Teldrassil
- For the lore of the zone and its status before the Cataclysm, see Teldrassil (Classic).
 Teldrassil | |
|---|---|
| Level: 1-30 Battle Pet Level: 1 - 2 | |
 As seen in Exploring Azeroth: Kalimdor. | |
| Capital(s) |
 Darnassus † |
| Races |
  Night elf  Highborne Furbolg Dryad Keeper of the grove  Worgen  Human Harpy Satyr |
| Former ruler(s) |
 Tyrande Whisperwind  Malfurion Stormrage |
| Major settlements |
Aldrassil † Dolanaar † Starbreeze Village † |
| Minor settlements |
Rut'theran Village † Wellspring Hovel † Gnarlpine Hold † |
| Affiliation | Darnassus, Alliance, Gnarlpine tribe |
| Location | Veiled Sea, northwest of Northern Kalimdor |
| PvP status | Alliance territory |
| Status | Deceased |
“Teldrassil was the name given to the island, but only as an afterthought. The island was only an extension of the true Teldrassil... a titanic tree filling most of the land rising so high, the top vanished in the clouds. Its branches were so vast that they dwarfed some kingdoms. The thick crown could have housed an entire civilization — and did.”
Teldrassil (meaning "Crown of the Earth" in Darnassian) (/ˈtɛl.drə.sɪl/ TELL-druh-sill)[2] was a World Tree situated on the eponymous island off Kalimdor's northwestern coast.[3] Created shortly after the Third War by the night elves, Teldrassil served as their home and primary base of operations, its thick crown housing the capital city of Darnassus. Other major settlements on the tree included Rut'theran Village, Dolanaar and Shadowglen. Owing to its size, Teldrassil possessed its own unique ecosystem with a variety of flora, fauna, and vast twilit forests.
According to Broll Bearmantle, as a World Tree, Teldrassil was linked to the very health of Azeroth, affecting not merely its immediate surroudings, but those lands beyond the island, and a Teldrassil that was not well could not properly maintain the balance between nature and decay.[4] The new tree was not blessed by the Dragon Aspects at its birth, unlike its predecessor Nordrassil, which would ultimately leave it vulnerable to corruption from the Emerald Nightmare. After the War Against the Nightmare, it eventually received the blessings of Alexstrasza and Ysera, while all known lingering corruption was purged during the Cataclysm.[5]
Teldrassil served as the largest bastion of Alliance power in Kalimdor, and maintained naval connections to the mainland, the nearby Azuremyst Isles, and the distant Eastern Kingdoms. Many young and ambitious night elves began their journey out into the world from the verdant shelter of the World Tree. During the War of the Thorns—roughly a decade after its creation—Teldrassil was burned down by the Horde under the orders of Warchief Sylvanas Windrunner, killing many of the night elves dwelling in it.
History
Birth
After the events of the Burning Legion's second invasion in 21 ADP, Malfurion Stormrage was trapped by Xavius within the Emerald Dream. In Shan'do's absence, Archdruid Fandral Staghelm took over leadership of the Cenarion Circle and convinced the Circle of Ancients in Darkshore that it was time for the night elves to create a new World Tree and regain their immortality.
The Circle of Ancients and the wise druids led by Fandral combined their powers to grow an immense tree in the Veiled Sea. They called the tree Teldrassil, meaning "crown of the earth" in Darnassian.[6] The night elves made their new home of Darnassus in the boughs of Teldrassil, creating a forest of mighty trees and flowing rivers, bathed in the endless night that fell over the lands of the elves from the dawn of time. However, the tree did not restore the night elves' immortality; Nozdormu, whose blessing on Nordrassil had been the source of their immortality, saw the night elves' wish as arrogant and refused to bless Teldrassil.[7][8]
World of Warcraft
By the Year 25 ADP, the land atop Teldrassil fell into the shadow of a sinister presence. Local creatures such as furbolgs and grell went mad, and satyrs appeared, intent on further corrupting the land. Giant turtles and threshers known to inhabit the waters surrounding Teldrassil began fleeing the tree to beach themselves and die on Darkshore.[9][10] The source of this corruption remained a mystery for some time until the conflict of the Emerald Nightmare spilled into the waking world.
