[2023] Relics Bring New Equipment to Guild Wars 2: Secrets of the Obscure

Learn all about the expansion's newest equipment slot. EDIT: Below are some answers to frequently asked questions. We may add more as we keep an eye on this thread and see questions we are able to answer at this time. What happens to rune slot 6? Slot 6 will be another stat bonus. Some runes already have a stat bonus here, and those that don’t will have one added. Can I equip 5 runes and +1 of another set? You can, as you can now, but this will be giving up the 6-slot bonus of one rune set for the 1 slot bonus of another. Will relics that launch cover all the special effect from each 6-rune set? Not all existing 6-slot rune bonuses will be available as relics at launch. We will continue adding additional core relics over time as part of our ongoing commitment to improving our core game features. Can you explain the note about “choice of three core relics”? When we say "your choice of three relics,” we mean that you’ll get to choose a total of three relics (exact number subject to change, but that’s our current plan) from among the available core relics. There are runes that have the same exact stat combinations up to 5 runes and then the 6th rune is different. For example, the runes of the pack, fireworks and surging. Now the rune of the pack actually gives stats (+125 precision) for the 6th rune. But the other two only have the special ability and give no stat bonus. Or does the 25% increase in movement speed count as a stat increase? In cases like this, we’ll be making sure that runes with duplicate 1-5 bonuses have unique 6 slot stats. In this example, 25% movement speed will count as a stat increase and will be seen on a handful of rune 6 pieces. Will you be retiring any runes (due to duplicates or otherwise)? No. All of the existing rune sets will have unique stat combinations and none of them will be removed. What will happen for rune sets with a special ability on rune 2 and 4? Unique 2 and 4 slot bonuses will become raw stats. (Boon and condition duration increases are not considered unique and will not be removed from runes.) Do we need 7 or will 6 that everyone crafted be enough towards the progress? We recognize most players will have only crafted up to 6 runes, but for players that have crafted seven, the extra effort will be recognized. That said, there is no requirement to make 7 legendary runes. Why only "progress towards," rather than rewarding the relic itself? The relic will need to be unlocked separately because relics will have new abilities beyond those covered by runes previously, and the legendary relic will be capable of expanding with new relic releases. Is the relic choice box granted to each character over level 60, or do you get one per account? The relic choice box is granted per character.

I'm a strong advocate for both playing Guild Wars 2 and spending plenty of time outdoors. Everyone should do both things! Weather and Internet access permitting! I'm much less fond of arguing back and forth about who should and shouldn't be touching grass... especially when there's a whole relics blog to discuss!

Hello all and happy Friday! I've been keeping an eye on this thread and have been working with members of several development teams to round up answers to frequently asked questions that I've seen. (Huge thanks to everyone on the team who helped me with answers!) Answers are below, but I've also added them to my original post so they're easy to find and share. I'm going to get caught up on the thread this morning and while there are things we can't discuss right now, if I see more questions that can be answered I'll work with the team on those and try to provide more replies. As always, thank you all for continuing to discuss and provide feedback--we appreciate it! FAQ: What happens to rune slot 6? Slot 6 will be another stat bonus. Some runes already have a stat bonus here, and those that don’t will have one added. Can I equip 5 runes and +1 of another set? You can, as you can now, but this will be giving up the 6-slot bonus of one rune set for the 1 slot bonus of another. Will relics that launch cover all the special effect from each 6-rune set? Not all existing 6-slot rune bonuses will be available as relics at launch. We will continue adding additional core relics over time as part of our ongoing commitment to improving our core game features. Can you explain the note about “choice of three core relics”? When we say "your choice of three relics,” we mean that you’ll get to choose a total of three relics (exact number subject to change, but that’s our current plan) from among the available core relics. There are runes that have the same exact stat combinations up to 5 runes and then the 6th rune is different. For example, the runes of the pack, fireworks and surging. Now the rune of the pack actually gives stats (+125 precision) for the 6th rune. But the other two only have the special ability and give no stat bonus. Or does the 25% increase in movement speed count as a stat increase? In cases like this, we’ll be making sure that runes with duplicate 1-5 bonuses have unique 6 slot stats. In this example, 25% movement speed will count as a stat increase and will be seen on a handful of rune 6 pieces. Will you be retiring any runes (due to duplicates or otherwise)? No. All of the existing rune sets will have unique stat combinations and none of them will be removed.

I want to quickly clarify that the blog post was not edited at all after publication, and still says seven: "In fact, each of the seven legendary runes you create will unlock further progress toward these relics. "

Hi all, I'm adding one more answer to the list and hope to be back with more later today. What will happen for rune sets with a special ability on rune 2 and 4? Unique 2 and 4 slot bonuses will become raw stats. (Boon and condition duration increases are not considered unique and will not be removed from runes.)

Hi all, I've got a few more answers to questions we've seen frequently. I'll add these to my original post as well: Do we need 7 or will 6 that everyone crafted be enough towards the progress? We recognize most players will have only crafted up to 6 runes, but for players that have crafted seven, the extra effort will be recognized. That said, there is no requirement to make 7 legendary runes. Why only "progress towards," rather than rewarding the relic itself? The relic will need to be unlocked separately because relics will have new abilities beyond those covered by runes previously, and the legendary relic will be capable of expanding with new relic releases. Is the relic choice box granted to each character over level 60, or do you get one per account? The relic choice box is granted per character.