Storyline (Factions)

This storyline article is a recount of the story of the second Guild Wars campaign released in April of 2006. Becoming familiar with the key dates in the history of Cantha will help make certain events in this story clearer.

The story in the Factions Campaign follows the players in their quest to put a stop to Shiro Tagachi who has returned from beyond death to destroy the balance of the universe. In their quest, the players are guided by Master Togo, the head of the Shing Jea Monastery and half-brother to Emperor Kisu, and Brother Mhenlo, a former student of Master Togo and a famous figure in Tyria.

Prologue
Canthan players begin their training in the Shing Jea Monastery. They receive training from the several Headmasters in the Monastery, become versed in two Professions, and earn their Insignia.

Master Togo is impressed by the player's performance, and decides to introduce them to Minister Cho personally. When they arrive at Minister Cho's Estate, however, they find only chaos. A disease has afflicted the residents of the Estate &mdash; not only the guards, but also the animals and birds that Minister Cho was so fond of. The players follow Master Togo through the Estate, eventually reaching Cho himself who turns out to be the most diseased of the Estate residents. Minister Cho transforms into a horrible necromancer boss, and the players are forced to destroy this creature.

Master Togo decides to find the cause of this disease and directs the players to seek out Ang the Ephemeral.

Help from Overseas
Tyrian players journeying to Cantha accompany Brother Mhenlo, who has received a letter from his former tutor about dark times heading their way in Cantha and a plea for help.

Kaineng Center

The players accompany Mhenlo, Eve, Aidan, Cynn and Devona to the Canthan mainland. They are greeted by Jamei, a former classmate of Mhenlo at the Shing Jea Monastery. Cynn is not too pleased that Mhenlo is on first names basis with seemingly every Canthan female.

Jamei tells the players that Master Togo awaits them in Bukdek Byway. They pass through Kaineng Center, the seat of power in the Kingdom of Cantha, and arrive just in time to see Master Togo beset upon by the Afflicted.

International Cooperation
Vizunah Square

The Canthan students of Master Togo and the Tyrian visitors with Brother Mhenlo meet up in Vizunah Square and together fight off a seemingly limitless horde of the Afflicted. They successfully evict the Afflicted from Vizunah Square, but just as they reach the final wave, they come upon a Construct inhabited by the spirit of Shiro Tagachi. Though they defeat Shiro's Construct, he resumes his Envoy form and slays everyone and departs, satisfied.

Several other Envoys are summoned to lead the spirits of the slain players to the Mists. However, they know that it wasn't the players' time and that Shiro is not acting according to his duties as an Envoy. They restore the players' lives, but in return ask that the players put an end to Shiro. To do that, they must first become Weh no Su, Closer to the Stars, in order to see and fight spiritual beings such as Envoys.

Master Togo knows of Weh no Su well. He directs the players to the Oracle of the Mists and custodian of the Star Temple, the man known as Suun. Togo tells them to find Nika, another of his students, who had recently accomplished Weh no Su.

The players track down Nika in Bukdek Byway and she gives them directions to the Oracle that eventually point to Nahpui Quarter. There, the brusque Oracle Suun tells them about their trial.

Closer to the Stars
Nahpui Quarter

Weh no Su requires the players to battle Celestials. They have to defeat the avatars of Kaijun Don, the Celestial Kirin; Kuonghsang the Celestial Turtle Dragon; Hai Jii, the Celestial Phoenix; and Tahmu, the Celestial Dragon. With each victory the task of the players becomes harder, for the slain avatars spawn aspects of themselves throughout the area, swarming the path ahead and behind.

The players do succeed in defeating the Celestials, and Suun tells them that they may now seek guidance from the spirits of the legendary Canthan heroes at Tahnnakai Temple.

Tahnnakai Temple

The path to the Temple is blocked by several patrols of the Am Fah and the Afflicted. When the players reach the Temple, they are informed by Mhenlo that Master Togo and Nika are in grave danger as they have gone to stave off an assault of the Afflicted. They arrive in time to save Togo and Nika, and Master Togo gains them admission to the Temple.

Once inside, they find a grim situation. Shiro Tagachi has imprisoned the spirits of the Legendary Canthan Heroes in the temple in his demonic constructs. Among the bound spirits is Vizu, one of the three heroes who defeated Shiro at the Harvest Ceremony two hundred years ago.

