#LFotW

[warcraft-lore-archives]

Lore Fact of the Week #75

Kaldorei traditionally exchange small tokens, such as jewelry or accessories, to show their affection for one another [Page: Hairpin of Silver and Malachite, Item: Eternal Bride’s Wedding Ring]. The giving of bracers in particular is a gesture that symbolizes a sacred bond of friendship, trust, and love amongst night elves [Quest: A Cry For Help]. One elf even gifted her husband with a “pendant of bonding,” though it is unclear if that is standard practice for romantic partners in kaldorei culture [Quest: Mortality Wanes].

[queen-ishura]

I’m back to writing lore posts!

I’ve been a bit unreliable lately, only able to write a week’s worth in advance at a time. I also definitely wasn’t getting anything done during Blizzcon or this last week...

...but you can bet there are more Highborne related posts in the near future!

[warcraft-lore-archives]

Lore Fact of the Week #72

According to one dreadlord, night elf virgins are in short supply these days [Item: Diabolical Plans].

[warcraft-lore-archives]

Lore Fact of the Week #74

According to the non-canon RPG, the Jaserplode and Fargodeep gold mines in Elwynn Forest were seized by the orcs during the First War to fuel their war efforts [RPG: Lands of Conflict, pg. 49]. When the humans finally routed the orcs out of their lands after the end of the Second War nearly four years later, they successfully recaptured the mines, only to lose them again to the forces of the Defias Brotherhood some time following the Third War [RPG: Lands of Conflict, pg. 49, World of Warcraft Chronicle Volume II, pg. 175, 177, Item: Wiley’s Note, Quest: The Fargodeep Mine, Quest: The Jasperlode Mine]. Kobolds, working at the behest of the disgraced stonemasons, invaded the mines, although exactly what they were doing for the Defias is unclear [Item: Wiley’s Note].

[warcraft-lore-archives]

Lore Fact of the Week #73

Banshees have access to the powers of those whose bodies they possess so long as they are inhabiting them [Quest: Reading the Bones, Page: Baroness Anastari].

[warcraft-lore-archives]

Lore Fact of the Week #71

Although it stood as virtually the last great human city of the original Alliance after the Third War, Stormwind City still relied heavily upon other kingdoms for several of its main imports [Book: The Alliance Splinters, World of Warcraft Chronicle Volume III, pg. 112, Cinematic: The Destruction of Dalaran]. In fact, when both Dalaran and Quel’Thalas fell during the Third War, merchants found it incredibly difficult to come by certain magical wares, especially enchanting supplies [Classic NPC: Jessara Cordell Dialogue]. What Stormwind’s craftsmen lacked in those, however, they made up for in other areas. The elves supplied the humans with an abundance of alchemical goods specially crafted in Teldrassil and brought over as a gesture of good will between the two races [Classic NPC: Eldraeith Dialogue].

[warcraft-lore-archives]

Lore Fact of the Week #69

CW: Please be aware that this lore post discusses a practice involving gaslighting, torture, and confinement. 

The banishment ritual practiced by the Adherents of Rukhmar was an exceptionally brutal custom. Designed to punish those who spoke up against the Adherents’ rule and discourage others from doing the same, the arakkoa exiling ceremony was a highly public, yet gruesome affair that lasted over the course of several days [Short Story: Apocrypha]. The ceremony, in which dissenters among the arakkoa were sentenced to a life as outcasts on the ground, was practiced for at least 600 years before the Adherents of Rukhmar were finally ousted from power [World of Warcraft Chronicle Volume II, pg. 44, Short Story: Apocrypha, Page: Order of the Awakened].

The elaborate ritual began once an arakkoa suspected of treasonous behavior was captured. To justify the victim’s impending banishment from high arakkoan society, the Adherents of Rukhmar would publicly denounce them as a heretic afflicted with the Curse of Sethe. They maintained authoritarian control over their people in this way by dictating that “heretical” activities – such as questioning one’s elders – were a sign of the curse. Moreover, although the curse could only be contracted by coming into contact with Sethe’s blood in Sethekk Hollow, the Adherents claimed that it was contagious, allowing them to swiftly silence and permanently exile any who dared challenge their leadership [Short Story: Apocrypha, pg. 2, 4].

Following the victim’s apprehension, their beak was bound, and their head covered with a blinding hood so they could not speak or see [Short Story: Apocrypha, pg. 2]. They were then placed in a cage hanging over Skyreach’s highest terrace. A dark cloth magically enchanted to keep out all heat and light was draped over the cage, which served to prevent the arakkoa within from feeling the grace of the arakkoan sun god, Rukhmar. This part of the ritual sometimes drove arakkoa mad, causing them to pluck out their own feathers [Short Story: Apocrypha, pg. 3-4].

After several days, the sound of windchimes during sunrise signaled that the victim was to be exiled the following day at the break of dawn [Short Story: Apocrypha, pg. 3]. Once that time had come, the arakkoa, still bound, was removed from the cage and taken to a ceremonial chamber in the Grand Spire, where all of the Adherents were required to attend and witness this final part of the ceremony. As soon as everyone had gathered, the High Sage, leader of the Adherents of Rukhmar, publicly condemned the victim as a heretic and cut off both of their wings for all to see [Short Story: Apocarypha, pg. 4]. The wingless arakkoa was then dropped into the pools of Sethe from a great height [World of Warcraft Chronicle Volume II, pg. 45].

Assuming they survived the fall, the newly made outcast would then actually contract the Curse of Sethe. The magical curse tormented the fallen arakkoa, ravaging their mind and causing them a great deal more pain. Many died or went insane as a result, but some of the strongest persevered and went on to join the outcasts [Quest: Banished from the Sky, World of Warcraft Chronicle Volume II, pg. 45].  

[warcraft-lore-archives]

Lore Fact of the Week #70

Few artifacts are as well-known as the Demon Soul, a relic so powerful that it could not only vaporize entire armies in an instant, but also control and enslave any dragon, including the aspects themselves [The Demon Soul, Chapter Twenty]. What some may not know, however, is that the Demon Soul was once fastened to an elementium chain named the Demon Chain [Quest: The Demon Chain]. Not unlike the Soul, the Demon Chain alone gave its wielder the ability to project their will like a physical force and compel dragons to do their bidding, although it is loosely implied that the chain did not always have these powers [NPC: Nakrall Rakeclaw Dialogue]. Rather, some claim that the magical artifact came by its unique abilities from being attached to the Demon Soul for so long [Quest: The Demon Chain].

While the Demon Soul has long been destroyed, the whereabouts of the Demon Chain are currently unknown [Quest: The Demon Chain, Page: Demon Soul].

[warcraft-lore-archives]

Lore Fact of the Week #66

With the exception of one, all Alliance military units enlisted in the war against the Lich King were named after Alliance towns [Quest: Lost and Found, Quest: A Deserter]. As part of the war effort, each unit was assigned to a specific region in Northrend and given a mission to carry out against the Scourge. The Westfall Brigade, for example, was sent to Grizzly Hills to secure strategic resource points and look for a safe path into the northernmost territories while the Darkshire and Goldshire regiments were sent to Dragonblight and Howling Fjord respectively, although the exact task they were given is unclear [Quest: The Hills Have Us, Quest: Report to Gryan Stoutmantle… Again, Quest: A Deserter].

The only regiment not named after a town, Unit S, was an elite strike force charged with infiltrating the temple city of En’kilah in northern Borean Tundra and collecting any scourge technology found there to use against the Lich King himself [Comic: Death Knight, Chapter Five, Quest: Cowards and Fools].

[warcraft-lore-archives]

Lore Fact of the Week #67

Before Halaa became a battleground between the Alliance and the Horde, it was the draenei’s primary research center for the study of naaru crystals [Quest: Oshu’gun Crystal Powder].

[warcraft-lore-archives]

Lore Fact of the Week #58

Some night elves follow a philosophy called ‘alara’shinu,’ which means finding beauty in imperfection. Those who live by it accept and ultimately take joy from understanding that all things are temporary, including life and nature [NPC: Rensar Greathoof Dialogue].

[warcraft-lore-archives]

Lore Fact of the Week #55

Blood elves can see clearly in low light conditions, a trait they get from their kaldorei ancestors. Unlike the night elves, however, blood elves can also visibly identify arcane auras around people and objects [Blood of the Highborne, Chapter Four].

