9.2 Lore Speculation

[sighy]

Exactly. There is no reason that Sylvanas would ever become the Arbiter. The Accuser's replacement if the Accuser became the Arbiter? Maybe, but there's no way Ardenweald would allow her in that position.

Her claiming any role within the current system of the Shadowlands makes no real sense. Her ideology being wholesale extremely anti-establishment is about the only thing, which has been made clear about her through BfA. Her feeling guilty about stuff is not going to change that. So we're in a similar situation to Genn, where she would likely want no part of it and nobody in their right mind would want her in a position of power within the Shadowlands.


For all we know Zovaal could irreversibly wreck the machinery of death and unravel the ordering, of the First Ones leading to us suddenly discovering new cosmic forces and whatever the hell else.

[Caerule]

Okay, don't panic. That image isn't real. I mean how would that even work? Genn wasn't even put in charge of Stormwind. That's Tyralyon. Genn doesn't even get to speak for Humanity, let alone the whole of the Alliance. The Night Elves haven't even officially agreed to the armistice yet, as far as I know.

I don't think it's even worth getting into the rest beyond that, but here goes:

Why would Anduin get to transcend mortality and become a Naaru? What greatness has this 19 year old boy accomplished to warrant an ascendance not even foreshadowed as possibility?

How is becoming the Arbiter penance? And why would you place someone in that role, that's shown nothing but bad judgement? At best, you'd make her the new Jailer. Besides, her whole story arc has been that she was deceived by her desire to change the system. Now she'd be the one keeping things as it is?

And Blizzard has said nothing on Arthas but wanting to treat the character with respect. Can you imagine the outrage if they suddenly brought him back for no purpose but being the Jailer's second fiddle?

Lastly, what does "merge realities" even mean? It goes in no details about how reality is forever distorted.

Anyway, if this leak is real, I'll make a signature that declares that I was wrong on this, and that my opinions and insights are questionable. That's a promise. I'm that confident it's fake.

[ohwell]

Her claiming any role within the current system of the Shadowlands makes no real sense. Her ideology being wholesale extremely anti-establishment is about the only thing, which has been made clear about her through BfA. Her feeling guilty about stuff is not going to change that. So we're in a similar situation to Genn, where she would likely want no part of it and nobody in their right mind would want her in a position of power within the Shadowlands.


For all we know Zovaal could irreversibly wreck the machinery of death and unravel the ordering, of the First Ones leading to us suddenly discovering new cosmic forces and whatever the hell else.

Eh I mentioned the Accuser as that's not really a position of power in the traditional sense as she herself implied. The Lord Chamberlain turned it into a power position, but to her it was a position of service. The Arbiter is most definitely a position of power as well as one that is held in extremely high regard.

However, I still firmly believe that the intent was or still is to explain that what she and Zovaal did wouldn't matter in the long run in terms of the "atrocities" as the information they hold basically prove they didn't matter and that's why they did what they did. That could change as the story is getting cut short, but it was always implied throughout the story of the expansion that there is something SERIOUSLY wrong with life and death and that they were cyclical.

[MikeBogina]

Anyway, if this leak is real, I'll make a signature that declares that I was wrong on this, and that my opinions and insights are questionable. That's a promise. I'm that confident it's fake.

With how much Blizzard copies the MCU, would it be surprising that some of the plots of the Loki series would inspire Shadowlands?

Sylvanas = Sylvie
merging of realities = Sacred Timeline blowing up
First Ones = Celestials
Eternal Ones = Eternals
Rogue Eternal One Zovaal = Deviant Eternal Thanos(they both really love death)
Sargeras killing all life to save the universe = Thanos Snapping 50%-100% of all life to save the universe

just some observations, but i do think that image is fake. It's soooooooo bad.

And Blizzard has said nothing on Arthas but wanting to treat the character with respect. Can you imagine the outrage if they suddenly brought him back for no purpose but being the Jailer's second fiddle?

Like that hasn't stopped them from taking everything we loved about Arthas and giving it to Anduin , in an attempt to make Anduin "Beloved by the players". Only way i see them bringing Arthas back is to sacrifice him to save Anduin.

