Official High Elf Discussion Megathread

[Varodoc]

Why not Maldraxxus? It is not particularly primitive or savage - they seem to have fairly advanced military technology and I'd say most of the smartest people in the Shadowlands (I.E. The Primus, Kel'Thuzad) end up there. I'd say most Void Elves are far more fitting for the House of Rituals than anywhere else. If anything, Maldraxxus being all about ambition at any cost seems very much like something the Void Elves, especially Umbric or Alleria, would fit with.

Everything about Maldraxxus is green.

Everything about the Void elves is purple and blue.

That is why they do not fit.

[Kyriani]

Everything about Maldraxxus is green.

Everything about the Void elves is purple and blue.

That is why they do not fit.

With the exception of leather (which doesnt look good on any race IMO), I think void elves with the right hair and eye color choices can pull together a fairly cohesive look with the necrolord/maldraxxus stuff.

[AOL Instant Messenger]

Everything about Maldraxxus is green.

Everything about the Void elves is purple and blue.

That is why they do not fit.

I wouldn't say color scheme is enough to abandon the whole relation. Lorewise, it's certainly a fitting choice because it focuses on people who are ambitious and, for the most part, unlimited in said ambitions.

[Varodoc]

It's too bone-y, the Ren'dorei are not connected thematically to bones, or egyptian architecture, or skulls, or skeletons, or undead, or war-like gladiatorial fights, or excessive brawns, etc.

Until there's a Void covenant, the Shadowlands will always feel alien to the Ren'dorei.

Thematic and aesthetic connections are the most important aspects. If we go by narrative alone, Bastion also fits the Ren'dorei since the Kyrians are strong-willed and devoted to their cause, yet do the Ren'dorei fit thematically and aesthetically in Bastion?

Do not answer, it's a rhetorical question.

[Narwhalosh Whalescream]

Still talking about high elves? Didn't void elves and blood elves get their blue eyes?

[Thalassian Bob]

Still talking about high elves? Didn't void elves and blood elves get their blue eyes?

We're all high elves now!

[AOL Instant Messenger]

It's too bone-y, the Ren'dorei are not connected thematically to bones, or egyptian architecture, or skulls, or skeletons, or undead, or war-like gladiatorial fights, or excessive brawns, etc.

Until there's a Void covenant, the Shadowlands will always feel alien to the Ren'dorei.

Thematic and aesthetic connections are the most important aspects. If we go by narrative alone, Bastion also fits the Ren'dorei since the Kyrians are strong-willed and devoted to their cause, yet do the Ren'dorei fit thematically and aesthetically in Bastion?

Do not answer, it's a rhetorical question.

I suppose it's really less about any existing race, though. It's supposed to be alien to just about any race - only some of the base races really match up well. I think that's supposed to be deliberate. You're not on Azeroth anymore, and your former identity doesn't matter much when you're quite literally dead. There's a huge emphasis on how death is not an end, but a new beginning, so wouldn't it be kind of cheap in that regard if every race was given a specific afterlife and the Shadowlands was just Azeroth but more dead?

I personally think it should be more of a personality thing at the end of things. Making it about race would be a little awkward if it's all about a machine of death where everything plays a role.

[Alanar]

We're all high elves now!

Weren't we always? >.>

[Varodoc]

I suppose it's really less about any existing race, though. It's supposed to be alien to just about any race - only some of the base races really match up well. I think that's supposed to be deliberate. You're not on Azeroth anymore, and your former identity doesn't matter much when you're quite literally dead. There's a huge emphasis on how death is not an end, but a new beginning, so wouldn't it be kind of cheap in that regard if every race was given a specific afterlife and the Shadowlands was just Azeroth but more dead?

I personally think it should be more of a personality thing at the end of things. Making it about race would be a little awkward if it's all about a machine of death where everything plays a role.

I'm sure Night elf players are having a lot of fun in Ardenweald. That place is literally Teldrassil 2.0, the campaign is even about the fate of the Teldrassil souls.

Same thing with the DK/Undead players and Maldraxxus.

Or the Blood elf players and Revendreth.

Or the Human/Draenei players and Bastion.

