World of Warcraft - Lore & Storyline discussion [SPOILERS] - Page 279

Camaris · 07/18/09, 1:13 PM

Isn't it also more or less established that Worgen can leap and run extraordinary fast? Remember the Grizzly Hills chase quest on horseback?

Since the Scythe of Elune itself was not really expanded upon in WotLK, we may still wonder what happened at that time. Was the Scythe really some artifact belonging to Elune? And if so, could it be that it was purposely designed to contact the worgen world? Perhaps there is some ancient connection between Elune and the worgen that we simply do not know of yet? It could theoretically even connect to things like the War of the Ancients or the Emerald Dream.

Oh, and I kind of like the idea of Zuldazar as the neutral city. Although I'd find it odd if Undermine became exclusively Horde.

Spleen · 07/18/09, 1:18 PM

Originally Posted by Nathanyel

Healers for Goblins and Worgen.

In the order of most likely inclusion to least likely, with shaman and paladin tied:

Priest
Priests are the baseline "healer class" lorewise, requiring only a belief system. Both races could fit this easily.

If the Worgen PC's are cursed humans, there's already a foundation established, subject to changing circumstances.

There's big money to be made in religion and we don't know much about Goblin theology, if any. Who's to say they don't have a type of theological capitalism like the Ferengi in Star Trek? Blizzard isn't exactly known for resisting the urge to pay homage to pop-culture.

Shaman

Shamans just require a connection to spirits, elements, or nature. With the introduction of Dranei shamans, anything's possible for a Worgen race that either has a newfound or preexisting connection to animal instincts/likeness. Goblins, less likely so, unless something changes to give them a connection. They're responsible for the Goblin Shredder and Venture Company deforestation, after all.

Paladin

Paladins require a more direct connection to the Holy Light, be it stolen from or given by the Naaru or Celestials. It can go either way for both Worgen and Goblins, but blizzard would need to establish a foundation. If Worgen are cursed humans, it's possible that their paladins still retain that connection. It would be interesting if Goblins "stole or coerced" their connection to the Holy Light like the Blood Elves did, but that hasn't been established.

Druid

Druids have a preexisting connection to Cenarius as PC's, with other druids being noted as practitioners independent of those teachings. Blizzard would have to establish a foundation for Worgen and Goblins. There's just no information or precedent for either group to be druids, even based on the patterns for class inclusion we have.

Trickytrout · 07/18/09, 1:39 PM

It is going to be interesting to see how the new leveling experience for the new races plays out. I predict a lot of players (specifically high end raiders) will level a toon opposite of their faction before the expansion is released. Once it ships they all faction transfer to the new race. Hell, that's what I'm going to do that is for sure.

Any thoughts on this?

Nathanyel · 07/18/09, 1:55 PM

Originally Posted by Trickytrout

It is going to be interesting to see how the new leveling experience for the new races plays out. I predict a lot of players (specifically high end raiders) will level a toon opposite of their faction before the expansion is released. Once it ships they all faction transfer to the new race. Hell, that's what I'm going to do that is for sure.

Any thoughts on this?

Most probably, they're gona deactivate faction changes to that race for the first few weeks.

Moror · 07/18/09, 1:58 PM

Who knows when the final date for the faction transfer is, although I imagine it will be before 4.0. Even still, I highly doubt they will allow faction change to the (possible) new races, at least not for a few months/patches after 4.0.

kalbear · 07/18/09, 2:17 PM

One interesting observation is the talk with the druids about sun magic and Elune being perhaps not the correct choice for Tauren when Worgen (who are intrinsically linked with Elune) might be coming out. This might point to Worgen being another druid class via some Scythe of Elune shenanigans. It also might point to their being some kind of specialized hero class.

Another possibility that I haven't seen raised yet is whether goblins/worgen could be neutral races. Goblins already have the chops, but worgen? They're very geographically located by the horde, which may help, and are associated with undead already. Could the draw for them (and goblins) be that they're a neutral race?

