Recaps

Medivh returned to Karazhan after ordering Thrall to heal Saurfang, then discovered that Kael'thas’s usual screams had stopped. Moroes explained that the prince enjoyed his peculiar hospitality, and the chapter revealed how Kael'thas’s pursuit of Jaina and theft of his family’s secret art had led him into Medivh’s custody.

• Medivh ordered Thrall to place the dying Saurfang on the Fel altar, where Saurfang’s wounds began to heal.
• Medivh completed his rounds of Karazhan and became alarmed when he heard no familiar scream from Kael'thas.
• Moroes told Medivh that Kael'thas seemed to take pleasure in his treatment, and Medivh went to see the captive prince.
• Kael'thas had pursued Jaina, stolen his family’s secret art to impress her, and sought Kel'Thuzad’s help in understanding it.
• After learning that Medivh had defeated Kel'Thuzad, Kael'thas was taken from a noblewoman’s bed in Alterac and brought naked to Dalaran by Medivh.

Medivh sent Kael'thas to deal with the wounded Kel'Thuzad, while Kael'thas warned him about the Orcs. At Blackmist Fortress, Thrall and Grom Hellscream met with their forces, as Arthas and Robbie watched from hiding and anticipated Grom's defeat.

• Medivh ordered Kael'thas to kill Kel'Thuzad and promised he could meet Jaina in Andorhal, and Kael'thas agreed while warning Medivh that the Orcs might betray him.
• Baron Rivendare abandoned Blackmist Fortress and withdrew to Stratholme after learning that the High Elves had joined the battle.
• Thrall's Orcs occupied Blackmist Fortress, and the Warsong Clan arrived the next day to face them outside its walls.
• Thrall confronted Grommash Hellscream, who accused him of hanging Orgrimmar from a flagpole.
• Arthas and Robbie watched the confrontation from an abandoned house, while Arthas noted that Thrall had elven rangers and Silver Hand knights waiting in ambush.

Thrall challenged Grom Hellscream for leadership, revealing his plan to drain Azeroth’s elemental power and restore Draenor. Hellscream broke free of Thrall’s elemental assault and prepared to fight with Gorehowl.

• Thrall and Grom Hellscream argued over whether the Orcs should submit to the Burning Legion, then began a duel for leadership.
• Grom Hellscream drank Demon Blood, stunned Thrall with his battle cry, and bit his shoulder, draining his strength.
• Thrall used wind, lava, and lightning to attack Hellscream, then revealed his plan to channel Azeroth’s elemental power into Draenor.
• Grom Hellscream freed himself from the lava hand and raised Gorehowl to continue the fight.

Thrall defeated Grommash Hellscream with a frenzy potion, but Sylvanas and Saurfang ambushed and apparently killed him. As Robbie watched, Fel power made Thrall’s head glow green.

• Thrall parried Grommash Hellscream’s relentless attacks until he lost his grip on the Doomhammer.
• Thrall used a frenzy potion to drive Grommash Hellscream mad, then wore him down with summoned Earth Elementals.
• Thrall mocked the weakened Grommash Hellscream and threatened to torture his soul, but Grommash warned that the fight was not over.
• Sylvanas shot Thrall in the chest, and Saurfang struck him with a battle axe, killing him.
• Grommash praised Sylvanas and Saurfang and promised them rewards, while Robbie expected history to intervene.
• Thrall’s head began glowing green with Fel power.

A twisted soul inside Thrall’s body revealed itself as Broxigar, seized control of Hellscream, and attacked Sylvanas and her rangers. Before departing, Broxigar instructed Saurfang to guard Thrall and described how a ring could awaken him, while Arthas secretly listened.

• Broxigar’s evil soul emerged from Thrall and revealed that it had served the Burning Legion for ten thousand years while waiting to possess his body.
• Broxigar drained Hellscream’s Fel power and restrained him, then ignored Saurfang and turned toward Sylvanas and her rangers.
• Sylvanas’s arrow passed through Broxigar harmlessly, and he struck her rangers with Fel arrows, killing them and corrupting Sylvanas.
• Broxigar secretly told Saurfang to watch over Thrall, explained how the ring could awaken him, and asked him to wake him if Thrall became engaged to an Orc woman.
• Broxigar said Thrall would be placed on the Burning Legion’s altar, while Arthas silently overheard the exchange and Robbie understood the Orcish slogan about Thrall’s green head.

