Recaps

Dick treated Muradin after the dwarf’s memories returned and he collapsed in pain, while the Frost Dwarves learned that Magni and Brann were his brothers. Muradin relived his past with Arthas and Frostmourne, then awoke remembering his family, his homeland, and his enemy.

• Muradin’s memories of Magni and Brann triggered a painful struggle that left him bleeding and unconscious.
• Dick calmed the Frost Dwarves and used Order Power and their herbal medicine to treat Muradin.
• The Frost Dwarf elder recounted how Muradin, known to them as Yogg, had rescued their people and led them back to Frosthold.
• As Muradin slept, he remembered meeting Arthas, seeing him claim Frostmourne, and fleeing into the Storm Peaks.
• Muradin awoke, recognized his family, and confirmed that he remembered everything.

Dick and Muradin discovered a secret route through Echo Valley that could bring the Alliance close to Icecrown Citadel, while Varian and Thrall confronted each other at Wyrmrest Temple and agreed to postpone their feud until after Arthas was defeated. The chapter ended with Varian warning Garrosh that he intended to reclaim Gorehowl.

• Dick asked Muradin about his plans, and Muradin admitted he intended to avenge himself on Arthas before returning to Ironforge.
• Dick urged Muradin to take the Frost Dwarves to Dun Morogh or keep them away from the coming war, which Muradin considered too dangerous for mortals.
• Muradin showed Dick Echo Valley and offered its secret passage, giving Dick a new route for a surprise attack near Icecrown Citadel.
• Varian and Anduin encountered Thrall and the Horde commanders at Wyrmrest Temple, where Varian challenged Thrall over the Horde's preparations and contacts with other orcs.
• Thrall called for the Alliance and Horde to unite against Arthas, and Varian agreed to settle their old grievances after the Lich King's defeat.
• Varian warned Saurfang that they would fight on the battlefield and told Garrosh not to die before Varian could take Gorehowl back.

Dick investigated the corruption spreading through the Furbolgs of Bear’s Maw and found the demigod Ursol bound and infected in the Emerald Dream. After freeing and restoring Ursol, Dick learned that N’Zoth and Yogg-Saron had ambushed the Ursol Brothers and that Ursoc was in grave danger; a new threat struck as Ursol warned Dick to watch out.

• Dick entered Bear’s Maw and discovered that the Furbolgs’ wooden bear statues carried chaotic power from Vordrassil.
• Dick crossed into the Emerald Dream, fought through chaos beasts, and found Ursol bound by corruption-tainted chains.
• Dick shattered Ursol’s chains and used order power to dispel most of the chaos infecting him.
• Ursol told Dick that Yogg-Saron had weakened the brothers through their Furbolg priest while N’Zoth attacked them, and that Ursoc had been summoned into the mortal world.
• Ursol pleaded with Dick to save Ursoc, then warned him as Dick’s arm grew scorching hot and Dick turned to slash at an unseen attacker.

Dick confronted Xavius in Ursol's den and fought to counter the nightmare's spatial jumps. He severed Xavius's arm and sealed the exit, leaving the King of Nightmares trapped and wounded as Dick prepared to finish the fight.

• Dick recognized Xavius, who taunted him and claimed Ursoc might attack his allies.
• Dick and Xavius exchanged rapid attacks, but Xavius's spatial jumps gave him the advantage in speed.
• Dick used Divine Storm to guard himself and baited Xavius into attacking Ursol before grabbing his wrist.
• Dick held Xavius in place and severed his arm with Windfury, inflicting a grievous wound.
• Dick sealed the den's entrance with a silver barrier and challenged Xavius to face death.

Dick freed Ursol from the Emerald Dream, burned the chaos from Bear’s Maw, and confronted the corrupted Ursoc in Ursoc’s Lair. After Ursoc’s soul returned to the Emerald Dream, Dick recovered Ursoc’s Claws and a crystal containing a sleeping starlight bear.

