Lore of Hearthstone, Episode #36 - Forged in the Barrens

This is recently updated with the mini-set, so I am republishing it again! I debated on making Wailing Caverns its own thing, but I guess this is how I'm going to handle the mini-sets from this point onwards, as a little addendum in-between the original release of the set and any single-player mode. 

I debated back and forth on whether I should include the Barrens-themed Quilboar cards from Battlegrounds here, but decided to stuff everything still in the Battlegrounds page. I'm assuming not all Battlegrounds updates would be as tied to the lore of the primary expansion.

Originally published in June 2021, I've re-published this article after updating the story mode to include the mini-set and the 'Book of Mercenaries' single player content for Xyrella, Guff and Kurtrus. I also re-published the Book of Heroes to be updated all the way to Malfurion as well, and went back to add a bunch of additional details regarding the hero skins to the basic ten heroes. 

The Barrens:

Forged in the Barrens is an expansion based on the Barrens, a large Horde-centric zone in central Kalimdor. It's the rugged savannah that we usually see associated with the Horde and orcs in particular. After the Third War and the destruction of Archimonde, the Horde renamed the region Durotar and built the Horde capital of Orgrimmar there. The founding of Durotar was a long and lengthy process, aided in no small part by Rexxar, Beastmaster and hero of the Horde -- as shown in Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne. It's a rough land filled with conflict to whet the appetite of the orcs, with quilboars, harpies and centaurs roaming the lands. 

In World of Warcraft, Durotar was the starting zone for orc and (initially) troll characters, and these early-level characters would be funneled into the Barrens. Thus, the Barrens is, in a meta sense, one of the most memorable areas for Horde players.

As of WoW, the Barrens are a mostly Horde-controlled area, with the largest outpost being the Crossroads and Camp Taurajo. Due to the importance of some trade routes and potential resources, some Alliance presence have cropped up there -- among them, the humans of Theramore have set up Northwatch Hold, while a dwarven expedition have created Bael'dun Keep near a titan excavation site. In addition, the neutral goblin-controlled port of Ratchet is built here. Two dungeons -- the Wailing Caverns and Razorfen Downs -- are located in the Barrens.

During Cataclysm, Alliance forces have encroached deeper into Horde territory, taking over the town of Honor's Stand. The Cataclysm itself rent the Barrens asunder with a massive lava chasm, separating the area into Northern Barrens and Southern Barrens, changing the shape of the location immensely. The formerly very Horde-centric location had more of an Alliance presence there, which became more of a challenge to new aspiring heroes of the Horde. 

LEGENDARY MINIONS:

Blademaster Samuro

Samuro is a hero that first appears in Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne, in the 'Founding of Durotar' Horde campaign. A representative of the Blademaster hero class, Samuro is one of the last Blademasters to wear the banner of the Burning Blade, a clan well-known for its blademasters but had much of its proud warriors fall to demonic corruption. Samuro was one of the few who pledged themselves to Warchief Thrall and his New Horde, trying to find redemption for his fallen clan. 

During the events of Frozen Throne, Samuro was sent to assist the heroes of the Horde, Rexxar and Rokhan, in investigating the mysterious appearance of humans that are hostile to the Horde. However, he is still gripped with vengeance and had to engage a powerful wildkin called Bloodbeak, who had wiped out the village that he was staying in. After dealing with Bloodbeak, Samuro would use his powerful Wind-Walk ability to sneak into the Kul Tiran base camp and plant explosives to sabotage the base, allowing Rexxar and his allies to enter. Samuro would depart the party after his job was done. 

Interestingly, unlike most characters in Warcraft III, Samuro hasn't actually appeared in World of Warcraft. One of the members of the in-universe band Elite Tauren Chieftain is an orc called Samuro, but it's unclear if it's the same character. Samuro himself has shown up in Heroes of the Storm, sharing much of his quotes and skills with Warcraft III's Samuro. Samuro's quotes in Hearthstone are taken from Warcraft III -- "my blade seeks vengeance" is the Blademaster hero's quote when he is summoned, "I hear and obey" is one of the four lines for obeying an order. "Bladestorm" isn't a quote Samuro says in Warcraft III, but is the name of his original ultimate skill, and his Heroes of the Storm incarnation says it when activating the skill. 

Overlord Varok Saurfang

(Originally published in 'Book of Heroes', where he appeared before showing up here) Varok Saurfang was born on Draenor as an orc of the Blackrock clan. Alongside Orgrim Doomhammer and Eitrigg, Varok Saurfang was the three primary lieutenants of Warchief Blackhand when the First Horde was formed. As part of the Horde, Varok committed many atrocities, participating in the saccking of Shattrath and the mass slaughter of Draenei. Prior to the opening of the Dark Portal, Varok's mate Remda died, with her dying wish that their son not be exposed to warlocks or cross the Dark Portal. Varok thus hid his son Dranosh away at Nagrand, under the care of Greatmother Geyah. Varok afterwards participated as a major commander of the Horde under warchief Blackhand (and later Orgrim Doomhammer), noted to be unstoppable in battle until the final battle of the Second War when the Horde was defeated (in Hearthstone, Uther was the one who beat him!). Varok would join the survivors of the Second War in following Thrall all the way to Kalimdor, fighting in the Battle of Mt. Hyjal. Varok would help many Horde veterans in coming to terms with the atrocities done under the blood curse, but his own slaughter of many humans and draenei haunted him. 

In World of Warcraft, Varok Saurfang was a high-ranking orc stationed in Orgrimmar's Valley of Strength, and would participate in the War of the Shifting Sands, acting as Supreme Commander in the war against the silithid. Varok would be reunited with his adult son Dranosh in Burning Crusade. He would once more lead the Horde's forces into battle in Wrath of the Lich King, first defending Orgrimmar from the Scourge, and then commanding Horde forces in Warsong Hold. He was known to nearly come to blows against the hot-headed Garrosh during this campaign. Varok's son Dranosh was slain by the Lich King and turned into one of the foul undead. During the final fall of the Lich King, Saurfang would personally command the gunship Orgrim's Hammer in the final assault in Icecrown Citadel. Varok would confront his son, transformed into Deathbringer Saurfang -- though the circumstance would be different depending on whether the player is part of the Alliance or Horde. Regardless, Dranosh is put to rest, and the remains returned to the grieving Varok. The death of Varok's son shattered the old orc, and he would retreat from being a major player in the Horde.

During the Siege of Orgrimmar in Mists of Pandaria, Varok Saurfang returned to rejoin Thrall and the rest of the Horde loyalists in opposing his former protege Garrosh. Varok was wounded by a mantid attack during the fight, however, and was dismayed to learn of the death of his friend Nazgrim, who chose to side with Garrosh. In Legion, Varok would participate in the battles against the Burning Legion, becoming one of the major officers representing the orcs (succeeding the dead Garrosh and the retired Thrall). He would also personally defend the Barrens from Legion incursions, and would be recruited into the ranks of the Valarjar due to his might and prowress. 

In Battle for Azeroth, the new warchief Sylvanas Windrunner consulted Varok on how to best attack Stormwind, something that Varok was very reluctant to do -- though Sylvanas's rationale on securing a future for the Horde won Varok over, so long as victory was earned with honour. Despite his misgivings, Varok ended up going through with Sylvanas's plans, pretending to be in conflict with Sylvanas and causing the Alliance to marshal their forces in Silithus thanks to their spies witnessing the conflict. Thus distracting the Alliance forces, Varok led an invasion on the night elven capital of Darnassus, though they met heavy resistance from Malfurion and the rest of the night elves there. The battle was fierce and long, but ultimately Sylvanas and Varok prevailed. During the fight, Varok struck a dishonourable blow against Malfurion, wounding him severely through an axe toss. Sylvanas gave Varok the honour of finishing Malfurion off, but the orc could not bring himself to do so dishonourably. This hesitation allowed Tyrande Whisperwind to arrive and heal Malfurion. Varok's failure in slaying Malfurion caused conflict between him and Sylvanas. The siege of Teldrassil would lead with Sylvanas setting the World Tree on flames with her war-machines -- something that Varok thought to be contrary to their plans, for they were supposed to divide the Alliance by slaying the night elf leaders; but such a horrendous act of mass murder would instead only unite the Alliance. 

