The word “Avatar” is a religious technical term of Hindu origin used of a concept similar to the Western idea of “incarnation”: The manifestation or appearance of a deity within a plane of existence. The term is used in GW2 infrequently; there is an avatar of Balthazar (the PC becomes the god’s avatar during his or her personal story), an avatar of Grenth (there are two examples of this: one encountered during the PC’s personal story and another, an elite transformation skill), an avatar of Melandru (an elite transformational skill), an avatar of the Sun (merely referred to but never encountered) and an avatar of the Pale Tree. Balthazar, Grenth and Melandru are all human deities, demonstrating that the use of the term “avatar” in relation to them stays true to the nature of the concept. In the short story “What Scarlet Saw” the Pale Tree is described as “godlike”, demonstrating that the use of the term “avatar” in relation to it is (probably) also true to the nature of the concept. Regarding the avatar of the Sun, although it is never encountered in-game (the hylek trying to become an avatar of the Sun is thwarted in his plans) the Sun is worshiped by the hylek (in Caledon Forest a group event called “Champion Of The Sun” confirms this), again demonstrating that the use of the term “avatar” by the hylek is true to the nature of the concept. These observations are very important; the consistency of the circumstances behind the employment of the term “avatar” evinces that the definition of “avatar” in GW2 is almost identical to that of “avatar” in the real-world.
So why all the fuss? Lore-enthusiasts will probably already know the answer to this question. There is one more situation in which the term “avatar” is employed in-game: It is used of three Summoned Husks during the meta-event “The Battle For Wychmire Swamp”. These husks are called the “Avatars Of Blight”.
At first glance, the “Avatars Of Blight” are the odd-ones-out in the previous list of examples. In every other case, only one avatar of a corresponding deity is seen at a time. Here, we have three avatars. Surely, then, this is a case of incorrect labeling – that is, development must have made a mistake. The “Avatars Of Blight” don’t represent a deity or deities – the term is not used like it is everywhere else in the game; instead, here it is used in the vaguer sense to describe the embodiment of something, regardless of it’s origins.
Or is it? Hindu religion often referred to the existence of multiple avatars of a deity within the same plane of existence. Moreover, the avatar of Grenth encountered during the PC’s personal story is one of the deity’s reapers – of which there are (when last confirmed) seven, suggesting that Grenth may have seven avatars. So whilst we can concede that the “Avatars Of Blight” may not correspond to known (i.e. identified) deities within GW2, there is no reason to consider that they do not represent powerful beings.
To what should we look for greater insight into the “Avatars Of Blight”? The best candidate is the Avatar Of The Pale Tree. Although it looks nothing like the “Avatars Of Blight”, the Avatar Of The Pale Tree is the most prominent example of a race of plant-beings we know as sylvari. In the same way, the Avatars Of Blight are the most prominent examples of plant-beings known as (Summoned) Husks. Still, the problem we quickly encounter during this comparison is the evident lack of greater beings to associate with the “Avatars Of Blight”. The Avatar Of The Pale Tree is a manifestation of a tree. Likewise, the other examples of avatars are representations of something – or someone – greater than themselves. So what are the “Avatars Of Blight” manifestations of? “Dead” trees?
There is evidence in support of this. Two locations at which Summoned Husks can be observed – Wychmire Swamp (which I will use to denote not only the swamp but also Twilight Arbor given it’s geographic proximity to the mire) and Dreamdark Enclave – are the sites of the trunks of dead trees. Indeed, there are numerous dead trees at Wychmre Swamp; maybe three, maybe more?
In conclusion, i’m not sure whether we can make much more headway on this subject at this point, given the information available in-game and on the Wiki. However, in my opinion, the nature and identity of these three beings remains one of the most enduring mysteries of GW2 right now.