True. Odyn made one horrible decision with Helya and people just decided to add more horrendous things to his name. Which, as you pointed out, obviously never happened.
People are also being weird with Jan, because there exists a minority portion of players who want him to be some sort of anti colonial war hero, while others have simply built an entire false narrative around him that contradicts his in game appearance to date
If Zul’jan was in the Old Soldier Cinematic, he would have called Saurfang a boomer and let him go die.
Well I didn’t want him to be “redeemed” I just want less than perfectly rational characters to be allowed to actually exist without being raid fodder again.
Warcraft used to be defined by the fact that no one was perfectly rational and that made the world feel alive. Now everyone has to pull from Anduin’s ideological bag or get sniped by the writers and it makes the world feel sterile.
Hey I’m unashamedly pro Alliance and I liked him. He was an actual person.
If it were the current Zul’jan, then quite probably, yes! 
But there are some nuances here too. Despite the comparison I suggested between Zul’jan and Zekhan, perhaps it isn’t entirely logical either 
After all, the Darkspear trolls and the Amani are different in the sense that, as part of the Horde, the Darkspear follow a path of unity / honor / some kind of cohesion. The Amani don’t have that now, considering the events they’ve faced — it’s as if all of their tribes are even living scattered, not under a single Empire.
In other words, Zekhan and Zul’jan grew up in different environments, under different circumstances, and turned out differently.
I don’t think the writing for Zul’jan is anything special. Decent by Blizzard standards.
It just that I think Amani fans feared (with some reason) that things would be much worse. Completely ignored or even made into villians. So there is a certain “better than we expected”…
Why would he do that if the Amani are not engaging in aggression? He hasn’t shown himself to be a “pre-emptive strike” type person in the past, and he hasn’t been attempting to wipe out the Amani just for existing during the past 20 years.
Point is, if push comes to shove, he’s not the type that’s squeamish about killing amani trolls. Just saying he would if given no other choice.
Because he was the only character actually allowed to have beliefs contradictory to the forced reconciliation. Zul’jan isn’t exceptional writing by any stretch of the imagination he’s just at least one vaguely acknowledged problem they’ll just brush aside.
Okay, but there’s a pretty big difference between “if given no other choice” and “the moment presents itself.”
Don’t get me wrong, I think there is a time and place for a story like that. The issue with Zul’jan is that the history being “wrong” or hidden is used as a way to discredit Zul’jan’s character. One of the quests is literally titled “revisionist history”.
Zul’jan’s understanding of Amani history is tied to his pride. Zul’jan’s initial refusal to accept the story and his eventual acceptance all stem from his obsession with the legacy of the Amani.
And from my understanding, Ula’tek is new lore and hasn’t been mentioned in objective sources. So not only is it an in-universe recontextualization, it is also a retcon to the players.
Its odd because all Blizzard had to do was say the Amani that wanted to summon Ula’tek were a splinter faction that never succeeded and the information was suppressed. That way, the Amani history still plays out like we know, and we also get to keep the same story beats with Zul’jan.
I think the reason I like Zul’jan is actually pretty simple: he feels seen.
Not because I agree with everything he does. Honestly, a lot of his choices are questionable. But he feels like a character with actual scars, opinions, pride, anger, and contradictions. He doesn’t feel like he was built just to deliver the “correct” answer in a conversation.
For a long time, Warcraft has had a lot of characters who are willing to understand each other after a few talks and a dramatic speech. That’s not bad, but sometimes you need someone who walks into the room and makes everyone uncomfortable.
Zul’jan reminds me of older Warcraft characters where people could be wrong, stubborn, even dangerous, but you still understood why they became that way.
The funny thing is, the NPCs were basically like:
“Huh… this is complicated. A lot to take in and digest.”
Meanwhile the players were more like:
“Wait… WHAT?! THIS IS BLASPHEMY. WHERE IS MY PITCHFORK?!” 
And honestly, I kind of love that reaction because it means people are invested.
Probably why he stands out. He feels like a person, not a quest marker.
I don’t need every character I like to be a hero. Sometimes I just want a character with enough personality that we can argue about them.
Warcraft is at its best when it gives us something to debate instead of everyone just nodding politely in a circle.
