Grand Magister Rommath

Grand Magister Rommath is the leader of all blood elven magisters on Azeroth, the Grand Magister of Quel'Thalas, and was once a fiercely loyal servant of Kael'thas Sunstrider. He is found within Sunfury Spire alongside Lor'themar Theron and Halduron Brightwing.

Biography
Grand Magister Rommath was part of Kael'thas Sunstrider's company of blood elves whom travelled into Outland, the likes of which included some of the sin'dorei's most powerful individuals. While Kael'thas sought to secure a new homeland for his people, the majority of them had remained behind on Azeroth. At his Prince's request, Rommath was sent back to Quel'Thalas with the radical new teachings advocated by Illidan Stormrage (which Rommath smoothly attributed to Prince Kael'thas), to sate the sin'dorei's thirst for power -- the technique of forcibly stripping magic away from several external sources, including demons. The majority of the blood elves quickly adapted to this efficient new method, and those who opposed it were banished from Quel'Thalas. Rommath was instructed to help rebuild Quel'Thalas, and await the Prince's return.

Rommath and his magisters quickly went about reclaiming much of Silvermoon City, using their great power to cleanse much of Quel'Thalas of its Scourge taint. Rommath would go on to hold a position of honor within the city, as the Grand Magister.

Burning Crusade
Grand Magister Rommath remained in contact with his brethren in Outland, and gained knowledge of what was hinted to be uncorrupted orcs still active around Draenor. Lor'themar Theron used this connection as a bargaining chip during his negotiations with the Horde, which would ultimately lead to the sin'dorei being accepted as an equal nation of its own. With their new alliance sealed, Rommath's magisters had any dissidents speaking out against the state quickly silenced.

Around this time, Rommath approved the creation of the Blood Knight order, which included the siphoning of the subdued naaru, M'uru, whom Kael'thas had sent back to Silvermoon for his peoples' use. This decision brought him into conflict with Halduron Brightwing, the leader of the Farstriders, who was deeply opposed to M'uru's exploitation.

Despite the promising future that Kael'thas had planned for his people, the Prince would later pledge his loyalties to Kil'jaeden and the Burning Legion. Returning to Quel'Thalas in a mad bid to summon his new master, Kael'thas and his felboods briefly attacked Silvermoon to steal the imprisoned M'uru, and use the Sunwell on the Isle of Quel'Danas as a means to usher his new master into Azeroth.

Rommath, however, remained loyal to Silvermoon, suggesting that he was likely unaware of Kael'thas' switch of allegiances. During Lady Liadrin's trip to Shattrath in order to secure a new source of power for the Blood Knights, Rommath represented the Blood Knights' interests in Sunfury Spire.

Kael'thas was ultimately killed for his treachery, and Rommath's unwavering loyalty to Silvermoon throughout the ordeal earned him the unlikely respect of Ranger-General Halduron. However, Rommath himself was left shattered by this turn of events, and resolved not to simply stand on the sidelines while decisions are made to damn his people further.

In the Shadow of the Sun
Following the betrayal of Prince Kael'thas, the fight has somewhat diminished from Grand Magister Rommath. Rommath, who had once fervently supported the Prince in his plight, has been left the most cold and barren of all. Rommath is present as Archmage Aethas Sunreaver arrives in Silvermoon City.

Aethas requests the aid of his people in dealing with the crazed aspect of magic, Malygos the Spellweaver, who had resolved to destroy mortal spell-casters. Rommath, however, immediately denies him—referencing the sin'dorei's time as prisoners in the dungeons of Dalaran, awaiting execution while the Kirin Tor did nothing. Rommath coldly notes that Modera, Ansirem, and the rest of the Kirin Tor can "rot in hell" for all he cares, and informs Aethas that none of his magisters will assist him. He mentions that only the Regent Lord possesses the ability to overrule his judgement in such matters.

Lor'themar stops their bickering, though despite his apparent neutrality in the matter, Lor'themar later finds himself agreeing with Rommath's opinion.

Rommath is present during Lor'themar's return from Quel'Lithien Lodge, though appears to have disapproved of his motivation for travelling there even more so than Halduron.

Sylvanas Windrunner later journeys to Sunfury Spire, and both Rommath and Halduron accompany Lor'themar to meet with her. Sylvanas reveals that the Horde prepares for war against the Lich King, and as members, the sin'dorei are expected to follow suit. She demands that the Blood Elves accompany her forces to Northrend, and after some argumentation - not least fueled by Sylvanas noting that not standing with the Forsaken is standing against them, and that Arthas would only destroy Silvermoon once again - Lor'themar agrees.

