#caledon forest

[talk-of-tyria]

Maguuma Jungle - Caledon Forest - Hamlet of Annwen Annwen Citizen #1: Have you ever met a Soundless? Annwen Citizen #2: Once. It was the strangest experience. Annwen Citizen #1: How so? Annwen Citizen #2: It was like she wasn't even there. I sensed nothing from her as she approached.

[brax-was-here]

The beauty of Caledon Forest

[nerdybookahs]

Caledon Forest in Maguuma Jungle

Caledorn Forest in Maguuma Jungle #GuildWars2

[firelordfoureyes]

The new chapter made me want to draw again so I thought it’d be nice and not at all cruel to show his sapling self vs him now

[graymarketblackdiamond]

ouhhhh in five days my account will be TEN YEARS OLD!!

[jupiter-crushes-the-moon]

North this week, to Caledon State Park tucked up against the Potomac in King George. It was chilly today, and although I got there around noon the temperature never got above 45 degrees.

I first set off on the evocatively named Boyd's Hole Trail, which appropriately led to a place called Boyd's Hole on the riverbank. There weren't many other people out today, which suited me fine.

Other than some neat mushrooms, I didn't see much on the way to the hole. It was taking a bit longer to get into the swing of things - I'm getting over a cold after all.

I ate a muffin at Boyd's hole, as foretold.

That's Maryland on the other side.

Bidding farewell to the hole, I went along the loop until it met up with the Belmont Trail, which connected up with most of the other trails I wanted to get to. I was finally feeling it, and plotted out the route I wanted to take.

It's December, buddies. It's all right. You can pack it in.

Through a clearing, along a spur trail where K-9 search and rescue teams were conducting off leash training, and I set off on the Caledon Marsh trail, which made a small loop through said marsh.

The clouds were dramatic, and I remembered that there *was* a nonzero rain percentage this afternoon.

Next up was the hiking-only Rookery Trail, which led into the Natural Area National Landmark area designated at the east end of the park. Caledon is home to several hundred acres of old growth forest, which is vanishingly rare on the east coast.

[leafofkudzu]

Happy Lunar New Year, everyone! Though it's not quite a snake per se, the Great Jungle Wurm sends its regards from over in Caledon Forest! It feels like it's been forever since we've been to a sylvari area, so how about we go pay it a visit, and then hang out with the Soundless over on the Weeping Isle? That's right: the first Saturday of a new month fast approaches, which mean it's time for another art party hosted by my guild, [VS] Verdant Shield!

A concept carried over from Final Fantasy XIV, art parties are in-game get-togethers for artists of all kinds to hang out, chat, and create together! For GW2 parties there’s more of an emphasis on hanging out and gathering references during the party itself, and then in the days/weeks following to work on your creations at your own pace and then post to the shared art party tag. We’ve used the same one (#VSArtParty) since the very beginning so you can go allll the way back and explore what people have made! The most important thing to keep in mind though is this: the ‘goal’ of an art party isn’t to be drawn, but to draw others, and share with the community!

Time and /squadjoin information is below the cut, but will also be posted again on the day of the party as squads go up!

Location Information:

The Weeping Isle is a nice and accessible open area, with lots of room for water activities too if anyone wants to bust out a skiff or two! Just head Southwest from Mabon Waypoint and you're there - no funny business needed! It may be in your best interest to turn down your NPC dialogue volume if you stay on land though...

Time & Squad Details:

As is customary, we’ll be having two parties - the first one on EU servers and the second on NA - with an hour break in between for those who may want to attend both!

The EU server party will begin at 9pm Central European Time (aka 3pm Eastern Standard Time or 4 hours before in-game reset). I’ll be hosting this one on my EU alt account, so please either /whisper or /squadjoin Aemryn of Noon for a taxi invite if you don’t end up on the right map!

The NA server party will begin 1 hour after the EU party’s official end, at 7pm Eastern Standard Time (aka 1am Central European Time or at in-game reset). I’ll be on my main account for this one and may switch ‘host’ characters a few times, but please /whisper or /squadjoin Brasyck for a taxi invite if you don’t see my customary white cat tag hanging around on your map!

Closing Words:

I do feel like I'm always apologizing for being late on these posts, but here I am doing it again: sorry for the delay! Expect me to reblog this a few times before the end of the week just to compensate for my weird posting time since this is also...uhhh.....1am for me as I post this? Whoops. Anyway!

