Wrathion

"The Black Prince" redirects here. For the NPC faction, see The Black Prince (faction).

Wrathion
Title	<The Black Prince>
Gender	Male
Race	Black whelp (Dragonkin)
Reaction	Alliance Horde
Affiliation(s)	Himself, Ravenholdt, Black dragonflight
Location	Various Locations
Status	Alive
Relative(s)	Nyxondra (mother), Deathwing (grandfather; in conflict), Nefarian, (uncle), Onyxia (aunt), Sabellian (half-uncle)
Companion(s)	Right, Left (bodyguards)

"I will NOT be held accountable for the sins of my father. My destiny will be my own."

Wrathion, the Black Prince, is one of the few black dragons on Azeroth known to be uncorrupted by the taint of the Old Gods and, following the death of Deathwing and the destruction of the corrupted black dragonflight, one of the last known black dragons alive on Azeroth. His disguise is that of a human with dark skin. Claiming to have seen a future where Azeroth falls, Wrathion helps heroes of the Horde and Alliance gain power, usually in the form of magical legendary-quality items. He is, however, ruthless in his goals and pursues what he perceives as the greater good for Azeroth with almost fanatical devotion.

As the self-proclaimed last black dragon Wrathion believes that the titans' mandate to protect Azeroth (once entrusted to his father) now falls to him, and he will do whatever it takes to fulfill this charge.

Background

Unhatched

This section concerns content related to Cataclysm.

The ambitious red dragon Rheastrasza, also known by her goblin guise Rhea, traveled to the Badlands to research the black dragonflight and to find a way to purify them. She captured the black dragon, Nyxondra, and forced her to lay eggs for the experiments. She and Dr. Hieronymus Blam eventually succeeded in creating a purified black dragon egg with an ancient titan device, a black whelp corpse, a wild black dragon egg and one of Nyxondra's eggs. She constantly moved around to avoid being found by agents of the black dragonflight, who wanted to destroy the egg. She was however killed by Deathwing in the end, who was after the egg. The egg he destroyed, however, was not the purified one, but Rheastrasza's own egg. Hieronymus Blam had already moved the real purified egg on to a safer location, away from the Badlands, so it could continue to grow, out of Deathwing's sight. The egg was hidden under the care of Corastrasza in Vermillion Redoubt, a Red dragonflight outpost in the Twilight Highlands. At some point later the egg simply disappeared.

The Black Prince

This section concerns content related to Cataclysm.

Fahrad and Wrathion planning their next move against the Black Dragonflight.

Wrathion makes his first official appearance during the rogue-only Fangs of the Father questline. The red drake Mostrasz and the player track down the egg Rhea purified to Ravenholdt Manor, where it is revealed Wrathion has hatched and is now in charge of the whole operation. Apparently free from the madness of the old gods, he sent the player out to kill the last black dragons plaguing Azeroth: Creed, Nalice and Fahrad. Apparently on the run from the Red dragonflight who see him as a threat, he disappears after Deathwing's demise during Quest:Patricide.

Mists of Pandaria

This section concerns content related to Mists of Pandaria.

Wrathion at Tavern in the Mists

It's hinted that Wrathion has traveled to Pandaria when he heard rumors of the land. This was proven true, as Wrathion then traveled in the Tavern in the Mists, which is found in the Veiled Stair of Pandaria after experiencing a vision of Azeroth's destruction.

Wrathion foreshadows a terrible threat to Azeroth is coming—a threat that a divided Azeroth cannot hope to stand against, the Burning Legion. Thus he believes the only way to prepare Azeroth for the coming threat is to have one faction win and dominate the other. He advises adventurers to bring a swift end to the Alliance-Horde War and gives his unwavering support to which ever faction the adventurer belongs to. Thus he will assist not just the Rogues during the Legendary storyline, but everyone else residing in or outside the conflict. So, Wrathion will give all of the adventurers quests to test their valor such as entering the Terrace of Endless Spring to defeat the Sha of Fear. After that, the adventurers will be rewarded greatly for their accomplishments by having Wrathion imbue their Sha touched weapons with his power. Wrathion then asks adventurers to let him know when their faction's naval fleet arrives during Patch 5.1.

