Wyvern

A wyvern, also known as a wind rider and war rider, is a sentient lionish creature with bat wings and a scorpion tail native to Kalimdor. They can speakRelease Heartrazor and understand Orcish and Taur-ahe,World of Warcraft: Traveler, pg. 316 but cannot understand Common.World of Warcraft: Traveler, pg. 345 Both males and females have manes.World of Warcraft: Traveler, chapter 30
==Background==
Wyverns share a common ancestry with both dragons and gryphonsWarcraft III: Reign of Chaos manual, Orc Units, Wyvern Rider and hail from some of the most inhospitable regions of Kalimdor, making them masters of adapting to any environment.Mount Journal entry for Grand Wyvern They can be found living in the harsh cliff-terraces of the Barrens, Stonetalon Mountains, and the Thousand Needles, as well as parts of Feralas.One-Eye They hold great enmity for harpies, as the vile creatures like to capture them.
The average wyvern is usually about the size of a horse, but some have been known to grow up to three times that size.World of Warcraft: Traveler, pg. 302, 305 Wyverns of this larger breed tend to have cubs the size of full-grown bears.World of Warcraft: Traveler, pg. 334
When Thrall first arrived on Kalimdor, Cairne Bloodhoof suggested enlisting the aid of the wyverns who dwelt nearby. Upon reaching their nesting grounds, the two leaders discovered that a band of harpies had captured and enslaved the wyverns. Encountering fierce local resistance, a force led by Thrall and Cairne fought their way to the harpies' lair and slaughtered the vile bird-women, freeing the wyverns. The sentient wyverns of Kalimdor were eager to ally themselves with the shamanistic Horde. Impressed by the orcs' commitment to honor and victory, the wyverns allowed the orcs to ride them into combat against those who would disturb the tranquility of Kalimdor and its denizens. The wyverns use their powerful claws and razor-like fangs against both airborne attackers and ground troops, while their riders may hurl envenomed spears at the enemy. Wyverns are today considered sacred by both orcs and tauren.The Turd Problem
Wyverns revel in flight, dutifully carrying Horde riders along various routes surrounding Thunder Bluff and Orgrimmar for a small fee. However, not all wyverns are friendly to the Horde; some are even enraged. Unfortunately, the Horde cannot train enough wyverns to keep up with the demand.
Despite appearing mammalian, wyverns do lay eggs. They are very protective of them, forcing the Horde to take the eggs to raise the newborn wyvern.Wind Rider (quest)
The venom of a wyvern, in some circles, is more valuable than the beast itself.Highperch Venom The venom resides in two soft and sensitive venom sacs, resting just below the stinger. The Highperch wyverns have a potent, and valuable, venom. The sacs bursting with venom are normally only gathered from young wyverns or fertile females. An Alliance source on Theramore Isle at one point claimed that orc assassins collect venom from the pridewings of the Stonetalon Mountains in order to use the substance on secret death raids against the Alliance.Pridewings of Stonetalon
Thorg No-Legs never paid heed to the old orc saying, "Don't pull a wyvern's tail."Wind Rider Cub
The Armored Blue Wind Riders are not native to Northrend, but they have adapted extremely well to the cold.Mount Journal entry for Armored Blue Wind Rider The Grand Armored Wyvern, renowned among wyvern handlers, was one of the first mounts chosen to take part in the Horde's Dominance Offensive.Mount Journal entry for Grand Armored Wyvern
==Notable==
* 
* 
*
*
* 
* 
* 
*
*
* 
* 
==Types==
==As a flying mount==
:"I still don't get why they fly faster when you put armor on them."
:— DrakmaMount Journal entry for Swift Green, Swift Red, Swift Yellow and Swift Purple Wind Riders
In The Burning Crusade, Armored Wyverns are the epic flying mount of the Horde in Outland. However, in some cases they were apparently trained to accept any rider, as seen by the bombing roosts around Halaa.
==As a companion pet==
Wind Rider Cub was available on the original Blizzard Store for $24.99 US or €24.99, along with a wind rider cub plushie.
==As a hunter pet==
Wyverns are tamable by hunters as part of the Feathermane family, added in patch 7.2.0. In order to tame Feathermanes, hunters must purchase the Tome of the Hybrid Beast from Pan the Kind Hand at Trueshot Lodge at a cost of .
==In the RPG==
Like hippogryphs and gryphons, wyverns are intelligent creatures — as smart as any humanoid. Their fierce predator instincts, as well as their harsh environments, lend little trust for humanoids, however. Despite this, wyverns are new allies to the Horde. The green-skinned orcs proved themselves to wyverns in battle against harpies attempting to kill a Stonetalon Mountains flight. Since then, the two species have a growing respect for one another. Wyverns share respect for the tauren just as they do the orcs, though the former are simply too large to join forces with a flying wyvern. A wyvern may choose an orc with a willingness to take to the air, and the two establish a formidable aerial scouting and combat team. Such orcs are known as wind riders. Wyverns are encountered alone as often as they are found in an orc rider’s presence.Horde Player's Guide, pg. 122 Orcs raise wyverns to serve as steeds both in and out of combat.Horde Player's Guide, pg. 119 Professional wyvern trainers wear thick, elbow-length leather gloves to protect themselves from baby wyverns' deadly stings. When wyvern carry others, such as orcs, they are capable of carrying up to 600 pounds, and that would be considered a heavy load for them. A medium load is between 201-400 pounds and a light load is considered anything under 200 pounds.Horde Player's Guide, pg. 223 
In the Appendix Three of Manual of Monsters there are different types of wyverns described: wyvern (dragonkin) and sand wyvern. However the validity of the source is disputed.
==Notes and trivia==
*In the Warcraft III alpha, far seers rode wyverns. Flying heroes were later removed from the game, and the far seers were instead given frost wolves.
*The updated wyvern model first used by the Grand Wyvern and Grand Armored Wyvern has horns, while the old wyvern model does not.
*In Hearthstone, the druid minion can choose to shapeshift into either a fire cat or fire hawk when played. When its effects are combined, it transforms into a fiery wyvern instead.
*The wyvern animation skeleton has been used for wolfhawks, razorwings, slyverns and wylderdrakes.
==Myth==
Despite possessing mammalian qualities in Warcraft, s were a type of reptilian dragon found in medieval heraldry. Wyverns were differentiated from other dragons by their four (rather than six) limbs and their barbed tails. Wyverns could breathe flame (typically from the nostrils rather than through the mouth), possess a venomous bite, or possess neither or both qualities (depending on culture specifications). The wyvern had an even worse reputation than the dragon — while dragons could be benign or wise, wyverns didn't seem to be sapient.
The wyverns of the Warcraft universe share more features with s than wyverns. The manticore was a mythological beast, originally of Persian origin, that had the body of a lion and occasionally wings, possessed a reptilian or scorpion's tail, and had a human face with a shark-like maw containing three sets of sharp teeth. These more leonine wyverns were intended to fit the wiser image of the Warcraft III Horde and to contrast with the evil-looking dragons the Warcraft II Horde stole from Alexstrasza.
==Gallery==
Wyvernrider.gif|Wind Rider in Warcraft III.
Warcraft III - Alpha Farseer.jpg|Far Seer flying on a wyvern in the Warcraft III Alpha.
Pridewing Consort.jpg|Original World of Warcraft wyvern model.
Highperch from above (Cataclysm).jpg|Highperch, home of the Thousand Needles wyverns, seen from above.
Wyvern.jpg|Seen resting on a flight master's post.
Flight master wyvern.jpg|Banner used at flight points that use wyvern mounts.
Wind Rider.jpg|Armored version of the original wyvern model.
Wind Rider Cub.jpg|Wind Rider Cub.
Grand Wyvern.jpg|Horned wyvern.
Graddoc.jpg|Armored version of the Mists of Pandaria wyvern model.
Alabaster Thunderwing.jpg|The :Alabaster Thunderwing mount.
World of Warcraft Traveler - Wyverns.jpg|One-Eye and her cubs in World of Warcraft: Traveler.
Druid of the Flame HS combined.jpg|A Druid of the Flame transformed into a fire wyvern in Hearthstone.
Gryphon and Wyvern WoW Classic.jpg|Gryphon and wyvern.
==References==
 
Category:Transportation
Category:Half-breeds
Category:Dragonkin
Category:Feathermanes
Category:Magical beasts
Category:Horde Player's Guide
Category:Manual of Monsters
es:Dracoleón
fr:Wyverne