Guild Wars 2

In the cinematic, after Scarlet’s death, you see the path of the leyline she hit with the drill. Following that leyline, we reach the dragon underground and see him awaken. I noticed that the map showing the various probes in Tyria after you killed her seems to follow the path shown in the video. It goes from Lion’s Arch through the gendarran fields, then there is a series of dot (probes) going south through the metrica province (possibly near the Thermanauvo reactor which we see in the cinematic) and the last dot/probe you could see following that “path” of probes was directly on the grove. Just saying. I’ve always said that the Pale Tree and Mordremoth are link and he could still be sleeping underneath it. Of course, he didnt rise from the ground yet, but it could still take some time before he can.

There is bad writing in many games stories with the occasional plot holes like in the ME series which still had an incredible lore and story overall. As for Scarlet’s minions, I don’t think the whole factions joined her; just a few splinter groups she manipulated out of greed and fear. And they all gained something by joining her despite their losses. The combined technologies/magic used by the Molten Alliance soldiers clearly makes them stronger than any Flame Legion or Moletariate soldiers. Plus, those two factions are slowly dying as a result of the players’ actions in the Sorrow’s Embrace and Citadel of Flames dungeons so there are not many reasons for those who decided to follow Scarlet to go back in their respective faction. Their own factions may not even want them back BECAUSE they chose to follow Scarlet. And despite her numerous defeats, Scarlet always won something in return which made her stronger each time she fought us. She disrupted many events across Tyria, creating mayhem and fear wherever she went. She became a force to be reckoned with, more than the Dredge Moletariate and the Flame Legion ever were which may be appealing for any bad guys. Some may argue with me on that point but seriously, the Flame Legion were mostly a Charr problem/enemy and weren’t the boogeyman they used to be in GW1. I’m not saying that the Flame Legion is not dangerous, but their power clearly waned as the years went by. As for the Moletariate, it was bad for the dredge race but not a general threat to Tyria’s safety. But Scarlet IS a threat to anyone in Tyria. As for the Nightmare Court, if Scarlet’s objective turns out to be shattering the Dream (as I think it is), you can bet that some Sylvaris inside the Nightmare Court might want to help her destroy it instead of simply corrupting it. We can’t assume that every courtiers share all of Faolain’s desires/beliefs. So a splinter faction arose within the court to join Scarlet instead. Finally, I always thought Scarlet brought the Kraits onboard by promising them the return of their Gods through the creation of the Toxic Hybrid which the Kraits mistakenly believed to be the reincarnation of their prophet or something like that. If you than add the fact that we, the players, aka Scarlet’s mortal enemies, killed the Toxic Hybrid, the Kraits are bound to be kittened about the other races and might still agree to follow Scarlet, especially if she promised them payback. And she’s delivering it right now…

LOL. That’s a good one.

Well the Tengus are the wild card here and could really make a difference. Scarlet doesn’t seem to consider them in her masterplan and according to their proximity to Lion’s Arch, they could play a major role in future events. They could decide to shelter Lion’s Arch refugees in Dominion of the Winds if LA is destroyed or be the one to finally break the siege, which would be an awesome way to introduce them officially to the community. And, since I believe the Grove could be Scarlet ultimate/real target (see the Theory Crafting Post on the Story and Lore forum), they could also shelter the surviving sylvaris until they find a new home/new tree.

I think people are forgetting an important thing : this is a videogame. Not everything’s going to make sense or be lore-friendly, especially if you stop at every little details. For exemple, I could ask : how is it possible that the the Flame Legion still exists when we, the players, probably killed millions of them together over the course of the game ?

Posted by Shiren : “Having said that, Scarlet was interested in Lion’s Arch before the probe lit up.”

Well, that really bothers me …………… No matter what happens in the following weeks, I think that might be a plot hole. I always assumed that during the Flames and Frost/Dragon Bash festival, before Scarlet’s introduction, the devs didn’t really exactly knew where they were going with the Living Story arc. Or Scarlet was interested in Lion’s Arch at first for its political potential ? After all, it is the only united government with representatives from each major races and can easily be considered as the “capital” of Tyria. Even Zhaitan’s wanted it gone. But I’m not too convinced by my own argument.

