 For today's story, we have another big character by the name of Jaina Proudmoore, a mage who is well known to both the Horde and the Alliance. Before we begin, let's listen to a small quote. Born prior to the First War, Jaina Proudmoore is the youngest child of Admiral Dalin Proudmoore, Lord of Kul Tiras and a longtime friend and ally of Lordaeron and the Kingdom of Azeroth. At a young age, Jaina was enamored with tales of the Guardian Aegwynn. When her magical talent was discovered and she was sent to Dalaran, she badgered Antonidas into accepting her as an apprentice, eventually becoming one of the few female wizards in direct service to Dalaran. Under pressure by the expectations of her mentor, the heroic legacy she had to live up to and the watchful eye of the citizenry of Lordaeron, Jaina struggled to keep focus on her studies. Because of their mutually royal heritage, it was inevitable that Jaina and Prince Arthas, the heir to the throne of Lordaeron would meet. Over the years, they grew close as friends, and then romantically. They were very much in love with one another. Eventually, Arthas questioned whether the two of them were ready to be together. Arthas abruptly ended the relationship, so Jaina could focus on her magical studies in Dalaran and he could focus on his commitments to Lordaeron. Jaina was very hurt by the decision, but did not fight him. She soon realized and agreed that it was the right thing to do at the time. Shortly after, they decided to rekindle their romance, but this was during the beginning of the Scourge invasion that would change both their lives forever. Many years later, Antonidas, eager to learn more about the plague sweeping northern Lordaeron, was met by the prophet, who pleaded with the wizard to take his people west to Calendor. Antonidas dismissed the prophet as nothing more than a madman, but Jaina, who had been watching from hiding, sensed great power in the prophet, and thought that perhaps they should heed his warnings. Antonidas continued to disagree, and instead sent Jaina to meet with Arthas and investigate the plague at the northern village of Brill. As they investigated Brill, Jaina saw some very strange things, including an extra-mancer and a zombie made of various parts of several corpses. They faced off against several undead enemies, and came upon a granary, which contained grain infested with the plague. The crates bore the seal of Anderhal, the primary distributor of grain throughout Lordaeron. Chasing the necromancer, who was actually Kel'Thuzad, formerly a member of the Kirin Tor, to Anderhal, they found a mass of undead warriors waiting for them. They fought their way through to Kel'Thuzad, where Arthas killed him. Jaina and Arthas made their way back to central Lordaeron, and they stopped for rest at the small town of Arthen. However, they discovered that the plague-infected grain from Anderhal had arrived and had been distributed among the townsfolk, who were transforming into the undead. Jaina reluctantly departed to find Uther for reinforcements. When she returned with the silver hand on her back, Arthen was all but destroyed, and Arthas was fighting a losing battle. With Uther's help though, they managed to push back the undead attackers. Arthas, demoralized and horrified by the overwhelming forces of undead, vowed to go to Stratholm, where he hoped to fight Mal'ganis. Jaina and Uther followed him to Stratholm, but did not arrive in time to stop the townspeople from eating the tainted grain. All three knew that the people of Stratholm would soon become undead and attack. Arthas was in favor of slaughtering the people before their transformation to purge the town, but Uther could not condone murdering helpless people, whose only crime was being infected. Even if leaving them alive meant they would soon become a threat. When Uther refused to kill the civilians as Arthas ordered, Arthas renounced him, accusing him of treason. He demanded that any true to the king stay with him, and cede to the town's destruction. Jaina turned and followed Uther to Arthas's surprise. Jaina and Uther returned to Stratholm's burning ruins after Arthas destroyed it. Both were appalled at what they saw. Jaina was visited by the mysterious prophet who had previously attempted to reason with both King Terenas and her mentor Antonidas. The prophet sensed her leadership abilities and urged her to take the people she could with her to the west, fleeing Lordaeron and her home country of Kulturas. She