• Dick delivered the weakened Ursol to the Green Dragon Queen’s World’s Sleep and burned Bear’s Maw, sparing Furbolgs who had not fallen to chaos.
• Dick traveled to Ursoc’s Lair and was ambushed by the corrupted Ursoc, whose overwhelming strength sent him crashing into the Drakkari Trolls’ wall.
• Dick fought back with the Aegis of Aggramar and the Fire of Justice, blinding Ursoc and burning the chaos within him with silver flames.
• At dawn, Ursoc’s freed spirit returned to the Emerald Dream after Dick told him that Ursol was waiting there and asked him to fight for him in the future.
• Dick collected Ursoc’s Claws and a starlit crystal, then recognized the bear sleeping inside the crystal as Arcturis.

Twenty-five young champions gathered at Wyrmrest Temple for a trial to prove they could fight together against the Lich King. After Tirion Fordring opened the event, the contestants faced their first opponents, whose identities remained unseen as the doors opened.

• Leaders of the Alliance, Horde, and Dick’s third power gathered at Wyrmrest Temple to watch the finalists’ trial.
• Tuhart announced that the twenty-five contestants would form one team for three challenges before competing in a tournament, and Garrosh accepted the rules after questioning them.
• Garrosh led the first-ranked orc team into the hall, where the Horde cheered them and the Alliance booed.
• Tirion Fordring addressed the contestants and emphasized that the Northern Expedition needed champions with strength, will, wisdom, and teamwork.
• Tirion Fordring opened the doors and announced the contestants’ first opponents, who had soared through the skies since the earliest days of time.

The contestants faced three dragons in a trial designed to teach them teamwork, but Onyxia’s chaotic assault initially left them scattered. Baron seized an opening to organize the fighters, and the team began following his orders as Dick’s deliberate intervention gave them a chance to coordinate.

• Three dragons—Onyxia, Demitier, and Stellagosa—emerged to challenge the contestants, while Thrall explained that the trial tested teamwork for the coming mission.
• Onyxia attacked the disorganized contestants, and Demitier and Stellagosa added to the chaos as the fighters struggled to respond together.
• Dick secretly prompted Demitier to land and create an opening, while Baron used his battlefield insight to issue orders dividing the contestants into teams against each dragon.
• Garrosh and the orc squad followed Baron’s command, and coordinated attacks forced Onyxia to land while the mages and druids began containing the other dragons.
• Kael'thas asked Dick whether he had deliberately created the opening, and Dick confirmed that the rookies needed a chance to begin learning teamwork.

Baron’s coordination helped the contestants drive Demi and Stellagosa from the battlefield, but Stellagosa’s magic paralyzed the fighters and let Onyxia break free. Velen and Tirion protected and evacuated most of the contestants, leaving Garrosh, Dranosh, and Kent on Onyxia’s back as the crowd rallied behind them.

• Maximillian wounded Demitier with the Windmill Spear, forcing the green dragon to leave the battlefield, and Baron reorganized the contestants and replenished the healers’ mana.
• The ranged fighters wounded Stellagosa, who retaliated with blue flames that disrupted the orcs holding Onyxia; the contestants then concentrated their attacks on the Black Dragon Princess.
• Stellagosa burst the flames into a paralyzing storm, allowing Onyxia to scatter her attackers and take flight with Garrosh, Dranosh, and Kent clinging to the chain trailing from her wing.
• Onyxia began to unleash Shadowflame, but Velen’s protection shielded the contestants, and Tirion ordered everyone except Garrosh, Dranosh, and Kent out of the arena.
• Rhonin teleported the other contestants away, and Alliance and Horde spectators joined in cheering for the three fighters left on Onyxia’s back.

Garrosh, Dranosh, and Maximillian defeated Onyxia in the trial of courage, then recovered with Velen’s healing. Tirion Fordring announced the next trial: the competitors had to take a golden horn from Heimdall and four Valarjar spirits, who would match their strength.

