Guild Wars 2

Hi there. (SPOILER ALERT)
I have a peculiar Thought process… that might upset space-time…
So… when Guild wars 2 began, and the Big Bad was Zhaitan, each race had a singular direction (of course with some off-branching) timeline. We all were injected into the war vs. the Elder Dragon Zhaitan, we all had to choose a Particular Order(1 of 3), and we all experienced our rebirth as Pact Commander.
Season 1 Hits, and we are still the Commander, but as we are progressing along, another wave of Heroes emerges, and they, too… must choose an order, Slay Zhaitan, and then come along with us.
but as we are in the present, they are playing through the past… hang on, it gets more bizzarre.
As the Living world concludes and we defeat Scarlett, there exists in the same space and in the same timeframe… two distinct groups. those who knew Lion’s arch before BLA, and those who knew it after. Two distinct, fixed moments in time, and yet, individuals from both groups can interact in the present.
Time Fractures again during Season two, with our original group discovering Mordremoth is awake and actively making havoc for the Pact, the Commander, and Destiny’s Edge(and 2.0) Zhaitan has long been slain, and we are moving on Mordremoth’s domain, taking the Battle to yet another Elder Dragon. Group Two has joined us(because, why not… for them this is current history) But at that same exact time… another wave of new adventurers arrives… setting their eyes on choosing an Order, Forging the Pact, and slaying…. Zhaitan?
wait, we killed him, right? so how are they fighting him, and more importantly, how can we see them making their progression towards him….when we killed him?
(wibbly wobbly-timey-wimey)
so… groups One and Two are now Entering the realm of Heart of Thorns. We are taking the fight To Mordremoth on a massive level. Eir dies. the Pact is all but destroyed. Destiny’s Edge is missing and separated. At this point, even Group 3(the little darlings) have caught up to us and joined in. all is right with the universe… untill you notice it again…
another wave hits. this time a Big One. heroes from all over start showing up… and you guessed it, they have chosen an order, forged the Pact and become the Commander(i’m not even touching this one) and they are hell-bent on slaying Zhaitan. you know, the Dragon we killed already. 3 times Some of them are even shunting through time and going straight for Mordremoth alongside of us, ignoring Zhaitan(and the pact, and their becoming commander) completely.
but HOW?
(wibbly-wobbly, Timey-wimey)
And now, as We have Defeated Mordremoth, and are racing into the Fire Islands, and then into the North, another wave hits. and you guessed it, they are gonna Kill Zhaitan too.
Now… Lorewise, I understand as a player that there is importance in making sure your patricular hero progresses in a linear format… from humble beginnings to legendary status.
But at the same time, it leads me to question something.
Aside from the lore-aspect, would the wibbly wobbly time loop go away if we updated the personal stories? I know it’s an intense endeavor and it requires voice-actors, content creation, Storyboard artists, etc…But think of it this way.
I have Just arrived In Shaemoor. the town is plagued by Centaurs. I overcome the odds and assist Logan Thackery in defeating the elemental hands that the Centaur Champ left behind. and when I wake up, and step out into the world, I stand next to someone who has:
Defeated Zhaitan,
Defeated Scarlett Briar
Defeated Mordremoth
Witnessed and defended the Birth of Aurene, Glint’s legacy…
and formed Dragon’s Watch with the members of Destiny’s Edge 2.0
All of the things I now must do, but they have already been completed(except i cannot kill Scarlett)
So I guess what I am asking here is… What are some possible update Personal Story ideas? Do we need them at all?

I like what you’re getting at in this post, imo its easy to follow and does point out an issue with the lack of update for personal story…though I do suggest putting in a Spoiler warning somewhere ahead before readers continue on!
Good points though, I think they won’t up date the story though because..they want people to still be able to play through those (But if that were the case i feel like they should let em play through season 1 too?)

As it happens, I had a weird issue like this earlier.

