Gorgrond

Gorgrond
Level: 92 - 94 Battle Pet Level: 25
Concept art
Capital(s)	Blackrock Foundry
Races	Orc Ogre Ogron Magnaron Gronn Botani Podling Genesaur Saberon Goren  Dwarf  Goblin
Government	Tribal chiefdom
Ruler(s)	Blackhand Kaz the Shrieker (presumed)   Kormrok (formerly)
Major settlements	Iron Docks Grimrail Depot Stonemaul Arena The Everbloom Evermorn Springs
Minor settlements	Beastwatch Bastion Rise Deadgrin Broken Horn Village Highpass Tangleheart
Languages	Orcish
Faiths	Shamanism
Affiliation	Blackrock clan (Iron Horde) Laughing Skull clan (Horde) Gorian Empire Primals Breakers
Location	Northern Draenor
PvP status	Contested territory

Gorgrond, Blackrock Foundry looming in the background.

"The land is a barren waste, devoid of redeeming features. Its residents are even worse."

—Vindicator Maraad

Gorgrond is a zone in northern Draenor. It is home to the Blackrock clan and the industrial heart of the Iron Horde and their ancestral home, the Blackrock Foundry, lies near the northern coast. However the industrial efforts of the Blackrock are dwarfed by the perpetual war that rages across the region. Two groups of creatures, both descended from ancients, fight a furious, unending war to determine what form the region's landscape should take. Along the northern and western side of Gorgrond the mighty Breakers have created a barren desert with rocky mesas and hot-springs bubbling up from the ground. Along the southern and eastern side of the region the savage Primals have created a lush jungle with thick foliage and dangerous animate plant-life that waits to devour those foolish enough to stray into its depths. If either side triumphed over the other, then Gorgrond and all of Draenor would soon be transformed into the victor's favoured environment. For the Blackrock, however, this war acts as perfect barricade preventing invasion from the south, allowing them to churn out weapons for the Iron Horde unopposed.

When Draenor became Outland, Gorgrond was pressed together with Frostfire Ridge and transformed into the Blade's Edge Mountains. While Frostfire was the source of the rock spires that would become synonymous with the region, Gorgrond's presence is still felt through the arid climate and patches of forests.

History

An orcish legend indicates that Gorgrond was once a great colossus, the largest of its kind that has ever walked Draenor. When it fell, its body became the land, its spine the mountains, its blood the ore, and its will the savagery that rules this dangerous land.

It is said that before Tarlna the Ageless arrived in Gorgrond, the entire region was a barren wasteland.

Kormrok once ruled Gorgrond, the creatures of the land slinking away from the giant magnaron's destructive fury, before he was captured by the Iron Horde and brought to Hellfire Citadel.

Storyline

After withstanding the Iron Horde's initial assault, you'll make your way into Gorgrond with a handful of allies to try to discover the Blackrock orcs' intentions and find a way to thwart any plans the Iron Horde may have. It's a perilous recon mission. If you're an Alliance player, you'll enter the zone from the eastern coast, where you'll get your first taste of things to come. You'll immediately encounter an elite group of draenei known as the Rangari holed up in a hidden encampment, fighting for their lives against vicious plant-like creatures. When the dust settles, your group will join the Rangari survivors and make a retreat to a clearing deeper in the zone.

Horde players will enter the zone from the west, where you'll encounter the Laughing Skull Orcs. These maniacal orcs are volatile and bloodthirsty, capable of extreme brutality—and as you experience Gorgrond for yourself, you'll begin to understand why. The Laughing Skull orcs are struggling to maintain their ancestral territory, but the brutality of being constantly assaulted by the warring factions of the zone has forged them into bloodthirsty savages.

In either case the adventurers will soon find themselves caught up in the ancient war between the Breakers and Primals. Which faction the player faces depends on which outpost building they select. Their efforts will ultimately secure them an ancient, possibly Titan, artifact that will give them control of the forces they defeated. This artifact is then used in an assault on the Iron Docks.

Getting there

Alliance

Please add any available information to this section.

Horde

The Horde can get here from Frostfire Ridge by traveling east through the Bones of Agurak and into Gorgrond Pass which enters into the southern area of Gorgrond.

Geography

Gorgrond consists of two distinct regions, each reflecting the nature of its inhabitants. The eastern portion of the zone is filled with lush plant life and shimmering pools. It seems idyllic until you realize looks aren't everything. The creatures here are merciless in seeking out anyone who enters their territory. They will capture them, kill them, and then infest their corpses with plant life or mulch them into fertilizer. The northwest region couldn't be more different. It's a dry, barren wasteland, but with a beauty of its own. Rock formations mixed with geysers and sulphur pools create an unconventionally vibrant environment.

