An elven version of shamanism - is plausible

Community General Discussion
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Important Warning Note: Click to read - this is not an "elves should be shaman" request post or rant

This is just a fun attempt at imagining a lore based way elven races can experience the shaman playstyle. I’m not saying blizzard are doing this (though they might be), nor am I saying blizzard should do this, or that this is some legit lore proven thing already around, so please don’t take it that way.

This is just a fun way I feel based on my knowledge of their lore that elvenn races could play a version of the shaman class that fit them, their lore and their history rather than homogenise the class lore by making elves shaman like the rest of the races that can be.

Get it? this is not an ELVES should be Shaman post. Elves shouldn’t be shaman, however it doesn’t mean they can’t the eleven equivalent of shaman which would be an elven thing, not shaman - even though it is the shaman playstyle

Like Tauren and paladin/priests, the established version of shamansim does not have a place in this race. If they get it, for lore integrity and good continuity sake, it should not be in the form other races currently have shaman, it would be in an adapted form

Introduction

For the shaman as a playstyle to become available to elven races, blizzard would either have to give the elves a version of shamansim that is close enough to the regular shaman but totally fits and feels a natural part of the elven race/lore - like they did with Kuk’tiran tidesages or dark iron shamans, EITHER that or further homogenise by inventing some story of how elves can now become the same sort of shaman in existing races like they did for Draenei shaman/Darkspear druids, Orc mages rather than a more unique race specific approach done for the Tidesages, blood knights, Zandalari druids.

I would have the first approach rather than introduce elves to the current shamanism

Which will just homogenise races and classes further in the lore. You want people to experience as many class playstyles as possible on their favourite race, but you do not want the uniqueness of certain traditional classes diluted un-necessary especially those strongly tied to certain kinds of races. Therefore if another race is to get it, it is far better for a unique visualisation to happen like Tidesages were, rather than have a group of elves learn shamanism from their allies when their lore does not present them as the type that would do that, They’d consider their way of doing things better and more capable - so it seems un-necessary and un-imaginative to have them learn shamanism like other races and rather dilutes the traditional version of shamanism and the race of the elves

Elves don’t need to beseech or bargain with elementals, they are already wielding the powers of creation via the arcane and have a very strong 10k+ year tradition of that already long demonstrated using this power to generate their fire, their frost/water, their ear and move rocks.

Elves are the most magically gifted playable race, and have the oldest and deepest magical connection unbroken for their near 15,000 year existence, this race doesn’t need shamanism in the traditional sense, it should have it’s own version.

Details: Elven magic version of Shamanism - Class Visualisation.

So the night elves invented the current version of the mage, and we can see mages use the arcane to wield frost and fire which are elements - they just don’t beg or convince elements to do it or to bestow their natural powers on them like traditional shaman, it is not hard to conceive they use the arcane to channel earth and wind too, while frost is just water frozen. They also use elements like shaman but differently. It’s not hard to conceive that not only can they produce the same effect of a shaman, just differently, but they actually did so devastatingly and it was one of the things lost in the genocide of the sundering and the loss of the Moonguard.

Proof: Here are some examples where elves have used the arcane to manipulate the elements.
  • The night elves used the arcane magic and nature druidic magic of ancient trees to build their great cities. This includes buildings and parks, WotA trilogy tells the stones have nature and arcane woven through them.
  • The high elves build Silvermoon with magic - arcane used to utilise earth/stone.
  • The elves fix their weather magically via the arcane - e.g. Quel’thalas is bathed in eternal spring, this requires water and air manipulation, without a doubt this is from the night elf age, you can imagine night elves creating the perfect temperature and climate in their houses in cities like Suramar, Eldre’thalas, Zin’Azshari or Loreth’aran way up in the north. This is air and water manipulation
  • We see night elf mages in End times/Azsuna wielding fire and frost, using elementals too, this comes from the arcane and is why modern mages can use these

An Elven version of shamansim should be based on their arcane mastery allowing all elven races to utilise the shaman playstyle and possibly extending to a human /forsaken to adopt this.

