Guild Wars 2

While I’ve played the original game with a friend, I’m relatively new to Guild Wars and playing catch up on the lore. I was curious what comparisons might be made when it comes to the human kingdoms, mainly for lore/Light RP’s sake.

Cantha is Asian culture and Orr seems to be heavy Middle Eastern, with an emphasis on the Arabian Nights motif. Where do Elona and Kryta fall?

When it came up in my story, I chose a Krytan lineage, as in my quick middle-of-the-quest-Wiki-research they seemed to be England Middle Ages (I’d say Arthurian, but then we have the Sylvari…)

I’d appreciate any lore experts giving me a quick crash course!

Elona was inspired by Africa.

Kryta.. I don’t know if I’d call it European. Ascalon was very European. 250 years ago, Krytans were a pretty dark skinned heavily tattooed folk http://wiki.guildwars.com/wiki/Krytan – maybe somewhere in the Mediterranean?

Darn. I hope the lineage thing doesn’t play out too much in expansions, sounds like my character should have been from Ascalonian refugees. Then again, it was generations ago, so who knows her storied history. Thanks for the clarification.

I imagine there’s a fair bit of mixed parentage in Divinity’s Reach. Everyone is just jammed into the same city there. Like a big box of refugees.

I wouldn’t worry about it though. Even in Cantha, Luxons (http://wiki.guildwars.com/wiki/Luxon) seem to have some Greek influences and Kurzicks (http://wiki.guildwars.com/wiki/Kurzick) have Russian/German influences.

Guesses:

Old Ascalon = English
Old Kryta = Old Spanish
New Kryta = Western European
Orr = Arabic
Shiverpeaks = Scandinavian
Asuran = Mesoamerican
Charr = Steampunk
Vabbi = Wealthy Arabian/Turkish
Kourna = North African
Istan = Nile Delta Egyptian
Kaineng = Former Kowloon, China
Kaineng Palace = Forbidden Palace, China
Shing Jea = Chinese Rural
Echovald = Gothic European
Jade Sea = Fishing Village?

To me Cantha had quite a few of Japanese overtones to it also, especially how the lore seems to have mirrored the tokagawa period of rule. Sai’s, Katanas, shinobi swords, the entire assassin class(I may be wrong, but looked to me to have Naruto likenesses), even the tengu as a species.

I like how it seems that they have incorporated many civs around the real world into this backdrop. Silently promotes the connection you have to Tyria imo.

Divinity’s Reach for me resembles the italian Florence or Siena in the 18th century

Kryta makes me think of the Byzantine Empire near its decline. Vastly diminished in power, barbarians and new powers at their gates, a ruler that is breaking some of the rules of nobility, and just the environment a bit too of the temperate coastal.

Of course the architecture in Divinity’s Reach and such bears little resemblance to that and is more closely to akin to medieval or quatrocentro Italy, so its hard to say what attributes we are evaluating to place it.

Absolutionis.9427:

Guesses:

Old Ascalon = English
Old Kryta = Old Spanish
New Kryta = Western European
Orr = Arabic
Shiverpeaks = Scandinavian
Asuran = Mesoamerican
Charr = Steampunk
Vabbi = Wealthy Arabian/Turkish
Kourna = North African
Istan = Nile Delta Egyptian
Kaineng = Former Kowloon, China
Kaineng Palace = Forbidden Palace, China
Shing Jea = Chinese Rural
Echovald = Gothic European
Jade Sea = Fishing Village?

I agree with this, although I’d say Ascalon was more western Europe in general rather than England specifically and Kryta was influenced by the mediterranean region in general (at least visually, culturally it’s a little hard to say because of all the civil war/cultural shifts going on you never really got a decent overview of it).

Also Cantha was a mash-up of many different Asian cultures, but mainly Chinese and Japanese. The Luxons seem to be a based on the general idea of a nomadic fishing/trade/pirate culture, but I don’t think they were based on any one in particular.

styx.7294:

Elona was inspired by Africa.

Kryta.. I don’t know if I’d call it European. Ascalon was very European. 250 years ago, Krytans were a pretty dark skinned heavily tattooed folk http://wiki.guildwars.com/wiki/Krytan – maybe somewhere in the Mediterranean?

Elona appears to be mostly inspired by North African and Middle Eastern civilizations/cultures. However Elonians all appear to be black for some reason. It’s like making a civilization where everything is inspired by real life Japan but all its denizens are Native Americans.

styx.7294:

Elona was inspired by Africa.

