==Meteor==[[Image:Meteor2.jpg|thumb|400px{|The infamous meteor sailing towards [[Tristram Cathedral]].]]In the [[Diablo 3]] [[cinematic]] trailer from [[WWI 2008]] we get to see glimpses of what is happening twenty years after the destruction of the [[Worldstone]] and the defeat of the [[Prime Evils]]. A blazing meteor is seen falling across the sky, crashing down into the [[Tristram Cathedral]]. We know from the cinematic and other art that [[Leah]] and [[Deckard Cain]] were at the cathedral at the time the meteor struck, crashing through many levels down into the catacombs below. Exactly who is where when the meteor hits is unknown, but further explained in the Cain and Leah section below. Blizzard has said the catacombs we see here are essentially the same ones we visited in [[Diablo I]], where [[Diablo]] himself was once "defeated". In the [[BlizzCon 2008]] playable demo, [[Captain Rumford]] says a meteor had struck the cathedral and it has awakened evil within. He asks you to investigate. This awakened evil turns out to be [[King Leoric]] (or possibly something deep underneath, where the demo characters were not able to proceed to). Whether we'll see the same story in the full game is unknown.  ===Cinematic Meteor Event===This is the sequence in which the [[cinematic movie]] from [[WWI 2008]] depicts the meteor:<gallery>Image:Meteor1.jpg|<span style="font-sizewidth:85%600px;line-height:95%;">Meteor across the horizon.</span>Image:Meteor2.jpg|<span style="fontmoz-size:85%;lineborder-heightradius:95%11px;">Comes tumbling down...</span>Imageborder:meteor-med21.jpg|<span style="font-size:85%5px dashed #55dd55;line-heightbackground:95%;#eeffee">And down...</span>Image:meteor-med4.jpg|<span stylealign="font-size:85%;line-height:95%;center">[[New Tristram]] Cathedral.</span>Image:Meteor3.jpg|<span style="font-size:85%;line-height:95%;">Light from meteor shines in.</span>Image:meteor-med6.jpg|<span style="font-size:85%;line-height:95%;">Crashes through the roof...</span>[[Image:Meteor4wiki.jpgpng|<span style="font-size:85%;line-height:95%;">Impacts in [[Tristram Cathedral180px]].</span>Image:meteor-med7.jpg|<span stylealign="font-size:85%;line-height:95%;center">Great bang ensues.</span>Image:Meteor5.jpg|<span stylefont color="font-size:85%;line-height:95%;black">Possibly a view of the crater left by the meteor.</span>Image:diablo-cinematic.jpg|<span style="font-size:85%;line-height:95%;"br>[[Diablo]] behind it?</spanbig></gallery> ==Speculation==What the meteor actually contains is unknown'''Missing DiabloWiki Flash Plugin. The only things fans have been able to speculate about are information given in the [http://diablo.incgamers.com/gallery/ concept art]. It is of course possible the flaming stone is just some spirit from above that resurrects [[Leoric]], but knowing Blizzard's intricate story lines, it's likely something much greater than just the Skeleton King.  ===Fallen Angel===One theory is that the comet is in fact an [[Angel]] who has been expelled from the [[High Heavens]] for unknown reasons, and that such an angel may have impacted or been made to impact [[Tristram Cathedral]] as a sign, perhaps to draw heroes there. This theory may be supported by concept art, which may show the meteor with an angel-like appearance. [[Tyrael]] and [[Izual]] are two popular candidates, who may have been banished by the [[Angiris Council]] for too often interfering with the [[Sanctuary]]. Below are concept art pieces that have been speculated to be related:<gallery>Image:Cain cinematic concept.jpg|<span style="font-size:85%;line-height:95%;">Was [[Cain]] originally supposed to be in the Cathedral, or was he just not visible in the cinematic?'</spanbig>Image:Tristram meteor impact.jpg|<span style="font-size:85%;line-height:95%;"br>Meteor impacts, but does not hurt [[Leah]].</spanbig>Image:Tristram meteor crater.jpg|<span style="font-size:85%;line-height:95%;">Presumably [[Leah]] looks down the crater'''Your Plugin version is outdated.'''</span>Image:Angel concept1.jpg|<span style="font-size:85%;line-height:95%;">Some [[Angel]]-type entity doing something involving fireing up his wings...</spanbig>Image:Tyreal_bare.jpg|<span style="font-size:85%;line-height:95%;"br>[[Tyrael]] on [[Diablo3.com]] changed wing-look on Dec 10 2008, is this related to the left image?</spanbig>Image:Angel concept2.jpg|<span style="font-size:85%;line-height:95%;">Entity with angel-like orange "wings" standing in a bastion of sorts. Wears helmet with horns, or has horns'''Please update it.'''</spanbig>Image:Angel concept3.jpg|<span style="font-size:85%;line-height:95%;">Looks a lot like the previous Angel in the tower, has a helmet with horns/wings, and apparently turns to fire/light. [[Tyrael]] has no such helmet normally.