• Garrosh, Dranosh, and Maximillian wounded Onyxia with Gorehowl and a steel dragonlance, bringing the dragon crashing down while all three survived with severe injuries.
• Kael'thas cleared the dust, and the arena cheered as the three fighters stood together; Tirion Fordring praised their courage and announced a second trial after twenty minutes of rest.
• Velen healed the competitors, who recovered with supplies and assigned leaders for their group.
• Tirion Fordring announced that fallen champions in the Northern Expedition War could have a chance to enter the Halls of Valor and become spirits.
• Heimdall appeared with four Valarjar spirit warriors and challenged the competitors to take his golden horn, by force or stealth.

The contestants fought Heimdall and his four companions, whose flawless teamwork overwhelmed their larger force despite their equal strength. After Baron rallied the fighters to target the spirit priest, Garrosh wounded him with Gorehowl, giving the contestants their first hope of victory.

• Marcus, Maximillian, Hemet II, and the other contestants attacked Heimdall's team, but the five spirits swiftly countered and badly disrupted their formation.
• Heimdall's team used Mass Dispel and Shadow Wail-Mass Fear to strip the mages' defenses and leave them exposed to Bladestorm.
• Hemet II interrupted the spirit priest with armor-piercing shots, and Baron ordered the defenders to hold off the spirits while the ranged fighters targeted the priest.
• Baron persuaded Garrosh to abandon his charge toward Heimdall and attack the priest instead, despite Garrosh's concern for his wounded brother Jorin.
• Garrosh struck the spirit priest with Gorehowl and inflicted the first serious wound on the spirits.

Garrosh, Dranosh, Hemet II, and Baron defeated Heimdall and the Spirits by securing Heimdall’s golden horn. As the contestants celebrated, the Lich King Arthas launched a full-scale Undead Scourge assault on Wyrmrest Temple and the surrounding forces.

• Baron dispelled Heimdall’s golden rage, giving Hemet II a chance to shoot the strap holding Heimdall’s horn.
• Hemet II’s bullet severed the strap, and Garrosh claimed the horn to win the battle for the contestants.
• Heimdall conceded the victory, and the contestants received cheers as the defeated Spirits vanished from the hall.
• Tirion Fordring began praising the contestants before crashes shook Wyrmrest Temple and two wounded Red Dragons fell into the hall.
• Mograine tried to counter the attack, but an ice-blue barrier stopped his Holy Light as a giant Bone Dragon and the Lich King appeared.
• The Undead Scourge poured through Angrathar and attacked the Alliance Forces near Fordragon Hold and Warsong Hold.

Arthas and his death knights ambushed the heroes at Wyrmrest Temple, forcing them into battles across the temple and nearby snowfields. Dick confronted Arthas while Rhonin and Jaina exposed the identity of their powerful black-robed opponent, who was revealed to be their former mentor.

• Mograine, Tirion Fordring, and Varian attacked Arthas, but Arthas wounded Varian and summoned Sindragosa to fight the Red Dragon Queen.
• Arthas’s allies ambushed Kael'thas, but Dick arrived and engaged Arthas in a clash of Holy Fire and deathfrost.
• Arthas tried to persuade Dick to join him, and Dick demanded to know whether he was fighting Arthas or the Lich King before the two renewed their battle.
• Mograine, Tirion Fordring, Saurfang, Varian, Thrall, Kael'thas, Magni, Daelin, Rhonin, and Jaina fought Arthas’s remaining champions across the temple and snowfields.
• Rhonin and Jaina worked together against a black-robed mage, whose time magic was exposed when Jaina’s ice barrage forced him to reveal his face.
• The black-robed mage addressed Anna and Rhonin as former companions and declared that they were now enemies.

Dick Tang fought Arthas across Dragonblight, where the Lich King froze him and pierced his heart before Dick broke free and struck back with a devastating blow. Both survived the clash, and Arthas withdrew as Dick learned that something had happened to Anna.

