Wildhammer clan The Wildhammer clan is a dwarf clan currently centered mainly in the Hinterlands and Northeron although many others can be found in Kalimdor and Outland as well . Now , as part of the Alliance , the wild dwarves hold the Horde as enemies . The Wildhammer dwarves are hill dwarves or mountain dwarves . They have founded three kingdoms so far in their history . Members of the clan consist of race of dwarves known as wildhammer dwarves , also known as wild dwarves ( and Aerie dwarves ) . They have a legendary reputation as being fierce and stealthy . Overview . Wildhammer dwarves are feral and untamed , prone to revelry , shamanism and daring acts of bravery . They eschew technological gadgets in favor of nature magic and straightforward weapons , including their famous stormhammers . Wildhammer dwarves are famous across Azeroth for their unique relationship with gryphons . They treat these noble creatures as equals rather than mounts or pets . The gryphons respond to their handlers ’ respect , and are steadfast and resolute in return . This close relationship produces the most famous Wildhammer dwarves : the gryphon riders , heroes of the Second and Third Wars . Wildhammer dwarves are fearless warriors and unswerving opponents of evil . They take to the skies astride gryphon s to combat vile creatures such as harpies , black drake s , and unnatural contraptions like goblin zeppelin s . Slightly xenophobic , Wildhammers are content to deal almost exclusively with gryphons and nature spirits . They are distant , even distrustful , toward members of other races . Despite their insular nature , Wildhammer dwarves do not hesitate to come to the aid of their allies when the need arises . The fanatical archaeological fervor that has seized the Ironforge dwarves does not fall upon the Wildhammers . Perhaps they are descended from these mysterious titans — but what does that matter ? Wildhammer dwarves live in the present and do not dwell in the past . Their ambivalence about their titan ancestry denies them the power that their Ironforge brethren have discovered , but the Wildhammers make up for it with bravery , determination and wild spirits . History . Like all dwarves , the Wildhammer clan are descendants of the earthen . Just prior to the War of the Three Hammers , the Wildhammer clan , ruled by Thane Khardros Wildhammer , inhabited the foothills and crags around the base of Ironforge . The Wildhammer clan was unsuccessful in wresting control of Ironforge from the Bronzebeard and Dark Iron clans . Khardros and his Wildhammer warriors traveled north through the barrier gates of Dun Algaz , and founded their own kingdom within the distant peak of Grim Batol . There , the Wildhammers thrived and rebuilt their stores of treasure . Thaurissan and his Dark Irons vowed revenge against Ironforge . Thaurissan and his sorceress wife , Modgud , launched a two - pronged assault against both Ironforge and Grim Batol . As Modgud confronted the enemy warriors , she used her powers to strike fear into their hearts . Shadows moved at her command , and dark things crawled up from the depths of the earth to stalk the Wildhammers in their own halls . Eventually Modgud broke through the gates and laid siege to the fortress itself . The Wildhammers fought desperately , Khardros himself wading through the roiling masses to slay the sorceress queen . With their queen lost , the Dark Irons fled before the fury of the Wildhammers . Once the immediate Dark Iron threat was eliminated , the Wildhammers returned home to Grim Batol . However , the death of the Modgud had left an evil stain on the mountain fortress , and the Wildhammers found it uninhabitable . Khardros took his people north towards the lands of Lordaeron , settling within in a mountainous region of Northeron and the Aerie Peaks ; and in the lush forests of the Hinterlands . Later , the Wildhammers crafted the city of Aerie Peak in the Hinterlands , where the Wildhammers grew closer to nature and even bonded with the mighty gryphons of the area . World of Warcraft . In the game , a Wildhammer clan currently makes its home at Aerie Peak in the Hinterlands . The most immediate threat to their security comes from the east in the form of the Witherbark trolls and Vilebranch trolls . They are most famous for riding into battle atop Gryphons , while wielding powerful Stormhammers . Wildhammer dwarves have a number of clans , each ruled by a thane . The strongest thane rules Aerie Peak . Burning Crusade . In Outland ' s Shadowmoon Valley , Kurdran Wildhammer , chief thane during the Second War and commander of the gryphon riders of the Alliance Expedition to Draenor , founded Wildhammer Stronghold as part of the bulwark against the Burning Legion . Kurdran is thane of the Wildhammer dwarves in Outland . Cataclysm . In , the Wildhammer Clan has been featured in new settlements in the Twilight Highlands as well as a new battleground called the Twin Peaks , where they will battle against the Dragonmaw clan , who has rejoined the Horde . Falstad Wildhammer resides in Ironforge as part of the Council of Three Hammers . Wildhammer Clan faction is reintroduced with Cataclysm . The Wildhammer Clan Quartermaster ( Craw MacGraw ) can be found at Twilight Highlands zone in the town of Thundermar - North Central of the map . Members of the Wildhammer clan have also been admitted into the Earthen Ring , with the shaman class becoming available to dwarf players . Legion . During the time when the Burning Legion invaded Azeroth the third time , nearly all of the Wildhammer Dwarves had to scatter and flee from the Twilight Highlands when the land was overrun by the Burning Legion . Stormcaller Mylra noticed what had happened and would tell it to certain adventurer s . Culture . The Wildhammer dwarves live up to their names , as their life on the high crags caused them to focus on nature . Their communion with nature and their gryphons leads them to follow a shamanistic path rather than that of the Holy Light . A Wildhammer paladin or priest of the Holy Light is about as rare as an Ironforge druid . They just follow their own paths . In Fact many Wildhammer dwarves leave home in search of adventure at a young age . The 200 or so years since the civil war has changed their looks in a surprising way . Life outside a mountain ’ s peak is not gentle . Constant exposure to the elements heavily tans and weathers the Wildhammer dwarves ’ skin . They dress in heavy skins and furs to protect them from the weather and the wind while riding their gryphons . In terms of their communities , Wildhammer children are exposed to fledgling gryphons at a young age . Those who show an affinity for caring for them find one to raise , while others choose another path in life . But the first path choice is always that of the highest honor , the gryphon rider . They are a story - loving culture ; the shaman and priests of the Wildhammer dwarves entertain the people on cold nights with tales of past battles , instructions on gryphon handling , and myths of nature and the Earth Mother . They have three community rituals per year : one holiday where all the marriages are performed , one to honor all children born that year , and one to mourn that year ’ s dead . Seems a bit long to wait if you ’ re born ( or die ) at the wrong time of year , but it ’ s efficient and has a tendency to strengthen the community as a whole . Children born in the same year grow to be strong friends , as they celebrate their births all on the same day . Wildhammer dwarves commonly marry someone from their same birth year . The climate is ideal for brewing good , dark beer with some weight to it , to keep you warm on the cold , windy nights . Their other beers are of less quality , and the Wildhammers only export their dark beer . One of their stouts is known as Gryphon ’ s Tears . The interesting thing about the Wildhammer dwarves is that they probably have been the only race to maintain the same standard of living after the Third War . The dwarves in Aerie Peak live as they did before the war , untouched by the horrors that happened on the rest of the continent . They have suffered a bit as their suppliers in the towns of Lordaeron are gone , but they still fly south to Stormwind and Ironforge to trade . This frequent contact with the Alliance keeps them abreast of what ’ s happening in the constant struggle with the Scourge and remaining Burning Legion ; they have even taken some refugees back to Aerie Peak , attempting to do what they can to strengthen the Alliance to what it once was . They prefer , however , to stay out of conflicts until the Alliance calls upon them . They do not want to muck about with politics , and as long as no one threatens their land or their livelihoods , they are content . They do rise to fight for an ally , and the Alliance is stronger because of them . However , calling in Wildhammer reinforcements certainly isn ’ t enough to win a war ; they ’ re great gryphon riders , but they ’ re uncomfortable with technology , and their population wanes . The few Wildhammer dwarves in Kalimdor are the most affected by the turmoil of the war . They care not for the walls of Theramore , and found no issues to stop them from simply launching into the air and traveling north , avoiding the considerable obstacles , beasts and Horde members on the ground . They had founded two kingdoms in the past 250 years . One more wouldn ’ t matter . To their credit , before they left , they met with the night elf and Ironforge dwarf delegations in Theramore . The Ironforge dwarves had already started excavating Bael Modan , and the Wildhammer dwarves wanted to know if it would be suitable for settlement . The Ironforge Dwarves thought not , as the Wildhammer preferred colder climates and Bael Modan was baked by the sun . They also expressed polite reservations about the mountain being settled by those who did not share their reverence when it came to the mysteries of the Titans buried there . The night elves agreed to allow the Wildhammer dwarves into their southern mountain peaks , and the Wildhammer dwarves report to the night elves anything out of the ordinary they see from their vantage point . Most think that dwarves and elves working so well together would be the first odd thing the Wildhammer dwarves would report . But life in the post - Third War world is different . Wildhammer dwarves have a new home in Ashenvale . It ’ s bitterly cold on their peaks , and they construct homes that are nearly always part cave and part building . Although they do not claim the same love for engineering and architecture as ironforge dwarves have , their constructions are admittedly impressive . They have a wooded area where they raise their gryphons . The fearsome birdlike creatures prefer the open air , but the natural flying beasts of the land , the hippogryphs and the wyverns , are sensitive to anything intruding on their territory ; so the Wildhammer dwarves are careful to raise their gryphons where they can be shielded to keep them from the sharp eyes of would be attackers . Some Wildhammer dwarves in Kalimdor have also been studying with the night elves to learn more about Elune , the moon goddess . Faith . Wildhammer dwarves have close ties to nature . Their society revolves around the respect of nature ; many Wildhammer dwarves are shamans , who their society regard as important religious figures . Many Wild dwarves attempt to understand the meaning of the world in the own way whether it be through studying the Elements or going on great adventures . This results in almost all clansmen worshiping or holding nature to a very high regard . Languages . Wildhammer dwarves usually speak Dwarven or Common . Many Wildhammers learn the languages of their friends ; a few learn the languages of their enemies . Region . The Wildhammer clan hails from Aerie Peak in the Hinterlands of Lordaeron , a region as yet untouched by the Scourge . Here they work to preserve nature and prevent evil from tainting their lands , waging a constant war against the native forest trolls . Though cool to humans and to Ironforge dwarves , many Wildhammers traveled to Kalimdor with Jaina Proudmoore to combat the Horde . Those in Kalimdor avoid Theramore , preferring the open skies . Wildhammers are wanderers and explorers , skirting large cities and concentrating in mountains and other wilderness areas . Biology . Wildhammer dwarves are taller , leaner darker and wilder than their earthier Ironforge cousins . The Wildhammers typically do not share the latter ' s love of technology and do not care as much about their titan ancestry , although they have been known to help with the excavations from time to time . Because of this difference in outlook , they lack some of the new abilities that Ironforge dwarves have discovered , such as changing their skin to stone . On the other hand , some Wildhammers practice shamanism , and are augmented by nature - focused divine magic . Wildhammers are larger than Ironforge dwarves and paint themselves in traditional tattoos . They adorn their hair and beards with feathers , beads and other colorful panoply . Wildhammer dwarves are similar in appearance to their Ironforge kin , though many shave their heads and they are slightly taller and leaner . Exposure to sun and high winds darkens and toughens their skin . Wildhammers string beads and feathers into their hair and beards as good luck charms , and paint tattoos on their bodies in homage to the totems , ideas and creatures they revere . Wild dwarves . Wild dwarf is a term used for the dwarves of the Wildhammer clan . The term wild dwarf is primarily used in the novel " Day of the Dragon " . Wild dwarves are " the mountain dwarves " according to Day of the Dragon ( 35 ) and are " hill dwarves " according to Lands of Conflict ( 19 ) . The term Aerie dwarf is also used to describe this race . The wild dwarf Falstad Wildhammer ( " Dragonreaver " ) has been described both as a