The topic of this new Q&A is the upcoming novelization of Warcraft 2: Tides of Darkness RTS Game.  Blizzard Entertainment and Simon & Schuster Pocket Star Books present us WORLD OF WARCRAFT: TIDES OF DARKNESS written by Aaron Rosenberg, author of STARCRAFT: QUEEN OF BLADES. The novel will be at local and online libraries on August 28, 2007. Get your copy!

Medievaldragon: The first question about your new novel is, What characters can we expect to see in this new book?

AaronR: There may be a few too many to list quickly. Well, it centers on Lothar and Khadgar over on the Alliance side, and Orgrimm and Gul’dan on the Horde side. Turalyon plays a major part as well, of course.

Medievaldragon: What timeframes in the Warcraft timeline are covered in World of Warcraft: Tides of Darkness?

AaronR: The book follows the events of the war, from the time the Stormwind refugees reach Lordaeron to the end of the conflict. I won’t give away who wins, in case anyone doesn’t know.

Medievaldragon: What did Simon & Schuster (Pocket Books) and Chris Metzen tell you when they brought to you this new project?

AaronR: Chris and I had talked about doing a WarCraft book before, when I was finishing up StarCraft: Queen of Blades. He was really excited about the prospect of covering WarCraft 2’s events, and so was I. So that’s what we agreed to work on next.

Medievaldragon: This questions is from Xaran Alamas: How much the Tides of Darkness book will vary from the plot of the game and also from what we already know of the period?  This is a main concern by many fans.  We have seen some lore retcons in the past.

AaronR: I try to stay very close to the details from the games. And Blizzard checks over everything to make sure. There were a few minor retcons, but those came directly from Blizzard, so they are official.

The Horde rescued Zul’jin from Hillsbrad, which gave the Horde a new ally: Amani Forest Trolls. Will the illustrous troll Zul’jin appear in your book?

AaronR: Zul’jin and the Amani trolls do indeed appear, and you get to see them joining the Horde.


Do we get to see Deathwing and Zuluhed through the early stages of the Demon Soul affair?

AaronR: There are scenes of the Dragonmaw clan learning to control the Demon Soul, and through it the dragons. Deathwing, however, doesn’t appear.


Is the book mostly narrated from the point of view of the Alliance, or do we shift back and forth from Alliance to Horde perspectives? Third person view? I think many fans liked that in your recent Starcraft: Queen of Blades, which is a novelization of Starcraft 1 map by map. - by Axscrum

AaronR: I shift back and forth between the two—through most of the book I alternate chapters, one Alliance and one Horde, though in a few places I break that rule. I wanted to make sure readers got an idea of what both sides were planning and what leaders on both sides were thinking.


I really have to ask because fans want to know. Did you play Warcraft 2: Tides of Darkness in order to write a novelization of that game? Or did you only read through the warcraft documentation provided by Blizzard?

AaronR: I did play as much as I could, given my own time constraints (my kids, mainly). I always try to immerse myself as much as possible. And right now I’ve got Burning Crusade at home, which I’m itching to try out!


What role will Stromgarde play in the upcoming book… will it go into detail on the events that occured there? - by Kestenvarn

AaronR: We do see Stromgarde, though briefly. We see Alterac a good deal, however.


You have been co-writer of some White Wolf Publishing licensed World of Warcraft RPG books, specially some Northrend lore in Warcraft RPG: Lands of Mystery. I suppose you gathered some references from the RPG Books to write this new novel. Which RPG Books and pocketbooks did you read to use as reference?

AaronR: Well, I read three novels: The Last Guardian, Rise of the Horde, and Day of the Dragon. I also read back through the RPG corebook and both Lands of Conflict and Lands of Mystery.


Should we expect at least a World of Warcraft: Beyond the Dark Portal as continuation to the novelization of Tides of Darkness?

AaronR: Unfortunately I can’t say. If there is one, though, I hope I get to write it!  (Update: Months after this interview it was revealed Aaron Rosenberg is writing World of Warcraft: Beyond the Dark Portal slated for June 24, 2008)


Does your new novel have anything to do with new content coming down the pipe for the MMORPG? The latest books are tie-ins with the MMORPG and Burning Crusade.

AaronR: Ah, I’m afraid I can’t comment on that.


Will relationships such as Alleria and her sister Sylvanas be featured? Or the relationship between Turalyon and Alleria?—(They have a son named Arator in the Burning Crusade expansion).—by Alex

AaronR: We do see quite a bit of Alleria, and the start of her relationship with Turalyon. We also briefly see her with both of her sisters.


Will your book go into detail on the events that happened at Tol Barad? It seems Blizzard retconned what happened there a bit, but what exactly happened has never really been made clear. - by Warlock

AaronR: Unfortunately, no—I didn’t get to go into Tol Barad much, since I was trying to fit everything into a single book.


Anything involving Commander Mograine and the Ashbringer? In Caverns of Time, Mograine reveals to Tirion Fordring, Isillien, Fairbanks and Abbendis that he found a peculiar crystal in Blackrock Spire during the Second War.—by Capoeira

AaronR: No, that one was outside my purview.


Will the Alliance have a heroic presence in the novel or will it be portrayed as shades of grey?—by Kenzuki

AaronR: The Alliance definitely has a heroic presence, but so does Orgrimm Doomhammer. I wanted to show throughout the novel that almost everyone involved (with a few notable exceptions) believed they were doing the right thing. Very few people ever consider themselves bad or villainous.

Submit further questions to Aaron Rosenberg at

• Pre-Order World of Warcraft: Tides of Darkness Here
  
  
• Read our previous interview with Aaron Rosenberg (Starcraft: Queen of Blades)
  
  
• Aaron Rosenberg Blog

Special thanks to RP-PvP Warcraft Lore Forums and Scrollsoflore Community for their Q&A submissions.

And to Stratics, and mmorpgdot.

Special Thanks for the international advertising of World of Warcraft: Tides of Darkness at the official Wow-Europe forum (courtesy of our friendly MVP
Schwick), Judgehype (France), In.wow.de (Germany), buffed.de (Germany), Giga.de (Germany), Baidu (Asia), PCGames.de (Germany), Games4Mac.de (Germany), Hardwired.hu (Hungary), Jeuxonline (France), among others.

Thank you, Blizzard for picking the best book writers to expand the Warcraft Universe.