Garm

Information

Player: Rowgen.

Character Full Name: Garm’ath Wrathblade.

Character In-Game Name: Garm.

Nickname(s): Garm.

Association(s): Lady Sangreala, the Burning Legion (indirectly).

Race: Fel Orc.

Class: Fel-Sworn (ICly), Warrior (OOCly).

Age: 57.

Sex: Male.

Hair: Black.

Eyes: Burning red.

Weight: 413 lbs.

Height: 7'6”.

Appearance

Armor/Clothing: Garm wears thick plate armor protecting his lower body, a pair of gauntlets, a pair of plate shoulderpads and a plate helmet. The armor protects most of his body, but his torso is left virtually undefended.

Other: Garm’s body is left weathered and beaten after many years of enduring harsh weather, intense combat and serious wounds. His red skin is covered in scars and bruises, but together with the bulging muscles, it seems as more of an indicator of how dangerous he is than anything else. To add to this effect, his eyes burn red with a demonic glow.

Personality

Garm is barely a ghost of his old self, and his personality has changed drastically in the aftermath of his mutations. He has become a fanatic to the Legion's cause, obeying every order issued him by his mistress. He is short-tempered, reckless and bloodthirsty, making him a perfect enforcer for the Legion. He has also become fiercely devoted to his mistress, unable to tolerate any insults against her. While an effective servant of the Legion, Garm still maintains some degree of honor, albeit twisted. He wouldn't kill an unarmed foe by his own choice, but would never question it if ordered to do so by Sangreala. In an almost sadistic fashion of mercy, Garm is also willing to let an enemy live if they are too wounded to pose any significant threat to him or his mistress.

Skills and Abilities

Fel Blood

Garm's body has mutated due to consumption of Fel blood, greatly increasing his size, among numerous other changes.

War Veteran

Garm is an experienced veteran of the Second and Third Wars, and is therefore familiar with combat.

Iron Will

Determination is one of Garm's prime strengths, able to resist much physical and psychological stress before he surrenders.

History

Garm was born around twenty years before the First War to Thok’zhul Wrathblade and his wife Dharta, and grew up on Draenor among the Warsong Clan. His father was a respected Shaman, among other things known to be in contact with the mysterious Draenei. Although the rumors were greatly exaggerated, there was some truth to them. His mother died of the red pox, a disease spreading among the Orcs. Alone with his father, most of Garm's time was spent training to become a strong warrior. As tension rose among the clans, Garm began to wonder why his father seemed to become increasingly worried. When asked about it, old Thok'zhul explained that the elements had abandoned him and how the Horde had declared war upon the Draenei.

When Garm cornered a pregnant Draenei woman, he hesitated: He couldn't bring himself to murder a woman and her child. He allowed his axe to fall out of his hand. The woman must have understood him, as she hurried away without a backwards glance. Garm was lucky. While his treacherous act hadn't been discovered by the other Orcs in the heat of combat, he still had a feeling someone did. When Garm and his father returned home, Thok'zhul muttered to him: "You made an old Orc proud today, son." His reassuring voice allowed Garm to finally relax.

When Ner'zhul ordered the Clans to gather, Garm was curious if they'd found some sort of Draenei settlement or something. What it really was, on the other hand, was far more sinister. The Pit Lord Mannoroth had given some of his blood to the Orcs, to create the Blood Curse, binding the Orcs to his will. While he resented himself for it, Thok'zhul nonetheless participated in the slaughter of the Draenei along with Garm. He was afraid of being branded a traitor and what that could mean to his family if he decided to aid the Draenei.

Garm, on his part, enjoyed the battle, relished in the thrill of combat. As the battle of Shattrath approached, Garm and Thok'zhul fought side by side. When the defenders were defeated, only the women and children remained. While Garm and his father detested the dishonorable slaughter of women and children, they nonetheless obeyed their orders. Garm and Thok'zhul, along with several other Orcs, were ordered to hunt for Draenei stragglers, but their searches were always unsuccessful. Perhaps by some mercy of the Elements, Garm didn't have to murder more Draenei. The hunting parties he participated in rarely, if ever, found any straggling Draenei. With a sigh of relief, he could rest at ease.

Watching the Horde prepare for war, Garm found an interest in forging when he saw the Horde's blacksmiths at work. An old smith, named Hrag Fiendhammer, noticed his curiosity. The smith asked him if he'd be interested in learning how to forge weapons and armor. Garm hastily accepted the offer, knowing that while he wouldn't fight in the war, he could at least supply the Horde's forces with weaponry and armor. Hrag was a strict, but good master. Apprenticing under the old Orc, Garm quickly came to understand that the quality of a weapon could easily determine the winner of a battle. After two years of apprenticeship, the older Orc gave Garm a final challenge to test his skill: To create an axe that was almost perfectly balanced.

Spending weeks gathering the materials to create the axe, Garm made a great effort to succeed in his task. He looked to Gorehowl, the mighty axe of Hellscream, for inspiration. He collected strong minerals from the Blade's Edge Mountains, collected durable leather hides from the Worgs of Nagrand and wood from the forests of Terokkar. When he had acquired the materials he needed, he returned to his master. He then melted the minerals into metal, which he used to forge the blade of his axe. Then he shaped the handle of the axe from the wood he had collected and engraved the leather with Orcish runes before he bound together the axe with it. Finally, the axe was completed. Impressed by his apprentice's work, Hrag told Garm that his challenge had been masterfully completed.

