Hail all,

Category: Games.

PART 1, PART 2, PART 3, PART 4, PART 5 and Part 6 can be found here. All links have now been fixed.

A word to the wise though, there may be spoilers in this. This goes for this and any other Part.

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It's weird, I'm blogging about WoW when I'm currently not playing it. Too busy actually. But I'm still fairly well-versed in it, and for this blog, we're yet again moving away from the story of the ancients (which will continue next, and every odd blog) and feature another specific thing from the Warcraft mythos of my desire.

Last time it was, of all things, a necklace. Today, it's a whole city.

Change of pace indeed.

No requirement to be up to date with previous entries to enjoy this one.

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The city I'm highlighting today is Stratholme. If you read my previous blog on the humans - withcity states building up now that the Arathor legacy is long buried, the two main centres of activity were Lordaeron to the north and Stormwind to the south. Around these built many villages and larger sub-cities, with Stratholme being one of them.

If you had played Warcraft 2: Tides of Darkness, Warcraft 3: Reign of War or World of Warcraft, you would be familiar with this city.

Very little information is available about the cities founding, though it did happen several years after the founding of Lordaeron. It was an ancient but well populated city of approximately 25,000 people.

It is also worth noting that the holy order of Paladins, the Knights of the Silver Hand were founded here. I'll definitely be talking about them in a blog soon.

In Warcraft 2, it was a major supplier of oil for the humans campaign against the Orcs. However, the oil was stolen and the city plundered. The citizens mostly were able to run and save themselves in Lordaeron, but the city did not survive and was demolished ruthlessly by the orcs. The city was actually originally situated on the edge of Lordamere Lake, which is in the south east of the Western Plaguelands. But with it's destruction, the villagers decided to create a new city in it's stead.

Fearing the return of the orcs, the current Stratholme was built further east in the north west of the Eastern Plaguelands. It also had outlying areas such as Light's Hope Chapel, but like Stormwind and Lordaeron beside it, Stratholme was a closed, walled-in city built to protect it's citizens.

During the campaign of Warcraft 3; Reign of Chaos, Prince Arthas Menethil (again, someone I will mention come another blog) fighting the scourge arrives upon Stratholme only to find that the plague of undeath had been spread here too and it was only a matter of time before it's citizens became undead. Ruthless and arrogant, Arthas along with several knights slaughtered almost the entire city and burned it to the ground. The dreadlord Mal'Ganis also correupted many of it's citizens, bringing ever more followers to the Lich King. It's a defining moment in Warcraft 3, signalling the start of Arthas' descent to the dark side.

In the forthcoming expansion, Wrath of the Lich King, a new Caverns of Time wing will open to players of World of Warcraft. It will be called "The Culling of Stratholme" (after the Chapter 6 Human campaign mission "The Culling" from Warcraft 3) and will feature the very events in the paragraph above. Players will be able to go back in time and enter the world alongside Arthas as he is about to destroy Straholme. It will be a 5 man level 80 dungeon and may help players understand who they will face as the end-game boss from Wrath of the Lich King.

In the wake of the destruction of the city, Kel'Thuzad moved in and rose the undead. He also magicked several major buildings and created the temple of Naxxramas, which floats above the city, plunging it into eternal darkness. Naxxramas also pleasently spews forth the plague, marking everything in and out of the city and corrupting the entire area with it's taint.

In World of Warcraft, Stratholme is one of the instance dungeons to the game. It is a level 60 5-man dungeon and was originally considered the end-game dungeon. It is a massive, sprawling city divided by 2 and can actually be ****fied as 2 dungeons. There are 2 entrances but no exits, and once inside you cannot leave unless by mage portal, hearthstone or by completing the end boss and recovering a key to the service entry.

Stratholme is divided into two sections basically. The Live side, and the Undead side. Both sides have a number of bosses, mobs and quests to complete. The instance is a major part of the Knights of the Silver Hand, Argent Dawn and Scarlet Crusade story and questlines. In fact, both the Scarlet Crusade and the Argent Dawn have a major stake in the city and it's denizens, with a makeshift camp at the nearby Light's Hope Chapel acting as a quest hub for them both and for both Horde and Alliance characters.

