I’ll admit, I thought of Tyr as well, with obviously less dread. Still, it would be weird to have him backing Vol’jin. That said, I think Vol’jin’s backer is on a higher pay grade. Still crossing my fingers for An’she.

According to Chronicles, Void and Shadow are the same thing. However, judging via the other media in the franchise, they practically and conceptually aren’t.

What’s going on?

For example, Alleria obviously uses the Void; Sylvanas obviously uses the Shadow. Besides the fact that both forces are depicted differently, if the two were the same, wouldn’t Sylvanas hear whispers, too? And, if the two are the same, why would the Void fear her?

I guess my question is this: how are they the same thing when we have a lot that points to them not being so?

My current thoughts on the matter are this: the Void is more powerful than Shadow, but the cost for such is whispers and the chance at a loss of control, whereas the Shadow may be weaker then straight Void, but there’s no toll to pay.

Thoughts?

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- Noitora, "A Couple of Illidan Spoilers" Thread (Pg. 17; Post #339)

I think the Void is a source of magic or power and Shadow is a effect. Just as Fire can be created by arcane magic, elemental magic or fel magic, Shadow can be be created by numerous sources (death magic, fel magic or void magic to name a few).

While hardly canon, I tend to feel like Void is most often used in reference to the darkness "beyond" normal existence, from whence the Void Lords, Old Gods and other things come that don't really belong in the physical universe. I.e. the Void as a "place" and the power associated with it.

Whereas Shadow strikes me more as reference to the inherent darkness that exists as part of everything in physical reality, in tandem with Light. I.e. the "native," ambient Void that's a balanced and necessary part of existence.

In that sense while darkness in the Void would be absolute for lack of anything else, darkness that's part of physical reality would be Shadow because it exists being shaped and contrasted by Light.

So while void elves are exposed to the whispers and other hazards of the dark denizens of the Void when they delve into their power, when a warlock or shadowmage or necromancer tosses a shadowbolt, they're basically using their own power (fel, arcane or necromancy) to shape and project the natural darkness that exists around them.

Kinda like how mages can use the elements; the elements basically exist in a fundamental sense everywhere in physical reality, so the arcane power sort of grabs onto those omnipresent elemental forces suffusing the mages' surroundings and shapes them into firebolts, frost novas, etc.

But that's just my theory. I suspect the Devs may not have any such specific connotations in mind; it's probably just two similar terms they can use interchangeably to reference the same thing without it sounding quite as repetitive.

This has been on my mind for the last minute. ()

Would the Forsaken and Worgen have benefited from sharing starting zones? Both starting in Gilneas, one civilisation on the defence and the other on the offence, with both moving into Silverpine Forest once the initial invading force gets repelled? Of course, the experience would have to be instanced in order to avoid new players getting killed in their safe-zone, but it would allow for a far more organic flow to the story. Without the worgen being deprived of experiencing half of what might just be one of the most significant events (that happened to them) in recent history.

What do you think?

Is this something you would like to see with future races or allied races? Perhaps a shared recruitment scenario with both sides facing off?

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I do think the Worgen should have seen Silverpine questing. It remains one of the most engaging questing zones in the game. Worgen and Forsaken really go hard at one another with a lot of turns and upsets in the struggle. Though perhaps the worgen side is more fun since they actually have to be clever and the Forsaken brute force their way through things because the PC is a Mary Sue. Buuut even that is not glaring since a lot of those quests end up with you being thwarted, culminating in the Fall of Saigon-like collapse of the Gilnean front, after all those flubs it does feel great when the PC smashes through the enemy at last.

Besides the worgen players being able to see this, and based on the way the zone story is designed as well as early Cata plans they were supposed to, it helps with a greater story narrative. It would involve the Alliance having a presence in all Lordaeron zones to an extent, and their goal is nothing short of taking back their home now that the Lich King menace is over. Ofc the Forsaken disagree on whose home it is and inevitably conflict ensues across all of the zones.

Obviously the issue was zone balance. Which looking back on it now wasn't that much of an issue. Even if Alliance was allowed to quest there it would take nothing away from the Horde, some pride perhaps. Though obviously it would be best if Blizz did the difficult but correct choice of just adding more Horde zones too, I think working undercover to cause rebellion in Westfall, messing things up in Darkshire and from there going either to Stranglethorn or the east coast where the Horde would have a more over presence in Swamp of Sorrows, Redridge, Searing Gorge and that other fiery place, this also gives a better Horde link to the Blasted Lands.
This setup allows for two lore developments too, a closer integration with Blackrock orcs now that they are out of the influence of Rend and the black dragons and a greater Alliance investment into Lordaeron which could lead to them starting the BfA war which would have worked out much better than "oh we are gonna tease that the start of the war is ambigious but actually it is 100% Sylvanas being evil as everyone thought, kek."