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Mists of Pandaria in-game cinematic achievement
You know what I love about this cinematic? Everything. But the biggest thing I love is the fact that it is utterly tied in to the actual expansion in the coolest possible way. Those in the beta may or may not recognize the location of the cinematic; it's the top of the Shrine of Fellowship in Jade Forest. And the sheer attention to detail between cinematic and game is staggering once you've seen the location in game, which you should absolutely visit upon hitting Pandaria's shores. Why? Because unlike any other expansion before it, Mists of Pandaria has put together the cinematic and the game via a unique achievement that you can only get by visiting the Shrine of Fellowship. Once there, all you need to do is reenact Chen's actions by straightening the broken incense burner found near the bridge. And once you've done that, you'll nab yourself the Restore Balance achievement along with 10 achievement points. So what's Chen doing up there? Well, he likely heard the bell -- and he may have been nearby visiting Sam the Wise, too. Check out our gallery for some side-by-side comparisons of stills from the cinematic and more shots from the Shrine of Fellowship, and don't forget to nab your achievement when Mists is released! %Gallery-162673% It's open warfare between Alliance and Horde in Mists of Pandaria, World of Warcraft's next expansion. Jump into five new levels with new talents and class mechanics, try the new monk class, and create a pandaren character to ally with either Horde or Alliance. Look for expansion basics in our Mists FAQ, or dig into our spring press event coverage for more details!
Breakfast Topic: Why do you play your faction?
A forum post about why people play Alliance turned into a general discussion that got me thinking about why I play what I play, which is primarily Alliance. Interestingly to me, I played Horde most of Cataclysm on my main, so when I went back to Alliance, I felt like I was coming home. To me, I played Horde to raid with good people, to play a tauren -- and that was it. I really don't like Horde races aside from tauren, Horde lore aside from tauren lore, or Horde cities aside from -- actually, I don't like any Horde cities. Sorry, Thunder Bluff. I made some good friends Horde-side and I still miss playing with them (Woo Apples), but in general, I'm happier being Alliance. But for all the reasons I could say I play Alliance, the real, honest truth is I play Alliance because I like to be able to play with my wife. She's awesome to be around, and I enjoy doing old content and will likely enjoy running dungeons with her in Mists. The fact that I like playing Alliance races like draenei and worgen, that I enjoy Alliance lore better and think Stormwind and the Exodar are cool cities -- none of that really matters. I play Alliance because of my wife. So, therefore I ask you: Why do you play the faction you play? World of Warcraft: Cataclysm has destroyed Azeroth as we know it; nothing is the same! In WoW Insider's Guide to Cataclysm, you can find out everything you need to know about WoW's third expansion, from leveling up a new goblin or worgen to breaking news and strategies on endgame play.
Breakfast Topic: Yay for the other guys
Whatever faction you play, one thing is for certain: Without those other guys, life would be a lot tamer. Going into Mists of Pandaria, we're looking forward to an expansion full of murdering those pesky (fill in name of enemy faction here) all over Pandaria. And PvP servers would be positively weird without the other guys. Who would we fight? Would we just shank each other in the streets all the time? World of Warcraft has been shaped and defined by the Horde/Alliance conflict, and whether you picked the good guys or the bad guys (or for that matter, whether you picked the morally ambiguous faction with shades of gray or the morally ambiguous faction with shades of gray), it's hard to imagine what the game would have been like without them. So now I say, hurrah for those other guys, who have filled our battlegrounds with targets and our world PvP zones with ganking. Those other guys, whom we define ourselves against. Those other guys who did that bad thing to us that one time that we're never ever going to forgive. Those other guys, who aren't as good at Warcraft as we are. Join me now in telling tales of our impending victory over them. You know who they are. World of Warcraft: Cataclysm has destroyed Azeroth as we know it; nothing is the same! In WoW Insider's Guide to Cataclysm, you can find out everything you need to know about WoW's third expansion, from leveling up a new goblin or worgen to breaking news and strategies on endgame play.
