WoW Moviewatch: Dalaran Deserted
by Michael Gray 
May 18th 2011 at 12:00PM
The first and most obvious layer is Wowcrendor's deep affection toward Dalaran and his surprisingly powerful language regarding it. He describes the city in beautiful language, using potent, poetic phrases.
The second layer of messages comes when the other characters react to Wowcrendor's speech. The "chorus," as it were, remains completely oblivious to the elegant design of Dalaran. They remain focused on portals and teleports, missing the engaging, architectural beauty of the city. For better or for worse, Dalaran was definitely a pearls-before-swine moment.
Interested in the wide world of machinima? We have new movies every weekday here on WoW Moviewatch! Have suggestions for machinima we ought to feature? Toss us an email at moviewatch@wowinsider.com.Filed under: WoW Moviewatch
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
exogenesis. May 18th 2011 12:10PM
I really miss Dalaran. Like, loads.
As soon as I read that the Orgrimmar and Stormwind portals had made a return, I immediately set the hearthstone of all my toons back there. In the past couple of weeks, I've seen a very slow incline of players in Dalaran. Before, I was lucky if I saw two or three people. Nowadays, I'm seeing as many as ten!
-sigh- I really do miss it. I wish it was as crowded and bustling as it used to be, even with the horrid lag.
I miss Wintergrasp too.
Kunikenwad! May 18th 2011 12:15PM
I miss Wintergrasp too. It was chaotic, unbalanced, and a ripping good time whether you were winning or losing. And Dalaran was something to behold. Too bad; Orgrimmar seems so soulless now, unless you hang out in the Tauren district.
Theresa May 18th 2011 1:03PM
You mean there are people who don't hang out in the tauren district?
Bynde May 18th 2011 1:12PM
My 85 still does WG. Sometimes I'm the only Aliiance member there...and I like it. And on my server, ever since Cata came, the Alliance has had control of it much more than it ever used to.
Usually there is maybe 2 more people there with me, and it's actually interesting with such a small group.
Kurtis May 18th 2011 1:58PM
@Theresa - yeah, they hang out in front of the auction house, just like they used to. Except now it's also Garrosh's front porch.
cloudhopper013 May 18th 2011 6:13PM
Orgrimmar is soulless feeling because the "new" parts of it are mostly the same buildlings copypasta'd into a canyon (even less unique architecture than before, which is saying a bit. They're used all over the new orc settlements elsewhere), not to mention said buildings themselves are very soulless and IRON FORGE OF DEATH (maybe with the exception of the auction house buildings). I'll admit, they LOOK cool, but they don't FEEL cool. Just... something about it. :|
I dunno, that's just my two cents. I, PERSONALLY, would really trade Orgrimmar for Stormwind any day, what with it's whole uniqueness and RP-ness and hugeness and awesome city feelingness.
Daeolt May 18th 2011 6:30PM
I remember when I was on my mage and my guild was willing to help me get the final achievement I never got for my frostwyrm I teleported everyone to Dalaran. They all flew off but when I mounted up I stopped and looked down. I suddenly was hit with nostalgia, just as I did with Shatt. I remembered my first time stepping there as a little guy and leaving as a Duelist and a Kingslayer. Just flooded with all the memories I had there. Didn't know I made so many.
And don't get me started on Wintergrasp. I loved just sitting there with my music on, looking onward to the snowy plains and ruins, imagining life there before we came along. Dalaran was my Pally's afk spot, but Wintergrasp was my Mage's. I just loved the peaceful music, the grand skies, and the unknowing moment of when someone would try to ruin it by ganking me.
Good times.
MrJackSauce May 19th 2011 7:14AM
I remember when the Tauren District was deserted. I set my bank toon up there, and happily whiled away the hours in peace as the main part of Orgrimmar hustled and bustled with flapping wings and giant shoulder pads.
jdryner May 19th 2011 1:30PM
I totally agree with you, Xeno, I miss Dalaran as well. I remember exploring it for the first time, after buying my way there via a portal. I went below (Crystalsong), walked around for a bit, and got ganked by a wolf, then a deer, then a spirit. Good times, good times!
