The Story of Bwonsamdi (and the Loa) [Lore] 

I remember one time I died as a mage, I tried to blink away and Bwonsamdi literally said; "Dat blink didnt get ya very far, did it?" Bwosamdi you are such a smartass

What's really cool is about Bwosamdi, he actually has a special line for each class. Demon hunter: "Something about ya seem off...Ah, da stench of a demon hunter." Druid: "Ya not be dreaming now, mon." Death knight: "Ah, a death knight. Ya should come see MY death gate!" Hunter: "Ya be tryin' ta feign death, mon? Shame..." Mage: "Dat blink didn't get ya very far, did it?" Monk: "Hah! Ya didn't roll out of dat one." Paladin: "I think ya followed da wrong light, mon." Priest: "Oh, a priest! If ya ever consider a change of faith, you be sure to let old Bwonsamdi know, ya hear?" Rogue: "Ya can't be hidin' from Bwonsamdi, little ting." Shaman: "Oh, da spirits with with ya now, mon." Warlock: "Awww, did ya lose your little shiny soulstone, eh?" Warrior: "All that armor...didn't help ya much, did it?"

I really hope Bwomsamdi doesn't turn up being an Old God minion. I'll be so sad ):

I love Bwansamdi, he reminds me of a lot of my older friends & relatives from the Caribbean with his humor & "trolling" lol. I also love how Blizzard made the Troll race a reflection of the African Diaspora.

The pure horror on Rastakhan's face when Bwonsamdi puts his hand on his shoulder, it's amazing.

I like the idea that Bwonsamdi's boss is Xibala, Rezan's mother. She is described with decay sounding powers, and when you kill a spirit at Xibala's bones it says "I go to Xibala..." She is also named after the Mayan underworld. It better not be an Old God. That's such a lazy copout. We need less things connected to Old Gods, there's way too much tied to them already.

I am so happy Vol Jin is back ! Please be a Loa ! My Warchief and now my loa

Best character in bfa so far

"He's got friends on the other side."

I want to just clarify a few things about real life voodoo, but I'll just clarify what's in this video. Baron Samedi is a loa of the Ghede family in Lousisana Voodoo, as well as Haitian vodou. Yes there is a difference, both connected to the history of those places. Voodoo/vodou has a lot of negative connotations, but that mostly stems from propaganda and assimilation techniques to try and destroy African worship in Americas. That's actually why he's called Baron Samedi, as he is associated with Saturday and the French word for Saturday is Samedi. This is also why there tends to be catholic imagery used in real world voodoo, as the exchange of worshiping saints as their gods in exchange for keeping their beliefs alive.

i love Bwondsamdi being the spirit healer, best char this expac and im an ally

Nobbel you're a boss and an invaluable help to people like me who love the lore but just can't process it all themselves.

Bwomsandi is best loa! Shadowman should’ve made a deal with him. lol

I hope you read this nobbel, your videos is da shit, i love em and you explain lore in an entertaining and understandable way. KEEP GOING! Btw i’d love a video on grand apothecary putress, I really dont know any of his backstory, how did he become the grand apothecary? Who was he before he died?

I bet he loves apples. If you know what I mean.

If Senjin really did become a Loa, then perhaps that was the soul he lost long ago. And if this boss was not happy about one Darkspear becoming a Loa on his watch, then how would he feel about two?

Didnt it feel like Bwomsamdi KNEW Rezan was going to be killed? When he says "..I will see ya in good time". He is gifting Rastakhan back to Rezan and knows Rezan will take Rastakahns place in the very near future.

Nice video. Now we know that his boss was Muehl’zala. But as he says in the dungeon after defeating his boss. He is the bossmon now!❤️

From what the void told Alleria about Sylvanas, it sounds like death and the void are opposed to each other. So I'm guessing he is gonna help us against some old Gods.

26:52 Every Loa makes bargains, not just Bwonsamdi. They are not benefactors, or friends of the ones who use their powers, they just provide a service in exchange for some kind of payment, and that's why Shrivallah, Hi'reek and I suppose Nalorakk, were completely pissed at Gonk when he taught their Primalists/Priests/Witch Doctors who to become druids. Every new Darkspear Druid meant one less Witch Doctor doing their biding

Oh, is this the new Deathnote series? Oh nevermind, just Bwonsomdi...

Bwonsamdi is a quite the character with certain appeal in the lore. There is so much pointing to death and the Old Gods here, especially N'zoth. Can't wait to see how far they take this, and all the juicy bits of lore, as you pointed out, come to light. Keep up the great videos.

Wow the Horde story line looks so good!

