Kel'thuzad's Work Log: Dragon Lich · Sabelian
His great Majesty utilized a new method to resurrect a black dragon, no longer the mostly mindless bone dragons, but a "Dragon Lich" that almost possessed all of its talents and abilities from its living days.
It's a very novel term, and also very fitting. Sabelian can indeed be called the Lich among dragons.
I humbly begged my Master for this ritual, and my Master, as generous as ever, imparted its essence to me.
Regrettably, the Dragon Lich resurrection ritual has considerable limitations. Its difficulty is much greater than resurrecting a Lich (at least in the physical plane), but considering the Dragon Lich's powerful abilities, this is not difficult to accept.
First, an adult dragon that has been dead for less than three days is required. The shorter the death time, the higher the success rate. At the same time, ensuring the integrity of the dragon's corpse can greatly guarantee the Dragon Lich's combat capability.
The ritual requires the preparation of a specific resurrection array, as well as a phylactery similar to but different from that of a Lich. The dragon's skull itself can meet this requirement, but this will also have certain flaws, which, though not fatal, can lead to rather troublesome results.
(Note: Black dragons corrupted by Old Gods must be resurrected with their skull as the basic phylactery, and their soul must be shattered and reassembled once. This situation should be related to the power of the Old Gods.)
The experimental subject, Sabelian, did not fall in Azeroth, so the influence of the Old Gods was minimized. If the ritual for a black dragon were to be performed in Azeroth, a complete Necromancer array would be required, along with no fewer than three high-ranking Necromancer-level spellcasters to preside.
Arrays and runes to isolate external forces are necessary, and to maximize the Dragon Lich's combat capability, appropriate flesh sacrifice rituals are also within the scope of preparation.
(Note: For details on flesh sacrifice rituals, refer to the book "Dark Rituals". They can be chosen freely based on specific circumstances and are not fixed ritual arrays.)
The resurrected Dragon Lich has no obvious external difference from a normal bone dragon, but possesses complete wisdom and thought. Furthermore, if the phylactery is intact, even if the basic skeleton is destroyed, it can be resurrected again.
The Dragon Lich possesses all the abilities and talents it had in life, and can even use shapeshifting spells as usual. However, if not deliberately altered, its basic shapeshifted form is the skeleton state of its commonly used form in life, with its skeleton enveloped by a magical, dark gray death mist, shaped like a cloak.
(Note: Talents and powers stripped for various reasons can also be used as usual, including but not limited to the black dragon's connection to the earth.)
… (There are blanks and scratches here)
The war with the Ogres has reached its final stage. His Majesty summoned me to launch the final offensive against the Bladetooth Ogres. The battle situation is fully under control, and the two experimental constructs have also displayed ideal strength. After the war, I will incorporate the specific ritual methods and conditions into the "Forbidden Necromancy Codex" for reference and reading by high-ranking members of the Scourge.
…
Kel'Thuzad closed his bone-adorned notebook, placed a magic pen shaped like a finger bone on his workbench, and turned to float towards naxxanar's control center.
"Respected Majesty, we are ready to launch the general offensive. Those peripheral Bladetooth Ogres are nothing to fear; only the Dragon Slayer Gruul needs to be watched."
Memories extracted from the soul fragments of Gronn and Ogres indicate a vast difference in combat capability between Gruul's offspring and the Dragon Slayer himself, not to mention the summoned Ogres.
And this powerful Gronn is, after all, a creature capable of clashing with Deathwing, so taking him seriously is never wrong.
"Is the plague ready?" Arthas observed the battlefield through the necromancy crystal, with most of his attention focused on the pitch-black cave in the heart of the Bladetooth Ogre fortress.
The towering cave entrance was pitch black, as if a ferocious beast waiting to devour people had opened its maw, and that infamous Gronn resided in this cave.
Also guarding inside were Mogar, the Great King of the Ogre puppet regime, and his advisors; they could be said to be the only remaining strongmen among the Ogres.
However, these guys are still no match for the Scourge. For a full-scale war, the existing Ogres no longer have the brains or energy to carry it out.
"Majesty, I am concerned the plague will have little effect on him," Kel'Thuzad reminded him. Even Gruul's offspring had demonstrated considerable plague resistance.
"It doesn't matter. Although Gronn are not entirely flesh-and-blood creatures, they can also be injured and bleed. As long as they are weakened, the plague will eventually take effect."
Arthas said, "Sabelian also told us that when Gruul stands on the ground, he forms a peculiar connection with the earth. His strength will increase with the duration of the battle, and he also has some tricky elemental abilities. We need the plague to suppress his growth."
Facing a ferocious beast like Gruul, the Undead Scourge sea tactic might wear down his vitality and will, but the required numbers and time are a big problem, and finding so many corpses in the Outland is also troublesome.
Since a human wave tactic cannot be used to wear him down, then directly applying the plague is another approach.
"Have naxxanar's cannons adjust their aim and fire plague bombs into Gruul's lair. At the same time, have Necromancers everywhere prepare to control the wind direction with magic."