The players rush through the temple, freeing the bound spirits and releasing Vizu before her spirit is fully consumed. The free Vizu tells the players about the way to put an end to Shiro: using the artifacts of the Kurzick Champion Viktor and the Luxon Champion Archemorus.

The Kurzicks
The first task is to recover the artifact Urn of Saint Viktor from the Kurzicks. Luckily, Count zu Heltzer and her daughter Danika zu Heltzer are paying a visit to the Imperial city, and the Emperor thinks that Danika may be the key to winning the Count's favor. The players track her down just as she has put an end to a group of afflicted, and is consoling a little girl who had to see her parents turn into monstrosities before her own eyes.

Danika says that she will of course help put an end to Shiro, and directs them to meet her father, the Count, in the Altrumm Ruins. The Count is glad that the players have come to him with news of Shiro's return, and is willing to hand over the Urn, except for a small problem. The Urn is consecrated in Cathedral zu Heltzer, which is at the moment under the control of the Wardens.

Arborstone

The players accompany Danika and Mhenlo to the Cathedral zu Heltzer to retreive the Urn. As they lift the urn, the curse of Saint Viktor activates, and the Cathedral starts to collapse around them. To make matters worse, the players are blocked off form the entrance by a cave-in, and are cut off from Mhenlo, who alone manages to escape.

The players must make their way through the collapsing Cathedral and escape out of the back door. Blocking their way are several groups of Wardens, the Cathedral guardians who have been awaken by the disturbance of the Urn, and, to make matters worse, several Oni who have been lured there by the smell of chaos. It is a tricky battle, but the players manage to make it out safely and rejoin Mhenlo.

Next up, the Spear of Archemorus.

The Luxons
Boreas Seabed

Master Togo directs them to the Luxon Convocation that has just begun. Every Convocation, the Luxons have a gladiatorial match between their three Clans, and the victor obtains the privilege of wielding the Spear of Archemorus to slay the Kraken Zhu Hanuku.

This year, there will be four contestants, as the only way for the players to obtain the Spear is by defeating the other three clans. This is trickier than it seems, but the players do manage it, and slay Zhu Hanuku with the power of the Spear. Just as they are about to celebrate, Mhenlo comes rushing in with terrible news. The afflicted are on the march on the city and the Emperor fears an attack.

An End to Shiro
Sunjiang District

The Emperor tells the players to lead a squadron of Palace Guards to Sunjiang District, which is the source of the disturbance. The players arrive there to find several spirit portals through which Shiro has been summoning his demonic Shiro'ken army.

The players carve their way through hordes of the Afflicted and Shiro'ken to close the four portals feeding Shiro's main portal. Then they attack Shiro, who has been meditating meanwhile at the center of the District. The players arrive there to find that it was a trap, and Shiro leaves four of his constructs to take care of the players.

But, once again, Shiro underestimates the players, who manage to defeat his constructs. Though the Spear of Archemorus and the Urn of Saint Viktor are destroyed in this battle, they deal Shiro a severe blow. But, being immortal, Shiro was not defeated, merely banished temporarily.

The Envoys tell the players to seek the aid of the warring factions, the Kurzicks and the Luxons. Only united will they have a chance to defeat Shiro once and for all.

Befriending the Kurzicks/Luxons
Here the players have choice of which faction to befriend. Either choice will require accumulating 10,000 points of Faction with the respective faction.

The Kurzicks

Those players who befriend the Kurzicks will eventually find themselves in the Eternal Grove, having led three selfless Kurzicks there who are about to sacrifice their flesh in order to bond themselves with the Forever Trees and become the immortal Juggernauts.

The Eternal Grove is under attack by the Luxons. They have brought their most dangerous weapons, the Siege Turtles, to raid the walls of the Eternal Grove and put an end to the Forever Trees. The players, Danika and Mhenlo have to guard the Grove against several waves of Luxons.

The battle does not drag on indefinitely, however, as the Luxons inexplicably surrender after a half dozen attempts. Count zu Heltzer is surprised at the surrender, but the explanation follows quickly behind the Luxons &mdash; waves of Afflicted are marching towards them.

