Zul'Aman

Zul'Aman, pronounced [ZOOL-ah-mawn] is a fortressBlood of the Highborne and a temple city that serves as the capital of the Amani tribe, located in the southeastern portion of Quel'Thalas, on northern Lordaeron.
==History==
===Founding===
During the Aqir and Troll War, the aqir forces were led by a C'Thrax named Kith'ix. The Zandalari rallied the troll tribes against this new foe and summoned the loa to fight by their side, tearing through the aqiri ranks and even wounding Kith'ix, forcing it to retreat. The Amani trolls tracked Kith'ix's trail far to the northeastern woodlands, cutting through an unending mass of aqiri guardians. In a final savage battle, the entire tribe flung itself in a suicidal attack against Kith'ix and its remaining insectoid minions. Only a tiny fraction of the troll army survived. Even so, the C'Thrax succumbed to its tireless hunters.
Atop the site where they had killed Kith'ix, the trolls established a new settlement. It would one day grow into a sprawling temple city known as Zul'Aman. With the C'Thrax gone, the aqir no longer fought with as much ferocity or purpose and the war between the aqir and the trolls shifted dramatically.
===Empire's Fall===
Thousands of years later, when the high elves were first exiled and landed in Lordaeron, they met violent clashes with the forest trolls, who viewed them as defiling their homeland. At the time of the founding of Quel'Thalas, the Amani Empire was the most powerful empire in the Eastern Kingdoms; they still held much of northern Lordaeron in their territorial grasp.The Founding of Quel'Thalas
Eventually, the high elves joined with the humans of Arathor and defeated the forest trolls in an immense battle that signaled the end of the forest trolls' empire. The Amani would never recover enough to extend their land beyond their home province of Zul'Aman, but they continued to be an enemy of humans and elves for thousands of years.Arathor and the Troll Wars
Silvermoon itself was constructed over the site of sacred troll grounds, which earned the elves further enmity from the neighboring Amani tribe.Ultimate Visual Guide, pg 148
===Second War===
Led by Zul'jin, the Amani trolls joined the Old Horde during the Second War. They did so in part to fight against the high elves, who had joined the Alliance of Lordaeron. After the Amani, several other forest trolls joined the Horde war effort as well and proved to be a valuable addition to the Horde. However, Zul'jin seemed to have disappeared mysteriously after the end of the war and the defeat of the Horde.Cannibalistic Cousins In truth Zul'jin had been captured by the high elves and freed by an Amani war party, and retreated into Zul'Aman to recuperate.
===Fall of Zul'jin===
Zul'jin, planning to take revenge against Quel'Thalas, saw the opportunity when most of the blood elves and Horde were busy fighting on Outland. He had his champions harness the power of the loa with the help of the cunning Hex Lord Malacrass. Not wanting to fight a war on two fronts, the Horde sent a task force of some of their strongest champions to kill the Amani leadership.
At the entrance to Zul'Aman, adventurers encountered Budd Nedreck, who convinced them to also steal the treasures within as well. Not only did said adventurers steal the treasures, but they also were able to beat back the Amani within Zul'Aman and successfully killed Warlord Zul'jin. With Zul'jin dead, the halls of Zul'Aman become quiet until the coming of the Zandalari. With the aid of the Zandalari, a new troll empire was brewing, spearheaded by Warlord Daakara.
===Rise of the Zandalari===
All of the troll tribes were invited to become a part of this new empire, including the Darkspear under Chieftain Vol'jin. However, Vol'jin has declined this offer, and instead joined forces with the Ranger-General of Silvermoon, Halduron Brightwing, and his Farstriders to counter the threat this new empire poses. In turn, Halduron has called upon Vereesa Windrunner and her rangers to join the battle, and the three can be seen planning their next move on the outskirts of Zul'Aman.
Heroes of the Alliance and the Horde then entered Zul'Aman and thwarted the Zandalari plans by killing Daakara.
==Amani Pass==
Outside Zul'Aman Vereesa Windrunner, Halduron Brightwing and Vol'jin have allied to combat the new threat within Zul'Aman. The following conversation plays every five minutes.
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
: 
:
: 
:
:
==Geography==
===Maps and subregions===
;Lore locations
*Lake Abasi
*Maisara Hills
*Shrine of Ula'Tek
----
; Warcraft RPG
*Greenrush River
==World of Warcraft: Cataclysm==
===Dungeon Journal===
Echoes of unfulfilled vengeance linger in the one-time capital of the Amani tribe, Zul'Aman. Though the Amani trolls answered their warlord's call to arms, Zul'jin was denied his goal of restoring the empire to its former glory. Where he failed, the Zandalar tribe will succeed. Left unchecked, the united tribes will reclaim their lands and savor a merciless retribution.