mountain dwarf and is a member of the Wildhammer Clan thus a hill dwarf . Wildhammer dwarves are found in the Hinterlands , Aerie Peaks , and Northeron . Wild dwarves are armed with their trusty , lightning - powered Stormhammers , they seek to keep the skies of Lordaeron free from enemy forces . The gryphon is symbol of resolve and fortitude among the wild dwarves of the Aerie Peaks . The wild dwarves of Aerie Peak have made a specialty of training gryphons as mounts . These gryphons are intelligent and loyal , and suppress their natural aggression and territorial behavior to assist the wild dwarves who share their mountain homes . The Khaz Modan hill dwarves and Aerie wild dwarves are shown to have racial enmity to each other , although they call each other " cousin " . Wildhammer relations . For a while the Wildhammer clan was not technically part of the Alliance , having become neutral , they still kept ties with the alliance members , and worked with the Alliance . It appears they have recently rejoined the Alliance fully ( in - game ) . Their relationship with the gryphons of the Hinterlands has proven profitable as the Alliance has established an extensive travel network using these flying beasts . In addition to convenient travel the Wildhammer are an important military force , in Outland for example the Wildhammer clan is supplying select Alliance members with gryphons of their own and performing bombing operation on important legion - controlled points . There are rumors of members of the Wildhammer clan residing in the human city of Stormwind as well as the dwarven city of Ironforge . Wildhammers have a kinship with the high elves due to the fact the Quel ' Danil Lodge is nearby , but are still hostile to the newly organized blood elves , as the Wildhammer clan considers members of the Horde to be their enemies . Affiliation . Alliance ( formerly , technically ) . The Wildhammer clan for a while was not a member of the Alliance , but remained allies of the Alliance and would certainly help it in a war ( and have done so in the past ) . They are distant with humans and Ironforge dwarves , but have formed a kinship with high elves . Wildhammers and high elves shared much in common in the past , including a love of nature and hatred of evil . Many high elves have grown introverted and brooding of late , which concerns the Wildhammers . The dwarves are appalled at the defection of the blood elves , an event which has caused them to see their high elf allies with new eyes . Wildhammers also get along well with night elves , as the two races share much in common . Ironically , Wildhammers may have more in common with the Horde than the Alliance , but longtime rivalry and natural distrust prevents meaningful contact . Wildhammers fought orcs in generations of warfare and cannot let old rivalries die . They respect the orcs ’ fighting prowess and their spiritual shaman of the Frostwolf clan inhabiting the nearby Alterac Valley , but remain suspicious of them and thus aid the Stormpike Guard in their mission to claim the valley . Wildhammers see potential in the tauren — the tauren bear a great reverence of nature ( as do the Wildhammers ) , practice elemental magic and possess great martial prowess . Wildhammer dwarves are wilder than tauren , but the possibility exists that the two races could become friends . Wildhammer dwarves do not like goblins . The little creatures are materialistic and technology - driven , and they clear - cut entire forests . Wildhammers take pride in zeppelin hunting . In - game faction . Wildhammer Clan was a faction in " World of Warcraft " until patch 2 . 0 . 1 removed it . Killing any Witherbark or Vilebranch trolls in the Hinterlands or Arathi Highlands would increase reputation . Only dwarf players could check the little " At War " box . Wildhammer clan reputation will be re - introduced with the Twilight Highlands battleground . Fraggar Thundermantle . Fraggar Thundermantle is found at the inn in Aerie Peak , on the east side just when you enter the building . He gives you the repeatable quest which will increase your reputation upon completion . You need 5 Troll Tribal Necklace s in order to complete this quest . On level 60 , it gives you 25 reputation points . The turn - in continues into . Even so , it would take 4 , 200 Troll Tribal Necklaces to go from 0 / 21000 to 0 / 1000 . There was no reward available from any of the Wildhammer dwarfs in Aerie Peak , or the Hinterlands . Interaction with the last remaining Wildhammer Dwarf , the rare spawn in the Eastern Plaguelands , is unknown . Faction rewards . There has never been any reputation reward for Wildhammer Clan .