#lor’themar

[kimaisalloren]

I like to do SoO just for the interactions of these two.

Have this here too cuz I don’t remember if I posted it

[trashgavin]

Redraw finished! I love him so much.

[angels-arbys]

I care them

[trickerycleric]

also wrathion being so sad and pathetic at that wedding was so funny to me. ‘i wish anduin was here im so sad’ ‘arator and magnis grandson are just like me and anduin fr. i keep thinking about anduin at this wedding im so normal’ ‘kalecgos everything sucks at this wedding want to go get wasted together’

[ladypurplejanewrynn]

Star’themar One Shot: The Jealousy

This is a one shot for my best friend and also my big sis @hopelessly-austroholic

The stars were shinning so bright, but this wasn’t a problem for the two lovers. They were celebrating their marriage anniversary by throwing up a party in Silvermoon city. After the horrors of the Fourth War and the Shadowlands, they deserved a break. And so did the Alliance and the rest of the Horde. That’s why they decided to celebrate their anniversary along with others. Some of the Horde leaders even came by to celebrate as well. Along those leaders, there was also the leader of the nightbornes, the First Arcanist Thalyssra herself. Is been a while since the Regent Lady felt uncomfortable when she was around her husband. Although she knew that Lor’themar would never dare to cheat on her and that he’s a loyal husband, she just couldn’t get over the thought that he might leave her for Thalyssra. After all, the First Arcanist was pretty good looking, was very talented and had an interesting personality. Tonight, Daenah’rys decided to brush that thought away though. She didn’t need negative and overwhelming thoughts to ruin her and her’s husband day. She was getting done with her tonight’s outfit. The lady decided to wear a beautiful, long and short sleeved red dress, with some red high heels and a tiara to complet the outfit. Just as she finished, Lor’themar came in:"Well, look at you. You are absolutely stunning my dear." Daenah’rys faced her husband:"You don’t look so bad either, love." They looked each other in the eyes and we’re about to kiss but got interrupted by someone knocking at the door. "Come in." said the Regent Lord. A guard came in:" My Lord, everyone’s ready and are waiting for the two of you." The man looked at the guard:"Give us a moment. Tell them that we’re coming." "Yes Sir." said the guard and closed the door. Lor’themar turned his face to his wife:"I guess we will have to save that kiss for later." She smiled gently:"Is alright sweetheart. After the party is over, you can kiss me all the way you want." He smiled at her and took her by the hand:"Let’s go. The guests are probably getting impatient." She giggled softly and they went out of their room, to join their guests.

They arrived at the room where they were hosting parties. They were greeted by Baine Bloodhoof, Mayla Highmountain, Cordelia, the Regent Lady older sister, Talanji, Zekhan and Thalyssra. The party start it. Daenah’rys decided to go chat with her older sister for a bit:"Hey sister, how are you doing?" The death knight turned to her:" Hey there little sis. Not much to be honest. Since the Shadowlands events happened, I don’t really have much things to do." The Regent Lady smiled:"Oh, really? What about your boyfriend, huh?" "Oh, him? We only just began dating . We’re still getting to know each other." answered the older sister. Daenah’rys looked around:"And where’s Kinvy? She didn’t want to come?" "Nah, is not like that. She would gladly come but the princess of Stormwind got sick and she refuses to leave her side." said Cordelia. "Well, that’s understandable. Princess Sophie is her girlfriend after all." said the Regent Lady. After a conversation with her older sister, she joined her husband’s side. Lor’themar gave her his hand:"May I ask you for a dance, my lady?" She gave him her hand:"Of course." Then they got in the middle of the ballroom and start dancing in the rhythm of the music. It was a slow and a romantic dance. The couple swayed like swans and we’re looking in each other’s arms. They looked absolutely stunning together, admired by all the guests. After the dance, they went to get something to drink. "I’ll be right back sweetheart. I will go check on our daughter, if she’s asleep. After all, the party is a bit loud and she’s still young. She still needs a lot of sleep." said Daenah’rys. "Alright, honey. I will be there waiting for you." said Lor’themar. The Regent Lady smiled at him and left for a moment.

