Warning: Spoilers for World of Warcraft: The War Within below.
A story synopsis from a recent build of theWorld of Warcraft: The War Withinalpha has revealed that Archmage Drenden, the new member of Dalaran’s Council of Six, was in fact Xal’atath in disguise. This major plot twist confirms a popularWorld of Warcraftplayer theory, and reveals how Dalaran is destroyed shortly afterThe War Withinbegins.
Recently,World of Warcraftreleased Patch 10.2.7, Dark Heart, which contained the final story campaign chapter beforeThe War Withinlaunches. As players begin their hunt for Xal’atath, the Harbinger of the Void, they may notice Archmage Drenden speaking with his colleague Karlain in Dalaran. Fans who spied the Mage, who hasn’t been heard of in nearly 20 years both in and out of the game, became immediatelysuspicious of theWorld of Warcraftcharacter.
Now that more details have come to light inThe War Withinalpha, it seems like fans were right to suspect Drenden after all. While the introductory scenario is not available for testing in the alpha, one of the most recent builds added a new synopsis that summarizes its events. Called “Visions of Azeroth,” this chapter explains howDalaran is destroyed in the first hour ofWorld of Warcraft: The War Within– by the hands of Archmage Drenden, who is none other than Xal’atath in disguise.
Xal’atath is Hiding in Plain Sight in World of Warcraft
According to the summary, Magni – the formerDwarf leader who goes through his own transformation inWoW: The War Within– discovers that the “Radiant Song” is a warning from Azeroth, which leads the floating city of Dalaran towards Khaz Algar. Unfortunately, it seems like Xal’atath was one step ahead of the heroes.
Magni tried to commune with Azeroth to learn what the Radiant Song was warning us about but fell unconscious during the process. Hopefully he can recover with the aid of the Dalaran archmages.
Magni awoke with new insight into the Radiant Song. Azeroth has been trying to warn us that Khaz Algar, a titan installation from legend, is in danger. Dalaran will teleport to the island to defend it.
Dalaran rushed to the aid of Khaz Algar, only for the Archmage Drenden to reveal himself to be Xal’atath in disguise! She attacked Dalaran with an army of nerubians at her command.
It seems like not many fans were surprised by this sudden betrayal. Drenden’s convenient and unexplained return, combined with his suspicious dialogue, didn’t do much to keep the secret hidden. Some were shocked that Xal’atath was able to fool some of the most powerfulMages inWorld of Warcraftso easily, but further details may clarify how she was able to perfectly disguise herself as Drenden to do so. That said, players did get a kick out of the fact that Xal’atath was hiding right around the corner while the heroes were hunting her down.
Either way, this is only the tip of the iceberg that isThe War Within’s story. As thenewWorld of Warcraftexpansion gets ready for its beta, and eventually moves towards its full release, players will undoubtedly discover even more twists and turns in the first chapter of the Worldsoul Saga.
World of Warcraft: Dragonflight
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World of Warcraft: Dragonflight was developed by Blizzard Entertainment and is the ninth expansion pack for the iconic massively multiplayer online role-playing game World of Warcraft.Dragonflight features an overhauled user interface, raises the level cap to 70, and introduces a new race and class.