The burning of Teldrassil led to the battle for Lordaeron, with Varok feeling much shame and dishonour for the events in Teldrassil. Varok Saurfang was disillusioned with the Horde and burdened with sins. Varok and a Horde champion helped to evacuate the civilians from Undercity and fight against Alliance infiltrators, and prominently charged through the battlefields to deal a blow against Anduin Wrynn. Varok attempted to later talk Sylvanas down from using the blight, but was ignored -- witnessing Alliance and Horde soldiers alike killed by Sylvanas and raised as undead. After a confrontation with Sylvanas, Varok stayed behind to fight the Alliance forces. Refusing to surrender, Varok was defeated by Alliance forces and captured -- an act of mercy on Anduin's part, and yet another honourable death lost to Varok. Anduin persuaded Varok that simply dying there had no honour, and took Varok prisoner in the Stormwind Stockades. In the Stockades, Varok and Anduin had a long discussion about honour, the suffering of innocents, and loyalty; and Varok admitted all he wanted was for his war back. Anduin let Varok leave, noting that he couldn't stop Sylvanas alone.

Varok made his way to eastern Redridge, meeting with a young troll Zekhan, who he befriended before. Zekhan led the Horde adventurer to aid Varok, narrowly rescuing him from a group of Sylvanas's Dark Rangers. As Varok left, he told Zekhan to gather those who would see the original Horde return. Varok traveled to his old home of Nagrand, seeking former warchief Thrall, who had taken residence there. After fighting Sylvanas's assassins, Thrall and Varok returned to Azeroth to fight for the Horde, and began gathering allies against Sylvanas. 

Varok and Anduin had another discussion on the eve of the battle to depose Sylvanas, ultimately agreeing that they both fought for Azeroth. Before battle could commence, in an attempt to prevent the spilling of Horde blood, Varok challenged Sylvanas to mak'gora. Wielding Thrall's axe Dra'gora and Anduin's blade Shalamayne, Varok listed all of Sylvanas's failures as warchief, bloodied Sylvanas across her eye, and caused her to reveal that her loyalties was never to the Horde. She attacked Varok with a blast of magic, killing him before escaping and abandoning the Horde. Thus earning his warrior's death, Varok Saurfang was buried in Nagrand, but his legacy led to the renewal and rebirth of the Horde. Click here for Blizzard's lovely collection of the major cutscenes of Varok Saurfang!

Kargal Battlescar

Kargal Battlescar is an orc stationed in Far Watch Post in the Northern Banners, and one of the quest-givers in the area for Horde adventurers. Kargal would welcome the aid of aspiring new Horde recruits in keeping the roads around Far Watch Post, and would send new warriors in defending the supply caravans going through the area from the Razormane-tribe Quilboars that raid them. Eventually, Kargal would send the adventurer to slay the leader of the Razormane raiders, a quilboar called Kreenig Snarlstout. In Legion, Kargal would defend Far Watch Post against the demonic invaders of the Burning Legion. 

Mankrik

Mankrik is an orc located at Grol'dom Farm in the Northern Barrens. In the original World of Warcraft, Mankrik was first seen begging Horde adventurers for aid in looking for his wife Olgra, last seen fighting a group of Bristleback quillboar. Mankrik himself was separated and overwhelmed by the quillboars, and begs any Horde adventurer to aid him in looking for his wife. Unfortunately, Olgra has been slain, and, in rage, Mankrik would ask the adventurer aid in unleashing vengeance upon the quillboars of the area. 

In Cataclysm, Mankrik has buried his wife and erected the Humble Monument in her honour. He still asks aid of any Horde adventurer in wiping out quillboars in the area, giving various quests that would lead the Horde adventurers in wiping out more and more quillboars, among them the warrior Mangletooth. Mankrik is also one of the possible champions that would aid the Horde in fighting Ragnaros's minions in the defense of Mt. Hyjal during Cataclysm. The name of the quillboar-hunting quest is 'Consumed By Hatred', which is the title of the second Mankrik card summoned in Hearthstone. A young Mankrik cameos as part of the Frostwolf clan in the alternate Draenor in Warlords of Draenor. 

Mankrik's quest was apparently a massive meme back in the original World of Warcraft. Due to how early Horde players will encounter Mankrik's quest, many players would gain this quest but have no idea how to complete it. Mankrik doesn't offer much in terms of direction to her location, and the quest itself just says 'find Mankrik's Wife', whereas the actual interactable object in the overworld is called 'Beaten Corpse'. This results in most people asking for this in the Barrens general chat, leading to a deluge of Mankrik's Wife questions in the chat. Due to how long Horde adventurers would spend in the Barrens, this ended up being a source of mockery or trolling for many more experienced players. Over time, 'Mankrik's Wife' has became a bit of a meme as a generic response to any chat questions involving quest-givers and merchants. Blizzard themselves have also made fun of this several times.

Neeru Fireblade

Neeru Fireblade is an orc of the Burning Blade clan who appeared in the original World of Warcraft. He is stationed in the Cleft of Shadows, and the adventurer is sent to him when he/she is investigating the uprising of the demon-worshipping Burning Blade clan. Neeru Fireblade would send the adventurer out to investigate the demonic corruption, at one point sending the adventurer out to kill the Felguard called Taragaman the Hungerer, and taking the demon's heart for 'safekeeping'. However, Thrall ends up being wise to Neeru's duplicity, and sends the adventurer out to get close to him, and the adventurer pretends to be loyal to the Shadow Council. Neeru would reveal that he's the leader of the Burning Blade clan, working with the demon-worshipping Searing Blade clan in Ragefire Chasm. Thrall, aware of this, would order the deaths of the leaders of the Searing Blade. Neeru was incensed, but was unable to do anything about it. His summon quote, 'even friends serve their own ends', is taken from one of his gossip lines in WoW.

In Cataclysm, Neeru attempted to curry favour with the new warchief, Garrosh Hellscream. He also has a new model, though Hearthstone's art is explicitly based on his original look. Ultimately, in Mists of Pandaria, Garrosh is angered by the fact that demon worshippers are found in Orgrimmar, and sent his Kor'kron warriors to purge them. Neeru was trapped in his tent and was killed off-screen, and adventurers would find his body alongside with other warlocks hung during the Siege of Orgrimmar. After his death, his questlines would be given by Arnak Fireblade. 

Apothecary Helbrim:

Apothecary Helbrim is a Forsaken stationed in the Crossroads, in Northern Barrens. Sent from the Undercity to aid the greater Horde cause, Helbrim would send adventurers out to investigate certain phenomenon in the Barrens that would further the creation of potions and poisons by Undercity's apothecaries, sending adventurers to look for fungal cultures around various oases and pools in the Barrens. He isn't particularly ethical about it, causing the destruction of the Stagnant Oasis in the experimentation he asks the Horde adventurers to do. In Cataclysm, however, the results of Helbrim's research was intercepted by Garrosh's loyalist, the orc Hargash, who makes it very clear that Garrosh doesn't quite trust the behaviour of the Forsaken and confiscates the results of the research. During Legion, Helbrim offers a special potion to Horde warriors to increase the damage they dealt to demons.

In the Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne quest 'A Blaze of Glory', one of the shops in Theramore is called Helbrim's Potions. While it's not confirmed, some fans have speculated that this Helbrim was killed and resurrected as a Forsaken at some point between The Frozen Throne and World of Warcraft. 

Cannonmaster Smythe

Known as Cannoneer Smythe in World of Warcraft (he's got a promotion in Hearthstone!), Smythe is a human found at Northwatch Hold in Southern Barrens, the largest Alliance base in the Barrens region. In World of Warcraft, Smythe was the target of a Horde quest given by the high elf Thalo'thas Brightsun of Ratchet, who retaliated for the sinking of many of his ships by the overzealous Northwatch humans. He asks Horde heroes to slay Smythe and two other Cannoneers, Fairmount and Whessan, in Northwatch Post. In Cataclysm, Smythe apparently survived, and would give quests to Alliance-allied characters, sending Alliance warriors to shoot down the Horde warriors that are arriving at the nearby coast. 

Death Speaker Blackthorn

Death Speaker Blackthorn is a quillboar (the franchise is inconsistent between 'quillboar' and 'quilboar'. Hearthstone uses the one L version) in Razorfen Downs. Razorfen Downs is the capital city of the quillboars in Durotar, having crafted it out of thorny vines and creating a labyrinth. In World of Warcraft, Razorfen Downs is the ancestral burial grounds of the quillboar of the Barrens, nestled on the southern edge of the region. Traditionally the capital city ruled by the Death's Head Tribe, the Third War brought the undead Scourge near the location, and the Razorfen Downs is now embroiled in a fight between the quillboar and the increasing amount of undead that the Scourge lich Amnennar the Coldbringer has created. During Warlords of Draenor, Razorfen Downs was revamped and the story updated, with a rematch between the forces of the Alliance, Horde and the red dragon Koristrasza fighting once more against Amnennar and his goons. 

