Warcraft ii game manual

Video Audio icon An illustration of an audio speaker. Audio Software icon An illustration of a 3. Software Images icon An illustration of two photographs. Images Donate icon An illustration of a heart shape Donate Ellipses icon An illustration of text ellipses. EMBED for wordpress. Want more? Select the Town Hall. When you select a unit or building, a colored square highlights your choice. Also, a description of the selection will appear to the left of the Command Map in the Unit Description area.

Move the arrow over the Peasant icon. The words Train P easant will appear in the Info Text area. Note that the cost of training this unit appears on the right side of the Info Text area.

Costs for buildings and upgrades will appear in this same area. Click on the Peasant icon. This begins the process of training your Peasant. Note that the rate of completion is shown in the Unit Description area. After the Peasant is trained, he will appear on the Command Map. Should you attempt to train another Peasant, you will receive the message. To view your current food supply, look in the food indicator in the upper right of the screen, or select any Farm.

In the unit description area, the rate of production and consumption will be displayed. You must have food available in order to train more units. To increase. Each Town Hall can support one unit, while each Farm provides food for four units. Move the arrow over the Build B asic Structure icon and select this option. This will open the Basic Structure selections.

Move the mouse over the icons, and select the one that says Build F arm in the Info Text area. A green tinted image of a farm will appear on the Command Map that represents the amount of space required for this structure. Buildings must have ample space available in explored territory in order to be placed, and non-coastal buildings may not be constructed on dirt, ice or mud. If you attempt to place a building in a location that is restricted, the portion of the building image that lies within the restricted location will pulsate red.

Also, a message will inform you why you cannot build there, and you will be unable to place the building. To place a building, select an area that falls within the restrictions for construction. When you have chosen an appropriate site, click to place the building. The Peasant will move to the site and begin construction. Note: Construction does not begin until the Peasant reaches the selected site. Any obstacles present when the peasant reaches the site will prevent the construction from commencing.

If you select the new Farm while it is being constructed you will notice a Completion Status bar in the Unit Description area, as well as a status bar, under the portrait, that indicates how much damage the structure can take.

Note: a building under construction begins in a weakened state and only reaches full strength when construction is completed. Once the Peasant has completed his construction, either look at your food indicator or select the new Farm.

Notice that your available food has been increased. Some buildings have buttons that allows certain upgrades. When an upgrade is available, selecting the button will generate a message in the Info Text area that will inform you of what the upgrade will affect.

By this point, you will find that you are running short on resources such as lumber and gold. To increase your stores, you must find forests to harvest lumber from and search for gold mines that may be found about the area. Initially the lands around your Town Hall and Farm are unknown and will appear as great black regions in both your Command Map and Mini Map. Select a Peasant. Then select the M ove icon in his Unit Command area.

A selection cursor will appear on the Command Map. Use this to indicate the destination of the unit selected. Send your Peasant into the unmapped region to the top of the command map. He will immediately head off in that direction, surveying any territory he encounters. As your unit enters unknown regions, they will become visible on both your Command Map and the Mini Map.

The space that is no longer in the vision of any of your units or buildings, becomes grey. When units re-enter grey areas, their knowledge of the terrain, as well as any units or buildings that inhabit that area, will be updated.

If buildings exist in an area that is later shrouded by the Fog of War, the knowledge of their existence and condition is retained, although it will not be updated until another unit enters into that areas line of sight.

Just above the town should be a Gold Mine. Instruct your Peasant to H arvest gold by selecting the corresponding icon in his Unit Command area. A selection cursor will appear as you move the mouse back to the Command Map. Click it on the Gold Mine you want him to harvest. Your Peasant will begin working the mine for gold and will return this gold to the Town Hall on his own. He will continue to repeat this cycle of harvesting until he empties the mine out, is attacked or is given another command.

Then select the H arvest icon in his Unit Command area. Use this to choose a spot in the forest that you wish the Peasant to harvest. Your peasant will begin chopping down trees to be used for lumber, and will return the lumber to the Town Hall on his own.