“It’s a tree! What is it going to do? Grow cannons? If a bunch of airships show up to set fire to it, it is utterly helpless. We have no reason to assume the Pale Tree has any sort of defense what so ever. Not just because we haven’t seen any, but because it is a tree. A tree!” by Mad Queen Malafide (sorry I don’t know how to quote properly)

You made many good points and arguments but this one, I just can’t buy it. You’re comparing the Pale Tree to normal trees. You’re basically saying that the Pale Tree can’t defend itself because it’s a tree. Can a tree breed an entire race ? Does a tree speaks and think ? Does a tree possesses a spirit/soul or shows any signs of intelligence/awareness ? Are all trees magic in nature ? Are all trees 1000 feet high (possible exageration here) ? No. You can’t compare the Pale Tree to a regular tree. And if the Pale Tree really is helpless against exterior attacks and solely relies on the sylvaries to protect him, can we assume that without them, a few hundred guys with sharp axes could come and chop it down ? And it wouldnt defend itself in any ways ? I’m sorry but I disagree.

You’re going too far guys by trying to fit everything perfectly in the lore. I’ll show you an exemple to explain why I believe this : Let’s say I don’t give a **** about GW2’s personal story and just discover every regions of the game, one after the other. Once I arrive in Orr, I’ll meet the Pact and discover Fort Trinity. But they should’nt exist on my personal point of view because I didn’t do the personal story which is closely tied to the creation of the Pact and the establishment of Fort Trinity. If after discovering every regions, I decide to do the personal story, there is gonna be a few inconsistencies because I’ll participate in the creation of an order which I know already exists in certain regions of the game. And I can’t expect the developpers to create a new instanced version of Orr just because I didn’t follow the storyline before going to Orr.

I’m not sure I’d like to pay to relive the Living World stories but they could easily bring them back as fractals. The most memorable moment in Dragon Bash Festival was that aetherblade dungeon they added and it’s now possible to do it again in the form of two fractals (altough one is only the last boss and the other’s only the first half of the dungeon). They only need to use an NPC to explain the story of that fractal as the players complete it. For exemple, they could alter the Marionnette’s fight a bit and make a fractal boss out of it. An NPC could explain the background behind this particular event and the impact it had on Tyria while the players fight the boss. That way we get more fractals and a way to relive the important moments of the Living Story.

When I said evidences about Scarlet were scarce, I admit I may have exagerated … but we still have no clues as to what her final motive is except the fact that she wants to attack Lion’s Arch (and will attack it), that she’s obsessed with the dream and the concept of free will /independance (as hinted by Jory during the Edge of the Mists story) and that she’s searching for something that may be hidden under Lion’s Arch. What I did is speculate on what her ultimate motive might be and I still used the facts we have while doing so. But the truth is, what’s going to happen after the Lion’s Arch attack when the finale happens on march 4th is everyone’s guess. Mine was that it would be a final battle in the Grove, the explanation of Scarlet’s ultimate motive being shattering the Dream by destroying the Pale Tree but I’m only assuming this because this is what I would love to see. And if I’m so obsessed with the destruction of the Pale Tree, it is because of the part of Scarlet’s dream when she was in Omadd’s machine where she sees a big tree being strangled by red thorns. I always assumed that the Red Vines/Thorns represented Scarlet or the entity controlling her and that the Tree was the Pale Tree. Since then, I always thought Scarlet’s goal was to destroy the Pale Tree. Once again, this is my interpretation of her dream and I may be wrong. But it makes sense to me if you believe the dream is linked to the existence of the Pale Tree in some ways. Even more so if we assume that the dream could come from Mordremoth’s dormant state and that the tree is the only thing preventing him from completely awakening. Thus, the only way to shatter the dream could be to wake Mordremoth and the only way to do so would be to cripple the tree. Maybe not destroy it as Darcshriek said, but doing something to it in order to break its control over the Jungle Dragon. But I’m really grasping at straws here ….

