[The Guide] Understanding Asura
As most residents of Tyria know, the smartest creatures of all are, at least according to them, the asura. Hailing from the deep underground caverns where they house cities that are supposedly even more wondrous than the colossal Rata Sum,the asura have collectively mastered everything that there is to know, and are constantly searching for more things to discover, classify, innovate, then never touch again. For more information on the asura, please turn to the appropriate entry.
Of course, at the front of the minds of many asura is a long list of long words that they are more than happy to use, much to the dismay of anyone who does not know what said words mean, which unfortunately tends to be the majority of Tyria's non-genius population. That said, the easiest way to go about understanding an asura is to either simply not try, or to memorize or actively carry a thesaurus with you. Of course, simply not trying is mentioned elsewhere within the Guide as being an almost useless tactic in many situations. Therefore, this entry shall focus on actually knowing what is being said.
In some cases, the words can be "decoded" as it were with a slight bit of Guesswork. For example, words that start with mechano- or end with -ics most commonly refer to a sub-discipline of Mechanics. The word that the prefix or suffix attaches to will, more often than not, tell you exactly what kind of Mechanics the word as a whole refers to. For example, "Mechanotransmutation" will refer either to the transmutation of mechancial systems, or the transmutation of objects through mechanical means, whereas "Transmutatics" will most likely refer to the Mechancis of said transmutation. Other popular prefixes and suffixes are Hyper-, Hydro-, Magi-, -cation, -action, and Golem-. For a more extensive list, please turn to the Supplementary Information section that corresponds with this entry.
It is important also to remember not to let unnecessary words that have been added to make phrases longer deter you or confuse you, as this is another favored tactic of the asura. In this case, it is helpful to either parse out what is not understood to get the root of the sentence, try out the "decoding" tactic mentioned above, or, once again, carry around a thesaurus. Should you still fail to understand them, some asura are receptive to simplifying their sentences for the benefit of other people. If you happen to come across an asura who is particularly stuck-up regarding the usage of language, there is an alternative tactic that can be used that is commonly referred to as Bullshitting.
Bullshitting an asura can be difficult, as their knowledge of words may make it easier for them to notice your bullshit. You can either pretend to have a complete or partial understanding of what they are saying, and attempt to respond accordingly, or you can respond with something completely unrelated and unnecessarily complicated to throw them off entirely. Should you manage to confuse them through either method, then congratulations. You are in the small minority of people who are able to properly confuse the smartest creatures on Tyria. For more information on Bullshitting, please turn to the appropriate entry.
If all else fails, it helps to remember that they are a short and typically frail people, and tend to be easy to hold off of the edges of cliffs or kick down short flights of stairs. Should you choose to take a more physical approach to solving your communication problems, be sure to do so in an area that has fewer witnesses, and more importantly, no law enforcement.