Emerald Legacy fan expansion concept

[Miminz]

Wow that is a really well writen and tought proposal and one I would surely love to see in game, however if you look at blizzard they must have the next expansion already on the make so it wont ever get there atention even if its such a good proposal.

[Jtree]

Hey all, I'm back! I moved cross country, and have had little play time, but I've still doodled on this idea from time to time. I've updated the OP with a few new dungeon ideas, a battle ground, and a link to a thread on the Dragonsworn hero class. Below are the first two patches, designed to match MoP's raid/lore patch alternation idea.

PATCH 6.1 - THE WILD SKIES

Green dragons and druids have long known that the skies of the Dream are filled with chaotic energies, dangers they have shied away from. But the Bronze Flight, exploring the Dream for the first time, were drawn to them. For these disruptions in the skies are fissures in Time, made of the same energy that empowers the Bronzes. Within the fissures are other iterations of the Dream. Wilder and more dangerous than the Dream that is, more power and resources can be found in them.

These fissures will create alternate versions of areas from the zones they are found in, filled with higher level and elite mobs. Terrain may vary slightly, while resources are more plentiful. New dailies will point the players into various fissures, offering more rep, new rewards, and PvP and PvE challenges.

Fissures will open and close each day. Don’t get caught inside when one collapses, as it will be a long fall to the ground.

PATCH 6.2 - THE SOUTH SEAS

(or, the Most Ambitious Patch Ever)

The Nightmare has been crushed, and the Naga have withdrawn from the Dream, but not before tapping its power. The Maelstrom has been engulfed with fog as volcanic activity boils the sea, shrouding what is happening. Tidal waves sweep across the islands as Naga raiders strike at coastal areas.

There’s a need for brave adventurers to set out to deal with the problem. To do so, you will train up your sailing skill. Set out in anything from a small trawler to a massive, guild-owned frigate, and explore the familiar-yet-different islands you saw in the emerald dream. Along the way battle Naga, sea monsters, pirates, and the other faction.



Main Islands


Tel Abim: This jungle island is home to a large pygmy population, with small fishing and smuggling outposts along its shores. Lush and dangerous, it is larger and more rugged than its Dream counterpart.

Kezan: The former homeland of the goblins was devastated by the Cataclysm. Now that the volcano has quieted down, scavengers are pouring over the island, searching for wealth and technology.

Plunder Isle: Headquarters of the Bloodsail Raiders. This small island is dangerous to approach, but rewarding to any who can make it out alive.

Broken Isles: All that remains of the Endless Plains in Azeroth. These islands are crowded with Naga, searching for buried Titan artifacts.

Zandalar: Once part of the north shore of the Inner Sea, the Zandalari trolls used their power to protect it from sinking in the Sundering. But King Rastakhan’s dismissal of the prophet Zul’s warnings left the island unprepared for the Cataclysm. The king now sits in a sinking city, trying to hold off Naga, Alliance, and Horde forces while his priests prepare a terrible ritual to save the island.


SHIPS

To safely travel the deep ocean, players will improve their sailing skills. This will give individual players access to small vessels, like the Goblin Trawler used for quests in Thousand Needles. Larger ships can be purchased by a guild, allowing players to work together for quests, raids, and sea-based daily quests.

Guild owned ships are built with materials provided by all professions, and plenty of gold. A guild may only own one ship, and there will be several classes requiring progressively greater expense. Guild ships will provide increased rewards for quests completed at sea, and offer benefits for the patch’s world bosses and certain raid encounters. NPC crew members can be hired to give the ship additional options for guild members, from repairs to portals, to an onboard spirit healer for convenient resurrection in world combat.

If you do not have access to a guild ship, or are building a PuG or running LFR, Captain Samir, Budd, and the rest of the gang are trying their hands at mercenary work again, and are available for hire.



RAIDS - SECOND TIER


World Boss - Ozumat

Azshara has released the kraken. Hunt down and kill the beast before he sinks every ship in the sea.


World Boss - Captain Smite

This Tauren pirate, once thought dead, has emerged as one of the most ruthless raiders in the South Seas. Board his ship and slay him.


Bloodsail Hold

The pirate stronghold is far too secure for a direct assault, but there is a hidden back entrance. All a raid must do is get through the basilisk infested Den of the Cold Eye alive, and they’ll have a chance to flush out the Pirate King and assault his mighty flagship as he flees.


Zuldazar

Capital of Zandalar, the flooded city is still occupied by trolls too stubborn to leave. Fight through them and press up the slopes of Mount Mugamba, where Hex Lord Malacrass is channeling the energies of the Emerald Dream. Slay him for good and cross into the Dream to find Hakkar, preparing to slaughter a large number of captured Ancients and Loas to consume their power, giving him the strength to restore Zandalar and enslave the trolls forever.


