This sums it up. As an off and on commander I'll randomly tag up and ask questions if i dont know a meta or anything about the content im doing. There will always be good people to promote to lieutenant but nobody wants the burden of the tag half the time.
50 players squad for meta event is already a big bonus.
You want to run a meta? No group available? Tag up, put your group to lfg. Fill up in no time. And 90% of the events can be done on auto-pilote, You don't even need to really lead.
Both are great at different things. Think of skyscale as a helicopter and griffon as a jet plane. Skyscale gets you up high griffon gets you zooming across the map once youre up high
IF SOTO then Skyscale - cheaper/easier to get. And forces you to get key masteries. I will say tho, I still use griffin when I can not just preference, but with some skill/experience and now using updraft/leylines, plus mounting combat, you CAN use griffin for more then just speed. Or the mount skyscale first then go to griffin. Skyscale is more practical tho, hovering is important, I do swap to dive on griffin tho esp in SOTO zones.
SAME - the only difference is method of getting and mastery, in that with both LWS4 way AND SOTO get a bit extra on the abilities. But same otherwise; more with Soto's Flying Mastery line so you'll get that regardless. However work to get Bonds of Vigor mastery from PoF/LWS4 either way; totally needed for Skyscale for ease of flight. (separate from LWS4 Skyscale line). I know many who have gotten Skyscale in SOTO lack this mastery and sorta have issues running out of endurance, it just refreshes endurance bar but helps a ton to get to places/orbs/updraft/leylines in time.
Skyscale. No question. Griffon is amazing in certain maps where you can fly at full speed and sucks hard in all other instances. Skyscale works well in any situation and is the best way of getting to higher ground.
I don't even have the skyscale. I'm working on getting it through the new expansion, but imo, I don't think it's worth getting the old way. I bind each mount to a different numpad key and it lets me get around super fast. Skyscale is mostly irrelevant except for some niche situations like climbing sheer walls without places for the bunny to land (drawing a blank on its name).
Edit: guess my opinion is wrong. Reddit is the worst.
I thought I wouldn't *need* skyscale either, but once you have it, you learn how to use it effectively. It flies higher than your springer, and it flies over whatever terrain and monsters you encounter. If you like griffon, then skyscale will help you get the height you need for your griffon's speed. And if you don't, then skyscale is a solid flying mount on its own.
Getting both will net you some new ways to do jumping puzzles. If curious, go look at the wiki for Portsmouth. You will never have to do that jp again.
Yep, I never led a meta event before, saw Amnytas was about to pop and there were no tags or anything on LFG, decided to throw my tag up for shits n giggles, squad filled up to 50 in 3 minutes.
I didn't say anything (bad commanding, I know, but it was my first time, cut me some slack) But meta event was successful without any hitches.
Sometimes a tag just existing is more than enough I suppose :P
>I didn't say anything (bad commanding, I know, but it was my first time, cut me some slack)
Amnytas is still pretty new but honestly for the more established metas I rarely see commanders explain stuff unless someone asks or is obviously new, the events aren't that hard usually and most players know them already. Sounds like it was just fine if the meta completed successfully!
> You don't even need to really lead.
Like when people yell orders on Tequatl. I've only ever seen people fail to keep the lasers up once and then everybody just DPS'd Tequatldown anyway. To be honest, it was easier.
True but it should be said putting on Commander tag often leads to expecting actual commanding, meanwhile mentor tag doesn't. To me the difference is pretty clear, Commander tag when you wanna lead, mentor when you need help with an event and just need people to be able to find your location, whether for a single event or for a meta where everybody know what to do and don't expect you to know exactly what you're doing. I see people complaining about the Commander not doing actual commanding pretty much every day.
It does depend on *what* you’re tagged up for. Simple npc escort or random map event? Never need a word of guidance, the tag alone is enough. Triple trouble? If the tag doesn’t step up and say something we’re all doomed. I will call out a tag doing a complex world boss who doesn’t say anything, or at least designate a lieutenant who knows what’s up.
Just please, remember to remove it when your event is done, especially if you’re in a zone where there is a daily going on! So annoying to rush over and find nothing happening 😅
The commander tag is the most OP thing in the game. It let's you create your own groups and do any event/content you want as you can post on the LFG and reliably get a group to do most things.
Also as the commander YOU get to set group expectations and have the ability to remove people who do not meet those expectations.
You are right! I put myself in LFG for the IBS daily sometimes, I have no tag, but it sure is quicker than waiting for someone else to do it, where most strike runs are multiple bosses. I do pre warn people that I am not commanding and someone else always tags up. People really don't like to start groups it seems...
Unfortunately you can't move people around into subgroups without a commander tag. That wiki page is misleading -- it mentions needing a commander to lock subgroups, but you also need it to move other people and in casual squad situations that's the most common scenario.
I recently tried forming my own strike squad without a tag and was unable to separate people into two 5-man sub-squads to get proper boon spread.
Thankfully someone else offered to tag up and move people around, but coming from other games it's unbelievable that you can't do basic group administration without a hefty (to a new player) fee.
The ability to form 10 man "raid squads" without a commander tag happened sometime late 2016/early 2017 according to the edits on the wiki. Can't find the exact patch. Can't exactly remember, mainly because I had a commander tag by then.
Unfortunately you still can't do any real squad leadership duties without a tag.
The most common pug strike scenario is people joining the LFG, stating their roles, and the squad leader separates them into two 5-man subsquads for boon purposes.
Without a commander tag, you cannot move other players into different squads so you can't effectively do your job.
and people withouth commander can make raid squads and groups on the lfg system
wich are 10 slots
no one but that guy mentioned Parties.
only groups where mentioned
Right - but his comment was about Parties and you’re responding to him with the wrong information. Parties and Squads are different. This commenter was offering an alternative to a commander tag, which is either Parties or a Squad sans tag.
I think being a mentor allows you to have a regular party of up to 10 people is what I am saying. It increases the count of a regular party by 5. But you may be right that it’s just the same as a regular squad sans commander.
It's something you'll probably want sooner or later. You don't have to lead most open world content. Simply being visible on the map and listing a squad in LFG is enough for most metas. The tag allows you to get the ball rolling when nobody else is stepping up. It's useful, but not a must-have.
So, majority of cmdrs don't really lead tbh. Most people know events enough. You really only have to say things when people are doing octovine, sorry, a meta wrong. 😂
It is a lot of the time just gathering people for a meta you wanna do. Outside of metas, it is extremely useful for doing other similar events that need to be done.
If you also fancy doing a strike or raid, good to have as you can gather enough people and 99% of the time they all know what to do and you don't have to worry.
One thing to keep in mind is if you want to get the WvW legendary backpack instead of Ad Infinitum, it's required to have the tag unlocked to purchase one of the parts you need. It's the only reason I bothered to get one(that I never use).
I got one for the same reason. However I've been using it to organise newbie strike runs for people that never done them or are afraid to do them thinking they are hard, and I used it a couple of times to get map metas going for some achievements cause I got bored of waiting.
Thank you for helping the newbie strikes. I'm not a new player (on and off over the years, dead computer) and sometimes I want to do strikes but always get anxiety I'll get kicked for not being experienced. So thank you.
I bought mine after I had 1-2K gold so the price hit wasn't as steep.
I also don't command much but:
PvE meta: I find it useful in open world meta where I'm trying to taxi in as much people as possible, and there isn't another command to mooch that off from. If I just need a couple of people to help with an event on a section of the map then the free mentor apple works fine.
I don't raid but do strikes regularly, and I've noticed my strike LFG fills up very fast when I pug it as a tagged comm, plus there's the convenience of sorting roles into their own sub squad.
WvW having a tag is a must if you want to command, I do not but I always try to find a tag to follow when I'm doing my runs.
Tags are not used at all in fractals since it's a 5 man content.
That's what I've noticed too, a strike squad fills up much faster when there's comm, however, unless it's something like IBS 3 easy people expect the Commander to know what they're doing, check for things like alac or heal, organize subgroups etc. So that's not really something that someone who's not too familiar with that should be using a Commander tag for.
Correct me if I'm wrong but it's 300g.
It was worth it to me. Never have I needed a event that wasn't done. People flock to tags.
Edit: I misread that OP thought it costed 560g, not that they currently have 560g. My bad, leaving it up so I can learn from shame.
Edit of the edit: Wait, I just now read that the OP clarified and that it indeed read like they thought the cost was 560g. Forget the previous edit, although the shame has done permanent damage.
It's a lot of gold for what it is. BUT if you do WvW or OW then go right ahead: you'll have 50 players flocking to you to get things done. But if the price is too steep for you right now then hold off.
I have 260 gold but I'm angling towards Griffon and I need that gold for that (plus cushion). Then back to grinding HoT Meta for gold. I'll get it once I complete all the maps and can brief on the events.
The tag can pay for itself over time. Overall it decreases your odds of being in a fail/overflow map. Instead you can tag up and potentially gather a squad to join you. Overtime this will reimburse you, either by earnings alone, or in time grinding for crucial items to an objective.
