Cantha's technology

[EdwinLi.1284]

So we got the new trailer and from it it appears Cantha has mastered turning their jade into a type of power source for their technology.

Not to mention there is development of something using that technology to defy the fate of the cycle or atleast a way to reset it without the Elder Dragon destroying the world.

What do you think maybe the importance of Canthan technology?

 

How advance it maybe?

 

What they may use it for?

 

and any other possible speculations you may think up involving Canthan technology?

Personlly, I hope to see mechanized Siege turtles with giant laser cannons on their backs. 

--------------------------------------------------------

Other than that, the new Canthan technology is peaking my interests more into what possible Engineer Elite Specialization maybe created for Cantha.

Edited July 27, 2021 by EdwinLi.1284

[Bast.7253]

From my understanding reading the article it seems as though the Jade somehow serves as a sort of bloodstone type device. I guess maybe since it's magic from Dwayna and it's been somehow absorbing the magic from the DSD?

There's also the possibility that it's "Dragonjade" because the jade wind was a result of the DSD's magic, but I'm not getting that impression from the article.

I don't know how it would defy the cycle given that the cycle seems to still hinge on having a certain number of dragons to fill the All. But, it seems that's out the window now and it's just the "excess magic" that is the real issue. So, who knows.

As far as uses, not really much to speculate on. 

[Paulgotik.8469]

Can you please share the link for the original article talking about the "Dragonjade Technology"?

[draxynnic.3719]

54 minutes ago, Paulgotik.8469 said:

Can you please share the link for the original article talking about the "Dragonjade Technology"?

It was mentioned in the overview stream about eleven hours ago. There's supposed to be an article coming, but it's not up yet.

[Teratus.2859]

I'm curious about it too.

Jade is a product of the Jade Wind which was itself unleashed Divine Magic thanks to Shiro.
And the Gods themselves are mists beings of immense power.
And of course the mists has all sorts of affiliation with time as well.

My first theory on this is that the Canthans have found a way to use Jade as a means of either manipulating time to a degree possibly by manipulating the mists itself somehow.

The Aetherblades last we saw them were messing around in the mists too, building bases there.
And now they are back, I don't think that's just a coincidence.

There's a good chance Scarlet's legacy will come up again as well since before Mai Trinn fled from us and disappeared for years we learned that Scarlet wanted Trinn alive for another "mission" that we never did find out about.
What she's been doing in Cantha all these years could very well be something Scarlet orchestrated long in advance that we and the rest of Dragons Watch have remained completely ignorant of.
The Aetherblades while also under Scarlets command gained access to a lot of Inquest technology as well so this too could play some role in Cantha and explain some of their technological advances.

[Legion.4198]

2 hours ago, Paulgotik.8469 said:

Can you please share the link for the original article talking about the "Dragonjade Technology"?

 

https://www.guildwars2.com/en/end-of-dragons/

 

Notice the jade-infused cyberarm on that Canthan engineer.

[draxynnic.3719]

Okay, going for a somewhat longer response now, since while they said that there'd be an article up "today", at this stage I don't think that's likely to actually happen.

 

What they've mentioned indicates that it's some form of magitech - the jade soaks up magic and seems to be working as batteries. There's also that mention of a century of progress, so I don't think this is a recent development or something that's in response to the magic buildup arising due to the deaths of dragons. Instead, it seems that it's using the dragon's jade to power something similar to asura magitech.

 

It's possible, though, that their response to the magic overload was to use dragon's jade to soak it up, which likely means that they've got it tuned to draw magic in... which might be an explanation for where the magic went when Jormag and Primordus took each other out.

[Konig Des Todes.2086]

Although it was a very minor lore point (kudos if they actually dug this up!) the jade mined from the Jade Sea in GW1 was always magically potent. The exact nature of this potency was never delved into, but it was why the Kurzicks and Luxons both sought it - Imperial Canthans mostly sought it for its aesthetic applications in Factions.

Overall, this makes "dragonjade" a parallel to asuran magitech - just with a lot of green, less hexagons, and more mystical technobabble than sciency-technobabble. I'm seeing this as what the Holosmith magitech could have been if there was a larger focus on using Zephyrite crystals as a power source for technology.

