World of Warcraft: Dragonflightis the latest in a long line of expansions that began almost two decades ago. Players are always keen on what changes or improvements this makes to the game, but the other important factor is the lore and history in this latest addition toWoW.
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The storyline of Dragonflight corrected and explained a lot of the weird and often nonsensical twists of the previous expansions. These left several beloved characters painted into corners or retconned into completely different identities. Plenty of heroes and villains see their stories resolved, and there are other threads the writers have cleverly dropped to keep us guessing for the next expansion.
7The Restoration Of Tyr
We haven’t heard very much about Tyr sinceUlduar, so this is an exciting development that ties together the dragons and their allies. It’s revealed that Tyr, the most powerful of the Watchers and one of the most important figures in the human pantheon, was closely allied with the Dragonflights. He also left an important series of clues behind in case he should disappear or be destroyed.
This has a nice tie-in with the game. A whole new wing of Ulduar, one of Northrend’s classic raids, opens up with clues as to Tyr’s ultimate fate. You can experience what he discovered during his last adventure, and most interesting of all, learn about the possibility of his restoration.
6Wrathion And The Black Dragonflight
Wrathion is back, in a way, and nobody wants to be reminded that the Black Dragonflight still exists. However, here we are. When Anduin landed a hard right on Wrathion’s jaw in the cutscene, he threw that punch for all of us. That being said, now what?
Wrathion’s character is rash and impulsive, so even if he means well, it might go badly all the same. So far he’s proved his worth by destroying his corrupted kin. Only one of his siblings remains, Sabellian, and whether one of them will be the new ruler of the Black Dragonflight is unclear.
5The Fury Of Raszageth’s Siblings
The main antagonists of the Dragonflight expansion were the Primal Incarantes, powerful proto-dragons that had absorbed the power of the elements. The dragon flights still managed to defeat and imprison the four of them, but the main story of Dragonflight is how they were freed and rose to be a threat again.
As part of the recent expansion, players get to face the youngest of the Primal Incarnates, Raszageth the Storm Eater, in theVault of the Incarnates. Regardless of how the fight ends, her older siblings escape, and they vow to avenge her death. What exactly they plan to do is left for us to discover in the next chapter of the story.
4The Desolate Council
Pick up a few threads, weave them together, and drop them again. Lilian Voss was a character that we got to know during the Cataclysm expansion, and the question of the younger heir to the throne of Lordaeron had been a mystery sinceWarcraft 3: The Frozen Throne.
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Dragonflight put some of those stories together with the return of Calia Menethil, Lilian Voss, and the formation of a new government in the Ruins of Lordaeron. Leadership seems to be an issue across the board in the Dragonflight story, and this council has taken the place not only of an absent Sylvanas, but also the lack of aWarchief of the Horde. The question remains of whether or not the human undead of Lordaeron can be taken back into living human society.
3Calia Menethil
Speaking of the Desolate Council, we have to talk about Calia. We haven’t heard much from her since her brother murdered her father and doomed her kingdom to ruin. As she explains, she was not only hiding to ensure the safety of her husband and child, but also because of the stigma carried by the name Menethil.
Calia was one of the organizers of The Gathering, an attempt to reunite some of the Forsaken with their living human relatives — and where she was assassinated by Sylvanas Windrunner. She was resurrected using the power of the Holy Light, however, and continued her quest to restore Lordaeron. Now undead herself, she seems to be poised to lead the Forsaken back to humanity.
2The Future Warchief
It’s not just who the future Warchief will be, but if there will even be one. With the Desolate Council running things in Tirisfal Glades — including one of the heirs to the former throne (even if undead) — and a Horde Council keeping things together in Kalimdor, there seems to be little use for one.
It would be an interesting twist to see Azeroth enter a new era where the concept of a Warchief, or any kind of single ruler over the Horde, is an obsolete idea. The last big decision of the Horde Council was to accept the Dark Talons as Horde allies, and the ultimate result of that has yet to play out.
1Illidan Stormrage
Not everyone is going to be heartbroken about the death of Malfurion, who has taken Ysera’s place so that she might return. Those who remember the excitement of The Burning Crusade will also rememberits tortured big badand Malfurion’s twin brother, Illidan Stormrage. Known as the Betrayer, his story is one of the most tragic in the history of Azeroth, and part of his rage came from Tyrande choosing Malfurion instead of him.
The last we saw of Illidan, he had redeemed himself and opted to remain as the jailor of Sargeras at the Seat of the Pantheon. Those who are familiar with the long and tumultuous history of Warcraft’s most infamous threesome can’t help but wonder, even though there’s no hint of his return in any of the story or cinematics.
