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This article is about the in-game city. For lore and history of Dalaran, see Dalaran (kingdom). For the area in the Hillsbrad Foothills, see Dalaran Crater.
NeutralDalaran City
Dalaran Concept Art Peter Lee 2
Concept art of Dalaran.
Type Capital city
Races HumanHuman Human
High elfHigh elf High elf
Blood elfBlood elf Blood elf
Half-elfHalf-elf Half-elf
DwarfDwarf Dwarf
GnomeGnome Gnome
Night elfNight elf Night elf
DraeneiDraenei Draenei
WorgenWorgen Worgen
OrcOrc Orc
TrollTroll Troll
TaurenTauren Tauren
ForsakenForsaken Forsaken
GoblinGoblin Goblin
PandarenPandaren Pandaren
Ethereal Ethereal
Government Magocracy[1]
Ruler(s) Council of Six
Languages Common, Thalassian, Various languages
Faiths Holy Light, Various
Affiliation Kirin Tor, Magocracy of Dalaran, Silver Covenant, Alliance, Sunreavers, Horde
Former affiliation(s) Alliance resistance, Alliance of Lordaeron
Location Legion Broken Isles
Wrath-Logo-Small Crystalsong Forest
PvP status Sanctuary

Dalaran (or the City of Dalaran and Dalaran City, pronounced DAHL-uh-RAWN)[2] is the capital of the magocratic nation of the same name. The city's inner fortress has served as the focal point for magi and the study of the arcane throughout human history.

Originally located by the Lordamere Lake in the Eastern Kingdoms, the city was magically moved to Northrend by the power of its magic. They fought both against the Dragon Aspect Malygos's crusade to eradicate the use of magic on Azeroth, and the undead forces of the Lich King.[3] Dalaran would later be set in motion and fly high above the seas, as seen during the Purge. During the third invasion of the Burning Legion, Dalaran was moved to Karazhan, and then teleported to the Broken Isles in order to serve as a focal point in the fight against the Burning Legion's invasion.

History[]

Main article: Dalaran (kingdom)#History

In-game evolution[]

Classic[]

WoW Icon update This section concerns content related to the original World of Warcraft.

Before Wrath of the Lich King, Dalaran was "hidden" behind a magic dome in the Alterac Mountains region. In truth, the area behind the dome was empty. After the second expansion, the area was replaced with the Dalaran Crater since the city had then been added in Northrend.

Wrath of the Lich King[]

Wrath-Logo-Small This section concerns content related to Wrath of the Lich King.
Journey Trailer - Dalaran

Dalaran as seen in Journey Trailer.

Dalaran City

Dalaran city in Northrend.

The city contains areas that are faction-specific in the same manner as Shattrath City is divided amongst the Aldor and Scryers. Certain parts of the city can only be reached by Alliance players (Silver Enclave) while others are strictly for Horde use (Sunreaver's Sanctuary). The majority of the city remains neutral.

It acts as the neutral sanctuary city for the continent, similar to Shattrath City in Outland, and can be accessed via the teleport crystal in Violet Stand, Crystalsong Forest, north of the Dragonblight, or through a flight path. Portals are located within the Alliance and Horde districts of the city, connecting to the factions' capital cities and Shattrath City. There is a portal trainer at the Violet Gate, and there are battlemasters and an arena master in the Underbelly sewer system. Like Stormwind's Stockade and Orgrimmar's Ragefire Chasm, Dalaran has its own instance within the city: the Violet Hold.

Like Shattrath City, there were originally no class trainers - with the notable exception of mage trainers, given the city's history - nor an Auction House (patch 3.2.0 introduced an Auction House for Master Engineers with the addition of Steam Powered Auctioneers to the Like Clockwork engineering shop, while patch 4.0.3a made the auctioneers usable by everyone and added class trainers). Grand Master trainers for each profession are available in the city.

In-game, the city of Dalaran was originally a no-fly zone below a certain altitude (slightly higher than the rooftops), with the exception of Krasus' Landing, where the flight point is located, and the Underbelly. This was to help maintain the atmosphere of the city, but with Cataclysm, the rule was lifted.

Cataclysm[]

Cataclysm This section concerns content related to Cataclysm.

The portals to the Alliance and Horde major cities were removed in patch 4.0.3a and replaced by class trainers.[4] However, the portals to Stormwind and Orgrimmar were restored in patch 4.1.0. The formerly engineering-only auctioneers — Steam-Powered Auctioneer in Silver Enclave and Steam-Powered Auctioneer in Sunreaver's Sanctuary — now serve anyone and flying is now allowed.

