When I first leveled Beru, I never spent any significant amounts of time in Thunder Bluff. In fact, of the three horde cities at the time, it was quite possibly the one that I disliked the most. I was constantly lost on the different tiers, and could almost never find where I was going. Outside of getting to Thunder Bluff, and being ported there to fly down to AQ, I am not really sure that I spent any time of significance in the zone.
Which in hindsight, is a bit of a shame.
When I faction transferred my baby druid (formerly Berutoo, now Elentari), she started in Thunder Bluff. And because I wanted to go slow and appreciate everything before it all changed on me, I left my hearthstone set to Thunder Bluff for a very long time. As a result, I came to realize that I quite enjoy Thunder Bluff. The music is peaceful and pleasant, and once you stop getting lost (and frustrated because you are lost), it is truly a gorgeous zone. Sometimes I just sit there and listen, and relax. I go there for all of my Auction House needs and all of my training just so I can enjoy the town.
Thunder Bluff has become one of my favorite places in the game, it’s just a shame it took me 5 years to explore and appreciate the zone. The lore is rich, and you see it throughout the zone, and appreciate it. The colors are beautiful and well done, and the scenery everywhere is lovely.
Now that I have appreciated the zone, I am a little bit sad that it might change. I wonder what is going to become of it in Cataclysm, I hope that it retains is grace and sense of peace whatever else happens. How about you? What memories do you have of Thunder Bluff? Is there anything that you hope Cataclysm doesn’t change?
Falling Leaves and Wings 
Thunder Bluff is actually my favorite city for numerous needs. I prefer it for auction house / bank / gbank stuff (though UC is slightly better for being able to mount and use all three). I LOVE LOVE LOVE it for having an anvil/mining trainer/blacksmith trainer so close to the mailbox/AH, and my tailor/enchanter likes how both his profession trainers are also nearby.
The only thing I wish they’d change is being able to ride your mount up the flight point tower.
While my alliance druid feels most at home in Moonglade, my tauren feels most at home in Thunder Bluff. Agreed on riding a mount up the flight tower: that is my only pet peeve about the zone, now that the buildings at the ends of the bridges no longer dismount players either. It’s quiet, it’s consolidated, and it’s got an aura of goodness and peace that you really don’t find elsewhere in the Horde.
Plus, there is a little tent along the back side that sells Prairie Dog whistles. Go for the eyes, Boo!
Oh one more thing – being able to remain mounted in the caves where the portal from Dal spits you out = BEST CHANGE EVER.
I adore Thunder Bluff. It is my favorite city in the game. I love how peaceful and quiet it is. I, too, enjoy the conveniences that Rades has already mentioned. When I was in France a month or so ago and local time in France was 8 hours different from my home server’s time, I saw a lot of Thunder Bluff, Mulgore, and the Barrens at server dawn — and oh, wow, those places are achingly gorgeous at dawn.
I hope that the Cataclysm leaves TB largely unchanged. I’m looking forward to finding out where the new Priest and Paladin trainers will be located. Perhaps a Tauren Priest trainer can replace the Forsaken Priest trainer in the Pools of Vision. And instead of a Forsaken Mage trainer, why not have a Troll Mage trainer?
I have many happy memories of both mind controlling invading Alliance off the bluff and falling off it myself.
I dearly hope our beloved capitals will remain relatively intact, come Cataclysm.
I love all of them for various reasons. Ok, I admit that I’m not too fond of Silvermoon City.
Undercity is by far my preferred one. It is dark, it is animated, with plenty of details. The apothecaries and their experiments, the tortured prisoners, the green canals. I feel safe there. It is the home of my Forsaken rogue.
Thunder Bluff has the silver medal. As you all mentioned, it is peaceful and well designed. Very soothing. Just to talk to a Tauren NPC makes me smile. I enjoy the slow cavernous voice. I spend more time there than in Orgrimmar.
Bronze medal for Orgrimmar. It is the main place of the Horde and the home (for now) of our Troll friends. I love the music, the drums of war and the savage Orcish architecture. It is a trade city, a fortress.
As you can see, I don’t like a town because everything convenient is nearby. For me, that’s a minor issue.
I was thinking the exact same thing the other day when I went to Darnassus. It made me sad that I was almost the only person there. Such a shame that these amazing capitals have no life in them, when places such as ORG and IF are teeming with life.
I’m really curious what they are going to do with Undercity. If I remember correctly I think they said it’s getting a big overhaul so it works well with flying mounts. Hopefully they don’t open up the roof because that would really ruin the dungeony feel it has.
As for the old world I really hope it’s done in such a way that you can still recognize how things used to be so that the changes appear more drastic, if that makes sense. Maybe I should be following Beru’s lead and leveling one more character before it all gets torn apart.
I love Thunder Bluff, for I am a cow at heart. I still sometimes get lost among the bridges but it’s a beautiful city, and it seems to really suit the Taurens. When SAN first started, one of the most asked questions in gchat was where the heck the guild bank was in TB. And everybody was happily shout back: “the enormous totem.” 🙂
I leveled my tauren hunter first in Warcraft and as a result spent a /lot/ of time lost and wandering around. I came to treasure Thunder Bluff and the starting area as one of the best in the game. Well, once I learned not to kill the wrong gnolls for the quests. The Tauren story has so much depth they could add to it, and it makes me sad they have overlooked it. Someday perhaps. On the contact page for my blog I used an old screen shot from right at the foot of the bluss, when I was experimenting with action poses after discovering how screen shots worked 🙂