For the citizens of Azeroth, there is no more scarier place than Northrend. But the next scariest place is Stratholme. An entire city of undead, several hundred over-zealous Crusade fighting them, and the looming Naxxramas hovering above them. It is a city which is perpetually alight with fire and the moans of the undead savages. It is definitely not a friendly place to outsiders.

Much of it's history and story intersects with that of the Holy Paladins, the Argent Dawn and the Scarlet Crusade, but they too are such a huge part of WoW that they at least deserve a blog each. Even 1 of the bosses in Stratholme, Grand Crusader Dathrohan, has a very interesting story worthy of his own blog.

Still, as an instance Stratholme is one of the better dungeons in the game. It's one of the few early dungeons that featured outdoor and open environments. It really brought that feeling of doom across so well, and it's mobs and bosses are challenging and fun.

Stratholme may face damnation for eternity, as teh undead are relentless but the source of the problem may still be faced in the next expansion. People like Tirion Fordring (who will definitely get his own blog) who ironically lives very near the instance in exile, will see that it will.

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Which is where this blog finishes up. I racked my brains thinking of something good to write tonight and decided on the city of Stratholme only because it fits in with the whole storyline of WoW (or at least where it's heading) and because I had played The Culling mission today. Say what you will, it is a mission based on the slaughter of innocents, but it's still fun.

Cheers all,

Saga.

Hail all,

Category: Games.

PART 1, PART 2, PART 3, PART 4, PART 5 and Part 6 can be found here. All links have now been fixed.

A word to the wise though, there may be spoilers in this. This goes for this and any other Part.

---

Good to be back after a 2 day/blog siesta. I was initially not about to write this part, and instead write something else, but I'm not sure how that's going to pan out (and I'm not sure I really wanna know), but if I were/am going to blog it, I'd rather have the whole story first.

Anyway, World of Warcraft. Last blog explored a significant part of Lady Sylvanas' life and a quest item that Horde players can go and seek her about. It's a major part of the campaign of Warcraft 3 and looks set to continue and possibly conclude next expansion, Wrath of the Lich King.

However, that was an interim - a special entry I should say, in showing off a small and dearly beloved part of the game whose lore stretches much further back. Today, we're exploring a little more of that. The continuation of the story of the ancients.

Too be really helpful, I think Parts 1, 3 and 5 might be the most useful reading. Looks like the odd numbered entries are for continuing the storyline, the even numbered entries for anything I feel like spotlighting. Anyway, let's get started already...

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Dalaran became a city with a bustling economy based almost entirely on the city's many magic-users. However, the High Elves did not teach the humans about the care one needed to hide magic from the Burning Legion and the heedless use of magic that the citizens used drew their attention. Several demons were able to quietly slip into the world, and in something not unlike Jack the Ripper, were able to kill many late night citizens unaware in beastly and gruesome attacks.

As paranoia gripped the streets, the city elders did what they could to contain the story and what was really happening. Although sinister agents weren't a huge force to be reckoned with, fear gripped the people as gruesome attacks were becoming more frequent. The best mages were recruited to fight these agents but were killed easily against the might of the Burning Legion. Fearing the wrath of the military might of the humans of Stromgarde (who themselves were having some problems, but more on this later), the elders of Dalaran decided to consult with the people who gave their elders this power, the Elves.

The elves sent otu their best men to study Dalaran and concluded correctly that there were isolated Demons entering the world due to the careless use of magic which it's citizens employed. The elves then told the elders all about the First War, about how the Burning Legion entered the world and nearly destroyed it, and how Magic was what drawn them to Dalaran. Fearing the taking of magic away from the citizens and the riots that would happen should they be told the truth, the elders decided to form an alliance with the Elves which would train champions to fight the Burning Legion with, yep, you guessed it, Magic.

However, 200 years passed relatively peacefully. The elders met with High Elves in Tirisfal Glades, and the secret group came to call themselves the Guardians of Tirisfal. Mortal champions were selected through the most rigorous of testing, and only 1 Guardian would ever be working at any one time. The Guardians job was to defend all life from the Burning Legion and to keep anyone from discovering the threat that plagued the world. These Guardians were given the most powerful magic possible, they were the elite and fought behind the scenes. They were never rewarded for any of the very important work they did. In 200 years, peace seemed to last and the Elves monitored closely for signs of the Burning Legion and Stromgarde continued to prosper.

