href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/84378"> style="width: 200px; float: right;" alt="Dismantle"
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/84378">

Since
first revealing the War
in Kryta last month as the first stage of
a longer series of events dubbed "Guild Wars
Beyond" intended to build some of the foundational storylines
that will carry over into Guild
Wars 2, ArenaNet has done an
outstanding job of weaving a strong narrative backdrop for current
in-game events. One of the more interesting tools in the
developer's arsenal to achieve this, and a personal favorite,
is the series of href="http://www.guildwars.com/warinkryta/#news">War
Chronicles at the href="http://www.guildwars.com/warinkryta/">official
site for the event.

In the most recent update,
"Uncertain Times Bad for Overseas
Trade", historian Murro explains some of the devastating
effects that war has had on shipping lanes to and from Lion's
Arch, the Krytan city currently held by the White Mantle that the
Shining Blade hope to reclaim with the aid of such notable allies as
the Ebon Vanguard.

The flow of goods to
and from overseas destinations has slowed to a
trickle, according to merchants and traders in Lion's Arch.



Here in Kryta's largest harbor, one can normally find ships
from Cantha and Elona loaded with spices, herbs, and rice. Today, only
a few ships are moored at the docks, their cargo holds empty.
Uncertainty regarding the outcome of the war has kept all but the
bravest and most desperate traders from visiting.



Canthan merchant Jiaju Tai has felt the downturn in trade more than
most. “We Canthans have a proverb: ‘Do not sail
into troubled winds.’ Very few merchant captains will risk
the journey to Lion's Arch with no guarantee of a market for
their goods.”



Jiaju Tai expects overseas trade to Kryta to resume if and when the
political situation stabilizes.



“When they know for certain who will rule Kryta and what to
expect, the Canthan ships will return,” she said.
“But not until then.”

Personally, I really dig what
ArenaNet has managed to accomplish so far
with the War in Kryta, especially these well crafted War Chronicles
updates that let players keep track of in-game lore quite literally as
it is being written. Not only is it incredibly cool for the lore nerds
among us, but it also adds a massive layer of depth to the in-game
components such as running into the buffed up White Mantle Peacekeepers
throughout the various Krytan zones.

To read the above entry and the
rest of the War Chronicles, be sure to
check out the official href="http://www.guildwars.com/warinkryta/">War in
Kryta website!