Thank you so much to everyone who came out to the anniversary party last month, it was so much fun! Even with my procrastination I still hope to keep these monthly parties happening for as long as people are interested - after all, you guys are what make them special! Take care of yourselves, and I'll see you all this Saturday! ♥

[nurllius]

SAPLING AAHRTUR + Callahan

LORE TIME. So Aahrtur is actually not from the Pale Tree but from a tree based somewhere deep in the Shiverpeaks. However when he was to wake, Sons of Svanir that found the tree attacked it, killing everyone there without mercy. Some Norn that knew about the Tree and swore to protect it in alliance with it came to aid in the battle however they werent enough. Amidst the fight the svanir would destroy pods killing the sylvari inside. When one got to Aahrtur’s pod they striked once, stabbing him near his heart, however a norn that fought alongside the tree stopped him before he could completely destroy the pod. Aahrtur fell out of the pod, still asleep as he was heavily bleeding. The norn saw the fight was unable to be won and swore to save anyone that he could. With that he grabbed Aahrtur and ran to see the nearest mender. Many menders of many races tried to wake Aahrtur up even after the wound was tended to but he remained asleep, his breathing shallow. That’s when the Norn decided he would visit his dear friend that he knew to be the best mender he knew, based in the Caledon Forest. Once there. After a few days of trying different things, a white fern hound came in, one of the fern hounds that Callahan, the mender, took care of, and it licked the sleeping sylvari. To everyone’s surprise that woke him up as he slowly stirred awake.

Aahrtur however woke up feeling confused and…empty. He didnt know but the tree that he awoke from, had fallen in battle. Oblivious to the fact and absent of any connection with the Dream he over time learns from the ones around him, mainly Callahan as she agreed to keeping Aahrtur with her to see his recovery process.

This is why Aahrtur’s main goal was to find who he really was and to find his place where he’d feel like he belonged.

He did eventually, but at what cost.

ALSO IN THE LAST PIC the black on his body is suppose to represent his scars, the middle across his chest is from Balthazar’s sword, the one along his arm and face is burns from the fight, and the one above his heart is from Bangar. I mainly wanted to represent his significant scars.

[mystery-salad]

Firstborn Falke, who tried to be so much for so many...

Pulled themself in too many directions, gifted child syndrome they had too much pressure on them, and it caused them to overexert their powers as a mesmer in turn. Sending out clones and illusions to help while they helped elsewhere, giving too much power and agency to those other selves, until it all spiraled out of control and the illusions were appearing second-natue without Falke even trying. Even when they wouldn't be necessary.

One day Falke looks over and just sees...themself. In another room of their home. They hear friends bring up conversations they don't remember having because the real them wasn't there. They try to reel it in but it's too late, their magic is out of their control and has a life of its own, they made this too second-nature to stop it now.

And it starts really making them wonder at times if they're the real Falke or one of the illusions, how much realism did they give those clones to act independently...? Do they all have memories? True agency? Which one becomes the real Falke then?

It starts affecting Falke and their illusions physically, magic as strong as ever but their sense of self shattering like illusions when they vanish...their illusions all start looking a little fragmented, like they're starting to shatter and vanish already, but they still go off to find ways to help before actually vanishing. Falke themself is growing in new ways, cracks in their bark mimicking the shattered effect and their glow shining through...

They've become somewhat of a cautionary tale in the Grove and surrounding Caledon forest, where you can see their clones out and about still finding people to help, as their main body stays within the Grove among concerned siblings trying to help them recover.

[prismatica-the-strange]

Out of this selection of my fictional daughters...

Basic info on each under the cut!

*for 3-6 hours

Maggie - 11/12-years-olds, Bradey's younger cousin who they adopted. She plays soccer, has a dog named Perdita, and loves space! Her favorite weekend activities include: Going to Disney or playing on the beach!

Walker - 3/4-years-old and a hybrid human/android of the ai Kronos and the clone Cleon xiii. They live on a planet far from Empire's purview and a good distance from the locals. Walker loves exploring the nearby forests and quarries of their home and listening to her mother tell the stories of the long-lost homeworld of humanity, Earth.

Rowan - 14-years old, Rowan is Adeline's youngest sister who She and Hector have taken custody of. She likes video games, spending time with her friends after school, playing with her dog, and hanging out with her sister and Hector. She looks forward to joining the drama club in high school, and trying out for the Cheersquad in her sophomore year.

Evelyn - 5-years-old. After losing her family in the tragic sinking of the Titanic, she was taken in by the man who saved her, Caledon Hockley. She now lives in a lavish with her father and nanny-turned-mother, Miranda. She likes horse riding, playing with her mother, going for car rides, and eating chocolates cake.

