Vael

Vael
Affiliation	Ebon Vanguard
Type	Human
Profession	Assassin
Service	Collector
Level(s)	20
Campaign	Eye of the North
Image(s)
He spawns at the red dots for quests that involve him. As a collector at the green dot after the quests.

Vael is a mysterious mercenary who seems to know a lot about your character and who randomly appears as an ally.

Locations

• Eye of the North
  • Charr Homelands
    • Dalada Uplands (random spawn)
    • Sacnoth Valley (random spawn; guaranteed spawn between starting Forbidden Fruit and completing Single Ugly Grawl Seeks Same for Mindless Destruction in Ascalon)
    • Grothmar Wardowns (see Notes)
• Guild Wars Beyond
  • Hearts of the North
    • Olafstead (explorable area) (during The Wedding)

Quests

Quests given:

• Be Very, Very Quiet...
• Single Ugly Grawl Seeks Same for Mindless Destruction in Ascalon

Quests involved in:

• Plan A
• Forbidden Fruit

Skills

• Flashing Blades (elite)
• Fox Fangs
• Iron Palm
• Shadow Refuge
• Twisting Fangs

Dialogue

Grothmar Wardowns (first encounter)

"I've been watching you for a long time, [Character Name]. It is good to finally come face to face."

Who are you?

"Vael is not my real name, but you may call me that."

You've been watching me?

"No, no. Your great deeds have attracted my attention, that's all. Besides, who wouldn't want a man as dashing as myself lurking just offstage?"

What exactly is it that you do?

"A little of this, a little of that. I mostly deal in information but I amuse myself with odd jobs. Right now it suits me to assist your Ebon Vanguard in their conflict with the Charr, unless those furry miscreants come up with a better offer than my current employers."

Odd jobs? How odd are we talking?

"You name it, I've done it. I've been from here to the Jade Sea and back again. I've traveled the jungles of Maguuma and survived the sulfurous wastes of the Desolation. I know the Merchant Princes of Vabbi personally and Emperor Kisu of Cantha calls me friend. I've been a beggar, a scholar, a cook, a merchant, and a guard just to name a few. I am the eyes, the ears, and the shadow of Tyria."

Who do you work for?

"Don't worry your pretty head with such questions. Just know I am friend, not foe, and for now I am at your service."

What is your favorite color?

"Sage green. Why?"

Grothmar Wardowns (as a collector)

"You have earned my respect, friend, in more ways than one. While we may never be able to grow old and stitch quilts together, I will try to stick to jobs that do not put me on the other side of the battlefront as you. But I offer more than friendship. This is a Mask of the Mo Zing. These masks are wielded only by travelers that call no man or woman their master, and I know that to be true of you. Alas all things come with a price, even between friends, a trifling thing. Bring me 250 Superb Charr Carvings in exchange for my masks. Trust me, it's worth it."

Sacnoth Valley and Dalada Uplands

"I am undercover. Keep your cool."

Olafstead (during the Wedding)

"3...2...1... There. The charges I placed in that Charr Camp should have just detonated. And they thought this wedding would spare them from a quick death at my hands!"

Quotes

On random spawns

"Hello! Hah, did I startle you? It's the false eyebrows, I'm told they make me look angry. I'm feeling a bit restless, so I'll accompany you for this little outing and assist when necessary. Lead the way!"

Idle

"...and as I rounded the corner, she hit me with the frying pan. It took three weeks for the bump to go down, but it was worth it."

"...so then the Crimson Skull pirate says, "That's no plague creature, that's my wife.""

"Blast, I lost my hollow fake hand during the last battle. Have you seen it?"

"Have you ever been double-crossed and shot full of Iboga venom? It's rather pleasant once you get past the nausea."

"How did I get the eyepatch? You don't want to know."

"I spent a month of my youth living with the Tengu. It was during the Tengu Wars... when they weren't particularly keen on humans. My stay ended prematurely when my false beak fell off during a rigorous training session with one of the Tengu masters. It was like throwing a rock at a hornet nest. I would not recommend the experience."

"I spied some Charr a few days ago dragging a sack into their cooking tent. A wriggling, talking sack. What do you make of that?"

"I think I'll dress as a peasant today. Or maybe a peasant's daughter."

"I was one of the soldiers with Rurik when he was slain by the Stone Summit. In fact, I was the one to break the sad news to the king."

"I'm a gentleman spy. I have no time for Lady Love... or her husband. Ouch."

"In Vabbi, I was ambushed by six of them! They wielded blunt wooden sticks and were hissing me about overdue fines. Bandits? Oh, no. These were library envoys."

"It's all fun and games until a pack of corsairs decide you've cheated them out of their shipment."

"On one assignment I pretended to be an alcove statue in an all-female temple of Melandru. That was an interesting month."

"Perhaps I shall pass the time with a story or two."

"This one time in Cantha, I ate a live beetle. It was at a wedding. I was drunk."

"Would you mind helping me re-apply my disguise makeup?"

Battle quotes

"Don't mind if I do!"

"Fists... er, blades... er, weapons of fury!"

"Ouch! You actually hit me."

"See what I did there?"

"Take that! And a little of this, while you're at it."

"This isn't really a fair fight... for you."

"You remind me of a pet rabbit I once had. He was soft and fluffy too."

"Your technique stinks worse than the Kodash Bazaar at high noon."

Collector items

Vael

Location: Grothmar Wardowns (outside Longeye's Ledge, after Single Ugly Grawl Seeks Same for Mindless Destruction in Ascalon)
Collecting: 250 Superb Charr Carvings

Profession		Item	AR	Armor bonus
	Common	Mask of the Mo Zing	Maximum	Item's Attribute +1 (Stacking)

Notes

• Appearance in Grothmar Wardowns:
  • First encounter can occur near any entrance to Grothmar.
    • Near Longeye's Stead exit, follow the white rabbits up the hill, or walk down the path straight from the exit.
    • Near Sacnoth Valley exit, head north towards the Charr camp, or west towards Ooze Pits.
    • Near Dalada Uplands exit, head southwest towards Kralkatorrik.
  • After you re-zone, he will appear in the middle of Grothmar Wardowns and give the first quest in the series.
  • In the Charr Camp by the prison after arriving at Doomlore Shrine, but before completing Assault on the Stronghold.
  • After completing Assault on the Stronghold, but before completing Plan A.
  • As a collector behind the resurrection shrine exiting Longeye's Ledge, after completing Single Ugly Grawl Seeks Same for Mindless Destruction in Ascalon.
  • Randomly spawns while Forbidden Fruit or Single Ugly Grawl Seeks Same for Mindless Destruction in Ascalon is active.
• The quests won't be available until you finish the Ebon Vanguard primary quests.
• Vael is known to the Ebon Vanguard by the name Nathanael, although neither of these names are real.

Trivia

• Linsey Murdock named him after a buddy of hers.
• He wields a large number of dagger sets.
• The "What is your favorite color?" part of the initial dialogue is a reference to Monty Python and the Holy Grail (scene 35).
• His quote that mentions getting hit by a pan, "...and as I rounded the corner, she hit me with the frying pan. It took three weeks for the bump to go down, but it was worth it," might be referencing one of Kihm's idle quotes.
• The comment "This one time in Cantha..." is similar to a recurring phrase used in the American Pie movie series.
• His line "I've been watching you for a long time" is a reference to what Agent Smith says to Neo in The Matrix.
• Nicholas the Traveler revealed that one of Vael's spying expeditions involved spying on the Tengu as well as the Quetzal. He helped to fashion a disguise for Vael for his spying upon the Quetzal.