The Infinite Raid

The Time Wardens have tracked their rivals into the distant past, into the era of Old Gods and Titans. Travel back and join five of the Titan’s greatest servants, the future Keepers of Ulduar, as they battle C’Thun’s armies and subdue the malevolent being so the Titan’s servants can bury him. Upon the Old God’s defeat, Velos Lightswift will attack your raid while the Infinite Raiders sweep in to steal the Titan technology that so easily split and reshaped the earth.



NEW BATTLEGROUD

ZULDAZAR HARBOR

Even sinking, Zandalar’s main harbor is a strategic point for both the Alliance and Horde. Assault the harbor’s control points, or destroy the dangerous troll and naga forces present, to gain points toward victory.

[Kobomino]

This is great concept minus the races, we really don't need any more.

[Pua]

Neat concept but an Orc has a better chance joining the Alliance than the Naga, and we really don't need new races.

I honestly think we need a new class less than new races. That said, if they put in the naga and made them Alliance only, I'd be very sad.

[Deleted]

Yes! I want this! Sounds, great, Emerald Dream, Azshara, naga, ogres, like a dream come true

[Jtree]

Back again, with more on the sailing concept. The South Seas will to great extent mimic the waters and islands of the Inland Sea zone in the dream, though scaled up in size. That ought to save somewhat on development time for a game changing content patch.

Questions, comments, fan art? Hit me up, I’ll try to reply in a timely manner.

SAILING

As the Naga offensive shifts out of the Dream and into the South Seas, players will have the opportunity to set sail in the open ocean. Take to the seas in your own small trawler, or team up with your guild to sail a hard working cargo ship, a swift cutter, or a mighty frigate.

Ships will open up all new exploration, gathering, and combat options. Deep sea fishing can offer a massive haul of fish and herbs, but players will have to work fast to clear the nets before the bounty is lost. Underwater salvage operations can yield metal, equipment, and gold. Raiding neutral and rival-faction shipping will give more daring crews action and reward.

Or dare you hoist the jolly roger, and become the enemy of all on the high seas?

Whichever action you choose, get to harbor when your hold is full, or risk losing it all to hostile forces.



Guildships

The best ships will be guild projects, requiring great investments of gold and resources. Many professions will be able to contribute to their ship’s construction and customization, improving the ship for the guild’s purposes.

A guild can have more than one ship, but many may find the cost prohibitively high. When a ship is taken out to sea, it must be returned to its port to be secured. If left unmanned it will remain on the open water, an easy target for hostile forces.



Home port

Your ship will have to designate a home where it is safe from attack when not in use. This will also ensure that it can be easily found by guild members who made need to use it. The ports are:

Alliance: Stormwind Harbor - Elwynn Forest

Horde: Bligewater Shipyard - Azshara

Neutral: Steamwheelde Bay - Tel Abim

Reaching your faction-specific harbor will require sailing to a friendly patrol fleet near the edge of the South Seas region. If you are hostile (wrong faction or flying a pirate flag) they will attack you. If friendly, you will be automatically docked in the appropriate zone.



Combat

Combat between ships will be a challenging, exciting addition to gameplay. Speed, maneuverability, and firepower will all affect your ability to enter or escape combat.

Cannons will damage ship and crew alike. Cripple an enemy ship, and pull alongside to board. Ranged DPSers can support the boarding party from crow’s nests, which give a bonus to attack range. Raid the enemy’s hold for the spoils of their recent work, and even strip out some of their ship improvements to enhance your own, or to sell at a profit.



Ship types


Cargo Ship - The basic transport seen sailing between Alliance and Steamwheedle ports. This workhorse of a ship has the most cargo space, and excels in ocean harvesting work. Slow and lightly armored, it will be a target for hostile vessels, but an able crew will be able to fight just fine.



Cutter - Light and swift, these are the signature vessels of the two elf races. Excellent for quick travel between the islands of the South Seas, they can be rigged for raiding or harvesting.



Ironclad - These heavy warships are the pinnacle naval might. They are fast and heavily armed, at the expense of a miniscule cargo capacity and reduced maneuverability.



Frigate - The basic frigate offers a good balance of speed, firepower, and capacity. Improved Alliance and Forsaken models increase all three elements, making the best all-around ships in the sea.



Trawler - A small steam-powered ship, built for individual or small-group use. Good for fishing and salvage work, clever sailors might find it useful in combat as well.



Ship improvements from professions

New ships are purchased complete and ready to sail, but players can use their professions to improve their ships’ performance in many ways.

