Why did the Frostwolves return to the EK?

[Florena]

This has been something bothering me since vanilla. Why did the Frostwolf clan stay around in Alterac? Did they not have time to join with the rest of the Horde to sail west? Did they not want to leave the home they'd lived in for all of one generation? It seems odd to me that Thrall's own clan would stay behind rather than follow him to Kalimdor.

Or did they simply go back after the war? Even this kind of baffles me a little, that they would go back to the heart of enemy territory rather than stay with the rest of their people.

Are they still bitter about being exiled? Do they just love those wolves up in Alterac too much? I just don't really get it.

[Venziir]

They most likely went back, since we know that Drek'thar followed Thrall to Kalimdor. They possibly returned to help the Forsaken fortify their position in Hillsbrad or to act as ambassadors.

[Justignoreme]

Perhaps they didn't want to see the natural beauty of Alterac Valley get strip mined and destroyed by the Dwarves?

[Skytotem]

Blizz needed a reason for the orcs and dwarves to fight :\ not much really to it.

In WC3 Thrall was pretty content to leave the EK alone, it was never really explained why he wanted to Ally with the Forsaken or have the frostwolves back there.

[Deleted]

So the alliance could not reclaim the north of EK. The forsaken had fought some kind of a civil war with the undead; Arthas forces and Dreadlords. They were split up and werent a great foe to anyone becouse they werent that organize. An orcish clan would increase the horde power on the destroyed Lordearon and would give time to the forsaken to build a new nation, It will also make somehow the forsaken in debt with the orcs.

[Deleted]

The Frostwolf clan were exiled from the old Horde when Durotan didn't like the idea of drinking Mannoroth's blood and started talking a load of noise about Gul'Dan and the Shadow Council. They legged it through the dark portal, and settled in the Alterac Mountains where they lived a relatively peaceful life of traditional shamanism for the better part of 2 decades. ( or just over 2 decades even ).

By the time Thrall came rolling back to find them and reinvigorate Orcs worldwide following the Orcish Lethargy, the Frostwolves helped and were all like "yeah this is great, woo, go Orcs !", but they nevertheless opted to settle back down in the mountains rather than move to Orgrimmar following the founding of Durotar.

One can presume they liked it up in the mountains and didn't want to move to the desert plains with the other, still-a-tad-rambunctious, orcs

[DeLos]

I don't think they ever left. They settled in AV some time before the original Horde was defeated. When Thrall busted the orcs out of the internment camps and stole Alliance ships to head to Kalimdor there was never a mention of the Frostwolf going. Pretty sure they never left the Eastern Kingdoms.

[Deleted]

I don't think they ever left. They settled in AV some time before the original Horde was defeated. When Thrall busted the orcs out of the internment camps and stole Alliance ships to head to Kalimdor there was never a mention of the Frostwolf going. Pretty sure they never left the Eastern Kingdoms.

Yes they did. Drek'Thar was one of Thrall's main mentors during his tentative time as the new Warchief and both he and varied Frostwolf warriors went with the new Horde on their jolly japes around the new world. Drek was a questgiver during the special Orcish "Founding of Durotar" campaign in Warcraft 3's expansion. Drek and a bunch of the Frostwolves helped with the founding, stayed there for a while, but eventually buggered off back home to the mountains across in the Eastern Kingdoms.

The only indication of that in Warcraft 3 was simply Drek's presence in Orgrimmar, we know he was there because... well, he was there. The finer details about his role within the Horde at the time, and the time he and the Frostwolves spent living away from home was fleshed out more in the novels iinm.

[Skytotem]

So the alliance could not reclaim the north of EK. The forsaken had fought some kind of a civil war with the undead; Arthas forces and Dreadlords. They were split up and werent a great foe to anyone becouse they werent that organize. An orcish clan would increase the horde power on the destroyed Lordearon and would give time to the forsaken to build a new nation, It will also make somehow the forsaken in debt with the orcs.

Okay but that doesn't make any sense to me. Thrall wanted peace with the Alliance back in Vanilla and the Forsaken were pretty plainly evil and the Horde didn't really NEED a power in north EK or for the forsaken to be indebted to them.

It's really weird.

[Combatbutler]

I guess they wanted to return to their newfound homes, they lived there since the dark portal had been opened after all.

[Skytotem]

I guess they wanted to return to their newfound homes, they lived there since the dark portal had been opened after all.

Which, in the 'new' timeline, is all of a decade :\ I mean that's awhile but it's hardly 'ancestral land'

God I hate the fact that Blizz sucks at timelines.

[Deathgoose]

Okay but that doesn't make any sense to me. Thrall wanted peace with the Alliance back in Vanilla and the Forsaken were pretty plainly evil and the Horde didn't really NEED a power in north EK or for the forsaken to be indebted to them.

It's really weird.

You're confusing strategy and such with gameplay balance.

Lore will pretty much take second seat to gameplay balance.

[Combatbutler]

Which, in the 'new' timeline, is all of a decade :\ I mean that's awhile but it's hardly 'ancestral land'

God I hate the fact that Blizz sucks at timelines.

Well they formed a kinship with the elements there, not to mention they were used to live in the mountains by now, not the desert.

[Skytotem]

You're confusing strategy and such with gameplay balance.

Lore will pretty much take second seat to gameplay balance.

Yes but the lore explanation could've been done better, this idea that lore needs to suffer for balance is idiotic and lazy, all you have to do is be a bit smarter.

For example, the hope could've been to have Forsaken Apothecaries act as Doctors in the Horde since the Tauren and Orcs and Trolls were having a lot of disease due to being in a new land and the centaur/quillboar and such LOVING to poison the few wells they have and there's too much for their shaman to handle all on their own.

Maybe they want trees from tirisfal or silverpine or need anti-scourge specialties, any STATED reason would be better than "Oh the tauren thought they could be cured only this is never mentioned again and there's nothing really for the horde to gain by curing them and this gets them on the Alliance's badside which is something Thrall didn't want!"

---------- Post added 2013-02-15 at 01:57 PM ----------

Well they formed a kinship with the elements there, not to mention they were used to live in the mountains by now, not the desert.

So they could move to goddang winterspring :|

[Deleted]

the Horde didn't really NEED a power in north EK.

They did, they really did, it's the only reason why Thrall accepted the Forsaken. And his decision has proved a wise one, The Horde would have long lost the war against the Alliance without a powerful ally half way across the world, the Alliance would have full control of an entire continent and the Blood Elves would not have been part of the Horde.

[Deleted]

A lot of things don't make any sense whatsoever. It's more for the sake of ingame mechanics and making the whole story works. If you have to consider that being reasonable and making sense actually goes out of the window first.

[Trassk]

You're confusing strategy and such with gameplay balance.

Lore will pretty much take second seat to gameplay balance.

sadly, this will always be true. The lore in wow isn't like a deck of cards you put in order, its like raisins in a sticky bun. you can try and remove the raisins, but the bun will break apart.

[Wyrt]

Would you want to live in shitty Durotar?

[Skytotem]

They did, they really did, it's the only reason why Thrall accepted the Forsaken. And his decision has proved a wise one, The Horde would have long lost the war against the Alliance without a powerful ally half way across the world, the Alliance would have full control of an entire continent and the Blood Elves would not have been part of the Horde.

Okay but the main reason the Horde is at war with the Alliance is BECAUSE THEY'RE WITH THE FORSAKEN.

[Deleted]

sadly, this will always be true. The lore in wow isn't like a deck of cards you put in order, its like raisins in a sticky bun. you can try and remove the raisins, but the bun will break apart.

I'm all for consistent lore, but "sadly" isn't the way to put it. They shouldn't break gameplay balance for lore in any circumstance. This isn't an excuse nor is it a reason for Blizzard to butcher the lore but things like territory/population balance must always take a front seat.

---------- Post added 2013-02-15 at 08:15 PM ----------

Okay but the main reason the Horde is at war with the Alliance is BECAUSE THEY'RE WITH THE FORSAKEN.

The main reason they are at war with each other is a mutual fear of one another. It was fear of war which lead to the inclusion of the forsaken. In Vanilla the powers were in a state of cold war and territory in the EK would improve the western horde's security, ergo Thrall let them join. No one foresaw wrathgate not even Sylvanas, and Varians stupid racist impulse against the whole Horde led to Garrosh's Horde.