From the foreword:

It is with a great deal of appreciation for all art-loving gamers that our team has assembled this collection of illustrations as a sneak peek into the crafting process behind the visually stunning war of Guild Wars 2.

We don't regard concept art as blueprints to be slavishly reproduced, but rather as an inspirational starting point for our amazingly creative production artists. Multiple layers of personal contributions are expected and encouraged, sometimes leading to significant deviations from the initial idea, but always adding depth and richness.

We invite you to retrace our intimate, occasionally convoluted thinking patterns and hope that the emotions we experienced along the ride will resonate with you. Get high with us on the harmless, yet oh-so-addicting drug of our choice: art.