The Queue: Never say no to panda
by Anne Stickney 
Mar 15th 2012 at 11:00AM
Welcome back to The Queue, the daily Q&A column in which the WoW Insider team answers your questions about the World of Warcraft. Anne Stickney (@Shadesogrey) is taking this thing over today.
Look, you can say no to panda if you want to, but we're not going to be responsible for the consequences, OK?
Knob asked:
What happens if Alex sleeps through the entire MoP presentation?
You see that video up there? Something like that.
thedoctor2031 asked:
In line with the breakfast topic, do you think we are going to get any information on the whole Theramore burning thing? It would be nice to find out if the Alliance is going to play catch-up the entire expansion as well.
Look, you can say no to panda if you want to, but we're not going to be responsible for the consequences, OK?
Knob asked:
What happens if Alex sleeps through the entire MoP presentation?
You see that video up there? Something like that.
thedoctor2031 asked:
In line with the breakfast topic, do you think we are going to get any information on the whole Theramore burning thing? It would be nice to find out if the Alliance is going to play catch-up the entire expansion as well.
I suspect that little Jaina novel that's coming out later this year will have plenty to say about that, among other things ... Seriously though, we haven't got any answers to what's going on with Theramore, just speculation. Whether Blizzard gives us more answers or not is up in the air -- however, given the amount of attention that particular announcement drew, I think it would probably behoove Blizzard to simply leave all the events surrounding the matter as a surprise. Because surprises are super fun.
Ullaana asked:
Mentioned this in the Breakfast topic this AM, but am also expanding on it here.
Why is there a depiction of a Worgen in the following screenshot from Pandaria if they have been out of touch for 10,000 years?
Did Worgen appear to the Pandaren or is this just an artistic error?
http://us.battle.net/wow/en/media/screenshots/mop?keywords=&view#/wowx4-screenshot-26
That actually looks a lot more like a tiger than a worgen. If you take a look at the screenshot from the day before, you'll see tiger statues on pedestals in front of the building. This might be an image from the interior of the Temple of the Tiger in Kul-Lai Summit ... maybe. In any case, it's definitely not a worgen -- worgen don't have stripes!
AquaWrench asked:
Q for the Q...
(This one has probably been asked a 1,000 times, so sorry... but it's been bugging me for ages)
Why are some birds unskinnable? It seems birds would be much easier to skin than some other mobs that are skinnable.
Thanks.
... what exactly would you do with the bird skin once you had it? I can't imagine it'd make anything remotely useful. I mean, around here we don't even eat the skin when we have birdies for dinner. I don't think there really is such a thing as bird leather. I'm pretty sure trying to cure it would just disintegrate it, you know?
@oathblade asked via Twitter:
Was the High Chief of the Tauren invented by Cairne/Thrall or did it exist before the Horde?
That's actually a pretty good question. There's not a cemented, in-the-lore answer for it, but here's my best guess. We know that the tauren, prior to the construction of Thunder Bluff, were largely a nomadic people. Each tribe out there had its own chieftain; Cairne was the chief of the Bloodhoof Clan. It was Cairne's idea to build Thunder Bluff in the home of the ancestors and unite all the wandering tribes into one. That is probably the point where a high chieftain was established; until that point, the tribes weren't united, so it wasn't really necessary to have one.
Keep in mind, this has nothing to do at all with Thrall or the Horde. When Thrall first encountered Cairne, Cairne was already on his way to try and build Thunder Bluff, but the centaurs were giving him issues. Thunder Bluff and the united tribes of the tauren were something that Cairne wanted long before he met Thrall or joined the Horde.
@Muscraft asked via Twitter:
Q for the Q: What was the most surprising moment in Vanilla/BC/WotLK/Cata for you?
In vanilla WoW, it had to be the moment Katrana Prestor was exposed right in the middle of Stormwind's throne room. In The Burning Crusade, probably when the whole Kil'jaeden angle popped up and the Sunwell was restored by Velen, of all people. In Wrath, the whole chain in Icecrown with the little ghost boy was just full of surprises for me, and it still remains one of my favorite chains to date.
You can start that chain with Exploiting an Opening on Alliance side or Opportunity for Horde. In order to begin the chain, you must open the Shadow Vault in Icecrown, and then head back to your respective airship for the quest.
In Cataclysm ... there were plenty of surprises in Cataclysm, but I think the biggest shocker to me was the first chapter of Thrall: Twilight of the Aspects. I definitely was not expecting what went down, and it took me completely by surprise.
