Midnight 12.X Patches & World Soul Saga Speculation Thread

[Nightshade711]

The majority of it was, which was my point.

Riiiight..




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Don’t bother. He is always purposefully obtuse. If something isn’t what he wants or he’s made up in his head that he’s right then no matter of reason or logic will work with him.

That’s fair. I think he’s peeved he’s not getting an Undermine/Yrel Light invasion expansion.

[Kiivar86]

Riiiight..

Hah that does remind me how I saw many a complaint about Zereth Mortis being so very un-death themed. And while I liked Zereth Mortis, I'd agree. It felt very out of place for the genesis point of the various afterlives.

[Ersula]

If we're going to a literal Shadow world, the vast majority of the game will look like that. Again, a terrible direction to take the game in.

Dark Souls 2 takes place entirely within the Abyss & most of those zones are sunny af. I imagine the Void is a lot like that; the memories of the civilizations they destroyed make material.

[Nightshade711]

Dark Souls 2 takes place entirely within the Abyss & most of those zones are sunny af. I imagine the Void is a lot like that; the memories of the civilizations they destroyed make material.

That actually reminds me…
There were large new Ethereal Eco-dome models datamined a few patches ago weren’t there?

Given the Ethereals connection to the void I could very well see them having built some Eco-domes in the void somehow. (Or wherever we go that’s touching the void)

[Teriz]

Not really?

Maybe half of it, at best. Bastion sure wasn't death aesthetic, nor was Ardenweald outside of the decayed portions. Maldraxxus was sure, and I could give a large part of Revendreth, but it was already pretty varied and far different from how the Shadowlands had been presented previously.

This idea that a shadow-based expansion, or Argus, or whatever would be too narrow and not varied is silly.

And I say that as someone who was arguing similar with an Undermine-themed expansion!

What about Torghast and the Maw? Those were very death-themed. Also it didn't help that the raids were all death themed as well.

The point is that Blizzard going shadow so quickly after Shadowlands is a mistake. However, at the end of the day it's their game to screw up.

[Nightshade711]

That actually reminds me…
There were large new Ethereal Eco-dome models datamined a few patches ago weren’t there?

Given the Ethereals connection to the void I could very well see them having built some Eco-domes in the void somehow. (Or wherever we go that’s touching the void)

https://www.wowhead.com/npc=209592/eco-dome-hole-large

Thought so. It was added in 10.1.7. Though it wasn’t exactly a new model.
Makes me wonder…

[Teriz]

That’s fair. I think he’s peeved he’s not getting an Undermine/Yrel Light invasion expansion.

I'm not peeved at all. I think the main clue to the next expansion is Thrall representing WoW on the key art for BlizzCon 2023. I don't think Thrall relates much to us going to a cosmic void world. I also seriously doubt Blizzard would go cosmic for WoW's 20th anniversary.

[Nightshade711]

I'm not peeved at all. I think the main clue to the next expansion is Thrall representing WoW on the key art for BlizzCon 2023. I don't think Thrall relates much to us going to a cosmic void world. I also seriously doubt Blizzard would go cosmic for WoW's 20th anniversary.

Thrall can also have just as much to do with the void.
Given he took center stage in N’zoth’s vision… and his whole deal in preventing the Hour of Twilight.

Or maybe Thrall is there just because Metzen is coming back.

[Catastrophy349]

The reality is, there are SO many loose ends from previous expansions, and even just DF story setting things up alone, that 11.0 could be just about anything.

[lostsoup]

That updated eco-dome reminds me there's been all the Ethereal stuff that's been building up for a while. Locus-Walker, Shadreen, the Shadowscrawled Coin, all of that combined with the Xal'atath and Azshara subplots and Iridikron leaving makes a Void expansion look incredibly likely, even ignoring these leaks.

I wonder what kind of features this expansion would actually have, since Borrowed Power is dead and they already revamped talents and the like. I guess we can get playable Ethereals or something?

[Teriz]

Thrall can also have just as much to do with the void.
Given he took center stage in N’zoth’s vision… and his whole deal in preventing the Hour of Twilight.

Or maybe Thrall is there just because Metzen is coming back.

I disagree. If the expansion is going to be void-based, you wouldn't be showcasing Thrall. Thrall is not a cosmic-friendly character. Alleria for example would be a better choice.

Also I don't think you would bring Metzen back to tell the crowd that they're going to be spending WoW's 20th anniversary off of Azeroth.

[Kiivar86]

What about Torghast and the Maw? Those were very death-themed. Also it didn't help that the raids were all death themed as well.

The point is that Blizzard going shadow so quickly after Shadowlands is a mistake. However, at the end of the day it's their game to screw up.

