Recommended Game Story · Warcraft Part 25

The Dark Portal · The First War Beginning at the Guardian's Tower

This episode covers the contact between Medivh and Gul'dan in the original timeline, the opening of the Dark Portal, the initial phase of the First War, and the death of Medivh. Major plot twists and conclusions are included. This is a novel-style commentary written by cross-referencing the official timeline, retrospective articles, game manuals, and the published preview of 'The Last Guardian' from an official publisher. What was read in the preview is the preface and a portion of the first chapter, not the entire novel. I do not insert fabricated dialogue or unverified inner thoughts of characters as official facts. The film version and alternate timelines are separate stories.

Chapter 1 · The Young Apprentice from Dalaran

Karazhan was the home of a powerful mage. A person who protected the kingdom lived there, but it was neither the king's court nor a school of the Kirin Tor. Medivh was the master of his own tower. The mages outside could not examine everything he knew and everything he concealed. The independence entrusted to the Guardian gave him the freedom to protect the world, while simultaneously making it difficult for that world to notice his condition.

The Kirin Tor of Dalaran had long been interested in Medivh's knowledge and library. The succession of the Guardian, records of the Burning Legion, and the knowledge of races with histories longer than humanity were not things to be overlooked as the property of a single mage. However, interest did not equate to access. The published first chapter of 'The Last Guardian' shows the uneasy relationship between Medivh and Dalaran. When he requested an assistant, the Kirin Tor finally gained the opportunity to send a young mage to that tower.

That young man was Khadgar. He had grown up learning magic in Dalaran, and he was someone who did not easily stop at the threshold of knowledge when he had questions. The published passage reveals his curiosity as he wandered the library to learn about the records and secrets of scholars. It was a quality different from an apprentice who only sought answers in assigned lessons. That tendency would help him become the assistant to a great mage, but it would also become important later in recognizing what his master was hiding.

What Khadgar brought with him was not just a letter of recommendation. The various masters of Dalaran had entrusted him with different requests. Some wanted to learn about records of demons, while others desired knowledge of ancient history or magic. Even the advice regarding his conduct did not point in one direction. The instruction to maintain courtesy but not be overly servile, the advice to ask questions actively, and the command to open his ears first were all given to one apprentice. Even before entering the tower, he stood amidst various expectations.

These details suggest that Khadgar was not sent as a hero of war from the beginning. He came to learn, and he came to find out. The city that sent him did not yet fully grasp the darkness of the Guardian. Those who face events that shake the world do not always set out expecting those events. Sometimes, at the entrance of history, instead of grand prophecies, there lie unread books and questions waiting for answers.

To understand Medivh, one must return to the battle of Aegwynn covered in Part 21. The threat of Sargeras did not approach only from outside the Guardian's family. The intrusion into Medivh could utilize the power and relationships held by the human Guardian. The official retrospective 'Cracking Karazhan' explains the conflict and corruption that occurred within him. Subsequent disasters become difficult to understand when simplifying the human Medivh and the entity that consumed him into a single mass.

Chapter 2 · A Promise Made to a Dying World

Meanwhile, on Draenor, the Horde stood at the end of the war it had waged. The power that brought down the cities of the Draenei could not make the land peaceful. The scars left by the Legion's fel magic, the conflicts between tribes bound for war, and the thirst for blood remained. Gaining a new enemy could not be the same as reviving a community, but Gul'dan was not the person to return the Horde to a different life.

What he sought was greater power. At the forefront was Blackhand's military leadership, and behind it was the control of the Warlocks and the Shadow Council. To Gul'dan, a new world was an opportunity to expand his influence. While the Horde warriors gaining land to live on and Gul'dan gaining power were different goals, he could bind those purposes within the same march.

The deal between Medivh and Gul'dan continues at this very point. The will of Sargeras, active within the Guardian of Azeroth, and the ambition of Gul'dan, moving the Horde on Draenor, made contact. Old manual retrospectives describe the contact through minds and dreams. It should not be changed into a scene where the two sat face-to-face in the same room in Karazhan to negotiate. Leaders of different worlds aligned their plans through magic.

Official retrospective articles describe the promise made to Gul'dan as power near that of a god. Old manuals connect that deal to the power hidden in the Tomb of Sargeras. Gul'dan wanted a location he did not yet know and the power to be gained there, while the other side wanted the Horde to invade Azeroth. The offer to open a portal was not a hand extended to refugees. It was a plan to unleash the army of one world upon another.

The landscape of Azeroth, far from Draenor, could be presented as a different possibility to the Horde that had fought repeated wars. Gul'dan's retrospective reveals a gaze looking at the resources of a new land. However, there is no reason to accept that the retrospective explains all his choices honestly. Even when reading official materials, one must distinguish between sentences where a villain boasts of their success and the actual connection of verified events.

