Chapter Summaries

Wrathion challenged Anduin to define true courage as they witnessed the Pandaren of Herb-Scent Town serve one of their own to the Orcs. After the Orc officer was poisoned and dragged Mayor Bai Yutou to the crossroads for execution, someone intervened, leaving Anduin and Wrathion watching.

• Wrathion asked Anduin what he thought of Velen, and Anduin described the cruelty he had seen among Stormwind's nobles and his father's use of secrets as leverage.
• Wrathion brought Anduin to Herb-Scent Town, where Mayor Bai Yutou had prospered by supplying medicinal cuisine to the Orcs.
• Wrathion argued that courage meant standing against the town, but Anduin admitted he could not bring himself to kill the Orc officer and face the Pandaren.
• An Orc officer killed the Pandaren server and ordered Mayor Bai Yutou to cook him into medicinal cuisine.
• The Orc officer became violently ill, accused Bai Yutou of poisoning the food, and dragged him to the crossroads while the crowd watched.
• As the Orc officer raised his axe to execute Bai Yutou, an unknown voice commanded him to let the Pandaren go.

Bai Yutou reported the Mogu’s arrival to General Nazgrim, but the Orcs abandoned their camp and fled while the Mogu advanced. At a shipboard feast, Bai Yutou served Tauren and Cloud Serpents to the Orc officers, after which an Orc general died and Nazgrim began to feel ill.

• A Mogu killed an Orc officer and his followers in Herb-Scent Town, and five hundred Mogu gathered there to drive the Orcs out.
• Bai Yutou reported the Mogu’s arrival to Nazgrim, who dismissed the threat and secretly arranged for the Orcs to evacuate by ship.
• Anduin learned from Wrathion that five hundred Mogu could defeat a hundred thousand Orcs, while the Mogu found the Orcs Camp abandoned and blamed the Pandaren for warning them.
• On the ship, Nazgrim asked Bai Yutou to prepare Tauren and Cloud Serpent dishes, and Bai Yutou sacrificed his three Cloud Serpents to please the Orc officers.
• An Orc general died during the feast, and Nazgrim felt his blood and qi churn as his vision darkened.

After poisoned generals died, Nazgrim blamed Bai Yutou and ordered Chen Stormstout to prepare Herb-Scent Town for the Orcs’ demands. Bai Ruanzu gathered the townspeople and used speeches and pressure to make them appear willing to become the Orcs’ military provisions, while many remained confused and afraid.

• Nazgrim learned that the generals who died had often eaten medicinal meals, but he rejected the Shamans’ findings and blamed Bai Yutou, then forced Chen Stormstout to write a report accusing him of murder.
• Nazgrim ordered Chen Stormstout to Herb-Scent Town to make the Pandaren provide military provisions, and Wrathion showed Anduin the tortured Bai Yutou as an example of the cost of compromise.
• Chen Stormstout told Bai Ruanzu that the Orcs needed Pandaren provisions and threatened to expose his fortune if he refused to gather the townspeople.
• Bai Ruanzu drove the people of Herb-Scent Town into the square and delivered a speech presenting their sacrifice as a noble duty.
• Several Pandaren echoed Bai Ruanzu’s call for volunteers, while most of the crowd remained confused and many began to cry at the thought of being eaten.

Wrathion freed Anduin after reflecting on courage and royal authority, while Chen Stormstout tried to terrorize Herb-Scent Town into surrendering its people to the Orcs. The townspeople resisted under the Sha of Anger, and General Nazgrim arrived to find Chen Stormstout beaten and disgraced.

• Wrathion told Anduin that courage belonged to the powerful, then admitted royal authority opposed the people's courage and freed him.
• Bai Ruanzu tried to flee Herb-Scent Town, but Chen Stormstout revealed that his father had been captured and declared Bai Ruanzu would be the Orcs' main course.
• Chen Stormstout defeated Bai Ruanzu's subordinates, seized Bai Ruanzu, and prepared to cook him before the townspeople.
• Chen Stormstout chose Li Li to fill Bai Ruanzu's body, but the Pandaren protected her and the crowd overcame his forces.
• Chen Stormstout realized the Sha of Anger had empowered the Pandaren, then encountered General Nazgrim, who knocked him down and called him useless.

Nazgrim’s Orc army was crushed by Sha-empowered Pandaren, while Cho’gall seized Orgrimmar and reconsidered his plans after seeing how badly its Orc civilians had been treated. Nazgrim realized Garrosh was absent and Cho’gall ruled the city, as Cho’gall and Gall debated how to handle the starving Orcs.

