Western Plaguelands

The Western Plaguelands are located in northern Lordaeron, wedged between Tirisfal Glades to the west, the Eastern Plaguelands to the east, and the Alterac Mountains to the south. It is filled with a smoky gray mist, and the creatures here are blighted and sick, angrily attacking anyone who wanders too close with surprising ferocity. The land is also home to countless undead who infest the ruins of Andorhal, the four cauldron fields, and Sorrow Hill. The Scarlet Crusade has a significant holding in and around Hearthglen to the north, and the Alliance has settled in the small Chillwind Camp to the south.

History
The area now called the Western Plaguelands was a beautiful forested farmland to the east of the Capital City of Lordaeron. The town of Hearthglen was the seat of the regional administration, while the town of Andorhal was the center of grain distribution in the Kingdom of Lordaeron's northern provinces.

Knowing that the quickest way to spread the Plague of Undeath would be via the grain exported from Andorhal, the necromancer Kel'Thuzad and his Cult of the Damned infected the grain with the Plague, and set up four massive plague cauldrons in the fields of the area's four largest farmsteads. As Lordaeron collapsed, the farmlands and the forests began to die. The trees in the Plaguelands pulsate with tumor-like growths, and the needles of the pines are a sickly brown. With the Kingdom collapsed, the Scarlet Crusade attempted to salvage what little of their lands remained, taking possession of Mardenholde Keep in Hearthglen as a regional headquarters. The Argent Dawn also has a presence here, setting up a camp near the overcrowded cemetery at Sorrow Hill for the Alliance, and aiding the Forsaken in reinforcing their bulwark on the eastern border of Tirisfal, and sending soldiers of the Horde into battle against the Scourge.

Despite being where the Plague took hold in Lordaeron, the Western Plaguelands are in surprisingly better condition (though still quite dead) than the Eastern Plaguelands. It is clear that the land is trying to resist the Plague with what little it has left.

Maps


Topographic map of Western Plaguelands

Dungeons

 * Scholomance

Raid Dungeons
None

Half-Dungeons/Elite Areas

 * Hearthglen

Battlegrounds
None

Flight paths from Chillwind Camp

 * Ironforge
 * Southshore, Hillsbrad Foothills
 * Aerie Peak, the Hinterlands
 * Light's Hope Chapel, Eastern Plaguelands

Notable Characters
The Western Plaguelands are home to several characters of note. At Chillwind Camp, Commander Ashlam Valorfist seeks aid in the battle against the Scourge. At Caer Darrow, Eva Sarkhoff attempts to rid the Scholomance of its most powerful evils. And at Andorhal, the bronze dragon Chronormu sends bold adventurers into the ruins in search of temporal anomalies.

For a complete list of characters, see List of Western Plaguelands NPCs.

Quests



 * See also: Western Plaguelands questing guide

Resources

 * Herbs
 * Arthas' Tears (One of the few regions where you can gather it)
 * Sungrass
 * Dreamfoil
 * Mountain Silversage
 * Plaguebloom (One of the few regions where you can gather it)
 * Leather
 * Warbear Leather (Skinning level 50-55 bears)
 * Ore
 * Silver Vein
 * Iron Deposit
 * Gold Vein
 * Mithril Deposit
 * Truesilver Deposit
 * Small Thorium Vein
 * Rich Thorium Vein

Wild Creatures

 * Abominations
 * Bears
 * Bog Beasts
 * Carrion Birds
 * Ghosts
 * Ghouls
 * Liches
 * Oozes
 * Shades
 * Skeletons
 * Spiders
 * Wolves
 * Wraiths
 * Zombies

Notes, Tips, & Additional Info

 * Western Plaguelands often sees the inadvertent death of curious newbies who venture too far east from Tirisfal and get murdered by one of the high-level beasts near the zone border.