Heroes of Azeroth
Drek'Thar: Farseer of the Frostwolves
Drek'Thar is the blind elder shaman and former farseer of the Frostwolf clan, and the orc who taught Thrall the ways of the spirits. On Draenor he was one of the first shamans eager to learn the warlock arts of the Shadow Council. In exile in the Alterac Mountains he renounced them and found the elements again, and he has never forgiven himself for his past. Today he leads the Frostwolves from Frostwolf Keep as Frostwolf General. He is one of the last orcs of the Old Horde still serving the Horde.
Video: He served Gul'dan, then raised the Warchief of the Horde
Draenor: from shaman to warlock
Sources disagree on whether Drek'Thar was blind from birth or lost his sight later in life. For many years on Draenor he was the apprentice of the Frostwolf far seer, Mother Kashur, and he became the clan's senior shaman when she was killed while hunting. Unlike his chieftain Durotan, Drek'Thar accepted Ner'zhul's claim that the draenei were plotting against the orcs, because "Mother Kashur's spirit" confirmed it. That spirit was really Kil'jaeden in disguise. When Durotan met the Prophet Velen near Oshu'gun, Drek'Thar called him a blasphemer and wanted to attack him, but Durotan stopped him.
When the elements abandoned the orcs, Drek'Thar followed Gul'dan's Shadow Council down the path of the warlock. Durotan, unwilling to draw attention by openly opposing the Horde, let his shamans take the training. Drek'Thar followed the Horde's attacks on draenei hunters and civilians alike, and Rise of the Horde hints that he took part in the destruction of Shattrath even though he never drank Mannoroth's blood.
Exile in Alterac and redemption
When the Frostwolves were exiled to the Alterac Mountains for Durotan's defiance of Gul'dan, Drek'Thar renounced warlock magic and rediscovered shamanism. With the help of the elements and a little patience, he won over the white wolves of Alterac, who became the clan's companions. He kept the camp from flooding in the spring thaw. After Durotan and his infant heir disappeared, Drek'Thar took the leadership of the Frostwolves.
Lord of the Clans: Thrall's mentor
Almost eighteen years later, an escaped young orc found the Frostwolves. He gave Drek'Thar the torn swaddling cloth he had been found in, and the farseer recognized him as Durotan's heir. At that first meeting the Spirit of Fire told Drek'Thar that the youth had the gift. After testing his humility and his pride, both necessary for a shaman, Drek'Thar took Thrall under his wing and taught him the ways of the spirits.
Before Thrall's initiation, Drek'Thar sent his wolf Wise-ear to find the wandering Orgrim Doomhammer. Orgrim arrived as a cloaked stranger and mocked any hope of freeing the orcs. Thrall challenged and defeated him, and Drek'Thar admitted he had arranged the confrontation to convince Doomhammer to take Thrall under his wing. Doomhammer and Wise-ear both fell in the battle for the fifth internment camp, now Hammerfall. Drek'Thar persuaded Thrall to put on Doomhammer's black plate so the orcs would see they had a new Warchief.
Durotar and Thunder Ridge
After the Third War, Drek'Thar crossed the sea with Thrall, helped found Orgrimmar and studied the surrounding lands. In The Frozen Throne he sent the newly arrived Rexxar for shimmerweed at Thunder Ridge. He told Rexxar that he had fought alongside the Mok'nathal's elders on Draenor long ago, very likely at the Battle of Bladespire. Together they found the thunder lizards driven mad by a human lumber mill. Rexxar wanted to raze it, but Drek'Thar forbade it to honour Thrall's non-aggression pact, and they had to put the beasts down instead.
Frostwolf General of Alterac Valley
Drek'Thar then returned to the Frostwolf lands and led his clan from Frostwolf Keep, defending Alterac Valley against the dwarves of the Stormpike Guard. He wept when he told Thrall the story of Draenor and of Durotan. In The Burning Crusade he went with Thrall and a Kor'kron honour guard to Garadar in Nagrand. It was his first return to Draenor since the Frostwolves crossed into Azeroth.
Visions of the Cataclysm
The Shaman manga calls him the Earthen Ring's most revered seer. By then he had lost much of the strength of arm and mind. In The Shattering, cared for by the young shaman Palkar, he had visions he forgot moments after waking. He saw an attack on a gathering of night elf and tauren druids, the world breaking apart, and Stormwind Harbor swallowed by the sea. The warning he sent about the druids reached the night elves, but no orcs were found and it only made them more suspicious of the Horde. When the attack did happen exactly where he had said, Palkar realized his visions were true and sent word to Thrall.
