As part of an ongoing series, Staff Writer Paul "LockeColeMA" Cleveland will be going zone by zone in World of Warcraft, discussing the changes since Cataclysm, quest rewards, locations of interest and more.

Once upon a time, back around the release of the Burning Crusade, a poster named Azuarc started a series of topics called “Zone of the Week" in our World of Warcraft general forum. These topics were open-ended opportunities for forum members to discuss what they did or did not like with certain zones. Azuarc focused mostly on the zones released with the first expansion, but we live in a different age now.

The Cataclysm introduced not only new level 80+ and racial zones, but changed the zones WoW players have known like the back of their hands for years. In an effort to reintroduce these zones to our members, and perhaps point out some things you might have missed, I'm reviving the Zone of the Week in the form of an ongoing series of editorials. So, sit back and enjoy the first installment, with the newest changes to Darkshore.

Zone Review: Darkshore was the under-used zone for Night Elves back in the day. Before there were boats to the Eastern Kingdoms from Auberdine, Night Elves were forced to either level through Darkshore and Ashenvale, or make the long and dangerous trek to Ratchet and hop a boat to Stranglethorn Vale, then run up to Stormwind. When the Burning Crusade came out, many Night Elves ditched Darkshore for Bloodmyst Island, which held much better rewards and more condensed quest hubs. One of the longest (vertically) zones in the game, Darkshore was a pain and a half to run through in the days before a player could buy a mount.

With the Cataclysm, the zone has changed. Auberdine is gone, sunken into the sea. In its place a new city, Lor'Danel, has sprung up. Boats no longer travel to the zone; transportation to Azuremyst and Stormwind now depart from Rut'theran Village, and the flight path there automatically connects to Lor'Danel. Many quest-givers from Auberdine show up again, including Cerellean Whiteclaw, Vlocor (and his bear, Grimclaw), and the quirky gnome Wizbang Cranktoggle. Travel through the zone is made easier for Alliance members by a series of Nightsaber Riders, which act as land-based flight paths to and from different quest hubs.

The landscape is almost entirely changed. In the north, the once secluded “Dancing Troll Village” (the Shatterspear tribe) has been opened up to the zone and now acts as a generic troll massacring area for Alliance members. The Tower of Althalaxx has been destroyed and swarms with Forsaken looters. The primal forces that sundered Auberdine also split the road through the zone, where the road abruptly ends in a plummet down to a new river. South of that, a giant cyclone rages with Malfurion Stormrage in the Eye of the Vortex, while near the coast fire erupts at the burning strand. And far to the south, Twilight Cultists work to unearth the Master's Glaive, while offshore the Naga plot to offer an ancient Elven artifact to Queen Azshara.

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