11 Reasons to be Excited for The War Within Lore
*magni voice* CHAMPIONS!
We are SO back. First things first, one of my dear readers (MY GM BROCCOLIZ) has suggested an e-mail list so folks can receive a notification when there’s a new blog post. Your wish is my command! (literally! she’s my raid leader! and my friend!)
You can sign up for the email list here or on the home page. Just enter your email (it is safe in Squarespace’s hands) and you’ll get the tiniest note ever from me when I make a new post.
I’ve also made an email address just for the blog/site: stayawhilewow@gmail.com. I thought it would be fun for folks to reply to blog posts in that email-I’ll do my best to respond to any and all email thoughts folks have!
This week, I wanted to do my part in conjuring War Within hype by sharing my top 11 reasons to be excited for the upcoming expansion. As you’ve probably gathered, I am very excited for the Worldsoul Saga-it’s literally why I started the blog-so let’s get started!
dad :)
1. The Worldsoul Saga is serious about story
To quote Chris Metzen at Blizzcon last year, “when it comes to this game’s story, we aren’t screwing around.” Oh what a treat it was to hear those words from that man on that stage. The past few expansions have been an…interesting time to be a lore person for WoW, as we steered between entirely illogical character turns, universe-breaking retcons, and generally bad times. The team making a commitment to three expansions, clearly plotted out ahead of time, is very exciting as a lore fan. Even if there end up being parts of the Saga that I don’t enjoy, it is so helpful to my enjoyment to hear from story folks, such as the fabulous Maria Hamilton, that they “know how the Worldsoul Saga ends” as early as TWW announcement. There’s a plan! They are collaborating! What a slay!
please help me
2. Xal’atath, hopefully killing me a bunch
Should be fairly self-explanatory. Intimidating, cool, well-voiced, void mommy kills us all. It’s like an inverse Denathrius, but for more than just the first raid of the expansion. We won this round, girls and gays.
As I said in my last post, Xal’atath is the most excited I’ve been about a WoW antagonist since Garrosh. Introduced years ago, has appeared enough times since to clearly be up to something, we have at least a partial idea of her investment in the story, and of course, she’s just super cool. Rule of cool will always have a place in WoW, and one of those places is a shit-eating grin on the antagonist’s face in every trailer.
ironforge has need of our sorcery, as well as our strength
3. Moira Thaurissan is back on screen
Perhaps one of the most consistently and deftly written characters in WoW, Moira Thaurissan is going to be back on screen in TWW. Many of y’all, especially newer players, have fairly limited experience with Magni’s daughter.
Picture this: your character introduction to her in Classic WoW is you walking into Blackrock Depths, killing her husband because Magni told you to rescue her from what he assumed was mind control, and her telling you to fuck off, pissed that you killed her husband. Moira would go on to make a power grab in Ironforge that resulted in a Dark Iron seat on the Council of Three Hammers, prove her clan’s commitment to the Alliance repeatedly, and eventually work to earn them full membership of the Alliance as an allied race in the Fourth War. I’m looking forward to whatever she’s got to offer in TWW and I’m especially hoping for more impassioned dragging of her dad because he deserves it (Magni often lamented that Moira wasn’t born a boy-they now write him as significantly less misogynistic).
I cannot recommend her out-of-game material enough, especially her 11.0 short story, The Lilac and the Stone by Catherynne M. Valente.
he needs a hug (preferably from wrathion)
4. My son returns from war
Oh thank GOD Anduin is back. Like, much needed break after Shadowlands, but holy fuck did I miss Anduin. I love this guy. I am supremely looking forward to the next stop on his journey in 11.0 and I think about CGI Manduin twice a day. And maybe his boyfriend could show up. Please? I’ll pay you guys.
the isle of dorn, our first zone
5. Not just Moira-lots of Dwarves!
The last major Dwarf settlement explored in game was during Cataclysm, as Grim Batol (now Twilight-controlled) made its in-game debut alongside Wildhammer lands in the Twilight Highlands. There have been dwarf appearances, such as Dark Iron allied race quests in BFA, but the 11.0 setting will be our first foray back to a Dwarven home since 2010. Wow!