This deal repeats a method used once before. Just as Kil'jaeden promised Ner'zhul a way to save his world, Gul'dan was presented with greater power. By placing what the listener desires in front of them, the manipulator uses the community that person can move from behind. As the power of the Guardian and the power of the Horde met, words like protection and survival were turned into means to prepare for invasion.

Chapter 3 · The Black Morass, a Threshold Between Two Worlds

The place where the portal opened on the Azeroth side was the Black Morass. If one brings the landscape of the devastated land of today to this point in time, one loses the place as it was before the First War. Official Black Morass introductions and game screens show wetlands with waterways and plants. The traces of war and magic that would later change the land had not yet all accumulated. The appearance of the world before it became sick was before the portal.

Dimensional portals do not open on their own simply because two worlds exist in the same universe. The magic of Medivh and Gul'dan connected the passage, and Gul'dan and the Warlocks secured the path for the Horde to pass through. Old manuals convey the process from the initial rift to its expansion into a passage for troops to pass. For the military power of Draenor to threaten the borders of Azeroth, a portal that crossed the border itself was needed first.

The Dark Portal is therefore different from a city gate. A gate in a wall divides two places in the same world, but this portal can move the disaster one world has suffered to another. The human kingdoms outside do not know why the spirits of Draenor were silent or how the walls of the Draenei fell. However, the army created by those events was already arriving in their lands.

Reconnaissance and the securing of a beachhead followed the invasion. In Gul'dan's manual retrospective, the Orcs examine the new land and identify human settlements. Official modern retrospectives also explain that full-scale attacks followed initial raids and skirmishes after the portal opened. It is not a story where the capital was conquered in a single charge. There was time to understand the enemy they saw for the first time, gauge the magnitude of resistance, and gather strength again.

At this time, the Horde is not the later Iron Horde. It is not an invasion from an alternate timeline attempting to conquer Azeroth with massive modern war machines. What first appeared in the Black Morass was the original Horde, bound by Gul'dan's control and demon blood. The Dark Portal ritual that adventurers witness in the Caverns of Time later is also time travel to protect past events. Those adventurers and the Infinite Dragonflight are not included as parties to the original invasion.

The moment strange magical light touched the waters of the Black Morass, the war had already begun. Even if that portal was not yet known to the people in the distant capital, the distance between the two worlds had vanished. The hatred cultivated on Draenor and the intrusion hidden for so long on Azeroth now moved through the same passage.

Chapter 4 · The Kingdom Withstood the First Attack

In Stormwind, there were King Llane and Anduin Lothar. These were not figures appearing on a map with unfamiliar names, but people connected even to Medivh's childhood. The relationship between the Guardian and the kingdom was not merely one of duty. Old friendship was present. Thus, Medivh's corruption was a global disaster and also the wound of betrayal from someone close.

In the initial phase of the war, humans did not just retreat helplessly. Official retrospectives explain that Lothar's army repelled the first major attack on Stormwind. Old manuals also have a passage where the Orcs retreated, pushed back by human defenses and cavalry. If the Horde that entered the new world thought it could easily crush the humans, that judgment had to be revised on the battlefield.

This victory did not mean the enemy was finished. Living villages began to feel the boundaries of war widening, and a larger army was being prepared behind small skirmishes. Even if an attack failed once, the portal remained. As long as the Horde could regroup and correct its strategy, the success of a single battle could not guarantee the permanent safety of the kingdom.

Lothar had the task of commanding troops and organizing defenses. Llane had the task of maintaining the kingdom and the lives of his people. However, this war had causes that could not be found only on the battlefield. If one faces the invaders without knowing where they came from, it is difficult to properly gauge the scale and path of the next attack. While swords and shields stood in the way, a different form of battle was taking place in Karazhan.

At this point, I do not hide the differences in old materials. Gul'dan in the initial manual recalls the rise of Blackhand's power and some events of the war in a different order than modern chronicles. The narrative of the early games and the canon organized later do not fit together as smoothly as a single book. This episode follows the connection that Blackhand already leads the Horde and the flow of the First War in modern official retrospectives. I do not mix the order of old character retrospectives to create a separate new history.

Chapter 5 · Doubting the Master

What Khadgar wanted was the learning of magic, but the problem he faced in the tower did not end with gaining knowledge. The Guardian was a powerful person. He was respected because of that power, and it was difficult for those close to him to doubt him because of that power. The task of an apprentice learning his master's secrets could become far more dangerous than reading books in the library.

