Hans’gar and Franzok are twin brothers raised and trained as masterful brawlers of their clan. Both carved paths of glory as warriors, but destiny had other plans. The brothers, each unwilling to slay the other in the rite of mak’gora, were banished from their clan and left for dead. They survived as outcasts in the savage wilds of Draenor, and when the Iron Horde called, these powerful warriors found a new home in the massive war machine.
It is always nice to see family stay together, and the merciful thing to do is put down all members when one falls. The duo known as Hans’gar and Franzok survived for years together, and The Grim ensured they died together.
Goren are pests, and this beast was the ultimate invasive species. Luckily the Grim are the best exterminators that can be brought to fight an infestation. Oregorger fell just like his many smaller kin.
This foundry was the ancestral home of the Blackrock orcs, wherein master smiths smelted and worked the impossibly hard ore that is the clan’s namesake. Now, massive giants captured and broken by the Thunderlord heat the great forges, flamebenders of the Burning Blade imbue the ore with an inner fire, and engineers shape the slag according to otherworldly schematics. Warlord Blackhand’s foundry is the center of the Iron Horde’s military might, churning out the weaponry that will be used to raze Azeroth.
How sad it seems to see an old foe known in our time as the Dragonkiller now relegated to a slave.
Garrosh knew that the surest path to breaking the gronn lay in subjugating their great father, Gruul. Known in another time as the Dragonkiller, here Gruul has been reduced to the role of menial laborer. In a cruel mockery of the Shattered Hand’s warrior tradition, his hand has been replaced with a hook to enable him to more easily haul pallets of fuel to the furnace.
As Gronn are not known for their diplomatic reasoning, the idea of negotiating with Gruul to join us against the Thunderlord Clan and the Iron Horde seemed pointless. Our thought was proven accurate when the father of the Gronn immediately attacked with a fury, bringing new tactics to bear, as well as some many of us were familiar with already. As in our time, Gruul was bested once again. No longer a slave, but now a trophy for the Grim.
The Grim have been continuing to battle the Ogres and other denizens of Highmaul even after besting them and clearing the city once already. The Grim do not have the manpower to occupy such a place, and the city is not something that can just be eradicated from the planet. After we left with our loot and glory the ogres and their filth soon seeped back into the city to reestablish their society. Dark arts were used to either resurrect or heal their leaders, and it seems as if our actions were for naught. However, The Grim live for war, and we willingly re-enter the city to shed more ogre blood. Our Heroes will not be stopped. If the ogres are bested again, which they shall be, and yet still manage to return to some strength, then we hope The Grim will go down in history as Mythic legendary warriors who never stopped battling until all that stood before it were wiped out.
PEACE THROUGH ANNIHILATION!!!!
Let the record-books show our Heroic battles thus far: Kargath 12/4/14; The Butcher 1/8/15; Tectus 1/8/15; Twin Ogron 1/22/15, Ko’ragh 01/27/2015, Imperator Mar’gok 03/12/2015, Brackenspore 03/19/2015
As the grand Imperator of Highmaul, Mar’gok is descended from a long line of sorcerers who ruled the Gorian Empire. With cunning that matches his brutality, Mar’gok recognized the rising tide of the Iron Horde and what it would mean to oppose them. He has acquiesced to an alliance with Grommash, even as he continues to search for a way to tip the balance of power back into his favor.
A cabal of foul ogre sorcerer’s stood before the Imperator, which The Grim dispatched easily. Unimpressed with our destruction of his minions, The High Imperator stepped down from his throne and engaged The Grim without fear. He was powerful, but foolish. The Grim have not seen a sorcerer like this ogre before, and he was full of magical tricks designed to destroy all before him. The battle was long and intense, but he was brought to his knees. The ogres of Highmaul have backed the wrong Horde… for we are the true Horde, we are The Grim.
Once again, my gnomish etching device was seemingly shorted out by the magical energies… however, our triumphs have been logged in the record-books of history.
Thinking the Imperator was soon to fall to our forces we were surprised to discover an ogre that seemed to resist all forms of magical assault upon its body.
Ko’ragh was the only ogre to survive direct exposure to a mysterious relic unearthed by the Highmaul excavations of Nagrand, leaving him with a near-complete immunity to all magic. Rumors abound regarding his connection to the Imperator, with some wondering why Ko’ragh would remain subservient to a sorcerer despite his unique gifts.
To be the sole survivor of an ancient relic usually marks one as quite the capable foe. Ko’ragh was no exception. Resistant to much of our attacks, due to his seeming immunity to magic, we were hard pressed to injure the beast. Our blades and might were enough though, and our magic was not completely useless after all, providing some moments of intense assault upon the ogre. Together, The Grim were victorious, controlling his energy orbs and summoned forces without difficulty.
Moving deeper into Highmaul, The Grim entered the locale known as The Arcane Sanctum.
The Pale Orcs inside Highmaul have bound elemental forces to their side, though just barely. Once such monstrosity known as Tectus was turned loose upon The Grim as we tried to navigate our way toward the citadel of the Imperator.
An ancient embodiment of the chaotic forces that shaped the terrain of Draenor, Tectus has been twisted and enslaved by the maddened Pale Orcs—who themselves barely maintain control over this imposing force of nature.
