Maws of Torment is an underappreciated but intricate meta event in the Path of Fire expansion of Guild Wars 2. Set in The Desolation region, it takes place inside the fractured crater known as the Mouth of Torment. This layered multilane event tasks players with escorting NPC allies, destroying portal crystals, and finally fighting a legendary Forged boss. While the event offers decent gold and achievement rewards, its lack of visibility, minimal player coordination, and unclear triggers often leave players frustrated or unaware it’s even available.
What is Maws of Torment?
This meta event occurs within the Ruptured Heart region of The Desolation, specifically at the Mouth of Torment. It involves helping the Order of Shadows to seal the realm gates opened by the Realm of Torment. The event is notable for its three simultaneous lanes of activity, escort phases, and a final boss fight against a legendary Forged demolisher.
Event Structure and Phases
- Three lanes activate concurrently, requiring players to split up or rotate.
- Each lane includes enemy clears, portal crystal destruction via bucketequipped players, and escort NPCs.
- Once all defenses are down, a final legendary Forged boss spawns outside the map for the concluding encounter.
Why Maws of Torment is Considered Difficult
Despite being challenging content, several key issues limit its popularity and completion rate. Many players report difficulty organizing participation due to poor visibility of event start and unclear timers.
- No zonewide announcement before the event begins only players near the area may see hints.
- Short preevent window leaves little time to gather groups or teleport in.
- Coordination across three lanes demands at least five players to effectively complete the final boss.
As one experienced player described it: >We waited patiently and finished the desolation, maws of torment meta event. It was… underwhelming. Both in rewards and epicness.
Community Frustration Over Visibility
Players have expressed recurring frustration that the event is rarely completed and often missed entirely due to its lack of schedule and indicator systems:
>As Maw of Torment is about to start, a message will appear across the screens of people within the vicinity Compare this with the Chakk Gerent event you would still have time to prepare.
Rewards and Why They Matter
While the event is short typically five minutes for lane clear and escort, plus a few more for the final boss it does provide rewards. These include gold, a few blues or greens, and sometimes a reward box tied to the meta’s achievements.
Players aiming for collection or achievement progression have few incentives to return regularly due to limited reward frequency and visibility. As noted:
>There are only two reasons to do the meta for collection and an achieve.
Tips for Completing the Event Successfully
1. Form a Squad or MultiMap Group
Many successful players coordinate across different maps to monitor the event. One effective strategy:
>Organize a multimap squad that waits until one map gets the prepre event message then jumps to that map and prepares.
2. Stay Near the Mouth of Torment
Since the announcement is not global, players close to the spawn area have a better chance of seeing it and reacting quickly. Remaining near the Darklands waypoint improves readiness.
3. Be Prepared and Flexible
- Split into three smaller groups for the lanes to handle portal defense and escort NPC tasks effectively.
- Designate at least one player in each lane to pick up and deposit the portal crystal device (bucket) to deal damage.
- Teleport to the waypoint nearest the final boss once all lanes are completed.
Common Challenges and How to Overcome Them
Low Participation
Even when players are aware of the meta, often too few join to complete it. Without a minimum of five well-equipped players coordinating, the final boss can be unmanageable.
Short Notification Window
The event can begin with little warning. The several-minute pre-phase doesn’t allow enough time for players to teleport in or gather teams, leading to frequent failures.
Unclear Triggers and Progress Indicators
Unlike Silverwastes or other meta events, the progress of Maws of Torment is invisible until you’re inside. No zonewide timers or progress bars are available beforehand, making participation inconsistent.
Why Improve Maws of Torment?
Players have suggested improvements to make the meta more accessible and rewarding:
- Add mapwide announcements or countdown timers like those in other meta events.
- Increase rewards or make them repeatable to encourage more players to participate regularly.
- Improve visibility by providing better achievement tracking or locator tools for new or rare metas.
A community member put it simply:
>If they don’t want to make Maws of Torment part of the schedule then AT LEAST make the preevent last forever and when all the defenses are destroyed the main assault will begin
Maws of Torment is a complex, visually intriguing meta event in Guild Wars 2 that often goes overlooked due to poor visibility and coordination challenges. While it offers respectable completion rewards and contributes to achievement collections, its inconsistent triggers and low participation mean many players never experience it. By forming proactive squads, staying ready near the event zone, and advocating for better event indicators, dedicated players can still complete it though the broader community would benefit from improvements in scheduling, visibility, and reward structure.
Ultimately, Maws of Torment has potential as a memorable Path of Fire meta event but it requires player initiative and possible developer attention to fully live up to that potential.
Let me know if you’d like any tweaks!