War of the Ancients The War of the Ancients is a conflict that rocked ancient Azeroth some ten thousand years prior to the First War . It started when the reckless Highborne drew the attention of Sargeras and his Burning Legion , and was ended , after massive casualties , when the Well of Eternity blasted the supercontinent of Kalimdor apart . Cenarius , Malfurion Stormrage , Tyrande Whisperwind , Illidan Stormrage , Jarod Shadowsong , Korialstrasz , Queen Azshara , Mannoroth , and Archimonde were major players in the War . There are differing accounts of the War : History . Many thousands of years ago ( 10 , 000 years before Warcraft I ) the Burning Legion became attracted to the world of Azeroth due to the reckless use of magic on that world . The night elf " Highborne " , under the direction of the Night Elf queen Azshara and her counselor Xavius , had been undertaking experiments to draw greater and greater amounts of energy from the Well of Eternity , the source of magical power on Azeroth . The Highborne ' s reckless use of magic sent ripples of energy spiraling out from the Well of Eternity and into the Great Dark Beyond . The streaming ripples of energy were felt by terrible alien minds . Sargeras — the Great Enemy of all life , the Destroyer of Worlds — felt the potent ripples and was drawn to their distant point of origin . Spying the primordial world of Azeroth and sensing the limitless energies of the Well of Eternity , Sargeras was consumed by an insatiable hunger . The great dark god of the Nameless Void resolved to destroy the fledgling world and claim its energies as his own . Sargeras gathered his vast Burning Legion and made his way towards the unsuspecting world of Azeroth . The Legion was composed of a million screaming demons , all ripped from the far corners of the universe , and the demons hungered for conquest . Sargeras ' lieutenants , Archimonde the Defiler and Mannoroth the Destructor , prepared their infernal minions to strike . Queen Azshara , overwhelmed by the terrible ecstasy of her magic , fell victim to Sargeras ' undeniable power and agreed to grant him entrance to her world . Even her Highborne servitors gave themselves over to magic ' s inevitable corruption and began to worship Sargeras as their god . To show their allegiance to the Legion , the Highborne aided their queen in opening a vast , swirling portal to Sargeras ' realm within the depths of the Well of Eternity . Once all his preparations had been made , Sargeras began his catastrophic invasion of Azeroth . The warrior - demons of the Burning Legion stormed into the world through the Well of Eternity and laid siege to the night elves ' sleeping cities . Led by Archimonde and Mannoroth , the Legion swarmed over the lands of Kalimdor , leaving only ash and sorrow in its wake . The demon warlocks called down searing Infernal s that crashed like hellish meteors into the graceful spires of Kalimdor ' s temples . A band of burning , bloodletting killers known as the Doomguard marched across Kalimdor ' s fields , slaughtering everyone in their path . Packs of wild , demonic Felhound s ravaged the countryside unopposed . Though the brave Kaldorei warriors rushed to defend their ancient homeland , they were forced to give ground , inch by inch , before the fury of the Legion ' s onslaught . It fell to Malfurion Stormrage to find help for his beleaguered people . Stormrage , whose own brother , Illidan , practiced the Highborne ' s magics , was incensed by the growing corruption amongst the upper class . Convincing Illidan to forsake his dangerous obsession , Malfurion set out to find Cenarius and muster a resistance force . The beautiful young priestess , Tyrande , agreed to accompany the brothers in the name of Elune . Though Malfurion and Illidan shared a love for the idealistic priestess , Tyrande ' s heart belonged to Malfurion alone . Illidan resented his brother ' s budding romance with Tyrande , but knew that his heartache was nothing compared to the pain of his magical addiction . Illidan , who had grown dependent on magic ' s empowering energies , struggled to keep control of his nearly overwhelming hunger to tap the Well ' s energies once again . However , with Tyrande ' s patient support , he was able to restrain himself and help his brother find the reclusive demigod , Cenarius . Cenarius , who dwelt within the sacred Moonglades of distant Mount Hyjal , agreed to help the night elves by finding the ancient dragon s and enlisting their aid . The dragons , led by the great red leviathan , Alexstrasza , agreed to send their mighty flights to engage the demons and their infernal masters . Cenarius , calling on the spirits of the enchanted forests , rallied an army of ancient tree - men and led them against the Legion in a daring ground assault . As the night elves ' allies converged upon Azshara ' s temple and the Well of Eternity , all - out warfare erupted . Despite the strength of their newfound allies , Malfurion and his comrades realized that the Legion could not be defeated by martial strength alone . As the titanic battle