Just as she left, someone else joined the Regent Lord. "Hello there, Regent Lord. Is nice seeing you again." said a female voice. He turned around to see Lady Thalyssra. "Oh, First Arcanist. Is nice seeing you as well. I’m glad you could join us at the party." answered the man. She smiled:"You know, you look really stunning in that outfit. I think you should wear it more often." "Ummmm… but I wear it really often. But thanks… I guess?" said the Regent Lord with confusion. "How about we go have a drink together. You know, just you and me."said the First Arcanist. "I can’t. I’m waiting for my wife in here." said Lor’themar. A moment of an awkward silence got between them. Suddenly realision hit the Regent Lord:"Lady Thalyssra, I got a question. Are you trying to flirt with me?" The woman let her head down as a blush appeared on her face:"I actually am. I’m really sorry for all of this. I know you have a wife and there’s absolutely no chance for us to be together. But I just can’t help it. I really can’t resist you." He looked at her, placed a hand on her chin and lift it it up to make her look at him:"Thalyssra, I’m really grateful that you’re being honest with me. But what you’re saying is true. We can’t be together. While I think you’re a really interesting person, my heart belongs to someone else. Plus me and Daenah’rys already have a child. I could never betray my wife like that. She is my everything. But, I’m sure you’ll be able to find someone who will return your feelings one day. And I wish you the best of luck for that. Although, we can still be friends." She smiled softly:"Promise?" He returned the smile:"Promise." Then they hugged each other. "Alright dear, I’m back. Sinetra’s asleep. Now, where did we..?" said Daenah’rys but didn’t finish as she saw her husband hugging with the First Arcanist. She felt her heart shattering and tears coming out of her eyes. "So is like that. I really didn’t thought you would do such thing but it turns out you’re cheating on me after all. And with whom? With her!" the Regent Lady burst into tears. "Hey, no honey. Is not like that. We…" said The Regent Lord but got cut off by his wife. "I’ve seen enough." said the lady and teleported away. She teleported herself into their room. She sat on the bed and covered her face with her hands and she was crying. "How could he do this? I thought he would never. Didn’t he love me after all? What does she have that I don’t have?" thought the Regent Lady as she was uncontrollably crying and was unable to calm down.

Suddently, she heared the door opening, but she didn’t dare to look up. A well known voice spoke up to her:"There you are Daenah’rys. I thought so that I would find you here." "What you want from me Lor’themar? Don’t you wanna stay with your new “lover”?" asked the woman. A confused look appeared on his face:"My new lover? Are you talking about Thalyssra? But there’s nothing between us. I swear that nothing happened between us." No response. Just silence. "Honey, please look at me. I’m telling you the truth. I would never do such awful thing behind you’re back. You’re my everything. I love you. I really do. And I love our daughter." She faced him:"Oh, really? Then why you two were hugging? Can you explain that to me?" "It was a hug between friends. She confessed her love to me but I turned her down. You’re the only one I love. But I also had to comfort her somehow. I promise you, that this hug means nothing else." he explained. Daenah’rys turned her head away from him:"Is been a while. Since you and her got to know each other, I saw that she start it to slowly develop feelings for you. And I was so affraid. Affraid that she might steal you away from me. That she might ruin our relationship. That she might push me away from the picture and take my place." The Regent Lord sat next to his wife:"She would never try anything like that. And there’s absolutely no one who could replace you. Never, in any lifetime." She looked at him, tears still coming out of her eyes:"But she’s just so perfect. So elegant. And she is pretty talented. Not to mention she does have an interesting personality and she is in fact pretty good looking. Sometimes it feels like she’s better than me." "Wait a minute hun, are you jealous of her?" asked Lor’themar. She turned her face away:"And why do you care?" "Because you’re my wife." he answered. She didn’t say anything. He hugged her:"Daenah’rys, listen. For me you’re perfect just the way you are. And you’re pretty talented as well. And I love everything about you. Your look. Your personality. Your strong sides and weak sides. Your virtues and your flaws. Think about it. I would never marry you if I didn’t like you back." Still no answer. "Here" he took her by the chin and placed a passionate kiss on her lips. A look of shock appeared on her face. They broke the kiss. "Wah… what was…? she was speechless. "I know we were supposed to spare that kiss for later, but this was an emergency." said the man. "But why did you…? I thought…" asked the Regent Lady. He smiled:"Like I said. You’re the only one I love. And nothing will ever change that." She jumped on him a hugged him:"I’m really sorry honey. I don’t know what got over me. I really shouldn’t jump into conclusions like that." He hugged her too and patted her head:"Is alright sweetheart. Just let it all out. Everyone makes mistakes." They sat there, hugging each other in silence. Both of them needed that. To sit together in silence for a moment, comforting each other in each other arms. "Maybe we should get back to the party? The guests may be growing impatient waiting for us to come back." said Daenah’rys. Lor’themar softly smiled at her:"Let them wait. Let us share that moment alone. Just the two of us. You and I." And they end it up by laying on their bed and passionately kissing each other, without anyone interrupting their moment.

The End

[heckinwacky]

pre-dragonflight time skip novel following lor’themar/thalyssra, fairshaw, and wranduin so true

[dandelionandkrindle]

WORLD OF WARCRAFT • CHARACTERS (8/?) Lor’themar Theron (requested by @victory-for-sylvanas)

All we can do is walk the road we are given with such dignity as we can muster, each to our own glory or demise, and pray that there yet remains something of our own hearts when all is said and done. 

