The leader of the Nightborne is returning home to Suramar. Remember what Metzen said,
“Elven tribes uniting…” One more leader returning home just in time for Midnight and I bet she will be helping us again.
12 Likes
I’m conflicted about this and I hope what this is NOT is a “post-mortem” redemption for the character, because it’s undeserved.
This is the same ruler that allowed the Legion to feed Nightborne citizens into their soul engines, that exiled and cut off dissidents from the sustenance that they needed, that kept Nightborne in cages to wither and die, and killed off the last remaining members of the Moonguard. She is evil.
Go back and save Suramar, but make sure you die in the process for good this time, Elisande. And pass on the title of Grand Magistrix to Thalyssra, you rat.
Edit: That being said, provided that this is indeed an alternate universe Elisande and not the one we defeated in Legion, then I’m more receptive to them possibly returning to aid the Nightborne in the future.
27 Likes
Huh they pulled a Gul’dan with her. I am sure her time portal will dump her out in 12.0, which is amusing as it’s our future.
1 Like
This could be interesting, honestly.
I like the idea of alternate timeline characters that aren’t ruined. In most timelines Garrosh was supposed to be the greatest Warchief ever, for example.
I’d absolutely be on board with an AU Elisande, Kael’thas, etc… coming into our timeline to help out. Kael’thas in particular. If any character needed a redemption from bad writing, it is him. Shadowlands just doubled-down on what BC did.
Hell, bring over a large number of elves with him. Get that population back up. Save Quel’Thalas, then leave it to Lor’themar. Kael can go to another timeline to try and save another Quel’Thalas afterwards, or something. Or heck, stick around as an advisor.
6 Likes
I really hope they don’t bring her back. I want to believe it’s just time-travel gimmickery where you’re just seeing her on her path down to her death but she never struck me as a character that needed or deserved a second chance in the writing.
6 Likes
Its actually sort of an interesting development the more I considered it. It really comes down to WHEN in her timeline the disk appeared. If it was before she took the desperate actions she took after scrying and seeing no possible future where the Legion did not win, then is THIS Elisdande guilty of the sins of her prime timeline self?
They are basically playing around with the concept of variants from Loki.
2 Likes
She made sacrifices to keep her people safe. What is 100 lives for the sake of a million? How many would you sacrifice for the “greater good?” Now I don’t think she’s a saint, but I do understand she was forced to open Suramar to the Legion because they told her. We give you two options - First open freely and some of you may live and join us. Secondly - Don’t and watch your city burn and all your people killed.
Not much of a choice, but I get your sentiment. She justified evil actions to save her people similar to Kael’thas. What’s the old saying, “The path towards hell is paved in good intentions.” I don’t think she’s evil and she even helps us as an echo and comments that she felt she had no real choice to resist and had to consider the overall safety of her people and took the Legion’s offer.
2 Likes
She is what might actually be called a morally gray character. Which is such a rarity in their writing.
21 Likes
This is why I’m excited that she’s alive. A version of her falls so that she can survive into the future and more importantly the city and people she loved dearly.
I expect her to return come Midnight as one of the leaders of the elves uniting against the oncoming deluge of darkness which poises to destroy the world. Something Elisande will not allow. She is first and foremost a protector of her people.
If they should return anyone for midnight, I feel kael’thas should be more important. 
edit: Kael’thas has the potential for so many fun interactions after his death. 
1 Like
I don’t get the point. What’s wrong with her just staying dead? Do people just like the big doofy pope hat?
Any time spent on her would be better spent developing the existing crew of Thalyssra and co.
6 Likes
I’m going to do the questline now. Hopefully it offers some more context to the cutscene.
Aw, in this alternate universe, Runas is in the Nighthold. 
Bad things happen when WoW’s story goes timey-wimey. 
7 Likes
I enjoyed how she dressed down all the Elves who rallied against her. She was a fun character, and that is rarer these days. I wouldn’t mind seeing more of her.
She is kinda newish and didn’t make it passed the expac she was introduced.
In general, I like that Blizzard is giving a second look to some characters who may have deserved a bit more lore. And as a master of time, it isn’t too hard to squeeze her in some where.
Not just the hat, but it is a bonus.
6 Likes
Bad things happen when WoW’s story goes (Insert anything here).
May as well redeem some characters that never should have been ruined to begin with.
5 Likes
Elisande is one of the few characters we can all empathize with and who’s character as a time altering master equal to the Bronze Dragonflight is actually the one person we would expect returning. Even in Legion everyone could not believe this was the last of her. She as much tells us. She never foresaw her defeat after reviewing the infinite timelines. She likely preserved herself and sacrificed a version of herself.
There’s an old Anime quote from Yu Yu Hakisho that fits Elisande, “If I killed myself to save myself, have I truly committed murder?”
Her death was one of the many infinite realities and one that she clearly has circumvented. She will journey the timeways and will return to Suramar likely more powerful than ever! Long live the magitrix! 
1 Like
Dunno if I’d call Elisande one of those, though. I can see the argument for wanting Kael’thas fixed up since his previous characterization was warped for the villain bat, but Elisande only existed to be a villain and Thalyssra was meant to be her better counterpart from the start, so I don’t see a need for this.
Is there anything to indicate Elisande’s actually coming back, instead of this just being the player visiting her past, though?
10 Likes
Alternate Elisande and maybe a vampire Kael’thas might actually convince me that elves are capable wielders of magic.
She’s not the past and I doubt she’s an alternate version. She’s Elisande who travels the timeways seeking ways to protect her people. This Elisande is the one who gleamed into Tyr’s mind and mastered Aman’thul’s eye. The one who traverses the infinite journeying towards Suramar.
2 Likes
To be fair, Elisande’s story did depict her as a decent villain. She had her reasons for what she did, and held to her ideals. Good intentions, bad results. It’s not so much that she deserves a redemption from bad writing. I mean, she was written pretty well, in my opinion. Rather, I think a redemption for her is more something I personally am interested in seeing, because it shows us the other side of her.
As players we only saw the villain, with a glimpse at a decent person at the very end. She did what she did for her people, because she saw no timeline in which they emerged in tact other than this one. It makes you wonder what kind of an ally she would have been, if she’d known we would succeed in defeating the Legion.
2 Likes
I’m not following. That Elisande is dead, and the dialogue in this datamined cutscene seems to indicate that she’s only just now learned how to protect Suramar from the Legion, which I assume would be “bubbling up and joining them” because that’s how events lead up to the player’s present day.
2 Likes