World of Warcraft: Dragonflight has just released its newest raid in Aberrus, the Shadowed Crucible. It takes place deep beneath the earth within Deathwing’s ancient laboratory, where all manner of sinister creations were abandoned millennia ago. Now, players must battle their way through hordes of draconic soldiers and twisted monstrosities to stop the Sundered Flame from claiming the power they believe is owed to them.
Aberrus in World of Warcraft is not only a laboratory, however. Its lore, although newly established, reveals characters like Deathwing in a whole new light. This lair was the center of all his obsessive creativity, the place where the Black Aspect could experiment and study undisturbed. But Neltharion never told any other dragons about his machinations, and only now is the rest of Azeroth discovering what he got up to.
Aberrus in World of Warcraft was Deathwing’s Personal House of Horrors
When Tyr the Titan Watcher bestowed upon the Aspects their great power, Neltharion was named the Earth-Warder and swore to protect Azeroth from any threat she faced. But while the other Aspects were content to wait for enemies to gather and react accordingly, Neltharion wanted to be prepared. He knew Azeroth faced countless foes, both from the stars and from beneath the earth. Soon, the Black Aspect became obsessed with forging the perfect weapon to defend his world.
Neltharion wound his way deep beneath Azeroth’s surface, using ancient passageways and chasms that only he, the Aspect of Earth, knew existed. Atop the volcanic summit within Zaralek Caverns, he found the perfect refuge to build a fortress of his own design. Within this secret bastion of elemental energy, Neltharion began his work. He studied dragons and proto-dragons for millennia, trying to discover the most effective combinations.
Within Aberrus, Neltharion hoarded all the knowledge he had accumulated over his lifetime, still trying to create perfection. He thought he had succeeded when he forged the Dracthyr, World of Warcraft's new playable race, as they were a potent combination of the power of dragons and the adaptability of mortals. However, he quickly decided that they, too, were failures, and he sealed them away within one of many obsidian vaults. By then, something else had drawn his attention, far more powerful and far more dangerous than even the Dracthyr.
It’s not known exactly when Neltharion decided to experiment with Shadowflame, but he believed it was a power that no foe could stand against. He was right, in a way, as his decision to utilize the very essence of the Old Gods as an ingredient would become the Black Aspect’s undoing. It took centuries of setbacks, but Neltharion was determined to use Shadowflame as a vector for his ultimate creation. Before he could finish his work, however, the void energies began to seep into his mind, whispers that slowly broke his sanity apart.
Even one as intelligent, determined, and experienced as Neltharion was no match for the endless horrors of the Old Gods. The Black Aspect lost all semblance of the noble protector he once was and took on a new name to reflect this change. He became Deathwing, the Aspect of Death, and the Old Gods delighted in their newest and most promising harbinger. Consumed with a new, horrific purpose, he abandoned Aberrus to gather dust.
As players delve deep within Aberrus, the Shadowed Crucible, they will encounter firsthand the leftovers of Deathwing’s experimentation. Some of these monstrosities have been languishing in agony since their beginning, and are eager to inflict that suffering upon any trespassers. The other Aspects will be horrified to learn what their dear friend and fellow protector really spent his time doing, and how the consequences have torn a hole in their hearts ever since.
World of Warcraft: Dragonflight is available now for PC.