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SiteLoremonger: The Troll Wars
The Troll Wars were a series of conflicts between the quel’dorei1 found in the forest regions north of Lordaeron and the indigenous forest trolls who were affronted by their efforts to build a new home following the War of the Ancients and the sundering of the world. The wars spanned millennia and culminated in a final battle almost three thousand years before the First War.
The quel’dorei were unaware at the time that their new home had been built on top of land known to be sacred to the forest trolls of the region. As the centuries passed following the high elves’ arrival to the area now known as Quel’Thalas, the conflicts between them and their neighbors escalated, eventually requiring use of the same magic that had resulted in their exile from kal’dorei society. The superstitious trolls fled in fear and the new kingdom of Quel’Thalas was left in relative peace other than the occasional skirmish with its more primitive neighbors.
Four thousand years later confrontations against the indigenous Amani trolls had escalated; united by their mutual dislike of the quel’dorei, the once bickering tribes descended on the Thalassian kingdom, beginning what was later known as The Troll Wars. Desperate to save their race, the high elves turned to the humans of the nearby land of Arathor for assistance. The two nations formed an alliance after a bargain was struck: in exchange for their aid, the quel’dorei would begin instruction in the arcane arts for one hundred humans.
When the time was deemed right, the quel’dorei instructors and their charges left the Arathi capital of Strom and traveled north alongside the armies of Arathor. There they met up with a contingent of quel’dorei magi who would be fighting alongside them in the upcoming battle at the foot of the Alterac Mountains. Though the fight waged for many days, the high elven lords held the full extent of their magical might from the forest trolls until a time that they deemed it necessary; when they did unleash the full fury of the heavens, the troll armies were set ablaze and together the allies crushed the Amani empire.
Following the conclusion of The Trolls Wars, the quel’dorei kept in contact with the people of Arathor and what had originally been a military alliance evolved into something more. Furthermore, the kingdom of Quel’Thalas possessed a debt that was later repaid during the Second War, when the quel’dorei joined the Alliance under Anduin Lothar, the last descendant of the Arathi bloodline. The quel’dorei sent a small contingent to aid the alliance in its fight against the orcs.
The introduction of magic to the humans changed the course of history. Hedged in by the desire to limit the use of magic by Thoradin, leader of the Arathi tribe of people, the fledgling wizards eventually decided to leave Strom and establish their own kingdom, one dedicated to the study and use of magic. Known as the Magical Nation of Dalaran, the magocratic city-state became a focal point for magi and the study of the arcane. This defection paved the way for other groups to do the same, such as those that did following Thoradin’s death, effectively splintering the human empire.
The Troll Wars in Roleplaying
Incorporating an event that occurred thousands of years in the past can be difficult for roleplayers, but the impact of The Troll Wars can be still felt by the descendants of that conflict. Many of the participants — whether they were quel’dorei, human, or even trolls — would have maintained records of the conflict. In particular, the people of Dalaran would have a strong memory of these events since it put into motion the events that eventually resulted in the city-state’s creation. Furthermore, the quel’dorei — and by extension, the sin’dorei — most likely maintain a strong hatred for the trolls in the surrounding area, which may easily transfer over to all trolls, even the jungle trolls of the Darkspear Tribe who are currently members of the Horde as well.
However, it’s important to remember that these events occurred thousands of years in the past and records may be incomplete or even entirely wrong. For example, one of my characters is the spirit woman of a small tribe of forest trolls. They have no written record of the events that occurred during The Trolls Wars, though it has a large impact on their racial identity; instead, the tribe maintains the story through oral legend, which is told by members of the circle of elders and is brought to life by the arts of the spirit woman. These stories are understandably one-sided, in that they extol the strengths and courage of the Amani Empire in the face of the demonic pointy-earred bastards who used their foul magic against them. From the perspective of the humans or quel’dorei, the story would be skewed more into their favor.
A common misconception of the quel’dorei and sin’dorei is that they are as long-lived as their progenitors, the kal’dorei or night elves. However, this is not true. Following the exile of the Highborne from kal’dorei society, the quel’dorei somehow lost all connection with the both the Well of Eternity and the World Tree, thereby losing the immortality that the race had originally possessed. This occurred during the period in which the high elves were seeking a new home on the continent of Lordaeron, centuries before the initial series of confrontations with the forest trolls of the region that would be known as Quel’Thalas. Therefore, it would be almost impossible for a representative of any race — even the longer lived quel’dorei — to have first-hand accounts of The Trolls Wars without having found some other means of sustaining his or her life.
Who loves lore? Cynra loves lore! Loremonger helps World of Warcraft players learn their lore and then apply that knowledge to roleplaying within the game. Articles in this series may be found in the Lore category.
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- A term referring to the high elves, but specifically meaning “Children of High Birth.” ↩
