Guild Wars 2

I don’t think there are enough asura to pull this off. Maybe they could take one city like this, maybe two if they move quickly and get around before word gets out and around. But even that’s a big maybe. But all of them?

And golems aren’t a reliable military force for Asura. They tend to explode/malfunction/turn on their creators and attempt to become our New Machine Overlords.

And even if they had a golem army, I can’t see them taking either Hoelbrak or The Black Citadel as easily as you describe. The norn would be too formidable and the charr would, at the very least, be able to hold out till their runners managed to go get reinforcements. That citadel is made to withstand a siege. I’d think everyone has a gun in Lion’s Arch, so they’d probably be fine, too.

DR might be in trouble with all the infighting there weakening it. Also, the placement of the Asura Gate in the very heart of the city would make it difficult. An enemy coming thru there, if they took the courtyard, could dig in very effectively very quickly.

And The Grove is very flammable.

They’d be the only towns I’d really consider in possible danger. Even then though, I doubt their people would go quietly into the night.

And on a separate note, could the asura even invade any racial capitals from Rata Sum? I thought the gates were tunnels btwn two set points. So they’d have to stage it from Lion’s Arch, which means taking that first.

As for why they don’t try all this… you’re right. They probably don’t want to. Or at least the ones who want to don’t have the power to do so. (Yay for Arcane Council gridlock?)

Also, its a stupid comparison on the teacher’s part considering the dragon the Zephyrites so admire, Glint, was purposefully hunted down and killed by an ED for betrayal and ruining their plans to kill off all the races back in the day. That’s not rising mindlessly like the tides and just leaving destruction wherever it happens to occur. That’s sapience and free will.

Also, I think the killing of Glint is proof Kralkattorik’s evil. And its not just the action, but the reasoning that makes him so. She betrayed him to protect people and that’s what he kills her over. B/c his plans were to hurt and/or use those people. If Glint can know the difference btwn right and wrong there, so can he. And if he can, so can the rest of the EDs. That they choose not to care doesn’t somehow absolve them of culpability.

Owens is the guy who has an event running every 15 minutes or so, asking adventurers to run his supplies up to the Zephyr Sanctum. His chests have a picture of a gryphon on them. (See attached for a close up.)

What trading group/company is this? Is it an organization that we’ve seen somewhere else in Tyria or is it unique to him and possibly just his own logo?

Duke Nukem.6783:

i actually have a character named donald trump i should have done this

Yes, you should have. Hang your head in shame.

selfdisplaced.5781:

It seems since the Cutthroat Politics update, the wooden chests stopped giving kite fortunes and scraps and now just give support tokens makes scraps even harder to come by.

Actually I still got a few kite fortunes from wooden boxes when I was running/swimming around in Gendarren fields this morning.

LameFox.6349:

Blackwyn.8127:

Don’t hang yourself up on the ‘kill his family’ thing, it’s just an expression.
Although if there was 10,000g on one end and his family on the other and you could only save one. I think he would go for the gold :P

Well, do we know his family? Maybe not saving them isn’t even such a bad idea.

Haha Indeed. This is a valid consideration. XD

Astralporing.1957:

Actually, we don’t. As soon as she announces that she’s returning the money, she will see that the number of money lost heavily outweights the number of money reclaimed (for a many reasons, both legitimate and more shady). Also, lot of people that lost their money will never get any of it back (some because they are no longer in LA. Some, because they died). The end result may be a good propaganda, but is unlikely to be anything more.
And as for the ledgers… what honest smuggler keeps ledgers???

I’d bet the sylvari guy does keep a ledger, but he’s probably new. lol

I know it won’t be the exact amount the merchants lost, but it can be haggled over and divided up. The logistics being difficult doesn’t mean the money is her’s to keep. There’s enough to go on to get it back to the people who lost it. The good choice there is to do so, annoying logistics concerns be kittened.

Astralporing.1957:

Alleluia.1320:

If so, we know who it belongs to. How much each merchant is missing and needs returned wouldn’t be that hard to determine.

yeah, we’ll just ask them…
Ironically, most of this may be even Evon’s (directly or indirectly).

