San’layn/vampyr Elf ALLIED RACE Coagulated Megathread of Ideas{Re-VAMPed} (Part 1)

Community General Discussion
3669

Browsing the interwebs I’m seeing rumours of a shadowlands esque expansion… So with many death entities being introduced I think San’Layn would ideally join then. Not to mention they would get access to deathknights immediately as they are featured in icc. (Since they said añlied races wouldn’t het hero classes in BFA- leading me to believe they are good candidates for the next expansion)

I also heard 8.2.5 may go up soon so we may see a developing story for the campaign.

Blizzcon usually comes around november. Within the next few months I hope to see more hints for San’Layn. Or other death related characters.

P.s. aftee the new in OW. Jeff says Blizzard soon with the TM is about 2 years. When they talk about stuff. Idk if he just means overwatch or blizz games. But if they started working a few months ago on player requested allied races it could be like 19 ish months down the line.

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3670

Yeah, I keep seeing it going to death over and over. Wouldn’t mind, like mentioned by others, if both sides lost in BFA. Maybe that’s why we recruit San’layn because we need more firepower to beat the death entities. And a death theme does keep the San’layn dream a live.

And I hope we get something soon because Blizz is having an info drought this year. Hopefully 8.2.5 hits and we get something from other players since Blizz is tight lipped. And right now I am really looking forward to Blizzcon only because I want to see if WoW’s future looks bright or if this is the end of the road for me. Like I said before, in other threads, if by 9.0 we don’t get some class redesign then I’m probably done with WoW. Classes are so boring imo.

One thing I don’t get is why it takes so long to put out any new races. I model a little and I can make a full character in a week if I worked 8 hours a day. I could also rig and paint it within a month for sure and work out all the kinks. Just hoping I get Mok’nathal before I quit WoW for good.

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3671

There are various rumors coming up regarding the theme of the next expansion. The two main ones I’ve heard are a death/shadowlands theme and something to do with the Dragon Isles. If we’re heading towards a death themed expansion, it would make sense to have San’layn be one of the allied races you get early access from pre-ordering the next expansion, and they could play a big role in such an expansion also.

November 1st is when the next Blizzcon will happen, which is 99 days at the time of this post. It’s likely we’ll see the new expansion announced with some of its features also announced then. Luckily, it is on a Friday, and I have no classes on that day, so I should be able to watch the free portion live and keep tabs on live-blog updates on the “Whats next” WoW panels. I’m hoping for new race announces, allied or core, myself.

On that note, I realized that the expansion trend of “new race every two expansions” was broken after Cataclysm, which gave two new races, when Pandaria, which game one new race, came out. We didn’t see new races until the allied race system came out with BfA, which was needed along with Legion rep for the first two pairs. While we’ve currently gotten 8 allied races, it’s possible we’ll see some as pre-order incentives for the next expansion. Thus, it seems the expansion trend can’t be relied on too much, in my opinion. Granted, I’m unsure what the chances we’ll get new races in the new few expansions are, sadly, but hopefully they’re decent chances.

I want to keep hope, but after last year’s lackluster event, I’m trying to not get too excited until I see what gets announced.

Aside from creating the player models and rigging them, they have all kinds of things to test and make. They need to test out all the weapon/armor graphics, all the mounts, test out all the animations, record voice recordings for speaking and combat noises, and all sorts of other things. Allied races also need their starting hub designed and populated with NPC’s and quest text as well, along with testing all kinds of quests to make sure they function with allied races. For something like Kul’Tirans, who had to be built from the ground up, I can understand why it took over a year for them to actually come out, but even if you cut corners with pre-existing models and rigging them, it still requires quite a bit of testing.

It’s a reason why I’m hoping that all this time since Kul’Tirans came out, they’re working on some more pairs of allied races so they’re more ready to come out sooner after announcement, whatever they’ll be. I still hope we get announcements of them sooner than later, though, as I don’t mind waiting for them.

At any rate, no matter what happens, I’ll keep supporting Ogres, Saurok, Vulpera, and San’layn for the Horde. Any of those would get me hyped and happy, but seeing new core/allied race news in general would make me feel a lot better.

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3672

Well, I just saw something about a possible leak and if it is accurate then there is no San’layn. I don’t trust leaks that but this is the second so called leak and both never mention San’layn at all. This one does mention Vulpera, no more factions, most AR’s being combined with there core race as cosmetics and other stuff. I’ll post one players reply that gave the MMO-Champion notes below.

MMO-Champion notes

Still going to wait till Blizzcon or some official post but I’m speechless right now.

That is true but they must have more then one guy working on an AR. I can see that taking as long if it is only one person working on an AR but there has got to be more imo.

Even if there is one for modeling, one for texture painting, one for rigging, one for animations, one for armor, etc. it should not take this long. Once it is made you can send a copy to each and let them do their work and then just combine everything once it’s all done.

I’m going to finish up the two models I have been working on and then I’m going to time how long it takes to make a new model, paint it, rig it, bake onto low poly, animations, voice, etc. and I’ll post my results somewhere on the WoW forums because it cannot possibly take that long to do. I’ve done most of the above mentioned and it took maybe 2 weeks at 8 hrs a day to get most of that stuff done.

