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[2012*] The Story of Warcraft

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[2012*] The Story of Warcraft est un article web Warcraft officiel, publié. Cette œuvre n’a pas de place fixe dans la chronologie : elle figure avec le matériel non daté.

L’article

Not to be confused with History of Warcraft or The Story So Far.

This article is a copy of "The Story of Warcraft", a section of the official World of Warcraft website that provides "an abridged timeline) of the Warcraft Saga starting from Warcraft: Orcs & Humans". The timeline is divided into "chapters", each providing a brief summary of the story for each mainline game, expansion, and major content patch in the Warcraft franchise, occasionally with links to trailers, wallpapers, and other related content on the official site.

The timeline was added on September 21st, 2012 and is sporadically updated; as of October 2026, it has been updated up through patch 12.2.

Original announcement

We just released The Story of Warcraft, a comprehensive collection that will bring you up-to-speed with everything that's happened in the Warcraft universe since the release of Warcraft: Orcs & Humans.

The story of the brave people of Azeroth and beyond has been growing and expanding with each additional release in the Warcraft series of games. It's a tale of mighty heroes, of powerful foes, a tale of strength, and honor, and of unlimited adventure. Now, you can check out a chronicle of the major events that happened in each Warcraft game, expansion, or major content patch. Each entry includes a short summary, a video trailer, and key art for the chapter. More content such as wallpapers, character cards (so you can keep track of the scores of heroes of the Warcraft universe), and more will be added to this section soon, so stay tuned!

Warcraft: Orcs & Humans

Released in November 1994 | PC / Mac Game

For ages, the fallen titan Sargeras plotted to scour all life from Azeroth. To this end, Sargeras possessed the human sorcerer Medivh and compelled him to contact Gul'dan, an orc warlock on the world of Draenor. There, Sargeras' demonic servants among the Burning Legion worked to corrupt the once - peaceful orcs and forge them into a bloodthirsty army known as the Horde. This cursed force invaded Azeroth through the Dark Portal, a dimensional gateway created by Medivh and Gul'dan, and clashed with the human nation of Stormwind). Aided by the half-orc Garona, human champions like Anduin Lothar fought valiantly to protect their kingdom. Yet, in the end, the mighty Horde shattered Stormwind's defenses. Amid the city's tragic fall, Garona betrayed her allies and assassinated King Llane Wrynn, sealing the nation's defeat.

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Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness

Released in December 1995 | PC / Mac Game

The human nation of Stormwind had fallen before the Horde. Knight Champion?action=edit&redlink=1) Anduin Lothar gathered the scattered remnants of the human army and led the refugees north across the Great Sea to the kingdom of Lordaeron). By enlisting the aid of other nations - humans, gnomes, elves, and dwarves - Lothar helped form a great Alliance to stand against the orcs and their ruthless new leader, Orgrim Doomhammer. The seemingly unstoppable Horde continued its rampage, reinforcing its growing army with savage trolls and brutish ogres. But, on the eve of victory, Gul'dan and his followers selfishly abandoned their allies to seek out powerful artifacts, forcing the weakened Horde to retreat. Doomhammer momentarily rallied the orcs when he slew Lothar in a harrowing battle, but the hero's death did not break the Alliance's resolve. Turalyon, Lothar's loyal lieutenant, quickly took up leadership of Azeroth's defenders and finally defeated the Horde.

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Warcraft II: Beyond the Dark Portal

Released in April 1996 | PC / Mac Expansion Set

Following the destruction of Azeroth's Dark Portal by the victorious Alliance, the orc shaman Ner'zhul took command of the remaining Horde on Draenor. There, he plotted to create portals to other unspoiled worlds and invade each in turn. To enable the rituals for his dimensional conquest, Ner'zhul sent orcish forces through his world's intact Dark Portal in search of powerful relics on Azeroth. Wary of the Horde's plans, the heroes of the Alliance invaded Draenor to end the orcish threat forever. Facing certain defeat at the hands of his enemies, Ner'zhul succeeded in opening numerous portals to new worlds. The resulting magical stress shattered Draenor, trapping many of Azeroth's greatest heroes on Outland, the damaged remains of the planet.

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Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos

Released in July 2002 | PC / Mac Game

After years of languishing in captivity, the remaining orcs on Azeroth were liberated by a former slave named Thrall. This young shaman and his reformed Horde fled to the continent of Kalimdor to escape the invasion of the Burning Legion, a demonic army that sought to ravage all of Azeroth. To weaken the world's defenses, the Legion unleashed a horrifying new weapon: the undead Scourge. Prince Arthas Menethil of Lordaeron fought bravely to protect his lands from this dreaded enemy, but his fear and desperation led him to join forces with the Scourge's mysterious leader, the Lich King. On Kalimdor, Thrall's Horde set aside old hatreds and united with other races to thwart a massive Legion assault helmed by the demon lord Archimonde. At great cost, the unlikely union of humans, night elves and orcs defeated their enemies atop sacred Mount Hyjal.

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Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne

Released in July 2003 | PC / Mac Expansion Set

While the armies of humans, orcs, and their allies recovered from their battle against the Burning Legion, Arthas Menethil - now a Death Knight - slaughtered the living denizens of Azeroth's Eastern Kingdoms in the name of the Scourge. But new forces emerged that threatened to destroy Arthas and his minions: the banshee Sylvanas Windrunner rebelled, creating a splinter faction of undead known as the Forsaken, and the demon-tainted night elf Illidan Stormrage sent his armies to the icy continent of Northrend to strike at the Lich King. Arthas rushed to his master's defense and defeated Illidan, who fled to Outland in shame. At last close to the seat of the Scourge's power, Arthas did the unthinkable, and willingly merged his own spirit with that of the Lich King.

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World of Warcraft

Released in November 2004 | PC / Mac Game

Intent on settling the arid region of Durotar, Thrall's new Horde expanded its ranks, inviting the undead Forsaken to join orcs, tauren, and trolls. Meanwhile, dwarves, gnomes and the ancient night elves pledged their loyalties to a reinvigorated Alliance, guided by the human kingdom of Stormwind. After Stormwind's king, Varian Wrynn, mysteriously disappeared, Highlord Bolvar Fordragon served as Regent but his service was marred by the manipulations and mind control of the black dragon Onyxia, who ruled in disguise as a human noblewoman. As heroes investigated Onyxia's manipulations, ancient foes surfaced in lands throughout the world to menace Horde and Alliance alike.

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Assault on Blackwing Lair

Released in July 2005 | World of Warcraft Patch 1.6

Deep within the fiery heart of Blackrock Mountain, the black dragon Nefarian conducted twisted experiments with the blood of other dragonflights. Intent on seizing the entire region for his own, he marshaled the remaining Dark Horde, a rogue army that embraced the demonic bloodlust of the old Horde. These corrupt orcs, trolls and other races battled against the Firelord Ragnaros and the shadowy Dark Iron dwarves for control of the smoldering mountain. Before he was vanquished by fearless heroes, Nefarian created the twisted chromatic dragons and a legion of other aberrations in his bid to form an army powerful enough to control Azeroth and continue the legacy of his infamous father, Deathwing the Destroyer.

Rise of the Blood God

Released in September 2005 | World of Warcraft Patch 1.7

Years ago, in the ruined temple of Atal'Hakkar, loyal priests of the Blood God Hakkar the Soulflayer attempted to summon the wrathful deity's avatar into the world. But his followers, the Atal'ai priesthood, discovered that the Soulflayer could only be summoned within the Gurubashi tribe's ancient capital, Zul'Gurub. Newly reborn in this jungle fortress, Hakkar took control of the Gurubashi tribe and mortal champions of the trolls' mighty animal gods. The Soulflayer's dark influence was barely halted when the wise Zandalari tribe recruited heroes from the Horde and the Alliance and staged an invasion of Zul'Gurub.

The Gates of Ahn'Qiraj

Released in January 2006 | World of Warcraft Patch 1.9

The great desert fortress of Ahn'Qiraj, long sealed behind the Scarab Wall, was home to the insectoid qiraji, a savage race that had once mounted an assault to devastate the continent of Kalimdor. But something far more sinister lurked behind Ahn'Qiraj's walls: the Old God C'Thun, an ancient entity whose pervasive evil had suffused Azeroth since time immemorial. As C'Thun incited the qiraji to frenzy, both the Alliance and Horde prepared for a massive war effort. A mixed force of Alliance and Horde soldiers, dubbed the Might of Kalimdor, opened the gates of Ahn'Qiraj under the command of the indomitable orc Varok Saurfang. Their charge: lay siege to the ruins and temples of Ahn'Qiraj, and vanquish the terrors of ages past.

