Gregory

This article is about the human character. For his Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos appearance, see Sage Truthbearer (Warcraft III). For his World Editor version, see Sir Gregory Edmunson. For the tauren, see Sage Truthseeker.

Gregory
Title	<Truthbearer>
Gender	Male
Race	Undead (Humanoid)
Level	45 - 60 Elite
Class	Death knight (formerly paladin)
Reaction	Alliance Horde
Affiliation(s)	Independent
Former affiliation(s)	Scourge, Champions of Truth, Knights of the Silver Hand, Kingdom of Lordaeron, Alliance of Lordaeron
Former occupation(s)	Agent of the Scourge, Leader of the Champions of Truth, Paladin of the Silver Hand
Location	Bloodvenom Falls, Felwood; Caer Darrow, Western Plaguelands; Darkwhisper Gorge, Winterspring; Ruins of Andorhal; Demon Fall Canyon
Status	Active

Sir Gregory Edmunson, also known by his paladin name of Sage Truthbearer, is an undead death knight. Once a member of the Order of the Silver Hand, he was raised into undeath after he was killed by Arthas Menethil in Andorhal. Although he was freed from the control of the Lich King, Gregory still chose to serve him of his own free will, deeming that it was the only possible path to protect Azeroth from threats like the Burning Legion. During the events of Season of Discovery, Gregory allied with his old friend Aeonas and the paladin adventurer to find and destroy the demonic Echoing Orbs. After the death of Aeonas and the defeat of Azgaloth, Gregory chose not to return to Northrend and left in search of others who, like him, have fallen and now seek to find their way back to Light.

History

Gregory Edmunson as a human death knight.

In life, Gregory was a paladin in the Order of the Silver Hand, where he earned the title "Truthbearer" and became close friends with his fellow paladin Aeonas. As the leader of the Champions of Truth, he fought under Uther the Lightbringer in the Third War and ultimately died protecting King Terenas's urn alongside his commander and Ballador the Bright in Andorhal. He was subsequently raised as a death knight of the Scourge, and like most of the undead mindlessly obeyed the Lich King's commands. He regained his free will after the Lich King was weakened by Illidan Stormrage's attack on the Frozen Throne, but the knowledge he had gained from serving convinced him that against the myriad cosmic forces that threatened Azeroth, only undeath offered a path to victory. Though he could not forgive Arthas Menethil for his crimes, he nevertheless freely pledged his service to his former prince.

His travels eventually brought him back to his old friend Aeonas, whose help he sought to destroy weapons of the Burning Legion. Aeonas agreed to aid him, rationalizing that the Legion was their mutual foe and hoping that he could find a way to bring his friend back to the Light. Together they recovered an Echoing Orb from the Mannoroc Coven in Desolace but required the aid of a paladin adventurer to obtain the materials needed to destroy it. As Gregory performed the ritual, he revealed that the adventurer's death was to be the final component, considering it a necessary sacrifice to destroy the orb. Aeonas, lamenting that he had let himself be blinded by hope, struck Gregory down with the Light.

Gregory survived, though his body was badly damaged by Aeonas's holy fire. When he received word that the Burning Blade was planning on stealing the orb from Stormwind City, he decided to steal it himself to protect it. Ada Darkhardt, a paladin Gregory had previously tempted away from the Silver Hand, left the bodies of the Burning Blade in the vault as a trail to lead the paladin adventurer back to them. Gregory admitted that trying to sacrifice them was short-sighted, acknowledging that it ultimately failed to accomplish his goal but never quite apologizing. He regretted alienating Aeonas after all the effort he'd made to win his trust, and now believed that another way to destroy the orb could be found that would not require ritual sacrifice. However, as the incomplete ritual had altered the orb, it would require something stronger than the paladin's blood.

The solution was eventually found when the paladin obtained a sample of Uther the Lightbringer's blood. Gregory took Ada and the paladin to Darkwhisper Gorge, where the barrier with the Twisting Nether was thinner, to re-attempt the ritual to destroy the orb. It was interrupted when the dreadlord Diathorus the Seeker arrived and killed Ada, breaking Gregory's concentration and causing the pit lord Azgaloth to be summoned on Azeroth. The two demons teleported away to Demon Fall Canyon.

Gregory knew that Uther's blood would be required to slay Azgaloth, but it had been lost in the failed ritual. After speaking to the bronze dragon Chromie, she agreed to send them into Andorhal's past to retrieve a sample of Uther's blood from just after his death. As he was still injured from Diathorus's attack, he recommended that Aeonas accompany the adventurer in his stead. Though the adventurer returned with the blood, Aeonas was killed escaping from the Scourge. Gregory accepted Aeonas's sword,  [Truthbearer], despite the pain he felt holding a consecrated weapon. Once Azgaloth had been slain, Gregory told the adventurer that he would not return to Northrend. He realized, like Aeonas did, that this mission changed him, making him feel sadness, regret, and love once again. Sadness for Ada's death, regret for his betrayal, and love for his old friend. Instead, he would travel Lordaeron and search for others like him who had fallen from the light but were trying to find their way back. He noted that Truthbearer no longer caused him pain, but still gifted it to the adventurer as it was not his to wield.