Some of these covenants really do feel tailored with a specific race in mind. Does Ardenweald really feel alien to NE players? Or Maldraxxus to Undead players?

Regardless I knew from the beginning that Shadowlands would feel too out of place for me, as a Void elf main. That's fine. I'm obviously not expecting Blizzard to come up with 10+ different Covenants. I just accepted that, and am waiting patiently for 10.0.

[AOL Instant Messenger]

I'm sure Night elf players are having a lot of fun in Ardenweald. That place is literally Teldrassil 2.0, the campaign is even about the fate of the Teldrassil souls.

Same thing with the DK/Undead players and Maldraxxus.

Or the Blood elf players and Revendreth.

Or the Human/Draenei players and Bastion.

Some of these covenants really do feel tailored with a specific race in mind. Does Ardenweald really feel alien to NE players? Or Maldraxxus to Undead players?

Regardless I knew from the beginning that Shadowlands would feel too out of place for me, as a Void elf main. That's fine. I'm obviously not expecting Blizzard to come up with 10+ different Covenants. I just accepted that, and am waiting patiently for 10.0.

Of course they fit - see my comment about a few of the base races. But it's not just about aesthetics and familiarity for some of them - Draka and Vashj are both in Maldraxxus despite having no connection to the Undead, and fit by virtue of their personalities. Similarly, Bastion is quite alien to the Draenic aesthetic, but Draenei characters fit in there (though I would argue some Lightforged are actually better fit for Maldraxxus). Revendreth does have a major Blood Elven bent, but that's primarily exemplified only through Kael'Thas.

Revendreth accentuates the lack of role race has in it. Garrosh, who definitely stands out against the aesthetic, was briefly shown to be there, and the sinstones describe various races from different planets. Ardenweald is for most Night Elves because of their nature theme, but it also fits Tauren and Trolls (through the Loa - De Other Side is closely connected to Ardenweald and accessible from there) despite lacking the aesthetic similarity.

Aesthetics is secondary to the actual lore. It's good to think about the other traits of your Void Elf character, since you definitely seem to lean toward roleplay and probably imagine such things often. What defines them? A character that went to use the Void because of ambition would likely be sent to Maldraxxus, while one who thinks themselves superior or tries to use it to bend others to their will may be sent to Revendreth instead. A selfless Void Elf could even be given a case, as a Void Elf could have taken the leap to join Umbric's group in interest of defending Silvermoon - if their loyalty to Silvermoon were more than merely to the material elements of the kingdom and to the idea of it, they would likely be sent to Bastion.

The only Covenants that really fit a race are Maldraxxus and Undead and Ardenweald and Night Elves, but they're not really exclusive at all. There are Night Elven sinstones in Revendreth. Individuals exist within various races and have different personalities, and showing a race as a set of identical individuals is a boring way of going about it. Thrall or Garrosh would be sent to different afterlives because they're different kinds of Orc, while Uther and Alexandros, both Paladins, go to different places because they drew their inspiration from different things. Even if a Paladin doesn't fit Maldraxxus, we see Alexandros there as a Paladin and not a Death Knight because his Paladinhood was directly connected to what made him fit for Maldraxxus. Same with Vashj, who is a Naga and thus not really the same aesthetic or even theme as anything in Maldraxxus but has the right personality.

The design philosophy of most areas was even meant to be "alien, but familiar", drawing from existing themes but making them more broad and transcendent. Just because something doesn't fit with the surface themes doesn't mean they don't fit overall - if that were the case, Blood Elves wouldn't be Horde. They're humanlike and look nothing like any of the Horde races, and are arcane in a faction that was originally shamanistic - but, since they're survivors and back when they were introduced had little legitimacy and were outcast by other races, they truly fit the Horde more than the Alliance.

[ravenmoon]

I'm sure Night elf players are having a lot of fun in Ardenweald. That place is literally Teldrassil 2.0, the campaign is even about the fate of the Teldrassil souls.

Reminded me when I did Broken isles, it felt like NElf Kalimdor 2.0 but with all the history, the places out of the WotA book, plus some new ones like Highmountain.. it reallyfeltl ike the land of the ancients, in a much better way than Kalimdor main came across.

