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Know Your Lore: Nobundo
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. One of the fantastic things about Warlords of Draenor is getting to see the way history provides context for a life. By seeing how people have changed, and how they could have been we get a sense of how they are, as we know them - and for me one of the most fantastic changes to contemplate and understand is that of Vindicator Nobundo, a stalwart draenei paladin, who in a different life became Farseer Nobundo, first draenei shaman. Nobundo's story is one of overcoming horrific loss, enduring not just the destruction of his way of life but a corrosion of the body that threatened his very soul, and his ability to overcome and become someone who could inspire his people to a new path displays his strength of spirit. The Vindicator Nobundo we meet on Draenor - the one who helps fight the Burning Legion forces in Talador, who comes to Nagrand to help calm the elements - has not endured the same trials as Farseer Nobundo. He has not come out the other side of seeing his people nearly destroyed, his body warped by fel energies, his connection to the Holy Light severed. And yet, he is Nobundo - he embodies everything the Farseer was, everything he lost to become who he is today. So who is Farseer Nobundo? And who is Vindicator Nobundo?
Warlords of Draenor: Shadowmoon Valley preview
I love draenei. I've made this clear time and again. So you can imagine the throaty, masculine squeal of delight that I let loose when I saw the new zone preview for Shadowmoon Valley up on the official site. I'm very hopeful that we'll get to explore it soon on the alpha (a hope fed by specific tweets) and getting to read about what's going on in the zone made me very, very excited. Okay, so it made me giddy with delight. Exarch Akama! The Temple of Karabor! Gul'dan up to no good! If I were any more excited this entire paragraph would be in italics. So head over to the official site and read what Senior Designer Helen Cheng has to say about Shadowmoon Valley, the Alliance's first stop on Draenor. I am so freaking excited right now. We're going to get to see intact draenei architecture and their greatest heroes and... I gotta go lie down now, guys. Discuss among yourselves.
Warlords of Draenor: New achievement for warlocks
The enterprising folks over at Wowhead have dug up more information from the latest alpha client, including a new achievement specifically for warlock players. Breaker of the Black Harvest is an achievement specifically for warlocks that have completed the green fire chain at level 90, similar to the achievement introduced for Swift Flight Form. As a Feat of Strength, there are no achievement points rewarded -- but there are plenty of bragging rights involved. Warlocks have been able to get green fire for quite some time via a unique class quest line introduced in patch 5.2. When Warlords was announced, many players wondered if the quest chain would go the way of the dodo when the new expansion released, much like the epic flight form chain introduced for druids in Burning Crusade, or the original paladin and warlock mount quests from vanilla. While the chain is staying put, enterprising warlocks will want to act now and complete the chain before they hit level 91 in Warlords if they'd like the associated Feat of Strength. Wondering where to get started on the chain? Check out our complete guide to getting it done.
Who I want to see in Warlords of Draenor: Restalaan
Yep, another one there's no art for. Enjoy this picture of some random draenei instead. Who was Restalaan and why should you care? I'm glad you asked. Restalaan was the closest thing Velen had to a buddy - a close friend and confidant, a right hand who led the defense of the draenei city of Telmor. Having been with the prophet since the exodus from Argus, Restalaan was technically an ancient eredar, born during the time when Velen, Kil'jaeden and Archimonde were the triumvirate and led all eredar before the coming of Sargeras. Restalaan was always there, serving as Velen's sounding board and anchor. In the history outlined in Rise of the Horde it was Restalaan who led the patrol that saved Durotan and Orgrim Doomhammer when they were children - an event that should still have happened in the Warlords of Draenor timeline, since both Durotan and Doomhammer are confirmed to be alive. In the original timeline, Restalaan would come to have reason to regret this decision, since in the process of saving the two young orcs and leading them to Telmor to meet with the prophet he exposed Durotan to the use of the Ata'mal fragment Leafshadow. This enabled Durotan to later expose Telmor to the Horde, which destroyed the city - Durotan killed Restalaan during the battle. So died Restalaan, captain of the guard of Telmore, Velen's best friend, survivor of the exodus from Argus - killed by the boy who's life he saved. But that fate is not set on the Draenor of Warlords.