Shadow of the Necropolis

Released in June 2006 | World of Warcraft Patch 1.11

In the Lich King's haste to spread the plague of undeath over Azeroth, he gifted one of his greatest servants, the lich Kel'Thuzad, with the flying citadel of Naxxramas, a horrific base of operations for the Scourge. Consistent attacks from the Scarlet Crusade and Argent Dawn factions weakened the defenses of the floating fortress, enabling an incursion that led to Kel'Thuzad's defeat. However, a traitor among the ranks of the knightly order of the Argent Dawn absconded with Kel'Thuzad's cursed remains and fled to Northrend, where the fallen lich could be reanimated.

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The Burning Crusade

Released in January 2007 | PC / Mac Expansion Set

The Doom Lord Kazzak reopened the Dark Portal to Outland, flooding Azeroth with the ravenous demons of the Burning Legion. Expeditions from the Horde and Alliance, reinforced by their new blood elf and draenei allies, passed through the gateway to stop the invasion at its source. On Outland's desiccated Hellfire Peninsula, the Alliance discovered several of their heroes who had crossed through the portal many years before, while the Horde made contact with the Mag'har - 'uncorrupted' orcs who had not participated in their race's original invasion of Azeroth. The expedition into Outland dragged Horde and Alliance armies further into conflict with the agents of the Legion and the lieutenants of Illidan Stormrage, who had claimed the shattered realm for his own.

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The Black Temple

Released in May 2007 | World of Warcraft Patch 2.1

In his quest to reign over all of Outland, Illidan the Betrayer had established a mighty stronghold for his forces within the Black Temple, a former draenei citadel. Yet his influence began to wane after the defeat of his most trusted lieutenants, including the traitorous former leader of the blood elves, Kael'thas Sunstrider. The resulting window of opportunity permitted Akama, an elder sage of devolved draenei known as the Broken, to rebel against the self-styled "Lord of Outland." Along with Illidan's former jailor, the stoic night elf Maiev Shadowsong, Akama helped a group of heroes infiltrate Illidan's seat of power and put an end to the Betrayer's reign once and for all.

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The Gods of Zul'Aman

Released in November 2007 | World of Warcraft Patch 2.3

Following years of battles alongside the old Horde, the troll warlord Zul'jin retired to the city of Zul'Aman, capital of the Amani trolls, where he called upon mysterious dark powers to rebuild his army. While the eyes of Azeroth focused on the fight against the Burning Legion and the expedition to Outland, treasure-seekers invaded Zul'Aman, rekindling Zul'jin's hatred of the outside world - particularly the high elves of Quel'Thalas). Upon hearing that these newly christened "blood elves" had become part of the Horde in his absence, the infuriated Zul'jin declared war on both Horde and Alliance.

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Fury of the Sunwell

Released in November 2007 | World of Warcraft Patch 2.3

Fresh from his defeat in Outland, Kael'thas Sunstrider returned to the blood elf city of Silvermoon. Rather than lead his people to glory as he had promised, the disgraced prince betrayed them. Kael'thas plotted to use the legendary Sunwell, source of the blood elves' magical power, to summon the demon lord Kil'jaeden into Azeroth. Aided by a joint task force of blood elves and draenei, the Shattered Sun Offensive, Horde and Alliance heroes narrowly stopped both Kael'thas and Kil'jaeden, purifying the Sunwell with the help of the draenei prophet Velen.

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Wrath of the Lich King

Released in November 2008 | PC / Mac Expansion Set

In the wake of the Sunwell's purification, a period of suspicious quiet had swept over the world. As if on cue, the undead Scourge launched a massive assault against the cities and towns of Azeroth, this time extending its reach far beyond the Eastern Kingdoms. Under pressure to respond with a full army, Warchief Thrall deployed an expedition force to Northrend led by Overlord Garrosh Hellscream. Meanwhile, the missing human king Varian Wrynn at last returned to Stormwind City and reclaimed his crown. He sent an equally powerful Alliance army, commanded by Bolvar Fordragon, to defeat the Lich King—and any Horde forces who would stand in their way.

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Secrets of Ulduar

Released in April 2009 | World of Warcraft Patch 3.1

The march of Horde and Alliance armies through Northrend led to a number of victories, but these successes paled before a discovery made by the explorer Brann Bronzebeard within the ancient titan complex of Ulduar. This mysterious fortress had long served as the prison of the Old God Yogg-Saron, a being of unfathomable evil whose influence had spread into the continent of Northrend itself. With Brann's assistance, small bands of Alliance and Horde champions infiltrated Ulduar to confront Yogg-Saron, who blasted the invaders with cryptic visions: the millennia-old creation of an artifact known as the Dragon Soul, the assassination of Stormwind's King Llane, and a glimpse of the Lich King's future.

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Call of the Crusade

Released in August 2009 | World of Warcraft Patch 3.2

In preparation for the final offensive against the Lich King, the Argent Crusade—a union of holy warriors from the Order of the Silver Hand and the Argent Dawn—assembled a base near Icecrown Citadel to gather resources and identify the champions who would serve at the vanguard of their army. Highlord Tirion Fordring organized a tournament to test potential heroes of the Horde and the Alliance, but agents of the Scourge quickly emerged to sabotage the event. The undead attack culminated with the appearance of the monstrous crypt lord Anub'arak, who attempted to exterminate Tirion's elite force before it could be assembled.

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Fall of the Lich King

Released in December 2009 | World of Warcraft Patch 3.3

As the final battle against the Lich King approached, the human sorceress Jaina Proudmoore and the Banshee Queen Sylvanas Windrunner journeyed to the icy heart of Northrend. Both had come for different reasons: Jaina hoped to discover whether a part of her former friend and lover, Arthas Menethil, still lived; Sylvanas longed to take revenge on her old enemy. With the aid of these two heroes, Azeroth's champions stormed Icecrown Citadel and vanquished the Lich King's minions. Their confrontation with the Lich King involved thousands of souls consumed by Arthas's blade, Frostmourne. Ultimately, Arthas was slain, and the heroes who triumphed over him learned a chilling truth about the existence of the undead Scourge.

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Cataclysm

Released in December 2010 | PC / Mac Expansion Set

The victorious Northrend expeditions returned home to find all of Azeroth shaken by erratic elemental forces. This unrest preceded the return of the maddened Dragon Aspect Deathwing the Destroyer, who erupted from his lair in the bowels of the Elemental Plane, shattering) Azeroth in the process. With the elemental realms now open to the world, chaotic elemental spirits and their tyrannical lords emerged to help the Destroyer and the nihilistic Twilight's Hammer cult bring about the Hour of Twilight: the end of all life on Azeroth.

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Rise of the Zandalari

Released in April 2011 | World of Warcraft Patch 4.1

Alarmed by the terrible losses of life among all trolls, the Zandalari tribe traveled around the world to reunite their race and rebuild their once-powerful empire. The Zandalari restored the fallen cities of Zul'Gurub and Zul'Aman, and begun to conduct bloody raids on territories that had once been "theirs." The burgeoning troll force hoped to lead a great war against the other races of Azeroth, but the honorable Vol'jin of the Darkspear tribe stood against their murderous agenda, and recruited champions from both the Horde and the Alliance to invade the ancient cities and stop the onslaught.

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Rage of the Firelands

Released in June 2011 | World of Warcraft Patch 4.2

After a ferocious series of battles, Azeroth's heroes banished Ragnaros the Firelord and his elemental minions from Mount Hyjal. Yet, threats to Hyjal persisted, including traitorous druids who had abandoned their allies and joined forces with the elementals. Fearing another elemental invasion, the defenders of Azeroth made a daring assault into Ragnaros' blazing realm: the Firelands. Among the seething flames of this elemental domain, Ragnaros was at his most powerful; only the greatest champions of the Horde and the Alliance, aided by druidic champions like Malfurion Stormrage, could dare hope to defeat the Firelord.

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Hour of Twilight

Released in November 2011 | World of Warcraft Patch 4.3

At the peak of his insanity, Deathwing the Destroyer fought to drive the world into twilight - a devastated future bereft of all life. The Dragon Soul, a powerful artifact lost in the past, was the only weapon capable of truly stopping Deathwing, and so the guardians of Azeroth - the Dragon Aspects - sent a number of valiant heroes racing through time to retrieve it. Despite being attacked by the mysterious Infinite Dragonflight as they travelled the timeways, the champions returned the artifact to the present and delivered it to the wise shaman Thrall. With his aid, the Dragon Soul was deployed against the Destroyer during a brutal battle that began in Azeroth's skies and continued into the roiling heart of the Maelstrom at the center of the world. Through the combined efforts of the Aspects and their allies, the madness of Deathwing was finally brought to an end.