Aethelbert : you may be right about the dragon’s location not being under the Pale Tree. I just thought it would be awesome to see the dragon emerge from the ashes of the Pale Tree at the end of this story arc. I thought the dragon’s proximity to the Pale Tree could explain why it is different from the other trees. I know Ronan was the one to plant the seed of the Pale Tree on his family’s graves and that he and Ventari took care of the tree until their deaths. It is assumed that Ventari’s teaching had an influence on the tree as it grows but seriously, it doesn’t explain the existence of the Dream or why the Pale Tree is different than his sibling. Surely, there is something more about the tree’s history that is yet to be revealed. I agree that Mordremoth could be anywhere and I’m happy to see that you share my opinion : that the Pale Tree is actually preventing from awakening. Although, why is this the Pale Tree’s mission ? Why not any of the other trees we know exist ? Why is the Pale Tree the only one to benefit from the Dream ? Because of Ventari’s tablet ? That’s clearly not a sufficient explanation to explain the link between the Pale Tree and the Dream. Because there’s a link between Mordremoth’s dreaming state and the Pale Tree ? I assume as much and I think you agree with me. But why is it only the Pale Tree that shares this connection ? Well, I think that’s because they share some proximity and because it was the Pale Tree’s destiny/purpose/wild hunt (?) to prevent this dragon’s rise from the very beginning. And since its origin is still a bit shady, I GUESSED that someone (maybe Ronan, Ventari or even someone/something else) planted the seed at that particular location because they wanted it to serve the purpose they intended for it. Once again, I might be totally wrong and the Jungle Dragon might be hiding in Maguuma but I wanted to share a bit more about why I thought the dragon could be beneath the Plae Tree since you seemed to think it was unlikely … and maybe it is.

Mad Queen Malafide, I doubt that the Pale Tree can’t defend itself on his own just because we never saw its defenses. As far as I know, the Pale Tree was never attacked before so I don’t know why it should have shown any of its defenses in the past just to show off. And I don’t want to dismiss their existence just because I’ve never seen them in action. To think that such an incredible living being such as the Pale Tree is absolutely helpless against any exterior attack is ridiculous. You’re sticking too much on the few evidences we have without trying to see past them in order to predict what could happen. Evidence about Scarlet are still scarce. But still, you’re making good points about Lion’s Arch being a tougher target than the Grove and I admit many of my own arguments are not rock-solid and lacks evidence or any proofs. (^^) In the end, it all comes down to my assumption about the leyline and the toxic poison. If it turns out to be true, it could explain why Scarlet wanted to attack Lion’s Arch so badly. But that theory has no evidence to support it so I doubt you’ll consider it. But I understand that it’s hard to put too much credibility on a bunch of hunches and theories…

[Part 5] Maybe she’s not after the Pale Tree Mad Queen Malafide, but I assumed in my theory that she can’t hurt the tree using conventional method. Thats why I was thinking she was gonna use the leyline in LA to poison the tree from its very roots. But its an assumption coming from nearly nothing and I know it. I doubt the tree would go down easily though if she were to attack it in a conventional way. Even the Nightmare Tower was hard to bring down. So maybe, even with her newly improved toxin, she can’t just take the tree down. Plus, I don’t think taking the fight directly to the grove without weakening the Pale Tree first would work because you can bet your kitten that tree got some insane defenses of its own. I doubt the Pale Tree is defenseless against Scarlet’s army. On the other hand, LA’s an easier target since it suffered a few series of attacks these past few years and Tyria’s forces are already stretch thin. I also believe that Scarlet will use her attack on LA to destroy its town portals in order to isolate or delay any tyrian reiforcements. Plus, using Mai Trin presence in the Edge of the Mists, she could also block the mists portals to ensure that no mists warriors come back to LA to defend the city against Scarlet invasion or to defend the Grove if some of my assumptions turns out to be true. That would make Lion’s Arch a strategicaly wise decision for Scarlet. From there, she could cripple one of the most successful government in Tyria, create a mayhem, isolate any reinforcements from any races in their own cities by taking out the hub of magical transport in Tyria and she could cripple the Pale Tree from a distance using the leyline without exposing her real goal till the very last moment. By then, it would be too late for us to reach the Grove and prevent the Pale Tree’s destruction because we don’t have a kittenload of magical airship like Scarlet does.