realized that he had been right, and he encouraged her to gather her people and sail west for Kalimdor. Jaina decided to follow his words and made preparations. She left just as the invasion of Lordaeron began, saving thousands of citizens before they met their doom. Upon arriving at Kalimdor, Jaina found that there were orcs there, believing the horde to having followed them from Lordaeron, Jaina clashed with the troops of Grom Hellscream. Afterwards, Jaina set out to find the prophet. Not only was Stontell and Pieck a good defense, but also she sensed a great power within. Jaina led a small expedition into the mountain, with the hopes of finding some power that could help her defeat the orcs, but she sensed that they were being followed. Upon breaching the core of the mountain, Jaina stumbled upon Thrall and Cairn. They were about to battle when they were awesomely confronted by the oracle, who was actually the prophet Medivh they had met in Lordaeron. The prophet Medivh implored them all to ally with each other, saying that they would not survive alone against the might of the Burning Legion. Reluctantly, Jaina agreed to ally her forces with Thralls against Hellscream and an army of Chaos Orcs and Demons. Jaina gave him a Soul Gem, which she used to capture Grom's essence as the invasion of Kalimdor began. Then, she helped him purge Grom of the demonic curse that equipped him. Jaina and Thrall continued as allies, although their forces were not very eager about it, even after Hellscream's death. They were terrorized by the Undead, but also by the Night Elves deadly hit and run attacks, though their alliance with one another kept them alive. They were only holding on by a thread. Finally, Thrall received a vision. Jaina followed him to where he was instructed to go, where they found the leaders of the Night Elves, Malfurion Stormrage and Tyrande Whisperwind. The prophet appeared and revealed himself to be none other than Medivh, returned to correct his mistakes of old. He implored the humans, orcs and Night Elves to all join forces against the Legion, or they would all fall alone. They all agreed to defend Mount Hygel together. Jaina used her teleportation spells to scout out the surrounding area and found that Archimonde and his Doom Guards were quickly making their way up the mountain. The defenders instituted three bases, going up the mountain in an effort to halt his assent. Jaina's base was the first in Archimonde's path, and so it was the first to go. But before he could kill her, Jaina taunted Archimonde by saying, is taking all you demons do, and spirited herself out of Archimonde's clutches. The next base to go was Thralls, and Jaina used her remaining energy to teleport Thrall from his base before Archimonde destroyed him so that he could live to fight another day. Following the Legion's defeat on Mount Hygel, Jaina took her refugees to an island outpost off the eastern coast of Kalimdor, newly named Theramore. The exact time of Theramore's founding isn't clear. Sources differ as to whether it was founded before or after the battle of Mount Hygel, but the role of the citadel was important in the tale of the founding of the Orc nation Durotar. When Rhexar demanded an explanation of the humans encroaching on Durotar and the assassination attempt, Jaina stated that she had no such knowledge. When Jaina agreed to help the Moknothal investigate, they discovered the outpost was under attack from the Naga. After an encounter with a dying marine, Jaina realized with horror that her father had decided to pay her a visit. Jaina pleaded with the admiral to spare Rhexar, but Dalin would have none of it. Rhexar and his companions escaped and Thrall rallied an army to push back Proudmoore's assault. Jaina was in despair. While she felt loyalty to her father and her nation, her experience with the Scourge and the Legion convinced her that Vendettas, such as the Fathers, were immaterial in the grand scheme. Jaina helped to hoard game ships from the goblins and ordered her own troops to stand down when the assault of Theramore. Jaina departed due to being unable to fight her own men, but not before Thrall and Rhexar promised her that they would keep human casualties to a minimum. Jaina's last words to her father were to ask why he didn't listen. Theramore and Durotar remained at relative peace for three years, though the two former arch enemies were still very wary of each other. Eventually, a series of minor shipping incidents led to