User talk:Emily Diehl/Trivia archive 4

Shields

Hi Emily. I was wondering if you could create a page for us for these two shields: 1 2.There both promo-items so its very hard for us to find info about it. Thanks :) ~ Kurd 08:11, 14 April 2008 (UTC)

o.o I want that second shield. Are they still in-game? --MageMontu 08:38, 14 April 2008 (UTC)

Thats weird, I thought i knew all weapons/shields and focii on sight but never seen those 2 before, i dont even recognise them as promo items. What promo are they from? -- Salome 10:29, 14 April 2008 (UTC)

Some japanese stuff, don't know for sure ~ Kurd 13:38, 14 April 2008 (UTC)

The second one seems to be a Japanese pre-order item, found an archived guru thread about it here. - anja 15:02, 14 April 2008 (UTC)

O tnx Anja. Now for the other one ~ Kurd 18:50, 14 April 2008 (UTC)

Sure! Let me ask John about those for you...I honestly don't know what they are off the top of my head. When I find out the details, I'll let you know. -- Emily Diehl (talk) 19:22, 14 April 2008 (UTC)

Tyvm ~ Kurd 19:34, 19 April 2008 (UTC)

Hiya guys! I got back some information for you about these two pieces. The first shield was part of an old ATI promotion. If John's memory is correct, purchasing one of the ATI cards got you this "Ominous Aegis". He mentioned that they were really rare and that he doesn't really remember the details of it. The second shield is Hog's Gluttony. It was a Japanese pre-order item, and all of those names were named after the Japanese versions of the seven deadly sins. When I get a few moments, I'll try to grab some renders for you of the items. I'll also ask around to see if anyone remembers more details on the ATI shield :) -- Emily Diehl (talk) 22:42, 23 April 2008 (UTC)

Thanks a lot :) ~ Kurd 12:17, 26 April 2008 (UTC)

The Spearmen

I've "pecked around" in your archives (using the Search Funtion ;) ) to find an answer to the trivia regarding Ruricu and other Spearmen. Is it true they are named after the officers of The Spearmen guild? Vipermagi 18:55, 23 April 2008 (UTC)

Ruricu the weapons crafter is indeed named after Ruricu, an officer in The Spearmen. I'm not sure what the "other Spearmen" are that you are talking about but odds are they were named after long time members/officers of the Spearmen as there are a number of NPCs named after them. 치 - Linsey talk 22:31, 23 April 2008 (UTC)

question

sorry if you've answered this before im too tired to read archives, why isn't the mask on this armor in game? --Cursed Angel 20:29, 5 May 2008 (UTC)

Hm, I don't remember off-hand. Let me check up on that for you. -- Emily Diehl (talk) 20:41, 5 May 2008 (UTC)

Should we maybe ask Linsey Murdock for that? The textures seemingly exist, possibly it's only a bug that prevented the armorers from offering it since the release?

Additionally, may i ask how you make the pictures of all these models? You seem to use a special program for that, as the mask is included in the armor image, yet not visible ingame. —ZerphaThe Improver 21:33, 5 May 2008 (UTC)

I just asked John Hargrove, Man o' Items, and he said "because I hate Rangers". - Linsey talk 23:12, 5 May 2008 (UTC)

<3 --Cursed Angel 23:16, 5 May 2008 (UTC)

... he was just teasing of course (the first character John truly fell in love with was his Ranger), he said he would look into it. ;P - Linsey talk 23:17, 5 May 2008 (UTC)

Just wondering...

if Elona was a little bit inspired by the Kingdom of Dorne from George R.R. Martins A Song of Ice and Fire series. There is a particular section in the third book that describes three distinct types of people living there, the first being "Salty" Dornishmen who are said to live on the coast; Istan is an island and has quite a bit of coast to it. The second type being "Sandy" Dornishmen who make their homes in the desert and river valleys; Kourna ,along with the rest of Elona, has a lot of desert to it not to mention the Elon River running through it. The third and final type are the "stony" Dornishmen who tend to stick the the mountain; Vabbi does have a river and desert but looks to be the most mountainous of the three provinces. Another similarity is that short throwing spears are one of the preferred weapons in Dorne. Lastly, the ruling house of Dorne has its seat in a stronghold called "Sunspear".

