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WarCraft Archive
624 pages, Paperback
First published October 24, 2006
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116 books164 followersBlizzard Entertainment is an American video game developer and publisher based in Irvine, California, and a subsidiary of Activision Blizzard.
The company is well known for creating the Warcraft, Starcraft, Diablo, and Overwatch franchises, and regularly publishes related novels, comics, and art books.
The company is well known for creating the Warcraft, Starcraft, Diablo, and Overwatch franchises, and regularly publishes related novels, comics, and art books.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
January 9, 2015
Four very different works here from four very different authors. Allow me to take them one at a time.
1. DAY OF THE DRAGON by Richard A. Knaak // 4 stars
This is apparently the first novel set in the Warcraft universe. What's fascinating about this work is that it already establishes the wide range of fantasy tropes the novels set in this canon will use to tell interesting stories. Azeroth is in many ways a post-Frodo Middle Earth. That is to say, imagine a Middle Earth after the destruction of the Ring, where the orcs are free from demonic corruption and must now find a way to co-exist alongside humans, elves, dwarves, etc. Obviously, the world of Azeroth is more complex than this simplification, but for introductory purposes, this is a viable analogue.
What we find, then, in Day of the Dragon, is the tale of a powerful wizard on a quest into a mountain under orcish control. Rhonin, the mage in question, enlists the help of a night elf huntress, a gang of dwarven gryphon pilots, and a particularly pompous human paladin in order to carry out the bidding of a higher-up mage within the Kirin Tor--the secret council of wizards that uses Dalaran as its base of operations. The inner workings of this secret mage's council are some of the best moments in this book, as they illuminate the powers and limitations of magic in this universe in a way that does not come across in the games.
What's great about Day of the Dragon is the solid writing, the gripping action, and the exploration of the dragons themselves. As a player, I hadn't had much interaction with the dragons other than killing them or mounting them for flight. To see inside their world, to understand their life on Azeroth from their own context--that's what makes this book a fun read. Certainly, the antics of dwarves, the pretensions of paladins, and the fleeting romance between a human mage and a night elf huntress (last name: Windrunner) are all fine story elements.
But the world of the dragons shines above all these as Knaak elevates dragons from their typical fantasy typecasting as villainous gold-hoarders and testy princess-mongers to an advanced race of sentient beings with their own complex internal politics and personal motivations. This is what makes the World of Warcraft such a compelling fantasy universe. Because it comes from games where the imperative on the creator is to make a compelling experience for the player, the transition into the written word makes for realms of possibilities for the authors. Unbound to more limited notions of what dragons can be in a fantasy piece (i.e., Smaugish obstacles or Targaryen plot points), Knaak is able to craft a space for the dragons to play out their own desires for vengeance, their own quests for true love, and their own ancient conflicts between opposing forces. It makes for a powerful story with a big payoff.
2. LORD OF THE CLANS by Christie Golden // 4 stars
This is the story of the orc known as Thrall. Personally, I'd never played in-depth as a Horde character and my limited memories of the original RTS games depicts the orcs, in my mind, as cookie-cutter bad guys in line with the Tolkien portrayals in the Ring series. Enter Christie Golden with the story of an orc ripped from the dying arms of his parents--orcs dedicated to resisting the demonic influences that would bring their people nearly to ruin. That child would go on to become something no other orc could imagine, would be hailed as a savior by his people. But before Thrall could become a hero, he must, of course, undergo a katabasis.
And so from the camp where his mother and father--orcs connected still to the old, shamanistic ways of their people--are assassinated by agents of the demonically influenced orcs they're attempting to resist, Thrall finds his way into the care of a sadistic son of a bitch by the name of Aedelas Blackmoore, who goes out of his way on a daily basis to demean Thrall. Blackmoore ensures Thrall never sees any of his own kinds, trains him for gladiatorial combat, and names him with a word for slave in an attempt to put the barbarian in his proper place. For years, Thrall grows amongst the humans, only ever leaving his tiny, dim cell to train with their warriors. He does receive an education in battle strategy from a scholar at the keep where he's held captive and he earns a level of mutual respect from the military officer training him in combat. He even conducts an elaborately hidden written correspondence with Taretha a.k.a. Tari, a young lady who was born to a servant Blackmoore's. Tari, it's revealed, was old enough to remember the day Thrall was brought to the keep. She projects on to Thrall the desire for a younger brother she feels after her own human brother is taken by disease as an infant. Her fascination and friendship with the orc put her, obviously, in great danger, especially as she comes of age and turns into a beautiful young woman who, to put it mildly, earns the...attention of Blackmoore himself.