Fair about Torghast/Maw though I'd still say it wasn't all Death (and I confess I actually forgot about Torghast/Maw, haha). It was quite varied, though as I've complained before it wasn't alien enough, for my tastes anyway.

I don't think it would be a mistake at all. I think they can find a good variety there. To think they can't is a lack of imagination. And as we saw with Aberrus, they've just up and altered Shadow in general to at least partly divorce it from the flesh and eyes and tentacles look of the Old Gods.

[Nightshade711]

That updated eco-dome reminds me there's been all the Ethereal stuff that's been building up for a while. Locus-Walker, Shadreen, the Shadowscrawled Coin, all of that combined with the Xal'atath and Azshara subplots and Iridikron leaving makes a Void expansion look incredibly likely, even ignoring these leaks.

I wonder what kind of features this expansion would actually have, since Borrowed Power is dead and they already revamped talents and the like. I guess we can get playable Ethereals or something?

If we didn’t get Dracthyr this expansion I’d 100% think we’d get playable Ethereals. They’re definitely on my wishlist.
If they are playable next xpac it could even mean the leaked images are from their starting zone & we wouldn’t be leaving Azeroth much at all. (Except maybe for patch content)

But I could see them doing another customization revamp to bring the other races up to Dracthyr standards.

[Woggmer]

The "Winter is coming" from the wow twitter account makes me believe that Iridikron will unleash the "Galakron Hunger" on the world.

This could lead to some Cataclysm-like event that would justified a (partial?) world revamp, with some kind of zombi apocalypse theme (Opposing argument would be we just had Shadowlands so...), but also new threats and new grounded adventures for each zone. We could imagine some zones being merged into one.

The cataclysm timeline could still be accessible through some Bronze temple of sort and if there is a Classic HD, the classic timeline could also be accessible once more.

That's just ideas from the "winter is coming" though, I'm probably wrong.

Or it could just be to promote ICC coming to Wrath Classic, but... /shrug

[KOUNTERPARTS]

I hate to speak more to this on-and-off Undermine expansion discussion, but I was thinking about potential plot points for a massive underground expansion centered around the Undermine.

I think it would be pretty cool if we saw a return of the Nerubian Empire in the sense of a faction of renegade Nerubians (living) who left Azjol-Nerub during the time of WotLK (seeing the city as a lost cause against the Scourge) and are encroaching on the Undermine. Perhaps they want the Undermine for themselves for the sheer amount of space? Perhaps they sense what the Undermine really is? Perhaps they want the kaja'mite? Who knows?
Being that they remain a very popular subterranean race, the Nerubians could serve as a major expansion-long antagonist... but not the primary expansion antagonist.

[huth]

Hah that does remind me how I saw many a complaint about Zereth Mortis being so very un-death themed. And while I liked Zereth Mortis, I'd agree. It felt very out of place for the genesis point of the various afterlives.

Of course it isn't. It's a factory for afterlives, not for cemeteries. How many people do you know that look forward to spend the rest of eternity in a field of skulls and bones vs. people that'd rather not?

[Teriz]

I hate to speak more to this on-and-off Undermine expansion discussion, but I was thinking about potential plot points for a massive underground expansion centered around the Undermine.

I think it would be pretty cool if we saw a return of the Nerubian Empire in the sense of a faction of renegade Nerubians (living) who left Azjol-Nerub during the time of WotLK (seeing the city as a lost cause against the Scourge) and are encroaching on the Undermine. Perhaps they want the Undermine for themselves for the sheer amount of space? Perhaps they sense what the Undermine really is? Perhaps they want the kaja'mite? Who knows?
Being that they remain a very popular subterranean race, the Nerubians could serve as a major expansion-long antagonist... but not the primary expansion antagonist.

There was a nerubian trinket found in Zaralek Caverns, so you never know. I think quite a few players would enjoy a Nerubian-based raid in an Undermine expansion.

[Kiivar86]

Of course it isn't. It's a factory for afterlives, not for cemeteries. How many people do you know that look forward to spend the rest of eternity in a field of skulls and bones vs. people that'd rather not?

I mean I expected it to be at least somewhat death themed. I guess you could argue that the misty nature of the place works toward it, but if I were new to all this I would've thought Zereth Mortis was more life oriented.

[Revamp Man]

What if Xal isn't the 5th old god but a void titan and the xal we know is the Harbinger of her coming

The planet looking thing in the art is the true Xal
It's beyond the umbral veil and the character in the art is basking in her glory like the Naga book talks about

[Kiivar86]

I've been vocal about not liking goblin aesthetic but I admit a fully underground city has started to worm its way into my head a bit.

Will need to see variety within it before I'm fully on board, if so.