Darnassus

Darnassus (aka Darnassus City) is the capital city of the night elves of the Alliance. The high priestess,, resides in the Temple of the Moon, surrounded by other sisters of Elune and Arch-Druid Malfurion Stormrage.

Background
Darnassus is the greatest city of the night elves, housing the leaders of both the druids and the faithful of Elune. It is carefully guarded by Sentinels, ancient protectors, and ancients of war. The city is formidable in spite of the peaceful natures of the night elves. In addition to the night elves, many guests and diplomats from elsewhere reside here, such as groups from the Explorers' Guild and the Knights of the Silver Hand, as well as a few representatives of the Horde negotiating peace treaties. The population here is almost entirely elven, and most of the night elves are tolerant of others. However, there is political strife between the druids and priests.

The atmosphere inside the city is a quiet and somewhat a melancholic one. It does not have the feeling of confinement that one would feel in Stormwind or Ironforge, where the buildings are grouped close together. Darnassus is open to the sky, and the graceful bridges spanning the lake around which it is built set the buildings wide apart. The prime reason why the city's population is so low is that it is isolated: Teldrassil is a small island away from the main mass of Azeroth, and the only way to gain access from another continent is to fly or sail to Rut'theran Village, a small settlement at the base of Teldrassil, and from there step into the glowing portal to the city proper. This is a good thing, though. It is the elves' capital, and should therefore be serene and quiet, holding the mystic and melancholic elements of the night elves.

Defenses
Anyone, from a brand-new level one, to an aged level eighty, shouldn't feel safe in Darnassus — arguably it is the unsafest haven for the Alliance in the game. The defenses are spread out due to the water that surrounds a town. A death knight with Path of Frost can easily get a whole raid in the water and to the temple, passing all guards. The Ancients would be nice guards, but most stand next to the wrong entrance, as the horde only come from the portal near the bank. However, Darnassus does boast the traditional level 75 sentinel guards in most locations, and some elite hunters prowl the city on impressive catlike mounts. However, the city is almost completely abandoned of high levels (going to places like Dalaran or Ironforge) and most low levels normally travel to Stormwind.

The entrance is tricky for the Horde to get to. The only connection from Darnassus to the world outside Teldrassil is through the portal from Rut'theran, and thus any Horde attacks will have to come from that direction. If they overwhelm the defenses at Rut'theran Village, they will face the bottleneck of the portal. Not only are four guards surrounding it at all times, but the portal is located just next to the Darnassus Bank. However, due to Astranaar being under constant attack on most servers, normally players don't heed the warnings of an advance. Unless you're on an RP server, most really don't care about what happens to Darnassus. Though some people do like this city and manage to defend it, the Horde can easily raid it with enough players even during peak hours.

There is a second route into Darnassus for sufficiently devious Horde players. By using an elixir of Water Walking, a Horde player with a fast land mount can cross from Darkshore to the outskirts of the great island tree where Darnassus is located. By running up the tree, then jumping off onto one of the lower roots, the toon will die and be brought to the graveyard inside the tree. By accepting local resurrection and waiting out the resurrection sickness, the Horde toon can gain access to the island and all its territories without encountering any guards at all.

History


In the aftermath of the Third War, the night elves had to adjust to their mortal existence. Such an adjustment was far from easy, and there were many night elves who could not adjust to the prospects of aging, disease and frailty. Seeking to regain their immortality, a number of wayward druids conspired to plant a special tree that would reestablish a link between their spirits and the eternal world.

With missing, Fandral Staghelm — the leader of those who wished to plant the new World Tree - became the new Arch-Druid. In no time at all, he and his fellow druids had forged ahead and planted the great tree, Teldrassil, off the stormy coasts of northern Kalimdor. Under their care, the tree sprouted up above the clouds. Among the twilight boughs of the colossal tree, the wondrous city of Darnassus took root. However, the tree was not consecrated with nature's blessing and soon fell prey to the corruption of the Burning Legion. Now the wildlife and even the limbs of Teldrassil are tainted by a growing darkness.

Recently, Malfurion returned from the Emerald Dream and helped imprison Fandral, who, as it turned out, had been turned insane by Lord Xavius and responsible for the corruption of Teldrassil. Arch-Druid Stormrage now stands in the Temple of the Moon alongside his beloved.

Terraces
Darnassus is arranged in a few terraces on the north, east and southern sides of a central lake area.


 * Warrior's Terrace (area beyond and including the city gate)
 * The Temple Gardens (west over causeway from Warrior's Terrace)
 * Craftsmen's Terrace (north of Warrior's Terrace)
 * Tradesmen's Terrace (south of Warrior's Terrace)
 * The Temple of the Moon (south over causeway from Temple Gardens)
 * Cenarion Enclave (west of Craftsmen's Terrace)
 * The Howling Oak (north between Cenarion Enclave and Craftsmen's Terrace)

Notable characters


From her seat in the Temple of the Moon, the high priestess Tyrande Whisperwind rules with the support of her fellow priestesses of the Moon. Next to her, her husband Arch-Druid Malfurion Stormrage presides over his druidic compatriots. Before the Cataclysm, Arch-Druid Fandral Staghelm led the druids and struggled to control Darnassus. For his corruption of Teldrassil, he was eventually imprisoned in Moonglade.

Points of interest



 * The Bough of the Eternals, which contains the bank of Darnassus. It is located on the central island of the Temple Gardens.
 * The portal to Rut'theran Village, west of the bank. The portal from Rut'theran Village is also usable by Horde characters, allowing Horde raids on the city.
 * The Temple of the Moon, home of the Sisters of Elune, the high-priestess order of the Night Elves. This is where the leaders of the night elves, and , can be found.
 * The Cenarion Enclave, containing druid and hunter trainers.
 * The Howling Oak, home of the Gilnean worgen who have settled in Darnassus.
 * The Auction House, located in the Tradesman Terrace.
 * The inn, located in Craftsmen's Terrace. It is the second most eastern big building in the terrace.
 * Three mailboxes: one outside the bank, one outside the auction house , and one outside the inn.
 * The forge, located in Warrior's Terrace, next to Weapon Master.

There are no Profession Trainers associated with Mining in Darnassus. This includes Engineering, Blacksmithing, and Jewelcrafting.

Portal

 * The Exodar
 * Rut'theran Village

Flight

 * Dolanaar
 * Rut'theran Village

Faction
Known Faction related bonuses:
 * The standard vendor discounts of 5%, 10%, 15%, or 20% (depending on standing).
 * At Exalted you can purchase a saber mount (not limited to night elves!).

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