At first sight, you might think that starships, of all things, have little to do with Warcraft. In reality, The Great Dark Beyond is the most lore-relevant expansion we have had in Hearthstone for some time: it explores the themes of Light and Fel, the fate of the Eredar, and the Warcraft universe beyond the Human, Elf, and Dwarf homeworld of Azeroth.
The Eredar Triumvirate
The race we know as Draenei originally had a different name. They were the inhabitants of the planet Argus, and they were called the Eredar. This highly advanced race was ruled by three great and wise rulers:
A triumvirate of leaders ruled over the Eredar, not by might or fear, but by contemplating the great questions of the cosmos and sharing the answers with their people. The mighty Archimonde had a gift for finding the strengths in those around him. His bold demeanor inspired his followers, filling them with the confidence and the courage to face any challenge. Kil’jaeden, the most brilliant of the rulers, was considered a prodigy even among the gifted Eredar. Witty and cunning, he reveled in puzzling out the most confounding mysteries of the cosmos. Last there was Velen, the spiritual heart of the triumvirate. He stood as a relentless champion of peace, whose wisdom could defuse any conflict.
(World of Warcraft: Chronicle Volume 1)
Yes, those are Kil'jaeden, Velen, Leader of the Exiled and Archimonde, who are some of the main Legendary card characters in The Great Dark Beyond. In The Great Dark Beyond, Archimonde and Kil’jaeden are Demons, while Velen is a Draenei. This is because the success of the Eredar attracted unwanted attention from Sargeras, the Destroyer and his Burning Legion. Sargeras wanted brilliant commanders for his Legion and decided to corrupt the Eredar to serve as such. Sargeras appeared before the Eredar in a radiant disguise, promising them great things. Velen was suspicious about him, and had visions of the impending doom of his race should they work with Sargeras. I guess you could call them a Bad Omen.
However, Velen was unable to convince others of the threat. While he pondered how to proceed, a Naaru called K'ure, the Light Beyond approached him and offered to take him and any of his allies to safety. When Sargeras arrived at Argus, Velen and his followers fled their homeworld aboard a Naaru dimensional fortress called the Genedar. They became known as the Draenei, meaning the exiled ones. The Eredar who remained were corrupted by Sargeras’ Fel energies and turned into Demons, including Talgath, Archimonde, and Kil’jaeden. All subsequent mentions of Eredar, like Eredar Brute, typically refer to this race of demons.
What Are Starships?
The Starships we have in Hearthstone are not spacecraft in the traditional sense. They do not fly through space at all. They are dimensional ships that teleport to other locations through the Twisting Nether. Blizzard did not want Star Destroyers flying around Warcraft, but they wanted to explore other worlds, and magical vessels, alongside portals, provided the means to do so.
There are two types of dimensional ships in Warcraft. The Naaru dimensional ships and the Legion ships. The Naaru ships are powered by the Light whereas Legion ships are powered by Fel. All of our Starships are Naaru vessels except for Warlock’s The Nether's Eye and Demon Hunter’s The Legion's Bane, which are Legion ships. In addition to the Starships built from pieces, The Exodar is also a Naaru dimensional ship.
Major Naaru vessels are dimensional fortresses that consist of multiple dimensional ships. Each dimensional ship is powered by a Naaru, a being of Light. They are peculiar creatures: sentient, intelligent, and made of energy. When extensively drained, they can also turn into polar opposites of themselves and fall into a Void state. This is exactly what happened to K'ara, the Dark Star. She was one of the Naaru who helped Velen escape Argus, but the effort was too much for her and she began to fade. Her darkened form still drifts above the skies of Shadowmoon Valley on Draenor.
The Draenei
The Draenei’s escape did not go unnoticed by the Legion, and they pursued the Draenei relentlessly. Just when the Draenei thought they were safe, they were attacked again, and again, and in one of the many battles they fought while trying to escape the Legion, the priestess Askara and seventy other defenders, Shield of Askara, perished.
The Draenei eventually ended up on Draenor. Their ship crashed there, and they were left on their own on a new world. Velen set about to organize their new society, and founded the Rangari Scouts to explore their new home and search for resources – an apt function for a Discover synergy card in Hearthstone. Velen also formed a council of exarchs to rule the Draenei: Exarch Naielle – the leader of the Rangari, Exarch Hataaru – the leader of their Ingenious Artificers who built the Arkonite Defense Crystals, Exarch Akama – the leader of Unyielding Vindicators, and Exarch Othaar who led the Draenei’s research into Naaru.
One of Othaar’s researchers found that strange things happened to the souls of the Draenei who had been killed in the crash. They were drawn to the remains of one of the Naaru who had been powering the ship, D’ore, and Draenei were able to talk with those souls near D’ore’s remains. This researcher was promoted to the council and became Exarch Maladaar. He would lead the Auchenai Death-Speakers in the mausoleum that was named Auchindoun. Later on, Auchindoun was attacked by Warlocks who accidentally summoned the elemental being Murmur to the site while attempting to summon a powerful demon. The Warlocks were eventually able to overcome Maladaar and contain Murmur as well.
The majority of the cards in The Great Dark Beyond chronicle the fall of the Eredar and the escape of the Draenei. We have Eredar loyalists who are chasing after the Draenei, and we have the full leadership team of the exiles.
The Voronei
Demon Hunters are the Hearthstone twist to the established Draenei lore. The description of Dirdra, Rebel Captain reads:
Under Velen’s command, the Draenei avoid engaging with the enemy in fear of eradication. Under Dirdra’s command, the Voronei fight the Legion head on in hopes of eradication.
Voronei are unique to Hearthstone. In Latin, vorare means to devour, so they are the Devouring Ones instead of the Exiled Ones. This may explain the presence of Space Pirates in the expansion. In World of Warcraft, we met survivors who had fought against the Legion since the fall of Argus when we arrived there during the Legion expansion, so having such a splinter group is somewhat plausible. Their access to The Legion's Bane ship is a remarkable achievement that may be hard to believe, but the Voronei are resourceful pirates.
The Ceaseless Expanse and the Ethereals
The most commonly played card in the expansion, The Ceaseless Expanse, is a Hearthstone original. It reminds me of Void Lords, but it seems to be on a more galactic scale. Void lords would have a connection to the Ethereals, but perhaps that is a bit far-fetched when it comes to The Ceaseless Expanse.
Other Hearthstone originals in the set include The 8 Hands From Beyond, which is a massive monster unlike anything seen in Warcraft, and Lumia, who is a Constellar – member of a race often used by the Titans to watch over planets.
Nexus-Prince Shaffar and Ethereal Oracle are eEthereals. They are a race of incorporeal beings who were transformed into such a state by the Void Lord Dimensius the All-Devouring destroying their planet. They attempted to construct magical barriers to stop the void lord, but the barriers only managed to protect their souls, not their bodies. They wear enchanted strips of clothing to give them a more tangible form as they travel the universe. The ethereals are often seen in World of Warcraft: sometimes as merchants, sometimes as enemies, and sometimes as allies.
The Lore of the Great Dark Beyond
It is a bit of a shame that we have all this background on so many of the characters from The Great Dark Beyond, but the cards do not see a lot of play. We have the Burning Legion hunting for the Draenei survivors, who do their best to survive. We have space pirates harassing the overwhelming Legion forces. And we have some Ethereals in the mix, pursuing unknown goals. And over it all looms The Ceaseless Expanse.
