline.<ref>{{cite web|website=Eurogamer|title=Guild Wars: Factions dated|last=Bramwell|first=Tom|date=10 March 2006|accessdate=22 February 2024|url=https://www.eurogamer.net/news100306gwf}}</ref>
Buying Factions as a stand-alone game does not allow access to the original game continent, Tyria, and [[player versus environment|PvE]] campaign. The professions from Prophecies are available for Factions players to create. However some skills from the original campaign are not available, but new skills for these professions are introduced. Most of the PvP content from Prophecies is available to Factions players.


===Professions===
A player with both Factions and Guild Wars Prophecies can link the games which allows their characters to travel between the two game's continents and the player may maintain two more concurrent characters.
<!-- FAIR USE of GWAssassin.jpg: see image description page at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:GWAssassin.jpg for rationale -->
[[Image:GWAssassin.JPG|thumb|A male assassin]]
<!-- FAIR USE of GWRitualist.jpg: see image description page at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:GWRitualist.jpg for rationale -->
[[Image:GWRitualist.JPG|thumb|A female ritualist]]
Like all ''Guild Wars'' campaigns, ''Factions'' contains the ''core'' character classes introduced in ''[[Guild Wars (video game)|Prophecies]]''; it also adds two new classes to the game:


*The '''Assassin''' is a master at getting in quickly, striking and getting back out just as quick. They are able to instantly teleport around the field of combat using their ability to Shadow Step. They are capable of dealing a great deal of damage to a particular target, especially spellcasters, in a very short amount of time. This is offset by their weak armor, making them relatively ineffective frontline fighters. They use self healing and can solo spike.
==Story==
*The '''Ritualist''' is a living conduit to the spirit world, capable of summoning bound spirits to the field that can attack enemies or protect allies. They can also summon ghostly weapons for their allies to wield, and commune with the spirits of their ancestors through the ritual use of ashes and urns.
{{spoilers}}
[[Image:canthamap.jpg|thumb|right|Cantha, the continent in which Guild Wars Factions takes place.]]
The story is only loosely linked to that of the original campaign, the original games NPCs being the most notable link. Cantha was also mentioned many times in the original game, most notably by the Xunlai storage agents.


[[Guild Wars Nightfall#Professions|Dervishes]] and [[Guild Wars Nightfall#Professions|Paragons]] can get to Cantha via Kamadan, the port city of Istan, but they cannot be created in Cantha.
In 1332CC (872AE on the Tyrian calendar), the Canthan Emperor's bodyguard, [[List of Guild Wars characters#Shiro Tagachi|Shiro Tagachi]], murders the Emperor after receiving an ominous omen from a fortune teller and calls great power to himself. The champions of the Luxon and Kurzick factions, Archemorus and Saint Viktor respectively, and Vizu, an assassin, are able to kill Shiro. However, before dying, Shiro gathered up all his malice, hatred and rage and his death wail triggered what became known as the Jade Wind, turning everything to stone within a hundred miles and turning the sea to jade. However, this was not the end, as 200 years later, in the year 1532CC, Shiro has returned from the Underworld, using his powers as an Envoy to create an unholy army known as the Afflicted in a bid to regain his mortal form and rule Cantha.


===PvE modifications===
New characters join the Shing Jea Monastery for training. During their training the initial impact of Shiro's attempts to return becomes apparent through the illness which is starting to travel through the islands inhabitants, turning them into the vile Afflicted. Once the danger is confirmed the players accompany [[List of Guild Wars characters#Master Togo|Master Togo]], a revered training master and half brother to the current Canthan emperor, on his travels to Kaineng City to warn and petition the [[List of Guild Wars characters#Emperor Kisu|Emperor]] for his assistance.
Cooperative missions in ''Factions'' are different from their equivalent in ''Prophecies''. In ''Prophecies'', players complete a main mission and an optional bonus mission. Cooperative missions are easy to avoid in ''Prophecies'' as most areas are accessible without completing missions. ''Factions'' makes all missions compulsory for accessing new areas and completing the game. The bonus mission has been removed and replaced with a three-tiered reward system. Some missions' tiers are based on the time taken to complete the mission, others are based on completion of extra objectives (such as keeping a certain number of NPCs alive until the end). Gold, experience and a skill point are given at each reward tier. Several new concepts for co-operative missions have been introduced, such as missions with two teams of eight and missions specifically for killing a single [[Boss (video games)|boss]].


The time taken for a new character to reach the maximum level of twenty is reduced and most of the areas are designed for level twenty characters. Experience, and therefore skill points, are easy to acquire once level twenty is reached. This means that the time taken to unlock skills through PvE play is reduced from ''Prophecies''. Skill acquisition is modified also, most skills must be purchased from Skill Traders, rather than received by completing quests.
Master Togo also expresses his concern to one of his Tyrian students, [[List of Guild Wars characters#Brother Mhenlo|Mhenlo]], an NPC from the Prophecies campaign and requests his assistance. Characters from the original campaign accompany Mhenlo as he travels to the Canthan mainland to assist his master.


Boss enemies now do double damage and take half the time to use spells and skills instead of having shortened hex and condition durations.
It becomes clear that Shiro is abusing his power as an Envoy for the dead to meddle in the affairs of the living and turn the souls of the dead into his weapons. Other Envoys approach the players and ask for their assistance to stop Shiro, saying the players need to become Weh No Su (ancient Canthan for closer to the stars, the Canthan equivalent of Ascension) which will allow them to see and fight beings from the spirit realm.


===Factions and alliances===
Vizu, the spirit of the assassin who was key in slaying Shiro the first time, reveals the way to stop Shiro is to use artifacts of the Luxon and Kurzick heroes who originally killed Shiro. After acquiring these artifacts the players are able stop Shiro forming an army in the city, destroying his constructs and closing spirit rifts he had opened. Shiro himself however is not destroyed. The players then choose a side; going with Mhenlo to convince the Kurzicks that Shiro returning is more important than their ongoing war with the Luxons, or travel with Master Togo to convince the Luxons to stop fighting the Kurzicks.
''Factions'' introduces two factions which players and guilds may side with;
* Kurzick - respecting art, religion, and social order, the <!-- 68.48.158.244, before you change gothic to emo, please look at the talk page and see some sense. Thank you. -->gothic Kurzick dwell in the Echovald Forests. The Kurzicks wear dark clothing to capture as much sunlight and heat as possible in their dark environment. The Kurzick culture seems to be more European than Asian, but the hairstyles of some of the Kurzick males and females do somewhat reflect East Asian style.
* Luxon - respecting strength above all else, the Jade Sea dwelling Luxon are often compared to pirates, and are somewhat religion-less. They tend to wear light clothing to reflect the heat from the sun.
Neither faction is considered to be inherently 'good' or 'evil'.


''Factions'' also introduces the concept of multi-guild Alliances. An alliance is a group of up to ten guilds aligned with the same faction who agree to join in an alliance under the name of a single lead guild.
Once the players convince their chosen side, players from the Luxon and Kurzick factions meet again to seek advice from the dragon, [[List of Guild Wars characters#Kuunavang|Kuunavang]]. However they find that Kuunavang has been corrupted by Shiro, but when defeated Shiro's corruption ends and Kuunavang is able to assist the players on their quest. It is concluded that Shiro is putting together a spell to return to the mortal realm and needs only one more ingredient, the spilt blood of someone descended from the Emperor he killed centuries before.


Each faction has a number of towns which they own; the control of these towns is given to alliances with the highest standing with their faction. Alliances may earn this faction by means of donations from that alliance's member players.
Shiro raids the palace and kidnaps the Emperor as the players hurry to his aid. The players rush to save the Emperor through Shiro's army of fearsome Shiro'ken. As Shiro is about to kill the Emperor, Master Togo throws himself in the way, saving the Emperor. Unfortunately Togo is actually the Emperor's half brother and his Royal blood is good enough to complete the spell. Shiro then returns to his mortal form but now with amazing powers. In doing so, however, Shiro loses the one thing that kept him from being defeated in the first place: his immortality. The players rise to the challenge and take on Shiro. Shiro is defeated, his mortal form sealed in Jade, and the envoys banish him to the Realm of Torment, a special portion of the Underworld reserved for only the most evil in life.