As 200 years ave passed, we are now 2,500 years before the events of WoW. It is at this time we meet the next race to roam Azeroth, the Earthen. Better known as the Dwarves. The Earthen were the Titans (you know, the gods that made the world) special children. Essentially, they were creators too, but in a much small sense. They had lived underground for 8,000 years almost, chilling out and hibernating away their time. But after all this time, they awoke and found themselves very different.

No longer were they stone skinned. No longer did their powers over earth and rock work. They were mortal men, and they ventured out into the world. They named the area Khaz Modan (a name that is still big in WoW) after the god Khaz'Goroth. Khaz'Goroth was one of the Titans that created the World, mainly responsible for every hill and valley. So he's big to the Dwarves. Khaz Modan literally means "Mountains of Khaz".

In keeping with their likeness with the dark and underground, the Dwarves created the thriving city of Ironforge and happily went about their business, isolated from the rest of the worlds inhabitants.

Jumping ahead another 1300 years, we are now just over 1000 years from the events of WoW. Things are pretty ship-shape in the world. Strom has built several city-states in the world, and under the watchful eye of the Elves, Dalaranhas become the centre of magic learning for the Humans. However, not all was well for the Humans...

After many thousands of years, Strom was an ageing city that offered nothing for the modern citizen. Impressed by the new city states large armies and stories of exploration and adventure, the citizens appealed to the city's leaders about moving the city to the north, where Lordaeron was becoming a popular foothold for the humans rapidly advancing population. The last of the Arathor bloodline dug in their toes and would not leave the place of their forefathers, which gained great displeasure from the citizenry, eager to leave.

At the same time, some important things happened. The city state of Dalaran created the Kirin Tor, an important (and still existing) faction whose main duty was to catalogue and research every single magic spell there is. And at the same time, the Humans first found Ironforge and became good friends with the Dwarves, finding like interests in Storytelling and mining.

However, each Human faction was becoming increasingly isolated. Dalaran had always been different, but there was a distinct difference in those that wanted to stay in Strom and those that wanted to go. Eventually, a mass exodus from the city happened, those that wanted to abide by the laws of Arathor and the bloodline decided to stay, though this became hard and they too decided to leave, moving way south. Lordaeron became a shining example of the advancements of humanity, while Stormwind was founded in a loving tribute to Arathor.

The dream of a united Humanity was lost. The empire of Strom had disintegrated into several smaller empires, each with their own customs and beliefs.

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Which is where this blog ends.

Cheers,

Saga.

Hail all,

Category: People.

Last entry was about a certain someone - a certain 10 years in the blink of an eye person, but it was a long-winded approach and so I broke up the entry. Here's Part B. Normal WoW related blogs to start later this week.

She called his mobile on the way there explaining that she and he had already met, that she had actually gone over there that day, about 1 hour before I came over (I didn't go over till night so I could drink) and that she and he had already known each other this whole time and decided to play a trick on me.

She decided not to stay at that house. Though she did stay in Matt's bed.

That was a surprise to me. But in the same way, kind of expected. I was conceiving an idea of having the two of them go out on a date. I didn't imagine that date would actually be in the bedroom, as I thought they both could have a good night out (they both deserved it), but they rounded all the bases while I was trying to get them to just make it to bat.

Still, it wasn't a bad pairing, I think. They both just needed some time for fun. Roxy had to move back hom and Matt couldn't stand living at a house for basically nothing and paying nothing. Dammit - I have no reservations!

So he moved back home too. They didn't last as a couple unfortunately, but Roxy is now pregnant. Silly I know, but it's happened. I kind of want to blame Matt for it, because Roxy has repeatedly told me she didn't want children. But obviously, both parties are involved here and so they are working together for the sake of the child. But they aren't together anymore.

I still see Roxy, she's great. It's good too have someone to **** against your workmates and know that she knows them and that it won't get back to them.

(Sidenote: I just read the most glorious leave notice that I have ever encountered. It's so good I made a copy and am taking it home.)

So yeah, she's good to chat too. Obviously, my mate Matt and I are still close. I don't go out much lately, the cost of petrol is beyond ridiculous and it's changing the way we live. I don't like it at all.

So, too keep up with each other, Roxy invited me as well as Matt on to, wait for it... Facebook. And so now I have a page.

