Recaps

Uther sacrificed his soul to drag Nathanos into the Shadowlands, leaving Sylvanas seeking a way to retrieve him. Illidan ordered Akama to infiltrate Shattrath and disrupt a Blood Elf ceremony, while Maiev quietly encouraged Akama to consider Thrall as an ally against Illidan.

• Eitrigg tried to flee as Uther was pulled toward a black vortex, but Uther split his soul and dragged Nathanos and himself into the Shadowlands.
• Sylvanas demanded that Varimathras find a way to recover Nathanos, and he told her that Illidan Stormrage was a close friend of the Jailer.
• Illidan told Akama to send the Broken into Shattrath as refugees and disrupt the Blood Elves' ceremony, with Vashj's Naga forces providing assistance.
• Illidan privately told Vandel to watch Akama and use the mission to draw out anyone acting against him.
• Maiev told Akama that Thrall might be the only one capable of defeating Illidan, planting doubt in Akama despite his promise not to cooperate with Thrall.

Thrall ordered Eitrigg to obtain the Skull of Gul'dan so Mannoroth could contact the Jailer and retrieve Nathanos's soul. Eitrigg approached Akama in Shattrath with an offer to help him seize Hellfire Citadel, hoping to secure Akama's cooperation in taking the Skull.

• Mannoroth spared Eitrigg and explained that the Skull of Gul'dan could be used to contact the Jailer of the Maw.
• Thrall sent the healed Eitrigg to the Black Temple to obtain the Skull of Gul'dan.
• Akama's Broken took control of Shattrath's united Lower City force while the city prepared to celebrate the Blood Elves joining the Holy Light.
• Eitrigg met Akama and argued that the Broken needed greater power to stand against Illidan's forces.
• Eitrigg offered to help Akama take Hellfire Citadel from Kargath Bladefist and become its master.

Kargath tried to force the Dark Scar Clans to recognize him as the true Warchief by controlling their access to water. Nazgrel faced a choice between betraying Thrall and risking his people’s destruction, but Eitrigg arrived just as he decided to submit to Kargath.

• Kargath learned that the Horde had entered Hellfire Citadel under Nazgrel and ordered his forces to prepare, while offering the Dark Scar Clans a chance to join him.
• Nazgrel’s people struggled to find water at Thrallmar, so he sought help from Agonar, who demanded that they attack the Mag’har Post.
• Netherkurse warned Nazgrel that Kargath would provide water only if the clan recognized him as Warchief, and revealed that Agonar had set both Orc groups against each other.
• After scouts reported that the Mag’har vastly outnumbered the Dark Scar Clans, Nazgrel decided to submit to Kargath to protect his people.
• Eitrigg arrived at Thrallmar just as Nazgrel had made his decision.

Eitrigg turned Thrallmar’s shortages into a scheme to attract Azeroth’s adventurers, using a staged victory at Hellfire Citadel to promote an expedition to Hellfire Peninsula. As adventurers and supplies poured into the region, the Alliance reinforced Honor Hold and Kargath Bladefist realized a major battle was near.

• Eitrigg told Nazgrel to advertise Hellfire Peninsula’s treasures and opportunities, then stage a victory by disguising sacrificed Orcs as Fel Orcs.
• Nazgrel’s supposed triumph at Hellfire Citadel made him a celebrated hero after Thrall praised him and urged Azeroth’s people to join an expedition.
• Nazgrel promoted Hellfire Peninsula across Azeroth, while adventurers flocked to Orgrimmar and Eitrigg screened them with a combat trial.
• Half the adventurers died in the trial, and their flesh was made into Tough Jerky to supply Thrallmar’s troops.
• Goblin merchants sent war supplies to Thrallmar, while the Alliance dispatched reinforcements and adventurers to Honor Hold.
• Kargath Bladefist saw that the situation on Hellfire Peninsula had become dangerous and that a great battle was inevitable.