Kryta.. I don’t know if I’d call it European. Ascalon was very European. 250 years ago, Krytans were a pretty dark skinned heavily tattooed folk http://wiki.guildwars.com/wiki/Krytan – maybe somewhere in the Mediterranean?

All of the north coast of the Mediterranean is in Europe.

Absolutionis pretty much summed up what I think too. Though I would add:

Rural Kryta: European but closer to Old Kryta with the exceptions of Nebo Terrace and the Ascalon Settlement.
Urban Kryta (Divinity’s Reach): Cosmopolitan European (more like London or Paris)
Ebonhawke (a separate entity to Kryta): hard boiled and kind of earthy, its difficult to draw a contemporary comparison but very much like post-war Europe.

Spacefish.4623:

Kryta makes me think of the Byzantine Empire near its decline. Vastly diminished in power, barbarians and new powers at their gates, a ruler that is breaking some of the rules of nobility, and just the environment a bit too of the temperate coastal.

Of course the architecture in Divinity’s Reach and such bears little resemblance to that and is more closely to akin to medieval or quatrocentro Italy, so its hard to say what attributes we are evaluating to place it.

kinda thought the same.

Orr = Atlantis. That is all.

Thank you all so much for the insights and discussion!

With regard to Elona, the more I look at it, the more I find that Kourna seems to resemble an amalgam of the Fulbe along the sahel south of the Sahara, and likely other more warrior types from the same region, or groups known for martial prowess, like the Akan. The reason I mention it is because the screenshots I’ve seen thus far on the gw1 wiki for Kourna have architecture with a decided resemblance to the Great Mosque of Djenne.
Which is in Mali.
For the Istani, as a trading people, an island people.. I’m less certain of a similar African culture, but given skin tone and the reputation for scholarship, I’d say the Hausa who are tradespeople throughout West and West Central Africa seem a plausible fit, though they’re not hugely distinguishable from the various subgroups of Fulbe.. tilthand I’m not truthfully sure what fits best.

Also…

Kodan: Eskimo
Tengu: Native American

and…

Quaggan: Sesame Street
Skritt: Beavis & Butthead
Hylek: “Chet” from the movie Weird Science

So I have seen a few NPC’s with Spanish names like “Velazquez” from the order of Whispers….how does that fit into the Lord? maybe just ran out of English names…any ideas.

I think ANet has always blended influences within the ingame cultures, to a degree, but I think the following influences can be picked up from the lore, the ingame artwork & concept artwork:

Tyria:
Ascalon – North European / Germanic
Old Kryta – Mesoamerican-esque (via influence from Mursaat(?) ruins in region) / Elonan (via lore – Kryta established as colony of Elona)
Old Orr – Arabic influences / lorewise had direct involvement of gods
Present Kryta – Generic western European

Non-human:
Dwarves / Norn – Scandinavian
Charr – Steppes culture / vague Roman influences
Asuran – Indigenous culture / Mesoamerican-influences (via reoccupied Mursaat sites)
Mursaat – Mesoamericanesque

Elona:
Primeval Dynasty – Egyptian/Mesopotamian
Istan – Nubian / Punt / East African
Kourna – Mali / Songhai / Maghreb culture / weak Roman influences
Vabbi – Persian / Arabian / Ottoman Turkish

Cantha -
Canthan (Dragon) Empire – Han China / Korea
Shing Jea – SW China / elements of Tibet
Kurzick – Gothic / Germanic
Luxon – vague Greek / Phoenician / Minoan influences (& possible Margonite influence)

Dredge culture – Soviet culture
Sylvari – loose Celtic / Tolkien elven influence
Centaur – in Tyria seems to be Steppes culture, in Elona reflects a more desert nomadic influence
Tengu – Varies according to tribe – Tyrian tengu had a Mesoamerican influence, Canthan tengu had more Thai influence

When I think of Ascalon, Old Ascalon to be more specific, I think of the English “Camelot.” The feeling of Kryta has totally changed from the 250 years prior; if anything it now gives me a feeling of Enlightenment mixed with Industrial Revolution.

I don’t think they align perfectly with one real life culture or another. I would say they’re drawn from multiple.

Modern day Kryta appears to be European, possibly a mixture of Spanish and English

Cantha in GW1 took inspiration from both ancient China and Japan

Elona was definitely African & Egyptian.

Ascalon could be British/Camelot inspired….