GW2 Community Creators Spotlight - The Pale Tree's Verene

Q: What do you do in the Guild Wars community and where can everyone find you?

A: Hi! I'm Verene, and I am a GW2 blogger. I run Under the Pale Tree, which can be found at thepaletree.net On twitter I am @LadyVerene, while I post blog-related stuff under @ThePaleTree.

Q: Did you hear of/play GW1 and what was your experiences/ you're impressions? What is your earliest memory if so?

A: I played GW1 quite a lot. I didn't start it until very late in the game – I think I bought it towards the end of 2008 – but I did really enjoy it. My earliest memory of it was making an Elementalist on my brother's account, playing around for a bit, buying it for myself...and my computer completely refusing to cooperate. Fun stuff.

Q: Did you/are you playing other MMO's? What attracted you to them?

A: I've dabbled in other MMOs, but for the most part I have never enjoyed them. Rift and Aion were the ones I played the most, other than GW/GW2, but even those were just on-and-off. It is, generally, not a genre I really enjoy much, despite trying many.

Q: When did you start playing GW2 and what got you involved in the game itself?

A: I started playing GW2 as soon as we were first able to play it! I had been following it for several years before launch, and played since the first beta weekend. I enjoyed the first game a lot, so I was naturally interested in GW2.

Q: How do you feel about the upcoming expansion HoT?

A: I'm looking forward to it, but I feel like a lot of hype for it has died down. Like, I'm still confident it'll have plenty of content and that I'll enjoy it, but I'm at a point where I can't quite feel excited for it all that much, I suppose. The lack of news and the current GW2 content drought is wearing me down.

Q: What class do you main/ What is your least liked class and why?

A: I play every profession (I have two characters of each profession at level 80, because I love making characters), but Mesmer has been my main from day one. My least favorites are warrior and engineer. Warrior just is very uninteresting to me, and I do not like the style of engineer at all. I don't like technology in my fantasy. :P

Q: What is your opinion on the lore of the game?

A: I've always really liked the lore of Tyria, and how deep it is. I also like that GW2 is expanding and adding new lore to the world, instead of just relying on GW1. GW1 was great and all, but we're playing a different game, so new stuff is appreciated.

Q: Is there a place, theme or person you would want new content to include?

A: I just really would love to see Elona. Nightfall was my favorite campaign in GW1, so visiting Elona again would be fantastic. And it's literally RIGHT THERE.

Q: What do you speculate as the next possible race?

 A: It'll probably be Tengu, because if it isn't, players will revolt. Personally, I really don't care about new races; none of the likely ones I have any attachment to or interest in playing. I also would prefer to see new professions over races, as they add far more to gameplay.

Q: Do you play Dungeons, if so, what one is your favourite and what do you think to the Dungeon clearing meta?

A: Less so now (mostly because I play less in general now), but I do like dungeons; Twilight Arbor and Crucible of Eternity are my favorites. I do not like the speedclear meta, though; too much of it relies on things that are borderline exploits (if not just straight-up cheating). There's also the reliance on very specific professions and builds which isn't something I've ever been a fan of.

Q: How did you get started with the community, what inspired you to get involved?

A: I like talking about things that I like. I originally started off as a staff member for GuildMag, and worked with them on and off for several years.

Q: Why do you think GW2 has such a great community around it?

A: The game is, when it comes down to it, really a very good game, and there's a lot available to work with. It's not a perfect community, but it is, in general, a very good one.

Q: Could Arenanet do more to curate and develop its community?/ What changes (if at all) have you seen in the community since you started playing GW2?

A: Oooh boy. Both of these questions kind of go together, and it's something that I've been both very unhappy and vocal about in recent months. Basically, yes, the community has changed significantly over the years, and ArenaNet's handling of the community is largely responsible for it. I feel like they've moved away from actually supporting and developing a community and more to simply content marketing, which has left a lot of long-term content creators completely left out, as well as the heavy focus on Youtube and twitch over all else. I understand that these formats are good for drawing in new players, but the focus on those content types should not be to the exclusion of those who spent years building and creating this community.

Q: Why did you choose your particular format  [Youtube/Twitch/blogs ect] ?

A: I like writing! I've never been a video person – I don't really like watching gameplay videos, and watching someone stream a game is just incredibly boring for me (personality is not enough to keep me interested). Writing is much more my thing.

Q: What content do you create? Anything of note coming up soon?

A: Well, as said above, I write. I don't really plan things out – most of my posts are spur of the moment things that come to mind. Originally I did a lot of speculation, “what if” posts, but there's little to speculate on these days.

Q: How much does the audience and community influence your production/creations?

A: A lot. If there's a particularly interesting conversation going on on twitter, for example, that frequently inspires me to write a post, simply because my thoughts are too long for twitter.

Q: Do you have any advice for people wanting to follow in your footsteps?

Do it because you enjoy it, not because you expect recognition. Because I'll be fully honest – blogs and fansites are no longer the popular content type.

Q: What type of games do you play for your own enjoyment?

A: I like the Sims a lot. I also like silly mobile games like Alphabear. I realistically don't play very many games right now; I simply don't have the time for it and I am very picky about what I like. That said, I am looking forward to Star Wars Battlefront, and will likely be buying a PS4 in the fall for it.

Q: Who else would you recommend in the GW2 community?

A: Relics of Orr and Guild Wars Reporter are both fantastic podcasts, with two very different styles. GuildMag remains a great fansite with all sorts of goodies. Dragon Season, of course! And Tough Love Critic is a great blog focused on constructive criticism.