As we’ve already seen, Midnight will have a very different raid structure than modern WoW expansion launches. With three smaller raids, the third of which is set to unlock a few weeks after the first two, it stands apart from all expansions since Mists of Pandaria. This third and final raid of the .0 patch is a very thematic and story-heavy one. The March on Quel’Danas is set to close the narrative threads of the campaign. And today we found out a lot more about it!
Spoilers below, obviously!
A Familiar Legacy for the First Boss
As the name itself implies, the raid will see us trying to stop Xal’atath from getting to the Sunwell. We’ve already seen this is her goal in the intro cinematic for the expansion. The two bosses in the raid are both already corrupted by the void, with one new and one returning face.
The first boss is a Void phoenix, but not just any phoenix. While the name Belo’ren might not ring a bell, its lineage might. It was freshly hatched from the last of Al’ar’s clutch! This dark phoenix isn’t even doing anything particularly wrong, either. It is simply confused and fulfilling its original purpose – to defend the Sunwell. Unfortunately for us, we’re the ones it’s defending it from. The encounter itself sees Belo’ren alternate between void and light magic, as well as do the standard phoenix move of coming back after being defeated.
A Familiar Face
The second and final encounter of the raid doesn’t have a boss name, but is rather ominously called “Midnight Falls”. As we reach the Sunwell, it has already been changed, as Xal’atath used the Dark Naaru L’ura to create the Darkwell. If the name of the Naaru sounds familiar, it’s because we’ve already faced it once. L’ura stayed behind during the original Burning Legion invasion of Argus to fend the demons off. After being imprisoned in the Seat of the Triumvirate, it turned to the Void after millennia passed. We fight her in the dungeon, and it’s Alleria that takes her power for herself when she transforms to her current void-infused state.
It seems Xal’atath salvaged the Dark Naaru, however, or perhaps even harvested L’ura’s power from Alleria in an earlier story beat? In any case, the Naaru has corrupted the Sunwell and we’re fighting it. It is unclear what happens when the encounter finishes. If we win, does the Sunwell go back to normal? Considering the encounter’s title, that seems unlikely. However, the potential consequences of it remaining a portal for the Void are pretty huge, especially considering the Alliance and Horde expansion capital is basically next door to it.
The Darkwell
The Sunwell is already changed as we arrive. Whether this is permanent or not is unclear, but the iconic location has its new name already as we enter the raid.
It seems whatever L’ura is doing in the Sunwell is an “ending” and we really ought to stop it, as stage 2 of the fight describes. Again, it’s somewhat unclear what “the ending” means specifically, if it’s just “Azeroth is destroyed” or if it’s more figurative than that. “If the Sunwell falls, so too does the world” is a line in the Deep Dive video. Now what the world falling means exactly…
The very ending to the raid remains a relative mystery. We might simply cleanse the well after we stop L’ura. However, if it’s unhealable, at best, we’re looking at another permanent Void portal on Azeroth, on top of the Voidstorm above Quel’Danas already created.
A Popular Theory
Regardless of what “the ending” means, there is a very interesting player theory about the Sunwell specifically. It seems to have absorbed almost every major cosmic power throughout its history. While it is currently a mix of Arcane (Order) and Light (Holy), it has interacted with Death (Kel’Thuzad’s resurrection and Arthas’ march in general), Disorder (Kil’jaeden’s emergence), and now the Void. The Dark Heart as also absorbed many of the same forces, with Death from Galakrond, Light from Beledar, Order (aka Arcane) from Dalaran, and Void from Dimensius. That leaves Disorder and Nature, and there’s a nature-themed raid in Midnight, the Dreamrift, where she might get that.
So the Sunwell could then be infused with all the Cosmic powers and… do… something! It seems pretty obvious what Xal’atath’s ultimate goal is, with Azeroth’s World Soul always being the target. What happens after we stop L’ura from… ending things is unclear. But, with Xal’atath, there’s always another plan!
What do you think happens at the end of the March on Quel’Danas? Is the Sunwell truly gone and the Darkwell is permanent? Or is there much more to it than that?
