It appears we have a few new folks in guild now that want to experience a greater variety of PvE content.  (I'm sure there are those that want to WvW and PvP, but as I know jack about those I am not going to discuss that).  I consider myself fairly savvy when it comes to searching wikis and the webs for info, but not everyone is so inclined.  I just was chatting with one of our new recruits who is lvl 80, but hasn't done any dungeons, hadn't seen our website, or our teamspeak.  Obviously not every recruit will be in this category, but that begs the question: what levels of experience are there in PvE, and how can we get our newbs up to snuff so they can enjoy tougher content with us?

It is in our enlightened self-interest to do this: fewer pugs on our runs, or we can do things we want more often (e.g. I like fractals, but I am not pugging a fractal 40 - ever)

[rule]

If I think back to my own gw2 education, I went through the following phases:

1) leveling to 80
* gathering, map completion, personal story
* I personally did not do a single dungeon in the course of leveling

2) studying and learning one or more effective lvl 80 PvE builds
* traits, stats, and weapon sets
* learning what all the numbers on the character panel actually mean

3) gearing up to exotic
* world boss chests, alternative gold farming methods (to fill in gear and get 15-20 slot bags
* learn 1 or 2 dungeon paths that have your stat set (eg CofP1&2, SEp1&3) so you can be a pug on them
* work your way up to a 6pc of exo armor and 2 exo weapon sets

At this point the story branches
4a) dungeon mastery
* able to competently speed run easy dungeons
* skilled enough with class (and listening) to not get kicked on harder dungeons
* ( at this level you can pull your own weight in the easy dungeons, though you may not be able to lead them)

4b) fractals of the mist
* learning the ascended gear grind (trinkets, infusions and acquisition thereof)
* learning the fractals well enough to be a competent pug
* getting enough agony resistance (AR) to survive mid-level fractals (15-30)

5b) fractals of the mists, part 2
* getting enough AR to survive high level fractals
* learning the various traits/utilities necessary to survive/thrive high fractals

The skill levels beyond this take one into leading - when a guildie gets to that point they don't generally need help, they are providing the help! 

[rule]

It's getting late, so I should get to the point (yes there is a point...)  In my opinion, we need 2 web tools for each of these tiers.

1) one stop summary on what to do and why to do it, with supporting links
* for example, in "stage 3" we farm world events to obtain rare and exotic lvl 80 items to sell, salvage for ecto, or sometimes even use.  Link to http://us.gw2stuff.com/en/events/anvil-rock
* encourage people to get on teamspeak if/when they want to run dungeons/fotm - because it'll be a whole lot easier for us to help them effectively (and it inconvenience us less! - a win/win)

2) lists of guildies that fall in this category and have interest in advancing in skill beyond that
* For example, all our new 80s who have never done a dungeon but want to would be in a list (in the PvE skill level 2 or 3 area).  These are people that need to have everything explained - both the dungeon itself and their role in it.  In my experience it is best to only have 1 of these in a party at once. 
* We also have a number of 80s who have run some dungeons here and there but are looking to get better.  They know their classes reasonably well for PvE, but may not know specifically what skills/weapons work best in a specific dungeon.  They'd be on a nearby list.  Or they can play well on one class or build, but are looking to broaden their horizons.

The idea being is that the more experienced PvE runners can then know who wants to do what, and where they are at gear and knowledge wise.  Taking 3 complete newbs on a dungeon run is a recipe for disaster, but taking 1 newb and 2 ppl with some exo gear and a few dungeon runs under their belt isn't too bad.  If a pug is being awful, all you can do is type a wall of text, groan, or kick.  If you know a guildie is new, you can take the minute in teamspeak to advise, and correct problems on the fly.

Anyway, commentary on these notions is welcome.  In my experience, I found guild help to be critical in step 3 (learning my first couple easy dungeons) and step 4b (introduction to fractals and ascended gear).

I think we need an easier way to identify who wants to do dungeons and things, since all too often guild chat is not effective (people too shy to speak up, worried about being newb, or just don't see it).  I think it will also help us more experienced people identify people we might want to mentor based on their classes and what they want to do (e.g. I like high level fractals, so helping people currently at mid level fractals is in my best interest).