All of this is to say that the crux of this entire novel--and what makes it such a great read for those of us who like this sort of inversion--is that here we have the hero of a fantasy epic cast as an orc. An orc! An orcish POW who grows up in slavery after the end of a war between his people and the people of his master. As it develops, this simple twist on the fantasy paradigm generates a Shrek-like freshness that enlivens the story not with a cartoonish sense of humor a la Mike Myer's ogre, but with the serious hopes, desires, and failings of the main character that the reader is asked to invest his/her compassion, empathy, and understanding into.
There is some great combat narrative from Thrall's experiences in the arenas, where the orc becomes a seasoned warrior. All the while, he is reading books he is not supposed to (what a rebel!), exploring his sensitive side in letters to Tari. Eventually, the inevitable happens and Thrall finally sees another orc for the first time. It shocks him as he's never even been allowed to see his own reflection. It serves to provoke curiosity about himself and his origins, leading him to pursue an escape.
Once free of the Blackmoore estate, Thrall seeks out other orcs, suffers through internment in a concentration camp, and eventually uses a scrap of baby blanket to find his clan amongst the orcs who remain free. From the old shaman who has taken the chieftain's role since his father's death, Thrall learn the ways of his people and begins his on-going studies in shamanism. Eventually, Thrall starts hanging out with Orgrim Doomhammer and Grommash Hellscream, two legendary orc bad-asses livings off the post-war lands outside of human control. With their support, Thrall begins a Tecumseh-like campaign of unification among the clans. The hero's journey progresses as Thrall ascends to power, all leading up to a climactic moment when the new orcish horde, Thrall's Horde, is fully realized.
3. THE LAST GUARDIAN by Jeff Grubb // 4 stars
Personal disclosure: My main toon in WoW is a mage. My main in Skyrim was a mage. My main in Oblivion was a mage. I basically always play a wizard if I can. That being the case, the story of Khadgar and Medivh has special resonance with me. I love digging into the lore of any fantasy world's magic, whether it's Gandalf's color or whatever the hell is going on in Game of Thrones.
The Last Guardian is a spellbinding (see what I did there?) exploration of Medivh, one of the most powerful wizards in the history of the Warcraft universe. Medivh is the titular character; he is the last Guardian of Tirisfal, making him the final entry in a line of wizards who is charged with protecting Azeroth from advances by the demonic Burning Legion. His mother is Aegwynn, the Guardian before him, and his father, biologically, is another powerful mage who Aegwynn seduced in order to produce an heir that would be as powerful as her and upon whom she would be able to exert a certain amount of influence. All of this--her seduction, her procreation, and her parenthood--is intended basically as a "Fuck You" to the Council of Tirisfal who choose her as Guardian but were total dicks about the fact that she's a woman.
She births Medivh, and he grows up amongst the company of future kings and champions. He's in a coma for a long time and eventually steps into his role as Guardian, exhibiting a fair amount of the strongheadedness his mother displayed during her tenure. He eventually takes up residence in the tower of Karazhan, where the only other residents are a cook and a steward.
Enter Khadgar. A bright young student in Dalaran, Khadgar is sent by the Kirin Tor (elite mage's council) to study with and spy on Medivh. An anxious but quick-witted youth, Khadgar struggles at first to understand his teacher and at the same time satisfy the demands of those back in Dalaran. Eventually, he finds himself in Medivh's library, organizing and learning valuable information from texts not present anywhere else in the world. This is a fascinating look at lore within the lore. Like much good fantasy, the stories that are told within the stories have great meaning and impact on the world as it exists in whatever narrative is contemporary. I found it well done and exciting to explore alongside Khadgar.