A player may earn account-based Kurzick or Luxon faction points while they are playing ''Factions''. Faction points are earned doing PvE quests for a faction, competing in Alliance battles, in Competitive Missions or in some Challenge Missions. If the player does not wish to donate faction to the alliance, or if they play for the faction which the guild isn't allied with, they can trade their faction points for armor crafting materials or skills that can be used in the PvE portion of the game. A player is considered Luxon or Kurzick by having a majority of unspent faction points for the faction they support. To change faction a player needs to acquire a majority of factions points for their new faction.
{{endspoilers}}


===Competitive missions===
==New gameplay==
''Factions'' provides PvE players access to two competitive missions, a new game type for the ''Factions'' campaign. In these missions, two random teams of eight compete to reach specific objectives. If a player dies they respawn in the base and are able to rejoin the fight to meet the objectives. When the match finishes the players are returned to a waiting area to start the next battle.
Factions follows many of the same game mechanisms as the original Guild Wars, making modifications and introducing new types of gameplay.


* The Jade Quarry is a point capture mission. The common goal for both factions is to capture the jade quarries so that jade can be dug from them. Each jade shipment that successfully made its way back to the Faction's base is worth one point. In addition, there are several Watchtowers to be captured, giving strategic advantage to the owner when attacking the jade shipments.
===Professions===
* In the Fort Aspenwood mission the Luxons must storm a Kurzick base and kill an [[Non-player character|NPC]] known as Master Architect Gunther, a Kurzick engineer, to stop him from making a new weapon for the Kurzicks. Additionally, the Luxons must intercept amber shipments to slow down the development of the Kurzick weapon and base repairs by the Kurzick team. The base must be defended by the Kurzicks long enough for the engineer to complete the weapon.
Guild Wars Factions adds two new character classes to the game.


===Challenge missions===
*The '''Assassin''' is a master at taking down an enemy quickly. They are able to stealthily "shadow step" to their target's location and use an attack system which enforces effective skill chaining. While able to cause mass damage quickly they are rather weak and need to know when to teleport away. Since Assassins are hard to master they are hard to get into a group with.
These missions are a new gameplay type introduced in ''Factions''. They set specific scoring objectives for a team to meet, offering rewards of gold, experience or faction points dependent on the team's performance in the mission. The best teams over each quarter, each month and each day are recorded for players to view online. There are five different missions each with different objectives. For example, Dragon's Throat requires the players to kill as many enemies as possible over a period of time and Amatz Basin (named by ArenaNet after the player community of The Amazon Basin, which also contributed to the official Guild Wars strategy guide) requires the players to save as many NPC refugees as possible in a set time.
*The '''Ritualist''' uses bound spirits, weapon spells and ashes of the dead to do damage to enemies and protect themselves and their allies.


===PvE modifications===
===Alliance battles===
Alliance Battles are where the Luxon and Kurzick factions battle for control of towns on the game map. Each faction is represented by a team of twelve, split into three squads of four. Players form squads of four which are randomly teamed with two other squads for the match.


The objective of the battle is to be the first team to reach 500 points. Points are rewarded for capturing and holding strategic map locations and player kills. If one team holds all map locations for a minute, the team automatically receives 500 points and the victory. Players do not get a penalty for dying (as they would in most other parts of the game) and are automatically resurrected. Players on both the winning and losing side are rewarded with Kurzick or Luxon faction according to the number of points their side gathered, with bonus points being given to the winning side.
Cooperative missions in Factions are different from their equivalent in Prophecies. In Prophecies players complete a main mission and an optional bonus mission. Cooperative missions are easy to avoid in Prophecies as most areas are accessible without completing missions. Factions makes all missions compulsory for accessing new areas and completing the game. The bonus mission has been removed and replaced with a tiered reward system based on the time taken to complete the mission. Gold, experience and a skill point is given at each reward tier. Several new concepts for co-operative missions have been introduced, such as missions with two teams of eight and missions specifically for killing a single [[Boss (video games)|boss]].


The battles are fought on a series of five maps which are weighted from strong advantage to the Luxons, through neutral to strong advantage to the Kurzick. The map played on depends on the land held by the faction. For example, if the Luxon are holding a lot of land, the maps played on give advantage to the Kurzick. Teams that are playing on maps where the opposition has an advantage receive a bonus to the number of Alliance faction points accrued during the match.
The time taken for a new character to reach the maximum level of twenty is reduced and most of the areas are designed for level twenty characters. Experience, and therefore skill points, are easy to acquire once level twenty is reached. This means that the time taken to unlock skills through PvE play is reduced from Prophecies. Skill acquisition is modified also, most skills must be purchased from Skill Traders, rather than received by completing quests.


== Plot ==
Boss enemies now do double damage and take half the time to use spells and skills instead of having shortened hex and condition durations.


The ''Factions'' story is only loosely connected to that of the earlier ''[[Guild Wars (video game)|Prophecies]]'' campaign. The primary link is with the monk Mhenlo, who is revealed to have spent his youth in the ''Factions''-specific fictional continent of ''Cantha''. Players who add ''Factions'' to their account can bring their role-playing characters from other campaigns by accompanying Mhenlo; characters that begin in ''Factions'' meet Mhenlo later in the plot.
===Factions and alliances===
Factions introduces two factions which players and guilds may side with;
* Kurzick - respecting art, religion, and social order, the <!-- 68.48.158.244, before you change gothic to emo, please look at the talk page and see some sense. Thank you. -->gothic Kurzick dwell in the Echovald Forests.
* Luxon - respecting strength above all else, the Jade Sea dwelling Luxon are often compared to pirates, and are somewhat religion-less.
Neither faction is considered to be inherently 'good' or 'evil'.


Like ''Prophecies'', ''Factions'' begins with a tutorial section, called the ''Shing Jea Island'', with easy quests and non-threatening monsters. The ''Factions'' tutorial areas are not separated from the rest of the game like in ''Prophecies'', but are instead accessible at all times like any other outpost. In the tutorial, Canthan characters are introduced to one of the main characters of the ''Factions'' story, the ritualist Master Togo. Togo is a half-brother to the emperor of Cantha, and the head of the ''Shing Jea Monastery'' where new ''Factions'' characters receive their preliminary training. It is revealed that Togo was a former mentor of Mhenlo. The ''Factions'' tutorial quests are directed towards specific tactical and strategic gameplay features such as ''kiting'', ''snaring'', and countering melee fighters.
An alliance is a group of up to ten guilds aligned with the same faction who agree to join in an alliance under the name of a single lead guild.


The initial tutorial missions also introduce new players to a plague spreading over Cantha. In attempting to find its source, the players discover the mark of an ancient evil from Cantha's history, the disgraced imperial bodyguard Shiro Tagachi. Two hundred years before the events of the story, Shiro murdered the emperor he was sworn to protect, and was himself promptly slain for his evil act. Shiro's death wail triggered a calamitous event, the ''Jade Wind'', that swept across the continent of Cantha, turning the sea into solid [[jade]] and the ''Echovald Forest'' in southern Cantha to stone. (This back story was featured in a full-motion cinematic trailer for ''Factions''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.guildwars.com/products/factions/gallery/video/default.php|title=''Guild Wars Factions'' cinematic trailer|publisher=[[ArenaNet]]|access-date=2007-12-04|archive-date=2007-12-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071203083254/http://www.guildwars.com/products/factions/gallery/video/default.php|url-status=live}}</ref>) Togo recognizes the mark of Shiro and rushes to inform the emperor; the player characters, under his direction, head to the seat of the Canthan empire, the sprawling ''Kaineng Center''.
Each faction has a number of towns which they own, the control of these towns is given to alliances with the highest standing with their faction. Standing is earned by the alliance by accepting donations of faction points from the players in the alliance.