Yeah, Suramar was perfect, it felt lieka night city, the Darnassus upgrade, or rather how Darnassus shoudl ahve been like.

now Ardenwelad has that feel of how a night forest should have been.

[FossilFree]

Reminded me when I did Broken isles, it felt like NElf Kalimdor 2.0 but with all the history, the places out of the WotA book, plus some new ones like Highmountain.. it reallyfeltl ike the land of the ancients, in a much better way than Kalimdor main came across.

Yeah, Suramar was perfect, it felt lieka night city, the Darnassus upgrade, or rather how Darnassus shoudl ahve been like.

now Ardenwelad has that feel of how a night forest should have been.

The tree landform assets they created for Ardenweald prove to me that they have the ability to create a really cool new tree city for Night Elves. Maybe the core of Teldrassil is still alive, like in the ending cinematic for WC3, where Nordrassil suffered the explosion of Archimonde. Right after that, we see the tree grow new roots, implying that it survived (which of course it did, as we see in game today).

I'd like to see a modern take on a rebuilt Darnassus that actually matches the concept art finally, since the vanilla and Cata ones were both just big stumps.

[Eleann]

The tree landform assets they created for Ardenweald prove to me that they have the ability to create a really cool new tree city for Night Elves. Maybe the core of Teldrassil is still alive, like in the ending cinematic for WC3, where Nordrassil suffered the explosion of Archimonde. Right after that, we see the tree grow new roots, implying that it survived (which of course it did, as we see in game today).

I'd like to see a modern take on a rebuilt Darnassus that actually matches the concept art finally, since the vanilla and Cata ones were both just big stumps.

You know what? This is an amazing idea! A modern, rebuilt, high-end Darnassus, with its temples of Elune, its crystal clear lakes and running fountains, swans and tigers all over the place, and large trees in the middle with a small dreamlike garden. Oh, the dream!

- - - Updated - - -

Regardless I knew from the beginning that Shadowlands would feel too out of place for me, as a Void elf main. That's fine. I'm obviously not expecting Blizzard to come up with 10+ different Covenants. I just accepted that, and am waiting patiently for 10.0.

They really need to delve deep into the Void for 10.0, I can imagine the Void expansion being a really frigging badass place if Blizzard plays its cards correctly. I can imagine dark zones with starry skies and voidy trees and environment, pitch black caves that can be explored using fireflies and what not, and ofcourse a big capital shared between Void elves and High elves in Telogrus, as well as Void themed fortresses for both Alliance and horde just like it happened in Pandaria.

[MyWholeLifeIsThunder]

Still talking about high elves? Didn't void elves and blood elves get their blue eyes?

Talk about High Elves? In the High Elven Megathread? More likely than you think!

[FossilFree]

You know what? This is an amazing idea! A modern, rebuilt, high-end Darnassus, with its temples of Elune, its crystal clear lakes and running fountains, swans and tigers all over the place, and large trees in the middle with a small dreamlike garden. Oh, the dream!

Imagine if it actually looked like this!

[Pregnant Orc]

Imagine if it actually looked like this!

If not for how it would clash horrendously with the other maps scale it could hold en entire expansion on its own. Would be pretty hard to work in the Horde though unless it's another "faction war expansion (honestly we promise this time)" sort of deal. Though in the end we'd learn that it's not actually a world tree but an old god tentacle with some plant growth covering it and we'd have to burn it again

[Narwhalosh Whalescream]

Talk about High Elves? In the High Elven Megathread? More likely than you think!

So did we get high elves to our satisfaction or?

[Kyriani]

So did we get high elves to our satisfaction or?

I think the answer to that will vary depending on who you ask.

Some players are satisfied with Void Elves as the Alliance High Elves now that they can have the full range of normal human skin tones.

Some players still want normal human hair colors and hairstyles to complete the High Elf aesthetic (I'm sort of in this camp since I really want black as a hair color option but that has nothing to do with High Elves for me).

Some players still want more in-game lore showing and explaining how and why the High Elves are joining up with the Ren'dorei (I'm strongly in this camp - I like the concept of Void Elves as the way forward for the Alliance High Elves, but the lore is lacking currently).

