Gender and sexuality

For gender in lore, see gender.

Editorial note: Keep it clean, and no speculation.

Sexuality is not often called upon in the Warcraft universe, but it does exist in official Warcraft lore and art.

Sexuality in the Warcraft universe

Childbirth

• According to Gaxim Rustfizzle, goblins seem to reproduce like rabbits.
• Draenei do not often have children because they are so long-lived.
  • Lightforged draenei have normal draenei children; as shown in the allied race version of the Vindicaar.
• Orcs are fecund and commonly have large litters because so many die in childhood.
• Worgen can't create new worgen babies as being a worgen is a curse. If two worgen were to mate and produce an offspring, that offspring would not be a worgen. The child would merely possess the genetic material of his or her parents, like any other child sans the curse.
• It is unknown if demons can procreate, but Aggonis claims to be the son of Aggonar.

Interracial relationships

• Nathanos Marris was in love with Sylvanas Windrunner, thought it is unknown if they had an affair.
• The then-high elf Kael'thas Sunstrider was interested in courting the human Jaina Proudmoore during her studies in Dalaran, but she rejected his advances.
• The blue dragon Kalecgos was in love with the seemingly human Anveena Teague, and later had a relationship with Jaina Proudmoore.
• The blue dragon Azuregos and the Spirit Healer Anara had a short-lived and ultimately impossible romance.
• Marvin and Tamara Wobblesprocket are a married gnome/human couple.
• Grizzek Fizzwrench and Sapphronetta Flivvers are a married goblin/gnome couple.
• Baros Alexston apparently considered Lieutenant Thorn's worgen form to be attractive, as he expressed admiration for her "long, silky fur".
• Marcus, the human protagonist of most of the erotic Steamy Romance Novels, has had affairs with people from a wide range of races.
• The human Maximillian of Northshire repeatedly proclaims his love for the goblin Doloria, but she does not return his feelings.
• Zebu'tan, a jungle troll in Agmar's Hammer, has a crush on the blood elf Alys Vol'tyr, but she repeatedly rebuffs his advances.
• The gnome Brazie Getz sells  [Brazie's Black Book of Secrets], which contains a series of books with tips on how to flirt with members of other Alliance races.
• Thonk the orc and Gail Nozzywig the goblin are attracted to each other.
• The orc Scout Utvoch finds tauren women irresistible.
• One of the Lazy Peons in Wor'var seems to have a crush on the blood elf Elathriel Sunstriker.
• One of the Orgrimmar Bruisers at the Orgrimmar Embassy seems to have a crush on the nightborne Mender Jessara.
• Anduin Wrynn considered one female draenei to be very attractive, and at some point began feeling more than simple friendship toward his dwarven bodyguard Aerin Stonehand.
• The original Love is in the Air event had people of various races being infatuated with the human Colara Dean and the Forsaken Elenia Haydon.
• The Zandalari troll Khal'ak was deeply infatuated with Vol'jin of the Darkspear tribe. Similarly, the Darkspear Zekhan is besotted with the Zandalari queen Talanji.
• The blood elf leader Lor'themar Theron and the nightborne leader Thalyssra are in a relationship.
• The ogre Captain Kromcrush is rumored to have once had a "torrid affair" with a gnoll.

Interracial reproduction

Main article: Half-breed

• Draenei and orcs can reproduce with each other. Their offspring are known as half-orcs or half-draenei; known examples include Garona and Lantresor of the Blade.
• The Mok'Nathal clan consists primarily of half-ogres: the descendants of orcs and ogres.
• More commonly known, humans and elves have been known to have half-breed children, a known example being Rhonin and Vereesa Windrunner twin children.

Marriage and marriage ceremonies

• Tyrande Whisperwind and Malfurion Stormrage get married at the end of Stormrage.
• The noun "mate" is used by many non-human races, including orcs, tauren, trolls, night elves, and dragons, from the context, it seems to be roughly synonymous to "spouse".
• Dragon Aspects are commonly polyamorous, their mates are known as consorts, with the primary mate bearing the title of Prime Consort.
• Members of the blue dragonflight are known to practice some form of betrothal: Kalecgos and Tyrigosa are described as "future mates".
• Ajamon Ghostcaller is described as the ex-wife of Tony Two-Tusk.
• After a lot of wedding arrangement, Fanny Thundermar and Keegan Firebeard get married in  [30-35] Wild, Wild, Wildhammer Wedding.

