Magtheridon: the pit lord of Hellfire Citadel

Magtheridon is the Burning Legion pit lord who ruled Outland after Draenor was destroyed, until Illidan took the Black Temple from him. Once beaten, he was chained beneath Hellfire Citadel, where his blood becomes fel orcs and where players fight him in the Magtheridon's Lair raid.

Who is Magtheridon?

Magtheridon is an annihilan, the race of giant demons that WoW calls pit lords. It is the same race as Mannoroth, the demon whose blood corrupted the Horde for the first time.

He is not just any demon. For years, he owned an entire world. Outland, the remains of Draenor, was in his hands. The Legion used that broken world as a base to attack other worlds and to hunt the surviving draenei.

His story splits into three moments:

1. His reign over Outland, after Draenor exploded.
2. His defeat by Illidan, told in Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne.
3. His imprisonment in Hellfire Citadel and his death at the hands of players, in The Burning Crusade.

For the background on pit lords and demonic blood, see Third War #7: the blood of Mannoroth.

How did Magtheridon rule Outland?

When Ner'zhul opened too many portals at once, Draenor shattered. What was left became Outland, a cracked world floating in the Nether.

The Legion took advantage of the chaos. It conquered Outland and put Magtheridon in charge. He gathered the orcs who had been left behind and corrupted them. That is how the Fel Horde was born: an army of fel orcs with red skin and constant rage.

The dimensional gateways Ner'zhul had opened did not close. Magtheridon started using them. New demons came through them and kept his fortress full of soldiers.

And that fortress was the old Temple of Karabor, the sacred place of the draenei. Gul'dan and the Shadow Council had corrupted it during the orc invasion. Later, Magtheridon took it. In Warcraft III, the fortress shows up under the name Black Citadel. In WoW, it is the Black Temple.

For the story of how the orcs took the citadel long before, read Beyond the Dark Portal #16: the Citadel must fall.

Who were Magtheridon's lieutenants?

Magtheridon had two main lieutenants: the Master of Pain and the Mistress of Torment. Below them were several fel orc chieftains, each with his own camp.

The Black Temple was surrounded by four orc encampments, full of demons and guarded by towers. From the outside, it looked impossible to take.

On the inside, there was a problem. According to Blizzard, Magtheridon had grown complacent. No one had threatened his reign for a long time. He did not expect a surprise attack.

The defeat by Illidan

Illidan reached Outland running from Kil'jaeden. He had failed to destroy the Frozen Throne and needed a hiding place and an army. Kael'thas and the blood elves, Lady Vashj and the naga followed him.

The first step was to cut off the reinforcements. Illidan personally sealed the dimensional gateways while his allies held off the fel orcs. With no gateways, Magtheridon received no more demons.

Along the way, Illidan gained another ally: Akama and the Broken draenei. Magtheridon's orcs had hunted Akama's people almost to extinction.

The attack on the Black Temple came from three sides:

• Akama and the draenei opened the doors from the inside.
• Illidan and Kael'thas attacked the front.
• Vashj came in with the naga through the aqueducts and killed the Mistress of Torment.

When the lieutenants fell, Illidan, Kael, Akama and Vashj entered the pit lord's chamber. Magtheridon lost. On the ground, he asked if Illidan was an agent of the Legion, sent to test him. Illidan answered that he had come to replace him. He called Magtheridon a relic, a ghost of a past age, and declared: the future is mine.

Illidan proclaimed himself Lord of Outland. The surviving fel orcs and demons started serving him.

The whole chapter, mission by mission, is in The Frozen Throne #3: the conquest of Outland.

Why didn't Illidan kill Magtheridon?

For a long time, everyone thought Magtheridon had died in the Black Temple. That is not what happened.

Illidan found out that the pit lord's blood had a corrupting effect on orcs. It was a source of soldiers. So Magtheridon, nearly dead, was dragged to Hellfire Citadel, in Hellfire Peninsula. There he stayed in chains, and his blood was drained every day to create a new Fel Horde.

The surviving fel orcs were stationed on the peninsula. Illidan made Kargath Bladefist their warchief. Kargath is the last boss of Shattered Halls, the Citadel's third dungeon.

What is the Blood Furnace?

The Blood Furnace is the second wing of Hellfire Citadel, in the tower above Hellfire Ramparts. This is where the fel orcs use Magtheridon's blood to create more soldiers. The last boss is Keli'dan the Breaker, with his channelers. His room sits right above the pit lord's lair.

In TBC, the quest Heart of Rage sends the player to investigate the Blood Furnace. On the way back, the commander concludes: they must be using the blood from this pit lord to create new fel orcs. On the Horde side, Nazgrel goes further: if they can do that to the Mag'har, they can do it to us.

What is the Magtheridon fight like?

