Midnight 12.X Patches & World Soul Saga Speculation Thread

[Lady Atia]

Honestly, the complete ignorance of the identity of the glowy feminine voice by two of our leads that should be intimately familiar with the concept of Azeroth plus the heavy acknowledgement of criticism and damage of SL at GDC, plus the leaving of Danuser and layoff of Golden gives me the vibes they're either doing a very broad strokes approach to the Worldsoul Saga, or are at least in a position to do so.

Like, clearly it happened, Anduin is PTSD-ridden over the zero confirmed people he killed, but we're still dealing with a team that has different priorities narratively from the one before it.

Danuser infamously said that 9.2 was the conclusion to Chapter 1 of the story dating back to WC3 and now Metzen comes in saying that the Worldsoul Saga is...meant to wrap up the last 20 years.

If there was ever a time to just discard that bullshit, it's now.

Well, you could interpret Shadowlands as the conclusion to chapter 1, that doesn't mean there are no more chapters from the story from WC3 to now. Like, both can be true.

[Eldryth]

I really hope they don't rush Azshara this time. It'd be a huge waste to just use her as a mid-expansion patch boss again in Midnight (and for the Void again too).

To me, it'd feel extremely out-of-character for her to be siding with the Void again at all without an extremely good reason. More than anything else, Azshara came across as a cunning, selfish, opportunist to me. Sure, she served N'zoth, but that was a desperate deal to save her own life- I can't imagine her actually having any lingering loyalty to the Void, especially after she was tortured.

Ideally, I'd like to see Azshara spend Midnight and TLT as an ally- an ally who's unambiguously evil and can't be trusted, but we'll work together anyway because both sides need each other to survive the greater threats we'll see in the Saga (just like Sylvanas's role before BFA). And then, in the end, she finds a way to exploit the situation to become stronger than ever, setting herself up as the main antagonist of a post-Saga expansion now that she no longer needs us.

[Jolly Roger]

Erm... we did.

N'zoth brought her back.

she wasnt dead

[Lady Atia]

she wasnt dead

Actually, she was dead ...

[Murlocos]

Danuser infamously said that 9.2 was the conclusion to Chapter 1 of the story dating back to WC3 and now Metzen comes in saying that the Worldsoul Saga is...meant to wrap up the last 20 years.

If there was ever a time to just discard that bullshit, it's now.

Nonsense. Every time we either see a blatant or outright admitted instance of the team not thinking or planning very far ahead, it's only further proof that Il'gynoth whispers and whatever cryptic tripe was being ominously spat out in SL were always meant to be the focal point of the Warcraft universe and all future plot threads must connect back to them. #TrustThePlan

[Kiivar86]

If the crystal in Hallowfall really is a Naaru ship they're going to have to explain how the Arathi knew to name it Beledar in accordance with Draenei ship nomenclature.

In regards to this, name-wise it is kind of similar to Mereldar. Could just be coincidence. According to the summary posted on the front page, Beledar translates as "Emperor's Vision."

[Santandame]

Actually, she was dead ...

Actually, she wasn’t. And until you present actual evidence that isn’t head-canon or tying yourself in knots trying to explain that she was dead it’ll just stay that way - head-canon.

[Makabreska]

Actually, she wasn’t. And until you present actual evidence that isn’t head-canon or tying yourself in knots trying to explain that she was dead it’ll just stay that way - head-canon.

What does all of this even matter?

[Santandame]

What does all of this even matter?

It doesn’t to be fair, it’s just becoming very playground “no I’m right! No I am!” at this point as well as derailing, which I am being just as guilty of.

Let’s move on.

[Civciv]

It doesn’t to be fair, it’s just becoming very playground “no I’m right! No I am!” at this point as well as derailing, which I am being just as guilty of.

Let’s move on.

If it weren't for N'zoth, Jaina and Lor'themar would have finished her off. So yeah, we beat her up until N'zoth used lay on hands on her and yeeted.