I stand against the theory of N'zoth being Bwonsamdi's master, because then why would N'zoth allow Bwonsamdi to oppose G'huun in the first place? The Old Gods want their Black Empire back, to rule Azeroth and corrupt her titan soul. Working against one of their own kind seems counter productive. You ask me, it could be Xibala, the T-rex described as Rezan's mother, and so what could be the Loa of all Loa, and so "The Boss" Maybe Nobbel's Sen'Jin theory is possible. Or perhaps its the answer as to the spirituality of the trolls in Shadows of the Horde. So far all Loa have been animals of sorts. Bwonsamdi seems to be the only Loa that looks like a troll. What if "The Boss" is the First Loa, and he's also a troll, perhaps the Loa that brought the Trolls to existence. (Remember that we don't know how the Troll race came to be in the first place. They aren't fleshified Titan constructs like Dwarves, or descendants of giant creatures like the Orcs.). And of course it can be the ultimate manifestation of Death. The Death equivalent of Naaru or Void Lords. I just hope that if this is the case, they don't make Death the ultimate villain because: 1. That would just be too short-sighted. Death is not some ultimate evil, its just an aspect of nature, meant to keep Life in check. Hell is something that awaits you after Death, not Death itself, so to say. 2. Would be kind of boring, since how Death is something that can never be defeated, we'd end up facing off against it for all eternity.

Makes sense for Bwonsamdi to be the one that set Sylvanas up as the Warchief. In shadows of the horde, when Vol'jin is interacting with him and having visions, Bwonsamdi urged vol'jin and was excited about one of the possible futures where he became warchief and lead the Horde as conquerors of azeroth, sparking endless war and bringing countless souls into Bwonsamdi's care. I would say that Sylvanas is doing a pretty good job of that so far.

27:47 There's also Samedi, another Loa inspired by Baron Samedi, Loa of the Grave (though Rezan calls that to Bwonsamdi, so Samedi might have been retconned), with the same basic domain as Bwonsamdi. There's also Mueh'zala, Loa of the dead among the Farraki trolls (there's even a shrine to him in Tal'Farrak, in Zuldazar). I'm betting on a new entity, on the same status as Elune (a fully god, not a demi-god as the Wild Gods or Elemental Lords are)

Yogg-Saron's quote "Your petty quarrels only make me stronger!" has haunted me to this day.. I KNEW that this war and everything to do with it is just making every Old God stronger, more powerful and maybe even return from their prisons.. remember his death lines aswel, "Your fate is sealed! The end of days is finally upon you and all who inhabit this miserable little seedling! /then Old God gibberish that does have meaning.." I would like to see Yogg-Saron and C'Thun back honestly, I thought we only pushed them back into their prisons by killing their physical manifestations and didn't outright kill them? Because killing an Old God is probably just as bad as letting one loose.

i haven't watched any of your vids since cata. nice work as always.

Someone working for the Old Gods giving power to Sylvanas would be very odd considering how much the Void wants her dead in Alleria's whispers.

Mueh’zala is revealed to be Bwonsamdi’s boss in Shadowlands, but all of you know that by now. He’s also the Loa who set Sylvanas as Warchief.

Rastakhan definitely screwed Talanji with the deal he made with Bwonsamdi...

Jani = best loa

Get me in here nobbel I’ve been waiting for this one my man

22:37 Love how Talanji casually apologizes for the whole thunder king resurrection to gain world domination plot... A bit like saying "you know, this Hitler dude seemed like he had some good ideas at the time"

WTB Shadowhunter class for the horde and perheps Tide Sages for the alliance

I need a bumper sticker that says “Bwonsamdi is my copilot”

Another great video

probably my favorite character in the whole game rn

arthas says the same thing as the king of zuldur: i have taken Care of everything

“Ya can't be hidin' from Bwonsamdi, little ting, no”

I think the last spirit Bwonsamdi lost before Vol'jin was Sen'jin. There's speculation that Sen'jin ascended to being a loa, and now there's speculation that Vol'jin became a loa as well. Loa could be out of Bwonsamdi's domain, since loa don't 'die' in the sense that mortals do. Like wild gods, most 'dead' loas' souls just rest on a different plain from the physical until they are summoned back. However, there seems to be permadeath for loa whose essence/power are consumed.

He seems like a perfect amalgamation of Ryuk and Dr. Facilier. with a dash of Hades... or is it just me? :D

Awesome video!

