The War Within 11.X Patches & World Soul Saga Speculation Thread

[ro9ue]

btw the netflix warcraft thing is indeed fake
not AI so I was wrong there.

https://x.com/Skoll_Shorties/status/...679152828?s=20

Damn, I thought it was real too...

[lostsoup]

Yeah, after the Khaz Algar book turned out to be a hint for 11.0 the tree living on underground is most likely building towards an underground zone. Maybe next expansion as well.

[Ferlion]

So you mean it could be another "Chronicles" situation?

You should take pretty much any book presented as in universe as a Chronicles situation. The Broker art book from Shadowlands was ALSO a Chronicles situation.

Hell, as far as we know, Elune creating the Naaru is also a chronicles situation.

Even the crazy dude who was talking about fractals was being watched by a Void creature who was all like "Yeah, this is all good"

Blizzard is very intentionally NOT giving us a concrete universal story.

[Hitei]

The Legend of Elun'Ahir

Unlreated to this specific post, but a few days ago, you mentioned in passing the idea that the anomalous fissure associated with Khaz Algar could potentially be "Xal'atath's body".

I didn't pay much attention to the comments comparing the gryphon texture to Saronite colors, because I doubted Yogg was getting involved in anything anytime soon. But thinking about the idea of the fissure's effects makes me wonder.

The titan watchers seemed perplexed about both the nature of the fissure and why something so old and so far away would manifest similar effects to the Curse of Flesh. But actually it being related to Xal'atath answers a lot of questions. First: that we have no evidence of Xal'atath's previous existence. That is, Old Gods generally leave permanent effects on the land around them, even when killed or utterly destroyed. The Sha, Saronite/vapors, the dark, mysterious, ancient crystals in Silithus. It's strange if Xal was an Old God, that we don't see any lingering vestiges.

But the fissure could easily be to Xal'atath what the Well of Eternity was to Y'shaarj. A scar left behind where she once existed. That'd explain why the keepers have no knowledge of what it is, because she was dead and forgotten long before their creators ever arrived. It'd explain the effects of exposure to the fissure on Earthen; it's like the Curse of Flesh because it's exposure to Old God essence, but it's not the same Old God. It'd explain the land being seemingly permanently storm and monster cursed, because the land suffered permanent effects of her presence. And it'd explain why we see no traces of her, because she wasn't on our side of the planet.

[Myrrh]

Yeah. The gist is "Eonar planted a world tree somewhere, Aman'thul didn't approve, called it chaotic, tore it out. It still lived on but grew in a strange way." We don't know if they held council meetings, had sit downs, or anything.

I think the implication is that it grew underground, which would lead to some kind of Hollow Earth thing.

Ooh what if the zones are connected by the roots? I could be excited about an expansion with kind of an 'underside of yggdrassil' vibe, with the roots tapping into different biomes and life flourishing in different ways from Eonar's tears.

We need a dragon, squirrel and eagle trio.

[Merryck]

You should take pretty much any book presented as in universe as a Chronicles situation. The Broker art book from Shadowlands was ALSO a Chronicles situation.

Hell, as far as we know, Elune creating the Naaru is also a chronicles situation.

Even the crazy dude who was talking about fractals was being watched by a Void creature who was all like "Yeah, this is all good"

Blizzard is very intentionally NOT giving us a concrete universal story.

When was it mentioned that Elune created the Naaru? I remember it was mentioned that they have similar energy, that's it.

[Viridiel]

Found another book about a green dragon wanting to travel west, in a building at the Eye of Ysera. Transcribing it now.

[Ferlion]

When was it mentioned that Elune created the Naaru? I remember it was mentioned that they have similar energy, that's it.

Legion. Khadgar brought out a book.

https://wowpedia.fandom.com/wiki/Goddess_Watch_Over_You

I may have found a "key" to unlock Light's Heart, <name>.

I was going through some ancient cosmology tomes when I stumbled upon a passage indicating that the prime naaru may have been created by Elune during the great ordering of Light and Shadow.

If Elune did create Xe'ra, then it stands to reason that we could use the Tears of Elune to unlock the secrets of Light's Heart.

It's a long shot, but we've got nothing left to lose.

[Viridiel]

We saw it already from people on Twitter. Really interesting.

Well here's the transcription anyway:

The Tragedy of Erinethria

1
In the days when the kingdom of dragons was young, brave Erinethria's emerald wings soared above the clouds.
The fastest flier of her day, she feared no enemy. Nor would she back down from any challenge.
Alas, her courage would be her undoing.

