The Ethereals?

[Buttonmasher]

So where are the ethereals right now on alternate Draenor? Did they arrive specifically after Draenor exploded? Or were they unable to arrive until Draenor became Outlands, say, when Draenor's "natural protective field" against foreigners faded?
It has me fairly curious. I don't care for "race discussions" so please keep that out of the thread.

[Thage]

I think they came to Draenor after it went kerplooey because of the metric fuckload of arcane energies the explosion released, which promised tons of profit for the Consortium and the other trade empires run by competing ethereals.

[Adoxe]

Dimensius didn't assault K'aresh yet. They're still there as it is their homeworld so no reason to go looking for a new one.

[Buttonmasher]

I think they came to Draenor after it went kerplooey because of the metric fuckload of arcane energies the explosion released, which promised tons of profit for the Consortium and the other trade empires run by competing ethereals.

That might make sense. I looked on wowpedia and read up what I could, but couldn't find anything relating to how they arrived.

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Dimensius didn't assault K'aresh yet. They're still there as it is their homeworld so no reason to go looking for a new one.

Are we sure about that? It should be very very close to that time right now. Could be a possibility, but we don't precisely know when that happened.

[Flurryfang]

Yeah the etherals are pretty much people who travels through the nether, so the only reason they came to outland, was because it was in close connection to the warp.

[shoc]

Yeah the etherals are pretty much people who travels through the nether, so the only reason they came to outland, was because it was in close connection to the warp.

AFAIK Outlands was free-floating in the Twisting Nether, which explains things like the Nether strands in the sky, Azeroth being visible from the Black Temple, etc.

[Astynax]

Azeroth being visible from the Black Temple, etc.

Is it really? Where would I go to see it? been to BT so many times and didnt notice

[Pandragon]

So where are the ethereals right now on alternate Draenor? Did they arrive specifically after Draenor exploded? Or were they unable to arrive until Draenor became Outlands, say, when Draenor's "natural protective field" against foreigners faded?
It has me fairly curious. I don't care for "race discussions" so please keep that out of the thread.

They are either still on their homeworld before it was assaulted by the void. Or it has been assaulted and they are on their way to Draenor.

I have a theory that they will be the next playable race. That they show up after 6.2 fleeing from the Void. We help defeat him and they join us.

[Thage]

AFAIK Outlands was free-floating in the Twisting Nether, which explains things like the Nether strands in the sky, Azeroth being visible from the Black Temple, etc.

If the novelization of Beyond the Dark Portal still counts as canon, all the portals being opened by Ner'zhul (which tore Draenor apart) broke time and space around Outland. So it's not only free-floating in the Twisting Nether, it literally exists in several dimensions at the same time.

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Is it really? Where would I go to see it? been to BT so many times and didnt notice

When you fight Illidan on the roof, look up. Azeroth is visible and roughly moon-sized in the sky.

[kabshiel]

Dimensius didn't assault K'aresh yet. They're still there as it is their homeworld so no reason to go looking for a new one.

If we do ever get to Farahlon, I wouldn't be surprised to see us working with an Ethereal scouting party, maybe led by Nexus-Prince Salhadaar. I could see us working with them to defeat the new void lord, Ner'zhul the All-Devouring. Blizzard does love their Burning Crusade references after all.

[Gadzooks]

They are either still on their homeworld before it was assaulted by the void. Or it has been assaulted and they are on their way to Draenor.

I have a theory that they will be the next playable race. That they show up after 6.2 fleeing from the Void. We help defeat him and they join us.

Sadly, I don't see this happening. How would you gear up an Ethereal, when they have no physical form? The rags they wear are it - they don't wear gear like we do.

The Ethereals are an interesting race, that honestly could be broken off into their own franchise, if Blizzard wanted to. I've always liked them, their look, and ground out Consortium rep in TBC, but they're only used as NPCs now, they have no real purpose in the game, and haven't for a long, long time - and the Devs don't seem real interested in them, either. Honestly, I think murlock's have better odds of being a playable race, than Ethereals.

Plus, Blizzard always hints at stuff - if Ethereals were coming, they'd have thrown hints of it at us by now.

[Thage]

Sadly, I don't see this happening. How would you gear up an Ethereal, when they have no physical form? The rags they wear are it - they don't wear gear like we do.

Well... there ARE Ethereal models that wear robes, breastplates, gauntlets, shoulderpads, shinguards, and belts. Customization could be done by having you choose a masculine or feminine 'wrap,' bandage color, mist color, turban- or bandanna-like bandages around the head, and ornamentation like writing/designs on the bandages or jewelery. Armor would fit the same as it does on anyone else (after all, as long as they're wrapped up they're good), and they could have a little blurb in their starting zone about how they're using enchanted bindings that allow them to wear heavy armor and wield large weapons.

[Gadzooks]

Well... there ARE Ethereal models that wear robes, breastplates, gauntlets, shoulderpads, shinguards, and belts. Customization could be done by having you choose a masculine or feminine 'wrap,' bandage color, mist color, turban- or bandanna-like bandages around the head, and ornamentation like writing/designs on the bandages or jewelery. Armor would fit the same as it does on anyone else (after all, as long as they're wrapped up they're good), and they could have a little blurb in their starting zone about how they're using enchanted bindings that allow them to wear heavy armor and wield large weapons.

Seriously? You expect Blizzard to make unique tier sets just for Ethereals?

I hate to laugh, but that's just too cute.

[chazus]

it literally exists in several dimensions at the same time.

I don't think it 'exists in several dimensions' so much as is 'dimensionless', and has connections to many of them. Sort of like passing by docks while travelling down a river, and each dock is a dimension.

[Thage]

Seriously? You expect Blizzard to make unique tier sets just for Ethereals?

Not at all. What makes you think they'd do anything approaching honest-to-god effort for gear? They can't even be assed to scale the Frostwolf set helm to fit non-orcs. I also never implied anything of the sort--I mentioned that the existing gear art could be justified with something as simple as a blurb about how they're using special bindings created to allow Ethereal adventurers to wear heavy armor and use big weapons.

I hate to laugh, but that's just too cute.

I mean, it's a good thing you didn't, because you'd feel silly for jumping the condescension gun.

[Deleted]

There are some in my Garrison and in Stormshield there are a few as well.

[Pandragon]

Sadly, I don't see this happening. How would you gear up an Ethereal, when they have no physical form? The rags they wear are it - they don't wear gear like we do.

The Ethereals are an interesting race, that honestly could be broken off into their own franchise, if Blizzard wanted to. I've always liked them, their look, and ground out Consortium rep in TBC, but they're only used as NPCs now, they have no real purpose in the game, and haven't for a long, long time - and the Devs don't seem real interested in them, either. Honestly, I think murlock's have better odds of being a playable race, than Ethereals.

Plus, Blizzard always hints at stuff - if Ethereals were coming, they'd have thrown hints of it at us by now.

have you ever seen an Ethereal? They wear all sorts of armor. Their character model would just be a humanoid form of energy wrapped in bandages, and then you place armor on it like a normal character.

You also cant say the devs have no interest in them. There is no telling what blizzard has planned in the future of WoW. Ethereals have just as much chance to be playable as murlocs do.

[Buttonmasher]

have you ever seen an Ethereal? They wear all sorts of armor. Their character model would just be a humanoid form of energy wrapped in bandages, and then you place armor on it like a normal character.

You also cant say the devs have no interest in them. There is no telling what blizzard has planned in the future of WoW. Ethereals have just as much chance to be playable as murlocs do.

I kind of specifically said not to turn this into a race thread.


But thanks everyone for the answers. I'm pretty glad with the possible explanations.