User:GoldenYak/The Forevergreen

Related to the Emerald Dream Expansion Concept

A lush jungle land filled with verdant life. Forested mountains and swampy valleys dominate this region, with plant-growth that could only exist in the magical dimension of the Dream.

History
The Forevergreen is one of the oldest realms of the Emerald Dream. After the Black Empire was annihilated by the Titans, the Forevergreen was the first pristine region that Eonar and her servants coaxed from the dreaming mind of Azeroth and wove into the geography of the Emerald Dream itself. The primal jungles of the Forevergreen were the first laboratory of the Life-Binder, and countless species were born, bred, and returned to the worldsoul over the millennia as the Dream grew larger and more defined. Within the jungles of the Forevergreen, feral beasts fought and died only to be reborn and fight and die again, in an eternal celebration of nature's splendor and ferocity, the primal dance of predator and prey, kill or be killed.

Millennia ago Hakkar the Soulflayer, a ferocious monster worshiped by the trolls of Azeroth as a deity of blood and war, came to dwell in the Emerald Dream and chose the Forevergreen as his lair. In the early ages of his reign, Hakkar was of a more noble aspect, his purview including martial honor and heroism in addition to combat and bloodshed. But over time, Hakkar's aspect became more and more cruel, merciless, and bloodthirsty, and all pretense of honor was discarded in favor of greater and greater barbarism and atrocities. Hakkar cared not for how war was fought or mortal notions of justice; he desired only more and more death and carnage from his followers, every murder and bloody slaughter a prayer to him.

Hakkar grew so bloodthirsty that his mortal followers among the troll empires on Azeroth turned away from him, and ceased to call upon him for millennia. It was not until the Gurubashi Empire turned from their more noble deities and summoned Hakkar from the Emerald Dream that the trolls once again beheld the blood god in all his terrible glory. Hakkar would have plunged the world into bloody carnage, but heroes from the Alliance and the Horde slew his priests and worshipers before he could attain his fullest incarnation in the mortal realm, and Hakkar's spirit was plunged back into the Emerald Dream.

For years Hakkar languished in the Dream, striving to regenerate his power so that he could again menace the mortal world. However, the Nightmare had spread far enough to infest the Forevergreen, and Hakkar was distracted from Azeroth by the pernicious Void-born plague of the Old Gods that had dared to intrude upon his territory. Summoning all of his terrible fury, Hakkar called forth his children the reptizar and unleashed them upon the Nightmare and its servants, purging the infection from the Forevergreen. Ever since, Hakkar has kept a watchful eye over the realm, waiting for the Nightmare to invade again and building up his forces and power. Hakkar would allow no force other than himself to fully dominate the Dream and conquer Azeroth.

Geography
The Forevergreen is a realm where the natural splendor of the Dream exists in its purest form. Vast expanses of forest, jungle, and verdant swampland cover the surface completely, engulfing every inch of land in a riot of plantgrowth. The elemental powers of Life and Wilds run riot, producing a great variety of animal and plant-life. The power of the Nightmare has found little purchase in this realm, due to the presence of Hakkar and his ferocious energies.

Dungeons and Raids
- Valley of the Titans - Hidden deep within the vast jungle known as the Forevergreen, the Valley of the Titans is the very cradle of the Dream itself, the fertile soil that the seed of the Dream was planted it. The magic of creation is suffused into every living thing, causing the trees to shine with every color of the spectrum. The forces of the Nightmare seek to infest this sacred land, and the free inhabitants of the Dream will need the aid of true champions to protect it.

Worldboss - Gargantis Rex, Lord of the Green
A colossal gargant that dwells within the Forevergreen. Patriarch and monarch, Gargantis Rex defends his territory with primal fury.

