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00:00:00 – 00:40:13
The video discusses the upcoming "World of Warcraft" expansion called "The War Within," part of the broader World Soul Saga, which spans three future expansions. The storyline kicks off with a cinematic featuring Anduin Wrynn and touches on the return of Zala’tath and a new void threat, signaling dark challenges ahead, including a Nerubian menace led by Queen Anere.
Key characters such as Velen, Magni Bronzebeard, and Aria Windrunner face personal and thematic struggles within this epic narrative, which emphasizes heroism, power responsibility, and justice. New zones include Kazalar, divided into three groups with unique societal structures, and the Nerubian city showcasing diverse and immersive environments. The Arrai civilization, reliant on a fading crystal for survival, faces new threats and ongoing battles with the Nerubians.
Players can explore zones like the Isle of Dorne and the expansive underground Ringing Deeps, reflecting the developers' efforts to create distinct and interconnected landscapes through innovative designs and technology. Morgan Day introduces new dungeons, including the "Cinder Meadow," and an eight-boss raid in the Narar Palace, emphasizing their verticality and complex stages.
New features aim to enhance the player experience, focusing on evergreen content, inclusivity, and respect for players' time. Notable additions include "delves" for endgame content, the "warbands" system for sharing achievements across characters, updated transmog rules, shared reputations, and new hero talent trees providing deep customization options. The segment concludes with a preview of these features and an invitation to further detailed panels at BlizzCon.
00:00:00
In this segment of the video, the speaker introduces the “World of Warcraft: What’s Next” panel, highlighting the dawn of a new era called the World Soul Saga that will unfold over the next three expansions. The first chapter, “The War Within,” will involve an expedition to Azeroth’s subterranean depths, presenting new challenges and a mysterious, dark world. The overview includes a summary of the cinematic reveal featuring Anduin Wrynn, who experiences a vision compelling heroes to investigate. Concurrently, a darkness emerges with the return of Zala’tath, signaling a new void threat. The talk also addresses the rise of a new Nerubian threat, led by Queen Anere, hinting at a dark evolution and formidable challenges ahead. Finally, key Azeroth heroes will face their unique challenges as they respond to this new call.
00:05:00
In this part of the video, the focus is on key characters and plotlines in an upcoming expansion of World of Warcraft. The segment highlights Velen grappling with his connection to the Holy Light and trying to find his place in The Horde, while Magni Bronzebeard faces the heavy responsibility of being the Speaker of Azeroth. Aria Windrunner’s journey as a void hunter, torn between her nature and the call of the Void, is central to the storyline. The World Soul Saga is introduced as an epic narrative redefining storytelling in the game, embodying themes such as the might of heroes, responsibility of power, the pursuit of justice, and finding common ground amidst adversity.
Maria Hamilton is then introduced to discuss new zones and cultures in “The War Within.” She talks about being led by dreamlike visions to the subcontinent of Kazalar, a long-forgotten place featuring the isolated Earth society. This society has developed unique manners and customs and is divided into three groups: the oath sworn, who uphold Titan edicts; the Unbound, considered rebellious; and a third unspecified group. The oath sworn guard the Coreway, a Titan passage to Azeroth’s core, while the Unbound have abandoned their original responsibilities.
00:10:00
In this part of the video, the speaker discusses the societal divisions and challenges faced by two distinct groups, the Earthin and the Wrathe. The Earthin, who support the Titan installation, live in rural areas around quarries and mines and feel neglected by city dwellers. They have limited interactions with surface dwellers and maintain their functions under the Titan edicts, though with some deviations. The Earthin society is weakened by differing perspectives and dwindling numbers, which the players can help replenish by choosing to ally with The Horde or the Alliance.
The Wrathe, descendants of the Aoran Empire, worship and wield Holy Fire and are dedicated to bringing light to darkness. They live in a cavern near an underground sea, constantly battling terrifying creatures and a swarm of Nerubians. The Wrathe are resilient and skilled in combat, but their numbers are limited, and internal division further complicates their plight. The segment also mentions that players will explore the Nerubian kingdom in the game, learning about their culture and their ongoing conflict with the Wrathe under a deal with the Nerubian Queen, Anere, to enhance her troops.
