I didn't write this, it came from here, which has a link to the original forum post too.
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World of Lorecraft: The Forsaken Tragedy
Greetings. I am Ghostwalka, Shaman of the Earthen Ring and member of the Argent Dawn. I serve as a Lorekeepa for the Darkspear Tribe. In this, I have been studying the stories and legends of the other races, and studying how each race is adapting to this changing world we now live in.
Today I bring my findings on the Forsaken to light. This race, along with the Night Elves, were ones I sought to naturally study. They are the ancient enemies of all Trolls, Human and Elf, but both are different from what they were before. In the case of the Forsaken, they have been... changed.
In the history of the Trollish People, there have always been legend of Necromancy. The first undead to walk this planet were not the minions of the Lich King, but the Mummified Legions of the Atal'ai. The Trolls, as a race, know, respect, and fear the Walking Dead. They are a part of our culture and a part of our memory of times ancient and terrible.
So in this, studying the Forsaken was fit for me... and my soul aches even now for what I found...
The Forsaken, as may be obvious, were once alive. They were humans. Many of them were simple commoners, or soldiers, or mages in service to Dalaran or some other land.
Few, however, realize the horror of this truth.
Inside each member of the Forsaken Race is the memory of their own death. For some it is the memory of going to sleep after eating a meal of bread and grains that were... tainted... ...for others there are memories of falling before a raging mob of Undeath, their very flesh ripped from their bones and great Ghouls biting into their still living bodies before death claims them.
We Trolls are no strangers to pain. Our regenerative abilities mean we've experienced grizzly injuries but stood up to fight and heal. But even we would be marked by such memories... and what happened after those memories. Many of the Forsaken remained conscious, locked behind the iron will of the Orc Lich, Ner'zhul, while they were forced to commit acts against their fellow humans. The lucky ones were destroyed by their fellow humans before they committed any acts of true horror.
The unlucky ones, driven by Ner'zhul's will, were forced to watch behind their own eyes as they devoured their loved ones... their husbands... their wives... their own children.
And now, they are free.
The Dark Lady has awoken them, and with the waning of Ner'zhul's might during the events of what history now chronicles as 'The Battle of the Frozen Throne', a vast population of former humans have regained themselves and their minds.
Yet... ...the memories remain.
Now, is it any wonder the path the race has taken? Many of the Forsaken, twisted by what they were forced to do and shocked by their own race's actions towards them, have gone down a dark path... After all, these are their brothers, sisters, and those who survived the Plague who judge now the Forsaken have become to be nothing but Monsters... irredeemable and that none should be allowed to exist.
To them, I say you be blind.
These people are as human as any of you. The difference is that they are cursed... and that they live with the horrors of what they were forced to do every day. Is it any wonder that, in order to try and reunite with their families, some people have gone slightly mad and think only of making a new plague to bring ALL Humans under the shadow of Undeath?
Is it any wonder that people like Keever, who is cited often by the Alliance as one of our worst Apothecarians, is a little mad? Is it any wonder that he is desensitized to death and the experiments he performs... because he was forced to watch behind his own eyes as he killed and devoured his own family and friends? Forced to watch as his homeland was destroyed by a plague of undeath, what sane man would remain so for long...
Is it any wonder that the Forsaken have become what they are and are doing what they're doing... when the people they love who still live turned their backs on them and treat them like monsters?
Let us go deeper into the social structure of the Forsaken now. It has been two years since the Forsaken joined the Horde. As of now, the Forsaken are fitting in to the Horde surprisingly well. They have become, more and more, accepted by the races they once fought and the races they once fought accept them.
Forsaken and Horde have fought together, bled together, and died together. There is no greater bond then that.
Others, however, have fought beside the Forsaken for years, and have come to rely and depend upon them. Each has their own little quirks to deal with the legacy of the past they hold in their memories. Some have repressed the memories, and act childlike, carefree, and even a little feral. Others take the aloof stance the Mages of Dalaran made common practice. Others still have become part of the Horde entire... and even form relationships.
Strangely true. Love can come between the Living and the Undead. Even if they are beyond feeling pleasure, they can still feel love and companionship. There will be no children born of such unions, nor will there be anything approaching a physical relationship... but there will be bonds formed between individuals that keeps them sane and whole... and perhaps will allow them to exist until a cure for the Affliction they suffer can be found.
The Forsaken have merged into the Horde, and over the years, we have become more and more a united force. Many Trolls, Orcs, and even the mighty Tauren, have come to accept and respect their abilities and even some of their more disturbing allies... such as the created Abominations that serve as living siege engines now in Horde Military Forces. Sylvanas is viewed with respect and admiration by many members of the Horde, and some members even assist now in the work of the Apothecary... disgusted by the actions of the Alliance, they'd rather have more Forsaken wandering around then more humans.
The Celebration of All Hallow's Eve that the Forsaken have adopted, and the speech given by The Dark Lady, strikes a cord in the heart of many a Horde member. Orcs know what it means to be a slave. Tauren know the struggle for Freedom. Trolls know the darkness and its power, and relish the release from it.
And what of the Cure? The Earthen Ring, a group of the most powerful Orc, Troll, and Tauren Shaman, which counts Thrall and Cairne amongst their membership... continue to search for a cure using the power of the Spirits. The Tauren Druids as well have added their abilities to the Earthen Ring's search.
The belief of many, these days, is that a cure will never be found until the being who sits now upon the Frozen Throne is destroyed. His power still drives the Curse of Undeath into existence, even if he cannot control them anymore. So, until the Throne is emptied... perhaps no Forsaken will walk the world in living flesh... and do not doubt that it is likely possible. We have ressurection spells. We have spells to knit flesh and revitilize tissue. We /will/ bring those back to life who want it, once we end the threat of the Lich King forever.
We do this now not because the Forsaken are a race to be pitied and we wish to patronizingly help them... but because they are a part of the Horde.
In the coming years, the Forsaken will continue to change as they become more and more part of the Horde. Only time will tell what courses the cold war between the Horde and the Alliance will take, and what threats await the world and both sides of the War... we must deal with them, and the Lich King, before any true progress towards a Cure can be made.
The future is dark and full of tidings of war for the Forsaken. Yet, they have survived the greatest tragedy possible to a living person. They have survived, and grow stronger and more numerous every day as more and more Scourge are broken free and arise to join the Forsaken. They are a powerful and noble people, who only want what they lost. Some have gone mad and seek only Power. Others remain sane, and seek only to exist.
I only say this now, and let all remember:
POWER TO THE FORSAKEN!
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I thought this would make a nice read and help those who are a little lost with RPing this race.
Subject: The Foresaken Tragedy 
Mon 25 Feb 2008, 15:22
