The Guild Wars 2 story is set about 250 years after the events in the Eye of the North expansion. The world of Tyria is drastically changed from its original form. These changes are caused by ancient dragons resurfacing after millenia of slumber. The first of the dragons, called Primordus, awoke during Eye of the North and proceeded to take over the underground network of Asuran tunnels under Tyria, driving the Asuras to the surface. Other dragons also resurfaced during the intervening centuries; one rose about the sunken holy city of Arah in the ruined kingdom of Orr, and severed the sea route between Kryta and Cantha; another arose to the south of the Crystal Desert, cutting off the link to Elona; a third arose in the Far Shiverpeaks and pushed the Norn south into land previously controlled by the Dwarves.

The human faction is much reduced. The resurfacing dragons caused massive floods that destroyed many coastal cities in Kryta, including its capital city, Lion's Arch and the PvP Battle Isles. The humans have established a new capital in Divinity's Reach after moving north from the coast. They're governed by a constitutional monarch and senate which attempts to balance all the human factions there. Many refugees flocked to Kryta from the rest of Tyria; most importantly, the humans from Ascalon. Ascalon now belongs entirely to the Charr apart from a single fortress, Ebonhawke. Ascalon City itself is a ghost town, populated by the vengeful spirits of its former citizens who slay all who dare enter.

Besides the humans, the other sentient races have a comparatively better time. The Norns and the Charr continue to honor their peace formed from a mutual respect. The Asuras spread through all cities, maintaining a network of teleportation gates but also remaining strictly neutral. The Charr achieve victory over Ascalon and settle into the former human capital of Rin. A new race, the Sylvari, appear fully formed from the mysterious tree that the centaur Ventari tended to until his death.

The Dwarves, who pursued the Destroyers deep and long at the end of Eye of the North, are now deathless creatures of stone; the few who remain watch the ages go by, interacting little with the other sentient races, if at all.

Lion's Arch has been rebuilt from the floods and is the new portal into the Mists; it takes the place of the Battle Isles.

In Cantha, the successor of emperor Kisu defeats the Kurzick and Luxon factions and reunites Cantha under one banner. Cantha then became much more isolationist; all non-human races were pushed out and the borders fortified. With the ancient dragon's undead corsair fleet disrupting travel, there has been no contact with mainland Canthans for a generation.

In Elona, Palawa Joko, successfully rebuilds his undead army and lays siege to Elona. Vabbi is all but destroyed, its former splendor ruined by a famine caused by Joko diverting the river Elon. The Sunspears are broken by Joko's armies. The land bridge between Elona and the Crystal Desert is blocked by Joko's minions and the dragon, and the only news that slips through is carried by the Order of Whispers, who are now spread over all of Tyria.

Rassen:

Asura
The Asura are a race of diminutive artisans, who secretly dwelled below-ground for thousands of years, until the minions of the Great Destroyer forced them out of their underground homes 250 years ago. Since then, they have adapted to surface life and quickly established themselves as one of the most powerful races in Tyria. They control a complex Gate system which links all the areas of Tyria together via magically-created wormholes. They have good relations with all races, and guard their neutrality and trade routes jealously, never allowing the Asura Gates to be used to gain the upper hands in the wars between the other races.

The Asura believe that they are destined to rule the world, with the taller, less intelligent races under them. Instead of an organized government system, they prefer to utilize krewes, which are small, efficient task forces designed to let each individual Asura reach their own maximum potential in any particular task.


Charr
The Charr are a race of large, savage, beast-like creatures that occupy much of eastern Tyria. Charr society consists of four legions, three allied and one outcast. Each legion is then separated into different warbands. Hierarchy is no more organized than this for the Charr; their society has not been structured since the conclusion of the Flameseeker Prophecies and the death of the Titans, their fiery gods.

The Charr have always worshiped flame, so when the Titans were destroyed, Charr society almost fell apart. Hierophant Burntsoul, leader of the Flame Legion (now derogatorily referred to as the Gold Legion) managed to briefly unify the Charr once more under the Destroyers, who were also quickly exposed to be mortal by a leader of the Charr rebellion, Pyre Fierceshot. Since then, the Charr have rejected all gods, believing that they themselves are in control of their fate.

Although the Charr live in relative peace with one another and their neighbors to the west, the Norn, this does not mean that they do not have to defend their territories. Human resistance forces from the Blazeridge Mountains still strike out from their sole remaining fortress, and the ghosts of Ascalon City still zealously guard their home as if they might still have a chance against the might of the Charr legions. Meanwhile, the twisted servants of the dragon that rose from the Grothmar Wardowns and flew to the Crystal Desert are scattered around the Charr Homelands and Ascalon, killing any Charr that have the misfortune to encounter them.

Human
Human is one of the playable races in Guild Wars 2. The primary and probably last human Kingdom is Kryta. Although once spread across the world, the humans control of Tyria has gradually slipped away over the last 250 years. Ascalon was lost to the Charr, the three states of Elona are under the control of the undead lord Palawa Joko and all links with Cantha were cut off after Orr rose, and the undead armies of an ancient power took control of the sea. One of the last areas that has humans living outside of Kryta is in Ascalon at the fortress Ebonhawke which is able to survive through the assistance of the Asura Gate located there.

Norn
The Norn are a race of nine-foot tall nordic warriors that currently inhabit parts of Kryta and the abandoned Dwarven fortresses in the Northern Shiverpeaks. They do not have armies, government or even a real society, only heroes. The Norn live for the hunt, so their tracking, stealth and killing skills make them invaluable allies in any combat situation. They were pushed southwards out of their homeland, the Far Shiverpeaks, by the servants of the great dragon that arose from an icy slumber in the cursed area around the Drakkar Lake that created the Nornbear. When they headed south, they entered conflict with the Dredge, a race that was enslaved by the Dwarves before the untimely demise of the Dwarven race. The hunt is on again, and the snow of the Shiverpeaks is once again tainted red by the blood of the heroes fighting atop the mountain range


Sylvari
The Sylvari are a young, inquisitive race of creatures spawned from a magical tree in Arbor Bay. The tree was planted by Ventari and Ronan, a Centaur and a human attempting to escape the violence that engulfed Tyria. The Sylvari still carry Ventari's beliefs and morals, despite his death long before the Firstborn Sylvari even appeared because of the Ventari Tablet.

The Sylvari have an innate bond with plants, and each other. They call this the Dream of Dreams. However, concealed within the Dream of Dreams are nightmares, something which the Sylvari do not yet understand. The Sylvari are a young race of nature spirits who had awakened with the dawn of a new age in Tyria. They are beings of light as they have yet to be corrupted by the knowledge of sorrow, suspicion, or hatred.