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The Queue: I feel pretty
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. Oh, so pretty. JeffLaBowski asked: Now that Mists has been out for a while, what would you have changed storywise? From the way the Pandaren were introduced to how both major plot lines were dealt with? I know a lot was changed in Beta. Do you think it played out as well as was planned?
Know Your Lore: Why World of Warcraft needs evil
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 real problems with the New Horde is fairly simple. A lot of the people attracted to playing it were not players of Warcraft or WCII. They discovered the game with or after WCIII -- and in Warcraft III, the Horde isn't portrayed as the group that came marching through the Dark Portal anymore. Trying to put the war back in Warcraft is hard for players who see the Horde as the group Thrall led, who first discovered the Horde in Warcraft III or in one of World of Warcraft's expansions. The Horde we have today, even after Garrosh Hellscream took over the reins, simply can't sustain the narrative weight of the Horde as the existed for two Warcraft games. The Horde that burned Stormwind, led by Gul'dan's puppet Blackhand and usurped by Orgrim Doomhammer, is not the Horde that Thrall led across the sea. It's a Horde composed primarily or exclusively of orcs with a few allies, a Horde that burns and rampages and murdered without remorse. It was to the Warcraft setting what the Empire was to Star Wars, a force of pure malevolence. The biggest difficulty reconciling that Horde with the current one is the idea of honor, which the Horde of WC and WCII could not have cared less about if they had tried. They were thieves and monsters, and their goal was to murder and steal. They were the villains.
Know Your Lore: The Third War, 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. A few months back, I started on an overview of the Third War. As you can see from reading it, the following week, I did not in fact talk about the Third War at all. If you're familiar with my Thrall piece for KYL, you understand this is something that happens to me from time to time. I fully intended to go into more details about the war, but I got sidetracked by something shiny or a colorful ball of twine or what have you. But with Wrath of the Lich King a month from its exit from center stage, it's time to look back again at the war that made it all possible. After the Culling of Stratholme, Arthas Menethil had taken his first steps into obsession. The Culling itself is often treated as an indefensible act that proves Arthas was already evil, but I personally see it as the first tipping point, when a young and idealistic man who wanted to do right by his people was presented with an untenable choice and let his own impulsive nature decide. Waiting outside the city for the residents to turn into undead and destroying them as they attempted to escape was, after all, neither a more merciful nor a more prudent option. In the end, Arthas made the choice he did, and in so doing alienated both Uther, his direct superior as a paladin (and one who has his father's ear, to boot) and Jaina, his on-again, off-again romance. This left him free to pursue Mal'Ganis to Northrend. His actions would change the face of Azeroth and her nations forever.
The Colosseum: Abni, mage of Mal'Ganis
The Colosseum takes us inside the world of the Gladiator to interview some of the top Arena fighters on the battlegroups. Our goal is to bring a better understanding of the strategy, makeup, and work that goes into dueling it out for fame, fortune, and Frostwyrms. We're especially focused on the people who play these games, to further shed light on the world of the PvP player. If you'd like to be interviewed for The Colosseum, please feel free to contact us -- be sure to include your armory as a link! Today's interviewee is Relentless Gladiator Abni, an arcane mage from Mal'Ganis. Abni is currently on the world's #1 rogue-mage-priest composition. In addition to holding the #1 3v3 spot down on the Stormstrike battlegroup, Abni is also #1 in 2v2. In this week's column, we asked him about rogue-mage-priest, his particular character choices, and the state of arena in general. Read on to see what the Relentless Gladiator mage had to say. WoW.com: In YOUR opinion, which classes are lagging behind right now?
The Queue: I want a siege tank IRL
Welcome back to The Queue, WoW.com's daily Q&A column where the WoW.com team answers your questions about the World of Warcraft. Alex Ziebart will be your host today. Today's edition of The Queue is brought to you by my bruised ego after a half-dozen rounds of crushing defeats in StarCraft II. Seriously? Twenty mutalisks in my base while I'm still trying to figure out where my dragoon buddies went? I hate everyone and everything. Yes, even you. Especially you, Taylor. You know who you are. Tethra asked... "Any idea when we're going to get our Olympics pets, other than 'soon'?"
