World of Warcraft Traditional’s Season of Discovery is at the moment in full swing, and gamers assume they’ve discovered a startling connection to the trendy, “retail” model of Blizzard’s MMO within the type of a mysterious, Void-shrouded determine that simply is perhaps the franchise’s subsequent big-bad.
WoW is about to have a giant yr in 2024. There is a new enlargement, The War Inside, coming later this yr to the trendy model, whereas WoW Traditional is getting new class skills, reworked dungeons and raids, and the potential resurrection of minimize content material as a part of Season of Discovery. Usually, these two completely different variations of the sport do not work together in any respect. Mounts and toys unlocked in trendy WoW do not unlock within the old-school variations, for instance. They could be two variations of the identical recreation, however in some ways they’re miles aside.
That is exactly why it is so stunning that the villain Blizzard has already confirmed will play a big function in The War Inside, Xal’atath, may need simply appeared in Season of Discovery. As damaged down by longtime WoW content material creator Bellular, a brand new quest chain added only for Season of Discovery sees gamers venturing into the sport’s revamped model of Blackfathom Deeps (as soon as a dungeon, now a 10-player raid) to gather a mysterious object referred to as The Field: one with the ability to infuse the Void into armor. The quest sees gamers then journeying to Hillsbrad Foothills, the place a mysterious crystal made of sunshine, one not within the unique model of the sport, could be discovered. Utilizing the ability of the crystal, The Field could be destroyed, abandoning a single Shard of the Void.
It is what occurs subsequent that has the heads of WoW conspiracy theorists spinning. A mysterious elven determine, shrouded within the void, magically seems with a tempting provide. Reasonably than destroying the shard, the “Shadowy Determine,” as they’re referred to in-game, as a substitute proposes one other idea–use the shard to craft a robust piece of armor that can be utilized to “destroy evil or no matter it’s you lot do.” Ought to gamers agree, the Shadowy Determine teaches gamers the recipes to craft numerous Void-Touched armaments, that are at the moment a number of the greatest objects in Season of Discovery.
A lot concerning the interplay, from their elven and Void-masked look, to their dialogue the place they poke enjoyable at gamers and their noble intentions, and even the character of the hunt itself that sees gamers infuse an merchandise with the ability of the Void, traces up completely with that of Xal’atath. She’s a mysterious character that, in response to lore from the trendy model of WoW, has existed within the shadows of Azeroth for hundreds of years, her darkish essence infused into a robust dagger of the identical identify which has modified fingers quite a few instances and was even utilized by Priest gamers again in the course of the recreation’s Legion enlargement. In the direction of the top of the Battle for Azeroth enlargement, Xal’atath is free of the dagger after hanging a take care of the Previous God N’Zoth, free to roam the world as soon as extra.
What precisely she’s as much as in The War Inside continues to be a thriller, however it’s clear she’s as much as no good and can play a big function within the adventures to return. Prologue quests revolving round Xal’atath, who can also be known as The Harbinger, can be coming in Dragonflight’s patch 10.2.7 this spring to arrange her function within the upcoming enlargement.
The query nonetheless stays: Is the Shadowy Determine in Season of Discovery really Xal’atath? Blizzard will seemingly by no means say outright, however the proof does line up. If the Shadowy determine is Xal’atath, it has big implications, as it might be the primary time that the Traditional model of the MMO has crossed over with lore and characters from the trendy model of the sport and may very well be an indication of issues to return. Season of Discovery is at the moment nonetheless within the first part of its content material rollout, with new leveling phases and content material slated to reach each few months over the course of 2024, with phase 2 set to begin on February 8. Meaning it is attainable the mysterious Shadowy Determine might make extra appearances in future phases and doubtlessly provide gamers much more highly effective objects, together with extra clues about their true nature.
WoW: The War Inside is slated to reach someday this summer time, with the enlargement’s pre-patch, which is able to add the anticipated Warbands function that can enable characters on the identical account to share objects and rewards, anticipated to reach just a few weeks forward of the enlargement correct. Round that very same time, gamers in Season of Discovery needs to be reaching stage 60, with Blizzard having promised new endgame actions and content material updates for max-level characters.