Liam Greymane
- For other Liams, see Liam (disambiguation).
 Liam Greymane | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Title | Crown Prince of Gilneas |
| Gender | Male |
| Race | Human (Humanoid) |
| Resource | Mana |
| Affiliation(s) | Greymane clan, Kingdom of Gilneas |
| Occupation | Crown Prince of Gilneas |
| Location |
Buried in Aderic's Repose (lore); Various (WoW) |
| Status | Deceased |
| Relative(s) |
Genn (father), Mia (mother), Tess (sister), Archibald (grandfather) |
“We protected Gilneas from the Scourge, we protected Gilneas during the Northgate rebellion. We will protect Gilneas from whatever this new threat may be.”
- — Prince Liam Greymane during the Wolf Cult's attack on Gilneas City
Prince Liam Greymane was a member of the royal family of Gilneas, and the son and heir of King Genn Greymane. He was killed by Sylvanas Windrunner during the battle for Gilneas City.
Biography
Lord of His Pack
As a teenager, Liam often disagreed with his father and had quarrels with him, particularly over seceding from the Alliance and constructing the Greymane Wall. When the Plague of Undeath began to overtake Lordaeron, causing the nation to plead for aid from Gilneas, Liam rebuked his father for not sending any help to their fellow kingdom. A slightly drunken Genn — furious that his own son would question him — threw his goblet of wine across the floor, insisted that the wall would protect Gilneas from the undead, and stated that he would not risk the lives of any Gilneans by sending them to fight the Scourge, just as his own father wouldn't have. Liam accused Genn of always trying to emulate his father and that there were other ways to consider, but Genn replied that it was a prince's duty to strive to be like his father. Liam retorted that he thought it was a prince's duty to one day be a great king. The prince then took his leave, knowing that the argument was lost.
After the Third War began, Liam watched alongside Genn, Archmage Arugal, and a guard captain from atop the Greymane Wall as a massive sea of the Scourge assaulted it in waves. Liam told his father that he should have listened to him. Genn — angered that his son would question him again, this time in public while he was trying to instill courage in the wall's defenders — brusquely told his son that now was not the time.[1]
The Fall of Gilneas
Several days prior to the Wolf Cult's attack on Gilneas City, King Genn ordered Liam to increase the presence of the military across Gilneas, concerned with the growing number of attacks across the kingdom, of which included the Starlight Slasher murders. When questioned on whether these troops should be moved from the Greymane Wall, King Genn refused to allow it, stating the neighboring Forsaken would use any opportunity to exploit a weakness on the wall. Not wanting to alarm the civilians with the sudden upsurge of military forces, Liam was instructed to simply state that the Northgate rebels were acting up again.[2]
The Wolf Cult's attack
On the day of the Wolf Cult's attack on Gilneas City, as the capital was put under complete lockdown, Prince Liam arrived with a regiment of soldiers and ordered them to secure the exits and the security perimeters for the citizens in the Merchant Square, while expecting to be outnumbered.[3] The prince then ordered the Gilnean adventurer to follow the instructions of Lieutenant Walden, however, the latter was found brutally murdered in an alley, and the worgen began to attack the district.[4] Although on Liam's order, their numbers were reduced during the fighting, the square was eventually overwhelmed by the worgen,[5] and the prince ordered the Gilnean adventurer to evacuate civilians to the Military District where his father and his troops could protect them,[6] while he and the guards would cover their retreat.[7]
Prince Liam later met with his father and the former rebel Darius Crowley in the Greymane Court. When Darius told Genn that some would have to remain behind to distract the worgen, in order to allow the rest of the Gilneans to evacuate from the city, Liam wished to stay behind with the Royal Guard and protect the city. However, Crowley retorted that it would be better for Liam to accompany Genn, since they couldn't afford to have the king wondering if his son was alive or not.[8] Shortly after Darius and his rebels left to create a suicide diversion at Light's Dawn Cathedral, his daughter Lorna Crowley arrived to ask where her father was following his release. Prince Liam thus had no choice but to tell her that Darius and his men had volunteered to make a suicide diversion at Light's Dawn Cathedral. In a fit of rage, Lorna threatened King Greymane with a gun, accusing him of sadistically having her father released only to have him killed for final revenge after the Northgate Rebellion. Although the king tried to deny the accusations, Liam managed to stop her, and while she mourned the certain death of her father in the prince's arms, Genn started the evacuation of the Gilnean population towards Duskhaven.[9]
One day later, King Greymane received a report from Prince Liam that their men had spotted worgen in the woods near Duskhaven, and that Lord Vincent Godfrey wished to eliminate them all. However, the king ordered that they should be captured rather than killed, since they were cursed civilians and not members of the Wolf Cult.[9] Despite all that happened, Liam still believed in his father, despite Genn's doubts, as he believed Genn could be a great leader once again if he could only regain his confidence in himself. Liam later observed the effects of Krennan Aranas' elixir on the worgen.[10]
A young Liam as seen in Curse of the Worgen.
