Recaps

Talanji and Zul helped defend Drak'Tharon Keep against the Scourge, where the Drakkari Loa Akali joined the battle before undead knights arrived. The chapter then shifted to a conference in Lordaeron, where Rowan met Varian Wrynn and asked to speak privately with Mathias Shaw.

• Talanji decided to keep trying to win over the Drakkari and build her authority among their tribes.
• Galdarah rallied the High Oracle Order to defend Drak'Tharon Keep, and Talanji and Zul joined the preparations.
• The Scourge attacked the keep, and Talanji and Zul fought as undead overwhelmed the walls.
• Akali emerged from underground and helped the Drakkari hold back the Scourge, while Zul realized Galdarah had stripped the Loa of its essence.
• Anub'Rekhan deployed ironclad undead knights against the Drakkari, and the battle continued.
• At a Lordaeron conference, Rowan met Varian Wrynn and asked to speak privately with Varian's bodyguard, Shaw.

A plague carried in grain turned hundreds of orcs and humans undead, then spread to villages near Southshore, where the Norwington Merchants' Guild was blamed. Rowan faced Terenas at the Alliance meeting while Tirion released Byron from prison and brought him to meet Rowan.

• Thrall sealed the internment camp after contaminated grain turned its inhabitants undead, and Blackmoore ordered the granaries closed and the infected grain destroyed.
• Thrall and Drak set out to investigate the grain supply, but the plague erupted in two villages, and Mayor Maleb traced the shipment to the Norwington Merchants' Guild.
• Byron prepared to burn the warehouse grain, but Illucia stopped him and urged him to preserve evidence; she then returned to Tarren Mill while Leonard went to protect Rowan.
• At the Alliance meeting, Tirion reported that nearly ten thousand people had been infected and that reports implicated Norwington grain; Rowan demanded an evidence-based investigation as Terenas suspended the meeting.
• Tirion met Byron after his release from Southshore's dungeon, assured him that he did not believe Byron was responsible, and escorted him to Rowan.

At Drak'Tharon Keep, the Drakkari fought the Scourge as their high oracles used the Loa’s stolen power, while Rowan investigated contaminated grain with Illucia in Southshore. The chapter ended with Rowan recognizing the name North and asking Illucia if she would stay by his side.

• Scourge runic blades turned wounded Drakkari soldiers into undead, and Galdarah enlarged Akali in Rhino Form to attack the undead knights.
• Xilitus joined the defense, and Talanji realized the high oracles had stripped the Loa of their power and that Slad'ran was using Xilitus’s body.
• Iron-shelled scarabs attacked Talanji, Akali, and Xilitus; Zul protected Talanji, and a mammoth drove scarabs off the Loa, while Xilitus’s poison killed allies as well as undead.
• Rowan asked Illucia whether the Barov Family had hired new mages, and she revealed that her father had hired an archmage named North shortly before the grain trade began.
• Rowan recognized North as possibly the Plaguebringer and asked Illucia whether she would trust him and stay by his side; she blushed and avoided answering directly.

Rowan countered Terenas’s attempt to blame the Norwington Merchants’ Guild for the plague, and the Alliance leaders left their meeting without an agreement. Later, Rowan, Modera, and Rhonin discussed the Cult of the Damned’s rapid-acting plague and the Scourge threat, while Modera agreed only to take Rowan’s concerns back to the Council of Six.

• Modera reported that none of 273 samples from the Norwington Merchants’ Guild’s warehouses showed abnormal energy, while 27 of 234 samples from the Barov Family’s warehouses did.
• Terenas called for military protection of grain trade, implying that mishandled shipments had enabled the plague, and Rowan answered by blaming the Cult of the Damned and offering a 30% price cut on goods from Boralus.
• Greymane supported Rowan’s focus on containing the plague, and the Alliance leadership meeting ended without a consensus.
• Illucia asked Rowan to visit Barov Manor that night, while Jaina warned him not to go; Rhonin secretly found an invisible Teleportation Anchor in the Barov Merchants’ Guild’s granary.
• Rowan told Modera and Rhonin that the plague could turn people into undead in under an hour and warned that the Scourge was preparing to conquer Northrend.
• Rhonin urged the Kirin Tor to lead the Alliance against the undead, but Modera said she would bring Rowan’s views to the Council of Six.

