User:GoldenYak/Zuldazar

Zuldazar, the Shattered City is a raid instance in the Reign of Azshara Expansion Concept. It features 9 bosses and is the first raid in the RoA-2 raid tier, with the Kajaro Undervault as the second. Zuldazar is the capitol of the island nation of Zandalar, the homeland of the zandalari trolls and the birthplace of the entire troll race.

Background
Zandalar, the capitol city of the troll homeland of Zandalar. When the Cataclysm ravaged Azeroth, Zandalar sank beneath the waves, scattering the zandalari trolls across the world. Azshara's spell to raise many of the sunken regions of the world from beneath the waves also affected sunken Zandalar, raising it back to the surface. Zandalar is now a kingdom of death, a sunken mockery of its former glory. The zandalari who dwell there now are the last few survivors of their kind, humbled by the fall of their empire. Now they struggle to rebuild their fallen homeland, haunted by angry ghosts of those they left behind.

To this kingdom of death has come a new king - Pluton, Lord of the Drowned, master of the stygians, brought the ravaged remnants of his armada to newly risen Zandalar. Here, Pluton plans to rebuild his forces by binding all the unquiet spirits of the trolls to his will. With the dead of Zandalar under his command, Pluton will become stronger than ever.

Charon the Ferryman
The right hand of Pluton returns to menace Zandalar isle. Charon has learned how to bend the spirits of the slain trolls to his will and raise their corpses as undead slaves. The Ferryman of the stygians has risen a small army of zandalari dead within a short time - his black rituals must be halted once and for all.

Mokk the Risen
A powerful troll berserker and one of the Zandalari's strongest. When the city was flooded, Mokk used his great strength to hold closed the gates, keeping the flood waters at bay for a few precious seconds and allowing more of his people to seek safety on rooftops and other high places. Ultimately it was all for nought as Zandalar sank to the sea. Mokk's outraged spirit has been bound into his drowned flesh by the magic of the stygians, and he is prepared to turn all of his fury upon the living.

Gundavash the All-Seeing
One of the colossal Thundersaur beasts native to Zandalar isle. Normally peaceful vegetarians, the Thundersaur under the dominion of the zandalari are trained to carry great siege catapults and howdahs full of troll warriors, while crushing enemies under their massive feet. Gundavash was the largest such creature that the trolls had trained in a generation, and has lost none of its instilled ferocity even after being reanimated through necromancy.

The Champions of the Tribes
Braga the Glacier - Champion of Zul'Drak. Nalakai, Fang of Hakkar - Champion of Zul'Gurub. Vol'Kra the Bone Eater - Champion of Zul'Aman. These three great representatives of the troll civilizations beyond Zandalar came to the homeland in the wake of the Cataclysm to pledge their loyalty to Rastakhan

The Great Voodoo Engine
The spiritual center of the Zuldazar, the Great Voodoo Engine is a colossal idol of stone and magic, built over 20,000 years ago by the first zandalari witch-doctors. Harnessing the primal power of voodoo, the ancient engine pulsates with the power of a thousand gods. The spirit of Charon seeks to wrest control of the engine from the zandalari protecting it, and the witch doctor Joa'Kul has shed his physical form to battle the stygian ghost. The two souls struggle for dominion over the raging power of the innumerable loa that power the engine, their duel threatening to destroy the machine and unleash greater devastation upon the city.

Horrigor
For centuries, troll warriors have sought glory in the arena. Many flocked to witness the spectacles as the brave gladiators battled against one another, as well as legions of slaves and great dinosaur beasts trained for battle. Now the arena of Zuldazar has become a grotesque parody - stygian necromancers have reanimated a great arena direhorn named Horrigor and plot to turn the beast loose upon their enemies. The ornate troll-forged armor adorning the beast can barely containing the bloated, rotting flesh beneath.

Guardians of the Temple
The twin berserker brothers Musta and Krakeesh have stood guard over the great temple of the troll skin for over a century. From atop their devilsaur mounts, the twins prevented all unsolicited approach. Even when the waves of the sea came crashing down upon Zandalar, the guardians of the temple would not leave their post. Now, from atop twin reanimated devilsaurs, the guardians still stand watch in undeath. Their wills were too strong to be controlled by the stygians until Pluton himself arrived and bound them to his service with his Lantern of Lost Souls, turning them upon the apporaching heroes of the Alliance and the Horde.

Pluton and the Spirits of Zandalar
Pluton and his forces have fought to the very heart of Zuldazar - the golden temple of King Rastakhan. From atop the temple, Pluton attempts to bind the unquiet spirits of the zandalari people to his Lantern of Lost Souls. If he succeeds, he will control all of the dead on Zandalar and have a new army with which to take revenge on the lands of the living. The deceased spirits of the Zanchuli Council writhe and scream aroud Pluton, attempting to free themselves from his control. This will be the final battle with the king of the drowned - Pluton must be defeated.

King Rastakhan - the Dread Loa
The King of Zandalar. For two hundred years, King Rastakhan sat upon the Golden Throne of Zuldazar, the ruler of all trolls. In the days before the Cataclysm, the prophet Zul sought to warn Rastakhan of the coming danger to the homeland of the trolls, but the proud king did not believe his kingdom could ever be threatened. When the Cataclysm struck and the sea swallowed Zandalar, Rastakhan knew he had failed his people, and refused to leave his throne even as the waters flooded his chamber and closed over his head.

