Revamping Lordaeron: The Powder Keg of Azeroth (Or what i would like to see)

Lore Story Forum
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While I’m sure this has been discussed at length previously. With a Revamped Quel’thalas on the horizon and Heartlands giving us a glimpse on the current state of the Arathi Highlands. I believe that should we ever get a full revamp Lordaeron we can be in a good place to tell not only interesting stories focusing not only on the rebirth of the region but realistic faction tensions stemming from so many groups settling in such a close proximity.

True North:

At a High level the zones need to be crafted with the idea that the groups actually live there. Its been years of peace in game, there would be new infrastructure built, questions would’ve been answered such as how to they trade, connect with their faction, where the borders are ect.

The Other True North Point is that the zones need to be evergreen. This means that when questing in the zone the priority needs to be on the cultures and people that live there. There shouldn’t be major conflict unless it is resolved in questing and reflected in game. To piggy back off the first point the infrastructure needs to be built up and be immersive. 15 years since Cata’s launch and no one likes seeing Kalimdor be a warzone still, or half of Silvermoon be in ruins since BC. Its not fun and doesn’t feel good to see your favorite race seemingly be stuck in squalor for decades. The lack of conclusion to these conflicts also leaves a sour taste. With Exploring Kalimdor being such a dumpster fire we still don’t know how the Horde Night Elf conflict ever shook out with who currently owns what and that’s not acceptable with the amount of time that’s passed.

I’ll Start with the Horde First since they are the major Player in the region

With the Forsaken their Core territories should Be Tirisfal, Silver pine and Parts of Hillsbrad. Lordaeron City needs to be revamped as an actual capital city, a major port built in Tirisfal to connect them to Quel’thalas and other places. The forsaken seemingly are reinventing their identity post Sylvanus as Lordearon proper so lets give them new settlements with quests to flesh that out. The Blood fang pack controls Shadowfang and can be a great source of tension if they are supported by Gilneas and the Alliance. In Hillsbrad We can ratchet it up with a rebuilt and fortified Southshore staking a claim in what was once Forsaken land as they deal with Alliance expansion and their own weakening after the 4th war and the loss of Sylvanus.

In Alterac I would love to see a Frostwolf victory in the valley lorewise and an expansion of the clan into alterac proper really fleshing them out as they have been separate from the rest of the orcs on azeroth, their relations with the New forsaken and how they react to the Maghar being so close. As well as the threat posed by an expanding Alliance presence in the region.

In the Hinterlands the RavenTusk Took Jintha’Alor as a capitol I would love to see that expanded upon along with new backing from the Zandelari and a conflict with the Amani over the soul of the Forest Trolls that hopefully leads to a Forest Troll Allied Race for the Horde.

In Arathi we got to see that the Maghar have taken over Hammerfall I would love to see it updated with Iron Horde Architecture as well as a large terraforming project with the Earthen, goblins and their own shamans to cut through the mountains and build a port on the eastern side of the EK to link themselves and the Raventusk to the rest of the horde. In my mind it makes no sense how the maghar can do anything when they are locked between mountains and Stromic land. I would love to see their tensions with Stromguard expanded on and their relations to the Raventusk and Frostwolves be fleshed out

Alliance:

Gilneas has been taken back now lets get it updated and filled with quests, vendors and amenities that city should have. Lets explore how their rebuilding has been and their lingering hatred for the Forsaken after the multiple wars between the 2. This can also be play on with with the populace wanting to render aid to the bloodfang and punch the forsaken in the mouth without starting a new war. Theres a lot of bad blood just because the queen can work with them doesn’t mean the population has to like it. We can also explore Tess a major character and really build her up.

South Shore is currently being rebuilt but it should be as a major bastion instead of a small town. This should be the center of the Alliances recolonization efforts in the region. All the original inhabitants got melted with blight so this would be Stormwind colonists and families who fled during WC3 returning. This can create tension with the forsaken and frostwolves and add some nice color while pushing for a aggressive and active alliance without being evil. Tueralyon wants to reclaim his home and remake the original human kingdoms. He might not want war, but he can push for colonial expansion against a weakened forsaken. Especially as it can protect Stromguard from the west and act as an anchor to connect to the wildhammer.

