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The Next Expansion: Sacking A Town

Run Ma, It's A Hurricane! Run Ma, It's A Hurricane!

The Next Expansion is an ever growing series of articles that focuses on WoW's upcoming third expansion.  The column covers news, speculation and even gameplay mechanics that PL's writers would like to see implemented.

The little quip about Southshore vs. Tarren Mill in yesterday's post was no accident.  We've discussed the topic at length in the past and it continues to instill a sense of nostalgia whenever it is brought up.  Unless you were trying to level during those days it was pure fun.  Even most of the lowbies didn't mind, as they got to be a part of the battle (even if it was a small part) and a glimpse of the future.  Occasionally the skirmishes became so large, and the resurrection timers so long, that one of the towns (often Tarren Mill due to level differences of the hubs) would be decimated.  Crushed, destroyed, void of anything but the corpses of the fallen and the invaders who laid them to rest.

I've been waiting for a Blizzard sanctioned event since.  No, I don't count Wintergrasp.  What I want is the mix of PvP and PvE that the battles gone bye brought us.  If one side dominated the other than it had an adverse affect on one's ability to continue questing in the area.  Sure, the NPCs respawned quickly, but when the town was completely sacked they'd fall to another blade in a moment's notice.  Not to mention that it was damn near impossible to be questing between the two towns without being ganked.

By binding a PvP/PvE area to the Honor system (sacking a town would give bonus honor to everyone involved) the system could be arbitrarily policed.  Upon the battle's completion the town would take time to recuperate.  With nothing to kill, and no honor to be gained the opposing faction would be forced to travel to some other land, giving the losers an opportunity to finish and turn in quests.  Or they could always prepare a counter-attack.

Unfortunately some people would deem this as too hardcore, since your leveling could come to a crawl.  So I'll present another scenario along the same lines that wouldn't be PvP oriented, but pure PvE.  One that is a perfect application of Tabula Rasa's invading forces mechanic mixed into the speculated world event for WoW Cataclysm.

With the Naga invading local shorelines the citizens of the areas beg for help, anybody's help.  Upon accepting your dispatch you are sent to various shores to clean up the invading forces, driving them back by the dozens.  Despite our best efforts the sea beasts overrun the shorelines, pushing further and further in.  As time progresses the bustling ports of Menethil Harbor, Southshore, Booty Bay and more are taken by the Naga.  With our shipping and supply lines in peril the capital cities have no choice but to attack the Naga's home.  It isn't until we breach their final defenses that the Naga swarm retreats back into the ocean to defend their Queen.

Think of it as a reverse Isle of Quel'Danas event.  Instead of us opening up content by reclaiming the island, the invasion's progress (which would be an unstoppable force) would reveal new objectives.  We'd start off with simple quests to collect information and slaughter the early cannon fodder.  Then we would work our way up to Naga Officers (outdoor bosses), staging grounds (5-man dungeons somewhere on the shores) and naval combat (ship to ship battles against the Naga).  The aquatic tyranny would not end until we have breached the Maelstrom and located the Naga hideout.  The bosses and invading force would then return, leaving the land mostly intact.

What do you think?  Would you rather the mix scenario or straight up PvE?  Any other ideas out there for a return of TM vs SS style combat?  At least these scenarios would finally make the Local Defense channel actually mean something.

Reader Comments (37)

I find the Naga PVE event quite appealing :)
And as you said, if a person is more PVP/arena oriented then they still have that option to go back to. I wouldn't mind more PVE events that would be really RP style. The Naga event describes above would really give me a sense of accomplishment.

July 31, 2009 | Unregistered CommenterDeeJayDieSeL

I think it would be great to have a true "contested zone" where quests could only be acquired and completed by players of the controlling faction. OF course, there would have to be an alternative zone to grind through. And there would have to be certain perks (i.e. buffs or increased experience) for capturing and defending the zone.

WG is a step in the right direction, but you dont get that feeling of being in the middle of the war between the Alliance and the Horde. What is the penalty for losing or failing to capture Wintergrasp? You cant do VoA? You cant by your WG PvP gear? It seems so trivial, really. Players are still able to farm in the zone with minimal opposition from NPCs or players, whether their faction owns it or not.

I dont know about you guys, but I'd really like to see a more in-depth representation of the war between the factions. Maybe you get that feeling a bit more on a PvP realm.

July 31, 2009 | Unregistered CommenterRancidPandemic

The only problem I see with that idea is the "it ends when the final onjective is completed". With that saId. You can potentially experience the event for as long as the server pleases, and it could still be going throughout the expansion.

July 31, 2009 | Unregistered CommenterOctaviax

I would like to see the Naga invasion just before the expansion hits. I loved the scourge invasion just before woltk launched.

July 31, 2009 | Unregistered Commenterno1important

honestly i think the naga thing is a good idea. Look at contested zones. what should happen is a letter in the mail appears at a 10th lvl ( 30 40 50 etc) and you are called by a main faction city to fight for the right of a contested area. every zone is instanced so that you progress through it. So think of areas like Halaa. Depending on the controlling faction will give that faction the right to quest there. Some may argue that this will screw a certain faction depending on who is and isn't controlling it. there are atleast two-three contested zones every five lvls so this wouldn't be a problem. and with the bg system coming out if you don't want to pvp and pve then you can just pvp.

July 31, 2009 | Unregistered CommenterSancterus

is it true they are canceling Icarly? and if so will jerry the former shaman come back? i mean will he come back to project lore? to help with intances or raids or a new thing like 10 days of knight questing with dorkins doing dailys stuff like that? i like him :P but his just level 71 so it might take awhile for him to hit 80

July 31, 2009 | Unregistered CommenterMontes

ahhh nevermind about my comment above its not getting cancelled i think...

