Lake Mennar Prior to the Cataclysm , Lake Mennar was one of the few places in the world where the blue dragonflight could be found outside of Northrend . The only comparable place was Mazthoril in Winterspring . Although most of the region on all sides of the lake was once inhabited by dragonspawn , the actual lake itself was free from danger , and provided solace and refreshment to those who were brave enough to get through the perimeter dragonkin . Since the Cataclysm , the lake dragonkin have disappeared , likely due to their fear of Deathwing . Spirit s now inhabit the lake , and a phased allows players to see the invasion of the Burning Legion 10 , 000 years ago . Origins . Malynea Skyreaver provides insight into the lake ' s origins : Player choice : Tell me about the nearby ruins . Are you familiar with the War of the Ancients , < Name > ? That is what we call the period of time 10 , 000 years ago , when the demons of the Burning Legion first breached the realm of Azeroth and attempted to devour this entire world as they have countless others . The ancient capitol of Azshara , a city that once dominated this landscape , was ground zero for the invasion . The ancient wreckage you ' ll find scattered throughout the area stands in broken testament to the egotism of our forebears . Player choice : What are you doing here ? My concern for the moment is with the ruins that surround Lake Mennar , to our east . Thousands of years ago the Mennar Academy was among the first to study the arcane arts . It was a beautiful terraced structure built in a ring around a tranquil lake , a place of quiet contemplation and focused study . It was there that my ancestors first discovered the potential of the magical energies seeping from the Well of Eternity . I ' m sorry - is this all too much to take in ? I ' ve immersed myself in arcane history for several decades now , I forget that others do not share my passion . Player choice : No , please go on . Suffice it to say that the academy was cautious in its application of these new - found powers - what few writings remain indicate that the mages there worried about arcane addiction , a problem my race suffers from to this day . This restraint put the mages of Mennar in opposition to Queen Azshara and her highborne lackeys , who sought ever greater power with wild abandon , throwing caution to the wind and delving into ever more dangerous applications of the arts . Player choice : What happened to the mages ? By the time the Burning Legion began its assault , the mages at the Mennar Academy had fallen far from the Queen ' s graces . They would ' ve been a powerful asset in the war to come , but they refused to fall back when the of the city fell . Instead of regrouping outside the city to join in the counter - assault , they stayed behind , erecting magical barriers and turning their once quiet home into a fortress . Refugees streamed to the Mennar Academy in the first terrible days of the Invasion , and survivors tallied to mount a defense . Player choice : Were they able to hold out ? Hold out ? Against a full frontal assault from the legion ' s vanguard ? Not likely ! No , history doesn ' t record what happened next . . . for there were no survivors . The raging demons left little more than the ruins you see today , and the secrets of the academy lay buried under the soil of Azshara . Player choice : And we ' re going to dig them up . I like the way you think , < race > ! Until recently , the latent magical energies of the academy grounds attracted the attention of the Blue Dragonflight , and I wasn ' t able to study them . The attention of the dragons is now elsewhere , but a worse threat is in the making - these little green brutes want to level the ruins to make way for a fuel depot ! Knowledge lost for ten thousand years is days away from being lost forever . We ' ve got to act fast .