Trickytrout · 07/18/09, 2:23 PM

I highly doubt that they would be neutral. While lore-wise Blizzard -could- make it work, logistically it would not work out well for the game. Too many balance issues as well as a ton of things (quests, achievements, mobs, towns, etc) being either horde only or alliance only.

Edit: Sorry, misunderstood when you said 'neutral'.

Kraith · 07/18/09, 2:47 PM

Originally Posted by Trickytrout

I highly doubt that they would be neutral. While lore-wise Blizzard -could- make it work, logistically it would not work out well for the game. Too many balance issues as well as a ton of things (quests, achievements, mobs, towns, etc) being either horde only or alliance only.

I am pretty sure he meant neutral in the sense that at some point (in game or at the character creation screen) you pick which faction you want to join. This would make both available to both factions and wouldn't be hard to balance (unless the choice is done in game).

songster · 07/18/09, 3:10 PM

No way Worgen will be excluded from mounts - they're a major collectable feature of the game these days. The only way we'll see Plainsrunning reappear is if Worgen turn out to be shapeshifters. Then they could have Plainsrunning in wolf form and mounts in human form. And (in fact) if they turn out to be shapeshifters that might give you the link to being a neutral race. Just because all the worgen we've seen are human / wolf, that doesn't mean they all are.

Monocle · 07/18/09, 3:12 PM

Hmmmm some how I got a duplicate post.

Monocle · 07/18/09, 3:13 PM

Just had a random thought about the timing for this leak. Comicon is this coming week, and Blizzard will be there. It is probably a coincidence, as I expect news of this nature would be officially shown off at Blizzcon. I fully expect the panel there to be on fiction and merchandise, but hey, you never know.

Wait, wasn't the fact that Draenei could be Shaman and Blood Elves could be Paladins announced at Comicon in 06?

Enova · 07/18/09, 3:33 PM

Originally Posted by songster

No way Worgen will be excluded from mounts - they're a major collectable feature of the game these days. The only way we'll see Plainsrunning reappear is if Worgen turn out to be shapeshifters. Then they could have Plainsrunning in wolf form and mounts in human form. And (in fact) if they turn out to be shapeshifters that might give you the link to being a neutral race. Just because all the worgen we've seen are human / wolf, that doesn't mean they all are.

Hah, okay, I probably have way too much time on my hands and I should get a new weed dealer just for thinking about this, but... may as well go ahead and say it.
For a few minutes I kinda dismissed Worgen as a neutral race after you brought it up. After all this time we spent discussing the goblins as an option? And then it dawned on me that we could actually have not one but TWO neutral races

I'm guessing if the developers were reading this thread they'd actually enjoy messing with us a bit and pulling some sort of unpredictable stunt like this.

Cranberry · 07/18/09, 4:29 PM

I can't help but wonder if, given that Blizzard certainly knows we're capable of reading through the game files, they're just screwing with us and/or building hype to sell Blizzcon streams. WWI purple penguin, anyone?

Tirlas · 07/18/09, 5:32 PM

I think Goblins on Crocilisks could be fun. Not the surfing on croc like in Sholozar Basin, but something with a saddle.

Would having 2 new races and one new class be too much at once to handle?

Montegomery · 07/18/09, 5:55 PM

Originally Posted by Tirlas

I think Goblins on Crocilisks could be fun. Not the surfing on croc like in Sholozar Basin, but something with a saddle.

Would having 2 new races and one new class be too much at once to handle?

The Burning Crusade essentially did this already; each faction had a new class added to it which required balancing in addition to a new race. The only notable increase in workload for Goblins + Worgen + Hero Class would be the ground up design of the class.

On that note, I'd expect that if Blizzard aims for a healing hero class that it will likely be a leather or plate wearer. Currently Druids are the only class interested in spellpower leather as spirit does nothing for Shamans or Paladins, and for obvious reasons spellpower plate isn't appealing to Warriors or Death Knights. Blizzard could make spirit more interesting for Shamans and Paladins instead, but even then I doubt they want to further increase cloth competition.