Why is Arthas the only lore figure that Blizzard has refused to bring back?

[Deleted]

He was a King for 5 years. That's less than most kings, so that line would be much better if Arthas was the Lich King for hundreds or thousands of years.

Might be a nod to the conversation he had with Uther before the latter bit it...
Uther: "I dearly hope that there's a special place in hell waiting for you, Arthas."
Arthas: "We may never know, Uther. I intend to live forever"

It was clearly his intention to also rule forever; which he failed... by a long shot.

[Lane]

I sincerely hope they never bring Arthas back and if they do not as anything but a villain. Definitely no redemption story. He is, and arguably always was, a selfish and power hungry man. My theory as to why he's being tormented as a child in the void is because that's the last time he was truly 'innocent' and the only version of him that can be tormented, which would speak volumes as to how corrupted he was even when he was still a paladin.

As for Illidan, he's always impressed me as more antihero than villain. I don't mind his so-called 'redemption', especially given how poorly he was treated in BC, but it bothers me it seems like they're trying to excuse the horrible things he's done in the past.

[Highwhale]

He is, and arguably always was, a selfish and power hungry man.

WRONG. So wrong. People who see in Arthas only pure evil is failed at understanding his character.

[Aeluron Lightsong]

I sincerely hope they never bring Arthas back and if they do not as anything but a villain. Definitely no redemption story. He is, and arguably always was, a selfish and power hungry man. My theory as to why he's being tormented as a child in the void is because that's the last time he was truly 'innocent' and the only version of him that can be tormented, which would speak volumes as to how corrupted he was even when he was still a paladin.

As for Illidan, he's always impressed me as more antihero than villain. I don't mind his so-called 'redemption', especially given how poorly he was treated in BC, but it bothers me it seems like they're trying to excuse the horrible things he's done in the past.

He wasn't necessarily power hungry. He was just willing to do extreme and questionable things to protect his people even if it meant killing them and preventing them from turning into Scourge. He was more vengeful then power hungry.

Now Illidan...Illidan is and always was power hungry.

[turboether]

No Warcraft character is truly dead until there is a robot-zombie version of them to kill.

[Lane]

He wasn't necessarily power hungry. He was just willing to do extreme and questionable things to protect his people even if it meant killing them and preventing them from turning into Scourge. He was more vengeful then power hungry.

Power hungry may not be the best description, but I never got the impression Arthas was interested in anyone but himself. Everything he said came off as a noble sounding excuse so he could get what he wanted. Sometimes his actions were more obvious than others, like burning his troops ships so they couldn't return home (and somehow even that gets defended).

As far as I'm concerned, his vengeance was just a guise for him to pursue increasingly dark and terrible power to feed a desire I thoroughly believe was in him from long before Stratholme. Mal'ganis seemed little more than a convenience. I know that's not a popular opinion because people like to believe Arthas was a genuinely good person who was manipulated by a demon into falling from grace. Unfortunately, if that's true, Blizzard did a poor job of relaying it.

[Aeluron Lightsong]

Power hungry may not be the best description, but I never got the impression Arthas was interested in anyone but himself. Everything he said came off as a noble sounding excuse so he could get what he wanted. Sometimes his actions were more obvious than others, like burning his troops ships so they couldn't return home (and somehow even that gets defended).

As far as I'm concerned, his vengeance was just a guise for him to pursue increasingly dark and terrible power to feed a desire I thoroughly believe was in him from long before Stratholme. Mal'ganis seemed little more than a convenience. I know that's not a popular opinion because people like to believe Arthas was a genuinely good person who was manipulated by a demon into falling from grace. Unfortunately, if that's true, Blizzard did a poor job of relaying it.

He couldn't get his vengeance if the ships returned him. His army got recalled back home, Arthas wanted Vengeance by the time Stratholme was over. Arthas always tried to act like a noble being. If you couldn't see that, that's your fault. In Warcraft III up until his vengeance consuming him he did truly care for his people.

[Zulkhan]

Power hungry may not be the best description, but I never got the impression Arthas was interested in anyone but himself. Everything he said came off as a noble sounding excuse so he could get what he wanted. Sometimes his actions were more obvious than others, like burning his troops ships so they couldn't return home (and somehow even that gets defended).

As far as I'm concerned, his vengeance was just a guise for him to pursue increasingly dark and terrible power to feed a desire I thoroughly believe was in him from long before Stratholme. Mal'ganis seemed little more than a convenience. I know that's not a popular opinion because people like to believe Arthas was a genuinely good person who was manipulated by a demon into falling from grace. Unfortunately, if that's true, Blizzard did a poor job of relaying it.