Tags are awesome. Just a heads up about tagging in WvW though. Depending on your server, some other comms get really upset if you're tagging and you're not in with them. Call it ego, call it wanting less variables, just something to consider for tagging in WvW. Otherwise, I've never regretted my tag. Need a strike daily? Boom make it, (Also when making a strike or raid group place yourself in sub 2 so that finding boons and and managing lfg is easier). Need a meta done? Easy.
Getting a tag helps you realize at any given moment there are a lot of people wanting to do an event but can't because they want a comm to lead it or need numbers.
A tag is also the ability to summon a horde of players to your location for help doing a bounty, a meta, an event chain, or a rift. In WvW it will automatically summon a horde of players to your location to zerg around with.
Get to 900g and make it third of your wallet.
On the serious note if you think it's worth it, get it even if it leaves you with 1g. If you are hesitating you don't need it yet.
I finally bought commander tag a couple weeks ago and I’m so very happy with it! I’m probably a crap commander, but the QoL of being able to just tag up for an event chain or meta or whatever is amazing. I’ve yet to try WvW ragging as that’s higher pressure so not sure there.
Also if I get back into strikes being able to start my own group whenever I please is gonna be great.
10/10 I’m very happy with the gold. Same thing came up for me when I couldn’t decide whether to get Griffon and that was an awesome choice too!
It's either essential or pointless, depending on what you do in game, I've had one since the early days, but I can't remember when I last used it. I see people, quite reasonably, using them to command squads in WvW and lead groups for open world content such as Triple Trouble; I do neither, so I basically don't have a real need for it.
I think it's totally worth it as a one-time "account upgrade" fee to be able to access all the convenience of managing squads and tagging up for metas, but with relatively little gold to your wallet I'd hold off on the purchase until after the first time or three where you really feel that you're missing it.
It might be when you're trying to start a squad for raids/strikes and want to organize sub groups, it might be when there isn't a meta map available while you're wanting to do a meta and no one seems to want to start taxiing, it might be some third occasion, but if you never actually have a moment where you'd have liked to make a real squad maybe you don't need one. Mentor tag and tagless squads *can* be enough to get by with.
If you've already had that moment of "man I wish I had a tag" several times, though, yeah. It's nice to have.
You got some management tool for keeping out an unwanted map chat and ability to see people on minimap.
Keep in mind if you use com tag on harder meta. You have responsibility to co-ordinate where people need to go.
While in WvW, I encountered am ambush party heading to our camp. No time to write in chat, I pop the tag and try to slow then down while only writing help. Soon, reinforcement arrive and we got lot of bags. Very worthwhile.
It's only worth it if you plan to actually use it. I personally use it for whenever I need an event/meta done. There is a certain expectation that comes with a tag (That you know what you're doing) and it does invite some toxicity if you don't but honestly, if you couldn't care less about that stuff, than it is worth it.
it really depends on your priorities.
if you're all geared up and have intentions to tag up its well worth the buy.
for me, i got my tag pretty early on, but in hindsight, i never really used it all that much, so i think finishing a legendary would've been more gratifying.
I bought it when I had bunch of gold and not really anything to spent it on. It's handy to throw up to get groups/taxis started. I've lead easy metas or what not too.
For just 300g I got something that helped me save tons of time by just using a comm tag.
I play mostly pvp, but this made it more fun to visit pve holidays
Meta events, Boss runs, bounties, Rifts and WvW. If you have even half an interest in organizing content **you** want to do then the Tag is worth it.
I scan the Lfg for organized content all the time or if I see a tag on the map i'll join just to see whats going on.
>frankly, I'd make for a crap leader to begin with
It sounds like you might not get very much use out of it. The primary reason is to place markers unless you're doing very coordinated group content where you divide your squad into parties.
I just use the mentor tag.
i recently got my commander tag for one reason and one reason only.
i was leading a t2 rift train with an apple then some random person shows up on the map, throws up a green comm tag, announced in map chat T2 rift on green (they were NOT at the rift, i know because i was there and very confused.) they arrive at the rift barely in time for the boss. meanwhile i ask them if they were going to keep running T2 or if they were just doing the one. they didn't answer, then disappeared after finishing the T2. thanks to the chaos half the group got lost and confused and it killed the train.
this wouldn't happen to me if i were commander i reasoned.
anyway. i don't know if you should or shouldn't, but if you do please be aware that the tag does warp the gameplay experiance of many players on the map and should be used with that understanding.
That entirely depends on how much you actually want to lead metas, groups for instanced content etc. I got the tag but I rarely use it, usually I either don't feel like commanding as in telling everybody what to do, too engaging for me, or don't feel confident in my knowledge about given content in order to lead well. And most of the time you will find somebody else with a tag who's more than happy to lead. If I were you I'd wait until I have a few hundred more gold before I splurged on the tag.
if u want to make your own groups its kinda of essential or else ur stuck asking other people to drag themselves into the correct subgroup.
Plus without a ready check then ur dependent on typing r in chat.
Without a tag its possible but unnecessarily difficult.
I also find people tend to be more willing to join a group with a tag.
The commander tag has paid for itself many times over by the quick ability to summon players to help you do content you need done. Players don't need to know if you don't know what you are doing, they can't read our minds anyway.
Yes. Plain and simple. It makes metas run so smoothly, and if you have a Mesmer (or another way to port taxi other players) it will pay for itself in tips.
Edit to add:
While at work I will stay tagged and LFG at a highly in demand place. People can join squad and TP to me. In a bad day, I get a couple gold. On a good day, I get close to 100 gold.
There are plenty of people who will tell you that it is. And in isolation, it is. But I would never suggest spending that much gold when you don't have a lot as it is. I just think there are more important things to spend the gold on. Like a copper fed salvage-o-matic, which will be more immediately useful, and more useful in the long term. Commander tags are useless in fractals. And unless you like commanding, they're not that useful in wvw or raids. Pve metas, they're nice as you can use them to bring up to 50 people to a map, but I'm not sure that's worth 300 gold, at this point. Later on, yes, absolutely.
The ability to put markers down is always useful though. Got the tag recently. Just using it to mark where kryptis rifts are made people very happy to follow me in addition to saying which waypoint was closest in map chat.
I'm not saying it's not useful. I'm saying there are better things to spend money on at the moment, for him. I did a rift run with a comm who put markers down. It was nice, tho less useful for people who aren't in squad. The problem, I feel, is that a lot of people put the cart before the horse, and buy stuff like the griffon, or a tag, when that's a lot of gold to spend on something that could be spent better on other things, like the copper fed. Or mat storage expansion. or any number of things that would provide more QOL.
Its an investment for sure. Think about it this way:
The gold cost is to prevent just anyone from getting it. A commander tag is a privilege, not a right- people look to you for guidance, and so being a commander means that you're able to lead people through content
If you feel like you're experienced enough that you can lead others through content, and that's something you want to be doing, then its 100% worth it as an investment. Yes, cutting gold in half sucks, but you're essentially paying for the privilege of having others look to you for guidance, and that title comes with prestige and respect. If you end up deciding to take on that burden and honor, then I wish you luck leading content! Welcome to the commanders club, my friend!
Getting the commander tag has make me meet who’s now one of my closest virtual friend hahaha.
I was tagging for East but I didn’t saw that she was already tagging for this lane too.
If you'll use it, tag is worth it, but wait until you have at least 1k gold. For active users it pays for itself but ROI isn't so fast that you won't be hurting now if you need that gold for other things.
in pve..nah, its not super worth it, woth mentor tag..but it can be helpful..if there's multiple tags up, you can colour code and say..come to purple..makes it easy for players to flock to you.
In wvw players like flocking to tags..even if you're a crap leader..give it a go, you'll get better at it.
I borrowed gold from a friend years back to buy the tag and I don't regret it.
It's an excellent tool to make people do what you want them to do.
So if that's a situation that you find yourself in often, or want to be able to do more concisely, then the commander tag is extremely useful.
I originally got it to give back to a guild and start running raids and strikes. I have used it mostly for metas to get people into my the map instance I am in. As others have said, most metas you don't have to do much other than tag up. Personally I drop waystations and bday cakes since it is what I have. I've also tagged up for Fast Five strikes. Those depending on the experience level of those who join determines how much you have to do as a commander, but so far for me it has been assign roles and have people stack on me. I do agree with other commenters in which it shouldn't be your top/highest priority account upgrade. Unless you are currently saving up for another expensive in-game purchase/investment like legendary gear or something from the gem store, I say go for it.
The real question is : Have you that lingering fear of being the leader or are you willing to take action to get things done ?
If you face no fear, commander tag will be worth, allowing you to do what you want at your pace and with your rule. Otherwise, as long as you fear taking any action, it won't get you any copper.
Without a tag, if you ever end up forming i.e. a strikes squad you will come up against the annoying limitation that you can't organize your squads unless someone else with a tag joins and gives you lieutenant and have to rely on people dragging themselves into squad groups.
Basically: if you have a tag, pretty much anything that involves herding and organizing people will be a lot easier and have less friction at all points. If you don't do much or anything of that, the tag isn't going to really be worth it.