From there, things escalate. Demons are afoot in Stormwind, the human capital, and Medivh & Khadgar are on the case like a wizardly Batman & Robin. As the action advances, there is rascinating depth on the mechanics of spellcasting in Azeroth as we see inside the powers of two of its most legendary magi. We meet Garona, an orc/human hybrid, who comes to Karazhan because she has a special ability to be accepted by neither side of the conflict and therefore is an agent of her own design. Khadgar and Garona discover the truth of Medivh's fathering and the essence of his being, which turns out to be very bad news for all involved. The final showdown is quite epic.
This book stands out in part because the ultimate villain is the Big Baddie from the game series. Sargeras, the demon in charge of the Burning Legion, which is currently hung up on Azeroth in its ongoing annihiliation of life in this universe, is confronted and the story becomes one of sacrifice for a greater good. In this way, it weighs heavily upon the world in a way that smaller stories cannot.
The best part of the read itself is the magic reality in which it all takes place and Grubb's ability to bring that world to the page. Think of Daenerys in the warlock's illusion for a frame of reference. Amidst this magical epic, there is a fair amount of surreal language that captures the magic of the world.
4. OF BLOOD AND HONOR by Chris Metzen // 3 stars
Fans of the canon might be well aware of Metzen--the closest thing Warcraft has to a true creator--and his infatuation with humanizing (so to speak) the orcish characters in his worlds. His dedication to making the orcs more complex than simple villains is what gives the lore of Warcraft an edge over other fantasy worlds. Of Blood and Honor is an exploration of this blurring of sides from a less significant but uniquely human perspective. Unlike Lords of the Clans, which follows Thrall's journey from infant to warchief, Of Blood and Honor is the story of Tirion Fordring, a human paladin, war hero, and the master of a keep in Hearthglen near the Alterac Mountains. Fordring is a classically cast paladin, dedicated to his holy duties, and--most importantly--a man of severe devotion to his own honor.
This devotion is what gets him in trouble. On an otherwise routine ride through his holdings, he comes across a ruined guard tower where, while remembering the horrors of war against the orcs, he finds--what else--an orc. They do battle, wounding each other and each noting the other's honorable combat tactics. Salutes are exchanged in the heat of battle and eventually Tirion finds himself compromised by the ruined tower as it falls. He awakes back home, confused as to what has happened to him. Eventually, he surmises that the orc must've saved him from the falling tower and returned him to his keep. He seeks the orc out once again at the tower. He finds him there, and the orc reveals himself as Eitrigg.
Tirion promisses Eitrigg that he will not reveal his existence to the other humans, as Eitrigg asks him this. Tirion makes this promise because he feels he owes a life-debt to this orc for saving him and because he knows that knowledge of the orc would send humans here with one express purpose--namely, to kill the orc. This context, in which the wars have ended but still there are those on both sides, young and old, who thirst for blood, is developed quite well, mainly through the character Barthilas, a young paladin too eager to prove himself.
Things don't go as planned and Tirion is eventually arrested and put on trial for keeping the orc a secret. (On a side note, never thought I'd see another Tirion trial I cared about.) He maintains his honor, never acquiesces to easy-outs that would end only in Eitrigg's death and his own survival. He is punished in accordance with the law. This is one of the best scenes in the book. I've never been big on paladin lore, but the magical aspects of Tirion's punishments are a good read. Branded a traitor, he is exiled. Like the true heroic fool, however, he returns to Stratholme, the site of his trial, to risk it all the save the orc who rescued him. It initially appears a feeble attempt, but the timely arrival of a certain Warchief changes the course of the events.
Metzen is not a gifted literary talent. He has made a career out of bringing stories to life through interactive media, and even then, his focus must include aspects of gameplay that no author considers. Sometimes, the writing leaves something to be desired. But at the bottom of all that is still another fascinating exploration of the complex relationships between the various players in Azeroth. In a world this size, it's easy to expect all manner of huge epics stories. Here we have a smaller tale with no less merit.
