More Alliance vs Horde articles! (Also - more on Varian!)
http://www.wowinsider.com/2009/04/26/the-state-of-the-horde-and-the-alliance/
http://www.wowinsider.com/2009/04/26/varian-wrynn-is-right/
(A longer & better written article)
For Bolvar! For Lordaeron!! FOR THE ALLIANCE!!!
-----
http://www.wowinsider.com/2009/04/26/all-the-worlds-a-stage-the-art-of-roleplaying/#continued
Just because I like WoWInsider's RP Column.
New **Chibi!** Varian icon incoming... Edit at 11:40pm: Uploaded! :3 Kudos to Nicholas.
--Incoming Nerd Rage--
A few words I'd like to get out there...
--With Orcs and the internment camps...How do you fault the Alliance for that? At that time in the storyline, it was quite clear that the horde was a mass of savage brutes interested only in conquest. There was none of the "Horde are redeemed" stuff going on back then. Savage invaders that murdered innocents eventually lose the war. What does the Alliance do with those invaders? Can't send them back home, the Dark Portal was closed. Kill them all? That would have been my vote. Instead they're put in internment camps. If you think there is anything more merciful than that compared to what that horde deserved, I'd like to hear it.
--After playing WC3 and the bonus campaign in TFT, I had HIGH hopes for Thrall. I really thought he'd turn the horde around. Keep in mind I've been playing Warcraft since the first game; back when it was "Orcs & Humans". I have hatred of Orcs built in deep. But even I was pretty impressed by the way Thrall's character was made. But since WoW they seem to have just killed what made him great.
First it's with Orc Warlocks, which I can ignore as we know game mechanics always come before Lore(though I don't agree with it). I think Horde would have been fine with just Troll and Undead Warlocks though to preserve the lore.
Secondly, they really make it seem like Thrall seems turns a blind eye to the problems with the Forsaken. The instability of the Forsaken is nothing new. We've known from the start of WoW that something isn't quite right and it was probably going to end up burning us later. Well then it happened, and people act like it happened suddenly out of the blue and that no one is at fault.
Third, the whole issue with Garrosh. Come on Thrall, put the dog down. For the record though, I don't believe Garrosh can take Thrall in a real fight. It seemed Blizzard purposely setup that event to give Garrosh some credibility, but it's obvious it wasn't finished, and was not meant to be conclusive.
--The Horde losing just as many soldiers does not make the Horde innocent.
"Yeah you lost a whole mess of soldiers and one of your greatest heroes to Horde traitors. But we lost people too, so you're not allowed to be mad at us."
Putress and Varimathras aren't some random demon and madman that just suddenly showed up. They were high-ranking Forsaken under Sylvanas. They are part of the horde, you can't claim innocence when one part of your faction does wrong. The Forsaken represent the Horde equally among of the other Horde races. Considered the Horde are usually depicted as being even more of a single entity than the Alliance is, I was surprised to ever see such an argument.
Also, Putress could not have gotten himself into a position to do what he did without Sylvanas. We still don't know what would have eventually happened with Sylvanas and the new plague had Wrathgate never happened.
--Varian should put aside his grudge to fight a greater enemy.
He ALREADY did that. Varian had seen the WORST of Horde society and STILL joined forces against the Lich King. What did he get for it? The Wrathgate disaster. He's in the EXACT same situation now as he was before, except replace "Lich King" with "Yogg'saron"
How is anyone surprised that he would refuse? What is the games timeline? The Wrathgate happened what? A month ago to him? A few months? Certainly not more than a year. That is certainly NOT enough time.
Other than that, it would be a political disaster for him to just forget what had happened only a few months ago and go right back into another joint venture with the Horde.
--Demons are at fault for all of the Horde's prior atrocities...I hadn't heard that one before. Nice try.
/////
So where are the people justifying Thrall revering Ogrim and Grom? The latter did only one thing that bettered the world in his entire life and the former was a power-hungry warlord that nearly drove humanity to destruction. Yet Thrall holds both of them up as heroes, wearing their armor and giving them monuments.
Where are the people justifying Sylvanas' planned genocide of EVERYTHING? Sure, the Forsaken are bitter and have every right to be. Total annihilation of everything that isn't them is okay because of that?
Where are the people justifying Warsong Gulch? Grom started the hostilities against the Night Elves and Thrall has done nothing to stop it, allowing the oh-so-wonderful New Horde to cut down the forest that they have absolutely no claim to whatsoever and then leave the wood to rot as a completely unjustified insult to the Night Elves.
Where are the people justifying the use of slavery in the Horde? The comic series is still canon and it still shows that the pure-and-innocent New Horde is using prisoners of war in brutal gladiator fights and then honoring the Orc who organized it. You'd think Thrall would object to that, but nope. Slavery is a-okay as long as Orcs aren't the ones being enslaved.
Where are the people justifying the Broken Front? I'll answer that one: there is no one justifying the Broken Front because there is no justification. The Alliance was on the verge of seizing the first of Icecrown's gates and the Horde was like "lol no", attacking from behind (nice honor there, guys), killing hundreds of Alliance troops, and handing the Lich King one of his biggest victories since the start of the Invasion of Northrend. And then the Horde general you turn the quest into laughs about it. Yeah, sure, Thrall, we'll fight together against the Lich King. You first.
