Originally Posted by
Florena
If you take the zones to be in order story wise according to level, it makes sense.
Jade Forest: You start a chain of events that leads to the six sha being freed. You deal with the immediate threat of Doubt.
Valley/Wilds: You deal with the immediate threat of Despair, while in the background fear is gaining power over the empress. During the time you're questing in these zones, Shek Zeer is beginning her swarm. You see her scouts here, and see the prelude to invasion coming from over the wall. In the climax of both zones ( a reminder that they used to be one zone at one point in development) you help fight off the initial wave.
Go north to Kun'lai. The mantid aggression has pushed many of the Yaungol out of Townlong, so they invade Kunlai in an attempt to claim new lands. You deal with Violence in the monestary and chase Hatred into Townlong.
Townlong. Here you fight more Yaungol and see that the mantid have solidified their position here now in the southern portions. You deal with hatred and the yaungol/mantid threats.
Dread Wastes: Now, the land is heavily corrupted by the sha of fear, and the invasion is on in full force. As you reach 90, there's even a pair of heroics having you fending off Mantid assaults.
So while it's possible that the sha of fear could have been free earlier than the players arriving, there's no need to assume it was unless there's solid lore to back that theory up.
---------- Post added 2013-05-24 at 10:26 AM ----------
Yeah. Tarah Zhu's involvmeent goes like this:
1. Yells at you in Jade forest first time you see him. Explains more about the sha the second time you see him there. Wants you to GTFO with your war.
2. He argues against letting you into the Vale in Kun-lai. After the Jade Forest incident he's certain it'll lead to disaster.
3. At some point off camera, likely due to his hatred for the horde/alliance for bringing their war to Pandaria, he succumbs to the Sha of Hatred.
4. We fight him at the Shado-Pan Monastery, freeing him from Hatred's grip.
5. We see him in Townlong, after he was freed canonically. Humbled by his experience perhaps, he is less hostile to the player now and gladly accepts your aid. We help him kill/imprison hatred (however that works with defeating sha) and he goes back to the monastery to recoup I think.
6. He shows up on the Isle of Thunder to fight the Thunder King. Once again has no qualms about working with the player but isn't happy about the Kirin Tor/Sunreaver battle. Eventually chews both Jaina and Lor'themar out at the island story's conflict, and goes back to recover from his wounds.
7. Hears about the digging in the sacred vale, a place that is VERY sacred to the pandaren and if you remember the quests it was a VERY big deal that they were openeing the gates and trusting the horde/alliance by letting them in. Understandably, he's angry with the Horde for doing this. But he doesn't forget the help the Horde has given him either, so instead of just purging the shrine he tells them to leave. And is eventually convinced to give the horde time to make things right because they're suffering under a tyrant, something the pandaren know of all too well.
Really I find all of his interactions with the player to be completely reasonable.