Aiden Perenolde

Aiden Perenolde was the king of the human kingdom of Alterac.Tides of Darkness, pg. 257 During the Second War, he betrayed the Alliance by assisting the Horde in return for Alterac's promised safety.
==Biography==
Aiden was a quiet-cultured looking man with graying brown hair, and hazel eyes.Tides of Darkness, pg. 45 He was one of the human leaders at the councils to form the Alliance of Lordaeron, and was initially reluctant to contribute to it, initially asking if the orcs would be open to negotiation, before deriding Anduin Lothar as urging for unity but having nothing himself to bring to such assembly.Tides of Darkness, chapter 3 Despite the later fall of Khaz Modan, Perenolde stubbornly resisted calls for creating an alliance. He feared that by unifying, he would lose some of his regional power. Divisions widened between the members of the councils, and the arguments grew so heated that Gilneas and Alterac threatened to abandon the discussions entirely. Despite his reluctance, Perenolde eventually gave in and joined the fledgling Alliance. When it came to choosing its supreme leader, Aiden suggested that brute force alone was not enough but that the commander should have intelligence, wisdom, and vision, all of which he felt he possessed in abundance. Anduin Lothar was chosen over him and the other human kings for the role, however.
Later during the Second War, as the Horde ravaged its way through the southern realms up to the elven kingdom of Quel'Thalas, Aiden started fearing for the safety of Alterac. He directly contacted Warchief Orgrim Doomhammer through a messenger bird and secretly met with him. Impressed that Doomhammer was able to speak Common, Aiden started finding the orc a cultured and honorable warrior. The two leaders negotiated an agreement: in exchange for free passage through the Alterac Mountains and other means of help from the kingdom, Doomhammer would keep his soldiers in check and not kill Alteraci citizens or raid Alteraci settlements. The Warchief even promised that after his conquest of Lordaeron, he would place Alterac under his protection, so that none may violate it, keeping the realm safe. Pleased with this agreement, Perenolde came back to his castle and announced his general staff that starting immediately, Alterac would renege its vows with the Alliance and side with the Horde instead. Aiden even murdered a young Alliance messenger minutes after revealing the whole situation to General Hath, the commander of his army.Tides of Darkness, chapter 15
Perenolde later arranged for a peasant revolt in Tyr's Hand to cover Horde mining operations there, kidnapped mages from Dalaran and sent pirates to assassinate Uther the Lightbringer; which would remove the driving force from the Order of the Silver Hand.Betrayal and the Destruction of Alterac (WC2 Human)
However, this treachery was discovered, and after the war King Terenas of Lordaeron led Alliance troops into Alterac, declaring martial law and taking Perenolde into custody.Tides of Darkness, pg. 373 The custody soon turned to a mere house arrest, confining Perenolde to his palace and the rest of his family on close watch, and the kingdom was put under Alliance control. As a sovereign king he could not be exiled, executed, or simply imprisoned (in order to avoid worrying the other kings that the same reaction would occur if they disagreed on anything). The other kings wanted him to abdicate his position as king, so that he could be executed as a lesser noble. However, he refused, knowing it would mean his death. His kingdom had been put under martial law as a temporary solution on Daval Prestor's suggestion.Beyond the Dark Portal, pg. 99Beyond the Dark Portal, pg. 96, 97 During an orcish attack on New Stormwind in the aftermath of the Horde's defeat, Perenolde had the Book of Medivh stolen by his troops in an attempt to use for future leverage. He ultimately traded it to the Horde to rid his lands of the vengeful troops of Stromgarde and Lordaeron.Beyond the Dark Portal, pg. 109 - 110The Seas of Azeroth (WC2 Orc) Deathwing attacked the barracks holding the troops. His son Aliden was disgusted by the action of his father, knowing it would destroy everything he had done to try to clear the family name.Beyond the Dark Portal, pg. 146 - 151
After the debacle, Perenolde was declared a traitor. His people were exiled from their lands, and a warrant was put on his head.
His position and his former lands have been fought over by his eldest son Aliden Perenolde, his nephew Isiden Perenolde, and Lord Daval Prestor.Beyond the Dark Portal, pg. 100Day of the Dragon, pg. 7
Aiden died at some point, but the exact time and cause of death are unknown.
==In the RPG==
===In Alliance Player's Guide and Dark Factions===
Aiden Perenolde was perhaps the most notorious human noble of the Second War. He was in charge of Alterac at the beginning of the hostilities. Perenolde was cowardly and was will weak; he betrayed the Alliance in favor of the enemy, the Horde, and sent ships to strike at the Alliance vulnerabilities.Alliance Player's Guide, pg. 158 - 159
Aiden was a good in using his political skills to turn people against each other.Alliance Player's Guide, pg. 137
====Biography====
During the Second War, the situation in the Alterac Mountains was dire as Lord Aiden Perenolde and the rest of the ruling families of the kingdom of Alterac secretly sided with the orcs in exchange for power. Aiden was terriﬁed of the Horde and persuaded a number of Alterac's nobles that an orcish victory was inevitable. Thus it was that the nation of Alterac aided the Horde in a number of ways, not the least of which was allowing the orcs to march west, unhindered, from Quel'Thalas through the Alterac Mountains. Many good men were lost to their initial deception.Alliance Player's Guide, pg. 134Dark Factions, pg. 158
When King Terenas of Lordaeron discovered Perenolde's treachery, he sent Alliance soldiers into Alterac and declared martial law. Perenolde was ultimately captured and ousted, and other collaborators were stripped of their titles and property, then imprisoned or exiled.