The Elven version of shaman

Lore

Possible Lore
Remember the lore states the night elves learnt to use the arcane for everything. It was the core magic that could be used to do any other type of magic. This is what they unlocked. It is quite feasible that the nature magic arts were replaced with the arcane in night elf society, because many of the things the night elves at that early stage had been able to do with nature could were achievable with the arcane. It certainly explains why shamanism like the other races have just isn’t a thing with them. And it is their scientific intelligent approach to magic developed from developing their arcane is how Malfurion, coming back to Cenarius is able to take nature magic to a completely different level that generates the druid class after the Sundering.

With many cities destroyed, and the race nearly wiped out, we know that many of the things achieved, discovered, mastered by the night elves are lost to the survivors who are in ruins. Unknown to them are the city communities of Eldre’thalas and Suramar that survived with a lot of lost knowledge and arts, the Farondis ghosts that were in a cursed state, thought lost, and the Moonguard remnant in their stronghold careful hidden

However, this elven version of magecraft can return with the arrival of the Shen’drelar, then Farondis, Nightborne and Moonguard, the elves have a connection to ancient mysteries of the arcane previously lost to or not practised by the Darnassians and Thalassians.

The return of the highborne groups and the combat magical specialists could bring a tradition of arcane usage long out of practice in our original playable elves that most resembled the shaman, and was the elves’arcane enhanced version.

Class and Spec Concept

Class Spec Concept:
We see night elves have Star Augurs and spell blades, these are Augurs are a version of shaman, and Star Augurs are like kaldorei (children of the stars) advanced version based in magical theory instead of praying to elemental.

Spellblades are like magically enhanced melee combatants, Spellblade Aluriel was a kaldorei champion from the ancient Moonguard who won many battles that ended kingdoms (she boasts) using her techniques,its literally and arcane based version enhancement shaman, but using the arcane tongue elemental assistance rather than using elementals’ power.

Elemental would be the easiest for you to visualise. Their fire, earth and air arcane generated rather bargaining with. Night elven moonguard/duskguard that specifically specialise in the use of arcane created elemental magic

Restoration: Could be a form of battle triage the Moonguard had mastered in the pre-sundering era through long working with the priests who fought with them utilising arcane infused water and moonlight/sunlight (for thalassians), it is from this application the sisterhood of Elune utislies arcane waters of the well to be imbued with healing properties. Arcane generally boosts health and life naturally, they would have discovered from the well of eternity how to use magic to bring out healing properties in water, the arcane being the enhancer of the life giving properties of water - because the arcane we know enhances life, makes you live longer -their is a conneciton. And don’t forget the early elves would have learnt some basic druidic magic and studied how water causes life eto grow, that knowledge would have been arcane enhanced and likely utilised as they continued greatly increasing their knowledge of the arcane, they would have incorprated manythings.

So restoration elven users instead of using healing water spirits or nature to bring out the healing, instead achieve the same thing via the arcane and priest ritual learned from the Sisterhood of Elune. The returning Moonguard, Highborne (Farondis and shen’dralar) and Nightborne are able to teach the Darnassians and Thalassians (blood and Void/high elves) this elven version lost to the Long vigil group (who become the Darnassians and Thalassians later on)

Cool Name

Cool Name
You can’t introduce a version of a class without a cool name. Blood Knights, Anchorites and Exarchs, Sunwalkers are all cool names for adopted versions of traditional classes that have a racial spin on them.

The elves can have just one name, or several.

  • Star/Sun Augurs,
  • Thermatauges,
  • Entropists.
Adaptations

Adaptations:
The aesthetic would demand some visual adaptations

  • Totems: Instead of visual totems, these are replaced with something more appropraite, possibly a summoned type of elemental or created one, in the case of the Star Augurs it could be stars instead use. Or simply arcane beacons that produced the same effect, magical item created to produce magical effect, like a spell on a loop - one of hte many arts lost that the returned highborne/moonguard/nightborne bring with them.
  • Unique versions of Ascendants
  • Unique polymorph for ghost wolf - whiles they could change into animal via the new arcane knowledge the returned highborne/nightborne groups bring, another option could be they instead use illusion magic that makes them appear as creature or just simply use the arcane to speed up and no shape is used.
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I want mechanical druids for Goblins and Gnomes :pray:

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If they can use magic to generate elements, why would they need to turn to shamanism.