During the Scourge Invasion, Teldrassil was attacked by the Scourge.
Stormrage
After the Northrend campaign in 27 ADP, Malfurion was freed from the Nightmare and flew to Darnassus, where he discovered that a remnant of a great evil had been grafted by Fandral Staghelm when the World Tree was planted. By grafting Xavius' fel-tainted branch[11] into Teldrassil, Fandral had given Xavius, as well as the evil behind his transformation into the Nightmare Lord, a tie to both Azeroth and the Emerald Dream.[12]
Malfurion managed to remove the corrupt branch and eventually restore the tree to a state closer to what it originally should have been. Alexstrasza, impressed that the tree could prosper alone without her influence or her kin's, blessed it belatedly. She later blessed it again, along with Ysera this time, during the wedding of Malfurion and Tyrande Whisperwind—a blessing which protected Teldrassil to its final day.[13] The tree flourished even more under the gifts from the Life-Binder and the Dreamer, though it still cannot return the night elves' immortality without a blessing from Nozdormu.
Cataclysm
Around the time of the Cataclysm in 28 ADP, the worgen arrived at the cleansed Teldrassil. When Malfurion Stormrage checked the heart of the World Tree, there was no apparent corruption. The archdruid, however, remained vigilant as he knew that pockets of the taint remained in the Emerald Dream, so Teldrassil was still vulnerable.[14]
Some time later, Teldrassil's recovery slowed, and signs of the Nightmare's corruption resurfaced. Though already burdened by political tension and the vast destruction unleashed by the Cataclysm, the night elves worked to find the cause of their World Tree's ailment.[15] They discovered that this was no new corruption, but lingering remnants of the original corruption, being pushed out by Teldrassil itself. With the corruption having been buried deep within Teldrassil, it would have been impossible to strike at the source without killing the world tree itself,[16] but the Aspects' blessing allowed Teldrassil to force the taint to the surface in a form that the night elves could destroy.[17] The Bough of Corruption was the one last remnant of Xavius on Teldrassil, and was the source of the Fel Moss that tainted the gnarlpine, the timberlings, and other creatures.[16]
Fourth War and aftermath
“From these shores, you may gaze upon Teldrassil. Once a cradle of life, it is now a ruin of ash and fire. Even the World Trees must bow to the cycle of life. Everything born will die. No one understands this better than the Bronze Dragonflight....Teldrassil...a magnificent sight, was it not? Often the most beautiful things are the most fleeting. Especially when mortals insist on shooting them with fire.”
- — Zidormi
During the War of the Thorns in 33 ADP, hundreds of night elves were fleeing toward Darnassus from other parts of Teldrassil.[18] The World Tree was ultimately burned down by the Horde under the orders of Sylvanas Windrunner.[19] The Horde used demolishers with arcane-enhanced payload, while the shaman in Darkshore conjured winds to amplify the flames.[20] It was the largest fire Azeroth had ever seen.[21] Many survivors escaped to Stormwind City via portals, where they settled in the area around Olivia's Pond, with injured refugees in the Cathedral of Light and Stormwind Harbor and other small groups scattered throughout the city. Other survivors sailed to the beaches east of the besieged Lor'danel. From there, preparations were made to evacuate them to Azuremyst Isle while other night elves stayed in Darkshore to continue fighting the Horde.[22]
During a meeting with Tyrande, King Anduin vowed to recover Teldrassil, but was apparently unable to directly assist the night elves for the rest of the Fourth War,[23] as the Alliance could not spare soldiers to help retake what remained of Teldrassil.[24]
Zidormi is present at Darkshore near Lor'danel, and is able to send players back in time to see the region along with Teldrassil before the War of the Thorns.
