The Future of Wizard101 - Part 2: It's All In The Mind

Theorycrafters are responsible for a lot of Wizard101's business. If you've opening your latest Ninja Lore Pack, wondering "what silly distraction comes next," then you might just log off and slowly fade into the endless world of blogging and spending more time doing it than actually playing the game... um, yeah, I might be speaking from experience there. Anyway, because of all the ideas and theorycrafting, wizards are kept wondering what's next. When you really look at the complexities of the game, there are a surprising number of loose ends, and that's done on purpose. Bloggers literally from all over the world get the chance to tie them up for you... some is realistic ways, and others not so much. I'd like to present to you some of MY ideas about where we're going in Wizard101's future worlds, and some of the most popular theories on what's coming next!

In theorycrafting, there are currently about 6 overall ideas in mind:

• Where will we fight Morganthe and how will each world leading up to the battle contribute, keeping the prophecy in mind? What school is Morganthe, and how much health will she have?
• When one of the Wizard101 staff members told wizards that they weren't finished questing in MooShu, what did they mean?
• What is the Council of Light? Who is a part of it? How does it affect the Morganthe plotline?
• How does Morganthe relate to Merle Ambrose? What does this tell us about the future of the storyline?
• What's the next world? Will it be a main or side world? How many world remain until we face Morganthe?
• What hints have we seen around the Spiral that lead us to draw such conclusions?

No doubt, there's lots of questions, but I'll be addressing them all, so grab a cup of coffee, kick back, put your feet on the table, and start reading!

So who is Morganthe? Most of us have a good idea by now - she's the newest villain. You see, after the death of Malistaire, Wizard101 needed a whole new "bad guy" to go chasing around the Spiral. To avoid a repeat of Malistaire, Morganthe had to be bigger, she had to be better, and she had to come with a twist that no one would be expecting... and Wizard101 certainly wasn't expecting this blogger's theories!

Lets first draw the obvious connection here. Merle Ambrose - Merlin. Morganthe - Morgan Le Fay. Merlin...

Morgan Le Fay... worst enemies. Therefore, Merle and Morganthe can't be best friends either, and if you were expecting to gradually step into this theorycrafting, you just fell off the deep end. Merle and Morganthe will very likely meet up during the final battle.
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What the Wiki says: Morgan le Fay /ˈmɔrɡən lə ˈfeɪ/, alternatively known as Morgan le Faye, Morgane, Morgaine, Morgana and other names, is a powerfulsorceress in the Arthurian legend. Early works featuring Morgan do not elaborate her character beyond her role as a fay or magician. She became much more prominent in the later cyclical prose works such as the Lancelot-Grail and the Post-Vulgate Cycle, in which she becomes an antagonist to King Arthur and Queen Guinevere. ... Morgan continues her magical studies under Merlin, all the while plotting against Guinevere.
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We can assume, then, that Merle and Morganthe have met before, and will certainly meet again.

Our first few questions still remain - what school is Morganthe, and how much health does she have? Well, many people believe Morganthe to be a wizard of all schools. While this is possible, there are better theories. Others think that Morganthe is part of an Astral school. This can't be possible, because we ran her out of Celestia on her quest to steal such magic, and even if she escaped with it, she can't have wanted it if it's the school she started in. Finally, there's the theory that she's Death, and that's my theory, too, and the most popular one, I should note. We know this for sure because Morganthe has shown great power, and all of the most powerful people are Death, as per my Wizard101 Central comment... In all seriousness, however, she teleports away from us in Celestia, and her teleport is that of a Death character.

We can't know for sure what her health and special abilities will be, but we've seen a definite increase in cheating bosses, and Morganthe isn't one to be left out. She ought to have upwards of 20,000, or some good minions, because she must be a real challenge for us, and our wizards will be nearing level 90 or 100 when we fight her. When asked when we'll be able to fight Morganthe, Wizard101 replied, saying that it'd be 4-5 worlds, just like Malistaire.

As for WHERE we'll fight her, that's still in question. There's the possibility that it'll be in her own, spidery domain in a world with a huge skull, and seen in one Wizard101 commercial. Look closely.

It does appear twice, so it could be a filler world. It may not be a world in the future at all. And even then, it might not be the last world. There's no way to know for sure. You can read more about it HERE, though.

J. Todd Coleman post on Facebook once, " I can't be specific, other than to say that there are more stories in Mooshu that need telling," When asked if he'd like to share, he responded with "Not yet, but soon. and it's not what you expect! ;)"

That can only mean one thing... ok, seriously, it could be several things, but I have one specifically in mind... the Council of Light. Remember in MooShu, how Malistaire slipped away with a Spiral key, and we were left with an entire world to recover and restore just for a simply Spiral Key that the Emperor might have handed us to begin with?

MooShu, however useless it might have seemed at the time, will likely prove to be part of both major storylines. For one member of the infamous Council of Light is there - the Emperor of MooShu!

We've heard very little about the Council of Light, other than its name used in a few items, and the mention of its barriers protecting Morganthe's Deck of Shadows. Outside the final battles of the Savannah, the pictures on the wall tell the story of the Council of Light, and depict several people who are likely a part of it... Diego the Duelmaster, Lydia Greyrose, the Emperor of MooShu, and Merle Ambrose. Other suggested members are Alhazred and other "world leaders" like MooShu's emperor.

