One side takes what should be a simple pep talk and aggrandizes it into a “historic moment,” and sends out a “menu” of activities so everyone can spread the message of solidarity and strength. The other side wraps itself in pomp and accuses one man, not even the man speaking, of trying to brainwash our fellow players and create a “cult following of lies.”

How did something so simple get so stupid?

The bigger question is, when will the assembled masses say “Enough.”

A guild leader worth their salt stands up for their own, and defends what they represent, staunchly, sometimes in the constant threat of ill feelings, bad politics or pure unsatisfied burn-out.

But either way, a guild leader must speak to the members in his sway, or lose them to another person speaking more loudly.

It’s what every leader should do, and many have done: “The job,” as a role model, as guild cheerleader, as an example of accomplishment and sometimes as a beacon of unadulterated, angst-ridden optimism.

Players who might have never believed a message of guild and server solidarity before can believe it now. But while naysayers will speak of oppression, dramatization and falsehoods, the true leaders talk about civic responsibility–which is never a bad idea in a culture built on self-indulgence.

The lesson of guild reliance and communities of support springing up throughout entire servers certainly isn’t anything that threatens the tenets of self-indulgence. After all, how can anyone claim to be left behind when everyone gets ahead?  The sides of the debate over the Triptych Accord can be read online easily enough on the Blackwater Raiders Warcraft Forums if you want to decide for yourselves.

But what fun are facts?

You can’t wreck a good leader, or make political points, or get ratings, with facts. For four years now, the debate on most everything to do with the World of Warcraft has been more about the politics than the facts.

And both sides of the public circus–politicians and trolls alike–have short memories.

When one guild leader addressed a detractor directly, he was ridiculed for using the Triptych Accords as intended and pushing for the enforcement of policies that have been agreed upon for over a year.

Our players have the energy and determination to do good things for one another, volunteering time to teach others valuable lessons about responsibility, community, and selflessness, perhaps at an early age, and through these efforts our community will learn how important the Triptych Accord can be.

The leaders of this community should be listened to, and their efforts respected, not because they own a guild, but because they give of their time and try to ensure that others have the opportunities they deserve to excel and enjoy in a community that will appreciate their successes as their own victories.

And when someone begins a campaign of hate or mistrust, remember one thing: these other individuals see themselves as leaders, when they set themselves apart from leadership by their actions–by failing to set the example of knowing when to lead, but also when to follow, and the mere politics are more about our differences than what we have in common.

Yes, words like “duty,” especially civic duty, and “responsibility” for your actions in a community of fellow players–each in seek of the same things–are the marks of good people, which is a lot more important than being a good player.

As a side note; yes, I am going to be trying to post more often. I have been rather busy and have kinda been playing way too much video games, which has taken up most of the free-time I actually have. Anyways, I back on subject. Remember, this entire post is speculation and theories on my part and should be taken as such.

Note: This thread may contain spoilers.

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I have always said the number one rule of WoW lore is “Everything bad that has ever happened is the Old Gods fault.” So considering that rule, I have come to believe that the Cataclysm was also their fault, even in a indirect manner. For this idea I have several facts that can help back this up

Lets look at what the Old Gods want to do, and have done in the past.

• The Old Gods want to escape from their prison within Azeroth
• They have corrupted powerful mortals and even some immortals to further their goals
• Deathwing was originally corrupted by the Old Gods, and gave him to idea to create the Demon Soul
• The Old Gods manipulated the events of the War of the Ancients to try and escape. This includes having the Burning Legion try to use the Demon Soul to summon Sargaras.
• We have fought two Old Gods, but there are at-least three others. Secondly there is evidence that Yogg’sarron and C’thun may still be alive

So taking those points we know can say for sure Deathwing was controlled by the Old Gods in the past and that their main goal is to be free. What did Deathwing just do? Oh, that’s right; he just unleashed massive destruction that weakened the planar boundaries. This by its nature means it will be a hell of a lot easier fro the Old Gods to escape, and that’s not even considering that the Cataclysm may have weaken the prison holding one or more Old Gods. So the Cataclysm completely favors the Old Gods, making it possible that they manipulated events to bring it to pass.

Now looking at the Cataclysm Expansion itself I have seen a few other things. The Twilight Cultists are way more prominent. Why is this important? Well they worship elemental and Old Gods. Now here is the thing, the Twilight Cultests are working for Deathwing, when it has been established that they follow the Old Gods. Now I don;t have much to go on, but isn’t it a little suspicious that the servants of the Old Gods are now working for the guy who just caused the whole Cataclysm?

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In the end I have no real proof of my theory; but you have to admit, it makes a lot of sense. If you have your own thoughts and ideas concerning this theory, PM them to me or post them in the forums. I would love more feedback on various topics such as this one, or others I discuss in the future.

he many different groups/factions involved in the upcoming expansion, including some of my personal opinions

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The Alliance

The Alliance as a whole has gained control of their major power bases while their outer areas of their control have become the sight of immense conflict with the forces of Deathwing and the Horde. Not much new has happened concerning the actions of the Alliance in comparison to the Horde, but it has yet to be seen what is to come later on in the Expansion

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The Horde

With the destruction in the wake of Deathwing’s return, Thrall has left to lead to Earthen Ring to help directly help with the events of the Cataclysm. Garrosh Hellscream has been given temporary lead of the Horde during Thralls absence. Garrosh has set the horde on the path of war, pushing for new territory and power. Horde forces have pushed deeply into Kalimdor and have come into heavy conflict with the night elves.

His head looks kinda small in preportion to his body

Interior conflict has risen between the races that make up the Horde. The orcs are split between those who favor Thrall’s ideals and those who follow Garrosh’s new plans for the Horde. The Darkspear Trolls have been kicked out of Orgimmar, and are close to splitting from the Horde as awhole. The Tauren blame the orcs for the death of their leader Carne Bloodhoof, and theForsaken have begun to gain power for their own goals.

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The Forsaken

With the defeat of the Scourge, the Forsaken have completed their quest for revenge. With their main goal completed, they have now set out to further there own ensidious goals. The Forsaken have set out to gain control of norther Lorderon and Gilneas, not for the Horde but for themselves. With the Val’kri under their control, the Forsaken can now replenish their numbers with newly raised undead. With more power and the ability to create more of their race leave the question of how long it will be before they no longer need to Horde’s aid.

Thrall gets a new model too.

Eathen Ring

With the destruction of Azeroth in the wake of the Cataclysm, the Earthen ring has set out to set the balance of the world right and to defeat the forces of Deathwing. Thrall, Azeroth’s most powerful Shaman, has left the horde to take leadership of the group to help directly help with the new threats to Azeroth.

I decided to offer up my perspective, and started by looking at all the nifty things that Cataclysm has promised, providing that information we’ve been receiving has itself been accurate and reliable; it usually is.

Read ID.

Well…. I don’t think there’s a man, woman or troll alive who isn’t aware of my perceptions and thoughts about Real ID. The system represents advances in communication and a networking platform for friends and family; but it’s also a security breach that provides your account email address and real name to the people you choose to play with, and it provides your real name to anyone on their friendlists. What’s worse, a vulnerability was discovered which allows any addon running a specific line of code to reveal your real name, and your battlenet account email, to the addon.

Blizzard grudgingly agreed to pull back its release of Real ID when they tried to expand its “real name” policy to the forums. The explosion of resistance was immediate, as players from all walks of life combined their voices to express concerns, fears and even outrage over the decision. In the end, Blizzard relented, but with the promise that we would see Real ID again in new ways. What will this mean for Cataclysm players? No one knows, and this time Blizzard isn’t telling.

Sweeping changes to the maps of Azeroth have raised the question, where the Triptych Accord might be hanging its hat, and whether changes to the maps may leave some of the guilds without a home. This is a question that’s raised concerns. A few of the places we’ve been congregating–the Park in Stormwind, Auberdine, Nijel’s Point, Thalanaar (on the border of the Thousand Needles) and Tanaris will be undergoing radical change. We already know for fact that some of these areas will be removed entirely, while some may or may not be reskinned. In the meantime, all we can do is wait and hope.

Guild Levels are the sticking point, though, for the majority of concerns, because the Triptych raids as a singular, collective unit, but Blizzard does not recognize the existence of alliances between guilds. When Cataclysm rolls out, it will become necessary for guilds to run together as guilds in order for them to gain guild experience for their runs. The present figures suggest that at least seven players will need to be from the same guild on a ten-man run, and at least twenty for a twenty-five man event. In addition, four members from the same guild will be necessary to receive credit for any guild experience to be gained from regular or heroic efforts.

Well, this may create problems for our efforts in the opening 2011 raiding season, as guilds must decide–in a competitive setting–whether they will sacrifice guild progression for player progression.

Today the Blizzard team made an unexpected but wholly welcome change, requiring that authenticator users ping to post. From now on, posters who “oh noes gotz hacked!” will be forced to read the stickies placed on the forums for their benefit over a year ago, because in all likelihood the mobile authenticator a hacker will place on their account will prevent them from posting, and force players to follow the correct course of action in order to get their accounts back in order.

Score one for the Blizzard Devs for finally devising an intelligent way to cut down on the spam that filled our screens each time someone would rush to post before reading.

Well done.

Others offered comment or congratulations for our vastly successful roleplay-while-raiding initiative, which has conquered the first quarter of ICC, while other branches of the effort returned to Naxxramas, Ulduar, the Obsidian Sanctum and the Trials of the Crusader to join Azeroth’s history.

Some offered encouragement for those partaking in the Glory of the Hero raiding endeavor, which intends to gear and “drake” its members before Cataclysm opens, and the next line of mounts vanishes forever.

Most notably, however, we welcomed another venerable roleplay caste into the Accord. Ring–better known by another name–has been a formative roleplay presence on the Blackwater Raiders for many years. Now, she returns with the command of the Circle, a collection of names from Blackwater Raiders’ past. Their coming is both welcome and needed, as we discuss new environments for good roleplay and begin to level warlocks for permanent placement at key locales friendly to roleplay across Azeroth.

Last, and something of a surprise, we made the decision to say goodbye to TRP as a mainstay roleplay add-on. While the new system was certainly interesting, it added a search element that seemed a little too stalker-curious, while offering an item creation table inferior to our previous and much beloved Gryphonheart Items. While GHI is reinstalled and the item tables repopulated, TRP remains as a platform for character history, but becomes one of many such add-ons deemed attractive for roleplayers as a place to hang your history.

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Thousands of years ago a powerful race lived on the world of Argus. Know as the Eredar, this race was highly gifted with arcane magic and build a civilizations unrivaled by those formed on Azeroth. But 25,000 years ago this time of peace came to a sudden end.

The dark titan Sargeras was drawn to the world of Argus and became attracted to the Eredar’s great skill with magic. He contacted the three Eredar leaders Archimonde, Kil’jaeden, and Velen. He promised them greater power, technology, and immortality if they would serve him. Archimonde and Kil’jaeden quickly became ensnared by his promises; while Velen had a feeling of unease. A troubling vision soon came to Velen, who saw that while the Eredar would gain immense power, they would also be transformed into beings of unspeakable evil.

Despite Velen’s warnings , Archimonde and Kil’jaeden agreed to join Sargeras’ Burning Legion. The Eredar became the first race to pledge their allegiance to Sargeras. The Eredar became known as the Man’ari and served as the most powerful demons under Sargeras’ command

Velen fled with those few who would listen to his warnings. As they prepared to flee, Velen’s followers were caught and would have been killed if they had not been rescued by being of light known as the Naaru. The Naaru told Velen’s followers that there were others who opposed the Demons, and one day a army of the light would be formed to defeat them. These uncorrupted Eredar became known as the Draenei or “exiled ones” in their language.

The man’ari continued to call themselves “eredar” under Kil’jaeden and were enraged with Velen, with what they saw as a betrayal. They hunted Velen and the draenei across dozens of worlds for centuries . Every time the draenei had found a new home, the Burning Legion would fall upon them. The races of many worlds were oftentimes transformed into demons by the eredar’s fel magic.

-Werdna

-Werdna

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Q: Will a dev ever actually answer anything in this thread?
A: Yes!

Q: What happened to all of the Scourge’s Obsidian Destroyers?
A: The entities known as obsidian destroyers are actually enslaved titan constructs that were once called the tol’vir. The tol’vir were created to maintain titan lore repositories and titan machinery surrounding the titan cities of Ulduar and Uldum. Not long after the troll empires divided the insectoid kingdom of the aqir, the aqir that travelled north discovered and overthrew the tol’vir society in Northrend. These aqir would eventually become the race we know as the nerubians today, having adapted the tol’vir’s architecture for their own purposes. Similarly, the aqir that travelled south ransacked and overthrew a titan research station near Uldum, renaming themselves the qiraji and calling their new home Ahn’Qiraj. Although the Scourge would eventually consume the nerubian empire and throw its few remaining tol’vir slaves into the front lines, it’s possible that more tol’vir still exist in the hidden titan city of Uldum or deep within the remnants of Azjol-Nerub.

Q: The Blood Knights of Silvermoon lack direction. None of them were seen in Northrend, and it is very unclear whether the Order still exists, or if it’s been disbanded. It’s also very unclear where the Blood Knights obtain their power, now. It used to be the Naaru, but then… remnants of the naaru. Surely these remnants are all but tapped now. Do we obtain power from the Sunwell?
A: As of the end of the Burning Crusade expansion, blood elves who wield the Light do so through the power of the renewed Sunwell. It is a harmonious relationship, no longer one of discord caused by the blood elves’ attempts to bend the Light to their will, which will likely have a positive effect on blood elf society in the long run. Look forward to updates that reflect this change in the Silvermoon and Blood Knight quests.

Q: What happened to Frostmourne after it was shattered?
A: While this is a closely guarded secret, we’ll trust you to be discreet: no one knows where the remnants of Frostmourne are now.

Q: Will we be hearing from any of the old or neglected human nations in Cata, specifically Stromgarde, Kul’tiras, and the remnants of Alterac (hey, Deathwing paraded around as an Alterac noble before)?
A: With the revamp of the classic World of Warcraft zones, players will get a chance to see how the fallen nations of Stromgarde and Alterac have fared over the last few years. Kul Tiras, the island nation, will not be visible at the start of Cataclysm – something about tectonic plates shifting it out to sea….

Q: What is the nature of the Void state of the Na’aru? For a being of the Light, turning into such a dark being seems like a heavy weakness. Sucking in souls and causing destruction simply because of a loss in strength greatly diminishes their saintly image. Though, this might be a reason they don’t act in combat very much, as turning on your army due to fatigue wouldn’t be good for morale.
A: Because three cases of this “cycle” have been demonstrated in Nagrand, Auchindoun, and Sunwell Plateau (K’ure, D’ore, and M’uru, respectively), players may have received the wrong impression with regard to the magnitude and rarity of these events: it is EXCEEDINGLY rare for a naaru to fall into a void state, and even rarer for a fallen naaru to be brought back into the Light. A naaru’s fall into the void represents a catastrophic loss for the naaru and for the forces of the Light, and it is the saddest, most heart-wrenching event for the naaru to witness. Conversely, a naaru being reborn into the Light brings renewed hope and sense of purpose to every naaru; if energy beings could weep tears of joy, this would do it.

Q: What happened to Algalon after Ulduar? It didn’t seem like he was just going to go back to business-as-usual.
A: As shown in the World of Warcraft Special #1 comic, Algalon is currently monitoring the activities of the mortal races of Azeroth. His outlook on life and the titans’ plans has been called into question, so he seeks to understand what makes Azeroth so different from the countless worlds he has observed before.

Q: What Loa do the Darkspear worship?
A: Because the Darkspear were originally part of the Gurubashi empire, they still worship many of the same Loa as the Gurubashi once did.

Q: What were Varok Saurfang’s notable accomplishments prior to WoW?
A: Varok Saurfang has served with the Horde ever since he drank the blood of Mannoroth alongside Grom Hellscream. Varok led forces in the sacking of Shattrath, Stormwind, and everything between, never losing in battle until the Horde was routed at the end of the Second War. When Orgrim Doomhammer seized control of the Horde in the First War, he chose Varok Saurfang as his second-in-command after witnessing Varok’s efficient and brutal tactics on the field. After the demonic bloodlust had been lifted from the orcs due to Grom Hellscream’s sacrifice, Varok helped dozens of veterans come to grips with their previous atrocities, ultimately saving the lives of many great Horde soldiers. Rumor also has it that Saurfang once cleaved three men in half with one swing… of his hand.

Q: How did ethereals get so… ethereal? They seem to act a lot more like a mortal race than other energy beings we meet, such as elementals.
A: K’aresh was an arid planet, home to a thriving ecosystem and several sentient species before the arrival of Dimensius the All-Devouring. How the void lord found K’aresh is still hotly debated among the surviving ethereals, but the effects of his coming were unmistakable: he opened countless gateways into the void and the Twisting Nether around the planet, bathing K’aresh in arcane and dark energies. Using every scrap of its advanced technology, one of the mortal races hastily attempted to construct magical barriers around its cities, but it was only partially successful; although the dark energies were blocked, the unimpeded flood of arcane energy tore away the mortals’ corporeal shells and infused their souls with enough energy so that they could subsist without a body… barely. Members of this race, now called ethereals, took to binding themselves with enchanted strips of cloth to provide their souls with enough structure to survive. This altered state proved to be a blessing in disguise, as their enhanced minds and magical abilities allowed the ethereals to fight Dimensius and his limited forces to a standstill. Over the years, however, Dimensius eventually grew powerful enough to summon armies of fellow void creatures, forcing the ethereals to flee into the Twisting Nether.

Q: Do incubi exist?
A: There are several different rumors concerning the male counterparts to the demonic succubus race, and it’s clear that the succubi are responsible for all of them. A few of the more common rumors are:

1. Yes, there are incubi, but the spell to summon them has been conveniently forgotten by mortal practitioners and Burning Legion agents.
2. Incubi are kept as slaves on their home planet, having been rendered incapable of escape or independent movement.
3. The succubi consumed the males of their race when they were brought into the Burning Legion. (Alternatively, the act of devouring the males is what caught the attention of the Burning Legion.)

Q: Could you please explain the lore behind goblin shamans? Goblins do not seem like a particularly spiritual race, especially one that would care about the elements (as evidenced by the Venture Co.).
A: Goblin shaman are an extension of their society’s single-minded devotion to making a profit; to a goblin shaman, elementals are potential customers. Goblins do tend to be a bit more forceful in their negotiations than the other shamanic races (especially the tauren) would like, though they are far less forceful than what we’ve seen from the taunka in Northrend. (Unless the elemental tries to weasel out of its contract. Elementals tend not to have breakable knees, so goblins sometimes have to resort to other methods of control.) As for the goblins’ “mechanical” totems, note that these are merely physical manifestations of the small totems they tinker/craft to form a link with the elemental spirits. Instead of lugging around large totems, goblin shaman have a ring (probably the same ring on which they keep their house and motorbike keys) with small totems they’ve built as conduits for the elemental spirits they do business with.

Q: Can you please explain how “light” works? The lore states that undead are physically incapable of using the light, much like the Broken, but then we have Forsaken players casting healing spells, and Sir Zeliek in Naxxramas using pseudo-paladin abilities.
A: Without spoiling too much, we can tell you that wielding the Light is a matter of having willpower or faith in one’s own ability to do it. That’s why there are evil paladins (for example, the Scarlet Crusade and Arthas before he took up Frostmourne). For the undead (and Forsaken), this requires such a great deal of willpower that it is exceedingly rare, especially since it is self-destructive. When undead channel the Light, it feels (to them) as if their entire bodies are being consumed in righteous fire. Forsaken healed by the Light (whether the healer is Forsaken or not) are effectively cauterized by the effect: sure, the wound is healed, but the healing effect is cripplingly painful. Thus, Forsaken priests are beings of unwavering willpower; Forsaken (and death knight) tanks suffer nobly when they have priest and paladin healers in the group; and Sir Zeliek REALLY hates himself.

Q: Can you tell us anything about the manner in which trolls become druids?
A: While it’s only barely hinted at during the upcoming “Zalazane’s Fall” event, new troll druids in Cataclysm should learn much more about their race’s adoption of these foreign practices.

Q: Why was Myzrael imprisoned?
A: Myzrael fell to madness after she was corrupted by ancient evils under the earth (read: Old Gods). She was defeated during the events of classic World of Warcraft, which purged her of the corruption, but she may make a cameo appearance in Cataclysm. Keep an eye out when adventuring through Deepholm.

Q: Who is the arakkoa “master” that Isfar talks about? It is not Terokk…
A: There are more Old Gods than just the ones trapped on Azeroth. It takes a lot for them to become manifested on a physical plane, however; see the quest line in Shadowmoon Valley that ends with “Thwart the Dark Conclave” for more information.

Q: With Lady Prestor’s, aka Onyxia, plot foiled, will Stormwind once again send soldiers to Lakeshire, Duskwood, and Wesftall or will these area’s and their self-made miitias continue to defend themselves?
A: With the return of King Varian Wrynn and the removal of Lady Prestor from power, the outlying towns finally received the reinforcements they needed. As you’ll see in Cataclysm, however, the reinforcements might not be enough….

Q: There was (and still is) a Moonwell smack dab in the center of Duskwood. This was the ONLY Moonwell on the Eastern Continent prior to the Burning Crusade which saw a Moonwell being added to the island west of Silvermoon (which from a lore sense, the placement of this Moonwell in Quel’Thalas made absolutely no sense.) Will the Duskwood’s Moonwell’s presence be explained?
A: Without spoiling anything, we can tell you that both of these moonwells are recent creations by night elves.

Q: What did the massive machines around the Storm Peaks, like the Engine of the Makers, actually do?
A: These machines are all part of the same system: the Forge of Wills.

Q: What’s the relation between The Order of the Silver Hand, Tyr’s Hand (City from Lordaeron region) and Watcher Tyr (from Ulduar)?
A: Long ago, on the continent that would eventually become known as the Eastern Kingdoms, a small group of creatures struggled to survive, using the limited supplies provided to it by parents who had just abandoned their children on an unfamiliar shoreline. These creatures, eventually called “humans,” would occasionally take to gathering around a fire whilst trying to read from scrolls telling of ancient heroes and leaders – tales from the civilization that had cast these creatures out. One of these scrolls spoke of a great leader, a paragon of order and justice, who sacrificed his right hand in a fight against an unfathomable evil. Although it was within this hero’s power to fix his hand after the fighting had ended, the hero instead chose to replace it with a closed fist made of the purest silver. In this way, the hero impressed upon those who followed him that true order and justice can only be accomplished through personal sacrifice. This hero, who slipped into memory long ago, went by the name of Tyr.

Q: Building off that- whatever happened to Tyr?
A: The watcher Tyr was not in Ulduar when adventurers finally freed the titan city from Yogg-Saron’s influence. If anyone knows where Tyr is now, he or she isn’t speaking up.

Q: Are Mimir and Mimiron supposed to be the same entity, or are they relatives?
A: Same entity, though only his close friends are allowed to call him Mimir.

Q: What is Tiffin Wrynn’s backstory in terms of family, original nation, etc.? I’d be curious as to what connections were set up through that marriage.
A: We’ll keep this brief because we could easily write a few pages for this one. Tiffin Wrynn was originally Tiffin Ellerian of the Ellerian noble family of Stormwind, a small house that only had a small chunk of land in Westfall. Her marriage to Varian was pre-arranged at her birth, finally securing her family a spot on the Stormwind House of Nobles. Tiffin and Varian initially disliked each other, but they eventually became inseparable. Tiffin helped Varian control his occasional anger issues and taught him economics, while Varian helped teach Tiffin about politics and social etiquette. Tiffin was eventually known as a queen of the people, and she was the most adamant supporter of paying the Stonemasons’ Guild the initially agreed-upon sum. Her accidental death during the Stonemasons’ Guild riot was a monumental loss for Varian, Anduin, and the people of Stormwind.

Q: Will you be explaining why the forest spirits of Hyjal will be friendly to the Horde despite the fact that Horde has done so much damage to Ashenvale?
A: By the start of Cataclysm, the ancients and spirits of the forest will have recognized that the forces of the Cenarion Circle and the Alliance combined are still not enough to stop Deathwing, the Twilight’s Hammer, and the elementals they have unleashed. As much as these ancients and spirits hate to admit it, they realize that they need the assistance of the Horde.

Q: What role, if any, will Med’an play in Cataclysm?
A: Med’an will not be visible in Cataclysm; something else is keeping him occupied.

… it was thought good
there should be an association and agreement,
that we should combine together in one body,
and to submit to such government and governors
as we should
by common consent
agree to make and choose …

William Bradford
Pilgrim Leader
November, 1620

They meant to land in Virginia, but their ship brought them to Cape Cod. It wasn’t the first time this group of people, seeking religious freedom, had ended up in the wrong place.  In 1608, English Protestants who disagreed with the Church of England were persecuted – as were Catholics.  A group of protestant separatists, thinking they would have greater opportunity to freely practice their religion in The Netherlands, left England for Amsterdam.

Within a year, that group of separatists – much later known as “The Pilgrims” – objected to aspects of life in their new city. With their families, they moved to Leiden (Leyden), a Dutch town north of The Hague.

By 1620, it was illegal for anyone in The Netherlands to hold religious meetings in their homes. Leiden, the Pilgrims’ adopted city, was no exception. Twelve years after they left England, the Pilgrims realized they would have to leave Europe altogether in order to practice their beliefs unhindered.

On a ship called the Mayflower, a group of about 102 people set sail for a new life in the “new world.” Their last port of call, before crossing the Atlantic, was Plymouth, England.

Freedom is not a value but is the ground of values because it allows a person to create and appreciate values, to pursue the classical values of beauty, truth and goodness. It enables people to use their creativity so as to bring joy to God and to others, their family, relatives, friends and wider community. According to the American moral philosopher Susan Wolf, freedom is the ability to act in accordance with the True and the Good. According to people such as Saint Augustine and Confucius, this kind of freedom can reach a point at which it always produces goodness.

We live “in interesting times,” ancient saying though it may be, it is still accurate to describe our world–ruined financial institutions, broken promises and big business living in the catbird seat with big politics.

“The catbird seat” is an idiomatic phrase used to describe an enviable position, often in terms of having the upper hand or greater advantage in all typesof dealings among parties. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the first recorded usage occurred in a 1942 humorous short story by James Thurber titled “The Catbird Seat,” which features a character, Mrs. Barrows, who likes to use the phrase. Another character, Joey Hart, explains that Mrs. Barrows must have picked up the expression from Red Barber and that to Barber “sitting in the catbird seat” meant “‘sitting pretty,’ like a batter with three balls and no strikes on him.” Further usage can be found in P. G. Wodehouse’s 1958 novel Cocktail Time: “I get you. If we swing it, we’ll be sitting pretty, ‘In the catbird seat.’”

But, when we each enjoy our fifteen minutes of fireworks, a few too many beers, a big dinner that we probably had to use the credit card to pay for and a few minutes talking to people we wouldn’t normally think about… take a moment to quietly thank the people who ensure that your freedom stays free.

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The Old Gods

The Old Gods are mysterious, godlike entities that once ruled  over the world of Azeroth. These evil entities are foreign to the planet, coming from the far depths of the Great Dark Beyond. Some sources claim the Old Gods predates the arrival of the Titans on Azeroth, while others claim the Old Gods predate the arrival of the Titans

Parasitic in nature, the Old Gods began to feed on the world of Azeroth, enslaving the Elementals and other forms of primitive life on the world. It wasn’t long before they came in conflict with the Titans, who embodied order in opposition to the Old Gods’ embodiment of chaos. After a long and violent conflict, the Old Gods were struck down and imprisoned beneath the world. It is not known why the Old Gods were imprisoned instead of killed outright. Perhaps they proved too powerful for the Titans to kill, or it is possible that there is a even darker reason for their imprisonment.

While imprisoned, the Old Gods retained the ability to influence and corrupt life on the world. Above all goals the Old Gods wish to be free, and have set all of their schemes to further their release. Using their ability to corrupt and influence almost any life-form, the Old Gods began to set in motion events that would help bring about their freedom. Of the events influenced by the Old Gods the most shocking is the possibility that the Old Gods orchestrated the initial corruption of the Highborn Night Elves, setting in motion the Burning Legion’s first invasion of Azeroth.

Of the Old Gods, the number imprisoned is unknown, though most sources point to Five. Of the Old Gods entombed by the Titans only two are known by name. C’thun, the Old God of madness was imprisoned in the Southwestern corner of Kalimdor. He influenced the evolution of the insectiod race known the Qiraji to be his servants. Yogg-saron, the Old God of Death, was imprisoned in the northern reaches of the world; and has begun to corrupt the Titan creations in the city of Ulduar.

Of the locations of the other Old Gods, there to go on but speculation. A few of the more notable theories that I think may be credible are as follows.

• In Dark Shore there is the Masters Glave, which contains a petrified body of a “Old God’. Whether this is the body of a slain Old God, or one of it’s servants is yet to be seen.
• The High Elves originally settled in the area known as the Tirisfal Glades after their exile, but soon left due when many started going insane due to whisperings. Many theorized that a “Dark Evil” lived under that land

Curse of Flesh

After the defeat of the Old Gods; the Titans set about creating sentient life on Azeroth. Their first experiment was the Earthen; which at first seemed to be successful. The Titans continued to create other forms of artificial life, such as the Giants, the predecessors to the Vrykul, and the Mecha-Gnomes. After awhile the Titans began to notice a corruption of their first form of life, the Earthen. Many earthen had began to degrade and transform into Troggs. After experimentation the Titans discovered this corruption, dubbed “The Curse of Flesh”, stemmed from the imprisoned Old Gods.

The Titans put the Troggs into stasis and entombed them under Uldaman and began work on a second wave of Earthen that would be resistant to the “Curse of Flesh”. While these new Earthen were more resistant to the Curse, eventually they would succumb to it, but unlike the original Earthen, would retain much of their original forum. The Titans considered this to be a adequate solution, with these new forms (Which later became known as Dwarves) a worthy genesis of their own right.

Over time the other Titan creations slowly began to be effected by the Curse of Flesh. The Mecha-Gnomes became the Gnomes seen today, and the Vrykul at first became creatures of flesh. Centuries later the Vrykul once again became effected by the Curse of Flesh. Many of their children were born much smaller and weaker. The leader of the Vrykul, King Ymiron, ordered these “malformed” children to be killed. Many Vrykul parents disobeyed the order and instead hid their children until they could survive on their own. Eventually these effected Vrykul became their own separate race, and became known as Humans.

-Werdna