Know Your Lore: Shattrath City and the Lost
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. Standing in Outland as a sanctuary capital shared by both Alliance and Horde, Shattrath City isn't exactly much to look at. The city is divided into several different sections, housing a variety of occupants from draenei to arakkoa to everything in between -- refugees, for the most part. In Warlords of Draenor, we'll finally see Shattrath as it was in its glory days. A coastal city, a museum metropolis, described as an architectural marvel. Unfortunately, the city will also be occupied by the Iron Horde. The events that turned Shattrath from shining capital of the draenei to the ruins we're familiar with today are steeped in tragedy that still affects the draenei race to this day. Certainly there was sorrow to be found in the fall of the city -- but its fall, and the fall of the other draenei cities scattered around Draenor, were also directly responsible for the evolution of the draenei race as we know it.
The best mistake ever
Mistakes happen, of course. One of the biggest to ever happen in the history of World of Warcraft led to the creation of the draenei as we know them today, and I think it's safe to say that the game and the lore of the Warcraft setting is the better for it. Going into Warlords of Draenor it's worth looking back at that moment. What mistake am I talking about? I'm talking about the time Chris Metzen forgot the work of a major lore writer on Warcraft III and changed things. What writer did Chris forget about? None other than the Senior Vice President of creative development himself, Chris Metzen. The obvious lore contradiction with Sargeras and his encounter with the eredar was clearly documented in the Warcraft III manual. I wrote those bits about four years ago, and to be totally honest, I simply forgot. -- Chris Metzen, Metzen on Lore What happened is fairly simple. In Warcraft III, we're told that the eredar were a race of sorcerers and warlocks whose corrupt magics date back to the dawn of time, devourers and corrupters who ran afoul of Sargeras before the titan went mad. In fact, in the original story, it was his encounter with the eredar that started Sargeras down the road that would lead him to go mad. At this time, no mention was made of the eredar being in any way related to the draenei, nor were the draenei depicted as anything beyond the deformed model used by Akama. Even when World of Warcraft debuted, the few draenei in game were known as lost ones, such as Magtoor or Kum'isha the Collector, and they were nothing like the draenei we have today. And then the mistake happened. Mr. Metzen, in preparation for The Burning Crusade, came up with a way to link the draenei of Outland to the eredar and in so doing, completely contradicted what he himself had written in the Warcraft III manual. And in so doing, he made the game as a whole much stronger.
Warlords of Draenor and the draenei
Okay, let's just put our cards on the table. The only thing I want to do with orcs in Warlords of Draenor is kill them. Bring on the Iron Horde for me to stomp on. I will eventually level my Horde characters, sure. But I'm not particularly interested in the Frostwolves and how the Horde is going to relate to them and the Horde's search for an identity somewhere between murderous lunatics and Thrall's happy fun-time frolic friends - it's certainly not a bad hook for a Horde storyline. But I don't care about it. We've had a lot of the Horde and their civil war and their struggle to stay united under Hellscream. It was often very interesting stuff - I very much liked the Dominance Offensive quests - and I'm glad we got to see it. Mists of Pandaria ended up being a very dark expansion in a lot of ways, with themes of personal responsibility and how good intentions can go bad, missed opportunities and the fog of war, and I thought that the Siege of Orgrimmar made a lot of sense. I wasn't one of the Alliance players who was upset about the Horde rebels having a role in SoO. I don't feel like it diminished the Alliance story any to show us working alongside them, I wasn't bothered by seeing Varian's actions at the end of the raid. I thought it was all good and proper. But frankly, I'm done with the Horde's problems. I play Alliance. I want to see Alliance stories. Horde players should have their stories, too, I'm not saying they shouldn't -- more power to y'all solving that whole issue of inheriting a legacy of murderous psychopathic lunacy from the Old Horde, that's gotta be rough for you -- but I am done. Because Warlords of Draenor has promised me the one thing I've wanted to see since Burning Crusade itself failed to deliver it, and that's draenei. Draenei cities, as they appeared at their height. Draenei culture, not the ruined remnants of it. The draenei we saw in BC were the ragged remnants cast adrift on Azeroth, survivors of a near total extermination. They were the embattled refugees desperately seeking a place to rebuild. I fell in love with them in no small part due to their tenacity and willingness to keep going, but I've always wondered what they were really like before the horrors Ner'zhul and later Gul'dan unleashed upon them at Kil'jaeden's behest. And at last, I'm going to get to find out.
