This is an archive of Burning Crusade's race ideas.
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This article or section includes speculation, observations or opinions possibly supported by lore or by Blizzard officials. It should not be taken as representing official lore.
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After the recent reveal to the world of the new playable Alliance Race for the Burning Crusade expansion of World of Warcraft, the Rumored Races page has no purpose to keep this expansion's arguments about that race. Here follow the last version of the Wowpedians' speculations since the official Blizzard announcement of the new upcoming expansion.
The New Alliance Race
8:30am update: NY times reports these shots are actually of Draenei (see [1], [2])
Blizzard's E3 presentation of the Expansion including (something that looks like) Eredrar as the new alliance race: [3]
Blizzard has confirmed at E3 that the new Alliance race will be an uncorrupted, unmutated version of the Draenei. [4]
BIG NEWS: E3 Report with Details on New Race
- The following has been confirmed false by the new information*
Several screenshots have been captured of Blizzard's display at E3. Though originally believed that the race depicted may be draenei, subsequent pictures of Blizzard's mural artwork appear to depict Eredar. This is a strange revelation, as the Eredar are known to be the most powerful demons in the Burning Legion. We can only speculate on why they would therefore join the Alliance - if indeed they are Eredar Warlocks. There is far too little lore on the Eredar at any rate, and we may yet be surprised.
A possible explanation for the Eredar could simply be mutual interest. One knows that Kil'Jaeden wants Illidan dead, as do the Night Elves. Since the goal, as of now, for the burning crusade is to defeat Illidan, one can speculate that the Eredar and the Alliance have just teamed up as a means of defeating Illidan.
Another popular theory is that the Eredar aren't actually true Eredar. The theory states that the Wisps who destroyed Archimonde were affected a great deal by the destruction of the demon lord and the World Tree, enough so that the immense magical energies released resurrected and transformed them into the image of Archimonde. If
this is true, it would mean that the Wisps April Fools joke, while still a joke, was actually a hint towards the new race. This is supported by how the Eredar's eye glow like a Night Elf's, as the Wisps are the ghosts of Night Elves.
Of course, a clear explanation would be that the Draenei in the expansion will look fairly different than the Draenei we have come to know and love. This can be seen in the picture of the Broken One breed of Draenei, who like these screen shots, has tentacles down from his cheeks. The new alliance race would not be the "Broken Ones", as the bestiary is for NPC types only, however that does not exclude it from being a separate yet similar-looking race of Draenei. This is analogous to how the Forest Trolls are in the bestiary, yet the Jungle Trolls are a playable race, as they are different yet closely related races.
Its said that the reason that Blizzard waited so long was to fully update the art, and this theory fits with that explanation as the new art is vastly different from the old art. The new blood elves appear different from the old blood elves, however the changes are not as revolutionary.
The Burning Legion is just an alliance of evil, however, so it is also possible that these Eredar want to stop their corrupted brethren and their Burning Crusade, since they are a race just as any other.
According to NY times it turns out that Draenei are a subspecies of Eredar.
Official Blizzard Response
- "They're bigger than a bread box." (Well, so much for Pigmy Gnomes)
- "It's something fun to speculate about. Also each new race is going to be accompanied by new starting areas, quests, etc. It's a big question mark right now, of course people are going to be excited. I'm excited to see the reaction." (It makes me wonder, will it be an unexpected choice?)
Tigole Says: (Jeff Kaplan)
- "With the Alliance race, our goal wasn't to make an "ugly" race. Our goal was to make a "cool" race. We thought of races that fit into the Warcraft lore and complemented the Alliance. We also thought of races that fit this particular expansion, Burning Crusade, and the Outland and started from there. But from the beginning, we wanted to pick something cool. At the end of the day, we needed to approach it as a player and ask ourselves, "Would I want to play that race?" Personally, I am very excited about our choice."
