Queen Sylvanas Windrunner

Queen Sylvanas Windrunner

The Dark Lady, Sylvanas Windrunner, is no stranger to the Lich King's cruelty. During the Third War the death knight Arthas led a Scourge army into Sylvanas' homeland, Quel'Thalas, in order to use the Sunwell's powerful magic as a means to raise the fallen necromancer Kel'Thuzad into undeath. As the ranger-general of Silvermoon, Sylvanas valiantly fought against the Scourge, but Arthas managed to defeat her in battle. Instead of allowing Sylvanas to die a quick death, however, Arthas ripped the ranger-general's soul from her body. He then converted her soul into a banshee and forced Sylvanas to assist the Scourge as they defiled Quel'Thalas and slaughtered many of the kingdom's inhabitants.

Sylvanas later regained her freedom following Illidan Stormrage's assault on the Frozen Throne. Illidan's attack had widened an existing crack in the throne, thus weakening the Lich King's control over some of the Scourge. Sensing that she was no longer chained to the will of her dark master, Sylvanas reclaimed her body and plotted to avenge her death. She nearly achieved this goal when a group of banshees loyal to Sylvanas led Arthas into an ambush. During the attack Sylvanas paralyzed her nemesis with a poisoned arrow, but Kel'Thuzad intervened and saved Arthas. Following the assassination attempt, Arthas journeyed to Northrend and merged with the Lich King. Meanwhile, Sylvanas gathered other renegade undead ― now known as the Forsaken ― and established the Undercity beneath the ruins of Lordaeron's capital. With the Forsaken under her command, Sylvanas went to war against the Scourge and eventually joined the Horde. This partnership benefited both parties: the Forsaken's relatively small forces required assistance in their offensive against the Lich King, and the Horde desired a foothold in the Eastern Kingdoms.

Sylvanas has faced many challenges since attaining freedom from the Lich King. Although they're enemies of the Scourge, the Dark Lady and her subjects are constantly hunted by those who wish to destroy all undead. Even some of the Forsaken have been thorns in her side. Recently Sylvanas dealt with an uprising by a group of demons and rebel Forsaken led by the dreadlord Varimathras and Grand Apothecary Putress: during a joint Horde and Alliance attack on the Wrath Gate in Northrend, Putress unleashed a new plague that killed friend and foe alike, and Varimathras and his loyalists seized the Undercity. Sylvanas defeated her enemies and retook the Undercity soon afterward, a victory that was possible only due to assistance from the Horde. Yet some of the Dark Lady's allies believe that she was complicit in the treacherous Wrath Gate incident.

Despite these setbacks and distractions, Sylvanas remains focused on her end goal: revenge. Now that the Forsaken and the Horde have begun their assault on the Lich King's fortress, Sylvanas believes that her destiny is close at hand.

Fact Sheet

• Gender: Female
• Race: High elf (formerly), unique undead (currently)
• Occupations: Ranger-general of Silvermoon (formerly), Banshee Queen of the Forsaken (currently)
• Base of Operations: The Undercity
• Affiliation: Horde
• Abilities: Although Sylvanas has reclaimed her undead high elven body, she still retains the ability to shift in and out of her incorporeal banshee form at will. Sylvanas is also skilled at archery, an art she mastered as a high elf. To this day the bow remains Sylvanas' weapon of choice.
• Major Novel, Comic, Manga, and Game Appearances:
• World of Warcraft: Tides of Darkness (Novel)
• World of Warcraft: Arthas: Rise of the Lich King (Novel)
• Warcraft: The Sunwell Trilogy volume 3 - Ghostlands (Manga)
• Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos (Game)
• Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne (Game)
• World of Warcraft (Game)
• World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade (Game)
• World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King (Game)