In the mainland, ''Factions'' characters are united with characters from other campaigns when they join forces to eject Shiro's army of the afflicted from ''Vizunah Square''. At the end, they learn more about the history of Shiro. When he was slain for his murder, he became an ''envoy'' of Grenth, the god of death, and was given the task of shepherding the newly dead to the underworld. However, Shiro was not content with this fate, and wished to become mortal again, which he hoped to accomplish by slaying the emperor to complete an arcane ritual. To accomplish this, Shiro uses his envoy powers to spread the affliction, and uses the souls of the dead as soldiers in his army. The other envoys are not happy with Shiro's actions and decide to help the players to put an end to him.
A player may earn account based Kurzick or Luxon faction points while they are playing Factions. Faction points are earned doing PvE quests for a faction, competing in Alliance battles, in Competitive Missions or some Challenge Missions. If the player does not wish to donate faction to the alliance, or if they play for the faction which the guild isn't allied with, they can trade their faction points for armor crafting materials. A player is considered Luxon or Kurzick by having a majority of unspent faction points for the faction they support. To change faction a player needs to acquire a majority of factions points for their new faction.


The first step in the envoys' plan is for the players to become ''closer to the stars'' to gain the ability to hurt Shiro in his envoy form. Subsequently, they pay a visit to the spirit of the former assassin ''Vizu'', who was instrumental in defeating Shiro previously. From Vizu, the players learn of the artifacts of two other Canthan heroes responsible for Shiro's death: the urn carrying the ashes of ''Saint Viktor'', the patron saint of the ''Kurzicks'', and the spear of ''Archemorus'', the legendary hero of the ''Luxons''. The players retrieve the artifacts, and assault Shiro at the center of his power, in the ''Sunjiang District'', destroying his constructs and closing spirit rifts he has opened. Shiro himself, however, escapes. At the advice of the envoys, the players then choose a side; going with Mhenlo to convince the Kurzicks that Shiro returning is more important than their ongoing war with the Luxons, or with Master Togo to convince the Luxons to stop fighting the Kurzicks. This causes a momentary fork in the story; the earlier ''Prophecies'' campaign was criticized for its linearity, so both ''Factions'' and the subsequent ''Nightfall'' campaigns have included non-linear elements in the plot. Once the players convince their chosen side, players from the Luxon and Kurzick factions meet again to seek advice from the ancient dragon, Kuunavang. They find that Kuunavang has been corrupted by Shiro, but they defeat Shiro's corruption and Kuunavang aids the players subsequently in their fight against Shiro by granting them devastatingly powerful skills.
===Competitive missions===


Meanwhile, Shiro has raided the palace and has kidnapped the Emperor. The players rush to save the emperor by cutting a path through Shiro's army of fearsome ''Shiro'ken'' constructs. Just as Shiro is about to slay the Emperor, Master Togo throws himself in the way, saving the Emperor. He pays a steep price, as Shiro focuses instead on Togo for his ritual; it appears that he merely needs to spill royal blood, not necessarily the emperor's. Togo's death is a sharp blow, but it makes the battle against Shiro immensely personal for Mhenlo, who vows to avenge his former master. In the final battle, the players assault the now-mortal Shiro Tagachi and kill him for a second time, after which his mortal form is sealed in jade and his spirit is captured by the other envoys. Unlike the final mission in the earlier ''Prophecies'' campaign, this final mission consists solely of the battle against Shiro, allowing players to modify their tactics, skills and team setup before a climactic final battle; this innovation was also used against the end bosses of the subsequent ''Nightfall'' and ''Eye of the North'' releases.
Factions provides PvE players access to two competitive missions, a new game type for the Factions campaign. In these missions, two random teams of eight compete to reach specific objectives. If a player dies they respawn in the base and are able to rejoin the fight to meet the objectives. When the match finishes the players are returned to a waiting area to start the next battle.


== Development and release ==
* The Jade Quarry is a point capture mission. The common goal for both factions is to capture the jade quarries so that jade can be dug from them. Each jade shipment that successfully made its way back to the Faction's base is worth one point. In addition, there are several Watchtowers to be captured, giving strategic advantage to the owner when attacking the jade shipments.
* In the Fort Aspenwood mission the Luxons must storm a Kurzick base and kill three [[Non-player character|NPCs]] known as Gate Guard Radick, Gate Guard Poletski and Master Architect Gunther, a Kurzick engineer, to stop him from making a new weapon for the Kurzicks. Additionally, the Luxons must intercept amber shipments to slow down the development of the Kurzick weapon and base repairs by the Kurzick team. The base must be defended by the Kurzicks long enough for the engineer to complete the weapon.


