Daelin Proudmoore

Daelin Proudmoore was the Lord Admiral and ruler of Kul Tiras. As Grand Admiral of the Alliance, he was the supreme commander of the naval forces of the Alliance during the Second War. He was a staunch enemy of the Horde, refusing to believe that it could ever change its ways - he greatly hated the orcs and would have been more than willing to see them all dead. Eventually, consumed by his own hatred and devoted to vengeance, the new Horde forces, led by Rexxar, were left with no choice but to kill him. His grave is now found at the Lord Admiral's Rest in Boralus.

The Second War
Proudmoore was the leader of the island nation of Kul Tiras after the First War when the people of Stormwind arrived up north and warned the orcs would soon invade Lordaeron as well. He was among the human leaders summoned shortly before the Second War to an emergency meeting at Capital City in Lordaeron by King Terenas Menethil II, where the Alliance of Lordaeron was formed.

With his longtime friend Anduin Lothar at his side, Proudmoore was given control of the Alliance navy as Grand Admiral. As such, Kul Tiras funded much of the armada of the Alliance and Proudmoore led the naval assault on the orcs, seeking to engage their forces on land, sea, and air.

Shortly before the Battle of Hillsbrad Foothills, Lothar heard from human scouts that the Horde had constructed a fleet in the Wetlands, and he sent Daelin and the Alliance navy to waylay the enemy. The navy intercepted the Horde's vessels near the island of Zul'Dare, where Proudmoore's sleek vessels and his experience in maritime warfare allowed the navy to quickly outmaneuver the Horde's crude ships and destroy dozens of transports with cannon fire. Proudmoore realized that he could destroy the entire Horde army at sea and end the war before it even started, but his plans were thwarted when three of the orcs' enslaved red dragons revealed themselves and began incinerating the Alliance ships. Proudmoore had no means of combating the dragons and called for a full retreat, causing his fleet to scatter and allowing the Horde ships to reach Lordaeron.

Later in the war, after the Horde was driven from Lordaeron and Khaz Modan was liberated, the Black Tooth Grin clan were sailing towards the Horde-controlled Stormwind. However, Proudmoore and his ships were patrolling the waters and managed to overtake the Horde fleet near the island of Crestfall. Just like in the battle at Zul'Dare, the orcish forces were supported by red dragons, but this time Proudmoore had the support of Wildhammer gryphon riders led by Kurdran Wildhammer. The gryphon riders outmaneuvered and distracted their larger foes while Proudmoore's ships bombarded the Horde ships. The Battle of Crestfall ended with a decisive Alliance victory, with the dragon riders scattering in all directions and most of the Horde's fleet sinking into the Great Sea. The victory was not without loss, however, as the dragon riders had managed to destroy the Alliance's Third Fleet and in the process killed the Grand Admiral's eldest son, Derek Proudmoore. The loss of his son would forever haunt Daelin, and his hatred of the orcs would fester like an open wound for the rest of his life. After the defeat of the orcish navy, Proudmoore discovered a human in the wreckage he initially believed was a survivor from the Third Fleet – beginning to hope Derek survived as well – but soon discovered the man was from Alterac and had been part of a group sent by Aiden Perenolde to guide and assist the Horde. Proudmoore had the man confined and soon found three more survivors with the same story that would be used as evidence of Perenolde's betrayal.

After the Second War, Daelin and other leaders of the Seven Kingdoms were present at the meeting in Nethergarde Keep. Proudmoore discussed the rebuilding of Stormwind City with King Varian Wrynn and the Dark Portal with Khadgar. He later informed the Alliance army of the orc's movements when they were searching for artifacts. Proudmoore stayed beside King Terenas through the political turmoil that followed the Second War. At a meeting concerning the fate of Alterac, Daelin Proudmoore almost fought with King Genn Greymane over the issue, but the confrontation never came as both of them had reluctantly agreed not to bring back any weapons. They had even agreed to having themselves searched by selected sentries from the Knights of the Silver Hand, the only military unit they all trusted despite its outward allegiance to Terenas. Subsequently, Daval Prestor defused the situation.

Later, he was present in Stormwind when Arthas became a paladin. He was also one of the four jurors during the trial of Tirion Fordring in Stratholme. Like the other judges, he was shocked when Tirion admitted his guilt, which led the paladin to his excommunication and his exile.

Following the Invasion of Draenor, Kul Tiran fleets patrolled the trade lanes hunting pirates and marauders on the high seas. At one point, several Alliance ships reported that they had escaped a band of vicious pirates whose leader carried glowing blades oozing black smoke, and soon it became clear that those ships were the lucky ones. Admiral Proudmoore led the search for the rogues, and after weeks of hunting, his small fleet cornered their ship a few miles off the Eastern Kingdoms' shores. The pirate crew seemed to be possessed, barely human, but after a coordinated cannon barrage, Proudmoore sent the Bellwether to the bottom of the ocean and sailed away, believing he had killed them all.