• Nazgrim sent a thousand Orcs into Herb-Scent Town while he stayed behind with Chen Stormstout, then fled when five hundred Mogu routed the force.
• Nazgrim abandoned most of his army and sailed into the mist, leaving Frostwolf generals to face the Sha-infected Pandaren, who killed nearly ten thousand Orcs.
• Anduin watched the Pandaren defeat the Orcs and resolved to remember the danger of their anger and courage.
• Chen Stormstout urged Nazgrim to return to Orgrimmar for reinforcements, but Nazgrim knew Cho’gall had taken the city while Garrosh was away.
• Cho’gall entered Orc homes and saw civilians starving, diseased, and suffering, so he concluded Garrosh had already punished them worse than he could.
• Cho and Gall argued over whether to leave the Orcs to their misery or feed them so they could serve as useful slaves.

Cho'gall assessed Orgrimmar’s population and food stores, then put Twilight's Hammer to work exploiting the Orcs and nearby mines. Garrosh, driven from the city and hiding with a small force, learned to stall Cho'gall by claiming he held Thrall.

• Cho'gall surveyed Orgrimmar’s civilian and wealthy districts and concluded that everyone except Garrosh could be discarded at any time.
• Cho'gall found a vast underground warehouse of food and decided to send some to the Dragonmaw Clan and ship the rest to Twilight's Hammer.
• Cho'gall ordered Twilight's Hammer to treat Orcs, ration their food, send them to mine, and enforce sanitary rules, hanging several Orcs who resisted.
• Garrosh’s fleet was ambushed by the Dragonmaw Clan, and Cho'gall then defeated his remaining army, forcing Garrosh to flee to the Valley of Trials.
• Garrosh prayed for help, and a mysterious being advised him to claim Thrall was in his hands and use negotiations to delay Cho'gall.

Cho'gall examined Garrosh's records and suspected that his deliberate mishandling of Orc troops and paperwork explained how he had become Warchief. Meanwhile, Baine agreed to send Garrosh five thousand Tauren, leaving Magatha to lament his resemblance to Cairne.

• Cho'gall read Garrosh's paperwork and discovered that at least five hundred thousand Orcs had died needlessly through negligence.
• Cho and Gall suspected Garrosh had been made Warchief because his incompetence and control of official decisions suited his master, and they proposed testing their theory.
• Garrosh sent a messenger to demand five thousand Tauren from Baine in exchange for army rations and support.
• Magatha urged Baine to seize the chance to free the Tauren from Orc rule, but Baine defended his position and warned that Garrosh could still regain power.
• Baine agreed to send five thousand Tauren to Garrosh in three days, and Magatha said he was much like Cairne.

Cho'gall lured Baine's five thousand Tauren into a trap, where they were slaughtered by Orc miners, and Garrosh learned that his promised hundred-thousand-strong army had already perished in Gadgetzan. Cho'gall watched the events unfold, surprised by the army's fate.

• Cho'gall led Twilight's Hammer to intercept Baine's five thousand Tauren in Mulgore.
• Cho'gall teleported shackled Orc miners to the Tauren and urged them to attack, while the Tauren instinctively surrendered and were slaughtered.
• Garrosh cursed Baine for losing the Tauren and said he would counterattack Orgrimmar once his hundred-thousand-strong army arrived.
• The Dragonmaw Clan burned the army's troopships at Gadgetzan, leaving the Orcs stranded without food until they all perished.
• Cho'gall, who had monitored the army in Gadgetzan, was surprised by its fate.

Cho'gall and Gall questioned why Elune allowed the orcs to suffer while seemingly protecting them, as Garrosh despaired over the starving army and his lost territories. Nazgrim proposed retaking Orgrimmar with Med'an's help, and Garrosh agreed to offer him the Staff of Atiesh.

• Cho'gall and Gall discussed Elune's contradictory treatment of the orcs and worried that their occupation of Orgrimmar might provoke her wrath.
• Garrosh despaired in the Valley of Trials after losing Pandaria and being unable to save the starving orcs in Gadgetzan.
• Nazgrim told Garrosh that Benedictus had split Twilight's Hammer from Cho'gall and suggested secretly rallying the two hundred thousand orcs in Orgrimmar.
• Nazgrim proposed recruiting the Dragonmaw Clan and sending Med'an to contact the orcs.
• Garrosh agreed to give Med'an the Staff of Atiesh and ordered Nazgrim to find him.

Medivh sent Med'an to Orgrimmar to stir the Orcs against Cho'gall, while Cho'gall decided to abandon the city rather than kill its people. In the Twilight Highlands, Nazgrim faced Zuluhed's accusations that Garrosh and Nazgrim had ignored the Dragonmaw Clan's pleas for help.

• Med'an told Medivh that Garrosh's envoys offered to return the Guardian's Staff and asked him to help incite an Orc rebellion against Cho'gall.
• Medivh told Med'an that the Orcs remained devoted to Garrosh and sent Cho'gall a letter explaining Med'an's plan.
• Cho'gall and Gall recognized that the Orcs would favor Garrosh over them and decided to abandon Orgrimmar.
• Nazgrim waited outside Zuluhed's tent until Zuluhed emerged with Mogor and rebuked him for making the Dragonmaw Clan wait for help.
• Zuluhed reminded Nazgrim that he had waited ten days for an audience before Nazgrim left for Pandaria, and Nazgrim realized he had forgotten the incident.

