I’ve heard over the past couple of days people discussing playable Ethereals due to datamined models. Regardless of any thoughts on its likelihood or not, I just want to quickly say that I would love this! I haven’t played retail in some time, but I would be more than happy to come back for playable Ethereal!
Aside from this, I’m curious as to what everyone thinks their customization look like? Body types, perhaps with a handful of options like Dracthyr? Bandage colors? More or less arcane light exposed with tighter or looser bandages? Flowy, dangling bandages, maybe even as “hair” options? Maybe even different bandage patterns for “faces” and “eyes?”
Playable races are one of the topics that get me most excited, and I’m for some reason particularly drawn to the idea of playable Ethereal, despite never really thinking it plausible in the past.
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While I do not dislike the idea of playable ethereals, the playable naga and ogre threads scare me.
I am genuinely terrified of their capacity to jihad at this point if we dont throw them a bone.
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Etherals are gunna be more common so it makes sense to just make the model easier to customize
Kinda like how they did with naga and vrykul
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Very true, but given their increasing lore involvement and tendency to be neutral-friendly with the Alliance and Horde, it seems like them being playable is at least a possibility. Besides, even if they aren’t planned as playable yet, talking about it enough could make the devs reconsider.
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My big hot take is that the dracthyr system was implemented properly, and it is definitely the system that should be used to implement new allied races point until they can get armor textures.
But the actual clapback on just how boring the dracthyr race is, Is intrinsically withholding blizzard from ever using that exact same system from implementing new Allied races that would genuinely benefit from it like gnolls, naga, and ogres.
It’s pretty clear that new ethereals are sharing the same skeleton as harronir, so I don’t think there’s going to be the exact same armor issues as the other races.
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As someone who’s wanted playable Naga for as long as I can remember, I understand the passion of people who want them, and I do hope the broadening of the customization system could lead to them or other out-there races, but I think magic mummies will keep me pacified for a while.
It does sadden me a bit that the new Ethereal don’t seem to have their original animations. Their stance, walking and running animations are part of what make them so flashy and appealing. I’m hoping that if they do become playable, some of this style is restored to their animations somehow.
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I can definitely see ethereals having a speed boost Racial that combines the old flicker stutter animation of the burning crusades era.
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There are some very interesting new Ethereal models in the 11.1.0 patch. However, they do not seem to be made with player customization nor gear in mind.
Out of curiosity, how do you come to that decision when they have full armor textures for both cloth and plate on the raid models?
Because that gear is part of their model. There are several ethereal models with built-in gear, but that just makes them NPC-only. When I mention gear, I mean the ones available for players. There are some new “naked” (just basic bandages) ethereal models that in theory could be adapted to wear player gear, but it seems these models weren’t made with that in mind.
I’m just going to disagree based off of blizzard’s own design philosophy changes since BFA, in wanting to make new racial models follow player armor texture philosophy over “baked in” armor designs for the ease of future asset recycling.
Even in comparison to the old ethereals, the new raid models clearly follow the above mentioned design philosophy.
Now it’s just a question of if they want to let them become player races, In which they might follow some anatomy collapsing like they did it with nightborne.
These ethereal models are not like Kul Tiran’s, Vulpera’s or Haranir’s, which were made with player gear in mind. They are more like the NPC nightborne models. Nightborne did became playable later, but they got a different model for players, and I think the reason is that Blizzard didn’t make them originally expecting to make them playable. Allied races only became a thing in BfA.
These ethereal models not having any range of customization nor being able to use player gear would indicate there’s no intent of making them playable at this point.
They aren’t getting customizble models. They’re getting a wider variety of pre-made models.
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Yes, a bunch of base models with nothing on compared to their old version of armor being part of them, making it easier to put different armor on them and other effects
Perhaps easier to customize