Mists of Pandaria Beta: The Jade Forest revamped and reopened
The Jade Forest has been reopened on the Mists of Pandaria beta servers, and it's had quite the face-lift in a few key areas. Two new giant mogu temples are now at either end of the zone, and the Alliance and Horde have claimed them in the names of their respective factions. As a result, the starting quests for each faction have changed significantly from what they were before the Jade Forest was closed for its renovations. Because of this, beta testers who were well past the zone when it was closed may want to copy another character over to the beta and give the new version a play-through. It seems that both Alliance and Horde have received significant changes in the opening portions of the zone; however, later quests outside of the starting areas seem to be unchanged. In addition, there were several model updates with the current patch. Pandaria's wildlife now seems to be suitably diverse from the rest of Azeroth's creatures. So what's changed? Well, quite a bit, actually. Take a look at the before and after in our galleries for a peek at the changes, and follow after the break for some impressions from the new Mists starting experience. %Gallery-157916% %Gallery-161437%
Know Your Lore: The final boss of Mists of Pandaria
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. We've heard various and sundry conflicting tales about Mists of Pandaria, tales of various pandaren groups, tales of faction warfare, tales of a warchief's downfall. But in and among all of the tales, one theme pervades, one thing stands out as something people point to in dismay. This thing is the lack of a final boss that is a powerhouse in Warcraft lore, something that we've had with every prior expansion. Illidan, Kil'jaeden, the Lich King, and Deathwing were all prominent figures in Warcraft lore before we rose up to defeat them. They were terrible threats to our world, threats that had to be dealt with. But in Mists of Pandaria, we don't have the reassuring face of a villain to charge after. We don't have a major lore figure to take care of. We have no idea what we're facing other than some rumblings about the warchief's downfall -- and even then, we're not sure if those rumblings are correct. For the first time in World of Warcraft's history, we don't have an easily recognizable, high-profile figure to contend with. Or perhaps we do. We have to deal with one of the greatest threats we've ever seen. We just aren't looking closely enough.
Mists of Pandaria Beta: Vale of Eternal Blossoms
The Vale of Eternal Blossoms, nestled at the center of Pandaria, is the last zone players will encounter while leveling. Unlike prior expansions, the Vale is a level 90 zone -- you won't really see any quest hubs open until you have hit level 90. Once you've reached max level, you'll find scores of daily quests to do for the various factions of the Mists expansion. The Vale is also home to this expansion's two capital cities for the Alliance and Horde, perched on opposite sides of the valley. And those capital cities are complete with bankers, auctioneers, vendors, inns, trainers, reforgers -- just about everything you need for day-to-day errands and quests. This way, there's no real need to head back to the rest of Azeroth -- unless you're looking to farm some older content, that is. Because of the proximity to each other, the two cities guarantee you'll see members of both factions here and there, although it's definitely not a peaceful situation. The Vale is home to the Golden Lotus, who offer the majority of the daily quests available in the zone. Also based in the Vale are the Lorewalkers, who offer additional daily quests. The Vale itself is a picturesque valley, but it's being besieged by mogu, and you assist the Golden Lotus in thwarting the mogu's efforts as part of your daily duties. But it's the architecture of the zone that really stands out above anything else. The cities are some of the most amazing eye candy I've ever seen in World of Warcraft -- and frankly, I'm not sure I'm going to want to leave them when the expansion is over. For a look at the Vale and a closer look at the cities, take a peek at the full gallery. %Gallery-159941% It's open warfare between Alliance and Horde in Mists of Pandaria, World of Warcraft's next expansion. Jump into five new levels with new talents and class mechanics, try the new monk class, and create a pandaren character to ally with either Horde or Alliance. Look for expansion basics in our Mists FAQ, or dig into our spring press event coverage for more details!
The ins and outs of pandaren roleplay characters
All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players. In World of Warcraft, that player is you! Each week, Anne Stickney brings you All the World's a Stage with helpful hints, tips and tricks on the art of roleplay in WoW. We've had new races in two expansions so far -- the alien draenei and the native blood elves, the scheming goblins and the beaten-down worgen. Each of these races had their own quirks and reasons for allying with the Alliance and Horde, and they were good ones. The draenei chose the Alliance because the night elves made first contact with their people, and the ideals of the Alliance matched what the draenei were all about. The sin'dorei allied with the Horde partially because of the help offered by Sylvanas Windrunner and partially because the Alliance had already turned their back on the blood elves in their most dire of hours. As for the goblins and the worgen, well, the worgen were a natural match to the Alliance as they were an Alliance race already -- human, save for the curse. The goblins allied with the Horde out of sheer necessity more than anything. The Bilgewater Cartel was in ruins, and the Horde helped them out. Each race chose Alliance or Horde, and each had its own reasons for doing so. But the pandaren pose a different kind of problem for roleplayers, because they can choose either side to ally with. So how do you roleplay a pandaren character who's allied with one side or the other?
