User:TheLongConn/World of Warcraft: Necropolis

World of Warcraft - Necropolis

World of Warcraft: Necropolis
(WIP)

This article is fan fiction.
The contents herein are entirely player made and in no way represent official Warcraft lore or history. The characters and events listed are of an independent nature and are applied for roleplaying purposes only.

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Introduction

Within the dark heart of Azeroth's underworld, the corpse of Azjol-Nerub stirs.

The nerubian kingdom was founded in defiance of their gods, but maddening whispers have taken root after its fall. An ancestral voice echoes in the mind of every last nerubian, beckoning their return to the fold. Ancient instructions guide their limbs, enacting rituals to bridge reality and oblivion, heralding the end of all life.

To prevent this eventuality, the reborn kingdom has sold its soul to necromancy, the very power that once destroyed it. Condemned to an eternity of cold undeath, yet free from the void's influence, the nerubians will stop at nothing to secure their own survival. To preserve their undying legacy, they will scour worlds and silence gods.

Descend into the depths of Azjol-Nerub and bring down the dread necropolis. Witness forgotten wonders and horrors that have never seen the light of day. Observe the majesty of a dead kingdom in the throes of resurrection, preserved in silk and memory. Bind your story to ancient legends and ascend to true mythos.

Features

• Explore the ancient underworld kingdom of Azjol-Nerub, its resurrection strangled between an insidious Hivemind and a necromantic cult promising salvation.
• Uncover lost [Vestiges], relics of power whose stories actively unfold throughout the journey below the earth, promising new abilities and customizations for every class and specialization.
• Customize your characters like never before with an entirely revamped glyph system, tailoring each individual ability with unique spell effects and cosmetics.
• Uncover [Ancient Knowledge], opening your eyes to the forgotten majesty of Azjol-Nerub and watch as the underworld stirs from its slumber.

History

Following the death of the Lich King, the nerubians quietly faded back into the obscurity of myth and legend to rebuild what remained of their kingdom. Caches of preserved eggs were discovered in sunken vaults, rekindling the resurrection of Azjol'Nerub. While the rest of the world slew dragons, demons, and each other, the nerubians slowly reclaimed their sprawling underworld. A new queen was crowned. Cities were rebuilt. Legacies were secured. Only the isolated dwarven archaeologists of Doorward kept any sort of relationship with them, trading artifacts and secrets.

It was Doorward who first discovered the nerubian's sickness. Somewhere in the deepest reaches of Azeroth's underworld, a connection to the Void had opened. From this wound, a relic of the nerubian's past whispered of communion and worship; a Hive Mind from their Aqir ancestors. In their ancient history, the nerubians cast off the hive mind, rejected the Old Gods who birthed them, and built a civilization of dark majesty. Reborn, the Hive Mind seeks to bring them back into the fold and call forth oblivion.

Amidst this chaos, a new force entered the rebuilt city of Ahn'resat. Calling themselves the Ammit, they are undead nerubians, once slaves of the Scourge, and they claim to bring salvation to the nerubian people. The Ammit state that only living nerubians fall prey to the Hive Mind, but if they were to join them in undeath, they will be saved from the Void's call. It was necromancy that destroyed Azjol'Nerub, but now it shall preserve it. What the Lich King started, the Ammit will finish, for the glory of Azjol'Nerub.

Caught between mindless slavery and cold undeath, the queen has surrendered to the Ammit's necrocracy, desperate to save her kingdom. Legions of nerubians have already been slain and reborn as lifeless husks. Azjol'Nerub will become an undying civilization. A city of the dead. A necropolis.

The Creed of the Ammit

"Neither life nor death, light nor void, shall bind our forms. Our will is our own. Our rule is unquestioned. Our legacy is eternal."

The Ammit have cemented themselves as the nerubian queen's ruling counsel and their plans grow bolder by the day. They claim that Azjol'Nerub's isolation has been its undoing since its foundation; from the collapse during the Great Sundering to their defeat during the War of the Spider, from invasions of demons to the unshackling of Old Gods. It was the unchecked actions of younger races that called out to the Burning Legion, that awakened forgotten deities, that tore the bedrock of the world apart. They are idiot children, playing with powers beyond their understanding.

The future of Azeroth will be built on the foundation of death and silence. From their dread necropolis, undeath shall spill out and engulf the surface, rendering all dead and stagnant. Only once all has been made still will Azjol'Nerub will be hidden from the machinations of the gods.

War Against the Surface

Not every nerubian found solace in eternal undeath. The Azjol-anak, previous counselors to the queen and protectors of the nerubians after their fall, were against surrendering to the very power that destroyed them. They argued for destruction of the Hive Mind at its source and the closing of the bridge. As their support waned, the Azjol-anak communicated with Doorward, warning them of the oncoming threats. The forces of the Ammit and nerubian royalists descended on Doorward to silence them, but a few brave souls managed to escape before the city locked itself down.

The call has gone out. The underworld roils with chaos, caught between sides as the void flows forth unchecked. Forces of the Alliance and the Horde rally in the Dragonblight, on the edge of the abyss. In time, their armies will pour down into the depths of the earth, but will they be ready for the horrors that await them?

Zones

• The Upper Kingdom: The entrance to the underworld, a descent through ice and plagued ruins into the heart of Azjol'Nerub.

• Amenthis: Once the palatial estates of the nerubian elite, these caverns now shelter refugees displaced by both the Hive Mind and Royalists, huddling in the kingdom's shadow. Enchanted stone gives the illusion of daylight, nurturing vibrant mosses and lichens. Nerubian refugees hide within decaying palaces, while Dwarven archaeology sites radiate out from the de facto capital, Doorward.
  • Doorward: Settled by the remnants of the Bronzebeard excavation in the ruins of a nerubian city, Doorward has slowly become a center for dwarven archaeology within Azeroth's underworld. Following aggression from Azjol'Nerub, it has opened its doors to nerubian refugees and adventurous surfacers. Whether you need weapons, a meal, or just some respite against the ever-present gloom, Doorward accepts all. They are the last, sputtering light in the darkness.

• Khepseti Wilds: The city of Khepset once fed all of Azjol-Nerub, delivering shipments of insect flesh and mushrooms to every corner of the kingdom. These were harvested from the fungal wilds at the farthest edges of civilization, but in the wake of the kingdom's fall, it is now the city that is being consumed. The bioluminescent jungles hold many secrets, from apostate research to temples of dead gods.