Caution is advised while leveling through this zone as Everbloom Wilds is a level 100 area and the Pit is a level 100 elite area.

Maps and subregions

Map of Gorgrond

Affliction Ridge Barrier Sea Bastion Rise Moria's Bastion Beastwatch Blackrock Foundry Blook's Overlook Brimstone Springs Broken Horn Village The Broken Spine Colossal Depths The Compost Heap Cragplume Cauldron Crimson Fen Crushfang's End Deadgrin Deeproot The Destroyed Expedition Dionor's Demise Drywind Gorge Glut's Burrow Everbloom Wilds Thaelin's Workshop Evermorn Rise Evermorn Springs The Fertile Ground Riverbeast Den Frondfall Gorgorek's Fall Gorgrond Pass Grimrail Depot Grom'kar Gulch Gronn Canyon Brak's Excavation Fissure of Fury Valley of Destruction Highpass The Iron Approach Iron Docks Iron Pass Iron Sea Mistcreep Mire Orunai Coast Overlook Ruins The Pit Razorbloom Rooter's Pass Ruins of the First Bastion Skulltaker's Crater Skysea Ridge Steamburst Cauldron Steamscar Rise Overgrown Den Stonemaul Arena Kor'gall's Hovel Sulfur Basin Tailthrasher Basin Tangleheart Windward Ascent Wildwood Wash Iyun Weald Naielle's Watch Rangari Hollow Witherwind Pass Sulfurscale Cave Darksting Cave

Dungeons

Instance name	Level range	Group size	Approximate run time
Iron Docks	92-94	5 player	Unknown
Grimrail Depot	100	5 player	Unknown
The Everbloom	100	5 player	Unknown
Blackrock Foundry	100+	10-25 player	Unknown

Adjacent regions

Zone Name	Faction	Level Range	Direction	Access
Frostfire Ridge		90-92	West	Unknown
Talador		94-96	South	By foot
Tanaan Jungle		TBA	Southeast	By foot
Farahlon		TBA	East	Unknown

Notable characters

The Crimson Fen.

Main article: Gorgrond NPCs

Quests

Main article: Gorgrond storyline

Alliance

We Need an Outpost

After the Alliance and Draenei's total victory at the Defense of Karabor, Yrel and Maraad proposed that the Alliance take the fight to the Iron Horde in Gorgrond. The champion, Yrel and Maraad led a small expeditionary force to the hostile region to strike at the Blackrock stronghold and discover any ancient primal secrets or artifacts they might use in the war effort.

At the Rangari outpost Naielle's Watch, they found a destroyed village overrun by Podlings and Botani. Two of the survivors-- Rangari D'kaan and Rangari Kaalya-- asked them to kill the leader of the Botani Harvester Ommru and his minions. The Alliance champion found and freed Thaelin Darkanvil trapped in a thrashing vine while slaying the encroaching flora. While they rounded up the other survivors of the massacre, Thaelin repaired his tank to drive them all to safety.

Further into the jungle, the party found Highpass and Thaelin pointed out that this would make an excellent spot to build an outpost. The Alliance champion built a sparring arena and a lumber yard.

In the Land of Giants (Lumber Yard)

With the lumber yard now operational, Thaelin reported that he was not the only Dark Iron dwarf that had come to Gorgrond. There were others, but they had gotten separated; Thaelin pleaded with the champion for help finding them. The champion, Thaelin, Yrel and Kaalya set out southward still deeper into the jungle to search for the others. As they were setting up camp, Kaalya made it clear she believed Yrel was naive and did not belong in the wilds of Gorgrond and it was the champion and Thaelin could to to keep the two of them from fighting.

Kaalya found the trail of the Dark Irons near the Botani settlement of Razorbloom. While searching for signs of the dwarves, the champion found a journal entry indicating that the Botani were feeding the dwarves plants that would, in time, enslave their bodies. The champion was able to rescue one dwarf that wasn't infested yet-- Burrian Coalpart-- but found it was too late for the others and burned their corpses. While collecting vengeance for the dwarves in Evermorn Springs, the champion discovered that the Botani had even managed to infest an Ogron. Recognizing the danger this posed, the champion went out of their way to put the Ogron down.