Death Speaker Blackthorn is the penultimate boss in the second version of Razorfen Downs. A member of the Death's Head cult, Blackthorn quickly usurped control of the cult after Amnennar's first defeat in WoW. Corrupted by the spirit of the lich, who promised eternal life, Death Speaker Blackthorn was compelled by the dark force of his master to cast a ritual that will return his former master to life. His first attempt was to sacrifice the dryad Taryndrella to bring Amnennar to life, but this was foiled. Soon after, the red dragon Koristrasza led a raiding party of adventurers, slaughtering all of Death Speaker Blackthorn's undead monstrosities before fighting him. However, with Blackthorn's death, he is able to resummon his dread master Amnennar, who also soon fell to the blades of the adventurers. Death Speaker Blackthorn's summon line, 'you struggle against the inevitable', is one of his lines when he kills a player in WoW.

Plaguemaw the Rotting

Plaguemaw the Rotting was an undead quilboar that rose to attack an adventurer escorting the red dragon in disguise, Belnistrasz, through Razorfen Downs. Belnistrasz is one of the prisoners captured by the undead in Razorfen Downs, and he asks the aid of an adventurer to escort him so that he can successfully cast a ritual that would purge the undead quillboars in the area. One of the last fiends to assault Belnistrasz and his ally was a mighty undead quillbar, Plaguemaw the Rotting. 

Both Belnistrasz and Plaguemaw were removed when Razorfen Downs was updated in Warlords of Draenor. For more quillboars related to Razorfen Downs, click here to go to my Battlegrounds coverage where Agammaggan, Charlga and various other Quilboar-related NPC's make an appearance. 

Mordresh Fire Eye

Mordresh Fire Eye is a skeletal boss in both versions of Razorfen Downs. In the original version of Razorfen Downs, Mordresh is a level 39 skeleton.  He is as an orc shaman who was sent from Orgrimmar to investigate Razorfen Downs, but was slain by the forces of the Scourge and reanimated as a skeletal spellcaster. Adventurers slew Mordresh, but during Warlords of Draenor, he was resurrected in a new form (he uses a character model normally associated with the Forsaken). Serving as the second boss of Razorfen Downs, Mordresh Fire Eye has a greater control over his master of fire. His summon line ("Your bones will be added to the pile! Burn!") is his aggro line, and "now dance" is abridged from his killing-a-player line, "you'll dance with the rest."

Yes, he does have that wicked axe-guitar-bone thing in World of Warcraft. No, it has nothing to do with him being a resurrected shaman or a minion of the Death's Head cult, but it looks freaking awesome. 

Serena Bloodfeather

Serena Bloodfeather is a particularly powerful harpy found in the Dry Hills in the Northern Barrens. Her sister, simply called Bloodfeather, was killed by Rexxar during the events of Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne. Serena Bloodfeather rose up through the ranks and became the leader of the Witchwing Harpies, and to avenge her slain sister, has attacked Horde caravans that travel through her territory savagely. The orc Darsok Swiftdagger would send adventurers out to slay her to protect Horde assets in the region. 

Barak Kodobane

Barak Kodobane is a level 14 hostile centaur that's part of the Kolkar clan that roams the Northern Barrens. The tauren Telar Highstrider in the Forgotten Pools would send Horde adventurers to hunt down Barak Kodobane and slay him, noting that Kodobane is one of the new leaders of the Kolkar tribe that have organized the normally disorganized Kolkar clan. The Kolkar Clan had its leader, Khan Gragtor, slain by Rexxar during the Third War, and much of its members and territory were subsequently taken over by the Magram Clan. Barak Kodobane was among the new leaders of the Kolkar Clan that riled up the clan and made it a bigger threat to the Horde. While the adventurers would kill Kodobane, other tauren would send the adventurers out to slay the other leadership figures of the Kolkar centaurs. 

Shadow Hunter Vol'jin, Firemancer Flurgl, Kazakus Golem Shaper

These three characters are all characters that have shown up in Hearthstone before, and, thus, we've talked about them. Vol'jin, leader of the Darkspear trolls and onetime Warchief of the Horde, first showed up as a card in Hearthstone during Goblins vs. Gnomes. 'Shadow Hunter' is one of the orc Horde heroes in Warcraft III, and the class that Vol'jin is identified to be. Vol'jin's summon quote ('you making a big mistake, mon!') is abridged from his original aggro quote in World of Warcraft, and his attack quote ('who be my next victim?') is one of the 'what?' quotes of the Shadow Hunter hero in Warcraft III.

Firemancer Flurgl is the murloc better known as Fungalmancer Flurgl, who first appeared as a boss in the Kobolds & Catacombs expansion, and became very prominent when he became one of the playable heroes in the Battlegrounds mode. Apparently, this is Flurgl early in his career, where he practiced fire magic before entering the dungeons and discovering fungi. Kazakus is also original to Hearthstone, first appearing as the leader of the Kabal in Mean Streets of Gadgetzan. This card depicts Kazakus as he journeys through the barrens, looking for the shards of the Naaru Mi'da -- which I think happens before Gadgetzan. Kazakus is also featured in the artwork for Silverleaf Poison, and is one of the major antagonists of the 'Book of Mercenaries' story mode. 

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OTHER MINIONS -- For the Horde!:

Peon: With their iconic and lovable "work, work!", "job's done!" "I try." and "something need doing?" lines, Peons have been one of the most popular faces of the first three Warcraft games. As the workforce for the Horde side, the orcish peons were identified as the lowliest warriors, good for little more than rough work and are often unable to battle, either due to their lack of battle prowress or their cowardice. These peons were thus used as labourers, sent to collect gold or lumber, or to construct buildings. While downtrodden, they are exceedingly loyal, in part due to the fear of disappointing their masters. In Warcraft III specifically, peons are able to hide in orc burrow structures and attack from there with spears. All four of the Peon's quotes in Hearthstone are taken from the first three Warcraft games.

In World of Warcraft, multiple Horde-related locations feature orcs that are identified as peons laboring or constructing buildings, and also have the same voice-lines as their counterparts from Warcraft III. Peons appear both as NPC's in Horde locations, or as enemies. While the treatment of the peons loyal to the New Horde seemed to have became more gentle, other orcish organizations like the Iron Horde or the True Horde or the Fel Horde presumably are still very harsh on their peons. 

Burning Blade Acolyte: Burning Blade Acolytes are level 16-18 orc warlocks that are part of the Burning Blade clan, located at Dreadmist Peak and the ruined farms around it. Once part of the Horde, a majority of the Burning Blade clan has fallen into demon worship and now serve as extensions of the Shadow Council. They work under the orders of Neeru Fireblade, a warlock that has infiltrated Orgrimmar. Part of the questlines that run through the Barrens include the adventurer hunting and slaying these demon-worshipping Burning Blade minions. The Burning Blade Acolytes, specifically, are the targets of a quest sent by Brogor of the Mor'shan Base Camp, who sends the adventurers to stop the Burning Blade cult from pillaging the farms. 

The artwork and the line of the summoned 'Demonspawn' refers to the Demon Seed, an artifact that's the focus of the Burning Blade questline in the Barrens. 

Pack Kodo: The tauren -- and later the Horde in general -- have utilized Kodo beasts as pack animals ever since Warcraft III, where one of the most notable quests was Thrall and his orcish Horde helping Cairne Bloodhoof's tauren to escort a group of pack Kodos throughout the Barrens. There are various quests involving escorting kodo caravans throughout the Barrens in WoW. The specific mob called 'Pack Kodo' is a level 90 caravan escorted by several warriors loyal to Vol'jin, and adventurers can come and help defend it from Garrosh-loyalist Kor'kron Caravan Raiders. 

(Also, yes, this is what kodo beasts are supposed to look like; not Stampeding Kodo, which depicts a Clefthoof.)

Warsong Envoy: Members of the Warsong Clan, the Warsong Envoys (originally 'Warsong Emissaries') are level 30 Battlemasters located in five largest Horde cities -- Orgrimmar, Silvermoon, Thunder Bluff, Undercity and Shattrath City. They appear every month to recruit warriors to fight in the PvP battleground Warsong Gulch, which is shown in the artwork. This monthly event was removed in Warlords of Draenor. 

Crossroads Gossiper: A lot of the cards aren't specific mobs, but refer to aspects and locations in the Barrens. Crossroads Gossiper refers to the Crossroads, the largest Horde town in Northern Barrens, It's named so because it's located at the crossing of the main north-south Gold Road, and the west-east road connecting Ratchet and Stonetalon Mountains. Its location offers flight paths to nearly all other Horde outposts in Kalimdor, and tends to be the biggest gathering of early-level Horde players in Kalimdor outside of Orgrimmar and Thunder Bluff. 

Mor'shan Elite: No specific mob is called 'Mor'shan Elite', but Mor'shan refers to the Mor'shan Rampart, a Horde base located in the northern end of the Gold Road in Northern Barrens. The Mor'shan Rampart is a makeshift post that acted as a roadblock against the push of Alliance forces from the night elven territories of Ashenvale into the Barrens, and are populated mostly by orcs and taurens.. The most prominent NPC and leader of the Mor'shan Ramparts is Kadrak, whose armour and weapon resemble the artwork of the Mor'shan Elite though the colours differ.