He will continue to repeat this cycle of harvesting until he either cuts down all available trees in that area, is attacked or is given another command. Note: If you stop a Peasant while he is returning to the Town Hall with a load of resources, the Info Text Window will remind you that he is carrying lumber or gold. Also the Harvest icon will be replaced by a Return with Goods icon that you can select to resume delivery and continue harvesting.

To move around in each scenario, you can use either the Mini Map or the Command Map. To move using the Mini Map, select the white box and move it around by holding down the left mouse button and dragging it where desired. You can also select any area on the Mini Map and jump to that location. To move on the Command Map, move the arrow cursor to any edge of the screen and the map will automatically scroll in the direction the arrow is pointing.

To use the keypad to move on the Command Window use the numeric keypad arrows, or the arrow keys. Some scenarios may require that you locate specific destination on the map. These will be shown with a glowing Circle of Power. Entering the area where the Circle is located fulfills any requirements for completing a scenario that involve a specific destination.

This is an indication of how many upgrades the unit has; Level 1 is the default, each upgrade adds one level. The amount your unit inflicts against an enemy unit. Min-Max, with Min being the minimum amount of damage done no matter what armor the enemy may have and Max being the maximum against an enemy with no armor. You can give commands to your units at any time.

All of your units share common commands, but some have specific abilities. Select a Footman. While having the footman selected, click the M ove icon. Use this to indicate the destination the selected unit will be sent to. While the Footman is moving, click the S top icon. The unit will halt all actions and await new orders. While the Footman is selected, click the A ttack icon. Use this to indicate the target the selected unit will be sent to engage.

Select the Town Hall as the target you wish to engage. Normally you would never attack your own buildings, but until you feel ready to tackle the Orcs, they make for an easy fight. While the Footman is attacking it, select the Town Hall. Note that the HP bar and number both get smaller as the structure sustains damage. Select the attacking Footman and click the S top icon in the Unit Command area to disengage. While the Footman is selected, click the Patrol icon. Use this to indicate the second point of a patrol route the first point being the current location of the unit.

The unit will now move between these two points repeatedly. While in patrol mode your units will attack any enemy units they encounter. To cease patrolling, select the Footman and click the S top icon. While the Footman is selected, click the S t and Ground icon. The Footman will now stand his ground and defend that specific point, not moving to engage an enemy unit. To cease standing ground, select the Footman and click the S top icon. This is used to order a unit that has a ranged attack to provide constant fire into a specific area.

Only units with ranged attacks may use the Attack Ground icon. When you have a unit or group selected, the Right Mouse Button can be used to issue commands that will automatically be carried out.

While the Peasant is selected, move the arrow over an area of trees. The Peasant will automatically move to the trees and begin harvesting lumber. While the Footman is selected, move the arrow to an open piece of land. The Footman will automatically move to the selected area. Units can be ordered to perform logical tasks move, harvest, repair, attack without multiple keystrokes or button commands. There are several different ways of grouping units and issuing commands to them as a group.

Up to nine units may be placed in any one group. Clicking and dragging across the command map allows you to draw a rectangle around the units you wish to select. Holding shift while selecting a unit will add him to the current group.

Holding shift while clicking on a portrait in the Unit Description area will remove just that unit from a group. Clicking on a portrait in the Unit Description area will select ONLY that unit and remove all other units from the group. If you have only one unit selected and click on his portrait, it will center the Command Map on his location.

Groups are automatically saved into memory and can be recalled by selecting any member of that group while holding down the alt key option key on the Macintosh. You can recall that group instantly by pressing its correponding number key. Troops can be made to follow a specific unit. Select a unit or group that will be following a lead unit. To choose the lead unit, immediately. The lead unit will then be outlined by a blinking green box.