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)
Jamie Mar 15th 2012 11:02AM
Ahoy Queue, my Q4TQ today is: Gnomes. Careful guys, I'm about to get serious (I know that's not usually my thing). After playing Kingdom of Amalur, it was really quite refreshing to seem them take gnomes seriously. Although in some ways in KoA they're like dwarves they still retained that lust for knowledge & discovery. Gnomes weren't some joke, they were genuinely a stalwart group of dependable templars, praetorians or wizards.
Is there any need for the comic relief treatment for a whole race when we have so much pop culture & lightheartedness in the game?
I suppose it's fair to say that it's nice to have a race which is genuinely optimistic and stuff but I get tired of the negativity this brings from the community. It would be nice to bring them into cinematics or give them some love (aside from the minor story boon that they had in Wrath).
To be fair on Blizzard, I think a lot of the serious tone of the race maybe lost in quest text or text dialog nobody reads.
Do you think there is any way for Blizzard to stop treating Gnomes as a punchline and actually give them a serious tone at times? I'm guessing for the most part it's too late.
For Gnomeregan!
Saikoujin Mar 15th 2012 11:19AM
So much seriousness about Gnomes... I'm having a sensory overload!
wodentoad Mar 15th 2012 11:23AM
There are several types of bird leather, including ostrich and chicken. The leather can be cured like any skin, and is usually pockmarked where the feathers attach. The chicken skin that you normally encounter has been cooked, breaking down the cells and proteins, making it easily broken.
Hierakles Mar 15th 2012 11:23AM
Having only played the KoA demo myself, I haven't seen much of how it depicts the Gnomes, but I loved what I did see. I think to give the Gnomes a more serious tone, Blizzard really needs to show them in the front-lines of the coming wars in MoP. Not some special task force group, not mixed with other races, I want to see Gnomish armies armed and mobilized for war. A few regiments of warriors backed up by the greatest mechanized force Azeroth has ever seen should do wonders for their tone.
minduim Mar 15th 2012 11:30AM
"Do you think there is any way for Blizzard to stop treating Gnomes as a punchline and actually give them a serious tone at times?"
No. But I'd actually like to see it.
Pazazu Mar 15th 2012 11:59AM
I'm a Horde player, but I've always loved gnomes (no, not for dinner). I basically love gnomes in any game that has them (my D&D/Pathfinder group makes fun of me for always playing a gnome), and I, too, would love to see them given a more balanced treatment in-game and in media. I think they tried to do this a little in Cata with the introduction of a new militaristic bent to gnomes. The "gnome special ops" was a solid hit in my book. IMO it's okay for them to be silly, but it would be nice if we saw them able to bring the pain if they need to. (See: goblins. Pretty silly most of the time, but if you mess with them you'll find yourself embargoed out of house and home. Or possibly your home will be filled with explosives. Or an enthusiastic work crew will be drilling for oil in your kitchen.)
Jamie Mar 15th 2012 12:07PM
Gnomes are a big part of the initial part of the entry to KoA. If you can download the demo and give it a try, if only to see what decent representation of the race can be.
You won't be disappointed even if you don't like gnomes.
clundgren Mar 15th 2012 12:19PM
WoW is all about the racial stereotype (fantasy in general, really). Gnomes are adorably optimistic. Blood Elves are shallow, effete snobs. Dwarves are drunken Scotsmen. Pygmies are...we won't go there.
Blizzard gets away with it by playing most of the more outrageous stereotypes for laughs, and by generally avoiding offensive real world analogies (but about those pygmies, again...). But if you want to get really serious about it, the tendency in fantasy to assume that race = destiny (behaviour, class, etc) is rooted in racial views from a hundred years ago. In some ways, WoW has challenged these conventions (a more sympathetic portrayal of Orcs, for example). But the trend is still there.
Angus Mar 15th 2012 12:19PM
To be fair, there was a gnome in the Burning Crusade Cinematic. I you watch it again, look for when the undead Mage is attacked by Murlocs. He blows them all away with a fire nova thing.
There's a gnome rogue there. You have to look real hard for him.
Luotian Mar 15th 2012 12:31PM
Partly, I think its the player base more than Blizzard that makes gnomes a joke. Now, Blizz doesn't *help* don't get me wrong. But players do it just as badly if not worse. I don't know how they could possibly change that at this point.
Jamie Mar 15th 2012 12:36PM
@Angus
I've looked over that video several times and all I see are Murlocs.
