Its incredible that there hasn't been a new ranged class added to the game.

[Teriz]

I agree one-hundred percent with what you said. It's downright amazing how Teriz says his strategy to make gnomes and goblins more popular will work, when we have that exact same strategy implemented for the monks and pandaren, and it did not work.

How was that strategy implemented for Monks and Pandaren when Monks have no unique aesthetics for a given race, and is available to 90% of races?

Again, look at Zalandari Trolls; They got unique dinosaur models for their Druid class, and they are among the most popular Allied Races in the game, only beat out by Vulpera and Void Elves.

Their most popular class? Druid by far.

Speaking of Vulpera, if Blizzard is truly concerned about class population, they'll let Vulpera be Tinkers. Supposedly Blizzard has a lot of former developers from Wildstar, so a Fox-like tech class wouldn't be too far out of their depth;

[schwank05]

The game released 16 years ago, and in those 16 years we've had 3 new classes added, and every single one has been a melee class.

Is that not absurd to anyone else? The ranged class options in this game has become stagnant, and I'm starting to realize its one of the reasons I haven't been playing as much anymore.

This expansion was the perfect opportunity to release a new ranged dps class, especially a cloth based one, and we got nothing. Nothing about Shadowlands looks like its going to be the huge win that WoW needs to skyrocket back into success.

I despise Ranged, and am so glad that Hunters got a Melee spec. IMO there is no need for another class just a 3rd-4th spec for everyone and then this will be solved.

[Axxil]

Blizz kept the "hero" class moniker as PR. They are clearly no better than the other classes and require no better skill cap than the other classes. Stop blinding accepting corporate PR.

You obviously haven't been watching the MDI with those UH DK numbers. They are better at AOE than every other class.

[Ielenia]

<snip>

All that's needed to be done when you say "the reason gnomes and goblins are unpopular is the lack of tinker" is to present facts:


EDIT:

https://i.pinimg.com/originals/70/08...43c808ee69.jpg

Look at you, using sources outside the game for inspiration. I mean, it's fine. It's not like you were berating others for doing that exact same thing, right?

[Teriz]

All that's needed to be done when you say "the reason gnomes and goblins are unpopular is the lack of tinker" is to present facts:

Right back at you;

https://www.mmo-champion.com/threads...r-for-the-game

https://www.mmo-champion.com/threads...ew-Class/page4

EDIT:

Look at you, using sources outside the game for inspiration. I mean, it's fine. It's not like you were berating others for doing that exact same thing, right?

There’s a difference between pointing out an art style, and pulling in elements from non-Warcraft classes. Vulpera are already a playable race in WoW.

[Shiza]

No, because that leads to homogenization and a rather boring class and racial lineup. The game is better for having the Monk class and the Pandaren race, not worse. Not everyone enjoys dark and edgy themes, and if you want to make your game as appealing to the masses as possible, you should find a balance.

The Monk Class isn't better though through their pandering towards Pandas. It really hampers their stylistic and aesthetic potential. Designing a class after unpopular races hurts a class in every way, because it means to restrict their design and visuals to something which only a tiny minority will and can enjoy instead of something bigger. Not to forget that homogenization is not an issue, considering how the more bright and heroic classes were there from the get go. I would rather say that it is for example healers who are currently too homogenious. We solely have healers with a bright light or nature focussed theme and lack a dark healer at this point. It is still no argument in your favor though, as Monks have proven that classes having a more whimsical niche style in terms of aesthetics will hurt them. and Pandaren are overall more popular than Gnomes.

Except Monks aren't restricted to Pandaren, so that comparison is invalid. Also if Blizzard is worried about popularity, they can simply expand the Tinker class to related races. The tech models are for the most part already in game. A class that can be played by 9 races should be just fine in the popularity department.

This is not an argument and I would love to know how it looks like one in your head. Monks can be played by Blood elves, Night elves and Humans, the most popular races but they took an immense time to take off despite having one of the most consistently best tank specs ever since release of the games and one of the most unique heal specs, simply due to their design which is solely focussed after a race that is simply unpopular. People demanded Pandaren and Blizz was wrong to listen to them, because nobody ended up playing one of them. They would have done better to introduce something anime.

Because in order to bring a valid Necromancer into the game you have to restructure Death Knight and Warlock classes. That will damage the existing player base, and cause people to leave the game. I disagree that it would be more successful, because it will play pretty much exactly like the existing Warlock class and people will wonder why Blizzard bothered in the first place, and again cause people to leave the game. A Tinker class would be something new and different within the class lineup, and only work to increase it since it won't affect any existing classes. It will also fill in some current gaps in the class lineup (like Hunters being the only ones who use guns for DPS), and provide much needed lore for playable races who don't really have a class that fits their lore. You should really try to keep your personal opinion out of this analysis.

Not really, because Blizz already expanded some aspects of the Necromancer and the Shadowlands aesthetic is already looking like extending them further, having the potential to make them more unique. Outside of Death and Decay, Death Knights have no significant Necromancer ability. They can raise the dead, but in the worst case the undead summoner aspect of the spec can be reduced in favor of a more plague focussed spec or they can leave it, considering that DKs pets are more focussed on longer CDs and summoning Ghouls, where the Necromancer can summon a greater variety of undead minions. There is nothing really which would be needed to be taken away from Warlocks and Death Knights and Necromancers may be close, but with a stronger focus on the Shadowlands covenants, they could be minor enough that they co-exist like Priests and Paladins do, considering that they are even closer thematically. The Problem with Tinker is really, that it is too niche to succeed, looking at the numbers. Facts still don't care about your feelings.

Again, you're seeming to forget that nearly all races can play a Monk, and Pandaren don't get any special bonus for playing as one. That leads the Monk class to not feel very unique and special, but actually rather generic. Part of the Druid's popularity is that each race gets its own unique Druid forms. So if I want to play as a dinosaur, I HAVE to roll a Zalandari Troll. If I want a Paladin Raptor Mount, I HAVE to roll a Zalandari troll. These exclusive perks are part of the reason Zalandari Trolls are one of the most popular allied race. What's by far the most popular Z. Troll class? Druids.

Dude, thats an argument against you. Like lol, you are constantly gotchaing yourself. Barely any class has anything unique to their race and they just work fine. Allied Race Druids having their unique forms is a gimmick, but they just worked fine back when nobody was caring about it. They also just worked fine during legion, when they all looked the same due to the artifact. The Monks took a long tame to take off despite the fact that they are playable by the popular races and despite the fact that their entire design is tailored to specifically fit the Pandaren, to the point where their animations initially even looked the best. Why is that so? Because it turned out, nobody likes Pandaren and the Panda-Style turns people off from Monk. This is the argument against your case, if you don't somehow want to reveal that you actually believe that Gnomes are stylistically and thematically the most popular races in the game, despite being one of the least played once, even being defeated by races for which you have to grind reputations.

