Earthen

Earthen
Faction/Affiliation	Alliance, Horde, Ulduar (Keepers), Titan-forged (Pantheon of Order), Kurun, Independent
Racial capital	Dornogal (Isle of Dorn); Uldaman (Eastern Kingdoms); Ulduar (Northrend); Stonehearth (Deepholm)
Racial leader(s)	Council of Dornogal (Khaz Algar); Bouldercrag the Rockshaper (Storm Peaks); Stonefather Oremantle (Deepholm); Kurun (Grizzly Hills)
Formerly	King Urel Stoneheart †
Homeworld	Azeroth
Language(s)	Titan, Common, Orcish
Organization(s)	Clans, Oathsworn, Unbound, Machine Speakers, Freysworn, Stormriders

For the playable race, see Earthen (playable).

The earthen (sometimes referred to as earthen dwarves^[2] or early dwarves)^[3]^[4] are stony titan-forged beings that were created by the Titanic Keepers to help shape the subterranean regions of the world during the ordering of Azeroth. Succumbing to the curse of flesh, most of the earthen became mortal creatures of flesh and blood known as dwarves. There remains a sizable population of earthen in Deepholm, Uldaman, Ulduar, and Khaz Algar.

History

Origins

A frost giant and a group of earthen

Following the war with the Old Gods, the titan keepers used the Forge of Wills to create new titan-forged races to help them reshape and order the world. Yet their first designs proved too complex and overambitious. Rather than making the perfect servants, they had created stone-skinned savages known as troggs. The keepers quickly refined and perfected their designs. The craggy, kindhearted earthen were the next generation of titan-forged to emerge from the Forge of Wills, created from magical, living stone.^[3] The keepers were troubled by the troggs, but they could not bear to destroy them. Instead, the titanic watcher Ironaya built a small subterranean vault known as Uldaman that would act as a stasis chamber for them.^[5] Other new titan-forged races were the clockwork mechagnomes, the stone-skinned mogu, the iron-skinned vrykul and the chiseled tol'vir. The earthen would specialize in crafting mountains and carving out the deep places of the world.^[6]^[7]

Created by the titans themselves, Val'anyr, Hammer of Ancient Kings was given to the first earthen king, Urel Stoneheart. With the hammer, he was to create and give life to the rest of his brethren.^[8] And so after the Pantheon of Order's departure, the earthen were largely unconcerned with the affairs of the surface-dwelling races and longed only to plumb the dark depths of the earth.^[9]

Sector AR-938

At some point, a contingent of earthen was sent by the Keepers to investigate a geological anomaly in a fissure detected on Sector AR-938. In the region that would later be known as Khaz Algar, Keeper Archaedas appointed the titan watchers Dornic and Galan to oversee the earthen that were deployed there. However, in the keeper's absence, Dornic became a tyrannical ruler which eventually led to the earthen rebelling and deactivating him. When Archaedas returned, he confronted Galan, who had also become oppressive after Dornic's disappearance,^[10] and punished her, stating that both she and Dornic had defied directives and misused their power and that Dornic had earned his fate.^[11]

When the clash between the mighty ramoliths, Durzan and Belzt, caused the storm above Dhar Oztan to summon the first stormrooks in Khaz Algar, the rooks attacked earthen holdings. The earthen sent word to Archaedas for help who in turn called on Highkeeper Ra. The two ascended the mountain together, and while the earthen are unaware of what transpired atop the mountain, when they returned the skies had cleared. The keepers brought bound stormrooks back down with them and declared that the creatures would serve as guardians and weapons for the earthen from then on.^[12]

Loken's betrayal

By the time the Pantheon of Order was defeated by Sargeras on Nihilam, Yogg-Saron had devised a plan to weaken its jailors and escape imprisonment. The Old God corrupted the Forge of Wills in Ulduar, tainting its creation matrix with a strange malady known as the curse of flesh. Any titan-forged created by the machine thereafter would fall victim to this affliction, and some would even spread it to previous generations of titan-forged, gradually transforming them into mortal beings of flesh and blood.^[13] Keeper Loken later fell under Yogg-Saron's sway and took control of Ulduar and its titan-forged servants. For many ages after Loken's betrayal the titan-forged who were exiled from Ulduar spread across northern Kalimdor, with the earthen tunneled into the deep places of the world, where they fought for dominance against the misshapen and brutish troggs.^[14]

