SI:7

SI:7 (Stormwind Intelligence), also spelled SI-7, is a secretive military force of Stormwind's sovereign monarch. It includes rogues specializing in special operations, espionage, assassination and stealth tactics. It is referred to as Stormwind's most elite covert force, the Alliance's intelligence agency, and Azeroth's most elite spy organization.

The organization is currently led by Master Mathias Shaw. SI:7 is located in the building with the same name in the Old Town quarter of Stormwind City. They have operatives all throughout the Eastern Kingdoms who carry out secret missions for Stormwind, such as Renzik "The Shiv" and Flint Shadowmore. They also have some operatives in the Kalimdor region, such as Andello Porter.

The black stallion is rumored to be favored by the SI:7 for night missions due to its dark coat.

History
Their earliest known activities date to the time before the Third War, when King Varian Wrynn used SI:7's elite, Reigol Valdread, to spy on the kingdom of Lordaeron. At some point, Marjani Flintwill met agents of the SI:7, including Reigol.

SI:7 members also met some dragons and noticed that more and more had been migrating to Winterspring on Kalimdor. The agents would tell stories amongst themselves about them.

At some point, Ravenholdt accepted SI:7's aid in routing out the Syndicate affliction, housing the base of operations out of Jorach Ravenholdt's manor.

World of Warcraft
SI:7 underwent reconnaissance efforts for many agents of the Alliance. Their missions consisted of varied matters; as wide-ranging as the Defias Brotherhood, the subversive traitors who sought to destroy Stormwind from within, to the undead Scourge.

SI:7 was instrumental in the in which agent Tyrion uncovered Lord Gregor Lescovar's treachery to Stormwind and aided in assassinating the traitor.

Andello Porter uncovered a secret alliance involving the Forsaken and the Grimtotem tribe.

Agent Kearnen was sent to Westfall to spy on Klaven's Tower.

Five of Mathias' best field agents were sent to investigate the missing corpse of Nathanos Marris. One returned only to end up dead in his sleep three days later. Flint Shadowmore and an Alliance adventurer continued working on the Marris case.

Agent Calia Hastings was stationed on Theramore Isle to deal with deserters undermining Lady Jaina Proudmoore's rule via a propaganda war. SI:7 also had Renn McGill investigating the Defias Brotherhood's involvement in the The Missing Diplomat quest chain by having him scrutinize a recent shipwreck directly north of Theramore Isle.

Dark Riders
Brink Spannercrank was sent to retrieve several magical artifacts the Dark Riders had gathered over the years, and recruited Revil Kost to aid him in his quest. Along with Mardigan, Karlain and a group of Night Watch led by the Commander Althea Ebonlocke, the party pursued the Dark Riders to the cursed tower of Karazhan and was able to escape its dangers with their missing artifacts. He obtained the Scythe of Elune and said he was going to deliver it to a night elf, most likely Valorn Stillbough.

The organization has knowledge of the Bronze dragonflight and their artifacts, enough for Brink to understand the abilities of a time artifact found in Karazhan, and how to use it against the Dark Riders. The SI:7 also knows the story and identity of the Dark Riders.

Cataclysm era
Before the Shattering of the world, a group of eighteen SI:7 assassins led by Owynn Graddock and Varian Wrynn infiltrated Ironforge to liberate it from the hands of the Dark Iron dwarves.

In World of Warcraft: Cataclysm, SI:7 is located in a green area just outside the Old Town, roughly where the Command Center was in vanilla.

A group of SI:7 members battled against the Bilgewater goblins on the Lost Isles. They also operated in Southern Barrens and Stonetalon Mountains.

Agent Jack Bauden was sent to infiltrate the Twilight Hammer cult and uncovered their plot to use stolen explosives to blow up the Cathedral of Light.

They also spied on the Dark Iron dwarves in the Searing Gorge.

Master Mathias Shaw takes the field and leads SI:7 operatives in the war against the Twilight's Hammer in the Twilight Highlands.

Mists of Pandaria
A team of elite SI:7 agents consisting of Rell Nightwind, Mishka, Sully "The Pickle" McLeary, and Amber Kearnen are sent to find the shipwrecked Anduin Wrynn and Admiral Taylor. Brought by the Skyfire, the team finds themselves on the lost continent of Pandaria.