extreme tension between the two powers, enough so that the goblins who controlled the region's only neutral port complained. Despite the tension, Thrall requested Jaina's aid in relocating a herd of Thunder Lizards, displaced by a mysterious logging operation at Thunder Ridge. Jaina intended to relocate the Lizards to a largely unpopulated region on the far side of Mulgore, but was astonished to discover that the area was magically warded to protect its single inhabitant, Aikwin. The former guardian brushed off Jaina's admiration, but filled in the gaps of what had been happening amidst the tensions between Theramore and Durotar. A minor demon, Zmodelor, had revived the Burning Blade clan and was playing the two powers against each other. Jaina and Aikwin hastily returned to Theramore, where they discovered that Jaina's own Chamberlain had been corrupted by the Burning Blade. After dealing with the turncoat, they took on Zmodelor himself. Unfortunately, the demon was backed by a small cable of warlocks. Jaina was nearly slain by the added strain, but Aikwin was able to use her own life force to support her, and Jaina was able to defeat the warlocks and banish Zmodelor back to the Twisting Nether. After the crisis had passed, Jaina and Thrall set about writing a permanent non-aggression pact to ensure that the mutual distrust of their people never escalated into war again. Against all odds, Aikwin survived, and assumed the duties left by Jaina's Chamberlain. After the apparent death of Bolvar Fordragon at the Battle of Angrithar the Wrathgate, King Varian Ryn prepared the forces of the Alliance for an all-out war against the Horde. Desperate to avoid a fourth war, Jaina teleported to Orgrimmar to uncover the truth of the recent events in Northrend. There she learned from Sylvanus Windrunner. Then an uprising broke out, and the Varian Mothers had taken control over the Undercity. Thrall assured Jaina that the Horde had no official interest in a war against the Alliance and that it would take care of the traitor. Jaina agreed to try to stop Varian, but warned him that it would not be easy. The late High Lord was like a brother to the King. Jaina's assessment proved correct, as the forces of Thrall attempting to regain control of Undercity and King Ryn, hoping to reclaim it as Lordaeron for the Alliance and bring Putris to justice, clashed at the Undercity. Refusing to allow the Horde and the Alliance to descend into open war, Jaina stopped the Alliance army cold, literally, and teleported them back to Stormwind. When Bran Bronzebeard learned that Yogg-Saron had escaped his ancient prison in Ulduar, Ronin and Jaina called a conference of Alliance and Horde leaders at the Violet Citadel. As Ronin debriefed Varian Ryn on the situation, Jaina noticed that Thrall and Garrosh Hellscream had arrived early and attempted to halt them before another confrontation was started. She was unable to stop Varian and Garrosh from coming to blows however, and King Ryn left. Refusing to work with the Horde at all after the events at the Rathgate, Jaina wondered loud who was left to challenge Yogg-Saron. Jaina later arrived at the frozen halls to confront the Lich King and attempt to reason with the Dark Lord, in hopes of releasing the spirit of her lost love, Arthas. She guided a small group of Alliance heroes through the halls of Ashgrond Citadel and eventually arrived at the halls of Reflection. Within the private chambers of the Lich King, Jaina and her troop discovered Frostmourne, the blade that stole Arthas' soul and led to the fall of Lordaeron. Jaina communed with the soul stolen from Frostmourne, and much to her surprise, Uther the Lightbringer appeared and told her a terrible truth. Not only did he inform her that Arthas was nothing but a small glimmer of light that stayed the Lich King's wrath, but in order to protect Azeroth, the Lich King would have to be killed and a replacement would have to bake the ultimate sacrifice. Suddenly, the Lich King entered the chambers and Uther was sucked back into Frostmourne. The Lich King coldly acknowledged Jaina while removing Frostmourne from his pedestal. The Lich King summoned Falric and Marwyn, two captains Jaina had fought alongside during the Third War. As the Lich King retreated to his private chambers and ordered the captains to attack her allies, Jaina remained determined to save Arthas and pursued him as the doors behind her closed. Following the defeat of the two captains, Jaina's allies rushed to her aid, only to find her on the verge of defeat, with her former love viciously attacking her. Heartbroken, Jaina and her allies fled down the hidden passage with the Lich King in steady pursuit. As they came to a cliff, the skybreaker flew in and rescued them at the last moment. After the Deathbringer was slain by a team of Alliance adventurers, Muradin Bronzebeard, fresh from the gunship battle, was unwilling to allow Varric Saurfang to retrieve his son's corpse. But when King Varian and Lady Jaina teleported to the scene, Varian ordered Muradin to step aside and let a grieving father pass, to which Jaina burst into tears out of respect for her king. Should an adventurer bring Jaina's locket to her, following the Lich King's defeat, she weeps, stating that she knew there was still some part of Arthas trapped within the Lich King. During the Cataclysm, Jaina became cautious when she found out the garage was planning to conquer the Hall of Calendor. The people of Theromore built a highway, which allowed her forces to move faster through the territory and send supplies to the Alliance bases in the southern Barrens. Jaina is present at Thrall and Agra's wedding at Mount Hygel. In the Tides of War book, we learn that after the Cataclysm, Jaina became concerned about rising tensions between the Alliance and the Horde. She met Thrall at Tidefury Cove, where she told him to prevent Garrosh from starting a war. Thrall, now a shaman of the Urdan Ring, said that he must undo the damage caused by the Cataclysm, and that for now, he must abandon his duties as warchief and a member of the Horde. When her meeting with Thrall ended, Jaina returned to the city state of Theromore, where she was visited by Calagos, who asked her to help him in finding the missing, focusing Iris. During the search, Jaina and Kaelak became very close friends. Pained, one of Jaina's closest assistants learned that the Horde was planning to attack Northwatch Hold. Later, Bane Bloodhoof sent a messenger, Perith Stormhoof, to warn Jaina about Garrosh's plans to conquer Calendor. Jaina and her people started the preparations for the war. Jaina began contacting allies. The one to answer a call were Vereesa Windrunner and the Silver Covenant, Shander's Feathermoon and her Sentinels. Desperate, Jaina sent word to Ronin and the Kirin Tor. Ronin stated that they couldn't help because of the Kirin Tor's neutrality, but if the rest of the Council 6 agreed to help Theromore, the Kirin Tor would cancel the call as well. The Council agreed and Khadgar, one of the members of the Council 6, sent word to Vidal, who in turn sent a small force of the Shatar led by General Tyra Salam. The Horde's initial attack on Theromore was repelled, but Jaina was unaware of a secret weapon in the Horde's possession called a mana bomb. Garrosh's plan was to gather all the allies in one place, so that he could annihilate them with a mana bomb, empowered by the focusing iris. Ronin used the portal to hide Jaina, so she could escape the blast. When Jaina awakened, she found herself radiating with arcane energy, everything around her in ruins, and all of her friends, including Kindysparkshine, Paine, Ronin, and Theravosh, dead. Furious, Jaina returned to Stormwind City where she urged Varian and Ryn to attack Orgrimmar with full force. Varian was aware that the Alliance couldn't simply attack Orgrimmar with their recent losses. Jaina traveled to Dalaran in order to avenge her city and her fallen allies. She tried to convince the Kirin Tor to fight the Horde, as she wanted to move Dalaran above Orgrimmar so they could attack with full force, but the mages of Dalaran refused to take a part in the war. Jaina returned to the ruins of Theromore, knowing Calagos had yet to recover the focusing Iris. She claimed it for herself, using magic to shield it from his detection. She infiltrated the Great Library of Dalaran, recovering a tome that gave a great amount of detail about the artifact. Its contents locked magically away by a former mentor Antonidas. With this knowledge, she made her way to Frey Island to begin her quest for vengeance, summoning water elementals to drown Orgrimmar. Thrall, having received a terrible vision while in the maelstrom, rushed to find and confront her. She ignored his pleas, but his appearance only infuriated her further, as this inaction led to Garrosh's opportunity to destroy her city. The two fought and aided by the focusing Iris, Jaina began getting the upper hand, only to be interrupted