The conflict that occurred within Medivh was not a war that could be seen simply from the outside. The power that could protect the human kingdom became a passage that threatened the same human kingdom. Official Karazhan retrospectives explain that he was shaken by internal struggle and corruption. It was a situation where one could not judge all his actions as acts of protection simply because he held the title of Guardian.

In official modern retrospectives, Khadgar informs Llane and Lothar of Medivh's darkness. The fact is revealed that the power that brought the Horde is not only in external demons unrelated to Stormwind, but is connected to their own Guardian. Now, what the kingdom must face is not only the warriors who came from the swamp. They must also face the magic that allowed those warriors to come.

The decision at this time should not be expressed lightly. To Lothar, Medivh was not an unknown enemy. To Khadgar, he was not simply a Warlock to be eliminated, but the master from whom he sought learning. When an old relationship and an assigned role no longer point in the same direction, responsibility demands an action that turns one's back on that relationship. Tragedy arises between the desire to protect a close person and the duty to protect more people.

Garona is also an important connecting figure of the First War. Her role, moving between the humans and the Horde, continues in the next episode with the death of Llane. One cannot explain all the history of birth and control supplemented in later generations solely through the race notations in official timelines or the retrospectives of old manuals. In particular, I do not merge the Garona of the film version and the Garona of the original game into the deeds of one person. Those details are areas to be contrasted separately in the character episode.

Chapter 6 · The Voice Silenced in Karazhan

Khadgar and Lothar confronted Medivh. The result confirmed by official materials is clear. The Guardian fell, and the soul of Sargeras that was active within him was banished from Azeroth and returned to the Twisting Nether. If one changes this into an event where the physical body of the titan Sargeras was permanently extinguished on the floor of Karazhan, it does not fit with the later Legion story.

What died in Karazhan was the human Guardian who had inherited the power to protect the world. The price for chasing out the entity that moved through him was paid with that human's life. The act of cutting off the enemy's plan and the death of a friend or master overlap at the same moment. Because of this, it is difficult to call the end of Medivh merely the disposal of a single villain.

In this episode, I do not create and attach combat movements and dialogue from the novel's second half that I have not read. I cannot claim to have confirmed who cast which spell at what moment, or how the blades moved. By following the results produced by the event, one can feel its weight even with only the history that is actually confirmed. They realized the Guardian's power was twisted, confronted the person who held that power, and the survivors had to continue to bear the war that followed.

Medivh's death also changed the meaning of the place called Karazhan. Official retrospectives connect the curse and strange phenomena that remain in the tower and surrounding lands afterward. However, one cannot say that all the entities encountered in the later Karazhan raid were present in this battle. The traces left by death and the dangers that gathered in the tower over time must be read separately from the original event.

The ruins and echoes shown in the published preface of 'The Last Guardian' also demand such a distinction. The gaze looking back at the already destroyed tower is not the same as when young Khadgar first arrived. The tower of the first visit, the tower of the war, and the ruins looked back upon later overlap within the book's composition. When one does not press that gaze into a single point in time, Karazhan remains a place that long retains the reverberations of victory and defeat.

Chapter 7 · Gul'dan's Silence, the Fall of the Warchief

The cooperation between the two worlds led to mental contact, but that connection also carried danger. Gul'dan entered Medivh's mind to obtain information about the power he was promised. Just then, as Medivh died, the shock of the connection overwhelmed Gul'dan. Official retrospectives explain that he fell into a deep coma. The power behind the Horde could suddenly no longer command his army.

Gul'dan had utilized the political weight the Horde possessed. However, his action of trying to obtain the secrets he wanted first caused him to lose the ability to control that very Horde. It is revealed here that his ambition and the army's purpose were not the same. While the warriors were attacking the human kingdom, Gul'dan was searching for power hidden elsewhere. The absence of a leader shows how much such a structure relied on individual control.

To Orgrim Doomhammer, the rule of Blackhand and Gul'dan was not a permanent order that had to be followed. Modern official retrospectives summarize that Orgrim turned his back on their leadership and challenged Blackhand, winning. The position of Warchief changes during the war. The power structure that began on Draenor began to collapse within the war of Azeroth.

Gul'dan in the old manual speaks of this as an ambush and assassination. However, later official retrospectives explain it as a challenge and victory for the Warchief position. If one writes both together and passes it off as the same fact regardless of which, one can misunderstand the way Orgrim gained power and the order of the Horde at the time. This episode follows the modern official explanation. The fact that old retrospectives remain is treated as material showing the perspective of records and changes in settings.

Just because Orgrim escaped Gul'dan's manipulation does not mean the Horde's invasion ended. The new Warchief also led the army that had already entered Azeroth. While the way of being subordinate to demonic plans and the way of commanding the Horde could change, the fate of the humans who would lose their homes to war remained threatened. The change in leadership is an event that redefines the direction of the war, not an event that makes the war disappear.

