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Eversong Woods
Eversong Woods
Eversong Woods wraps around one of the better known locations of
Warcraft lore - the location of the ancient city of Quel'Thalas,
or "Silvermoon City" as it's known today. Silvermoon City and
environs are where the remnant of elves stranded on the
continent of Lordaeron have made their stand against the
plague-ridden forces of the Scourge. However, the Eversong Woods
of today will strike you moreso as an island of grandeur in an
expansive wasteland rather than a province under siege, owing to
the power of the "Burning Crystals" and the protection of large
magical runestones which keep the blight of the Scourge at bay.
The Blood Elves owe much of their livelihood to magic, and ask
still much more of the magic they possess. While blood elf
living spaces are serviced by magical brooms and mops like
something out of "Beauty and the Beast", the nearby woods are
rife with magical misanthropes - from creations gone completely
awry like manawraiths and manaworms to the rebellious
treant-like "tenders" and elemental guardians who turned against
their former masters. The insatiable blood elf thirst for magic
is tempered by a sylvan regard for their environment and the
military realities of their situation- thus the blood elves have
escaped the fate of the city of Gnomeregan, destroyed by the
gnomes quest for horrific military technology.
Some handy maps...
Eversong Woods Map
Silvermoon City Map
This is indeed a region of unmatched beauty; the woods
themselves seem to match the extravagent tastes of the blood
elves and their preference for deep scarlet, golden, and purple
hues. The woods themselves are a match for the translucent
drapery, the hovering potted plants, the suspended chandeliers,
and the many gaudy charms that make up the blood elf decor. This
is clearly a new race (or, more accurately, a re-established and
re-named race) that emerged from its initial struggle with the
Scourge fiercely proud and equally scornful of their far-away
Night Elf kin, who they regard as traitorous cowards. Their
hatred impels them to make a new alliance with the other
hangers-on of Lordaeron - the undead Forsaken and their Horde
allies - against the swelling presence of the Scourge now that
the Dark Portal yawns open once again.
The single blight marring this ethereal landscape is the mark of
the Scourge's advance - the Dead Scar, which runs like a river
of death and torment through the heart of the Eversong Woods,
slicing the once grand city of Silvermoon City in half. Even the
ruined eastern section of Silvermoon City has regained something
of its former lustre (though it remains populated with magical
miscreants and outcasts), but aside from hellish wraiths and
zombie-like creatures, nothing grows in the Dead Scar to this
day.
Sunstrider Isle
New blood elves start their lives at the foot of the Sunspire in
Sunstrider Isle (if you're noticing a theme here, these lands
and structures were named in honor of the Sunwell, from which
the elves drew power and strength prior to its necromantic
destruction by Arthas at the coming of the Scourge). This is the
questgiver and trainer area of the newbie region, with class
trainers and vendors in the Sunspire proper and a handful of
tradeskill trainers in a nearby outbuilding.
If you've played World of Warcraft before, you probably know
something of how a World of Warcraft newbie area is laid out-
with trainers, quests, and mobs aplenty in a level 1-4 newbie
"teaching" area, a level 4-5 "dungeon crawl", and so-called
"breadcrumb" quests to lead you to your next quest hub.
Sunstrider Isle offers several nice variations on the
triedtheme. First, the quests are focused on fixing the magical
excesses of the blood elves (this is an ongoing motif throughout
your time in Eversong Woods). Second, the "mini-dungeon crawl"
(where players learn to move and fight in something of a linear
path) is the open-air, towering Falthrien Academy - home of a
blood elf gone mad with magical power. And finally, Sunstrider
Isle lies extremely open and on a downhill slant from the
Sunspire, allowing easy visibility of the Isle's many landmarks
(important for finding quest objectives).
Once I'd dropped off the head of Falthrien and was well into
level 5, it's time to head toward Silvermoon City. But first
stop: Falconwing Square, in the southern part of the Ruins of
Silvermoon.
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