Nazgrel used Agonar’s Pool to trade adventurers’ lives for magic crystals and a staged victory that raised his standing, then negotiated with Kargath Bladefist to sacrifice 35,000 adventurers in exchange for taking three outposts. As Thrallmar’s forces moved toward the outposts, General Danath Trollbane weighed whether the Alliance could intervene, and a guard reported that visitors had arrived.

• Anachronos, Imperator Mar'gok, Durotan, and Velen observed Thrallmar’s growth and discussed the Titan relic held by Kargath Bladefist.
• Nazgrel arranged for Agonar to slaughter adventurers at Agonar’s Pool in exchange for their souls, then led a staged battle in which he claimed to defeat the Pit Lord.
• Kargath Bladefist agreed to help Nazgrel take three western outposts after Nazgrel offered the lives of 35,000 adventurers in exchange for the victory.
• General Danath Trollbane considered whether Honor Hold should send troops to stop nearly 40,000 Horde adventurers approaching the outposts, then learned that visitors had arrived.

Robbie and Krasus warned Danath Trollbane that Nazgrel planned to sacrifice thirty-five thousand adventurers, then proposed exploiting divisions among the Fel Orcs to seize the Fountain of Living Water. As the adventurers marched along the Path of Glory, Draenei ghosts tried to warn them, but the column cleared the ghosts’ mist and continued toward the slaughter awaiting it.

• Robbie told Danath Trollbane that Nazgrel planned to trade thirty-five thousand adventurers’ souls for three outposts, and he offered to help stop him in exchange for the Titan relic in Hellfire Citadel.
• Robbie proposed a surprise attack on Zeth'Gor, claiming its capture would give the Alliance access to the Fountain of Living Water.
• Kargath agreed to let the Broken protect the Fountain of Living Water after Akama supported his plan to ally with the Horde’s Wyverns against the Alliance’s Gryphons.
• Nazgrel rallied thirty-five thousand adventurers in Thrallmar and led them along the Path of Glory to attack three Fel Orc watchtowers.
• Draenei ghosts warned the adventurers that Thrall had deceived them and tried to stop them with a thick mist, but the adventurers refused to believe the warning.
• Undead Priests and other holy practitioners used water infused with the Holy Light to disperse the mist, and the adventurers trampled the bleached bones and rushed onward.

Nazgrel lured thirty-five thousand adventurers to the altar and trapped them with green mist as Fel Orcs closed in. At Magtheridon's lair, Akama realized the Illidari Council sent to guard the Fountain of Living Water were impostors, but as they tried to take the relic, a hooded figure appeared.

• Nazgrel gathered the adventurers at the altar after they captured the three watchtowers, then revealed his plan to make them food for Orcs.
• Green mist weakened the adventurers as Fel Orcs surrounded them, and Kargath ordered his forces to kill them all.
• Akama assessed the defenses around the Fountain of Living Water and learned that reinforcements from the Black Temple had arrived.
• Akama recognized flaws in the supposed Illidari Council and concluded that the four Blood Elves were impostors.
• After an Alliance attack on the Infernal Ramparts, the impostors used forged orders to retrieve the Fountain of Living Water.
• Akama prepared to expose the impostors, but a hooded figure appeared and challenged their attempt to take the relic.

Jaina and the fake Illidari Council fought for the Fountain of Living Water in Hellfire Citadel while Akama tried to interfere. The fountain vanished through the Void, and its guardian revealed himself as Magtheridon, who vowed to find it again.

• Jaina froze Akama, the Broken, the fake Illidari Council, and the Dreadguards, then pulled the Fountain of Living Water from its pool.
• The Dreadguards attacked Jaina, Akama freed himself and the Broken, and the fake Illidari Council joined forces with Jaina against them.
• A powerful green-skinned Orc emerged from the pool, forced Akama aside, and attacked Jaina and the fake Illidari Council with Fel.
• Jaina and the fake Illidari Council escaped through a Portal as the Fountain of Living Water disappeared through the Void.
• The Orc identified himself as the Pit Lord Magtheridon, revealed that Illidan had sealed his body, and promised to track down the fountain.

