Dragonblight

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Not to be confused with Dragonflight.
NeutralDragonblight
Level: 15-30
Battle Pet Level: 22 - 23
Exploring Azeroth Northrend - Dragonblight.jpg
Capital(s) Neutral Wyrmrest Temple
Races IconSmall DragonRed2.gifIconSmall DragonBlue2.gif Dragon
IconSmall DrakonidGreen2.gif Drakonid
IconSmall SpawnBronze2 Male.gifIconSmall SpawnBlack2 Female.gif Dragonspawn
NerubianNerubianNerubianNerubian Nerubian
TaunkaTaunka Taunka
ScourgeScourgeScourgeScourge Scourge
TuskarrTuskarr Tuskarr
Magnataur Magnataur
HumanHuman Human
DwarfDwarf Dwarf
OrcOrc Orc
TaurenTauren Tauren
Ruler(s) Neutral  Alexstrasza
Horde  Roanauk Icemist
Major settlements Neutral Dragonshrines
Alliance Wintergarde Keep
Alliance Fordragon Hold
Horde Agmar's Hammer
Horde Kor'kron Vanguard
Horde Venomspite
Mob Icemist Village
Mob New Hearthglen
Minor settlements Neutral Moa'ki Harbor
Neutral Dawn's Reach
Neutral Light's Trust
Neutral Nozzlerust Post
Alliance Stars' Rest
Horde Westwind Refugee Camp
Mob Scarlet Point
Mob Indu'le Village
Mob Jintha'kalar
Affiliation Wyrmrest Accord, Scourge, Anub'ar, Nerubian empire, Alliance, Taunka, Horde, Kalu'ak, Argent Crusade, Scarlet Onslaught
Location South-central Northrend
PvP status Contested territory

“Within the Dragonblight, the one-time seat of the nerubian empire, dense forests surround an arctic wasteland littered with the massive bones of dragons who came here to die. Here also resides the Chamber of the Aspects, where the five great Dragon Aspects were given their charge to watch over the newly created world of Azeroth.”

— The Art of World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King, pg. 82

The Dragonblight, also called the Great Dragonblight,[1] is a great dragon graveyard valley, located in southern Northrend. The entrance to the nerubian kingdom of Azjol-Nerub can be found in the mid-west part, while the mysterious Wyrmrest Temple resides in the middle. The magnataur village of Bloodmar is here also, as well as the ruined taunka capital of Icemist Village, and the nerubian conclave of Sundered Monolith. The Forsaken base of Venomspite and the human stronghold of Wintergarde Keep are located to the east. The Scourge citadel of Naxxramas is floating in the skies above Wintergarde.

The bones are zealously guarded by Malygos and his blue dragonflight, but the rise of the Lich King and the Scourge allowed the undead to claim many sets of bones from the graveyard and use them to create frost wyrms for the Scourge forces. The Dragonblight was also the home of the first humans to fall victims to the Plague.[2][3]

History

Prehistory

The Dragonblight is the area where Galakrond was defeated, and his remains are seen to this day. It is here where the titans, through the keepers, blessed the five proto-dragons - Alexstrasza, Nozdormu, Ysera, Malygos and Neltharion, turning them into the Dragon Aspects.[4] It is known to be a final resting place for dragons,[5] a place where they instinctively go to when they are ready to die.[6][7]

Around the year 823 BDP, Aegwynn traveled to the Dragonblight to aid the dragonflights in banishing a pack of demons that were draining the potent arcane energies of the blue dragons. Just as the last demon was banished from the world, the Avatar of Sargeras appeared to battle her.[2][8]

Rise of the Lich King

In 8 ADP, the newly-arrived Lich King Ner'zhul used the plague of undeath to destroy a human settlement on the fringe of the Dragonblight.[2][9][3]

During the Third War in 20 ADP, Prince Arthas Menethil and the 1st Legion made landfall at the Forgotten Shore[10] on their hunt for Mal'Ganis. When the Alliance Emissary conveyed King Terenas' order to recall the expedition, Arthas had his ships destroyed, trapping his forces in Northrend.[11] A few days later, Mal'Ganis attacked his encampment with overwhelming numbers, prompting Arthas and Muradin Bronzebeard to seek out the runeblade Frostmourne in a cavern to the north.[12]

After the Scourging of Lordaeron, Arthas answered the Lich King's call to fight Illidan Stormrage in Northrend. At the head of the Scourge forces, his first base camp was on the southern coast of Dragonblight.[13]

Wrath of the Lich King

Wrath of the Lich King This section concerns content related to Wrath of the Lich King.

