Druidic Culture

Talanji's ancestors were Witch Doctor priests who traveled to the Mogu Empire to study druidic knowledge. Because of this, she was able to become a priestess of the Raptor Loa, Gonkk. Later, she became close friends with Princess Talanji, hitched a ride on her grand caravan, and secured enough independence for herself.

Druidic culture originated from another Loa—well, one known to the outside world as the demigod and King of Forests, Cenarius. Legend says he was the child of the Moon Goddess Elune and the White Stag King, Aparro (another name for Malorne). Born half-man and half-deer, he taught druidic culture to several friendly races, including the Yaungol.

Due to the oppression of the Mogu, the Yaungol tribes were forced to migrate repeatedly and eventually lost their druidic heritage. However, the Zandalari Trolls still preserved a great deal of this knowledge. Although it was not entirely complete, Talanji managed to obtain a portion of these abilities with the permission of the Raptor Loa, Gonkk, and dedicated herself to promoting druidic culture.

Talanji worked hard to spread druidic culture, but the response was lukewarm. Zul'ra took the opportunity to learn this knowledge from her, finding himself drawn to a culture that emphasized watching over nature and advocating for balance.

Druidism advocates for the harmonious coexistence of man and nature, drawing power from the natural world to protect life and maintain balance. These concepts contain echoes of traditional Chinese Confucian ideals of benevolence and the Golden Mean, as well as the Daoist philosophy of non-action. Naturally, this gave Zul'ra a sense of affinity.

Under the core principle of harmonious coexistence, druids actively communicate with everything in the natural world. They study the habits of flora and fauna and observe the movements of celestial bodies. By familiarizing themselves with nature, they gain the ability to manipulate natural forces, the light of the sun, moon, and stars, and the power to shapeshift into animals.

Unlike Voodoo, which leans toward support and healing, druidic magic balances support, healing, and offense, making it quite versatile. However, the training is not easy, and some of its beliefs conflict with troll customs, which is one reason why druidic culture has never gained a wide following. In Zandalar, trolls refer to druids as Diviners.

Unlike the year of pure academic study during the seventh year of the Dark Portal, Zul'ra joined the Zandalari Rastali Guard during the eighth year, becoming a Witch Doctor serving in the military—essentially an internship.

Within the Rastali Guard, Zul'ra gained a close-up look at the Zandalari military organization. Unlike the Amani, whose structure consisted of many warriors and few Witch Doctor priests, the Zandalari army was composed of many Witch Doctor priests and fewer warriors.

Compared to the backwardness of the Amani, the Zandalari military organization was very sound. It was divided into standing armies and militias, equipped with standardized weapons. During large-scale wars, they would even conscript farmers to participate in battle.

Zandalar has a strict vetting system. If one wishes to become a farmer, they must pass the Boulder Trial: lifting a massive boulder to demonstrate the strength of their back muscles. Only by passing this trial can one obtain arable land; thus, in Zandalar, farmers are also reservists.

Beyond its military organization, the Zandalari military possessed excellent logistics. Witch Doctors provided the warriors with various medicinal wines, and their craftsmen forged uniform, practical metal equipment. Of course, the caste system meant armor could not be worn indiscriminately, but it was still far superior to the Amani, who were still using stone tools.

The Rastali unit where Zul'ra served was part of the Zandalari standing army. The soldiers within were all Zandalari Trolls with straight, upright backs. They were responsible for guarding Zuldazar, maintaining urban order, and securing the borders.

Within the borders of Zandalar, other races are not safe, as they are often viewed as prey by troll hunters. Much like the Forest Trolls, the Zandalari Trolls also have a history of cannibalism.

However, unlike the Amani, where cannibalism was a habit practiced by the ruling class, in Zandalar, only the lower castes—warriors and commoners—engaged in it. The high-caste scholars, such as priests and Witch Doctors, did not eat people, as they looked down upon the meager power gained from such acts.

Zul'ra followed the Rastali on several missions, observing their combat methods and weaponry up close. Compared to the agility prized by the Amani Forest Trolls, the Zandalari Trolls favored direct, raw power.

Zandalari Trolls do not use javelins or throwing axes as their primary weapons like the Forest Trolls. Instead, they use shovels, hoes, spears, and greatswords for melee combat, and crossbows for ranged warfare. In battle, warriors form a front line, crossbowmen provide concentrated fire from the rear, and Witch Doctor priests intersperse themselves to provide support and cover, occasionally joining the fray directly.

In addition to infantry, the Zandalari Trolls have tamed beasts such as Brutosaur, Direhorn, Raptor, Pterosaur, Devilsaur, and bats for transport and combat. Beast-taming is a troll tradition and is even included as a requirement for the adulthood trial.

During his time with the Rastali, besides applying his knowledge of Voodoo and druidism and integrating his own insights, Zul'ra learned several melee and weapon-handling techniques. He also peeked into Zandalari smelting and crossbow-crafting processes, carefully recording them on paper.

Accompanying his internship with the Rastali, Zul'ra spent the eighth year of the Dark Portal in the perpetually spring-like Zandalar. He officially turned seventeen, an age that meant he was due to undergo his adulthood trial.

As mentioned earlier, Zandalar has a very strict vetting system. If a troll reaches adulthood and is not chosen to become a Witch Doctor, priest, or scholar, they must undergo a trial to demonstrate their strength to the King, the Council, and the Loa to earn their position.

Theoretically, as a Witch Doctor and scholar, Zul'ra did not need to undergo the trial. However, when he first arrived in Zandalar to study, Rastakhan had already mentioned that there would be a test.

Although two years had passed, King Rastakhan did not break his word. After the conclusion of the God-Offering Festival in the eighth year of the Dark Portal, he sent someone to deliver instructions to Zul'ra: he was to help the devout Kurtaki uncover the truth behind why the God of Tigers, G'hnir-Elaka, had stopped accepting followers, and use this to prove his own strength.

Upon receiving the word from Rastakhan, Zul'ra immediately sought out Kurtaki to inquire about the situation. Kurtaki was a devout follower dedicated to the God of Tigers, the King of Beasts, G'hnir. For years, he had been monitoring the movements of the deity and had even visited Zul'Farrak in Tanaris, only to discover the fact that his god had refused to accept any more followers.

It is not uncommon for a Loa to stop responding to their followers for a long time, but it is rare for a god to refuse followers entirely, with all shrines and temples remaining silent. Aside from the death of the deity, such a situation usually implies that the god has been hindered by some event.

Loa is a collective term for beings that transcend death. They possess immortal bodies and undying souls. Even if their physical form in the mortal realm is slain, they can seek a new body to return to the world. To date, no Loa deity has truly died, so the question remained: why did the God of Tigers, G'hnir, refuse to accept more followers?