He later moved back to Tirisfal Glades, being happy to see many of his former Lordaeron compatriots risen an finding new purpose in undeath.

Quests

•   [50] Materials of Significance
•   [60] Plaguelands Rendezvous

Quotes

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

• "Light have mercy on you! Your betrayal has broken Uther's heart, boy. He would have given his life for yours in a second, and this is how you repay his loyalty?"

The subject of this section is unique to the World of Warcraft Classic: Season of Discovery.

Gossip

My word, <name>. You look nearly as pale as I am. You'd think you'd spoken to the dead. <Gregory chuckles to himself>

 I've no time for games, undead. I need you to make this make sense to me.

Very well, very well.

It is as Aeonas said. I was once a paladin, just like yourself. I believed fiercely in Lordaeron, in the Silver Hand, in my oath. My heart broke when Arthas plunged his blade into my King's heart and I fought until my last ounce of strength was gone on the day he killed my lord The Lightbringer in Andorhal.

 Yet here you stand, under the banner of the Lich King.

Yet here I stand. At first my soul railed against what was done to me, to my homeland, to my friends and family. As time passed in death however, I was able to find perspective. Yes at first I was what Aeonas initially feared me to be. A mindless thrall. But just as the^[sic] Arthas threw off the chains of the legion and freed himself, the dominating grip of the Lich King slackened in the minds of his minions and I was able to free myself as well.

 After what you've seen, what he made you do... how could you serve him still?

In life, my brothers called me "Truthbearer" and I was hailed for my introspection and sage wisdom. As I rediscovered the parts of myself that were lost, my eyes were open, and I began to feel the burden of the knowledge that I was able to glean from the mind of the Lich King while under his domination. There is part of me that will never forgive Arthas for what he did, but I cannot ignore the cold, hard truth.

 What is that truth?

That our world is but a tiny spec^[sic] in the grand cosmic game. There are forces far beyond our ken lurking in the darkness. Titans, Demons... the Void. They are all deadly beyond anything we've known, and they are all hungrily devouring world after world in pursuit of their own ends. What hope do the mortals of Azeroth have against such forces? We need to be stronger, we need to be more than we are to be able to stand against that. We need to be undying.

 This is delusion. The only thing that undeath brings is oblivion.

Does it? Or is that what you tell yourself to maintain your righteousness and clarity of purpose, <name>. In death, we can be all we are, and so much more. And we need to be more to fight against what is coming. But it is not my place here today to sway you to my perspective. My mission is simple: find and destroy the orbs. For that, I need allies.

 You are a member of the Scourge, your numbers are nearly endless. Why not just march an army down from northrend^[sic] and seize these orbs that way? Why do you need the living at all?

Not every problem is a rock that requires a hammer to break. For some things, the slender, sharper blade is the better tool. This mission requires guile and subterfuge as much as it requires strength of arms, and there are some places that someone like me and mine cannot go.

 Okay, let's say I agree to help you. What is next?

What is next is to continue our mission. Thanks to your efforts, the first orb has been destroyed, and we must find a way to destroy the one that Aeonas and I recovered from the Mannoroc Coven. We must do this before we begin the search for the others. Having more than one in close proximity could be incredibly dangerous.

 Very well, for now we work together, but the moment you turn against us I will destroy you.

I'm sure you would try, paladin.

Tirisfal Glades gossip

Greetings, <class>. Please, don't mind me. I've merely found my way here to pay my respects to some fallen friends.

Much has changed here since... my former life. But seeing how many of my friends and countrymen have risen again and are finding new purpose fills me with hope. Who knows, perhaps some may find their way back to the light, as I have?

Notes

• In Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos, the unit Sage Truthbearer was referred to internally in the files as "Gregory Edmunson." There was also a unit in the Editor that shared the same model named Sir Gregory Edmunson. Given Gregory's title of "Truthbearer" and references to his "sage wisdom," it is clear they are intended to be one and the same.
  • This is later confirmed when Aeonas sees Gregory's fallen body during the return to Andorhal. There, Gregory's body is still named Sage Truthbearer.
• He doesn't appear in the novel Arthas: Rise of the Lich King, but his quotes are said by Gavinrad the Dire.

Patch changes

• Patch 1.15.2 (2024-04-02): Added.
  

External links

• Wowhead
• WoWDB