During the Winterskorn War the massive Winterskorn army marched first against the good-natured earthen, storming their underground lairs. The earthen foes were led by fire giants Volkhan and Ignis and consisted of the Winterskorn clan vrykul and newly molded powerful molten golems and iron constructs designed by the fire giants. The earthen were unprepared for such an organized force, entire caverns were massacred to the last living creature. A small group of survivors escaped and sought out Tyr, Archaedas, and Ironaya who had eluded Loken's wrath. Tyr and his allies immediately journeyed in aid to the earthen's cavernous home, and in time the earthen and their allies drove back the Winterskorn. The fire giants next enslaved entire flights of proto-dragons with enchanted snares with which the Winterskorn army shattered the earthen's defenses and scattered them across the icy mountain passes. The earthen were hunted by vrykul and golems on the ground and proto-dragons from the sky. Even Tyr was forced to flee, knowing that he and his allies could not defeat the Winterskorn alone he called on the Dragon Aspects for help. The Aspects enraged by these events unleashed their power on the Winterskorn's iron ranks and brought a decisive end to the conflict.^[15]

Hibernation in Uldaman

A earthen affected by the curse of flesh.

With the Winterskorn defeated the titan titan-forged were still divided, Tyr and his allies Archaedas and Ironaya stole the Discs of Norgannon from Loken and gathered great numbers of titan-forged who dwelled around Ulduar and whom they saw as innocent victims of Loken's treachery. Most of the surviving earthen, a large group of peaceful vrykul afflicted by the curse of flesh, and many of the mechagnomes agreed to flee with them southward in preparation for their next move. They traveled for weeks until they reached what would one day become known as the Tirisfal Glades. It is here that Tyr sacrificed himself fighting a C'Thrax monstrosity in order to allow the rest of the titan-forged to flee further south. The vrykul were so moved by the keeper's deeds that they decided to settle at the battle site and stand vigil over his grave until the end of days, while the earthen with Archaedas, Ironaya, and mechagnomes continued south until they reached the easternmost titan-forged vault on Kalimdor, Uldaman. The keeper and the giantess expanded the site, carving out new chambers.

As years passed, some of the earthen in Uldaman exhibited signs of the curse of flesh. Fearing that the effects would only worsen, they asked to be placed in hibernation until a cure could one day be found. Archaedas agreed, promising to rouse them at some time in the future. He sealed his followers within the vast subterranean vaults. The mechagnomes, however, remained awake. Even though they knew the curse would one day overtake them as well, they heroically vowed to watch over the facility and maintain its wondrous machineries. A small number of the earthen had chosen not to be placed in stasis as well, deciding that they would watch over and maintain the facility alongside their mechagnomes companions.^[16]

The earthen largely kept to themselves. They were unconcerned with the activities of the world's other races as new civilizations arose across Azeroth. Some earthen remained isolated underneath the icy mountains of Northrend. Those who came south with Keeper Archaedas and the watcher Ironaya continued to dwell or slumber within the catacomb vaults of Uldaman.^[17] Some of the earthen came to conflict against the Kaldorei Empire but were defeated by the military power of the House of Ravencrest.^[18] The night elves came to use the derogatory term of "dwarf" to refer to those earthen.^[19]

War of the Ancients

Dungard Ironcutter, the earthen spokesman during the War of the Ancients.

When the demons invaded Azeroth, many other clans of earthen led by Dungard Ironcutter were convinced to join the resistance against the Burning Legion by Jarod Shadowsong, or alternately by the dragon-mage Krasus when he traveled in time, even while night elves looked down upon other races. It was a reluctant truce, as the earthen were called in by Krasus in defiance of the xenophobic commander Desdel Stareye. The earthen were initially put to the outskirts of the host, but after Stareye's demise, their warriors were put to their best use under the new commander, Jarod Shadowsong.^[20]^[21]

As the Great Sundering tore through Azeroth, many of the active earthen reeled from the catastrophe. They felt the pain of the broken world as their own. They tunneled deep within Uldaman and locked themselves away within the hibernation chambers alongside their sleeping brethren. Only the mechagnomes remained to watch over the facility. Yet they, too, eventually succumbed to the curse of flesh, causing them to turn into fleshy beings later known as gnomes. Physically and mentally debilitated, they lost all sense of purpose and left the halls of Uldaman. Only a handful of mechagnomes stayed in the facility, still driven by their titan-forged imperative. They gradually succumbed to the degradations of time until only one was left. This lone clockwork servant did her best to maintain Uldaman until the curse of flesh began to chip away at her metallic form as well. Aware that she did not have much time left, the gnome worked to free the still-slumbering earthen. With her dying breath, she activated the hibernation chambers.^[22]