Tankers are used to haul oil much in the same manner that Peasants are used to harvest lumber or mine gold. Tankers, however, must construct an Oil Platform from which to drill for this resource. The first step is to find a suitable location to place a Platform. There are Oil Patches that represent concentrated areas of oil. Use your Tanker to scout out one of these sites by moving it around the waterways.

A green tinted image of an Oil Platform will appear on the Command Map that represents the amount of space required to build the Platform. If you attempt to place the Platform over any area that is not an Oil Patch, the image will pulsate red. When you have chosen an appropriate site, place the Oil Platform.

The Tanker will move to the site and begin construction. When the Oil Platform is completed, the Tanker will automatically begin hauling oil back to the Shipyard. Any new Tankers that are constructed may be ordered to carry oil from an existing Oil Platform by selecting H aul Oil in its Unit Command area.

Transports are used to ferry your units across vast stretches of water. You can automatically load up to six. The Transport will be outlined in a blinking green box and will automatically move towards the shoreline.

The selected units will also move towards the shore and enter the Transport when it docks. Units can disembark from a Transport, after the ship has moved to its shoreline destination, by selecting the U nload Transport icon in its Unit Command area. Specific units can be made to disembark from a Transport by selecting the desired portrait from the Unit Description area while the Transport is selected.

This will cause only the unit whose portrait is chosen to disembark from the ship. To begin a new multi player game click on the M ulti Player Game option. You will now be taken to the Sign In screen. Enter the name you wish to be known by during multi player games. Click OK to go to the Connection Method screen.

These connection methods and their use are described below. This can either be a dialup connection or a direct connection. Hewn from solid rock by the Dwarves of Northeron, their Aviary inspires dread in the hearts of whomsoever these Gryphon Riders call foe. Deep inside these massive structures are the Gryphon aeries and the Dwarven workshops where saddle and harness are crafted. Most sacred to the Dwarves is the enchanted forge that lies at the heart of each Aviary.

It is here that the magical weapons known as Stormhammers are fashioned. A Stormhammer, when thrown, strikes with the fury of lightning and the force of thunder. This destructive weapon, combined with the indomitable spirit of the Gryphon Riders, justifies their position as masters of the skies. The mighty Castles of Lordaeron are the center of large military cities. As with the lesser Keeps, Peasants may bring gold and lumber here for judicious dispersal in order to sustain the war effort.

These bastions against invasion are guarded by fortified battlements, making them virtually indestructible. The Castle represents the strength of the peoples of the Alliance and their unyielding resolution to defend the whole of humanity against the Orcish Hordes. Like an elemental force of havoc and destruction we thundered through the lands of the Draenei devastating all that we beheld.

Not one life was spared. No building was left standing. The only traces of their existence were the blood-soaked fields they had worked for nearly five thousand years and the rank, acrid smell of the huge victory fires that consumed the bodies of their young. The Draenei were a weak people - hardly worth the effort of our raiding sweep.

In the end, however, even these simple victories serve to keep the inferior in their place. It has always been so with my kind. The savage, brutal tendencies of the masses are easily manipulated by those who hold true power. Power is the true force that drives the great destructive machine that is the Horde. Those who imagine themselves in possession of this power rally around their clan banners of violence.

Yet without a common foe, even the leaders of the Orc clans blindly turn upon each other. The appetite for destruction that prevails amongst these fools drives the Horde; might and might alone is honored above all things.

No one knows the dark, burning allure of ultimate power better than I. In what passed as my youth, I studied Orc magiks through the tribal Shaman of my clan. My natural talent for channeling the cold, negative-energies of the Twisting Nether brought me notable standing amongst the other Shaman, and I knew that even Ner'zhul, the greatest of my teachers, became jealous of me as my abilities grew even stronger. My aspirations rose higher than those of my peers and masters alike, for I knew that the scope of their vision was limited by their devotion to the advancement of the Horde.

I cared nothing for the Horde or its petty politics. I cared nothing for this world over which we had complete dominion. I cared only for the chance to fathom the spiraling mysteries of the Great Dark Beyond. I had begun secret explorations of energies far beyond the scope of anything that my so-called tutors could possibly comprehend. It was at this time that I discovered a being of immense power - the Daemon Kil'jaeden.

