With Pandaren, Dracthyr and now Earthen Dwarves being cross-faction, what other races would you like to see added to this list? Could be existing or races that haven’t been released for play.
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Just make faction pickable over it being race based.
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Orcs should be faction neutral. No reason.
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None.
I can buy into making the factions a little less restrictive but I don’t want there to be even more homogenization between the two more than what’s already is. I’d rather Devs create races and invest in their distinctive content that adds immersion and gameplay (unique class, gear heritage armor, etc) than just give one race and make it cross faction as a cost cutting measure so they don’t have to commit to the same standards that they had to do in the past.
You want to make it more accessible to play across lines? Cool. But give the races(and factions) content too. Double down on it even.
Edit: Well, Tuskars would be kinda cool though.
5 Likes
Faction lore is so cool rn. I can’t wait until my new Earthen is asked, “so, which side of the permanent race war which is canonically concluded but still mechanically relevant would you like to be part of”.
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Ideally, I’d like to take a page from ESO’s book and give players the option to choose their faction regardless of race, but still have races tied to a particular faction. It’s a relatively fair compromise, and somewhat realistic.
I’m also not too opposed to just abolishing the factions entirely. I’d prefer they stick around but at present they’re so vaporous their racial configurations and related iconography are pretty much the most significant things defining them. Ideally, I’d want the factions’ continued existence justified (but the choices related more flexible) but, similar to my thoughts on the war, if the devs are unwilling/unable to make it work then they might as well drop it altogether.
6 Likes
Actually, you know what I’d really love to see is the inverse of a faction crunch. I would love to see even more factions. It’d be neat if there were separatist factions within the Horde and Alliance as well as unification factions and maybe some factions with entirely new ideas about where to take things.
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This is definitely a better option than “effectively get rid of race-faction flavour”
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Murlocs : )
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The Naga and that serpent race.
Disregarding the unfortunate reason that they ain’t got feet, those would be great dual faction races.
Naga: Some want to feel close to their roots and join the side their Kaldorei brethren are on. Some feel too monstrous and join the other faction of monsters.
Serpent race: Some think Gnomes look delicious and some think Valpera look delicious. As to whether they join one faction to be closer to their race of taste, or to be on the opposite side for a chance to dine; snakes are on the plane.
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I’d prefer faction-less races honestly. As Miko mentioned, factions are only gameplay-related these days but we continue to move away from that.
My pie-in-the-sky dream would be choose-your-own-questing adventure, where you could pick the quests you want to do, regardless of faction, because it’s the right (or wrong) thing to do or because you want the gold/quest reward. It won’t ever happen but a girl can dream.
(But as an answer to the actual question you asked: goblins.)
3 Likes
Gnomes and Goblins should be best pals.
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Honestly this is the only one that makes sense to me. Goblins have worked for the Alliance in the past and even though they feel more Horde, I think they should have been on both sides.
Otherwise, I don’t want to see any more neutral races. I think we have so many playable races at this point that it is hard to give love to the ones we have on Blizz’s part.
I have had a lot of frustration in the past in regards to the factions. At times I have been so upset that I have called for the to be removed. However, that is not what I would want nor do I think it would be good for the game. Personally it is the restrictions Blizz placed on us due to the factions.
I think they need to loosen them so we can go where we wish and play with whom we want. I am not sure how allowing any race to pick their faction would go. I personally haven’t played ESO so I couldn’t say.
This I don’t think would be too bad either. I personally feel that player choice is very important and should be expanded upon.
Honestly, I think this would be a great way to go if Blizz could devote the time to it. The Horde has had two civil wars already and I have seen differing players on both factions. Both factions can be broken down into more factions and Blizz can draw inspiration from the player base themselves.
For example there are some Horde that very much want to be like the old Dark Horde from earlier warcraft games or even like Garrosh’s Horde, and others that wish to be more like Thrall’s Horde. And then you have Alliance that are very Bloodthirsty and believe the only way to have peace on Azeroth is for the Horde to be completely annihilated. There have been Horde guilds that have had their stories be that they refuse to acknowledge the Horde Council and left to do their own thing; have a warchief and to destroy the Alliance.
However, more factions might mean more work and the new factions would probably need new cities and lands. I would hate to see Kalimdor and EK broken down with more political boundaries that restrict our moment further in the game.
This is what I wanted when they added the faction symbols to the character selection screen and rampant speculation ensued. Let me break off from my main faction and pledge to one of the many smaller factions – existing and new. Also, let me join a hardline Horde or Alliance sub-faction that defies the mingling we have now.
As an altoholic, this would be so fun for further differentiation of alts.
For further races, Ethereals would be sick. Also, some sort of Naga-esque sea elf w/ Naga form elf because we really need more elves IMO.
1 Like
unpopular opinion but i would rather just see more customization for races we already have and not get any new ones. i’d be cool with the earthen being cancelled in favor of more faces for tauren. i want to see every race brought to the same standard as humans and dracthyr.
3 Likes
In case you’re curious, you could pay for the ability to choose which faction to be aligned with during character creation. I imagine it worked just fine, seeing as the starting experiences were only partially related to faction and never to race. Races in ESO also weren’t as strictly allocated based on faction; that is to say, you’d have a few npcs native to faction territories associated with a faction their race wasn’t part of. For example I recall seeing a few Khajiit, a Aldmeri Dominion race, as citizens of Wayrest, a Daggerfall Covenant city. I imagine this structure also makes the overall idea a bit more palatable than it might be with WoW.
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Dark Trolls
Mogu
Sethrak
This is my current top three list for x-faction people to introduce.
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I honestly could see Humans and Orcs going cross-faction, given the Horde allied with Kul’tiran Pirates, and the Horde has had whole swathes of Orcs rebel and reject the Horde under Garrosh, and likely Sylvanas too, and we had a certain Light-Forged Draenei talk about ‘conversion’.
But on to a less rage-inducing take, I could easily see Ogres, Hozen, Saurok, Ethereals, Taunka and Gnolls would all work as the ‘Pandaren’-style Allied Race, able to pick and choose which side they join.
Ogres are a bit of a stretch, but they’re infamous for being mercenaries and while the Horde might be a more natural fit, Ogres aren’t picky about allies when pressed, and a group of Ogres who might see the Horde as inherently unstable, especially a group led by Ogre Mages, and don’t want to be caught on the wrong side of history once again. Horde Ogres might very well settle happily in Feralas, with plentiful lumber, game and space to move, while Alliance Ogres might be more vagabond, going from fight to fight in exchange for their might, muscle and magic, while their non-combatants lair somewhere close to Stormwind, possibly Redridge, taking over the old Horde locations as part of their allegiance to the Alliance. Close enough to remain in contact, far enough for the unlikely bed-fellows to keep a comfortable level of separation.
Hozen are quick to act, quicker still to filch, and live short, furious, wild lives. While the Horde’s a more likely pick, once again, Hozen might react negatively to the Undead or there might be a rival to the Monkey King who sees his tolerance of the Horde as ‘wickety nonsense’ and sees the Alliance as the perfect choice to show up the old man. Or maybe the Monkey King, wise, clever and tricksy, might see the value in having a foot in both camps, ensuring that no matter what happens in the future, his people will continue to survive and thrive across Azeroth.
Saurok are an odd choice, but we’ve seen on the Isle of Thunder, and in Kul’tiras, that they’re not only sapient, but capable of solid alliances and long-term planning. Saurok from the Isle of Thunder might make for good fits with the Horde, especially given their Shamanistic take on life and the growing rebellion we took advantage of amongst the Small Teeth against the Saur-Priests and the Brutes who ruled through fear and intimidation. For the Alliance, Saurok pirates might make for an unlikely mercenary force, trading service in exchange for their lives and Alliance ‘protection’ of their eggs and hatchlings, rather than just being hunted down for their piracy along Kul’tiras waters.
Ethereals are a natural choice for this, especially considering their war against the Void has possibly raged for longer than recorded history on Azeroth, and since we’re on the cusp of the most feral hoe-down throw-down show-down between the Light and the Void in the future, we could see various sects of Ethereals showing up to lend their support. The Ethereals who have dabbled in the Void or at least have respect for Locus Walker’s knowledge of their most hated enemy could see them joining the Alliance, while Ethereals who hate the Void and all who are touched by it could find themselves unlikely allies amongst the Horde, who have likewise suffered repeatedly under the machinations of Demons, Old Gods and worse.
Taunka might seem like an easy in for the Horde, but the Arctic Tauren of Northrend are not a homogenous nation, with each Tribe a nation unto themselves, and the Horde didn’t exactly leave a very good taste in their mouth, especially since after Northrend and Garrosh’s relentless douchery there, both Horde and Alliance pulled back and left only skeleton crews in their outposts … and the Kor’kron broke that agreement to smuggle Magnataur to Ashenvale to help the Warchief’s mad plan to topple the Kaldorei. The families of those kidnapped adults and children would likely have gone on a rampage, both following after their kidnapped kin, and against any small Humanoids in their wake. Taunka who might wish to reconnect with their Tauren and Highmountain kin are one thing, but Taunka who’ve washed their hands of the Horde and seek their rivals instead to help support and supply their beleaguered Tribes back in Northrend would work quite well, and be a continuous middle finger to the Horde that they’ve even alienated what should be firm and loyal allies…
Gnolls are so wide-spread and common that they’re the equivalent of Humanoid Seagulls, always there, always screaming at you, always trying to steal your chips. Veteran mercenaries and relentlessly aggressive, Gnolls will fight for whoever pays them the most, gives them the most meat, and lets them do what they want. They’re a lot smarter than either the Horde or Alliance gives them credit for, and aside from Hogger Memes, they’re also prone to some significant military presences and victories, being a perpetual thorn in the side of the Human military of Stormwind and being a constant threat to the Tauren, Troll and Orc settlements in Mulgore, the Barrens and even Feralas.
At least, that’s how I could see Blizzard offering up these races. Ogres could easily use a modified Kul’tiran rig, Hozen would have to be unique, Saurok and Gnoll use the Worgen rig, Ethereals are just Sin’dorei/Ren’dorei, and Taunka would literally just be using the Tauren rig.
3 Likes
Let the Nightborne be neutral! Both sides helped Suramar during the rebellion and civil war, they should choose which faction they allied with more.
4 Likes
Noh, Tyrande said meanie words. Thalyssra’s jimmies are simply too rustled to forgive it.
