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{{fanfic}}
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{{npcbox
 
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|image=Ravenous-Thresher.jpg
 
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| name = Ravenous Thresher
 
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| title =
 
| gender =
 
| race = Shark
 
| creature = Beast
 
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| level = 78
 
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| type =
 
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| health = 12,600
 
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| aggro = {{aggro|-1|-1}}
 
| faction = Combat
 
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| location = [[Kelp'thar Forest]]
 
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| status = Killable
 
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| relatives =
 
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}}
 
   
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<blockquote>"We will never see his like again. And that's a Light-damned shame."</blockquote>
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'''Ravenous Thresher''' is a level 78 [[shark]] swimming among the [[Kelp'thar Forest]].
 
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::<span style= "font-variant:small-caps">- General Oren Tanis</span>, personal journal
   
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{{Npcbox
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==Objective of==
 
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| image = Saavedro's Wars.jpg
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{{questlong|Neutral|78|Pressure is Mounting}}
 
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| name = Saavedro of Stratholme
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| titles = The Regent, the Loremaster, the Oncoming Storm
 
| gender = Male
 
| race = Human
 
| creature = Humanoid
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| character = [[Paladin]] / [[Dragonsworn]]
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| affiliation = [[Alliance of Lordaeron]]<br />[[Lordaeron|Kingdom of Lordaeron]]<br />[[User:Joshmaul/Saavedro's Coalition|Saavedro's Coalition]]<br>[[Argent Crusade|The Argent Crusade]]<br>[[Wyrmrest Accord|The Wyrmrest Accord]]
 
| faction = Alliance
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| occupation = Regent Lord of Lordaeron, Loremaster of the Alliance, Champion of the Crusade, Servant of Alexstrasza
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| location = Buried in [[Dalaran]], awaiting reinterment in Lordaeron
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| status = Deceased (killed by Joshmaul)
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| relatives = Ezekyle (father), Verity (mother), [[User:Joshmaul/Ordevaas Portalseeker|Ordevaas Portalseeker]] (honor brother), [[User:Joshmaul/Nyssha Swiftblade|Nyssha Swiftblade]] (adopted daughter), [[User:Joshmaul/Joshmaul the Warlock|Joshmaul the Warlock]] (nemesis)
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| mentors = [[User:Joshmaul/Sekhesmet of Stratholme|Sekhesmet of Stratholme]]<br>[[Duthorian Rall]]<br>[[Grayson Shadowbreaker]]<br>[[Tirion Fordring]]
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| students = [[User:Joshmaul/Velenkayn|Velenkayn]] (paladin acolyte)<br>[[User:Joshmaul/Vulnavia Hildreth|Vulnavia Hildreth]] (priesthood acolyte)<br>[[User:Joshmaul/Taeril'hane Ketiron|Taeril'hane Ketiron]] (engineering student)
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| alignment = [[Alignment#Chaotic good|Chaotic good]]}}
   
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Once a simple priest and scholar, '''Saavedro of Stratholme''' later rose from his humble origins to become much more - a guide for a landless people; a leader of men in the ongoing struggle for supremacy with the Horde; a teacher of the Light and its principles, and of the enemy they all face; an explorer with an appreciation for the world he lived on, and the worlds beyond his own. As a Knight of the Silver Hand, Saavedro has risen in the decade since the Battle of Mount Hyjal to be a rallying beacon for the survivors of his destroyed homeland of Lordaeron, and trained with some of the most powerful paladins on Azeroth to prepare himself for the final battle against the Lich King. Throughout his service to the Grand Alliance, he has faced the perils of Blackrock Mountain, destroyed the children of Deathwing, faced the servants of the Old Gods, confronted the servitors of the Burning Legion, done battle with the forces of Illidan, and ended Malygos' genocidal Nexus War. But it was the Scourge and its dark master, a creature who had once been the noble Prince Arthas Menethil, who was Saavedro's sworn enemy - the one he most wished to confront and finally defeat, avenging the loss of his homeland once and for all.
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==Patch changes==
 
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{{patch 4.0|note=Added}}
 
   
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With his destiny written, Saavedro confronted his mortal enemy, [[User:Joshmaul/Joshmaul the Warlock|Joshmaul the Corruptor]], in the frozen mountains of Icecrown shortly after the defeat of the Lich King, coming to the aid of his comrade, General [[User:Joshmaul/Oren Tanis|Oren Tanis]]. Though he slew the Corruptor and smote his ruin upon the mountainside, Saavedro succumbed to his wounds in Dalaran four days later, surrounded by his comrades-in-arms in the battle against the Lich King.
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==External links==
 
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{{elinks-NPC|40219}}
 
   
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==Origins==
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[[Category:Sharks]]
 
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[[Image:Corinscrossing-magistrateshouse.jpg|thumb|left|250px|The Magistrate's house in Corin's Crossing, across from the town hall. Saavedro was born and raised in this house; his father, Ezekyle, lived here until the town was sacked by the Scourge.]]
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[[Category:Kelp'thar Forest mobs]]
 