Lord Aiden was left rotting in prison (where he would eventually die), and his son Aliden attempted to assume command of the exiled Alteraci. He eventually succeeded his father and is now leading a bandit group known as the Syndicate, which includes the fallen noble families of Alterac, all seeking to reclaim their lost lands.
===In Lands of Conflict===
Aiden Perenolde is the former lord of the kingdom of Altrac, and is a high-ranking Syndicate member.Lands of Conflict, pg. 88 He is 66, dark of skin and hair with blue eyes.Lands of Conflict, pg. 173 Rumors say he is addicted to flushbloom.
Aiden resides in his keep in the Uplands, and is the scion of the Perenolde family. His wife Isolde died some time ago and his oldest child, Beve, is an important member of the Syndicate. She is fiercely devoted to her family but disagrees with her father on many issues. Beve thinks her leadership would be much more beneficial and since she is next on the line, it would not be bad if Aiden disappeared. She believes he is blind to her machinations, but he is well aware of her desires.
====Biography====
Aiden Perenolde grew up wealthy, never knowing need. He adored his home in the Alterac Mountains, but had his eyes on Lordaeron City. He held none of the lineage for the throne, even if everyone in Lordaeron died inexplicably.Lands of Conflict, pg. 172
When the Horde invaded the continent of Lordaeron, he saw his chance to ride the wave of their destruction and claim the jewel of the Alliance as his own. And thus he betrayed the Alliance in the Second War. Alterac's honor has been blemished ever since.
The ousted nobles discovered, to their dismay, that the few bands of free orcs in Lordaeron wanted nothing to do with them and refused them sanctuary, so they began stealing to stay alive. Soon they banded together to become more powerful and called themselves the Syndicate. A haughty, fractious group led loosely by Lord Aiden Perenolde. They managed to stay alive by stealing from towns and villages, and traveling frequently.Lands of Conflict, pg. 171
In the Arathi Highlands, Aiden knew if they did not work together they would die. He managed to gain a loose hold on the prickly nobles to organize raiding parties on the local towns. Now acting as the self-proclaimed leader of the Syndicate, Lord Aiden realized he had to do something drastic to reclaim his lands. When the Burning Legion and the Scourge began their assault on Lordaeron, he did not make the same mistake twice by allying himself with the enemy; he simply took advantage of the Alliance's distraction to begin moving on his lands. The harried and panicked citizens, the people they used to lord over, were frightened and confused and put up little fight, more concerned with the hellish creatures that were rampaging over the land.
When Aiden regained control of his lands — and his neighbors — after the Third War, he had a burning desire to punish the Alliance (never mind that it lay shattered with the fall of Lordaeron). Due to that, he managed to urge his fellow nobles into taking more and more surrounding land, and currently the Syndicate holds a good portion of the Alterac Mountains and Arathi Highlands. He knows he is a target for the nobles who chafe under his rule and protects himself accordingly.
When Lord Aiden Perenolde came up with the idea to take advantage of the Alliance's crippled state and attack neighboring lands, the Syndicate once again came under his rule, grudgingly. Lord Falconcrest, who had been one of the many lesser nobles under Lord Perenolde during his reign, took over command in the Arathi Highlands. Falconcrest never liked the older man, but he admitted that Perenolde had a good idea from time to time, and thought it was a fine idea to work with the Horde. After they were exiled, Falconcrest blamed Perenolde for the loss of their holdings.
The Syndicate accepted bandit pledges of fealty, and thus stronger warriors and rogues brought their skills to the group. One of the smarter decisions Aiden Perenolde made for the Syndicate was to break up these bandit gangs among the noble families, giving the bandits new allegiances so the gangs could not stay together to work against the nobles. This trick worked perfectly, and most bandits went along with it for the greater reward.
Far enough away from Perenolde's control, Falconcrest is slowly grooming the rogues under him to work against Aiden and the northern Syndicate. Falconcrest is younger than Perenolde, only in his forties, and is prepared to bide his time until he is ready.
==Notes==
*Like Aedelas Blackmoore, Aiden and later his son Aliden wanted to enslave the orcs.Blackmoore's Legacy
*Aiden Perenolde was originally simply named "Lord Perenolde" in the earliest Warcraft manuals and novels; no first name was given. The RPG book Lands of Conflict was the first source to establish his name as Aiden Perenolde, followed by the Alliance Player's Guide, both of which are now non-canon. However, he also appeared as Aiden Perenolde in Tides of Darkness.
*As of Legion, he is the only human king from the Second War not depicted in-game in any Warcraft game.
==Speculation==
===Death knight===
One of the Death Knight heroes names in Warcraft III was "Baron Perenolde". It is unknown if this Baron was meant to be a relative of Perenolde, or Aiden Perenolde himself (by the programmers). But if Aiden was alive after Warcraft III, the latter is unlikely, in which case the character may not actually exist. He may also be the nephew mentioned in Day of the Dragon (who was named Isiden in Beyond the Dark Portal).
==See also==
*Perenolde's End
==References==
Category:Human characters
Category:Aristocrats
Category:Alterac (kingdom)
Category:Deceased characters
Category:Lore characters
Category:Day of the Dragon characters
Category:Tides of Darkness characters
Category:Beyond the Dark Portal characters
Category:Dark Factions
Category:Alliance Player's Guide
Category:Lands of Conflict
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