Chapter Summaries

Herad’s Obsidian Warship was ambushed by nearly twenty thousand Burning Legion Warships, but it used the planet’s mountains and smoke to evade their attacks and strike back. The fleet commander ordered a retreat after the Burning Legion’s numbers proved ineffective against Herad’s guerrilla tactics.

• Kil’jaeden anticipated the Obsidian Warship’s next target and deployed nearly twenty thousand Burning Legion Warships to surround it.
• As Herad taught Alleria a game, the Obsidian Warship’s alarm sounded, and its central control system attacked the encircling fleet.
• Herad ordered the Obsidian Warship into the planet’s atmosphere, where it hid among the mountains and dodged the Burning Legion’s attacks.
• The fleet commander ordered the Burning Legion Warships to blast through the mountains, but the resulting collapse and smoke let the Obsidian Warship change position and destroy enemy ships with precise counterattacks.
• The fleet commander, unable to overcome the Obsidian Warship’s mountain-based guerrilla warfare, decided to retreat.

After escaping the Burning Legion fleet, Herad considered how the Obsidian Warship’s limited size left it vulnerable to sustained attacks and decided to seek more obsidian in Pandaria. He bypassed the mist concealing the land and descended into Pandaria.

• Kil'jaeden approved the fleet commander's retreat and planned a trap for the black warship, but Herad’s ship disappeared after destroying the planet’s important buildings.
• Herad reviewed the battle and realized the Obsidian Warship’s stored energy had nearly reached a dangerous level, so he concluded that increasing its obsidian tonnage was essential.
• Herad decided to gather obsidian in Pandaria, despite the mist Shaohao had created to seal it off.
• Herad flew above the mist, entered its interior, and fell through the barrier until Pandaria appeared beneath him.

Herad discovered a gigantic Sha roaming Kun-Lai Summit and attacked it with the Purple-Black Figure and Full Moon Scimitar. The Sha’s energy bolts failed to harm the figure, and Herad watched as Xal'atath’s power overwhelmed the creature.

• Herad flew over Kun-Lai Summit and spotted an enormous Sha below.
• Herad recognized the Sha as a creature born from the negative emotions and corruption left by Y'Shaarj.
• Herad decided to deal with the Sha and sent the Purple-Black Figure crashing down to attack it with the Full Moon Scimitar.
• The Sha retaliated with a barrage of black energy bolts, but the Purple-Black Figure absorbed them without harm.
• Herad smiled smugly as Xal'atath easily handled the Sha’s attack.

Xal'atath countered the Sha of Anger while Herad lost interest in their drawn-out battle and began mining Kun-Lai Summit's vast obsidian deposits. The White Tiger sensed Herad's earth power and hurried toward the mining site with powerful Pandaren following.

• Xal'atath repeatedly attacked the Sha of Anger, whose impure negative energy could not overcome her pure shadow power.
• Herad decided the battle was too boring to watch and discovered obsidian veins beneath Kun-Lai Summit.
• Herad began digging mine tunnels and summoning earth elementals to extract obsidian, reinforcing tunnels beneath places such as the Temple of the White Tiger and Shado-Pan Monastery.
• Powerful Pandaren sensed earth power flowing underground and feared a geological disaster, while the White Tiger recognized it came from the Sha of Anger's region.
• The White Tiger raced toward the source of the earth power, and powerful Pandaren from the Temple of the White Tiger followed its path.

The White Tiger joined Xal'atath in attacking the Sha of Anger, while Herad used the Hammer of Khaz'goroth to bind it with the Power of the Earth. The Sha was left struggling against the tightening chains as its enemies continued their assault.

• The White Tiger climbed the cliff and ambushed the Sha of Anger, tearing into it with lightning-charged claws.
• Xal'atath recognized the White Tiger was attacking the Sha and helped protect it so the tiger could keep fighting.
• Herad arrived with the Hammer of Khaz'goroth and used the Power of the Earth to bind the Sha with energy chains.
• Herad increased the chains' pressure, forcing the Sha to pour its energy into resisting and weakening its attacks on Xal'atath and the White Tiger.

Herad helped the White Tiger defeat the Sha of Anger, then teleported the group to the Temple of the White Tiger for a celebratory feast. As the Pandaren praised him for fighting monsters and demons, Herad privately remembered that he had come to Pandaria to gather obsidian.

