World of Warcraft®

What is the Shadow Priest lore in World of Warcraft?

Only reference comes from the Cult of Forgotten Shadows ( http://www.wowpedia.org/Cult_of_Forgotten_Shadow ), which all comes from the RPG, which is based on the depression and reformation of religion for the undead. Besides that reference, there is no reference to shadow priests anywhere in the game / world etc.

Priest lore is all about the "Light" and never about the "Shadow", even then, usual mention of the light comes from Paladins and Argent Dawn.


1.0 Was about the Light versus the Plaguelands
2.0 Was about the Light versus the Burning Crusade
3.0 Was about the Light versus the Lich King
4.0 Was about the Earth Ring versus Deathwing *combobreaker* and the cult of twilight shadows, had nothing really nothing to do with shadow priests despite having shadow in the name.
.... shadow priest lore is still non-existant... I want to see great shadow priest lore in 5.0

The only real shadow priest to come out in ages was the Archbishop even then he was "corrupted" by Deathwing, does that make all "shadow priests" corrupted or what ?

Shadow Priests on alliance and horde side dont have a notable NPC to live up to ?

Where do Shadow Priests go to Church to be true to themselves ?

Why does the church accept shadow priests, or if they dont, what is their position on them. How did the other race learn to become them, why are they "ignored" when like warlocks are publicly shunned and stuck in a basement of a pub etc.

If the "Shadow" is the Shadow (aka Darkness) is also a corruption of the faith of the Light. What pracitces stop Alliance/Horde shadow priests stepping over that corruption line that locks have to struggle with.

Im a Shadow Priest... I feel like I have no past, and no future. Just the target in front of me waiting to be face melted.

Natalie Seline was a bishop from Lordaeron that, after the First War, began to delve into workings of the orc necrolytes who had poured through the Dark Portal and desecrated their hallowed dead. While at first this was done in order to provide Azeroth with the knowledge it needed to fight against such dark magic, her studies over the years became increasingly obsessed with finding out why such dark energies existed at all, and why she began to see the ebb and flow of such energies in the world around her. She began preaching about the necessity of balance between dark and light, but after her death, her books were locked away in the Kirin Tor's vaults in Dalaran.[1]

The Cult of the Forgotten Shadow was created through the (re)discovery of her teachings by Forsaken priests in Lordaeron after the capture and refurbishing of the Undercity.[1]

http://www.wowpedia.org/Natalie_Seline

CAN LIGHT REALLY EXIST WITHOUT DARKNESS???

A shadow priest is just a generic thing.



In the original design of WoW, the idea was that all Horde priest races were actually different kinds of shadow priests. Trolls worship the Loa but for some reason they were considered Shadow priests. Forsaken believe in their cult.

For the Alliance races it's more or less a fall from grace idea.

A shadow priest is just a priest that believes in destruction rather than creation.

Natalie Seline was a bishop from Lordaeron that...[1]

http://www.wowpedia.org/Natalie_Seline

Yeah thats the formation of the Cult...
even then the story stops there, and its still all "before" world of warcraft.

What is the state of the Cult, now, and how does it extend beyond the walls of Undercity and out to the Alliance ?

I am hoping the "Sha" gives CDev an oppotunity to really add meat to the shadow priest lore!

So... Many... Errors.

Brother, if it is truth and knowledge of our noble history you seek I shall do my best to provide.

Text from the Magazine that has not been decanonized that will answer most of your questions. I know for a fact much of it is on that Wowpedia page you linked, and it's not from the RPG.

The Teachings of Bishop Natalie Seline
-After the first war, a bishop from Lordaeron began to delve into workings of the orc necrolytes who had poured through the Dark Portal and desecrated their hallowed dead. While at first this was done in order to provide Azeroth with the knowledge it needed to fight against such dark magic, the bishop's studies over the years became increasingly obsessed with finding out why such dark energies existed at all, and why she began to see the ebb and flow of such energies in the world around her. She began preaching about the necessity of balance between dark and light, but after her death, her books were locked away in the Kirin Tor's vaults in Dalaran.

What's the Deal with Shadow Priests?
-While many priests draw on powers such as the Holy Light or the goddess Elune, shadow priests turn to dark energies to accomplish their goals.

The Cult of the Forgotten Shadow, a group considered heretical by most, believes that dark energy practitioners are just as vital to the survival of life and reality (which they call "the Shadow") as wielders of the Light. The cult preaches balance, mandating that shadow priests must never forget the dangers of falling too deep into the dark energies they manipulate, for it is often too hard to find one's way back to the Shadow from the deep reaches of the darkness.