July 31, 2009 | Unregistered CommenterMontes

I was leveling when TM/SS was a big deal and the only form of pvp that the game had to offer other than duels. As stated in the article, my leveling was zero because of non-stop ganking, corpse camping and dead NPC's. Call me a carebear or whatever, but that's stupid and not enjoyable. I wanted to do a few quests or whatever, not get corpse camped by a twelve year old nitwit on a 60 hanging out in the yeti caves. I eventually skipped most of the quests in TM because there was no point in trying to do them.

Although, as a Horde player, I will say that doing Hecular's Rod back before it was nerfed was the best thing ever. If you timed that quest turn in just right all the guards, NPC's and players that happened to be in Southshore would get decimated.

July 31, 2009 | Unregistered CommenterGQ

i would like there to be daily pvp quests but are just to kill mayors/etc of random towns.

so, today i have to kill the major of southshore, and the alliance would get a quest to kill the person in charge of TM. automatically pvp would start, and everyone leveling would stick away from the zone for the day and level somewhere else

July 31, 2009 | Unregistered CommenterBarrager

rancid@

man i couldent agree with you more

GQ@

you should change your name to QQ

i think this would be really and really fun as menchioned by the many it would really bring out the rivalry between the fractions my best memmorys of pvping and bombing TM they should do this for every contested territory zangarmarsh, terrokar, hellfire, nagrand, blade edge( i think never got around to leveling their but it had both horde and alliance mdsummer fires) feralas arathi highlands, ashenvale, SS, TM etc and aply some mecahnics of AV like summoning beckup but not one like AV but a whole bunch a distress call sent out to the near by alliance/horde settlements allso the leader the general the top dog of the town owcurse his/hers would jacked up so they cant be one shoted and the raid downs get a huge honor bonus allso those should marks like halaa and wintergrasp does and and their a reward vendor allso for those pvers of us new quest could be implented screwing with the oposing fraction similar to stink bomb fiasco during hollows end which you get honnor exp gold, marks and rep with storm pike or who ever the horde knights of arathor or who ever teh horde have and the WSG guys whic i forgot the names of depanding on what you're defending and blizz could do the same as they did with the scourge invasion put marks on the map whear horde/alliance invading now as for the leveling problem i think i got it covered the attacker has 1 hour to destroy the town they are assualting destroy means every building is burning and all the npcs all the guards all the players are dead if even one attackible taht means no bubble or secrofisesis left standing the attack has failed and everyone in 20 yards range becomes unattable while in the town for the next 2 hours

jut some scratches taht i would to see

July 31, 2009 | Unregistered Commentercocopuff

the post above has simmilar ideas i did not copy it i didnt even see the post untill i refreshed

July 31, 2009 | Unregistered Commentercocopuff

i think it would be a good idea for the nagas because itll give you a chance to take a break from questing to have some fun and it would be col if it would be made into a 25 man like they did with the argent tournament and i think that you maybe could add some dailies to make it worthwhile for the higher levels for reasons other than gear but its an overall good idea and i think it has a chance to be a major part of the game

cowjuice, windrunner server
level 72 paladin

July 31, 2009 | Unregistered Commentercowjuice

when the attack fails (meaning the attakers are completly repeled not one person is standing at the end of the hour) the defender gethers their forces and unleashes an all out assult on the attacker if the attack succeds then timer resets and the current attacker has an extra hour to play around with teh civilians of the town after taht hour anyone in the otwn becomes unattackble for the next 2 hours

July 31, 2009 | Unregistered Commentercocopuff

maybe blizz could do both the naga and this during this after the attackers are repled and the attacker s grow bored of the towm

July 31, 2009 | Unregistered Commentercocopuff

edit: maybe blizz ciuld do both the naga and this after the are repeled or grow bored of teh town and move on

July 31, 2009 | Unregistered Commentercocopuff

could*

July 31, 2009 | Unregistered Commentercocopuff

Southshore was always being sacked on the server I played on (Shadowsong) in part due to the Horde quest that has you poke that grave of the necromancer guy, other part in fact the guards didn't patrol the main road in, but around the border. (Rather ineffectively I might add) while Tarren Mill was always impregnible because that stupid Mushroom Vendor would not only aggro to players to hit them, but call for guards as he did so. No Southshore NPC does that :P

July 31, 2009 | Unregistered CommenterKyndranigar

I'd rather enjoy your idea about a naga invasion more than the pvp aspect. Call me an RP-er, but at least I'd feel more involved in the story.

July 31, 2009 | Unregistered CommenterAlayea

COCOPUFF SPELL CHECK YOU RETARD!!! Crap, I made a nice comment...jeez..Learn to to Spell Check!!!

July 31, 2009 | Unregistered Commenter3pallyroller

3pallyroller i dont have spell check and i wasn about to go though the whole thing

July 31, 2009 | Unregistered Commentercocopuff

Cool since how xroads is almost always under attack by alliance

July 31, 2009 | Unregistered CommenterJessiness

the person that wanted to kill mayors......remind you of Bloodsail quest =).......if u spent the 3 hours in Booty bay of course (got to love killin goblins =D)

August 1, 2009 | Unregistered CommenterRayl

good post, but has blizzard really said their new xpac will be called WoW Cataclysm? thats dumb, i thought they just bought rights to the word to be used on merchandise and stuff like that, but did i miss a post where they released the name of the 3rd xpac?

August 1, 2009 | Unregistered CommenterKyle

i cant read there is an ad in the way T.T

August 1, 2009 | Unregistered CommenterDylan

nvm it left after i submited a comment

August 1, 2009 | Unregistered CommenterDylan

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