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Born in 572 (Stormwind reckoning) in the town of [[Corin's Crossing]], southeast of [[Stratholme]], Saavedro was the only child of the town magistrate Ezekyle and his wife Verity. The name Saavedro means "teacher" in an ancient human dialect.
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Living with his parents for much of his childhood, Saavedro - or Saav to his friends - grew tired of living within the magistrate's estate; for all of his good intentions, his father was the typical ineffectual politician. When he reached his Age of Ascension in 585, at age 13, Saavedro encountered a messenger from the King of [[Lordaeron]], headed for Stratholme, and accompanied the messenger to the High Priest [[User:Joshmaul/Sekhesmet of Stratholme|Sekhesmet]]. The young man took his oath as a priest in the service of the Kingdom of Lordaeron, and trained for much of his life under the venerable High Priest. Despite not being born there, Saavedro considered Stratholme his home and became known as "Saavedro of Stratholme" for the rest of his life.
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In 594, word reached Stratholme of the fall of Lordaeron's sister kingdom of [[Azeroth (kingdom)|Azeroth]], at the hands of the orcish [[Horde]]. Not long after that news reached Lordaeron, the refugees from [[Stormwind]] - led by Lord [[Anduin Lothar]], the Knight Champion of Stormwind, and the Dalaran mage [[Khadgar]], apprentice to [[Medivh]] - arrived in the court of King [[Terenas Menethil II]], the reigning monarch of Lordaeron. Saavedro, as an emissary of the Conclave of the Priesthood in Stratholme, was present as Lothar informed the King of the opening of the [[Dark Portal]], the atrocities committed by the orcs and their allies, and the assassination of King Llane. Saavedro was particularly disturbed by the word of the destruction of the holy order of the Clerics of Northshire, but aided the aged Archbishop [[Alonsus Faol]] - who taught his master, Sekhesmet - and his apprentice, [[Uther the Lightbringer]], in the creation of the Order of the [[Silver Hand]] - the paladins. At the tender age of twenty-three, Saavedro was inducted into Stratholme's Conclave of the Priesthood.
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==Sending the Expedition Off==
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As it prepared to depart, the [[Alliance Expedition]] to [[Outland|Draenor]] assembled on the flatlands outside of [[Nethergarde Keep]] to be sent off by the priesthood of the Alliance. Archbishop Faol and his student, the future [[Archbishop Benedictus]], were joined by Sekhesmet, Saavedro and several members of the priesthood of Quel'Thalas to give the blessing of the Light to the expedition, led by Khadgar and General [[Turalyon]], before they ventured across the Dark Portal. Saavedro remained in Nethergarde for the entire period the Portal was open, until he received word that the Dark Portal had been sealed, Draenor all but destroyed, and the Expedition cut off from their homeland. For twenty years after that fateful day, Saavedro waited and wondered...what had happened to them?
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==The Fall of Stratholme==
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[[Image:Saavedro-kelthuzad.jpg|thumb|left|300px|Saavedro as a priest, around the time of Thrall's escape from Durnholde. The figure walking in front of him is the Dalaran archmage [[Kel'Thuzad]], whom Saavedro would later destroy in Naxxramas.]]
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[[Image:Saavedro-oldstratholme.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Saavedro, High Priest of Stratholme, around the time of the city's fall]]
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After the Alliance expedition into Draenor sealed the Dark Portal, Saavedro's mentor, High Priest Sekhesmet, was sent to the capital as a member of the high council of Lordaeron's priesthood. Now in his early thirties and a full-fledged priest of Lordaeron, Saavedro focused on his duties as a priest to the city of Stratholme, becoming High Priest in 602. Then, in 604, he received orders from the high council informing him that he was being sent to the court of King Varian Wrynn, the new King of Stormwind. He lived in a small house in the Canal District, not far from the Cathedral of Light, and also in a large townhouse outside of Goldshire. He lived in Stormwind for ten years, but occasionally ferried between Stratholme and Stormwind as his duties permitted. On his last return trip to his beloved city, he encountered Lord Uther, who was on his way to the outskirts of Stratholme to meet with the Crown Prince, [[Arthas Menethil]]. Saavedro watched breathlessly as Arthas commanded Uther to purge Stratholme. When the Lightbringer refused, Arthas accused him of treason and ordered that the Knights of the Silver Hand be disbanded. Stunned, Saavedro - who had heard of, and investigated, the death cults in northern Lordaeron, but had no idea how far the plague had spread - realized that something was wrong, but made his way back to the southern part of the continent. He did not realize, however, how bad it really was.
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By the time Saavedro returned to Stormwind, he had heard that both the Kingdom of Lordaeron and the elven Kingdom of Quel'Thalas had been destroyed by the Scourge. The noble King Terenas and the leader of the Silver Hand, Lord Uther, had been brutally murdered by Prince Arthas, now a death knight in the Scourge's service. Lordaeron had crumbled into ruin, and Stratholme was left to burn, a fire that has lasted for many years after the end of the "Third War", as the battle with the Scourge and the Burning Legion was called. From his home in Stormwind, Saavedro refused to believe what he was hearing - Lordaeron had weathered the orcish Horde, how could it fall?
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But it soon became inevitable to him - his homeland had fallen into ruin, the ghosts of hundreds of thousands roaming the blighted landscape. He travelled to Lordaeron himself, careful to avoid detection by the Scourge. As he stepped into the empty throne room of Terenas' palace, he was stricken by a horrifying sight. His master, Sekhesmet, was lying dead on the floor, where he had choked out his last breaths. Judging from the state his body was in, Saavedro deduced that he had been dead for several months. Saavedro aided the survivors of Tirisfal Glades in burying his master in the family mausoleum, located in the graveyard of the town of Brill, and then returned to Stormwind.
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Saavedro fell into a state of melancholy after returning from Lordaeron; he shirked his duties and began drinking heavily. In this state, he brooded for four years after the war before he realized he had a greater part to play. On the advice of the Archbishop Benedictus, Saavedro removed the robes of the priesthood and took up sword and shield as a paladin. Swearing to defend the helpless and fight both the Scourge and the Horde, he was inducted into the Order of the Silver Hand at Northshire Abbey, in the year 618 on the Stormwind calendar. He was forty-six years old.
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==The Regency of Lordaeron==
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Shortly before the reopening of the Dark Portal, Saavedro - as one of few people in current Alliance service hailing from Lordaeron - met with a group of senior officials from both the priesthood and survivors from the court of King Terenas. They believed that there must be a Regent to lead the people of Lordaeron - what remained of them, anyway - until the Scourge and Forsaken are driven from the Plaguelands, and an uncorrupted member of the Menethil Dynasty could be found. At present, only Princess Calia, Arthas' sister, is believed to have been uncorrupted, but her current location is unknown. It has also become apparent - Saavedro himself mentioned this - that the former Kingdom of Lordaeron had to deal with not only Kel'Thuzad, but with the remaining leadership of the Scarlet Crusade, including High General Abbendis in Tyr's Hand. Plus, though Quel'Thalas was now in the hands of the Horde - via the machinations of Regent Lord Lor'themar Theron - Saavedro believed that a re-examination, and potential repair, of the Alliance's relations with them was in order.
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Saavedro, along with former Tirisfal Magistrate [[User:Joshmaul/Artimus Devaneaux|Artimus Devaneaux]], were chosen as potential candidates for the title of Regent Lord of Lordaeron until the Menethil Dynasty's fate could be confirmed - with its only known surviving member, Calia, missing or dead, this situation remains unclear. By a narrow margin, Saavedro - who had more experience in open warfare, having fought the Horde on various battlefields for several years - was chosen to take this post.
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==Loremaster of the Alliance==
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[[Image:Saavedro-loremaster.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Saavedro in the colors of the Loremaster]]
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When he is not fighting enemies of the Alliance or meditating in solitude, Saavedro can often be found in a library, studying anything that provided him information on the enemies he faced. He found many such sources in the Royal Library of Stormwind before the opening of Karazhan. He was ecstatic to finally reach the near-mythic Guardian's Library, discovering many forgotten tomes that had been hoarded by Medivh before his demise. During his service with the Eternal Order, its members began to jokingly call him "Loremaster". Little did he know that a simple joke would turn into his occupation.
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After the war in Northrend began, Saavedro journeyed the frozen continent, battling many foes and learning much about the nature of the enemies he faced. This gave him a greater appreciation of his world, and he returned to the south and explored many places he had only given a passing glance. In the Eastern Kingdoms, he returned to the Plaguelands to find that his work there was far from done, and also wandered the jungles of Stranglethorn and the marshes of the Wetlands. In Kalimdor, he journeyed to the forests of Feralas and the ruins of Dire Maul, the Barrens and the Wailing Caverns where the druids of the fang lavished in their corruption, and the aptly-named Desolace and the centaur temple-city of Maraudon.
