If Blizzard was looking to manipulate the World of Warcraft community into caring about this MMO prior to the expansion launch later this month, then it’s mission accomplished. The story events of the past week, most notably with the Horde Warchief Sylvanas’ decision to burn down the Night Elf world tree, has riled up players like little we’ve seen in the past few years.
The backlash against the story beat is so strong, especially among Horde players, that a unique protest is spreading in the game itself. Inspired by the recent “Old Soldier” cinematic, in which the Orc leader Saurfang removes his shoulder armor in response to Sylvanas’ war crime, many players are emulating that fashion in-game. Considering how notoriously big and bulky World of Warcraft’s shoulder armor is, the lack of it is drawing attention from more than a few passers-by.
It’s a way for Horde players to show that they still have honor and don’t stand behind their current warchief’s actions. It’s also a not-so-subtle way of showing the community rallying behind a character that they clearly want to be the next warchief — and perhaps this was Blizzard’s plan all along.