Robbie and Krasus led an Alliance assault on Zeth'Gor and captured Grillok Darkeye, recovering the Fountain of Living Water. After Kargath learned the fountain was gone, Magtheridon urged him to keep cooperating with the Horde and use adventurers to free him and reclaim the Black Temple.

• Robbie gave General Trollbane the signal, and the Alliance attacked Zeth'Gor while Dwarf Gryphon Riders set its buildings ablaze.
• Robbie and Krasus cornered Grillok in his cave, where Grillok surrendered the Fountain of Living Water after his Void escape was blocked.
• The Alliance withdrew from Zeth'Gor, and Kargath and Nazgrel celebrated their joint slaughter of thirty-five thousand adventurers and their gains.
• A scout told Kargath that the Fountain of Living Water had been stolen, so he rushed to Hellfire Citadel and questioned Magtheridon.
• Magtheridon said he could no longer track the fountain and told Kargath to continue working with the Horde and use adventurers to free him and reclaim the Black Temple.

After Nazgrel and Kargath arranged a staged assault on the Infernal Ramparts and a supposed killing of Magtheridon, Magtheridon warned Kargath that Nazgrel’s plan was a plot involving the Army of the Light. He gave Kargath the Eye of Magtheridon to watch Akama without alerting him.

• Nazgrel led the Horde to victory over five million Fel Orcs, and Thrall used the triumph to recruit more adventurers for the war in Outland.
• Kargath agreed to let a five-person adventurer team take the Infernal Ramparts and Blood Furnace in exchange for ten thousand souls, then offered Nazgrel a staged chance to slay Magtheridon for one hundred thousand adventurers.
• After Nazgrel left, Kargath grew suspicious that their negotiations had gone too smoothly and sought Magtheridon’s advice.
• Magtheridon told Kargath that Nazgrel’s plan was a plot that could let the Army of the Light and the Orcs force Magtheridon’s soul into the Void.
• Magtheridon gave Kargath the Eye of Magtheridon and instructed him to use it on Akama to watch his actions without warning him.

Akama planned to awaken the Magnaron beneath Shattrath City during the Holy Light Celebration, but Khadgar intercepted him and forced him to cooperate with A'dal. At the celebration, Thrall and A'dal proclaimed the Blood Elves’ submission to being eaten by Orcs, until a voice claiming to be Prince Kael'thas exposed the gathering as a trap for him.

• After failing to obtain the Fountain of Living Water, Akama left Hellfire Citadel and returned to Shattrath City to carry out his plan.
• Akama entered the sewers and opened a hidden passage to the Magnaron burial place, but Khadgar, disguised as Atani, confronted him.
• Khadgar stopped Akama from disrupting the celebration and said A'dal needed him to obtain something to use against Magtheridon.
• At the Holy Light Celebration, Countess Liadrin presented Kael'thas's head, and Thrall declared that the Blood Elves would become food for the Orcs; the Blood Elves accepted.
• The ground shook, and a voice identifying itself as Prince Kael'thas called out Lor'themar and challenged the Blood Elves’ willingness to be eaten.
• Liadrin drew her sword, while Lor'themar admitted that he knew the gathering was a trap and said he would gladly watch the Orcs eat the Blood Elves.

Lor'themar's sacrifices summoned Murmur, whose voice devastated Shattrath while Thrall revealed his pact with A'dal. As Kael'thas's forces struggled, Kael'thas began casting a mysterious spell to bring his warriors back from death.

• Kael'thas sealed A'dal and attacked the ceremony, but Lor'themar ordered forty-nine Blood Elf Paladins to sacrifice themselves to summon a powerful being.
• Liadrin killed Lor'themar's prospective queen, completing the sacrifices, and Murmur, the Essence of Sound, emerged in Shattrath.
• Murmur's voice killed many people and overwhelmed Lor'themar, Liadrin, Khadgar, Akama, and the city’s other defenders.
• Thrall revealed that he and A'dal had arranged the massacre so Shattrath would return to the Orcs.
• Kael'thas took out a black staff and began a spell to summon his warriors back from the realm of death.