Also if Blizzard is REALLY worried about Tinker popularity, they'll just expand the class to Draenei, Vulpeira, Dwarves, and/or Orcs. The Draenei already have their own mech and tech designs, and the Orcs can just use Iron Horde aesthetics.

But why should Blizz do it, when there are more fan favored alternatives or alternatives which will fit the tested and proven tastes of their community better than something that is designed after the most unpopular and ugly races?

This is completely your opinion. You have no idea what Blizzard will or won't do. If Blizzard were as lazy as you believe them to be, they wouldn't have created so many allied races, and give Z.Trolls their own unique Druid forms. Further, the models for individual racial mechs already exist. If Blizzard wants to be lazy, they can just give Gnomes Mekkatorque's mech, give Goblins Gazlowe's Shredder, give Orcs a variation on the Fel annihilator, give Draenei (if applicable) the Lightforged Warframe, and make up something new for Mechagnomes and Vulpeira.

Simple.

Blizzard is so lazy that they tried to weasel their way out of having to do Raid-Sets. And the difference between z.Trolls and Gnomes is still, z.Trolls are generally popular. They hit a nerf in terms of design and aesthetic. Gnomes failed to do so.

[wushootaki]

Aside from necromancer, what ranged class would be thematically new and fresh? Serious question because I can't really think of any. Maybe some sort of afterlife class that uses anima will come after we harness the power of the shadowlands or something like that for 10.0

- - - Updated - - -



I've seen this person arguing about tinkers on this forum for years. whatever you say they will have a counter for. Not worth the battle lol

Tinker

We've seen via the island teams that they have a tank, ranged dps, and healer option. Gazlowe's Greasemonkeys and the Gnome Jump-a-thon (whatever the f they are called). They have abilities in game that require levels as well, and are unique enough. Whether they will ever get the full class treatment remains to be seen.

As for necromancer...it has never been a hero in warcraft, which is largely what the playable classes are based off of (mostly from WC3). Last remaining two yet to be seen are Goblin Tinker and Goblin Alchemist. You could argue for dark ranger, but it has been farmed out to hunter and rogue (same with Warden). Sea Witch makes zero sense, brewmaster got added, and necromancer, again, doesn't exist, unless its as a Lich, which the only undead hero unit to be made into a PC was Death Knight.

[Shiza]

How was that strategy implemented for Monks and Pandaren when Monks have no unique aesthetics for a given race, and is available to 90% of races?

Again, look at Zalandari Trolls; They got unique dinosaur models for their Druid class, and they are among the most popular Allied Races in the game, only beat out by Vulpera and Void Elves.

Their most popular class? Druid by far.

Speaking of Vulpera, if Blizzard is truly concerned about class population, they'll let Vulpera be Tinkers. Supposedly Blizzard has a lot of former developers from Wildstar, so a Fox-like tech class wouldn't be too far out of their depth;

Because not everyone is as entitled and despite the fact that Monks are aesthetically and thematically solely designed to fit Pandaren, nobody plays Pandaren Your whole argument was always that a class tailored specifically to a race will increase the races popularity. We have this class, Monk. Not only did it not increase the popularity of Pandaren, it actually hurt the popularity of the class despite also being able to be played as the fan favorite races. Monk proofs two points:

1. A class specifically designed to suit a whimsical niche race will not increase the races popularity
2. Designing a class after a whimsical niche race will decrease its overall popularity even if it can be played by fan favorite races.

- - - Updated - - -

Tinker

We've seen via the island teams that they have a tank, ranged dps, and healer option. Gazlowe's Greasemonkeys and the Gnome Jump-a-thon (whatever the f they are called). They have abilities in game that require levels as well, and are unique enough. Whether they will ever get the full class treatment remains to be seen.

As for necromancer...it has never been a hero in warcraft, which is largely what the playable classes are based off of (mostly from WC3). Last remaining two yet to be seen are Goblin Tinker and Goblin Alchemist. You could argue for dark ranger, but it has been farmed out to hunter and rogue (same with Warden). Sea Witch makes zero sense, brewmaster got added, and necromancer, again, doesn't exist, unless its as a Lich, which the only undead hero unit to be made into a PC was Death Knight.

Tinkers would canonically be to weak to serve as a class, considering that the most powerful Tinker in the lore barely can press a button.

[Teriz]

The Monk Class isn't better though through their pandering towards Pandas. It really hampers their stylistic and aesthetic potential. Designing a class after unpopular races hurts a class in every way, because it means to restrict their design and visuals to something which only a tiny minority will and can enjoy instead of something bigger. Not to forget that homogenization is not an issue, considering how the more bright and heroic classes were there from the get go. I would rather say that it is for example healers who are currently too homogenious. We solely have healers with a bright light or nature focussed theme and lack a dark healer at this point. It is still no argument in your favor though, as Monks have proven that classes having a more whimsical niche style in terms of aesthetics will hurt them. and Pandaren are overall more popular than Gnomes.

Shiza, this is entirely your opinion. There are players out there who LOVE the Pandaren aesthetic, and indulge themselves in the Wandering Isle and Pandaria itself. Like I told another poster, MoP is one of the most beloved expansions in WoW based on multiple polls. Just because YOU disliked the aesthetic and art style of Pandaria and the Monk class heavily associated doesn't make it objectively bad. Further, yes a continuous trend of dark and edgy expansions and classes WILL hurt WoW in the long term. WoW is not necessarily a dark and edgy game. It has always had lighthearted and humorous elements along with pop culture references. That's what made the Warcraft franchise popular; The balance of seriousness and silliness. Not all players are obsessed with being edge lords, and not all players want to play lighthearted and goofy characters. That's why Blizzard caters to BOTH player bases.

This is not an argument...

Shiza, your argument is that the Monk class and Pandaren are a valid comparison to a situation where the Tinker class is limited to Gnomes, Goblins, and Mechagnomes. The reason my argument counters yours is simple; The Monk class was never exclusive to Pandaren, and offered no racial benefits like the Druid, Paladin, and Shaman classes do. Thus you can't compare it to a Tinker concept that limits its races and gives racial benefits.