Gender and gender roles

Note: In the game... men and women are equal in Azeroth, so the only differences between the two genders are cosmetic. At least within the Alliance and Horde. There is generally more dimorphism in the lore.

• Gender is usually split between males and females. However, for some creatures and races, some members of a particular gender are mentioned by lore, but rarely represented or seen.
• Some races show extreme sexual dimorphism, though there are a few unique exceptions:
  • Prior to the conclusion of the Third War, night elf society was sharply divided by gender, with the vast majority of druids being men and most warriors and clerics being women. There were a few deviations, obviously — males with no aptitude for druidism trained in the arts of war, and females with exceptional druidic gifts were trained, but these gender roles more or less defined the culture of the kaldorei for ten thousand years. In the years since Archimonde's death, this gender division appears to have eased somewhat, and more women have taken up the mantle of the druids, just as men have begun to choose the path of war or dedicate themselves to Elune.

Prostitution

• Prostitutes have been known to attend the annual Crimson Ring games.
• The Guest Chambers in Karazhan are occupied by many Concubines, Night Mistresses and Wanton Hostesses.
• The Den of Mortal Delights in the Black Temple is implied to be a harem/whorehouse for the Illidari. Within the den, Charming Courtesans, Sisters of Pleasure and Temple Concubines can be found.
• Bilgewater Harbor is filled with pleasure houses and other luxuries.
• Madam Goya is implied to have directed a brothel at the Tavern in the Mists in  [A Steamy Romance Novel: Hot and Misty].
• Scarleth is implied to be the matron of several nightborne girls when evacuating the Waning Crescent.
• There are goblin "floozies" at the Frazzlecraz Motherlode.
• One of the mascots for  [Kaja'Cola] is referred to as a "Goblin Wench-Monger" in a piece of concept art.
• Elisande's Secret Quarters feature several Tower Concubines and, most surprising, a gnomish Exotic Concubine.

Pornography

• The Steamy Romance Novels are a series of erotic novels.
• One of the "quality goods" Crazy Larry asks players to retrieve from the Fortune's Fist is a  [Stack of Questionable Publications].
•  [Goblin Gentleman's Magazine] can be obtained from [Pick Pocket].
• The goblin child Bazwix asks players to retrieve his stolen treasure—a calendar with pictures of scantily glad goblin women—from Sabermaw. After getting his "treasure" back, he says that he's "got to do...things and...stuff" before running off.

Rape

• Aedelas Blackmoore abused and raped his unwilling mistress Taretha Foxton during her time as a slave at Durnholde Keep.
• During the Second War, the Dragon Queen Alexstrasza and her prime consort Tyranastrasz were captive and forced to produce red dragons on behalf of Deathwing for the Old Horde.
• Keristrasza was taken prisoner by Malygos to be his unwilling consort.
• Archmage Karlain killed his apprentice who was attempting to rape his wife.

LGBTQ+ characters

In the open Q&A at BlizzCon 2011, one of the questions was: "There really hasn't been a large representation of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender characters in the World of Warcraft lore. Are there any chances to change that in the future?" Chris Metzen's reply was We have I don't know how many quest designers. Probably seven? So there's a lot of people that plug away on story for this thing and certainly, like, our CDev's department's always chasing fiction and hooking characters and stuff like that, and we totally appreciate every component of our audience and want the game to kind of sing to everybody, so... Off the top of my head, I don't know if we're currently developing gay or lesbian characters but it's certainly a possibility. As long as the story's compelling... I think everything's gravy as long as it's just a really good character, well-rounded character that people really respond to, so I think it's totally an open possibility.

In a July 2020 interview with Eurogamer, while discussing the Shadowlands character Pelagos (see below), executive producer John Hight stated that WoW is a game that doesn't try to emphasise sexual relationships so in that regard, we don't necessarily tell that part of the story other than to hint around it. But we certainly have characters [that have] - or we've always thought of characters as having - different gender identities in the game. We don't try to put a big focus on it and make it a big deal, we just try to make the game feel comfortable, friendly and approachable for everybody in the game, regardless of where they come from. When asked if this meant that there are transgender characters in content predating Shadowlands, Hight replied Knowing some of our designers and having conversations with them, I'm sure that was the intent. But we like to keep things subtle.

In an interview with Wowhead around the same time, lead narrative designer Steve Danuser stated that I think it's a valuable thing that we show these different perspectives [on gender and sexuality] on Azeroth and want to really make clear that, you know, there's people who sometimes say, “Well, Warcraft is this medieval fantasy game and those kinds of things weren't talked about in medieval times, so they shouldn't be in Azeroth,” but I disagree with that. I think that Azeroth is a world of magic and a world of possibilities, and one of the things that's really important to know is that, in Azeroth, you can love who you want, you can identify yourself the way that you want, and all of those things are possibilities. We just want the game to be able to reflect that through it storylines, and through its character customization options, and we're really excited about that.

World of Warcraft

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

• Hearthsinger Forresten in Stratholme drops items such as his  [Woollies of the Prancing Minstrel] or  [Rainbow Girdle], hinting at flamboyant-ness.
• Upon receiving Edwin VanCleef's Unsent Letter, Baros Alexston seems to reminisce on his past with Edwin and calls him an idealist and romantic, hinting at Edwin's potential bisexuality (since he had a daughter), as well as Baros's (since he was in love with Lieutenant Thorn).

The Burning Crusade

This section concerns content related to The Burning Crusade.

• This might just be another case of game mechanics (see here), but when reaching Exalted with the Sha'tari Skyguard, Skyguard Khatie's gossip text shows she has a clear interest in the player, no matter which gender the character is.

Wrath of the Lich King

This section concerns content related to Wrath of the Lich King.

• Sentinel Sweetspring "grins at Sentinel Amberline across the camp, waggling her long eyebrows suggestively."

Cataclysm

This section concerns content related to Cataclysm.

• Elementalist Starion compliments the looks of women and men alike in his gossip text, calling female characters gorgeous and male characters handsome. He also caters to the male blood elf stereotype of loving mirrors and the image of themselves. However, it is possible that this is just a case of game mechanics.
• Female Bilgewater Prisoners say: "Hey bud, I'll sell you my wife if you get me out of here. She won't mind!" This may be just an oversight or limitation of the game as they spawn as males as well.

Mists of Pandaria

This section concerns content related to Mists of Pandaria.

• In the romance novel  [A Steamy Romance Novel: Hot and Misty], it's implied Kama the Beast Tamer's life-mate is another female.
• Marsha Stockton and Ann Stockton, a human and a dwarf respectively, can be found at the south-west wing of the Shrine of Seven Stars. Their relation is unknown, though they may be a married, interracial lesbian couple.

Warlords of Draenor

This section concerns content related to Warlords of Draenor.

•  [A Steamy Romance Novel: Savage Passions] is about Marcus' romance with a male stablehand named Raven.
• Female Darktide Engineers say: "Tell my wife I...ah, forget it." This may be just an oversight or limitation of the game as they spawn as males as well.

Legion

This section concerns content related to Legion.

• Heather and Rhonda on the Wandering Isle are seen flirting. They are based on a real-life lesbian couple.
• In a small enchanting questline in Azsuna, the player reunites two former lovers (both females), Priestess Driana and Enchantress Ilanya.
• The quest   [110] Fevered Note depicts a female Bradensbrook Explorer who fell into illness after kissing a harpy.
• The ending of  [A Steamy Romance Novel: Got Milk?] implies a threesome between Marcus, Bax Freeseeker, and Tanda Freeseeker. In-game, Marcus can be seen lying next to the two in a hut near Thunder Totem. When approached, he wakes up and walks out of the hut with the words Well, that was certainly unexpected.
• After Dark Ranger Velonara rejects Death Hunter Moorgoth's advances in Trueshot Lodge, Moorgoth incorrectly concludes that this is because Velonara is actually attracted to the player character, regardless of said character's gender.
• Levia Laurence fell under the seduction spell of Agatha, an imp mother she had thought was a succubus. Alongside her shock at Agatha's true form, Levia seems genuinely hurt to find out she had been deceived and that Agatha didn't really care for her. One quest even describes them as lovers.

Battle for Azeroth

This section concerns content related to Battle for Azeroth.

• The quest  [35-60] Glimmering Locket has the player return a  [Glimmering Locket] with a painting containing two female humans–who may be a couple–to its owner, Stabby Jane.
• Upon completion of  [10-50] Broken Compass, Flora Silverwind states that now that her male lover is dead, she is interested in pursuing Kirsty Logan.
• During the quest  [60] Stay of Execution, the Alliance player, alongside Jaina Proudmoore and Mathias Shaw, teleports atop a picnic in the Underhold and encounters two female goblins, who exchange tender words before being frozen by Jaina.

Shadows Rising

This section concerns content related to the Warcraft novels, novellas, or short stories.

• Before Wilmer was raised as an undead, Jago loved him. They reunited briefly during the Gathering.
• Queen Talanji granted permission to the Zandalari girls, Nav'rae and Khila, to be wed.
• Flynn Fairwind is bisexual. This is shown by him currently having a relationship with Mathias Shaw while he previously had a crush on Taelia.

Shadowlands

This section concerns content related to Shadowlands.

• The kyrian Pelagos presented as a woman in his mortal life but chose to be a man in the Shadowlands.
• The burdens of Acolyte Galistos includes a memory of two tauren caring for an infant. The burdens' models are randomized, meaning the tauren can spawn as either one male and one female, two males, or two females.
• The venthyr outcasts Kasimir and Mircero in the Ember Ward are likely a male couple as Kasimir refers to Mirceo as "my love."
• Thiernax and Qadarin are a married male couple.
• Acolyte Nelesis is said to be Margrave Sin'dane's "favorite consort"; both Nelesis and Sin'dane are female.

Folk & Fairy Tales of Azeroth

This section concerns content related to the Warcraft novels, novellas, or short stories.

• Keda Bloomblade, the protagonist of the short story "Stones, Moss, and Tears", is a transgender female.
  • The same story passingly mentions a member of the Sentinels (at the time a female-only organization) who is married to another woman.
• The short story "Why the Mermaids Left Boralus" centers on a romance between the human Ery and the mermaid Halia, both of whom are female.
• The short story "Visage Day" reveals that Chronormu was born male but chose to become female during her Visage Day ceremony.

Miscellaneous

• During the PTR for Cataclysm, Theralion's voice and mannerisms was that of a stereotypically flamboyant personality. However, the voice acting was then changed to be more neutral when the game went live.
• The following examples may be the result of game mechanics, such as the random NPC generator or a joke, and thus not official lore representation of homosexuality:
  • In his retelling of the day Deathwing came (during the quest  [15-30] The Day that Deathwing Came: What Really Happened), Martek the Exiled is shown surrounded by numerous female admirers and a male admirer. Should Martek (the player) choose to save the male admirer, they share a "tender moment" upon his motorcycle just like they would if a female admirer was chosen, implying that Martek is bisexual, or that the listener assumed the blood elf admirer to be male.
  • Gender has little or no effect on interactions with most NPCs. For example, NPCs who react to emotes such as /kiss and /flirt will react the same towards male and female characters, and the Seduce ability is equally effective on male and female targets.
  • During the Feast of Winter Veil, inns generally have pairs of Winter Revelers standing under the mistletoe. Most inns have a male reveler and a female reveler, however Silvermoon City Inn has two male revelers.
• One of the /silly emotes for female nightborne characters reflects an interest in women: "Tyrande still looks good after all these years. Know if she's seeing anyone?"

Non-canon

• According to the Monster Guide, female quilboar sometimes take on a male lifestyle, including female mates; see the RPG section below.
• The Hearthstone character Varden Dawngrasp is non-binary.

Quotes

• Concubine quote:

  "They fall asleep after. Me, I fall asleep during...."

• Dryad annoyed speech:

  "I'll attract the enemy with my human call. I'm so wasted! I'm so wasted!"

• Night Mistress quote:

  "Five seconds! I'm not kidding!"

• A male goblin joke:

  "She told me to tie her up and do whatever I wanted to her. So I took her stereo."

• A female goblin joke:

  "I'm a free spirit, I don't like to be tied down. Oh, you mean that literally. I'm totally into that."

• A dwarven saying:

  "Be-ware, Be-ware of a gnome with long hair! Though tiny in height, if the ale is just right, she'll follow you back, and hop in the sack!"

• A female troll saying:

  "When enraged, and in heat, a female troll can mate over 80 times in one night. Be you prepared?"

• Succubus:

  "Don't touch what you can't afford."

In the RPG

This section contains information from the Warcraft RPG which is considered non-canon.

Childbirth

• In Duskwood, a pregnancy — human, elven, or dwarven — has not been carried to term in two years.

Interracial breeding

• Interacial breeding is generally frowned upon by human and elven society. Half-elves usually suffer bigotry from both their elven and human parents. The elven parents often abandon their children.^{[citation needed]  [citation needed]} 
• Goblins and dwarves do not hold strong opinions on human-elf mating.
• Male harpies may not exist, as no male harpies have been reported. Harpies will breed with captive males of many species, though they prefer elves, orcs, and humans to either smaller or larger species.

Romance and love

• It is not uncommon for a succubus in a mortal's servitude to fall uncontrollably in love with him or her; this occurrence is not always to the master's advantage, though, for a devoted succubus can be prone to fits of extreme jealousy, especially when her master deals with those of the opposite sex.

Marriage and marriage ceremonies

An Alliance wedding reception.

• Night elves do not traditionally marry, but they do take companions for life.
• Wildhammer dwarves only have a single holiday each year in which all the marriages are performed. It is one of the three community rituals held per year (the other two are for births and deaths respectively). Wildhammer dwarves commonly marry someone from their same birth year.
• Traditional jungle troll rites of passage include suitors battling to the death for the object of their affection (either gender would do this), fights with blunt weapons during a marriage ceremony to establish dominance in the marriage. Many jungle trolls consider their wives as both trophies to be proud of and lowly slaves who have no rights. The more wives a warrior has, the more ties he shares within the tribe and the more allies he has. Though the warrior must have the means to care for all of his wives, it is a matter of prestige but also of political and social interest to own as many wives as possible. Only a willing father or brother agrees to give a female to a husband; unless, of course, a husband decides to hand out one of his own wives to another jungle troll to show his appreciation. Such a valuable gift shows a mark of respect and mutual friendship between the giver and the recipient. This ancient tradition allows jungle trolls to cut deals and alliances with other tribes. It is not rare to see the members of a weaker jungle troll tribe offer wives as tributes or peace offerings to the warriors of a bigger or more organized tribe. Among the members of the Darkspear tribe — who suffer the influence of the Horde some are beginning to question this outdated way of life.
• For tuskarr, marriage occurs as soon as a man can support a wife, and for females as soon as they reach puberty. Tuskarr like to celebrate positive social behavior such as marriage, to indicate the proper way an individual should act to reach the afterlife. Tuskarr have simple rituals relating to marriage, and it is one of their most prominent ceremonies. Girls dream of marrying a good whaler.
• Orcs share many of common marriage ceremonies as humans.

Mating rituals

• Magnataur do not have a mating season. Magnataur breed when food is plentiful and chance brings a potential mate into close proximity. Once the act is complete the pair separates. Mating can pit males against each other. These fights are usually all display. The two shout and smash the ground until one loses his nerve and flees.
• Murlocs extract a greenish mucus from the colored head fin of threshadons for use by chieftains as a powerful aphrodisiac.

Gender and gender roles

• Some races show extreme sexual dimorphism, though there are a few unique exceptions:
  • Murlocs have minimal amount of sexual dimorphism (only the length and shape of the head-fin and back-fin indicates gender).
  • Makrura males and females appear identical to non-makrura observers unless a female is carrying a clutch of eggs on her torso. Male makrura mate only once and then molt into sexless drones (although they are still referred to as he for all practical purposes).
  • Most female quilboar do not follow the males' path of the warrior. On occasion, a female child displays such unnatural strength that the shaman deems her a man. She then trains as a warrior and lives in all ways like a male, even taking female mates. Tribal legend holds that such unions have occasionally produced an exceptional quilboar warrior (though no scholar has confirmed the tale), so there is little or no stigma attached to such situations.
  • Female trolls hold no place in regular troll society. Male trolls consider them mates, nothing more — though they honor and give respect to female trolls who distinguish themselves in battle. Tauren (and orcs, due to a recent decree from Thrall) value their females as more than mates and allow them to rise to positions of power. Female Darkspears find this concept interesting, and some choose to live in the future because they sense it affords them greater opportunities than standard troll culture. Until Thrall’s involvement with the Darkspear trolls, only male trolls became witch doctors. Female trolls have since seen the equality other Horde women possess and crave their own emancipation. Despite their efforts, few female witch doctors exist, and those who attempt to take on the role of tribal witch doctor meet with much derision and resistance.

Prostitution

• Prostitution, the sex trade, and slavery are common business practices among goblins. While slavery is usually illegal in other parts of the world, it is a legitimate trade among goblins, and is condoned by the trade princes. However, it is kept secret to avoid offending potential customers who might object to the controversial business. Slaves are used not just for manual labor but for other deplorable pursuits, and have no rights at all.
• The streets along Ratchet's wharf teem with whorehouses (aka brothels) for those with earthier tastes.

Rape

• Rape is generally frowned upon in Azeroth's societies but exists. Half-human half-ogres are rumored to be products of ogre aggressions on human villages. Half-orc genesis is usually violent and perverse, they are usually born to abused or victimized parents. Forlarren are typically the result of couplings between unwilling night elves and demons. A succubus is into pleasure and pain. Like all demons, she enjoys bringing death and misery to the mortal races, but that doesn't mean she can't have fun with them first.
• Harpies capture males of other humanoid races and force them to mate. These unfortunates are often hobbled to keep from escaping. Given the circumstances, seduction is out of the question. Harpies resort to magic and potions to ensure cooperation, and employ their captives until they succumb to disease and malnutrition...

Notes

• One of the great pleasures of the humanoid forms used by shapeshifted dragons is that soft skin is more sensitive to receiving a loving touch than hardened scales. Despite her protections, Deathwing's last mating attempt left many burn marks and scars on Sintharia's body.

Gallery

This section contains images about the anatomy (nudity, sexual dimorphism, and suggestive imagery), sexuality in official artwork, and/or images that show off the physical form. They may include nudity or revealing clothing. It also includes examples of sexual dimorphism within a race.

Females

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  A nymph

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  A Temple Concubine, "Business... or Pleasure?".

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  Queen Azshara

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  A naga

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  Garona Halforcen

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  A troll

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  Garona Halforcen

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  "Don't touch what you can't afford."

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  Idol is similar to real-life "mother goddess" & fertility statues (e.g. "Venus" or Goddess of Willendorf)

• Elune.PNG

  Elune is a representation of a "mother goddess"

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  A Primal Jungle troll

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  Beachy dreams

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  Chopper girl

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  Gilnean Woman

Males

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  A satyr

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  A forest troll

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  Archdruid Lathorius

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  A centaur

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  Illidan Stormrage

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  Demon hunter in the Ruins of Karabor

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  A Keeper of the Grove, son of Cenarius

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  A human

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  A Gargoyle

Other

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  Murlocs have minimal sexual dimorphism.

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  Arakkoa gender is not reflected in details apparent to non-arakkoa, and appear androgynous to other races.

See also

• Flirts, who are often sexual in nature
• Soulbinding, which shares some elements with mortal romance