THE HIS TORY OF WINTE RSDAY LIVING ST ORY SEASON 2 SUMMAR Y

FEATURE D A RTIST: VASBURG

Welcome to Guild Mag’s Wintersday 20 14 issue, and the begin ning of a new era for GuildMag as a whole. I’m extremely excited to publish th is issue as the fi rst under my leadership, following Ollannach’s departure earlier this year. Myself and the rest of the team have worked tirelessly over the last couple of months to produce a magazine that we hope will be our best to date, and truly encapsulate what Wintersday is all abou t. This year has been a time of ups and downs for the Guild Wars 2 community: we’ve seen the arrival o f the second Living World season (and some of the best Living World content yet!); we’ve had two Feature Packs tha t have changed the game considerably; and for some of us, it’s also been a time of turmoil as ArenaNet has overhauled various UI elements, continu ed to change classes and equipment, and kept the lid fi rmly sh ut on their plans for Guild Wars 2’s future. Wintersday is a time for celebration, and br ingin g our community of ama zing individuals together. And that’s what we’re hoping to capture with this issue. We’ve teamed u p with Vasburg t o bring you the jaw-dropping art on the front cover (you can read about his process in our ‘Featured Artist’ article!), and we hope that this serves a s inspiration for you too to get involved! GuildMag has been a community-driven project since we open ed our virtual doors in 2010, and we’re only here today becau se of you . On behalf of everyone at GuildMag, thank you for supporting us. Here’s to another great year! - Valiant

According to human beliefs, the rituals of Wintersday began as a disagreement between Dwayna and her son Grenth over the proper way for humans t o celebrate th e end o f the year. Dwayna felt that it should be a time of merriment, community, and generosity; a chance for people to take a break from some of the harsh realities o f life and celebrate the imminent coming of spring. Grenth, o n the other hand, felt that it should be a time spent in sombre contemplation and in paying respect to the dead – similar to how, i n those days, the charr regarded winter as the season of death. To resolve this, Dwayna and Grenth agreed on a bet that would be repeated every year – each deity would attempt to bring more people over to their point of view, to b e decided b y how many supporters each received at a rite held on Wintersday itself. The stakes were the beginning of the Season of the Zephyr – if Dwayna won, then Wintersday would mark the end of the cold season, wh ile i f Gren th won , the thaw would be delayed.

For many years, Dwayna received victory after victory, as the message of good cheer accompanied by the generous granting of gifts by Dwayna’s followers proved again and again to be easier to spread than Grenth’s message of dour re fl ection. This was to change, however, when some of Grenth’s supporters came upon the idea of sabotaging the gifts spread by Dwayna’s followers. This turned what had been a war of words into a war of tricks – the followers of Grenth attempting to destroy presents and slip in their own booby-trapped substitu tes, while those of Dwayna so ught to protect them – a new phase in their rivalry that led to the two deities gathering new servants to ful fi l these roles. In an ironic twist, Dwayna’s new servants were composed of ice, an elem ent norma lly a ssociated with Grenth, in the for m o f snowmen constructed by children in honour o f the joy of the season. Disturbingly, the legends claim tha t t he Grentches, twisted green creatures with ‘hearts three sizes too small’, were created by feedin g tainted potion s to unwary drinkers. As time passed, this con fl ict escalated: when Grenth attempted to hide presents in the Underworld until they could be sabotaged and redistributed, Dwayna’s followers began invading the Underworld t o retrieve them, and after the Secret Lair o f the Snowmen was discover ed by a dwarf treasure-hunter after the Great Destroyer campaign, it became subject to regular invasions by G rentches a nd Grenth- worshippers every Wintersday.

Sometime after the Great Destroyer’s defeat , this ri valry expanded further when Balthazar and Melandru entered the fray. Balthazar’s stated reason for intervening was that he foresaw a ‘coming darkn ess’ and that h e felt that the winter period should be spent in preparation for this fi ght instead of frivolities. Melandru, however, disa greed, feeling that the cessation o f joy was not needed in order to prepare and fearing the e ff ect that a delayed spring would have on the balance of nature. Thus, as Balthazar’s supporters joined those of Grenth, M elan dru ’s maintain ed the balance b y siding with Dwayna.