Rommath, however, is outraged at Lor'themar's decision. He throws Sylvanas' offers of aid back at her, and reminds her that every step she took to assist Quel'Thalas was by her own accord—that she would now blackmail them into a war, holding their lands to "ransom", is an absurd contradiction.

Sylvanas simply reitirates that her offers were just that, offers, and that the sin'dorei were more than free to deny her. She notes that all she now asks in return is the power of the sin'dorei, in order to defeat their greatest enemy.

Rommath does not say a word in response, and Lor'themar intervenes.

Later, Rommath confronts Lor'themar about his willingness to commit to such a war. Lor'themar reasons that they would lose both the Forsaken and the Horde's support if they do not assist, and would likely lose most of Quel'Thalas too. Rommath does not relent, however, and even puts forward the notion that the elves who had perished in order to protect Quel'Thalas would have preferred to die in vain, than have given their lives to watch the Regent Lord become a pawn. Lor'themar notes Rommath's increasingly desperate appearance, this probably being the first time he had lost poise and composure in years.

Lor'themar asserts his authority on the matter, and notes that if playing the pawn is required to keep Quel'Thalas safe, then he will gladly do so—and so will Rommath. Rommath simply states that another leader of the sin'dorei had once said the same thing to him, and that they buried him on Quel'Danas. Rommath leaves to inform the Blood Knight leadership of the Regent Lord's decision.

Wrath of the Lich King


Grand Magister Rommath plays a part in the restoration of Quel'Delar and is seen at the restored Sunwell. After a non-Blood Elf player is permitted to enter, Quel'Delar is submerged within the Sunwell as Lor'themar and Rommath observe it.

Though Lor'themar is somewhat skeptical of its authenticity, Rommath is certain of it. Lor'themar attempts to take the blade himself, though Quel'Delar knocks him back and slices a large portion of his health off. Rommath holds the onlooking player in an ice tomb as the Sunwell Guardians surround the player with weapons drawn, and demands to know the meaning of this supposed treachery. Auric Sunchaser intervenes, and informs Rommath that Quel'Delar must decide on its own wielder. Rommath grudgingly accepts his reasoning, and calls off the guards. Rommath orders the player to take the restored Quel'Delar and begone, if it is truly not meant to be theirs. For a Blood Elf player, Rommath gives words of support, referencing Quel'Delar's broken and abandoned state to Silvermoon following the betrayal of Kael'thas. He instructs the player to return to Archmage Aethas Sunreaver with the restored blade, and notes that the sin'dorei shall always rise up to face any foe.

Cataclysm
Grand Magister Rommath has been properly scaled for the expansion, and now uses a variety of fire based attacks such as Flamestrike, Fireball and Molten Armor.

Personality
Grand Magister Rommath is a highly talented, highly pragmatic master-magister and politician. With Rommath's somewhat cryptic assistance, Lor'themar was able to soundly seal the blood elves' alliance with the Horde, despite vocal concerns about the sin'dorei's capabilities from several of its existing members. Rommath held no qualms about his magisters using heavy handed, totalitarian methods to keep his country united. He has been noted as coming into conflict with the leader of the Farstriders, Halduron Brightwing, several times.

Rommath was one of Kael'thas Sunstrider's most staunchly loyal supporters. Upon travelling back to Quel'Thalas, Rommath quickly advocated the teachings spread by Illidan Stormrage, attributing it to Kael'thas. As such, when Kael'thas' true loyalties were unveiled, Rommath was shattered - perhaps more so than anyone in Quel'Thalas. Rommath has since undergone subtle changes, most notably being in regards to the future of the blood elven people. Having lost much of his composure, Rommath was strongly against committing the weathered sin'dorei to the Northrend war, to the point where he vocally condemned Lor'themar's decision to fight in it. Regardless, with the war going well, both Rommath and Lor'themar were later seen at the Sunwell alongside several of their high elven cousins.

Rommath holds a strong grudge against the Kirin Tor, stemming from his opinion that they had simply watched and waited as the sin'dorei were slated for execution at the hands of the New Alliance. As such, he appears to be at odds with Archmage Aethas Sunreaver, one of Dalaran's ruling council members, to the point where he flatly denies the aid of his magisters in anything pertaining to the Kirin Tor's welfare.

