Doesn’t the title say it all? Do we truly need an explanation to one of BlizzCon’s consistently anticipated events? No, not the inevitable reveal of a new World of Warcraft expansion or something new in the StarCraft or Diablo universes. Not Jay Mohr’s recycled punchlines and Grand Theft Auto anecdotes, but the customary Costume Contest. Which, by the way, is the only contest to remain largely unmolested, changing some key rules – size maximums – but continuing its tradition of showing any and all dedication to cosplay, from enormous turtles and a mistress of pain to hand-studded leather gauntlets and a Minecraft player that fell off the stage!

And so let it begin. You can see an ever-so-small morsel of the extravagance directly below, but the meat of the situation is after the jump. Our compilation spans the up-close-and-personal pictures to the far-and-away snapshots taken during the procession.

Enjoy!

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Blizzard fans were treated to a few big announcements during the opening of the first day of BlizzCon 2011.

We’ll start with the basics and move on to more specifics to come. First, we got our first look at the next World of Warcraft expansion, Mists of Pandaria.

• New Continent: Pandaria
• New playable race: Pandaren
• New class: Monk
• Challenge Modes
• PvE scenarios
• Pet Battle System
• New Talent System

Take a look at the preview video:

In related news, a newly available World of Warcraft annual pass has been revealed, and it will grant access to both Diablo III when it goes live and to Mists of Pandaria. The annual pass also will give subscribers guaranteed access into the Mists of Pandaria beta, as well as a new flying mount, Tyrael’s Charger.

And now onward to some tidbits on Diablo III. The Collector’s edition will have some interesting contents that many fans will be interested in getting their hands on:

• Art Book
• Game Soundtrack
• Behind the scenes blu-ray
• Diablo skull
• Asthetic artifacts
• Soulstone shaped USB containing Diablo II with its expansion Lord of Destruction
• World of Warcraft pet: Fetish Shaman
• Starcraft II Battle.net portaits

So what does everything think of what we’ve seen from BlizzCon 2011 so far? What are you most excited for?

Now that we’ve laid out the basics, keep watch of LoreHound.com for more detailed news as it comes out at BlizzCon 2011.

This excerpt-review of the upcoming World of Warcraft: Wolfheart novel by Richard A. Knaak is of the mild-spoiler variety.

For the people that don’t know Richard, he has written several novels set in the world of Warcraft before, which include The Sunwell Trilogy and the War of the Ancients. Before I get into it I will warn for some spoilers. If you want to read the excerpts before reading the review head here. I will be giving my thoughts about the two excerpts Blizzard has posted.

After reading the first excerpt, I was impressed with the writing style of Knaak. The long-time Warcraft wordsmith created a bond between common orcs and  their new Warchief, Garrosh. It was obvious that the orcs, whether brownskin or greenskin, would would do everything for Thrall’s successor. This becomes more apparent when Briln, the elderly orc captain, tells the reader that the orcs would have readily given their lives for their legendary overlord of the Warsong Offensive.

To be fair, I haven’t actually read any of Knaak’s novels yet, but these excerpts certainly caught my eye and I am looking forward to digesting his older works. This excerpt kept me intrigued throughout. I really wanted to find out what the cargo is that the orcs carry and what its purpose is. I had the idea that they captured some worgen, seeing the name of the novel, but after a second thought I am not so sure anymore. Briln informs us that they will be using this cargo against the Alliance. The worgen maybe an aggressive race, but they wouldn’t attack their own allies. More engrossing is the idea that the Cataclysm is the first sign of their “day” coming. What does Garrosh mean by that…

The second excerpt entertained from start to finish, largely due to heavy emotions. I read how disheartened Genn became with losing his land and city and how he doesn’t like having this curse. He blames himself for everything that happened. Again, the writing style remains slick (not surprising, given that it’s one book). Other staffers have routinely criticism Knaak for his dialogue and descriptions, but he made me feel the heartache and internal struggles Genn is living with. Just consider the weight of the last line, why would it be Malfurion’s fault that the Gilneans got cursed?

Before I go I really want to know what you guys think of these two excerpts? What kind of creatures do you think are in those cages? Why could it be Malfurion’s fault the Gilneans got cursed? Last but not least, are you going to buy this novel? I certainly am!

Darn previews sucking me in. LoreHound.com will have a full review shortly.

This review of Gelbin Mekkatorque: Cut Short by Cameron Dayton is a mild spoiler-filled type. Be warned.

Much like the Vol’jin: The Judgement,  Gelbin Mekkatorque: Cut Short explains one of the more shadowed leaders encountered in World of Warcraft. I must admit that I, unlike iTZKooPA, cannot say that I’ve ever had a soft spot for Gnomes. Ever in the lifetime of my gaming, I’ve never cared for them in any way, shape, or form beyond the fact that they have a superior intellect and actually care for safety in their inventions, unlike their Goblin counterparts.

Being one who was always happy to jump into a “Gnome Punting” joke session, when I saw this short story released, I was slightly hesitant to read it. But, despite that, it surprised me in a few spots.

I remember it wasn’t long ago that all us Alliance players were jumping into Operation Gnomeregan. Again, like with the troll counterpart, there was some lore explained and furthered through this mini-world event — however I felt that the Troll event was done in a way that players actually understood what was going on. I felt in Operation Gnomeregan that not much was taken back – considering I still need to run Gnomeregan as a dungeon to claim it from the Troggs. The end boss has always been Thermaplugg, but I never knew why. And considering that he… disappears in the short story, it still doesn’t correlate to the dungeon changing ever.

It was to my surprise to learn in this short story that Thermaplugg was indeed a close and dear friend of Mekkatorque – akin to the Anakin / Obi-Wan construct. Thermaplugg saw a twisted view of the world and wanted to build it for himself, and Mekkatorque wasn’t willing to go along with it, so he had to be eliminated. Continue Reading