Retcon 2
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| This article or section includes speculation, observations or opinions possibly supported by lore or by Blizzard officials. It should not be taken as representing official lore.
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This article deals with further speculation regarding retcons and other apparent discrepancies in Warcraft lore.
For a list of other discrepancies see retcon 1. Both articles discuss alleged discrepancies that are subjective in nature and may be considered a matter of opinion, as well as theories which attempt to reconcile discrepancies by reference to other sources of lore.
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Azerothian blood elves
According to the mission in Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne, Prince Kael'Thas took the remaining survivors with him to Outland to escape Lord Garithos, but according to new light in the World of Warcraft Encyclopedia, not all of the Blood Elves followed the prince, only the healthiest of them were sent in search of alternative magic sources. However, the mission could possibly be generalizing, and this may not be a retcon at all.
Complete blood elf Information, including acceptance into the Horde and current population statistics, is available in the World of Warcraft Encyclopedia.[1]
Garona's parentage
There has been considerable dispute over the years about what exactly the other "half" of Garona is. While it has been established that she is a half-orc, sources have differed as to her other half. Warcraft I presented her as half-human, but when the timeline was revised the First War was moved to only a year after the Dark Portal was opened rather than twenty, eliminating the possibility that she could be half-human. Caydiem later suggested that she could be half-draenei, stating that the draenei in Warcraft III were corrupted by the energies of Draenor's explosion and were formerly more human-like (this was later made official by the Burning Crusade expansion. The debate continued, however, based on Garona's lack of draenei features. Eventually, the Warcraft comic officially established that she was in fact half-draenei.
Hell
Their belief system was later revised to the philosophy of the Holy Light. The realm from which demons are summoned was originally referred to as Hell, Hades, and the underworld, as opposed to the Twisting Nether. This is not a true retcon as later sources confirm the existence of hell, although it is synonymous with the Twisting Nether, which goes by many titles. Hell as one of its names has been referenced in later sources.
In Warcraft I, and to a lesser extent Warcraft II & Warcraft III, and in the novels, Day of the Dragon specifically, the terms "hell", "hells", "Hades", "lower planes", "the underworld", "damnation",, "pit of darkness" and "Dark Below" are used in a very traditional sense.
Warcraft: Orcs & Humans
"Denizens of the underworld, the daemons are creatures said to be some of the most powerful entities to ever exist in the lands of Azeroth. Their aptitude in the arts of deception and combat are only equal by their sadistic nature, and puissance they possess in the black arts of Magic. They command the searing fires of Hell as if it where their plaything. They are the true lords of chaos, wreaking havoc at every step and destroying what they wish.
There is rumored to be a gateway that appears every thirteenth full moon that bridges the gap between Azeroth and the underworld, and it is during these brief moments that the daemons came to this place. Legend also states that some have the power to summon these creatures and control them, but if this is so, none are alive to tell the tale of how it was accomplished."-From the chronicles of Anduin Lothar
These hellspawn are evil incarnate. The ability to summon these dark minions of the underworld has long been lost, though the Warlocks seek to find those secrets once again. Breathing flame and wielding a blade forged in the fires of hades, destruction and death are their greatest desire. These daemons possess cruelty beyond the imagining of even the sickest mind, and delight in the execution of their plans. If there is a way to send these monsters back into the pits that spawned them without the loss of many lives, it too is a secret locked away in time.-From the chronicles of Garona Halforcen
"The fires of hell rise up to meet the enemies of the Warlock clan. Their sorceries are rooted in the deepest pits of the underworld...
Fireball; The basic fire spell which all followers of the Orcish cults (the underworld) first learn. It channels the flames of hades through the caster's body, allowing the wielder to direct it as a missile at anyone he choses...
Summon Demon; The most powerful spell ever rumored to exist. Legends say that the caster would have the ability to summon forth a daemon by allowing his body to be sacrificed to enable its existence in this plane. The daemon would then be guided by the spirit of the caster to do his bidding, but should the daemon be destroyed, the warlock's life would be forfeit. The truth to this tale is questionable, but the incantations are rituals used to summon the creature may lay in some lost runic writings. The dream of every follower of the underworld is to rediscover these incantations and be able to command the power of the Daemon.
