Mad King Thorn Returns In Guild Wars 2's Halloween Event

The Shadow of the Mad King returns once again today to torment Tyria in Guild Wars 2's annual Halloween event. All of Mad King Thorn's "loyal vassals" are "encouraged" to visit Lion's Arch to participate in the festivities and all the holiday events until November 9, and face off against him in person in the Ascent to Madness instance.

The events are mostly the same as in previous years, though there have been some alterations to the Mad King's Labyrinth. A "new visitor" has appeared, and there are new achievements that players can strive for to help them find the "unvarnished true story behind this latest development in the Mad Realm."

Completing the overall meta-achievement will net players the Grasping Gaze Shoulders, while last year's Lunatic's Court Cape can be purchased from vendors. Rewards for all include bonuses to experience, magic find, and reward-track progress until October 12, and everyone can pick up a weapon from the Mist Stranger that will grow with you as you level. Update notes for the event can be found on the GW2 forums.

In other GW2 news, Senior Gameplay Coordinator Kyle Conroy posted to the forums yesterday to explain some details behind the game's dye system and improvements that were in planning that should "significantly improve the reliability of it in the Hero Panel." To wit, he's planning to clear up a few bugs that have occured when the various parts of the system don't "talk" to each other properly, but it's going to be a while before that happens, since the End of Dragons expansion has priority.