Thrall unified the Orcs through brutal violence and prepared to invade Lordaeron as King Terenas faced starvation, condemnation, and death in his capital. Meanwhile, Experiment 335 finally reached Lordaeron after a dangerous journey across Kalimdor and began recounting his rise under the identity of Kenan Lieti.

• Thrall resurrected by the Evil Soul slaughtered the Warsong Clan and tortured Grommash Hellscream until he submitted.
• Thrall abolished the Orc clans, centralized power, and declared that the Orcs would take Lordaeron and make King Terenas pay.
• King Terenas read Dalaran’s resolution supporting the Orcs, while Nadori condemned him and jumped from the balcony after taking poison.
• Two starving palace guards asked King Terenas for help as he imagined the souls of the dead surrounding him.
• Experiment 335 arrived near Lordaeron aboard an airship after a dangerous three-year journey and reflected on his preparations and rise as Kenan Lieti.

Kenan Lieti, also called Experiment 335, traveled to Lordaeron hoping to prevent Arthas from becoming the Lich King. Uther staged a prosperous city and lavish banquet for him, but Kenan began revealing his knowledge of the coming disaster.

• Kenan Lieti recalled how he used the Orb of Deception and compromising photographs of Xiaolan Bloodhoof to marry her and rise to Thunder Bluff's chief high priest.
• Experiment 335 told his attendants that he wanted to change Arthas's fate and believed Lordaeron could be saved if Arthas avoided Frostmourne.
• Experiment 335 saw that Lordaeron appeared deserted, while Undead beneath the airship mistook it for a flying creature.
• Alexandros Mograine detained the Tauren emissaries and alerted Uther, who brought civilians from the Thorium Territory to stage a bustling city for them.
• Uther arranged a lavish banquet with King Terenas, where Kenan Lieti revealed that he could see the future and warned that Lordaeron's doom was near.
• Kenan Lieti told Uther, Mograine, and King Terenas that Arthas would soon kill Kel'Thuzad in Andorhal as part of a conspiracy.

Experiment 335 recounted a prophecy in which Arthas became a Death Knight and destroyed Lordaeron, but Uther, Mograine, and Terenas rejected its implausible details. Medivh used the revelation of Frostmourne’s location to send Thrall to kill Terenas, who refused to lead Lordaeron’s survivors to Kalimdor, and Thrall brought down the Doomhammer.

• Experiment 335 described how Mal'Ganis supposedly manipulated Arthas into purging Stratholme and taking Frostmourne, but Uther and Mograine challenged the story’s details.
• Experiment 335 said Arthas would become the Scourge’s leader and kill Terenas and Uther, while Terenas insisted Arthas could not do it and revealed that his son had been exiled.
• Thrall entered the throne room carrying the Doomhammer and admitted he had been eating people from Uther’s Thorium Territory.
• Medivh appeared through a magic scroll and urged Terenas to lead Lordaeron’s survivors west to Kalimdor, but Terenas refused to risk their deaths among foreign races or in the Barrens.
• Medivh learned from Experiment 335 that Frostmourne was hidden in a cave at the back of Dragonblight, then ordered Thrall to finish Lordaeron.
• Terenas closed his eyes, and Thrall struck him with the Doomhammer.

Thrall slaughtered King Terenas and revealed that he intended to conquer Azeroth, exploit the Tauren, and use Tirion Fordring to control Hearthglen. As Arthas mourned his father and accepted the departed souls’ terms, he chose revenge or redemption.

• Experiment 335 watched Thrall kill King Terenas while Uther protested and Mograine calmly ate.
• Thrall and Eitrigg treated Experiment 335 as food, then discussed forcing the Tauren into an alliance as provisions, soldiers, and supplies for the Orc conquest.
• Thrall ordered Eitrigg to approach Tirion Fordring about surrendering Hearthglen, with destruction as the alternative.
• Arthas fell from his horse after Terenas died, begged the departed souls, and told Robbie that he had accepted their terms.
• Kilwinter reached Razorfen Downs in the Barrens and rejoiced at the sight of charging Quilboar.
• Arthas told Robbie that the terms were revenge or redemption, then wiped away his bloody tears.