The cult was created through the (re)discovery of the teachings of Bishop Natalie Seline by Forsaken priests in Lordaeron after the capture and refurbishing of the Undercity. Shadow priests generally do not practice openly, and not all members are Forsaken, although they formed the cult. Within the last few years, the number of non-Forsaken (and non-Horde) members within the cult has grown sharply.

The Shadow in the Cult's terminology is not identified with Darkness, but rather reality to which both Darkness and Light are vital components. I wouldn't consider the Cult in its latest lore to be a corruption of anything, but rather expanding upon incomplete teachings.

This is what past you have, as for the future...

Yet I too am saddened by the lack of ingame content. The Light is glorified repeatedly and we've had its three virtues confirmed in Paletress' sermon.

Yet as for the Shadow we have an entry in a magazine with the details skimmed over, the important parts barely noticeable. That and de-canonized RPG info that does not fit the new, as the new depiction of the teachings predates the Forsaken and is in no way Undead-centric which was more-or-less the basis of how it was in the RPG.

So, the Light has its virtues ingame but we have nothing. What are our virtues now? What reasons do we give for them? Do we still even believe in Ascendancy?

The Cult would make an excellent addition to the Story ingame, especially for providing us a view into a far more moderate segment of Forsaken society as they've apparently no issue in spreading the teachings to the living or even the Alliance since they've got members among those according to the Magazine.

We're better then Light worshipers, more accepting. Our teachings, what little we know of them, carry a greater truth, as confirmed by the origin story described in the Titan comic.

It is said that in the beginning there was light and there was void and in a time long ago, the two collided in the abyss of the great dark.

Infinite worlds spiraled out into the newly forming cosmos... worlds that would one day bear life forms of wondrous and terrible diversity.

For here, as in the cults teachings, it is said that our existence is of both Light and Void. Even the Naaru accept this and know a balance must be kept between the two, though they don't seem to like it.

Anyways, I just want more details on our practices and ideals. Ingame lore and attention on top of this would be a greater blessing then words could describe.

A shadow priest is just a generic thing.
For the Alliance races it's more or less a fall from grace idea.

Thats the thing, especially coming from a Death Knight...

A Paladin becomes corrupted, becomes a Death Knight... full blown story arc just freeing themselves from LK and becoming the Ebon Knights and pledging allegiance to Alliance/Horde. Every notable Death Knight has the good life pally, great fall, evil DK story.

A Priest becomes shadow priest, has to just nod their heads quielty when other priests go on and on and on about "the Light", never mentioning "the Shadow", and are pretty much ignored and considered something "generic". And no one notable to live up to!

02/07/2012 08:39 PMPosted by Draelik

A shadow priest is just a priest that believes in destruction rather than creation.

Blatant lies and propaganda, my good sir...

The Shadow believes in accepting creation as a whole and knows the Darkness or Void is just as vital to our existence as the Light itself, and as such a balance must be maintained between the two. Most of us do indeed tend to manipulate the Darker magics, serving as the balance to the Light and its followers, but such Darker magics are no more the Shadow we believe in then the Light is.

That and the Magazine states we have members among the Alliance and other living, so it's really not as generic as you thought.

Brother, if it is truth and knowledge of our noble history you seek I shall do my best to provide.

This is what past you have, as for the future...Yet I too am saddened by the lack of ingame content.

So, the Light has its virtues ingame but we have nothing. What are our virtues now? What reasons do we give for them? Do we still even believe in Ascendancy?

Anyways, I just want more details on our practices and ideals. Ingame lore and attention on top of this would be a greater blessing then words could describe.

Thanks Dusksworn, that was a nice read... but yeah, still feel like, more of a case of where do we belong.

Even with the thought that shadow priests exist in a state of balance of light and dark, that doesnt come out ingame if its all about Light preaching (but I blame the Paladins for that mostly :P) and that the only notable exceptions are full blown corruptions.

But yeah more stuff ingame... practices, ideals, standing in the church, tensions in the church. new notable npcs.

Thanks Dusksworn, that was a nice read... but yeah, still feel like, more of a case of where do we belong.

Even with the thought that shadow priests exist in a state of balance of light and dark, that doesnt come out ingame if its all about Light preaching (but I blame the Paladins for that mostly :P) and that the only notable exceptions are full blown corruptions.