[chronicallyhaughty]

Bird in the Hand

“A survey of the runestones is long overdue, we are all in agreement on this.” Rommath nodded, and though his mouth was covered like always, Hal just knew he was smirking under there. “As this matter is intrinsically tied to the safety of our people, there is nobody else I would trust more on this mission,” Lor’themar continued, looking at Hal so earnestly, and Hal would ordinarily agree with the sentiment, but… Asking him to accompany a mage as they survey the runestones felt a bit too close to babysitting for his comfort.

[Halduron/Aethas, NSFW, AO3, Ko-fi]

Okay, here we go! Multichapter fic attempt! I have an outline, just gotta get the work done!!! (Beware – further kinks to be added!)

——————————

One never really gets used to being dumped. Halduron Brightwing has his eyes closed as he draws a deep breath, smelling hay and feathers and bird droppings, holds the air in his lungs for one moment, another… then sighs all of it out. A beak nudges his head, ruffling his hair affectionately.

‘I just don’t see us working long term,’ she had said.

Halduron opens his eyes to stare at the barding of his hawkstrider – his trusty Cerila, so named by his youngest sister – and his fingers laced through the straps. Feeling around, it’s a bit loose by the bridle so he tightens a buckle there before grabbing the reins and leading her outside. Her bright white plumage shines in the low sun.

They had been bold words for a woman who only gave him a month to try to prove himself. She hadn’t liked that he didn’t have much time for her. Well, maybe she simply had too much time, spending it all doing nothing to help anybody. Why he’d ever thought to try dating a socialite he’s not sure, but whatever. No use crying over spilled wine, as the saying goes.

He knows better than to get invested, he thinks firmly to himself as he mounts up and they make their way out of the courtyard, nodding at Oninath as he passes him and his recruits. This is why he typically tends towards renting partners by the hour, rather than try to keep them interested in spite of his many forays into Eversong. Speaking of…

“A survey of the runestones is long overdue, we are all in agreement on this.”

Rommath nodded, and though his mouth was covered like always, Hal just knew he was smirking under there.

“As this matter is intrinsically tied to the safety of our people, there is nobody else I would trust more on this mission,” Lor’themar continued, looking at Hal so earnestly, and Hal would ordinarily agree with the sentiment, but…

Asking him to accompany a mage as they survey the runestones felt a bit too close to babysitting for his comfort. At least the mage in question seemed as unhappy with the assignment as Hal was, even if Aethas Sunreaver was wearing that awful cowl, hiding his face. His body language told a clear story to anyone who cared enough to look: he was uncomfortable. To be standing before the three of them, to have been chosen for this… busywork; whatever his reason, they would likely have that much in common to fuel conversation during the trip. Or stop it dead at every turn, more likely.

And so here Halduron is now, dismounting at Thuron’s Livery and waving at the young woman who jogs up to take Cerila’s reins as he unhooks the saddlebags one by one. He is to leave his rather conspicuous warstrider behind in favor of a more drab individual provided by the stable master. This mission does require if not stealth, at the very least some discretion. He nods his thanks to the young woman who is already talking to Cerila in low, soothing tones and grabs his gear, slinging it over his own shoulder. He gets one last scratch in next to her beak before he lets the woman lead the animal away. No need for the bird to see Hal with another, after all.

He finds his reluctant companion standing awkwardly some ways away from the paddock by the main livery building, watching the hawkstriders within. The birds are of good stock, Perascamin Thuron providing many young sin’dorei with their first mounts as they first venture beyond the Thalassian borders. While not trained to bear heavy armor or see active combat, Thuron’s birds are well-known to have even temperaments, even if all hawkstriders are naturally inclined to do combat with would-be predators.

Aethas is dressed in simple adventuring-type clothes, looking like any fresh-faced mage just out of training, and with his face uncovered it is plain to see that he is apprehensive – far more so than the mission details warrant, as a matter of fact. Two young hawkstriders want to inspect the same tuft of grass, one of them shoving the other aside, causing it to throw its head back with a loud squawk and Aethas about jumps a foot into the air, clutching his staff close to his chest. Ah. Hal grins...

