Chris InglisWorld of Warcraft: The War Within has been one of the better expansion experiences for me in many years of playing the 20-year running MMORPG. In addition to things such as delves, hero talents, skyriding and the first Isle of Dawn explorable area that I covered in my in-progress review, this final review covers off on unlocking the Earthen race, my thoughts on the overarching story, the other three explorable zones, follower dungeons, and profession changes.
Unlocking the Earthen race is a significant achievement in the expansion given you must complete the entire campaign of The War Within, which took me around 15-20 hours. Additionally, you need to complete specific side quests that have an ‘earthen allied race’ symbol on them, namely quest chains of Mourning Rise in Isle of Dorn, Broken Tools in Ringing Deeps and Merrix and Steelvein in Dornogal. The Earthen are a fascinating new addition, with unique abilities and a distinct aesthetic that adds variety to the gameplay experience. Levelling an earthen to 50 will earn you a set of heritage armour and a new mount, Slatestone Ramolith.
The story of The War Within is one of the highlights of the expansion for me. While Dragonflight and Shadowlands before that both started off compelling, I fell off the wagon of interest after around the 5-6 hour mark in both. However, this story has kept me captivated the whole way through. This is in part due to the engaging storylines being told, my love for dwarves as we meet the Earthen, and the fact that after key story beats, you move onto a whole new zone which, for me, feels like a fresh start. The campaign is filled with memorable moments, from epic battles to some emotional and heartfelt interactions, making it a compelling experience from start to finish.
As players delve deeper into Khaz Algar, they enter The Ringing Deeps. This zone is characterised by its vast underground caverns and intricate tunnels. I loved having to skyride deep down to the vast caverns below. The environment is dark and foreboding, with bioluminescent flora and fauna adding a mystical touch. You will be fighting against the forces of Xal’atath, encountering corrupted creatures and powerful enemies.
The next zone is Hallowfall and this quickly became one of my favourites in all of World of Warcraft. When you first fly into the zone, you are greeted with this incredible vista that is well worth pausing at to take the sights in. There is a huge sky crystal coming through the roof of the overarching cavern that change into a shadow form at times, from bright yellow to dark purple, and this changes the whole aesthetic and mood of the zone. The environment is a mix of ancient ruins and overgrown vegetation, with a focus on the remnants of past civilizations.
Azj-Kahet is the final major zone in The War Within, and it is the most challenging. This zone is set in the heart of the Nerubian Empire, with towering structures and vast underground chambers. The environment is dark and oppressive, with a focus on the corruption and decay that has taken hold of the area. The quests in Azj-Kahet are intense and rewarding, with a focus on epic battles and high-stakes missions. The zone culminates in a climactic showdown against Xal’atath, testing players’ skills and determination.
The zones are filled with hidden secrets and treasures for your warband, signified by purple glowing items, encouraging exploration and discovery in all corners of each zone. You may gain items that give you crafting knowledge in your profession, or items for your warband characters. These warband items can be freely swapped between your alts until they are used and become soulbound, and there’s a central bank container for you to store those items you find and to easily switch between alts.
Professions have had an overhaul, and you can now specialise within the professions too. My dwarven hunter has mining and jewelcraft as his professions and it is the first expansion since Burning Crusade where I have really been invested in crafting. With the ease at which gold comes in and the limited time to play MMORPGs in recent years since having kids, it’s just been easier to buy resources and items off the auction house. However, seeing new ore nodes in these new zones, gaining new recipes and learning about profession specs has been a lot of fun, and a good break from the combat-heavy quests and storylines.
Knowledge points are a currency that enables profession specialisations to grow. Gaining knowledge points is done in three main ways – via patron (NPC) crafting orders, finding treasures as mentioned, and gaining a first craft bonus for the first of every new recipe you discover. However, be warned, knowledge point changes are permanent and once you spend a knowledge point and apply the changes, you will not be able to respec later. This might be something Blizzard looks at in the future but for now it is well worth doing some research beforehand.
The final aspect worth mentioning is follower dungeons. In addition to the new solo and small group delves, follower dungeons are a standout feature in this expansion. These dungeons, from Dragonflight and The War Within zones, allow you to play through dungeons with a group of NPC companions, which reminded me of playing Guild Wars: Eye of the North. Even better is that you can toggle on ‘Dungeon Assistance’ and the followers will lead you through the dungeon if you are unfamiliar with it. This means they will run ahead and guide you through the dungeon which was invaluable to me as I learned the new dungeons as a solo player. While I enjoy having real players running dungeons with me, in the absence of mates being online, this is now an ideal option and can avoid some of the bad PUG experiences of the past.
Overall, World of Warcraft: The War Within is a fantastic expansion that has re-captured that fantasy feel for the MMORPG that has been long absent for me. Previous expansions have not kept my attention for more than a few hours, but I have been hooked on the storylines and zone exploration on offer. In addition, I have found many other aspects worthy of my time such as investing in crafting professions, unlocking the Earthen race, engaging with delves and follower dungeons, and the captivating story that kept me coming back for more. If you have been disenfranchised with WoW recently, I highly recommend giving The War Within a look, and as this is the start of the Worldsoul Saga, I am excited to see what’s to come over the next 12-24 months.
This review utilised a key provided by Bizzard ANZ and World of Warcraft: The War Within is out now.
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