The loa of Zandalar, outraged at Rastakhan's failure, cursed his spirit to forever haunt the throne chamber. Rastakhan lingers there still, a disembodied wraith, seething with fury at fate. The loa swirl around him, mocking and tormenting him for his failure.

Would any dare awaken him, and face his undying wrath...?

The Broken Gates
Moments after following Pluton and his forces into Zuldazar, the heroes are confronted by the stygian necromancer Charon, Pluton's right hand. Charon has raised an army of troll corpses to do his bidding, and is the first major obstacle in the pursuit of the stygian king. Even after Charon's death however, the spirit of the stygian continues to meance the heroes, fleeing deeper into the city and raising every corpse it comes across.

The Drowned Square
The marketplace of Zuldazar. Countless troll merchants and traders perished here when the city sank. The great troll berserker Mokk tried to hold the gates to the square closed against the wall of flood-water, but ultimately his efforts to save his people proved futile. Charon's spirit resurrects Mokk and directs him to attack the approaching heroes.

The Beast Pens (Optional)
The training grounds of the zandalari beast-tamers. The heroes have the choice to explore this region or ignore it. Within they find many of the dinosaurs and other war-beasts trained for battle by the zandalari dinomancers. The great thundersaur Gundavash, the largest beast ever tamed by the zandalari, has been reanimated and is going wild.

Concourse of the Tribes
The meeting-place of Zuldazar, where trolls from all the kingdoms across Azeroth met in (mostly) peaceful discourse. Representatives from all the tribes - Amani, Gurubashi, Drakkari, and Farraki, were present here when Zandalar sank. In death, their spirits have been bound into slavery by the stygians. Stygian necromancers will send the champions of the tribes to attack all those who seek to pass through.

Shrine of the Thousand Gods
The spiritual heart of Zuldazar, where shrines and temples are built to the innumeral multitude of loa and demigods that the trolls worship. From small shrines honoring minor spirits, to great altars of worship devoted to Hakkar and other deities, this portion of the city displays the entire troll pantheon. At its center is the ancient Voodoo Engine of the ancients, a magical machine powered by mighty loa spirits. Charon's dismebodied soul vies for control over the engine with the spirit of the troll witch-doctor Joa'Kul, and the engine is threatening to explore under the strain of the warring ghosts.

The Arena (Optional)
The great arena of Zuldazar has been the scene of innumerable bloody battles, all for the acclaim of the masses. Troll warriors pitted themselves against one-another for glory, or fought against captured monsters and slave-gladiators. All of it came to an end with the sinking of Zandalar, and has seen a twisted rebirth with the island's rise. Ambient necromantic energies woven by the stygians have raised the many dead spectators, who now laugh and howl and caper amongst the seats, reveling in the spectacle below in the pit, where undead gladiators battle reanimated beasts. If the heroes choose, they may pit themselves against the colossal undead direhorn, Horrigor.

The Golden Temple
The Golden Temple of Zuldazar is the heart of all trolldom. Atop their massive ziggurat is the Throne of Gold, where King Rastakhan once ruled. Now, it is the king's tomb. Nevertheless, the structure is not unguarded. A host of undead zandalari defend the temple against all comers, even the stygians who resurrected them - their devotion to duty in life or death outweights the power of the undead necromancers. The spirits of innumerable dead zandalari have flocked to the temple, the focus of their devotion in life. The air itself writhes and crackles with the lost souls, their anger and hatred overcoming the efforts of the stygians to tame them. The troll brothers Musta and Krakeesh guard the gates to the temple, mounted atop twin armored devilsaur.

The Temple Summit
At the peak of the temple, Pluton is attempting to bind the lost souls of the trolls to his will. At his command are countless stygian wraiths, bereft of flesh and eager to be infused into the corpses of the troll dead. The spirits of the zandalari resist Pluton's efforts, and are joined in their battle by the guardian loa of Zuldazar. It is a battle for the very soul of Zandalar itself, and Pluton's victory could seal the fate of the lands of the living. But if he fails, what greater horrors will be unleashed by the restless dead of Zandalar?

The Throne of Gold
Within the topmost chamber of the temple, the troll king Rastakhan's drowned carcass lies in eternal slumber atop his golden throne, while his raging spirit swirls around his former vessel like a poisonous fog. Pluton, weakened from his conflict with the heroes at the temple summit, attempts to use his Lantern of Lost Souls to bind King Rastakhan's spirit to his will, hoping that doing so will at last bring the raging spirits of the trolls under his control. However, King Rastakhan calls upon all the loa and dark gods of the trolls to empower him, and he shatters the lantern, causing blue flame to erupt outwards and engulf Pluton's body. The fury of the lantern's power immolates Pluton, leaving nought but scattered ash and the undead vrykul's disembodied soul. Rastakhan then devours the power of the lantern, drawing in the soul of Pluton and all the spirits of the stygians as well. Bloated with hideous power, Rastakhan's spirit burrows into his slain flesh, rising from his throne as an undead horror bristling with dark magic and a thirst for souls. Rastakhan, the Dread Loa, then turns his hunger upon the heroes who stand before him.

The Shattered City Falls
After a mighty struggle, Rastakhan is destroyed, and the spirits he devoured freed. The dead of Zandalar finally fall quiet after the destruction of the stygians and the horror their king had become, and the loa are placated, withdrawing their wrath. The few zandalari survivors vow to gather their people once again and begin to rebuild. They vow they will never turn from the guidance of the loa again and will strive to find a place of balance in the world, alongside all others who dwell in it.