Rising of Orr
The Rising of Orr, known as the Great Tsunami,[1] the Great Flood,[2] or the Zhaitan Disaster, was an event in which the Elder Death Dragon Zhaitan awoke, causing the island of Orr to rise from the depths of the sea, causing a colossal tsunami spread throughout the world, causing immense destruction. The regions affected included Dajkah, Kryta, the Tarnished Coast, Old Kaineng, the Battle Isles, and Shing Jea Island.
History[edit]
The Rising of Orr occurred in 1219 AE when the Elder Dragon Zhaitan woke from slumber. Originally underneath the peninsula, Zhaitan forced the sunken kingdom of Orr to the surface. The sailor Cobiah Marriner was one of the few people to witness the event and live.[3] This event caused the flooding of Old Lion's Arch, the Kingdom of Kryta had to move to a drained plain north of Shaemoor and build a city that would be known as Divinity's Reach where they could rule from. After some time, the waters receded in Lion's Arch which following its abandonment by Kryta, was captured by pirates, who made it a center of global trade.
The tsunami also caused the destruction of the corsair fleets that were nestled in the islands above sea level. It caused a large tidal wave, known as the Great Tsunami by the tengu and as the Great Flood by the Olmakhan tribe of charr, that flooded the coasts of Kryta, the Ring of Fire Islands, the Battle Isles, and Sandswept Isles, if not more.[4][5] Most of the land that was hit by the tidal wave was simply reshaped, with new lakes and rivers forming and shores altered, but some islands, such as the Battle Isles, were submerged.[6]
In Cantha, the event became known as the Zhaitan Disaster after it destroyed the Old Kaineng City and turned many Canthans into Risen, leaving great losses and part of the city flooded.[7]
Gallery[edit]
Zhaitan's awakening. Concept art by Kekai Kotaki.
An army prepares to face off against Zhaitan's Risen. Concept art by Kekai Kotaki.
Notes[edit]
- The Rising of Orr is depicted in both the original Guild Wars 2 announcement trailer and the Durmand Priory introduction cinematic during Dredging up the Past.
References[edit]
- ^ Sangdo Swiftwing
- ^ Of Maelstroms
- ^ "Chapter 5", Sea of Sorrows by Ree Soesbee:
- There, in the center of the darkest, deepest ocean in the world, at the very heart of the Sea of Sorrows, Cobiah saw something that should not have existed.
- He saw land, where there was nothing but ocean.
- Dark, tattered wings, as if something long dead was rising from the grave.
- Ancient cathedrals of coral-crusted stone. Torn flesh and ice-white bone against a storm-laden sky. Corpses, crawling from the waterlogged earth like maggots; bodies by the thousands, roiling like waves themselves over sodden ground.
- ^ Hayato
- ^ Of Maelstroms
- ^ The Movement of the World
- ^ Guild Chat - Episode 117
