Cast

Definition
Casting is the action of activating a spell (or any kind of skill - see note).

Most skills don't activate instantly but require a certain casting time. During that time there is a certain chance that the casting may be interrupted.


 * Note: The use of the term "cast" in GuildWars is somewhat inconsistent. In some cases it is used for spells only (for example for the Mesmers' Fast Casting), in other cases it applies to all kinds of skills (for example while under influence of the Curse of the Bloodstone).

Casting Animation
If you watch a foe or ally closely while he is activating a skill you can tell a lot about the skill he is using, without even checking him on the Target Monitor.

The animation has up to 4 parts:
 * 1) the movement animation of the caster
 * 2) a symbol appearing above the caster's head (optional)
 * 3) an "aura" around the body of the caster (optional)
 * 4) an "aura" around the body of the target

Movement Animation
For each skill there is a movement animation, depending on skill type, profession and gender:
 * Spellcasters will usually raise their arms/weapons in the air, bend back (sometimes hovering in midair), then point their weapon in direction of the target.
 * Warriors will swing their weapon at the target in different ways.
 * Rangers will draw their bow (for bow attacks).

The Casting Symbol
The Casting Symbol is a symbol that appears above the head of the caster. Typically it appears during the whole process of activation.

The Casting Symbol is optional and the type depends on type of the used skill:


 * For Spells (including hexes and enchantments) the casting symbol usually indicates the linked attribute, for example most Healing Prayers spells have the "ankh" symbol, most Divine Favor spells have the "vortex" symbol, etc. However, there are exceptions from this rule:
 * Some few spells have no Casting Symbol at all.
 * Some few spells have a unique casting symbol, for example Vampiric Gaze has a green skull instead of the typical red blood-dripping ring of a Blood Magic spell.
 * Some few spells have the "wrong" casting symbol, for example Life Attunement has the "ankh" symbol of a Healing Prayers spell altough it is a Protection Prayers spell.


 * Signets have the same "rose" symbol for all professions and attributes.


 * Nature Rituals have two casting symbols:
 * 1) a symbol that is unique (actually, it might be part of the "aura", see next paragraph)
 * 2) a symbol that appears at the very end of activation, which is identical for all Nature Rituals


 * Most non-spell skills (especially those that activate instantly) have no Casting Symbol at all:
 * "Plain" skills (no sub-type)
 * Attack Skills
 * Stances
 * Shouts
 * Preparations
 * Traps


 * Glyphs: Not checked yet

The Caster/Target Aura
The "aura" is some kind of visual effect that appears around the body of the caster (optional) and/or the target.


 * The auras are unique for each skill.
 * They are usually nicely animated: Swirling, rotating, pulsing, sparkling, flashing, ... there are countless variations.
 * In case there is an aura for both the caster and the target, these two auras are usually different.

Caster Aura

 * Many spells do not have a caster aura.
 * Most non-spell skills have a caster aura (instead of or in addition to a Casting Symbol).
 * The caster aura appears either during the whole process of activation (typical for non-spell skills) or at the end, right before or right after the activation is complete (typical for spells).
 * In case of a self-targeting skill the target aura appears on the caster, blending in with the caster aura.

Target Aura

 * Virtually all skills (including non-spell skills) have a target aura of some kind.
 * The target aura appears upon "impact" of the skill, i.e. after successful activation.