But yeah more stuff ingame... practices, ideals, standing in the church, tensions in the church. new notable npcs.

Would the corruptions even qualify as proper Shadow Priests? They seem to be the ones who have have fallen fully into Darkness into which the Cult warns against.

The cult preaches balance, mandating that shadow priests must never forget the dangers of falling too deep into the dark energies they manipulate, for it is often too hard to find one's way back to the Shadow from the deep reaches of the darkness.

So really, those might not even qualify as proper Shadow Priests at all, or not in the same sense as the Cults even if they wield similar powers. And we only have one Lightslayer ingame with no lore behind him, in Darkshore...

http://www.wowpedia.org/Fallen_Priest

02/07/2012 09:27 PMPosted by Sarm

http://www.wowpedia.org/Fallen_Priest

I'm afraid that hasn't much to do with the topic on hand other then informing us that Priests can wield darker magics, which we already knew, and that some of those are just pricks.

I always assumed a priest was just a servent of some divine aspect. But as there are gods of light there are also gods of shadow.

The trolls priests of dark loa spirits make perfect sense
The Foresaken Priests of the forgotten shadow make perfect sense.
I assume Goblin shadow priests worship aspects of greed and corruption

Night Elves shadow priests aren't evil, they just venerate darkness and the night (They are a noctural race afterall)

Humans and dwarves and Blood elves and gnomes are all subject to corruption by various dark influences.

the only one that does not makes sense are tauren shadow priests.

ADDENDUM: It's like in DnD; a cleric is attached to a divine source of power, that divine power can be any alignment and so the cleric can be any alignment, but Paladins must be Lawful Good, and can't not be lawful good.

What's wrong with tauren shadow priests? The sun creates shadows.

02/08/2012 12:17 PMPosted by Moomaul

What's wrong with tauren shadow priests? The sun creates shadows.

Taurens are also seekers of balance and shadow balances the light.

02/08/2012 12:17 PMPosted by Moomaul

What's wrong with tauren shadow priests? The sun creates shadows.

Plus, don't the Tauren know the need for balance? Balance is essentially the central theme of the Forgotten Shadow as it stands in the only applicable lore remaining and I would think that would give it some appeal among the Tauren, wouldn't you?

The new lore states rather clearly that they have other races other then Forsaken among them, and even takes time to note that even some of the Alliance are among their numbers. So Tauren Shadow Priests may be something taught to them by the Forsaken for all we know, there are plenty available in their city to train them after all.

EDIT:

02/08/2012 12:48 PMPosted by Koaleaf

Taurens are also seekers of balance and shadow balances the light.

Ah, the confusing part. Where various terms have a different meaning depending upon whom is speaking.

It is Darkness or Void which balances Light, and Shadow is sometimes used synonymously except when speaking of the balance between the two. In those cases "The Shadow" is the whole of reality itself and most certainly not Darkness or Void, it is what is maintained through the balance of Darkness and Light.

Shadow Priests however do not wield "Shadow" in this sense, but typically utilize Darkness or Void to balance out those who only follow the Light.

I know, it can be confusing. Anyone who does not believe in this balance may wield the same exact power but not be a true Shadow Priest, since it's beliefs and not the powers they wield that make one a Shadow Priest by this definition. They would be Dark Priests or Void Priests or something of that sort.

Blatant lies and propaganda, my good sir...

The Shadow believes in accepting creation as a whole and knows the Darkness or Void is just as vital to our existence as the Light itself, and as such a balance must be maintained between the two. Most of us do indeed tend to manipulate the Darker magics, serving as the balance to the Light and its followers, but such Darker magics are no more the Shadow we believe in then the Light is.

That and the Magazine states we have members among the Alliance and other living, so it's really not as generic as you thought.

It's a generic concept.

What we're saying doesn't entirely contradict each other. However I do have one boon in my favor: Every single Shadow Priest ability is in some way aimed towards destroying something.

THAT is the "balance". Destruction is another form of creation. To destroy something is to transform it.

Furthermore, to cause such transformation has a ripple effect on other things. For example, kill a child's parents, and that child thirsts for revenge, and in the long run becomes a stronger person because of his/her drive to conquer their grief.

So both creation and destruction are needed for balance. Shadow priests aren't bringing balance per say, they're just transforming the work holy priests strive for, thus creating a theoretical balance.

I just find the Shadow Priest lore is just lacking... and in general I think the priest lore is a bit lacking. On a closer inspection, if you remove the Paladin lore and their direct link to "the Light" there isnt much lore left for Priests.