''Factions'' was developed by ArenaNet as a standalone release over twelve months immediately following the release of ''Guild Wars'' in 2005.<ref>{{cite web|website=Eurogamer|title=Guild Wars Factions|last=Gibson|first=Ellie|date=3 March 2006|accessdate=24 February 2024|url=https://www.eurogamer.net/i-guildwarsfactions-pc|archive-date=23 February 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240223234010/https://www.eurogamer.net/i-guildwarsfactions-pc|url-status=live}}</ref> Executive producer Jeff Strain described the aims of the new release were to improve on the campaign of the original game, offering improved graphics and new co-operative play mechanics through the introduction of alliances, factions and player-versus-player modes.<ref name=CVG-I>{{cite web|website=Computer and Video Games|title=Interview: Guild Wars: Factions|date=3 February 2006|accessdate=24 February 2024|url=http://www.computerandvideogames.com/r/?page=http://www.computerandvideogames.com/interviews/interviews_story.php?id=133721|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20060405003737/http://www.computerandvideogames.com/r/?page=http://www.computerandvideogames.com/interviews/interviews_story.php?id=133721|archivedate=5 April 2006}}</ref> The soundtrack of ''Factions'' was created by video game composer [[Jeremy Soule]], who had composed the music for the original game.<ref name=Engadget>{{cite web|website=Engadget|title=Jukebox Heroes: Guild Wars Factions' soundtrack|last=Olivetti|first=Justin|date=10 April 2012|accessdate=22 February 2024|url=https://www.engadget.com/2013-04-09-jukebox-heroes-guild-wars-factions-soundtrack.html?guccounter=1}}</ref> ''Factions'' was announced on 10 January 2006, with ArenaNet launching a free player-versus-player preview event in January 20-22 to introduce the Assassin and Ritualist professions.<ref>{{cite web|website=IGN|title=Guild Wars: Factions Preview Starts Tomorrow|last=Adams|first=David|date=30 January 2006|accessdate=22 February 2024|url=https://www.ign.com/articles/2006/01/19/guild-wars-factions-preview-starts-tomorrow}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|website=GamesIndustry.biz|title=NCsoft, ArenaNet Announce Guild Wars: Factions|date=10 January 2006|accessdate=22 February 2024|url=https://www.gamesindustry.biz/ncsoft-arenanet-announce-guild-wars-factions}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|website=GamesIndustry.biz|title=NCSoft announces plans to release Guild Wars: Factions|last=Gibson|first=Ellie|date=11 January 2006|accessdate=22 February 2024|url=https://www.gamesindustry.biz/ncsoft-announces-plans-to-release-guild-wars-factions|archive-date=22 February 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240222112555/https://www.gamesindustry.biz/ncsoft-announces-plans-to-release-guild-wars-factions|url-status=live}}</ref> Between 24-26 March 2006, a two-day public beta preview event was launched for the game for European players who had pre-ordered ''Factions'' and up to three referred players,<ref>{{cite web|website=IGN|title=Guild Wars Factions Preview Event|last=Adams|first=Dan|date=10 February 2006|accessdate=22 February 2024|url=https://www.ign.com/articles/2006/02/09/guild-wars-factions-preview-event|archive-date=22 February 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240222112549/https://www.ign.com/articles/2006/02/09/guild-wars-factions-preview-event|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|website=Eurogamer|last=Gibson|first=Ellie|title=Guild Wars Factions beta|date=9 February 2006|accessdate=22 February 2024|url=https://www.eurogamer.net/news090206guildwarsfactions|archive-date=22 February 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240222112549/https://www.eurogamer.net/news090206guildwarsfactions|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|website=GamesIndustry.biz|title=Guild Wars Factions To Be Unveiled In Massive Beta Testing Event Available To More Than 3 Million Gamers|date=9 February 2006|accessdate=22 February 2024|url=https://www.gamesindustry.biz/guild-wars-factions-to-be-unveiled-in-massive-beta-testing-event-available-to-more-than-3-million-gamers}}</ref> with over 500,000 players participating in the event over the weekend, making it one of the largest [[public beta]] events of its time.<ref>{{cite web|website=GamesIndustry.biz|title=Half A Million Gamers Played More Than Three Million Hours In Guild Wars Landmark Weekend Event|date=3 April 2006|accessdate=22 February 2024|url=https://www.gamesindustry.biz/half-a-million-gamers-played-more-than-three-million-hours-in-guild-wars-landmark-weekend-event|archive-date=22 February 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240222112550/https://www.gamesindustry.biz/half-a-million-gamers-played-more-than-three-million-hours-in-guild-wars-landmark-weekend-event|url-status=live}}</ref> A 'Day of the Tengu' pre-release event was held for pre-order players on 27 April 2006. ''Factions'' was released on 28 April 2006.<ref>{{cite web|website=IGN|title=Guild Wars Factions Is Now Live|last=Howarth|first=Robert|date=28 April 2006|accessdate=22 February 2024|url=https://www.ign.com/articles/2006/04/28/guild-wars-factions-is-now-live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|website=IGN|title=Guild Wars Factions Launch Dated|last=Steel|first=Wade|date=11 March 2006|accessdate=22 February 2024|url=https://www.ign.com/articles/2006/03/10/guild-wars-factions-launch-dated|archive-date=22 February 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240222112556/https://www.ign.com/articles/2006/03/10/guild-wars-factions-launch-dated|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|website=GamesIndustry.biz|title=Guild Wars Factions Ships Worldwide|date=26 April 2006|accessdate=22 February 2024|url=https://www.gamesindustry.biz/guild-wars-factions-ships-worldwide|archive-date=22 February 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240222112551/https://www.gamesindustry.biz/guild-wars-factions-ships-worldwide|url-status=live}}</ref> To coincide with the release, ArenaNet and NCsoft announced a Guild Wars Factions Championship event at the [[Games Convention|Leipzig Games Convention]] in August 2006.<ref>{{cite web|website=GamesIndustry.biz|title=Guild Wars Factions World Championship event dated|date=7 April 2006|accessdate=22 February 2024|url=https://www.gamesindustry.biz/guild-wars-factions-world-championship-event-dated|archive-date=22 February 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240222112553/https://www.gamesindustry.biz/guild-wars-factions-world-championship-event-dated|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|website=GamesIndustry.biz|title=Guild Wars Factions World Championship Announced for Leipzig, Germany, 24-27 August|date=6 April 2006|accessdate=22 February 2024|url=https://www.gamesindustry.biz/guild-wars-factions-world-championship-announced-for-leipzig-germany-24-27-august|archive-date=22 February 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240222112551/https://www.gamesindustry.biz/guild-wars-factions-world-championship-announced-for-leipzig-germany-24-27-august|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|website=GamesIndustry.biz|title=Guild Wars Factions World Championship Crowned|date=5 September 2006|accessdate=22 February 2004|url=https://www.gamesindustry.biz/guild-wars-factions-world-champions-crowned|archive-date=22 February 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240222112552/https://www.gamesindustry.biz/guild-wars-factions-world-champions-crowned|url-status=live}}</ref>
===Challenge missions===


== Reception ==
These missions are a new gameplay type introduced in Factions. They set specific scoring objectives for a team to meet, offering rewards of gold, experience or faction points dependent on the teams performance in the mission. The best teams over all time, each month and each day are recorded for players to view online. There are five different missions each with different objectives. For example, Dragon's Throat requires the players to kill as many enemies as possible over a period of time and Amatz Basin (named by ArenaNet after the player community of [http://www.theamazonbasin.com/ The Amazon Basin], which also contributed to the official Guild Wars strategy guide) requires the players to save as many NPC refugees as possible in a set time.


===Alliance battles===
=== Sales ===
Alliance Battles are where the Luxon and Kurzick factions battle for control of towns on the game map. Each faction is represented by a team of twelve, split into three squads of four. Players form squads of four which are randomly teamed with two other teams for the match.


Upon release, ''Factions'' reached the top of the [[GfK Chart-Track|Chart-Track]] weekly sales for computer games in the United Kingdom, Europe, and North America.<ref>{{cite web|website=GamesIndustry.biz|title=Guild Wars Factions #1 Game in Europe and North America|date=23 May 2006|accessdate=22 February 2024|url=https://www.gamesindustry.biz/guild-wars-factions-1-game-in-europe-and-north-america}}</ref> Shortly after the release of ''Factions'', the number of sales of ''Guild Wars'' titles passed the two million mark milestone.<ref>{{cite web|website=GamesIndustry.biz|last=Fahey|first=Rob|title=Guild Wars hits 2 million sales worldwide|date=20 June 2006|accessdate=22 February 2024|url=https://www.gamesindustry.biz/guild-wars-hits-2-million-sales-worldwide|archive-date=22 February 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240222112553/https://www.gamesindustry.biz/guild-wars-hits-2-million-sales-worldwide|url-status=live}}</ref>
The objective of the battle is to be the first faction to reach 500 points. Points are rewarded for capturing and holding strategic map locations and player kills. If one team holds all map locations for a minute, the team automatically receives 500 points and the victory. Players do not get a death penalty and are automatically resurrected. Players on both the winning and losing side are rewarded with Kurzick or Luxon faction.


=== Reviews ===
The battles are fought on a series of five maps which are weighted from strong advantage to the Luxons, through neutral to strong advantage to the Kurzick. The map played on depends on the land held by the faction. For example, if the Luxon are holding a lot of land, the maps played on give advantage to the Kurzick.


{{Video game reviews
== Editions ==
<!-- Aggregators -->
In addition to the Standard edition which includes the games CDs, basic Account Creation Code and Manuscript Book the following editions have been available for Factions.
| MC = 84/100<ref name=MC>{{cite web|url=https://www.metacritic.com/game/guild-wars-factions/critic-reviews/?platform=pc|title=Guild Wars Factions Critic Reviews for PC at Metacritic.com|work=[[Metacritic]]|access-date=2012-09-13}}</ref>
<!-- Reviewers -->


| AVC = B-<ref name=AVC>{{cite web|website=A.V. Club|title=Guild Wars Factions|last=Dahlen|first=Chris|date=17 May 2006|accessdate=22 February 2024|url=http://www.avclub.com/content/node/48583|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20060522005021/http://www.avclub.com/content/node/48583|archivedate=22 May 2006}}</ref>
===Pre-order edition===


| EuroG = 8/10<ref name=EG>{{cite web|website=Eurogamer|title=Guild Wars: Factions|last=Gillen|first=Kieron|date=20 May 2006|accessdate=22 February 2024|url=http://www.eurogamer.net/article.php?article_id=64877|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20060901112410/http://www.eurogamer.net:80/article.php?article_id=64877|archivedate=1 September 2006}}</ref>
Players who pre-ordered Factions were able to get a bonus CD. The disc included;
* concept art
* unique pre-order only weapons
* early access to Factions game play
* access to beta events
* 10-hour trial to the original Guild Wars


| GRadar ={{Rating|4|5}}<ref name=GR>{{cite web|website=GamesRadar|title=Guild Wars Factions Review|last=Nagata|first=Tyler|date=23 June 2007|accessdate=22 February 2024|url=https://www.gamesradar.com/guild-wars-factions-review/}}</ref>
This disk is no longer available.