• The Sha of Anger exhausted its energy and returned to the earth after Herad and the White Tiger defeated it.
• The White Tiger boasted to his followers about the victory and invited Herad to visit the Temple of the White Tiger.
• Herad teleported the group to the foot of the temple, where the Pandaren discussed Arcane Magic and the ancient threat of the Burning Legion.
• The Pandaren prepared a grand banquet to celebrate the Sha of Anger's defeat and toasted Herad for helping them.
• Herad accepted the praise while privately recalling that he had come to Pandaria to scour it for obsidian.

Herad discussed the Pandaren’s long war against the Mantid and offered to sell them weapons to strengthen their defenses. He demonstrated a modern rifle, impressing the Pandaren despite missing his target, and left them eager to learn more about its accuracy.

• Herad drank strong liquor with the Pandaren, who eventually stopped pressing him to toast after he went to relieve himself twice.
• The Pandaren discussed how they defended the Serpent's Spine from the relentlessly reproducing Mantid.
• Herad decided to sell the Pandaren weapons to improve their fighting strength.
• A leading Pandaren showed Herad an old flintlock, and Herad presented a modern rifle and its large cartridges.
• Herad fired at a distant pine branch but missed, while the Pandaren praised how close the shot had come.

Herad demonstrated powerful firearms and anti-aircraft guns to the Pandaren, who bought them to defend the Serpent's Spine and attack the Mantid. The new weapons began destroying Mantid fliers, and Taran Zhu believed the Mantid's defeat was near.

• Herad adjusted his aim and shot through a dead branch, convincing the Pandaren of the rifle's accuracy and long range.
• The White Tiger decided to buy a thousand rifles, and Herad recommended twin-barreled, 30 mm self-propelled anti-aircraft guns.
• The White Tiger and the other powerful Pandaren agreed to buy a hundred anti-aircraft guns for the army's offensive beyond the pass.
• The Island Armory supplied the weapons, and Pandaren defenders used the anti-aircraft guns to blast Mantid fliers out of the sky.
• Taran Zhu welcomed Herad and, seeing the destroyed fliers, sensed that the Mantid's doom was at hand.

The Pandaren army advanced through the Townlong Steppes toward Niuzao Temple, defeating a Mantid force at Kor'vess with cannons and newly equipped muskets. After the army moved on, Herad arrived to search the region for obsidian.

• The Pandaren army set out from the Serpent's Spine to join Niuzao's defenders and clear Mantid forces from the Townlong Steppes.
• At Kor'vess, the Pandaren bombarded the Mantid stronghold, and their guns shot down the Mantid flying troops before they could drop bombs.
• The Pandaren Musket Hands shot down most of the charging Mantid, and the remaining soldiers killed those who reached the line.
• The army left Kor'vess to head for Niuzao Temple, leaving surviving Mantid unable to threaten its advance.
• Herad arrived after mining obsidian in Kun-Lai Summit and began looking for more deposits in the Townlong Steppes.

Herad sent Xal'atath to eliminate the Mantid at Kor'vess while he examined the Kypa'ra Trees and summoned botanists and Night Elf Druids to study them. He then surveyed the earth beneath the Townlong Steppes, alarming the Black Ox Venerable, whom he reassured that the Pandaren army was coming.

• Herad ordered Xal'atath to wipe out the Mantid at Kor'vess, and she hunted them through their amber buildings with the Full Moon Scimitar.
• Herad examined the Kypa'ra Trees and removed amber armor plates from the Mantid corpses.
• Herad contacted his botanists and the Night Elf Druids, who arrived through a Portal and began studying the Kypa'ra Tree.
• Malfurion surveyed the Kypa'ra Tree and the Mantid corpses before focusing on the sacred tree.
• Herad used the Hammer of Khaz'goroth and Abyssal Crown to survey the earth beneath the Townlong Steppes.
• The Black Ox Venerable contacted Herad, who reassured him that the Pandaren army was coming to counterattack.

The Druids and Botanists awakened the enormous Kypa'ra Tree as an intelligent Treant, which began its slow journey toward Niuzao Temple. Herad explained the transformation to the startled Pandaren army, which waited for the Night Elf reinforcements.