Not really, because Blizz already expanded some aspects of the Necromancer and the Shadowlands aesthetic is already looking like extending them further, having the potential to make them more unique. Outside of Death and Decay, Death Knights have no significant Necromancer ability. They can raise the dead, but in the worst case the undead summoner aspect of the spec can be reduced in favor of a more plague focussed spec or they can leave it, considering that DKs pets are more focussed on longer CDs and summoning Ghouls, where the Necromancer can summon a greater variety of undead minions. There is nothing really which would be needed to be taken away from Warlocks and Death Knights and Necromancers may be close, but with a stronger focus on the Shadowlands covenants, they could be minor enough that they co-exist like Priests and Paladins do, considering that they are even closer thematically. The

You should probably listen to Blizzard;

While all Death Knights have some ability to control and reanimate undead minions, Unholy Death Knight has chosen to specialize necromantic magic, and their abilities should reflect that. All Unholy Death Knights will be able to use Summon Gargoyle (previously a Talent) to bring these flying terrors to their side. Army of the Damned (Talent) returns as an even stronger force with a familiar and faithful recruit—a Magus of the Dead. These formidable magic-wielders have fought side by side with Maldraxxus’ bannermen and their presence rallies Unholy Death Knights’ ghoulish armies, lobbing Frostbolt and Shadow Bolt spells into the enemy. Death Coil and Epidemic casts will reduce Army of the Dead’s cooldown, allowing Unholy Death Knights to summon forth a relentless stream of monstrosities into battle. Magus of the Dead will also fight by a Death Knights’ side when they cast Apocalypse, which also benefits from a cooldown reduction whenever Death Coil and Epidemic are cast. Unholy Death Knights’ Mastery: Dreadblade will benefit both master and servant by also increasing the Death Knights’ Shadow damage and the damage of their ghoulish minions, allowing undead armies to trample all in their wake.

https://worldofwarcraft.com/en-us/ne...-class-updates

Kind of strange to say they only have one Necromancy spell when the game makers say that all DKs utilize Necromancy, and Unholy specializes in it.

Dude, thats an argument against you. Like lol, you are constantly gotchaing yourself. Barely any class has anything unique to their race and they just work fine. Allied Race Druids having their unique forms is a gimmick, but they just worked fine back when nobody was caring about it. They also just worked fine during legion, when they all looked the same due to the artifact. The Monks took a long tame to take off despite the fact that they are playable by the popular races and despite the fact that their entire design is tailored to specifically fit the Pandaren, to the point where their animations initially even looked the best. Why is that so? Because it turned out, nobody likes Pandaren and the Panda-Style turns people off from Monk. This is the argument against your case, if you don't somehow want to reveal that you actually believe that Gnomes are stylistically and thematically the most popular races in the game, despite being one of the least played once, even being defeated by races for which you have to grind reputations.

Shaman have unique totems for every race and alliance has heroism, while horde has bloodlust.
Paladins have unique racial mounts
Druids have unique forms

Also yes, let's ignore the Zandalari Troll population boom almost completely propelled by them getting unique Dinosaur Druid forms.

But why should Blizz do it, when there are more fan favored alternatives or alternatives which will fit the tested and proven tastes of their community better than something that is designed after the most unpopular and ugly races?

Actually based on every poll in this forum, Tinkers handily beat every other class concept. They destroyed Necromancers in a head to head poll just last year;

https://www.mmo-champion.com/threads...r-for-the-game

So much for so many players wanting another dark and edgy class.....

Blizzard is so lazy that they tried to weasel their way out of having to do Raid-Sets. And the difference between z.Trolls and Gnomes is still, z.Trolls are generally popular. They hit a nerf in terms of design and aesthetic. Gnomes failed to do so.

Zandalari trolls are popular because they have a class that reflects their racial culture; The Druid class that allows them to turn into Dinosaurs.

Gnomes don't have that benefit, so they are less popular.

[Ielenia]

Right back at you;

https://www.mmo-champion.com/threads...r-for-the-game

https://www.mmo-champion.com/threads...ew-Class/page4

Oh look. Threads that do absolutely nothing to disprove what I said. So what if the Tinker is the most requested class in those polls? It does absolutely nothing to support your falsified claim that the reason gnomes and goblins are disliked because there is no tech class in the game.

The fact is: your claim that THE reason gnomes and goblins are disliked is due to a lack of a tech class in the game is wrong.

There’s a difference between pointing out an art style, and pulling in elements from non-Warcraft classes. Vulpera are already a playable race in WoW.

But they're not a technological race. You are literally pulling in an element (technological vulpera) from non-Warcraft classes (tinker is not a class in WoW).

Again: you are literally doing the exact same thing you're accusing me of doing. This is hypocrisy. It's double-standards.

EDIT: Also, Teriz, you should really stop saying "that's just your opinion" as a way to dismiss people's arguments, when what you are writing is also "just your opinion". And worse, some of your opinions have even been proven wrong.

[Jokubas]

I feel it's less incredible when you look at it from a lore/tradition perspective than a gameplay one, which seems to be what Blizzard has done. This is probably the same reason that Mail is behind in options as well.

It just so happens that popular Warcraft concepts that were not available at launch, like Death Knights and Demon Hunters, just happened to be melee. Monk, which took inspiration from the Pandaren Brewmaster, was also melee. When it comes to the potential future, the Spell Breaker, another popular unit (that suddenly proliferated a lot recently in the lore for some reason), was only technically ranged in Warcraft III and not what would be treated as such in World of Warcraft. Even Tinkers were a melee hero in Warcraft III with a single ranged ability. This could obviously be expanded upon, but if the class came in the first half of the game's life it probably would have stuck very close to the hero. Necromancer is the obvious exception, but Blizzard seemed to have felt that Death Knight filled the niche of Necromancer, at least at the time, so they disappeared as an option before there was a pattern to defy.

Choices with the original class line-up didn't help this. Shaman was fleshed out by borrowing heavily from Witch Doctors and Shadow Hunters, removing them as options. Some other popular options lost their niche in a similar fashion right away. Dark Ranger has been asked for recently, but mostly just being a Hunter with some shadowy magic abilities makes it really hard to distinguish them. Hunter even got Black Arrow. There might be room to split them, but it's not as easy as other choices they've made. This can even apply to melee classes. Blademaster was a popular hero, but there hasn't been much reason to not roll its ideas into Warrior.

I certainly wouldn't be against a new ranged class, but I also wouldn't mind if it was melee again if it was another classic Warcraft concept we loved.

[Shiza]

Shiza, this is entirely your opinion. There are players out there who LOVE the Pandaren aesthetic, and indulge themselves in the Wandering Isle and Pandaria itself. Like I told another poster, MoP is one of the most beloved expansions in WoW based on multiple polls. Just because YOU disliked the aesthetic and art style of Pandaria and the Monk class heavily associated doesn't make it objectively bad. Further, yes a continuous trend of dark and edgy expansions and classes WILL hurt WoW in the long term. WoW is not necessarily a dark and edgy game. It has always had lighthearted and humorous elements along with pop culture references. That's what made the Warcraft franchise popular; The balance of seriousness and silliness. Not all players are obsessed with being edge lords, and not all players want to play lighthearted and goofy characters. That's why Blizzard caters to BOTH player bases.