I was in awe of his heartless fury. To witness his awesome power was to be all but consumed. In the fleeting, fevered nightmares he brought me, I touched the essence of that which lies Beyond. Within me an unfathomable lust was sewn - a desire to wield the fury of ethereal storms and to stand unscathed within the dying hearts of burning suns.

Under the tutelage of Kil'jaeden, I realized how limited even my understanding had been. Untold histories of ancient Daemon races and primal magical dimensions were made known to me. I learned that there existed worlds without number, scattered throughout the darkness beyond the sky - worlds to which I might lead the Horde as only one of my abilities could. Though I remained with my people on the dark, red world of the Draenei, I soon learned to project myself into the depths of the Twisting Nether, being driven nearly mad by the whispering chaos contained therein.

Although it seemed it would mean my death, I was irresistibly compelled to continue my sojourn until, finally unbound from my corporeal existence, I understood the whispers. It was then that I first spoke to the dead Ancestral worship has long been at the heart of Orcish religion.

While nearly all of the Orcish Hordes believed that our dead elders watched and guided us from the depths of some lost realm of chaos, I believed this notion to be a product of ritual and not reality.

Within the Twisting Nether I discovered that the spirits of the dead do linger on, floating on the astral winds between the worlds. I learned that they kept their endless, silent vigil over clans in hope of finding some means of escape from their lifeless torment.

I knew then that these spirits of the dead would be a useful tool for anyone who could bind them to his will. Years passed. My apprenticeship under Kil'jaeden had allowed me to become the most powerful Warlock the clans had seen in many generations. My place within in the Horde was as a respected leader, but as ever, tension ran high amongst the clans. The destruction of the Draenei left nothing upon which the great beast of war- could feed.

After centuries of violence and warfare, we had finally conquered the whole of our world. With no enemies left to crush and no new lands to conquer, the clans had fallen into a state of utter anarchy. Minor disputes between clans led to open battle and massive bloodshed. Those chieftains who attempted to assume the position of overlord soon found themselves slaughtered by the ravenous legions of the disheartened Horde. I knew that the time had come to claim the mantle of power that I had so long neglected.

I quickly gathered together the few Warlocks who had shown some spark of passion and desire to rise above the petty quarrelling of the clans.

To these Warlocks I bestowed the knowledge of the dead by leading them in secret rituals and communing with the spirits of the Twisting Nether. Those who were incapable of channeling this power were destroyed. After a time a pact was forged between the members of our circle and the dark spirits whose energies we had learned to invoke. I would use my place among the Warlocks to shape the thoughts of other while, cloaked by a veil of secrecy, they would be immune to the caprices of the bloodthirsty masses.

Thus did the Shadow Council come to be. Within a few short months the Shadow Council had its hand in all of the important political matters within the Horde. Nothing occurred within the Horde that we did not know about, and many events took place by our design - so cleverly implemented that even the clan chieftains were oblivious to our manipulations. Before half a year had passed, we had assumed near total control of the inner workings of the Horde.

Yet, behind all of our secret machinations, there loomed the silent and ominous shadow of the Daemon Kil'jaeden. In pursuit of furthering our magical resources, I opened a new school of magical discipline that became known as Necromancy. We began training young Warlocks in the arcane mysteries of life and death. Again, with tutelage from the Daemon Kil'jaeden, these Necrolytes delved into the dark arts, eventually gaining power enough to animate and control the bodies of the newly dead.

Every victory - every success - left me with an emptiness I could not fill. I came to realize that the Shadow Council could serve my purposes only to an extent, and thus I would require even greater power should I wish to become the true harbinger of our destiny.

