Originally Posted by
ravenmoon
Without a doubt, and their journey has proven this too. But let's look at some things observable in the lore about their highborne ancestors.
Their Ancestors
1. They were palace highborne - this means they were amongst the most elite of the Empire. The highest of the nobility normally surround the Monarch.
2. They did the right thing and rebelled against the Queen's mad alliance and joined the right side fighting her.
3. They called Malfurion, Cenarius and the Druids out on their b/s, 3,000 years was enough time to mourn and sulk over the mistakes of the sundering, they were not only right that itw as time to look to building a future, but that ways could be found to use the arcane without summoning the legion - thus rendering the Long Vigil's ban pointless, it would take the rest of that kaldorei group 7,000 years to realise this.
Their History & Achievements
Highborne they may no longer be, but as descendants they have exceeded tehir forbearers. Don't be blinded of this because Quel'thalas wasn't as "great" or "advanced" as the pre-sundering civilization.
1. It was nowhere near as corrupt or addicted.Addiction happened over time, but nothing like the night elf scale that we see with the Nightborne and Shen'dralar. [My personal opinion, if they hadn't lost their kaldorei enhancements, they would not have gotten addicted - I can explain my theory if you want]
2. Despite losing kaldorei enhancements (a devolution of sorts) with reduced capacity, longevity, intelligence, stature - not only did they manage to enhance themselves with the Sunwell, but they built a Utopic civilization, with much better standards. While their counterparts just hid in cities drinking away their problems with mana (Shen'dralar), getting lost in a time bubble (Nightborne), just doing nothing else but their duty when they could do so much more (Darnassians).
3. The high elves also continued to protect their world, but also advancing themselves and their civilization, they gave their race and their people a future, and made choices to protect, safeguard the world even when it was costly. They may not be the best but they had a lot less than their kaldorei ancestors and did much more with it than they did.
The Other Highborne - The Greatest of the Highborne
Face it, they were better than these too.
1. Naga - palace stock like the high elves but became twisted into aberrations, and did not succeed in accomplishing anything. All their attacks are thwarted and failed, and their Queen's best laid plan to survive and rule the world, ruined, as only a minor note in the events of Azeroth
2. Satyrs - also initially from the palace, even though their increased numbers came from subverting other kaldorei, yet they became little more than cunning beasts, only caring about power and magic - no developments, advancements only spreading misery and corruption, lost their war and all their attempts get beaten.
3. Shen'dralar - were the Queen's most revered arcanists - so it's hard to place them in relation to the palace highborne, they may have been her secret genius squad she hides from her competitors, which granted, makes them quite capable, but what did they do? They instead of choosing to confront the devastation and at least function as an alternative path for night elves than that on offer in Hyjal, instead hid for 10,000 years, growing a measure of ineptitude such that their city falls into ruin.. all they had to do was maintain a city, not a kingdom, they had no threats like Troll war bands and were absent from the first 3 major wars.. instead they were high on juice just studying.. they may be the most genius and intellectual of the highborne, but they are certainly not the best.
4. Nightborne - Elisande's group: Now not all nightborne are highborne, if you didn't know that, you now do. The highborne were Elisande's group and ofc the highest of nobility in the city: They were in charge of artifacts, procurement, storage and harnessing. AS important a task as this is, this is hardly the highest pedigree, so no they are not on the same level as the Palace highborne nor the Shen'dralar. what do they achieve? They, cower in fear in a bubble, and even when their city is facing starvation and dwindling resources, they're too chicken to lower the shield to verify wehther their assessment was correct. Instead they further abuse their magic going so much so to start ingesting it to solve the food shortages.. as fancy and advanced the techniques must be, surely even you can see how silly and extreme this is just to avoid facing reality. But then, what did they do in the War of the Ancients, rather than seek to save their kin and the world in a all or nothing strike against Queen Azshara, they instead used their new power to shield up.. then 10k years later, accept an ultimatum from the most evil force in the universe that was responsible for the isolation they've endured. Fortunatley for us, Thalyssra shows us that they at least have some fight and decency. Their progress under the shield was snail paced. Don't wow over Suramar, most of what's in Suramar was around 10k years ago (yes, the Kaldorei were that advanced), but once the empire fell, every single group of them except for Darth'remar's highborne have been disappointing. With fear, regret, shame, complacency dominating them instead of moving forward.
5. The Farondis Highborne: Well, they're all dead or unliving (still not sure here), we don't know what they would have become. But we know that they were a full highborne community like the Shen'dralar and the High elven ancestors. They were the forefront of magical research through their famous academy (I like to think of the Shen'dralar as the magical development premiers, likely graduates from Nar'thalas now working as the Empire's best developers and private researchers), but the Farondis would have been the world renowned academics. They also were very noble, they rebelled against the QUeen immediately they realised what was happening, were brave enough to stand up against her, and even 10k years on as ghosts showed the same character and brilliance. However they're not alive, and their state has presented them from achieving anything. They may have been imo, the best of the highborne, but they are no more existing as pale shadows of themselves-- literally, or at least severely handicapped from having a genuine future by being unliving. They don't really count.
My Conclusion:
If you've read all of this, you should probably conclude that not only were they from the best of the highborne, but they are the best of the elves. The night elves have greater capability naturally, this is what the lore shows, but with less, the High/blood elves have done much more. But how can the weaker species be greater? Well it's a trend in wow, just look at the Vrykul and humans. Having the better stats on paper , or the better start doesn't make you the grater or better. It's what you choose to do with what you have. Let that be a lesson to all. Stop looking at what you don't have, or what others have, make better choices with what you have, you will be measured up against what you did with what you have.
Yes, I like the night elves, yes they have other good qualities I like to talk about, no I don't think they are as amazing as you may have thought I did, haven't felt htat way about them for a long time, you were just likely taking my defsne of them and their positive attributes as some sort of proof that I thought they were super amazing. You also likely mistook my admiration for their lore, aesthetics, assets and fantasy to mean that I think they are untouchable and should be the best, you didn't give me the benefit of the doubt to think for a moment my plaudits were based on the description of them I was given and was trying to make a case for how they should have been portrayed in Warcraft and didn't for a moment think that I actually fully took on board their weaknesses and shame. You just wanted an excuse to bash somebody painting a good light on a group you didn't like, rather than accepting the facts about them, but also recognising that the blood elves you liked were better for what the lore shows them as having done.
You don't need to be the most magically enhanced naturally or advanced civilization to be the best. And you could easily have been amazing once before but failure, shame, circumstances have taken a dent out of your initial drive. It doesn't mean others can't celebrate your greatness and hope for a return, nor does it mean that such don't see you aren't actually where you are.
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