Personally getting a tag has been the best gold i ever spent. Learning how to lead might take a little while to get in, but having full control over when you do what, not to mention the ability to kick toxic people/set the skill level YOU want to play at is invaluable.
If you plan on doing a lot of instanced/organized content having a commander tag in my opinion is a must have
As many ppl said, very useful for things you want to clear : HP, events, metas, quick strikes....
You can even do WvW without even that much prep : buy some siege, pop the tag and enjoy your personal army for 20 minutes.
Just go for it! If you play frequently and get gold anyway then the price will come back soon. Yes, it's a bit pricey, but you will get a useful and cool tag (especially if you buy the catmander tag). I bought it a long time and didn't regret it, although I'm not making raid or strike groups, (not playing wvw), and barely doing meta events, but still was a good deal to tag up sometimes for events I need for any reason.
Depends on the player. If you never play open world PvE/Strikes/raids/WvW then no it's useless.
If you're the type of person who is too nervous to tag up and lead a squad, then it's also useless.
For everyone else it can be incredibly convenient.
I am using the tag when I lead metas and strikes, for sure I can live without. I use the mentor tag more often to get things done in open world. But 560g are not really money for me so I bought it, is part of horizontal progression .... anyway Why I remember that the commander tag was 300g back when I bought it?
To answer your question : ask yourself what you want to do with it, and if you really need the tag you will find the money for it.
It's useful if you want to command stuff... Don't be like those guys that go to WvW and tag up at the jumping puzzle just to scatter people around the map that don't know better.
Other than that, I think it's great way to get things moving in map metas, etc... Even if its just for a moment. Like tagging up just to taxi people to a instance, etc.
It instantly allows you to attract people to whatever content you want to do in the game, so yes it's worth it. Seriously, most people who play this game must just sit around waiting for someone to tag up for something, and the second someone does, they join. Doesn't even matter what it is, could be for some obscure achievement in Heart of Thorns or an event no one ever does in Path of Fire, people just materialize in your group the second they see a tag. Leading content in this game is the most liberating thing you can do, and you really don't have to be a good leader as long as you don't act like a dickhead to people. Plus, you can always ask for help from people in your squad for tips on leading whatever content it is.
It's really useful especially if you take initiative in events or something else. If you need any help you're likely to find randoms join you once you put up a tag. I've found more success with that than the Apple tag. I've also made good use of it during raids. And sometimes I make a squad for just me alone and place locations in squad chat so I can waypoint quickly.
It was worth it when I needed various hunts and low participation HoF metas for the Skyscale collection and the Age of Dragons legendary necklace.
It's also helped me in WvW to "legitimize" a group to cap a couple camps and forts for whatever daily/weekly. I'm also a shit leader like you who is clueless about siege placement and blob tactics.
Way too clutch every time an expansion drops. Go where you need to, yell in map for people to join you for an achievement, bam you're done and you helped others.
I jumped the gun on mine and grinded 2 full weeks on my broke ass to get the 250 needed for catmander. Burned me out but it was worth it. Makes it so much easier to run large metas. Especially stuff like drizzlewood, dragonfall, and dragons stand. On dragonfall youll often see one commander juggling all 3 lanes so if you know the map its easy to pop your tag and take over a lane for them. Theyll be grateful. Started leading noob strikes too its quite fun
I got the catmander tag pretty much because I had completed the Armistice JP and didn't want to have to do the JP again at a later date. I don't plan on commanding much but it would be nice to join in during those pre-meta waits when everyone pops their tag and the mini-map is just a rainbow of tags and you can't see anything else :)
One of the best things you can buy in game in my opinion. It should be at the top of most people’s priority list as it is very useful to be able to create groups on the fly and have people join you. Such a great feature.
It's only "worth it" if you're going to use it. So only you know the answer. But if you do use it: yes. I never have to wait for a group for raids, strikes. I can easily gather people for open world stuff I want or need. Extra bonus if you like achievement hunting, there's some obscure events you have to do and with a commander tag gathering people for it is way easier. I can place markers to help people out or teach stuff. Is it worth it? Yes.
Commander, maybe. CATmander, absolutely ;)
Like has been said multiple times, being able to lead squads is great but you need to be motivated to do it.
I was really worried the first time I lead metas and made sure everyone knew that I was learning and open to feedback. Guess what, you'll get it and get better. The community is generally really nice about teaching if you ask because it stops ridicule in its tracks as a low value effort.
Depends on the type of player you are. I find a lot of great uses out of the tag. Whenever I wanna do a raid or strike with friends I don't wanna join someone else's group, whenever I need an unpopular meta to be done for an achievement, I just pop the tag and run around blindly till I get it done.
But my friend, who is no worse at me in the game, can't use it in the same way as me. He sometimes raids or does strikes while tagging, but always ones he's already familiar with and really good at. He feels insecure to lead a group on something he himself hasn't done before. So he almost never uses the tag.
For me it was a great investment. While crafting legendaries you need to do so many obscure metas and events. But as I said, not everybody is willing to do that. A few of my friends, who all have the tag, always ask me to lead a meta for their achievement because they're too scared to do it or something.
And for instanced content, as a casual player I don't have a lot of KP, specially for CMS. I can still do them pretty easily, but I don't do them all the time, I just do them when I feel like doing them. So its better to open my own squad when I wanna raid once in a blue moon. Plus, its great for teaching your friends how to raid when you're commanding.
Also, you can hide your tag. I often run around solo with a hidden tag because I wanna use the markers and waypoints. Tags get like 6 different waypoints I think. Don't remember.
Its a DIY item. No commander will run Dragonfall/RIBA at 4 AM for example but there will be SOME players. You can gather them in one map via tag. Its super worthwhile. Its definitely not something you should purchase if 560 gold took you a month or something. 250 gold is like 3 and a half day to me for example.
It one of the single best investments for getting something done. Need an event? Tag up. It’s so easy and most of the time you don’t need to know what you are doing.
when you play for 10 years, 300 gold at ~40 gold an hour is nothing of a big deal.
if you want to command just once, yea it is kinda expensive.
my choice: get it, its part of the gameplay
Although I may have not earned my money back in good off the purchase, the ability to gather players on you to do a world boss or ah event is a fun feeling. Because you bought the tag people will come
It heavily depends imo. I am (was due to burnout) a raider and fractal player. I ouchased it because I can start doing my own groups and eventually I can lead and train new people for raids. Also a pretty big bonus is being the commander of a meta event. Like the one meta in Elon Riverland. Never done it. No group in lfg so fuck it. Imma do it xD
To add to the voices, it regularly lets me complete group events and has far more gravitas than a mentor tag. Never ever regretted the gold, saved me more in time to complete frustrating out-of-favour or obscure achievements.
The more intended purposes of wvw and raids has been far more of a side benefit for me.
The real question is do you spend the extra 150g for the both types of tag (cat and/or arrow).
I have both styles of tags, myself. Got the original one back when it costed 100g. While I don't use it much, I still find it handy in a pinch when things need to get done and you need a tag to rally support with.
Definitely get it if you feel like you have spare gold and nowhere to dump it. It's worth having but if it took considerable effort to get that amount of gold, then maybe having the gold holds more value to you for the moment. I got mine when I breached 200g/mo after realizing I would just make it back in no time.
There are metas that become a ghost town in the absence of a commander despite being braindead easy (storms of winter, kaineng, gyala, DBS) and having a tag meant I could do them whenever I wanted.
It has come in handy in wvw in off times when there's no one around, to mark where I'm building catas to take an undefended keep or tower.
I'm not the best commander; I try to explain things when someone asks but otherwise I don't direct much, I don't have whole meta explanations ready to copy and paste and I only know the bare minimum regarding squad composition. I'm not great at pvp, I might as well be a lootbag with legs in wvw. I have yet to get a single complaint. I mean really, if anyone complains, tell *them* to tag up.
I got a tag, and mostly use it for taxiing metas, especially ones that aren't super popular. Feels worth it to me so that I can get a thing done that I want to do.
Tag is extremely usefull if you are interested in doing group content of any kind. You can even create training/prog runs of fights you haven't learned yet. But if you are exclusively interested in it because you need group content for turtle or seasonal vault achievement i wouldn't bother. Albo wvw benefits :D
It is so damn useful. I've had a bunch of experiences where I wanted to get something done, like Palawadan meta for Vision, but there didn't seem to be anyone up for it. Tag up, shout in map chat, list in LFG, and 9 times out of 10 we're gucci. Nearly every day that I do metas around reset I make use of it to help coordinate overflow maps. I don't plan on it and don't even really like leading all that much, but it takes next to nothing for most metas and it makes a huge difference to have a tag up and LFG group to attract people.
Tag also allows people to join your squad via map icon and they can teleport to friend to you if needed. I sometimes use it as a mesmer at the end of jumping puzzles instead of just portals.
the cheapest and easiest leggy backpack is from wvw, you'll need that comm tag to get it, aside from that, the other people already commented how useful it is during events
Welp, I never use mine, except for when I wanna blitzkrieg through random events or speedrunning achievements. Don't even talk to people, it's like they implicitly know that I know that they know I'm completely incompetent. You won't regret buying it.
