It’s difficult losing a father. Even more difficult if you’re the son of a king. In Son of the Wolf, we see how the pup strengthened the Wolf and how Anduin Wrynn will lead in some of Azeroth’s darkest times.
Varian and Anduin didn’t always get along. Taking after his mother, Anduin was the more scholarly type, taken with books and willing to see past old feuds and forge bonds with enemies. It was this trait that led the “pup” to befriend Baine Bloodhoof, son of the late Cairne. In addition to both being sons of prolific leaders, both also shared the same conscientious approach to leadership. His father, on the other hand, was a renown gladiator and war leader. The Wolf, as he was called. The name fit.
Usually, a grizzled soldier and battle tactician is exactly what you want during wartime, not a scholar and bridge builder. Unfortunately for Anduin, the time has come to put that leadership style to the test. This is the main internal conflict of Son of the Wolf — along with a strange twist.
Obvious spoilers for Son of the Wolf follow.
Summary: Son of the Wolf
We actually open with a curious panel focused in on the wrinkled brows of an old man. Considering that Varian never lived to old age and Anduin is approximately 17-18 in the present day, you immediately start with a question: Who’s this guy? What old man looks back at the past? And since remembering the olden days isn’t always a positive pastime: Does he look back on it in regret?
In pure comic book fashion, we have two narratives going: The parchment-style text appears to be Varian Wrynn’s last written words to his son, the blue-box text Anduin. This letter was featured both in the Legion trailer and the Alliance version of the Broken Shore in-game cinematic. Accompanying this comic with the trailer narration isn’t a bad way to enjoy the tale.
We learn through Anduin that he’s carried his father’s final words with him each day since he was crowned king. He’s also sought an everlasting peace — a goal that’s quite difficult in a world that breaks out into war ever few years. Especially with something like the Burning Legion lurking in your universe.
We’re dropped back into the present with Anduin reading the letter at the keep. A portrait of his father looms behind him, his sword laid out on the table before him. Curiously, we last saw that sword discarded on the Broken Shore, its flame burned out after Varian’s demise. Either that detail didn’t quite make it to this artist or the sword was later retrieved. I wonder what unlucky soul was stuck with that suicide mission. Both the Alliance and Horde ran with tails tucked from that valley. It’s not like the Legion left so soon after winning. Getting the sword back was probably one heck of an ordeal but probably a story that will go untold.
A guard barges in with an urgent message from the Broken Isles, or more specifically an assassination attempt. The man is revealed to be a dread lord in disguise (dread lords certainly are working overtime lately) but Anduin disposes of him quickly.
He may be a pup inheriting the pack, but Anduin isn’t vulnerable. He snatches the would-be assassin’s wrist, halting the blade inches from his face. There’s a neat moment for a split second where Anduin looks like his father. The shape of his chin, the thick eyebrows, the darker lighting of his hair, and how a single strand of hair lays over his face similar to one of his father’s scars… you do a double take, wondering if the panel is back on Varian’s portrait on the wall. But no, it’s Anduin.
Here it is:
See it? Nice touch by the artist. The older Anduin gets, the more he resembles Varian. This is an important theme in this particular story since his mind is focused on his father’s legacy.
With a flash of Light, he binds the dread lord. His guards belatedly rush in, hearing the commotion. Anduin commands them to search the keep for other spies and leave him with the captured demon. Taking up his father’s sword, he questions the creature. The dread lord brags, claiming the Burning Legion “knows all,” from him, his father, and the vulnerabilities of the Alliance. It raises the question just how much forward scouting the Legion conducted before invading. Or perhaps picking up as many defected soldiers as possible has given them the glimpses they need to exploit the Alliance’s cracks.