[Ko-fi]

[stupid-sloot-headcanons]

Also on Lor’themar: You know how everyone in Silvermoon pretty much knew that Sylvanas and Nathanos were a thing when Sylvanas made Nathanos the first human ranger despite the pushback from the other elves? Well imagine Lor’themar with his own human hunter darling. He hasn’t even made his darling a ranger yet (even though he really really wants to) but Halduron is already giving him little teasing/pointed looks whenever he praises his darling when they train together. It’s almost worse than Kael’thas and his mage darling because if Sylvanas/Nathanos ever caught wind then you know Sylvanas would say something that would make his blood boil lol

Tbf any human Lor'themar has feelings for is better than Nathanos Shitcaller by default. See, when I write self-insert romantic fanfiction it's cringe, but when Steve Danauser does it, he gets to make it canon and gets paid actual money to write it. There's no justice in it goddammit, I want MY cringe self-insert to be loved by MY waifus and husbands >:(

[eighthdoctor]

[chinhands] talk about the Dark Rangers' vicious conviction that Silvermoon owes them /nothing/ and even Nathanos not being willing to leverage that guilt to save the Forsaken.

me: dangles bait you: happily grabs it

Anyway. For reference, this is the bit that's made it into the fic so far:

Lilian picks at an exposed sinew on her fingers. “Silvermoon?” Velonara’s ears snap back, flat against her head and Nathanos whips his head around to glare at Lilian. Neither of them speak. For Nathanos, at least, it’s a matter of respect and loyalty. But Velonara died at the Gates, was Raised there too, her first memories of death being the fall of her city. Lilian ignores their reactions. “Lor’themar owes us—” “The Regent-Lord owes us nothing,” Velonara snarls, shooting Nathanos a vicious glare so he keeps his mouth shut. “It is not a matter of debt between us. He would accept, he could not do otherwise—but at what cost? I will not see Silvermoon fall, again.”

So okay. What's happening here?

Velonara is immediately, vehemently against taking refuge in Silvermoon even though a) they don't have a better option in that moment and b) Lor'themar would absolutely take them in.

Nathanos, whether or not he agrees with this, doesn't argue.

This is something Velonara will risk the Forsaken over, and Nathanos agrees; Velonara then links this to the Fall of Silvermoon.

What happened there? Oh right:

Arthas had Sylvanas brought out and paraded her in front of Silvermoon, as a testament to the fate awaiting his enemies. (from the wiki)

It's vaguely implied in canon but SO FUCKED UP that I couldn't resist, that those who died with Sylvanas are then used as the weapons to destroy Quel'Thalas.

Sylvanas and the Dark Rangers remember killing friends, killing family, destroying their country. They didn't have any ability to not do this, they were puppets, but what difference does that make? Ninety percent of the quel'dorei died, how many of them to quel'dorei Scourge? How many of them were Raised themselves and turned against their people?

Now. Lor'themar (and most of the sin'dorei) absolutely does not hold this against them. He's a reasonable person, and he is absolutely aware that there wouldn't be any survivors without Sylvanas, that she rebelled the moment she got the chance, that she literally could not stop herself from carrying out Arthas's orders, that her loyalty to the sin'dorei is second only to her loyalty to the Forsaken.

If the Forsaken asked, he...might pause briefly, because his responsibilities to the sin'dorei, but ultimately there's no question he would let them into Quel'Thalas. Whatever came of that--possibly a Horde civil war, possibly not--he knows how much Sylvanas has done for them.

But Velonara remembers. The old guard Forsaken, the ones initially Scourge (which Lilian is not, she has different complexes but she's younger), have so much guilt about this. The Dark Rangers vowed to lay down their lives for Quel'Thalas, and then they did, and then they were used to destroy her. There is so much guilt here.

None of them is ever going to ask Silvermoon for anything. How could they?

[mikacolt]

Lor’themar and Thalyssra baby concept: looks exactly like a normal nightborne child but with an eyepatch.

[kimaisalloren]

Sketchdump of my QUEEN, Nathanos, Lirath, and a bell sprout.

I think a lot about the scene in the book where lirath confronts Sylvanas for ignoring him and asks her if she even cares or if she’s forgetting him and she gets so overwhelmed with emotions and her own inability to explain herself to Lirath, wanting to tell him how much she loves him and how much he changed her life, but also wanting to be mad and angry and she wants to hurt him as much as break down and love him and so she just fucking SPRINTS AWAY FROM HIM it’s SO FUNNY

[trashgavin]

wip of the day: redraw of my 2020 lor’themar art

[redisaid]

Sylvaina Poll #4 Results

Thank you again for all the replies! This poll is now closed!

Let’s get right to the answers!

For question #1, Does Jaina have other dreams? our winner is:

The red eyes option!

Notable write in: 

For question #2, If you had to assure your semi-estranged mother you were fine and that absolutely nothing was wrong or different about you, how would you do it? our winner is:

Gluttony!

Notable write in:

For question #3, Your eyes have turned blue and you've suddenly decided to stop doing vaguely evil things. Who is the first Horde leader to react to that and how? our winner is:

Lor’themar!