So, it took a few days to get used to the site, and now I'm basically hooked. I check it daily to see if I have messages and to join groups. I've joined groups for my old schools and my location, and then about a week ago, I got a messge. From a friend from High School.

Someone I haven't seen for 10 years.

I got a message that I could basically hear - there was a lot of excitement behind that quick jumbled, cobbled together message.

But the meaning was clear - how are you Jeff? Been a while, huh?

And there she was - 10 years and yet time has barely changed us. She looks as I remember her.

Blink of an eye indeed.

Cheers,

Saga.

P.S Yeah, we keep in touch now. And through her I've found a few other old faces.

Hail all,

Category: People.

Ok, I went through my blog back a few pages to check - but you don't know this person so I should start from the start.

If you haven't realised yet - no, this is not a WoW based blog. We'll get to that later.

Anyway, a few months ago work decided to fire a friend of mine. At the time she was havign it rough. She found out that her husband was leaving her after having an affair with her friend for half her marriage. Quite nice actually. But then he's also racked up all the bills he can on credit and whatnot, and dumped her in it while he jets off. So yeah - not too good.

Lastly, she's found that he hasn't paid the rent and landlords kicked her. Turns out that he's been holding out on the landlord just enough to stay and he told him to have the money the day he left. So he knew what was happening and was just using my friend as long as possible. Where'd he spend the money?

On a $4,000 holiday for him and his girlfriend to Bali.

Anyway, so in the span of a month, my friend has lost her best friend, her husband, her job and her home. All of which was through no fault of her own. I also consider her a great girl, so I took her out a few times and kept texting her - seeing how she was.

Now, as it turns out, my other friend Matt (you've heard about him before) was also having a tough time. One thing about Matt is he doesn't like charity. He will donate, but he doesn't want any favours in life. He believes good hard work will be enough, no matter what. (Personally, I disagree, but that's not the purpose of this blog).

Matt's an apprentice and was living in a share house with another friend. But that friend is now in Jail and Matt needed somewhere else to live. He found a home with another friend. A good home too. But here's where it gets interesting...

Me and Matt regularly go to a club we enjoy. Its not far from this place so when he lived there (he doesn't now) he went to this club even more than normal. Matt happened to be at the club one night and was talking to the bargirl. The bargirl knows Matt very well, he's there a fair bit and so they chatted like normal. Matt was approached by my friend, someone he didn't know and she began talking to him about the place he lived in, knowing that there was a spare room from the Waitress.

Matt and her talked a fair bit and he got her phone number. At the time, they didn't realise I was each of their friends.

She had left a little early that night, and about 15 minutes after she left, I arrived at the club.

Me and Matt talked about the girl of course, but naturally I had no idea it was the same girl as my friend.

But a few days afterward, I went to call her and couldn't. Her line was busy. So I called Matt on his mobile and he answered, said I was coming over. He said fine, but he was talking to the girl who asked him about house on the home phone. First time she rang too. Obviously, my friend...

I went over there and we had a few drinks and chatted a bit. I liked this house. It was a real boys club. Pool table, PS2 and Guitar Hero, huge barbecue. A full size bar and heaps of grog. It was like a Palace. He even had a really good punching bag, which he never used for excecise but for getting rid of aggression (and that bag was worn well).

Anyway, I liked that house. While over there, I said I'll call my mate and see how she's doing - maybe invite her? So I call her and start talking and invite her over. When I tell her the address, the penny drops for her, and yet she doesn't say anything.

So over she comes, and I go to introduce her to Matt. I go, "Hey Matt, this is Rox..", and they both look at each other grinning, and then suddenly burst out laughing. And I'm standing there, in total shock, dumbfounded why.

She called his mobile on the way there explaining that she and he had already met, that she had actually gone over there that day, about 1 hour before I came over (I didn't go over till night so I could drink) and that she and he had already known each other this whole time and decided to play a trick on me.

She decided not to stay at that house. Though she did stay in Matt's bed.

And the conclusion... soon.

Hail all,

PART 1, PART 2, PART 3, PART 4 and PART 5 can be found here. All links have now been fixed.

A word to the wise though, there may be spoilers in this. This goes for this and any other Part.