Against a common enemy, the remaining Luxons and Kurzicks ally and hold the Grove. The new allies give the players news of Master Togo: he and the Luxons are headed towards the Unwaking Waters. The players head there too, stopping briefly to resupply at the Vasburg Armory.

The Luxons

The players who come to seek the aid of the Luxons eventually find themselves at Gyala Hatchery after they recover a number of stolen Turtle eggs. At the hatchery the eggs hatch into Young Turtles, who are then led to the Leviathan Pits.

The path to the Pits is a perilous one as it is open to Kurzick raids. The Luxons therefore have several Siege Turtles accompany the Young Turtles. The players rush to and fro, directing the siege power at the onrushing Kurzicks, until they finally make it through the gates of the Leviathan Pits.

There they meet the final wave of Kurzicks, who are easily outnumbered by the Luxon reinforcements. Just as the Kurzicks are about to flee, they find their retreat blocked by the Afflicted, who have come to raid the Leviathan Pits. Forced to ally against a common enemy, they Luxons and the Kurzicks halt the Afflicted attack.

The Luxons are not about to be kind to their Kurzick prisoners, but Master Togo arrives in time to put an end to the senseless violence. He reminds them that they have a common enemy now, Shiro Tagachi, who has returned and brought the Afflicted with him.

The Kurzicks tell the players that Mhenlo and the Kurzicks have headed to the Unwaking Waters, so they head there themselves.

An Audience With the Dragon
Unwaking Waters

The Kurzick and the Luxon players meet up at the Unwaking Waters to seek an audience with the dragon Kuunavang, who now resides in the Harvest Temple. Kuunavang herself is under Shiro's influence and puts up a strong resistance against the players. The players have to combine forces and hold off several waves of the Afflicted and Kuunavang's devastating attacks until they finally make their way to the top of the Harvest Temple.

There they have a final showdown with Kuunavang. She is a formidable enemy, but is eventually no match for the players. Defeated, her enslavement to Shiro is broken, and she offers her aid to the players. The Envoys too appear then and tell the players that Shiro is making his next move against the Emperor.

Apparently, Shiro desires to return the mortal realm, and the only way he can do that is to break his original curse by slaying a member of the Imperial line.

Raisu Palace
Raisu Palace

Shiro leads his demonic Shiro'ken army in an assault on the Palace. His army overpowers the Palace Guard, and Shiro himself makes it to the Imperial Sanctum, the very center of the palace and the Emperor's own throne room. He slays everyone but the emperor, puts the emperor in a bound trance, and waits.

The players arrive to find the Palace locked down. Together with the help of the celestial skills granted by Kuunavang, and the aid of several of the NPCs from the storyline, the players begin a fight to the Sanctum through the Shiro'ken army.

Each room of the Palace presents a unique challenge and a fight with a boss, but the players do manage to make it through all six rooms and enter the Imperial Sanctum. Here they are attacked simultaneously by three bosses, but they emerge victorious and rush to Kisu's aid.

Just as they reach the Emperor, Shiro appears in a flash, binds Master Togo in his spell, and escapes to the interior. Shiro had used the Emperor to lure Togo there, and Togo, being of the eldest of the Imperial line, was the last ingredient Shiro needed to complete his transformation.

Shiro slays Master Togo. He has returned.

The Final Conflict
Imperial Sanctum

The players have lost their guide. Brother Mhenlo has lost his venerated teacher. This is a sad moment, but there is no time for sadness. Shiro must be stopped. Mhenlo leads the players on a quest for revenge.

Once more, with Kuunavang's aid, the players confront Shiro Tagachi. He is tremendously powerful in battle, but he has one weakness now that he lacked before: he is mortal. This means he can be killed.

It is a difficult battle, but the players finally defeat Shiro. As he dies, the acolytes of the Star Temple led by the Oracle Suun appear and seal Shiro's mortal form in jade. Because Shiro has died a normal death, his spirit comes into the keeping of the Envoys. They have prepared a special place in the Underworld for Shiro to do penance for his sins.

Epilogue
Divine Path

The players have saved Cantha. They have defeated Shiro, stopped the plague, united the warring factions, and saved the Emperor. This is a joyous occasion, and people form all around Cantha appear to pay their respects to the new heroes of Cantha.