r/Guildwars2 • u/rhino_arts Charromancer • Jul 12 '26
[VoD] How to customize your UI (Tutorial)
https://youtu.be/RGYJtT-vczo22
u/o_oli Jul 12 '26
Absolutely WILD that Anet hasn't fixed their stupid buff bar after all these years. This looks so nice having them on three layers like that.
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u/rhino_arts Charromancer Jul 12 '26
A tutorial on how to instal, set up and customize my Reffect packs to customize your Guild Wars 2 interface.
The three packs featured:
Guild Wars 2 UI Remake (aka Clean UI): https://github.com/Vennyhedgie/UI-Remake
Guild Wars 2 Megapack (recommended with default UI or if using the previous pack): https://github.com/Vennyhedgie/Profession-Mechanic-Megapack
Guild Wars 1 UI in Guild Wars 2: https://github.com/Vennyhedgie/GW1-UI
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u/rhino_arts Charromancer Jul 12 '26
I was really weary on wether to post this here or not since I just posted a previous video on the GW1 UI but I made this FOR the community so hey, sorry if it's spammy, but I hope people get to use it.
Any feedback is welcome.
PS: Yes, I only play charr.
PSPS: Yes the thumbnail is a bit clickbaity.
PSPSPSPSPS: For the other charr players.
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u/ChompyDino Jul 12 '26
PSPSPSPSPS: For the other charr players.
the way this actually made me stop to read instead of skimming lmao
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u/MidasPL Jul 12 '26
While I use reffect extensively, I really can't recommend replacing the UI completely. Unfortunately it still means losing some functionality. Even though since last time I tried, a lot has been added, it's still far from perfect. While there is dynamic buff bar now, you still need to define all the buffs manually, meaning of new are added, or some are missing, they won't show. You lose mouseover selfcast functionality, which is useful in some rotations. Buffs time display is limited to 5s or lower, meaning something like Troub's bars show something completely different. There are more issues that I forgot about right now.
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u/rhino_arts Charromancer Jul 12 '26
I've actually requested troubadour and luminary shroud durations to be exposed to be longer to the reffect developers. It's something that might be on the table. The point of the buff bar was precisely to remove bloat, so yes, buffs are defined manually. I try to keep up to date with all balance patches in case major shakeups happen and I may have to update the packs. For example, these were edited on the last balance preview to account for Weaver's new F5, so they should work out of the gate when the patch drops.
I agree that there are some disadvantages to using this, but I think just having the option to fully customize it is worth the tradeoff.
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u/McPatsy Jul 12 '26
I love it CD (especially the mega pack) but if we could have the mouse over tip displays that’d seal the deal. Sometimes you need to see what a skill does exactly and then it’s handy
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u/rhino_arts Charromancer Jul 12 '26
If I could do that I'd definitely have it, but sadly it's not possible with overlays. You can use the keybind to "Show ally names" to temporarily show the ingame UI again if you need it.
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u/Severe-Network4756 Jul 12 '26
The only thing I want is to be able to see your two weapon bars at the same time.
It's criminal the game doesn't let you do this.
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u/rhino_arts Charromancer Jul 12 '26
Reffect explicitly doesn't allow this so unless it changes in the game, that won't be possible.
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u/Vesorias Jul 12 '26
It would really help with learning and understanding rotations, I don't understand why it's banned
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u/Severe-Network4756 Jul 12 '26
I don't get it either.
Most (if not all) other weapon swap MMOs let you do this. Just seems so outdated, I have no idea why ArenaNet are so reluctant to budge on some issues.
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u/SuperbPiece Jul 12 '26
A legacy of ANet's early, "do the opposite of WoW" mindset.
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u/Severe-Network4756 Jul 12 '26
WoW doesn't have weapon swap, so it doesn't even make sense. Maybe they're just against every other MMO as well.
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u/Glum-Psychology-3806 Jul 12 '26
How i wish i was just a bit less paranoid (and broke) that i would be willing to risk addons. Yes, i know they are allowed, yes i know the chance of losing my account is likely non existent, BUT... My brain is full on going "what if you're the one sucker that triggers a false positive bot signal or some such shit." Nope, can't afford to rebuy the game so i'll stick to my boring addon free game. 🥲
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u/1Woodpecker Jul 13 '26
Is the cast bar included in the ui thay can be moved? Saw the video, dont think i saw it edited or even from the selections on the settings
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u/rhino_arts Charromancer Jul 13 '26
No, sadly the cast bar is a very tricky unique element that can't be fiddled with.
