Tuskarr The tuskarr are humanoid people who live in Northrend . They make their home along the southern coast of the continent having settlements in Borean Tundra , Dragonblight and Howling Fjord . The tuskarr culture is centered around fishing and whaling such that a tuskarr ' s fishing ability is seen as a moral guideline of sorts . Tuskarr females farm the few crops that grow in the tundra while also collecting a variety of berries and roots . Animal husbandry exists in the tuskarr culture , including the breeding of penguin s as farm animals . Tuskarr are humanoids with solid builds , thick torsos , and broad shoulders . They wear warm furs under oilskin jackets . Their heads are blunt and almost hairless , with a pair of great tusks pointing down from their upper jaw . Their brown faces are friendly and expressive . Due to their walrus - like attributes , some tuskarr have been known to hold their breath for 10 - 15 minutes underwater , however they rarely explore into the depths of the icy seas . Culture and society . The tuskarr are peerless fishermen and whalers . Their self - contained economy is based on the ocean ' s bounty . These stout - hearted creatures have a budding society along the frozen coasts of Northrend . Although the tuskarr do not yet have an organized society , their villages lay scattered across icy beaches , bustling with activity and commerce . Communities are established to help with fishing , animal husbandry , and defense rather than political interest . The family is the primary social structure , and tuskarr have no community figureheads aside from familial leadership roles . Kinship usually involves three generations from both the mother and father ' s sides . Functionally , these extended families are treated as one , so the action of a member is the responsibility of the entire group . Marriage occurs as soon as a man can support a wife , and for females as soon as they reach puberty . Language . Most tuskarr do not learn more than Tuskarr and Common , but those who do speak the tongues of their enemies understand Low Common and Zandali . Family . The tuskarr are a simple people who place extreme emphasis on family values . Their hierarchy includes the family first , the larger community second and the individual third . Because of the vulnerability of the tuskarr , however , the families tend to keep close proximity with the others . When the families must coordinate , a family is picked at random to take charge for that particular situation . Each family has its own implicit leader , but the entire family bears responsibility for each of its members . Law . Tuskarr laws are simple . No tuskarr may avoid helping tend to the needs of the settlement — gathering food , making clothing and housing , patrolling in defense , etc . The sea is communal property for fishing and whaling . Catches are divided among the community as much as is feasible , with those who miss out on one catch getting first choice the next time . Tuskarr individuals have personal property , but possession is conditioned by actual use . Tuskarr laws are not meant to punish criminals as much as they are meant to maintain community peace and prosperity . Punishment is mild , usually aimed at injuring one ' s social position ( through gossip , ridicule , or ostracism ) . Still , some matters are taken seriously . Blood vengeance is always required in return for the taking of a life , which may result in an ongoing feud . Role of shamans . Tuskarr shamans have the power to influence events such as weather , food , and illnesses . Shaman magic is often quite a production , even something like curing the sick : the shaman may speak with ghosts of the patient ' s relatives and even battle other spirits into submission before forcing them to help heal the patient . Hunting . Fishing and whaling form the basis of everything from moral guidance to conversational slang . Boys strive to be good fisherman and girls dream of marrying a good whaler . Success in fishing is a sign of right living , and failure is a sign of moral disorder . The tuskarr afterlife is imagined as a paradise with choice catches and successful whaling without hard work . To visit a tuskarr village , visitors must bring several fresh fish along , to prove they can fish . Fishing is more than just a means to survive for tuskarr — it ’ s also a moral guideline . If they think that someone cannot fish well , that is a bad person , so evidence of successful fishing means someone must have good morals and therefore must be respectable . If a person brings several large fish , he is treated like a long lost and much beloved cousin . Religion . Tuskarr have simple rituals relating to social rather than religious circumstances — birth , marriage , sickness , and death most prominently . Other rituals relate to celebrating a good catch and venerating those who are lost at sea or who fall in battle . The tuskarr also worship a small pantheon of deities or spirits such as Tayutka , Karkut , and Issliruk . War . The tuskarr often war with the indigenous ice trolls and nerubian spiderfolk of Northrend . Though they have done well to evade the undead Scourge , the tuskarr know