Quotes

 * "Tell me, Archmage, did Modera send you with a statement before you left? Your words drip of her false diplomacy. At least she dares not set foot here herself. She has that much sense, I see."
 * "They fear to face both Malygos and Arthas, and rightly so. They seek aid beyond their capacity -- and to whom they have always turned regarding matters of the arcane? Oh yes, to us. The humans of the Kirin Tor will swear up and down that you are indispensable to them, that your skills are invaluable. The moment you become inconvenient, you will be discarded. Ask them. They know. But not as well as I."
 * "A false accusation, and a monumental betrayal. In Dalaran... beneath the ever-watchful Violet Eye."
 * "These are the same people who happily turned their eyes away when Garithos sentenced us to death. They can all rot in hell. At least Arugal suffered a deserving fate."
 * "So let it go! They would rather have died in vain than have given their lives just so you could turn into nothing more than the pawn of some... demon... in the name of their sacrifice! Do not fall to her threats. She will only use you."
 * "Another leader of the sin'dorei once said something very similar to me, Lor'themar. I did not argue with him then; indeed, at the time, I thought him right. We buried him on Quel'Danas."

Quel'Delar say say say

Speculation

 * Following the revelations regarding Prince Kael'thas, it was widely speculated whether Rommath's loyalty to his Prince outweighed that of his love for his people. With the early release of the Magisters' Terrace, the final room in the encounter - named the "Grand Magister's Asylum" - strongly hinted that Rommath, the only known Grand Magister, could have played a role here. However, this was not the case, and Kael'thas himself used the asylum to make his final stand.
 * Rommath's opinion on the future of Quel'Thalas (and the increasingly small gap between the children of Silvermoon) has not been particularly elaborated upon, despite several remaining high elves appearing in a neutral manner within both the Sunwell and the Ghostlands. Rommath's opinion on his quel'dorei cousins appears to be somewhat low, as he was opposed to Lor'themar's mere mention of giving a certain high elven lodge aid. Furthermore, Rommath was quick to threaten them during the events surrounding Quel'Delar, and had the Sunwell Guardians surround Auric Sunchaser with weapons drawn.
 * Rommath's strong hatred for the Kirin Tor could suggest that he himself was part of Kael'thas' regiment that was sentenced to an unjust death by the New Alliance. By extension, this is supported by the fact that he was part of Kael's company in Outland, and a quote of his in regards to it - "Ask them. They know. But not as well as I." Furthermore, it was stated that Rommath himself had lived in Dalaran for a long while.

Trivia

 * Rommath wields a staff similar to the Staff of the Sun from and the Sun-infused Focus Staff dropped by Kael'thas in Magisters' Terrace. He seems to wear a Blood Elf Bandit Mask too, or at least one with the same model and colouring.
 * Prior to Patch 3.2.0, Grand Magister Rommath had a 'unique' hair style that was considered to be a bug in his model, in that the style was actually the short hair used when a character wears a full helmet, normally not accessible. In Patch 3.2.0, he was given one of the new blood elf hair styles introduced in the Wrath of the Lich King expansion.
 * Prior to Patch 4.0.3a Rommath strangely lacked any form of magical or special abilities. Whether this was intentional or was merely overlooked by programmers was never found out. Regardless this led many players to jokingly call Rommath 'The Mage With No Magic' a few even go so far as to call him the 'Captain No-Shirt of Silvermoon', a vague reference to the fact that Rommath would probably fight better if he knew some sort of magic. This issue has since been addressed.
 * At some point during the Cataclysm beta, datamined soundfiles began circulating the internet regarding the Grand Magister, engaging in a conversation with Lor'themar, the Regent Lord confronting him with an incriminating document of some kind. It would appear that Rommath was to be outed as a member of the Twilight Cult, and would betray Silvermoon - though this "event" was ultimately never implemented. Exactly why this was the case was never stated, though both Rommath's inexplicit, out of character betrayal here was met with criticism following its datamining, as was his Alliance equivalent's betrayal.
 * The event in question has been speculated to have been scrapped, with minor characters taking on the role this would have fulfilled.
 * Though his voice has remained the same as one of the standard blood elf males, when casting a spell or wielding his staff Rommath will use a different, more aggressive soundbyte to convey his actions. The voice in question seems to be his "voice actor" from the aforementioned event.
 * Rommath is the only known individual to hold the title of Grand Magister.
 * During the Burning Crusade beta, one of Rommath's servants named Maltrake allowed teleportation to Silvermoon City.
 * With the recent model updates for his compatriots Lor'themar Theron and Halduron Brightwing, Rommath is now the only member of the triumvirate that has yet to receive one.
 * Rommath holds the rank of Archmage, though refuses to bear the title - instead styling himself as the "Grand Magister of Quel'Thalas."