Icecrown Quests: The Story Before the Raid

The Icecrown quests tell the story of the invasion of Icecrown before the raid: the Argent Crusade fights its way in from the south, the Knights of the Ebon Blade take the Shadow Vault in the north, and the Alliance and Horde gunships strike the Lich King's walls. The story ends in Tirion's Gambit, when Tirion destroys Arthas's heart right in front of the Lich King.

This post follows the zone in the order you play it. The raid is covered in other posts, such as Icecrown as a symbol and the Argent Crusade, the Ebon Blade and the fall of the Lich King.

What is Icecrown in the WotLK quests?

Icecrown is the glacier of the Frozen Throne. During the war, the Scourge covered the region with walls. The entrance from Dragonblight was the Wrathgate. The glacier had three more gates: Mord'rethar, Aldur'thar and Corp'rethar.

That is why each force attacks from a different side:

• The Argent Crusade climbs in from the southeast, through the Valley of Echoes.
• The Alliance and the Horde attack from the air, with the gunships.
• The Ebon Blade takes a Scourge fortress in the north.

If you came from the Wrathgate, this is the next chapter. See what happened at Angrathar.

Who's who in the Icecrown quests

| Character | Side | Where they appear | | --- | --- | --- | | Tirion Fordring | Argent Crusade | Argent Vanguard and Crusaders' Pinnacle | | The Ebon Watcher | Ebon Blade | Darion Mograine in disguise | | Thassarian | Ebon Blade | With the Alliance on the Skybreaker | | Koltira Deathweaver | Ebon Blade | With the Horde on Orgrim's Hammer | | Baron Sliver | Ebon Blade | Shadow Vault | | Matthias Lehner | Ghost | Naz'anak and the Court of Bones | | Lich King | Scourge | A voice in the battles, and in person at the end |

How do the Icecrown quests begin?

You arrive on your faction's gunship. In Dalaran, Preparations for War takes the Alliance to the Skybreaker, with High Captain Justin Bartlett. The Horde goes to Orgrim's Hammer, with Sky-Reaver Korm Blackscar. Then Judgment Day Comes! sends you to Tirion.

The Argent Vanguard was the Argent Crusade's first forward base in Icecrown. It sits in the Valley of Echoes, in the southeast of the zone.

There the chain is about defense. In A Cold Front Approaches, the Scourge attacks the base. The valley fills with undead, the tower cannons fire and frost wyrms join the fight. In The Last Line Of Defense, the crusaders hold off the attack.

Then Tirion gives you Once More Unto The Breach, Hero. The crusaders have cleared the webs that blocked The Breach, a passage cut through the mountain between the Valley of Echoes and Scourgeholme. You go and speak to the Ebon Watcher.

This knight is Darion Mograine in disguise. His knights served the Lich King until Light's Hope Chapel. For the origin of the order, see how the death knights broke free from Arthas.

The battle for Crusaders' Pinnacle

On the other side of the Breach lies Scourgeholme. The Crusade clears the area with The Purging Of Scourgeholme and The Scourgestone.

The high point is The Battle For Crusaders' Pinnacle. Tirion hands you the Blessed Banner of the Crusade. You carry the banner to a pile of crusader skulls at the top of the plateau and defend the spot.

• Crusader Lord Dalfors arrives with Crusade priests and masons.
• They find crusader bodies hanging from a dead tree and burn the tree.
• The Scourge attacks in waves, up to the boss Halof the Deathbringer.
• The Lich King's voice echoes: "Leave no survivors!"

When Halof falls, the plateau is taken. The Crusade consecrates the ground and raises Justice Keep. There, Tirion warns that the next step is Icecrown Citadel.

After the battle, a sad chain opens: A Tale of Valor. Crusader Bridenbrad caught the Plague of Undeath at the Broken Front and isolated himself in the mountains. You seek help from Keeper Remulos, Alexstrasza and A'dal. His body cannot be cured, but the naaru take his soul to the Light.

The Ebon Blade and the Shadow Vault

In the north, near Aldur'thar, is the Shadow Vault. It was a Scourge fortress where General Lightsbane oversaw weapon production. The Ebon Blade takes the place with your help:

1. In Free Your Mind, Baron Sliver gives you the Sovereign Rod. You use the rod on Vile, Lady Nightswood and The Leaper and break the Lich King's hold over them.
2. In If He Cannot Be Turned, you kill General Lightsbane.
3. In The Shadow Vault, the fortress becomes an Ebon Blade base.

From there, Duke Lankral sets his sights on Jotunheim. The chain of The Duke goes through Malykriss: The Vile Hold and through The Rider of the Unholy, The Rider of Frost and The Rider of Blood. It ends with The Fate of Bloodbane. Darion finds Orbaz Bloodbane's hiding place under the citadel and fights him at your side.

To find out if the reputation is worth the farm, read Knights of the Ebon Blade: required or optional.