- " Since our official announcement at BlizzCon concerning the upcoming World of Warcraft expansion pack, we've seen a great deal of speculation regarding what race players believe might be available to the Alliance faction. This topic has revealed itself to be both highly debatable and exciting, and we're definitely pleased to see so much interest surrounding this particular future addition to the game.
- With that being said, we wanted to take this time to remind everyone that we have not provided any information or made any announcements concerning the new Alliance race to any Web sites, magazines, or other media sources. While we don’t want to discourage you from continuing your discussions on this matter, we ask that you keep that bit of information in mind. When we’re ready to announce the new race, we’ll eagerly share as much information as we can with everyone on our community site."
- "If we even remotely hint that we might know what the new Alliance race will be, the badgering for information on that subject would increase tenfold. :P
- That said, as someone who has participated in the detailed speculation that comes from an impending announcement such as this in the past, I am tickled by the elaborate explanations you folks come up with to support your claims. :)"
- "We're going to announce the new Alliance race when it's in a state that will allow us to present it in all its glory, meaning we want to be able to show off the finished model, art, new zone and discuss in detail all its lore. Each of these items are already available for the Horde's new Blood Elf race and such was even playable at BlizzCon. We're really ecstatic about both new faction races, and feel strongly that both need to be given an opportunity to shine when unveiled.
- I will however confirm that the new Alliance race is not the Kool-Aid man. As 'kool' as he is, we felt his existence in Azeroth would be a bit disturbing and thus I felt this as good a time as any to put an end to this specific rumor. ;)"
Notes on Races
The table below represents the best efforts of the Wowpedia community to list reasons why a race may or may not be the new Burning Crusade Alliance race, but also includes reasons why they may be in a future expansion. They have been placed in alphabetical order to reduce bias toward any particular race.
NOTE: Rumors are unsubstantiated and commonly false.
- Rumored Races:
- Levels of likelihood (of being true):
- Confirmed — The races marked as Confirmed were officially presented as THE new race for its appropriated expansion.
- Debunked — Debunked as a possibility by supposed official sources (Blizzard employees).
- Reasons:
- Bold-written reasons — Relatively strong reasons/arguments.
- Italic-written reasons — Relatively weak reasons/arguments.
Race | Likelihood | 1st Appears | Reasoning | |
Centaur |
BC: Debunked | WC3 |
+ Maraudon quest lines indicate race may be poised to undergo a reformation. | |
Children of Cenarius † |
BC: Debunked | WC3 |
+ Strong Alliance connection. | |
Dark Trolls |
BC: Debunked | WC3 |
+ A tribe of Dark Trolls aided the alliance in the Battle of Mount Hyjal. | |
Draenei |
BC: Confirmed | WC3: TFT |
+ Lore-based hatred of Orcs. | |
Drakonid |
BC: Debunked | WoW |
+Early Warcraft lore states that Alexstrasza gave an oath of non-aggression to all of the current races of the Alliance (excluding Gnomes) as long as she was in power over the Red Dragonflight, and she has a deep hatred for Orcs. This suggests a reason for the Red Dragonflight to join the Alliance. | |
Dragonspawn |
BC: Debunked | WC3: TFT |
+Early Warcraft lore states that Alexstrasza gave an oath of non-aggression to all of the current races of the Alliance (excluding Gnomes) as long as she was in power over the Red Dragonflight, and she has a deep hatred for Orcs. This suggests a reason for the Red Dragonflight to join the Alliance. | |
Eredar |
BC: Confirmed as uncorrupted draenei | WC3 |
