Lore Series 2: Artifacts - The Book of Medivh

So you're a warlock. You know the spells, you know the talents, the rotations, the stats. But how much do you really know? How much do you really want to know? The World of Warcraft has a body of lore worthy of most major works of fantasy, potentially more than you'll ever want to know.

Continuing where we left off last week, today we'll be looking at a powerful warlock artifact. No legendary weapon or ancient font of power, but a simple, modern book. The Book, in fact, that set in motion nearly all of the events of the Warcraft universe: The Book of Medivh.

Though Medivh himself is rarely noted as a warlock - he confined himself to the arcane arts for the most part - it is notable that Medivh committed one of the greatest acts of demonic magic ever to occur on Azeroth: The opening of the Dark Portal to Draenor. The orc invasion, which defined the political landscape of the Eastern Kingdoms as it is today, the rise of the Scourge and the Lich King, the modern Burning Legion invasions, Illidan's return to power, and the ultimate conquest of Draenor by the races of Azeroth - none of these things would have happened had the Dark Portal not been opened.

It's unclear if the Book of Medivh itself possesses any special power. It's not uncommon for spellbooks to be empowered by their creators, but it's not a prerequisite, and there is reason to believe the Book of Medivh is a simple mundane book in and of itself. What it does contain, however, is a wealth of demonic knowledge. It's complete contents are a mystery but the most prominent and best known item in the list is a collection of spells and rituals required to create a permanent, stable portal between worlds.

Medivh used the ritual only once. Possessed by the Dark Titan Sargeras, he created the Dark Portal and opened the way for the demon empowered orc hordes to invade Azeroth. The event has profound repercussions around Azeroth, most of what we know about recent history simply wouldn't have happened without this event. As such, it's one of the prime targets in the bizarre and confusing Temporal War between the Bronze and Infinite Dragonflights. If that attack by the Infinite Dragonflight were to succeed, major threads of the past, present, and future would unravel with unknowable results. If you really want a headache, that may have already happened and it might be your fault. Confused? There's a reason why mortals are warned against delving too deeply into the ways of dragons. They're unfathomable enough when they can't travel through time.

But, alas, I digress. Where was I? Ah, the Book of Medivh. Following Medivh's death, the Book was kept in New Stormwind's Royal Library. At the end of the Second War Khadgar used knowledge from the Book to attempt to undo what was done in the Blasted Lands and to close the Dark Portal. While the portal was damaged, the rift remained connecting the worlds. Nethergarde Keep was built to keep the Orcs from returning.

Even as the Alliance expedition forces passed through the Dark Portal to end the orc threat, Ner'zhul and his lieutenants stole the Book of Medivh. In addition (and as I mentioned, this is the reason many believe the Book itself houses no special power aside from pure knowledge), he required the Jeweled Scepter of Sergeras, the Eye of Dalaran, and the Skull of Gul'dan (another well known warlock artifact with a storied history).

Using the Book and the artifacts he collected, Ner'zhul opened numerous portals from Draenor seeking easier worlds for the horde to conquer. Opening such portals isn't a gentle process - the single portal opened in Azeroth blasted a crater well over a hundred yards wide altered the geology and climate of the southern end of the Eastern Kingdoms permanently. Opening many at once unleashed a spectacular magical cataclysm. Draenor was nearly destroyed - what exists of it now is but a fragment of a single continent, ripped from the surface of the world and plunged from this plane deep into the Twisting Nether.

Grom Hellscream and Killrog Deadeye (Not a warlock, but a name that should be well known to any warlock) and their clans led an exodus as the bulk of the orc hordes tried to escape the destruction. Obris remained, but was struck down for his insolence in questioning Ner'zhul. His dying act of vengeance was to hand the Book yet again to Khadgar, and the Skull of Gul'dan with it. The fate of the Sceptor and the Eye are both unknown. The Skull has another story to tell in the interim, but was among the artifacts recovered after Illidan's defeat in the Black Temple.

Khadgar, Turalyon, and the Alliance expedition forces chose to make the ultimate sacrifice in order to destroy the Dark Portal from the other side. Just before the portal was closed, a Wildhammer gryphon rider was dispatched with the Book and the Skull, hoping to lock the keys outside, so to speak. For many years the fate of those heroes was unknown, and likewise Khadgar had no way to know if the Book and Skull made it through to Azeroth.

Demon portals are durable things, though. While rendered inactive, the Dark Portal was not destroyed. It's not clear it ever can be. Illidan passed through it years later, though during his reordering of Outland he was able to close the majority of the portals opened by Ner'zhul, those portal still stand as a chilling threat and constant reminder of the fragility of Azeroth's conquest in Outland.

As for the Book, it's story still still isn't over. It's movements are unknown following the closing of the Dark Portal, however it finally came to rest in the Magical Nation of Dalaran in the possession of Archmage Antonidas. Now, despite (Or perhaps because of, *cough*) the density of powerful mages in Dalaran the city's military history doesn't inspire confidence. It was burned to the ground in the Second War, and no sooner did they rebuild it but the horde came through again and made off with the Eye of Dalaran.

So when Arthas and Kel'thuzad came knocking, what would history have the educated warlock expect of the glorious mages of the Kirin Tor? They got slaughtered. Again. And just to insult to injury, Kel'thuzad used the Book of Medivh right there in front of the Kirin Tor to summon Archimonde into Azeroth. Archimonde's first act was to burn Dalran to the ground. Again. Though, after the job the Scourge had already done to it, he was really just shifting the rubble around. As with Medivh, Kel'thuzad is rarely remembered as a warlock, but using Medivh's spellbook, he performed another of the greatest feats of demonic magic ever accomplished on Azeroth.

The Book of Medivh's ultimate fate is unknown. It's power, if it possessed any, may have finally been spent summoning Archimonde, or the book physically destroyed in the process or aftermath of that summoning. It may have been handed over to the Legion. It may still lie in the hands of some Scourge necromancer who survived the conquest of Icecrown. It was not among the artifacts recovered from Kel'thuzad upon his first defeat, or after his resurrection and final (presumably, as his phylactery was successfully recovered this time) death. It wasn't in the hands of any of the necromancers killed during the dismantling of the Scourge. It also wasn't in the possession of Archimonde upon his death, either originally or, as part of the Bronze Dragonflight's Temporal War, his simultaneous future-past re-defeat (normal verb tenses fail in ways it's fundamentally impossible for words to fail when talking about the Temporal War). Granted that it's possible he wasn't (or won't be) defeated in the future-past Temporal War version of the timeline, despite it already happening possibly twice, and it's possible that's your fault, too. I told you not to think about it too hard.