Welcome to Tyria, stranger!
Welcome to Guild Wars 2. A place full of unbound Magic, Dragons, Grawl and more.
The continent of Tyria was first opened to us (for the second time) in 2012, and it has come a long way in how it has been shaped and expanded by the dedicated team of Devs over at Anet.
According to the Lore(and a map found in the Durmand Priory Library), Guild wars 2 is made up of 3 continents: a supercontinent known as Tyria, Cantha and Elona. For now, we only have access to Tyria and Elona, although we can catch glimpses of Cantha - most notably of the Jade Sea, through the use of Fractals. In the roughly 200 years since Guild Wars 1 ended in 1075 AE. (This is based off the Mouvelian Calender, which is named after the first high priest of the Church of Dwayna. It begins on the first day that the gods left Tyria - an event known as the Exodus. Thus AE - After Exodus, BE - Before Exodus. There are 4 seasons in this calendar - Season of the Zephyr, Season of the Phoenix, Season of the Scion and Season of the Colossus- There are also 365 days in said calendar. If you really want to get confused, there is also the Canthan Calendar and the Dynastic Reckoning, two other calendars on the continent, but I shall be sticking to the most used one.)
The continent of Tyria was first opened to us (for the second time) in 2012, and it has come a long way in how it has been shaped and expanded by the dedicated team of Devs over at Anet.
According to the Lore(and a map found in the Durmand Priory Library), Guild wars 2 is made up of 3 continents: a supercontinent known as Tyria, Cantha and Elona. For now, we only have access to Tyria and Elona, although we can catch glimpses of Cantha - most notably of the Jade Sea, through the use of Fractals. In the roughly 200 years since Guild Wars 1 ended in 1075 AE. (This is based off the Mouvelian Calender, which is named after the first high priest of the Church of Dwayna. It begins on the first day that the gods left Tyria - an event known as the Exodus. Thus AE - After Exodus, BE - Before Exodus. There are 4 seasons in this calendar - Season of the Zephyr, Season of the Phoenix, Season of the Scion and Season of the Colossus- There are also 365 days in said calendar. If you really want to get confused, there is also the Canthan Calendar and the Dynastic Reckoning, two other calendars on the continent, but I shall be sticking to the most used one.)
Playable Races
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The Charr
A race of cat/cow creatures with a thirst for war and iron. To them all that matters is victory, and anything less is shunned and expelled from the group. Their young are placed within military units once weaned - usually around a year of age - known as a Fahrar of one of their parents Legions. These become the cubs first 'War Band' and are considered adults as soon as they no longer need adult supervision. The name of the War Band is incorporated within their family name, solidifying their bond with their group. There are indeed non-military tasks such as farming and trade, which are left more to the young, retired or injured Charr. However, any Charr that shows signs of cowardice of foolishness are seen as contemptible characters and labeled Gladiums (The lowest rank a Charr can have. It is a charr without a war band, and are seldom given respect.) or worse - their name is removed from their own history.
the norn
Hearty, proud and very drunk. They value the Hunt and focus upon success and personal glory. They never give up on a fight, or a friend. This can lead to bragging, bullying and rash decisions, as well as an unwillingness to listen to sense, but despite the arguments, they are quick to forgive. They are proud of their heritage and pass a name through many generations (such as Olaf Olafsson, seventh son of Olaf) but this does not give a Norn immediate respect. Every Norn is judged by his or her actions and not by their family. Whilst two Norn can marry, they can only marry someone of equal status. Someone at the wedding even has to speak to determine that they are indeed, equal. On another note: despite the cold of their home lands, they tend to dress in little more than light furs.
the asura
A race of elf-like creatures, with floppy ears and frog-like faces. They lived below ground until the minions of the Great Destroyer forced them above ground in 1078 AE. Despite this shaky start, they have established themselves well above ground and are now considered one of the most powerful races in Tryia. They are exceptionally short, and both male and female Asura look alike. They consider themselves to be above other races and will dedicate their entire lives to building a portfolio of projects or becoming an expert in some tiny part of the Arcane. Some even try to specialise in the field of Golemancy - often ended in accidents. Their writing is also one of the most used writing styles in Tyria, however the New Krytan is becoming just as popular. Asura seen to value family and extended family - calling younger ones Progeny or Offspring. They also seem to venerate their parents and grand parents. Curiously enough, they also seem to practice monogamy - to such an extent that their relationships have an actual, predetermined end date. hose relationships that do break up tend to fight more over the inventions than the children.
the humans
are... humans ? Unlike the other races, humans have the most variable cultures. This is easily seen in Divinity's Reach, where there are entire districts names after the places where the flood of refugees have taken up home. They are primarily craftsmen - although out of all of the races, they have retained the most expertise in history and agriculture - which is chalked up to humanities attention to record keeping.
the sylvari
The cabbage leaves of civilisation. This race of plant creatures aren't actually 'born', they simply 'wake up' with all the knowledge that they have gained from their pre-life 'Dream'. For the moment, the most we know if Sylvari are of the ones born to the Pale Tree - although it is speculated that there is another tree somewhere, past the wilderness. They also see romance as a part of life - to them gender does not interfere with love. Despite this seeming fairly strange from the viewpoint of - all of the Sylvari are born to the same tree, the Sylvari do not consider each other as close family - even if they shared the same Pod or Dream. What is curious about them is that all of their armour is crafted from leaves or roots.They are even able to grow their own armour with their skin.
Astronomy in Tyria
Something that is curious - for those into it of course - each race has their own constellations that seem to appear differently to each race. Of course it is possible that is is because the main areas are so far apart the map from each other. If you are interested, the list of current constellations are:
human constellations
- Grenth's Eye, or Eye of Grenth (Contains the stars "Deadrun" and "Shadow")
- The Vizier's Tower
- Gnarl of Melandru (Contains the stars "Autumn", "Dreamflower" and "Verdance")
- Hounds of Balthazar
- Kormir's Scales of Order
- Lyssa's Mirror (Contains the stars "Phantasm" and "Delusion")
charr constellations
- Unnamed Soldier
- Cauldron
- Claw of the Khan-Ur
- Siege Devourer
norn constellations
- Great Spirit Bear
- Great Spirit Raven
- Great Spirit Snow Leopard
- Great Spirit Wolf
The Dwayna's Heart is a star that is visible above all of Tyria, and it does not move. It is similar to our North Star.
Languages of Tyria
My baby! It is time to shine! The languages found in Guild Wars 2 are intricate and interesting! I intend upon doing a mini series in the future where I shall go around translating everything I can in game! Until then, here are a few below!