raged around Azshara ' s capital city , Suramar , the delusional queen waited in anticipation for Sargeras ' arrival . The lord of the Legion was preparing to pass through the Well of Eternity and enter the ravaged world . As his impossibly huge shadow drew ever closer to the Well ' s raging surface , Azshara gathered the most powerful of her Highborne followers . Only by linking their magics together in one focused spell would they be able to create a gateway large enough for Sargeras to enter . Malfurion , convinced that the Well of Eternity was the demons ' umbilical link to the physical world , insisted that it should be destroyed . His companions , knowing that the Well was the source of their immortality and powers , were horrified by the rash notion . Yet Tyrande saw the wisdom of Malfurion ' s theory , so she convinced Cenarius and their comrades to storm Azshara ' s temple and find a way to shut the Well down for good . Knowing that the Well ' s destruction would prevent him from ever wielding magic again , Illidan selfishly abandoned the group and set out to warn the Highborne of Malfurion ' s plan . Due to the insanity brought on by his addiction and the stinging resentment towards his brother ' s love of Tyrande , Illidan felt no remorse at betraying Malfurion and siding with Azshara and her ilk . Above all else , Illidan vowed to protect the Well ' s power by any means necessary . Heartbroken by his brother ' s departure , Malfurion led his companions into the heart of Azshara ' s temple . Yet as they stormed into the main audience chamber , they found the Highborne in the midst of their final dark incantation . The communal spell created an unstable vortex of power within the Well ' s turbulent depths . As Sargeras ' ominous shadow drew ever closer to the surface , Malfurion and his allies rushed to attack . Azshara , having received Illidan ' s warning , was more than prepared for them . Nearly all of Malfurion ' s followers fell before the mad queen ' s powers . Tyrande , attempting to attack Azshara from behind , was caught off - guard by the queen ' s Highborne guardsmen . Though she vanquished the guardsmen , Tyrande suffered grievous wounds at their hands . When Malfurion saw his love fall , he went into a murderous rage and resolved to end Azshara ' s life . As the battle raged inside and outside the temple , Illidan appeared from the shadows near the shores of the great Well . Producing a set of specially crafted vials , Illidan knelt and filled each with the Well ' s shimmering waters . Convinced that the demons would crush the night elves ' civilization , he planned to steal the sacred waters and keep their energies for himself . The ensuing battle between Malfurion and Azshara threw the Highborne ' s carefully crafted spellwork into chaos . The unstable vortex within the Well ' s depths exploded and ignited a catastrophic chain of events that would sunder the world forever . The massive explosion rocked the temple to its foundations and sent massive quakes ripping through the tortured earth . As the horrific battle between the Legion and the night elves ' allies raged around and above the ruined capital city , the surging Well of Eternity buckled in upon itself and collapsed . The resultant catastrophic explosion shattered the world and blotted out the skies ( see The Great Sundering ) . As the aftershocks from the Well ' s implosion rattled the bones of the world , the seas rushed in to fill the gaping wound left in the earth . Nearly eighty percent of Kalimdor ' s landmass had been blasted apart , leaving only a handful of separate continents surrounding the new , raging sea . At the center of the new sea , where the Well of Eternity once stood , was a tumultuous storm of tidal fury and chaotic energies . This terrible scar , known as the Maelstrom , would never cease its furious spinning . It would remain a constant reminder of the terrible catastrophe . . . and the Utopian era that had been lost forever . Somehow , against all odds , Queen Azshara and her Highborne elite managed to survive the ordeal . Tortured and twisted by the powers they had released , Azshara and her followers were dragged down beneath the raging sea by the Well ' s implosion . Cursed — transformed — they took on new shapes and became the hateful , serpentine naga . Azshara herself expanded with hate and rage , becoming a massive monstrosity , reflecting the wickedness and malice that had always hidden within her core . There , at the bottom of the Maelstrom , the naga built for themselves a new city , Nazjatar , from which they would rebuild their power . It would take over ten thousand years before the naga would reveal their existence to the surface world . In Cataclysm . According to an interview with Tom Chilton , which took place on June 8th , 2010 , War of the Ancients was said to be a Caverns of Time raid instance released some time during the patch cycle . A raid of that name never materialized , but a 5 - man dungeon with a partial and similar description was implemented in Patch 4 . 3 called Well of Eternity .