| GSpot = 8.5/10<ref name=GSpot>{{cite web | url = http://us.gamespot.com/guild-wars-factions/reviews/guild-wars-factions-review-6149248/ | title = Gamespot Review | work = GameSpot | access-date = December 3, 2006 | archive-url = https://archive.today/20130124092255/http://us.gamespot.com/guild-wars-factions/reviews/guild-wars-factions-review-6149248/ | archive-date = January 24, 2013 | url-status = dead }}</ref>
===Collector's edition===


| GSpy = {{Rating|4.5|5}}<ref name=GSpy>{{cite web | url = http://pc.gamespy.com/pc/guild-wars-campaign-2/705445p1.html | title = GameSpy Review | work = GameSpy | access-date = December 3, 2006 | archive-date = December 14, 2006 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20061214214640/http://pc.gamespy.com/pc/guild-wars-campaign-2/705445p1.html | url-status = live }}</ref>
A Collectors edition is available for players to purchase. Players purchasing this edition will receive in addition to standard edition materials;
* Soundtrack CD
* Art Book
* Sticker Set
* Mouse Pad
* Desk Calendar
* Factions Poster
* Special dance emote for Assassin and Ritualist characters
* Code for free Factions Music mini pack
* Cloth picture (European edition only)
* A Minipet Kuunavang (Miniature NPC Dragon that follows the player)


| IGN = 8.5/10<ref name=IGN>{{cite web | url = http://us.pc.ign.com/articles/709/709647p1.html | title = IGN Review | work = IGN| access-date = December 3, 2006}}{{dead link|date=August 2021|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref>
There was a delay with the initial shipping of the Collector's edition due to unforeseen demand. ArenaNet introduced a mini Kuunavang dragon pet to the Collector's edition as a thank you for those who had purchased and decided to wait for the Collectors edition to arrive.


| PCGUS = 80%<ref name=PCGUS>{{cite magazine|magazine=PC Gamer|title=Guild Wars: Factions|last=Crump|first=Mark|pages=64|issue=151|date=August 2006}}</ref>
===PvP Edition===


| PCZone = 78%<ref name=PCZone>{{cite magazine|magazine=PC Zone|title=Guild Wars: Factions|last=Hill|first=Steve|pages=82|date=July 2006|issue=169|url=https://www.pixsoriginadventures.co.uk/PCZone/PC%20Zone%20169%20(July%202006)/PC%20Zone%20169%20(July%202006).pdf|access-date=2024-02-22|archive-date=2024-02-22|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240222075100/https://www.pixsoriginadventures.co.uk/PCZone/PC%20Zone%20169%20(July%202006)/PC%20Zone%20169%20(July%202006).pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>
This version of the game is only available for purchase from the online store. It unlocks the two Factions specific professions and the skills available in Factions but does not allow the player access to the PvE missions and areas only the PvP areas. This version of the game may be purchased as a stand alone game or may be added to an existing account.


| RPG = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref name=RPG>{{cite web|website=RPGamer|title=Guild Wars: Factions Review|last=Martz|first=Josh|date=26 July 2006|accessdate=22 February 2024|url=https://rpgamer.com/review/guild-wars-factions-review/|archive-date=22 February 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240222112549/https://rpgamer.com/review/guild-wars-factions-review/|url-status=live}}</ref>
== Special Events ==
===Day Of The Tengu===
An event during the Guild Wars factions head-start day. Tengu Masks were exchanged by Emperor Kisu for Naga Fangs.


| VG = 7/10<ref name=VG>{{cite web|website=VideoGamer|date=6 June 2021|title=Guild Wars: Factions Review|accessdate=22 February 2024|url=https://www.videogamer.com/reviews/guild-wars-factions-review/|archive-date=22 February 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240222074838/https://www.videogamer.com/reviews/guild-wars-factions-review/|url-status=live}}</ref>
During the event there were three special quests available from the Master of Celebrations in the Shing Jea Monastery. As reward for the quests players received large amounts of Naga Fangs (200 for completing all three quests).
''
Note: It was not necessary to have completed the quests to obtain a mask.''


}}
In addition to the quest rewards, nearly all Naga dropped one Naga Fang when slain.

===Dragon Festival Event (30 June - July 5, 2006)===

Emperor Kisu dedicated a new Dragon Festival to commemorate the survival of the Empire of the Dragon. This event took place in the Shing Jea Monastery, and introduced new quests and several festival mini-games which involved the gambling of tickets (games included versions of tag and "pick the right square"). On the last day of the celebrations, Emperor Kisu himself made an appearance every two hours and would reward a Dragon Mask to everyone who had 250 Jade Wind Orbs in their inventory and spoke to him. The Dragon Masks can be sold but, like all items, are customized, therefore restricting usage of it to the person who created it.

A special PvP arena named "The Dragon Arena" was also introduced during the festival. In this PvP arena everyone's stats were evened out and everyone was allocated the same three skills. The objective was to be the first to reach twenty kills. If your team won a match, you would be each rewarded with five Jade Wind Orbs.

After the event, a collector was added who could give a Dragon Mask for 250 Jade Wind Orbs, for those who had been unable to be there for the event. This collector left one week after the end of the Dragon Festival.


According to [[review aggregator]] [[Metacritic]], ''Factions'' received "generally favorable" reviews from critics.<ref name=MC/>
==Critical Response==
''Factions'' didn't garner as high acclaim as the original ''Guild Wars'', although it still scored well overall by critics<ref name="campaign-compare">{{cite web | url = http://www.gamerankings.com/itemrankings/itemsearch.asp?itemname=Guild%20Wars | title = Game Rankings - Search | work = GameRankings | accessdate = December 3 | accessyear = 2006}}</ref>. Reviewers were mostly impressed by the addition of the new Kurzick and Luxon factions that players could fight for in claiming territory on the game map<ref name="gamespot-review">{{cite web | url = http://au.gamespot.com/pc/rpg/guildwarsfactions/review.html | title = Gamespot Review | work = GameSpot| accessdate = December 3 | accessyear = 2006}}</ref><ref name="gamespy-review">{{cite web | url = http://pc.gamespy.com/pc/guild-wars-campaign-2/705445p1.html | title = GameSpy Review | work = GameSpy | accessdate = December 3 | accessyear = 2006}}</ref>, however ''Factions'' was criticised for having a poor storyline when compared to ''Prophecies'' which was due to poorer voice-acting and your character reaching level 20 far too quickly to feel the need to continue<ref name="gamespot-review">{{cite web | url = http://au.gamespot.com/pc/rpg/guildwarsfactions/review.html | title = Gamespot Review | work = GameSpot| accessdate = December 3 | accessyear = 2006}}</ref><ref name="ign-review">{{cite web | url = http://au.pc.ign.com/articles/709/709647p1.html | title = IGN Review | work = IGN| accessdate = December 3 | accessyear = 2006}}</ref>. Also the continuing problem in ''Guild Wars'' with the UI not supporting an easy way of forming parties or selling items has also received some criticism<ref name="gamespot-review">{{cite web | url = http://au.gamespot.com/pc/rpg/guildwarsfactions/review.html | title = Gamespot Review | work = GameSpot| accessdate = December 3 | accessyear = 2006}}</ref>. This was however rectified shortly after the release of Guild Wars: Nightfall with a new party search system.