-Rathwyn (Drenden, US-A)
Saeadame May 18th 2011 12:10PM
I DO miss Dalaran, although I also love new Orgrimmar, so I don't think I would go back. Dalaran just had a nice atmosphere, it was like an old-world village in the sky.
cloudhopper013 May 18th 2011 6:15PM
I can totally agree with you and crendor, being the arts-and-aesthetics-obsessed guy I am. I feel sorry for those who just see these places for their mechanics like... portals, and don't stop to appreciate all the uniqueness and detail put into Dalaran and Shattrath and the alliance cities. And maybe some of the Horde ones on a smaller scale. :|
Debesun May 18th 2011 12:17PM
I guess spending all those years in Dalaran (and Northrend in general) made me feel fairly jaded towards it all when it was at its prime.
Though, I was flying through all the zones with a brief visit to Dalaran for a few achievements and I really do miss the magic that the whole continent seemed to have with the art, music and story. I don't know if it was just all the years of memories that I had associated with WotLK giving me a bad case of nostalgia, or if it was a legitimate quality that Northrend had... But I really do miss that place :(
Joe May 19th 2011 1:16AM
No, it wasn't just the years of residing in Northrend that makes it so special. It really is a wonderful place. There is not one time when I'm leveling an alt that I don't almost tear up when flying through Grizzly hills or Howling Fjord. The music, the climate, the theme. Especially for those 2 zones but overall Northrend has to be the most well designed and atmospheric place in the game. I love it so much and yes, I do miss Dalaran, my hearth is set there and I even idle there now. I just wish more people would see Northrend the way I do.
jealouspirate May 18th 2011 12:28PM
The only thing I don't miss about Dalaran is the music. The city is beautiful, but after a while the music drove me mad for some reason. Always turned my sound down when I was in Dal.
Aggrajag May 18th 2011 12:31PM
I would have gone back had I not discovered the Tauren District of Org where I can post/hearth/bank/AH/repair/sell all without dismounting or even if I do dismount everything is within a 20 yard radius.
Admittedly Dalaran is only a Ring port away anyway.
acehawkblade May 18th 2011 12:33PM
I moved back to Dalaran as soon as they put the portal back in. And there are actually other people there now, too. It's nice to see it being used again.
thepiratester May 18th 2011 12:35PM
Blizz has a way in killing cool content when they add new. Its a shame that they cant find a way to keep cool parts of past expansions alive- I miss the isle of quel'danas, I think they should have updated the levels there, perhaps add a few new quest. Keep everything relevant instead of blowing over it.
Matthew May 18th 2011 1:11PM
THIS. It is so empty now, and so beautiful. It's currently my desktop background.
Kuro May 18th 2011 12:44PM
I missed Dal a lot as well. I started a few months after Wrath was released and getting there it was all like new and shiny and I still have many fond memories of it.
New Org is pretty, but I rarely left the Tauren (or Troll district on my Shammy.)
I don't really understand why they re-added the Org port, but not the other cities. Why advantage does it provide to allow people quick access to Silvermoon or Exodar.. or the other cities? There's not too much Cata related and no sane person would fly from IF to TH or something where you could take a quick portal from the capital city.
I reset my hearth to Dal on my main and most of my alts as soon as they re-added the portal. I hopped on my talbuk and started running circles around the city. It's empty, mostly.. A few leveling toons, few 85 mages, even fewer 85 non-mages.
Dal's still a good place for doing business -- the AH, mailbox, anvil, and vendors are all in easy to access area.
One day I'll do a lil nerdy RP in trade and have my Mage offer free ports back to Dal from Org on behalf of the Dalaran Magus Chamber of Commerce... "Aimee the Pie Vendor misses you."
The Dewd May 18th 2011 2:20PM
They claimed (IIRC) that they added the portals back for people who had taken extended breaks from WoW and were "stuck" in Dalaran or Shattrah. Unfortunately for them, I don't believe this as you could always get a flight from Shat to Dark Portal and take the SW/Org portal from there. Or you could fly from Dal down to one of the Northrend start zones and catch a boat.
I suspect they realized that people really WERE pissed off about losing the portal hubs but didn't want to make it too easy to get around. They really did a lot of work on SW and Org and don't want people to miss out - but the problem is that it's not what the players want. We don't want to have to hoof it all over the place or bribe a mage friend for holiday achievements and the like.
These comments are making me consider moving back to Dal since the Earthshrine would just be a portal and a short flight away.