New Warchief on September 10th

[Wildberry]

He's doing what Tauren tend to do. Vengeance and retribution are not exactly aspects of Tauren culture. Grimtotem are outcasts because of it. They will always walk the high road even if it means putting their survival in peril.

I realize that, and I'm not bashing him because of his culture, I'm just stating that it is because of his culture, that he should not be the Warchief.

[Slowpoke is a Gamer]

They said the cinematic would show the process, not the result. They said the result would probably have to wait for a patch after 5.4, either 5.5 or 6.0.

Obviously that is for the reason the OP showed. To avoid datamining it before N-Garrosh is even seen once.

[Urmydinner]

It's pretty obvious that Vol'jin is going to be picked if they go with the singular "Warchief" model after the Cataclysm. Little arguments could be made for others but seriously. Vol'jin has gotten a new model, been the star of the past couple of patches, and he even got a book. No other prominent figure has really gotten the highlights that he has gotten thus making anyone else pretty irrelevant.

[Deleted]

Why can't you stand Lor'themar?

Come on, how lame will the Warcraft franchise be when it is Pinkskin vs Pinkskin?

[NotFunny008]

What if a Valkyrie pops in and raising Garrosh into undeath? Behold your Forsaken Garrosh Hellscream. He will say sorry, I learnt my lesson. I will be a good Undead Warchief of the Horde from now on.

[Confirm Deny]

1. Kill the surviving ______ that didn't swear loyalty? No, he has their wounds treated
2. nearly every decision Baine makes relies upon whether or not his father would approve.
3. Sure he can do diplomacy, but he's lacking in every other field.

1) Sounds like a quality the Horde could use. Especially after Orgrimmar's sieged.
2) Again, contrasting... I think lots of people like Cairne 2.0 (I could have a field day with jokes about that myself, but w/e)
3) I think they've tried to make him more well-rounded, if even just in book situations he appeared in? (Haven't played)

Sounds like you value characters who aren't shy of flexing some muscle. Not trying to be too serious here, but orcs clearly fit your disposition (signature not included) =P

[Wildberry]

If it were any other situation beyond the one the Horde is in now, I'd agree. He's viable atm because of it. There can't be any hawkish approaches to deal with the Alliance when they have captured the Horde capital and are strong-arming the decision making. Any storylines written as such would be utter rubbish so closely following the end of the siege. Supposedly the new Warchief is going to be tough on Sylvanas, which suggests Baine wouldn't be the one, but you never know.

Hold on, hold on, I know your an Alliance player and you want to feel like you've conquered the Horde, but realistically, all you've done is team up with the rebels to take down a Tyrant that has the capability of destroying your faction should you stand alone. I'm not suggesting a hawkish approach to the Horde v. Alliance conflict, I'm simply saying Baine isn't fit to even deal with Weeds growing in the middle of roads.

[Deleted]

That's not true at all actually, it's been discussed with the devs themselves. Gameplay is the only reason the Horde continues to exist along with its capital. The Alliance is more than capable of handling Garrosh with or without the rebels, the fact that the rebels are ineffective on the siege instance until the Alliance forces show up is a strong tell. The Alliance does conquer the Horde, and returns it to you with a Warchief selected that can work with the Alliance instead of against it because that is the only way gameplay can end this storyline without forcing players off a faction or making them lose a major capital etc. etc. Horde players need to come to terms with this and understand its gameplay and nothing more than allows them to keep their faction and capital city.

Link or dismissed as extreme hyperbole.

[Slowpoke is a Gamer]

Link or dismissed as extreme hyperbole.

Very hyperbole. At one point a dev (I forget who but it was a front page interview or tweet) said that while removing Orgrimmar would be cool, it couldn't be done without alienating half the playerbase.

[Azutael]

I thought they said we wouldn't get to see the new warchief right away ?

[Trassk]

Very hyperbole. At one point a dev (I forget who but it was a front page interview or tweet) said that while removing Orgrimmar would be cool, it couldn't be done without alienating half the playerbase.

they didn't say that. What they said was they couldn't afford to set focus completely on the alliance without alienating the horde as a result.

[Aquamonkey]

Very hyperbole. At one point a dev (I forget who but it was a front page interview or tweet) said that while removing Orgrimmar would be cool, it couldn't be done without alienating half the playerbase.

they didn't say that. What they said was they couldn't afford to set focus completely on the alliance without alienating the horde as a result.

