New leaders are coming to World of Warcraft. We reveal who will sit on the throne of Stormwind and who will control Orgrimmar.
In the upcoming WoW expansion Shadowlands, there are some changes among the leaders of Stormwind and Orgrimmar. While the troll Rokhan takes control of Orgrimmar, the supreme Exarch Turalyon sits on the throne in Stormwind.
Why are there new leaders? With the pre-patch of Shadowlands, certain events are set in motion that lead to the kidnapping of key figures. Many leaders of the Horde and Alliance are abducted by Sylvanas’ minions and banished to the Shadowlands. To fill the resulting power vacuum, some characters assume the positions of leaders. Among them are Turalyon and Rokhan, who will rule over Stormwind and Orgrimmar – albeit temporarily.
Who are the two? Both characters are quite well-known in Warcraft lore. Turalyon, in particular, is considered a folk hero of the humans. He disappeared years ago in the shattered world but returned with Legion and the Army of Light. He is a being aligned with the Light, while his wife Alleria is an elf filled with Void. In “Shadows Rising”, he was appointed commander of the Alliance forces to track down Sylvanas Windrunner.
Rokhan, on the other hand, is the current leader of the Darkspear trolls and thus the successor to Vol’jin. Although he himself does not particularly care for peace, he sees himself as a representative of the Horde and wants to implement the goals of the council.
Are the temporary leaders important? Yes, and for several reasons. For one, the story requires significant personalities from Warcraft history to exist as leaders in the capitals and temporarily have control over the forces of the Horde and Alliance.
At the same time, the leaders also have a gameplay function. Particularly PvP fans often storm the enemy’s capital to rack up PvP achievements and create a bit of chaos. Turalyon and Rokhan thus serve as the PvP bosses of the cities and can be killed by the opposing faction.
Turalyon as a leader – a problem? Especially Turalyon as the leader of the Alliance in Stormwind could have larger consequences. In the book “Shadows Rising”, he is portrayed as quite radical, to the point where even Jaina fears what he could become. While Turalyon holds someone captive with Lightbinds, Alleria ravages the victim’s mind to obtain information.
It becomes even more sinister when one thinks of the words of the boss Il’gynoth from the raid Ny’alotha. One of his whispers was:
The Golden ascends an unoccupied throne. The crown of Light will bring only darkness.
This could apply to Turalyon – after all, there is no other character that appears “golden” and ascends a throne. What consequences this will have, we might find out in Shadowlands.
Another current theory suggests that Arthas was not as evil as we thought – also a former throne contender…
What do you think of the two in leadership positions? A good choice or should they not have been given power?
