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WoW Archivist: Two weeks as a noob in 2004
WoW Archivist explores the secrets of World of Warcraft's past. What did the game look like years ago? Who is etched into WoW's history? What secrets does the game still hold? When I took on the WoW Archivist mantle last year, I wanted to tell some personal stories as well as provide in-depth looks into the game's past. My first column talked about an early but extraordinary world PvP experience. Today I'd like to tell you about my first weeks of WoW in 2004, in a very different Azeroth than our modern version, with a very different incarnation of the hunter class. A hunter will rise In December 2004, a hunter stepped forward in Red Cloud Mesa. He was new to the ways of Azeroth, but eager to learn. What followed would be painful. But when the narrator shut up and the hunter proudly accepted his first quest from the Navajo minotaur guy with giant punctuation over his head, this new hunter set forth. He had nothing but a bow and a hope that his trials would forge him into a hero. He would become a hero, many months and scars later. His first two weeks, however, were marked with terror, failure, and shame in roughly equal parts.
Know Your Lore: The genesis of Garrosh Hellscream
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 almost an enigma in his own right. You wouldn't think that, by first glance -- after all, right now he fits the bill of brutal orc bent on global domination. But Garrosh's story has had so many moments between the depressed and unwilling would-be leader of Garadar, and the bloodthirsty warleader of Mists of Pandaria that it's difficult to determine where, exactly, he went from point A to point B. I've been asked about it before by many, but KyleCaligiuri phrased it really well, so I'll reprint the question here. Is there some piece of lore I'm missing explaining Garrosh's actions between Cataclysm and Tides of War? Shattering helped put a *bit* of a positive light on Garrosh after WotLK, I felt, since he was remorseful about what happened with Cairne (in that he didn't want to win by cheating...) and I felt his leader short story did as well, if I remember correctly. I'm now playing through the Horde campaign finally, and the events in Stonetalon further point that he is all about honor and pride in the Horde. Also, Ragefire Chasm is all about defeating the dark shaman so that they don't end up with another threat like the Twilight's Hammer or Burning Blade. Yet, this is all contradicted in Tides of War, where he drops a bomb just as Krom'gar did in Stonetalon, and embraces the dark shaman. I'm only up to Desolace right now in the Horde campaign, so do we see his progression toward the more corrupt Garrosh, or is this still yet to be explained? It's that disconnect between moments that confuses people. Garrosh may be many things, but two-dimensional is not one of them. Who is Garrosh Hellscream, and how did he find his way to this path that flies in the face of his previous actions?
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.
Know Your Lore: Top 10 lore developments of 2011, part 3
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're at the final four of our Top 10 countdown of lore development. I had to think very carefully about the top four spots and what should take them, largely because there were so many things introduced in 2011 that it was difficult to say which had the biggest impact. Our #1 spot, however, is one that I don't think anyone can really argue with -- so let's get to it! Read: Top 10 lore developments of 2011, part 1 & Top 10 lore developments of 2011, part 2
Know Your Lore: Top 10 lore developments of 2011, 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 development of lore in WoW has ramped up over the years. While vanilla saw a few lore developments, players could still wander the lands of Azeroth with nary a clue as to why they were there, skipping quest text altogether in favor of simply getting the job done. The Burning Crusade saw more of these lore-related quests introduced, and Wrath pushed the concept even further. But Cataclysm's taken lore and gameplay to a new level of interactivity. Last week, in segments #10 through #8, we talked about a few of those innovations in lore development, include the emphasis on focused, directed storytelling over the aimless wandering days of vanilla WoW and the trend of releasing free-to-read short stories on the official website. Both of these have their ups and downs, but the short stories weren't the only focus of Blizzard's writing department.