I like the idea of his boss being Mueh'zala. It's the only loa from the Tablet of Theka in Zul'Farrak that we haven't seen yet. Kimbul and Shadra are the other two mentioned on the tablet. The Travelers book does well to show how evil he is - wouldn't surprise me that Bwonsamdi would be afraid of him.

just FYI Nobbel Haitian is pronounced Hey-shen. Btw they actually changed the quest text since early beta.. in late beta it no longer had a limit of souls you give to Bwonsamdi. Instead of saying a million, it just says something like "You'll keep me favor and I'll help you out, so long as you keep sending me souls." The problem with the deal Bwonsamdi makes with Rastakhan is it's actually easily broken.. "all those that succeed you" all Talanji has to do is not succeed him to the throne of Zandalar and the deal is broken.. So she can just hook up with Rokahn and become queen of the Darkspear instead of Zandalar and the pact is broken. :D

Man I love the storytelling in this expansion. Especially all the troll stuff, Bwonsamdi is so cool. Also I bethes gonna be a raid boss one day.

HEK HEK HEK HEK

I love Bwonsamdi my new favorite character he's great maybe my favorite of all time

I feel like there's gonna be a war between Bwonsamdi and Helya for Sylvannys

I love the group you’re with in that video😂😂😂 RPG to the max

I would love a speculation video on what Loa Vol'jin will be and who Bwonsamdi works for. I can't really put my finger on either of them, but I love the idea that Vol'jin will be a Loa. Also, the potential for the "boss" of Bwonsamdi to be any of the old gods or the titans is sooooo cool. Personally, I think since we already dealt with the titans that it will be an old god that Bwonsamdi "works" for., I just don't know who. It would parley into the future pretty well, though, because it could introduce a new one of the old gods. Then if we have Bwonsamdi withhold his spirits in order to weaken that god so we can vanquish it, that would be quite awesome. This all makes me sooo excited for the future.

Yay you posted this I asked like 6 times

Bwomsamdi has become my favourite character currently, he is too damn enjoyable and entertaining.

Neither Bwonsamdi, nor any other Loa, is in tandem with the Old Gods. Loa need the living to go on, and specially Bwonsamdi, he needs people to continue killing each other, and being born again. He cannot claim Old Gods's "souls." The Dark Empire coming back would only make him weaker in the long term

I wish I Jani could be my Loa, maybe even learn if she works with Grifta or not Ps. Happy to see Grifta doing well after legion.

I suspect that death as a theme is going to play a bigger part in whatever expansion comes next. Between this, the peeks we see of the realm of the dead Thros, and of the implication that Lich King Bolvar Fordragon is doing something in the background suggests that something big is coming.

Bwomsandi power has been confirmed the power to jump really high...

he is the best, I enjoyed playing BFA wonderful story telling. Not to mention De other side dungeon in SL.

Freaking awesome! We share the same last name!!

Honestly everything about Troll culture is somehow very comforting and happy. You can choose your Loa to guide your path and follow your dreams, and even death only means that you meet your old friend Bwonsamdi as he brings you over to your ancestors.

Looks to be Bwomsamdi is tied closely to the Shadowlands. It's been in Alpha and probably Beta. I believe this was a setup for next expansion, and it's one I do very much look forward to! Shadowlands and Bwomsamdi are a perfect connection in terms of thematics and that.

Alright why, oh fucking why, is taking Vol'jin's ashes up to the grand temple of kings better, than the time he was warchief?! I've always had a soft spot for trolls, I've always like the Dark Spear, especially the time of the Darkspear Rebellion, it was absolutely glorious! And all the talk about the book, I just wonder, why couldn't we see Vol'jin act like a great warchief during all the time he lead? That cinematic I saw where his spirit is right there with Talanji better indicate he has in fact become a Loa, because Vol'jin had so much more to give before dying like that! Also, the first parts of this video really, really make me wish there was such a thing as race-specific classes. Just imagining what it'd be like to be a Shadow Hunter troll, I can only dream. The tale of the Loa is still fascinating as a whole. I just wish we were told some more, on how exactly the Wild-God-like Loa diverged from THAT side of the wilds that the Wild Gods belong to. Like, with the War of the Ancients and all the allies Malorne had and Freya made, we never hear about the likes of Rezan for example. Just what exactly made these Loa different from the Wild Gods. It's a bit like the August Celestials, or at least I think so. Last I heard they were the same kind of existance as a Wild God, but what made them whatever they are, and why only those four? Lastly, I'll forever be disappointed in Rastakhan's final confrontation with Zul. He paid his entire bloodline for fuck's sake! Is a powerful melee attack all he can do?! When he didn't even secure ANY benefits for his descendants? Sorry, dislike.

Great video, but one thing i have to mention is your ghastly transmog on your paladin hehe :P

I just love him he is just so much fun he really reminds me of the villain in princess and the frog in a good way

There is some mess in lore. Void lords created old gods and they whispering to Alleria to kill Sylvanas because they scared. So Sylvanas enemy of old gods, it can't be N'Zoth behind that.

I think it would be cool if voljin becomes the new loan of Kings or maybe he becomes the loa of the horde.