Third War
Daelin Proudmoore remained a close ally of Lordaeron for many years, with his mighty fleets patrolling the trade lanes hunting pirates and marauders. As a prominent leader of the Alliance, Admiral Proudmoore's duty was maintaining order on the high seas. Meanwhile, Daelin's own daughter, Jaina, studied in Dalaran under Antonidas himself (after Daelin was convinced by his wife Katherine to let her go) and eventually becoming romantically involved with Prince Arthas. He was crushed and horrified to hear the news that Lordaeron was destroyed by the demonic invasion. When he searched Lordaeron for survivors, he found nothing but legions of undead and demons, and few survivors.

Proudmoore learned about the new Horde stealing ships from Southshore. He and his navy quickly tracked the orcs to the open seas, but both fleets were hit by a storm that caused some of their ships to land on the Darkspear Islands.

When Bolvar Fordragon sent his daughter Taelia to Kul Tiras to be safe from the Scourge, Daelin personally chose Cyrus Crestfall to be her guardian.

Aftermath of the Third War
Daelin returned to Kul Tiras and, taking a large part of the Kul Tiras fleet, sailed across the Great Sea to Kalimdor in order to search for his daughter and the survivors that fled there after Lordaeron fell to the Scourge. Though Jaina Proudmoore had managed to earn Warchief Thrall's trust, Daelin felt that he had to crush the Horde before they gained a foothold in Kalimdor. While Proudmoore headed towards land, he ordered Lieutenant Alverold to take an exploratory fleet and scout out the coasts of Kalimdor, while Lieutenant Benedict was to wait and lead a second wave to Durotar.

He began raiding the coast and assaulting orcish settlements, but when they began to fight back he withdrew and retreated to the island citadel of Theramore. When he arrived, he was overjoyed to find Jaina alive, but found her keeping some strange company: Rexxar the Mok'Nathal, Rokhan the Darkspear troll shadow hunter and Chen Stormstout the pandaren brewmaster, all of them allies of the Horde that were with her. Daelin immediately demanded that they all be arrested, but Jaina retreated and helped Rexxar and his friends escape.

Unwilling to allow Jaina any explanation, Daelin usurped control over Theramore and used it as the staging ground for his newest campaign to have his vengeance on the orcs, but he was beaten back by their numerous allies and was forced to retreat back to Theramore where he established a naval blockade around Theramore Isle to prevent the Horde from launching a counterattack. What the Admiral didn't count on, though, was his own daughter siding against him. Jaina realized that her father was trapped in the past and that his vendetta against the orcs would only lead to more needless death and destruction for both sides, and aided Rexxar in destroying the ships.

The Horde then laid siege to Theramore and battled their way to his keep, where Rexxar squared off against the Admiral himself. Thrall tried to reason with Admiral Proudmoore, telling him that the Horde was no longer the same enemy he had fought so many years ago, but Daelin refused to believe that the orcs could ever change and launched himself into battle. After an arduous fight, Daelin Proudmoore, victim of his own hatred, was slain in battle. With his death, the battle ceased. Jaina knelt at the body of her prideful father and mournfully asked why he didn't listen. Rexxar told Jaina to remember her father for the proud warrior he was.

When the people of Kul Tiras learned of their Lord Admiral's death, they cried out for vengeance, but the other nations of the Alliance were not interested. Ordeals caused by the plague in Lordaeron were more immediate concerns, and the other allied leaders also had little pity for Daelin's own aggressive actions. The people of Kul Tiras furiously isolated themselves from the rest of the Alliance, but were not angry with all of the Alliance leaders. They instead nursed a bitter hatred only towards Jaina for betraying her family. Daelin's wife Katherine would succeed him as Lord Admiral of Kul Tiras.

Legion
Years later, during the third invasion of the Burning Legion, death knight champions were sent to collect the Essence of Hatred from his soul in the Shadowlands.

Warbringers: Jaina
Following the Argus Campaign, and after her visit to Boralus, Jaina Proudmoore sang "Daughter of the Sea" while paying her respects to a graveyard of swords in the Ruins of Theramore. She took a silver Kul Tiran pendant hanged around one of the sword handles and handed it to a hooded ferryman at the Theramore docks as fare.

While Jaina recalled the events that led to her father's demise, the ferryman sailed Jaina through a canal filled with floating corpses and wrecked ships. The wisps of dead sailors eventually guided their ferry through a stormy ocean until they reached a specific spot where Jaina saw the faces of the dead. With her magic, Jaina raised a sunken Kul Tiran ship from the depths of the ocean, and then she spoke to her father, who was disguised as the ferryman, telling him she was listening to his wisdom now. Daelin turned his face and smiled at her while fading away, presumably glad that his daughter had finally taken the path he always thought was correct.

