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

[KayRule]

So... Them nedw Tyr's Guard NPCs...
Future council raid boss, or just there to explain future paladins?

It's very interesting that each individual one has a full new suite of unique dialogue, battle lines and gossip lines.

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The orc is quite convincing ! It looks like a new art direction for fel orc. Given that the orcs want to restore their traditions and settle on Azeroth, including those in Outland, I wouldn't be surprised if the fel orcs were among them

On the other hand, the humanoid behind makes me doubt the veracity of the leak, something is wrong with these "horns". Looks like AI generated

The "horns" of the helmet are small, if there at all. The big thing on the left people think is a horn is part of the same thing on the right, and it's on their back or behind them.

[Nibelheimy]

I can understand why people are seeing the character on the right as proof of AI generation but I am reminded of the leaked dragonflight cinematic and how much I really believed it was showing an alexstrazas past scenario enslaved by orcs. I don't believe anybody guessed at that time it would be anything akin to stony Tony so it could if real be something we're just not expecting.

My immediate thought was a botani infested orc for the character on the left, but towards the sides of his head it looks like flames rather than plant matter to my eyes.

I could see the character on the right being the same as the left, but holding a warbanner or a back piece as others have suggested.

My only other guess right now is it could be a new artistic take on dragonmaw orcs. The orc heritage has left it open for some development of them, but I wouldn't think it would be for a cinematic such as this.

Cinematically speaking, if this cinematic is real, and opens on a pan of this orc on the left looking at a horizon, and the spikes are indeed a warbanner of sorts that as that character slowly approaches we can see it is indeed a dragonmaw banner so we now understand that's what the characters are. That would work on a purely cinematic scale. Especially if it's dragonmaw orcs approaching Orgrimmar. The colour scheme of the shot could fit that quite well.

[Worldshaper]

Today is 10.2 announcement day!

[KayRule]

It looks like a Stoneborn Venthyr, the horns, the earns, the facial distribution, the eyes, even the little beard.

Though I can't imagine Blizzard would be that fucking stupid to go back to cosmos/Shadowlands shit.

[Raetary]

Today is 10.2 announcement day!

Only 10 hours and 37 minutes to go.

[Nibelheimy]

I don't think its likely (if this turns out to be real) that it's anything shadowlands related currently.

I would assume that if this is a wow cinematic. It's probably going to end up being various Fyrakk fire minions preparing to assault the dream. The armour on the left character is indeed reminescant of armour peices we've got from this expansion.

We've been told with our new Ingame cinematics Fyrakk is going to tear his own way into the dream with his armies so, sometimes the most likely answer is the right one. I'd imagine the most likely answer is that.

Fyrakk has been popular, possibly the favoured new character from this expansion. So doing a big cgi cinematic with him, assaulting one of wows most anticipated places to visit, is probably a good call.

[vintage79]

tell me if I'm paranoid but Ybara who deliberately replies to a tweet about a revamp that there would be no pirates and then this leak appears leaves me wondering

no, you are not

it's about space&time pirates!

[Nebron]

Again, compared to standard Draenor Orcs;



That warped looking orc is an improvement.



Also Orcs were already twisted by fel, and they never looked like that. This is clearly a different cosmic force twisting their appearance.

If that image is legit of course.

Improvement? Obviously it’s subjective, but in my view Draenor cinematic in terms of quality is the best WoW cinematic ever released. Since Legion everything looks plastic and uncanny. The attention to detail in Draenor cinematic is crazy, even the drops of sweat on Grommash skin are there.

Again, why it has to be a cosmic force? Why it’s not a different sub-species? Why not a new race actually? Of all the things, why Light? Why not a twisted experiment?

I mean, you make a bold claim, but I can’t see any reason behind it other than - it’s a twisted character, I like the idea of Light Force as 11.0s theme, therefore it’s a character twisted by Light.

Mkay.

[crusadernero]

Metzen is back. We should all expect more orcs. Oh, and maybe a bit of ORCS.

Anyway, I want the baddies to somewhat win in DF and that could kick us off to 11.0

[Worldshaper]

Improvement? Obviously it’s subjective, but in my view Draenor cinematic in terms of quality is the best WoW cinematic ever released. Since Legion everything looks plastic and uncanny. The attention to detail in Draenor cinematic is crazy, even the drops of sweat on Grommash skin are there.

Again, why it has to be a cosmic force? Why it’s not a different sub-species? Why not a new race actually? Of all the things, why Light? Why not a twisted experiment?

I mean, you make a bold claim, but I can’t see any reason behind it other than - it’s a twisted character, I like the idea of Light Force as 11.0s theme, therefore it’s a character twisted by Light.

Mkay.

Wasn't there some guy in a leading role who left the cinematic team a few years ago? I wonder if that's when the change you've observed started happening. Can't remember his name off the top of my head.

Re: all the comments about the Keeper of the Grove and it looking non-Warcrafty, there might be a similar situation with the art direction for WoW going on. IIRC a guy called Chris Robinson used to headline many of Blizzard's panels when it comes to art. He was some type of Senior Art Director. Haven't seen him in a few years, did he quit?

