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

[Pheraz]

Seriously what are you even whining about here? That it doesn't have enough spikes?

My personal problem with the new generic adult dragon models is that they look too humanoid and too friendly.
This comes also from the massive chin

I prefer the smaug type. Humans have often fear of snakes. Dragon models should utilise this

[Nebron]

Really dig this new Void aesthetic of nice dark blues, vastness of space and silent stars instead of purple tentacles everywhere.

Absolutely! It nicely exemplifies the idea of nothingness, rather than lurking cosmic threaths.
Or maybe it's just me and Shadowmoon Valley and Ardenweald are simply my thing... after all, I always have a stack of Inky Black Potion in my pocket

[Worldshaper]

Reusing all those color palletes would be a bit uninspired though, i expect a world revamp to give each zone its unique color and not just copy paste vol'dun sands everywhere for example, or every marsh to end up a nazmir copy or Ungoro to turn into valsharah green.
Most things you mentioned could end up being reused but i would hope for a retint to a degree including the structure assets and not a half assed revamp.

It's not about reusing. It's about finally applying those assets in the context they were really made for. But I'm sure they'll tweak things a bit when it makes sense, to make it feel fresh.

Keep in mind, though, that they basically reused Val'sharah for the Emerald Dream. So it's not something that they shy from.

[Myrrh]

Based on that it should be October 17th? Would they release the patch a few weeks before Blizzcon or just wait until after?

A few people have pointed out how far along this patch seems, and I definitely can't remember ever seeing a month of raid testing posted before. But honestly, even a 2 month testing period to release just after Blizzcon would be ambitious. ~One month would be downright bonkers, particularly with a DH rework still waiting in the wings. Kudos to them if that is the aim though.

Something else I noticed from the raid testing announcement was the LFR wings - while the first wing has the usual 3 bosses, the mid wings each have 2. If they are getting more comfortable with using 2 boss wings then that's a plus for me, as I find LFR to be a massive slog which usually means I'll just go do something else instead of queuing. More bite-sized wings like Magmorax/Nelth from this tier would be welcome - though I guess the tradeoff is more time waiting in queues, which I can understand might ruffle some feathers.

[Shadowferal]

I prefer the smaug type. Humans have often fear of snakes. Dragon models should utilise this

I agree for the most part.
Dragons should be seen as unpredictable and incomprehensible by the mortal races most of the time.

[Well Done Steak]

Hey so does no one find it odd that in the faction fight for Dawn, the Horde general is Grom while the alliance one is Lothar???

Grom had no part to play in the second war and was never even warchief.

Blizz could have easily picked Orgrim as Lothar's mirror or even Blackhand. Yet they chose Grom instead, Why????

I think I know why.

They know most players are familiar with Grom instead of orcs like Orgrim because of his role in WoD.

But more importantly, I think they're getting us ready for Yrel and her lightbound by reacquainting us with Grom, since old man AU Grom is probably still alive after charging at Yrel at the end of the maghar scenario

Probably a reason why Thrall is in the key art for blizzcon

[AOL Instant Messenger]

Seriously what are you even whining about here? That it doesn't have enough spikes?

You cannot sincerely tell me that you do not see the differences between the two. Aside from that there simply exists a better sense of continuity with Classic in the mounted head model, there are a couple things I prefer in the mounted head design that a few others have already articulated fairly well:

I would guess it's more the lack of depth and the spatial homogenity of the head. Makes the horns seem "tacked on", which i suppose they kind of are due to the customisability.

The colors too are simpler and more "unnatural" somehow.

Old head was more narrow and saggy, with a softer jawline, rougher and more visible scales and narrow/more delicate looking horns, there's also the underbite and goofy teeth.

Whereas the new head looks like a scaly version of the chad meme.