Either way, this isn’t a typical Legion invasion. They’re showing up with new ways of teleporting demons to Azeroth (space ships!) and showing some serious foward scouting and infiltration tactics every step of the way. They know far more about our heroes than they know of them. Definitely not the tactical position you want to be in. As for Anduin…
The theme of him being a disappointment to his father has been touched on before in various Warcraft media, including Wolfheart. The dread lord is more than happy to tout this fact, using it as an insult to pry away at Anduin’s insecurities. Calling Anduin the “runt,” he claimed his love of books, habit of befriending enemies, and failure to match his father’s martial prowess weakened and “leashed” the Wolf. It goes on, claiming it’s too late for Anduin to learn his father’s ways now, and that if such a mighty warrior fell against the Burning Legion, what hope could the Wolf’s weak little pup have?
In pure Legion fashion, the dread lord offers a choice: Bow before the Legion or perish. It claims this is the way of peace. That waging war with the Legion would be the path of selfish pride and would destroy his people, whereas joining the Legion would spare lives. Whether or not that’s true remains to be seen. But as the demon tempts Anduin, Varian’s background narrative continues. Contrary to the demon’s claims, Varian wrote to his son:
Varian: “From you I have learned patience, tolerance, and faith. Anduin, I now believe, as you do, peace is the noblest aspiration.”
Momentarily, Anduin concedes the point to the demon. And we get a wonderful dual narrative when Anduin replies to the dread lord while his father’s words recount in his head, his eyes glancing at the looming portrait of his father on the wall:
Varian: “But to preserve it, you must be willing to fight.”
Anduin: “The Wolf is gone forever. I am the Light that remains. And I will finish this!”
Summoning a hammer of Light, Anduin deals a mortal blow to the dread lord. For paladin fans, you can even catch a glimpse of a libram chained to his belt. However, careful watchers of Anduin’s development may be a little confused since he’s also displayed some priest-like tendencies (including shadow spells). What class is the pup, exactly? Will he officially take on the mantle of paladin in honor of his father, the warrior, and his previous caretaker, Bolvar Forddragon? Either way, he smited this demon back to where it came.
Standing over its smoldering remains, Anduin concludes that yes, he did change his father, but in that same vein his father also changed him. Whether the father and son exchanged the perfect balance of leadership traits remains to be seen. The Wolf learned to be a bridge builder and diplomat. Will the pup learn to fight? From this tiny comic glimpse, it seems that he may just have. Now he needs to step forward and prove himself.
Truthfully, I thought the comic ended here. It made canonical sense but considering that the story opened with the wrinkled brows of an old man, there’s one more thread to weave. I found this story choice to be odd since it essentially spoils the fate of two major Lore characters several decades later and implies the fate of others. If you’d like to keep Anduin’s story open-ended, feel free to stop reading here and avoid the end of the comic as well. For those curious about the old man, here’s his story:
Many decades later, within the Exodar, the Prophet Velen and a much older High King Anduin Wrynn prepare for battle. We’re not given the full story, but it’s implied that the war with the Burning Legion continues but today marks a crucial strike against the Legion. It may indeed fall. We see no other major Lore characters other than Velen and Anduin in this scene and Anduin implies that many have fallen. Clutched in his hand is the letter from his father, clearly something he treasured for decades. It seems Anduin indeed set himself on the path of peace, including avenging the death of his father and whoever else fell against the Legion. Perhaps he will be the final High King of the Alliance who battled against the Legion, and I mean that in the triumphant sense.
A quick note: There’s a nice little double meaning in Velen’s line of “the Light.” He may literally mean the Light itself, given that he’s quite pious (most, if not all, Draenei are), but Anduin referred to himself as The Light decades earlier. Could that become his title much like his father being called the Wolf? Talk about prolific!
Though it’s good to know Anduin honored his father’s legacy and survived so long, I wish this could have been revealed in another storytelling manner. It felt like stumbling across a huge spoiler! Still — the story ends here. We don’t know where the Exodar is (it could be in space, in orbit above Argus) or whether this supposed final battle will succeed. Perhaps us players will take up sword and spell and play part in this battle. Time will very literally tell.
Thus concludes our look at Son of a Wolf. Thanks for reading! We highly recommend you take a look at this flood of Warcraft Lore. We’ll be writing other comic summaries leading up to World of Warcraft: Legion’s launch on August 30 and also chat about these comics on our show. See you next time.