Free character migrations for select realms
As of yesterday afternoon and lasting through January 28th at 2:00 PM PST, a number of free realm transfers have opened up in the US in an attempt to repair some harsh population imbalance. Bornakk does warn, however, that if they fulfill the transfer quota before January 28th, they will end transfers early so they don't end up in the exact same situation on opposite ends. If any of the below transfer offers suit your fancy, get it done before it's too late. What's interesting is that in a few of these instances, they're only extended the offer to Horde players. These servers include Illidan, Mal'Ganis, and Warsong. Considering Mal'Ganis is home to the infamous Goon Squad, this isn't the most surprising thing in the world. Interesting, yes. Surprising? Not in the slightest. For further information on the available transfers, hit the forum thread. You can also check out the source and destination realms behind the cut below.
One Boss Leaves: King Ymiron proves the bane of Mal'ganis
Two Bosses Enter ... but only One Boss Leaves, in WoW.com's series of fantasy death matches. This season's combatants come from the original five-man instances of Wrath of the Lich King. King Ymiron raised his weary head long enough this week to send Mal'ganis packing, with a 60% to 36% defeat of the dreadlord in the Two Bosses Thunderdome. The spectators seemed somewhat restless ("This would have to be one of the most boring fights to watch," muttered t0xic. "Sorta like a resto druid duel."), although we suppose that could have been some pre-patch malaise creeping in. A conversation in the stands between Nazgûl and Danarok draws attention to a rule we've only recently begun clarifying in each fight's setup: All of the competitors' abilities, including crowd control and other effects to which bosses are usually immune, work on their opponents. In this case, we think Nazgûl's gotten it right. In the spirit of the Two Bosses Thunderdome, the king's undead racial immunities should probably be overlooked ... But we could probably be convinced by a strong case to the contrary, presented with confidence in the comments. What do you think?
Two Bosses Enter: King Ymiron vs. Mal'Ganis
Two Bosses Enter ... but only One Boss Leaves, in WoW.com's series of fantasy death matches. Welcome to Round Two of the five-man Wrath of the Lich King season. Grab a seat, and let's get ready to rumble! Lorehounds should have plenty of material to root through in the playbills of this week's Two Bosses Thunderdome matchup, as King Ymiron (Utgarde Pinnacle) takes on Mal'Ganis (The Culling of Stratholme). King Ymiron enters the ring after a close battle against King Dred, while Mal'ganis is undoubtedly still riding high after an easy defeat of Omorok the Tree-Shaper earlier this season. Listen up for the ground rules: All of the competitors' abilities, including crowd control and other effects to which bosses are usually immune, work on their opponents. Assume that the opponents share similar levels, health pools and comparative overall damage output. This deathmatch takes place in neutral territory, which shall in no way hinder either opponent from using his usual resources. Get creative in your scenario, if necessary, but make it work in spirit. Don't get caught up in gameplay mechanics and what actual players might do in each encounter. Don't neglect style, story and scale. Let the Thunderdome gates open, and let the contestants come forward. As Dr. Dealgood would say: Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls ... Dyin' time's here.
One Boss Leaves: Mal'ganis chops Ormorok
Two Bosses Enter ... but only One Boss Leaves, in WoW.com's series of fantasy death matches. Welcome to Round Two of the five-man Wrath of the Lich King season. Grab a seat, and let's get ready to rumble! With a decisive 63 percent of the vote, Mal'ganis made firewood of Ormorok the Tree-Shaper in this week's Two Bosses Enter deathmatch. The matchup demonstrated the division between the two camps who vote in this series: those who base their decisions more on lore, and those who base their decisions more on the bosses and their mechanics as they are presented in the match itself. "Even though Mal'ganis' abilities pose much less of a threat than Ormorok's do in this case ... I couldn't vote against him, because he's Mal'ganis," confessed andrewlnagy. "Lore-wise, I just don't think he'd lose." Tridus countered, "How so? In lore, there's no fight he actually wins. He's a commander and a manipulator, not a direct fighter. Forced to fight directly, he's never actually won a battle anywhere in lore. He has lost several, though. This 'Oh, in lore, I'm sure he'd win' stuff isn't grounded in any actual lore. :P" "Mal'Ganis had to be killed the first time with the most powerful weapon in Azeroth," noted BlazingSky. "Ormorok was killed by five guys with mundane equipment. I'm going to have to go with a character that, while he is the evil version of brave Sir Robin, still required a runeblade to put him down semi-permanently."Should "having lore" be an advantage in these fights? Does a boss' history dictate how he will react in today's deathmatches? Must these matches rely solely on abilities as set forth in each match? We suspect the best solution to these questions lies in blending these perspectives. We'll leave it to our readers to show us how they balance the mix through their votes.
