Thrall leads his followers west across the sea

Full History

Thrall had united and freed many orcs after the years of internment that followed the Second War. The New Horde was not yet secure in a homeland, and its people continued to live amid the hostility produced by the Old Horde's invasions. Medivh, returning in the guise of a prophet, warned that an extraordinary danger was approaching from the Burning Legion. He urged Thrall to lead his followers across the sea to Kalimdor rather than remain where the Scourge and the coming invasion would bring destruction.

The journey required the orcs to abandon familiar regions and place their future in a land few of them knew. Their fleet traveled west, passing through dangers that tested the fragile movement Thrall had assembled. During the voyage the Horde aided the Darkspear trolls and became linked to a people whose struggles were separate from the orcs' long wars with human kingdoms. The partnership began to change what the New Horde could become.

On Kalimdor, Thrall's forces encountered Cairne Bloodhoof and the tauren, who were threatened by centaur attacks. Cooperation brought another alliance and helped the orcs understand the terrain of their new world. Yet the continent was not empty. The night elves guarded ancient forests, and the Warsong clan's actions in Ashenvale would create a grave conflict with their defenders. The Horde's arrival brought hope for some peoples and disaster for others.

The voyage culminated in the struggle against the Burning Legion at Mount Hyjal. Thrall's forces joined human refugees under Jaina and the night elves against Archimonde. After the victory, the orcs established Durotar and began the building of Orgrimmar. The westward crossing was therefore the decisive migration that carried the Horde from the aftermath of defeat toward its permanent place in the original World of Warcraft.