Nazgrim tried to pull Mogor away from the Dragonmaw Clan’s alliance with Cho'gall by winning his confidence with wine and promises of the world beyond. Meanwhile, Med'an entered Orgrimmar and revealed himself to the miners as their supposed savior, leaving them to hear his claim as the Child of Light and Darkness.

• Zuluhed explained that Cho'gall had helped the starving Dragonmaw Clan and threatened to destroy it if Zuluhed refused to join his plan, so Zuluhed told Nazgrim the clan could not return to the Horde.
• Nazgrim decided to approach Zuluhed’s son-in-law Mogor and sneaked into his tent with the help of a bribed guard.
• Nazgrim used fine wine and stories of the outside world to make Mogor more receptive to him.
• Med'an entered Orgrimmar, where secret Orc networks and a miners’ resistance had formed under Cho'gall’s exhausting work regime.
• A small Orc told several hundred miners that Med'an was their savior and repeated wild claims about his ancestry, citing the prophet Legolas.
• Med'an entered the tent, expanded its cramped space with light, and declared himself the Child of Light and Darkness.

Med'an won the Orcs of Orgrimmar’s devotion by declaring himself the Master of Destiny, prompting Garrosh to plan a military response. In Blood Gorge, Nazgrim’s stories about Garrosh persuaded Mogor to pursue greater power, and Mogor awoke determined to act.

• Med'an called himself the Master of Destiny, urged the Orcs to rebel against Cho'gall, and left after teleporting them to a tent outside Orgrimmar.
• Garrosh learned what Med'an had done and, after Rokhan warned him about the religious authority Med'an might gain, planned to bring twenty thousand Orc soldiers to Orgrimmar.
• Nazgrim tried to turn Mogor against Zuluhed by recounting Garrosh’s rise and claiming Garrosh had killed Agna’s father.
• Mogor spent the night reflecting on Nazgrim’s words and, the next morning, decided to seek glory for himself.

Cho'gall watched Med'an turn Orgrimmar's civilians against Garrosh's guards, while Benedictus taunted him with discoveries about End Time. After the civilians slaughtered nearly five thousand guards, their leader considered seizing Garrosh's position; elsewhere, Mogor told Zuluhed he wanted to see the world.

• Benedictus told Cho'gall that the Old Gods had verified his theory about Elune protecting the Orcs, then taunted him about finding End Time.
• A short Orc used a speech and Med'an's bewitching magic to incite Orgrimmar's civilians to attack Cho'gall's supposed enemies.
• Cho'gall arranged for Garrosh's imprisoned guards to be released and disguised as overseers, so the civilians would mistake them for enemies.
• The civilians slaughtered nearly all five thousand guards, and their leader considered taking Garrosh's place.
• Mogor brought liquor to Zuluhed's tent and said he wanted to go out and see the world.

Zuluhed warned Mogor that he could not match Thrall and Garrosh’s cruelty, but Mogor killed him and claimed leadership of the Dragonmaw Clan. In Orgrimmar, a short Orc prepared to welcome Garrosh back after Cho'gall’s forces disappeared, while Garrosh ordered a messenger eaten.

• Zuluhed told Mogor that Thrall and Garrosh’s ruthlessness made them impossible to match, and Mogor admitted he had spent a night deciding to poison the wine.
• After Mogor’s poison left Zuluhed weak, Zuluhed stabbed himself, and Mogor cut off his head while grieving.
• Mogor announced that he was the new Dragonmaw Clan chieftain and that the clan would abandon Cho'gall to support Garrosh; Nazgrim watched his plan succeed.
• In Orgrimmar, a short Orc helped secure Garrosh’s throne, searched the city with the others, and sent a messenger to report that Cho'gall was gone.
• While playing chess with Rokhan in the Valley of Trials, Garrosh heard that a messenger had arrived and ordered the guard to eat him.

Garrosh starved Orgrimmar of news and then returned to massacre its weakened population, turning their restless souls over to Sylvanas. Sylvanas revealed that Thrall’s army was nearing the city, leaving Garrosh shocked by the threat he had failed to anticipate.

• Fidipite was eaten by starving Orcs in the Great Den, while Garrosh played chess with Rokhan.
• After messengers sent from Orgrimmar vanished, the short Orc suppressed unrest with executions that left the city starving and depleted.
• Garrosh arrived with twenty thousand elite soldiers, killed the short Orc, and ordered the slaughter of Orgrimmar.
• Sylvanas arrived to collect the Restless Souls and bones, and Garrosh agreed to let her use the souls in the Wraith Tower.
• Sylvanas told Garrosh that Thrall had landed at Rustwater Port with tens of thousands of Orcs and was nearing Orgrimmar’s back gate, and Garrosh paled in shock.