+ Very strong connection to Outland and overall theme of Burning Crusade. +GameSpy reports having seen a video featuring a member of the new race. Blizzard has not announced the name of this race, but Gamespy reports it is a huge race about the size of Taurens. They have bluish skin (although as with the other races, this could be customizable) and small mindflayer-like tentacles hanging from their chin. They also have a large tail (maybe scaled) and what look like hooves. The description does almost perfectly describe an eredar. + We've seen how Metzen likes to break the standard fantasy stereotypes - orcs being honourable, high elves being shorter than humans etc. Adding a demon race to the supposedly 'holy' Alliance would be certainly in the style of Metzen. + Forsaken-type lore - they may have decided to make their own way after the fall of Archimonde, deciding not to join with Kil'jaeden. + Known to be powerful shapeshifters and manipulators (Kil'jaeden for example), meaning that a joining to the Alliance will certainly not be out of their grasp if they wish it to be so - the Alliance would have no choice in the matter: they've seen what Onyxia can do. + Of all the probable races debated, this one would probably produce the largest "What?!?" reaction promised in the quote from Blizzard. + Beastly and large race, a good balance addition for Alliance. Also, there are no physical inhibiting factors. (In Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne, maps on Outland feature smaller (roughly tauren sized) Eredar as "creeps" that players can kill for gold and experience. They are not extremely huge or extremely powerful. These may be "regular" Eredar while others like Archimonde are special demon lords.[5]) + Their demonic affiliation makes them good counterpart of Blood Elves. + Eredar are not bestial or overly violent like many other demons, and have good reasoning. They know a good opportunity when they see one. - They are "Demon"-type creature in game, not Humanoid. But this can be changed the same way as Forsaken are not Undead. - They are evil demon commanders of the Burning Legion. - Hated by many races. But this never stopped them from turning multiple races to the Burning Legion. | |
Ethereal |
BC: Debunked | WoW: BC |
+ Provide a new, unique visual style to the game. | |
Forest Troll |
BC: Debunked | WC2 |
+ Absolutely hate Blood Elves. | |
Furbolg |
BC: Debunked | WC3 |
+ Night Elf connection. | |
Gnolls |
BC: Debunked | WC3 |
- Little evidence of civilization. | |
Goblin |
BC: Debunked | WC2 |
+ Neutral cities could remain neutral if its a group of goblins separate from the steamwheele Cartel. | |
High elves |
BC: Debunked | WC2 |
+ Close ties to the Alliance. | |
Ice trolls |
BC: Debunked | WC3 |
| |
Mok'Nathal |
BC: Debunked | WC3:TFT |
+ Provides a large, Horde-like race for the alliance. | |
Mountain Giant |
BC: Debunked | WC3:TFT | + Lore connections to Alliance. - Possible balance issues. - Too big. - No Obvious Relationship to Outland. - Not seen wearing clothes. - Unknown intelligence, culture, or civilization. | |
Murloc |
BC: Debunked | WC3 |
+ Rumors of Verging on Sentience. (Illidan Rocks says: "The bonus orc campaign in The Frozen Throne provides precedent for murlocs being sapient; those who worshipped the Sea Witch were clearly intelligent and even had dialogue.") | |
Naga |
BC: Debunked | WC3 |
+ Relationship to Outland via Illidan. | |
Nathrezim |
BC: Debunked | WC3 |
+ Very strong connection to Outland and overall theme of Burning Crusade. + We've seen how Metzen likes to break the standard fantasy stereotypes - Orcs being honourable, High Elves being shorter than humans etc. Adding a demon race to the supposedly 'holy' Alliance would be certainly in the style of Metzen. + Forsaken-type lore - they have decided to make their own way after the fall of Archimonde and Tichondrius, loosening their binds to the Scourge and the Burning Legion and now have their own agenda, as we can see from Balnazzar and the Scarlet Crusade, and his brother, Varimathras and his Forsaken allegiance. + Known to be powerful shapeshifters and manipulators, meaning that a joining to th Alliance will certainly not be out of their grasp if they wish it to be so - the Alliance would have no choice in the matter: they've seen what Onyxia can do. + Of all the probable races debated, this one would probably produce the largest "What?!?" reaction promised in the quote from Blizzard. + Beastly and large race, a good balance addition for Alliance. Also, there is concept art for a wingless Nathrezim, meaning that wings may not necessarily be an issue. + Their demonic affiliation makes them good counterpart of Blood Elves. + Nathrezim are not bestial or overly violent like many other demons, and have good reasoning. They know a good opportunity when they see one. - They are "Demon"-type creature in game, not Humanoid. But this can be changed the same way as Forsaken are not Undead. - They are evil demonic soul vampires. - Hated by many races. But this never stopped them from seizing control. Mal'Ganis and Tichondrius managed to dupe the Prince of Lordaeron into turning to the Scourge. Forcing an alliance won't be difficult, especially when you have the power to cripple your 'allies' from the inside... | |
