Patch 7.3 voice files reveal story spoilers and more

Guys, this is another of those posts where I warn you that if you read — or, in this case, listen — any further, you’re going to get spoiled for patch 7.3.

I just want that to be clear up front. There are spoilers here. Don’t read any further if you don’t want spoilers for patch 7.3, because that’s the entirety of what this post is about. Voice files from the upcoming patch, including potential dungeon and raid spoilers, are contained herein. The folks at Wowhead have datamined the heck out of them, and there are some big surprises here.

Now that that’s out of the way, let’s get started, shall we?

Sargeras and the other Titans

To put it mildly, this is a big deal — it’s the first confirmed appearance of Sargeras in any form in WoW history. And I have to admit, the big guy is surprisingly mellifluous, all things considered. I mean, that’s him at the top of this post chopping up a planet, but you wouldn’t know it by listening to him. He sounds quite reasonable for a mad Titan who wants to destroy the entire universe.

But Sargeras isn’t the only Titan chatting with us in this patch. We now have voice files for Aman’Thul, Eonar, Aggramar, and Argus, the world-soul of the planet itself. I’m a little amused — and more than a little horrified — that Argus sounds like an Eredar/Draenei. Listening to all of these files pretty much spoils the entire expansion’s ending, so be warned. All the same, it’s interesting to consider how long all of this has been planned.

The fact that Sargeras has been essentially planning to collect and somehow recreate the Titans for all this time — to essentially remake the Pantheon in his image — is amazing enough. But the idea that we’re going to encounter at least three of the Titans as well as Sargeras himself in the end of this expansion changes everything.

For proof of that, we need go no further than the voice files from Sargeras, Aman’Thul, and Illidan Stormrage himself. One of the dialogs has Illidan say, “It matters not, look to the skies!” And a further bit of dialogue hints at what happens next, as Illidan relates, “Azeroth must survive, no matter the cost.” The battle against Argus definitely seems to mark an extreme change in the status of the Betrayer. The voice of Aman’Thul seems to confirm this: “We will use the last glimmer of Argus’ power to bind him here. The Seat of the Pantheon shall become Sargeras’ prison… and ours as well.”

Alleria and Turalyon

Both Alleria Windrunner and High Exarch Turalyon have extended voice files in this patch. There’s a lot of dialogue about the Void, the Legion, personal relationships, and more. Alleria talks about Sylvanas, Arator, and Thas’dorah, and the relationship between Turalyon and Alleria is explored — there seems to be some tension there, although clearly they’re still intertwined. {PB}

Alleria refers to ‘her studies’ several times, and her statements about the Void — “I feel the fallen Naaru’s power… it beckons me,” among others — seem to indicate a turn towards a much darker source of power for Alleria going forward. These portents also jibe with the new model we’ve seen datamined for her.

It definitely seems that, while Turalyon walks in the Light more than ever, Alleria has chosen another path — one that’s a bit darker and more shadowy than his. This has led to some problems, with Alleria mentioning that she was confined to a cell at one point in the past. This apparently comes to a head in the Seat of the Triumvirate dungeon storyline.

Archimonde, Kil’jaeden, Velen and the history of Argus

Despite being dead, both Archimonde and Kil’jaeden had a big role in the corruption of the Eredar, and their sound files here help shed some light on how it all went down. They’re not the only ones who shed some light on that process, however. Familiar-sounding Archmage Ymera talks about the past as well, which is interesting because she may have been part of the crew of the Xenedar. And, of course, Prophet Velen doesn’t exactly shy away from discussing it, along with many other things.

Listening to Velen’s musings on when Sargeras arrived on Argus is surprisingly painful. And of course he narrates the ultimate conclusion to the expansion, which is a pretty big shock if you think about it. In many ways, the end of Legion is the end of a threat that’s defined World of Warcraft all these years, and the beginning of a whole new focus for what’s to come.

In fact, Velen tells us exactly how the Antorus raid ends. We read before how Aman’Thul declared that the Pantheon would imprison Sargeras and themselves at the Seat of the Pantheon. But apparently that’s not all. Velen witnesses it, and relates the end: “Illidan serves as the Dark Titan’s jailor. His sacrifice has ended the Legion.”

This doesn’t seem like it ends them, so much as postpones them — people can escape prisons, after all — but think about what it means for Warcraft as a whole. The Legion and Sargeras have been the background threats we’ve had to deal with since the very first game, the force behind the Orcs’ corruption, the major villains of Warcraft III. And now?

Now they’re effectively gone. Oh, sure, there are and will be demons left, but Archimonde, Kil’jaeden, and even Sargeras are gone — and Illidan Stormrage and the Titans are all bound to the Seat of the Pantheon keeping Sargeras in check. This changes the story in fundamental ways.

Head on over to Wowhead and listen for yourselves, if you don’t mind even more spoilers. There are lots of voice files — more than I could cover in a single post.