Maelstrom
 The Maelstrom |
|
|---|---|
| Level 82 | |
 |
|
| Maelstrom loading screen | |
| Faiths | Shamanism |
| Affiliation | Earthen Ring |
| Location | Center of the Great Sea |
- For the zone underneath the Maelstrom, see Eye (Maelstrom).
The Maelstrom is the gigantic rift that was created when the Well of Eternity collapsed into itself during the Great Sundering. Located in the middle of the Great Sea - which the Great Sundering created - the Maelstrom appears as a massive, fierce vortex of water.
Contents |
History
Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos
From the Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos manual:
- "As the aftershocks from the Well's implosion rattled the bones of the world, the seas rushed in to fill the gaping wound left in the earth. Nearly eighty percent of Kalimdor's landmass had been blasted apart, leaving only a handful of separate continents surrounding the new, raging sea. At the center of the new sea, where the Well of Eternity once stood, was a tumultuous storm of tidal fury and chaotic energies. This terrible scar, known as the Maelstrom, would never cease its furious spinning. It would remain a constant reminder of the terrible catastrophe and the utopian era that had been lost forever..."[1]
Additionally, during the Third War, Thrall's fleet crashed and they made an emergency landing on an island near the Maelstrom, where they found a group of jungle trolls fighting desperately against human colonists and murloc invaders.[2] The island was destroyed by Zar'jira, with Thrall and his allies barely escaping.[3]
World of Warcraft
The Maelstrom can be seen on the world map of World of Warcraft, where it sits between Kalimdor and the Eastern Kingdoms. Ship and zeppelin routes go out of their way to avoid the Maelstrom, for fairly obvious reasons. This depiction of the Maelstrom, as well as evading ships/zeppelins, was continued in the following expansions which elaborated the map and added more travel routes.
The Burning Crusade and Wrath of the Lich King
The two first World of Warcraft expansions, The Burning Cruade and Wrath of the Lich King, included minor depictions of the Maelstrom:
- The Burning Crusade:
- The Maelstrom can be seen on the "super-map" which features Outland and Azeroth.
- Azeroth - and the Maelstrom - can be seen from the Black Temple in Outland.
- Wrath of the Lich King:
-
Map of Outland and Azeroth.
-
Azeroth, and the Maelstrom, seen from Outland.
-
The Maelstrom on an Azeroth globe in Ulduar.
Cataclysm
In the third expansion, Cataclysm, players became able to visit the Maelstrom.
Deathwing has used the Maelstrom to reenter Azeroth's physical plane from Deepholm, triggering the Shattering. Thrall is present here on behalf of the Earthen Ring, and is trying to maintain the rift with other key Earthen Ring members alongside Muln Earthfury and Farseer Nobundo.
As far as game mechanics are concerned, the Maelstrom is a sanctuary, where PvP combat is disabled. The zone can be reached through the quests which lead the player to Deepholm from Stormwind City and Orgrimmar. Once the player enters Deepholm, the Maelstrom cannot be revisited.
Player mobility in the Maelstrom is limited: mounting is disabled, and an invisible wall does not allow movement outside of Thrall and Aggra's piece of land. As a result, players cannot venture over via flight or swimming to visit Kezan or the Lost Isles,
In the Dragon Soul raid, the final battle against Deathwing will end at the Maelstrom, after a long battle on his back. Deathwing will attempt to flee to Deepholm and players must face him before he can usher forth the final cataclysm.
Even after the death of Deathwing, the shamans of the Earthen Ring were still healing the world.[4]
-
Concept art.
-
The Maelstrom as seen in World of Warcraft.
-
Complete view from an earlier build.
-
Closer view.
-
Thrall maintaining the rift.
-
Muln Earthfury maintaining the rift.
-
Farseer Nobundo maintaining the rift.
-
Entering the Maelstrom.
-
Flying into Deepholm from the Maelstrom.
Geography
The Maelstrom itself is located in the northern tip of the South Seas, to the northwest of the Broken Isles. At the center of the Maelstrom is a location known as the Eye. The empires of the makrura and the naga, named Mak'aru and Nazjatar, lie beneath it. They, along with the other regions within the Maelstrom, are considered sub-regions of The Eye. These are all located beneath it, below ocean surface.[5]
It is implied that the Maelstrom is slowly eroding and damaging the artificially-raised Broken Isles, and will ultimately destroy them for good.[6]
-
The Maelstrom's location in World of Warcraft.
-
Loading screen from "The Fires Down Below" in Warcraft III.
-
Lands of Mystery map.
-
Continent map.
-
Zone map.
-
Underneath The Eye.
Regions adjacent to the Maelstrom
| Zone Name | Faction | Level Range | Access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deepholm |   |
None | Via the eye of the Maelstrom. |
| Orgrimmar | |
None | Via portal |
| Stormwind | |
None | Via portal |
Quests
[82] Deepholm, Realm of Earth- [84] Devoured
- [82] The Maelstrom
- [84] The Worldbreaker
Factions
Notable characters
Notes
- The shark-dinosaur-Forsaken Epicus Maximus appeared during the Cataclysm beta in the Maelstrom after hearing that players considered the area not epic enough.
Videos
Patch changes
Patch 4.1.0 (2011-04-26): The Maelstrom now has its own loading screen.- Patch 4.0.3a (2010-11-23): Added.
References
- ^ Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos manual, page 51
- ^ Riders on the Storm
- ^ Countdown to Extinction
- ^ Jaina Proudmoore: Tides of War
- ^ Lands of Mystery, page 70
- ^ Lands of Mystery, pages 67-68
External links
|
|||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||
