Talk:Nicholas Sandford

Research Table

← moved to Nicholas Sandford/Research

npc

http://img9.imageshack.us/img9/4813/gw124mfw.jpg
http://img10.imageshack.us/img10/3849/gw125.jpg
http://img18.imageshack.us/img18/1270/gw123.jpg

Reward

He offers a Gift of the Hunter(I think I just got one and I forgot the name /fail) I opened mine and got 5 Sparklers --74.61.164.197 02:07, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

I gave him 10, and got 5 Sparklers, and 5 Jars of Honey (sweets)Sloh Em Oshun 03:36, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

These are a few of my favorite things.

I guess the hills must be alive with the sound of music... (Ralmon the Gen 02:55, 10 April 2009 (UTC))

Trivia

Hot Fuzz reference? Nicholas Angel, and the village of Sandford?

Woah. I knew this name sounded weird... Now I know why. Maybe it is a reference to Hot Fuzz. Abedeus 06:15, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

This trivia reference was recently removed from the article -- anyone know why? Seemed good enough to me. --Mme. Donelle 01:04, 13 April 2009 (UTC)

Yeah it makes sense knowing Anet. see here and here — Seru Talk 23:05, 14 April 2009 (UTC)

It's valid trivia, although I must intervene and fess up the entire truth. Nicholas' first name was actually borrowed from Saint Nicholas due to their common gift giving natures, and then from there that train of thought left the station in search of a last name to match and arrived in a recent movie (at the time) with a lead character whose first name also so happened to be Nicholas... which as you movie buffs have noticed was Hot Fuzz. From there the connection we made is pretty easy to see! I think I may have to watch that again tonight actually. Indeed, I believe that would be for the greater good. John Hargrove 07:36, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

John Hargrove is listed on the ArenaNet special page, so this is the straight stuff! mtew 07:48, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

Random or cycling?

As the items that this collector requires changes daily, it'll be interesting to see if it's completely random (within the boundaries of available trophies in presearing) or if it's on a cycle. Do we have a wiki page listing all the presearing-only items? Yol 11:20, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

My guess would be that he does a regular cycle. I don't think there's a wiki page that lists all pre-searing trophies, however from a spreadsheet I made up ages ago, there are the following trophies (which have a pre-searing collector):

• Baked Husks
• Dull Carapaces
• Enchanted Lodestones
• Gargoyle Skulls
• Grawl Necklaces
• Icy Lodestones
• Skale Fins
• Skeletal Limbs
• Spider Legs
• Unnatural Seeds
• Worn Belts

There might be other items I've ignored because they didn't have a collector --BramStoker (talk, contribs) 11:48, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

There are also Charr Carvings, Charr Hides, and Red Iris Flowers. - Tanetris 15:54, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

That makes a total of 14 items....a 2 week cycle? Yol 16:22, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Charr Hides are no trophy. They are salvage items. If they will be used then Spider Webs should as well. Though I don't think traders accept salvage items. 85.225.61.189 16:38, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Technically, they're both, as they have a collector (Calissa Sedgwick in Post). - Tanetris 17:44, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Then again they could use stackables too such as red iris flowers or random items from the quests that are obtainable.

Today's item are Skeletal Limbs Ying Tze 00:05, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

I doubt red iris flowers would be used as they can't be farmed ~

The flowers appear in certain areas (Ashford, for example) so they may be used. Consider the limits placed on the trade -- this isn't meant to give someone tons of Gifts in a short amount of time, so having something easily farmable probably isn't a requirement.

Unrelated to flowers, another stackable item in pre-searing is a Spider Web. Technically a salvage item, but I don't see a reason that those can't be used. Nicholas isn't a normal collector (and as noted, there are examples of collectors for salvage items). --Nkuvu 05:00, 12 April 2009 (UTC)

That would make one type of enemies drop two types of collectibles, like charr. I do not think they would go for 2 week cycle anyway. That would make every other weekend skeletal limbs / seeds. If they just use 11 collectibles, it would be 77 days / 11 weeks before we get "limbs/seeds" weekend. As bonus, each collectible would be featured once in each week day each cycle. That means that anyone who can play GW only in certain weeks days thanks to RL shedulling issues will get to farm each collectible type. That beats making it align to "two week" cycle. Zweistein 12:41, 12 April 2009 (UTC)

"That would make one type of enemies drop two types of collectibles, like charr." Pre-searing spiders already drop webs and legs. It sounds like you think I'm proposing to change the drops, which I'm not. --Nkuvu 15:33, 12 April 2009 (UTC)

No, it means that one type of enemies would drop two types of collectibles (one of them being previously only salvage material). Noone is putting words "i suggest that .." into your mouth or anything, relax, this is not some forum, be less paranoid :) Anyhow, If spider webs were one of Sanfords collectibles (not saying you suggested that) as well as legs, farming for either of them would also naturally get one other collectible, saving time of enterprising farmer and (not saying you want or do not want that or that you take any stance whatsover to this potentional situation and not implying any statement or emotion on your side). Zweistein 19:41, 12 April 2009 (UTC)

Now we know, it is random. Zweistein 07:44, 18 April 2009 (UTC)

Dialogue

Presumably his dialogue changes for each item he collects too? Does that need to get recorded somewhere? --BramStoker (talk, contribs) 11:57, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Yeah, it would be good if someone would add all texts to the page. poke | talk 13:46, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Info source?

Unnatural seeds? Says who? Yesterday the note "The items he collects changes daily" was already on the page, when the players couldn't possibly know that. It turned out to be true, as evidenced by the fact that today he's collecting Baked Husks. However it looked a lot like speculation yesterday (and the Unnatural Seeds looks like speculation today). I'm not claiming that this information is incorrect, but it looks weird to me to have unconfirmed information listed on the page without any notes to indicate that it isn't confirmed. --Nkuvu 14:23, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

I agree. I'll remove it -- if it turns out to be true it can always be re-added tomorrow. --Mme. Donelle 14:48, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

It was known it would change daily, Linsey said it would when she was talking about it in Fort Ranik 70.127.252.252 15:25, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Can you see my point, though? If I look on the wiki page I expect to see confirmed information -- that is, information that I could see for myself in game, or maybe even point to another spot on the wiki.

Hypothetical example: Linsey talks to the players in game, and says "what Nicholas collects will change." Someone misinterprets that and puts "changes daily" on the page. But because it was a line in game chat, we have no way to cross reference and correct it.

It's not a huge deal in this case, but it saves work if we put accurate, confirmed information on the page in the first place. --Nkuvu 20:08, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

I believe in game staff chats are listed under Arenanet Interaction/News/In-game Talk.99.236.240.156 17:32, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

Some are, some aren't. There's no mention of Nicholas changing daily in any of the chats currently on the wiki. --Nkuvu 15:36, 12 April 2009 (UTC)

Unlimited gifts

Just use two accounts and have an empty slot on one? 'nuff said? For the thicker of you: So, you farm on one character till you get tons of those items, then give them to a different account's disposable character, which trades them for gifts. You then delete the character (after handing them off to the original account), and recreate him/her. Tons of gifts, but I'm sure Anet will fix that soon. --Gah Eat my uber regen. 16:26, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Thats actually a good idea, but only for those who can afford to have a separate prophecies account and a free toon slot, which most do not have, also it seems like alot of work if you ask me. But I do plan on buying another prophecies account just for this purpose. Also while I am on the subject, does the 5 gift limit go to just the character or does it extend to the entire account?--Patch 18:48, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

the limit is character based. Artisan Archer 19:52, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Prophecies is cheap these days alot of people have two or more accounts. This isn't a bad idea. --The preceding unsigned comment was added by 92.9.246.74 (talk).

Limits?! Greed knows no limits! 76.30.79.54 08:28, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

People have those anyway, for extra storage space and free zkeys. Backsword 08:54, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

The limit is now account-based, I asked lindsey about it and she confirmed that account-based limit was the goal Artisan Archer 10:29, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

That may be the intention, but the limit is still character-based for now. --Nkuvu 01:28, 13 April 2009 (UTC)

I can confirm that its not character based anymore. Friday I received 225 items through using multiple pre characters. Today I was unable to get more than 50 for both my accounts. Just a text saying Thanks, Character Name. May Our paths cross again! Fun while it lasted.NexceveN 21:31, 13 April 2009 (UTC)

Just saw someone add a bug note to the page saying you can still get additional items for a newly created char. I can confirm this. Although exciting pre-characters are unable to get more than 5 a day per account, using an empty slot and creating, get items, delete char, recreate I am able to get additional items. The note also states the first char you create, but i'm now with my second recreate and still get items. The work-around still works I guess NexceveN 16:42, 14 April 2009 (UTC)

Just leave it up to the players to find and abuse exploits asap. God, how I dislike the meta...145.94.74.23 14:40, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

What do PvE exploits have to do with PvP? Vili >8< 18:41, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

My defenition of the metagame is a certain group of players, that currently (and unfortunately) span the vast majority of the players. In this case, being a metagamer also means being a player that can't play without finding (or copying) things that give an edge over other players. Especially bugs and cheesy skill combo's. This issue falls into that first category. 145.94.74.23 05:27, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

I think if this is what you have to do in order to enjoy yourself then you've missed the bus already... People usually go to this extreme for titles not simply for items... this method takes quite a bit of extra time which a normal person would not have. If you can sit in front of you PC all day every day I'd suggest that you do not.70.189.106.136 14:41, 3 November 2009 (UTC)

Nicholas Sandford is a LIAR!!!