Uther mourned Lordaeron’s destruction and regretted helping the Orcs, then sent his son Udir away rather than let him die defending Stratholme. At Karazhan, Medivh resolved to investigate Frostmourne and opened a portal to the Wyrmrest Temple to summon Alexstrasza.

• Uther rode through the ruined streets of Lordaeron, admitted his guilt, and vowed to accept execution if Terenas’s son Sarthas returned with Frostmourne to avenge him.
• Uther learned that his eldest and second sons had died protecting Udir from the Orcs.
• Udir told Uther he planned to join his Fifth Sister and the remaining forces heading to Stratholme, but Uther begged him to hide his identity and survive.
• Udir agreed to leave for the Kingdom of Gilneas, and Uther watched him ride away in tears.
• At Karazhan, Medivh dismissed the prophecy about Frostmourne until a strange voice warned him to fear its unknown power.
• Medivh decided to verify whether Frostmourne existed, opened a portal to the Wyrmrest Temple, and called for Alexstrasza to awaken.

Medivh forced Alexstrasza to search Dragonbone Plain for Frostmourne, then destroyed a secluded basin and its swordlike peak when he suspected the sword might be buried there. News of the eruption reached Muradin Bronzebeard, who saw a chance to find the Eternal Flame and forge a Legendary weapon.

• Medivh ordered Alexstrasza to take him through Dragonbone Plain to search for Frostmourne, despite her insistence that no such sword was there.
• Alexstrasza flew Medivh over the northern mountains and pointed out local creatures and territories, but Medivh detected no unusual magic.
• Medivh decided Frostmourne might be hidden beneath a special landscape and had Alexstrasza fly to a lush basin surrounded by mountains.
• Medivh unleashed a storm of thunderbolts that split the earth, collapsed the swordlike peak, and triggered the ancient volcano, burying the basin in lava.
• Muradin Bronzebeard heard about the eruption and set out hoping to find the Eternal Flame and forge a Legendary weapon.

Robbie and Arthas taught Lord Marrowgar and the Undead to use Runes, giving them a way to defend themselves as the forces hunting Arthas closed around Andorhal. Marrowgar declared Arthas their king and set out to spread the new knowledge, while Arthas and Robbie considered seeking Jaina to enter the city.

• Robbie lit a fire at an abandoned house near Felstone Field, and he and Arthas shared a meager breakfast with Lord Marrowgar, an Undead visitor.
• Marrowgar explained that the Silver Hand and the Orcs were hunting and slaughtering the Undead, while four forces waited near Andorhal to capture Arthas and Kel'Thuzad.
• Robbie realized the Undead had strong spiritual power and proposed teaching them Rune Casting.
• Robbie and Arthas taught Marrowgar the Blood, Frost, Evil, and Scourge Runes, and Marrowgar quickly learned to use them.
• Marrowgar pledged the Undead's loyalty to Arthas, called him King Arthas Menethil, and left to teach the runes to others.
• Arthas suggested that he and Robbie find Jaina as a way to get into Andorhal.

Arthas confronted Jaina at a manor near Andorhal and revealed that he knew damaging secrets about her, but she dismissed his leverage and let him leave. Robbie noticed that Arthas had not uncovered Jaina’s most dangerous secret and wondered whether she had deliberately sought her father’s death.

• Jaina left the blocked roads near Andorhal and stayed in a comfortable manor while the lords prepared for battle in Stratholme.
• Arthas and Robbie entered the manor, and Robbie held Destiny to Jaina’s neck as she considered using the Evil Eye on her hand to summon Medivh.
• Jaina tried to appeal to Arthas’s old feelings, but he recalled how she had used Charm Magic and a maid to manipulate him on Hallow’s End.
• Arthas revealed that he had investigated Jaina’s past in Kul Tiras, but Jaina said his revelations could not threaten her future as queen.
• Robbie noticed Jaina’s relief and concluded that Arthas’s secret was not the deadly truth she was hiding.
• Robbie questioned whether Jaina’s true goal had been to see her father dead.