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Mists of Pandaria

Released in September 2012 | PC / Mac Expansion Set

With Deathwing's menace ended, Warchief Garrosh Hellscream seized the opportunity to strike at the Alliance and expand the Horde's territory on Kalimdor. His assault completely obliterated the human city of Theramore, causing world-wide violence between the factions to erupt anew. A destructive naval skirmish left Alliance and Horde forces washed ashore on the fog-shrouded island of Pandaria, which had appeared in the open sea, defying modern maps and charts. As both warring factions established footholds on the resource-rich continent, they made contact with the noble pandaren, one of its most prolific peoples. This ancient race worked with the Alliance and Horde in the hopes of dispersing the Sha: dark, ephemeral beings roused from beneath Pandaria by the bloody conflict.

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Landfall

Released in November 2012 | World of Warcraft Patch 5.1

The conflict between the Horde and the Alliance entered a bloody new chapter in Pandaria. As the two factions' armies clashed on the shores of the continent, Warchief Garrosh Hellscream dispatched elite troops to find the Divine Bell—an ancient mogu artifact capable of endowing his soldiers with unimaginable power. Garrosh's bold and reckless actions, however, had dire consequences for the Horde, including the outbreak of violence against the Darkspear trolls and the expulsion of the blood elves from the once-neutral mage city of Dalaran. Although Garrosh claimed the bell, Prince Anduin Wrynn and the Alliance secret agents of SI:7 closely tracked the warchief's every move. On the highest peaks of Kun-Lai Summit, the brave prince thwarted Garrosh's plans, leading to the fabled mogu artifact's destruction.

The Thunder King

Released in March 2013 | World of Warcraft Patch 5.2

While war between the Horde and the Alliance raged across Pandaria, the scattered mogu plotted a return to their terrible former glory. They rekindled their historical alliance with the Zandalari trolls, who managed to resurrect the tyrannical mogu emperor, Lei Shen the Thunder King, in the hopes of restoring mogu dominion over the continent. The valiant Shado-pan rushed to suppress their enemies, creating a task force, the Shado-pan Assault, originally composed of pandaren warriors and later supported by heroes of the Horde and Alliance. These fearless champions strove to defeat the Thunder King, though they also simultaneously served their factions' interests on Pandaria. Jaina Proudmoore led the Kirin Tor Offensive on a quest to uncover the source of all mogu power (and keep it from the Horde), and Lor'themar Theron took the Sunreaver Onslaught in search of mighty mogu weaponry to aid a daring plan…an insurrection against Warchief Garrosh Hellscream.

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Escalation

Released in May 2013 | World of Warcraft Patch 5.3

Garrosh Hellscream's quest for power in Pandaria leads him to excavate part of the sacred Vale of Eternal Blossoms in search of a sinister artifact, a decision that puts the Horde at odds with the Shado-pan and other influential pandaren. Meanwhile, in the Horde capital of Orgrimmar, Chieftain Vol'jin and the Darkspear trolls are declared traitors and hunted by the Kor'kron, Hellscream's personal guard. Vol'jin's people retreat to Durotar and the Barrens to gather supplies and reinforcements for their counter-strike, relying on the support of their former warchief, Thrall, and a particularly tenuous pact with the Alliance, whose interest in ending Garrosh's rule may not bode entirely well for the Horde...

Siege of Orgrimmar

Released in September 2013 | World of Warcraft Patch 5.4

Orgrimmar, heart of orcish civilization on Azeroth, was set ablaze by revolution. When Warchief Garrosh Hellscream revived the heart of the Old God Y'shaarj to empower his army, he desecrated Pandaria's sacred Vale of Eternal Blossoms. This affront, alongside Garrosh's increasingly dangerous conquests, led Horde rebels and Alliance stalwarts to assail the great walls of Orgrimmar, hoping to dethrone the tyrant before he ravaged an entire world. Alongside Thrall, champions of the Horde and Alliance fought their way to the Warchief's lair beneath the city, where the battle grew so desperate that Garrosh absorbed the energies of the Old God to halt his downfall. It was not enough. At the behest of King Varian Wrynn, a defeated Garrosh was brought to trial before the August Celestials of Pandaria – but the scars of his rule will bleed for some time.

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Warlords of Draenor

Released in November 2014 | PC / Mac Expansion Set

Garrosh Hellscream escaped justice with the assistance of the bronze dragon Kairozdormu, eventually finding himself in an alternate Draenor) in the time before the original Horde had come to Azeroth. Hungry for vengeance, Garrosh provided his father, Grommash Hellscream), with the technology to assemble his ideal army—the conquering force called the Iron Horde. Grommash was quick to unite Draenor's orcish clans under his banner, and the clan leaders became the Iron Horde's warlords. Among them were the bloodthirsty Kargath Bladefist), the cunning Blackhand), the elder shaman Ner'zhul), and the fearless Kilrogg Deadeye). The Iron Horde took command of several vital locations on Draenor, subjugated the ogre city of Highmaul, and built massive fortifications like Blackrock Foundry to outfit the warlords' armies. Once the Iron Horde had Draenor in its grasp, the orcs invaded Azeroth through the Dark Portal, razed Nethergarde Keep, and seized control of Dreadmaul Hold. In retaliation, Khadgar assembled the champions of the Alliance and the Horde, leading them through the portal to stop the Iron Horde on Draenor once and for all. Garrosh ultimately met his end at Thrall's hands, and after an exhausting campaign, the heroes of Azeroth were able to defeat most of the Iron Horde's warlords. Khadgar's offensive dealt a crushing blow to the Iron Horde. Grommash's failure to give his warriors the victory he had promised bred dissent within the ranks, affording the warlock Gul'dan) the opportunity to usurp the Iron Horde and summon the demonic Burning Legion to Draenor...

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Fury of Hellfire

Released in June 2015 | World of Warcraft Patch 6.2

The warlock Gul'dan persuaded the Iron Horde's remaining leaders— who were enduring crushing defeats against the champions of Azeroth—to serve the Burning Legion. Their servitude, they believed, would give them one last chance to turn the tide of battle. Only Grommash Hellscream proved difficult to break, and so Gul'dan imprisoned him, hoping to make an example out of the former warchief. Gul'dan took control of Hellfire Citadel), intending to use it as a staging area for the Legion to invade Draenor. He then proceeded to summon the demon lord Archimonde. Meanwhile, the heroes of Azeroth assaulted the citadel's gates, invading from both land and sea. Aided by Khadgar, Yrel, Durotan) and a freed Grommash, Azeroth's champions battled their way through the horrors unleashed within Hellfire Citadel. After a harrowing struggle that nearly destroyed Draenor, the heroes were able to cast down Archimonde. Yet, even as he fell, the demon hurled the treacherous Gul'dan through a portal. His pact with the Legion was far from being fulfilled.

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Legion

Released in August 2016 | PC / Mac Expansion Set

Following the battle for Draenor, the deceitful Gul'dan found himself on Azeroth. Gul'dan, tormented by whispers of Kil'jaeden the Deceiver, opened the Tomb of Sargeras and with it a gateway for the Burning Legion to invade Azeroth. The warlock bent the denizens of the Broken Isles to his will, including the ancient nightborne city of Suramar and their leader, Grand Magistrix Elisande. The Alliance and the Horde assaulted the Broken Shore, hoping to preemptively stop Gul'dan and the Legion's forces. Their efforts ultimately failed, costing High King Varian Wrynn and Warchief Vol'jin their lives. A desperate effort by Archmage Khadgar to unite the shattered factions ultimately resulted in the recovery of the Pillars of Creation, the only instruments capable of sealing the Tomb once more. As the dwellers of the Broken Isles are rescued from the Legion's grasp, the forces of the Alliance and the Horde close in on The Nighthold—Gul'dan's base of operations, poised to end the warlock's menace once and for all…

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Return to Karazhan

Released in October 2016 | World of Warcraft Patch 7.1

As conflict raged across the Broken Isles, the Burning Legion focused its efforts on Karazhan, Medivh's ancient seat of power, hoping to find anything they could use to keep the tide of battle moving in their favor. Khadgar and a small band of heroes were successful in stopping this menace, which gave the forces still fighting on the Isles the momentum they needed to strike. Heroes, aided by First Arcanist Thalyssra, Tyrande, and Lady Liadrin, led an insurrection against Grand Magistrix Elisande, regent of the ancient city of Suramar. With the city liberated, the heroes then struck at The Nighthold—ending Gul'dan's reign of terror at last. Azeroth's champions now possess the Eye of Aman'Thul—and the power they need to close the Tomb of Sargeras forever.