1. DAY OF THE DRAGON by Richard A. Knaak // 4 stars
This is apparently the first novel set in the Warcraft universe. What's fascinating about this work is that it already establishes the wide range of fantasy tropes the novels set in this canon will use to tell interesting stories. Azeroth is in many ways a post-Frodo Middle Earth. That is to say, imagine a Middle Earth after the destruction of the Ring, where the orcs are free from demonic corruption and must now find a way to co-exist alongside humans, elves, dwarves, etc. Obviously, the world of Azeroth is more complex than this simplification, but for introductory purposes, this is a viable analogue.
What we find, then, in Day of the Dragon, is the tale of a powerful wizard on a quest into a mountain under orcish control. Rhonin, the mage in question, enlists the help of a night elf huntress, a gang of dwarven gryphon pilots, and a particularly pompous human paladin in order to carry out the bidding of a higher-up mage within the Kirin Tor--the secret council of wizards that uses Dalaran as its base of operations. The inner workings of this secret mage's council are some of the best moments in this book, as they illuminate the powers and limitations of magic in this universe in a way that does not come across in the games.
What's great about Day of the Dragon is the solid writing, the gripping action, and the exploration of the dragons themselves. As a player, I hadn't had much interaction with the dragons other than killing them or mounting them for flight. To see inside their world, to understand their life on Azeroth from their own context--that's what makes this book a fun read. Certainly, the antics of dwarves, the pretensions of paladins, and the fleeting romance between a human mage and a night elf huntress (last name: Windrunner) are all fine story elements.
But the world of the dragons shines above all these as Knaak elevates dragons from their typical fantasy typecasting as villainous gold-hoarders and testy princess-mongers to an advanced race of sentient beings with their own complex internal politics and personal motivations. This is what makes the World of Warcraft such a compelling fantasy universe. Because it comes from games where the imperative on the creator is to make a compelling experience for the player, the transition into the written word makes for realms of possibilities for the authors. Unbound to more limited notions of what dragons can be in a fantasy piece (i.e., Smaugish obstacles or Targaryen plot points), Knaak is able to craft a space for the dragons to play out their own desires for vengeance, their own quests for true love, and their own ancient conflicts between opposing forces. It makes for a powerful story with a big payoff.
2. LORD OF THE CLANS by Christie Golden // 4 stars
This is the story of the orc known as Thrall. Personally, I'd never played in-depth as a Horde character and my limited memories of the original RTS games depicts the orcs, in my mind, as cookie-cutter bad guys in line with the Tolkien portrayals in the Ring series. Enter Christie Golden with the story of an orc ripped from the dying arms of his parents--orcs dedicated to resisting the demonic influences that would bring their people nearly to ruin. That child would go on to become something no other orc could imagine, would be hailed as a savior by his people. But before Thrall could become a hero, he must, of course, undergo a katabasis.
And so from the camp where his mother and father--orcs connected still to the old, shamanistic ways of their people--are assassinated by agents of the demonically influenced orcs they're attempting to resist, Thrall finds his way into the care of a sadistic son of a bitch by the name of Aedelas Blackmoore, who goes out of his way on a daily basis to demean Thrall. Blackmoore ensures Thrall never sees any of his own kinds, trains him for gladiatorial combat, and names him with a word for slave in an attempt to put the barbarian in his proper place. For years, Thrall grows amongst the humans, only ever leaving his tiny, dim cell to train with their warriors. He does receive an education in battle strategy from a scholar at the keep where he's held captive and he earns a level of mutual respect from the military officer training him in combat. He even conducts an elaborately hidden written correspondence with Taretha a.k.a. Tari, a young lady who was born to a servant Blackmoore's. Tari, it's revealed, was old enough to remember the day Thrall was brought to the keep. She projects on to Thrall the desire for a younger brother she feels after her own human brother is taken by disease as an infant. Her fascination and friendship with the orc put her, obviously, in great danger, especially as she comes of age and turns into a beautiful young woman who, to put it mildly, earns the...attention of Blackmoore himself.
