[Spoilers] Shadowlands Prequel Novel "Shadows Rising" Due in July

[Yoshingo]

Time for the Horde to find their honor for the 20th time.

[Aucald]

Really? Again?

Well i guess this time the Horde don't have a Warchief to be killed or turned on the villain, maybe this time everyone is the Warchief and gets killed lol

Different crossroads, I suppose - as opposed to "follow/don't follow tyrannical despot" it's "the hell do we do now?" The excerpt makes it seem like the Horde doesn't know what it's doing at the moment, and lack of strong central leadership of some kind is causing all kinds of bureaucratic issues as the current council members don't really trust one another or have much in common with one another.

[Zyky]

appears to be due out in June of this year.

It's official release date is July 14th, just so you can update the title and the post

[Aucald]

It's official release date is July 14th, just so you can update the title and the post

Thanks for the update.

[Kyphael]

I'm glad Zekhan is living up to his potential as a character, to provide a window into an entire generation of Horde troops who've grown up in a shithole of a world that's constantly teetering on the brink of yet another war. It's also nice the writer remembered that getting involved with the Horde has generally only brought the Zandalari misery.

Has any Horde race actually benefitted from getting involved with The Horde? The Amani are nearly extinct today. Blood Elves got more help from Velen alone than The Horde itself. The Zandalari lost their king and a good portion of their forces to Sylvanas' war. Tauren lost Cairne to the Horde Warchief.

Forsaken definitely benefitted, as they would have likely been wiped out by The Scarlet Crusade and The Alliance without Horde support. Vulpera and Goblins definitely benefitted as The Horde actually helped them, but there are more Horde races that got fucked by their ties to The Horde than not.

Nightborne don't count, as they got help from both Alliance and Horde but just chose Horde in the end.

On the flip side, only Night Elves got fucked by their ties to The Alliance, every other race needed the Alliance for their own survival.

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Different crossroads, I suppose - as opposed to "follow/don't follow tyrannical despot" it's "the hell do we do now?" The excerpt makes it seem like the Horde doesn't know what it's doing at the moment, and lack of strong central leadership of some kind is causing all kinds of bureaucratic issues as the current council members don't really trust one another or have much in common with one another.

I don't see why. How can Baine, Lor'themar, Ji, Gazlowe and Rokhan not trust each other? They've been working together for years! Then Mayla and Baine, Lor'themar and High Arcanist what's her face who are likely already in a romantic relationship also can't trust one another? Sounds like fabricated drama. If there's any one leader that might not trust The Horde, it's Talanji, everyone should be able to confide in each other now that the snake's been chased out of the garden.

[TickTickTick]

Meanwhile, Nathanos Blightcaller and Sira Moonwarden have been tasked by the Dark Lady with a terrifying gambit: to kill the troll loa of death himself, Bwonsamdi.

That's interesting.

[Jaggler]

I'm glad Zekhan is living up to his potential as a character, to provide a window into an entire generation of Horde troops who've grown up in a shithole of a world that's constantly teetering on the brink of yet another war. It's also nice the writer remembered that getting involved with the Horde has generally only brought the Zandalari misery.

Looks worth a read, yeah. Hopefully they don't kill Nathanos off in the book, the players deserve to get that kill in after having to put up with his smug bullshit all expansion long.

Well, if it wasn't for the Horde, chances are the Zandalari Empire would be gone, overrun by G'huun's forces.

[omeomorfismo]

Has any Horde race actually benefitted from getting involved with The Horde? The Amani are nearly extinct today. Blood Elves got more help from Velen alone than The Horde itself. The Zandalari lost their king and a good portion of their forces to Sylvanas' war. Tauren lost Cairne to the Horde Warchief.

Forsaken definitely benefitted, as they would have likely been wiped out by The Scarlet Crusade and The Alliance without Horde support. Vulpera and Goblins definitely benefitted as The Horde actually helped them, but there are more Horde races that got fucked by their ties to The Horde than not.

Nightborne don't count, as they got help from both Alliance and Horde but just chose Horde in the end.

On the flip side, only Night Elves got fucked by their ties to The Alliance, every other race needed the Alliance for their own survival.

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I don't see why. How can Baine, Lor'themar, Ji, Gazlowe and Rokhan not trust each other? They've been working together for years! Then Mayla and Baine, Lor'themar and High Arcanist what's her face who are likely already in a romantic relationship also can't trust one another? Sounds like fabricated drama. If there's any one leader that might not trust The Horde, it's Talanji, everyone should be able to confide in each other now that the snake's been chased out of the garden.

forsaken helped belf to retrieve and pacify ghostlands

[Aeluron Lightsong]

forsaken helped belf to retrieve and pacify ghostlands

And Sylvanas loved her use of blackmailing Lor'themar, like the conniving witch that she is.