[KyleEverett]

In regards to this, name-wise it is kind of similar to Mereldar. Could just be coincidence. According to the summary posted on the front page, Beledar translates as "Emperor's Vision."

Mereldar is a name of a Tirisfallian human who was one of the first to hear the Naaru and discover the light after the Troll Wars. She dedicated her life after the war to healing all the veterans.

[Jolly Roger]

Well, you could interpret Shadowlands as the conclusion to chapter 1, that doesn't mean there are no more chapters from the story from WC3 to now. Like, both can be true.

danuser said it was the culmination of all previous lore and tied it up in a bow

[Kiivar86]

Mereldar is a name of a Tirisfallian human who was one of the first to hear the Naaru and discover the light after the Troll Wars. She dedicated her life after the war to healing all the veterans.

I know. I'm saying that the crystal/possible Naaru ship having a name similar to the naming convention of other Naaru ships (Exodar, Genedar, interestingly Vindicaar has double a's there) is possibly just chance and the name itself is based closer to Mereldar.

[Vakir]

Well, you could interpret Shadowlands as the conclusion to chapter 1, that doesn't mean there are no more chapters from the story from WC3 to now. Like, both can be true.

Except that's not what it was going for.

It was meant to be the resolution that this now promises to be. Hence the Jailer being responsible for basically everything up to that point. It wasn't enough to be behind the Helm of Domination and Arthas. He had the Dreadlords in every domain. He's implied to be responsible for getting Sargeras into targeting the Void Lords. He's aware of another threat seemingly nobody else has ever told us about. We literally go to the 3D printer of the WELL ACKSHUALLY Gods that are way cooler than what you thought were the gods. Danuser seeded this into everything.

The idea that a supposed resolution to story dating almost 20 years is Chapter 1 and then ANOTHER story immediately following the poor reception to it is not an immediate course correction and is, in fact, just a Chapter 2 that's less than half as long in duration is a massive cope, my dude.

They can't throw something under the bus and say "we're sorry that was bad"...but the idea of literally dropping 3 expansions, flat out telling us "OK, there's a plan for realsies, we're going back to two of the most popular places in the game's history," and telling us to "come home" from the story's resident cocaine fueled salesman was such an obvious PR move.

- - - Updated - - -

Nonsense. Every time we either see a blatant or outright admitted instance of the team not thinking or planning very far ahead, it's only further proof that Il'gynoth whispers and whatever cryptic tripe was being ominously spat out in SL were always meant to be the focal point of the Warcraft universe and all future plot threads must connect back to them. #TrustThePlan

Right on. YOU GUYS! THE GREEN EYED VASSAL! There's like 15 characters with green eyes but fuck you! It sounds ominous and important!


PEPE SILVIA DID TELDRASSIL! Orcish catapults can't melt world tree lumber!

Like, the guy who did the initial pool of whispers doesn't even work for Blizzard anymore and even then you have the fallback of the Void being open to all possibilities and/or just being duplicitous fucks.

I don't want to hush idle speculation, but it's the sheer confidence of its legitimacy and efficacy that needs to be mocked.

[Ersula]

Erm... we did.

N'zoth brought her back.

She was only knocked unconscious.

[Lady Atia]

She was only knocked unconscious.

Nope, since you can get "Famed Slayer of Azshara". Bosses who survive get different titles for HoF (see Sylvanas and Jaina).

[Raetary]

Patch is up for the US-lers.

[Ersula]

Nope, since you can get "Famed Slayer of Azshara". Bosses who survive get different titles for HoF (see Sylvanas and Jaina).

That is supposedly canon but when a Toy says "titan technology" we're supposed to take it with a grain of salt, apparently.

[Nymrohd]

Patch is up for the US-lers.

Let's see what the heritage quests will be like.

[Darkarath]

Hmmm did I just see Alleria aiming at Turalyon in the trailer? Probably an illusion, but still... and Ethereals