War of the Ancients ( WC3 account ) The War of the Ancients was first referred to in the story of Warcraft III , where it depicts the first titanic battle between the Burning Legion and the Night Elves , also known as the " First Burning Legion Invasion " . Below is the original account of the war as given in the Manual . The Kaldorei and the Well of Eternity . Ten thousand years before the orc s and human s clashed in their First War , the world of Azeroth cradled only one massive continent surrounded by the infinite , raging seas . That land mass , known as Kalimdor , was home to a number of disparate races and creatures , all vying for survival amongst the savage elements of the waking world . At the dark continent ’ s center was a mysterious lake of incandescent energies . The lake , which would later be called the Well of Eternity , was the true heart of the world ’ s magic and natural power . Drawing its energies from the infinite Great Dark beyond the world , the Well acted as a mystical fount , sending its potent energies out across the world to nourish life in all its wondrous forms . In time , a primitive tribe of nocturnal humanoids cautiously made their way to the edges of the mesmerizing , enchanted lake . The feral , nomadic humanoids , drawn by the Well ’ s strange energies , built crude homes upon its tranquil shores . Over time , the Well ’ s cosmic power affected the strange tribe , making them strong , wise and virtually immortal . The tribe adopted the name Kaldorei , which meant “ children of the stars ” in their native tongue . To celebrate their budding society , they constructed great structures and temples around the lake ’ s periphery . The Kaldorei , or night elves as they would later be known , worshipped the moon goddess , Elune , and believed that she slept within the Well ’ s shimmering depths during the daylight hours . The early night elf priest s and seers studied the Well with an insatiable curiosity , driven to plumb its untold secrets and power . As their society grew , the night elves explored the breadth of Kalimdor and encountered its myriad denizens . The only creatures that gave them pause were the ancient and powerful dragon s . Though the great serpentine beasts were often reclusive , they did much to safeguard the known lands from potential threats . The night elves believed that the dragons held themselves to be the protectors of the world , and that they and their secrets were best left alone . In time , the night elves ’ curiosity led them to meet and befriend a number of powerful entities , not the least of which was Cenarius , a mighty demi - god of the primordial forestlands . The great - hearted Cenarius grew fond of the inquisitive night elves and spent a great deal of time teaching them about the natural world . The tranquil Kaldorei developed a strong empathy for the living forests of Kalimdor and reveled in the harmonious balance of nature . Yet , as the seemingly endless ages passed , the night elves ’ civilization expanded both territorially and culturally . Their temples , roads , and dwelling places stretched across the breadth of the dark continent . Azshara , the night elves ’ beautiful and gifted Queen , built an immense , wondrous palace on the Well ’ s shore that housed her favored servitors within its bejeweled halls . Her servitors , whom she called the Quel ’ dorei or “ high - borne , ” doted on her every command and believed themselves to be greater than the rest of their lower - caste brethren . Though Queen Azshara was loved equally by all of her people , the high - borne were secretly hated by the jealous masses . Sharing the priests ’ curiosity towards the Well of Eternity , Azshara ordered the educated high - borne to plumb its secrets and reveal its true purpose in the world . The high - borne buried themselves in their work and studied the Well ceaselessly . In time they developed the ability to manipulate and control the Well ’ s cosmic energies . As their reckless experiments progressed , the high - borne found that they could use their newfound powers to either create or destroy at their leisure . The hapless high - borne had stumbled upon primitive magic and were now resolved to devote themselves to its mastery . Although they agreed that magic was inherently dangerous if handled irresponsibly , Azshara and her highborne began to practice their spellcraft with reckless abandon . Cenarius and many of the wizened night elf scholars warned that only calamity would result from toying with the clearly volatile arts of magic . But , Azshara and her followers stubbornly continued to expand their burgeoning powers . As their powers grew , a distinct change came over Azshara and the high - borne . The haughty , aloof upper class became increasingly callous and cruel towards their fellow night elves . A dark , brooding pall veiled Azshara ’ s once entrancing beauty . She began to withdraw from her loving subjects and refused to interact with any but her trusted high - borne priests . A young , brazen scholar named Malfurion Stormrage , who had spent much of his time studying the Well ’ s effects , began to suspect that a terrible power was corrupting the high - borne and his beloved Queen . Though he could not conceive the evil that was to come , he knew that the night elves ’ lives would soon be changed forever … The War of the Ancients . 