After getting back to camp, Burrian informed the champion that the dwarves had discovered an artifact south of there, but they needed a Botani power source to use it. The champion went back into the Botani settlement to obtain the  [Waters of Utrophis] to power the artifact. After obtaining the Waters, Burrian directed the party to Moira's Bastion, the Dark Iron base that had become overrun by goren prior to completion. The champion, Yrel and Kaalya purged the goren from the base and stockpiled amunition for the expected counterattack from the Primals. Hansel Heavyhands told the champion where the  [Will of the Genesaur] was located within the base. After retrieving it, the champion emerged to find a battle with the genesaur Iyu already underway. With the help of Yrel, Kaalya and the Dark Irons, the champion killed Iyu and gained the means to use the artifact against the Iron Horde.

The time for the assault on the Iron Docks had come. With the Will of the Genesaur, the Alliance forces had the power to control Primals on their side. The siege of the Iron Docks began quickly, and the genesaurs dominated by the Will slaughtered the Iron Horde grunts that moved to defend their base. Despite heavy losses, the Iron Horde was able to push back just enough to destroy the Will of the Genesaur before their lines broke completely and the Iron Approach was taken. The Alliance had won the battle and the invasion of the Iron Docks proper was ready to begin, but the victory was at the cost of the artifact that could have won them the entire war. Rangari Kaalya agreed to join the champion as a follower.

In the Land of Giants (Sparring Arena)

With the sparring ring open for business, Vindicator Maraad asked the champion to rendezvous with Rangari Erdanii, who was dispatched previously to observe the ongoing struggle between the Primals and the Breakers. When the champion arrived, they found the Breakers getting the upper hand and the champion surgically killed a few gronn to rebalance the battle. Erdanii also noticed the arrival of the Iron Horde in central Gorgrond and asked the champion to investigate. The champion found the Iron Horde group and unexpectedly met the Draenor version of Rexxar. After saving Nisha from an attack by goren, Rexxar invited the champion back to his camp, where Rexxar and the champion nursed her back to health. Rexxar asked the champion to thin the number of Iron Horde grunts nearby, as they were encroaching upon his hunting grounds. While doing so, the champion found an Iron Horde missive--orders to capture additional gronns for the ominous purpose of "weaponization".

Rexxar caught Rangari Erdanii lurking about his camp, but the champion vouched for her and he released her. Erdanii reported that she and the champion needed to investigate what the Iron Horde was up to, and the best way to do this would be to use the goren digging tunnels. Erdanii explained that she had learned from the Laughing Skull that the acid the goren leave behind in their wake could be avoided--by making an armor out of their corpses. The champion completed the grisly task, and enduring the stench of the disguise plowed through the goren tunnels to find a dead Iron Horde messenger, whose body gave a clue as to the Iron Horde's operation. With this information in hand, the champion, Rexxar and Erdanii sought out Thukmar, believed to be in the Ogron leader Borogahn's lair. The champion killed Borogahn but found Thukmar already dead. His journal indicated they had found an artifact capable of controlling the Breakers. Unfortunately, the artifact was already gone.

The good news is that it wasn't hard to find. Nisha located the Iron Horde base where the artifact was being stored and tested against the captured gronn and magnaron. The champion, Erdanii and Rexxar attacked the base, killed its leader Captain Brak and stole the Heart of the Magnaron from the Iron Horde and immediately moved to use it against the Iron Horde.

The time for the assault on the Iron Docks had come. With the Heart of the Magnaron, the Alliance forces had the power to control Breakers on their side. The siege of the Iron Docks began quickly, and the magnaron dominated by the Heart slaughtered the Iron Horde grunts that moved to defend their base. Despite heavy losses, the Iron Horde was able to push back just enough to destroy the Heart of the Magnaron before their lines broke completely and the Iron Approach was taken. The Alliance had won the battle and the invasion of the Iron Docks proper was ready to begin, but the victory was at the cost of the artifact that could have won them the entire war. Rangari Erdanii agreed to join the champion as a follower.

Crimson Fen

After arriving at Highpass and establishing their outpost, Rangari D'kaan asked the Alliance champion to visit the nearby Crimson Fen marsh to check in on a Rangari squad he dispatched to survey the area.

The champion arrived to find the entire squad either dead or missing in action, save their leader Khaano. Khaano asked the champion for help recovering personal effects from the corpses of the rangari to return to their families and to slay fungal monsters that had abducted them in the first place. While doing so, the Alliance champion found an intact spore pod similar to those growing on the corpses. The champion brought it back to Khaano, who inadvertently opened it, inhaling the spores within.