Didn’t say it was a perfect solution. :P But they likely have ledgers that can be checked. Point is, there’s a viable way to at least attempt to get it back to the original owners. Its not an abandoned dollar on a deserted street corner. We know who took it and who they probably took it from.

Astralporing.1957:

Also – is there a reason to make a thread that is almost identical (includng the title) to an already existing one? ( https://forum-en.gw2archive.eu/forum/livingworld/cutthroat/Interesting-Case-Study )

Fair point. Thread merge?

Blackwyn.8127:

Don’t hang yourself up on the ‘kill his family’ thing, it’s just an expression.
Although if there was 10,000g on one end and his family on the other and you could only save one. I think he would go for the gold :P

You don’t like him. We get it. :P

Yeah the rewards add more nuance to the choice, but I think the op’s question there was if you will let the potential benefit to you (getting the fractal you like) allow you to overlook the bad behavior and moral character of the guy offering it.

Its hardly an accurate social experiment b/c any negative consequences resulting from picking the “evil” candidate won’t be real and we know it. Also, I have hope Evon has some kind of depth to him and isn’t just the “what you see is what you get”, cardboard cutout, stereotype of an evil business man. So i’m hoping the evil is just for show or he’ll have a bit of a Tony Stark turn around. Minus the suit. (Or with it, maybe. That could be cool. lol)

Would have preferred to have two candidates on more equal moral ground, personally. Or really, just have left Kiel as the good cop-crusader she is, but have given Evon more depth. As it stands right now, though, its clearly a choice btwn two sets of ethics. If you are basing your choice on the fractals/potential story in the future and ignoring the candidate’s ethics, that’s a part of the overall “experiment” too.

Barabbas.8715:

Then again, concepts like “good” and “evil” are only opinions anyway.

As is the opinion that they’re opinions. :P

But yeah, I would describe Evon as greedy, arrogant. Unlikable, even. But there is certainly no basis to think he’d kill his family (warband? business partner? w/e).

Its a choice between good and evil, but there are degrees of both. Evon’s behavior is not grave enough to lump him in the category the OP is putting him in.

Infamous Darkness.3284:

Evon keeps the loot for his campaign while Kiel decides to return the possesions to their “rightful owners” which I don’t know how the hell you would find that out. (ex. if you find a dollar on the street and no one else is around how are you going to find whos it was to return it to them. since we were defending piles of gold similar scenario.)

I thought it was implied that the Aetherblades stole that gold, and w/e supplies there were on that ship, from the merchants up at the Sanctum dock? As a result of the raids they’ve been pulling?

If so, we know who it belongs to. How much each merchant is missing and needs returned wouldn’t be that hard to determine.

I’ve tried it in Lion’s Arch, in the Labyrinthine Cliffs, in Divinity’s Reach…

Is there a story step I missed where I had to active the journal somehow once I received it?

Siphaed.9235:

Speculations on what “QJ” is for the name of the update? Because that’s how they code their update photos with the name initials embedded (as seen in Sky Pirates, Cutthroat Politics, Dragon Bash, and every other update prior).

[…]
Queen’s Jubilee?

Actually, how long has she been in power? Queen’s Jubilee is a very plausible guess if an anniversary of her reign is coming up. And the story could be she’s reviving the entertainment district in direct competition with Caudecus’ bread-and-circuses carnival.

SpeedFiend.4521:

Evon is presumed to be Mr. E from Dragon Bash.

I don’t believe it is accurate to say he is “presumed to be Mr. E”. Its a bit of conjecture here on the forums. I hope its right, personally, as I think it’d be very cool. But its hardly a widespread assumption.

SpeedFiend.4521:

On the other hand, we have Ellen Kiel who offers cheaper waypoints. The price of waypoints is determined by the Arcane Council. The Arcane council cannot agree on anything, resulting in the Inquest representative always being the tie-breaker. Yeah, do the math.

