Are the Draenei too good?
by Elizabeth Wachowski 
Jan 21st 2007 at 4:00PM
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Sure, anything that looks vaguely like Dr. Zoidberg probably can't be TOO good, but you have to admit that the draenei are almost preternaturally nice. They're all about healing the environment, and helping the needy, and preserving the light. The undead Kendoch of Blackrock says that their goodness has really turned him off from playing one, since it ruins his suspension of disbelief.
Other posters add that the Tauren are also pretty much perfectly good, except for the Grimtotem tribe, and that the Draenei might be very nice, but the Eredar -- who are about the same thing, genetically -- have messed up the entire universe.
Another thing to keep in mind is that the Draenei are fairly extreme in their pursuit of goodness, and in the Warcraft universe, any kind of extremism leads to bad things. Humans who got too extreme in their pursuit of the Scourge became the Scarlet Crusade. Going to "any lengths" to stop the Burning Legion led Tyrande to free Illidan, and we all know how that turned out. And the Draenei HATE the blood elves -- one of their early quests leads a Draenei chief to exclaim, "They must be wiped from the face of the earth!" More than a little creepy.
I know many members of the Horde refer to Draenei as filthy hippies or goody-two-shoes, but what do you think about the Draenei? Is their goody-goody exterior true to form, or is any race that makes sexual jokes about gnomes and the Staff of Dominance hiding some naughty secrets?
Filed under: Tauren, Analysis / Opinion, Draenei, Lore
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
jakk on the blackrock server Jan 21st 2007 4:12PM
why would he say they should be wiped form the face of the earth? they are in azeroth
Elizabeth Wachowski Jan 21st 2007 4:31PM
Okay, I probably didn't remember that perfectly, but they were definitely going to be wiped from the face of something.
jakk on the blackrock server Jan 21st 2007 4:41PM
lol ok. but yea from now on i refer to them as filthy hippies. /1 lvl 60 filthy hippie shaman headed for xroads!
Jim Jan 21st 2007 5:11PM
I think there's a big swerve coming. There's more than a superficial resemblence between the Naaru and those pumping stations in Zangamarsh, and it's telling that the Naaru are helping to drive various conflicts: encouraging the militarization and expansion of the Draenei, setting up internicine war between the Aldor and the Scryers (the big Naaru chooses which faction goes on missions).
The Burning Legion was only able to get the orcs to exterminate 80% of the Draenei. So how do you get rid of the rest? Disguise yourselves as beings of light, throw in some superficial goodies, get in good with the leadership, bring in a bunch of Blood Elves to live in the Draenei's original capital city.
Then tighten the rope.
The Draenei are outwardly good because they're *stupid*. They think they've been saved by the Naaru, when they're merely being herded into cages. And they're evangelical about it because the Naaru are encouraging them to build an orderly, controlled community to make it easier to wipe the Draenei out when the time is right.
Or, if not to wipe them out, maybe to turn them to the Legion. They are byblows of the Eredar, after all.
At least, that's my prediction.
Becca Jan 21st 2007 5:14PM
My guild and I lovingly prefer to call them Squidheads. We also seem to have a 'We don't party with calamari' rule in effect.
Paul Jan 21st 2007 5:25PM
I did some quests in the starting area and damn... they really are a bunch of boy-scouts.
Give me the Blood Elfs any day, much more interesting to follow the story, then some blue guys who dropped from space in a ship that doesn't even resemble a spaceship.
Matt Jan 21st 2007 5:33PM
Not only do I prefer the Draenei to the filthy undead who deliberately poison everything around them in an attempt to wipe out all that lives and the horrible junkie blood elves, I think the Draenei are hardly boy scouts. They've seen the majority of their own people go about as far to evil as it is possible to go, becoming bloody-handed, fanatical Eredar, and then they survived the purge of the demon-tainted orcs. These are a people who have endured repeated genocidal attacks from their own former kin and their pawns, have managed to traverse from reality to reality in an endless diaspora and finally found a home only to have it ripped from them. They're into the environment because they've seen it die. They're into helping others because of the times they themselves have needed help. And they're into preserving the Light because they've actually seen the Light wounded, stolen and perverted.
If someone who likes to play a walking corpse animated by an unholy plague who owes his or her entire free will to the rebellion of a ghost from the hands of demons has a hard time believing in good, that's his hangup. I have no trouble believing in the Draenei behavior, and it really does have a dark side. They've been hounded across infinite worlds and are cornered on Azeroth now: they're not playing nice at all anymore.
