Why Motivation is Important? Illidan Stormrage Can Give You an Answer.

In Greenalty, multiverse capital, we faced a weird story one day. An earthquake has destroyed the monitoring center for various natural accidents. Election day was soon, and citizens’ attention was concentrated on it only. Politicians blamed each other for what has happened. People divided into groups that supported different sides. And everyone has forgotten that we have no monitoring center now! Nothing to predict the next possible earthquake. It has happened again, and many lives were taken. Wait… What are we talking about? Hmm… Illidan, right.

This might seem an unnecessary lyric story, but I remembered it after some of you sent a curious letter in our office. It was written there that many heroic characters in the history of Azeroth make some things misunderstood and judged by others. Unpopular or even harmful decisions. The example given was Illidan Stormrage.

I Hope, my thoughts will address you much more broaden discussion than the one about his actions. Illidan’s life story is a sequence of betrayals and deceptions by people close to him. And, on the other hand, made by him to others.

Azeroth citizens perceived Illidan as the crazy elf greedy and thirsty for power. Sure, they saw his devotion and love for Tyrande Whisperwind, a friend of his childhood, but most of his deeds were associated with demons, betrayals, and corruption. His brother Malfurion caged him for inconvenient use of power in fighting with demons that might let to the harmful aftermaths for the elven people. Ironically, this “inconvenient use” helped to preserve night elves civilization.

Villain or Savior?

Fighting demons is Illidan’s destiny

Each time the new threat from the other side appeared in Azeroth, Illidan was summoned as the magic wand, the ultimate solution for the problems. And when the threat was over, he was justified as a criminal. His efforts and decisions were truly appreciated only in the last fight with the Legion invasion, and it would be interesting to understand, why people of Azeroth have misunderstood him before.

Maiev Shadowsong, the warden of Illidan cage, repeats the sequence of actions made by prosecutor Javert in the famous Earth novel Les Miserables. Just like Javert, she has the feeling that only justice can decide, which motivation and methods of reaching pieces are worthy. Just like Javert, she fails in her attempt to show everyone that her prisoner as “definitely bad” because people ask the prisoner about the motives for the first time. And they start to understand him. For a bit.

Once the warden caught her prisoner. For sure.
Only during the last Legion invasion, we saw the whole picture of Illidan’s motives. He knew that one interaction with the Legion forces will cause other ones. Till they finally destroy Azeroth. That is why he was preparing his own plan of fighting with the threat. Why he didn’t ask for help? Because peoples of Azeroth are in a constant fight with each other. They are just like people in my story, focusing on the differences, making alliances to battle on the physical and ideological level. The Legion invasion is the earthquake, and Illidan was the one, who saw the consequences of monitoring center destruction. You may ask, why didn’t he tell everyone about his motives? But, you know, will they listen? Probably, not, because “your faction sucks” shouting is the better option.