===Description from website===
Seething with hatred against his ancient enemies in the Alliance, and spiteful towards his former allies among the Horde, who chose to ally themselves with the blood elves, Zul'jin rallied an army of trolls and sealed power from the Amani animal gods within the strongest of his warriors in pursuit for revenge. Zul'jin was slain and his army scattered, but the potent magics invoked in Zul'Aman remain. Now, along with several other tribes, the Zandalar trolls, devastated by the Cataclysm, have come to see Zul'Aman as a symbol of salvation for their people. They have traveled to the ancient forests to see Zul'jin's plan brought to fruition - and, with it, the rise of a unified troll empire, filled with godlike power and prepared to claim dominion over all of Azeroth.Zul'Aman
==In the RPG==
The forest troll kingdom of Zul'Aman is a dark, primal woodland and the only place of life in the Ghostlands of Quel'Thalas. The trolls' voodoo energies permeate the climate, and ancient, stepped ziggurats rise above the canopy. Warlord Jin'zakk is rumored to command the trolls, and his witch doctors and shamans provide him with magic support.World of Warcraft: The Roleplaying Game, pg. 22
===History===
Once, forest trolls controlled a vast swath of Lordaeron. Their empire was called Zul'Aman, and the area currently known as Zul'Aman was their power center. Their dominion stretched across the continent, and they threatened the nascent human nations and the fledgling kingdom of Quel'Thalas with extinction. Eventually, the high elves traded arcane knowledge to the humans for help in defeating the trolls, and the two races bludgeoned the forest troll empire. Now, this tiny area in northeastern Lordaeron is all that remains of the trolls' continent-spanning empire.
In the years after their defeat, the trolls largely gave up their imperialist mindset, though they protect their small territory zealously. They have never forgiven the humans or the elves for their near-genocide. Warbands patrol the forest, slaying all living and undead creatures that are not trolls or natural forest beasts. They worship ancient deities, though whether these deities are the mythic Old Gods or some strange creation of their voodoo witch doctors is unknown. With Lordaeron and Quel'Thalas in ruins, the trolls move out to reclaim their kingdom.Lands of Conflict, pg. 115Lands of Conflict, pg. 118
Any trolls encountered try to kill on sight. Explorers need to be careful but are not totally without allies in Zul'Aman. Several bands of high elves, survivors from Quel'Thalas, fled south and now wander throughout the forest. Those who stay one step ahead of the trolls survive; those who do not will learn first-hand what the cannibalistic trolls do with their victims. Scourge patrols, hunting the elven refugees, also stalk through the land.
The Scourge group in Zul'Aman is led by Necromancer Ru'sad and they are having difficulties trying to end the elves as they know the forests better than the undead. Incorporeal troops such as shades or ghosts would be more helpful as the ghouls and zombies make a fearsome amount of noise trudging through the overgrowth alerting the elves. The gargoyles are somewhat more useful; they fly through the clearings and dense tangles of the jungle and allow the undead to discover refugee groups which they later kill as they sleep. The Scourge are confident that it is only a matter of time before they finally destroy all of the elves. They intend to prevent them from joining with their allies in Hillsbrad or Khaz Modan, or rally together. They intend to stop them from reviving the Sunwell.Lands of Conflict, pg. 117
A great witch doctor, Ral'jin, rised to prominence in Zul'Aman. Ral'jin sent out hunters to capture hundreds of prisoners for use in a massive sacrifice, planning to use this ritual to summon Ula-Tek, the Serpent Goddess. This information is bad news, but the Ironforge dwarves are particularly concerned: they have seen the devastation that an elemental lord's rebirth brings, and a bona fide Old God must be even more powerful. The Dark Iron dwarves, however, are jubilant. Ula-Tek, perhaps an Old God, could serve as a companion and ally to Ragnaros. The Dark Iron sent a contingent to Zul'Aman to wish their goodwill and to protect Ral'jin as he completes the lengthy ritual.
===People and culture===
thumb|Zul'Aman in Lands of Conflict.
Forest trolls are vile creatures. They practice evil voodoo magic and worship primal beings they call the Forest Gods. Violent cannibals, forest trolls eat their own kind as well as their enemies with equal zest. The trolls joined forces with the Horde in the Second War, as the orcs promised them vengeance against Lordaeron and Quel'Thalas, but the trolls' savagery was too much even for the orcs. Due to this the trolls also hate orcs now, who they feel betrayed them. In short, forest trolls hate everyone — including each other.Lands of Conflict, pg. 115 - 116
Witch doctors control Zul'Aman, with shamans and warchiefs in lesser leadership positions. The exception to this tradition is Warlord Jin'zakk, who rules the entire kingdom. The voodoo witch doctors wield arcane magic, while shamans provide divine support. Forest troll society revolves around hunting, spear fishing, shamanism, and voodoo. They make their capital at the Shrine of Ula-Tek, a massive ziggurat they hold sacred. Forest troll society is patriarchal, though cunning and aggressive females occasionally hold important positions. Forest trolls are primitive, possessing few metalsmithing skills and no knowledge of steam technology though they are masters with thrown weapons, be they axes or spears.