Reviewers were impressed by the addition of the new Kurzick and Luxon factions that players could ally with and claim territory on the game map for their alliance,<ref name=GSpot/><ref name=GSpy/> but criticized its weak storyline (compared to ''Prophecies''), poorer voice-acting, and its accelerated [[experience point|character level]] curve that let characters reach the maximum level before leaving the tutorial content.<ref name=GSpot/><ref name=IGN/> The continuing problem of the ''Guild Wars'' user interface lacking advanced team-forming and trading functions was also criticized,<ref name=GSpot/> but the subsequent ''[[Guild Wars Nightfall|Nightfall]]'' release partially addressed these criticisms by adding a unified party-search utility with limited trading functions. Justin Olivetti of ''Engadget'' critiqued the game's soundtrack, stating the music was "technically sufficient" but lacked the "grandeur" and "catchiness" of its predecessor.<ref name=Engadget/>
''Factions'' was also nominated for a [[BAFTA]] award in the best Multiplayer game category<ref name="BAFTA">{{cite web | url = http://www.bafta.org/site/page413.html | title = BAFTA nomination| work = BAFTA| accessdate = December 3 | accessyear = 2006}}</ref> and won the Best Multiplayer game award from DEMMX<ref name="DEMMX">{{cite web | url = http://www.demmx.com/demmx/awards/2006.jsp | title = DEMMX Award| work = DEMMX| accessdate = December 3 | accessyear = 2006}}</ref>.


=== Accolades ===
Also the introduction of ''Guild Wars Factions'' helped boost the number of units sold in the ''Guild Wars'' franchise to over 2 million<ref name="2million">{{cite web | url = http://au.gamespot.com/pc/rpg/guildwars/news.html?sid=6152907 | title = Gamespot News | work = GameSpot| accessdate = December 3 | accessyear = 2006}}</ref>. This does not equate to 2 million players since the vast majority of purchasers will be adding Guild Wars: Factions to existing Guild Wars: Prophecies accounts.


''Factions'' was nominated for a [[British Academy of Film and Television Arts|British Academy Video Games Award]] in the 'Multiplayer' category,<ref>{{cite web|website=British Academy of Film and Television Arts|title=Latest Winners and Nominees|url=https://www.bafta.org/site/page413.html|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20061109172634/https://www.bafta.org/site/page413.html|archivedate=9 November 2006|accessdate=22 February 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|website=Games Industry.biz|title=Guild Wars Factions Nominated for BAFTA|date=19 September 2006|url=https://www.gamesindustry.biz/guild-wars-factions-nominated-for-bafta|accessdate=22 February 2024|archive-date=22 February 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240222112552/https://www.gamesindustry.biz/guild-wars-factions-nominated-for-bafta|url-status=live}}</ref> and won the ''Best Multiplayer Game'' award from DEMMX.<ref name="DEMMX">{{cite web| url = http://www.demmx.com/demmx/awards/2006.jsp| title = DEMMX Award| work = DEMMX| access-date = December 3, 2006| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20061205220221/http://www.demmx.com/demmx/awards/2006.jsp| archive-date = December 5, 2006| url-status = dead}}</ref>
== References ==
<div class="references-small"><references /></div>


==References==
== External links ==
{{Reflist|30em}}
* [http://www.guildwars.com/ The official ''Guild Wars (note both guild wars factions and prophecies)'' website]
* [http://ladder.guildwars.com/ The official ''Guild Wars'' ladder]
* [http://www.arena.net/ ArenaNet, the makers of ''Guild Wars'']
* [http://www.guildwars.com/community/ Complete list of Guild Wars fansites]
* [http://gw.gamewikis.org/wiki/Main_Page GuildWiki], a ''Guild Wars'' [[wiki]]


==External links==
{{Guild Wars}}
<!-- Please do not add external links without discussion. Confer [[WP:EL]]. -->
* [http://www.guildwars.com/ The official ''Guild Wars'' website]
* [http://wiki.guildwars.com/ The official ''Guild Wars'' Wiki]


{{NCsoft}}
[[Category:Guild Wars]]
[[Category:2006 computer and video games]]


[[Category:NCSoft games]]
[[da:Guild Wars: Factions]]
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[[Category:Guild Wars|Factions]]
[[Category:Role-playing video games]]
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[[Category:Video games scored by Jeremy Soule]]
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[[Category:Video games developed in the United States]]
[[sv:Guild Wars: Factions]]
[[Category:Windows games]]
[[Category:Windows-only games]]
[[Category:Action role-playing video games]]
[[Category:2006 video games]]

Latest revision as of 23:41, 16 November 2024

Guild Wars Factions
Developer(s)ArenaNet
Publisher(s)NCSOFT
SeriesGuild Wars
Platform(s)Windows
ReleaseApril 28, 2006 (Retail)
  • NA: April 22, 2009 (Steam)
Genre(s)Action RPG
CORPG
Mode(s)Multiplayer

Guild Wars Factions is a fantasy action role-playing game and the second stand-alone campaign in the Guild Wars series developed by ArenaNet, a subsidiary of NCSOFT corporation. It serves as both a standalone game and first expansion pack to the base game, which is referred to as Prophecies. Simply referred to as Factions, it introduces the continent of Cantha, inspired by East Asian cultures, where two warring factions, the Luxons and the Kurzicks, are locked in a global persistent war. Players are able to join in this conflict, assisting their chosen faction in claiming towns on the game map.

Factions introduced a new PvE campaign, two new professions in addition to the original six, new skills and armor for existing professions, new gameplay modes for both PvE and PvP, and gameplay modifications in response to criticism of the earlier Prophecies campaign. Most of the PvP content from Prophecies is available to Factions-only accounts.

Gameplay

[edit]

Factions is a standalone version of Guild Wars that shares the same gameplay mechanics and features a unique area and storyline.[1]

Professions

[edit]
A male assassin
A female ritualist

Like all Guild Wars campaigns, Factions contains the core character classes introduced in Prophecies; it also adds two new classes to the game:

  • The Assassin is a master at getting in quickly, striking and getting back out just as quick. They are able to instantly teleport around the field of combat using their ability to Shadow Step. They are capable of dealing a great deal of damage to a particular target, especially spellcasters, in a very short amount of time. This is offset by their weak armor, making them relatively ineffective frontline fighters. They use self healing and can solo spike.
  • The Ritualist is a living conduit to the spirit world, capable of summoning bound spirits to the field that can attack enemies or protect allies. They can also summon ghostly weapons for their allies to wield, and commune with the spirits of their ancestors through the ritual use of ashes and urns.

Dervishes and Paragons can get to Cantha via Kamadan, the port city of Istan, but they cannot be created in Cantha.

PvE modifications

[edit]

Cooperative missions in Factions are different from their equivalent in Prophecies. In Prophecies, players complete a main mission and an optional bonus mission. Cooperative missions are easy to avoid in Prophecies as most areas are accessible without completing missions. Factions makes all missions compulsory for accessing new areas and completing the game. The bonus mission has been removed and replaced with a three-tiered reward system. Some missions' tiers are based on the time taken to complete the mission, others are based on completion of extra objectives (such as keeping a certain number of NPCs alive until the end). Gold, experience and a skill point are given at each reward tier. Several new concepts for co-operative missions have been introduced, such as missions with two teams of eight and missions specifically for killing a single boss.

The time taken for a new character to reach the maximum level of twenty is reduced and most of the areas are designed for level twenty characters. Experience, and therefore skill points, are easy to acquire once level twenty is reached. This means that the time taken to unlock skills through PvE play is reduced from Prophecies. Skill acquisition is modified also, most skills must be purchased from Skill Traders, rather than received by completing quests.

Boss enemies now do double damage and take half the time to use spells and skills instead of having shortened hex and condition durations.