This is an interesting point. I still think there’s a possibility there is no lore reason behind it, just the devs wanting to give Ellen a discount to offer in her campaign. However, if there is lore behind this, and its meant to be thought more deeply about, then this implies that Ellen somehow has the Inquest backing her. Which is weird, especially considering their involvement in the Aetherblades.

What’s the view of the Inquest in Lion’s Arch? And, for those who actually completed the Aetherblade content, was it stated in-game that the Inquest was involved with the Aetherblades? Or was it just some asura who had Inquest ties at one point in their lives, but weren’t shown to be acting as Inquest agents while with the Aetherblades?

Basically, I am wondering what Kiel’s view of the Inquest could be and if she could honestly not know just how bad they are or what they’ve been involved in lately. If the answer is that she could, then she’s being had. If the answer is no… Well. Ellen Kiel just got more interesting.

GoddessHrist.8472:

Esplen.3940:

They were created by the Asura PC, but they’re in the Shiverpeaks because of Thaumanova.

What’s the source on this? The wiki doesn’t list any connections between the two and I’d like to verify this info.

Ronah.2869:

Esplen.3940:

But what happens if you support BOTH of them to get the titles. o-o

You can get both titles but you can display one at a time, isn’t it?

Not sure if there is even confirmation there ARE titles yet. That’s what this thread was for.

Fransson.7910:

Why can’t we be able to change that little emblem next to your name (the one that tells people if you have explored the entire world or not) into a button with kiel or evon’s face on it?

^ This is an excellent idea.

^ I don’t get the impression any of this “speciesism” is serious. Its all specious charges about eating puppies, sacrificing quaggan, and one really entertaining video of Kiel laughing maniaclly as she kills a cat.

This is all tongue-in-cheek satire and silliness. (And its mostly Buttercup, anyway. :P)

Fafnir.5124:

You do know you get to vote multiple times right.

/shrug I’d still like a title to put under my name in game to show which candidate I’m supporting at the time.

DeShadowWolf.6854:

Buttercup.5871:

Vol.5241:

It has been proven that Kiel is a direct supporter of the Separatists in Ebonhawke. Kiel is a racist and does not deserve a chance to represent the council.

This is incorrect. In fact, it is in fact Evon that is guilty of what you’re accusing Ellen of. Didn’t you hear of the latest Evon-gate? We all know his phrase:

You: Is it odd that a charr is running a trading company?
Evon: "Nay! The same principles apply to both trade and combat! A stout heart and sufficient supplies will always carry the day! “I love the smell of commerce in the morning!”

But that’s not what he said. His comment was far closer to where he stole [typical for his character!] the original quote from, namely, Apocalypse Now: I love the smell of napalm in the morning.

But here’s the shocking part: Evon is really an ogre. What Evon really said was:

You: Is it odd that a charr is running a trading company?
“I’m no Charr, I’m an Ogre! Ha! No principles apply to either trade or combat! A vile heart and sufficient napalm will always carry the day! I love the smell of charred Charr in the morning!”

Vote for justice. Vote for bikinis. Vote Kiel.

Except that the only part of your argument that actually has any sort of backing is the first pair of lines and that it is a reference to Apocalypse Now. However, making the change from what it actually is to the napalm version from the movie is basically unequitable because many games (including GW2) throw in references like that all the time. this does not mean the two incredibly different quotes can be exchanged. Anet throws in these references for fun and for the people who understand them. That does not make them interchangable. Your last ‘quote’ set is simply a blatant lie and is only in there to attempt to sway people (and in the process, being specieist.)

And Vol’s quote was a lie too as Kiel isn’t supporting seperatists (that we know of). The whole set of lines is meant to be a mockery of dirty politics.

In short:

Nightarch.2943:

Vol.5241:

It has been proven that Kiel is a direct supporter of the Separatists in Ebonhawke. Kiel is a racist and does not deserve a chance to represent the council.

I’ll string up the charr like Ramsay Bolton, torture them, mutilate them sending off random limbs to their sires! BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD!!!!!!! BURN! Burn them all! Crimson slaughter!!!!!

