Project Lore

Chilton promises Deathwing will be one of the most captivating villains yet.Twitter buddy and gaming journalist extraordinaire Phil Kollar posted a new interview with Tom Chilton on Game Informer's website yesterday. The piece, as part of the site's "Afterwords" column, is primarily a retrospective on the past expansion (and what a better time to do it than at the tail end of Wrath content?).

The three-page chat covers plenty of content and Chilton talks at length about several subjects including:

• Death Knights and what other options were in the running for the expansion's hero class
• Satisfaction with the Lich King storyline and progression of Icecrown Citadel
• Graphical improvements and system requirements going forward
• Pure DPS class versus hybrid class performance
• Successes and failures with the design of Lake Wintergrasp
• How world PvP will be handled differently in Cataclysm with Tol'Barad
• Ulduar's position in the storyline (and how it could've been explained better)
• How awesome Deathwing is going to be as a character and villain

Perhaps one of the interview's most interesting points comes towards the end, when Kollar asks if there are any more immediate plans for adding content to the game. We've already received some hints about what will change in terms of PvP, but Chilton mentions the possibility of opening up a boss in the Ruby Sanctum underneath Wyrmrest Temple.

It's comforting to know that they're working on something, but at the same time disappointing to realize that it likely won't be anything extensive. Either way, Chilton emphasizes that content coming before Cataclysm is more an extension of 3.3 than a true 3.4, so it's best to expect nothing but minor patches until the expansion.

So go read the interview, then come back here, and tell us what you think. Do your feelings on Wrath of the Lich King jive with those of the WoW's Lead Game Designer?

BlizzCon 2009 is certainly gone, but it is by no means forgotten.  The latest, and greatest, convention to celebrate Blizzard's universes has given World of Warcraft players plenty of fodder for questions and concerns.  Not to mention increasing the general hunger we reserve for all things Azeroth (or things in another dimension that happen to impact Azeroth).  Even though the third expansion is a ways away, Blizzard has begun trickling out additional information and screenshots for Deathwing's return via the official Cataclysm website. The Abyssal Maw, the elemental plane of water, was chosen as the first zone to be detailed.  In sticking with tradition, the new page details the background of the zone as told through small snippets of lore.  We learn, or are reminded, that the elemental planes are creations of the Titans to protect their creations from the elemental minions of the Old Gods (ie Ragnaros) and the natural destructive forces of the elements.  However, Deathwing's escape into Azeroth rips open a hole between the planes of existence, allowing noble and nefarious factions to enter the formerly closed areas. Blizzard manages to tease a new Legendary item during the description of Abyssal Maw.  By way of describing the likely end boss of the zone, Neptulon the Tidehunter, Blizzard states that he "possesses a potent weapon that allows its owner to control the very seas of Azeroth."  And it appears that players will be able to get their hands on the powerful weapon, "the artifact has remained secure inside the water elementals' domain... but that will soon change." It's nice to see Blizzard following up BlizzCon with new information in such a timely manner.  Hopefully the company can keep the flow of information coming, instead of peaks and valleys.  In case you are wondering, the Cataclysm site is not bare outside of Abyssal Maw.  It also contains the introduction to the Worgen with Gilneas and the Lost Isles for the Goblins.

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Proverb is a twice-weekly column discussing the lore of Warcraft. It is spoiler heavy for all Warcraft games, novels, and other media. Comment on this post or send a tweet to @Heartbourne and let us know what you would like to see in future columns!

Fan rendering of Ysera, night elf and dragon forms

Of all the dragonflights, the green and red dragonflights are considered to be the most peaceful. Alexstrasza, the aspect of the red dragons, the Life-Binder, rules over Wyrmrest Temple and has long been a protagonist of many perilous adventures. Ysera has not gotten nearly as much attention as Alexstrasza, but with Neltharion as the main antagonist of Cataclysm, Malygos killed in the Nexus War, and Nozdormu likely involved in the Infinite Dragonflight (see previous Proverb columns), Ysera and the green dragonflight may be one of our last remaining draconic allies. Ysera, like all dragons, was created by the Titans from the great proto-dragon Galakrond. The titan Eonar gifted her with the powers of nature. Eonar also imparted some of her power to Alexstrasza, but the form it took was more specifically in life energy. Ysera was tasked with safeguarding the natural world and the Emerald Dream, an alternate realm that exists parallel to the mortal realm where all mortals dreams take place, among other things. The Emerald Dream exists much as the world was at its shaping, a lush, green paradise. It is what the world would be like if sentient beings were not to exist. Even those who can walk the Dream, including its master, Ysera, cannot alter the Dream; it will always quickly revert to its unaltered state. Many powerful beings, especially those skilled in the ways of natural magic, can exist in both realms at once, or move their spirit through the Emerald Dream while their physical forms remain in the mortal realm. Novice spellcasters can easily become overwhelmed by the serenity of the Dream and never return to their bodies. Their physical forms slowly die of starvation, destroying their spirit as well.  Ysera, known as The Dreamer, nearly always has her eyes shut, wandering the Emerald Dream in spirit while she freely roams the mortal realm. Ysera often takes the form of a female night elf with green robes, hair, and eyes, especially in the Emerald Dream.

