GW2. How to unlock the classic mounts from the Path of Fire expansion. Guild Wars 2 New Player.
Getting Started
Unlike other MMOs, mounts in Guild Wars 2 are very interactive with the environment. Each mount has a specific purpose for traversing the terrain and their own limitations, making the world of Tyria still feel exciting and adventurous once they are obtained.
Update August 2:
- Road test the raptor!
- Accounts with an expansion unlocked will be granted permanent access to the basic raptor mount after they reach level 10 on a single character. Players who have reached level 80 and own the Guild Wars 2: Path of Fire expansion can unlock this mount’s Masteries.
- Characters on Play for Free accounts will get a 10-hour trial of the raptor mount when they reach level 10.
- For characters that are already over level 10 and missed the initial unlock checkpoint, we will attempt to grant the unlock every 10 levels. This is true for both Play for Free and expansion accounts. We are working on additional methods to offer this unlock to players not caught by this fallback solution.
To begin collecting mounts in Guild Wars 2, you must purchase the Path of Fire expansion. You must have a level 80 character to do the Path of Fire story, but purchasing this expansion provides you a level 80 boost. Once you have a level 80 character, begin by opening your hero panel to the story journal.
You will acquire the Raptor, Springer, and Skimmer just by playing through the Path of Fire story. The other mounts are optional but have many benefits to them. The Jackal can be obtained later on in the story. The rest will be covered in separate guides. For other mount acquisition guides, check these links:
Each mount can be improved using the mastery system in the hero panel. This is important for acquiring mounts because to complete some mount quests you will need improved versions of other ones. To level up these masteries you need to gain experience on a character that is level 80 while selecting a specific mastery to train, then spend mastery points once you have filled the experience bar to complete that mastery.
Mastery points can be earned by completing specific achievements that grant mastery points, or finding them at certain locations on the map. Masteries and Mounts are account bound, meaning that all your characters have access to the same progression on them.
Raptor
The Raptor will allow you to jump across large gaps such as canyons and valleys. The mount engage ability is an area pull, making it very good for gathering enemies up.
One of the first story instances in Path of Fire will give access to the raptor. Inside this instance you must complete a heart quest. This will give immediate access to the Raptor mount. You must borrow a Raptor from the trainer and perform certain activities with it to complete the quest. Completing the heart quest gives you your own Raptor Mount.
Handling the raptor is simple. Use the leap ability to gain distance while moving or to cross distances. This will cost endurance to use. With the Canyon Jumping mastery, hold down the leap button to go further at the expense of more endurance.
Springer
While the Raptor provides great horizontal movement, the Springer is great for verticality. It can reach high-up places that the raptor won’t be able to, but is much slower than the raptor. It also can learn to become resistant to fall damage, allowing you to survive falls from greater heights.
To acquire the Springer you must have the Raptor mount with the Canyon Jumping mastery. This requires 5 mastery points invested into the Raptor. Once you get to the Desert Highlands in the Path of Fire story, you must cross the Highjump Gap – [&BLUKAAA=] with the improved raptor to reach the Springer Ranch. Complete the heart quest at the Springer Ranch to acquire the Springer Mount.
The Springer’s ability is to leap high into the air. You can wait longer and spend more endurance to jump higher, however, endurance is never an issue for the Springer because it will always recharge fully before you land and can attempt to use the jump ability again. Endurance is merely a measure of how high your jump will go. Hold the forward movement key while charging your jump to go further horizontally, and hold nothing besides the jump key to go more vertically.
Skimmer
The Skimmer is not exceptional at any single motion, but is very versatile. It hovers over the ground, allowing you to glide on water much faster than swimming. You can also avoid environmental hazards like quicksand and sulfur pits by hovering over them. It is also immune to fall damage naturally, because it never touches the ground.
The Skimmer is also the most survivable mount because mount abilities can become evades with the Jackal mastery, and the Skimmer ability is a channeled ability so the evade duration is much longer and controllable than others. This allows you to traverse much more dangerous places in peace using the Skimmer.
To acquire the Skimmer, simply reach the point in the Path of Fire story where you go to the Elon Riverlands, then make your way to the Skimmer Ranch – [&BGcKAAA=] Complete the heart quest there to receive the Skimmer Mount.
The mount ability makes the Skimmer float higher in the air, and with the Ride the Wind mastery it will float even higher. This allows a smoother ride as there will be less obstructions in the way. It also lets the Skimmer glide across long distance jumps because it loses less elevation over time while using the mount ability. The skimmer moves faster than normal while floating over water, quicksand, or sulfur.
Jackal
There is no need to obtain the Jackal as part of the Path of Fire story, so obtaining it will require a little exploration. It is similar to the Raptor in its usage. It is slightly slower than the Raptor, but has better turning and can leap across gaps with more precision. The Jackal is also able to travel through Sand Portals with the Shifting Sands mastery. This allows access to new areas and shortcuts.
To acquire the Jackal, go to Sand Jackal Run – [&BHcKAAA=] in the southwest corner of The Desolation. You will want the skimmer for this because you must cross the sulfur wastes to get there. Glide up the side of the isolated platform to the east of Sand Jackal Run. From there, climb up the staircase and complete the heart quest at the top to obtain the Jackal Mount.
The Jackal’s engage ability with the Bolster Allies mastery grants barrier to allies at the location, which is useful for completing some challenges. The mount ability Blink is a port in the direction the Jackal is facing. The direction the Jackal is facing can be changed quickly, allowing the player to traverse winding terrain more easily. The Jackal Blink will also reset the momentum of gravity, so using the Blink after falling quite a far distance will save you from dying to fall damage.
Crystal Champion Mount Masteries
The Living World Season 4 allows the player to unlock more masteries for enhancing all their mounts further. Once learned, these masteries provide skills that can be used while mounted. To unlock these you must enter any of the Living World Season 4 maps except for Sandswept Isles – Episode 2. Enter any of these maps to unlock the Crystal Champion Mount Masteries:
- Domain of Istan – Episode 1
- Domain of Kourna – Episode 3
- Jahai Bluffs – Episode 4
- Thunderhead Peaks – Episode 5
- Dragonfall – Episode 6
Bond of Life
Bond of Life replaces your mount’s health with your health for 10 seconds, allowing you to push through dangerous zones for longer without being dismounted. Be careful, if your health reaches 0 during this duration, you will go into downstate rather than just be dismounted. This is good for using the Springer in dangerous areas and being able to survive long enough until you can leap out of the area.
Bond of Vigor
Bond of Vigor gives you drastically more endurance regeneration over a short period of time when used. This can give you a burst of speed on the Jackal and Raptor, or allow you more height on the flying mounts.
Bond of Faith
Bond of Faith allows players to dismount in the middle of an action and launch themselves upwards. This is good for reaching higher heights than the Springer can reach, or for switching to a flying mount mid-air using the respective mount’s masteries.