2
Erinethria had flown to the far corners of Kalimdor and back. She had witnessed wondrous sights, and loved to share stories of them with her kin.
Yet there came a day when Erinethria felt she had seen all there was to see of the world. She grew bored. Restless.

3
Erinethria sought the wisdom of Keeper Tyr.
"Great keeper, is there any mystery left for me to discover? Any riddle yet to be solved?"
"Everything you need is here, child. What more could you want to see? What else could you seek to know?"

4
As the dragon's brow furrowed, a cool wind blew in from the west.
"The breeze, great keeper. I wish to see the place from whence the winds are born."
Tyr grew solemn. "Beyond the Storming Sea lies only ruin. Stay close to home. Stay close to kin."

5
Tyr's warning hung like a shadow over Erinethria's heart. It clashed again and again with her deep yearning for answers.
One bright morning, the green dragon bid farewell to her clutchmates.
"Fear not," she told them, "for I can fly higher than any storm. Faster than any thunder. And when I know from whence the west winds come, I shall return home and tell you all!"

6
And with that, Erinethria soared into the sky.
Moons passed. And still more. Yet brave Erinethria did not return.
Even Ysera woke from her dreaming to aid in the search. But there was no sign to be found.

7
Most believed that Erinethria was lost to the Storming Sea. That her mighty wings grew tired and torn by the harsh winds, and that she tumbled into the roiling waters.
But some greens claimed they saw her in their dreams. That she reached a land beyond, where she raised a brood of her own.

8
Surely, after all these ages, we must accept the truth of her loss. While we honor her courage, we must remember the wisdom she failed to heed.
Beyond the Storming Sea lies only ruin. Stay close to home. Stay close to kin.

9
Beware, beware, the wind from the west. Its call holds only doom.
For if you take wing across storm and sea,
You share share Erinethria's tomb.

[lostsoup]

Well here's the transcription anyway:

Gee, I wonder where the Stormriders might be from. Definitely not this undiscovered land beyond the Storming Sea that's also definitely not Avaloren.

[Cheezits]

Key takeaways:

Tragedy of Erinethria
-There is a Storming Sea to the west of Kalimdor
-Titans do not want people to go there
-A green dragon may have made it there and started a family there

Elun'Ahir

-Eonar planted a world tree through a gift from Elune, somewhere we don't know
-Aman'thul ripped it out, but the tree survived in secret
-tree thrived underground and is protected by "mysterious guardians"

All in all, both are probably direct 11.0 foreshadowing. The Storming Sea is what blocks people from accessing the next area (see: Stormrider) and there is probably a world tree there growing underground (see: Towellie's comments about going underground)

[hattahat]

Amirdrassil was the sixth tree after all. I had a feeling that was the case, but the problem was that there were only five known world trees.
https://www.wowhead.com/news/whisper...ialogue-322841

Everliving Statuette: Hidden from daylight, a sleeping flame rests atop the sixth tree.

So that means he knew the future.

[Cheezits]

Gee, I wonder where the Stormriders might be from. Definitely not this undiscovered land beyond the Storming Sea that's also definitely not Avaloren.

While it probably was just to keep things somewhat vague, it's very weird that the Algarians were documented... despite nobody being able to access Avaloren. So maybe they aren't the same exact place?

- - - Updated - - -

Amirdrassil was the sixth tree after all. I had a feeling that was the case, but the problem was that there were only five known world trees.
https://www.wowhead.com/news/whisper...ialogue-322841

So that means he knew the future.

"Hidden from daylight", motherfucker, it was an UNDERGROUND tree this whole time. Wow.

Hats off to Blizz if this was in the pipeline the whole time.

[Viridiel]

On the Nature of the Dream

1
I have spent ages here within the Emerald Dream, exploring its reaches and basking in its tranquillity. Yet the more I experience, the more what I perceive seems to be at odds with lessons taught to us by the titan keepers.
Thus I am compelled to share my feelings here. Not to stir discontent, or to claim my theories are immutable truths, but to encourage others to ponder these subjects for themselves.

2
It has been said that the dream was created by Keeper Freya, acting on behalf of her patron, Eonar. And yet, I have noticed that the titans' acolytes do not speak of something as "finished" until it has been ordered.
So did they truly create the Dream, or merely discover it, seeing its vibrancy as chaos to which they were compelled to bring structure?

3
Seeking an answer, I have spoken to many spirits who inhabit the Dream. Dryads, ancients, grove keepers, and others. None of them tell of a titan creating the Dream.
Instead, they speak of the first spirits awakening long ago within its wilds, in lands as beautiful and free as they are today.
(Though I wonder, since time has so little meaning here, whether those born of the Dream truly think in terms of past or present)

4
We have also been told that the Dream is a sort of framework for life on Azeroth. And it is true that we can see reflections of our world within the Dream.
Yet while it is clear that these realms share a bond, is one a copy of the other? Or might both be reflections, each informing the shape of its counterpart?

