The World of Warcraft is an expansive universe. You're playing the game, you're fighting the bosses, you know the how -- but do you know the why? Each week, Matthew Rossi and Anne Stickney make sure you Know Your Lore by covering the history of the story behind World of Warcraft.

Because of the way we experience the setting, the story of World of Warcraft progresses in bursts. It's fair to think of each expansion as a new series, and the patches as episodic, in the same manner as British TV series such as Doctor Who or Turning Evil. Therefore, each expansion brings new settings, new dangers, and a new, overarching storyline, while each patch is an advancement of that storyline, bringing it to a conclusion with the ultimate patch of each expansion. In this way, Patch 4.3 is effectively a multi-part episode concluding the story of our confrontation with Deathwing.

I bring this up because with Mists of Pandaria, we're going to see a whole new place and explore it. In essence, it will be an expansion that introduces a great deal of new -- new lands, new peoples, new experiences. While it will still be part of Azeroth and still part of the unfolding storyline, it's also a change to switch gears and get away from the familiar. In a game like WoW, it's necessary to introduce new elements in this way to keep the setting engaging. It may be hard to relate now, but Ragnaros, Ahn'Qiraj, the Old Gods, the Silithid, all were introduced in World of Warcraft and not any of the RTS games. Look at the Warcraft III map of Kalimdor. You'll notice pretty much everything south of Feralas is blank on it.

This puts me in mind to speculate on the future of the game and where the lore is going to take us. Not just in Mists, of course, as I expect that much of the lore of the expansion is well and truly fleshed out already, and I'm as eager as anyone to see it. But we've got expansions down the road and trends to consider. None of this absolutely will happen ... but some of it might.

The Blackrock clan and the Horde

The Blackrock clan of orcs is placed in an unusual position as the war between Alliance and Horde continues. They still hold Blackrock Mountain, but with the death of Rend Blackhand and many of the corrupt leaders of the Blackrocks and the rooting out of Nefarian once and for all, the Blackrocks are at a tipping point. Consider that this was the clan of Blackhand the Destroyer, the clan of Orgrim Doomhammer, the clan that led the charge through the Dark Portal and that shaped the very destiny of the Horde entire for decades. Now, for the first time, they're leaderless and not under the control of an outside force like Nefarian. What does that mean?

Considering that we know that Eitrigg and his son Ariok are Blackrocks, it's possible that we'll see a renaissance for the clan. For one thing, they still hold a bastion of power directly north and south of Alliance territory. From Blackrock Mountain, Blackrock orcs can threaten Redridge and Northshire and can even strike north into the Searing Gorge. They're at war with the Dark Iron dwarves, who are also free of Ragnaros at the same time that the orcs are free of Nefarian, and we know that Moira Thaurissan is making progress toward claiming rule of both Bronzebeard and Dark Iron for her son, Dagran Thaurissan II. This puts the Blackrocks in a position where they need alliances to survive.

Now consider that under Garrosh, the Horde was willing to accept the Dragonmaws, a clan despised by many and with a history of the fel orc taint, back into the fold. How much more attractive is it to consider making a strategic partnership with a clan with a long-established history of warfare, especially now that Eitrigg and his son have cleansed the clan of their corrupt influences? With Rend and his chosen leaders dead, in fact, Eitrigg himself is a leading candidate for head of the clan.

Furthermore, the Dragonmaw offered a port and a toehold into the Twilight Highlands, a territory fairly distant from any other Horde base and with minimal strategic importance aside from bringing war to the Twilight's Hammer. The Blackrocks can offer a fortress right in the heart of the Eastern Kingdoms, quite close to Kargath and Stonard for ease of resupply and reinforcement, that divides Khaz Modan from Redridge. If you want to eventually move to sack Stormwind, this is a tempting forward base.

Keep an eye on the Blackrocks. They have nothing to lose at this point and nothing stopping them from agreeing to recognize Garrosh as Warchief. And if they do, the Alliance will find the wolf is now squatting directly on their door. A stronger Blackrock/Horde relationship doesn't need to happen during Mists, but it almost seems inevitable once we move past it.

The Prophecy of Velen

Pandaria and its wonders and dangers are compelling and new, and I for one am looking forward to exploring them. But I definitely see our sojourn there as an interlude where we get to see a place that developed on its own for 10,000 years and experience their different perspectives and histories. Always looming in the background is the prophecy that Velen spoke to Magtoor and Avuun. Azeroth is not merely a world torn apart by wars, with a history of conflict and clashes against great, terrible forces of destruction. There's a war coming, a war of cosmic significance before which even Deathwing is merely a harbinger. And that ultimate conflict between equal and opposite cosmic forces will be fought on this small, twice-sundered planet.

One of the creatures mentioned in previews of the upcoming expansion is the Sha, living manifestations of dark energy. The Sha remind us not only of Entropius (the dark cycle form of M'uru) but also of the stained glass entities seen in the Descent Into Madness in Ulduar.

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Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, The Burning Crusade, Lore, Know your Lore, Cataclysm, Mists of Pandaria