For information about getting out of Dalaran and getting around the Old World without the portals to the major cities, Cataclysm travel guide will prove useful. Note that, while it has been explained that Outland and Northrend take place within the time frame their storylines occurred in, the Dalaran Crater in the old world remains empty.

Mists of Pandaria[]

Mists of Pandaria This section concerns content related to Mists of Pandaria.

During the purge, Dalaran had already left Northrend and was in motion.[5][6] However, for game purposes, Dalaran remains unchanged after the questline is completed (see Notes).

Legion[]

Legion This section concerns content related to Legion.
Dalaran City (legion)

Dalaran city at Broken Shore.

Dalaran was moved to Deadwind Pass during the Burning Legion's invasion in order to protect the Eastern Kingdoms.[7][8][9] It then teleported to the Broken Isles where it served as the capital city for Alliance and the Horde players. During the Assault on Broken Shore, Kil'jaeden sent Legion ships to destroy the city.[10]

The city's layout was overhauled for Legion with notably the Underbelly being expanded and the center of the city becoming a portal hub.[11]

Maps and subregions[]

Wrath-Logo-Small Northrend[]

VZ-Dalaran

Map of Dalaran.

VZ-Underbelly

Map of the Underbelly.


The Underbelly

Undisplayed locations

Legion Broken Isles[]

VZ-Dalaran (Broken Isles)

Map of Dalaran.

VZ-Dalaran (Broken Isles)-s1

Map of the Underbelly.


The Underbelly

Undisplayed locations

Lore locations[]

Instances[]

Instance Name Level Range Group Size
Wrath-Logo-Small Instance portal The Violet Hold 63 - 80 5 man
Legion Instance portal Assault on Violet Hold 105 - 110 5 man

Factions[]

In the Dalaran present in Wrath of the Lich King, there are three major reputation factions players can deal with. These are:

  • Neutral Dalaran Tabard Kirin Tor - The main body of the city with its leaders of the Council ruling over it. Neutral to the Alliance and the Horde. Led by Archmage Khadgar.
  • Alliance Silver Covenant Tabard Silver Covenant - Supporters of the Alliance and hostile to the Horde. Led by Vereesa Windrunner.
  • Horde Sunreaver Tabard Sunreavers - Representatives of the Horde and hostile to the Alliance. Led by Archmage and former Council member, Aethas Sunreaver.

Notable residents[]

Main articles: Dalaran NPCs, Dalaran (Northrend) NPCs
Argus seen from Dalaran

Argus appearing in the skies of Azeroth, as seen from Dalaran.

The Council[]

Main article: Council of Six
  • Neutral IconSmall Khadgar Khadgar - Formerly Medivh's apprentice, he was the member of the council that suggested appointing Jaina as their leader, following the events of the attack on Theramore. Now leads the council as of Jaina's departure.
  • Neutral IconSmall Ansirem Ansirem - Known member of the council. Like Modera, he was on the council when Garithos condemned Kael'thas.[13]
  • Neutral IconSmall Kalecgos IconSmall Kalec Kalecgos - Joined the Kirin Tor after the fall of Theramore.
  • Neutral IconSmall Karlain Karlain - An alchemist and mage. Once at the mercy of his emotions, he has since become one of the most controlled and thoughtful members of the Kirin Tor.[14]
  • Neutral IconSmall Modera Modera - The longest-standing member.[15]
  • Neutral IconSmall Vargoth Vargoth - Survivor of the Alliance Expedition and former resident and notable of Kirin'Var Village.

Other notable residents[]

Getting there[]

Wrath-Logo-Small Getting to Dalaran in Northrend[]

Dalaran is located in the north-central region of the continent of Northrend, floating above the western side of Crystalsong Forest. Ships[16] and zeppelins[16] departing from Stormwind, Orgrimmar, Menethil Harbor and the Undercity provide access to Northrend from Kalimdor and the Eastern Kingdoms.