Two Bosses Enter: Mal'Ganis vs. Ormorok the Tree-Shaper
Two Bosses Enter ... but only One Boss Leaves, in WoW.com's series of fantasy death matches. Welcome to Round Two of the five-man Wrath of the Lich King season. Grab a seat, and let's get ready to rumble! The second bracket of our Two Bosses Enter, One Boss Leaves battles begins with an unusual matchup: Mal'ganis (The Culling of Stratholme) versus Ormorok the Tree-Shaper (The Nexus). We're not quite sure what you lore fans are going to do with this one -- but we're ready to hear what you've got in the comments. Even if you don't have a scenario in mind, be sure to click through and vote for who you think should move forward into the next bracket.Before we get too deep into this week's battle, we'd like to thank the readers who commented about our lineup last week on our Bracket 2 listing. We've decided to take your votes to bring back any three of your favorite losing underdogs for the next bracket. We'll do that at the end of this bracket. Now -- let's get ready to rumble!
Two Bosses Enter: Mal'Ganis vs. Varos Cloudstrider
Two Bosses Enter ... but only One Boss Leaves, in WoW Insider's series of fantasy death matches. This season's bosses come from the five-man instances of Wrath of the Lich King. After The Puppy chewed up The Squeak Toy in last week's Two Bosses matchup, we move to a theoretically interesting pairing: Mal'Ganis from The Culling of Stratholme vs. Varos Cloudstrider of The Oculus. Readers will want to consider not only the fighting styles of the two combatants but the considerable power and lore behind Mal'Ganis as a character. Don't cop out or be too l33t to bother – let's see what you've got in some juicy comments!The usual rules apply: assume that the opponents share similar levels, health pools and damage output, and that they are fighting in neutral territory. While Arthas normally assists against Mal'Ganis in the Culling fight, it doesn't make a whole lot of sense that he should be here to butt in. Let's scoot Arthas out of the picture. However, we think the fact that Varos Cloudstrider summons Azure Ring Captains as an integral part of his battle plan serves as a decent counter to the sheer strength of Mal'Ganis' background. Let's work with it; no Arthas, but we'll allow for the summoned Captains. (And no, all you smarty-pants out there: Varos doesn't have to kill Mal'Ganis outright, simply wear him down to the point where he escapes.)Remember, focus your debate on the three S's: Style, Story and Scale. Don't get caught up in game mechanics and what players might do in each encounter. Consider the flavor each villainous gladiator brings to bear, then cast your vote for who you think would come out on top.
A new round of free character transfers announced
As of noon today, a new set of free character transfers are available from select realms due to their exceedingly high population. Bornakk says that these transfers will last until Wednesday, September 10th unless their transfer goal is met early. In that case, the character transfers will end early as well. Get in while you can, if you're on one of these realms!The realms Illidan, Mal'Ganis and Warsong have the option to transfer to the Zuluhed server. Aerie Peak, Area 52, Moon Guard, and Zul'Jin have the option of transferring to Muradin. On the Oceanic side of things, the servers Barthilas and Frostmourne may transfer to Dreadmaul if they so choose. Forum links embedded for your new-home-researching convenience.Remember, these transfers are only open until September 10th or until their transfer quota is met. If you're interested in moving, do it as soon as you can so you don't miss out.
US PvP realms get free character moves
Bornakk announced last night that selected US PvP realms will be given free character moves starting at Noon pacific time today, July 10th, and ending on July 17th. As always, Blizzard does reserve the right to close transfers early once their quotas are met, so be sure to get your transfer request in as early as possible if you plan to move. Once the transfers are open, you can visit the character move page to request a transfer. The realm transfers are as follows:
