It’s sooo lazy, oh no look the Echo Isles are under attack again! 
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How powerful are the Darkspear currently? Have they ever really come back from the brink of extinction because it always feels like they’re being pushed back under water every time they come up to breathe.
Actually BfA did them some favour.
- In HC Warfront Darksears were using trollems (Troll golems).
- table missions established that Echo Isles are Horde’s Biggest Port, not Bladefist bay or any other location.
- Darkspears are tough fighters, One Shadow hunter not only quickly undid Zandalari Lich, but also soloed ambush of 8-10 blood trolls.
- During the battle of Lordaeron, on the alliance, the Darkspears put the most difficult fight, they had powerful shaman that was throwing entire party around like rags with his tornadoes and then flew to the other side and repeat the process. He kited you like that until you got him down (and I want to believe he faked his death or used ankh once he was done).
- Rokhan together with Gadrin and one Zandalari Witch Doctor created Big Bad Voodoo ritual that wiped out entire Lightforged army in Drustvar, which was imo the biggest flex so far.
- Darkspears are used as a special forces. And also judging by Shadow hunter Ty’Jin, Darkspears are very flexible, Ty’Jin was able to quickly construct mini canon, and he was daydreaming about stealing airplane - So I guess he knows how to pilot flying machine.
They might still not have the numbers to match Zandalari, but Darkspears are meant to be tough as nails now. Because they’re the most experienced of the trollkind. All these campaigns they went on withthe Horde paid off. And I think that Darkspears should’ve been very creative when it comes to warfare, and this is why I am upset over Dambala, he would’ve been perfect Loa to illustrate “Dirty fighting”.
I think there was a missed opportiunity to integrate a story where Darkspears check on Arracoa magic as there is lots of similarities between their usage of shadow.
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That’s actually a relief to hear, It’s been so long since I did any zone other than Tirigarde Sound I’ve forgotten most of BFA, my memory isn’t what it used to be. Remember those Darkspear Ballista they used during the Seige of Orgrimmar? Those are sick I wish they’d use those for something again.
This never even crossed my mind but yeah they really should the Darkspear heritage quest was a great opportunity to finally explain what Voodoo magic really is and how it related tot he other forces they just straight up neglected the heck out of the Trolls on this, so disappointing.
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Directly in the raid they were not used, but it was implied by the Nazgrim that they were used but that Juggernaut boss destroyed them. Nazgrim said to Vol’Jin (You don’t have any siege weapons left).
But ye, all this positive buildup and the good will that BfA came up with for the Darkspears quickly fell flat on the face. Because I believe that the natural plot for the Darkspear Heritage should be reflecting on how they started, to end with on where are the now.
So the Darkspear quest should get us to Zul’Gurub to bring the Darkspear early history, that they denouced Hakkar and refused to participate in blood sacrifice, and why other troll tribes started to gang up on them.
Then there should be talk about Kul’Tirans and Naga how the also never give them rest despite Darkspears never crossing them before, reflecting on how the world is cruel and why Darkspears have to be cruel themselves in return, becuase nobody had mercy for them.
Then talk about joining the Horde and how thanks to the Horde they expanded and slowly grew stronger.
To end up on where are they now. So a strong allies of the Zandalari, and the most experienced of the troll kind. And with that knowledge go to STV and finally settle matters with Bloodscalp, Skullsplitter and Gurubashi.
“We’re exiles no more, now we’re the powerhouse” (of the jungle trolls).
and ou could’ve been creative with handling the other tribes. giving Darkspears a challenge to prove themselves and show other tribes that they made a massive mistake to make out of Darkspears their enemies.
As for Gurubashi to force them to admit that Darkspears which they shunned, are their only chance for recovery, getting the ultimatum - either you adapt with us, or you perish completely.
The quest could end that there is still long road to go, and it was a first step, but it would deffinietly be a hopeful event.
It would be sweet that upon returning to Echo Isles you’d meet Zandalari who are in return the guests of honor, just like Rokhan was guest of honor on Talanji’s coronation.
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See this is literally 20X better than what we got! Literally all you need to do is know and understand the existing Darkspear story it’s clear whoever worked on it just brushed up on the facts.
I’d hope they can rebuild their Ballistas because those things are epic. Always wanted one as a toy that you can fire with the little yellow aim tool like in quests but to use in open world to dismount enemy players. Now i need to google the Darkspear golems.
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There should be ballistas all over the place, there should be Darkspear boats, there should be Darkspear Golems, There should be Loa shrines… many many things, but who would put this much resources to update tiny zone that nobody uses anyway.
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For an island dwelling people related to some of the greatest ship builders alive they should have better boats than just canoes.