2 hours ago, Teratus.2859 said:

My first theory on this is that the Canthans have found a way to use Jade as a means of either manipulating time to a degree possibly by manipulating the mists itself somehow.

People are hinging quite a bit on the dialogue talking about "trapped in the past" and "gave them a future" to imply time travel/manipulation. But the latter phrase is a very common metaphor for "giving them a chance at life", while the latter is often reflective of people being obsessed with something that happened in their past (e.g., revenge), so I'm not sure time manipulation/travel is at all involved.

4 hours ago, Bast.7253 said:

There's also the possibility that it's "Dragonjade" because the jade wind was a result of the DSD's magic, but I'm not getting that impression from the article.

My impression of the name is that it's just being called that because Cantha is the Empire of the Dragon and they just love their dragons, not that it ties to the Elder Dragons. Based on the concept tower of what seems to be the Harvest Temple, the implication I get is that the dragon there (Kuunavang? A bit large but Harvest Temple was her home) is perpetuating/charging the jade.

2 hours ago, Teratus.2859 said:

The Aetherblades last we saw them were messing around in the mists too, building bases there.
And now they are back, I don't think that's just a coincidence.

 

There's a good chance Scarlet's legacy will come up again as well since before Mai Trinn fled from us and disappeared for years we learned that Scarlet wanted Trinn alive for another "mission" that we never did find out about.
What she's been doing in Cantha all these years could very well be something Scarlet orchestrated long in advance that we and the rest of Dragons Watch have remained completely ignorant of.
The Aetherblades while also under Scarlets command gained access to a lot of Inquest technology as well so this too could play some role in Cantha and explain some of their technological advances.

Given Mai Trin's placement in the trailer, it seems the Aetherblades will be our ticket into going to Cantha - for whatever reason, she was in the fleet of airships accompanying Aurene.

 

So I don't think outright that "Scarlet's legacy" involves Cantha. I think ArenaNet just saw an opportunity to bring Mai Trin back as a Cantha-related Tyrian.

[EdwinLi.1284]

1 hour ago, Legion.4198 said:

 

https://www.guildwars2.com/en/end-of-dragons/

 

Notice the jade-infused cyberarm on that Canthan engineer.

Yes! Siege turtles with Giant Laser cannons on their backs!

Also, it is going to be interesting what kind of Elite Spec the Engineer will be if they are Mechanized arm Elite Spec.

that also put into question the weapon since they already have hammer for Scrapper.

My best guess is it maybe Greatsword that way they can have the Engineer wield a greatsword with one hand and the other hand is for all the mechanized arm attacks

Or it could be a High tech Power Armor Elite Spec that has the Engineer transforming into a High Tech combat power armor thus going full Iron man/War machine

 

Edited July 28, 2021 by EdwinLi.1284

[Teratus.2859]

1 hour ago, Konig Des Todes.2086 said:

People are hinging quite a bit on the dialogue talking about "trapped in the past" and "gave them a future" to imply time travel/manipulation. But the latter phrase is a very common metaphor for "giving them a chance at life", while the latter is often reflective of people being obsessed with something that happened in their past (e.g., revenge), so I'm not sure time manipulation/travel is at all involved.

It's not so much those quotes I based that on but the other factors, Jade's association with Divine Magic which is associated with Gods who are associated with the Mists in which Time does play a big part there.

The quotes i'm still more interested in are the ones in the first teaser.
"Mortals are little flames, brilliant, hot then gone"
"Those who face eternity often forget what a lifetime means, what an ending means, they need me" 

The voice to me sounds like it values the natural state of mortals.. they're not supposed to exist forever they're supposed to die.. and eventually end and it's that end that makes their existence so special.
If they found a way to live forever (say by eliminating the natural elder dragon cycle, or preserving themselves in the mists) they wouldn't be special anymore, they wouldn't be brilliant little flames.

This new trailer shows some kind of new Jade technology, Jade being as mentioned associated with divine magic, gods, indirectly linking it to the mists.
That's where the time factor comes in.. or at least mists factor.
Perhaps Canthan's are trying to use this technology to preserve themselves forever, or find a way to see the future or even the past.

Maybe the voice is Mother and Canthans are trying to summon a long dead "good" Elder Dragon from the past into the present through the mists to destroy the Sea Dragon and put their nation on equal terms with Tyrians who at the moment are the only ones who have a benevolent Elder Dragon.
Or at least that's how Canthans see it, a threat.. same as the Charr saw it.

Or maybe Mother is manipulating them, her real agenda being to get summoned to the present to correct the mistake of us killing the Elder Dragons by wiping out the mortal races, creating a world where new mortals, new brilliant little flames can come into existence.

Edited July 28, 2021 by Teratus.2859
Typos, additions etc :D

[Konig Des Todes.2086]

17 minutes ago, Teratus.2859 said:

The quotes i'm still more interested in are the ones in the first teaser.
"Mortals are little flames, brilliant, hot then gone"
"Those who face eternity often forget what a lifetime means, what an ending means, they need me" 

The voice to me sounds like it values the natural state of mortals.. they're not supposed to exist forever they're supposed to die.. and eventually end and it's that end that makes their existence so special.
If they found a way to live forever (say by eliminating the natural elder dragon cycle, or preserving themselves in the mists) they wouldn't be special anymore, they wouldn't be brilliant little flames.

This interpretation still doesn't feel like time manipulation to me, but rather what I get from your associations and interpretations is that the mysterious voice is wanting to eliminate the need of Elder Dragons - of immortal beings - from the world.

To remove The All's balance but retain the world, in effect.

 

Which... would be an interesting plot. A mortal enemy who's goal is to eliminate the need of Elder Dragons and is using Dragonjade to do so.

17 minutes ago, Teratus.2859 said:

This new trailer shows some kind of new Jade technology, Jade being as mentioned associated with divine magic, gods, indirectly linking it to the mists.
That's where the time factor comes in.. or at least mists factor.

Given they're dubbing it "Dragonjade" now, I'm honestly a little worried about the GW1 origin being retconned in some manner. Or it turning out that this jade is a different type of jade from GW1's jade.

[Teratus.2859]

1 minute ago, Konig Des Todes.2086 said:

This interpretation still doesn't feel like time manipulation to me, but rather what I get from your associations and interpretations is that the mysterious voice is wanting to eliminate the need of Elder Dragons - of immortal beings - from the world.

To remove The All's balance but retain the world, in effect.

 

Which... would be an interesting plot. A mortal enemy who's goal is to eliminate the need of Elder Dragons and is using Dragonjade to do so.

That's also a valid theory as well, could definitely see it that way too.
Could go either way I guess based on whether this voice is coming from a mortal or an immortal being.
I think i'd lean more my way on it due to Kuunavang being familiar with it and now Aurine talking to it too which does lead me to suspect it's an immortal being of some kind rather than a mortal.

But either way I really can't wait to find out about this entity and where this story is going 😄
Gonna be counting the months haha 
 

1 minute ago, Konig Des Todes.2086 said:

Given they're dubbing it "Dragonjade" now, I'm honestly a little worried about the GW1 origin being retconned in some manner. Or it turning out that this jade is a different type of jade from GW1's jade.

RIght with you there man, I found that a bit odd as well.
Maybe they're finally hinting now at a link between the Gods and Dragons?.. I doubt it though lol

Then again a lot changed in the last 250 years, perhaps the Gods absence was felt much more by the Canthan's resulting in them abandoning the Gods and adopting a Dragon as their legitimate God, perhaps this Mother figure or this voice if they are not one and the same convincing them of it's true divinity.
Wouldn't be the first time a nation of humans were duped into believing in false Gods.. Krytans have been through that one 🙂 

Or maybe the Canthans simply believe the Elder Dragons to be the true forms of the Gods and have been worshipping them as such, resulting in the rebranding of Jade to Dragonjade.
This one would certainly make our arrival in Cantha pretty awkward, specially since we've also directly killed a God.

[Amanda Whitemoon.6173]

i think its called dragon jade because it has been absorbing some of the dragon magic everytime we killed one. they talked they had made a timeline of events and how it would have affected cantha.  Like someone made the parallel to bloodstone. but isnt bloodstone way older than the gods and not from them, they just found it and used it. Does give an interesting question, what exactly is this Jade?