It is not an opinion, just because it contradicts your feelings. Pandaren are among the least played races in the entire game. Monk was for the longest time consistently among the least played classes, despite Brewmaster being for the longest time it was in the game one of the strongest Tank Specs and Mistweaver one of the most unique healing specs. It never reached the levels of success that Demon Hunters and Death Knights archieved. Yeah, currently Death Knight is less played due to being consistently underdeveloped as a class for years now, but when it was introduced, it was a hugh success. Monks were not. The difference being, Monks are designed after a meme hero and a whimsical element of the game while DH and DK are designed after its most popular icons. And yeah, while Mist of Pandaria is currently praised as one of the best addons, it is mostly on the basis of class design and raid encounters. People hated the world content while it was relevant.

Shiza, your argument is that the Monk class and Pandaren are a valid comparison to a situation where the Tinker class is limited to Gnomes, Goblins, and Mechagnomes. The reason my argument counters yours is simple; The Monk class was never exclusive to Pandaren, and offered no racial benefits like the Druid, Paladin, and Shaman classes do. Thus you can't compare it to a Tinker concept that limits its races and gives racial benefits.

Which is not an argument, seriously. Its just a way to further defend your delusion that secretly gnomes are more popular than elves and dark and edgy shit and that you are actually the majority instead of the odd one out who enjoys extremely niche aspects of the setting. The Monk being available to more popular classes is a strong suit, because if you look at the numbers and get out of your conspiracy theory mindset, you will see that Gnomes and Goblins are consistently unpopular race choices. If you also look into it, you will see that even when it comes to Monk, a class which entire lore, aesthetic and toolset is exclusively styled to cater towards Pandaren, Blood Elves beat them. Despite being one of the least played classes on blood elves. How do you justify restricting Tinkers to incredibly unpopular and widely loathed races without basically killing them off as a class or forcing Blizz to make them OP so that people feel compelled to play them while disliking their character? They could do that with Demon Hunters because elves are consistently popular.

You should probably listen to Blizzard;



https://worldofwarcraft.com/en-us/ne...-class-updates

Kind of strange to say they only have one Necromancy spell when the game makers say that all DKs utilize Necromancy, and Unholy specializes in it.

Blizzard is consistently tone deaf when it comes to the community, this is how you got the little bit of gnome content you have. You are basically defending the lunatics who systemically ignore any kind of feedback. You are saying the guys who bring back Holy Power to Holy Priests, a system loathed by the entire Holy community, are right. This is your argument. Dude, just listen to yourself.

Shaman have unique totems for every race and alliance has heroism, while horde has bloodlust.
Paladins have unique racial mounts
Druids have unique forms

Also yes, let's ignore the Zandalari Troll population boom almost completely propelled by them getting unique Dinosaur Druid forms.

The Zandalari Community would also have boomed otherwise, because their setting and their aesthetic is popular. Your whole argument falls apart and reveals itself as the strawman it hopefully is, if you turn around and look at Kul Tirans. Kul Tirans have the same benefit. They have highly unique druid forms with a drust aesthetic while also having the most unique heritage armor in the game. But they are among the least played allied races. Which means that druids or unique features in classes are secondary to looks and aesthetics. Your whole argument falls apart on the Kul Tiran race.

Actually based on every poll in this forum, Tinkers handily beat every other class concept. They destroyed Necromancers in a head to head poll just last year;

https://www.mmo-champion.com/threads...r-for-the-game

So much for so many players wanting another dark and edgy class.....

And Pandaren where the most demanded race at the time of MoP yet nobody played them. Your polls are worth less than toilet paper. Especially during this epidemic.

Zandalari trolls are popular because they have a class that reflects their racial culture; The Druid class that allows them to turn into Dinosaurs.

Gnomes don't have that benefit, so they are less popular.

Then why are Kul Tirans no popular?

Right, because it is all about you not wanting to accept that gnomes ain't popular and Tinkers won't make them popular.

[Jokubas]

I haven't campaigned for Tinkers myself, but I will say that a lack of a tech class does make gnomes, and especially goblins, feel weird to me. The races are pretty much entirely defined by their technology in almost every appearance. When I made a goblin, I made him a hunter just so I could get a mechanical pet so I could feel some tech connection, but it never quite feels right to me.

I think it's a shame because otherwise I think goblins are one of the best implemented races in the game. They're a classic Warcraft race that had to wait longer than I think they should have to have been playable, but their models didn't fail to translate their design, their voice lines perfectly play up their gimmick, and all of their quests and regions are dead-on for their concept. I'm really annoyed they aren't more popular than they are. A tech class might help (it would for me), but I'm not sure by how much.

It's a little different for gnomes. They felt shoehorned in to me (and many others) when they were first announced, and in some ways that's never really gone away for me (it was worse than intended, as well, since the gnomes as we know them actually originated in Warcraft Adventures, which was never released, so at the time the fans only knew gnomes as little more than Warcraft II trivia, not a race anyone was actually familiar with). The fact that they seem to often be defined by "Alliance rivals to goblins" hasn't given them a lot of room to grow, especially since goblins were fleshed out in Warcraft II and III, didn't used to be a Horde race in World of Warcraft, and still have plenty of neutral representatives.

I don't begrudge anyone for being a fan of gnomes even if I would have rather had something else in that slot, but they have a lot going against them.

When it comes to Monks, I find them jarring. No other class in the game is so inseparable from a single culture (especially as classes like Shaman and Druid have been showing up everywhere with culturally themed differences). I was actually looking forward to Pandaren before Mists of Pandaria was announced, but it's always bugged me how little variety there ended up being. What makes it worse is that Auchenai Monks and Scarlet Monks existed before Mists of Pandaria, but if you want to play a draenei or human Monk, you still have to be throwing around jade lightning and put on a Pandaren outfit during Storm, Earth, and Fire (imagine a troll druid putting on night elf clothes, or a Kul Tiran shaman dropping Horde-logo orc totems). That's fine for Pandaren Monks and I embrace it wholly on them, but I don't understand why there's no other option.

[Teriz]

Oh look. Threads that do absolutely nothing to disprove what I said. So what if the Tinker is the most requested class in those polls? It does absolutely nothing to support your falsified claim that the reason gnomes and goblins are disliked because there is no tech class in the game.

The fact is: your claim that THE reason gnomes and goblins are disliked is due to a lack of a tech class in the game is wrong.

You ever stop to think why the most requested class is heavily attached to the least popular races in the game? Even in your poll the majority of respondents said that their LOVE Goblins and Gnomes. However, why don't they play as them?

But they're not a technological race. You are literally pulling in an element (technological vulpera) from non-Warcraft classes (tinker is not a class in WoW).

