Arthas Menethil
Arthas Menethil is a male video game character who features in Warcraft.
Contents |
Biography
Origin
Arthas Menethil was a male human born to King Terenas Menethil II and Queen Lianne Menethil of Lordaeron that was a kingdom on the world of Azeroth. The young prince was born before the First War that was fought against the Horde of the world of Draenor that emerged from the Dark Portal. As such, he grew up in a time when the lands were ravaged by war and the Alliance fought desperately to survive the invasion of the world.
At 19 years old, he came to be inducted into the Knights of the Silver Hand who were a Paladin order of the land. The ceremony was held in the Cathedral of Light in Stormwind City, and was attended by prominent figures such as Genn Greymane, Thoras Trollbane, Daelin Proudmoore, and Jaina Proudmoore, whom Arthas had not seen since childhood. Archbishop Alonsus Faol led the initiation process, which included four of the five original paladins: Uther, Tirion Fordring, Saidan Dathrohan, and Gavinrad the Dire. Arthas was presented with the holy warhammer called Light's Vengeance by Gavinrad and had the ceremonial silver plates placed upon his shoulders by Uther. While in Stormwind, Arthas visited the newly crowned king, Varian Wrynn, and sparred with him while recounting old memories. He also met the recently born prince, Anduin Wrynn, who had gripped his finger. Arthas once visited Durnholde Keep where he saw the famous orc gladiator Thrall. He stayed in the Keep during the night and Aedelas sent Taretha to Arthas' chamber to please him. However, Arthas had only a talk with her and he noticed that Taretha reminded him of Jaina Proudmoore whom he had begun to fall in love with. Later on, he rode on Invincible only to have an accident which caused Invincible to be dealt a mortal wound. Arthas had no other option than to kill his beloved steed in order to stop its suffering, an act which would haunt him for the rest of his life.
Arthas met the only daughter of Admiral Proudmoore, the sorceress Jaina Proudmoore during his youth. Their relationship grew close as friends first, and then romantically years later. They were very much in love with one another. Arthas once stayed in Dalaran only to be with Jaina. During his visit, Antonidas organized a banquet for Arthas and Kael'thas who also happened to be there at the same time as Arthas. At the banquet, Arthas and Antonidas spoke of the situation regarding the orcs' strange lethargy, Terenas' health, as well as about Stormwind, the young Anduin Wrynn and Arthas' relationship status. Kael'thas whom was also fond of Jaina, once caught Arthas and Jaina together under an arch as they were kissing which angered him out of jealousy. Arthas paid the jealous elf prince no mind. Having grown into a strong, confident young man, Arthas was headstrong and somewhat arrogant, though none could dispute his bravery and tenacity. Arthas came to be considered one of the finest swordsmen in Lordaeron and was famed for counterattacking and defeating the forest troll warbands of Zul'Aman when they began raiding the settlements along the Quel'Thalassian border. Later on, Arthas invited Jaina to Lordaeron to celebrate the two festivals of Noblegarden and Hallow's End, during this time Arthas revealed that he was courting Jaina to the public. Eventually, however, Arthas began to question whether the two of them were ready to be together. Arthas abruptly ended the relationship so Jaina could focus on her magical studies in Dalaran and Arthas could focus on his commitments to Lordaeron. Shortly after, they would agree to rekindle their romance, but this was during the beginning of the Scourge invasion, an event that would change both of their lives forever. He held the position as one of the four jurors during the court 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
Reign of Chaos
It was then that trouble began to erupt in Lordaeron with the Orcs breaking free from their internment camps. Meanwhile, reports were coming in of a plague that was ravaging the northlands. In that time, Arthas alongside Uther were sent to Strahnbrad in order to defend the town from Orc raids. This saw the young prince defeating the black drake Searinox whose heart was used by the dwarf Feranor Steeltoe to create an Orb of Fire. This was used by the prince to help him defat the Orcs and slay the Blackrock clan blademaster who was leading the raids. Weeks later, a new danger emerged in the form of the Plague of Undeath where the 24 year old Arthas was reunited with Jaina and alongside Captain Falric they investigated this strange new disease. They came to encounter the undead and determined that infested food was being used to turn loyal citizens into the living dead. This led to them encountering the necromancer Kel'Thuzad in the town of Brill who was responsible for spreading the plague and pursued him to Andorhal. Kel'Thuzad had already infected the stored grain in Andorhal and shipped it out to outlying villages. Before Arthas killed him, Kel'Thuzad spoke of Mal'Ganis, a nathrezim demon who led the Scourge. Jaina and Arthas traveled north to confront him in Stratholme. Along the way, Arthas and Jaina stopped at Hearthglen where they hoped to rest. Instead, they were warned of an approaching army of undead. Arthas ordered Jaina to find Uther and seek his aid while he remained behind to defend the town. To his horror, Arthas discovered that the plague was not merely a means of mass murder, but rather the means of turning innocent townsfolk into undead creatures. Arthas' forces barely held out and were on the verge of defeat when Uther arrived with reinforcements and saved the village. While traveling to Stratholme, Arthas was met by the enigmatic prophet Medivh. He gave him the same advice he gave Terenas — to travel west to Kalimdor, as fighting the undead would speed up the delivery of Lordaeron to them. Arthas argued that his place was with his people, and vowed that he would not abandon them. Jaina suggested that the prophet might be right, but Arthas paid her no heed and continued to Stratholme. When he arrived at Stratholme, Arthas found that the grain had already been distributed. He knew the people of Stratholme would soon become undead, and ordered Uther and his knights to purge the entire city. Horrified, Uther rebuked him by saying he would not follow such an order even if Arthas were already king. Proclaiming that Uther had committed treason, Arthas relieved him of his command and suspended his paladins from service. Several soldiers, such as Sir Thomas Thomson, left with Uther — as did Jaina — while those who remained loyal to Arthas joined him in slaughtering the infected citizens. As Arthas began to slay the citizens of Stratholme, he was met by Mal'Ganis himself, who was working to claim their souls. Arthas sought to destroy them before Mal'Ganis could reach them, and eventually demanded a final showdown with the dreadlord. Mal'Ganis slipped away, however, vowing to meet him in Northrend. Arthas then set fire to Stratholme, and those fires continued to burn for many years afterwards.
Arthas followed Mal'Ganis with a detachment of his troops. They arrived a month later in Daggercap Bay. As they searched for a proper place to set up camp, Arthas' men came under gunfire before being recognized by the dwarven explorers' guild. Arthas was shocked to come upon his good friend and former mentor Muradin Bronzebeard. At first, Muradin thought Arthas was leading a rescue party sent to save his men, who had been besieged by the undead as they searched for the runeblade Frostmourne, but Arthas admitted it was mere coincidence. Together they destroyed the nearby undead camp, but there was still no sign of Mal'Ganis. As Muradin and Arthas continued their search for Frostmourne, an emissary from Lordaeron arrived in a zeppelin and spoke to Captain Luc Valonforth. He bore orders from Uther and Terenas, instructing Arthas and his men to return home. When Arthas returned to his base, the men had abandoned their posts and were making their way through the forest towards their ships. Arthas had no intention of leaving before Mal'Ganis was destroyed. With the help of some indigenous mercenaries, he managed to reach and burn his ships before his men got to them. When his men arrived, Arthas betrayed the mercenaries by accusing them of destroying the ships. To Muradin's disgust, they were promptly killed. Arthas told his men they had no means of going home, and the only way they were leaving Northrend was through victory. Arthas and his troops continued to press on to Draktharon Keep in search of Frostmourne. As he arrived, Mal'Ganis appeared to him, and foretold his death. Arthas went to search for Frostmourne with Muradin, leaving his captain to defend the camp. Using an ancient waygate Arthas, Muradin, and a small group of men traveled to the vicinity of the fabled runeblade. Arthas was soon confronted by the Guardian, who tried to keep him from Frostmourne, apparently for his own protection. The Guardian fell, and Arthas and Muradin claimed their prize. Muradin, reading an inscription, reported that the blade was cursed. He pleaded with Arthas to forget his desire for vengeance and lead his men home, but Arthas was adamant. Arthas asked the spirits of the cavern for the sword to be released from its icy prison, proclaiming that he would give anything or pay any price if it would help him save his people. When the weapon broke free, Muradin was struck by a rogue shard of ice, rendering him unconscious. Arthas moved to help Muradin, but was dissuaded by the call of Frostmourne in his mind. Arthas discarded his holy warhammer Light's Vengeance then picked Frostmourne up and returned to his base, leaving Muradin for dead. With Frostmourne in hand, Arthas defeated Mal'Ganis's army, destroyed his base, and finally confronted the demon. Mal'Ganis told him that the voice he was now hearing was that of the Lich King and asked what he was telling him. Arthas replied that voice was instructing him to destroy Mal'Ganis, much to the dreadlord's surprise. After slaying the dreadlord, Arthas fled into the frozen north, leaving his troops to fend for themselves. Arthas soon lost the last remnants of his sanity. Unknown to Arthas, Mal'Ganis had actually managed to had survived their encounter.
Overview
Personality and attributes
As son of the king, he was known by the title of the Crown Prince of Lordaeron. This was until he fell under the influence of Frostmourne leading to him becoming the Champion of Ner'zhul. After devastating his kingdom, he came to take the throne after slaying his father becoming the King of Lordaeron. He later came to be the ruler of the undead and thus became the new Lich King.
After the death of his father, Arthas claimed that he no longer felt remorse, shame, or pity, which was explained by him losing his soul to Frostmourne. He was said to had been born as a new Arthas that was a ruthless and cynical person with a grim sense of humor. As a death knight, Arthas was not above mocking his enemies and gloating over their defeats.
When Balnazzar, Detheroc and Varimathras managed to usurp control over most of his warriors, Arthas realized that the undead were more like weapons or tools than subjects.
Even as a death knight, though, Arthas felt as though the last remnants of his humanity were holding him back, and he still regularly thought of Jaina and his past life. He also still showed a degree of attachment to things he valued in life that echoed his humanity, most notably Invincible. Despite this, somewhere deep inside him a portion of him still existed that fought against the darkness. The Lich King later destroyed this small remnant of who he was, and only at the end, when Frostmourne was broken and the Lich King was defeated, was his soul finally released.
Arthas was noted for being the son of King Terenas Menethil II and Queen Lianne Menethil. As a result of his corruption, he came to be responsible for murdering his own father.
Powers and abilities
Arthas Menethil was born a human being with no inherent abilities.
The Crown Prince came to be trained as a Paladin allowing him to use the power of the Holy Light in battle. In this time, he came to wield a two-handed warhammer called Light's Vengeance.
After his corruption by the Lich King, he came to be the first of the undead rulers Death Knights.
In search for greater power, he came to be the wielder of the cursed runeblade known as Frostmourne.
Arthas was born a Prince of the Kingdom of Lordaeron where he was set to succeed his father as the new ruler of their nation. During that time, he came to be inducted into the Knight of the Silver Hand where he trained to be a Paladin. His fall to darkness and latter corruption by Frostmourne saw him joining the ranks of the undead Scourge where he became the first of the Lich King's Death Knights. Later on, he was chosen as the successor to Ner'zhul and became the Lich King.
Notes
- Arthas Menethil was created by Blizzard Entertainment where he made his first appearance in Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos (2002).
Alternate Versions
In other media
Video games
- In Heroes of the Storm, Arthas Menethil appeared as a playable champion in the setting of the MOBA video game where he was voiced by actor Michael McConnohie.
RPGs
Appearances
- Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos:
- Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne:
- World of Warcraft:
- World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King:
- Heroes of the Storm:
External Links
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