Security! We need a Gold Cloak over here!

Rouven.7409:

Alleluia.1320:

Xhyros.1340:

Reduced WP costs = more gold in the game = inflation. Reduced key costs = maybe people will buy more gems, or convert gold to gems = gem price coming down, or gem price going up, but less gold in the economy = anti-inflation. Don’t vote for inflation.

#Gnashblade2013

#Gnashblade2013

It’s the year 1326 AE.

……

#Gnashblade1326

Xhyros.1340:

Reduced WP costs = more gold in the game = inflation. Reduced key costs = maybe people will buy more gems, or convert gold to gems = gem price coming down, or gem price going up, but less gold in the economy = anti-inflation. Don’t vote for inflation.

#Gnashblade2013

^QFT

#Gnashblade2013

Kuess.1842:

Alleluia.1320:

In game titles would be great. Like if you spend 5 of your vote tokens for a candidate, you get a 0 or 1 pt achievement that includes the granting the #titles from the Cutthroat Politics splash page.

Also, possibly being able to put their likenesses on your kites. That could be cool.

Kuess, maybe you should edit the thread title to say “In-Game #Team Titles”. The devs might not take another look at this if they think the question is already answered. Including “in-game” might get them to give it a second look.

Tried searching for that option but Im only allowed to change my post not the title :S

It changed the title. lol

Seras.5702:

I missed the part of about us having a nemesis. Was that Molten Facility or F&F cuz I kinda missed out on that arc? Can someone fill me in on our nemesis plz?

It was confirmed on reddit or in an interview or something that we would have a personal nemesis in the living story. One of the devs used the pronoun “she” purposefully, though that’s not an absolute guarantee its a woman. But then you have a dredge imprisoned after the events of Frost & Flame who tells you it was a woman who convinced the Molten Alliance to work together. And now this “Scarlett” is the power behind the Aetherblades. So most ppl are assuming this female puppetmaster behind the scenes is the nemesis the devs mentioned.

In game titles would be great. Like if you spend 5 of your vote tokens for a candidate, you get a 0 or 1 pt achievement that includes the granting the #titles from the Cutthroat Politics splash page.

Also, possibly being able to put their likenesses on your kites. That could be cool.

Kuess, maybe you should edit the thread title to say “In-Game #Team Titles”. The devs might not take another look at this if they think the question is already answered. Including “in-game” might get them to give it a second look.

Onshidesigns.1069:

Alleluia.1320:

Onshidesigns.1069:

TriggerSad.2597:

Onshidesigns.1069:

Tamashi.5647:

I don’t understand why businessman = devil in everybody’s mind.

Evon/Anet is not a good businessman. He rips his customers off (RNG Skins)
without delivering a quality product for their money.

Anet should take the skins out of the BLC’s, sell the skins outright, reduce the price to 25-50 gems each, remove items like permanent bank access from the game.

RNG is RNG.
You have a chance at getting what you want, and ArenaNet makes this very clear every opportunity they can get when dealing with these items. Don’t blame the sellers for the buyers’ bad choices.

Las Vegas is required to post the odds of their gambling machines.

And?

And What? You reply is silly and trolling me. You should know what I am implying.

I have some ideas, but it’d be nice if you’d just clarify…

darkace.8925:

Gulesave.5073:

The late Captain Ashford was human. Sorry.

Is the charr killed in the effigy lighting ceremony cutscene not the council member we’re voting to replace? I mean…

/clears throat

That’s just the kind of propaganda Evon Gnashblade is counting on to win him the election. Don’t be a dupe.

He was the charr cultural ambassador. lol Not that you’re the first person to make that mistake. Most ppl seem to be assuming they’re the same guy.

Mysterious Jungle Dragon FTW

Shiren.9532:

The electoral college is how the world got Bush. Let’s stay away from that kind of system.

Also how we’ve gotten Obama and every other POTUS since 1787 so…

I think weighting the decision of each server according to server population density would be fair, personally.

This is assuming that all worlds will have to live with the same winner. Is it stated somewhere whether this is a cross-server decision? Or can Kiel be elected on one server and Evon on another?