With both Lordaeron and Quel'Thalas fallen, the forest trolls see a chance to regain their old empire. They push the borders of their realm ever outward. Warbands strike south, north and west, seeking to reclaim more of their land. The trolls are myriad — almost 20.000 total, and most of them skilled hunters. They have been fighting for centuries and are competent tacticians. Alone, Zul'Aman has little chance against the Scourge. However, if approached in the right manner (by a tauren or goblin, perhaps) and promised their empire, they may be willing to join an alliance.
Like all trolls, Zul'Aman's forest trolls are lean, strong and tough. They possess long ears and noses and jutting canines. Their faces are hard and feral. Forest troll hide ranges from dark brown to light green. Many forest trolls wear primitive jewelry, often wood or bone, on their clothing, strung around their necks or thrust through their noses and earlobes. The males often maintain tall, dyed mohawks. Some paint themselves in tattoos. Forest trolls are organized into tribes, with names such as Blackleaf and Treeblight, and members of the same tribe are relatively loyal to each other.Lands of Conflict, pg. 116
===Geography===
Zul'Aman is a temperate forestland of towering trees, dark shadows and ancient ruins and ziggurats. These ruins and odd, stepped pyramids remain from the days of Zul'Aman's empire, but they could be much older, even Titan or Old God remnants. Elevation rises toward the north, and a hilly region dominates the Quel'Thalas border. The mighty Greenrush River begins in Zul'Aman's Lake Abassi and exits the region in the southwest crossing the Eastern Plaguelands and emptying into Darrowmere Lake. The Maisara Hills to the northeast, are sacred to the trolls.
Primitive forest troll settlements are scattered throughout the region. Weathered ruins hide among the trees, covered with vines and the dust of ages. Trolls guard treasure and captives, and ancient ruins of indeterminate origins dominate forest clearings.
==Trivia==
*Early in World of Warcraft development, the Zul'Aman area was in the game's files.
*The ritual to open the gates of Zul'Aman require several people to hit a Strange Gong together.
*Interestingly, with some specific mountain climbing skills and heading out of bounds of the map, the Zul'Aman mountains actually house an uninstanced version of Zul'Aman after passing through some broken terrain, bereft of both water and enemies.
==Speculation==
*In the map from , Zul'Aman is located right above Darrowmere Lake, rather than in Eversong Forest, implying Zul'Aman might have spanned an extremely large area prior to the Great Sundering.
**This is somewhat "confirmed" with the lore stating that Quel'Thalas and Silvermoon City were established on the ruins of sacred troll lands, possibly having once been a part of a massive temple city that spanned all the way from Darrowmere Lake to Quel'Thalas.
*Some maps showing Azeroth following the Sundering depicted Zul'Aman to be bigger compared to its appearance in the game:
**A map from Warcraft III has a building / temple named Ziggurat (this could be the place of the Zul'Aman instance in the game). In the map, the Zul'Aman term uses the "kingdom" font and not "city" font. It is right above Caer Darrow but since that time, the geography of the Eastern Plaguelands has changed and Zul'Aman is no longer above the lake.
**A Lordaeron map from the World of Warcraft: Game Manual uses zone font instead of city font with Maisara Hills and Shrine of Ula'Tek as cities. The Shrine is roughly in the place of the in-game's instance.
**A map also presents the red area of the Amani tribe which could be the Zul'Aman area.
**The larger area may also be supported by the description from Blood of the Highborne where Liadrin climbed a "remote peak east" of Zul'Aman. Atop of the peak, she saw troll destroyers on the ocean.
Zulaman-1-.jpg|Zul'Aman map from Warcraft III, east of Quel'Thalas.
Zul'aman.JPG|RPG map of Zul'Aman.
QuelthalasDetail.JPG|Map of Quel'Thalas showing Zul'Aman as a much larger zone.
Film Azeroth.jpg|Map from the Warcraft film universe that depicts Zul'Aman almost as big as the elven kingdom.
==Gallery==
Zul1.jpg|
Zul2.jpg|
Zul3.jpg|
Zul4.jpg|
Zul6.jpg|
Zul7.jpg|
ZulAmanConcept.jpg|Concept art.
Zul'Aman old loading screen.jpg|The Burning Crusade Zul'Aman loading screen.
Zul'Aman loading screen.jpg|Cataclysm Zul'Aman loading screen.
Amani'shi Guardian.jpg‎|A forest troll of the Amani tribe.
Zul'Aman key art.jpg|Key art.
==References==
 
Category:Forest troll territories‎
Category:Nations
Category:Temple cities
es:Zul'Aman
pl:Zul'Aman