Landfall

If you have Quest:Incoming..., signal your factions fleet in order to continue the story line. Wrathion wants to test the player's commitment to the Alliance-Horde War and uses his blood to see through the player's eyes, thus monitoring his or her progress. He tasks the player to kill Alliance/Horde soldiers at the shores in order to gain revered with him and prove to him that their faction deserves to win the war. Then, he will bring up King Varian Wrynn/Warchief Garrosh Hellscream to talk about their pasts and how they fare as leaders. Afterward, you'll have to gather 3000 [Valor Points]. Once you have earned 3000 [Valor Points], Wrathion requests that you kill your opposing faction's Commander in Krasarang Wilds. In addition to slaughtering the enemy Commander, Wrathion requires you to achieve a victory in both Silvershard Mines and Temple of Kotmogu. After you have completed these tasks, he'll bring up your faction leader again and discusses their merits as leaders of their factions and what he's learned about each respective faction. He tells the player to continue to hone his or her skills in Pandaria and then arms them with the  [Eye of the Black Prince] to increase the player's prowess. At last, he brings up a new threat: The Thunder King. Talk to him when you are ready in Patch 5.2.

Rise of the Thunder King

Wrathion seen at the Thunder Forge.

Wrathion and Anduin chatting.

If you have Quest:The Thunder King, get Quest:Meet Me Upstairs from Tong the Fixer who informs the player that Wrathion is upstairs. You see Sunwalker Dezco on the ground kneeled, Alliance guards, and Anduin Wrynn recovering from his wounds and playing Jihui, a pandaren board game, with Wrathion. Both Anduin and Wrathion have been discussing current events and as they play, they discuss Lei Shen the Thunder King, and his leadership style; to which they disagree with each other if whether his tyrannical and brutal reign should be applauded or not. Anduin disapproves of Wrathion's hard cutthroat outlook and Wrathion likewise think Anduin too soft. At this point, Wrathion recruits the player to act as his champion and to show his might by terrorizing any mogu, Zandalari, or saurok that you find. The player can get to exalted by being his champion during your faction's assault on the Isle of Thunder.

Wrathion must know the origin and source of Mogu power, and Azeroth's adventurers aided the Black Prince in finding out what it is. The search for information took players into the depths of the Thunder King's Palace, the Throne of Thunder. Along the way, players unlock the secrets to a new legendary metagem, Crown of the Heavens. Once on the Isle of Thunder, you collect for him 20  [Secrets of the Empire] and 40 Trillium Bars. Then you must progress to the Thunder Forges to continue for his next task. Call him shortly after you get the forge up and running again. Wrathion then asks you to engage the Foot of Lei Shen and use the  [Lightning Lance] on Storm Lord Nalak, which is a world boss. Afterwards, return to Mason's Folly where you got your Sha-Touched gem and Wrathion presents you with the  [Crown of Heaven].

Anduin distrusts Wrathion and warns the player to think twice before putting that thing on your head. You return to the Throne of Thunder to collect 12  [Titan Runestone] that an image of Wrathion appears to translate the stones. Once all of them have been translated, return to him for one final request. He wants the adventurer to kill Lei Shen himself for the  [Heart of the Thunder King] to end his reign once and for all. Once the heart is given to Wrathion, he eats it and a glowing light appears and speaks of a message that even Anduin cannot understand. The light fades and Wrathion forgets of what he said and doesn't remember any of it. To that regard, it was the message that the Mogu didn't remember all this time and Wrathion laughs of the irony of it. Anduin still doesn't understand nor trusts Wrathion and Wrathion says he is wise that he doesn't. He then tells the adventurer to give him time to "digest" what he learned, because soon it will take root in Patch 5.3.

