Sons of Lothar

The Sons of Lothar, also known as the Alliance ExpeditionThe Dusts of OutlandMaster Mathias Shaw#Battle for Azeroth 2 and the Alliance Expeditionary Force,Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos Game Manual, pg. 32Ultimate Visual Guide are mostly the veterans of the Second WarBeyond the Dark Portal, chapter 2 that ventured to the orc homeworld of Draenor during the invasion of Draenor,: Turalyon raised his banner, declaring that he would lead this army - the "Sons of Lothar" - into the orcish homeworld... with the goal of confiscating the stolen magical artifacts (such as the Book of Medivh, Eye of Dalaran, etc.) from Ner'zhul and his Horde of Draenor, and to end the threat of the orcs before Ner'zhul could open portals to other worlds.
They named themselves Sons of Lothar in honor of Anduin Lothar, who was considered to be the bravest and most selfless human warrior they ever knew. Following his example, they stayed in Draenor, or Outland as it is now called, to safeguard Azeroth from demonic threats.
When the Dark Portal reopened, the Sons of Lothar were reunited with the Grand Alliance and led the Alliance's crusade against the Burning Legion, fel orcs, and Illidan's forces. Three of the Expedition's leaders — Khadgar, Danath Trollbane, and Kurdran Wildhammer — were confirmed to be alive with the opening of Outland. The latter two, Alleria Windrunner and Turalyon, were later shown as alive during the invasion of Argus, as members of the Army of the Light. All five expedition leaders have since returned to Azeroth as leaders of various factions, with Danath Trollbane becoming the ruler of Stromgarde, Kurdran Wildhammer taking on a position of secondary leadership in his clan, Khadgar having become the leader of Dalaran's Council of Six, Turalyon serving as the leader of the Army of the Light, and Alleria serving as the leader of the Void elves.
Though they affiliate themselves with the Alliance,Overlord (quest) Khadgar is currently available as a quest giver to both factions.
==History==
===Invasion of Draenor===
As the fires of the Second War died down, the Alliance took aggressive steps to contain the orcish threat. A number of large internment camps, meant to house the captive orcs, were constructed in southern Lordaeron. Guarded by both the paladins and the veteran soldiers of the Alliance, the camps proved to be a great success. Though the captive orcs were tense and anxious to do battle once more, the various camp wardens, based at the old prison-fortress of Durnholde, kept the peace and maintained a strong semblance of order.
However, on the hellish world of Draenor, a new orcish army prepared to strike at the unsuspecting Alliance. Ner'zhul, the former mentor of Gul'dan, rallied the remaining orc clans under his dark banner. Aided by the Shadowmoon clan, the old shaman planned to open a number of portals on Draenor that would lead the Horde to new, unspoiled worlds. To power his new portals, he needed a number of enchanted artifacts from Azeroth. To procure them, Ner'zhul reopened the Dark Portal and sent his ravenous servants charging through it.
The new Horde, led by veteran chieftains such as Grom Hellscream and Kilrogg Deadeye (of the Bleeding Hollow clan), surprised the Alliance defense forces and rampaged through the countryside. Under Ner'zhul's surgical command, the orcs quickly rounded up the artifacts that they needed and fled back to the safety of Draenor.
King Terenas of Lordaeron, convinced that the orcs were preparing a new invasion of Azeroth, assembled his most trusted lieutenants. He ordered General Turalyon and the archmage, Khadgar, to lead an expedition through the Dark Portal to put an end to the orcish threat once and for all. Turalyon and Khadgar's forces marched into Draenor and repeatedly clashed with Ner'zhul's clans upon the ravaged Hellfire Peninsula over the next several months. They founded Honor Hold as their primary base. The Sons of Lothar received erratic shipments of supplies and manpower from their homeworld then, as the Azerothian side of the Dark Portal switched sides several times during the late stages of the Invasion of Draenor.Beyond the Dark Portal, chapter 16 The Alliance Expedition eventually went on the offensive, but even with the aid of the high elf Alleria Windrunner, the dwarf Kurdran Wildhammer, and the veteran soldier Danath Trollbane, Khadgar was unable to prevent Ner'zhul from opening his portals to other worlds.
Ner'zhul finally opened his portals to other worlds, but he did not foresee the terrible price he would pay. The portals' tremendous energies began to tear the very fabric of Draenor apart. As Turalyon's forces fought desperately to return home to Azeroth, the world of Draenor began to buckle in upon itself. Grom Hellscream and Kilrogg Deadeye, realizing that Ner'zhul's mad plans would doom their entire race, rallied the remaining orcs and escaped back to the relative safety of Azeroth.
