Worgen Diet and Instinct
Thankyou again for finding these two. Funny enough, the debate on worgen diets is what started it all for me, years ago. Someone on the forums asked the question, I answered, and a then-guildie disagreed and began trolling on an alt.
Itās been three years since then, and Iāve had the opportunity to research, ponder, and discuss the topic. At length. The question of āwhat worgen eatā really is bigger than simply taste. It involves biologyā¦ instinctā¦ and delving into what the worgen really are. Whether theyāre furry humans, or savage predators.
In short, yes, worgen eat meat. The wolf-men are predatory and carnivorous by nature. The worgen is physically equipped for the role of predator, with claws, a sensitive nose, and a maw of fangs. So too is the worgen instinctually predatory, by default. Halford Ramsey narrates it best in Curse of the Worgen - a sophisticated Gilnean detective - once he is turned.
A new, uncharted world stretched before me. And yet raw desire and emotion warred within. A need to sate hunger, to slake thirst, to run with feet barely touching the ground.
ā¦
Then a shift in the wind alerted me to another scent, an odor I had encountered many times in my workā¦
Blood.Instantly calm, peace, and serenity were shattered. Rage swelled anew. I raced toward the source.
There was no thought, only action. I attacked! Driven by hunger, overwhelmed by the desire to pierce flesh with my teeth, to rend and tearā¦
(Curse of the Worgen, issue 3, pg 1-4)
Alpha Prime - the first worgen - addresses this instinct as well, more than once in the book. Perhaps one of his most forward of quotes is this, addressing on his imprisonment.
āBe at peaceā? At PEACE?! We are meant to run! To hunt!
The exile of the Dream was a torture you could never possibly comprehend! You cannot tame what is meant to be wild!
(Curse of the Worgen, Issue 5, pg 20)
This does not appear to be āsomeā worgen, either. Even the most sophisticated Gilnean worgen example we have, King Genn Greymane, hunts on all fours, with a pack. In fact, it was the bitten nobles that accompanied him, hunting on all fours in Teldrassil.
Those who accompanied Genn included other surviving members of the nobility, male and female. However, in addition, favored officers and Gennās own personal staff and guards would also be included in the āroyalā hunt.
(Wolfheart p. 263)He bared his teeth as he imagined the nearby pack pursuing its prey, and increased his pace in order to better his chances of joining the chase before it was too late. He knew that the pack would not hunt too far apart from one another. Their lupine tendencies would make the worgen follow certain traits that Varian understood very well.
(Wolfheart p. 264)And at last he saw a worgen who could only be the Gilnean king. Genn flung himself after a massive boar with tusks so sharp and strong that, if the animal turned to face the worgen, Genn would truly risk death. At the moment, though, the boar thought only of flight. Genn, however, was fast gaining. He ran sometimes on only his legs, but other times used his hands too. With a litheness that Varian had not even seen from the much younger Eadrik, the veteran ruler closed on the boar.
(Wolfheart pp. 265-266)The bear let out a moan and fell on its left side, its throat now torn out. A worgen stood above the dead animal, blood and bits of meat still dangling from the end of his claws. The worgen looked at Varian.
(Wolfheart p. 274)
Iāve recently found another quote for support as well, in the newest book āBefore the Stormā. The passage below begins with Anduin and Genn (in human form), eating breakfast together at the table, and Christie Golden takes this moment to comment on Gennās other eating habits.
āI had almost forgotten we were heading into summer,ā Greymane said as he helped himself to a sweet-smelling, perfectly ripe peach. Amberseed buns, Stromgarde cheese, herbed eggs, ham, bacon, fresh sunfruit, and pastries also had been laid out, and milk, coffee, tea, and a selection of juices were provided to wash it down.
As a worgen, Greymane had hunted for food in a way that the rest of the Alliance could not, and could feed upon things others could not. Worgen were, in many ways, the strongest and best suited to war, for the adage that an army marched on its stomach was a true one. But clearly the king of Gilneas still relished the taste of summerās first fruits.
(Before the Storm p. 46)
More support can be found in other worgen lore sources as well. The Nightbane worgen in the comic Dark Riders love meat with a passion, so much so that two foolish worgen attacked without waiting for the pack. There are several mentions of bacon in the game, in jest, but there are also several instances of worgen eating meat, anywhere worgen can be found. In Duskwood, the Nightbane can be found eating slain wolves. In Silverpine Forest, the Bloodfang worgen were easily distracted by the meat on the table in the Shadowfang Keep dungeon. In the Grizzly Hills, the secretly worgen villagers try to sell you raw meat, and fur with puncture marks.
Thatās not to say worgen canāt eat other things. Even my family dog loves her some potato chips. Worgen are at least half human too, even if they do have a canine mouth, so chocolate or grapes isnāt going to kill you if you eat it, as it would a dog. What is true is that worgen are compelled to eat meat, as well as to hunt it themselves.
Thankyou for this question! I actually had to go looking for old posts, and through various books in my kindle library for this one. Now that I have them on hand, reformatting this for the guide should be a piece of cake.
The only one I couldnāt find the source link for was the vendor in Silverbrooke village, that sells you raw meat and punctured fur scraps. Evidence of hunting by fang, even by the āhumanā villagers. Iām gonna need to hop ingame to find that oneā¦ couldnāt find him on wowpedia or wowhead.