[Blazing Rathalos.1904]

2 hours ago, Konig Des Todes.2086 said:

People are hinging quite a bit on the dialogue talking about "trapped in the past" and "gave them a future" to imply time travel/manipulation. But the latter phrase is a very common metaphor for "giving them a chance at life", while the latter is often reflective of people being obsessed with something that happened in their past (e.g., revenge), so I'm not sure time manipulation/travel is at all involved.

I agree with this, I don't think any time travel or related mechanics are involved here. Rather, I think all this "stuck in the past" and "giving people a future" talk should be connected to the other main thing that same character is speaking of: the dragonjade technology she is (apparently) responsible for creating (she mentions the jade SHE gave purpose). These phrases are a common real-life short-hand for technological progress improving lives. From what I can gather, something is threatening the "century of progress" she has achieved with this technology, and she is refusing to give up on it.

 

Wild speculation: The way this dragonjade is being utilized is actually destabilizing the planet (perhaps the magic should just be left stored in the jade), player characters are sent over to stop it, but end up opposed by this character not out of malice, but because she refuses to give up on the future this technology can offer her people.

 

Still waiting for that blog post they said was coming out "later today".

Edited July 28, 2021 by Blazing Rathalos.1904

[Imba.9451]

Before the trailer, my theory was that Canthans somehow managed to use the DSD'd power or even the DSD itself, with a human antagonist taking the spotlight, basically a counterpart to our commander. Someone who isn't an eldritch abomination with the sole intent to screw over the world, but a person who became great by doing basically the stuff we did as well.

 

I still see this potential.

Considering the trailer seems to tease some form of defiance towards fate, while showing ominous use of Jade-Magitech, Cantha seems to chase a goal that we yet have to learn, but to me, it is hinted at, that they know of some kind of bigger, cosmic plan, that they do not wish to go d'accord with. And this will have repercussions within the mortal plane, causing some form of threat and/or dilemma that we, as the players, will have to face and prevent.

What exactly it is they try to achieve is something we can only speculate about. But it I still fairly confident, that the main antagonistic force will not be the DSD, but a group of Canthan people, who are about to screw up big time with the over-ambitious use of Jade-Tech.

 

Also, consider this line:

"I am not... Cantha is not just a stoke in some grand cosmic wheel"

This person cleares is hinted to stir up others to join her cause, but has actually very personal and intrinsic motivations to do whatever she does.

Edited July 28, 2021 by Imba.9451

[Trejgon.9367]

I am putting my bets on canthans using jade-tech to try to simulate ED with machinery. Basically huge magical pump that balances flow of magic in some promixity to it.

[Bast.7253]

6 hours ago, Konig Des Todes.2086 said:

Although it was a very minor lore point (kudos if they actually dug this up!) the jade mined from the Jade Sea in GW1 was always magically potent. The exact nature of this potency was never delved into, but it was why the Kurzicks and Luxons both sought it - Imperial Canthans mostly sought it for its aesthetic applications in Factions.

Overall, this makes "dragonjade" a parallel to asuran magitech - just with a lot of green, less hexagons, and more mystical technobabble than sciency-technobabble. I'm seeing this as what the Holosmith magitech could have been if there was a larger focus on using Zephyrite crystals as a power source for technology.

People are hinging quite a bit on the dialogue talking about "trapped in the past" and "gave them a future" to imply time travel/manipulation. But the latter phrase is a very common metaphor for "giving them a chance at life", while the latter is often reflective of people being obsessed with something that happened in their past (e.g., revenge), so I'm not sure time manipulation/travel is at all involved.

My impression of the name is that it's just being called that because Cantha is the Empire of the Dragon and they just love their dragons, not that it ties to the Elder Dragons. Based on the concept tower of what seems to be the Harvest Temple, the implication I get is that the dragon there (Kuunavang? A bit large but Harvest Temple was her home) is perpetuating/charging the jade.

Given Mai Trin's placement in the trailer, it seems the Aetherblades will be our ticket into going to Cantha - for whatever reason, she was in the fleet of airships accompanying Aurene.

