An Insight into Uther's Character Arc in Bastion (Story Spoilers)

Posted 2020/08/12 at 8:56 AM by Neryssa

WARNING: SHADOWLANDS STORY SPOILERS AHEAD!

Things RememberedBastion Leveling Storyline

Uther: All around me, the Ascended speak of the Path. The way in which each soul must find its peace, its eternity, after a lifetime of flawed mortality.
Uther: I have tried to forget. I have tried to forgive. Yet... He lingers in every waking thought. Down every path.
Uther: This anger is foreign to me. Unrecognizable. I must cleanse it. That is my path. My Paragon said it should be so, and it WILL be so.
Uther: The Light has damned your soul, Arthas. May it rot in the Maw!
Uther: Will his fate ever bring me peace? Will I ever be free of him? Perhaps... in time. Perhaps.

Uther and Arthas' Influence in the ForswornUther's participation in the Kyrian Covenant CampaignKyrestia's Grace

I remember this particular soul... Uther. Devos brought him before us some time ago. She pleaded her case about his soul having a connection to the Maw.

She then took him under wing, ascending him before he was ready. He became her other hand alongside Lysonia, as it were.

He may proclaim a change of heart, but we shall see. Place him under guard. He may stay by the Archon's grace, but I will not take any chances with one so...broken.

The Spires of Ascension

Kyrestia the Firstborne: We sacrifice because we must. Mortal burdens would only impede our sacred duty.
Devos: No. It was a mortal who exposed the folly of your edicts.
Devos: As I peered into Uther's memories, what I saw shook me to the core.
Devos: But you refused to see the truth. That the path is flawed. That we serve a lie.
Devos: And so, I listened to the Jailer's words. I learned of the great injustice you and others thrust upon him... and upon us all.

Kyrestia the Firstborne: Devos...
Kyrestia the Firstborne: The Jailer's schemes have torn a schism in the ranks of the kyrian. One that must be healed.
Kyrestia the Firstborne: Long have we believed that our mortal lives are burdens to be shed in the name of service. And yet, the deeds of mortals are what won the day.
Kyrestia the Firstborne: You have my gratitude. Once the Jailer lies defeated... there may be much more for the Kyrian to discuss.

Comment by KrannkyLooks interestingComment by doncoyoteIt Is weird yo see Uther so clear in mind in the Legion Artifact quests and now described like thisComment by ThagesthoughtsIt Is weird yo see Uther so clear in mind in the Legion Artifact quests and now described like thisComment by elmurwhy do i feel this is gunna be legion all over again they r pulling out all the stops bringing back alot of legendary hero's to end up with an empty story for whatever comes after SLComment by FlamingBloodIf SL ends and we return to an Azeroth that has been completely revamped... we won't need that many heroes to drive the narrative. But of course, these are just the musings of a hungry Vulpera. :PComment by MightylorddkIt Is weird yo see Uther so clear in mind in the Legion Artifact quests and now described like thisComment by frozenembersWhy does everyone think blizzard is just bringing back old names, for the sake for bringing back old names? We are going to the land of the dead.... who else are we going to see? Of course we are going to run into characters we know. Like, honestly, how else did you think it would go?Comment by KandredI just hope we're going to be able to get Uther fixed up. I was primarily motivated to join the Kyrian Covenant when they announced it at BlizzCon because I thought I'd get to have my paladin working with him. He's suffered enough and deserves better than his present fate.Comment by DawnsonI just hope we're going to be able to get Uther fixed up. I was primarily motivated to join the Kyrian Covenant when they announced it at BlizzCon because I thought I'd get to have my paladin working with him. He's suffered enough and deserves better than his present fate.Comment by Zeejirits sad to see that they took the Forsworns way (keep your memories that what makes you a character rather a soulless husk) and turned it into a basic "haha look at me i'm so evil, my minions are only canon-foder"-plot line, as seen in the articel a week ago.