Notable write in:

And yes all of them will be happening, it’s about what happens first.

For question #4, How would you really convince the love of your life that you had your soul again, if she wasn't replying to your messages? our winner is:

Tell her you thought of her every time you died!

Notable write in:

It’s a little early for that just yet...but we’re getting closer.

Annnnnnnnd that’s it! Stay tuned to see the results of these choices in the next two chapters of Beneath the Blue Moon!

[celedyn]

Celedyn’s Backstory: Extremely Annotated Edition

Very important disclaimer: while I enjoy deep diving into lore and using it as a foundation to make my own connections and conclusions, my connections are for my own entertainment and should in no way be considered “right.” If you have built different conclusions from the story, I absolutely love what you have done as well and truly, if we are RPing together I will not contradict you or tell you that you are wrong. Referencing canon can make some people feel on edge or scrutinized, but it’s important that while this post may go deep dive into where I pulled these bits of lore from it doesn’t mean my connection is the one true way. 

SPOILERS! SPOILERS! BACKSTORY SPOILERS! HE AVOIDS THIS SUBJECT A LOT SO YOU ARE UNLIKELY TO EVER PIN IT DOWN IN RP BUT IT IS STILL SPOILERS!

Regarding Celedyn’s age, while there are a lot of ideas about elven life spans out there, there is lore to support extreme longevity in the Quel’dorei. We had seen multiple examples of elves that were at least in the 2700+ range due to their participation in the Troll Wars (see in game book The Guardians of Tirisfal which is dated at 2700 Before Dark Portal and details historic events that take place after the conclusion of the Troll Wars. (https://wowpedia.fandom.com/wiki/The_Guardians_of_Tirisfal and backed up by Chronicles 1 pg 133) known participants : Anasterian, survived until 22 ADP. Galell survived until some time after 26 ADP. (Per Blood of the Highborne ch.1) Dar’Khan survived until 22 ADP then risen into undeath. (Per Blood of the Highborne ch.1) Liadrin, Lor’themar, Halduron (Per Blood of the Highborne ch.1) Alleria (Per the Warcraft Encyclopedia online entry confirmed canon by Sean Copeland and archived at https://wowpedia.fandom.com/wiki/The_Warcraft_Encyclopedia/Alleria_Windrunner)  survived to the current timeline. 

A real obscure pull is the Elven Engineers: survived from establishment of Dalaran (~2700 BDP per Chronicles 1 pg 134) to 22 ADP (“Prince Kael, the other engineers and I helped to build Dalaran's original defenses.” Warcraft 3 secret chapter The Crossing  https://wowpedia.fandom.com/wiki/The_Crossing_(WC3_BloodElf) 

Of course all of those seemed really really old until we got Lorash Sunbeam born in Tirisfal Glades (A Good War pg 50) where the Quel’Dorei first landed in 7,000 BDP (Chronicles 1 pg 118) placing his birth prior to their 6,800 BDP immigration to Quel Thalas (Chronicles 1 pg 120 and https://wowpedia.fandom.com/wiki/The_Founding_of_Quel%27Thalas ) and survived to ~34 ADP along with his mother born an undefined time prior to that and survived until the scourge invasion of Silvermoon 22 ADP. 

All this is to say that Quel’Dorei have a lot of room for maximum ages. I personally like the headcanon that subsequent generations of Quel’Dorei are less long lived than their Highborne ancestors because it leaves room for people who like a shorter lifespan, but Celedyn is OLD old and much like Alleria who gave birth to Arator in Outland while she was at least in the 2800ish range and is flawless and beautiful every time Blizzard puts her in a cutscene, he does not show it. 

Celedyn was a participant in the Troll Wars in that I treat it as a period that all elves were participants. It was a time that they were under so much pressure that complete extinction was eminent (“Clearly the trolls were winning”… “without assistance from Arator, the trolls would soon destroy Quel’Thalas” … “Teaching the arcane arts to the humans could easily lead to disaster. Yet as much as this possibility troubled Anasterian, his own people were facing exctinction.” Chronicles 1 pg 130) and I handle it as a period of martial law where the entire combat capable population was drafted into service with no room for civilians.

In contrast with contemporary Quel’Thalas, even with 90% of the population wiped out in the aftermath of Arthas’s attack we don’t see that same level of desperation. The Horde and the Alliance are sending emissaries courting Quel’Thalas to join them and when Lor’themar sends his letter of acceptance following the Forsaken’s assistance with Dar’Khan; his tone is much more that he is pleased they will not look weak than one of compromising for the purposes of survival. ( https://www.wowhead.com/tbc/quest=9621/envoy-to-the-horde  and https://www.wowhead.com/tbc/item=23930/letter-sealed-by-sylvanas)

Celedyn has foundational training in magic, which I treat as just having been common in Quel’Thalan schooling and life, but he was not a particularly exceptional spellcaster and he is gentle in nature and cowardly and unsuited to combat. Instead, most of his service during the Troll Wars was as a messenger and scout, where he could take advantage of his talent for running away to find a military unit capable of protecting him.

