Akarek
 Akarek | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Title | Margrave |
| Gender | Male |
| Race | Aranakk |
| Affiliation(s) | House of Eyes |
| Occupation | Leader of the House of Eyes |
| Status | Deceased |
| Student(s) | Draka, Vashj |
“No matter what happens now, Maldraxxus must stay true to its purpose. For if we fail in our duty, the Shadowlands will fall.”
- — Akarek to Draka[1]
Margrave Akarek was the leader of the House of Eyes, one of the five Necrolord houses of Maldraxxus, until he was killed in a plot by the traitor House of Rituals.
Biography
Akarek personally trained one of his two baronesses, Draka, in combat. At one point, the two traveled to a world controlled by Azgoth, a lord of the Burning Legion, and stole a set of maps from his stronghold.[1][Note 1]
Before the fall of his house, the margrave sent his second baroness, Vashj, to investigate suspicious behavior in the House of Rituals.[3] Following the mysterious destruction of the House of Plagues, Akarek suspected that Maldraxxus' purpose was in peril, and sent Draka to deliver a vital message to Margrave Krexus of the House of the Chosen. Shortly after Draka departed, the house's necropolis Nurakkir exploded, taking Akarek with it[1]—the work of members of the House of Rituals serving the traitorous Baron Kel'Thuzad.[4][5] Draka eventually reached Margrave Krexus and delivered her lord's final message, which stated "I offer the key to saving Maldraxxus". Krexus and Draka both realized that Draka was the key in question, meaning that Akarek had suspected that his demise was imminent and had sent Draka to relative safety with Krexus. That day, Draka joined the House of the Chosen.[1]
The House of Eyes still struggles to persist through Akarek's demise.[6][7] Shortly after his death, Vashj continued trying to complete his final mission[8] and avenge him by killing Mor'Bitan—one of the Ritualist liches involved in his death—and managed to do so with the help of mortal Maw Walkers.[9][10] Later, Vashj's devoted Khaliiq got her own vengeance for the margrave[11] by killing the rest of the Kel'Thuzad loyalists that had been involved in Nurakkir's destruction, led by Zelmany,[4] Drava'ora,[5] and Fal'zinge.[12]
Notes and trivia
- The slime river flowing from Nurakkir's crash site is named Akarek's Tears after the margrave.
- The Eye Navigator Xennir at one point uses the parting phrase "Akarek's cunning guide you".[13]
- Akarek, being a spider-man that collects information and was a master of deception as the spymaster of Maldraxxus, may be derived from the parallel motifs of trickster, deceptive spider deities who are also associated with collecting knowledge and stories, like the Akan Anansi and the Lakota Iktomi.
- Akarek is voiced by Dee Bradley Baker.
- His name may be inspired by Acererak, a powerful demilich from Dungeons & Dragons.
Gallery
Akarek briefing Draka.
Draka witnesses the margrave's death.
Footnotes
- ^ Afterlives: Maldraxxus shows Akarek and Draka stealing a map from a demon citadel on an unspecified jungle world, but the scene reuses a shot of three felguards from Harbingers - Illidan. In an interview with Screen Rant, Steve Danuser stated that the reused shot is an intentional reference to Harbingers.[2] Patch 9.1 added the
[Azgoth's Tattered Maps] item, whose flavor text states that it was "Obtained by The House of Eyes", ostensibly confirming that Azgoth's world and the world that Akarek and Draka visited are the same.
References
- ^ a b c d Afterlives: Maldraxxus
- ^ Cody Gravelle 2020-10-30. Steve Danuser WoW Shadowlands Interview: Good, Evil, & In Between. Screen Rant. Retrieved on 2021-08-20.
- ^
[53-60] A Common Peril
- ^ a b [60] You Cannot Run
- ^ a b [60] You Cannot Hide
- ^
[60] Eyes to the Sky
- ^ [60] Whisper of Hope
- ^ [53-60] Glorious Pursuits
- ^ Vashj#Gossip
- ^ [53-60] Straight to the Heart
- ^ [60] Akarek Avenged
- ^ [60] You Can Only Die
- ^ [60] No Friend Left Behind