He said enchanted lodestones glow in the dark for prof. yakkington. i took one to the dark and it did not.

--adrin 10:14, 13 April 2009 (UTC)

They only glow for Prof. Yakkington, duh. --Arduinna 10:11, 13 April 2009 (UTC)

Maybe thats the case, but he still seems a little shifty. Plus, they don't glow for yakkington, but they supposedly glow in general so.. ah nevermind =P --adrin 10:14, 13 April 2009 (UTC)

You need to polish them first... Yol 13:44, 13 April 2009 (UTC)

With some processed Yakk fur. Foo 14:29, 13 April 2009 (UTC)

"...this area emit a subtle glow in the dark..." perhaps your monitor doesn't have good enough contrast that you're unable to see the subtle glow :) --SetandSpike 00:27, 14 April 2009 (UTC)

— Why 17:45, 14 April 2009 (UTC)

They glow in the dark for lore, not the game - the lore for it probably came after they were made. And where did you find a place to dark anyways? I don't know of a single spot in pre or post except for the wurm guild hall. -- Azazel The Assassin\talk 23:22, 14 April 2009 (UTC)

@Why: Thats a sparkle, not a glow. @Azazel: It's the part in Abbadon's gate when you first start out. It's all black. --adrin 07:34, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

LMAO, you went to the End of Nightfall to test something at the Beginning of Prophecies. Awesomeness. Blood Red Giant 12:34, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

Have you considered the possibility that the glow may have worn off in the 5 years between Pre and NF? - Tanetris 16:29, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

Seven Years: don't forget to add on two years for the transition from Pre-Searing to Post-Searing --70.21.38.148 17:46, 5 July 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) Er... in game mechanics, I don't think there would be a difference. I think it's more of what I said. Nicholas speaks in terms of lore, but the item is of game mechanic, and the lore came after the game mechanic. Therefore, unless they made an update to change the Enchanted Lodestone, it will not glow, as the idea of it wasn't around when it was made and release - or updated. And it's too much of a hassle to change the skin of one item to fit one NPC's dialogue. -- Azazel The Assassin\talk 16:55, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

I know, i'm just goofin with it. He's still a liar tho. =) --adrin 01:39, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

Should we note that he's a liar? -- Halogod35 17:51, 5 July 2009 (UTC)

Cantha?

In light of his skale fin collecting dialog, perhaps a future update will place him in cantha? A guy can dream, can't he? Underated Skill 13:39, 14 April 2009 (UTC)

It's definitely possible. I can't help but wonder if his appearance has something to do with the big content update, a feature we don't yet know about. I hope so. Daedelus 14:23, 14 April 2009 (UTC)

I was tihnking about wouldn't it be cool if he spent a week on each newbie island then i thought he would need to know how to timetravel or use the old guild hall glitches to get into pre :)--Smithyben 23:45, 14 April 2009 (UTC)

He can be in both Pre and post at the same time, without there being a timeframe paradox :P *Just can't talk about later events in the earlier parts*. -- Azazel The Assassin\talk 23:51, 14 April 2009 (UTC)

That's a silly idea.. The whole point of having him added to pre-searing was to benefit perma-pre characters. Those characters haven't much more to do besides title-grind, and since there were limited ways one could get their hands on festive items, I feel this collector was put in place to give them an alternative. Adding Nicholas to Shing Jea or Kamadan is pointless, since characters have access to storage as well as guild hall so they can trade freely with the rest of the world. --SetandSpike 00:30, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

I highly doubt that Nicholas was meant to be around for title grinding. It looks more like he was put in game to be a fun NPC. And plus, perma-pre characters don't have to be a perma-pre, people want them to be. Just as people want to grind. Anet has, since prophecies (although they slipped away for a bit) been against increasing grind. So I doubt that he was there for people to farm farm farm and grind those three titles in pre. That was probably made to keep people going to him, and keep perma-pre people busy, if they wanted to stay in pre. But there is no reason why Nicholas cannot be in other areas of the game. Or NPCs like him. But if he is to be, we shall see. -- Azazel The Assassin\talk 01:05, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

Perma pre? I only see him used to farm stuff that is to be shuffled to post-sear. Point of him being in pre is that all characters, pre and post, have access to his loot. With this in mind, his twin could as well be added to post. Zweistein 06:36, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

Not only that, but those who do not have Prophecies would not get the benefit that is Nicholas - easy drunkard, party, and sweet points all year round. And, for those who do not have any room for perma-pre characters (or a free slot to constantly remake every now and then) would be unable to get the benefit of Nicholas as well. Therefore, a NPC version of Nicholas is likely to occur in post. I see him being in Cantha and the Crystal Desert due to his dialogues to be honest. Possibly we will see dialogue relating to him planning to go to other areas as well, where we may find him. -- Azazel The Assassin\talk 07:28, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

But... you can buy those items year round rather easily in the other newbie islands. You can't return to Pre once you've gone whereas those from other campaigns can return to Shing Jea or Kamadan whenever they wish. Nicholas makes a fun alternative to just Charr hunting over and over, I never really saw it as a means for title grind. There's no other mini-campaigns/quests for exploring more of Pre and I would still enjoy seeing Rin before it went ker-splodey.--Thrashed 19:06, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

You can get em very easily in pre too. All it takes is to meet r9 req of bonus weapon and you start one-two shotting enemies. Fire Imp helps with AOE nukes (fireball in pre!). Plus the fact that enemies bascially cap at L3 and rarely go over it and do not get any builds. Any factions or Nf newbie area almost seems harsh. 217.77.169.58 06:42, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

impossible after the searning he will be renamed so it would all screw up if he would come in cantha whilst beign nicholas sandford instead of nicholas the traveller although i have to admit i would like it if he appeard for low leven chars in shing jea

Bug Alert

How did this become a bug? "You can exceed the limit: the first new character created after your account has maxed out can receive an additional 5 gifts." All of the collectors in pre allow this. All of the collectors in pre are not account based, they are charecter based. KJZ 06:15, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

Nicholas, unlike other collectors, has a limit of how many times you can trade with him. The limit was originally meant to be account based, but it was introduced character based. It eventually became account based, but the bug - i.e., recreating a character - allows one go to past the limitation. Therefore, a bug. -- Azazel The Assassin\talk 07:25, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

I don't mean to be a pain, but the ONLY place where I read that the limit is account based is here. Do you have a source?KJZ 01:47, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

Well, I have 3 Pre chars on my mule account and, except for the workaround, the limit is account-based for them (if I turn in 25 items on one char, I cannot turn in any on either of the other two, and if I turn in 20 on one char, I can only turn in 5 more on one of the others). So either it's a bug one way or it's a bug the other, and between the two, I find it more likely that the intention was for an account-based limit. Also, someone in an earlier section of this talk page said Linsey confirmed in-game chat that the limit was meant to be account-based, but I leave it to you how much stock you want to put in hearsay. - Tanetris 02:30, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

OK, thank you. I found a transcript of parts of that chat. KJZ 07:11, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

Trivia

When I first saw mary and her apples I thought about the old nursery rhyme about Mary Mary quite contrary who uses cockle shells to grow her garden... looking at marys page her name seems to be references to elsewhere... for the rhyme see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary,_Mary,_quite_contrary 192.203.160.241 14:44, 14 April 2009 (UTC)

What happened to "just 3 items"?

Wasn't he just supposed to trade necklaces, husks, and seeds? --Gah Eat my uber regen. 13:27, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

No, it was never supposed to be just 3 items. If you mean when the page listed only necklaces, husks, and seeds, that was because necklaces and husks had been the only items so far (seeds was speculation and got removed until 2 days later when it actually was the item). Most of us expect it'll eventually be all collectible Pre-Searing items, but we can only document what we know so far. - Tanetris 15:13, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

Thought people were saying that Linsey said that there would only be those 3. Well, that teaches me to trust people. --Gah Eat my uber regen. 16:04, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

When did Linsey say there would be only 3 items? I have yet to hear of her saying that it would be three items. -- Azazel The Assassin\talk 16:26, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

Is there a place where it has transcripts of talks that the developers suddenly decide to divulge? I've searched everywhere and it seems so far people have only had the foresight to document gaile talks in which she says very little, but when the Dev's say everything that will be added people don't put it up anywhere. Its kind of irritating because some of us don't know when or where shes going to show up, and we don't know what she says about stuff. Maybe thats part of the reason she gets taken out of context... 99.52.93.74 16:33, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

ArenaNet:In-game talk ? Vili >8< 18:40, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

The 5 per account limit - research notes

Here's what I know from my teammates' experience: to get more than 5, you need to create a new character before receiving gifts. If you collect your five, it will not help to create new chars. (My teammates tried several variations; I have not personally tested.)

