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GUILD WARS 2 BLOG KREWE LOVES CHARR!
Charr | Guild Wars 2 Race
While the Sylvari may be the newest race in the Guild Wars world, it is the Charr who persist long after other races have fallen. The original "bad guys" in Prophecies, those Ascalonian-eating, house-burning, furry, fanged marauders are back for more in Guild Wars 2, only this time YOU get to play as one (and you can be FEMALE if you prefer!) These ferocious, warmongering creatures have evolved, embracing industry and technology to create devastating weaponry with guns, explosives and incredible war machines which they use to pound their enemies into submission.It may have taken a little longer than they'd anticipated but the Charr finally conquered the human kingdom of Ascalon, claiming the land as their homeland and building their own capital, the Black Citadel, on the ruins of Rin. This massive city is a vast foundry, the center of Charr industry, and is dominated by the Imperator's Core, a huge spherical structure that houses the headquarters of the three legions, the offices of the tribunes, and the war council, where the legions meet to plan strategy.
Meet the new, improved Charr in GW2!
After abandoning their Shamans and refusing to worship false gods, military warbands now function as a government of sorts in their ferocious, competitive society. The key to claiming the throne of the Charr is a powerful totem, the "Claw of the Khan-Ur", which gives the holder the right to rule as the "Khan-Ur" (supreme ruler) and is seen as the only means to gather the support required to lay claim to the throne.In the absence of a "primus imperator", power is somewhat shared amongst the military Legions of the Charr with each of the four legions being led by separate Imperators who hold supreme authority within their own legion's structure. There are four primary Legions - the Blood Legion, the Ash Legion, the Iron Legion and the Flame Legion - each controlling city-strongholds spread out across the Charr lands. Currently, the Iron, Ash, and Blood Legions operate under a shaky alliance.
The Flame Legion, who researched forbidden magics and worshipped dark, false gods has been considered outcast since the fall of the Shamans. They have withdrawn to their northern bases where they continue their assault on the other legions, seeking to undermine the leadership and to regain control of the Charr.East, across the Blazeridge Mountains, "Imperator" Bangar Ruinbringer controls the lands of the Blood Legion. This Legion musters the fiercest warriors and dominates on the battlefield through sheer ferocity and strength of numbers.Ash Legion, led by a young female charr imperator, Malice Swordshadow, practices stealth and subtlety, choosing its targets carefully and then eliminating them with deadly precision.
The Iron Legion, led by Smodur the Unflinching, a battle-scarred, one-eyed, veteran of countless battles. His is the most technologically skilled of the charr legions and provides the machines, weaponry and strong leadership required to keep this potentially explosive alliance from tearing itself to pieces. The residents of the Black Citadel live their lives and conduct their business under the strict eye of the Iron Legion's Adamant Guard.After the overthrow of the Flame Legion, the Iron Legion was granted control of the kingdom of Ascalon by the other legions. Whilst the Khan-Ur's throne remains empty, the Charr in Ascalon stand largely united under the rule of the Iron Legion's Imperator.
From 3:10 onwards this 15-minute video shows the creation of an Iron Legion Charr Engineer including the biography, followed by the GW2 starter experience for that character.
It's said that the Charr are a warlike race but this is only partly accurate. More precisely, they are a warrior race, as all Charr serve the legions in some way, if not as soldiers, then as logistical support for soldiers, providing weapons, transport, food and whatever else the legions may need. There are still Charr merchants, explorers, and even charr scholars, but whatever their vocation, all Charr are soldiers at heart, and they tackle life's challenges with a soldier's discipline and focus. That's not to say the Charr don't enjoy life's simple pleasures, or the occasional luxury, but like all well disciplined soldiers, they never lose sight of the larger mission.For a young Charr it all begins in the "Fahrar", a kind of military boot camp that Charr report to once they're old enough to walk and wield a blade. Here, the training can be brutal, and a Charr bonds for life with the other cubs in the fahrar, with graduates forming a warband that becomes an adult charr's second family. Once they reach adulthood, charr have little contact with their natural parents or their natural offspring, though each sometimes keep tabs on the other to stay informed of any victories or defeats that could reflect back on the family’s reputation.
