iv Christmas Contest Lore Recap

[Valks 2,375]

Wondering about the lore behind some of our clues? Check out our full discussion of the stories behind everything we chose and the clues that came with them.

 

We're going to be breaking down the different pieces of lore based on the days. Some of them are going to be much longer, while others are going to be simple, small pieces of the story. Let's get going!

 

Day 1 - Voidtalon of the Dark Star 

 

Our first day only ended up having one clue, but it still indicated the majority of the story behind this mount. 

 

 

There was a time when Draenor was filled with untainted beasts such as this, but the Shadowmoon Clan sought to bend them to their dark ways. When they realised that the beasts couldn't be forced to obey, they set out to destroy them all. The final egg was tainted by the touch of the Dark Star.

 

The Dark Star was in fact a Naaru named K'ara, who was injured in the crash of the Genedar. He entered into the "void" life cycle of the Naaru and was found by the orcs of Shadowmoon Valley. They named him the Dark Star, but when they discovered the evil powers of the void, one of the ancient leaders of the clan refused any further interaction with the evil being.

 

When threatened by Grom Hellscream, Ner'zhul broke the ancient laws put into place by his ancestors and began to draw upon the powers of the Dark Star. He and his people began to animate the dead in order to fight against the Draenei. 

 

Prophet Velen eventually sacrificed himself in order to cleanse the Naaru of its corruption and recreated K'ara.

 

This final egg of the beasts was lost in the void, only to be stumbled upon once again by the mighty adventurers that wish to sit and wait for hours upon hours. Neat!

 

Day 2 - The Shattered Halls 

 

This was one of our harder days to begin with, since you really needed some pretty intense knowledge of the dungeons to realise what it was early on. Let's break this one down, clue by clue.

 

Our first clue was a very subtle reference to a number of things. The face meaning simply implied that the dungeon was housed in a building that was found in both green and red. This relates to the two different Hellfire Citadels, one in Outland and one in Draenor.

 

The first part of the clue references something far darker. It talks about one of the darkest periods in Draenei history, in which they saw the majority of their race completely eradicated from the face of Draenor. When the orcs were first corrupted by the demon blood of Mannoroth, their lust for blood was insatiable. They were turned on the Draenei, who simply could not muster the necessary defenses to withstand the might of the Horde.

 

The orcs at the time weren't happy with simply winning a war. They sought pure genocide, to completely eradicate any living race in their path. They lived for battle, they lived to spill the blood of any they could find. The Draenei were no match for the new orcs and they were slaughtered, men, women and children alike. Their bodies were scattered across the Hellfire Peninsula, their bones used to construct one of the most horrendous sights in the game.

 

The Path of Glory is literally made of the bones of the slaughtered Draenei, leading through half of the region, from the Dark Portal to Hellfire Citadel. Despite a number of examples of the destruction wrought upon the Draenei, this path is the strongest example of just how many Draenei were slaughtered during that period.

 

 

A close-up of the bones on the Path of Glory.

 

Our second clue is pretty basic, it was essentially looking at the fact that the Hellfire Citadel, the building that houses Shattered Halls, is located in both timelines: once on Outland and once on Draenor. The second part of the clue does get slightly more complex however; we tried to help differentiate between the two timelines by referencing the "4th wing" of Hellfire Citadel, the raid Magtheridon's Lair. 

 

This raid used to be one of the prequisites for entering the Tempest Keep raid; you were sent on a quest to kill Magtheridon and retrieve his head. There was a slight double meaning here, in that you would also find Kargath Bladefist within the dungeon. He is the "head" of the Shattered Hand clan, as well as the Warchief of what he believes is the "True Horde".

 

Prior to the destruction of Draenor, the Citadel was used as a fortress for the great Warchief of the Horde, Blackhand. As the demonic corruption began to spread through the orcs, they started to abandon the elements that the Shamans communicated with, instead using the fel energy of the demons, commanded by the warlocks. The area around the Citadel began to decay, eventually being named Hellfire Peninsula. This led to the Citadel being given its name, Hellfire Citadel.

 

For a period, the Citadel was used as a training ground for the Horde, allowing them to house their military might, ensuring they were prepared for battle at any moment. They used the Citadel as a base during their final assault against the Draenei, as well as a base for their march on the Dark Portal. 

 

The Alliance Expedition that journeyed through the portal met the orcs at the Stair of Destiny, just in front of the portal, and battled their way to Ner'zhul. Ner'zhul had lost his mind, due to the artifact that he had recovered, the Skull of Gul'dan. It was speaking to him, controlling him, and Ner'zhul began to only care about his own wellbeing. He began to open portals around Draenor, attempting to find any means by which he could escape the ensuing battle, and further his power and safety.