Events since have demonstrated t ha t the priests of Balthazar were likely right in their concern, and w hether their methods were too extreme or not, humanity certainly would hav e bene fi ted from better preparation against t he ca lamities that would follow . However, despite the tribulations that came for humanity after the departure of the gods, Dwayna’s vision of the season being a s a time of joy and celebration would not only win out, it wou ld also come to spread among the other races tha t humans kept r egula r contact with, albeit witho ut the religious trappings that human ity associa ted with the festi vities. While the tradition of sn owball- fi ghting a t Wintersday remains , this has become simply part of the merr ymaking, rather than a part of a serious contest to determine the nature of the festivities. Other activit ies sim ilarly harken back to that ancient competition: instead of running a gauntlet of Grentches to bring presents to children, contestants run through a magical obstacle course, and the bell choir tradition may be a distorted re fl ection of the carolers of Dwayna and Grenth that competed to bring their message to the citizens of human and dwarven cities while drowning out the opposition, the vocals removed t o be more inclusive of those who do no t worship th e Six.

Even the idea of training moas to dance, now a common sight a t festivities and circuses at any time of the year, seems t o have been fi rst hatched a s part of the Wint ersday tradition, as followers of Dwayna sought unconventional means of reviving Wintersday cheer during a year when Grenth’s tricks had proven p articularly e ff ective. As Wintersday transition ed from a religious observation to what is essentially one big party, commer cial enterprises and in dustries have been quick to get into the action. The Black Lion Trading Compan y can usually be relied on to offer products unique to the season, some new and some repea ted fr om previous years, although the Black Lion’s tr ading practices often put them out of reach of all but adventurers and other wealthy Tyrian citizens. However, the winner for sheer showmanship has to be the asura known as Toymaker Tixx .

An early adopter of airship technology, Tixx installed his workshop into his golem-shaped dirigible and made his debut by touring th e majo r cities of Tyria, showcasing an animated toy designed to be suitable for the locals at each stop, fi nally reaching Lion’s Arch where all fi ve were displayed. At each stop, Tixx invites adventurers on board his airship to assist with various teething troubles in his manufacturing process, such as rebellious toys and rage-inducing malfu nctions of his golem assistant, Toxx. Some of these adventur ers claim that these malfunctions are not simply the occasional glitch, and that Toxx has blown her insurrection inhibitors and is actively seeking to sabotage the operation, including being responsible for reprogramming the ‘malfunctioning’ toys. Despite Tixx’s cheerful obliviousness, however, the manufacturing process always seems to be brought under c ontr ol in time for Wintersday, although the legions of rebellious toys that adventurers are often forced to violently decommission cannot b e good for Tix x’s overhead.

Take that! Merry Wintersday to your face!

The centerpiece of Wintersday is usually Lion ’s Arch. In the aftermath of Scarlet Briar’s attack on the city, Tyria ns ar e now celebrating in Divinity’s R each.

At the Mystic Forge, a giant snowglobe has traditionally ap peared, complete with a snowman en ticing you to build on e of you r own from magical snow piles. Why not jo in in a sn owball fight while you’re at it? Of course, if fighting is more your style there’s always …

… the Snowglobe Finisher. Because nothing spread s holiday cheer like gingerbread men and plush toys to rub your victories into people’s faces. This finisher features scenes in spire d by Tixx’s Infinirarium and the crazed toys you encounter th ere.

In the Infi nirarium, players can assist Tixx the Toymaker with malfunctioning toys, and stop skritt invaders from stealin g presents and ruining Tixx’s wo rksh op. As rewards, players can earn …

Toy Ventari

Tixx’s Toys weapons skins, pictured To y Staff

… one of Tixx’s toy minis …

… and they can also earn toy weapon skins.

Mini Dolyak Calf (taller than an asura! )

Last year, players could also take the three minis from th e Wintersday Mini 3-Pack and combin e them with ugly wo ol hats, socks, or sweaters to obtain the Mini Dolyak Calf bearin g gifts.

Winter’s weapon skins, p ictured Winter’s Edge greatsword

Cuteness isn’t for everyone, th ough. S ometimes w ooden weapons decorated with snow crystals and snow flak es when wielded are b etter.

However you choose to celebrate Winters day , be sure you do it in your own stylish w ay!

In this month’s issue of GuildMag, we feature perhaps one of the most celebrated Guild Wars fan artists: Vasburg. His hauntingly beautiful and unique art style have long set him apart from other artists. Vasburg has been recognised and well- loved in the Guild Wars community for his breathtaking renditions of his favourite Guild Wars subject: Cantha. As evidenced by his artwork, Vasburg has been an avid fan of the Guild Wars universe since Guild Wars 1. It was GuildMag’s pleasure to sit down with him and ask abou t his love of art and Guild Wars.