Vol'jins voice brought back so many memories

Loa used to be tURTLES THAT MADE IT TO THE WATER

Bwonsamdi is awesome, but I can't help but laugh at a dream I had about him a while back. In my dream, I was sitting on a couch in some study like room, with a bookshelf full of old looking books. There was an old, 90's looking non-HD TV on a wooden table. Playing on the TV was Bwonsamdi being interviewed on some late night talk show. In it, he was saying how he would sit on the floor with his legs behind his head and hold his breath until he was light headed and blue in the face. Then he would get up and strut around while flapping his arms and clucking like a chicken. He went on to explain something like: "Dis technique enhances de natural powers already bestowed upon Bwonsamdi."

I would like to see a story about Nathanos Blightcaller next :D

I would love to see some sort of Hakkar tie-in. Although i like the idea of Bwonsamdi as his own agent, he could be under Hakkar's "thumb", and we could end up helping him out from under it. nonetheless, i want Hakkar to show up and show G'hun and the blood trolls how to do some REAL blood magic.

Watching the video shows you how much the writing has changed or is now under a different writer, before BFA he was more solem and serious and also sincere. In BFA he is lighthearted, joking and scheming, it's not just the voice actor, the loa's character has been changed

I love this character in BfA, he is very interesting I am curious where this goes, where Vol'Jins story goes... oh I can't wait to see

BFA ending - Bwonsamdi redeems Sylvanas, She takes back Azshara's highborne (insert playable highborne), and Nathanos takes over undead.

or the bald jailer guy has a iq of 1000 and outsmarts all these villians lol

Sidenote: where the hell is thrall? Wasn't he supposed to be a big part of this expac? I need some green jesus in my life

God, I love Jani

A shark Loa! We might see him in the tides patch hopefully that will be awesome!

he is by far the most standout and best character in this expansion in my personal opinion and i just fucking love his personality and just everything about him.

Hi there love your latest lore! Can you make the lore on wild gods please? I wonder if you make another lore video on that one. Thank you!

Hey, Nobbel. I am aware that this is unrelated to the video, but it’s the only way I can think of to contact ya. I have two suggestions for videos that you can do. The first: a video speculation on potential future stories that could bring Vol’jin back to the living. I know how much you disliked how they disposed of Vol’jin, and I think it’d be a fun project to see you and maybe other youtubers as well speculate on how he may return. The second is a request for a video that I looked for on RU-vid and searched on the web for, but to no avail. I am curious if you would be interested in making a voice acted machinima or at least writing a story on what would’ve been different had Kael’Thas not begun to use fel magic.

omg i love these cut scenes i never did em before easy a new fav npc lol

Finally I can watch this video now that I've done all the questing. *Talks about more stuff I haven't done yet* Oh for fu...

"BWOMSAMDI! I HAVE COME TO BARGAIN"

17:19 He just becomes slightly more buff. I died.

really hoping you can do the story leading up to Uldir next, because as Alliance we have no clue what we're doing there

That pink rapters quests are the main reason why didn't pick zuldazar to quest in fire @ 0:04.

Bwonsamdi was the redeeming point of BFA. Something about him also gives off Disney's version of Hades from the animated Hercules 😅

If what you're doing(in the end of the vid) is considered "rambling" by all means Nobbel87, ramble on till your hearts 100% content!!!! I love your videos and all your what if's!!!! :)

Hey nobbel! have u checked on bolvar the new lich king and the death knight classes since the legion expansion? u will be surprised! im telling u cz ur the best one to tell lores and stuffs cz i suck

Can you do the story of Gortuk in Drustar and what the blighted lands are?

While i don't know who Bwonsamdis boss could be i think Vol jin may become the new Loa of death at the end of this expansion. That way the Zandalar will be bound to him, which seems a lot less worse than being bound to Bwonsamdi.

I like the idea of undead progenitor races

I love Bwonsamdi. So. Friggin. Much. "Won't ya shake a poor sinnah's hand?"

I love Bwonsamdi.

14:25 sounds a lot like the drums that play during N'zoth's bits in the Azshara cinematic

This hit me so hard in the feels man. Blizzard did such an awesome job by even deciding to honor Vol'jin and to the extent of taking him to where all troll kings rest and even more, possibly making him a Loa. I wonder what he be de Loa of? Loa of Execution perhaps? Mainly cause he did execute Zalazane. Or better yet, De Loa of Da Horde?

Perhaps the "Loa" whispering to Vol'jin in his final moments was an old god in disguise telling him to put Sylvannas in charge just for the shear caos

His character grew on me. I had no idea he was a chill and humorous dude in almost every way. He is a bit of a perv though.

It still pissed me off Vul Jin just gets stabbed ny a faceless demon and just flmg dies! They give Wrynn this big cinematic bad ass death And Vul Jin gets stabbed....