Nightarch.2943:

Humanity will rise again! Every filthy charr animal will be Exterminated. Salads will be made, ears will be crushed and ale will run dry! Charr cubs will be thrown from the walls of EbonHawke! Glory to the MASTER race!

Oh gosh, that made me laugh. +1

I think it’d be cool if Evon was Mr. E. In a manner of speaking, he does have experience providing ppl with things “they need before they know they need them”.

Not ready to call Ellen “Scarlet”. Though, being in league with the Inquest would explain just how she has the ability to lower waypoint costs. To do so, she has to get the asuran Arcane Council to do it, since the waypoints are their property from what I understand. And the Inquest is a powerbroker on the Arcane Council. Their guy is the one who breaks the voting gridlock on things. So, she might very well need the Inquest’s ok to get that done…

(Or the devs were just trying to even out the perks to not give one character an unfair advantage. Also, a possibility. lol)

Incarnus.2097:

Gnashblade is a corrupt, 2 faced merchant. You guys are like the uneducated masses who voted for Obama.

Kinda personally insulted by this since I most certainly did not vote for that man.

Besides, he was portrayed in the media as a savior type. Certainly not a business man, as those are generally vilified by the media.

In light of that, I could possibly say Kiel is the Obama analogue here, but she has more experience and integrity than he does, so…

Still #TeamGnashblade

Onshidesigns.1069:

TriggerSad.2597:

Onshidesigns.1069:

Tamashi.5647:

I don’t understand why businessman = devil in everybody’s mind.

Evon/Anet is not a good businessman. He rips his customers off (RNG Skins)
without delivering a quality product for their money.

Anet should take the skins out of the BLC’s, sell the skins outright, reduce the price to 25-50 gems each, remove items like permanent bank access from the game.

RNG is RNG.
You have a chance at getting what you want, and ArenaNet makes this very clear every opportunity they can get when dealing with these items. Don’t blame the sellers for the buyers’ bad choices.

Las Vegas is required to post the odds of their gambling machines.

And?

BilboBaggins.5620:

Alleluia.1320:

BilboBaggins.5620:

Remember, a vote for me is a vote for change!

I don’t know if we’re in need of a Burglar, Mr. Baggins.

But aren’t all politicians burglars?

Touché.

BilboBaggins.5620:

Remember, a vote for me is a vote for change!

I don’t know if we’re in need of a Burglar, Mr. Baggins.

Tiborb.1453:

Pixelpumpkin.4608:

1 out of 5 Tyrians is interested in human gods.

5 out of 5 Tyrians visit the Thaumanova Reactor every day to clean it up.

#TeamKiel

What?
We are talking about a Charr interested in the fall of a Human God, and “Charr need no gods!”, so this must be important for the races of Tyria.

#TeamGnashblade

(erm… lorewise… something seem a bit messed up :p )

I’ve noticed a lot of charr living in Lion’s Arch aren’t stereotypically “charr-like” in their beliefs and practices. Cubs being raised by a “ma and pa” instead of a neighborhood “farrah” thing, for example.

If Evon isn’t a part of the legions and isn’t really part of the charr nation (at least not at this point in his life. No idea what his history there is), then I can see him being totally ok with looking in to the fall of a human god. There are a lot of humans in his “potential voter” pool who still have faith in them, after all. All he has to do is be willing to cater to that.

Not that I’m not enjoying the idea of this update (cus I am), but why do we random adventurers, none of whom can technically call Lion’s Arch home, get the right to vote for the council seat?

We do get to vote right? Or are we merely gathering influence for each candidate? like being part of their grassroots campaign so to speak. And just whoever ends up with the most support will win the vote, even if we don’t get to actually vote on anything?

I am geeking out over this update. lol

I’m voting Evon, b/c even if there were no fractals or goodies on the line, he’d be the better candidate. His instincts and intelligence (along with help from that sylvari business partner of his whose name escapes me at the moment) have allowed him to became the most successful merchant in Tyria. It takes SERIOUS effort to become the only viable game in town and no one can disparage that.

