stormwind
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That sinking sensation
There are a few quests I've done so far that have really made me squirm. I play Horde, and you just know that most things the Forsaken are wrapped up in are going to be kind of dodgy. A lot of our early questing in Northrend concerns the Apothecary Society's attempts to find a Scourge-specific plague (...right), and that doesn't end particularly well. I can sort of accept that, because the quest series skates a thin moral line between plausible deniability on the character's part as to the apothecaries' true intentions, and what actually ends up happening. But there's one quest in particular that has nothing to do with the apothecaries that really gave me pause. It's actually one that has an Alliance equivalent as well, although it ends somewhat differently there.If you're not that far into Dragonblight quests and don't want to be spoiled, I'm putting it behind the cut.
Battle for Orgrimmar and Stormwind videos
The battles against the Scourge in Stormwind and Orgrimmar continue to rage (once every 20 minutes), but if you're not in a position where you can see the event firsthand, some fantastic readers have contributed some videos for us, and for all of you.You can see the Orgrimmar version above, and the Stormwind version past the cut below. Neither video does the chaos of the event justice, but no video ever will. It's something you need to be there for, I think. No video gives you the "holy crap, did that just happen!?" feel of Varian Wrynn leaping through the air and tearing an abomination asunder. The fight between Thrall and Garrosh is ridiculously cool, too. I highly recommend trying to see these events before they go away, but these videos will do for now, and our thanks go out to Chrono of Silvermoon-EU and Ben H. for them.
Ask a Beta Tester: Lordaeron, epic quests, and other things
Welcome back to Ask a Beta Tester, where we answer your questions about the Wrath of the Lich King beta! Let's get things started with Chris's question...I really enjoy the Epic quest in Nagrand to bring Thrall to meet his grandmother. Is there anything like that in Wrath where you have to complete all the quests in one zone before you get an epic quest to complete?Well, there are a lot of quest chains. Maybe not that long, but certainly not less epic. That doesn't mean the chains are short, either. They just don't necessarily require completing every other quest in the zone. Some of the stories start the moment you step into a zone and last straight through until you're ready to leave it again, but there are plenty of other quests you do on the way. They're less of a prize for 'beating the zone' and more an everpresent story.
Scourge invasion in Stormwind and Undercity
While it's not something new exactly, it seems a lot of people haven't quite seen it happen yet. Along with the Scourge Invasion in places like the Burning Steppes, Azshara, and other points around the world, the invasion has hit some of the capital cities. Every now and then a strike team of Scourge, a Pallid Horror and Flameshockers, will spawn in a capital city and start attacking nearby guards and NPCs. When defeated, they'll leave behind a broken Necrotic Crystal which will have a quest for you.This is something exclusive to the invasion, but it's not something that just started happening today, and not the next step/phase of the event. A lot of people are under the impression that it is simply because it happens so infrequently. It really is rather cool when it happens, though. The first time I saw it was back in 2006 when this event happened the first time. Since I roleplay when I'm not raiding, I was sitting in the Cathedral of Light in Stormwind just yapping away with some people. The Scourge actually spawn in the 'basement' of the Cathedral, so my first experience with them was seeing them rise up out of the catacombs. Freaky? I think so!
WotLK world event going underway
var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/pc_games/Zombies_invade_WoW_in_pre_expansion_world_event'; And thus it begins. Midnight just rang out across the EU's servers, and with it brings the Argent Dawn, appearing in capital cities all over Azeroth warning of the coming of the Lich King. "The plagued tendrils of the Lich King," they say, "lurk close."We knew it was coming (heavy spoilers on that link!), though we still don't know for sure exactly what form the Lich King's re-arrival into Azeroth will take. Will it be a simple replay of the Scourge Invasion that brought Naxxramas to our shores for the first time? Or will it be something even more sinister, a world event that shakes the very foundations of the World of Warcraft as we know it?Call us destructive, but we're kind of hoping for the second. Stay tuned for more news of the world event leading up to Wrath of the Lich King as we hear it.Thanks to everyone who sent this in!%Gallery-35140%Zombies have entered the World of Warcraft in the Wrath of the Lich King world event! Check out our tips for eating brains, our zombie night gallery, or see Blizzard's official zombie infestation guide. They live! Braaiiiiinnnssss!
