Transcript:
Hello everyone!
Queen Azshara, Light of Lights, the moon and the stars for the many of the Night Elves way back when. She was beloved by pretty much everyone. To be Azshara meant to be worshipped, in part due to her beauty, her wits, and her way of playing the crowd, but one would be foolish to forget that Azshara was or perhaps still is, one of the most powerful spellweavers in existence. Illidan, with his magical eyes granted by Sargeras, could see how foolish he had been in assuming that Azshara would have others to do heavy lifting for her—that her claim to the throne had more to do with looks than skills. In his world view, he could see the aura radiating around her, ensorceling even the demons of the Burning Legion to serve the queen with their lives, and it took everything someone like Illidan Stormrage had to not fall for her as well.
Lady Vashj was willing to stab out eyes, cut out tongues, and murder anyone she perceived to take away the queen’s attention. That’s how devoted they all were to her, and Azshara loved every bit of adoration.
“Keepers of Eternity, will you stand for your queen?”
“I pray that the Light of a Thousand Moons will grant me this honor.”
With the world bowing down, she could be forgiven for daring to think big. Who could possibly match the beauty and might of Azshara? Only the gods themselves would do, the very creators and shapers of this world—a titan perhaps—none other than the dark lord of the Burning Legion, Sargeras. When Azshara’s followers made contact with him, she was shown what they had accomplished:
She let out a gasp, and although the counselor could not see her expression completely, he made out enough to know that Azshara now understood, and the voice he had heard before, the voice of his god, said for all to hear: “I am coming.”
From that point on, the queen longed for the day when all the imperfect would be eradicated from the world, leaving only the Night Elves—and only the best of that race—to rule the paradise that would follow. In her mind, Azshara began picturing the world that would replace what had been decimated. A more magnificent city, a true monument to her glory. Then another, more intriguing thought entered her mind. True, she was the most perfect of her race, the icon of her people, but there was one who was even more glorious, more magnificent…and soon he would come. His name was Sargeras.
“Sargeras…” she whispered. “Sargeras, the god—an almost childlike smile crossed her face—and his consort, Azshara…”
The queen had high ambitions indeed, but the plans of summoning in Sargeras during the War of the Ancients were prevented, and now she found herself in a lot of trouble.
“You betrayed us. You destroyed everything.”
“No, my people.”
“Save us, my queen.”
“This is your fault!”
“This is my fault?”
“No… No… NO! THIS IS NOT THE DEAL I MADE!”
“Hmmmmm.” Giggles. “Deal. I like deals.”
“Who are you?”
The old god N’zoth made contact with the queen and offered her a deal, but one not made under the most equal of circumstances. The cold darkness embraces them, the need for air burning in their lungs. Eternal abyss or servitude to this god…
“Serve me.”
“You? You are nothing.”
“Nothing? I am a god! Before you walked this land, I ruled.”
“Ungh… Owwww…. Magnificent.”
“Serve me, and we will rebuild my empire.”
“Azshara gazes upon the Black Empire, making up her mind…”
“No.”
“No?! YOU DARE. You will die.”
“A queen! not a slave. You’ve watched me for a thousand years, so you know what I want. Take my people. With them, I will raise an army, conquer your enemies, build an empire—as queen. Or, let me die and you will remain here—a prisoner. The god of nothing.”
“ROAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAR.”
N’zoth is not too happy, it sounds like, and Azshara is left in the water. At first she is very certain of herself, confident that the deal offered is one that the old god will accept. But time is running out, the air leaving her lungs, and her confidence changes to panic. Did she make a mistake? Did she miscalculate the situation? And then it happens: The drums of war thunder once again. The transformation is painful, the power awakening deep within. Azshara transforms into a Naga, the queen of N’zoth’s empire. The bargain is struck.
“Arise Azshara. Arise my queen.”