• Dick Tang discovered that his Order power gave him no special advantage against Arthas, and Arthas's strength overwhelmed his defenses.
• Arthas froze Dick in a massive block of ice, then pierced his chest and declared that he would raise Dick as his weapon.
• Anveena lent Dick her power, allowing him to break free and blast Arthas with a tremendous strike of Holy Light.
• Dick and Arthas both remained capable of fighting, but Sindragosa's arrival and Arthas's decision to withdraw ended their clash.
• Liadrin contacted Dick to say that something had happened to Anna, and Dick prepared to return.

Arthas’s assault on Wyrmrest Temple left Jaina unconscious and Rhonin badly wounded after Arthas desecrated Antonidas’s soul. As Dick and Velen headed to the overwhelmed battlefield at Angrathar, Garrosh faced a deadly strike from a Scourge Necropolis.

• Dick found Liadrin, Jaina, Rhonin, and other wounded survivors in the ruined Wyrmrest Temple.
• Rhonin told Dick that Arthas had resurrected Antonidas and desecrated his soul, while Velen said Jaina needed time to recover.
• Liadrin reported that the Scourge had overrun Fordragon Hold and Warsong Hold, killing more than fifteen hundred soldiers.
• Dick set out for Angrathar with Velen, and Rhonin followed to bring his mentor to the battlefield.
• Alliance, Horde, and Dragon forces fought to hold back the vast Scourge army, while Garrosh charged its commanders.
• A Scourge Necropolis targeted Garrosh, Dranosh rushed to save him, and a beam of dark-green energy pierced the sky.

The Ebon Blade arrived at Angrathar and turned the battle against the Scourge, allowing the Alliance and Horde forces to charge. Dick then joined Velen and used Anveena to channel their combined Holy Light toward the gate as a lure.

• Garrosh saw the Ebon Blade's four floating cities destroy a Scourge necropolis and realized the reinforcements were allies.
• Uther led the Ebon Blade in a devastating attack that cut through the undead and halted their advance, while Thassarian sounded the horn.
• Varian ordered the forces to charge, and the Alliance and Horde armies advanced as dragons and Ebon Blade fighters attacked the Scourge.
• Dick explained to Velen why Azeroth's leaders and warriors fought to protect their home, then asked him to help cut through Apocalypse Gate · Angrathar.
• Anveena converted Dick's Holy Light for Velen, and their combined power surged into the sky, drawing attention toward the gate.

Dick and Velen combined their holy power to attack Angrathar, forcing Arthas to defend the gate and then retreat when their strike opened a breach beside it. Their power also bathed the battlefield in healing light, leaving the living forces victorious for the moment.

• Velen controlled Dick’s holy power and shaped it into a massive sword of light aimed at Angrathar.
• Arthas gathered Icecrown’s dark energy and clashed with the sword, freezing the gate’s lower structures as its upper structures melted.
• Dick and Velen redirected their final strike, carving a vast hollow through Angrathar’s wall and the adjoining mountainside, while the effort left them both weakened.
• Velen released a rain of holy light that healed the living, honored the fallen, and purified undead across the battlefield.
• Mograine, Saurfang, and Cairne led the forces forward as Arthas ordered the undead to retreat, and Mograine challenged the Lich King.

After the Alliance Forces reclaimed Fordragon Hold and Warsong Hold, Garrosh considered whether to become Chieftain of the Warsong Clan before he and Jorin received a secret mission from Saurfang. They boarded an Engineering Submarine with Dranosh and Brigadier General Matthew, bound for a destination Matthew called hell.

