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The latest update for Guild Wars 2's Janthir Wilds expansion, Repentance, has finally arrived. The update overwhelmingly focuses on providing a refined experience over inundating players with massive swaths of banal content.
Repentance, the second major post-launch update in the Janthir Wilds calendar, aims to bring some much-needed variety to the huge amount of content released during the Godspawn update.
We were recently invited to a preview session with the developers over at ArenaNet, and here's what we experienced.
Repentance is a gracious respite from the breakneck release schedule of Guild Wars 2
The preview session began with a recap of the Janthir Wilds storyline so far, explaining how the Tyrian Alliance has managed to push back the Godspawn Titans in the eponymous update, ending with Ura's demise atop Mount Balrior. Before perishing, Ura ominously mentions that the gate to Tyria from where the Titans breached remains open.
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Repentance picks up right after, leading to an expedition deeper into the Isles of Janthir, and lands us close to the former home of the Mursaat, the city of Bava Nissos. The city was formed after the Mursaat were exiled from their original home of Nayos, which we visited during Secrets of the Obscure.
Bava Nissos is also the place where the bloody conflict between Mursaat and Seers broke out, leading to the effective eradication of the latter race. So it goes without saying that the place is rife with violence, death, and sorrow that inextricably involves Isgarren, a seer, and his deceased Mursaat comrade Mabon, who acted as the keeper of the dead city.
The new zone of Mistburned Barrens borders Bava Nissos. It is an impenetrable magical dead zone filled with Spectral Agony, a form of tormenting magic heavily utilized by the Mursaat. Our goal is to scout the Mistburned Barrens and find a way into the city without using Spectral Agony. It is an area that is dark and foreboding, with gargantuan stone structures that hide dark memories and darker enemies.
The map is filled with other forms of Mursaat magic, such as Mursaat Mirrors and magical jetstreams, which help you and your mounts traverse more freely. The mirrors, in particular, also grant access to special areas that hold secrets and special rewards.
Personally, I avoid spoiling the story for myself, but the developers assured me that Mistburned Barrens would offer a glimpse into Tyria's darker past. The zone is divided into three distinct "lanes," similar to Dragonfall of Living World Season 4.
Like Dragonfall, the lanes offer different storylines involving various characters. Interestingly, the lane-specific storylines and events are slated to change periodically, offering different experiences and providing a greater context for Bava Nissos, the Mursaat, White Mantle, and other parts of Tyrian history.
The Mistburned Barrens lacks a larger meta-event, which was quickly picked up by all those present. The developers confirmed their decision to remove a meta-event to eliminate the sense of urgency when logging into the game. They want players to experience the map and always find something to do, rather than log in at specific times for fear of missing out.
ArenaNet has instead focused on carefully refining the existing gameplay opportunities with additional features, such as the Mount Balrior Raid and Convergence event. Both activities are effectively being refreshed, with the Raid getting a Challenge mode and a Legendary Challenge Mode for Ura, while the Convergence will welcome a new weekly boss.
The Challenge mode for Mount Balrior Raid is currently live, but the Ura Legendary Challenge Mode or LCM will arrive on March 25, 2025. Greer, the Blightbringer, is joining the Mount Balrior Convergence and will be on a weekly rotator. Greer's moveset will feature a combination of his abilities from the Janthir Syntri meta and the Raid.
ArenaNet doesn't want players to go empty-handed from fighting all of these extremely powerful bosses and tackling crippling Mursaat magic, so they're giving them brand new weapons, armor, a new Legendary precursor, and a Pulsing Bloodstone Infusion. The infusion will be primarily available from the Convergence and Raid and will be very rarely dropped in Mistburned Barrens.
Repentance will also feature a refresh to the Wizard's Vault that will be restocked with all the standard affairs, such as Gold, Mystic Coin, and Tier-6 materials. The Wizard's Vault will also feature a new iteration of the Legendary Weapon Starter Kit. A new dispatch quest is also being released with the Vault refresh, which will grant a new Forest Wisp Infusion.
Here is a detailed list of all the rewards coming with Repentance:
- Ward Knight's Set - Wizard's Vault
- Old Growth weapons - Wizard's Vault
- Illustrious Skysage's Throne - Wizard's Vault
- Forest Wisp Infusion - Wizard's Vault
- Legendary Weapon Starter Kit: Set 7 - Wizard's Vault
- Scavenged Obsidian Weapons - Mistburned Barrens
- True Sight Armour - Mistburned Barrens
- Woodland Kodan Leather Gloves - Mistburned Barrens
- Salmon of Knowledge Backpack - Mistburned Barrens
- Pulsing Bloodstone Infusion - Mistburned Barrens, Mount Balrior
The homestead is also being updated with much-needed features and rewards. First and foremost, new achievements are being added to older maps and will unlock new recipes for purchase from Deft Lahar. These recipes will feature thematic homesteading items, such as home instance gathering nodes from Janthir Syntri and Lowland Shore.
Mannequins and Armor display decorations are also being added, where players will be able to showcase their fashion and gear grind in real-time, which, let's be honest, is the real end game in Guild Wars 2. And if all of that isn't enough to tickle your fancy, Repentance will add the Janthir Bee as a charmable pet for the Rangers because bees are cool.
There's more to come for Janthir Wilds, as a final and yet unnamed update remains on the horizon to close off the narrative strings. ArenaNet has confirmed that the upcoming update will feature a new map and even more quality-of-life features. We'll make sure to keep you updated as we get more information.