Arthas issued several commands, then said, "Once the plague has completely spread, Gruul certainly won't be able to sit still. He can withstand it, but those Ogres cannot."
Once everything was ready, it would be Sabelian's turn to make his appearance.
This newly resurrected Dragon Lich burned with a fierce flame of vengeance. Before following Arthas to eliminate the Old Gods, he first had to deal with the major problem of Gruul.
Amidst the roar of cannon fire, several dark green streaks of light cut across the sky, slamming heavily onto the heads of the Ogres.
In an instant, large amounts of plague mist exploded in this barren canyon. Those Ogres still struggling against the undead minions, upon being infected by the plague, hadn't even realized what it was before they found their bodies covered in terrifying blisters, suffering simultaneous intense pain and itching.
Tormented by these two sensations, some Ogres even dropped their weapons, frantically scratching open the blisters on their bodies. However, this did not alleviate their suffering, and the Undead would not stand idly by.
The plague further destroyed their respiratory function. The Ogres either collapsed in the plague, or shakily rose to become shambling zombies, or were pounced upon by undead minions and became their blood food.
"Death Knights, charge with me!"
Grommash, wielding a runic axe remarkably similar to Gorehowl, led an entire knight order sweeping through the Ogre positions. Death magic and sharp weapons instantly tore open the Ogre lines, and large numbers of Ogres fell like cut grass.
The Ogre spellcasters immediately reacted, but their magic could neither disperse the plague nor easily strike down the Death Knights, who wore heavy armor inscribed with anti-magic runes and were protected by anti-magic shields.
For example, a massive fireball struck Grommash squarely in the chest, but he merely swayed, waved away the black smoke from his chest, and then continued to slaughter Ogres as if nothing had happened.
"Hahaha, the wails of souls, sweet death!"
Plaguebringer Noth set up a plague cauldron on one side of the Ogre fortress. This magical cauldron did not cook delicacies, but terrifying plague. Scourge soldiers threw the corpses and souls of Ogres into the cauldron, and these materials were made into poison for enemies and an enhancer for the Undead.
The terror of the Scourge began to gradually reveal itself.
The offensive launched by the Scourge made the Bladetooth Ogre's self-proclaimed impregnable fortresses and fortifications a joke.
The remaining Ogres completely lost their will to fight, either being caught and slain by the Undead or throwing down their weapons and fleeing desperately to areas not covered by the plague.
The final glory of the Bladetooth Ogre had ended, but the ultimate target of this attack had not yet appeared.
Arthas stood on the bridge platform of naxxanar, leaning on Frostmourne, observing the battle below. Ogre King Mogor and his advisors were forced to flee their caves due to the spreading plague, rendering all their pre-prepared resistance measures useless.
The Ogres who came outside were quickly caught by the Death Knight and beaten mercilessly under the cover of Gargoyles and Necromancers. Mogor roared and wielded his weapon, but only scurried around like a headless chicken, with no real chance to retaliate.
Soon, this Ogre King was cut down by Grommash's axe, twitched twice, and stopped moving.
Facing the Scourge, which was almost in a different dimension, the primitive Ogre tribes, still organized by clans, were easily destroyed without putting up a decent fight. The last hurdle before the Scourge was Gruul himself.
Grommash pulled the axe blade from Mogor's body, coldly wiped the blood from it, and focused intently on the dark cave.
Creatures in the sky could not feel it, but all Scourge members standing on the ground at this moment noticed that the ground was trembling slightly, and the huge cave and mountains began to shake.
Grommash, holding his axe with both hands, showed a serious expression for the first time in this battle. Gruul's fearsome reputation had spread throughout Draenor even before the destruction of Outland; he was a very difficult opponent.
Low-level Undead cannon fodder lacked the ability to feel pressure, but they were drawn by the movement in the cave and began to gather towards it, some even entering the cave.
But the deep entrance was like a bottomless abyss; the Undead who walked in never made any sound again.
"Can we bombard inside the cave?" Arthas asked.
Kel'Thuzad immediately calibrated the parameters, adjusted the cannon's direction, and after simulating a round of bombardment, he replied, "It can only cover the outer part of the cave. We need to adjust naxxanar's position to be closer to the cave."
"No need. Just let those two Gronn constructs bombard inside the cave. Gruul has sensed the danger and is unwilling to come out."
Arthas knew that the Scourge's power had made Gruul fearful. Unlike the Dragons that had attacked Blade's Edge Mountains, except for Neltharion, the Black Dragon could not quickly deal with Ogres and other Gronn. With confidence, Gruul would certainly dare to clash with Neltharion.
But the current situation was that the Ogres were almost completely annihilated, and his offspring were either far away or had already been captured by the Scourge and turned into war golems. Fighting alone, Gruul understood that it was impossible to recklessly defeat the Scourge, so he tried his best with his small brain to scheme and trap the Scourge first.
If naxxanar were truly moved close to the cave entrance, the Dragon Slayer would likely use all his strength, even collapsing half a mountain to bring down naxxanar.
