Sylvanas (World of Warcraft Novel) by Christie Golden - Spoilers

[Vakir]

So is the implication from the clank of metal armor and her statement about hope in the epilogue that Anduin is staying behind in the Shadowlands not just to heal from his trauma, but to accompany her in saving the souls too?

Or is that supposed to be Nathanos? I just generally don't associate him as much with the "clank of armor," even if he's in what could be interpreted as mail - he's more based around being fleet and ranger-y. It also describes it as "unexpected" mere sentences from her thinking resolutely that she'd find him.

But hey, if it means getting rid of Anduin for longer, I'm good.

EDIT: Garithos and Arthas are also candidates but the former is probably not even a name known by the majority of present Blizzard staff and the latter is in my anima reservoir.

[Amaterasu65]

I'd also like to thank OP for the info.

[Lorgar Aurelian]

So is the implication from the clank of metal armor and her statement about hope in the epilogue that Anduin is staying behind in the Shadowlands not just to heal from his trauma, but to accompany her in saving the souls too?

Or is that supposed to be Nathanos? I just generally don't associate him as much with the "clank of armor," even if he's in what could be interpreted as mail - he's more based around being fleet and ranger-y. It also describes it as "unexpected" mere sentences from her thinking resolutely that she'd find him.

But hey, if it means getting rid of Anduin for longer, I'm good.

EDIT: Garithos and Arthas are also candidates but the former is probably not even a name known by the majority of present Blizzard staff and the latter is in my anima reservoir.

It’s 100% suppose to be Anduin the last chapter even comments on his armour clanking which is the only use of the word any where in the book I believe.

[Vakir]

It’s 100% suppose to be Anduin the last chapter even comments on his armour clanking which is the only use of the word any where in the book I believe.

I guess they realize that he's overexposed and not universally beloved as well. That's good news.

The downside is it might mean it'll expedite her sentence due to his pet status and we'll be stuck with them both again before we know it.

[Jastall]

As I expected, a massive pile of retcons and whitewashing to make her a good girl who was merely misled into being a genocidal asshole because she just cared too much. Happens to all of us really. Quite the relatable story and interesting development there.

I'm not even mad at Golden really. More than likely she got thrown most of those plot points and was told to make something readable out of it and I expect she did her best, such as it is. But I'm starting to truly be done with the lore. Can't respect something that has literally no respect for itself, you know.

[Lorgar Aurelian]

I guess they realize that he's overexposed and not universally beloved as well. That's good news.

The downside is it might mean it'll expedite her sentence due to his pet status and we'll be stuck with them both again before we know it.

Ya it’s obviously meant to be that the went down there to help so she can get out faster as the book even ends with sylvanas thinking it’s impossible before anduin’s clanks up and she remembers him saying that hope can make even the impossible possible.

[Vakir]

Ya it’s obviously meant to be that the went down there to help so she can get out faster as the book even ends with sylvanas thinking it’s impossible before anduin’s clanks up and she remembers him saying that hope can make even the impossible possible.

When I and many others said both of these characters could go to Hell, they took it literally, I guess.

[Lorgar Aurelian]

I'm not even mad at Golden really. More than likely she got thrown most of those plot points and was told to make something readable out of it and I expect she did her best, such as it is.

The book heavily feels like this is the case. There is some really well written character stuff through out it but that good stuff is surrounded by horrible shadowlands plot points and a metric ton of retcons.

[Jastall]

The book heavily feels like this is the case. There is some really well written character stuff through out it but that good stuff is surrounded by horrible shadowlands plot points and a metric ton of retcons.

If it were the story of, I dunno, Alleria or just some other elf in some other fantasy setting it would probably be decent. But making Warcraft's premier unrepentant and pragmatic Queen Bitch into someone who's such a huge softie and cares so much that she loops around into being a completely moronic mass murderer is just not the play. This is like writing a story where Tirion Fordring was secretly a serial killer but fought the evils of evil to conceal his nefarious secret identity or whatever. Like OK I get the concept but why. You just completely change the character post facto into something utterly unrecognizable. Just why, is the question I see absolutely no answer to, besides a writing team somehow fapping to the idea of Good Sylvanas so hard they sledgehammer it into the story no matter what.

I was afraid they'd pull a Kerrigan, but IMO Sylvanas's story is even worse. Kerrigan might have gotten away with her actions unpunished but at least her actual character wasn't the subject of so many retcons, pointless "recontextualizations" and villain/dumbass bats.

[Lorgar Aurelian]

If it were the story of, I dunno, Alleria or just some other elf in some other fantasy setting it would probably be decent. But making Warcraft's premier unrepentant and pragmatic Queen Bitch into someone who's such a huge softie and cares so much that she loops around into being a completely moronic mass murderer is just not the play. This is like writing a story where Tirion Fordring was secretly a serial killer but fought the evils of evil to conceal his nefarious secret identity or whatever. Like OK I get the concept but why. You just completely change the character post facto into something utterly unrecognizable. Just why, is the question I see absolutely no answer to, besides a writing team somehow fapping to the idea of Good Sylvanas so hard they sledgehammer it into the story no matter what.

