The next patch to World of Warcraft is introducing a new Alliance capital city for Night Elves. It is set at the base of Azeroth’s latest World Tree. Yet, unlike the rest of the Alliance capital cities, this one is open to members of the Horde to explore.
Called Amirdrassil, the tree and its city, Bel’ameth, is the result of years of storytelling. The Night Elves have been forced into refugee life ever since former Horde Warchief, Sylvanas Windrunner, burned down their previous home of Teldrassil in the Battle for Azeroth (2018) expansion.
Over time, with the Shadowlands (2020) and now Dragonflight (2022) expansion, the Night Elves have been striving to grow a new World Tree to call home. Following patch 10.2, this dream is now a reality thanks to players defending its blossoming from Fryakk, the Primal Incarnate.
Now that Fyrakk has been stopped, the Night Elves have been able to settle into their new home. The upcoming patch 10.2.5 will introduce the new city of Bel’ameth, but oddly enough, allow Horde members inside.
This is not going over quite well with many Alliance players, as it was the Horde who originally caused this problem in the first place by destroying the previous World Tree that housed Darnassus. Forum posts on the official website and Wowhead are chock full of comments complaining about the cross-faction feature.
However, it’s important to note in general that Dragonflight has done away with the majority of the faction conflict that stretches across WoW’s history. Furthermore, the game now allows players of both factions to run dungeons together, raid, and join the same guilds like never before, for instance. Therefore, Horde players and leaders have each played a role in defending the new World Tree.
Despite the Horde being allowed in, Blizzard has included several touches to show that while these players can visit, the city of Bel’ameth is not as neutral as it may seem. Not only do Horde players receive an aura informing them that they are “being watched closely” and that “seen and unseen eyes alike are watching [their] every more”, there is only a single portal to the alliance city of Stormwind inside.
Patch 10.2.5, Seeds of Renewal, is also introducing the ability to run dungeons with NPC companions and expand the Dragonriding feature across all of Azeroth. The next expansion for the champion of MMOs, The War Within, is slated to release in 2024. It represents the first part of a three-expansion long story known as The Worldsoul Saga.