Dont inflict that evil on someone bro. Its bad enough you’re all stuck enduring the horror being a modern day Horde player. Don’t drag others into that suffering.
As for why I like Zul’jan. He’s a prick and we need more of those.
Which is increaslignly the norm sadly
and its why zuuljan stands otu, cause he isnt
eveen in bfa even if nto as abd had that with rastakhan vs talanji, rastakhan was FALWED but he felt like a real character
while talanji clealryb was set up to be the ‘good’ /better replacement for him
If are alliance (adjacnent)defneitly
horrde(adjaacent)? LIK UHHHH
NOOOO Not so much
Or salandria !
She shoudl alsoo be aroudn 20 and is one reasons hed been better pci, then liadrin for zulaman stuff
Not greatest character ever
but when evry other is increasingly the same bland plot device?
Yeah people gonna lacth on to the exception tot hat rule
For me Zul’jan is a boring character. He’s just another boring angry Amani and he’s also a repeat of the zul’jin plot but with a younger and more hot headed troll.
But that’s just me. It’s a personal preference, just like liking him is one.
I can only speak for myself in this, but when Bungie was able to do a somewhat decent job with a similar character, i.e. Eramis in Destiny 2, it does leave blizzard with egg on their faces.
I’ll try and summarize Eramis’s story, covering mostly the important bits.
Eramis, like some other Eliksni we see in Destiny 1 & 2 was originally from Riis, her homeworld. The Traveler, whom they called ‘The Great Machine’ visited Riis and uplifted the Eliksni like many worlds before and one world after (have a guess which world came after Riis :P). Unfortunately this left a giant target on Riis as The Witness, a being content on using the Traveler to complete its version of ‘The Final Shape’ sends one of its servants to go after the Traveler, this being Oryx, the Taken King.
In Oryx’s wake, ‘The Whirlwind’ occurred, the collapse of Eliksni culture. Some Eliksni like Eramis sought to chase the Traveler in a desperate attempt to reclaim what was lost. During this period, known as ‘the long drift’, Eramis became bitter towards the Great Machine and this bitterness turned into hatred. She would soon become a Baroness of the House of Devils and was one of the leaders behind the Eliksni’s attack on the Last City. However they were defeated at the Battle of Twilight Gap. Eventually she was imprisoned in the Prison of Elders until the events that led to Destiny 2: Forsaken.
In the lead up to Forsaken, the warden of the Prison of Elders, Varriks released ALL of the prisons inmates and fled. Variks did this because he was convinced by Fikrul, the first of the Scorn (undead Eliksni) that he was destined to be the Kell of Kells (King of Kings). However who would follow an Awoken simp like him? No-one.
Eramis, free from prison rallies what remains of her former House and would even send a strike force into the ruins of the Last City’s Tower (The Destiny 1 tower that was destroyed during the Red War, i.e. Destiny 2’s launch campaign) to retrieve something that could help the House of Devils claim what they deserve. The prize was Outbreak Perfected, a weapon that contains SIVA, a self replicating nanomachine (son!) that the House of Devils had tried to use in the past (Destiny: Rise of Iron). The plan failed thanks to Misraaks, a former Captain of the House of Dusk that was spared by the Guardian during the Red War. Misraaks would go on to create a new house called the House of Light in response to the Guardians act of mercy.
Desperate, Eramis listened to a voice beckoning her to Europa. Here she gathered other, likeminded Eliksni to create the House of Salvation. She even reached out to Variks and asked if he wanted to be her new houses scribe, as a way to say thank you for setting her free from the Prison of Elders. Who was voice that brought her to Europa you might ask? The Witness. The Witness senses Eramis’ anger and hatred towards ‘The Great Machine’ and thinks she might be a worthy candidate to turn into a disciple. However The Witness has also found someone else worthy of this title… us. As such we were also beckoned to Europa (Season of Arrivals, leading into Destiny 2: Beyond Light).
