So a lot of people are speculating that we're going to receive a new breed at the end of the Dustcarve Dig event, with some saying it'll be an Earth breed and others saying it'll be a Water breed. Personally I agree with them, except I don't think it'll be just an Earth or Water breed. I think it'll be both - a hybrid Water + Earth breed that both the Tidelord and Earthshaker worked together to create.
Hear me out - Tunnel 5 confirms that the Tidelord is still alive, and that he's the one who likely redirected the underground river. Velya also notes that the Earthshaker's magic has been present throughout the Dustcarve Dig. But why would the Tidelord redirect a river in the Earthshaker's domain? Moreover, why are Tidelord and Deepseer Tetra in this event in the first place? Dustcarve Dig is clearly tied to Earth's lore story from Bounty of the Elements, but Water's BotE story doesn't have any connection to Earth's...at least, that's what we thought at the time. This unexpected connection between Earth's and Water's stories likely means that whatever we find at the end of the Dustcarve Dig is going to be tied to both flights - and a collaboration between Tidelord and Earthshaker would fit the bill.
Sure, most of the breeds we have now are the product of a single deity's creation. But the existence of Bogsneaks shows that you don't need a diety to create a new breed - and if a breed with no deity involvement in its creation can exist, then a breed with two or more deities working together to create it isn't out of the question.
Here's my theory for the lore: sometime around the events of BotE, Tidelord gets a prophecy that says the deities must work together to defend Sornieth against some sort of threat. So he leaves (without telling anyone, thanks Dad
) and heads over to Dragonhome to talk to Earthshaker, figuring he would be the most likely to work with Tidelord. Eventually they decide that the best thing to do is to create a new breed together to help protect Sornieth. After spending a long time working (because Tidepapa is lazy and Earthshaker is as slow as the tectonic plates :P), they're finally ready to introduce their joint creation to the world, and have decided to do so by leading the expedition to where the newly-created hybrid breed is waiting (and uncover some Second Age ruins along the way).
As for what a Water/Earth hybrid breed would look like, I have a few ideas. One possibility is a sea turtle-like breed, combining Snappers' protective armor-like plates with more aquatic features.
Another possibility is something resembling a Plesiosaurus (the one that looks like the Loch Ness monster), which would connect to both Water and Earth as a large marine reptile that today only exists as fossils.
What do you guys think? Personally, I think a hybrid Earth + Water breed would be so cool - both for being the first breed created by two deities working together, and for opening up more potential collabs between other deities.
It would also make the upcoming Water vs. Earth dom battle more interesting. 
Hear me out - Tunnel 5 confirms that the Tidelord is still alive, and that he's the one who likely redirected the underground river. Velya also notes that the Earthshaker's magic has been present throughout the Dustcarve Dig. But why would the Tidelord redirect a river in the Earthshaker's domain? Moreover, why are Tidelord and Deepseer Tetra in this event in the first place? Dustcarve Dig is clearly tied to Earth's lore story from Bounty of the Elements, but Water's BotE story doesn't have any connection to Earth's...at least, that's what we thought at the time. This unexpected connection between Earth's and Water's stories likely means that whatever we find at the end of the Dustcarve Dig is going to be tied to both flights - and a collaboration between Tidelord and Earthshaker would fit the bill.
Sure, most of the breeds we have now are the product of a single deity's creation. But the existence of Bogsneaks shows that you don't need a diety to create a new breed - and if a breed with no deity involvement in its creation can exist, then a breed with two or more deities working together to create it isn't out of the question.
Here's my theory for the lore: sometime around the events of BotE, Tidelord gets a prophecy that says the deities must work together to defend Sornieth against some sort of threat. So he leaves (without telling anyone, thanks Dad
) and heads over to Dragonhome to talk to Earthshaker, figuring he would be the most likely to work with Tidelord. Eventually they decide that the best thing to do is to create a new breed together to help protect Sornieth. After spending a long time working (because Tidepapa is lazy and Earthshaker is as slow as the tectonic plates :P), they're finally ready to introduce their joint creation to the world, and have decided to do so by leading the expedition to where the newly-created hybrid breed is waiting (and uncover some Second Age ruins along the way).As for what a Water/Earth hybrid breed would look like, I have a few ideas. One possibility is a sea turtle-like breed, combining Snappers' protective armor-like plates with more aquatic features.
Another possibility is something resembling a Plesiosaurus (the one that looks like the Loch Ness monster), which would connect to both Water and Earth as a large marine reptile that today only exists as fossils.
What do you guys think? Personally, I think a hybrid Earth + Water breed would be so cool - both for being the first breed created by two deities working together, and for opening up more potential collabs between other deities.
It would also make the upcoming Water vs. Earth dom battle more interesting.