Blizzard can do whatever they want with the lore. Again, the point is that if Blizzard is really concerned about the popularity of this class and it has to remain with the shorter races, they'll make Vulpera tinkers and come up with some crazy throw-away lore explanation as to why. Heck, they even use the Goblin skeleton, so that'll make things even easier. My point about the former Wildstar artists and the Chua is simply that those designers have experience with a similar aesthetic, so they'll have no problem with designing such a concept.

- - - Updated - - -

It is not an opinion, just because it contradicts your feelings.

Saying that the Monk class is "worse" because Blizzard "pandered to Pandas" is literally an opinion.

Pandaren are among the least played races in the entire game. Monk was for the longest time consistently among the least played classes, despite Brewmaster being for the longest time it was in the game one of the strongest Tank Specs and Mistweaver one of the most unique healing specs. It never reached the levels of success that Demon Hunters and Death Knights archieved. Yeah, currently Death Knight is less played due to being consistently underdeveloped as a class for years now, but when it was introduced, it was a hugh success. Monks were not. The difference being, Monks are designed after a meme hero and a whimsical element of the game while DH and DK are designed after its most popular icons. And yeah, while Mist of Pandaria is currently praised as one of the best addons, it is mostly on the basis of class design and raid encounters. People hated the world content while it was relevant.

Wow, thanks for reinforcing my point.

Demon Hunters are exclusive to two races, and they get racial benefits because of it. That makes them feel more unique and less generic. Again, Blizzard slapped the Pandaren aesthetic on the entire class and allowed almost every race to play it. That makes it feel less unique and MORE generic. Also we shouldn't ignore the inherent benefits that hero classes have like starting at higher levels making them easy for players to make alts and switch mains. Monks have to start at level 1.

Which is not an argument, seriously. Its just a way to further defend your delusion that secretly gnomes are more popular than elves and dark and edgy shit and that you are actually the majority instead of the odd one out who enjoys extremely niche aspects of the setting.

I've provided two polls that show that Tinkers are far more popular than "dark and edgy" classes. I have little doubt that if you put a new poll on here and put Tinkers up against Necromancers and Dark Rangers, the Tinker class concept would again beat them handily.

So sorry, but the Gnome/Goblin Tinker is more popular than dark and edgy class ideas.

The Zandalari Community would also have boomed otherwise, because their setting and their aesthetic is popular. Your whole argument falls apart and reveals itself as the strawman it hopefully is, if you turn around and look at Kul Tirans. Kul Tirans have the same benefit. They have highly unique druid forms with a drust aesthetic while also having the most unique heritage armor in the game. But they are among the least played allied races. Which means that druids or unique features in classes are secondary to looks and aesthetics. Your whole argument falls apart on the Kul Tiran race.

Yeah, when 37% of Zandalari Troll players are Druids, that says that that race wouldn't have boomed without the ability to play Dino Druids.

And while the Kul Tirans could also be Druids, their Wicker Druid forms were just wooden versions of Druid Cat, Bear, Boomkin, and Bird form. They don't hold a candle to being able to turn into a damn dinosaur.

And Pandaren where the most demanded race at the time of MoP yet nobody played them. Your polls are worth less than toilet paper. Especially during this epidemic.

The polls were taken before the epidemic, and unlike your personal opinion, these polls are evidence that shows that your argument doesn't have a leg to stand on.

Then why are Kul Tirans no popular?

Because the wicker forms aren't different enough from the standard forms. Also Kul Tirans and Wicker animals don't really go together. Kul Tiras is about naval lore. Zandalari Trolls have always been connected to Dinosaurs. Allowing Zandalari to turn into dinosaurs as Druids was a stroke of genius by Blizzard.

Right, because it is all about you not wanting to accept that gnomes ain't popular and Tinkers won't make them popular.

I know it's hard to accept it, but the most popular future class concept is largely based on a Gnome inside a robot suit. Imagine that.

- - - Updated - - -

I haven't campaigned for Tinkers myself, but I will say that a lack of a tech class does make gnomes, and especially goblins, feel weird to me. The races are pretty much entirely defined by their technology in almost every appearance. When I made a goblin, I made him a hunter just so I could get a mechanical pet so I could feel some tech connection, but it never quite feels right to me.

I think it's a shame because otherwise I think goblins are one of the best implemented races in the game. They're a classic Warcraft race that had to wait longer than I think they should have to have been playable, but their models didn't fail to translate their design, their voice lines perfectly play up their gimmick, and all of their quests and regions are dead-on for their concept. I'm really annoyed they aren't more popular than they are. A tech class might help (it would for me), but I'm not sure by how much.
.

I'm in a similar boat actually. I also made a Goblin Hunter attempting to somewhat mirror their technology background, and like you it simply didn't work for me either. The Hunter class does a very good job of making you feel like a Hunter or a tracker. It does a very poor job of making you feel like Tony Stark. That isn't surprising riding around in robotic suits of armor isn't really the point of the Hunter class.

I think what further complicates all of this is that now both Gnomes and Goblins have faction leaders who pilot robot suits, and as a Goblin and/or Gnome player, you can't do that and you can't experience it. I often said that one of the most jarring experiences I ever had in WoW was to roll a Goblin warrior. Here I am in this steampunk hell hole with cars, highways, gundams, and laser canons, and I have a medieval sword. It took me right out of the experience, and I immediately rerolled to something else.

[Ielenia]

You ever stop to think why the most requested class is heavily attached to the least popular races in the game?

I have. You, obviously, haven't. You assumed a conclusion based on your bias and just ran with it as if it was a fact. Here's two more possibilities, off the top of my head:
• People just like the idea of "medieval technology". Nothing to do with gnomes and goblins.
• People want something different theme than what is presented in the class line up. Nothing to do with gnomes and goblins.

Teriz, I've linked, more than once, a thread that completely TANKS your claim that the reason gnomes and goblins are unpopular is the lack of a tech class. I repeat: more than once.

And I know you've not only seen the image I linked, but you've read the thread, too. And the reason I know you're aware of that thread because you posted three times in it. Which means you're starting to tread into self-delusion territory right now, by ignoring hard evidence against your claims.

Blizzard can do whatever they want with the lore.

Bullshit. This is nothing but you using of hypocrisy to attempt to weasel yourself out of the fact you've been caught. Because, when it's about other people's class ideas, you don't allow the idea of "Blizzard can do whatever they want with the lore". Case in point, the Bard class concept: how many times have you pointed out that characters used as example for it, like Russel Brower and Hearthsinger Forresten are not bards, or have not done anything important the lore? Or how about creating new characters to represent the new class? That can't be done, for some reason, according to you.

But when it's your beloved class idea, suddenly Blizzard is allowed to do WHATEVER THEY WANT??