I honestly never had the impression that Arthas had some kind of malicious agenda behind most of his actions, I think he was genuinely good-intentioned, good-hearted and sympathetic overall. But he also had negative traits, he sufferred the pressure of his responsibilities and the judgement of both father and teacher, things that made him insecure and with a pride too easy to hurt. He sufferred the lack of acknowledgement and perceived as outright betrayal any firm questioning of his decisions.

There was definitely "darkness" within Arthas, more than Arthas himself was vaguely aware of and all of that surfaced and grown after the Purge of Stratholme, a misguided act of mercy executed through cold ruthlessness, still he was unable to deal with the aftermath of such event from an emotional standpoint. That's why he got consumed by hatred and the worst of his persona came out completely in Northrend, place where his road to damnation properly began.

[Deleted]

His spirit in the ... hell-part of the Shadowlands, I guess?.. is mentioned in the Sylvanas short story. If it is not only something that is there to somehow test Sylvanas or conjured up by her imagination, that's were it still is, I'd say.
I'd also say that it should stay there or if anything should serve as her point of reaching out for the light again by forgiving. I don't think it's probable for many reasons, one of them being her fully understandable hatred against him. (another point being, if the writers want to go into anything of that kind for her at all)

Aside from that, I think he should remain untouched, because his story came to a conclusion and there is really nothing that he could offer for our various conflicts by being brought back. In my opinion at least.

[Al Gorefiend]

Because his story concluded at Icecrown Citadel in Wrath. There's not much else to do aside from flashbacks and so forth. Illidan being brought back was well BC was a bit messy and confusing. That and they made Kael'thas(Wish they'd bring this guy back) a villain cause boss to fight.

If we bring Kael'Thas back which BEs are we killing for him to replace? We don't need 15 different BEs running around in lore each with their own voice actors when they can't even come up with more than one lore character for... 3? Different playable races.

[Aucald]

Arthas' story has reached its logical (and well executed) conclusion, I don't think there's a compelling reason to bring him back as doing so would undermine the story and legacy of WotLK without much in the way of gain. The occasional stray mention or reference is good enough - anything more would strain credulity and have the dragging weight of a re-tread. Better to move on to new stories with new primary antagonists and protagonists.

[Lane]

He couldn't get his vengeance if the ships returned him. His army got recalled back home, Arthas wanted Vengeance by the time Stratholme was over. Arthas always tried to act like a noble being. If you couldn't see that, that's your fault. In Warcraft III up until his vengeance consuming him he did truly care for his people.

Respectfully have to disagree. Since my WC3 memories were rusty I re-watched the Arthas cutscenes and, no, I still don't see it. In fact, within one of the first ones with the orcs Uther warns him of his vengeance turning into bloodlust so, again, the propensity was always there long before Stratholme. The only arguably noble act I saw was his willingness to stay behind and defend Hearthglen, which was immediately followed by bitterness once Uther arrived. The entire rest of his arc is comprised of people warning him his actions are leading him/his people to ruin and him essentially saying, "I don't care, I'm doing what I want."

It's fine if you interpreted it differently and, like I said, I know mine isn't a popular opinion. Personally, I find the most satisfaction with his story from this perspective because things don't line up with his character otherwise. There's simply too much selfishness and bloodlust in Arthas for me to feel like he was ever acting out of nobility. Not to mention his apathy toward those in his command. The lack of emotion he displayed when it came to "his people", especially those close to him who dared to disagree with him, was chilling.

There was definitely "darkness" within Arthas, more than Arthas himself was vaguely aware of and all of that surfaced and grown after the Purge of Stratholme, a misguided act of mercy executed through cold ruthlessness, still he was unable to deal with the aftermath of such event from an emotional standpoint. That's why he got consumed by hatred and the worst of his persona came out completely in Northrend, place where his road to damnation properly began.

Agreed. I saw someone compare his story to Anakin's in "Star Wars" (probably an old comparison but new to me). I can see it, although, Arthas didn't have the 'benefit' of being born into slavery and having to save his mother from kidnappers only for her to die in his arms. He seems to have led a highly privileged life which, for me, makes him an even less sympathetic (let alone tragic) character.