Medivh told Med'an that powerful forces were manipulating Thrall and Garrosh, then sent him to cooperate with the Bronze Dragonflight. Outside Orgrimmar, Thrall and Garrosh agreed to settle their struggle for the Horde through an ancient Blood War.

• Medivh examined Atiesh, returned it to Med'an, and explained that the forces behind Thrall and Garrosh mattered more than which Orc won.
• Medivh told Med'an to prepare to help the Bronze Dragonflight find a glimmer of hope.
• Thrall led more than forty thousand Orcs from the Timeless Isle toward Orgrimmar after Wrathion supported his bid to challenge Garrosh.
• Thrall and Garrosh faced each other outside Orgrimmar, each worried about his army's weaknesses and possible opponents.
• Thrall proposed an ancient Blood War, and Garrosh accepted the challenge at Orgrimmar's gates.

Nazgrim persuaded Mogor to exploit the conflict between Thrall and Garrosh to seize power, while the two leaders’ ancient blood battle slaughtered most of their forces. Thrall emerged victorious, but Garrosh still had a way to escape, and Mogor had yet to choose which leader to support.

• Nazgrim told Mogor he had lost faith in Garrosh and urged him to seize the Warchief’s power after Thrall and Garrosh weakened each other.
• Mogor agreed to mobilize the Dragonmaw Clan and consider taking advantage of the conflict.
• Thrall and Garrosh began the blood battle, sending waves of Orcs into brutal fights that killed more than twenty thousand soldiers.
• Thrall defeated Garrosh, retaining three thousand Frostwolf Clan guards, while Garrosh kept a teleportation scroll that could take him to Doras's airship.
• Mogor watched the battle with a spyglass and asked Nazgrim whether to support Thrall or Garrosh as a puppet chieftain.

Mogor joined Garrosh’s side, believing he could control him and become Warchief, but Nazgrim and Saurfang betrayed and killed him. As Mogor died, Nazgrim threatened to destroy the Dragonmaw Clan and its families.

• Nazgrim advised Mogor to support Garrosh, and Mogor chose him, hoping to gain power through Queen Doras’s favor.
• Thrall challenged Garrosh, but Dragonmaw Red Whelps attacked Thrall’s forces, forcing Thrall to flee by teleportation.
• Mogor approached Garrosh after the attack, expecting to make him a puppet, but Nazgrim tried to stab Mogor from behind.
• Mogor overpowered Nazgrim until Saurfang the Great struck him in the back with an axe.
• Nazgrim stabbed Mogor in the chest and threatened to have the Dragonmaw Clan and its families killed, and Mogor died in regret.

After helping defeat and subjugate the Dragonmaw Clan, Nazgrim angered Garrosh by opposing Zaela’s appointment and criticizing the Warchief. Garrosh sent Malkorok to summon Nazgrim back to Orgrimmar, and Malkorok warned him that disaster was near.

• After Mogor died, the thirteen Red Whelps escaped, and Nazgrim led Orcs and Forsaken forces to defeat the Dragonmaw Clan.
• Nazgrim persuaded Garrosh to spare the Dragonmaw name, then killed the clan’s males and settled Orc soldiers in Blood Gorge with Zaela as chieftain.
• At a banquet, Garrosh learned Nazgrim was absent and heard that he had criticized him; Saurfang gave him a record of Nazgrim’s remarks.
• Garrosh presented the record as proof of Nazgrim’s loyalty and ordered Malkorok to take over in Blood Gorge and summon Nazgrim back.
• During the handover, Malkorok told Nazgrim that Zaela held the chieftain’s position and warned him that disaster was upon him.

Nazgrim dismissed Malkorok’s warning and trusted that Garrosh would protect him, but Zaela betrayed him and his guards were slaughtered. Paraded through Orgrimmar and shown his murdered family, Nazgrim lost all hope before Garrosh ordered him imprisoned, while Mogor slowly awakened.

• Malkorok warned Nazgrim that Garrosh knew of his words to Mogor, but Nazgrim rejected the warning and left with his guards.
• Zaela ordered Nazgrim’s guards to stay behind, and Nazgrim obeyed; Forsaken Ghouls then attacked the dock and killed the guards.
• Zaela’s forces captured Nazgrim, broke his spine, and cut out his tongue before taking him to Orgrimmar.
• Orcs jeered at Nazgrim as he was paraded through the city, where he saw the murdered members of his family and lost faith in Garrosh.
• Garrosh publicly accused Nazgrim of betrayal, ordered him taken to a cell, and pretended to grieve; Mogor began to awaken.