Nozdormu

Nozdormu the Timeless One is the Dragon Aspect of the bronze dragonflight and the guardian of time. He watches the timeways from the Caverns of Time in Tanaris and almost never takes part in mortal affairs. In Classic, his presence is felt through his brood: the bronze dragons who guard the Scepter of the Shifting Sands, the Brood of Nozdormu reputation earned in Ahn'Qiraj, and his son Anachronos, who sends players on both the scepter quest line and the quest for Atiesh.

Biography

The Titans gave Nozdormu power over time. He was granted the ability to see the paths of past and future, and, as a lesson in humility, the knowledge of exactly how and when he would die. His duty is to keep the timeline on its proper course, which usually means staying out of events rather than changing them.

He was missing during the War of the Ancients, trapped in a time anomaly created by the Old Gods. Afterward he helped Alexstrasza and Ysera bless the World Tree Nordrassil; his gift gave the night elves their immortality.

The War of the Shifting Sands

About a thousand years before the events of World of Warcraft, the insectoid Qiraji of Ahn'Qiraj swept out of Silithus. When the night elf druids asked for help, Nozdormu at first refused. His brood only joined the fight when the Qiraji pushed into Tanaris and threatened the Caverns of Time. His son Anachronos led the bronze dragons, and together with the red, blue and green flights they helped Fandral Staghelm's druids seal the Qiraji behind the Scarab Wall. Anachronos made the Scepter of the Shifting Sands to open the wall again. When Fandral threw it to the ground in grief after his son's death, it shattered, and Anachronos split the pieces among the four flights to guard.

In World of Warcraft

Nozdormu never appears in Classic, but his brood is one of the main forces behind the War of the Shifting Sands content added in patch 1.9 (January 2006).

The refused blessing

The earliest mention comes in the night elf starting zone. In Crown of the Earth, players learn that when Fandral Staghelm grew Teldrassil, Nozdormu refused to bless it and scolded the Arch Druid for his arrogance. Alexstrasza sided with him, and Teldrassil grew flawed without them.

The Scepter of the Shifting Sands

The long quest line that opened Ahn'Qiraj begins in Silithus with Baristolth of the Shifting Sands, one of Nozdormu's Watchers. In [[forever:quest:8286]], he sends players to see whether the bronze master has returned, and the trail leads to Anachronos outside the sealed Caverns of Time. After [[forever:quest:8305]], in which players relive the end of the old war through a crystal in Silithus, Anachronos explains the fate of the scepter in [[forever:quest:8519]] and charges them with recovering its pieces in [[forever:quest:8555]]:

• The red shard from Vaelastrasz and Nefarian in Blackwing Lair ([[forever:quest:8730]]).
• The green shard from Eranikus, through the chain that ends with [[forever:quest:8736]] in Moonglade.
• The blue shard, through a chain that begins with [[forever:quest:8575]] and runs through Narain Soothfancy in Tanaris.

With the shards restored, [[forever:quest:8742]] rewards [[forever:item:21175]]. On each server, the first player to ring the Scarab Gong in [[forever:quest:8743]] started a ten-hour war at the gates and received the [[forever:item:21176]], a mount. Players who finished the quest line before that war ended earned the title Scarab Lord.

Brood of Nozdormu reputation

Brood of Nozdormu is the reputation for the 40-player Temple of Ahn'Qiraj (Ahn'Qiraj). Every character starts at 0/36000 Hated, the lowest standing possible. Killing monsters in the temple only raises it to the edge of Neutral. After that, players must turn in [[forever:item:21229]] tokens from the temple's bosses and complete the temple's quests:

The last of these leads to [[forever:quest:8802]], in which players bring the [[forever:item:21221]] to Anachronos, who says he will place it in his master's collection.

Reputation also unlocks the [[forever:item:21196]], a ring that grows stronger at each reputation tier. Anachronos offers three versions: the Path of the Protector for tanks ([[forever:quest:8747]]), the Path of the Conqueror for melee and the Path of the Invoker for casters. The Ahn'Qiraj class armor sets also need Neutral to Honored standing.

Atiesh

Anachronos is also the contact for Medivh's staff. Players who assemble the [[forever:item:22727]] in Naxxramas are sent to him, and need at least Neutral with the Brood to speak with him. The quests that follow, [[forever:quest:9251]] and [[forever:quest:9257]], end with the legendary [[forever:item:22589]].

Later history

The Caverns of Time opened in The Burning Crusade, letting players travel into key moments of history guarded by Nozdormu's flight. In Cataclysm, Nozdormu appeared in person. Players saw his potential future self, Murozond, leader of the infinite dragonflight, in the End Time dungeon, and Nozdormu gave up his power with the other Aspects to destroy Deathwing. In Dragonflight his powers were restored and he led his flight against the infinite dragons once more.

Trivia

• Nozdormu chides Fandral in the Teldrassil quests years before players learn of the Shifting Sands. The two events turned out to be linked: Fandral is the druid who shattered the scepter.
• Bronze dragons breathe sand. Nozdormu breathes the Sands of Time.

Sources

• Nozdormu - Warcraft Wiki
• Brood of Nozdormu - Warcraft Wiki
• Anachronos - Warcraft Wiki