Robbie coerced Jaina into opening Andorhal to them on the full moon, but he realized the meeting with Kel'Thuzad was a decoy meant to keep the allies away from Stratholme. At dawn, the group discovered Arthas had never arrived, and a vast Undead army surrounded Andorhal.

• Robbie threatened Jaina with a fabricated secret and secured her promise to alter Andorhal's patrols on the night of the full moon.
• Arthas suspected Jaina's brother Derek's death and his father's near-death in the Second War might have been part of a conspiracy.
• Robbie realized Kel'Thuzad's arranged meeting was a trap to keep the Order of the Silver Hand, Thrall's Orcs, and Sylvanas's rangers in Andorhal while events unfolded in Stratholme.
• Jaina waited for Arthas at Andorhal, but Thrall, Uther, Saurfang, and the others emerged from hiding at dawn without having seen him.
• Uther concluded Kel'Thuzad had used the meeting and a fabricated Frostmourne prophecy to keep them occupied in Andorhal.
• As Lordaeron's battle song sounded, an immense Undead army converged on Andorhal.

The Undead overwhelmed the Alliance forces at Andorhal, forcing Uther, Thrall, Sylvanas, and Jaina to retreat by teleportation. After discussing their losses and plans for Stratholme, Arthas watched the battle and Robbie told him the Undead needed to be forged into a true army.

• Uther led the Silver Hand, Thrall led the Orcs, and Sylvanas led the Elf rangers in a charge against the Undead, but they discovered their foes had become much stronger and fought with relentless numbers.
• The Undead killed many Paladins, Orcs, and Elf rangers, and some slain Paladins rose again as skeletons to attack their former comrades.
• Uther, Thrall, Sylvanas, and Jaina gathered at the center of the battlefield, where Jaina cast Mass Teleport and took them to safety.
• The commanders counted their losses near Chillwind Camp, and Uther warned that Stratholme could not be left alone while Thrall threatened Hearthglen.
• Arthas watched the battle at Andorhal, and Robbie told him that the ordinary people needed to be forged into a true army.

Arthas and Robbie struggled to turn Lordaeron’s newly transformed civilians into a true Scourge, while Kel'Thuzad summoned Arthas to pass on his knowledge before he died. Kel'Thuzad explained that his attempt to become a Lich had failed and began recounting how he had encountered Ner'zhul in Northrend.

• Arthas considered becoming Undead, but Robbie argued that the Runes of the Dead were not enough to create a powerful Scourge and that they needed to be combined with the Holy Light Runes.
• Malogar told Arthas that Kel'Thuzad wanted to see him before his time ran out, as the Undead of Andorhal retreated in an orderly fashion.
• Arthas and Robbie found Kel'Thuzad gravely ill, and he said he wanted Arthas to inherit everything he had.
• Kel'Thuzad revealed that his attempt to become a Lich had failed, leaving his body filled with rotten fluid and his life dwindling as his luck declined under Azeroth’s curse.
• Kel'Thuzad said he could not reveal the Guardian’s secrets, but promised Arthas could defeat Medivh through his own strength and began explaining how he had found Ner'zhul in Northrend.

Kel'Thuzad died after entrusting Arthas with a spirit crystal and Robbie with a music box, and Arthas vowed to resurrect Lordaeron's people and bring Kel'Thuzad back. Experiment 335 awoke as an Undead, met Barthilas near a ruined outpost, and learned that Tirion Fordring was nearby.

• Kel'Thuzad told Arthas how he had altered the plague to preserve the souls of Lordaeron's people and urged him to keep searching for a way to suppress souls and defeat Ner'zhul.
• Kel'Thuzad gave Arthas the spirit crystal and named him leader of the Cult of the Damned, master of the Undead, and king of Lordaeron.
• Kel'Thuzad gave Robbie a music box that played an ancient song honoring Queen Azshara, then died as its music played.
• Arthas swore to bring Lordaeron's people and Kel'Thuzad back to life and make their enemies pay.
• Experiment 335 emerged from the ground as an Undead and mused that he needed a runeblade to become a Death Knight.
• Barthilas, a guard of Tirion Fordring, warned Experiment 335 to flee and revealed that Fordring was nearby; Experiment 335 teased him about his lord meeting a lover.