by the arrival of Calagos. He refused to attack her, but also refused to remove himself from standing between his love and Thrall. Finally, Jaina listened to him. Only after taking a flight with him over Orgrimmar did she realize that she would have drowned much of the Alliance fleet had she gone through with her plan. During the Mists of Pandaria, Jaina settled down in Dalaran, where she overcame her rage, stating that Dalaran should be a beacon of light and hope. She helped the Night Elves to increase their defenses in Darnesses, in order to prevent Garrosh and the Horde from stealing the Divine Bell. When it was discovered that Blood Elves within the Curentor had been secretly helping the Horde, despite the Curentor's neutrality, a furious Jaina purged Dalaran of all Horde and allied the Curentor with the Alliance. Feeling herself betrayed not once, but now twice by the Horde, Jaina adopted a far more aggressive stance toward the Horde in general, and Garrosh in particular. Together with Varisa Windrunner and the Mages of Curentor, Jaina went to Isle of Thunder in order to defeat the Thunder King and to prevent the Horde from obtaining his powers. During her mission, Jaina formed an alliance with Taran Zhu and the Shadow Pan. Jaina and a newly found Curentor offensive came face to face with Lotharmar Theron and the Sunreavers who also played a part in assaulting the Thunder King. Jaina and Varisa were eager to slay the Sunreavers, but they had to focus on a much more important mission. Jaina, Lord Walker Cho and Lotharmar Theron arrived at the Vault of Y'sharsh, where Garrosh's arrogance released the Shal of Pride. Jaina assaulted Bladefist Bay, together with Varisa, Varian, Sylvanas and Lotharmar. At the end of the siege, when Garrosh was defeated, Jaina urged Varian to dismantle the Horde once and for all. However, Varian chose not to exploit the opportunity. During the Warlust Draenor, Jaina arrived at Catagar's tower in Zangorah after Catagar was attacked by Grona Halforsan. While she thanked the alliance commander, she also reminded the Horde commander that the Horde was not permitted to be a part of the council's business. Catagar said that it would not be his first time to disagree with the council and it wouldn't be his last. Jaina and Catagar went inside the tower to empower the commander's ring. In Legion, Catagar travels to Dalaran to initiate a vote to allow the Horde to entry back into Carinthor and Dalaran. He wins the vote, with only Jaina and Anosran Runeweaver voting to keep them out. In a rage, she announces that if the Horde will be part of Dalaran and the Carinthor, she wants nothing to do with it. Jaina then resigns her membership of the Carinthor and relieves the city, which results in Catagar stepping in to lead the Carinthor against the Burning Legion. And finally, during the Battle of Azeroth, Jaina returned to Theramore for a brief time, finding and magically raising her father's ship from the deep. After the War of Thorns, when Anduin Wrynn and Greymane led the charge against the Undercity, Jaina appeared when it seemed all was lost and the Alliance was surrounded by Sylvanas' Blythe. Using her now flying ship, she destroyed the Blythe outside the city and blasted open the gates where the cannons. Between the confrontation with Sylvanas and subsequent return to Stormwind, she is brought up to speed about Azerite and the destruction of Teldrassil. Knowing the Alliance needs all the help it can muster for the war, she volunteers to return to Kilteras to beg aid of her mother, Catherine Proudmoore. Knowing that there is a high likelihood of her own imprisonment. True to her expectations, her former kinsman shunned her as she enters the kingdom, and she is immediately seized by the guards. Brought before Catherine and Priscilla Ashvane, she is sentenced to death for treason, exiled to an island off the coast of Stormsong Valley. Fates end. Once there, she is captured and forced into the blighted lands, expected never to escape. Jaina's remains resign to her fate. Reliving all her past failures repeatedly, Catherine Proudmoore makes her way inside, however asking instead that Jaina forgive her for claiming that she was no longer her daughter and sentencing her. Catherine later hands the title of Lord Admiral to her, helping Jaina to achieve the goals she set out to meet. And that is the story of the powerful mage, Jaina Proudmoore. Thank you for listening, I hope you enjoyed, and I will see you next time.