[warcraft-lore-archives]

Lore Fact of the Week #64

An old Bloodscalp legend tells of the Gurubashi Empire’s fall some time ago at the hands of Neptulon, the Tidehunter [Item: Bloodscalp Lore Tablet]. It is never stated when the events described in the tale took place, but it is possible that the story was meant to convey the Gurubashi trolls’ interpretation of the Sundering.

This tale, simply called the “Fall of Gurubashi,” loosely goes like so: For reasons unknown, long ago the elemental lord of water, Neptulon, sent his kraken minions to destroy I’lalai, a troll city located somewhere in the lush southern jungles of the Eastern Kingdoms. The city’s leader, infamously known as Min’loth the Serpent, moved to protect the town and its inhabitants by erecting a magical barrier. Aware that the barrier alone would not stop Neptulon’s servants, Min’loth also endeavored to cast a binding spell on the kraken, but they ultimately proved to be far more powerful than him or his magic. And so, enraged at being attacked by a mere mortal, the kraken rushed toward I’lalai and brought the fury of the ocean crashing down upon the city and surrounding jungle, drowning all who lived within it. Once the waters reached the mountains of Zul’Gurub, they stopped and retreated, placated by the destruction they had wrought. Nonetheless, the ocean would remain to engulf I’lalai, drowning the city forever as punishment [Item: The Third Troll Legend, Item: Bloodscalp Lore Tablet].

[warcraft-lore-archives]

Lore Fact of the Week #56

Prince Arthas Menethil was not the only one to kill hundreds of innocents in an attempt to stop the Scourge plague. The man who was to become the Headless Horseman, Thomas Thomson, committed similar atrocities under the Scarlet Crusade. Made to believe that the citizens of Lordaeron had all unknowingly contracted the plague, he and other members of the holy order razed numerous towns across Tirisfal Glades and put a grisly end to their human inhabitants. During this campaign, Thomson inadvertently killed his own family, an act that – combined with the deaths of countless innocents before them – drove him insane. Burdened by the Light’s apparent ineptitude in the face of the Scourge plague and Arthas’ despicable acts against his father and kingdom, Thomson’s psyche broke irreparably.

Thereafter, he was quarantined in the Scarlet Monastery until the leader of the Scarlet Crusade, Grand Crusader Dathrohan, let Thomson out during Hallow’s End in the year 24. Since Hallow’s End is traditionally a time for putting one’s past behind oneself, Dathrohan – actually the dreadlord Balnazzar in disguise – hoped that the holiday and its customs would help Thomson move forward. However, when he was released to fight side by side with members of the Scarlet Crusade against the undead once more, Thomson turned on his friends and slew them. He was killed that night, decapitated by one of his former allies.

Balnazzar infused Thomson’s corpse with fel energies and raised him as the Headless Horseman to serve his own twisted ends. Believing that everyone else is dead and he is the only one alive, the Headless Horseman continues to carry out his mission and raze villages on Hallow’s End to this day, many years later [Legends Volume Five: A Cleansing Fire, NPC: Costumed Orphan Matron Dialogue].

[warcraft-lore-archives]

Lore Fact of the Week #63

The blood elves have a long history of changing their family names to reflect and honor major transformations in their culture. It is strongly implied that many of the high elves first changed their surnames sometime after they were exiled from Kalimdor, likely so they could distance themselves from their kaldorei cousins and celebrate their new sun-centered culture. While a few of the Highborne, Dath’Remar Sunstrider included, had sun-oriented surnames to begin with, that type of family name was and still is particularly uncommon among the moon-worshipping kaldorei [World of Warcraft Chronicle Volume I, pg. 118].

Following that, when the high elves renamed themselves to the blood elves after the Third War, some sin’dorei also took it upon themselves to change their family names accordingly to further honor the fallen [Blood of the Highborne, Chapter Four].

[warcraft-lore-archives]

Lore Fact of the Week #62

Members of the Sisterhood of Elune practice four periods of ritual fasting every year. While the fasting is primarily done as a sign of dedication to the goddess Elune, it also serves to train the elven priests how to survive with minimal sustenance [The Demon Soul, Chapter Nine].