Tower; This is where the knowledge of dark magicks is are revealed. Warlocks reside here to focus their energies towards harnessing the forces of the underworld.
Warcraft II: Beyond the Dark Portal
Sometimes the words show up in the names of characters and locations, for example, Grom Hellscream, Hellfire Peninsula and Hellfire Citadel.
Lord of the Clans
Even the novel Lord of the Clans made references to the word "hell":
- "If a warlock was to summon hell's flames against an enemy, they would be burned to death...With hell's fire, you make a bargain. It costs a little of yourself."
- — Grom Hellscream in Lord of the Clans.
Day of the Dragon
- "A paladin had indicated to Rhonin that he believed that, after death, the mage's soul would be condemned to the same pit of darkness shared by the mythical demons of old. This no matter how pure Rhonin's soul might have been otherwise."DotD 19 "...A damned soul..."DotD 39
Warcraft III
There is a references to hell from Uther Lightbringer; "I dearly hope there is a special place in hell waiting for you Arthas." Arthas then replies back, "We may never know, Uther, I intend to live forever."
Sylvanas Windrunner tells Prince Arthas to, "Give my regards to hell."
Note: Underworld also refers to a secret underground hellish cavern system where ghosts, murlocs, skeletons, and other minions of a Ghost Sea Witch once resided.
Aprendix Three
A place called the Dark Below, is described in the demons section of the Manual of Monsters Appendix Three which states that it is a place where certain demon races are originated from, but the validity of the source is disputed.
World of Warcraft
Caelestrasz states:
- "Even if you somehow manage to free us without defeating C'Thun, we would focus all our powers to see the beast banished back to the hell from whence it came — AT ANY COST."
The spell Hellfire is also aviable.
The Burning Crusade
In The Burning Crusade, the term hell is used quite often, a notable example is Magtheridon being referred to as a "hellspawn".
High elven druids
It has been assumed due to lack of mention of high elf druids, that high elf druids did not exist and were retconned out of history. This assumption was speculation. It has been confirmed recently that there was in fact druidism practiced by high elves in recent sources.
The Runestone at Caer Darrow was described in the Warcraft II manual as being crafted by elven druids that used the "magics" connected to the "arcane". As the background of the high elf race was further developed in Warcraft III, they were depicted as a race dedicated to the free use of arcane magic. It seems to some fans the principles of druidism would be antithetical to the majority of high elves, and it didn't appear there was any indication of any renegade sect of druids.
Furthermore, the More Magic & Mayhem RPG implies that at the time the book takes place (not long after the events of Lands of Conflict), runic magic is usually practiced by the tauren and the dwarves, and only rarely by other races in the world. Gnomes and humans, are cited as somewhat likely to use rune magic, usually taught to them by dwarves, and some Forsaken learned the art of runic inscription through tauren runemasters. It is possible that high elves would have learned runic magic from the Wildhammer dwarves. The book does imply that runic magic has some ties to druidic magic by a connection to natural ley lines.
Additionally, the RPG implies that before and up to the end of the Third War, the high elves were more open to other philosophies and religions as alternate sources of power, especially the Holy Light. This explains the existence of high elven priests in Warcraft III.
According to the books, it wasn't until after the Third War that most began to leave the other religions, as they began to lose focus because of withdrawal symptoms from their magic addiction. It is possible that some high elves may have been open to druidic or runic magic in the ancient past when the Runestones were created, as a means of tapping into natural energy sources of arcane magic (see ley line and ley lines), much like how some high elves dabbled with divine magic before the Third War. The Alliance Player's Guide has an article on savagekin, a form of druidism based on ancient beliefs still held by half-elves, implying that high elves may still have knowledge of druidism.APG 60-62 In Horde Player's Guide, it mentions that former high elven rangers practiced druidism before they became dark rangers, and had to convert their beliefs to necromancy instead.HPG 41 Freywinn in Tempest Keep appears to be evidence of a former high elven druid turned blood elf.