I know that some of this is a bit of a stretch and the Order of the Sunspears is completely autonomous from any government, but when I read that chapter it just sounded so familiar to Elona I had to ask if there is any correlation between the two. -- Broodling 02:35, 26 April 2008 (UTC)

You may not be as far off as you think :) There are a lot of us here that are huge Grr Martin fans, so there are definitely references to his work slipped into the game. I know that Sunspears are one of them. I'm not sure about your other parallels, but I'll check on Monday. -- Emily Diehl (talk) 03:15, 26 April 2008 (UTC)

While you're at it could you ask if Jora is partly derived from Ser Jorah Mormont. Ser Jorah was exiled from Westeros and the sigil of his house was a bear, while Jora was shunned for losing the ability to turn into her bear form. -- Broodling 21:33, 26 April 2008 (UTC)

Wow, didn't think Sunspears were a reference to anything. — ク Eloc 貢 22:44, 27 April 2008 (UTC)

Hiya Broodling! Just got a response back from the writers, and they confirmed that there are no other intentional GRR Martin references in your first posting, and that Jora is not derived from Sir Jorah. -- Emily Diehl (talk) 20:55, 29 April 2008 (UTC)

Trivia (Watchtower Coast and Dhuum)

Hey Emily! I was wondering if you could tell us what the watchtowers are "watching" along Watchtower Coast? And what is the "official" status of Dhuum in GW1? Trying to knock down some of the Unanswered Questions page, if you don't mind. Cheers! --Ravious 12:43, 7 May 2008 (UTC)

Heya Ravious! Let me kick this over to the design team and see if they can give any details on this now. -- Emily Diehl (talk) 21:56, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

Heya again Ravious! For your first question, I was told that the giants could be Norn, but I don't have any more details to give on that topic. As far as the second goes, I've been told that Dhuum has been knocked down, but he can get up again. Again, I have no additional details. Hope this helps a little bit. Sorry I can't provide you with more for these questions. -- Emily Diehl (talk) 21:02, 29 May 2008 (UTC)

Yay, thanks! Added to the Unanswered questions page. --Ravious 16:33, 3 June 2008 (UTC)

Remains of Sahlahja

Based on Pacman? The smaller beetle are the sam as the small coins in pacman to get points. And the greater are the same as the bigger coins in pacman to be invunerble and being able te kill the ghosts. Fox007 13:57, 9 May 2008 (UTC)

Bump Bump^^ Fox007 11:06, 12 May 2008 (UTC)

Bumping on wikis doesn't really do anything. Just be patient and I am sure Emily will give you a response. — ク Eloc 貢 00:44, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

Hiya guys! Yep, Remains was inspired by Pacman. Comically, it was born in one of the first design meetings I sat in on. Our whole office park lost power and was running on emergency backups, so the whole studio cleared out except for designers. Since we didn't really NEED computers, everyone sat around in the dark in one of the design pods (as we call them) and threw out ideas for a variety of things. Sorry for the late reply on this...I've been swamped lately :) -- Emily Diehl (talk) 21:56, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

Thanks Emily and sorry for bumping was a bit curious^^ Fox007 13:02, 14 May 2008 (UTC)

This is why I love the wiki and A.Net devs. Just hearing about stories like that makes it so worthwhile to poke around in the backwaters of the GWW. Thanks for sharing, Emily! --Ravious 15:01, 14 May 2008 (UTC)

Hey Emily

Long time no see. I wanted to ask you if the names of Lions Arch NPC's are intentionally similar to Star Wars characters. Thanks --MP47 (Talk) (Contr.) 20:45, 19 May 2008 (UTC)

Heya Marco :) I'm not positive, so I'll add this to my wiki questions email when I send it out today. -- Emily Diehl (talk) 20:46, 29 May 2008 (UTC)

Hiya Marco! No, unfortunately the LA NPCs are not intentional Star Wars references. -- Emily Diehl (talk) 22:10, 6 June 2008 (UTC)

Song of Ice and Fire

Is the Great Northern Wall a reference to The Wall? Is Ben Wolfson a reference to Benjen Stark? —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Macros (talk • contribs) at 22:17, 20 May 2008 (UTC).

I was also thinking about asking that question about the Great Northern Wall but I figured that A-Net and George R.R. Martin are hardly the first people to build a wall to keep out enemies. Actually while we are back on this subject is the Master of Whispers a reference to Varys' title of "Master of Whisperer's"? -- Broodling 04:38, 21 May 2008 (UTC)

Hmm, not sure on these, guys. I'll pass them along and find out for you. -- Emily Diehl (talk) 20:43, 29 May 2008 (UTC)

Hiya Broodling! I asked about this and was told that the original inspiration for the wall was more from the Great Wall of China. Once it was added to the world, though, it did give several members of the team who were fans of G.R.R. to add in the occasional reference. -- Emily Diehl (talk) 22:10, 6 June 2008 (UTC)