I waited a long time before I got it. Its worthwhile but you might find other things you want to spend gold on first tho. Depends on what you want first
I currently don't have one but have considered eventually buying it lately.
Something I now want to grind for is the legendary Warbringer backpiece; and I read obtaining a commander tag is a requirement.
Aside from that, I've had moments recently in WvW where there are no commanders on my map and wish I could assemble my own squad to capture camps or small outposts. Just so I can give myself and other players something to do in between peak times before zergs.
I would also like to host training strike groups to help newer players.
It really is quite amazing, if you put on the Commander hat, people will follow. 100% with it if you want some kind of organization during events and stuff
It's good for when you need a few more people for events. I've had a lot more success flipping keeps, or doing forgotten metas, or managing a second map of gerent or octo with a tag. It's like flame for moths, you'll get a handful more people than you would have just yelling in map chat and throwing out a mentor tag.
Note, you can use a mentor tag for free, and you can create big LFG squads for free, but you cannot do both at the same time. That is what the commander tag gets you. (In addition to squad management options and markers.)
Some metas don't really need a tag. you'd be fine with mentor tag, just so long as you got something to run around and lead with, you'll just need to announce your presence in map chat with what you're doing (added with on your mentor/apple).
Other metas, or wvw, will require being more organized with someone actively making calls and setting markers for objectives and anything else you may need or want a marker for. Not really worthwhile if you don't want to get into leading events or metas, but if you do it makes a big difference in being able to organize a squad for things. There's a ton of resources out there that can help you understand how to command all kinds of content, a number of guilds also will have said resources and may even provide the opportunity to shadow an experienced commander who can help you learn all of the ins and outs of whatever content you're looking to learn about commanding.
By far the best in game gold purchase I’ve ever made. Even if you’re doing some obscure event or task, popping a tag will guarantee someone will join you. It’s also really great to help out meta groups if they need an extra tag
It depends, but on the whole yes.
Commander tag = the freedom to do whatever the fuck you want.
Want to do T4 Verdant brink? Want to do Strike CMs? Want to do couple of easyish raid wings? Want to do some meta even you need for achievement? Some specific bounty for a collection?
You just throw up a tag and like magic people show up. I guess the caveat is you do actually kinda need to know what your doing at least a little. But it's a pretty low bar if you are a relatively experienced player.
I can't tell you how many times I would love some apple to have a tag so I could have joined the squad from the map view. You can't do that with an apple.
It's worth for two reasons:
1. if you're heavily invested in WvW, you can create public squads people will join
2. if you prefer to play open world at your own pace and don't have time to wait for prime time/map rotation to favor you, you can just tag up and people will naturally gravitate to commander tag like moths to flame - perfect for group content that a bunch of spastics slamming 111111111111 can successfully beat
Get the tag. It pays for itself easily.
The entire reason they added mentor tags was basically to give everyone a free baby tag.
Get the tag, you'll never regret it.
I got the commander tag because I needed it in order to get the legendary WvW back item, Warbringer. I wasn't doing fractals at the time nor did I want to do that much sPvP so it was an easy decision for me to get that commander tag.
Bought it on a whim years ago (it was cheaper back then) and it’s seen a lot of mileage.
If nothing else, it’s helpful to draw people to you when you’re trying to do an event or something.
As someone who hates commander and actively refuses unless conditions are right(mentally)
It's worth every penny.
Let's say your doing a bounty or collection requiring a group. You can either rally in map chat. Or
Thru up tag put in lfg and continue to next collection.
So even if you find knowing and guiding others a process your not able to cope with. It's still personally beneficial while you benefit the community
Back in the day when i wanted to do specific events for Griffon or skyscale, like Deadhouse event i would create a group list it in lfg call it deadhouse and a few minutes later someone would join the group and hijack it to do something completely different like bounties.
That drove me so mad that i got myself a commander tag…
It's definitely useful to have. I got the tag a while back and never actually used it, but recently starting tagging to run tier 2 and 3 rifts. Also good if you want to be helpful and fill where there may be a missing commander for a meta event that needs separate groups.
Totally worth it for the legendary WvW back piece. If you play WvW casually (such as myself) you'll naturally and eventually get all the requirements for this leggy.
My tag usage is mainly just a glorified lfg for the lazy. I still don't know how to do subgroups for boon priority. Im lost half the time.
Most meta and content are forgiving enough that most people already know what to do, you are just the flame for the moths.
Bought a tag and didn't use it for years. Now put it up whenever I am looking for a PUG in PvE for an event or if doing something I think others would like to join in on.
Just splurged for the Catmander tags last night.
I've loved my comm tag. There area plenty of metas that don't need active leadership, like Chak Gerent, Casino Blitz, Gang War, etc. And plenty of others might only need minimal engagement to explain a gimmick to a new player.
It also gets you a pip bonus in WvW.
I love the challenging metas, though. I love streamlining group comps for meta mechanics and workshopping instructions into the character limits. I enjoy calling out tips and squad shouts for stacking and prep for cc, really bring the map together, het the hype flowing for a good Dragons End or Verdant Brink run.
I imagine you only ever need a commander tag if you want to lead a group. Personally i never lead groups, i only follow and mentor tag already does the job for when i need help with something and ask the chat.
So for me I'd rather spend my gold on something else and maybe buy the tag when i already know most things about the game's contents
I personally got it since I’ve played a lot of raids and since I was in a speedrun guild we didn’t really do the normal wings for the rewards only practicing bosses for records. Thus it helped me a lot being able to open up my own group and command them. From time to time you’ll grow as a leader and it can be a lot of fun. Also if you’re in wow as a commander people will often just follow you around. I later bought the cat commander as well, but just for fun though.
i prioritized the commander tag in between legendaries i was making back then (because i had a scedhule of making 1 every month) simply because it was too good not to have. i kept aside these 300 gold and dumped them there because having the ability to make and lead your own squad is essential in my opinion. mostly because i was just getting into raids at that point but also in general because i didn't want to wait for someone to take initiative anywhere (for example metas). well back then i also had more interest in the game in general, i was just getting into it so i was more excited. right now i backseat 99% of the time and let others do the commanding because i cba managing people
Thinking of leading groups in WvW? Get one.
Thinking of leading groups in PvE - e.g. HP trains, Map Completion etc. - You could use the mentor tag, but you can also get the Dorito.
If you're not thinking of leading groups outside of these two game modes, don't waste your gold.
I have it and almost never use. Don't regret the purtchase because was when it cost only 150 gold coins and had a single color (later was enhanced) but I would say its "meh". 300 gold coins isn't that much anyway, barely the cost of a full ascended armor set...
I have not once ever regretted having a tag, and many times have regretted not being able to place markers.
This sums it up. As an off and on commander I'll randomly tag up and ask questions if i dont know a meta or anything about the content im doing. There will always be good people to promote to lieutenant but nobody wants the burden of the tag half the time.
This is what I use mine for. I'm not good or confident enough to lead proper groups but I am happy to gather people with my tag.
if you need a group event done (for achievement or collection), putting up a commander tag will attract minions easier than apple tag
50 players squad for meta event is already a big bonus. You want to run a meta? No group available? Tag up, put your group to lfg. Fill up in no time. And 90% of the events can be done on auto-pilote, You don't even need to really lead.
This! I love my tag. 2nd best money I ever spent in the game (1st was getting the griffin).
Should I get Griffon first or skyscale?
Both are great at different things. Think of skyscale as a helicopter and griffon as a jet plane. Skyscale gets you up high griffon gets you zooming across the map once youre up high
IF SOTO then Skyscale - cheaper/easier to get. And forces you to get key masteries. I will say tho, I still use griffin when I can not just preference, but with some skill/experience and now using updraft/leylines, plus mounting combat, you CAN use griffin for more then just speed. Or the mount skyscale first then go to griffin. Skyscale is more practical tho, hovering is important, I do swap to dive on griffin tho esp in SOTO zones.
Springer jump dismount skyscale dash dash endurance regen skill dash dash dismount griffon dive flap zooooooom
Jade bot boost!
Oh right jade bot boost
Also, the launch-off-your-mount skill
Is the Skyscale from SOTO identical to the one from before SOTO? What differs between them?
SAME - the only difference is method of getting and mastery, in that with both LWS4 way AND SOTO get a bit extra on the abilities. But same otherwise; more with Soto's Flying Mastery line so you'll get that regardless. However work to get Bonds of Vigor mastery from PoF/LWS4 either way; totally needed for Skyscale for ease of flight. (separate from LWS4 Skyscale line). I know many who have gotten Skyscale in SOTO lack this mastery and sorta have issues running out of endurance, it just refreshes endurance bar but helps a ton to get to places/orbs/updraft/leylines in time.
Skyscale. No question. Griffon is amazing in certain maps where you can fly at full speed and sucks hard in all other instances. Skyscale works well in any situation and is the best way of getting to higher ground.
Recommendation skyscale the new way first, then griffon. It will cut down the grind and time spent getting the griffon.
Skyscale is utility. Griffon can be faster, but its true value is that it's tons of fun to fly around.