[micwini]

New patch logo leaked.

[Pheraz]

As far as we know.....

Also CGI orcs are pretty ugly to begin with;

Uhm excuse me but orcs are always incredibly ugly. No matter where and in which context or what games that's the whole point of orcs. I have no idea why blizzard and specifically metzen wanted to ride this horse of "orcs can be palls" until thrall was called green Jesus.

[Le Conceptuel]

Uhm excuse me but orcs are always incredibly ugly. No matter where and in which context or what games that's the whole point of orcs. I have no idea why blizzard and specifically metzen wanted to ride this horse of "orcs can be palls" horse until thrall was called green Jesus.

LARPer detected

That was me spitballing though I was going with it being a Scourge Orc (Scorc?) vs a Hordey Human.

I definitely can't see it being anything we're familiar with, even altered, if this really is a leak for World of Warcraft-related content. I'd be more inclined to guess it's some kind of creature local to a new landmass. If that's the case, I'd be inclined to take the "no pirates" thing with a grain of salt because I don't see us going to a new landmass that isn't specifically the one the Nightsquall was shooting for.

[Pheraz]

LARPer detected



I definitely can't see it being anything we're familiar with, even altered, if this really is a leak for World of Warcraft-related content. I'd be more inclined to guess it's some kind of creature local to a new landmass. If that's the case, I'd be inclined to take the "no pirates" thing with a grain of salt because I don't see us going to a new landmass that isn't specifically the one the Nightsquall was shooting for.

what the hell, because I spit out the fact that orcs are by defnition ugly you fantasize me into being a larper? yeah, no. I like elves though in a video game /shrug

[Le Conceptuel]

What bothers me is the upper right corner. It looks like the picture is supposed to be rotated a bit when you would actually watch it on your screen. But then it would be crooked or am i wrong?

The angle looks fine to me between the image and the corner. It's the text that seems utterly fucked.



Here's the picture adjusted to no longer be at roughly the angle I would expect it to be if the camera were aligned, going by the position of the corner. Now that I look at it, the figure in the background is also at a very unusual angle.

[Darkarath]

Today is 10.2 announcement day!

AND 10.3 !!!! MAYBE???

[ChronoSul]

Uhm excuse me but orcs are always incredibly ugly. No matter where and in which context or what games that's the whole point of orcs. I have no idea why blizzard and specifically metzen wanted to ride this horse of "orcs can be palls" until thrall was called green Jesus.

Hate to be that person but the thing u hate about Warcraft orcs is the one thing that makes them unique compared to other franchises? What?

[Pheraz]

Hate to be that person but the thing u hate about Warcraft orcs is the one thing that makes them unique compared to other franchises? What?

nono, hatred is too much for orcs for me
I just wanted to point out that the visual appearance of orcs is "monstrous" so one (like me) finding them ugly should be by design.
Plus I wonder why "the people at blizzard" were so obsessed by that muscle pall stories between thrall and his friends. /shrug
Didn't want to derail this thread, I am just a little bit fearing another orc xpac :S

[Dragonborn]

AND 10.3 !!!! MAYBE???

Didn't they hint towards Fractures in Time some time before 10.1's release in a similar livestream/event? Complete with namedropping Morchie even before she was even revealed properly and all that. I'd imagine if there really is a 10.3 then they might show a slide that hints where the story is going to go next(Like the Argus and Azshara teasers).

Also, that "orc" in the supposed cinematic leak looks a bit like a doomguard to me. And the background character could be an inquisitor, but the horns are different. Does anyone really want another Burning Legion expansion though, is the thing.

[Darkarath]

Didn't they hint towards Fractures in Time some time before 10.1's release in a similar livestream/event? Complete with namedropping Morchie even before she was even revealed properly and all that. I'd imagine if there really is a 10.3 then they might show a slide that hints where the story is going to go next(Like the Argus and Azshara teasers).

Also, that "orc" in the supposed cinematic leak looks a bit like a doomguard to me. And the background character could be an inquisitor, but the horns are different. Does anyone really want another Burning Legion expansion though, is the thing.

As I said before, I totally expect another reveal like 7.2 and 7.3 in Legion. Although instead of a picture of Argus, a cinematic, hence the leak that everybody is talking about.

It is way too soon for an 11.0 leak, unless they are announcing it before Blizzcon, which is very unlikely.

The picture is, IMO, clearly Warcraft related. That shoulderpad is as Warcraft as it can be. The creature is also an Orc. A different Orc, that is for sure, but an Orc, IMO influenced by Life. I cannot see a Dreadlord or a Stone Guard from Revendreth in that picture.

Also, the Orc and the other creature that we see, are of the same type. As many have pointed out, same scarf, same shoulderpads, same colours. The "horns" are not horns, but something that comes from the armour.

My guess is that they are the Heretics from Avaloren and that they are being attacked by Iridikron. 10.3 would be an introductory zone of the large continent that Avaloren would be.