The Horde Doesn't Matter Anymore

The speaker expresses concern about the diminishing role of the Horde in the upcoming "Midnight" expansion, arguing that Blizzard's recent storytelling choices have sidelined the faction. Despite the Horde's historical importance in World of Warcraft, including iconic moments like Grom Hellscream's charge and Vol'jin's revolution, it appears to be absent from the current major narrative. The immediate context for this concern is the attack on Silvermoon, where the Lights Vanguard, its primary defense, was incapacitated. Logically, the Horde should have been called upon for aid, yet the narrative instead focuses on reaching out to other elven factions, starting with the Kaldorei (Night Elves). This decision feels incongruous to many players, especially given the long-standing animosity between the Night Elves and Blood Elves, a key component of the Horde. The speaker highlights the historical antagonism: Night Elves condemned the Blood Elves' use of the Sunwell and shunned the Nightborne, pushing them towards the Horde. Conversely, Blood Elves supported Garrosh's war and participated in the burning of Teldrassil. Given this history, the idea of Night Elves assisting Blood Elves feels strange and undermines established lore. Blizzard's potential rationale, as revealed during the World Soul Saga, was a reunification of elven tribes, a concept that sounded promising. However, the implementation appears rushed, with centuries of trauma seemingly overcome in a brief encounter. The speaker suggests this could have been an opportunity to explore the complex history between elven tribes, but it was missed. The narrative attempts to explain the Blood Elves' need for an army by drawing on other elven allies: Bellameth (due to proximity to the Dragon Isles), Suramar (a powerful city-state with portal capabilities), the Silver Covenant (who resettled near Eversong), and the Void Elves (who, despite their banishment, have less reason to hate the Blood Elves). This provides a plausible, albeit elven-centric, army for Lor'themar. However, the complete absence of other Horde factions is striking. The speaker points out that the Horde is portrayed as exhausted from decades of war and governed by a seemingly inactive council. Despite recent instances where Thrall could rally forces, the current narrative implies a difficulty in mobilizing the Horde, potentially due to logistical constraints or the need for a powerful artifact like the Sunwell to teleport an army. While these explanations might make "sense" within the story's constraints, they do not resonate with players. The speaker illustrates player sentiment by referencing Old Man Maverin, a Forsaken military figure who dedicated himself to defending Silvermoon but is now retired and effectively forgotten in the current crisis. The Forsaken, despite their close ties to Silvermoon and a pre-attack plea for aid from Liadrin, are conspicuously absent. Similarly, other Horde leaders like Gazlowe and the Tauren (whose central figures were randomly teleported to the Sunwell, indicating awareness of the crisis) are shown as either too busy or stuck in "stasis," doing nothing. The Blood Elves, a backbone of the Horde, are portrayed as not reaching out to their allies, and the Horde, in turn, does nothing. The speaker concludes that the Horde's absence is not due to logistical challenges or busy schedules, but a deliberate choice by Blizzard to exclude them from the story. This suggests that Blizzard no longer views the Horde as a "worthwhile storytelling unit" and has instead pivoted towards the reunification of elven tribes. This shift, the speaker argues, highlights Blizzard's uncertainty about the factions and their legacy. The speaker traces the "breaking" of the Horde as a storytelling entity to the Fourth War and its revelations in Shadowlands. Initially, the Fourth War made sense as a brutal culmination of Alliance-Horde tensions, but the revelation that Sylvanas manipulated events to fuel the Jailer made the factions' sacrifices feel "pointless." This, combined with real-world controversies at Blizzard, led to a pivot away from stories that could be perceived as "uncomfortable," effectively sidelining the "hard edges, death, loss, and redemption" that defined Horde storytelling. The speaker cites the alteration of Eitrigg's iconic "strength and honor" motto to "strength, peace, and honor" as a prime example of this shift, arguing it sacrifices the "soul of the Orcish people" for a more "young adult fantasy" ambition. Despite the perceived decline of the Alliance and Horde as central factions, the speaker acknowledges that "factions" themselves are still crucial for facing world-ending threats. However, the nature of these factions is changing. "Midnight" introduces new de facto factions, such as the Vanguard of the Light and the reunited elven tribes. The speaker sees potential in this "post-faction future," envisioning a Lordaeron-focused human and Forsaken faction, a pan-Troll faction, or a coalition of the Children of the Titans. However, the problem arises when Blizzard ignores or downplays the historical Alliance and Horde, effectively "cutting out 20 years of player experience." The speaker believes that with a little more effort in explaining the factions' non-involvement, players might accept the new narrative. Instead, the lack of explanation forces players to constantly ask, "Where are the Horde?" The speaker emphasizes that the interaction of these two grand coalitions defined Azeroth and World of Warcraft. While change is inevitable, when a game "forgets what it is," players feel a disconnect. The Horde, in particular, resonated with many players as a symbol of outcasts, underdogs, and the misunderstood. Its unique "American in a good way" take on fantasy, distinct from the "Anglo-Saxon Tolkien-inspired" Alliance, made Warcraft stand out. By abandoning this unique identity, Blizzard risks losing what made their world special. The speaker expresses hope for a return to a "cold war" dynamic, reminiscent of vanilla World of Warcraft, where distinct peoples with political and defensive alliances faced smaller, more grounded conflicts, like the Night Elves' love for trees clashing with the Orcs' need for wood. This, the speaker concludes, is the kind of world-building that makes a world feel real and is what Blizzard has lost.