Project Lore

Who Needs A Body? For reasons unknown I was meet with a good amount of playtime this weekend.  Rather then ponder on my good fortunes I set out to plow through level 73 (accomplished) on my priest in an effort to have her join the raiding ranks before Cataclysm is released.  With most of the quests in Dragonblight accomplished on my dagger lover I went about my business rushing through quests, burning down numerous mobs and getting ganked.  Then I ran into Orik Trueheart and his eye-catching T2 (recolored) Paladin set. Trueheart is a dwarf on a mission.  He was sent to the Forgotten Shore in Dragonblight to free the souls of those that Arthas betrayed.  In case you forgot, upon hearing that his father had ordered Arthas' troops returned to Lordaeron, the crown prince had the fleets boats burned to their frames.  The actions have been retold numerous times, most recently in the novel, so the setup isn't exactly new.  But we've always followed Arthas' journey into Frostmourne Cavern after that.  Turns out that the men Arthas stranded on the chilly shores eventually died to the Scourge around them and were cursed to defend the landing forever.  That's where Trueheart comes in. Trueheart's questline, one that offers a whopping amount of quick, easy and local experience, has players once again leave their bodies to converse with the dead.  After learning their plight, we realize that the souls have been trapped because they forgot how they came to be.  Naturally it's up to us to release them.  Upon finding a use for the unusual emblem residing in the snow we are graced with a scripted cinematic that brings numerous other names into play.  If you haven't played Warcraft III or read Arthas' novel, then the line is a good place to witness Arthas' descent into madness. This Random Emblem Caught Me Off Guard Until... Sick of reliving old lore and wishing Blizzard would introduce more original backstory?  Stop crying and do it anyways.  Upon completion of the Arthas nostalgia I was given the opportunity to crush some Scarlet Onslaught faces.  Seeing as decimating the ranks of the Scarlet followers, Crusade or otherwise, is a favored pastime of mine, I couldn't say no.  Zelig, Trueheart's "bra", and his compadres of the 7th Legion, sent me off to collect information, curb overpopulation and brush up on my reading comprehension.  How could one pass up XP and nostalgic murder?  Little did I know that my face melting would lead me back to ancient lore.  The scripted culmination with Muradin in the Frostmourne Cavern is both new, and highly interesting.  It also offers sick loot too boot. I was privy to the information given in the cinematic, I just can't believe that I missed such a long questline the first time around.  According to my buddy, the chain continues, becoming far more complex than a little Spock-style retconning.  If it stay on the same level of awesomeness then I will definitely have more for you.  Approaching a year from releases Wrath of the Lich King continues to impress me with its quest design, presentation and integration. These Alliance restricted quests make me wonder, what the heck is the Horde revisting?

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I was not the only gamer to get wrapped up in the excitement behind Christie Golden's latest World of Warcraft novel.  Apparently many, many of us decided to pick up the novel upon its release, making it the first piece of Warcraft's Extended Universe to dip into the mainstream via the #16 slot on the New York Times Best Seller list.  There's good reason why Arthas: Rise of the Lich King made it to the prestigious list, it's fraking awesome.

*Note: If you've followed Arthas' lore at all, then none of this should contain any large spoilers.  But plot points will be discussed (especially in the comments) so beware.*

The novel starts off with a simple introduction to Northrend's native races and creatures that we have become so familiar with.  After the brief prologue we are tossed into the world of old, the days of Arthas's upbringing and rise as a prince.  It's this early section of the novel (Golden broke it up into three distinct parts) that will bring experienced lore nuts the most joy.  Here we are given entirely unknown details about Arthas' past, alongside various scenes that have been told in the novels before.  To keep things creative, Golden chose Arthas' naive mind as the focal point for the scenes, giving us more insight to his motivations while she touched upon these key scenes.  This section's extensive use of foreshadowing, specifically the implementation of Arthas' stead Invincible, captured me beyond any other WoW/Warcraft novel.

Section 2 - The Bright Lady - deals largely with Jaina and Arthas' touchy relationship as he descends down his dark path.  Golden writes a fantastic love triangle between the pair and Kael'thas.  One that has neither being the "bad guy," but both eligible suitors for the powerful mage.  The pair of males both get their shots at each other through witty dialogue and observation, but Kael'thas ultimately comes out on top, despite losing the girl.  As soon as Golden removed the love triangle from the plot, the novel begins recycling much of the Warcraft III:RoC+TFT campaign.  She doesn't take much artistic risk - possibly in fear of alienating us - sticking closely to what we know.  For me, precious little lore was introduced in the back half of the book, but the constant fight inside Arthas between what he has done - killing his father, dumping Jaina, the murders at Stratholme - and the power he was after kept things interesting.

I've always believed that Golden could craft good characters and well written stories.  To me her weak points have always been her dialog and battle scenes (or lack thereof), but no more.  In Rise of the Lich King she masterfully crafts Sylvannas Windrunner and Kael'Thas - characters that I haven't seen much of since I have always played Alliance in WoW - in addition to the interactions of Arthas and Jaina.  Kael'thas was also a part of the best battle scene in the novel, the fight upon Icecrown Citadel as Arthas attempted his ascent to The Frozen Throne.

