Official High Elf Discussion Megathread

[Sharby]

Gonna just be honest here, if void elves got the Kael'thas orb look and blood elves didn't, I'd be super jealous.

On the heritage armor topic, though, doesn't the Mag'har set change based on your skin tone or something? Am I just imagining that?

Once you unlock it you unlock all 4 tints as well. They're considered individual pieces so you pretty much get 4 full sets of armor to mix and match.

[protip]

Honestly, the Kael'thas orb look would make for a good cloak at this point.

You make a good point. I hardly know anyone who uses actual cloak mogs with all the clipping and awkward animations, but the new covenant pieces are surely just the beginning.

Once you unlock it you unlock all 4 tints as well. They're considered individual pieces so you pretty much get 4 full sets of armor to mix and match.

I think you literally just unlock the various tints and they can be tmogged. Unsure though because I've got Mag'har unlocked but not their heritage armors.

That's cool, I guess that would be the ideal situation for other races, too. Was trying to figure out why I'd always seen the armor tint matching the skin tone, but figures it was just player choice.

[Molvonos]

. Between adding "High Elf" as a race or adding some random leveling quest, likely of similar size as an investment, which do I think would make them more money? The "High Elf" race option hands down.

What would make them money?

You're assuming that it's cheap to make all the graphics involved in a new allied race.

Sure. They could turn around and simply start painting over blood elf textures, or the new void elf textures. But you're also going to have to make heritage armor, weapons, go through and change models.

You're going to have to create new tabards, sigils, spell effects (for racials), spend time thinking about new racials. Then they'd have to create a whole new scenario for their enlistment (and this alone would be the most expensive thing) and the time invested.

To placate what? A few hundred or thousand people (compared to the grand total) who're already paying for subscriptions?

Or they could just do skins, which is infinitely easier and cheaper and placate a large portion of those few hundred.

It's not a very cost effective option.

[Traycor]

ALSO! Looks like it indeed only 'required' sub 1k people to request High Elves and get it granted

What are you referring to here?

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He and tallisin etc have both said alliance now have high elves...they do not get its not just the looks...its the lore, the history, the know high elves we would have liked to see.

High elves are already part of the lore. We have the Silver Covenant, there are high elves walking around in our cities, giving us quests. They are already on the Alliance. All that was missing was the look for players, so if we get that, we have high elves.

[ddi2]

Depends on your definition of 'playable', I guess.

[DeicideUH]

High elves are already part of the lore. We have the Silver Covenant, there are high elves walking around in our cities, giving us quests. They are already on the Alliance. All that was missing was the look for players, so if we get that, we have high elves.

This. The simple fact that they are now "playable" increases the chance of there being storylines featuring them in the future.

Blizzard purposely hid the high elves in BfA because they wanted to sell their new toy, void elves. If high elves weren't "threatening" to void elves, then they'd probably would had appeared more. They are no longer such a "threat". Blizzard has no reason to downplay their roles anymore.

[ddi2]

Blizzard purposely hid the high elves in BfA because they wanted to sell their new toy, void elves. If high elves weren't "threatening" to void elves, then they'd probably would had appeared more. They are no longer such a "threat". Blizzard has no reason to downplay their roles anymore.

I think it's a bit naive to think that Blizzard tried to 'hide' High Elves to give Void Elves spotlight. If Blizzard actually wanted to implement High Elves back then, they would have given us High Elves back then and we would have never heard about this thing called 'Void Elves'.

[Oswen]

I think the Alliance just needs Broken Draenei aswell to be made playable to feel "complete" before moving onto more exotic options, possibly Furbolgs and Frost Dwarves aswell.
On the other hand the Horde really needs to get Forest Trolls, Dragonmaw Orcs, Taunka, Ogres and Mok'Nathal at some point, their omission after all these years is a bit sad.

[Thalassian Bob]

Yeah, who knows. But one thing is sure: They would still not call themselves High elves if that was the case, since bearing the name Blood elf is a badge of honor and refusing it is kinda disrespectful, maybe this also point out at almost anyone called High elf to not want to return given the fact, but well.

It has been stated that the blue eyes were given as a last minute decision of some sorts, so very shortly from the announcement, these were labeled as nonsensical, so I'm curious to see what's the rationale for it, if there's any.

