Canthan New Year
“On January 31st, at Noon Pacific (-8 GMT), Cantha begins a weeklong celebration with festive item drops and games in Shing Jea Boardwalk. It all culminates on February 6th with a feast for the celestial visitor, every three hours starting at 12:01 AM Pacific. For more information, visit www.guildwars.com. [sic]
“Join the people of Cantha as they prepare a heavenly feast to honor the Celestial Animal of the coming year! This annual week-long celebration features Canthan cuisine, festive fireworks, special prizes, and the famed Shing Jea Boardwalk!
| Animal | Year |
|---|---|
| Pig | 2019 |
| Rat | 2020 |
| Ox | 2021 |
| Tiger | 2022 |
| Rabbit | 2023 |
| Dragon | 2024 |
| Snake | 2025 |
| Horse | 2026 |
| Sheep | 2027 |
| Monkey | 2028 |
| Rooster | 2029 |
| Dog | 2030 |
| Pig | 2031 |
The Canthan New Year, or Lunar Festival, is a special event that occurs annually from January 31, 20:00, to February 7, 20:00 UTC,[1] which celebrates the particular Celestial Animal watching over Canthans during the coming year. During the celebrations, citizens work to prepare special meals for the Celestial Animal; if the animal is pleased, it will bestow good luck upon the populace. The primary celebrations occur on Shing Jea Island on the Shing Jea Boardwalk, but the tradition has spread on a smaller scale to both Lion's Arch and Kamadan.
Schedule
| PST (UTC-8) | UTC / GMT[1] | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Noon, 31 January | 20:00, 31 January | Start of the event. |
| 12:01 AM, 6 February – 12:01 AM, 7 February |
08:01, 6 February – 08:01, 7 February |
Finales every 3 hours (see accompanying chart). |
| Noon, 7 February | 20:00, 7 February | End of the event.
|
| Noon, 14 February | 20:00, 14 February | All remaining Canthan New Year NPCs disappear. |
| PST (UTC-8) |
UTC / GMT (24 hr format) |
|---|---|
| 12:01 am | 08:01 |
| 3:01 am | 11:01 |
| 6:01 am | 14:01 |
| 9:01 am | 17:01 |
| 12:01 pm | 20:01 |
| 3:01 pm | 23:01 |
| 6:01 pm | 02:01 February 7 |
| 9:01 pm | 05:01 February 7 |
| 12:01 am February 7 |
08:01 February 7 |
Finale
Chefs located in Shing Jea Monastery collect specific ingredients during the finale. For each ingredient your character turns in, you receive a Lunar Token from that chef.
| Imperial Chef Yan (Appetizers) |
Imperial Chef Reun (Salad) |
Imperial Chef Jiong (Soup) |
Imperial Chef Chen (Main Course) |
Imperial Chef Tian (Dessert) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Finale rewards
After the celestial feast has been offered, all characters in Shing Jea Monastery (including those in Shing Jea Boardwalk) will be rewarded with prizes in their inventory based on how many successful dishes were presented to the Celestial Animal in that district.
| Successful dishes |
Lion Mask | Red Gift Bags | Crate of Fireworks | Celestial Summoning Stones |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0† | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 1 | 4 | 1 | ||
| 2 | 6 | 2 | ||
| 3 | 9 | 3 | ||
| 4 | 12 | 4 | ||
| 5 | 16 | 5 | 5 |
- † If zero dishes were successfully completed, every player character in the district is temporarily transformed by a disguise specific to that year (e.g., Celestial Snake appeared during the Canthan New Year 2013 finales in the Year of the Snake, transforming characters via Snake Form).
Decorated towns
Quests
These quests are only offered to characters that are level 5 or higher (except Take My Sister, Please).
- Sunqua Vale
- Shing Jea Monastery
- Plains of Jarin
OR
Other festivities
Each Canthan New Year makes the Shing Jea Boardwalk, Dragon Arena, and Rollerbeetle Racing available for use. Lunar Tokens also randomly drop from PvE foes for the duration of the event.
Items
Miniatures
| Miniature | Introduced1 | From Lunar Fortunes2 |
|---|---|---|
| Miniature Pig3 | 2007 | 2007 |
| Miniature Celestial Pig | 20084 | 2019, 2031 |
| Miniature Celestial Rat | 2008 | 2008, 2020 |
| Miniature Celestial Ox | 2009 | 2009, 2021 |
| Miniature Celestial Tiger | 2010 | 2010, 2022 |
| Miniature Celestial Rabbit | 2011 | 2011, 2023 |
| Miniature Celestial Dragon | 2012 | 2012, 2024 |
| Miniature Celestial Snake | 2013 | 2013, 2025 |
| Miniature Celestial Horse | 2013 | 2014, 2026 |
| Miniature Celestial Sheep | 2013 | 2015, 2027 |
| Miniature Celestial Monkey | 2013 | 2016, 2028 |
| Miniature Celestial Rooster | 2013 | 2017, 2029 |
| Miniature Celestial Dog | 2013 | 2018, 2030 |
- All Canthan New Year miniatures became available after the introduction of the Celestial Miniature Token in Canthan New Year 2013.
- These miniatures dropped from the Lunar Fortunes acquired during that year's Canthan New Year event.