• The Druids and Botanists gave the Kypa'ra Tree intelligence and helped it pull its roots from the ground, while it dismissed the Mantid caretakers as incompetent.
• The colossal Kypa'ra Tree assumed Treant form and began moving toward the western sea, too large for the Scepter of Sargeras to teleport.
• Herad marveled at the Treant's power as the Druids and Botanists directed it toward the island where Niuzao Temple stood.
• The distant Pandaren army panicked at the moving giant until Herad used a wind spell to explain the transformation.
• Taran Zhu recognized that Herad's message had prevented a mutiny, and the Pandaren army slowed its march to await the Night Elf nature spellcasters.

Druids and botanists used summoned small treants to protect the Pandaren army as it advanced toward a strait crossing crowded with Mantid. The Pandaren forces overwhelmed the Mantid there, whose attacks could not break through the treants’ bark and roots.

• Druids and botanists used nature magic to restrain Mantid, drain some into empty shells, and summon small treants to hold enemies in place.
• Pandaren soldiers fought safely behind the treants, while druids restored the treants’ strength after their force of nature ran out.
• Malfurion welcomed the Pandaren’s interest in learning nature magic and helped their army sweep aside obstacles on its way to the strait.
• The Pandaren army approached a crossing where Mantid were preparing offshore footholds, and the Mantid turned to attack.
• Pandaren artillery and gunfire struck the Mantid before small treants formed the front line and bound them with roots.
• The Mantid’s claws scored only shallow grooves in the treants’ bark, and Pandaren soldiers attacked from behind as the treants battered their trapped enemies.

Herad raised a dam across the strait, allowing Pandaren reinforcements to reach Niuzao Temple and defeat the Mantid there. Niuzao joined Taran Zhu’s offensive against the Mantid, while Ninolok flew toward the temple to bomb it, unaware the Pandaren expected the attack.

• Herad raised a dam across the strait, and Pandaren reinforcements crossed it to join the defenders of Niuzao Temple.
• The Mantid forces attacking the temple were wiped out, and Taran Zhu proposed eliminating the remaining outposts and handing the Kypa'ra Trees to Druids and Botanists.
• After consulting Herad and the commanders, Niuzao agreed to lead the offensive against the Mantid.
• Niuzao charged through the Mantid camps, crushing their forces as Ninolok watched in shock.
• Ninolok threatened Niuzao Temple and led its flying troops there to drop their alchemical bombs, while the Pandaren remained confident that the Black Ox Venerable had planned for the attack.

Herad protected Niuzao Temple with an Earth Defensive Barrier while Ninolok’s flying insect forces tried to break through. The insects became trapped when Herad activated his plan to capture them.

• Ninolok led the flying insect forces to Niuzao Temple, but their Alchemy Bombs failed to breach Herad’s Earth Defensive Barrier.
• Ninolok halted the suicidal bomb attacks and searched for another way to strike the temple.
• Herad summoned Stone Men to watch the barrier and used them to relay what the flying insects were doing.
• Ninolok mistook the motionless Stone Men for statues and ordered the entire flying insect force to attack the barrier with their claws.
• Herad began his Insect Capture plan, and the barrier started dragging the insects’ claws—and the creatures attached to them—inside.

Herad’s Gravity Magic wiped out Ninolok’s flying insect army, and the Mantid leader discovered that the Pandaren had occupied the Townlong Steppes. The Pandaren halted at the Dread Wastes border while Herad focused on mining obsidian and considered killing an Old God once he had enough.

• Herad used Gravity Magic to crush Ninolok’s flying insects, and Ninolok fled Niuzao Temple after seeing his army destroyed.
• Ninolok saw the Black Ox Venerable and the Pandaren army’s devastation, then found the Kypa'ra Trees occupied and concluded the Mantid had lost the Townlong Steppes.
• The Black Ox Venerable and the Pandaren stopped at the Dread Wastes border, where the Pandaren built fortifications and settled into garrisons.
• The Druids and Botanists focused on the Kypa'ra Trees, while Herad accepted the Mantid’s survival and continued collecting obsidian.
• Herad planned to mine across Pandaria and, if he gathered enough obsidian, attempt to kill C'Thun with the Obsidian Warship.