Maybe Blood elves who were outside Quel'thalas, maybe it's the fel fading off, maybe they just clarify if it's their natural color or not instead of assuming that these are like that because of the arcane (I theorize this because I haven't found a source that simply states this, so it's easy to assume that people just assumed these were blue because of the arcane, instead of just being simply a natural color, like almost any other race).

You're right that any Quel'dorei returning home post-Sunwell reclamation would very likely adopt the "blood elf" nomenclature out of respect for the fallen like the rest of the more conventional Sin'dorei we think of (those who were present for the reclamation and were exposed to the fel crystals in some capacity).

I'm actually hoping they don't give us any explanation and leave it up to us players to come up with our own stories for why our characters look the way they do (with people hopefully trying to use established lore to back up their explanations).

I had been saying since their introduction that void elves could be of Quel'dorei origin and now, with the revelation of their new customisation options, people in this thread are accepting that conjecture. Especially after Taliesin's video using the same evidence which I used - the high elf wayfarers (and I also cite the high elf sorceresses walking around Stormwind with void elves).

I think on the blood elven side, the different shades of eye colours tell enough of a story without Blizzard having to spell anything out. The standard green eyes that we have already are probably for the average citizen who spent considerable time in Silvermoon during the reclamation. Then, some of the other shades of green that are being added actually existed on the old model with certain faces - the angry face had the very fel green eyes which probably belong to warlocks (who still use fel energy today), one of kinder faces had the teal eyes that probably would belong to the likes of Halduron or Lor'themar - people who were exposed to fel but probably didn't need it very much - or it might belong to people who did actively use it but stopped after they were more healthy and their eyes are becoming blue again. And, finally, blue could belong to Quel'dorei who became blood elves later, farstriders who were stationed in places like the Ghostlands or the Farstrder Retreat or mages who regularly wield arcane energy.

The less Blizzard tell us explicitly, the more we can imagine for ourselves.

Umbrithas Voidreaver looking good right there

Thanks! Voidreaver is a kickass surname! I did take inspiration from Aethas actually! Thinking I could maybe make his Silver Covenant/void elf foil... Glad that comes across! His name is Ealfric actually, trying to go with the -ic ending names of high elves like Auric and Umbric. I find it interesting that that seems to be a naming convention with high elves but not blood elves, particularly because -ic suffixed names are typical of the Anglo-Saxons. A group one wouldn't usually associate with inspiration for elves!

[Soon-TM]

Always wanted Broken since Warcraft 3.

For some reason, I remembered the pre-BC hype, when everyone in the forums back then thought that belfs were going to go to the Ally, while Horde would be getting Ogres or Broken. Talk about plot twists lol... At all rates, I'm glad that allies are finally getting their own copy of belfs, maybe that will appease their entitlement for a while

[FlubberPuddy]

What are you referring to here?

It's a reference to when Obelisk Kai and others would say the observable numbers of High Elf requesters pales to those who requested Classic WoW servers and thus equating the consistent asking of Classic WoW servers to the consistent asking of High Elves was comparing apples to oranges.

That is, because the observable numbers of High Elf requesters never 'appeared' to go above 1k, there's a minority only asking for High Elves. Contrasted with the amount of players that asked for Classic, where there were over 300,000 signatures pledged for it.

My comment there is to show that Obelisk Kai and others were wrong to state that. It never required say 100,000 people to ask for High Elves, because the request in itself is a much simpler task than rebooting a 15 year old state of the game.

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This. The simple fact that they are now "playable" increases the chance of there being storylines featuring them in the future.

Blizzard purposely hid the high elves in BfA because they wanted to sell their new toy, void elves. If high elves weren't "threatening" to void elves, then they'd probably would had appeared more. They are no longer such a "threat". Blizzard has no reason to downplay their roles anymore.

I agree. Now they're MORE likely to show many High Elves among the Alliance and have them be more involved since they're now supported playable options.

I forgot about that aspect, that's going to be really nice to see so many of them around. It will also kill the 'High Elves population is too low' once and for all (to any it hasn't already).

High Elf fans just keep on winning and the future looks more hopeful!