Even after the armistice in 34 ADP, the husk of the tree still smoldered from the fire.[25]
In Year 40 ADP, after establishing Bel'ameth under Amirdrassil on the Dragon Isles, Tyrande proclaimed that once life returns to the shores of Teldrassil, the night elves will return and build anew.
Sylvanas, Nathanos, and Saurfang walk towards the shores of Darkshore seeing Teldrassil in the distance.
Teldrassil is set ablaze.
Teldrassil burning in the expansion reveal trailer.
Teldrassil burning in Battle for Azeroth.
Teldrassil's snag in the distance.
During the Terror of Darkshore trailer.
Geography
The majority of Teldrassil's upper reaches resembles a mid-sized forested island. Darnassus occupies a large chunk on the western side of this tree-island, while the towns of Aldrassil and Dolanaar dot the remaining forest. All forms of terrain exist here, including streams, lakes, hills, and mountains. The waterways were created and continue to be fed by the dew collected by the massive World Tree, and the night elves manipulated the waterways around Darnassus to maintain the splendor of the Temple Gardens.[26]
The entire zone of Teldrassil is, in fact, one huge tree, grown on an island off the coast of Kalimdor. As such, there are no ore deposits here and the night elves are not known as crafty blacksmiths or miners. However, because the tree is so full of life, herbs are numerous.
Teldrassil contains no dungeons, raid dungeons, micro dungeons, or battlegrounds. It is the starting area for the night elves and contains a very sheltered 1-5 leveling area, Shadowglen. The night elf capital city of Darnassus can also be found in this zone, though the travel hub is actually located at Rut'theran Village (accessible by portal from Darnassus).
At the tree's base, there are some pieces of wooded land between its roots, one of which has an abandoned furbolg house on it, as well as Rut'theran Village.
Although Teldrassil is only the size of a mid-sized island in width, its sheer height dwarfs many other islands.
Maps and subregions
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|
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A detailed area map (lists all creatures).
A topographic map of Teldrassil.
Travel hubs
Rut'theran Village is connected to Darnassus by a portal. Players can also reach Rut'theran Village by boat from Stormwind or Valaar's Berth.
This is also the only way for Horde players below level 60 to get to the island by themselves. One can attempt swimming from Darkshore using Swim Speed Potions and health potions, but this is not recommended.
- Flight paths from Dolanaar
- Darnassus, Teldrassil
- Flight paths from Darnassus
- Dolanaar, Teldrassil
- Rut'theran Village, Teldrassil
- Darnassus, Teldrassil
- Lor'danel, Darkshore
- The Exodar, Azuremyst Isle
Adjacent regions
| Zone Name | Faction | Level Range | Direction | Access |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Azuremyst Isle |
|
1-10 | Southwest | By boat from Rut'theran Village. |
| Darkshore | |
10 - 60 | Southeast, across the sea. | By swimming (not recommended), by flight path (Alliance only), or by flying mount. |
| Stormwind City | |
N/A | East |
Notable characters
- Main article: Teldrassil NPCs
Teldrassil is home to several night elves of status. From the top of the tree Aldrassil, Tenaron Stormgrip sends promising young elves out into the outside world. In Dolanaar, Tallonkai Swiftroot leads the effort to fight back the corrupted furbolgs and satyr of the Great Tree, while in his small tent near Lake Al'Ameth, Denalan seeks to understand the nature of the strange affliction seeping into Teldrassil.
Quests
- Main article: Teldrassil storyline
Resources
Wild creatures
Kalidar
Kalidar was the name Blizzard had originally used on their preview website as well as on several concept maps and in the World of Warcraft DVD for the island off the northwestern coast of Kalimdor where Teldrassil was grown. The night elves moved their capital to this island. The Circle of Ancients and the wise druids pooled their power to create a World Tree which eventually outgrew the island[27][28] and the night elves built the city of Darnassus atop it. The island now takes the name of the tree as well, and a twilit forest covers it.
