Greatest magical group in Azeroth

[Beloren]

Amongst the mortals ofc. I'm trying to figure out which one is the best, and I'm hoping that people an pitch in with their thoughts, overall I have highlighted 3 main groups that play a role.

1. Dalaran Mages
2. Silvermoon Magi of Blood elves
3. Highborne Shendre'lar

There are many other groups tho, some major like the Blue Dragonflight - but they're immortals and not playable, and some really small like the Stormwind Magisters, The Forsaken Magi - other races like orcs, draenei, trolls, dwarves gnomes, goblins don't have independent magister group organisations, they seem more a bunch of loose magi that are either independent or a member of one of the bigger groups. Finally, the Council of Tirisfal which no longer exists as an exclusive mage group, so it is excluded. If I've missed any out please let me know.

I have read The Last Guardian, The War of the Ancients, The Sunwell Trilogy, WC1-3 & TFT, Warcraft RPG books, Classic quests, Cataclysm quests, Rise of the Horde, all the short stories, Night of the Dragon, Cycle of Hatred, The Shattering, Warcraft the comic.


Dalaran Mages - Dubbed the best in Azeroth, combination of Human and High elf mages, did some amazing things, held Azeroth and the squabbling human alliance nations together in the 1st war up until it's destruction during the events of the 3rd war, recently kicked back into action. This guys have been studying magic for something like 400 years plus, but I suspect they've been going for just over a millennium or possibly 2. Humans are the most talented race at magic the elves have encountered outside themselves - which is surprising given the Gnome's intellect, but I guess the Gnomes while really good at magic, have an organisation of mind more conducive to technology rather than magic. Humans have a natural talent.

Silvermoon's Reliquary - the Blood elves (formerly known as High Elves) have had a kingdom for nearly 7,000 years, they are highborne who were exiled and formed a kingdom to practice their magic. They lost a lot of knowledge and know how after the destruction of the Elven Empire, but quickly regrouped and continued studying magic intensely, creating a magic source out of a vial of the well of eternity, and building a very magical kingdom. However until a few years ago, their magic was highly restrictive, focusing on subtlety, masking magical use, and a thorough exposition on every magical technique namely to avoid the trap that the Ancients fell into of intense addiction and recklessness that led to the burning legion. They taught humans magic

Highborne - the ancients themselves, thought long lost to time, dead and buried, have actually survived, in a city university, that with stood the 250 year long invasion of the Burning Legion and survived the Sundering. By not joining the surviving night elves, and staying in their city, this highbourne group on losing access to the well of eternity, found another source in trapping a demon, they fed on for millennia, over the thousands of years it slowly corrupted many of them, until they flung their doors open calling for assistance to adventurers to free them and their mad prince from its grip and clear the rest of their city out. They've been paying in long lost magical knowledge or artifacts seen nowhere else in Azeroth. It only took a few years after opening their doors to rejoin their fellow ancients, the night elves and have convinced them to re-embrace their arcane heritage to aid them in surviving and fighting the destruction of the cataclysm, the naga, and the rampaging Orcs under the leadership of Garrosh Hellscream.


So, of these groups: who's the greatest? imo.

1. Highborne - Shend'relar they are nearly all well over 10,000 years old, unlike the High elf highborne, they did not lose any knowledge, they were a university city founded by Azshara for her most cutting edge magical advancements and they rebuffed the overtures of the legion and their's is the only city of the entire night elf kingdom that survived both the demonic onslaught and the sundering. They've had 10,000 years of continuous research and indulging of their magical curiosities.
They've not had war or combat or famine and the usual setbacks and struggle for survival that would slow their progress.
This also means their magical warfare capability may not be as advanced as either of the other two magic groups which have had to fight in wars with magic for nearly 4,000 years.
They've also been scrying and spying on the world, this is how they caught wind of both Deathwings cataclysm plan and Azshara's attempt to approach them to join forces - this also likely means they've gleaned all the magical advancements from Dalaran and Silvermoon in that time.

Knoweldge, expertise of a depth and scope beyond any living mage - puts them at the top in my book.