The term "the White Pawn" was SI:7's code name for the lost prince.

Other groups of SI:7 agents were brought as a part of the Landfall campaign against the Horde in Krasarang Wilds.

7 Field Commander Dirken and 7 Rangers were sent to spy on Horde activity in Ragefire Chasm.

During Battlefield: Barrens, Amber Kearnen and Sully McLeary were sent to spy outside of Orgrimmar and prime it to be besieged. The SI:7 agents learn of the Darkspear Rebellion and escalated the conflict between it and Garrosh Hellscream's True Horde by supporting the Horde rebels.

Warlords of Draenor
SI:7 has quickly established a presence throughout. Bodrick Grey was directing their assistance to the war effort from the Commander's Garrison in Lunarfall and Jeanine Amrell was sent to to spy on the Iron Horde leadership. Owynn Graddock spied on the Bloodmaul ogres in Frostfire Ridge. Amber Kearnen was seen in battlefield in Tanaan Jungle. Chris Clarkie directs the Wrynn's Vanguard's operations against the Horde in Ashran.

Legion
Before the Alliance and Horde arrived on the Broken Shore, SI:7 were there and discovered that there was a trap set by the Burning Legion. Before they could warn the approaching armies, Detheroc ambushed the agents and captured Mathias Shaw before impersonating him. As Amber Kearnen was a witness to this, Detheroc had her killed before she could warn the Uncrowned.

With Detheroc in command, the Uncrowned began looking into SI:7's recent suspicious activity. They discovered the truth about the nathrezim, and the Uncrowned freed the real Shaw from Felsoul Hold, sneaked into Stormwind, and exposed and defeated Detheroc.

Although officially not a part of the Uncrowned, several members of the SI:7 are seen in the Hall of Shadows and Mathias Shaw himself is allied with them.

SI:7 later led the Alliance's operations in Silithus in their race against the Horde to claim Azerite. Shaw himself personally oversaw the battle on the Seething Shore.

Before the Storm
Following the Argus Campaign, the SI:7 learned about the existence of the Desolate Council in the Undercity. They also spied on the Forsaken on Thoradin's Wall during the Gathering.

Battle for Azeroth
Prior to the War of the Thorns, a massive amount of SI:7 spies infiltrated Orgrimmar. Their mission was to keep the Horde under constant surveillance and to use their overbearing presence to dissuade any Horde aggression. Their sheer numbers would be too costly for the Horde to uproot them all, forcing Warchief Sylvanas Windrunner to tolerate their presence. Renzik "The Shiv" was one of the SI:7 agents undercover in Orgrimmar, and he reported a fistfight between Varok Saurfang and Nathanos Blightcaller. Apparently, Varok was advocating for a deployment of troops to conquer Silithus and the Azerite proliferating there, while Nathanos considered Saurfang's campaign a waste of resources. Nathanos' subsequent reprimanding seemed to confirm the Alliance leaders' suspicions of the Horde's capability to make Azerite weapons and that Warchief Sylvanas Windrunner had endorsed Saurfang's Silithus campaign, which consequently caused the Alliance leaders to deploy the night elven army to deter them. It was later revealed that the Horde's campaign in Silithus was a ruse and that their true objective was the invasion of Ashenvale and the conquering of Darnassus.

During the Battle for Lordaeron, SI:7 infiltrated the Undercity alongside Druids of the Claw while battle was being waged on the surface. Renzik "The Shiv" stole intel from the city during the attack.

SI:7 later was assigned to aid the 7th Legion from the shadows in their efforts to secure Alliance footholds on Zandalar.

When the Horde leadership was to meet in Warfang Hold in Stormsong Valley, SI:7 agents spied on the area.

The SI:7 was looking for the Fluctuating Worldvein.

Shadows Rising
After the Fourth War, the SI:7 agents, Narsilla Keensight and Krazzet, spied on the Horde Council members.