All of this is to say that the crux of this entire novel--and what makes it such a great read for those of us who like this sort of inversion--is that here we have the hero of a fantasy epic cast as an orc. An orc! An orcish POW who grows up in slavery after the end of a war between his people and the people of his master. As it develops, this simple twist on the fantasy paradigm generates a Shrek-like freshness that enlivens the story not with a cartoonish sense of humor a la Mike Myer's ogre, but with the serious hopes, desires, and failings of the main character that the reader is asked to invest his/her compassion, empathy, and understanding into.
There is some great combat narrative from Thrall's experiences in the arenas, where the orc becomes a seasoned warrior. All the while, he is reading books he is not supposed to (what a rebel!), exploring his sensitive side in letters to Tari. Eventually, the inevitable happens and Thrall finally sees another orc for the first time. It shocks him as he's never even been allowed to see his own reflection. It serves to provoke curiosity about himself and his origins, leading him to pursue an escape.
Once free of the Blackmoore estate, Thrall seeks out other orcs, suffers through internment in a concentration camp, and eventually uses a scrap of baby blanket to find his clan amongst the orcs who remain free. From the old shaman who has taken the chieftain's role since his father's death, Thrall learn the ways of his people and begins his on-going studies in shamanism. Eventually, Thrall starts hanging out with Orgrim Doomhammer and Grommash Hellscream, two legendary orc bad-asses livings off the post-war lands outside of human control. With their support, Thrall begins a Tecumseh-like campaign of unification among the clans. The hero's journey progresses as Thrall ascends to power, all leading up to a climactic moment when the new orcish horde, Thrall's Horde, is fully realized.
3. THE LAST GUARDIAN by Jeff Grubb // 4 stars
Personal disclosure: My main toon in WoW is a mage. My main in Skyrim was a mage. My main in Oblivion was a mage. I basically always play a wizard if I can. That being the case, the story of Khadgar and Medivh has special resonance with me. I love digging into the lore of any fantasy world's magic, whether it's Gandalf's color or whatever the hell is going on in Game of Thrones.
The Last Guardian is a spellbinding (see what I did there?) exploration of Medivh, one of the most powerful wizards in the history of the Warcraft universe. Medivh is the titular character; he is the last Guardian of Tirisfal, making him the final entry in a line of wizards who is charged with protecting Azeroth from advances by the demonic Burning Legion. His mother is Aegwynn, the Guardian before him, and his father, biologically, is another powerful mage who Aegwynn seduced in order to produce an heir that would be as powerful as her and upon whom she would be able to exert a certain amount of influence. All of this--her seduction, her procreation, and her parenthood--is intended basically as a "Fuck You" to the Council of Tirisfal who choose her as Guardian but were total dicks about the fact that she's a woman.
She births Medivh, and he grows up amongst the company of future kings and champions. He's in a coma for a long time and eventually steps into his role as Guardian, exhibiting a fair amount of the strongheadedness his mother displayed during her tenure. He eventually takes up residence in the tower of Karazhan, where the only other residents are a cook and a steward.
Enter Khadgar. A bright young student in Dalaran, Khadgar is sent by the Kirin Tor (elite mage's council) to study with and spy on Medivh. An anxious but quick-witted youth, Khadgar struggles at first to understand his teacher and at the same time satisfy the demands of those back in Dalaran. Eventually, he finds himself in Medivh's library, organizing and learning valuable information from texts not present anywhere else in the world. This is a fascinating look at lore within the lore. Like much good fantasy, the stories that are told within the stories have great meaning and impact on the world as it exists in whatever narrative is contemporary. I found it well done and exciting to explore alongside Khadgar.
From there, things escalate. Demons are afoot in Stormwind, the human capital, and Medivh & Khadgar are on the case like a wizardly Batman & Robin. As the action advances, there is rascinating depth on the mechanics of spellcasting in Azeroth as we see inside the powers of two of its most legendary magi. We meet Garona, an orc/human hybrid, who comes to Karazhan because she has a special ability to be accepted by neither side of the conflict and therefore is an agent of her own design. Khadgar and Garona discover the truth of Medivh's fathering and the essence of his being, which turns out to be very bad news for all involved. The final showdown is quite epic.