One last chance to run Onyxia's key quest
Reader Blinger wrote in to remind us that if patch 3.0.2 does, as expected, go live on the servers tomorrow, tonight will be your last chance (for the foreseeable future) to see one of the best quests in the game, the Alliance Onyxia key quest, featuring Marshall Windsor's valiant walk through Stormwind to confront the deceiving and treacherous dragon. He's hosting a final viewing of the quest tonight on Khaz'goroth at 9:30pm Central, so if you've never seen it go down (and it is cool), you may want to stop by and check it out.In fact, why don't we try to make this a worldwide event? If you have the quest ready to do (or can get ready in the next few hours), why don't we say that at 10:30pm Eastern/9:30pm Central this evening, you can run the quest and let everyone in Stormwind on your realm see just what happens when Marshal Windsor runs out of bubblegum. There's quite a bit of prep work to do, unfortunately, so maybe not every realm will have someone ready to run the quest. But you can use the comments below to coordinate -- sure, everyone could jump onto Khaz'goroth to see Blinger do it, but it would be even more awesome to have every realm experience an unmasking of their own, because tomorrow, it might not be able to happen again.And of course, if you check out this or any other player-run events, be sure to let us know about it (with pictures if possible, we love pictures). It's always awesome to hear players finding new (or in this case, old) ways to experience the game together.
The funny, morbid, and sad coins of the Dalaran fountain
Level up fishing so you can fish in the Dalaran fountain. I'm serious. This completely nonsensible and illogical statement is brought to you by the 53 tiny lore moments you'll get if you'll just sit yourself down somewhere and level up fishing. Yes, it's boring having to fish up dozens of useless fish to get to the good stuff in Outland and Northrend. Yes, you could be farming up gold or materials that will help you level in Wrath. I don't care. Go fish.You see, while you'll be fishing up a lot of equally useless fish in the Dalaran fountain, you'll also get coins. No, not in the sense that you'll be fishing up ingame money, but you'll fish up coins tossed into the fountain of this very old city by 53 people, many of whom will be known to you if you've played the game for any length of time. Some of them, perhaps most of them, are funny. Some are serious. Some are heartbreaking. I admit to a touch of being a lore geek, and it was wonderful being allowed a peek into the irreverent or hopeful or sad heads of Jaina Proudmoore, Thrall, or Stalvan Mistmantle. It is idiosyncratic little touches like this that make WoW hopelessly fun to play, and it is my fondest wish that whatever person at Blizzard who thought this up is pulled off whatever they're doing right now and chained to a desk until they come up with more stuff like this.So, if you don't do anything else with your time between patch 3.02 hitting and Wrath going live...level up fishing so you can fish in the Dalaran fountain. But don't read any further if you're not interested in Wrath spoilers, because there are a few here...
Breakfast Topic: The not-so-easy achievements
If you're like many of us, you've probably looked at the Achievement system coming to the game in patch 3.02, picked a few favorites, and considered getting some of them done before Wrath hits and all hell breaks loose. The last few weeks before an expansion tend to be relatively relaxed and quiet, leaving you with plenty of time to, say, Explore Kalimdor, visit zones you may have missed for 1500 Quests, or just convince more factions that you're really not so bad.Some Achievements, however, are a little tougher, particularly those that will reward your character with a special title or mount. While I'm not sure I want to think about what something like For the Alliance! is going to be like, the one that I'm most concerned about is the Fishing Diplomat one. It's an an achievement needed for Accomplished Angler, and requires you to fish something up in both Orgrimmar and Stormwind. My main is a Tauren Druid, so fishing anything in Orgrimmar is a piece of cake. Stormwind, less so. While I can stealth into the city easily enough, fishing necessarily leaves you exposed for a period of 15-20 seconds. I don't think it'd bother me as much as it does if it weren't for the team of bored Alliance on my realm who typically camp quest objectives during holiday events. While I somehow doubt they've got the numbers or inclination to cover every inch of the Stormwind canals, I'm equally doubtful that my eight-foot cow's presence in the city will go unnoticed.I don't really have that much to worry about compared to the Hordies going after Old Ironjaw (in Ironforge) or Alliance going after Old Crafty (in Orgrimmar) for the Old Ironjaw and Old Crafty achievements respectively (what sadist came up with the idea of having you fish for a 0.1% drop in an enemy city?), but one thing's certain: some achievements are going to be more taxing than others.