 

 

The skull of Gul'dan, held by Illidan Stormrage.

 

When the Alliance arrived at the Citadel, he was already long gone and had began opening more portals across Draenor. The instability caused by his portals eventually caused Draenor to implode, destroying the world as they had previously known it. Ner'zhul's lust for power had driven him to destroy their homeland.

 

The Citadel remained on Draenor, uninhabited and desloate, until Kargath Bladefist returned. Under the influence of the fel energy from blood of Magtheridon, they drained the Pit Lord slowly, using his blood to create more fel orcs to eventually create the Fel Horde.

 

Kargath now uses the Shattered Halls as his basis for ruling over the Fel Horde, ensuring that they continue to create more fel orcs.

 

The third clue was a reference to the fact that, inside the instance, you have one of two choices. You can either find a way to go through the door to the first boss or you can venture through the sewers. We were trying to see if people that had perhaps done the instance while it was current content remembered that part of it. It was a huge help having either an engineer or a rogue to break/pick the lock on the door. 

 

The fourth one was just us trying to single out the Shattered Halls as the only dungeon in the area that was behind a gate.

 

Day 3 - Bastion of Twilight 

 

This was one of the faster days, but we managed to get to the second clue. Our first clue was a direct reference to the first fight, against Halfus Wyrmbreaker.

 

When you entered the raid on normal, there were five dragons chained up behind Halfus. Two of the dragons would be immobilised each week, meaning that you could only deal with three of them each time you tried the encounter on normal.

 

The second clue was a bit more interesting in regards to lore. The mother that we are referring to is Sinestra, also known as Sintharia. She was the consort of Deathwing himself, the only dragon to actually survive mating with him after his transformation. She was the mother of two very well known dragons within the universe: Nefarian and his sister, Onyxia.

 

 

The main hint that distinguished the siblings in the clue was the idea that Sinestra had lost them "twice". Nefarian perishes twice, in Blackwing Lair and Blackwing Descent, while Onyxia perishes in Onyxia's Lair twice, but also in Blackwing Descent as her "re-animated" form.

 

Day 4: Damien's Ice-Vein Mask 

 

This one didn't have many lore-based clues, so if you want to read the story behind the clues, just check out the Day 4 post. Instead, I'm going to take a look at the story behind the NPC that drops the piece of loot.

 

 

Ordos was one of the Yaungol, a sort of yak-humanoid race. He was a Shaman once, but was promised eternal life and power by the Fire Lords. He sacrificed his mortal self to the flame, in order to become a demigod. Demigods in the Warcraft universe are immortal in time, but can still be killed, as evidenced by those felled in the War of the Ancients.

 

Ordos was never told of the agony that he would suffer at the hands of the flames that engulf him; those that worship him will make prayers in order to ease the pain that he suffers.

 

Day 5: Gunther Arcanus 

 

This seemed to be the most puzzling day, reaching four clues, but still only getting three correct answers. Let's take a look at the story behind this, quite frankly, amazing NPC. 

 

Gunther Arcanus was initially a member of the Kirin Tor until the Third War. He perished at the hands of the Scourge and was raised as one of the undead. Gunther was an exceptionally powerful mage in his life, with exceptional abilities that were only amplified by his revival. 

 

He is one of the few in history that broke the control of the Lich King over him alone. He had no help from others, but simply used his own magic to break the link. He wandered until he found himself in Tirisfal Glades, at a place now known as Gunther's Retreat. He was surrounded by the mindless dead on the island and believed that every other undead being was just as mindless as the zombies around him.

 

He distrusted any that came to him, but an adventurer was eventually sent in the name of Sylvanas, to speak with Gunther. Gunther was discovered by the Forsaken through a book, which named the mage as a Lich. We are still unsure of whether this is actually true, since his immense powers might have just made people think he was one.

 

 

Gunther never allied himself with anyone before being approached by the Forsaken, so this is the reasoning behind our first clue. He trusted only himself.

 

Our second and third clues are explaned above, but it's worth noting that the "book on the floor" is found in Dalaran, in the Violet Citadel.

 

The last clue refers to the actual location of Gunther. His island is in the middle of the Brightwater Lake, so it's "across the bright waters" and is in direct view of the city of the Banshee Queen, Sylvanas.

 

Hopefully you've enjoyed our lore-recap of the competition and you learnt a few new facts in the meantime!

 

Thanks again to everyone that participated.