Awakening as dwarves

The awakened earthen found that they had changed dramatically. Their rocky hides had softened and become smooth skin, they had become mortal creatures of flesh and blood. Calling themselves dwarves, the last of the earthen left the halls of Uldaman and ventured out into the waking world. They found themselves drawn to the west, where a range of majestic stone mountains towered into the clouds. Settling in the snowy region of Dun Morogh, and still lulled by the safety and wonders of the deep places, they founded a vast kingdom under the highest mountain in the land and named their land Khaz Modan, or "Mountain of Khaz", in honor of the titan Khaz'goroth. They delved into the heart of Khaz Modan's tallest mountain and crafted an immense forge, around which they built a proud city called Ironforge.^[17]^[9]

Wrath of the Lich King

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

After thousands of years, Yogg-Saron's chains began to weaken, and the Old God truly took control of the prison. Under his orders, the corrupted Keeper Loken attacked Ulduar, took its control from the resident earthen, and created iron dwarves and iron vrykul in the Forge of Wills; these new creations then drove the remaining earthen and mechagnomes from the titan complex.^[23]^[24]

Cataclysm

This section concerns content related to Cataclysm.

When King Magni Bronzebeard sought answers to the troubling state of the elementals^[25] and of the world, he selflessly underwent a mystic titan ritual to commune with the earth by activating the [Tablets of the Earth]. In Old Ironforge, he drank a potion and spoke the words to activate the ritual in the earthen's language. Though he initially thought his plan was working, the ritual was actually a process for earthen (and thus dwarves, descended from earthen) to once again become part of the very material they had been crafted from by the titans: the very crust of Azeroth. Magni was instead turned into a diamond, his statue-like form fused into the diamond heart of Ironforge itself before the stunned onlookers.^[26]

Legion

This section concerns content related to Legion.

At the time of the third invasion of the Burning Legion, Ulduar have been cleansed of the corruption that previously infested it, with the earthen and mechagnomes resuming command of the facility under the eyes of their Keepers.^[27]

Dragonflight

This section concerns content related to Dragonflight.

At the behest of Alexstrasza, champions of the dragonflights ventured into a previously unexplored wing of Uldaman to recover a memory disc from Keeper Tyr.^[28] Inside, they battled the earthen guarding the facility and found a report from Watcher Melenia. She noted that while observing the effects of the curse of flesh on the afflicted titan-forged, none showed more variance in their transformations than the earthen. While those who fully succumbed to the curse eventually became the dwarves, others were able to resist it, either partially or completely. A notable group of earthen sent to investigate a fissure in Sector AR-938 even began to manifest behaviors similar to dwarves, despite being completely separated.^[29]

Physiology

Various types of earthen.

Earthen are imbued with the essence of Azeroth's worldsoul.^[30] Their design maximizes strength and stamina without sacrificing cognitive processing power. The earthen's physical features are that of a smaller stature humanoid, though their composition is that of Azeroth's various stone core compounds. As such, they do not bleed,^[31] and nor do they eat. Food preparation is not part of earthen culture, and their cities are similarly bereft of food preperation facilities.^[32] Their skin and musculature are nearly impervious to physical damage, and with very minor modifications the earthen display a remarkable resiliency to unwanted magical forces.^[7] Despite this, they are still capable of being mortally wounded.^[31] Their beards are actually an intricate series of mineral growths.^[33] Though their "hair" is randomized by the Awakening Machine and doesn't normally grow on its own, the earthen of Khaz Algar have found that consuming certain minerals can increase its length or change its color.^[34] Some earthen like to smoke pipes.^[33] Earthen can stay underwater for some time before any permanent damage is done to their breathing apparatuses.^[35]

Earthen like to stay warm, and their stone beds are placed above coals.^[36] Every earthen has access to a memory crystal.^[36]

Algari Earthen don't have children.^[37] The earthen of Deepholm seem to have found some method around this, as Stonefather Oremantle has a son, Flint Oremantle.

Culture

Earthen politics are said to be complicated.^[38] Sitting in warm baths and being in warm areas is important to earthen.^[32]

Groups of earthen

Ulduar

Earthen in Northrend and Deepholm.