I think Paladins take too much of the "lime light" of "the Light" leading the crusades, wars, conflicts and having the huge dramas and spectacular failures. Paladins have all the notable "light" and "fallen" characters, stories and dramas, as well as leading the big fights on the banner of Argent Dawn.

Deep down I think the only new lore priests we had in years was Gnome Priests... and before that was Prophet Space Goat who didnt do much cause the iconic draeni image that always popped up still ended up being a Draeni Paladins holding that purple crystal mace *facepalm*

I so hope they include Shadow Priests in the whole balance of light/dark that the monks supposedly have and the fight against the "new darkness" for Mists of Pandaria. I want some big priest lore.


WoW needs Epic Priest Lore !!! "The Shadow" lore more suited to priests and cut the Paladins out of it, they had enough spotlight on them.

Well there are a few Priest characters who...

Were background characters?

One who gave a sermon and another joined the Old Gods? That and the other did little else then form the Paladins so they could steal the spotlight. That and we only know the Bishop Natalie Seline, who first formed the teachings of the Shadow, from the magazine.

And now it looks like the Monks may even steal our "Balance between Light and Dark" theme, though I still have hopes that maybe, just maybe, the expansion might have some of the focus on us.

Also to Draelik, I've just hunted through my screenshots for some quest text not on Wowhead...

So even in A'dal's likely biased words...

Creatures of the void are naturally chaotic. They are a necessary part of the universe, but they must be kept in check by the Light.

So basically even the Lightest of the Light who actually understand how things work know the Void is necessary for the Universe to exist, and was even half of what it took to create it in the first place.

A force responsible for the creation of the Universe to as much a degree as the Light is unlikely to be purely destructive. Though we may take it that you are correct that it is more focused on transformation or change, as if we take A'dal's words as fact then Void is inherently chaotic. This makes it likely that Light tends to be orderly since they're supposedly opposite, so we may infer that the Light keeps things stable while the Void moves them along when kept in proper balance.

If the Light were to achieve dominance their would likely be stagnation and if the reverse were to occur then yes, destruction would likely ensue. Too much of either would theoretically be a bad thing. Though apparently unholy power, which I assume to be Void, also serve to bind matter as it states in the Death Grip text.

Harness the unholy energy that surrounds and binds all matter

I've done my best to make myself aware of all the information even loosely tied to these matters I could find.

I started a shadow priest on an RPPVP server and I was wondering the same thing. After reading all this, and the limited text available on the subject, I believe I have found a better understanding of what a Shadow Priest is. as far as the Cult of Forgotten Shadow. it comes across fairly straight forward that they aren't "good" people. even looking at their alignment on the WoWwiki claims them as "lawful evil, chaotic neutral, neutral evil" and further claims "There are also shadow priests among the trolls, they find Forsaken to be kindred spirits, supporting them because they are evil." However. take that with a grain of salt. it is a Wiki after all.

What Natalie Seline taught however, was very different from what the Cult of Forgotten Shadow teaches in my opinion. Personally I feel that they bastardized what she really meant to teach us. But I'm sure if my mind was partially decomposed, id mess up a lot as well, heh heh.

However! all that having been said. what I have read across the forum, the wiki, wowpedia, and what little official lore is out there, I have come to...My own Understand of what it means to be a Shadow Priest, and that is what has been said multiple times already, Balance. we wield the power of darkness and void because we have too to preserve a consistent in the world.

It is said that in the beginning there was light and there was void and in a time long ago, the two collided in the abyss of the great dark.

Infinite worlds spiraled out into the newly forming cosmos... worlds that would one day bear life forms of wondrous and terrible diversity.

So in a sense, while we wield the power of the void, we do it in response to the light to preserve the balance of creation. we walk that fine line of madness because without us the Light would over power the void. which in theory sounds nice, but in practice would be disastrous. the light keeps the void in check. just as the void keeps the light in check.

So don't use the word "Shadow" interchangeably with "Darkness" or "Void" when talking about who shadow priests are or what they represent. a shadow is formed from the light. but it is not darkness. if you turn off all the lights in a room, there is no shadow, there is darkness. same concept.

We must wield the Void. and work in the 'Shadows' that the light cannot touch. Because we are the Priests Azeroth deserves, but not the ones it needs right now. So, we'll control the powers of the void, because we can take it. Because we're not your hero. We're a lightless bishop. A dark cleric. A Shadow Priest.