Know Your Lore: The History of Draenor
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. It may not be Azeroth, but it's got a history just as rich and just as convoluted. In the Warcraft universe, the planet Draenor plays a secondary role to Azeroth in terms of storyline -- consider it something like a sister planet, one whose history is irrevocably entwined with Azeroth's. Although these days Draenor exists as a mere shell of what it once was, Draenor, its inhabitants, and its fate are all one of the most significant pieces of Warcraft lore out there. After all, if there were no Draenor, there would be no First or Second wars. There would be no Horde. Why is this planet so important? It certainly didn't have very much to do with the original inhabitants. In fact, Draenor would have likely lived on in obscurity were it not for the strange, peaceful settlers from another world. Peaceful they may have been, but they had a history they could not escape -- a past that forever linked them with the Burning Legion ... and the Burning Legion knows little of forgiveness or mercy for those that incur its wrath.
How to get green fire for your Warlock in Patch 5.2
Are you sure you don't want green fire? Quite sure? Positively sure? Absolutely, one hundred percent sure? Don't lie to me like that. You want it. You want to do the end of this questline, because it's so badass. I was spinning circles in my seat and giggling maniacally at how Kanrethad completely wiped the roof of the Black Temple with my body for two hours straight, because it was so much fun to be challenged not merely as a player, but as a whole warlock. You're going to use abilities you've almost never used before in this questline, and you're going to love all of it. I hope I don't have to say it too much, but spoilers ahead.
Breakfast Topic: Has the time come for Outland story updates?
After Chris Metzen's seeming joke at BlizzCon concerning the possible reappearance of Illidan in future WoW storylines, it occurred to me that we really haven't seen much of Outland or its storylines lately. Well, maybe that's not fair -- if you're leveling a character between 58 and 68, I imagine you've seen all too much of Outland and are heartily sick of the whole continent and its dungeons by now. Still, The Burning Crusade featured some great stories, and if Illidan ever does come back, there are a few people I hope he'll (metaphorically) drag alongside him. The two that come immediately to mind are the Netherwing Dragonflight and the Ashtongue Deathsworn. What's up with the Netherwing since Deathwing's demise? Do they even know about it or what's happened with the Aspects? And what's going on with Akama now? I'd argue that he, more than Kael or Vashj or Illidan, was the greatest and most compelling character of WoW's first expansion, and he had one hell of a unique model. The brains behind the Ashtongue's high-stakes Batman Gambit (warning: TV Tropes link) has got to be up to something these days, and if Blizzard ever revamps Outland questing, I hope it gives players a peek. Then again, that's assuming that yanking Illidan back from the dead is even a good idea to begin with (is it?) or that Outland stories can be made relevant to their modern counterparts. Thoughts, readers?
Know Your Lore: Interbellum Part 3 - To rule a world
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. So now the stage has been set. The exiles have all arrived on the blasted remnants of Draenor, once the home of the orcs and last refuge of the draenei. Following the events of Ner'zhul's attempt to lead the orcs away from their dying world, the planet was shattered and torn asunder, pulled violently into the Twisting Nether that Ner'zhul's portals linked to its surface. Now Outland, a world drifting in the nether, is the remains of that destroyed place. A world where natural laws are often suspended, it hung overripe waiting for a clawed hand to pluck it. That hand belonged to Magtheridon. Second among the pit lords only to his master Mannoroth, Magtheridon was the one the Legion chose to conquer this world, unique among all the planets formerly taken and crushed by this army of demons. For Ner'zhul's portals still worked, making Outland a kind of nexus wherein the Legion could pull entire armies through at will and easily stage them for new conquests. Holding Outland therefore gave the Legion a strategic foothold, one they were loath to give up. However, circumstances were unfolding that would lead to exactly that. Part 1: Forcing Fate's Hand Part 2: Into the Outland
Know Your Lore: A second look at Maiev Shadowsong
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. Have suggestions for future KYL topics? Leave a comment below! As I mentioned previously, Maiev Shadowsong is one of my favorite characters in all of Warcraft lore. When I said that, the statement was quickly met with the cries of people calling her all sorts of unpleasant names. And you know what? That's the beauty of the character. Sometimes, not all good characters are people you would sit down and have a beer with. In fact, some of them are downright nasty people. I wouldn't go that far with Maiev, but I think it's okay that she's not a peaches and sunshine sort of character, especially considering what's been done to her.Yes, Know Your Lore has covered Maiev before, but now it's my turn. Elizabeth and I have pretty substantial differences of opinion on the Warden, so I don't think you'll mind too much.
WoW Moviewatch: The Scourge - Episode I trailer
Fal Bulon has a new, upcoming series called The Scourge. In case you don't recognize the name, Fal Bulon is the same German author who brought us Revenge of Akama. Like his previous work, "The Scourge" is spoken in German, and subtitled in English. We only have a trailer to look at right now, but we can be hopeful for the upcoming movie. "The Scourge" has the same high-end production values we saw in "Revenge of Akama." The action is distinct and effective. Fal Bulon uses the lighting in his scenery to lend urgency and intensity to his characters. Overall, it was definitely fun to watch. The trailer doesn't have a lot of plot indications, which is probably fine for a trailer. We know that the Scourge are attacking, and the orcs and humans are both caught up in it. We have epic indications of leaders making hard choices, and we have a whole bunch of fighting. (Knowing is half the battle, but the other half always comes down to fighting.) Ultimately, this is a great trailer, and I can't wait to see the movie. [Via WarcraftMovies] If you have any suggestions for WoW Moviewatch, you can mail them to us at machinima AT wowinsider DOT com.Previously on Moviewatch ...
Blizzcon 2008 DVD production panel reveals WoW tidbits
Here's a secret gem from BlizzCon from our sister site, Big Download: The DVD Production panel. The DVD Production team, despite the name, actually oversees most of the video produced by or at Blizzard. That means that they had a hand in the South Park episode "Make Love Not Warcraft," as well as the "What's your Game" and "Lawgiver" commercials.They also work on the gameplay trailers from World of Warcraft, and walked us through the creative process for the patch 2.1 Black Temple trailer, revealing some interesting lore behind Akama's betrayal. Finally, they revealed that they were the force behind the Wrath Gate cinematic. It's no wonder they were able to make such an epic cut scene though: One of their team members was a member of Rufus Cubed Productions, the creations of the epic machinima Return.There's some other nice information from the panel, including the real identity of the villain from "Make Love Not Warcraft" and a preview of the lore of Diablo 3. Be sure to go check it out at Big Download!
Maintenance for June 17th will be short
Here's a heads-up to all our North American night owls early risers and Oceanic readers: It's Tuesday morning, and that means maintenance. Luckily, it's a short one today. Bornakk has said that they expect most servers to only be down a half hour, starting at 5AM PDT and ending a 5:30AM PDT. There are some extra servers that will be down slightly longer, until 6:30AM PDT. Those servers will be listed after the break. Aussies can rejoice as well, as any Oceanic servers not on this list won't be taken down until 5AM AEST (Which is noon over here on the American west coast). For the list of servers that will have a longer downtime, read on:
WoW Moviewatch: Revenge of Akama
Brace yourselves for Revenge of Akama, an epic 38 minute machinima by Fal Bulon, of Dei ex Machina. It has action, adventure, and excitement, among other things. Apparently it's the conclusion of a saga that focuses on Illidan, Malfurion, Tyrande, Akama, and Maiev. The main plotline for RoA centers around Illidan and his battle in the Outland.This is a well done movie, but unless you download it, you'll have a hard time reading the English subtitles, as the entire movie is in German. In addition, some feel that it mimics Burning Crusade: The Movie too closely. Nevertheless, it's an entertaining video, and we look forward to seeing what else Fal comes up with![Via Warcraftmovies.com]If you have any suggestions for WoW Moviewatch, you can mail them to us at machinima AT wowinsider DOT com.Previously on Moviewatch ...
WoW Moviewatch: Rise of Illidan Stormrage
Yesterday we saw the story of Arthas as he rose (or sank, some would say), from the holy paladin prince of Lordaeron to the most powerful evil person in Azeroth, lord of vast armies of mindless undead -- all recorded from the original Warcraft 3 cut-scenes. Today we bring you an similar piece that Sylvictus put together for The Burning Crusade, about Illidan's journey from down-in-the-dumps reject brother to the most powerful evil person in Outland, lord of mish-mashed groups of villians and misfits who really aren't as loyal to him as they seem. It doesn't actually begin from the real beginning of Illidan story -- you'll have to go to the Warcraft prequel novels to get that, but as far as the official in-game lore is concerned, this is real deal. Also keep in mind that the end isn't really the end for Illidan here. Illidan, too, is capable of doing a corpse run, and has acquired plenty of prime real estate in Outland to come home to. For those who are interested, the trailer for Blizzard's "Black Temple" patch also touched on Illidan's story, this time from the draenei Akama's point of view. It doesn't include Illidan's conflict with Arthas, but it sets the stage for the progression of the story within WoW.So if you've been playing The Burning Crusade all this time and wondering what the deal was with the big blind guy with horns and wings, here's the story of Illidan Stormrage straight from Warcraft 3.Previously on WoW Moviewatch...
Urgent Maintenace
Tseric informs us that the realms Aegwynn, Akama, Chromaggus, Draka, Drak'thul, Garithos, Hakkar, Khaz Modan, Jubei'Thos, Kul Tiras, Korgath, Malorne, Mug'thol, Runetotem, and Thorium Brotherhood have been taken down for urgent, but unspecified, maintenance. Further the continent of Kalimdor seems to be having serious technical difficulties - reports in the general forums suggest that the continent may be crashing (or causing player disconnects) as frequently as every thirty seconds. Ouch. Thank goodness there's a lot of cool stuff in the Eastern Kingdoms - just hope you didn't log out in the wrong place...
WoW Insider Guild & Characters
Here's a quick update on how our guild building has been going. C.K. started the guild charter a few weeks ago and we have a few signatures, but neither he or I have had much time to play over the last week or so. We'll get it going eventually, but it may be awhile. In the meantime, if you'd like to play along on Akama with us, here's our Akama names:SERVER: Akama. (this server will be where we play our WoW Insider horde characters).Damien = Dab (undead warlock)C.K. = Cks (undead warlock)Josh = Kulain (tauren druid)Mike = Groon (undead rogue)SERVER: Chromaggus (this server will be where we play our WoW Insider Alliance characters).Damien = Dab (human warrior)C.K. = Cks (dwarf hunter)And here are the characters we play on other servers, which we may or may not be on at any given time, including quite rarely. I'll update this list as other WoW writers get me their info on characters (if they wish to publicize them).SERVER: GorefiendDamien = Shuffle (dwarf paladin)Damien = Floss (night elf rogue)SERVER: Argent DawnC.K. = ChaosyetiSERVER: BloodhoofJosh = Krios (gnome warlock)Josh = Kulain (night elf rouge)Josh = Kelmor (dwarf hunter)Josh = Kamoox (night elf priest)Damien = Shuffle (gnome mage)SERVER: ShadowmoonJosh = Kulain (undead rogue)SERVER: Shadowsong (EU)Jennie = Arjuna (night elf druid)Jennie = Kerowyn (human paladin)SERVER: Dragonmaw (EU)Jennie = Selenay (tauren shaman)SERVER: Venture Co. (EU)Jennie = Arjuna (tauren hunter)SERVER: Cenarion CircleMike= Wakeman (paladin)SERVER: Lightning HoofMike = Greenslade (Alliance hunter)SERVER: Emerald DreamMike = Slubbergull (troll priest)Please feel free to add any or all of us to your friends lists on any servers listed above that you might play on, and particularly on the two servers we've indicated where we'll be building WoW Insider Horde and Alliance guilds. Hope to see you in game!
