Guild Wars 2: The Celestial Tournament - Cantha expansion idea

[Thornwolf.9721]

Playable tengu.... a man can dream....

[Badcat.7320]

Cantha would be good

[Dami.5046]

Nothing but love for Cantha. Nice thread.

[Nash.3974]

I really love this draft @"Lonami.2987" and don’t get me wrong, but to be honest I don’t get your elite spec ideas… they don’t seem to fit the Canthan theme at all.

 

I mean of course assassin for example fits perfectly but greatsword really? I‘d rather see a sword off hand for thieves(assassins) to synergize with sword main hand getting either stances or meditations as utilities.

 

Also ritualist shouldnt be a spec for revenant, the purpose of running a support/heal build doesn’t work with core revenant much, even though we have Ventari.

I‘d rather see an offensive elite spec for rev something like invoke the power of the legendary envoy ’Courier Torivos’ getting axe as main hand weapon (I think that works perfect with the Canthan theme and with the revenant in general, also it would be super fun to have shiro and torivos in the same build).

 

Also I feel like the ritualist himself has way too many mechanics to be put in an elite spec.

If it’s gonna make a comeback, it definitely should be an own class, even if it’s highly unlikely but all the mechanics the ritualist has can’t be but into one elite spec (you have ashes, weapon spells, spirits, offensive/defensive(heal) spells, corruptions etc.).

 

I do agree with the dervish not necessarily being bound to Elona, but I also don’t think it represents Cantha well.

In fact djinns have nothing to do at all with Cantha.

 

The description of the gladiator doesn’t fit a gladiator imo, a gladiator isn’t a magician, but mantras and tridents make the spec magicianish. Maybe give the warrior a spear or melee staff instead.

 

I btw love the idea of having serpents as mounts, that’s just genius

 

And also one more complaint, why no shing jea isles in the xpac qqqq...

My fav part of entire guild wars 1. The very least that should happen with it is the monastery being a city or a pass similar to the lily of the elon etc. (just bigger).

[Lonami.2987]

> @"ProtoGunner.4953" said:

> Holy kitten dude, you are really into it... and you have a lot of time after reviewing your page on the wiki. Anyway, I would love to see a Cantha expansion and I still look forward to it.

 

Raid LFG waits are incredibly long =).

 

> @"Nash.3974" said:

> I really love this draft @"Lonami.2987" and don’t get me wrong, but to be honest I don’t get your elite spec ideas… they don’t seem to fit the Canthan theme at all.

>

> I mean of course assassin for example fits perfectly but greatsword really? I‘d rather see a sword off hand for thieves(assassins) to synergize with sword main hand getting either stances or meditations as utilities.

>

> Also ritualist shouldnt be a spec for revenant, the purpose of running a support/heal build doesn’t work with core revenant much, even though we have Ventari.

> I‘d rather see an offensive elite spec for rev something like invoke the power of the legendary envoy ’Courier Torivos’ getting axe as main hand weapon (I think that works perfect with the Canthan theme and with the revenant in general, also it would be super fun to have shiro and torivos in the same build).

>

> Also I feel like the ritualist himself has way too many mechanics to be put in an elite spec.

> If it’s gonna make a comeback, it definitely should be an own class, even if it’s highly unlikely but all the mechanics the ritualist has can’t be but into one elite spec (you have ashes, weapon spells, spirits, offensive/defensive(heal) spells, corruptions etc.).

>

> I do agree with the dervish not necessarily being bound to Elona, but I also don’t think it represents Cantha well.

> In fact djinns have nothing to do at all with Cantha.

>

> The description of the gladiator doesn’t fit a gladiator imo, a gladiator isn’t a magician, but mantras and tridents make the spec magicianish. Maybe give the warrior a spear or melee staff instead.

>

> I btw love the idea of having serpents as mounts, that’s just genius

>

> And also one more complaint, why no shing jea isles in the xpac qqqq...

> My fav part of entire guild wars 1. The very least that should happen with it is the monastery being a city or a pass similar to the lily of the elon etc. (just bigger).

 

Half the elite specializations aren't even Canthan to begin with, they're foreigners from exotic lands, coming to the tournament. Explained in the wiki page with some lore tidbits.