Tengu weapon design inspiration

The design for the Tengu weapons seems to mirror that of Protoss buildings from StarCraft. Since ArenaNet has some staff that came from Blizzard, it isn't too hard to see that kind of design being used here. Was that the case, or are the yellow-hued, blue-crystal-lain Tengu weapons just coincidentally similar? -Auron 12:25, 22 May 2008 (UTC)

That would be pretty neat if it is. — ク Eloc 貢 00:34, 23 May 2008 (UTC)

Hi guys! No, unfortunately this is not an intentional similarity to anything Protoss. -- Emily Diehl (talk) 20:32, 29 May 2008 (UTC)

Trivia questions

Hi guys! I just wanted to let you know that it's been a bit tougher to get trivia answers lately because all teams are really heavily focused on GW2 (mine included). I send regular emails to the team containing questions, and I still try to follow-up on the requests that you all have, but sometimes response times are a little slower than they used to be. I just wanted to let you all know that I'm not ignoring any questions (hence me leaving them on the page until they're answered.) Thanks for understanding :) -- Emily Diehl (talk) 17:51, 21 July 2008 (UTC)

Jora and Daryl Hannah

Hello, wondering if you can help me out. For a long time I cannot shake that Jora was somehow based upon or inspired by Daryl Hannah? Of course it could be a coincidence or I'm just seeing what I want to see. I do see a resemblance but it could be just in my head :) Anyway if it's possible for you to find out, that'd be great. Many thanks! – Barinthus 00:34, 16 June 2008 (UTC)

Sure thing! I'll see what I can find out for ya. -- Emily Diehl (talk) 20:01, 26 June 2008 (UTC)

Appreciate it :) It's probably nothing but at least I can stop wondering LoL – Barinthus 15:11, 27 June 2008 (UTC)

Hiya Barinthus! I managed to track down the answer to this question for you. I was told that at least one of the artists who worked on Jora was a fan of Daryl Hannah, so she was indeed one of the inspirations for the character. Sorry that took so long! We're in high gear around here, so tracking stuff down is tricky. -- Emily Diehl (talk) 03:38, 9 August 2008 (UTC)

Trivia Gaze of Contempt

Could you confirm/deny if Gaze of Contempt is really a reference to the WWE superstar The Undertaker? I've been wondering about it for a while... And I think so have other people. Thanks in advance! :D --84.24.206.123 09:59, 28 July 2008 (UTC) Viper

Because of the image? It looks like it could be Izzy (which wouldn't be too far-fetched, as I think he's in a few other skill icons). -- Brains12 \ talk 14:13, 28 July 2008 (UTC)

Izzy? Fox007 15:10, 28 July 2008 (UTC)

Nope ;) That icon's in the likeness of Brant, who was our head effects guy for Guild Wars. -- Emily Diehl (talk) 17:00, 28 July 2008 (UTC)

Okay then. Thanks again :> (Forgot to log in prev edit, oops) --Viper 00:15, 29 July 2008 (UTC)

Trivia

Heya emily. Long time no see! ANYWAYS, ppl at guildwiki apparently want to know if the skill "Holy Spear" is a reference to the supposed spear that is said to have struck the supposed Jesus. Answer please? (Although I'm 99% sure I already know the answer.--MP47 (Talk) (Contr.) 02:35, 20 August 2008 (UTC)

Heya MP! Nope, this is not a reference to any real world religious stuff. As a rule of thumb, references that could potentially be troublesome/controversial to folks are avoided (unless you're particularly sensitive to things like the thought of Paragons doing the Hammer dance and fedora-wearing Asuras dancing like Michael Jackson ;)) -- Emily Diehl (talk) 02:53, 20 August 2008 (UTC)

Both are equaly scarey -.o The paragons doing the hammer dance was funny, and it was pretty crazy to see asura do the thriller dance. =D --Wolf 03:03, 20 August 2008 (UTC)

Thanks Emily! That's the confirmation I needed.--MP47 (Talk) (Contr.) 03:18, 20 August 2008 (UTC)

There's nothing "supposed" about the spear itself, it is kept in the Imperial Treasury in Vienna: photo and Wikipedia article. --84.128.209.101 08:34, 20 August 2008 (UTC)

Thanks for finding out for me

In reference to Jora & Daryl Connection, I wanted to say thanks for taking time to find out this for me. Aug 9 was the day after my thesis defense and two days before my big move to a new residence hundreds miles away so I was busy with graduate school and packing/moving. So I didn't see it until now. Again, many thanks!!! – Barinthus 06:38, 6 September 2008 (UTC)