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The Tomb of Sargeras

Released in March 2017 | World of Warcraft Patch 7.2

Though Gul'dan was defeated at the Nighthold, and the heroes of the Alliance and the Horde recruited new allies to their cause—including Illidan Stormrage—the Legion's menace was far from over. Kil'jaeden the Deceiver, one of Sargeras' most trusted lieutenants, bolstered the Legion's defenses at the Broken Shore, hoping to use the Tomb of Sargeras and the power within it to end all life on Azeroth. The Armies of Legionfall , a special force of Azeroth's greatest heroes, fought their way into the Tomb--and found that the Deceiver had nearly accomplished his goal. Kil'jaeden transported the heroes to Argus, the fel-wrought Legion homeworld, intent on exterminating them all, but the Eredar Lord met his end at the hands of Khadgar, Velen, Illidan and Azeroth's champions. To save those on Argus and to seize an opportunity to fight the Legion on his terms, Illidan did the unthinkable—he used a device known as the Sargerite Keystone to open a rift that brought the worlds of Argus and Azeroth together. The Alliance and the Horde are now at a crossroads. They must strike at Argus with all of their might, or risk destruction by the persistent threat of the Legion.

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Shadows of Argus

Released in August 2017 | World of Warcraft Patch 7.3

Led by Prophet Velen, the champions of Azeroth embarked on a journey to the shattered world of Argus, home of the demonic Burning Legion, to put an end to their crusade against life. There, they joined forces with the Army of the Light—a host of Lightforged warriors who spent millenia fighting the Legion across the stars, and whose ranks included the legendary paladin Turalyon and ranger-captain Alleria Windrunner. Together with the champions of Azeroth, the Army of the Light mustered their scattered forces and embarked on a desperate quest to storm the Legion's seat of power: Antorus, the Burning Throne. There, the heroes discovered that the fallen titan Sargeras had corrupted not only the soul) of the world of Argus, but the titan Pantheon as well. After a tremendous struggle, the heroes of Azeroth defeated the soul of Argus and freed the titans, who imprisoned Sargeras for his transgressions—and appointed Illidan Stormrage as his jailor. As a last act of defiance, the Dark Titan plunged his sword into Azeroth, inflicting a deep wound in the planet that would leave her fate uncertain...

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Battle for Azeroth

Released in August 2018 | World of Warcraft Expansion

The wounds inflicted by Sargeras the Dark Titan on Azeroth brought forth a volatile substance known as Azerite—the blood of Azeroth herself. Tensions escalated between the Alliance and the Horde as both factions came to realize the true power of Azerite, igniting a full-scale war leading to the fall of Teldrassil and the Undercity.

Weakened and in need of new allies, the Alliance and the Horde called upon their greatest heroes to bolster their ranks. Jaina Proudmoore traveled to her home kingdom of Kul Tiras, hoping to bring them once more into the Alliance. She found squabbling nobles and a resentful people, united only in their contempt for Jaina's past actions. Meanwhile, the Horde rescued the Zandalari princess Talanji from the Stormwind Stockade. Talanji worked to convince the Zandalari trolls to aid the Horde, though her father—King Rastakhan—initially refused to listen. Both factions' diplomatic efforts were successful in building trust, however, and their war campaigns alongside new allies led to new footholds being established in Zandalar and Kul Tiras.

United in arms with new allies, the Alliance and the Horde stand once more upon the shores of war, as the tides of vengeance loom on the horizon...

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Tides of Vengeance

Released in December 2018 | World of Warcraft Content Update

Lord Admiral Jaina Proudmoore led Alliance forces on a daring gambit to besiege the golden pyramid of Dazar'alor). They disabled most of the Zandalari fleet with clandestine explosives and distracted the Horde's armies in the swamplands of Nazmir. By the time the Horde's champions discovered the deception, the Alliance had already reached the steps of Dazar'alor. The ruler of Zandalar, King Rastakhan, fought to the death rather than surrender his ancient kingdom. Though their attack dealt a crippling blow to the Zandalari, the Alliance was forced to retreat as the Horde took back the city and mortally wounded High Tinker Mekkatorque.

Determined to regain the upper hand in the war, Warchief Sylvanas Windrunner plotted to undermine the Alliance from within. She revealed a plan to twist the mind of Derek Proudmoore—Jaina's long dead brother, newly raised into undeath—and unleash him as a weapon against his family. Baine Bloodhoof refused to permit Sylvanas's warped scheme to unfold, so he chose to free Derek and return him to Jaina. When his defiance was discovered, the tauren chieftain was imprisoned as a traitor.

Meanwhile, naga invaders assaulted the coastlines of Kul Tiras and Zandalar in increasing numbers. Repelling those attacks led Azeroth's champions to rediscover a lost artifact: Xal'atath, Blade of the Black Empire. The dagger's maddening whispers drew a band of heroes into the Crucible of Storms, where dark forces gathered to awaken the long-imprisoned Old God, N'Zoth. While the threat appeared to be contained, N'Zoth's numberless servants will not rest until their master rises once again...

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Rise of Azshara

Released in June 2019 | World of Warcraft Content Update

In the aftermath of the Battle of Dazar'alor, Warchief Sylvanas Windrunner ordered Nathanos Blightcaller to set sail with the remnants of the Horde fleet. Using Xal'atath, Blade of the Black Empire as a compass, the Horde hoped to turn the war in their favor. The Alliance fleet engaged in pursuit, and both groups were ambushed by the naga as the sea opened beneath them. Trapped in Nazjatar, the ancient home of the naga, both factions were met by an ancient enemy: Queen Azshara, ruler of the naga and servant of the Old God N'Zoth.

Meanwhile, Sylvanas Windrunner planned to execute Baine Bloodhoof for freeing Jaina Proudmoore's risen brother Derek. Unbeknownst to her, Alliance and Horde forces were already on route to rescue the tauren chieftain. Upon meeting on the battlefield, the outfits led by Thrall and Jaina realized that only by working together they could hope to destabilize Sylvanas's command over the Horde, and decided to join forces.

As Queen Azshara continued to dare those stranded in Nazjatar to face her, the champions learned from Magni Bronzebeard that a titan console was keeping N'Zoth prisoner within the Eternal Palace. As they fought their way through the Palace, the heroes discovered too late that it was a trap—though Queen Azshara was defeated, she successfully tricked the heroes into activating the console, releasing N'Zoth from his imprisonment. The Old God retrieved Queen Azshara and disappeared into the shadows, ready to once more unleash his terrifying might upon Azeroth. Left with no choice but to join forces completely against this new threat, the Alliance and the Horde headed into battle... but first, Sylvanas had to be stopped.

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Visions of N'Zoth

Released in January 2020 | World of Warcraft Content Update

Freed at long last from his titan-wrought prison, the Old God N'Zoth returned to his seat of power—Ny'alotha, the Waking City. There he gathered his forces and prepared to unleash a new age of madness upon the mortal world.

Elsewhere in Azeroth, a different battle raged on. Varok Saurfang, after rescuing Baine Bloodhoof, recruited assistance from Thrall, Anduin—who mustered the Alliance—and Horde dissidents. Saurfang's was a battle for honor, for the very soul of the Horde. The combined army traveled to the gates of Orgrimmar where Saurfang challenged Sylvanas Windrunner to Mak'gora, a duel for the title of Warchief. Empowered by a mysterious force, Sylvanas struck a lethal blow to the old soldier after proclaiming that "the Horde is nothing". She discarded the mantle of Warchief and left Orgrimmar, losing support from all but a few clandestine loyalists.

With the armies of both the Horde and Alliance depleted from the long war, N'Zoth sensed the perfect time to strike. As his shadowy servants assaulted the Forge of Origination in Uldum and the Engine of Nalak'sha in Pandaria, the heroes of Azeroth were aided by the return of Wrathion. The black dragon provided the means to resist the Old God's seductive promises of power and his nightmarish visions of a horrific future. The heroes of Azeroth stormed Ny'alotha and fought through the twisted armies of the Black Empire. In the end, they channeled the full power of the Forge of Origination through the Heart of Azeroth, defeating N'Zoth and purging his corruption from the world.