The Scourge’s assault on Zul'Drak exposed the High Oracle Order’s deception and brought Galdarah and Moorabi into battle with Anub'Rekhan. Meanwhile, Rowan investigated the Barov Family’s possible ties to the Cult of the Damned and warned Illucia that he would hold her father accountable if the accusations were true.

• Anub'Rekhan ordered the Scourge to conquer Zul'Drak, then pulled his forces back when the Drakkari prophets used the Loa’s power against them.
• The Scourge’s necromantic spell revealed Galdarah and Moorabi inside Akali and Mathos, exposing that the High Oracle Order had killed the Loa and taken their power.
• Galdarah used Akali’s senses to locate Anub'Rekhan underground, and he and Moorabi attacked the Crypt Lord after collapsing much of Drak'Tharon Keep.
• Talanji asked Zul about their chances of victory, and Zul estimated them at fifty percent.
• Rowan considered whether Alex had allied with the Cult of the Damned and the Norwington Family, then sent Number Zero to watch Sataia and went to meet Illucia.
• Rowan told Illucia he would not protect Alex if he had colluded with the Cult of the Damned, and Illucia wondered why her father had chosen power over everything else.

Illucia learned that her father, Alex, had colluded with the Cult of the Damned, then followed him to the hidden manor on North Mountain. There, Kel'Thuzad revealed the alliance was breaking down over the plague’s spread and used Illucia’s presence to pressure Alex, while ordering Putress to find Prince Arthas.

• Rowan comforted Illucia after she confirmed that Alex had supported the Cult of the Damned, and she asked him to hold her before he left.
• Illucia followed Alex into the woods on North Mountain, passed through a Mirror Image illusion, and found a hidden manor where she lit a fire against the cold.
• Alex visited Kel'Thuzad’s manor and demanded to know why the plague had not yet been reported in Stratholme.
• Kel'Thuzad told Alex that the House of Menethil had suppressed reports of infected villages and that the Cult intended to spread the plague through Lordaeron.
• Alex tried to end the Barov Family’s partnership with the Cult, but Kel'Thuzad revealed that Illucia knew about their deal and warned Alex to preserve the status quo.
• After Alex left in anger, Kel'Thuzad told Putress to go to The Sepulcher and find Prince Arthas.

Arthas defied his assignment to patrol The Sepulcher only after Uther refused to let him leave for Stratholme, and he encountered Putress while out with Faria. Meanwhile, Anub'Rekhan unleashed the Lich King's Undead Storm against the Drakkari, leaving Talanji and Zul trying to protect their soldiers.

• Arthas ordered Faria to prepare for Stratholme, but Uther insisted that Arthas fulfill his duty guarding The Sepulcher.
• Arthas and Faria noticed a sudden chill while walking toward the northern crossroads and encountered Putress.
• Arthas wounded Putress with Holy Light, while Putress's Ice Spike injured Faria and spread cold energy through his body.
• Arthas used Lay on Hands to save Faria, allowing Putress to escape toward the patrol post.
• Anub'Rekhan activated the Death Formation and unleashed the Undead Storm across the battlefield.
• Talanji spread Torga's Mist and called the afflicted Drakkari soldiers to gather around her.

Talanji escaped the Death Storm through a passage dug by Dak'uru, while Arthas survived Putress's plague attack and learned that the Cult of the Damned had an outpost in Tarren Mill. Rowan questioned Mathias Shaw about his visit to Boralus and discovered evidence that a Boralus operative had secretly incapacitated him.