Ulduar is one of the ancient titan cities where the earthen first took shape and form. It is said that after the War of the Ancients earthen reeled with the pain of the earth itself and lost much of their identity and sealed themselves within the city's stone chambers.^[9] The earthen of Ulduar are currently led by Bouldercrag the Rockshaper. They seem to be a subrace of earthen made of [Enchanted Earth] (which may give them their unique look).^[39] These earthen are incapable of bleeding.^[40] They were forced out of their home by the iron dwarves, with whom they are at war. Kurun, a stone giant leads the earthen in Grizzly Hills in their war.

Uldum

Uldum is one of the ancient titan cities where the earthen first took shape and form. It is said that after the War of the Ancients earthen reeled with the pain of the earth itself and lost much of their identity and sealed themselves within the city's stone chambers.^[9] Earthen, like the Sandstone Earthen, exist in its Tanaris section, but no others can be found in the zone. See the Deepholm section below.

Besides the ones near Uldum, only Goggeroc has been seen in Kalimdor.^[41] The Resonite Crystals from Boulderslide Ravine in Stonetalon contain Earthen magic.^[42]

Deepholm

Earthen, appearing similar to the Ulduar type, as opposed to the other earthen, can be found in Deepholm, the elemental plane of earth. They are led by Stonefather Oremantle, and are battling the stone troggs. The earthen and the stone troggs somehow found their way to Deepholm through Uldum more than fifteen thousand years ago. They've been warring ever since.^[43] They may have come through the portal to Uldum there.^[44]

Uldaman

Earthen as seen in the Eastern Kingdoms and Kalimdor.

The Uldaman facility is one of the facilities that the earthen were sealed in.^[9] It came to contain destabilized earthen, and the original stony variant. The stone earthen remain there to this day. The facility also contains the Stonevault troggs.

Khaz Algar

Main article: Earthen (playable)

A contingent of earthen was sent by the keepers to investigate a geological anomaly in a fissure detected on Sector AR-938. In time, these earthen began to display behaviors similar to those who had fallen under the influence of the flesh, despite being separated by a great distance and sharing no cultural ties whatsoever. To the keepers, the similarities were uncanny. Although both groups remained physiologically distinct, the earthen had started to refer to Sector AR-938 as Khaz Algar, and their behaviors, language, and demeanor showed many similarities to other former earthen groups.^[29]

Notable

Name	Role	Status
Urel Stoneheart	First king of the earthen, wielder of Val'anyr, Hammer of Ancient Kings.	Deceased
Bouldercrag the Rockshaper	Leader of the Ulduar earthen after Loken's bretayal.	Alive
Dungard Ironcutter	Earthen spokesman during the War of the Ancients.	Unknown
Stonefather Oremantle	Leader of the Deepholm earthen.	Alive
Merrix	Leader of the Oathsworn on the Isle of Dorn.	Alive
Brinthe	Leader of the Machine Speakers in the Ringing Deeps.	Alive
Adelgonn	Leader of the Unbound on the Isle of Dorn.	Alive
Lufsela	Leader of the Stormriders on the Isle of Dorn.	Alive

In the RPG

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

The titans created two caretaker races to watch over and help reshape the world. The dwarves are placed in charge of maintaining the earth, while the sea giants watch over the waters.^[45] The titans created the earthen to watch over the realms deep within the ground.^[46]

The troggs were the mistaken first attempt at crafting a mortal race of guardians from living stone for Azeroth. When the titans saw how brutal and misshapen the troggs were, they buried them in the northern vault of Bael Modan (and other locations). The titan scientists referred to the successful second race experiment as Series Two. Series Two were the successful conclusion of the titan's experiments, called "earthen" in ancient times.^[47]

Long thought to be merely myth, the troggs were the titans' first attempt at creating a race. The second attempt, entirely successful, produced the dwarves. Rather than destroy the troggs, the titans locked them deep beneath the earth where they slept for untold generations.^[48]

Before the War of the Ancients, the dwarves are just beginning to develop their traditions and make the earliest of the technological innovations that will revolutionize the world.^[49] Tinkers and even simple technology (phlogiston and gunpowder have yet to be discovered) are exceedingly rare in these days, found mostly among the dwarves.^[49]

During the War of the Ancients, the dwarves sealed the gates of their underground cities, leaving the Kaldorei to face the demons on their own.^[49] However, the night elves remember the dwarf race from their most ancient days, back before they were called "dwarves." They know that although their two races never had much contact, the earthen fought against the demons in both the War of the Ancients.^[50] An underground war was fought by the earthen in the shadows to prevent the return of the demons to the world of the living.^[51] The Kaldorei were known to the earthen. In the early histories of dwarves, the Kaldorei are shadowy figures of dark perfection wielding incredible god-like powers.^[49]

