Guild versus guild

Basics
As the name says, Guild versus Guild (GvG) matches are fought between two guild parties. They fight over rank in the Official Guild Ladder.

Matching
When setting up a match you are given an automatic guild match. This prompts Guild Wars to search for an appropriate other guild and matches you with that guild. Guild matches can only be started in the presence the of the guild leader or an officer of the guild. NOTE: The ability to pick your opponent guild was removed in the September 29th update (popular because of its major changes to skills). People were exploiting the system by buying two accounts, running a guild on each, and having the two guilds battle each other over and over to "farm" guild rating.

The Playground
GvG battles take place on the Guild Islands. Each guild island features two bases and a flag stand in the center area.

The guild with higher guild rating is assigned the part of attacker. On most maps the attacker has a slightly weaker position (for example, fewer NPCs).

Depending on the type of Guild Hall there may be additional strategical features like catapults, gate switches and more. Read the Guild Island Description for details.

Objectives
The objective of a GvG match is to kill the opposing team's Guild Lord, an NPC character, who is sitting in the opponents' base.

In GvG battles each guild has a flag that spawns in their base. Putting your guild's flag in the flag stand (usually near the island center) and holding it for more than 2 minutes will give your guild a 10% morale bonus.

''Note: In a GvG match all dead players and the Guild Thief (but no other NPC mercenaries) will automatically be resurrected by the Resurrection Shrine in their base every 2 minutes. (Provided their Death Penalty hasn't reached the low point of -60%. At that point a player can only be resurrected by an other party member.)''

Team Setup
Both teams in a GvG match consists of 8 players, plus NPC mercenaries. A guild may use henchmen that are available in the Guild Hall.

Each base is guarded by (besides the enemy players) a number of powerful NPC mercenaries:
 * Arcanists (Elementalists)
 * Archers (Rangers)
 * Footmen (Warriors)
 * Bodyguards

Furthermore, in maps with gates, each team has an NPC Guild Thief who is able to open the locked gate to the opponent base.

Victory Or Death
If a GvG Match lasts 30 minutes, the Guild Lord's guards will abandon him and fight more towards the center of the Guild Hall. This may turn the tide of the battle as the Guild Lord is very vulnerable without the NPCs that guard him.

When the clock reaches 30:00, the gates of each base will open on their own, and all NPCs stationed in each base will leave their posts and march to the center of the map, usually to the location of the flag stand.

Each of these NPCs carries a Shout skill named "Victory or Death!". The NPCs will use this skill repeatedly starting at 30:00. The NPCs use this skill whenever they are within Shout range of anyone who is not currently affected by "Victory or Death!".

Winning
A guild wins if it manages to kill the other guild's Guild Lord or if it manages to bring all opposing guild members Death Penalty to 60%. The winning guild members gain faction and the winning guild gains guild rating. The lower your guilds rating compared to your opponent guilds rating, the more rating you gain for a win.