• Talanji and Zul found their escape route blocked, but Dak'uru opened a passage beneath the rubble and led them toward the city exit.
• Arthas used his shattered Holy Pact to survive Putress's plague, then fought the infected Paladins alongside Faria.
• Arthas defeated Putress, learned that the Cult of the Damned had an outpost in Tarren Mill, and set off to report to Lord Uther.
• Rowan questioned Mathias Shaw about his Boralus visit, and Shaw recalled being watched by a female Stealth User and losing awareness after being struck with Sap.
• Rowan concluded that a Boralus operative working for the Old Gods had been acting as a mole.

Arthas investigated the Barov Family and confronted Lord Alex, who admitted to Illucia that he was pursuing vengeance through his alliance with the Cult of the Damned. Illucia tried to protect her father, and Rowan struck her before offering Alex one chance to change course.

• Arthas broke with Uther and searched Barov Manor, but found no evidence of the Cult of the Damned; Lord Alex challenged his accusations and agreed to bring Illucia to him.
• Alex found Illucia near North Mountain Manor and confessed that he had allied with the Cult of the Damned to take revenge on the House of Menethil, despite knowing innocent people would suffer.
• Illucia returned to Tarren Mill and answered Arthas's questions truthfully, while concealing her father's involvement.
• Illucia went to Rowan and asked him to spare Alex, then offered to take her father's place as the suspect; Rowan slapped her and said he would give Alex one chance.

After fleeing Drak'Tharon Keep, Talanji led the surviving Drakkari through Grizzly Hills and secured passage from the Snow Spring Tribe, while learning of a wounded Loa at Rock Spring. Meanwhile, Rowan kept Illucia and Jaina confined as he prepared to set a trap for Lord Alex.

• Dak'uru guided Talanji and the Drakkari south through Grizzly Hills after the fall of Drak'Tharon Keep.
• Talanji and Dak'uru entered the Snow Spring Tribe's village, where Talanji spoke with the chieftain in Common.
• Talanji told the Snow Spring Chieftain about the Scourge and invited his people to flee with the Drakkari, but he chose to hide in the southern mountains.
• The Snow Spring Chieftain granted the Drakkari passage and told Talanji that a wounded Loa was recovering at Rock Spring; Talanji accepted the task.
• Rowan ordered Illucia and Jaina to stay put so they could not warn Lord Alex, then prepared to set a trap for him.

Xal'atath broke into the Cult of the Damned's base and warned Kel'Thuzad that Rowan was targeting him, offering aid if the Scourge gained the advantage against the Alliance. Meanwhile, Arthas demanded that Rowan surrender Illucia, but Rowan challenged Lordaeron's claim to handle the case after its attempt to blame the Norwington Family.

• Xal'atath shattered the illusion protecting North Mountain Manor and destroyed the undead guarding it.
• Xal'atath warned Kel'Thuzad that Rowan had the Cult of the Damned in his sights and offered tangible assistance if the Scourge gained the upper hand.
• Kel'Thuzad reported Xal'atath's visit to Ner'zhul, who dismissed her as a creature from the Underground World.
• Arthas learned that Illucia had funded the Cult of the Damned and went to Tarren Mill, where Uther insisted the Silver Hand still needed evidence.
• Arthas surrounded Rowan's inn and demanded that he surrender Illucia to the Silver Hand.
• Rowan refused to simply hand Illucia over and asked Arthas why Lordaeron had tried to make the Norwington Family take the blame.

Talanji and Dak'uru searched for the wounded Salu'ya near Rock Spring, while Rowan confronted Arthas over the Royal Court's treatment of the Norwington Family. Rowan later joined Uther to arrest Lord Alex, leaving Illucia grieving and Arthas confused about how events had turned against him.

• Talanji failed to sense Salu'ya at Rock Spring, and she and Dak'uru stayed behind to search for clues while Zul led the Drakkari south.
• Talanji and Dak'uru found no sign of Salu'ya during the day, then cooked wind serpents as furbolgs gathered nearby after dark.
• Rowan rebuked Arthas for the Menethil Royal Court's handling of the Southshore plague and refused to let him dictate what happened to Illucia.
• After Arthas left, Rowan told Rhonin to make his move, then he and Uther arrested Lord Alex at the Barov Family home.
• Lord Alex told Illucia she had made the right choice before being taken away, and Arthas asked Uther why the arrest had unfolded that way.