Speaking of Grim Batol, get excited for its return as an M+ dungeon in 11.0 Season 1. I hope to see many of you trying out the awesome new M+ changes as I push for title again!
can’t wait to hit a bunch of stalactites
6. Down down into the ground
If you know Warcraft lore, you know that the more subterranean someplace is on Azeroth, the sketchier it is. Extremely spooky things tend to lurk under this planet’s surface, and I guarantee there is some weird shit happening in Khaz Algar. A lot of us have been after an “underground” expansion for many years and it only makes sense to dig a little deeper from where that sword was aimed. It’s hilarious to me that one of the 8.0 leaks about like the heart of azeroth being an underground continent below the sword is…kind of coming true? The leaks, they’re long-con oriented.
WHO ARE YOU!!!!!!
7. WHO IS THAT IN THE TRAILER??????????
I hope you also lost your mind over this character in the trailer.
I’m aware of who this is, but will not spoil it for you in case you aren’t. I’m beyond intrigued at the cool root/vine person. What’s happening here. Please tell me more. Can u teach me ur dance.
NASTY AND BAD!!!! I LOVE THEM!!!!
8. Nerubians! 16 years later!
The famous scrapped Nerubian zone in WOTLK patch content. Redemption! Azj-Kahet has looked stunning in every trailer they’ve shared so far and I am one of many folks excited about the return of our skittering foes. I’m looking forward to reading some more Nerubian history, hearing some Anub’arak name drops, and learning about Azj-Kahet’s relationship to the kingdom of Azjol-Nerub. Nerubians, as an elder race, should be very skilled historians-I can’t wait to see what they have buried in their libraries.
I’m thinking about doing a single post dedicated to Nerubian history in Warcraft (let me know if that sounds interesting!). They are literally ancient. I think their history is very worth knowing because they made significant contributions to global affairs for like thousands of years.
ngl this is still absolutely iconic, he was PISSED
9. The actual continuation from Legion
Now, BFA obviously dealt with some of the ramifications of That Sword, such as Azerite popping up and N’Zoth going after the heart, but in a way, I still don’t believe that “faction war” was the intended plot hook right after Legion. Like, imagine you get handed a giant fuck-off sword sticking out of the planet and then decide “they started fighting each other again!” I’m by no means a conspiracy theorist, but I will absolutely not deny that 11.0 feels like the resumption of The Plot after a 3 expansion detour. “Main plot” stuff has been present in the last 3 expansions for sure, but I do always have a giggle over The Actual Sword getting ignored in favor of “the world is healing.” What do you mean by that. Explain it to me like I’m 5 years old.
So, I’m excited to receive some answers to long-held questions at the end of Legion. Why aim the sword there? Why stab the planet? What happens when Azeroth wakes up? How much can the worldsoul be influenced in nascent stages by the cosmic forces? Do they default to Titanic?
RIP KING THEY DID YOU DIRTY!!!! I HATE YOU BFA!!!!
10. The Legend of Korra classic: retroactively making people cooler
For the other folks who have watched Avatar and Legend of Korra, you may recall Unalaq from season 2 and how one line from season 3 raised him from a D tier to a B tier character (no spoilers for folks who haven’t seen it). I am looking forward to seeing which flopped characters can get that treatment in Worldsoul Saga. I’m gonna say it: they are capable of retroactively making The Jailer less terrible with just a few lines of dialogue.
This next group of characters may be hopium, but I have been super suspicious of Xal’atath’s marketing of “the Old Gods are dead!” especially after the N’Zoth text in Dragonflight at the Temporal Conflux. I am super hopeful that at least N’Zothie, maybe some other Old God characters as well, will receive their 2nd go around during the Saga. The rest I could take or leave, but after the atrocity of 8.3, I am super hopeful N’Zoth will receive a round 2.
Lastly, I think there’s a lot of potential for some expanded story around Nerubian characters from Wrath, making them feel a little less idle and perhaps more active. Either way, I’m looking forward to expanded story on more characters.
midnight is my favorite already sorry
11. It feels like people writing this game care about this game.
Like I said above, no spoilers, but y’all are gonna be blown away by the side/minor character reappearances in TWW. I was so thrilled with the attention to the previous canon, remembrance of past expansions, and forward-looking angle that every reappearance in TWW has. It feels like people are really fucking excited to write this story for us. I am equally really fucking excited to experience this story.
(Pandaria fans…we shall rejoice together)
I hope you are looking forward to TWW lore as much as I am! Please feel free to drop a message on Twitter or email me at my new blog related email with your thoughts!
In camaraderie,
-Ily