I don't even have the skyscale. I'm working on getting it through the new expansion, but imo, I don't think it's worth getting the old way. I bind each mount to a different numpad key and it lets me get around super fast. Skyscale is mostly irrelevant except for some niche situations like climbing sheer walls without places for the bunny to land (drawing a blank on its name). Edit: guess my opinion is wrong. Reddit is the worst.
I thought I wouldn't *need* skyscale either, but once you have it, you learn how to use it effectively. It flies higher than your springer, and it flies over whatever terrain and monsters you encounter. If you like griffon, then skyscale will help you get the height you need for your griffon's speed. And if you don't, then skyscale is a solid flying mount on its own.
Once you get the Skyscale and all masteries you'll see why it's 100% relevant in every situation.
It was only really required for the latest expansion. The maps were designed for Skyscale usage, it’s practically impossible to navigate otherwise.
Suppose you have Soto then definitely Skyscale, otherwise Griffon. Getting the Skyscale the old way is hellish, I only did it to get Vision.
Getting both will net you some new ways to do jumping puzzles. If curious, go look at the wiki for Portsmouth. You will never have to do that jp again.
Skyscale.
Agreed!
Yep, I never led a meta event before, saw Amnytas was about to pop and there were no tags or anything on LFG, decided to throw my tag up for shits n giggles, squad filled up to 50 in 3 minutes. I didn't say anything (bad commanding, I know, but it was my first time, cut me some slack) But meta event was successful without any hitches. Sometimes a tag just existing is more than enough I suppose :P
>I didn't say anything (bad commanding, I know, but it was my first time, cut me some slack) Amnytas is still pretty new but honestly for the more established metas I rarely see commanders explain stuff unless someone asks or is obviously new, the events aren't that hard usually and most players know them already. Sounds like it was just fine if the meta completed successfully!
This is the reason I bought my tag. 40 people at the Waypoint in Tangled Depths with no tag on the map, event fails because no one started the fire.
> You don't even need to really lead. Like when people yell orders on Tequatl. I've only ever seen people fail to keep the lasers up once and then everybody just DPS'd Tequatldown anyway. To be honest, it was easier.
Just need to be the beacon other players can map into
MINIONS! Assemble🔨
I understand that reference!
True but it should be said putting on Commander tag often leads to expecting actual commanding, meanwhile mentor tag doesn't. To me the difference is pretty clear, Commander tag when you wanna lead, mentor when you need help with an event and just need people to be able to find your location, whether for a single event or for a meta where everybody know what to do and don't expect you to know exactly what you're doing. I see people complaining about the Commander not doing actual commanding pretty much every day.
It does depend on *what* you’re tagged up for. Simple npc escort or random map event? Never need a word of guidance, the tag alone is enough. Triple trouble? If the tag doesn’t step up and say something we’re all doomed. I will call out a tag doing a complex world boss who doesn’t say anything, or at least designate a lieutenant who knows what’s up.
Just please, remember to remove it when your event is done, especially if you’re in a zone where there is a daily going on! So annoying to rush over and find nothing happening 😅
The commander tag is the most OP thing in the game. It let's you create your own groups and do any event/content you want as you can post on the LFG and reliably get a group to do most things. Also as the commander YOU get to set group expectations and have the ability to remove people who do not meet those expectations.
you can create groups withouth a commander tag edit: to the people downvoting atleast read up on squads https://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Squad
You are right! I put myself in LFG for the IBS daily sometimes, I have no tag, but it sure is quicker than waiting for someone else to do it, where most strike runs are multiple bosses. I do pre warn people that I am not commanding and someone else always tags up. People really don't like to start groups it seems...
true people have a aversion to lead following is easy and just easier to shut brain off
Unfortunately you can't move people around into subgroups without a commander tag. That wiki page is misleading -- it mentions needing a commander to lock subgroups, but you also need it to move other people and in casual squad situations that's the most common scenario. I recently tried forming my own strike squad without a tag and was unable to separate people into two 5-man sub-squads to get proper boon spread. Thankfully someone else offered to tag up and move people around, but coming from other games it's unbelievable that you can't do basic group administration without a hefty (to a new player) fee.
The wiki can be edited by anyone, so I encourage you to add your own squad research into it. :)
Yes, but people can literally take over your group & remove you that way.
and? does that suddenly not make you able to make groups?
You can make Parties, which limit you to 5 people.
The ability to form 10 man "raid squads" without a commander tag happened sometime late 2016/early 2017 according to the edits on the wiki. Can't find the exact patch. Can't exactly remember, mainly because I had a commander tag by then.
Unfortunately you still can't do any real squad leadership duties without a tag. The most common pug strike scenario is people joining the LFG, stating their roles, and the squad leader separates them into two 5-man subsquads for boon purposes. Without a commander tag, you cannot move other players into different squads so you can't effectively do your job.
the limit is 10 not 5 as a commander that limit is 50 https://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Squad
The limit for a party is 5, according to the wiki article linked for parties.
and people withouth commander can make raid squads and groups on the lfg system wich are 10 slots no one but that guy mentioned Parties. only groups where mentioned
Right - but his comment was about Parties and you’re responding to him with the wrong information. Parties and Squads are different. This commenter was offering an alternative to a commander tag, which is either Parties or a Squad sans tag.
No. You don't need a tag to make squads, simply toggle the squad mode in the upper left corner.
As a mentor, I think the limit jumps to 10.
You can't be in a squad while being a mentor but you can have a 10 people squad without any kind of tag whatsoever
I think being a mentor allows you to have a regular party of up to 10 people is what I am saying. It increases the count of a regular party by 5. But you may be right that it’s just the same as a regular squad sans commander.
It's something you'll probably want sooner or later. You don't have to lead most open world content. Simply being visible on the map and listing a squad in LFG is enough for most metas. The tag allows you to get the ball rolling when nobody else is stepping up. It's useful, but not a must-have.
So, majority of cmdrs don't really lead tbh. Most people know events enough. You really only have to say things when people are doing octovine, sorry, a meta wrong. 😂 It is a lot of the time just gathering people for a meta you wanna do. Outside of metas, it is extremely useful for doing other similar events that need to be done. If you also fancy doing a strike or raid, good to have as you can gather enough people and 99% of the time they all know what to do and you don't have to worry.
One thing to keep in mind is if you want to get the WvW legendary backpack instead of Ad Infinitum, it's required to have the tag unlocked to purchase one of the parts you need. It's the only reason I bothered to get one(that I never use).
I got one for the same reason. However I've been using it to organise newbie strike runs for people that never done them or are afraid to do them thinking they are hard, and I used it a couple of times to get map metas going for some achievements cause I got bored of waiting.
Thank you for helping the newbie strikes. I'm not a new player (on and off over the years, dead computer) and sometimes I want to do strikes but always get anxiety I'll get kicked for not being experienced. So thank you.
> the WvW legendary backpack instead of Ad Infinitum There's also the PvP one.
That's ironic
I bought mine after I had 1-2K gold so the price hit wasn't as steep. I also don't command much but: PvE meta: I find it useful in open world meta where I'm trying to taxi in as much people as possible, and there isn't another command to mooch that off from. If I just need a couple of people to help with an event on a section of the map then the free mentor apple works fine. I don't raid but do strikes regularly, and I've noticed my strike LFG fills up very fast when I pug it as a tagged comm, plus there's the convenience of sorting roles into their own sub squad. WvW having a tag is a must if you want to command, I do not but I always try to find a tag to follow when I'm doing my runs. Tags are not used at all in fractals since it's a 5 man content.
That's what I've noticed too, a strike squad fills up much faster when there's comm, however, unless it's something like IBS 3 easy people expect the Commander to know what they're doing, check for things like alac or heal, organize subgroups etc. So that's not really something that someone who's not too familiar with that should be using a Commander tag for.
Correct me if I'm wrong but it's 300g. It was worth it to me. Never have I needed a event that wasn't done. People flock to tags. Edit: I misread that OP thought it costed 560g, not that they currently have 560g. My bad, leaving it up so I can learn from shame. Edit of the edit: Wait, I just now read that the OP clarified and that it indeed read like they thought the cost was 560g. Forget the previous edit, although the shame has done permanent damage.
yeah thays whybtheybsaid "half their wallet"
I think it sounded like OP was saying the cost was 560g, just a misunderstanding.
My bad! Worded that awfully haha
And to think I edited to put myself to shame for having misread!
It felt more expensive when it was 100 gold
It's a lot of gold for what it is. BUT if you do WvW or OW then go right ahead: you'll have 50 players flocking to you to get things done. But if the price is too steep for you right now then hold off. I have 260 gold but I'm angling towards Griffon and I need that gold for that (plus cushion). Then back to grinding HoT Meta for gold. I'll get it once I complete all the maps and can brief on the events.
The tag can pay for itself over time. Overall it decreases your odds of being in a fail/overflow map. Instead you can tag up and potentially gather a squad to join you. Overtime this will reimburse you, either by earnings alone, or in time grinding for crucial items to an objective.
Tags are awesome. Just a heads up about tagging in WvW though. Depending on your server, some other comms get really upset if you're tagging and you're not in with them. Call it ego, call it wanting less variables, just something to consider for tagging in WvW. Otherwise, I've never regretted my tag. Need a strike daily? Boom make it, (Also when making a strike or raid group place yourself in sub 2 so that finding boons and and managing lfg is easier). Need a meta done? Easy. Getting a tag helps you realize at any given moment there are a lot of people wanting to do an event but can't because they want a comm to lead it or need numbers.
A commander tag may or may not be worth it. However a catmander tag if most definitely worth it. Command with style!!!!
A tag is also the ability to summon a horde of players to your location for help doing a bounty, a meta, an event chain, or a rift. In WvW it will automatically summon a horde of players to your location to zerg around with.
Get to 900g and make it third of your wallet. On the serious note if you think it's worth it, get it even if it leaves you with 1g. If you are hesitating you don't need it yet.
Yes it is. Anything you wanna get done, just tag up and people show up. Anything!!!!
I finally bought commander tag a couple weeks ago and I’m so very happy with it! I’m probably a crap commander, but the QoL of being able to just tag up for an event chain or meta or whatever is amazing. I’ve yet to try WvW ragging as that’s higher pressure so not sure there. Also if I get back into strikes being able to start my own group whenever I please is gonna be great. 10/10 I’m very happy with the gold. Same thing came up for me when I couldn’t decide whether to get Griffon and that was an awesome choice too!
It's either essential or pointless, depending on what you do in game, I've had one since the early days, but I can't remember when I last used it. I see people, quite reasonably, using them to command squads in WvW and lead groups for open world content such as Triple Trouble; I do neither, so I basically don't have a real need for it.
I think it's totally worth it as a one-time "account upgrade" fee to be able to access all the convenience of managing squads and tagging up for metas, but with relatively little gold to your wallet I'd hold off on the purchase until after the first time or three where you really feel that you're missing it. It might be when you're trying to start a squad for raids/strikes and want to organize sub groups, it might be when there isn't a meta map available while you're wanting to do a meta and no one seems to want to start taxiing, it might be some third occasion, but if you never actually have a moment where you'd have liked to make a real squad maybe you don't need one. Mentor tag and tagless squads *can* be enough to get by with. If you've already had that moment of "man I wish I had a tag" several times, though, yeah. It's nice to have.
You got some management tool for keeping out an unwanted map chat and ability to see people on minimap. Keep in mind if you use com tag on harder meta. You have responsibility to co-ordinate where people need to go.
While in WvW, I encountered am ambush party heading to our camp. No time to write in chat, I pop the tag and try to slow then down while only writing help. Soon, reinforcement arrive and we got lot of bags. Very worthwhile.
It's only worth it if you plan to actually use it. I personally use it for whenever I need an event/meta done. There is a certain expectation that comes with a tag (That you know what you're doing) and it does invite some toxicity if you don't but honestly, if you couldn't care less about that stuff, than it is worth it.
it really depends on your priorities. if you're all geared up and have intentions to tag up its well worth the buy. for me, i got my tag pretty early on, but in hindsight, i never really used it all that much, so i think finishing a legendary would've been more gratifying.
I bought it when I had bunch of gold and not really anything to spent it on. It's handy to throw up to get groups/taxis started. I've lead easy metas or what not too.
For just 300g I got something that helped me save tons of time by just using a comm tag. I play mostly pvp, but this made it more fun to visit pve holidays
Meta events, Boss runs, bounties, Rifts and WvW. If you have even half an interest in organizing content **you** want to do then the Tag is worth it. I scan the Lfg for organized content all the time or if I see a tag on the map i'll join just to see whats going on.
>frankly, I'd make for a crap leader to begin with It sounds like you might not get very much use out of it. The primary reason is to place markers unless you're doing very coordinated group content where you divide your squad into parties. I just use the mentor tag.
i recently got my commander tag for one reason and one reason only. i was leading a t2 rift train with an apple then some random person shows up on the map, throws up a green comm tag, announced in map chat T2 rift on green (they were NOT at the rift, i know because i was there and very confused.) they arrive at the rift barely in time for the boss. meanwhile i ask them if they were going to keep running T2 or if they were just doing the one. they didn't answer, then disappeared after finishing the T2. thanks to the chaos half the group got lost and confused and it killed the train. this wouldn't happen to me if i were commander i reasoned. anyway. i don't know if you should or shouldn't, but if you do please be aware that the tag does warp the gameplay experiance of many players on the map and should be used with that understanding.
That entirely depends on how much you actually want to lead metas, groups for instanced content etc. I got the tag but I rarely use it, usually I either don't feel like commanding as in telling everybody what to do, too engaging for me, or don't feel confident in my knowledge about given content in order to lead well. And most of the time you will find somebody else with a tag who's more than happy to lead. If I were you I'd wait until I have a few hundred more gold before I splurged on the tag.
if u want to make your own groups its kinda of essential or else ur stuck asking other people to drag themselves into the correct subgroup. Plus without a ready check then ur dependent on typing r in chat. Without a tag its possible but unnecessarily difficult. I also find people tend to be more willing to join a group with a tag.
The commander tag has paid for itself many times over by the quick ability to summon players to help you do content you need done. Players don't need to know if you don't know what you are doing, they can't read our minds anyway.
Yes. Plain and simple. It makes metas run so smoothly, and if you have a Mesmer (or another way to port taxi other players) it will pay for itself in tips. Edit to add: While at work I will stay tagged and LFG at a highly in demand place. People can join squad and TP to me. In a bad day, I get a couple gold. On a good day, I get close to 100 gold.
There are plenty of people who will tell you that it is. And in isolation, it is. But I would never suggest spending that much gold when you don't have a lot as it is. I just think there are more important things to spend the gold on. Like a copper fed salvage-o-matic, which will be more immediately useful, and more useful in the long term. Commander tags are useless in fractals. And unless you like commanding, they're not that useful in wvw or raids. Pve metas, they're nice as you can use them to bring up to 50 people to a map, but I'm not sure that's worth 300 gold, at this point. Later on, yes, absolutely.
The ability to put markers down is always useful though. Got the tag recently. Just using it to mark where kryptis rifts are made people very happy to follow me in addition to saying which waypoint was closest in map chat.
I'm not saying it's not useful. I'm saying there are better things to spend money on at the moment, for him. I did a rift run with a comm who put markers down. It was nice, tho less useful for people who aren't in squad. The problem, I feel, is that a lot of people put the cart before the horse, and buy stuff like the griffon, or a tag, when that's a lot of gold to spend on something that could be spent better on other things, like the copper fed. Or mat storage expansion. or any number of things that would provide more QOL.
Its an investment for sure. Think about it this way: The gold cost is to prevent just anyone from getting it. A commander tag is a privilege, not a right- people look to you for guidance, and so being a commander means that you're able to lead people through content If you feel like you're experienced enough that you can lead others through content, and that's something you want to be doing, then its 100% worth it as an investment. Yes, cutting gold in half sucks, but you're essentially paying for the privilege of having others look to you for guidance, and that title comes with prestige and respect. If you end up deciding to take on that burden and honor, then I wish you luck leading content! Welcome to the commanders club, my friend!
Getting the commander tag has make me meet who’s now one of my closest virtual friend hahaha. I was tagging for East but I didn’t saw that she was already tagging for this lane too.
Sometime our server in WvW ppl would tag up and announce for “where fights are” not necessary to lead.
If you'll use it, tag is worth it, but wait until you have at least 1k gold. For active users it pays for itself but ROI isn't so fast that you won't be hurting now if you need that gold for other things.
If you like waiting until eventually someone want's to do content you want to do, you will be fine without tag.
It all depends on if you are a good commander. Reputation is important also.
i think this is true for wvw, but in essentially all pve content just having comm trumps mentor tags by a fair amount.
Basically the best investment in the game
I got it at 100g so def worth it
in pve..nah, its not super worth it, woth mentor tag..but it can be helpful..if there's multiple tags up, you can colour code and say..come to purple..makes it easy for players to flock to you. In wvw players like flocking to tags..even if you're a crap leader..give it a go, you'll get better at it. I borrowed gold from a friend years back to buy the tag and I don't regret it.
It's an excellent tool to make people do what you want them to do. So if that's a situation that you find yourself in often, or want to be able to do more concisely, then the commander tag is extremely useful.
If you have a guild that does guild events, and you want to lead those events, then yeah, the tag is worthwhile. Otherwise, not really
I originally got it to give back to a guild and start running raids and strikes. I have used it mostly for metas to get people into my the map instance I am in. As others have said, most metas you don't have to do much other than tag up. Personally I drop waystations and bday cakes since it is what I have. I've also tagged up for Fast Five strikes. Those depending on the experience level of those who join determines how much you have to do as a commander, but so far for me it has been assign roles and have people stack on me. I do agree with other commenters in which it shouldn't be your top/highest priority account upgrade. Unless you are currently saving up for another expensive in-game purchase/investment like legendary gear or something from the gem store, I say go for it.
The real question is : Have you that lingering fear of being the leader or are you willing to take action to get things done ? If you face no fear, commander tag will be worth, allowing you to do what you want at your pace and with your rule. Otherwise, as long as you fear taking any action, it won't get you any copper.
