Neltharion the Betrayer
Neltharion was originally the mighty black wyrm chosen by the titan Khaz’goroth to be one of the five Dragon Aspects, with dominion over the earth and the deep places of the world. He was chosen as the caretaker of the continents of Azeroth, and he used his power to forge mountains and rivers for the benefit of mortal races. In peaceful times, Neltharion was renowned for his wisdom and power, and he became known as Neltharion the Earth-Warder, a great protector of the land. Malygos the Spell-Weaver, the Aspect of magic, was his closest friend.
My blessing upon you will seem humble compared to those which have been bestowed upon the others: the managing of time, of life, of dreams and magic. I offer you the earth. The soil, the ground, the deep places. But know that the earth is the basis of all things. It is where we are rooted. Where you must come from, if you are to go to. Here is whence true strength comes. From deep places…within the world, and within oneself.
– Blessing of the Black Aspect, given by Khaz’goroth
The Old Gods convinced Neltharion to create the Dragon Soul. With the help of goblins, Neltharion created a simple golden disc made of his blood and forged in the goblins’ cauldrons and anvils deep beneath the earth. Empowered by Neltharion’s magic, the simple disc was magically shielded so that the other Dragon Aspects could not see within it. There was an evil within the disc, some taint of the Old Gods, though what exactly it is not known. The voices made him paranoid of even his own black dragonflight. Neltharion began to yearn for a world dominated by his black dragonflight — a world in which the other dragonflights ceased to exist and Ysera and Alexstrasza would be his petty slaves for mating.
When the Burning Legion entered Azeroth during the War of the Ancients, Neltharion saw the opportunity to complete his Dragon Soul. Guided by the voices of the Old Gods, he first captured demons of the Burning Legion, and added their powers to the Dragon Soul. Neltharion then convinced Malygos to help him with the other Dragon Aspects. All of them agreed to give a portion of their powers to the Dragon Soul, including all dragons of their dragonflights. Neltharion proposed that the Dragon Soul disc could be a weapon of great power to destroy the demons of the Burning Legion. Unknown to the rest, Neltharion was the only one who did not give of his powers to the Dragon Soul.
Neltharion, the Dragon Aspects and their dragonflights flew toward Zin-Azshari where the night elves held the demons at bay. The dragons awaited Neltharion’s first attack. He grabbed the Dragon Soul and by channelling his destructive power through it destroyed thousands of demons with one swing of radiant magic. The Dragon Aspects watched in horror as Neltharion also killed hundreds of night elves and other allies along with the demons.
Neltharion revealed the depths of his betrayal at last. Now with the disc at his command he wanted all races and the demons to see his power and to bow to him. The Dragon Aspects attacked Neltharion in an attempt to take the Dragon Soul from him and to reason with him in hopes of determining the cause of his betrayal. Malygos’ blue dragonflight surrounded Neltharion, but with a swing of the Dragon Soul, most of the blue dragons perished. The next swing of the Dragon Soul paralysed all dragonflights and the Dragon Aspects in mid-air, rendering them unable to move or speak. Neltharion then struck out at the Dragon Aspects and their dragonflights, destroying many and scattering them far across the land.
Neltharion’s betrayal struck a great blow to the Aspects, and their fear of being destroyed like the blue dragonflight kept them in seclusion. In desperation, the Aspects shielded themselves and hid to become undetected even by each other.
The growing corruption in Neltharion’s heart warped his body, as the angelic dragon began taking a more demonic appearance, similar to how Sargeras changed to a more demonic form after his corruption. Neltharion’s body cracked open, revealing his molten heart, and magma and fire flowed off his chest. His eyes became aflame in red, demonstrating the magnitude of his power and the depths of his evil. Thus was Deathwing the Destroyer born, and the Dragon Soul was renamed the Demon Soul.
Deathwing returned to his lair beneath a mountain. His proximity to the Demon Soul was ripping his body apart, so the goblin smiths forged an armour of adamantium to serve as a vessel to contain Deathwing’s raging powers and keep them in check.Only the adamantium plates kept the power from destroying his body.
The Old Gods had manipulated Deathwing into creating the Demon Soul, but their true intention was that the demons would inform their lord Sargeras of the great power of the weapon used against them. Sargeras would no doubt want the Demon Soul to power the gateway that would let him enter Azeroth. By using the Demon Soul to amplify the gateway, the three Old Gods hoped to escape their prison beneath the planet.
However, Malfurion Stormrage used the Emerald Dream to find Deathwing’s lair and stole the Demon Soul from the black dragon, who tried to pursue the thief in vain. Illidan and Varo’then captured Malfurion and took the Demon Soul back to Zin-Azshari, to Mannoroth the Destructor, the general of the Legion’s armies. It was used to power up the portal that would allow Sargeras to enter Azeroth.
Deathwing tried one last time to recover the disk, when it was being used by both Sargeras and the Old Gods, and actually succeeded in reaching it. Deathwing was almost destroyed in the attempt, but after he got the Demon Soul, an enormous surge of power made him lose his grip on the disk, and sent him spiralling far away from the portal.
After the Burning Legion was defeated, the Dragon Aspects sealed the Demon Soul with their energies, so that Deathwing should never be able to manipulate the Demon Soul. The artifact was hidden in an undisclosed location by Malfurion at the request of the Dragon Aspects. No longer in possession of the artifact and now unable to use it, Deathwing vowed to destroy most life and to wreak havoc on the planet. With his powers over earth, Neltharion caused volcanoes to rise along with the destruction already caused by the Well of Eternity’s implosion, sinking most of Kalimdor below the ocean.