One Shots: We don't need no water
Ever get tired of dealing with "pick up these things and bring x amount of them to me" type quests in World of Warcraft? Well, if you have, may we recommend Soulara's method of dealing with it? Pick up a flamethrower and torch things into next year! Sure, whatever it was won't get to whomever it was supposed to and you might wipe out a lot of trees in the process, but it's a great stress release. Really, more MMOs need flamethrowers, we think. Anyway, our opinion tendered, we move on to the note attached to Soulara's bright World of Warcraft One Shots image: "[Here's a screenshot of my character] toasting up some supply boxes in Stonetalon Mountains with the nifty flamethrower." If you've found a new favorite weapon or toy, why not take a screenshot of you using it and email it in to us here at oneshots@massively.com? Be sure to include your name, the name of the game, and a note about what makes that particular screenshot so awesome. You never know -- it may wind up being the next one we feature here on Massively! %Gallery-112285%
Know Your Lore: Honor, Krom'gar. Never forsake it.
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.I spent a very long time in Northrend, Krom'gar. I learned much about the Horde in that time. While there, a wise old war hero told me something that I would carry with me forever... "Honor," Krom'gar, "No matter how dire the battle... never forsake it." The shattering of Azeroth wreaked havoc across the world and destroyed many outposts and important areas to both Alliance and Horde. This destruction prompted an all-out war between the two factions, centered mainly on grabbing as much land as possible -- with the devestation of the shattering, both sides felt the pressure of losing precious resources. The Stonetalon Mountains, nestled in the heart of western Kalimdor, are one such location that's come under heavy fire from both sides. Formerly home to the Venture Company, the Stonetalon Mountains are now under contention by both sides, in an effort to grab what resources and land are immediately available. For the Alliance, it's a harder fight than previously thought. Not only is the Alliance dealing with Horde forces, they're also dealing with an ancient evil lurking beneath Stonetalon Peak.
Lowered Expectations sits down with Ghostcrawler
There are two great articles over at the Lowered Expectations blog about him meeting Ghostcrawler during an event at his university. The posts are quite an interesting read and I highly recommend everyone heads over and checks them out.There's some interesting tidbits that came out of his time with the Ghost: Sindragosa will be playing a part in Patch 3.3 We shouldn't expect a hero class in every expansion Ghostcrawler was split down the middle on the Death Knight starting at level 55 Blizzard is interested in buffing up the old world levels to make them more interesting. He listed off (the top of his head): Darkshore, Stonetalon Mountains, and The Barrens. Ghostcrawler is responsible for the many varieties of fish in the game. This makes sense. Expect an expansion every 18 to 24 months Again, I highly recommend you head over to Lowered Expectations and check it the full articles. They're well written and quite informative.
Fictional WoW terrorism plot detailed
Just how would terrorists plan an attack through an online virtual world like World of Warcraft using actual game lingo to mask their true intents? This isn't the premise for an episode of 24, although the writers of that show may want to start taking notes. Pentagon researchers have been trying to answer this premise and recently revealed a possible scenario, which comes off as even more absurd. Apparently, terrorists could use character names such as "WAR_MONGER" and "TALON238". Their primary form of coded chatter would be in-game World of Warcraft lingo. These digital terrorists discuss the "Stonetalon Mountains" where the "White Castle" resides, which they plan to attack with a recently acquired "Dragon Fire" spell.The entire idea is questionable at best and outright dumb at worst. What's even more stupifying is that most of the WoW terminology isn't even correct. So now we're dealing with wild-eyed, out of touch researchers who can't even do their jobs correctly. Besides, everyone knows the terrorists would just use Vent servers anyhow.
Around Azeroth: Help!
Reader Zorkolak of Spinebreaker sends in this shot showing one of the odd little Easter eggs you can find in Azeroth. The highest mountain in Stonetalon Mountains has this little message scrawled across its peak, which Zorkolak found using his farsight ability.Encountered any fun Easter eggs of your own? Tell us about it by e-mailing a copy to aroundazeroth@wow.com with some notes on where the shot came from -- your image may be featured in the next Around Azeroth! %Gallery-1816%