Variks however learned about the bargain between Eramis and the ‘voice in the darkness’ and stole a Crux of Darkness. Hoping to hand it over to the Vanguard in exchange for safety. Knowing full well the Vanguard is after him as his actions ultimately got Cayde 6 killed and the Dreaming City of the Awoken trapped in a time loop curse. Unfortunately for Variks, a stranger, an exo stranger if you will stole the Crux just as Eramis arrives to their location. After reaching Variks and freeing him from House Salvation, we repair the relay node he is at. Only to be beckoned once more by The Witness. There we see the Exo Stranger, Eris Morn and The Drifter eliminate a group of House Salvation looking for a ziggurat of Darkness. The Stranger gives us the Crux she took from Variks and tells us that despite what she said previously back in Destiny 1, sometimes one must embrace the enemy in order to destroy it. Through her guidance we learn how to control Stasis, a form of Darkness while also eliminating two of Eramis’ lieutenants.
Desperate and reaching her breaking point, Eramis activates an old Vex gate that was created by Clovis Bray during the Golden Age (The Glassway Strike). Following this we storm Riis reborn and corner Eramis. We manage to defeat her however Eramis is encased in Stasis while reaching out to the Pyramid off in the distance. Here Eramis would remain as we mop up what is left of House of Salvations leadership that seeks to continue Eramis’ work, including whatever business they had in the Deep Stone Crypt. That is until Season of Plunder.
I should add in this comparison between Eramis and Zul’jan, the ending of Beyond Light would basically be where Zul’jans story would end. In this comparison, The Great Machine are the Loa, The Witness (to an extent) would be Malacrass, and Ula’tek would be Stasis. Both Eramis and Zul’jan are bitter towards so called “God(s)” abandoning them in the hour of their greatest need. And yet they continue to demand blind faith and obedience to be “worthy” of their power. Here comes a third party who feeds this bitterness until it becomes an all consuming hatred. Offering them the means to take command of their destiny (title drop!) as a means to bring true Salvation to their people.
Fortunately for Eramis this is not where her story ends, so let us continue.
Some time after we committed grand theft stasis, the Witness would give Eramis a second chance. Freeing her from her icy prison and instructing her to find several artifacts that are important. Here Eramis acts as a foil to Misraaks, where we and his adopted daughter Eido learn a dark truth about the Kell of Light from Eramis during a parley. He knows what the artifacts really are as he once used one of them during his days as a pirate. His lust for power led him to betray his own adopted brothers and leaving them on an asteroid for disobeying his orders. These Eliskni would become The Spider (Rakis) and Siviks. Siviks is killed by the player during the events of Season of the Forge.
The artifacts are revealed to be pieces of Nezarec, a disciple of the Witness that was killed by an “ally”. This “ally” would also place a curse on his body. The Witness, after learning the truth of this betrayal, among others this “ally” has done since seeks to resurrect their fallen disciple. And speaking of this “ally”, her minions also seek the body parts, despite this happening after her “death” (she is technically dead but also not dead at the same time). Eido, hoping to prove herself attempts to claim the final artifact when she is cornered by the Lucent Hive. We rush to find her only to find the Lucent Hives leader defeated at the hands of Eramis. Misraaks and Eramis fight while Eido pleads for the two of them to stop. As Eramis only arrived to defend Eido. Due to Eramis having grown a soft spot for her. During the duel, Misraaks fights dirty by using his splicer gauntlet to blind Eramis, but he doesn’t go for the kill, for Eido’s sake. Eramis manages to escape by creating a stasis wall behind her. Revealing that she could have used it at any point during their duel but chose not to. Eido sends a final message to Eramis, asking her to renounce her hatred and join House of Light. Eramis however, refuses. Stating that it is far too late for her to change after everything she has lost and that House of Light is better without her.
For her failure in acquiring the pieces of Nerzarec, The Witness forces Eramis to see them turn members of her own house into Scorn (Season of the Seraph). The Witness even brings back one of her old allies as scorn. Side note: I love the delivery Eramis’ voice actress gives when you fight Praksis again, now brought back as a scorn at the end of the Seraph Shield Exotic Mission. It is dead pan but done in a way that it is clear that Eramis is at her lowest point. This is where her hatred has brought her. A slave to the very power that brought ruin to her people and forced to see friends become monstrosities because of her failures. Similar sounding messages can be found in the Spire of the Watcher dungeon. Some of these messages involve Eramis trying to convince the Guardian that they do not need gods like the Traveler. Stating that the Traveler will just abandon them as it did to her people and many others before.