Prince Liam leading the Gilneas City Guards in Merchant Square.
Liam and his father in Greymane Court.
Liam comforts a mourning Lorna Crowley.
The Forsaken invasion
At some point, Liam started drinking to drown his regrets of being unable to prevent the loss of Gilneas City, but when the Forsaken attacked Gilneas, he and his men fought back. As the undead troops reached Duskhaven, the alert was triggered by Liam who led the men to protect the village, while Mayor Gwen Armstead sent the adventurer to support them. The prince was overjoyed to reunite with the adventurer from Gilneas City, even though the hero had now been transformed into a worgen. On the battlefield, the prince tasked them with eliminating large numbers of enemy soldiers as well as using explosives to destroy their abominations.[11][12] At the same time, King Greymane ordered Krennan to use his remaining potions on all the feral worgen they had captured. Despite Godfrey's opposition, the worgen were freed and led by Genn onto the battlefield, where they massacred the Forsaken and forced them to retreat to form a larger force. Although King Greymane wanted to continue the fight, Liam managed to convince him to leave the battlefield, as his people needed him more than ever in these dark times.[10]
While Liam was heading towards the main Forsaken army, the Cataclysm occurred and drowned the land near Duskhaven, and Liam assisted in rescuing drowning Gilnean soldiers and helped evacuate the village. After the earthquakes swallowed up much of the land near Duskhaven, Prince Liam ordered Mayor Armstead to begin preparations to once again evacuate the refugees to higher ground.[13] At the same time, Liam assisted in rescuing drowning Gilnean soldiers[14] and stayed with some of his men to continue the fight against the Forsaken on the remaining coasts. However, they were soon interrupted by earthquakes that destroyed what remained of the area, and the prince watched helplessly the devastation, imploring the Light to come to their aid.[10]
During the evacuation towards Stormglen Village, the stagecoach of Prince Liam tipped on the main road due to an ogre ambush while the members of a second coach were not so lucky, as their carriage careened over the edge of a steep hill and into the Hailwood Marsh, where they battled crocolisks to stay alive. When the worgen adventurer arrived, Liam tasked them to save all the survivors while he came up with a plan to deal with the Servants of Koroth.[15] After the prince learned that the Forsaken troops were after the refugees, he planned to stop them by stealing Koroth's banner from his den with the help of the adventurer, and then planted it before the squadron. When Koroth came, he mistakenly believed that the Forsaken took the banner and slaughtered all of them in the area.[16]
Liam with a beard in Curse of the Worgen.
Prince Liam after the loss of Gilneas City.
Liam witnesses the destruction of Duskaven by the Cataclysm.
Prince Liam at Stagecoach Crash Site.
The Battle for Gilneas City
“The Forsaken think we're weak. A broken people. They think we'll roll over like a scared dog. How wrong they are. We will fight them in the fields until the last trench collapses and the last cannon is silenced. We will fight them on the streets until the last shot is fired. And when there's no more ammunition, we'll crush their skulls with the stones that pave our city. We will fight them in the alleys, until our knuckles are skinned and bloody and our rapiers lay in the ground shattered. And if we find ourselves surrounded and disarmed... wounded and without hope... we will lift our heads in defiance and spit in their faces. But we will... NEVER SURRENDER!!!!! FOR GILNEAS!!!”
- — Prince Liam Greymane's speech during the Battle for Gilneas City.