Kalidar was also referenced in quests, such as an unused quest from Shayla Nightbreeze[29] and an earlier version of [3] The Woodland Protector.[30] Further, most of the objects seen on Teldrassil (trees, bridges, etc) are labeled as "kalidar" in the game files.
Official website
Taken directly from the official site:[28]
Kalidar, the new home of the reclusive Night Elves and a stunning testament to the power of their magic and their connection with nature. After the cataclysmic events that followed the invasion of the Burning Legion, the Circle of Ancients and powerful druids combined their powers to grow an immense new world tree on Kalidar. They called the tree Teldrassil, meaning "crown of the earth" in their native tongue. The night elves made their new home in the boughs of Teldrassil, creating a forest of mighty trees and flowing rivers, bathed in the endless night that fell over the lands of the elves from the dawn of time. However, the calm of the enchanted forest has slowly fallen into the shadow of a sinister presence. Crazed furbolgs and fouler beasts have appeared in Kalidar, and it occupies all the attention of the vigilant Sentinels and the wise druids to ensure the safety of their new home.
A sprawling city of moonstone and wood, the night elf capital of Darnassus stands as a shining beacon atop Kalidar. Within its mighty walls are housed countless druids, hunters, and warriors, led by the priestess of Elune, Tyrande Whisperwind. A stunning marvel to the ability of night elven craftsmen, the ethereal Temple of the Moon rises above the tree line, balanced by the druids' meticulously cultivated meditative grove. Trade from the main continent bustles through the city's trade quarter, where night elves, dwarves and humans alike haggle for wares and services. Delicate bridges and pathways crisscross the serene waterways of the city, the pristine waters reflecting the glowing light from the moons above.
Development
- It is possible that the backstory of the island originally being called "Kalidar" was later dropped, since the European townhall was updated to have all references to "Kalidar" replaced with the word "Teldrassil",[31] while the US townhall had been taken down.
- Latter sources like the Wolfheart novel and the Ultimate Visual Guide refer to the island as Teldrassil.
- There exists unused files for a "Kalidar" battleground map.
In the RPG
Teldrassil, meaning "Crown of the Earth",[32] is the massive second World Tree. It is a marvel and unlike any location you could have ever visited. Within the massive tree's branches are entire cities of elves — and the homes of less friendly creatures as well. Located on an island off the coast of Darkshore, Teldrassil is isolated from the rest of Kalimdor, and generally is a safer and more tranquil place. It is best known for being the location of Darnassus, the cultural center of the night elven race and one of the most impressive cities in the known world.[33]
Things are a bit wilder outside Darnassus' gates, but there are several other friendly villages as well. Small communities of night elves thrive, and one can find a few camps of furbolgs and wildkin as well. These last two groups are uncorrupted, but can nevertheless be dangerous.[33]
The island takes the name of the tree as well, and a twilit forest now covers it.[32]
History
Even though Nordrassil was healing, it would take another century or two for the World Tree to regain its former glory and power. Unreconciled with their loss of immortality, a splinter group of druids led by Fandral Staghelm were planning to create a second World Tree.[34]
Malfurion Stormrage entered a deep coma, and sleeps in his base at Moonglade. No one knows why, and no one knows how to wake him. His absence leaves control of the druids to Fandral Staghelm, who has become the new archdruid. Before his coma, Malfurion opposed Fandral's plan to grow a new World Tree. After Malfurion fell into his coma, Fandral met with the other druids and, without Malfurion to argue against him, convinced them of the wisdom of creating a new World Tree, and them, most believing that Fandral was right about the tree, created Teldrassil and erected a new capital in its branches. Despite a widespread distrust of Teldrassil and Fandral, the city of Darnassus remains the focal point of night elf culture and life.