Am I? I feel hon oured! There’s actually quite an impact. Speaking honestly, if it wasn ’t work related to a community project, the community wouldn ’t have an impact on the artwork itself. However, all the replies an d comments are a huge motivation b oost.

GuildMag would like to thank Vasburg for all his h ard work on this issue; creating the cover art specifically for the Wintersday edition. If you’d like to see more of Vasburg’s art you can find it at his website: www.vasbu rg.com.

The Commander arrives at Camp Resolve and reconnects w ith Trahearne. He asks the hero to investigate a missing Pact squad h e’ d sent out into the Wastes with two sylvari, Caithe an d Canach. Sh ortly after, the Commander joins Braham and wanders over to Taimi who is busy questioning the three Aspect Masters. The Masters leave an d Taimi takes off after Brun Ingotspitter, an acc laimed charr engineer, with hopes of improvin g her golem, Scruffy. The Commander makes one last stop by Rox, leaves th e camp, and heads far west, tracking every sign of the Pact squad. Eventually, the hero runs into Canach, w ho had been laying traps for the Mordrem. They press forward and catch up to the squ ad as they come u nder attack from the Mordrem. Despite the danger, Caithe urges the party to continue the search for the source of the dragon ’s minions. A to p a high ridge, the group spots the source, bu t their presence attracts the dragon’s minions, forcing them to fight until their extractio n.

After their rescue via Pact helicopter, the Commander receives a letter from Marjory. The detective explains that they w ere unable to reach Ogden Stonehealer. The dwarf is squirreled aw ay in a vault that requires a cipher to enter, a cipher that was said to be give n to Explorer Campbell. The Commander quickly hunts down the research er in the Silverwastes and grabs the nearest waypoint to the Durman d Priory to join the two d etectives. There, they share the cipher with Ela Makkay and gain access to the “Special Collections ” portion of the library. The group descends even further to a hidden storage room wh ere they meet with Ogden. He asks the Commander to inspect an artifact that he claims is relevant to the Pale Tree’s vision. The heroes touch the hourglass, it shatters an d warps the space around them, dragging them into what they would disco ver to be Glint’s Lair. Separated by the terrain, the Commander push es on  alone, fighting through various “environmental hazard s” before reaching the others. At the end, they see a vision of the Maste r of Peace receiving an egg-shaped object from an invisible source, revealing wh at the Master had been protecting from the crazed sylvari, Aerin: a dragon egg.

The three are warped out of the lair and back to library storage room. Ogden, amused by their wonderment, sends th em on th eir way .

Soul-binding? Ritu alists? CANTHA CONFIRMED! *twitch*

The Durmand Priory’s Special Collections

Shouldn’t Glint appear in th is scene?” “Female dragons are h ard to render with magic.

When the Commander catches up with th e “biconic” team in the Modrem Labyrinth, they’ve already been separate d. With C aithe, the  two free the others from their Mord rem traps and head for the center chamber. The Master of Peace is fou nd gravely wou nded on the ground. After killing the Mordrem Troll in the ch amber, the M aster of Peace dies, leaving Glint’s egg in the Commander’s care. W ith out warning, Caithe snaps up the egg saying that th ere’ s “no time to explain” and vanishes into the shadows. Th e team agrees to go after Caithe, and Marjory suggests that they have an au dience with the Pale Tree, the one being with access to most sylvari memory.

The Commander and Marjory follow the clu es from the first vision to an Inquest lab in Metrica Province. The second seed is plan ted, an d the second vision begins. Caithe and Faolain infiltrate the asura lab wh ere their kin are being experimented on. There, th ey confront Vorpp, th e krewe leader, but he escapes. Together, they return the surviving sylvari to safety. Faolain, bitter from the encounter, vow s to confront Wynne about her secrets. This leads the Commander back to the Silverwastes, where after questioning some Seraph and skritt about any kn own lo cal centaur, the pair is directed to the Far Silverwastes. After crawling thro ugh a claustrophobe’s nightmare, the Commander locates th e site for the third memory seed. Caithe, Faolain, Cadeyrn, and his followers approach the centaur camp, but split at the entrance road. The centaur gu ards are curious of the two sisters. Eventually, Nekhii Burn thide greets them, mentionin g that Wynne is not currently at the camp . Caith e offers to wait around until she returns, but Wynne approaches th em at that moment. The conversation between the four of them becomes h eated an d Nekhii asks to speak with Caithe in private. Caithe tries to explain that they mean no harm, but a scuffle takes place outside an d soon Faolain is fighting the centaurs with Cadeyrn and his “back-up”. The ce ntau rs are wiped out and Wynne, traumatized by th e loss of her frie nds, flees in to a cavern hidden behind a stone door imb ued with a magical illustration of serpents. A shaken Commander walks with Marjory to the same door n earby to find it sealed shut. Marjory offers to research the images on the d oor at the Durmand Priory and promises to send word on ce she’s fou nd something.