I thank you for your reply but I still don’t get it.

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3673

This is what 100% disqualifies the silly leak. Blizzard would never do something this nonsensical. ARs have unique jokes, some have unique dances, they have racials, and lore as well. They said in several QnA by now that they’re more than just silly cosmetics. Not only would this be ripping away what they’ve already made, which is legit just fine and doesn’t need to be come anything other than what it is, especially not cosmetic options that are utterly pointless, but the work people put into earning them would be flushed down the toilet.

This leak therefore has no validity to me, and makes very little sense. It’s written by someone that likely hates the AR system and is just obsessed with mythic raiding and ripping away everything else interesting from the game. There’s more in that leak that just makes me scoff, but yeah. This is the one that I trust the least, as it sounds like the most pathetic attempt to curtail to those on the forums that whine about AR’s and people wanting something other than raiding to work on.

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3674

Regarding leaks, I take the stance of reading them for fun and taking them with a grain of salt. I only believe something when it is officially announced by Blizzard. It’s a reason you’ll usually see me counter farfetched leaks being spun with a farfetch’d leek being spun:

Regarding making new races, aside from all the programming and testing (WoW’s coding is likely a Frankenstein monster with code that breaks easily dating back to WoW’s vanilla launch), it’s possible they save the release of allied races to create hype and release them when it would more than likely interest people and get subscribers back into playing the game again…well, I say that and it’s been over a year since we got new allied race news, so it’s all just in theory (and not a game theory :V ). There is also the storyline to consider, as some are tied to it. Others…are a bit debatable, but still can be a factor.

When I heard of the allied race system, I had expected them to be spread out and released regularly as time went on to keep people, like me, who like their alts playing to unlock and then play with the new characters. While I wouldn’t expect a huge number of them released in weeks, I would have expected announcements and potential releases under a year between new allied races at least. The radio silence is a reason I’ve lost some interest in actually playing the game and need a break from it, I think. Obviously, I’ll still be posting on here, of course.

Also meant to mention this my last post:

Assuming they are talking fan feedback, from megathreads and other sources of feedback, it would be worth the wait for some people. Since they haven’t said anything about forthcoming allied races, other that more are coming at an unspecified time, I’m unsure what to expect.

I mean, I can type up some fiery passionate writings about Horde Ogres and highlite the text in flashing hot pink colors, but it’s up to Blizzard whether they’ll take any of that feedback as part of consideration for new races. I still think things like megathreads are very important, especially if they are seeking fan feedback as they consider adding new races. As I keep saying, better to be part of a marketing statistic to show support for a race you want playable than being a silent outlier.

Hopefully we’ll see soon what the plans are. I have to admit, I do feel a lot better venting here some, as I’m sure others have had similar frustrations with the radio silence.

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3675

It takes many people to work on the races and rig them up. They dedicate alot of time into playable races which is why I am okay with waiting. If they want them to be really good as the customization here is provided then it’s a decent wait.

If you notice some characters have hair physics in the game. Some certain hairstyles wave while casting. Stuff like that. Especially if we are asking for wings and stuff. Realistically given the recent interviews of Overwatch it can be a year or two away from San’layn.

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3676

The problem I have with this is that it tends to turn into a competition between who has the most supporters. This is why I don’t think the size of the fanbase should matter whatsoever. Like it is literally possible for someone to make an allied race for playable rocks and get it to have the biggest community around provide some of the best arguments for why it should be an allied race with enough effort. But should this happen? Just imagine being the regular joe who doesn’t even use the forums or social media much and finding out that the allied you want is heavily determinant by the fan group you are apart of and how much of your life you are willing to dedicate to the faint possibility of a fictional race being made playable.

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3677

A public survey would be nice. But I like to think they have an idea of what the community likes. It being accurate is another story.

3678

Again though. People who have interests in more niche races shouldn’t be stiffed out because of what the majority wants all the time.

3679

Yea I know but I think they keep it in mind. One of t he criteria they said for allied races is being relevant to the story. But we see how some are barely relevant in time of there recruitment such as maghar.

So the expansion leaks could hint at races that are relevant to the plot. Gilblins right now are relevant they seem like good candidates in the next coming month for example. The team have to have the models ready as well that takes time so you can make some good educated guesses on release times. If blizzcon has panels on how they are making allied races that may help guesstimate things as well. I suggest appropriately preparing Q and A in advance. Should be a forum post in a few weeks/months for the blizzcon QAs.

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3680

This makes me think though that Sanlayn could easily have a good chance at becoming an AR in the future. Especially since they are seen helping the horde today in BFA.

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3681

Yup so far we only really see the San’layn helping us on the alliance. I would think seeing the San’layn on the horde during the campaign/questing in future patches would be a good sign. Idk what rep faction they’d be tied too, unless they start adding different unlock requirements for new allied races which I think would be good. More lax requirements would be good imo.