Ysera's current (temporary?) model in her night elf form in WoW

Cenarius, the patron of the Druids, was "adopted" by Ysera. Cenarius' actual parents are Elune and Malorne (known to the Tauren as Mu'sha and Apa'ro), but as Cenarius was much more mortal than Elune, she entrusted him to Malorne for his upbringing. Malorne was very close friends with Ysera, and Ysera seemed a more proper mother figure for Cenarius' life. Cenarius learned much about natural magic from Ysera's teaching and became a master of the wistful Emerald Dream. Perhaps 55,000 years after these events, Cenarius imparted this information to the night elves, training Malfurion Stormrage as the first druid. Many druids maintain a very close relationship with the green dragonflight, as they both spend much of their time tending to the natural world and the Emerald Dream. Many druids even become dragonsworn. Soon after Cenarius began training Malfurion, the Burning Legion invaded Azeroth. The night elves fought a difficult war and many of the Ancients, including Cenarius, ultimately helped decide the outcome. Neltharion, later known as Deathwing, tricked the other four dragon Aspects, including Ysera, into sacrificing much of their power into an artifact known as the Dragon Soul, later called the Demon Soul. He did not impart any of his power to the artifact, and as such remained much more powerful than the other dragons. Malfurion and Krasus attempted to travel to the lair of the Aspects so that Krasus could commune, but Neltharion had erected a strong barrier, making it impossible for them to enter. Malfurion entered the Emerald Dream to seek out Ysera to grant them an audience with Ysera. After repeatedly mentioning that he was a student of Cenarius, Ysera allowed his spirit passage to the meeting of the Aspects. While the Aspects discussed the demon soul, Malfurion investigated it silently with his mind. Neltharion noticed his meddling, and attacked him with silent spells. Malfurion attempted to escape to the Emerald Dream, and Neltharion surprisingly was able to follow, and follow undetected to Ysera. Neltharion took on an even more fearsome form in the Dream, but appearances in the dream world mean little. The implications of this event are many; the fact that powerful spellcasters such as Neltharion can enter the realm without communing with nature is interesting, as is the possibility of such beings entering the Dream without Ysera taking note.

Creature of the Dream

Neltharion's madness drove him to use it against anyone not of his flight. This caused a desperate struggle that resulted in the vast majority of dragons perishing, including practically all of the blue dragonflight. After a long battle, the demon soul was taken from Neltharion and sealed far beneath the earth, with an enchantment that prevented it from ever being wielded by dragonkind again. The War of the Ancients, as it later became known, ended with great losses, such as the death of most night elves and the exile of the highborne. Illidan Stormrage recreated the Well of Eternity using the Vials of Eternity, which caused his imprisonment at the hands of the remaining night elves. Ysera rewarded the night elves by planting a great tree in the Well of Eternity using an acorn from the Mother Tree G'Hanir, which perished with the death of its master Aviana during the War of the Ancients. This new tree became known as Nordrassil, the first World Tree, which greatly aided druids with natural powers, including the entry into the Emerald Dream. This direct endorsement from Ysera of the druids may have been one of the reasons druidism grew. This tree was blessed by the remaining Aspects. Nozdormu's blessing made the tree timeless, and the night elves inherited from it the power of immortality, causing them to never age (until the tree's eventual destruction). Look for part 2 tomorrow!

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"I'm Ron Burgundy?" One of the biggest side effects to the upcoming cataclysm is the destruction of Azeroth by Deathwing's return.  The Earth Warder - or Warderer for the overzealous, over caffeinated, under REMed writer - will return with a bang.  The leader of the Black Dragonflight will cut a hole in the world and leave a fiery trail from his exit wound across the Eastern Kingdom.  The effects of such a tumultuous event will be felt as far away as Kalimdor (no mention of major Northrend changes have been made), shattering The Barrens, ravaging the coastline of Auberdine and refreshing the Wailing Caverns.  It's only natural that the quests and tasks we've done over, and over, change alongside the world. To my knowledge no developer has abandoned old content entirely.  We players do it all the time though.  When was the last time you spent more than a few minutes running around Outland?  (Farming old achievements does not count!)  For us, it makes sense to move on to the new hotness for leveling, loot and a myriad of other reasons.  Being the efficient minded players that we are, we do just that. This, unfortunately, leaves the old areas crawling with tumbleweeds, bored mobs and unchallenged raid bosses.  Why shouldn't Blizzard nuke it and start over?  Nearly no one is using it, and to top it off, Blizzard is often ashamed of the archaic design ideas that the company implemented so long ago.  By combining the release of new races with Deathwing's destruction players will have a perfect reason to rerun all of the "new" zones, but that leads us to the bad - the disappearance of the old. This may sound contradictory to the good point.  That is because it is.  The removal of the old content, by way of the new stuff, is going to upset a lot of people.  Blizzard surely agonized over the decision to abandon all the vanilla WoW content, but that doesn't matter to the old school.  No matter what, those rose colored glasses will make players remember the "good ole days." *cough*Perhaps someone should archive the old dungeon content before it disappears?!  I wonder which site would be capable of such high quality hijinks?!  Any ideas?*cough* As a consolation prize, much of the old world raids will be returning alongside Cataclysm, albeit in an entirely new form.  Apparently beheadings do not kill dragons. The ugly is simply laziness.  I've seen, and heard, people claim that Blizzard isn't redoing anything, the company's artists are.  Subscribers to this philosophy believe that the massive changes will just be updates to art, textures and models, with little gameplay being modified.  I put the question mark in the title on purpose, as I have no fuel to add to this fire.  Are any readers out there capable of making a poignant case of laziness on Blizzard's part?  In my opinion, there are simply too many zones drastically changing, and too much raid content incoming for me to see the light. The keen-eyed readers will note that the post lost meat as I continued down the list of topics.  The Holmes-ish readers will then deduce my stance on the subject, which applies to my girlfriend as well.  I hate to see it go, but love to watch it leave.  What about you?  Feel free to leave my girlfriend out of your comments.

