Kael'Thas in the new Game Informer?

[Raetary]

Could be. The hair and face shape are similar. Ears aren't like Thalassian elves, though. Looks more like a Venthyr.

Could also be Kael just got turned into a Venthyr.

[Venziir]

He looks very smug and confident for one who is "confined to Revendreth for the crimes he committed in life." So no, I doubt it's Kael'thas.

[Rumred]

If this is indeed him, it looks like he's not getting a redemption story after all lol

Well, the whole point of the zone he went to in the shadowlands was for his soul to atone and be redeemed to be later sent to one of the other areas. He was deemed to have a flaw that caused him to do the bad things he did but was redeemable. The issue is how long this process takes since I doubt it would be a quick process to break his pride.

[zlygork]

Well, the whole point of the zone he went to in the shadowlands was for his soul to atone and be redeemed to be later sent to one of the other areas. He was deemed to have a flaw that caused him to do the bad things he did but was redeemable. The issue is how long this process takes since I doubt it would be a quick process to break his pride.

If he was turned into some sort of smiling Venthyr, it would seem to me that he has found a loophole out of getting his ego tortured out of him

[Sangris]

While I wouldn't completely dismiss it, I'd rather guess that this is Denathrius. I do agree that the clothing is reminiscent of Kael'thas' outfit. The face and ears don't fit, though. I can definitely see similarities, however.

There's also the chance that this is just supposed to be artwork of a generic Venthyr, although considering their portrayal is more decrepit I don't think that is the case.

I'm uncertain how I'd feel about a Venthyr-ified Kael'thas.

[Cosmic Janitor]

but that face is so off, and why would he have horns? maybe left over from being a felblood?

Probably assimilation into the shadowlands if it actually is him. It is said that souls take on the appearance of the realm they go to.

[Hugnomo]

It's definitely Kael'thas. He is supposed to become a Venthyr, seeing as he was sent to Revendreth, hence the horns and different ears.
It's literally the one notable character that has been associated with Revendreth, and probably the main character of that place.
Interested to see how Uther, Draka and Cenarius will look like in their respective zones. Excited for the beautiful models that'll come out of it

[bullseyed]

The rip in his clothes matches the rip he had when he died a second time.

Hersey! He didn't die a second time, it was merely a setback.

[Th3Scourge]

Death's Due looks really nice. Good thing, since I'm really liking the Night Fae aesthetically (even the wood plate transmog and especially the moth back transmog).

This is what I'm really worried about with Covenants. If I want to tank high keys as blood, 10% damage reduction is too good to pass up compared to the others. I really can't stand the night fae druid/nature shit aesthetics but I'd be pigeonholed into it because its the clear choice

[Thage]

This is what I'm really worried about with Covenants. If I want to tank high keys as blood, 10% damage reduction is too good to pass up compared to the others. I really can't stand the night fae druid/nature shit aesthetics but I'd be pigeonholed into it because its the clear choice

I run DPS so I'm less worried about the damage reduction as I am at having another nice AoE to drop while plowing through everything in my path. Wouldn't be sad to see the damage reduction changed, perhaps into rune regeneration procs or something less 'required' for tanking.

[matrix123mko]

Very well could be ... and the cartoony - like art style doesn 't really do justice of what he may look like in - game

It looks like animated shorts that we get at start of expansions.

- - - Updated - - -

It's definitely Kael'thas. He is supposed to become a Venthyr, seeing as he was sent to Revendreth, hence the horns and different ears.
It's literally the one notable character that has been associated with Revendreth, and probably the main character of that place.
Interested to see how Uther, Draka and Cenarius will look like in their respective zones. Excited for the beautiful models that'll come out of it

The thing is that they said that souls of Revendreth are supposed to move to other parts of Shadowlands, not become venthyr. However, I suspect Kael'thas will go to purgatory on his own terms.

[dcc626]

This is what I'm really worried about with Covenants. If I want to tank high keys as blood, 10% damage reduction is too good to pass up compared to the others. I really can't stand the night fae druid/nature shit aesthetics but I'd be pigeonholed into it because its the clear choice

short of having there only be one ability with different visuals, this is always going to be the case. people complain that WoW has lost all the rpg elements, but then get upset when the game makes you make meaningful choices and doesnt let you swap back and forth at will.

we cant have everything.

[Chromell]

Looks like Kael just became a Mage/Demon Hunter, Shadowlands Dual-Class system confirmed!

[Th3Scourge]

short of having there only be one ability with different visuals, this is always going to be the case. people complain that WoW has lost all the rpg elements, but then get upset when the game makes you make meaningful choices and doesnt let you swap back and forth at will.

we cant have everything.

Considering that the cosmetics/aesthetics seem to be what people are most interested in the covenants, just remove the damn abilities and leave it there. I really like all the other aspects of the covenants so far, but tying abilities to them and turning the decision more mathematical seems counter intuitive to what they want to implement

[Destinas]

Could also be Kael just got turned into a Venthyr.

I doubt they would do that. We know Kyrians were once mortals that were reshaped in the Shadowlands, but the Venthyr (so far) just seem to be a native race to the Shadowlands. They eat the sins of the souls that go to Revendreth in order to punish them, before they are able to go on to other areas of the Shadowlands. That's why we see Kael in Revendreth anyway.

If elves could turn into Venthyr in the Shadowlands, then it would overlap too much with San'layn in appearance and function. They already overlap too much as it is - though knowing Blizzard, there will be some sort of connection between the two. Perhaps the powers of the San'layn (and "vampyr" in general) come from the Venthyr.

[Doffen]

I read it as Kael'thas is the new game informer. That would've been wild.

If it's him or not, hard to say. But I like that model.