The Queue: Patchstache
by Michael Sacco 
Aug 27th 2011 at 12:00PM
I was just going through my old screenshots and found this gem, from April 14, 2009. Some may remember this day as the launch day for patch 3.1, Secrets of Ulduar. But for me, it will live in infamy as Patchstache Day.
Twowolves asked:
Has it been stated the transmog will only work on green+ gear? There are some nice gray sets I wouldn't mind using.
The gear must have stats on it besides armor, and only uncommon (green) or higher rarity items have stats on them. Bonus armor, in green text, counts as a stat.
mrespman asked:
Will we be able to 'mog' the appearance of tabards?
There's been no word about it, but honestly, it's pretty unlikely. Wearing a tabard you don't like for rep gain is, at best, a minor inconvenience.
Erevan asked:
In previous expansions, an NPC comes in and "saves the day" during the last boss fight of the big end-of-expansion raid. Maiev Shadowsong came in to help with Illidan, and Tirion Fordring saved our butts during the Lich King fight. Who do you think is going to be our "save the day" NPC for the Deathwing fight?
No concrete information, but Alexstrasza and probably the other aspects, along with Thrall, will undoubtedly kill-steal us and hog the glory. That's the way the cookie crumbles.
J G asked:
I recently started a break from WoW, but for when i am back i am planning to switch servers and start anew. The one thing i play WoW for is raiding, and any advice on which server to transfer to for this is welcome. I may start pugging at first before committing to a guild, but ultimately it is a guild that i will look for. Suggestions, and the reasoning behind them are very much appreciated! :)
You can use the realm forums on the official WoW site to look for guilds on a specific server, or you can visit your intended server and use the Guild Finder feature in game to find a guild that matches the environment and schedule you prefer.
Adam asked:
Correct me if I'm wrong, didn't Metzen say at BlizzCon 2010 that Thrall would take over the mantle "Aspect of Earth" after we kill Deathwing? I doubt even the mighty Thrall could juggle two jobs at once.
You'll want to read the Thrall book for more details, but no, Thrall will not be the Aspect of Earth.
Have questions about the World of Warcraft? The WoW Insider crew is here with The Queue, our daily Q&A column. Leave your questions in the comments, and we'll do our best to answer 'em!
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 9)
That one Joey Aug 27th 2011 12:04PM
Question from someone who's never read the lore books:
I thought you had to be a dragon to be an "aspect"..?
Fletcher Aug 27th 2011 12:17PM
This is most likely true, but before it was definitively stated in Twilight of the Aspects, a lot of people (due to Metzen's comments last Blizzcon) thought that a sufficiently powerful Mary Sue could take up the role without necessarily being a dragon.
With that said, though, the line between dragons and people seems to blur at times. In BRC we see Corla turning humans into drakonids; it's never been stated to my knowledge but it'd make sense if the four-legged dragonspawn were *also* the enhanced minions of the dragonflights. There's a dragonspawn model with wings; could a mortal pumped full of enough dragon magic go all the way and turn into a dragon?
Matthew Aug 27th 2011 12:22PM
Metzen did not say this.
Read the book. It's really good.
eakin3 Aug 27th 2011 12:32PM
Everyone knows you never go full dragon.
loop_not_defined Aug 27th 2011 12:40PM
The "Thrall becomes new Aspect of Earth" thing was a rumor from before Cataclysm was announced. It was originally leaked on MMO-Champion, I believe, and it was partially true - Thrall filled in as Aspect of Earth temporarily.
Jason Aug 27th 2011 1:22PM
Thrall can't possibly be the earth aspect AND be expected to be making babies with Aggra, can he?
Wait, I take that back, maybe he can.
thawedtheorc Aug 27th 2011 2:48PM
New Legendary turns you into a dragon to fly. :P
Stabaa Aug 27th 2011 2:50PM
I can see Magni Bronzebeard becoming the aspect of earth. Even though he appears to be dead in IF, if you read The Shattering the wording behind the event that led up to him turning to stone is pretty ambiguos.
He had partaken in an ancient earthen ceremony to 'become one with the earth' which he misinterpreted as communing with it as a shaman perhaps would, not physically becoming part of the earth.
Even if he doesnt become an aspect I doubt we've heard the last from him.
