Canthan New Year 2009
This year, the annual Canthan festival returns!
Honor the Ox[edit]
Put on your best red gear and prepare for a journey to Shing Jea Monastery, because it's time for the annual Canthan New Year's Festival. This year's beast of honor is the Celestial Ox, a divine celestial that will descend from the heavens to bestow good luck upon the populace for all of 2009—but only if the traditional New Year's feast is suitably delicious for such an illustrious guest.
In addition to the great feast, players can explore the Shing Jea Boardwalk, encounter colorful NPCs who offer a variety of festival-themed quests, and visit the wandering Fortune Teller for a glimpse of their future destinies. Anyone who likes a good game of chance will enjoy the return of the Rollerbeetle Races, and those who are feeling slightly more combative can visit the Dragon Arena all weekend long for some all-out dodgeball action.
Mark your calendars and help the Ox ring in the New Year, Canthan-style!
Festival Events[edit]
A feast, fireworks displays, dancing, fortunes, and a trip to the races...all this and more await you during the Canthan New Year's Festival. Here's what you can expect:
- Satisfying the Celestial animal is a tall order, especially since every festival has a few unexpected problems for enterprising young adventurers to solve.
- Want a preview of the coming year? The fortune teller can peer into your future and provide you with a very real, and legally binding, fortune. Whether it bodes well or ill, your destiny will follow you out into the world beyond Shing Jea.
- The Shing Jea Boardwalk makes a special appearance during the festival, so you can play games to earn Festival Tickets and boost your luck—or play to lose, and work your way down a different life track.
- For you racing fans, make your way to the Rollerbeetle Racing Arena, where you'll be outfitted with your very own rollerbeetle racer, complete with its own set of racing skills. Races roll all weekend long.
- The Dragon Arena is now an official part of the festival, so head over for a brawling good time.
- The Celestial Feast lets players participate in cooking competitions to help chefs from across Cantha prepare special dishes in honor of the Celestial Ox. It'll be bad luck if the chefs fail to please the Ox, but the chefs reward player participation with Lunar Tokens, and the Celestial Ox rewards everyone for each properly prepared dish.
Quests[edit]
Every festival brings with it a variety of problems that can only be solved by enterprising young adventurers willing to undertake a quest or two to ensure the festival runs smoothly. Supplies of everything from red dye (for Nian-scaring party attire) to fireworks (also used to frighten off the nian) will inevitably run low. And, speaking of the Nian, you never know when, or where, these New Year's festival hating creatures might attack. (NOTE: these quests will only be offered to characters that have reached level 5 or higher)
Sunqua Vale
Shing Jea Monastery:
Plains of Jarin:
or
Schedule[edit]
The 2009 Canthan New Year's Festival began at Noon Pacific (-8 GMT) on Friday January 30th 2009, ran all weekend and ended at Noon Pacific (-8 GMT) on Monday February 2nd 2009. On Sunday February 1st 2009 the Celestial Ox came down from the sky every three hours to sample Canthan delicacies in Shing Jea Monastery. Canthans living abroad weren't left out: Lion's Arch and Kamadan also hosted smaller celebrations, complete with traditional New Year's decorations.
| PST | UTC / GMT (24 hr format) |
|---|---|
| 12:01 am | 08:01 |
| 03:01 am | 11:01 |
| 06:01 am | 14:01 |
| 09:01 am | 17:01 |
| 12:01 pm | 20:01 |
| 3:01 pm | 23:01 |
| 6:01 pm | 02:01 (February 2nd) |
| 9:01 pm | 05:01 (February 2nd) |
| 12:01 am (February 2nd) |
08:01 (February 2nd) |
Finale[edit]
Several Chefs stand in Shing Jea Monastery. They will collect specific ingredients during the finale. For each ingredient turned in, you will receive a Lunar Token from that chef. If no dishes are prepared successfully, everyone in the district will be temporarily transformed by the Ox Form disguise.
| Imperial Chef Yan (Appetizers) |
Imperial Chef Reun (Salad) |
Imperial Chef Jiong (Soup) |
Imperial Chef Chen (Main Course) |
Imperial Chef Tian (Dessert) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Finale Rewards[edit]
Below is a chart describing the amount of items the player receives based on how many successful dishes were presented to the Celestial Ox:
| Successful Dishes |  Lion Mask |
 Red Gift Bag |
 Crate of Fireworks |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 1 | Yes | 2 | 0 |
| 1 | Yes | 4 | 0 |
| 2 | Yes | 6 | 0 |
| 3 | Yes | 9 | 0 |
| 4 | Yes | 12 | 0 |
| 5 | Yes | 16 | 5 |
1 If no successful dishes were created, players may be temporarily turned into Oxen.
Special Miniature[edit]
In addition to the festival rewards, there is a special miniature available at this year's festival. Watch those Lunar Fortunes closely—your future just might include a Miniature Celestial Ox.
Decorated Towns[edit]
NPCs[edit]
Festival Rewards[edit]
| Icon | Item |
|---|---|
 |
Sugary Blue Drink: Take a drink when you need a quick boost of energy in town. |
 |
Champagne Popper: Share these classic party favors used to ring in the New Year in style. |
 |
Bottle Rocket: Set off a single-shot firework—please point away from body. |
 |
Sparkler: Light up to shoot sparks around your body; be careful not to stand near flammable objects. |
 |
Red Bean Cake: These sweet treats are sure to put some pep in your step. |
 |
Bottle of Rice Wine: The traditional festival drink. But don't drink and quest. |
|
Red Gift Bag: Open for a festival gift; surprises come wrapped in red during the New Year's festival. |
 |
Lunar Fortune: Read your Lunar Fortune to find out whether you will have good luck or bad luck this year. |
 |
Lunar Token: Collect these tokens throughout the festival and trade them in for prizes. |
 |
Miniature Celestial Ox: Drop from Lunar Fortune. |
|
Lion Mask: A festival hat resembling the heads of the lion dance costumes. |
|
Crate of Fireworks: The Finale reward for a successful feast, See in the New Year with a bang! |
Further Information:[edit]
| Special events | |
|---|---|
| Canthan New Year | 2007 • 2008 • 2009 • 2010 • 2011 • 2012 • 2013 • 2014 onward |
| April Fools' Day | 2007 • 2008 • 2009 • 2010 • 2011 • 2012 • 2013 • 2014 onward |
| Anniversary Celebration | 2nd • 3rd • 4th • 5th • 6th • 7th • 8th • 9th • 10th-14th • 15th onward |
| Dragon Festival | 2006 • 2007 (Redux) • 2008 • 2009 • 2010 • 2011 • 2012 • 2013 • 2014 onward |
| Wintersday in July | 2008 • 2009 • 2010 • 2011 • 2012 • 2013 • 2014 onward |
| Halloween | 2005 • 2006 • 2007 • 2008 (Redux) • 2009 • 2010 • 2011 • 2012 • 2013 • 2014 onward |
| Wintersday | 2005 • 2006 • 2007 • 2008 • 2009 (Redux) • 2010 • 2011 • 2012 • 2013 onward |
| Other annual events | Breast Cancer Awareness Month • Lucky Treats Week • Pirate Week Special Treats Week • Sweet Treats Week • Wayfarer's Reverie |
| One-time only events | Day of the Tengu • Farewell to Gaile |
