[Cairenn]

Lore and Quests

The main speaker for this panel was Chris Metzen. He is the main person in charge of creative direction in WoW. This means that though this was a “lore” and quest panel, a lot of the future direction of WoW in general was fair game. (As a note... Chris says he plays the Horde when he plays)

Why was the outland chosen for the first expansion, vs other more interesting places? Why not “Northrend”? “Do you really think Arthas is level 70?”

The storyline for this twisted and morphed to come to this point. The burning crusade is the burning legion's desire to kill all life. It is the thing that drives the legion to do what they do.

The setting for WoW is huge. This battle we fight is a supposed to be on a cosmic scale, many worlds, not just this one. The expansion is designed to show the scope and breadth of the cosmos. Other worlds are being threatened by the burning legion, other battles, other people. The world of Azeroth is the only location that the burning legion has ever been defeated, and we have done it twice. WoW will eventually take the fight to the Burning Legion, take the fight to these other worlds, save them. This expands the “current world”, and provides new hooks. Later expansions can link from the outland... those other portals that the legion are attacking through.

There was a bit of talk about lore, how the titans tamed the elements in the worlds, formed them as they are, seeded life. They came across demons and other things in the twisted nether. The fall of Sargares is well documents in other lore sites, and I won't reprinted here. I checked my notes against what was already printed in lore sites, and nothing was changed or added. So look it up there.

Outland is the remnants of the original planet the orcs are from. The details are in the Warcraft 3 expansion. The heroes (who are still around) closed the portal from the other side. This world was corrupted by the legion, used as a tool, and the tool failed... the burning legion does not reward failure... they have found their way back to the outland... and the actions in the WoW expansion are almost a retribution. The 5 heroes from the expansion are alive, and will be part of the plots. You can see the 5 heroes if you go to Stormwind... they are the huge statues at the entrance.

Outland is huge chunks of rock... continent sized, floating in the astral plane. It is all that is left of the original planet.

In Warcraft 3 expansion, Illdian escaped into the outlands. He closed the gates that the original inhabitants used to escape the destruction. We will be opening these gates to take the fight back to the burning legion.

“The twisting nether is the astral plane”

We the players, will fight Illdian. It is not said if we kill him or not... but we do fight him. They were very cagey about the details... whether this would be a fight like Majordomo Execetus... or a slaying. Or he could have been playing on the audience.

The blood elves are meant to be cool. The blood elves are the high elves that aligned with Illdian. The players will be the elves still in our world... trying to make it to the outlands. The goal of the night elves is to make it to the outlands and rejoin their prince, to rejoin Illdian. The “drama” is when they get their, there is something wrong with the prince or the details (not a lot of specific info was given... just vague clues).

“Why would the blood elves fight Illdian and their price with the rest of the horde once they get to the outlands?”.

Basically things are not like the blood elves left behind expect things to be. Something is wrong... and they, once they learn the truth of something, will no longer want to unite, or be welcomed, by the people in outlands.

Arcane Magic is corrupting. It is corruptive and chaotic in nature... the longer you use it, the more you are twisted.

Chris then went into the exile of the high elves after the sundering... the forming of their new nation... all in line with the already published lore.

95% of all high elves are dead. Killed in Warcraft 3. 4% have become blood elves... and 1% remain in the world as high elves.

Blood elves are addicted to magic.. a deep hard addiction. Prince Kal'thalas(sp?) made a deal with the devil (Illdian) to sate this addiction. It was pride that drove him to (I think).

The blood elves rebuilt their homeland. They want to regain the glory of their past. They are steadily being more corrupt, and have gone down a path they can never come back from. They are the “Nice happy blond people” according to Chris... royally f.ucked up.


Kal'thalas lives in the outlands. He has a dungeon, and is a raid boss.

Players will start in Qual Theras (sp?) with their eventual goal is to get enough power to open the portal to go into the outlands. That is such a burning desire, that they are willing to do the unthinkable to reach it. Nothing is as important to make it to the outlands and rejoin their allies there to the blood elves left. Yes... we know they are not going to find what they want there... but in the mean time... this is the plot point to get them into the horde.

The alliance is right out, and would never accept the blood elves.

The horde is the only choice available to them. Though the blood elves have no love for the horde, their alliance with them is one of convenience. What ever is necessary to reach the outlands is done... the horde have the power and the resources that they blood elves need to reach the outlands. Silvanas... the queen of the undead is the conduit of the blood elves entering the horde, the link that brings them in.