Since we don’t have voodoo abilities in the game (still hoping for this one day), what class represents the entire priesthood concept best for Zandalari and/or trolls?
Paladins? They are prelates linked to the King of Loa.
Druids? Connected to many Loa and supposedly students of Gonk.
Shamans? Elements and spirits.
Priest? Honestly not sure if this even works for them…
Probably shaman since the totems come from the witch doctor wards from warcrfat 3 originally. That and hex. Chain heal, Shamans original healing spell from vanilla, was from the Troll Shadow Hunter hero unit.
This, though to be fair that’s closer to the concept of the Darkspear “priesthood”, strictly speaking.
Druid and paladin would also be good picks for the Zandalari, for the reasons you gave.
Sadly you’re right that until we get class skins, priests are pretty locked into either generic human Light-spewing or void tentacles as far as general theme goes.
All four work in that you could just say as a Priest I worship and maintain the temple of Akunda or Gonk or w/e
Or as a Shaman I commune with the spirits of Loa who are no longer with us
You can do this for just about any race/class combo in game.
It’s odd we say this for Shaman though. Shaman in-game seem far more about the elements and communing with them. I can think of very little in terms of Spirit or Loa. It’s barely scratching the surface with ghost wolf form, spirit wolves, and in a way reincarnation.
For Loa, it’s like Druid represents that idea of Troll faith more than Shaman.
shaman and monk
need to work on the transmog, but these 2 classes just “priesthood” makes sense for both trolls race
Discipline priests were nice for the spirit magic. Shadow magic, and light magics sort of represent different parts of their gods. And they would be missing a bunch of nature magic though.
Monk is so inextricably tied to Pandaren though. In that way it makes the least sense for Zandalari.
Old school Shadow would have fit Troll well. Very “voodoo” bad juju vibes. Would have made perfect for a shadow hunter concept.
Current theme of Void def not though.
Well with shadow priest having ties to old gods, Zandalari Trolls could’ve been drawn to G’huun. We even have a Blood Troll mog now.
Go back and play WC3.
The troll priests appear to be using the light to heal, as strange as it seems. Perhaps it was the limitations of the game engine at the time, but there it is.
That said, some more voodoo-esque themes to their abilities (or themed abilities for all classes in general) would be pretty cool!
Priests and Paladins should be ruled out.
The Z Trolls dont worship a force or some “cosmic balance” like a Paladin or a Priest does with the Light. There isn’t even really much belief involved, because the Loas are literally real. They’re tangible. You can see them, touch them.
It is closest to Shaman and their relationships with spirits and elements. It’s not belief but something closer to mutual respect.
Druids are just nature boys who love nature. Not necessarily fitting to all Loa.
“Loa” has a very wide definition that isn’t restricted to just the animal gods we see most of the time. The Trolls view spirits, wisps, and even the spirits of their dead ancestors as Loa. Some, like the Blood Trolls, even refer to Old Gods and their lieutenants as Loa. From the Trolls’ perspective, the Elements are just another Loa they worship and commune with.
That’s not how the Light works. The Light works through conviction and faith, regardless of what that particular faith is. A person in the Warcraft universe doesn’t have to worship the Light directly in order to use its power. They just have to be extremely devout and pious. The Zandalari are the religious center of the entire Troll race. The mountain they live on is where Trolls first communed with and began worshipping the Loa. Priests and Paladins absolutely make sense given the Zandalari’s fanaticism in worshipping the Loa, especially Rezan, the Loa of Kings/Queens.
Not all druids are tree-hugging “protectors of nature”. Zandalari Druids are servants of Gonk, Loa of the Hunt and Master of Shapes. Their dinomancers make up the group known as the Raptari.