Summary
Though speculation about the tenthWorld of Warcraftexpansion continues to ramp up, a datamined achievement may give players an idea of where Blizzard will take them next. The achievement in question was shared on social media byWorld of Warcraftplayers and later confirmed by a reputable source to be in the game’s files at the time of writing.
With BlizzCon 2023 scheduled for November 3 and 4, Blizzard started sending out promotional materials and floor plans for what fans will be able to do at the Anaheim Convention Center. In one of the floor plans posted on social media, one segment of the banner showed a new earth elemental mount model. This elemental may have revealedwhat the nextWorld of Warcraftexpansion could focus on. However, that is not the only mount that players are speculating about in the lead-up to BlizzCon.
A Reddit user named Wiraneusz posted a screenshot on theWorld of Warcraftsubreddit of some potential achievements coming in the future. The OP stated that they were digging through Blizzard’s API for achievement data inWorld of Warcraftthat were encrypted at the time of writing. These discoveries were then corroborated by Wowhead. In addition to achievements concerningthe upcomingWarcraft Rumblemobile game, one achievement titled “Heroic Edition: Algarian Stormrider” caught the attention of players, who speculated that it may be the name of a mount earned by purchasing the Heroic Edition of the next expansion. OtherWoWplayers claimed that the mount’s name is a reference to Khaz Algar, a dwarven city in uncharted Azeroth that was named in a book located within the “Uldaman: Legacy of Tyr” dungeon in the game.
While the name “Stormrider” could mean anything from an elemental to a new type of Dragonriding mount, some players commented that the mount may be tied to the Wildhammer clan of dwarves. The Wildhammer clan was last featured prominently in theCataclysmexpansion as an Alliance-exclusive faction that players could earn rewards from and raised gryphons as their steeds of choice. Withthe return of Chris Metzen to Blizzardas theWarcraftseries' Executive Creative Director, it remains to be seen if the Algarian Stormrider is part of Metzen’s work for futureWoWexpansions, or something else entirely. However, fans will not have to wait long, as Metzen is slated to appear at BlizzCon to talk about the future of theWarcraftseries.
Needless to say, all rumors are to be taken with a grain of salt. But asrumors surrounding the nextWorld of Warcraftexpansioncontinue to circulate, only time will tell which ones will be proven true.