Gold Road Grunt: The minion's name refers to the Gold Road, the major north-south road that runs through almost the entirety of the Barrens, from the Mor'shan Rampart all the way to Southern Barrens. After the Cataclysm, it leads up to the Great Divide, and the rest of the road in the Southern Barrens is called the Southern Gold Road. 'Grunt', of course, is the catch-all term for the basic footsoldiers of the orcish Horde. "Zug zug" is an orcish battlecry most commonly associated with the Grunt units in Warcrafts I, II and III.

Darkspear Berserker: No mob is specifically called 'Darkspear Berserker', but berserking is a well-known trait among trolls, and 'Troll Berserker' is one of the units able to be created in Warcraft III, which replaces Troll Headhunters. The trolls of the Horde are almost all exclusively from the Darkspear Tribe.

Sunwell Initiate: The Sunwell is one of the major locations in the Blood Elven starting location of Silvermoon Forest, where the Sunwell was destroyed by Arthas during the Third War and it is a major part of the blood elf storyline in Burning Crusade to restore it. 

Taurajo Brave: No specific mob is called 'Taurajo Brave'. Brave is a title of respect indicating a respected warrior or guard among the tauren. Camp Taurajo is a tauren outpost located in Southern Barrens near the mountain pass, leading to Mulgore. Most Tauren adventurers coming from Mulgore would enter Camp Taurajo before heading to the greater Barrens. During Cataclysm, however, Camp Taurajo was obliterated by an Alliance assault which firebombed it, killing many of the taurens there and reducing it to nothing but ruins. 

Priest of An'she: Again, no specific mob with the same name exists, but An'she refers to the god of the sun in Tauren mythology. In tauren myths, An'she was once the right eye of the Earth Mother, but was torn out and sent running across the heavens, chased eternally by Azeroth's biggest moon, Mu'sha. In tauren myths, every morning An'she bleeds to sacrifice part of his light to let the Tauren know that dawn is coming. Tauren priests ('Seers') and paladins ('Sunwalkers') revere An'she as the light of hope, and Tauren priests and paladins view the glowing divine magic channeled by them as coming from the sun. Anduin Wrynn and other Alliance priests consider An'she to be another expression of the Holy Light. 

Ratchet Privateer: Ratchet is a major goblin port city located on the eastern shore of Northern Barrens, located directly between Orgrimmar and Theramore. It was founded by the goblin Gazlowe, who received many funds after helping in the construction of Orgrimmar. Despite being populated mostly by goblins, Ratchet is a neutral town since the goblins there are part of the neutral Steamwheedle cartel... though most of the quests in Ratchet are only available to Horde adventurers. It's also got an above-average amount of pirates!

Oil Rig Ambusher: The mob is original to Hearthstone, but there are oil rigs in the Northern Barrens, specifically the Sludge Fen, found on the north-eastern part of the Northern Barrens. It's occupied by the mercantile Venture Company, and certain quests would lead the Horde adventurers to attack and steal some resources from the goblins that work there. 

Mor'shan Watch Post/Far Watch Post/Crossroads Watch Post: Watch Towers are used by orcs as lookout posts in both Warcraft II and Warcraft III. Functioning as mere scouting towers in Warcraft II; in Warcraft III the orcish Horde would station archers there to attack enemies coming from both land and air. In World of Warcraft the scope of these watch towers tended to be extended to be small bases of their own. We've talked about the Mor'shan Base Camp/Mor'shan Rampart above, as well as the town of Crossroads -- note that the artwork actually features the Crossroads inn as opposed to a watch tower or watch post, but orcish architecture always did look pretty hardy. Far Watch Post (pictured) is a Horde outpost located west of the bridge between Durotar and the Northern Barrens, and its leader is Kargal Battlescar. 

The following cards are original to Hearthstone: Talented Arcanist, Druid of the Plains, Warsong Wrangler, Barrens Trapper, Hog Rancher, Horde Operative, Reckless Apprentice, Barrens Blacksmith, Watchful Grunt, Lookout, Barrens Scavenger, Whirling Combatant, Apothecary's Caravan, Soothsayer's Caravan, Void Flayer.

The Barrens Blacksmith might be intended to depict Ornag, the only female orc blacksmith/weapons merchant in the Barrens, but the artwork doesn't match the model all that well. The cycle of 'caravan' cards refers to the several questlines in the Barrens where the Horde adventurer would have to escort or rescue caravans under attack from centaurs or quillboars, but are otherwise all original to Hearthstone. Watchful Grunt's lines are taken from the Grunt unit from Warcrafts I-III. 

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OTHER MINIONS -- Alliance Scum!

(When we get to the next Alliance-centric expansion, we'll flip the titles around, don't worry)

Northwatch Commander/Northwatch Soldier: No specific mobs have those two titles, but they both refer to Northwatch Hold (sometimes Northwatch Keep), a massive Alliance fortress in Southern Barrens. In Warcraft III, the orcs fought the forces of Daelin Proudmoore there, though the location wasn't named. It was subsequently taken over as territory by the humans of Theramore. In World of Warcraft it was often the target of harassment by quests given from the Horde or from the criminals in Ratchet. After the Cataclysm, however, Northwatch Hold became one of the most important Alliance footholds in Kalimdor, and during the Cataclsym Alliance forces strengthened Northwatch Post and took over much territory in the Southern Barrens, among others taking out Fort Taurajo and Honor's Stand. With rising tension between the Alliance and Horde, Northwatch has been supported with many more troops, and has blossomed into a much larger naval base. Alliance adventurers would have many quests in this area -- mostly defending it against the Rageroar orc clan, and Horde adventurers sometimes would sneak into the keep to rescue or kill certain objectives. While it's not explicitly stated, it seems that most of the Alliance characters in the expansion are affiliated with Northwatch Hold, particularly considering their tabards. 

Vengeful Spirit: Various minor undead mobs are called 'Vengeful Spirit' in WoW, but the artwork and its association with the Demon Hunter class seem to mark this as an adaptation of the 'Spirit of Vengeance'. One of the abilities of the Warden class in Warcraft III is to summon an Avatar of Vengeance -- a ghostly spirit of a Warden, which would convert any nearby corpses into Spirits of Vengeance. These spirits would aid the Warden in fighting their enemies, with the lesser Spirits being invulnerable but dying very quickly, while the Avatar is able to last longer but are vulnerable to attacks. In Legion, the Avatar and Spirits of Vengeance appear and are represented as ghostly versions of the Warden mode -- which the Hearthstone artwork shows. 

The following cards are original to Hearthstone: Field Contact, Soldier's Caravan, Prospector's Caravan, Knight of Anointment, Veteran Warmedic, Battlefield Medic

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MINIONS -- Other Inhabitants of the Barrens:

Spirit Healer: Spirit Healers are angel-like spirits that resemble women with flowing wings. When an adventurer dies in World of Warcraft, they wake up as a ghost in a graveyard and encounter the Spirit Healer. They judge whether the soul is ready, before spiriting their soul away to the Shadowlands, the realm of the dead. If they are not ready (which is all the time for any playable character) the Spirit Healers will restore them to life. While simply existing without much lore and just as a mysterious being; the Shadowlands expansion identify them as a subspecies of Kyrian, angelic soul-beings that are responsible for the passage of souls into the Shadowlands.

Spirit Healers essentially 'resurrect' a dead player character to life, though they would have to move in their ghost form to re-possess their body. The Spirit Healer is able to circumvent this, however, by resurrecting the player with a 25% durability penalty to all items and debuffing the player with 'Resurrection Sickness'. However, this allows the player to immediately walk out of the graveyard with their body. 

In various areas, the role of the Spirit Healers are replaced by Val'kyr in the Death Knight starting experience or in Helheim; the Prime Naaru in Argus; the loa of the dead Bwonsamdi in Zandalar; and Spirit Obelisks in Shadowlands. Their summoning quote in Hearthstone, 'it is not your time yet', is the first part of the line spoken to a dead character when they first meet the Spirit Healer. 

Razorfen Beastmaster: The pig-men known as the Quillboar are a savage and brutish race native to the Barrens, and one of its biggest tibes is the Razorfen Tribe. A constant thorn to the Horde as they settled into Durotar, the Razorfen Tribe is based in the thorny labyrinthine Razorfen Kraul and Razorfen Downs, worshipping the boar wild god Agamaggan. Raorfen Beastmasters are specific level 34 mobs in Razorfen Kraul, one of the many Razorfen tribe members to stay there and defend their master, Charlga Razorflank. 