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:roll_eyes: Indeed, they won’t be shamans, but a form of magic wielders that were effectively doing the same thing, same powerful spells or minor variations of them, just via arcane means.

This is exactly what the post is saying. I’m not sure you understood it. It won’t be called a shaman, hence the “Cool Name” section

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I’m against Elven Shamans in any and all forms.

For me, not even Draenei really make the cut for Shamans. KT Humans, Dark Iron Dwarves and regular Dwarves make the cut for Alliance.
Horde wise, I’m happy with what we’ve got. Only Goblins are something that I’d call into questioning.

For me, I prefer the idea of an Orc Shaman. It’s rich and beautiful with many different beliefs.
Night Elven or Nightborne Shamans just don’t do it for me.

Again, I’d rather the Shaman Class remain away from Elves as other races, particularly those on the Horde, have a much better and deeper connection to the elements.
Even if they became available, I still wouldn’t play one for either race. For me, Mag’har Orcs feel right as a Shaman.

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So, basically Mages?

Shamans channel forth the elemental powerf from their respective field.
Horde shamans deal with all elements, dark irons deal basically with just fire, tidesages with just water (lore wise).
If you lose a favour of the elements you can no longer use their power - look Thrall.

Mages conjure the the elemental atack out of arcane.
It is not elemental pwoer and never was even close to the elemental plain, it just functions and looks like one but it’s basis is transmuted arcane.
As their power is just twisted Arcane, as long as they have mana they can use their magic.

Elves cannot be shamans cuz they’re arogant and do things their own way - they don’t need to.
Originally only elves were mages but taught humans how to be ones as part of alliance deal.
Horde learned how to be mages from Forsaken (former humans) as a condiction of letting them in their ranks.

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Why not just post in the exact same topic that was up a few days ago?

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Please stop.

They didn’t have it since their beginning for thousands of years so they shouldn’t have it randomly now.

Please play non elf for at least onle bloody class.

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I agree.

It just doesn’t fit well. For me, Horde Shamans (barring Goblins) are my favorite races for being Shamans. Neither Nightborne nor Night Elf Shamans work.
Everything that was mentioned by the OP is “Mage-related.”

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Darkspears had their own proto mages, when we started in Vanilla they had their tablets with teachings, likely passed from Zandalari themselves, and the very first mage class quest was about stopping Zalazane’s sorcery.

So in likelyhood troll mages were combining voodoo with arcane knowledge.

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I think this is what the Darkspear were learning from as well, but it just isn’t developed.

To be fair though, I’d rather Blizzard focus on key elements of Troll lore like their Shadow Hunters, Beserkers, Wardruids, Shamanism, Voodoo etc.
I think these serve as better Troll lore-based connections.

Horde side, the Arcane is a very “Nightborne” thing, which again - I don’t see a problem with.

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Yeh, you could call it a different type of mage that specialises in elemental and healing.

It effectively is the shaman class - similarly to how the Blood knights used the light differently.

It uses the basis and mechanics of the shaman class, wielding elemental magic and enhancing melee via spells, but isn’t the shaman. This is why you would call it something else.

As am I, which is why if a shaman class were to open up to the elves, it won’t be the type of shaminism that is the shaman. It really won’t be a shaman at all, it would be an elemental arcane wielder that casts the same spells as the shaman but works the same end result via a totally different way that is instead arcane based.

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But this is Mage related.

We see these things with the Astromancers, Nethermancers etc and it’s all relative to the Arcane. Not Elements that lean towards Shamanism in, really - anyway, shape or form.

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Yeah I agree, that NB are kings of Arcane as they use it for basically everything.