The leaders of the Horde and Alliance signed a treaty to bring the Fourth War to an end. The Battle for Azeroth was over, but the whereabouts of Sylvanas were still unknown....

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Shadowlands

Released in November 2020 | World of Warcraft Expansion

Leaving Orgrimmar and the Horde behind, Sylvanas Windrunner journeyed to Icecrown Citadel. There she defeated the Lich King, Bolvar Fordragon, and claimed possession of the Helm of Domination. With a single act of destruction, Sylvanas ripped open the way to the Shadowlands—a realm of infinite afterlives never before seen by the living.

In a further act of treachery, the Banshee Queen sent her agents to kidnap Anduin, Baine, Jaina, and Thrall. The heroes of Azeroth pursued Sylvanas into the Shadowlands only to find themselves trapped in the Maw, a prison for the vilest, most irredeemable souls in existence ruled by Sylvanas's ally, the Jailer. Escaping was no easy feat, but the heroes made their way to Oribos, the Eternal City—the arrival point for all souls who enter the Shadowlands. There they discovered that the impassive Arbiter, responsible for judging souls and sending them to their final destination, had gone dormant, unable to discharge her duties. Furthermore, the four Shadowlands covenants were in disarray, deprived of souls and starving for a crucial resource vital to their existence: anima.

The heroes of Azeroth fought to rebuild the strength of the covenants as they attempted to thwart Sylvanas's plan and rescue their allies from the Jailer's stronghold: Torghast, Tower of the Damned. A traitor was revealed among the covenants—Denathrius, the Sire of Revendreth, home of the venthyr covenant. Denathrius had been hoarding anima to empower his true ally, the Jailer. Though the Sire was defeated atop his seat of power, Castle Nathria, Sylvanas and the Jailer had already set their plan in motion: to dominate Anduin Wrynn and use him as a weapon to further their nefarious plans.

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Chains of Domination

Released in June 2021 | World of Warcraft Content Update

Though the Sire was defeated atop his seat of power, Castle Nathria, Sylvanas and the Jailer had already set their plan in motion: to dominate Anduin Wrynn and use him as a weapon to further their nefarious plans. The heroes had returned to the Maw with the restored strength of the Kyrian, Necrolords, Night Fae, and Venthyr, and together struck back at the Jailer.

As Azeroth's champions answered the call, the Shadowlands became more than a distant realm of the dead. The Jailer abandoned the shadows and made his move. Sylvanas Windrunner led the assault, and beside her was Anduin Wrynn, stripped of his own will and shaped into a weapon through Domination.

The first strike fell upon Ardenweald. As the Knights of the Ebon Blade rallied to defend Oribos from Mawsworn invaders, the covenants answered the Winter Queen's call to defend against Sylvanas Windrunner's assault. Though the defenders held fast against the darkness, Anduin, under the influence of Domination, slipped through their grasp and claimed the Winter Queen's sigil, leaving the covenants shaken and the Jailer one step closer to his terrible endgame. Faced with a threat to the foundation of the Shadowlands, defense alone was not enough, and the covenants and Azeroth's champions set aside any differences to act as one. United beneath a common banner, the Kyrian, Necrolords, Night Fae, and Venthyr prepared to carry the fight into the Maw.

At its center lay Korthia, the City of Secrets—a long-lost realm dragged into the Maw from the hidden reaches of the In-Between. There, defenders of Azeroth encountered the Keepers of Korthia and unlocked an ancient waystone), opening the way for the covenant armies to march where few souls dared to tread.

Amid constant resistance, allies secured a tenuous foothold and began uncovering long-buried knowledge.

The war spread deeper. In Desmotaeron, Helya and the Nine lent their strength to the Jailer's cause. Covenant forces pushed forward regardless, breaking strongholds and striking at the systems that sustained his power. When the Eye of the Jailer fell, his reach weakened—and resistance within the Maw proved possible.

One of the most significant revelations came through restored memory. The Runecarver was revealed as the Primus of Maldraxxus, and with his identity returned, so too came a clearer understanding of the threat ahead. The respite was brief. The Jailer intervened, claiming the Primus's sigil through Anduin before it could be secured.

Across the Shadowlands, progress and loss unfolded together. In Revendreth, the dreadlords' treachery was laid bare as Sire Denathrius escaped justice. Ardenweald endured and began to bloom anew, while the houses of Maldraxxus stood united against the forces that sought to divide them. Through Elune's grace, Tyrande was spared the fate of the Night Warrior, and in Bastion, the Kyrian began to reshape their purpose and forge a new path. Each shift strengthened the covenants, even as the Jailer remained one step ahead.

The Jailer confronted the Arbiter and reclaimed what was taken from him. The truth reshaped everything: the Arbiter was a fragment of his essence, and its return restored Zovaal to the height of his power.

By the end, few realms remained unchanged. Alliances had hardened, hidden truths had come to light, and hard-won victories had begun to reshape the Shadowlands. Despite these victories, it was not enough. With the Arbiter's sigil in hand, the Jailer opened the path to Zereth Mortis.

Anduin remained bound to him, carried forward as both weapon and tool, but the Jailer's betrayal had shattered the last of Sylvanas Windrunner's illusions.

In that moment, the cost of obedience became impossible to ignore. Sylvanas saw the chains she helped forge, while Anduin remained trapped within them, carrying the burden of every act done through his hand. Confronted by the truth of her actions, Sylvanas turned against her former master and helped lead the fight to save the Shadowlands. As a consequence of her actions, the Jailer restored the fragment of her soul lost to Frostmourne, and she was made whole again.

Still, Anduin Wrynn endured. Beneath Domination and despite his lack of free will, his soul remained his own, even as he was made a puppet of the Jailer's will.

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Eternity's End

Released in February 2022 | World of Warcraft Content Update

The Jailer's design reached its final stage as the balance of the Shadowlands began to break, and with the return of his missing essence through the Arbiter, he was powerful enough to open the way to Zereth Mortis.

Within Zereth Mortis lay the Sepulcher of the First Ones, where the pattern of Death itself was shaped. Zovaal sought control of this place. If he succeeded, Azeroth's Worldsoul) would become the final key, allowing him to remake reality.

Opposition gathered. The Primus offered direction as the covenants and Azeroth's defenders pressed forward together, carrying the fragile hope that Anduin could still be saved. Where they once fought divided, they now moved with shared purpose.

But Zereth Mortis did not yield easily. Its defenses awakened, and every step forward had to be earned.

Though the conflict spanned realms, the focus remained clear: the Jailer had breached the Sepulcher, the mysterious heart of the Shadowlands. Should he control its primordial power, he would reshape the cosmos with Death at the fore. As Zovaal prepared to dominate reality, champions of Azeroth charged forth to stop him.

The heroes arrived at the Heart of Eternity as the Jailer moved to claim the Machine of Origination and remake reality itself. Though they fought with all their might, they could not prevent his scheme from unfolding.

Across the Great Dark Beyond, ancient engines stirred. Azeroth's Worldsoul was drained to fuel the Jailer's grand design, bringing existence to the brink of annihilation. Yet in the final hour, Azeroth's champions stood united and struck down the fallen Eternal One.

As death claimed him, the Jailer spoke of a greater enemy still to come, a force he believed threatened all creation. With that warning, his long crusade ended, and his essence faded into silence.

The Machine of Origination fell dormant, and Azeroth was saved. The Shadowlands began to heal, and the rift above Icecrown finally closed.

Sylvanas faced her judgment in Oribos, led by Arbiter) Pelagos, who noted that true justice required compassion, and that Sylvanas' deeds bore the mark of the Jailer's influence. However, Sylvanas denied Jailer control, accepting responsibility for her own actions. Pelagos asked her to choose to whom she would answer. After requesting Tyrande Whisperwind, Sylvanas submitted to her judgment, expecting execution and death as a merciful end, but instead received mercy. Sylvanas was sentenced to penance and chose a self imposed exile to the Maw, a final act of atonement for the burning of Teldrassil and its people.

The Jailer's final words lingered. Beyond the veil of death, something stirred, and unseen forces began to move once more.

