The Ten Races of the World Of Warcraft

In continuation of a previous article on the World of Warcraft, I will try to bring the races to you through this one. The ten races are divided into five for each faction-namely the Alliance and the Horde. The Alliance races are the Draenei, Dwarves, Gnomes, Humans, and Night Elves. The Horde include the Blood Elves, Orcs, Taurens, Trolls and Undead. Each race has its own special strengths which help them to improve the class and professions which a player chooses. These unique abilities should be taken into consideration before making or choosing a character. Some races stand out as being sneakier, better magic wielders, burlier fighters or well suited to being part magic user and part soldier.

Alliance

The Humans

The Human race is a strong race that easily gets up after a defeat. It survived the first war with the invasion of the Orcs and retook the lands of Azeroth once again in the second war. The Humans can be a warrior, mage, rogue, priest, paladin, death knight or (DK), and warlock. Their racial bonuses are their slightly increased stealth detection and their ability to break movement-altering effects. Humans are among the youngest races on Azeroth, but they are also the most populous. They generally have a shorter life span than the other races which makes them to strive all the more harder to achieve great heights in empire building, exploration and magical study. Humans value virtue, honor and courage, though like all races they also pursue power and wealth to stay in business.

In the current gaming scenario, The humans’ primary threat other than the Scourge, is the Forsaken who are continuing their attempts to expand south from Tirisfal into , though the human presence in the region remains strong with the remnants of Lordaeron and Stromgard , causing the  Hillsbrad area to be one of Azeroth’s major battlefields.

The Dwarves

The Dwarves are an ancient race of strong warriors who live deep beneath the mountains of Khaz Modan. They have always been allied with the humans, battling together since the second war. They rarely leave their fortress but when battle is on they are there to defend their allies with whatever it takes. The Dwarves believe that the titans formed them from stone when the world was young and that it is their destiny to discover more about the Titans’ hidden legacies. Because of this the Dwarves now have established excavation sites all over the world. The Dwarven race assisted their Human and Elf allies in the second war against the Orcish Hoards by sending in the deadly Dwarven Demolition Squad. The Dwarven inventors are known all over the lands of Azeroth for their incredible and innovative creations. The Dwarven race has created more technological wonders then all of the other races combined. They are known for their valor and courage in battle and their love of combat sends them running to help their allies when there is even a hint of the chance that a battle may take place. They can be a warrior, hunter, paladin, death knight or (DK), priest, and rogue.

The Night Elf

The Night Elves as they are now called, come from across the great ocean from a land called Kalimdor. While once all three continents were one giant landmass, it was the Night Elves who brought about the separation of them. They were the first race to awaken in the World of Warcraft. These shadowy, immortal beings were the first to study magic and let it loose throughout the world nearly ten thousand years before Warcraft I. As a race, Night Elves are typically honorable and just, but they are very distrusting of the ‘lesser races’ of the world. They are nocturnal by nature and their shadowy powers often elicit the same distrust that they have for their mortal neighbors.

The Night Elves rely on their magic and the benefits of the natural world around them to maintain their society. Their magic is druidic in nature and flows straight from the natural world. Rather than drawing from the chaotic and darker side of magic, theirs is pulled from Azeroth itself. Stone, root, flora and fauna all are avenues through which their magic travels. The Night Elf can be a warrior, hunter, rogue, priest, DK, and druid and when it comes to skill with a bow, there are none who can compare with the Night Elves. Their accuracy and ability to melt away into the shadows of the night make them deadly adversaries.

The Gnome

Known for their cleaver inventions and their engineering skills the Gnomes are one of the most peculiar races in the World of Warcraft. Living together with the Dwarves in Dun Morogh the Gnomes have built the strange techno-city of Gnomeregan. The Gnomes fought bravely with the alliance during the second war but for some reason they refused to send anyone to aid the Dwarves and Humans during the invasion of the Burning Legion. Later it was discovered that an ancient barbaric menace had risen from bowels of the earth and defeated Gnomeregan. Nearly half of the gnomish race was wiped out during the invasion. The ragged Gnomes that survived fled to the safety of the Dwarves’ stronghold of Ironforge. Committed once again to the Alliance’s cause, the Gnomes spend their time devising strategies and weapons that will help them retake their ravaged city and build a brighter future for their people. The Gnome can be a warrior, DK, mage, rogue, and warlock.

The Draenei

The Draenei are the exiled race which originated on the world of Argus where they were known in a lesser form as the Eredar. Sargeras, the Destroyer of Worlds, noticed the grace, intelligence, and potency of Eredar magic and made an offer of the Eredar to amplify their strength, magic, and knowledge in exchange for their services as commanders of the Burning Legion. The offer fractured the race. Those who accepted Sargeras’s offer became demons, tremendous and vile. A number of draenei still remained untainted. They arrived in Azeroth after crash landing their dimensional-traveling ship, which fell victim to sabotage by malicious blood elves under the direction of Kael’thas. The draenei were the new Alliance race introduced in the Burning Crusade expansion. The Draenei can be a warrior, hunter, shaman, paladin, mage, priest, and DK.