The elves already knew that arcane magic attracted the attention of the Burning Legion. (“Many of the high elves grew wary of their rampant use of arcane magic, fearing it could draw the Burning Legion to Azeroth once again. Dath’Remar sent his most powerful arcanists to find a solution. Over several decades they built a series of monolithic Runestones around Quel’Thalas’s borders. This barrier was called Ban’dinoriel, or “the Gatekeeper” in the high elven tongue. It would prevent others from detecting the elves’ usage of arcane magic” Chronicles 1 pg 121) (“The shield was tied to a series of monolithic Runestones, relics that prevented the Burning Legion and other outsiders from detecting the arcane magics wielded by the high elves. They also weakened the powers of their enemies, such as the Amani trolls.” Chronicles 2 pg 162)

Ban’dinoriel is a term used inconsistently in lore. It seems to be a blanket name for all of the multiple systems of protection around Quel’Thalas, including the two elfgate shields and the protective monolithic Runestones. 

As best I am able to decipher, the First Elfgate is tied to the protection from magical detection, offensive spells, and supression of hostile behavior from animals that surrounds the full borders of Quel’Thalas and is powered by the Monolithic Runestones. When Orgim had Gul’dan dismantle the monolitic Runestone at Caer Darrow, it restored their magic and allowed them to storm through Quel’Thalas. (With the Runestone desecrated, the Horde’s death knights and other spellcasters regained their powers” Chronicles 2 pg 164) Some form of repair may have been done to this barrier or potentially only to the Elfgate itself, because Arthas had to destroy this Elfgate on his march.

An additional barrier around Silvermoon is described as being summoned by magi during Ogrim’s assault and powered by the Sunwell at the time (“Their fire washes over the city but does not touch it, and their claws are repelled by an invisible barrier they cannot break.” “It is the Sunwell,” Gul’dan commented, turning back to take part in the conversation. “The elven source of magic. It gives them immense power.” Tides of Darkness ch 15) by the time Arthas is marching through Quel’Thalas the Silvermoon barrier is supported by a series of mooncrystals and it is also called Ban’dinoriel (“Thus interconnected, the crystals created a field of energy known as Ban’dinoriel - The Gatekeeper.” Arthas: Rise of the Lich King ch 19) 

Sometimes the second elfgate is treated as being part of the protections around Silvermoon city and sometimes it is interpreted as part of the protection around Eversong woods that is represented in game by Eversong still being lush and green while the Ghostlands is withered after being burned down by the red dragonflight, but your guess is as good as mine. (“Silvermoon City was protected by a number of magical barriers. Two were the elfgates, which were positioned at strategic points on the main road to the capital. The third and most powerful barrier was called Ban’dinoriel. It was an impenetrable shield that derived its power from the Sunwell.” Chronicles 3 pg 63)

People may have multiple interpretations for what all this means or if one defense superseded another or if there was a continuity error, but for the purposes of this post I will use Ban’dinoriel broadly for all magical systems of elven protection, including any systems that suppress offensive magic and any systems that physically block attacks or invaders, and I will only use Runestones when referring to monolithic Runestones. 

Bringing this all back to Celedyn, he previously had a fiancé, Ardoras. Ardoras was what would be presently called a balance druid, an expert on the astral connections between nature and the arcane. His shan’do was one of the creators of the monolithic Runestones and had trained Ardoras to assist with and one day be his successor in their maintenance.  

During the Troll Wars the first human mages are trained, and they are wildly talented (“Although the humans lacked grace and subtlety in their castings, they possessed a startling natural affinity to magic.” Chronicles 1 pg 130) but following the Troll Wars, Ardoras was upset with he way the human mages had been handled, that they had been given power without warning and that their elven teachers had taught them how to function as weapons but had not taught them of the risks or offered guidance on defense. He discussed all of this with his fiancé Celedyn and it fostered sedition in the pair as things worsened and the formerly nomadic humans began to establish permanent colonies only to have them besieged by the Burning Legion, still without the mages aware that they were the cause of the attacks. (The Guardians of Tirisfal https://wowpedia.fandom.com/wiki/The_Guardians_of_Tirisfal) 

The Quel’thalan druids were particularly sensitive to these assaults. They remembered well the risks that came from unchecked magic, and the choice that the first druid Malfurion had made to banish the arcane affiliated Highborne (To clarify, while the Sundering took place 10,000 BDP, the exile of the Highborne was not until 7,300 BDP and I assume that there were druids trained in that time that due to family ties and other relationships or simply using arcane as part of their own practices; who went alongside the exiled Highborne.) They knew that sharing the exact secrets of Ban’dinoriel’s protection would put the elven kingdom at too great a risk, but they could not stand idly by; and so they decided they would extend the barrier of protection themselves.