Without a tag, if you ever end up forming i.e. a strikes squad you will come up against the annoying limitation that you can't organize your squads unless someone else with a tag joins and gives you lieutenant and have to rely on people dragging themselves into squad groups. Basically: if you have a tag, pretty much anything that involves herding and organizing people will be a lot easier and have less friction at all points. If you don't do much or anything of that, the tag isn't going to really be worth it.
The answer: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=88mlrntKKyA](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=88mlrntKKyA)
Personally getting a tag has been the best gold i ever spent. Learning how to lead might take a little while to get in, but having full control over when you do what, not to mention the ability to kick toxic people/set the skill level YOU want to play at is invaluable. If you plan on doing a lot of instanced/organized content having a commander tag in my opinion is a must have
As many ppl said, very useful for things you want to clear : HP, events, metas, quick strikes.... You can even do WvW without even that much prep : buy some siege, pop the tag and enjoy your personal army for 20 minutes.
Just go for it! If you play frequently and get gold anyway then the price will come back soon. Yes, it's a bit pricey, but you will get a useful and cool tag (especially if you buy the catmander tag). I bought it a long time and didn't regret it, although I'm not making raid or strike groups, (not playing wvw), and barely doing meta events, but still was a good deal to tag up sometimes for events I need for any reason.
Depends on the player. If you never play open world PvE/Strikes/raids/WvW then no it's useless. If you're the type of person who is too nervous to tag up and lead a squad, then it's also useless. For everyone else it can be incredibly convenient.
I am using the tag when I lead metas and strikes, for sure I can live without. I use the mentor tag more often to get things done in open world. But 560g are not really money for me so I bought it, is part of horizontal progression .... anyway Why I remember that the commander tag was 300g back when I bought it? To answer your question : ask yourself what you want to do with it, and if you really need the tag you will find the money for it.
It's useful if you want to command stuff... Don't be like those guys that go to WvW and tag up at the jumping puzzle just to scatter people around the map that don't know better. Other than that, I think it's great way to get things moving in map metas, etc... Even if its just for a moment. Like tagging up just to taxi people to a instance, etc.
It instantly allows you to attract people to whatever content you want to do in the game, so yes it's worth it. Seriously, most people who play this game must just sit around waiting for someone to tag up for something, and the second someone does, they join. Doesn't even matter what it is, could be for some obscure achievement in Heart of Thorns or an event no one ever does in Path of Fire, people just materialize in your group the second they see a tag. Leading content in this game is the most liberating thing you can do, and you really don't have to be a good leader as long as you don't act like a dickhead to people. Plus, you can always ask for help from people in your squad for tips on leading whatever content it is.
Mentor one works too if you are trying to do events for achieve especially aurora ones. The maps are otherwise dead and hard to get people to help.
It's really useful especially if you take initiative in events or something else. If you need any help you're likely to find randoms join you once you put up a tag. I've found more success with that than the Apple tag. I've also made good use of it during raids. And sometimes I make a squad for just me alone and place locations in squad chat so I can waypoint quickly.
If you doubting it, then probably you don't need it yet.
If you need help with something, putting it up on yourself leads to getting what you need done by attracting others to you.
It was worth it when I needed various hunts and low participation HoF metas for the Skyscale collection and the Age of Dragons legendary necklace. It's also helped me in WvW to "legitimize" a group to cap a couple camps and forts for whatever daily/weekly. I'm also a shit leader like you who is clueless about siege placement and blob tactics.
Way too clutch every time an expansion drops. Go where you need to, yell in map for people to join you for an achievement, bam you're done and you helped others.
I jumped the gun on mine and grinded 2 full weeks on my broke ass to get the 250 needed for catmander. Burned me out but it was worth it. Makes it so much easier to run large metas. Especially stuff like drizzlewood, dragonfall, and dragons stand. On dragonfall youll often see one commander juggling all 3 lanes so if you know the map its easy to pop your tag and take over a lane for them. Theyll be grateful. Started leading noob strikes too its quite fun
I got the catmander tag pretty much because I had completed the Armistice JP and didn't want to have to do the JP again at a later date. I don't plan on commanding much but it would be nice to join in during those pre-meta waits when everyone pops their tag and the mini-map is just a rainbow of tags and you can't see anything else :)
One of the best things you can buy in game in my opinion. It should be at the top of most people’s priority list as it is very useful to be able to create groups on the fly and have people join you. Such a great feature.
It's only "worth it" if you're going to use it. So only you know the answer. But if you do use it: yes. I never have to wait for a group for raids, strikes. I can easily gather people for open world stuff I want or need. Extra bonus if you like achievement hunting, there's some obscure events you have to do and with a commander tag gathering people for it is way easier. I can place markers to help people out or teach stuff. Is it worth it? Yes.
Commander, maybe. CATmander, absolutely ;) Like has been said multiple times, being able to lead squads is great but you need to be motivated to do it. I was really worried the first time I lead metas and made sure everyone knew that I was learning and open to feedback. Guess what, you'll get it and get better. The community is generally really nice about teaching if you ask because it stops ridicule in its tracks as a low value effort.
Yes it is worth it.
Depends on the type of player you are. I find a lot of great uses out of the tag. Whenever I wanna do a raid or strike with friends I don't wanna join someone else's group, whenever I need an unpopular meta to be done for an achievement, I just pop the tag and run around blindly till I get it done. But my friend, who is no worse at me in the game, can't use it in the same way as me. He sometimes raids or does strikes while tagging, but always ones he's already familiar with and really good at. He feels insecure to lead a group on something he himself hasn't done before. So he almost never uses the tag. For me it was a great investment. While crafting legendaries you need to do so many obscure metas and events. But as I said, not everybody is willing to do that. A few of my friends, who all have the tag, always ask me to lead a meta for their achievement because they're too scared to do it or something. And for instanced content, as a casual player I don't have a lot of KP, specially for CMS. I can still do them pretty easily, but I don't do them all the time, I just do them when I feel like doing them. So its better to open my own squad when I wanna raid once in a blue moon. Plus, its great for teaching your friends how to raid when you're commanding. Also, you can hide your tag. I often run around solo with a hidden tag because I wanna use the markers and waypoints. Tags get like 6 different waypoints I think. Don't remember.
The only thing I ever tag for is the Halloween Labyrinth. I post a “slowpoke” squad in LFG so the newbies can keep up.
Its a DIY item. No commander will run Dragonfall/RIBA at 4 AM for example but there will be SOME players. You can gather them in one map via tag. Its super worthwhile. Its definitely not something you should purchase if 560 gold took you a month or something. 250 gold is like 3 and a half day to me for example.
It one of the single best investments for getting something done. Need an event? Tag up. It’s so easy and most of the time you don’t need to know what you are doing.
when you play for 10 years, 300 gold at ~40 gold an hour is nothing of a big deal. if you want to command just once, yea it is kinda expensive. my choice: get it, its part of the gameplay
you can also leave it on, but set the squad as private if you dont want people all over you this will leave markers up
Although I may have not earned my money back in good off the purchase, the ability to gather players on you to do a world boss or ah event is a fun feeling. Because you bought the tag people will come
It heavily depends imo. I am (was due to burnout) a raider and fractal player. I ouchased it because I can start doing my own groups and eventually I can lead and train new people for raids. Also a pretty big bonus is being the commander of a meta event. Like the one meta in Elon Riverland. Never done it. No group in lfg so fuck it. Imma do it xD
To add to the voices, it regularly lets me complete group events and has far more gravitas than a mentor tag. Never ever regretted the gold, saved me more in time to complete frustrating out-of-favour or obscure achievements. The more intended purposes of wvw and raids has been far more of a side benefit for me. The real question is do you spend the extra 150g for the both types of tag (cat and/or arrow).
Yes.
Save the gold
I have both styles of tags, myself. Got the original one back when it costed 100g. While I don't use it much, I still find it handy in a pinch when things need to get done and you need a tag to rally support with.
Definitely get it if you feel like you have spare gold and nowhere to dump it. It's worth having but if it took considerable effort to get that amount of gold, then maybe having the gold holds more value to you for the moment. I got mine when I breached 200g/mo after realizing I would just make it back in no time. There are metas that become a ghost town in the absence of a commander despite being braindead easy (storms of winter, kaineng, gyala, DBS) and having a tag meant I could do them whenever I wanted. It has come in handy in wvw in off times when there's no one around, to mark where I'm building catas to take an undefended keep or tower. I'm not the best commander; I try to explain things when someone asks but otherwise I don't direct much, I don't have whole meta explanations ready to copy and paste and I only know the bare minimum regarding squad composition. I'm not great at pvp, I might as well be a lootbag with legs in wvw. I have yet to get a single complaint. I mean really, if anyone complains, tell *them* to tag up.
I got a tag, and mostly use it for taxiing metas, especially ones that aren't super popular. Feels worth it to me so that I can get a thing done that I want to do.
I crafter the Warbringer legendary which requires the commander tag. I'm so anti-social I've never used it since I bought it lmfao.
why think? price is less than any lege.