On Draenor, Turalyon and Khadgar agreed to make the ultimate sacrifice by destroying the Dark Portal from their side. Though it would cost their lives, and the lives of their companions, they knew that it was the only way to ensure Azeroth's survival. Even as Hellscream and Deadeye hacked their way through the human ranks in a desperate bid for freedom, the Dark Portal exploded behind them. For them, and the remaining orcs on Azeroth, there would be no going back.
Ner'zhul and his loyal Shadowmoon clan passed through the largest of the newly created portals, as massive volcanic eruptions began to break Draenor's continents apart. The burning seas rose up and roiled the shattered landscape as the tortured world was finally consumed in a massive, apocalyptic explosion.The Invasion of Draenor
===Aftermath===
Many believed that they were killed by the cataclysm that destroyed Draenor; others believe they escaped to other worlds within the Twisting Nether through the powerful rifts opened by the shaman Ner'zhul; and some others believe that they survived in the remnants of the world. After the reconstruction of Stormwind, five statues in the likeness of Turalyon, Alleria Windrunner, Khadgar, Kurdran Wildhammer, and Danath Trollbane were placed within its Valley of Heroes to inspire future heroes of the Alliance. To honor the leaders for making the ultimate sacrifice for the safety of Azeroth, these heroes of the Alliance Expedition were memorialized in stone to commemorate their heroic deeds.
===The Burning Crusade===
Years later, the Dark Portal was reopened by the demon Lord Kazzak. In his wake, legions of demons came spilling through into Azeroth. The forces of Nethergarde Keep were quickly rallied, and with aid from the Argent Dawn and numerous adventurers the demons were pushed back through the Portal, securing it once more. The adventurers, not satisfied with securing only one side of the Portal, pressed through to Outland after Kazzak where they discovered what became of Draenor.
Vestiges of the Sons of Lothar, veterans of the Alliance that first came into Draenor, have steadfastly held on to their Hellfire outpost of Honor Hold and other Alliance strongholds. According to Khadgar, after the Sons of Lothar were trapped in this broken wasteland now known as Outland, they did their best to survive. Over time they sensed that a new evil was closing in around them from the Twisting Nether and believed the demons once again sought to claim Outland. They are now joined by the armies from Stormwind and Ironforge and together, they continue to fight demonic and native aggression, while also striving to put an end to the Burning Legion's Burning Crusade. Force Commander Danath Trollbane leads the Sons of Lothar's campaign in Honor Hold, while Kurdran Wildhammer patrols the skies of Wildhammer Stronghold in Shadowmoon Valley. Allerian Stronghold, on the edge of Auchindoun in Terokkar Forest, is named after Alleria and is where most high elves reside, and Kirin'Var Village, in Farahlon, is where the mages of the expedition settled. Sometime before the Dark Portal's reopening, Khadgar had used his magic to reach into the Great Dark Beyond and found the naaru led by A'dal. He convinced them to come to Outland to aid in stopping the Legion's incursion on the shattered planet.Khadgar#Khadgar's story in his own words Khadgar can be found in Shattrath City, acting as an envoy to the Sha'tar to coordinate with the faction and aid them in providing some stability and protection for Outland. Only Alleria and Turalyon have yet to be found as they were presumed lost during some horrific battle with the Burning Legion. Their son, Arator the Redeemer, believes them to be still alive and continues his search for them. He traveled to Honor Hold with the Alliance armies and offered Commander Trollbane his services.
Although many died during the Sons of Lothar's military campaigns, some continued to haunt their fallen holdings as restless spirits. The Alliance soldiers stationed at the Expedition Armory fell to the Horde of Draenor and became the spectral Unyielding. The mages of Kirin'Var Village too were decimated; since the Kirin'Var mages died from a mana bomb detonated by Kael'thas's Sunfury forces.The Unending Invasion Following the blood elven assault, the necromancer lich, Naberius, had enslaved the fallen Kirin Tor as enthralled spirits.Destroy Naberius!
The floating remains of Draenor, now known as Outland, has become a warzone. The Alliance and the Horde have occasionally skirmished for political reasons, but the Illidari, savage Outland natives, and agents of the Burning Legion have all threatened the Sons of Lothar with their machinations to dominate Outland. The Sons of Lothar employed adventurers of the Alliance to secure Outland from these threats and tame the shattered planet's savage lands.
===Cataclysm===
Following the Cataclysm, Kurdran Wildhammer returned to AzerothFire and Iron and led the Alliance forces in the Twilight Highlands.
In the Arathi Highlands, Skuerto complained about a "pencil-pusher" holding up Danath Trollbane's return to Azeroth.Skuerto#Quotes
===Legion===
During the third invasion of the Burning Legion, Danath Trollbane finally left Outland and traveled to Dalaran, marking the return of all of the expeditionary leaders to Azeroth at last.