Kael'thas summoned Grond to fight Murmur while Shattrath suffered heavy losses, then attacked Thrall before A'dal intervened and forced Kael'thas to retreat. The chapter ended with Magtheridon planning to turn A'dal and Akama's scheme to his advantage and escape Illidan.

• Kael'thas summoned Grond, who challenged Murmur and drew him into the Void World for a fight.
• Kael'thas used Gravity Control and Hellish Death Rays against Thrall, while Lor'themar threatened him and Liadrin questioned his allegiance to the Shadowlands.
• A'dal broke free of Kael'thas's seal and shielded Thrall, prompting Kael'thas and the Tempest Keep Generals to leave Shattrath.
• A'dal declared Shattrath saved, and its surviving people praised him and Thrall despite Thrall's earlier scheme against the city.
• Magtheridon told Kargath he had foreseen A'dal's plan and intended to exploit it to gain his freedom from Illidan.

After the Horde captured two strongholds in Hellfire Citadel, Nazgrel prepared a mass assault on Magtheridon's Lair under Eitrigg's orders. Habudash warned Kargath that Magtheridon was about to be abandoned by Mannoroth, leaving Kargath in danger.

• Thrall and A'dal defeated the attackers at Shattrath City, while Nazgrel's forces captured the Infernal Ramparts and the Blood Furnace and seized seven Titan relics.
• Thousands of adventurers joined Thrallmar after surviving Eitrigg's deadly selection tournament and paying a hefty deposit.
• Eitrigg whipped Nazgrel and ordered him to create a rift between Kargath and Magtheridon so Kargath would die.
• Nazgrel brought Habudash to meet Kargath, and the old comrades reunited in Hellfire Citadel.
• Habudash showed Kargath sludge from Mannoroth that could block Magtheridon's perception of fate, then explained that Magtheridon was Mannoroth's intended scapegoat.

Kargath learned that the Burning Legion might abandon Magtheridon and brought the warning to him, then confessed the situation to Illidan. Illidan planned to free Magtheridon, fake Kargath’s death, and accept the Horde’s hundred thousand adventurers, who marched toward Hellfire Citadel unaware of their fate.

• Habudash warned Kargath that the Burning Legion and Illidan might abandon Magtheridon, and Kargath revealed he had obtained the Eye of Magtheridon.
• Kargath told Magtheridon about the warning, and Magtheridon decided to seek an equal partnership with Illidan.
• Kargath confessed everything to Illidan, who ordered him to fake his death and said Magtheridon would be freed to oppose the Army of the Light.
• Illidan offered to transform Kargath into a higher life-form, and Kargath accepted.
• Thrallmar’s hundred thousand adventurers marched toward Hellfire Citadel along the Path of Glory, unaware they were heading to their deaths.

Nazgrel led a hundred thousand Horde adventurers to Magtheridon's Lair under the pretense of fighting Kargath and Magtheridon, but he had arranged for them to be processed into Tough Jerky. After three days, the adventurers had all disappeared into the lair, and corpses hung around Hellfire Citadel to dry.

• Nazgrel struck Nazgrel for questioning whether Kargath could be trusted, then told the army they would defeat Kargath and Magtheridon.
• Robbie told Krasus that the Horde adventurers would never doubt Thrall, while Nazgrel sent groups of five thousand into Magtheridon's Lair to be turned into Tough Jerky.
• Adventurers dismissed rumors of betrayal, and Nazgrel ordered the Blood Elves and Undead to leave after a Fel Orc revealed the plan.
• Fel Orcs hung processed corpses on poles, and Nazgrel's guards killed adventurers who escaped the lair warning that it was a trap.
• The remaining adventurers realized Nazgrel had sold them out but stayed silent, and all one hundred thousand were processed over three days.

Nazgrel, Kargath, and Akama freed Magtheridon by sacrificing twenty-five adventurers, but Magtheridon escaped Kargath’s attempt to bind him and swallowed him. In the Void World, Magtheridon revealed that a Draenei vanguard vanished in Mardum, and Illidan offered to help Magtheridon evolve in exchange for more information.