The Holy Light and God
In the description of the Warcraft I units, the Clerics of Northshire are described as worshippers of God, though whether or not this referred to a specific deity within a pantheon or a single deity is not known. This is followed in some of the later sources, such as Warcraft II ("Deo Gratias", Latin for "Thanks be to God") and Day of the Dragon.
- "...clearly it was chosen by a higher power that your paths would lead you to us."DotD 44
By the time of Warcraft III, they are shown as followers of the Holy Light, which is described as a philosophy that that does not follow any particular theology, although a reference to a single all powerful god-like being creating the universe is mentioned in the manual and angels appear during resurrection spells. It is unknown as to whether or not the individuals worship this deity.
Iblis, Blade of the Fallen Seraph, seems to be a reference to a fallen angel as well.
Spirit Healers and Spirits of Redemption have the form of angelic beings as well, though as of yet there is no name for the race, but it could be a Seraph.
In the preview information released regarding the draenei race for the Burning Crusade expansion, the naaru were referenced as "a race of sapient energy beings bent on stopping the Burning Crusade" and that they "blessed the draenei with Light-given knowledge and power". The naaru may explain the origin of the Holy Light or at least demonstrate that that the Holy Light is an interplanetary force not restricted only to the world of Azeroth. Additionally, its known that the naaru are also a source of Holy Light power, as blood elves have found a way of draining a naaru of its powers, in order to wield divine powers as blood knights.
Additionally, according to Warcraft III's manual, one legend states that the creation of the universe was from a single all powerful entity. The concept of God likely originated from this legend. See, Creation Myth.
Additionally, Alliance Player's Guide tends to switch between the points of view that the Light seems to be an sapient entity of some kind; while it may not be an individual it may be a force. But it says little is known as the philosophies have been changing over the years especially since many of the original books discussing the Holy Light were destroyed during the various wars, especially during the third war.
Orc warlocks
Under the leadership of Thrall, the orcs have rediscovered their ancient Shamanistic traditions. In an attempt to rid the Horde of its demonic corruption, Thrall banned the use of warlock magic and necromancy. Now, all orc magic users practice shaman magic which draws its power from the natural world and the elements.
However, in World of Warcraft the orcs have begun training warlocks once again. They are though looked down by society and barely tolerated much like human warlocks. This could be reconciled by the suggestion that the Horde's warlocks are their equivalent of Demon Hunters (using the powers of darkness against their masters). This is backed up by the orc warlock quests where the warlock trainees do good deeds like reuniting two lovers.[2] The Warlocks are also supposedly a separate clan that has been integrated into the present Horde, much like the orc Rogues who are supposedly former Shattered Hand members.
Stormwind and Azeroth
The nation of Azeroth may have simply changed its name, within the context of the game world, to Stormwind. Even though technically the kingdom was called Azeroth earlier in its history, historians will sometimes project the current name on an earlier history of the kingdom especially when talking about the seat of power for the land, its capital, Stormwind.APG 158
Wrynn
Wrynn was initially given as the single name of the king of Stormwind at the time of orcish invasion, King Wrynn III, with his son being called King Llane. Wrynn was later used as the family name of the Stormwind royal line, being applied as Llane's surname, as well as that of his son and grandson.
Illidan's bandana
In the book War of the Ancients: The Well of Eternity, Illidan is said to have been given an amber bandana (the color of his lost eyes) by Lady Vashj after having his eyes burnt out by Sargaeras. However, in WoW Illidan is seen wearing a black bandana. The bandana which drops from him is also black and appears to have been given to him by Sargeras, as it is called "Cursed Vision of Sargeras", rather than by Lady Vashj. Perhaps he lost his old bandana during the 10,000 years, or it grew black with time, not necessarily a retcon.
Alternately, it is likely that this stems from the change made to the timeline in War of the Ancients (novel account) in which Illidan's bandana was given to him by Sargeras after burning out his eyes as Illidan was feigning service to the Burning Legion at the time.
Dar'Khan Drathir obliterated and then not
According to the manga The Sunwell Trilogy, Dar'Khan Drathir is obliterated by Anveena.[3] However, he later appears in at Tower of the Damned in Deatholme at the southern reaches of the Ghostlands.[4]