Wrath of the Soulflayer
Upon the arrival of the heroes of Azeroth and their Emerald Dreamguard allies to the Forevergreen, they find the forces of the Nightmare already utterly shattered, the Unwaking slaughtered, and the infection of the Nightmare itself being burned away by the blood magic of the Hakkari, the troll worshipers of Hakkar the Soulflayer. Driven to a bloodthirsty frenzy by their constant war against the Nightmare's forces, the Hakkari refuse to recognize the Dreamguard as allies against a common enemy and instead turn upon them. When the heroes of Azeroth and the Dreamguard push the Hakkari back into the jungles, an image of Hakkar manifests to declare all-out war against all who intrude upon his domain. Hakkar unleashes the reptizar, reptilian humanoids transformed from[wind serpents that Hakkar regards as his favored children.

The migty reptizar overwhelm the Dreamguard position, forcing them to scatter. They are nearly run down until the loa of the Gurubashi - Hir'eek, Shirvallah, Bethekk, and Shadra intervene, saving the Dreamguard and the heroes and leading them to the Valley of the Titans, a sanctuary within the Forevergreen. There, they make contact with the Dreamsingers, troll druids from ancient times who revere the loa and seek to protect the Emerald Dream. Presiding over the Valley of the Titans is the legendary serpent goddess, Ula-Tek, once consort of Hakkar and now his sworn enemy. While Hakkar may be an enemy of the Nightmare, the bloodthirsty deity will inevitably seek to destroy all who do not follow him as surely as the Nightmare will. To protect the Dream, Hakkar must be destroyed once and for all.

Agents of the Loa
The heroes of Azeroth aid the Dreamsingers in carrying out a realm-wide campaign against the forces of Hakkar. Ula-Tek co-ordinates the efforts of the other loa, guiding the heroes of Azeroth to aid them as best as they are able.


 * Hir'eek the bat deity defends the high mountains and tree-tops of the Forevergreen from the blood-maddened wind serpents and other flying monsters of Hakkar's forces. Hakkari trolls are attempting to capture Hir'eek's children and corrupt them with tainted blood to use as flying mounts, and their efforts must be halted to deny mastery of the skies to Hakkar.
 * Shirvallah the tiger deity and his feral children meet Hakkar's reptizar head-on in bloody skirmishes through the Forevergreen. Heroes of Azeroth ride astride tiger mounts to clash with the reptizar and their enormous reptilian war-beasts.
 * Shadra the spider goddess rules the Forest of Spiders, her venomous children making the region inviolate to all living beings. But Hakkar has unleashed his Soulflayed, enslaved undead warriors immune to the spider's deadly venom, to purge Shadra's home. The heroes must join forces with Shadra and her followers to push back the Soulflayed. The heroes discover that Jin'do the Hexxer, the would-be enslaver of Hakkar from Zul'Gurub, has been transformed into a tortured soul-engine to fuel the rise of the Soulflayed.
 * Bethelekk's panther children are being hunted by chameleon-like reptizar in the low valleys of the Forevergreen. These vile hunts must be stopped.

Each loa requires the support of the heroes of Azeroth in defeating Hakkar's forces. With each battle won, the servants of Hakkar retreat further to the east, withdrawing to the heart of Hakkar's territory, the Altar of Blood.

In time, Ula-Tek invites the heroes of Azeroth to learn a troubling secret, calling upon them to venture below the Valley of the Titans and see what lies within. The heroes discover the Nightmare flowing like liquid corruption in hollow caverns far below the surface, feeding upon the violence of the war against Hakkar. Blood drips like rain from the cavern ceiling, feeding the Nightmare and causing it to rise towards the Altar of Blood, beneath Hakkar's defensive forces. Ula-Tek is concerned that their efforts to oust Hakkar may simply be empowering an even greater threat. The other loa remain adamant that Hakkar must be destroyed and prepare to attack the Altar of Blood, perceiving the Nightmare to currently be the lesser threat. The Dreamsingers are less certain, worried that the Nightmare may already be influencing the loa due to their greater connection with the Dream, but they declare that they must follow their gods.

