kvaldir
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Cataclysm Post-Mortem: Vashj'ir
Alex Ziebart and Mathew McCurley (that's me) decided to give each Cataclysm zone the once-over now that we're many months out from the release of the expansion. In this post-mortem series, we'll examine (in our own opinions and words) what worked and what didn't work in terms of story, quests, and overall feel for the zones and the cool moments that dotted the landscape. Join us for a discussion about Cataclysm's new level 80 to 85 content and what made the cut as the most compelling experiences. The Sunken City of Vashj'ir lies off the coast of Stormwind, with pieces of the forgotten land rising up from the waves after the devastation of the cataclysm and Deathwing's sundering of Azeroth. The Alliance scrambles to secure this territory so close to their shores to prevent any malicious entities from causing more havoc on their shores. The Horde, seeing a golden opportunity for a land grab so close to the human capital, has sent its navy in full force to take the now surfaced islands of Vashj'ir. Little does either faction know that a war rages in the very heart of the sunken city between the Lady Naz'jar and her army of naga aided by the Old Gods and the kvaldir. Lady Naz'jar's ultimate goal -- enter the Abyssal Maw, home of the water elemental lord Neptulon, and seize his power for her naga army. Vashj'ir's story Mathew: Before we begin, I have a confession to make. I finally finished Vashj'ir, from start to finish, only recently for this article. Zones that are built in such a way, as to emphasize the 3D space of the water, etc, are one of those things that occasionally bugs me. It's not that I didn't want to participate in Vashj'ir -- quite the contrary. I just had no reason to go here since Hyjal was so straightforward and had my flying mount ready to go from the get-go. Also, Vashj'ir was notably bottle-necked in beta, as many players streamed in and getting out of that initial sunken ship was a rough ride. Now that I had the zone to myself, it was a much better experience.
The Queue: There's a surprise at the end
Welcome back to The Queue, the daily Q&A column in which the WoW Insider team answers your questions about the World of Warcraft. Alex Ziebart will be your host today. Today's edition of The Queue discusses the nature of the death knight, the recent lack of creepy whispers, the nature of the vrykul, and ... something special. Enjoy! Oscar asked: Is it me or does it feel as if the whole "caster" part of DKs was just wholly abandoned and just being confined to Death Coil and a few other abilities?
Know Your Lore: Look to the seas -- the mists of the Kvaldir
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. They come from the depths of the oceans, bringing with them a mysterious mist that clouds the senses. And when they die, they don't perish so much as dissolve into sand, making one wonder what exactly holds these creatures together. What is it about them that brings the ethereal fog? Are the Kvaldir the bringers of the mist, or are they merely slaves to it, cursed to emerge from the sea only when the mist is present? Not much is known about the Kvaldir other than their appearance in Wrath of the Lich King and their upcoming appearance in Cataclysm. What we do know is that they are somehow related to the vrykul, and they seem to hold no love for any of the races above the sea. In Cataclysm, it is made absolutely clear that they hold no love for anything below the ocean waters, either. They are the apparent enemy of all they encounter ... but who is it that they serve? What exactly is the motive of the Kvaldir? WARNING: The following post contains spoilers for the upcoming Cataclysm expansion. If you wish to remain spoiler-free, do not continue.
Know Your Lore: The naga, part 2
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. The naga of Outland led by Lady Vashj all swore themselves to serve Illidan Stormrage. It's never explained whether or not Vashj had any ties left to Queen Azshara, though it can be assumed that since Azshara sent Vashj to Illidan to begin with, Lady Vashj hasn't really done anything to earn Azshara's wrath. Or perhaps when Vashj slithered through the portal to the shattered world of Outland, she slithered out of Azshara's notice entirely. Though Lady Vashj and her meddling with the water flow of Zangarmarsh in Outland had little to do with Azeroth, there were still repercussions for her actions. Not everyone followed her blindly, and not everyone approved of her plans for the shattered world. Skar'this the Heretic can be found in the heroic version of the Slave Pens instance in Coilfang, and he is not happy with Vashj or her plans. Skar'this is the only friendly naga in Outland and seeks revenge against Vashj and all the other naga of Outland for their supposed affront to Neptulon. WARNING: The following post contains spoilers for the upcoming Cataclysm expansion. If you wish to remain spoiler-free, do not continue.
Breakfast Topic: Who could be a new world boss in Cataclysm?
One thing that was missing from the Wrath expansion, conspicuously or not, was a world boss on par with those such as Kazzak and the Emerald Dragons. For better or for worse, Blizzard completely removed them from the game, reserving the massive figures towering over the landscape for instanced quests or dungeons. Blizzard touched a bit on why they've not used world bosses in Wrath in the recent Twitter developer chat. They observed that there are issues with the bosses that have prevented them from feeling comfortable making more world bosses, such as issues with groups racing to bosses, or the ability of people outside raid groups to deliberately mess up boss attempts. On the other side of the coin, though, they did imply that they like world bosses, and will probably implement more in Cataclysm if and when they can find a satisfactory work-around for the problems.
Breakfast Topic: What Race or Organization should make a return in the Expansion?
So I've been thinking a lot about lore lately, and one thing that's been nagging for a long time is how fast some really cool and interesting storyline and organizations seem to fade into the background once the patch or zone that focuses on them is over and done.Example prime might be the Ethereals. They were an amazing group. The Consortium was Goblins except with actual charisma, business savvy, common sense, and inventions that worked. The Protectorate was a pretty badass group of elite fighters battling the forces of darkness. Even the Ethereum had a story of tragedy and corruption to make the Scarlet Crusade look like amateurs at the whole fanatic game. But in Wrath? Okay, we get some Ethereum hanging out with Malygos' posse, but that's it. Poof. Ethereals are all but gone. I would have loved to see them selling their Eco-dome tech to settlers in Northrend's snowy areas or something, or handing us monthly gem bags for Frost Wyrm Ivory.