Not only that Trolls everywhere are still living in the ruins of their former empires, why aren’t they going back to building in their iconic megalithic style? The Darkspear have the two big pillars on Echo Isles but they really should be building on a grander scale by now.
Really wish Blizzard would actually show this. It’s like one dock and three huts when it should be much bigger. Ideally every city should be on the scale of Suramar.
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I always envisioned Darkspears to build Catamarans where additionally, Darkspears would use totems that would generate wind that would blow the sails for extra speed.
They should’ve had at least one big ziggurat and at least one proper stronghold, I have nothing against wooden huts but really they should have at least few solid structures.
AND they should have proper shrines.
And I think that Darkspears should’ve have at least one thing for pure leasure - maybe let’s use that cave that naga had, and make inside hot springs? Where Darkspear elders could warm up their bones.
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Outside of Orcs and Humans (and even then, it’s hit-or-miss), I think there have been multiple generations of WoW writers that are simply more interested in their original creations than expanding on the lore of existing races. Or even bothering to try to understand it.
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Yeah very unfortunate, a core race had to wait all the way to the end of the line for someone to throw them a bone and instead of a bone they got trash.
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You see this problem everywhere when people buy a certain IP they want to take all these creative liberties and out their own little twist on things without any respect for the giants on whose shoulders they’re standing.
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This is precisely the problem with most Intellectual Property right now including Warcraft whose story has been going to heck in a hand basket.
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0 respect for source material. Hard to say in this case if it’s just a matter of being cheap and refusing to allocate resources or if they wanted to play at being creative either way this was loongggggg anticipated and for them to do so little right and so much wrong despite all they feedback they’ve been getting and all the lore they had to go off it’s just wrong.
Really should have been a Glaive I don’t see what would have been so hard about that. If I’m not mistaken I think that sword was datamined waaayyyy back before they even started working on the heritage quest and they just decided to throw it in because it was an unused asset and they clearly slacked on the rest of the set.
No better time than now for Vol’Jin to make a comeback and bring some dignity back to the Horde leaders, Thrall will be gone before we know it, would be nice to at least have Vol’Jin back.
Blizz hates Trolls, minus BFA where they were actually given some love with the Zandalari, but even then the Darkspear didn’t have much representation outside of Rokhan.
Heck, even the Zandalari were flawed, where most of the storylines there were just killing other Trolls or cleaning up the Zandalari’s messes all over.
Then in Shadowlands, we get (in my mind), the horrific disappointment that was “De Other Side”, which really should’ve been its own zone/raid instead of a crappy 5-man where we barely even do anything Troll-related.
Very disappointing.
edit: I know BFA had some Darkspear representation with Zekkhan (Zappy Boi) in the Saurfang quests but I’m talking more about the Zandalar campaign.
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Here’s an ideal rush’kah mask. Notice who it’s attached to?
Why the Darkspear’s colors and icon aren’t more prominent is a mysterious, but it probably circles back to the increasing disinterest that the team seems to have in lore.
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It was super disappointing. Zandalari didn’t have half of the stuff they were meant to have, and they got stuff they were not supposed to be there.
There was no academy for Zandalari scholars/ chroniclers where tehy could have all this historical records together.
There are no goldmines, no shipyards (where we could se how Zandalari build their boats), No cropfields, Bwonsamdi talks in cinematic about Zandalari liking other Loa for bringing the rain so the crops could grow, but then the only crop field is in Vol’Dun all dried up. There was no Tal’Drak, no Lore on Archanital, Zanza was completely snubbed and demoted. Rastakhan apparently didn’t have any family and only recently he had Talanji - in 200 years of his reign he didn’t try to reproduce?! Oh, and then he dies after 1 patch. You waited for the guy since Vanilla, and he dies within one Patch.
Imagine Alliance finally getting Turalyon and then seeing him dying on Antorus.
Imagine if we had a guide on Zandalar, a chronicler that would tell us more about other troll tribes and their hsitory.
Imagine if the first raid was like Caverns of Time, where we witness Ancient Zandalari past. Aquir Wars for Raid and dungeon where we fight against nelves and achieve phyrric virctory.
Imagine if Nazmir was about Zandalari trying to fix the damage that Cataclysm caused while at the same time repelling Kul’Tiran invasion. No blood troll nonsense, no titan nonsense.
And Sethrak to be a new race that reached Zandalar and also tries to take it over, instead of some other made up empire that was created on Zandalar, without Zandalari knowledge (sic!) .
Darkspears got some nice moments in BfA, but it was wayyyy to little.
I am the most upset that they had to shove in Nathanos in the raid to have a staredown with Jaina, making it all tense and all, as if they shared some history, but they didn’t!
Rokhan had a history with Jaina! Nathanos did not!
Seriously Pet characters and the push for them in this game is one of the reasons why the writing is such a garbage.
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