Nerubian |
BC: Debunked | WC3 |
+ Fanatic hatred of the Undead, Scourge or otherwise. | |
Ogre |
BC: Debunked | WC1 |
+ Originally from Draenor/Outland. + Ogres left the Horde since the end of the Second War because the Horde was too weak, and became their own party. They can easily join the other faction (Alliance) by doing something to convince them. + Ogres were touched up a bit with a few of their animations. ? No female Ogres have been previously seen, see Draenei + Ogre Rumor ? Revealed Outland Ogre model [7] casts some doubt to some on whether Ogres are indeed the Alliance race. Though this model is obviously a 'creature' Ogre, another question can still be posed. Why take a large amount of time to create a new Ogre model when a simple reskin of the 'player' Ogre would probably suffice? However, due to recently given informations, these ones might be the Ogre-demigod leaders called the Gronns, or maybe their brethren. - Traditionally a Horde race. - "This is not Everquest, this is World of Warcraft. Ogres are not a playable race so they have no need of fitting through doorways."--Drokthul, Blizzard (Dec 2005) | |
Pandaren |
BC: Debunked | WC3: TFT |
+ Settlement in Stonetalon Mountains, and there is a zone-sized unused area on the map at the west end of the Stonetalon range. Pandaria said to be located on island in same area. (WoW RPG) | |
Quilboar |
BC: Debunked | WC3 |
+ The god of the quilboar, Agamaggan, battled the Burning Legion in ancient times. | |
Satyr |
BC: Debunked | WC3 |
+ Very strong connection to Outland and overall theme of Burning Crusade. Might be good help for Alliance in the Outland against their evil brethren. | |
Tuskarr |
BC: Debunked | WC3: TFT |
+ Limited lore--this could enable blizzard to adapt it to their needs. - Tuskarr would most likely join the alliance in the Northrend Expansion Pack as that is their native land. | |
Worgen |
BC: Debunked | WoW |
+ The Kirin Tor Archmage, Alphus Wordwill, suggests a method of using "good-hearted" worgen to fight the Scourge and other evils for the Alliance: "This begs the question as to what can be done with them. Are we morally correct in eliminating them, as they are a danger to all mortals? I do not believe so; rather, I believe we should find a cure. If possible, this cure would not prevent the transformation, it would do more — it would preserve the afflicted individual’s mindset after the transformation. Such an effect would allow good-hearted worgen to take on fearsome physical abilities and use these against the Forsaken, the Scourge and other evil powers. Given proper funding and support, I believe that I could create such a cure." (Excerpt from Warcraft: Lands of Conflict) |
Notes
- ∴ If this Wisp thing isn't an April Fools joke, I'm scared. --Fandyllic
- At Blizzcon, creative director, Chris Metzen had this to say regarding the new race: "When we finally reveal [the alliance race], it's gonna blow your mind. At first, you are gonna say 'whaa?', but then 'wow...'. It's gonna be awesome."
- "...all of the WOW races will have strong motivating incentives to go to Outland", CGW, Dec 2005
- † Children of Cenarius, or Cenarians are: Keepers of the Grove (male), Dryad (female).
- 1 Gaming Steve is a dubious source, but could be considered an industry insider.
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Credits
Thanks especially to Xmuskrat who put a ton of work into this page. Credit also goes to the many other Wowpedia users who contributed to and bashed heads over this page.
The BCRR page was created by Kirochi
Thanks also to Blizzard who generated the desire for this page by their cryptic inscrutability.