• Dun Valdr: Once the capital of the earthen, this land of carved stone and ancient machinery fell to an army of giants and vrykul during the Winterskorn War. It is now a monument to the Titan's pride and hubris, their great engines languishing under a tide of corrosive oil and filth. As the surface-dwellers scramble to help what life still remains, a misguided expedition seeks the mantle of their forebears, but they play with the powers of gods.

• Lethae: A nexus of haunted, subterranean waterways, Azjol-Nerub's grasp on this region has been limited. The rivers pull at the mind, washing away thought and memory. Legends speak of aberrations lurking beneath the waters, eager to remove burdens or regrets in exchange for a small sliver of the buyer's consciousness. The fall of Azjol-Nerub may have once starved these psychic parasites into dormancy, but in the kingdom's resurgence, the waters of Lethae begin to churn with an abyssal hunger.

• Merun Plateau: A tundra of ice and howling winds at the bottom of the world, underneath an impossible void-streaked sky. The homeland of the Tol'vir lies in stasis within a cursed winter, their obsidian pyramids half-buried under the snow. Centuries ago, a nerubian city disappeared into the void, and as monstrosities roil in their prisons below the ice, the once-silent city is beginning to stir.

• Ahn'resat: The capital city, birthplace of Azjol'Nerub, named for Anek'resat, the First King. Founded in defiance of an empty existence at the whims of elder gods, Anek'resat sought to build an empire whose achievements would echo through time. Now the city is strangled, caught between the hollow enslavement by the void and the empty eternity of an undead cult.

Patch X.2

• Duat-Myr: The impact crater of an ancient catastrophe, now buried and hidden within the depths of the underworld. The lost Takhmet Dynasty built their sanctuary here, amidst the calcified flesh of fallen Shath'Yar and the wreckage of a derelict Naaru citadel. They sought an escape; a world beyond the reach of gods and monsters.

Patch X.4

• Azj'ramun: A demiplane wrought from knowledge stolen from the Titans and the Naaru, akin to the Elemental Plane. It was created by the Takhmet Dynasty so that the nerubians may escape from this world and the machinations of gods and monsters. Millenia later, its founders return, now believing themselves to be the very gods they fled from. From their stillborn universe, they will arrive on Azeroth not as cowards, but conquerors. Their kingdom, Azj'ramun, is an endless, astral desert of crystalline sands, under the glow of an artificial twilit sun. Azj'ramun is split into 2 regions; the city of Eskatol and the haunting Dunes of Oros.
  • Eskatol: Eskatol was once the seat of the Takhmet Dynasty before it was swallowed by the Void. Now the city has returned, capital of a lost kingdom, and it has changed dramatically over the millennia; crystal sands blow in from the desert, the laboratories rebuilt into temples to an artificial sun. For how unrecognizable it is, the people are even more so.
  • Dunes of Oros: Trapped in their demiplane, the souls of the nerubian dead were spirited away to Oros, an artificial afterlife of rest and remembrance. Now, Azj'ramun is sick, its pillars rotting away, and the dead are a resource; leashed to a Hivemind, their collective wills holding up the foundation of reality.

Dungeons

• Lost Falkirk: This dwarven settlement was established as a satellite city of Doorward, dedicated to storing and cataloguing artifacts scoured from the underworld. Following the recovery of an unknown relic, the foundation collapsed and sent the city crumbling into the bowels of the caverns. Only recently has an expedition located Falkirk's resting place, the comforts of dwarven domestic life twisted and broken during the fall.
• Amun'set, Dynasty's End: In ages past, the nerubians honored their dead with elaborate burial rituals, including mummification and the construction of decorated tombs. Rather than honoring any gods or afterlife, these ceremonies served as symbols for the glory of Azjol-Nerub, an eternal kingdom whose history will never be forgotten. The Scourge tore through these holy crypts and raised the entombed corpses as their puppets. In a cruel twist of irony, the Ammit'ar now hold them as their fortress, filling the halls with unholy rituals. Though they assert their hatred of the Scourge, the Ammit'ar are quick to claim their scraps.
• The Candelabra: The holy city of the kobolds, where the wax flows like rivers and 10,000 candles banish the darkness. Driven into a frenzy by the rising void, the high tallowmancers have decreed a holy crusade the banish the shadows, as well as anyone else who gets in their way. (WIP)
• Spire of Silence: In ancient times, this citadel once bridged the cosmic divide, connecting Ulduar to a vast network of Titanic installations that spanned the stars. When the Winterskorn invaded and the Prime Designate ignored their cries, the Earthen attempted to send a message out into the beyond, asking for any assistance their masters could give them. It was not the Titans that answered their call, but something lonely and haunting, its songs turning stone to oil and beauty to disfigurement. For years, the spire has lain silent, but with its reactivation, the echoes of that song become louder, desperate to be heard once more.
• Glassleaf Conservatory: The Mechagnomes of Dun Valdr grew their simulant gardens from this realm of gears and glass, nurturing life from metal. It is now threatened by the Stonefell Collective, who twist the machines into weapons of war in an effort to reclaim the legacy of the Titans. Deeper within, they attempt to restore their ancestral forms of stone and metal, eager to secure the mantle of their makers.
• Naraxar Hatchery: (WIP)(A nerubian hatchery built into the aqueducts of Lethae as they rise into Ahn'resat. Its pools nurture generations of nerubian hatchlings, whose lives are stolen from them as they magically aged, killed, and resurrected as undead soldiers of the Ammit'ar.)
• The Spiral Mooring: On the shores of the Sunless Sea, the Zhar have built a trading enterprise on emotions, thoughts, and memories. Centuries of secrets thought lost have resurfaced in their markets, and the nerubian Royalists will do anything to reclaim this knowledge. Infiltrate this city of memory-eaters and make sure the transaction is never completed.
• Glutton's Keep: In the highest towers of Khep'set, an ancient nerubian dynasty hides within mold-ridden walls. They cling to a deranged excess of a long-dead kingdom, and their hunger drives them ever closer to madness. A disgraceful secret is kept hidden deep within the citadel, one they will protect even as their home is devoured around them.
• Hollownest: The Khepri's faith in their many gods had once protected them from the whispers of the Void, but those whispers have now become screams. They flock to the burrow of Hollownest, near the bones of an ancient temple to the Old Gods. Lit with glowing spores, echoing with chittering beasts and primal rituals, the Khepri's faith will form a new god, one birthed from the depths of the Void.
• En'kilah, Hanging City of Webs: In the underworld skies above Ahn'resat, the city of En'kilah hangs between the stalactites, suspended in a silken web. Once a testament to the culture, artistry, and engineering of Azjol-Nerub, it has been annexed by the nerubian royalists, who use it to monitor the city below for treasonous activities.
• Halls of Stasis: Millenia ago, the Tol'vir of Ur'hedj Plateau buried their cities under a tide of snow and ice, obliterating themselves in the process. Now, as their great machines shut down and the eternal winter abates, monstrosities writhe below the permafrost. Deep within the halls of Sumenu's Black Pyramid, the Tol'vir labor to reverse their frozen hell, and the secrets of their "noble" sacrifice may finally come to light.

