In all fairness to the stone masons Varian didn’t pay them what he owed them before the labor riots broke out and Tiffin was killed because he didn’t want the Aristocracy of Westfall who paid the Stonemasons guild to get any richer.
Varian was a bad king. I don’t think diehard human fans want to admit how bad of a King Varian was.
Tiffin Wrynn ran Stormwind before she was killed. And Onyxia ruled it afterward.
That’s explained in the book and it’s because the Alliance rejected her offer. She wanted the Forsaken in the Alliance, she wanted to restore ties with the living and Varian Wrynn and the humans declined her offer multiple times.
Thrall knew she wanted to join the Alliance, that’s why he was skeptical to let the Forsaken join the Horde at first.
The Gathering and Anduin’s dumb offer of peace between the Forsaken and the Alliance was a slap in the face, it came too late.
Yeah it’s still very annoying to me they don’t have the Forsaken reckon with any of this.
It always bugged me in BC when the Belves are just instantly out for Kael’Thas’s after the Sunwell Plateau update because he attacked the city off screen.
And if this guy is considered the last, best hope for the elves race and the last son of an ancient bloodline that founded everything you hold dear - well you’d think thered be some denial or heartbreak. Something.
So I did appreciate the Loyalists still being in denial.
But there’s a whole book’s worth of content you could squeeze out of this.
Like - I don’t think this is very good but I tried to do something. I kind of liked the idea of the Forsaken at least feeling some solace within the found family of the Horde.
This is what makes me nervous about this direction. It’s not that Forsaken can’t or shouldn’t be able to get along with humans. It’s that they’re essentially different species now and just aren’t going to ever gel well together. Even the nicest undead like Faol is still a bit unhinged.
“I wonder what would happen if you split someone into pure light and pure void. Interested in volunteering?”
I figured the reason nobody ever tried to move into SW with their kid is the same reason no human would want to move to the UC to be with their mom.
Even if you vanish the societal suspicions and intolerance - they just need drastically different things to feel comfortable now. The Forsaken don’t hang out in crypts with giant bats to be on brand. That’s their version of a cozy cottage and big friendly dog.
Obviously they’re going to hang out with the guys who decorate Christmas trees with skulls and edged weapons.
And he should be.
The dude might of had some royal education during his time in Lordaeron. But aside from that, he has zero experience in ruling. Zero experience in warfare. He was a Gladiator. Varian can fight, entertain, and shoulder a butt load of trauma.
He doesn’t need to be a Good King to be a good character, and I think he would have been more interesting if Blizzard did more to outline his flaws.
Considering we kill Vancleef early on in our questing, this is pretty much guranteed to have happened.
Not as big as they were and as mentioned. The region was secure enough that it was able to send enough to actually fight the Lich King. By Wrath the Defias were virtually leaderless and were effectively just bands of robbers.
It was the NOBLES who didnt want to pay and that was because Onyxia was sabotaging the work of the masons*and preying on their greed). Then Onyxia convinced the stonemasons to make unreasonable demands(also preying on their greed). Varian went and offered to pay, from his own coffers, but was rejected by the Defias.
Again, it was all Onyxia.
Varian helped rebuild Stormwind and was helping defend it from orc raiders. No, Tiffin did not rule it, BOTH helped each other.
It’s so funny that the intended message here is that the nobles are not, in fact, greedy bastards.
Edit: What does “unreasonable demands” actually mean? Is that ever specified?
No, the take away here should be everyone in Azeroth has been manipulated by forces beyond their control and had things like the Legion/Old Gods etc were not involved Azeroth would probably be a better place. That Stormwind would probably a rather peaceful and prosperous place.
The stone masons still never got paid and they were not nobels they were farmers and the resulting uprising left Westfall bankrupt and it’s people starving.
Which the new king, still has done nothing to rectify despite his overflowing coin purse.
Vanessa Vancleef returned in Legion with a threat to the Alliance. I doubt this story is over and the Wyrnn’s will have to pay the piper sooner or later.
Only is you played human. If you played Night Elf, you probably didn’t do Westfall until max level, if at all. So, it being a low level zone is not evidence at all.
You have no way of knowing that. They were strong enough to attack a Stormwind Mage and Dignitary being escorted by an armed guard. That is typically beyond the notice and capability of a small, local gang.
Zerde, could you explain this? In “Shaw’s report” it clearly says that the nobles couldn’t pay due to massive debts, particularly due to military overextension:
“However, the nobles of Stormwind ran up a huge debt by expanding the kingdom’s military presence through Elwynn and into Stranglethorn. The massive debt crippled the kingdom’s economy and stripped VanCleef and his Stonemasons of their promised rewards. After spending years toiling to rebuild the glorious city, the Stonemasons were left broke, forgotten by the city’s corrupt officials.”
Or is that just Onyxia’s manipulation?
That awkward moment when you realize we killed our awesome Dragon Queen and replaced her with discount Crimson Chin for literally no reason.
#JusticeForPrestor
#OnyxiaDidNothingWrong
I mean, she objectively didn’t, right? She ordered the Stormwind troops to retreat from STV and Elwynn, because that caused the massive debt in the first place.
The stonemasons rioted. Hence why they did not get paid.
It is called a retcon. The Chronicles never mention about it and just talks about how the nobles and Stonemasons both became unreasonable because of Onyxia.
Nah, Onyxia was the source of a good chunk of Stormwind problem. Glad her head is now mounted on Stormwinds wall/I have her stupid mount.
I suspected that. It’s funny how both keeping the troops inside and outside Stormwind could be written as “Onyxia’s super hyper 4d chess manipulations to ruin the kingdom”, when it’s just basic economy.
But the game needed a villain, so it created one.
Thank you 
I mean. Yeah Onyxia was totally self serving and power hungry. But… Honestly, I love a power hungry queen. And also, if she had been successful, between her in Stormwind and her Brother at Blackrock, we would have seen a unified Human/Orc Alliance as early as TBC. The Faction conflicts might have been avoided in such a case, and Azeroth would have been better prepared to deal with otherworldly threats.
I mean, the downside is living under the tyrannical ruled of Crazy Dragons. But really… Stormwind is still an absolute monarchy, so its not all that different.
Because they were sending troops not to help the people but to some far flung land to expand on territory when it was more important to deal with internal issue. Effectively military adventurism with no true purpose.
The Prestor’s may be making a comeback.
Her father’s legitimate child with Calia Menethil may be coming back to claim the throne of Stormwind, and fight her other brother, the current king of Stormwind’s boyfriend.
Deathwing Bad Dragoned Calia?
Except Calia and him never did anything. Her kid is likely from some peasant or local noble.