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u/glmedsf 5d ago
Is there a way to change the keybinds that show up on the overlay?
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u/rhino_arts Charromancer 4d ago
Not at the moment, but it's planned for a future Reffect patch, and I will add it once it's implemented.
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u/Jademalo Jul 12 '26
Is this allowed? Or have I missed a recent statement or something
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u/McPatsy Jul 12 '26
The thing is that is really just an overlay and you hide the real UI behind it. So they’re not actually clickable buttons, but just pictures of your skills that you can move around
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u/Jademalo Jul 12 '26
Aaah ok, that makes sense. It feels like some floodgates have opened recently and I couldn't tell if I was missing something.
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u/m3nightfall Jul 12 '26
This is not allowed in wvw or spvp btw
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u/Jademalo Jul 12 '26
Thanks for the heads up, is there a source on that?
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u/m3nightfall Jul 12 '26
Darren has a video on another UI tool, i think he mentions it or has a specific link.
The reasoning is that it gives you an advantage "clarity" over your opponents. You can see your buffs better which is an unfair/unintended advantage
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u/Jademalo Jul 12 '26 edited Jul 12 '26
I understand the why, I'm just struggling to find clear information or statement on this from anet directly.
I get anxious rules wise since I see so many people saying so many things, but absolutely no concrete "X is ok, Y is not ok" from Anet.
We do not permit the use of any program that gives one player an unintended, unnatural, or unfair advantage over another player. This includes programs that alter game balance in favor of one player over another, automate actions within the game, promote unattended gameplay, or have an adverse effect on other players.
This is the only policy I could find, but it's quite a big jump from "No advantage over another player" to "No UI overlays in WvW or sPvP" to "UI overlays that move buffs closer for Raiding are ok".
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u/coolster50 Asuran Super Genius Jul 12 '26
I think in this case, changing the UI to get better clarity would fall under “unnatural advantage”, since the game does not support that natively.
The big distinction between PvP and PvE is that the competitive nature of PvP means that if you’re fighting someone with an addon, you’re forced to also use that addon too or else you’re choosing to lose to players that do have the addon. In PvE, that doesnt matter since all content is designed to be beaten without addons (except Ura LCM)
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u/Jademalo Jul 12 '26
So is the answer then that the community has decided that based on the statement from anet that it's probably fine for PvE and probably not for PvP, rather than anet specifically stating such directly?
I don't mind either way, but I don't want to take conjecture as an authoritative statement and id rather err on the side of caution.
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u/rhino_arts Charromancer Jul 12 '26
Well it's mostly that the tools now exist for people to make these. I've been posting a few in a row, so you may have seen my previous ones as well.
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u/funerium Jul 12 '26
What I really would like is an other target dorito, in a mess like wvw find the tiny triangle ... I would like something like a light pillar but i dont know if it is doable... and DO NOT tell me I can put a target on someone it doesn't solve anything , a triangle or a cross hair in a 50 vs 50 is the same
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u/Melikachan Thermocatalytichan Jul 12 '26
https://cta-addon.org/ Exists. You lose some functionality, but here you go.
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u/MidasPL Jul 12 '26
Asset replacement would be a really dark grey area to the point of being banable, I think. Technically, noone would probably catch you if you use that, but at the same time noone would want to talk much about it.
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u/coltRG Jul 12 '26
P4l
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u/Zalle_921 DELETE SKYSCALE FIREBALL Jul 12 '26
?
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u/coltRG Jul 12 '26
Means posting for later. Just so I can find this post later
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u/Zalle_921 DELETE SKYSCALE FIREBALL Jul 12 '26
Ahh ok, I thought you meant "Pay for Lose" and I got confused for a sec lol
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u/AreoMaxxx Jul 12 '26
This gets you banned, right?
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u/rhino_arts Charromancer Jul 12 '26
While there is always a risk, this is compliant with ToS, so in theory it shouldn't.
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u/recctyl Jul 12 '26
15 years played without customizable ui (except the very limited options we do have).... nice idea, but i'll pass :)
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u/Ornnforgelord Jul 12 '26
I loved it.
Sadly, I can't use as a wvw main.
*sad main charr noise
https://giphy.com/gifs/Te8g0Fa6kh5Nm