Yesterday we finally gained access to one Guild Wars 2 tool that has been requested for quite some time now: Leaderboards! Players can access PvP ranks, WvW ranks, and a list of our top achievers in the game by going to this section of the official Guild Wars 2 site. Leaderboards currently feature rank positions, rank totals, character names, account names in some cases, rank adjustments, and rank deviations. ArenaNet is planning more for the tool as well, which Nate Long detailed in a recent developer blog:

“We’re starting with the top 100 users in PvP and Achievements, but over the next few weeks we’ll ramp this number up and add some different ways to slice the data to help you get the most relevant information possible.”

“We have lots of plans for ways we can expand and enhance this data to include more information about more of the game—the current release is just the first taste of what we’re doing. As always, we love hearing what you have to say, so feel free to post any comments, suggestions, ideas, etc. on the forums.”

ArenaNet announced a large change coming to Guild Wars 2′s free world transfer system yesterday. Starting November 1st, players will only be able to transfer between worlds once every week instead of once every 24 hours. Here is the announcement, which was posted by Martin Kerstein, Head of Global Community:

Originally posted by Martin Kerstein (Source)

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Due to community concerns about the effect of free transfers on world versus world, starting on November 1 we are going to change how often players are allowed to transfer worlds. After the update, players will be able to transfer worlds once every 7 days instead of once every 24 hours. We are also actively working on getting the guesting functionality in place. Thank you for your understanding.

With any luck, this should curb the amount of world-hopping done for WvW purposes. Also, it’s great to hear that ArenaNet is actively at work on the game’s guesting feature.

Were you part of this three way fight this weekend? If you’re into competitive W3 play, then these three servers are probably worth checking out if you haven’t found a home yet.

World vs. World is a fantastic part of GW2 that is just starting to shape up. The better servers are bubbling to the top; but everything is not hunky-dorey. Queues are killing a lot of people’s will to play. Some players are reporting up to 5 hour queues. Let’s hope Arenanet is working on this issue now.

In other news, GW2 is sold out digitally and at retailers all over the world.

Today we get a fifth video discussing all the aspects of Guild Wars 2, and as promised, we get the the last concerning World vs. World vs. World.

Guild Wars 2 Game Designers Matt Witter and Mike Ferguson talk about World vs World (WvW), where three teams battle for control over objectives across four massive maps. Each team represents an entire server, so literally hundreds of players take part in wars that last for weeks. It’s PvP combat on an epic scale!

Hit us after the break for the video.

Anyone can join in on the WvW battle and several GW2 game designers have stated that WvW should act like a stepping stone for those players who are interested in learning about PvP but not quite ready to jump in to the competitive side of things.

As you enter in to World vs. World, regardless of what level you actually are, you’ll be scaled up to level 80. You’ll retain all of your skills, abilities, and armor, but it will all be scaled up to level 80. This is different than in competitive PvP where everyone is given the same gear, and all of your abilities and traits are unlocked.

What this boils down to is that if you’re a level two player fighting a level 60 player in WvW, the level 60 player will have a huge advantage over you. They’ll have a variety of skills and better gear than you do, even though you’ve both been scaled up to level 80 in the environment. In competitive PvP, everyone is on an even playing field, but that’s not the case in WvW.

Source: Guild Wars 2 World vs. World Preview — Realms at War

Check the latest dev blog from Arenanet as Jordan Massey tells us about the role of squads in world vs. World combat.

Joining a squad is just as easy as sending a whisper or a party invite. Simply select a teammate and right-click their portrait. If they’re in a squad, you’ll see an option to join their squad. Click that and you’re in! The commander doesn’t have to approve your request—you can join and leave freely. It doesn’t matter whether you click on a commander or a squad member. You’ll join the squad as the person you clicked on, so you don’t have to worry about chasing down a commander in order to join a squad. In the party menu on the quick-launch bar, there’s a small squad panel. From there, you can leave the squad you’re in if you want to join a different one, or if you’re just done for the day.

Source: Role of a Squad in WvW