Thrall gone from savior and symbol of the New Horde to utterly impotent, powerless to rein in the bloodlust of his people and incapable of stopping his "allies" from committing further atrocities. He's nothing more than a figurehead at this point, and one that his people no longer even like at that.
http://www.wowinsider.com/2009/04/26/varian-wrynn-is-right/
(A longer & better written article)
For Bolvar! For Lordaeron!! FOR THE ALLIANCE!!!
-----
http://www.wowinsider.com/2009/04/26/all-the-worlds-a-stage-the-art-of-roleplaying/#continued
Just because I like WoWInsider's RP Column.
New **Chibi!** Varian icon incoming... Edit at 11:40pm: Uploaded! :3 Kudos to Nicholas.
--Incoming Nerd Rage--
A few words I'd like to get out there...
--With Orcs and the internment camps...How do you fault the Alliance for that? At that time in the storyline, it was quite clear that the horde was a mass of savage brutes interested only in conquest. There was none of the "Horde are redeemed" stuff going on back then. Savage invaders that murdered innocents eventually lose the war. What does the Alliance do with those invaders? Can't send them back home, the Dark Portal was closed. Kill them all? That would have been my vote. Instead they're put in internment camps. If you think there is anything more merciful than that compared to what that horde deserved, I'd like to hear it.
--After playing WC3 and the bonus campaign in TFT, I had HIGH hopes for Thrall. I really thought he'd turn the horde around. Keep in mind I've been playing Warcraft since the first game; back when it was "Orcs & Humans". I have hatred of Orcs built in deep. But even I was pretty impressed by the way Thrall's character was made. But since WoW they seem to have just killed what made him great.
First it's with Orc Warlocks, which I can ignore as we know game mechanics always come before Lore(though I don't agree with it). I think Horde would have been fine with just Troll and Undead Warlocks though to preserve the lore.
Secondly, they really make it seem like Thrall seems turns a blind eye to the problems with the Forsaken. The instability of the Forsaken is nothing new. We've known from the start of WoW that something isn't quite right and it was probably going to end up burning us later. Well then it happened, and people act like it happened suddenly out of the blue and that no one is at fault.
Third, the whole issue with Garrosh. Come on Thrall, put the dog down. For the record though, I don't believe Garrosh can take Thrall in a real fight. It seemed Blizzard purposely setup that event to give Garrosh some credibility, but it's obvious it wasn't finished, and was not meant to be conclusive.
--The Horde losing just as many soldiers does not make the Horde innocent.
"Yeah you lost a whole mess of soldiers and one of your greatest heroes to Horde traitors. But we lost people too, so you're not allowed to be mad at us."
Putress and Varimathras aren't some random demon and madman that just suddenly showed up. They were high-ranking Forsaken under Sylvanas. They are part of the horde, you can't claim innocence when one part of your faction does wrong. The Forsaken represent the Horde equally among of the other Horde races. Considered the Horde are usually depicted as being even more of a single entity than the Alliance is, I was surprised to ever see such an argument.
Also, Putress could not have gotten himself into a position to do what he did without Sylvanas. We still don't know what would have eventually happened with Sylvanas and the new plague had Wrathgate never happened.
--Varian should put aside his grudge to fight a greater enemy.
He ALREADY did that. Varian had seen the WORST of Horde society and STILL joined forces against the Lich King. What did he get for it? The Wrathgate disaster. He's in the EXACT same situation now as he was before, except replace "Lich King" with "Yogg'saron"
How is anyone surprised that he would refuse? What is the games timeline? The Wrathgate happened what? A month ago to him? A few months? Certainly not more than a year. That is certainly NOT enough time.
Other than that, it would be a political disaster for him to just forget what had happened only a few months ago and go right back into another joint venture with the Horde.
--Demons are at fault for all of the Horde's prior atrocities...I hadn't heard that one before. Nice try.
/////
So where are the people justifying Thrall revering Ogrim and Grom? The latter did only one thing that bettered the world in his entire life and the former was a power-hungry warlord that nearly drove humanity to destruction. Yet Thrall holds both of them up as heroes, wearing their armor and giving them monuments.
Where are the people justifying Sylvanas' planned genocide of EVERYTHING? Sure, the Forsaken are bitter and have every right to be. Total annihilation of everything that isn't them is okay because of that?
Where are the people justifying Warsong Gulch? Grom started the hostilities against the Night Elves and Thrall has done nothing to stop it, allowing the oh-so-wonderful New Horde to cut down the forest that they have absolutely no claim to whatsoever and then leave the wood to rot as a completely unjustified insult to the Night Elves.
Where are the people justifying the use of slavery in the Horde? The comic series is still canon and it still shows that the pure-and-innocent New Horde is using prisoners of war in brutal gladiator fights and then honoring the Orc who organized it. You'd think Thrall would object to that, but nope. Slavery is a-okay as long as Orcs aren't the ones being enslaved.
Where are the people justifying the Broken Front? I'll answer that one: there is no one justifying the Broken Front because there is no justification. The Alliance was on the verge of seizing the first of Icecrown's gates and the Horde was like "lol no", attacking from behind (nice honor there, guys), killing hundreds of Alliance troops, and handing the Lich King one of his biggest victories since the start of the Invasion of Northrend. And then the Horde general you turn the quest into laughs about it. Yeah, sure, Thrall, we'll fight together against the Lich King. You first.
Thrall gone from savior and symbol of the New Horde to utterly impotent, powerless to rein in the bloodlust of his people and incapable of stopping his "allies" from committing further atrocities. He's nothing more than a figurehead at this point, and one that his people no longer even like at that.