• The Alliance Forces strengthened their defenses and morale after recapturing Fordragon Hold and Warsong Hold, while leaders resolved to send more troops and prisoners to Northrend.
• Garrosh told Dranosh and Jorin that Warsong warriors had asked him to become their Chieftain, and Dranosh urged him to accept the responsibility.
• Saurfang assigned Garrosh, Jorin, and Dranosh a confidential mission that could affect the war, warning them to withdraw if it risked failure.
• Saurfang told Dranosh that his performance had earned him one of the world's finest weapons, intended for warriors.
• At New Hearthglen's harbor, the three Orcs boarded an Engineering Submarine with Brigadier General Matthew, who said their destination was hell.

Stormwind blamed the Lich King for Archbishop Benedictus’s death and sent a second expeditionary corps to Northrend. Meanwhile, Dick and Muradin forged Shadow’s Edge, and Uther set out to meet Dick after hearing the weapon could oppose a runeblade.

• Archbishop Benedictus was killed during an attack in Westfall, and Stormwind’s reports blamed the Lich King’s death knights after investigators found shadow energy, insectoid remains, and a shattered runeblade.
• King Varian held Benedictus’s funeral, vowed to fight Arthas, and sent Stormwind’s Second Expeditionary Corps to Northrend.
• Stormwind’s authorities silenced people who questioned the official account, while Cathedral of Light priests and soldiers helped suppress the Twilight’s Hammer cultists.
• Dick and Muradin completed the war axe Shadow’s Edge using water from a glacier near Frosthold, and Dick said he meant to give it to someone who could earn its recognition.
• A messenger told Uther that Dick was waiting at K3 Base with a weapon capable of opposing the runeblade, and Uther left to meet him.

Dick gathered Illidan, Senegos, and Uther to imbue Shadow's Edge with fel, frost, and blood so it could counter Frostmourne by trapping souls. The weapon awakened with a greedy soul of its own, but neither Uther nor Dick could wield it, leaving Dick to seek it another master as he promised to aid Illidan's war later.

• Dick learned that the quest system had identified the crystal Anduin found after Helya's death as an unknown special rule item required for the Darkness Overturned quest.
• Dick asked Illidan to infuse Shadow's Edge with fel flame, and Illidan agreed after Dick explained that the weapon needed the power to trap souls and oppose Frostmourne.
• Uther arrived and approved Dick's plan, then added the power of blood and hatred while Senegos infused the axe with frost.
• Shadow's Edge transformed into a soul-manipulating weapon, but its greedy spirit resisted Uther, and Dick said neither of them could become its master.
• Dick promised Illidan he would eventually help in Draenor, said he would join the war later, and asked him to take something to Sylvanas.

Dick unveiled Shadowmourne, a dangerous axe modeled after Frostmourne, and explained that it could help prevent powerful Scourge undead from being resurrected. Tirion Fordring volunteered to test whether he could wield it, despite Dick warning that the weapon would be especially difficult for him to control.

• Dick brought a chained wooden box to the Alliance Forces' headquarters, where Tirion Fordring welcomed him and Mograine and other leaders gathered to inspect its contents.
• Dick explained that Frostmourne preserved the souls of dead Scourge leaders, allowing them to return, and said the Alliance needed a way to counter that threat.
• Dick opened the box and revealed Shadowmourne, describing its soul-absorbing powers and saying it could oppose Frostmourne.
• Dick warned that Shadowmourne might influence its wielder and that only someone able to master its will could use it safely; Cairne Bloodhoof stressed that the wielder needed a strong will to face Arthas.
• Tirion Fordring asked whether Shadowmourne would affect its wielder's thoughts, then volunteered to try it, saying he wanted to end the war and had already lost too much.

Tirion Fordring took hold of Shadowmourne and fought its power as Holy Light and death energy clashed within him. He persuaded the weapon’s newly born soul to accept him as its wielder, then joined its power with his own and prepared to strengthen it with Dick’s “Feast of a Thousand Souls.”