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Dragonflight

Released in November 2022 | World of Warcraft Expansion

When the Dragon Isles awakened after ages of silence, they did not return unchanged. Ancient wards failed, long-buried powers stirred, and old wounds rose with them. At the heart of it all stood the Dragon Queen Alexstrasza, striving to guide the dragonflights through upheaval and renewal. That hope was tested when Raszageth the Storm-Eater descended upon the isles in fury, unleashing elemental devastation and calling dragonkind to answer for the past that shaped them. Her war was not only one of destruction. It was an attempt to free other Primal Incarnates held in stasis. Raszageth's overconfidence would ultimately be her death, but not before she succeeded in freeing Vyranoth, Fyrakk, and Iridikron.

For Wrathion and Sabellian, the return to the isles brought a different reckoning. Both sought to restore the black dragonflight, but each carried a different vision of what should come next. Their struggle unfolded as the dracthyr awakened on the Forbidden Reach, soldiers shaped by Neltharion, put into a magical stasis, and bound to a past they never chose. Emberthal sought a life not defined by him, while Sarkareth turned toward what came before, convinced their creator's power could still offer purpose. Ebyssian saw what the others had yet to accept: the black dragonflight could not be restored by clinging to what corruption had already claimed.

But the Dragon Isles were not yet done with war. Iridikron moved through the struggle with grim purpose, seeking ancient power while Chromie fought to preserve the timeways and protect Nozdormu from a fate long feared. Though one road to ruin was delayed, Iridikron escaped with the Dark Heart, carrying the promise of threats still to come. At the same time, Fyrakk turned toward the Emerald Dream, intent on claiming Amirdrassil and the power it held. Vyranoth refused to stand beside that destruction, turning away from the cause she once shared with her brothers and opening the way for a new alliance.

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Embers of Neltharion

Released in May 2023 | World of Warcraft Content Update

Raszageth's fall did not bring peace to the Dragon Isles, and Iridikron, Vyranoth, and Fyrakk returned to the Forbidden Reach with new purpose.

The pursuit led beneath the Dragon Isles into Zaralek Cavern, where Fyrakk descended into shadowflame and emerged changed by it. Ebyssian, Wrathion, and Sabellian confronted him too late, and his new power left ruin in its wake, from Loamm to the wider reaches of the isles. Fyrakk was only part of the danger gathering there. Sarkareth initiated containment protocol to prevent Emberthal and the adventurers from escaping.

Within Aberrus, the truth of Neltharion's legacy became impossible to deny. Wrathion, Sabellian, and Azeroth's heroes descended into halls filled with failed experiments, guided by an echo of the leader who had shaped and failed them. What they found was not greatness, but corruption, cruelty, and the full cost of his ambition.

Sarkareth reached the sanctum first with Emberthal in close pursuit. Though she pleaded with him to turn away, he refused, determined to claim Neltharion's legacy as his own. Emberthal, exhausted by the prospect of fighting her own kin, let him go. Meanwhile Ebyssian stayed behind, hoping that Wrathion and Sabellian would understand that Neltharion's legacy was death and nothing more—a truth that Aberrus made impossible to ignore.

Deeper within Aberrus, Sarkareth sought a way to claim control of the dracthyr using the Oathbinder and the secrets hidden within Neltharion's laboratory, but Emberthal destroyed the artifact rather than allow her people to be enslaved again. Where Emberthal chose freedom, Sarkareth chose power. That choice carried him deeper into Aberrus, where, confronted by the truth of Neltharion's ambition, Sarkareth fell, another victim of Neltharion's legacy built on ruin.

After Sarkareth's fall, the question facing dragonkind shifted from who would claim power to who could bear it wisely. Wrathion and Sabellian at last stepped aside for Ebyssian. In him, the black dragonflight found the kind of leader it had long lacked: steady, thoughtful, and free of the need to prove himself.

Other wounds began to mend. Koranos sought Tyr's lost memories and uncovered the burden the titan keeper long carried: the fear that the Aspects would one day fall to corruption. Kalecgos, meanwhile, called the scattered blue dragonflight home. With Senegos beside him, he gathered the last remnants of his people, laid old spirits to rest, and restored the flight at last. Senegos passed in peace, knowing his kin had found one another again. Across the isles, restoration took root, even as darker plans continued to unfold beyond sight.

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Fractures in Time

Released in July 2023 | World of Warcraft Content Update

Iridikron joined forces with Chrono-Lord Deios and the infinite dragonflight, tearing open the Temporal Conflux and sending fractures across the timeways. While Soridormi worked to contain the spreading rifts, Chromie pursued the heart of the threat into the distant past, to the moment after Galakrond's death. There, she fought not only to stop Iridikron, but to save Nozdormu from the fate that had always haunted him. She succeeded in preventing Deios from turning him into Murozond, but victory came at a cost. Iridikron used the Dark Heart to consume Galakrond's essence before vanishing into the Void to deliver it to the Harbinger.

When Chromie, Nozdormu, and the champions of Azeroth returned to the present, the danger had sharpened. Nozdormu saw Amirdrassil burning in a vision of what was to come, and Alexstrasza knew the dragonflights could not turn away from the threat gathering around the Emerald Dream. Even then, she sought another path for Vyranoth, meeting with her in secret and urging her to abandon Iridikron and Fyrakk before more was lost. But Vyranoth had not forgotten what was done to dragonkind in the name of Order, and she would not be moved.

The peace won in Aberrus was real, but fragile. What came next would decide not only the fate of the dragonflights, but whether Azeroth's future was shaped by renewal or fire.

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Guardians of the Dream

Released in November 2023 | World of Warcraft Content Update

The road now led to Amirdrassil, where the fate of the Dragon Isles hung in the balance. Fyrakk's hunger turned at last toward the Emerald Dream, and as he brought fire and shadow against the World Tree, Alexstrasza, Merithra, Tyrande, Azeroth's champions, and their allies rose to meet him.

Seeking a path into that sacred realm, he abducted Gerithus and pressed deeper into the shadowflame consuming him. Even Vyranoth, who had long stood beside her brothers, could no longer ignore what he was becoming. When she warned Alexstrasza that Fyrakk did not mean to destroy Amirdrassil, but to bend it to his own will, the choice before her became clear. In Valdrakken, Alexstrasza asked her to stand with the dragonflights against him. Vyranoth agreed.

At the same time, Chromie and Nozdormu faced another lingering wound. By bringing Eternus into the truth of her sister's death, they forged an uneasy understanding between bronze and infinite.

Fyrakk did not wait. With Fyr'alath the Dreamrender in hand, he tore open a path into the Emerald Dream. Merithra rallied the green dragonflight, and Tyrande led the kaldorei into the Dream to defend Amirdrassil. Vyranoth sought the allies needed to stop her brother. With Wrathion at her side, she gathered the Netherwing and the Thorignir, drawing long-isolated dragonflights into the fight.

Merithra held against Fyrakk's assault as Amirdrassil neared full bloom, while Alexstrasza called champions and allies from across Azeroth into the Dream. Fyrakk's armies broke against them, but he pressed on with shadowflame at his command. In the end, it was not enough. The Dragon Aspects and Vyranoth brought him down before he could corrupt the World Tree, and as he fell, Amirdrassil bloomed into Azeroth. In that moment, the Aspects were renewed, and Vyranoth took her place among them.

With Fyrakk's fall, the work begun in secret reached its end. Beneath Amirdrassil's boughs, the dragonflights and Azeroth's champions gathered in celebration, but the peace carried a warning. Strange visions stirred, and Khadgar's concerns about the Harbinger deepened.

With the Primalists broken, the Dragon Isles turned toward renewal. The Aspects gathered in Valdrakken to honor their allies and consider what came next. Kalecgos chose to give his full attention to the blue dragonflight, while Wrathion spoke openly of hunting Iridikron beyond the isles. Vyranoth, now the Aspect of Storms, revealed that Iridikron had already reached out to her, speaking of his war against the titans and the ally he called the Harbinger. New beginnings took root elsewhere. The night elves settled beneath Amirdrassil in Bel'ameth, and in Gilneas, Genn Greymane, with the help of the Forsaken, reclaimed his homeland and placed its future in his daughter Tess's hands.

Even in victory, another threat emerged. As reports of the Radiant Song spread across Azeroth, Khadgar turned to Alleria Windrunner and asked her to uncover the truth behind the Harbinger and the Dark Heart. In Telogrus Rift, she found signs of Void activity already spreading and heard the whispers of the enemy hunting her in turn. With the Locus-Walker's guidance, the truth became clear: the Harbinger was Xal'atath, and the song now stirring across the world was Azeroth)'s own warning.