Matt T. Jan 21st 2007 8:34PM
Draenei......YOU ARE NOT PREPARED
RJ Jan 21st 2007 5:56PM
We can't forget that while they were fleeing from the Eredar they went to countless worlds and brought the Burning Legion to the worlds, destroying everything on them. The Orcs would have never been corrupted if it wasn't for the Draenei. Everything that has happened to the Orcs (and the Alliance) can mostly be blamed on the Draenei deciding to stay at Draenor. They demonize the Orcs left and right because they can't dream of actually admitting their mistakes and trying to fix it. They shift the blame on someone else and move on to another world to do the same thing.
qoa Jan 27th 2007 4:38PM
@1 Azeroth is also called Earth in the lore.
Abjure Jan 21st 2007 6:20PM
Capital E in Earth refers to the planet. Lowercase 'e' is earth refers to the ground (dirt, soil, etc If you think about it, it does make sense.
Kyle Jan 21st 2007 7:02PM
The draenei do look like goody-goodies on the outside. But they do have their darker sides.
One must remember that the majority of their race actually exist as members of the Burning Legion. They may call themselves different names, but they are the same race, outside of a few differences.
Additionally, as Elizabeth pointed out, they are pretty fanatical about the Light. One Broken in Orebor Harborage mentions that some try and force his fellow Broken to follow the Light again, even though they no longer wish it.
There's also a draenei officer in Telaar who, via hologram (or whatever), tells the guards to beat up a BE captive so he would talk.
So yes, the draenei do look like boy-scouts from the get-go. But after digging a bit, you'll turn up some darker sides.
Krianna Jan 21st 2007 7:20PM
I rather agree with Matt-- why is it that people can believe in horrible evil, but can't take _good_ characters?
I enjoy them. They're good people-- not always nice, but good.
If Bliz does that stupid, cliched "Oh, they LOOK good, but see how evil they are!" junk, it just might make me leave the game. It would be pathetic, and far below the standards Bliz has set for creative storylines. (I also don't watch any modern movies that have two-D Nazis or The Vatican as the villian; you can't be bothered to think of something new, I can't be bothered to pay.)
NewDark Jan 21st 2007 9:04PM
shattarth (or whatever its named) is where the draenei nicely LET the blood elves stay there for sanctuary, how can that be an extreame?
Qix Jan 21st 2007 9:45PM
I think that the Draenei being 'too good' is exactly what they should be. It helps them fit into the alliance better with the over-zealousness.
Finnicks Daerkhiv Jan 21st 2007 10:27PM
Several points here...
To #4:
Your argument is overlooking one fundamental thing... if the Naaru are the Burning Legion in disguise and are only trying to lead the Draenei to their ultimate doom, then why did they help them escape Argus in the first place, where they would have been a prime target for the Burning Legion even as 2/3rds of their people turned evil?
And explain, if the Naaru really are demons in disguise, how the Blood Elves are even now sapping the Light from a captive Naaru to empower their Paladins and Priests with the Holy Light? If the Naaru are evil corrupt demons, however much in disguise, how could Blood Elves pull Holy Light out of one?
And #13:
The Draenei faction in Shattrath, the Aldors, did NOT "nicely let" the Blood Elf Scryers move in. The Sha'Tar Naaru allowed them to move in. And if you paid any attention, you'd notice that the Aldors weren't too pleased about those arrangemetns, hence losing 1.33 rep with them for ever 1 rep you gain with Scryers. :)
Main Article:
The Draenei's attitude is very believable. The entire section of their population that wasn't 100% good was tempted away to join the Burning Legion. The Draenei are nothing but goody-goodies because all the less-than-goodie-goodies joined Sargerras.
schnippopotamus Jan 21st 2007 11:03PM
I think that the Draeni will probably go the way of the Scarlet Crusade but on a much larger scale. I think that they will probably be like the Puritans, they will only see in terms of black and white, good and evil, with no middle ground. This is probably why they reject the Horde and accept those who are more like them. The humans for instance.
Sam Jan 21st 2007 11:06PM
If you went across the universe and saw all of its evils and horros, wouldn't you feel obliged to do something about it? They're simply good people, just like there are evil races the Draenei are a good race. Even they have their dark sides though, look at the Death Priests.
It seems that people have an easy time relating to evil races but can't take a "good" race. Even the Draenei aren't entirely good, but the majority try to be the best people they can be, which I respect, and why I think they're such an incredible race.
That's just me though.
Shat Jan 21st 2007 11:45PM
the "evil" part of the Horde is the brutality they sometimes show, ala Grom Hellscream running amok in Ashenvale. The "evil" part of the Alliance is their zealotry. I think the Draenei fit in just fine.
Shat Jan 22nd 2007 12:40AM
@7, the Undead you play are NOT the Scourge, they're the Forsaken who broke away from the Scourge.