During the course of the conflict, it was discovered from a relic known as Light's Heart that Turalyon and Alleria were still alive, having become leaders in the Army of the Light. Khadgar reunited with the two of them on Argus, homeworld of the Burning Legion, and told them that Danath and Kurdran were both still alive. The three resolved that the Sons of Lothar would hold a reunion feast when the invasion was over.Sizing Up The Opposition
==Notable members==
Name	Role 	Status	Location
 	Lead Scout and Intelligence Agent. 	 	Various Locations
 	Captain of the high elves. 	 	Allerian Stronghold, Terokkar Forest
 	Force Commander and Tactical Advisor. 	 	Various Locations
 	Right hand of Danath Trollbane. 	 	Unknown
 	Supreme Commander of the Sons of Lothar.	 	Various Locations
 	Commander of the Gryphon Rider Division.	 	Various Locations
 	Priest and old friend of Turalyon. 	 	Honor Hold, Hellfire Peninsula
 	High elven ranger. 	 	Unknown
 	Lieutenant of the Sons of Lothar. 	 	Unknown
 	High General of the Sons of Lothar. 	 	Various Locations
 	Leader of the Kirin Tor expedition. 	 	Various Locations
 	Right hand of Alleria Windrunner. 	 	Unknown
 	Guide 	 	Unknown
==Leadership==
Though Turalyon was the Supreme Commander of the Alliance following the death of Anduin Lothar, the Alliance Expedition itself was led by Khadgar, who had called for the army to be rallied at Nethergarde and led into the Dark Portal to Draenor. As Khadgar's task was by far the most important - to retrieve the Book of Medivh and seal the Dark Portal to save Azeroth from destruction - Turalyon and his lieutenants deferred to him when it came to ways to achieve that task. Otherwise, the command of the Expedition's forces fell under Turalyon's purview.
==In the RPG==
The Alliance Expedition is also known as the Draenor Expedition.Alliance Player's Guide, pg. 131, 136
==Notes and trivia==
*The Sons of Lothar were already wearing their current tabard before and during the Invasion of Draenor.Beyond the Dark Portal, chapter 6
*Most of the Sons of Lothar in Honor Hold are now old and gray-haired, with the younger-looking Caretaker Dilandrus saying he was born here.
*Many veterans and refugees of the expedition joined Shattrath City, as presumably did most of the humans living in the Lower City.
*In Warcraft II: Beyond the Dark Portal, the military actions of the expedition were described as such: after constructing Vanguard as their main fortress in Hellfire Peninsula,Siege of Vanguard (WC2 Human) the expedition was ultimately successful in fighting the Shadowmoon clan and their allies in a string of military victories on Draenor and destroyed Fortress Shadowmoon.The Heart of Evil (WC2 Human) The Laughing Skull clan stole the Book of Medivh before Fortress Shadowmoon was destroyed and gave the Expedition the Book along with soldiers in exchange for helping the traitor clan dominate on Draenor.Dance of the Laughing Skull (WC2 Human) However Ner'zhul had learned enough from the book to succeed with his plan to open numerous portals. Seeing the destruction of Draenor, the Alliance forces chose to close the Dark Portal in order to protect Azeroth from the influx of energy unleashed from the quickly dying world.The Bitter Taste of Victory (WC2 Human)
*In the canceled Warcraft Adventures, a bulletin board inside Durnholde Keep showed that the Alliance was still looking for information about the missing members of the expedition.
*During the Warlords of Draenor alpha stage Lotharian Peacekeepers briefly appeared during the battle.
*By the time of the Fourth War, at least nine of the original members of the expedition have returned to Azeroth. These include all five of the expedition leaders (Archmage Khadgar, General Turalyon, Danath Trollbane, Alleria Windrunner and Kurdran Wildhammer), as well as Archmage Vargoth, Ravandwyr, Captain Auric Sunchaser and Eli Thunderstrike. The questions whether the other members returned as well, or if the expedition remains active in Outland, remain unanswered.
==Gallery==
File:The Dusts of Outland - Invasion of Draenor.jpg|The Sons of Lothar fighting against the Horde of Draenor.
File:Sons of Lothar at Honor Hold.jpg|Turalyon and Alleria overlook Hellfire Peninsula from Honor Hold.
File:Warcraft Adventures - Alliance Expedition.png|The Alliance Expedition leaders in Warcraft Adventures.
==See also==
*Expedition Armory
**Unyielding
*Excerpts from the Journal of Archmage Vargoth
==References==
==External links==
 
Category:Outland
Category:Lore
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fr:Fils de Lothar