So there has been a lot of opposition to the idea of races like Gilgoblins and Mechagnomes and if there was some sort of new type of panda in BFA, you’d bet there would be opposition to that one too. So here is my question:
Do you think should goblins, gnomes and pandas should even get an allied race to begin? Is it a waste of an AR slot for them to get one? Races that bear too many differences like Vulpera or Sethtrak are excluded from this question since they fit into racial categories of their own.
Secondly. Do you think that Goblins, Gnomes and Pandas should have been playable to begin with?
EDIT: Now there is a debate to be hard over whether allied races are actually meant to be similar in nature to each other and how, but for the purposes of this question, we are sticking to allied races that would share a similar sized fan base. For example. If sanlyn was put in the gnome slot then it would obviously have a have a much higher player base than gnomes do and this is a question about niche races.
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#1) If the alternative to Gnomes getting Mechagnomes and other possible lesser-played-race-allied-races is no race at all, then absolutely go ahead and make them. But if there are things in the works for more heavily played races, I think going in order of popularity makes sense, and that a brand new fully fledged race would also take priority if that becomes relevant to the conversation. It’s just a matter of making what people would be happy with. Gnomes are the least played race on Alliance other than Pandaren, which have their population split between the factions, so it makes sense to hold off on giving them a subrace – not indefinitely, but enough to let others go first if any are planned.
#2) I think Gnomes should be playable. They played an integral role in the original Alliance, it wouldn’t make sense to exclude them from WoW.
I do not think Goblins should have been made playable. They’re driven primarily by greed, to a point that even some of their classes are explained away as “money” despite it making basically no sense. They should have 0 loyalty to either faction, because money. They made infinitely more sense as a neutral NPC entity.
I do not think Pandaren should have been made playable, despite my appreciation for their appearance and background lore, and as someone who once mained a Pandaren. They’re simply too different from the other WoW races. Their proportions make them look like they were designed in a completely different art style and they just look awkward side by side with ANY other race. I still think Mists of Pandaria could have happened without making them playable, but they should have largely remained on their isolated continent afterward.
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Gnomes have been with the alliance since day 1 and people are really against them getting an allied race because they aren’t white people elves. Sad!
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Allied races were not billed as sub races for a faction’s currently available choices even if they frequently fall into that category. Blizzard has even stated that they can make anything they want an allied race if they think it’s a good idea indicating that they’re not restricted to the subrace pattern.
With that in mind, should blizzard make subraces only and forgo something newer or more interesting? Absolutely not. Mechagnomes are not only niche and likely to be enjoyed by a percent of a percent of the player base, but they’re just so unimaginative. They add nothing new or distinguishing to the game, and I can think of quite a few other things I’d rather have. The new Ankoan, the rougher edged looking Jinyu race introduced in 8.2 as an alliance faction, would not only be new, but unique looking while still being built off a preexisting skeleton (nelf) like all other allied races.
Same thing for the Vulpera vs Gilgoblins. Would I rather have an uglier goblin that nobody is going to play or the vulpera who have generated their own hype and will undoubtedly be as popular as they are unique? I think you know my answer.
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I think all pre-BFA races should get an equivalent Allied Race. I’ve even wanted to see Mechagnomes playable ever since WotLK, but I would greatly prefer the version introduced in that expansion rather than the steampunk cyborgs being introduced in 8.2.
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How are gnomes a niche race?
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Basically I was talking about more unpopular races, although I do know gnomes are loved by many.
Are you saying Gnomes are a niche race? They’re an OG race.
I’m actually glad they don’t completely pander to the playerbase when coming up with Allied Races. I’d rather not have 7,000 flavors of elf while other races exist.
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Niche doesn’t mean they aren’t an original choice, it just means they only appeal to a very small population.
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I think the premise of your argument is flawed.
If it fits into the story and has solid lore, yes.
I don’t see things in terms of “Waste of an AR slot”. I see things in terms of:
- Does it fit into the lore without completely destroying said lore of another race?
- Would it make sense to join a specific faction?
- Would it make sense for them to join the war in the first place?
- Even if the story isn’t focused on them (see DID and Mah’gar, added due to want but with stories to go with them to help them fit) can they be added in to reasonably make sense?
- Are they different enough from another race to be added? Not looks-wise, persay–but culture-wise. While HMT and LFD are very similar to their base races, they have distinct cultural differences and backgrounds.
Variety is a spice of life. Even if I have no interest in playing it, and even if a small amount might, I think it’s fine to be playable, again if it makes sense and does not destroy lore of another race and/or completely undermine it.
(I will point out what I personally want to see and will play, but my personal preference should not dictate what’s added, of course, it’s all about what makes sense. What people want and talk about also is a factor, but it’s not the defining one by any means.)
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I don’t like what they did with void elves. Just giving us a race that came out of nowhere like that with poor lore. However I do feel that niche playerbases shouldn’t be given the cold shoulder when it comes to content. What is the point of even having niche races in the game if blizzard is going to neglect the races in favor of more popular ones? I definitely think they should add new content and races even for fanbases that are smaller. Many players may not realize it, but the existence of other more niche races as playable races can effect their gameplay quality for the better. One key example. If blizzard was making this game mostly out of elves than elves may lose their significance and they wouldn’t feel as special.
Allied races were not billed as sub races for a faction’s currently available choices even if they frequently fall into that category.
I don’t want to get too off topic, but there is a strong pattern of allied races of the same type. All allied races that have been released have been the same racial type. Perhaps blizzard meant something else when they said sub races.
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Gilgoblins and mechagnomes from this expac look lame so i dont wanna see them everywhere as a flavor of the month new thing everyones playing.
Do i have a problem with them being playable? No only if thier inclusion doesnt remove another allied or normal race i actually want from getting in.
Should the normal ones have been playable? of course i thought goblins should have been neutral or alliance only until we got the new tribe of them. And as for gnomes back in vanilla i had a gnome lock named Mexico so never had a problem with them either
Do i have a problem with them being playable? No only if thier inclusion doesnt remove another allied or normal race i actually want from getting in.
This sentiment is why there is often a lot of friction between people who want Gilgoblins vs those who want Vulpera.
Yes, more options is always nice. But the point of allied races is more than just a sub-race, it’s meant for other npc races that were originally reskinned player races to get a chance as a playable option. Shining examples of it if it actually happens would be a Furbolg allied race being derived from the existing Pandaren model, and there’s the Saberons too.
They should focus on getting the popular races in the game first. Then they can do more experimental stuff like the Junker Gnomes.
For Alliance, every single race they’ve added this expac has been niche. There are a lot of players not interested in any of them and as a result it feels like they’ve gotten nothing.
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Weird niche races deserve their weird niche allied race.
Ya’ weirdos.
(I’M JUST KIDDING!!! Kind of… those Gilgoblins… if that makes you happy, it makes me happy for you lol.)
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How about Worgen and Undead? Will they ever get Allied Races based off of them?
From an alliance side, there are 2 big races (elves and humans) and then everyone else. Both of those have gotten their ARs already. The third most popular(Draenei) have gotten their AR. They have worgen, gnomes and pandas left. Horde side it is pretty much the same-they have covered elves, orcs, Tauren and troll. They have undead, goblins and pandas left.
Yes they should get ARs because ARs are fleshing out the race and adding new chapters to the story of races. The lack of story is one of the reasons which limits racial attractiveness.
Finally, role-players should get new content too.
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