When Ner'zhul's call to arm was sounded after the Horde's defeat and the Dark Portal's destruction, Garm and the rest of the Warsongs rallied under Grom to fight for the Elder Shaman's cause. The Warsongs, along with the Shattered Hands and Bleeding Hollows, served under the Elder Shaman to claim artifacts of extreme power for the purpose of creating new Portals to other worlds. However, Ner'zhul was overcome with greed, and in his insanity only cared for power, which would destroy them all. Grom realized this, and lead the Warsong, Shattered Hand and Bleeding Hollow through the Dark Portal.

While the Warsongs made it through in one piece, half of the Bleeding Hollow and Shattered Hand forces failed to make it through the Portal. To make matters worse, the few who did make it through were captured by the Alliance forces that ambushed them. The battle went poorly for the Orcs: Their already diminished forces were suffering heavy losses to the Human forces. Only the Warsong Clan managed to evade capture, although they sustained losses as well. After the battle, Garm found to his horror that his father had been killed by the Human forces. Vowing revenge on the Humans, Garm fought alongside the Warsong for a while, harassing the Human borders.

However, during one of the raids, Garm was captured and brought to the internment camps, where he was separated from his fellow Warsongs. Left to rot within the camp, Garm eventually lost track of time after a few weeks, barely able to move and suffered the same Lethargy as the rest of his species was recently suffering from. The food had no nourishment, the pain never stopped and death drew nearer each day. Most of the days, Garm would spend slaving under the Humans as he wished to be anywhere but there, but at the same time couldn't muster the strength to escape.

Salvation eventually came when Thrall and Ogrim Doomhammer, having rallied the Frostwolf and Warsong clans, rebelled against Aedelas Blackmoore and his internment camps. Finally charging into battle under Grom Hellscream once again, Garm regained some of his old resolve during that battle and participated in the following celebrations of victory. It was during these celebrations that Hrag, his old master, approached him. In surprise, Garm found that Hrag had picked up his axe when he had been captured and had kept it. As it was Garm's rightful property, Hrag returned the younger Orc's axe back to him. While Hrag watched, Garm engraved his father's name into the handle and took the name Wrathblade after him.

At the beginning of the Third War, Garm and Hrag followed the rest of the Horde to Kalimdor. During the voyage across the Great Sea, the Warsongs were separated from the rest of the Horde, the two groups eventually managed to find each other when safely arrived at Kalimdor. Although safely is an arguable term, as the land was inhabited by centaurs, marauding quilboars and Humans who had followed them over the sea. Thrall ordered the Orcs to stay away from the Humans, wishing to avoid open conflict. Grom, on the other hand, was driven by an insatiable blood thirst, and ordered the Warsongs to strike.

The battle was a success and the Warsongs managed to defeat the Human forces. Hrag was wounded during the assault and it was only because Garm was able to get him away from the battlefield as fast as possible that he survived, but the old Orc was frailer as he used to be, and it was uncertain if he'd survive the ordeal. Furthermore, Thrall was furious for the Warsong Clan's disobedience, and ordered them to move further north, toward Ashenvale, to gather lumber. While most of the Warsongs were outraged at this treatment, Garm personally was grateful that Hrag wouldn't have to fight in his current state.

He was proven wrong when they reached Ashenvale, as the Orcish deforestation disturbed the ancient woodland. The Warsong Clan eventually gained the attention of the Night Elves, who attacked them in a desperate effort to protect the woods. The pressure on their forces did nothing to improve Hrag's condition. This initial hostility led to the Warsong Clan’s increasingly brutal means and in the end the demigod Cenarius himself had to intervene to defeat the invading Orcs. And as the Orcs grew increasingly desperate, the Darkspear Witch Doctors claimed to sense a source of power in the dark woods.

When they reached the source, which was revealed to be a fountain, the Witch Doctors became worried that the source of the water's power was Demonic. Grom ignored their warnings, and ordered the Orcs to drink from the tainted waters. Garm and the Warsongs willingly obeyed, believing like Grom that the power of the waters would give them the power to defeat Cenarius. The effects of the water made them unrecognizable. They were reborn into the murderous killing-machines they were intended to be. As the euphoric experience spread among the Warsongs, so did a maddening bloodlust.

Driven by the Demonic energies, the Orcs ravaged the Night Elven defenders, tore through the forests and finally faced him: Cenarius himself. The Demonic energies fueling the Orcs proved too much for him, and he was slain by the murderous Orcs. After Cenarius' death, Mannoroth approached the victorious Chieftain and the Pit Lord revealed that the waters they drank in fact were of Demonic origins: It was his own blood. With the Blood Curse stronger than ever in them, the Warsongs continued their Demon-induced slaughter.