Some players will never be satisfied until the racial tag says "High Elf" or "Quel'dorei" and they can be Paladins.

So for me, the answer is... "almost". We're very close to what I personally feel is a satisfying answer to the High Elf request.

In regards to High Elves specifically, I feel like, outside of the Silver Covenant, the Alliance High Elves have stagnated for years as far as story advancement goes. I believe that Void Elves can be the future of the High Elves, but there needs to be in-game story elements showing and telling us about this development, what drew them to the Ren'dorei, and how they are acquiring their powers (we still don't know how new recruits are becoming Void Elves).

Aesthetically, all that's really needed to finish the "High Elf Look", is to add a few hair color options in the human range of hair colors (yes that includes blonde, though my personal want is black), and a toggle for the hair tentacles so they can be turned on or off (or replaced with braids as some would prefer). More options in general are always desirable regardless of what "theme" they might trend towards though.

I personally don't feel like the Paladin class is essential to Alliance High Elves, though others may disagree. There's also the lore conflicts of that being possible unless Blizzard decides to just throw lore out the window for gameplay's sake, or make new lore explaining how it's possible. The most important thing to me however, is that Void Elves have their lore expanded so we understand essential things about them as a people going forward, and how they are the future of the Alliance High Elves (and defecting Horde Blood Elves as indicated from the Silvermoon Scholar NPC's in Telogrus).

[AOL Instant Messenger]

I think the answer to that will vary depending on who you ask.

Some players are satisfied with Void Elves as the Alliance High Elves now that they can have the full range of normal human skin tones.

Some players still want normal human hair colors and hairstyles to complete the High Elf aesthetic (I'm sort of in this camp since I really want black as a hair color option but that has nothing to do with High Elves for me).

Some players still want more in-game lore showing and explaining how and why the High Elves are joining up with the Ren'dorei (I'm strongly in this camp - I like the concept of Void Elves as the way forward for the Alliance High Elves, but the lore is lacking currently).

Some players will never be satisfied until the racial tag says "High Elf" or "Quel'dorei" and they can be Paladins.

So for me, the answer is... "almost". We're very close to what I personally feel is a satisfying answer to the High Elf request.

In regards to High Elves specifically, I feel like, outside of the Silver Covenant, the Alliance High Elves have stagnated for years as far as story advancement goes. I believe that Void Elves can be future of the High Elves, but there needs to be in-game story elements showing and telling us about this development, what drew them to the Ren'dorei, and how they are acquiring their powers (we still don't know how new recruits are becoming Void Elves).

Aesthetically, all that's really needed to finish the "High Elf Look", is to add a few hair color options in the human range of hair colors (yes that includes blonde, though my personal want is black), and a toggle for the hair tentacles so they can be turned on or off (or replaced with braids as some would prefer). More options in general are always desirable regardless of what "theme" they might trend towards though.

I personally don't feel like the Paladin class is essential to Alliance High Elves, though others may disagree. There's also the lore conflicts of that being possible unless Blizzard decides to just throw lore out the window for gameplay's sake, or make new lore explaining how it's possible. The most important thing to me however, is that Void Elves have their lore expanded so we understand essential things about them as a people going forward, and how they are the future of the Alliance High Elves (and defecting Horde Blood Elves as indicated from the Silvermoon Scholar NPC's in Telogrus).

I wouldn't say High Elf Paladins have ever been particularly iconic - in fact, the idea of Elves as paladins came in to existence with the Blood Knights in TBC, when previously the High Elves were only ever shown to be Priests. Although there were some in the Silver Hand, Mehlar was the only known High Elf in the Silver Hand at the time. Historically, the themes of High Elves have been mages, farstriders, and priests. Paladins are distinctly Blood Elven in nature.

[Frenchvince]

There are people who just want to be a void elf like Alleria (I'm one of them).

I would mainly need these 3 customization options, which would remain unique to the void elves:

- new natural hair colors
- new hairstyles "less octopus"
- a "with or without tentacles" toggle option for all hairstyles

I don't want to copy / paste blood elf hair customizations.

We come in peace ...