Ascalon

Ascalon is a landlocked nation to the east of the Shiverpeak Mountains and to the north of the Crystal Desert. There seems to be a large series of impassable mountains towards the Crystal Desert. Ascalon has been ruled by a royal family for many years. King Adelbern rules over Ascalon with the aid of his son, Prince Rurik although they don't always agree on matters of state.

Newly created characters of the Prophecies Campaign actually start in Pre-Searing Ascalon.

Pre-Searing
Two years ago Ascalon was a kingdom of rolling green hills and vast blue lakes. It was constantly at war with its neighbours thanks to the Guild Wars. When the Charr invade the nations of Tyria, the Guild Wars ended abruptly. Fortunately, the Great Wall protected the humans for a time and they were able to hold the Charr at bay. However, the Charr brought powerful magic to bear and simultaneously breached the Wall and scorched the lands of Ascalon.

Post-Searing
The event that breached the wall and devastated much of Ascalon is referred to as the Searing. Ascalons now live in decaying ruins and the remains of cities for defense. The land is barren and most of the lakes have dried up completely, making place for pools of tar. King Adelbern's guards continue to hold off much of the Charr threat thanks to the remnants of the wall, but the Ascalons exist as a shadow of their former glory. Prince Rurik is not as satisfied with the defense of Ascalon as King Adelbern.

The capital city of Ascalon is Rin, although the largest and currently most important city is Ascalon City. The old capital, Drascir, had fallen long ago.

The region of Post-Searing Ascalon is sometimes referred to as "Ruins of Ascalon" by ArenaNet.

Towns and Outposts

 * [[Image:CityIcon sml.png]]Ascalon City
 * [[Image:OutpostIcon sml.png]]Frontier Gate
 * [[Image:OutpostIcon sml.png]]Grendich Courthouse
 * [[Image:OutpostIcon sml.png]]Piken Square
 * [[Image:OutpostIcon sml.png]]Sardelac Sanitarium
 * [[Image:OutpostIcon sml.png]]Serenity Temple
 * [[Image:MissionIcon sml.png]]Fort Ranik (Mission)
 * [[Image:MissionIcon sml.png]]Nolani Academy (Mission)
 * [[Image:MissionIcon sml.png]]Ruins of Surmia (Mission)
 * [[Image:MissionIcon sml.png]]The Great Northern Wall (Mission)
 * [[Image:ArenaIcon sml.png]]Ascalon Arena

Explorable areas

 * Ascalon Foothills
 * Diessa Lowlands
 * Dragon's Gullet
 * Eastern Frontier
 * Flame Temple Corridor
 * Old Ascalon
 * Pockmark Flats
 * Regent Valley
 * The Breach

Trivia

 * The name Ascalon most likely comes from the Latin translation of a city called Ashkelon which was part of the Kingdom of Jerusalem and resides in modern-day Israel. This city dates back to 2000 BCE.
 * In the same time period, there was a town (or city, I'm not positive on all of the details) to the west of Jerusalem, named Ascalon.
 * There is a sword named "Ascalon" in an old fairy tale named "St. George of Merrie England".