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Death Warmed Over: Death Knights I

Section: Death Knights | No Comments »

[Potential Spoilers - so be warned]

A hero… That’s what you once were.
You stood boldly against the shadow and purchased another dawn for the world…
…with your life.
But the evil your fought is not so easily banished…
The victory you claimed, not so easily held…
For now, the specter of death looms above the world yet again, and has found new champions to bring about it’s final reign. Knights of darkness, wielding runes of death and destruction, bound by the will of The Lich King.
This is the hour of their ascension…
This is the hour of your dark rebirth…
— game intro for Death Knights

The first step in trying to role-playing a death knight is this introduction. While you can have a different backstory or course, but the “standard” is that you fought against the Scourge (or similar) and died.

That life ended, and this one begins under “new management”.

So, you’ve probably guess this isn’t Hello Kitty Online – so let’s take a look at what happened to your character right before you pressed [Enter World] for the first time.

Death Knights are not nice people. Yeah, I know that’s a big shocker, right? (*grins*) Let’s take a look at your “humble” beginnings, as it were.

All races were gathered for service during the recent Scourge Invasion – the Scourge have a large selection of potential applicants to draw from for active duty.

It is also possible you submitted yourself the Scourge as a chance at power and/or vengeance – or driven insane by the hauntings of scourge spirits.

The roots of the Scourge are sewn in the folly of all races. Our rise to power is the product of the sins of those who mean our end. The so called ‘heroes’ of the land fall before us by resorting to a measure of our ideals to bring forth their envisioned victory.

Their victory is a vehicle to the realization that without resorting to what they define as deplorably to achieve it, we would have overcome them instead. In both outcomes, win or lose, the Scourge invariably wins. When this is recognized, submission to our will is inevitable.

The Master, our Lich King, was born under this very doctrine.

To conquer is to corrupt. To corrupt is to take what it is to be righteous and hopeful, to be living, and invert it through any means in your arsenal. The attributes of the living all have synonyms with fatal flaws that are their undoing: hope is dogma, righteousness is zealotry, living is empathy. Recognize what makes that which lives desire to live, and turn it upon itself.

Knowing the most direct path of corruption is the pinnacle of wisdom. A simple weakening of the heart, dismemberment of vital organs, or direct disease will work for most. However the conquer of most is not the decree of the Master, but the conquer of all.

It is foolish to spend excessive resources in warping the mind of a simple peasant where the common plague will suffice. But it is equally unwise to try the same plague against the seasoned and hearty. Reasoned study of any formidability will reveal useable weaknesses.
— from The Decree of the Scourge, Chapter 1, By Kel’Thuzad

Many roads lead to becoming a Death Knight, but remember this is a grim and dark path to tread.

After your death, your corpse was gathered and sent to the The Ebon Hold, otherwise known as Acherus (pronounced ACK-er-us). This floating necropolis looms over an area in the Eastern Plaguelands, near Tyr’s hand and Light’s Hope Chapel.

From there, you are reanimated and measured…

If you pass the initial “judgment” you are outfitted and begin training and begin your dark path. If not…

Let’s just say it doesn’t end well.

If you survived the culling out… you are sent to gear yourself with a Runed Soulblade and to meet the new “Boss” (The Lich King) to begin training as his “chosen”. Thus the reign of terror upon the living begins.

Behold the finest of ironies. The living ascribe unto undeath all the most sickly attributes of their own lives–hopeless servitude, savagery, stillness of the spirit. We serve! The living serve, too, though they serve kings, warlords, druids, priests, gods, men, and beasts. We serve only the mighty, unifying will of the Lich King, which compels us unto prosperity and unity!

For all the endeavours of men, there exist only endless records of tragedy, cruelty, betrayal, and selfishness. For the Scourge, there is only efficiency and totality. Serve the Lich King in life, or serve him in death. His is a way of choice whose roads lead only to fulfillment!

Cold in flesh, but warmed by unity, the mighty Scourge are one nation, one mind, one being. True cold dwells in the heartless gaze of the guards who turn away sickly refugees from their neighboring country in a time of war! Are not all men of one kind? Nay, divided in their icy hearts.

Raise high our ideals, and bring low our foes! Fold their broken into our number until all serve the Frozen Throne!
— from the book, “One Truth in Undeath”, found in Acherus

Now it gets ugly, for your will is no longer yours…

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Resources:
http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/wrath/features/story/story.xml
http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/wrath/features/deathknight/lore.xml
http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/info/story/undeadplague.html
http://www.wowinsider.com/2007/08/09/know-your-lore-death-knights/
http://www.wowwiki.com/Death_knight
http://www.wowwiki.com/Necropolis
http://www.wowwiki.com/Acherus:_The_Ebon_Hold
http://www.wowwiki.com/Lich_King
http://www.wowinsider.com/2007/02/23/know-your-lore-arthas/
http://www.wowwiki.com/Arthas_Menethil
http://www.answers.com/topic/arthas-menethil
http://www.wowwiki.com/Ner%27zhul
http://www.wowwiki.com/Scourge
http://www.answers.com/topic/the-scourge
http://www.wowwiki.com/The_Decree_of_the_Scourge
http://www.wowwiki.com/This_is_my_Runeblade…