What will happen to the Scourge when Arthas dies?
by David Bowers 
Oct 1st 2007 at 3:03PM
Interesting concept to think about isn't it? But does killing Arthas really mean the undead cease to exist? They existed when he was just a paladin didn't they?Although we have seen that Arthas and the Lich King are now "one," it remains to be seen what "one" really means for them. Are they two souls in one body? Is Arthas the flesh and the Lich King his armor? What kind of state would the Lich King exist in after Arthas was killed? What sort of threat would the Scourge pose at that point -- just fodder for new characters leveling up in future expansions perhaps?
There are things to ponder here but most importantly...
Does the Lich King cease to be when the vessel is destroyed?
Filed under: Expansions, Lore, Bosses, Wrath of the Lich King
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
souledge Apr 13th 2008 5:44PM
I can't even think about arthas' death.......it's horrible. Warcraft will be nothink without Arthas because he is the GOD of Warcraft!!!!!!
Archimande Apr 22nd 2008 11:41AM
here is a cheap-make up of the dialogue in the horde and the alliance ending.
alliance
beginning: ah Jaina, i see you have come to visit me
and join me finally (raid group enters) AH! you fools,
you will feel the wrath of the lich king! (lich king voice), no they will not Arthas, you have always been my instrument, you will know longer possess my power, (arthas) what? (lich kings spirit floats out of Arthas' body and flies away) (arthas) NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
Ending: you, you are stronger then i last remember (player name) (raid leader)what do you mean? we have never met before, (arthas) you mean Jaina hasnt told you! hahahahaha! jaina i expected more honesty from you! (Jaina) he does not need to know Arthas be silent, or you will find yourself falling off your throne (player) what is this all about Jaina, i helped you get here and find your boyfriend, now give me an explanation! (Arthas) HAHAHAHA! do i seem to familiar to you (player name), does me face seem to bring back memories! (arthas takes off his helmet, suddenly the raid leader goes thrtough a flash back in first person and sees Arthas sword fighting with his father while you hide behind a bush, and then King Terenas sees you and says, go home now! and the vision fades) (Arthas) you have seen the truth my BROTHER! father always dsiregarded you, in fact to the point where he hid you from existence in shame because you did not wish to be prince, no one ever knew you existed so you had Antonidas, Jainas master, wipe your memory and you could start a new life, and now you have been a fool, you did not heed my servants warning and you have now come here! (jaina) Arthas do not open the box of the maelstrom! (Arthas) to late Jaina, Illidain serves me in fear, kil jaeden serves me in fear, all of your enemies serve me in fear except for that damn horde! (player) but i was prepared, illidain made the mistake of telling me that i wasnt prepared(remember "you are not prepared!") and for that he dies, and now you will die!, (player grabs frostmounre from the ground where arthas dropped it and stabs it into his heart) (arthas) aghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
! (Jaina) no! (player) now i am the king of lorderan and the lich king! (raid leader is now able to attack his own teamates and becomes a new hero class lich king and is strong that he can own the raid group or if he dies then he is automatically rezed and the whole raid is killed as a result (no armor damage dont worry) (jaina) no, no, no, i will not go through this again, i will not let another man that i live become a tyrant! (WTF!) (player) come then jaina join me and be the lich queen (jaina) no, no, i cant iw ill not give in to sugh madness! (player/lichking) it is not madness, it is power! (spirit of Ner zul(previous lich king) comes back) indeed it is brother of Arthas indeed it is, (lich king posesses your body and walks you out of the instance) now my trick worked and you know your true identity (lich king leaves with his power and frostmourne (but if it drops then he lets you keep it) and you are teleported back to your home town
Horde
Beginning: (Arthas) Ah Sylvanas windrunner, i remember you, you shot me (sylvanas) no i didnt (from pirates of the caribean 3) (raid group enters) Ah you pathetic horde will never stop me, your companions, the blackrock, could not stop me when i was a death knight, they could not stop me when i was follower of the pathetic light, and you can not stop me with my newfound power, not even with your new allies! Now you will feel the Wrath of ther Lich king! (Lich king) no they will not, (you remember what he said) (arthas) NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
End: well then, cut me down, cut me down like you did with my ancestors, cut me down like i so gladly cut down my father, cut me down like i did to you sylvanas! as you foolishly ignored our affair and shot me! (WTF!) (sylvanas) i did it for my own freedom, do you know who truly told illidain to weaken the frozen throne? i did, when illidain came to guel thalas before you destroyed it, he told me that if i ever needed any favor from him he would do it, i saved his life, but i will not save yours! (arthas) then come, meet me in combat once again to decide the fate of the world! (sylvanas picks up arthas by his kneck) no you must be silenced (Halo 3) and she stabs her sword into arthas' heart
Sylvanas (if dropped) picks up frostmourne and gives it to the group to be rolled for why she rezes and kills arthas over and over again, until eventually she says, my main purpose for life has been fulfilled, i have freed the undead and my people, please go back to my city and kill varimathras, he will likely try to usurp my rule (next quest in the chain), now i will claim my place amongst the heavens and meet my fallen sisters (sylvanas stabs her sword into herself and you see her spirit lift up into the sky) and you all can leave the instance
Thrak Jan 29th 2009 1:37AM
#4: Thing is, Arthas controls the Scourge. They are completely mindless (as far as we know) - It's like using a string puppet and then dropping the strings. The puppet falls over and doesn't move - it doesn't keep doing the last movement you made.