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Upon his return to Northrend, Saavedro received a message from Tyrande Whisperwind in Darnassus, praising him for taking the time to learn more about their world and the evil that plagued it, and finding ways to stop it. On behalf of the Alliance, she formally bestowed upon him the title of Loremaster, and presented him with the colors of his station.
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With the aid of Caedus Netherfist, who had put in a good word with the leadership of the restored Kirin Tor, Saavedro was granted access to Dalaran's vaunted library, undergoing reconstruction following the city's destruction at the hands of Archimonde nearly a decade earlier. His subjects tended towards both the interesting (history, cartography and engineering) and the practical (information on the various strengths and weaknesses of his myriad enemies, including dragonkin, iron dwarves and, of course, the Scourge).
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==The Strands of Fate==
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[[Image:Saavedro and Joshmaul - The Last Battle.jpg|thumb|right|400px|His path set, Saavedro prepares for the final battle with Joshmaul after the fall of the Lich King]]
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Saavedro has been the subject of many prophecies from shamans and other far-seers such as the Prophet Velen, but only one crystal-clear revelation came at the height of the war in Northrend, just after the completion of the Argent Coliseum. The draenei shaman [[User:Joshmaul/Ammenkayn|Ammenkayn]], daughter of Saavedro's former apprentice Velenkayn, was mortally wounded by the Corruptor and left for dead on the Broken Front in Icecrown. Found by Saavedro moments later, Ammenkayn revealed her final vision, indicating that after "the king is dethroned" (referring to the final defeat of the Lich King in Icecrown Citadel), Saavedro will meet his greatest enemy - Joshmaul - and "both of your times will end", indicating that Joshmaul will be destroyed by Saavedro at the cost of his own life.
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After the fall of the Lich King and the celebrations that followed the end of the war with the Scourge, Saavedro - still weakened from his battle against Lady Deathwhisper, which nearly killed him - was residing in Westguard Keep in the Howling Fjord. Without a word to anyone, he flew away on the back of his loyal gryphon, Intrepid, and set out for Icecrown. The Corruptor had ambushed General Tanis outside the Argent Tournament Grounds, and held the young man at his mercy. Moving with unnatural speed, Saavedro arrived in the frozen wastes of Icecrown and confronted the Corruptor for the last time. Light met Shadow, holy hammer and shield met rune-engraved staff and black sorcery as the duel between them raged on. Finally, with his last ounce of energy, Saavedro [[Holy Shock|lashed out with a burst of holy energy]], burning a hole into the Corruptor's chest. The mortally-wounded warlock staggered, and then fell to his death, his body scattered on the cliffs below before it was consumed by the sea.
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Saavedro collapsed in the bloody snow next to General Tanis, and both men were taken to Dalaran by the Argent Guards who had come to Tanis' aid and were left to watch the duel, unable and unwilling to come between these two incredibly powerful men. Saavedro never regained consciousness, and died four days later.
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===The Aftermath===
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Saavedro's death was mourned by the Argent Crusade, the Alliance, and certain elements of the Horde - including the House of Whitehair, now under the leadership of [[User:Joshmaul/Taeril'hane Ketiron|Taeril'hane Ketiron]]. His will stated that he was to be buried in Lordaeron once efforts at its restoration were made; until then, he rests in Dalaran, in the small cemetery near the Violet Citadel.
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With the Lich King dead, the Cenarion Circle and the Earthen Ring have begun efforts to cleanse the Western Plaguelands; among the first areas to be restored will be the cemetery at Sorrow Hill. His comrades have agreed that once that work is done, Saavedro's body will be taken to Sorrow Hill (transported from Silvermoon at the behest of Lord and Lady Ketiron, who will accompany the funeral cortege in its journey through Quel'Thalas and Lordaeron) and buried at one of the empty mausoleums there.
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==Various Residences==
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[[Image:Saavedro-lightsjustice.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Saavedro outside his home in Goldshire, wearing the colors of the Eternal Order during the war in Outland]]
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[[Image:Saavedro-crimsonthrone.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Saavedro within the conquered Scarlet Bastion in Stratholme, after the conclusion of the Shattered Sun Offensive]]
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[[Image:Thehuntforartimus.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Saavedro accompanied by Ordevaas and Korogh in the hunt for Artimus Devaneaux during the Shattered Sun Offensive]]
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[[Image:Saavedro-liadrin.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Saavedro with Lady Liadrin, the Blood Knight matriarch, as she makes her case to A'dal during the Shattered Sun Offensive]]
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Saavedro was born in the residence of the Magistrate in Corin's Crossing, across the road from the town hall. When he became a priest of Lordaeron, he lived primarily in Cathedral Square (now Crusaders' Square) in western Stratholme, close to the church that is now the Scarlet Bastion. When he was sent to Stormwind, he lived at first in a small house in the Canal District. Seeking a place that provided somewhat more solace than the bustling streets of Stormwind, Saavedro moved into the house now inhabited by Adele Fielder and Helene Peltskinner (the leatherworking and skinning trainer, respectively) outside Goldshire. He still maintained this as a residence whenever he was in Elwynn Forest, and both Adele and Helene kept his room open for him in the event he ever required it. After his death, the house was given to General Tanis.
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In Outland, Saavedro lived for a time at Honor Hold in Hellfire Peninsula, taking shelter from the oppressive heat and the infernals in the fortress' inn. After joining the cause of the Sha'tar, he made his home in the Aldor Rise in Shattrath City, using it as a base to connect with the rest of Outland and the other capital cities (and eventually Quel'Danas during the Offensive). After the Offensive defeated Kael'thas Sunstrider, Saavedro often spent time in the inn at Sun's Reach, and would be seen on the beach at night, staring to the northwest - towards Northrend.
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Once the war in Northrend began, Saavedro resided at the inn at Valiance Keep in the Borean Tundra, the headquarters of King Varian's expedition. After a time - and with the aid of magi trained in all of their portal spells - he journeyed to Dalaran, where he made his home in the Silver Enclave. He was most often found there throughout the war, except for the days he spent at the tournament.
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In addition to settling wherever the current war is being fought, Saavedro also had a small house kept for him in Theramore, at the behest of Lady Jaina Proudmoore. Saavedro's draenei lieutenant, Jaeden'laek, often made use of the house as he conducted his business in Kalimdor. After Saavedro's death, the house remained in Jaeden'laek's care. The house in Goldshire went to Artimus Devaneaux, who resided here in seclusion following the death of the Lich King.
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==Political Beliefs==
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===Warlocks and Necromancy===
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Saavedro was adamantly opposed to the use of warlock magic and necromancy, and had spoken against allowing the continued presence of the warlock guilds in Stormwind and Ironforge. He believed that warlock magic was the domain of the Horde, which he described as "Light-forsaken and immoral", and had no place within the Alliance. He had attempted to use his influence as Regent Lord of Lordaeron to reverse the acceptance of warlocks in councils of the Alliance leadership, to no avail; despite their own opposition to it, the leaders of the Alliance - with the possible exception of the night elves and the draenei - reluctantly believed that warlock magic is a necessary evil, for the warlocks have proven their worth to the Alliance.
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But he did have support: Tyrande Whisperwind, High Priestess of Elune and leader of the night elves, is of the belief that warlock magics are responsible for the corruption that has plagued Kalimdor, including the creation of the Felwood. The Prophet Velen, leader of the draenei and one of Saavedro's staunch supporters, believes as Saavedro does, that warlocks are an abomination to the Light - more so because a good number of his people took up this mantle eons in the past, when Sargeras called to them.
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Saavedro had also been vehement in his opposition to the acceptance of the Knights of the Ebon Blade, a position he shared with his friend Ordevaas Portalseeker. "Liberated" or not, Saavedro argued, death knights were abominations to the Light and to all life as a whole, using their cruel tactics and black magic. Saavedro was a witness to the Battle of Light's Hope Chapel, though he did not participate himself. After the battle was over, Saavedro and Ordevaas visited the ruined towns in the shadow of the Ebon Hold - the fortress from which the Lich King had commanded the final annihilation of the Scarlet Crusade. Though the Crusade was as much an enemy of the Alliance as the Scourge, Saavedro pointed to the actions of the Ebon Blade here - as well as the killing of Argent Dawn soldiers during the brief battle at Light's Hope (to which Saavedro expressed his surprise at the result) - as reason enough to oppose them.
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During his time in Northrend, however, Saavedro learned to work well with the Ebon Blade in their aims to disrupt the Scourge leadership in Zul'Drak as well as the capture of the Shadow Vault and the battles at Scourgeholme and the Cathedral of Darkness in Icecrown. At first this was chalked up to the "darkening of his soul" after the death of his friend Bolvar Fordragon; later, it was believed that Saavedro (albeit grudgingly) acknowledged that the Ebon Blade fought for the same end that he did, and honored Tirion Fordring's alliance with them.
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===The Horde===
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Saavedro was a staunch enemy of the Horde, knighted by King Anduin Wrynn of Stormwind (via his regent, Highlord Bolvar Fordragon) for his services in battle against them, particularly in Alterac Valley. Of the five main races of the Horde, the tauren are the least reviled - Saavedro has had many meaningful interactions with tauren over the years - and considered by him to be more loyal to the preservation of nature than even the night elves. However, Saavedro had a much lower opinion of their orcish allies (though he made a friend in the form of [[User:Joshmaul/Noggra the Pure|Noggra]], a Frostwolf shaman, during a trip to Lordaeron). He believes that neither extermination nor internment has proven to work, so he believes that all orcs should be shipped across the Dark Portal and made to resettle in "their own world", or rather what remains of it.
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As for the trolls of the Darkspear, Saavedro feels only hatred; having fought against the legions of Hakkar the Soulflayer across the world, Saavedro sees all trolls, particularly the jungle ones, as evil abominations who must be destroyed by the power of the Light. He also remembers - from his days as a young man in Stratholme, under Sekhesmet's tutelage - the time that the Amani forest trolls allied with the Horde as they burned their way through Lordaeron and Quel'Thalas; with Zul'Aman preparing to reopen itself to the world, Saavedro believes that, like Zul'Gurub and the sunken Temple of Atal'Hakkar, the Amani capital must be purged. Critics of his adamant hatred of trolls point out the services he did to the Zandalar clan of trolls who battled the Soulflayer, but Saavedro points out that they seem to place the preservation of the world above their own selfish interests, unlike their Gurubashi and Amani cousins.
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The Forsaken remain something of a grey area. Like most paladins, Saavedro loathed any form of undeath, and at first lumped the Forsaken into the same grouping as the Scourge - abominations requiring destruction (ironically, this same mindset dominates the Scarlet Crusade, which Saavedro denounced as twisted and blind). However, like with the tauren and the blood elves, he had some meaningful relations with them in his service to the Alliance. Despite early unsettled feelings - which sometimes boiled down to outright hatred - Saavedro reconnected with his former master, Sekhesmet of Stratholme. He also became acquainted with [[Leonid Barthalomew the Revered]], a Forsaken who had joined the Argent Dawn feeling his undeath a malady that simply required treatment - and that treatment was destroying the Scourge responsible for his undeath. Though Saavedro has reunited with Sekhesmet and Ordevaas in a common cause - despite their being part of the Horde - he remains suspicious of the Forsaken as a whole because of the actions of Grand Apothecary Putress during the Battle of Angrathar the Wrath Gate. Though Ordevaas had attempted to convince him otherwise, Saavedro believed that Sylvanas has an ulterior motive, and may have had some stake in the plague that Putress unleashed at Angrathar.
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====The Blood Elves====
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Saavedro's opinion of the blood elves was slightly mixed. On the one hand, he considers them kindred spirits, having lost their land, family, friends and King to the treachery of Prince Arthas. On the other, the methods that some blood elves use - particularly the Blood Knights - are reprehensible. He was especially horrified to learn of the capture and apparent torture of the naaru M'uru, his powers harvested by the blood elves to give power to their Blood Knights. When Kael'thas' treachery became clear and M'uru was kidnapped by the felblood elves, Lady Liadrin - the leader of the Blood Knight order - travelled to Shattrath along with Ordevaas Portalseeker and two Blood Knight Honor Guards to beseech A'dal for forgiveness and was granted a natural source of power for her knights - the power that Saavedro himself wielded without effort. The fact that the naaru were inclined to redeem Liadrin despite her crimes - and that the events were in fact prophesied by Velen, whom Saavedro considered a mentor - made Saavedro rethink his opinion of their practices.
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Saavedro was particularly appalled to learn what had driven them to this course in the first place after the Scourge invasion - the racist policies of "Grand Marshal" Garithos, the self-declared leader of the Alliance remnant following the fall of Lordaeron. Garithos was an ethnocentric snob who did not seem to care anything about his non-human troops; even if they were superior to humans in their efforts, they were still considered nothing more than cannon fodder to Garithos. While Saavedro could sympathize somewhat with how they were treated in the Alliance, he continues to point out the fact that Kael'thas gave himself freely first to Illidan (who was nothing more than a pawn) and then to Kil'jaeden, and a good deal of his people followed him.
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===Restoration of Lordaeron===
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[[Image:Saavedro-flyingmachine.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Saavedro at the controls of his hand-built aircraft, the ''Legacy of Lordaeron'']]
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Saavedro, as Regent Lord of Lordaeron, was a staunch supporter of reconstructing the Kingdom, or at least retaking as much of it that remains intact. The major obstacle is the infestation of undead - Scourge and Forsaken - that controls northern Lordaeron. Though publicly claiming to hold the throne until an uncorrupted (and still living) member of the Menethil Dynasty can be found, Saavedro privately believes that Princess Calia - the last known member of the dynasty - is likely dead and gone, which would precipitate the crowning of a new King of Lordaeron. When that is done, Saavedro says, he will stand aside.
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Because of the blood elves' connection to the Forsaken, however, Saavedro was aware that taking Lordaeron from Sylvanas may result in a war with Quel'Thalas, one that the blood elves are more prepared for than the humans are. While Saavedro himself would have welcomed the blood elves (despite their less-than-ideal methods) back to the Alliance, others - particularly the draenei - would not have been so willing. The blood elves tortured a naaru for their dark powers, which they claimed to be true mastery of the Light, but which the draenei saw as an abomination to all who call themselves paladins.
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===Nemesis===
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Of all of Saavedro's many enemies, his greatest without a doubt was [[User:Joshmaul/Joshmaul the Warlock|Joshmaul the Warlock]], a megalomaniacal human who possessed the body of an orcish shaman and warped it to his own purposes. Wielding immense power over demons and shadow magic, Joshmaul's one goal is to dominate the world, and he seeks to do so by conquering the Scourge.
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The final conflict between the two was decided in Northrend (see "The Strands of Fate" above).
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==Old In-Game Information==
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[[Image:Saavedro-tirion.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Argent Champion Saavedro with his friend Tirion Fordring]]
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*[[User:Joshmaul/Saavedro of Stratholme/List of In-Game Information|List of Current Information]]
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*[[User:Joshmaul/Saavedro of Stratholme/In-Game Accomplishments|Earlier Accomplishments]]
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*[[User:Joshmaul/Saavedro of Stratholme/In-Game Accomplishments/Continued Accomplishments|Continued Accomplishments]]
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*[[User:Joshmaul/Saavedro of Stratholme/The Secrets of Medivh's Tower|The Exploration of Karazhan]]
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*[[User:Joshmaul/Saavedro of Stratholme/Confronting the Legions of Illidan|Beyond the Halls of Karazhan]]
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*[[User:Joshmaul/Saavedro of Stratholme/The Threat of the Amani|The Invasion of Zul'Aman]]
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*[[User:Joshmaul/Saavedro of Stratholme/Assaulting the Sunwell Isle|The Battle of Quel'Danas]]
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*[[User:Joshmaul/Saavedro of Stratholme/In the Service of the Netherwing|Aiding the Netherwing]]
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*[[User:Joshmaul/Saavedro of Stratholme/Invasion of Northrend|Against the Scourge on the Front Line]]
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==Quotes==
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[[User:Joshmaul/Saavedro of Stratholme/Saavedro Speaks|List of quotations]]
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{{Succession|[[User:Joshmaul/Sekhesmet of Stratholme|Sekhesmet]]|'''[[Stratholme|High Priest of Stratholme]]'''|Stratholme destroyed}}
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{{succession|[[Terenas Menethil II]] (King of Lordaeron)|'''[[Kingdom of Lordaeron|Regent Lord of Lordaeron]]'''|Unknown}}
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{{User:Joshmaul/Template:Characters}}