Also I wanted to add - perhaps this is a coincidence or not - Daryl played Ayla in the movie The Clan of the Cave Bear which was based on the novel of the same title. Ayla was never fully accepted by the Clan somewhat similar to Jora who was sort of ostracized by the Norn due to her curse (at the beginning of EoTN anyway). Like the Norn, the Clan revered the Spirit of the Cave Bear above anything else. Coincidence or not, there are nice similarities here :) – Barinthus 06:55, 6 September 2008 (UTC)

pets and death

"Animal companion owners should be aware that at the instant the animal companion dies, all of the owners skills will be temporarily disabled (from 3 to 10 seconds, depending on attribute points in Beast Mastery). The one exception to this rule is if your character is still in Ascalon (pre-Searing)." Now i have had it where my pet has died and not have my skills disabled can you shead any more light on this?75.172.47.227 04:37, 17 September 2008 (UTC)

It's like how when you just get rezzed at a shrine, you have a few seconds of invulnerability. Keeps things going. I mean, how pissed would you be if your pet died, and just wehn you get him rezzed again, he dies and all your skills are shutdown again? — Wolf 04:26, 17 September 2008 (UTC)

no my point is it happens outside of pre searing. and it isnt like the rezzed thing. i think it has to do with if attacking, it could just be a bug.75.172.47.227 04:37, 17 September 2008 (UTC)

Skills have always been disabled when your pet dies, that's not a bug, it's a game mechanic, and is one of the prices you pay for keeping your pet with you. -- Wyn 05:24, 17 September 2008 (UTC)

yet again not what i mean. there are times when it dose not happen (out side of pre searing). i know that is a game mechanic i wouldn't be asking about it other wise.75.172.47.227 06:57, 17 September 2008 (UTC)

If your pet dies within a certain amount of time of it being rezzed, your skills do not get disabled, or it could be a very rare bug. — Wolf 07:05, 17 September 2008 (UTC)

how i know thats not what i am talking about is because in iway you want your pet to die. and i play iway all the time and it happens every once in a wile, so theirs an other circumstance where that happens.75.172.47.227 08:13, 17 September 2008 (UTC)

Heya anonymous! This is a question that Linsey may be answer better for you. I'm not sure how the pet death mechanic is set up. -- Emily Diehl (talk) 05:05, 10 December 2008 (UTC)

thanks ill repost it there eek her list of questions is getting long. my theory right now is that you wont get the black out if you and your pet are not attacking anything.75.165.101.64

missing qustion

a few weeks ago i asked what the highest lvl monster was in the game (in both hm and normal) and i thought i asked you so i looked in the archives and i couldn't find it. i also looked in the holding tank, and couldn't find it maybe it got misplaced. dont know maybe some one else can help me find it. thanks in advance! 75.165.101.64 04:32, 11 December 2008 (UTC)

I recall seeing a message on this subject, but I couldn't tell you whether it was on Emily's page or not. -- Wyn 04:35, 11 December 2008 (UTC)

Here it was. Vili 04:37, 11 December 2008 (UTC)

And here it is - Tanetris 04:38, 11 December 2008 (UTC)

the only other person's page i would have posted it on is Linseys but i don't see it on there and she hasn't really been on to move stuff around.75.165.101.64

thanks! i must be blind. 90% chance of not hitting can be a problem.75.165.101.64 04:45, 11 December 2008 (UTC)

Featherfoot Grace trivia

Plese look at Featherfoot Grace trivia, was that your intentions for Featherfoot Grace art?If not I'll delete it,thanks.--Wealedout 17:03, 15 December 2008 (UTC)

Hiya Wealedout! That trivia is fine to leave up :) -- Emily Diehl (talk) 19:20, 6 January 2009 (UTC)

Dervish Ancient armor Trivia

was the male helm inspired by Watchmen's night Owl? if so awesome if not not so awesome but still a cool armor none the less. i only ask because i just got done reading it and saw that armor in game and was like hmmm. 75.165.98.83 21:56, 31 December 2008 (UTC)

I think all of the Ancient Armors are based with a Egyptian look. And the Dervish armor, at least for male, makes me think of an impersonation of the egyptian gods with the animal heads. Makes me think of Ra in specification. -- Konig Des Todes 01:22, 1 January 2009 (UTC)

Hiya guys! Nope, the armor wasn't inspired by Watchmen (although that is a really sweet graphic novel...one of my faves) :) -- Emily Diehl (talk) 19:31, 6 January 2009 (UTC)

Dyed Armor Images

Hey Emily, would it be possible to list the dyes used on the armor sets pages? I have been working on trying to figure out the Male Elementalist Deldrimor armor colors the last few days without any luck, perhaps it is my game settings not making the colors look anything like on here, or if it is a complex combination, but the one on here looks very nice, as do many other armor types. I know several people who would love to know which dyes were used. Feel free to contact me in game if that will work better, character name is Erethor Banlarr. 99.142.2.249 04:06, 12 January 2009 (UTC)Erethor

