There are two sides at war right now in World of Warcraft: the Alliance and the Horde. Which side is better? Well, both sides have their pros and cons and this week we’re going to look at the top five reasons you should set your allegiance to the grand Alliance. Why should you throw your lot in with them? Well, below you’ll find five very good reasons to click one of the Alliance’s loyal races during character creation.

The Alliance has the Best Races

Now we can debate this one all you want, but let’s face it. The majority of players care only about aesthetics and little about statistics. The majority of players right now are Human, Blood Elves, Night Elves, and Draenei (from most played to lesser played). Only one Horde race makes it into that list and that’s a huge win for the Alliance.

Think about it, those are five of the best looking and prettiest races in the game (Draenei being one of the best monster looking classes by far, next to Worgen). Only one Horde race makes it into the top five which is a huge win for the Alliance. The only Horde race is Blood Elves which used to be High Elves which used to be part of the Alliance. So technically they’re Alliance defectors.

Technically the Horde probably wouldn’t make it on the list if it wasn’t for Blood Elves and the huge rush to make ‘em during The Burning Crusade. That’s the only reason the Horde has a fighting chance against the Alliance right now and pretty pathetic if you think about it. Blood Elves aren’t exactly menacing but they are the huge force keeping the mean ‘ol Alliance at bay.

Think the Horde have amazing racials? Look at the Alliance’s new revamped racials. They are nothing to shun, especially thanks to the Human’s “Every Man for Himself.” So you can’t laugh at the Alliance’s racials even if we were to look past aesthetics.

The Alliance is the Hero

Let’s face it, when it comes down to it the Horde is full of nasty evil foul creatures that seem to fit in as daemons from Warhammer or Voldermort from Harry Potter. Throughout the Cataclysm expansion you’ll find them killing innocents, blowing things up, and creating plagues to tear apart entire cities. The Alliance on the other hand is full of good guys who have saved Azeroth multiple times. When you think about it, the Lich King fell to Tirion Fordring, the ultimate hero of the Alliance. Sure they kicked him out for a while, but he’s a Human and that’s good enough for me.

Take a look at Jaina Proudmoore. No one else around is as kind and gentle as her and it shows. She’s a big figure in the Alliance. Then there is like every Dwarf in existence that has stood for honor and courage. Night Elves have yet to do a single thing wrong, well except for Fandral Staghelm but he’s just as bad as most side villains. On the positive side, he’s there when Thrall gets blown to smithereens so that’s a plus for the Alliance.

Who does the Horde have? Thrall? Powerless currently to control his organization and gets shattered into a billion pieces by ‘ol Staghelm who is some throw away character that has failed everything he’s tried so far and gets to become a loot piñata in 4.2. Garrosh? Warmonger that is either celebrated for wanting to kill the good guys or hated because he’s pretty annoying. Sylvanas? I’m not even going to touch that. Blood Elves? They’ve done nothing at all since The Burning Crusade when almost all of them went and followed Illidan into crazyville.

The Alliance is Prettier

Cataclysm changed things around a bit, but the Alliance still has pleasing aesthetics when it comes to buildings and structures. Look at Stormwind as a great example. Sure, it’s on fire a little bit but beyond that it’s a beautiful city. Darnassus looks wonderful even if it’s rarely visited. Ironforge is one of the best designed cities in the game and the Exodar has an amazing sci-fi feel to it. Compare to the Horde where Orgrimmar is a nightmare to navigate now and every other city is almost ignored.

Then you have to consider the outposts scattered throughout the world. Some of them are shining memorials to how amazing the Alliance is: clean buildings, open shops, and pleasing things to look at. Others are more rugged but still maintain some dignity. The majority of the Horde, pre-Cataclysm as at least, reside within broken down buildings and huts surrounded by sticks.

There is definitely a huge difference in the “pretty factor” when it comes to the Horde and Alliance.

The Alliance has an Anime Hero at the Helm

Let’s face it; the Alliance CAN NOT lose anything because they have an anime hero (starts with a G and ends with a U) at the helm. There is no way an anime hero could ever die much less lose in a fight, so it’s obvious that the Alliance have victory foretold for them. Think about it, when has any main hero of any anime ever lost? EVER?

You know things are good whenever your fearless leader has basically has lost his wife giving him that extra special kick to start his zealous hate against all who oppose him. He’s also had his son threatened countless times and has lost his memory and has chapters and chapters devoted to his crazy shenanigans. He also duel-wields some crazy swords and has a giant statue of him looking really angry.

He doesn’t take all of the credit though! Every other racial leader is pretty awesome. You have the Dwarven leader in carbonite, the Night Elves in which almost everyone has done something amazing, and then Velen who resisted Sargeras himself.

So when it comes down to it the Alliance has amazing leadership and is ready to take down any member of the Horde, even with their dirty tactics.

The Alliance has Numbers

Let’s face it, taking it to server statistics, the Alliance outnumber the Horde by a large margin on most servers. The only place the Horde hold their own is PvP servers and even then the numbers are usually not too tipped. So when you sign up with the Alliance you’ll usually be the majority.

Not that server balance isn’t serious, but it’s good to know you’ve got friends who have got your back. More players = more fun when you can get groups going faster, have more friends to join you, and more people in trade to help craft items.

Of course, many may argue that the Horde has more quality and better players. I’m a firm believer that both sides are the same when everything considered. After all, we’re all Human, and just because someone has a preference from one side or the other doesn’t make them a stereotype. I’ve met good and bad players on both sides equally.

So give the Alliance a try if you haven’t. If you’re a member then good for you!