Escalation

Lei Shen is dead and his artifacts are in the hands of the Horde and Alliance. However, Wrathion isn't ready, he needs time to think. For the moment, he tries to give the same power to the adventurer. However, the body is not capable of holding a power equivalent to its own. With the heroes, Wrathion wants to obtain the blessings of the four celestials. At Niuzao Temple, Niuzao tests the adventurer's fortitude; at the Temple of the Red Crane, Chi-Ji tests their hope; at the Temple of the White Tiger, Xuen tests their strength; and at the Temple of the Jade Serpent, Yu'lon tests their wisdom. With the blessing of the celestials, Wrathion gives a  [90] Cloak of Virtue to the champion to cast his own power.

Siege of Orgrimmar

Wrathion was eager to explore the secrets of the Timeless Isle, and with good reason: the island holds the secret of imbuing celestial cloaks with his own formidable draconic power. Bearers of this new legendary-quality cloak are able to do battle with the deadly Ordos atop the Timeless Isle, but that isn't Wrathion's ultimate goal. Instead, the black prince hoped to send his empowered cloak-bearers into the bowels of Orgrimmar to overthrow the Warchief himself. Wrathion also participated in the Celestial Tournament with his companions - Alex, Dah'da and Cindy. After the Celestials are defeated, he, Cho and the adventurer return to the Seat of Knowledge where they narrate a legend of the adventurer. Cho wished for the legend to portray the adventurer as a hero, liberator and protector, while Wrathion wished to see them as a conqueror with none able to stand in their way. After the legends was done, Wrathion sent the adventurer to the Siege of Orgrimmar to fulfill his hopes.

When the adventurer arrives back in the Tavern, Wrathion is pacing around the room; awaiting information about what happened in Orgrimmar. The adventurer told him about what happened in Orgrimmar and he was not happy with the outcome: calling Varian Wrynn a fool for allowing the Horde to continue existing. Tong the Fixer was infuriated with his constant speaking and his lack of understanding of the lessons of Pandaria. Tong said that the Alliance and the Horde are not strong despite each other, they are strong because of one another. Wrathion thinks he's just a fool waiter, and starts walking out the Tavern and proclaimed for the battle to come, he will leave nothing to chance.

War Crimes

This section concerns content related to the Warcraft novels, novellas, or short stories.

Wrathion, alongside his bodyguards, Right and Left, attended the trial of Garrosh Hellscream, frequently corresponding with Anduin Wrynn during intermissions. He came to acknowledge the prince of Stormwind as a personal friend, though told him that his kind heart and desire to see good in the world would be his undoing. He sat as far from Alexstrasza as he could.

Eventually, Wrathion revealed himself to be working with Kairozdormu and the Infinite dragonflight to free Garrosh and send him back in time to the Draenor of thirty-five years ago. After incapacitating the Chu brothers so he could lock up Chromie for investigating Kairoz, Wrathion was confronted by Anduin, who attempted to deter his friend from freeing the captured warchief. Proclaiming that as the last of the Black Dragonflight, the protection of Azeroth now falls to him, Wrathion knocked Anduin out and took his leave. Despite his actions, Wrathion believed this would be best for Azeroth in the coming conflict with the Legion, and maintained hope that Anduin would eventually understand his motives and even stand with him as a brother when the time comes.

Warlords of Draenor

This section concerns content related to Warlords of Draenor.

Wrathion, having traveled to the alternate Draenor after the Dark Portal became connected to it, traveled to Admiral Taylor's Garrison in the Spires of Arak, brought there by Sir Edward. Wrathion sought asylum in the Garrison, claiming he had somehow angered the local ogres. As Wrathion was a wanted fugitive of the Alliance following the events of Garrosh's trial, the troops led by Lady Claudia took aim. Admiral Taylor claimed that Wrathion would be a "guest" in the Garrison provided he stay under house arrest and full-time guard.

Wrathion provided Taylor's Garrison the resources to build an inn, and when Taylor confronted him about it Wrathion told him not to trust Ephial. Taylor offered a group of guards money to keep a close eye on Wrathion, but Wrathion had already paid those very same guards to watch Taylor. When Taylor left to participate in the Ring of Blood, Wrathion left the Garrison and took several of Taylor's best followers with him.

Wrathion had remained in hiding somewhere on Draenor until he made a minor cameo once the adventurer has to return the Tomes of Chaos to Cordana Felsong. Wrathion momentarily sits on a Kirin Tor banner in whelp form until seeing his former ally, upon which he quickly flies off to parts unknown.

