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Rise of the Horde
The Orcs became increasingly aggressive under the
secret control of Gul'dan and his Shadow Council.
They constructed massive arenas where the Orcs honed
their warrior skills in trials of combat and death.
During this period, a few clan chieftains spoke out
against the growing depravity in their race. One
such chieftain, Durotan of the Frostwolf clan,
warned against the Orcs' losing themselves to hate
and fury. His words fell on deaf ears, however, as
stronger chieftains such as Grom Hellscream of the
Warsong clan stepped forward to champion the new age
of warfare and dominance.
Kil'jaeden knew that the Orc clans were almost
ready, but he needed to be certain of their ultimate
loyalty. In secret, he had the Shadow Council summon
Mannoroth the Destructor, the living vessel of
destruction and rage. Gul'dan called the clan
chieftains together and convinced them that drinking
Mannoroth's raging blood would make them utterly
invincible. Led by Grom Hellscream, all the clan
chiefs except Durotan drank and thereby sealed their
fates as slaves to the Burning Legion. Empowered by
Mannoroth's rage, the chieftains extended this
subjugation to their unsuspecting brethren.
Consumed with the curse of this new bloodlust, the
Orcs sought to unleash their fury on any who stood
before them. Sensing that the time had come, Gul'dan
united the warring clans into a single unstoppable
Horde. Knowing that the various chieftains like
Hellscream and Orgrim Doomhammer would vie for
overall supremacy, Gul'dan set up a puppet warchief
to rule over this new Horde. Blackhand the
Destroyer, a particularly depraved and vicious Orc
warlord, was chosen to be Gul'dan's puppet. Under
Blackhand's command, the Horde set out to test
itself against the simple draenei.
Over the course of a few months, the Horde
eradicated nearly every draenei living on Draenor.
Only a scattered handful of survivors managed to
evade the Orcs' awesome wrath. Flushed with victory,
Gul'dan reveled in the Horde's power and might.
Still, he knew that without any enemies to fight,
the Horde would consume itself with endless
infighting in its unstoppable appetite for glorious
slaughter. Fortunately, Kil'jaeden had just such an
enemy available. The Orcs had become the Burning
Legion's greatest weapon. The cunning demon shared
his knowledge with his waiting master, and Sargeras
agreed that the time of his revenge had finally
come.
The Dark Portal and the Fall of Azeroth (Warcraft:
Orcs and Humans)
As Kil'jaeden prepared the Horde for its invasion of
Azeroth, the human lord Medivh was fighting for his
soul against the temptations of Sargeras. King
Llane, the noble monarch of Stormwind, grew wary of
the darkness which seemed to taint the spirit of his
former friend. King Llane shared his concerns with
Anduin Lothar, his lieutenant-at-arms. Even so,
neither man could have imagined that Medivh's slow
descent into madness would bring about the horrors
that were to come. .
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