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Incoming! The short answer is that Boubouille scored.  The data mining machine, who used some other resources for his recent discoveries, received almost a perfect score during yesterday's opening ceremony.  Nearly every World of Warcraft detail that had been disclosed by MMO-Champion.com came true.  Nearly ever one. There's absolutely no way I can take away from the sleuthing that went on to find out Cataclysm's particulars.  Sure, I didn't believe them all at first, but Blizzard confirmed that the company is simply crazy.  Crazy enough to reinvent what MMO gamers, not just World of Warcraft players, will expect in future expansions. Here's what MMO-Champion had spot on:

• Worgen & Goblins - WoW.com independently "confirmed" this before the event ever happened, but it was Boubouille and his mask discovery that sparked the rumors.  The new races' racials definitely sound OP as announced.  However it was later confirmed that all the other races will have their racials revamped.
• Level cap raised to 85 - Seems an arbitrary choice, but Blizzard wants players to focus a bit more on the content leading up to level 85.  Not just the idea of getting there.  Of course that won't stop many people from being level capped week 1.
• Azeroth revamp - The lands as we know them will indeed change drastically.  Barrens is split in two (double the Barrens Chat?!), Grim Batol is now Twilight Highlands and various other lands, coastlines and jungles will radically change.
• Flying everywhere - Yes folks, we will be able to fly everywhere in Cataclysm.  This even includes Wintergrasp.
• Class combinations - Data mining discovered the new possibilities and they've all come true, even Night Elf Mages.  Solving the 2:1 Horde to Alliance druid question is the Worgen's ability to offer a self-standing holy trinity.
• Unfinished original content done - Uldum and Mount Hyjal will both be arriving as part of Cataclysm.  Blizzard stated that Hyjal was never completed because it was impossible to do what they wanted previously.

There's really only one thing I can say Boubouille missed the mark on, and that's the main protagonist of the third expansion.  Deathwing is, without a shadow of a doubt, the bad guy in Cataclysm.  He's the force that lays waste to the lands as we know them.  Not an erupting Maelstrom as so many speculated.  QueenAzshara and her Naga buddies are definitely around, they have a new island to themselves just south of the Maelstrom, but they'll be a distraction compared to The Earth Warderer. "That is their (Goblin) mount" We've also got some additional details that no one guessed.

• New Secondary Profession - Archaeology (a word that will be often misspelled) will be added to WoW.  It'll be the first secondary profession that plays like a gathering profession.  No, fishing doesn't count.  After collecting from nodes of ruins and such, players will be able to discover rewards.  The mechanic to discovery hasn't been disclosed, but the possibility of a mini-game (Bejewled?!) was mentioned.  We will be able to track ruin nodes, and other gathering nodes at the same time.
• Mastery system - A new mode of progression.  The Mastery system is going to work alongside Talents to offer additional character customization, and it won't be class restricted.  This means a Priest can pick up the same Mastery skills (or whatever they are to be called) as a Rogue.  We are going to find out more details during the WoW Game Systems panel at 10:30 PST.  I'll be covering it via Twitter, and I expect it to be live blogged here as well.
• Heroic Deadmines & Shadowfang Keep - We heard dungeon revamps were coming, and now it's official.  These particular dungeons will use the same art and models.  To spice things up these assets will be mixed with new encounters and fights.  We'll hear more at today's Raids & Dungeons panel, which I'll be covering as well.
• Ragnaros - He's indeed back, "bigger and more pissed."  How much bigger can the developers possibly make the Lord of the Fire Elementals?
• So much more - Changes to fishing, Blackrock Spire is back, new PvP zone, rated BGs and the Alliance loses Southshore!

Consider me excited.  What do you think?  Good, bad, lore buster?  Anything that truly shocked you? For the StarCraft II players out there; I'll be sitting down for a StarCraft II interview later today. @iTZKooPA with your questions.  I'll select the best ones and work them into my own queries.