Talanji and Dak'uru found a tentacled source of shadow energy in a furbolg den, while Lady Jandice forced North to promise that the Cult of the Damned would resurrect Lord Alex. The story left Jandice fighting Rowan's assassins as Number Two's daggers struck what appeared to be only arcane energy.

• Talanji and Dak'uru fought and killed the maddened furbolgs, and Dak'uru absorbed a wisp of purple energy from one of them.
• Talanji and Dak'uru tracked the furbolgs to a cave, where Talanji discovered tentacles in a pool and resisted their mind-affecting whispers.
• Talanji struck the pool with Rezan's Wrath, and Dak'uru found that a severed tentacle shriveled into a dead branch like those carried by the furbolgs.
• After Lord Alex was executed, Lady Jandice brought his body to the Sepulcher and demanded that North arrange his resurrection.
• Rowan's assassins attacked Jandice and North, but Jandice forced North to agree to seek Kel'Thuzad's help.
• Jandice drove back Number Zero and Number Two with arcane storms, but Number Two charged and stabbed her robes, finding only arcane energy.

Alexandros Mograine refused to let the Silver Hand harm living refugees, while Rowan helped Illucia begin facing her family’s losses. Jandice rescued North, found the Cult of the Damned’s base in her family’s old castle, and asked Kel'Thuzad to resurrect her husband, Lord Alex.

• Dathrohan urged Mograine to stop refugees from spreading the plague, but Mograine insisted that paladins must never strike the living.
• Rowan told Illucia that the Barov Merchants' Guild had survived, and Illucia decided to go out without makeup and reminded Rowan to keep his word.
• Jandice rescued North from Rowan's assassins, and the two escaped by teleportation.
• North led Jandice to the Cult of the Damned's base in the Barov Family's ruined castle at Lake Darrowmere.
• Jandice asked Kel'Thuzad to resurrect Lord Alex, and he advised her to perform the resurrection herself because Alex might not recognize her.

Mograine and Dathrohan held off another undead assault at Stratholme while Rowan coordinated grain supplies and urged Lordaeron to prepare for the plague. After losing Jandice Barov, Rowan confronted Sataia and accused her of serving an Old God, leaving her expressionless at his revelation.

• Mograine and Dathrohan led the Silver Hand through a desperate battle against the third undead wave, and Baron Rivendare helped rescue the wounded afterward.
• Jaina and Illucia oversaw grain shipments at Menethil Harbor and agreed that Illucia would pursue Rowan without resorting to anything disgraceful.
• Rowan discussed grain supplies and the threat to Andorhal with Uther and Tirion, who said reinforcements had marched toward northern Lordaeron.
• Number Zero and Number Two told Rowan that Jandice Barov had escaped, so he sent them to search the Barov family's former manor in Andorhal.
• Rowan confronted Sataia about her hidden power and accused her of being an Old God's minion, causing her expression to vanish.

Rowan negotiated a provisional partnership with Xal'atath, who agreed to work under him as Sataia in exchange for his efforts to unite the surface world against the Old Gods. Afterward, Dak'uru questioned Talanji about marriage and discovered she had no troll she liked.

• Rowan recognized Sataia as Xal'atath and persuaded her to discuss working together.
• Xal'atath revealed her enmity with the four Old Gods and her goal of uniting the surface world to destroy them.
• Rowan asked Xal'atath to help extend his lifespan, but refused her proposed bodily assimilation and demanded an exchange before she helped Lord Arthur.
• Rowan and Xal'atath reached a provisional agreement for her to work under him as Sataia in return for expansion and opportunities to pursue revenge on the Old Gods.
• Dak'uru asked Talanji whether she was married or liked any trolls, and she said she did not.

Sylvanas agreed to aid Stratholme as the Scourge Plague threatened Lordaeron, while Rowan brought grain to starving civilians on Northflow Coast and uncovered officials’ profiteering. In a separate confrontation, Talanji and Dak'uru fought the shadow-fused Oracle Salu'ya, leaving Dak'uru to attack him with a piece of root after his blade broke.

