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I don't think Raynor is going to make it to SC3.

I have no idea how he will die, I just have a feeling that he will.

A few scenarios:

Raynor must go on a suicide mission for the good of all.

Raynor mistrusts Kerrigan, lets her stab him in the back (she becomes the Queen of Blades again)

Raynor suicides himself to take out Mengsk

Kerrigan dies at the hands of X, Raynor dies trying to kill X (X being the non-Zeratul Protoss hero of LotV, or the Dark Voice)

Raynor is captured by Mengsk, gets publicly executed (my favorite)

Raynor is captured by Mengsk, gets executed in front of Kerrigan (Mengsk dies shortly after)

Raynor mistrusts Tosh, gets stabbed in the back

Raynor dies of old age with whiskey bottle in hand (probably what will happen)


Any thoughts on how you think Raynor will die? Do you think he will die at all (in the game, of course everyone must die eventually)

Disclaimer: I am not claiming to know anything about what will happen, just crackpot theory crafting.

Discuss.

Raynor will be in danger in LotV and we'll all be sure he's going to die, but then Kerrigan will come from nowhere and carry him to safety in her arms as trumpets of victory and happiness play.

Knowing Metzen, as long as Kerrigan lives, Raynor probably will too.

If Metzen wants to continue being successful, he will make sure to keep his work unpredictable.

I hope he proves this to us by killing off Raynor in the most shocking and heart breaking way possible. Then making sure he stays DEAD.

-edit: I don't hate Raynor I just think the story will benefit from his tragic death.

"Keep his work unpredictable"? What the hell are you talking about? Blizzard games always had fairly predictable plots; not that there is a problem with that, really.

What really matters in the end is the execution.

A writer should lure you in, let you think you know what will happen, then shoot you down to keep you on your toes. Some of these whims of yours have to come true, or else you will also suspect danger and deception around every corner. A false sense of security must be made and Metzen has definitely done that for me. I don't feel any of the main characters (except Raynor, and that is a sketchy feeling at best) in SC2 are at risk of dying right now and it bothers me.

I am not accusing Metzen of anything, he has kept me relatively entertained with his stories so far. I am just saying that it may be a shock to everyone if Raynor were brutally murdered with no hope of ever coming back. Kind of like a certain character (name hidden for spoilers) in A Song of Ice and Fire....

A sudden and meaningless death tends to be a rather cheap shock twist, anyway; killing off a character is generally a sign that the writers are either running out of ideas and/or are desperately trying to keep the audience interested. Last time I checked, that was not the case with Wings of Liberty.

By the way, the mission you are probably referring to is "A Symphony of Ice and Fire". If so, then you are mistaken: Illidan didn't die in The Frozen Throne. The cutscene gave you that impression because Blizzard ran out of budget sooner than expected and had to cut it short (apparently, just as they did with the Zeratul-Kerrigan fight in WoL), but they really intended to have him survive his fight with Arthas.

I think raynor would die of old age if anything.

Johnny, I was speaking of George R. R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire book series (Game of Thrones HBO show based on it)

Now, killing off Horner would be a sudden meaningless death for a cheap shock twist. Killing Raynor off would be a tragedy and all SC fans will mourn his loss. You would now actually be scared whenever characters get into hairy situations, not assume they will find a way out just because they are the main characters.

12/29/2011 09:12 AMPosted by Fleetlord

Johnny, I was speaking of George R. R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire book series (Game of Thrones HBO show based on it)

Never watched it, but it seems some Blizzard folks are fans of it, given the obvious reference.

Killing Raynor off would be a tragedy and all SC fans will mourn his loss. You would now actually be scared whenever characters get into hairy situations, not assume they will find a way out just because they are the main characters.

"All SC fans", hah! You overestimate Raynor's popularity.

Look, he isn't very important; he's kinda like Fenix, albeit better developed as a character. Besides, he's already not afraid of dying, and he doesn't even expect to see Horner's better future either. Heck, I was already expecting him to die at the end of WoL. :P

Well, Fenix didn't exactly get to be the cover art of SC (Who is that Protoss anyways? Aldaris?) complete with 6' tall cardboard replicas distributed to stores around the US for the release of SC lol. I even got a poster of Raynor with my game (midnight release party) lol

I would say Blizzard knows that Raynor is probably the most recognizable SC character, possibly matched by Kerrigan and Nova is getting very recognizable too.

Now kill that character off, suddenly and brutally. Make Raynor fans weep but give his death meaning. Even if he is tortured to death by the Dominion and dies weak and afraid, still we will remember him as the rebel who stood up against Tyranny and ultimately paid the price.

Still sounds like a cheap shock twist to me. Besides, why would Mengsk want to turn Raynor into a martyr all of a sudden? That's pretty much the reason why he's still alive in Wings of Liberty.

From WildStorm's StarCraft comic book:

JOSS

Say, Raynor-- any chance your boys'll come back for you?

RAYNOR

Nope. They had strict orders to git gone and stay gone. Name aside, Raynor's Raiders are bigger than one individual. They'll carry on with or without me. Sorry.

Besides, that's hardly what I would call "unpredictable"... especially if you are now expecting it. :P

Turning Raynor into a martyr wouldn't be the wisest of decisions Mengsk would have made, however he doesn't seem too wise as far as thinking of the repercussions of his actions.

Kind of like how he backstabbed Kerrigan, figuring he would be rid of her forever, we all know how that turned out.

But if he kills Raynor, I don't want Raynor to come back, too many resurrections in this story already...

Kerrigan should be the one to make him pay for Raynors death, she already is after vengeance, why not fan the flames a bit more. Give Kerrigan another reason for killing billions to get her hands on Mengsk.

The thing is, Mengsk had no way to anticipate what would happen to Kerrigan; he was playing with forces he didn't understand at all. He thought the Zerg were a biological weapon created by the Confederates, remember? However, when it comes to martyrdom, he knows all too well how it works, as that's precisely what happened when the Confederacy had his own father and the people of Korhal IV slaughtered.

And having Kerrigan take revenge on Arcturus for Raynor's death? Are you kidding me? Don't you think we had enough stupid rants about StarCraft II being a "love story" already? :P

Well if Raynor dies people will rant about that, maybe if his death is so shocking and heart breaking, the rants about his motives and cheesy lines will cease.

Give us something to rant about!!! We wouldn't rant if we didn't care.

After his depiction in WoL as a total cheeseball I don't even think I'd care anymore if he died.

Well if Raynor dies people will rant about that, maybe if his death is so shocking and heart breaking, the rants about his motives and cheesy lines will cease.

Give us something to rant about!!! We wouldn't rant if we didn't care.

You do realize you're basically asking Blizzard to make the plot for HotS entirely predictable. :P

I, for the matter, don't care whether Raynor lives or dies, as long as it's done in an interesting way. I hate to admit it, but most deaths in StarCraft have been generally cheap: Fenix's embarrassing defeats, Tassadar's utterly pointless sacrifice, Aldaris' and Stukov's contrived assassination, Duke's death being a blatant excuse to get rid of an useless character... Ironically enough, the most surprising and memorable twist in SC involves a character (Kerrigan) actually surviving.

If anything, WoL handled death in a much more satisfying manner: Karass' heroic and relevant sacrifice, an apparently enlightened Tassadar returning as a psionic ghost/demigod, the poignant homage to the late real-life Michel Koiter, Tychus' tragic end at Raynor's hands...

12/29/2011 07:00 PMPosted by Gradius

Keep dreaming dude. You forget that they now cater to tweens. Killing off main characters goes against Blizzard's new fairy-tale fantasy ending themes that they seem to like now. I don't think they'd be able to pull off a gripping/convincing death anyway.

If they were catering to tweens, they wouldnt have gone for a game rated T with themes such as alcohol and conspiracies.

Technically, Blizzard always catered to teens, as their games are all rated T, with the possible exception of the Diablo franchise... and then again, I suspect the M rating is purely due to its pseudosatanic themes. :P