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We're back for the Preview Panel! Amatera will be hosting. 12:32: The panelists are being introduced. A huge portrait of Deathwing was on the screen. 12:34: Talk of how they approached Lich King, with Arthas confronting you throughout the expansion. 12:35: Deathwing was originally supposed to be the protector of the earth. Metzen is mostly talking about his background right now, much of which can be perused by going to Deathwing's WoWWiki entry. 12:38: "[Deathwing's] a nutcase." The corrupting power of the Old Gods has gotten worse, so he's essentially more insane than before. Deathwing has awoken from the earthen elemental plane, Deephome, and his "explosion" into the world is what causes the cataclysm. All manner of destructive forces have reshaped Azeroth. No corner has been left untouched (except, Metzen jokes, Westfall). 12:40: Deathwing's emergence has also "brought up" the other elemental planes. We will be visiting them. 12:41: Concept art is being shown on the screen. Now onto Worgen. 12:42: They wanted to have a more "monstrous" race for the Alliance (much like they wanted the Horde to have a "prettier" race with the Blood Elves). 12:43: The "Worgen Curse" afflicted Gilneas much like the Scourge did the rest of the world. 12:44: The question: "Are the Worgen from somewhere else or somewhen else?" They're kind of like the "Wolverine of the Alliance" in terms of personality and fighting strength. 12:45: On the show floor, you'll start at Level 6 for the Worgen and Goblins, so that they can preserve the surprises found in the Level 1-5 content of the starting zones. 12:46: On to Goblins. The ones you play as (the ones that are part of the Horde), are only a certain faction of the race. Their starting area is the Lost Isles, off the coast of Kalimdor, between Azshara and Durotar. There will be Wrathgate-style cinematics for both the Goblins and Worgen. 12:47: The specific faction of Goblins: Bilgewater Cartel. 12:49: Dark days ahead. Horde likely impacted more than Alliance, will need "comic relief" (aka little green guys). The Goblin mount is a sweet-looking race car. 12:50: Portrait of Thrall and Cairne rescuing Horde babies after the upheaval. Metzen says there are tsunamis, tidal waves, volcanic trenches, neverending storms, etc. 12:51: Arthas' will "get what's coming to him," but it leaves both the Alliance and Horde drained, which causes extra stress during the events of the Cataclysm. 12:52: After allowing the Alliance and Horde to work together during Burning Crusade, they decided they wanted to bring the element of war back into the universe. Wrath was all about ramping that up. Orgrimmar NOT shown as destroyed, but as being reinforced by dark iron. Onto the new features. 12:54: Level 85 is the confirmed cap. A lot of effort went into redoing 1-60 zones, but they also wanted to bring in more end-game content than ever before. 12:54: Worgen will have "Dark Flight," sort of like a Sprint ability. They show a Worgen dressed in battle armor (in-game), looks badass. Worgens won't be Paladins or Priests. All other classes open currently. 12:55: Goblins will have "Rocket Belts." These can be offensive, but also defensive. You can "disengage" from battle by rocketing forward, sort of like Blink. Most of these things will be detailed in the Class Panel. 12:58: 7 NEW zones, in addition to reworked content. Hyjal. Uldum. Lost Isles. Gilneas. Vashj'ir (new underwater sunken city). Twilight Highlands (around Grim Batol). Deepholm, the Elemental Plane of Earth. Updated quests, art, and items for classic world. 1:00: Guild Advancement System - level up your guild for new perks. Will be more detailed in the Game System Panel. There will be 20 Guild levels. Advanced by doing all the usual stuff (battlegrounds, raids, dailies, etc.). There will be a guild talent tree, which will give access to things like mass resurrection, less durability loss after raids, and reduced or free repairs. 1:01: New class/race combos. Just to spite everyone, they show Tauren Paladins first (Holy Cow!). Gnome Priest. Dwarf Shaman (shown in some magma-looking armor). Now phased terrain. 1:03: The world will be able to change as you play through quest lines. Shows a coastline flooded in three distinct phases. 1:05: Archaeology. You can scout ruins for artifacts and study them. Then you take them to different factions that can help you advance along the "Path of the Titans." 1:06: You'll get 5 new talent points, but the trees will not expand (this does not mean we won't get new talents, they just won't go past the current range). Path of the Titans makes up for that. There are multiple paths, but they are not restricted to class. There will be new abilities and passive bonuses in each path. 1:06: The Mastery System will streamline the existing talent tree. They will preserve more "fun" talents, while taking basic power boosts out. Many new dungeons, creatures, quests, items, and so on. Now more detail on those parts of the game. 1:07: Each and every zone in classic Azeroth will be affected, though some clearly more than others. Five of the new zones will help you level from 78-85. The two starting zones will actually go from 1-15. Also, flight everywhere. No silly restrictions this time around. 1:10: Multiple scales of change (i.e. Elwynn might get new quests and whatnot, but Barrens will be sundered in two). New leveling paths. Examples are shown. Hillsbrad 20-25, Arathi 25-30, Hinterlands 30-35, Western Plagueland 35-40, etc. These changes are two sweeping to note right now, but Southshore is gone from Hillsbrad! 1:12: We are now looking at The Barrens. There is a gigantic, lava-filled scar down the middle. Parts of The Barrens are now regrown via the Wailing Caverns. Desolace has cracked open, bringing in water flows, which actually revitalizes nature in that area, as well. 1:14: Auberdeen in Darkshore is destroyed, the people move north to a new camp. There is a new Horde encampment on the strand near Blackfathom Deep. Stonetalon looks crazy. The Charred Vale now has lava floes running all over it. Azshara is the new Goblin 10-20 zone. The Goblins have turned the mountains into a quarry. 1:15: Undercity features new art above ground, and Stormwind as well, so they you can fly over them. Now onto the new zones. 1:15: Vashj'ir and Hyjal will be the first leveling zones and they will both flow into Deepholm. Then to Uldum, and finally Twilight Highlands. 1:17: Vashj'ir, as the name might imply, is the homeland of Lady Vashj. There will be a gateway to the Water Elemental Plane of Abyssal Maw here. 2 dungons within it. There will combat underwater, but it will feel just like doing it on land. 1:18: There will be underwater mounts, many will be normal flying mount speed. Concept art of Vashj'ir. The zone will be colorful, featuring coral reefs, kelp, Naha architecture, the usual underwater stuff. 1:20: The entrance to Deepholm will be where Deathwing exploded back into the world. The Temple of Earth will be a key area in Deepholm. You'll see the Twilight Hammer faction everywhere, since they're servants to Deathwing. Deepholm will be the biggest zone in Cataclysm. It's an interior zone, but the cave is huge, and you will be able to fly around inside of it. Deepholm will be the central hub area, and it will have portals to most of the other new zones. Deepholm looks, well... underground. There is a large crack in the ceiling, which is presumably the entrance. 1:23: Uldum will have two dungeon areas. There's a huge river running through it, with temples created by the Titans. A Titan machine has kept an illusion over the area, but the Cataclysm destroyed it, revealing the existence of the new zone. Brann Bronzebeard will, undoubtedly, be found here. Rumor is there is a super-weapon here that will figure into the quest lines. Everyone is after it. New creature race, the Tol'vir (stone, cat-like people). They were also created by the Titans. 1:24: Of course, Uldum will be part of the larger Titan storyline. Uldum looks like an ancient version of Egypt. Very desert-like, but with lush oasis-like areas. The temples looks somewhat like pyramids. 1:26: Hey, how about Hyjal? Ragnaros (!) has opened a portal from the plane of fire here and is actively assaulting the land. Cenarius and Malfurion (!) come back from the Emerald Dream to defend Hyjal and the World Tree from Ragnaros. The conflict will be key to the storyline here. Concept art shows Hyjal on fire in areas, and it is up to the players to stop it. Darkwhisper Gorge will be useful for more than just mining now. 1:28: Grim Batol is torn in half by Deathwing's power. This is currently where he resides and it is also the HQ for the Twilight's Hammer. There will be new port towns for both the Horde and Alliance in the Twilight Highlands. The Red Dragonflight will be here, but they need your help. A new Dragonflight, the Twilight Dragonflight will be introduced. This zone still needs the most work. Let's not forget about the dungeons in the Abyssal Maw, either. 1:32: The Firelands - new raid, focused on Ragnaros. Two level-up dungeons in Uldum, The Lost City of the Tol'Vir and The Halls of Origination. Blackrock Caverns, new level-up dungeon in Blackrock Spire. It is completely new, it is NOT a revamp of one of the existing dungeons in the area. Grim Batol will have a level-up dungeon and a raid. Skywall will also be a raid and a dungeon (the air elemental plane). Deadmines and Shadowfang Keep will be Level 85 Heroic dungeons. The dungeons will looks similar, but there will be new fights, new items, and so on. 1:34: They are finishing up with a PvP details now. Tol Barad is a new PvP zone, it is off the coast of the Eastern Kingdoms. There used to be a prison on the island and both the Horde and Alliance want control of it. It will be similar to Wintergrasp, but when there is no fight, it will be more similar to the Isle of Quel'Danas. Control will open up new rewards and dailies for the side that wins. There will be three new Battlegrounds throughout the expansion. The Battle of Gilneas is the first, and seems to take place in the main Gilnean city. There will be new arena maps. People who like to PvP, but hate Arena, will now be able to be rated by playing in Battlegrounds instead. 1:36 And like that, the panel is over. No time for Q&A. Open Q&A tomorrow, as well as PvP details during the Game Systems panel. Thanks for tuning in!

