The Great Masquerade (Stormwind Raid Event)

[MongoJerry]

Note: Other Adventures of Neriad include:

• Onyxia<>
  
• Lord Lakmaeran<>
  
• Schooling Scholomance (Note: Image links broken until December due to bandwidth restrictions)<>
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  ADVENTURES OF NERIAD: The Great Masquerade
  
  As our doomed Onyxia raid group dissolved, Rynin and I coopted the remnants of the group and encouraged them to go to Stormwind to do the Stormwind raid event. The responses were enthusiastic ("Huh?" "What's that?" "Will it take long?"), so we headed there as quickly as we could, meeting Marshal Windsor on the bridge at the entrance to Stormwind.
  
  
  
  But but we're really in the middle of a quest storyline here. Enough people have asked me about where this quest line starts (the funniest requests are from those who ask me to "share" it with them) that I'll give a brief overview of the entire quest line up to this point. This is all an Alliance-only quest line, by the way, although from glimpses of Horde-only quests listed on Thotbott, I gather that there's a similar quest line available for them.
  
  1. The True Masters The quest line starts in Marshal's Refuge in the Burning Steppes with the quest titled The True Masters. Marshal Maxwell tells you that his expedition had accumulated enormous amounts of intelligence pertaining to the Blackrock menace, information that he had hoped would finally convince Stormwind to send an army to the Burning Steppes. But when the expedition's commanding officer, Marshal Windsor, was lost in an ambush, all of that precious information was lost with him. Maxwell asks you to speak with Ragged John, one of the few survivors of the ambush to get more information. When you speak with Ragged John, he tells you that Windsor was taken alive into Blackrock Depths.
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  2. Marshal Windsor After reporting this news to Maxwell, he asks you to enter Blackrock Depths and find out what became of Marshal Windsor.
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  3. Abandoned Hope You find Marshal Windsor in a prison cell in Blackrock Depths. He tells you that all of his precious information is lost. It is here that we get the first hint of what is to come:
     
     [Bolvar, chancellor of Stormwind] is a blind buffoon. Proof stands two feet away from him and he does not see.
     
     As for my data, it's lost. Gone. Unrecoverable.
     
     Should I ever find Ironfoe and make it out of this labyrinth, my first stop will be Stormwind, to place my hammer in between that reptile's eyes.
     
     When you return to Marshal Maxwell to give him the bad news, you get an experience reward but no followup quest. To all appearances, the quest line has ended.
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  4. A Crumpled Up Note But this is an illusion, because the next time you enter Blackrock Depths "A Crumpled Up Note" will drop for you off a random mob. The note is barely legible, but there is the mention that the Dark Iron dwarfs are trying to decrypt Windsor's information. The quest that you get off the note asks you to take it to Marshal Windsor.
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  5. A Shred of Hope When you show the note to Marshal Windsor, he gets excited. The note indicates that General Angerforge and the golem lord Argelmach are heading up the Dark Iron dwarfs' decryption effort. Windsor asks you to kill these two Blackrock Depths minibosses and retrieve the information for him.
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  6. Jail Break! This is the mother of all escort quests. When you retrieve Windsor's information, he asks you to help him escape. But heading directly to the door isn't good enough for him. First, you have to help one of his buddies escape. Then, you have to help Windsor get his gear in the storage room. Then, you have to help him beat up on other prisoners for the fun of it (Windsor is a vindictive fellow). Then, after escorting him around two full loops of the prison level, you rescue one of his other buddies. Then and only then does he consider the exit door a good option. It took a group of four level 60's (admittedly not the best configuration -- 2 warriors, 1 druid, and 1 priest) more than an hour and a half to complete this quest. (Hint: Clear the whole d*** prison level before starting the escort). At the end of it, Windsor asks you to meet him back at Marshal's Refuge.
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  7. Stormwind Rendezvous (Not listed on Thotbott) But when you get there, Marshal Maxwell informs you that Windsor had just left and had left a message for you to meet him at the gates of Stormwind. And also, bring an army.<>
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     By this time, our "army" had dwindled to twelve people, and several of those people were threatening to leave. Some of our party were still on their way to Stormwind, and I had to choose whether to wait and risk people leaving or to start the escort quest immediately and hope that those who were still traveling could meet us along the way. I had heard from others that this quest needed about 25 people to win (keep in mind this was only a couple of days after the patch had been released), so at this point our group was figuring we would just do as much of the escort as we could for the sake of seeing what we were up against. None of us expected to win. I chose to start the escort and hope for the best, and just as I was clicking the "Accept" button, Marshal Windsor disappeared.
     