Patch X.3

• Ersetu, Gate of Memory: A half-remembered netherworld at the bottom of Lethae's Silent Sea, Ersetu is the sanctum of the zhar, their ethereal archive of memory. It rests at the junction of the Sea of Dreams, the bridge between the two realms being slowly rebuilt as knowledge is gathered and their abyssal god remembers its name. The forces of Azj'rhamun have breached Ersetu's defenses, dredging its depths for lost secrets and forgotten truths.

Raids

• Palace of Nerub: The ancient seat of the Nerubian dynasties, towering over the city of Ahn'resat and the rest of Azjol-Nerub. Once, it was the kingdom's last living bastion before its walls fell to the undead armies of the Scourge. Now, rebuilt and shining once again, it has become host to a necromantic cult, promising salvation as its adherents defile the hallowed halls with profane rituals.
• Vanahal, the Mantle's Rest: A nexus of Titanic power, a key to the Cosmos, and a legacy to be claimed. Within Vanahal, the Stonefell Collective enact the rites to ascend to godhood, eager to assume the mantle of a dead pantheon and an uncaring universe.

X.2

• Narakos, the Derelict Keep: The wreckage of a Naaru Citadel that once traveled between the boundaries of Light and Void, called into the underworld by a desperate vizier. Here, the Takhmet Dynasty unraveled the secrets of the universe, attempting to find a world beyond the reach of gods and monsters. However, on the path to deciphering divinity, the dynasty may have lost their way.

X.4

• Kingdom of the Sun: (Bind yourself to Azj'rhamun's hierarchy and Ascend. Rise from the realm of the dead into a kingdom of radiance, before breaching the artificial sun itself. Kill a king made into a god against his will.) WIP

Key Players

• Nerubian Royalists: ()
• Ammit: ()
• Azjol-anak: ()
• Doorward Council: ()

Glyphs and Customization

World of Warcraft: Necropolis entirely revamps the old Glyph system, giving players hundreds of new customizations for their spells and abilities, allowing for an unprecedented level of character customization. Not only does this allow for tailoring your characters to your own individual style, but it allows for fulfilling class fantasies that have been left behind for the sake of homogeneity. Tauren Sunwalkers and Seers may now customize their holy abilities to visually resemble sunlight and flame, better suiting their beliefs in An'she. Kul Tiran priests and shaman may visually swap flame and lightning for the ocean magics of their Tidesages. In addition to these larger "theme" sets, players will have a multitude of smaller, more unique effects that they can apply to their spells.

Players will have the ability to collect various glyphs from activities around Azeroth and applying them to their abilities via class trainers, similar to Transmogrification or the Barber shop. Players can select their various abilities and see what glyphs can be applied to them, accompanied by a small graphic of the glyph's affect. From these menus, they will see which glyphs are currently available, which glyphs they do not yet possess, and where to find those glyphs. Glyphs can be obtained by completing quests, earning Renown, earning achievements, and looting them from powerful foes in the world, dungeons, and raids. Of course, many can be made from the Inscription profession and sold on the auction house.

While many glyphs allude to class identities that may be associated with specific races and cultures i.e. Blood elven Blood Knights, Night elven Wardens, and Drustvar Druids, the majority of these glyphs will be available among the other races as the expansion goes on.

Finally, while glyphs offer players a chance to embody previously unavailable class identities and powers, it also exhibits entirely new, unknown themes. Many Vestiges that players will find in the depths of Azjol-Nerub offer brand new visuals, from the phantasmal waters of [Drachma, the Ferryman's Passage] to the burning, crystalline fury of [The Queen's Vitriol].

Glyph Sets can be loosely divided into groups in order to simply their acquisition and activation. These groups are Major Sets, Minor Sets, and Unique Glyphs.

Major Sets

While some glyphs have more unique and specific effects, many glyphs belong to a central theme, sharing similar motifs to fulfill a certain image or design philosophy. Like the above example, Tauren Sunwalkers and Seers will be able to customize the majority of their abilities with a sunlight or flame effect. Rather than having to individually buy or loot all of these glyphs to tailor each and every spell, many will be contained within a single Tome that only needs to be used once. Tauren simply need to complete a quest chain to obtain [Tome of Sunwalker Teachings] or [Tome of the An'she Seers] , giving them access to all glyphs necessary to pursue the identity of a Sunwalker or Seer.

Not every major set is so easily obtained, but consolidating them under a single Tome will make acquisition much simpler and spare players from having to collect every individual spell glyph. However, rarer sets may still need to be obtained over time, like raid sets; they just may be broken up into 2-3 individual Tomes, rather than 12 separate glyphs.

Even among major sets, there may still be small variations that can be obtained in the world. While [Tome of the Tidesage Devout] will give Kul Tiran priests their signature ocean magics, the rarer [Tome of the Depthborne] will color their watery abilities a much darker, more abyssal shade.

At the class trainer, Major Sets can be seen under their own tab, allowing for players to easily and quickly swap glyphs.

Examples

 Death knight

• [Tome of the Mawsworn Knight] : Embody the Maw, the shadowy prison of domination and ruin.
• [Tome of the Thousand-Faced Fiend] : Embody the endless hunger of Yogg-Saron, true God of Death.

 Demon hunter

• [Tome of the Desecrator] : Embody the ruinous, star-eating visage of the Void Desecrators.

 Druid

• [Tome of the Nightmare Keeper] : Embody the festering horror of the Emerald Nightmare.
• [Tome of the Drustvar Thornspeaker] : Embody the wicker-and-bone of the Drustvar Druids.

