BlizzCast Episodes 9 and 10

Blizzard Entertainment has just released a tenth BlizzCast episode, though we’re going to cover it along with the ninth episode since we apparently missed it back in April. From #9’s transcript:

Bornakk: Hello and welcome to this special edition of BlizzCast. This is Bornakk and today we are bringing you an inside look at the upcoming World of Warcraft novel titled Arthas: Rise of the Lich King. To bring us this inside scoop, we have our Senior Vice President of Creative Development Chris Metzen here to talk about the book and deliver the prologue.

Chris Metzen: Hello everybody!

Bornakk: What can you tell us about the book Chris?

Chris Metzen: Well, this novel has been in the planning stages for awhile. The story of Arthas’ rise and fall is one that’s very near and dear to our hearts. We’ve been really excited for Christie Golden to get on board and begin constructing much of this story. While a lot of the book deals with the events of Warcraft III and The Frozen Throne that we’ve all kind of played through. To me the far more interesting part of the book is Christie’s construction of Arthas’s origin. We never really got into a lot of the stories about when he was a kid: how he came up, how he became a Paladin, just who he really was. What are his chief relationships like with characters like Uther or Muradin or Jaina Proudmoore? We just felt Christie just absolutely rocked this one out of the park and I just can’t wait for people to be able to read it and just really see what’s been cooking.

And from #10:

Zarhym: Okay, so to sort of play off of the evolving storyline at the Argent Tournament, what are some of the bigger updates in patch 3.2 to sort of support that storyline?

Dave Maldonado: Well, I mean story-wise, it is kind of just a continuation. So nothing really starts there. Nothing really ends there. But, you know, the storyline certainly does continue. So players will see these important figures beginning to converge on the tournament as the actual games begin. The coliseum’s been built now. The training period is over. like the real, real deal is starting. So Thrall arrives, Garrosh, Jaina, King Wrynn. All of these people are coming there and meeting with Tirion. And this is stuff that happens in game on the grounds. Players will be able to see them all appearing and interacting with one another; and through their interactions you’ll get a real sense of kind of what’s going on, of the tensions that underlie this whole sort of tenuous thing that Tirion and the crusade are trying to manage.

And there’s some cameos too, some sort of side stuff that relates. Trag Highmountain is there who’s a character who has kind of a big grudge against Arthas and he’s sort of showing up in this sort of final preparation stage as well. And then there’s the Cult of the Damned thing and the Black Knight. That story actually continues here as well. It wasn’t over. He’s. not. dead… yet, completely!

Zarhym: [laughs]

Dave Maldonado: So that’s still going on.
Zarhym: Right.

Dave Maldonado: He’s the Black Knight! He never dies. The guy just keeps going.

Zarhym: So is he ever going to die? I mean, are we ever going to find out? Are we ever going to kill him and finally say “alright, he’s just dead now”?

Dave Maldonado: Uhh…

Scott Mercer: You end up fighting him inside the 5-player dungeon.