I was afraid they'd pull a Kerrigan, but IMO Sylvanas's story is even worse. Kerrigan might have gotten away with her actions unpunished but at least her actual character wasn't the subject of so many retcons, pointless "recontextualizations" and villain/dumbass bats.

honestly if they didn't want to make her a good girl so bad the book could have been good but ham fisting in the "I care more then any one so ill kill any one" second half drags the whole thing into a dumster fire.

Her early life stuff is good if a bit dull for my taste and even her early undead stuff is good but once the story get's to her killing her self at ICC and meeting the jailer it takes such a unsaveable nose dive.

[Jastall]

honestly if they didn't want to make her a good girl so bad the book could have been good but ham fisting in the "I care more then any one so ill kill any one" second half drags the whole thing into a dumster fire.

Her early life stuff is good if a bit dull for my taste and even her early undead stuff is good but once the story get's to her killing her self at ICC and meeting the jailer it takes such a unsaveable nose dive.

Showcasing the contrast between the Sylvanas-that-was, which we otherwise saw for two missions and a half back in WC3, and the Sylvanas-that-is would at least be a story whose point I could understand; underscoring the tragedy of a loving woman's descent into misanthropy and madness. That I could get the appeal of even if it would be too little too late. But straight up changing her entire story to turn her into a misled saint all this time? You're not writing Sylvanas anymore at that point really. Just some new conjuration wearing her skin for the sake of, I dunno, Danuser getting to say his waifu is a good girl or whatever it is happens in that writer's dojo of theirs.

I can't be assed to care about this anyway. I suspected it would be bad, it's bad, such is life.

[Soon-TM]

When I and many others said both of these characters could go to Hell, they took it literally, I guess.

Yes... The problem is that they are quite unlikely to stay there for good

[Magical Mudcrab]

The book heavily feels like this is the case. There is some really well written character stuff through out it but that good stuff is surrounded by horrible shadowlands plot points and a metric ton of retcons.

I think it would be fair to say that she did the best she could with a very bad plot. It was good overall, though the book dragged on in a couple of places, character motivations were still not salvaged (her aligning with Zovaal was still not sufficiently justified), and it portrayed the Jailer's plan being even a larger load of horseshit than we had previously thought (again, not her fault, she had to write around the narrative team's failure).

[Lorgar Aurelian]

I think it would be fair to say that she did the best she could with a very bad plot. It was good overall, though the book dragged on in a couple of places, character motivations were still not salvaged (her aligning with Zovaal was still not sufficiently justified), and it portrayed the Jailer's plan being even a larger load of horseshit than we had previously thought (again, not her fault, she had to write around the narrative team's failure).

Ya the plot is a bloody train wreck but the writing it self is rather good character stuff for most of the book(If a bit boring at time) and the parts where it falls short feel like it was due to overhead meddling to make sure sylvanas looked better or just unsalvageable horse shit like every scene with the jailer.

[Jshadowhunter]

Have to agree: the Jailor in the book isn't the Jailor in the game.

[Ielenia]

"Audiobook voiced by Sylvanas' voice actress."

I sincerely mean no offense at all at Patty Mattson, but that, for me, is a big negative for the audiobook to me. Not because she's a bad voice actress, but because I'm honestly in a big "Sylvanas burnout" and the least I see or hear the character, the better.

[Feanoro]

"Audiobook voiced by Sylvanas' voice actress."

I sincerely mean no offense at all at Patty Mattson, but that, for me, is a big negative for the audiobook to me. Not because she's a bad voice actress, but because I'm honestly in a big "Sylvanas burnout" and the least I see or hear the character, the better.

I'm sure she means well, and the acting itself is fine, but my God, I can't stand how nasal it is.

[Jastall]

I'm sure she means well, and the acting itself is fine, but my God, I can't stand how nasal it is.

Same. It's grating. From what I heard it's not Mattson's natural voice so I doubt it's her fault but I can't stand Sylvanas's voice. Her WC3 voice was miles, miles better. Much like her WC3 everything was miles better come to think of it.

[Lorgar Aurelian]

This is why you have the people who actually wrote these plot lines originally write these things - the amount of retcons here is disgraceful - how can you take Golden seriously for writing them or Blizzard seriously for letting her

There's little to no chance Golden is the one coming up with the Retcons the book reads as if every one was forced in by a higher up and it's been known for a while she's not actually on the wow/lore team and just fills orders from different teams.

[Theangryone]

The story needs to be in game. If you have to keep writing novels to explain your game, your game has a bad story.