This book stands out in part because the ultimate villain is the Big Baddie from the game series. Sargeras, the demon in charge of the Burning Legion, which is currently hung up on Azeroth in its ongoing annihiliation of life in this universe, is confronted and the story becomes one of sacrifice for a greater good. In this way, it weighs heavily upon the world in a way that smaller stories cannot.
The best part of the read itself is the magic reality in which it all takes place and Grubb's ability to bring that world to the page. Think of Daenerys in the warlock's illusion for a frame of reference. Amidst this magical epic, there is a fair amount of surreal language that captures the magic of the world.
4. OF BLOOD AND HONOR by Chris Metzen // 3 stars
Fans of the canon might be well aware of Metzen--the closest thing Warcraft has to a true creator--and his infatuation with humanizing (so to speak) the orcish characters in his worlds. His dedication to making the orcs more complex than simple villains is what gives the lore of Warcraft an edge over other fantasy worlds. Of Blood and Honor is an exploration of this blurring of sides from a less significant but uniquely human perspective. Unlike Lords of the Clans, which follows Thrall's journey from infant to warchief, Of Blood and Honor is the story of Tirion Fordring, a human paladin, war hero, and the master of a keep in Hearthglen near the Alterac Mountains. Fordring is a classically cast paladin, dedicated to his holy duties, and--most importantly--a man of severe devotion to his own honor.
This devotion is what gets him in trouble. On an otherwise routine ride through his holdings, he comes across a ruined guard tower where, while remembering the horrors of war against the orcs, he finds--what else--an orc. They do battle, wounding each other and each noting the other's honorable combat tactics. Salutes are exchanged in the heat of battle and eventually Tirion finds himself compromised by the ruined tower as it falls. He awakes back home, confused as to what has happened to him. Eventually, he surmises that the orc must've saved him from the falling tower and returned him to his keep. He seeks the orc out once again at the tower. He finds him there, and the orc reveals himself as Eitrigg.
Tirion promisses Eitrigg that he will not reveal his existence to the other humans, as Eitrigg asks him this. Tirion makes this promise because he feels he owes a life-debt to this orc for saving him and because he knows that knowledge of the orc would send humans here with one express purpose--namely, to kill the orc. This context, in which the wars have ended but still there are those on both sides, young and old, who thirst for blood, is developed quite well, mainly through the character Barthilas, a young paladin too eager to prove himself.
Things don't go as planned and Tirion is eventually arrested and put on trial for keeping the orc a secret. (On a side note, never thought I'd see another Tirion trial I cared about.) He maintains his honor, never acquiesces to easy-outs that would end only in Eitrigg's death and his own survival. He is punished in accordance with the law. This is one of the best scenes in the book. I've never been big on paladin lore, but the magical aspects of Tirion's punishments are a good read. Branded a traitor, he is exiled. Like the true heroic fool, however, he returns to Stratholme, the site of his trial, to risk it all the save the orc who rescued him. It initially appears a feeble attempt, but the timely arrival of a certain Warchief changes the course of the events.
Metzen is not a gifted literary talent. He has made a career out of bringing stories to life through interactive media, and even then, his focus must include aspects of gameplay that no author considers. Sometimes, the writing leaves something to be desired. But at the bottom of all that is still another fascinating exploration of the complex relationships between the various players in Azeroth. In a world this size, it's easy to expect all manner of huge epics stories. Here we have a smaller tale with no less merit.
April 24, 2017
The thing about rereading one of the older books, is you always find new details as you read. There's so much lore in WoW that you can barely hold it all in and rereading books often feel like you're reading it for the first time. Picked this up to review my knowledge of the 'Of Blood and Honor' book since certain events in Legion had transpired, but then I remembered Day of the Dragon was also here. Can't go wrong with a Rhonin and Korialstrasz adventure.
November 25, 2020
This is four stories written by different authors contributing to the ever-expanding lore of the Warcraft-universe. Fans of the franchise (at least the ones who read) will love the backstories behind some of these iconic characters. People who are new to the franchise might not entirely understand some of the context (such as the different races), but they will undoubtedly still find them intriguing.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews