It actually only took me half an hour but I spent a while faffing about doing other stuff. I saw the first person link a Claim Certificate at nineteen minutes past five so I was obviously slacking.
It's a goofy looking creature. Definitely not very warlike. It handles fairly normally, without the extreme lurching of some of GW2's generally abysmal mounts. I'm waiting to see whether it will end up being an essential part of the meta, an optional extra or something no-one ever mentions again once they've ticked the box.
I'd guess the second outcome is most likely, although I can see the Warclaw's ability to instantly kill downed players being adopted with gusto if it works smoothly. The potential 50k damage per mount to gates could make a big difference to the ability of small groups to take structures, too.
The requirements for the mount were known well in advance so I'm surprised Dulfy doesn't already have a guide up. It hardly needs one. It's very straightforward to get. If you do need guidance, there's a checklist on the forum and the details are on the Wiki but be aware of the current bug that could block progress.
When I logged out to have a muffin and write this post there were queues on all four maps in Tier 1 and all of them were growing. Given that this is still in the middle of the working day for most players, I can only imagine the chaos in North American primetime.
All of the necessary actions to get the mount can be be completed in the Edge of the Mists spillover map, with the sole exception of taking a camp. I believe EotM spins up as many instances as required ( although it's been dead for so long I can't honestly remember.) and it's far more PvE-friendly, so I imagine that's where most will go.
I'd estimate that, for someone who never sets foot in World vs World, it will take several game sessions to complete the necessary Reward Track. You also need fifty skirmish tickets but the collection gives you forty. And some badges, which almost everyone will already have from achievement milestones.
Why anyone outside of WvW would want the thing is another question altogether. It's the slowest of all mounts in PvE and all its skills are specific to WvW. For completionists only, I would guess.
I was dead set against mounts coming to WvW and I remain to be convinced that they will be anything more than an annoyance but we will see. As for the conceit that the event will introduce new players to the game mode, it is to laugh. Ha ha.
What it will do is let PvE players see WvW at its most frustrating, infuriating worst. Team chat will be a conveyor belt of tedious, repetitive questions, insults and memes. Gameplay will consist of mindless Ktraining (zergs rotating around the map taking structures while avoiding each other). Lag will be off the scale. If you have to run to find the zerg you'll be ganked. And before you even get to all that "fun" you'll have to sit in a 30-person queue and stew.
It's an experience hardly likely to persuade any casual PvE player to change modes and it royally pisses off the locals. The only upside is it won't last long. These things never do.
If it turns out I end up liking the mount I'll be sure to post about it. Don't hold your breath.
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