[Civciv]

With how much Blizzard copies the MCU, would it be surprising that some of the plots of the Loki series would inspire Shadowlands?

Sylvanas = Sylvie
merging of realities = Sacred Timeline blowing up
First Ones = Celestials
Eternal Ones = Eternals
Rogue Eternal One Zovaal = Deviant Eternal Thanos(they both really love death)
Sargeras killing all life to save the universe = Thanos Snapping 50%-100% of all life to save the universe

just some observations, but i do think that image is fake. It's soooooooo bad.


Like that hasn't stopped them from taking everything we loved about Arthas and giving it to Anduin , in an attempt to make Anduin "Beloved by the players". Only way i see them bringing Arthas back is to sacrifice him to save Anduin.

Yeah I agree. After watching Eternals, Shadowlands seems strangely similar to MCU Storyline.

[Progenitor Aquarius]

this sucks SO MUCH MORE than what i imagined, it might just be real.
everything in there sounds exactly like stuff blizz would actually shit out these days

It is fake. Automa is not one person but whole population so this is how this fails.

[sighy]

Eh I mentioned the Accuser as that's not really a position of power in the traditional sense as she herself implied. The Lord Chamberlain turned it into a power position, but to her it was a position of service. The Arbiter is most definitely a position of power as well as one that is held in extremely high regard.

However, I still firmly believe that the intent was or still is to explain that what she and Zovaal did wouldn't matter in the long run in terms of the "atrocities" as the information they hold basically prove they didn't matter and that's why they did what they did. That could change as the story is getting cut short, but it was always implied throughout the story of the expansion that there is something SERIOUSLY wrong with life and death and that they were cyclical.

This really depends on the nature of the McGuffin Zovaal is looking for within the Sepulcher of the First Ones and what it actually does. Because Blizzard made the whole plot of two expansions hinge on it and are refusing to give us any real information on it. And if they sought to basically remake reality then stuff like Teldrassil would really just not matter, on that scale.

That said it'S not really elaborated upon what Life/Death were before the First Ones or what the First Ones did to them so who knows?

[Zers Editor]

May as well repeat myself here: there will be no "redemption" for her.

If the Jailer hadn't given her half of her soul back, maybe she could still have it. But if we are to believe what we saw with Uther in 9.1, her personality will most likely be "remade". She will "realize" how selfish her actions were, understand Tyranda's position and reject her "anti-establishment" thing.

She will either sacrifice herself to save Anduin, or she will begin to serve as the new Arbiter (no one will let her do anything on her own; the Jailer was put away for that, and he could only escape because he was a titan++ with an army of subordinates).

Besides, her whole story arc has been that she was deceived by her desire to change the system. Now she'd be the one keeping things as it is?

That'd be quite ironic, wouldn't it?

[ro9ue]

My dad's grandmother's dog's goldfish works for Blizzard and here's what really happens:

- Azeroth is "Zereth Vita".
- "Reality" is a construct of life and death, and as such you need the keys from both Zereth Mortis and Zereth Vita to rewrite reality, like the two key activation codes for a nuclear weapon. This is the reason why the Jailer wanted Sylvanas to open the gate from Azeroth to the Shadowlands, he still needs to get the 2nd key.
- During the final encounters, split souls merge, people get clearer vision. Illidan comes back and consumes a skull. Everyone is on the same page when we track the Jailer to Azeroth. He will be defeated but the main characters are given a chance to "rewrite" some past mistakes. Draenor with Thrall, Sylvanas and Teldrassil, etc.
- This "fix" still causes a bunch of fucked up problems with timelines. And rewriting out AU Draenor causes that world to start collapsing, forcing Yrel into our main Azeroth through the Everbloom portal in Stormwind.
- Yrel, a commander of massive light army is welcomed with open arms by Turalyon and given command of Stormwind.

[Gloriandus]

Same guy, on Twitter: https://twitter.com/vk55343/status/1461218761328017410

[Varodoc]

Fake leak, 10.0 isn't coming out in 2023.

Fake leak, expansion sales are the main source of revenue for Blizzard, they're not delaying an expansion. Fake leak. 10.0 will be out by the end of 2022.

