Inside the World of Warcraft fan celebration Stranglethorn Bonfire Bash

World of Warcraft’s mainline story has been dealing with some pretty heavy topics over the last few years. However, fans are still finding something to enjoy about the game, its world and characters, sometimes using their ingenuity to make their visions come to fruition. As Blizzard continues to work on the next expansion of its game, DragonflightMany hundreds of people gathered at Stranglethorn’s beaches to play volleyball, chase pigs and share fan art.

Stranglethorn’s Bonfire Bash (an annual, massive community celebration for role-players) is an incredible event. The summer Bash offers an opportunity to escape the monotony of adventurers who spend their time rescuing people, fighting monsters and managing politics. This year’s Bash, which was held on July 22 and 23, brought over three hundred players to the beach’s sandy shores to unwind and celebrate.

“It’s a laid back beach party to roleplay in,” says Buttart, one of the event’s organizers, in a conversation with Polygon over Discord. “It encompasses mini-games and contests as well, usually done through creative toy usage or roll-based competitions, but at its heart is all about relaxing at the beach (in Stranglethorn Vale) and giving your characters a break from the heavier subject matter of WoW.”

Image by Buttart

Although the event is ongoing since 2016, this year marks the debut of Epsilon. This private server allows for players to access it from anywhere. World of Warcraft You can use these assets to build your own scene. Bash fans will love to frolic on the Stranglethorn Vale shores while they enjoy all of the created and customized assets, such as tents, fairgrounds, or a stage for performers. Fans enjoyed lighthearted activities such as lounging on the beach, racing along the racetrack, or throwing fish toys at each other.

“It’s a place to put aside faction hatreds and let loose. But it creates some entertaining scenarios since summer is a big month for major content patches,” says Ragewane, the Bash’s co-founder. “In 2017 when Argus had just made its dramatic debut into the skyboxes of Azeroth, the vibe as we partied under it was definitely: ‘This Is Fine. We’re okay with the events which are currently unfolding.’”

Ragewane, image

Ragewane, image

“We’ve jokingly (but lovingly) referred to it as ‘giving your characters a beach episode’ as if WoW were an anime,” says Buttart. “Also, it’s a great excuse for visual artists (and commissioners) to dress their characters up in swimsuits!!”

“Everybody loves a good swimsuit,” agrees Ragewane. “It’s just science.”

In recent years, Bonfire Bash’s popularity has increased as people look for positive spots during pandemics and find social centers. “[In 2020] people were so desperate for a speck of brightness and celebration/festivity in an otherwise incredibly lonesome and isolating time, and it was so amazing to be able to provide that for people,” says Ragewane. “I feel like I sound like I’m exaggerating, but we literally had people messaging us throughout the pre and post event to say, ‘Thank you for doing this, we needed this.’”

In 2019, the Bash added an Art Bash competition to its festivities. In their adorable swimsuits, players created fan art depicting each other. These fan art are a great way to preserve the fun times. Even though the event lasts for a weekend, the attendees leave with lasting impressions. The phase is still open until the end of July for explorationIncluding any last-minute scene between partygoers.

Bonfire Bash only one of many. World of Warcraft’s vibrant role-playing community, which often creates the most lively parts of the game despite working with relatively limited tools. The Bash’s organizers cite the Tournament of Ages, a group behind a giant Medieval Times-style show joust, as a major reason why the Bash even exists. Epsilon, a tool that allows players to access the environment of other games like chess and snooker, is now available. World of WarcraftFans can use their imagination to take their characters to new heights.