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3682

I’ve seen people mention that popularity isn’t the only deciding factor Blizzard uses on whether a race gets to be playable or not, though I haven’t seen a source regarding this.

That said, when I say being part of a marketing statistic, I mean that it’s better that some support is shown for wanting a particular race as opposed to considering all others as competition and that you need to gather up a lot of people and make some noise. People were wanting sub-races for a long time, Mag’har and Dark Iron Dwarves in particular, and eventually Blizzard did use that feedback in making them playable. I’m sure a lot depends on several factors, other than popularity, when considering new races.

I personally don’t see other megathreads as competition, and really don’t think it’s a healthy mindset to think negatively like that. It’s why I personally say that we’re all fans of the game and have races we want playable, and that we should come together as fans of the game. Attempting to compete in that regard just defeats the purpose of showing support and would muddy the waters, so to speak.

It’s not perfect by any means, nor does it guarantee said race would ever become playable, but something is better than nothing, in my opinion.

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3683

Admittely though a lot of the problem often lies in the players themselves. I don’t think its a good idea to get so emotionally attached to something which may never be playable, but it can kinda happen especially when there is discussion spawning over which are likely to happen or not.

3684

I try not to get too attached. Or I will get dissapointed. But allied races gives us a chance to play those races we always wanted. I think that’s really good. And they aren’t tied to having to have a starting zone to delay them. ( I understand many people want a starting zone but is it really worth the delay over the time?).
Anyway we can only wait and give ideas. I hope they are considering many of them!

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3685

Are we seriously implying here that megathreads are pointless and shouldn’t be considered much? sighs We share ideas here and hope to be considered. I don’t see the problem with doing so anywhere on the forums. This place is for feedback, Blizzard said it themselves. There’s no ‘emotional attachment’ unless people literally start attacking people over it, which yes has happened, and yes isn’t right. Hence why when someone comes into this thread and tries to be rude, I point out I’d rather them be nice in expressing their distaste for ‘xyz’ and that I simply disagree with them. There’s no real reason to start conflicts against people, these threads are for ideas, and there’s nowhere else we’ve been told to share feedback.

I don’t intend on stopping my idea-sharing until we’re told a flat out ‘no’. My break from the forums was helpful, and the art piece reinvigorated my muse and hope for this thread and Allied Race idea. Even if it’s a concept that never comes to pass, at least people can get a look at what either could have been or just concepts in general that we’re talking about and think would be cool.

That’s all this ever is. Ideas, support, and hope. We don’t need to be at each other’s throats.

Now then, on the spirit of idea sharing, we should continue to get to it. Patch 8.2.5 has been encrypted upon wowhead. We might get some information next week, in regards to it, because according to the wowhead post, the trend was it happened like that for the previous patch as well. I don’t know what to expect, from the next patch, to be honest, but a continuation to the story of the San’layn would be nice. Particularly, the two missing blood princes and Dreven’s body (where is it?). If this whole ‘death expansion’ speculation has some merit, we might have hope for the undead allied race to be the San’layn, as they seem a likely candidate for working with the Horde and against the Alliance. They also have no home.

First and foremost, “Dreven’s betrayal” would need to be looked at and considered heavily. Was he ordered to distract the alliance at all costs? If so, did he really fail, and was he really betraying the Horde if he was under Sylv’s orders? Why would he doom his people by doing that stuff at risk of barring them from a place to call home, or the Horde? We know that without the Horde, San’layn are most likely going to continue to be hunted down and slain. That doesn’t seem like an enjoyable prospect to any intelligent undead. Surely they’d get along with the forsaken and even want to defend their old home.

Plus, San’layn would give the Horde an upper hand in Northrend, as they’re a tactical race that would know that land well.

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3686

Yes please.

And hopefully Sylvanas doesn’t go back in time to make Iron Elves…

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3687

For AR’s I would prefer two things really that I have yet to see Blizz do.

  1. Release them with the content they are suppose to be relevant with. I was not happy that I didn’t get to explore Zandalar with my Zandalari Trolls. I don’t care if I have to level them from 20 - 110 while everyone else is exploring the new zone. Personally it feels better to actual play in your home zone as the home race.
  2. Try to release them say every 3 - 4 months. I love alts but leveling so many of the same race gets old after a while and new races make it more fun imo. It’s just a personal thing but still. Crap, I’d take a new AR or core race every 6 months if we got some heads up of what was coming so I could plan names and whatnot. Not this radio silence BS that’s going on now.

This just made me lol. Iron elves? Is there such a thing? How about Heavy Metal Elves? I could so go for them. Their heritage armor is a rock band outfit with the first ever heritage weapon which are guitars, drums, microphone and maybe an electric keyboard, lol.

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3688

Hang on a second. Tone the hostility done a bit. There is no need to get so aggressive. Nobody was arguing Sanalyn shouldn’t be a thing. The points brought up were legit concerns about just Blizzard’s tendacy to accept or reject ideas in general… Yes it is nice if Blizzard hears what we do, but I think it sets a bad precedent if it gets to extent that being apart of a certain fan group is require to have any chance of such an idea happening.