Dragonflight Alpha/Beta General Discussion

[Aucald]

Look, you want to excuse poor writing because they added a cheap McGuffin instead of actually showing the Aspects doing something for Azeroth (and not for themselves, their house and their flights). Have fun. Like the first zone has us reempower the Ruby lifestone yet the one who actually pulls all the work is not even Alex, it's Sabellian.

I'm actually saying it's not "poor writing," as it's exceedingly early to really make that pronouncement in my opinion. The idea of Oathstones is consistent, and the mechanism within RPG-type video games is pretty common. Whether or not the story element is done well within the greater story arc remains to be seen - you appear to have come to what I'd say is a pretty hasty prejudgment, though.

[Hitei]

Eh this is just seeing a pattern and calling it logical just because it is a pattern. We HAVE seen what it takes to empower an Aspect, at no point did the Blue flight need the Azure Oathstone to do it. It doesn't even seem like the Oathstones, like the Pillars or the Sigils, are the center of the story, they just happen to be around.

The Blue flight didn't attempt their empowerment after the power of the Aspect was exhausted killing Deathwing.

[Makabreska]

I came to realize how random Malygos going evil in WotLK was, and how wasteful, on top of that. He got like the shortest end of the stick from all the Aspects in terms of development.

[Foreign Exchange Ztudent]

I mean Domain of Magic.. Magic kind of fucked everything in your life.. Said Magic was abused by Mortals and Immortals.. You snap and wage war against those you believe fucked your life up and then you die because Plot Armor heroes show up when they activate cocaine magic concentrator.

To be honest if anything the fact he didn't snap sooner is actually more impressive.

(Also since Shadow Wing is recanonized, there's a reason why he didn't snap sooner.)

[Villager720]

I mean Domain of Magic.. Magic kind of fucked everything in your life.. Said Magic was abused by Mortals and Immortals.. You snap and wage war against those you believe fucked your life up and then you die because Plot Armor heroes show up when they activate cocaine magic concentrator.

To be honest if anything the fact he didn't snap sooner is actually more impressive.

(Also since Shadow Wing is recanonized, there's a reason why he didn't snap sooner.)

Yeah, to be honest he wasn’t wrong. Mortals using magic often fees like it causes more problems than it fixes.

[Nymrohd]

Yeah, to be honest he wasn’t wrong. Mortals using magic often fees like it causes more problems than it fixes.

It's not like Dragons using magic are any better though. He wasn't fixing anything.

[Kiivar86]

It's not like Dragons using magic are any better though. He wasn't fixing anything.

Wasn't he kind of though by the end of his life? Something about realigning leylines, as I recall.

Though as I also recall it would've been bad for the world in general so...

[Nymrohd]

Wasn't he kind of though by the end of his life? Something about realigning leylines, as I recall.

Though as I also recall it would've been bad for the world in general so...

Given leylines seem to be Azeroth's literal veins, I am not sure what he was doing was good for the planet. I think it was a waste, in the same way they wasted so many big names in TBC and turned them villains just so they could have a raid. He did not even get a proper raid; just quests in a couple of zones, a dungeon no one wanted to do and a solo boss raid . . .

[Raetary]

Wasn't he kind of though by the end of his life? Something about realigning leylines, as I recall.

Rerouting ley lines to the Nexus so he can yeet all magic into space.
Basically a planet sized flare gun alerting anyone and anything that could potentially come and harm Azeroth.

His plan would've left Azeroth completely defenseless and who knows what that would've done to all the life on Azeroth, especially all the species and areas that are directly dependant on it.
Yogg was almost free at the time and we already knew the Legion was gonna return at some point, so either of those forces would've just taken over the planet.

[Cheezits]

Stupid Cata writing shouldn't have a deep storyline to revoke it. It was always stupid for the Dragons to lose their power/turn sterile (lol) to defeat Deathwing, so I'm amazed there's any attempt at all to bother telling a story about them getting it back.

At least it seems to be resolved in a patch, unlike Shadowlands where the covenant stories took two patches.

[Nebron]

Eh this is just seeing a pattern and calling it logical just because it is a pattern. We HAVE seen what it takes to empower an Aspect, at no point did the Blue flight need the Azure Oathstone to do it. It doesn't even seem like the Oathstones, like the Pillars or the Sigils, are the center of the story, they just happen to be around.

Couldn't agree more. The general idea of an artifact that holds immense power, needs to be collected before the bad guys take it, that later serves as some sort of a key to defeat the final villian feels to some degree lame and definitely uninspired.

This is literally the very first thing that comes to mind, hence I'm not surprised that your fan-fics from your teenage years resolved around that theme.

You have a goal to achieve - collect it.
You have a challange - bad guys want it to, to do their bad things.
It holds as much power as the scenario requires to fit into the plot neatly.
Artifact is a key factor to defeat the big bad.

It doesn't mean it can't be fun, but imo, you are absolutely right about unattractiveness of such take on storytelling. We had Dragon Soul, Pillars, even Artifact Weapons to some degree, Heart of Azeroth, Sigils, now it's Oathstones... yeah.

[Aeluron Lightsong]

Couldn't agree more. The general idea of an artifact that holds immense power, needs to be collected before the bad guys take it, that later serves as some sort of a key to defeat the final villian feels to some degree lame and definitely uninspired.

This is literally the very first thing that comes to mind, hence I'm not surprised that your fan-fics from your teenage years resolved around that theme.

You have a goal to achieve - collect it.
You have a challange - bad guys want it to, to do their bad things.
It holds as much power as the scenario requires to fit into the plot neatly.
Artifact is a key factor to defeat the big bad.

