History Videogame / WorldofWarcraft

The fifth expansion was officially announced at BlizzCon 2013 on November 8th, and is called "Warlords of Draenor". This expansion takes a look into the past, on the world of Draenor (the previous state of present-day WoW Outland), and players will meet characters such as Grommash Hellscream, Blackhand, and Ner'zhul. The expansion allows new and returning players to immediately boost one of their characters to level 90 to start playing the expansion immediately (similar to how Death Knights start at level 55), and raises the level cap to 100. It also introduces the Garrison feature, which will allow players to build and customize their own Garrisons. Rather than a new race ''or'' class (or both, as mists was), Blizzard has opted to give the eight vanilla races updated models.

The fifth expansion was officially announced at BlizzCon 2013 on November 8th, and is called "Warlords of Draenor". This expansion takes a look into the past, on the world of Draenor (the previous state of present-day WoW Outland), and players will meet characters such as Grommash Hellscream, Blackhand, and Ner'zhul. The expansion allows new and returning players to immediately boost one of their characters to level 90 to start playing the expansion immediately (similar to how Death Knights start at level 55), and raises the level cap to 100. It also introduces the Garrison feature, which will allow players to build and customize their own Garrisons.

The fifth expansion has not yet been officially announced. An announcement is expected at BlizzCon 2013 on November 8th. Early speculation is that Blizzard will be returning to a ten level expansion. This is based in part on items that drop in Mists of Pandaria's final raid which have a level requirement of 90-100.

* Paladin -- A hybrid melee class that can specialize as tank, melee DPS, or healer. They were formerly only available to the Alliance, but this changed in '''Burning Crusade''' with the introduction of the Blood Elf class. Paladins wield their faith in the Light as sword, shield, and bandage, incorporating holy magic into their martial abilities as well as their spellcasting. Something of a Warrior/Priest hybrid.

* Paladin -- A hybrid melee class that can specialize as tank, melee DPS, or healer. Paladins wield their faith in the Light as sword, shield, and bandage, incorporating holy magic into their martial abilities as well as their spellcasting. Something of a Warrior/Priest hybrid.

The fifth expansion has not yet been officially announced. An announcement is expected at BlizzCon 2013 on November 8th. Early speculation is that Blizzard will be returning to a ten level expansion. This is based in part on items that drop in MoP's final raid which have a level requirement of 90-100.

The third expansion, ''Cataclysm'', was released in December 2010. It returned players to a redesigned Kalimdor and Eastern Kingdoms (devastated after the titular Cataclysm), raised the level cap to 85, and revisited a great deal of old and unfinished content while continuing the story lines of Azshara, Deathwing, and the Guardians of Tirisfal. The expansion saw upsets in the leadership of several player races and a resurgence in the Alliance/Horde conflict storyline throughout Azeroth. It added two new races: the bestial Worgen of Gilneas for the Alliance, and the cunning Goblins of Kezan for the Horde. The final dungeon was Dragon Soul, featuring the long-awaited battle against Deathwing the Destroyer.

Well-known for its depth of interaction, [=WoW=] has also spawned a collectible card game, a pen-and-paper RPG, comic books, and many other merchandising peripherals. The game was one of the largest MMO in the world by a huge margin, with a peak subscriber base of 11.5 million players and at one point holding nearly 60% of the total market share. [[note]]For reference, the largest US MMORPG before this was ''VideoGame/EverQuest'' at half a million during its height; the largest worldwide was ''{{Lineage}}'' at 2-3 million -- although Asian MMORPG numbers such as ''Lineage'' can be considered inflated, as they have a different pricing structure in Asian markets that revolve around cybercafes. Note that ''World of Warcraft'' is played in the same cybercafes on the same terms.[[/note]] A feature film based on the Warcraft franchise is currently in DevelopmentHell, but seems to still be happening..

* Paladin -- A hybrid melee class that can specialize as tank, melee DPS, or healer. Paladins wield their faith in the Light as sword, shield, and bandage, incorporating holy magic into their martial abilities as well as their spellcasting. Formerly available only to the Alliance, which was changed in ''Burning Crusade'' in giving Blood Elves to the Horde, and then Tauren could do it too.