A few days after the death of Lord Vincent Godfrey at Tempest's Reach, the Gilnean went to listen to King Greymane's speech at Livery Outpost. Shortly before, Genn revealed to Liam the truth behind Archmage Arugal's summoning of the worgen during the Third War, including his responsibility in this decision. He also revealed how he and the other nobles relentlessly hunted the bloodthirsty beasts to extinction, without much success as he was infected during one of the hunts. Nevertheless, Liam accepted his father's revelations, leading to a reconciliation between him and his father. Before leaving, Genn told his son that he never told him that he loved him, but that he meant it every day.[10]
After the adventurer helped to reclaim Emberstone Village from the Forsaken,[17][18] Prince Liam gathered the Gilnean Militias at the bridge between Livery Outpost and the Merchant Square's gates, where he gave an impassioned speech before leading the charge to begin the battle of Gilneas City. He then led the charge, and the Gilnean forces began clearing the area of all the Forsaken and the Dark Ranger Elite at their head. Once the district was secured, everyone headed in the direction of the Military District to continue the reconquest. They were soon blocked by abominations at the entrance to the Military District, until they received cannons in support by the citizens of Emberstone Village. Soon, they eliminated all the Forsaken forces there and Liam united with Lord Crowley's worgen forces around Stoneward Prison, where the Forsaken unleashed upon the Gilneans one of their most powerful creations — the flesh beast known as Gorerot. However, they took control of Forsaken catapults and used them to take down Gorerot quickly, before continuing their assault at the Greymane Court.
When Liam and Crowley caught Sylvanas Windrunner herself at the Greymane Court, King Greymane and his forces came and attacked from the other side. As the tide was turning against the Banshee Queen, she used her dark powers to stun everyone in the immediate area and aimed a poisoned arrow at Genn. However, Liam jumped in front of the bowshot, saving his father from certain doom. As Sylvanas fled the scene, Liam died in the arms of his father, with the knowledge that the city had been freed from Forsaken control.[19]
After the battle, the worgen adventurer informed the king that the Forsaken were going to use the New Plague, and Genn made the difficult choice not to pursue his son's murderer but to respect his wish to prioritize the safety of the civilians before all.[20] While the worgen adventurer bombarded the Forsaken forces at the Northern Headlands, to delay their use of the blight, all the survivors were evacuated to Aderic's Repose by passing through the Undertaker's Pass, a subterranean passage hidden beneath a fishing shop in the district.[21][22] In the final moments of the evacuation, Prince Liam was laid to rest in a coffin in front of the patriarch's tomb. During the ceremony, King Greymane and the Crowley family paid their final respects and made a promise to him to liberate Gilneas one day.[23]
Liam and his father reconciling at Livery Outpost.
Liam and the Gilnean Militias during the battle for Gilneas City.
King Genn mourning the death of his son.
Legacy
After Liam's death, Genn continued to be haunted by the memory of his son, particularly the quarrels they had and the sight of the prince's dying body after the battle for Gilneas City. During the exodus to Darnassus, Genn nearly drowned while saving Mia and Tess from the sinking Elune's Radiance. After he was saved by Talar Oaktalon, Genn told the night elf that he had been dreaming of Liam and that while there would be times when his child's death would hit him like a stone thrown at his chest, he could take comfort and pride in knowing that his son had been a wiser man than him.[1]
In Stormheim, when Genn stole and destroyed the magical Soulcage from Sylvanas Windrunner to prevent her from enslaving Eyir, he said: "You took my son's future, and now I've taken yours".[24]
During the battle at the Gates of Orgrimmar, Genn made reference to avenging Liam when the Gilnean forces were sent to flank Orgrimmar during Varok Saurfang's rebellion. He ultimately was outraged to find that Sylvanas had escaped yet again, denying him justice.[25][26] Liam's death was later relived by his sister, Tess Greymane, in a vision granted to her by Goldrinn of what she could have changed as a worgen during the battle for Gilneas City. Tess was unable to prevent her brother's death, leading to her falling into an enraged state before being defeated and calmed by the worgen hero assisting her. She forlornly realized that she couldn't have saved Liam either, before coming to terms with her reasons for seeking out the worgen curse.[27]
As Genn once promised, the Gilneans eventually managed to retake the city over a decade after their exile. Following the Scarlet Crusade's defeat, his sister and father reflected on how they never healed from his death, and still missed Liam.[28] Genn then made his way to Liam's grave, where he reflected on the past, and expressed that Gilneas was now in the best of hands, with Tess as the new Queen of the kingdom.[29]
Locations
| Location | Level range | Reaction | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Various in Gilneas City and Gilneas | 1-30 Normal/Elite | Friendly | As part of the worgen starting experience. |
| Gilneas City | 50-70 | Alliance | During the Heritage of Gilneas. |
Abilities
- Multi-Shot
Shoot — Shoots at an enemy, inflicting Physical damage.
Soldier of the Battle for Gilneas City — Proximity to a leader of the Battle for Gilneas City grants you high morale.
Strength of Rye — That hits the spot!
Throw Bottle — Stuns the target for 4 seconds.
Quests
- In Gilneas city
[1-30] Lockdown! 
