Just some random thoughts that won’t leave my head, so I’m putting them down so I can get some sleep before my next shift.
- Tameable Demons for Warlocks:
Tome of Impcraft allows Warlocks to go out and specifically bind unique Imps and Imp-Kin, to get a variety of different models. Imps and Fel Imps serve their normal role, while Imp Mothers take the role of Succubi/Incubi.
Tome of Voidcraft allows Warlocks to find and bind various Voidwalkers, with certain types of Voidwalkers being able to replace Imps (Caster Voidwalkers). Also opens access to Fel-fire Elementals and certain Arcane Elementals to be enslaved.
Tome of the Fel Hound allows Warlocks to find and bind various Felhounds and similar beasts, like the twin Bosses from the Antorus Raid, the Xenomorph-like hounds, and both the old and new Felhound Models.
Tome of the Profane Flesh allows Warlocks to find and bind various Succubi, Incubi, Shivarra, Satyr and certain Eredar to fulfil the role of their basic Succubi/Incubi Pets.
Tome of the Black Heart allows Warlocks to tame certain varieties Eredar, Wrathguards and similar Eredar-desended Fel Races, and here’s where things get fun. Certain Eredar can fulfill the role of an Imp, others that of Voidwalkers and Fel Guards/Wrathguards, others perform similar to Felhounds and the Beholder Demons, and others fulfil the CC/DPS role of the Succubi/Incubi.
Tome of the Fel Machine allows Warlocks to tame Gnaarg Demons, and similarly to the Tome of the Black Heart, various Gnaarg Demons can fulfill other roles, replacing Imps, Voidwalkers and the like.
Tome of the Grand Warlock allows the Warlock to tame Infernals, and Doomguards. Infernals serve as replacement Voidwalkers and Fel Guard/Wrathguard, while Doomguards can serve as replacement Imps, Succubi and Wrathguard pets.
- Return of Budd : The Buddening
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Also narcotics. Lots and lots of narcotics.
The kicker is that Griftah is outraged that Budd ‘stole’ his would-be bride and has arranged a posse of rival ‘merchants’ to undercut and slander Budd’s outfit at every turn, underlings who really don’t care about this nonsense, but they’re being paid well so whatever, I guess? And Budd’s Bride doesn’t even know who Griftah is, they’re just enamoured with their new beau and are actually a shockingly powerful follower of Jani, Loa of Trash.
Across Kalimdor, the Eastern Kingdoms, Northrend, Pandaria and even the Dragon Isles, the sappy romance of Budd and Bride, and shenanigans by Griftah’s misplaced ire, cause minor chaos and stupidity that the players have to deal with, from dueling merchants throwing bootleg Hearts of Azeroth and Legion Artifact Weapons at each other to outraged mobs of scammed locals rioting after their new purchases turn out to be cursed, to Jani’s children popping up and creating new Trash Piles all across Azeroth while the Heckin’ Overlord of Garbage expands their power-base, it could be a fun little side-show to pursue in-between actual progression quests.
- Khadgar’s lost his marbles!
While he has since apologised and they’ve made up, one of them items lost was a bag of marbles.
Very powerful marbles.
Very easily abused and exploitable powerful marbles.
Since Khadgar is on a short leash now and he really doesn’t want to leave Dalaran in the current era where it needs all of the Council of Six on-hand at all times, he asks us to track his ‘pet projects’ down before they cause an incident or three.
We’re off to go chase through older Dungeons, now turned into Scenarios and leveled up to make them challenging, to find twelve enchanted marbles to return to Khadgar.
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The First Marble is the Obsidian Marble, which has found its way into Stratholme. Representing processing emotions and letting go, the Marble has been used by a group of Paladins and Priests who sided with Arthas during his purge of the city to be used as a focus to both help the Undead of the region let go of their fear and anger, and to deal with their own grief and shame.
