The Oni, what are they?

For those who have Factions, it is most likely you have come across these Oni. They usually appear out of nowhere in groups of 3-4. They also can be found almost anywhere in Cantha. Either from the Luxon or Kurzick territories. Their physical appearance resemble an alien life form unlike any other creature in Cantha. They have this unique yet creepy roar and unusual running form. They use mostly assassin skills and one other skill called Demonic Agility. So does this mean they're demons? Whatever they are, these level 28 Oni are just creepy.

Demons from Japanese mythology who feed on destruction and violence.

They are the abominations created by some pushover in ''The Deep'' thats all i know...

I was talking to a Luxon NPC,he thought they were Outcast Luxons driven insane by (can't remember) and are quite aggressive.

Pushover? you obviously haven't tried to kill it yet. -_- I'm in the alliance that controls Cavalon and I still haven't beaten the Deep.

From Eurayle (the sentry that lets us into the Deep):
Years ago, when the Jade Wind froze the sea, a demon of nightmares was trapped deep below the sea's hardened waters. A group of Luxons unearthed the demon's resting place while mining the sea for jade. The demon's nightmares slowly seeped into their minds, until they eventually went insane. The tale of these outcasts is a sad one, but if you come across any, do not show them pity. They are beyond rehabilitation and will not hesitate to kill you.

The demon that caused the corruption of these outcasts is known by the name Kanaxai, bringer of despair. He is also the source of the oni that appear all over Cantha as waking nightmares. If you wish to prove your loyalty to the Luxons, head into the caves known as The Deep that lead toward the ancient mine, and destroy the outcasts and the demon Kanaxai.

That pretty much somes up the name. As for there relation to the game...

A brief description: (wikipedia, other sources)
Oni (鬼, Oni?) are creatures from Japanese folklore, similar to Western demons or ogres. They are popular characters in Japanese art, literature, and theatre.

Appearance
Depictions of oni vary widely but usually portray them as hideous, gigantic creatures with sharp claws, wild hair, and two long horns growing from their heads. They are humanoid for the most part, but occasionally, they are shown with unnatural features such as odd numbers of eyes or extra fingers and toes. Their skin may be any number of colors, but red, blue, black, pink, and green are particularly common. Their fierce appearance is only enhanced by the tiger skins they tend to wear and the iron clubs they favor, called kanabō (金棒, kanabō?). This image leads to the expression "oni with an iron club" (鬼に金棒, "oni with an iron club"?), that is, to be invincible or undefeatable. It can also be used in the sense of "strong beyond strong", or having one's natural quality enhanced or supplemented by the use of some tool.

In this case they use daggers like weapons instead of clubs, hammers, iron spikes, iron clubs, etc. Also it's said that they were demons capable of warding off evil spirits, evil-doers, etc. Oni characters have been seen on videogames like Onimusha, Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance, some manga episodes of the DragonBall Z series and many others. I just know that they are scaring, they make loud noises and they drop cool skin daggers and swords.

They are the Borg, they teleport in from a Cube/Sphere and try to destroy Cantha/Canthans before they have a chance to create Starships.

*Spoilers*




As you kill the different facets of the boss in the deep you learn that it's him (Kanaxai) that is creating the Oni by sending evil projections of himself onto the surface since he's trapped under the Jade Sea. It's also him who drives some Luxons mad and turns them into outcasts.

It says in the manuscripts that the great majority of canthans know little about the Onis, and only that they are demonic creatures which attack at random and slip back into the void, but obviously that must just be there so you can find out the truth in game.

all i can say is that i love the oni weapons

Oni, akuma, all meaning demon or devil.

IF you are nipponjin(japanese) you might know a different meaning for oni some say that the oni were big, hairy, stinky, smelly, evil creatures that lived in southern japan. and if anyone read momotaro or lived in japan you know where okinawans come from right?... .... .....
no disrespect okinawan's that just what i heard

ok.....i know oni are "dangerous" but if u ever go into the deep and put a condition on em, the run around like japansese school girls trying not step in some mud, we had quite a good laugh on vent, it was great

http://guildwarsguru.com/forum/showthread.php?t=3009244

might find this thread relevant

Wrath Of Dragons is right. Mythical creatures, that, in GWian case, were created by Kanaxai (<or SOMETHING like that...) for no apparent reason.

There is another quest related to this, I think. The Quest you get at Seafarer's Rest. The NPC that gives the quest talks about Jade Reavers who dug too deep into the Jade and went insane. They became Luxon Outcasts who now fight like animals and prevent the Luxons from mining by raiding their quarries.

Although that could be true, thats a reference to the Reavers in Firefly/Serenity, and a pretty cool one at that. Theres other firefly references too .

Oni= the dev's for factions, as punishment for comming up with the factions/alliance idea

they look like the evil aliens in metroid prime. it was cool on shing jea i came across a short oni

everheard of the game "onimusha". its about a japan guy that kills everyone