Unnamed

 * Barrens Operative
 * SI:7 Agent
 * 7 Agent
 * 7 Assassin
 * 7 Infiltrator
 * 7 Marksman
 * 7 Operative
 * 7 Squad Commander

People in touch with SI:7
Also few people are familiar with the excellent, and unofficial, relationship between SI:7 and the Explorers' League. The two organizations traveling through Azeroth, sometimes hold and share information. Which leads the High Explorer Muninn Magellas to hide precious missives in a cache under the carpet at the entrance of the Hall of Explorers, and the league to continue to transmit information by codes and secret means for the agents of the SI:7.

In the RPG
The Stormwind Assassins (also called SI:7 or Stormwind Intelligence Agency) are one of the oldest surviving organizations on Azeroth, and one of the most active within the Alliance, having up to 2,500 members in its ranks. They are an assassin and thief guild which was founded by Pathonia Shaw sometime prior the Great Wars. It is rumored that King Wrynn employees the secret society, which also includes spies and saboteurs wielding royal carte blanche. Its symbol is a fist, and its members wear a piece of white clothing with a single red thread carefully sewn in, looking like a stray piece of lint.

The population of Stormwind knows the Assassins exist, and the public relations machine has taken their reputation to the extreme: these are glamorous fighters, too talented to serve with the mere warriors in the army; they are stealthy people who work by the night, shrouded in mystery and barroom tales. Some children—even wealthy types—become thieves in the hope that someday they can be Stormwind Assassins too. No one knows who they are, but almost everyone claims to have seen them at work, although this is highly unlikely.

The Cathedral of Light understands that the Stormwind Assassins must exist for the good of the kingdom and the Alliance, but the priests do not condone assassination. They choose simply to look the other way. When solving an "inconvenient" problem that would go against the tenets of the Holy Light, the Stormwind Assassins are called. They deal with matters quickly and efficiently, and few questions are asked.

At the request of the Caretaker Logan Palimore, the Assassins took care of a thief named Ran Tilwood. A young woman of the Assassins rescued a man called Antonio Kremen.

Before the Great Wars
Long before any of the Great Wars, the kingdom of Stormwind felt it was unable to do everything it wanted to within the law. One of its leaders, Erwill Youngton, secretly approached a thief in their prisons called Pathonia Shaw. She had been imprisoned repeatedly for theft, caught perhaps three times at most, and she was notorious for scores of high profile crimes. Youngton offered her clemency if she agreed to form a society to take care of Stormwind's dirty work quickly and cleanly. She agreed at once—and added that she would find a way to do it with a sense of style as well. The Stormwind Assassins began that day, with Pathonia Shaw sneaking into a corrupt high elf mayor's room that night and killing him, making sure to keep the bedroom immaculate: not a drop of blood spilled nor a sheet rumpled. With the agreement of Erwill Youngton, she combed the prisons for her fellow thieves to bring into the family, as they were called, and soon built a small force to serve the kingdom.

Among the first rogues she recruited from the Stockade was Waltion Freemore, a man who served as her right-hand and lover for 30 years, helping her build the guild into the powerhouse it would become. Some of the rogues under Pathonia wanted to show their pride with tattoos of the fist that is the organization's symbol, but she did away with that thought, warning that they should make no permanent indication on their bodies that they belong to the Stormwind Assassins. They instead took to wearing one piece of white clothing with a single red thread carefully sewn in, looking like a stray piece of lint.

Shaw had been a thief for the thrills and was not necessarily evil. Once she was allowed to do her favorite thing in the world and still get paid for it, she became a loyal fighter to the crown. She made sure to hammer this home in her recruits: one does not steal from the hand that feeds. If the thrill of the stolen goods and the secret kill, along with a steady salary, was not good enough for her thieves, they were not initiated into the guild. She had one other requirement when she built the society: secrecy was a must. The thieves did not normally walk around claiming to be thieves, and they had no reason to do so once they were legitimate assassins either. The king of Stormwind is the only one with a full list of the Stormwind Assassins, and when one was assigned to be part of a larger operation, their true purpose was not revealed to the other troops. They passed as fighters or scouts, even wizards from time to time, but still did their primary jobs of stealing and killing when needed. Their commanders would know of their secret when needed, but often only the assassin knew of their true reason for being in the field.