Alliance fist pump moment - it was promised - what is it?
This expansion, after Theramore, there have been a string of Alliance victories. They stopped Garrosh in 5.1 from doing what he was going to do. By 5.2, we had purged Dalaran. Dalaran is now an Alliance city. 5.3, we saw the Horde completely dissolving while the Alliance is coming together. And in 5.4, the Alliance is marching into Orgrimmar, deposing the Warchief, and allowing the Horde to name a successor that they can work with. So, Alliance is changing the world here. And so, that's big! I don't know how to make it any bigger without alienating the entire Horde playerbase. I think we're trying to walk the line where both Alliance and Horde are seeing the siege of Orgrimmar as something they're both excited about. I think we've crafted a good story to do that. I'm not sure... if we were sieging Stormwind would that be more fist-pumpy? I mean, YOU'RE SIEGING ORGRIMMAR! YOU ARE TAKING AN ENEMY CAPITAL AND KILLING THE WARCHIEF! I don't know what more the Alliance can be doing. They're like, "uuhhhh yeahh, whatever." I don't know, I don't know what more the Alliance can be doing. PUMP SOME FISTS AS YOU KILL EVERY SINGLE ORC IN ORGRIMMAR, practically. (Source)

Example of game mechanics needing to trump in-universe logic. AvH always going to be central theme, says Metzen.
The story is always going to serve the needs of the game, not the other way around. We understand that doesn't sit well with all. (Source)
conquered a city but after the raid it will be a horde city again, Theramore is still a hole in the ground
If this was a single player or non-persistent game, we'd consider removing one faction's capital permanently. (Source)

[cwowtbang]

Metzen is the reason Warcraft Orcs aren't a 2 dimensional parody of European Soccer Hooligans, all I really have to say is "don't cut yourself on all of that edge."

As far as Lor'themar, he's not a bad guy, but he's no Warchief, and I honestly cannot fathom how people would want to piss on this games story just for some "new and exciting" change...

We got Panda's remember?

[Trassk]

Ah well guess they did say it, but yes, as I've said to bloody often, wow is not a single player game with a lineal storyline, so get use to it people.

[Krixooks]

I feel like its going to be a very close-run thing between Thrall, Vol'jin and Baine.
The real clue to who it will be has to be in story development, especially in-game.

When Garrosh was being built up as an important character we saw a lot of him in-game:- challenging Thrall in Orgrimmar, leading the Horde in Northrend, at the Argent Tournament alongside Thrall etc

As an Alliance player, I don't really have as solid a knowledge on who is the most 'visible' and relevant to the Horde players as they quest and participate.

(Mists is really a story about the Horde again isn't it.)

[Mormolyce]

I'm half hoping for some kind of last minute surprise. We'll see I guess.

As they release the patch, the final cinematics will be released as well, soon they will be datamined (before anyone kill normal Garrosh)

Earliest they could datamine it is patch day. At best we'll see the cinematic a few days before the world first guilds get normal down. Shrug.

[GoldNSilence]

If it's a dirty, prissy pinkskin or inferior skinny troll then the Horde is broken and I'd rather take my chances with dirty but grizzled Varian.

[blackblade]

As they release the patch, the final cinematics will be released as well, soon they will be datamined (before anyone kill normal Garrosh) and we will contemplate the name of the new Warchief of the horde.

This will be a crazy day, some people will be happy, some will get mad. Forums will explode with joy and with tears.

Personally any candidate is good enough for me, but I just can't stand Lor'themar.

What are your thoughts? will you get angry if they don't choose your preferred one?

Uh, it ever occur to you that the "coronation" may not occur until a later patch? Is there a concrete source that the warchief is going to be selected this patch?

[Stormdash]

If it's a dirty, prissy pinkskin or inferior skinny troll then the Horde is broken and I'd rather take my chances with dirty but grizzled Varian.

Don't let the door hit ya?

Good writing cures all ills. It really wouldn't make any sense at all for the first Warchief, post-Garrosh and his blatant race-mongering/orc superiority trip, was also an Orc other than one or two very specific exceptions, whose credentials are better than "... is an Orc", like Saurfang or Thrall.

In any circumstance, it will have to be someone with a direct tie or the trust of the rebellion, which immediately brings up... Vol'jin, Lor'themar, Baine. Not Gallywix, and really not Sylvanas, who will never be mistaken for one of the lads as it were.

Outside of that pool of five the only one I can really think of would be Rexxar, which while awesome, they aren't going to be able to do a believable job of bringing him back into the fold in time to actually be the Warchief. So it's one of those -- Saurfang, Vol'jin, Lor'themar, Baine, Thrall. I think all are pretty worthy, all upgrades over Garrosh even before he went batshit, IMO.

[Trassk]

If it's a dirty, prissy pinkskin or inferior skinny troll then the Horde is broken and I'd rather take my chances with dirty but grizzled Varian.

See, I knew this would happen. Years before, the horde was great, banded together under one ruler that, despite having some issues here and there, the horde respected one another as well as its defacto leader, and even the playerbase felt the same for the most part.

Now, the tables are switched, the horde is in a fu**ing mess, the alliance has the rugged defacto leader, and the horde is faced with having its face changed yet again by uncertainty.