My personal problem with the new generic adult dragon models is that they look too humanoid and too friendly.
This comes also from the massive chin

I prefer the smaug type. Humans have often fear of snakes. Dragon models should utilise this

I'm on the spectrum, so it's difficult to precisely communicate aesthetic misgivings in a way that's perfectly easy to understand. My best effort is this: the new model simply does not read as a Warcraft dragon. It's soft, ridiculously so: its color scheme is very fake and plastic, looking less like a representation of a creature in an immersive fantasy world and more like a toy due to the degree of contrast between the white, black, and candy red components in a triadic color scheme. Compared to the more cohesive palette of orange-tinted, more analogous colors on the mounted head, it feels far more artificial and far less organic. The scales don't look segmented at all on the Dragonflight NPC model; it's especially egregious on the face, which lacks any scale definition at all. The crest has a harsher and earthier texture and color on the mounted head model, while the crest on the Dragonflight NPC model looks more like volcanic glass, continuing the problem of the excessive smoothness. The horns on the mounted head model are more slender, longer, pointier, and straighter, which all serve to make it look more regal and impressive. They also just look more like, well, horns, and less like vaguely hornlike growths. There's also something to be said about how the mounted head model retains the spines on the head. In that capacity, you're not wrong at all about the spikes contributing to my opinion. The spines running down the crest, with their somewhat odd coloration, make it look just a bit more unique and less like a very typical kind of fantasy dragon.

One of the biggest problems is the head shape. The lack of the underbite on the Dragonflight model is one of several problems that make it look too humanoid, or perhaps like some kind of dog. It's too smooth and shapeless, regardless. The shape of the mounted head is more imposing, with stronger slopes and harsher noise and variations. It is free of the undefined smoothness and overly-humanoid features that plague the Dragonflight models, yet doesn't compromise on personality. If anything, it arguably communicates far more personality in addition to the menace and regality due to the prominence of its brow and the way its face frames its eyes. A few miscellaneous features to note on the mounted head include the more chaotic arrangement of its teeth and a scragglier, more distinctive beard that arguably also blends much better with the off-white underside of the head.

[Hitei]

Hey so does no one find it odd that in the faction fight for Dawn, the Horde general is Grom while the alliance one is Lothar???

Grom had no part to play in the second war and was never even warchief.

Blizz could have easily picked Orgrim as Lothar's mirror or even Blackhand. Yet they chose Grom instead, Why????

I think I know why.

They know most players are familiar with Grom instead of orcs like Orgrim because of his role in WoD.

But more importantly, I think they're getting us ready for Yrel and her lightbound by reacquainting us with Grom, since old man AU Grom is probably still alive after charging at Yrel at the end of the maghar scenario

Probably a reason why Thrall is in the key art for blizzcon

If most players are familiar with Grom, there's no need to reacquaint players with a completely different, wrong version of the one who's probably dead. All that does is further confuse people because now they are thinking of Grom, the old Horde figure, not Grom the Iron Horde enemy.

Also I don't know what people's obsession with Thrall = Yrel is. The two have basically nothing to do with each other. They've met a singular time, been in the same location twice. Thrall's relevancy in WoD was to the Frostwolves, Draenor as his ancestral homeland, and Garrosh. A Yrel Light invasion expansion has nothing to do with any of those things. It's not like the mag'har, a tiny group of refugees whose only experience with the Lightbound is getting kicked off their planet by them, are going to lead the charge against the forces of the Light, and it's not like Thrall has any sort of logical narrative connection. He didn't even attempt to go to Draenor to "return home" and instead went to live on Outland.

[CasualFilth]

Derailing this:

What's the general consensus on 10.2's release date?

[Well Done Steak]

If most players are familiar with Grom, there's no need to reacquaint players with a completely different, wrong version of the one who's probably dead. All that does is further confuse people because now they are thinking of Grom, the old Horde figure, not Grom the Iron Horde enemy.

Also I don't know what people's obsession with Thrall = Yrel is. The two have basically nothing to do with each other. They've met a singular time, been in the same location twice. Thrall's relevancy in WoD was to the Frostwolves, Draenor as his ancestral homeland, and Garrosh. A Yrel Light invasion expansion has nothing to do with any of those things. It's not like the mag'har, a tiny group of refugees whose only experience with the Lightbound is getting kicked off their planet by them, are going to lead the charge against the forces of the Light, and it's not like Thrall has any sort of logical narrative connection. He didn't even attempt to go to Draenor to "return home" and instead went to live on Outland.