Razormane Raider: Razormane Raiders are quillboars that attack the Crossroads Caravan, and adventurers have to shoot them down with a massive cannon lent to them by the orc Halga Bloodeye. The Razormane Tribe is a smaller quillboar tribe that often menace the Crossroads, but have been thrown into chaos after the Cataclysm split their tribe into two. They're the tribe of quillboars responsible for the death of Mankrik's wife. 

Razormane Battleguard: Razormane Battleguards are level 9-10 quillboar warriors that patrol various locations in Durotar, and are the target of a quest given by the orc Raggaran, who sends adventurers to cull the Razormane quillboars from attacking Horde civilians affected by a flood. 

Death's Head Cultist: Death's Head Cultists are level 41-42 mobs found outside the Razorfen Downs, and is the target of a quest given by the elf Myriam Moonsinger. The Death's Head tribe are a group of quillboars allied with the Scourge, consisting mostly of undead quillboar or necromancers. They are led by the lich Amnennar the Coldbringer, who establishes Razorfen Downs as the first huge Scourge outpost on Kalimdor. Eventually, the Death's Head Tribe would ally themselves with the Razorfen tribe.

Blood Shard Bristleback: The term is original to Hearthstone, but it refers to the Bristleback tribe of Quillboars, a tribe that spans the Barrens to Mulgore. They are constantly at war against the Razormane Quillboars in the Barrens and the Taurens of Mulgore, though during the Cataclysm the new chieftain of the tauren, Baine Bloodhoof, brokered a peace treaty by creating a river for them. Blood Shards are items that drop from many Bristleback tribe mobs, and could be turned in for resources at Mangletooth, a Razormane-tribe quillboar. The Quillboar believe that the Blood Shards are crystals created from the blood that was spilled by their patron deity Agamaggan. 

Kolkar Pack Runner: Kolkar Pack Runners are level 14-15 centaurs that roam the Northern Barrens, and are often accompanied by their companion hyenas, Kolkar Packhounds -- accurately adapted into the Hearthstone card! They are the subject of a minor quest given by the orc Regthar Deathgate, who asks Horde adventurers to slay Kolkar centaur and bring back their bracers as proof. 

Sunscale Raptor: Sunscale Raptors are level 11-12 raptors that roam the Northern Barrens. They are the weakest type of the Sunscale breed of raptors, which also include the Sunscale Consort, Sunscale Lashtail, Sunscale Ravager, Sunscale Screecher and Sunscale Scytheclaw. I'm pretty sure I tamed one of these as a hunter pet! The orc Gazrog at the Crossroads would ask adventurers to bring 12 raptor heads to him, parodied by Hearthstone in this Wronchi-animated short.

Hecklefang Hyena: Hecklefang Hyenas are level 15-16 hyenas that menace the Northern Barrens, near the Sludge Fens, and the target of the quest Hyena Extermination given by the goblin Nozzlepot, who resides in Nozzlepot's Outpost.

Southsea Scoundrel: Southsea Scoundrels are level 15-30 pirates that are located in Tanaris during the quest 'Seaside Salvage', and are the targets of resource-gathering quests for both the Alliance and the Horde. While the Scoundrel mob is specifically located in Tanaris, the Southsea Freebooter pirates have a significant presence in the Barrens, in particular being a thorn for the neutral port town of Ratchet.

Earth Revenant: Not a specific mob, but a specific type of Elemental, Earth Revenants (or, well, revenants in general) are elementals that resemble a floating suit of armour, usually equipped with a melee weapon and a shield. Earth Revenants in particular have a head that resembles a single eye, and carry a giant mace.

Stonemaul Anchorman: No specific mob called the Stonemaul Anchorman exists, though it refers to the Stonemaul clan of ogres, which are primarily based in Dustwallow Marsh. While they had been briefly allied with the Horde during the Third War, their village was razed by Onyxia prior to World of Warcraft and ended up becoming neutral afterwards. 

Lushwater Scout/Lushwater Murcenary: No specific mob corresponding to the two exists, but the name is taken from Lushwater Oasis, one of three large oases in Northern Barrens. Lushwater Oasis specifically is located south of the Crossroads, and is the entrance to the dungeon known as the Wailing Caverns. Horde operatives are located there, waging a battle against the Kolkar centaur that stalk through the trees. While the Lushwater Oasis itself escaped destruction due to the Cataclsym, its southernmost pools did dry up due to it. 

The following cards are original to Hearthstone: (though for the most part, are based on beasts that roam the Barrens) Razorboar, Ravenous Vilefiend, Thickhide Kodo, Arcane Luminary, Rimetongue, Lightshower Elemental, Efficient Octo-Bot, South Coast Chieftain, Tinyfin's Caravan, Arid Stormer, Lilypad Lurker, Spawnpool Forager, Kabal Outfitter, Kindling Elemental, Oasis Thrasher, Toad of the Wilds, Venomous Scorpid, Injured Marauder, Gruntled Patron, Primordial Protector.

Note that Finja and Murloc Tinyfin shows up as a cameo in 'Nofin Can Stop Us' and 'Tinyfin's Caravan'. Kabal Outfitter is a reference to the Kabal, the Hearthstone-original organization led by Kazakus in Mean Streets of Gadgetzan. Gruntled Patron is yet another reference to the memetic Grim Patron. 

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SPELLS:

Spell Ranks: Not too much to say here, but especially prior in Cataclysm, many spells have spell 'ranks' that level up as your character levels up, and the spells get more powerful effects. In Warcraft III, all hero abilities can also be ranked up as the hero levels up. Again, without delving particularly deep into the specific game mechanics, I don't have too much to say. 

Fury: Fury isn't actually an ability for Demon Hunters, but rather the primary resource used by them. Fury is generated by certain abilities (i.e. Demon's Bite, Disrupt, Consume Magic, etc) and required for the casting of other abilities (i.e. Chaos Nova, Chaos Strike, Eye Beam, etc).

Sigil of Flame: Sigil of Flame is a level 12 Vengeance Demon Hunter ability, which allows the demon hunter to place a sigil at a target location, which would erupt in an explosion of fire damage 2 seconds after it is cast.

Sigil of Silence: Sigil of Silence is a level 39 Vengeance Demon Hunter ability, which, similar to Sigil of Flame, allows the demon hunter to place a sigil which would erupt and silence all nearby enemies 2 seconds after it is cast.

Celestial Alignment: Celestial Alignment is a level 39 Balance druid ability, added in Mists of Pandaria. It allows the druid to activate both Solar and Lunar Eclipse at once and increase the druid's haste.

Living Seed: Living Seed is a level 28 passive Restoration druid ability, which plants a 'living seed' token on the target whenever the druid gets a critical heal from the abilities Healing Touch, Regrowth or Swiftmend. When the target is attacked next, the Living Seed will bloom and heal the target for an additional 25%. 

Thorngrowth Sentries: The ability is original to Hearthstone, but some developers have commented that it's based on a specific quest in the Barrens -- 'Altered Beings', where the tauren around the Stagnant Oasis are investigating unusual energies in the waters of the oasis, and sends the Horde adventurer to investigate the changes done to the local Oasis Snapjaws. And, yes, this quest and area is the inspiration for the Basic card Oasis Snapjaw. 

Piercing Shot: Parsed as Piercing Shots in World of Warcraft, Piercing Shots is a passive ability for Marksmanship hunters that was added in WOTLK and removed in WOD. It is available at level 72, and causes additional bleed effects for other 'shot' skills. 

Tame Beast: Otherwise known as 'the reason to play Hunter in World of Warcraft', for me at least. Tame Beast is a level 13 hunter ability that allows a hunter to tame a beast (or attempt to) and make them his/her pet. The Hunter needs to put their current active pet in a stable or in a stable; and interruptions will cause the taming process to fail. Only mobs classified as 'beasts' can be tamed, and the hunter needs to be at a higher level. And, let me tell you something, there are a lot of beasts I tamed as a hunter in the Barrens. 

Flurry: Added in Legion to replace Frostfire Bolt, Flurry is a level 19 Frost mage ability that unleashes a small flurry of ice bolts that damage and slow the enemy before them. 

Wildfire: Wildfire, added in Battle for Azeroth, is an Azerite Trait for mages that buffs their Pyroblast and Combustion abilities. 

Refreshing Spring Water: Not an ability, but an item; Refreshing Spring Water is the lowest-level drink item available, and most races start with two of these items in their inventory. It resotres 180 mana over 18 seconds, though the character must remain seated while drinking. It also drops from many low-level enemies and from low-level vendors. 

Conviction: Conviction is a Holy paladin talent that gives a bonus to the paladin's damage and healing after a critical effect from an ability or weapon. It is removed in Mists of Pandaria.

Desperate Prayer: Desperate Prayer is a level 52 Holy priest ability that costs no mana to use, and instantly heals the Priest for 30% of their health, functioning as a 'panic button' for the Priest to immediately get some health without spending mana or time. 