This section is a lore stub.

During the war against the Lich King in 27 ADP, the Alliance and the Horde gradually marched deep into Northrend, pushing closer to the seat of the Lich King's power. After they arrived in Dragonblight and established outposts, the Scourge launched its first major counterattack, with the necropolis of Naxxramas appearing above their forces. Under the command of the lich Kel'Thuzad, the undead armies attacked the living forces from all sides, however, bringing Naxxramas so close to the front lines gave an opening for the adventurers to invade the necropolis once more. Tearing it apart from the inside and purging the evil from its halls, the heroes of Azeroth ultimately destroyed the majordomo of the Lich King. This victory allowed both factions to establish permanent footholds in the Dragonblight from which they hoped to strike at Icecrown Citadel itself.[14]

Cataclysm

Cataclysm This section concerns content related to Cataclysm.

Dragonblight during the Hour of Twilight.

During the Cataclysm in 28 ADP, some time after Cho'gall's death, the Twilight's Hammer invaded Wyrmrest Temple, resulting in a battle of the four dragonflights against the cultists.[15]

At the climax of the war against Deathwing, the Dragon Aspects met at the Wyrmrest Summit to infuse the Demon Soul with their combined might, along with Thrall's shamanic power. [16] In retaliation, the Twilight dragonflight and Twilight's Hammer's forces rallied to invade Dragonblight, surrounding Wyrmrest Temple for their final battle against the dragonflights. Across the frozen lands, hundreds of cultists and twilight dragons lost their lives, including the Twilight Father, to the allied armies of the red, blue, green, and bronze dragonflights, along with heroes of the Alliance and Horde.[17]

During the battle, Tyrygosa warned the heroes they had to hurry to defeat the colossus Morchok who was pounding at the foundations of the spire, trying to level it. She later reported that maw creatures were erupting from the nearby earth, and ordered their destruction, along with the faceless generals Warlord Zon'ozz and Yor'sahj the Unsleeping.[18] Just as many of the temple's defenders fell in battle, their sacrifices gave enough time for Thrall to unleash the power of the artifact to wound and drive Deathwing away.[17]

Mists of Pandaria

Mists of Pandaria This section concerns content related to Mists of Pandaria.

During the Alliance-Horde war in 30 ADP, Okrut Dragonwaste and his enslavers arrived to the Dragonblight to capture and subjugate dragons in the name of Warchief Garrosh Hellscream.[19]

Legion

Legion This section concerns content related to Legion.

During the third invasion of the Burning Legion in 32 ADP, a large part of the Deaths of Chromie scenario took place in the Dragonblight, visiting the different dragonshrines.[20]

Aftermath of the wars

WoW-novel-logo-16x62.png This section concerns content related to the Warcraft novels, novellas, or short stories.

Following the war against the Jailer in 36 ADP, the Bronzebeard brothers reported that as the dragons had dispersed on their own business, all the dragonshrines stood empty.[21]

According to Khadgar's tome, scars of the twilight siege still dot the wastes where bursts of dragon fire strafed the crater of the Old God's horrific n'raqi. Although the area appears solemn and devoid of life, tuskarr still hunt here.[22]

Description from site

Concept art of the Dragonblight.

For millennia the Great Dragonblight has served as the enduring heart of Northrend.

Here, dense forests surround a vast Arctic wasteland littered with the massive, gleaming bones of perished dragons. In the center of this frozen expanse lies Wyrmrest Temple, a structure believed to be built by the world-shaping titans shortly after Azeroth's creation. Many legends hold that the five great Dragon Aspects were blessed within this fortress and given their charge to watch over the budding world. Perhaps it is for this reason that dragons nearing the end of their lives come to the Dragonblight to enrich the land with their passing.

Surrounding Wyrmrest Temple are five majestic dragon shrines: red, bronze, green, blue, and black, each blessed with the powers of its respective flight. In recent times, the undead Scourge has laid siege to these shrines in an effort to further its attempts at raising terrifying new variations of undead dragons to serve the Lich King. In an attempt to arrest these invasions, the red Dragon Aspect, Alexstrasza, has begun recruiting heroes to aid in the fight against the Scourge, even as the taunka and tuskarr wage their own desperate battles against the undead. The one-time Scarlet Crusade, now the Scarlet Onslaught, has arrived as well in the hopes of claiming victory in their ongoing campaign against the Lich King and his minions.