3. As talented as the humans have been, I've always considered the high elves better at magic, Elves in warcraft are naturally attuned to magic, whether they choose not to use it like the night elves did for nearly 10,000 years until recently, or practice it with extreme caution like the high elves did, they are naturally gifted. Kael'thas' blood elves showed remarkable initiative and magical ingenuity when they threw caution tot he wind and went all out, they made massive strides in a ridiculously short time, mastering alien technology to even supplant the draenei, harvest and entire continent for more magic, but off course soon fell itno the grip of the burning legion and were ultimately destroyed for it. But it goes to show.

I rate Dalaran as third, while it is a combination of humans and high elves, and the high elves kinda bring all the knowledge of Silvermoon anyway, where they would have held back from revealing more magical knowledge and history (like the secret of the Legion) before, there is no need now after the 3rd war and also since their hated blood elf brothers now control Silvermoon, that combined with human collaboration might just give them the edge, however, it's impossible to really tell, because the talent of the elves is down to an individual thing, and as the majority of that race are blood elves, it stands to reason that more magical talent would be in the red half rather than the blue half. It would have been harder for magic users to resist the urge to use fel magic than the non-magic ones, and whiles you did have high elf mages that stood their ground firmly, I would argue that it is likely more of the races talent are with the blood elves than the high elves of Dalaran.

Still without knowing the who's who, it's impossible to tell.

2. Silvermoon has the potential to exceed dalaran atm, as Kael'thas shows blood elves driven can do pretty daring things high elves would never have done and crossed lines they wouldn't either, this means that they can supplant Dalaran, they've just set up their own counter organisation, and they're not afraid to dabble officially in fel magic which no Dalaran mage will cross. this has advantages but also disadvantages because of the nature of the beast. This just pips them ahead in my opinion.


So overall.
1. Highborne
2. Silvermoon
3. Dalaran


what do you think?

[Thirteen]

I think Silvermoon and the Kirin Tor are stronger than the Shen'drelar if only because there's more of them. The Shen'drelar are what, dozens? Yes, they're training apprentices, but it's completely different. The blood elves are probably the strongest just because magic is very much in their blood, even the ones that aren't mages, so the mages are essentially building further magical knowledge onto an already strong foundation.

[gcsmith]

I have to say the Draenai. Immortal and were the most powerful mages in the universe, which was what drew the eye of Sargearas. I think they probably kick most of Azeroths races when it comes to arcane knwoledge

[Beloren]

I have to say the Draenai. Immortal and were the most powerful mages in the universe, which was what drew the eye of Sargearas. I think they probably kick most of Azeroths races when it comes to arcane knwoledge

yeah.. the Draenei would be good, but they seem to be one off mages, and not particularly hot on the arcane either - there are no notable magi we know off and know magical organisation, furthermore, magic has not been a pillar of foundation of their society as it has been with the elves since their inception. We know that the Eredar are great spell casters, but they were eventually out matched by the Elves in the original story line when they finally met despite their much greater numbers and power and were eventually beaten over the 250 years the war of the ancients originally lasted.

The elves are magic through and through, every one of them...people I think forget the night elves only stopped praticsing arcane magic...but they then went to impossible heights with druidic magic, and are still linked to the Well of Eternity even now- I suspect, Nordrassil stops anyone else who didn't re-connect to the well on its reformation from accessing it.. which is why the Shen'drelar cant tap its power even though they are linked to it.

Only the Shen'drelar and High/Blood Elf Highborne are very adept in magic, the rest of he night elves aren't, (incl those highborne and moonguard magi who didn't depart with Darth Remar, giving up magic, they'd be well out of practis now, an have to learn a lot anew) but they will all eventually catch up with access to the highborne and Dalaran, but let us not forget they are right up their alongside the Highborne/Highelf groups in terms of ability and potential. In a mere matter of weeks, Azshara quests showed us night elf mage trainees already out in the field ... they picked it up lightning fast.

They way I view it, Magic goes to the elves, Tech to the gnomes, explosives to the goblins, divine to the draenei, dexterity to the elves again, strength to the tauren, rage to the orc, vengeance and bitterness to the forsaken.

The Draenei I feel combine magic and tehthe bet, humans are lie overall probably better than all those groups because they are a close second to the elves in magic, but also way up there in all the other departments