 

The purpose of greatsword is just a ninja-style two-handed sword, with parrying and cleaving strikes. I don't like using already available weapons for elite specs, thief's sword off-hand should become available through an update to the core profession.

 

Obviously, the ritualist elite spec will be a shadow of its former self. In this case, I'd focus on the spirit master role, which was the most enjoyable, and the profession's trademark signature. But yeah, I wish revenant had been more like the ritualist from the very beginning.

 

Shing Jea Island for the Living World. The Monastery itself could become a raid too. Haven't thought too much about LW and raids, but here's a draft:

 

---

 

**Living World Season 5: Bells of Harvest**

 

I haven't thought about what to do next yet. I have multiple ideas, but I'll stick with this one:

 

The tournament was a deception. The true intentions of the emperor, who is none other than Usoku himself, turned immortal, is to harvest the souls of the foreign heroes, and use them for something sinister. Later on, that something is revealed to be the Deep Sea Dragon, being controlled by the Empire as a superweapon of sorts. They used his powers to crush the other nations of Cantha, and to achieve eternal youth. The dragon is busy feeding on Cantha's ambient magic, semi-dormant, but the latest events in Tyria have altered the flow of magic, and his minions have started to pop around.

 

In the expansion finale, the player's team managed to enter the final phase of the competition, together with 7 other teams. There's a ceremony at the Imperial City, and the "real tournament" starts. LW5 covers this final phase of the tournament, together with some other events.

 

* **Red Marshes:** The first match is against a group of tengu you've already met during the expansion storyline. You win. In their dying breath, their leader says they failed their secret mission, and gives you some hints about what's really going on, trying to convince you to investigate. Their leader tells you to visit an out of limits desert area in northeastern Cantha, where you find dozens of slave camps, full of multiple races. There you meet them again, and it's revealed they weren't a team, but a single tengu mesmer (the racial tengu mentor), and he survived the encounter. You wreak havoc in Kahnmaatu Stronghold, and free some of the prisoners. The tengu mesmer joins your group, but even him doesn't know what's really going on, only that the emperor is Usoku, and that he has achieved immortality through some sinister means. He will help you win the tournament so you can get close to the emperor and capture him. Some of the prisoners are Canthan tengu, and they speak of a hidden village.

* **Valley of the Wind:** You win the second match, and enter the finals. You receive news from the tengu mesmer, and travel to some mountains east of the Jade Sea. There you find a hidden village of tengu and other races, the last free survivors of the imperial purges. To find the truth, you will have to climb the mountain and reach Kaziin Monastery, where you'll meet Suun, the true Oracle of the Mists, thought dead, in truth having escaped from the empire. There you confirm your suspicions, where some of the foes you previously met in the Jade Sea could have a dragon origin. A team of largos you met before, who quit the tournament halfway through, has somehow followed you, and they declare they will kill the Deep Sea Dragon, no matter the consequences.

* **Harvest Temple:** You lose the final match against another team. The winner could be any familiar face, Braham's team being a good option. Nevertheless, the tengu mesmer joins your team and helps you infiltrate the harvest ceremony, but you arrive too late. The largos team reveals himself again, and sabotages the ceremony. The Harvest Temple explodes, creating a vortex of floating islands and dragon minions, leaving us a zone similar to Bloodstone Fen. This isn't what was supposed to happen, and Usoku retreats while we try to stop the dragon minions. Once we're done, the largos disappear.

* **Rijeka Delta:** Dragon minions are spawning all over the continent. The emperor has the key to stop this, and we begin gathering rebel forces to dethrone him. The Rijeka river connects Echovald Forest to the sea, running through a hard to navigate valley, full of cliffs and precipices. Dinfang Harbor lies by the sea, protected by Fort Kitah. The rebel troops want to use the valley to reach the port and steal some ships for the assault on Shing Jea, where the Ministry of Purity keeps most of their forces.

* **Shing Jea Island:** Using the stolen ships, the assault on Shing Jea begins. The monastery, once a place of knowledge, is now one of the empire's biggest strongholds, controlling the seas of Cantha with an iron fist. With the island in rebel hands, the fleet can move safely against the imperial palace.

