Tyria (world)
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This article is about the world named Tyria. For information on the eponymous continent, see Tyria.
Tyria is the name of the planet on which most of the Guild Wars game series takes place. It is home to many species, such as humans, the Charr, the Norn, the Asura, and what remains of the Dwarves. It is known to be at least 11,000 years old, however, it has not been confirmed to house human life until at least 786 BE. It has four known continents, and many unexplored ones. Beneath Tyria run a (mostly abandoned) subterranean network of tunnels linked by the Asura Gates. Now the threat of the Great Destroyer has passed, the Asura are expected to repopulate the Depths of Tyria.
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[edit] History
- Main article: History of Tyria
Not much is known about Tyria before the arrival of the gods. Giant skeletons litter parts of Tyria, relics of a time before civilization, remains of an extinct race of great giants, whose kind have never been gazed upon by the eyes of man. Legends tell of creatures older still, dating back to a time before history was ever recorded. These creatures are said to rival the powers of the gods, and their ultimate fate is unknown. The only thing that can be said about them is this: should they return, it would surely spell the end for humanity, and, indeed, all the creatures that call Tyria home.
In 1769 BE, the first civilized race arrived on Tyrian soil. They were the Forgotten, a race of serpents created by an older pantheon, and summoned from an older world, across the Mists by the new gods to protect the races of the world while the gods morphed the planet to their liking. Tyria was the first world created by the gods, and after the event known as the Exodus, they would go on to create more.
In the time between then and the Exodus, much changed in Tyria. Humans appeared on all three continents, driving the Charr from their ancestral homelands in the north, and quickly conquering the world. The Forgotten, no longer needed, built mighty ships, and sailed to the Crystal Sea, which would eventually become the final resting place of the Tyrian Forgotten.
However, a rift was growing between the gods. Settlements began to appear on the northwest shores of Elona in 175 BE. The inhabitants of these settlements, known as the Margonites, did not worship the entire pantheon, but just one: Abaddon, the god of secrets and water. Margonite ships ruled the Unending Ocean, causing uneasy relations with the Forgotten. The already tenuous bond between the gods was severed for the final time, when Abaddon made the most significant decision in the history of Tyria: he introduced magic.
War simultaneously broke out all over Tyria. While the humans fought the Charr for dominance in the mortal realm, the gods battled Abaddon, in a secret war that would be lost to history for over a thousand years. Abaddon defeated two of the gods, but the combined might of all five - Dwayna, Balthazar, Melandru, Grenth and Lyssa - brought Abaddon down. The final blow against Abaddon was struck at the Mouth of Torment, a cataclysmic strike so powerful that it turned the Crystal Sea into an arid wasteland, uniting Tyria and Elona into one supercontinent. The Crystal Desert and the Desolation were born that day. Abaddon was imprisoned in the Realm of Torment, literally chained to a fate of eternal anguish, pain, fear, and madness. The year was 1 AE, and it was this year that the gods would finally leave Tyria forever.
[edit] See Also
[edit] Geography
Tyria is separated into three different continents: Tyria, also known as the namesake continent, Cantha, home to the Empire of the Dragon, and Elona, land of the golden sun. Between the three continents are the Battle Isles, a small island chain ruled by the Zaishen Order, a guild of Canthans that were shipwrecked and cut off from their continent many years ago. In the time since, they have grown, and the Battle Isles is now the training ground for the most elite fighters of the world.
The northern continent of Tyria is filled with grand mountain ranges, dense forests and jungles, and ruins of once-mighty empires. To the east lie Ascalon and the Charr Homelands, locked in a perhaps eternal war for territory. Further south, across the Blazeridge Mountains, lies the Crystal Desert and the shattered peninsula of Orr, where the abandoned city of the gods once stood, before the Cataclysm. Now all that remains of Arah lies on the seabed. West of the Shiverpeak Mountains, the sounds of civil war ring in the only remaining human kingdom of Kryta, which borders the Maguuma Jungle and the Tarnished Coast. South of there is the Ring of Fire Island Chain, which, like Arah, has also been devoid of human settlement since the Exodus.
South of Tyria is the continent of Cantha. Compared to the namesake continent, the Empire of the Dragon is prospering, with opulent palaces and magnificent forests dominating the area. The reality is that Kaineng City is a dirty, overpopulated metropolis, full of slums, street gangs and vermin. To the south lie the Echovald Forest and the Jade Sea, two vassal states turned to stone by the Jade Wind. However, things are improving for Cantha. The Afflicted creatures that almost brought commerce to a standstill have finally all been hunted down and killed. Shoots of grass are growing through the stony, dead floor of the Echovald. Isolated reports of small pools of water forming in the Jade Sea pervade. Emperor Kisu is growing old, but perhaps his son Usoku will be able to restore the Empire of the Dragon to its former glory.
Elona, Land of the Golden Sun also prospers in the years since the return of Abaddon was thwarted. Kourna is slowly being rebuilt, while Istan and Vabbi continue to provide aid to the fallen province. Members of the Order of the Sunspears have been seen north of the Crystal Desert, in the Blazeridge Mountains and even the Shiverpeaks. They spread their teachings to the other human continents to this day in their bid to fulfill their ancient purposes, steeled by the Truth of their former leader, now a goddess, and the confidence that they will be the guardians of Elona for hundreds of years to come.
