Dumb Thoughts: Amun'thul, Y'shaarj and corruption

So a rogue thought hit me today.


We know that the Void desperately wants a Void Titan to open up the way for the Void Lords to invade the Material Plane directly.

We know Y’Shaarj was so powerful even just his breath was able to infect Titan Keepers and Watchers with the negative emotions associated with this most powerful amongst the Old Gods. By his breath, his voice alone, this Old God could turn even the Titan Watchers by exploiting the darkest aspects of their nature, their emotions, and we’re never told just how dangerous its magic was, if its mere breath was able to overcome such powerful entities of Order.

Anger, Hatred, Violence, Fear, Doubt, Despair, and most disturbingly of all, Pride. All of these were weapons wielded with terrible malice and intelligence against all who stood against Y’shaarj’s ambitions.

And Amun’thul is a Proud Titan. The First Titan. The Titan of Time, able to see all, know all, comprehend all. But Pride is ‘good’ … until it becomes ‘bad’.

And Amun’thul reached down and directly ripped Y’Shaarj from the very crust of Azeroth with his own hand, full of ‘Anger’ and ‘Violence’ that the Old God was opposing his will. And in the process of doing so, not only did Amun’thul ‘kill’ the Old God, but he tore a gaping wound in the world so dire that it threatened the very existence of the World Soul, gripping his heart with ‘Fear’ and ‘Doubt’ over what he’d done.

We’d also see Amun’thul in the grips of dark emotions when he’d rip G’Hannir out of Azeroth, ‘Fear’-ing that it was Chaos in his ‘perfect Order’. ‘Doubt’-ing Eonir’s loyalty and commitment by fraternizing with a rival Pantheon. ‘Anger’ that anyone would bring a force of Chaos to Azeroth after all they’d done to Order it. ‘Pride’ that his course, his agenda, was the only one worth pursuing. ‘Hatred’ for Chaos, in all of its forms.

I have a theory that Amun’thul made a critical error in grabbing an Old God directly, as we’ve seen how corruptive and insidious Old God essence is even when they’re in torpor/stasis and horrifically depowered by the Titan Facilities that force them into such a state. How powerful, how dangerous, was Y’shaarj at the height of its power, flush with Void energy and raging at full strength against the greatest servants of the Titanic Pantheon.

And in that moment, where Y’shaarj and Amun’thul, both entities with the ability to cast their vision with almost flawless precision into past, present and future, collided both physically and magically, where Amun’thul’s anger had taken control, however briefly, that is the moment when Y’shaarj struck, knowing it could not win against the Pantheon, but it might yet provide either the Void Titan its masters, the Void Lords, so desperately needed, or topple the Titanic Pantheon from within by driving their leader into the darkest aspects of his emotions, fueling his Pride, his Doubt, his Fear and his Anger to the point where the Pantheon would either tear itself apart from within, or fall to corruption.

Either way, the Pantheon would be weakened and divided and be considerably less effective against the Void Lords’ plans.


What are your thoughts?

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Ah just made the connection but the Haronnir probably guardians/keepers of the roots left by Elun’Ahir. So might be getting some Elune lore next expansion.

Now to sh-post and put on my tin foil hat and look like a derange conspiracy theorist but the roots bore deep into the earth, infecting the world soul with Elune’s essences. It wasn’t the void we should have been worried about but the goddess thats intends to hatch out of the world and kill us all

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I think that Y’shaarj’s greatest power WAS in his voice. I don’t think there was anything in his arsenal greater than it. He didn’t need the power to blow up a mountain or planet or whatever because the power he has over those vices/sins are so great.

Anyway, I’m not so sure he could corrupt beings on a order of magnitude greater than himself. It’s kind of like in Lord of the Rings where you have this powerful artifact, the One Ring that could corrupt you and exploit all the darkness in your heart. Very similar to Y’shaarj could, just more covert. But would such a thing work on Morgoth? Probably not. Even though he has tons of traits that could be exploited in a human being. Why? Because Morgoth is a being an order of magnitude higher than Sauron. And I think that kind of thing applies to Amun’thul as well. It should also be noted that we adventurers overcame our pride before we fought the Sha of Pride.

This isn’t to say the Old Gods couldn’t lay traps or exploit the character weaknesses of a Titan. They certainly could. But in much the same way a person would do it to another. Through wits rather than supernatural influence. Basically, I think what you’re saying COULD be the case, but in a different way. Rather than corruption it’s outplaying him.

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I know the Old Gods, back in the Knaack triology, the Sundering or whatever it was called, had full intention of ambushing and taking out Sargeras after he came through the Well of Eternity and manifested physically into Azeroth, so I’m not sure that a Titan is entirely immune to an Old God’s influence.

I would definitely say, being the oldest and most guileful, if not intelligent, of the Titans, Amun’thul would likely not be just instantly corrupted, but I would argue that given that we’re seeing, more and more as the story progresses, that Amun’thul is jealous, angry and prideful, that he might not even be aware of, or be willing to admit, that he’s been infected, however slightly.

He comes as the type of character/personality type that would be shouting everything is fine even as the ship is sinking below the waterline, if that makes sense? He’d never admit to being bested by a force of Chaos, and from the few encounters we’ve had, seems to treat even wise advice that goes against his beliefs as arrogance or unnecessary. Even when Eonar is telling him they’ve got to hurry to capture Sargeras, he seems angry that she spoke ‘out of turn’ while he was doing his grand speech to the Mortals, or at least that’s the expression he takes.

I don’t think it could be a full corruption, but a slow, incrementally effective one that has progressed slowly even after being captured by the Legion and reduced to a state of pure energy.