When the Well collapsed, it took the world with it. Even in their distant fortresses, far from the Well, the dwarves feared for their lives as the very rocks around them shifted and crawled as though they were living creatures.^[49]

Something happened to change the earthen, though, and they turned mortal, as they are now. Maybe it was the result of the War of the Ancients.^[46]

They emerged into the world and wandered about, searching for a home.^[46]

The race of dwarves awakened and emerged from the expansive titan-created city of Uldaman, located deep beneath the earth. They call their new civilization Khaz Modan.^[52]

At this point, the dwarves have "awakened" from ancient times, shaken deeply by the Sundering and forgetting much of what they were as a race. Emerging from beneath the earth, they begin to explore their surroundings. Yet they no longer have skin of stone, but are flesh like other races — losing all knowledge of their racial heritage, especially knowledge of the titans who created them and of their purpose (to shape the world).^[53]

Dwarven history tells little of this period. Except for occasional armed expeditions from one clanhold to another, they sealed themselves underground. They neither knew nor cared what went on outside their mountain homes.^[54]

They have stone hides (or "rock skin") and are more "elemental" in nature.^[51] They do not need to breathe and can tunnel around without shovels or picks.^[46] They are immortal.^[46]

Khaz'Goroth was the facility overseer of the facility near Bael Modan nearly 100,000 years ago. His scientists began the first series of experiments to create a race of stone, known as the "earthen". What was made here turned into troggs. When the titans saw how brutal and misshapen the troggs were, they buried them in the northern vault of the facility.^[47]

Most pre-Sundering history was later forgotten as the earthen entered their slumber, and changed into the beings they are now. Brann Bronzebeard states in one of his books that when the humans first met the dwarves they just simply called them dwarves.

Back when we created Ironforge we had no idea that anyone else existed in the world. We didn’t even have a written language — everything was handed down by word of mouth. Naturally, facts became legends, and legends became forgotten. The early dwarves were so busy mining and smithing their little hearts out that remembering the past just didn’t seem all that important. They got very, very good at smelting ore and making things, but that was about it. However, from what we know of those early days, my people were happy. Then, one day, a couple of thousand years ago or so, the first humans appeared at the gates of Ironforge. We know this because human-written tales of the day tell of the race of short, stocky, bearded master smiths who shared a great love of crafting and storytelling. Dwarves, they called us, and thus we are known today, even though at the time we didn’t know the word literally meant “diminutive.” Ah well, it could be worse — they could’ve called us "beard-men" or "rockheads" or something like that.^[46]

Notes and trivia

The script of [Ancient Journal] is referred to as ancient earthen.^[55]
Before the War of the Ancients, the term "dwarf" was used as a derogatory term by the night elves towards the earthen.^[56]
Some Lunar Festival Elders such as Elder Bronzebeard (Bronzebeard), Elder Ironband (Dark Iron) and Elder Firebeard (Wildhammer), are earthen. This may suggest that the dwarven clans started as earthen ones.
Previous lore had different origins for the earthen, dwarves, and troggs. According to the Lore Keeper of Norgannon, earthen afflicted with the Curse of Flesh would turn either into troggs, or dwarves.^[7] According to the Tribunal of Ages, the earthen were created before the Old Gods were imprisoned. When they were cursed with flesh, the Forge of Wills was created to churn out new earthen, and the Dragon Aspects were appointed. Then Loken put the original earthen into stasis, and they eventually woke up millennia later as dwarves.^[57] According to [Ironforge - the Awakening of the Dwarves], the earthen sealed themselves within multiple facilities (Uldaman, Uldum, Ulduar...) instead of just Uldaman following the Great Sundering.^[9] Chronicle Volume 1 later retconned and clarified the events and timeline as detailed in the rest of the article.
Female earthen didn't appear until The War Within.
It was decided early on in the earthen's development that they wouldn't eat. This is reflected in game design, with earthen towns lacking such amenities.^[32]

Speculation

This article or section includes speculation, observations or opinions possibly supported by lore or by Blizzard officials. It should not be taken as representing official lore.

The Frostborn model is a recolored earthen model, including the head gem.

The frostborn use recolored earthen models. It is thus unsure if they are actually icy earthen, or dwarves who have adapted to their environment. They are however referred to as "frost dwarves" and, contrary to earthen,^[31] are capable of bleeding.^[58] Brann makes note that they originated from Earthen in his titan-forged chart, and the Frostborn also make note of their heritage.