The plot from the latest patch of World of Warcraft ends up much too positively. There are hints that we have doomed Nozdormu to his fate …
For a few days now, the Patch 10.1.5 Rifts in Time has been online in World of Warcraft, along with the Mega-Dungeon “Twilight of the Infinite”. The heroes accompany Chromie to save Nozdormu. However, everything is going a little too smoothly to be true …
There are many hints that Nozdormu was not saved at all. We break that down.
Spoiler Warning: This article covers the plot of Patch 10.1.5 and especially the Mega-Dungeon “Twilight of the Infinite”. If you don’t want to be spoiled, do not read further.
The story of the bronze dragon Nozdormu, who is fated to eventually become the leader of the Infinite Dragonflight and ruin the timelines as Murozond, is one of the more tragic stories in World of Warcraft. It is a dilemma that cannot be resolved.
When Nozdormu was empowered by the Titans, he gained power over time. But this came with a vision. He saw how he would die and simultaneously knew that this death must occur to protect the “true” timeline. Nozdormu’s transformation into Murozond and thus his death is inevitable.
At least, we thought that until now. In the dungeon “Twilight of the Infinite,” we are supposedly taught otherwise. We accompany Chromie, solve a few problems with the timelines, and in the end, we make a decision: Do we prevent Iridikron from obtaining the essence of Galakrond? Or do we prevent Nozdormu from becoming Murozond already as a proto-dragon?
Chromie’s decision is clear: She wants to protect Nozdormu, so we prevent that and let Iridikron escape with the essence of Galakrond.
Nozdormu is saved and the timelines are too. Or?
Presumably, that is not the case. Because many hints indicate that Nozdormu is still going to become Murozond. Perhaps we have postponed his transformation a little – or in the worst case, guaranteed it through our actions.
The colleagues from wowhead and Twitter user Portergauge have some thoughts on the incidents that we want to break down here.
Everything that is wrong
The Aspect Paradox
In the dungeon “Twilight of the Infinite,” we experience the aspects before they became the aspects. They are still proto-dragons and have not yet been empowered by the Titans. They do not yet possess their aspect powers.
This creates quite a paradox. If Nozdormu must become Murozond in the true timeline, then this cannot happen before he has received the power of an aspect. Because in that case, he would be becoming Murozond before he has even seen the vision of his own death or possesses power over time. This means that Murozond would not have this power either – which makes little sense.
The second hint comes from the old dungeon “End Time.” The boss Murozond has a clear description in the dungeon journal that explains how he actually became Murozond. According to it, “he was deceived by the old gods and tried to avert his own mortality.” There, Nozdormu destroys the timeways and creates the Infinite Dragonflight.
In other words: Nozdormu never had the vision that he would become Murozond in the dungeon “Twilight of the Infinite.” That was not the vision of his death that he had from the very beginning.
The second inconsistency is how we prevent Murozond. After Chromie sees the rise of Murozond, she travels back in time a few hours and we travel back to the same place again but this time take care of Deios, who wants to transform Nozdormu.
If preventing Murozond were really that easy, that one could simply “travel back in time and do something differently” – would Nozdormu have such problems and nightmares? If the solution to his transformation is that the bronze dragons only need to travel back briefly and restore the true timeline, that would hardly have been a problem for Nozdormu. Because exactly such difficulties are resolved by the bronze dragons since they were empowered by the Titans.
Nozdormu must become Murozond – And many hints are missing
Above all, there are clear hints in the game that this story is not finished. One hint is a loot item from the dungeon. The shield “Murozond’s Timeless Scales” drops from the final boss Deios and has quite an interesting flavor text. It reveals that Deios is not acting out of his own volition, because:
“Ensure my rise, Deios. There is no one I trust more.”
Further indications are that important information does not occur in the dungeon at all. Thus, we learn remarkably little about the motivation of the Eternals in the dungeon. While Patch 10.1.5 constantly reminds us of what the bronze dragons have sworn and what task they pursue, very little is said about the Eternals. Sure, we already know their goals – but why they deviate from their original plan or what advantages they gain from an alliance with Iridikron are not mentioned at all.
Especially Soridormi, who is present at the time rifts, repeatedly mentions what the bronze dragons are actually doing and why their task is so important. By the way, Soridormi is also doomed to die in the true timeline.
Also absent: Eternus. The dragon lady of the Infinite Flight was an important part of the questline surrounding Thaldraszus in the story of 10.0 and did not appear at all in Patch 10.1.5. It is unlikely that Blizzard has forgotten this character, especially since it was the first “friendly” eternal dragon one has ever encountered. That such an important character for Chromie does not appear makes many skeptical.
A final clue is the name of the dungeon itself, even though the clue is somewhat lost in the German version. “Twilight of the Infinite” is called “Dawn of the Infinite” in the English original, which would be more accurately translated as “Dawn of the Infinite”. Because “Dawn” is clearly the beginning of a day, so a beginning. However, in the dungeon itself, it seems we are bringing about the end of Murozond – which does not fit at all.
It is therefore very likely that our actions, and those of Chromie, guaranteed that Murozond will be created just as he saw it in his vision.
We have stopped his transformation now – and thus enabled his transformation later.
So it remains to be seen what happens to Nozdormu. Because it has not changed that he will become Murozond and must become one.
Did Blizzard just mess it up?
Of course, all these problems can be solved with a simple answer that WoW critics will easily accept: Blizzard simply ruined the story and provided an actually important part of the plot with a much too simple solution that still defies contradictions.
Which of these two variants has occurred, we will surely see in the coming months and years. For now, however, it would be wise not to assume that we have really saved Nozdormu permanently and that he, Soridormi, and Chromie will now coexist happily and contentedly until the end of the timeline.
What do you think about the story from Patch 10.1.5?
A particularly cool quest from Patch 10.1.5 is even “hidden” – have you done it yet?
