Game updates/20090401

Update #2 - Wednesday, April 1, 2009

Bug Fix

Fixed a bug that prevented some text in the Hall of Monuments from displaying properly.

Update - Wednesday, April 1, 2009

Note: This update was never implemented. It is a fake update in the spirit of April Fools' Day.
However, this update did cause all player characters that were above level 1 in non-PvP outposts to appear as Gwen-chan.

For more information on these changes, please see the Developer Updates page.

PvE and PvP

Assassin

File:Scorpion Wire.jpg Scorpion Wire: no longer has half-range. Changed functionality to: "Target foe is teleported to your location and knocked down."
File:Shroud of Silence.jpg Shroud of Silence: changed functionality to: "For 5...20 seconds, target player cannot send chat messages."

Dervish

Increased duration of all Avatar skills to 40...70 seconds.
File:Avatar of Grenth.jpg Avatar of Grenth: changed functionality to: "For 10...90 seconds, your attacks steal 1...2 enchantments from any foe you hit and apply those enchantments to you."

Elementalist

Sandstorm: now deals 10...30 more damage if the caster is standing in a sandy area.
Searing Flames: removed Burning condition.

Mesmer

No changes.

Monk

File:Ray of Judgment.jpg Ray of Judgment: Removed Burning condition, increased damage to 10...90.

Necromancer

File:Animate Flesh Golem.jpg Animate Flesh Golem: removed the single-golem limit.

Paragon

File:"Fall Back!".jpg "Fall Back!": Now ends if target ally is not moving away from a foe.
File:"Incoming!".jpg "Incoming!": Now ends if target ally is not moving away from a foe.
File:"It's just a flesh wound.".jpg "It's just a flesh wound.": This skill can now be used while dead.
File:"The Power Is Yours!".jpg "The Power Is Yours!": changed functionality to: "Sacrifice all Health. Until resurrected, 5 nearby party members gain +1...5 Earth Magic, +1...5 Fire Magic, +1...5 Air Magic, +1...5 Water Magic, or +1...5 Healing Prayers."

Ranger

Beast Mastery: pets now have a chance of ignoring commands unless their master has a higher Beast Mastery rank than the pet's level.
File:Equinox.jpg Equinox: Exhaustion duration is now based on the time of day.

Ritualist

File:Signet of Ghostly Might.jpg Signet of Ghostly Might: reverted functionality to: "For 10 seconds, target ally or foe does +10...30 damage. When this skill ends, that target is slain."
Spawning Power: Weapon skills now last 50% longer for each rank of Spawning Power.

Warrior

File:Bull's Charge.jpg Bull's Charge: functionality changed to: "You Shadow Step to target foe and knock them down."
File:Dwarven Battle Stance.jpg Dwarven Battle Stance: duration is now based on the user's height.
File:Gladiator's Defense.jpg Gladiator's Defense: duration is now doubled in Random and Team Arenas.

Guild Battles

Guild Battle NPCs now respawn at regular intervals until the Guild Lord is slain.

Miscellaneous

Removed the Lucky Aura effect from the Lunar Fortune item.
On a direct hit, the Zaishen rank emote now deals minor damage based on the user's rank and knocks the target down.
Characters suffering from Blind cannot see distant enemies.
Characters suffering from Dazed will now spin in place. The camera is locked for the duration of the effect.
Introduced a new Cartographer title for the Battle Isles.

Guild Wars Wiki notes

The alleged change to Signet of Ghostly Might is a reference to an infamous bug during the Guild Wars Nightfall World Preview Event which allowed it to be cast on any creature rather than only working on allied spirits.
The alleged change to "The Power Is Yours!" is a reference to Captain Planet.
The alleged change to Scorpion Wire is a reference to the character Scorpion of the Mortal Kombat series, whose signature move is to impale a spear, with a rope attached to the end, into the opponent's chest, and then drag the opponent towards him by pulling on the rope, leaving the opponent dazed for a free hit.
The alleged change to Beast Mastery is a reference to the Pokémon game series, where, If you did not have a certain number of badges, Pokémon over a certain level would not obey you.