 Hunter

• [Tome of the Dark Ranger] : Embody the shadowy armaments of the Dark Rangers.
• [Tome of the Vespertine] : Embody the Vespertine, remnants of the Twilight's Hammer, and their blasphemous methods of monster-hunting.

 Mage

• [Tome of the Nerubian Magus] : Embody the arcane spellweaving of the Nerubian mages.
• [Tome of the Hemomancer] : Embody blood magic, drawn from the bodies of your unwilling victims.

 Monk

• [Tome of Sha-Binding] : Embody the malefic Sha, turning your enemies' emotions against them.
• [Tome of the Void Serpent] " Embody the essence of Aku, Serpent of Renewal, and shed your ego into the darkness of the Void.

 Paladin

• [Tome of the Sunwalker] : Embody the sunlight of An'she and the pride of the Sunwalkers.
• [Tome of the Moonblade] : Embody the moonlight of Elune and the founding of a new order.

 Priest

• [Tome of the An'she Seers] : Embody the sunlight of An'she and the faith of the Seers.
• [Tome of the Tidesage Devout] : Embody the Tidemother and the faith of the open ocean.

 Rogue

• [Tome of the Warden] : Embody the vengeance and knife-edged training of the Wardens.
• [Tome of the Phantasmal Ferryman] : Embody the Ferryman's Passage, the cloak of phantasmal waters that hides you from memory and allows passage into the sea of dreams.

 Shaman

• [Tome of the Spiritwalker] : Embody the spirit world, trading the elements for the souls of your ancestors.
• [Tome of the Tidesage Wavespeaker] : Embody the Tidemother and the spirits of the abyssal ocean.

 Warlock

• [Tome of the Shadebinder] : Embody the shadow, casting away demons and the Fel for the monsters of the Void.
• [Tome of the Heartsbane Coven] : Embody the wicker-and-bone of the Heartsbane witches.

 Warrior

• [Tome of the Spellblade] : Embody the iron and the arcane, dueling with magical power behind every strike.
• [Tome of Ancient Vitriol] : Embody Vitriol, the scorn-and-seethe of Lethaen ice, dredged from the memories of countless battles.

Minor Sets

Minor Sets are very similar to Major Sets, but are smaller in scope. They often cover fewer abilities or have a much more specific theming, usually limited to a single Tome or 3-4 individually-gathered glyphs. For example, Hunters can complete the Underworld Beastmaster minor set by obtaining the following individual glyphs:

• [Glyph of Neruphobia] : [Dire Beast] summons the various, horrifying spiders of Azjol-Nerub.
• [Glyph of the Ravenous Swarm] : [A Murder of Crows] releases a swarm of stinging insects instead of crows.
• [Glyph of Phase Spider Venom] : [Cobra Shot] is colored the phantasmal purple of a Phase Spider.

While not as involved as major sets, minor sets allow players to customize their characters with more specific and unique themes. They can also be seen under their own tab at the class trainer.

Unique Glyphs

Unique Glyphs are glyphs that customize spells with no singular theme. An example of an individual glyph would be [Glyph of Deathwing's Roar] for Warriors, which replaces the normal dragon head of their [Thunderous Roar] with the head of Deathwing. While they do not belong to a singular set, individual glyphs are no less distinctive and often give a more unique spell effect than those belonging to larger sets.

Forms and Pets

Classes that have unique attributes like shapeshifting or pets have additional tabs in their glyph system. Rather than going to a barber shop, Druids can pick their shapeshifting forms from class trainers, while Warlocks can modify their choice of demons here. Other classes, like Shaman and Death Knights now have the ability to modify their elementals or undead minions.

Vestiges

• Seven Plagues of Kesjarim
• Item Level 152
• Binds when picked up
• Unique
• Vestige
• +37 Strength
• +56 Stamina
• +25 Critical Strike
• +24 Mastery
• Blood Artifact Relic Slot
• Iron Artifact Relic Slot
• Shadow Artifact Relic Slot
• Equip: Grants the Host of Agony ability, which festers the target's flesh and spread a terrible illness to all nearby.
• Classes: Death knight
• "As a final act of vengeance against Azjol-Nerub, the tol'vir sage Kesjarim cursed his own flesh, drawing out seven terrible plagues."

[Vestiges] are ancient relics whose stories have been lost to antiquity and the darkness of the underworld. Caught between the Ammit necrocracy and the whispers of the Hivemind, the champions of Azeroth have turned to forgotten artifacts, wielding mysterious magics to further their cause.

Vestiges are similar to artifact weapons in that they are an item equipped to your character, providing access to a tree of useful abilities, and are upgraded over time. They have their own associated quest lines that you unlock as you explore Azjol-Nerub, and as you complete these quests, you discover new abilities and powers unique to the Vestige. Unlike artifacts, they do not replace your weapons and instead possess their own specific equipment slot. In addition, vestiges have a maximum cap to their level, gained through [Vestige Prowess] points obtained through various activities, including leveling quests, dungeons, PVP, and world quests.