* **Usoku Palace:** Next to the Imperial City, the palace grounds are almost as big as the city itself. The Deep Sea Dragon is nested here, at the heart of the palace, trying to free himself. The immortal soldiers of the Ministry of Purity defend the palace, and every now and then waves of dragon minions crawl from the sewers and try to break free their master. We fight and capture the emperor, but we don't arrive in time to put him back to sleep. Instead, the largos appear and kill it. The whole immortal army dies screaming, their source of power gone. The magic has nowhere to go, with Aurene back in Tyria, still injured from her fight against Kralkatorrik, and it spirals out of control.

 

That would be it. The dragons wouldn't be a problem anymore in the next expansion, and the races of Tyria would start to turn against each other, using the newfound magic powers. The first would be Bangar Ruinbringer, imperator of the Blood Legion, who would subdue the Flame Legion remnants, and ally with other races to conquer the other charr legions and exterminate the lesser races. Our goal in the 4th expansion would be to stop Bangar's charr civil war before it turns into a world war, and find the five bloodstones, to seal magic again before the mortal races destroy each other.

 

---

 

**Raids**

 

* **Imperial Apothecarium:** Strange things are happening deep below the surface of Kaineng Center. Mutants and monsters are starting to appear in the Undercity, some even reaching the surface. Find where they are coming from, and stop the ministry's a clandestine dragon magic operation.

* **The Deep:** Dragon minions are crawling from under the jade. Find a way to collapse the tunnels and hold them back. Demons are still around too, and you might need to make a pact with them.

* **Urgoz's Warren:** Kurzick tree singers are trying to claim the powers of the ancient forest spirits to help them in their battle against the imperial forces. The ministry and the wardens won't allow it.

* **Shing Jea Monastery:** The island is in rebel hands, but the elite soldiers of the Ministry of Purity still control the monastery, barricading themselves and consuming dragon magic to become stronger. Among them is their supreme leader, Ecclesiate Xun Rao, and ancient creature posing as a human.

 

---

 

**Fractals of the Mist**

 

* **Sanctum Cay Fractal:** Fight alongside Krytans and tengu against the risen, and witness the foundation of the tengu city of Dominion of Winds.

* **Harvest Temple Fractal:** Follow Vizu and fight demons and other horrors as you climb Harvest Temple, facing Shiro Tagachi at the top.

* **Minister Wona's Estate Fractal:** Fight alongside Master Togo and Talon Silverwing against those trying to sabotage the Tengu Accords.

* **Tahnnakai Temple Fractal:** Fight alongside Minister Reiko Murakami against the afflicted and witness the birth of the Ministry of Purity.

 

---

 

Still a work in progress, and I'm not sure I'll bother to complete it anyway.

[hugo.4705]

All those ideas seems pretty cool , but I don't want to have some nice content locked behind raid like the Undercity, I'm not fan of raid and I will never be, for me raid maps are so huge that they could be perfectly converted into solo-able dungeon, with this setting, everyone would enjoy their maps and rewards. After 5 years and a full map completion, only a few parts are remaining undiscovered: The raid ones. All rewards should be centered on the three main modes: PvE - PvP - McM, each one with the same reward but with a different manner to obtain them. I would be really disappointed if elite designed content (I mean top notch: great story, map design and so on) be locked behind a mode that only a minority (or a lot of players, I dunno) do, I don't want to became an Elite and force myself into a concept I don't like to unlock this content!

Instead of raids it would be far more rewarding to have side-story long dungeons which have to be done solo and give the raid rewards.

Don't get me wrong, if you enjoy raids, that's great for you, that's my opinion since I prefer fractals.

But the undercity sound more like a Meta event or a side-map like the crown pavilion for divinity reach.

[Lonami.2987]

> @"hugo.4705" said:

> All those ideas seems pretty cool , but I don't want to have some nice content locked behind raid like the Undercity, I'm not fan of raid and I will never be, for me raid maps are so huge that they could be perfectly converted into solo-able dungeon, with this setting, everyone would enjoy their maps and rewards. After 5 years and a full map completion, only a few parts are remaining undiscovered: The raid ones. All rewards should be centered on the three main modes: PvE - PvP - McM, each one with the same reward but with a different manner to obtain them. I would be really disappointed if elite designed content (I mean top notch: great story, map design and so on) be locked behind a mode that only a minority (or a lot of players, I dunno) do, I don't want to became an Elite and force myself into a concept I don't like to unlock this content!

> Instead of raids it would be far more rewarding to have side-story long dungeons which have to be done solo and give the raid rewards.

> Don't get me wrong, if you enjoy raids, that's great for you, that's my opinion since I prefer fractals.

> But the undercity sound more like a Meta event or a side-map like the crown pavilion for divinity reach.

 

The Undercity is [already a pivotal part of Kaineng Center](https://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/User:Lon-ami/Cantha#Kaineng_Center). The raid is another section of it, outside the zone boundary. Like, much more deeper into the sewers. The fractals should cover 5-man instanced PvE.

 

I too would love to see dungeons or something similar back, but I don't think this expansion would be the right one to do so.

[serenitycat.4623]

I really admire all your hard work , thank you for being brave and sharing your ideas!

[Lonami.2987]

> @"serenitycat.4623" said:

> I really admire all your hard work , thank you for being brave and sharing your ideas!

 

Nothing brave about it lol, and anyway, what's the point of keeping them for myself? I love discussion, and these ideas are but an excuse to start one.

 

Glad you liked them =).

[kito.1827]

@"Lonami.2987" WOW..... stunning. your effort leaves me speechless. i'm applauding IRL

 

you need to put the music-link on top of your OP btw

[AzureNightmare.3914]

This may be a bit old, but I really do appreciate how this answers the dilemma of Tengu having no starting area, a very common problem asked when talking about the idea of Tengus as a playable race. I do love this concept as a whole, and I really want to commend OP for the sheer amount of effort they put into making this wiki page for it. Amazing, fantastic work, I hope even now you're proud of it.

 

I do agree the premise seems rather week, but for a fan-thing just for fun its amazingly well-done and well-thought out. I'll admit the concept of vials as a weapon feels a bit meh to me, but at the least, I'd love to see how it'd work hypothetically in-game before I made a judgment. I'll admit since the new weapons are things we've never seen in GW2 its a bit hard to get excited about Elite Specializations getting them because as a reader I don't know how they play for others, thus making it a little hard to be excited for than compared to, lets say, Reavers getting Hammers. But maybe that's nitpicky.

 

If nothing else, I'll never not be impressed by the effort put into this. Great work!

[Aplethoraof.2643]

> @"starhunter.6015" said:

> All good, really but only issue with this is Dervish uses the gods for their power. Since the gods left they would have nothing to draw from. Let alone any race not human would be/could be restricted from the class lore wise. But I do love the dervish class, we just need a way to bring it up for all races a Dervish 2.0 , maybe instead of drawing from the human gods. Dervish 2.0 could draw from the Cantha Zodiac ?

 

That isn't true. Awakened are not human, and have Dervishes among their number.

 

And if you want to dig deeper, GW1 had:

Minotaur Dervishes

Elemental Dervishes

Demon Dervishes

Destroyer Dervishes

Golem Dervishes

Undead Dervishes

 

Not to mention, any of your heroes could be Dervishes. That means, we have at-least one Charr Dervish, Centaur Dervish, Asuran Dervish, Dwarf Dervish, and Norn Dervish. And M.O.X was another Golem Dervish, at that.

 

Added to that, no-where was it mentioned in either the manual or flavour text that only humans could be Dervishes (as that would contradict the game).

 

Dunno where people get their lore, but it definitely doesn't hold up in the game itself.

[starhunter.6015]

> @"Aplethoraof.2643" said:

> > @"starhunter.6015" said:

> > All good, really but only issue with this is Dervish uses the gods for their power. Since the gods left they would have nothing to draw from. Let alone any race not human would be/could be restricted from the class lore wise. But I do love the dervish class, we just need a way to bring it up for all races a Dervish 2.0 , maybe instead of drawing from the human gods. Dervish 2.0 could draw from the Cantha Zodiac ?

>

> That isn't true. Awakened are not human, and have Dervishes among their number.

>

> And if you want to dig deeper, GW1 had:

> Minotaur Dervishes

> Elemental Dervishes

> Demon Dervishes

> Destroyer Dervishes

> Golem Dervishes

> Undead Dervishes

>

> Not to mention, any of your heroes could be Dervishes. That means, we have at-least one Charr Dervish, Centaur Dervish, Asuran Dervish, Dwarf Dervish, and Norn Dervish. And M.O.X was another Golem Dervish, at that.

>

> Added to that, no-where was it mentioned in either the manual or flavour text that only humans could be Dervishes (as that would contradict the game).

>

> Dunno where people get their lore, but it definitely doesn't hold up in the game itself.

 

The wiki for starters and this in game description "Bolstered by the blessings of the gods, these holy warriors reap the benefits of multiple Enchantments. With a sharpened scythe, the Dervish can unleash a whirlwind of destruction."

An I said any race NOT human would be restricted lore wise, as for GW1 the reason is simply for game play. Also Awakened are considered human, they started as human and still think and function as human.

[Aplethoraof.2643]

> @"starhunter.6015" said:

> > @"Aplethoraof.2643" said:

> > > @"starhunter.6015" said:

> > > All good, really but only issue with this is Dervish uses the gods for their power. Since the gods left they would have nothing to draw from. Let alone any race not human would be/could be restricted from the class lore wise. But I do love the dervish class, we just need a way to bring it up for all races a Dervish 2.0 , maybe instead of drawing from the human gods. Dervish 2.0 could draw from the Cantha Zodiac ?

> >

> > That isn't true. Awakened are not human, and have Dervishes among their number.

> >

> > And if you want to dig deeper, GW1 had:

> > Minotaur Dervishes

> > Elemental Dervishes

> > Demon Dervishes

> > Destroyer Dervishes

> > Golem Dervishes

> > Undead Dervishes

> >

> > Not to mention, any of your heroes could be Dervishes. That means, we have at-least one Charr Dervish, Centaur Dervish, Asuran Dervish, Dwarf Dervish, and Norn Dervish. And M.O.X was another Golem Dervish, at that.

> >

> > Added to that, no-where was it mentioned in either the manual or flavour text that only humans could be Dervishes (as that would contradict the game).

> >

> > Dunno where people get their lore, but it definitely doesn't hold up in the game itself.

>

> The wiki for starters and this in game description "Bolstered by the blessings of the gods, these holy warriors reap the benefits of multiple Enchantments. With a sharpened scythe, the Dervish can unleash a whirlwind of destruction."

> An I said any race NOT human would be restricted lore wise, as for GW1 the reason is simply for game play. Also Awakened are considered human, they started as human and still think and function as human.

 

What is the lore for? It provides context for the gameplay. "For gameplay" doesn't work, these are creatures who's MAIN PROFESSION is Dervish. Like it or not, they are Dervishes. All the heroes, minus Razah and M.O.X. are also Main Profession Dervishes. If you think main profession matters in this case, which it doesn't. Jora and Vexx can use the magic? Then they can be Dervishes (and they certainly can).

 

Also, the wiki and the in-game description (and the manual) never say "only humans can be dervishes" or anything of the effect. It sounds like you are embelleshing?

 

If you are willing to do mental gymnastics, I can't argue with that. Anything is possible in your own head. Grass could be blue!

[Mikali.9651]

I like most of the ideas, but elite specs are totally missed.

 

Ranger should have a hammer, and go bunny thumper style, with dazes and high attack speed DPS.

 

Warrior should have a spear, and be Paragon, getting mid-range weapon and chants for a more supportive role (we already have a "fighter" spec)

 

Revenant you guessed right, they should be Ritualists, and get both Scepter and Focus item, because not a single main or off-hand weapon atm has any good support skill IMO.

 

Guardians should get the Tank elite spec, and not be dependent on AI, they are clunky, most of the time not responsive enough. Greataxe I welcome.

 

I like your Mesmer idea, using "mesmerizing" melody for both support and torturing, but not with a shortbow, I would introduce Lute as a weapon or give them Warhorn.

 

Necromancers are alright, not sure with pistols though.

 

Engineer is a fun idea :)

 

Ele also didn't even think about Djinns and Scythe for it! Very good concept.

 

The assassin with the greatsword? A big no, unless they make it into a big-ass one-hand weapon. I actually would like to play a profession that only wields a sword in the one hand, like a typical sword.