So, a correct statement would be:

• You can bypass the daily 5 gifts/account limit if (a) you create a new character to exchange; (b) delete the character; and (c) create a new character to receive additional gifts. This can be repeated indefinitely.

With luck, someone here can rephrase to a shorter, simpler version of above. (my original statements were incorrect; if responding, please respond to the updated version — my apologies for adding to the confusion)Tennessee Ernie Ford 21:36, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

Simply not true. Get the gifts, create a new toon, and it can get another 5, and so on. (you can say that when you get 5 gifts, your existing characters get a 'mark', which a then newly created toon will not have). Foo

sigh...Foo's right (and I was right first time). Sigh. (What I get for not doing my own testing.) Any new char will do. (I've struck out the comments above that were incorrect.) Tennessee Ernie Ford 01:04, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

@ [1]: I'm not gonna go on reverting people and rewriting the page, so I'll just lay down the facts as I know them:

• Mods have stated that the limit is intended to be per account.
• Once you get 5 gifts, no other existing character can get any.
• A new character 'can' get additional (5) gifts.

(...and therefore, I think [2] is what the page should say). Foo 08:25, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

The limit is indeed per account but can be distributed between multiple pre-searing characters, and characters created after that limit is reached can get more gifts. The mechanism for getting around the limit may or may not be an 'exploit'. If it is, it will probably be fixed quickly. mtew 12:19, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

So, why is the {{bug}} thingy gone? — Why 14:03, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

Yes, you can 'define' the system as distributed between characters, but that relays on the assumption that it is intended for new characters to be able to get more gifts, and that was debunked by a mod, and therefore, an exploit. You are also assuming that exploits are fixed quickly, which is something, we all know, isn't always true. Foo 15:30, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

Also, [3] ?? Foo 15:32, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

A {{bug}} marker says that the actual behavior is not what was clearly intended and that it should be changed to keep the game working. The current implementation does provide a per account limit with (added 09:47, 17 April 2009 (UTC)) what might be (end add) a reasonable exception so it could be what the 'mod' meant. While it is possible that the new character exception was unintended, it is also possible that it was intentional.

Serious exploits are fixed fairly quickly. It has been a week since this feature was put in place and the new character exception has been known for most of it. If AreanaNet considered it a big problem, they could have changed it by now. mtew 23:17, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

Looking through Category:Bugs states otherwise. Stuff like this is generally tagged as bug. And afaik, the devs said there was a limit of 5 per account per day, so from that I deduce this exploit clearly wasn't intended. But hey, whatever. — Why 23:31, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

I don't understand how you consider this "a reasonable exception". Why would it be? Why would they want an exception at all, let alone one that allows you to get an unlimited number of gifts per day (assuming you can farm sufficient collectables)? In what manner does it make sense that having three permanent Pre-Searing characters on an account would get you less gifts than having one Pre-Searing character which you constantly reroll?

Also Linsey has stated they're "looking into it" (a far different answer from "working as intended"), but they don't exactly have a lot of time to spare right now with the big April build upcoming. - Tanetris 02:38, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

Maybe they'll fix it with the April content update. While I would agree that it is a bug and should normally be tagged with {{bug}} I have to say that (sad as it is to have to say something like that) without the marker it does not immediately alert people to the fact that there's something they can abuse. Xelonir 08:00, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

You are correct to question 'reasonable'. I should have qualified that (and now have). The fact that Linsey of ArenaNet is checking it out could have several implications, including the one you suggest. If they want a stiff per account limit, they will set the initial count for newly created characters from any other Prophecies character on the account or five if there are no other pre-Searing Prophecies characters. If that happens, the whole exception note should be removed and the limit mechanism description simplified. I converted the {{bug}} to a simple note because that tag implies that we all know, or can figure out, exactly what was intended but, while I agree that it could be unintended, there are other possibilities. mtew 09:49, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) The fire which does not render might be intended. Divine Aura not showing with drunk and rank emotes might be intended. The fact that Gull Hookbeak and Yorrt Strongjaw will always spawn in Jaya Bluffs might be intended. We never got a confirmation of those bugs, and I could go on and on. There are other possibilities for each and every bug in the game. Should all those bug tags be removed? — Why 13:15, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

I agree with Why. They obviously made it so that all existing characters on an account could only trade for 5 gifts per day. It's silly to think that it was intended that you could get more, so long as you bought another character slot or deleted and recreated a character. It was, imho, an oversight (as has been seen before in the Canthan New Year where they put a level limit on one of the quests specifically so you couldn't do the quest over and over by simply recreating a character), and therefore should be tagged as a {{bug}}. --★KOKUOU★ 13:24, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

Well, just to add to the 'research notes' bit: I just exchanged 25 Lodestones for 5 gifts on one of my characters (not new); dear Nicholas would not let me exchange any more. Then I switched to another pre-character of the same account (not at all new either), farmed a couple more lodestones and exchanged an additional 2 x 5 Lodestones for 2 gifts. So if there is (supposed to be) an account-based limit it is - at least at the moment - not 5 gifts per account (and just to put it straight: I have NOT created a new character to exceed the supposed limit and both characters belong to the same account).--Iant 14:13, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

I have tried the same (same 2 characters) with worn belts today and it did not work anymore (5 gifts per account limit in place). So it may either have been fixed with the April 24th content update or somehow the collector keeps track of the rotation and you get a chance to make up for items you had not handed in when they were collected before. [The latter thought is just wild speculation on my part - the update reason seems far more likely.]--Iant 08:24, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

Baked Husk

I can confirm that today's (April 18th) item is baked husk. Does this mean it might be "random" (no apparent order)? Gold Chocobo 07:42, 18 April 2009 (UTC)

Splendid! --Arduinna 09:48, 18 April 2009 (UTC)

Quite possible. My guess would be that they intentionally did a "full cycle" with all items accepted by Nicholas to make sure everything works (nothing better than thousands of players to test something, right?) before switching him to random mode. Xelonir 19:33, 18 April 2009 (UTC)

Considering neither Worn Belts nor Spider Legs have been hit yet, I'm dubious that this was a full cycle. I'm more willing to accept that Charr Carvings and Red Iris Flowers got left off the list for their (relative) rarity, but Worn Belts and Spider Legs are no rarer than the rest of the current list. I think it's more likely it's random but not perfectly random, with more recent items having a lower chance than less recent items to reduce the possibility of getting the same item two days in a row, but still possible to get an item a second time before cycling through entirely.

At a guess, the same code will be used for the changing of zquests, which is why Nick got released so far ahead of the April update, to test the randomness. - Tanetris 19:56, 18 April 2009 (UTC)

Yes, proven wrong right on the next day :) Xelonir 09:25, 19 April 2009 (UTC)

The above research table

Er... if we keep a list of this that table is going to get VERY big! -- Salome 14:39, 18 April 2009 (UTC)

We just keep researching until we're sure weither there is some sort of pattern or if it is completely random -- BlackHoleSun 15:02, 18 April 2009 (UTC)

Keep The Lower Table Though. I wan't to know what "today" is.The Savior 11:30, 19 April 2009 (UTC)

Worst Item Ever?

Is it just me or is todays item the worst item to farm? truesimzy 15:22, 19 April 2009 (UTC)

Try walking through Ashford, there an up north near the bandit camp you'll usually find at least one Flower. Though I agree, this one's a hard-to-get. -- BlackHoleSun 15:43, 19 April 2009 (UTC)

Or you can just pick them up when you farm other items and not bother farming specifically for them as that is not really efficient, I got barely enough to get 5 gifts from previous 10 days of farming. Now that you know that those flowers (just like every other collector pre drop) are essentially worth at least 100g each, you will not shy from little detour to pick one when farming likes of baked husks. Zweistein 15:52, 19 April 2009 (UTC)

I hope he'll ask for Worn Belts next, those are easy to get outside of Barradin Estate.--Thrashed 15:54, 19 April 2009 (UTC)

I have a 2nd account with a mule in pre, my main is just saving every collectible drop on him while I go for LDoA. -- Salome 15:57, 19 April 2009 (UTC)

In Lakeside, there are typically four Red Iris Flowers that I have seen. Each quadrant has one. The easiest to farm is the SW quadrant. Go out of Ashford Abbey and go S to the welcome sign, then NE toward the merchant. Once you've found it Map back to AA. The one in the SE is typically between the River Drake and the Devourer Cave. There is usually one in the Plague Worm field. Try hunting around the gate to the Northlands for another one. mtew 16:44, 19 April 2009 (UTC)

(Edit conflict) Make that five. There is usually one near the upper part of the river from the Ashford mill pond. With the increase in the detection range for the flowers, it is fairly easy to collect all five. Start at Ashford Abbey, head S toward Wizard Folly, then E under the river bridge, then circle the Devourer's Cave to the S, then around Althea's Stage, and finally to the Plague Worm field. --mtew 15:49, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

That's true, but it's more time efficient to focus on the ones in the plague worm field and Ashford village.