Both the Alliance and the Horde have begun establishing a presence in the Dragonblight, taking a particular interest in the barred entrance to Icecrown, Angrathar the Wrathgate. There both factions have begun gearing up for the siege that will inevitably lead into the lair of the Lich King himself.

The immediate dangers of the Dragonblight are posed not only by the Lich King, however, but also by the blue dragonflight. Determined to manipulate all existing magic to serve his own purposes, the blue Dragon Aspect, Malygos, has ordered his flight to maneuver colossal machines into key positions over magical ley line clusters. Many believe that these dire constructs are intended to realign the paths of magical energy that course beneath the earth. If successful, Malygos's tampering could result in an ecological and magical catastrophe that would threaten not only the stability of Northrend, but ultimately the equilibrium of the entire world.

Geography

The Dragon Wastes near Wyrmrest Temple.

Dragonblight is the keystone of Northrend, the center of its southern shore. It's an expanse of glaring white glaciers, interrupted by mountain peaks and a massive graveyard of dragon bones. The ice and bones make for a suitable landscape, but there's no glacier deep enough to bury the history of Dragonblight. It is a land of endless strife and death, and betrayal after betrayal.[7] Bitter winds cascade down from the distant Storm Peaks to scour the barren landscape.[22]

Dotting the wasteland are Dragonshrines to each of the dragonflights, where a number of dragons go when their lives are at an end.[21]

Maps and subregions

Map of the Dragonblight.
Undisplayed locations
Removed locations
WC3RoC-logo.png Warcraft III
Icon-RPG.png Warcraft RPG

Instances

Instance Name Level Range Group Size Approximate Run Time
Instance portal Azjol-Nerub 72-74 5 25 - 30 min
Instance portal Ahn'kahet: The Old Kingdom 73-75 5 45 min - 1 hour
Instance portal Obsidian Sanctum[23] 80+ 10/25 30 min - 1 hour
Instance portal Ruby Sanctum 80+ 10/25 Unknown
Instance portal Naxxramas[24] 80+ 10/25 2 – 4 hours

Travel hubs

Adjacent regions

Zone Name Faction Level Range Direction Access
Dalaran AllianceHorde N/A Northwest By foot via Crystalsong or flight path
Borean Tundra AllianceHorde 58 - 80 West By foot, flight path or turtle boat from Moa'ki Harbor
Howling Fjord Alliance Horde 58 - 80 Southeast By flight path or turtle boat from Moa'ki Harbor
Zul'Drak AllianceHorde 64 - 80 Northeast By foot or flight path
Grizzly Hills AllianceHorde 63 - 80 East By foot or flight path
Crystalsong Forest AllianceHorde 67 - 80 North By foot
Wintergrasp AllianceHorde 67 - 80 PvP Northwest By flight only
Icecrown AllianceHorde 67 - 80 North By foot via Angrathar the Wrathgate or flight path

Notable characters

Main article: Dragonblight NPCs
Angrathar the Wrathgate

Quests

Main article: Dragonblight quests

The prevailing questline from the Alliance perspective is the attack of the Lich King's forces upon Wintergarde and the siege at Angrathar the Wrathgate. A short side story relives some important events from Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne at the Frozen Coast and Frostmourne Cavern.

The Horde questline at Venomspite revolves around Arthas's machinations with the Scarlet Onslaught at New Hearthglen, and the initiation of the taunka into the Horde at Agmar's Hammer.

Both mortal factions and the dragonflights represented at Wyrmrest Temple are concerned with Malygos's disastrous redirection of ley line energies at Moonrest Gardens and the Azure Dragonshrine and the Scourge attacks at their respective dragonshrines.

Resources

Kaldorei ruins in Dragonblight.

Wild creatures

Azure Dragonshrine
Undead
Dragonkin
Giants
Animals
Elemental
Humanoids

Rare Elite NPCs associated with the  [Northern Exposure] achievement:

In Warcraft III

WC3RoC-logo.png This section concerns content related to Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos or its expansion The Frozen Throne.

Those who have braved the chill wind speak of a graveyard called Dragonblight. Treasure is rumored to lie beneath draconian bones, but vigilant dragons watch this sacred ground for foolhardy graverobbers.[25]

In the RPG

Icon-RPG.png This section contains information from the Warcraft RPG which is considered non-canon.