They didn’t explain why they had offered to gift an elven artifact to the nearby settlement of Caer Darrow; and the Barov family certainly wasn’t about to question it. In secret they had built another monolithic Runestone, bound it to Ban’dinoriel and delivered it to the island. Unfortunately, they had greatly overestimated the Barov’s capacity for discretion, and soon word of this offering reached the ears of the magisters.

What the druids did not know is that the magi that ruled Quel’Thalas the Council of Silvermoon, were already well aware of the problem and had a solution of their own in mind, one that would allow them a level of political influence over the human kingdom (“Having agreed that they could not prohibit the use of magic, the Council of Silvermoon and the magocragy of Dalaran decided on another solution. Together, they formed a clandestine order to deal with the demonic invaders.” Chronicles 1 pg135) and the druid’s solution of simply extending Quel’Thalas’s protection threatened their ability to monitor and control the human mages that were rampantly growing in both numbers and power.

The Council’s retaliation was swift and succinct. Overnight; magisters capable of manipulating the thoughts and memories of others (See the interaction in the Silvermoon bazaar. https://wowpedia.fandom.com/wiki/Priest_Ennas   While some people feel this level of totalitarianism was reflective of Kael’Thas’s reign, it is important to note that Silvermoon was never under his direct rule. After learning Anasterian and the Council had died during Arthas’s march on Quel’Danas, he destroyed the corrupted Sunwell, named Lor’themar his regent and immediately departed for Dalaran and later Outland) were dispatched, the druids of had their minds overwritten, and the history of their contributions to Quel’Thalas were erased (This is meta commentary relating to early concept maps featuring a world tree in Quel’Thalas  https://twitter.com/manaborne/status/1449913597950300162?s=46&t=lRdyqF10RdSWO2uXdPr8Pw that was then downgraded Thas’alah to just being a pretty cool tree, and the original manual for Warcraft II Tides of Darkness saying that the Caer Darrow runestone was placed by Elven Druids https://wowpedia.fandom.com/wiki/Warcraft_II:_Tides_of_Darkness_manual#The_Runestone_at_Caer_Darrowwhich was later changed in the Warcraft Encyclopedia to “Elven Magi”) 

Celedyn was not directly involved in the creation of the Caer Darrow monolithic Runestone, but he accompanied Ardoras, and he knew that what the druids were doing was in defiance of the ruling powers of Quel’thalas. Shortly after their return to Silvermoon, he came to visit Ardoras late one night after an evening of partying and debauchery and he found his fiancé calm and content and not recognizing him at all. He ran to get help from Ardoras’s shan’do but found that he was calm and content and not recognizing him at all. When Celedyn returned to his own home, he noticed the door was very slightly ajar. He turned around and he started walking and did not stop and that was the last time he saw Quel’Thalas. 

Bonus content for people who made it this far and presumably just love obscure citations about druidic presence in Quel’Thalas: 

See Emmarel Shadewarden, sent by the Unseen Path to fight alongside Talanas Windrunner against the Amani (“I fought alongside its first wielder, Talanas Windrunner, during an Amani troll incursion.”  https://wowpedia.fandom.com/wiki/Rendezvous_with_the_Courier#Notes ) I personally don’t interpret this was the contemporary invasion associated with the Zul’Aman raid. We are told that the bow Thas’Dorah has been passed though multiple Windrunner generations of Ranger Generals (Including Grandmother Alleria her daughter Lireesa, and Current Alleria who refused the title but took the bow then lost it.) and while one may interpret that Talanas passed down the title and weapon while he was still alive and simply survived until the contemporary Zul’Aman conflict where he met Emmarel, I am not aware of us ever seeing elven ascension working that way. Anasterian and Lireesa both passed their titles on when they died and Anasterian is treated as being past his prime while still retaining the title by the time Arthas is attacking. By the time the ZA raid came out, the title of Ranger General had already passed down many generations and I think that is because Talanas was already long dead.