• Nazgrel and Kargath sacrificed twenty-five adventurers to break Magtheridon’s five seals, freeing the Pit Lord.
• Kargath tried to bind Magtheridon with a black sphere, but Magtheridon broke free and swallowed him; Nazgrel teleported away, while Akama knelt before Magtheridon.
• Magtheridon ordered Akama to warn Illidan, then opened a portal and took Kargath to the Void World, where Illidan met them.
• Magtheridon told Illidan that the Draenei vanguard had reached Mardum twenty-five thousand years earlier and then disappeared.
• Illidan asked Magtheridon to share everything he knew and offered to show him a path to evolve beyond Mannoroth.

Sylvanas traded the Horde’s cooperation to Illidan to free Nathanos and agreed to send him intelligence. After the Horde captured Hellfire Citadel, Eitrigg pushed the Cenarion Expedition to supply Thrallmar and threatened Ysiel Windsinger when she could not comply.

• Sylvanas met Illidan in the Black Temple and offered the Horde in exchange for Nathanos’s soul.
• Illidan freed Nathanos and instructed Sylvanas to send him Horde intelligence using Fel Fire.
• Nazgrel received praise for taking Hellfire Citadel without casualties, while the surrendered Fel Orcs created a costly supply problem.
• Eitrigg decided the Horde should target Zangarmarsh to address the supply shortage.
• Ysiel Windsinger struggled to provide supplies for Thrallmar, and Eitrigg slapped her and threatened to eat every Druid in Cenarion.

Eitrigg forced Ysiel Windsinger and the Cenarion Expedition to prepare an all-meat dinner for Thrall, and Ysiel turned the demand into a call for Druids to volunteer as food. The banquet began with Hamuul Runetotem and Guardian Remulos presented to Thrall, who told everyone to start eating.

• Eitrigg threatened Ysiel Windsinger and ordered her to serve Thrall an entirely meat-based dinner.
• Ysiel and Hamut discussed how to feed the Orcs, and a Tauren Druid killed himself so the camp could prepare him as food.
• Ysiel called on the Druids in the Emerald Dream to volunteer, and several Horde Druids joined her.
• The Cenarion Expedition slaughtered Druids and filled its stores with bear pelts before Thrall and the Horde leaders arrived.
• Ysiel presented Hamuul Runetotem and Guardian Remulos to Thrall, who approved and called for the meal to begin.

Vashj's army attacked the Cenarion Expedition's camp while Thrall and the Horde leaders were dining. As Vashj cornered them, the badly wounded Hamuul and Remulos tried to help Thrall escape, but Remulos carried both Thralls into the sky.

• Eitrigg forced Ysiel Windsinger to feed Druids to the Orcs and ate one himself.
• Thrall dined on Hamuul Runetotem and Guardian Remulos until a sentry warned that Vashj's army was attacking.
• The Horde leaders volunteered to fight, but Vashj shattered the tent and surrounded them with Naga.
• Vashj recognized Thrall despite his attempt to hide beneath the table and disguise himself with a lookalike guard named Gudan.
• Hamuul transformed into a giant bear and attacked Vashj while Remulos became a giant eagle and carried both Thralls away.

Vashj defeated the Cenarion Expedition and captured the Horde’s leaders, while Kael’thas chose to keep them alive as he waited for the one who could break Destiny. The prisoners were locked in the Slave Pens, and news of the battle spread secretly across Azeroth.

• Remulos fell after Naga arrows struck him, and Hamuul risked himself to catch the real and fake Thralls before collapsing from his wounds and poison.
• Vashj challenged Nazgrel, Cairne Bloodhoof, Lor'themar, and Vol'jin; each surrendered after weakness, curses, or fear overcame them.
• The Naga defeated the Cenarion Expedition and took its leaders prisoner as their forces looted the camp.
• Kael'thas emerged, revealing that Shadowlands power had changed him, and told Vashj to keep the prisoners alive until the one who breaks Destiny appeared.
• Vashj confined the prisoners in the Slave Pens, but secret channels carried news of the battle across Azeroth.