“Conniving vegetable!” - Rytlock Brimston e

Trahearne was a master of delegation before the age of three.

Greetings, empty heads in need of fi lling! I am Professor Blorp, archaeologist, palaeontologist, xenologist, biologist and historian extraordinaire, here to give you a review from historical rec or ds on threats that adventurers have previously faced in the Maguuma region, and which may be encountered again as our explorers and magisters push further into th e jungle! I’m sure that you are all aware of the rise of a new dragon in the Ma gu uma region, one that has becoming the focus of the e ff orts of the Pact due to its threat to the waypoint network and th e general observation that newly awoken dragons tend to b e more destructive than those tha t have already established a territory. For those that are not aware… …then how do you have the gall to call yourselves Priory scholars!

Get out of my sight and don’t come back until you a t least have attained a minimum level of comprehension about current events! In case you’re too stupid to fi gure it out, the d oor is THAT WA Y. O ff you go! Nobody? Good. As I’m sure you all know – if not, door is that way, turn left, third door on the right, and ask the librarian for the Mor dremoth repor ts, you can read can’t you – the new dra gon’s signature charac teristic is that it has constructed much of its army from the corruption of plants. As a result, in order to possibly predict what new threats we may b e facing, I have prepared a review on asura and bookah records o n hostile plants

that used to dwell in the Maguuma region. Most of these were thoroughly catalogued and exterminated in the Tarnished Coast region a fter w e asura reached the surface, however, they may still dwell deeper in the jungle where they may be available for Mordremoth to recr ui t. Due to the resemblance of many of these plants to animals, some scholars believe that these may have been surviving examples o f a n earlier generation of sylvari, where their trees lacked bookahs a s a template and made do with copies of even less intelligent creatu res. First, there are the ‘aloes’, a plant that was regarded as the lea st thr eatening but most annoying among many bookah adventurers. Once rangi ng across Tyria but now apparent ly extinct in settled regions, the aloe had a tendency to form symbiotic relationships with more dangerous creatur es in the area, whether animals o r other plants. While their partners attack anything that enters the area, the aloes would pop up from hiding below ground and use their healing properties to keep their symbiotic allies in good health, making them p riority targets for adventurers. Without such p artners, nests of aloes used their pow ers to keep each oth er alive, making them di ffi cult to root out. Next on the list are the ‘stalkers’, to w hich I direct you t o the reproduction of a two hundred and fi fty year old painting that m y mesm er assistant is projecting on the screen behind me. Note the generally humanoid appearance and the hollow abdomen – some scholars ha ve speculated that these ma y have been immature examples of the ‘husks’ now associated with the Nightmare Court and Mordremoth’s minions. Bookah records credit these c reatures with wielding elemental a nd mesmer ic magics, depending on the variety… b ut as we all kn ow, the ancient bookahs had a tendency to regard anything they did not understand as ‘magic’, so this may have been some other process rather than truly being magic. These creatures were usually found i n the drier parts of the Maguuma and the swampier areas of Kryta, but another variety – switch to the next image now - used to be fou nd close to the Grove’s current location: the snakelike ayuhuasca. Again, bookah records credit this plant with magical abilities, particularly in the ability to generate mesmer illusions. I suspect that the ayahuasca may instead ha ve developed a kind of poison with hallucinogenic properti es, which bookah adventurers in terpreted as magic use.

A lecture reviewing the dangerous plantlife once found in th e Maguuma region, given by Professor Blorp in late 1 327AE as preparation for the possibility of their descendents being corrupted by M ord remoth.