Ask a Beta Tester: More on mounts and other things
Welcome back to Ask a Beta Tester, where we answer your questions about the Wrath of the Lich King beta! Most of our answers are short and sweet today, and we'll get started with Molly's question...What's the word on passenger mounts? Will they be a whole new level of riding skill, or will you simply purchase them individually? How much do these things cost?They use the same riding skill as regular ground mounts, but they tend to be on the more expensive side. The Engineering-made Motorcycles will be up to the market to price, but Traveler's Tundra Mammoth costs 20,000g. So the cost of the mounts themselves is what's going to be harsh, not an added level of training. That last one carries three people, by the way.
Ask a Lore Nerd: Portals, pandaren, and Jaina Proudmoore
Welcome to Ask a Lore Nerd, where each week Alex Ziebart answers your quests about the lore in the World of Warcraft. If you have any questions, no matter how big or small they might be, ask them in the comments section below and we'll try to answer it in a future edition.Let's get this party started with Lionheart's question...What is that barred off instance looking portal thing in Stormwind, by Old Town? Were the gates once open?There are actually two of these in Stormwind. Neither of them were ever open, they're relics of unfinished projects. One is a closed off little guarded island in the Canals. That one was going to be the Stormwind Vault, probably a dungeon like Arcatraz or the upcoming Violet Hold in Dalaran. Probably.There's also the barred off one at the end of the Canals, right down the way from that one. This is probably the one you're referring to, I'm going to guess? I don't think we've gotten a real answer on this was supposed to be, but it was probably going to be the portal to player housing. They actually did start work on player housing at one point, but never got far. There are relics of it in the game files. Half completed houses/structures, things like that. They all use the Stormwind motif for their appearance, and they would have to put it somewhere. Through this portal is a safe bet.thinice asked...Jaina Proudmoore and Arthas. Any chance they'll hook up against in the future? What are the details of their history together?
Ask a Beta Tester: Flying in the snow, etc
FoSho asked.... Maybe I'm in the dark here, but how does one get to Dalaran since its floating in mid air. Is there a portal in a town, or do you have to be 67 to get there? I keep on hearing its "dangerous" to get to Dalaran, how so? I wouldn't call it dangerous, but you aren't going to be able to get there at level 70 without the help of a Mage or Warlock. Because Dalaran is floating high above Northrend, you need a flying mounto reach it, and when you first arrive in Northrend, your flying mount simply doesn't know how to handle the cold weather. You'll need to complete a level 77 quest chain to obtain Cold Weather Flying and reach Dalaran on your own. Alternatively, there's a quest at level 74 you can seek out in certain inns that will take you there.For more of your beta questions -- and our beta answers -- read on! But if you're the sort who wants to avoid spoilers, turn back now. We're aiming to avoid major story spoilers, but this feature is all about beta content and we can't talk about the beta without giving a few things away.
Patch 3.0 PTR round-up
The public test realm has just gone live, and if you've got any characters on it (or if you'd like to go copy some), you can head on over to enjoy all of the patchtastic frivolity likely to descend sometime soon. In case you're catching up to the rest of us, patch 3.0 is another large content patch specifically designed to transition the player base to the upcoming expansion Wrath of the Lich King. We won't be seeing Death Knights or Northrend (or at least, we're pretty sure we won't, unless they're planning on a big surprise). We will be seeing all of the 1-70 class changes, new features added to the default UI, barbershops, Inscription, a raid buff system overhaul, and more, in addition to four European servers closing due to Russian player migration. Read on for a quick guide to what you can expect:
Ask a Lore Nerd: And two stealthed rogues
Welcome to Ask a Lore Nerd, where each week Alex Ziebart answers your quests about the lore in the World of Warcraft. If you have any questions, no matter how big or small they might be, ask them in the comments section below and we'll try to answer it in a future edition.We'll start off with Cole's write-in question...Why can Rogues use Maces but not Axes? What's so sneaky about hammers but not about edged blades of death?Well, this is likely more game mechanics than anything. They need to split up which weapons can be used by what classes evenly, or you get a severe loot imbalance. If you want to justify it in-character, maces are really, really good at stopping your opponent, rendering them unable to fight back, or fight ever again. A cut leaves a scar, a shattered bone leaves a cripple.The Mace Spec that everyone hated so much in PvP? That's pretty much how it goes with maces in real life. You thonk someone on the head, and they're out of it. I could see a Rogue playing dirty like that. Coming up from behind, cracking someone over the head, then swinging low and shattering the next guy's kneecap.Why can't they use axes? Probably no compelling reason besides game balance, though I'm sure they would be harder to use in a Rogue-y fashion than swords, daggers or hammers. Axes are probably the most unforgiving of all of the bladed weapons. You want a hard swing, not so much an elegant stroke, a well-placed shiv, or a busted joint. Axes tend to be more about being heavy and using momentum to cut, rather than sharp edges. Not always, but that's their tendency. Maybe they weren't graceful enough to make the cut*? Who knows.Eternauta asked...Why did they retcon the Draenei lore from WCIII to WoW BC? What was wrong with the original lore (ugly, thin, primitive Draenei).