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The War Within

Released in August 2024 | World of Warcraft Expansion

A haunting call, the Radiant Song, echoed across Azeroth. From the world's slumbering heart, something ancient stirred beneath the surface. Thrall, Jaina Proudmoore, and Anduin Wrynn sought answers from Magni Bronzebeard.

When Magni was grievously injured attempting to commune with the Worldsoul) once more, Azeroth's heroes regrouped in Dalaran with Khadgar and Alleria Windrunner. There, Magni delivered a dire warning: darkness rose beneath Azeroth in Khaz Algar. In response, the Kirin Tor moved Dalaran above the uncharted land, setting the stage for a desperate descent into the depths that ended in catastrophe.

Alleria discovered that the Void entity Xal'atath had already infiltrated Dalaran, leading a nerubian assault as she attacked the city. Though many escaped, Khadgar was seemingly lost as Xal'atath siphoned Dalaran's arcane power into the Dark Heart before destroying the city outright.

The survivors arrived on the Isle of Dorn, where they found uneasy allies in the earthen—ancient, stony, titan-forged defenders bound by titan edicts. Led by Stormward Baelgrim, they held against relentless nerubian assaults as the vital Coreway to the depths was shattered. In the hour of greatest need, Baelgrim gave his life to save Dornogal. His sacrifice inspired the earthen to restore the Council of Dornogal and begin forging a future of their own.

At the broken remains of Dalaran, Aethas Sunreaver, Jaina Proudmoore, Kalecgos, and Khadgar gathered not simply to mourn what was lost, but to confront what the Kirin Tor had become. In the shadow of failure, they chose renewal over restoration—a future no longer bound to the pride, blindness, and compromises that had led them there.

Far below, unrest gripped the Ringing Deeps. The earthen's survival depended on the Awakening Machine, now corrupted through Xal'atath's influence. With help from Magni, Moira, and Dagran, Speaker Brinthe uncovered a grim truth: those restored by the machine became Void-corrupted skardyn. Calling upon Azeroth herself, Magni helped cleanse the machine, shattering his diamond form and restoring him to flesh and bone.

In Hallowfall, Anduin encountered the Arathi, descendants of an ancient empire stranded far beneath the surface. Beneath the radiant crystal Beledar, he joined Faerin Lothar to defend their people against cultists, kobyss, nerubians, and the encroaching darkness. As the fighting intensified, Anduin wrestled with his connection to the Light but refused to yield. When the nerubians struck again, he remained behind to secure the Arathi's escape and was captured.

To save him, Alleria ventured into the nerubian kingdom of Azj-Kahet, where the enemy began to fracture from within. Disillusioned leaders and hidden rebels turned against Queen Ansurek, whose pact with Xal'atath had twisted her realm. With Anduin reclaimed, a new resistance rose: the Severed Threads.

As war spread across Khaz Algar, the forces of Azeroth united with the earthen and Arathi to form the Algari Offensive. Freed from rigid titan doctrine, the earthen claimed the right to choose their own path, rebuild the Stormriders, and stand beside their allies in the conflict ahead.

The battle reached its peak in Hallowfall. There, with Azeroth's defenders holding the line, Alleria struck a decisive blow, fracturing the Dark Heart and forcing Xal'atath into retreat. Khadgar was recovered from within the relic, and Anduin rekindled his connection to the Light, offering a fragile but hard-won hope.

Deep in Azj-Kahet, the Severed Threads helped bring Queen Ansurek's reign to an end. Even as her kingdom began the long struggle to reclaim its future, the true threat slipped back into the shadows, watching and waiting, far from defeated.

Though Xal'atath retreated from the battlefield, the corruption she left behind continued to spread—drawing new opportunists, old enemies, and uneasy allies toward the Black Blood still seeping through Azeroth's depths.

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Undermine(d)

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Released in February 2025 | World of Warcraft Content Update

Xal'atath had been driven back, but the wound she carved into Azeroth still festered beneath the world. Black Blood seeped through stone and shadow, carrying corruption that had already twisted so much in its wake. Frustrated by the silence, Orweyna left the haranir and followed a vision whispered by Azeroth's Worldsoul into the Ringing Deeps, where she found Gazlowe and SI:7 operative Renzik “The Shiv” tracking a growing goblin operation at Opportunity Point. What appeared to be another suspicious venture soon revealed something far older and more dangerous: Jastor Gallywix—trade prince, master opportunist, and one of the few figures in Azeroth ruthless enough to turn Black Blood into profit.

Beyond Undermine's turmoil, the world shifted in quieter but no less fateful ways.

At Opportunity Point, the hunt opened into something far larger. Alongside Azeroth's champions, Monte Gazlowe, Renzik, and Orweyna uncovered a Venture Co. mining operation siphoning Black Blood from a blasted cavern. They brought the operation down and traced the scheme to Undermine. Beneath the neon glare and smoke-choked glamour of goblin ambition, they found a city stripped for parts by its own tyrant. Through the Darkfuse cartel, Gallywix had tightened his grip on the streets, broken rival powers, and turned fear into law. Yet where Gallywix ruled through appetite and coercion, Gazlowe began gathering something far more dangerous to him: trust.

The rebellion began not with banners, but with whispers in the Incontinental Hotel. Pamsy, ever concerned about the safety of her team and their families, introduced the group to Grimla Fizzlecrank, a Venture Co. insider willing to turn on the machine she helped feed, and the conspiracy widened. Revilgaz of the Blackwater Cartel and Marin Noggenfogger of the Steamwheedle Cartel were revealed to be caught in Gallywix's expanding Black Blood network, pressed into service as he reached for power beyond Undermine's streets. When Alleria Windrunner arrived, still pursuing Xal'atath through the ruin she left behind, the trail bent toward Zuldazar. There, kaja'mite was being used to transport Black Blood and aid in the restoration of the Dark Heart. Before Gallywix could complete his work, a band of void ethereals led by Phase-Thief Azir descended on the city, seized the Dark Heart, and carried it away in the name of K'aresh.

Then the struggle became deeply personal. Nikki the Fixer leveled a Black Blood rifle at Gazlowe, and Renzik stepped into the shot. His death cut through the heart of the resistance, turning sabotage into open uprising. District by district, Gazlowe, Azeroth's champions, and their allies severed Darkfuse supply lines, ignited rebellion, and rallied the people of Undermine to reclaim the city from beneath Gallywix's heel. The fight surged to the Gallagio, where Gallywix—abandoned by Xal'atath, betrayed by his crumbling empire, and cornered by the people he exploited—met his end. In the aftermath, Grimla took control of the Venture Co., the surviving cartels began rebuilding, and Gazlowe stood beside Mathias Shaw to honor Renzik's sacrifice. Undermine remained scarred, but for the first time in a long while, its future belonged to more than one goblin.

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Legacy of Arathor

Released in June 2025 | World of Warcraft Content Update

A reckoning spread across the Arathi Highlands. Faerin Lothar traveled to Stromgarde with Danath Trollbane and Geya'rah to find a kingdom unraveling under hunger, fear, and bitterness left too long untended.

The Red Dawn, strengthened by Defias agents, Scarlet Crusade zealots, and Syndicate operatives, worked to turn hardship into hatred and fracture the region from within. Danath was kidnapped. Stromgarde began to buckle. Yet Faerin refused to let the past dictate what came next. She exposed the conspiracy, confronted Lady Marran Trollbane, the now powerless leader of the Red Dawn, and chose restoration over vengeance.

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Ghosts of K'aresh

Released in August 2025 | World of Warcraft Content Update

Still hunting Xal'atath, Alleria Windrunner was summoned by the Locus-Walker to K'aresh, the shattered homeworld of the ethereals and the brokers. There, she learned the Shadowguard intended to use the Dark Heart to restore Dimensius the All-Devouring. In Tazavesh, Alleria joined the K'aresh Trust, a coalition fighting to save what remained of the broken world. When the Shadowguard attacked, the city held only because Xal'atath appeared and proposed an uneasy pact. She revealed that she once served Dimensius, then betrayed him, surviving K'aresh's fall alongside Locus-Walker and the secretive Ravel through the ancient Reshii Wraps. Though bitter over what her mentor had concealed, Alleria accepted the arrangement—for the moment, survival mattered more than vengeance.

