The Alliance Expedition went back through a reopened Dark Portal to end the orcish threat at its source. Draenor did not survive.
What Happened
- The shaman Ner'zhul reopens the Dark Portal to seek new worlds to conquer.
- An Alliance Expedition under Turalyon and Khadgar pursues him through.
- Ner'zhul opens multiple portals at once. The competing rifts tear Draenor apart.
- Khadgar seals the portal from the Draenor side. The Expedition is stranded.
- Ner'zhul flees into the Twisting Nether, where Kil'jaeden captures him, flays his spirit, and remakes him as The Lich King.
Why It Still Matters
Draenor's shattered remnant becomes Outland — unreachable at launch. The Expedition (Turalyon, Alleria Windrunner, Danath Trollbane, Kurdran Wildhammer) is missing, presumed dead, which is a live mystery in 2004 and a fine plot hook. And the Lich King is created here — meaning the Second War produced the Third.