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The second Marble is the Jade Marble, which has been claimed by one of Yu-Lon’s offspring, the whimsical hatchling refusing to let go of her prize and leading the players on a merry chase through the Temple of the Jade Serpent before being cornered and must be challenged to a mini-game to be convinced to give it up. Representing prosperity and luck, the Jade Marble reacts to the Obsidian Marble, and the player gains the first of a small but rapidly increasing buff, and is drawn to the next marble.
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The third Marble is the Rose Quartz Marble, and has fallen into the hands of a certain love-struck pair of a Goblin and a Gnome, Grizzek and Saffy, whom are enjoying a well-earned break … but are firmly under the effect of the Marble, which enhances love and trust. Unfortunately, that also means they’re blind to the chaos their inventions are causing around Mechagon. Players must fight, sabotage or sneak their way around the haywire mecha and love-addled Mechagnomes to find the two lovers and convince them to give up the Marble.
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The Turquoise Marble is found in the ‘hands’ of a Makura Queen who has settled into the Deepfathoms Dungeon. While players are told that this is a dangerous individual who is a threat to the returning Kaldorei in the region, investigation of the Dungeon reveals that the soothing and reinforcing effects of the Turquoise Marble have actually made the local Makura under the Queen quite amendable to being allies to the Kaldorei … and they’re loathe to give up the Marble. Finding a suitable substitute for the Marble and installing it in the new home of the Makura Queen could be an adventure in and of itself.
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The Moonstone Marble has found its way to the Darkmoon Faire-grounds and into the hands of the inscrutable Silas Darkmoon. While the wily Gnome is loathe to give up the Marble and its ability to create success out of failure, the dark powers he made bargains with to create the Faire in the first place are starting to make uncomfortable and disturbing demands, and in exchange for forcibly reminding these entities of the boundaries of their contracts, Silas ‘might’ be willing to return the Marble.
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The Bloodstone Marble has been found and hoarded by a cabal of Blood Mages who seek to pervert its powers of healing and energy restoration, turning the Bloodstone Marble instead into a battery in which the vitality of thousands could easily be stored to serve as a power-source for their particular brand of sorcery. Holed up in the depths of Defias territory, Players must fight their way through the exsanguinated minions and failed experiments of the cabal to eventually confront and defeat the Blood Mages before their work succeeds and the Bloodstone Marble is turned into a weapon of mass destruction upon the Alliance civilians of Westfall and Elwynn Forest.
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The Sapphire Marble has come into possession of a curmudgeonly old noble who has become entranced by the effects of the Marble, its influence finally piercing decades of selfishness and greed. Players find the old noble unwilling to give it up because, after decades, he’s finally happy and the Marble is allowing the old goat to build a rapport with his estranged children and grand-children, and he lives in absolute terror of losing the effect and reverting back to his old ways, begging the players to just leave it with him ‘for so long as life remains in these old bones’. Eventually, a thief steals the Marble while we’re wrangling with the old man and we must chase them across Westfall and into the ruined lair of Neltharion itself, where a band of opportunistic thieves and brigands have set up camp to try and use the dark reputation of the region to ward off pursuit. Stealing the Marble back requires triggering the alchemical equipment and traps of the raid to traumatize and humiliate the bandits, and returning to the old noble, we find he’s come clean to his family and apologised for his actions, and is working to make amends on his own, rather than relying upon the Marble’s powers. We’re sent on our way and thanked for trying to return the Marble, but he’s learned his lesson and now is concerned overly relying upon the mystical effects was cheapening the regrowing bonds he was making with his family.
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The Jasper Marble has rolled into the paws of a band of Kobolds who had invaded the Drogbar’s home beneath Highmountain, and against all odds, the hordes of rat-like beings are driving out the Drogbar. Empowered by the Marble and shielded from the powers of the Void by the purifying effects of the Jasper Marble, the Kobolds are trying to tap into the Dragonbones littering the caves to make the ‘Ever-Candle’ to permanently drive out the Void, and are heedless to the cost their efforts are inflicting upon the surface world and the other races. Players have to defeat the Kobolds, and the servants of the Void drawn to their efforts, before recapturing the Jasper Marble and convincing the Kobolds to work together with the Drogbar and the Highmountain Tauren.