Likelihood that distribution is purely random is less than 3 percent.

Based on current evidence, it's possible, but very unlikely that Nick's collection choices is strictly random.

• If Nick collects only trophies, the chance that he goes 9 days without a repeat = (1-1/11)*(1-2/11)*(1-3/11)...(1-8/11) = 0.8%.
• If Nick is collecting any possible PRE stack, the chance that he goes 9 days without a repeat = (1-1/16)*...(1-8/16) = 2.6%.

It's possible that ANet scripted to allow them to choose the item, so that they can confound expectations (and watch us squirm). It's possible that it's random. It's possible that it's a complicated distribution that depends on the quantity of items farmed/hoarded, the number of toons in pre, and whether the moon is in Virgo. We just don't have enough evidence to establish a clear pattern. Tennessee Ernie Ford 16:56, 19 April 2009 (UTC)

I'd say - random out of the items which were not chosen in the last 7 days, or something of this sort. Foo 18:56, 19 April 2009 (UTC)

It's probably very similar to the "random" item drop tables, which use a weighted random selector - making up numbers here, but for a boss, it might be something like 50% chance to get a white item, 25% chance to get a blue, 15% chance for a purple, 9% for a gold, and 1% for a green. So for Nicholas, assuming for this example that there are 12 items for him to pick from, it's something like 0% chance to choose an item that was used in the past 3 days, 3% each for the items on the 3 days before that, 10% for the next three, and 20% for the last three (yes, that adds up to 99%, but whatever). It's still random, just not purely random. 24.144.19.33 19:59, 19 April 2009 (UTC)

I agree with the last two responses that just because it's not purely random doesn't mean it isn't random. My personal guess, or at least how I would probably do it:

Let's say, for the sake of this example, that there are 10 items. I know that's not the case, but the concept is scaleable and 10 makes the division easier for me.

On the first day, everything starts out with a 10% chance of being the item.

For the second day, the first day's item drops to 0% (so no getting the same item two days in a row), and that chance gets distributed among the other 9 items, so all the other items have an 11.1% chance.

On the third day, the second day's item drops to 0% and gets distributed, so the 8 items that haven't been up yet now have a 12.3% chance, and the item from the first day has a 1.2% chance.

And so forth. By the 10th day, assuming you haven't hit any repeats along the way, the first day's item is up to a 14.7% chance, while the item that hasn't been used yet has a 25.8% chance (second through ninth days' items are 13.5%, 12.1%, 10.6%, 8.9%, 7.0%, 4.9%, 2.6%, and 0%, respectively).

As you can see, it makes repeats before a full cycle less likely without making them impossible. While this particular example uses 10 items for ease of division, this same code could easily be scaled to any number from, say, the number of PvP types to the number of bosses across the entire game. Just a thought, but it makes the most sense to me. And yes I know it's completely unprovable short of actually asking Anet. - Tanetris 21:26, 19 April 2009 (UTC)

We just don't have enough evidence to establish a clear pattern. Tanetris's theory (Zaishen distrib) is as likely as Foo's (7-day rolling distrib); we also cannot disprove that ANet isn't choosing the item daily. I've changed the heading to read, purely random, since that is technically correct. (This section was added in explanation for removing random from the article.) Tennessee Ernie Ford 03:14, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

Part of being random is that even 3% chance event can happen. I would not expect anet to bypass simple pure random generator just to make sure people will not have to farm same item within few days (given number of collectibles it would happen, but not often enough to bother with intricate system to make sure it wont happen). However, I have suspicion that at least initial set of collected items was handpicked rather than random. Purely to keep us entertained with metagame speculation. Think about it. Just when most people were expecting to get legs/belts weekend and thought that only trophies were collected, thinking pattern was uncovered, we got husks again and flowers. 217.77.169.58 05:59, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

Possible. Another possiblity is that it is a cycle, and they just put husks in twice by mistake. Backsword 11:11, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

"Item of the day" bar?

Should there be a kind of "item of the day" spot, akin to the GWW:BDAY page. Or is this too minor for anyone to care about what he's collecting every single day?-- anguard 18:05, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

If there is pattern, we could do that once we find out what it is. Obviously, if it's random it won't happen. Backsword 18:07, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

Ah, alright.-- anguard 18:09, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

Even random, we could still have one, it would just have to be updated manually. - Tanetris 18:28, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

Exactly, was gonna say that but had to /flee from teh intarwebz. And I thought the BDAY one was manual?-- anguard 18:33, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

That would be a convoluted way of doing what can already be done by just editing the page. Backsword 18:44, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

BDAY one is a DPL thing that scans the /day templates, completely automatic. And editting the page is what "updated manually" means. - Tanetris 19:26, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

If it's completely random, I'm against it. Its just one step from listing material prizes. — Why 21:11, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

MATERIAL! NOW LOOK! GET YOUR ACT TOGETHER AND DO WHAT YOU GUYS JOINED WIKI FOR! IF YOU DONT MAKE A PLACE ON THE HEADLINE FOR HIS ITEM THEN I WILL! YOU HAVE 1 DAY TO DO IT YOURWAY!!!The Savior 11:33, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

Nvm I found you doofs issues. YOU GUYS PUT THE LINK IN THE WRONG SPOT. It is fixed.The Savior 11:38, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

You are right. I didn't read what you said though, but I noticed it was in allcaps, so you rock. — Sarcasm 15:11, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

I don't know what you guys are talking about but I'd volunteer to update it sometimes, provided I played that day and found out what it was.-- anguard 15:19, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

It could be done I suppose, but as I said, the wiki doesn't usually list constantly changing/fluctuating content. I won't object though, if you wanna, go ahead. But lets first find out whether there is a pattern or not. :) — Why 15:25, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

Of course. Might take a couple weeks. But the current list (via a thread on presearing.com):

4/9/09 Grawl Necklaces (This was the day it was released, so not a full day.)

4/10/09 Baked Husks

4/11/09 Skeletal Limbs

4/12/09 Unnatural Seeds

4/13/09 Enchanted Lodestones

4/14/09 Skale Fins

4/15/09 Icy Lodestones

4/16/09 Gargoyle Skull

4/17/09 Dull Carapace

4/18/09 Baked Husks

4/19/09 Red Iris Flowers

4/20/09 Spider Legs

4/21/09 Skeletal Limbs

-- anguard 15:32, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

At the very least, if known it should say the current item. As is, I have to go to the table to figure it out, which is annoying. Oh, and that info is at Nicholas Sandford/Research --JonTheMon 15:34, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

Ahh, didn't know of that page.-- anguard 15:37, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

How about something like this: User:JonTheMon/NicholasCurrentItem? --JonTheMon 15:51, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

Works for me. (Is there some reason why we don't want to post today's item in the first paragraph? Sure, it changes daily, but plenty of ppl here to update it. And there's some indication that Nick will leave after the anniversary celebrations, so this is just temporary.) Tennessee Ernie Ford 16:41, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

Where's the indication that they'll be taking him out?-- anguard 16:46, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

No opposition to adding in that template? --JonTheMon 16:49, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

Well there are only 3 of us are here that are fine with it, so no. If people bitch they can just come to this topic.-- anguard 16:51, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

On second thought, the BDAY idea by Tane might be better. Keeps the information in 1 area (probably the /Research page) and things like messing with timezones wouldn't be an issue. --JonTheMon 17:07, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

uhuh, didn't notice this discussion :P Well it seems to be resolved then :D poke | talk 18:20, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

If it works...(Being possibly random, and all)-- anguard 23:43, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

You Know you guys r WAY TO STUBORN, THIS IS YOUR JOB SO DO IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! oh and Tennesse, don't talk like that or we wont have any more pre ales and sugar!The Savior 11:46, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

Stop being an asshat Savior. As to the discussion at hand, yet I think the table is fine, althogh it lacks a certain flair but it's perfectly functional which is what the wiki's about. -- Salome 12:13, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

"THIS IS YOUR JOB", ehm..no it's not -- BlackHoleSun 16:36, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

I don't know if you're aware of this Savior, but we are players, pretty much like you. We don't work for ANet, hence it is not our "job" to do anything. If you think we are too stubborn, I invite you to join the discussion, present your arguments, and work together to improve this article. Also writing posts in ALLCAPS and typing hundreds of exclamation points will not change much, in fact, it will only result in people not reading your comments at all because it makes them look awful and annoying, whatever the content is. — Why 18:01, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) To the discussion at hand, I think what we have now is just about perfect. I'd prefer the line saying which item is today's item not to be bold but I hesitate to change anything in the dpl, as I'd probably just screw things up. — Why 18:04, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

I agree with your mention of the bold daily item. And I also have no idea how the dpl works, so don't want to mess with things randomly. But if it stays bold, no huge deal. --Nkuvu 19:52, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

Changed the text so only the item is bold. poke | talk 19:56, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

I like the new bold. Very useful. And I don't know about any others but I actually come to this article every morning to see the item :3-- anguard 20:06, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

I do to sry guys im turning over a new leaf, no you dont work for me or for anet, but u did join the wiki to help.74.173.107.209 11:00, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Looks perfect. :) — Why 19:25, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

I like where this is going, but perhaps we can change the format to say the date instead of "Today's." That way if this somehow ever falls behind it wouldn't be a wiki of false info. I don't know how to go about changing that. 96.230.116.146 11:08, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

Good point. I hadn't checked this page for a few days, and went to look at what Nicholas was collecting this morning. I wasn't sure if the page had been updated so just looked at the wiki history -- but having it as part of the page text seems like it would be a good idea. --Nkuvu 05:46, 27 April 2009 (UTC)

If the research table has not been updated, the wanted line simply is not displayed. So if it appears it will be correct for that day. --mtew 19:05, 27 April 2009 (UTC)

OK, that sounds good enough to me -- my earlier comment was based on not fully understanding the inclusion voodoo table thing. --Nkuvu 20:13, 27 April 2009 (UTC)

Don't worry, nobody except poke and mtew do. :D — Why 20:14, 27 April 2009 (UTC)

Removed?