[yango]

The only thing I can imagine is, that we can talk to him like Uther. Now he knows, that he was wrong, so he could give us more warnings, to never ever go the way, he did.
But I cant imagine anything more for him. The only way I guess, is to put everything in Nerzhul, so hes the bad guy behind all this and Arthas was merely a victim, who hadnt the control for hisself.
But look at the 4 Horsemen. Nazgrim and Whitemane wasnt the best people around.. so, maybe there is always a 2nd chance for everyone.

Agreed. I saw someone compare his story to Anakin's in "Star Wars" (probably an old comparison but new to me). I can see it, although, Arthas didn't have the 'benefit' of being born into slavery and having to save his mother from kidnappers only for her to die in his arms. He seems to have led a highly privileged life which, for me, makes him an even less sympathetic (let alone tragic) character.

jeah, but Arthas was the only one, who did something against the scourge, before hes gone nuts hisself for it. Who knows, what would ve happened, if he hadnt done anything.
He thought, he had the burden of the whole humankind on his shoulders. What would u do, if u think, the world is going to die and no ones believe and u have to do everything for ur own? ^^
Like Illidan, he had good intentions, but after all, they did it the wrong way.

[Deleted]

Respectfully have to disagree. Since my WC3 memories were rusty I re-watched the Arthas cutscenes and, no, I still don't see it. In fact, within one of the first ones with the orcs Uther warns him of his vengeance turning into bloodlust so, again, the propensity was always there long before Stratholme. The only arguably noble act I saw was his willingness to stay behind and defend Hearthglen, which was immediately followed by bitterness once Uther arrived. The entire rest of his arc is comprised of people warning him his actions are leading him/his people to ruin and him essentially saying, "I don't care, I'm doing what I want."

It's fine if you interpreted it differently and, like I said, I know mine isn't a popular opinion. Personally, I find the most satisfaction with his story from this perspective because things don't line up with his character otherwise. There's simply too much selfishness and bloodlust in Arthas for me to feel like he was ever acting out of nobility. Not to mention his apathy toward those in his command. The lack of emotion he displayed when it came to "his people", especially those close to him who dared to disagree with him, was chilling.

Agreed. I saw someone compare his story to Anakin's in "Star Wars" (probably an old comparison but new to me). I can see it, although, Arthas didn't have the 'benefit' of being born into slavery and having to save his mother from kidnappers only for her to die in his arms. He seems to have led a highly privileged life which, for me, makes him an even less sympathetic (let alone tragic) character.

You should read the book and see how right you actually are.
It is even more filled with examples of him not giving a damn about consequences and then him expecting others to fix his mistakes.

1st example: Invincible - a fresh prestigous horse he is given;
1. he gets warned by the stablehand he should not ride it out into a snowstorm,
2. he does it anyway and rides very dangerously
3. the horse breaks it's legs and thus dies of freezing to death
4. he demands the light to heal it, but the light doesn't oblige

It's also filled with his doubts and un-noble thoughts...
In 1 part he actually considers killing Kael'Thas out of jealousy (for his good-looks and ofc Jaina getting along with him), and then remembers the mage could fry him rather quickly.

[gambit998]

I alwys wondered why Sylvanus didnt take the Crown tbh , Granted Bolvar is a good choice but it would have made a good arc of her character to have taken on the crown even to some extent her abilities he might have been able to returne alot of sentience to alot of the scourge.

[Qualia]

I alwys wondered why Sylvanus didnt take the Crown tbh , Granted Bolvar is a good choice but it would have made a good arc of her character to have taken on the crown even to some extent her abilities he might have been able to returne alot of sentience to alot of the scourge.

Why would she want to? Sylvanas had little to no affection towards the Scourge, and certainly isn't selfless enough to take on such a burden to protect entire Azeroth. Plus, do we even want she to? If one of the most noble, venerated paladins (Bolvar) turned into who he is right now, how evil would Sylvanas with the helm would be?

[SoundOfGuns]

I sincerely hope they never bring Arthas back and if they do not as anything but a villain. Definitely no redemption story. He is, and arguably always was, a selfish and power hungry man. My theory as to why he's being tormented as a child in the void is because that's the last time he was truly 'innocent' and the only version of him that can be tormented, which would speak volumes as to how corrupted he was even when he was still a paladin.

As for Illidan, he's always impressed me as more antihero than villain. I don't mind his so-called 'redemption', especially given how poorly he was treated in BC, but it bothers me it seems like they're trying to excuse the horrible things he's done in the past.

