Blades of the Fallen Prince < onlyinclude > < / onlyinclude > Frost death knight s bend the will of Frostmourne ’ s shattered remnants to their cold - hearted needs . Known as and , these dual devices of death are waiting to be infused with even greater power . They are twin one - handed runeblade s that serve as an artifact weapon , introduced with " " . Frost death knights must venture into Icecrown Citadel to retrieve the shards of Frostmourne to construct the blades . Lore . Crafted by the Burning Legion to corrupt the world of Azeroth , the soul - stealing runeblade Frostmourne was shattered by Ashbringer atop Icecrown Citadel . Countless souls were freed from the broken blade , but others were not so fortunate . Today the shards of Frostmourne can be recrafted and infused with even more power . However , the spirits still trapped within must first be subdued and bent to the wielder ' s will . In - Game Lore Book Blades of the Fallen Prince Before Icebringer and Frostreaper , there was only Frostmourne . The name alone is enough to chill the hearts of the living . Few weapons have shaped as much of modern history as this one . Frostmourne spilled the blood of kings and destroyed nations . The scars it inflicted on the world remain to this day . Icebringer and Frostreaper will always carry this history with them , but they will not follow in Frostmourne ' s path . They will make their own future . As one legacy ends , so another begins . Blades of the Fallen Prince , Part One The tales of Frostmourne are many , but they all trace back to the Lich King . The Burning Legion molded this spectral entity for one purpose : to spread a plague of undeath across Azeroth . Deep within the trackless wastes of Northrend , the Lich King began this dark task . His influence crept over the world like a shadow and manipulated mortal minds to serve him as agents of undeath . The Lich King also possessed otherworldly artifacts to achieve his goal . Among them was the demon - forged runeblade Frostmourne . The weapon could consume the souls of its victims , imprisoning their spirits within the blade . It could also remake the living into mindless undead servants . Yet to harness these extraordinary powers , the Lich King required a mortal vessel to wield Frostmourne . In the young human prince Arthas Menethil , he would find such a vessel . Blades of the Fallen Prince , Part Two Lordaeron was the first region crippled by the plague of undeath . The affliction claimed entire families and villages as it tore through the human kingdom . The victims found no peace in death . They rose from the grave as mindless undead creatures called the Scourge . Prince Arthas Menethil vowed to stop these horrors at any cost . He undertook ever more extreme measures in pursuit of this goal . Eventually , against the wishes of his closest allies , he embarked on a reckless search for the plague ' s source in Northrend . There , fate led him to Frostmourne . Though Arthas knew the runeblade was cursed , he believed he could use its powers for good . He was wrong . Upon taking up Frostmourne , Arthas succumbed to the Lich King ' s iron will . The prince ' s sanity unraveled , and the runeblade gorged on his soul . He became the first of the Lich King ' s death knights . Blades of the Fallen Prince , Part Three From the journal of Captain Falric , royal guard to Prince Arthas Menethil : " There is something unsettling about Frostmourne . Something cold tugs at my heart whenever I am near the weapon . But I cannot deny its power . No one can . Not after this last battle . " Arthas led us into the stronghold of that unholy creature called Mal ' Ganis . We could barely keep up with the prince . He never seemed to tire . Never seemed afraid . With that strange blade in his hand , he ripped through the undead . Even Mal ' Ganis stood no chance against the prince . " A great victory , but I am in no mood to celebrate . Arthas has been acting strange of late . After the battle , he disappeared into the icy wastes . For what reason , I cannot say . I will soon go to find him . " Blades of the Fallen Prince , Part Four From chapter three of The Fall of Lordaeron and the Scouring of the Eastweald , written by Royal Historian Archesonus : " Prince Arthas returned from Northrend to a hero ' s welcome . Bells tolled as the people of Lordaeron cheered their beloved prince . No one knew that he had lost his soul to Frostmourne . No one knew that he had slain his own soldiers in Northrend and converted them into undead . " In the capital city ' s throne room , Arthas knelt before his father and liege , King Terenas II . It was to be a reunion of joy , but it ended in tragedy . " The prince plunged Frostmourne through his father ' s heart . The blade drained Terenas ' s soul , as it would do to many others . With one stroke of the cursed weapon , Arthas destroyed more than a king . He destroyed an entire nation . All of Lordaeron soon fell to the dark prince and his Scourge . " Blades of the Fallen Prince , Part Five As Arthas and the Scourge swept over Lordaeron , panic seized the living . Though many humans gave in to despair , some looked to the holy paladins for salvation . Uther the Lightbringer was the greatest of these righteous warriors . If anyone had the power to stop the fallen prince , it was him . In the city of Andorhal , the two met in a battle that would decide Lordaeron ' s fate . Frostmourne clashed with Uther ' s legendary Hammer of the Lightbringer . Each weapon blow erupted in a shower of warring energies . It was a struggle between Light and darkness , between life and death . Death prevailed . Frostmourne cleaved through Uther ' s gilded armor and devoured his virtuous soul . And with that , Arthas extinguished the last ray of hope that remained for Lordaeron ' s people . Blades of the Fallen Prince , Part Six The list of Frostmourne ' s victims is long . Nearly everyone killed by the runeblade suffered the same dark fate . The weapon feasted on their broken souls and locked them within Frostmourne itself . Ranger - General Sylvanas Windrunner was an exception . When the Scourge invaded the high elf kingdom of Quel ' Thalas , she led a fierce resistance . Her brilliant tactics stymied Arthas and his unholy forces at every turn . She fought with the courage and valor of a true hero . When at last Sylvanas fell in battle , she did not receive the hero ' s death she deserved . Arthas punished the ranger - general for her stubborn opposition . He used Frostmourne to rip Sylvanas ' s soul from her body , and then he transformed her spirit into an incorporeal banshee . Blades of the Fallen Prince , Part Seven The death of the high elf king Anasterian Sunstrider , as recounted by Magister Hathorel : " That rabid dog Arthas came to Quel ' Thalas for one reason : to steal the power of our glorious Sunwell . We did everything to stop him . Everything . And still Arthas and his foul army marched on . " It was in those final moments that our great king , Anasterian , appeared . He bore the legendary blade Felo ' melorn . Dead and living alike stopped and watched as Anasterian dueled Arthas . " Old though he was , my king held his own . He pushed Arthas to his limits . But even Felo ' melorn was no match for Frostmourne . Arthas cleaved Anasterian ' s ancient blade in two . Then , with a single ruthless strike , the death knight ran my king through . " I wanted to fight on , but I knew in my heart that it was all over . Everyone did . " Blades of the Fallen Prince , Part Eight Not even the mighty Sapphiron was safe from Frostmourne ' s bite . This wise blue dragon was a master of arcane magic and one of the greatest of his kind who had ever lived . For many ages , he and his loyal draconic servants stood guard over a trove of extraordinary relics in Northrend . It was these relics that drew Arthas ' s attention to Sapphiron . The death knight and his Scourge minions invaded the dragon ' s lair to pilfer its treasures . The battle that followed would become one of legend . Sapphiron and his fellow dragons unleashed the full fury of their arcane might on Arthas , but he would not be denied his prize . The death knight overwhelmed his ancient foes and slew them one by one . Calling on Frostmourne ' s powers , Arthas then transformed Sapphiron into an undead frost wyrm . In his new form , Sapphiron would become one of the Scourge ' s most terrifying weapons . Blades of the Fallen Prince , Part Nine Few crossed blades with Arthas and lived to tell the tale , but the demon Illidan Stormrage was one of them . With a mighty army at his back , Illidan stormed across Northrend to destroy the Lich King . He advanced through sleet and snow toward Icecrown Citadel , frozen capital of the Scourge . Upon finally reaching his destination , Illidan found the death knight Arthas and the undead barring his way . As living and dead waged war upon each other , Illidan and Arthas grappled in single combat . Armed with the mighty Warglaives of Azzinoth , Illidan assailed the death knight from all sides . The keening of their blades splintered the ice and shook the halls of the Lich King ' s citadel . Though evenly matched , Arthas gained the upper hand . Frostmourne tore through Illidan ' s flesh , nearly killing him . The demon escaped with his life , but his wound would never truly heal . Years later , it would still ache from Frostmourne ' s icy touch . Blades of the Fallen Prince , Part Ten With Illidan defeated and his army routed , Arthas took the final step to seal his damnation . He became one with the Lich King , his mind and soul merging with the powerful spectral entity . In that moment , Arthas the death knight was no more . He became the avatar of death itself . Arthas < nowiki > < / nowiki > had bested all of his adversaries , and now his powers had increased by orders of magnitude . It seemed that none could stand against this new Lich King , but there was one who did . His name was Tirion Fordring , and he wielded a holy blade known as the Ashbringer . At the Second Battle for Light ' s Hope Chapel , Tirion confronted Arthas and showed the world that he was not invincible . With a mighty blow from the Ashbringer , he forced the Scourge ruler to retreat . It was not the last time Frostmourne would clash with the Ashbringer . When next the two blades met , only one would remain unbroken . Blades of the Fallen Prince , Part Eleven No king rules forever . Atop Icecrown Citadel , Arthas would learn that lesson . To destroy the Lich King and his Scourge once and for all , Azeroth ' s nations launched a massive campaign into Northrend . The bloody war culminated in a siege on Icecrown Citadel itself . Armed with the Ashbringer , Tirion Fordring led some of the world ' s greatest champions deep into the stronghold . In the frenzied assault that followed , Tirion once again met Arthas in battle . The Ashbringer crashed against Frostmourne , steel howling like a bitter winter wind . After a single bone - shaking strike , Tirion did what so many other great heroes had failed to do . He shattered Frostmourne . He ended Arthas ' s reign . The breaking of Frostmourne unleashed many of the souls trapped within the runeblade . It also freed Arthas from the sword ' s domination . According to Tirion Fordring , the fallen prince ' s last words were : " I see . . . only darkness . . . before me . . . " References . < onlyinclude > < / onlyinclude >