Why was the text about what trophy hes collecting removed from the page? Thats like the most important element on this page! Well, I'm gonna take an initiative here, and re-add it, but in a more identifiable format. ~Mervil 02:41, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

It was showing twice, when I pressed "preview" it only showed once.... Then I come back, it's missing... dunno what happened. >_> -- Azazel The Assassin\talk 03:23, 26 April 2009 (UTC)Edit: And when I looked again, it's mentioned where it was before, and where Mervil added it... weird... -- Azazel The Assassin\talk 03:24, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

I believe it's a timezone issue. I've modified the template to try to account for the time zone. --JonTheMon 03:27, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

It's there for me again, so I think you did fix the issue. -- Azazel The Assassin\talk 03:32, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

Nit pick: is "found in pre-searing" redundant?

Since Nick (the Hunter) is only found in pre-searing and pre-searing toons are limited to pre-searing items, isn't it redundant to say he collects items found in pre-searing? I've removed that text from the article; please discuss here if you think it ought to be reverted. Thanks Tennessee Ernie Ford 09:34, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

I initially added that text bit, because it looked a bit bad at my computer resolution, that the sentence with the current item is always displayed in the second row alone. That made it look as if there was a manual line break. poke | talk 13:34, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

I believe it was also poke who didn't want the sentence "Today's wanted item is (whozit whatzit)." on its own line "because it looked bad." Well now i know its his resolutions fault! I still think it should have its own line; it would make it more identifiable for those of us who frequently visit this page for that information. ~Mervil 15:33, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

There is also the problem that if the research table has not been updated yet, the line disappears. If it that happens, putting it on a separate line leave a rather large and unsightly gap. --mtew 16:00, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

Could that problem be solved in the template? By inserting tbd or using if/then to make it a comment (removing the gap)? Tennessee Ernie Ford 17:03, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

I personally don't want it on a separate line; that looks bad and if people who are interested in the current item are not even able to read that sentence... poke | talk 17:49, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

wtb unopenned GotH's or b-day presents..<--pretty redundant comments as well because you cannot buy them if they have been openned, you can only buy what was in them <G> --The preceding unsigned comment was added by User:75.94.224.242 (talk).

Worn Belts

Only one thing to say about this... It's about freakin' time! ~Mervil 15:34, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

I missed yesterday but I still agree with you.74.173.107.209 10:45, 27 April 2009 (UTC)

Spoiler

Either the spoiler should go or the thing at the top. They make each other useless - Bex 14:52, 6 May 2009 (UTC)

The spoiler thing is rather pointless. How exactly is it a spoiler anyways? But cannot remove the top disambiguation notice due to formatting rules. x) -- Azazel The Assassin\talk 19:00, 6 May 2009 (UTC)

I don't think the disambig is needed, the surnames are different, and the notes reference the "other" Nick. Rose Of Kali 19:06, 6 May 2009 (UTC)

What's the formatting rule? There's no disambig on the traveler page. - Bex 06:34, 18 May 2009 (UTC)

There is now -- BlackHoleSun 15:49, 18 May 2009 (UTC)

Osric in trivia

I'm removing the note about Captain Osric from the trivia becuase of debate over weather anomalies regarding Osric's level should spill over into its mention on this page. I think that the spillover is a bad idea, but I'm indifferent to his being mentioned (and the trivia in general) so: discuss. --Star Weaver 04:49, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

I agree. A bunch of explanation that he's only sometimes level 20 is just clutter, you rephrased it well. Rose Of Kali 06:04, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

It's still part of the trivia...so what if his level and... face....... and entire character polygons changed since pre and the yak's bend...and.. ermmmm - Chrisworld 06:04, 14 August 2009 (UTC)

Unable to trade with Nicholas?

I have several pre-searing accounts, and have a glut of skale fins I've been working to trade in with Nicholas when he's accepting them. Today I logged on three accounts who were able to trade with him just fine, however, three of my four additional accounts received the message of thank you as if they'd traded already although they haven't since the last time he was accepting skale fins. The last time I traded with him on the three that were successful today was on the last skale fin trade also. Is there a problem with him today, or have they implemented a new per ip address limit? Thank you in advance for any information. 74.40.135.18 18:16, 27 July 2009 (UTC)

did you have empty space in your inventory to accept the gifts? MrPaladin talk 18:37, 27 July 2009 (UTC)

Yes, plenty of free space, and 25+ skale fins, and definitely different accounts. I've been doing this for a while, and never run into this issue before. 74.40.135.18 19:24, 27 July 2009 (UTC)

Just tried from a different ip address on one of the same accounts where Nicholas refused, and he refused again. Very strange. Same person as 74.40.135.18 posting from the one I just used to run GW. 63.94.34.23 19:41, 27 July 2009 (UTC)

for clarification, did you state that the last time these accounts traded with him was the last time he also offered the fins? MrPaladin talk 19:44, 27 July 2009 (UTC)

Yes, the last time any of these accounts did any trading with Nicholas Sandford was with skale fins. Thought I might be onto something there, but I'm certain the three that worked today are the same in that respect as the three that didn't work. I've also traded with Nicholas the Traveler in post on all the accounts when he was outside Piken Square, so I don't think there's a connection there. I'll definitely try with tomorrow's item if nothing happens today with skale fins. 74.40.135.18 19:57, 27 July 2009 (UTC)

Seen odditys like this happen with the Zquests where you can complete a Zmish and not log in until that Zmish is up again but not be able to take the quest as the system thinks you already did it for the day... might be one for the bug report page MrPaladin talk 20:08, 27 July 2009 (UTC)

I've had this same thing happen with charr carvings. 97.87.96.100 15:04, 10 August 2009 (UTC)

(Reset Indent) I just tried to trade with him - just the "thank you" message. I didn't trade in weeks, if not months. It MAY be I was trading belts back then as well. Is that a bug or intended feature, should it perhaps be mentioned on the main page?--Cyberman 20:16, 13 October 2010 (UTC)

Report it (via email or on the bug report page and try, as best you can, to state the date/time), but not the article. Given how many 1000s of people trade w/Nick daily and how few of them encounter issues, I would hesitate to start worrying the average player.

I am sorry that you guys are not able to trade your full quota, but the numbers suggests something other than a bug.  — Tennessee Ernie Ford (TEF) 20:25, 13 October 2010 (UTC)

Just a follow-up - today(next day, different item) it worked just fine. Still, I better write a bug-report. Perhaps it helps...--Cyberman 17:17, 14 October 2010 (UTC)

Absolutely. The staff don't always reply on the wiki. Sometimes a bug-report support ticket gets closed w/o them telling you that a bug-fix is on the way. But the evidence is clear that ANet pays attention to these reports. (Of course, they don't get around to fixing all of them and sometimes not the ones that players care about the most.) Thanks for taking the time to alert people.  — Tennessee Ernie Ford (TEF) 17:30, 14 October 2010 (UTC)

Just had the trade bug myself. took two accounts out and teamed up. Tradded with first account and went to trade with second but he said ty, blah blah blah. I only had 50 charr carvings and the second account I hadnt used for nick gifts for over a month. Ended up with 5 gifts and 25 carvings. Its most certainly a bug. Justice 00:31, 12 June 2011 (UTC)

You might have gotten robbed of five GotH, but that's hardly evidence that this is a widespread, repeatable bug. Otherwise it would be affecting a lot more people. (Several ppls in my guild have multiple accounts and visit pre-Nick frequently; none of them have ever reported an issue.) If it happens again, it would be helpful to grab the time and screenshots and ship it all to support. The more examples they can see, the easier it will be for them to track down whatever it is. Sorry it happened to you, Justice. — Tennessee Ernie Ford (TEF) 00:51, 12 June 2011 (UTC)

Actually I dont really care that much. Almost positive it was due to taking both accounts out at same time plus other conditions. Im sure its rare and what not and thats why I could care less. But yes it certainly does exist for anyone who doubted it. Perhaps a tag on page wouldnt hurt? Hard to tag it for something we dont understand I suppose. This doesnt occur on post searing version ever? That would be more likely seen as depending on where nick is located peeps may party together & ofcoarse larger party size available. Only thing remotely similar is chests that double up items for a person and leave the next person with an empty chest. Think that only happens with tomes since they can stack. GoTHs stack but its not like I got double the amount on my first account ;-) Justice 01:43, 12 June 2011 (UTC)

The short story is: yes, there is harm in posting theories prematurely. We want to collect more evidence; at the moment, there isn't much we could say without leaving a misleading impression.