Know Your Lore: Why Garrosh Hellscream shouldn't die
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. Garrosh Hellscream is one of the most polarizing figures in Warcraft lore at the moment. You either hate him or love him, and there are very few players who stand somewhere in the middle. Ever since his introduction in The Burning Crusade, Garrosh's journey has been a series of ups and downs, starting with the moment that then-Warchief Thrall showed Hellscream how his father died. It was as a hero to the orcish race, and Garrosh has spent the majority of his time on Azeroth trying to live up to that heroic image. It's a tough role to fill. And in the press event for Mists of Pandaria, it was revealed that Garrosh would be taken down, his role as warchief ended. Given all of the chaos Garrosh has sown in his short reign as warchief, it's no wonder that it's not just the Alliance gunning for the warchief's downfall -- the Horde isn't particularly happy with him, either. So it seems entirely likely that Garrosh will fall, his reign will end, and the world will move on. And frankly, Garrosh's death is the worst possible thing that could happen.
My own private faction bias
There's a lot of talk about faction bias in the game among the designers and even in terms of the playerbase. Some realms have heavy faction representation issues; some players would never, ever play a member of the opposite faction; and so on. Around this time last year, I transferred my main (a character who had been Alliance since his creation) to the Horde to raid with a guild that ended up being an excellent home for me and a great place to raid. I stayed with that guild up until we'd completed heroic Dragon Soul, but recently I transferred to a new guild. And one of the biggest reasons I moved back had nothing to do with either guild (both are fine guilds) or the people in them. My Horde guild was full of people I enjoyed raiding with, cracking wise, doing old content, even making occasional forays into PvP. No, in addition to feeling burned out and needing to raid less, the main reason I transferred back was related to the faction concept in WoW. Frankly, I wish WoW didn't have factions -- at least, not the big Horde/Alliance split. Because it's made my game playing experience less fun over the years.
Mists of Pandaria: Sunwalker Dezco for Warchief
Spoilers for Mists of Pandaria in this post. I cannot tell you how much I enjoy Sunwalker Dezco. As a tauren, I love the idea that there's a tauren presence in Pandaria, and that unlike most of the Horde the leadership of said tauren, actually uses the quotes around the word Warchief when talking about Messere Hellscream. I first met the Sunwalker in the Krasarang Wilds. He was leading an expedition to Pandaria inspired by the visions of his wife. After that, I ran into him again helping out against the mantid, then in Kun-Lai Summit at the Temple of the White Tiger, where he gives out a quest to meet with one of the August Celestials within the Temple of the White Tiger. After Xuen, the White Tiger, tests your mettle, he allows you and Dezco (if you're Horde) to go south. Pretty much everything Dezco says or does shows that he's loyal to the Horde, but clearly less than enamored with Garrosh and his particular way of leading it. Dezco is very involved with the quests leading to the Vale of Eternal Blossoms as well as Krasarang and Valley of the Four Winds, and he's at once a determined bringer of the light and a much more tolerant and reasonable Horde figure than we've seen in some time. I'm just glad to see a new, no-nonsense tauren lore figure, and to see the tauren taking some initiative in Pandaria. And I admit, I love the idea of a sarcastic tauren paladin. It's open warfare between Alliance and Horde in Mists of Pandaria, World of Warcraft's next expansion. Jump into five new levels with new talents and class mechanics, try the new monk class, and create a pandaren character to ally with either Horde or Alliance. Look for expansion basics in our Mists FAQ, or dig into our spring press event coverage for more details!
Know Your Lore: State of the Horde, 2012
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's good to be Horde. All over the world of Azeroth, the Horde is conquering new territory, claiming new land and expanding far, far beyond the few holdings it had in vanilla World of Warcraft. Back then, the Horde merely eked out an existence, defending small outposts where it could. Sylvanas and her Forsaken stayed by and large in Tirisfal Glades, with a tiny outpost in Silverpine and a slightly larger one in Hillsbrad Foothills. The tauren stayed largely confined to Mulgore, with a few settlements to the south and southeast. The trolls took refuge in Orgrimmar, with no real land to call their own save one tiny village on the coast and another small outpost in Stranglethorn Vale. Now, the Horde is branching out in a major way. Sylvanas has dominated the forests of Silverpine and the rolling farmlands of Hillsbrad and is working her way east through the Western Plaguelands. The trolls have taken back the Echo Isles, and the orcs of Orgimmar are claiming new land to the north and the east, moving in a tidal wave of barbaric conquering. The Horde is flush with the glorious victories in Northrend, eagerly seeking more territory. In Cataclysm, it's very, very good to be Horde. Or so popular opinion states.