Dath’Remar did step down as LEADER following the creation of Ban’Dinoriel (Chronicles 1, pg 121) but not explicitly as King and the King of Quel’thalas has not been the political leader since the establishment of the Convocation of Silvermoon (“The Convocation of Silvermoon was founded as the ruling power over Quel'Thalas, though the Sunstrider Dynasty maintained a modicum of political power. https://wowpedia.fandom.com/wiki/The_Founding_of_Quel%27Thalas ) I don’t put an upper limit on the start or length of the Troll Wars but it is note worthy that Talanas was declared Ranger General in them; and Current Alleria who is at least three generations removed also fought in them but she was not offered the title of Ranger General until her mother Lireesa died in the Second War (“It wasn't until the orcs allied with the Amani trolls and turned their attention to Quel'Thalas that the Highborne understood the true threat. Many elven rangers--including Lireesa Windrunner, the ranger-general--died in a bloody attack.”  https://wowpedia.fandom.com/wiki/Tales_of_the_Hunt#:~:text=Tales%20of%20the%20Hunt%20is,lore%20about%20the%20hunter%20artifacts. ) and YES dear reader that does mean Sylvanas was not originally intended to be the military head and only held the role for 2 decades at the most and maybe that’s why she’s not very good at leadership.

All that is to say I think there’s good lore evidence that for one reason or another the druids of the Unseen Path had some level of involvement in the Troll Wars, maybe as an investigation into the heavy use of Loa delivered by the Zandalari (“tens of thousands of troll fighters exploded from the shadowy forests. Monstrous loa demigods marched alongside the Amani, infusing their troll adherents with supernatural might” Chronicles 1 pg 129)

[redandpointy]

short flashfic

related to the short story posted today where Wrathion attends Lor’themar and Thalyssra’s wedding, and Kalecgos hears that Jaina couldn’t attend due to issues at home. It’s me so it’s Jaina/Kalec flavored.

Jaina appeared in front of Proudmoore Keep in a burst of arcantic light and a cloud of barely verbalized curses. Hefting her staff, she stalked into the keep, absently nodding at the guards who saluted the Lord Admiral as she returned home.

Jaina stalked into the Lord Admiral’s offices. Her mother was in the larger room used for planning, apparently waiting for her. Katherine turned from the map of Kul Tiras to greet her. Whatever Katherine had been about to say was stopped by the thunderous look on her daughter’s face. “How bad?” Her mother asked.

“Gold and supplies raided, every fishing boat sunk. Casualties all around, but at least this village didn’t have an armory to plunder,” Jaina reported in terse, clipped words. A wave of her hand dismissed her staff to it’s holder on the wall. Another gesture set a red tack on the map of Kul Tiras. The image was littered with markers indicating the piracy plaguing their shores and their naval deployments to combat it.

“We can’t spread the navy any further,” Jaina stated, eyes blazing holes into the map’s parchment. “Tandred says they’re stretched about as thin as they can be in the north. Any thinner and we’ll see more coastal raiding like we did last month,”

“Jaina-”

“I know! I know we need to fine out where these Pirates are operating out of before more people are killed. I know mother, believe me.”

“Jaina-”

“And I know people are frightened and they want to see something done, but we’re spread thi-”

“Jaina,” Katherine interrupted her daughter, placing a hand on her shoulder. The flow of words finally ceased. “Jaina there is a... person here to see you.”

Frowning, Jaina wondered at the slight pause in her mother’s statement. “A person?”

“He’s in your office and wished to speak with you once you returned.”

Confused and wary of what else could go wrong, Jaina entered the smaller private office. She was startled by what she saw on the other side, for it was none other than Kalecgos The Spellweaver, Keeper of Magic, Lord of the Blue Flight, Member of the Council of Six of Dalaran, her former lover and (she hoped) still friend.

The blue hair, half-elven ears and astounding magical presence gave it away, though his back was to her. Though... what he was wearing... The dark blue shirt was of exceptionally fine material and.. blouse-y. With puffy sleeves. The pants were black leather and exceptionally tight and she did have to reluctantly drag her eyes away to take in the high, lacing boots and three? swords belted around his hips.

“Kalec?”

He turned at her voice and smiled tentatively. The shirt was indeed blouse-y and though it could be laced up the front, it wasn’t. instead she caught a flash of his chest as he took a step forward carrying a wide brimmed hat with a plume of white puffy feathers as long as her arm.

“Jaina! It’s good to see you.”

She couldn’t help but smile. “What a surprise- I- What- Why-” She cut her self off and shook her head then gestured. “What are you wearing?”

Kalec beamed. “Wrathion told me this would be appropriate wear for your home and the situation.”

“Wrath- The situation?”

Kalec nodded. “I would like to help. Ah, wait, I have what I am supposed to say.” He held up a finger with an apologetic look then summoned a sheet of paper. Clearing his throat he read “Yarr. I not be letting them lay a hand on your booty. Yarr.”

Jaina stared, unable to process the situation.

Kalec looked nervous, if hopeful as he smiled at her. “Did I say it correctly? I was uncertain of the meaning but Miss Fordragon was quite supportive of the suggested text.”