     What the...? I don't quite understand how it works, but I understand that he only appears at the bridge for about a minute. You then have to wait some amount of time for him to appear again. (5 mins? 10 mins?) I looked around, left the area, came back, left the area again, and then someone yelled that Windsor had come back. In some ways this was a good thing for our group, since it allowed those who were still traveling to arrive. We started the escort quest right away this time.
     
     
     
     After we escorted Marshal Windsor a few paces, General Marcus Jonathan, who keeps vigil at the Stormwind city entrance, dismounted from his horse and brought forward a line of guards. I hadn't expected this. I had heard about there being a fight in Stormwind Keep, but I hadn't heard about a fight at the bridge. Our tiny crew would be no match in a fight against General Marcus Jonathan and six Stormwind guards simultaneously -- along with more guards both behind and in front of us who might aggro against us as well. We then witnessed this conversation:
     
     General Marcus Jonathan says: Reginald, you know that I can't let you pass.
     Reginald Windsor says: You must do what you think is right, Marcus. We served together under Turalyon. He made us both the men that we are today. Did he err with me? Do you truly believe my intent is to cause harm to our alliance? Would I shame our heroes?
     Reginald Windsor says: Holding me here is not the right decision, Marcus.
     General Marcus Jonathan appears lost in contemplation.
     General Marcus Jonathan says: I am ashamed, old friend. I know not what I do anymore. It is not you that would dare bring shame to the heroes of legend -- it is I. It is I and the rest of these corrupt politicians. They fill our lives with empty promises, unending lies.
     General Marcus Jonathan says: We shame our ancestors. We shame those lost to us... forgive me, Reginald.
     Reginald Windsor says: Dear friend, you honor them with your vigilant watch. You are steadfast in your allegiance. I do not doubt for a moment that you would not give as great a sacrifice for your people as any of the heroes you stand under.
     Reginald Windsor says: Now, it is time to bring her reign to an end, Marcus. Stand down, friend.
     General Marcus Jonathan says: Stand down! Can you not see that heroes walk among us?
     
     
     
     Lady Katrana Prestor yells: Seize him! Seize the worthless criminal and his allies!
     General Marcus Jonathan says: Move aside! Let them pass!
     General Marcus Jonathan yells: Reginald Windsor is not to be harmed! He shall pass through untouched!
     
     The guards on each side of General Marcus Jonathan moved to the side of the road and bowed.
     
     
     
     General Marcus Jonathan says: Go, Reginald. May the light guide your hand.
     Reginald Windsor says: Thank you, old friend. You have done the right thing.
     Reginald Windsor says: Follow me, friends. To Stormwind Keep!
     
     Marshal Reginald Windsor then led a procession into the city of Stormwind.
     
     
     
     We got many curious looks from the other mostly low level players in the area. We posted on the general chat channel messages asking if any high-level players wanted to join the raid, but only medium to low level players responded. A couple of players in their low 40's were really enthusiastic about joining the raid, even though they had no clue what it was about. I figured, why not let them in? We were just checking out the event to find out what happens. The more the merrier, I say.
     
     
     
     Marshal Windsor paused at the door of Stormwind Keep.
     
     Reginald Windsor says: Be brave, friends. The reptile will thrash wildly. It is an act of desperation. When you are ready, give me the word.
     
     He waited there for someone to talk to him. This is a nice touch on the part of the developers to give a party a chance to finish gathering, buffing, and medding.
     
     
     
     We gave Windsor the word, and he and our small party proceeded up the sloping entrance hall to the receiving room where the boy king, Highlord Bolvar Fordragon, and Lady Katrana Prestor a.k.a. Onyxia, the dragon, awaited us.
     
     UP NEXT: Lady Onyxia unveiled!