List of Vestiges

Class	Spec	Vestige	Description
Death knight	Blood	[Sanguine Maw of Yogg-Saron]	"An atrophied maw of the god of death. It is indiscriminate in its hunger, devouring flesh, souls, dreams..."
	Frost	[The Runekeeper's Lost Codex]	"A book of indecipherable runes from a devoured plane of the Shadowlands, wreathed in black ice."
	Unholy	[The Seven Plagues of Kesjarim]	"As a final act of vengeance against Azjol-Nerub, the tol'vir sage Kesjarim cursed his own flesh, drawing out seven terrible plagues..."
Demon hunter	Havoc	[Wreckage of Eskatol]	"The remnants of a nerubian city, devoured by the void and strewn amidst an umbral storm."
	Vengeance	[Kharzera's Damnation]	"The cage of a fallen Legion inquisitor, linked to an abandoned prison-world."
Druid	Balance	[Orrery Of the Unseen Heavens]	"This orrery depicts astral bodies you have never seen before, bound by an aching cosmic balance."
	Feral	[The Shape of Slaughter]	"Track down a skin-stealing aberration, a Wild God born from an unholy union. Embody its ever-shifting flesh, and hunt down the monsters who call themselves beasts."
	Guardian	[Mark of the Mandible]	"The ecosystem of the underworld is like nothing you have witnessed. Humble yourself before chitin and claw, and take up the Mark."
	Restoration	[Exis, Bloom of the Living Pattern]	"An extension of an artificial ecosystem, built not in mockery of life, but in celebration."
Hunter	Beast Mastery	[Talos, Bond of the Simulant Beast]	"This creature of glass and gears has imprinted on you. Repair its arcane workings, and become the protector of the synthetic wilds."
	Marksmanship	[Transfusion of the Old Blood]	"The Vespertine hunters have marked you as one of their own. Inoculate yourself with the blood of aberrations and hunt down monsters from beyond reality."
	Survival	[Sefetu, the Jeweled Scarab]	"To survive, one must adapt to their surroundings. Bind yourself to this arcane scarab, and become but one member of the Swarm."
Mage	Arcane	[Azj'zi, Loom of the Prototype]	"An arcane spirit of intellect, this was the prototype for the nerubian construct that once controlled the kingdom's defenses. Let those defenses become your own."
	Fire	[Crucible of the Forge-Magus]	"Master the arts of the Grayslate's greatest Spellhammers, and forge weapons of pure, arcane flame."
	Frost	[Parabola, Glimpse of Outer Night]	"The Takhmeti attempted to look beyond this world, far from gods and monsters, to the edge of the universe. They found only a cold, remorseless expanse."
Monk	Brewmaster	[Ceremonal Cask of Nerroth Modan]	"This earthen brew is still palatable after centuries, and time has only added strange magics to the fermentation. I'm sure they wouldn't mind if you mixed in a few of your own ingredients."
	Mistweaver	[Aku, Serpent of Renewal]	"The Void is vast, and not all share the Lords' desires. The serpent coiling around your shoulders embodies change and rebirth. Shed your old skin and become one with nothingness."
	Windwalker	[Way of the Empty Soul]	"The Sobek meditate within the darkest caves of the underworld, allowing the silence and emptiness around them to resonate within. Understand the stillness that lingers in your soul, and weaponize it against your enemies."
Paladin	Holy	[Melodic Pulse of the Derelict]	"There are legends of an ancient ship that crossed the boundaries of Light and Shadow, now resting at the bottom of the world. You recall them with each crystal you add to this construct; its song gets louder, echoing below your feet."
	Protection	[Throne of Resat]	"Anek'resat, First King of Azjol-Nerub, sacrificed much to found his kingdom. His cast-off shell is heavy with burden, but the strength of ancient bloodlines flows through you."
	Retribution	[Sejed, Brand of the Pale Court]	"The Pale Court once held absolute control over Azjol-Nerub's laws, particularly those concerning worship of the Old Gods. As their inquisitors brought down dread temples, they unknowingly deified their First King against his will."
Priest	Discipline	[Methods of Madness]	"A ragged tome penned by heretics within the Twilight Cult. Maybe the Light has a use, it reads, to journey deeper into the dark..."
	Holy	[The Lamplighter's Promise]	"Though we fall into the cold darkness yet again, I promise that we will return to the light. Once more unto the deep, my kin. Once more..."
	Shadow	[Intrusive Whisper of the Hive Mind]	"The Hive Mind speaks once again, whispering ancient instructions to the nerubians."
Rogue	Assassination	[Thousand Fangs of Zhatep]	"Death is the final destination, fixed and unchanged. Yet, there are many, many ways to arrive there."
	Outlaw	[Jed'zir, Hand of Avarice]	"Mania and greed whisper from this ancient artifact. Perhaps you can hold onto it for a little longer..."
	Subtlety	[Drachma, the Ferryman's Passage]	"This coin is a payment to travel the amnesic rivers of memory. Pay the toll and dive into its waters, haunting your enemies as a figment of their consciousness."
Shaman	Elemental	[Atazane, Foundation's Folly]	"Five Lords journeyed into the foundation of the world. Four emerged as monsters. One remained, lost and forgotten."
	Enhancement	[Marbruk, Totem of the First Wayfarer]	(WIP)
	Restoration	[Amnesos, Tear of the Silent Sea]	"Let the waters take your pain away. Giving up is the first stage of healing."
Warlock	Affliction	[Ihmoxet's Deathless Phylactery]	"The nerubian sorcerer, Ihmoxet, had bartered his soul to demons, shades, and spirits of the Shadowlands. Terrified of repaying his debt, he sealed his soul into a series of increasingly esoteric containers."
	Demonology	[Path of the Shadebinder]	(WIP)
	Destruction	[Apophis, the Many Hands of Setesh]	"Many times have I stayed my hand over the choice of destroying this world. I trust you will not be as sentimental." - Watcher Setesh
Warrior	Arms	[Augur of the Branching Blade]	"A sect of Sobek swordsmen have the ability to strike with unerring accuracy, visualizing every possible outcome before they attack. They do this by ingesting the flesh of aberrations, the blood of the Void opening up their minds to every eventuality."
	Fury	[The Queen's Vitriol]	"Long ago, a queen of the earthen felt her rage would cloud her judgement. She stole water from Lethae and distilled her fury into it, until she was as calm as the Silent Sea. She gifted that fury to her to most trusted warrior, to act as her instrument. When peace failed, her anger would not."
	Protection	[Vanahal's Burden]	"Carry the weight of the cosmos on your shoulders."

Progression

Within the depths of Azjol-Nerub, you will witness ancient wonders that have been lost to time, their secrets held tight beyond barriers of antiquity. This is an alien world, and it will take considerable effort to see beyond the surface level, yet the rewards will be significant.

Progressing through Azjol-Nerub centers around exploration and understanding. Your first foray into this will be shortly after entering the underworld, investigating tales of a [Vestige] of ancient power unique to your Class and Specialization. While journeying through the ancient ruins, fungal wilds, and amnestic waterways, you will be rewarded with [Vestige Prowess] through leveling quests, PVP, and dungeons. As your prowess grows, you unlock quests that expand on the story of your vestige, its legend now tied to yours, and gain powerful new abilities, cosmetics, and spell customizations.

Your efforts to bring peace to the underworld will have you uncover the Archive of the Lost, a vault of knowledge created by the enigmatic Takhmet Dynasty of ancient Azjol-Nerub. It is inhabited by Azj'ro, Arcane Intelligence; a spirit of intellect and magical energy used by the dynasty to manage the archives, who is surprisingly open to providing whatever information he can to protect Azjol-Nerub. The Takhmet loathed sharing their insight, and much of your campaign involves attempting to crack their cipher and learn of their obscure goals. Once your character is max-leveled and has completed the major questlines of Azjol-Nerub, the first layer of defenses will be opened, and the Archive's understanding will be at your fingertips... for a price.

