Kezan

The isle of Kezan is the tropical island homeland of the goblins. It was once inhabited by the trolls. The Undermine is located beneath the island.

The playable goblin race experiences a phased instance of Kezan in their earliest levels before evacuating to the Lost Isles. Kezan is not reachable by other races or beyond these initial levels. However, many of the denizens live on in Bilgewater Harbor, Azshara.

Introduction
Goblins are in charge on the Isle of Kezan, making the whole place a swarming cesspool of corruption, chaos, scheming and invention. Several cities exist on Kezan, including the nefarious Undermine, the de facto capital of the goblins’ trade empire. Kezan is a tropical island, and palm trees and other greenery appear in profusion. Kezan’s many ports bustle day and night as merchant ships approach and depart, carrying goods of all sorts to places of all sorts for people of all sorts. Kezan is a valuable way station between the eastern and western lands, and almost all travelers stop here, whether traveling by ship or gryphon or more esoteric means. The island is the heart of the goblins’ mercantile efforts, pumping trade throughout Azeroth.

Kezan is the largest and southernmost of the South Seas islands, and, despite the goblin presence, the safest. Unlike the surrounding islands, Kezan’s inhabitants won’t try to kill you on sight; rather, they first attempt to take your money and all your worldly possessions, then leave you to die on the rain-soaked cobblestone streets. Kezan’s ports are valuable neutral areas for both the Alliance and the Horde, and if not for the goblins trade would grind to a standstill and there wouldn't be adventurer shops in places like Stranglethorn Vale.

History
Kezan was originally home to the goblins and a group of jungle trolls. The goblins were enslaved by the jungle trolls and forced to mine minerals. After discovering kaja'mite the goblins gained a massive increase in intelligence and were able to fight off the jungle troll and claim Kezan for themselves. Afterward, the goblins declared Undermine as their capital city. Since that time, they’ve ranged out and allowed people of all races to buy silly merchandise at exorbitant prices. They allied themselves to the Horde in the Second War (because the orcs paid and/or intimidated them), but in the Third War they were a neutral force, making money off every side.

People and culture
Goblins are short and green and they don't laugh; they cackle. They wear leather clothing, often cut into aprons to protect themselves from the caustic fluids they handle. Their entire culture is focused on mercantile enterprises, and they work hard to expand their markets in any way possible. Most goblins seem friendly but insane. Goblins can be cutthroat merchants, and this ruthlessness is more prevalent on Kezan than anywhere else — probably because the goblins are competing against their own kind. While goblins answer to no king or other such titular head, a collection of trade princes rules their merchant empire, which is called the Trade Coalition.

Officially, five trade princes exist, though one or two may be lurking about in the shadows. The goblins don't elect their trade princes, nor are the positions hereditary; the trade princes killed, blackmailed and schemed their way to the top. Together, these five goblins make the mercantile machine run, organizing the extensive and complex Trade Fleets. The Trade Coalition is huge, far-reaching and massively complicated. In addition, numerous other, smaller goblin companies, created and run by entrepreneurs called moguls, operate throughout Azeroth. Perhaps the most famous of these smaller businesses is the Venture Company, founded and ruled by Mogul Razdunk.

Goblins engage in any activity that earns them a profit. They traffic in legitimate dealings, including food, spices and textiles, as well as more esoteric and questionable wares, such as magic items and arms dealing. Goblins have no respect for nature and engage in deforestation and mining on vast scales (the Venture Company is particularly notorious for such activities). In addition, goblins run morally corrupt businesses such as smuggling and slave trading. While the Trade Coalition condones all such activities, goblin smugglers and slavers prefer to maintain low profiles — for obvious reasons. Goblins are mad but brilliant. Their technology is just as ingenious, if usually more volatile, than gnomish inventions. Goblins are also the best alchemists around, with the possible exception of the Forsaken. Goblin tinkers and alchemists are found throughout Kezan.

As chaotic as it is, goblin society does have some order to it. Goblin barons serve as magistrates to run the trade princes' lands and holdings, and goblin captains command vessels for the Trade Fleets or for private merchants. Every city on the island is a bit like Ratchet on a larger scale.

Notable characters
Kezan is home to several goblins of status. From the greedy Trade Prince Gallywix to the enthusiastic Sassy Hardwrench, the sexy Candy Cane and Chip Endale, and the Bilgewater Buccaneers trainer Coach Crosscheck, the personalities are as varied as they are colorful. Be sure to take the time to absorb the local culture before you head out to the Lost Isles, as you may never be able to return.

The Trade Princes reside here, as does Mogul Razdunk, the founder and ruler of the Venture Trading Company, and Director Riddlevox, the leader of the goblin Tinkers' Union.

Cataclysm
Kezan is the initial start zone for the goblins in World of Warcraft: Cataclysm. The goblin player begins as a mid-level executive on Kezan, possessing great riches and power. Deathwing causes Mount Kajaro to erupt, forcing the evacuation of Kezan. Fleeing across the Great Sea, the goblins become shipwrecked on the Lost Isles after getting caught in an Alliance-Horde crossfire.

Future of Kezan
At Blizzcon 2010, Alex Afrasiabi said that the goblin starting zone is only "'a small segment of the actual whole' of Kezan", and that the goblins "do want to go back to Undermine and the other goblin land holdings, just a question of when." 

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Geography
Kezan is a tropical island, and the associated flora and fauna appear in the wilderness between cities. Palm trees are everywhere, and in the wild places tasty fruits and flowers can be found. Many tropical animals, including tigers and lots of bugs can also be found. Kezan has several natural bays, and the goblins have constructed at least small port towns in most of them. To the south, the elevation rises. Southern Kezan is volcanic, and several volcanoes constantly ooze lava into the ocean. Lava tubes and other geological tunnels and caves riddle the island.

Goblins control just about everything on Kezan. Non-goblins always leave the island with less gold than they had when they came.

Maps and subregions
The Bilgewater Port area is currently the only explorable area of Kezan. An open bridge and an invisible wall prevents access to the rest of the island.

Old maps and subregions
The Isle of Kezan had been in the planning stages long before Cataclysm. This section details its previous, unused incarnations.

Other than the Undermine, notable locations include Mount Kajaro, an active volcano in the southern part of the island, Bilgewater Port on the northwestern coast, Edj on the northeastern coast, and Voodress Village, inhabited by trolls.

The island of Kezan is located directly south of the Maelstrom, southwest of Zandalar. It cannot be seen on maps in the World of Warcraft but shows up in other maps in the Warcraft RPG.

On the World of Warcraft Behind the Scenes DVD there was a map of the Isle of Kezan, which is above the Undermine, visible on a whiteboard. It shows:


 * Three transportation paths to: Booty Bay (by boat), Kul Tiras (by boat), and Ratchet (by zeppelin). Valgarde is also somehow connected.
 * What seems to be a lake in the center of the island, with rivers connecting it to both ports and Mount Kajaro.
 * Four coastal zones: "Resort Beach", "Savage Beach", "Black Beach", and "Rain Forest"
 * "Naga Gate" off the western coast.

The Evacuation
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