So I’m in the minority here that genuinely loved the War of Thorns, up until the Warbringers trailer. Which ruined my mood so thoroughly I actually lied and told a concerned coworker an aunt’s dog I was close with died, as I wasn’t going to sit there in a suit and tell people I was mad about a cartoon fantasy war. Have a healthy amount of shame for being this invested in a world of pretend, fellow nerds.
But I was bummed. Because the War of Thorns had been really good. I’ve mentioned before how it tied in honor with mechanics. Everybody remembers Astranaar where you could kill civilains only if you wanted and the assassin would chide you for it. But what I loved where the WQs where flagged hostile Alliance NPCs would retreat instead of attacking you.
That was a great subversion of established mechanics I think is sad you never see more of. The Zenkan will remember this rebel questline was a thing I guess but I’d find it infinitely more interesting if the option was there to make say the Sethrak simply retreat, rather than just killing all of them.
But I digress, what really sold me on the War of Thorns was Slyvanas’s explanation for it. Which I’ve never seen posted here so for those that never read it;
"You would ask a question of me, name?
Warchief, may I ask why we want to capture Teldrassil?
Time is not a luxury we possess, but I respect your desire to know more.
THIS has forever altered the balance of power in Azeroth. Deposits of Azerite are being located across the world, name. Though we do not yet understand its full potential, it is clear that this substance has vast destructive capability.
What will war look like in twenty years? In a hundred?
How can the Horde hope to defend its borders if the Alliance controls the flow of Azerite?
It is uncertain, Warchief.
What IS certain is that the Alliance will use Darnassus as a safe harbor for funneling Azerite into the Eastern Kingdoms. Anduin Wyrnn will build powerful new weapons, and sooner or later he will turn them upon our homelands. First he will strike at the Undercity and Silvermoon, then his gaze will fall upon Kalimdor.
For the sake of the Horde’s future, we must be the first to act.
By occupying Darnassus, we will control the flow of Azerite and ensure it cannot be used against us. The Alliance will dare not attack its own city for fear of harming civilians.
With a single stroke, we will guarantee generations of peace.
The night elves will fight us at every step.
The Kaldorei will defy our occupation… unless we break their spirits.
We must inflict a blow that will show them what is at stake. They need to lose something… someone… in whom they have absolute trust and faith. A symbol of hope.
Malfurion Stormrage must die."
This is what I wanted Warchief Slyvanas to be. Cold, calculating but actually thoughtful.
Holding Teldrassil at gunpoint would force Anduin to cancel all Kalimdor mining operations. And killing Malfurion would create an internal diplomatic nightmare. The Alliance would be crippled. The Horde would secure peace for generations.
Of course I didn’t suspect the story would go down that smoothly. But I expected Teldrassil to be a mystery ot an accident or something. It ruined what had actually been a really good war story with understandable goals and ruthlessness with a greater good in mind.
It’s silly now, and particularly dumb as I’d read BtS already, but I thought Slyvanas might be quietly horrified when the tree went up.
For all her posturing she seemed genuinely protective of her people, smiled to cheer up orphans during Children’s Week and broke into a whole butt sad song routine if you brought her a trinket from her childhood.
And the thing is the Warbringers cinematic almost does this. We see her losing her ish not at the sight of her own dead body, but at the sight of the mother and child she failed to protect. Undeath doesn’t change people that much. It certainly makes them spookier but they’re still themselves. Alonsos Faol still wants to heal, Pontius still loves training dogs, Leonid is still a devout follower of the Light, Voss is still a zealot on the warpath and so on.
We could’ve had not just an interesting war storyline where our factioms behaved coherently. But an actually interesting Slyvanas, who’s wrathful and cruel nature is born not out of a desire to destroy, but caused by failing to protect her home and people one time and something she’ll never allow again.
Ah well. That would’ve been a cool idea for an expansion. But anyway we sure did get those turtles to the water, and now we’ve to bust into the afterlife to hunt down Azshara 2.0 Slyvanas.
Maybe someday I’ll stop pretending Blizz’s writers will elevate the narrative beyond 90s Saturday Cartoon or bad anime.