Warcraft Universe

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The Warcraft Universe is the universe in which the Warcraft series of computer games, novels and announced movie are set. Known worlds of this fantasy universe include Azeroth (homeworld of most of the known races in the universe, due to this being where most of the content takes place), Draenor (now known as Outland, homeworld of the Orcs), Argus (homeworld of the Eredar), and Xoroth, one of worlds destroyed by the Burning Legion, homeworld of the Nathrezim. As the name implies, the Warcraft Universe largely revolves around conflict.


Contents

[edit] Geography

The Warcraft Universe includes many worlds, connected by a chaotic vortex called the Twisting Nether. Travel between these worlds is a rare event, but it can be achieved by so-called portals.

[edit] The World of Azeroth

Map of the planet Azeroth as it appears in the game World of Warcraft (Note: The map does not include the continent of Northrend at the north pole as it is not a reachable area within World of Warcraft)
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Map of the planet Azeroth as it appears in the game World of Warcraft (Note: The map does not include the continent of Northrend at the north pole as it is not a reachable area within World of Warcraft)
Map of Azeroth as it appears in Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness.
Enlarge
Map of Azeroth as it appears in Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness.

Azeroth is an Earth-like planet, inhabited by a diverse array of species. Most of the action of the Warcraft games takes place on this planet. Azeroth's land area consists of four large continents, Kalimdor, the Azeroth, Lordaeron and Northrend. These land masses are interspersed with a multitude of islands, most notably the Broken Isles, the Echo Isles, Azuremyst Isle, Bloodmyst Isle, and the largely unknown island which contains the briefly mentioned Goblin city of Undermine. There may also be more landmasses in the world of Azeroth that are as yet unexplored.

[edit] Capital cities

[edit] Nation-States of Humans

  • Alterac (destroyed, under Ogre control)
  • Gilneas (shut off from the rest of the world, situation unknown)
  • Stromgarde (mostly destroyed, under mixed Syndicate/Renegade Ogre/Stromgarde Cavalry control)
  • Dalaran (mostly destroyed, under restoration by few survivors)
  • Kul'Tiras (Administrated by Tandred Proudmoore, situation unknown)
  • Lordaeron (destroyed, now under mixed Forsaken/Scourge control)
  • Azeroth (destroyed by orcish horde, now rebuilt and more commonly referred to as "The Kingdom of Stormwind")
  • Theramore Isle (newest human nation, led by Jaina Proudmoore)

[edit] Major cities

  • Dalaran (Effectively destroyed in Warcraft 3, few survivors erected a magical barrier to prepare for restoration/rebuilding)
  • Stratholme (Currently under mixed Scourge/Scarlet Crusade control)
  • Andorhal (Destroyed in Warcraft 3, currently under Scourge Control)
  • Tyr's Hand (Fell out of Alliance hands, into the control of the Scarlet Crusade)
  • Caer Darrow (Effectively destroyed, base for the Scourge's Cult of the Damned)

[edit] Minor Cities

[edit] Major races

[edit] The World of Draenor

Map of Draenor as seen from Warcraft II: Beyond the Dark Portal.
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Map of Draenor as seen from Warcraft II: Beyond the Dark Portal.

Draenor (referred to as Outland after its partial destruction) is a harsh world that glares in a reddish hue. The waters seem foul, but this is misleading; the planet does contain biology. It is the homeland of the Orcs and other related races (Ogres, Draenor Giants, and so) that invaded Azeroth through the rift called the Dark Portal. It is also the place where some of the greatest heroes in the history of Azeroth journeyed to and disappeared, now presumed dead. The energies of this and subsequent portals opened by the Shaman Ner'Zhul were so intense that the world was ripped apart and consists now of only floating islands suspended within the Twisting Nether. The world was originally a dense green swampland, but the demonic corruption of the Orcs by the Burning Legion scarred the land so thoroughly that it was left as little more than a dusty wasteland. The dominant life forms of the world were once the Draenei, that imigrated from Argus. Gul'dan the Warlock describes these beings as "a weak people -- hardly worth the effort of our raiding sweep." After the destruction of Draenor, a few Draenei, known as the Broken Ones, remained alive on Outland but their numbers were further crippled by the Fel Orcs led by the Pit Lord Magtheridon who had completely conquered the remains of the planet. Magtherion held Outland using the Fel Orcs as well as demons that came from the remaining Dark Portals from his castle known as the Black Citidel. It wasn't until Illidan Stormrage and his band of Blood Elves and Naga arrived that the world was freed from Magtheridon's iron grip.

