🐉 Official Twilight Highlands Allied Race Megathread

Community General Discussion
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:dragon_face: Twilight Highlands Allied Races :eagle:
The Dragonmaw and Wildhammer Clans

Corrupt forces stir once again in the depths of Grim Batol.

The Twilight Dragonflight returns.

The Black Prince sends his agents across Azeroth to observe.

Who can the Alliance and Horde rely on to tackle these forthcoming draconic threats? Who can provide a base of operations for our factions? Who can provide expertise in airbourne combat?

You need not look far to answer these questions, for the Wildhammer Dwarves and the Dragonmaw Orcs have been fighting these threats - and each other - ever since the Second War.

The Twilight Highlands are entrenched in stories both draconic and corrupt, associated with the Twilight’s Hammer, and three dragonflights - the black, the red, and the twilight. Given that certain aspects of the current narrative have elements of all of this, it would make sense to give the players the option to engage with the content as characters who themselves are integral to the setting.

Both Clans have officially been a part of their respective factions for years, but like the Dark Iron and Mag’har, it is time for an official induction, giving the Alliance and Horde access to these Allied Races.

Why More Orcs & Dwarves?

Why not?

But a bit more in-depth: both options offer perspectives and visual stylings not otherwise available with the currently playable options.

The Dragonmaw Orcs have a unique culture, relative to their green and brown brethren. Whereas the other Orcs are refugees, fleeing greater powers to distant lands, the Dragonmaw Clan is a relic from the Second War - unconquered and proud. And it seems that they have developed around draconic ritual, branding themselves and continuing their tradition of breaking dragons to their will unabated after Alexstrasza was freed.

The Wildhammer, on the other hand, are also a free people. Unimpressed by their cave-dwelling cousins, these Dwarves much prefer the open air, taking to the skies themselves on their lifelong gryphon companions. Heavy armour does not lend itself well to this practice - instead, they adorn themselves with war paint and feathers to starkly separate themselves visually.

Furthermore, from a technical standpoint, neither would require an entirely new model, complete with animations and rigging. While I might suggest a few tweaks (namely, Wildhammer Dwarves being slightly taller and leaner than the Dwarves already playable), much of the work is already in place for implementation.

Aren’t These Clans Dead?

I wouldn’t blame you for thinking that, given the events of the most recent iteration of UBRS and a certain Dwarf in Kul Tiras alluding to his clan having been wiped out. But I can assure you that neither is true.

In the case of the Wildhammer, this dwarf seems to be referring to his family subclan, specifically, not the entirety of the Wildhammer Clan. There are some pretty major characters involved with this Clan, and it would be quite surprising to see them written out of them game in passing like that.

As for the Dragonmaw Clan, that’s a bit more complex. Zaela, before her heel turn, was a compelling character (for an Orc). Assuming she was a generally typical member of the Dragonmaw, I would be surprised if everyone followed her on her foolish quest with Garrosh. Furthermore, it seems that someone has stepped into her shoes after her death: Gorfax Angerfang represented the Dragonmaw Clan during Legion, being present at a gathering of faction leaders.

How Might These Races be Implemented?

Far be it from me to dictate step-by-step how something might be implemented, if you will indulge me, I have thought of a couple baseline concepts:

:dragon_face:Dragonmaw Orcs:

Story : Holding the Twilight Highlands for the Horde, the Dragonmaw Clan has held firmly in Azeroth since the Second War - for them, a war that continues to this day. With the Alliance on the offensive, it’s time for these renowned dragon-riders to take to the skies once more in defense of the Horde!

Now led by Gorfax Angerfang, those of the Dragonmaw who did not foolishly follow Warlord’s Zaela’s hasty call to arms are called upon by the Horde to deal with the dual threats of the increasingly bold Wildhammer Dwarves and a seemingly regrouping Twilight’s Hammer…

Appearance : Ashen-skinned, yellow-eyed Orcs, this Clan brands themselves to mark the first dragon they’ve broken. They adapt various body parts of slain dragons into adornments.

Heritage Set : A mixture of dragonscale and bone, wings draped over the shoulder, a tail from the belt, a partially skinned skull for the helm. Branded arms exposed. Colour variations representative of the flights that have come to heel under the Clan.

Classes : Warrior, Hunter, Rogue, Shaman, Mage, Warlock, Druid (Dragonkin Forms)

Racials :
Dragonstrike : Order a tamed dragon to strike an area, doing damage and disorienting all affected. Standing in the flames boosts your primary stat, flames lasting 15 seconds.
Branded : 1% Fire Resist
Soul-marked : Gain a 10 point bonus to Alchemy and Enchanting due to lingering exposure to the Demon Soul.
Dragon-Breaker : Dragonmaw Hunters may tame dragonkin. (Unlocks account-wide once Dragonmaw Orcs are recruited.)

:eagle:Wildhammer Dwarves:

Story : Maintaining their distance from their cavern-dwelling cousins, the Wildhammer Clan has sounded the first alarm to the resurfacing threat of the twilight dragonflight. Noticing the increased activity of the Dragonmaw Clan as well, the Wildhammers petition the Alliance to bring their full force to quash these upstart threats before they get out of hand.