[Zers Editor]

Again, I really doubt Blizzard would be trusted with a budget that would allow something as big as this nowadays.

[Myradin]

Does he post his fake leaks with fanart and such to try and lead them more credence? lol

[Zers Editor]

Fake leak, 10.0 isn't coming out in 2023.

Fake leak, expansion sales are the main source of revenue for Blizzard, they're not delaying an expansion. Fake leak. 10.0 will be out by the end of 2022.

Yeah, current Activision-pressured Blizzard delaying the expansion to THIS degree in the game's current state, sure...

They're many things, but they're not suicidal.

[Aresk]

Anduin transcending into a Naaru is improbable, since recently (by that I mean, since Legion) the Naaru have gotten nothing but NEGATIVE spotlight from Blizzard. Xe'ra is shown as a complete fanatic, willing to mentally and physically abuse someone; though admittedly it was for the greater good of the Cosmos.

The AU Xe'ra, or whoever the "Light Mother" is, has sent visions to Yrel, visions of the Golden Army marching across countless worlds, thereby serving as catalyst for the creation of the Lightbound, the fanatical army that has conquered Draenor and subjugated everyone into the faith of the Light.

So the point here is that it would be surprising if Anduin, the golden child, Mr. "I stand against toxic masculinity", were to become a Naaru. Since the Naaru have been shown negatively for years now. And sure there are kind Naaru like A'dal, but really what has he done since TBC? Nothing.

The idea that Genn becomes "King of the Eastern Kingdoms" is laughable. 1) The title doesn't exist 2) He's one of the weakest kings, king of a cursed people that lost their home 3) Turalyon would be the logical "ruler of the EK", as the Regent of Stormwind and the entire Alliance, which is obviously the most powerful force on the continent 4) Genn has a bad history with the Alliance due to leaving them after the Second War, while Turalyon is a war hero and legend of the Alliance, the one who rallied the Seven Kingdoms into an alliance and led the reclamation of Stormwind.

Not a very credible leak at all.

I question your bias about the naaru, given that Z'rali has been supporting our efforts in Revendreth and was helpful in imprisoning Denathrius for as long as we did. That's hardly a negative spotlight. Saara's actions in Before the Storm aren't portrayed negatively either, and while I haven't played a priest through Legion, I assume they were positively portrayed throughout the questline there. Even void naaru like L'ura are not portrayed as villains but tragic martyrs who sacrificed themselves for the good of others, now driven insane and needing to be destroyed. Outside of Xe'ra, the Light Mother, and arguably K'ure, the naaru have overall been presented as a positive aspect of the setting from TBC through present, much to my chagrin.

Also, A'dal's last in-game actions were in WotLK. Practically just as long ago as TBC, but he did show up in the Bradenbraid questline to save a lone paladin.

[Tanaria]

More faceless robot things doing more faceless robot crap.

that's 9.2's lore in a nutshell.

[OCoyne]

Not sure if Spoilers are allowed in the thread so I'll just tag just incase

Proto-Denathrius is in the 9.2 datamined files. He's looking his normal self except in armour very similar to our tier sets, the file is named Proto Denathrius

Magni is back also, with Azerite essences inside the raid

The lore of the patch looks to be pointing towards Zovaal going after Azeroth using something (Sargaras' sword perhaps?) to connect his current location to Azeroth

[Powerogue]

Sylvanas becoming the Arbiter would be the most baffling thing for me so I'm not sure why it's so popular as a fan theory. She's defined by selfish choices that hurt others as a villain-we-share-common-enemies-with since WC3. An impartial judge she aint.

I do believe the notion we'll see Arthas in some form or another, such as the soul crystal in Anduin's sword. They've been nodding Anduin/Arthas parallels for years.

[OCoyne]

This is wild speculation

But does Zovaal dominate the entire Shadowlands? Or is he just making clones of everything possible?

Boss raid icons are up on MMO so don't have to spoiler tag

Proto Denathrius
Proto Archon
Proto Primus
Proto Winter Queen

[dope_danny]

I'm totally expecting Sylvanas to become the new arbiter because stevie needs his wife to be the megaredeemed protagonist of the story but that would still be better than this shit doing the rounds: