So let’s say can a Death Knight leave with no apparent consequences? and didn’t two did that and what happened with them? As they joined their respective factions. Did they suffer any consequences?
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The question would be more why, in WPL we’re shown Koitera and Thassarian who fight for the Alliance and Horde, though still maintain ties to the Ebon Blade.
I think a Death Knight would realistically see little purpose in abandoning their bedrock brotherhood, as more often than not they’re treated with contempt or outright feared by the living.
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As the poster above said, you don’t particularly need to leave it to do that. You can, but it’s not necessary.
When it comes to Death Knights serving their factions, it’s not just an important NPC thing only - we see death knights in the Alliance Expedition to Pandaria, the Stormpikes in Hillsbrad, an orcish death knight who has joined the Deathguard of the Forsaken standing as the gladiator mount seller in Orgrimmar, so on!
Essentially, the only ‘necessary’ thing here is your DK being in a belligerant faction. Against what? That’s up to you and your writing.
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Wouldn’t this also depend on the race?
Thanks this helped me alot!
Death knight agency in lore is kind of dented by the player being assumed both faction loyal and called to serve and lead the ebon blade all at once.
In practice you get plenty of knights not part of the order in an active capacity, though regular civilian life is impossible when you have physical cravings to kill.
https://wowpedia.fandom.com/wiki/Abu%27gar
I believe that if you can have that as a reason not to be in Ebon Blade - you can have pretty much anything else.
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You CAN, but you don’t need to as stated above.
Just be aware that people throw around the term ‘Rogue Death Knight’ in terms of folks who aren’t in the Ebon Blade, something that is purely headcannon and should be ignored.
I’ve had this thrown at me before and the person in question LEGIT used Koitera and Thassarian as an ‘example’ of it.
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You can leave, nothing is forcing you to remain, you don’t have to leave. And yes, you can return to your faction (And still be a member of the Ebon Blade) though many still would eye up and avoid being too close to a Death Knight technically.
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It’s mostly server headcannon that a “Rogue” Death Knight is a Death Knight that’s left the Ebon Blade. I don’t think I’ve seen any actual lore statement saying that if you do not abide by the Ebon Blade, you are to be terminated or considered scourge / hostile.
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My own Death Knight has in fact ditched the Ebon Blade, and did so pretty much immediately.
However, my Death Knight is a Nightborne. As is referenced in “We Ride Forth”, the last batch of Death Knights that Bolvar raised had essentially no training. They were just raised, made to take an oath and sent out into the world.
Nazgrim had expected to spend years training them to wield their new power, but almost all of them were sent back to their old homelands, forced to find their own way in a world that would fear and despise them. Nazgrim couldn’t imagine sending fresh recruits to war without trying to teach them how to survive.
I’d assume said knights wouldn’t be pleased to be drafted into the Ebon Blade. Mine at least wasn’t, so they’re part of the Forsaken instead.
That’s just a potential reason for the newest lot of Death Knights. Older ones can just decide to leave like Abu’gar as mentioned before. Some might have been Scourge until the Death of Arthas and then went their own way without joining the order.
There’s a whole host of reasons why one would, evidence of ones having done so, and nothing that promotes the idea of there being consequences for it beyond having to live as an undead in a world that hates them.
If you want your Death Knight to not be Ebon Blade, go right ahead. But be prepared for everyone under the sun to assume they are.
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Yes. Koltira and Thassarian do exactly that in Cataclysm, I believe it was. Or maybe MoP?
Literally giving Ebon Blade members, who shouldn’t have a reason to mess with each other, a reason to mess with each other.
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This may also include:
Alliance and Horde Dreadblades at the platform the ICC gunships are docked at.
The Garrison DKs in Ashran you recruit for the Garrison.
The Ashran BG DK officers.
Captain Crudbeard is a Dwarf DK in service to the Stormpikes
DK WQ targets during BFA assaults.
The DKs in the Alliance/Horde bosses of the Trial of the Crusader Raid.
Also Koltira and Thassarian have done things for the Alliance and Horde since Wrath (Thassarian in Borean Tundra leading a Suicide company/ being on the Skybreaker) and Koltira (Dragonblight quests + Orgrim’s Hammer)
In general you’re fine, whether you do so or not. To be in the Ebon Blade and still be true to Horde and or Alliance.
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The ‘3rd generation’ lot who came out of Light’s Hope absolutely have precedence for not being in the Ebon Blade.
The new bunch introduced in SL are, in my perception, different. Part of their intro is swearing fealty to the Lich King, to
Bolvar, whereas the previous bunch specifically fight to break free from their fealty/servitude to the Lich King.
This might make it more difficult for SL-era death knights to break from the order, assuming there’s any enforcement of loyalty at all within the Ebon Blade.
As far as I know there’s absolutely no material distinguishing between these two generations or any incongruence in the order though. Generally speaking, the structure of the Ebon Blade is just one of those things that all DK rpers will have their seperate interpretations of.
As far as death knights and their eligibility to leave the Ebon Blade go, Abu’gar is probably not the best example of it. He wasn’t part of the Ebon Blade to begin with.
But in general, as others have said, you can rejoin either faction without leaving the Ebon Blade. It wouldn’t make much sense to simply quit it as Acherus is the only place where death knights aren’t treated with disdain or fear, sans the Forsaken, and it’s the only place where they can “rest” and re-supply.
That structure that they were forced to swear themselves into collapsed almost immediately afterwards, though, when Bolvar ceased to be the Lich King.
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I agree, but my point was more about that you don’t even need to be in Ebon Blade originally in order to join other factions/do your own thing.
I think I got enough to understand the concept so essentially my Death Knight can return to the Horde and serve them in the military without any issues. Sounds good to me that is what I needed to hear, thanks all!
Edit: I just assumed all DK’s 2022 hanged around at Acherus holding hands and waiting for a new great evil to fight against lol
They’re not the Scourge is loose and with several powerful individuals in it forming their own factions and trying to take over the entire scourge so the EB still have their hands full to prevent that
No that would be the DHs