Things were well within the Horde. Though the Shadow Council kept the warring clans pacified by the promise of escape from the dying world, I knew that this new order - much like the war against the Draenei - would provide only a brief respite if I could not find new lands for the Orcs to conquer. My contemplation on this matter was disturbed late one night when I was surprised by the sound of screams emanating from the Warlocks' Tower. I arrived to find many of the apprentices locked in deep trances, their faces twisted into masks of pain.

The Warlocks, whom I questioned in detail, could tell me only that they had felt and unexplainable presence in their dreams. I returned to my Stronghold, deeply puzzled by the fact that whatever it was that had contacted the Warlocks, had made no attempt to reach me. I sought the counsel of Kil'jaeden about this presence.

He also was touched by this power - a power that was beyond any he had ever experienced before Whether it was the image of a force so awesome that it could cause this baneful Daemon to actually feel fear, or my own trepidation, I fled - moving aimlessly through the Twisting Nether for what seemed an eternity. It was during my fevered flight that the Presence finally made contact with me. It radiated untold power, but it lacked the emotionless control displayed by Kil'jaeden.

My senses seemed to take control over the dread that had engulfed me, and my mind began to cipher and reason.

I knew that if I could divine the desires of this force, no matter how powerful, I could use it to further my own ends. The presence identified itself as Medivh, a sorcerer from some far and distant world. We communicated not in words, but in a guarded joining of minds. His mind seemed boundless, but his thoughts moved so swiftly that it was difficult to learn anything from him. All the while, I knew that he was probing me - learning more and more about the Orcs and our magic.

I could never learn as much from him as he would from me, and I soon broke contact with him. I sought the counsel of Kil'jaeden, but he refused to answer my summons. Somehow I knew that he had forsaken his students because he was afraid of this Medivh. I found myself again doubting my skills. Could I contend with a being who could intimidate my own master?

I continued to venture into the Twisting Nether for several weeks, all but forgetting the disturbance that had caused me to question myself. Then one night, Medivh appeared to me in my dreams See my world and understand your fear.

Then fear no more". Images came, flashing much too quick to comprehend. And then A fleeting picture that left a longing stirring inside of my soul I awoke. I embraced consciousness knowing all along that the dream had been real.

Medivh had shown me the wonders of his world, knowing that the Horde would not be content until his world was ours I met with the members of the Shadow Council concerning the visions that we had seen. Although there was much debate as to the true intentions of this Medivh, I informed the Shadow Council that a way to escape from our world would soon be ours. I would seek the aid of Medivh in creating a way to get to his world, and then we would subjugate his race as we had done to all the others who stood before us.

Although he had appeared to many Warlocks with these images of a new and fertile world, we agreed to keep the knowledge of this enigmatic message to ourselves. Those Warlocks outside of the Shadow Council who had shared in the visions were killed; for if the secret were revealed before preparations were made, the Horde would tear itself apart. Weeks passed with no word from Medivh. My attempts to contact him were fruitless.

It was as if he had erased any trace of himself from the Twisting Nether. Some members of the Council gave up any hope of the wizard ever returning.

It took considerable time to expand the rift enough to send the massive frame an Orc through. The first scouts to return from the other side seemed to be driven completely mad by what they had seen. These early failures did not deter us, and subsequent quests confirmed that the world beyond this rift appeared similar to what was depicted in our visions.

With the combined powers of the Horde's Warlock clans and the Shadow Council, we were able to enlarge the mysterious rift so as to create a Portal. This Portal was used to move a great number of Orcs into this unknown land.

A small outpost was quickly built on the other side of the rift, and Orc scouts were sent to explore the surrounding areas. The agents of the Shadow Council reported that the denizens of this world were called Humans, and their lands were known as Azeroth. We found that these Humans were a weak race, farming their fields and living peacefully in the countryside.

I feared that they would prove no more of a challenge than the Draenei, and would not appease the hunger of the Orcish war machine for long. The clan chieftains, quickly swayed by their lust for blood and war, agreed that it was time to leave this dying world and lay claim to the domains of Azeroth.