The Wildhammer in the hinterlands should have a revamped Arie peak and focus on fleshing out their place on the council of three hammers now that the bronzebeard and dark iron are merging under 1 throne very soon. They should also have a B plot of their relations with a resurging Raventusk and tensions being so close to so many horde nations.

Stromgaurd can obviously expand on their tensions with the maghar and their culture now that they have been reborn after BFA and their relationship with the rest of the Alliance

Non Aligned:

This is Pretty common but its been 20 years lets have the plaguelands be restored for the most part. Im really interested in what the Argent Crusade has been up to post Legion and the 2nd scourge invasion. I would love to have a story of their rebirth, taking Stratholm as a capitol and forming a new multiracial with both fmr Plaugelands under their control. I think this opens the door not only to build up a new roster of characters but opens the door to quest with neutral characters that don’t have the baggage that come with say Dalaran and the Kirin’tor.

What do you all think? In my ideal world we can return to the factions having real and reasonable tensions while still being at peace and willing to work together. I think Lordaeron is the perfect place for this to be apparent, the politics can feel real and it would be good to see every group on the upswing and feel like they are actually settling their lands.

With that said do you agree with me or what would you rather see in the region?

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undercity will be the same with all the same npcs except sylvanas replaced
and with no damage

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Good ideas, but I’m kind of curious how it would work with Tirisfal and Silvermoon being starter zones; a lot has happened, especially in and around Lordaeron in the last 20 years and honestly I hope they just stick with a direction rather than add more layers of instances and talking to an NPC to go into this timeline or another.

Biggest issue is the Scarlet Crusade; if they update Lordaeron to be the current timeline, give us a different enemy. They shot their shot with them, over and over and over, it cheapens the experience of having done the Forsaken heritage quest that they’re always still a thing, somehow too incompetent to win but somehow a massive threat that needs to be dealt with.

So get rid of it. Change the Scarlet Monastery to be a priory for the Forsaken and the Cult of the Forgotten Shadow. You can always bring it back for anniversary events and the headless horseman thing, but WoW as it is right now doesn’t feel great from a narrative perspective with how it’s incredibly static in some areas but very dynamic in others. Same goes for Stratholme; put a new threat in there or something but that city’s been on fire for decades now, I’m starting to think it’s built from rubber tires.

Consider this for a moment; there is a Mount Hyjal raid in the Caverns of Time. I’m pretty sure that less time passed since the actual events at the end of Warcraft 3 to the CoT raid than there was from classic to War Within. Hell, you can stuff the old classic dungeons in CoT so they’re still there but update them where it makes sense or remove them as dungeons where it doesn’t.

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In a complete diversion from the way this thread is going, I want Blizzard to address some pretty huge inconsistencies in how Lordaeron changed when it became undeathly.

The Cult of the Damneds infiltration seems far too swift.
The Royal Apothecary Societies embracing of the Blight seems blatantly out of character if you look at Lordaeron through rose tinted glasses, not to mention the swiftness in which they developed the Blight itself.
The desperation behind the Scarlet Crusade wanting to eradicate it, and in return a portion of Lordaerons history, points at something curious.
And then of course, there’s Garithos. How did such a wicked and petulant man become so high ranking within Lordaerons army?

Something stinks about Lordaerons history, and it seems to be in an identity crisis.

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Major points I think are all there, at least from a general compilation of suggestions over time. A few finer points and areas to really flesh out involve the current periphery of Forsaken control and where it should go.

I’ve been arguing Silverpine should be ceded as a Horde territory to a contested territory, with Shadowoon Keep being that cut off between Lordearon/Forsaken and Gilneas. Ambermill, then, remains in Forsaken control and there is some similar keep/fort in parity to create a DMZ styled zone between the two. This also allows Gilneas a pretty secure road into Hillsbrad that connects with Southshore.

In return, the Forsaken gain WPL as the Horde zone and retain Andorhol after they won it and the western parts of it become more Forsaken-fied again. The Argents can remain in Hearthglen if they please, or it can also be Forsaken-fied, I’m indifferent. Uther’s Tomb won’t be constantly defiled any more, but otherwise its a Horde controlled zone that gives them direct access through Alterac to Tarren Mill and Hillsbrad, better connecting the two even better than before.