Now let's think about Morganthe's prophecy. "The mirror will break, the horn will call, from the shadows I strike, and the skies will fall." Before the release of Zafaria, I went into this complex thinking process about how Celestia was the first line. It was once a world in the stars, sunk below the waters, which produce a reflection, therefore being the mirror. Celestia was completely ruined in its time above the waters, which is how the Celestians ended up in these domes, but stopping Morganthe and Celestia's further destruction broke their chain of bad luck below the waves, "breaking the mirror." 

This wasn't the case at all, of course. It was much more obvious. Mirror Lake - drained. "Broken mirror." So the others could potentially be metaphors, too. Now let's consider the worlds we've heard of in Wysteria, because I've got a hunch that they aren't going to disappear easily. One shopkeeper mentioned a sky squid from a land called Empyrea. "The skies will fall." Is there some sort of cloud/sky world to come in the prophecy that will be Empyrea? And what better place for light than in the sky and clouds? Council of Light. And finally, we've met two of the three giants in two separate story arcs. The Storm Titan, likely to reside in the sky, is left. That's almost too many coincidences.

For now, however, where will be headed next?

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What the Wiki says: In subsequent chapters she uses her skills to foil Arthur's knights, especially Lancelot,  and to expose him as Guinevere's lover. In the Prose Tristan, she delivers to Arthur's court a magic drinking horn ...

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Well, there's no guarantee that that'll be the horn she's after, but she's after a horn all right. "The horn will call." And, since I've checked and checked again and verified that I may join in in the theorycrafting about the puzzle, I shall reveal all. If you'd like to solve it, and uncover the mystery yourself, skip the next few paragraphs... or maybe the rest of the post.

Look closely at some of the nearly 40 of 60 puzzle pieces that you've collected. After returning to the homepage, take a look at my puzzle-solving tips.

This is surely a new world... before I go any further, I should let you know that I've personally contacted Wizard101 Support over all issues of this puzzle. While I can't post any pictures of my progress, or post any pieces for you, but I was told that I am free to reveal any of my thoughts on the puzzle, including any theories I have about it, just like so many others are already doing.

Let's be honest here... two logos, decorated letters, corner decorations, and people outlines in black... it's a new world. Let's take a close look at each part. In the top left, we've got the Wizard101 logo, and what looks like a column or archway - keep that in mind. Below that, we've got a dragon-like creature. In the bottom left, we have some plants and roses and the corner decorations. At the bottom, we have the bottom half of the words. For the first, large letter, you can see two angles lines, probably part of an "A." Follow the rest of the bottom to see V, A, L, O, and N... Avalon. Remember hearing about that world in Wysteria?

Right now, at the top of the puzzle, we see a tower. In the center so far, we see ents, people, trolls, animals, sea-faring creatures, warriors, and even... what is that? Gamma! Is this Merle's homeland? On the warrior's chestplate, we see a crest with an "A," confirming that this is Avalon.
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What the Wiki says: Avalon (probably from the Welsh word afal, meaning apple) is a legendary island featured in the Arthurian legend. It first appears in Geoffrey of Monmouth's 1136 pseudohistorical account Historia Regum Britanniae ("The History of the Kings of Britain") as the place where King Arthur's sword Excalibur (Caliburnus) was forged and later where Arthur was taken to recover from his wounds after the Battle of Camlann. Avalon was associated from an early date with mystical practices and people such as Morgan le Fay. ... The Historia also states that Avalon is where his sword Caliburn (Excalibur) was forged. Geoffrey dealt with Avalon in more detail in Vita Merlini, in which he describes for the first time in Arthurian legend the enchantress Morgan le Fay as the chief of nine sisters (Moronoe, Mazoe, Gliten, Glitonea, Gliton, Tyronoe, Thiten and Thiton) who live on Avalon.

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Excalibur, King Arthur, Morganthe Le Fay... it's all too coincidental to be a side world. No, Avalon is definitely a main world, filled with all sorts of mystical creatures. Here's one wizard's take on Avalon:

Morganthe has escaped to Avalon, a paradise once thought lost somewhere within the Spiral. Avalon was a paradise with all the people connected as one and celebrations constantly roamed through the areas. When Morganthe came, she destroyed the wildlife making life difficult and causing the people to betray and distrust each other. There was a distress call to Wizard City as the Guardians Of The Light from Avalon need help and you're the perfect wizard for the job. The whole world revolves around how Morganthe has used her agents to manipulate the leaders of the world, poison the waters with malice and hatred, pitied everyone against each other, and destroy much of the plant life and resources used by the Avalon people. Morganthe wants the Horn of Guidance which is was given to Avalon by the Council of Light as a key to the Hidden Tower located literally below the Great Castle of Arthur (King of Avalon who was manipulated by darkness and you must defeat him to move on to the Abandoned Mines where Morganthe's Robes of The Spider Queen). Morganthe has stolen the Horn of Guidance in order to find the Mystic Staircase in which she uses to travel underground to recover her Robes Of The Spider located within the Hidden Tower.

I'm also wondering if KingsIsle will include the nine sisters as major battles throughout the world.

Oh, and how about an encounter with Merle?

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What the Wiki says: ... Merlin appears as her lover, but she refuses him to save Avalon by withdrawing it from the world.

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We can only theorize, right?

Anyway, I hope you've now got some good ideas about not only upcoming content, but also future worlds and encounters. Although the four-part series may run past the end of the month, it's continuing on with part three soon!

Thanks for reading, and see you in the Spiral!