Khaano then revealed that the dead were the lucky ones--the spores infested and enslaved the living. Khaano begged the champion to put the survivors out of their misery. Khaano also sends the champion to collect more of the mushrooms. While worried that he is succumbing to the fungus, the champion assists him anyway. Khaano voraciously consumed the mushrooms and went with the champion to the heart of the marsh. There, Khaano attacked and the champion was forced to kill him in self-defense.

The champion reported what happened in the Crimson Fen to Rangari D'kaan when they returned to Highpass. While dismayed about the loss of the brave Rangari, D'kaan thanked the champion for looking into it and warned the other Rangari not to venture into the marsh again.

Vignettes

Main article: Gorgrond vignettes

Continuing the tradition started on the Timeless Isle, Gorgrond has a huge number of vignettes, which are one-time events like killing rare mobs, looting treasure chests, or completing scripted events. Nearly all of the vignettes reward [Garrison Resources] in addition to an uncommon or rare-quality item.

Gorgrond is unique in that there are treasures (just caches of [Garrison Resources], really) that are only available to players who choose one of the two buildings, either the Lumbar Mill or the Sparring Arena. The map below also displays the eight rare elite monsters tracked in the  [Gorgrond Monster Hunter] achievement. For clarity's sake, the Hardened Thornvine and Odd Boulder nodes are not displayed on this map. See those articles for a map containing just those resources.

Gorgrond

Map key

Icon	Meaning
	Traditional one-time kill rare mob
	Achievement-tracked Elite mob, drops quest-starting item
	Open traditional one-time treasure

Resources

• Fishing
  •  [Crescent Saberfish]
    •  [Small Crescent Saberfish]
    •  [Enormous Crescent Saberfish]
  •  [Jawless Skulker]
    •  [Small Jawless Skulker]
    •  [Enormous Jawless Skulker]
  •  [Sea Scorpion]
    •  [Small Sea Scorpion]
    •  [Enormous Sea Scorpion]

• Herbalism
  •  [Gorgrond Flytrap]

• Leatherworking
  •  [Raw Beast Hide Scraps]
  •  [Raw Beast Hide]

• Mining
  •  [Blackrock Ore]
  •  [True Iron Ore]

Battle pets

• Junglebeak
• Cockroach
• Brown Marmot
• Silkbead Snail
• Leopard Tree Frog
• Wishbright Lantern Untameable
• Idol of Decay Untameable
• Gold Beetle
• Twilight Wasp
• Wood Wasp
• Amberbarb Wasp
• Axebeak Hatchling
• Mudback Calf
• Parched Lizard

Wild creatures

A magnaron wandering through Gorgrond's desert.

• Basilisks
• Boars
• Clefthooves
• Crabs
• Dragonflies
• Elekks
• Fungal giants
• Fungal monsters
• Groupers
• Hydras
• Lashers
• Mandragora
• Oozes
• Raptors
• Riverbeasts
• Ravagers
• Rylaks
• Scorpids
• Snakes
• Spiders
• Toucans
• Vultures
• Worms

Notes

• Gorgrond has the most instances of any zone in Draenor, with three five-man dungeons and one raid.
• The zone is quite infamous amongst the players who played the expansion in its first few weeks, as its outpost was host to a particularly persistent bug that caused its building associated quest giver to not appear; thus rendering the zone's story impossible to complete.
• The zone was described on Blizzard's official site as follows:The industrial development of the Blackrock clan has left the once-glistening oasis of Gorgrond a desolate, rocky badland, its only remaining natural produce the steam that boils up from massive vents beneath the earth. Gorgrond has become the source of the Iron Horde’s arsenal—its foundries churn out weapons, armor, and torrents of smoke great enough to be seen from neighboring lands. This description possibly indicates a larger Iron Horde presence in Gorgrond during development than is seen in the final product, where the rocky badland is described as being a result of the Breakers, not the Iron Horde, and the jungle of the Primals is still very much present and flourishing.

Gallery

• 

  Blackrock Foundry as seen from the outside.

• 
• 
• Gorgrond dev - alpha map.jpg

  The in-game map during alpha, featuring different area names such as "Bracken Tangle" and "Highland Pass"

Videos

WoD Alpha - How Different Alpha Gorgrond Was

Patch changes

• Patch 6.0.2 (2014-10-14): Added.
  

External links

• Wowhead
• WoWDB