[Part 4] That’s about it. A lot of what I wrote here are pure assumptions and most of them are probably going to be dismissed by people who knows a lot more about the lore than me. But I do WANT to believe that Mordremoth is actually still sleeping under the Pale Tree and that the tree is keeping him in check which would explain why the dragon can’t even control the sylvari that are not under the « Dream’s protection ». Finally, I strongly believe that Scarlet is going to destroy the Pale Tree, freeing the dragon and bringing hell down upon her entire race (and Tyria). And future content will see the sylvaris creating a new home in the Maguuma Jungle while trying to ward off the dragon’s evil influence.

Sorry I know it was a few long replies and I’d like to add for those who believe nothing indicates the Pale Tree or the Grove as a possible target … You’re right. And I think that’s the point. It’s a strategy to hide her true goal, to make sure her own plan succeed without us having the time to mount a proper counter-strategy. This isn’t a coincidence if none of the event involving Scarlet happens in Sylvari controlled lands (except Kessex Hills which is closer to Divinity’s Reach imo) or near the Grove. It’s like she’s trying to convince us : “I’m not interested in the Grove! Don’t worry about it!”. Yeah, right ! Even if she may not be after the Pale Tree itself, just as DarcShriek said on my original post, she’s definetly trying to destroy the Dream and I don’t see her doing that from LA.

[Part 3]Now, if Scarlet is unknowingly Mordremoth’s minion (she hears his voice but reject the fact that he might be controlling her actions) as many players claimed, what does HE have to gain in the destruction of the Pale Tree? Well, if the sylvaris are indeed the Jungle Dragon’s minions and the Pale Tree was intended to be one of his original champions, he probably wants them back under his control. People assumed that he could not control them specifically because of the existence of the Pale Tree and the Dream of Dreams which would protect the sylvaris against his influence. It would explain why he might want the tree destroyed. That way he could get his “army” back. But since we know there are other existing trees like the Pale Tree that aren’t linked to the Dream and thus, doesn’t benefit from the “Dream’s protection”, why aren’t the sylvaris born from these trees corrupted by Mordremoth’s influence? Doesn’t he have other minions or armies? Why would he use Scarlet instead? Because he is not fully awakened yet and something is warding off his powers; he is a prisoner. Let me explain my theory. I think that Mordremoth’s conscience is awake (though not entirely) but his body is still in a dormant state. Remember, Primordus wasn’t fully awaken in Eye of the North but his destroyers were still running amok, which indicated a certain level of awareness on his part but he didn’t rise until many years later. Right now, all dragons are awakened, except for Mordremoth (and maybe Bubbles but from what the ocean races tell us, he has awakened as well). With everything that has happened in Tyria over the last years, why haven’t we heard or seen anything related to Mordremoth? He should be awakened by now. Why would he be hiding? My assumption is that he is sleeping beneath the Pale Tree and that the Pale Tree is actually keeping him in its dormant state to prevent his actual rise. How?

According to what we know, dragons usually emerge when there is too much magic in the world. They consume all of it and return into slumber while magic slowly leaks from their body back into the world until the time of their return comes and the cycle begins anew. Having lost all the magical energy they had consumed during their previous rise, it’s their insatiable hunger for magic that eventually wakes them up. It is safe to assume that when they return they are weaker then they originally were which would explain why there is a delay between their «first awakening» and their actual emergence. The way I see it, Primordus didn’t rise immediately at the end of EotN because he needed to strengthen his powers first by consuming magic. In Mordremoth’s case, the Pale Tree is preventing him from gaining back his strength and fully awakening his body. I can easily picture the Jungle Dragon in its dormant state, deep beneath the earth under the Pale Tree, entangled in the tree’s giant roots which prevent him from devouring the flow of magical energy coming from the leyline. I think the Pale Tree’s purpose was actually to prevent Mordremoth’s rise. Maybe the gods or the druids, knowing more information about this powerful and dangerous foe, directed Ronan and Ventari’s actions. The Dream of Dreams might even be the spiritual representation of Mordremoth’s prison/dormant state and the Nightmare would be a direct consequence of his dark influence over this realm. And through the Dream, the dragon managed to pierce the veil of his prison to create a connection to a singular sylvari which obsessions could easily serve his needs. Now, we could ask ourselves why the Pale Tree doesn’t reveal that fact and doesn’t try to actually kill the dragon while it is still in a weakened state. A quick hypothesis can easily explain why. There’s a probability that by killing the dragon, the Pale Tree and all sylvaris would die. The only problem to this hypothesis is that Zhaitan’s minions are still running amok, even after his demise. But remember that each dragon is different and that their corruption/minions might work differently. Plus, Zhaitan may still be alive (but this is wishful thinking after a disappointing final fight).