Continuing to be driven by hatred, Eramis even attempts to hack Rasputin, the Warmind. Hoping to unleash its full arsenal against the Great Machine as it attempts to flee Earth as the Black Fleet arrives in full. However Rasputin is destroyed by Ana Bray, one of its creators and the Warsats are destroyed. The traveler even refuses to leave, further angering Eramis.
During Season of Defiance, Eramis attempts to warn us of a trap set by Calus’ Shadow Legion. We ignore her warning due to her attempting to destroy the Traveler with Rasputins Warsats and while we do rescue those the Shadow Legion had imprisoned, Amanda Holiday is killed as a result. Eramis saves Misraaks by creating a stasis barrier, stopping the explosions blast from consuming him. Eramis would remain in hiding. Meanwhile the Guardians would finally destroy the Witness within the Travelers Pale Heart. Now free from The Witness, Eramis hopes that there can be chance for her people and her house after all. This hope would not last.
Following The Witness’ death, three fragments of its memories, made solid by the Travelers light are scattered across the system. One of these landed on Nessus and was claimed by a third party, another on Oryx’s Dreadnaught and would ultimately be destroyed by the Guardian and the third landed on the Tangled Shore. We actually encounter this one second. Fikrul, still alive thanks to his unique condition (Wish magic, what are you going to do) claims the this ‘echo’ of the Witness. Corrupting its power to turn living Eliksni into scorn and he has set his sights on Europa. Eramis, learning of the coming threat sends a distress call to the Vanguard, knowing that they might kill her on sight. However the Guardian doesn’t and agrees to help her fight these reverent scorn.
We manage to defeat the scorn, to which Eramis quickly flees. We manage to catch her and state that we are bringing her to her people in House Light for judgement. Eramis agrees to go if the Vanguard offers her people safe harbour and if she is allowed to see Eido. We agree to do so and take her to the H.E.L.M. Soon a House of Salvation Ketch arrives to try and rescue Eramis. However Fikrul boards the H.E.L.M and to show off his new power, uses the echo to turn every Eliknsi on the ketch to scorn. Causing it to crash into the H.E.L.M. The two ships crash land on Europa. The H.E.L.M is left in a mostly intact state thanks to the AI Failsafe and her experience with crash landings. Failsafe was remotely uploaded to the H.E.L.M during the events of Episode: Echoes, which preceded Reverent.
Locked up in a cell in the Last City, Eramis would remain. That is until Eido believes she knows the key, well tonic to ending Fikruls immortality and Eramis might know how to obtain it. We release Eramis from her prison and she tells us of an Eliksni alchemist that has a high chance of knowing how to create such a tonic. This lead ends up being correct and with the aid of the alchemist, we create a tonic capable to making Fikrul “mortal” long enough for him to be permanently killed. This is done by removing the Darkness from his ether. As Fikrul was made into a scorn when Riven used the lingering Darkness within Uldren Sov when he ‘wished’ he could save his fallen (no pun intended) friend.
We manage to weaken Fikrul long enough to inject the tonic into him and finally bring him down. It is here that Eramis and Misraaks arrivals. The latter of which has been growing very out of character since the events of Season of Plunder. To demonstrate this, during the Final Shape, Misraaks drops a giant brig onto the already fatally wounded Eliknsi that had killed his mother. Overkill much? It turns out the reason for this is due to Nezarec. You see, Misraaks used the body pieces of Nezarec to create a ‘tea’ in the hopes of awakening Osiris from his coma. It worked but the darkness within those body pieces had to go somewhere. Nezarec, fully in control of Misraaks body tries to take the Echo for himself. However the Echo, which we learn during this episode might actually be sapient chooses Eramis instead. Eramis uses the echo to destroy Nezarec, hopefully for good and leaves. Taking what supporters she has left to try and reclaim Riis from the Hive. With Oryx dead, The Witness dead, Savathun a servant of the Traveler and Xivu Arath hiding like a coward as she is no longer immortal (Season of the Witch), Eramis believes might be the best time to reclaim her homeworld. Obviously she still holds onto her belief that House of Light is better without her.
Eramis leaves with one final message. She states that she still holds contempt for The Great Machine and the Machine Spawn (aka Guardians). And that she still sees House of Light living in the last city as being under our ‘tyrannical rule’. But the call of finally coming home helps see a brighter future for her and her followers. In the end her desire to see Riis truly reborn was stronger than her blind hatred for the great machine and humanity.
