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Whether or not the next Warchief is an orc, the fact remains that any future leader of the Horde will have to take the full Horde into account.
The trolls, tauren, blood elves and even the goblins have all stepped forward to display animosity and opposition to Hellscream to date, and it seems likely that the forsaken will take the opportunity to at least reclaim Undercity from the Kor'kron. But after, a sitting orcish Warchief will have been deposed in part by the actions of the non-orcs within the Horde, and this may well mark the point in time when the Horde moves from an orcish institution that allows non-orcs within its ranks to a full international alliance of nations. Up until this point, the Horde has always been the orcs and their amazing friends. Whatever agony orcs might be feeling (at least those fighting against Hellscream), this is an unalloyed sea change in the rest of the Horde. Hellscream, in embracing those elements of the Horde that never stopped fighting the Second War, has displayed the widening divide in the orcish people between those who want to move away from that period and those that think this time we can win.
This division in the orcish people was exacerbated by Garrosh's recruitment of those orcs who would or could never have been part of the Horde under Thrall - for better or worse, Thrall's mentality may have set the stage for Garrosh, but the World Shaman could never have convinced the Blackrock or Dragonmaw to make common cause with him, or moved them to join a Horde under his command. For some orcs, this has been the return of a theme they've heard before and didn't much like how it ended, and don't want to go through it again, while for others it was the chance to try again. For some, Garrosh is a representation of their warrior spirit and his untained Mag'har nature won him support and loyalty, but even back during the Cataclysm there were as many orcish voices raised in concern over his plans as there were those supporting him. Not all orcs, especially not all of the ones who followed Thrall to Kalimdor, support Hellscream. The war that Hellscream began has finally found its way back to Orgrimmar.įor the orcs, this is a particularly bitter moment. Some reluctant, others eager, but in the end it all comes down to this - two full scale armies invading the most fortified, heaviest defended place on the planet Azeroth. Still others, like Lor'themar Theron and Varian Wrynn, were brought to this point reluctantly and only act now in the best interests of their people. For others, like Thrall and Varok Saurfang, this is a conflict of brother against brother and they seek to avoid it even as they suspect that it cannot be avoided. Vol'jin's grudge is of longer standing, and his desire for retribution stems from an attempt to have him assassinated, but Jaina seeks redress of a loss of an entire city in the bombing of Theramore, the loss of an apprentice, of friends and colleagues and the last refuge of a refugee people. Both Vol'jin and Jaina Proudmoore fall into this category - both want the Warchief removed and some measure of revenge for personal slights and injuries. The die has been cast.įor some, this is the culmination of a desired confrontation. The Warchief has declared his intent to lure the armies of the world to make open war against him on his terms, on ground he controls, and within a week that intent will have become reality. For both the Alliance and those members of the Horde in open revolt, there is now no longer any path but forward, and that path leads through Orgrimmar's iron walls, past her legions of defenders, and must inevitably lead all to the iron throne of Garrosh Hellscream in his subterranean fortress below Orgrimmar itself. This is the moment beyond which we cannot return. You're playing the game, you're fighting the bosses, you know the how - but do you know the why? Each week, Matthew Rossi and Anne Stickney make sure you Know Your Lore by covering the history of the story behind World of Warcraft. The World of Warcraft is an expansive universe.