Jotunheim, Valhalas and the Ymirjar

Jotunheim is the largest vrykul village in Northrend, on the cliffs of northwest Icecrown. It was there that the vrykul woke from their magical sleep. During the war, Overthane Balargarde ruled the village.

Its heart is Valhalas, an arena watched over by the val'kyr Geirrvif. The vrykul fight each other:

• Whoever wins becomes Ymirjar, the elite caste created by King Ymiron to serve the Lich King.
• Whoever loses becomes a vargul, an undead.

The Ymirjar capital is Ymirheim, in the center of Icecrown. They return inside Icecrown Citadel.

The Battle at Valhalas series is for groups. In Battle at Valhalas: Final Challenge, news of your victories reaches the citadel. Prince Sandoval, one of the Lich King's chosen, appears in the arena.

For the origin of this people, see the vrykul and the roots of Northrend.

The gunships: Skybreaker and Orgrim's Hammer

The Scourge ruled the ground, so the factions used flying ships as bases. The Skybreaker belongs to the Alliance. Orgrim's Hammer belongs to the Horde, named in honor of Orgrim Doomhammer.

The war fronts start from the gunships:

• Ymirheim, with Get to Ymirheim! and the daily King of the Mountain.
• The Broken Front, against the Scourge troops.
• Aldur'thar: The Desolation Gate, the second line of defense, made of saronite. Thassarian and Koltira lead the factions up to the death of the cultist Alumeth the Ascended.
• The Valley of Fallen Heroes, behind the gate.

In the raid, the ships return in the Gunship Battle, with Muradin Bronzebeard on the Skybreaker and Varok Saurfang on Orgrim's Hammer.

Arthas's heart: the road to Tirion's Gambit

After the Shadow Vault, Thassarian (Exploiting an Opening) or Koltira (Opportunity) sends you below the citadel. In A Voice in the Dark, you touch a "crystal" in the depths of Naz'anak. It is an organ trapped in the ice. A boy's voice says: "You really shouldn't have done that."

The boy is Matthias Lehner, a ghost. His name is an anagram of Arthas Menethil. Only you can see the boy, because you touched something that belonged to the prince.

• Where Dragons Fell: a vision shows the Lich King raising Sindragosa.
• The Hunter and the Prince: you become Arthas and fight Illidan, the duel at the end of The Frozen Throne. Matthias reveals that the crystal is Arthas's heart, thrown away because it made him weak.
• Knowledge is a Terrible Burden: the Lich King already knows the heart has been found.

That duel is in The Frozen Throne #5: the rise of the Lich King.

What happens in Tirion's Gambit?

Tirion's scouts see the Cult of the Damned carrying the heart to the Cathedral of Darkness, northwest of the citadel. You and Tirion go in disguised as cultists.

The Lich King arrives and sees through the disguise. Tirion draws the Ashbringer and destroys the heart. The blast knocks Tirion down and leaves the Lich King at 30% health. Darion, Koltira and Thassarian arrive with the Ebon Blade and open a Death Gate to Crusaders' Pinnacle.

Back there, Tirion concludes that nothing is left of Arthas, only the Lich King. It is the end of the zone and the door to the raid. The sword has its own post: The Ashbringer of the Dark Crystal.

The Ashen Verdict already belongs to the raid. It arrived in patch 3.3.0, uniting Tirion's Crusade and Darion's Ebon Blade at Light's Hammer. See Ashen Verdict: how it works in ICC.

Where to see it in WotLK

Icecrown is a level 77 to 80 zone. In the guide to the best zones for rushing levels, it shares that range with the Storm Peaks.

• Argent Vanguard (86.9, 76.5): Tirion and the defense of the base.
• The Ebon Watcher (83.0, 72.9): Darion in disguise, near the Breach.
• Crusaders' Pinnacle (79.7, 72.3): Tirion after the battle, and Tirion's Gambit.
• Crusader Bridenbrad (79, 30): starts A Tale of Valor.
• Shadow Vault: Baron Sliver and Free Your Mind.
• Valhalas, in Jotunheim: Geirrvif and the Battle at Valhalas series.
• Gunships: they leave from Krasus' Landing, in Dalaran.

Before this zone came the Storm Peaks. The next chapter is the Argent Tournament.

Read more:

• The story of Wrath of the Lich King
• The story of the Lich King and Arthas
• Tirion Fordring and the Ashbringer
• The best quest chains in WotLK

Frequently asked questions

What is the order of the Icecrown quests?

Argent Vanguard, then Crusaders' Pinnacle. Next come the gunships and the Shadow Vault. The Arthas's heart chain, which ends in Tirion's Gambit, comes last.

Where does Tirion's Gambit start?

With Tirion at Crusaders' Pinnacle. Before that, do the Matthias Lehner chain up to Tirion's Help (Alliance) or Argent Aid (Horde).

Who is the Ebon Watcher?

He is Darion Mograine in disguise. He sends you to help clear Scourgeholme.

Does the Lich King appear in the Icecrown quests?

Yes. His voice echoes at Crusaders' Pinnacle, and he appears in person in Tirion's Gambit.