it's not the first time in resent wow-story telling that the came up with a "good" plot just to crash it against the wall within a few weeks.
*cough faction pride / war good concept, terrible execution.
only 1 out of 6 leveling zones (horde had none, alliance got one) HAD faction conflict as a story point (stromsong), the war campaign lost the "faction war/pride"-point with nazjatar. and a single raid tier was based on the faction war. the rest old gods.
the horde's "pride" got split (like there playerbase) in the "choose your side it totally metters" between Saurfang and Sylvanas
and the alliance was more or less the third wheel until the horde-intern-conflict got solved and the "main" villian can be focused on..Comment by richforceIt Is weird yo see Uther so clear in mind in the Legion Artifact quests and now described like thisComment by bluebird91Why does everyone think blizzard is just bringing back old names, for the sake for bringing back old names? We are going to the land of the dead.... who else are we going to see? Of course we are going to run into characters we know. Like, honestly, how else did you think it would go?Blizzard aren't asking the question: "What would Vashj's/Draka's/Alexandros' afterlife look like?"
They are asking "How do we force this random assortment of fanloved characters into 1 of the 4 niche theme parks we invented a year ago?"Uther Comment by EridianIt Is weird yo see Uther so clear in mind in the Legion Artifact quests and now described like thisComment by AbracadabroIt Is weird yo see Uther so clear in mind in the Legion Artifact quests and now described like thisComment by kaleestrazaWhy does everyone think blizzard is just bringing back old names, for the sake for bringing back old names? We are going to the land of the dead.... who else are we going to see? Of course we are going to run into characters we know. Like, honestly, how else did you think it would go?Comment by bluebird91Because they are bringing back fanservice characters by shoehorning them into an expansion regardless of how much sense it makes.

Blizzard aren't asking the question: "What would Vashj's/Draka's/Alexandros' afterlife look like?"
They are asking "How do we force this random assortment of fanloved characters into 1 of the 4 niche theme parks we invented a year ago?"

That's why a lot of players (especially who care about lore and characters) find Shadowlands to be a forced cheap fanservice inclusion, rather than a sensible and coherent continuity of the characters themselves and previously established lore. Uther for example has made several appearances since his death, even in Legion, where his spirit appeared on Azeroth and shared his usual wisdom. But Shadowlands wants us to believe that his spirit was feeling sad in Bastion, then just popped up in Azeroth completely normal, then went back to being Blue and brooding in Bastion.'Uther is Bluther now and he's all emo''Vash and Draka and Mograine are part of a backstabby undead plague army society'Currently as it stands, Huln Highmountain, famous dead Tauren could be an angelic blue female Kyrian called Greekopeia and that's the afterlife according to Blizzard.Comment by kaleestrazaBecause they are bringing back fanservice characters by shoehorning them into an expansion regardless of how much sense it makes.

Blizzard aren't asking the question: "What would Vashj's/Draka's/Alexandros' afterlife look like?"
They are asking "How do we force this random assortment of fanloved characters into 1 of the 4 niche theme parks we invented a year ago?"

That's why a lot of players (especially who care about lore and characters) find Shadowlands to be a forced cheap fanservice inclusion, rather than a sensible and coherent continuity of the characters themselves and previously established lore. Uther for example has made several appearances since his death, even in Legion, where his spirit appeared on Azeroth and shared his usual wisdom. But Shadowlands wants us to believe that his spirit was feeling sad in Bastion, then just popped up in Azeroth completely normal, then went back to being Blue and brooding in Bastion.'Uther is Bluther now and he's all emo''Vash and Draka and Mograine are part of a backstabby undead plague army society'Currently as it stands, Huln Highmountain, famous dead Tauren could be an angelic blue female Kyrian called Greekopeia and that's the afterlife according to Blizzard.Comment by SomeNerdWoWWhy does everyone think blizzard is just bringing back old names, for the sake for bringing back old names? We are going to the land of the dead.... who else are we going to see? Of course we are going to run into characters we know. Like, honestly, how else did you think it would go?Blizzard aren't asking the question: "What would Vashj's/Draka's/Alexandros' afterlife look like?"
They are asking "How do we force this random assortment of fanloved characters into 1 of the 4 niche theme parks we invented a year ago?"Uther Comment by Nickname404I absolutely agree with thesises about niche theme parks and bare fanservice. The most laughable thing about Uther is that he had lost about all his memory (according to campaign he remembers only his death from Arthas)... So he is literally empty shell with name of famous character. And unique model, of course. I see Blizzard didn`t play ever in Legion, so they don`t know about paladin quests and don`t care about coherency of lore. Shame on them.Comment by bluebird91As someone who cares a lot about lore and story in a multitude of games, you are genuinely overreacting.
You absolutely cannot speak for everyone on a matter like this, especially when you have a very clear bias against it already.

When it comes to Uther you should first ask yourself whether it's better to create a new story for a character that's been largely gone for a long time, or continue trying to force their previous story onto them. In this case I find it a far better option to create a new story for him.

Moving on to another returning character though, Alexandros Mograine actually faces the question of why he ended up in Maldraxxus
I find it very easy to agree with him being sent to Maldraxxus rather than anywhere else.after the factreasonYou can see that all that 'explanation' is arbitrary bandaid, because it would work for anybody.ther'continue trying to force their previous story onto them' keeping what made people like those characters in the first place.