Shadowlands - World of Warcraft - Oribos Sky

The sky for Oribos, the capital city of Shadowlands, was a real technical achievement for the expansion. This was the first time we used our skyscene tech that allows us to place elements of the sky in full 3D space so they will parallax as the player moves past them. It’s also the first time we used bone animation in part of the sky (typically sky animation is limited to scrolling textures).

Perceptive players will notice the nebulas in the sky correspond to the five zones of the Shadowlands. The black nebula that is the Maw also appears in the Revendreth sky and changes appearance at key points in the game; I was responsible for making and animating all its versions. I did not make the portals in the sky or the tower of Oribos itself.

This sky and the Maw were designed by my lead Tina Wang, whose art direction was invaluable during its development. Nice team effort on this one!