Humans and orcs are just the pillars upon which the Alliance and Horde were built
Zarhym hit the forums to clarify an important point that is being lost in recent lore discussions around the internet. Chris Metzen was quoted in a PC Gamer interview: ...the pillars of the franchise are orcs and humans; it really is the Alliance and Horde by extension, and it really is those two groups beating the brains out of each other for an extended period of time. That's always gotta be what Warcraft is about... And as Zarhym entirely correctly points out, it's not just the orcs and humans that are all that matters now, but the entire Alliance and Horde factions that have developed over the course of the franchise's life. Warcraft started with them but has expanded unto everything else. This is also a good opportunity to place front and center the fact that the Warcraft universe is an evolving story. It's not like Lord of the Rings, where everything that is has and (likely/hopefully) ever will be in the universe is already written in stone. Gandalf isn't suddenly going to join forces with the factions of darkness beyond the great sea while Frodo becomes the next Gollum -- but Thrall? Maybe he'll defect to the Alliance some day.* No one knows; it's evolving and ever changing. Zarhym's full statements, after the break.
Know Your Lore: 5 must-do Horde zones to complete before Mists
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. Cataclysm wasn't just about Deathwing, the Aspects and the Dragon Soul. It also contained a huge chunk of new lore information in the 1-to-60 zones that were revamped with the expansion's launch. Some of these areas have a lot to do with Deathwing's story, but some of them contain little stories of their own, stories that haven't been fully completed, plot elements that we may see pop up again in Mists. The revamp set out to breathe some new life into these 1-to-60 leveling zones, and it accomplished that in a major, major way. I keep repeating myself in Know Your Lore posts and suggesting that people go play through those level 1-to-60 zones that were added in Cataclysm. But it occurred to me that while there are some really amazing zones out there, most people have no idea where to start or which ones they should really be playing through. Which zones are the best in terms of lore? Which ones are the most fun? Which ones may contain elements we may see addressed again in the upcoming expansion? Which ones absolutely should not be missed? Let's make it a little easier for you.
Breakfast Topic: Is "For the Horde" obsolete?
Dave Kosak sent out a tweet recently asking for appropriate rallying cries for the Alliance. Of course, the predictable responses ensued (the last time I looked, "Not in the face!" was the clear leader), but the discussion led me down a different line of reasoning altogether. Besides the orcs, who's really "For the Horde!" anymore? The Forsaken are busy doing their own thing, as they always have. Vol'jin and the trolls were last seen sending emissaries to the Alliance to help contain the Zandalari. The tauren are still mourning Cairne and have little love for Garrosh. The blood elves lost their reason to stay in the Horde at the end of The Burning Crusade and seem to be sustained solely by inertia at this point. The only loyal Hordies left are the orcs themselves and the goblins, a race long known for their steadfast loyalties. Of course, the Alliance isn't all too chummy, either. What do you think? Do the races need new battle cries, or will Mists of Pandaria spur a new wave of unity?
Total war and Mists of Pandaria
If you've ever seen Joyeux Noel, you're familiar with the concept of a temporary armistice -- not like the AQ-40 events where Alliance and Horde fought together against a greater threat, but instead a simple cease-fire for various reasons. I recently mentioned the idea of Cross-Faction Real ID raiding, but this isn't that. Instead, I'm finding myself wondering about how the war in warcraft is presented in World of Warcraft and how it could be presented. Warfare often has twists and turns that when viewed later through the lens of history seem absurd. In our own history (a history devoid of things like magic), we've seen bat bombs, fire balloons, and even British Secret Service agents playing pranks on Nazi sympathizers in South America. War is often terrible, yes, but it's also ludicrous and insane. How much more bizarre, incomprehensible and deranged could war become in a world where orcs throw demon fire at humans who pull the raw power of Light down through themselves? This leads me to wonder how total war between the factions in World of Warcraft will be presented.
5 ways to fail at Battlegrounds
WoW Insider covers the world of player vs. player action in Blood Sport for fans of Battleground, world PvP and Arena play. Steering you to victory is Olivia Grace, who spends most of her time in Azeroth as a restoration shaman turning people into frogs. Battlegrounds are usually the new PvPer's first foray into PvP, unless of course you're on a PvP server, in which case you're thrown unwittingly into the world of the ongoing Horde vs. Alliance conflight almost from day one. A Battleground is very likely to be your first go at cooperative PvP and certainly your first go at cooperative PvP with strangers. There are 10 Battlegrounds available to you -- fewer when you start out, then gradually added as you increase in level. All these Battlegrounds have objectives, the majority of which are assessed by points on a counter at the top of your screen. Once one side either gains the required total points or completely runs out of points, the Battleground is won. There are, of course, strategies associated with each map. As the maps and objectives grow more complicated, so do the tactics. But a Risk-style grand stratagem is not what we're looking for here and certainly wouldn't comply with our word limit! What we're interested in is how not to play in Battlegrounds. Your team may not lose the Battleground because you made these simple mistakes, but it will certainly make it harder for them to win. So don't be the guy who's failing at Battlegrounds! How? Well, read on! (There are of course times and situations when these rules don't apply, particularly on those rare occasions when your team actually has a strategy that it's following.)
