Guild Wars 2

Are Sylvari humanoid and mimic human attributes (such as the ability to have sex despite being unable to reproduce) because the pale tree designed them that way, or does it have something to do with the fact that Ronan buried his Family under the tree?

Due to the fact that the Pale Tree seems to produce Humanoids and Canines I was under the idea that the Pale tree used the “DNA” of Ronan’s family and possible dog as the basis for her children’s design. I mean she could have designed them due to the possibility that she considered Ronan a father like figure for aiding her growth and therefore designed the Sylvari after humans, but then why wouldn’t she do the same in honor Ventari and create a centaur like plant being?

We can take a guess that the sylvari do not emulate humans because of Ronan. This is because there is another pale tree which produces sylvari identical in form to the ones we see, and it most likely does not have humans buried underneath it.

Another Pale Tree? What’s it’s name?

I see no reference too it anywhere in my searches.

It doesn’t have a name, but it’s referenced in one of the sylvari personal story quests if you pick “Where life goes, so to should you”

Saw the quest, Not sure what to think of Malyks origin, but it doesn’t necessarily disprove the notion that Sylvari are partly conscripted from deceased humans since we do not even know of the history regarding this second tree, It could have very well had a similar origin to the pale tree, A human finding it and planting it over the remains of his people(Humans were everywhere remember). Malyk might not even actually be sylvari, he seems perfect for a “Shapeshifting Trope”.

I feel the most supportive thing with this conscription concept is the fact that Arena net takes some practicality when it comes to races without constantly having to resort to gender dimorphism for sex appeal and the likes (Female Charr having cat mammary glans instead of going the humanesqe kind, for example). With this in mind it wouldn’t be practical for the pale tree to produce an influence race to combat the dragons with all these useless features that apply to something they are not. They have sterile sex organs and sexual dimorphism to the point where it feels like the tree didn’t purposely place these features with them, they merely came as a byproduct of the blueprint she borrowed. There also has to be some significance behind Arena Net pointing out that Ronan buried his family under the tree other than fertilizer. I don’t think they would mention that fact without it having some level of importance, as everything involving Ronan and Ventari and the tree is almost fundamental in importance to Sylvari existence.

Also, The animal companions being dogs, which would have also been buried under the tree, and not something like a fern owl or other random spawn the pale tree could chose to produce.. is really hinting at something.

Oh ma gawd. I never heard of this before. I had assumed they look human because of the pale tree’s location over the mass grave site.
I need to learn more about this! Do you think Malyck is wrong? Or possibly being influenced to think he is from another pale tree?

It’s just speculation, but normally I don’t take details about a race fundamental beginnings in a fantasy franchise as being nothing more than pointless flavor. There is a significant reason why Arena states Ronan grew the tree over the graves of his family. It also seems to go with the theory that the Pale Tree is Dragon Related, as every dragon revealed so far accept Primordus conscripts minions from previously existing creatures, or like Primordus, attempts to create their own versions. In that context we don’t even know if Primordus had copied the “DNA” of trolls, harpies and crabs to produce his destroyers.

As for Malyck, He’s pretty strange. It could be possible that there is another tree. I didn’t chose the white stag storyline for my Sylvari so I’m not sure if he mentions another tree or that is implied by him stating he’s not from the grove. It could be possible that perhaps first born sylvari traveled to another location and developed the ability to reproduce. Or he isn’t really a Sylvari, generally strange outsiders with backgrounds that don’t make any sense are prime subjects for Shapeshifter Tropes. Malyck could have very well not been Sylvari, but something mimicking one.

The cave that Ronan discovered was apparently full of seeds, so it seems likely that there is more than one tree. Personally, I think that being over Ronan’s grave site contributed to the Dream and to the morality of the sylvari, but the forms were pre-created. Perhaps whatever the pale tree originates from designed the forms.

True, but then how did the seeds get from said cave to another continent?

As for the dream contribution, I don’t think the sole morality of Ronans family was passed over, particularly because they were dead and buried. If anything could be taken from a corpse, it would be it’s form.

Recall that I’ve taken great questioning to the attributes of the Sylvari race under the idea that the Pale Tree or her creator designed them.

Sylvari look like they do because Anet wanted freaky looking plant people. The original design was much better.

With the current design, they wanted to do a hypothetical humanoid race if a plant was going to be humanoid.

The original design looked like your standard elf, but with greenish skin.

I generally don’t have a problem with elves but there are literally elves in almost every fantasy franchise (I dub them superhumans, because they essentially are everything humans want to be, beautiful, immortal and physically fit). So I support the changes to their design, however I wouldn’t think that Sylvaria are who a plant race would look like if it was going to be humanoid, I’d imagine something with far greater emphasis on the plant parts.

If a plant race was going to be humanoid, it would look like whatever it was designed to look like. A plant’s biology is so far away from an animal’s that if a plant were to emulate an animal, it would basically be an animal. I think Anet wanted to branch away from the traditional fantasy races (this would be why they offed the dwarves).

Anyways, Bard, you may be right about the form coming from Ronan. It just seems to me that there is equal evidence on both sides. Now that I think of it, it is possible that there are other trees, and they chose the human form simply because they were copying the Pale Tree, which grew first.

I think the reason they look humanish is simply for the game, it has no lore reason behind it other than that is how they are.

The moral compass of the Pale Tree is from the stone tablet Ronan placed as a tombstone on his family. That is the importance of the tree growing at this location, not the bodys underground.

People have talked about the true nature of the Sylvari are to be the 6th dragon’s minions. And there would seem to be some evidence to back that.
The Nightmare court seem to be the “true” sylvari. But they dont seem to be following a dragon, so the dragon is probably still asleep or trapped or something, and cant control its minions.

The other dragon’s have minions that look human, granted thats because several of the dragons corrupt living creatures to make its minions. yet none of them have corrupted sylvari minions, and thats probably because dragon’s cant corrupt each other’s minions.

There is a much simpler explanation:

Magic.

I doubt the sylvari are dragon minions. The other dragons corrupt humanoid things to make humanoid followers. Sure, the dragons can create followers from non-living and formless things (in fact, that is all Primordus does), but it seems that they only have a few truly aware followers at a time, and even then they are bound to the dragon’s will and imbued with immense power. If the sylvari are dragon-created, then the sixth dragon is either dead, or not malevolent.

I’d like to point out the fact that Plant based monsters have been present in the Maguuma jungle for as long as Guild Wars has been around; thorn stalkers are some of the first enemies you fight upon getting into the jungle. It’s not so farfetched that at least one of these types of plant based life would develop the intellect and will to be an honest to goodness race, as seems to be the case with the sylvari.

The official wiki on the Sylvari briefly talk about the Pale Tree being over a grave of humans which is why the Sylvari take on the forms and characteristics of humans (like the act of human reproductive organs etc). Though my question is a bit more than that though they’re some spoilers.