Horde

The Hordes is one of the two major political groups of the mortal races in Azeroth, its counterpart being the Alliance. The Horde, a faction led by off-worlders and composed of outsiders has survived these obstacles by bonding together, fighting as family, comrades, or even uneasy allies. They are genarally perceived to be ugly and their spells are dark.

The Orc

The savage, green-skinned Orcs are one of the most prolific races of Azeroth. They are commonly believed to be brutal and mindless, possessing no humanity or empathy for other races. Born on the hellish world of Draenor, the Orcs were brought into the kingdom of Stormwind through the dimensional gateway known as the Dark Portal and forced to wage war on the Humans. Although few are aware of their history, the Orcs once cultivated a noble, Shamanistic society on the world of Draenor. Tragically, the proud Orc clans were corrupted by the Burning Legion and used as pawns in the Legion’s invasion of Azeroth. To their enemies, they are brutal and fearsome opponents, without parallel in their ferocity and cunning. To their allies, they are noble and honorable, following the traditions of a rediscovered past.. For an orc, honor is as important as his clan, and most will die defending either clan or personal reputation. The orcs are one of the most populous races on the world of Azeroth. While many of the Alliance races perceive them to be brutish and savage, the orcs have undeniably spawned a complex society that embraces many occupations and many different races. The orcs are undergoing a cultural revolution as they feel the unnatural, arcane bloodlust leave their bodies, giving them calmer and more focused states of mind.  They can be a warrior, hunter, shaman, DK, warlock, and rogue.

The Undead

This renegade group of Undead managed to break free of the tyrannical rule of the Lich King and now seek to retain their free will while destroying all who oppose them. Now known as the Forsaken they are dedicated to follow their new leader, the Dark Lady Sylvanas Windrunner. The Forsaken has established a secret stronghold beneath the ruins of Lordaeron in the Tirisfal Glades, the Undercity. Created by the Lich King, the undead armies of the Scourge scoured the eastern lands and forced the free peoples to flee to Kalimdor. Sylvanas Windrunner, hero of the elves of Quelthalas was one of the Lich King’s greatest adversaries. The world itself is a mockery to the Forsaken. Being animated dead, the Forsaken do not need to grow crops or raise families. The undead draw their power from the darkness in their souls and the chaotic magics that keep them alive. n battle the undead feel no pain and do not fear death. In fact, most welcome the idea of being released from their tortured state and will not flee out of self preservation. The Undead can be a warrior, DK, warlock, mage, rogue, and priest.

The Tauren

The Tauren are huge nomadic creatures who live on the grassy, open plains of Mulgore in central Kalimdor. Tauren are large, muscular humanoids and bovine in appearance, complete with hooves and horns. The plains of Kalimdor have long been a home to these tremendous nomads. Tauren rarely speak unless there is a true reason to, preferring to act instead of talk. However, once a tauren has learned to interact with a companion, there seems to be a more open and enthusiastic exchange of words. Tauren have no love for bloodshed, as their deep spiritual beliefs do not have a place for warfare. The elders of a tribe solve most issues, or two tauren might resolve a conflict with a ritual challenge resembling a duel. Although the tauren have reclaimed their lands and battle alongside the Horde, not all is peaceful.

The Grimtotem tribe tries to this day to usurp the rule of Cairne, plotting to overthrow his leadership.. The language of the tauren is often harsh and low sounding, which is reflected in the names of their children. The last name of a tauren is usually a family name, handed down through the generations. The Tauren can be a shaman, warrior, DK, hunter, and druid.

The Troll

The Trolls are a barbaric and superstitious race who are recognized for their cruel and mystic ways. Like the Forsaken group of Undead, the Darkspear tribe of Trolls has become disunited from the rest of their kind. After being exiled from their homeland in Stranglethorn Vale, they faced eradication. Though the Trolls have a hatred for all beings, the Darkspear tribe was forced to overcome these prejudices when they encountered Thrall and his Mighty Horde. The Trolls live in a tribal society, led by the cunning Shadow Hunter, Vol’jin. In general, the Troll thirst for war and proficiency in battle has often led them to be mercenaries to the highest bidder. The Trolls, like the Orcs, favor a much more offensive stance in combat than the other races. The Troll can be a shaman, hunter, rogue, mage, priest, death knight, and warrior.

The Blood Elf

Those now known as blood elves were once high elves. In the transition that led to this renaming, they glorified their civilization while discarding their honor. Life for the blood elves changed during the Third War. The Scourge slew more than 90% of the high elven population, devastating their culture. Prince Kael’thas Sunstrider was studying magic in Dalaran at the time of the disaster. He returned from his studies to find Quel’Thalas in ruins. Thirsting for vengance, Kael’thas gathered the survivors and renamed them “blood elves” in honor of their fallen kin. Unfortunately, the blood elves’ practice of embracing demonic energies resulted in them being shunned by their former comrades in the Alliance. Thus, the remaining blood elves on Azeroth look desperately to the Horde to help them reach Outland, where they can reunite with Kael’thas and achieve the golden destiny he promised them. They can be a DK, paladin, mage, priest, warlock, rogue, and hunter.