Ancient Knowledge and Cryptic Gear

At max-level, your characters will be rewarded with various ancient relics from many different endgame tasks, all of which are used to increase your [Ancient Knowledge]. In addition, you will begin to discover [Cryptic Gear], whose true stats and abilities are hidden behind the fog of age and ignorance. With the help of the Archive and Azj'ro, you can use your Ancient Knowledge to decipher cryptic gear and gain further understanding of its potential. For each level of obscurity you unveil, you will gain bonus stats and powerful traits, though the most difficult levels require more Ancient Knowledge. In addition, unveiling cryptic gear requires additional resources, becoming more demanding the deeper you go; [Underworld Materials], [Historical Context], and [Takhmet Access Rune], to name a few.

Cryptic gear is not just found in endgame quests, dungeons, and raids, it can also be crafted. Cryptic gear crafting requires the usage of a rare material known as [Cryptic Ornamentation], which represents various elements of the ancient world whose true meaning (and power) is not yet understood. Only through Ancient Knowledge can it be unveiled.

Scholar's Insight

Each time you spend Ancient Knowledge to decipher a piece of cryptic gear, you also increase your level of [Scholar's Insight]. Scholar's Insight acts as a sort of "Master Renown" within Azjol-Nerub; as you gain understanding of the world around you, its rewards will become ever more apparent. At high levels of Scholar's Insight, you will:

• Be more likely to discover better rewards from the "grab bags" caches earned through activities, increasing your chance of getting mounts, pets, higher quality of gear, and even cryptic gear.
• Receive higher quality Renown items you find throughout the underworld, giving higher levels of reputation.
• Increase the rate of [Vestige Prowess] on other vestiges you may be using.
• Increase the quantity of Ancient Knowledge you get from activities, which means more deciphering of gear and thus more Insight!

Just as knowledge must be shared amongst everyone, Scholar's Insight is shared between all players on a realm. This means that alts will be upgrading their vestiges quicker and have an easier time obtaining (and upgrading) their gear!

Once you get to a stage where you no longer need to decipher your gear, Ancient Knowledge can still be spent on deciphering paragon caches obtained at the primary settlements for each Renown, usually called the Antiques Dealer. Unveiling these caches, such as the [Cryptic Ahn'vexis Antique] for the Azjol-anak or [Cryptic Sumenu Antique] for the Vespertine, will provide you with high-level reputation items, as well as chances at particular cosmetics, mounts, and pets. They can also be spent on cryptic coffers that provide valuable crafting resources; [Cryptic Herbalist's Coffer], [Cryptic Geologist's Coffer], [Cryptic Anatomist's Coffer], etc. As you are still spending Ancient Knowledge to decipher these, they will continue to provide Scholar's Insight.

A Buried World

Finally, Scholar's Insight brings life to the world you are saving. As you learn and understand the various cultures you are interacting with, you understand snippets of their language, receive gifts of treasures and keepsakes, see historical events play out in living memories, unearth troves of cosmetics and spell effects, and unlock potential hidden secrets for your vestige.

Curios and Mythos

[Curios] are enigmatic items found within Azjol-Nerub that can be linked to your vestige, similar to artifact relics. Curios provide powerful stat bonuses while also empowering your vestige, either by directly buffing a vestige trait or altering a different class ability. Curios can be deciphered just like cryptic gear, unveiling hidden stats and increases to their abilities. At their initial discovery, Curios only have access to one trait that they can upgrade, but as your level of deciphered cryptic gear increases, they will have multiple traits to choose from, allowing you to swap between them as necessary.

[Mythos] are akin to legendaries; stories of ancient warriors and battles whose deeds echo through history to this day. Mythos are rarely obtained through various activities and provide significant changes to a class's toolkit. To be used, they must be attached to a piece of Cryptic Gear. Some endgame activities are more likely to provide a Mythos. If you are having particular difficulties, you may visit Eribu, Distiller of Mythos; a zhar trader with access to many different Mythos, provided you have the resources ([Distilled Antiquity])to obtain one.

Forgotten Power

As you decipher deeper and deeper levels of obscurity with your Cryptic Gear, they will provide increasing amounts of a stat called [Forgotten Power]. Forgotten Power increases the potency of many abilities and effects provided by endgame-level Curios and Mythos. If Forgotten Power is high enough, it unlocks the ability to pick between 2 (and eventually 3) potential bonuses for a given Curio, switching back and forth if necessary.