Wrathion has since returned to Azeroth.

Locations

Notable appearances
Location	Level range	Health range
Hillsbrad Foothills	85	387,450
Pandaria	90	106,032
Quest:The Thunder Forge	90	2,363,646
Quest:Celestial Blessings	90	19,697,050
Celestial Tournament	90	393,941
Seat of Knowledge	90	2,363,646
Khadgar's Tower	100	587,100

Quests

Ravenholdt Manor

• Quest:To Catch a Thief
• Quest:Our Man in Gilneas
• Quest:The Deed is Done
• Quest:Cluster Clutch
• Quest:Our Man in Karazhan
• Quest:Victory in the Depths
• Quest:Sharpening Your Fangs
• Quest:Patricide

Tavern in the Mists

The subject of this section was removed from World of Warcraft in patch 6.0.2.

Patch 5.0 - Mists of Pandaria

1. Optional breadcrumb:  [90] Stranger in a Strange Land
2.  [90] A Legend in the Making
3.  [90] The Strength of One's Foes &  [90] Trial of the Black Prince
4.  [90] Fear Itself
5.  [90] Breath of the Black Prince

Patch 5.1 - Landfall

1. Optional breadcrumb:  [90] Incoming... ( [15-35] Lion's Landing /  [15-35] Domination Point required to continue)
2.  [90] The Measure of a Leader
3.  [90] The Prince's Pursuit &  [90] A Test of Valor
4. Complete all of:
   •  [90] The Lion Roars /  [90] Glory to the Horde
   •  [90] A Change of Command
5.  [90] Call of the Packmaster /  [90] The Soul of the Horde

Patch 5.2 - The Thunder King

1. Optional breadcrumbs:  [90] The Thunder King /  [90] Meet Me Upstairs
2.  [90] Secrets of the First Empire &  [90] I Need a Champion
3.  [90] The Thunder Forge ( [32-35] To the Skies! required to continue)
4.  [90] Spirit of the Storm Lord ( [32-35] The Fall of Shan Bu required to continue)
5.  [90] The Crown of Heaven
6.  [90] Echoes of the Titans
7.  [90] Heart of the Thunder King

Patch 5.3 - Escalation

1.  [90] Celestial Blessings
2.  [90] Cloak of Virtue
3.  [90] Preparing to Strike /  [90] Meet Me Back at the Inn

Patch 5.4 - Siege of Orgrimmar

1.  [90] A Timeless Discovery
2.  [90] Secrets of the Timeless Isle &  [90] The Emperor's Way
3.  [90] A Pandaren Legend
4.  [90] Judgment of the Black Prince

Legion beta

The subject of this section did not make it out of the beta stages.

• Quest:A Timely Opportunity
• Quest:The Backdoor#Beta
• Quest:Flight of the Black Prince

Abilities

Wrathion wields unusually powerful abilities for a black whelp. He has displayed power over fire, magma, and magic on par with a full-grown black dragon. During Quest:Celestial Blessings, he claims that he wields the power of the titans, and was probably referring to the powers of Keeper Ra that he stole from Lei Shen by devouring his heart.

•  Blindside — Standing behind Wrathion increases your damage dealt to him by 250%. Aura on Wrathion for the duration of the encounter.
•  Crumbling Arc — Wrathion jumps in front of you and does a semicircle AoE attack. It is an uninterruptable 3 second cast that you can dodge by moving out of the dust clouds. It hits for approximately 200k damage. Be advised that this ability is currently buggy, and you may get hit even if you are outside the dust clouds.
•  Reign of Fire — Fireballs rain down from the ceiling, doing damage if they hit you. You can easily dodge this by avoiding the black shadows the fireballs cast when they appear.
•  Blood of the Deathborn  — 2 second cast creates a void zone that deals about 50k damage/second. This spell can be interrupted.
•  Neltharion's Tears  — About every minute or so, Wrathion summons or resurrects 5 adds. They have 500k health and melee for approximately 35k damage.
•  Inferno   — About 2 minutes in, Wrathion will spawn many images of himself, all channeling Inferno. A single attack (including AoE) will kill any images it hits. Hitting the real Wrathion will stop the spell and despawn all the images. If Inferno goes off, it will deal damage depending on how many images remain. It will kill you if you killed too few images. This repeats 3 times in sequence.