The Dragonblight and Tundra Coldhoof as seen in Lands of Mystery.

The Dragonblight is a depressing sight. Once this valley was a thriving land, the most fertile in Northrend after the Sholazar Basin, though that was a long time ago. Now it is a vast wasteland where even the snow and ice seem drained. Most of the Dragonblight is a single enormous valley filled with bodies. Although not just any bodies, but dragon bodies. Ailing and old dragons, from every dragonflight, from all over the world, come here to die.

The ground is littered with dragons of all colors. Black, red, green, blue and bronze, they all lie here together, all their differences set aside in death. The mightiest creatures in the world, laid low by age and illness and attack. The land has never recovered, and never will. It weeps for its lost children and remains barren in their memory.[26]

The Dragonblight seems peaceful at first, it is not, however. Nerubians stalk the valley, Scourge creatures patrol it, dragons protect it, and other creatures scavenge through it.[27]

History

Thousands of years ago, before the Sundering, this region was settled by blue dragons. At some point the black dragon Deathwing attacked them, slaughtering the blue dragons by the dozens. The survivors fought back but were no match for Deathwing's ferocity. In the process, their homes were destroyed and the land so damaged it could never recover. That area became known as the Dragonblight. The leader of the blue dragonflight, Malygos, in his rage and grief, split his home located to the west from the rest of the land, creating the gap later named the Westrift in the Borean Tundra.

The remainder of the blue dragon race settled on Malygos's island, which they named Coldarra, and carved out homes of their own. They gave up the war against Deathwing and the black dragonflight and chose to withdraw from the world. Soon they lost themselves in study, though they always look toward the Dragonblight and the spirits of their kin still lingering there.[28]

Nothing particularly noteworthy has happened ever since.[27]

People and culture

Of the living, the most common creatures here are nerubians. The entrance to Azjol-Nerub sits near the northern edge of the Dragonblight, just below Crystalsong Forest; and before the Scourge came the spider-men wandered freely through this region, moving among the dragon corpses without a care. Now those who survived the War of the Spider find refuge up here, using dragon bones for cover from Scourge patrols. They hatch plans to reclaim their kingdom but lack the numbers or the strength to succeed.

Tauren live here as well, though only in Icemist Village, where a pack of Icemist tauren settled on the western edge of the Dragonblight, on the shore of Lake Wintergrasp. They don't venture into the blight proper very often, preferring the clean cold of the lake to this bitter air of doom and death.

Scourge creatures wander through here all the time, probably looking for ways to use the dragon remains, or searching for any artifacts the dragons left behind. Since they can't pass through Crystalsong Forest, the Dragonblight also provides the only route to the east of Northrend, unless they want to scale the Storm Peaks. Most of the Scourge creatures lurk near the northwestern corner, close to Icecrown Glacier.

Some blue dragons live here as well. They tend their fallen kin and pay their respects. The dragons live in Wyrmrest Temple, down toward the southern shore. They communicate regularly with their kin in Coldarra. They seem to rotate through since even a dragon can stand only so much of this gloom.[26]

Geography

Map of the Dragonblight in Lands of Mystery.

Most of the Dragonblight is a single valley, sloping southward to the Shiverwind Coast. Low hills rise along the sides, taller to the east where they butt up against the Grizzly Hills and Zul'Drak. To the north, a thin line of tall, sharp-edged cliffs breaks the land where Icecrown Glacier begins. The western edge borders the Borean Tundra and Lake Wintergrasp, the ground there is low and even and frozen solid.

Many animals live here, feeding off the dragons' remains. Birds, bears, spiders, wolves and bats all tear at the remains or at each other. There are also wendigo, sasquatch, and worg packs as well. Strange that a communal graveyard should support so much life, but maybe the dragons would find it appropriate. Thanks to the Scourge, undead animals wander here as well, killing and converting the living where they can.[26] Large numbers of magnataur led by Grom'thar the Thunderbringer of the Bloodmar, and the nomad Dammia Frostcut dwell the region too.[29]

The Dragonblight is an eerie place and it is hard to imagine anyone that would want to live here. Everywhere you look you see dead dragons and their remains. Most of the creatures here shelter beneath or behind or even within dragon carcasses. A few dig shallow pits into the valley wall or settle beneath the rotted trees that dot the landscape. The region has only two settlements of any real size, Icemist Village and Wyrmrest Temple. Everything else is a single family or a small band, a pack at best.[27]