• Sylvanas learned from Lor'themar that at least fifty thousand Lordaeron civilians had become undead, ordered Southern Eversong Woods into emergency readiness, and agreed to negotiate aid for Stratholme.
• Rowan sailed to Northflow Coast with grain, rejected pirates seeking to join Kul Tiras, and learned that local officials and merchants had bought up the villagers’ grain before the plague arrived.
• Rowan sent Byron to monitor grain distribution and prevent local officials from diverting supplies.
• Talanji struck Oracle Salu'ya with lightning, but his shadow attack shattered her shield and knocked her across the meadow.
• Dak'uru charged Salu'ya to protect Talanji, broke his blade against the oracle, and thrust a piece of root at him.

Jaina and Illucia secured grain in Stormwind despite profiteering merchants, while Rowan confronted Lordaeron's guilds over grain prices at a supply conference. Aemeth pledged fair sales for her family and recognized Rowan's offer of lasting partnership or subordination as dangerous.

• Jaina grew furious at Stormwind's merchants for raising grain prices, but Illucia negotiated concessions and secured the shipment.
• Rowan attended Lordaeron's grain conference at The Sepulcher, where he learned about the kingdom's shortages and spoke with Arthas and Aemeth.
• Rowan promised the Norwington Family would keep grain prices steady and warned guild representatives against exploiting the crisis, but most attendees rejected his appeal.
• Aemeth told Rowan the Agamand family would sell grain at its purchase price, and Rowan promised she would remain his loyal partner or subordinate.
• Aemeth realized Rowan's words implied a larger move and called him far too dangerous.

Talanji and Dak'uru learned that Vordrassil's corrupted branches and the madness in Grizzly Hills were tied to the Old Gods, while Oracle Salu'ya explained the World Tree's history. In Northflow Town, Byron discovered that officials were buying back relief grain and routing it through merchants to sell to Rowan at inflated prices.

• Talanji saved Dak'uru from the shadow energy pouring out of Salu'ya, and Salu'ya revived him with his remaining mojo.
• Talanji exhausted herself healing Salu'ya, who explained how the World Tree Vordrassil was corrupted and how the Old Gods' whispers had controlled him and the Furbolgs.
• Salu'ya recounted the Night Elves' history and revealed that a broken branch of Vordrassil had caused the disasters in Grizzly Hills.
• At dawn, Lilith tried to stop her father from selling their relief grain, but he took her sack to a buying station.
• Byron watched officials send the repurchased grain to Stormwind City merchants, who planned to sell it back to Rowan at inflated prices, and raged at the scheme.

Rowan ordered Byron to arrest Lordaeron officials and guild presidents who had profited from grain price manipulation, while Floyd worried that the Norwington Family was spending money faster than it could recover. The arrests succeeded, and Rowan ended the chapter dining with Jaina aboard the Iron Warship.

• Floyd and Kande worried that the Sky Warships project and Kul Tiras's industrial expansion were draining the Norwington Family's funds.
• Rowan learned that Lordaeron's Old Nobles were buying back grain at inflated prices and ordered Byron to arrest the officials and guild presidents involved in Northflow Town.
• Byron and Leonard entered Northflow Town in disguise, detained its officials, and used Mosen to summon the guild presidents.
• Jaina teleported the arriving guild presidents to the Iron Warship, where Rowan ordered them shackled and deprived of food for a day.
• Rowan ate dinner with Jaina, who teased him about his meal and blushed at his flirtation.

Dak'uru led the Drakkari to Zuldazar, where Talanji offered him a chance to become their leader. Meanwhile, Rowan's agents uncovered a hidden underground passage in Caer Darrow, and Rowan and Illucia discussed the risks of his recent crackdown as she confessed her feelings.

