When I began playing World of Warcraft, I wasn’t sure what to expect. Yes, I ended up enjoying it so much that it’s now my MMORPG of choice, but given how long the MMORPG has been in service, a part of me was unsure if I would be able to dip into the content that had initially caught my eye in 2008 — the Wrath of the Lich King expansion. Warcraft III was one of my most played games as a child, having spent numerous hours playing community-made maps online or replaying what was one of my favorite video game narratives at the time.
Arthas Menethil and his fall from grace had absolutely captivated me, and learning that he would appear in World of Warcraft was a tantalizing prospect. But I was already playing another game, and the opportunity passed me. Wrath of the Lich King was then followed by Cataclysm, with that being followed by Mists of Pandaria, and so on. Arthas’ story was over, and so I thought I would never be able to experience it in full, unsure of how World of Warcraft functioned in relation to its “legacy” content.
Chatting with a friend I learned about Chromie Time, a feature introduced in Shadowlands that allowed for players under level 50 to go back and re-experience expansions as though they were fresh. So when I decided to make a Void Elf Death Knight, I knew that I wanted Wrath of the Lich King to be my leveling experience.
And I wasn’t alone in that.
My partner ended up picking up World of Warcraft and joined me. Sure enough, we eventually made our way across Northrend and saw that massive tower of ice in the distance, the structure where Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne had come to an end. Icecrown Citadel.
Excitedly, I messaged a friend who was a long-time player (they had left World of Warcraft for greener pastures, and because of the virulent toxicity of the game’s community), and they told me that they would be up for getting a subscription to take me and my partner through Icecrown Citadel and the dungeons that accompanied it. I was elated, and we ended up setting a date, with another friend joining up with us as he also decided to give World of Warcraft another spin.
As we made our way to Icecrown, completing the accompanying dungeons that provided more lore and further fleshed-out characters like Jaina Proudmoore, they shared their memories of what Wrath was like on release. It made me nostalgic for something I hadn’t even participated in, and I was utterly engrossed in everything they shared: how the Ziggurat had appeared, the event leading up to Wrath that Blizzard Entertainment had attempted to replicate but immediately pulled back on for Classic, and how Arthas had instilled the fear of God into so many players in the Hall of Reflection.
It was a joy to hear them talk about this as we fought through the first floor of Icecrown, blasting through waves of the undead and other monstrosities that barred our path. It was amazing how much of it tied back to events that happened in the MMORPG and the RTS that preceded it. I didn’t feel entirely lost, but was eager to drink in all of this new lore about one of my favorite characters in the series. We eventually made our way to the top of Icecrown Citadel, the two veteran players in the group reminiscing about their time progressing through the content while it was fresh.
I mentioned Sindragosa, and one of them made an audible noise, something resembling a pained groan, as they regaled to me the tales of spending night after night against the infamous undead dragon. I’ll never experience Sindragosa as she was, but every World of Warcraft player I’ve ever spoken to has always had some story about how she almost destroyed their raid group or friendships. And as we finally reached the very top of the tower, we finally saw him: Arthas Menethil, or rather, the Lich King.
He cut an imposing figure against the jagged ice that made up his throne, and as he stalked towards us I was listening to friends explain what the fight was like, how punishing the tank busters were and how difficult it was for healers. And as they burned him down to precision, as to make sure we would see some of the most important mechanics, he wiped our party.
And as Arthas gloated over his victory, the ghostly visage of his father appeared, resurrecting us to strike down the Lich King and free his son. It was the end of Arthas’ story and a fantastic final fight to pull everything together. I understood why it was looked upon so fondly or why people had such strong feelings about this particular chapter and raid in World of Warcaft. One of my friends mentioned how their raid was sobbing by the end of it as Terenas Menethil brought his son into the afterlife.
It wasn’t just a series of boss gauntlets and a really well-executed fight at the very top. It was the end of a culmination of events — a shared narrative thread that began in Warcraft III and spun outwards to lay the foundations for World of Warcraft. Without the events of Warcraft III, the geography and geopolitics in World of Warcraft would be very different.
There would be no Plaguelands, no Forsaken, no Jaina Proudmoore as we know her, Sylvannas would be an entirely different character, and there would be no real threat to unite the Alliance and Horde that wasn’t really done to the same level as it was in Wrath.
At the time, it was saying goodbye to one of Blizzard’s more interesting characters. And that’s what Icecrown Citadel represents and what makes it one of World of Warcraft’s most memorable raids to date.