While there are a variety of other forms of dangerous plants that have been reported in other parts of Tyria – I’m sure you are all familiar with the oakhearts and their relatives – there is one more form o f dangerous plant that was reported in the Maguuma region: a sedentary, in the adult phase, family called ‘blooms’ (n ext image, please!). Two forms were known t o exist, one described as fungu s-like and th e other with nettle-like foliage – given their similarities otherwise, though, I suspect that they were closely related species, a nd one e ither had something that looked like leaves as a defense, o r had a symbiotic relationship with a genuine fl ora species. Either way, these ‘blooms ’ were know n for their reproductive method – they would release large spores – bring up the last sketch - that drift for short distances before settling and undergoing explosive growth in to a juvenile bloom. Both varieties were credited with magical abilities to defend themselves against nearby threats in both their adult and juvenile forms, and reports indicate that production of spores is a ccelera ted rapidly when an adult bloom regards itself a s under threat – likely both as a means of generating reinforcements as well a s a last-minute e ff ort to reproduce before it is potentially destroyed. This made infestations di ffi cult to burn out, since i f the adult blo oms are not quickly id enti fi ed and destroyed, even a strong force can be quickly overwhelmed by an expandin g tide of n ew growths.

Now, none of these forms of dangerous plant life have been seen in some time, such that they are believed extinct in settled regions – however, there is n o telling what might remain in the deeper Maguuma where the new dragon lies. Thus, while this lecture serves a s a n overview, I would recommend any of you that are assigned to the region undertake your own study into the records on these creatures, to ensu re that you are prepared should w e fi nd their corrupted descendents among Mordremoth’s armies. Class dismissed!

While Wintersday has a long, rich history beyond the con fi n es of Guild Wars 2, for the last two years the denizens of Tyria have been entertained by a more modern version, featuring asura n genius Tixx the Toymaker , whose arrival tr iggers a series of Wintersday-th emed activiti es. Li ke the living world of Tyria, they have changed over time, but like good holiday traditions they continue to th rill and inspire. The Wondrous Workshop of Toymaker Tixx in trodu ced players to Tixx and his golem Toxx. Together, they traveled across Tyria bringing presents to all, but trouble followed in their wake. For th e initial fi ve days of the event in 2012, Tixx's w orkshop - a dungeon know n as the In fi nirarium - docked at each major city. Each port intr oduced players to a di ff erent version of the dungeon, creating fi ve "paths" based on which toy Tixx was attempting to make. Players who explored the dungeon learned of the Toymaker, and his troubles with both stowaway skritt and malfunctioning toys. The rewards for completing each path allowed players to collect ingredients they needed to build their own Wintersday Toy mini pets. In addition, each city had its own toy: Ventari fi gures for the Grove, Princess Dolls at Divinity's Reach, Toy Soldiers at the Black Citadel, Golems for Rata Sum, a nd Plush Gr i ff ons in Hoelbrak. After the fi rst fi ve days, the In fi nirarium landed in Lion's Arch and all previous events were available. For the adventurous, a fi nal Toypocalypse event also became available. In 2013, the In fi nirarium docked only in Lion's Arch with all events available. Although the activities within the dungeon remained the same in 2013, rewards did change, allowing players to choose one of th e festive toy minis after completing the holiday meta achievement rather than building it within the Mystic Forge as they had in 2012. Instead, last year the Forge was used to cr eate a special edition mini: a present-toting dolyak.

2012's Wintersday celebration also saw the introduction of th e Enchanted Snow Globe and its three festival events : th e Bell Choir, Snowball Mayhem, and the Winter Wonderland jumping puzzle. With few changes, these activities returned in 2013. For the musically inclined, the Bell Choir gave the citizens of Tyria a chanc e to ring in t he holiday. Each map held twelve people – four stages with three players each wh o played a di ff erent octave. Althou gh points were scored for a good performance, the real challenge was not in besting your fellow bell ringers but in staying alive long enough to complete the event. Each wrong note deducted health, although you could easily regenerate it between songs w hile waiting for oth ers t o join. Snowball Mayhem, the heir t o the original Guild W ars sn owball fi ght, pitted teams of eight players a gainst each other in a fi ght to collect the most presents from a central spawn point and return them to their base. Entering the snowball fi ght adjusted your skillbar. While some new snow skills were set based on your profession , others depend ed on the role you chose: Scout, Heavy Hitter, or Su pport. Given the whimsical skills, it a cted a s a n introduction t o PvP for players who traditionally played PvE. The Winter Wonderland jumping puzzle, the third area of the Enchant ed Snow lobe, initially required players to carry a gift through a n obstacle course of giant snow fl akes, peppermint candies, ex ploding presents and past giant snowballs, before delivering it to the happy gingerbrea d men and children at the en d. The gift itself bestowed the frostbite e ff ect, which slowl y drained a player's health, limiting the time they had to complete the puzzle. Wh ile the bell choir and snowb all fi ght remained t he same between 2012 and 2 013, the Winter Wonderland jumping puzzle was changed slightly, removing the present b undle that needed to be carried by the players but n ot removin g the frostbite

