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Highlights from Exploring Azeroth: Pandaria - Li Li's Journey of Self-Discovery
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Опубликовано
20.10.2023 в 00:59
DiscordianKitty
Exploring Azeroth: Pandaria
is the latest in World of Warcraft's Exploring Azeroth series. This time, we follow Li Li and Chen Stormstout as they take their friend, the pirate Catelyn the Blade, on a tour of Pandaria.
Basic Story
Previous books in the
Exploring Azeroth
series have covered Kalimdor, the Eastern Kingdoms, and Northrend, describing what these continents look like today. This time, the book is created from Lili Stormstout's personal journals as she records a tour she and her uncle, Chen Stormstout, take of Pandaria with their friend, the pirate captain Catelyn the Blade. Li Li's journals make up the bulk of the text, with Chen and Catelyn adding notes in the margins.
For the most part, there is little revolutionary about this return to Pandaria. We learn that some Alliance and Horde settlements have since been abandoned, while others still remain. The Yaungol invaders in Kun-Lai summit have been pushed back, and the Mantid of Dread Wastes have remained mostly quiet since their last attempt at an invasion. Pandaria still bears the scars of Garrosh's actions and, more recently, the Legion, but the continent is healing.
As they visit each area in Pandaria, Chen recounts the story of Emperor Shaohao, last emperor of Pandaria, and his various dealings with the Sha. And as can be expected, we encounter several old characters players may remember from their time in Pandaria, such as Tong the Fixer, owner of the Tavern in the Mists - where Wrathion and Anduin developed their friendship - or Mudmug, the Pandaren brewmaster who uses bug-infested water for his beer. We learn that Catelyn is married to a woman named Nalini, and Li Li has spent the last few years living in Mistfall Village.
One detail that we found odd was the mention of a portal from Darnassus found in Krasarang Wilds. The book claims that the portal used to be one-way, but has since been repaired, allowing Night Elves to travel freely to Pandaria. The problem is, of course, that Darnassus doesn't exist anymore, having burned down with Teldrassil. Perhaps the portal has been moved as well as repaired, or it could simply be a mistake. Even so, the possibility of at least some Night Elf refugees relocating to Pandaria is a pleasant one.
The Alliance were eventually able to rescue their trapped people from the oubliettes; the portal that links this place to Darnassus was once one-way because of the remaining magic, but it has since been repaired. Now the Night Elves can come and go as they please rather than take the long overseas route, and they are in good spirits and enjoying their time in Pandaria.
Li Li's Journey
If
Exploring Azeroth: Pandaria
has a central theme, it's Li Li's journey of self-discovery. When we first encountered the niece of Chen Stormstout, Li Li was just a child - estimated to be about 10 or 12 during the events of
Pear of Pandaria
. Many years have passed since then, and Li Li is grown up now - somewhere in her 20s at least. And, like many young people as they enter a new phase in their life, Li Li shows signs of struggling with her identity and place in the world throughout the book.
As Chen recounts the stories about Emperor Shaohao and the Sha, Li Li often reflects on her own recent struggles with these same emotions, such as anger, pride, and fear.
I thought as I listened to Uncle Chen's story--everyone tells these stories a little differently, with their own little flourishes-- that I have felt...not so lost as Shaohao, certainly, but mired and without direction as I try to think about what I should be doing and where I should go. There are too many responsibilities, and so many troubles, and I am only one person. Perhaps, like Shaohao, I need to look around with fresh eyes.
One of the reasons behind Li Li's frustration seems to be the fact that, after many years of wandering, Chen Stormstout has finally settled. When talking about Stormstout Brewery, Li Li realizes this is Chen's home, but not her own.
Watching the two of them talk, I had a warm realization--here, Uncle Chen had come home. That much was obvious from the smile on his face. I never expected to see that for him; we've both always been wanderers. Perhaps that means his wandering days are over. He's found his place here in Pandaria and I...haven't. I think maybe that's what troubles me so much. Uncle Chen fits in among the kegs and barrels of his brewery like he was built to match them. I don't.
Note from Chen:
Sometimes you have to wander a long time to discover where home is, Li Li. Life is a journey!
Note from Catelyn:
Having a home port doesn't stop you from sailing out to the horizon. Or if you're lucky like me, you find your home and bring it with you.
We also see how Li Li has changed over the years. As a child, she was known for her confidence and daring, even nicknamed "The Wild Dog". But now that she's older, she seems to feel like she may have lost some of that fire.
The Wood of Staves is the one place on the Wandering Isle wee would not have been able to take Catelyn at all, since in order to enter you'd have to have defeated the Guardian of the Elders. I've been welcome in the wood since I was a child. I had the confidence (some would say hubris) to make that challenge at a very young age. That feels very long ago, and I wonder if the person I am now would do such a thing. That I don't know the answer bothers me.
In the end, Li Li finally realizes that her own pride has been keeping her in Pandaria, but that her heart has been calling for her to do exactly what Chen did before her: Travel the world.
Pride was the weakest of the sha, and the most hidden. It was my own pride that made me think that I had to stay in one place because I must be so desperately needed, and that held me back just as much as my fear (of doing something for myself). I had my doubts that I could leave and find my happiness in wandering again, even though the answer seemed so obvious.
Of course, Chen's idea to show Catelyn Pandaria turns out to have been part of a plan all along - he knew Li Li was searching for some answers, and that this journey would help her find them. And she did. While Chen stays home at his brewery, Li Li has joined Catelyn's crew.
In other words, the next time we see Li Li Stormstout in game, there'll probably be some pirates.
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