- [1-30] All Hell Breaks Loose
- [1-30] Evacuate the Merchant Square
- [1-30] Royal Orders
- [1-30] The Battle for Gilneas City
- In Duskhaven
- [1-30] Hold the Line
- [1-30] You Can't Take 'Em Alone
- [1-30] Holding Steady
- [1-30] Gasping for Breath
- [1-30] Evacuation
- [1-30] Stranded at the Marsh
- [1-30] Introductions Are in Order
- [1-30] Stormglen
Quotes
Gossip
- Merchant Square
- It is not safe out here, <name>. Seek shelter before it's too late.
- We need you, <name>! There are worgen everywhere!
- Duskhaven
I failed to defend my people in Gilneas City. It seems the fates have given me a second chance, <name>. I will not fail again!
On-click
- Greetings
- For my people.
- For Gilneas!
Dialogue
- Main article: Lockdown! (quest)#Notes
- Main article: All Hell Breaks Loose#Notes
- Main article: Time to Regroup#Notes
- Main article: Introductions Are in Order#Notes
- Main article: The Battle for Gilneas City#Notes
Lord of His Pack
- "And what if these creatures get through your wall? What then, Father? Moreover, what if we could have done something to stop it beforehand?"
- "No, sir. I will not, until you have heard me out. Truly heard. Truly listened for once. They are pleading here, Father. Lordaeron only asks for our aid in a most desperate time. They are dying by the moment. These are not requests for tariffs or—..."
- "Always with Grandfather. Always. It’s as if you yourself are not king, just some steward keeping the chair warm until he returns."
Notes and trivia
- As Liam was a young teenager during the Greymane Wall going up and the Scourge attacking it; he would have been in his mid-twenties when he died.
- The speech made by Liam before the battle in Gilneas City is reminiscent of Winston Churchill's speech in the House of Commons on June 4, 1940, during the Battle of Britain. Faced with overwhelming odds, Churchill vowed that "we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender".
- He wielded a
[Rough Boomstick] during the Cataclysm beta, but wields a normal Gilnean rifle in the live version of the game. - Liam is voiced by Zach Appelman.
- Liam's ghost appears as a legendary card for the paladin class in the The Witchwood expansion for Hearthstone. His flavor text reads: "I have a very particular set of skills. Skills that make me a nightmare for witches like you." In Hearthstone lore, Liam's spirit is rumored to appear and help people in great danger, perhaps because he failed Gilneas once before and a desire to do better fetters him to the mortal plane, or perhaps because the curse of the Witchwood denies him eternal rest. Whatever the case, this version of Liam is not done serving Gilneas.[30]
Gallery
A drunken Liam in Duskhaven.
Prince Liam as he appeared prior to Warlords of Draenor.
Patch changes
Hotfix (2010-12-08): Liam has been given lessons in anger management and team work. He will now properly stay with his soldiers during "The Battle for Gilneas City" event. - Patch 4.0.3a (2010-11-23): Added.
References
- ^ a b Lord of His Pack
- ^ Curse of the Worgen, issue 2
- ^ [1-30] Lockdown!
- ^ [1-30] Something's Amiss
- ^ [1-30] All Hell Breaks Loose
- ^ [1-30] Evacuate the Merchant Square
- ^ [1-30] Royal Orders
- ^ [1-30] Time to Regroup
- ^ a b Curse of the Worgen Issue 4
- ^ a b c d Curse of the Worgen Issue 5
- ^ [1-30] Hold the Line
- ^ [1-30] You Can't Take 'Em Alone
- ^ [1-30] Evacuation
- ^ [1-30] Gasping for Breath
- ^ [1-30] Stranded at the Marsh
- ^ [1-30] Introductions Are in Order
- ^ [1-30] Liberation Day
- ^ [1-30] Push Them Out
- ^ [1-30] The Battle for Gilneas City
- ^ [1-30] Vengeance or Survival
- ^ [1-30] Slowing the Inevitable
- ^ [1-30] Knee-Deep
- ^ [1-30] Patriarch's Blessing
- ^ [10-45] Ending the New Beginning &
[10-45] A New Life for Undeath
- ^ [60] Strategic Deployment
- ^ [60] The Price of Victory
- ^ [50-70] Let Sleeping Wolves Lie
- ^
[70] Beginning a New Dawn
- ^ [70] What We Left Behind
- ^
Daxxarri 2018-04-11. The Witchwood – Mysterious Missives Part 1. Retrieved on 2018-06-08.