00:15:00
In this segment of the video, the focus is on the transformation of the Nerubians into Paragons, led enthusiastically by Queen Anere, and details about the opposition against these changes from within. Viewers are introduced to various citizens and forms of Nerubians, including domesticated insects. The video then describes the zones within the game’s world, starting with the Isle of Dorne, home to surface dwellers and enriched with fertile soil and unique species like fiery bees. Key landmarks include the city of Dagal and its Titan Causeway. The second zone, the Ringing Deeps, lies beneath the Isle of Dorne and houses massive machines and forges maintained by the Earthens. As the population of machine speakers declines, they face increased threats from the growing force of Cobalts, led by the aggressive Candle King. The Earthens struggle to maintain their ancient processes, relying on new, improvised methods. The segment concludes with a brief mention of Hollow Fall, an area deeper within Cazal gar, bordering an underground sea.
00:20:00
In this part of the video, the speaker discusses the civilization of the Arrai, who survive using a massive crystal’s light, which supports their airships, light towers, and villages on high plateaus. They are in a near-constant battle with the Nerubians and rely on the crystal for light and growth. Recently, the crystal’s light has been fading unpredictably, causing dangerous creatures to emerge and adding to the Arrai’s struggles.
The speaker then details the intricate structure of the Nerubian city built on layers of ruins, with different districts like the Burrows for scavengers, the Umbrell Bazaar for trading exotic goods, and the Skaines for lorekeepers. Exploration of these areas requires skill in using pheromones and bravery.
Additionally, the video mentions the seamless transition between the zones of the game world using airlock technology, enhancing the player’s dynamic flight experience across the varied landscapes without load screens. The developers’ efforts in designing these interconnected zones focused on creating an immersive experience with continuous flow and exciting transitions.
00:25:00
In this segment, the developers discuss the unique design of the zones in their game, emphasizing that despite three out of four being underground, each zone feels distinct and different from the others. They mention creating areas with natural features, industrial workspaces, vast caverns with artificial suns, and traditional architecture filled with dramatic elements. Following this, Morgan Day introduces new content, including eight new dungeons, and elaborates on a specific “Cinder Meadow” dungeon in a zone called the Isle of Dorne. Furthermore, he discusses the eight-boss raid in the Narar Palace, detailing its various stages and emphasizing the innovative verticality feature due to the Nerubian theme. Finally, he teases about the systems and features philosophy they will discuss next.
00:30:00
In this segment, the discussion centers around introducing features in “The War Within” expansion for World of Warcraft, emphasizing three main pillars: evergreen features, inclusivity for all player types, and respect for players’ time. A significant new feature, “delves,” will be integrated into the outdoor world experience, providing endgame content similar to World Quests. Delves offer seasonal rewards and scale from one to five players, with Bran Bronzebeard as an NPC companion. Additionally, a new system called “warbands” will allow players to share achievements and resources across all characters on their Battle.net account, reflecting a shift towards a more player-centric approach.
00:35:00
In this part of the video, the speaker discusses various updates and features in a new game expansion called “War Within.” Key points include:
1. **Transmog Rules Update**: Players no longer need to run multiple characters through legacy instances to collect appearances; it can be done with one character.
2. **Shared Reputations**: All reputations and Renown will be shared across the player’s entire account.
3. **Hero Talents**: Introduction of three new hero talent trees per class, with two available per specialization, and the ability to swap between them freely. These offer new customization options and core class fantasy deep dives.
4. **Unlocking Hero Talents**: The system unlocks at level 71, with one Talent Point earned per level from 71 to 80, similar to the Legion artifact system. The system is designed to be low friction and easily swap between choices and trees.
5. **Gameplay Preview**: A video demonstration of hero talents in action, showcasing new abilities and visual effects for the warrior class.
The segment concludes with an invitation to a detailed deep dive panel at BlizzCon for more information.