After the Great Wars
Pathonia and her assassins were there when the orcs poured from the Dark Portal during the First War, taking out stray scouts. Yet, they found it difficult to make a true dent in the enemy forces because of the Horde's sheer numbers and the Assassins' lack of military training. Despite this, they quickly discovered they worked best one-on-one, and so they decided to concentrate more on aiming for the Horde's leaders instead.

After many years leading the Stormwind Assassins, Shaw retired 10 years ago and put her grandson Mathias in charge. She had groomed him for the job from when he was an infant, testing his speed and dexterity on a physical level and making sure he understood the difference between doing what was right and doing what was necessary, and how those two do not always mix.

Organization
The Stormwind Assassins are based in Stormwind, but often travel to other Alliance-held lands in Azeroth. They have influence in Elwynn, Redridge and Westfall. They have done jobs in other areas, such as Duskwood and Deadwind Pass, but they almost never go further south.

The Thumb and the four Fingers
The Stormwind Assassins view themselves as a hand grasped around a knife, forming the organization into five branches. Mathias Shaw and his group of leaders make the Thumb, dealing with the management and leadership. The leadership consists of about 30 older rogues, many of whom knew Pathonia, some of whom were appointed by her. They are familiar with how she wished the organization to be run, and often steer the young Mathias on the correct path. These leaders are in charge of the other four Fingers, leading, training, taking reports, and even running the books and making sure salaries are distributed.

The next two Fingers of the hand are made up of the highest-level members and consist of about 500 rogues each. The First Finger, the highest level an assassin can reach before leaving the life behind to become a leader in the Thumb, is dedicated to the assassination, targets being anyone from rival military leaders to corrupt priests. The Second Finger is dedicated to "acquisitions" of material, either taking already stolen material to give to its rightful owner or taking a particularly powerful item from a person it would be politically uncomfortable to kill outright.

The 500 or so rogues who make up the Third Finger excel in espionage, often working with rogues from the First and Second Finger to gather information, read and remember scrolls without stealing them, and serve as lookouts and diversions while the others do their jobs. The Fourth Finger rogues make up the largest and lowest level. These 1,000 rogues are the jacks-of-all-trades: they commonly handle the burial of victims (and Stormwind Assassins), body-hiding, and alibi-establishing. It is their job to make sure the Assassins' identities do not get discovered. They are also in charge of recruitment.

Recruitment
Every rogue and thief in Stormwind wants to be part of the Stormwind Assassins. The entire city views their work as necessary and admirable. It is a difficult organization to join, however, as the leaders of Stormwind do not want to endorse the Assassins' way of life, the organization began by a judicious picking through of the prison for "trustworthy" rogues, and word spread. Some thieves attempted to get caught just for the chance of getting picked, and the pardon did not hurt either.

When Stormwind found the Stockade filled with hapless, eager-faced thieves, King Anduin Wrynn approached Mathias and demanded he did something about it. Mathias assigned the Fourth Finger of the Stormwind Assassins to recruit others, training a handful of rogues to recognize talent and discreetness (something the rogues in the city had left behind in their eagerness to join the Assassins). A rogue from the Fourth Finger will follow a rogue and leave him a note card with a place and a drawing of an open hand on it. If the rogue arrives alone at the meeting place, he meets with the Fourth Finger rogue. If the meeting goes well, the rogue will then receive another note card with another meeting place and a closed fist on it, indicating his acceptance.

Initiation is difficult. The rogue is tested in everything from skills to morals. Many of the tests are subtle: the rogue must be entirely trustworthy, for without trust among the rogues, the entire organization of the Assassins will fail. Morality and a desire to serve the city of Stormwind are two of the most important aspects of an Assassin, and these qualities are understandably difficult to find. When prospects are rejected, they leave with only the face of their recruiter in their minds—if even that. The society does not feel the unveiling of a Fourth Finger's identity will hurt them too much, so this is an acceptable risk.

Upon full acceptance, the new Fourth Finger is given dirty work to do, all the while training, buffing their skills, and working to become a Third Finger. Even accomplished rogues, thieves, and assassins must start at the bottom and work their way up.

RPG notes

 * Lands of Conflict mistakenly says the Stormwind Assassins served the Alliance before the Great Wars, something that would have not been possible as it was founded right before the Second War.

