Hearts of the North
Hearts of the North is the second major installment of Guild Wars Beyond. It focuses on the relationship of Lt. Keiran Thackeray and Gwen.
After the War in Kryta content, players can see the events leading up to the reuniting of Keiran Thackeray and Gwen through Keiran's eyes. Players are able to play as Keiran, in the same way that they play as other characters in the Bonus Mission Pack's missions.
The Hearts of the North is part of Guild Wars Beyond — content that bridges the gap between Guild Wars and Guild Wars 2.
Lore background[edit]
Driven north due to the war between Ascalon and the Charr, the Ebon Vanguard have been situated in the Far Shiverpeaks raiding the Charr Homelands. During this time, Gwen, a former prisoner of the Charr, has grown distant from everyone. Lieutenant Keiran Thackeray has been trying to change this, but to no avail.
In their time of need, the Shining Blade requested aid from the Ebon Vanguard against the White Mantle during the Krytan civil war. Keiran Thackeray and the Ebon Falcons left to Kryta to aid them, but at the end of the war he has gone missing.
Setting[edit]
- Gwen
“The charr destroyed everything dear to her when Gwen was a young girl. Her toughness and single-minded hatred of the charr served her well as a member of the Ebon Vanguard, but Gwen was bitter and full of rage – until she met Keiran Thackeray. The noble ranger was immune to her cruelest barbs and took her indifference in stride, and over time Gwen’s frozen heart melted. She finally realized her true feelings for Keiran when he was reported missing in action. Now Gwen leads the Ebon Vanguard alone and waits for any word of Keiran’s fate…
— official website
- Keiran Thackeray
“An orphan of war, the Ascalonian ranger Keiran Thackeray has endured forced marches, pitched battles, and endless Shiverpeak winters during his time with the Ebon Vanguard, but the fierce, headstrong Gwen is the young ranger’s greatest challenge. Before Keiran’s elite unit, the Ebon Falcons, was sent to war-torn Kryta to aid the Shining Blade, he and Gwen quarreled, and Keiran marched to war questioning his role in her life. The Ebon Vanguard believed that he perished in that savage war, but Keiran Thackeray is a hard man to kill…
— official website
Hearts of the North content[edit]
Hearts of the North is available only to characters who have completed the last quest of the War in Kryta content, The Battle for Lion's Arch and have subsequently reported the disappearance of Lt. Thackeray to Gwen in the Hall of Monuments.
Gwen and Thackeray[edit]
The relationship between Gwen and Lieutenant Keiran Thackeray of the Ebon Vanguard began during Wintersday 2008. The origins of the story of their relationship is not considered to be part of Guild Wars Beyond, but, instead, the Wintersday festival.
Before Guild Wars Beyond[edit]
The relationship between Gwen and Keiran (Lt. Thackeray) began during Wintersday 2008 when he sends you on a quest to bring her a very special, personalized gift to cheer her up. After visiting several Norn tradesmen you bring back a pendant, crafted with her family crest, and imbued with the essence of her mother's spirit. This single act seemed to ignite their interest in one another.
After completion of Wintersday Cheer or A Good Deed, entering the Hall of Monuments had the chance of activating one of two possible dialogues between Gwen and Keiran where you were able to witness further developments between the two.
Guild Wars Beyond[edit]
The introduction of Guild Wars Beyond brought a series of additional dialogues between Gwen and Lt. Thackeray. These dialogues culminated in Thackeray's scavenger hunt, a sort of "minigame" where he has you collect items for a birthday picnic with Gwen, and a final dialogue, where things between them ended poorly. Lt. Thackeray then left for duty to assist the Shining Blade in their war with the White Mantle. The series of events during the war led to Lt. Thackeray becoming missing and presumed dead. In the main content of Hearts of the North, the player is able to search for the missing Lieutenant, as well as view his story, from the time he went missing, through his eyes.
Finding Thackeray: clues, mini-missions, and quests[edit]
Follow the hints and clues to discover why Lieutenant Thackeray has gone missing and what he has been doing.
- Exit Eye of the North to Ice Cliff Chasms and speak with the Ebon Vanguard Scout, who hints at the location of...
- The Embedded Arrowhead can be found in Watchtower Coast.
- Return to the Hall of Monuments, where Gwen will give you Keiran's Bow.
- Speak to Scrying Pool to initiate the first mini-mission, Auspicious Beginnings, after which you will be returned to the HoM.
- Listen to Gwen's comments about what you have seen through the Scrying Pool in order to setup the next clue.
- Look for the Tarnished Emblem next to the west portal of Majesty's Rest (the closest outpost is The Wilds and again use running skills as you can avoid the foes along the route.)
- Equipped with Keiran's Bow, speak to the Scrying Pool to begin A Vengeance of Blades.
- Wait for Gwen to say, "How could we have? I was always so busy pushing him away..." before looking for the next clue.
- Look for the Broken Sword in Ettin's Back .
- Equipped with Keiran's Bow, speak to the Scrying Pool to begin Shadows in the Jungle.
- Look for the Shining Blade Cloak in Watchtower Coast.
- Equipped with Keiran's Bow, speak to the Scrying Pool to begin Rise.
- Return to the Hall to speak to Gwen to begin Reunion.
- Go to Anvil Rock with Gwen in your party.
- Accept the quest reward from Gwen in the Hall of Monuments
- Rezone to the Hall of Monuments to witness Thackeray's proposal to Gwen.
- Enter the Hall of Monuments to find Gwen planning her wedding and get the quests Norn Catering and The Wedding.
Important figures[edit]
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20 Danthor the Adamant
20 Gwen
/
20 Keiran Thackeray
20 Miku
Wallpapers[edit]
Notes[edit]
- The quest and mission rewards for Hearts of the North are the same in both Normal and Hard modes; the total rewards (without repeating missions and excluding the optional Norn Catering quest) are: 25,000 experience, 7,000 gold, 5,000 Vanguard reputation points, and 8 Medals of Honor.
- Your health, attributes, and energy are fixed while under the effects of the Keiran Thackeray (disguise); these cannot be changed by using consumables (e.g. Candy Apple) or equipment upgrades (e.g. armor runes/insignias or weapon mods).
- However, consumables can increase your movement and attack speeds.
Anomaly.Although Thackeray goes missing at the end of the War in Kryta, he can still appear as one of the random allies in Kryta locations whenever a Shining Blade Bounty is active.
Bug.Some dialogues have not been translated into other languages; some that involve Gwen are repeated.Trivia[edit]
- Keiran first suggested his interest in Gwen through a series of quests during Wintersday 2008.
- The first formal Hearts of the North content was introduced during November 2010 and the remainder was released in stages:
- Two missions and two quests were released on November 18, 2010, along with the Hearts of the North brand.
- Three more quests and two more missions became available after the bug fix on November 19, 2010.
- The final installments were released together with the beginning of Wintersday 2010.
External links[edit]
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