Northern Barrens

The Northern Barrens is the northern half of what was once the Barrens. Before being divided it extended into Southern Barrens without break; the two areas are now separated by the Great Divide. It serves as a proving ground for young Horde warriors, ready to seek glory in the name of their people.

## Before the events of Cataclysm

The Barrens is a large zone in central Kalimdor controlled mostly by the Horde. It is a massive savanna, with a few oases in the north-central region around the Crossroads and with low mountains serving as natural borders.

Long ago, the Barrens was mostly forests, tended to by the night elves. The combination of the Burning Legion, war, and the Great Sundering turned the woodland into a barren expanse. Now, the divided Barrens are a shade of their glory, one that is in short supply in this dry place. Despite this, it is more than an infertile soil and sand.

## History

The Barrens were once a verdant, thriving forest, tended to by the kaldorei. An expeditionary force sent by Queen Azshara established the outpost of Then'Ralore in the lush wilds, It is said that during the War of the Ancients, the demigod Lo'Gosh confronted the Burning Legion in the lush land that later became the Barrens. After the Great Sundering, war and disaster raged across the land, turning this valley of nature into the harsh, sun-scorched plain it is today.

It is said that at some point a person named Dethorin arrived to the land after he had found his Allurana in arms of her lover. Dethorin cried out and the sands of the Barrens burst forth the axe Killmaim with which he killed Allurana.

For countless generations, the tauren roamed the plains of the Barrens, honoring their people and culture, hunting the mighty kodo, thunder lizards, cheetah, and zhevra, and seeking the wisdom of their eternal goddess, the Earth Mother. Their tent settlements were scattered across the landscape and changed with the seasons and the weather. The wandering tribes were united only by a common hatred for their sworn enemy, the marauding centaur. The centaur hunted the tauren for sport and launched intermittent attacks on their foes, taking a heavy toll on both sides. The tauren did not shy away from combat and made the centaur pay for every unprovoked attack, but they had no love for war and always opted to find a new home rather than throw their lives away whenever the horse men appeared. As such, the tauren lived in a constant state of upheaval, and a year of peace was always followed by a year of war. The shu'halo accepted this cycle of conflict as inescapable as it was the only life they knew, but that would eventually change.

When the orcs under the new Warchief Thrall and Darkspear trolls from Darkspear Islands landed on the Barrens, it saw civilization anew. First, the area was crossed by the Warsong clan led by Grommash Hellscream. Then, Thrall reunited his warriors scattered on the shore, and the Horde then helped the Bloodhoof tauren at their village. The tauren and the Horde marched through the Barrens, visiting its oases and finding a group of Warsong warriors. The tauren crossed the Barrens into Mulgore, fighting against centaur warbands and ultimately triumphing over them.

After the Warsongs were corrupted by the Burning Legion, they took the area near the northern border of the Barrens. Thrall, Cairne, and Jaina fought against the fel orcs and their demonic allies.

Following the Battle of Mount Hyjal, Thrall led the Horde to the eastern Barrens and claimed it as their own, fighting the local Razormane quilboar and naming the land Durotar with its capital Orgrimmar.

## Rares

###### Brokespear - Deceased

Brokespear was a renowned raider and warrior of the Kolkar Centaur Clan. When assaulting from the Stagnant Oasis towards Ratchet, his life was cut short by Harumn Ragetotem, Tetserro Ironbranch, Kord Darkrend and Gor'slak Cinderhorn.