• Talanji explained that Dak'uru had absorbed some of Salu'ya's life force, and the Drakkari sailed from Howling Fjord to Zuldazar.
• Talanji offered Dak'uru land for his people and encouraged him to seek leadership of the Drakkari tribe.
• Number Zero, Number Two, Number Six, and Number Seven found an illusion concealing an underground passage beneath Caer Darrow and debated whether to enter.
• Rowan asked Illucia to bring Merchants' Guild staff from Southshore to Northflow Town after his operation left people without work.
• Illucia warned Rowan that he was in danger and told him not to raise her hopes unless he intended to marry her.

Mograine asked Sylvanas for food for the starving people of Stratholme, but Quel'Thalas could not borrow grain from its Royal Court. As Dathrohan sought aid abroad, he learned that Rowan’s family controlled Lordaeron’s grain supply and that Rowan would sell it for the right price.

• Mograine thanked Sylvanas for helping the refugees and asked to borrow grain, but Sylvanas explained that Quel'Thalas's Royal Court could not provide it.
• Mograine sent Dathrohan to request food aid in Lordaeron, while Sylvanas told Lor'themar to ask the Silvermoon Council for academy grain.
• Dathrohan boarded a Sanguinar Family ship and asked Valeera about Lordaeron's food supply.
• Valeera told Dathrohan that Rowan's Norwington Family had supplied the Royal Court's grain and would sell some at the right price.
• Dathrohan asked what Rowan liked so he could prepare a gift, and Valeera replied that he liked money.

Mosen lost his fortune after Rowan forced him and other officials to surrender their assets, then sought help from his backer Terence. Saidan Dathrohan arrived in Northflow Town to obtain money for grain and confronted Mosen, ending the chapter by threatening to make him pay.

• After two days without food and relentless interrogation, Mosen and the other officials surrendered more than a hundred thousand gold coins to Rowan.
• Mosen went to The Sepulcher and appealed to Terence, who promised to demand justice from Rowan.
• Dathrohan arrived in Northflow Town seeking funds to buy grain for Stratholme, but guards told him Mosen had barred entry to the Council Hall.
• Dathrohan forced his way into Mosen's office, beat him, healed him with Flash of Light, and identified himself as Saidan Dathrohan.
• When Mosen claimed the town had no money, Dathrohan demanded his personal fortune and warned that Mosen would soon change his tune.

Rhonin and Eileen reached the Swamp of Sorrows, where a pair of immense arcane surges left them wondering what powerful being lived there. Meanwhile, Rowan rejected Bridgette Abbendis’s demand for confiscated assets, and Leonard reminded him that Dathrohan was waiting.

• Rhonin and Eileen arrived in the Swamp of Sorrows, where the spell-suppression runes still gave Eileen brief moments of control over her mind.
• Rhonin and Eileen felt two immense arcane storms erupt in the swamp and suspected that a Guardian-level mage or something even more powerful was responsible.
• Rhonin recalled Meryl Winterstorm’s history and the vanished Guardians as he wondered who could wield such power.
• Dathrohan gave up trying to make Mosen admit he had money and went to seek grain from Rowan instead.
• Bridgette Abbendis demanded the return of assets Rowan had confiscated, but Rowan exposed that she was seeking money and refused to give it back.
• Rowan teased Bridgette by calling her cute, then apologized and claimed she was not cute when Leonard reminded him that Dathrohan was waiting.

Number Zero discovered that Kel'Thuzad and Jandice were summoning Tichondrius, escaped the underground castle, and learned the Burning Legion intended to use the Cult of the Damned as pawns. Rhonin reached Mirror Lake and found Grand Archmage Meryl, leaving Eileen's fate in his hands.

• Number Zero sent the other stealth users to scout separately, then confirmed that the underground castle was the Cult of the Damned's new base.
• Number Zero found Kel'Thuzad and Jandice opening a portal for the Burning Legion, and Tichondrius emerged through it.
• Tichondrius ignored Number Zero as he fled and warned Kel'Thuzad not to presume upon the Burning Legion's power.
• A voice told Kel'Thuzad to keep the Scourge's Future Emissary close because he might help them survive the Burning Legion.
• Rhonin and Eileen crossed Mirror Lake, where Rhonin met the undead Grand Archmage Meryl and believed he could save Eileen.