Also wasn't Thrall meant to be the new Guardian of Tirisfal?
Leland Ford Aug 27th 2011 3:00PM
@Jason, it could be possible but Thrall would have to have some serious Chuck Norris style skills.
Artificial Aug 27th 2011 3:31PM
The titans made aspects out of dragons. It does not follow from this that only dragons can be aspects, just because, to date, only dragons have been.
Revynn Aug 27th 2011 5:43PM
- "Also wasn't Thrall meant to be the new Guardian of Tirisfal?"
No. When that theory came about, it was simply stated that an Orc would be the new guardian. We also knew at the time that Thrall would be stepping down as Warchief and people put 2 and 2 together. The new Guardian of Tirisfal is an Orc . . . Kind of. It's Medan, Garona and Medivh's half-human-quarter-Orc-quarter-Draenei-sham-pala-mage-adin love child.
Angus Aug 27th 2011 6:38PM
We named him Medan. Which means Mary Sue in Orcish.
Goodk4t Aug 27th 2011 8:00PM
The new Aspect of the Earth is Sabellian (Baron Sablemane), that Black Dragon in Blade's Edge Mountains.
llcjay2003 Aug 27th 2011 10:07PM
@Goodk4t: Good eye. I had completely forgotten about him. He is nowhere to be found since BEM, which is odd given that he is Deathwing's son. Fun fact: he considers Rexxar his friend. Add that and the uncorrupted black dragon egg that Rheastraza was hiding from DW (which Hieronymus Blam is currently hiding) and you can begin to don your tinfoil hat.
I wonder if they will address these 2 black dragons when and if they decide to anoint a new Aspect of Earth.
Suzaku Aug 27th 2011 11:09PM
Thrall can't become an Aspect. No mortal has the power required, as stated in the novel.
The rumors about that were based on ambiguous statements from Metzen that Thrall would be involved with the Aspects and that their little family was missing a member. He never meant that Thrall would be an Aspect, just that he'd be involved in helping deal with their problems.
In Twilight of the Aspects, he helps Nozdormu return to the present, helps Alexstraza cope with the death of her consort, and helps Kalecgos become the new Aspect of Magic. Then he uses his shamanic connection with the earth to fill in for Neltharion in a ritual.
Magni has been treated as being officially deceased ever since he performed that stupid ritual. It was the ritual used by Earthen to "return to the Earth", sort of like a funeral ceremony whereby they gave up their will. He and Cairne are out of the picture, replaced by new leaders, and there are new quests that have you visit their 'corpses'.
He could always come back. It is Blizzard, after all, but I think Blizzard's decision was to move the politics and leadership forward rather than fall back on old characters.
Med'an is the Guardian of Tirisfal, though I'd argue that he's far from a Mary Sue. Most people evidentally have not actually read the comic. His birth and parentage is a bit convenient (Garona and Medivh) but not that unbelievable, and he's nowhere near as powerful as, say, Knaak's pet characters. Other than being the Guardian of Tirisfal (in which various other characters channel their power into him) he's not particularily powerful. He gets thrashed quite a bit in the comic and spends a few issues completely unconcious while other characters try to rescue him. Hardly Mary Sue behavior.
pancakes Aug 28th 2011 9:27AM
An interesting sidenote on Human/Dragon hybrids: Maloriak in BWD was originally a human alchemist who was kidnapped & finused with Dragon-ness by Nef, according to the dungeon journal.
Bobby Earl Aug 29th 2011 11:05PM
@eakin: 10 mins later and I'm still LMAO.
That one Joey Aug 27th 2011 12:08PM
and another q4tq:
Where do you think deathwings raid portal will be at?
My votes:
1. Somewhere in Twilight Highlands
2. Blackrock Mountain
3. Deepholme
4. The Barrens (cuz man did the torch that place well enough..)
Alex Aug 27th 2011 12:20PM
I'm guessing it is going to be one of the areas blocked by invisible walls. Otherwhys, we shurely would have noticed a hige flaming dragon under/in one of the zones by now
Kaahn Stewart Aug 27th 2011 12:37PM
Perhaps they'll throw a wrench into our thoughts and they'll put his Raid Portal in the Wyrmrest Accord!
... Yeah, I know, but still. It was a funny thought.