Again, the point is that if Blizzard is really concerned about the popularity of this class and it has to remain with the shorter races, they'll make Vulpera tinkers and come up with some crazy throw-away lore explanation as to why.

You mean, making the concept even clunkier by shoehorning in the vulpera and not other technologically-inclined Horde races like the forsaken?

Heck, they even use the Goblin skeleton, so that'll make things even easier.

Completely irrelevant. Having the same model skeleton does not mean the race is technologically inclined or would be a good fit for it, theme-wise. That's like saying Void Elves should be paladins because they share the same skeleton as blood elves so they won't have to tinker with it to add the paladin's special casting animations.

My point about the former Wildstar artists and the Chua is simply that those designers have experience with a similar aesthetic, so they'll have no problem with designing such a concept.

Again, completely irrelevant.

[Teriz]

I have. You, obviously, haven't. You assumed a conclusion based on your bias and just ran with it as if it was a fact. Here's two more possibilities, off the top of my head:
• People just like the idea of "medieval technology". Nothing to do with gnomes and goblins.
• People want something different theme than what is presented in the class line up. Nothing to do with gnomes and goblins.

Except the Tinker in Warcraft is directly tied to Goblins and Gnomes. If people wanted a technology class unassociated with Goblins and Gnomes, they wouldn't vote for Tinkers. Nice excuse though.

Teriz, I've linked, more than once, a thread that completely TANKS your claim that the reason gnomes and goblins are unpopular is the lack of a tech class. I repeat: more than once.

And your own thread says that the majority of voters LOVE Goblins and Gnomes. So they like them as races, they just have no reason to play as them. More than likely because no class properly represents their racial lore.

Bullshit. This is nothing but you using of hypocrisy to attempt to weasel yourself out of the fact you've been caught. Because, when it's about other people's class ideas, you don't allow the idea of "Blizzard can do whatever they want with the lore". Case in point, the Bard class concept: how many times have you pointed out that characters used as example for it, like Russel Brower and Hearthsinger Forresten are not bards, or have not done anything important the lore? Or how about creating new characters to represent the new class? That can't be done, for some reason, according to you.

If Blizzard wants to create a Bard class, they certainly could. My point was that based on what they've done with the concept going all the way back to Warcraft I, I don't see them ever implementing one.

But when it's your beloved class idea, suddenly Blizzard is allowed to do WHATEVER THEY WANT?? You mean, making the concept even clunkier by shoehorning in the vulpera and not other technologically-inclined Horde races like the forsaken?

Well yes because the Forsaken are too large for mech piloting to make sense, while Vulpera would be relatively easy to do since they're pretty much Goblins with fox appearance and fur. And again, this entire thing is merely based on the idea that Blizzard would add a race to the Tinker concept if they feel that Goblins and Gnomes aren't strong enough to carry the concept.

Completely irrelevant. Having the same model skeleton does not mean the race is technologically inclined or would be a good fit for it, theme-wise. That's like saying Void Elves should be paladins because they share the same skeleton as blood elves so they won't have to tinker with it to add the paladin's special casting animations.

It's relevant because Blizzard can do it if they so desire. Yes, Void Elves can be Paladins if Blizzard wants them to be, and that's the point.

[Protean]

The game released 16 years ago, and in those 16 years we've had 3 new classes added, and every single one has been a melee class.

Is that not absurd to anyone else? The ranged class options in this game has become stagnant, and I'm starting to realize its one of the reasons I haven't been playing as much anymore.

This expansion was the perfect opportunity to release a new ranged dps class, especially a cloth based one, and we got nothing. Nothing about Shadowlands looks like its going to be the huge win that WoW needs to skyrocket back into success.

Give us the spacemarine/doomguy/quakeguy?.

I want plate and a shotgun.

[Ielenia]

Except the Tinker in Warcraft is directly tied to Goblins and Gnomes. If people wanted a technology class unassociated with Goblins and Gnomes, they wouldn't vote for Tinkers. Nice excuse though.

Teriz, your logic does not follow at all. If someone wants a class based on technology, because they like technology, and the two most tech-driven races in the game are gnomes and goblins, it does not mean that they want a tech class because they like the races.

And your own thread says that the majority of voters LOVE Goblins and Gnomes. So they like them as races, they just have no reason to play as them. More than likely because no class properly represents their racial lore.

The poll was not adequately construed, and the first option isn't relevant to the discussion or the question posed by the poll itself. If you were right in your claim that the reason gnomes and goblins aren't played is because there is no tech class to "represent" them, then option #5 should have been the most picked option. But it isn't. In fact, it's the second least picked option. Aesthetics and lore are the most picked reason for not liking gnomes and goblins, with Aesthetics having been picked almost three times as many as the "no tech class" option.

That is why that poll completely bombs your claim that a tech class is "the solution to the unpopularity of gnomes and goblins."

Well yes because the Forsaken are too large for mech piloting to make sense, while Vulpera would be relatively easy to do since they're pretty much Goblins with fox appearance and fur.

That's a dumb logic to have, especially since "model scaling" is a thing for basically everything in the game. And, I'll repeat: That's like saying Void Elves should be paladins because they share the same skeleton as blood elves so Blizzard won't have to tinker with it to add the paladin's special casting animations.

And again, this entire thing is merely based on the idea that Blizzard would add a race to the Tinker concept if they feel that Goblins and Gnomes aren't strong enough to carry the concept.

Which they aren't. At all. The night elves and blood elves were popular enough on their own to carry a new class on their own. This is how their population looked, roughly three months before Legion:


Together, both added up to little more than a quarter of WoW's character population. Now let's take a look at gnomes and goblins nowadays:


Together, gnomes and goblins don't even add up to 5% of the game's population. I put mechagnomes and vulpera there to show you how even they all put together, all four barely reach 10%. The point is that gnomes and goblins are not popular enough to warrant a class based on them, much less RESTRICTED to them.

It's relevant because Blizzard can do it if they so desire. Yes, Void Elves can be Paladins if Blizzard wants them to be, and that's the point.

Then you're not advocating for consistency to the class concept. You're advocating for Blizzard to do what you want, the way you want, even if it goes against the class concept, which is what the addition of Vulpera is.

[Shiza]

Saying that the Monk class is "worse" because Blizzard "pandered to Pandas" is literally an opinion.

It is backed by the relative low popularity of the class despite all of its feats, despite being consistently strong. This is well in line with the lack of popularity of Pandaren, who are among the least played games.

Wow, thanks for reinforcing my point.

Demon Hunters are exclusive to two races, and they get racial benefits because of it. That makes them feel more unique and less generic. Again, Blizzard slapped the Pandaren aesthetic on the entire class and allowed almost every race to play it. That makes it feel less unique and MORE generic. Also we shouldn't ignore the inherent benefits that hero classes have like starting at higher levels making them easy for players to make alts and switch mains. Monks have to start at level 1.

