Dalaran Dalaran ( aka Dalaran City ) is a magocratic city - state which was once located by the Lordamere Lake on the Alterac Mountains shore in the Eastern Kingdoms . With the beginning of the War against the Lich King its leaders , the Kirin Tor , have used their powers to move the city over the Crystalsong Forest in Northrend in order to use it as a front to attack the armies of the Lich King . The Kirin Tor rule the single city . Its inner fortress , the Violet Citadel , has served as the focal point for magi and the study of the arcane throughout human history . The kingdom ' s national color is violet and its flag is a yellow , possibly golden , eye set against a light purple background . History . Dalaran was one of several kingdoms that emerged as the Empire of Arathor declined ( see Seven Kingdoms and The Seven Kingdoms ) . Long ago , most human magicians lived in Strom . Wanting a place more suited to extensive use and study of magic , they traveled north to the Alterac Mountains and founded Dalaran with the High Elves . More wizards followed , and the city became a haven for magi and a center of arcane study . The mages of Dalaran protected inhabitants who weren ' t magic - users with powerful protection spells , and created a decadent , extravagant paradise . Dalaran was also built atop a massive ley line . This overuse of magic with no proper protection or regulation , though , acted as a beacon for the Burning Legion , luring them back to Azeroth . Demons slipped through the gaps in reality , terrorizing the locals until the ruling Magocrats were forced to turn to the elves for aid . High Elf wizards quickly realized what had happened and warned that humanity would have to give up magic to subdue the threat completely . The Magocrats , unwilling to sacrifice their power , instead proposed selecting a mortal champion to protect them from the Legion . This Guardian would have access to all their might , and would form a secret defense for the world . The elves agreed and , through the newly formed Order of Tirisfal , provided guidance in the selection . At the same time , the Magocrats sent some of their number to research and catalog all human magic . These wizards became the Kirin Tor . The Kirin Tor became the city ’ s ruling power . Dalaran , though not a large city , was a beautiful place of towering spires and glittering streets , and the people there were happy and well protected . The Kirin Tor ’ s headquarters was the Violet Citadel , an impressive building so named for its stone walls which gave off a faint violet light . The building had many libraries , research chambers , testing rooms , classrooms , meeting alcoves , and bedrooms . During the Second War , Dalaran entered the Alliance of Lordaeron in order to help fight the invading Horde . After the war , Teron Gorefiend and his Death Knight s , aided by Deathwing , were able to successfully enter Dalaran ' s Arcane vault and steal the Eye of Dalaran from it . Later , Dalaran found itself powerless to stop Prince Arthas and his forces when he led the Scourge through Lordaeron . Arthas acquired the spellbook of Medivh and Kel ' Thuzad used it to summon Archimonde , who destroyed Dalaran . The city was left in ruins . The Kirin Tor refused to abandon their home , however . They returned to the ruins months later , destroying those few undead creatures that remained , and reclaimed their city . They erected a glowing dome around the entire city , powerful enough to destroy anyone who touches it , while they worked to rebuild their fallen city . Relocation . Eventually , the city , including the Violet Citadel , was somehow moved to its current location floating above the Crystalsong Forest in Northrend — close to the border with Icecrown . It left only a crater in its original place . In Wrath of the Lich King . Dalaran has been neutral since " Lands of Conflict " . was in charge during its reconstruction , and it was introduced as the neutral city for the " Wrath of the Lich King " expansion , as Shattrath City was introduced as the neutral city for the " The Burning Crusade " expansion . One thing to take into consideration is that three of Dalaran ' s best wizards , , , and have had dealings with the Horde in the past . Also , studied the effects of the orcs ' lethargy extensively enough to know that they could be reasonable in the absence of their demonic bloodlust . This could possibly explain why Dalaran could have dealings with the Horde , especially against a common enemy . Another factor to consider is that many Forsaken and blood elves were formerly citizens and even rulers of Dalaran . The city contains areas that are faction - specific in the same manner as Shattrath City is divided amongst the Aldor and Scryers . Certain parts of the city can only be reached by Alliance players ( Silver Enclave ) while others are strictly for Horde use ( Sunreaver ' s Sanctuary ) . The majority of the city remains neutral . Evidently , the blue dragonflight , led by , has declared war on all mortal magic - users . In response to this crisis , the city has been moved ( likely with the bulk of the Kirin Tor and most available resources ) to levitate high in the skies above Northrend . Today , Dalaran floats majestically above the Crystalsong Forest in defiance of the blue dragonflight as well as the forces of the in Icecrown , which are located to the north of its current position . Dalaran can be accessed via the teleport crystal in Violet Stand , Crystalsong Forest , north of the Dragonblight . A council — including , , and , with at its head — leads the new Dalaran in its war effort in Northrend . It acts as the neutral sanctuary city for the continent , similar to Shattrath City in Outland , and can be accessed by teleportation from the Violet Stand in the Crystalsong Forest or by flying mount . Like Stormwind ' s Stockade and Orgrimmar ' s Ragefire Chasm , Dalaran has its own instance within the city : the Violet Hold . Like Shattrath City , there are no class trainers ( with the notable exception of mage trainer s , given the city ' s history ) nor an Auction House for most players ; Patch 3 . 2 introduced an Auction House for Grand Master Engineer s with the addition of Steam Powered Auctioneers ( / ) to the Like Clockwork engineering shop . These auctioneers were later made available for all players in the Cataclysm expansion which also added class trainers in the faction specific areas . Grand Master trainers for each profession are available in the city . Portal s are located within the Alliance and Horde districts of the city , connecting to the factions ' capital cities and Shattrath City . There is a portal trainer at the Violet Gate , and there are battlemasters and an arena master in the Underbelly sewer system . In Cataclysm . According to blue poster Bornakk , Dalaran will remain in Northrend for the foreseeable future . The portals to the Alliance and Horde capitals will be removed in Patch 4 . 0 . 3 and replaced by class trainers . Auctioneers have also been added to the city . In Mists of Pandaria . The Kirin Tor is beginning to affiliate more with the Alliance , after the expulsion of the Sunreavers . In Patch 5 . 2 , Kirin Tor Offensive is introduced as an Alliance affiliated faction in opposition to the Horde affiliated Sunreaver Onslaught . In Legion . Following the terrible Battle on the Broken Shore , Dalaran moved briefly and could be found hovering over Deadwind Pass , which is where Karazhan still remains . In the effort to aid adventurers in their quest to defeat the Burning Legion by recovering the Pillars of Creation , Dalaran was moved again to float above the Broken Isles between Suramar City and the Broken Shore . Areas . Dalaran is split into several inter - faction zones , and 2 faction only zones . These are : Factions . There are 3 major faction s in Dalaran . These are : Previously , during The Third War , the city was also inhabited by the Sorcerers ' League and Mages ' Guild , two Alliance - aligned wizard - factions that fought alongside Kirin Tor against the Scourge . As they haven ' t been mentioned since then , they were possibly either destroyed or fused with Kirin Tor . Travel connections . Portals . Since " Wrath of the Lich King " went live , Dalaran has supplanted Shattrath City as the major hub for player activity , due to easy access to the capital cities in the southern continents , to Outland via Shattrath , and to the high level content in Northrend . Old location . A large , gaping crater has replaced the old location of Dalaran , with a weakened shield in place of the opaque dome , though there is some purplish smoke around the site — possibly residue from magic dome or the city ' s ( literally ) earth - shaking exit . Below can be found some of the changes and additions to Dalaran since its move .