Most players are familiar with the AU version of Grom, so dawn having a version of Grom night be to just remind people of his existence come Yrel's invasion. Cuz it would have made more sense to given the slot to Orgrim instead.

I know Thrall barely had a relationship with Yrel, but his Au Gender bent version does, which might somehow bring him to the mix somehow.

[AOL Instant Messenger]

https://www.wowhead.com/news/new-pat...counter-334991



More void!

One of the few things—if not quite possibly the only thing—I like about Dragonflight's art direction is the new style of magical effects and of the more outlandish skyboxes. They look far more animated and fantastical, and I hope that sticks around.

[Santandame]

Not sure why some people are so convinced it’s a Yrel invasion next expansion. It’s one of the least likely expansion ideas for 11.0 I feel.

[Revamp Man]

Derailing this:

What's the general consensus on 10.2's release date?

November 15th

[Well Done Steak]

Not sure why some people are so convinced it’s a Yrel invasion next expansion. It’s one of the least likely expansion ideas for 11.0 I feel.

It's not just her, it her and a void incursion coming to blows with us in the middle

[Well Done Steak]

and even the worst idea
if people want to fantasize about a WoD 2.0 that's their problem, but they really need to stop inundating us with their completely idiotic headcanon
just the fact of reading you-know-which brings back the traumas of 2014

Dude, it's not head cannon.... Why do you think blizz took the time to bring back the AU maghar orcs while simultaneously villain batting Yrel. They could have easily just made the playable maghar orcs the maghar from outland. But no, they specifically did what they did for a reason.

All Yrel needs is a time travel source to come to us. Lowand behold, we got bronze and infinite shenanigans up the ass recently.

[Polybius]

I think it's rather this Eastern kingdoms+ light goes evil expansion idea. Overall the EK need a revamp much more. Also from a business perspective they can then split the revamp into two expansions

I've got a strong feeling it's this ^, one for EK and one for Kalimdor: EK focusing on setting up the Light/Void conflict with Scarlets, Titan influence, and the corruption of the Sunwell; Kalimdor focusing on Life and the Elementals. They're leaving Iridikron intact on top of no explanation on where the Night Elves are staying and why the Grimtotem were active. Add to this we haven't seen the invasive side of Life, which Kalimdor can touch on with the Botani.

The prepatch for DF planted the seeds for Lordaeron and Gilneas. I can also see Dun Algaz and Avaloren separated into the two main motherlands.

[huth]

I think they're just stars. It can easily be the influence of Elune considering the blessings the tree will give or be given. The purple smoke is likely Fyrakk's shadowflame touching the Dream.

Remember that the seed was created from a Tear of Elune. Amirdrassil has Elune's influence by default.

[Well Done Steak]

because it was just a fucking pretext to bring back the mag'har, that's all

Again, they had an entire clan of maghar orcs in outland without needing any time travel what so ever...

And why bother making Yrel a bad guy to begin with? Why even include her? We didn't need to go 30 years post wod.

How you not see what's being set up boggles my mind.

If you hate WoD that's one thing, but you can't deny the very clear set up that's being done.

[Polybius]

Remember that the seed was created from a Tear of Elune. Amirdrassil has Elune's influence by default.

Wonder if this means a future Amirdrassil player hub will have influences from both Teldrassil and Ardenweald.

[KOUNTERPARTS]

I'm a little late to the party (very late actually) but I saw the context of the Forsaken's heritage armor quest chain.

What little hopes I had for the Scarlet Crusade to become an actual big deal in the future are now gone. Sure, I did not really have anything to support the idea of them becoming a big threat. Traditionally the Scarlet Crusade is always the red-headed stepchild of villainous groups in WoW... and in professional wrestling terms, they are the job squad who only serve to lose on purpose to put over bigger names.

Still upset though.