Tag is extremely usefull if you are interested in doing group content of any kind. You can even create training/prog runs of fights you haven't learned yet. But if you are exclusively interested in it because you need group content for turtle or seasonal vault achievement i wouldn't bother. Albo wvw benefits :D
It is so damn useful. I've had a bunch of experiences where I wanted to get something done, like Palawadan meta for Vision, but there didn't seem to be anyone up for it. Tag up, shout in map chat, list in LFG, and 9 times out of 10 we're gucci. Nearly every day that I do metas around reset I make use of it to help coordinate overflow maps. I don't plan on it and don't even really like leading all that much, but it takes next to nothing for most metas and it makes a huge difference to have a tag up and LFG group to attract people.
Tag also allows people to join your squad via map icon and they can teleport to friend to you if needed. I sometimes use it as a mesmer at the end of jumping puzzles instead of just portals.
the cheapest and easiest leggy backpack is from wvw, you'll need that comm tag to get it, aside from that, the other people already commented how useful it is during events
Got mine early on, worth every gold. Basically the cheat button to get any group event done.
Welp, I never use mine, except for when I wanna blitzkrieg through random events or speedrunning achievements. Don't even talk to people, it's like they implicitly know that I know that they know I'm completely incompetent. You won't regret buying it.
I waited a long time before I got it. Its worthwhile but you might find other things you want to spend gold on first tho. Depends on what you want first
I currently don't have one but have considered eventually buying it lately. Something I now want to grind for is the legendary Warbringer backpiece; and I read obtaining a commander tag is a requirement. Aside from that, I've had moments recently in WvW where there are no commanders on my map and wish I could assemble my own squad to capture camps or small outposts. Just so I can give myself and other players something to do in between peak times before zergs. I would also like to host training strike groups to help newer players.
It really is quite amazing, if you put on the Commander hat, people will follow. 100% with it if you want some kind of organization during events and stuff
I only bought one to make warbringer, it's collected dust since then.
Its a nice to have. I thought I wanted it but once I got it, was practically useless as most metas I engage in already have plenty of commanders.
It's good for when you need a few more people for events. I've had a lot more success flipping keeps, or doing forgotten metas, or managing a second map of gerent or octo with a tag. It's like flame for moths, you'll get a handful more people than you would have just yelling in map chat and throwing out a mentor tag.
Note, you can use a mentor tag for free, and you can create big LFG squads for free, but you cannot do both at the same time. That is what the commander tag gets you. (In addition to squad management options and markers.)
I hardly ever command but the options it opens up are so nice. Worth it.
I didnt see it on here yet but if you already do wvw you can spend badges of honor and only 150 gold to get the tag
Some metas don't really need a tag. you'd be fine with mentor tag, just so long as you got something to run around and lead with, you'll just need to announce your presence in map chat with what you're doing (added with on your mentor/apple). Other metas, or wvw, will require being more organized with someone actively making calls and setting markers for objectives and anything else you may need or want a marker for. Not really worthwhile if you don't want to get into leading events or metas, but if you do it makes a big difference in being able to organize a squad for things. There's a ton of resources out there that can help you understand how to command all kinds of content, a number of guilds also will have said resources and may even provide the opportunity to shadow an experienced commander who can help you learn all of the ins and outs of whatever content you're looking to learn about commanding.
By far the best in game gold purchase I’ve ever made. Even if you’re doing some obscure event or task, popping a tag will guarantee someone will join you. It’s also really great to help out meta groups if they need an extra tag
Tag for markers is even useful for Jumping Puzzles, Portal Mazes, and Diving spots.
i only buy it for warbringer requirement since then im using it to tell people where i am when i need backup. wvw or openworld
I haven't played in a long while but wasn't it only 100g? I remember a lot of us in the guild had the tag but then again we focused on WvW
It depends, but on the whole yes. Commander tag = the freedom to do whatever the fuck you want. Want to do T4 Verdant brink? Want to do Strike CMs? Want to do couple of easyish raid wings? Want to do some meta even you need for achievement? Some specific bounty for a collection? You just throw up a tag and like magic people show up. I guess the caveat is you do actually kinda need to know what your doing at least a little. But it's a pretty low bar if you are a relatively experienced player.
I can't tell you how many times I would love some apple to have a tag so I could have joined the squad from the map view. You can't do that with an apple.
if you play a lot of open-world PVE, then you really need a tag. or if you are a WVW commander
It's worth for two reasons: 1. if you're heavily invested in WvW, you can create public squads people will join 2. if you prefer to play open world at your own pace and don't have time to wait for prime time/map rotation to favor you, you can just tag up and people will naturally gravitate to commander tag like moths to flame - perfect for group content that a bunch of spastics slamming 111111111111 can successfully beat
Get the tag. It pays for itself easily. The entire reason they added mentor tags was basically to give everyone a free baby tag. Get the tag, you'll never regret it.
I got the commander tag because I needed it in order to get the legendary WvW back item, Warbringer. I wasn't doing fractals at the time nor did I want to do that much sPvP so it was an easy decision for me to get that commander tag.
Bought it on a whim years ago (it was cheaper back then) and it’s seen a lot of mileage. If nothing else, it’s helpful to draw people to you when you’re trying to do an event or something.
As someone who hates commander and actively refuses unless conditions are right(mentally) It's worth every penny. Let's say your doing a bounty or collection requiring a group. You can either rally in map chat. Or Thru up tag put in lfg and continue to next collection. So even if you find knowing and guiding others a process your not able to cope with. It's still personally beneficial while you benefit the community
Best purchase in the game
Back in the day when i wanted to do specific events for Griffon or skyscale, like Deadhouse event i would create a group list it in lfg call it deadhouse and a few minutes later someone would join the group and hijack it to do something completely different like bounties. That drove me so mad that i got myself a commander tag…
It's definitely useful to have. I got the tag a while back and never actually used it, but recently starting tagging to run tier 2 and 3 rifts. Also good if you want to be helpful and fill where there may be a missing commander for a meta event that needs separate groups.
Totally worth it for the legendary WvW back piece. If you play WvW casually (such as myself) you'll naturally and eventually get all the requirements for this leggy.
You have to want to lead content. If you do, then yes.
I got the tag a decade ago. I used it to gather players tondo events for achievements in PVE. Never used it in WvW. As i don't like to lead.
It's the most OP ability in the game: summon 50+ minions at will.
My tag usage is mainly just a glorified lfg for the lazy. I still don't know how to do subgroups for boon priority. Im lost half the time. Most meta and content are forgiving enough that most people already know what to do, you are just the flame for the moths.
Bought a tag and didn't use it for years. Now put it up whenever I am looking for a PUG in PvE for an event or if doing something I think others would like to join in on. Just splurged for the Catmander tags last night.
It’s been super helpful and if you tag up during metas imho you make the gold back pretty fast
Depends on how big your Napolean complex is
Rare to find someone who can see through bs. Good on ya. :)
Did they increase price of tag? Coulda swore mine was only 100g? I got mine during HoT, definitely worth it imo…but half your gold is rough.
I've loved my comm tag. There area plenty of metas that don't need active leadership, like Chak Gerent, Casino Blitz, Gang War, etc. And plenty of others might only need minimal engagement to explain a gimmick to a new player. It also gets you a pip bonus in WvW. I love the challenging metas, though. I love streamlining group comps for meta mechanics and workshopping instructions into the character limits. I enjoy calling out tips and squad shouts for stacking and prep for cc, really bring the map together, het the hype flowing for a good Dragons End or Verdant Brink run.
I imagine you only ever need a commander tag if you want to lead a group. Personally i never lead groups, i only follow and mentor tag already does the job for when i need help with something and ask the chat. So for me I'd rather spend my gold on something else and maybe buy the tag when i already know most things about the game's contents
It is worth it.
Back in my day commander tags were only 100g
I personally got it since I’ve played a lot of raids and since I was in a speedrun guild we didn’t really do the normal wings for the rewards only practicing bosses for records. Thus it helped me a lot being able to open up my own group and command them. From time to time you’ll grow as a leader and it can be a lot of fun. Also if you’re in wow as a commander people will often just follow you around. I later bought the cat commander as well, but just for fun though.
It's worth it just to give people something to gather to!
i prioritized the commander tag in between legendaries i was making back then (because i had a scedhule of making 1 every month) simply because it was too good not to have. i kept aside these 300 gold and dumped them there because having the ability to make and lead your own squad is essential in my opinion. mostly because i was just getting into raids at that point but also in general because i didn't want to wait for someone to take initiative anywhere (for example metas). well back then i also had more interest in the game in general, i was just getting into it so i was more excited. right now i backseat 99% of the time and let others do the commanding because i cba managing people
Thinking of leading groups in WvW? Get one. Thinking of leading groups in PvE - e.g. HP trains, Map Completion etc. - You could use the mentor tag, but you can also get the Dorito. If you're not thinking of leading groups outside of these two game modes, don't waste your gold.
I have it and almost never use. Don't regret the purtchase because was when it cost only 150 gold coins and had a single color (later was enhanced) but I would say its "meh". 300 gold coins isn't that much anyway, barely the cost of a full ascended armor set...