Sails and Engines - Ironclads and trawlers use steam engines built with components from blacksmiths, alchemists, and engineers. Other ships have sails made by tailors, with ropes and rigging from leather workers and engineers.

Navigation - Jewelcrafters create navigation tools to keep a ship on course, as it’s easy to lose your heading in the open sea. Scribes can provide special charts that may lead a ship to rich fishing grounds, huge salvage operations, or hidden treasures.

Deck guns - Blacksmiths, alchemists, and engineers offer enhancements to range, damage, and reload speed, respectively.

Defense and repairs - Enchanters can create arcane barriers, orbs that any mana user can use to channel a protective barrier around the ship. Alchemists make tars that plug leaks and prevent the ship from burning.

Harvesting - Ropes and rigging from engineers and leather workers increase the effectiveness of fishing and salvage work. Jewelcrafting makes diving equipment needed for deep sea salvaging. High level fishing, skinning, and herbalism can get increased haul from nets, while mining and archeology can help find more salvageable supplies. This bonus material goes straight to the player’s inventory instead of the ship’s cargo hold.



Flags

Your ship’s affiliation can be shown by the flag you raise. Sail under the banner of the Alliance or Horde, and proudly represent your people on the oceans. Hoist the Jolly Roger, and become enemy to all.

On a PvE realm, ships sailing with their faction flag will have their PvP flag turned off so long as they take no hostile action against other player ships. On PvP realms, ships are always under threat from the other faction. Ships with the pirate flag are always hostile to everyone, unless several pirate ships are sailing together.



Armadas

Captains of ships from different guilds can ally together, sharing work and rewards at sea. This can be an Ironclad protecting a cargo ship working salvage, a cutter shepherding trawlers through pirate infested waters, or pirate ships joining together to take down a shipping flotilla.



Crewing a ship

The guild master is the default captain of the ship. He can set restrictions by rank on who can command the ship and take it out of port when he’s not there. Other players can spread across the ship, taking positions on the guns, the crow’s nests, or at work and repair positions.

Guild members will be able to automatically board their ships. Friendly forces outside the guild must be partied with a guild member aboard the ship in order to board it. Without that, they will not be able to enter on a PvE server, and will be flagged as a pirate on a PvP server.

NPCs can be hired to provide additional functions for the ship. This includes basic repair and resupply vendors, a cook who serves as innkeeper, a mage who sells portals to major cities, and even a spirit healer, to get your dead crew back into the fight quickly.




Missions

Daily assignments in combat and harvesting will be available to suit players’ needs. For combat, you may be asked to protect a friendly convoy in hostile waters, or hunt down a pirate ship. In harvesting, you will be pointed to a rich fishing ground, or a sunken ship loaded with salvage.

Different players will be given different missions. This will keep player ships spread across the Seas, keeping any one area from becoming too crowded A captain can share his mission with his crew, so everyone working together on a ship will be able to complete the same assignment. The bounty from fishing or salvaging will be automatically distributed upon return to port.

If you don’t have access to your own guild’s ship, you can join another crew as they run their mission. Lacking even that, a personal trawler can be used to gain special shallow water missions instead. While slightly less rewarding, they are quicker and less likely to draw the attention of large, hostile enemies.



Ships for Hire

Certain raid encounters, and the new world bosses, will require a ship. If you don’t have access to that, there are NPC crewed ships available. Samir and his gang can be found in Steamwheedle Bay, ready to set out when a world boss has been spotted. Gather your group and tell Samir when you’re ready to set sail. In raids, Thrall’s Thrashers and Wrynn’s Raiders are standing by if your guild ship isn’t up to the task (they will always be there in LFR).



Beyond the Legacy - The Future of Sailing

The final raid patch will continue to make use of the guild ships introduced in this patch. For future expansions, the concept may have to come and go as the content sees fit. I can imagine a new Legion/Outland remake expansion introducing zepplins and gunships in a Netherstorm styled region, or great protective land barges on a Legion world.

[-Superman-]

It was a fun read. I will not be returning to WoW, but it sure sounds like a fun expansion

[ro9ue]

Really loving all of the ship/sailing ideas. Would be amazing. Keep it up man, looking forward to more.

[Deleted]

Caverns of Time - The Tomb of Sargeras

The Infinite Raiders have emerged in the Third War, when Illidan entered to search for the Eye of Sargeras. Intercept the Raiders and make sure they do not interfere with history. And search for anything else of value while you're there.

If you're going to make a Caverns of Time version of The Tomb of Sargeras it should be about when Gul'dan opened it and not about Illidan just messing around.