Illidan was kind of a stupid Anti-Hero and believe it or not i mean that in a good way. Illidan was not... as smart as he thought he was. He is kind of the guy that had easy solutions for complicated things (you know, like a lot of people these days but this one actually happened to be sort of right) and broke A LOT of pottery in the process. He is self-centered, lusts for fame and is pretty fune with fucking everyone over for his higher goal, no matter how noble it may be in the end. That made him a character tho... He is UTTERLY flawed and utterly unfit to be the Lord of anything, but sometimes someone who makes important decision on a whim while doing it with the pointy end is kind of what you need...

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Why would she want to? Sylvanas had little to no affection towards the Scourge, and certainly isn't selfless enough to take on such a burden to protect entire Azeroth. Plus, do we even want she to? If one of the most noble, venerated paladins (Bolvar) turned into who he is right now, how evil would Sylvanas with the helm would be?

Im still not sure if it even mattered tho. In my eyes, Ner'Zhul is pretty much the problem. He is definitely not as dead as we get told he is... His voice is still there. Its the dominant part in the new voice... It actually has been since Bolvar became the Lich King. You can hear Bolvar in him tho, but much less strong than you could clearly make out Arthas (but i may read to much into that). Therefor im not sure if Sylvanas would be any more evil. Its more about resisting Ner'Zhuls will.

[Deleted]

I always thought it was a huge Mistake to let Arthas become a Paladin. He was the Crownprince, destined to become the King, so he already hat the pressure for all of his people on his shoulders. But then turning him into a Paladin, someone who vows to protect all Innocent, being a perfekt Role-Model and absolute Paragon of Virtue and Justice is to much. I think what he was, was a young men who wanted to prove himself among the old heroes he lived and do the best he can, while still having problems with his anger and being too inexperienced to handle the Situation. And his two closest allies weren't a help either, they leaved him the first moment a hard Choice was to be made. Burning down Stratholme was right. It was a brutal and ugly act, but it had to be done. He gave his people the biggest mercy of all in a war against the Scourge: Dying without being forced to serve the Scourge. Being a Servant of the Scourge is still a fate worse than death, especially if you are a worshipper of the Light.

And after that, he reacted like a human being would react, he wanted his vengeance. Everyone who had to kill his own people would crying out for bloodshed against the people who made him do that. His father did nothing against the Scourge, he didn't took it serious, his mentor and the love of his life both left him, he was all alone against this danger.

[Deleted]

.......


Im still not sure if it even mattered tho. In my eyes, Ner'Zhul is pretty much the problem. He is definitely not as dead as we get told he is... His voice is still there. Its the dominant part in the new voice... It actually has been since Bolvar became the Lich King. You can hear Bolvar in him tho, but much less strong than you could clearly make out Arthas (but i may read to much into that). Therefor im not sure if Sylvanas would be any more evil. Its more about resisting Ner'Zhuls will.

I'm not sure the problem is Ner'zhul still being in there somewhere. I guess technically he might be, but we have no evidence for that yet. I mean, we see his echo and Arthas's echo in the Frost DK quest, but that's not really Arthas, he's in the Shadowlands, so I think it's not really Ner'zhul there either.
I think the problem is more the Helm of Domination and the place where the Citadel stands and what it all was made of. Almost everything there is made of Old God blood. And even if the Old God is 'dead' we know how much good that does against being influenced by one of them. I don't think any being, as we all know very well not even the Titan keepers, could stand a chance of going un-influenced by that for a longer period of time. That doesn't have to mean fully corrupted or controlled by it, and I hope it doesn't.

[Zulkhan]

Agreed. I saw someone compare his story to Anakin's in "Star Wars" (probably an old comparison but new to me). I can see it, although, Arthas didn't have the 'benefit' of being born into slavery and having to save his mother from kidnappers only for her to die in his arms. He seems to have led a highly privileged life which, for me, makes him an even less sympathetic (let alone tragic) character.

Yeah Arthas had quite a priviliged life but on the other hand, a lot of expectations and responsibilities weighed on his shoulders. You could say that Anakin too was target of similar expectations, but in Arthas' case this is way heavier as he was the heir of a whole kingdom. Arthas definitely sufferred this pressure, he sufferred when Terenas remained vague or stern in his acknowledgement of his son's progress and achievements and sufferred too when Uther lectured him. Even though both of these people had quite a good consideration of him, Arthas was too insecure and conditioned by doubts to see that.

This greatly escalated when Arthas found himself in a position where heavy decisions, worth of a king, had to be made. The grave circumstances of the Scourge's rise forced him in such position, but since he wasn't ready for that he simply cracked beneath such weight.