-->-'''Original trailer'''

-->''Beyond the gates of mighty kingdoms, lies a vast, unexplored world. A world of honor. A world of mystery. A world of danger. [[TitleDrop The world of Warcraft]].''

[[caption-width-right:350:[[TheLastOfTheseIsNotLikeTheOthers A world of heroes, battles and a flying motorbike.]]]]

'''''World of Warcraft''''' is easily the most popular subscription-based MassivelyMultiplayerOnlineRolePlayingGame in the world today. It's based on Creator/BlizzardEntertainment's popular ''VideoGame/{{Warcraft}}'' RealTimeStrategy game series and was originally set four years after ''Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne'', with later expansions advancing the timeline.

* Paladin -- A hybrid melee class that can specialize as tank, melee DPS, or healer. Paladins wield their faith in the Light as sword, shield, and bandage, incorporating holy magic into their martial abilities as well as their spellcasting. Formerly available only to the Alliance, which was changed in Burning Crusade in giving Blood Elves to the Horde, and then Tauren could do it too.

* Shaman -- A caster/melee hybrid that draws on the power of elemental and ancestral spirits. Shaman may specialize in melee DPS, ranged DPS, or healing, and utilize mystical totems to buff allies and attack their foes. Formerly available only to the Horde, which was changed in Burning Crusade with the addition of the Draenei to the Alliance, and later expanded when the Wildhammer Dwarves joined and began teaching other Dwarves.

'''''World of Warcraft''''' is easily the most popular subscription-based MassivelyMultiplayerOnlineRolePlayingGame in the world today. It's based on Creator/BlizzardEntertainment's popular ''{{Warcraft}}'' RealTimeStrategy game series and was originally set four years after ''[[{{Warcraft}} Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne]]'', with later expansions advancing the timeline.

'''''World of Warcraft''''' is easily the most popular subscription-based MassivelyMultiplayerOnlineRolePlayingGame in the world today. It's based on BlizzardEntertainment's popular ''{{Warcraft}}'' RealTimeStrategy game series and was originally set four years after ''[[{{Warcraft}} Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne]]'', with later expansions advancing the timeline.

[quoteright:347:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/world_of_warcraft_logo_8277.jpg]]

[[quoteright:347:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/world_of_warcraft_logo_8277.jpg]]

Well-known for its depth of interaction, [=WoW=] has also spawned a collectible card game, a pen-and-paper RPG, comic books, and many other merchandising peripherals. The game was one of the largest MMO in the world by a huge margin, with a peak subscriber base of 11.5 million players and at one point holding nearly 60% of the total market share. [[note]]For reference, the largest US MMORPG before this was ''VideoGame/EverQuest'' at half a million during its height; the largest worldwide was ''{{Lineage}}'' at 2-3 million -- although Asian MMORPG numbers such as ''Lineage'' can be considered inflated, as they have a different pricing structure in Asian markets that revolve around cybercafes. Note that ''World of Warcraft'' is played in the same cybercafes on the same terms. As of the last few months however, ''World of Warcraft'' was arguably surpassed in size by the MMO game ''League of Legends''[[/note]] A feature film based on the Warcraft franchise is currently in DevelopmentHell, but seems to still be happening..

Well-known for its depth of interaction, [=WoW=] has also spawned a collectible card game, a pen-and-paper RPG, comic books, and many other merchandising peripherals. The game is the largest MMO in the world by a huge margin, with a peak subscriber base of 11.5 million players and at one point holding nearly 60% of the total market share. [[note]]For reference, the largest US MMORPG before this was ''VideoGame/EverQuest'' at half a million during its height; the largest worldwide was ''{{Lineage}}'' at 2-3 million -- although Asian MMORPG numbers such as ''Lineage'' can be considered inflated, as they have a different pricing structure in Asian markets that revolve around cybercafes. Note that ''World of Warcraft'' is played in the same cybercafes on the same terms.[[/note]] A feature film based on the Warcraft franchise is currently in DevelopmentHell, but seems to still be happening..