And so, Azshara and her followers were transformed into the Naga. Though her old empire was in ruins, she crafted a new one far from the light of the sun—Nazjatar, at the bottom of the sea. With patience and cunning, they expanded their dominion over the oceans, and for millenia we knew that the queen was out there, somewhere, in the great dark of Azeroth’s oceans, biding her time, building her units, expanding their empire. We’d see her followers show up, like the ever jealous Lady Vashj joining Lord Illidan’s side when he called for their aid, but the queen only really made an appearance with the Cataclysm, taunting Malfurion, and then in Legion, taunting Prince Farondis. Where, oh where was queen Azshara?
The Horde ship is sailing, Nathanos at the front, in his hand is the Blade of the Black Empire. Behind them is the Alliance fleet, in hot pursuit, trying to track down their prey.
Genn: “Keep on them! We cannot let them escape.”
Down into the water we go.
“My queen…they have arrived.”
“Wonderful! Set the Tidestone, won’t you?”
Behold, Queen Azshara talking with N’zoth.
“Feeling anxious, are we? How frustrating it must be for you, still locked away, so powerless for now.
“Do not worry. We’ve both waited so long, but at last… You’re about to see what I do best.”
Sets the tidestone that they just grabbed from the Tomb of Sargeras. No joke, they explained this by saying we just didn’t put any guards in place. The Naga went in and yoink.
“She’s not responding!”
“Set the sails. Set the sails.”
“We can’t escape.”
Down we goooooo…
The time had finally come, Battle for Azeroth, in which Azshara was ready to pay up for her pact with N’zoth, but not without means of breaking free after the fact. This is Azshara, after all. If anything, she had only become more powerful and more cunning. Believing to outsmart N’zoth, she makes deals and bargains without his knowledge, but as it turned out, he knew exactly what she was up to and was counting on it:
“Behold, my betrayal and yours…”
“We have a bargain, then. I will bring both fleets crashing to the ocean floor, and your champion will deliver the dagger to me.”
“And in turn, you will have the key required to free the Old God from his bonds—and leave him vulnerable.”
In short, Azshara was working with Warchief Sylvanas Windrunner. Sylvanas gifted the now-emptied Blade of the Black Empire by members of the Horde. This blade was traded with Azshara in exchange for wiping out Sylvanas’ enemies. The plan partially worked—the seas opened up and we were drawn to the eternal palace, where our Heart of Azeroth was used to unlock the prison of the Titans, which contained the Old God. The king of diamonds had been made a pawn, and N’zoth was released.
Now, Azshara had planned to use the blade to slay the god of old, but we packed a bit more of a punch than she anticipated. N’zoth knew what she’d been up to, and now he was free from his bonds, so the treacherous queen was forced to endure the torment of the Black Empire until we found her again.
On our mission through Ny’alotha to take care of N’zoth, we come across Dark Inquisitor Xanesh. Few can resist the whispers of the Old Gods, but those who do find themselves at the mercy of Dark Inquisitor Xanesh. A cruel and sadistic torturer, Xanesh prides herself on slowly carving the sanity away from those in her charge, until all that remains is unwavering devotion to N’zoth. He wasn’t done with Azshara, but her will proved far stronger than what even Xanesh could break. Upon release, she hands us the blade to do the mission she’d planned to do, and then…
“We fulfilled our end of the bargain, Azshara. Now honor yours.”
“Mind your tone, whelpling. A queen keeps her promises. Listen closely, as I will only say this once. For all his bluster, N’Zoth was ever the weakest of his kin. One vestige of their power yet remains that can be turned against him. I would have driven this blade into his foul heart myself, had you not disrupted my plans. No matter. Xal’atath is yours, mortals. Strike true. Should your first blow fail, you will not survive to attempt another. Now go, and do what you will. I tire of intermediaries and heralds. The true throne of power beckons, and I intend to claim it.”
We kind of just let her walk away for no apparent reason, ending the expansion with using the blade to get to N’Zoth and blowing up the Old God. The Queen is still missing after his defeat, with many of his servants of the Void still remaining. Where did Azshara go? What is she up to now? A mystery of the ages.
The “true throne of power” had us wonder back then if she was going to compete with claiming the Frozen Throne, but I guess Northrend was a bit too cold for her taste. The Siren Isle from the War Within added that, in the past, Azshara had sent her followers to the isle in search of the power contained within, and then The Forbidden Reach, a landmass connected to Dragonflight, has a chilling missive written from the deep, a song of the depths, which says:
“Rise, rise! Our Queen calls to us from beyond the Umbral Veil. She has transcended the Circle of Stars and basks in her eternal grandeur!
“The time we have long awaited is nigh.
“Even now, the Harbinger gathers the children of the first flesh to reclaim what was lost. They must remember their vows and serve those to whom they owe fealty.
“While they toil in the deep places, we will journey to the shores of dragon lands, to the blessed isle where the Worldbreaker first embraced the whispers.
“As one storm recedes, another rises. The torches have been lit. The secrets he buried will strike as a dagger into the hearts of his kin!
“The Harbinger speaks of a primal power that seeks the end of Order. Such rage can be bent to serve our ends.
“A hunger lost to the ages will be reclaimed.
“A dark heart left broken awaits the taking.
“When these things come to pass, the Harbinger will fulfill the final prophecy and complete the awakening.
“Only then shall our Queen return to reign over sea and sky and earth. We must make ready.
Rise, rise! Soon all that was hidden will be revealed.”
Azshara is a powerhouse on her own and has been drawn to greater powers in the past. When gazing upon Sargeras, she saw herself at his side, and with Nzoth, she only agreed as a queen, not a slave. Xal’atath, the Harbinger, has managed to whisper her way into plenty of allegiances. Could we see a world in which Azshara agreed to the Harbinger’s plans? If and when she returns, will we see her stand at her side?
Much of the written prophecy has already come true. The Primal Incarnates of Dragonflight sought to end order, Galakronds hunger, claimed from the past, contained in the relic called the Dark Heart. The final prophecy of awakening seems to be the bit that has not happened yet, and we do have artworks suggesting the awakening of a Titan. Is Xal’atath aiming to awaken Azeroth herself? If so, what would that mean for the world that we play on, and how would that work for Azshara’s return?
Warning! Midnight Alpha Spoilers Ahead
This brings us to a small bit of extra information given to us from the Midnight Alpha, which means spoilers ahead. If you don’t want to know what’s going down in the next expansion, then let me just say thank you very much for watching so far, and please turn off the video now…
In Midnight, there are Naga on the beach enveloped in this noir crime-investigating side questline, which is honestly a blast to play through. Lyssara Duskmourne says that the Sunwell’s radiance may shine, but its light has not purged the filth that festers within this city.
“Smugglers scuttle through the streets like vermin, preying upon the desperate and enriching the spineless. Yet, there are whispers of something fouler stil—trade in wares so vile that even the Venture Company would recoil. I require someone to spy on each shipping company and find out which cloaks a smuggling ring. Will you stand with me, or will you turn away as the rot spreads?”
Obviously, we stand with them and uncover that Daggerspine Naga are gathering power for some reason. Unstable arcana, all kinds of supplies, basically anything with a shred of power they’re hauling off with, but why? They’ve got plenty of power to strike out at the local villages, and yet all they seem to do is skim a little bit off the top and ship off the rest out to sea. To where and to whom, only time will tell. Are they gathering power for their queen? Perhaps. When striking at the head of the beast, the head of the operation called Princess Naz’jena, she says as she lets out her last breath, “Nazjak we will rise again from the depths…”
Prince Nazjak is the presumed leader of the Daggerspine Naga, but Prince Nazjak is also a rare spawn we’ve been able to kill in the Arathi Highlands. Is his offspring named after their father or did he survive the assault? Or, what’s going on here? Hard to say, but the point being, power is being gathered for some purpose. While working on this, I also remembered the side quest in Hallowfall, with the fish we set free in the waters and how they warned us about not going into the darker depths…
There are more dangers lurking beneath Azeroth’s waves, waiting to be uncovered, but for now, you’re up to speed on what happened to Queen Azshara and what her and the Nagas’ role might be going forward, so thank you very much for watching, everyone!
Say that you want to read up on all the things we talked about today, then make sure to check out the related Wowhead article in the description down below. Subscribe if you like my videos, and until next time, see ya!
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