</spanbr></gallerybig> ===Cain and Leah===Exactly how things progressed at the impact is not known yet. There is a lot of concept art about Leah and Cain in and around [[Tristram Cathedral]], and through any game or story development things change. Not all of these images are necessarily part of the actual story we'll experience in [[Diablo III]]  In the material we do have access to, it does seems like [[Deckard Cain]] is sitting furthest in to the Cathedral, noticing the light from the meteor shortly before impact, and [[Leah]] running in to try and save him. Either he is hit, somehow not killed and pushed into the labyrinth below, or neither of them are hit.  Only Leah is seen approaching the big gaping hole, looking down. However, the similar scene from the cinematic shows only the hole, and no Leah looking down.  We know Cain has spent the last 20 years trying to find out why there has not been a [[demon]]ic onslaught after the [[Worldstone]] was destroyed, and either all that research has been done in [[Tristram Cathedral]], or they just recently arrived there.  From [[Abd al-Hazir]]'s entry about [[Writings of Abd al-Hazir: Entry no. 0020|Gnarled Walkers]], we know [[Wortham]] is close to [[Tristram]], and at one point, Leah was there with her [[Pablo DeSoto|father]]. This could have been either before she met up with Cain or a brief trip to Wortham with her father during the research.  We do know Cain and Leah know of and care for each other, as the [[WWI 2008]] gameplay video has the [[Barbarian]] telling Cain that Leah is worried about him. Since he is alive and down in the labyrinth (which you get to by jumping down the hole), either he wasn't hit, or the meteor isn't a meteor in the common sense. The meteor could simply be one of the aforementioned [[Angel]]s ([[Tyrael]] or [[Izual]]), who makes sure to save Cain on the way down, saving him from the impact that destroys the Cathedral.  Exactly how he got down there, and is looking through old scriptures there is unknown, and this could also be a story interaction that will be cut from the actual game. If this has any significance or not is also unknown.  If nothing else, the two of them are both obviously surprised when the meteor comes rushing down, so it did indeed appear unexpectedly.  ==Beyond Speculation== There has been a large amount of datamining of the [[beta]] game files, and it is generally known what the precise nature of the meteor is.In the beta test, the [[Cathedral]] features a large, gaping chasm that runs through the entire structure, on multiple levels. The hole is blue in color, with what looks like liquid fire running down the sides. Blizzard released a screenshot of what is at the bottom of the hole, in an image entitled ''Wizard and Templar Meet a Stranger'', which can be seen below. It is hidden behind a link to prevent spoilers: [http://www.diablowiki.net/File:Stranger.jpg Click to view image.]  ==Media==You can find pictures in the Diablo 3 screenshot and picture galleryhere:* [http://www.diiix.net/galleryco/ Diablo 3 screenshots and picturesq7bR Flash Plugin]* [http://www.diii.net/gallery/showgallery.php?cat=all&si=meteor Meteor-specific gallery contents]   ==Meteor Terms==A meteoroid is a sand- to boulder-sized particle of debris in the Solar System. [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meteor] The visible path of a meteoroid that enters Earth's (or another body's) atmosphere is called a ''meteor'', or colloquially a ''shooting star'' or ''falling star''. The term "meteorite" refers to the source of light, while the term "meteor" refers to what is generally seen in the sky by the human eye. If a meteor reaches the ground and survives impact, then it is called a ''meteoroid'' [http:<//www.mentalfloss.com/difference/meteor-vs-meteorite-vs-meteoroid/] or, depending upon circumstance and elemental composition, a big><br>''chondrite'' [http://meteoritesDiablowiki.wustl.edu/id/ordinary_chondrites.htm]. Many meteors appearing seconds or minutes apart are called a ''meteor showernet''. The root word meteor comes from the Greek meteōros, meaning "high in the air". Furthermore, the color of the meteroid's trail when it is entering the atmosphere is determined by the atomic composition of gasses surrounding the rock. Different atoms will burn at a different color in the light spectrum, but meteoroids often burn white due to a varied composition.     ==Reference==* [http:<//www.blizzard.com/diablo3/media/#movies Diablo III Cinematic Trailer]font>* Blizzcon 2008 Hands-on Playable Demo* [[Captain_Rumford|Captain Rumford Quest]]  [[Category:Lore]][[Category:Objects]][[Category:Artefacts]][[Category:Act I]][[Category:Story]]}