It doesn't mean it can't be fun, but imo, you are absolutely right about unattractiveness of such take on storytelling. We had Dragon Soul, Pillars, even Artifact Weapons to some degree, Heart of Azeroth, Sigils, now it's Oathstones... yeah.

Yeah still not buying it, just seems like more whinging. Somehow the concept of collecting 5- or 7 or whatever things to lead to something big event happening or what not isn't a bad idea. Weather its stones,gems, pillars or whatever.

[Polybius]

I just love reposting this video.

Perfection. I can never forget.

- - - Updated - - -

Stupid Cata writing shouldn't have a deep storyline to revoke it. It was always stupid for the Dragons to lose their power/turn sterile (lol) to defeat Deathwing, so I'm amazed there's any attempt at all to bother telling a story about them getting it back.

At least it seems to be resolved in a patch, unlike Shadowlands where the covenant stories took two patches.

Likely because world-ending threats are gone for now, so the aspects don’t necessarily need their powers. It’s more about retaking the Dragon Isles and finishing those threads they left with Chromatus and Nozdormu.

I hope they continue this post-DF to wrap up and refresh WoW’s old worldbuilding.

[Nebron]

Yeah still not buying it, just seems like more whinging.

Oh, yeah, I kinda forgot that every negative opinion is by default a whinging. Cool then, whatever I guess?

[huth]

Couldn't agree more. The general idea of an artifact that holds immense power, needs to be collected before the bad guys take it, that later serves as some sort of a key to defeat the final villian feels to some degree lame and definitely uninspired.

Meh. It's pretty much impossible to come up with genuinely original basic plotlines. You might as well complain about "hero fights evil, wins".

[Skildar]

I think a simple issue that people will have with Dragonflight is that this is the Aspects story. And if we get too involved in it, it just means that they probably too weak to deserve this power.

It will be quite complicated to justify us having to be there for them when we don't really need these behemoths to gain more power especially when one is doomed to fall into madness and another has always felt superior to humanoid civilisations and toyed with them during mop right after cleansing his own race. Besides the power we are about to restore to them will let them curb the reality as they wish.

I have yet to peak at the scenari that have been already tested and would rather wait for them to hit live servers. But if we do indeed go into this kind of direction, there might be a good part of the story that would have been a better be told in a book rather than in game.

I'm very excited about this expansion but reading here that there will be pillars of creation type of artefacts to fetch in each zones doesn't resonate well with me there, that's not the high fantasy writing I'm pursuing.

[Nymrohd]

I think a simple issue that people will have with Dragonflight is that this is the Aspects story. And if we get too involved in it, it just means that they probably too weak to deserve this power.

It will be quite complicated to justify us having to be there for them when we don't really need these behemoths to gain more power especially when one is doomed to fall into madness and another has always felt superior to humanoid civilisations and toyed with them during mop right after cleansing his own race. Besides the power we are about to restore to them will let them curb the reality as they wish.

I have yet to peak at the scenari that have been already tested and would rather wait for them to hit live servers. But if we do indeed go into this kind of direction, there might be a good part of the story that would have been a better be told in a book rather than in game.

I'm very excited about this expansion but reading here that there will be pillars of creation type of artefacts to fetch in rach zones don't resonate well with me there, that's not the hogh fantasy writing I'm pursuing.

See, I am not sure we are about to restore their power, at least not in the form it used to have. Most of the power of the flights was concentrated on the Aspects. I think Blizzard might move away from that with the Aspects being first among equals; the strongest of their flights but not by far. I.e. the power will be disseminated across the flight.
So I think they will get back their fertility and individuals will all be a bit more powerful than before.

Remember during Cata the Aspects were at FULL strength (since Rhonin destroyed the original Dragon Soul in Day of the Dragon, necessitating the inane time travel plot). They were still not a match for either Chromatus or Deathwing. Getting them to full power does not solve anything if they have to face Chromatus again down the line (Galakrond is by far the weaker threat since he was defeated by five reasonably intelligent proto drakes and Tyr). The solution is not Aspects. It's Dragonflights. Then if a couple go insane we can kill/capture them vs an Aspect going insane and being stronger than their entire flight combined.

[Skildar]

See, I am not sure we are about to restore their power, at least not in the form it used to have. Most of the power of the flights was concentrated on the Aspects. I think Blizzard might move away from that with the Aspects being first among equals; the strongest of their flights but not by far. I.e. the power will be disseminated across the flight.
So I think they will get back their fertility and individuals will all be a bit more powerful than before.

Remember during Cata the Aspects were at FULL strength (since Rhonin destroyed the original Dragon Soul in Day of the Dragon, necessitating the inane time travel plot). They were still not a match for either Chromatus or Deathwing. Getting them to full power does not solve anything if they have to face Chromatus again down the line (Galakrond is by far the weaker threat since he was defeated by five reasonably intelligent proto drakes and Tyr). The solution is not Aspects. It's Dragonflights. Then if a couple go insane we can kill/capture them vs an Aspect going insane and being stronger than their entire flight combined.

You're 100% right, there is no need to empower a single dragon for each flight if there a way to empower the flight as a whole.

[Bsirk]

Anyone else find it funny that the "Age of Mortals" lasted all of 5 years before it goes right back to the age of dragons? lol

[Venziir]

Can I say this thing with the Oathstones feels lazy to me? Every zone is about a flight charging up their oathstone, it's cheap fantasy story.

Doesn't sound that different from finding the four Pillars of Creation in the four Legion zones.