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Awesome WoW art by pulyx
Reader and artist pulyx sent us a link to his profile on Deviantart, and before I went, I wasn't sure to expect, as the stuff on DA seems to run the gamut. But once I got there, I was surprised to find some pretty amazing WoW art.Quite a few of his pieces are just colored by him (with line art done by someone else), but what's there looks great in terms of both lines and colors. Don't miss his own character (which I thought looked a little Hellboy-ish, and I discovered pulyx is no stranger to the work of Mike Mignola), as well as some great renditions of Arthas (before he got creepy), Uther's Tribute, Kael'thas, the Prophet Velen, Illidan, and even a rip-roaring Ragnaros battle that he did as a present for a guild he's friends with. Love the Thunderfury-wielding main tank.Good stuff. He mentions that he has done some character commissions, and his prices aren't too bad. He mentions that he can't send the original lineart (shipping problems), but it seems like either that won't be necessary, or that you could work something out with him. If you've been thinking about immortalizing your character with some great WoW art, this might be the guy to do it.
Northrend hints in PTR client?
This is pretty slim evidence, but still interesting. As you might expect, people have gotten to datamining the PTR client by now, and along with all sorts of interesting graphics, they've found some interesting categorization. To be specific, there are now assets (which I think just means bits of data) categorized under "Expansion02" and then under "howlingfjord." Why is this interesting? Well, Howling Fjord is an area in South-Eastern Northrend!It has long been speculated that Northrend is going to be the area of a future expansion, what with Arthas and all that lovely lore stuff. It's also very conspicuously missing from our Azeroth maps. According to WoWWiki, Valgarde, an outpost in the Howling Fjord, "has since become the center of Alliance activity on Northrend." So that makes Howling Fjord a pretty likely Alliance starting zone for Northrend. On the other hand, Blizz have said that we're a few expansions away from being able to defeat Arthas (but that doesn't necessarily mean they won't open Northrend and just keep Arthas from us).What do you think? Is "howlingfjord" being categorized under "Expansion02" anything we can draw conclusions from?[thanks, Robert]
Know Your Lore: Arthas
Arthas Menethil is a relatively new addition to the Warcraft Series -- he only appeared in Warcraft III and its expansion. Nevertheless, Arthas's impact on Azeroth is so profound that he remains one of the biggest names in WoW, even though he's never appeared in the game itself ... yet. Who: Prince Arthas Menethil, Crown Prince of Lordaeron, Knight of the Silver Hand, and Lich King. What: Human at first, kinda undead later.
The speculation begins... again
Too soon? Too bad.The paint hasn't even dried (or, in some cases, been applied) on the Burning Crusade, but players have already begun speculating about the next expansion pack-- the one Blizzard said would come a year from now. It's not all completely unfounded-- a CM has hinted (ok, he was joking) at Uldum finally showing up, but this is the videogame industry, so if there's any chance at all that something might come out in the next century (Duke Nukem, anyone), players are talking about how cool it will be.Besides the Uldum guess, a lot of players say Northrend and Arthas, but it's true that Blizzard has said a few times that that's another few expansions away. Personally, I'm throwing my hat in the "back to the seas" camp-- I think we'll see what's in the middle of the map, and maybe get some swimming mounts. Or maybe some new races? Maybe Murlocs or Naga will make a show as player characters eventually. Paladinsucks is in on the speculation, but as usually, they're only concerned about how their shiny Paladin selves will look.Ok, ok, so we haven't even opened the plastic wrap on the Burning Crusade yet. Feel free to go back to running Hellfire Citadel and getting to 70. But know that as soon as a year from now (snicker), we could all be doing it all over again.
WoW Insider Best of 2006: Friend, Enemy, and Instance
All this week, we're announcing our picks (from your nominations) for the best of the year in Azeroth. Lots of great stuff happened in the World of Warcraft this year, and we've sifted through all of it to come up with the stuff we'll remember for a long time.Yesterday, we announced the awards for Server, Class, and Guild of the Year, and today we're proud to tell you our picks for Friend of the Year, Enemy of the Year, and Instance of the Year. Next year, we'll have all new foes (are you prepared?) and friends, not to mention tons of new instances. But before all the changes come, we're looking back at two NPCs that helped and hurt us this year, and the swirly portal we most enjoyed walking through. The winners are right after the break below.And don't forget to come back all this week-- we've still got Player of the Year and Best and Worst Blizzard Move of the Year to announce, so stay tuned.
Showdown: Van Cleef vs. Arthas
I can't believe this thread went on as long as it did in a relatively unironic tone. Seriously, they made it to page three before anybody even mentioned laughing at the idea-- at least three pages of people seriously considered what would happen in a fight between Van Cleef and Arthas.For the record, Van Cleef would do the exact same thing he does to everyone he fights-- call his opponent a lapdog, summon adds around 50%, and then die horribly. I'm calling Arthas on this one for sure. Better question: Ony vs. Hakkar (with aspects or without?). Or Vael vs. Nef (as a legendary forum thread, now lost to history in the old forums, once postulated). Or C'thun vs. Kel Thuzad! I'm going to have to go with C'thun for sure-- KT is a lich, but C'thun is an Old God, man!So, so nerdy. And yet, if you're into the lore at all, so very intriguing. Especially with the Caverns of Time upcoming, expect to see lots more of this stuff. When you're able to get up close and personal with some of the biggest figures in the Warcraft universe, you can't help but imagine what these showdowns would be like.
You Have a Friend Request From C'Thun
Well, you knew it had to happen. As soon as Blizzard made their entrance into that bastion of social networking and terrible design, Myspace.com, it was just plain expected that they'd have some company.And sure enough, in among World of Warcraft's 58,000 plus friends, there are a few familiar faces. Did you know you could be friends with Edwin Van Cleef, a "swinger" who's frustrated that all people want from him is the Cruel Barb? And of course if he's on Myspace, then so is Mr. Smite (who gets comments from someone who wants him to "stop stunning me!"), Jin'do the Hexxer, and High Inquisitor Whitemaine (who says "Hi there! <3" to all her friends). Even Raggy and Vael are in on the Myspace action-- Raggy likes some good tunes, but Vael likes Linkin Park. Go figure. I always saw him as more of a Slayer type.And if you're looking for expansion news, Myspace won't disappoint there either. What better way to learn about Tyrande Whisperwind and Arthas himself than befriending them and subscribing to their blogs? Like OMG, thx 4 the add, Lich King!
Select US Realm Maintenance Friday
You know the hardware upgrades mentioned on Thursday? Well, some of them are already becoming reality. Three US realms will be brought down at 4:00 AM PDT for a scant two hours in order to install short-term hardware upgrades. There's no detail on what exactly is being upgraded, or what precisely the upgrades are expected to accomplish - though all must hope for overall performance improvements. The lucky (or unlucky?) realms in question are Arthas, Bloodhoof, and Stormrage. The response to this upgrade seems mixed - many with the opinion that it's too little too late, and many more complaining that their servers need upgrades more urgently. However, what performance improvements even these servers will gain is still left to see.