Factions and alliances

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Factions introduces two factions which players and guilds may side with;

  • Kurzick - respecting art, religion, and social order, the gothic Kurzick dwell in the Echovald Forests. The Kurzicks wear dark clothing to capture as much sunlight and heat as possible in their dark environment. The Kurzick culture seems to be more European than Asian, but the hairstyles of some of the Kurzick males and females do somewhat reflect East Asian style.
  • Luxon - respecting strength above all else, the Jade Sea dwelling Luxon are often compared to pirates, and are somewhat religion-less. They tend to wear light clothing to reflect the heat from the sun.

Neither faction is considered to be inherently 'good' or 'evil'.

Factions also introduces the concept of multi-guild Alliances. An alliance is a group of up to ten guilds aligned with the same faction who agree to join in an alliance under the name of a single lead guild.

Each faction has a number of towns which they own; the control of these towns is given to alliances with the highest standing with their faction. Alliances may earn this faction by means of donations from that alliance's member players.

A player may earn account-based Kurzick or Luxon faction points while they are playing Factions. Faction points are earned doing PvE quests for a faction, competing in Alliance battles, in Competitive Missions or in some Challenge Missions. If the player does not wish to donate faction to the alliance, or if they play for the faction which the guild isn't allied with, they can trade their faction points for armor crafting materials or skills that can be used in the PvE portion of the game. A player is considered Luxon or Kurzick by having a majority of unspent faction points for the faction they support. To change faction a player needs to acquire a majority of factions points for their new faction.

Competitive missions

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Factions provides PvE players access to two competitive missions, a new game type for the Factions campaign. In these missions, two random teams of eight compete to reach specific objectives. If a player dies they respawn in the base and are able to rejoin the fight to meet the objectives. When the match finishes the players are returned to a waiting area to start the next battle.

  • The Jade Quarry is a point capture mission. The common goal for both factions is to capture the jade quarries so that jade can be dug from them. Each jade shipment that successfully made its way back to the Faction's base is worth one point. In addition, there are several Watchtowers to be captured, giving strategic advantage to the owner when attacking the jade shipments.
  • In the Fort Aspenwood mission the Luxons must storm a Kurzick base and kill an NPC known as Master Architect Gunther, a Kurzick engineer, to stop him from making a new weapon for the Kurzicks. Additionally, the Luxons must intercept amber shipments to slow down the development of the Kurzick weapon and base repairs by the Kurzick team. The base must be defended by the Kurzicks long enough for the engineer to complete the weapon.

Challenge missions

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These missions are a new gameplay type introduced in Factions. They set specific scoring objectives for a team to meet, offering rewards of gold, experience or faction points dependent on the team's performance in the mission. The best teams over each quarter, each month and each day are recorded for players to view online. There are five different missions each with different objectives. For example, Dragon's Throat requires the players to kill as many enemies as possible over a period of time and Amatz Basin (named by ArenaNet after the player community of The Amazon Basin, which also contributed to the official Guild Wars strategy guide) requires the players to save as many NPC refugees as possible in a set time.

Alliance battles

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Alliance Battles are where the Luxon and Kurzick factions battle for control of towns on the game map. Each faction is represented by a team of twelve, split into three squads of four. Players form squads of four which are randomly teamed with two other squads for the match.

The objective of the battle is to be the first team to reach 500 points. Points are rewarded for capturing and holding strategic map locations and player kills. If one team holds all map locations for a minute, the team automatically receives 500 points and the victory. Players do not get a penalty for dying (as they would in most other parts of the game) and are automatically resurrected. Players on both the winning and losing side are rewarded with Kurzick or Luxon faction according to the number of points their side gathered, with bonus points being given to the winning side.

The battles are fought on a series of five maps which are weighted from strong advantage to the Luxons, through neutral to strong advantage to the Kurzick. The map played on depends on the land held by the faction. For example, if the Luxon are holding a lot of land, the maps played on give advantage to the Kurzick. Teams that are playing on maps where the opposition has an advantage receive a bonus to the number of Alliance faction points accrued during the match.

Plot

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The Factions story is only loosely connected to that of the earlier Prophecies campaign. The primary link is with the monk Mhenlo, who is revealed to have spent his youth in the Factions-specific fictional continent of Cantha. Players who add Factions to their account can bring their role-playing characters from other campaigns by accompanying Mhenlo; characters that begin in Factions meet Mhenlo later in the plot.

Like Prophecies, Factions begins with a tutorial section, called the Shing Jea Island, with easy quests and non-threatening monsters. The Factions tutorial areas are not separated from the rest of the game like in Prophecies, but are instead accessible at all times like any other outpost. In the tutorial, Canthan characters are introduced to one of the main characters of the Factions story, the ritualist Master Togo. Togo is a half-brother to the emperor of Cantha, and the head of the Shing Jea Monastery where new Factions characters receive their preliminary training. It is revealed that Togo was a former mentor of Mhenlo. The Factions tutorial quests are directed towards specific tactical and strategic gameplay features such as kiting, snaring, and countering melee fighters.

The initial tutorial missions also introduce new players to a plague spreading over Cantha. In attempting to find its source, the players discover the mark of an ancient evil from Cantha's history, the disgraced imperial bodyguard Shiro Tagachi. Two hundred years before the events of the story, Shiro murdered the emperor he was sworn to protect, and was himself promptly slain for his evil act. Shiro's death wail triggered a calamitous event, the Jade Wind, that swept across the continent of Cantha, turning the sea into solid jade and the Echovald Forest in southern Cantha to stone. (This back story was featured in a full-motion cinematic trailer for Factions.[2]) Togo recognizes the mark of Shiro and rushes to inform the emperor; the player characters, under his direction, head to the seat of the Canthan empire, the sprawling Kaineng Center.

In the mainland, Factions characters are united with characters from other campaigns when they join forces to eject Shiro's army of the afflicted from Vizunah Square. At the end, they learn more about the history of Shiro. When he was slain for his murder, he became an envoy of Grenth, the god of death, and was given the task of shepherding the newly dead to the underworld. However, Shiro was not content with this fate, and wished to become mortal again, which he hoped to accomplish by slaying the emperor to complete an arcane ritual. To accomplish this, Shiro uses his envoy powers to spread the affliction, and uses the souls of the dead as soldiers in his army. The other envoys are not happy with Shiro's actions and decide to help the players to put an end to him.

The first step in the envoys' plan is for the players to become closer to the stars to gain the ability to hurt Shiro in his envoy form. Subsequently, they pay a visit to the spirit of the former assassin Vizu, who was instrumental in defeating Shiro previously. From Vizu, the players learn of the artifacts of two other Canthan heroes responsible for Shiro's death: the urn carrying the ashes of Saint Viktor, the patron saint of the Kurzicks, and the spear of Archemorus, the legendary hero of the Luxons. The players retrieve the artifacts, and assault Shiro at the center of his power, in the Sunjiang District, destroying his constructs and closing spirit rifts he has opened. Shiro himself, however, escapes. At the advice of the envoys, the players then choose a side; going with Mhenlo to convince the Kurzicks that Shiro returning is more important than their ongoing war with the Luxons, or with Master Togo to convince the Luxons to stop fighting the Kurzicks. This causes a momentary fork in the story; the earlier Prophecies campaign was criticized for its linearity, so both Factions and the subsequent Nightfall campaigns have included non-linear elements in the plot. Once the players convince their chosen side, players from the Luxon and Kurzick factions meet again to seek advice from the ancient dragon, Kuunavang. They find that Kuunavang has been corrupted by Shiro, but they defeat Shiro's corruption and Kuunavang aids the players subsequently in their fight against Shiro by granting them devastatingly powerful skills.