Experiment 335 tried to make Barthilas stronger by teaching him Rune Casting, but Barthilas could not hold the first three runes. When Barthilas fused a Scourge Rune with a Holy Light Rune and gained power, he revealed his hatred of Orcs, and Experiment 335 told him that Tirion Fordring was with the Orc he hated most.

• Experiment 335 decided to teach Barthilas Rune Casting so he could use him against Tirion Fordring.
• Barthilas formed Blood, Frost, and Evil runes, but each one dissipated immediately.
• Experiment 335 explained the Scourge Rune, and Barthilas fused it with a Holy Light Rune, awakening powerful Holy Light within him.
• Barthilas revealed that Orcs had killed his parents and said he wanted to protect Hearthglen and take revenge on them.
• Experiment 335 told Barthilas that Tirion Fordring was with the Orc he hated most.

Eitrigg tried to provoke Tirion Fordring into giving the Orcs an excuse to destroy Hearthglen, then demanded a bribe and fought him. Tirion Fordring regained his composure and gained the upper hand, but hesitated before killing the fallen Eitrigg.

• Eitrigg demanded half of Hearthglen's people and Tirion Fordring's wife and son as sacrifices for Thrall, and Tirion Fordring refused.
• Eitrigg attacked Tirion Fordring and whispered a demand for a bribe, while explaining that the Orcs wanted to provoke him into becoming their enemy.
• Tirion Fordring struck Eitrigg, and the two fought with weapons as Eitrigg accused him of threatening the Orcs and Azeroth.
• Tirion Fordring calmed down, used the Holy Light to heal and wear down Eitrigg, then wounded him in the thigh and knocked him into the dirt.
• Tirion Fordring prepared to kill the fallen Eitrigg but hesitated out of fear.

Eitrigg beat and humiliated Tirion Fordring, but a Holy Light blast collapsed the watchtower and left Tirion gravely wounded before Eitrigg fled. Barthilas rescued Tirion and agreed to investigate him, while Arthas discovered the fourth Holy Light Rune in Hearthglen.

• Tirion Fordring lowered his sword, but Eitrigg called him a coward and attacked him until Tirion begged for mercy.
• A Naaru sent Holy Light toward Barthilas, but the first blast struck the watchtower and buried Tirion; Eitrigg tried to pull down Tirion's pants before another blast drove him away.
• Barthilas freed the unconscious Tirion from the rubble and healed him, while Experiment 335 warned Barthilas to investigate Tirion's suspicious meeting with Eitrigg in secret.
• Barthilas carried Tirion away on Mirada and promised to prove Experiment 335 wrong.
• Robbie and Arthas secretly buried Kel'Thuzad in Andorhal, and Arthas discovered that the fourth Holy Light Rune had appeared in Hearthglen.

As Tirion Fordring lay unconscious, he recalled how Uther’s disastrous command had turned the Silver Hand into a force that sacrificed soldiers for honor and glory. He woke beside his wife Kalendra and decided that protecting his family and Hearthglen mattered more than defending honor, even if it meant abandoning the town.

• Tirion Fordring remembered joining the Silver Hand with hope, then recalled surviving a battle where his comrades died after he charged the Orcs under Uther’s Aura of Courage.
• Saidan Dathrohan told Tirion that Uther’s Aura of Courage drove Paladins into reckless battles and taught him to use the Aura of Concentration to survive.
• As one of the Silver Hand’s founders, Tirion proposed ambushes, night attacks, and holding Lordaeron’s defenses, but Uther rejected each plan in favor of honorable field battles that cost thousands of lives.
• Tirion came to see the Silver Hand’s clenched-fist banner as a pig’s trotter and stopped offering advice after Uther backed helping the Orcs in the name of a prophecy.
• Tirion woke from his coma, saw Kalendra and heard children outside, then resolved that Hearthglen could be abandoned to protect his home and family.