Assault on the Altar of Blood
The loa and their forces, bolstered by the heroes of Azeroth, gather for an all-out assault on the Gates of Blood, the entrance to Hakkar's territory in the Forevergreen. The Soulflayer himself appears and engages the Gurubashi loa in pitched battle, while the heroes and the Dreamsingers battle against the Hakkari and repitzar. As the battle reaches its climax, the Nightmare suddenly erupts from beneath the earth, geysering to the surface and pouring across the battlefield in a tide of corruption. Hakkar's forces are transformed into even more insane monstrosities by the the Nightmare's power, and n'raqi and other eldritch entities erupt from the Nightmare itself, screaming praises to N'Zoth. Mad with hatred, the Gurubashi loa and Hakkar fight on heedlessly as the Nightmare overtakes them, engulfing the frenzied deities. The Dreamsingers call a retreat, forced to abandon their gods to the Nightmare as it swallows the Altar of Blood, rendering the entire region a deathtrap of darkness and pollution.

Valley of the Titans
The Dreamsingers rally the survivors of the disastrous attack at a fallback location. To their horror, they discover that the Nightmare has spilled out from the Altar of Blood across the Forevergreen, even pouring into the Valley of the Titans. The most sacred region in all the realm has been tainted, and it is only a matter of time before the Nightmare spreads out from the Valley of the Titans to infect the entire realm. The Dreamsingers implore the heroes of Azeroth to venture into the polluted Valley of the Titans and purge the Nightmare infestation welling up there. Only with the cleansing of the Valley of the Titans can the Forevergreen be spared.

Questlines

 * Servants of the Soulflayer - All throughout the Forevergreen, the servants of Hakkar the Soulflayer are on the attack. The Hakkari trolls, blood-maddened beasts, and the monstrous children of Hakkar himself, the reptizar, are all creating menace across the realm. Aid the Dreamsingers in destroying these threats before they are overwhelmed.
 * Watered with Blood - Hakkar's vile blood magic has begone to have serious effects on the living things of the Forevergreen. Even the plants watered with the corrupted blood of Hakkar's victims have become bloodthirsty monsters, uprooting themselves to search out fresh victims. Destroy this corrupted plant-growth before the effect spreads and more lives are lost.
 * Nightmare Uprising - The Nightmare was purged from the Forevergreen's surface by Hakkar, but the crawling corruption of the Old Gods lingers deep below, flowing underground. The Nightmare has begun erupting in regions across the Forevergreen, threatening to cause further Nightmare outbreaks. The heroes must purge these infestations before they grow too entrenched.
 * The Soulflayed March - Hakkar's bloodthirsty servants sacrifice the living in his name, but even after their husks are drained of blood these hapless victims are not done suffering. Hakkar has transformed the corpses of his sacrificial victims into an army of the undead, his Soulflayed. The necromantic spirit-engines animating these corpses are powered by the souls of those who have displeased Hakkar.
 * The Crimson Mire - Hakkar's corrupted blood has tainted the swampy lowlands of the Forevergreen, affecting the creatures living there. A tribe of sluagh dwelling in the swamps have caught the blood-madness plague of Hakkar and are turning upon their neighbors. There is only one cure for this particular disease - a swift death.

X.1 - The Dark Ancients
Still ravaged by the actions of Hakkar and the blood-maddened Gurubashi Loa, the Forevergreen is now menaced by a new evil deity. Mirhira the Tiger stalks the polluted forests of the Forevergreen, seeking to hunt down and slay those who have escaped the Nightmare's corruption. Mirhira's Nightmare-spawned children, the tiger-like baihu, add to the carnage by conducting their own hunts throughout the jungle in vicious war-packs.

Mirhira will spawn as a world-boss and his presence will greatly increase the power of the Nightmare and its servants during a Nightmare Incursion.

X.3 - Rage of the Blood God
Hakkar returns to the Forevergreen, his power twisted and made even more terrible by the Nightmare's influence. Hakkar's revival causes the Nightmare eruptions occluding his altar to recede, opening up new regions of the Forevergreen to be explored.