Here's a terrific GW2 video, courtesy of Wartower (28 minutes in length) showing the starter experience for an Ash Legion Charr Guardian.
In Guild Wars 2 female Charr make their first appearance.The females were once strong warriors, respected as equally as the males. When the Flame Legion took over and tried to unify the race, they subordinated the charr females and refused to combat-train them, as a means of forcibly pacifying the other legions.During this dark time, females had to train in secret, passing techniques down by word of mouth and suffering horrible penalties, even death, if they were caught using weapons or fighting in battles. Four years after the fall of Ascalon, a female charr named Kalla Scorchrazor led a rebellion, doubling the strength of the armies that opposed the Flame Legion.In the end, it was their courage that freed the charr legions from the domination of the shamans.
Although the Legions have no central rule, the Iron, Blood and Ash legions have learned how to work together without sacrificing their individuality to maintain and expand their territories, which now stretch from their original lands in the north all the way south to the merging of the two mountain ranges at the edge of the Crystal Desert.This empire-expansion comes with a heavy price though, and the Charr of Guild Wars 2 are beset by formidable enemies on all sides.While the Charr eventually retook Ascalon, its maddened human leader, King Adelburn, invoked his own dark magic, the Foefire, which destroyed their physical forms and left their spirits to forever guard their land, fighting the Charr. These "ghosts of Ascalon" are a constant threat to the Charr, as they seek eternal revenge upon their vanquishers.The Flame Legion is bowed, but not broken and plots to retake control at the first opportunity.Adding to their troubles, the Elder Dragon Kralkatorrik recently scarred Ascalon with the great Dragonbrand, scouring and transforming the land beneath it into a battleground for the dragon minions' continual war with the Charr. Kralkatorrik's passing also drove Ogres out of the Blazeridge Mountains and they now seek to settle their herds in these new lands... Charr lands. Whilst Iron Legion's Imperator, Smodur the Unflinching, is reluctant to make a move for power lest the other legions turn their combined fury on him, he recognised an opportunity when he learned that the human Queen Jennah was in possession of the Claw of the Khan-Ur. It was discovered by a team of adventurers she employed (if you'd read the Guild Wars novels you'd know this already! ).At the time of Guild Wars 2, the Charr, embroiled in internal dissension, external threats and now confronted by the power of an Elder Dragon, have chosen to negotiate with humans rather than battle them too. The negotiations have resulted in a tentative truce between their peoples, with humans now permitted inside the Black Citadel itself. Smodur and Jennah are now working on a fully fledged peace treaty but there are factions within both societies who are determined to do everything they can to ensure the peace talks fail.As a Charr player it's up to YOU to save the day and find a way to make the peace treaty happen! It is a task you must not fail!
These ferocious, warmongering creatures have evolved, embracing industry and technology to create devastating weaponry with guns, explosives and incredible war machines which they use to pound their enemies into submission.It may have taken a little longer than they'd anticipated but the Charr finally conquered the human kingdom of Ascalon, claiming the land as their homeland and building their own capital, the Black Citadel, on the ruins of Rin. This massive city is a vast foundry, the center of Charr industry, and is dominated by the Imperator's Core, a huge spherical structure that houses the headquarters of the three legions, the offices of the tribunes, and the war council, where the legions meet to plan strategy.
Whilst Iron Legion's Imperator, Smodur the Unflinching, is reluctant to make a move for power lest the other legions turn their combined fury on him, he recognised an opportunity when he learned that the human Queen Jennah was in possession of the Claw of the Khan-Ur. It was discovered by a team of adventurers she employed (if you'd read the Guild Wars novels you'd know this already! 
).At the time of Guild Wars 2, the Charr, embroiled in internal dissension, external threats and now confronted by the power of an Elder Dragon, have chosen to negotiate with humans rather than battle them too. The negotiations have resulted in a tentative truce between their peoples, with humans now permitted inside the Black Citadel itself. Smodur and Jennah are now working on a fully fledged peace treaty but there are factions within both societies who are determined to do everything they can to ensure the peace talks fail.As a Charr player it's up to YOU to save the day and find a way to make the peace treaty happen! It is a task you must not fail!