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Hail, and welcome to the sixth part in my ongoing analysis of World of Warcraft. Remember, this is through my experience, so don't treat this as official canon. I may be wrong. For the complete story, I recommend checking out WoW wiki or the official site. Today is a short but sweet entry which makes sense if you had read the previous entry. Though this doesn't continue the story of the ancients.

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Today's blog entry is called The Lament of the Highborne, and if you are a Horde (one of the two factions in-game) character and you have the Burning Crusade expansion, than there is no doubt that you would have played, want to play, or know of this quest.

This is a low level quest which takes place in Ghostlands, the second new zone for the Blood Elves in their starting area. It is just south of Silvermoon and just north of the Western Plaguelands.

The quest itself is rather simple actually. One of the scourge will dropThe Lady's Necklace in Windrunner's Spire, which is a small outpost that was crushed when Arthas and the Scourge turned their eyes to Silvermoon.

Most of Ghostlands and Eversong Woods (the first of the two new zones for starting Blood Elf characters) are in disarray and disrepair after Arthas ripped his way through them 4 years prior. As such, Scourge and undeath remain. Silvermoon is still in somewhat good shape, though half of it is underweed and can't be accessed.

Anyway, finding The Lady's Necklace, characters can right click on it, reading it's inscription. This inscription gives you the hint that it might belong to Lady Sylvanas, but you take it to the local Magistrate to be sure.

After you take it to him, he confirms your suspicions and urges you to take it to her directly. You do just that.

If you had read my blog 2 parts ago you would have read of my love for Lady Sylvanas. Much like Lady Jaina Proudmoore, she is a good soul, yet has had much pain and suffering inflicted upon her life. In undeath, she leads the Forsaken, and they are really only a part of ther Horde due to her influence, even though she sees it merely as a means to an end.

Anyway, taking it to her starts an event unlike any other in the game. Giving her the locket will make her reminisce slightly and inform you of it's origin. The necklace was a gift from her sister Alleria. If you have played Warcraft 2, you would know the name. Alleria was one of the heroes of the Alliance, and she gave the necklace to her sister before departing for the Second War.

She's a hero to the Alliance, and like her sister, was a Ranger General for the Silvermoon forces. However, she was told from a dying Orc that her sister's had been killed (which wasn't true) and she took her vengeance on the Bleeding Hollow Orc clan, slaughtering them before entering the twisted nether to Draenor. She hasn't been seen since, though she was to appear in Burning Crusade. It's unknown why she hasn't.

There is also a monument to her in the Hall of Heroes in Stormwind for her actions in Warcraft 2. Strangely, like many of the heroes in that place, she was reckless and killed without sympathy or thought. The Alliance dont appear to have any true, moral heroes, it seems. Except of course for you-know-who.

Anyway, after Lady Sylvanas thanks you for the returning of the Necklace, she begins to sing. Backed up by pleasent sounding banshees (there's a first), she sings the Lament of the Highborne. This is an ancient song which is actually a part, not just of blood elves, but all elves. Sindorei and Kaldorei elves will know this song well.

It was first sung some 2800 years ago when the troll wars came and attempted to ripo apart Silvermoon. I detailed this attack in the previous blog. Over time, it's become a sorrowful song which is slightly altered to fit the mood. In this version, we listen to the song where Lady Sylvanas laments the loss of Silvermoon's Sunwell. It also re-enacts scenes from Warcraft 3, such as the ripping out of her soul by Arthas and her struggles to lead her armies against him.

Lament of the Highborne is really a tribute then, to all fallen Elves. It is the song that is overplayed during credits, that when activated by the quest in Undercity replaces the standard music, is a part of the Official Soundtrack and is the only one where vocals are really featured so prominently. This song represents the Elves and the Burning Crusade concurrently.

Upon the songs completion, talking to the Blood Elf ambassador besides Lady Sylvanas will give you a copy of the song's lyrics. The item has no use other than to show you what the song is about.

Lament of the Highborne then. A highlight in a game that rarely changes, this is one quest that really stands out.

Till next time,

Saga.

Hail all,

PART 1, PART 2, PART 3 and PART 4 here.

A word to the wise though, there may be spoilers in this. This goes for this and any other Part.

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Hail, and welcome to the fifth part of my WoW Playbook. This Playbook examines everything World of Warcraft as I see it. If you want the full expereience, I suggest checking out the WoW Wiki or the Official Site.

