Stormrage Stormrage is the name of a " World of Warcraft " novel by Richard A . Knaak . The novel centers around Malfurion Stormrage ; Christie Golden confirmed it was definitely not about Illidan at BlizzCon 2008 , and Chris Metzen and Micky Neilson said Malfurion would play a major role at New York Comic Con 2009 . The storyline explores the corruption of the Emerald Dream , and takes place some time before the cataclysm but after the Lich King was defeated ( in a later scene in the book , Sharlindra says " She [ Sylvanas , talking in her sleep ] mentions the traitor Varimathras , slain by her , and the Lich King , finally defeated ! " ) In an excerpt released , it is revealed that the minds of the entire town of Goldshire have been trapped in the Emerald Nightmare . Description . When the world of Azeroth was young , the god - like titan s brought order to it by reshaping its lands and seas . Throughout their great work , they followed a magnificent design for what they envisioned Azeroth would become . Although the titans departed Azeroth long ago , that design endures to this day . It is known as the Emerald Dream , a lush and savagely primal version of Azeroth . WORLD OF WARCRAFT Many are the mysteries surrounding the Emerald Dream and its reclusive guardians , the green dragonflight . In times past , druid s have entered the Dream to monitor the ebb and flow of life on Azeroth in their never - ending quest to maintain the delicate balance of nature . However , not all dreams are pleasant ones . Recently the Emerald Nightmare , an area of corruption within the Emerald Dream , began growing in size , transforming the Dream into a realm of unimaginable horror . Green dragons have been unexpectedly caught up in the Nightmare , emerging from it with shattered minds and twisted bodies . Druids who have entered the darkening Dream lately have found it difficult - - sometimes even impossible - - to escape . Nor are these the Nightmare ' s only victims : more and more people are being affected . Even Malfurion Stormrage , first and foremost of the druids on Azeroth , may have fallen victim to this growing threat . As uncontrollable nightmares spread across the world , a desperate quest begins to find and free the archdruid . Soon nature ' s enemies will learn the true meaning of the name STORMRAGE Plot . The opening chapters follow various characters , and the nightmares and visions they experience . Some , such as Krasus , and the townspeople of Goldshire , are unable to awake . These nightmares are attributed to the spreading of the corruption of the Emerald Dream , both within the Dream itself and into Azeroth as well . Through these nightmares and visions , Tyrande Whisperwind learns of the impending death of Malfurion , who has not returned from and has been out of reach within the Emerald Dream , as are all the others who have recently walked it , including Ysera and the green dragonflight . As a result of this a convocation of druids is called by Fandral Staghelm on Teldrassil , where he reveals that Teldrassil is threatened by the Dream ' s corruption , and that the druids ' efforts to heal Teldrassil will yield to them a way to save Malfurion . In attendance at the convocation is Broll Bearmantle , who has received visions of Teldrassil ' s corruption and death . Tyrande asks the druids to visit Malfurion ' s sleeping body in Moonglade to address the situation . Fandral does not take the reports of nightmares and endless sleep spreading throughout the world as linked to Teldrassil ' s corruption or to Malfurion ' s dire state , and insists on the healing of Teldrassil as the solution . He had initially intended to use the Idol of Remulos to heal the Tree , but Remulos himself forbid it . Tyrande is not convinced by Fandral ' s plan , and , desperate to save Malfurion , asks Broll to travel to Bough Shadow , in Ashenvale , where there is a portal that enters the Emerald Dream . He steals the Idol of Remulos from Fandral ' s chest in Cenarion Enclave and Tyrande secretly accompanies him to Bough Shadow after meeting in Auberdine , leaving Shandris Feathermoon charged with ruling Darnassus until her return . Thura , an orc woman , is now the bearer of the enchanted wooden axe once owned by Broxigar . She has been receiving visions which depict Malfurion betraying Broxigar in the middle of battle leading to his death . As a result , she goes on a hunt to find Malfurion and kill him . Within the Emerald Dream , Malfurion is slowly transforming into a tree against his will by the work of someone referred to only as " the Nightmare Lord . " He is somehow using Malfurion ' s druidic powers to spread the corruption throughout the world , but Malfurion can only see shadows and hear his voice , and so does not understand who the perpetrator is , or how to escape . Malfurion is actually the one behind the terrifying or alarming visions the other characters have been receiving - he has been trying to draw them into the Dream to help him . They are his only means of communication without alerting the Nightmare Lord . Along the way , Tyrande , Broll and Lucan Foxblood plan to enter the dream and are confronted by Eranikus who is reluctant to help them . He is despondent about the growing corruption and sees any plan to fight against it as futile . They leave him behind to enter the dream and are attacked by a corrupted green dragon . They manage to escape into the dream , where they find that the corruption has resulted in the death and decay of large swaths of the Dream , with many of the inhabitants of the dream , including elementals , Ancients of War , and dreamforms of druids , having become corrupt and hostile as well . They must fight against them as they search for Malfurion , and the origin of the everpresent shadow of a tree and the vision of an mysterious fortress built at the heart of the Dream . Eranikus , who despite complaining and despairing , aids them from time to time , explains that nothing ought to have been built there . Broll and Tyrande fall victim to various nightmares as a result of the spreading corruption meant to throw them off the path . This requires that they go in and out of the Dream as the situation requires , with the help of Lucan , who was born inside the Emerald Dream and has some power to bring others in and out at will ( though where they end up on either side is unpredictable ) . Inside , they manage to fight against the corruption and its turned denizens . Thura gets a hold of Lucan and finds her way to Malfurion . She destroys his tree form with Brox ' s axe , which was enchanted by Cenarius and thus had the power to do so , freeing Malfurion in the process . Outside the dream , those afflicted by the sleeping sickness have begun to attack the waking around the world , including in Stormwind and Orgrimmar . Those waking who stand against them in the ensuing battles are forced to kill their own in order to survive , and inside the dreamforms of those afflicted continue on as corrupted . But finally , with Eranikus ' s help , they make their way to the heart of the dream where they discover that the shadow of the tree was cast by the Nightmare Lord himself . Malfurion finds out when the tree is shown to have blood for sap that it is actually his nemesis from the War of the Ancients Lord Xavius . This is the origin of the mysterious fortress - it was an apparition of Xavius ' s castle in Azshara before the Sundering . He initially survived Malfurion ' s spell transforming him into a tree during the War of the Ancients , and has since entered the Dream in this form and taken on its corruption . Eranikus gives his life in the heroes ' defense , and with the help of Ysera , Malfurion destroys Lord Xavius yet again . Hamuul Runetotem and Broll discover that Staghelm has actually been tricked into believing his dead son Valstann was alive again , when it was really a vision given to him by the Nightmare Lord . Through this vision , he made Fandral graft a branch of Xavius ' s tree form onto Teldrassil , which is the source of its corruption . He has also been the one keeping Malfurion from leaving the dream , using morrowgrain . Fandral is taken to Moonglade to recover after he is discovered and the branch broken off . Now that they have destroyed the ostensible corruptor of the Dream , the sleeping sickness fades , and the sleepers ( who weren ' t killed ) wake up . Malfurion promises never to leave Tyrande again , and the two get married in Darnassus , with many Alliance nobles and even Alexstrasza and Ysera in attendance . However , though Xavius was ruling over the Nightmare , it is strongly suggested that a much larger and unseen malevolent force is behind even his actions , with the implication that the Old Gods are responsible . Characters . Minor characters . " Note : These characters were only mentioned or had little to no role during the story . "