Are trolls the greatest race of hunters?

[Grazrug]

I think this discussion about which race is the "greatest race of hunters" is doomed to fail for one reason, and one reason alone: it hasn't been defined what exactly are the qualifiers to be considered a "great hunter race":
• Does being the first race to ever hunt make the greatest race of hunters?
• Does killing beasts at a rapid pace make you the greatest race of hunters?
• Does going for the largest and most powerful beasts make you the greatest race of hunters?
• Does hunting while still keeping balance within nature the greatest race of hunters?
• Does having the most hunters per capita in your population make you the greatest race of hunters?

In other words, everyone's using their own subjective take of what makes "the greatest race of hunters".

The Thunderlords hunted giants and got all their food from game. I dare to say on Draenor they were unchallenged. In Azeroth it gets trickier because many civilized races raised to have hunter sof their own. Not counting most alliance races because they mostly are settlers and not hunters and gatherers.

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1.Taurens
2.Maruuk centaurs
3.Trolls
4.Elves

Sorry but if you don't have half of your questlines dedicated to hunting, you can't pretend to be one of the best.



Found it. It was on the quest of the old parchment you receive as a troll hunter in vanilla : https://wowpedia.fandom.com/wiki/Etched_Tablet_(quest)

"Da Horde turned to us when they be just strugglin' to survive on Azeroth, and they ask us to teach them, to show them the secrets of many tings. They were strong already: strong in shaman ways; strong in warrior ways. But the hunter path not be their path... then.

Now we teach them those things, and they teach us others. We become one race... almost. We be allies for long time now. So you remember to help them. And Jen'shan remember to help you."

The Maruuk are peaceful mostly and had been living in balance with nature similar to night elves.

[DatToffer]

The Thunderlords hunted giants and got all their food from game. I dare to say on Draenor they were unchallenged. In Azeroth it gets trickier because many civilized races raised to have hunter sof their own. Not counting most alliance races because they mostly are settlers and not hunters and gatherers.

The Maruuk are peaceful mostly and had been living in balance with nature similar to night elves.

The maruuk also have a long tradition of hunting parties in various ecosystems and against the dragon-influenced fauna of the Dragon Isles. I mean, if we assume their culture was the same 10k+ years ago, which I would be inclined to believe.

Meanwhile, the trolls and elves don't have such traditions. They hunt for practical reasons and that activity doesn't have such a prevalent place in their culture. Well at least it was not so hammered down that I would look at this race and think "Oh yeah, they are the hunter people who is known for hunting".

And you're right about the Thunderlords, I completely forgot and they are pretty badass for hunting giant. The Dragonmaw are also good for that specific big game that are the dragons. I must have overlooked them because we were talking about whole races, not specific clans, they are exceptional but can they carry the whole team who had to relearn how to hunt after their invasion of Azeroth ?

[Ielenia]

The Thunderlords hunted giants and got all their food from game. I dare to say on Draenor they were unchallenged. In Azeroth it gets trickier because many civilized races raised to have hunter sof their own. Not counting most alliance races because they mostly are settlers and not hunters and gatherers.

Okay, it doesn't really answer my question, unless you're saying that your own subjective take on what makes a race "the greatest race of hunters" is "hunts the biggest game"?

By that token, the maruuk centaur can hunt even powerful proto-dragons.

The Maruuk are peaceful mostly and had been living in balance with nature similar to night elves.

What does that has to do with anything? Are you also saying that to be "the greatest race of hunter" you also have to be a warring faction?

[Grazrug]

The maruuk also have a long tradition of hunting parties in various ecosystems and against the dragon-influenced fauna of the Dragon Isles. I mean, if we assume their culture was the same 10k+ years ago, which I would be inclined to believe.

Meanwhile, the trolls and elves don't have such traditions. They hunt for practical reasons and that activity doesn't have such a prevalent place in their culture. Well at least it was not so hammered down that I would look at this race and think "Oh yeah, they are the hunter people who is known for hunting".

And you're right about the Thunderlords, I completely forgot and they are pretty badass for hunting giant. The Dragonmaw are also good for that specific big game that are the dragons. I must have overlooked them because we were talking about whole races, not specific clans, they are exceptional but can they carry the whole team who had to relearn how to hunt after their invasion of Azeroth ?

I wonder where the name Dragonmaw comes from when dragons didn't exist on Draenor. And Thunderlords are my favorite clan together with the Shadowmoon. I hope Fenris is still alive somewhere. At least one old chieftain of the Horde might have survived.