effect. Last year, players were only safe from the effect if they were able to stand near a fire. As a fi nal touch, the 2013 iteration of the event featured two NPCs, Ho- Ho-Tron and Marcello DiGiacomo, collecting donations for rebuilding Divinity's Reach after the devastating at tack by Sca rlet Briar . Once these two characters had collected su ffi cient funds, they triggered a n escort mission through Lion's Arch. This year, the festivities have been moved to Divinity’s Reach, occupying the Crown Pavilion area of the city. A replica Ho-Ho-Tron has ret ur ned, raising money for charity and players are once again able to collect festive skins, out fi ts, an d mini pets.

When ArenaNet decided that Mac owners are gamers too, I fi na lly got ac cess to the game two of my best friends kept going on about and p romptly got hooked. Being the newcomer to our very small, besties guild, I ’ve closely watched my friends and their playing styles so that I knew what to aim for myself. After a little more than a year, I’ve fi nally come to the conclusion that we are entirely a motley crew, and frankly, trying to watch us a ll pla y is completely bewildering, stu pefying and a whole lot of fun. First o ff , we have Nin. Nin is a very structured and strategic player who knows a lot about th e technicalities of play. Build n ot working? Go to Nin. Need to know about skills? Go to Nin. Which alt to use for a certain boss? Nin. She’s the one who chivvies us along when we play together. She keeps us organized, makes u s check our skill sets, rearrange traits and focuses us on the mechanics o f the fi ght. She’s kind of like a mother making sure we have our jackets on before we go out in the cold. It’s not always easy to get u s to comply, because who need s to stop and put on a jacket when there’s snow? Eventually we listen and that usually means we don ’t just walk into instantaneous death; w e rock that dungeon - or think w e do and that’s all that counts. Thanks for keeping us from wandering into our very own apocalypse, Nin! Then we have Al, A l is skilled and knows the technicalities of the game just as well a s Nin, but she might, just might, have a problem focusing. She starts o ff fabulously with a goal in mind and eyes on the prize, but then, shinies! From then on she’s lost to us like a skritt to scrap metal. We have to b e careful t o keep her from wandering o ff into dangerous areas by herself. Then we remind her that she did actually have a goal for the day and yes, she might b e drifting; just a little bit. And yes w e know there was a gathering node 20 miles away, but, rem ember your goal that' s in the other direction? Having said that, when she’s focused, she’s deadly and has saved all our patooties a time or two. Thanks for helpin g us d iscover n ew places and things, Al! Then there’s Marvelline. Unfortunately she doesn’t play as much as we would like her to, but when she does, she’s eno rmous fun. M arvelline h as all of the enthusiasm of a child in a toy store and doesn’t hesitate to show it. She cares not about stats or traits or technical thingies. She just likes to kill things! Kill all the things! Is it moving? Kill it! Something dangerous that you can waypoint away from? Why do that when you can walk into an ambush with 50 enemies who are three levels higher than you? Let’s just kill things, now! Watching her play is probably the most fun I’ve ever had. It also challenges the rest of us to hone our skills as we try and save her hiney from certain death, so it’s all good. Thanks for tea ching us that it’s a ll about the fun, M arvelline!