Ask a Lore Nerd: Things that aren't Deathwing
Welcome to Ask a Lore Nerd, the column that answers your questions about the story and lore of the Warcraft universe. Click the Comments link below (or e-mail us!), ask your question, and blogger/columnist Alex Ziebart will answer your question in a future installmentCowbane asked...Is there a Heaven or Hell in any Warcraft lore? Or is the swirly clouds when you die about it.That's a good question, and my answer isn't going to be very clear, because Warcraft itself isn't clear on it. Warcraft used to be based much more heavily on Christian concepts. There was a Heaven and there was a Hell, there was God and Angels and all that jazz. It's much more vague and nebulous now. It seems that the Twisting Nether is the current concept of Hell, but that might just mean it's a really bad place and not somewhere that sinful dead people automatically go. I have no idea if there is still a Heaven, but the Priest quest for Benediction/Anathema has you escorting souls of Stratholme's dead to the afterlife. So do they exist? Probably, yes. It is suggested that they definitely do exist. What are they like, exactly? We don't know.
Blizzard announces Pre-Wrath content patch
var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/pc_games/Blizzard_announces_Pre_Wrath_content_patch'; Hold on to your hats, ladies and gentlemen. In a sign that Wrath of the Lich King is quickly moving toward release, Eyonix officially announced today that we will see a new content patch "in the coming weeks." This patch will introduce a good portion of the old world Wrath-related content and UI improvements, and will probably start the pre-Wrath opening event (If you don't mind spoilers, you can get some info on what that event may entail from us). Check out Eyonix's list of what is being implemented and what it may mean after the break.
All the World's a Stage: So you want to be an orc
This installment of All the World's a Stage is the second in a series of roleplaying guides in which we find out all the background information you need to roleplay a particular race or class well, without embarrassing yourself.If you've seen Lord of the Rings, or read any other fantasy story in which orcs are portrayed, you probably think orcs are hideous humanoid monsters charging mindlessly forward to slaughter helpless innocents. Azerothian orcs are significantly different, however, with a shamanistic culture that prides honor above all other virtues.But unless you've played World of Warcraft or Warcraft 3, you probably wouldn't know that. The orcs of Warcraft 1 and 2 were pretty squarely in "bad guy" territory, and it is only with the story of Thrall's rise to power and return to shamanism that we find out what the orcs' true history is.Ironically, the story of the orcs is a bit like that of the horrors of modern Nazis and the lore of the ancient Jews mixed together. Imagine that the vast majority of your species came under the sway of a terrible and evil leader, utterly determined to commit genocide against your peaceful neighbors. After carrying out this deplorable task, your people sought a new enemy, and found a new world to destroy. In the midst of this conquest, however, your people's political leadership failed, the way back home was cut off, and you all ended up as slaves in exile, lethargic and utterly without hope. Suddenly, a hero appeared to unite your people, overcome your former masters, restore your ancient faith, reclaim your dignity, and establish a new homeland. What follows is a brief account of the events most orcs know about or lived through, and a glimpse of the effects they would have had on your character.