Revision as of 05:59, 24 October 2010

Roleplaying
This article is fan fiction.
The contents herein are entirely player made and in no way represent official Warcraft lore or history. The characters and events listed are of an independent nature and are applied for roleplaying purposes only.

"We will never see his like again. And that's a Light-damned shame."

- General Oren Tanis, personal journal
AllianceSaavedro of Stratholme
Image of Saavedro of Stratholme
Title The Regent, the Loremaster, the Oncoming Storm
Gender Male
Race Human (Humanoid)
Class Paladin / Dragonsworn
Affiliation(s) Alliance of Lordaeron
Kingdom of Lordaeron
Saavedro's Coalition
The Argent Crusade
The Wyrmrest Accord
Occupation Regent Lord of Lordaeron, Loremaster of the Alliance, Champion of the Crusade, Servant of Alexstrasza
Location Buried in Dalaran, awaiting reinterment in Lordaeron
Status Deceased (killed by Joshmaul)
Relative(s) Ezekyle (father), Verity (mother), Ordevaas Portalseeker (honor brother), Nyssha Swiftblade (adopted daughter), Joshmaul the Warlock (nemesis)
Mentor(s) Sekhesmet of Stratholme
Duthorian Rall
Grayson Shadowbreaker
Tirion Fordring
Student(s) Velenkayn (paladin acolyte)
Vulnavia Hildreth (priesthood acolyte)
Taeril'hane Ketiron (engineering student)
Alignment Chaotic good

Once a simple priest and scholar, Saavedro of Stratholme later rose from his humble origins to become much more - a guide for a landless people; a leader of men in the ongoing struggle for supremacy with the Horde; a teacher of the Light and its principles, and of the enemy they all face; an explorer with an appreciation for the world he lived on, and the worlds beyond his own. As a Knight of the Silver Hand, Saavedro has risen in the decade since the Battle of Mount Hyjal to be a rallying beacon for the survivors of his destroyed homeland of Lordaeron, and trained with some of the most powerful paladins on Azeroth to prepare himself for the final battle against the Lich King. Throughout his service to the Grand Alliance, he has faced the perils of Blackrock Mountain, destroyed the children of Deathwing, faced the servants of the Old Gods, confronted the servitors of the Burning Legion, done battle with the forces of Illidan, and ended Malygos' genocidal Nexus War. But it was the Scourge and its dark master, a creature who had once been the noble Prince Arthas Menethil, who was Saavedro's sworn enemy - the one he most wished to confront and finally defeat, avenging the loss of his homeland once and for all.

With his destiny written, Saavedro confronted his mortal enemy, Joshmaul the Corruptor, in the frozen mountains of Icecrown shortly after the defeat of the Lich King, coming to the aid of his comrade, General Oren Tanis. Though he slew the Corruptor and smote his ruin upon the mountainside, Saavedro succumbed to his wounds in Dalaran four days later, surrounded by his comrades-in-arms in the battle against the Lich King.

Origins

Corinscrossing-magistrateshouse

The Magistrate's house in Corin's Crossing, across from the town hall. Saavedro was born and raised in this house; his father, Ezekyle, lived here until the town was sacked by the Scourge.

Born in 572 (Stormwind reckoning) in the town of Corin's Crossing, southeast of Stratholme, Saavedro was the only child of the town magistrate Ezekyle and his wife Verity. The name Saavedro means "teacher" in an ancient human dialect.

Living with his parents for much of his childhood, Saavedro - or Saav to his friends - grew tired of living within the magistrate's estate; for all of his good intentions, his father was the typical ineffectual politician. When he reached his Age of Ascension in 585, at age 13, Saavedro encountered a messenger from the King of Lordaeron, headed for Stratholme, and accompanied the messenger to the High Priest Sekhesmet. The young man took his oath as a priest in the service of the Kingdom of Lordaeron, and trained for much of his life under the venerable High Priest. Despite not being born there, Saavedro considered Stratholme his home and became known as "Saavedro of Stratholme" for the rest of his life.

In 594, word reached Stratholme of the fall of Lordaeron's sister kingdom of Azeroth, at the hands of the orcish Horde. Not long after that news reached Lordaeron, the refugees from Stormwind - led by Lord Anduin Lothar, the Knight Champion of Stormwind, and the Dalaran mage Khadgar, apprentice to Medivh - arrived in the court of King Terenas Menethil II, the reigning monarch of Lordaeron. Saavedro, as an emissary of the Conclave of the Priesthood in Stratholme, was present as Lothar informed the King of the opening of the Dark Portal, the atrocities committed by the orcs and their allies, and the assassination of King Llane. Saavedro was particularly disturbed by the word of the destruction of the holy order of the Clerics of Northshire, but aided the aged Archbishop Alonsus Faol - who taught his master, Sekhesmet - and his apprentice, Uther the Lightbringer, in the creation of the Order of the Silver Hand - the paladins. At the tender age of twenty-three, Saavedro was inducted into Stratholme's Conclave of the Priesthood.

Sending the Expedition Off

As it prepared to depart, the Alliance Expedition to Draenor assembled on the flatlands outside of Nethergarde Keep to be sent off by the priesthood of the Alliance. Archbishop Faol and his student, the future Archbishop Benedictus, were joined by Sekhesmet, Saavedro and several members of the priesthood of Quel'Thalas to give the blessing of the Light to the expedition, led by Khadgar and General Turalyon, before they ventured across the Dark Portal. Saavedro remained in Nethergarde for the entire period the Portal was open, until he received word that the Dark Portal had been sealed, Draenor all but destroyed, and the Expedition cut off from their homeland. For twenty years after that fateful day, Saavedro waited and wondered...what had happened to them?

The Fall of Stratholme

Saavedro-kelthuzad

Saavedro as a priest, around the time of Thrall's escape from Durnholde. The figure walking in front of him is the Dalaran archmage Kel'Thuzad, whom Saavedro would later destroy in Naxxramas.

Saavedro-oldstratholme

Saavedro, High Priest of Stratholme, around the time of the city's fall

After the Alliance expedition into Draenor sealed the Dark Portal, Saavedro's mentor, High Priest Sekhesmet, was sent to the capital as a member of the high council of Lordaeron's priesthood. Now in his early thirties and a full-fledged priest of Lordaeron, Saavedro focused on his duties as a priest to the city of Stratholme, becoming High Priest in 602. Then, in 604, he received orders from the high council informing him that he was being sent to the court of King Varian Wrynn, the new King of Stormwind. He lived in a small house in the Canal District, not far from the Cathedral of Light, and also in a large townhouse outside of Goldshire. He lived in Stormwind for ten years, but occasionally ferried between Stratholme and Stormwind as his duties permitted. On his last return trip to his beloved city, he encountered Lord Uther, who was on his way to the outskirts of Stratholme to meet with the Crown Prince, Arthas Menethil. Saavedro watched breathlessly as Arthas commanded Uther to purge Stratholme. When the Lightbringer refused, Arthas accused him of treason and ordered that the Knights of the Silver Hand be disbanded. Stunned, Saavedro - who had heard of, and investigated, the death cults in northern Lordaeron, but had no idea how far the plague had spread - realized that something was wrong, but made his way back to the southern part of the continent. He did not realize, however, how bad it really was.

By the time Saavedro returned to Stormwind, he had heard that both the Kingdom of Lordaeron and the elven Kingdom of Quel'Thalas had been destroyed by the Scourge. The noble King Terenas and the leader of the Silver Hand, Lord Uther, had been brutally murdered by Prince Arthas, now a death knight in the Scourge's service. Lordaeron had crumbled into ruin, and Stratholme was left to burn, a fire that has lasted for many years after the end of the "Third War", as the battle with the Scourge and the Burning Legion was called. From his home in Stormwind, Saavedro refused to believe what he was hearing - Lordaeron had weathered the orcish Horde, how could it fall?

But it soon became inevitable to him - his homeland had fallen into ruin, the ghosts of hundreds of thousands roaming the blighted landscape. He travelled to Lordaeron himself, careful to avoid detection by the Scourge. As he stepped into the empty throne room of Terenas' palace, he was stricken by a horrifying sight. His master, Sekhesmet, was lying dead on the floor, where he had choked out his last breaths. Judging from the state his body was in, Saavedro deduced that he had been dead for several months. Saavedro aided the survivors of Tirisfal Glades in burying his master in the family mausoleum, located in the graveyard of the town of Brill, and then returned to Stormwind.

Saavedro fell into a state of melancholy after returning from Lordaeron; he shirked his duties and began drinking heavily. In this state, he brooded for four years after the war before he realized he had a greater part to play. On the advice of the Archbishop Benedictus, Saavedro removed the robes of the priesthood and took up sword and shield as a paladin. Swearing to defend the helpless and fight both the Scourge and the Horde, he was inducted into the Order of the Silver Hand at Northshire Abbey, in the year 618 on the Stormwind calendar. He was forty-six years old.

The Regency of Lordaeron

Shortly before the reopening of the Dark Portal, Saavedro - as one of few people in current Alliance service hailing from Lordaeron - met with a group of senior officials from both the priesthood and survivors from the court of King Terenas. They believed that there must be a Regent to lead the people of Lordaeron - what remained of them, anyway - until the Scourge and Forsaken are driven from the Plaguelands, and an uncorrupted member of the Menethil Dynasty could be found. At present, only Princess Calia, Arthas' sister, is believed to have been uncorrupted, but her current location is unknown. It has also become apparent - Saavedro himself mentioned this - that the former Kingdom of Lordaeron had to deal with not only Kel'Thuzad, but with the remaining leadership of the Scarlet Crusade, including High General Abbendis in Tyr's Hand. Plus, though Quel'Thalas was now in the hands of the Horde - via the machinations of Regent Lord Lor'themar Theron - Saavedro believed that a re-examination, and potential repair, of the Alliance's relations with them was in order.

Saavedro, along with former Tirisfal Magistrate Artimus Devaneaux, were chosen as potential candidates for the title of Regent Lord of Lordaeron until the Menethil Dynasty's fate could be confirmed - with its only known surviving member, Calia, missing or dead, this situation remains unclear. By a narrow margin, Saavedro - who had more experience in open warfare, having fought the Horde on various battlefields for several years - was chosen to take this post.

Loremaster of the Alliance

Saavedro-loremaster

Saavedro in the colors of the Loremaster

When he is not fighting enemies of the Alliance or meditating in solitude, Saavedro can often be found in a library, studying anything that provided him information on the enemies he faced. He found many such sources in the Royal Library of Stormwind before the opening of Karazhan. He was ecstatic to finally reach the near-mythic Guardian's Library, discovering many forgotten tomes that had been hoarded by Medivh before his demise. During his service with the Eternal Order, its members began to jokingly call him "Loremaster". Little did he know that a simple joke would turn into his occupation.

After the war in Northrend began, Saavedro journeyed the frozen continent, battling many foes and learning much about the nature of the enemies he faced. This gave him a greater appreciation of his world, and he returned to the south and explored many places he had only given a passing glance. In the Eastern Kingdoms, he returned to the Plaguelands to find that his work there was far from done, and also wandered the jungles of Stranglethorn and the marshes of the Wetlands. In Kalimdor, he journeyed to the forests of Feralas and the ruins of Dire Maul, the Barrens and the Wailing Caverns where the druids of the fang lavished in their corruption, and the aptly-named Desolace and the centaur temple-city of Maraudon.

Upon his return to Northrend, Saavedro received a message from Tyrande Whisperwind in Darnassus, praising him for taking the time to learn more about their world and the evil that plagued it, and finding ways to stop it. On behalf of the Alliance, she formally bestowed upon him the title of Loremaster, and presented him with the colors of his station.

With the aid of Caedus Netherfist, who had put in a good word with the leadership of the restored Kirin Tor, Saavedro was granted access to Dalaran's vaunted library, undergoing reconstruction following the city's destruction at the hands of Archimonde nearly a decade earlier. His subjects tended towards both the interesting (history, cartography and engineering) and the practical (information on the various strengths and weaknesses of his myriad enemies, including dragonkin, iron dwarves and, of course, the Scourge).

