Yogg-Saron

For the encounter in Ulduar, see Yogg-Saron (tactics).

Yogg-Saron
Title	The Beast with a Thousand Maws, Fiend of a Thousand Faces, The Death God, That Which Must Not Be Named
Race	Old God (Uncategorized)
Affiliation(s)	Old Gods
Occupation	Old God of death
Location	The Prison of Yogg-Saron, Ulduar
Status	Defeatable
Ulduar The Siege of Ulduar Flame Leviathan Ignis the Furnace Master Razorscale XT-002 Deconstructor (lore) (lore) (lore) (lore) The Antechamber of Ulduar Assembly of Iron Kologarn Auriaya (lore) (lore) (lore) The Keepers of Ulduar Mimiron Freya Thorim Hodir (lore) (lore) (lore) (lore) The Descent into Madness General Vezax Yogg-Saron (lore) (lore) The Celestial Planetarium Algalon the Observer (summoned) (lore) Other Ulduar instances Halls of Stone (5) Halls of Lightning (5)

Yogg-Saron is the Old God of death who was imprisoned by the titans within the depths of Ulduar. He is responsible for much of the corruption in the Grizzly Hills, including that of Ursoc. He managed to sway one of his wardens, Watcher Loken, under his influence, using him to corrupt the rest of the Watchers.

Yogg-Saron is an encounter in the raid dungeon Ulduar, implemented in patch 3.1.

History

Yogg-Saron, along with the other Old Gods, created the Curse of Flesh to infect and assimilate the titans' creations, such as the earthen. The Titans determined that if the Old Gods were destroyed, it would devastate Azeroth, as the parasitic nature of the Old Gods ensured their destruction would also destroy those they had cursed. Instead, the Titans kept the Old Gods alive and imprisoned them beneath Azeroth, Ulduar serving as Yogg-Saron's prison. The Titans assigned the watchers Freya, Hodir, Mimiron, Thorim and Loken, to serve as his wardens. Yogg-Saron eventually was able to corrupt Loken, his chief jailor, who was then able to subdue the other watchers, facilitating any possible escape Yogg-Saron might attempt. His prison is currently broken, although he has not escaped.

The world tree Vordrassil corrupted by Yogg-Saron.

Yogg-Saron is presumed to have corrupted the world tree Vordrassil when its roots penetrated his lair. Druids destroyed the tree upon discovering its taint, but corruption continued to spread to the Grizzlemaw furbolgs who later inhabited the tree's stump and attempted to regrow the world tree. The furbolgs used the corrupted magic of the tree to resurrect the bear god Ursoc, who in turn also became corrupted.

Yogg-Saron is an encounter in Ulduar, found in the Prison of Yogg-Saron. He is guarded by faceless ones including General Vezax, suggesting that he is allied with them.

Saronite

Saronite ore is the blood of Yogg-Saron. It is used by the Scourge as fuel, armament, weapons, and in constructing their buildings. The Scourge utter "Yogg-Saron" with contempt. Faceless ones also refer to Yogg-Saron in an unknown context.

Composition

Yogg-Saron in Ulduar.

Yogg-Saron in the encounter is a composition of different NPCs:

• Body of Yogg-Saron
• Brain of Yogg-Saron
• Constrictor Tentacle
• Corruptor Tentacle
• Crusher Tentacle
• Influence Tentacle
• Sara

Speculation

This article or section includes speculation, observations or opinions possibly supported by lore or by Blizzard officials. It should not be taken as representing official lore.

Influence

In Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne while traveling through Azjol-Nerub on his way to Icecrown, Arthas encountered and defeated a "forgotten one" which bears physical similarities to C'Thun (another Old God), and was defended by faceless ones. Furthermore, a faceless one is present in the Ymirheim Saronite Mines, where (presumably) Yogg-Saron's whisper can be heard.

The manner and contempt with which the Scourge proclaim "Yogg-Saron" suggests they may be at odds with him. On the other hand, they are reliant upon Saronite which he produces.

One of "The Three"

During the encounter in Ulduar, in his mind, two of of the three flashbacks are important lore events that happened either after visions or whispers:

• The assassination of King Llane by Garona Halforcen.
• The creation of the Dragon Soul by Neltharion and the Dragon Aspects.

Furthermore, during the Immolated Champion's vision he says that the Lich King will learn that "No king rules forever", which will ultimately be true as Arthas Menethil dies in Icecrown Citadel and Bolvar Fordragon becomes the new Lich King.

This hints that Yogg-Saron is possibly behind those events, alone or as part of "The Three" and their "Greater Plan" mentioned by Korialstrasz during the War of Ancients events.

Death or Defeat?

When fighting Yogg-Saron in Ulduar, it can be be noted that Yogg-Saron does not die when at 0% health. His death animation is triggered at exactly 1.4%. This likely means the players don't kill the old god, but only defeat him. This makes sense with what the Tribunal of Ages revealed about the old gods can not be killed without destroying Azeroth.

Whispers

See also: Old Gods#Whispers of Old Gods

The whispers heard in Whisper Gulch from "unknown voice" may be produced by Yogg-Saron, and are listed in the game files as "Creature - Yogg-Saron Whisper". They sound similar to the whispers of C'Thun, another Old God:

They are coming for you...

Give in to your fear...

Kill them all... before they kill you...

They have turned against you... now, take your revenge...

Tell yourself again that these are not truly your friends...

There is no escape... not in this life... not in the next...

You are a pawn of forces unseen...

It WAS your fault...

In Ahn'kahet, "a mysterious voice" is heard whispering to players at random. This voice is most likely Yogg-Saron as well:

All that you know will fade.

You will be alone in the end.

Trust is your weakness.

The voices can also be heard in the Ymirheim Saronite Mines.

Inspiration

• Yogg-Saron's name is derived from Yog-Sothoth of H.P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos. Additionally, by the same turn, his monikers "The Beast with a Thousand Maws," or "Fiend of a Thousand Faces" are references to Shub-Niggurath, who is refered to as "The Black Goat of the Woods with a Thousand Young" and to whom Yogg-Saron bears a resemblance. "That Which Must Not Be Named" may be a reference to Hastur, whose role in the Cthulhu mythos remains unclear. In Lovecraft's own "The Whisperer in Darkness," the protagonist hears a recording of cultists reciting, in reverence, the names of several beings, including Yog-Sothoth, Cthulhu, and Hastur (as "That Which Must Not Be Named"). However, in the same story and in the expanded universe created by authors continuing Lovecraft's mythos, Hastur is shown as being at war with the Mi-Go, the race of extraterrestrials that seems to worship the aforementioned "Gods" as a group (who were among the voices heard on the recording).
• "Yogg" might also be an intentional misspelling of "Ygg", referring to Yggdrasil, the World Tree of Norse mythology, tying in with Yogg-Saron's corruption of Vordrassil.
• "Ygg" is also one of the aliases of the Norse God "Odin".

Gallery

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  Fan art of Yogg-Saron

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  The brain of Yogg-Saron

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  Sara, the Avatar of Yogg-Saron