Battle for Azeroth
During the Alliance's expedition to Kul Tiras following the Horde's infiltration of the Stockades, Jaina saw Daelin singing a lullaby to her younger self in a dream, before she was called away by her mother. As the little Jaina left, the vision of Daelin, visibly dead and rotting, claimed that her mother would never forgive her and that she was a murderer, before Jaina frightfully awoke from the dream. Initially, the dream proved to be true, as Katherine imprisoned Jaina at the behest of her chief advisor, Lady Priscilla Ashvane, who had Jaina sent to Fate's End. When Jaina was trapped within Thros, the Blighted Lands by the vengeful Gorak Tul, the ancient Drust king, Katherine and an emissary from the Alliance pursued her there and experienced Jaina's memories of guilt, including the confrontation she had with Daelin before he was killed by Rexxar, and her mourning over his dead body. It was there that Katherine realized that Daelin had become consumed by his hatred, and Jaina had tried to save him from himself, but to no avail. She asked Jaina to forgive her for banishing her, and to learn to forgive her father, as well as herself.

When Varok Saurfang expressed his belief to Anduin Wrynn that the Horde was forever shackled to the past, Anduin cited Daelin as an example of the Alliance's regrets.

Abilities

 * Thros

Day of the Dragon

 * "You might as well tell the wind to stop howling. You'll have more success there than getting that creature to quiet even for a moment!"

Arthas: Rise of the Lich King

 * "It is as much of a mistake to underestimate yourself as to overestimate yourself."
 * "False modesty is as bad as false pride. Know exactly what you are capable of at any moment, and act accordingly. Any other path is folly—and could be deadly in battle."

Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne

 * "Death to the Blackbloods!"
 * "For Sir Lothar!"
 * "For Lordaeron!"

World of Warcraft

 * "Peace is like a dream. Beautiful, ephemeral. Unobtainable."


 * Dialogues

In the RPG
He is rumored to be the father of Finnall Goldensword, daughter of Kilnar.

The wildhammer dwarves resented the call to join Daelin's attack on the orcs of Durotar and sent only a token force to aid him. The insult was obvious to Proudmoore, who promised punishment after the war was over. He did not live to carry out this reprimand.

Notes and trivia

 * While it may only be bad gossiping, apparently Daelin wasn't much of a looker.
 * In The Frozen Throne, Daelin's hero unit's model was based on that of the Paladin. However, he had the abilities of a hydromancer.
 * Two areas in Kul Tiras are directly named after him: Daelin's Gate and Fort Daelin.
 * The Kul Tiran song Daughter of the Sea tells the story of Daelin's demise and Jaina's involvement.
 * His saber was later held by Jaina during the Battle of Dazar'alor.
 * Jaina mentions her father in the Battle for Azeroth features trailer.
 * Daelin had a statue in Stormwind Keep until Cataclysm removed it from the game. It is still there in lore, as Jaina stopped by it in Tides of War.
 * He also has a statue in Boralus.
 * The hunter Tyrathan Khort was lent to Daelin Proudmoore, participating in the invasion of Durotar with the Kul Tiran force.
 * He was rumored to have been trained by Jalod, though Colonel Lorena doubted that.
 * Jaina referred to her father as "Papa".
 * Prior to Battle for Azeroth, Daelin's wife was only mentioned briefly in Tides of Darkness where he sent her a letter about Derek's death, and in Rise of the Lich King which mentions that the respective parents of Arthas and Jaina gave tacit permission for their courtship.
 * The fate of Daelin Proudmoore and his pursuit of vengeance against the Horde draws parallels with the story of Moby Dick. Just like Captain Ahab and his pursuit of hatred against the white whale, Daelin let his hatred of the Horde and his obsession with vengeance consume him. And in the end, it resulted in not only his own death but the deaths of nearly everyone who followed him.
 * In Heroes of the Storm, one of Jaina's quotes is about Daelin: "When my brother Derek was killed, my father swore an eternal oath to destroy all orcs on Azeroth. I always wonder how I would handle a loss like that. Honestly, I just pray I never have to find out."
 * The Soul of Daelin Proudmoore NPC used in Unholy Attainment: Essence of Hatred is situated in the same ID range as other legendary warriors presumably meant to appear in Skyhold, hinting he was created at the same time as them and potentially later re-purposed.
 * In his flashback appearances in Battle for Azeroth, Daelin is voiced by Mark Addy, who portrayed King Robert Baratheon in Game of Thrones.