How about the resolution to the dichotomy of Arthas's psyche?  Previously we had always been told that Arthas and the Lich King had merged.  According to the novel, that isn't the case.  Stunning.

End Spoilers.

Seriously, if you are at all interested in the Warcraft lore then you need to go pick up this book.  Your need to experience the novel is compounded further if you are playing Wrath of the Lich King and haven't completed the WC3 campaign.

My rave review aside, I am not sure how this piece of literature would stand on its own.  I feel that by going into the novel as a Warcraft virgin, the reader would be missing a lot of the story.  Specifically the entire foreshadowing that made the early chapters such a joy to read.  At any rate, it is still the best WoW novel to date, and the best starting point for new readers.

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What, no meal with this flight?

Before Wrath hit, I admitted that I was awaiting its release far more than its predecessor, The Burning Crusade. Blizzard Entertainment planned to do things with The Burning Crusade that I just did not agree with. And if you ever state a fact along those lines in General Chat, you'll know that one of the first responses you will receive is “Quit if you don't like it.” The thing is, I actually did.

I was only gone a few months, but I tried to show my disdain for some of their choices by slightly lowering their income. I highly doubt they noticed. Shortly after my return, solid details of Wrath started pouring onto the Internet, but I only needed one detail, that the Lich King would be in the expansion. Once the storyline was revealed to include and extend Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne's theme, I was as good as signed up. The other stuff was just icing.

The quest designers really, I mean REALLY wanted players to understand what is going on in Northrend. One would have to be incredibly feeble-minded (or adverse to questing) not to see that Arthas, aka The Lich King, has his talons in everything and sees all.

While putzing around Zul'Drak I picked up the Unliving Choker from a random mob. During my routine vendoring of my junk, I realized that it was actually a quest item that begins the Betrayal quest line. The chance at spying on the Scourge, by disguising myself as one, was enough of a motivator to send me off on my way. The Achievement hungry will be happy to know that it is one part of a two quest chain Achievement for Zul'Drak.

The chain is much longer than that of the Storm Giant's, but to be honest, the gameplay isn't as cool. The chain lacks the destructive qualities of Gymer, but makes up for it in story, which Gymer severely lacked. If only the designers could have merged the strengths of both. Zul'Drak has already hit me with two chains that I have loved enough to highlight here. Safe to say that it is a pretty solid zone, and from what I am told, Icecrown only gets better. Can't wait.

Towards the middle of the chain it becomes abundantly clear why the chain is called what it is. The twist – if you can really call it that – reminded me of something a great man once said “Ah, curse your sudden but inevitable betrayal!”

I miss that show.

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Photo by Robin. June 2007

Hey, guess what. Wrath of the Lich King comes out tomorrow morning at 12:01 AM! Score! To celebrate I will be heading to a local midnight release party in the mean streets of South Philadelphia. I took a few minutes out this morning to pack a “survival bag.”

In my “Gigantique” Bag you will find:

• My Nintendo DS, currently equipped with Yoshi's Island DS (possibly the best platforming game ever).
• The new issue of Game Developer magazine.
• My girlfriend's Point & Shoot camera (more on that in a few) and a spare battery pack.
• Some Nature Valley granola bars.
• Miscellaneous junk like keys, wallet, cell phone and the ever useful stun gun (rabid fans are more dangerous than angry critics).

It surprised me how long it took to find a store with a midnight release party. I live in South Philadelphia, and the Philadelphia area is actually the home to EBGames (not that you care or anything). If you punch in 19104 into their store locator, you will be hit with over 50 stores inside a 30 minute drive. Yet, the first seven EBGames/Gamestop stores I called were not having parties. Granted, they don't all need to have a party, but they should know which store is.

In the end I got bumped to their District Manager, who informed me that the closest store with a launch party is at the popular tourist location of South Street. I should have known.

I will be heading there, camera in hand, to chat with the crowd, hang out, and kill those last few Wrath-less hours with like minded individuals. For those who may not be familiar with it, South Street is a bit of a hot spot in Philadelphia, and has become, what I would call, an outdoor mall. The Gamestop is located at 505 South Street (between Fifth and Sixth streets), with the queue starting up by 10 PM.  If also else fails, there is plenty to do in the area.

I spoke with a sales rep earlier and they are expecting a pretty large crowd, so it should be a blast. Anyone else going to launch parties? Where and which store is having it? Dare someone come meet me in person?! If you are timid about meeting people from “teh internets,” do not fret, I am not a troll.

