- For the encounter in Ulduar, see Yogg-Saron (tactics).
| Yogg-Saron | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Title | The Beast with a Thousand Maws, Fiend of a Thousand Faces, The Death God, That Which Must Not Be Named[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Race | Old God (Uncategorized) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Affiliation(s) | Old Gods | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Occupation | Old God of death[2] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Location | The Prison of Yogg-Saron, Ulduar | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Status | Killable | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Yogg-Saron is the Old God of death[3] who was imprisoned by the titans within the depths of Ulduar.[4][5] He is responsible for much of the corruption in Grizzly Hills, including that of Ursoc. He managed to sway one of his wardens, Watcher Loken, under his influence, using him to corrupt the rest of the watchers and facilitate his potential escape.[6]
Yogg-Saron appears in World of Warcraft as an encounter in the raid dungeon Ulduar, implemented in patch 3.1.[7]
History
Yogg-Saron, along with the other Old Gods, created the Curse of Flesh to infect and assimilate the titans' creations, such as the earthen.[8] The titans determined that if the Old Gods were destroyed, it would also destroy their infected creations.[8] Instead, the titans kept the Old Gods alive but imprisoned them beneath Azeroth, Ulduar serving as Yogg-Saron's prison.[5][8] The titans assigned watchers Freya, Hodir, Mimiron, Thorim and Loken to serve as his wardens. Yogg-Saron was eventually able to corrupt Loken, who was then able to subdue the other watchers, facilitating any possible escape Yogg-Saron might attempt.
The world tree Vordrassil corrupted by Yogg-Saron.
Yogg-Saron is presumed to have corrupted the world tree Vordrassil when its roots penetrated his lair.[4] Druids destroyed the tree upon discovering its taint, but corruption continued to spread to the Grizzlemaw furbolgs who later inhabited the tree's stump and attempted to regrow the world tree. The furbolgs used the corrupted magic of the tree to resurrect the bear god Ursoc, who in turn also became corrupted.
Yogg-Saron is an encounter in Ulduar, found in the Prison of Yogg-Saron.[7] His prison is guarded by his faceless minions, most notably General Vezax.[9]
Relationship with the Scourge
The Scourge make extensive use of the blood of Yogg-Saron, otherwise known as Saronite ore.[10][11] It is used in their fuel, armament, weapons, and in constructing their buildings.[12][10][13] The Scourge utter "Yogg-Saron" with contempt.[13]
Blizzard stated that there is a larger connection between Yogg-Saron and the Lich King, but it is "poorly expressed" in-game.[14]
Composition
Yogg-Saron in Ulduar.
Yogg-Saron in the encounter is a composition of different NPCs:
- Body of Yogg-Saron
- Brain of Yogg-Saron
- Constrictor Tentacle
- Corruptor Tentacle
- Crusher Tentacle
- Influence Tentacle
- Sara
Speculation
|
This article or section includes speculation, observations or opinions possibly supported by lore or by Blizzard officials. It should not be taken as representing official lore.
|
Influence
In Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne while traveling through Azjol-Nerub on his way to Icecrown, Arthas encountered and defeated a "forgotten one" which bears physical similarities to C'Thun (another Old God), and was defended by faceless ones. Furthermore, a faceless one is present in the Ymirheim Saronite Mines, where (presumably) Yogg-Saron's whisper can be heard.
The manner and contempt with which the Scourge proclaim "Yogg-Saron" suggests they may be at odds with him. On the other hand, they are reliant upon Saronite which he produces.
One of "The Three"
During the encounter in Ulduar, in his mind, two of of the three flashbacks are important lore events that happened either after visions or whispers:
- The assassination of King Llane by Garona Halforcen.
- The creation of the Dragon Soul by Neltharion and the Dragon Aspects.
Furthermore, during the Immolated Champion's vision he says that the Lich King will learn "No king rules forever", which will ultimately be true as Arthas Menethil dies in Icecrown Citadel and Bolvar Fordragon becomes the new Lich King.
