Lore Watch Podcast

This week's Lore Watch Podcast takes us back in the day, with a couple questions that ask about lore from the vanilla days.We start off talking arcs. The Alliance has a great arc involving the Defias in their initial starting zone, which evolves to involve Lady Prestor in the middle levels, all the way up to Onyxia at cap. The Lore Watch crew discuss the various threads of the Horde narrative that branch in similar ways throughout their leveling experience all the way on up.Then, we pivot to class quests of that same era, up through the Legion Order Hall quests. Some of them felt like a great, cohesive way to celebrate your class and give you a lot of lore about it, and others... less so. Joe, Matt, and Eric reminisce about their time playing their respective classes, and whether they prefer unique class touches -- even if they might be a little half-baked for certain classes.If you want even more background story, we also have a guide to every Warcraft book in chronological order (for those of you who prefer reading that way).If you enjoy the show, please support us on Patreon, where you can get these episodes early and ad-free! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Comic book artist Sam Kieth passed away earlier this month as a result of Lewy Body dementia, so our Lore Watch Podcast team wanted to take an episode to talk about his impact on the genre and pop culture as a whole. Both Sam Kieth's art style and plotlines shaped comics as we moved into a more grimdark take on the old heroes. Sam's comic The Maxx put him on the map, and his collaboration with now-notorious Neil Gaiman on The Sandman clinched his place in the pantheon of early 90s comics creators. And that was just the start of his career, which included a turn writing Batman, and later included a crossover with The Maxx as one of his final projects.Because Sam Kieth's comics deal with some heavy topics, this episode comes with a content warning for topics ranging from murder and gore to dissociative identity disorder and sexual assault. While we don't linger on these topics in-depth, they are present as a part of the discussion.If you enjoy the show, please support us on Patreon, where you can get these episodes early and ad-free! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Joe, Matt, and Eric sat down this week to discuss the dragons of World of Warcraft, starting with their origins as proto-dragons, and all the way up through more modern politics. With many thanks for the great questions, we start off with proto-dragons: why do they call themselves that? Seems like they might call themselves "dragons" and come up with something new for those long-armed fellows. But then, this leads into the next question, because the past of the proto-dragons was described largely with Malygos as the narrator. This was written by Richard Knaak, so there's a lengthy bit of discussion on his turn at the writer's desk. But then, Alexstrasza winds up being the leader of the Dragonflights. So, what happened there?Then, speaking of diplomacy and jockeying for power, how are Lordaeron and Gilneas doing now? Calia is on the new Forsaken council, and Genn has sort of retired and let Tess lead the way, so how are the relations there going to shake out as we move forward into the future?If you want even more background story, we also have a guide to every Warcraft book in chronological order (for those of you who prefer reading that way).If you enjoy the show, please support us on Patreon, where you can get these episodes early and ad-free! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week Joe and Eric were joined by Liz, and it was a great opportunity to begin discussing the abundance of Loa we've had in Midnight so far. Our cohosts discussed some of the ins and outs of becoming a Loa, and talked about what they thought they might be the Loa of one day, since none of them were nepo babied into the situation. After that they moved into Harandar and its relationship to the Emerald Dream, and how that figures in to the Rift of Aln and the World Soul.Then, they wrapped up with a discussion on revamped zones, and which ones we'd like to see in the future. While Northrend is in the offing, our hosts have some ideas on other zones they'd like to see updated. Personally, I'm rooting for the Exodar.If you want even more background story, we also have a guide to every Warcraft book in chronological order (for those of you who prefer reading that way).If you enjoy the show, please support us on Patreon, where you can get these episodes early and ad-free! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We love answering your questions, especially when it lets us don our tinfoil hat. Our first question this week was relatively straightforward: If you were to run a WoW TTRPG for a Horde campaign and an Alliance campaign, what would it be? With three hosts, there were six varied answers. We move from there to conflict among the Titans, and why some all-powerful beings might clash. Speaking of all-powerful, then we talk about the counterplay of the Light and the Void -- and the Naaru. Part of it is how the two forces interact, based on some of the earlier vignettes from the first few expansions of WoW. And how do all those forces relate to another magic force we've seen coursing inherently through all creatures through a few different expansions: Anima?It is a tin foil hat good time on this week's Lore Watch.If you want even more background story, we also have a guide to every Warcraft book in chronological order (for those of you who prefer reading that way).If you enjoy the show, please support us on Patreon, where you can get these episodes early and ad-free! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week our usual crew of Joe, Matt, and Eric was joined by Liz to discuss William Gibson's novel Neuromancer. This 1984 novel was foundational to the cyberpunk genre in many ways, from establishing the grittiness of the setting all the way down to shaping the way this genre looks and feels across different types of media. The crew discuss themes through Neuromancer which are also inherent through a lot of cyberpunk media now, like the idea of what makes a person, and whether an AI could ever have personhood. They also discuss how older tech can affect our modern reading of futuristic media -- if you've never seen a payphone, you probably have no idea how eerie a bank of them ringing all at once would be, but then Gibson would have no way of knowing where payphone tech ended up today.It's a great conversation on a foundational work of sci-fi, and if you haven't picked it up, Joe has some suggestions as to where to get it online while still benefitting your local book store.If you enjoy the show, please support us on Patreon, where you can get these episodes early and ad-free! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We thank our listeners and patrons for giving us another round of great questions, which we summarily answered and used as a diving board directly into the deep end of tin foil hat theories and speculation. First, who was the elf Xal'atath is currently using for a body? While we do have a pithy answer to this identity courtesy of a particular quest line, there's also a broader lore implication in terms of who this poor erstwhile High Elf once was. Another listener wanted to know what kind of humanoid form Azeroth will have, and specifically suggests it may be a Troll. Trolls were one of the progenitor races of Azeroth, so is it possible they were formed in her likeness? This leads us into a discussion of the races of Azeroth and how they may have evolved over the centuries -- and who may have been pressing a thumb on that evolutionary scale.If you want even more background story, we also have a guide to every Warcraft book in chronological order (for those of you who prefer reading that way).If you enjoy the show, please support us on Patreon, where you can get these episodes early and ad-free! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Our readers dutifully sent in questions, and our three hosts -- Joe, Matt, and Eric -- gave them all the answers they could want, and more. They start off with a discussion on the music of WoW, spurred by the inclusion of Player Housing decor, and how Taurens all got drums. It evolves from there, to discuss how the themes present within in-game music mirror real life music characteristics. Then, they pivot to more Void vs Light in a continuation from last week, and how those forces might shape both the world we play in, and Anduin and how his characterization may continue forward. The last question involves the discussion of source influences on WoW, from Arthurian Legend through Tolkien, and then we come back to music. However, now the topic is basically the soundtrack to Stranger Things.If you want even more background story, we also have a guide to every Warcraft book in chronological order (for those of you who prefer reading that way).If you enjoy the show, please support us on Patreon, where you can get these episodes early and ad-free! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Our listeners had a lot of questions for the Lore Watch crew this week, and they all center on Midnight, specifically the role of the Void and Old Gods. Is there another forgotten Old God waiting in the wings? Will all the Old Gods come back to wreak havoc during The Last Titan?Perhaps most tantalizingly in light of the events to come, with all this Void power at her command, what exactly is the prize Xal'atath is here to seek?If you enjoy the show, please support us on Patreon, where you can get these episodes early and ad-free! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As we make our way into the Midnight prepatch and beyond, Matt, Joe, and Eric take the opportunity to recap the lore of The War Within. In case you missed it -- or maybe missed some of the signs leading up to it, or through it -- we have the story. It starts with a literal bang, and the destruction of Dalaran. The implications of that, from how it affects the plot all the way to how it affects the way the writers can shape the story forward, set the stage for all the The War Within, and perhaps beyond as we make our way back into Silvermoon City in Midnight, and then Northrend in The Last Titan. We'll talk about the hijinks of Xal'atath, and why the heck we ended up in Undermine, anyway.All those detours and more on this episode of Lore Watch!If you want even more background story, we also have a guide to every Warcraft book in chronological order (for those of you who prefer reading that way).If you enjoy the show, please support us on Patreon, where you can get these episodes early and ad-free! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week Joe is joined by our writer Eric O'Dea to discuss Blood Ties, the newest WoW novel. The events of Blood Tieshappen between the end of The War Within but just before Midnight -- basically when we are right now. As such, there will be spoilers for both Blood Ties and a little bit of what we know happens in Midnight.Joe and Eric point out various details they found particularly effective, and things they wished we had more of in other contexts. A fun little dinner party with lots of expository dialogue is a treat, for instance. But there's a lot of ground to cover, and Eric and Joe have a lot to say!If you enjoy the show, please support us on Patreon, where you can get these episodes early and ad-free! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week Joe and Matt are answering another listener question, this time concerning Paladins, and how they serve as an intersection between the divine Light, and the Titans who shaped Azeroth. As you might imagine, the answer will span the cosmos, and go completely off the rails in the process. Paladins in particular serve as a mash-up between some Light power and Titanic power -- does that mean a Titan of the Void could occur? There's a lot of ground to cover, some of which will take us into Midnight and what may happen as we start to make our way toward the final act of this trilogy.But you can count on one thing: an Odyn mention means he gets called a jerk again. We don't make the rules.If you enjoy the show, please support us on Patreon, where you can get these episodes early and ad-free! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week by special listener request, Matt and Joe are delving into Icewind Dale -- perhaps literally, because it involves the iconic character Drizzt Do'Urden, the Drow Ranger. Icewind Dale began simply as a region in Dungeons and Dragons, and then became the title of a series of three novels penned by R. A. Salvatore, with the first published in 1988 and the last in 1990, and then a video game in 2000 set in the region. As such, there is a ton of lore to discuss, including its roots, which begin -- like almost every work in modern fantasy fiction -- back with Tolkien, and its use as a setting in D&D. Join us as we discuss one of the most beloved series in the D&D oeuvre.If you enjoy the show, please support us on Patreon, where you can get these episodes early and ad-free! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Because it's Christmas, and on Christmas you get a little treat, Joe and Matt are discussing all the ways crossovers are used in comics. From KISS to that one time Doctor Doom was Santa, to more mundane crossovers, adding a different set of characters to an existing comic can add new life to a stale plot. This episode has it all, from Archie to Transformers, perhaps both at the same time, and maybe in the Spiderverse. The sky's the limit when it comes to mashing up pop culture!If you enjoy the show, please support us on Patreon, where you can get these episodes early and ad-free! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Since Paladins were announced as the next class to join the roster in Diablo 4 in its next expansion Lord of Hatred -- and already playable with preorder -- Matt and Joe sat down this week to chat about both, but mostly Paladins and their history within the franchise. First, they dive into the place of Paladins within the franchise as contrasted by other classes. Blizzard seems to be cribbing heavily from Diablo 2, with almost all the classes from that game now available in D4. They touch on Paladins from D2, their famous fall, and how that led to the Crusaders from Diablo 3.The story we see in the cinematic also has our Paladin facing off against Mephisto while he inhabits Akarat's body, which he possessed at the end of the previous expansion, Vessel of Hatred. Akarat being one of the founders of the faith the Paladin belongs to, this is a deeply interesting contrast -- as well as a personal religious crisis in the making. If you enjoy the show, please support us on Patreon, where you can get these episodes early and ad-free! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this birthday episode of Lore Watch, Joe gave Matt a gift, and let Matt talk about whatever called to him -- and that was the lore of The Outer Worlds. They discussed everyone's favorite Gilded Age throwback with minimal spoilers, talking about how the world itself is setup and constructed in this alternate version of earth. In this version of history, the robber baron tycoons who brought you public works like Carnegie Hall and Rockefeller Center so they wouldn't be guillotined felt as though they wouldn't have to do such a thing -- McKinley wasn't shot by an anarchist, and thus his Vice President Teddy Roosevelt, who was known for rooting out corruption in the NYPD, just stayed Vice President. As such, inequality remained rampant and worsened, while that Gilded Age aesthetic continued to reign supreme.Led by Matt, they discuss how that has affected the world of The Outer Worlds, from the job market to the cuisine. They run down some of the more significant characters and their roles within that world. And of course, there are diversions galore, from Futurama to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Though, we're thinking the oompa loompas probably know a thing or two about working a crummy job at unfair wages.If you enjoy the show, please support us on Patreon, where you can get these episodes early and ad-free! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Our listeners wanted to know about the legacy of the Troll raid. We've been killing those poor saps a lot -- just about every expansion in either raid or dungeon form, in fact, to the extent that "the Troll raid" is almost a meme. Midnight may be bringing us another chance to murder a whole bunch more Trolls, with rumors swirling about islands off the coast near Zul'Aman -- which, incidentally, was the Troll raid for The Burning Crusade.We start off with a brief recap of the myriad of times in the past when we defeated one branch of trolls or another in a variety of settings. Of course, with such a broad topic, the rabbit hole goes deep. Matt and Joe discuss the Loa, notable troll heroes like Zul'jin, and the future of Trollkind. Since we're going into Midnight without a Troll raid as such, they also speculate a little on how it could come to pass before the expansion is out.If you enjoy the show, please support us on Patreon, where you can get these episodes early and ad-free! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week we have four listener questions answered by our lore experts Joe and Matt. First, they discuss the Ethereals and what their timeline is in relation to the timeline on Azeroth. Has this race existed for years, decades, milennia -- or something different entirely. They pivoted to the dragons and their aspects, and how choice figures in. Chromie, for one, clearly got some element of choice in how she appears in her bipedal form. How might other dragons choose, and how might new discoveries change what they choose? Is Alexstrasza going to become a Kul Tiran? Then, we pivot a third time to the old-school class quests like the Paladin's Charger questline and how they tied in to the class fantasy of the player, plus how they might be brought back in the future. Finally, we pivot once more, back to where we started, with Ethereals. This time you asked about Ve'nari and her secretive nature. The Ecodomes hardly seem nefarious or easily sabotaged -- why did she keep them a secret from us?You ask us questions and we luckily have some loremasters on hand to explain the answers. If it were just me you'd be listening to hold music while I frantically scanned through everything in our Warcraft in print guide looking for something approaching an answer. Hope you like the muzak version of Careless Whisper!If you enjoy the show, please support us on Patreon, where you can get these episodes early and ad-free! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As we make our way toward Midnight, Joe and Matt are making sure we know what we need to before the expansion launches. Chief among those things is the lore of Blood Elves. It starts with the Highborne and the schism between Night Elves and High Elves, which eventually led to the Blood Elves and the creation of the Sunwell.But ancient history isn't all. Joe and Matt also discuss some of the notable figures in Blood Elf society that are important to know. Lady Liadrin and Lor'themar were in the Midnight cinematic, and the Windrunner sisters are a trio to rival the Schuylers -- with their own "and Peggy" in Vereesa -- but there are tons of characters who have had their fingers on the scale of Blood Elf nobility to discuss. From Azshara all the way to Xavius, and with the entire Scourge in the mix, the history of Blood Elves is twisty and fascinating -- and a little hard to remember. So let Joe and Matt guide you through what you need to know before Midnight.If you enjoy the show, please support us on Patreon, where you can get these episodes early and ad-free! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Because we aren't all constantly filled with existential dread, Joe and Matt are answering some deep questions asked by some of our listeners. The first concerns the afterlife in Diablo, namely where we all go when we die. Heaven and Hell aren't really in keeping with our religious afterlife paradigm, after all. Then, they're asked about what the moon or sun is, really, in WoW. This one is a little less harrowing, since we see lots of things like magic derived from these celestial bodies, and some of them are characters in their own right. There are also other solar systems in other planes to worry about, and what all these celestial bodies working in concert might mean for the fabric of reality.And now we have to go lie on the floor and think about why the sky is blue, what dogs dream about, and what makes us humans. It's fine.If you enjoy the show, please support us on Patreon, where you can get these episodes early and ad-free! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.