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 ripples of energy streamed out into the Twisting Nether and were felt by terrible alien minds . Sargeras , the Great Enemy of all life , the Ravager 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 , demonic army , known as the Burning Legion , and made his way towards the unsuspecting world of Azeroth . The Legion , comprised of a million screaming demons , all ripped from the far corners of the universe , roiled and burned at the thought of 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 high - borne 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 high - borne aided their Queen in opening a great , swirling portal 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 warlock s called down the searing Infernal s that crashed , like hellish meteors , into the graceful spires of Kalimdor ’ s temples . The Doomguard , a band of burning , bloodletting killers , marched across Kalimdor ’ s fields slaughtering everyone in their path . Even 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 . The Sundering of the World . It fell to the young scholar , 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 young , beautiful priestess , Tyrande , agreed to accompany the brothers in the name of Elune . Though both Malfurion and Illidan shared a secret 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 himself and his overwhelming hunger to tap the Well ’ s energies once again . However , with Tyrande ’ s patient support , he was able to contain himself and help his brother find the reclusive demi - god , Cenarius . Cenarius , who dwelt within the sacred Moonglade s of the distant Mount Hyjal , agreed to help the night elves by finding the ancient dragons 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 colleagues realized that the Legion could not be defeated by martial strength alone . As the titanic battle raged around Azshara ’ s capital city , 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 high - borne 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 shocked by the rash notion . Yet Tyrande , seeing the wisdom of Malfurion ’ s theory , convinced Cenarius and their dragon 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 high - borne of Malfurion ’ s plan . Due to the madness brought on by his addiction and the stinging resentment towards his brother ’ s affair with 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 high - borne in the midst of their final dark incantation . The raging communal spell created an unstable vortex of power within the Well ’ s raging 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 raging powers . Tyrande , attempting to attack Azshara from behind , was caught off guard by the Queen ’ s high - borne guardsmen . Though she vanquished the guardsmen , Tyrande suffered grievous wounds at their hands . At seeing his love fall , Malfurion went into a murderous rage and resolved to end Azshara ’ s life . As the battle raged inside and outside of 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 finally 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 earth and blotted out the skies . . . Aftermath . 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 … The few night elves that survived the horrific explosion rallied together on crudely made rafts and slowly made their way to the only landmass in sight . Somehow , by the graces of Elune , Malfurion , Tyrande and Cenarius had survived the Great Sundering . The weary heroes agreed to lead their fellow survivors and establish a new home for their people . As they journeyed in silence , they surveyed the wreckage of their world and realized that their passions had wrought the destruction all around them . Though Sargeras and his Legion had been ripped from the world by the Well ’ s destruction , Malfurion and his companions were left to ponder the terrible cost of victory . It was clear that Azshara and her elite high - borne followers had been smashed to the bottom of the raging sea . Still , there were many high - borne amongst the survivors who made their way to the shores of the new land . Though Malfurion mistrusted the highbornes ’ motivations , he was satisfied that they could cause no real mischief without the Well ’ s energies . . . Other Accounts . An expanded version of the War of the Ancients was given on the Official Site as part of its History of Warcraft , and scattered throughout the World of Warcraft as in - game books . See , The War of the Ancients , The Waking World and the Well of Eternity and The Sundering of the World . See , War of the Ancients ( WoW account ) . Two more versions of the war were described in the War of the Ancients Trilogy , the 3 books by Richard A . Knaak . One version told of events that occurred before history was altered . The second version was created by 3 characters from the present time traveling back in time 10 , 000 years ago , and witnessing first hand the events of the war unfolding , and eventually being responsible for changing key aspects of it . " Blizz ard appears to consider the War of the Ancients Trilogy as an official , authoritative source of ' true ' history , as most articles currently up on the WarCraft Encyclopedia directly reference events in that version , and characters only found in that version have articles there . " Please see War of the Ancients ( novel account ) for more info . Other sources such as the RPG , and World of Warcraft sometimes expand on the War of the Ancients , as well , by telling stories of lesser known events that occurred during the War .