You are not that smart, you know that? Demon Hunters both pander towards the most popular WoW Hero as well as to the most popular races. Tinkers pander towards the least popular WoW Heroes. Like, you are literally the only Mekkadril fan around. And Demon Hunters don't really have that much unique aspects to them from race to race. The only one are different color patterns. Which kind of makes it more likely that a hypothetical tinker would be the same. Not to forget that statistics don't care about your feelings that gnomes are secretly the most popular race. Numers show it, Humans and Elves are consistantly the most popular races. Guess what, even with Monks, Blood Elves are the most played Monk Race. A unique class specifically tailored to a unpopular race doesn't makes it more popular. Not to forget the fact that even after years and despite leveling faster than traditional classes, they are still behind in popularity compared to them. Which proves, that People are less interested in a more gimmicky and funny aesthetic, compared to either dark and edgy ones or serious heroic ones.

I've provided two polls that show that Tinkers are far more popular than "dark and edgy" classes. I have little doubt that if you put a new poll on here and put Tinkers up against Necromancers and Dark Rangers, the Tinker class concept would again beat them handily.


So sorry, but the Gnome/Goblin Tinker is more popular than dark and edgy class ideas.

These polls are worthless though, due to an incredibly small sample size, which isn't in any shape or form representative of the WoW community. You know what is representative? Census websites with incredibly large sample sizes which proof over and over again that gnome players are a minority. So any pole of yours is defeated by larger sized census websites which proof that there is no interest inside the community to play a gnome. It is further made worthless by the fact that the demand for Pandaren has already proven, that loud minorities which demand gimmicky, silly comedy content are not representative of the community. People asked for Pandaren. Blizzard gave them Pandaren. Nobody played Pandaren. And you failed to answer this argument, because it breaks apart your whole basis. If we look at the numbers and the success of newly introduced classes and races in general, we have a clear picture which is worth more than your pole about which we can't even say whether or not you paid for votes. People generally enjoy humans and elves the most, though Zandalari Trolls as a more humanoid and noble monster race with a straight posture and Vulpera as a cute race struck a nerve. People enjoy the serious and darker aspects of the WoW Canon more, proven by the greater success of Demon Hunters and Death Knights compared to Monks. When it comes to brighter and more heroic classes, they enjoy the more serious once which have the fantasy of important heroes of the settings, instead of gimmick fun characters. Classes like Paladins, Druids and Shamans, all with a bright heroic fantasy which is backed by actual icons of the series, are more popular than Monks, which is backed by Chen Stormbrew, a gimmick character. And Chen is still more popular than Mekkadril, who has no fanbase at all.

So Tinkers lack a satisfying fantasy as well as an iconic hero.

Yeah, when 37% of Zandalari Troll players are Druids, that says that that race wouldn't have boomed without the ability to play Dino Druids.

And while the Kul Tirans could also be Druids, their Wicker Druid forms were just wooden versions of Druid Cat, Bear, Boomkin, and Bird form. They don't hold a candle to being able to turn into a damn dinosaur.

It isn't. Like, do you even understand that everyone here thinks you are just trying to justify your mary sue power fantasy that gnomes are secretly the most popular race and that you are actually cooler than all those elf fans? They are still unique forms with the Drust aesthetic, which is generally one of the more popular aspects of BFA. Outside of Paladins, which are not the most popular Zandalari Class though, they have everything running for them that the Zandalari have, with the benefit of the most unique heritage armor which likely offsets the lack of Paladins. Yet they are less popular than Zandalari Trolls. And the reason is clearly, that people are not interested in playing fat humans. Just as they are not interested in playing midget castrati. Guess what, guys don't want to be a castrati. The difference is very clear, Zandalari Trolls just appeal more to the fanbase in terms of their aesthetic and setting.

The polls were taken before the epidemic, and unlike your personal opinion, these polls are evidence that shows that your argument doesn't have a leg to stand on.

Again sample size and the fact that a loud minority is not a reliable source, considering the case of the Pandaren.

Because the wicker forms aren't different enough from the standard forms. Also Kul Tirans and Wicker animals don't really go together. Kul Tiras is about naval lore. Zandalari Trolls have always been connected to Dinosaurs. Allowing Zandalari to turn into dinosaurs as Druids was a stroke of genius by Blizzard.

In terms of percentage, there is a bigger percentage of Kul Tiran players playing as a Druid than of Zandalari Druids. Which kinda shows, the forms appeal to those who would play a fat human. It is just an incredibly small minority of people who would play the race.

I know it's hard to accept it, but the most popular future class concept is largely based on a Gnome inside a robot suit. Imagine that.

Again, if you want to play a midget castrati, go for it, but people don't like to play as midget castrati and numbers show it. Your poles have an incredibly small sample size and looking at the case of the Pandaren who were in demand as a playable race, there is the proof that your pole is not a reliable source compared to actual numbers of large samples of played characters which give us a good idea about what people will actually play ingame instead of claiming to be interested. Especially if we consider that the response to playable Mecha-Gnomes was incredibly negative. There is a broad consensus in the community that Vulpera were the superior racial option which is proven by the numbers. And even if we get Tinkers, there is little in terms of your headcanon that they will be a gnome and goblin only class. If we look back at Monks, it is more likely that Blizzard will play them safe and make them available to all races. They restricted a new class just once in terms of playable races and this case was backed by the numbers due to the popularity of elf races.

Your arguments also falls apart if you look at the large success of Death Knights during their release, despite the fact that they have no unique racial features and are playable for every race. And guess what, despite the most iconic Death Knight being a human, Blood elf and Orc Death Knights beat Humans in terms of representation. And humans are popular. So it is more likely, that when Tinkers are introduced, Gnome Tinkers would be among the lesser played combinations and that Blood Elves would beat them as tinkers. Which also reveals your hidden motives when you argue for restricting Tinkers:

You want to force people to play gnomes, just to feel like your favorite race is bigger and more popular than it is. Because you know it, if Tinkers would be available to all races, Humans, Void Elves and Night elves would have a stronger representation. Though Void Elf tinkers would be legitimately dope.

[Teriz]

Teriz, your logic does not follow at all. If someone wants a class based on technology, because they like technology, and the two most tech-driven races in the game are gnomes and goblins, it does not mean that they want a tech class because they like the races.

If you hate Goblins and Gnomes because of how they look and their lore, why would you like a class BASED on their look and their lore? When you google Warcraft Tinker, this is the first image that shows up;



No one is going to sit back and say "Oh, a Tinker, that means a technology class!" No, they're going to look up what a Warcraft Tinker is and all they're going to see is Goblins and Gnomes with their tech. You're telling me that someone who hates how Goblins look and their lore would want to play something like that? You can't be serious.