• Tirion Fordring grasped Shadowmourne, and its power surged through his body as his Holy Light fought against it.
• Mograine, Dick, and Saurfang urged Fordring to hold on while he struggled against the weapon in his mind.
• Fordring confronted Shadowmourne’s soul and convinced it to obey him until it found a more suitable wielder.
• Shadowmourne accepted Fordring, and the two energies reached a balance that left his left hand in constant conflict between regeneration and destruction.
• Dick proposed strengthening Shadowmourne with a “Feast of a Thousand Souls.”

Hemet Nesingwary and Hemet II sabotaged the undead’s defenses around the Shadow Vault by intercepting and altering messages, then ambushed a scouting party. After revealing that he had joined the expedition to obtain the Titan-powered Eye of the Eagle, Nesingwary called for Rexxar, Rogério, and Theron as a major hunt approached.

• Hemet II and Hemet Nesingwary captured a bone raven outside the Shadow Vault and replaced its encrypted message with altered information.
• Nesingwary explained that Arthas received information through layers of command, allowing them to weaken the undead defensive line without attracting his attention.
• Sensing danger, Nesingwary and Hemet II concealed themselves and attacked a lich and five death knights who arrived through a portal.
• Nesingwary killed the fleeing lich with a long-range shot from the Eye of the Eagle, while Hemet II learned why his father had joined the expedition.
• Nesingwary told Hemet II to signal Rexxar, Rogério, and Theron, declaring that a vast organized hunt was about to begin.

Dick showed Tirion Fordring, Mograine, and Uther how Arthas’s forces were raising Frost Giant corpses at Lightning Ledge to create Bone Behemoths. He sent the Alliance Forces to clear the undead operation, leaving Tirion to fight a powerful target with Shadowmourne.

• Dick explained that the Frost Giants of Dun Niffelem had yielded to his forces, while the Mogu Burning Legion had destroyed Brunnhildar Village and captured Thorim’s surviving followers.
• Dick brought Mograine, Tirion Fordring, and Uther to Lightning Ledge to show them a troubling discovery made by his scouts.
• The group saw undead raising Frost Giant corpses and assembling them into Bone Behemoths for Arthas’s army.
• Dick suspected Arthas had approval from powerful figures in Ulduar, and Tirion Fordring demanded that they destroy the site.
• Dick opened the Storm Peaks’ rear areas to the Alliance Forces and led the group in an attack, assigning Tirion a target to feed to Shadowmourne.

Valanar reflected on his transformation into a San'layn prince before Lightning Ledge came under attack by Dick, Mograine, and Uther. Tirion Fordring confronted Valanar inside the fortress, and their battle ended with both still fighting.

• Valanar remembered his former life in Quel'Thalas and how he had become one of Arthas's San'layn princes.
• Dick, Mograine, and Uther attacked Lightning Ledge with Holy Light, lightning, and dark powers, prompting Valanar to watch from the fortress.
• Tirion Fordring broke into Valanar's room and attacked him with Shadowmourne, cracking Valanar's crimson shield and nearly severing his arm.
• Valanar fought back with blood blades, crimson chains, and his claws, wounding Tirion and healing himself by drinking the paladin's blood.
• Tirion broke free of Valanar's chains and prepared to continue the fight as Valanar declared that Tirion's blood would be his.

Tirion Fordring defeated Valanar in the fortress at Lightning Ledge, and the dying San'layn remembered his lost love, Vanessa. After promising to bury him beside her in Fairbreeze Village, Tirion watched Valanar die and burned his body and blood-soaked letter in Holy Light.

• Valanar used Blood Magic to exploit Tirion Fordring's wound, but Tirion healed it with Holy Light and countered Valanar's attacks.
• Tirion unleashed the bound souls around him and struck Valanar with Shadowmourne and a powerful burst of Holy Light.
• Valanar, mortally wounded, remembered Vanessa and asked Tirion to bury him beside her in Fairbreeze Village.
• Tirion promised to honor Valanar's request, and Valanar died peacefully while reaching toward the memory of Vanessa.
• Tirion recited Holy Script and burned Valanar's corpse and blood-soaked letter in golden flames.