The case for cross-faction Real ID raiding
I have seen dozens of forum posts, Twitter conversations, and even a knitted wool hat that argued for the concept of cross-faction Real ID grouping, so I thought why not throw my own hat into this contentious debate? I'm old, I'm grumpy -- it's what I do. First, to be up front, I think cross-faction Real ID is a fabulous idea. This is motivated by pure selfishness on my part. Half of my Real ID friends are Horde, the other half are Alliance. To a degree, this is ameliorated because we have a lot of alts on both factions, but it's not totally addressed. Some of my friends have no alts; others only have alts on the same faction; and still others have one main they dedicate 90% of their playtime to and a host of alts who barely make level 20. We'd easily be able to put together a raid for any of the content in the game, save for that faction wall. We can talk to each other and put together smaller groups fairly easily to steamroll old raids, but doing content like Blackwing Descent or Firelands is arduous. I do understand that not everyone would be on board with this, and there are good reasons to be discussed. Cross-faction Real ID raiding would not only be a huge change, but it would also cross a line Blizzard has managed never to deliberately cross in all its time of allowing new services like faction and server transfers and character customization. Sure, your Alliance warrior can join a Horde raiding group now, but in order to do so, he or she must become a Horde character. There are no humans raiding with orcs. It's been the case in the game since launch (to the point that Forsaken players lost the ability to speak with human players to preserve it) that the two factions are separate and cannot group together at all. To change that, even for just Real ID friends, would be a huge change in the game. That being said, here are my reasons for cross-faction Real ID raiding.
Know Your Lore: Cataclysm for Dummies, epilogue
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. If you've read Act I and Act II of Cataclysm for Dummies, you should have a pretty basic understanding of what happened during Cataclysm, why Deathwing was a threat that needed to be addressed, and what we've been doing in all of those zones, 5-man dungeons, and raids. There was a purpose to every raid that came out with Cataclysm, but that purpose isn't blatantly clear unless you're paying really close attention as you're leveling through the zones. People who love following the lore do that automatically, which is why these guides aren't for them. However, you might want to know what all of this means or have some questions about the stuff that wasn't really resolved in Cataclysm. Or you may want to know what's in store in Mists of Pandaria and why you should be interested in what's coming next. This epilogue is going to go over a few simple end-of-Cataclysm points that should be of interest to those wanting to know what's next or still have some questions about Cataclysm's story.
Third faction or logistical nightmare?
In the beginning, there was Azeroth and there was Draenor. The two worlds clashed together repeatedly over the course of three RTS games, each with expansions. But it didn't stay Azeroth vs. Draenor -- the orcs of Draenor had made Azeroth their new home, and the feud between the Alliance and Horde was forever etched in Warcraft history. And when World of Warcraft was released, players could choose either side" the native races of Azeroth, united as the Alliance, a group of good guys, or the orcs and other castaway races, thrown together as one motley group of bad guys, the Horde. Each side has its own justifications for what they view as right, just, and honorable. Yet there are races on either side that seem more neutral than anything, whether it be the peaceful draenei, the equally peaceful tauren, or even the blood elves, who have spent time on both sides of the faction fence. These races participate in the battles and bloodshed as readily as any other, but their motives never seem quite in the right place. And that's caused more than one person to wonder: Just what exactly would happen if World of Warcraft created a third faction?
Breakfast Topic: What secondary character would you promote to a leading role?
It's become sort of an undercurrent in a lot of WoW lore discussion lately that not everyone is happy with their leaders. Varian is too angry and doesn't do anything. Jaina's an appeaser and a crybaby. Malfurion's a jerk. Sylvanas is so evil that she makes Arthas look like a little puppy. Of course, Blizzard has a whole new expansion coming soon, so we may just see more from these leaders that could change our minds -- or at least let us accept their story arcs. That said, what if Blizzard took an opposite tack? What if it just either killed off the leaders or swept them to the side and let other characters step up to drive the narrative going forward?