Hidden away inside the Temple of Earth is the Stonecore, locked in the heart of Deepholm. It was here inside this mysterious domain that the corrupted Dragon Aspect Deathwing waited, recovering from the wounds of his last battle against the forces of Azeroth. As he bided his time until he could reforge the world in molten fire, the Twilight’s Hammer toiled over him, forging a new armor of elementium plates that were then hammered to the Dragon Aspect’s skin to hold his tormented body together.
In recent years, the whisperings of the Old Gods have gotten worse; the Old Ones’ dread power steadily increased as C’Thun and Yogg-Saron stirred from their ancient slumbers, and the growing influence of the Old Gods has magnified Deathwing’s power ten-fold. From within his lair in the elemental plane of Deepholm, Deathwing has awoken from his slumber and literally erupted into the world. His explosion into Azeroth was so powerful that it tore a rift between the Elemental Plane and Azeroth and caused earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and floods, reshaping the very face of the world. Very few lands have remained untouched in the wake of the devastating Shattering.
Following his explosive escape from Deepholm, Deathwing cast a deadly shadow over the people of Azeroth. Deathwing randomly chooses zones to attack; a blackened sky and red haze are the only warnings before every living creature caught in his approach is consumed by his terrible fire and killed. Dying in this manner also rewards the [Stood in the Fire] achievement. You can also get the achievement dying during the Deathwing encounter.
Deathwing features heavily in the three five-man dungeons that lead up to the raid. In the first, End Time, the future is shown if Deathwing is not defeated and the Hour of Twilight at last falls – a charred Dragonblight in Northrend, with all life extinguished forever. Deathwing is shown as a burnt-out shell of his former self, his powers having at last destroyed him from within. His lifeless corpse is impaled at the top of Wyrmrest Temple, his lava-like blood seeping from his mouth. To prevent the Hour of Twilight, the bronze aspect Nozdormu sends adventurers to go ten thousand years into the past, to the War of the Ancients, and retrieve the Dragon Soul – having been completely obliterated by Rhonin and Krasus shortly before the Shattering – so that Thrall could invoke its power to defeat Deathwing. Once the artifact is retrieved, the adventurers must escort Thrall to Wyrmrest Temple and protect him from Deathwing’s minions, so that the weapon could be secured for the final battle.
After the Dragon Soul was brought to the present, it had to be transported by Thrall and mortal heroes to Wyrmrest Temple, a place of great power connected to the Chamber of the Aspects, where the artifact was originally imbued. Since Deathwing learned of their intent, he and his minions converged on the temple to waylay them at all costs. At Wyrmrest the Aspects infused it with their essences once again, making it more potent than it ever was. Kalecgos altered the Dragon Soul’s properties so that it would affect Deathwing. But the artefact was imbued with the essences of the four Aspects and Deathwing never imparted his into it. To use the weapon to defeat him, they had to infuse it with the power of the Earth-Warder. Thrall possessed a portion – however small – of that exact thing: the essence of Azeroth itself. After the death of the twilight dragon Ultraxion, Thrall unleashed the Dragon Soul upon its creator. Wounded, Deathwing fled, attempting to return to the relative safety of Deepholm, through the Maelstrom. Thrall, the Aspects, and the Adventurers gave chase, riding a gunship after the Aspect of Death, battling his personal escort along the way.
After catching up, the adventurers leapt onto Deathwing’s back and began prying the elementium plates from his back, eventually making an opening big enough for Thrall to blast a hole into Deathwing’s chest with the Dragon Soul, causing Deathwing to crash into the Maelstrom. The defenders of Azeroth briefly rejoiced at having rid themselves of the Destroyer, but Deathwing rose from the Maelstrom. Without his armour, his molten form began to mutate, granting him a form far more terrifying than before. The final battle for Azeroth began in earnest, until one final blow from the Dragon Soul infused with the complete essence of each Aspect completely obliterated Deathwing. After the death of Deathwing, the Aspects had fulfilled their duty, and their ancient powers had been expended in order to destroy their former brother, and thus, the remaining Aspects became mortal. The glow in the Aspects eyes faded and the sands of time from Nozdormus’ broken spaulder pour into his hand. With the loss of Nozdormu’s powers, the Dragon Soul was returned back in time to the point where it was taken.
Watch the cut scenes from inside Dragon Soul when the Aspects and Thrall are at the top to Wyrmrest Temple and ending with Deathwing’s defeat.
The Black Drake mount has a 100% drop rate from Sartharion in The Obsidian Sanctum (Normal 10) as long as his 3 adds are still alive when he is defeated.
The Onyxian Drake has a low chance to drop from Onyxia, usually found sleeping in her lair.
The Dark Whelping pet (formerly known as Tiny Black Whelpling) has a drop rate between 0.08-0.19%. They may be farmed from the Ebon Whelp in Wetlands, Nyxondra’s Broodling in Badlands and the Flamescale Broodling in Burning Steppes. After Patch 4.0.3a this pet was added to multiple “dark” whelpling loot tables including the whelplings in Wetlands (lvl 20 – 25 zone), Dustwallow Marsh (lvl 35 – 40 zone), Badlands (lvl 44 – 48 zone) and Burning Steppes (lvl 49 – 52 zone).
Lil’ Deathwing was the free gift obtained from purchasing the Cataclysm Collector’s Edition.
This Onyxian Whelpling pet was rewarded via in-game mail when players logged in with their character during WoW’s 5th Anniversary event between November 22nd and approximately December 7th in 2009.