Finally there’s me, Wee Mad. As you can tell from the name, I’m a bit mad and all over the place. I started out with Marvelline’s exuberance and just went in killing things. It was fabulous and a part of m e misses not having to worry about anything b ut exploring Tyria. Never again will I fi nd myself in Q ueensdale wo ndering wh y I’ve on ly got my u nderwear between m e and the centaur of doom; or run from Snowden straight into Frostgorge with m y level 10; or take on Jormag b y my wee self, dying spectacularly i n the attempt. This all happening while Nin is screaming in my ear, “Do y ou want to die? Listen to the guy at the gate, he’s telling you you’re going to die! Stoooooop…Too late.” That part of the fun is over in a sen se as I’ve progressed to actually care about instadeath and broken armor . I’ve moved on t o more technical play; trying out di ff erent professions and techn iques until I found the ones I like best. That doesn’t mean the fun has ended - it's just changed. Although I still can’t really be bothered to invest much time into all of the diversities of builds (I have Nin for that), fi ghts have become more complex, more challenging and more interesting. Goals cha nge with each update, and a s new content is added, I try to adapt and improve. Finally, to my guildies’ great delight, I have, against my very stubborn will and nature, done the very thing I told my besties I would never do. I have become a fashionista and skin hoarder. Don’t ask m e to personally don anything but jeans and sweaters, but my characters each have a wardr obe that rivals that of Imelda Marcos. There’s nothi ng like making sport for our guildies and laughing w ith them in turn. In the end, my game and how I play or how my characters look is not r eally what’s important. What’s important are my guildies. Without them, I could (theoretically a t least) move o n to being the best player i n all of Tyria, but it wouldn’t be the same. I wouldn’t have Marvelline t o re min d me that sometimes it’s just about being a kid; Nin to remind m e that ma ybe ta king on fi fty foes at once is not such a fabulous idea (even with the #5 longbow skill and a reef drake); or A l to remind me that sometimes it’s just about letting yourself wander where the shinies take you. All in all, we may be small and some may consider u s anti-social for not joining larger guilds, but we have style and our style is fu n!

In the last chapter, I talked about the changes that have occurred in the practise of ‘innate’ magic, a s employed by the adventuring professions of Tyria. In this chapter – of however many parts i t will turn out to be – I will discuss the technological developments that have occurred in the last two and a half centuries. From the modern perspective, there are two main branches of technol ogi cal development. While there is evidence that neither race were the fi rst to discover their branch, these branches can be categorised ac cording to those now most known for each branch – namely, the charr (mostly lead by the Iron Legion) and the asu ra. While there are, of course, signi fi cant di ff erences in the outcomes and results of the two branches, the two forms of technology appear, a t least from my outside perspective, to have two main di ff erences in philosophy behind them. The fi rst i s that Iron Legion technology is intended to be widely disseminated among the legions, often regardless of whether the end user has specialised training. As a result, their technology emphasises practicality – ideally, any given piece should be as simple to produce and operate as possible. A s a result, whether intentional on their part or not, examples of technology quickly spread t o their frie nds and enemies both, although the charr still take the lead in developing this form of tec hnology. Their only true competitor i n this area appears t o be the dredge, whose own technology appears to be a divergent line from the same source – the machines left behind by the dw arves.

Asura technology, on the other hand, is, at least in modern tim es, employed only by the asura themselves, apart from pieces reverse-engineered by larger skritt scratches. An asura would claim that t his is because the ir technology is far beyond the understanding of other, su pposedly less intelligent races. I suspect, however, that they deliberately make their technology, and the jargon around it, needlessly complicated – as a precaution against having it stolen not only by oth er races, but by other asura krewes as well. While this has certainly served to keep asura sec rets hidden from most rivals, this culture of secrecy and paranoia has its costs – asura history is scattered with wonders that have been lost w hen th eir inventor died while still unwilling to pass on their secrets. In some cases, the inventor became so paranoid about their secrets being stolen even after death that they deliber ately hid them away in secluded locations protected by automated defences. The second, possibly more substantial difference, is in the relationship of the two forms of technology wit h magi c. Many would say t ha t the charr form of technology does not employ magi c at all… however, this is not str ictly true. As an example, I have heard of c ha rr collecting elemental lodestones to use in constructing ammunition for art illery pieces – this is clearly making u se of the magical properties of t he lodestones, even if  this is simply that the lodestones can be made to explode under th e right condition s. The truth is, i n present times, it is often hard to say for sure what is the result of magic, and what i s the result of some other unknown but nonmagical property of a given substance – for instance, there would seem to be nothing magical about burned wood, but if mixed with brimston e and a certain preservative salt it can create e ff ects that can easily b e mistaken for magic. A charr inventor simply doesn’t care – he is concerned about whether a given material will react in a predictable manner under the desired circumstances, regardless of whether magic is involved in this property or not. The various ghostbusting devices built b y the charr, for example, almost certainly involve making use of magical substances – but all the Iron Legion cares about is that, if used in the correct way, they have

Part 2 of a series on the progress of magical research, penned by Eleano r Draxyn nus in the year 1327 AE.

the desired effect upon the ghosts, whether that effect be containment, dispersion, or disorientation. Asura technology, on the other hand, is focussed primarily on the harnessing and channelling of magical energies. While the physical form of a piece of technology derived from the charr approach is based on the shapes required to make use of the desired properties, the appearance of asura technology is typically determined by the circuits needed to extr act magic al energy from a source, convert it into a more useful form (if required), and channel i t t o generate the desired e ff ect. In a nutshell, a follower o f the charr line of technology looks at a lodestone and views it to be useful because it has a n intrinsic property that it w ill explode under the right circumstances. An asura l ooks at the same lodestone and sees a source of magical energy. A third line of magical technology exists, although it has mostly been lost since the Searing, and some might not regard it a s m agic at all. This is the a rt of enchanting what might otherwise be taken a s a common object, granting it properties that would not be guessed a t through casual examination even by a n expert. From this line w e have the likes of cauldrons that conjure a rain of fi ery crystals, teleportation pads that appear to require none of the complexity o f asura ga tes, and swords that can transform much of the population of a nation into ghost warriors. Much a s the asura might prefer not to admit i t, this branch of magical technology may rival or even exceed their own, and is typical of the artifacts of ancient human ity as well as the elder races. However, mor e knowledge has been los t than gained regarding this branch sin ce the Searing. As a simple demonstration of the distinction between the second and third styles, consider the line of animated toys colloquially known a s ‘minipets’. The origins of many of these toys is a mystery – while somebody is clearly making new ones as minipets of signi fi cant people continue to appear, usually o ff ered for sale by the Black Lion Company, nothing is known of who that migh t be. Evon Gnashblade might know, b ut he refuses to name his supplier, at least not for any price within this sch olar’s exp ense bud get. However, there are some that are know n. While he did not invent them, one of the earliest known minipet creators was Mahk of Kamadan. His breakthrough work wa s reportedly a miniature of a creature from the Desolation called a Grey Giant – one that was reportedly indistinguishable from the real thing, i f one were t o overlook its diminutive size a nd lack of aggression. Mahk had crea ted (some histories say repaired) an exquisitely detailed model of a creature that existed elsewhere in the world, and infused it with magical essence – reportedly from a djinn – in order to animate it. This, along with most models seen today, serves a s a n example of the third form of magical technology – no special joints or gizmos appear to be needed, the minipet simply moved o n its own through magic. This is in contrast t o the mass-produced products of Toymaker Tixx. Wh ile in some cases covered b y plush and stu ffi ng, the frames o f Tixx’s toys with articulated servos and levitated joints indicate that they a re essent ially

small golems in nature. Thus, they serve as examples of the comm on asura approach to magitechnologica l design. Whi le nobody would descr ibe Tixx’s creations as lifelike, Tixx’s Emporium is able to produc e them cheaply enough that they can actually serve as toys for children – while Evon’s ever- increasing prices often relegate the more realistic miniatures to collectors items only a ff orded by the wealthiest of Tyria’s citizens. Certainly, visitors to the In fi narium report that the process seems almost entir ely a utom ated (except when it breaks down, wh ich is disturbingly often) and it seems unlikely that even asura-designed machinery could reproduce the lifelike detail of the more traditional (and expensive) animated miniatures.

It is, of course, possible that the asura are perfectly capable of creating lifelike miniatures, albeit not in such quantity. When the asura fi rst broke the surface, they brought with them the game they called Polymock – a game whose playing pieces were lifelike animated simulacra o f various monsters that were pitted against one another. Some legends claim that some polymock pieces could even b e animated outside the arena t o defend their owners against enemies. However, it is also interesting that the legends cl aim that pol ym ock piec es, particularly the more powerful and valua ble ones, were more often a cquir ed from raiding long-abandoned du ngeons th an from the asura themselves. In addition, while the asura made a n e ff ort to spread the game on the surface when they arrived, the Polymock arenas have been closed to no n- asura for years. The asura are known t o have made many discoveries that were lost in later years due to the deaths of their creators, particularly in the destruction of their underground civilisation by th e Great D estroyer… perhaps the closure of the arenas is due to shame a t having lost the knowledge of creating lifelike pieces, and bein g forced to resort to less artistic substitutes such as the golem tournaments in Soren Draa? Perhaps the asura were never responsible for the manufacture o f polymock pieces at all, instead having made a game from them after acquiring them from some other, older culture.