Decent Armour, Finally…

After a brief attempt at sunshine early on, it rained constantly for most of the day. It suited my mood - my annual leave is coming to an end. Manfully resisting the urge to cry quietly in a corner, I distracted myself with a gaming marathon and accomplished great things in one of my favourite haunts, Guild Wars 2. I completed the long and grindy quest to make a set of legendary armour for one of my main characters, who features in today’s blip.

The acquisition of expensive and good-looking gear is one of the main objectives in the game – it is nicknamed Fashion Wars for a reason. This is easier for some characters than others; case in point, the fierce chap pictured here is a Charr necromancer – a spell-casting profession that requires ‘light armour’, which mostly entails a variety of foppish robes and silky gowns. For the Charr, a race of extremely warlike predators, most of the offerings just don’t cut the mustard. So slim pickings on the cool armour front, until now… this set of newly minted Suffused Obsidian Armour fits the bill perfectly.

A feline-inspired race in the Guild Wars franchise, the Charr have drawn from a variety of fictional and cultural sources. Among the confirmed influences is the visual similarity between the Charr and the Beast from Disney's Beauty and the Beast. This connection is primarily observed in the body structure of male Charr, who share the long, hyena-like build and short legs characteristic of the Beast. Additionally, the developers of the Charr have confirmed that their design was inspired by the human fear of being devoured by large cats, combined with demonic features to create the fearsome, fire-wielding "hell cats."

Other fictional races and characters may have indirectly influenced the Charr, though these connections remain speculative. Some have compared the Charr to the Khajiit from The Elder Scrolls series, as both are feline humanoid races. The Charr, however, maintain a more distinctive visual style. Similarly, the feline races in EverQuest, such as the Vah Shir and Kerra, share some characteristics, but the Charr are widely regarded as more original. The Charr are also frequently compared to other "beast" races in fantasy settings, though their design and cultural elements distinguish them from these counterparts.

The Charr’s cultural and historical inspirations are evident in their societal and aesthetic design. Mongolian culture, particularly pre-revolution society, has influenced their societal structure, while Roman culture can be seen in their military organization and naming conventions. Additionally, the Charr’s post-revolution technological development bears clear hallmarks of steampunk aesthetics, adding another layer of complexity to their design.

While there are potential similarities between the Charr and other fictional races, such as Larry Niven’s Kzinti, there is no direct evidence to suggest that the Charr were based on these precedents. The Charr seem to emerge as a unique creation, blending various influences from fiction, culture, and history into a distinctive race within the Guild Wars universe.