[Part 2] Why would she do such a thing? Destroying the Pale Tree is the only thing from which Scarlet could truly benefit. Each time we learned a bit more about Scarlet, there was something about her persona that kept coming back: her insatiable desire for independence, to free herself and her people from their predestined paths. And I believe that is what makes Scarlet such a nice villain, because you can easily understand her obsession and her motives (although not all her actions). It is true that sylvaris are often born to fulfill defined roles in their society and that their desires to complete their Wild Hunts play a major part in the development of their identity. Just look at Trahearne. His “destiny” was to purge Orr from its corruption and even though he had no idea how to accomplish such a feat until the opportunity presented itself, every action he took in his life served towards the completion of this unique goal. It literally shaped him.

This is my own theories/beliefs I wrote this morning on the Living World forum concerning Scarlet and some of her motives/background. I wanted to share it with you guys to see what you think of it since I should have posted this here in the first place. I know some of you are going to litteraly destroy most of these ideas and I’m totally okai with it. Just do it respectfully please. Before you start reading this, let me say that this theory rely on a lot of assumptions and a lot of theories that were already developed by other people. I merely wanted to add my own ideas and beliefs regarding what’s going on with Scarlet’s story arc. You should also know that I’m French Canadian and that my English is not perfect. So there’s probably going to be a lot of writing errors, even in this little introduction. If you notice them, it’s normal. I did my best. I hope you appreciate reading my own theories. I’d also like to give credits to every fans of Guild Wars 2 who came up with their own theories, some of which greatly influenced my own beliefs.

[Part1] My own theory about what’s going to happen next:

Scarlet will attack Lion’s Arch. That much is certain and it was just confirmed as I wrote these lines. She’ll launch a massive attack on the city’s defenses while bringing down her massive drilling machine in the lake (where her probe can be found) in order to create a tunnel to reach the magical leyline beneath the city. I think it is clear now that her probes where actually researching the network of magical leylines scattered across the globe. Once she has access to this leyline, I believe she’ll use the powerful poison she created in the Tower of Nightmares and mix it inside the magical current. Of course, I don’t even know if it is possible to do such a thing, to use the magical leylines as conductors, but anything is possible in a magical fantasy world. Now, why would she do this? She wants to poison and cripple the Pale Tree. I strongly believe that this poison was created to weaken or even destroy the Pale Tree. This is not a coincidence if the Tower of Nightmare looked like a giant tree-like tower. I think that it was created from the same type of seeds from which the Pale Tree originated. That way Scarlet could concoct the right poison suiting the “biology” of her target. But how is it related to the leyline beneath Lion’s Arch?

As a powerful magic entity, I believe that the Pale Tree needs a tremendous amount of magic energy in order to maintain the Dream as a whole. We can only assume the insane level of magical resources it takes to breed new sylvaris, to nurture them in the dream and to continuously preserve their connection to it. So, where does the Pale Tree finds all the magic it needs in order to do all those things? We know that most beings, except maybe the gods, aren’t inherently magic in nature. They tap into the magic energies of the world through their environment (or so I believe). Even the Elder Dragons need to consume magic and, according to the lore, once they consume it all, they return into their dormant state until their next awakening. We can assume then that after the elder dragon’s appearances, magic completely disappears from the world, at least for a time. Magic is then a finite resource that recycles itself over the course of time. And I believe that, just as any other beings, the Pale Tree needs to tap into the world in order to acquire its magical energies and that it uses one of those leylines as an infinite source of magic in order to maintain the dream. The Pale Tree’s roots might be directly connected to it and, just as dragons consume magic, the Pale Tree feeds off of this constant flow of natural energy, using it for its purpose. And that leyline is the one Scarlet was searching for all along. She’s going to pour her poison directly inside the magical vein that flows through the Pale Tree in order to weaken it considerably. In this weakened state, she could then destroy it by using the powerful Aethercannon she was testing during the Giant Twisted Marionette meta-event. At first, I thought the marionette’s purpose was to distract us while Scarlet collected the energy needed to complete her drilling machine (because the gigantic platform from which the marionette hanged was identical to the upper parts of the drill depicted in Scarlet’s lair). While I do believe the drill will eventually be attached to this giant platform, I think the drill itself is already finished and ready. The only thing Scarlet lacked to complete her master plan was a weapon powerful enough to destroy the Pale Tree in its weakened state, thus the Aethercannon.

