12-02-2009, 10:47 PM
Amazing, for once I didn't make a hilarious pun for a topic title.
Anyway, this thread is about recent events. I've been watching all the events, player and GM, going by, and a melancholic realisation crosses my mind over the course of a month, few weeks, pick yours... Really, it's that the events aren't pushing the boundaries of fantasy, if that made any sense whatsoever. No insults intended from here on, by the way. It's just, I can picture most of the story arcs in real life. I can replace Blood Elves with Humans in my mind, for example, and while it's an AMAZINGLY well executed storyline it's very realistic. Not the "Gravity pulls things down" realistic, mind you, which is good.
I suppose all of this is a roundabout way of saying "What's happened to the WORLD of Warcraft?" There are tens of dozens of species and races out there, two dozen or so regions on the three continents, which are part of two entire worlds. And while I know most of those races don't have much lore, what stops us from giving them some? Ogres, Gnolls, Murlocs, Centaur, Kobolds. . . All of these creatures hold a pivotal role in Warcraft, without them the Lich King would be toppled, Kil'jaeden would be a pile of dust and the Emerald Nightmare would probably be the Emerald Peaceful Sleep. It feels to me that if I replace the races participating in events with Humans of different countries we could easily be role-playing a different-looking Earth with some men in Rat costumes saying "You no take candle!"
It's hard to eloquently explain what I'm trying to say here. I guess it's that the events we've been doing can easily be transferred into real life with little to no trouble translating it, and it seems that most of us (Me included, as well) aren't trying hard enough to separate the two worlds.
For example, there is a group of Ogres in Feralas that have control of most of Dire Maul. What stops them from packing up their things and going on the Warpath?
The Silithids in the Field of Giants haven't been checked for a long time, as far as I can tell. Who can properly say they haven't been multiplying, and want to eat our brains?
Feral Crocolisks?
The insects on the Swarming Pillar decide to migrate?
Maybe even the Twilight's Hammer begins some even shadier operations...?
It's just I believe that the races that truly make it the World of Warcraft have been neglected for a while, and if all the events, as they have been, are set solely around the player races then it can quickly become an only slightly more fantastical representation of real life. The Tauren can, without any trouble, be switched to Native Americans, Forsaken have widely German-styled architecture, Humans are Humans. . . So on and so on. While we give all of these races depth and even more character than their lore (Which is bursting at the seams) already gives them, all of these others races remain as with as thin depth as cardboard cookies.
Keep in mind this is a semi-rant initiated after a great epiphany, so if I make no sense shout at me. Sometimes you need to.
-Maulbane, keeping it unreal.
Anyway, this thread is about recent events. I've been watching all the events, player and GM, going by, and a melancholic realisation crosses my mind over the course of a month, few weeks, pick yours... Really, it's that the events aren't pushing the boundaries of fantasy, if that made any sense whatsoever. No insults intended from here on, by the way. It's just, I can picture most of the story arcs in real life. I can replace Blood Elves with Humans in my mind, for example, and while it's an AMAZINGLY well executed storyline it's very realistic. Not the "Gravity pulls things down" realistic, mind you, which is good.
I suppose all of this is a roundabout way of saying "What's happened to the WORLD of Warcraft?" There are tens of dozens of species and races out there, two dozen or so regions on the three continents, which are part of two entire worlds. And while I know most of those races don't have much lore, what stops us from giving them some? Ogres, Gnolls, Murlocs, Centaur, Kobolds. . . All of these creatures hold a pivotal role in Warcraft, without them the Lich King would be toppled, Kil'jaeden would be a pile of dust and the Emerald Nightmare would probably be the Emerald Peaceful Sleep. It feels to me that if I replace the races participating in events with Humans of different countries we could easily be role-playing a different-looking Earth with some men in Rat costumes saying "You no take candle!"
It's hard to eloquently explain what I'm trying to say here. I guess it's that the events we've been doing can easily be transferred into real life with little to no trouble translating it, and it seems that most of us (Me included, as well) aren't trying hard enough to separate the two worlds.
For example, there is a group of Ogres in Feralas that have control of most of Dire Maul. What stops them from packing up their things and going on the Warpath?
The Silithids in the Field of Giants haven't been checked for a long time, as far as I can tell. Who can properly say they haven't been multiplying, and want to eat our brains?
Feral Crocolisks?
The insects on the Swarming Pillar decide to migrate?
Maybe even the Twilight's Hammer begins some even shadier operations...?
It's just I believe that the races that truly make it the World of Warcraft have been neglected for a while, and if all the events, as they have been, are set solely around the player races then it can quickly become an only slightly more fantastical representation of real life. The Tauren can, without any trouble, be switched to Native Americans, Forsaken have widely German-styled architecture, Humans are Humans. . . So on and so on. While we give all of these races depth and even more character than their lore (Which is bursting at the seams) already gives them, all of these others races remain as with as thin depth as cardboard cookies.
Keep in mind this is a semi-rant initiated after a great epiphany, so if I make no sense shout at me. Sometimes you need to.
-Maulbane, keeping it unreal.