Key Players

• Nerubian Royalists: Queen Nezerai's coronation has ushered in the next age of Azjol-Nerub, referred to as the New Kingdom. With the Hivemind bearing down on their door and the Ammit'ar death cult poisoning them from within, the Queen's rule lies on unstable ground. There are many forces within the fledgling kingdom that would seek her station, even as it falls apart.
  • Weavers Regent: Led by the Nezarak Dynasty, the current regime of Azjol-Nerub and beholden to Queen Nezerai herself. Once a house of little standing, the Weavers officially hold supreme influence within the kingdom after Nezerai's coronation, yet many seek to undermine them. Composed of scholars and sorcerers, the Weavers' power lies in knowledge, secrets, and magical prowess, backed up by enslaved Tol'vir constructs. While they comply with the Ammit's wishes, they are loyal only to the queen, and have been engaging in many enigmatic ventures on her behalf; namely, uncovering the relics of the ancient Takhmet Dynasty.
  • Harvesters Regent: Led by the Khepset Dynasty, a once-powerful lineage who ruled the Khepseti Wilds. The Khepset nobles had been glutted with power and plenty, having supplied the food for the entire kingdom, and their vaults swelled with treasure as they lost their minds to vicious, bestial hungers. The Harvesters serve their interest, fielding titanic, bejeweled warriors whose noble appearance belies a wicked savagery. These ranks are supplemented by monstrous insects and spiders, captured from the depths of the Wilds. The Harvesters are quick to seize power where they can; their influence is tied to nourishment, which decreases the more nerubians surrender to undeath. Meanwhile, their highborn sponsors lose themselves to ancient hungers...
  • Shapers Regent: Led by the Broodkeepers of Azjol-Nerub's hatcheries, an ancient caste dating back to the kingdom's founding. The Shapers are vital but largely overlooked, tending the spawning pools that nurture Azjol-Nerub's future citizens. Hatchlings are sorted and shaped through complex alchemical means, twisting their forms into drones, viziers, and vanguards. They field a variety of newly-designed warrior breeds, fleet of wing and sharp of claw, fresh from the reservoirs along Lethae's edge. Driven by a fundamentalist loyalty to the kingdom yet constantly seeking perfection in physical form, the Shapers' yearn for greater power and influence within the monarchy. This doesn't sit well with the more traditional factions, but evolution often leaves its vestigial parts behind, letting them wither and die.
  • The Pale Court: Azjol-Nerub's ancient judicial system, founded shortly after the mysterious death of Anek'resat, the First King. Its original judges were once inquisitors handpicked by the king himself, dedicated to scouring the Hivemind in its entirety and rooting out worshippers of the Old Gods. While its influence has waxed and waned over the millennia, the Court sees the Hivemind's resurgence as justification for its absolute control over Azjol-Nerub's laws. Within their tribunals dwells an army of arbiters, adjudicators, and consuls, wielding a mysterious Pale Light as they bring their kingdom's disparate factions to heel. While wholly dedicated to purging the world of strange gods, they are paradoxically cult-like in their reverence of Anek'resat, unconsciously deifying him against his will.
  • Ammit Necrocracy: Undead nerubians who once suffered under the Scourge, now wielding necromancy in the name of resurrecting their empire. Led by Archlich Khorsus, the Ammit preach salvation for Azjol-Nerub, as undeath renders immunity to the maddening voices of the Hivemind. Queen Nezerai has reluctantly invited the cult into Ahn'resat, allowing them to kill and raise its citizens in the name of preservation and protection. The Ammit loathe their undead state yet willingly inflict it on their kin, creating an army of chitinous husks, vengeful liches, and insectoid abominations. Under their rule, Azjol-Nerub will be governed by an undying nobility; an eternal, unchanging kingdom whose leaders will reign unopposed forever.

Reputations

Azjol-Nerub is home to many disparate peoples, both native and immigrant. Kingdoms have risen and fell over millennia, from the titan-forged to the nerubians, while others have scrambled to fill the power-vacuum left in their wake.

Leveling Renown

• Azjol-anak: The Azjol-anak were once the last living nerubians, instrumental in rekindling their ancient kingdom. Now, Azjol-Nerub has sold its soul to the very power that destroyed them; a desperate measure to hold back the Hivemind. The Azjol-Anak are reformed once more, offering shelter and aid to nerubian refugees fleeing from the dread capital Ahn'resat. Though they hold seat within Doorward, they are focusing their efforts on Amenthis, attempting to rebuild the abandoned palace of Ahn'zetal into a haven for refugees.
  • As you aid the Azjol-anak and track down valuable nerubian artisans, Ahn'zetal will grow and expand, offering new goods and services while the palace is slowly repaired.
  • Defense of Ahn'zetal: In this scenario, you defend the settlement from both Royalist nerubians and the Hivebound. Refugees you find will participate in the scenario, fighting directly or providing useful support.
  • Many of their quests involve helping refugees and defeating Ammit'ar necromancers while also securing ancient relics. They will eagerly accept any [Preserved Nerubian Eggs] you may acquire on your travels.
  • The Azjol-anak know every secret tunnel across Azjol-Nerub, and will aid you in uncovering them for use in fast-travel across the underworld.
  • Gifted scribes and weavers, they hold many useful recipes for Inscription and Tailoring.
• Doorward Expedition: An archaeological coalition formed by the Explorer's League, the Reliquary, and the newly-arrived Stonefell Collective. They seek the heart of Dun Valdr, ancient homeland of the Earthen, and the secrets that lay buried there. Centered within Nerroth Modan, capital of the Grayslate Earthen, they will eagerly trade unburied artifacts and treasures. They also appreciate any help given to the Grayslate, who have maintained a vigil over these caverns even as their bodies deteriorated, and the Novognomes, quirky mechagnomes that have nurtured gardens of living metal. Once the Stonefell Collective's true colors show, hindering their efforts will be a top priority of the Expedition.
  • The Syntharium: After saving the Glassleaf Conservatory, players can access the Syntharium, using the components from around Dun Valdr to construct a variety of clockwork animals for use as mounts, companions, and Hunter pets.
  • Repair engines and clear pipes of Blackrot corruption in order to direct energy back into the Vigils or other machines, unearthing components for Syntharium crafting.
  • Newforged Training: The Forge Cradles will regularly produce new Grayslate earthen, fully grown, though there is a period of confusion and adjustment. As experienced champions, you will bring groups of newforged Grayslate out into Dun Valdr and beyond, training them in combat.
  • The Grayslate are gifted smiths and enchanters while the novognomes tinker away at their clockwork gardens; they hold many useful recipes for Blacksmithing, Enchanting, and Engineering.
• Khepseti Anthera: The moth-like Anthera have carved a holy land from the mold and chitin of the Khepseti Wilds. Cursed to become mindless zealots if they gather in too great of numbers, they instead are intermittent nomads, traveling between villages on labyrinthine roads. Beholden to the Penumbrals, the animist spirits of the underworld, they treat these wanderings like holy pilgrimages. As void magic spreads through their communities, they turn to their faith in hundreds of bizarre, inscrutable gods; a pantheon that will zealously protect its worshipers.
  • Explore the Khepseti Wilds and uncover shrines to various underworld Wild Gods; by providing their altars with offerings sourced from the wilds, you will gain powerful boons and bonuses to protect you throughout Azjol-Nerub.
  • Court of Slaughter: Hidden in the wilds is a relic of Khepset's past; a coliseum dedicated to the capturing, killing, and eating of enormous beasts. The nerubian Khepset Dynasty was infamous for its depraved hunger despite their highborn status, and little has changed. Compete for glory and prizes from this decrepit nobility, up until their hunger overtakes them and they join the fray. Over time, tap into the unsettling powers of the court itself, built on the bones of an ancient temple to the Old Gods.
  • Weavers of mothsilk and carvers of chitin, the Anthera have access to many Tailoring and Leatherworking recipes. Meanwhile, the decrepit Khepseti nobility hid away their recipes for nauseating (but empowering) feasts for use in Cooking.
• The Riven Ferrymen: The zhar of Lethae are alien predators who both feed on and manipulate memory, but those belonging to The Riven prefer to trade rather than kill. Having spent enough time around sapient life to experience a change within themselves, the Riven believe there is a better way to heal their abyssal god than the mindless predation of their kin. From their markets on the Silent Sea, these memory-traders leverage their psychic magics and control of Azjol-Nerub's waterways to great effect, provided the transaction is mutually beneficial.
  • Unbroken Descents: The Unbroken zhar are investigating the forces of the Alliance and the Horde by plunging into the sea of memory, analyzing the accumulated thoughts and emotions of the surface world. Halt their activities by diving in after them, fighting through through visions of previous zones, dungeons, and raids as you become further lost in memory.
  • Many rewards from the Riven, including the Unbroken Descents, are cosmetic weapons and armor from times (and expansions) long ago.
  • The Riven have strangely lucrative trading deals with the Drogbar of Blackwater, including admission to their fishing competitions.
  • Artists of chemicals and runes, the zhar have access to useful Alchemy and Inscription recipes. Through the drogbar, they inexplicably also have Engineering schematics (results may vary).