In Hearthstone
In Hearthstone, the following cards represent the members of SI:7:
 * HS Scabbs Cutterbutter
 * HS SI:7 Agent
 * HS SI:7 Infiltrator
 * HS SI:7 Anduin

Exploring Azeroth
Mathias Shaw in his reports to King Anduin after the Fourth War offers various details on the workings of SI:7:
 * SI:7 agents are often faced with life-or-death decisions that must be made in a heartbeat.
 * They know every corner and have "friends" in nearly every quarter of Stormwind City, selling goods, listening to strangers chat, and keeping an eye out on their behalf. Agents also pose as lesser noblemen or servants in Stormwind Keep, with Varian and Anduin being aware of only a handful of them.
 * At night, SI:7 uses the Stormwind City Cemetery for covert meetings and exchanges. The catacombs of the Cathedral of Light are used as "drop points" to house messages and objects for SI:7 agents in places like behind loose bricks or in cracks in the wall.
 * The transients in Westfall provide a rich source of rumors for SI:7 to investigate. The Westfall Brigade cooperates with SI:7, managing the troublemakers and gnolls.
 * SI:7 keep watch over Karazhan, sending agents to check up with the Medivh's shade as well as with Khadgar. They also have intel on the Opera Hall that new plays continue to manifest there.
 * When going into Stranglethorn Vale, agents must be equipped with an emergency pouch containing antidotes. They are also to avoid Zul'Gurub unless specifically directed to investigate.
 * Blackrock Mountain is so dangerous that many SI:7 agents don't return.
 * Despite this, SI:7 agents did investigate Blackwing Lair and found references to similar experiments that may predate Nefarian. They collected the material for further study.
 * SI:7 is watching Wrathion and his Blacktalon agents very closely.
 * Tinker Town is Mathias' favorite place for supplementing the ranks of 7, with gnomes' intelligence, curious natures, nimble fingers, and small stature making them perfect spies.
 * Mathias seldom sends SI:7 agents to Caer Darrow.
 * Mathias insists that the name Detheroc be mentioned in every new agent's initial briefing as a reminder to always be wary.
 * SI:7 spies often attended gatherings of blood elves in the Bazaar of Silvermoon City to see was sympathetic to the Alliance.
 * Through SI:7, the Alliance has been secretly negotiating for the return of the headdress of Alleria Windrunner and the now-tattered cape that belonged to Archmage Antonidas.
 * SI: agents are adived to not let their guard down around the Bloodfang pack. Although they are allies, they are also close to feral.
 * The pirate Jamison Gray, first mate of the Bloody Dawn, in Rustberg Village served as SI:7's contact until he was killed. His position was taken over by Quartermaster Brazie who sends trusted adventurers with fox kits and gulls bearing messages to Mathias. Nevertheless, Shaw intends to find a new pirate contact in Rustberg.
 * Once, the Alliance got the upper hand on Master Apothecary Faranell, and an SI:7 agent recovered the notebook from him, giving the Alliance insight into the blight.
 * SI:7 believes that an added part on the empty tomb of Terenas in Lordaeron's palace was done on the order of Thoras Trollbane.

Notes and trivia

 * Generic SI:7 agents are often armed with katana and wakizashi swords while wearing khaki infiltration uniforms.
 * Some believe Experiment 12-B is the result of a covert SI-7 initiative.
 * John J. Keeshan is of high enough rank to request files from SI:7, of which there are ones covering people of importance in the Alliance, such as Shandris Feathermoon. Coincidentally, likely as she is general of the Sentinels, Shandris is also able to request files.
 * It is unknown if SI:1-SI:6 even existed, let alone what happened to them. SI:7 appears to be a clever reference to MI5 and MI6, the remaining sections of the British Directorate of Military Intelligence. SI:7's operations are similar to those of MI6 in that they deal with cloak-and-dagger external affairs.
 * In the Russian version of the game, this organization is called ШРУ (ShROO, Shotrmgradskoye Razvedyvatel'noye Upravleniye - Stormwind Intelligence Agency) as reference to US CIA (ЦРУ in Russian).

Speculation
Stormwind Assassin's Guild may be an alternate name for SI:7, its subgroup or completely another group.