The Strands of Fate

Saavedro and Joshmaul - The Last Battle

His path set, Saavedro prepares for the final battle with Joshmaul after the fall of the Lich King

Saavedro has been the subject of many prophecies from shamans and other far-seers such as the Prophet Velen, but only one crystal-clear revelation came at the height of the war in Northrend, just after the completion of the Argent Coliseum. The draenei shaman Ammenkayn, daughter of Saavedro's former apprentice Velenkayn, was mortally wounded by the Corruptor and left for dead on the Broken Front in Icecrown. Found by Saavedro moments later, Ammenkayn revealed her final vision, indicating that after "the king is dethroned" (referring to the final defeat of the Lich King in Icecrown Citadel), Saavedro will meet his greatest enemy - Joshmaul - and "both of your times will end", indicating that Joshmaul will be destroyed by Saavedro at the cost of his own life.

After the fall of the Lich King and the celebrations that followed the end of the war with the Scourge, Saavedro - still weakened from his battle against Lady Deathwhisper, which nearly killed him - was residing in Westguard Keep in the Howling Fjord. Without a word to anyone, he flew away on the back of his loyal gryphon, Intrepid, and set out for Icecrown. The Corruptor had ambushed General Tanis outside the Argent Tournament Grounds, and held the young man at his mercy. Moving with unnatural speed, Saavedro arrived in the frozen wastes of Icecrown and confronted the Corruptor for the last time. Light met Shadow, holy hammer and shield met rune-engraved staff and black sorcery as the duel between them raged on. Finally, with his last ounce of energy, Saavedro lashed out with a burst of holy energy, burning a hole into the Corruptor's chest. The mortally-wounded warlock staggered, and then fell to his death, his body scattered on the cliffs below before it was consumed by the sea.

Saavedro collapsed in the bloody snow next to General Tanis, and both men were taken to Dalaran by the Argent Guards who had come to Tanis' aid and were left to watch the duel, unable and unwilling to come between these two incredibly powerful men. Saavedro never regained consciousness, and died four days later.

The Aftermath

Saavedro's death was mourned by the Argent Crusade, the Alliance, and certain elements of the Horde - including the House of Whitehair, now under the leadership of Taeril'hane Ketiron. His will stated that he was to be buried in Lordaeron once efforts at its restoration were made; until then, he rests in Dalaran, in the small cemetery near the Violet Citadel.

With the Lich King dead, the Cenarion Circle and the Earthen Ring have begun efforts to cleanse the Western Plaguelands; among the first areas to be restored will be the cemetery at Sorrow Hill. His comrades have agreed that once that work is done, Saavedro's body will be taken to Sorrow Hill (transported from Silvermoon at the behest of Lord and Lady Ketiron, who will accompany the funeral cortege in its journey through Quel'Thalas and Lordaeron) and buried at one of the empty mausoleums there.

Various Residences

Saavedro-lightsjustice

Saavedro outside his home in Goldshire, wearing the colors of the Eternal Order during the war in Outland

Saavedro-crimsonthrone

Saavedro within the conquered Scarlet Bastion in Stratholme, after the conclusion of the Shattered Sun Offensive

Thehuntforartimus

Saavedro accompanied by Ordevaas and Korogh in the hunt for Artimus Devaneaux during the Shattered Sun Offensive

Saavedro-liadrin

Saavedro with Lady Liadrin, the Blood Knight matriarch, as she makes her case to A'dal during the Shattered Sun Offensive

Saavedro was born in the residence of the Magistrate in Corin's Crossing, across the road from the town hall. When he became a priest of Lordaeron, he lived primarily in Cathedral Square (now Crusaders' Square) in western Stratholme, close to the church that is now the Scarlet Bastion. When he was sent to Stormwind, he lived at first in a small house in the Canal District. Seeking a place that provided somewhat more solace than the bustling streets of Stormwind, Saavedro moved into the house now inhabited by Adele Fielder and Helene Peltskinner (the leatherworking and skinning trainer, respectively) outside Goldshire. He still maintained this as a residence whenever he was in Elwynn Forest, and both Adele and Helene kept his room open for him in the event he ever required it. After his death, the house was given to General Tanis.

In Outland, Saavedro lived for a time at Honor Hold in Hellfire Peninsula, taking shelter from the oppressive heat and the infernals in the fortress' inn. After joining the cause of the Sha'tar, he made his home in the Aldor Rise in Shattrath City, using it as a base to connect with the rest of Outland and the other capital cities (and eventually Quel'Danas during the Offensive). After the Offensive defeated Kael'thas Sunstrider, Saavedro often spent time in the inn at Sun's Reach, and would be seen on the beach at night, staring to the northwest - towards Northrend.

Once the war in Northrend began, Saavedro resided at the inn at Valiance Keep in the Borean Tundra, the headquarters of King Varian's expedition. After a time - and with the aid of magi trained in all of their portal spells - he journeyed to Dalaran, where he made his home in the Silver Enclave. He was most often found there throughout the war, except for the days he spent at the tournament.

In addition to settling wherever the current war is being fought, Saavedro also had a small house kept for him in Theramore, at the behest of Lady Jaina Proudmoore. Saavedro's draenei lieutenant, Jaeden'laek, often made use of the house as he conducted his business in Kalimdor. After Saavedro's death, the house remained in Jaeden'laek's care. The house in Goldshire went to Artimus Devaneaux, who resided here in seclusion following the death of the Lich King.

Political Beliefs

Warlocks and Necromancy

Saavedro was adamantly opposed to the use of warlock magic and necromancy, and had spoken against allowing the continued presence of the warlock guilds in Stormwind and Ironforge. He believed that warlock magic was the domain of the Horde, which he described as "Light-forsaken and immoral", and had no place within the Alliance. He had attempted to use his influence as Regent Lord of Lordaeron to reverse the acceptance of warlocks in councils of the Alliance leadership, to no avail; despite their own opposition to it, the leaders of the Alliance - with the possible exception of the night elves and the draenei - reluctantly believed that warlock magic is a necessary evil, for the warlocks have proven their worth to the Alliance.

But he did have support: Tyrande Whisperwind, High Priestess of Elune and leader of the night elves, is of the belief that warlock magics are responsible for the corruption that has plagued Kalimdor, including the creation of the Felwood. The Prophet Velen, leader of the draenei and one of Saavedro's staunch supporters, believes as Saavedro does, that warlocks are an abomination to the Light - more so because a good number of his people took up this mantle eons in the past, when Sargeras called to them.

Saavedro had also been vehement in his opposition to the acceptance of the Knights of the Ebon Blade, a position he shared with his friend Ordevaas Portalseeker. "Liberated" or not, Saavedro argued, death knights were abominations to the Light and to all life as a whole, using their cruel tactics and black magic. Saavedro was a witness to the Battle of Light's Hope Chapel, though he did not participate himself. After the battle was over, Saavedro and Ordevaas visited the ruined towns in the shadow of the Ebon Hold - the fortress from which the Lich King had commanded the final annihilation of the Scarlet Crusade. Though the Crusade was as much an enemy of the Alliance as the Scourge, Saavedro pointed to the actions of the Ebon Blade here - as well as the killing of Argent Dawn soldiers during the brief battle at Light's Hope (to which Saavedro expressed his surprise at the result) - as reason enough to oppose them.