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Cataclysm Countdown is a series of informed speculative articles concerning things we might see in the next expansion that I will be posting every day this week, leading right up to Blizzcon. In the interest of thought purity, I will do my best to steer clear of recent "leaked" material, relying upon it only where it logically connects with the existing lore. Nothing hereafter is official or has been confirmed/denied by Blizzard at the time of its writing. Weekends are like life's natural cliffhangers. Once Friday evening rolls around, the entire news-media industry just sort of shuts down as we writers and journalists go off to frolic with our friends and loved ones (or level up a Paladin, in my case) for a couple of days. That is, unless you're an unfortunate weekend editor or something really, really big happens. Well, something really, really big did happen this past Friday, but as it turns out, there was just nothing else to report after the big leak. We would've continued to keep you informed if there was anything to inform you about. Instead, people began to speculate and everything that entails (including the doubters, and some misguided young fellows who were looking for their 15 minutes of internet fame by claiming to have "hoaxed" the whole thing). I must admit, I couldn't keep my mind off of Cataclysm, either. And, in the following few days, I'd like to share some of my own thoughts with the rest of you. So many things have gone through my head, but I keep coming back to the one thing that is near and dear to my heart: raiding. As much as a pure pain in the ass it can be at times, raid content represents the nexus of high lore and the most complex gameplay elements. It is the intersection between the legacy of WoW's biggest baddies and the narrative you've carved for yourself as a character, or as part of a guild. That seems like a fine place to start, as we can use the existing lore as a touchstone to examine what villains we may be facing in the near future. The Maelstrom, a giant storm raging in the center of Azeroth, conceals much of Azshara's empire. Nazjatar - If there's one thing we can almost certainly count on seeing in the expansion, it's Azshara, former Highborne and Queen of the Naga for the past 10,000 years or so. Nazjatar is the seat of her power, currently built into a wall of The Rift, a deep ocean trench that runs under the Maelstrom. Some people have speculated that the catastrophic event associated with the expansion will cause Nazjatar to rise to the surface. Whether it erupts from the waves or remains at the bottom of the sea, I'm willing to bet that players are going to have to go there at some point. And as acting home base for one of the chief expansion villains, they're probably going to have to raid it, as well. I personally imagine Nazjatar to be Icecrown-like in structure. It is unlikely that we'll have access to the stronghold from the get-go, but we will be able to explore and quest in the surrounding area. Nazjatar, and the area of The Rift would be sufficient enough, but it may also end up including nearby locales like the homeland of the Makrura and a huge ship graveyard called the Drowned Reaches (assuming they survive the destruction). The Rift - The Rift, itself, is a scar cut deep into the ocean floor by the collapsing of the Well of Eternity thousands of years ago. Little is known about what is down there, but lava flows in the deepest of its reaches. It may also be home to an Old God (these guys really do love hiding within the planet's core, don't they?) who needs some slaying. This could end up being a single-boss raid, Malygos style, depending on whether or not an Old God ends up being the primary villain. Zandalar - It wouldn't be an expansion without some new Troll content, now would it? Sure, they haven't gotten a raid in Wrath, but they did get a whole zone, and two 5-man dungeons, to themselves. The most underplayed race in the game is also, without coincidence, the coolest. It would be a shame if we didn't see any associated areas! Zandalar itself could play a pivotal role in the coming events. It was once attached to Kalimdor before being torn from the coast by the original Sundering (a.k.a. the collapsing of the Well of Eternity), and now exists just to the southeast of the Maelstrom. It's close to the action and mixes deliciously into the lore, which makes it prime territory for a raid. But where and why? I say Zuldazar, the worldwide Troll capital, with King Rastakhan as the endboss. While we don't know a whole lot about the nature of the island, Zuldazar is reported to look like a mountain built out of smaller Ziggurats (think the tiered structure of Zul'Drak, but bigger, much taller, and all squished together). This towering structure makes for an imposing, and impressive raid zone. Non-Troll races face danger the moment they step on the island, but some new found threat (perhaps a Naga invasion) could force Rastakhan to seek outside help. If rumors of the Goblin's home being destroyed by the cataclysm are true, it stands to reason that Zandalar would suffer a similar fate. So, whether outsiders are called to resolve a communal threat, or Rastakhan and company have been driven mad, I'm secretly hoping that Blizzard finds reason to stick some cool raid content here. The gate to Grim Batol -- it could use a facelift. Grim Batol - Grim Batol has been called home by several different factions over the years. First, it was the Wildhammer Dwarves, and then the Dragonmaw Clan of Orcs. Currently, members of the Red Dragonflight (kin to Alexstrasza, who has played a key role in the events of Wrath) guard the entrance, but there is no way in. The Warcraft novel Night of the Dragon indicates that Deathwing, the Black Dragon Aspect, currently resides within. As another potential primary villain in Cataclysm (as well as another major power driven nuts by the Old Gods), a raid on Grim Batol is an almost certain possibility. His attempts to perfect the destructive twilight dragons ensure that we'll be seeing plenty of them inside the dungeon (and the world at large). CoT: War of the Ancients - Azshara and Deathwing were both key players in the War of the Ancients. Just like they did to remind us of Arthas' past in Wrath of the Lich King, I fully expect Blizzard to give us some insight into where these villains are coming from. In order to do that, we may have access to a new, Hyjal-style Caverns of Time raid that puts us right into the heart of this weathered conflict. At what point? I don't know. But in a "history repeating itself" moment, I bet we get to witness the original Sundering. Blackrock Mountain - But there's already a raid here, right? The venerable Molten Core! One rumor pointed out that Blackrock Mountain would explode to reveal a new caldera. There isn't much to back this up just yet, but it stands to reason that a cataclysm would involve shifting around the tectonic plates and screwing with the chewy, magma-filled core of the planet. If so, it stands to reason that a gigantic volcano like Blackrock would blow its top. It's unclear what this may or may not do to the existing dungeons/raid content, but I'm sort of hoping for the return of Ragnaros. Blackrock Mountain -- at least as it looks right now. Allow me to go into fanboy mode for a moment. I'd love to see this massive version of Ragnaros erupting from the center of the destroyed Blackrock Mountain, hurling fireballs into the countryside and causing massive destruction. Imagine entering the instance, in this case, an outside one placed around the edge of the caldera, facing mini-bosses while trying to avoid the wrath of the Elemental Lord by ducking into small caves and alcoves. I can just see him taunting the raid with threats and insults as you travel around the spiral, eventually arriving at his "feet." I'm imagining an experience much like Coldarra in Borean Tundra, only replace the magic spire and rings with the towering inferno that is Ragnaros. None of us truly knows what to expect from Cataclysm at this point, but understanding the lore likely to be associated with it provides us with the framework for basic raid content as shown above. Every location, every character, relates back to the core event of the War of the Ancients and the Sundering. As things seem about to repeat themselves, it only stands to reason that they will come to the forefront once again. But that doesn't preclude Blizzard from inventing entirely new villains or raids to supplement the existing lore. So, trusty readers, what do you think of my predictions? Knowing what we know, are there any other major zones or characters that you think will show up in the expansion's raid content? What about Uldum (I suspect it to be a 5-man instance) or modern-day Hyjal (what might be a standard, but nonetheless important, area)? There might even be repurposed content from old raids. Tell us what you're looking forward to raiding beyond Wrath!