Just when this beast seemed defeated, it would just rise again in smaller size, but it multiple iterations. Control would prevail over the chaos of this beast, even with its foul Pale Orc handlers attempting to set upon our forces from the flanks, and it became nothing more than a source of mineral wealth for our forges.
Not content to call off our assault, we discovered the portal leading inside the Arcane Sanctum itself, where we faced the Imperator’s personal bodyguard. Twin Ogron called Pol and Phemos.
Guarding the entrance to the Gorthenon atop Highmaul, Pol and Phemos are the personal guard of Imperator Mar’gok. Peerless in strength and determination, what these ogron brothers lack in intelligence, they make up for with sheer size and brute force.
Enormous paragons of their species, these brothers grow more angry and stronger when they are not fighting by each others side. Using superior cunning and tactics The Grim were able to best these behemoths in martial combat.
Highmaul has a small sandy area, where the sea meets the city, and the Iron Horde ships in the harbor have disturbed the native creatures of the water. Once such beast was battling the Iron Horde forces as we discovered them.
The Iron Horde juggernaut moored in the waters beside Highmaul drew the attention of Brackenspore, ancient walker of the deep. This aquatic giant spreads fungal growth and moss in its wake, and is driven by primal instinct to eradicate any traces of civilization on Draenor.
Thinking we would leave the beast to its fun, and let it dispatch the Iron Horde for us as we moved forward, The Grim began to move past the area, only to watch as this thing called Brackenspore annihilated the Iron Horde before it and set upon our own forces. Utilizing fire weapons dropped by the Iron Horde troops, we quickly reacted to the assault, and battled the beast. It summoned plant creatures from the very sand, and more great beasts from the sea, straining us to our very limits! This was indeed one of the greatest battles against nature that The Grim have fought, and again, we were victorious! Though I do wish our druids would have been able to put the creature at peace rather than risk our lives battling it.
Born in the fetid Underbelly of Highmaul, this ogre may have once had a proper name, but it’s since been long forgotten. Abused and beaten from his earliest days, the hardship only strengthened his body even as it broke his mind. Now there is not an ogre in Highmaul who will not give him a wide berth as he hacks away at slaughtered carcasses to pass his days.
A sad, yet terrifying ogre suddenly stood before The Grim as we navigated the maze-like streets of Highmaul. Dispatching his “pet” boars put us upon a direct confrontation with this giant specimen. His fury and might were terrible, but The Grim prevailed though much blood was shed.
The fight was intense, and sadly my gnomish etching device was damaged and I could not document the battle. I shall work to see if I can salvage the etching so that all may see the history being made.
The Mandate states “Peace Through Annihilation” and while most take this to mean the eradication of the Alliance, and this is the primary goal, we also seek the total destruction of all that stand in the path of the Horde. Our forces are constantly at war, the battles are difficult and dangerous, and our forces are resilient and battle-hardened. The Iron Horde and its allies present the latest danger to our way, and we begin our journey on Draenor with a direct assault upon Highmaul.
Highmaul is the seat of power for the Gorian Empire, the ogre civilization that ruled Draenor for generations until the arrival of the Draenei. A massive city that belies the ogre reputation for brutish stupidity, Highmaul is full of bustling markets, wealthy nobles, and the roar of the Coliseum crowd echoing through the streets of the slums. Visible from everywhere within the city’s walls, Imperator Mar’gok’s citadel casts a long shadow, a reminder of his watchful eye and iron grip.
We have been tested in dungeons, citadels, and cities, and this one will fall before the might of the Grim as all others have before.
Our first assault was upon a district known as The Walled City, located at the base of Highmaul. As we entered the tunnels beneath the city, we were met by an ogre called Gharg, the Arena Master. For some reason, we did not dispatch him, and he did lead us into the gladiatorial arena above, through a lift, where it seems we would have to fight for the amusement of the Ogres and their subjects. After dispatching some trivial opponents, we were challenged by the Warlord of the Shattered Hand himself, Kargath Bladefist.
Warlord of the Shattered Hand, Kargath honed his combat skills as a slave in the ogres’ gladiatorial games. He slaughtered countless opponents for the promise of freedom, only to be ultimately rewarded by being locked away with the other retired “champions.” Fueled by rage, Kargath severed his own hand to escape and led a revolt that soaked Draenor in ogre blood. Now, he returns to the arena to teach you the true meaning of savagery.
Once a slave to the ogres who fought in this arena for sport, and then the slaughterer of his masters, he and the Iron Horde now work with the Imperator’s forces against the Horde.
Kargath is as much a killer as he is a showman, and once his dramatic entrance was complete, we squared off to battle the Warlord. The Grim were surprised by many tricks in the arena, from Fire Pillars andTiger Pits, to foreign objects being thrown into the ring from the stands, and even having forces thrown into the same stands where they had to battle the very spectators in order to rejoin their companions below (a bit of justice considering their dishonorable acts at disrupting the battle…). After an intense fight, The Grim bested the Shattered Hand Warlord, and the arena cleared quite quickly of other hostiles. Heroes once again, though this time, unexpectedly, for Kargath was whipped into quite a frenzy, contrary to our initial reports.
The doors to the remainder of The Walled City were forced open, and The Grim moved forward.