Devouring Plague: Devouring Plague is a level 12 Shadow priest ability that consumes Insanity, and deals instant damage and applies a damage-over-time 'disease' on the target. It also heals the Priest for each damage dealt by the plague. 

Power Word: Fortitude: Power Word: Fortitude is a Priest ability available at level 6, which increases a target's stamina by 5% for an hour. 

Paralytic Poison: A level 75 rogue talent, Paralytic Poison coats the Rogue's weapon which has a chance to poison the enemy. When four stacks of the poison is applied to the enemy, they get stunned. Paralytic Poison also causes the Shiv ability to instantly stun the enemy. It was added in Mists of Pandaria and removed in Warlords of Draenor. 

Chain Lightning: Chain Lightning first appeared in Warcraft III as one of the abilities of the Far Seer orc hero, where the Far Seer will cause a bolt of lightning to jump through multiple nearby enemies (the amount of enemies goes up as the spell is ranked up). In WoW, Chain Lightning is a level 24 Shaman ability that jumps through 3 targets and generates additional damage onto each subsequent enemy. 

Grimoire of Sacrifice: Grimoire of Sacrifice is a level 90 warlock talent, available to Affliction and Destruction specialization warlocks, added in Mists of Pandaria. The Warlock is able to sacrifice their demon partner to buff the Shadow spells that he or she casts personally. 

Imp Swarm: Imp Swarm is vaguely based on Glyph of Imp Swarm, a Warlock-exclusive item in Mists of Pandaria that summons 5 wild imps around the Warlocks. Glyphs are all removed in Legion.

The following spells are original to Hearthstone: Vile Call, Pride's Fury, Mark of the Spikeshell, Wound Prey, Runed Orb, Oasis Ally, Galloping Savior, Invigorating Sermon, Condemn, Yoink!, Wicked Stab, Silverleaf Poison, Nofin Can Stop Us, Soul Rend, Altar of Fire, Bulk Up, Rancor, Conditioning.

Runed Orb does share its name with a lootable crafting item found in Ulduar. Condemn shares its name with an unrelated Warrior ability from Shadowlands. Silverleaf Poison shares its name with Silverleaf, a low-level herb used for minor self-buff spells.

All of Kazakus's choice potions -- Earthroot, Fadeleaf, Grave Moss, Liferoot, Swifthistle, Firebloom, Sungrass, Gromsblood, Icecap, Kingsblood and Mageroyal -- are herbs that can be gathered by herbalists. There really isn't much to say about them other than to note that herbalists can extract them from specific nodes. 

WEAPONS:

Swinetusk Shank: The Swinetusk Shank is a level 35 unique dagger that drops from the Quillboar Roogug, the first boss in Razorfen Kraul and the leader of the geomancers in the Kraul. 

The following weapons are original to Hearthstone: Tuskpiercer, Sword of the Fallen, Outrider's Axe.

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THE WAILING CAVERNS:

The Mini-Set for this expansion, the Wailing Caverns, is based on one of the first dungeons that Horde players are likely to encounter. Located in Northern Barrens, south of the Crossroads, the Wailing Caverns is a network of underground caverns. In many years past, the night elven archdruid called Naralex discovered these Wailing Caverns, naming the cave network after the wailing noises made by the underground steam fissures within. Naralex attempted to use the Wailing Caverns' underground springs to restore lushness and fertility to the Barrens, and his attempt to do so connected him to the Emerald Dream. However, once he did so, Naralex was instead corrupted by the Emerald Nightmare, the mysterious corrupting influence within the Emerald Dream. And as such the Wailing Caverns was likewise corrupted -- the waters turned foul, the docile creatures within were mutated into monstrous creatures, and Naralex's fellow druids were transformed into the violent Druids of the Fang. (We talked about the Druids of the Fang in Goblins vs. Gnomes, forever ago)

Eventually, in World of Warcraft, the tauren druids Tonga Runetotem and Nalpak would ask the aid of a group of Horde adventurers to cleanse the corruption of the Wailing Caverns before it spreads further. 

LEGENDARY MINIONS:

Archdruid Naralex

Naralex is a night elven arch-druid found in the Wailing Caverns. As mentioned above, in the past, Naralex had arrived in the Wailing Caverns and attempted to use it as a conduit to channel the Emerald Dream and restore the Barrens into a lush state. However, he was instead corrupted by the Emerald Nightmare, putting him into a deep slumber while the Nightmare spread out and mutated the flora and fauna of the Wailing Caverns and transformed Naralex's druid followers into the savage Druids of the Fang. Ultimately, the Horde adventurers that delved deep into the Wailing Caverns would find Naralex in the innermost chamber, where he lay asleep while the monstrous Mutanus lurks nearby. The adventurers and Naralex's disciple, the tauren druid Muyoh, would succeed in bringing Naralex back up and ending the nightmare that plagued the Wailing Caverns. 

Afterwards, Naralex would slowly recover in Teldrassil. During the events of the Stormrage novel (prior to Cataclysm), Naralex would discover Fandral Staghelm's madness and inform Hamuul Runetotem and the other druids. They were attacked by Fandral, but were eventually rescued by Malfurion. By the time of Cataclysm, Naralex's work had paid off and some parts of the Barrens become more lush and green, and he would send adventurers to help combat the Emerald Nightmare's influence in the Overgrowth. In Legion, Naralex is one of the members of the druid organization known as the Cenarion Circle, aiding the new archdruid of the Cenarion Circle in their fights against the Burning Legion. Naralex and other druids aided adventurers in fighting High General Rakeesh, an eredar of the Burning Legion. 

Mutanus the Devourer
The giganic pale-white murloc known as Mutanus the Devourer is the final boss of the Wailing Caverns, found in Dreamer's Rock. A notoriously difficult boss for how early in the game you can face him, Mutanus appears when the Horde adventurers attempt to rouse Naralex from his slumber. Apparently a creature manifested from deep within the dark corners of Naralex's twisted mind, Mutanus the Devourer was ordered by the Emerald Nightmare to stop anyone from awakening Naralex. Naralex apparently had considered murlocs to be his worst enemy, which is why his worst nightmare manifests in the aberration known as Mutanus. After the adventurers defeat Mutanus, Naralex would be freed. In Wrath of the Lich King, Mutanus appears as a cameo as one of the possible 'memories' summoned by Argent Confessor Paletress. 

Lady Anacondra

The druid Scarletleaf is one of the many members of the druids that went alongside Naralex to bring life back to the Barrens, but while her master slumbered, the rest of the druids were corrupted and driven insane, rechristening themselves as the Druids of the Fang. The once-idealistic Scarletleaf had her mind shattered, and she renamed herself as Lady Anacondra, and took on the title of Fanglord. Lady Anacondra is the first boss in the Wailing Caverns, located in the Screaming Gully sub-area. Her summoning quote, "none can stand against the serpent lords", is taken from World of Warcraft. 

Despite her name, her snake-themed clothes and her card art, in WoW she actually fights alongside raptor mobs. Alongside Lord Cobrahn, Lord Pythas and Lord Serpentis, Lady Anacondra is one of the four Druid of the Fang leaders that needed to be slain before the adventurers can reach Naralex. 

Kresh, Lord of Turtling

The Emerald Nightmare within the Wailing Caverns affected almost all of the flora and fauna within, driving them insane. All save for the turtles, who are oddly unaffected by Naralex's nightmare. Mightiest among these turtles is Kresh, the mighty ancient beast who wanders the caverns, oblivious to the corruption that gripped his underground home. Kresh is a level 20 turtle that wanders the river near the beginning of the Wailing Caverns. He is an optional boss, and will not attack adventurers who leave him alone. 

OTHER MINIONS:

Meeting Stone: Also known as Summoning Stones, Meeting Stones are stones with a glowing runic symbol carved onto it that appear outside of all dungeons. These are intended to fill in parties that required more members, by auto-inviting suitable candidates. Later on, they were more specifically used to summon other players in the party. 

Devouring Ectoplasm: The Devouring Ectoplasm is a type of level 16-17 ooze that could be found outside of the Wailing Caverns. These oozes are able to clone themselves, creating mobs called Cloned Ectoplasm. 

Taintheart Tormentor: Parsed as 'Taintheart Tormenter' in World of Warcraft, these guys are level 46 satyrs found in the Clutch of Corruption in the Emerald Nightmare raid. 

Deviate Dreadfang: One of the many corrupted beasts within the Wailing Caverns, the Deviate Dreadfangs are level 19 wind serpents found in the Crag of the Everliving sub-area of the dungeon. They are able to cast Terrify on enemies. They share their area with the druids of the fang, as well as a group of mutated plant monsters like lashers and shamblers. 