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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.

Late last Friday MMO-Champion ran a story on the next expansion that detailed enough information to keep many brains busy over the weekend.  Boubouille insists that none of the information posted is speculation, but pure fact.  I was as giddy as a school girl (or my girlfriend) around Robert Pattinson (swoon) as I read the news, until I took the time to think things through.  It just sounds too good to be true. You can consider the races, Worgen and Goblins, confirmed as well as the third expansion's title, Cataclysm.  Those tidbits have been repeated by "sources" for weeks now.  I'm skeptical about a few other things, as are many others out there.  My main concern is that the larger playerbase is getting too excited before the details are official.  Simply put, I fear hype backlash. Boubouille is one of the great Internet sleuths, so it is hard to doubt his skills.  Nevertheless here's what I have trouble digesting:

• Level 85 Cap:  There's really no justification to not do 10 additional levels like we are used to.  If the developers want leveling to take longer then Blizzard can simply make the XP pools far larger.  We've also no reason to believe that WoW has to end at level 100.  No matter what this isn't a big concern; just the first point that caught my eye.
• Class Combinations: This is certainly plausible.  Orc Mage, Tauren Priest, Blood Elf Warrior, all highly likely, lore-fitting modifications to our current race/class structure.  It's the Troll Druid that I can't see being a reality.  On the one hand, It'd be a perfect way to get more Horde playing the most underplayed race in the game.  However, two druids for the Horde and only one for the Alliance (Night Elf) just doesn't seem like a move Blizzard would make.
• Flying In Azeroth:  There's a reason that Blizzard never allowed flying in Azeroth, the game's basic design.  If you look really closely at the old landscapes you can see that Blizzard employed a lot of tricks to get objects, foliage specifically, to look 3D without it actually being 3D (allows the client to have a crappier computer).  These Doom-esque tactics would need to be completely redone across all of Azeroth to enable flying.  Even using the superb tools created by Blizzard, it would be a daunting, and boring, task.
• Unfinished Original Content:  Areas like Mount Hyjal only compound the flying issue.  The zone was never made accessible because Blizzard never finished the content.  It was there however.  If we are allowed to fly in Azeroth then Blizzard has to spend more time completing, or at least overhauling, the formerly neglected areas of Azeroth.

Don't get me wrong, I would love to see all of this come true.  The fact of the matter is it would be a massive undertaking.  The scope of the expansion, as detailed by Boub, would effectively be like starting the game from scratch, as far as content is concerned.  Blizzard is good, but I don't know if the company can pull all of this off in approximately two years development time. If Cataclysm comes to pass as described it will set a new precedent for MMO expansion. It's hard not to get excited, especially with awesome mechanics like flooding, town sacking (kinda), revamped old world content and the return of Deathwing.  Love me some horizontal content. Just remember that BlizzCon, and official confirmation, is only days away.  Take a deep breath, do a reality check, and wait...for ~120 hours.

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The info just keeps on rolling in today. A week out from the rockstar event that is Blizzcon and we might have our first major leaks. Heartbourne has already clued us in on potential new class combinations, but our friends over at MMO-Champion seem to have found a whole lot more. Boubouille absolutely insists that none of this is speculation, and while I remain skeptical about his sources, his track record is proven. This is as close to gospel as we're going to get until we hear something officially official. So keep on reading to find out what we know (or think we know) so far. Be warned, though, spoilers are abound if you want to keep your sense of surprise. SPOILER WARNING Herein is a rough list of major content changes that we can expect to see in the next expansion:

• New Class Combinations - No new classes will be added to the game. Instead, existing races will be given access to classes that they never had before. It is currently unknown what classes will be available to the new races, however.
• New Level Cap - Surprisingly, it's only 85. This may fit in with a new philosophy of improving characters through gear instead of pure XP. Likewise, if the end-goal for WoW is 100, it leaves a little more space for successive expansions to grow.
• Azshara, Queen of the Naga The Cataclysm - This titular event, set in motion by Deathwing and Queen Azshara, will bring many changes to the existing content in the game, as well as open up several new ones.  Their motivations for unleashing such destruction upon the world may be in part due to those pesky insanity-inducing Old Gods.
• New Horde Race: Goblins - The Goblins have found their island home virtually destroyed by the events of the Cataclysm. Washing up on the shores of The Barrens, a quest line involving Thrall's capture (and subsequent rescue by the Goblin race) will explain how they ended up as the new consorts of the Horde. With their homeland gone, it's unclear whether or not we will get to visit Kezan, the island where the Goblin capital of Undermine exists.
• New Alliance Race: Worgen - The Greymane Wall, which separates Gilneas from Silverpine Forest, has been shattered by the Cataclysm. Bewildered from their self-imposed exile, the Worgen venture forth and find friends in the Alliance. It is unclear what the Goblin starting area may entail, but the Worgen will be receiving the Death Knight treatment. Gilneas will be a heavily-phased zone that will shuttle your character through the nation's history before unleashing them on the rest of Azeroth. Did I mention that Worgen do get to transform? That's right, you'll be able to shift from Human to Worgen at the click of a button, though we don't know if it will afford you any special abilities to do so.
• Azeroth Remade - Goblins and Worgen aren't the only ones who have felt the impact of this catastrophic event. Existing zones will be remade or phased in order to accommodate the current state of the world. The examples given include remaking Azshara into a 10-20 level area and splitting the Barrens into two distinct zones for players of different levels.
• New Areas - There will be no new continents introduced in the expansion, but instead, unreleased content in Kalimdor and the Eastern Kingdoms will finally be filled in. In addition to the aforementioned opening of Gilneas, you can also expect to see modern-day Hyjal and Uldum. These are only examples and do not represent the entire breadth of fresh content that will no doubt be introduced.
• Mainland Flight - Restructuring the two core continents has allowed Blizzard to add flight to those zones that never had it. Now you can ride all the way from the Plaguelands to Booty Bay on you very own flying mount. Presumably, you will still need to take a boat or zeppelin to go from one continent to the other.
• Dungeons Remade - Onyxia was only the beginning. This does not preclude the addition of new 5-man dungeons or raid content, but many of the old instances will be retrofitted for players progressing from Level 80-85. Reportedly, we'll also be seeing Ragnaros again. It is not known how extensive the changes will end up being (new bosses/new graphics or merely upgraded stats on mobs and items).

That's a lot to digest and I'm honestly eager to see how everything fits together. There are some controversial ideas in there, as well as changes that players have been clamoring for year after year. In fact, a lot of it sounds like the kind of stuff that Blizzard employees have wanted to implement themselves, but have repeatedly insisted they haven't been working on. Phasing, as I previously proposed, will play a large role in the recreation of mainland Azeroth (self high-five!). By treading this path, however, I'm afraid there is also the chance of alienating a certain portion of the  player base who see this as merely reusing old content. That may or may not be the case, and we may have to wait another week to find out. I think it really depends on how fresh the revamped content ends up feeling. Will the graphics of many areas be significantly improved or changed? Will the new quest lines make it worth adventuring through old zones? Is this the vanilla WoW that we always wanted? Or will the new Azeroth be a whole lot like the old Azeroth? A yet-to-be-confirmed post on the Something Awful forums indicated huge, sweeping changes for the landscape, though. Thousand Needles flooded, many zones in absolute ruins, Orgrimmar sundered in two (with the introduction of a new Orc main city). The forums are private, but the summary has be re-posted on MMO-Champion. I'm sure you all have a lot to say about these revelations, so feel free to strike up a conversation in our comments section. I know I'll be watching it closely!

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After completing the Tides of Darkness over my vacation, I could not wait to dive into Beyond the Dark Portal.  Aaron Rosenberg returns to pen his second Warcraft novel, this time teamed with long-time Blizzard novelist Christie Golden.  With my appreciation of ToD well documented, I was in heavy anticipation to get to the other side of the portal and be re-introduced to Outlands from a whole new perspective.  Having Beyond The Dark Portal's plot pick up almost exactly where it left off in ToD seemed like it would be quite a treat.

The deep connection to the previous novel wasn't all that gravitated me toward reading the series back-to-back.  Beyond the Dark Portal, developed by Cyberlore Studios and not Blizzard Entertainment, was the game that managed to pull me away from Command & Conquer camp and into the Warcraft universe.  Therefore, good ole nostalgia played a hefty role in my decision. Enough about why I chose to read the book and more about the book.  Originally, I believed that I would enjoy reading more about my favorite characters from Tides.  However, I think the writers went a little overboard, relying too heavily on the previous characters and not introducing any new noteworthy persons.  If you haven't read any of the previous novels then there are new focuses -Ner'Zhul, Deathwing, his three children and the rest of the Black Dragonflight for instance - but they are the only worthwhile characters.  For those that have read the previous novels, then minor characters like Kargath Bladefist and Danath Trollbane will be the most notable new faces. While the returning characters may annoy some, we are treated to the addition of some other races, including the Gnomes, Draenei, Naaru and a more in-depth look at Goblins than ever before.  Despite the lack of all-new major characters, Rosenberg and Golden kept the epic plotline of the game moving with added detail, numerous details and links to World of Warcraft's incarnation of Outlands, sticking with the mature action sequences and solid dialog.  I was pleasantly surprised that Rosenberg was able to keep BtDP's dialogue in check.  In my opinion, Golden's dialogue is always her weak point. If you haven't read any of the other Warcraft-inspired novels, then this is not a good starting point.  There are several reasons why one should avoid Beyond the Dark Portal as their introduction to the written Warcraft universe. This is mostly because it is a direct sequel to the aforementioned Tides of Darkness, reusing many major characters from that novel and continuing the plot.  It also continues Khadgar's story from The Last Guardian.  Simply put, this isn't the strongest book in the series, period.

If you want to get started then grab the compiled introductory trilogy. It'll start you off on three separate storylines and you can go from there.  The Archive, rather than the separate books, also comes with Chris Metzen's short story - 200 pages - Of Blood And Honor which details major events in Tirion Fordring's life.

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