But I liked the odd idea of troll mage that is using the ancient knowledge passed on from Zandalari (as they learned it from mogu and later developed their own way to vield it) and mix it up with voodoo and tribal stuff.

like flying tiki masks, enchants applied on body via paint and stuff like that.
I really like my Accursed Hexxer pet for that type of fantasy.

and I agree that shamanism, berserkers, voodoo priests and shadow hunter are their main thing. After looking back I think that their druids weren’t that well implemented - Zandalari got the treatment that I wanted for trolls to begin with.

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They don’t have what? Who doesn’t have what? Night elves don’t have arcane magic or mages for 10,000 years?

Then what are the shen’dralar, the Farondis and the Moonguard. And if the darnassians didn’t use arcane magic for 10,000 years, does that mean they are incapable of learning or using arcane magic? Does that mean their other night elf kin that have rejoined them can’t teach them or they can’t bring back some old art?

Night elves don’t have arcane magic? they’ve had a Well of Eternity and moonwells which are arcane for the last 10,000 years.

Are you saying night elves can’t use arcane magic? Or don’t have arcane expertise from their arcane era and the last 10,000 years? Then what are the shen’dralar teachers, the Farondis, and the surviving Moonguard? - Sorry, but you keep harping on about night elves not having arcane stuff or expertise… you keep viewing them like the arcane isn’t a part of htem.

When are you going to get over the fact that this is every much a part of the night elves and they have access to all their ancient mastery, knowledge, and are still talented in the arcane - this is the lore that shows this and states this, not me.

No friend, you stop, you keep denying the night elf arcane side, even when it is put infront of you. I assume you are ofc objecting that night elves could have an arcane basis for wielding magic - like you do not accept night elves are mages.

They are, get over it. - No offense Zakkaru. your diea of night elves having nothing to do with the arcane, or their arcane legacy gone and never to return is not the reality of the lore at all. It is not canon, and frankly it is a horrible 1-dimensional view that severs them from a key core part of themselves. Having arcane wielders, mages and highborne is not mutually exclusive with having priests and druids. Stop thinking that this somehow breaks night elves - they were never presented as some arcane-less group. Even the night elves that banned its use still had a huge freaking arcane well and many smaller moonwells they were protecting and using - and this is not mentioning the other ones in places like Suramar or Feralas that never stopped.

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They didn’t have shamans, nor shamanistic abilities - since their very beginnings. I think I made it that clear so I’m surprised how you got it confused and wrote another essay.

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And I think it’s better for Blizzard to keep this.

Well that’s a grand idea. It makes way for the ancestry use of arcane from the Trolls.

But as far as the story in-game goes…coupled with the Nightborne joining the Horde, I don’t think we’ll see too much in regards to that sort of lore, taking a full precedent stance.
I mean, everything we’ve seen with the arcane on Horde side in BFA has been the Nightborne.

He’s referring to Shamanism and he’s absolutely correct.

The Kaldorei Empire was built through use of the Arcane, mostly. Not Shamanism or anything relate-able to that.

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Ah my apologies… well that was a bit of a rant on my part. I thought you meant mages.

As for shaman, it is not a night elf should get shaman post, I absolutely agree elves should not get shaman at all… it’s just a fun exercise on a concept for elven arcane wielders that could be a version of the class.

What I’m talking about here while they play identical to shaman gameplay wise, they aren’t shaman at all, they shouldn’t even be called so if they make it to character creation. but most of the gamers would refer to them as shaman because it’s the playstyle they’re based on.

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Yeah and I also used this NPC for reference:

Among Kor’kron the mages were made up not from belves but from trolls.
And Darkspear sorcerers were shielding the Skyship with their magic, but it was more voodoo oriented.

So I think that troll mage is combining arcane, elemental and their own custom magics which is quite an unique style. If you want pure arcane usage then yeah NB are for that thing.

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I’m trying not to, I made a lot of effort to compress the OP and give as many bullet points with hidden sections for people who wanted to read more. So you don’t have to read an essay.

Trying, but even with all the explanation, people are thinking it’s a shaman I want for elves. which means I haven’t done a good job at explaining it or haven’t written enough.

Ah… they’d get it in a video though.

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