That’s about it. A lot of what I wrote here are pure assumptions and most of them are probably going to be dismissed by people who knows a lot more about the lore than me. But I do WANT to believe that Mordremoth is actually still sleeping under the Pale Tree and that the tree is keeping him in check which would explain why the dragon can’t even control the sylvari that are not under the « Dream’s protection ». Finally, I strongly believe that Scarlet is going to destroy the Pale Tree, freeing the dragon and bringing hell down upon her entire race (and Tyria). And future content will see the sylvaris creating a new home in the Maguuma Jungle while trying to ward off the dragon’s evil influence.

Now, if Scarlet is unknowingly Mordremoth’s minion (she hears his voice but reject the fact that he might be controlling her actions) as many players claimed, what does HE have to gain in the destruction of the Pale Tree? Well, if the sylvaris are indeed the Jungle Dragon’s minions and the Pale Tree was intended to be one of his original champions, he probably wants them back under his control. People assumed that he could not control them specifically because of the existence of the Pale Tree and the Dream of Dreams which would protect the sylvaris against his influence. It would explain why he might want the tree destroyed. That way he could get his “army” back. But since we know there are other existing trees like the Pale Tree that aren’t linked to the Dream and thus, doesn’t benefit from the “Dream’s protection”, why aren’t the sylvaris born from these trees corrupted by Mordremoth’s influence? Doesn’t he have other minions or armies? Why would he use Scarlet instead? Because he is not fully awakened yet and something is warding off his powers; he is a prisoner. Let me explain my theory. I think that Mordremoth’s conscience is awake (though not entirely) but his body is still in a dormant state. Remember, Primordus wasn’t fully awaken in Eye of the North but his destroyers were still running amok, which indicated a certain level of awareness on his part but he didn’t rise until many years later. Right now, all dragons are awakened, except for Mordremoth (and maybe Bubbles but from what the ocean races tell us, he has awakened as well). With everything that has happened in Tyria over the last years, why haven’t we heard or seen anything related to Mordremoth? He should be awakened by now. Why would he be hiding? My assumption is that he is sleeping beneath the Pale Tree and that the Pale Tree is actually keeping him in its dormant state to prevent his actual rise. How?

According to what we know, dragons usually emerge when there is too much magic in the world. They consume all of it and return into slumber while magic slowly leaks from their body back into the world until the time of their return comes and the cycle begins anew. Having lost all the magical energy they had consumed during their previous rise, it’s their insatiable hunger for magic that eventually wakes them up. It is safe to assume that when they return they are weaker then they originally were which would explain why there is a delay between their «first awakening» and their actual emergence. The way I see it, Primordus didn’t rise immediately at the end of EotN because he needed to strengthen his powers first by consuming magic. In Mordremoth’s case, the Pale Tree is preventing him from gaining back his strength and fully awakening his body. I can easily picture the Jungle Dragon in its dormant state, deep beneath the earth under the Pale Tree, entangled in the tree’s giant roots which prevent him from devouring the flow of magical energy coming from the leyline. I think the Pale Tree’s purpose was actually to prevent Mordremoth’s rise. Maybe the gods or the druids, knowing more information about this powerful and dangerous foe, directed Ronan and Ventari’s actions. The Dream of Dreams might even be the spiritual representation of Mordremoth’s prison/dormant state and the Nightmare would be a direct consequence of his dark influence over this realm. And through the Dream, the dragon managed to pierce the veil of his prison to create a connection to a singular sylvari which obsessions could easily serve his needs. Now, we could ask ourselves why the Pale Tree doesn’t reveal that fact and doesn’t try to actually kill the dragon while it is still in a weakened state. A quick hypothesis can easily explain why. There’s a probability that by killing the dragon, the Pale Tree and all sylvaris would die. The only problem to this hypothesis is that Zhaitan’s minions are still running amok, even after his demise. But remember that each dragon is different and that their corruption/minions might work differently. Plus, Zhaitan may still be alive (but this is wishful thinking after a disappointing final fight).

