During GamesCom last week, the new intro cinematic of “World of Warcraft: Warlords of Draenor” was released. As usual, the sequence is outstanding and perfectly sets the stage for the upcoming expansion: A whole bunch of Orcs, a lot of warmachines, a big demon exploding, and a large portal.
Anyone familiar with the story will now have furrowed their brow a bit, and those who have played the old strategy classics Warcraft 1-3 will also be confused. Has Blizzard thrown the existing lore out the window and replaced it?
Of course, they haven’t, but the developers are playing a bit with the timelines, so clarification is needed. Don’t despair, ask a succubus! I will explain the connections of the story and tell you why one should not drink demon blood.
The “old” story
For the explanation, you should momentarily forget the trailer, and we will start right from the beginning, even before “Warcraft 1”.
Thirty-five years ago, the leaders of the Orc clans gathered on Draenor – they had conquered this world and apart from fights among themselves, there was nothing left worth fighting for. But Gul’dan, a former shaman and now the first orc warlock, had learned from the voices from the Nether that there were other worlds to conquer. If the Orcs drank the blood of the demonic pit lord Mannoroth, they would become incredibly strong and be able to open portals to other worlds to conquer them.
This exact thing happened, but the consumption of demon blood had further side effects: From now on, the Orcs were tormented by a demonic blood frenzy that further enhanced their wild nature, and their skin color changed from brown to a shade of green. Furthermore, they were now little more than pawns of the Burning Legion (the demons) and could be wonderfully abused as war tools.
As Mannoroth planned, the Horde invaded Azeroth shortly after the opening of the Dark Portal and caused the great wars (Warcraft 1&2), although they were split into many clans. Only a few Orcs remained untouched by the corruption and stayed back on Draenor, including the son of Grommash Hellscream: Garrosh. But Draenor was changed by the opening of the portals, the magic of the Nether caused the world to shatter, and the once beautiful place was henceforth called “Shattered World”.
Many years later (Warcraft 3), the Orcs, under the leadership of Warchief Thrall, crossed from Azeroth to Kalimdor in search of a new homeland, but were once again confronted by Mannoroth. Thrall and his good friend Grommash (short “Grom”) rebelled against the command of the oppressor and faced him in battle. Although Grom succeeded in killing the pit lord, he was gravely wounded in the final explosion of the demon and died – however, he had freed his people from the blood frenzy and returned their freedom.
Many years later, Thrall encounters Grom’s son, Garrosh, in the Shattered World, leads him to Azeroth, and ultimately appoints him as the new Warchief of the Horde, dedicating himself to shamanism. During “World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria”, Garrosh evolves from an assertive conqueror to a tyrant, turning even the other races of the Horde against him. The current expansion ends with his imprisonment – but he vows revenge. Revenge on his enemies and also on his former allies, whom he now sees as nothing but weaklings.
Back to the film…
The cinematic of “World of Warcraft: Warlords of Draenor” shows the crucial point in the story of the Orcs, as they drink the blood of the demon – but this time, something is different. The Orc leaders were warned of the consequences, and Grom chooses to refuse the blood. Mannoroth obviously does not tolerate this, and a battle ensues. The demon is struck down much earlier this time, but it does not cost the Orc his life – he is saved by his son, Garrosh. How does everything fit together now?
It sounds more complicated than it is: The deposed Warchief of the Orcs, Garrosh Hellscream, travels to the past with the help of a dragon. In Draenor, he prevents the Orcs from being corrupted by the demon blood, saves his own father from death, and brings plans for warmachines from the future. He succeeds in convincing the many Orc clans to act as one – he forms the Iron Horde. These Orcs are weaker, not driven by blood frenzy, but their numbers are significantly higher, and their martial knowledge from the future makes them a serious threat. And this Iron Horde is what Garrosh now wants to invade the Azeroth of present day through the Dark Portal, seeking revenge on both the Alliance and the Horde.
It is important to mention that this change of the past does not affect the overall timeline; they essentially live on a different timeline but are now set to invade “our” world.
And what do we learn from this? Well, not much, except that one should not drink demon blood if one does not want to be saved by their own son, who is older than oneself. However, if a nice succubus offers you to drink her blood, you should accept. If anything is still unclear, let me know in the comments – you should all go to bed smart!