[Golden Yak]

I love the idea of a guild being able to collectively work towards something great. Guild levels in a visible, tangible form - a ship, a fortress, whatever. Every crafting alt helping out by working towards upgrades and so forth. Decorate the place with your guild emblem, put it on a flag or sail.

[deviantcultist]

Oh please not freaking Ogres for the Horde again :S

[Jtree]

Really loving all of the ship/sailing ideas. Would be amazing. Keep it up man, looking forward to more.

I love the idea of a guild being able to collectively work towards something great. Guild levels in a visible, tangible form - a ship, a fortress, whatever. Every crafting alt helping out by working towards upgrades and so forth. Decorate the place with your guild emblem, put it on a flag or sail.

Thanks. Yeah, there could easily to be options for guild emblems on flags, sails, or mastheads. Could be a lot of ways to customize the ship, making a sort of guild housing that really lives in the game, that others can interact with (with or without invitation) too.

As for building ship components, I image especially enterprising individuals will be able to make a fair bit of money crafting and selling such parts on the AH.

If you're going to make a Caverns of Time version of The Tomb of Sargeras it should be about when Gul'dan opened it and not about Illidan just messing around.

Interesting idea, but I'm kind of fond of the notion of having to get in and out before Illidan brings the whole place down. Plus so many players have such a strong attachment to him that another reappearance would be well received.

Oh please not freaking Ogres for the Horde again :S

Oh yes!

[ro9ue]

Oh please not freaking Ogres for the Horde again :S

Expansion ideas don't even count unless they have Ogres for the horde.

[deviantcultist]

Expansion ideas don't even count unless they have Ogres for the horde.

If they get to put Ogres for the horde then they should provide a free faction change option for Blood Elves and Forsaken

[Jtree]

Expansion ideas don't even count unless they have Ogres for the horde.

IMO, it's the only new race, for either side, whose addition is completely solid in in both lore and game design.

If they get to put Ogres for the horde then they should provide a free faction change option for Blood Elves and Forsaken

Why? Those guys ain't welcome in the Alliance. And Ogres are already in the Horde, so it's not like they'd be leaving in protest.

[Deleted]

That ship idea is awesome!

[Falu]

Fun & interesting read - Keep it up!

[deviantcultist]

Why? Those guys ain't welcome in the Alliance. And Ogres are already in the Horde, so it's not like they'd be leaving in protest.

Ogres were sided with the Old Horde in WC2 and are generally considered as dumb brutes that best serve as quest mobs. Just because a lore addict wants to downgrade the Horde to the typical barbarians instead of evolving them to a more proud yet chaotic faction, then I think I have some objections there. At least that is a legitimate comment from someone who plays Forsaken or Blood Elf characters. Should they go to the Alliance? Nope, they should stay as mobs.

They have already refused to revamp Silvermoon and the possibility of Ogres along with Rexxar as a Warchief seems progressively alienating for Blood Elves.

[Jtree]

Ogres were sided with the Old Horde in WC2 and are generally considered as dumb brutes that best serve as quest mobs. Just because a lore addict wants to downgrade the Horde to the typical barbarians instead of evolving them to a more proud yet chaotic faction, then I think I have some objections there. At least that is a legitimate comment from someone who plays Forsaken or Blood Elf characters. Should they go to the Alliance? Nope, they should stay as mobs.

They have already refused to revamp Silvermoon and the possibility of Ogres along with Rexxar as a Warchief seems progressively alienating for Blood Elves.

I really don't follow. I've no idea what Rexxar or Silvermoon have to do with the possibility of playable ogres.

Are you suggesting that other races might not like having ogres in the Horde? Hasn't proven to be a problem yet, since ogres are part of the Horde (Stonemaul, primarily). If you're saying ogres are too big and dumb to be playable, there are outliers in game already, which is basically what my Firetide Clan in the OP is rooted in.

[deviantcultist]

I really don't follow. I've no idea what Rexxar or Silvermoon have to do with the possibility of playable ogres.

Are you suggesting that other races might not like having ogres in the Horde? Hasn't proven to be a problem yet, since ogres are part of the Horde (Stonemaul, primarily). If you're saying ogres are too big and dumb to be playable, there are outliers in game already, which is basically what my Firetide Clan in the OP is rooted in.

Sorry for my lack of complete elaboration. If Rexxar turns out to be the Warchief, it is quite possible that this will be the reason why Ogres will turn out to be playable. Therefore, that means that the Horde lore will lean towards the more classic views of the Horde as barbarians aka the Old Horde.

As a result, Blood Elves and Forsaken that are rather irrelevant races, will feel even more irrelevant given the fact that Blizz denies to revamp Silvermoon. As a Blood Elf player, I suggest against that direction. Otherwise, I might reconsider my char's race or maybe the faction in general.