Arthas is considered one of the tragic villains in the history of World of Warcraft. But was he perhaps not as evil as we all thought?
The story of Arthas Menethil, the former prince of Lordaeron and subsequent Lich King, has actually been told for over 10 years. With his death in the raid Icecrown Citadel, an era came to an end that had long defined the Warcraft universe. One of the most important and significant characters died. But perhaps Arthas never became the monster we all thought he was.
The video Afterlife: Bastion was previously analyzed in detail on MeinMMO, but one point was left out because it delves deeply into speculation. Arthas’ soul was never “lawfully” condemned to a residency in the Maw. Normally, all souls are brought before the Soul Judge and then their fate is decided. Only the darkest souls end up in the Maw and are punished with eternal damnation.
The video shows the Kyrian Devos and the soul of Uther visiting Arthas at the moment of his death. They seize the soul of the Lich King and make decisions about what will happen to his soul independently.
Uther and Devos have risen above this natural cycle and have independently thrown Arthas’ soul into the Maw. They do not possess the nearly omnipotent insight that the Soul Judge actually has. They cannot make decisions with full knowledge of the state of Arthas’ soul.
This act is also in stark contrast to the portrayal of Arthas in this scene. The former Lich King, in the grip of the Paladin, does not look like the dark monster he once was. His facial features are gentle, almost peaceful – as if he is simply the man he once was again. But there are also many more tangible arguments.
What supports Arthas’ good side?
There are numerous indications that Arthas was not just the cold villain he was always thought to be. Although his actions were dark, his soul may not have been.
This starts as early as Warcraft 3. After Arthas obtains the runeblade Frostmourne, his character changes and he becomes the “traitor” we knew. In the first mission of the Undead campaign, a Dreadlord reveals to him that Frostmourne consumes souls and that Arthas’ soul was the first to fall victim to the blade. Just that alone would mean that Arthas was no longer the actual decision-maker of all his actions.
Even later, there are still indications that Arthas preserved a core of his good nature.
- His good, childlike side can be encountered in Icecrown. The small boy Matthias Lehner (an anagram of Arthas Menethil) is a key quest giver there.
- Arthas kept a piece of jewelry from Jaina Proudmoore, his childhood love. Even as Lich King, he still carried the jewelry with him.
- Arthas controlled the Scourge and never unleashed it with full power on Azeroth. This is why a Lich King is always needed to keep the undead in check. That would not make sense if the Scourge existed solely for total destruction.
This is further reinforced by the moment of his death. As Arthas falls, Frostmourne shatters, and the Helm of Domination slips from his head, he is no longer the Lich King. In his last moments, he sees the soul of his father and asks, “Father, is it over?” Now, in retrospect, this sentence sounds much more like Arthas was simply not in control of his senses. It seems to clearly indicate that Frostmourne and the Helm of Domination were under the influence of the Jailer.
This also makes sense in light of the latest information. Frostmourne and the Helm of Domination both contain “the power of the Maw” and were forged there. Stories mention that there seems to be another presence slumbering within the Helm of Domination – neither Ner’zhul (the first Lich King) nor Arthas.
This seamlessly fits in and explains why the last Lich King, Bolvar Fordragon, became increasingly dark over the course of the expansions. In the early years, he took on very little, but in Legion the new Lich King steered the fate of the Death Knight heroes and the Black Blade, which once again fell under his control.
He commanded dark deeds such as an attack on the Paladin order hall with many deaths, as well as an extremely dark extermination of the red dragons in the Ruby Sanctum. All of this seemed to indicate that Bolvar was gradually becoming something dark as well – as if the control of the Jailer became stronger and stronger. Until that day when Sylvanas shatters the Helm of Domination.
When you bring all these factors together, it appears quite conceivable that Arthas does not belong in the Maw, but would be much better off with an afterlife in Maldraxxus or Revendreth. Because unlike many other, clearly completely dark souls, a spark of the benevolent paladin he was meant to be always lived on in Arthas.
What exactly happened to Arthas in the Maw, we do not know. However, it appears that he wants to make an important appearance over the course of Shadowlands. Blizzard had announced in advance that they would not ruin such an important character as Arthas and would not disregard his legacy. But the course has already been set for Arthas to play a role at least in Patch 9.1 or later, when the Jailer’s plans are revealed. We will surely learn more when Shadowlands is released in October.
Do you hope that Arthas will play a role in Shadowlands? Or would you rather that Blizzard kept their hands off this great character?