Heritage

While Wrathion refers to Deathwing as his father, this claim is dubious, since Sinestra was previously established as the only dragon to survive mating with him after he succumbed to corruption. When asked about Wrathion's lineage, Dave Kosak confirmed the theory that Deathwing isn't Wrathion's literal father, and tweeted the following:

"We don't know who Wrathion's literal father is. Certainly he's in Deathwing's lineage. He considers DW to be his father, FWIW."

"Wrathion likely took the "Prince" title himself, claiming to be the "true" heir of Deathwing."

While Wrathion's mother is clearly Nyxondra, the identity of his father is unclear. Neltharion/Deathwing is the leader of the black dragonflight and as such is likely seen as the father of the entire flight (which could be why he refers to Deathwing's actions and why the legendary daggers are named Fangs of the Father). As there is no real shortage of other named (and unnamed) male black dragons, Wrathion's actual father could have been any of them.

The Ultimate Visual Guide lists Wrathion as Deathwing's son and Onyxia and Nefarian as their half-sibling.

Kosak later stated that Nyxondra was Onyxia's sister and tweeted out the following:

"It's kinda kooky, but Wrathion's mother Nyxondra was Onyxia's sister... so... Yeah black dragons are freaky."

"You guys are right, Deathwing isn't technically Wrathion's direct biological father."

This would mean that Deathwing is Wrathion's grandfather, not his father. This would also make Onyxia and Nefarian his aunt and uncle, respectively. This also corresponds with Wrathion's own words when he called Onyxia his auntie.

Oddly enough, War Crimes mentions Wrathion being sired by Deathwing. Annual 2015 also lists Deathwing as Wrathion's father.

In Ultimate Visual Guide - Updated and Expanded, all mentions of Wrathion being related to Deathwing and his children are removed. In Wrathion's entry, Nyxondra is listed as his only known relative.

Dave Kosak on Wrathion

During an interview with WoW Insider in 2012 Lead Quest Designer Dave Kosak talked about Wrathion:

When we had written that questline in the Badlands there, we knew that this would be a cool story thread to pick up some day. But if you really think about how long it would take a dragon to mature and start developing his own thoughts, it'd be a long time. Like decades. And we didn't really have time for that! So I said well, OK -- if we ask people to buy into this one thing, that because of these experiments he can have some self-awareness early on, wow - what an interesting character that is!

All of a sudden he's so compelling. Because let's see, his father was crazy and tried to destroy the world, his mother was basically raped by the red dragonflight, then his egg was experimented on to sever his ties with his own family - so how do you view the world at that point? Well, you don't really view the world as a friendly place. You're probably eager to take control of your own destiny, which he does, even before he hatches. And then you kind of have this thing to atone for - your father tried to destroy the world. Your father went crazy. Are you crazy? How do you not be crazy, how do you make up for what your father did. Suddenly he's such a cool character! I really want to explore that character. We kind of went nuts with it. So we kind of asked people -- well if you can already buy in to the idea that he hatched from his egg and already started hatching schemes, then there's a whole cool story that can come from that. And we really rolled with it.

That was kind of the genesis of that character. His value to the franchise is he really can kind of stand above Alliance and Horde, and really try and be a good guy, but without all the moral reservations that most good guys have. He really does have the best interests of Azeroth in mind, but his interests may not necessarily line up with our interests. His plan may not be the way that we would think of planning it. That kind of gray area between hero and villain is so cool for us, very cool to explore. And you're never sure whether you should trust him or not. It helps that we got a wonderful voice actor who really gets that across. He gets that kind of, that air of arrogance and also a little bit of smarminess. You know, like you like him, but don't trust him at the same time. Wonderful, wonderful characterization.

Quotes

• "They wanted to hold me, to keep watch over me – a prisoner in all but name. But I will NOT be held accountable for the sins of my father. My destiny will be my own."