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Okay, it doesn't really answer my question, unless you're saying that your own subjective take on what makes a race "the greatest race of hunters" is "hunts the biggest game"?

By that token, the maruuk centaur can hunt even powerful proto-dragons.


What does that has to do with anything? Are you also saying that to be "the greatest race of hunter" you also have to be a warring faction?

Of course there is no objective measurement but it is easier to get some criteria when you compare the races on their own.

[Combatbutler]

I wonder where the name Dragonmaw comes from when dragons didn't exist on Draenor.

The answer is incredibly simple, it sounded cool. You just don't have to look for deep meanings in warcraft lore, when in doubt think of the most likely way a teenager would think about these things and most of the time it is the case.

[Daedius]

Prefer orcs as Hunter.

[Maljinwo]

I wonder where the name Dragonmaw comes from when dragons didn't exist on Draenor..

You can just google this one:

They were called Nelghor-shomash, "Cry of the Beasts" in Orcish. On Draenor, the Dragonmaw dwelled in southwestern Gorgrond, near the border with Frostfire Ridge, and tamed the fierce rylaks that hunted on the outskirts of the region.

Deathwing believed that Zuluhed, chieftain of the Dragonmaw, would be the most receptive and sent him vivid dreams and visions of his clan taming and riding strange, powerful winged creatures. The thought of once again soaring in the sky was irresistible, and if properly tamed, these dragons would make excellent nelghor

They are only called Dragonmaw now because

a- It sounded cool and Blizzard hadn't come up with the whole Draenor fauna yet
b- No one is going to pronounce Nelghor-Shomash clan when the other orc clans are simple English names like Bonechewer or Blackrock

[Combatbutler]

As I said, the Australia comparison is extreme, but that's to underline the point that "island nation" doesn't mean tiny. There's an open question as to which scale is truly canon, as well - since the in-game scale is often minimized for gameplay purposes, meaning that it would be even larger than we see in-game (e.g. the depictions of the massive scope of Silvermoon City). A 2D map is not going to give anyone the full picture of true scale either way.

Kul'tiras was never represented as massive anywhere in the lore though, that's what I was getting at, people see it ingame and believe Kul'tiras is some kind of superpower, though it was one of the lesser 7 Kingdoms.

Scale in the wow universe is pretty much broken, everything is ridiculously small and worst of all hardly explored in context of the world. And some books don't help either, with their pitiful "armies" of a few hundred people

[DatToffer]

I wonder where the name Dragonmaw comes from when dragons didn't exist on Draenor. And Thunderlords are my favorite clan together with the Shadowmoon. I hope Fenris is still alive somewhere. At least one old chieftain of the Horde might have survived.

Iirc they made up something about the dragonmaw naming themselves rylaks. Then when arriving to Azeroth, they discovered dragons and so dragon became the equivalent to rylak and there name got translated in common accordingly. I think.

EDIT : Nvm Maljinwo gave the right answer.

It's the same problematic as the Blackrock coming to live in an Azeroth mountain that was also named Blackrock. Weird how things go, right.

[Aucald]

Kul'tiras was never represented as massive anywhere in the lore though, that's what I was getting at, people see it ingame and believe Kul'tiras is some kind of superpower, though it was one of the lesser 7 Kingdoms.

Scale in the wow universe is pretty much broken, everything is ridiculously small and worst of all hardly explored in context of the world. And some books don't help either, with their pitiful "armies" of a few hundred people

Kul Tiras was a complete unknown prior to BfA, it could've been a massive island nation, or it could've been minuscule. It didn't even appear on most maps, to my recollection. Kind of the Broken Isles, as well - which went from a tiny little outcropping of a sunken island chain in WC3: TFT to a continent-sized archipelago in Legion sporting four unique regions in addition to the original TFT Broken Isles map now called the Broken Shore. That's really the essential thrust of what I said previously - the scale of lands of WoW is basically in Schrödinger's state until we see it in-game, in which it could be tiny (like Tol Barad), or way larger than otherwise expected.

[Grazrug]

Kul'tiras was never represented as massive anywhere in the lore though, that's what I was getting at, people see it ingame and believe Kul'tiras is some kind of superpower, though it was one of the lesser 7 Kingdoms.

Scale in the wow universe is pretty much broken, everything is ridiculously small and worst of all hardly explored in context of the world. And some books don't help either, with their pitiful "armies" of a few hundred people

Lordaeron > Stormwind >Gilneas > Stromgarde > Kul Tiras > Alterac > Dalaran. In terms of man power and size. My suspection.

[Kyphael]

Either them or Elves. The Windrunners alone are notorious. Besides, aren't Trolls better known as Shadow Hunters? Probably splitting hairs here.

[Combatbutler]

Kul Tiras was a complete unknown prior to BfA, it could've been a massive island nation, or it could've been minuscule. It didn't even appear on most maps, to my recollection. Kind of the Broken Isles, as well - which went from a tiny little outcropping of a sunken island chain in WC3: TFT to a continent-sized archipelago in Legion sporting four unique regions in addition to the original TFT Broken Isles map now called the Broken Shore. That's really the essential thrust of what I said previously - the scale of lands of WoW is basically in Schrödinger's state until we see it in-game, in which it could be tiny (like Tol Barad), or way larger than otherwise expected.

It was displayed several times over the years, always as a relatively big Island between Gilneas and Khaz Modan, the broken Isles aren't that big either lore wise. I for one dismiss ingame scale outright as any kind of measurement for the actual scale of things.

[Grazrug]

Either them or Elves. The Windrunners alone are notorious. Besides, aren't Trolls better known as Shadow Hunters? Probably splitting hairs here.

The elves have rangers. Those aren't actually your typical hunters who befriend animals and collect trophies.

[Deneios]

Hunting is a occupation where the errors can easily cost you your life. Thus you either have to train for a long bloody time or be able to live through your mistakes.

Night elves are good hunters because they have the longest life span and can dedicate a 100 years to the craft with relative safety and precaution.

Trolls can regenerate lost limbs so mistake what would make others ex-hunters is just a lesson in carefulness. Regeneration allows for fast learning. It also helps that trolls are not picky eaters.

[Aucald]

It was displayed several times over the years, always as a relatively big Island between Gilneas and Khaz Modan, the broken Isles aren't that big either lore wise. I for one dismiss ingame scale outright as any kind of measurement for the actual scale of things.

In-game locations and regions are canon, though. You might dismiss their scale, but you can't really dismiss the existence of entirely new regions that were heretofore unknown. And they do have to take up some space in order to properly exist, as well; so you're still saddled with an unknown quantity and scale of new locations you didn't previously know. Prior to BfA we didn't even know places like Vol'dun or Stormsong Valley existed in their respective regions, with rather larger settlements and former settlements denoting quite impressive holdings. Zul'nazman, for example, is close to the size of Dazar'alor itself - nearly doubling the size of what we thought Zandalar would be, and it's not the only impressive locale or ruins seen in Zandalar (e.g. Skycallers' Spire, Atul'aman, and Naz'watha).

[Combatbutler]

In-game locations and regions are canon, though. You might dismiss their scale, but you can't really dismiss the existence of entirely new regions that were heretofore unknown.

I don't, never have, after all these places exist, but are in terms of scale much smaller compared to the main continents

[Varodoc]

Hunting is a occupation where the errors can easily cost you your life. Thus you either have to train for a long bloody time or be able to live through your mistakes.

Night elves are good hunters because they have the longest life span and can dedicate a 100 years to the craft with relative safety and precaution.

Trolls can regenerate lost limbs so mistake what would make others ex-hunters is just a lesson in carefulness. Regeneration allows for fast learning. It also helps that trolls are not picky eaters.

It's way easier to hunt if you can regenerate any limb and can afford to make dumb mistakes because you can just regenerate an arm or a leg. The regeneration capabilities make trolls worse hunters than elves, because elves can't afford to make dumb mistakes, as they can't regenerate lost limbs. Meaning that elves are obviously smarter and more cautious hunters than trolls.

[Ielenia]

Of course there is no objective measurement but it is easier to get some criteria when you compare the races on their own.

I'm not saying there's an objective criteria. I'm saying is that everyone here is basically using their own criteria, which often clashes with what other people thing. Those who think that the "greatest race of hunters" are the ones who have been doing it the longest would disagree with those who think the greatest are the ones who hunt the biggest game, for example.

There's no agreed upon set of criteria.

[Grazrug]

I'm not saying there's an objective criteria. I'm saying is that everyone here is basically using their own criteria, which often clashes with what other people thing. Those who think that the "greatest race of hunters" are the ones who have been doing it the longest would disagree with those who think the greatest are the ones who hunt the biggest game, for example.

There's no agreed upon set of criteria.

Well I think most can agree that hunters are supposed to roam for wild animals, befriend them, kill them, use their parts and have rituals to honor their work. Which is one of the reasons I almost didn't count the elves because they stopped being hunters and turned them into a military force like the Farstriders and Sentinels. Going traditionalist would leave the Orcs, Tauren and Trolls, going by playable races.