Deviate Viper: Deviate Vipers are hostile level 19 serpents with a unique purple colouration, found in the Pit of Fangs sub-region of the Wailing Caverns, one of the three types of deviate snakes to be found there. 

Water Moccasin: No specific mob is called 'Water Moccasin', but a mob called Deviate Moccasin is located in Wailing Caverns. The Deviate Moccasin (which uses the 'cobra' model instead of the 'viper' model) are level 19 enemies that are found in Dreamer's Rock, the final area of the dungeon. A very similarly-named mob, the Yellow Water Moccasin, is found in Krasarang River in Pandaria. 

The following collectible minions -- Frostweave Dungeoneer, Devout Dungeooneer and Primal Dungeoneer -- as well as the following uncollectible minions -- the Arcane, Burly, Deadly, Devout, Relentless, Sneaky, Swift and Vital Adventurers -- are all original to Hearthstone, and basically represent the gaggle of various players and adventurers that would arrive to challenge any given dungeon. 

In addition, the following minions are also original to Hearthstone: Selfless Sidekick, Felrattler, Wailing Demon, Man-At-Arms, Fangbound Druid, Sin'dorei Scentfinder, Stealer of Souls, Floecaster, Wailing Vapor, Cleric of An'she. The Fangbound Druid is obviously a member of the Druid of the Fang; and we talked about An'she above.

SPELLS:

Serpentbloom: Serpentbloom is not a spell, but rather a side-quest that takes place in the Wailing Caverns. Apothecary Zamah in Thunder Bluff would send adventurers to collect the rare herb known as Serpentbloom from the Wailing Caverns. Anytime a player would pick up a Serpentbloom flower, a tiny Serpentbloom Snake would pop out of it and slither away. 

Judgment of Justice: Judgment of Justice is a Paladin ability added in Wrath of the Lich King, trainable at level 28. A Paladin can cast only a single Judgment at any time, and Judgment of Justice would limit the movement speed of any enemy it is cast upon. In Cataclysm, all the various Judgment spells are combined together into a single spell simply called Judgment. 

Party Up!: Not quite a spell, but this card essentially depicts a group of adventurers gathering together as a party to enter a dungeon. Note that the artwork is a composite of the artworks of Relentless Adventurer, Swift Adventurer, Sneaky Adventurer and Arcane Adventurer. 

Savory Deviate Delight: The Savory Deviate Delight is an item crafted by cooking a Deviate Fish, after obtaining the recipe from a Southsea pirate called Stinkbraid. The players who eat one of these delights will find themselves visually transformed into either a pirate or a ninja. In Hearthstone, since there's no dedicated 'ninja' tag, the game uses a Stealth minion instead. The artwork is based on the icon of the WoW item. 

Shroud of Concealment: Added in Mists of Pandaria, Shroud of Concealment is a Rogue ability available to all Rogues at level 68. By activating Shroud of Concealment, the Rogue is able to expand his or her stealth into an aura around himself or herself, allowing the party members to also gain the benefits of stealth. 

The following spells are original to Hearthstone: Sigil of Summoning, Shattering Blast, Against All Odds, Perpetual Flame, Unstable Shadow Blast, Final Gasp. 

WEAPONS:

Venomstrike Bow: Simply called 'Venomstrike' in World of Warcraft, this is a level 21 weapon with the bonus effect of having a chance to add additional venom-based nature damage to your attacks. The Venomstrike drops from Lord Serpentis in the Wailing Caverns. 

Seedcloud Buckler: The Seedcloud Buckler is a level 21 off-hand shield that drops from Verdan the Everliving in the Wailing Caverns. 

The following weapons are original to Hearthstone: Whetstone Hatchet and Turtle Spike. 

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BOOK OF MERCENARIES:

The 'Book of Mercenaries' and the Mercenaries mode introduces a Mercenary hero for each of the ten classes in Hearthstone. Essentially, they're all original to Hearthstone and their stories intercross with each other in one way or another. Since the entirety of the Book of Mercenaries haven't been released, we know very little about their lore, though they all have multiple hero skins from which we could infer how they would eventually grow as adventurers. 

Boiling their interlocking stories down, all ten Mercenaries are adventurers who travel through the Barrens to prove their mettle, and they eventually come across fragments of the shattered Naaru Mi'da -- which affects their journey directly or indirectly. The event of Mi'da's shattering is called the Night of Falling Stars. Click here for Blizzard's own list of the lore for all ten characters. 

...I honestly don't have a whole ton to say here; especially since I'm probably going to have to re-write some of these as we get all ten chapters of the single-player Book of Mercenaries out, so this part is heavily in progress. 

All the 'Rank' spells in Hearthstone feature their respective Mercenary in the artwork. 'Against All Odds' also features all the Alliance-aligned Mercenaries. In addition, Kurtrus is featured in Vile Call; Varden in Shattering Blast; Scabbs in Yoink!; Tamsin Roame in Soul Rend and Unstable Shadow Blast; Rokara in Rancor; Bru'kan in Conditioning and Perpetual Flame.

Horde-aligned Mercnearies:

Note: the events in the Year of the Gryphon's storyline involving the Mercenaries takes place with certain events taking place earlier than they should -- namely, the blood elves and draenei joining the Horde and Alliance respectively during the events of World of Warcraft instead of Burning Crusade. 

Note 2: Rokara, Dawngrasp and Guff all resemble the young explorers seen in the trailer for Journey to Un'Goro, which seems to be intentional. 

• Rokara: The orc Warrior. A member of the Frostwolf clan, Rokara is a proud orc warrior inspired by tales of heroes of the Horde like Thrall and Grom Hellscream. She arrives in the Barrens and ends up meeting an eclectic group of other adventurers (basically the four here), eventually realizing what honour means when she is forced to choose.
• Bru'kan: The troll Shaman. An elderly shaman who has grown a bit eccentric due to his exposure to some tragedies in the past, Bru'kan saw certain signs during the Night of Falling Stars, and travels to the Barrens to assist in this. Assigned as mentor to the young orc Rokara, Bru'kan found himself mentoring a slew of new young adventurers as well. 
• Varden Dawngrasp: The blood elf Mage. Trained by Kael'thas Sunstrider himself, Dawngrasp had refused to follow his prince to Outland. A bit of a pariah among their people, Dawngrasp went off to the Barrens to investigate the mysterious troll called Kazakus, who's trying to obtain mysterious glowing shards in the Barrens. 
• Cariel Roame: The forsaken Warlock. Older sister to Tamsin Roame, Cariel was studying in Scholomance Academy when it fell to the invasion of the undead Scourge during the Third War. Raised as an undead Forsaken, Cariel viewed everyone she knew as having abandoned her, and went off to the Barrens to seek items of power that would allow her to have her revenge. 
• Guff Runetotem: The tauren druid. Great-nephew of the legendary archdruid Hamuul Runetotem, Guff is a gentle giant who is mostly happy to spend time learning about nature, but is also prone to great feral rage if his friends is harmed. Hoping that he would learn something, Hamuul had sent Guff out to the Barrens. 

Alliance-aligned Mercnearies:

• Tavish Stormpike: The dwarf Hunter. A member of the Stormpike clan, Tavish is estranged from his clan, going off on his own to hunt down glory and loot. Mostly loot. He arrives in the Barrens to investigate the mysterious exploding object in the sky. 
• Cariel Roame: The human Paladin. Born in Stormwind, her life was upended when her sister, studying abroad, was presumed to be killed by the Scourge. She became a Paladin and was assigned to Northwatch Post, to investigate reports of a Forsaken matching her dead sister's description.
• Xyrella: The draenei Priest. When the draenei ship Exodar crash-landed on Azeroth, Xyrella's husband was killed and her daughter fell into a mysterious coma. As she prayed, she saw a mysterious object shatter in the sky, and Xyrella had a vision that revealed that the object was in fact the shattered pieces of a Naaru called Mi'da. Thus compelled to seek it out, Xyrella went to the Barrens to recover the Naaru.
• Scabbs Cutterbutter: The gnome Rogue. Once a humble cook, Scabbs' skill with the knife got Scabbs recruited into SI:7, the Stormwind intelligence network. Agent Cutterbutter was dispatched to the Barrens to investigate the mysterious exploding golden object in the sky. 
• Kurtrus Ashfallen: The night elf Demon Hunter. When the Burning Legion corrupted part of Kalimdor and turned it into Felwood, Kurtrus was the only survivor of his village, and swore vengeance against the dreadlord Anetheron. He trained under Illidan to become a Demon Hunter, but abandoned his master in order to seek vengeance against Anetheron.

Bosses: [Kurtrus's Story Mode TBA]

For the 'Book of Mercenaries story mode, we'll go through mostly the bosses that are new, because this particular story mode reuses a lot of characters from the Forged in the Barrens set itself. 

Herzul Bloodmark

Herzul Bloodmark is a level 5-30 centaur that roams the Northern Barrens, patrolling the Lushwater Oasis with his two bodyguards. As a leader of the marauding Kolkar centaur tribe, Hezrul Bloodmark has caused significant amount of trouble for Horde operations around the location. The orc Regthar Deathgate is in charge of dealing with the centaur incursions into Northern Barrens, and adventurers are sent to slay him and bring his head and bracers as proof. 

In Hearthstone, Bloodmark is the second boss faced by Rokara, who finds the centaur menacing Guff Runetotem.

Isha Awak

Isha Awak, the Deep Doom, is a level 27 Threshadon that roams the Merchant Coast in Northern Barrens. The nearby orcs identify Isha Awak as having attacked and consumed many humans of both Theramore and the Southsea Pirates. The tauren Mahren Skyseer would send Horde adventurers to slay Isha Awak as a sign of their strength. The quest is removed in Cataclysm, but Isha Awak still remains. 

In Hearthstone, Isha Awak's artwork is a re-coloured version of the artwork of Lake Thresher from Scholomance Academy. She is the fourth boss encountered by Rokara, having swallowed Varden Dawngrasp whole. 

General Twinbraid

General Twinbraid is a dwarven warrior that is stationed in the dwarven stronghold of Bael'dun, one of the Alliance-controlled locations in the Barrens, with a visceral hatred towards Horde-aligned races. In Cataclysm, Twinbraid is found in Twinbraid's Patrol, and in addition to holding Bael'dun, also intends to help invade Southern Barrens to create a supply chain between Theramore and night elf territory. Twinbraid survived the destruction of Bael'dun Keep, but his son Marley was killed, and his hatred towards the Horde was amplified. Twinbraid would give multiple quests to Alliance adventurers to sabotage and kill Horde-aligned races in Southern Barrens, and sent Alliance adventurers out to wipe out and blow up a goblin-controlled mine in retaliation. On the Horde side of things, Twinbraid is held responsible for the killing of many tauren and goblins.

In Mists of Pandaria, Twinbraid was promoted into High Marshal and was the head general of Lion's Landing in the Pandaria campaign. He has a special enmity against the orc leader Warlord Bloodhilt. High Marshal Twinbraid also participated alongside SI:7 agents and Alliance adventurers in repelling the Horde invasion of Lion's Landing. Ultimately, Horde adventurers sent by Wrathion would make Twinbraid their mark and assassinate him. 

In Hearthstone, Twinbraid is the sixth boss to be faced by Rokara.

Feegly the Exiled

Feegly the Exiled was once a dwarf found in Bael Modan, but after he went mad after touching an artifact called the Tear of the Moons, was exiled by General Twinbraid. He was driven mad by it. In World of Warcraft, Feegly was a mad dwarf who asked Horde adventurers to assault Bael Modan and recover the Tear of the Moons and return it to him. Evidently, a Horde adventurer did this, because in Cataclysm, Feegly has been transformed by the effects of the object into a Trogg. Marley Twinbraid would then ask Alliance adventurers to end Feegly's suffering, as the maddened trogg has been attacking the dwarves in the dig site. 

In Hearthstone, Rokara's party ends up meeting Feegly, but Rokara took pity on Feegly and refused to kill him. The arrival of Kazakus put an end to that, for Kazakus used a potion to kill Feegly. 

Sludge Beast: The Sludge Beast is specifically a level 5-30 elemental found in the sub-area of the Barrens known as the Sludge Fen, an oil field found in North-East Barrens and under the control of the Venture Company faction. While in World of Warcraft the Sludge Beast uses the 'swamp monster' model, Hearthstone's Sludge Beast reuses the artwork for Tar Lurker from Journey to Un'Goro.

The Sludge Beast is the third boss in Xyrella's campaign. After sneaking into the Barrens as guided by her prophetic dreams, she faces off against Kargal Battlescar and Serena Bloodfeather (seen above), recruits Tavish Stormpike the dwarf, before their journey takes them to the Sludge Fen. 

Engineer Whirleygig: Engineer Whirleygig is a level 17 rare mob, one of the leaders of the Venture Company stationed in the Sludge Fen. Whirleygig can be found specifically in the control room, and in combat he will summon either a Compact Harvest Reaper or an Explosive Sheep to aid him in combat. In Hearthstone, Engineer Whirleygig reuses the artwork for Piloted Shredder from Goblins vs. Gnomes, and is the fourth boss to be fought for Xyrella, who proceeds to appropriate his shredder.

Trixie Sprockets: Trixie Sprockets is original to Hearthstone, fought by Xyrella and Tavish after they stole Whirleygig's Shredder. She reuses artwork of Oil Rig Ambusher from this expansion. Presumably, like Whirleygig and Sniggles, she's also part of Venture Company. 

Tinkerer Sniggles: Tinkerer Sniggles is a hostile goblin located in the Barrens, located in the Sludge Fen. Horde adventurers would get roped into a quest chain by Horde-loyal goblins in Nozzlepot's Outpost where they investigate an oddly-named device in the possession of the goblins known as a "Samophlange", and they would have to fight the Venture Company goblins in the Sludge Fens to figure out what it is. Sniggles, in particular, is encountered and defeated by Horde adventurers who steal his console key from him. He apparently survived this encounter to reappear in Legion, where he is wounded by the demonic invasion and would aid adventurers by lending his shredder to them. 

0CT0-Bot: 0CT0-Bot is original to Hearthstone, and shares artwork with the collectible Efficient Octo-Bot. After defeating the goblins of Venture Company and gaining the aid of the SI:7 gnome agent Scabbs Cutterbutter, Xyrella's party faces off against the 0CT0-Bot to retrieve the shard of the Naaru it is guarding. 

Garona Halforcen: Xyrella's party is accosted by Garona, who is also after the shard of the Naaru. We covered Garona here. Garona wields her signature weapons in this boss battle, Kingsbane. 

Vapos: Vapos is original to Hearthstone. After Guff Runetotem fights an enraged treant that he has conjured (which wrecked Thunder Bluff), he regroups with his allies and fights the rogue elemental Vapos, who is also guarding a shard of the Naaru. Vapos reuses card art of Steam Surger from Journey to Un'Goro. Afterwards, Guff fights against Barak Kodobane, Cannonmaster Smythe, a group of random adventurers, Lady Anacondra, Mutanus and Naralex in quick succession -- all of them being legendary cards from this expansion that we covered above. Essentially, Guff's story is a tie-in to the Wailing Caverns mini-set, featuring his party going to investigate that location and free Naralex from the Nightmare's corruption. 

Sangtusk: Sangtusk is original to Hearthstone, and uses card art for the collectible Blood Shard Bristleback. He's a maddened quillboar warlock who Kurtrus Ashfallen and Cariel Roame encounter as their third adversary in their journey through the Barrens, with the first being Samuro (covered above) and Aranna Starseeker (from Ashes of Outland). Kurtrus's story follows him as he hunts down and tries to stop a warlock from resurrecting Anetheron, the dreadlord responsible for wiping out his village during the events of Warcraft III, while Cariel investigates reports of her sister, thought dead, appearing in the Barrens. Both of these eventually lead to the two Alliance heroes encountering and fighting Tamsin Roame, the very same now-undead sister turned into a warlock, over a shard of the Naaru.

Sarilus Foulbane: Sarilus Foulbane is a Forsaken mage loyal to the Horde that sits on top of Dreadmist Peak. Sarilus is responsible for unleashing a swarm of corrupted water elementals into the Mystral Lake in Ashenvale. He would later be slain by Alliance warriors under the orders of the night elf Sentinel Velene Starstrike, After Sarilus's death, both Alliance and Horde adventurers would work independently to clean up the out-of-control water elementals.

Sarilus's appearance in Hearthstone uses a recoloured version of the "Gladiator's Regalia" card from the TCG, swapping fire and fel effects for frost. 

Rathorian: Rathorian is a named Felguard demon that is found atop Dreadmist Peak, who is assigned to guard the mystical artifact known as the Demon Seed, the powerful artifact that the Burning Blade cult rallies around. Rathorian was originally the guardian of the Demon Seed, but this task would later fall to the Felguard called Xelnaz while Rathorian patrols the area around the Burning Blade base. 

During the fight against Sarilus and Rathorian, Kurtrus and Cariel come across Xyrella's band of Alliance adventurers. After defeating Rathorian, they face off against Kazakus and a reluctant Varden Dawngrasp, who are after Xyrella's Naaru shard. Later, they face Neeru Fireblade (covered above), only to discover that the one pulling the strings of the Burning Blade is Tamsin Roame herself, now an undead warlock ready to summon Anetheron. Kurtrus takes out a reluctant Cariel before defeating Tamsin, though she escaped into a portal for parts unknown.