Realizing they needed help to survive in this new world and to oppose the Horde, which chose their continent as its new home, the night elves reluctantly joined the Alliance. Commerce began between Theramore and the night elves, as the two cultures shared values and ideas. The night elves remained withdrawn, however. There are still many places considered too sacred for dwarves or humans to venture into, and only when they’re drunk do they really loosen up around other Alliance races.[34]
In Darnassus the atmosphere is a bit strange; there's a mix between carefree, joyful elves and grim citizens with suspicions similar to those of the druids in Moonglade. The druids and priests of Elune here are keenly aware that the tree is being corrupted, and both sides try their best to combat the effects with minimal success. More interestingly — and perhaps more dangerously — the druids and the priests are beginning to blame each other for the mess.[35]
A few of the non-elves here (a few human paladins and two dwarves from the Explorer's Guild) can give you an outsider's perspective, and you can get a pretty blunt summary: Archdruid Fandral Staghelm hates Tyrande Whisperwind's guts. At least, things certainly seem that way. The archdruid questions High Priestess Whisperwind's leadership abilities, and that causes strife in the community. Tyrande was the companion to Malfurion Stormrage, the greatest of all druids, and many elves see the rift between their orders as both shocking and appalling. The situation hasn't reached the point where people choose sides, but things could get there, and that could turn real ugly real fast. The dwarves there suggest someone needs to wake up Malfurion before circumstances get messy. With an unstable political climate and the growing corruption of the World Tree, danger lurks within Teldrassil.
The World Tree's decay begins to accelerate, and the Cenarion Circle is unable to find the source. Rather than continue to explore the slow destruction of the tree, the druids finally agreed with the priests of Elune that they need outside help. They sent champions to find the only beings who may be able to save the World Tree — the Dragon Aspects. If the champions could gain the blessing of even a single Aspect, the corruption could halt for a time — perhaps forever. With the blessing of more than one Aspect it could reverse the damage that had already been caused.[35]
Geography
The majority of Teldrassil's upper reaches is open forest, and it resembles a mid-sized forested island. Darnassus takes up a large chunk on the western side of this island, and smaller cities dot the remaining forest. All forms of terrain exist here, including streams, full-sized lakes, and a few hills that non-dwarves might consider mountains.[33]
RPG notes
Notes and trivia
- The Horde version of the Darkshore Drilling War Campaign mission mentions night elves "streaming out of Darnassus" and posing a threat to Shatterspear Vale, despite it having been burned with Teldrassil. The mission is either supposed to take place during the War of the Thorns despite being unlocked later, or is a mistake since the Alliance version takes place after the war.
- A piece of concept art in The Art of World of Warcraft[37] was originally labeled as ldrassil, seemingly a typo for Teldrassil. The same picture was later properly labeled as Teldrassil in Ultimate Visual Guide.[38]
- While Teldrassil looks like a stump in World of Warcraft, this is due to engine limitations. Artwork such as The Comic and concept art for the Warcraft film, as well as the tree's appearance after the Burning of Teldrassil, show that it's canonically a whole tree. Chris Metzen wanted this to be reflected in the zone in classic World of Warcraft, but the developers were unable to make a gigantic 3-dimensional tree work with the technology at the time due to the game engine being based completely off height-mapping, which heavily limits terrain possibilities. This led to the zone's in-game state, which is essentially a flat area located atop a huge pillar with branches sticking out of the side. Metzen was greatly disappointed by this; as a compromise, a smaller giant tree was included in the zone.[39][40]
- According to the World of Warcraft: Game Manual, the corruption of Teldrassil was of Burning Legion origin, but other sources state that the tree was corrupted by both the Emerald Nightmare and the demons.[41][42][43]
[Pine Nut Bread] is often formed into the shape of a leaf to honor Teldrassil.[44]- Prior to Cataclysm, the only way for Horde players to get to Teldrassil was via ship from Auberdine.
- As is the case with all of the other World Trees, the suffix "-drassil" comes from Yggdrasil, the world tree, in Norse mythology.
- After the Burning of Teldrassil, it was originally impossible to approach the tree's remains in-game due to an invisible wall. It is now possible to approach the stump far enough to get your stamina back after passing through Fatigue waters, but getting very near will cause the player to be teleported back to the beach next to Lor'danel.