Greetings (Ravenholdt Manor)

• I do not share my father's madness.
• A new era is beginning.
• I must remain hidden, so that I remain free.
• I believe an individual can have an enormous impact on the world.
• You do not want to make it onto my list!

Greetings (Pandaria)

• A new era has begun.
• Pandaria: a land of mystery, history, and opportunity.
• We stand at the crossroads of history.
• The battle for Pandaria rages on.
• This war could tear Azeroth apart.
• Is there such a thing as a righteous war?
• These Pandaren question everything. It makes you think?
• There is so much we can learn from the Mogu.
• There is a hidden darkness to this land. Do you feel it?

Pissed

• This is an awfully one-sided conversation.
• Did you hear what happened to the rest of the Black Dragonflight?
• I had them killed. All of them...
• ...And THEY were family.
• So, if I were you, I would carefully consider your decision to continue poking me.

Mists of Pandaria

Pre-90

<The Black Prince looks you up and down.>

It is very good to meet you, <class>. You are one of the vanguard, it would seem - an explorer in a strange new land. And how have you been finding the mysterious continent of Pandaria?

You have the look of someone who gets things done. I want you to return to me once you've gotten the lay of the land.

I will be right here.

Level 90

Welcome, <class>! My contacts throughout Pandaria tell me that you have been quite busy here. I admire mortals with your... 'initiative.'

History finds us at a turning point. If you are prepared to meet destiny with me head on, I will ensure that you are richly rewarded for your efforts.

 Who are you?

I have chosen the name "Wrathion." To my knowledge, I am the last of the black dragons.

My father was Deathwing, the Worldbreaker, the Aspect of Death, the Destroyer... But I hope you will not hold that against me.

I have no love for my father, whose corruption destroyed my race, or for the Red Dragonflight, who stole away and experimented on my egg to create me.

Let's just say, I am... unaffiliated. And I am always on the lookout for like-minded heroes.

Trivia

Wrathion in Hearthstone.

• Wrathion is voiced by Aaron Phillips.
• Wrathion and Deathwing briefly appear in Quest:Gods and Monsters, a story told by Lorewalker Cho.
• Many fans pair him with Anduin Wrynn. However, Christie Golden has stated that "Their relationship was only good friends".
• In the Legion alpha, Wrathion was in Highmountain disguised as Spiritwalker Ebonhorn, and at the end of his questline he gathered time-lost black dragon eggs to raise new, uncorrupted black dragons. In later builds he was replaced as Ebonhorn by Ebyssian and the questline was rewritten, mainly because it made little sense for Wrathion to have become a trusted sage of the Highmountain tauren in such a short amount of time. Wrathion was based at the Obsidian Overlook, along with several characters from the Tavern in the Mists.
• In some ways, the Burning Legion's massive third invasion was ultimately Wrathion's fault. The invasion only occurred thanks to the alternate Gul'dan discovering and being sent to Azeroth, neither of which would have happened had Wrathion left Garrosh in prison.
• Wrathion appears as a legendary card in the Mean Streets of Gadgetzan expansion for Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft. Despite being a black dragon, his Hearthstone card lacks the Dragon minion type, a fact that is referenced by his flavor text:"Wrathion, son of Deathwing, is a dragon. Why isn't he tagged as a dragon, you ask? WHAT, ARE YOU TRYING TO BLOW HIS COVER??"

Gallery

• 

  Wrathion promotional image set at Ravenholdt Manor.

• 

  Wrathion and Deathwing in Lorewalker Cho's story.

Videos

• Wrathion's story part 1
• Wrathion's story part 2
• Wrathion's story part 3
• Wrathion's story part 4
• The Story of Wrathion

Patch changes

• Patch 5.0.4 (2012-08-28): Added in Pandaria in the Tavern in the Mists in the Veiled Stair.
  
• Patch 4.3.0 (2011-11-29): Added.
  

See also

• Fangs of the Father
• I am Legendary

External links

• Wowhead
• WoWDB

WoWInsider Know Your Lore: Wrathion the Purified