Why would she do such a thing? Destroying the Pale Tree is the only thing from which Scarlet could truly benefit. Each time we learned a bit more about Scarlet, there was something about her persona that kept coming back: her insatiable desire for independence, to free herself and her people from their predestined paths. And I believe that is what makes Scarlet such a nice villain, because you can easily understand her obsession and her motives (although not all her actions). It is true that sylvaris are often born to fulfill defined roles in their society and that their desires to complete their Wild Hunts play a major part in the development of their identity. Just look at Trahearne. His “destiny” was to purge Orr from its corruption and even though he had no idea how to accomplish such a feat until the opportunity presented itself, every action he took in his life served towards the completion of this unique goal. It literally shaped him.

Before you start reading this, let me say that this theory rely on a lot of assumptions and a lot of theories that were already developed by other people. I merely wanted to add my own ideas and beliefs regarding what’s going on with Scarlet’s story arc. You should also know that I’m French Canadian and that my English is not perfect. So there’s probably going to be a lot of writing errors, even in this little introduction. If you notice them, it’s normal. I did my best. I hope you appreciate reading my own theories. I’d also like to give credits to every fans of Guild Wars 2 who came up with their own theories, some of which greatly influenced my own beliefs.

My own theory about what’s going to happen next:

Scarlet will attack Lion’s Arch. That much is certain and it was just confirmed as I wrote these lines. She’ll launch a massive attack on the city’s defenses while bringing down her massive drilling machine in the lake (where her probe can be found) in order to create a tunnel to reach the magical leyline beneath the city. I think it is clear now that her probes where actually researching the network of magical leylines scattered across the globe. Once she has access to this leyline, I believe she’ll use the powerful poison she created in the Tower of Nightmares and mix it inside the magical current. Of course, I don’t even know if it is possible to do such a thing, to use the magical leylines as conductors, but anything is possible in a magical fantasy world. Now, why would she do this? She wants to poison and cripple the Pale Tree. I strongly believe that this poison was created to weaken or even destroy the Pale Tree. This is not a coincidence if the Tower of Nightmare looked like a giant tree-like tower. I think that it was created from the same type of seeds from which the Pale Tree originated. That way Scarlet could concoct the right poison suiting the “biology” of her target. But how is it related to the leyline beneath Lion’s Arch?

As a powerful magic entity, I believe that the Pale Tree needs a tremendous amount of magic energy in order to maintain the Dream as a whole. We can only assume the insane level of magical resources it takes to breed new sylvaris, to nurture them in the dream and to continuously preserve their connection to it. So, where does the Pale Tree finds all the magic it needs in order to do all those things? We know that most beings, except maybe the gods, aren’t inherently magic in nature. They tap into the magic energies of the world through their environment (or so I believe). Even the Elder Dragons need to consume magic and, according to the lore, once they consume it all, they return into their dormant state until their next awakening. We can assume then that after the elder dragon’s appearances, magic completely disappears from the world, at least for a time. Magic is then a finite resource that recycles itself over the course of time. And I believe that, just as any other beings, the Pale Tree needs to tap into the world in order to acquire its magical energies and that it uses one of those leylines as an infinite source of magic in order to maintain the dream. The Pale Tree’s roots might be directly connected to it and, just as dragons consume magic, the Pale Tree feeds off of this constant flow of natural energy, using it for its purpose. And that leyline is the one Scarlet was searching for all along. She’s going to pour her poison directly inside the magical vein that flows through the Pale Tree in order to weaken it considerably. In this weakened state, she could then destroy it by using the powerful Aethercannon she was testing during the Giant Twisted Marionette meta-event. At first, I thought the marionette’s purpose was to distract us while Scarlet collected the energy needed to complete her drilling machine (because the gigantic platform from which the marionette hanged was identical to the upper parts of the drill depicted in Scarlet’s lair). While I do believe the drill will eventually be attached to this giant platform, I think the drill itself is already finished and ready. The only thing Scarlet lacked to complete her master plan was a weapon powerful enough to destroy the Pale Tree in its weakened state, thus the Aethercannon.