The Sunwell
How was the Sunwell created? Dath’Remar Sunstrider was one of the Highborne who had lived in Azshara’s palace. Because he and his followers joined the resistance against the queen, he was allowed to live.
But Dath’Remar had no intention of giving up arcane magic. He had already begun to show early signs of addiction. He stole one of Illidan’s vials containing water from the Well of Eternity and continued to experiment with magic.
Thousands of years later, this experimentation led to a new incident that caused a lot of chaos in the Ashenvale. Subsequently, the night elves decided to finally bid farewell to the Highborne and banish them.
After their banishment, the remaining Highborne sailed eastward with their ships, following the magical ley lines – much like Azeroth’s veins, where magic flows particularly strong – until they reached the Eastern Kingdoms.
But the further they traveled, the more the elves began to degenerate. They aged, lost their purple skin tone, and their bodies became smaller – all a result of being too far removed from the World Tree and the Well of Eternity.
To remedy this, Dath’Remar decided they needed a new source of power. He used his vial and created the Sunwell. Henceforth, the former Highborne called themselves High Elves – Quel’dorei.
What dangers did the Sunwell bring? How powerful the Sunwell was became almost immediately apparent. For the otherwise cold north of Quel’thalas was invigorated by the Sunwell, creating a warm land of everlasting spring.
Although the High Elves made many efforts to keep the Legion from noticing their Sunwell, they failed. For the death knight Arthas, who as a human and ally of the elves already knew about the well, sought to claim its power for the Scourge.
He conquered Quel’thalas and used the Sunwell to resurrect the necromancer Kel’Thuzad as a lich. The nourishing power of the well for the High Elves was lost in the process.
In the following years, the Quel’dorei sought new powers, such as fel magic, but nothing could sustain them for long. It was only at the end of “The Burning Crusade” that the Sunwell was cleansed by the Prophet of the Draenei and a Naaru, giving them a source of power once again. This time, however, not only from arcane magic, but mixed with the holy power of the Light.
A source that will again play a major role in the upcoming expansion “Midnight.” For Light is the counterpart to Void – making it perfect for being corrupted by Xal’atath.