Endgame Renown

At max-level, players will have access to the zones of Ahn'resat and Merun Plateau. These factions are extrinsically linked to the progression in their zones.

• Voruzun Dynasty: A nerubian house of no-particular standing, having lost its ties to the throne long ago, it has been revitalized in these troubling times. Few among the monarchy suspect that this house has allied with the Azjol-Anak and forces of Doorward, giving a foothold for the resistance right in the heart of Ahn'resat. Upon making contact with the Hive Scryers, nerubians who brave the Hivemind's psychic prison to monitor its movements, the city will be in the palm of your hand.
  • Regents' Favor: Completing quests and activities within Ahn'resat will reward you with Regents' Favor, a tangible sign of the Zherai Dynasty's increasing popularity among the city. This is often achieved by pitting the various Regents against one another. More Regents' Favor means more access to the city's resources without travel restrictions.
  • Compulsions: Compulsions are psychic auras created by the Hive Scryers, allowing you to blend in with the forces of a particular Regent; the Weavers, the Harvesters, the Shapers, etc. By unlocking compulsions, you can freely access forbidden areas beholden to the Regents, even allowing you to receive quests from the enemy to sabotage other Regents.
  • Ammit Rituals: The Ammit necromancers are conducting strange rites across the city and the rest of Azjol-Nerub, consecrating the area with death energies. These rituals are heavily guarded by undead, and the necromantic magics also empower the creatures normally found in these locations. Strike them down for rewards. These rituals are later determined to be a part of a grand rite to sacrifice all of Azjol-Nerub, culminating in the Palace of Nerub raid.
  • Seal of Nezerai: Rewards found through Ahn'resat, these seals offer free passage out of the city. They are invaluable in getting nerubians out of Ahn'resat before they are killed and raised into undeath, so the Zherai Dynasty will reward you handsomely for them.

• The Vespertine: Former members of the Twilight's Hammer, they have hunted aberrations and the wayward remnants of their cult down to the bottom of the world. Repentent for their sins but not expecting grace, they will leverage their occult rituals in staunching the flow of the Void from the wastes of Merun Plateau.
  • Underworld Exposure: Survival in the Merun Plateau is perilous between the supernatural Winterblight storm and the Void "sky" above. Working with the Vespertine will culminate in various charms and protections against the deadliest areas of the Plateau.
  • Eldritch Hunts: As the permafrost thaws, eldritch creatures rise from the depths. Engage in hunts across the plateau (and Azjol-Nerub) as you send these monsters back to their fallen gods. Common rewards include [Monstrous Rumor] .
  • Rumored Monstrosities: As the Winterblight abates, it reveals Thawing Prisons below the ice, drawing camps of Vespertine hunters. Multiple players can gather together to share [Monstrous Rumors] of various types; wings, maws, tentacles, venom. These combined stories of dangerous beasts will then culminate in the prison opening, revealing a Hideous Abomination that inexplicably matches the many combined descriptions the players shared. This creature will possess unique abilities and appearances based on the amount and types of each Rumor given.
  • Eldritch Mounts: Travel with the Vespertine enough and they will reward you with a [Restrained Tindaloth] and [Restrained Nightgaunt] ; ground and flying mounts based on eldritch Old God beasts. These mounts are constantly changes and can be customized with all kinds of mutations; tentacles, eyestalks, maws, etc. Many of these mutations are rewarded from Rumored Monstrosities.
  • Void Vision: The Vespertine's more psychotic members can see into many different shades of the void. By sharing that knowledge with you, you can see treasures and monsters in the wastes that you normally would have (happily) passed by.

PVP Renown

With Doorward having rescinded its Alliance membership and opening doors to the Reliquary, the Alliance and the Horde have few formal military command structures present in Azjol-Nerub. However, with the focus on the nerubian monarchy and Ammit cult, there is little to stop third parties from staking their claim on Azjol-Nerub's many treasures and artifacts. Both of these factions once flew under one banner, but when Steelgrin Acquisitions cut ties with Shroud Company to secure their own fortune, they created an arms race that will shake the underworlds, criminal and physical.

• • Steelgrin Acquisitions: A crew of goblin pirates, mercenaries, and thieves, Steelgrin Acquisitions has leveraged its connections with the Bilgewater Cartel to sneak into Azjol-Nerub, intent on securing as many treasures, artifacts, and weapons as it can. It will bring all the alchemical, mechanical, and mercantile power it can muster to do so, even if it means bringing the caverns down on their heads.
  • Shroud Company: A Kul Tiran mercenary group specializing in retrieving dangerous artifacts, Shroud Company took it personally when the goblins parted ways. Having bribed and bloodied their way into the underworld, these cutthroats have laid claim to Azjol-Nerub's bountiful plunder, enforcing their will through rogue tidesages, wayward thornspeakers, and even a former Heartsbane witch.

Bestiary

A comprehensive bestiary of Azjol'Nerub; World of Warcraft: Necropolis Bestiary

Humanoid

• Khepri

Professions

A list of profession changes can be found at World of Warcraft: Necropolis Professions

Classes

• 
  • A more comprehensive look at Hunter vestiges can be found at User:TheLongConn/Hunter Vestiges.
  • A list of new hunter pet families and models can be found at World of Warcraft: Necropolis Hunter Pets