Once you are in Northrend, there are a number of ways[16] to reach Dalaran:

Dalaran specific methods from within Northrend
Dalaran specific methods from anywhere
  • At level 74 mages can learn a portal to Dalaran from the portal trainer. A mage portal allows anyone to get to Dalaran from anywhere.
  • A set of upgradeable Kirin Tor rings are available at level 80. Any of these rings can teleport the player to Dalaran.
  • An Inv shirt guildtabard 01 [Argent Crusader's Tabard] is available at level 80. This teleports the player to the Argent Tournament Grounds, less than two minutes' flight from Dalaran.
Non-Dalaran specific methods
  • Once in Dalaran, players can set a Dalaran inn as their home, which enables them to teleport there with their Inv misc rune 01 [Hearthstone].
  • A Warlock in Dalaran can summon players to Dalaran, with 2 others in Dalaran in the same group.
  • Players whose accounts are linked via Recruit-A-Friend can summon one another to Dalaran. The players must be in the same group.
  • Portals to Dalaran exist at the Orgrimmar and Stormwind portal rooms.

Legion Getting to Dalaran in the Broken Isles[]

All players arrive in Dalaran over the Broken Isles on the quest N [10-45] In the Blink of an Eye and receive a Inv misc rune 15 [Dalaran Hearthstone], allowing them to teleport to Dalaran once every 20 minutes.

In addition, every Class Hall has a portal to Dalaran. There are also portals in Stormwind Keep in Stormwind City and the Cleft of Shadow in Orgrimmar — the same portals previously used to get to Dalaran over Karazhan for B [10-45] Calling of the Council.

Finally, at level 110, mages can learn a portal to Dalaran over the Broken Isles from a portal trainer, allowing them to teleport other players there. And like its Northrend version, Dalaran over the Broken Isles has innkeepers who allow players to set their regular Inv misc rune 01 [Hearthstone] there.

Leaving Dalaran[]

Dalaran-specific methods
Non-Dalaran specific methods
  • Hearth to non-Dalaran bind point.
  • A warlock not in Dalaran can summon players from Dalaran, with 2 others at destination in the same group.
  • After meeting the Dalaran Flight master (in Krasus' Landing), players can pay to fly from there to nearby flight masters via a Flight Path.
  • Jump off the edge or from the tunnel in the sewers (Underbelly), though this will kill you unless you have a way to slow your descent.
  • As of Cataclysm, it is fairly common to see mages offering portals out of Dalaran to various locales.

Wrath-Logo-Small Travel connections in Northrend[]

Flight[]

Neutral Ebon Watch, Zul'Drak
Neutral Moa'ki Harbor, Dragonblight
Neutral Wyrmrest Temple, Dragonblight
Neutral Argent Tournament Grounds, Icecrown
Neutral Argent Vanguard, Icecrown
Alliance Fordragon Hold, Dragonblight
Horde Kor'kron Vanguard, Dragonblight

Portals[]

When Wrath of the Lich King went live, Dalaran supplanted Shattrath City as the major hub for player activity, due to easy access to the capital cities in the southern continents, to Outland via Shattrath, and to the high-level content in Northrend. Those portals were removed in patch 4.0.3a, but portals to Orgrimmar and Stormwind City were added in patch 4.1.0.

Teleport crystals[]

Legion Travel connections in the Broken Isles[]

Flight[]

Neutral Watchers' Aerie, Azsuna
Neutral Shackle's Den, Azsuna
Neutral Felblaze Ingress, Azsuna
Neutral Meredil, Suramar
Neutral Crimson Thicket, Suramar
Neutral Hafr Fjall, Stormheim
Neutral Vengeance Point, Broken Shore

Portals[]

Teleport circles[]

Every class hall has a portal to it located in Dalaran, with the exception of Trueshot Lodge, which has a special, instant-arrival flight, effectively a teleport

Points of interest[]

Dalaran beta map

Points of interest.

  • There are 12 mailboxes, one outside The Filthy Animal inn and two outside The Legerdemain Lounge inn, two located outside the north bank and one located outside the south bank, one outside the Eastern entrance to The Underbelly, one outside the Alchemy trainer, one in Krasus' Landing, one at the foot of the stairway leading to The Violet Citadel, one outside A Hero's Welcome, and one outside the Guild Master.
  • As pointed out from above there are two banks, one located right from the statue of Antonidas and another located on the other side of Dalaran in The Eventide, to the left of the entrance of A Hero's Welcome. Although they are both near the faction controlled areas, they are available to both the Alliance and the Horde.
  • The well near the Magus Commerce Exchange is an entrance to the Underbelly, when you jump into it you arrive randomly at one of four possible sites in the Underbelly. Jumping down will not give any fall damage.
  • All profession trainers (except Fishing, Cooking and Archaeology) are located in the Magus Commerce Exchange.
  • All mage trainers are located in the Violet Gate.

Film universe[]

Icon-film-40x16 This section concerns content exclusive to the Warcraft film universe and is considered non-canon.
Main article: Dalaran (kingdom)#Film universe

In Hearthstone[]

Hearthstone This section contains information exclusive to Hearthstone and is considered non-canon.

Dalaran is the major setting of the Great Dalaran Heist, being invaded by the League of E.V.I.L.. The Bank of Dalaran (or Dalaran Bank), the Violet Hold, streets of Dalaran, the Underbelly, and Kirin Tor Citadel are areas of battle. At the end of the heist, the League steals the entire city, flying it to Uldum to set up Saviors of Uldum.

Notes and trivia[]

Dalaran early layout concept

An early layout concept by Cory Stockton.[17]

Lore
  • A group of high elf engineers helped build Dalaran's original defenses. These engineers later ended up as blood elves in Kael'thas Sunstrider's army.[18]
  • The city is protected by defensive shields based on Antonidas' earlier version of a magical field that destroyed any undead that touched it during the Third War.[19]
  • Dalaran has an orphanage. Alodi was raised in it.[20] It was originally supposed to appear in-game, at the location of the present-day Sisters Sorcerous's shop.[21]
  • Dalaran has magic schools where young mages and schoolchildren are educated and trained in the use of magic.[22][23]
    • Before the Third War, the Archmage Antonidas was in charge of teaching in some magic classes.[24]
    • As a child, Khadgar learned from most of his lessons that non-Dalaran mages, wild, untrained, and self-taught wizards without restraint, control, and thought, always ended in the same fashion with a bad end, and sometimes, though not often, destroying a large amount of the surrounding countryside with them.[25]
  • The tallest spire in Dalaran City is called Dalaran Spire.[26]
  • Grasses of the Alterac Mountains are still growing around the outskirts of the floating city. They are hearty and impart a strong, earthy flavor to hot tea.[27]
Gameplay
  • While in Dalaran, you may randomly get Manabonked by Minigob Manabonk.
  • When night falls, Windle Sparkshine will light most of the lamps in Dalaran, then stand outside the Alliance section of Dalaran, and will sell Inv wand 02 [Windle's Lighter] for 50 Silver.
  • Compared to other major cities, Dalaran has very many activities. Examples include /Pet'ing Jones, lighting up the city, hunting books and fishing for treasures.
  • Like the World's End Tavern in the Lower City of Shattrath, Dalaran has a portal to Caverns of Time for quick access to southern Kalimdor. This portal is located in the second floor of the Violet Citadel. Also, a player can talk to Zidormi, an NPC standing in front of the portal to also teleport to the Caverns of Time.
  • The white-quality weapons sold at the Arsenal Absolute were excellent for leveling up weapon skills, until the removal of weapon skills in patch 4.0.1.
  • Dalaran is smaller than the other major cities in the game. At the same time, it has a large number of NPCs, doodads, and objects. This accumulates a high amount of players at a small area, along with causing a player's computer to load several city details at once. Back in the day of WotLK, the result was often a mediocre to a large degree of lag when the player was inside the city. The lag experienced within Dalaran was a very common topic within World of Warcraft; some players even dubbed the city "Lagaran" because of it. It was not uncommon for a character in Dalaran to be unable to perform any action at all, use abnormally much time on simple actions such as walking, or be even repeatedly disconnected when attempting to log in if the character was located in the city. The problem was severe enough that Blizzard had to implement the Argent Tournament in Icecrown away from Dalaran, rather than in Crystalsong Forest directly underneath it as originally planned. The amount of lag lessened in Cataclysm with the removal of most city portals, and with most players moving to their faction capitals (Stormwind City and Orgrimmar).
  • Since patch 7.0.3, there are five separate Dalarans in the game (not counting Dalaran Crater), each reflecting a different time in the city's history: in Northrend, as an instance during the Operation: Shieldwall/Dominance Offensive storyline, over Karazhan (phasing in after the Battle for the Broken Shore), and with Legion, the most recent version over the Broken Isles, as well as an instanced copy with no NPCs that can be seen from the balcony of the Hall of the Guardian.
  • Dalaran can be seen in the End Time dungeon, but not in the Dragon Soul raid.
    • The version of Dalaran seen in the patch 5.1 storylines (the Operation: Shieldwall and Dominance Offensive quest chains) is located in its own instance, similar to Plaguelands: The Scarlet Enclave, rather than being a phased version of the main-world Dalaran. It uses the Violet Hold loading screen rather than the Northrend one and is floating over what looks like a sea. The world map interface bar shows its location in Eastern Kingdoms. Besides the NPC changes, there is no Violet Hold instance portal in this version, flying is impossible (even at Krasus' Landing), and jumping off the Underbelly pipe kills the player before they reach the water below.
    • Dalaran over Karazhan, seen between completing B [10-45] The Battle for Broken Shore and N [10-45] In the Blink of an Eye, is an intermediate version between the Northrend and Broken Isles Dalarans. The Chamber of the Guardian exists in this version but the teleport pad is not working; the Silver Enclave and Sunreaver's Sanctuary still have those names, rather than their new names in Legion (and both are accessible to both factions); the city is full of Kirin Tor Guardians, and most NPCs only offer gossip text instead of their regular services.
  • In an interview with Jesse Cox, Dave Kosak revealed that Dalaran was planned to be in the air above the Siege of Orgrimmar, but technical limitations meant they had to scrap the idea. It is possible this is related to the limitations which prevented the Argent Tournament from being placed in Crystalsong Forest.[28]
Other
  • The Schools of Arcane Magic achievement is completed in the city.
  • The Ultimate Visual Guides erroneously described Dalaran as "formerly ruled" by a magocracy.[29] However, while the Magocrat Lords are defunct, the Council of Six still rules it as of Legion, and it has been confirmed that Dalaran is thus still a magocracy.[1]
  • Strangely, in-game there is no "old gate" on the side of the land mass and the other halves of the houses in Alterac Mountains aren't there either.
  • The decision to have Dalaran as the Legion sanctuary has created mixed results among players, with some wondering why the Horde would want to return after the Purge of Dalaran and others feeling that Dalaran has left the Alliance and become neutral.
  • Dalaran is a melee tileset in The Frozen Throne.
  • Dalaran is probably inspired by Serannian, a pink marble city in the clouds part of H.P. Lovecraft's Dreamlands.

Gallery[]

Maps

Fan art[]

Patch changes[]

See also[]

References[]

 
  1. ^ a b Blizzard Entertainment Sean Copeland 2018-03-07. Sean Copeland on Twitter. Archived from the original on 2018-03-08. Retrieved on 2018-03-08.​ “Confirmed! Here's an excerpt from his research: "...although the term is seldom used these days, magocracy has been used in our games and expanded universe. It is still an accurate description of Dalaran, as the nation is still ruled by magi. It's just not commonly used."
  2. ^ Hearthstone: Announcing the Knights of the Frozen Throne
  3. ^ World of Warcraft: Mage
  4. ^ Patch 4.0.3a (world changes)#Dalaran
  5. ^ Vanion's interview with Dave Kosak - "So, in present-day, Dalaran is in motion and we don't say where and we are not sure if we show it in-game somewhere else. Yet we have not decided."
  6. ^ Dave Kosak on Twitter
  7. ^ B [10-45] Calling of the Council
  8. ^ N [10-45] Anomalous Anomalies
  9. ^ N [10-45] In the Blink of an Eye
  10. ^ N [45] Assault on Broken Shore
  11. ^ Dev Interviews, Rogue Order Hall, Blue Posts, Warcraft Movie Prop Contest, DLC #500 (2015-08-11).
  12. ^ N [45] The Thieving Apprentice
  13. ^ In the Shadow of the Sun
  14. ^ Tides of War
  15. ^ Day of the Dragon
  16. ^ a b c d e The Cataclysm travel guide provides more information on the ship and zeppelin routes to Northrend, item and quest portals to Dalaran, and suggests ways higher level players can shorten travel times between Dalaran and their faction capitals.
  17. ^ Mumper on Twitter (2014-02-07).​ “My 1st pass layout of Dalaran for WotLK. Made a few changes along the way, but it came out pretty damn close.”
  18. ^ The Crossing (WC3 BloodElf)
  19. ^ The Archmage Antonidas - Part III
  20. ^ Archive of the Tirisgarde#Ebonchill, Greatstaff of Alodi
  21. ^ File:Dalaran early layout concept.jpg
  22. ^ STAY OUT!!!
  23. ^ The Old Wizard's Almanac
  24. ^ Journal of Archmage Antonidas
  25. ^ The Last Guardian, chapter 1
  26. ^ Wowhead
  27. ^ The Fate of Apprentice Argoly
  28. ^ Warcraft Interview: Dave Kosak - 2 NERDS, 1 LORE (Patch 5.4 and beyond)
  29. ^ Ultimate Visual Guide, pg. 18

External links[]

Northrend During the Purge Broken Isles
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