 

So I don't think outright that "Scarlet's legacy" involves Cantha. I think ArenaNet just saw an opportunity to bring Mai Trin back as a Cantha-related Tyrian.

You think that big dragon is Kunavang though? 
 

I assumed Kunavang would look like she does in the teaser but I guess it could still be a vision of the past.

[Sajuuk Khar.1509]

36 minutes ago, Bast.7253 said:

You think that big dragon is Kunavang though? 
 

I assumed Kunavang would look like she does in the teaser but I guess it could still be a vision of the past.

Concept art such as that is very rarely made with the ideas of scale in mind. Its done for visual impact, so inspire the actual modelers/texturers on what thing should look like.

[Zola.6197]

I like the character with the prosthetic dragon jade tech arm! I wonder if Taimi will use similar DJT to help with her condition somehow?

[ChronoPinoyX.7923]

8 hours ago, Konig Des Todes.2086 said:

Given they're dubbing it "Dragonjade" now, I'm honestly a little worried about the GW1 origin being retconned in some manner. Or it turning out that this jade is a different type of jade from GW1's jade.

The only way I can see this Dragonjade being directly connected to both DSD (if that's the dragon this jade is linked to) and the Jade Wind is if they mention the DSD being under the Jade Sea during Shiro's death wail. At that point, it would make sense for the jade to absorb dragon magic, but that's depending on whether the DSD was sleeping under the Jade Sea the entire time. 

[EdwinLi.1284]

49 minutes ago, Zola.6197 said:

I like the character with the prosthetic dragon jade tech arm! I wonder if Taimi will use similar DJT to help with her condition somehow?

it maybe possible that new Elite Spec maybe where Taimi goes down to help compensate for her deteriorating bones. It is basically a cybernization/mechanization elite spec if it is a High Tech Mech arm elite spec. 

A very useful type of technology that can help people with physical disability to replace or allow their disabled parts to function normally by either replacing, enhancing those body parts ability, or repairing them with those cybernization or mechanization. 

In times of war, this type of technology is very much in high demand due to injuries people fighting in the war will go through.

I know it is wishful think but I think this type of tech may even help Zojja recover from her condition though even if it does it may lead to a new voice actor due to the changes the cyberization/mechanization does to her body.

Edited July 28, 2021 by EdwinLi.1284

[Konig Des Todes.2086]

On 7/28/2021 at 11:32 AM, ChronoPinoyX.7923 said:

The only way I can see this Dragonjade being directly connected to both DSD (if that's the dragon this jade is linked to) and the Jade Wind is if they mention the DSD being under the Jade Sea during Shiro's death wail. At that point, it would make sense for the jade to absorb dragon magic, but that's depending on whether the DSD was sleeping under the Jade Sea the entire time. 

Would still be a retcon, incidentally, as pretty much the only lore we had on the DSD up until this point has been "it woke up in the deepest depths of the Unending Ocean" which also happens to be krait homelands, and very much not in the Jade Sea.

[ChronoPinoyX.7923]

10 minutes ago, Konig Des Todes.2086 said:

Would still be a retcon, incidentally, as pretty much the only lore we had on the DSD up until this point has been "it woke up in the deepest depths of the Unending Ocean" which also happens to be krait homelands, and very much not in the Jade Sea.

True, only other thing that could have dragon energy is a Champion a la Drakkar style. Maybe a Leviathan Champion or something frozen under the sea. I know there were the Wurm like "Leviathans" in the Jade Sea, though they aren't anything like the ones around Unending Ocean, but they could still serve as a potential Champions. 

[Daniel Handler.4816]

4 hours ago, Konig Des Todes.2086 said:

Would still be a retcon, incidentally, as pretty much the only lore we had on the DSD up until this point has been "it woke up in the deepest depths of the Unending Ocean" which also happens to be krait homelands, and very much not in the Jade Sea.

 

I mean can't they move? 

[Sajuuk Khar.1509]

24 minutes ago, Daniel Handler.4816 said:

I mean can't they move? 

Why would they move from ocean they can freely swim around in to sea turned into solid rock?