Magtheridon's Lair is a 25-player raid, added in patch 2.0.3. The entrance is at the very bottom of the Citadel's western side, opposite the other three entrances. It is a one-boss raid.

The fight tells the story of his imprisonment:

• The channelers. Five Hellfire Channelers keep Magtheridon bound, each one next to a Manticron Cube. They heal each other, cast fear and summon Burning Abyssals. When one dies, the others get stronger.
• The release. Two minutes after the first attack on the channelers, Magtheridon breaks free. He shouts: "I... am... UNLEASHED!!!" Ideally, at least three channelers are already dead.
• The cubes. Every minute, he casts Blast Nova, a fire blast across the whole room. To stop it, five players click the five cubes at the same time. The cubes cut off the blast and leave him much more vulnerable, and he complains: "Not again... NOT AGAIN!" Whoever clicks gets Mind Exhaustion and cannot click again for 30 seconds.
• The ceiling. At 30% health, he makes the walls shake and the cavern ceiling collapses on the raid.

When he dies, he warns: "The Legion will consume you all!"

Magtheridon also drops the Tier 4 chest tokens, the same tier as Karazhan and Gruul's Lair.

Magtheridon's head

Magtheridon drops Magtheridon's Head, which starts the quest The Fall of Magtheridon. The Alliance turns the head in to Danath Trollbane, in Honor Hold. The Horde turns it in to Nazgrel, in Thrallmar. The reward is a ring of your choice and reputation with Honor Hold or Thrallmar.

On turn-in, the NPC shouts for the whole base to hear. Danath says the feast of corruption is no more. Nazgrel says Hellfire Citadel is ours. The quest also gives a 10% bonus to Honor Hold or Thrallmar reputation for two hours.

The quest text leaves one line hanging: redemption comes for Illidan, and soon. Magtheridon falls, and the next one is the new master of the Black Temple.

In original TBC, killing Magtheridon was also part of the Tempest Keep key. The quest Trial of the Naaru: Magtheridon, from A'dal in Shattrath, asked for his death. Since patch 2.1.2, the key is no longer required.

Who's who

| Name | Who they are | |------|--------| | Magtheridon | The pit lord who ruled Outland for the Legion. | | Illidan Stormrage | Took the Black Temple and chained Magtheridon. | | Akama | Elder of the Broken draenei, opened the temple from the inside. | | Lady Vashj | Leader of the naga, came in through the aqueducts. | | Kael'thas | Prince of the blood elves, attacked alongside Illidan. | | Kargath Bladefist | Warchief of the Fel Horde on the peninsula. | | Keli'dan the Breaker | Boss of the Blood Furnace, above the lair. | | Danath Trollbane / Nazgrel | Commanders of Honor Hold and Thrallmar. |

Where to see it in WotLK

On the WotLK 3.3.5a server, this whole story is still standing in Outland:

• Hellfire Peninsula: the first zone of Outland, right after the Dark Portal. Hellfire Citadel sits in the middle of it.
• Hellfire Ramparts, The Blood Furnace and Shattered Halls: the Citadel's three dungeons. In Ramparts and the Blood Furnace you see the fel orcs up close. Shattered Halls ends with Kargath Bladefist.
• Magtheridon's Lair: the pit lord's raid. Even at 80, Blast Nova and the collapsing ceiling are still part of the fight.
• Heart of Rage: the Blood Furnace quest that reveals how his blood is used.
• The Fall of Magtheridon: the head turn-in at Honor Hold or Thrallmar.
• Black Temple, in Shadowmoon Valley: the temple that was Magtheridon's and became Illidan's.

If you are just arriving in Outland, the guide What to do when you hit the Outland wall at 58–62 helps you get through Hellfire Peninsula without getting stuck. The other lieutenant who was in the attack on the temple has her own story in Lady Vashj and Serpentshrine Cavern.

Read more: The Burning Crusade in order: Illidan, Kael'thas, Vashj and the fate of Outland and History of Warcraft #5: Illidan Stormrage.

Frequently asked questions

Who is Magtheridon in WoW?

A pit lord of the Burning Legion. He ruled Outland after Draenor was destroyed, created the Fel Horde and lost the Black Temple to Illidan.

Did Magtheridon die in Warcraft III?

No. Everyone thought so, but Illidan kept him imprisoned beneath Hellfire Citadel to use his blood. He only dies in TBC, in the Magtheridon's Lair raid.

How are fel orcs created from Magtheridon?

The pit lord's blood corrupts orcs. In the Blood Furnace, Illidan's orcs drain that blood every day to create new Fel Horde soldiers.

Where is the Magtheridon raid?

In Hellfire Citadel, in Hellfire Peninsula. The entrance is at the very bottom of the Citadel's western side.

Is Magtheridon the same as Mannoroth?

No. They are the same race, the annihilan, but they are different demons. Mannoroth died in Warcraft III, and Magtheridon falls in TBC.