Notes

Sunken skeleton off the coast
  • The War of the Ancients Trilogy novels often refer to some unnamed dragon lands,[30] which includes areas such as the lair of the red dragonflight (a series of large caverns deep inside towering mountains, with hundreds of great gaps in every cliff leading to their realm, and Alexstrasza's chambers being filled with plants and flowers that should have not been able to grow there),[31] the lair of the black dragonflight (later moved to the Broken Isles) and the lair of the blue dragonflight (later moved to Northrend). Long ago, during his mating ritual with Alexstrasza, Korialstrasz had circled his beloved over and over, displaying his strength and agility while she flew in a vast circle around the realm of dragons.[32] During the War of the Ancients, these dragon lands were surrounded by a giant, impenetrable magical barrier during the time of the Dragon Soul's empowerment, as Neltharion didn't want anything or anyone to stop the ritual.[33] This barrier was guarded from the inside by dragons from all flights such as Horakastrasz, but were also patrolled from the outside by black dragons who had the orders to kill on sight anyone trying to enter or even leave the area.[34] This description could refer either to Northrend or the Dragon Isles and as such it is unsure where it happened.
  • The remains of a giant creature lie underwater in the far south of the zone, off the coast where the Path of the Titans crumbles into the sea. Only a skull accompanied by a partial skeleton are emerged but they are much bigger than even Galakrond's Rest, and are even visible on the in-game map of the region. It may be the remains of the Manta or another giant dragon or proto-dragon.

Gallery

World of Warcraft
Art
Other

Patch changes

  • Legion Patch 7.3.5 (2018-01-16): Level scaling implemented, previous zone level: 71 - 75.
  • Wrath of the Lich King Patch 3.0.3 (2008-11-04): Added.

References

 
  1. ^  [The Path of Redemption]
  2. ^ a b c Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos Game Manual
  3. ^ a b World of Warcraft: Chronicle Volume 3, pg. 18
  4. ^ Dawn of the Aspects
  5. ^ Annual 2015
  6. ^ The Cinematic Art of World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King, pg. 155 - "The Fall of Sindragosa" booklet
  7. ^ a b Exploring Azeroth: Northrend, pg. 70
  8. ^ World of Warcraft: Chronicle Volume 1, pg. 148 - 150
  9. ^  [Icecrown and the Frozen Throne]
  10. ^ Exploring Azeroth: Northrend, pg. 83
  11. ^ Dissension (WC3 Human)
  12. ^ Death Knight (manga)
  13. ^ The Return to Northrend (WC3 Undead)
  14. ^ World of Warcraft: Chronicle Volume 3, pg. 175 - 177
  15. ^ Thrall: Twilight of the Aspects
  16. ^ World of Warcraft: Chronicle Volume 3, pg. 218 - 219
  17. ^ a b World of Warcraft: Chronicle Volume 3, pg. 219 - 220
  18. ^ Tyrygosa's quotes in Dragon Soul
  19. ^ N [1-80] Okrut Dragonwaste
  20. ^ N [45] The Deaths of Chromie
  21. ^ a b Exploring Azeroth: Northrend, pg. 76
  22. ^ a b World of Warcraft: The Dragonflight Codex, pg. 52
  23. ^ WorldOfWar.net. Jeff Kaplan Video Interview Transcript.
  24. ^ Boubouille 2008-06-05. Blizzcast Episode 3 is out !. Retrieved on 2008-06-06.
  25. ^ http://www.battle.net/war3/maps/war3xbonusmaps5.shtml
  26. ^ a b c Lands of Mystery, pg. 99
  27. ^ a b c Lands of Mystery, pg. 100
  28. ^ Lands of Mystery, pg. 96
  29. ^ Lands of Mystery, pg. 125, 127
  30. ^ The Sundering, chapter 4
  31. ^ The Well of Eternity, chapter 13
  32. ^ The Demon Soul, chapter 11
  33. ^ The Demon Soul, chapter 12
  34. ^ The Demon Soul, chapter 16

External links

World of Warcraft Community Site World of Warcraft Community Site Wrath of the Lich King Dragonblight
Dragonblight Deaths of Chromie
External link MMO-Champion Dragonblight highlighted on Northrend map.
External link MMO-Champion Annotated map with flight paths.
External link WorldOfWar.net A Dragonblight Quest guide.
Dragonblight is a contested territory
Map of the Dragonblight
Northrend is an in-game continent
Map of Northrend
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