Ironforge

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Ironforge as seen in the World of Warcraft.
Enlarge
Ironforge as seen in the World of Warcraft.

Ironforge is the capital city of the Bronzebeard Clan Dwarves in the Warcraft storyline of Blizzard Entertainment. It is a huge stone fortress built into a mountain. Gnomes also reside in their section of Ironforge, called Tinker Town. In World of Warcraft, there is a sort of city hierarchy. Cities for the Alliance are ranked from most to least populated as such: Ironforge, Stormwind, and Darnassus. For the Horde: Orgrimmar, The Undercity, and Thunder Bluff.

Contents

[edit] History

Dwarven Ironforge insignia.
Enlarge
Dwarven Ironforge insignia.

Many dwarven strongholds fell during the Second War, but the mighty city of Ironforge, nestled in the wintry peaks of Dun Morogh, was never breached by the invading Horde. A marvel to the dwarves' skill at shaping rock and stone, Ironforge was constructed in the heart of the mountain itself: an expansive underground city of explorers, miners and warriors. While the Alliance has been weakened by recent events, the dwarves of Ironforge, led by King Magni Bronzebeard, are forging a new future in the world. Ironforge is now also the home of the Gnomeregan refugees; the gnomes who were exiled from their irradiated home. They have converted an area of Ironforge to their liking and this section has come to be known as Tinker Town. But the Gnomes didn't always live in Tinker Town; they once lived in their city of Gnomeregan, which was taken over by troggs.

In the MMORPG World of Warcraft, Ironforge was home to the Alliance's only Auction House (before the 1.9 patch which added linked Auction Houses in Darnassus and Stormwind), and is thus a major hub for players. During peak times Ironforge can, for people with certain configurations, cause the game to slow down (or lag), causing some to refer to Ironforge as 'Lagforge' or 'Ironlag'. Despite the availability of auction houses in Stormwind and Darnassus, the amount of traffic in Ironforge has not decreased. Some players believed that the end result of the patch would be that instead of merely one laggy capital per faction - Orgrimmar for the Horde and Ironforge for the Alliance - there would be 3.

[edit] Structure

The Great Forge.
Enlarge
The Great Forge.
The Gates of Ironforge.
Enlarge
The Gates of Ironforge.

Ironforge is structurally laid out in a giant circle of sections:

  • The Commons (by the gates)
  • The Great Forge (at the center)
  • The Mystic Ward (north from the gates)
  • The Military Ward (east from the gates)
  • The Forlorn Cavern' (beyond the Mystic Ward)
  • Hall of Explorers (far opposite from the Commons)
  • Tinker Town (beyond the Military Ward)
  • Deeprun Tram (from Tinker Town)

The Great Forge is the heart and soul of Dwarven culture, where all of their ingenious creations and weapons are made. At its center is the famed Great Anvil, where most of the best Dwarven blacksmithing trainers can be found. Ringed around the Great Forge are a great deal of shops and guild offices, including trainers for cooking, mining, first aid, tailoring and leatherworking. as well as the court of the High King Magni Bronzebeard. Ironforge's gryphon master is also located here.

The Hall of Explorers is home to the famed Iron Forge Explorer's Guild. Every archaeological expedition the Alliance sends out is coordinated here. It also houses the Iron Forge museum and the Great Library.

Originally, Tinker Town was just a small quarter of the city for Gnome visiting from Gnomeregan to use. Since the fall of their clockwork city, it has become the center of the Gnomish court in exile. the High Tinker can be found here, along with his close advisors. It is also home to a number of Alchemy and Engineering trainers, as well as the entrance to the famed Deeprun Tram. The Deeprun Tram connects the city of Ironforge with the city of Stormwind, the capital city of the Human nation of Azeroth.

[edit] Trivia

  • "Iron forge" was a cheat code in the original Warcraft
  • Ironforge is the hardest capital city for Horde players to raid due to the large amount of Alliance players there, as such high concentration of players in Ironforge is often the cause of server crashes.
  • In the Deeprun Tram an elite monster named "Nessy" can be seen swimming outside in the ocean sections of the tram.
  • Also in the Deeprun Tram, there are several level 60+ Naga (Warcraft) who are also unencounterable.

[edit] External links

Warcraft Universe
Azeroth | Draenor | Eastern Kingdoms | Gnomeregan | Kalimdor | Northrend | Lordaeron | Khaz Modan | Azeroth Kingdom | Quel'Thalas | Dalaran | Darnassus | The Exodar | Ironforge | Silvermoon | Stormwind | Orgrimmar | Thunder Bluff | Undercity | Well of Eternity
Games | Books | Races | Locations | Characters | Organizations | Instances | Items
In other languages