- Miniature Pigs were given to every character in a 2007 district that had a successful finale; they also dropped from 2007 Lunar Fortunes (i.e. Lunar Fortune [Year of the Pig]).
- Miniature Celestial Pigs were available in 2008 from collectors in exchange for 5 Miniature Pigs.
NPCs
These Canthan New Year NPCs appear with Shing Jea Boardwalk event NPCs:
| Shing Jea Monastery | Lion's Arch | Kamadan, Jewel of Istan | Great Temple of Balthazar |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|
Collectors
| Name | Location | Collects | Campaign |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kao Tseng | Shing Jea Monastery | 25 Festival Ticket | Factions |
| Lunar Fortune Giver | Shing Jea Monastery | 3 Lunar Token | Factions |
| Lunar Gift Keeper | Shing Jea Monastery | 5 Lunar Token | Factions |
| Qili | Shing Jea Monastery | 1 Celestial Miniature Token | Factions |
| Seiji | Shing Jea Monastery | 5 Victory Token | Factions |
| Sheng Yi | Shing Jea Monastery | 10 Victory Token | Factions |
| Lunar Gift Keeper | Lion's Arch | 5 Lunar Token | Prophecies |
| Zaishen Supply Master | Lion's Arch | 5 Victory Token | Prophecies |
| Zaishen Supply Master | Lion's Arch | 10 Victory Token | Prophecies |
| Lunar Gift Keeper | Kamadan, Jewel of Istan | 5 Lunar Token | Nightfall |
| Zaishen Supply Master | Kamadan, Jewel of Istan | 5 Victory Token | Nightfall |
| Zaishen Supply Master | Kamadan, Jewel of Istan | 10 Victory Token | Nightfall |
| Little Jack | Rollerbeetle Racing | 200 Racing Medal | Core |
| Lunar Gift Keeper | Great Temple of Balthazar | 5 Lunar Token | Core |
| Zaishen Supply Master | Great Temple of Balthazar | 5 Victory Token | Core |
| Zaishen Supply Master | Great Temple of Balthazar | 10 Victory Token | Core |
Gallery
- Canthan New Year 2009 Shing Jea Monastery1.jpg
- Canthan New Year 2010 Shing Jea Monastery.jpg
- Canthan New Year 2009 Lions Arch1.jpg
- Canthan New Year 2010 Lions Arch.jpg
- Canthan New Year 2009 Kamadan1.jpg
- Canthan New Year 2010 Kamadan.jpg
Notes
- This event occurs around the Lunar New Year.
- During each Canthan New Year:
- Guff Hufflebeak and Jiaru have different dialogues.
- A different Lunar Fortune is available from Lunar Fortune Giver and Lucky Hochei (e.g., Lunar Fortune [Year of the Snake] was available during Canthan New Year 2013).
- The Canthan New Year finale often sees many guilds and alliances "sponsoring" a district by providing all the ingredients for the feast. To find out whether a district is being sponsored, look in the Party Search panel or ask in the chat window. See this list for guild and alliance patrons that frequently host events.
Trivia
- Canthan New Year draws inspiration from the Chinese New Year. Among many similarities, the zodiacal animals match with Chinese astrology, the Nian are creatures from the Chinese New Year, and the festival culminates in a huge banquet.
- Beginning with Canthan New Year 2013, the duration of the event was extended from a weekend to a week. The start and end of the event were also changed to fixed dates instead of occurring on the weekend immediately after or during Chinese New Year, which caused finales to no longer always occur on a Sunday and Monday (PST and UTC).
- Prior to 2013, the Canthan New Year occurred on the weekend immediately after or during Chinese New Year, with the exception of 2012:
Year Canthan New Year Chinese New Year 2007 16–19 February 18 February 2008 8–11 February 7 February 2009 30 January – 2 February 26 January 2010 12–15 February 14 February 2011 3–7 February 3 February 2012 2–6 February 23 January
References
External links
| Special events | |
|---|---|
| Canthan New Year | 2007 • 2008 • 2009 • 2010 • 2011 • 2012 • 2013 • 2014 onward |
| April Fools' Day | 2007 • 2008 • 2009 • 2010 • 2011 • 2012 • 2013 • 2014 onward |
| Anniversary Celebration | 2nd • 3rd • 4th • 5th • 6th • 7th • 8th • 9th • 10th–14th • 15th–19th • 20th onward |
| Dragon Festival | 2006 • 2007 (Redux) • 2008 • 2009 • 2010 • 2011 • 2012 • 2013 • 2014 onward |
| Wintersday in July | 2008 • 2009 • 2010 • 2011 • 2012 • 2013 • 2014 onward |
| Halloween | 2005 • 2006 • 2007 • 2008 (Redux) • 2009 • 2010 • 2011 • 2012 • 2013 • 2014 onward |
| Wintersday | 2005 • 2006 • 2007 • 2008 • 2009 (Redux) • 2010 • 2011 • 2012 • 2013 onward |
| Other annual events | Breast Cancer Awareness Month • Lucky Treats Week • Pirate Week • Special Treats Week • Sweet Treats Week • Wayfarer's Reverie |
| One-time only events | Day of the Tengu • Farewell to Gaile |