[Jastall]

I hope the Dungeon doesn't entail rescuing Bwonsamdi.
He's the damn loa of Death.

Hell, he should kill Nathanos and Sira just by looking at them wrong

Sylvanas's villain-sueness rubs off on her loyal sycophants. Which is why for instance Nathanos is able to last more than a second against Malfurion and an empowered Tyrande. Similarly, he and a bitchy dead elf can indeed probably go and stomp Bwonsamdi if they want to, so that the heroes have to save him. Or maybe the plan is to summon Sylvanas to him, since she can probably oneshot the loa at this point.

[omeomorfismo]

And Sylvanas loved her use of blackmailing Lor'themar, like the conniving witch that she is.

and? they still hold ghostlands thank her

[Aucald]

I don't see why. How can Baine, Lor'themar, Ji, Gazlowe and Rokhan not trust each other? They've been working together for years! Then Mayla and Baine, Lor'themar and High Arcanist what's her face who are likely already in a romantic relationship also can't trust one another? Sounds like fabricated drama. If there's any one leader that might not trust The Horde, it's Talanji, everyone should be able to confide in each other now that the snake's been chased out of the garden.

It would seem they have different ideas and views on how to lead, which is understandable as they all hail from very different cultures with different values and social structures. The Horde previously operated on a decidedly Orcish basis - the Warchief being the autocrat and subordinate leaders falling in line underneath the Warchief's commands in a top-down manner. Now you have a council of equals, with each voice jockeying for attention and focus. Going to take some time for the Horde as whole to acclimate to such a major shake-up in the way it's managed, and I can certainly see some of the more neglected parts of the Horde taking advantage of the shake-up to leverage new power and a new voice on the Horde's council.

Not so sure about the idea of not trusting one another, per se; but not having much in common seems to scan.

[TheFirstOnes]

The Players: Ah shit, here we go again...

[Dellis0991]

Zekhan about to clap some Talanji cheeks.

[DemonHunter18]

Summary of the preview: The Horde, The Horde, The Horde, The Horde and the The Horde.

wanna bet that we will get 3 Horde centric ala Sadfang CGI cinematics featuring Sylvanas as she talks about how she is saving everyone and deep down she is still a Horde player

[Dellis0991]

could that book shits on forsakens more than the last one? we will see soon...

The forsaken are fucked, too much hint at them being fodder for the light's incursion.

[Mehrunes]

Sira fucking Moonwarden? Seriously? Why can't they let that failed idea of Night Elves forsaken by Elune instantly becoming Forsaken? Especially at the expense of long-established actual Forsaken characters? Also, given how Bwonsamdi has already been confirmed for Shadowlands, we already got spoiled on that aspect of the novel. Fuck all will come out of it. And didn't we just "rediscover" what makes "Horde" strong at the end of BfA? Did the Horde not learn the lesson of Pandaria again so that we have to go through that shit again? And so quickly at that? Also, since when is Bwonsamdi the key to Horde's survival? He ignored the plight of the Darkspear for half a decade and they are his actual worshippers.

And just lol at the idea of the council of Alliance sycophants + Talanji getting issues because the distrust runs too deep. Especially when we know it's not between Talanji and the rest of the leaders of the faction formerly known as the Horde because Thrall and the rest aid her. By empowering Zekhan who's "still mourning Saurfang" after meeting him on three occasions and exchanging maybe 10 lines of text. This is another Lor'themar considering Baine to be the heart of the Horde after not giving a shit about romantic nonsense like that as he has always been a political pragmatist and existing in the same general vicinity as Baine three times in his life while exchanging no serious dialogue.

[Vasaru]

Summary of the preview: The Horde, The Horde, The Horde, The Horde and the The Horde.

They might as well retcon the Alliance out existance at this point.

[omeomorfismo]

The forsaken are fucked, too much hint at them being fodder for the light's incursion.

then hopefully blizz should grow a pair of balls and let our character to die with still dignity

[Mehrunes]

We can only hope. Sylv can continue her work of muh honor-related pest control. Truly a hero we can believe in.

Just you wait for Shadowlands to retcon her inner monologues again.

is this gonna be from Titan's perspective

No, it will be narrated by Sylvanas' inner voice talking to itself in a therapy session kind of a scenario where one part of that voice is the patient and the other the therapist. Only for the ending to reveal that she was lying all the time. And not to herself but specifically to fool the reader because she has broken the fourth wall and is in the process of breaking the fifth.

yeah, we need some big retcons

We will learn that the Forsaken always hated Sylvanas and plotted her downfall and the restoration of Menethil dynasty before they even broke free from Lich King's grasp.