Meanwhile, Shiro has raided the palace and has kidnapped the Emperor. The players rush to save the emperor by cutting a path through Shiro's army of fearsome Shiro'ken constructs. Just as Shiro is about to slay the Emperor, Master Togo throws himself in the way, saving the Emperor. He pays a steep price, as Shiro focuses instead on Togo for his ritual; it appears that he merely needs to spill royal blood, not necessarily the emperor's. Togo's death is a sharp blow, but it makes the battle against Shiro immensely personal for Mhenlo, who vows to avenge his former master. In the final battle, the players assault the now-mortal Shiro Tagachi and kill him for a second time, after which his mortal form is sealed in jade and his spirit is captured by the other envoys. Unlike the final mission in the earlier Prophecies campaign, this final mission consists solely of the battle against Shiro, allowing players to modify their tactics, skills and team setup before a climactic final battle; this innovation was also used against the end bosses of the subsequent Nightfall and Eye of the North releases.

Development and release

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Factions was developed by ArenaNet as a standalone release over twelve months immediately following the release of Guild Wars in 2005.[3] Executive producer Jeff Strain described the aims of the new release were to improve on the campaign of the original game, offering improved graphics and new co-operative play mechanics through the introduction of alliances, factions and player-versus-player modes.[4] The soundtrack of Factions was created by video game composer Jeremy Soule, who had composed the music for the original game.[5] Factions was announced on 10 January 2006, with ArenaNet launching a free player-versus-player preview event in January 20-22 to introduce the Assassin and Ritualist professions.[6][7][8] Between 24-26 March 2006, a two-day public beta preview event was launched for the game for European players who had pre-ordered Factions and up to three referred players,[9][10][11] with over 500,000 players participating in the event over the weekend, making it one of the largest public beta events of its time.[12] A 'Day of the Tengu' pre-release event was held for pre-order players on 27 April 2006. Factions was released on 28 April 2006.[13][14][15] To coincide with the release, ArenaNet and NCsoft announced a Guild Wars Factions Championship event at the Leipzig Games Convention in August 2006.[16][17][18]

Reception

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Sales

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Upon release, Factions reached the top of the Chart-Track weekly sales for computer games in the United Kingdom, Europe, and North America.[19] Shortly after the release of Factions, the number of sales of Guild Wars titles passed the two million mark milestone.[20]

Reviews

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According to review aggregator Metacritic, Factions received "generally favorable" reviews from critics.[21]

Reviewers were impressed by the addition of the new Kurzick and Luxon factions that players could ally with and claim territory on the game map for their alliance,[25][26] but criticized its weak storyline (compared to Prophecies), poorer voice-acting, and its accelerated character level curve that let characters reach the maximum level before leaving the tutorial content.[25][27] The continuing problem of the Guild Wars user interface lacking advanced team-forming and trading functions was also criticized,[25] but the subsequent Nightfall release partially addressed these criticisms by adding a unified party-search utility with limited trading functions. Justin Olivetti of Engadget critiqued the game's soundtrack, stating the music was "technically sufficient" but lacked the "grandeur" and "catchiness" of its predecessor.[5]

Accolades

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Factions was nominated for a British Academy Video Games Award in the 'Multiplayer' category,[32][33] and won the Best Multiplayer Game award from DEMMX.[34]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Bramwell, Tom (10 March 2006). "Guild Wars: Factions dated". Eurogamer. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  2. ^ "Guild Wars Factions cinematic trailer". ArenaNet. Archived from the original on 2007-12-03. Retrieved 2007-12-04.
  3. ^ Gibson, Ellie (3 March 2006). "Guild Wars Factions". Eurogamer. Archived from the original on 23 February 2024. Retrieved 24 February 2024.
  4. ^ "Interview: Guild Wars: Factions". Computer and Video Games. 3 February 2006. Archived from the original on 5 April 2006. Retrieved 24 February 2024.
  5. ^ a b Olivetti, Justin (10 April 2012). "Jukebox Heroes: Guild Wars Factions' soundtrack". Engadget. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  6. ^ Adams, David (30 January 2006). "Guild Wars: Factions Preview Starts Tomorrow". IGN. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  7. ^ "NCsoft, ArenaNet Announce Guild Wars: Factions". GamesIndustry.biz. 10 January 2006. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  8. ^ Gibson, Ellie (11 January 2006). "NCSoft announces plans to release Guild Wars: Factions". GamesIndustry.biz. Archived from the original on 22 February 2024. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  9. ^ Adams, Dan (10 February 2006). "Guild Wars Factions Preview Event". IGN. Archived from the original on 22 February 2024. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  10. ^ Gibson, Ellie (9 February 2006). "Guild Wars Factions beta". Eurogamer. Archived from the original on 22 February 2024. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  11. ^ "Guild Wars Factions To Be Unveiled In Massive Beta Testing Event Available To More Than 3 Million Gamers". GamesIndustry.biz. 9 February 2006. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  12. ^ "Half A Million Gamers Played More Than Three Million Hours In Guild Wars Landmark Weekend Event". GamesIndustry.biz. 3 April 2006. Archived from the original on 22 February 2024. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  13. ^ Howarth, Robert (28 April 2006). "Guild Wars Factions Is Now Live". IGN. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  14. ^ Steel, Wade (11 March 2006). "Guild Wars Factions Launch Dated". IGN. Archived from the original on 22 February 2024. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  15. ^ "Guild Wars Factions Ships Worldwide". GamesIndustry.biz. 26 April 2006. Archived from the original on 22 February 2024. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  16. ^ "Guild Wars Factions World Championship event dated". GamesIndustry.biz. 7 April 2006. Archived from the original on 22 February 2024. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  17. ^ "Guild Wars Factions World Championship Announced for Leipzig, Germany, 24-27 August". GamesIndustry.biz. 6 April 2006. Archived from the original on 22 February 2024. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  18. ^ "Guild Wars Factions World Championship Crowned". GamesIndustry.biz. 5 September 2006. Archived from the original on 22 February 2024. Retrieved 22 February 2004.
  19. ^ "Guild Wars Factions #1 Game in Europe and North America". GamesIndustry.biz. 23 May 2006. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  20. ^ Fahey, Rob (20 June 2006). "Guild Wars hits 2 million sales worldwide". GamesIndustry.biz. Archived from the original on 22 February 2024. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  21. ^ a b "Guild Wars Factions Critic Reviews for PC at Metacritic.com". Metacritic. Retrieved 2012-09-13.
  22. ^ Dahlen, Chris (17 May 2006). "Guild Wars Factions". A.V. Club. Archived from the original on 22 May 2006. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  23. ^ Gillen, Kieron (20 May 2006). "Guild Wars: Factions". Eurogamer. Archived from the original on 1 September 2006. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  24. ^ Nagata, Tyler (23 June 2007). "Guild Wars Factions Review". GamesRadar. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  25. ^ a b c d "Gamespot Review". GameSpot. Archived from the original on January 24, 2013. Retrieved December 3, 2006.
  26. ^ a b "GameSpy Review". GameSpy. Archived from the original on December 14, 2006. Retrieved December 3, 2006.
  27. ^ a b "IGN Review". IGN. Retrieved December 3, 2006.[dead link‍]
  28. ^ Crump, Mark (August 2006). "Guild Wars: Factions". PC Gamer. No. 151. p. 64.
  29. ^ Hill, Steve (July 2006). "Guild Wars: Factions" (PDF). PC Zone. No. 169. p. 82. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2024-02-22. Retrieved 2024-02-22.
  30. ^ Martz, Josh (26 July 2006). "Guild Wars: Factions Review". RPGamer. Archived from the original on 22 February 2024. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  31. ^ "Guild Wars: Factions Review". VideoGamer. 6 June 2021. Archived from the original on 22 February 2024. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  32. ^ "Latest Winners and Nominees". British Academy of Film and Television Arts. Archived from the original on 9 November 2006. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  33. ^ "Guild Wars Factions Nominated for BAFTA". Games Industry.biz. 19 September 2006. Archived from the original on 22 February 2024. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  34. ^ "DEMMX Award". DEMMX. Archived from the original on December 5, 2006. Retrieved December 3, 2006.
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