Gallery
- World of Warcraft
Teldrassil during the Battle for Darkshore.
Teldrassil as seen from Rut'theran Village.
A moonwell in Teldrassil.
- From the official site (Kalidar)
- Others
Teldrassil from afar in The Comic.
Teldrassil in The Art of World of Warcraft and the Ultimate Visual Guide.
Teldrassil concept art from BlizzCon 2007.
A boat lane to Kalidar can be seen in an early World of Warcraft map.
Kalidar battleground satellite map.
Videos
Patch changes
- Patch 8.0.1 (2018-07-17): Teldrassil is burned down and the zone is destroyed becoming inaccessible. Zidormi can take you back as it once was.
Patch 7.3.5 (2018-01-16): Level scaling implemented, previous zone level: 1 - 10. - Hotfix (2010-11-30): Random, mean level 15 deer appeared in Teldrassil to the shock and awe of low-level players. They have been replaced with level 1 fawn.
- Patch 4.0.3a (2010-11-23): Zone revamped.
See also
References
- ^ Wolfheart, chapter 1
- ^ http://blue.cardplace.com/cache/wow-general/3813779.htm
- ^ Wolfheart, pg. 22
- ^ Stormrage
- ^ [1-30] The Vengeance of Elune
- ^ The Warcraft Encyclopedia/Darnassian
- ^
[1-30] Teldrassil: The Refusal of the Aspects
- ^ [11] Crown of the Earth
- ^ [14] Washed Ashore
- ^ [16] Beached Sea Creature
- ^ Stormrage pg. 855
- ^ Stormrage pg. 876
- ^ @Loreology, Twitter, July 28, 2014. Archive lore tweets from loreology.
- ^ Wolfheart, chapter 1 & 2
- ^ Races of World of Warcraft: Night Elves
- ^ a b [1-30] The Vengeance of Elune
- ^ [1-30] Teldrassil: The Coming Dawn
- ^ Elegy, pg. 72
- ^ 2017-11-04, BlizzCon 2017 World of Warcraft: Battle for Azeroth Panel Transcript. Blizzplanet, accessed on 2017-11-05
- ^ Elegy, pg. 79
- ^ Elegy, pg. 80
- ^
Teldrassil Evacuation
- ^ [50] Waning Hope
- ^
[60] Daughter of the Night Warrior
- ^ World of Warcraft: Exploring Azeroth: Kalimdor, pg. 44
- ^ Stormrage, pg. 15
- ^ Old News (English). Blizzard Entertainment. Retrieved on 2009-06-25.
- ^ a b Teldrassil (English). Townhall US. Blizzard Entertainment. Archived from the original on 2009-06-25. Retrieved on 2006-11-23.
- ^
- ^ Warcraft Central screenshots gallery. Archived from the original on 2004-02-09.
- ^ Teldrassil (English). Townhall EU. Blizzard Entertainment. Retrieved on 2009-06-25.
- ^ a b c World of Warcraft The Roleplaying Game, pg. 19
- ^ a b c Lands of Mystery, pg. 20
- ^ a b Alliance Player's Guide, pg. 125
- ^ a b Lands of Mystery, pg. 23
- ^ World of Warcraft The Roleplaying Game, pg. 38
- ^ The Art of World of Warcraft, pg. 120
- ^ Ultimate Visual Guide, pg. 19
- ^ Mark Kern 2019-05-23. Mark Kern World of Warcraft: Classic stream (around 00:15:45). Twitch. Archived from the original on 2019-06-05.
- ^ Mark Kern 2019-05-23. Mark Kern World of Warcraft: Classic stream (around 00:17:35). Twitch. Archived from the original on 2019-06-05.
- ^
[Fel Cone]
- ^ [1-10] Fel Moss Corruption
- ^ World of Warcraft: Chronicle Volume 3, pg. ??
- ^ World of Warcraft: The Official Cookbook
External links
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