Wrath sound files point to world event
Spoiler Alert! The guys over at the WotLK Information Wiki have uncovered what appears to be sound files related to the world event that will open up Northrend. There are three separate monologues that have Arthas talking in villanous tones and creepy background music. Spoiler-heavy details after the jump! You have been warned!
All the World's a Stage: So you want to be a human
This installment of All the World's a Stage is the first in a series of roleplaying guides on every race in WoW, in which we find out all the background information you need to roleplay a particular race or class well without embarrassing yourself. I know, you're thinking "wait a minute, I'm already a human, aren't I? Isn't roleplaying a human in WoW just like being a human in real life -- plus some sword and sorcery, minus some boring office jobs and unpleasant bodily functions?" The answer is no, it's not so simple -- there's a bit of history and culture at work in Azerothian human society that all roleplayers of human characters need to be aware of. Otherwise, it's easy to fall into the trap of inconsistency with the Warcraft lore and the roleplaying that everyone else is trying to do within it.Suppose for example that you say "Hi! My name is Walter and I was raised on a farm. Now I've come to Stormwind to have adventures and become a hero!" You may find the never-seen-danger-before style of new hero interesting to roleplay, but it would be very unlikely to find such a human in the actual Warcraft lore: ever since the orcs first came through the portal 30 years or so prior to the setting of our game, every human nation has suffered terribly as the human race barely survived 3 huge waves of devastating warfare, with some whole nations of humans completely wiped out. No human growing up in that time would have been untouched by the conflict -- and if you want to roleplay a human, you ought to know about it.Similar issues exist for all the available player races in WoW; there are certain details about your race's history that you need to know in order to roleplay well. So today we will provide you with the basic knowledge you need to be a human. We'll leave the in-depth lore to other columns, though -- today is just a basic roleplayer's primer on one race, with other races to follow in the future.
Around Azeroth: Beta testin'
Despite what you may have heard, the life of a Wrath of the Lich King beta tester isn't always filled with action and excitement. Sometimes it's filled with, gulp, bugs! I can tell you from personal experience that life in the beta involves plenty of "World Server Down" and "Restart in 15:00" messages and some things plain don't look or work the way they ought to. What can I say? It's a beta and it still has some rough edges to be polished out -- that's the whole point of having a beta test! Nowhere is the game's beta state more obvious than in this shot by Ferin of Hakkar, who logged into Stormwind City to find... well, this. I'm pretty sure that this is a graphical glitch and doesn't mean Stormwind City, like Dalaran, has been relocated in Wrath, though I've been wrong before...This image came to us straight from the Wrath of the Lich King beta -- and we'd love to have your beta screenshots, too! If you have anything our readers might like, sharing it is as simple as e-mailing aroundazeroth@wow.com with a copy of your shot and a brief explanation of the scene. You could be featured here next! Remember to include your player name, server and/or guild if you want it mentioned. We prefer full screen shots without the UI showing -- use alt-Z to remove it. And, please, no more sunsets! (Well, okay, maybe if they are some really cool Northrend sunsets, we can consider.)%Gallery-1816%
The sights of Stormwind Harbor
As you may have noticed in the latest patch, workers in Stormwind are busy building Stormwind Harbor, a relatively large addition that will give us a convenient boat dock to get up to Northrend. As an aside, is Stormwind going to be the Alliance jumping-off point for all expansions? It's already the most convenient capital to the Dark Portal, as well as (I think) the only city with trainers for all classes. Anyway, it's my favorite city, so I don't really mind, but still – when's Ironforge or poor Darnassus going to get some love? What was I talking about? Oh right, I have here a beautiful gallery of screenshots of Stormwind Harbor, its boats, and a lighthouse that seems to be on the way out of the city. The Harbor will offer non-stop trips to the Borean Tundra in Northrend, as well as to Auberdine (the current boat in Menethil is being re-routed, and Menethil will now connect only to Theramore). This should make it much less painful for low-level Alliance characters to travel between the Eastern Kingdoms and Kalimdor – "no more Wetlands Deathflop," as one Blizzard CM put it. I really like the look of the the boats, too, with the big paddle wheel and the gryphon prow. It's always nice to see a little more steampunk in my WoW. Come on in and check out the beautiful scenery, and thanks to Kevin from WoW Macros for providing all these lovely screenshots. %Gallery-28434%