This “He’s responsible for RNG” stuff is bogus b/c a) its a gameplay mechanic in the first place, not lore; and b) his “RNG chests” are Exactly What it Says on the Tin. Don’t like them? Don’t buy them. But don’t claim you’re being cheated out of money you weren’t forced to spend on a product that behaved exactly as advertised.

Inspector Kiel is a good woman, but being a great cop and being a great leader are two unrelated things. And she is a great cop, which is why the Liongaurd needs her more than the council, anyway.

#VoteEvon

(On a more meta note, I just want all these assumptions that he’s a villain to be turned on their heads. I don’t think his intro in this storyline proved anything beyond Evon’s ability to eavesdrop. We know he’s savvy and calculating when it comes to achieving his goals, but being ruthless regarding opponents doesn’t make you evil. Being successful in business doesn’t make you evil. (And his cackle there wasn’t evil; it was quirky. :P)

And for once I’d like the business man in the story to not secretly be evil. Or even amoral, necessarily, which is also not something I think can be claimed about Gnashblade at this time. We’ve heard his basic philosophy, but we haven’t actually seen enough of how he puts it in to practice to judge that he’s not just as much the “moral choice” as Kiel. I’m really hoping this story gives us that.)

Female face 6. Half decided to use it b/c it seems to under represented here. lol Also, I just find it has its own character.

^ 9/10. The meanings are very appropriate for the classes and I really like the name Noddoeth. Lost a point because 3/4 of the names themselves have a few too many consonants together in a string for my tastes and I had to stop and stare to read them right.

Gwylen.3462:

8/10 Really awesome thought put into the name too o:

Giloy is my Ranger Sylvari :D Named after the common slang for Guduchi herbs c:

No one rated this one, so I will. 7/10. Grats on finding a single word name. :) Sounds more anglo-saxon than gaelic, but still. And, once I looked up what Guduchi was, I found out its prominent in forests, which is appropriate for a ranger. And I see that the coloring on your ranger’s hair matches the fruit of that plant, which is a nice touch. :)

My contribution: Fegann the Dawnborn

Fegann is the gaelic word for henbane, a poisonous yellow and purple flower known for its “psychoactive properties”, including visual hallucinations.(Source) She’s a mesmer. I thought it was appropriate. :3

Fegann also translates to “dangerous one”. Also appropriate.

“The Dawnborn” b/c she’s of the Cycle of Dawn. (Also, the game wouldn’t let me have the name otherwise. I think an NPC took it already. :/)

Lemon Yellow here (And bright purple for her eyes.)

My level 5 Sylvari mesmer, Fegann. I had a hell of a time choosing a color scheme I liked for her. For kicks, I decided to try to represent her cycle (Dawn) in her clothes. I really ended up liking the result.

Zedd.8239:

Alleluia.1320:

I haven’t actually been able to get in game to do these yet, but from what I’ve read here, can’t you all just ask to group up with the ppl already camping and agree to take turns killing the holograms? Or coordinate your attacks so you hit them together?

That’s a good idea in theory. The problem is all it takes is one person to not care about anyone else in the area and kill them before you have a chance to tag the enemies. They drop insanely fast if you have a high damage build. It’s griefing akittens finest.

Edit: Why is a swear filter being applied to my post? The word “at” followed by “its” is swearing? lol

Take away the “a” in the beginning and notice what is spelled. lol

And I still think that simply talking to the campers will help, at least in many cases. Or camping a spawn yourself and then offering to group with people you see around. If you want community, it just seems you’ll have to put some effort in to it this time instead of just the passive sense of community that occurs with, say, dynamic events. At the least, don’t just assume people camping the spawn points are going to be jerks about it before you even bring up the suggestion of working together. Talk to them, give them a chance. I find life tends to go easier that way.

/2cents

I haven’t actually been able to get in game to do these yet, but from what I’ve read here, can’t you all just ask to group up with the ppl already camping and agree to take turns killing the holograms? Or coordinate your attacks so you hit them together?