Darkspear tribe The Darkspear tribe ( aka Darkspear clan ) are a tribe of jungle troll s . Members of the tribe belong to the Darkspear Trolls faction of the Horde . Introduction . During Thrall ' s Exodus of the Horde from Lordaeron , the Horde rescued the Darkspear tribe of jungle trolls from the mysterious Sea Witch . The Darkspear trolls felt they owed Thrall and the orcs a great debt and so allied themselves with the Horde in gratitude . Their relationship with the noble orcs and tauren has begun to change the Darkspear trolls ' savage natures . Darkspear trolls , however , deny their dark legacy . The Horde has taught them camaraderie , restraint and , to a lesser extent , kindness . History . As tribal rivalries erupted throughout the former Gurubashi Empire , the Darkspear tribe found themselves driven from their homeland in Stranglethorn Vale . Having settled in what are believed today to be the Lost Isles , the tribe soon found themselves entangled in a conflict with a band of murloc s . Their fate seemed sealed until the orcish Warchief Thrall and his band of newly freed orcs took shelter on their island home . Controlled by a Sea Witch , a group of rampaging murlocs captured the Darkspears ' leader Sen ' jin , along with Thrall and several other orcs and trolls . Thrall managed to free himself and others , but was ultimately unable to save the trolls ' leader . Although Sen ' jin was sacrificed to the Sea Witch , he was able to reveal a vision he had in which Thrall would lead the Darkspear from the island . After returning to the island , Thrall and his followers managed to fend off further attacks by the Sea Witch and her murloc minions , and set sail for Kalimdor once again . Under the new leadership of Vol ' jin , the Darkspear swore allegiance to Thrall ' s Horde and followed him to Kalimdor . Now considered enemies by all other trolls except the Revantusk and the Zandalari , the Darkspear are held in contempt to this day . Yet , the Darkspear have not forgotten being driven from their ancestral homes and this animosity is eagerly returned , especially towards the other jungle trolls . Having reached the orc ' s new homeland , Durotar , the trolls carved out another home for themselves — this time among the Echo Isles on the eastern shores of the new orc kingdom . However , with the coming of Kul Tiras and its navy , the Darkspear were forced to retreat inland under the onslaught of the misguided commander Daelin Proudmoore . The trolls , fighting alongside their Horde brethren , defeated the enemy and reclaimed their new homeland . Shortly thereafter , a witch doctor by the name of Zalazane began using dark magic to take the minds of his fellow Darkspear . As his army of mindless followers grew , Vol ' jin ordered the free trolls to evacuate , and Zalazane took control of the Echo Isles . The Darkspear have since settled on the nearby shore , naming their new village after their old leader , Sen ' jin . From Sen ' jin Village they , along with their allies , send forces to battle Zalazane and his enslaved army . Philosophies . Among the Darkspears , two philosophies hold equal sway . One focusing on strict loyalty with the horde and their customs , and the other keeping very close ties with their traditional religious and arcane practices . The Darkspears who were present when Thrall saved their tribe hold a great respect for the orc leader . Thrall ' s spirituality and strength intrigued them , and the trolls decided that Thrall ' s teachings held merit . These trolls see shamanism as a way to improve their race . They choose to live in the future . They enjoy their alliance with the Horde and support their new allies by revering what they revere . Female trolls hold no place in regular troll society . Male trolls consider them mates , nothing more — though they honor female trolls who prove themselves in battle . Tauren ( and orcs , due to a recent decree from Thrall ) value their females as more than mates , and allow them to rise to positions of power . Female Darkspears find this concept interesting , and some choose to live in the future because they sense it affords them greater opportunities than standard troll culture . Making a choice and implementing that choice are two different things , though . The Darkspears who try to live in the future struggle to reconcile their old habits with these new ways . Some come closer to the target than others , but what marks these trolls is their willingness to try . Trolls who live in the future pursue the paths related to orcish culture such as Shamanism and Arcane study . The Darkspears were in big trouble , and then Thrall saved them . The tribe swore loyalty to Thrall and joined the Horde , but some still cling to the old ways . The Darkspear value their elaborate , structured culture , but they know the Horde does not approve their alien rituals and customs . These trolls decided to do what it takes . They maintain the façade of embracing orc persisted shamanism and civility in their religious practices , but many still practice traditional savage voodoo traditions in secret , or lessen their savage practices , easing tension with non trolls . The Darkspears who have not entirely discarded their tie to voodoo don ’ t see themselves as betraying their Horde allies . They serve Thrall with utter loyalty , but remain pragmatic . Should the Horde fail the trolls , they have their ancestral faith to fall back on . Trolls who do what it takes also favor the witch doctor class , but carefully avoid the darker aspects of the calling ( at least when other races are watching ) . Loa . The Darkspear tribe , although never referenced to or talked about , still worship many of the same Loa that they did when part of the Gurubashi empire . They also worship Bwonsamdi , the guardian of the dead . Notable Darkspears . Darkspear trolls . One tribe of jungle trolls was forced to overcome its prejudices when it encountered the orc Warchief Thrall , and his mighty Horde . The trolls of the Darkspear tribe , long since exiled from their ancestral lands in Stranglethorn Vale , were nearly destroyed by a band of aquatic murloc s , but Thrall and the Horde managed to save them . In return the grateful trolls swore an oath of eternal allegiance to the Horde . Led by the cunning Shadow Hunter , Vol ' jin , the Darkspear trolls now make their home in Durotar along with their orcish allies . Their village , named after their fallen tribal elder Sen ' jin , lies along the eastern coast of the harsh , rocky land . The Darkspear tribe also occupies tracks within the nearby jungles of the Echo Isles . As part of the Horde , the trolls have extended their loyalty to the mighty Tauren , but they have little trust for the manipulative undead , whom they believe will visit only misery and strife upon their allies . It is not explicitly known what they think of the blood elves , but since the elves are addicted to and freely practice demonic magic , it is likely that the trolls do not think much higher of them than they do of the Forsaken . Island Trolls . Island Trolls was the name , which later was retcon ned to Darkspear tribe , given to a group of troll s in the " " demo . The missions involving them were not included in the retail release ; however , they did reappear in " " as a custom mission . They were forced out of Stranglethorn Vale due to conflicts with the other troll tribe s in the area , and had settled on a " lone island " amongst the Darkspear islands near the Maelstrom . Thrall helped save the tribe from murloc attacks and the Sea Witch — during which Sen ' jin was killed . Sen ' jin was granted a vision which showed that Thrall would lead the Island Trolls off the island and escape certain death . Appearance . Darkspear trolls have skin colors that range from pale , ghostly blue to bruised purple to sickly green . Their skin color is usually just one of those three colors , although sometimes there are trolls with mixed skin pigments but this is not so popular . Male trolls are hunched over in WoW and generally have long , protruding tusks that grow from under their upper or lower lip . Male trolls also have rather long noses and very messy , matted hair . Female trolls , on the other hand , stand up straight and erect in WoW , have rather small or squashed - in noses , and usually have hair in a wild updo or strewn across their chest in thick braids . Classes . Troll characters can play as a priest , rogue , warrior , mage , hunter , death knight , druid , warlock , shaman , or monk . Cataclysm . Long exiled from the Echo Isles by Zalazane , Vol ' jin waged war on the evil sorcerer and through a series of skirmishes , the tribe regained control over the Echo Isles , instead of sharing the Valley of Trials in Durotar with the orcs .