Lordaeron
- This article is about the continent. For the human kingdom of the same name, see Lordaeron (kingdom). For the Silverpine Forest quest, see
[5-30] Lordaeron. For other uses, see Lordaeron (disambiguation).
Lordaeron (/ˈlɔːr.də.rɒn/ LOR-də-ron) is the northernmost continent[n 1] of the Eastern Kingdoms. It was named after Lordain, a general of the Empire of Arathor who sacrificed himself in the Troll Wars.[1] Separated from Khaz Modan by a narrow strait, the continent of Lordaeron stretches from the Arathi Highlands in the south to the Eversong Woods in the far north. Historically, the continent has been populated by humans in the northern, western and southern regions, trolls in the eastern regions; the Hinterlands and Zul'Aman, and high elves in the far-northern Quel'Thalas.
The climate of Lordaeron is moderate, although the land is rugged and largely mountainous in and around the Hinterlands, Alterac and Arathi Highlands. The southern, northern, and western regions of Hillsbrad, Gilneas, and Tirisfal are characterized by mild forests and farmlands whereas the north-eastern region of Zul'Aman is covered by a thick and wild forest.
After the recent events of the Third War and the war against the Lich King, however, the vast majority of the human population has turned undead, and the high elves are now mostly known as blood elves.
History
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Cataclysm
Following the Cataclysm, the Forsaken began a military campaign to secure their hold over Lordaeron. By orders of Warchief Garrosh Hellscream, Sylvanas Windrunner mobilized her undead forces to invade the Gilneas peninsula, in order to secure its ressources[2] and use it as a port for the Horde in southern Lordaeron.[3]
Battle for Azeroth
The Fourth War drastically reshaped the balance of power in the Eastern Kingdoms, especially in Lordaeron. Following the Battle for Lordaeron, which ended with Sylvanas Windrunner releasing the blight and rendering the Capital City uninhabitable, Lordaeron was apparently militarily occupied by the Alliance forces afterwards.[4] According to Captain Roderick Brewston, the Alliance fighting to reclaim Arathi Highlands during the Battle for Stromgarde was largely to ensure that they are able to continue to occupy neighboring Lordaeron.[5] The war eventually ended in an uneasy armistice, with the Alliance successfully returning most of the Arathi Highlands back into the Kingdom of Stromgarde's sovereign control.[6] Meanwhile, Tirisfal Glades remained under Forsaken control, although Lordaeron Keep itself remained blighted.[7]
Geography
Zones
Alterac Mountains- Arathi Highlands (Classic)
- Hillsbrad Foothills (Classic)
- The Hinterlands (Classic)
- The Plaguelands
- Silverpine Forest (Classic)
- Tirisfal Glades (Classic)
Quel'Thalas
- Gilneas (starting zone)
- Tol Barad
Lore locations
Other
In the RPG
Lordaeron is one of the three continents[8] that form the continent of Azeroth.[9][10][11][12] Its name comes from the three main Alliance race languages: "lorn" (in Dwarven) that means "land", "daer" (in Common) that means "people" and "ronae" (in Thalassian) that means peaceful.[13]
Lordaeron is the most dangerous land outside of Northrend. The Scourge rules much of the continent, and the newly freed Forsaken, who have yet to choose a side, stir beneath the earth. Humans still hold a few shattered realms, but battle hopelessly against enemies old and new. Murlocs, naga and ogres fight against the struggling nations. Human brigands attack and murder their own kind. Forest trolls from Zul'Aman strike out to regain their ancient territory, and human fanatics fight a private crusade against the Scourge. Lordaeron is a land of chaos, where innumerable factions clash across the ashes to further their own trivial aims.[14]
Notes and trivia
- ^ The continents of Lordaeron, Azeroth, and Khaz Modan — as part of the larger Eastern Kingdoms continent — would technically be referred to as subcontinents in real-world geographical/geological terminology. But the term isn't used in any published Warcraft source.
- The demonym of Lordaeron and the homonymous kingdom and city founded upon it is "Lordaeronian".[15]
- After the Third War, the Alliance Remnants and particularly the blood elves hid caches of gold, lumber, and artifacts such as magical small buildings all over western Lordaeron.[16][17]
- In Mists of Pandaria Lordaeronians had German accents (heard with bosses in Scarlet Halls, Scarlet Monastery, and Scholomance), but this accent has never been present in any appearances before or since Mists.
- It was previously stated that the continent had been named after the city-state of Lordaeron,[18] Chronicle 1 seems to change this, instead being the continent named after Lordain and the city after the continent.
- Lordaeron is a melee tileset in Warcraft III with three variants: Summer, Fall and Winter.
Gallery
Lordaeron in Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness.
Map of central Lordaeron in Warcraft III.
Map of Quel'Thalas and Zul'Aman in Warcraft III.
- Fanart
Detailed fan map of Lordaeron by Kuusinen.
References
- ^ World of Warcraft: Chronicle Volume 1, pg. 133
- ^ Battle for Gilneas battleground description
- ^ Edge of Night
- ^
[50] Back to Boralus
- ^ [50] Back to Boralus
- ^ Turalyon's gossip in Stormwind Keep
- ^ World of Warcraft: Exploring Azeroth: The Eastern Kingdoms, pg. 106
- ^ Lands of Conflict, backcover quote: "...the eastern continents of Azeroth, Khaz Modan and Lordaeron..."
- ^ Lands of Conflict, pg. 17: "...the Arathi assured them the land would always belong to all peoples and named the land as a whole in homage to their ancient ancestors: Azeroth."
- ^ Lands of Conflict, pg. 17: "The envoy explained that long after the destruction wrought by the Maelstrom, some of the survivors had made their way to northern Azeroth and established a new kingdom, called Quel'Thalas, and a new source of magical power, called the Sunwell."
- ^ World of Warcraft: The Roleplaying Game, pg. 362: "On both Kalimdor and Azeroth, war and time have left much of the land in ruins, and civilization is often limited to the land enclosed inside city walls."
- ^ Dark Factions, pg. 11: "...but they exist on coastlines throughout the world — Azeroth, Kalimdor, and Northrend all boast tribes of murlocs."
- ^ Lands of Conflict, pg. 19
- ^ Lands of Conflict, pg. 85
- ^ Sean Copeland on Twitter: "Lore from Chris Metzen and Micky Neilson! Alteraci (“alterackee”), Lordaeronian, Stromic, Dalaranian, Stormwindian. BOOM." March 10, 2014
- ^ Shards of the Alliance (WC3 NightElf)
- ^ Misconceptions (WC3 BloodElf)
- ^
[The Seven Kingdoms]
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