Attempting to be the Devil’s Advocate, I … can sort of … force… myself to see a position where Jaina being in Nazjatar instead of Tyrande or Maiev makes sense.
Azshara is the Sorceress Supreme as far as anything we know. Other than Jaina, who could face her in a pitched Arcane fight? Perhaps the Horde’s new found Shaldorei First Acranist and her Sindorei boy toy can bolster Jaina… but who could take on Azshara in a battle of the Arcane?
With hindsight… I can see that 8.2 and Nazjatar were really a stepping stone. Fans might have wanted more… but more is yet to come. Azshara herself states the throne of true power lies ahead.
I think Jaina and Shandris and Lorthemar and Genn and Thalyssra are in a way, subordinate in stature to Azshara. While Tyrande and Maiev could look down their nose on Azshara with force and contempt and thousands of years of fury and sass.
Of those I just mentioned, only Tyrande and Maiev have defeated Azshara and moved on. Shandris was a child, and Thalyssra was in a bubble. The others were not even around. Perhaps the presence of Tyrande or Maiev would give the situation more gravity than intended.
I mean I thought Jania was there for the Lady Ashvane connection. Even if that was a weird end imho.
I think Ashvane could’ve been a good reoccurring lesser villain. She’s evil and cunning but not at a ‘doom of all things which must be defeated at all costs’ levels. And frankly I prefer those smaller stakes stories. That has actual character and motives mortals can understand; like greed.
Yeah. I meant more of Blizzard laying out a scope of the events. Not whether it is good or bad. Just where I see their narrative path. I could be wrong.
Of course Jaina and Genn did not set sail to meet Azshara because the presence of Tyrande and Maiev against Azshara is a different story. They were trying to defeat the Horde, and Sylvanas threw a roadblock, as she does.
But in trying to make sense of the story Blizzard is trying to tell… Nazjatar seems like Child’s Play. And intentionally so. More of a build up. Thalyssra and Jaina can play the roles of Children in a Child’s Play where Arcane Magic abounds, but Maiev and Tyrande… not so much.
As the Void Rifts no longer harm Lightforged following Xe’ra’s demise(as shown in Shadows Rising) it is quite possible for Void Elves to have Paladins too.
Blood elves deserve to be in the Horde. I’m glad the good High Elves stayed loyal to the Alliance and finally we are able to get them in game!
Having said that more than being part of the Alliance or Horde I will always believe it’s time for all elves to get together and form their own faction.
Turalyon walking through a Void Portal caused an explosive reaction(no actual physical damage) and a lot of pain in the A Thousand Year War Audio Drama.
The evidence all suggests that Xe’ra was causing the Light in Turalyon to reject Void. Considering S’aara helped Anduin raise Calia into Undeath it seems the Light’s usual reaction to Death Magic(I.E. cause it pain) runs on the same principles(Light from Naaru hurts what the specific Naaru despises).
It seems there is no Anti-Light in WoW despite there being a visible Anti-Void in Fel. Xhul’horac describes the reaction between Void and Fel as “I cannot remain… I am becoming… EVERYTHING! NOTHING!”
Fel is Everything while Void is Nothing it seems explaining why the two Cosmic Forces are fundamentally opposed.
Arcane being weak to Fel(due to Fel breaking down the Order inside Arcane) indicates that Fel is both Anti-Order and Anti-Void at the same time.
Light seems to just be Light while Shadow is Nothingness. KH-Style Darkness(basically Anti-Light) does not exist in WoW.
I do not remember this at all. The only time I recall him going through a Void Rift was their escape from Argus, and there was nothing about pain or explosions. The only pain he felt was touching Alleria directly afterwards while her body was still coursing with void magic.
I think we might need to chalk this one up to that one specific encounter. We’ve seen far too many cases of demons wielding shadow/void magic for Fel and Void to be incapable of mixing like that.
I stand with Forsaken fans, don’t worry, you’ve been in a similar boat for as long.
The suffering you all must have endured to forcibly grow moustaches to twirl in villainous fashion, just to adhere to Blizzard’s obsession with ‘metal’ concepts… we should make our own faction.
Alliance players were initially salty because they want(ed) playable High Elves to complete the usual fantasy association and because they are still a part of the Alliance.
When the Blood Elves were announced as a Horde race, that disrupted the status quo of the Alliance (and Horde) fantasy - I was never a fan of that decision and I say that as someone that has no interest in playing them (because they’re freakishly tiny!). It’s the same reason Void Elves were so unpalatable: they’re not the typical fantasy elves that pal around with the pink skin kingdoms.
I suspect that at this point with both Horde and Alliance having access to this basic elf type, most Alliance players probably won’t be too bothered with Blood Elves continuing to be a thing for Horde.
Personally, I prefer the Void Elf look, but still think High Elves should be playable for Alliance simply because there’s no valid argument against it now and they’re part of the faction already. But due to the aforementioned VEs and added cosmetic options, this is likely a truly dead end for them.
I’ll have to disagree here. From most people I’ve talked to, their biggest gripe with Void Elves, aside from the usual bit about the void, is mostly that they’re former Horde Blood Elves, when they could’ve easily been the Silver Covenant or Alleria’s Second War rangers in Outland. People just wanted to play the elves that have been a part of the Alliance’s narrative and identity since before WoW began, but remained a part of it throughout WoW’s lifespan. If that meant them evolving into a new type of elf just to look different, most people seem like they would’ve been fine with that.
The biggest sin of the Void Elves isn’t being ugly (which is a matter of perspective anyways), but that they were Blood Elves, not the Alliance’s High Elves turned into Void Elves.
Their origin as former Blood Elves was secondary in my estimation. That’s not to refute what you’ve said but merely reinforcing that we’re providing different anecdotes. I definitely believe that some considered that the bigger disgrace.
And this is or was the main issue however you look at it: they weren’t/aren’t High Elves.
But I’m expecting the majority of advocates for playable Alliance High Elves will be mollified by the VE cosmetic options.