I think the comparison between Mark Ruffalo and Malfurion is incorrect. The issue is that you’re trying to make it a matter of the scale of their power, not the legal nature of it.
This is the problem. Unofficial power can easily be the equivalent of official power. This does not trump anything. We’ve seen numerous historical examples of such things. People following religious leaders, revolutionaries, what have you. That’s why the legality is irrelevant. Government derived power is definitely not inherently or necessarily stronger than power derived from other sources.
For example, all that legality meant nothing when the Watchers defied Tyrande. So she had to enact force, killing them. Now law can be a good thing for deriving respect and cooperation, but hardly the end all be all.
Though, even in Frozen Throne, Maiev still sided with Malfurion, regardless of Tyrande’s position:
Maiev Shadowsong: Elune be praised! I knew you would come, Shan’do Stormrage! Malfurion Stormrage: I’m glad we reached you in time, Maiev. Maiev Shadowsong: Priestess Tyrande, I’m surprised you came in person. Are you here to absolve your guilty conscience? Tyrande Whisperwind: I did what I had to do, Maiev. You are in no position to judge me. Maiev Shadowsong: What you did was murder my Watchers and set the Betrayer free! It is you who should be locked in a cage. Malfurion Stormrage: Stop this, both of you! We’re not out of danger yet. Maiev, what’s the situation here? Maiev Shadowsong: There are no resources left in this area, Shan’do. We’ll need to find a gold mine if we’re to marshal more troops for an assault on Illidan’s compound. Malfurion Stormrage: Very well. Let’s get moving, then.
Tyrande saw Illidan Stormrage as a potential weapon. He was a great Sorcerer, and his knowledge of demons was without equal among the night elves. If she were to set him free, he could unleash his might against the Legion. Malfurion vehemently opposed liberating his brother. Time had not changed his opinion of the Betrayer, and he believed Illidan was still a danger to the world.
After weighing the risks, Tyrande mer her choice to free Illidan, and she set out on her own. All that stoon in her way were the Watchers, an order of night elves who had guarded the Betrayer for millennia. When Tyrande called on them to release Illidan, they openly defied her.
And for that, they paid the ultimate price.
With the fate of Azeroth itself hanging in the balance, Tyrande Whisperwind would not suffer dissent.
Maiev can think what she wants. Yes, being a spiritual leader does give some cultural power. I am speaking in general terms, because if we get into it, even THEN, Malfurion would lose out to Tyrande considering how loved she is to her people to the point they bow out of reflex and think she is the literal embodiment of Elune.
Tyrande was the leader of the Night Elves. Chronicle 1 and 3 both make this clear in no uncertain terms.
Funny enough, this is one of the few places Tyrande herself is wrong.
The War could not have been won without Illidan. And while she is oft blamed for all the bad things he did after release, I find it most entertaining she also doesn’t get the credit for him being one of the primary reasons Saurfang is locked away.
Except that when it comes to the major decisions rendered down during the period between the Sundering and the Present, it’s Malfurion who’s the author. He doesn’t give advice, he’s the one laying down the law and rendering punishments.
I disagree. The degree of respect and authority given to him seems equivalent to me, in a law book or not. Hence why I consider the legality regardless. Given the degree of pull we’ve seen him enact.
Oh, very true. But the War of the Ancients was well in the past by the time of the Third War. If Illidan hadn’t made a new Well of Eternity, the Legion wouldn’t have had that plan to act on.
You are right, though, that Illidan’s getting rid of Tichondrius and Illidan’s efforts in Felwood were very helpful to the Third War, and Illidan was unfairly banished for becoming demonic. But that was never clarified to Tyrande or Malfurion, sadly, so she didn’t know that he had actually helped when she confronted him again in Frozen Throne.
Asking the Night Elves to lose their faith in Elune is basically asking the for the entirety of Night Elf culture to be dismantled. Anyone who thinks this is a good idea for the narrative and overall world building needs to back off.
Luckily for you, for the most part the people who lost faith in Elune are Undead Night Elves that walked off with Calia and aren’t on their way to rejoin the Alliance (which, even under your premises, would explain why they don’t kill themselves upon being raised, if they don’t care about Elune or balance any more). If they wander off and don’t return they won’t have any impact on the rest of the Night Elves’ culture.
Shandris, even trying to get Tyrande to let go of the Night Warrior ritual, still believes in Elune and pleads to Tyrande to come back to embrace Elune’s capacity for love.
I do not believe Tyrande is actually having a crisis of faith, as much as Tyrande is blaming herself (mistakenly, as Sylvanas would have burned Teldrassil regardless of her having let Saurfang live or not), and lashing out in anger out of her self-inflicted sense of guilt.
I am mostly talking about players. I was a fan of undead nelves keeping their faith, and using their circumstance to infiltrate the institute of the Dark Rangers… Which yeah, has it’s problems. But lets be honest, we have seen stupider things this expansion.
I hope you are right, but, perhaps ironically, I could be having my own crisis of faith with Blizzard.
I would have loved that. Unfortunate that it didn’t play out that way.
Luckily as far as playable Night Elves go, there’s nothing to really indicate a loss in faith in Elune. Even the Night Warrior customization and BfA leatherworking questchain all reinforce that the living Night Elves still have full faith in Elune.
Again, not what I am talking about. I am saying people who would support a narrative that involve Night Elf society to lose faith in Elune, or for Elune to become less vital and prevalent in the culture. Like Ferlion.
Well, for all we know maybe someone like Delaryrn will be a good influence on someone like Velonara? I have no idea what to expect from those Undead NE left behind, but there are theoretically worse things than them being “the hand on the wheel”.
Not an ideal outcome, but if they are to stay with the Dark Rangers … I would sort of hope THE NEs would change the DRs for the better; once they find themselves again enough to do so.
The Dark Rangers are already split up into three groups. Velonara’s group that is loyal to the Blood Elves, Forsaken, and the Horde still. The Dark Rangers still loyal to Sylvanas and working under Nathanos in the upcoming novel. And any that might have wandered off along with Kitala Starshadow and Calia. And it doesn’t sound like Calia is heading to the Horde or the Alliance with them, so I don’t think they will be affecting Velonara’s group any.