Vashj and Kael'thas kept the captured Horde leaders under control by scattering the Orcs and making Thrall indistinguishable from the others, while Medivh failed to find him. Thrall used the Orcs' rivalry to increase their work output and became an overseer captain.

• Kael'thas persuaded Vashj to scatter the Orcs among the Broken and publicly claim that Thrall would receive special treatment, encouraging impostors.
• Vashj sent the captured Druids to Musel'ek in the Underbog to be turned into hunters' pets and enslaved the other Horde leaders.
• Medivh secretly approached Lor'themar, but Lor'themar could not identify Thrall among the Orcs, so Medivh left without rescuing him.
• Thrall endured forced labor as the Orcs complained and slowed their work, then approached Mennu the Betrayer under the name Gudan.
• Thrall advised Mennu to threaten execution for Orcs who failed to match sixty percent of the highest worker's output, and the Orcs' productivity soared.
• Mennu rewarded Thrall by making him an overseer captain with twelve Naga under his command.

Thrall built a reputation as the cruel overseer Gudan while the Horde secretly sought a way to rescue him. The Holy Light called on Nobundo to save Thrall, but Nobundo recalled the Draenei’s slaughter and rejected the request.

• Thrall personally executed Orcs who failed their quotas, earned Mennu’s praise, and was promoted to chief overseer.
• Orcs privately recognized Gudan as one of Thrall’s body doubles and vowed to repay his cruelty when Thrall led them to freedom.
• Saurfang and Sylvanas discussed the difficulty of rescuing Thrall and concluded that Telredor was the only viable base for an attack on Coilfang Reservoir.
• Nobundo remembered how the Holy Light healed the Orc general who had fought him during the fall of Shattrath City, then how the elements and Fel answered him after the Draenei were slaughtered.
• The Holy Light asked Nobundo to save Thrall, but he refused and recounted his memories of Shattrath’s fall.
• The Holy Light told Nobundo that the Draenei had wandered for twenty-five thousand years for the sake of the Orcs.

The Holy Light revealed that the Draenei had been shaped to help the Orcs and threatened to strip them of its protection unless Nobundo rescued Thrall. Nobundo persuaded the Earthen Ring to fund the mission and began recruiting adventurers for a search in Zangarmarsh.

• The Holy Light told Nobundo that the Draenei had been intended to help the Orcs and demanded that he rescue Thrall or his people would lose the Light.
• The Holy Light explained that Durotan was alive in Nagrand and that Nobundo could find him because the Light that had saved him belonged to Nobundo.
• Nobundo agreed to help for the Draenei’s survival and went to the Earthen Ring for support.
• Nobundo told Muen Earthfury that Vashj had captured Thrall and warned that Saurfang might threaten the Earthen Ring’s wealth; Muen pledged half his fortune to hire rescuers.
• Nobundo hired Watcher Jhae to post a generous quest for adventurers to enter The Slave Pens and search for companions.
• Nobundo and Muen hired adventurers to enter Zangarmarsh and prepare to rebuild the Cenarion Expedition Camp.

Nobundo’s attempt to reach Thrall through Bloodline Connection was disrupted by Saurfang’s forces, so he led the Earthen Ring to Durotan’s secluded home in Nagrand. The chapter ended with Durotan asking Nobundo who he was.

• Nobundo told Muen Earthfury he wanted to find Durotan and use Bloodline Connection to locate Thrall, while secretly planning to obtain adventurers’ blood.
• Orgrimmar wolf riders attacked the Earthen Ring’s camp, killed the hired adventurers, and ordered the Shamans to relocate to Telredor.
• At Telredor, the group found Saurfang’s notice demanding that visitors surrender their possessions and bodies for entry, so they traveled to Sporeggar instead.
• Nobundo used the Holy Light to locate Durotan, whose secluded home was in the mountains of Nagrand; the couple’s snow camellia withered and their aged Frostwolf died as the visitors approached.
• Nobundo and Muen discussed taking Durotan and his wife’s blood, then arrived at their stone house, where Durotan failed to recognize Nobundo and asked what he was.