Naga and Defias aren't mindless - They operate after the last order they got. Who knows, they might not actually know that their leaders are dead yet (WTG Defias, missing out on your kingpin's death for four years -,.-*).
soulz Jan 30th 2009 2:58PM
if arthas dies the lich king would summon him as scourge and use his corpes as if he was still alive and he could thne use a spell and tele out of the instance =D those are my thoughts of what could happen
Nails Oct 1st 2007 3:24PM
well i guess we'll find out when all the undead mobs on the Magtheridon server disappear suddenly
Dave Oct 1st 2007 3:41PM
I believe the easy answer is "arthas isn't going to die".
That, or the lich king part of him isn't.
One way or another, they wouldn't basically wipe several zones worth of the game AND disable new undead characters as well (which is what the end result would be at that point, no more new undead from the lich king means no new forsaken to break off from the undead)
Delta Oct 1st 2007 3:50PM
Warcraft 4: Rise of the Lich King Gnome
RogueJedi86 Oct 1st 2007 3:53PM
Did killing Lady Vashj stop all the Naga in Zangarmarsh? Nope. Did killing Edwin VanCleef stop all the Defias in Elwynn Forest and Westfall? Nope. Being an MMO, nothing's ever permanent in WoW.
Chris Jahosky Oct 1st 2007 10:44PM
Nethaera's comment isn't exactly accurate -- yes, the Scourge existed when Arthas was a Paladin, but there was *already* a Lich King that controlled them. Arthas just hadn't fused with him yet.
If they really are fused now, and killing Arthas also meant that the spirit of Ner'zhul would die, then the Scourge might die along with them (remember, Ner'zhul originally created the Scourge and ruled them from the Frozen Throne before Arthas came along).
Anthony Oct 1st 2007 4:04PM
The new Death Night class will become (somehow) the reason that the undead continue methinks.
kuri Oct 1st 2007 4:11PM
I smell a lore twist.
Arthas dies, and an NPC assisting you in the battle dies also... only to be revived as the Lich King's new vessel.
Or something.
Baluki Oct 1st 2007 4:18PM
The undead weren't created by the Lich King, but are controlled by him. They were created with Kel'thuzad's plague of undeath.
We've already seen what happens when the Lich King's power falters. The undead under his control regain their free will, like the Forsaken (the playable undead race).
There are also others who can create/control the undead. The trolls Zalazane and Zanzil can, and I'm sure there are others.
oshin Oct 1st 2007 4:22PM
Arthas and the scourge will magicly reappear 7 days after their death, ready too lead there damned legions to mull around a pretty dungeon for eternity.
Ryan Oct 1st 2007 4:22PM
@5 Only if they don't get sleepy and wait till the Death Morning.
Ylts Oct 1st 2007 4:24PM
i think arthas or lich king or who ever he is have somekind of mental illness - he have splited personality o_O
or something like that
Ryan Oct 1st 2007 4:24PM
@5 Only if they don't get sleepy and wait for the Death Morning.
Zuty Oct 1st 2007 4:26PM
I am going to have to agree with 4 on this one.
The undead did exist pre-Arthas, So I see no reason why him being killed will lead to the down fall of them.
Maybe Blizz will slip in some new lore on an even greater Lich that takes over?
~Zuty
Todd Oct 1st 2007 4:28PM
Didn't the developers kick around an interesting idea that the first server kill of Arthas result in the player becoming the new Lich King? A shame this idea was quickly killed by the Powers That Be.
romo Oct 1st 2007 8:15PM
Uhh...did downing Illidan for the first time topple the Burning Legion?
This is stupid. It's a Raid Boss. Please tell me nobody is seriously asking about this. Of course he's not going to actually die.
Anon Oct 1st 2007 8:54PM
@14 Illidan isn't in control of the Burning Legion. That is Kil'Jaedin (sp?) or Sargeras, depending on perpsecive, whereas the Litch King is the primary ANIMATING force of the Scourge. Do raised beings die when their summoner is killed? For example, would killing Arthas kill Sylvanas, becuse he directly raised her, even if she has broken free of control...there might be some connection between the two. They are in similar positions...and with how the Forsaken treat her...they're starting to develop Aszshara syndrome...Not a good thing by any means.