I dunno how many times I've visited Nick, but when I was farming daily, there were always two players grabbing gifts together; we never saw anything like this. I'm gonna setup a new section at the bottom that makes it easier to see (and less likely to be archived any time soon) so that if this is occurring more often than we think (new bug introduced or we just weren't observant before)... then ppls can add their experiences.

In every case I've seen tracked down (in-game, with guildies, on the wiki, or forums), it's always turned out to be explicable, e.g. user error, full inventory, etc. That doesn't mean that's what happened to you; it just means we don't have any data. And normally, we try to be thorough before posting stuff like this. For example, we don't post drop rates until we have 1000s of results (the standard for bugs is lighter: someone can replicate the results or at least describe the circumstances required to do so).

One problem with posting too soon is that people take what we post very seriously and repeat it back. I've seen rumors that still haven't died out based on theories posted prematurely on GWW or GWiki; even though they have since been discredited, you can still find recent posts with people claiming they are still accurate. — Tennessee Ernie Ford (TEF) 02:30, 12 June 2011 (UTC)

item of the day?

I've seen it happen a few times now. The page says: collecting item X, when I get there he's collecting item Y. Is it different for everybody now or should I change it when I find that Nicholas is collecting something different?Nizab 12:12, 17 August 2009 (UTC)

I haven't seen the item be wrong, but I don't check every day these days. For today, I'm talking to Nick right now and he is asking for Baked Husks as the page says. If the item on the page doesn't match up with what Nick says, try purging the page (click the clock at the top) or try going to Nicholas Sandford/Research and looking at the appropriate date. If it still doesn't match up with what Nick says, either change it on the Research page (this page and other pages automatically update based on the Research page), or post to the talk page and someone else will confirm and fix it. - Tanetris 14:40, 17 August 2009 (UTC)

k, confirmed then. He was asking for baked husk with me too but it still showed spider legs. If I see a discrepancy, will update it. (and remember to sign^ ^ ) Nizab 21:33, 17 August 2009 (UTC)

I added a Note with refresh/page link (similar to implemented for Daily activities) to ensure people see the correct current info on collected items. Arrowmaster - 10:48, 9 June 2021 (UTC)

Adding the Pattern

There was a person previously in pre-searing posting the daily item as well as the next days item in the search window. I have not seen them post in awhile but last I checked they had always been correct. I whispered them and they told me that the gifts where on a 52 day cycle. I know it is very easy to figure out this cylce and would make it much easier for players if someone was to post it on the Nicholas Sandford page. If someone figures the cycle out then please post it. If there are repeated items (which there obviously will be) labling them might help also. For example if the pattern begins: grawl necklaces; spider legs, unnatural seeds; gargole skulls; baked husks; spider legs; charr carvings etc. then adding a (1) and (2) or some other symbols next to the spider legs would make it easier. On the day that he asks for the spider legs second in the pattern, whoever updates the dialy item would put in Spider Legs(2) or whatever symbol represents the second time the item shows up in the listed pattern. I will gladly be the one to post the pattern if nobody else wants to but if nobody else thinks its a good idea then I do not want to waste my time. Your opinions are appriciated. Thanks guys --Athena Shadows 20:06, 17 August 2009 (UTC)Athena

you could go to This page it has predictions for the next few weeks. -- Tenri 20:11, 17 August 2009 (UTC)

lol. that would help. Thanks. --75.175.247.71 20:34, 17 August 2009 (UTC)Athena

Drop rate

Can someone please confirm that teh droprate changes wenn a item is Nicks item for today. I was farmen enchanted lodestones on a other day then it was the item and I got them much faster, this also happend with unnatural seed and crawl necklace.--Wysth 07:53, 15 September 2009 (UTC)Wysth

Short story: the drop rate probably doesn't change because Nick requests an item. Given the number of people farming any particular zone at a particular time, we'd need to collect 1000s of data points over weeks to prove it. There have been hints by ANet that the servers reduce drops of all kinds in an area that's currently being overfarmed; clearly, it's more likely for Green Hills County to be overfarmed on the days that Nick wants e-stones. However, I haven't seen anyone publish stats here or elsewhere that show to what degree any such software affects the drop rate, Nick-related or not.

I have yet to notice any differences between request and non-request days: whether Nick has a yen for gargoyle trophies or not doesn't seem to affect whether I find only 5 skulls or as many as 15 in a run.   — Tennessee Ernie Ford (TEF) 10:23, 15 September 2009 (UTC)

ok thx anyway--Wysth 11:53, 17 September 2009 (UTC)

Best proffession?

Anyone know the best proff for Nik farming? *edit* for gift of the huntsmen not traveler --The preceding unsigned comment was added by User: 86.134.65.115 (talk).

Go /Rt and spiritspam. Primary profession doesn't matter. --Arduin 18:06, 23 September 2009 (UTC)

Sandford? Yeah, sure.. Arduin :P

I think any profession will work when you have a higher level... poke | talk 18:27, 23 September 2009 (UTC)

There are farming guides on on GuildWars Wiki and at PvX. Also, GuildWars Guru usually has the earliest suggestions (but suffers imo from terrible noise:signal ratios).   — Tennessee Ernie Ford (TEF) 19:08, 23 September 2009 (UTC)

Let me say it a bit more clearly again: This is the Sandford talk page.. The Pre-Searing guy. poke | talk 19:33, 23 September 2009 (UTC)

I personally like Ranger, but pretty much any prof that you're willing to get enough levels in to use a max weapon (assuming you have them GotY and/or EotN preorder bonus weapons available) should be fine. Warriors do have the downside of needing to get into melee, so you might wind up chasing mobs around. Probably particularly annoying when it comes to farming Baked Husks, as the Plague Worms tend to disappear quickly, but a bit of patience should do fine and they're otherwise quite resilient. Having a Fire Imp is also helpful. - Tanetris 19:26, 23 September 2009 (UTC)

O Darn. Brainfart :) The Fire Imp is realy helpful. --Arduin 20:01, 23 September 2009 (UTC)

Indeed he is :) MystiLefemEle 08:19, 19 October 2009 (UTC)

Baked Husks: put down your imp, no further help needed. Charr Carving: go Northlands. Any profession will work on high lvl's. You can also farm Charr At The Gate, but that isn't as rewarding as killing Northlands creatures. Dull Capraces: walk into Regent Valley from Lakeside. Get your imp. Other tactic is walking into the Catacombs; there's a spot with a lot of devourers there as well. Enchanted Lodestone: Hulking cave in Green Hills. Ele works very good since they have Fire Storm (=AoE). Gargoyle Skull: Catacombs, enter from Green Hills. Any profession will do, as long as you have much dps. Grawl Necklace: Icy Lodestone: farm ice cave with ele. Double fire damage. Red Iris: no real farming... just run around and grab them. Skale Fin: put out your imp at the mobs next to Devona, or put your imp out when going out of Fort Ranik and walk into those mobs. Make sure you heal yourself. Skeletal Limb: Catacombs. Monk's holy wrath does double damage... Spider leg: standard spider run. Unnatural seed: go outside Barradin's estate, cross the "mountains" and kill any aloe seed you see with one attack from whatever weapon you have equipped. Worn Belt: follow the path from Fort Ranik onwards and kill every blood sworn you see. Also, you can abandon and re-accept the quest Bandit Raid (or leave one alive and map back to Mhenlo, since the quest is given in Ascalon City).

Overall, Fire Storm is your friend. I suggest E/Mo with Fire Magic and Smiting Prayers. 84.85.197.187 08:52, 6 November 2009 (UTC)

Don't forget that in pre you can take the "second attribute" quest, and get the skills, without actually taking the second attribute. So you can borrow fire storm and the smiting signet for whatever the task is that day as well.76.22.94.20 20:33, 16 November 2009 (UTC)

Jeez, you guys... Pre is a joke even if you don't use the Fire Imp, and with it it's easier than taking a walk with your dog. Even if you ARE a warrior who chases kiters around, just get a quest reward bow and kill them in 3 hits. Silly question is silly... Rose Of Kali 02:31, 17 November 2009 (UTC)

Actually, you can speed up pre farming considerably by using different profs/builds/techniques depending on your target trophy. While any L8+ toon can easily farm, only some can farm quickly.   — Tennessee Ernie Ford (TEF) 02:46, 17 November 2009 (UTC)

Well, that depends on what particular trophy you're farming. Also, once the Fire Imp comes into play, professions don't matter, because it's considerably stronger than any Pre char of the same level. Without the Imp, I'd say Ele and Ranger tie for first place, Mesmer and Necro tie for third, Monk and Warrior lose. Rose Of Kali 04:44, 17 November 2009 (UTC)

Nope, I've seen Monks doing great things with Symbol of Wrath. - Reanimated X 05:01, 17 November 2009 (UTC)

But for someone who actually needs advice in choosing a profession, Monk probably isn't a good choice. PBAoE needs skills in "herding" ranged attackers, like Skale or Grawl, and expecially mixed groups like Charr. Rose Of Kali 15:16, 17 November 2009 (UTC)

He wasn't saying Monk was good for farming other things beside Skeletal bones. Monk just pwns all in the Catacombs when it comes to undead. Just take HB, SoW and SH. Easy peasy. Even outruns the ele. btw Rose of Kali, fire imp is for farming Baked Husks because it's boring to farm them yourself.

main page mismatch

on the main page it says he collects grawk laces but on this paeg its lodestons whats correct and why is tehre a mismatch?