Eramis: Machine-spawn. This is Eramis of no House, Echo-Bearer and Voice of Riis. I reach you from the outer edges of Sol, where I am departing this war-torn slum forever. That I leave my people under your blithe tyranny shall be another of my unavoidable regrets. The Echo believes I am still worthy. But… [sighs] I am not so certain. I’ve been drifting for so long now. I barely remember who I was in this place. The Kell I am now has scars. Faults. Debts to repay. I’ve made so many compromises. Can I… truly say I am of Old Riis? [exhales] Eido would have me stay, of course, using my new power to reclaim Scorn from the Darkness. But the Echo calls me home. Its song resonates through every drop of my being. It sounds like… Gusts of Ether flowing through canyons. Roiling as clouds and condensing as dew. Nourishing a paradise safe from humanity… and the Great Machine. My kin will once again be weavers and dancers, instead of the scrabbling insects you made us. Soon enough, the Machine-spawn will be no more than a legend to frighten hatchlings. I shall build a new life with my family… and think of you no more.
https://www.destinypedia.com/Act_III:_Kell_of_Kells#Step_17
I like this ending. It shows that some wounds can never heal and how those wounds can be used by a higher power to manipulate you. It is clear that Eramis did regret siding with The Witness during Season of the Seraph but felt like she had no choice but to continue serving out of fear and maybe even the sunk cost fallacy. Our relationship with her has come a long way since Beyond Light and while we will never be ‘friends’, she does hope for a future where her people can finally return home to Riis, no longer bound by humanity or The Great Machine. She also sees that her peoples future is in the hands of Eido and while Eido wishes Eramis would be part of that future, sometimes the harsh truth is needed. Eramis believes she is better off without House Light and believes they are better off without her. Maybe she is right, maybe she is wrong, the point is, Eramis’ mind will never change on that and Eido has to accept it.
It is honestly a shame that we might not get an ending like this for Zul’jan and his relationship with the Loa and by extension, the Blood Elves. I don’t think anyone is asking for him to suddenly become best buddies with the Loa. He can still believe the Amani is better off on their own instead of being ‘slaves’ to false gods while also supporting his sister. Being manipulated by Malacrass should be part of that journey, like how Eramis was by The Witness. Not be his final ending. Who knows however, it is possible that Zul’jan might return in the future, although unlikely. I mean Eramis was frozen in ice for all of Beyond Light’s seasonal content and half of Witch Queen’s until Season of Plunder. But it is evident that Bungie had plans for Eramis and a somewhat redemption arc. One where she isn’t fully redeemed as she herself believes she can never be but one where she is in a healthier position than she was during Beyond Light. Sometimes a character needs to go down a negative arc in order to begin a positive one.
Ula’tek prior to Midnight was in a weird quasi, canonical state. As the ‘official’ maps used in Vanilla WoW’s manual were updated versions of those from the early RPG books. On the map covering Quel’thalas and Zul’aman, there was a major city or cultural landmark called the ‘Shrine of Ula’tek’. As these maps originate from the RPG books, they were deemed non-canon when the RPG books were, but since they were used in still canonical material, people wondered if Ula’tek, or at least the shrine in her name was still canon. It was implied that the Zul’aman we got in TBC was probably not going to be the full version. As there was a giant Amani gate in Eversong Woods until Cata.
The RPG books also described Ula’tek as a snake loa or something more.
Another could simply be the history was lost naturally over time. I mean we have ancient history in the real world that we don’t fully know about. Most sources we have about those ancient civilizations were written years, decades maybe even centuries after they existed. So it is not unreasonable to say that the knowledge of Ula’tek was simply forgotten about over time. Between the Sundering, the Cataclysm and the wars with the High Elves, The Alliance of Lordaeron and later the Blood Elves, I could see most recorded sources of Ula’tek being destroyed one way or another. With the Vilebranch being the only tribe that managed to salvage any record of her. Due to their isolated nature, even amongst their fellow Amani.
Yup, given when she first appeared in game (TBC) she is in her 20’s now. Unlike Arator who is pushing late 30’s closer to early 40s. Salandria has the same unsure of their place in the world, little to no understanding of Quel’thalas/Zul Aman that Arator does. Which was already a story Anduin did but arguably better