During the Cataclysm, Drek'Thar used a wheelchair. He refused to help High Warlord Cromush fight alongside the Forsaken. He contrasted his own remorse for his past with their unrepentant crimes.
Legion and Dragonflight
During the Legion invasion he was sometimes seen walking again. He attended Sylvanas's honour ceremony in the Undercity and blessed his fellow shamans in the Heart of Azeroth. Several years after the Fourth War, Thrall's family visited him because Durak wanted to talk about his om'riggor. A conversation between Drek'Thar, Aggra and Eitrigg led to the revival of the forgotten Kosh'harg festival and to the replacement of the om'riggor with a new rite, the om'gora. Drek'Thar then named Aggralan the new Farseer of the Frostwolf clan in his place.
Drek'Thar family tree
Mermaid source of the family tree
%% Drek'Thar – canonical family tree (The Tirisfalen)
%% No relatives are known in canon. Dashed = non-canon (Warcraft Adventures)
flowchart TD
MK["Mother Kashur<br/><i>Mentor · Frostwolf far seer</i>"]
D["Drek'Thar<br/><i>Elder shaman of the Frostwolves</i>"]
T["Thrall<br/><i>Student</i>"]
P["Palkar<br/><i>Student · caretaker</i>"]
A["Aggralan<br/><i>Successor as Farseer</i>"]
K["Kal'Thar<br/><i>'Son' – cancelled Warcraft Adventures only</i>"]
MK -->|taught| D
D -->|taught| T
D -->|taught| P
D -->|named Farseer| A
D -. "non-canon" .-> K
Canon note: The Ultimate Visual Guide (p. 122) states that Drek'Thar has no known relatives. "Kal'Thar", his son, exists only in the cancelled game Warcraft Adventures: Lord of the Clans, which is not canon. This "tree" therefore shows his spiritual lineage (mentor, students and successor) and not blood family. Thrall is Durotan's son, not Drek'Thar's.
Related heroes
FAQ
Is Drek'Thar blind?
Yes. Some sources say he was blind from birth and others that he lost his sight later in life. He "sees" through the spirits and his visions.
Was Drek'Thar a warlock?
Yes. On Draenor he followed Gul'dan's Shadow Council into warlock magic. He renounced it during the Frostwolf exile in Alterac and returned to shamanism.
Who trained Thrall as a shaman?
Drek'Thar, the Frostwolf farseer, after recognizing Thrall as Durotan's son from his swaddling cloth.
Is Drek'Thar related to Thrall?
No. He was Thrall's mentor and the elder of his father's clan, not a blood relative.
Does Drek'Thar have a son?
Not in canon. Kal'Thar appears only in the cancelled Warcraft Adventures. The Ultimate Visual Guide lists no known relatives.
Is Drek'Thar still alive?
Yes. In Dragonflight he helped revive the Kosh'harg and named Aggralan the new Farseer of the Frostwolves.
Where can you find Drek'Thar in World of Warcraft?
At Frostwolf Keep in Alterac Valley, where he is the Horde's final boss, the Frostwolf General.
Sources
- Christie Golden, Lord of the Clans (incl. ch. 19).
- Christie Golden, Rise of the Horde (incl. ch. 20 and p. 173); The Shattering: Prelude to Cataclysm (incl. p. 323).
- Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne, Bonus Campaign The Founding of Durotar ("To Tame a Land").
- Warcraft: Legends / Shaman manga; World of Warcraft game manual, p. 182.
- World of Warcraft: Ultimate Visual Guide, p. 122 (and Updated edition, p. 134); BlizzCon 2013 panel.
- In-game: Alterac Valley; Matters of Loyalty (Cataclysm); A Royal Audience (Legion); A People in Need of Healing and The Kosh'harg (Dragonflight).
- Community wikis cross-checked: Warcraft Wiki – Drek'Thar, Wowpedia – Drek'Thar, plus their page on the Frostwolf clan.
Illustrations: original artwork by The Tirisfalen. World of Warcraft and Warcraft are trademarks of Blizzard Entertainment. This page is fan content and is not affiliated with Blizzard.