Exactly.
The absence of an arm doesn’t mean you suddenly can’t swing your shoulder.
You can, and when you do a full shield bash, almost as if your arm were a door swinging outwards, it’s your shoulder that does all the work; your bicep and forearm do nothing except hold the weight of the shield. But if the shield is attached to your shoulder, as Faerin’s is, the rest of the arm isn’t necessary for a swing like that.
Like I understand if the complaint people had is just it’s less effective because range of motion. Sure 100% get it. But people act like your shoulder can’t flex or move. I also dislike the mention of her model not having the shield connect when it’s because of how it’s coded, there is a limitation in what is given to a single character so they opted to do the quick and lazy option of just making her models arm invisible. Like how you can put certain helms on that ‘remove’ your head when in reality it’s just a simple graphic toggle.
youve missed 15 years of stuff happening.
magar orcs were saved from their reality and made that place their home.
the humans are arathi humans that rebuilt their city. we killed off the corrupt people at some point or the other.
the scarlet crusade are the scarlet crusade with some other dumb name. or whatever is left of them.
because people can travel in the world and faerin faction came from arathi highlands to start with. 1000 something years ago or w.e they left arathi because of some prophecy and in their travels they got stuck on a storm.they went made an empire and came back to find their ancestors only to be stopped by said storm but by the power of prayer or luck they got teleported to the cave where the beledar crystal was at and they made a life there not because they were stuck. but because they made it their lifes job to guard the crystal from all evil. they always knew there was a way out by the earthen tunnels.
Carhegen are you seriously arguing hanging that shield on her shoulder like that is going to allow her to shield bash someone?
Saying it’s just part of the goofy WoW story is one thing but arguing pulling off that in reality is really stretching it.
The Syndicate is a group of Humans from the ruined kingdom of Alterac. They threw their lot in with the Dark Horde during the Second War, but when the Dark Horde was dismantled and the treachery of Alterac was discovered, Lordaeron destroyed Alterac and sent its people into exile. The Syndicate found no love from the rogue factions of the Dark Horde that managed to escape Lordaeron’s capture and so, the Syndicate were. They are the ruined kingdom of Alterac, exiles who could only survive on their own. They eventually settled in their ruined Kingdom and were able to maintain other, smaller outposts. They have lost most of their holdings throughout the history of World of Warcraft.
The Scarlet Crusade is just a group of Lordaeron humans who were left to fend for themselves in the Third War as all power structures collapsed as a result of the Scourge. They were unfortunately infiltrated by a Dreadlord which drove them to extremism that persists to this day; Human superiority
Lastly, the Stromgarde people are humans who, well, came from Stromgarde which was once the most prosperous Human Kingdom. It fell during the Third War and the people of Stromgarde largely fled South to places such as Stromwind. It was reclaimed and re-settled during the Fourth War, and plenty of humans who hail from the Kingdom of Arathor long to see themselves returned to glory.
Now look, I didn’t enjoy the direction of the “Red Dawn” in 11.1.7 and I think it was quite foolish for Danath to let Marran win.
But, the “Red Dawn” absolutely makes sense as a realistic and viable faction; there are several groups of Humans that were disenfranchised by the Third War and their problems didn’t just go away.
Yes.
And before you reply, I want you to try something. Pretend you’re holding a shield and then go for a full shield bash, as if your arm were a door and you were swinging it outward. Tell me what muscle does most of the work when you do that.
It’s your shoulder muscle. That’s the muscle that does all the work when you do a swing like that. Not your biceps or your forearm, your shoulder.
It’s the same mistake folks make when they claim that your arms do all the work when it comes to shooting a bow. It’s not your arms; it’s your back. Your back muscles are what allow you to draw a bow properly. It looks like it’s your arms doing the work, but it’s a different muscle entirely. Same with the shield bash, or at least a shield bash like the one Faerin used.
On top of that, look at the design of Faerin’s shield. It’s a kite shield. and most of the weight in a kite shield is at the top; this would make it far easier for her to swing outwards compared to any other shield design. Given that it was made specifically for her, which is why no other Arathi has a similar shield, it is likely balanced in such a way to allow her to do those types of shield swings easily.
In addition to the Heartlands stories Splints linked to above, see:
(Backstory and connecting tissue for Ferin specifically: I admit the names are a bit of a blur to me, but I think I absorbed the general gist of it)
You can’t hang the shield on your shoulder and stabilize it to use it in any useful manner much less putting any force behind it to bash anyone.
If they hung it there it would be a massive hindrance on her mobility and allow a skilled opponent to take advantage of the situation. This coming from a practitioner of HEMA and SCA combat.
Maybe you could strap a super tiny buckler on her shoulder and try to truck someone but it would be rather pointless. That shield she carries in the manner she uses it is utter asinine and only works in the magical WoW bs plot armor.
Normally no, but again you’re forgetting that Faerin’s shield is specifically made for her and accounts for her disability.
Which means the way it’s balanced is different, as is the way it’s constructed.
She would never be able to use any other type of shield, not without a proper prosthetic/mechanised arm. And because of the way it’s designed, no one else can use her shield. It doesn’t have straps or standard balancing, which would be necessary for anyone else to use it. It can only be used by her because of its design.
And nothing of value was lost. 
Come closer, I’ll tell you the story. (Spoilers ahead for the stories told outside the game)
When we got to Dorn, Jaina and Thrall hearthed back to the old world to gather an army to fight Xal. No one could spare troops and they decided to go knock on Stromgarde and Hammerfall to ask for soldiers.
