Two Alliance races got dark ranger options, while one Horde did

[Rorab-wyrmrest-accord (Rorab)]

The Dark Ranger skins are all existing assets that have been in the game for years. There are no nightborne Dark Ranger NPCs and they don’t share skin textures with night elves like void elves do with blood elves, so there was nothing to give them without developing something new.

[Autai-moon-guard (Autai)]

@Rorab-wyrmrest-accord

There are no nightborne Dark Ranger NPCs and they don’t share skin textures with night elves like void elves do with blood elves, so there was nothing to give them without developing something new.

Well they could have given Forsaken a human Darkfallen option. Didn’t need to be just elves since we know human Darkfallen were a thing.

[Louvé-moon-guard]

They made a Blood Elf and Night Elf customization options to appease some fans.

Void Elves got it because it was easy to port over and nobody is hurt by more options.

NB didn’t because it would have required more effort than they wanted to put into it.

It’s really that simple.

[Gocmmaelite-durotan]

I mean that would require them to add the model to the Horde as a playable race.

[Autai-moon-guard (Autai)]

The model already exists and is also Horde aligned so it’s w/e

[Trikzi-dentarg]

@Louvé-moon-guard

Blood Elves went to Horde because Horde needed more players and Blood Elves would satisfy that need. It wasn’t for the Asian marketplace specifically, but it was not “organic”.

That’s more your opinion than what the facts prove. They wrote the story and the lore and it works wonderfully. If people can’t see that I think they’ve let their biases rule their views.

[Solarion-wyrmrest-accord]

@Louvé-moon-guard

Blood Elves went to Horde because Horde needed more players and Blood Elves would satisfy that need. It wasn’t for the Asian marketplace specifically, but it was not “organic”.

Metzen himself has stated Blood Elves don’t fit the Horde.

Mists of Pandaria: Chris Metzen interview

The draenei and blood elves had their own world, their own expansion to themselves, but they’ve been kind of in the background since then. Goblins feel like they’re a part of the horde proper, the worgen maybe haven’t felt as connected to the Alliance as some other races. Is there a place for pandaren after Mists is over, and are there any plans to bring some of those previous-expansion races not necessarily back into the spotlight, but into the players’ eyes?

There’s almost like three answers to that, or there’s three vectors of that. One would be that, in a weird way, it depends on the racial kit and how harmonic it is to the faction kit. Goblins are a no-brainer; they feel like Horde even if they weren’t part it. And their starting zone is two feet outside of the capital city, so in pretty much every way, that feels right.

Worgen and draenei are a harder sell. Worgen have no homeland, they’re currently squatting in the night elf tree. And they’re werewolves, right? It’s not exactly an easy fit into the Alliance spectrum of broad fantasy vectors. Draenei are maybe the weirdest fit for an Alliance race, and their homeland’s pretty far away. So there’s a lot of factors in how races feel closer or further away from the core of their faction. And that’s always gonna be a weird space for us.

And pandaren, relative to that, well, there’ll always be the Wandering Isle and everything. But those pandaren that have joined red or blue really live amongst red or blue now. They have their cities out there, but they’ve really chosen to be red or blue. And they’re about as weird as werewolves or draenei.

I’m trying to think of Horde races. I guess only blood elves feel like the odd man out for the Horde. I hope that we’ve engineered that into it as deftly as we could, but you know, it’s the equivalent of a bunch of white chicks hanging out with goblin or tauren. It’s weird. The Alliance races are a little pushed, but I think we’re finding that balance with pandaren running around Stormwind, you know. Like “hey, it’s those guys!” We just think it’s cool they’re hanging around with us.

[Gocmmaelite-durotan]

But it’s not as simple as adding an eye color.

It would take a lot more work, not saying Blizzard couldn’t do it.

[Avarie-farstriders]

I think it’s cool that blood elves joined the horde. Besides, they didn’t need a pretty race, troll and orc ladies were right there.

[Lannislight-tichondrius]

@Autai-moon-guard

Well they could have given Forsaken a human darkfallen option

Given what they did to a Horde request already, I doubt Alliance humans wouldn’t also be given the options w Alliance somehow still having the odds in their favor over a long standing Horde request.

Also just on principle NB shoulda just been tossed the options in the same “who cares” ideology they apparently used for VEs.

That said, I am moving to asking for more Light options for BEs as at least that you would think they could keep without repackaging right back to VEs.

[Louvé-moon-guard]

@Trikzi-dentarg

They wrote the story and the lore and it works wonderfully.

I haven’t seen Blizzard write something “wonderfully” in ages. The Blood Elves entire inclusion in the Horde is some of the most forced writing I’ve seen in ages outside WoW.

@Solarion-wyrmrest-accord

Metzen himself has stated Blood Elves don’t fit the Horde.

Thanks.

[Terranox-stonemaul (Terranox)]

Hmmm they created Drama with the Alliance of Lordaeron and Garithos. They set up narrative for it to go either way. They decided to give blood elves to horde, from what I recall in past interviews due to horde struggling population wise.

Later one they improved the races visually and made the horde just better overall. I remember blizzard stated they gave trolls warlocks and druids because they thought it would make them more of an attractive choice. Trolls used to be one of the least played races. And now it’s one of the most popular on horde, one of the most popular horde allied races.

They set the story up a long time ago, and made those decisions a while ago. The alliance bring it up for high elves and they actually got that customization now, but they heavily pushed for that stuff for like over a decade.

Meanwhile I don’t think I ever saw any alliance wanting dark rangers stuff besides a few void elves. That generally was a horde theme.

At this point though they might as well give forsaken the human bodytypes and forsaken or nightborne the undead night elf bodytypes if blizzard is going to share stuff like dark rangers on void elves.

And humans probably get the forsaken skinny model as humans like from kul tirans.

Yall can’t have the sharing only go one way.

[Lasira-darkspear (Lasira)]

Its not gossip…
Literally look up race ideas with Chris Metzen during BC panel… Why do you think we still got VEs. Its been in lore with HEs for so long. BEs were not the original ideal race for horde during development.

[Autai-moon-guard (Autai)]

@Lannislight-tichondrius

Given what they did to a Horde request already, I doubt Alliance humans wouldn’t also be given the options w Alliance somehow still having the odds in their favor over a long standing Horde request.

I mean, probably true, but it still would have made sense as an option for Forsaken imo.

@Gocmmaelite-durotan

But it’s not as simple as adding an eye color.

I’m not sure what you’re saying here since I’m not stating they simply add an eye color.

[Trikzi-dentarg]

@Avarie-farstriders

I think it’s cool that blood elves joined the horde. Besides, they didn’t need a pretty race, troll and orc ladies were right there.

Orc ladies have a great model, their walk and run look natural.

[Louvé-moon-guard]

@Lannislight-tichondrius

Also just on principle NB shoulda just been tossed the options in the same “who cares” ideology they apparently used for VEs.

The VE one took no effort compared to the NB one, that’s why VE got it and NB didn’t. Sucks to be a NB but what are you going to do, make Blizzard not lazy?

[Birchthorn-moon-guard]

@Grabbag-arugal

20 years of Dark Rangers being the iconic shock troops of the Forsaken

huh… i always saw deathguards and abominations as the shock troops, and dark-rangers as the scouts.

[Terranox-stonemaul (Terranox)]

They need to make night elves go nuetral imo, so we can play undead night elves on horde tbh.

[Louvé-moon-guard]

Honestly I could see that happening after the absolutely insane and idiotic decision the “night elf rangers” made to join the people who literally genocided them.

[Gocmmaelite-durotan]

I still don’t get this logic where I’m against the Horde getting options.