Forsaken

Biodata

Background

The Forsaken arose from freed undead searching for a purpose beyond the Lich King’s control. After Nathanos’s reported death, a mysterious archer rescued Veronalara’s survivors from Crusaders in Darrowshire, accepted their leadership, named them the Forsaken, and gave them a cause: revenge against the Scourge 322.

Under the Witherer, the early group traveled through dangerous territory, sought ships and outside contacts, and established itself in Kalimdor. Nathanos stressed that the Forsaken could not abandon other undead still struggling in Lordaeron, and that their souls remained alive despite the death of their flesh 323 328.

Their first major homeland was Maradon in Wailing Caverns. There, the Forsaken developed fortified districts, a harbor, intelligence operations, military forces, and a public identity separate from the Scourge 332 340 359.

Identity and Condition

• Forsaken doctrine rejects both Scourge-style slaughter and the distrust of the living; Nathanos insists that the faction must rely on itself because it lacks the Scourge’s numbers and cannot easily earn other races’ support 340.
• Forsaken bodies decay, cannot naturally heal, and cannot reproduce. Their continued existence is therefore a struggle against both hostility and time 193.
• The faction’s original unifying purpose was vengeance against the Lich King. Arthas’s fall left many Forsaken, including Nathanos, uncertain about what their existence should mean afterward 507.
• Internal disagreement persists over whether expansion, power, ordinary comforts, or acceptance by the living can give their people meaning 610 630 643.
• The Forsaken distinguish themselves from Vampyrs and other undead driven by bloodlust. Nathanos refused the Vampyr clan’s submission, while Fleet Commander Tatsel later purged Vampyr-influenced troops rather than allow their violence to spread 658 669.

Organization

Territory and Military Assets

• Maradon / Wailing Caverns — The Forsaken’s original major base, divided into specialized districts and rebuilt in a black, militarized Lordaeron style 332 359.
• Shadowfang Keep and Alterac — Early northern strongholds used for expansion, intelligence, and military positioning 377 437.
• Dire Maul — A Forsaken-held base in Feralas; Nathanos ordered its former High Elf environment preserved rather than damaged 750 768.
• Lordaeron — Captured by the Forsaken and rebuilt as their grand capital, including a planned underground city to expand their living space 733 755 776.
• Navy — The faction builds warships at Desolation Hold and maintains ships such as The Witherer 552 651.
• Field army — Nathanos deployed more than ten thousand soldiers in the Stromgarde campaign, over half of the Forsaken’s military strength at the time 559.
• Air and cavalry assets — The Forsaken use giant bats for reconnaissance and messengers, plus skeletal warhorses, though both remain scarce 432.

Story Role and Major Arcs

Relationships

• Nathanos the Witherer — Founder and supreme leader. His decisions, absences, and changing ambitions directly shape the Forsaken’s future 322 630 750.
• The Scourge — Former masters and the Forsaken’s defining enemy. The faction was founded to oppose the Lich King and repeatedly emphasizes that it is not a second Scourge 322 328 340.
• Argent Crusade — Cautious ally against the Lich King. Tirion Fordring recognizes Forsaken aid, while later Argent reports conclude that the Forsaken are not another Scourge 462 463 751.
• Knights of the Ebon Blade — Allied undead order during the Icecrown campaign; Darian Mograine treats Nathanos as a friend of the Ebon Blade 463 479.
• Alliance — Relationship marked by fear, war, and limited cooperation. The Alliance initially blames the Forsaken for the Lich Gate attack, later negotiates over their territory, and remains divided over accepting them 460 631 760.
• Horde — Potential diplomatic partner rather than a settled ally. Grommash seeks an alliance, while Nathanos considers Horde relations strategically important 631 760.
• Vampyrs — Hostile undead faction rejected for its uncontrolled thirst for blood and slaughter 658 665.

Notable Quotes

“The flesh has long since died, but the soul still burns.” — Nathanos 328

“We are not Undead who know only slaughter, nor are we living beings who scheme against one another. We are Forsaken!” — Nathanos 340

Trivia

• The Bronze Dragonflight detected a major temporal discrepancy surrounding the Forsaken: their timeline was distorted and showed signs of vanishing 1 597.
• The faction’s flagship is named The Witherer after its leader 651.
• Nathanos’s vision for the Forsaken eventually includes an underground city beneath Lordaeron, modeled on the additional living space once created at Maradon 755.