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Oh, Wrath of the Lich King, how we await your arrival. Come Wednesday night, I will be camping my local EBGames for my copy of Wrath, only to receive my Collector's Edition in the mail the following day or so. Yes, I am that excited for Northrend. It appears I am not the only one, for the Lich King kicked off another world event last night. As of press time, the event isn't nearly as large as the infamous “Zombiefication of the Azerothian Nation,” but it is still new and exciting. WoWInsider had ongoing coverage of the event while it unfolded, and confirmed that it repeated every 20 minutes or so. Players will have to travel to Stormwind or Orgrimmar, to see the story unfold. Once again, the two factions are not created equal, as the Horde get to see Warchief Thrall and Garrosh Hellscream – Son of Grom – duke it out in the Ring of Honor. The attack on these main cities is strike two against Arthas and his better half. The event doesn't particularly lead one to believe that the factions will turn and head straight for Northrend, so there may be more to the proceedings. Reports indicate that the attack was still repeating before maintenance, so if you missed it, you may be able to catch a repeat later today. I for one, hope that Arthas tries something more dastardly, causing the combined forces of the Horde and Alliance to head to Northrend, each seeking their own revenge. What do you lore nuts think the outcome from the attacks could be? I predict that Garrosh will leave Thrall's side and head to Northrend. Possibly without Thrall's consent or perhaps to banish him from Orgrimmar for kicking his ass (Spoiler: We already know he is a Warchief in Northrend, but not under what circumstances). Bolvar Fordragon is probably bored with playing politics, and with King Varian Wrynn's return, he will return to the battlefield. I am incredibly excited for WotLK's lore!

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Blizzard debuted the Wrath of the Lich King cinematic trailer during last week's Leipzig Games Convention to much discussion. Many, yours truly included, felt that it was lacking something. At the same time, others enjoyed how Blizzard "hid" the lore by not explaining it during the video but eluding to the backstory. Either way, just about everyone loved the animation and art. Surely, not everyone is a lore nut and therefore may not know what Arthas is doing in Northrend, or simply forgot. Today we will add a little lore to ProjectLore with a quick re-cap of Arthas and his ascension as the new Lich king. Prince Arthas was first introduced to the Warcraft univserse with the release of Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos. Blizzard's third RTS in the series revolved around the return of the Burning Legion to the land and the four races' attempts to stop them. Arthas begins his career as a Knight of the Silver Hand by defending Strahnbrad before moving onto Stratholme. His actions in Stratholme mark the beginning of his turn, as he purges the town of its people in an attempt to stave off the plague. With Kel'Thuzad, the plague bringer, dead, Arthas pursues Mal'Ganis into Northrend where he and Muradin Bronzebeard find Frostmourne. In his final conversation with Muradin, Arthas explains that "I would gladly bear any curse to save my homeland!" shortly before a powerful explosion shatters the ice surrounding the sword, wounding Muradin. With Frostmourne in hand Arthas seeks revenge upon Mal'Ganis. Striking the dreadlord down before he returns to Lordaeron. To kill his father. Now corrupted, following the bidding of Tichondrius, hearing the Lich King's sweet nothings and lacking a soul, Arthas began performing unthinkable acts. For months he carried out Tichondrius' bidding, including exhuming the corpse of Kel'Thuzad, and obtaining a magical urn for his body. An urn protected by his former mentor Uther the Lightbringer and one that possessed his father's ashes. Without remorse, the former Prince dispatched of his mentor and discarded the last remains of King Terenas Menethil II. The Death Knight proceeded to resurrect Kel'Thuzad as a powerful lich after destroying Silvermoon and plundering the Sunwell for its power. With his resurrection complete, Kel'Thuzad tells Arthas of the Lich King's full plan. The pair sought the Book of Medivh and succeeded in summoning Archimonde to their lands. The demon - not knowing their plan - disregarded the pair, allowing them to meet with Archimonde's enemies. Arthas located the recently freed Illidan Stormrage and divulged the secret to Archimonde's demise, the Skull of Gul'dan. Arthas made his return shortly after the combined forces of the Night Elves, Humans, and Orcs defeated Archimonde. Archimonde's remaining three dreadlords realized that the Lich King's power was waning and moved to seek their revenge. Thanks to Kel'Thuzad, Arthas narrowly escaped an assassination attempt by his former aide, Sylvanas Windrunner. The ordeal left Arthas shaken and the Lich King called him to protect The Frozen Throne in Northrend. After being saved by Anub'arak, the former king of Azjol-Nerub, the pair ventured towards the Icecrown Glacier via the remains of Azjol-Nerub. During their descent into the caves they first claimed the treasures of Sapphiron and after his defeat, Arthas managed to raise him once again as a powerful frost wyrm. Then, they were confronted by the remaining forces of Muradin, led by Baelgun. After dispatching of the dwarves, the team ran into the legendary race known as the Faceless Ones before managing to reach the Upper Kingdom. Arthas' forces clashed with Illidan's as he attempted to open the path to The Frozen Throne. Upon starting his ascent he was greeted by Illidan. Arthas quickly dispatched the demon-infused elf and so he climbed the icy stairs to receive the Lich King's armor. With a powerful cry Arthas shattered the throne and claimed the helm of the Lich King. The act merged the soul of Arthas with that of the Lich King. Ner'Zhul and Arthas became one and await you in Icecrown Glacier. For more information on Arthas check out his WoWWiki page or the plot's to Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos and Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne.

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