Dragons are coming back to World of Warcraft. After the Dragon Aspects disappeared into the shadows at the end of Cataclysm, they are returning to the forefront of the story with Dragonflight. Players will be traveling to the Dragon Isles for the first time and seeing the homeland of World of Warcraft's dragons. However, the dragons that are returning to their sacred homeland are not the same ones that left. Years of conflict and turmoil have reshaped the landscape of the Dragon Aspects and dwindled their numbers significantly, not to mention the fact they no longer have the same power they once did.

One Dragon Aspect that will not be returning to the Dragon Isles is the infamous Deathwing the Destroyer. Once, he was the black dragon known as Neltharion the Earth-Warder, but he fell to the influence of the old gods and wreaked havoc across Azeroth. His actions led to the loss of the Dragon Aspects' power at the end of Cataclysm. It has been five expansions since he changed the trajectory of Warcraft forever, and his story will most likely come up during the narrative of Dragonflight.

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Neltharion's Fall Before Catacylsm

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Neltharion was one of the original five Dragon Aspects tasked with protecting Azeroth and making sure that the land thrived. He was given control over the very earth that life walked on, as well as the deep underground of Azeroth. Neltharion would forge large mountains and rivers for mortals to utilize, becoming renowned for the wisdom and power that he held while forming close ties with fellow aspect Malygos. He would also create the Dracthyr as perfect soldiers, though the specifics of their creation are still a mystery.

During Neltharion's time as an Aspect, he would grow increasingly angry by the burden he was forced to carry. He felt suffocated by the weight of Azeroth and began to resent the titans that gave him this task. Eventually, he would begin to hear whispers from the Old Gods, who promised him power beyond his wildest dreams. Neltharion would begin to dream about a world where he was in control. Alongside goblin servants, he would create a Dragon Soul imbued with his magic and some Old God corruption.

During the War of the Ancients, Neltharion convinced his fellow Aspects to plunge some of their power into the Dragon Soul. He would also absorb the power of various members of the Burning Legion and put them into the Soul. The Dragon Soul gave him immense power, which he used to subdue the other dragonflights as they fled across Azeroth. However, the power became too much, and his very body became corrupted with molten magma and flames. His servants would forge scales of steel to keep the magma at bay, and he would take up the name Deathwing. The Dragon Soul would become the dreaded Demon Soul.

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Deathwing's Reign of Destruction

After much fighting and destruction, the heroes of Azeroth were able to keep Deathwing at bay, and the Demon Soul was ripped from his possession. He would spend years biding his time and repairing his body from the damage it had sustained. During this time, the Twilight Hammer would join him and forge a new set of plates from elementium. The Old God whispers grew stronger when C'Thun and Yogg'Saron awoke, and Deathwing was stirred from his seclusion.

Deathwing would explode back into Azeroth, causing a rift between the Elemental Plane and Azeroth. This led to massive earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and floods across the world. The continents were reshaped and World of Warcraft never looked the same again. He would fly across Azeroth and cause destruction in his wake, even leaving his mark on the walls of Stormwind City. In-game, he would randomly attack zones and anything in his path would be killed by a rain of fire.

Deathwing's goal was to destroy all life on Azeroth and prepare the world for the Old Gods. He would team up with the likes of Ragnaros and the Al'Alkir. The Al'Akir began to hunt for the Forge of Origination that would kill all life on Azeroth, meanwhile Ragnaros would spread fire across the world. This spread the heroes of Azeroth thin as they tried to defeat one crisis after the next, Deathwing continuing to destroy everything they held dear.

The Defeat of the Destroyer

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The only thing powerful enough to defeat Deathwing was the dangerous Demon Soul. The heroes of Azeroth were sent back in time by the bronze aspect Nozdormu so they could bring it back to the present day. Alongside Thrall and the Dragon Aspects, the heroes confronted Deathwing in Wymrest Temple in hopes that they could end this madness once and for all.

The forces of Azeroth pursued Deathwing across the skies and into the Maelstrom, where players jumped on his spine and began to rip off the plates from his back to make a big enough opening for Thrall. Once they succeeded in that, Thrall was able to unleash the power of the Demon Soul and deal Deathwing a blow that seemingly killed him. However, he rose from the Maelstrom and tried to cause a second cataclysm on Azeroth. The Dragon Aspects held him back with their power until the Demon Soul delivered the killing blow.

After centuries of anger and hatred, Neltharion was finally able to rest. Deathwing the Destroyer's reign of terror came to an end, but at an immense cost. In their pursuit to stop him, the Dragon Aspects lost all their titan-giving power after sacrificing it to power the Demon Soul. The age of dragons had ended and the age of mortals had begun, at least until Dragonflight potentially brings about a new age.

World of Warcraft is available now on PC.

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