Represented at the Council of Three Hammers by Dragonreaver, the Wildhammer Clan takes to the skies once again, the vanguard of the Alliance’s efforts to combat these airbourne threats, old and new.

Appearance : Taller and leaner than their underground counterparts, these wild Dwarves adorn themselves with the feathers of their gryphon companions and ready themselves for battle with woad war paint. Their hair and beard styles are also much more extravagant than other Dwarves.

Heritage Set : Showing as much skin as possible to flaunt their war paint, the Wildhammer Clan also flaunts their bond with their gryphons with feathers, and honour their fallen by adorning themselves with bones and beaks, ensuring that even the departed a present for whatever glorious battle awaits. Colour variations are representative of the different plumage colourations of gryphon breeds.

Classes : Warrior, Paladin, Hunter, Shaman, Monk, Death Knight (Heritage Unlock unavailable)

Racials :
Lightning Blast : Call forth a blast of lightning from your weapon, stunning enemies in front of you for 1.5 seconds. Enemies are marked, taking X% more damage for 10 seconds.
Thunderstruck : 1% Nature Resist
Topsider : Gain a stacking increase to run speed after defeating a foe that gives experience or gathering a node, relishing in the freedom that living above ground gives.
Gryphon-Tamer : Wildhammer Hunters may tame Feathermanes. (Unlocks account-wide once Wildhammer Dwarves are recruited.)

24 Likes
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I’m pretty sure I saw a mega thread for Wildhammer earlier.

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Honestly I have no interest on Wildhammer and Dragonmaw.

That said, I wouldn’t mind them becoming playable… But they should go to the back of the queue. We already got a variation of Orcs and Dwarves on BfA. We should get other stuff before we get more Orcs and Dwarves.

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what can you do really give them more tattoos there part of a tribe not a new Race

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This is part of a more philosophical question: why does the Allied Race system exist?

Does it exist to add entirely new creations that are at the forefront of the game’s storyline, like Nightbourne and Lightforged?
Or does it exist to bring our selection in line with those options that should be available already, like Mag’har and Dark Iron?

Do they need to be built from something that already exists?
Or can they be entirely new models, built from the ground up?

Is it a supplementary system, or does it replace traditional means of adding races?

Depending on how those questions could be answered, I might be right there with you with spreading the visual variety a bit. But given the direction of the story, the relative ease of implementation, the existing relationships… I see a future for this pairing.

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They should have added, wild hammer and dark iron simultaneously and then for horde dragonmaw and mag’har simultaneously.

2 pre existing customizations of each race that have been part of their respective factions for multiple expansions. (ignoring the fact that the devs somehow decided to use time traveling orcs instead of the ones from original outland…)

Edit: btw great thread.

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allied race seem to be just whatever the devs want to toss out as a race.

while reskins are certainly easier, kul tirans show that making a whole new rig isn’t out of the question.

That said, kul tirans heavily delayed the release of zandalari because they were so unique, I’d be a little surprised if we got something of their scope again for an allied race.

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Wildhammer Dwarf Idea is not bad. But it needs more creative choice for Classes.

I like for Example Paladins and Death Knights wouldn’t make much sense for the Wildhammers since they are a Nature Dwarven Base Society.

Right Classes should be Warrior, Hunter, Shaman, Monk, Druid, Rogue, and Priest. Specially Druid since there’s no other Dwarven Clan that has a Druid Option besides Wildhammers.

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Are the Dragonmaw still a part of the Horde? I feel like we haven’t heard anything about them since the the whole Garrosh incident.

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Fair enough. I was a little torn on the options - giving them a Light-based class was questionable, but Paladins felt right over Priests. Furthermore, an Allied Race capable of being a Death Knight hasn’t been done yet, and Wildhammer would have made the most sense given their location and strong ties to the Alliance since the beginning.

Druid would also be an interesting choice - I suppose it comes down to the demands on the art team.

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You have my full support sir.

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Read above. They were still included as of Legion during a gathering of faction leaders. That being said, they’ve been about as active as Gnomes have been as of late.

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Honestly. Orcs & Dwarves > Elves & Trolls Imo.

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You would then be getting a core race, not an allied race. The OP is asking for allied races.

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Precisely. Assuming the Allied Race system exists not to add to the racial selection available, but to expand upon it, as all current examples lead me to believe, I’ll take more Orcs and Dwarves any day.

I would be very surprised - pleasantly so, but surprised nonetheless - if we saw entirely new races, such as Ogres and the like, under the Allied Race system.

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Hmm. We need Broken and High Elves before we move on to new things.

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I mean we don’t really want this becoming world of Orc and Dwarf craft. Don’t we have enough Orcs and Dwarves?

I’m joking man. Good luck on the request. Hope they happen.

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Rich, coming from an Elf. :wink: It’s not even that I’m driving for these two, solely. I want all of the “technically already Allied Races” to be made playable. It simply seems the most logical to get these two out of the way, given the way the story with Wrathion and the Twilight Dragonflight is headed.

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Wildhammer should be relegated to tattoo options in the barbershop. They’re cool but Dwarves suffer from a distinct lack of players willing to play them. A third Dwarf allied race is not worth the resources or waste of an AR slot.

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Evidence?

I’ve seen infinitely more clamouring for Wildhammer over Dark Iron over the years.

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