Herad surveyed the Dread Wastes for obsidian deposits, but a Mantid swarm attacked after sensing his use of the Power of the Earth. He sent Xal'atath and Ulthalesh to destroy the flying Mantid, leaving the shaken ground troops facing the threat of his earth magic.

• Herad landed near the largest Kypa'ra Tree and surveyed the valley's obsidian deposits.
• A large Mantid swarm approached after its leaders sensed the Power of the Earth underground.
• Ninolok ordered the flying Mantid to throw burning bundles at Herad's earth-element Defensive Barrier.
• Herad teleported Xal'atath and Ulthalesh to fight the swarm.
• Ulthalesh killed Ninolok, and Xal'atath and Ulthalesh pursued the fleeing Mantid as the ground troops watched in fear.

Herad used Gravity Magic and the Hammer of Khaz'goroth to slaughter the Mantid, then summoned a Fire Elemental army that overwhelmed their defenses and drove toward their capital. As the Mantid's capital faced destruction, their resentment awakened the Sha of Hatred.

• Herad's moving gravity traps killed Mantid by the hundreds of thousands, but the queen's orders drove the army to keep charging.
• Herad summoned Flamewalkers, Molten Core Hounds, Molten Giants, Firekin, and Flamethrower Lava Turtles to attack the Mantid with fire.
• The Mantid queen ordered the Klaxxi Council to unseal the Paragons, who led troops against the Fire Elemental army.
• The Fire Elemental army crushed the Mantid Paragons' defenses and advanced toward the Mantid capital.
• The Mantid's hatred awakened the Sha of Hatred within the earth.

The Sha of Hatred rapidly grew stronger by feeding on the Mantid’s resentment, so Herad sent Xal'atath and Ulthalesh to attack it. Herad trapped the battlefield in a cage of fire, and the Sha of Hatred began tearing at the flames as its enemies wore it down.

• The Mantid queen sent more Mantid to the Sha of Hatred, and their corruption fed its growing power.
• Herad saw the sha energy near the largest Kypa'ra Tree and sent Xal'atath and Ulthalesh to fight the Sha of Hatred.
• Xal'atath and Ulthalesh attacked the Sha of Hatred with powerful shadow and blood-red energy, while Mantid rushed to protect it by merging into its body.
• Herad raised a towering cage of fire around the battlefield, burning Mantid that tried to enter and binding the Sha of Hatred with flaming chains.
• The Sha of Hatred mistook the chains for its greatest threat and clawed at them, while the flames and the two attackers steadily wore it down.

The Mantid army was routed by the fire elementals after Malik the Unscathed was killed and the Sha of Hatred dissipated. As the Mantids fled, Xal'atath beheaded their queen, leaving the survivors scattered and unable to replenish their numbers for a long time.

• The Firekin taunted the fleeing Mantids while keeping behind the other fire elementals and attacking from a distance.
• Malik the Unscathed killed one Firekin with Death from Above, but the others pierced him with sulfuron tridents and burned his corpse to ash.
• The Mantid leaders began planning a retreat after seeing their Paragon die without defeating an enemy.
• The Sha of Hatred roared and dissipated, prompting the Mantid leaders to flee.
• Xal'atath sliced off the Mantid queen's head as she tried to escape, leaving the Mantid scattered and unable to produce new members until another queen matured.

Herad finished his campaign in the Dread Wastes, where Xal'atath hunted down the Mantid and destroyed the newly awakened Sha of Fear. He traveled to Halfhill in the Valley of the Four Winds to survey the region for obsidian.

• Xal'atath relentlessly pursued the fleeing Mantid and destroyed the immature Sha of Fear before it could grow stronger.
• Herad arranged for hundreds of thousands of fern treants from Silithus to move into the Dread Wastes and help ensure the Mantid's extinction.
• Herad left the Dread Wastes with more obsidian than expected, raising the Obsidian Warship's tonnage above six million tons.
• Herad encountered Pandaren defenders on the Serpent's Spine, who were relieved to hear the Mantid had been weakened.
• Herad flew to Halfhill, a prosperous trade hub in the Valley of the Four Winds, intending to survey the region with the Hammer of Khaz'goroth.