The poll was not adequately construed, and the first option isn't relevant to the discussion or the question posed by the poll itself. If you were right in your claim that the reason gnomes and goblins aren't played is because there is no tech class to "represent" them, then option #5 should have been the most picked option. But it isn't. In fact, it's the second least picked option. Aesthetics and lore are the most picked reason for not liking gnomes and goblins, with Aesthetics having been picked almost three times as many as the "no tech class" option.

You do understand that people could dislike their aesthetics and lore because they don't work with their current class options right? Thus it stands to reason that you give them a class that actually fits Goblin and Gnome aesthetics and lore could improve their population numbers. Again, the popularity of the extremely Goblin and Gnome Tinker backs that up.

That's a dumb logic to have, especially since "model scaling" is a thing for basically everything in the game. And, I'll repeat: That's like saying Void Elves should be paladins because they share the same skeleton as blood elves so Blizzard won't have to tinker with it to add the paladin's special casting animations.

The bottom line is that you can't have just any race be able to pilot mechs because it jumps the shark and starts becoming absurd. It works for Goblins and Gnomes because of their diminutive size. It doesn't work for larger races, and the idea of several races riding around in mechs sort of defeats the purpose of a medieval RPG, because if everyone is riding around in a mech, why would they fight outside the mech? The concept works for Goblins and Gnomes because they're physically weak and need machines to fill the gap.

Which they aren't. At all. The night elves and blood elves were popular enough on their own to carry a new class on their own. This is how their population looked, roughly three months before Legion:


Together, both added up to little more than a quarter of WoW's character population. Now let's take a look at gnomes and goblins nowadays:


Together, gnomes and goblins don't even add up to 5% of the game's population. I put mechagnomes and vulpera there to show you how even they all put together, all four barely reach 10%. The point is that gnomes and goblins are not popular enough to warrant a class based on them, much less RESTRICTED to them.

It's rather unfair to compare racial populations when Night Elves and Blood Elves have multiple classes that fit their racial lore, while Goblins and Gnomes have none.

Then you're not advocating for consistency to the class concept. You're advocating for Blizzard to do what you want, the way you want, even if it goes against the class concept, which is what the addition of Vulpera is.

Except the lore of Vulpera stretches back to the current expansion. Nothing is written in stone about their racial identity, and it Blizzard makes them quick students of Goblins or Gnomes no one will bat an eyelash. In short, you're making a mountain out of a molehill.

- - - Updated - - -

It is backed by the relative low popularity of the class despite all of its feats, despite being consistently strong. This is well in line with the lack of popularity of Pandaren, who are among the least played games.

And its still you're opinion.

Like, you are literally the only Mekkadril fan around.

Is that why Tinker consistently beat every other future class concept in polls?

These polls are worthless though, due to an incredibly small sample size, which isn't in any shape or form representative of the WoW community.

Yeah, that's not how polls work. Also if the entire community hated Gnomes and Goblins as much as you clearly do, then Necromancers would have no problem beating out Tinkers. You know why that isn't the case? Because you don't know what you're talking about.

You know what is representative? Census websites with incredibly large sample sizes which proof over and over again that gnome players are a minority.

Because they don't have a Tinker class.

So Tinkers lack a satisfying fantasy as well as an iconic hero.

In your opinion.

It isn't. Like, do you even understand that everyone here thinks you are just trying to justify your mary sue power fantasy that gnomes are secretly the most popular race and that you are actually cooler than all those elf fans?

Uh, where did I ever say that? What the heck are you even talking about?

They are still unique forms with the Drust aesthetic, which is generally one of the more popular aspects of BFA. Outside of Paladins, which are not the most popular Zandalari Class though, they have everything running for them that the Zandalari have, with the benefit of the most unique heritage armor which likely offsets the lack of Paladins. Yet they are less popular than Zandalari Trolls. And the reason is clearly, that people are not interested in playing fat humans. Just as they are not interested in playing midget castrati. Guess what, guys don't want to be a castrati. The difference is very clear, Zandalari Trolls just appeal more to the fanbase in terms of their aesthetic and setting.

No, they're unique skins, and they really don't look that much different than other Druid forms. The Zandalari forms are actual departures from the standard Druid forms, hence why they're so popular. Again, the fact that 37% of Zandalari players are Druid, and Zandalari Trolls are on the most popular allied races around backs that up. Give the player base something cool and unique and they'll be interested. Giving Goblins and Gnomes a mech-based Tinker class would have a similar effect.

Again sample size and the fact that a loud minority is not a reliable source, considering the case of the Pandaren.

Someone needs to study statistics.

Again, if you want to play a midget castrati, go for it, but people don't like to play as midget castrati and numbers show it. Your poles have an incredibly small sample size and looking at the case of the Pandaren who were in demand as a playable race, there is the proof that your pole is not a reliable source compared to actual numbers of large samples of played characters which give us a good idea about what people will actually play ingame instead of claiming to be interested. Especially if we consider that the response to playable Mecha-Gnomes was incredibly negative. There is a broad consensus in the community that Vulpera were the superior racial option which is proven by the numbers. And even if we get Tinkers, there is little in terms of your headcanon that they will be a gnome and goblin only class. If we look back at Monks, it is more likely that Blizzard will play them safe and make them available to all races. They restricted a new class just once in terms of playable races and this case was backed by the numbers due to the popularity of elf races.

The only way Blizzard would do that would be to create unique mechs for every race, which is unlikely. In addition, I have serious doubts that Blizzard wants to make it lore that there is a group of adventurers of any race piloting giant mechanical robot suits. It works with Goblins and Gnomes due to their diminutive size and racial lore, it doesn't work with Humans, Elves, Orcs, and other races.

Your arguments also falls apart if you look at the large success of Death Knights during their release, despite the fact that they have no unique racial features and are playable for every race. And guess what, despite the most iconic Death Knight being a human, Blood elf and Orc Death Knights beat Humans in terms of representation. And humans are popular. So it is more likely, that when Tinkers are introduced, Gnome Tinkers would be among the lesser played combinations and that Blood Elves would beat them as tinkers. Which also reveals your hidden motives when you argue for restricting Tinkers:

Yeah, let's forget that Death Knights were utilizing the ever-popular Necromancy school of magic, were overpowered, were based on perhaps the most popular antagonist in the history of Warcraft, and could start at level 55 when the cap was 70....

You want to force people to play gnomes, just to feel like your favorite race is bigger and more popular than it is...

Uh, Gnomes aren't my favorite race. Also Tinkers wouldn't be just Gnomes. Remember that the WC3 Tinker (the unit ALL of this is based on) was a Goblin.