The Forsaken’s control of WPL basically extends to EPL and takes over the Morris Stead (again) and Crown Guard Tower. Similarly the Blood Elves regain control of Quel’lithian Lodge and Northpass Tower. Gives that Horde buffer into the zone to better connect the two nations in negotiation with the Argent Crusade who, largely, remain and either gain Tyr’s Hand, or allow some Alliance aligned Lordearon revanchist to occupy the area simply due to their neutrality and they ended up claiming it first/the Brotherhood of the Light didn’t have the numbers to occupy it.

Alterac City becomes a joint Frostwolf and Forsaken kingdom, with of course contention in the periphery. Scarlet and Syndicate remnants, Alliance saboteurs and revanchists, and your general fallen kingdom problems. Put former traitor king Peranolde, now Death Knight High Executor Peranolde in charge, and have some fun. Of course the whole zone itself, on a technical level, gets buffed into a real zone to help facilitate this.

This whole shuffling of Forsaken/Horde territory into a more connected and cohesive, but still troublesome, area can do a lot for the story and its developments and I see as a way forward. The Alliance already controls the entire western approach to the Eastern Kingdoms from Lordearon to Stormwind. So creating more Horde control on the interior and eastern coast is an acceptable trade off.

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In a Cdev Q & A they explained it as him bring promoted not necessarily due to his own abilities, but by his father’s reputation and title.

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My preference for revamping Lordaeron would have the Forsaken claiming most of the Western Plaguelands and establishing a major base/observatory in the Alterac Mountains alongside the Frostwolves and the Blood Elves. Stromgarde would claim and fortify the Arathi Highlands the goals of building secure supply routes to the Aerie Peak and to Gilneas. Terran Mill and Southshore would both be reinforced and be the major flash point between the Horde and the Alliance. Eastern Plaguelands would be a neutral zone in the midst of a power struggle between the Argent Crusade , the Scarlett Brotherhood, and remnants of the Cult of the Damned.

That and the simple fact that everyone higher than him was dead by that point.

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I I were blizzard, I would come up with story lines with, or before, deciding what changes one might make to zones.

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Isn’t that basically already there? With the exception of the Syndicate/bandits/ogres, Stromgarde controls Arathi minus Hammerfall and probably some Witherbark areas. Hammerfall itself is pretty isolated anyway. Stromgarde then has either the dwarven northern tunnel or going through Thoradin’s, past Durnhold, directly connecting Aeirie Peak. The Horde does not control any sort of real choke point or pass through either which would risk any connections.

Southshore is already stated as being cleansed by the Alliance, and Eastpoint Tower isnt exactly capable of a blockade of sorts. It hardly operates as a functional therapists office.

Even if we assume that land route is cut off to Stromgarde, the nation itself was described as having significant docks and a somewhat seafaring nation. Not like KT, but capable. So if we go off of that older lore, its not impossible to just land route it Aerie Peak to Stromgarde, then ship it from Stromgarde to Gilneas or Southshore.

All of those, however, relies on getting the Highlands under control, which they clearly do not, which would also sap the zone of any fun for questing. We want it to be a bit of the wild west. Nominally controlled, but its not safe outside of these walls kinda thing.

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I would like to see them lean in harder on the fact that Stormwind is like, a melting pot in terms of population of other Kingdoms. Realistically there are a lot of people of the nation who fled the Scourge, joined for reconstruction post-Second War and stayed (cause it’s not like Stormwind could’ve evacuated the whole kingdom, no way lmao) and leaned into that being like a cultural fixture for a desire for the restoration of humanities places of significance and meaning. It very easily supports Lordaeronians that arent Scarlets or Argents.

Personally, as someone who does not care about the Forsaken because of how impossible it is to represent them smartly (I.E. them just doing whatever they want isn’t handwoven and the Alliance actually remembers their crimes and makes it an issue instead of it just constantly being shrugged off) I would like to see them flesh out the Argent territories more too. Lordaeron should probably have been the most internally diverse human nation because of sheer size, I mean even the accents of living ones randomly include hardcore german sounding dudes in Scarlet Monastery lmao, and see that more precisely laid out would be fun.

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I want Alterac to be back with alteraci humans playable.