They arrive and find both cities are playing BFA remix and at each others throats. Shenanigans happens and turns out Stromgarde’s regent, Danath’s niece, is a human supremacist obsessed with a glorious past of her people and wishes to re-establish that past glory by killing orcs.
Jaina and Thrall stop her, she’s arrested and we get the troops to…sit in Khaz Algar and never ever lift a finger against Xal.
Season 1 and Season 2 happens
Now Faerin is feeling the call to adventure, she reminisces of her childhood and how she became a Lamplighter and says her goodbyes to her friends as she gets ready to see the world, starting with Arathi Highlands bc she wants to see the starting point of her entire civilization (wich started as a splinter group of Stromgarde that left generations ago and established an empire on the other side of the planet).
Then the 11.1.7 story happens. Hope this helps.
Oh, another Carhagen history lesson. Did we omit that shield bashing was extremely rare in medieval combat, or are we trying to lean on ‘the authority of my imagination’?
Faerin just went with them out of curiosity to see Arathi, she didn’t really show any purpose to be there.
I got too excited when I thought I was going to see Faerin impale someone. Blizzard should of let it happen to show Faerin’s strength in character that she’s not weak.
This turned into a Disney game.
Faerin as a character is somewhat Naive and idealistic; for her Arathor was a land of great heroes and legend so seeing it would have been like the equivelant of seeing Avalon or Camelot for someone who was british.
Beyond that, Faerin was an infuriating reality check for Maren; The former was simultaneously everything she imagined ancient Arathor to be (noble, proud, pure of heart) while also a complete perversion of it (she wasn’t pure human).
Also, while the conclusion wasn’t great (this is literally the second time Maren has led a revolt and this time in league with known enemies of the alliance) the idea that mercy is weakness is some serious eye-roll material.
OH and, why was she wielding a lance? I though I was the only one that forgot to change weapons after doing tourney dailies. I guess they stopped in Icecrown on the way to the Highlands…
You need a forearm and hand to manipulate the shield’s angle and control. The power may come from the shoulder and torso, direction and stability come from the forearm and hand. Even if you attach a shield to your shoulder, you’d lose control and adaptability without the rest of the arm.
a shield bash without a forearm is basically unworkable.
That’s not enough for combat moves.
When it comes to models or artworks, there are no limitations.
The quest starts out with her wanting to visit the Arathi Highlands because the Arathi people still have stories and there’s some domestic upheaval she could help with.
The Arathi of Hallowfall are no longer trapped underground. They can come to the surface and often do, but most prefer to stay close to Beledar because it’s an important part of their faith.
No, you don’t.
Point your arm out straight and then move it up, down, left, or right. Your shoulder muscle does all the work. The angle of the shield only matters if you’re deflecting a blow, and Faerin’s shield isn’t designed for that, so she’s not deflecting anything with her shield. The only thing she can use for deflection is her lance, and it is actually designed to allow that thanks to its conical shape.
You’re conflating movement with control.
Pointing your arm straight and waving it around proves that your shoulder can move, not that it can fight. The force may come from the shoulder, but the direction, timing, angle, and stability, the stuff that make a shield bash effective, all rely on the forearm and hand.
See here:
https://steel-mastery.com/image/cache/1-1000/277/additional/6ac5-7657Round_Shield-0-2.jpg
Your example works for a broad, slow swing, like knocking open a door. Combat doesn’t work like that. You’re not just throwing mass. You’re responding to opponents, adjusting mid-move, absorbing impact, and maintaining your stance, all of which require the forearm to manage torque, direction, and fine motor adjustments.
deflecting or blocking blows is the primary, foundational purpose of a shield.
That’s an odd reversal of roles, saying the lance, not the shield, is the main tool for deflection. It’s a pierce and thrust weapon - on back of a horse.
You are correct; the point of my statement was to show that it’s your shoulder that does the work.
The rest is training, and Faerin has trained her entire life on how to live with only one arm; that includes how to fight and how to defend herself. Not only against the void terrors that appear when Beledar shifts, but also against the Nerubians.
In her case, yes. Let’s look at her shield carefully. The shape, first off. If it were designed to deflect, it would have round edges so any weapon or claw that hits it can’t get a grip on the shield’s surface. Instead it has a completely flat top, and then the edge of the shield curves outwards before it starts the more traditional ‘kite shield’ shape. This means she can’t really deflect blows with the edges. But what about the flat surface of the shield? Unfortunately, she has the cup-like feature right in the middle of it and the raised details, which means blades that hit it could hook into any of those things.
Now let’s look at her weapon. It’s a conical lance with a sharp point. Useless for slashing unless she wants to bludgeon something. Instead, she has to thrust with it for maximum damage. Now she could have just used a rapier or a standard sword. That would have given her more battlefield options, as the weapon would have been much lighter; instead, it’s designed in such a way that there’s only one place an enemy’s weapon can get a grip on it, and that’s right at the base where the weapon flares out the most. If you tried to strike her with a sword, she could raise her lance and deflect, and your weapon would just slide right down, drop off the end of the conical flare, and do absolutely nothing to her.
Worse, if she deflects your blow with the tip of her weapon, your blade is going to slip off harmlessly, never finding anywhere to lock in, while she now has an opening to punch that lance straight through any gaps in the armour.
So she can easily deflect blows with her weapon, where she has far more control and accuracy, and have the shield work more as a defensive barrier for blocks or offensive if she’s mastered how to use it effectively with just her shoulder muscle.