[edit] People of Draenor

Races native to the world of Draenor:

Immigrated races of Draenor:

Note: The Draenor giants are rarely mentioned or referenced. The only reference to them was concerning the temples of the damned which were used by the Orcs in the Second War. The temples are made from the bones of the petrified corpses of a race of giants that were native to Draenor. Nothing else is known about them. The only mention of Draenor Humans (or a human-like race) are in the novel The Last Guardian as the basis for the parentage of Garona the Half-Orc, who was born before the Dark Portal was first opened. Blizzard later said she was not a half-human/half-Orc, but half-Orc and half-Draenei instead (see Inconsistencies in Warcraft lore).

[edit] The World of Argus

Nearly twenty-five millennia, the Eredar race arose on the world of Argus. They were extremely intelligent and had a great affinity for magic in all its forms. Using these techniques, they developed a vast society.

Unfortunately the eredar's accomplishments caught the attention of Sargeras, the Destroyer of Worlds. He enticed Kil'jaeden and Archimonde, two of the Eredar's leaders and transformed many of the eredar into demons.

Only Velen and a few other eredar who had thus far refused to join Sargeras fled the planet with the help of the Naaru. Naming themselves the draenei, or "exiled ones" in the Eredun language, the renegades barely escaped from Argus, with the Burning Legion only moments behind. No draenei has seen their original homeworld since.

[edit] Races of Argus

Prominent animal species native to the planet Argus:

  • Eredar (native race of Argus, they have been corrupted into demons by Sargeras)
  • Draenei (referred to as "Draenor Humans" in 'The Last Guardian'; Draenei were originally thought to have evolved on the Orc's homeworld of Draenor (Now Outland), later it was realized that the eredar and the draenei were once one race. As the Eredar have been corrupted into demons, the Ancient Eredar must look more like the draenei)

Source

[edit] The Twisting Nether and the Beyond

A chaotic swirling mass, the Twisting Nether is the fabric of the universe. One can think of the Twisting Nether as the universe itself, although this is rather simplistic. It can be more accurately described as a higher plane of existence, where powerful beings exist that shape the events we see. It is not to be confused with space as we think of it for it is clear that space is a well understood concept by the races of Azeroth. The Dwarves, for instance, were originally made and bestowed with knowledge by the godlike Titans, who have large mechanical astrolabes which demonstrate the movements of planets, stars, and extrastellar bodies through space. The Elves, furthermore, have been shown to possess telescopes for observing objects in the night sky. This space between the stars and planets is frequently called "The Great Dark Beyond," or simply "The Beyond," and it is described by Gul'dan as a place where the spirits of the newly dead go. On the other hand, the Nether, known varyingly as the Void, is shown to be a hell-like place above (or below) space and time as mortals observe them, and is the realm of Demons, what Gul'dan describes as "the long dead." It is arguable as to whether all dead animals invariably go to the "Great Dark" and the Nether, as humans, who worship what they call "the Holy Light," have been known to perform resurrections in which a winged spirit of light revives the dead with rays of light. Furthermore, Orcs routinely commune with the spirits of their dead ancestors through wind and earth. It is perhaps possible, that in Gul'dan's life-span, before the Orcs broke free of the demonic possession, that Orcs simply were not "good enough" to go anywhere but the "Beyond."

[edit] Demons of the Burning Legion

Known demon races from the Twisting Nether:

[edit] Sources

The back-ground, plot, and setting, like most Blizzard games, is indebted to tabletop games such as Warhammer Fantasy by Games Workshop, and Dungeons & Dragons from Wizards of the Coast. The fantasy works of J. R. R. Tolkien also served as a foundation; many of the races are patterned after Tolkien's, and place names are often made to sound like Sindarin, the predominant Elvish language used in the Lord of the Rings. However, large portions of the setting are drawn from modern-day sources and references, ranging from Star Trek to the Cthulhu Mythos, to Thundercats to third-world proxy wars.

[edit] Media set in the Warcraft Universe

[edit] Computer games

[edit] Strategy Games

[edit] Other

[edit] Other media

[edit] Movie (announced)

  • Warcraft: The Movie

[edit] Tabletop games

[edit] Trading card games

[edit] Books

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ http://warcraftcardgame.com/2006/05/october-25-release-date.html

[edit] External links

Warcraft Universe
Games | Books | Races | Locations | Characters | Organizations | Items
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