During his time in Northrend, however, Saavedro learned to work well with the Ebon Blade in their aims to disrupt the Scourge leadership in Zul'Drak as well as the capture of the Shadow Vault and the battles at Scourgeholme and the Cathedral of Darkness in Icecrown. At first this was chalked up to the "darkening of his soul" after the death of his friend Bolvar Fordragon; later, it was believed that Saavedro (albeit grudgingly) acknowledged that the Ebon Blade fought for the same end that he did, and honored Tirion Fordring's alliance with them.

The Horde

Saavedro was a staunch enemy of the Horde, knighted by King Anduin Wrynn of Stormwind (via his regent, Highlord Bolvar Fordragon) for his services in battle against them, particularly in Alterac Valley. Of the five main races of the Horde, the tauren are the least reviled - Saavedro has had many meaningful interactions with tauren over the years - and considered by him to be more loyal to the preservation of nature than even the night elves. However, Saavedro had a much lower opinion of their orcish allies (though he made a friend in the form of Noggra, a Frostwolf shaman, during a trip to Lordaeron). He believes that neither extermination nor internment has proven to work, so he believes that all orcs should be shipped across the Dark Portal and made to resettle in "their own world", or rather what remains of it.

As for the trolls of the Darkspear, Saavedro feels only hatred; having fought against the legions of Hakkar the Soulflayer across the world, Saavedro sees all trolls, particularly the jungle ones, as evil abominations who must be destroyed by the power of the Light. He also remembers - from his days as a young man in Stratholme, under Sekhesmet's tutelage - the time that the Amani forest trolls allied with the Horde as they burned their way through Lordaeron and Quel'Thalas; with Zul'Aman preparing to reopen itself to the world, Saavedro believes that, like Zul'Gurub and the sunken Temple of Atal'Hakkar, the Amani capital must be purged. Critics of his adamant hatred of trolls point out the services he did to the Zandalar clan of trolls who battled the Soulflayer, but Saavedro points out that they seem to place the preservation of the world above their own selfish interests, unlike their Gurubashi and Amani cousins.

The Forsaken remain something of a grey area. Like most paladins, Saavedro loathed any form of undeath, and at first lumped the Forsaken into the same grouping as the Scourge - abominations requiring destruction (ironically, this same mindset dominates the Scarlet Crusade, which Saavedro denounced as twisted and blind). However, like with the tauren and the blood elves, he had some meaningful relations with them in his service to the Alliance. Despite early unsettled feelings - which sometimes boiled down to outright hatred - Saavedro reconnected with his former master, Sekhesmet of Stratholme. He also became acquainted with Leonid Barthalomew the Revered, a Forsaken who had joined the Argent Dawn feeling his undeath a malady that simply required treatment - and that treatment was destroying the Scourge responsible for his undeath. Though Saavedro has reunited with Sekhesmet and Ordevaas in a common cause - despite their being part of the Horde - he remains suspicious of the Forsaken as a whole because of the actions of Grand Apothecary Putress during the Battle of Angrathar the Wrath Gate. Though Ordevaas had attempted to convince him otherwise, Saavedro believed that Sylvanas has an ulterior motive, and may have had some stake in the plague that Putress unleashed at Angrathar.

The Blood Elves

Saavedro's opinion of the blood elves was slightly mixed. On the one hand, he considers them kindred spirits, having lost their land, family, friends and King to the treachery of Prince Arthas. On the other, the methods that some blood elves use - particularly the Blood Knights - are reprehensible. He was especially horrified to learn of the capture and apparent torture of the naaru M'uru, his powers harvested by the blood elves to give power to their Blood Knights. When Kael'thas' treachery became clear and M'uru was kidnapped by the felblood elves, Lady Liadrin - the leader of the Blood Knight order - travelled to Shattrath along with Ordevaas Portalseeker and two Blood Knight Honor Guards to beseech A'dal for forgiveness and was granted a natural source of power for her knights - the power that Saavedro himself wielded without effort. The fact that the naaru were inclined to redeem Liadrin despite her crimes - and that the events were in fact prophesied by Velen, whom Saavedro considered a mentor - made Saavedro rethink his opinion of their practices.

Saavedro was particularly appalled to learn what had driven them to this course in the first place after the Scourge invasion - the racist policies of "Grand Marshal" Garithos, the self-declared leader of the Alliance remnant following the fall of Lordaeron. Garithos was an ethnocentric snob who did not seem to care anything about his non-human troops; even if they were superior to humans in their efforts, they were still considered nothing more than cannon fodder to Garithos. While Saavedro could sympathize somewhat with how they were treated in the Alliance, he continues to point out the fact that Kael'thas gave himself freely first to Illidan (who was nothing more than a pawn) and then to Kil'jaeden, and a good deal of his people followed him.

Restoration of Lordaeron

Saavedro-flyingmachine

Saavedro at the controls of his hand-built aircraft, the Legacy of Lordaeron

Saavedro, as Regent Lord of Lordaeron, was a staunch supporter of reconstructing the Kingdom, or at least retaking as much of it that remains intact. The major obstacle is the infestation of undead - Scourge and Forsaken - that controls northern Lordaeron. Though publicly claiming to hold the throne until an uncorrupted (and still living) member of the Menethil Dynasty can be found, Saavedro privately believes that Princess Calia - the last known member of the dynasty - is likely dead and gone, which would precipitate the crowning of a new King of Lordaeron. When that is done, Saavedro says, he will stand aside.

Because of the blood elves' connection to the Forsaken, however, Saavedro was aware that taking Lordaeron from Sylvanas may result in a war with Quel'Thalas, one that the blood elves are more prepared for than the humans are. While Saavedro himself would have welcomed the blood elves (despite their less-than-ideal methods) back to the Alliance, others - particularly the draenei - would not have been so willing. The blood elves tortured a naaru for their dark powers, which they claimed to be true mastery of the Light, but which the draenei saw as an abomination to all who call themselves paladins.

Nemesis

Of all of Saavedro's many enemies, his greatest without a doubt was Joshmaul the Warlock, a megalomaniacal human who possessed the body of an orcish shaman and warped it to his own purposes. Wielding immense power over demons and shadow magic, Joshmaul's one goal is to dominate the world, and he seeks to do so by conquering the Scourge.

The final conflict between the two was decided in Northrend (see "The Strands of Fate" above).

Old In-Game Information

Saavedro-tirion

Argent Champion Saavedro with his friend Tirion Fordring

Quotes

List of quotations

Preceded by:
Sekhesmet
Position:
High Priest of Stratholme
Succeeded by:
Stratholme destroyed
Preceded by:
Terenas Menethil II (King of Lordaeron)
Position:
Regent Lord of Lordaeron
Succeeded by:
Unknown