To stop Dimensius from rising again, Alleria, the K'aresh Trust, and Azeroth's defenders pursued the scattered Reshii Ribbons across the broken world. Locus-Walker already bore one, and Ve'nari surrendered another after Alleria helped defend her eco-dome from the Shadowguard. Xal'atath then revealed that the Ravel unleashed the ribbons during K'aresh's destruction in a desperate attempt to stop Dimensius, deepening Alleria's anger and distrust. The hunt led to another ruined eco-dome, where a ribbon had fallen into the hands of the Wastelanders, ethereals who blamed the survivors for all that was lost. Before Soul-Scribe and her followers, Xal'atath revealed that an echo of K'aresh's Worldsoul) still remained and secured their support.

With three ribbons in hand and the Wastelanders at their side, the coalition moved on the final ribbon. Alleria returned with void elves beside her, and together they seized it from Phase-Thief Azir—only to learn he no longer carried the Dark Heart. Then Nexus-King Salhadaar appeared, remade by the Void and still obsessed with restoring Dimensius. He turned Soul-Scribe against them, though she fled when Alleria cut down her guards. Xal'atath united the gathered ribbons, and the path opened to Manaforge Omega, where Salhadaar waited with the Dark Heart.

At Manaforge Omega, the K'aresh Trust, the void elves, and Azeroth's champions stormed the manaforge in a desperate bid to stop Dimensius from rising again. There, they defeated Salhadaar and confronted Dimensius within the Dark Heart itself. Alleria, Xal'atath, and Locus-Walker struck down the void lord's weakened form and reclaimed a shard of K'aresh's Worldsoul, but the victory was short-lived. Xal'atath killed Locus-Walker, claimed the fully empowered Dark Heart, and escaped. Ve'nari warned that Azeroth would be next. Soul-Scribe gave her life to strengthen K'aresh's fragile Worldsoul and helped the broken world endure.

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The Warning

Released in December 2025 | World of Warcraft Content Update

The fallout on K'aresh soon reached beyond the shattered world. Troubled by visions of Silvermoon, Vereesa Windrunner and Arator sought answers as Xal'atath gathered the Devouring Host for war. Arator found Alleria on K'aresh and urged her to help defend Silvermoon, but her pursuit of the Harbinger did not waver. With Ve'nari's aid, he journeyed into the Maw and asked Sylvanas Windrunner to return to Azeroth. She refused, bound to the penance conferred upon her by Tyrande Whisperwind.

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Midnight

Released in March 2026 | World of Warcraft Expansion

Midnight fell over Azeroth as Xal'atath, the Harbinger, and the Devouring Host descended on the Sunwell—sacred fount of the blood elves and one of the world's last beacons of Light.

Azeroth's champions returned to Quel'Thalas, home of the blood elves, to hold the line beside Lor'themar Theron, Lady Liadrin, and the rest of the defenders of Silvermoon, alongside Turalyon and the Vanguard of the Light, while Arator led the innocent to safety as the Void closed in. A desperate ritual performed by Lady Liadrin, Arator, and Azeroth's heroes used the Vanguard's combined faith and power to summon the Light once more, forcing the Devouring Host to retreat and buying time for Quel'Thalas to survive the void incursion. The reprieve was fragile, and Quel'Thalas remained on the brink.

As Silvermoon regrouped, Lightbloom spread through Eversong Woods, twisting the land and driving its creatures into violence. Arator, Halduron Brightwing, and Orweyna joined forces to uncover its source, while Umbric returned from exile to unravel the Voidstorm's secrets. Their search exposed the Twilight's Blade, fanatics devoted to Xal'atath who sowed chaos within Tranquillien. Though the cult was driven back, old hatred between blood elves and the Amani trolls sparked anew as the Amani harvested Lightbloom for their own war against the Void.

In Zul'Aman, Lady Liadrin found an uneasy ally in Zul'jarra, Chieftain of the Amani. With her people fractured, her brother Zul'jan hungry for conquest, and the loa's favor long withdrawn, Zul'jarra undertook the trials of the hash'ey to unite her people. Side by side, she and Liadrin faced Mor'duun and the Twilight's Blade, proving old enemies could still stand together when the alternative was annihilation.

Beneath Azeroth's surface, Orweyna and her allies returned to Harandar, home to the enigmatic and reclusive haranir, where the roots of the World Trees converged. There, she found the haranir unprepared as Lightbloom threatened her homeland and the world above. With Halduron Brightwing at her side, she discovered Alndust could cure the afflicted rutaani and halt the Lightbloom's spread. When haranir Elder Ruia turned the corruption toward Eversong in vengeance for the Sunwell's role in awakening it, Orweyna and her allies raced to stop the disaster before it consumed Quel'Thalas.

Arator, meanwhile, was caught between two legacies: the Light of his father and the shadowed path of his mother. As tensions rose between Silvermoon's citizens and the zealous Vanguard, he journeyed with Alonsus Faol to recover relics that could sustain the Sunwell's ritual. In Arator, he saw grief, guilt, and devotion—and began to forge a path of his own.

When the Sunwell began to fail, Umbric opened a path into the Voidstorm, and Arator, Alleria, and Lothraxion entered the realm of the Devouring Host. They seized the Mantle of Predation, a relic capable of severing the Voidstorm's nexus-points, but the mission left scars. Consumed by righteous fury, High Commander Lothraxion, a Lightforged nathrezim of the Grand Army of the Light, turned against his allies and threatened Silvermoon. Alleria and Arator had to stop him, clearing the way for the final assault on Xal'atath's fortress.

Azeroth's champions ventured into the chaos of the Voidstorm, carrying the last hope of Silvermoon into Xal'atath's domain. At the Voidspire, the battle reached its breaking point. Alleria, Turalyon, and Arator confronted Xal'atath, but the Harbinger bent the battlefield to her will. She flooded Alleria with Void energy, tore the dark naaru L'ura free, and unleashed its power into the Sunwell. Light collapsed into shadow. The sacred fount became the Darkwell, and Alleria and Turalyon vanished into its depths as Arator was pulled to safety. The Isle of Quel'Danas fell beneath a tide of darkness.

Refusing to surrender hope, Arator called upon the elven people to reclaim what was lost. Blood elves, void elves, night elves, high elves, and nightborne answered Silvermoon's call, setting aside generations of bitterness to fight for Azeroth's future. Together, they stormed the Darkwell and drove back the Devouring Host. When Xal'atath moved to strike again, Sylvanas Windrunner emerged from the Shadowlands to stand beside her sister and nephew, forcing the Harbinger to retreat. In the aftermath, long-buried wounds began to heal: Umbric and the void elves were welcomed back to Silvermoon City, the Sunreavers and Silver Covenant forged the Silversun Compact, and each elven faction offered part of its heritage to cleanse the corrupted fount. From shadow and sacrifice, the Dawnwell was born—a symbol of unity, renewal, and resistance against the dark.

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Curse of Ula'tek

Released in August 2026 | World of Warcraft Content Update

A forbidden power stirred beneath the cursed Amani isle of Atal'Utek. Desperate for strength, Zul'jan joined forces with Malacrass to breach an ancient temple and claim Ula'tek's power. When the gates opened, serpent-worshipping cultists and monstrous horrors spilled across the Coiled Isle.

At Malacrass's command, the Children of Ula'tek fell upon the Amani, seizing their people for the ritual. Azeroth's heroes fought beside Zul'jarra, Orweyna, and Lady Liadrin as the Amani rallied to defend their home, but the first strike left too many of their people in enemy hands. To save them, the heroes carried the fight to the Coiled Isle and hunted down Malacrass and Zul'jan before the ritual could take hold.

On those shores, the heroes found a band of shipwrecked tortollans and forged a fragile alliance to wrest the island from Ula'tek's faithful. Zul'jarra still believed her brother could be saved, but her efforts proved fruitless. Torn between blood and ambition, Zul'jan cast her aside, and the Fang of Ula'tek struck deep.

Zul'jan did not yet understand what he had unleashed. He left his sister bound to a curse that drained her life with every passing moment. Orweyna and Azeroth's champions searched forgotten ruins for a way to save her and uncovered the truth: the Fang of Ula'tek had to be destroyed before its venom claimed her.

With that knowledge, the heroes confronted Zul'jan. Faced with the cost of his choices, he relinquished the dagger in a final attempt to save his sister. Malacrass would not release him so easily. He dragged Zul'jan into the depths of the temple, where Ula'tek's return was already taking shape. With the Fang shattered and Zul'jarra restored, the heroes prepared to end the ritual once and for all.

In the corrupted heart of the temple, the heroes of Azeroth faced Malacrass and the ancient horror he had served. Ula'tek was cast down, but Zul'jan had already been twisted into a monster against his will. In his final moments, his sister stayed beside him and offered comfort as his story came to an end.

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