This hints that Yogg-Saron is possibly behind those events, alone or as part of "The Three" and their "Greater Plan" mentioned by Korialstrasz during the War of Ancients events.[15]
Whispers
- See also: Old Gods#Whispers of Old Gods
The whispers heard in Whisper Gulch from "unknown voice" may be produced by Yogg-Saron, and are listed in the game files as "Creature - Yogg-Saron Whisper". They sound similar to the whispers of C'Thun, another Old God:
- They are coming for you...
- Give in to your fear...
- Kill them all... before they kill you...
- They have turned against you... now, take your revenge...
- Tell yourself again that these are not truly your friends...
- There is no escape... not in this life... not in the next...
- You are a pawn of forces unseen...
- It WAS your fault...
In Ahn'kahet, "a mysterious voice" is heard whispering to players at random. This voice is most likely Yogg-Saron as well:
- All that you know will fade.
- You will be alone in the end.
- Trust is your weakness.
The voices can also be heard in the Ymirheim Saronite Mines.
Inspiration
- Yogg-Saron's name is derived from Yog-Sothoth of H.P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos. Additionally, by the same turn, his monikers "The Beast with a Thousand Maws," or "Fiend of a Thousand Faces" are references to Shub-Niggurath, who is refered to as "The Black Goat of the Woods with a Thousand Young" and to whom Yogg-Saron bears a resemblance. "That Which Must Not Be Named" may be a reference to Hastur, whose role in the Cthulhu mythos remains unclear. In Lovecraft's own "The Whisperer in Darkness," the protagonist hears a recording of cultists reciting, in reverence, the names of several beings, including Yog-Sothoth, Cthulhu, and Hastur (as "That Which Must Not Be Named"). However, in the same story and in the expanded universe created by authors continuing Lovecraft's mythos, Hastur is shown as being at war with the Mi-Go, the race of extraterrestrials that seems to worship the aforementioned "Gods" as a group (who were among the voices heard on the recording).
- "Yogg" might also be an intentional misspelling of "Ygg", referring to Yggdrasil, the World Tree of Norse mythology, tying in with Yogg-Saron's corruption of Vordrassil.
- "Ygg" is also one of the aliases of the Norse God "Odin".
Gallery
Fan art of Yogg-Saron
Sara, the Avatar of Yogg-Saron
References
- ^ "The end is nigh! Which Must Not Be Named is almost free!" - said by Deranged Explorers
- ^ Blizzard Entertainment. Under Development (US): Ulduar. Retrieved on 2009-02-17.
- ^ http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/info/underdev/3p1/primer.xml
- ^ a b
[75G] Ursoc, the Bear God, [75G] Ursoc, the Bear God
- ^ a b The Old Gods and the Ordering of Azeroth
- ^ Loken
- ^ a b Michael Sacco 2009-12-03. Ulduar achievements unveiled. Retrieved on 2009-12-03.
- ^ a b c Tribunal of Ages
- ^ World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King. Blizzard Entertainment. Ulduar. Sara: "The time to strike at the head of the beast will soon be upon us! Focus your anger and hatred on his minions!".
- ^ a b Black Blood of Yogg-Saron
- ^ The Halls of Reflection, World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King. Blizzard Entertainment. Halls of Reflection. Uther the Lightbringer: "You have forged this blade from saronite, the very blood of an old god. The power of the Lich King calls to this weapon.".
- ^ Tonight We Dine In Havenshire
- ^ a b The Search for Slinkin
- ^ [Kollar] 2010-02-17. Afterwords: World of Warcraft: Wrath Of The Lich King 3. Retrieved on 2010-02-19. “There is supposed to be a tie-in between Yogg-Saron (the boss of Ulduar) and the Lich King, and that’s how that was supposed to make sense – through Yogg-Saron’s manipulation of world events. I don’t think that was obvious enough to the players. It’s hard for them to draw that connection even though theoretically that connection exists. In the planning stages, that wasn’t much of a factor for us, because in our minds that connection existed and was clear. We just didn’t do a very good job of expressing it.”
- ^ The Sundering, 157
[75G] 
[75G]
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
