One of my favorite areas has to be Skettis, with its narrow alleys that evoke the feeling of a bustling bazaar the wild, uprooted terrain and precarious walls. There are contrasting visuals throughout the zone, and yet somehow it all feels tied together. The forested regions are dark and mysterious, while the sun-bathed coastal plains are blanketed in brilliant wildflowers. What are some of your favorite locations in the zone?ĭon Adams: You can get a great sense of the look and feel of the Spires of Arak from the Artcraft post detailing the zone’s level design and environment art. Hopefully players will connect with the cursed arakkoa and forgive them for the whole “monstrous kaliri” thing back in Terokkar. You are helping these underdogs, and they’re extremely shady and creepy, but you can sense some potential within them. Overall, the vibe in the zone is dire and dark, with hints of light scattered throughout. You can look up and see them from pretty much anywhere-a constant reminder of the threat looming overhead. Skyreach and its satellite spires maintain an imposing presence throughout the entire zone. You reach a dramatic vista to see Skyreach looming high above a forest canopy stretching out into the horizon. As you progress down the path, arakkoa refugees push past you in a mass exodus from Skettis. Boulders are suspended overhead by huge thorny vines reaching out from the mountainside. Your adventure leads to two climactic events in the zone: one involving the plight of the outcasts against the flying arakkoa, and another focusing on the Shattered Hand fortress of Bladefist Hold.ĭon Adams: You first enter the zone through a mountain pass that shows off some of the harsher elements of the landscape. You’re learning about the curse they bear, the ancient gods of their land, and the very real threat posed by the Adherents of Rukhmar, the ruling caste of zealous arakkoa in Skyreach. Over the course of the zone, you’re helping this shady resistance group of cursed arakkoa to make their final stand. These arakkoa outcasts are caught between several enemies, and they really have nobody on their side before you show up. To make matters worse, the Shattered Hand orcs have begun expanding into the region, killing anyone in their path. They’re outcasts, hated and oppressed by the flying arakkoa who are torching their villages with an enormous beam weapon fixed atop Skyreach. ![]() In The Burning Crusade, the arakkoa of Skettis had pretty much fallen entirely into evil, but in Warlords of Draenor we see them at a crossroads. We felt it was important to portray both sides of the arakkoa, and their duality gave us some interesting themes to draw on throughout the zone. ![]() ![]() We already teased the flying arakkoa at BlizzCon, but players might be surprised to find the familiar cursed arakkoa from The Burning Crusade there too, only with a fancy new model. The Spires of Arak is their home territory, so it felt like the right place to really dive in and explore their culture. What awaits players among the Spires of Arak?ĭon Adams: First of all, we love the arakkoa, and we knew players would be excited to see them again. Game Designer Don Adams and Associate Quest Designer Johnny Cash fill us in on what to expect. Located in the southernmost part of Draenor, the Spires of Arak is a zone of soaring heights and shadow-drenched crags-but as with much of the planet, the beauty of this place hides something sinister. Here, the winged arakkoa plot atop their high perches, well out of the reach of the brutal Shattered Hand orcs and the cursed wingless outcasts below. In our latest Warlords of Draenor zone preview, we turn our gaze upward to the beautiful Spires of Arak.
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