Can we finally get playable the high elves?

Community General Discussion
1273

You are simply looking for a solution where already one is, that’s why I abandoned the discussion with you in the first place (no offense). Truth is, that High Elves should be playable on both sides in their glorious and shallow form, which none of both parties can do at the moment to 100%. People always believe that the Blood Elves are the rightful successors to the High Elves but they aren’t for a simple reason:

They are Horde. They were introduced as the edgier survivors with Kael’thas on top of it. There is even an official storyline, which calls out that they are “no longer High Elves”, which only cements the fact that we have two High Elf-groups, with one still inheriting the old values and the new ones exclusive to Horde. What people want to experience is a blue/silver or blue/gold variation without the catches. No red/gold, no purple/gold. And the closest thing to achieve this is to play Alliance as a subrace. I would actually welcome it if you, the developers, don’t use these people here on a constant hamster wheel until you decide to release new options during hard times. This is unprofessional.

But don’t get me wrong, Runeleaf, I do not care which side has the “true” High Elves but it’s hard to speak subjectively about something when the most prominent High Elf-group is Alliance-based and people love to bash their heads over their shallow Barbie dolls. Objectively speaking, the Alliance has the original High Elves with all their attached values, while the Horde has everything but the remains of their hard contested culture to themselves. This is why I do hope that this petty kindergarten ends with them united in Midnight. To think about it, it’s ridiculous how often people clashed on these forums because of these player races. I blame Blizzard for not seeing the issue and acting upon it accordingly.

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1274

I don’t know who you’re trying to make this point toward? Where did I ever say that they shouldn’t be playable? My point of contention is simply this use of the name without acknowledging that being an Alliance High elf doesn’t make them any more of a “high elf” than a blood elf in any more than a semantic sense.

Again, them “no longer being High elves” was merely in a semantic sense since nothing really changed besides their color scheme. The name change wasn’t a departure from who they were, it was to honor who they are. They still upheld the same traditions, continued on the same beliefs, nothing really changed moving forward besides their name.

The Blood elf story is the natural development and story progression of the High elf narrative, it is the choice their people made in times of strife, it doesn’t make them a different people.

Old values? Do mean aesthetically? I can get behind wanting blue/gold themed armor, but we don’t need to faction change to achieve that. It seems like the desire to play High elves on the Alliance comes from wanting to play on a human, blue/gold side and less about anything having to do with High elves as a culture.

I think this is subjective, as I don’t see humancentric Alliance High elves as the “original High elves with all their attached values” because they’re anything but. Alliance High elves are elves gutted of their original themes, and turned into humans with pointy ears. In fact many Alliance High elves purposely avoided magic and other High elven aspects to disassociate themselves and avoid scrutiny from other Alliance races. Blood elves embrace magic as they always have, live in the High elven capital, their racial armors while leveling are designed and themed around traditional high elven clothing. The only difference is that things are red, and not blue.

This is only becoming more and more true over time as well, as Blood elves have shifted from their original nebulous position as “good or evil” to simply light-based Elves once again. Blue eyed, natural-skinned elves are becoming synonymous with Blood elves, and it’ll get to the point where someone sees a blue eyed elf and just naturally assume they’re a Horde elf, whereas “void” elves are becoming more and more closer associated with the Alliance.

What I foresee happening is that they divide the remaining High elves into two camps, those willing to delve into the void joining the Void elves, officiating the inclusion of High elves in the Void elf ranks, and those oriented in the light joining the Blood elves in defending the Sunwell and utilizing the light.

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1275

Omfg Blood Elves could get more light based customizations this way so yes please because I have loved my golden eyes since they were added. :dracthyr_heart: :dracthyr_heart: :dracthyr_heart:

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1276

I hope in further customization patches they focus on light, and arcane themed options that every class can use. Since not only does the Sunwell contain both Light and Arcane magic, but it would be kinda tragic as let’s say a mage elf, to only have options to expand on the light-aspect of the race and not the arcane one as well.

But honestly I’ll just be excited to see any new customizations for Blood elves lol

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1277

Random things: I strongly feel like the sunwell won’t be around past Midnight, so it’s “source of arcane and light” thing will probably become irrelevant.

We will soon have 3 races that are literally identical regardless of faction. While it’s plausible that random members of their society would want to join alliance or horde allies from our time helping them, there’s to the best of my knowledge little to no reason that they would be willing to kill each other in a faction war, let alone how their society would view them after doing so. Meanwhile, High elves and Blood elves had fairly interesting story reason why they disliked one another and would be willing to participate in our faction war. And there’s always still the possibility of reunification quests.

Virtually every reason Blizzard has ever tried to give about why they shouldn’t be able to be playable has been upended by another race they’ve added very shortly thereafter.

“They’ll just want a neitral Silvermoon if they’re made playable” - High elves are more interesting separated from their homeland searching for a new one. Umbric literally states that he wants Silvermoon returned to the Alliance shortly after meeting him. But why though? They exiled his people, and the sunwell offers the void elves nothing. They don’t need it anymore, and perhaps i’m wrong, but I thought it was stated they aren’t connected to it now, or not like they used to be? Basically, their addictive relationship to it is gone?

I think the destruction of Dalaran will see Vereesa and some high elf survivors return to Silvermoon, while some others decide the Void is their way forward, reinforcing the numbers of both groups. So high elves supposedly don’t have enough population to be playable, but somehow have enough to bolster Silvermoon’s loss of Umbric’s group and bolster Umbric’s group with new members.

