Guardian Race - Best for looks/Feel/Story

[Kirax.8693]

Good day all,  I am returning to the game after not playing since 2013/2014.  I had a Human Guardian that i started and then quit due to family issues.  I now have a little more time to play and wanted to start a new guardian again.

 

I remember enjoying the human starting area when i first played and based on a quick google search i like the way they look in heavy armor.  But norn and Sylari seem to look pretty cool too.  Char and Asura I sadly just cant get into.  

 

Based on looks, animations, and personal story how would you rank Human, Norns, and Sylvari?  Also What is the best personal story choices for each of these?

 

Thanks!

[Gibson.4036]

Personally, of those three I much prefer Sylvari. Their models are beautifully done. Their core stories also have an Arthurian quest feel (the white stag, green knight, moon shield) that lines up nicely with the paladin-like Guardian.

I find the male human character models to be oddly crude in comparison. Make Norn’s distorted physiques are also off-putting to me.

[Nabbut.7480]

If you are a human, play human. Being a racial traitor is bad. GW1 had humans as the only playable race for a reason.

[ASP.8093]

5 hours ago, Kirax.8693 said:

Based on looks, animations, and personal story how would you rank Human, Norns, and Sylvari?  Also What is the best personal story choices for each of these?

All three have fairly similar animations and armor generally looks similar on them (compared to Charr and Asura, who are often very different). But there are some differences.

 

Looks:

• Norn are the only species with tattoos. Sylvari are the only species that glow at night (and are made of plants).

• A lot of popular haircut choices are available on both Humans and Norn. So if you see a haircut you really like, sometimes it pays to check whether it's available on another race before you proceed.

• Norn have bulkier bodies. The main thing that throws people off sometimes is they often have rather wide necks. If you don't like this, you can partly offset it by messing with your head size / width in the character creator.

• If you want to create a creepy-looking character, Sylvari (and Asura) are a good base. A lot of Sylvari are pretty but you can also make wonderfully unsettling ones, playing up the way they look "incomplete" or "inhuman" in some way. Great for a more sinister vibe, especially for your Necro, Revenant, or Mesmer.

 

Animations:

• All player characters move at the same speed, for balance. But Norn are bigger. So they often feel a bit "slower" when they run. (Some people compare it to Moonwalking.) Most of my Norn characters also happen to be characters who have some baked-in speed boost like perma-Swiftness, to avoid this quirk.

• Sylvari have a noticeably more "youthful" stride — the way they swing their arms when they run, mostly. Particularly the women.

• Some distinctive emotes, especially /dance. I, personally, like the Sylvari dance the most.

 

Other stuff:

• Voice acting, of course. They all have their own voices and some of the standard callout lines (for stuff like "I have Fury on me!") are different as well.

• Cultural armor. Take a look at the wiki and see if any of them really inspire you.

• Story stuff. Sylvari probably have the most unique role in the story, and you learn a lot about Caithe and Trahearne (who are very central characters to a lot of the game's big story) as you start. Norn have a solid comedy option in the personal story (not mandatory).

• "Racial skills." These are designed to be rarely used, but I find the Human ones boring and the Sylvari ones one-note; the Norn transformations, in contrast, are big and splashy and can occasionally be used to make super sick meme builds.

 

If you play Sylvari, I recommend the "Where Life Goes, So Should You" personal story pick. It ties in really well to the overall story of the game and expansions. ("Act With Wisdom" is good, too.)

[Kirax.8693]

Thanks for the replies all.  I created a Sylvari to test out and then i found out there is a total make over kit i can buy to get some more customization options.  I like the looks of the new sylvari exclusive options for sure.  Also like the way the human ones look too.  Norn seem too big after playing with the character creator again.  

 

Question... Is the extra lore content in HoT worth it to roll sylvari also?  And is there any race specific dialog in either of the other expansions?  Thanks!

[Donari.5237]

There is some race-specific dialogue but it's minimal, of the blink-and-miss it variety, especially in EoD.  In HoT it's definitely worth it as there are several achieves you can only do as a sylvari or at least with a sylvari in your party in the instance, plus only sylvari understand the words behind the roars directed at them in the story.  You also have some notable moments where you are affected in ways non-sylvari are not.

Edited May 9, 2022 by Donari.5237

[Ashantara.8731]

23 hours ago, Kirax.8693 said:

Good day all,  I am returning to the game after not playing since 2013/2014.  I had a Human Guardian that i started and then quit due to family issues.  I now have a little more time to play and wanted to start a new guardian again.

I remember enjoying the human starting area when i first played and based on a quick google search i like the way they look in heavy armor.  But norn and Sylari seem to look pretty cool too.  Char and Asura I sadly just cant get into.  

Based on looks, animations, and personal story how would you rank Human, Norns, and Sylvari?  Also What is the best personal story choices for each of these?

Thanks!

Here is my short take on player character aesthetics:

Female Human: nay 👎
Male Human: yay 👍

Female Norn: yay 👍
Male Norn: nay 👎

Female Sylvari: nay 👎
Male Sylvari: yay 👍

Female Asura: nay 👎
Male Asura: yay 👍

Female Charr: yay 👍
Male Charr: yay 👍

[IrishPotato.6327]

13 hours ago, Kirax.8693 said:

Thanks for the replies all.  I created a Sylvari to test out and then i found out there is a total make over kit i can buy to get some more customization options.  I like the looks of the new sylvari exclusive options for sure.  Also like the way the human ones look too.  Norn seem too big after playing with the character creator again.  

 

Question... Is the extra lore content in HoT worth it to roll sylvari also?  And is there any race specific dialog in either of the other expansions?  Thanks!

Sylvari get entirely exclusive conversations in HoT and after when mentioning the Jungle Dragon. I very much enjoyed the unique feel of a Sylvari in HoT and since male Sylvari has been my favorite by far, and main. Arguably male sylvari has the best voice acting post core game as well. It just feels so much more authentic and accurate portrayal of emotions.

[Kirax.8693]

8 minutes ago, IrishPotato.6327 said:

Sylvari get entirely exclusive conversations in HoT and after when mentioning the Jungle Dragon. I very much enjoyed the unique feel of a Sylvari in HoT and since male Sylvari has been my favorite by far, and main. Arguably male sylvari has the best voice acting post core game as well. It just feels so much more authentic and accurate portrayal of emotions.

Thanks for this. I decided to roll with my male sylvari guardian and this makes me excited for what’s to come! 

[IrishPotato.6327]

1 hour ago, Kirax.8693 said:

Thanks for this. I decided to roll with my male sylvari guardian and this makes me excited for what’s to come! 

There's one line that hits hard at the beginning of HoT in Verdant Brink because the everyman pact soldiers don't trust you, and when one of them questions you, and while you're normally such a lighthearted and calm voice you get pissed along the lines of "get back in line soldier and shut up or else"

Edited May 9, 2022 by IrishPotato.6327

[Baby Goth.4983]

Norn  or Charr  ,   trust me you will change your mind after you get the Legendary Warbringer Back  on them ...   

 

you can feel the heat when the animation of the back piece triggers ...

[IrishPotato.6327]

10 hours ago, Baby Goth.4983 said:

Norn  or Charr  ,   trust me you will change your mind after you get the Legendary Warbringer Back  on them ...   

 

you can feel the heat when the animation of the back piece triggers ...

2 points of contention: the Warbringer backpiece requires heavy WvW involvement which is possibly not what the OP wants.

It's also more in tune with a Warrior vibe than Guardian.