Vivian - 4-years-old. So much like her parents, Eddie and Mika, Vivy loves using her imagination and playing knights on the playground with her best friend Ethan. When the two aren't there or at pre-school, they're at ballet class together. She loves playing with Eddie's old dnd minis and watching Mika's old theater club recordings, her favorite is Beauty and the Beast because both her parents play the lead. And she's very excited for her little brother to be born.

Amelia - 10/11-years-old. Shenandoah her brother Michael were infected with the Zombie virus during the vaccination scandal and abandoned by their parents. They were taken in by Cori and Blaine when Cor found them outside the Scratching Post, going through the dumpster for brains. Amy doesn't talk much, and once she gets comfortable with someone she gets clingy, so she can usually be found being carried around by Blaine or coloring near her brother. She likes playgrounds, especially swings.

[cryptidsofgw2]

caledon forest is in disarray

.

[tabswrites]

WIP Intro: The Forest’s Embrace (Guardians of Eternity, Book Two)

Synopsis: One year after the events of The Tomb’s Whisper, magic is stronger than ever before, but its guardians are divided. Mara must find a way to unite them and decide the fate of magic once and for all.

Eternity has awakened. Mara would have rejoiced over that years ago, before she lost everything.

The Ancestral Forest is haunted by a spirit of her own making, a spirit that calls for blood. Only by dismantling the Veritas Council can she restore peace and hope to Caledon—but her allies are scattered…

One lost to grief, one lost to love, and the other driven into the forest’s embrace.

She must correct her mistakes and decide once and for all if magic is worth the bloodshed.

Genre: NA fantasy

CW: Violent imagery, mild gore (will continue to update these as needed)

Features:

��Found family

✨Magical creatures

✨Soft magic system

✨Slow burn f/f romance (sloooow burn)

✨Antihero MC

✨Multiple POV

Characters

Tag list: @cilly-the-writer @writernopal @writingrosesonneptune (please ask to be +/-)

[nocte-argentea]

I'm doing map completion for a third time and it got me thinking.

What is your least favorite map when it comes to map completion?

Mine are Caledon Forest and Lornar's Pass

[jonnysinsectcatalogue]

Whitespotted Sawyer Beetle - Monochamus scutellatus

This insect has already been thoroughly examined and explored in the previous post that featured it. For today's post, please enjoy a few more pictures of this hardy Longhorn Beetle that survived a tumble into a cottage pool thanks to quick intervention. If you seek one in North America, remember the following tidbits of information:

Since it relies on forests for its diet and egg-laying, search there to try and find live specimens. Check the bark and needles of cut/damaged pine, spruce and other conifer trees. They are attracted to the scent cues and may also be found after fires (but please don't look during a fire, be safe)

It is a native North American insect, and so the ecosystem has had plenty of time to adapt to it, and the Beetle itself doesn't appear to have status as a major pest of trees

To identify it and distinguish it from its relatives, look for a white scutellum (between the wingcases) and pronotum "shoulder" spikes. It is also rather slim with a slightly widened abdomen

The elongated antennae are hard to miss; they are easily 2-2.5 times the length of the body. Oh my!

If the antennae are ringed and/or the wingcase features white patches, the specimen is something else...something far more invasive (see the Citrus Longhorn for details)

The larvae may be trickier to find since they hid beneath trees, but they are apparently noisy, hence the name "Sawyer"

The adults have formidable jaws as well, but are unlikely to do anymore than pinch. Nevertheless, handle with care

I really enjoyed observing this insect during the summer of last year, and I'm glad it could be saved from a pool. It still needed some time to recuperate before it could move again, but Beetles are very durable and resilient! I'm very fond of Picture 2, where it looks like the Beetle is trying to pull itself up again, but is too exhausted to fully stand. It tries anyway. I didn't pose it that way, that's just the way it landed on the nearby stones. For a general timeline of handling this insect from the pool: hand pictures were first, with stone pictures taken afterwards. Pictures 7 and 10 showcase that the Beetle was able to regain its strength and move again.

Pictures were taken on July 1, 2023 in Caledon with a Google Pixel 4.

[ratasum]

Pride Month Showcase - Islwyn

Hailing from a mysterious tree in the northern Shiverpeaks, Islwyn had a bit of a rough start after he emerged from his pod. Mistaken for a lost Pale Tree sylvari, he was taken to Caledon Forest, and eventually he made his way to working with the Nightmare Court. Still unable to find anywhere he truly fit in, he went into hiding during Heart of Thorns, worked with the warring Nightmare Court factions during the aftermath, and eventually found himself picked up by the Crystal Bloom. Though he's frustrated, he's working to better himself, having met several other of his own people in the organization. Islwyn is trans and gay!