The third Guild Wars 2 Expansion; End of Dragons will release on February 28, 2022. In this article you’ll find all the things you need to know! We’ll talk about Elite Specializations, the continent of Cantha and Fishing!
End of Dragons Launch Livestream
Feel free to join me whenever we first enter Cantha! Join me and come chat on this livestream:
End of Dragons Release Date
Guild Wars 2: End of Dragons will release on February 28, 2022.
Although many players expected the expansion to release in 2021, it was eventually delayed to 2022. Luckily this news was accompanied by the return of two familiar faces to the ArenaNet Studio; Colin Johansson and Josh “Grouch” Davis. Both Colin and Josh worked on the development of Guild Wars 2 and even worked on the development of the original Guild Wars. Both Colin and Josh left ArenaNet in 2016 but returned in 2021 to continue their work on Guild Wars 2.
Buy End of Dragons
If you want to buy End of Dragons you can do so on the official Guild Wars 2 website. If you want to support me you’re able to buy it through one of my affiliate links. It won’t cost you anything extra and it gives me a few cents to keep the site up! If you want to, use the links below:
The Return to Cantha!
End of Dragons will take the player back to Cantha. This continent is well-known to players that have played the original Guild Wars: Factions.
Although we are not entirely sure about the contents of each map, we can say that Shing Jea Island, the Echovald Forest, the Jade Sea and Kaineng City will make their appearance in the new expansion. Not everything will be the same as in the original Guild Wars: Factions. More than 250 years have passed since the events of the original Guild Wars. Many screenshots and developer livestreams can confirm that!
Guild Wars 2 dedicated special livestreams to some of the playable areas in Guild Wars 2: End of Dragons. You can check them out down below.
New Kaineng City
Shing Jea Island
Echovald Wilds
New Elite Specializations
A new expansion means new Elite Specializations! Once your Guild Wars 2 character reaches level 80 and you have either Heart of Thorns, Path of Fire or End of Dragons added to your account, you are able to unlock Elite Specializations. Elite Specializations allow you to change the play style of your current profession (class). It also allows your profession to use a weapon that it could not use before. For example, the Elementalist (core profession) is able to unlock the Catalyst Elite Specialization in End of Dragons. This allows the Elementalist to use a Hammer in combat. Also, it gives the Elementalist acces to a whole array of new skills and mechanics that it could not use before.
Here is a list of all the new Elite Specilizations in End of Dragons:
| Profession | Elite Specialization | New Weapon | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Warrior | Bladesworn | Off-hand Pistol | Uses “flow” instead of adrenaline and gives access to dragon slashes. Allows the warrior to use a gunsaber and an off-hand pistol. |
| Guardian | Willbender | Off-hand Sword | Gives the guardian fast paced movement and skills. Allows the guardian use an off-hand sword. |
| Revenant | Vindicator | Greatsword | Unlocks the Legendary Alliance Stance which channels the powers of Saint Viktor zu Heltzer of the Kurzicks, and Archemorus of the Luxons. Also allows the revenant to use a greatsword. |
| Ranger | Untamed | Hammer | Gives the ranger the ability to wield a hammer and cast cantrips. |
| Thief | Specter | Scepter | Gives the thief the ability to heal (!) with Shadow Magic and allows thiefs to cast wells. Allows thiefs to wield scepters |
| Engineer | Mechanist | Mace | Replaces the Engineer’s tool belt skills with Jade Mech CJ-1 and command skills. Allows the engineer to use a mace. |
| Mesmer | Virtuoso | Dagger | Grants mesmers access to psionic skills, replaces the mesmer’s shatter ability with bladesong requiring blade charges. Allows the mesmer to use daggers. |
| Elementalist | Catalyst | Hammer | Grants elementalists acces to augment skills and attunement-based jade spheres. Allows elementalists to use a hammer. |
| Necromancer | Harbinger | Pistol | Gives necromancers acces to Elixirs for boons. Blight reduces maximum health for more damage and/or boons. Acces to the Harbinger Shroud which increases the necromancer’s mobility. Allows necromancers to use a pistol in combat. |
Fishing and Skiffs
Next to combat, crafting and exploration there were little side activities for a Guild Wars 2 player to participate in. With the introduction of Fishing and Skiffs, the player is able to add an extra layer of features to their Guild Wars 2 experience.
Both features explained in under a minute:
Fishing
Players are able to cast their fishing rods at shore or on a skiff. In order to fish a player needs to add bait to their fishing rod. There are different kinds of baits that, you guessed it, allow you to catch different kind of fish.
Fishing works through the mastery system that Guild Wars 2 players are familiar with. You can unlock new fishing abilities by exploring, story instances and completing achievements. The developers have confirmed that fishing is unlocked through one of the early story chapters.
Skiffs
Skiffs are small boats that are also unlocked through the story of the End of Dragons expansion. Each player gets their own personal Skiff which allows up to 4 other players. Whenever other players are on your skiff, they can increase the Skiff’s speed by emoting.
It’s also possible to park your Skiff somewhere and cast out your fishing rod!
The Siege Turtle Mount
The Path of Fire Expansion (2017) introduced the player to mounts in Guild Wars 2. Through Living World Episodes and World vs. World players were able to unlock three additional mounts; the Rollerbeetle (2018), the Warclaw (2019) and the Skyscale (2019).
Each mount in Guild Wars 2 is unique and has their own special abilities. For example, the Springer allows you to jump on ledges you could not reach before and the Skimmer allows you to ‘surf’ on water and move fast underwater.
The End of Dragons expansion introduces the player to yet another mount; the Siege Turtle. The Siege Turtle is the first mount that can be used by two players. One player will be the driver and determines which way you are going to go. The other player will be the gunner that fires the Siege Turtles’ Siege Cannons.
Jade Bots
The last prominent feature of the new End of Dragons expansion are the Jade Bots. These little helpers can be used to rally you when you’re down, they can help you solve puzzles or can help you get around in New Kaineng City. The Jade Bots are unlocked through the story of End of Dragons and have (at least) 5 masteries tied to them.
| Mastery | Description |
|---|---|
| Gliding Booster | Your Jade Bot gives you a upward boost while gliding |
| Multicharge | Your Jade Bot can allow up to 4 energy charges at the time |
| Jade Tech Waypoint | Your Jade Bot can create a personal waypoint for you which you can teleport to when you die. |
| Energy Efficiency | Your Jade Bot will now get 2 charges from jade batteries, to a maximum of 4. Your jade bot can now gather charges from zip lines. |
| Rescue Protocol | Your Jade Bot will help you rally whenever you get downed. |
That’s about everything you need to know about the new End of Dragons expansion! What are you most excited for? Let me know in the comments. I hope to see you in Cantha!
