Insider: Let’s talk about some high-level design concepts for the Sunwell. We already mentioned that the Sunwell dungeon and raid will conclude the blood elf and draenei storylines, at least for the time being. Can you elaborate on that a little more?

J. Allen Brack: Without spoiling too much, it’s true that some of the major story arcs of The Burning Crusade reach their conclusion in Fury of the Sunwell. There are big revelations for both the blood elves and the draenei, and players will also learn the fate of the remaining member of the bad guy triumvirate of Illidan, Vashj, and Kael’thas. In addition to Kael’thas, there’s a new “ultimate villain” to defeat. Essentially, we’re providing players with epic resolutions to The Burning Crusade’s most visible story arcs.

Naxxramas comes to mind as an example of what we’re aiming for with the Sunwell. Despite being the pinnacle of PVE raiding before The Burning Crusade, Naxxramas didn’t actually complete that many of the story arcs presented in the original game. While Naxxramas remains one of the best designed high-end dungeons in World of Warcraft, it still felt like there was untapped potential for what high-end PvE storytelling could be. That’s what we set out to do with Sunwell Plateau and Magisters’ Terrace: create a dungeon experience that features spectacular gameplay and an awesome conclusion to the expansion’s story arc.