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

[Marlamin]

Good. That ends that nonsense. Now we can get to some real discussion.

As long as "real discussion" is not like the last few pages, sure, yeah.

[Teriz]

As long as "real discussion" is not like the last few pages, sure, yeah.

I felt a great disturbance in the Force, as if tens of voices wanting a pirate expansion suddenly cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced. I fear something wonderful has happened.

In all seriousness, I'm very happy that 11.0 won't be a pirate expansion.

[Marlamin]

I felt a great disturbance in the Force, as if tens of voices wanting a pirate expansion suddenly cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced. I fear something wonderful has happened.

In all seriousness, I'm very happy that 11.0 won't be a pirate expansion.

Yep, making way for that world revamp/void/space/multiverse/sword expansion! *runs away from impending doom*

Cue the inevitable 10 pages back and forthing of "did he mean no pirates at all or some pirates because a world revamp would still have some pirates because it has pirates right now!!!".

[Nightshade711]

No pirates! (but still possibly maybe some pirates I guess but definitely not as a main theme similar to DF?)

Inb4 “they’re sailors/seafarers not pirates”

[Jolly Roger]

i bid farewell to the port and the land
as i travel away from my kingdoms safe land
to search for long ago forgotten friends
to search for the place titan secrets end

i fear not the weather
i fear not the sea
for the lords of the ocean wil guide us safely

[AOL Instant Messenger]

i bid farewell to the port and the land
as i travel away from my kingdoms safe land
to search for long ago forgotten friends
to search for the place titan secrets end

i fear not the weather
i fear not the sea
for the lords of the ocean wil guide us safely

I appreciate a poet, and all my friends do know it,
But a poem needs more rhythm, else it hardly hits 'em.

Try a stable meter to make the language flow;
Despite the proof there otherwise, on your ship I'd gladly stow.

[Ielenia]

Horde and Alliance meets with a seafaring people with a powerful navy (Kul’Tiras, Zandalar). Horde and Alliance go throughout their lands to solve their problems while experiencing their seafaring culture (8.0-8.1). Horde and Alliance encounter Azshara and beat her and discover someone else pulling her strings(8.2). Horde and Alliance encounter the old god mastermind and beat them (8.3). Additional features is hopping around islands looking for treasure (Island Expeditions).

I couldn't help but notice that you did not mention "pirates" in your description of BfA even once. Which is the whole point I was trying to evidence here: BfA never was a "pirate-themed expansion". The expansion's main factions have navies =/= pirate theme. In fact, we almost didn't deal with pirates in BfA. Sure, the Horde had a little help from pirates to get a foothold in Tiragarde Sound, and Freehold was basically a pirate dungeon, but pirates weren't a big thing in BfA. They were minor arcs, at best.

Old gods were a greater arc in Wrath than pirates were in BfA, because it happened through the first seasons with stuff about saronite and old god whispers, culminating in a big raid: Ulduar. The Emerald Nightmare was a greater arc in Legion than pirates were in BfA, because it was the whole main arc of the Val'sharah zone, had a dungeon AND a raid. The fact of the matter is this: BfA is not a "pirate-themed" expansion. It was a faction conflict expansion, that just happened to have their stage be between two seafaring nations.

Shadowlands probably shouldn’t have happened though.

But it did. Which is my point. Just because you have something in an expansion, it doesn't mean said something can't exist again in another expansion.

[Worldshaper]

Just "Pirates!" was never really a likely theme for the expansion, was it?

Exploration / Conquistador/ Japan or South America/ Islands etc have some merit, but not outright Pirates.

The only thing we "know" is that the Void and maybe the Elements will be important in the expansion, since it is the final part of the "Void" trilogy.

It's also highly likely Thrall is back, as well as Queen Azshara and the Harbinger.

A revamp is possible but not guaranteed.

The location is anyone's guess. Old Azeroth? Avaloren? South Seas? Frigging space? We'll see.

I do like the fact that Mike specifically chose to deny the Pirate speculation in a tweet that also talked about the Old World, and returning to it. I hope that means something.

[AOL Instant Messenger]

Just "Pirates!" was never really a likely theme for the expansion, was it?

I do like the fact that Mike specifically chose to deny the Pirate speculation in a tweet that also talked about the Old World, and returning to it. I hope that means something.

Hopefully. As for the pirates, the thing that sticks out at me about that is that he specifically said "no pirates" as opposed to "not pirates", which indicates to me an absence of pirates rather than that pirates are just the center stage, which is very odd given the Nightsquall build-up. Maybe he's planned for expansion after next, like how the Dragon Isles were foreshadowed in BfA and then came into play after Shadowlands?

[CaptainV]

A revamped azeroth is -probably- 11.0's main selling point, you dont spend 2 expansions adding assets in the background not to use them later.

