Originally posted by bansan

Why does it have to be so humanoid?  Why?  Even down to the belly button.  Plants sprout they don't need an umbilical cord.  Plants don't suckle, they don't need breasts.

These aren't plant people.  They are mammals that look like plants for whatever reason.

 

Read the blog post before making a comment please.

Originally posted by Unlight

Originally posted by bansan

Why does it have to be so humanoid?  Why?  Even down to the belly button.  Plants sprout they don't need an umbilical cord.  Plants don't suckle, they don't need breasts.

These aren't plant people.  They are mammals that look like plants for whatever reason.

The Pale Tree grew from a magic seed planted by a human hand.  The Sylvari imprinted as human from that contact, which gave them human appearance, even though they are still completely plant.  Not a stretch when weird, ancient magicks are involved.

 

Not really a human hand, it was by grown by a Centaur named Ventari. A human lived with him though.

Amazing.

Rarely seen such attention to detail in a video game.

So much props to Anet art team !!!

Originally posted by Zeroxin

Originally posted by Unlight

Originally posted by bansan

Why does it have to be so humanoid?  Why?  Even down to the belly button.  Plants sprout they don't need an umbilical cord.  Plants don't suckle, they don't need breasts.

These aren't plant people.  They are mammals that look like plants for whatever reason.

The Pale Tree grew from a magic seed planted by a human hand.  The Sylvari imprinted as human from that contact, which gave them human appearance, even though they are still completely plant.  Not a stretch when weird, ancient magicks are involved.

 

Not really a human hand, it was by grown by a Centaur named Ventari. A human lived with him though.

It was found by Ronin and grew on top of the graves of Ronin's family. Ronin and Ventari took care of the tree together.

Can't they just erase this ridiculus green tree like race? I mean they could just replace them with elfs which is one of the most favourite race of players.

Ok some will say , hey what about the lore? Frankly instead of watching this race in game i would prefer a small change in the game's lore . After all game hasn't released yet and there is still time.

I know there are players that like wierdos races but majority prefers serious like races to pick and play and after all, if proggramers want a green like race... well they can implement orcs heh

Originally posted by Goggy
Racial trait: x10 damage from fire!

Can't wait to burn these in pvp!

I wonder how Anet are gonna get around this one.
 

SIMPLE!.. Heat resistant trees!

I really, really love the new design.

Originally posted by Goggy

Racial trait: x10 damage from fire!



Can't wait to burn these in pvp!



I wonder how Anet are gonna get around this one.

 

LOL their racial trait can be 10x less dmg from fire pretty easy, in the magical fantasy world where u have magic, inteligent plants, dragons and other cool things not exactly matching our reality. everything is possible :P

Originally posted by tazarconan7

Can't they just erase this ridiculus green tree like race? I mean they could just replace them with elfs which is one of the most favourite race of players.

Ok some will say , hey what about the lore? Frankly instead of watching this race in game i would prefer a small change in the game's lore . After all game hasn't released yet and there is still time.

I know there are players that like wierdos races but majority prefers serious like races to pick and play and after all, if proggramers want a green like race... well they can implement orcs heh

Man if you really really hate all those weirdos, you can always play those doggy style

Originally posted by Goggy
So why not let mages use spells underwater. As you say, its fantasy, anything is possible.

From what i've read so far, Anet seem to be quite critical on all the little details.

I'm not having a go here. Its just, they haven't really addressed it, or have I missed that bit.

Mages can use spells underwater, what are you talking about?

About the burning Sylvari (quoted from another thread):

Originally posted by Meowhead

Originally posted by OmgZombies

How do you think Sylvari do with fires?  Would lighting their hair/leafyness on fire pretty much gaurentee killing them if it's not put out in a short aount of time?  Would they burn instantly like a dried up leaf if they're bark-looking like with the winter body?  

Would kind of bother me if they were, considering how much fire damage is gonna be in the game, even burning conditions.  I'm not talking about in-game racial stats though, just from a lore perspective.  :P

Wet wood doesn't actually burn that particularly well.  They're probably full of tree... liquids and stuff, like humans have blood.

... and humans are really flammable too, you know?  It's part of being organic, generally.

You could make a bonfire out of humans, but it's considered to be in poor taste.  You're just confused because people tend to use wood as the less gruesome campfire material. :T

Originally posted by Goggy
So why not let mages use spells underwater. As you say, its fantasy, anything is possible.

From what i've read so far, Anet seem to be quite critical on all the little details.

I'm not having a go here. Its just, they haven't really addressed it, or have I missed that bit.

Mages, or elementalists, as they are called in the GW universe, CAN use spells underwater. Just not the same spells as the ones they can use over water. Their skillbar changes, just like everyone else's. Say you're a fire attunment ele and you go underwater. Fire can't really be conjured underwayer, but lava, which is tenfolds hotter than fire, can be lobbed a little distance for then to start boiling the water and causing aoe damage.

On topic: Thanks Anet! Now all GW2 players can be sure that the sylvari is no elf, they're definitivley plant people!

Originally posted by Goggy
So why not let mages use spells underwater. As you say, its fantasy, anything is possible.

From what i've read so far, Anet seem to be quite critical on all the little details.

I'm not having a go here. Its just, they haven't really addressed it, or have I missed that bit.

Trident: Long-range magical weapon. Used to change the skill bar so this type of environmental interaction feels different and besides more appropriate than arrows or fireballs u/w also?!

http://www.arena.net/blog/jonathan-sharp-talks-underwater-combat

I think the Sylvari are one of the most interesting-looking races... and look distinctive now, which is paramount too.

Much better than the originals. They look like a great mix of elfs and plants...instead  of just elfs with plant clothes on. Also, having them look more mature is great, I love cartoony cute stuff, but the old Sylvari didn't really match the not so cartoony GW2 world.

Damn I love these design blogs. As an artist, it is truly fascinating to gain insight from a designer's research and creative process. That's one reason I own the GW2 art book.

Oh, and Kristen totally nailed it on the Sylvari.

Well, I like what I see of the designs so far. Great job. They will probably lose some players from the race who really like Elves, but this will probably also gain some players to Sylvari who want something different than the usual cliches.

I usually make an Elf my primary, when available. The Sylvari design is great and I will definitely have a Sylvari Alt as my secondary, but I think this cemented my decision to play a Human as my primary, which is unusual for me. I do love the design, but I'm not sure I'm ready to jump into the role of sentient plant right off the bat. :)

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Originally posted by illyana
whats so cool is that ANET actually *listened* to player comments about the old sylvari look and decided to overhaul it, even this far into developemnt... that's the kind of company i want to give my money to

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I couldn't agree more.

I know I've said it before, but this is what made Blizzard so great, and this is why the leaders of Anet left Blizzard. If you can build a base of fans, and show them you are working hard to keep them happy, and to do things that work, you will keep those players. If you show that you care about the game, and its future development (I don't know, maybe by tying future profits into development instead of counting on a monthly take.), then you will convince (if the game is actually good, as GW obviously is) that you really care about making games, and if you do that, more people will flock to you.

It's a basic rule of business that seems to have been forgotten sometime during the 20th century. If you make a product people like, if you show people you care about making the product people want, if you show you actually care about the product and not just the profits, you will have unbeatable customer loyalty.

That is what makes Anet one of the best game companies out there right now.

I find it ironic that people who are perfectly willing to suspend their disbelief for a game based on fantasy, have such trouble justifying the existence of sentient plant life.  I guess that somehow breaks 'the rules', regardless of how finely detailed and rich the lore is surrounding them.  Where these rules are explicitly stated, is a question I would love to have answered though.

There are no elves and there are no orcs.  If that's what you're looking for, I suggest you delve into the little-known writings of a man named Tolkien.  There's even an MMO based on his work.  Really.  Look it up.  It should be right up your collective alleys.

Wow, I really like new design. Way too better than the first ones. And I find males look great. Maybe I'll change idea of my main  - Mhuman to Msylvari? Also armor design is really nice.