I’ve been doing the original personal story with my revenant lately, slowly, one chapter a week or so. I’m one or two story instances past the point where the Pale Tree asks you what’s your greatest fear. I picked “letting an innocent die”, which will eventually lead to the mission where demolitionist Tonn dies. I’m not there yet though.

So, imagine my surprise when his wife, Pact medic Ceera, started yelling at me for letting Tonn die, when I talked to her at the camp near the entrance of Auric Basin.

I mean, I get it. I really really do. Time is not ever going to be Linear in any MMO. but Yes, Yes it is. Overall, the progression of the Tyrian Timeline is, in fact, very linear. While every single player has their own particular Branch of the timeline, they are assisting in the progression of the Tyrian Timeline, and thus their progression should also, by deduction, be linear. Except it doesn’t have to be. Players can race “through time” from their first steps in their starting zone directly to the End-game current events, completely ignoring the historical significance of what happened between the Time of Zhaitan and the current part of the Tyrian Timeline. and in Manasa Devi’s post, she pointed out how wobbly that can actually be.

The original idea was a living world with a story that played out live, hence why the story is dated in the journal. Playing through old episodes is considered to be reliving past memories, as your character is assumed to have already done it. There definitely isn’t going to be any major updates to old content.

I’ve been treating it, especially with one character who loves reading about history since she’s in the Priory, as if she’s reading about those events. She’s read about how Zhaitan was defeated, and is now reading about the events leading up to the Pact’s assault on Mordremoth (she hasn’t been to the Heart of Thorns maps yet).

I think this approach works for her because whenever I read a book, I find myself placed right there in the action, even though I’m not there.

I actually had a quite funny conversation with my partner just a few days ago; I got LWS2 after HoT had come out, and he played through it with me… on his revenant. So we were trying to theorize ways that could have made sense lore-wise. In the end I decided he must “have been” a warrior or guardian at the time that, like many NPCs do, just used skills that his class isn’t know to use (and that, since Rytlock only uses mainhand sword, my partner’s revenant obviously invented the staff, hammer, and shield skills himself – and taught the shield skills to my mesmer, since the chronomancer and herald shield skills are so similar :P ). Sometimes trying to imagine up reasonable lore for these things is pretty fun imo.

Besides the obvious “its an mmo with thousands of people and it has lore and story” and “its just a game” i try to look at it like this:

-I create a new character who lives in the current timeline,the timeline of whatever current up to date living world season is (why? cause only those actually change my enviroment such as brisban wildlands, lornars pass, kessex hills, lions arch ect)

-The world it self is set up in such a way that it has its own lore,stuff thats going on (dynamic events and renown hearts) which doesnt really interfear with the living world much.

-When i go play my PERSONAL zhaitan story its just that.Im playing in a old flashbacky timeline in a instanced zone. Heck even when you enter lions arch with destinys edge you play in the old lions arch.

-When i play with another player who is a dragon slayer ex commander newly baby dragon trainer in the world doing guild missions or dungeons…well…nothing changes.. he still acts the same way as i do.. so whats the point?

I am glad to hear these variations on how players react as their characters whilst whisking through the timeline. While some of you see what you are doing as reliving memories, others are trying to patch together their own version of how everything has transpired. in a way, we, by doing what has been observed here, have added to our own branch of the Tyrian Timeline and the lore surrounding it with our own distinct points of view. While I still stand firm on the notion that there is room for “updated” personal stories for players currently entering the world, one where they may have never had to face Zhaitan, (or mordremoth for that matter) at all… that at some point, the newly found heroes of Tyria may not even rise as “The Commander” but rather a member of dragon’s watch, led by a Mysterious Commander they have never even seen. Perhaps… though not likely the way things are going, we could see a shift in how we start out as regular average farmers or townsfolk that have to suddenly take up arms against an overruling class.
While I promise you the timeline in Tyria is in fact Linear, i will admit that our specific timelines, those that branch off the main timeline, are not linear at all, and malleable, and even if the Major events in Tyria are fixed points in time, we can still go back to that point and participate in them. I guess that’s the joy of the game itself.
But I still think we can advance the hero’s timeline a wee bit.