I was reading over some old threads debating the shift to “morally grey” Light, and something suddenly hit me over the head that I should have realized ages ago.
In the early days of WoW, the Light was basically the Force.
That’s why it could be channeled by the Scarlet Crusade—they’re the Sith. And what color are Sith lightsabers? Scarlet.
It was overlaid with the trappings of medieval-style fantasy (churches, priests, etc.), sometimes awkwardly. But the base concept of the Light was very much like the Force: it was everywhere, and listening to it produced goodness/rightness, but it wasn’t a deity.
The Force doesn’t act on its own (that I recall, in the movie canon)—it acts through its users. Light-wielding priests and paladins are like light-side Force users, working with the Light/Force for unselfish purposes. The Scarlet Crusade and Blood Knights are dark-side Force users, selfishly bending the Light/Force to their own desires instead of listening to its guidance.
This is also why it wasn’t necessary to explicitly be a follower of the Light to be good. There are plenty of good people in the Star Wars universe who aren’t connected to the Force.
However, this view of the Light was eroded in-game over time, probably as a result of many different writers working on it and especially after Chris Metzen scaled back his involvement. And then, with the introduction of Chronicles, it was replaced by a morally neutral force of pure order.
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Light and Shadow used to be fundamental forces that were mirrors of each other, it’s true, with neither one being inherently good or evil. Now, Shadow of course was darker and maybe had some more risks, but it was more like different spheres instead of actual enemies. Both could be used for good or evil, and there wasn’t really a risk of corruption.
We see this in Cataclysm, where the Twilight Cult’s big scary corruptive magic wasn’t Shadow/Void but Twilight magic, which was corrupted elemental energies blended together forcibly.
The changing of Light lore mirrors when they changed Shadow lore in Chronicle to make it Void and created yet another super duper big bad in the form of the Void Lords.
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They decided to make the Big Six(and the secret seventh) of which light and void are only two. All six have the same goal. Each goes about it in its own way. None of them care about us beyond seeing us as tools. It makes more sense to me and is less “embrace the loving light” which had too much religious connotation and more “submit to the light or die”.
the light was always bad don’t trust a palla
The Light and all the major powers of the universe are now exactly what they should be. Forces seeking to spread themselves fully and the other forces keep them in check in a never ending war. None are truly evil, just follow different philosophies in which most, if not all of them, are incompatible or incomprehensible to mortal (our) minds.
I would say it was more like the light and dark sides of the Force were the Light and Void/Shadows.
The problem for me is more HOW the change was done. To use an example I often cite, If you want to change the Light, making its most powerful representative seen thus far a jobber for a 90’s comic wannabe was a bad move.
whatever it is we kill it for loot
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That sounds lame and boring, no wonder no one takes lore of this game seriously anymore lol
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There’s some of that, but I feel like this explains the Scarlet Crusade. The last time we discussed this issue (and I hope this thread doesn’t get as contentious as that one), some posters insisted that the existence of the Scarlet Crusade proved that the Light had no alignment of its own. That just never sounded right to me, and I think I finally figured out the model that the original creators were drawing on (perhaps subconsciously).
We know Metzen & co. pulled inspiration from a lot of fantasy literature and movies—everything from Tolkien and Wheel of Time to Babylon 5. It makes sense that Star Wars would be on their list of influences as well.
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lol
I can’t take your reply with any level of seriousness.
The Scarlet Crusade bent the Light to their will? I thought it simply granted them their powers willingly.
Everyone is connected to the force in Star Wars. Midi chlorians are required for life to exist. Force sensitives are the only ones who can tap into its power, but everyone is connected to it.
The Light answers any call so long as you believe what you are doing is the right thing. That’s the only requirement. Blood Knights used to be the ones that forced the connection though Blizz walked that back.
More precisely, the Force sensitives have a higher count than normal people.
Most likely. I personally suspect the Scarlet Crusade weren’t just “create enemy faction” and were made partially for social commentary (Vanilla came out a few years after 9/11 among other things).
They use its powers for their own preexisting goals, and their goals come first.
To the degree that the Force grants Sith their powers willingly.
You’re right; I phrased that badly. Let me try again: there are good people in Star Wars who don’t listen to the Force or think about it—who may never even have heard of it, in fact. That doesn’t prevent them from being good.
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People take video game lore seriously?
Oh yeah, I think they’re definitely meant to stand in for fanatics of all kinds and perhaps to show how overreaction can lead to extremism. Possibly also a comment on how good intentions can be twisted into something far from good. I don’t know how much Metzen & co. thought through the worldbuilding implications of the Scarlets being Light-users, but if they did, I suspect the Sith and the Force were the model they used.
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Pretty sure arcane is fundamental order not Light
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I kinda see the Light and Void as the typical Light and Dark Side of the force. But one that’s a little more honest.
Like let’s be real here the Force dichotomy in Star Wars never made a lick of sense. Shooting bolts of energy? Super evil. Bad guy only power. But using essentially God to tamper with people’s perception and rewriting their own free will? Uber chill. Good guy only power. Because it can only be used on the ‘weak minded’. Great so taking advantage of the mentally suboptimal is heroic now, cool. Explains why the Jedi had no qualms about using an army of basically enslaved child soldiers on HGH.
The Light and the Void seem a little more interesting though. In that they’re wielded with pure faith. You don’t have to be in the right to use the Light. You just have to believe you are.
Hence probably why you can use spells specifically said to punish the target for their sins, like the Priest’s Purge The Wicked and Paladin’s Hindrance, on literally anything.
Suffice to say I doubt that random zebra in The Barrens had a guilty conscious about much. But my Zandalari Prelate sure believed it did, so weighed down by it’s sins it 'twas nevertheless.
Then again seeing as that random Westfall horse was in duck mothering Revendreth I guess equines can know sin on Azeroth.
Neil Patrick-Harris tried to warn us!
Shadowflame be kinda sus tho and those fanatical primalist are practically bathing in it
Is there an explanation in lore for thenalliance between the djaradin and primalist? Is it their shared elemental interest? Their common enemy (you/dragons?) The zakali elders seem surprisingly chill about the shadowflame well in the caldera. Then again maybe fyrak is scarier to them than the alliance 
Good point. I’m doing so less and less unless the writers give me a reason to care (which would involve more consistency instead of retcons on a whim).