[Trumpcat]

What I think is that the next step should be to lift class/race restrictions, except for extreme cases like midget Demon Hunters.

[rhorle]

Broken Draenei need to happen and then it would be complete. I'd wanted light forged to be a quest customization with the allied race the broken. Even more so given how Blizzard turned Alt Draenor into a cult take over.

[shoc]

What I think is that the next step should be to lift class/race restrictions, except for extreme cases like midget Demon Hunters.

Would be a cool way to add Fel Orcs, Feltotem Tauren, Man'ari Eredar in a way that makes sense.

[Broflake]

It's a reference to when Obelisk Kai and others would say the observable numbers of High Elf requesters pales to those who requested Classic WoW servers and thus equating the consistent asking of Classic WoW servers to the consistent asking of High Elves was comparing apples to oranges.

That is, because the observable numbers of High Elf requesters never 'appeared' to go above 1k, there's a minority only asking for High Elves. Contrasted with the amount of players that asked for Classic, where there were over 300,000 signatures pledged for it.

My comment there is to show that Obelisk Kai and others were wrong to state that. It never required say 100,000 people to ask for High Elves, because the request in itself is a much simpler task than rebooting a 15 year old state of the game.!

If for 15 years they don't do something, and then choose for other reasons to do it now, that doesn't render the past 15 years wrong.
It just means there were new factors that werent there before.
Classic didn't get meaningful consideration until the pirate servers popped up.
Same for Classic.

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Would be a cool way to add Fel Orcs, Feltotem Tauren, Man'ari Eredar in a way that makes sense.

Would it? I mean...all thoe are enemies that we killed off didnt we?

[Traveler Voltin]

What I think is that the next step should be to lift class/race restrictions, except for extreme cases like midget Demon Hunters.

how about no.
typical keep demanding after you got what you want.

[Yarathir]

I think the Alliance just needs Broken Draenei aswell to be made playable to feel "complete" before moving onto more exotic options, possibly Furbolgs and Frost Dwarves aswell.
On the other hand the Horde really needs to get Forest Trolls, Dragonmaw Orcs, Taunka, Ogres and Mok'Nathal at some point, their omission after all these years is a bit sad.

Mok'nathal and Broken would be a good fit together.

Forest Trolls is a difficult one. If Wildhammer were an allied race, I'd put those two together.

I'd put Ogres with Arakkoa. Though I'm sure people would disagree with me there, because that would make Ogres the Gorian type by default (you can RP them however you want, ofc), and a lot seem to dislike those.

[DeicideUH]

Mok'nathal and Broken would be a good fit together.

Forest Trolls is a difficult one. If Wildhammer were an allied race, I'd put those two together.

I'd put Ogres with Arakkoa. Though I'm sure people would disagree with me there, because that would make Ogres the Gorian type by default (you can RP them however you want, ofc), and a lot seem to dislike those.

The goalposts have moved, I want ogres and broken next.

[FossilFree]

Mok'nathal and Broken would be a good fit together.

Forest Trolls is a difficult one. If Wildhammer were an allied race, I'd put those two together.

I'd put Ogres with Arakkoa. Though I'm sure people would disagree with me there, because that would make Ogres the Gorian type by default (you can RP them however you want, ofc), and a lot seem to dislike those.

Gorian Ogres (or High Ogres as they are also known) would probably go to Alliance.

The Gorian Empire (also referred to as the Gorian ogre imperium or simply the Ogre Empire) was the nation-state of the ogres encompassing various holdings on Draenor. On alternate Draenor, it was notable for being one of the few empires on the world, but lost its former dominance after the rise of the Iron Horde, which forced Imperator Mar'gok to align himself with the orcs to ensure his empire's continued survival. He would have, however, turned himself against the orcs if the situation was favorable.

They are referred to as high ogres.

https://wow.gamepedia.com/Gorian_Empire

[FlubberPuddy]

If for 15 years they don't do something, and then choose for other reasons to do it now, that doesn't render the past 15 years wrong.
It just means there were new factors that werent there before.
Classic didn't get meaningful consideration until the pirate servers popped up.
Same for Classic.

Uh yes it does lol. For what other reasons would they turn around? Ion himself said they 're-examined' it right after the interview he confirmed it wasn't happening.