Insider: In terms of lore, the Sunwell is one of the most important sites in Azerothian history. Revisiting this place in the Sunwell Plateau raid and the Magisters’ Terrace dungeon doesn’t just mark the high point of The Burning Crusade’s PvE progression, it also doubles as the final act of the first expansion’s story arc. How did this sense of a “grand finale” inspire the artistic direction of these settings?

 

Chris Robinson: The central theme we wanted to realize with the Sunwell’s design was a clear revelation of blood elf culture in its highest form. With Sunwell Plateau and Magisters’ Terrace, we also had an opportunity to take the gear that players first experienced in the blood elf starting areas and develop those items to their most evolved form. One way this concept was implemented was in the fully realized blood elf visual style of the Sunwell gear players can obtain from these new dungeons. Since the Sunwell represents the culmination of the blood elf storyline that started with The Burning Crusade, it made sense to take design cues from the blood elf starting gear and translate those into some really epic-looking, clearly blood elven armor and weapons.

J. Allen Brack: This is the first time that Alliance players have had access to the full range of blood elven items and equipment, and for blood elf players, they have the added treat of finally having the epic versions of their newbie gear. Another thing we felt was important in the development of this patch was that this is also the first opportunity for many Alliance players to experience the true blood elven culture, so we really wanted to show off their art and architecture as it would have been at the peak of the elves’ power.

Insider: Let’s talk about some high-level design concepts for the Sunwell. We already mentioned that the Sunwell dungeon and raid will conclude the blood elf and draenei storylines, at least for the time being. Can you elaborate on that a little more?

J. Allen Brack: Without spoiling too much, it’s true that some of the major story arcs of The Burning Crusade reach their conclusion in Fury of the Sunwell. There are big revelations for both the blood elves and the draenei, and players will also learn the fate of the remaining member of the bad guy triumvirate of Illidan, Vashj, and Kael’thas. In addition to Kael’thas, there’s a new “ultimate villain” to defeat. Essentially, we’re providing players with epic resolutions to The Burning Crusade’s most visible story arcs.

Naxxramas comes to mind as an example of what we’re aiming for with the Sunwell. Despite being the pinnacle of PVE raiding before The Burning Crusade, Naxxramas didn’t actually complete that many of the story arcs presented in the original game. While Naxxramas remains one of the best designed high-end dungeons in World of Warcraft, it still felt like there was untapped potential for what high-end PvE storytelling could be. That’s what we set out to do with Sunwell Plateau and Magisters’ Terrace: create a dungeon experience that features spectacular gameplay and an awesome conclusion to the expansion’s story arc.

Insider: Do you see a lot of parallels between Naxxramas and Sunwell Plateau?

J. Allen Brack: I see Sunwell Plateau more as an evolution of what we did with Naxxramas. Like I said, Sunwell Plateau serves a dual purpose of concluding The Burning Crusade’s story as well as representing the ultimate challenge for PvE content. In that regard, you could say it’s the Naxxramas of The Burning Crusade. But there are also some noticeable differences reflecting what the team learned from developing Naxxramas: Sunwell Plateau definitely has a more focused layout than the massive expanse of Naxxramas. Naxx’s immense size was one of its defining characteristics, and that was not a bad thing in itself. It allowed us to populate the necropolis with some of the game’s most memorable raid bosses, but at the same time I think its size made it difficult for some players to fully experience the dungeon. Sunwell Plateau’s smaller scale will let more players access the raid and give them a reasonable chance of clearing it before the launch of Wrath of the Lich King.

In addition, we consider Magisters’ Terrace to be an integral part of the complete Sunwell package -- a small group experience that, along with the slew of new daily quests, new badge rewards, and new crafted items, shows our continued commitment to providing meaningful, rewarding solo and small group content.

Insider: Speaking of Wrath of the Lich King -- How is Northrend progressing? What are your feelings about going from the world style of Outland to the very different Northrend setting? 

 Chris Robinson: Coming up with the high concept look of The Burning Crusade was a great experience, and as a team we really enjoyed working in this style. For a designer, it’s always a breath of fresh air to have some new elements to play with. So naturally it’s great to now have this opportunity to go back to the more traditional elements of fantasy that comprise the look and feel of Wrath of the Lich King, even though this poses new challenges in and of itself. Northrend has a very Nordic, gothic fantasy feel that’s a departure from the wild scenescapes of Outland.

One way we’re attempting to reflect these new visual themes is by making sure all the item rewards of Northrend faithfully embody the new style. From the get-go, players will earn trophies of war that are very “Northrendy” -- for example, say, a two-handed axe that’s made of a dragon jaw, covered with spikes, leather, and other traditional materials. We want players to see the new gear and think, “Yeah, that guy’s been to Northrend.”