Pale Tree
From Guild Wars 2 Wiki
The Pale Tree, also known as the Mother Tree, is a massive, magical, sentient tree which is the mother of all sylvari. She is aware of activity around her and can manifest as a golden light or intangible presence and will converse with those who seek her wisdom. The Pale Tree might be considered the ultimate ruler of her sylvari children, though her firstborn take most responsibilities, as each sylvari shares in the pool of knowledge, wisdom and experience she has attained prior to their awakening.
The Pale Tree dominates her location in the Tarnished Coast, towering like a skyscraper over the landscape. The lower parts of the tree are known as the Grove, which the Pale Tree has created to be a multi-level, growing city with roots and branches forming platforms on which other plants grow to provide the sylvari with their homes. The Pale Tree grows its sylvari children, and other creatures it births, in pods high enough above the ground that the fall from them can be fatal.
The Pale Tree holds the sylvari's collected knowledge and emotion. The few most important memories for a sylvari make it to the Pale Tree to be added to this pool of experience, typically those with the greatest emotional impact. This knowledge and experience is spun by the Pale Tree into what is known as the Dream of Dreams, a state shared by every sylvari prior to awakening from the tree and continues to weakly link them to the Pale Tree once awake. Through the dream, the Pale Tree instills each sylvari with an inherent sense of nobility, curiosity, and a need to explore. Each she reminds each to hold to the hero's path of honor, courage, chivalry and compassion even as they strive for victory over the Elder Dragons. In spite of this, a group of sylvari called the Nightmare Court seek to change the message the Pale Tree gives to her children. They commit acts of depravity and send memories of these acts to the Pale Tree, with the ultimate goal of turning their mother from her initial philosophy, formed by a human and a centaur, to one which is uniquely sylvari.
[edit] History
The seed which sprouted the Pale Tree was found in a cave containing many others like it, guarded by powerful plant creatures. Over 250 years ago, Ronan, a Shining Blade warrior, took one of these seeds and placed it on the graves of his family, who were killed by the mursaat. He and the centaur Ventari tended the young tree, and their attitudes and philosophy had significant influence on its nature. In particular, the marble tablet carved by Ventari prior to his death and placed at the base of the tree forms the basis for the Pale Tree's philosophy.
25 years prior to the start of Guild Wars 2, the Pale Tree birthed the twelve Firstborn sylvari. More sylvari joined them six to seven years later, with more following with greater frequency and in greater numbers.