Chapter 8 · There Was No Returning After the Portal Opened

Medivh was dead. Gul'dan was silent, and Blackhand had fallen. Even though the forces that created the cause of the event did not remain in the same form, the kingdom's crisis did not end. The war that broke out with the Horde that had already crossed over does not disappear just with the death of the Guardian. Defeating the person who opened the portal and reversing the world that portal changed are different things.

Lothar had to protect the kingdom even after the death of his friend. Khadgar could not return to the position of the young apprentice who came to learn magical knowledge as if nothing had happened. The secret he uncovered led his master to death, but if he had hidden that secret, more people would have been in danger. From this point on, his learning goes beyond the problem of gaining strong spells and connects to the problem of what a person with power must take responsibility for.

For Gul'dan, the end of the connection was not a final defeat. What kind of deal he makes to survive after waking from a coma, and how he continues his desire to find his own power, leads to the subsequent war. The Horde moving under Orgrim's leadership aims at Stormwind again. Garona's actions also become key in determining the safety of the King and the final moments of the kingdom.

The next main episode leads to the fall of the capital and the evacuation across the sea. The war, which was initially a defense problem of the southern kingdom, grows into a common crisis binding the northern kingdoms. The death of one king and the collapse of one city change the order of the continent. However, before that transition, what must be remembered is the fact that the war did not start only at the portal in the distant swamp. Within the tower where the responsibility to protect the world was entrusted, the power to open that portal had been growing for a long time.

Karazhan and the Black Morass, Draenor and Stormwind were distant places, but now they are connected by a single causality. The deception that stole the voices of the ancestors created the Horde, and the intrusion hidden within the Guardian created the path. After the two met, ordinary people pay the price of war. The story of the First War asks not only who is stronger, but how a world that trusted in great power must endure the betrayal of that power.

Reading by Names and Relationships

Khadgar: A young mage who grew up in the Kirin Tor of Dalaran. He came to Karazhan as Medivh's assistant, discovered the Guardian's corruption, and confronted him alongside Lothar.

Medivh: The son of Aegwynn and the Guardian of Tirisfal. Distinguish between the human Medivh and the soul of Sargeras that was active within him. The process of his reappearance later is a story of a separate era.

Karazhan · Deadwind Pass: The tower where the Guardian lived and the surrounding area. The tower of the First War and the cursed tower explored in the later raid are at different points in time.

Gul'dan · Shadow Council: The leader and organization that exerted influence on the Horde through fel magic and covert rule. The survival of the army and Gul'dan's personal pursuit of power are not the same purpose.

Dark Portal · Black Morass: The passage connecting Draenor and Azeroth and the swamp of Azeroth at the time of the initial opening. Distinguish the later devastation and time-travel dungeons from the original event.

Llane Wrynn · Anduin Lothar: The King and military leader of Stormwind. The relationship from childhood connected to Medivh has tragic meaning in the war.

Blackhand · Orgrim Doomhammer: The first Warchief of the Horde and the warrior who challenged him to become Warchief. Distinguish the difference in expression between modern canon and old Gul'dan retrospectives.

Garona: An important figure of the First War who moved between the Horde and humans. The death of Llane and the problem of control revealed in later generations are contrasted in the following main episodes and character episodes.

Related Published Episodes

The Guardian Aegwynn and the Origins of Medivh: /ko/community/tm-warcraft-saga-part021-20261008

From the Birth of the Horde on Draenor to the Fall of Shattrath: /ko/community/tm-warcraft-saga-part024-20261008

Historical Background of Dalaran and the Human Kingdoms: /ko/community/tm-warcraft-saga-part019-20261008

From Story to Game

'Warcraft I Remastered' is the official game where you can experience the First War through Human and Orc campaigns. Read the endings of each faction in the early game and the flow of the canon established later separately. You can check the requirements for operating system, language, and Battle.net account on the purchase page.

Official Download · Purchase Page: Warcraft I: Remastered — official Battle.net purchase page

Official Materials and Scope of Verification

Verification Date: October 8, 2026 (UTC). This was written based on settings and events verified in the official published materials below. Public samples and setting introductions were verified only for their respective scope, and I do not indicate that I have read the entire books. Illustrations are AI reconstructions, not official images.

World of Warcraft: The Last Guardian — AST licensed edition and public preview

Warcraft III: The Story So Far

Warcraft: Orcs & Humans

Warcraft II: Battle.net Edition — Official Manual

Cracking Karazhan

Warcraft I: Remastered — official Battle.net purchase page