5
Many times I have shrugged off the call of sleep and taken wing to explore the distant reaches of the Dream. The farther I flew, the greater the wonders I beheld.
Life took forms strange and unfamiliar. Bizarre, impossible plants and trees. Creatures unlike any I beheld before.
Perhaps the Dream is bound not only to Azeroth, but to realms not yet discovered. Is it a reflection of those places, too?

6
At these far reaches, I felt the presence of entities whose power seemed vast and unknowable, akin to the titans themselves.
Had I reached the edges of the Dream where it flows into the Realms of Life? Are they one and the same? Truly, I cannot say, for as waves of joy and contentment washed over me, I could no longer resist the call of sleep.
I awoke back at the Eye of Ysera, wondering if I had experienced a dream within the Dream.

7
It seems clear that the servants of the titans wish the Dream to stay unchanging--at least, unchanged by any hand but theirs.
Yet the very nature of life is one of change, is it not? Things are born, live, and die, but life itself goes on.
Perhaps life was never meant to be ordered. To be static and unchanging.

8
The titans' servants do not seem to understand that Life and Death are sisters, bound together in a Great Cycle.
Do they not wish to see this truth? Or is it beyond their fundamental nature to perceive it?
If we dragons see it, then it can only mean that we are touched not just by Life and Order, but other forces as well.

9
And if dragons are the product of powers great and small being eternally intertwined, then so must all mortals be.
Perhaps Azeroth herself was touched by all these forces. Or could she be their true source?
Some things are beyond knowing. Some things are only to be pondered... in dreams.

[Cheezits]

Multiple Dreams confirmed. "Emerald Dream" = Veil of Life + Titan Ordering.

[Marlamin]

We have also been told that the Dream is a sort of framework for life on Azeroth. And it is true that we can see reflections of our world within the Dream.
Yet while it is clear that these realms share a bond, is one a copy of the other? Or might both be reflections, each informing the shape of its counterpart?

I like this part, if I'm reading this right and correct me if I'm wrong, while previously it was hard set to "the Dream is what Azeroth would be untouched" which would frankly make it kind of boring, this now gives Blizz a lot of breathing space to go back in the future and let it be influenced either way as well as set a precedent of the zone going into the overworld.

[Merryck]

How many journals is Danuser going to write about how shitty the Titans are ... Dude won't stop.

[Worldshaper]

Unlreated to this specific post, but a few days ago, you mentioned in passing the idea that the anomalous fissure associated with Khaz Algar could potentially be "Xal'atath's body".

I didn't pay much attention to the comments comparing the gryphon texture to Saronite colors, because I doubted Yogg was getting involved in anything anytime soon. But thinking about the idea of the fissure's effects makes me wonder.

The titan watchers seemed perplexed about both the nature of the fissure and why something so old and so far away would manifest similar effects to the Curse of Flesh. But actually it being related to Xal'atath answers a lot of questions. First: that we have no evidence of Xal'atath's previous existence. That is, Old Gods generally leave permanent effects on the land around them, even when killed or utterly destroyed. The Sha, Saronite/vapors, the dark, mysterious, ancient crystals in Silithus. It's strange if Xal was an Old God, that we don't see any lingering vestiges.

But the fissure could easily be to Xal'atath what the Well of Eternity was to Y'shaarj. A scar left behind where she once existed. That'd explain why the keepers have no knowledge of what it is, because she was dead and forgotten long before their creators ever arrived. It'd explain the effects of exposure to the fissure on Earthen; it's like the Curse of Flesh because it's exposure to Old God essence, but it's not the same Old God. It'd explain the land being seemingly permanently storm and monster cursed, because the land suffered permanent effects of her presence. And it'd explain why we see no traces of her, because she wasn't on our side of the planet.

So... kinda what I've been saying for months at this point?

[Ferlion]

I like this part, if I'm reading this right and correct me if I'm wrong, while previously it was hard set to "the Dream is what Azeroth would be untouched" which would frankly make it kind of boring, this now gives Blizz a lot of breathing space to go back in the future and let it be influenced ether way as well as set a precedent of the zone going into the overworld.

So..

IT now has to be asked. What do the Halls of Origination do then?

[lostsoup]

How many journals is Danuser going to write about how shitty the Titans are ... Dude won't stop.

But they're not shitty, they've done fantastic things for the inhabitans of Azeroth. They're just a bit more gray than previously shown, which is honestly a good thing.