While the Shadow Council kept close watch over the workings of the Horde, the masses looked to the clan chiefs as their leaders. These powerful leaders were expected to direct the Horde to a swift and savage victory over the Humans.

Thus, as the Horde gradually channeled through the rift into Azeroth, Cho'gall and Kilrogg began to plan their assault against the Human stronghold of Stormwind. The attack against Stormwind was catastrophic. Our armies, expecting to meet weak resistance, charged headlong into the enemy fortress. Surprisingly, the Humans soldiers held our forces at bay. Then they unleashed warriors mounted upon beasts of muscle and sinew to devastate our troops.

The Humans forced our troops to retreat back into the swamplands surrounding our outpost and the Portal where, only by the invoking the shrouding mists of shadow, were we able to escape.

This decisive and humiliating defeat threw the Horde into chaos. Cho'gall and Kilrogg blamed each other's incompetence for the failure, and the Orcs quickly polarized into factions that supported either chieftain.

The Shadow Council desperately sought a remedy to the violence that was sure to follow, but the volatile nature of the Orcs made it difficult to appeal to reason or wisdom. I realized that the Horde needed a strong leader that could unify the clans under his control - and be kept in his place.

Thus did I first learn of Blackhand the Destroyer Blackhand, chieftain of the young Blackrock clan and a Raider in the Sythegore Arm, was well honored by Orcs within the Horde. More importantly, he was extremely lustful, and this made him easily corruptible. To his credit, Blackhand was a ruthless dictator who inspired awe and terror from his warriors. While the Horde rallied under Blackhand and the other chieftains acquiesced control of him, it was I who dictated policy by blackmailing and bribing Blackhand.

With Blackhand's ascension to War Chief, order was restored to the Horde. I was visited again by the visage of Medivh, who appeared more in control of his powers, but less in control of his mind. Petitioning the Horde to destroy the kingdom of Azeroth, but to make him ruler of its people, Medivh offered all manners of treasures and baubles to me. I assured him that his world was ours for the taking, and that he held nothing that could persuade the Horde to do his bidding. His face broke into a wicked sneer as he proceeded to show me the image of an ancient tomb upon which was etched the name of the Daemonlord Sargeras.

The Tomb of Sargeras! The daemonlord who had instructed my own tutor Kil'jaeden was entombed upon this pathetic little world! Destiny had chosen to lay the hand upon my shoulders alone, for Kil'jaeden had told me that the lost Tomb contained power absolute - enough to make any who would control it into a living god. Medivh pledged that he would grant me the location of the Tomb if only I would use the Horde to destroy his enemies We took the lands of Azeroth from the Humans and razed all that we surveyed.

Although the Horde dominated Azeroth and the pathetic worms who defended it, my own plans were badly hampered. A small band of Human warriors stormed Medivh's Tower and engaged the insane sorcerer in direct combat.

As his body was slashed and torn by the swords of Azeroth, Medivh began to transmit telepathic waves of trauma across the astral plane which easily shattered even my formidable defenses. I attempted to reach into the sorcerer's mind and steal the location of the Tomb from him directly, but before I could divest the location, Medivh was killed by the Azerothiens. Having been inside his mind at the moment of his temporal death, I suffered a massive psychic backlash and fell into a catatonic state.

For weeks I slept as if dead, closely guarded by my faithful Warlocks. When I finally arose, I learned of the shift in the balance power within the Horde. Blackhand had been killed. Without my magiks and counseling to aid him, Blackhand fell prey to a surprise attack launched by one of his strongest and most trusted generals - Orgrim Doomhammer. Orgrim was quick to consolidate his power within the Horde, justifying the assassination of Blackhand by securing false testimony that support his claims of the Destroyer's incompetence as War Chief.

It seemed that the hand of fate had struck me a harsh blow. Orgrim set out to uncover the inner workings of the Horde, leaving no stone unturned.