The item changed five hours ago to Grawl Necklaces. However this page hasn't yet updated itself to match that.

Also please sign your comments with four tildes (~). ‹Lady Chani› 12:16, 2 March 2010 (UTC)

Append &action=purge to the end of the page address and reload the page. Rose Of Kali 13:30, 2 March 2010 (UTC)

Oh yeah, that or click the running clock at the top of the page. Rose Of Kali 13:32, 2 March 2010 (UTC)

Both the main page and this page pull their information from Nicholas Sandford/Research. The main page updates its cache quicker because it gets more hits. If either page is still showing the previous day's item, just click the clock at the top to purge the page's cache, or go right to the Research page and look for the appropriate date. - Tanetris 14:18, 2 March 2010 (UTC)

Eve trivia

Just saw that the note about Eve being a friend was removed, but Imperial Chef Yileng was left up. Is there any lore-based reason for this? I would assume that both friendships pre-date the Searing, although neither character appears in Pre... did I miss something in the dialogue? If not, it would be fair to allow both notes to stay on the page (or for both to be removed). -- Elv 12:01, 6 April 2010 (UTC)

It would make more sense to remove them. From a timeline perspective, it is unlikely that Nick knew the Imperial Chef until he becomes the traveler, since he would have to travel to meet him. Eve's friendship is not so clear, but Eve is introduced to the rest of the cast during the searing, so it is also unlikely that Nick knew her prior to becoming the traveler. Both should be removed/relocated to the Traveler's page, IMO. -- FreedomBound 12:14, 6 April 2010 (UTC)

Technically, he's already a traveler during pre - look at the Icy Lodestone, Dull Carapace, Worn Belts, and Skale Fin dialogues. However, I'm curious why those trivia are here and not on Nicholas the Traveler... -- Konig/talk 12:17, 6 April 2010 (UTC)

I believe the note about Yileng stems from the belief that the following two lines are related:

"I'm off to Cantha soon ... The last time I was there a chef spotted the Skale Fins sticking out of Yakkington's pack." - pre-Searing

"I just found out that my old friend Yileng is now an imperial chef." - post-Searing

The trivia note could probably be phrased better, but it is related to his pre-Searing self, whereas Eve doesn't appear to be referenced at all in pre-Searing dialogue. - Tanetris 12:33, 6 April 2010 (UTC)

^^That's exactly how I see it, so I dunno why the Eve note was put back, there is absolutely no mention of Eve anywhere in association with Nicholas in Pre. Rose Of Kali 13:36, 6 April 2010 (UTC)

I put it back for discussion... Eve not appearing in Pre doesn't mean that people can't have known her at that point. (It seems unlikely to me, anyway- if she's from Ascalon people would surely have run into her.) Kind of like with the Yileng references above, it can go either way. Personally I think that if anything is (re)moved, it should go for both notes... or both should be allowed to stay. I'm in two minds myself, I was curious how other wikians thought about this. :) -- Elv 18:03, 6 April 2010 (UTC)

Either move both to Traveler page, or remove Eve, but in both cases Eve has to go. There is a reference to the cook, as pointed out above, but not a word about Eve, none, we have not a slightest idea when they met, and having that trivia there is confusing. When I first saw it, I started searching for a reference wondering if something new was added to the game that related Eve to Nick in Pre, which was obviously a waste of time, as there is none, which is why I removed it in the first place. Rose Of Kali 18:09, 6 April 2010 (UTC)

Moving both works for me. I noticed that on the Traveler's page there is a remarkable lack of trivia like this. -- Elv 18:57, 6 April 2010 (UTC)

The trivia that should be mentioned in this page should be the trivia that is actually referenced in the dialogue for this "incarnation" of Nicholas. For specific example, the bowl of skale fin soup in Nightfall is referenced by extension of the dialogue for the skale fins. There are numerous references to Mary Malone in his dialogue, but upon reading through the dialogues for each item, I do not see anything specifically referencing Eve. He also specifically mentions the Crystal Desert, Elonia and the Shiverpeaks, so notes and/or trivia related to this would not be outside the realm of possibility, in my opinion. 69.182.152.136 02:50, 11 December 2010 (UTC)

plans to ponder

haha i found ol nick in this state after changing from wc3 back

127.0.0.1 17:08, 6 May 2010 (UTC)

Go to any EoTN outpost and watch the henchmen. I'm fairly certain there are more examples, but these make it obvious that NPCs have been given additional behaviors so they would seem to "interact" or be more lifelike in general. -- Oiseau | 17:44, 6 May 2010 (UTC)

Idle NPCs do /bored and /yawn a lot every now and then. I wouldn't doubt /ponder to be added. -- Konig/talk 18:06, 6 May 2010 (UTC)

typical you gyus dont even test it you assume and fail 127.0.0.1 20:28, 6 May 2010 (UTC)

If I said that the sky isn't blue because at night it turns black and becomes populated by points of light, would you watch the sky for this change and reach a new conclusion? Or might you take the facts - that the Earth's atmosphere is reflective and therefore at night, does not reflect blue - and conclude that the current state of knowledge were indeed the proper standard?

Like the reflective quality of the atmosphere, the tendency for NPCs to preform various emotes when left idle is standard in NPCs and therefore is neither anomalous nor requires direct observation. -- Oiseau | 20:37, 6 May 2010 (UTC)

problem is nick never uses idle emotes and stops using this very quickly upon viewing 127.0.0.1 22:19, 6 May 2010 (UTC)

I've seen him use emotes before, like /bored and /yawn. True, most of the time he just stands there, so if all you do is run up to him, click through the dialogue, and map out, you're not likely to see him do anything but stand there, leading you to think he never does anything. Also, don't think the game has a clue whether you're tabbed in or out of it. The window does, but not the game. Rose Of Kali 22:35, 6 May 2010 (UTC)

How did this go so long without being corrected? The sky is blue during the daytime because of preferential scattering of short wavelength light (i.e. blue). Reflection has absolutely nothing to do with it. If the color of the sky were simply due to reflection, then there would be no difference at night, because the atmosphere doesn't change from day to night.  ;-) 64.15.81.27 00:16, 2 December 2011 (UTC)

Is this the correct wiki code?

Icy Lodestones
{{Cycle|SandfordV}}{{ #ifeq: {{#var:Sandford}} | Skale Fin | [[Skale Fin (Pre-Searing)|Skale Fins]] | [[{{#var:Sandford}}]]s }}

---

Shouldn't it be simply,
Icy Lodestones
{{Cycle|SandfordV}}[[{{#var:Sandford}}]]s

1. If there's an issue with the cycle, template, or display, it will show an error (getting rapid attention) and
2. people will stop trying to edit the Skale Fins to some other item type in an attempt to fix what they perceive as an issue.

No doubt I'm missing some key concept in wiki-fu and, if so, there's no need to explain all the details. Since people keep trying to edit the code, I just want to make sure there's a good reason for having a default. Thanks.  — Tennessee Ernie Ford (TEF) 08:27, 17 September 2010 (UTC)

Alternatively you could add a html code comment next to that line, stating this should not be changed since it's not an error.--Fogeltje 14:56, 17 September 2010 (UTC)

The reason why the wiki code looks a bit more complicated is simply because we have two different versions of Skale Fins in the game, and the ones in Pre-Searing, which are the ones Nicholas is looking for, are Skale Fin (Pre-Searing). So to correctly display that one, we have to check that special case. Otherwise it does exactly the same. We might move that code to a subpage, that might prevent people from changing the Skale Fin code.