I believe all the renders Emily has provided are using the base colors, natural to the armor (pre gray dye). The base color for Elementalist armor is purple with the exception of the EotN armors which are based red for all professions. -- Wyn/talk 04:55, 12 January 2009 (UTC)

I have the feeling the EotN armors use a color that is not available in game. It may be the difference between the in-game lightining and the renders, but I have never been able to reproduce such a vibrant shade of red on anything in game. Erasculio 13:24, 12 January 2009 (UTC)

Heya Erethor! Yes, unfortunately the colors in the renders are base colors. The red in the EOTN renders isn't accessible in game. -- Emily Diehl (talk) 19:42, 14 January 2009 (UTC)

Unimplemented HA maps

I was wondering if you knew the names of the five Heroes' Ascent maps that were never added to circulation, or if you could direct me to someone who knows. ~Shard 23:43, 25 March 2009 (UTC)

Heya Shard! Linsey or Izzy would probably be the ones to ask about that stuff (that's who I'd ask, at least). -- Emily Diehl (talk) 23:54, 25 March 2009 (UTC)

Okay thanks. ~Shard 01:16, 26 March 2009 (UTC)

another trivia check - Bosun Mohrti

Was that NPC named after Morty from Bring Back The Rifts [Rift]? Also, small reminder of the trivia bit I inquired about last july on Ensign Lumi. If you're feeling really bored, you could keep an eye on Category:NPCs named after community members and make sure we aren't listing false references. There are a number of unconfirmed spearmen references, but a few are pretty obvious and the rest fit because of the spearmen theme, so I just added em all. If any are wrong, feel free to tell me and I'll remove them from the list. Thanks :) -Auron 03:28, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Sure! I'll keep and eye on this and point other folks to it too. You should add Emryd to the list :) Lins named her after me! -- Emily Diehl (talk) 22:45, 21 May 2009 (UTC)

Any update

on the trivia questions in the holding tank? It's been two months since you sent the questions out... Cress Arvein 19:43, 17 February 2009 (UTC)

Unfortunately, no :( I'll send them over to Linsey and the rest of the team again. Right now, things are extremely busy around the studio, so everyone's budgeting their time pretty tightly. I'm sorry for the delay, but unfortunately there's not much more I can do. I'll see if I can send one question at a time so they are a bit more digestible for folks. Thanks for understanding! -- Emily Diehl (talk) 19:51, 17 February 2009 (UTC)

Oh well =(. Thanks for the response. Cress Arvein 03:50, 18 February 2009 (UTC)

Trivia check - Linsle

Hey Emily, is Linsle named after Linsey Murdock? I'd ask Linsey about this but her talk page is so full I figured I'd ask you. Thanks! Mini Me 22:00, 6 July 2009 (UTC)

That is what she goes by, I'd assume it's a reference to her. ~Shard 22:04, 6 July 2009 (UTC)

Yeah I guess. I'll just add it. Mini Me 23:02, 6 July 2009 (UTC)

Just like Elsnil? :P --NIN37 00:59, 7 July 2009 (UTC)

Yep, any reference to "Linsle" or "Elsnil" is a reference to Lins. That's one of the nicknames she uses a lot. -- Emily Diehl (talk) 00:28, 8 July 2009 (UTC)

Rofl. Just noticed "Elsnil" is "Linsle" backwards. ^_^ Rose Of Kali 02:12, 8 July 2009 (UTC)

Lol, me too.—Rein 02:14, 8 July 2009 (UTC)

Trivia check- Ybbob

Is Ybbob (Bobby spelled backwards) a reference to anyone at ArenaNet? – Emmett 19:32, 29 November 2009 (UTC)

Well... — Jon Lupen 14:47, 30 November 2009 (UTC)

I'd already checked the list of ANet staff- there's also Bobby Pontillas- but simply because there is (was?) a Bobby at ANet doesn't mean it's a reference. – Emmett 16:13, 1 December 2009 (UTC)

Probably not so much a reference, and more so that they just lacked an idea for a name, and so went with the first thing that came to mind. — Jon Lupen 16:31, 1 December 2009 (UTC)

Which is why I'm asking for confirmation. :/ – Emmett 21:39, 1 December 2009 (UTC)

Actually, that little guy is a tribute to our writing lead, Bobby Stein. So yep, he's a reference! -- Emily Diehl (talk) 04:42, 3 December 2009 (UTC)

Thank you Emily! :) – Emmett 20:41, 3 December 2009 (UTC)