Eventually, his spies captured my servant Garona and under intensive, agonizing torture, forced her to reveal the existence and location of the Shadow Council. She was weaker than I had expected. Suspecting that the Shadow Council was a threat to his control of the Horde, Doomhammer led his Wolfriders in a surprise attack against my Citadel near the ruins of Stormwind Keep. The Warlocks, caught unprepared by Orgrim's assault, held off the Horde as long as their magiks would last.

Having no time to rest or replenish their energies, the Warlocks fell before the wrath of Orgrim. In the end, the Doomhammer was victorious. Any surviving Warlocks were branded as traitors to the Horde. The public executions were effective in weakening my position and strengthening his I was taken before Orgrim and questioned at length about my involvement with the Shadow Council. Being greatly weakened by the backlash of Medivh's death as well as the energies I had expended during the battle, I found that I was in no position to either threaten nor harm the War Chief.

Orgrim made it clear to me that the Horde was under his control, and that he was not as easily swayed as his predecessor. The gleam in his eye and the steel at his side bespoke of his intentions, but I would not be defeated so easily. While he may have held the upper hand, I reminded him that with the death of the Warlocks, I was the last true sorcerer within the Horde.

Orgrim, made impudent by his victory, agreed that perhaps I could prove useful, and agreed to let me live - by his good graces. I silently vowed that he would one day take those words to his grave. Although his suspicions of me were never fully assuaged, I did succeed in convincing the War Chief that the Raiders were preparing to unit with the song of Blackhand in a revolt against him.

Although this claim was untrue, Orgrim was already suspicious of Rend and Maim and so disbanded the multitude of Wolfriders, sending them into the various arms of the Grunt forces. To demonstrate my 'loyalty' to Orgrim and the Horde, I promised to create a host of undead riders that would be completely loyal to him alone.

Although the Doomhammer did not fully trust me, the idea was sufficiently appealing, and so I was allowed to enter seclusion to create this new legion. Even with the aid of my Necrolytes, I was unsuccessful in bringing forth this undead force. Failure and weakness were all that these minions could offer me, until I sensed that while their spirits were willing - it was the flesh that was weak.

I summoned them to a greater alter constructed of Ironwood and Blackroot where, at the height of black incantation, I took the lives of every last one of them.

In the bloody wake of their executions, the Necrolytes would finally nourish my creation of the perfect undead servant. Using what few resources I still controlled within the Horde, I acquired many of the long-dead corpses of the fallen Knights of Azeroth. Into these twisted and decayed forms I instilled the essences of the greater members of the Shadow Council who were quite willing to return to the mortal plane to wreak terror and havoc once again.

I furnished each of the dark riders a jeweled truncheon through which they could better focus the unearthly powers they would brandish. Into these jewels were infused the raw, necromantic magiks of the freshly slain Necrolytes. Thus were the Death Knights born.

Orgrim Doomhammer was please with these knights of death. Although the spirits of the Shadow Council remained loyal to me, they feigned allegiance to the War Chief. Orgrim was well satisfied with the realization of my promise, and allowed me to go about my own affairs. I will be patient and bide my time, pretending to be the faithful servant until the time comes to show this presumptuous, boisterous upstart who is greater between us. My designs to discover the Tomb of Sargeras still remain.

I have assembled the Stormreaver clan to be my support when the season finally comes to strike back at Orgrim for his insolent crimes against me Background : Although years of war have reduced their numbers, the Blackrock clan remains the strongest within the Horde. Ruled for many years by Blackhand the Destroyer, the Blackrock clan rose quickly in power and was responsible for numberless victories against the Humans in the First War.

Orgrim Doomhammer - known also as the Backstabber - assassinated the ruthless, but careless Blackhand, and named himself clan chieftain and War Chief of the Horde. The Blackrock clan continues to dictate the course of the war intimidating the lesser clans within the Horde into following Orgrim's lead. The forces of the Blackrock clan are fanatically loyal to the Doomhammer and will serve him with their lives. Background : The Stormreavers are a small but powerful clan whose origins are fixed in the history of the Horde since its coming to Azeroth.

