Draenei

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Draenei as seen in World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade. Their "Dimensional Ship" is in the background, still smoking from the recent crash landing.

The Draenei (IPA: dɹɛˈnaɪ) are a fictional race in Blizzard Entertainment's Warcraft series of computer games and novels.

General Information

The playable race is significantly different from the Draenei already shown in World of Warcraft and Warcraft III. These "new" Draenei are non-mutated forms of the ones currently in the game (see below).

Background

Unfortunately the Eredar's accomplishments caught the attention of Sargeras, the Destroyer of Worlds. He had already begun his Burning Legion to eradicate all life from the cosmos, and he believed that the brilliant Eredar would be pivotal in leading the vast demonic army he was gathering. Thus, he contacted the Eredar's three most prominent leaders: Kil'jaeden, Archimonde, and Velen. In exchange for the loyalty of the Eredar race, Sargeras offered untold power and knowledge.

Denizen of Outland

Although the offer sounded very tempting, Velen had a vision of the future that filled him with sick dread. Sargeras had spoken the truth: the Eredar who joined the Dark Titan would indeed gain enormous power and knowledge. However, the Eredar would themselves be transformed into demons.

Velen saw the Legion in all its terrible might and witnessed the destruction it would wreak upon all of creation. He hastened to warn Kil'jaeden and Archimonde, but they dismissed his concerns, for they had been enticed by Sargeras' promises. They gave Sargeras their allegiance and were transformed into colossal beings of depthless evil.

The sheer power that Sargeras commanded made direct opposition unthinkable. Velen nearly despaired, but his prayer for help was overheard. A being came to Velen and explained that it was one of the Naaru, a race of sentient energy beings bent on stopping the Burning Crusade. The Naaru offered to take Velen and any other like-minded eredar to safety.

Deeply relieved, Velen gathered the other eredar who had thus far refused to join Sargeras. Naming themselves the Draenei, or "exiled ones" in the Eredun language, the renegades barely escaped from Argus, with the Burning Legion only moments behind. Kil'jaeden was furious with what he felt was Velen's betrayal, and the demon vowed to hunt Velen and the rest of the draenei to the ends of the cosmos if need be.

The Legion chased the Draenei for many thousands of years. The Draenei visited many worlds and explored much of the known cosmos in their quest to find safe harbor. Still the Legion would not give up its pursuit. Meanwhile, the enigmatic Naaru race blessed the Draenei with Light-given knowledge and power.

At last Velen and his Draenei settled upon a remote and peaceful world that seemed an ideal refuge. They named it Draenor (meaning "Exiles' Refuge"), and there they quietly cultivated their society once again. Ever wary of being discovered again by Kil'jaeden's forces, Velen and his mystics kept their magics hidden for generations.

Draenei Artwork

In time the Draenei met and befriended the shamanistic Orc clans that already lived in the tranquil southern grasslands of Nagrand. Aside from engaging in some limited trade, the Draenei and Orcs regarded one another with respect but kept mostly to themselves.

In spite of the Draenei's caution, Kil'jaeden discovered their secret refuge on Draenor. He learned more of the world and its inhabitants, and he grew intrigued by the mighty Orc race. A plan unfolded in his mind, and the demon lord began to laugh. He could see precisely how to mold the orcs into the instrument of his wrath. It was merely a matter of time and pressure.

And so Kil'jaeden began to corrupt the orcs, first through the elderly shaman Ner'zhul, and then through his apprentice, Gul'dan. The orc clans dedicated themselves to the art of war and joined to form a single, murderous Horde. Even the wisest shaman learned warlock magics and abandoned the teachings they had once revered.

Smoothly manipulated from a state of wary acceptance into blind rage and bloodlust, the Orcs attacked the Draenei. This bloody conflict lasted nearly eight years, but the orcs' triumph was inevitable. The Draenei were mighty due to their Light-given powers, but the demon-maddened Horde still proved that the light was no match for the demonic force. The orcs killed over eighty percent of the Draenei race and sent the rest fleeing for safety to the remote corners of the world.

Afterwards, Draenei who had fought the Horde and survived found that they had been affected by the fel energies wielded so freely by the orc warlocks. These Draenei have since mutated into lesser forms, resulting in a series of subspecies. The Broken and the Lost Ones (as seen below) are two such genetic offshoots. Their warped bodies bear only a rough resemblance to the proud Draenei they once were, and quite a few have lost their grip on sanity.From the [Official World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade website].

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Relation to the Alliance

In addition, the Draenei hold no love for certain Horde races. They loathe the Orcs, who nearly drove the Draenei to extinction in Outland. And more recently, the Blood Elves stole technology from the Draenei and also sabotaged their dimensional ship, which crash landed on Azeroth.

Jeff Kaplan, one of the designers of World of Warcraft, explained the inclusion of the Dreaeni in an interview: "Lots of players have wanted to play demons, and Draenei are the closest you can get to looking like an Eredar... They have these cool forehead features, and one of the customization features is switching around these facial features and the tendrils hanging beneath the chin..." Jeff Kaplan, a Blizzard designer, as quoted in the New York Times, May 11, 2006).

Inconsistencies in Warcraft lore: Sargeras and the Eredar

In contrast, the backstory for the player-character Draenei in the World of Warcraft expansion, the Eredar were the first noble race that was later corrupted by Sargeras' evil and the Burning Legion. (See Inconsistencies in Warcraft lore.)

Chris Metzen, the creator of the Warcraft lore, stated while writing the Draenei backstory he simply forgot about his previous writings. While apologetic about the confusion, he stated the old lore has be replaced with the new one because he thinks it’s “far stronger than what I crafted back in the day.” [Metzen on Lore]

In addition, previous description in WarCraft suggested that the Draenei were more human like, and from other descriptions in lore, the Draenei had no relation to any other races. Also, the Draenei, in their original descriptions, were described as inquisitive, but limited to "crude cities". One notable example is artwork portraying Garona Halforcen, who looks very human with the exception of her Orcish/Draenei ears. Garona was retconned from a half Orc, half Human to half Orc, half Draenei according to a post by Caydiem in the WoW General forums. See [link]

Subspecies

Draenei and subspecies. From left to right: playable race Draenei, The Broken Ones Draenei and The Lost Ones Draenei.

The Lost Ones

The Broken

In World of Warcraft

Starting Location

Capital

Classes

• Warrior
• Paladin
• Mage
• Priest
• Hunter

Racial abilities

• Blessing of the Naaru - Heals the target of 50 damage over 15 sec (scales with level).
• Gemcutting - Jewelcrafting skill increased by 15.
• Inspiring Presence - Increases chance to hit by 1% for all party members within 30 yards.
• Shadow Resistance - Shadow Resistance increased by 10.

Draenei Dance

The female's dance is as yet unannounced.

Draenei Mount

Classes

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References

External links

• [Official Draenei page on the Burning Crusade website]
• at WoWWiki, a World of Warcraft wiki

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