Upon receiving instructions from Naxxanar, the Gronn constructs' giant claws directly grasped a barrel of sealed plague bombs—no cannon barrels were needed, these fierce beasts themselves were giant catapults.
The constructs began mechanically throwing bombs into the cave, while Skeleton Siege Masters continuously transported barrel after barrel of bombs to their hands.
"Grommash, get ready. That fellow will soon be unable to sit still." Arthas's words echoed in Grommash's ears. The Orc snorted and gripped his battle axe tighter.
Gronn are different from Magron; after all, they are still organic beings with some flesh and blood. Although Gruul's strong physique could make him immune to most of the plague's effects, when the plague's concentration increased and the exposure time lengthened, even a Gronn could not stay in the toxic gas indefinitely.
As expected, when another barrel of plague bombs fell into the cave, blowing up many low-level Undead still approaching and causing a chain of corpse explosions, a roar that made the mountains and earth tremble wildly burst out from the cave.
Visible sound waves swept out, directly dispersing some of the plague and directly blowing away the cannon fodder, who then rained down everywhere, turning into shattered Undead.
Immediately after, a giant rock, ten meters in diameter, flew out like a cannonball, heading towards the two Gronn constructs. The constructs immediately dropped their bombs, and the logistical Undead quickly dispersed. The two constructs also roared, simultaneously swinging their giant claws to meet it.
After a loud bang, the rock was directly swatted down by them in mid-air, but the immense impact also caused the two Gronn constructs to fall backward. Their massive bodies crushed the plague bombs that had not yet been thrown, and a dense green mist surged skyward, obscuring their figures within it.
Immediately after, amidst the trembling of the ground, a colossal creature swiftly emerged from the cave. He was larger than the Gronn captured by the Scourge, and his normally dark brown skin glowed red. Immense elemental and life energy surged within him, causing the giant beast's size to even show a tendency to further expand.
The moment the Dragon Slayer appeared, he crushed a large group of Undead attempting to pounce on him into fragments. This Gronn's giant claw swept out, shattering ground structures and shelters into a sky full of debris.
Grommash also shot out like lightning, nimbly dodging the splashing fragments, traversing dozens of meters with his battle axe, and directly ascending a towering stone pillar. With a push of his legs, he launched himself into mid-air.
Gruul sensed the Orc's threat and swung his claw to retaliate with effort, but he was a step too slow, only shattering the stone pillar where the Orc had landed. However, Grommash, taking advantage of the instant Gruul extended his arm, transformed the dark energy in his left hand into a rope, binding it to a stony protrusion on Gruul's body.
The Death Knight stood firmly on Gruul's arm. He grinned, and the axe blade mercilessly cut along his path. As his figure flashed, he also left a huge wound at the connection of Gruul's arm and shoulder.
Gruul, in pain, tried to swat the ant on his body with his other claw, but Grommash, as the Chieftain of the Warsong Clan and wielder of Gorehowl, had inherited a wealth of experience in dealing with Gronn from his clan.
He held the dark rope with one hand, quickly leaped, and descended towards the blind spot on Gruul's back, while not forgetting to wedge his axe into Gruul's body to provide himself with a buffer.
This was another fierce move; Gruul's back was cut open again. Although not fatal to him, being repeatedly wounded by the little insect he despised, the Dragon Slayer's rage grew even more violent.
Grommash was still looking for an opportunity to strike Gruul with another fierce blow, but before he could swing his axe, while he was looking for a foothold on Gruul's rocky, rugged skin, he suddenly found that the direction of gravity on his body had changed!
"Damn it!"
The battle-hardened Grommash immediately realized that Gruul was leaning backward, intending to have a close encounter with the mountain.
Looking at the sharp rock pillars, Grommash would likely have several more holes in his body, or even be directly squeezed into a pulp.
Just then, Gruul's backward-falling body suddenly stopped. He roared, swinging both arms, temporarily abandoning his attack on Grommash, because two pale, giant bone claws had appeared on his shoulders.
Gruul, unstable on his feet, quickly tasted bitterness. In a normal struggle, he was stronger than most Dragons, but now, he was not steady, and Sabelian's sharp claws had pierced his skin, holding Gruul tightly. The Dragon Lich's immense power directly slammed him diagonally to the ground.
Sabelian completely ignored the Gronn that had crushed several sections of his body and even shattered one of his claws. He swung his tail, and the bones at the end of his tail instantly converged into a blade-like tip. He calmly and precisely stabbed towards Gruul's chest and abdomen.
Gruul frantically tried to struggle, his survival instinct making him almost break free from Sabelian's restraint, but just as he was about to dodge, his body suddenly stiffened—
Grommash, who had just been thrown out and was still flying in mid-air, sneered and gripped his axe handle. Several runes on the axe blade dimmed, and chilling frost power exploded on Gruul's arm and back wounds, even blasting out a cluster of ice.
Blood splattered, Sabelian's sword-tail deviated slightly, but easily pierced one side of Gruul's waist!