As the last of his kind, the Warlock Gul'dan maintains absolute control over this clan. Gul'dan, who secretly ruled the Horde through his unwitting puppet Blackhand, has found that the shrewd Doomhammer harbors no trust or fondness for him.

This forced Gul'dan to found the Stormreavers in order to protect himself from any action Orgrim might take against him. With the support of his clan, Gul'dan intends to find the lost Tomb of the Daemonlord Sargeras. It is legend that this Tomb contains unimaginable power - power which Gul'dan means to possess. Background : Obsessed with the notion that the Horde is the harbinger of apocalyptic doom to all the lands that it ravages, the Twilight's Hammer feels a sacrosanct gratification in the destruction of all that it encounters.

Its loyalty to the Horde is not as strong as its belief in its sacred mission of oblivion. Background : The Black Tooth Grin clan was originally part of the Blackrock clan, but splintered off before the Horde's passing into Azeroth. After their father was deposed from his position as War Chief by Orgrim Doomhammer, Rend and Maim decided to gain control over their own faction within the Horde without directly opposing the Doomhammer's ascension to power.

The Black Tooth Grin, noted for its custom of each member knocking out one of his own teeth to symbolize his loyalty to the clan, is charged with the protection and preservation of the dreaded Portal.

The unity of The Black Tooth Grin may be sorely tested should the opportunity arise for Rend and Maim to reclaim their father's station and avenge his death. Background : The Bleeding Hollow clan was one of the largest in the Horde before passing into Azeroth. Led by the aged Kilrogg, the Bleeding Hollow embodies the unrelenting savagery required for many long years of successful Orcish warfare.

In accordance with their unequaled performance in battle, they have been given the honor of safeguarding the refinement operations in the occupied lands of Khaz Modan. Allegiant to the Blackrock Clan, these veteran warriors place the needs of the Horde above all else. Background : Led by the Shaman Zuluhed, the Dragonmaw clan is a small but elite faction within the Horde. With its legacy dating back into the time before the Warlocks, the Dragonmaw was quick to become one of Blackhand's strongest supporters in Azeroth.

After his demise, the Dragonmaw honored its fealty to Blackhand by pledging itself into the service of his sons and The Black Tooth Grin. Using ritualistic magiks dowered by the ancient Shaman, the Dragonmaw clan was responsible for the capture of the Dragon Queen Alexstraza and the Horde's current subjugation of the Dragons of Azeroth. Background : The Burning Blade is not a clan as much as it is an elemental force of nature.

Chaotic and unpredictable, the Burning Blade is a brotherhood of demented Orcs whose only objective is to raze and plunder with no regard for their own safety.

This leaderless swarm is held in check by the Ogres - to be unleashed by the clans in times of urgent duress. The Burning Blade holds loyalty to no one and will attack any that they perceive to be a threat - even their fellow Orcs. The label of Peon denotes the lowest station amongst those in the Orcish Horde.

Inferior in all skills of import, these dogs are relegated to menial tasks such as harvesting lumber and mining gold. Their labor is also required for the construction and maintenance of building necessary to support the vast undertakings of the Horde. Downtrodden, the Orc Peons slave thanklessly to please their overseers.

Those Orcs who distinguish themselves enough in the arts of war to be trained as Grunts epitomize the merciless spirit of the Horde. Equipped with mighty axes and battle-worn armor, they are prepared to fight to the death. Devoted to the Horde and to their clans, the Grunt lusts for battle - wanting nothing more than to wade into the field of carnage and die a bloody death surrounded by the bodies of his fallen enemies.

The Trolls of Lordaeron have suffered ages of attrition at the hands of the Humans, Dwarves, and Elves. The appearance of the Orcish Horde has given them the opportunity to ally themselves with kindred spirits with whom they can seek revenge upon their many enemies.

More agile than the brutish Orcs, Trolls employ throwing axes - along with a cunning attack and retreat stratagem - to assail their foes.