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The Tiger’s Eye Marble has come into possession of a up-and-coming Monk training at the White Tiger Monastery who use used the emboldening and fear-dampening powers of the Marble to swiftly overcome their limitations … yet the White Tiger is not blind to what is going on, and quietly charges the Player(s) with teaching the Monk a lesson that there are no short-cuts on the road to victory. Players must fight the Monk in several locations, driving him deeper and deeper into a corner until even the Tiger’s Eye Marble can no longer supress his fears and doubts, and we must help the Monk fight his Sha-spawned Fear, Doubt, Anger and Rage, and then his Pride, before the Monk, humbled by facing his inner demons so candidly, returns the Marble to us and returns to the Temple of the White Tiger to renew his training, the right way this time.
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The Iron Marble has found its way into the grubby mitts of Siegecrafter Blackfuse’s spouse, who intends to turn the Marble’s magentic powers into a power-core for an incredibly destructive mecha based upon an improved version of the giant mecha-scorpinoid we fought during the Siege of Orgrimmar Raid. Rampaging across the Barrens, players must man guns on a Zepplin and do enough damage to slow the mecha before it can travel from the cliffs dividing Stonetalon Mountains and the Barrens and descend upon Orgrimmar. Success diverts it south, towards the Crossroads, where we parachute down onto the mecha and engage in a direct brawl with the outraged spouse ontop of the on-fire and exploding mecha, and must defeat them before the mecha collides with the Crossroads and causes massive destruction to the trade-hub between Orgrimmar and Thunder Bluff.
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The Diamond Marble has lodged itself deep into the Stonecore and has attracted a flight of Stone Drakes to it, empowering their Brood Mother enough that she’s an actual threat to Therazane’s Court of Stone Lords, and since it is ‘mortals’ fault this happened, she insists we fix it before anymore of her consorts are harmed by the frenzied and enraged Drakes. We must fight through waves of Stone Drakes before eventually engaging in a running battle against a Stone Drake mutated to the size of an Aspect by the effects of the Diamond Marble and, upon slaying this Brood Mother, recover the Marble, and possibly a few eggs, before escaping back to Azeroth as the scattered Stone Drakes come under bombardment by the vengeful Stone Lords and Therazane herself.
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The Azerite Marble. The final Marble, the Azerite Marble has the ability to actively improve the target, in every way, but only for short periods of time before going dormant and requiring time to recharge. A powerful pair of Champions have been fighting over the Marble for weeks, one of the Alliance, one of the Horde, and each waits until the marble’s powers are depleted before challenging, or stealing, the marble back from their rival. This constant skirmishing takes place in the various wings of Dire Maul, with players recovering the Marble from their opposite-faction Champion, only to be tricked by their same-faction Champion into handing it over, and then having to work alongside the first Champion to get it back. Finally, the two Champions are brought low by Muradin who has sensed the drain of Azeroth’s power, who crushes the marble rather than allow it to continue to drain, however slightly, the powers of the World Soul, and sends the players on their way before settling down to yell at the two despairing, and now profoundly horrified Champions whom had grown intoxicated on the power, about abusing Azeroth’s ‘woons’.
Khadgar is horrified to learn what the Azerite Marble was capable of, and relieved to hear we’ve recovered the rest of the Marbles. Players are given a choice of three Experimental Marbles as a reward.
1st version is a giant clear-crystal marble ground-mount, where we are surrounded by a gold-veined quartz sphere that rolls, with us standing inside of it.
2nd version is a transmog option that gives us a large, bulging sack as a backpack/cloak option, aptly named ‘Oversized Marble Pouch’.
3rd version is a vanity pet of a Marble Golem, a Magical Pet that has the appearance of a large purple-blue marble that follows us around and emits tendrils of arcane power at random intervals, like probing limbs.