that it is only a matter of time before the legions of the dead come calling . Tuskarr favor spear weapons and nets as their primary tools of war . Tuskarr warriors coordinate in combat , each working to ensure the well - being of the others . Typically , one member of a squad will attempt to snare an enemy in a net , while the others attempt to dispatch the trapped opposition with their spears . Tuskarr are peaceful people , but they show little mercy to ice trolls , nerubians and anyone else they consider their enemies . While they sometimes organize raids against foes that threaten the ancestral territories where they build their villages , the tuskarr more frequently defend against their enemies . Anyone wreaking havoc on a tuskarr village , however , unleashes the full wrath of these people . The tuskarr are disciplined and well organized , and each of them takes the defense of his family and village seriously . For many tuskarr , it is a matter of survival , but also of pride , to be prepared against any threat . Because of their reliance on fishing and whaling , tuskarr receive training in the use of nets and spears at a young age . All tuskarr also receive at least rudimentary training in ways to put these implements to use against an intelligent foe . Warriors patrol the areas surrounding their villages and act as lookouts in strategic locations . These warriors warn their people of impending attack . While they follow no particular leader , tuskarr fight in squads composed of 6 to 8 members of the same lineage . The tuskarr abide by the recommendations of the individual with the most warfare experience , or the one they consider the wisest among them if no warriors are in the group . Most often , the leadership of a squad is divided among 2 or 3 members deemed learned in matters of war . Because the members of a squad are family , the tuskarr warriors are not only extremely loyal to one another but also get along together . They are also used to working together — after many years spent fishing and whaling with their brothers — and thus are efficient as a unit in times of war . Sometimes , a squad includes a couple of specialists . The most common specialist is the net thrower , a dexterous fisherman with some experience in warfare whose mastery with the net causes great trouble to opposing troops . Sometimes , a squad also includes one or two javelin throwers . These warriors carry up to a dozen javelins and provide useful cover fire to the members of the squad . Also , when such an individual is available , a squad includes a shaman who can cast spells to hamper the opposition or heal the troops . Architecture . Tuskarr houses are solidly built structures of wood and stone , with thick , thatched roofs . They are only one story , and sprawl rather than rise , because of the incessant wind . Heavy shutters cover the windows and short entry halls lead from the outer door to an inner one , which keeps heat from escaping and cold from entering . Their homes are radial , with a single large chamber at the middle and the sleeping quarters arrayed around it . They have large pits in the center , lined with stone , and keep a fire blazing constantly — it heats the entire house and has spits and trays for cooking food . Tuskarr are fishers and whalers , and they use every part of the animals they hunt . Whale bones form support beams in their homes , and heavy sealskins and other furs cover the floors and the doorways . They create dyes from various squid inks and fish scales , and have colorful weavings on their walls . In addition the Tuskarr carve massive stone heads ( similar to Easter island heads ) that allow the Tuskarr to communicate with their ancestors . It is assumed that each head can only be used by a specific spirit . Clothing . Tuskarr inner clothing is brightly colored under their thick furs and oilskins . When a tuskarr woman accepts a tuskarr man as her husband , she weaves him a vest and he wears that against his skin . She replaces it once they have children , and again if he becomes the head of their extended family . She repairs it when necessary but otherwise he never takes it off . When males die , they are buried in their most recent vest , and the others are wrapped together to fashion a pillow for the body . In Warcraft III : The Frozen Throne . In " " the tuskarr appear as neutral hostile creep s on maps with the tileset " Icecrown Glacier " . They attack hostile units on sight and may drop items . There are different unit types of tuskarr : In Wrath of the Lich King . According to new lore from the " Wrath of the Lich King " expansion , the tuskarr form an alliance with the culturally similar Horde , and help establish the outpost of Warsong Hold . It should be noted , however , that the tuskarr are a neutral faction , and both the Horde and Alliance will be able to interact with them . Description . Note that the line " " . . . although they are a peaceful race , they are constantly beset by taunka and local murlocs . " " was secretly changed to " " . . . although they are a peaceful race , they are constantly beset by the Kvaldir and an Arctic race of murloc - like creatures known as the Gorloc . " "