I think it’s really really odd that there are only 2 races infused with a cosmic energy related to upcoming expansions, and they are both Alliance races

Disclaimer: I do not believe they will ever give us playable High elves in the way myself and others would like, especially after Void elves, but it’s pretty understandable why Void elves likely will never fill the “void” of people who like them. For myself it’s as simple as I don’t really like playing on the Horde much, and I really don’t like the anything about the void. I appreciate that they relented and gave some customization to somewhat allow people to rp as an alliance high elf, but for various reasons, they just still miss the mark. My blood and void elves are technically my favorite toons, but both kinds of them just leave me feeling kinda dissatisfied :man_shrugging:

1278

I don’t know, I’m highly skeptical anything will happen to the Sunwell to be honest as it’s sort crucial lore-point to many aspects of the game that I imagine would be a pain to have to redo. (Spell names, Overhaul to the Blood elf Blood Knight story which just recently received a story update.) Unless there’s something I haven’t heard of yet.

For some reason “High Elf” seems to be a sort of trigger word for Blizzard, and whenever it’s brought up they immediately go into a damage-control mode and say whatever they think might cause the least problems.

I don’t know, personally I think it would be quite interesting to see the two groups reunite, families and friends coming back together, and the High elves getting to embrace their homes and old lives once again. There could be plenty of quests involving the two groups coming together and cooperating, some conflict and resolution, and an excellent way to further the world state of Silvermoon from the ancient time-locked state of “Hail Prince Kael’thas!”

Plus if they update Silvermoon I always thought it would be rather nice if the former ruins could have a spot for the returning High elves to gather and integrate. Which I honestly could see Vareesa doing if she ever ended up returning.

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1279

You have them as the void elves. You can customize them to look like High Eves and RP them as such.

I understand people wanted PROPER High Elves on the Alliance as a distinct race but that ship truly sailed with the Void Elves.

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1280

That was the whole reason they were given those options as well so they should be making due with that, shut off the glow racial with a macro and bam you can play as the so called “High Elf” all day every day.

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1281

And while the first set of Void Elves were Blood Elves we actually DO see High Elves now wandering into Telogrus Rift. So it’s not even just RP.

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1282

Well, there’s no telling if they’re just Blood Elves and High elf scholars interested in the void, or actually joining their ranks as they’ve been there even when it was announced that the Void elves were not currently recruiting.

It’s not like they left it up to speculation when it came to the Man’ari, they gave it a whole questline but we cant even get one line of dialogue confirming it? I imagine it has to come at some point.

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1283

its a modern social invention to assume beauty is evidence of vacuity, and during said modernity, beautiful women of color were usually not insulted in this manner. it has primarily been pale blondes who were said to be lacking mental fortitude, thus the preponderance of dumb blonde jokes (almost exclusively in reference to blonde females. you dont see people making dumb blonde jokes about brad pitt, for example). and this has even crossed boundaries into video games . in fact its starting to become an issue for beautiful women of color as well. people need to stop assuming female beauty is a social ill.

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1284

Somewhat true, and yet the reality is they’re going there to undergo the process to transform away from being a stock high elf and gain their void-y features and powers. I think blizzard made a statement that all player options are canon, yet the void elves voice lines specifically refence their tentacles, meaning technically all of them have undergone mutation, at the least shown by them not retaining any of their former customization options as blood elves. We were given some options to not have to look void warped as a placebo for high elves, and they “kinda” fill that niche, but several aspects of them make it almost impossible to overlook that they are very much not the same thing. Mind you, i still grudgingly play them.

And to Runeleaf, there’s stuff on the PTR with an NPC in Valdrakken talking about becoming a void elf recently and there are npcs in telogrus now actively undergoing the process to become void elves. It seems they have figured out how to create more of themselves now.

I also don’t think destroying the sunwell would affect the blood elves very much. I mean lorewise, yea it’d be a hefty blow, but they’ve in-game not used it or allowed people to it often enough to really be missed by the playerbase for future stuff, as it still exists in it’s old raid, and the blood elf voice lines just reference the sunwell as having existed, not that it currently does, so it wouldn’t really put them in a spot where their voice work doesn’t make sense. I think? I may be way off on that

1285

oh the sunwell radiates to all capable of absorbing the radiation. its online 24/7. if it were removed, panic would ensue

1286

Nah, im pretty sure they will end up getting Arcan’dor’d by the Nightborne

1287

hmm. interesting.

1288

You people don’t get it do you? The more you give these helfers the more they want. Their ultimate goal is to get belfs in the Alliance. If they can do it piece by piece they will. You keep letting them get stuff without any protest who knows, by the end of Midnight you belfs will be kicked out of Silvermoon.

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1289

this is true, though technically id prefer alliance high elves/half elves with different hairstyles, idling and casting animations. problem is the devs have limited bone animations, thusly why nearly anything new is a copy/paste

not interested in silvermoon

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1290

None of us have the power to give anyone anything in terms of game content. And I can absolutely assure you there will never be a day where we wake up to see that all blood elves have been forceably moved to the alliance

1291

Not yet you mean.

1292

I don’t have much time at the moment, but I’ll answer this.

You weren’t there four years ago, so I can’t blame you not knowing this. The Blood Elf-players on these forums mocked and belittled the High Elf-fans so much that Karma delivered an extreme blow with the Shadowlands 9.1.5 patch. In the beginning they resisted but when Blizzard started to roll out not only five High Elf hair colors but even more, things went really bad for them. Ever since then their spirit has taken a blow, which is understandable. It took them several weeks to come back posting here.

And ever since then Karma has been striking them again and again. I wrote them several times to stop posting in these topics, they give them enough manifesting energy to get everything in the end. They simply didn’t learn the lesson.

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