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Know Your Lore: Rise of the Zandalari
The World of Warcraft is an expansive universe. You're playing the game, you're fighting the bosses, you know the how -- but do you know the why? Each week, Matthew Rossi and Anne Stickney make sure you Know Your Lore by covering the history of the story behind World of Warcraft. In the beginning, there was Azeroth. It existed as one continent called Kalimdor. Prior to the Sundering -- indeed, prior to the rise of the elven race at all -- there were the trolls. The troll race is one of the first sentient races on Azeroth, it's been suggested on more than one occasion that the troll race predates even the arrival of the Titans. Needless to say, Azeroth is full of trolls, from the Darkspear, Horde allies that joined during the orcs' trek to Kalimdor from the Eastern Kingdoms, to the various splinter tribes scattered across Azeroth. But the troll races share a common point of interest -- once, long, long ago, these trolls were all part of one empire, one tribe of trolls from which all others originated. The Zandalari tribe isn't an unfamiliar name to those that have played through Northrend content. The Zandalari were assisting both Alliance and Horde against the maddened remnants of the Drakari ice trolls. However, players were first introduced to the Zandalari in vanilla, when the mysterious progenitors of the troll race appeared to ask for help from both Alliance and Horde against the combined might of the Atal'ai trolls to conquer Zul'Gurub -- once the capital of the Gurubashi Empire. Please note: This edition of Know Your Lore spoils some elements of the upcoming 4.1 patch, Rise of the Zandalari. If you'd like to avoid spoilers for upcoming content, turn away now, before it's too late!
Patch 4.1: Rise of the Zandalari preview now online
For those of us waiting with bated breath (yes, it's bated, not baited -- look it up) for the release of patch 4.1, one of the most highly anticipated aspects of the patch would be the new heroic 5-man dungeons Zul'Gurub and Zul'Aman. Now, at last, we have Blizzard's patch 4.1 content preview, Rise of the Zandalari, to tell us how ZG and ZA came back to life after we defeated the horrors within both dungeons. If you want to see how the same Zandalar tribe that once assisted us against the Hakkari in Zul'Gurub and the Drakkari in Zul'Drak is now working at cross purposes, how Vol'jin has stepped out of the shadows to stake his own claim to troll affairs, and who replaced Zul'jin as warchief of the Amani (and how the Zandalar are behind it all), this preview is for you. You can view it directly on the official Battle.net blog, or read it behind the cut below. %Gallery-119767%
Patch 4.1 PTR: Zul'Aman examined
After spending many hours and relying on the dungeon finder to pick up tanks on the 4.1 PTR, I managed to get a nice handle on the updated bosses in Zul'Aman. Unfortunately due to time constraints, the group was only able to challenge the first four animal bosses. We weren't able to progress past the Lynx or Dragonhawk bosses. While there were new mechanics introduced, after wiping over 10 times to the Dragonhawk boss, I can safely say that there need to be some slight numbers adjustments. WoW Insider rogue specialist Anne was able to join me as we continually wiped, figuring out new mechanics. Thank goodness for repair bots. As an aside, perhaps someone can answer me this question: Why are raid groups looking for players for Icecrown Citadel on the test realm? %Gallery-118415%
Ask a Beta Tester: Zul'Drak and more
Welcome to yet another edition of Ask a Beta Tester. We're coming to you a little later in the day than we usually do, but I think getting the site's redesign up was worth it! It's sparkly, isn't it? We only have a little under a week of Ask a Beta Tester left, so let's make the best of the time we have and get started!Nick S asked... Is there any lore for the Trolls? I've seen very, very little that's not negative. Where's the Troll lovin'?!? Unfortunately, I'm primarily Alliance and didn't see much from the Horde beyond the first couple of zones, so I'm not really sure about the Darkspear. Zul'Drak has a whole load of Troll content, though. It's an entire Troll zone centered on the last Troll Empire, the Drakkari. There's also the return of the Zandalar Trolls, who are much more friendly. You might have met them back when Zul'Gurub was run frequently. They're there to document the fall of the Drakkari and prevent them from doing something really, really bad.
Giving players some more race variants
I have to agree with Michael on WoW LJ: it would be nice to have a little more variance in the types of races that we choose at character creation. Of course, due to lore reasons, all the trolls we create are Darkspear Trolls, and likewise, all of our Taurens are of the Bloodhoof variety. But it would be nice to have a few more options, especially since we now know that some of the "foreign" tribes and clans might have a member or two interested in joining the Horde.None of Michael's suggestions would really work -- the Taunka are almost a completely different race, the Forest Trolls can't be very happy that we've killed their leader, and neither the Dark Iron Dwarves or the Iron Dwarves are very friendly to either Horde or Alliance. But there are possible variants out there -- the Zanadalar tribe might have some members interested in joining the Horde, and certainly the Mag'har Orcs are friendly to players. Alliance doesn't have as many options come to mind, though all players are Bronzebeards, I believe, and surely the Stormpikes are Friendly by now.We've got new hairstyles coming in the next expansion, of course, but it would be nice to vary up the races a little bit, and have even different backgrounds within the race choices. RPers would love it for sure, and even for other players, it would give a little more meaning and power to playing through the various racial areas in the game.