[Dragonborn]

Void and Elementals being themes that could carry over to the next expac makes me think of the Black Empire. I feel like they're still not very keen on doing a whole expansion based on time travel after WoD but ~30 years vs more than 10,000 years ago can make it different I think. Or they could use the Emerald Dream, maybe they'd have the Old Gods transform it so that instead of being an undisturbed version of Azeroth, it becomes a mirror of the Black Empire days.

That gives us the setting of a primordial Azeroth with Old God forces and elementals, and we find ourselves allying with the latter and helping them defeat the Old Gods with Thrall leading us somehow.

[Worldshaper]

Hopefully. As for the pirates, the thing that sticks out at me about that is that he specifically said "no pirates" as opposed to "not pirates", which indicates to me an absence of pirates rather than that pirates are just the center stage, which is very odd given the Nightsquall build-up. Maybe he's planned for expansion after next, like how the Dragon Isles were foreshadowed in BfA and then came into play after Shadowlands?

My theory (if it's even possible to claim any ideas as your own these days) used to be pretty firmly that we'd have a world revamp in 11.0, then sail away to the other side of Azeroth in 12.0. Maybe that's a possibility.

[Mecheon]

A revamped azeroth is -probably- 11.0's main selling point, you dont spend 2 expansions adding assets in the background not to use them later.

The thing is, the way WoW does it, it can't just be a revamp. There's gotta be something new to the expansion because, the moment the pre-patch hits? All the new-ish stuff is out there in the world. And if the new-ish stuff is 'revamped world', then... Just like with Cata, we'll have that from the pre-patch. Which kind of makes a poor argument for "Buy the expansion". Cata itself had the new zones like Hyjal and the like gated off with the "If you don't have Cata, we port you out" spells (which also mis-fired on one quest you were on a mount for, as you snaked into Twilight Highlands)

Phasing limits the world to the point its not really going to be a revamp and, per Blizzard's own stuff as to why we don't have Karabor as a city, hurts server load a bit. So either you've got an expansion you don't need to buy, or they'd have to do something awful like making a whole seperate EK and let me tell you, its bad enough to have two Dalarans, I do not want two Stormwinds and two Orgrimmars

[Jaggler]

If there is a world revamp, the max/expansion content has to take place in this new world.

A Cata-style revamp would take a massive amount of resources for content that, in the grand scheme of things doesn't matter (leveling). In Cataclysm the endgame-content suffered massively due to the revamp, even though they weren't even able to finish it, as you can see with zones that were barely touched like Arathi or Silithus.

Qwik said no pirates, but he didn't say no privateers :P

[Revamp Man]

I appreciate a poet, and all my friends do know it,
But a poem needs more rhythm, else it hardly hits 'em.

Try a stable meter to make the language flow;
Despite the proof there otherwise, on your ship I'd gladly stow.

To be fair
Did they mention pirates

[Black Rider]

No pirates
https://twitter.com/Qwik/status/1698517913672573052

[Pheraz]

No pirates
https://twitter.com/Qwik/status/1698517913672573052

Oh good lord then it's either elemental or orcs or both.
Or this light is evil thing hopefully. Please no elemental orc xpac...... Oh man
This thrall blizzcon hint is really a bad sign. Metzen returns, thrall returns.... The last xpac metzen was part of was WoD, right? Or was he still on the team before legion?

[Well Done Steak]

No pirates
https://twitter.com/Qwik/status/1698517913672573052

Hah, see, i knew it

[Jaggler]

Oh good lord then it's either elemental or orcs or both.
Or this light is evil thing hopefully. Please no elemental orc xpac...... Oh man
This thrall blizzcon hint is really a bad sign. Metzen returns, thrall returns.... The last xpac metzen was part of was WoD, right? Or was he still on the team before legion?

IIRC the last thing he worked on was the BfA cinematic, so i am sure he had some influence during legion as well.

[Yzmor]

Just a reminder about leaks before the season starts.
If it's a fully detailed post you read --> Liza Minnelli. Lies.

Real leaks tend to be a couple of lines merely like:
New continent Dragon Isles
New lvl cap 70
Winged fire-puking reptile player race Dracthyr
Unique class Evoker
Available only to Dracthyr
Tyr plays a role in the story

When a "leak" post starts with something like:
"So the next chapter of WoW takes place in [insert continent here] with the [insert cosmic force here] attacking Azeroth. After a huge naval mission has failed near the coasts of [insert continent here], we are sent there by [insert main protagonist here] to investigate the dark dealings of [insert main antagonist here] and..." --> LIZA MINNELLI. LIES.

Have a great day y'all!
Also: Happy waiting for 10.2 news (IMHO: not happening this week)