Today, we are continuing the story of the Ancients.

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Unfortunately for them, they came across the trolls of Zul Aman, vicious creatures who could grow back limbs and heal themselves of injuries which would ordiniarily equal death for any lesser race. The walking across their lands was seen as an act of war by the tribe, which was made worse when the Elves decided to create their new city on a land the trolls considered sacred. Constant war was sparked between the two and finally, the Elves decided to resort to magic...

However the Elves feared (as they rightly should) the use of magic may bring Sargeras back to their world. So they used a magical barrier to shield their learning of the arts and they placed runes around the city, which also put the fear into the superstitoius trolls. Almost as badly and fiercly as it began, the fighting between the two races was finished and the elves went about their duties of creating a great new city.

Eventually. 4,000 years passed of peace and tranquility for the High Elves. The city of Silvermoon was the shining beacon they had longed to create and their civilisation was secluded and never ventured further than their lands. So it was a huge surprise that they found themselves defending when once again, the trolls attacked in force.

At the time that the trolls laid seige to the monument of Silvermoon, the vast human tribes, spread all across the area of Lordaeron were in-fighting and going nowhere. Thankfully, one of these tribes was smart, and after beating another tribe and claiming victory, would offer a hand to join them. They steadily grew in number deliberately, knowing that the Trolls were to close and too big a threat to ignore.

Eventually, the many disaparate human tribes became the mighty Arathi, and the zone of Arathi Highlands and the battleground, Arathi Basin is named after these people. They created the mighty Stromgarde, an impressive fortress used to arm and train the massive army they now commanded. This fortess is still around in World of Warcraft, though it is dilapidated and over-run with common scum.

Thoradin, the King of the Arathi oversaw vast improvements under his command, and word continued to come down about the trolls massive forces and the elves being constantly under siege. However, he did not want to risk the lives of his men to reclusive strangers and so had some ambassadors look into the situation properly. A few High Elves met with him and discussed a union that would see his forces help out the beseiged High Elves. He agreed.

In addition, the High Elves would train the Humans magic, something which scared Arathor as he was brought up to believe in Military strength. Nevertheless, a hundred men were taught basic offensive magic and the humans joined the fight. The humans found the trolls a worthy adversary, as they (as previously said) wereable to regenerate limbs and heal wounds. Nevertheless, when military strength wasn't proving enough, they used magic and the trolls were burned and left in tatters. To this day, the trolls have never fully recovered.

This is why I said in the last post that Sylvanas, as all High Elves do, have more of a connection to the Humans than the Horde. Their history stems all the way back to here, as the victory against the relentless trolls signified a pledge of loyalty and friendship between the two races that lasted many years. The Elves returned back to their city to again rebuild it, while the humans returned to their fortress of Strom. They prospered for many glorious years under the watch of the mighty Thoradin, though he maintained that Strom was the heartland of the Arathi and the humans could not spread too far from their homeland.

However, after his death, the Humans began to expand their empire rapidly. At the same time, the 100 carefully chosen human magni who were always careful about their use of magic and power were growing old and began to pass on their skills to a younger generation who didn't follow their same rigid structure of ideals. They didn't have the self-restraint that these carefully chosen magni did, and this led to some dire consequences.

As the empire began to expand, so to did the Humans and their new Magni. They proved effective at protecting small townships from local critters and forces, but their magical powers made them conceited and increasingly isolated. In some time, a second city state was built in the Highlands, (which has now become the Hillsbard Foothills), Dalaran. A large city with many spires, it was based on the architecture of Silvermoon and it lured many isolated Magni.

Dalaran became a city with a bustlign economy based almost entirely on the city's many magic-users. However, the High Elves did not teach the humans about the care one needed to hide magic from the Burning Legion and the heedless use of magic that the citizens used drew their attention. Several demons were able to quietly slip into the world, and in something not unlike Jack the Ripper, were able to kill many late night citizens unaware in beastly and gruesome attacks.

Which is where the story shall continue - next time...

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The World of Warcraft, like or very own, is seeing constant repetition. From the rise and fall of empires to the purging and rebirthing of others - it is a constant cycle of repetition, of building and glory.

Of course, the humans luring the Burning Legion can not be good for the world...

Till next tim,

Saga.