This is where the Undead Warlock comes in just after the Human Mage exits:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EVPZIJV_xGg&t=2m5s
Pyromelter Mar 15th 2012 12:46PM
Gnomes are srz business!
No but seriously, in traditional fantasy literature (ie Lord of the Rings), gnomes, hobbits, halflings, "little people" have mannerisms and qualities that are usually associated with being jovial prankster types. They are kind of sneaky, quick, funny. In KOA the designers decided to make gnomes more like... I'm trying to think of a fantasy race that fits that model. Basically they are highly involved in politics and thinking like politicians. If someone knows a fantasy race like that, remind me, because I can't think of one off the top of my head. But yeah, political intrigue appears to be the main driving force behind the gnome race in KOA, along with profit and scientific endeavors.
Raposa Mar 15th 2012 1:11PM
I take gnomes seriously. You see, last weekend I offered 1000g for the first guildie to kill a gnome player and send me the screenshot. It was a huge success and we'll probably turn that into a weekly event.
robsmith77 Mar 15th 2012 1:17PM
I've never viewed Gnomes as anything other than a fairly serious race. Yes, in-game you don't really see any angry or depressed Gnomes, but beneath their generally jovial exterior lies a relatively hard, calculating nature which can be glimpsed occassionally (cf the quests in Tanaris where you help the Gnomes to gain favour with the Steamwheedle cartel).
Snuzzle Mar 15th 2012 1:26PM
Gnomes *should* have had their time in the sun when they retook Gnomregon. Same with trolls and their Island... although the troll's campaing was actually serious. The gnomish one was still silly. The gnomish starting area should be serious (help the wounded/infected, help clean up) but it's still silly.
I don't see this changing, really. Even goblins, who are definitely a very pop cultury race and were silly before Cata are now deliciously dark and fully fleshed out. I don't like gnomes, but id like to see them get a makeover similar to goblins (with their own flavor of course). Who knows, I didn't like goblins before theirmakeover, either.
marcoscr05 Mar 15th 2012 1:29PM
@Pyromelter "But yeah, political intrigue appears to be the main driving force behind the gnome race in KOA, along with profit and scientific endeavors" OK I'LL BUY IT!!!!
And to the OP, well...Gnomes are awesome, I hope someone in Blizzard developes their potential.
Kadzeroth Mar 15th 2012 1:33PM
Personally, I like both the serious and lighthearted depictions of gnomes. As a Veteran D&D player who enjoyed both the worlds of Aebir-Toril and Krynn, I think they can be done either way.
Obviously Blizzard's gnomes are much more akin to the gnomes of Krynn (albeit a bit less destructive (yes, you heard me, I said less)).
The more serious and wizardly gnomes of Faerun are equally awesome though.
So really, either way you spin them, gnomes are just a cool race IMO.
Drakkenfyre Mar 15th 2012 1:54PM
Gnomes have always been depicted as the humorous, light-hearted race. Back in WarCraft 2 (where Gnomes were first seen) the Gnomish Gyrocopter had amusing, funny quotes. They were considered "crazy" for inventing and piloting such a thing.
While I don't ever want them to stop being that "humorous, light-hearted race", I wish Blizzard would sometimes stop dismissing them out of hand as comedy relief purely. Such as answering a question on a Q&A like this, "Will Gnomes ever be taken more seriously?", "No, they're the funny race. Their entire existence is a joke."
Killik Mar 15th 2012 2:04PM
Would like to see us questing for a council of unbelievably powerful Gnome Mages, levitating like the Guardians of Oa.
Alexander Krizak Mar 15th 2012 2:09PM
As a long-time gnome warlock, I too would like to see gnomes get some respect. I cannot remember where I read it - it may have even have been on this website - but someone once put forward that gnomes get made fun of because we secretly terrify all the other races. Gnomes are brilliant, without the ongoing issues the goblins suffer from due to the way they gained their intellect, and while we're short in stature, we're actually ridiculously strong for our size, easily capable of the same martial prowess a human can achieve. And despite this level of superiority, we're not condescending; we're friendly with everyone we meet, cheerful, accepting. Before Thermaplugg went so wrong, a gnome killing another gnome was unheard of; that's why his betrayal was so effective, because a gnome would have never have expected another gnome to backstab them. In short, gnomes are practically perfect... and nobody likes the guy who seems perfect.
Hmm, I may have to play KoA now; their portrayal of gnomes sounds a lot like the ones in the Eberron D&D setting.