* Shaman -- A caster/melee hybrid that draws on the power of elemental and ancestral spirits. Shaman may specialize in melee DPS, ranged DPS, or healing, and utilize mystical totems to buff allies and attack their foes. Formerly available only to the Horde, which was changed in Burning Crusade with the addition of the Draenei to the Alliance.

* Warlock -- A ranged DPS class that employs demons and attacks with shadow and fire magic. Warlocks may specialize in summoning demonic minions to cause damage and bolster their party, withering their targets with curses, or battering them with direct power. Warlocks also have the ability to utilize fragments of their past victims' souls to a gambit of group-supportive ends.

[[caption-width-right:350:[[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking A world of heroes, battles and a flying motorbike.]]]]

Well-known for its depth of interaction, [=WoW=] has also spawned a collectible card game, a pen-and-paper RPG, comic books, and many other merchandising peripherals. The game is the largest MMO in the world by a huge margin, with a peak subscriber base of 11.5 million players and at one point holding nearly 60% of the total market share. [[note]]For reference, the largest US MMORPG before this was ''VideoGame/EverQuest'' at half a million during its height; the largest worldwide was ''{{Lineage}}'' at 2-3 million -- although Asian MMORPG numbers such as ''Lineage'' can be considered inflated, as they have a different pricing structure in Asian markets that revolve around cybercafes. Note that ''World of Warcraft'' is played in the same cybercafes on the same terms.[[/note]] A feature film based on the Warcraft franchise is currently in DelopmentHell, but seems to still be happening..

Well-known for its depth of interaction, [=WoW=] has also spawned a collectible card game, a pen-and-paper RPG, comic books, and many other merchandising peripherals. The game is the largest MMO in the world by a huge margin, with a peak subscriber base of 11.5 million players and at one point holding nearly 60% of the total market share. [[note]]For reference, the largest US MMORPG before this was ''VideoGame/EverQuest'' at half a million during its height; the largest worldwide was ''{{Lineage}}'' at 2-3 million -- although Asian MMORPG numbers such as ''Lineage'' can be considered inflated, as they have a different pricing structure in Asian markets that revolve around cybercafes. Note that ''World of Warcraft'' is played in the same cybercafes on the same terms.[[/note]] A feature film based on the Warcraft franchise is in the works, with a release date of 2013.

* Paladin -- A hybrid melee class that can specialize as tank, melee DPS, or healer. Paladins wield their faith in the Light as sword, shield, and bandage, incorporating holy magic into their martial abilities as well as their spellcasting. Formerly available only to the Alliance, which was changed in Burning Crusade in giving Blood Elves to the Horde.

* Monk (added in ''Mists of Pandaria'') -- A tank/melee DPS/healer hybrid focused on the Pandaren culture. They can tank as a [[DrunkenMaster Brewmaster]], deal damage as a Windwalker, and mix up damaging attacks with magic to heal as a [[CombatMedic Mistweaver]]. They use [[KiAttacks Chi]] as a resource.

See also the WarcraftExpandedUniverse, which contains write-ups for works set in the Warcraft universe. The character sheet (for the entire Warcraft universe) is [[Characters/{{Warcraft}} here]].

The fourth expansion, ''Mists of Pandaria'', is scheduled for release on September 25th, 2012. It raises the level cap to 90 and opens up the continent of Pandaria for exploration. It features the Pandaren as a playable race for both the Alliance and Horde, a new class in the form of the Monk, and more focus on [=PvP=] content. Additional features include [[{{Mons}} pet battles]], [=PvE=] scenarios, and Challenge Mode dungeons. As the Horde vs. Alliance conflict will be a major part of the storyline, the FinalBoss will be none other than the current leader of the Horde, Garrosh Hellscream.

''World of Warcraft'' is based in the world of Azeroth, on four main continents: Kalimdor, the Eastern Kingdoms, Northrend and Pandaria; as well as the former planet of Outland, whence the [[OurOrcsAreDifferent Orcs]] originate. There are two factions: the Alliance and the Horde (though neither is automatically good or evil -- and in trope terms, ''both'' are TheAlliance), thirteen races, eleven classes, eleven primary professions, and four secondary professions.