MMORPGDot Feature: World of Warcraft Beta Journal #8
Dialogue, 2004-04-29

My first character in the new push was an Undead Mage. Starting out in the gloom of the Tirisfal Glades, I got to see a feature of the game that will be included in the retail version but as yet is not present for all races. After making my character a camera pans out over the newbie starting zone of Tirisfal, looking at the actual gameworld as it pans. I got to see other players doing their thing as a voice-over guy gave me the low-down on what the Undead are all about. Namely, killing humans and other undead. These two factions are The Scourge and the Scarlet Brigade. The Scourge is the undead faction controlled by the Lich King and Prince Arthas. The Scarlet Brigade is the remnants of the human population of Tirisfal. The early levels really drive home something you may have already suspected about the Forsaken: They're Evil! Despite what Sylvanas Windrunner may want to think of herself and her brood, the Forsaken are just as bad as the Scourge when it comes to nasty acts. Your constant attempts to remove the human population of the area and the methods used to do it are very clear indicators of that. Though there is a creepy undertone to the Glades and many of the early quests, the Forsaken also strike me as sort of sad. That didn't stop me from having fun though. The most difficult early objectives have you searching out commanders in the Brigade at various strategic locations. There you slay them and a few of their most trusted soldiers in an effort to weaken the Brigade as a whole. It's a great hook into the overarching stories of the Forsaken.

The Glades themselves are wonderful. Where Duskwood is a Lovecraftian creepy with things skirting at the edge of your vision and a menaced town populace, Tirisfal Glades is a "living in oblivion" sort of creepy. Signs of death and decay are everywhere. Trees rot where they stand, most of the buildings are in some sort of ruin, and the rivers in the Undercity flow with poisonous ooze. The Undercity is probably the most amazing part of the Glades. As you're probably already aware, the Undercity lies beneath the former palace of Lordaeron. You have to travel in through a broken and discarded courtyard, past the now empty throne room and down through an elevator shaft to reach the Undercity. The soaring grisly artwork of the Undead is lit in a garish green glow by the rivers of ooze. The abominations, their guts visible to all onlookers, guard every doorway and patrol the sidewalks. They have skulls in place of levels, meaning they are effectively unkillable. The circular wheel of the Undercity is tied together in the trade hub. The center of the hub is the bank, around which are small stalls with vendors, and Inn, and the bat station. The Undead are probably one of the most popular races in this push, and I know a lot of people sick of the Alliance turned to 3vil in order to sate their need for novelty. The surest sign that the Undead are evil? The male undead dance is a hard-rocking rave, and the female undead is a goth-club worthy slow-hand thing that is sure to make any Bauhaus fan happy as heck.

From the Northern areas of Tirisfal we go far to the south, to Mulgore on the continent of Kalimdor. The fertile plains of the Tauren homelands are an awesome sight. There is nothing at all like Mulgore in Azeroth. There are only a few trees as far as the eyes can see, just a lake here or there, and an endless expanse of grasses waving in the wind. Like all the races, the Tauren face their own problems. The Quillboar, a bestial race of pig-men, the Centaur, Gnolls, and races from the Alliance all infringe on the edges of the Tauren lands. They break the earth to dig up ancient treasures and artifacts, burn what few trees there are, and kill the creatures of the land for almost no reason. To the spiritual peoples of Mulgore this is an outrage. Many of your early quests will revolve around stopping the various despoilers on the plains and proving yourself to your culture. The Tauren are all about the journey, and they have very specific rituals that must be completed to prove your worth in a certain way. It's a fascinating and very immersive way to assign quests. The Tauren as a race may be the most societally fleshed out of all but the humans. Unfortunately, the quest coverage and flow is still somewhat choppy. The three most well tested areas of the game are Elwynn, Dun Morogh, and Tirisfal (in that order). As such the Orc, Tauren, and Night Elf lands are all undergoing their first major examinations thanks to the tireless Beta testers. Many of them are constantly recreating new characters to investigate the newbie areas as thoroughly as possible. Already there have been a few minor changes (such as a change in a critter's spawn table in the NE lands), and more are sure to be on their way before too long.

The plains of Mulgore are, as I said, breathtaking. If you've ever been to the American Midwest or Yellowstone National Park you may have seen sights that could be analogous. Because it's Blizzard, though, take those images in your mind and make them stretch from horizon to horizon. The plains teem with wildlife, including large flightless birds, wolves, great hunting cats, and of course the Kodo. The Kodo Beasts are huge herbivorous mammals that live on the plains. The Tauren live with and depend upon these great beasts in much the same way as the North American natives did on the bison. There are several quests surrounding the Kodo, and the artists have made a supreme effort to include the beasts within the culture. Kodo heads hang from lodges, their skin and bones are the makings of tents, and killing a Kodo in single combat is a very sacred act within Tauren culture. The analogy to Native American culture is very apt, as the architecture of Tauren villages seems designed to reinforce that thought. Teepee like structures of all shapes and sizes form the buildings of Bloodhoof Village and Thunder Bluff. You might think they'd be somehow hokey or contrived, but they seem very natural in this setting, and wholly appropriate. Mulgore is a land of beauty inhabited by intelligent and spiritual people. The antithesis of the Undead, if there is a truly "good" race in WoW the Tauren are it.

Next week I'll take a look at Orgrimaar, Durotar, and the Shaman class. Until then, Zug Zug.