Know Your Lore: Hakkar the Soulflayer
Welcome to Know Your Lore, where each week Alex Ziebart brings you a tasty little morsel of lore to wrap your mind around. Sweet, sweet lore. Mmmm. Today we're going to take a step back from out pre-emptive study of Wrath subjects and look at something a little more old school. We'll get back to catching up for Wrath of the Lich King soon enough, don't you worry about that. I'm far too excited about the expansion to not come back to it soon.Today we're going to look at Hakkar the Soulflayer, not to be confused with Hakkar the Houndmaster which apparently came first in the lore, but I don't really care which of them came first because the Blood God (that one's the Soulflayer) is way cooler. What the Soulflayer actually is is largely a mystery. He's a god, certainly, but Azeroth has many flavors of gods and demigods. He is probably just a Loa god, but our buddy Brann Bronzebeard seems to think he's more than that. Specifically, Hakkar might be the son of an Old God.
Well Fed Buff: Essence Mango
Well Fed Buff serves up tasty dishes to boost your HP, stats and appetite – with that special WoW twist, of course. Those Trolls from Yojamba Isle were on to something. Before The Burning crusade, one of the cool foods that players could get were Essence Mangoes, a quest reward that could be obtained by handing in a Zandalar Honor Token. These weren't actually any better than Alterac Manna Biscuits, and back when Zul'gurub was still in vogue, the tokens weren't quite worth turning in for an average food that didn't give any buffs. But the quest describes mangoes as luscious fruits from the South Seas, and it couldn't be more true. Mangoes are significant fruits in Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, and the Philippines. In the Philippines, where I live, mangoes are an everyday treat and I think we have the best mangoes in the world. Today on Well Fed Buff, we'll put a new spin on the Essence Mango (which is essentially just a fruit) by making a simple, healthy drink that is sure to restore your health and mana as well as tickle your taste buds.
Unobtainium: Rare, ridiculous, and remarkable reputation schematics
Or"There's no such thing! Is there?"Engineers have among the greatest freedom to choose our allegiances throughout Azeroth and Outland. While Jewelcrafters and leatherworkers spend hours and days making a name for themselves with the Furbolgs of the Timbermaw, or the druids of Cenarion, Engineers remain free. No such slaves to the grind of reputation, we. For what could we learn from the various factions of the lands? It's little they can teach us, and little we would gain from the work done. No, our main choice of faction has always been to join M.E.G.A. or to take our lives in our hands and join G.E.E.K.With few exceptions. There are several factions we can seek out whose expertise in Engineering allows us to learn a thing or two (quite literally) from them. In this lecture we will discuss where an enterprising Engineer can go to learn some of the rarest schemata known: those derived from earned reputations.The factions with which you'll need to work are the Zandalar Tribe of trolls in Stranglethorn Vale, the Cenarion Expedition, predominantly in Zangarmarsh, and the Consortium, predominantly in Netherstorm. Zandalar trolls will require you to join their battle against Hakkar, the Blood God, and his priests in Zul'Gurub. This will require a raid 20 strong, though if you've mastered the art of flying you'll likely find you need somewhat fewer than that to be effective. The Cenarion Expedition has agents posted in the western barrens of Hellfire Peninsula, but the main camp can be found further west in Zangarmarsh. They offer work mostly in and around Zangarmarsh itself, including, most prominently, reputation earned from delving into the Coilfang Reservoir: Underbog, Slave Pens, and Steam Vaults. Consortium reputation can be earned in Auchindoun, but only in the Mana Tombs, and that only until you've reached Honored. Beyond that you'll need to visit Nagrand for Ogre beads or, ultimately, Netherstorm for a variety of work.
Around Azeroth: Welcome to Yojamba Isle
Reader Tiffa sends in this shot of Yojamba Isle, which looks like the ideal setting for a beach party, doesn't it? Blue sky overhead and palm trees below! However, the Zandalar tribe which resides here is a serious lot, dedicated to the fight against Hakkar, the Blood God, and his minions in Zul'Gurub. But if you fancy some good times in old Azeroth, pay the Zandalar a visit! The fights in Zul'Gurub remain some of my favorite in the game.Do you have a unique shot of Azeroth or Outland that you'd like to show off to the rest of the world? Tell us about it by e-mailing aroundazeroth@gmail.com! Or perhaps you'd just like to see more of your pics from Around Azeroth. %Gallery-1816%
