Best Low Fantasy Transmogrification Sets
When it comes to deciding on a transmogrification set to wear, many WoW players prefer to choose the flashiest and the most over-the-top armor with the biggest pauldrons they can find. You’ve seen those people, maybe you’ve even been one of them. And it is completely fine! It is entirely up to you to choose how you want to represent yourself and your character.
However, I’d like to show you the other side of transmogrification today.
Ever since white and gray items became available for transmog there’s been a boom of “low-fantasy” mogs in the community. People started taking the roles of farmers and peasants, librarians and miners, vagabonds and mercenaries but retaining their combat prowers. We won’t be covering the “farmers and peasants” part today, but I’m still going to show you the beauty of simplicity that grounded low fantasy has. I’ll take you to the world of knights, bounty hunters, rangers, and more.
Cloth Armor
Starting off on a weaker note we have Mage, Warlock, and Priest sets. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find a lot of truly beautiful yet simplistic cloth armors. So please, take note that these are more about being Low-Fantasy, rather than being astonishing.
Embersilk Sets
While not being the most beautiful cloth set Blizzard have ever put out, these ones always struck me as something special. The most unique feature of this set being a classic wizard hat and a collar that covers half of the character’s face. This set always gave me either an “outlaw mage” or “classic final fantasy mage” vibes. Notably, Lord Vincent Godfrey wore a black recolor of this armor. These sets are available for Cata tailoring and Cata justice vendors.
Whisperwind Sets
Another pair of sets from the Cataclysm Era. These armors have the comfiest looking hood ever. Other than that there’s nothing more to be awed about. A character in this armor will look like a professional magic wielder that knows their craft and is willing to share it… for a right price.
Pure Aspirant Set (white and gold)
This Shadowlands questing set is easy to get, and what’s more important – it fits this list perfectly. It is very minimalistic, yet has some nice detailing where it matters. This armor is perfect for roleplaying as a blinded priest that follows the Light. In a way, this armor is what the Mythic Uldir Cloth set could look like if it was toned down to low fantasy style.
Legion Dungeon Cloth Set
Finally, we have the set that was featured in our list of all-time best looking cloth armor. It is a subtle, yet effective look. Purple hues of the armor communicate that its wearer has tampered with arcane arts, or even the forbidden void magic.
Leather Armor
When it comes to leather sets and low fantasy setting – we’re doing good. There’s tons of good looking armors to help you live out your mercenary, bounty hunter, thief, and other characters of gray morale fantasies.
I would like to bring your attention to the fact that when it comes to leather low fantasy sets – we will be ditching the shoulder pads for many of the sets. They often take away from look, making it bulkier than it is supposed to be. Now that that’s been said, it is time to look at the transmogrification sets.
Defias Leather
And the best way to start this list is with a classic. Defias leather set may not necessarily be the prettiest, but it certainly holds some meaning and nostalgia to anyone who leveled through the Westfall storyline.
Kul Tiras Questing set
Kul Tiras in itself is quite a low fantasy setting – not all of it, but on a surface level pretty much so. As you can see — I’ve opted to remove the shoulderpads from the armor, and I honestly believe that it makes it better. The look that I went for here has this “blade for hire” vibe.
Regalia of the Dashing Scoundrel
Our first Raid set on the list. Now this is truly something a bounty hunter might wear. This armor in no way, shape, or form connected to the place it dropped from, which is Antorus the Burning Throne. Instead, it is just a very modern and highly-detailed armor of an outlaw. This transmog set is truly unique, and the normal version (green and brown; shown on the screenshot) is available to all the leather classes.
Assassination Armor
As the name implies, this armor makes your character look like a sneaky assassin. What’s more, is that this armor might be considered a low-fantasy version of the Bonescythe armor from Naxrammas. It has a very cool looking mask, and for once the shoulderpads actually add to the overall look, rather than unnecessarily bulking it out.
Castle Nathria Leather Armor
Yet another modern raid set on the list. Heavily inspired by Witch Hunter, and perhaps Van Helsing himself, this set is also grounded in reality, for the most part at least. It is very stylish, features high quality textures and many small details — a perfect set to be featured on the list.
VanCleef Armor
Leather armor in the low fantasy setting doesn’t always have to mean that you’re a bad guy. Take this Alliance-specific set example. The VanCleef battlegear makes your character look like Stormwind’s infiltrator, or a spymaster. This armor is truly some of the best, except we had to drop both helmet and pauldrons, because the character looks way more noble and agile without them.
Mail Armor
Low Fantasy mail archetypes would be rangers, hunters and other types of stalkers. Unfortunately the selection isn’t really that rich, however we were still able to find some transmogs that fit the bill.
Rangari Armor
In WoW’s lore the Rangari are a mix of a hunter and a rogue among the Draenei people. Not to say that this armor is unavailable to other races, but it just adds a bit of lore-friendliness to the whole thing by wearing this outfit as our favorite space goats.
Kul Tiras Dungeon Mail
Yet another Kul Tiran armor on the list. And yes, it is available to the Horde players as well. While the Alliance character donning this look would be perceived as a Kul Tiran wayfarer, a Horde character will give off a plunderer and pillager energy. Other than that, I can only say that this set is just an overall stylish mail armor that actually looks like mail armor.
Dreamthorn Set (Black and Silver)
Now this set has some foreboding energy to it. Like as if your character deals with some unnatural beings. And the color scheme is so pleasing. You’d be surprised to learn that black armor is actually quite rare in World of Warcraft, if you didn’t know that already.
Flowing Water Armor
This mail set looks more like a leather set, with all the benefits we’ve discussed before. It doesn’t have a clearly readable theme, so you can decide for yourself if this something a bounty hunter, a ranger or say, a wandering adventurer would wear.
Crystal Leaf Sets
And this is what many consider the best series of low fantasy mail armor in the game. Partially inspired by dwarven riflemen from Warcraft III this armor truly communicates that it is supposed to be worn by a ranger. Still, it will look great on both Shamen and Evokers, and not just Hunters. It is simplistic, like something that an artisan armorer could actually craft, if they’d put their heart to it.
Plate Armor
Plate armor was always everyone’s favorite – players’ and Blizzard designers’ alike. There is an uncountable amount of amazing looking plate sets for Warriors, Paladins and Death Knights. That includes the low fantasy outfits as well – Knights, Brawlers, Barbarians — Plate armor got it all. Where I had to scrape for outfits with other armor types, with plate there were so many options that I had to turn some of them down. Anyway, let’s proceed to admiring some outfit sets, shall we?
Legion Dungeon Armor
One of the most popular low fantasy archetypes is a Viking/Northman/Barbarian and, surely, WoW has us covered with awesome víkingr armor. It isn’t over-the-top, but still quite detailed. Pair it up with a brutal looking axe and you’ll be ready earn your place in Vallhala!
The Dark Vessel Mail
Despite being called “mail” this is, in fact, a plate set. What’s more — it is not Alliance-specific. However it does pair up rather nicely with WoD’s rendition of the Alliance tabard.
Renowned Expeditioner’s Armor
This armor is literally as “low fantasy knight” as it is possible. There’s really ain’t much to say about it other than that. The textures are of really nice quality, I suppose. Bringing attention to that, because you’ll come to miss it further down the list.
Kul Tiran Quest and Dungeon Sets
Putting these two together, because they have a similar vibe and feeling. Except one is much easier to get than the other.
Savage Gladiator’s Scaled Armor
I didn’t really wanted to include any class-specific sets in the list, but this Paladin-only set truly deserves it. But why? —you may ask. The answer is simple really: With a few custom additions this set becomes something different. From a soldier’s plate it turns into worn armor, donned by a veteran of the Northrend Campaign.
Warfronts Alliance Plate
If by this point you had a feeling that the plate sets list is catering to the Alliance you wouldn’t be in the wrong. It’s just that the Alliance, and Stormwind in particular are all about the classic knights. And knights are the basis of low fantasy plate wearers. This set is a bit too posh for true low fantasy vibes, but we ain’t talking grimdark today.
Sinful Gladiator’s Battleplate
Speaking of a bit too posh. It is pretty hard to believe that this armor could potentially be considered low fantasy. But it is. This is a gothic knight armor. It does look very detailed and elaborate but there isn’t anything way over-the-top. It doesn’t spit out fire, there’s no trapped souls escaping the shoulderpads, it doesn’t transform as you go. No, It’s just a heavy knight armor with intricate detailing and high quality textures.
And with that I’d like to wrap up this list of armors grounded to low fantasy. I hope you enjoyed and that next time you visit transmogrifyer you might consider going for one of these looks.
Comments
All these sets are just mind-blowing! Very cool article. Keep up the excellent work!