After recovering from his injuries, Tirion Fordring planned to resume negotiations with Eitrigg, while Robbie and Arthas revealed Eitrigg’s presence in Hearthglen to Barthilas. Barthilas agreed to help Arthas learn about his Deity Rune after hearing the truth about Lordaeron, and concluded that saving Hearthglen required Guardian Medivh’s approval.

• Tirion Fordring learned that Barthilas had saved him with the Holy Light and resolved to negotiate again with Eitrigg after he recovered.
• Robbie told Barthilas that Eitrigg was staying in Tirion Fordring’s manor house as an honored guest.
• Robbie introduced Arthas Menethil to Barthilas, and Arthas asked him about the Deity Rune on his forehead.
• Barthilas agreed to help Arthas learn how to condense the Deity Rune and where it came from, provided Arthas explained the situation in Lordaeron.
• Robbie and Arthas told Barthilas what was happening in Lordaeron, and Barthilas concluded that saving Hearthglen required Guardian Medivh’s approval.

Robbie and Arthas learned that Barthilas’s Deity Rune came from one of thirty-six mysterious church tablets and was changing him into a being of Holy Light. Barthilas stayed in Hearthglen to protect its people, while Tirion Fordring prepared to meet Eitrigg after Barthilas revealed he knew the Orc was hidden in Tirion’s manor.

• Barthilas told Robbie and Arthas that he found the Deity Rune carved on a stone tablet in Hearthglen’s church, and they recognized that its Holy Light was changing his body.
• Arthas reported that thirty-six Holy Light churches once held different rune tablets and that Stratholme’s intact tablet might contain the Evolution Rune.
• Robbie invited Barthilas to Stratholme, but Barthilas refused because he wanted to save Hearthglen’s people from the crisis.
• Tirion Fordring told Alton to care for Eitrigg and keep his presence secret from Barthilas, who was searching for the Orc.
• Barthilas confronted Tirion Fordring, revealed he knew Eitrigg was in the manor basement, and offered to stop the search if Tirion handed him over.
• Tirion Fordring rode to the collapsed watchtower to meet Eitrigg, believing he would have to sacrifice Hearthglen’s people to protect his family.

Tirion Fordring negotiated with Eitrigg to protect his wife and son, agreeing to help the Orcs obtain provisions in exchange for wealth and safety. Their deal was exposed when Barthilas arrived and revealed he had overheard everything.

• Tirion Fordring brought his warhammer to meet Eitrigg, prepared to fight if their negotiations failed.
• Eitrigg admitted that he had rescued Tirion Fordring from the ruins, giving Tirion hope that they could reach an agreement.
• Tirion Fordring offered to help Eitrigg obtain a hundred unborn ones through his pirate connections in exchange for his family's safety and a share of Hearthglen.
• Eitrigg promised Tirion Fordring fifty households, servants, and a villa as they agreed on how the Orcs would take Hearthglen and conceal their crimes.
• Barthilas emerged from the woods and told Tirion Fordring that he had overheard the negotiations.

Barthilas revealed his overwhelming strength by maiming Eitrigg and declared that Hearthglen’s people were his family, while Tirion’s family mattered most to Tirion. He exiled Tirion and threatened his son, leaving Tirion fleeing in terror and Hearthglen under Barthilas’s control.

• Tirion worried Barthilas would expose his secret deal with the Orcs, but Barthilas said he was doing what Tirion wanted but lacked the courage to do.
• Eitrigg attacked Barthilas with a battle-axe, but Barthilas caught it, disarmed him, and threw the weapon away.
• Barthilas beat Eitrigg, tore into his flesh, and offered Tirion a piece while explaining that he had hated Orcs since childhood.
• Barthilas told Tirion he would protect Hearthglen’s people as his family and urged Tirion to report his planned Orc-meat feast to Thrall and Uther to save his wife and children.
• Barthilas declared Tirion no longer lord of Hearthglen and threatened to kill Tirion’s son if he returned, so Tirion fled on horseback.