Otherwise to update the displayed item when it changes in-game, all one need to do is to purge the page. Sadly there is no way to automatically refresh the cache. poke | talk 14:40, 18 September 2010 (UTC)

Okay, I did that now: Nicholas Sandford/current item. poke | talk 14:45, 18 September 2010 (UTC)

Cool! Thanks for doing that.  — Tennessee Ernie Ford (TEF) 15:54, 18 September 2010 (UTC)

Why Pacific Time (and not some other)

Every article that covers a frequently recurring event uses UTC and Pacific Time (Nick Traveler, Zaishen Quests, SBBs all use PDT/PST)...except that someone keeps changing this article to use Eastern time. Holiday event calendars also use UTC and PT. This article should follow the same pattern; until the community comes to a new consensus (for using a different time zone), we should stick to the current pattern: the universal zone and the zone local to ANet HQ.  — Tennessee Ernie Ford (TEF) 20:09, 19 December 2010 (UTC)

There should be others (time zones) there so that people who do not have the entire world's time zones memorized have a reference as well. 69.183.30.175 08:00, 20 December 2010 (UTC)

It's impossible for us to list all timezones, so whatever subset we choose there will be some that won't be happy with it. As such the most appropriate way, without wasting space, is to list the original timezone (PST) and the most neutral one (UTC) which is also used everywhere else on this wiki so people can easily get an idea of what an UTC time means for them. Just take a look at the clock at the top of every page; it is UTC and by looking at it people can simply see what kind of time difference is there to get an idea when a certain event happens. poke | talk 13:04, 20 December 2010 (UTC)

Maybe a compromise solution would be to usse a {{UTC|(time)}} template. The widget would auto-convert UTC into PST/PDT (depending on date) and link appropriately to the definition of UTC and a world clock or time converter site. e.g. it would convert 07:00 UTC to something like:

07:00 UTC (11:00 PM Pacific Standard Time)

07:00 UTC (11:00 PM Pacific Standard Time)

At one of my last jobs, it was mind boggling how many incredibly smart people were stumped by dealing with time zones conversions. Although, as Poke said, it's pretty easy right now to figure out when GW events happen in our local time zones, we could make it easier.  — Tennessee Ernie Ford (TEF) 16:57, 20 December 2010 (UTC)

Didn't find this page earlier: Help:Timezone conversion chart. poke | talk 17:25, 20 December 2010 (UTC)

It isn't that it isn't possible to convert to other times, it is just a huge pain in the neck to have to sit there and figure out every time you look at the page. 69.183.17.239 08:02, 16 January 2011 (UTC)

Sure, that was my point above; lots of people are confused or frustrated by time zones and conversions. The problem is: there's no adequate solution that is easy to read and helpful to everyone. If you think you have a good alternative, please post it on a talk page (e.g. here) so that we can discuss it. We've chosen to post two times: UTC (because it is universal) and Pacific (because it's local to ANet). There's no compelling argument as to why Eastern time should be second or third (probably, something from the other side of International Date Line would be next, e.g. Japan, Korea, or Australia).  — Tennessee Ernie Ford (TEF) 08:49, 16 January 2011 (UTC)

Trade dialogue

I've noticed Nicholas will always say May our paths cross again soon. even if you only give him 5 of an item. He will still offer to trade if you reopen his dialogue and he hasn't already received the max for the day.

Some might interpret his response that he's done trading for the day. Do you think this could be noteworthy? 66.170.212.17 07:14, 24 March 2011 (UTC)

The wiki refers to his dialogue when you click on him. It was thus correct. It's a bit confusing maybe that he has the same dialogue as a response to when you actually give him something.--Fogeltje 11:33, 24 March 2011 (UTC)

My, not very well made, point was that the article makes it sound like Nicholas will only respond this way if 25 items were traded. In fact, any number of trades up to the max for the day elicits that response. No biggie, it's not a life changing issue :) 66.170.212.17 17:58, 24 March 2011 (UTC)

On a somewhat related note, his post searing persona has the same dialogue after already trading for the max number of gifts for that week. 69.177.224.142 07:13, 19 May 2011 (UTC)

Bug reports: trading issues

A couple of people have, over time, reported having trouble getting their daily allotment of gifts from Nick. When we've been able to follow-up, we've generally been able to explain their experience through existing mechanics (full inventory, missed the deadline, stacking issues, etc.)

However, that doesn't mean there isn't something very rare that goes on that we haven't caught. Please use this section to add your experience with as many as the relevant details as you can, to help us try to replicate your situation and/or establish a theory that we could post on the main article. Some things that might be relevant are: single player or partner; was your inventory full/nearly full? did you have a stack of GotH in inventory? did you have a near-stack (e.g. 248)? What was the time/time zone? Was this one of several daily visits or your first time in ages? — Tennessee Ernie Ford (TEF) 02:39, 12 June 2011 (UTC)

lvl 18 monk partied with lvl 12 monk and zoned with both and ran them to nick in same instance. Had exactly 50 carvings for nick. Had room in both inventories and no near full stacks. ~ 6 pm central time. Tradded for goths with the lvl 18 first (i do nick once in a while with my main/ this monk) then tradded 25 carvings to my lvl 12 monk and talked to nick and hit the brick wall of, ty. The lvl 12 rarely does nick and hasnt done for a month or more. Tried going sepperatly to no avail. Justice 08:24, 12 June 2011 (UTC)

Encountered this bug at about 20:05 UTC today on a solo level 15 monk/nosecondary; left Fort Ranik from district Euro English 1 and playing from UTC+0 timezone. Had 38 skeletal limbs in my inventory, with 25 free slots, but the bag containing the limbs (right-hand Charr bag) was full. No gifts were in my inventory, but I did have 16 honeycombs in my backpack. Nick only offered to trade 20 limbs for 4 gifts. This was the first time I'd visited him, on any character, for several weeks. Was also the first time I'd encountered the bug, even though I usually visit under similar conditions. Finally, rezoning didn't make him change his mind. --Wormwood 20:31, 22 July 2011 (UTC)

You should report this at the new official bug reports forum. We could try to troubleshoot here, but the QA team should hear about it first hand. (If you want to troubleshoot also, I would recommend moving the limbs into a bag that has at least one free slot.) — Tennessee Ernie Ford (TEF) 20:50, 22 July 2011 (UTC)

I already tried moving the limbs to a bag with free space and rezoning, but that didn't work. Neither did removing the 4 gifts from my inventory. And good idea about the forum; I'll post there now. --Wormwood 20:58, 22 July 2011 (UTC)

It's an odd one. If you have time, please post the link to the forum thread you create. And good luck. — Tennessee Ernie Ford (TEF) 22:49, 22 July 2011 (UTC)

Here we go. The reply offers that Nick won't reset until you try to trade with him on a day when he's asking for a different item than the one you previously traded; in other words, my previous trade must have been 5 limbs for a single gift, leading Nick to think he's already given me 1 gift today as well. Seems like a likely explanation. --Wormwood 00:26, 23 July 2011 (UTC)

That would have been my next guess, but (a) you don't sound like the sort of person that just gets one gift and (b) that's still a bug IMO (since it doesn't happen if you get 5 gifts). Anyhow, glad you got an explanation. — Tennessee Ernie Ford (TEF) 00:45, 23 July 2011 (UTC)

Actually, it's quite common for me to only get one gift. :p I'm lazy. Anyway, like I mentioned in the forum, I'll test this out and see if I can reproduce the bug. --Wormwood 00:57, 23 July 2011 (UTC)

(Reset indent) I've added a bug note to the page. Neither I nor the dev who responded to my post in the forums could figure out what causes the bug, but it does appear to be a real bug. --Wormwood 19:51, 11 August 2011 (UTC)

The way the similar Zaishen bug occurs is that you log out after accepting the reward and before zoning somewhere else. So, the next step would be to try this theory again, but this time make sure you log out on the first visit, right after you get the gifts from Nick. Hold Me Closer, Necromancer 02:11, 1 September 2011 (UTC)

(Reset indent) I just experienced a similar problem that Justice had: I had ignored my Pre characters for quite a while (months). Tonight, I decided to get my necro on my main account her last 10k experience for LDoA, and then finish up my business before moving to Post. I drop-traded my existing 80 GoTH to my alt elementalist. My alt then drop-traded a bunch of my Nick trophies to a friend of mine who holds all that junk for us. At about 3:30 AM, Pacific, my friend and I went out with what we thought were the day's items, Gargoyle Skulls. Nick told me "Thank you, may our paths cross again." My friend said, "It's not Gargoyle Skulls." So we went back for Spider Legs, which my friend was able to trade for gifts, but I still got the "May our paths cross again" message. I tried several different items, several different times, alone and partied, with both my main necro and my alt elementalist, and they both were denied gifts with the "May our paths cross again" message. They both had room in their inventories. There were only 80 GoTH in my pack. I'm thinking it was the trade of the gifts earlier that triggered the bug. MVLM 11:23, 21 August 2012 (UTC)

Just came across this today. Forgot that I had this bug in the past and came looking here. So yeah its still a thing if anyone was curious. Justice (talk) 11:22, 14 October 2018 (UTC)

I had the same bug except didn't trade anything, and had rooms in my bag (plus no gifts). Two consecutive days in a row. Today I went to trade in Icy Lodestones on my alt at 10:15 UTC and again I got the "May our paths cross again" message. Tried rezoning and switching from European to American servers, nothing. Traded the lodestones to my main and he could hand it in on the first try, no problem. --MostDefinitelyNotHanz (talk) 10:24, 7 November 2019 (UTC)

Not switching over on time

Current UTC time - 11/05/2012: 12:40PM.

Current requirement: Icy Lodestones

It's supposed to be switched to Unnatural Seeds! 86.176.111.58 12:41, 11 May 2012 (UTC)