They were thwarted by Thrall's Horde and the Alliance, which had joined forces to defeat them. There were heavy casualties on both sides, and even with the Demonic aid, the Warsongs struggled. Garm was no exception. While he fought recklessly against the Humans and Orcs, he was unable to prevent the defeat of the Warsongs. In the middle of the fighting, Thrall managed to capture Grom, and the joined force of Thrall's shamans and Jaina's priests cleansed him. While Garm and the Warsongs kept fighting without their chieftain to lead them, Thrall and Grom faced off against the Pit Lord. When the Pit Lord was slain, Garm slowly regained his mind and fell to his knees, his axe thrown to the ground before him.

In the aftermath of the battle, Garm tried to find his friend Hrag. He eventually found him, but not in the state he would've preferred. The old Orc lay, wounded and dying, alone on the battlefield. Garm knelt down by his old friend's side, lifted him up and tried to get him to a shaman in time, but was too late. Garm's friend and mentor died in his arms. Furious, Garm vowed revenge on the Burning Legion over his friend's grave, and rejoined the main bulk of Thrall's forces, dedicated to destroying the Legion and all its servants.

When the Horde and the Alliance made its way further north, into Night Elven lands, Garm used his experience fighting the Elves to aid the Horde. This knowledge wasn't necessary for long, as the Warchief and Jaina had a meeting with the Night Elven leaders, explaining their common hatred of the Legion. Garm, although hesitant to fight alongside the Elves, obeyed Thrall's orders without question. As the Night Elves, Alliance and the Horde forces rallied at the foot of Mount Hyjal, Garm couldn't help but feeling a mixed sense of excitement and fear.

As the Demons, aided by Scourge forces, assaulted the defenders, Garm fought with all his strength to protect the World Tree. Slipping into a trance-like rage, he ravaged through the Scourge lines along with his fellow Orcs. He summoned all his strength and all his fury to defeat the enemies of all life. But not even the combined might of the Humans, Orcs and Night Elves could defeat the Legion, and the defenders fled just in time for Malfurion to spring the trap. With Archimonde banished, the rest of the Demon's forces were defeated.

With the defeat of the Legion, Garm followed the Warchief's suggestion of venturing further South, back to the Barrens. The Horde claimed a portion of the Barrens as it's own, making a home for itself in the rugged land. Thrall called it Durotar. While adapting to the new enviroment, Garm found that the region reminded him strongly of Draenor. He eventually settled with escorting caravans running between Horde outposts, ensuring that quilboars and centaurs didn't get hold of the precious resources.

This mercenary operation practically blossomed when the goblins founded Ratchet, Gadgetzan and Steamwheedle Port. Escorting trader caravans between the goblin cities, Garm soon made a relatively large amount of gold. While goblins hated paying an Orc for his services, they hated the thought of centaurs and quilboars in possession of their technology even more. His adventures became even more daring when he expanded to covering longer travels, sometimes as far as between Gadgetzan and Everlook.

He eventually forsook mercenary work for more disciplined and organized work under the Red Vanguard, a military organization operating in Northrend. He quickly befriended its commander, Kotorr Hellaxe. He also recruited several of his old friends, namely Logar Spinebreaker and Gok’tar Wolfson, from the wars to the Red Vanguard’s cause, further increasing his influence and respect within the organization, until he became one of the commander’s most trusted advisors and military leaders. Despite this, he was still a free spirit, often departing for long periods of time without any warning. Garm’s travels would eventually lead him to a fateful encounter. While roaming the wastelands of Shadowmoon Valley, he heard a powerful chanting echoing through it. As he approached to investigate, he found himself along with several other adventurers, the lot of them having stumbled into a dark ritual performed by a Demoness. As she finished her chanting, a large demonic hound was summoned from the Nether.

After the harsh, long fight that ensued finished, only Garm and a Blood Elf remained on their feet. The Elf charged at the Demoness from behind while she was focused on Garm, stabbing her in the back. The Demoness merely shrugged it off, easily knocking the Elf out of the way. Drawing the blade out of her own back, the Demoness sliced Garm with it, injecting him with her Blood before she allowed him to go. From then on, Garm fought himself, trying to contain the corruption on his own. He became suspicious of his friends, not daring to confide in them what had happened. As such, after having carried the taint for several days, he finally lost control after aiding in the defense of Camp Mojache, as he was weakened, wounded and unable to contain it any longer.

This sparked his search for Sangreala. When he finally found her where they’d first met, he vowed that he’d obey her every order. He kept his promise, and among many other exploits he assisted Urameil in his hunt for Torr, on the Lady's behalf. However, the hunt was a fiasco, and Garm returned to his mistress in shame. Although infuriated, Sangreala spared him in a sort of cruel mercy. The cost was to give up the thing of his past he cared for the most. He gave up the tabard of the Warsong Clan, which symbolised his birthright, his family and his friends, forsaking his past. While in the Lady's service, he began to notice changes in his body. As his body gradually grew taller and his muscles grew larger, his skin became reddish and a burning fire awoke in his eyes. His mind mirrored these mutations, clouding his judgement. He spent the final phase of the mutations alone and in a trance-like state, plagued by nightmares, horrifying flashbacks and intense pain. When he awoke, he was a new creature entirely; An instrument of the Lady's will.